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huearmy · 4 years

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Life is Beautiful - I

Summary: You are a glass half full person, your life motto is "Life is too short to... Insert something and anything here". During your whole life you wanted something more, and even not knowing what it is, you put yourself to find out and get it, experiencing everything brilliant that the world offers - within the measure of what is safe, of course. The curious thing is that your way of living ended up rousing the interest of two vampires. One who sees beauty in everything and loves to exist, currently working with suicide prevention; and another one who no longer sees grace in things, in that boring immortality that never ends, and only complains about the Netflix catalog all the time.

Pairing: Jimin x reader / Taehyung x reader.

Genre: fluff, angst, future smut (very soft, ok?)...

Words: 7509.

Rating: +18

Warnings: As much as my writing is soft and light, and as these are not the main topic of the story, treated in a non-descriptive way, there are sensitive themes from the beginning of the first chapter to the end of the fic that can trigger sensitive people, like depression, suicide, addictions in general - Jimin literally works at a suicide prevention center here. SO PLEASE! Read responsibly, my intention when dealing with topics like this is always 1) dealing with them in myself, as a way of putting out part of my own healing process 2) generating identification in other people, so they can go through the difficult time a little less alone. THIS IS A STORY THAT SEES THE WORLD WITH POSITIVITY.

Chapter II Chapter III .

After some centuries of not living, all vampires go through a kind of midlife crisis in which everything loses its grace and eternity becomes endless boredom. Nothing new happens, humans are born, sometimes they are relevant to world history, they become vampire food or they die dull. Vampires do not need to sleep or use the bathroom, nor to feed more than once a month, so the days are long, and often lonely, which leads many of them to stand still without moving, looking at nothing until their thirst quits, forcing them to go after a pulsating neck. Many go through this phase as serial killers, with killing as their only source of pleasure, others prefer to hibernate in some dark place or tomb, because false death is more interesting than false life. Some never get past the phase.

Jimin is not like that. With almost a thousand years of existence he is totally in love with life. Every day when the sun rises and the sunlight forces him to stay indoors so as not to burst into flames, he spends his hours with a smile on his face, engaging in small banal hobbies, such as gardening or online courses at distance - after almost a decade of doing this, Jimin already has fifty-two certificates in different areas, and he is pretty pride of it. When night comes and he can go out and see the world it’s even more interesting, because humans ’nightlife isn’t as hectic as daytime, so those who live in those dark hours are different. There are those who do wrong things and commit crimes, those who have double lives or who keep secrets, there are people working to protect and save, like doctors and police, there are night guards and twenty-four hours convenience store attendants, groups of friends who spend the night partying until dawn, and those who feel lonely in their empty apartments unable to sleep... And this is the part that he likes the most: people.

He likes to meet random people in the empty metro, buy a drink for a girl who doesn't take her eyes off him and then dance with her, strike up a conversation with a homeless man under a marquee because he knows the guy must be lonely. Watching and learning about other lives keeps him alive, more than the blood he needs to drink.

He likes to get temporary jobs to have some human experience. He has worked in pizzerias, both in the kitchen - he was not very good, so he was put in the dishwasher - both in deliveries, and at a gas station, as a hotel receptionist... But now it looks like he found a job he wants to stay in, so much that it has been a year and he has not yet resigned. Perhaps Jimin has found his calling.

"It's okay... You are not alone, I'm here and I'll stay until you feel good again." He said with his sweet, angelical voice. "Can you get away from the sharp objects? Please?"

The voice on the other end of the line sounded like just a choked whisper, before the answer came, fast, heavy breathing filled the air.

"No... I can't..." The female sobbed.

"Can you tell me why?" Jimin's voice was calm. "I... my legs are numb... I can't... stand up." Her breathing was erratic and desperate.

"Are you hurt? Do you need an ambulance to be sent to you?" He used his most reassuring voice possible.

"No!" She started to cry even harder. "I don't want no one... to see me... like this." Jimin bite the inside of his cheek, thinking, maybe she just wasn't able to get up because of the anxiety attack, but she also didn't say she wasn't hurt.

Regardless of the case, he needed to make the girl trust him in order to help her.

"What is your name?" He smiled, hopping she would listen to it in his voice. "... Ana" She whispered. "Nice to meet you, Ana. Do you remember my name? I told you at the beginning of the call."

One moment of silence.

"Jimin." She said with little certainty.

"Exactly, good job. Hi, Ana." "Hi, Jimin." Despite the crying voice, she was no longer sobbing.

"Ana, can you recall the last thing you did that made you feel safe? Secure?" A sigh reached Jimin's ears. As he waited for an answer his hands moved over a sheet of paper, he was drawing a beautiful face of a girl with crayons, without paying much attention, but getting a beautiful result.

"No." She said at last.

"I know you can, Ana. No need to rush. Breath." She thought some more, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. Almost a full minute passed, the two of them silent on the call. Jimin did not press for an answer.

"I was watching Friends... with my cat." "Your cat?" Jimin smiled more spontaneously now, noticing in her voice an oscillation of affection when saying the word cat. "Talk more about your cat."

"His name is Sushi, he's fat, full of himself, and loving. He likes children, food and sleeping. I recently bought him a cute collar, it looks like a pink bow tie." She almost laughed.

"Wow...He is a lucky cat." Suddenly she started to cry again, sobbing so hard that Jimin hardly understood what she was saying.

"He ran away and hasn't come back yet... He's never been away from home so long... He's all I have, there's no one else... I don't want to live... alone." "Is it just you and Sushi?" Jimin spoke more forcefully for her to hear over the sobs.

"Yes." She choked. "I can't get up... It hurts so much. I'm so-sorry..."

"Ana, do you need an ambulance to be sent to you?" He tried again. Silence.

"Yes." "So I will stay with you until they come to help you. You are not alone."

Jimin was a vampire in love with live, eager to live each day as if it were the most precious gift, so working in the Center of Valuing Life and Preventing Suicide was perfect. He considers himself an expert in convincing anyone that life is beautiful when he has the opportunity to say everything he thinks about. And not letting people feel alone is one of his favorite hobbies.

After all, eternity can be quite lonely, he knows how it is.

________________________________________________________________

That call is over. Jimin was searching for missing cat posts on social media. In the silent office room it was just him and three other people working, each at their separated personal table. Perhaps due to the nature of the work, or due to the late hours of the night, nobody spoke loudly or made a lot of noise when doing things, even when talking to each other, everything is always very restrained, calm.

Jimin's eyes followed the clock hands on the wall above the door. It was almost one in the morning, actually, to be exact, twelve minutes to go, so in two minutes, you would punctually enter that door with your heavy backpack full of books, of someone who just left college on the other side of the city, and after stopping at a twenty-four hours fast food to get a well-deserved burger spent an hour on a subway trip. He could already hear your footsteps down the hall, the characteristic sound of the rubber on the soles of your boots and your bunch of keys stuck in the handle of your backpack tinkling. He heard you putting your stuff in your closet and hanging your coat on the rack in the next room, and a smile formed on Jimin's face. When the hand on the clock struck ten to one and you opened the door trying not to make any noise so as not to disturb anyone's call, Jimin pretended not to notice you entering, not taking his eyes off the computer screen full of images of cute cats. You straightened up and held firmly the pair of coffee cups in your hands till the knots turned white, looking straight at him - in fact, from the moment you walked through the door you were already expecting to see Jimin sitting at his table, as always, and since then you haven't looked away. Walking in light steps - that he could hear by the way - to him who had his back to you, you tried to control the butterflies in your stomach, happy he wasn't in a call right now.

"Jimin?" You called softly, close to his ear, but not that close. Yet. Jimin contained a smile and turned around as if you had taken him by surprise. "Hey, Y/N, didn't see you there". As usual, his direct look made your heart race and you gave a nervous laugh before getting along with his flirty tone. "I bought you coffee." You handed him one of the cups. "To take the night shift a little better."

"Thanks, sweetheart."

You are the other reason Jimin didn't quit this job yet. A few weeks ago, when he was working long enough to decide to leave and go for the next adventure, you started working at the night shift, and right away you caught Jimin's attention, even though at first you didn't talk with him that much - in fact you only talked to the women on the team, and avoided the men. More than once he found himself paying attention to your emergency calls, how you talk, being positive without being suffocating for those in pain ... how you love life. After a while you started doing the same thing, a little less easily, since you don't have a vampire audition, but it was enough for you to acquire a platonic crush on Jimin, which resulted in you opening up, and you two start talking here and there. Now almost whenever you have time or money left over - college life is poor life - you bring him coffee. Jimin doesn't actually drink coffee at all, and he doesn't feel sleepy either, but he thinks it's cute that you worry for him. You see each other three to four times a week, depending on the schedule of work, and he is always eager to see you. Flirting is exciting, and he hasn't done that in a while... Like two centuries, and how it was done back there was quite different. Other times indeed.

"Did you lose your cat?" You asked, confused.

"Oh, no, I didn't." He closed the page with the photo of a white and gray cat wearing a pink bow tie.. "One friend of mine lost her cat, Sushi." "Poor thing. I hope she finds Sushi soon..." You slightly pouted.

"Me too. I'll help her." Jimin said, and the butterflies in your stomach thought it was beautiful.

Something on his desk caught your attention, a colorful draw of said cat made with crayon. Before Jimin could stop you - he was distracted by hearing your heart beat faster because of him - you picked up the stack of papers to get a closer look.

"And you drew him! How beautiful... I didn't know you were so talented." "Thank you. My friend who taught me, he is much better than me..." Jimin simply answered.

You moved on to the next sheet, where another sketch of the cat in different colors made your eyes shine. "So he must be awesome. Look at this!" Jimin was happy to be praised by you, the pink of your cheeks when speaking was a beautiful sign for him, but then he remembered what was the next drawing in your hands, and before you could see it, he cleared his throat and took them back, keeping them in the drawer. It was a drawing of a girl's pretty face. Your face. "They are not quite ready yet..." He pretended modesty.

"Oh, sorry. If you need help, just tell me. I can hang up posters or something. About finding the lost cat, I mean." You volunteered, and then looked around. "I better get to work before someone scolds me."

You went to your desk, across his, and your eyes met a few more times before as you sat down and turned on your computer. Jimin's phone rang and he forced himself to look away from your face, someone else needed him now. "Good night, my name is Jimin and you called the Life Valuation Center. Can I help?" He spoke, his voice welcome and full of affection. ________________________________________________________________

Jimin's shift ends before yours, just before three in the morning he puts things away and leaves the table ready for the person who will use the next shift, but he won't leave, even if everyone thinks so. Instead he goes to the roof to look at the stars and wait for you to leave - not that you know he is waiting for you. He was listening to a random playlist on spotify, stretching his body to the beat just because it feels good, thinking about nothing specific, just existing and feeling good about it.

The night breeze brought his scent to him, looking down from the parapet, he could see you leaving the building, with your scarf well wrapped around your neck, covering half of your face to protect you from the cold air. He doesn't understand you... It's beautiful that you want to help people who are going through a difficult time, and you've commented before that the night shift matches your other schedules, and that you like to stay up at night. However, he thinks you should consider it's not worth it. It's so late and empty when you go home, it's dangerous for a human woman, and as much as he knows that you have a pocketknife in your pocket, Jimin thinks it's silly of you. Usually he wouldn't think much about it, but it's you, and he is fond of you, he can't just do nothing about it. So even if you don't know it, he accompanies you home every night to make sure you are safe. He is only satisfied and goes home when he hears you enter your room. Sometimes he stays a little longer, sitting on the emergency stairs outside your building, listening to you walking up and down in your room, doing whatever, instead of going to sleep soon.

That's kind of creepy. He knows. But he is a vampire, he is already creepy in essence. But of course he would never watch you sleep, for exemple, this is a stalker limit that he does not intend to cross.

"Okay." He sighed as he heard you getting into bed. "I have one hour and a half before the sun rises... Let's find that cat." __________________________________________

You were awake for a couple of hours already, currently packing your books at the end of a lecture, really needing sugar to feel prepared before the last class of the day, and excited that instead of going to the study group you are a part of, you will take an experimental dance class and it's your day off, which means that instead of staying up until dawn working, you can stay up until dawn studying, and maybe sleep a little earlier. Life is too short to not take all the free trial classes available just because your schedule is already full and totally demanding. Anyways you are dead tired, wishing your body doesn't need to sleep... Since you started to work on the Life Valuation Center all your sleeping schedule went down the drain. At first your plan was to work the night shift only at the beginning, and then change your hours, but for some reason you always liked to stay up all night, also the movement of calls in this period is bigger and more specific, which helps in your internship report, and of course, in the day shift there is no Jimin... You've settled in, and now after months of this crazy, fickle routine, your body is feeling the side effects.

"Three of this rainbow donuts please." You asked at the college cafe. One because you want, two because one is not enough, three because you are greedy. Life is too short not to overeat your current favorite sugar source. You sigh to yourself, taking a seat along your friends. Your mantra for life is life is too short to...insert anything here, experimenting and doing things that you never imagined before and that your mother probably wouldn't approve a hundred percent is what moves you. Basically nothing scares you, since childhood you were courageous and fearless. You subject yourself to almost anything, within the measures of what is safe, to have good stories to tell. The world is too big to be content with just having good grades to graduate and have a good job. What you want is much more... so much more that you don't even know what... But it’s not just because you don’t know yet that you’ll stand still without going after it to find out.

"Hey, Y/N, what are you gonna do on the weekend?" Your friend, Becca, asked comfortably within her girlfriend's embrace. As usual, whenever you see the two of them together being all lovey dovey, you feel a twinge of pride in your heart, because you were responsible for them to start dating in the first place. Although your romantic life is not very interesting, without serious or successful relationships, you are a great cupid.

"For the very first time in months... I don't know. I didn't plan anything, maybe something will show up, if not I'm just going to sleep. Why?" You smiled your happy smile of eating what you like.

"Pool party. You need to get a tan, you look like a vampire with that pale, tired face of yours."

You laughed because it's true, since you started changing the day for the night, your skin has acquired a not healthy tone that you are not used to. You've been missing the sun a little.

"First of all, I'm too cute to be a vampire. Second, yeah I'll think about it, I have a new bikini I haven't worn yet that makes my breasts look stunning." One of your friends that was sitting by your side put his arm over your shoulder. "I changed my mind, I'm going to this party." He loudly said. The girls in the group didn't laugh at all. "Shut up, Mike." You playfully pushed him. ________________________________________________________________

This was the second night that Jimin was looking for the cat, Sushi. It was not difficult to find out the address of it’s owner, since he had to activate an ambulance for her, and with that he started looking for the animal in her neighborhood. Passing through the empty streets at night after his work shift, he could see the girl's tracks leaving "missing" posters with a picture of a kitten wearing a pink bow tie, on lampposts and bus stops. At first Jimin thought it was going to be easy, with his keen vampire senses, but all he found were stray cats that weren't Sushi. The second night of searching was already ending, the sun was rising, threatening to make him explode into ashes if he didn't come home soon, and no clue as to where to look the next night he had.

Before getting into the car and driving home, Jimin took one last look at the slightly open curtains in the girl's room, Ana, just to make sure she was okay. She had been discharged from the hospital that afternoon and was now sleeping on the couch, probably medicated. Jimin didn't want to leave her alone, but he couldn't just walk into her apartment and offer help, for now all he could do was find a way to find the cat. ________________________________________________________________ Jimin lives in an old pretty house in the wealthiest part of the city, it isn't a mansion, but it is big and expensive enough to impress anyone who sees it, privileges of centuries of saved money. It's a cliché, but vampires dress in designer clothes, ride luxury cars and live in expensive mansions, houses, apartments, and Jimin is no exception.

From one of the main rooms, behind a heavy curtain, hidden in the gloom, was another vampire, watching the street with intent, expressionless eyes. When Jimin's car turned the corner and up the wide street lined with huge trees, the vampire got uneasy, his beautiful restless hands worrying the hem of his sleeves. He was anxious and angry, if his heart was still beating it would be racing. The garage door opened and the car entered, disappearing from view, in the next second the vampire was no longer in the room but in front of the door leading to the garage, waiting in the empty, dark hall. The knob turned the door slightly opened, Jimin with his head down did not seem to notice the presence of the other before being attacked.

"AH!" Jimin screamed as long arms embraced his neck. If it wasn't for the wall behind him he would have fallen, yet he had no escape, with a body much larger than his overpowering him. "Taehyungie!"

"You are late! Is the second day in a row you get home after sunrise! Are you trying to die?" Taehyung said, and didn't let Jimin go just yet. "It's okay. I was careful, I just had to do a few things before I came home. Look, there's not even smoke coming out of me." Jimin ran his hands over Tae's back, making him relax. The other stepped back a little, taking his face in his big hands.

"You could have sent a message. I asked you to let me know if you were going to be late again, Jiminie..." Tae pouted, still distressed. "And why do your clothes smell like garbage? Take it off."

Even feeling deprived of affection, Taehyung walked away looking disgusted, covering his nose with two fingers. Jimin obeyed, taking off his sneakers, jacket and jeans, following Taehyung through the corridor to the laundry room, where he put everything in a basket to wash later, and also exchanged the shirt for a clean one too. "I went into some alleys today, looking for a cat. That's why." Jimin explained, feeling much more comfortable in not smelling bad.

"And where's it? I don't think Tannie will like to share the house with a cat..." "Where is what?" Jimin was confused. Tae crossed his arms.

"The cat?"

"Oh no!" Jimin laughed, reaching for Tae to take him by the shoulders. "I wasn't looking for a cat to bring home, as much as I would love one as a pet... It's the cat of a girl I met, and is very sad to have lost it..."

"I got it..." Taehyung mumbled.

Jimin was just helping someone. Again. And Taehyung couldn't say exactly why it bothers him so much every time, but it does, he feels distressed, almost as if the world around him collapsed, and it makes him think he's being overdramatic. Live an eternity when you can't even put your feelings out in moments of frustration. Damn, it is conflicting... If vampires could cry, he would. But never that he would let Jimin discover that he feels that way.

It was Jimin's turn to take Tae's face in his little hands.

"You are so skinny. When was the last time you fed?" Taehyung didn't answer.

"You don't even remember, right?" Jimin's eyes went worried. "Did you see that I brought some O- packs for you? I left it in the fridge."

"No, I didn't." A shy smile spread across Tae's face. O- is his favorite blood type, but because it is a not so common type, and humans need transplantation, it's not always that Jimin brings it to him, usually opting for his second favorite flavor or other one available.

Jimin has been trying to cheer his friend up with little treats. It has been a difficult phase, in which he thinks Tae is going through the vampiric midlife crisis. He hasn't been out of the house for almost two decades and does nothing without a little external motivation, even the simplest things like eating. So Jimin tries to bring the best blood types to fill the fridge, signed all available streaming platforms, updates Taehyung's video game consoles as soon as a new model comes out, tries to get him interested in new hobbies - which never works but he doesn't give up - and he even adopted a puppy so that Tae would never be alone.

"Come." Jimin pulled him by the hand to their modern practically untouched kitchen, opened the fridge and picked two packs of blood, the dark liquid shining at the cold light. “In my room or yours?"

"Yours."

The two of them got to Jimin's room, followed by the sound of four paws scraping the polished wooden floor, Yeontan chasing them closely. Jimin pulled the covers off the clean bed, on which he rarely lies down, so they could get more comfortable. Tae laid on his back, against the pile of smooth pillows, carefully opening a packet of blood to not spill a single drop, and put a stainless steel straw in the opening. Jimin turned on the TV, put the dog in the bed, and cuddled Tae's side, with his head on his chest.

"What show have you been watching?" Jimin asked.

"None. I've been looking for something interesting in this shit for days and I can't find anything." Tae took a sip of his blood with a pout.

Jimin chuckled. "I'm choosing then."

A moment of silence followed, in which the only sound was of Tae drinking the rest of his first pack, and then opening another one.

"I think I need to shower..." Jimin commented.

Taehyung's arm that was around Jimin tightened. "Not now. Later." Jimin laughed, thinking it was cute. An idea crossed his mind, another small treat.

"Do you want to bath with me instead?" He looked up to Tae.

Tae hold tightened even more.

"Not now. Later. Now we cuddle."

As if agreeing, Yeontan climbed over the two vampires, finding a comfortable place to lie down and join the cuddle pile.

"Ok."

________________________________________________________________

Tonight you didn't have time to talk to Jimin when you arrived at work, he was on a call, and it seemed really serious. You didn't have the money to buy extra coffee even for yourself, so you hadn't an excuse to pass quietly by his desk to leave a post-it written "Hi :)". In those circumstances, you went straight to your desk to work, to do your best to be a good listener.

To your surprise, making your heart melt and your breath hold at the bottom of the throat, you saw at the top of your computer screen a post-it with a "Hi, sweetheart." written on it, and another one with a "Look in the fridge.". After working with him for that time, regularly doing some paperwork like filling out documentation and such things, you could say for sure that this was Jimin's handwriting, besides, only he calls you sweetheart.

You checked the clock on the wall with an eager look and a silly smile. As you always arrive ten minutes early, there was time to go to the break room quickly, and look inside the fridge before starting to work. And so you did. The break room was nothing more than a small table with a few chairs, a small couch, a sink, an old coffee machine, a microwave and the refrigerator, all in a tight space lit by white lights that leave the place a little impersonal. None of your co-workers were there, as usual. You crossed the small room to the fridge and opened it trying not to make a noise, more out of habit than necessity.

The interior was very empty, with some forgotten lunchboxes, but that didn't interest you. Your goal was right in the middle. A big cup of iced coffee, from a franchise that you don't usually buy from because you find it a little too expensive for your student budget, with your name written on a post-it on top of it.

"Y/N, I wanted to be me treating you today. Hope you like it."

That coffee was as cold as Jimin's fingertips when touching yours, but it warmed your heart. Sometimes you question yourself if it's healthy how head over heels you are for this guy, for so little.

Back at your desk, now with your iced coffee, you wrote a post-it and pasted it on the back of your computer screen, where Jimin could see it. "Thanks :)" Then you started to work. Other people needed you now. ________________________________________________________________ On your fifteen minutes break time, you were leaving the restroom, passing a moisturizing hand cream - because you swear that the soap in this place dries out your skin, and god forbid you from harsh hands -, the sound of the break room's door opening made you lift your eyes from the floor. It was Jimin. He don't take breaks, it's not like he needs it, he doesn't get tired, but he didn't get the chance to talk to you today yet, so as soon he saw you stretching in your chair, indicating that you would soon get up to go to the bathroom - yes, he learned your routine and mannerisms - he discreetly left the room to meet you by coincidence in the hall afterwards.

"Hi, Y/N. Did you like the coffee?" He charmly smiled at you, he was eager to ask it to you, to find out if he made the right choice of flavor, or if he made a bad mistake and you hated it - he couldn't help thinking about that possibility. Anyway, he was looking forward to your approval.

The truth is that you were so stunned by his caring that it didn't matter what the flavor was.

"Actually, yes. I love vanilla flavored things. It's basic but it makes me happy." You fixed your hair, pulling it behind your ears. Jimin could tell by your smile and your heated face that you aren't lying.

"Nice. I wanted to make you happy." He approached you, more than is suitable for the work environment, and it made you nervous, and of course he noticed. But it was okay, if someone came close he would hear and walk away before they could see you, too bad he couldn't tell you that.

"Mission completed successfully." You said, without looking away from his eyes - no matter how much part of you shouted at you to do it, your heart felt like it was going to explode. Well, your heart has a limit, so you changed the subject. "Did your friend find her cat?" Sadness took over Jimin's eyes.

"Unfortunately not. I've been looking for him for two days and nothing, I swear I think I've looked in every street, alley and trash can. I don't want to think like that, but I think Sushi is no longer with us." He sighed, clearly frustrated. You had the impulse to rub his forearms to comfort him, it was the very first time you really touched him. "If he is a cat that wasn't accustomed to getting out, and didn't know how to walk on the street, it is possible that something bad happened... But! He's a cat, if he used to go out often, he might have some other house, other owners, and that's why he hasn't come back yet." You optimistically said.

A smile spread in Jimin's face.

"That makes sense! She told me something like 'He's never been away from home for so long', there's hope then. And you also gave me an idea. Thank you, Y/N." He pulled you into a hug, and you thought you could die.

"You welcome." You said against his chest, deciding not to waste the opportunity to return the hug. ________________________________________________________________ The day was perfect for a vampire walk in the daytime. Cloudy and rainy. No deadly sunbeams and an excuse to use an umbrella without calling attention to it. After the tip you gave, Jimin looked in the right place after accompanying you home that night, and in less than an hour he was outside the window of two children's rooms, in a ground floor apartment, looking inside, and sleeping between the feet of one of the children was the cat, he wasn't with his bow tie but there was no mistake, Jimin was sure. Even without being able to enter - vampiric rules, you only can get in somebody's house if invited, or else you explode as if you were under sunlight - Jimin could smell cat all over the house, and the windows all had anti-escape screens, which indicated that it was a family of cat people.

Jimin would need to come back to pick the cat during the day, knock on the front door and politely ask. That's why heavy weather is perfect. With a dark couture coat, covering all from his neck to the back of his hands, to his knees, a design hat and sunglasses, and last but nos least, a big umbrella, he approached the lower middle class apartment complex. Without hesitation he raised his hand and knocked. Some seconds passed by, sound of kids running inside and a voice of a famale scolding them muffled by the closed door, and then a little girl, maybe six-year-old, appeared in Jimin's field of vision, her eyes sparkling as she looked at him. He was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen after all.

"Hello." Jimin smiled. "Are your parents home?"

She smiled at him, but shook her head negatively.

"Jo, who is it?" An older girl opened the door wider and faced Jimin with a frown that fell apart when she saw his smile. Great, a teenager, he thought. "What do you want?"

"Sorry to bother, I really wanted to talk to an adult, but..." Jimin lifted his phone, the screen showing Sushi's missed post. "I saw my friend's cat on your window."

The older girl narrowed her eyes as she looked at the photo, but before she could answer, the little girl she called Jo before ran away.

"No!" She screamed, disappearing inside the apartment, and then slamming a door somewhere.

"Sorry for that, please wait a minute." The teenager closed the door on his face, and he could hear her shouting and scolding the girl little inside. He was starting to lose his patience. Jimin doesn't like to be ignored at all. Should he knock again and use his mind control powers to get the cat? He was pondering the idea when the door opened again, the two girls were still loudly arguing inside, and this time it was a small boy who must be the middle sibling in front of him.

"Hi, grandma said to tell you to come in." He mumbled.

"So you are letting me get in your house?" Jimin asked with a satisfied grin.

"Yeah... follow me." The boy was avoiding eye contact, being shy. Jimin thought he was adorable.

Jimin followed the boy to a tiny living room, where an old woman was sitting in front of the TV. The girls were now silent, but clearly wanting to argue some more, and the small one was with Sushi in her arms. Jimin sighed, he likes children, a lot, even though he doesn't live with many, but he likes them even more when they're not having a tantrum.

"Hello. Please, take a seat." The old lady pointed to the old couch. The vampire obliged, and almost immediately a fat orange cat jumped into his lap. In this small room alone he could see three more of them. "So, why do you want to steal one of my babies?" Steal? Jimin was slightly offended, he already explained himself, but the chaotic situation created a misunderstanding. "I'm not here to steal nothing, ma'am." He showed his cellphone again. "One of your cats is Sushi, my friend's cat."

"That's not his name!" The little girl shouted tapping a foot on the floor in anger. Jimin just raised his eyebrows at her, making her swallow hard. But he is in control of the situation, so Jimin smiled to remain pleasant.

"Of course it is. Just watch, little one." He reached out to call the cat. "Come here, Sushi." Even though the cat didn't know Jimin to trust him - and these people don't need to know that - cats are creatures of the night, strongly attached to magic and protection in the dark hours, and in the hierarchy of the night they obeyed vampires. The only things that cats respect more than vampires are witches and their own owners whom they protect. As Jimin expected, Sushi jumped off the girl's tight hold and went over to him.

"Good boy. Ana is missing you like hell." Jimin scratched behind his ears. Before someone else could say anything, he proceeded. "When he got lost he was using a pink bow tie." The old lady was still with Jimin cellphone in her hand, and he could see she was convinced he know the cat, but wasn't intending on letting him leave with him yet.

"I'm seeing it in the post, but there was no tie when we got him." She replied. "You just didn't see it, ma'am." Jimin was tired of this conversation, it was being a lot less nice than he imagined on his way there. When he looked to the little girl to talk to her, his eyes were intense and powerful, and his voice was full of authority. "Go get the tie where you hid it, little one."

Mesmerized by Jimin's power, the girl didn't even blink or say anything as she obeyed, turned around and ran to one of the rooms. Jimin doesn't use hypnosis very often but he has fun every time. She got back with it and handed it to him.

"Thanks." He removed the effect and the little girl blinked a few times before understanding what happened.

The old lady was clearly angry with the girl, but it wasn't Jimin's business. "Well I think that's all. We are going now." Jimin got up from the couch.

"Wait!" The teenager snapped. "Jo lied about the bow to keep the cat, and that's bad, but she already loves him! You can't just take him away!"

Jimin was almost on the door.

"Of course I can. Besides, it's not because what she did is bad, young lady. It's because my friend loves him, actually this cat is Ana's family. No one should live alone, right?"

"Right!" The old lady got up too. "I'll get you to the door, tell our friend we are sorry."

"I will. Thank you." ________________________________________________________________

"You found the cat!" Tae sniffed the back of Jimin's neck. "Where is it?"

Jimin was putting the clothes he was using to wash, to remove the smell of cat and the places he passed by. And to get comfortable, as is his habit when he gets home, he just stayed in his underwear and t-shirt.

"I already gave him back to his owner." In the next second Jimin was dropping himself on the leather couch.

"And how was it? Did she thank you with tears in her eyes?" Tae leaned over the back of the sofa with his chin in his hands.

Jimin chuckled, Taehyung's thirst for drama is funny, and he's always been like that. And at least that doesn't seem to have changed...

"Well... She cried a lot when she found him in the window. She looked really happy!" Jimin sang. He was really happy too. He helped someone to find their smile again, even if it is a little bit, it made him really proud of himself, a warm feeling in his chest telling him it was the right thing to do, and that he should do it again if he gets the opportunity. Taehyung's expression changed, suddenly he was disinterested.

"You didn't even talk to her? Just left the cat there for her to find?"

"Well, yeah." Jimin threw his hair back. "I couldn't risk she recognizing my voice and thinking I was stalking her. Scaring her was not the goal, Tae, quite the contrary..."

Taehyung stared at him in silence for what felt a whole minute - maybe it really was, vampires perceive time differently. "You are not a secret superhero, Jimin. You are a vampire." Said that he got back to his room.

Jimin doesn't understand. These outbursts and mood swings leave him confused. And it's not like he hasn't already tried to talk. This... This he doesn't recognize in Taehyung. It hurt his feelings and at same time he feels it is partially his faut. "I can be both if I want to!" He exclaimed.

No answer. To find somebody who would be happy for him and understand the euphoria he felt for saving a little bit that girl he went through his contact list. A lot of vampire names - a lot is maybe an exaggeration, since he doesn't have many friends at all - who wouldn't be rude, but wouldn't understand, and also some former human colleagues from past jobs with whom he hasn't spoken in a long time and maybe should erase the number... And you. Of course you are the obvious choice. You had sympathy for the case from the beginning, even offered to help. And if it weren't for you he wouldn't have succeeded...

Jimin: hey sweetheart Jimin: I found sushi! Jimin: thanks to you btw He sent the messages, hoping it wouldn't be strange. It wasn't the first time you two texted before, but it was just an exchange of memes and silly flirt... without compromise talk. And what he wanted this time was different. You took too long to answer, and he wondered if you were in class and if he was bothering you. He wanted everything but to mess it up with you right now. Maybe he should've checked your class schedule for the week to make sure he texted you when he was sure you were free. But he was so eager to talk to someone... with you. He gave up waiting and went after doing something productive. Crochet dolls. He was doing a mini Taehyung, with red eyes and little cute fangs - an apology for later, neither of them like fighting with each other, even if you can't call that earlier thing a fight- when his cell phone started to crazily vibrate and beep.

You: OMG! You: thts amazing! You: sorry i didn't aswr before You: I was taking a nap hehe You: anyways You: i'm so happy u found him You: [image.jpg] You: ur friend must be even happier :) You: what do u mean thanx to me? You: sorry i spammed u :( Jimin can't handle you. You are too cute. You literally sent him a photo of you with an enormous smile, cheering, to show him your reaction. And you were with your hair all messed and the puffy face of someone who just woke up. Precious. Jimin: no problem, sweetheart Jimin: you said to look in other owners' houses. basically. I found him with a old cat lady with three grandchildren Jimin: you are looking cute btw You: OwO You: i'm looking like shit Jimin You: BUT thats awesome You: if it was me id be crying til my eyes fall You weren't even there with him, in person, and you were putting a smile on his face. How dare you say you look like shit when you have those perfect cute cheeks? So alive...

Jimin: EXACTLY. that's why I wanted to find him so much. Jimin: and because you helped me, I want to reward you Jimin: i know you don't work today. me neither. do you want to go out for coffee in a nice place? You took too long to answer again, and that's because your heart is exploding and knees trembling while you stare at your cell phone screen, standing midway in your kitchen. You: u dont need to. i did nothing. This time Jimin took too long to answer. He was making a decision. To be more straightforward. More honest. Until now he was dictating a slow pace for your flirting, because for him romance is like that. But what if he tries to speed things up a bit? Or if he lets you command? How would things be?

Jimin: Y/N, respect my excuse to ask you out.

He knew what your answer would be. Even so, he felt anxious, hearing a non-existent heartbeat in his ear, while the three dots indicated that you were typing.

You: ok. what time do you come to pick me?

Tag List: @angrygardenerr @depressed-dude20 @milktaetae95 @tangledsparkles @wlalsrkfla @minikolima @wrecklesseuphoria

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xmagicxshopx · 4 years

Text

Rush Hour Pt 1

Genre: Action Adventure, Angst, Romance, Comedy Rating: PG-13 - M Warnings: drug trafficking, human trafficking, language, smut (in pt 2) Pairing: officer!jungkook x reader , officer!taehyung x oc (Nari) Notes: AU fic. Not idol!bts. Single quote marks ‘ ‘ are for thoughts and double “ “ are for talking. Additional Notes: Thank all the crime shows my parents watch for this. XD Not to mention I love the Rush Hour movies. @u@

Tagging: @grxnadxs

Summary: You and your best friend are being framed for a crime you didn’t commit and there’s only two people who believe you. Agent Inspector Jeon of the Busan Police Department and Detective Kim of the Daegu Police Department. Can they rescue you before it’s too late?

MASTERLIST

Organized Crime.

South Korea’s biggest enemy.

Financial fraud, drug trafficking, weapons smuggling, human trafficking. It was all because of organized crime and it made the police departments absolutely sick. A beast they couldn’t contain, let alone kill. Drugs were their biggest problem, really. And what drugs couldn’t produce in real cash flow, fake won made up for it. Sickening. Absolutely sickening.

“Detective Kim---Agent Inspector Jeon has arrived.”

Having been standing there watching the city with his steaming mug of hot chocolate because he’s not a coffee drinker, he simply turned his head to the officer-in-training and smiled a friendly smile before nodding his head and saying casually,

“Let the asshole in.”

“Hey, I heard that, asshat!”

Detective Kim, more commonly known as Kim Taehyung, just laughed as he set his mug down to greet one of his best friends and favorite partners in law enforcement. Walking through the door was one chuckling Jeon Jungkook, otherwise known as Agent Inspector Jeon. After performing their super secret handshake, the both of them took a seat in which Jeon sighed heavily.

“They briefed me on the situation. One of them is from Busan so they sent me over. It’s a pretty ugly case. This organization seems to have quite the record.”

“No kidding. Drug and human trafficking?? Disgusting. Makes me sick.”

Jungkook watched his older bestie tossing the folder full of files onto his desk and he couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Kim Taehyung was a good man. An honest and traditional man. Someone who one day wanted to settle down and have a family. A wife and kids. He cherished his fellow human beings so human trafficking always hit harder for him than anything else.

“Hey. We’ll catch them, hyung. They’re going to slip up and that’s when they’ll hang themselves with their own rope. In fact, it sounds like they might already have. It says they’re on the run. Armed and dangerous. But we’re more dangerous. Besides....”

Kim looked away from the window once more to see what his younger friend might be trying to say. The sight before him made the male snort and shake his blonde head in amusement. Jeon Jungkook had since stood up from his seat and was standing in a fighting position while saying with confidence that only he could pull off,

“I’ve been taking boxing lessons. These dirt bags won’t see me coming.”

“Whatever you say, Jeon. Whatever you say.”

Meanwhile, on a train heading out of Daegu.....

“I’m scared....”

You could hardly hear your best friend and honestly you couldn’t blame her. Both of your voices were hoarse from the lack of hydration. The first thing you’d do once getting to the next town would be trying to buy some bottles of water. Your tongue felt like sandpaper. Trying your best to comfort the female next to you, you simply reeled her in and let her head rest on your shoulder.

Criminals.

In the eye of the public, that’s what you were.

The world knew you both as criminals but the world couldn’t be farther from the truth. You two were just a pair of best friends who had found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Simple on paper but oh-so complicated in all actuality. With an internal sigh, you gently stroked your best friend’s raven locks as you spoke up softly,

“It’s going to be okay, Nari. I’m going to take care of us. Just stick with me and everything will be fine.”

Nari, your best friend of four years, nodded gently against your shoulder as she shifted a little closer in the bus seat the two of you were sharing. Honestly, the two of you weren’t used to the silence of the bus. The life you both had been living for the last four months was anything but silent. Guns, violence, moving from home to home. It was all so chaotic.

Human trafficking.

You were no longer considered a person. No. You and your best friend had become objects to be used by scum bags who called themselves men. To be used as they saw fit. Whether it be as a cover-up for a smuggling operation or to release sexual frustration, you were no longer considered a human being. It may have only been for four months, but it’s been the longest four months of your lives.

“Once we get off the bus, I’ll get us a hotel room, okay? I managed to knock the one guy out and grab his wallet. Let’s just hope this won is legit and not fake. Otherwise we’re screwed.”

You didn’t want to scare Nari, but you had to be realistic too. The situation was not pretty but you were going to do your very best to make this as easy for her as possible. Your best friend was a soft and sensitive soul so naturally this was extremely hard on her. Not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally. The physical scars would heal, but the mental and emotional? That was a whole other ballgame.

“Let’s get off here. Surely there’s a hotel or motel near by. If not, we can always ask around.”

Back at the Daegu Police Department....

“Okay. So your prime suspects are two females, both in their 20s and South Korean natives. Squeaky clean criminal records. Not even a parking violation.”

Both Taehyung and Jungkook found themselves sporting identical expressions of confusion as their eyebrows knitted together. While the younger of the two was staring at the huge TV screen that had the suspects’ passport photos on display, Taehyung was looking through each of their files and couldn’t believe his eyes.

“The one was going to school to be a kindergarten teacher with a minor in journalism while the other has an online degree in Police Science and has taken several self-defense classes.”

While the blonde detective was rattling off more information from the files, Min Yoongi who was Daegu’s Intelligence Analyst was bringing up those very same records up on the screen for Jungkook to look over as well. Dang. It was hard to believe these girls were their prime suspects.

“The files go on to say the university student, Nari, was currently shadowing a kindergarten class when she went missing four months ago. The Police Science graduate was currently working at a cafe in Busan when she too went missing four months ago.”

“So they were together when they went missing?”

Just as Yoongi and Taehyung were about to wager a guess to the younger’s question, a new voice entered the room as a young man that went by the name of Jung Hoseok strolled in. Hoseok, or otherwise known as Hobi, was a Forensic Psychologist and had been brought it to try and figure out why two girls with absolutely no prior criminal records would be suspects in one of South Korea’s largest drug trafficking ring.

“Possibly. According to their records, they live at the same address. An apartment building on the shadier side of town. Judging from their day jobs, I would say it was all they could afford. The Busan girl commutes.”

Jungkook turned around to look at the older males with his hands stuffed in his pockets, expression pensive as he stood there in deep thought before asking out loud,

“So maybe they did it for the money?”

With a casual shrug, Hoseok looked to the TV screen where the records and photos were on display. It just didn’t add up to him. He had dealt with a lot of cases and in all his years of forensic psychology, he had never seen anything quite like this. But then again.....

“It’s not uncommon for financial stress to drive a person to commit crime. For now, they’re probably going to be your only suspects. They were seen on the storefront’s security footage with the bag as they fled the scene. Looks like it was a deal gone South.”

It was then that Yoongi pressed a button on his tablet and brought up the exact footage Hobi was referring to. The four young men watched as the two female suspects approached two men who were twice their size. Again. It didn’t make sense to Hobi. This was a professional ring. Why would a ring leader who was supposedly one of the smartest men in crime......be sending in two puny girls in their 20s to perform a hand-off???

“Looks like the one put her self defense lessons to good use. But she’s lucky neither one of them got shot.”

While Yoongi spoke in his usual calm tone, the rest of the boys watched on as the footage soon revealed the spat that took place. One man was knocked out and Taehyung could see one of the girls swiping his wallet. The last few seconds of the recording was of the girls running off while leaving the bag behind. The bag was then taken by the two men who ran in the opposite direction. Dang.

“Okay, Hobi hyung. Put your brain to work. Why would those girls try to fight when they were just going to let them have the drugs anyway? What’s the purpose here? The only crimes they committed were assault and stealing a dirt bag’s wallet.”

The psychologist took a moment to consider the young inspector’s questions. Yes. What was the purpose of the whole transaction??? All the girls got away with was a wallet and who knows if it had any actual won in it. Even if it did, the odds of the won being legit were slim to none. Still......it wasn’t adding up......there was more to this story here. That’s for sure. It was then that Taehyung spoke up as he said in an authoritative tone,

“Okay. Jeon---call in Jimin from your guys’ Busan department and have him interview the cafe manager and the staff. You and I are gonna take a trip to the kindergarten class Nari was shadowing and see if the teacher might have any insight. Maybe they got close while working together.”

He then turned to the older males in the room and added in the same tone but with more softness and naturally more respect,

“Yoongi hyung, if you can get me any further footage, maybe even some traffic cams, I’d greatly appreciate it. Maybe we can track down where they ran off to. Hobi hyung, try to take a closer look at the footage we already have. Maybe you can spot something we aren’t looking at. See if you guys can enhance the video any. Get a closer look.”

With that, the four men went to work. Innocent or not, these two women needed to be found because they could be the key to bringing down the largest drug trafficking ring in South Korea.

“There’s a convenience store. Want to grab some supplies and food and then find a place to stay?”

After receiving a timid nod from Nari, you offered her a warm smile and gently tugged her along as the two of you headed into the store. There was plenty of won in the wallet you had swiped so thankfully they could afford the necessities without having to skimp. Shampoo, body wash, water, and food. Pretty simple. Well maybe some toothbrushes and paste as well. The two of you felt absolutely disgusting and probably looked just as much.

The hotel room would probably have little bottles of shampoo and body wash, but you planned to douse yourselves in both. Now that you got to thinking about it, both of your hair looked like rats nests. Comb and brush. Okay. The list was getting longer but still. You both were a little more than ready to start feeling human again. Could anyone blame you???

Once picking out the cheapest shampoo and conditioner you could find, you went to go pick up a bottle of body wash that was just as cheap. You guys didn’t need to be in a beauty pageant, just clean. After picking a brush and comb both, you gently tugged your bestie along with you to have her pick out some food.

Ever since the human trafficking started, Nari had nearly completely shut down. She became quiet and shut off. It was hard for even you to get her to speak. Like the few moments they had alone together while waiting for their next ‘owner’ to arrive and take them ‘home’. It was so heartbreaking because your best friend was once a ray of pure sunshine. A light in the darkness.

And now she had become part of the darkness.

“Okay, Ri, what sounds good for dinner tonight? I think some instant noodles are calling our name.”

You would have loved to just call room service. However, for two reasons, you didn’t go that route. One, it wasn’t essential and therefore you didn’t want to risk wasting your limited funding on it. Two, you didn’t want to give the organization or the authorities any ammo that might help either one of them track you both down. Oh how you wanted to use this guy’s credit cards. But you knew better. Credit Cards were so easy to trace back. It was safer to use the won notes.

After allowing Nari to pick out her bowls of instant noodles, you picked out some as well before buying a loaf of bread and some peanut butter. Carbs. You both needed carbs desperately. The organization and all of your ‘owners’ hadn’t exactly taken the best care of you. Apparently you didn’t need to have a pretty or healthy body to be a sex toy. Go figure. With all of your hygienic items in one basket and the food in the other, you gently tugged your bestie along so that the two of you could pay for the items and get the heck of here.

Coughing up more notes than you wanted to, everything was paid for and the two of you were soon out into the world once more. Honestly, the weather was perfect for a nightly stroll. It had been so long since you felt so.....free. Granted you were currently on the run but you’d take what you could get. Just before you had left the store, you asked the employee on the other side of the counter if there were any hotels close by. Turns out there was. Thankfully just a block away from the store.

“Come on, Ri. Let’s get a roof over our heads and some food in our bellies. You can have first dibs on the shower. It’s gonna be okay, bestie. We’re gonna be just fine.”

You could only hope you didn’t turn into a liar. Going over it all in your head, you were pretty confident that you wouldn’t be found. At least not for a few days. But your mind was already thinking of the next steps to take. Thinking and calculating. You knew better than to think you could be on the run forever. No. You just needed a bit of time before contacting the authorities and explaining the situation; hoping they’d hear you out.

“Morning, Jeon.”

“Morning, hyung. Ugh. I didn’t sleep a wink last night. Just kept thinking about those girls. Makes no sense.”

It was a new day and the game plan was simple. Information gathering. After that, the pair would get together with Yoongi and Hobi to analyze the data collected. Meanwhile, Yoongi was going to try and see if he could use traffic cams to map out where exactly the two girls went. They could still be in Daegu for all they knew. Hobi’s job was to pick apart the suspects’ body language and see if there was anything he could identify that might help them figure out why the girls are even their prime suspects. That part still didn’t add up with any of them.

Okay so maybe not such a simple plan. But it was a plan all the same.

“It was a good call to wear something casual. We wouldn’t want to scare the kiddos.”

Taehyung honestly hadn’t thought about it till late last night. He too had a hard time sleeping. All he could think about was the girls. There was this nagging feeling telling him these girls were innocent. He highly doubted they were armed let alone dangerous. Speaking of, as he popped the trunk to his personal vehicle, he said casually,

“Probably ought to hide the guns too. These kids are young but you know how they pick up on every little thing that’s out of the ordinary.”

“Good point. You’re batting a thousand today, hyung. I’m gonna have to up my game if I’m going to keep up with you.”

“Just put your mad boxing skills to good use should something go south and we’ll be square.”

Chuckling softly, the two made their way into the building and showed the receptionist their badges before being escorted to the kindergarten classroom Nari had been shadowing. It was odd to be working in something other than their usual suit and tie. Jungkook could get used to working in his button up shirt and skinny jeans. The two could hear lots of giggling and it warmed Taehyung’s heart. God how badly he wanted to be a dad. But he needed to focus. This was a job. Not a field trip. He couldn’t let his feelings get involved.

“Good morning, Mrs. Lee. I’m Detective Kim Taehyung and this is my partner Agent Inspector Jeon Jungkook. If you have a moment, we’d like to ask you a few questions concerning the girl who was shadowing your class. She disappeared a little over four months ago. Her name is Nari. Do you remember her?”

Turns out this Nari girl was quite the ray of sunshine to be around. Naturally shy upon first meeting but once she got comfortable, she was a bit of a chatter box. Kind of cute, really. She got along great with the kids and when she had first disappeared, they immediately picked up on it and kept asking where she was. The class had even made get well cards after being told that she was simply not feeling good and needed some time off.

The whole thing silently broke Taehyung’s heart. This Nari sounded like his dream girl. Aside from the criminal part. Which still didn’t make sense. This girl enjoyed reading, writing, anime, and kids. She enjoyed several things that he too enjoyed. It was a shame to think that she possibly turned to organized crime. But for what? What was the incentive to just drop everything and turn to crime? She had such a beautiful life and it seemed like it was something she was still working on building. Why just abandon it?

“Okay, Jeon. Playtime’s over. Let’s go.”

His partner had been of little help during the questioning. However, it wasn’t entirely Jeon’s fault. The kids were insistent that he play with them. Who was a man to deny so many sets of puppy eyes??? That was how Taehyung found his younger partner currently being used as a human jungle gym. He had a kid hanging off each arm as he flexed his arm muscles to help hold them both up. A little girl was giggling and squealing in happiness as she had been placed on his shoulders, hugging his face to keep herself from falling. What a dork.

“Okay, kids. Let Mr. Jeon go so he can get back to work. And what do we say to others who play nicely with us?”

“Thank you, Mr. Jeon!”

The chorus of high pitched voices was so endearing. Perhaps Jungkook was starting to see why his hyung wanted to be a father so badly. These little ones weren’t so bad. Well that was probably a result of good parenting. Not to mention it sounded like the teacher was trying to set good examples for them too. After smiling to the kids and trying to dodge their questions of whether or not they’d be seeing him again, Jungkook quickly made his exit with his partner who was smiling and shaking his head in amusement.

Kids. Go figure. It was then that both agents heard Yoongi coming in through their ear pieces. Taehyung had just been popping the trunk back open to get their guns when the Daegu native started speaking in a calm but rushed voice,

“You two better get back to the office. Hobi made a huge discovery that’s going to change this into a whole different ballgame.”

Well that didn’t sound good.

Making haste, the two drove from the school parking lot and headed straight for the station. It wasn’t often that Yoongi sounded so urgent. He was usually pretty cool, calm, and collected. That’s what made him such an awesome analyst. He was able to look at things with a clear head. It was a trait that many in the department wish they had as well. Arriving in the information room where the male worked, Taehyung said in a breathless tone,

“What you got for us, hyung?”

But it was Hoseok that spoke up in reply; his tone grave.

“Your suspects just turned into victims.”

Wait what???

Meanwhile, you were up bright and early. It was easy and yet difficult to sleep all at the same time. The exhaustion had knocked both you and Nari out the second your heads hit the pillows of your shared king sized bed. However, it seemed like you were awake every other hour. Your body screamed sleep but your mind was on full alert. It was hard to sleep peacefully when you knew danger could be around every corner. You could open your eyes and find yourself right back in the jaws of danger.

It was exhausting, really. But this was your reality for the time being. Looking away from the window, you peered over at the sleeping figure in the bed. Poor Nari. She looked so small and frail laying there in that big bed. It was comforting to see her getting some sleep. Hopefully dreamless and restful. Last night had been wonderful. Their first night where they weren’t held in some kind of captivity. No disgusting cages or dirty food and water. For the first night in four months, they were just two girls hanging out. No longer objects. But humans.

They were humans again.

Deciding it was safe to take a shower, you tiptoed your way to the bathroom and just cracked the door so that it wouldn’t let all the steam out. Gosh the shower last night had been amazing! Hot water, soap. It was wonderful! The both of you had brushed your teeth twice just for good measure too. While you allowed the water to warm up, you thought about the tasks at hand today. The plan sounded simple but it was going to be tricky regardless.

A disguise. You both needed a disguise. Just until you could get your thoughts together and a plan for when you notified the authorities. You didn’t want to just go waltzing in the Daegu Police Department with hands in the air. No. You needed a plan. You needed to be able to prove your innocence. And that was when you thought of those disgusting bracelets you had to wear. Ugh. They were the ugliest shade of orange too. It was surly a color you’d despise for the rest of your life.

“They’re what?!”

Jungkook tried to put a gentle hand on his partner’s shoulder but it got roughly shrugged off. Taehyung was furious. Absolutely furious. Seeing red. That was all the male could see as he stared at Yoongi and Hoseok. The two had just informed them that the two suspects were actually being trafficked and were part of the transaction that took place on the storefront camera footage they were able to obtain.

Human trafficking. These two poor girls were being handed off along with the drugs. It all made sense now. The one using her knowledge in self defense to try and disarm and distract the punks. Swiping the wallet and yet leaving the drugs behind. It all finally added up. These girls weren’t criminals at all. There was a reason their records were so squeaky clean. They never asked for this. They were forced into it. They didn’t go missing willingly. They were kidnapped.

“It’s gonna be okay, Tae. I was able to get access to the town’s traffic cams and I think I know what city they’re in. But you gotta calm down first. The chief isn’t going to let you go into this guns blazing and you know that.”

However, the blonde detective wasn’t entirely listening. It was like his ears were filled with water. He just stood there staring at the single clue that lead Hobi and Yoongi to discovering what was actually going on in the footage from earlier. Each girl sported an orange colored wristband. After doing some digging, Yoongi had discovered it was an inside tagging system for women who were being trafficked. Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting. It left a horrible taste in Taehyung’s mouth as he thought of Nari......Nari........

It was then that the feline looking male spoke up but this time directed his attention to the younger inspector.

“Kook---Take him to the cafe around the corner. I’ll forward you guys what I believe to be their city of refuge. It’s not too terribly far from here but it’s a drive. Looks like they took the bus.”

“Thanks, Yoongi hyung. Come on, buddy. Let’s go have a drink.”

That was how Taehyung wound up sitting at a small table with a steaming to-go cup of hot chocolate. Meanwhile, Jungkook had opted for an iced americano. Ugh. Gross. While the younger was looking over the traffic cam footage Yoongi had forwarded to his phone, the detective simply stared out the window of the local cafe. His partner had tried to place a single glazed doughnut in front of him to go with his hot chocolate but Tae had touched neither one; too lost in thoughts of the sweet college student trying to become a kindergarten teacher.

His dream girl.

‘I bet she wants to have kids too someday.....I’ll make sure she has that chance. I’m gonna find her. And I’ll save her.’

The young inspector, on the other hand, was more focused on you. What was your story? Certainly you weren’t going to be working as a barista the rest of your life. The fact that you had taken an online course in Police Science intrigued him. Perhaps you were interested in going into law enforcement? That would be cool. Especially since you were a Busan native. What would be the chances of you working in the same station as him?

“Okay, Ri. Today we’re gonna try and get some fresh clothes and maybe do something with our hair. Basically we need a disguise. Just until we can get our thoughts together and figure out how to notify the police without it looking like we’re turning ourselves in.”

It saddened you when all your best friend did was nod. Again....she used to be so talkative. So bright and cheery. You weren’t sure you were going to be able to take her out of this hotel room just yet. While your guys’ physical scars were already starting to heal, there were far deeper cuts that needed attention. Carefully taking a seat next to her on the bed, you gently wrapped an arm around her and spoke in a soft and soothing tone,

“Nari, baby. You gotta talk to me. I’m no therapist but I think being your best friend has to count for something. You can tell me anything. So please, say something.”

“You could have died.....”

Hmm? Out of all the things you were expecting Nari to say, that definitely wasn’t one of them. Before you could ask her to clarify, she did it for you as she added in explanation,

“They had guns, bestie. And they were shooting at us. They were shooting at you. I was so scared you’d get hit and die. I’ve lost so much. I can’t lose you too. Please---”

“Hey, hey. Shhh. It’s okay, Ri. It’s okay.”

You sat there at the foot of the bed hugging a sobbing Nari; gently rocking the both of you back and forth as you allowed the girl to cry out her feelings. You had been in such a constant state of survival mode, that you hadn’t taken into account how the dangers of the whole situation would affect her. Of course seeing your best friend get shot at would be traumatizing. Gently kissing the girl’s forehead while stroking her hair with a free hand, you said softly and soothingly,

“I’m sorry I scared you, Ri. It wasn’t my intentions. I just......I needed to get us out of there and it was the only way I knew how. And the good news is, we’re not only alive, but we’re free. No more drugs, no more trafficking. We’re humans again and we’re gonna get through this together. I’m with you every step of the way. Okay? Together?”

You held out your pinkie finger for her to take and was happily surprised to see her return the gesture by weakly wrapping her pinkie around your own. This was progress. It was the most Nari had said since the two of you escaped from the organization. Hopefully with this off her chest, she’d open up a little more and just maybe, things would get back to some kind of normal between you two. You really didn’t want to lose your best friend. Nari wasn’t the only one in that hotel room who had lost a lot.

With the both of you feeling a little bit better, you carefully stood up from the bed and brought your bestie along with you. It would be okay. You’d make it be okay no matter the cost. It was time to get out of these disgusting clothes and find something more suitable for wear. Not to mention your hair needed a trim something awful. Then again.....you were willing to go the extra mile for a disguise if it meant surviving to see real freedom.

Deciding it wasn’t smart to stay in one place for two nights in a row, you made the plan to get your clothes, get stuff needed for your hair, maybe purchase a couple duffel bags, and make your next move. That was as far as you had gotten in the planning. Should the two of you stay in this town or perhaps travel back to Daegu? Maybe Busan? Ugh. You just didn’t know yet. Okay. One step at a time, here. One step at a time.

Crossing the street, you had heard from the hotel desk clerk that there was a hand-me-down store for clothing not too far from where they were staying. That would be perfect! You didn’t need to look like models. You just needed some clean clothes to wear. And you had saw where a pharmacy was close by as well. You decided to dye your hair and cut it yourself but you just weren’t sure what color to get. Poor Nari, on the other hand, was way too happy with her hair and especially the color. So to try and find some even ground, the two of you had agreed on a hat. She could tie up her hair and wear a baseball cap. That would work.

While Nari wanted something pretty, you were more focused on trying to disguise yourself as much as possible. In fact, when you came out of the dressing room with a plain white t-shirt tucked into a pair of black skinnies and a black blazer to match; paired with black combat boots that looked like they could kill, Nari couldn’t stop herself from mumbling shyly,

“You look like a boy if it wasn’t for your boobs and long hair.”

“That’s the plan.....babe.”

You couldn’t help but grin as you watched your best friend blush heavily. Don’t get the wrong picture, the both of you were far more into boys. But it was cute to tease your bestie because as much as you loved her, she was such a cute and easy target. When you heard that familiar whine of mortification, you couldn’t help but feel your chest bubble with happiness and relief. Perhaps that talk in the hotel room really did do some good. Nari just simply needed to get some feels off her chest.

After he got Taehyung to finally eat and drink something, Jungkook ended up lugging his butt up from the cafe chair and hauled him outside into the fresh air. It wasn’t like his older friend to get stuck in his feels like this. Sure human trafficking had always been a sore subject, but he was taking it to a completely new level of sore. Stuffing his hands in his pockets and squinting against the sun’s rays, the young inspector said casually,

“Jimin said there wasn’t much to report on the barista from Busan. Apparently she was trying to save her tips from the cafe in order to go into law school. She’s on the fence of whether or not she wants to be a cop or an attorney.”

Jungkook really wanted to meet you. You fascinated him to no end. First the course in Police Science and now law school? You sounded super cool with how you had taken several self defense classes as well. He wondered if you liked boxing......Yeah......maybe he could teach you one day.

Wait what???

Shaking his head to clear it, it was then that he heard Yoongi coming on the ear piece once more.

“Your girls are on the move. They stayed at a hotel last night but they’ve not made any further reservations. Apparently one of the other guests recognized them in the hallways. I informed the manager to keep it quiet because we don’t want to scare them off. If we’re lucky, we can catch them before they depart. The manager said they’ve not returned the room keys yet.”

“Thanks, hyung. Keep us posted.”

“No problem. Forwarding you guys the hotel address now.”

“You hear that, hyung? We’re gonna find them and it’s gonna be okay.”

Feeling a hearty pat on his shoulder, Taehyung nodded and tried to give his younger partner a smile. The two girls must be so scared. Running from not only the organization, but the law as well. When in all reality, this had since then turned into a rescue mission. This was definitely a first for him in his career of law enforcement. Pulling himself together, the blonde squared his shoulders and held his head up high as he walked to the car. Meanwhile, Jeon was reading off the directions to the city where the girls were currently staying in.

“So.....Hyung.......You seem pretty invested in this case. You wanna talk about it?”

Yoongi was right when he said it was a bit of a drive. At the same time, Jungkook couldn’t help but mentally praise the girls for thinking of taking such a far, out-of-the-way route to escape danger. It was a quieter town too. Or so he had heard. Listening to the ticking sound of the vehicle’s turn signal, the blonde detective finally spoke up but in a small voice.

“I just want to find them and bring those dirt bags to justice.”

Okay. So clearly his hyung wasn’t ready to talk about it. Which was totally fine. But it was easier to work with a Kim Taehyung when he had his head on straight and he wasn’t thinking with his heart instead of his brain. Subconsciously nibbling on his bottom lip, a nervous habit of his, Jungkook silently nodded and turned his attention to his phone. With the help of Yoongi and his ability to enhance images, he was able to get a better look at the two girls they were trying to rescue.

“They’re both kind of cute. Once you get past their bird nest hairstyles and grungy clothing.”

That didn’t seem to make matters any easier as Jungkook could hear his hyung gripping the steering wheel all the tighter; the sound of his skin squeaking against the material of the wheel. Oops....

“What hotel was it again? I think we might be approaching the town soon.”

Yeah. Definitely not ready to talk about it.

“Bestie.....are you sure you want to do this? We can get you a ball cap too, you know. It doesn’t have to be this extreme.”

“I’m absolutely positive, Nari. Lay it on me.”

Nari couldn’t believe what she was about to do to her best friend’s hair. It was already painful enough to watch you chop it all off. She knew the point was for you to look as far from yourself as possible but still......This was just crazy. You had chopped your own hair off and now sported a boy cut of sorts. Bangs hung in your eyes to try and hide them while your back had been completely taken up. Not a single strand of hair was hanging down or coming anywhere close to your shoulders. Nothing framing your face. Just your bangs.

“They won’t be looking for a blonde, Nari. Just trust me.”

And that was how you got your hair bleached for the first time ever. It was worth it, though. Everything you were doing, you were doing for you and Nari both. What was a little hair if it meant keeping you both alive and getting your tickets to true freedom? It was so worth it in your mind and you could only hope your bestie would see that too. With time.

After washing and drying it, you stood there in the hotel bathroom mirror with your girl next to you. Nari looked shocked and a bit pale while you were grinning like an idiot. This was perfect. Sporting your outfit you had picked out from the store and turning your head this way and that way to inspect your new hairstyle, you couldn’t wait to throw both the organization and the police for a loop.

They’d never see you coming.

“Okay, Ri. Sadly we can’t stay here. We gotta keep moving. Let’s check out and find a different place to stay. We’ll grab a bus to the next city over and grab another hotel room. We still have plenty of won left. The guy was stupid enough to leave his wallet loaded.”

Helping your bestie secure her baseball cap on and making sure her hair was tucked in nice and neat, you couldn’t help but think how cute she looked dressed so casually compared to the rags she was forced to wear for the last four months of her life. Nari was way too pretty to wear such filth. You couldn’t wait for things to get back to normal. The first thing you’d do is take her shopping for some pretty new clothes to wear to the kindergarten class she shadowed. You knew how much she loved those kids.

Once the both of you packed your items from the convenience store last night and the new batch of instant noodles and snacks from the pharmacy earlier today, you hoisted up the duffel bags and made your way out of the room; making it look just as it did when you arrived. It would be like you were never even here. Although you couldn’t help but notice how deadly quiet it was in the hotel hallways.

“Thanks for staying with us. Have a wonderful day!”

Cool. You were out and on the street once again. The next step in your plan was simple. Find a bus routing out of town to the next city and hop on. Simple, right? Just as you were about to make a step for the bus stop down the street, you felt something hard and cold pressing into the small of your back. Not only that, but a chin rested on your shoulder and whispered in your ear,

“Scream and I’ll shoot you right where you stand, slut.”

Well that sucks.

#bts #jungkook #taehyung #jeon jungkook #kim taehyung #jungkook bts #taehyung bts #jungkook smut #taehyung smut #bts smut #jungkook x reader #taehyung x oc #officer!jeon #officer!jungkook #officer!taehyung #officer jeon #bts fanfiction #jungkook fanfiction #taehyung fanfiction

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ariadnekurosaki · 4 years

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A Promise Made (and Kept)

Prompt: Day 23, Promises Kept

Pairing: Kuchiki Rukia/Kurosaki Ichigo

Rating: T

Read on AO3.

Summary: Ichigo keeps his promises. A little on the nose, but it’s positivity week - so here is more fluff.

A Promise Made (and Kept)

Ichigo kept his promises.

It was something Rukia noticed almost from the first moment they met, just a Shinigami and a human boy facing off against a hollow. Oh, he’d balked when she told him that he had to take on her duties until she regained her powers, but once he committed to protecting everyone who needed it, Ichigo had kept that promise.

When he promised to save her, even though she begged him not to and told him she wouldn’t forgive him for following her – Ichigo kept that promise as well, facing down some of the strongest fighters in Soul Society and not stopping in his quest until she was safe. He’d saved her again when nearly the whole world had forgotten about her, even when her own brother and former best friend thought it was hopeless.

He’d sworn to protect as many people as he could, even at the cost of his life, and lost his powers until she returned with a blade to give them back. He’d told her brother that he would save Soul Society from the Quincy, and he had defeated Yhwach.

He’d stood before Captain Kyouraku and promised his loyalty to the Gotei, and said the same to Captain Hirako, so that he could stay in Soul Society – with her. Then he’d stood before her just a few years later and promised to love her for the rest of their lives.

“More paperwork from the Fifth, Captain,” Sentarou announced from the open door of her office and shook her out of her musings.

Rukia looked up from the already-sizable pile before her with a sigh that softened into a smile when she saw Ichigo just behind her Third Seat. “Thank you, Sentarou. You can come in, Ichigo.” Sentarou just smirked and when Ichigo stepped around him and into the office, he pushed the door shut.

“The Fifth has an awful lot of paperwork for me lately,” Rukia commented as Ichigo crossed the short distance to her desk and offered her a pile of papers.

“Yeah, well, Shinji is a stickler now,” Ichigo drawled. But he leaned down to kiss her, one hand bracing himself on the desk as he bent nearly double to reach her lips.

“Mmn,” Rukia murmured against his mouth. “And is it just a coincidence that he always sends his Sixth Seat? I would think you’d be busy with training the unseated squad members.”

Ichigo just grinned at her. “I promised that even when I joined the Gotei that I’d spend as much time with you as I could. I’m not going to protest when Shinji makes it easy for me.”

Rukia’s lips found his again, but then she leaned back in her chair. “We’re on duty, Ichigo,” she reminded him. But he hummed in the negative and leaned closer to nip her lip.

“You’re on duty. My shift ended once I got here. I’ll have dinner waiting when you get home.” He straightened up from her desk and walked back to the door of her office. “I asked Sentarou to kick you out if you’re not done by eight.”

She leveled a glare at him. “Since when do you command my squad members?” Rukia asked, though there wasn’t any heat in her voice.

Ichigo crossed his arms. “I don’t, but you haven’t come home until midnight the last three nights running. You need to eat and rest properly. You’ll like dinner, I promise.”

She didn’t know when Ichigo had turned into a proper cook, but he kept that promise as well – when she returned to their home almost two hours later he had a hot meal waiting for her and her favorite sleep yukata spread out on their bed for her to change into.

“There’s mochi for dessert too,” he told her when she sat down across from him and he began to serve her some of the steaming rice, vegetables, and teriyaki chicken he’d cooked. “From that place you like in the Southern shopping district.”

Rukia beamed at him and picked up her chopsticks. “Spoiling me, Ichigo?” she asked, and they both said “Itadakimasu” before starting to eat.

Ichigo shrugged; he’d changed out of his shihakusho and was wearing the navy yukata she’d bought him for his last birthday. “You work hard, and you still don’t have a lieutenant. The least I can do is make things easier by making sure you eat. Otherwise you’d get so tiny that you’d disappear.”

Rukia scoffed at him but under the table her leg brushed against his, and she ate her meal with a warm feeling that nothing to do with the temperature of the food. “No one’s exactly stepping up to volunteer for the job, and Sentarou isn’t really…lieutenant material,” she said, though a curl of guilt found its way through her mind at the words. Sentarou had been very helpful in the wake of Ukitake’s death, when she’d had to face a grieving division decimated by the Quincies.

Ichigo set his chopsticks down on his bowl and looked at her seriously. “The only reason I haven’t volunteered is because we’re married. I didn’t want you to think I was looking for special treatment or needed to live in your pockets.”

“I don’t have pockets,” she said, puzzled, and Ichigo snorted.

“It’s a living world expression, midget.”

She picked at her rice. “Would you take the Lieutenant’s exam if I asked?” she said after a moment of quiet. “Shinji’s made noises about how you’re wasted as a Sixth Seat but he doesn’t want to replace Momo.”

“Momo’s a good lieutenant,” Ichigo agreed. He rubbed the back of his head and looked at her from under bangs that were starting to get too long again. “If what you need is a lieutenant, yeah, Rukia, I’ll do it.” He eyed her carefully. “But how will the rest of the Thirteenth feel about it? I know they’ve had it rough the past few years, with Ukitake’s death and the way Kyoraku Soutaicho dragged his feet appointing you as captain.”

“I don’t think there will be any objections,” Rukia said, a thoughtful look on her face. “It’s not like you’re an unknown who waltzed into the role. And you’ll have to pass the lieutenant’s exam like everyone else did.” Then she grinned at him. “My female officers will probably thank me.”

Ichigo scowled and his foot nudged hers under the table. “You’re the only one I want looking at me, Rukia, you know that.” He ducked his head but peeked out at her from under those bangs again, and Rukia’s heart skipped a beat. “We’d get more time together. Would you be okay around me all day?”

She smiled, and at the heat in her gaze Ichigo’s cheeks flushed. “I like looking at you too.”

He cleared his throat and rubbed his calf against hers. “Finish your dinner, Rukia,” he managed.

Rukia grinned – she loved that she could still get a rise out of him and that he still blushed even though they’d been married for four years. “Yes, husband,” she murmured overly-demurely and looked up at him from beneath her dark eyelashes.

“After dinner,” he said in return, and the heat in his gaze promised more than just mochi for dessert.

Ichigo kept that promise, too, and they were both late for duty the next morning.

He kept another a few months later, after passing the grueling Lieutenant’s exam and turning in his transfer paperwork to Shinji – who by all reports had just smirked and told Ichigo that it was about time. As Rukia tied the Squad 13 Lieutenant’s badge around his arm, she thanked fate that she’d been the Shinigami assigned to Karakura that first night.

Yes, Ichigo kept his promises.

#ichiruki #irmonth2020 #ichirukimonth #bleach fanfiction #fluff #deathberry family

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allthefilmsiveseenforfree · 3 years

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Dangerous Minds

Those of my readers who haven’t known me long may not know that I was once a corps member of Teach for America. I taught 10th and 11th grade English for about 5 weeks, then I was told on a Friday about my “involuntary transfer” to another school in the district, where I’d be teaching 7th and 8th grade English instead. I went from having about 110 students to about 190. My classroom had no books (textbook or otherwise), no pencils, no paper, no markers or chalk, but it DID have one of those folding lamps that come out of the ceiling at the dentist’s office. The kids had been in there for 5 weeks with a rotating roster of subs; they’d done no schoolwork of any kind. I was teaching in a very poor area of the city, and my students were predominantly Black and Hispanic. One of my 10th graders wrote his first personal essay about getting shot the previous year. I say all this to tell you that when Chad asked that I review Dangerous Minds, the 1995 adaptation starring Michelle Pfeiffer of the true story of Louanne Johnson’s experience teaching in inner city schools in California, I was prepared to laugh it off as a cringey, Lifetime-movie representation of my experience. Is that what I got? Well...

For the most part, what I got was a ball of anxiety in my chest. It’s well-worn territory, obviously. A teacher bonds with their students from the wrong side of the tracks, and ends up learning just as much from them as they learn from him/her. Usually poetry or music features heavily as a tool that can set the students free from the depressing circumstances of their lives. Depending on the rating, usually a student dies, and the teacher learns just how Important their job is, so they commit to it even harder even though it pays no money and garners no respect from the administration who just doesn’t “get it.” But these cliches and stereotypes and broad strokes exist because at their core, they’re true, and they make me anxious and uncomfortable and I can’t laugh at them or Michelle Pfeiffer being a Nice White Lady because I’m too busy being angry about the systems we put in place that straight up abandon so many kids, all in the name of white supremacy.

Some thoughts:

Oh we’re starting right off the BAT with “Gangsta’s Paradise.” Fantastic news. Two things I associate so strongly with this song is skating around the skating rink in 2nd grade and buying the Weird Al cassingle of “Amish Paradise” and wearing it out.

Ooh, the score was composed and performed by Wendy & Lisa! Love that, you don’t see nearly as many film scores as you should composed by women.

God, the salary is $24,700 a year and Louanne acts as though that is appealing - I can’t tell if that’s because it was 1995 or because teacher salaries are so dismally low that this feels like a good salary?

This scene in which Louanne goes into her classroom for the first time and the kids are all shouting at her and getting in her face and sexually harassing her and throwing paper balls at her is giving me stress hives.

Also her friend Griffith (George Dzundza) saying, “You wanna teach, so teach! All you gotta do is get their attention” is rather disingenuous. Trust me, you can have their attention, and still not be able to teach.

I’m excited to see Sally-Can’t-Dance from Con Air as Raul (Renoly Santiago). He’s honestly fantastic in this, with a tough exterior but a sensitive and gooey inner sweet boy. All of the teens give pretty solid performances, but he’s a real standout.

I recognize this is based on a true story and Louanne Johnson’s lived experience, but I am not sure it’s wise for any teacher, regardless of grade or subject, to be teaching her students how to fight each other. Or taking them to dinner on what looks to outsiders like a date. I know some people have a problem with the bribery (giving her students candy for speaking up in class) but I have no problem with it - you get paid to do all the dumb stuff you don’t want to do at work, why shouldn’t kids be compensated for going to school if they don’t want to be there? External motivation goes a long way to building up internal motivation.

Mm I do love me some Courtney B. Vance, but he’s such a quiet, condescending ass in this. It’s a different vibe than I’m used to seeing in a principal in a movie like this.

Ooh, Griffith grading papers and saying “What a fuckin’ idiot” is a real mood.

“Since when has the Board of Education done anything for us? We barely get fuckin lunch” is legit. The lunches my students were served in summer school were some of the most horrifying things I’ve ever seen. One day it was spoiled milk, white bread, and pickles. And one of my students put his in a microwave that was hidden in the back of my classroom behind some dividers and left it for a week. And just so you know, as stomach-churningly awful as that sounds, the day I found “pickle man” as my student called him, isn’t even in my top 5 worst days teaching list.

I like Griffith, and I’m glad Louanne has a friend, but frankly I’m not that interested in these interludes between them - they really feel like they slow down the momentum from the scenes of her in the classroom slowly earning the kids’ trust. The pacing is kind of a mess, because the most dynamic sections all revolve around the kids in the classroom, and I feel like that only makes up about a third of the movie.

One thing I know for sure is you do not get in the middle of a fight between students. I have a friend who worked in the same district I did who interrupted a fight and got punched in the face because of it. And her principal blamed her.

Oh wow the way the soundtrack picks up when Emilio finally engages in the class is some kinda cheesy. And it continues through the rest of the scene to a distracting degree. Oh Wendy and Lisa, I hoped for better.

Can I just emphasize that to reach these kids, Louanne uses her experience as a LITERAL MARINE by demonstrating she can kick all their asses, and then she bribes them by paying for 25 kids to go to an amusement park for the entire day with her?

Also, even if they like and respect her now, I call bullshit at any scene in which ALL of the kids are A) sitting in their seats or B) silent, and especially C) both.

Um suddenly feeling some weird vibes with Louanne and Raul having a dinner date at this fancy restaurant by themselves. Also, the double standard here is pretty telling - there’s no way this scene makes the movie if Louanne had been a male teacher and Raul was a female student.

Wait wait wait, she’s also loaning Raul $200? Like, is this why I didn’t make it as a teacher? Because I wasn’t a former Marine taking students to amusement parks and fancy dinners and lending them money? I was 25 and could barely afford rent. Maybe teachers who have enough money to take care of themselves are better equipped to take care of others. Idk, I’m just spitballin here.

Oh “Gangsta’s Paradise” is happening again! We already heard the whole song over the opening credits but now it’s happening again about 3/4 way through. I mean this song is definitely the best thing about the film, so I get it, but it feels weird that they think we wouldn’t notice it playing to completion twice.

Michelle Pfeiffer is doing everything she can to make this movie feel less cheesy and more real. Like, you can tell she’s really trying with her performance. Of course, it’s not like the character is a huge challenge acting-wise, but she is definitely committed to the part and can walk the line of both accessible and tough.

This scene where Louanne tells her class she is not going to be there next year, that what happened to Durell and Lionel and Callie and Emilio made her too sad to stay has not aged well at all. And it’s certainly true to life, and I say that as someone who did the same thing. It’s not something I’m proud of, but it’s a reality - the fact that I’m a nice white lady is exactly the reason that I can choose to leave when things get too hard. Just because the kids convince her to stay at the end in this very rushed “all’s well that ends well” way doesn’t sweep this scene under the rug, and it shouldn’t.

Ope, “Gangsta’s Paradise” shows up one last time in the credits for good measure.

Side note: after the film, I researched Louanne, and she’s still teaching, which honestly made me emotional (in a good way). And I’d like to point out the racist ass bullshit the studio and screenwriter Ronald Bass pulled by changing the poems the students read to Bob Dylan lyrics when Louanne originally used rap lyrics from popular artists in ‘89-’90 to teach the kids about poetry.

Did I Cry? No, but I did get heartburn from anxiety flashbacks.

This genre of film is easy to mock and parody because it tells the same story and hits the same beats to the point that they’ve become cliche. Ultimately, the truth at the heart of the movie (which is the un-nuanced and candy-coated depiction of Johnson’s real memoir, My Posse Don’t Do Homework) is that high schoolers crave someone who will see them and validate them, someone who is willing to put in the effort. The quality of the package that truth is wrapped in varies, and this one certainly leans in hard on stereotypes that feel like cheat codes rather than any real illuminating depictions of living teenagers. But as cringey as it is to watch, maybe it’s not a bad thing to remember that all people - including those who are trapped in poverty and all the cruel injustices that entails - want to be seen and valued for who they really are.

If you liked this review, please consider reblogging or subscribing to my Patreon! For as low as $1, you can access bonus content and movie reviews, or even request that I review any movie of your choice.

#121in2021 #dangerous minds #dangerous minds review #michelle pfeiffer #renoly santiago #courtney b vance #louanne johnson #movie reviews #film reviews #patreon review

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femmesfollesnebraska · 3 years

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Artist feature: Helena Baka

Artist Helena Baka shares with LFF about her inspiration as an artist through trauma, experiences, identity, femininity and more. All images and text (c) Helena Baka, helenabaka.com.

Where are you from and how did you get into art?

I’m from Elmwood Park, Illinois, but I’m currently living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Both of my parents were born and raised in Albania and immigrated from there before I was born, a few years after the collapse of communism. I’ve loved art since I was a child – I used to draw princesses, my favorite television show characters, Sanrio characters, and self-portraits. This was probably because both of my parents were artists - my father is a painter, and my mom used to make little angel Christmas ornaments and draw mermaids for my sister and me (although she stopped doing that very early on once she became a paralegal). All my life I had been surrounded by my dad’s oil painting landscapes of Albania hanging on the walls of our home, so I think I wanted to be just as good as him.

It’s been hard to be upfront about this, but my mom committed suicide when I was only 16 years old, and that was really the beginning of my painting practice because I started to draw inspiration from my traumas, dreams and experiences after that. Now, my work is motivated by my cultural identity and the distance I’ve experienced with my Albanian culture while growing up American. Lots of my current work shines on aspects of my identity, both relating to culture and femininity. I also have been exploring the relationship between sculpture and painting in my work because I’m fascinated with how bending the rules of traditional sculpture and/or painting can possibly make either of those fall into either category.

I have a few impetuses for creating; much of it derives from the need to tell my story, to use my practice as a form of therapy, to take risks and experiment with both familiar and unfamiliar mediums, and to educate my audience on whatever topic evokes strong emotions from me.

Tell me about your most recent exhibit.

4th Midwest Open at Woman Made Gallery in Chicago is the upcoming show I’m featured in, and I’m really excited for it because it’s going to be filled with so many different types of work featuring many artists of diverse backgrounds. It’s a chance to showcase the voices of women and nonbinary people in a space that is not male-dominated, which I think is so important because spaces like these are rare to find in the art world.

I hope when people see my work, it can spark some curiosity and self-education of what and where Albania is, and that it’s not just some impoverished Eastern European country that never made it into the footnotes of western history textbooks. My work touches on themes of loss, displacement, and frustration with one’s identity, as well as learning to accept and embrace who you are; that it’s okay not to fit into the mold of who or what you’re “supposed” to be. So, I hope at the end of the day, anyone who views my work can see a little bit of themselves in it, too. Most importantly, I want to be the Albanian woman artist role model that I never got to see growing up.

Does collaboration play a role in your work?

Although I have always worked independently in the studio, I’ve found collaboration beneficial to my practice through exposure of others’ ideas and methods of production. Being in my last year of art school toward my BFA, I have grown used to surrounding myself in an environment of plenty of working artists, and that alone inspires me to create, too. I think the act of critiques and even showing in-progress work has been a collaboration between me and whoever is critiquing my work, because most of the time I’ll come out of it with fresh ideas handed to me by another person. It works the same way vice-versa.

I once had my first ceramic sculpture fall apart in the kiln, and through a collaborative effort of mending it with my friend who was very familiar with working with plaster, my sculpture was repaired and I gained new insight toward this specific material and potential future uses in my practice. My work could never have progressed the way it has without the exposure of different ideas, methods and materials that other artists use.

What do you think about making work right now with the current political climate?

The political climate we’re living in right now has brought on so much outstanding work that has been made by BIPOC creators. Through the darkness of the pandemic, a corrupt, unfitting president in office, systemic racism, police brutality, and all of the tragic deaths we’ve experienced in 2020 from these events, one of the few instances of light the world gained out of these tragedies was the art made by black folx and BIPOC. From music to writing to visual art, BIPOC’s voices have been uplifted and encouraged on every accessible platform, and I continue to see more and more spaces made exclusively for these communities in the art world. Art really makes a difference in impacting our ways of thinking and beliefs, and I believe that if we continue to make BIPOC creators and voices a priority after Black Lives Matter is no longer a trending topic, there could be huge changes in the art world that provide even bigger opportunities for BIPOC creators, such as solo/group exhibitions, publications, grants and rewards, and leadership positions, if not more.

Is feminism relevant to your work?

Absolutely! I would categorize much of my work as feminist pieces because it discuss the contrasting distance and pride not only between myself and my cultural identity, but with my female identity as well that has been challenged and taken advantage of throughout all my life by others. Sexism, misogyny perpetuated by both men and women, double standards, and body image dysphoria as a consequence of these things have all been themes I’ve had to work through in my life and practice.

I can’t speak for every womxn or nonbinary person, but most who are or have once been feminine presenting in their lives have experienced a hypersexualization of themselves and their bodies through the media, culture, and the overall tainted perspective of the patriarchy we’ve been trained to look through. Instead, my work inevitably sees through the lens of the female gaze, where there is no objectification or negativity associated with the female/feminine body or experience, and instead the viewer is presented with this sort of chaotic, distortion of the faces and bodies of my characters, who are often abstract depictions of self-portraits.

What’s the best advice you have received about being an artist?

Strive to make work better than the last and only compete with yourself. Never measure your talents and successes to someone else's.

helenabaka.com

instagram: @artbug666.

Les Femmes Folles is a volunteer organization founded in 2011 with the mission to support and promote women in all forms, styles and levels of art from around the world with the online journal, print annuals, exhibitions and events; originally inspired by artist Wanda Ewing and her curated exhibit by the name Les Femmes Folles (Wild Women). LFF was created and is curated by Sally Brown Deskins. LFF Books is a micro-feminist press that publishes 1-2 books per year by the creators of Les Femmes Folles including the award-winning Intimates & Fools (Laura Madeline Wiseman, 2014) , The Hunger of the Cheeky Sisters: Ten Tales (Laura Madeline Wiseman/Lauren Rinaldi, 2015 and Mes Predices (catalog of art/writing by Marie Peter Toltz, 2017). Other titles include Les Femmes Folles: The Women 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 available on blurb.com, including art, poetry and interview excerpts from women artists. A portion of the proceeds from LFF books and products benefit the University of Nebraska-Omaha’s Wanda Ewing Scholarship Fund.

Submissions always open! - Check out the 10th anniversary call here:

https://femmesfollesnebraska.tumblr.com/callforart-writing

#feminsitart #contemporaryart #womenartists #womanmadegallery

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aaluminiumas · 3 years

Text

Sapphire

He had seen her at her worst.

In fact, Crocodile barely remembered the moment she started working for him: after years of affiliation and partnership balancing on the verge of a more intimate relationship, the memory practically erased the event that brought the woman to the threshold of his luxurious office packed with sumptuous bric-a-bracs she never considered useful. As a chain smoker, he had a guillotine cigar cutter incrusted with gems just as bright as those in his rings. Ivory statuettes and figurines stood upon multiple shelves showing off ancient books. A huge elephant leg-shaped urn in the corner of the office made him look like a huge fan of safari that worked as a perfect disguise to those who didn’t know the man at all. The best rugs covered the floor that slightly creaked at the steps and smelled wood. A bar across his desk contained the most expensive beverages: Crocodile himself preferred strong drinks but the guests he welcomed could relish the flavor of the eminent champagne, wine, liqueur, port, cognac, gin, whiskey and whatever else their heart desired.

Nico Robin was mentally put in the row of wines, undeniably red. Cunning and intoxicating, she provoked slow reaction: once yielded into her hands, the drinker would not be able to forego her influence. One couldn’t get enough of her until she used her outstanding skills and bring them into action. She always waited for the right moment, parsed the situation, made the decision and hit quickly – hit so hard into the head that left the man dumbfounded and thunderstruck. Crocodile was by no means a careless one, or so he thought; that’s why he believed that Nico Robin, no matter how skillful, gifted and extraordinary she was claimed to be, wielded no power to finagle the information she needed. She could not double cross him – definitely not.

“Nico Robin,” the man drawled, his pale fingers tapping at the rim of the whiskey tumbler. “What brings you here?”

Of course he had gleaned a few details about her: he was aware of the schemes she contrived and accomplished; he learnt everything about the organizations she breached in and disrupted from the inside. Using his position, he spent quite a while in the archives of the Marines to find out more facts about the girl who fled from ablaze Ohara two decades ago. She was no longer a child he saw on the wanted posters. There was no fear on the pale face; he spotted no consternation in the azure eyes of the weeping girl; he clearly saw a mature woman whose sangfroid could easily surpass his. Unlike many others before her, Nico Robin was not afraid of notorious Sir Crocodile.

“Work,” came a dry simple reply.

Crocodile’s golden eyes veered to look at the woman standing opposite him – the lack of intonation that would reveal her real intentions caused him to peruse her visage in attempt to pry into her mind.

Tall, slender, unbending, the female was intently staring at the man sitting in the armchair. Her black hair, two inches lower her ears, exposed the jawline and the fine neck with visible tendons. For a moment he thought that such a woman deserved a necklace with a sapphire to rest in the dimple between the collarbones.

“What do you expect from the job?” the man drawled idly, in a lackadaisical voice. For some vague reason, he felt ill at ease: quiet and motionless, distant and composed, Nico Robin intrigued him. This woman must’ve seen enough to learn the basics and burnish her deadly skills: although jockeying for her place in the sun, she wouldn’t resort to blatant flattery or beautiful lies.

“Precision and accuracy,” came the dry reply.

Precision and accuracy. Indeed. She didn’t want less from a man so notorious – and she didn’t even try to flatter him by ingratiating smiles and servile behavior which intrigued him even more. Crocodile realized that he finally found someone smart enough to rely upon while contriving schemes and cons, but on the other hand the man knew she saw though him predicting his ensuing actions and upcoming decisions.

Unsettling. Crocodile loathed being in the position of his own employee, scrutinized and examined by the superior.

…Miss All Sunday had been working for Sir Crocodile for years before the idea of building up an empire moulded and fortified in his mind. The whole notion seemed particularly tempting: a man with connections and acquaintances, Crocodile knew how to work out the kinks making the plan impeccable by perfecting the smallest details. He had already observed violations on the part of his fellow ‘colleagues’, especially Doflamingo. Even though he practically staged a coup, the leader of the Donquixote Family didn’t come under a tidal wave of criticism – the government connived at the odious crimes he committed. Would an organization disguised by a casino ever beat it? Hardly.

Crocodile learnt the details from the incumbent King of Dress Rosa himself – Nico Robin, highly intelligent, didn’t go into hiding and accompanied her boss to the private parties knowing how much that particular Donquixote nettled him. The sandman, suspicious, industrious and quiet until his plan accomplished and goals reached, detested Doflamingo’s braggadocio. With a glass of exquisite wine in hand, the new King of Dress Rosa boasted whenever he felt right – which meant constantly.

In fact, Doflamingo’s lengthy soliloquy Crocodile tended to disregard, pushed her to contribute to the empire prospect: unlike her boss, Robin imbibed his words like a sponge. The woman offered the level system and the nicknames – while it may seem odd to some, her boss found it ‘charming’. That’s what he said – probably stating it to be a hallmark of the organization from now on.

Mr. 0 he became.

Ms. All Sunday she was.

Ms. All Sunday was allowed to play by ear.

In all honesty, she held no illusions as to what he was going to do to her when she was no longer needed: Robin fully comprehended his intentions and ulterior motives. Even though she managed to become irreplaceable, she knew she had to run amok as soon as she got the chance. For now, the devoted subordinate chose to simply enjoy the wide range of entertainments the rigorous man had to offer – though she never relinquished the hold of her graceful hand on the business.

Unsettling. Sir Crocodile didn’t like that either.

In a way, she enthralled, entranced him – and the realization gnawed at the man especially when she sat up on the bed, adjusted her short dark hair and stood up to grab her clothes and leave. It wasn’t their first time together; neither of them even remembered what drew them so close that they were ready to push the boundaries and forget about subordination. After all, they both cherished their loneliness but got fed up with it – stressed, abandoned and injured, they found another benefit of working in tow to avoid the emotional toll.

“Where are you going? He asked in a low voice not even looking at the woman beside him but nonetheless smoking his cigar.

“To work, I gather,” she replied calmly and, stark naked, stood up to approach the curtains.

“Stay.”

It didn’t sound like an order at all – albeit said in the same commanding tone, it resembled a simple request. She did suspect a gambit in it, a ruse to pry into her thoughts, but something inside her bludgeoned her to obey.

They didn’t talk that morning. Sir Crocodile kept smoking his cigar, Robin lay next to him, swarthy and flexible, ready to retaliate in case of danger. Although she knew she was allowed to leave the chamber unharmed, she couldn’t impel herself to do it – and to lose the warmth she longed for too long.

It may have been forged. It may have been a trick to keep her near but it was still nice to maintain the illusion of being taken care of. Idle, neglectful, egoistic to a fault, Crocodile probably didn’t even think about that he – deliberately or not – supplied her with something she craved for.

“Why didn’t you go that day? I didn’t detain you.”

“You didn’t banish me either.”

He hummed and didn’t respond – no answer came to his mind, only a picture of the inflexible young woman with short dark hair. The more peculiar it was to watch her grow and develop – and finally come across her new wanted poster: the almond eyes narrowed, long strands slightly disheveled. She was still enthralling – and he might have welcomed her back if she asked nicely. Nico Robin – Ms. All Sunday – was extremely smart: her ideas always served the right purpose.

Crocodile glanced at one of the rings he was wearing. Sapphire. He gave the necklace to her. She put it on once or twice but he never knew whether it was an act of courtesy, genuine fear, sheer respect or mocking.

Maybe he should pay her a visit?..

#one piece #OP #baroque works #sir crocodile #crocodile #nico robin #sir crocodile x nico robin #crocodile x robin #miss all sunday

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meggz0rz · 4 years

Video

youtube

INU KPOP AU

CHAPTER ONE: A KING’S PLAN, AND A VOICE WITHOUT A FACE

-MIROKU-

“Miroku?”

Miroku looked up from his phone, knowing he probably looked as bleary-eyed as he felt. Sesshomaru, always a fan of dramatic flair, kept the lights in his top-floor office purposely dimmed, and so even in the waiting room outside the double doors to the inner sanctum, it was hard to see very well. Or at all, really.

Kagura stood there in her smart straight-legged jeans and heels, chewing on the lid of a ballpoint pen and squinting down at her customary appointment diary. It seemed even after years of working side-by-side with her oh-so-famous household name of a client, she hadn’t completely adjusted to the lack of visibility either.

Miroku had thought to ask her about it once, several years ago, and she had just shrugged and laughed quietly to herself, saying something about Sesshomaru “having his quirks just like every other genius” but saying it with clear fondness.

“You can go in now. ‘The King’ is ready and waiting.”

They exchanged a smirk, and Miroku stood up from the plush bench (which wouldn’t have looked out-of-place in a museum exhibit about Louis XIV) and cracked his neck.

He’d only been waiting forty minutes. New record.

But then again, Sesshomaru ran on Sesshomaru time. And if Sesshomaru needed to delay a meeting to call his psychic and see just how the stars were aligning today for creative efforts...well, more power to him.

“Ah, Miroku,” Sesshomaru said, giving the slightest hint of a smile as Miroku poked his head in through the heavy office doors. “Come on in and have a seat.”

Miroku ambled up to one of the large high-backed chairs in front of the desk and dropped himself into it. This room was even darker, as Miroku had well known, and so when the chair on his right spoke, he had to fight not to jump in surprise.

“Sup, Rap Monk.” Inuyasha wasn’t smiling welcomely, but he did, at least, raise a single hand in greeting before returning the bitter scowl to his face and staring across the desk at his older brother.

“I wish you wouldn’t call me that anymore,” Miroku sighed, running a hand over his face. “I didn’t choose that stage name to begin with, and it’s haunted me ever since.”

“Would you like something to drink, Miroku? Coffee, tea, sparkling water?” Sesshomaru held up a hand as if ready to summon Kagura to retrieve whatever it was.

“No, I’m good, thanks. What’s this all about?”

Sesshomaru took on a solemn posture, folding his hands upon his desk. If he noticed Kagura scurrying around behind him and frantically lighting even more of the candelabras that dotted every other surface in the room, he didn’t give any indication as he heaved a great sigh.

“As you know,” ‘The King’ began, “my foolish little brother was just dropped from Naraku’s label. The group is disbanding and the label is reassigning the other members to various new projects.”

“Dropped? Fired, more like,” Inuyasha growled under his breath. “Thrown out like it was nothing, and after all these years I busted my ass - “

“There is obviously much to say about this,” Sesshomaru interrupted sternly, “but that is not what I’m concerned about at the moment. That’s not why you were summoned here, Miroku.”

Summoned. Like I’m a slave on retainer.

Well, to be fair, Sesshomaru’s album sales didn’t lie, did they?

Miroku would jump on command if he had to just to get a piece of the action, especially after long months of sporadic freelance producing work that were threatening to force him to - gasp - downgrade his apartment in Seoul. The very idea!

“I’m guessing you want me to produce some tracks to start Inuyasha off on a solo career?” Miroku awkwardly rubbed at the back of his neck. “Are you gonna finance him to start out or - “

“I can finance my own damn self if I need to, thanks.” Inuyasha leaned back in the chair and crossed a leg over his lap.

And that was probably true.

Inuyasha, in the very beginning, had purposely signed to a label unconnected to his outrageously famous brother, had done his best to gain fame the hard way with talent and commitment and that charisma of his. He’d been, inarguably, the breakout star of his group, and had become the face of Naraku Entertainment.

Until a few months ago. When it all came crashing down.

The press had freaked out. The fans had freaked out. But Naraku Entertainment’s decision stood, and all that momentum had been squashed like an unexpecting insect on the kitchen floor.

“We are of the opinion,” Sesshomaru said, in a way that made it sound like it wasn’t anyone’s opinion but his own, “that we need to keep Inuyasha behind-the-scenes for now, so to speak. In order for him to come through this unscathed, we will need the power of the fans behind us.”

That wasn’t going to be easy. The Japanese fans had at first been outraged on Inuyasha’s behalf, but in the span of twenty-four hours they had turned, blaming him for busting up their favorite group, blaming him for being selfish.

Sesshomaru must have seen the uncertainty on Miroku’s face (which was once again, a miracle in this candlelit room covered in crushed velvet drapery), because he quickly went on. “We’re going to extend this company of mine, this label, to include a whole new crop of Japanese idols and entertainers. And we’re going to concentrate almost entirely on the Korean market.”

“Ahhh, so that’s why you wanted me to fly up here,” Miroku said, breaking into a sly smile. “Because I’m based in Seoul now.”

“We’re going to start with a female group. A small one, no more than four or five members. I want girls fluent in both Japanese and Korean.”

“A girl group? Why not a - “

“Because if it’s a bunch of guys, the press is going to think I’m just forming a new group for myself, and they’ll go ballistic and call me an ungrateful egomaniac,” Inuyasha supplied, glaring down at his clenched fist on the arm of his chair.

“Precisely,” Sesshomaru said. “And besides, this will be something grand, something the world has never seen before. A group of Japanese artists performing entirely in Korean for Koreans. It will make the home market see what they are missing, and will drum up support for a glorious comeback for all.”

“Uh...huh…?” Miroku gave a bewildered frown. “So you want me to...what, exactly?”

“Oh for fuck’s sake, he’s hiring you, idiot.” Inuyasha’s tone was growly, but from what Miroku could see in this cave of platinum records and eccentricity, he was smirking.

“To…?”

“To help me, to help Inuyasha form this group, produce and write the songs, and grow the label’s influence in a market you must know quite intimately by now.”

Holy shit. “Oh, okay, yeah that sounds like a plan.” Understatement of the century right there.

“Your first task is this,” Sesshomaru said, “I already know I want Ayame in the group. She’s been going through a similar situation with her label as Inuyasha was with his, and she’s looking to make a change. I can handle that part; she’s a good friend.”

To a man this famous, Ayame, who at one time was built up as “Japan’s Newest Idol Princess,” a girl whom everyone between the ages of twelve and forty knew, was simply “a good friend.” Oh, to live the life these people lead every day.

“A-Alright.” This was happening so fast. One minute you’re thinking of selling your old memorabilia to make rent, and the next…

“I want the others to be largely unknowns. New discoveries. I don’t want the typical formula, where girls in their early teens sign horrific contracts and are reduced to dancing, singing soldiers by the time of their debut. I want the emphasis to be that here at Taisho Entertainment, we don’t need that kind of rote repetition to make stars from nobodies.”

Miroku was starting to pick up what Sesshomaru was putting down, and it both intrigued him as a concept and terrified him beyond belief. “You want to form a fully realized K-pop girl group using girls without any formal training in the system?”

“That’s exactly what I want.”

Miroku gulped. That meant combing through thousands upon thousands of Japanese girls, weeding out the ones who couldn’t speak Korean first, then weeding out the mediocre ones, then weeding out the ‘girls-who-sing-well-but-have-no-stage-presence’ and the ‘girls-who-can-dance-their-feet-off-but-have-voices-like-dying-cats’...

“You got it.” Why do I feel like I just signed up for guaranteed panic attacks and insomnia for the next several months, or even years?

“I’ll expect a list of some good prospects to explore by the end of the week,” Sesshomaru said, “You’ll need to work closely with my brother on this. The priority here is untapped talent, and if we find a girl who’s usable, we’ll help her learn the rest.”

Time to hit up karaoke bars and YouTube, I guess.

“You’re dismissed. I’ll summon you both again in a week’s time to look over what you’ve found and work out our plans from there.”

Like a good little soldier, Miroku stood and left the office. Inuyasha sighed behind him and followed, but at a more reluctant pace.

“Where do we even start?” Inuyasha griped, shoving his hands into his pockets and kicking at the ground.

Ding-ding-ding. Lightbulb.

“Wait,” Miroku said, pulling out his phone and going to his streaming app. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of it a second ago. I found this duo on my random playlist just last week. Apparently they’re based at Busan National University, they’re Japanese nationals, and they play the coffeehouse circuit.”

Inuyasha peered over his shoulder at the band’s profile page, emblazoned with the words ‘JxK, LOL’ which was, admittedly, a pretty terrible name for a band under any circumstances.

“No photos,” Inuyasha pointed out, raising an eyebrow. “That’s promising. You’re right, Miroku. Brilliant idea. I see why my brother’s gonna pay you a million gazillion - “

“Alright, alright,” Miroku said irritatedly. “Enough with the snark. I know we don’t know what either of them looks like, but just listen to this girl’s voice.”

He chose a song and hit play.

(AUTHOR’S NOTE: HI I WILL BE COMING IN LIKE THIS QUITE FREQUENTLY TO TELL Y’ALL WHEN TO HIT PLAY ON THE LINK FOR MAXIMUM IMMERSION. OF COURSE YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO IT ONLY WHEN I SAY SO, YOU CAN LISTEN TO YOUR HEART’S CONTENT HOWEVER THE HELL YOU WANNA, BUT STILL, CONSIDER THIS YOUR CUE TO PLAY THE SONG IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY OK BYEEEE)

They both stood there, both utterly enraptured.

As the song played, the skeptical furrow in Inuyasha’s brow seemed to gradually smoothe out, and Miroku had to fight back a laugh of triumph.

“Okay, so she can sing,” Inuyasha said stubbornly after the last notes rang out and they were left in silence once more. “She can really sing. But aside from knowing that she’s somewhere in the huge-ass city of Busan, how can we possibly find out more about her? We don’t even know her name!”

With a flourish that would have made Sesshomaru tear up with pride, Miroku pulled up the band’s tiny social media page. Still no photos or details, but there, aha, a small list of upcoming gigs (all coffeehouses and restaurants, of course).

“Guess we got a date,” Miroku snarked.

Inuyasha sighed, blowing a lock of silvery hair out of his face. “Guess I gotta pack for a flight to Korea.”

“Pack for a week,” Miroku called after his retreating back, “It’s gonna be a busy one.”

#inukpopau #kpop #inuyasha #fanfiction #inukpopau ch1 #akmu #akdong musician #re bye

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africanization101 · 5 years

Text

A heart-warming tale from Berlin

My blog mixes fact and fantasy for erotic effect and as enjoyable as that can be, I try not to delude myself and limit my expectations in the real world. Every so often though, I will read an article in a serious journal or paper that will make me do a double take to see if I haven’t accidentally clicked on a fetish blog. Today I want to share one such story.

It’s an article from Berlin-based newspaper Tagesspiegel about the “gangs of Marzahn”, Marzahn being a gentrifying working class neighborhood in Berlin with a sizeable non-white population. It’s advertised as a generic story about youth crime, but then you read it and ... well, I’ll just translate the relevant passages for you, add some visuals and share my two cents later.

---

Four police cruisers stop near Marzahn’s Eastgate mall to investigate a break-in at the nearby elementary school. The officers spread out to search the area, but the youngsters they are looking for have long vanished. Ten minutes later, the police give up.

Things quiet down for a while. Then we spot three girls, maybe 14 to 16 years old, sharing the same look: leggings, cigarettes and cell phones.

“WhatsApp told them the coast is clear,” says Uwe Heide, a social worker observing the scene. Other groups of young women approach, then some groups of young men. Half an hour later, the place is packed. Beyoncé plays from big speakers and there’s lots of smoking, drinking and general cavorting. “They’re chasing each other”, Heide adds. (...)

The general composition of these groups is known to the authorities: “They consist of male adolescents with migrant backgrounds and female adolescents who live in the general area. The male groups feature recently arrived adolescent refugees, but also sons of immigrants who have been living here their whole lives.” A few of them come all the way from other parts of the city to join in.

“The girls are the motivating factor here,” says Heide, who has been doing street outreach at Eastgate. He and his colleagues have long been confused by their presence. It took them a good bit of observation and dialogue to figure out that the girls are basically coaxing young migrant men to come to the Eastgate mall. The young men, in turn, are convinced that their female companions are “easy”. “They’re competing for these girls”, Heide says. It’s a completely new challenge for him. “We have no expertise to fall back on here,” he says.

These young women come from good homes, they’re white German and generally middle class. This makes it hard for a social worker to entice them with anything. Heide sounds like he’s at his wit’s end. (...)

Things look peaceful enough at the hangout spot. The youngsters stand around in groups; every so often, girls will circle boys and vice versa. Some are holding hands, there’s a bit of kissing. It has all the makings of a courtship dance.

Paula is 14, wears white sneakers, skinny jeans and a red shirt, all pricey brand-name clothes. “These guys are just such great fun. They’re up for anything,” she says, eating some ice cream. The boys from her school, on the other hand, bore her; they’re glued to their computer screens, she says. She’s here three or four times a week together with her twin sister, always in the afternoons after school. What does she like about her new friends? “They’re always here for us. One call and we’re rolling.” Just then one of her girlfriends walks over carrying a bottle of blue Prosecco. Paula throws away her ice cream and follows her. The group returns a short while later, slightly tipsy, no bottle in sight. Do her parents know what she’s up to here, we ask? Paula just laughs at us in response.

---

The article already touches on this twice, but it’s important to note that these aren’t trashy chav girls just because they’re smoking and drinking at 14. For better or worse, that is the age when German teenagers of all social strata start smoking and drinking. The difference is that, at least 10 years ago, prim middle class girls in expensive sneakers would have done their partying in some rich whiteboi’s pool house. Of course that’s not going to happen anymore if you automatically reject your white male peers for being boring nerds and aren’t shy to tell journalists about it either. Absolutely devastating, lol.

What I would really like to know is what cover story they’re telling their parents about their exploits. Middle class parents in Germany are no less snoopy than elsewhere and being away from home all week has to raise some questions. They must have cooked up some elaborate tale and stuck to it, collectively, because if one of them was found out, they’d all be in trouble. The commitment here is astonishing, all so they can party their days away with dreamy migrant beaus.

Obviously there’s a lot of teenage hedonism involved here and most of these girls will grow out of it at some point. But the thing about teenage hedonism is not that it’s an inaccurate reflection of what we want to do; it’s rather a hyper-accurate reflection of what many of us wish we could still be doing, but alas, we now have responsibilities and less energy than our teen selves. These girls may settle down at some point, but they will always be thinking back to this. I’d hate to be the guy who will forever be compared to refugee romance at Eastgate mall.

This is really happening and it’s so happening that it even became a story in a German newspaper. At this pace, I’ll soon be able to graduate from IR blogger to legit journalist and hardly anyone will be able to tell the difference.

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desperatelyseekingroleplay · 4 years

Text

Searching for Discord 1x1

Hello! I’m looking for some skilled, experienced 1x1 partners for Discord roleplays. Please read to the end as there is a password I won't answer messages without.

•General/Writing Style•

I usually prefer sticking at around 4 paragraphs and up, but quality over quantity for the most part. These days I’ve been favoring a bit of a slower pace and writing 8+ paragraphs, however. I would prefer you write in 3rd person, past tense. Please have decent grammar and spelling, varied vocabulary and sentence structure, as well as decent syntax. Please provide me something of substance to respond to in your responses. Please also be somewhat experienced.

•Age•

18+ only, but 21+ preferred (I'm 23)

•Timezone•

EST. I don’t mind what timezone you’re in- waking up to new responses is exciting :)

•Platforms•

Discord is strongly preferred for the actual role-play. I can be convinced to use kik, Reddit, or Tumblr, however.

•Response Frequency•

I'd prefer if you could respond at least a few times a week. I'm a pretty busy student can't always commit to much more than that, so I won't ask that of you. Please try to communicate when you will be gone or significantly less active for several weeks or more. I will try to do the same.

Please don’t contact me if you will be gone for a couple weeks plus very early into the role-play. I tend to lose interest very fast if there’s long breaks at the very beginning. Get me invested and I can wait quite a long time for you, though.

I'm a bit less lenient with this when we're still doing introductions, so if we've barely said hello but a few days pass and I hear nothing, I'll assume you're no longer interested or never were in the first place and close our discussion. You are free to assume the same of me.

•Genre•

I'm a sucker for modern, romantic slice-of-life with a healthy dose of character-driven drama and angst. I also sometimes like to weave other genres in there too such as Supernatural, Mystery, Action, and Adventure. I'm really open to most things if the plot interests me.

•Gender and Romantic Preference•

I strongly prefer playing a female main outside of MxM. Beyond that, I am open to MxF, FxF, NBxM/F, and MxM. Currently, I'm mostly in the mood for an MxF or possibly F//. My apologies, but please note I do not play male in MxF nor do I double up.

I do not engage in dichotomy personality dynamics and like pairings to be close to even as possible in contributions to the relationship. If a scene gets intimate, I'd prefer we fade to black.

•Plots/Creativity•

While I have plots listed, you're more than welcome to share plots of your own. I'd prefer it if you are open to brainstorming plot points and bouncing ideas off each other too. Let's keep this interesting for both of us so it stays alive.

•OCs•

I would prefer not to roleplay with OCs that are excessively shy, Mary-Sues, or OP. Additionally, please ensure your own OC does not monopolize the plot with their own issues and background. Let's share the spotlight.

I tend to play multiple side-characters and would prefer if you did too.

Please do not control my main OC or any named side characters I introduce. It can really mess with my plans with them if you suddenly auto-kill out of nowhere or something... If necessary, I may permit you to control a side character of mine, but please run it by me first. Communication is key.

•Fandoms•

I am willing to roleplay within the universe of several fandoms, but please note I do not roleplay as canon characters and would prefer not to roleplay with canon characters either. Please recall that I am more than happy to do original plots too if you aren't into any of these.

-Corpse Party**

-Black Mirror*

-Death Note

-Avatar The Last Airbender*

-Downton Abbey

-Call The Midwife*

-Dragon Quest(IV-IX)***

-Miraculous Ladybug****(I'd love to delve into the more subtle, darker elements like the consequences of a broken miraculous and time travel)

-Fruits Basket***

-Soul Eater

-The Hunger Games

(The number of * indicates craving)

•Original Plots•

(Muse I would like to play is bolded. If neither are bolded, I can do either. All of these are open to brainstorming and tweaking!)

(This is an older one of mine, but I’ve recently kinda been in the mood to start it up again.) Marianoh’s Culinary Institute is the most renowned school for culinary arts in the country. Any who truly wish to be a master chef would be foolish not to attend. Unless they don’t have the means- the tuition is insanely high. Muse A is part of the lucky few of humble beginnings that has been selected to attend via scholarship. They couldn’t be more excited. Muse B, on the other hand, comes from a family of celebrity chefs. Their spot at Marianoh’s was confirmed before birth. Yet, somehow, they don’t share Muse A’s joy. Far from it, actually. What happens when the two are partnered up for the year?

Muse A has always been at the top of their class since early elementary and thrived on it. They come from a family of high achievers where failure is neither seen nor accepted. Proud and arrogant over their achievements, their grades make them, them. All that changed when Muse B showed up, smashing the entrance exams with marks unheard of. Of course Muse A wouldn’t take that lying down, thus, the classic rivalry begins. What happens when the two find they have more in common than they thought? Life on Muse B’s side is not all it seems as well.

They were the voice in their head. The imaginary friend. For as long as they can remember, Muses A and B have always been there for each other when they needed it. But to everyone else, it’s all in their heads. They was saved from that riptide by pure chance and luck, despite being unable to swim. The bullies were coming for them, but they found that little nook to hide in all on their own. Flash forward to current day, the two are attending the same university. Muse A is an upstart, trying to make a name for themself academically and socially, the latter going much better than the former. Muse B is the opposite, the social anxiety fueled by a rocky past relegating them to basically a shut in. Their grades, on the other hand, are phenomenal despite barely ever attending classes. When a sibling suggests they try working as a tutor to get out more, they have their doubts, but decide to go for it anyway. The first student walk-in, however, just so happens to be Muse A...

Please note the idea for this world is not mine, but I unfortunately don’t remember the title of the original story. If this sounds familiar to you, feel free to comment the details and I’ll credit the story! Anyhow, in a smaller country, tucked away from the rest of the world, people are born into a unique system. They are either Energy Givers or Energy Takers. Their ability activates from a young age and they are paired with the most compatible one of the opposite ability as soon as possible, usually early elementary school. Energy is transferred from the giver to the taker via a kiss on the lips and must be done at least once a day. While partners are not necessarily romantically involved, the two depend on each other immensely. Without receiving energy, the taker will quickly tire, weaken and collapse becoming comatose and at risk of death. If they do not give energy, the giver’s energy supply builds up making them suffer from nausea, lethargy, fevers, and other unpleasant symptoms that will gradually worsen to the point where their life is in danger. Should a pair of partners be separated either through death or other means, the lone individual must visit a donation center where they will be paired with a donor that somewhat matches until a more compatible, new permanent partner is finally found.].

Now for the main plot. Muse A and Muse B are a Giver-Taker pair that has been together since childhood. Their feelings grew from platonic to romantic and by high school, the two were a golden, seemingly unbreakable couple. Near the end their last year, all comes to a grinding halt when Muse B suddenly breaks up with Muse A and disappears. Five years down the line, Muse A is a jaded, lonely individual, known for constantly going from donor to donor. Deciding they need a change, they take a teaching job in a boarding school on the other side of the country. Yet when they walk into the faculty office on their first day, they find themselves placed in a desk right next to Muse A. Not only this, the two are in the same department. How will things proceed?

Contact Instructions: Please either message me here @addienadelaide or email me at [email protected] with BOTH your favorite season and a recently written roleplay sample. If all looks good I will give you my discord and we can move things there. Hope to hear from some of you soon!

#Desperately Seeking Roleplay #Writing Partner Wanted #Roleplay Partner Wanted #Roleplay Partner Ad #Roleplay Partner Search #Original Roleplay Wanted #Long Term Roleplay Wanted #21+ Roleplay Wanted #Slice of Life Roleplay Wanted #submission

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morbid-n-macabre · 5 years

Text

Mountain City, Tennessee

2005-

For a lot of people social media simply enhances their lives, they don't take it too personally; Jenelle Potter was not one of those people. She didn't have any sort of a life at all outside of social media, meaning Facebook was her entire world. Jenelle was a grown woman of thirty still living with her domineering parents, Barbara and Marvin "Buddy" Potter, who still treated their daughter like she was 10. That's not just a random number, 8 - 10 years of age was what Barbara and Buddy told everyone their daughter's mental capacity was. Jenelle did not drive, she didn't hold any sort of a job nor any real responsibilities; the woman was treated as a small child, complete with a set bed time and all.

When Jenelle met Tracy Greenwell, a young woman who worked at the local pharmacy which the Potters frequented to fill Jenelle's diabetes medications in 2009, Tracy took pity on the sad shut-in. In Jenelle she saw a lonely young woman and Tracy took it upon herself to include Jenelle in her own group of friends; her biggest mistake was introducing this woman to her brother, 36 year old Billy Payne. Soft hearted like his sister, Billy decided to take this girl under his wing, he even took Jenelle rock climbing and to the county fair. But you know that old saying: no good deed goes unpunished. Though the man of her dreams always kept the friendship platonic and did his best not to send out the wrong signals, Jenelle fell hopelessly in love.

When Billy first began seeing 23 year old Billie Jean Hayworth, he still did his best to include his female pal in his life; this wasn't an easy feat as Jenelle was mighty jealous. Though she had, without her parent's knowledge, been dating Billy's cousin, Jamie Curd, Jenelle was still fixated on the man who had been so kind to her. Jenelle felt that Billy was hers before Billie Jean showed up; she treated the woman she deemed to be her adversary like dirt! When Billie Jean came up pregnant, Billy did what most honorable men would do: he realized it was time to put an end to his friendship with a woman who refused to respect the mother of his unborn child.

Billy was so happy with his beautiful new life; he and Billie Jean became engaged, moved in together, and soon they were blessed with a perfect baby boy named Tyler. The young couple dreamed of a wonderful future as a family, a dream which they would never be allowed to fulfill. While the happy New family were living in bliss, Jenelle was beside herself; she was obsessing, and she was plotting.

Sometime during Billie Jean's pregnancy Jenelle began to complain that she was being cyber stalked, threatened, and harassed. At one point a stone was found in the Potters yard; on this stone were written the names Billy Payne and Billie Jean, the pair who Jenelle claimed to be behind the hate campaign against her. In turn, Jenelle's online pals began leaving threatening messages for Billy and Billie Jean. There had been so much tension between Billie Jean and Jenelle that the real life group of friends who had recently taken her under their wing completely stopped talking to her; Jenelle was alone with her parents again. Just one person remained by her side: Billy's cousin, Jamie Curd.

Throughout all of this drama, Billy and Billie Jean had kept Jenelle on their Facebook friend's list, until this point. It was finally just too much drama for the happy couple; Jenelle was now unfriended. This was absolutely catastrophic for Jenelle, and she had no intention of letting anyone move on with their lives! Sadly Billy, Billie Jean, nor their friends had any inking that they were in danger; why would they? Jenelle seemed physically harmless, at best she could inspire some hate from strangers via the interwebs. The happy couple believed they were strong enough to weather Jenelle's storm; sadly, they were dead wrong.

When Jenelle's cyber stalking began, a man who identified himself as Chris came out of the woodwork; he began writing to Jenelle's mom, Barbara, online. Chris claimed to have known Jenelle from school, and he was now a CIA agent. Though Barbara could not remember ever meeting this strange man in person, the two became fast friends; they grew so incredibly close that Barbara began to refer to Chris as her son. Chris was supposedly keeping an eye on Billie Jean and her friends, and he was growing more concerned by the day; Jenelle was in imminent danger. He stated that the happy couple had been abusing hard drugs, Billie was a known sex worker, and they planned to kidnap and rape Jenelle because she was a virgin and she was so very pretty. If all of this weren't bad enough, Chris claimed to have proof that this evil couple were planning to cut off Jenelle's beautiful head! Upon hearing this, Barbara panicked; Buddy, Jenelle's Marine corps Vietnam veteran father who had some serious health issues, was brought into the conversation.

Now, if you're a parent you can probably imagine how Barbara and Buddy felt after learning that that there was a plan to kidnap, rape, murder, and decapitate their mentally challenged daughter; it must've been sheer panic! Most of us would be livid, but as adults we would probably still run to the police right away; Buddy and Barbara didn't do that. They were told by CIA Chris that time was running out: if they wanted to save their sweet, innocent daughter's life, they had to act right away! At this point Jenelle's close friend, Jamie, was brought into the fold; the white knights who loved Jenelle quickly formulated a plan to save her.

In the early morning hours of January 31st of 2012, Buddy and Jamie entered Billie Jean and Billy's home. Billy was shot on the head and his throat was slashed as he lay in bed; Billie Jean was shot in the face while holding her infant son on the couch. Baby Tyler was not harmed, but he was left alone in the home with his murdered parents, covered in his Mama's blood. Just before fleeing, Jamie planted drug paraphernalia at the scene in hopes of throwing the investigation off. It was several hours before the corpses were discovered, and the poor baby was rescued from his dead Mama's arms.

Since everyone in town knew of the ongoing war between Billy, Billie Jean, and Jenelle, of course she was an immediate person of interest. Not that anyone believed the childlike 30 year old was capable of anything like this, but police still had to question her; maybe she knew something that could lead them to their killer. Investigators visited the Potters home for a quick interview; Jenelle and her parents claimed they knew nothing of what had happened to the murdered couple, only that they had been harassing Jenelle because they were jealous of her beauty. The family played it cool, and it's very likely they would've gotten away with it all, were it not for Jamie.

Upon hearing through the grapevine that Jamie had been dating Jenelle, the man was brought in for questioning by police. Now Jamie was not an accomplished liar; he failed a polygraph test, and soon confessed. He admitted to entering the victim's home with Buddy Potter; Buddy had been the one who slashed Billy's throat then shot both the man and woman in the face. According to Jamie, he was merely guilty of planted drugs at the scene to throw the investigation off. Once Billy and Billie Jean were good and dead, the two men left their victim's baby alone with his murdered parents. Buddy, who police had originally believed to be physically incapable of committing the crime due to a myriad of health issues, was brought in for questioning. A few hours later he placed a phone call to his wife in which he admitted, "I did it". Even now still had no clue exactly what they were dealing with, or how strange this case would become; not until Jamie asked if the CIA was there to talk with him yet. Police were taken aback; why in the world would the CIA be involved in a small town murder case like this? Then Jamie dropped a bombshell: the double murder had been completely planned out by a CIA agent named Chris.

Upon a search of the Potter home police seized many items, including the family computer and Buddy's truck. In the bed of said truck were hundreds of papers which had been shredded up and thrown in a trash bag; these papers contained printed conversations between the Potters and CIA Chris. But who exactly was this Chris guy? Investigators tracked down a man named Chris Tjaden who had gone to school with Jenelle; this Chris was not a government agent, but a police officer. Though the mysterious CIA Chris had used all of Chris Tjaden's photos as his own, the officer was completely unaware of the situation; matter of fact, he barely even remembered a Jenelle from high school! It was obvious that someone had been impersonating this officer online. When investigators began looking at the Potter family's computers, lo and behold, they discovered CIA Chris's messages had been sent from Jenelle's IP address, and she'd contacted this man by writing to her very own email address! But that's not all they found: remember all of that harassment which Jenelle had suffered through, all of those threatening messages sent by Billie Jean and her friends? Every bit of it had been sent by Jenelle to make her look like a victim! And all those messages which Billie Jean had been receiving from Jenelle's online friends? Every single one of them had been sent from Jenelle's computer as well. Jenelle had created dozens upon dozens of false profiles; she spent a good deal of her life pretending to be fake people, and creating a feud in which no one besides herself truly partook in. Upon feeling slighted by Billy, Jenelle had come up with a plan to get even; this plan included catfishing her very own mother! She invented lies about her targets, and began harassing herself to make it look like she was being victimized. In one online message Jenelle, using a different name, wrote, “F*ck you and Bill and your f*cking so-called little baby. F*ck them. I hope they die, die, die, and that baby”. Jenelle mentioned baby Taylor's death quite often, she wanted this innocent baby dead. Jenelle was really nothing but a master manipulator.

Upon her arrest, Jenelle just couldn't comprehend why she was in trouble. She didn't personally kill anyone, how could she possibly be held criminally responsible? Jenelle had truly believed that she could trick everyone who loved her into committing cold blooded murder, they'd pay the price, and she would walk away scott free! Thankfully the law saw things differently.

Jamie took a plea deal: in exchange for his testimony against Buddy, he received 25 years; Buddy was given two life sentences. Jenelle and her mother Barbara both loudly proclaimed their innocence; they seemed to believe they could manipulate their way out of their legal trouble. Barbara swore that she would not lie for anyone's sake, not even her daughter's! Jenelle's defense was that it would've been impossible for her to mastermind this sort of a crime with her 4th grader mentality; she continued to claim that she'd truly suffered bullying by scores of people online, and that CIA Chris was really real! When it was mentioned that she'd been not only receiving messages from but also contacting CIA Chris by sending messages too very own email address, Jenelle retorted that this was possible because CIA Chris had continuously hacked her account no matter how many times she changed the password. When it was proven that the real Chris was not involved in the scenario at all, Jenelle said she wasn't sure of CIA Chris's true identity, but that she had a good feeling it was someone she'd attended school with him. It was all so far fetched, and the jury saw right through it. Jenelle and her mother are both serving 2 concurrent life sentences for 1st degree murder and conspiracy to commit 1st degree murder. Jenelle will be 80 years of age when she is finally up for parole.

*About the drugs which Jamie planted at the scene, I read that in a book years ago. I wanna say that it was a crack pipe left on the porch. Though I definitely remember reading about it, I can not find a citation to back this up; please take that fact with a grain of salt.

There is another player in this scenario, though very distant she may hold some insight: Jenelle's estranged sister, Christie Groover. Christie says that her sister was always socially awkward. Their parents forced her to make friends, but they were forever going on about how "different" Jenelle had been. Christie got the hell out of Dodge more than a decade before the murders, and she completely cut her family off. After losing all control of Christie, mother likely began to focus all of her attention on the other daughter. To say that Barbara was over protective would be an understatement; by treating Jenelle like a 10 year old forever, she would always have control. The spoiled Jenelle was never going to abandon her parents. When someone threatened to take away the only child they had left, Barbara and Buddy flipped; Buddy did the unthinkable. That's my take on it anyhow.

Oh. And baby Taylor is being raised by his parent's family, he's reportedly doing very well.

#true crime #true story #Tennessee #catfish #catfished #double murder #double homicide #master manipulator #murder #conspiracy

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darkvalkyrie6 · 4 years

Text

Choice

I got the inspiration from an old myth, so no spoilers. Just read the story, there is a short explanation at the end. I didn't use any movies or series for inspiration, the story is my original work.

I hope you like it :)

It’s still just a story, like all of my other stores. It doesn’t have a deeper spiritual, moral or ethical meaning.

————————————————–

Chapter 1. The start of the road

Living in a big city could be chaotic sometimes, especially in the capital city. The city never slept, people were out on the streets all the time, whenever you went out it felt like it was rush hour. Thano’ job required him to work crazy hours. He was in a police department that was understaffed. All of the police departments were understaffed considering that twelve million people lived in the city. With so many people, the time people committing the crimes didn’t consider that the detectives and police officers had to sleep or rest occasionally.

Thano once had a dream that all the crimes in the city were committed between nine AM and four PM and that he was home at five PM having a normal evening just watching TV and drinking a beer. He liked that dream, it was a shame it wasn't true.

Today at eleven PM Thano’ mobile phone rang and his chief told him to be at a crime scene downtown. It was a double homicide. A double homicide was could be a premeditated murder, or a robbery gone wrong he will first have to gather evidence and do the interviews with the family members and friends to see if they had any enemies. The whole process was in his head like a cooking recipe.

“Ahhhh…” Thano sighted ‘When did this become routine to me?’ He thought. And it really did, solving crimes had become a daily routine to him. With each case, he started to care about the dead people less and less and just did his job, just solved the crime. Thano tried to remember when this started to happen, but he couldn’t. After 20 years as a detective, it was bound to happen one day, people get used to all kinds of things, so he probably just got used to seeing dead people.

Thano got up out of bed, got dressed, took his car keys and left for the crime scene.

Chapter 2. The right turn

Thano was driving towards the crime scene and stopped at an intersection. He was sitting in his car at the intersection waiting for the light to turn green. He needed to get to the crime scene as fast as he could because he saw rain clouds gathering in the sky and rain was never good for evidence. He hoped that the people at the crime scene saw what he saw and put up a tent over the crime scene so that the rain doesn’t wash away the evidence. Thano thought which way was the fastest to the crime scene at this time of night.

‘If I go left towards the main street, I'll get stuck in a traffic jam. I should go right and through the back streets, that should take a few minutes more but there would be no traffic. If I go straight through the tunnel, there is a risk that I’ll be stuck because of a car accident. The tunnel has only two lanes and there’s always a car accident there. I should go right.’ The light turned green and Thano turned right at the traffic light.

Driving through the backstreets cost him a lot more time than Thano anticipated because there were a lot of traffic lights at the intersections. When he arrived at the crime scene, the coroner had already processed the bodies and the forensics team had already processed the crime scene.

“You’re late Thano.” The coroner said.

“I know. I’m sorry. I took the back streets thinking I’ll get here faster.” Thano said.

“It’s the middle of the night, you could have just taken the main streets.” The coroner said.

“What did I miss?” Thano asked.

“This was definitely a premeditated murder. A man Victor Zazni and a woman Mellany Bruke were both shot in the head from the back. It wasn’t a murder, it was an execution. There are no signs of a robbery, they had all their money and jewelry on them. But I’ll know more after the autopsy.” The coroner said.

“You sure you didn’t miss anything?” Thano asked.

“I don’t know. I’m not a detective. Maybe if you were here on time you would know.” The coroner said with anger in his voice and walked away saying. “You’ll get my report tomorrow.”

It was never a good thing to get on the coroner's bad side so Thano went over to the forensic team who were packing their stuff. “Hi, guys! What did I miss?”

One of the forensic guys looked at Thano and said “A lot, because you were late. You’ll get our report tomorrow.”

‘How did I get on their bad side?’ Thano thought. The chief will give him hell about this tomorrow, but since he had nothing to go on tonight, he decided to go home and sleep. He’ll continue working the case tomorrow when he gets the reports.

Thano sat in his car and started to drive home.

In the morning, Thano waited for the coroners and forensic report and while he waited, he did background checks on his victims. He started with the woman, Mellany Bruke, she had no prior arrests, no parking tickets and worked as a secretary for a construction company. Clean as a whistle. There was no apparent reason why anybody would want to hurt or kill her.

The coroner's report arrived at his desk, he opened it and started to read it out loud to himself. “Cause of death is both victims shot to the back of the head… The male victim has a wedding ring female doesn’t… Now that's interesting. Nothing removed from the bodies… Jada, jada, jada… Noting that helps me… Shooter approximate height five feet ten inches? That sounds like a man or a tall woman. If I had to guess I’d say it’s a man.” Thano didn’t expect to get any clues from the coroner's report, but these two were a big one.

If these two were lovers, it made sense that a jealous husband, fiancé or a boyfriend killed them. When an affair is happening the wife usually just asks for a divorce, it can get ugly, but the women in a relationship rarely kill their partners or ex-partners. Men, on the other hand, behaved opposite, they were much more prone to violence and more prone to killing their partner and lover than asking for a divorce. So Thano decided to pay a visit to Mellany Brukes address, and talk to her boyfriend or the man she was living with.

The apartment was an hour's drive from the police station, which meant an hour's drive from the crime scene. ‘Maybe one of the traffic cameras got the killer on tape. I should check them when I get back.’ If it were a love affair, it would be logical for the lovers to be as far away, from where they lived, so there would be no chance that their partners would see them. Thano arrived at the apartment building and went up to the apartment of Mellany Brukes. He knocked and waited for somebody to open the door. To his surprise, a woman opened the door and asked him. “Who are you? What do you want?” Her eyes looked like she was crying all night.

“Hi miss. I’m Thano.” He took out his wallet and showed her his badge. “I have a few questions I’d like to ask you if you don't mind. Can I come in?” Thano asked.

“Yes.” The woman said silently, opened the door to let him in and closed them behind him. “Sit anywhere you like. Do you want coffee or something else to drink?” She asked.

“No, I’m ok. I just want to ask a few questions and then I’ll be out of your hair. Ok?” Thano said as he sat on the armchair in the living room.

The woman sat on the couch “Yeah… What do you want to know?”

“What's your name?” Thano asked.

“Charlet Massing, why?” Charlet said.

“Well Charlet, yesterday evening we found Mellany Bruke, who lives in this apartment, dead.” Thano said.

“What?! No! No no no no no!” Charlet started to yell and cry at the same time. “No! Mellany cannot be dead! She cannot! I spoke to her yesterday morning. No, you must have the wrong Mellany!” Tears were flowing down Charlet’s face, she was wiping them off with her hand as she picked up her mobile phone and dialed Mellany’s phone number. A phone started to ring in Thano‘ pocket. He took out a plastic evidence bag with a mobile phone inside it. The mobile phone was ringing and it stopped as soon as Charlet stopped the call.

“Noooo! My Mellany! Noooo!” Charlet started to scream and weep. Thano comforted her trying to calm her down so he can get some answers. He wasn’t sour what the relationship between Charlet and Mellany was but he could see that they were not just roommates.

Charlet finally calmed down and Thano continued to ask her about her relationship with Mellany. Charlet and Mellany were in a relationship for three years. But for the past months, Mellany was acting strange. She was not gay, like Charlet, she was bisexual. Charlet had her doubts that Mellany started seeing a man because she sometimes came home smelling like men's cologne. Two days ago, they had a really awful fight and Mellany told her that she was seeing a man, but that seeing a man didn’t mean she didn’t love Charlet.

“I hate to ask you this but I have to. Do you know if anyone wanted to hurt Mellany?” Thano asked.

“No, she was a good person. Everybody liked her. Even at her job, she was friends with everybody.” Charlet sad.

“I was so hurt when she told me she was cheating on me that I threw her out and told her I hated her.” Charlet sad. “The last words to the person I loved the most were I hate you.”

“She knew you didn’t mean it, everybody knows that in the heat of the moment we say things we don't mean. Don’t worry, she knew you love her.” Thano said the old comfort line he already told hundreds of people before Charlet. It never failed him, the most important thing was that it made people feel better and it gave him the excuse he needed to go and find the real killer.

“Here is my number. If you remember, anything about what Mellany said about the man she was seeing or something strange she did call me. I have to go now, you take care.” Thano said. They said goodbye and Thano headed back to the police station.

‘So no jealous fiancé or a boyfriend for Mellany Bruke and no one wanted to hurt her. Maybe she wasn't the target. However, she was having an affair with the man Victor Zazni who had a wedding ring. I should at least go speak to his wife, maybe he had enemies.' Thano was thinking as he entered the police station. On his desk was the forensic report. It was already late but he decided to read it and go home after that. He’ll speak to the man’s wife tomorrow.

As he picked up the forensic report, he felt a piercing pain in his chest. He couldn’t breathe, his vision started to blur and the pain in his chest got even stronger. Thano fell down on the floor and the last thing he saw was his colleagues rushing towards him with concerned looks on their faces.

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Chapter 3. The left turn

‘If I go left towards the main street and over the bridge, I'll be there in a few minutes. If I go right and through the back streets, that should take me longer because of all the traffic lights. If I go straight through the tunnel, there is a risk that I’ll be stuck because of a car accident. The tunnel has only two lanes and there’s always a car accident there. I should go left.’ The light turned green and Thano turned left at the traffic light.

Driving on the main street and the bridge was a good choice. It was late enough that there was not a lot of traffic. Thano arrived at the crime scene just as the coroner was examining the bodies.

“Hi. What do we have?” Thano asked the coroner.

“Oh, you're here. We have two dead. A man Victor Zazni and a woman Mellany Bruke shot in the head from behind and...” The coroner started to say but was interrupted by Thano.

“And it looks like they were executed. And nothing was taken from them so it’s not a robbery.” Thano said as if he was enchanted. “And the man has a wedding ring but the woman doesn’t.”

“How do you know that?” The coroner asked him confused.

“I don’t know...” Thano said also confused. ‘How do I know that? I feel like I have been here before. It’s like a deja vu but I remember this place. I was here before.’ Thano felt like something strange was happening to him. He went over to the forensic team to see if he remembered anything about what they said but as he walked over to them, the feeling was gone.

“Hi, guys! What do we have?” He asked the forensic team.

“A lot. There is a lot of blood and blood splatter but it’s probably from the victims. Here we have two sets of footprints.” The forensics guy took Thano to the footprints.

“That’s not unusual, we have two dead bodies.” Thano said.

“Yes, one of the footprints matches your male victim, but the other doesn’t. It’s a male shoe footprint as big as the male victim’s footprints. They both stepped in the puddle over there and made these footprints. We took pictures and we’ll be able to match the footprint to the type of shoe that made it.” The forensic guy said.

“That’s awesome.” Thano said. ‘But I already know the killer is probably a male because of the height in the coroner's report. But how do I know that when the coroner is still here.’

“If you find anything else leave it on my desk. I have to go.” Thano said. Something strange was happening and he didn’t like it. He knew things he shouldn’t possibly know. He sat in his car and headed to the police station.

At the police station, he sat at his desk. He typed in the name of the female victim Mellany Bruke, into the computer and looked at her photo. Somehow, he knew that she was having an affair with the male victim, that she just broke up with her girlfriend and didn’t have anyone who wanted to hurt her. ‘How in the hell do I know that? I just got the case.’ Baffled, not knowing what to think about this whole situation, Thano decided to look at the traffic cameras around the crime screen. All of the traffic cameras didn’t have a good angle and didn’t catch the act of crime. There were too many people walking around, the killer could follow them dressed in one set of clothes, killed them, then changed clothes and the police would never know.

The cameras were no help at all, Thano would have to use old-fashioned police work on this one. It seemed that he already knew everything about Mellany Bruke. Maybe it was time to talk to the wife of Victor Zazni. Thano looked at the clock it was already one AM. It was too late to go knocking on people’s doors so he decided to go home and go speak to the wife tomorrow.

In the morning, Thano first went to the police station to see if the forensics report was done. There was nothing on his desk so he decided to go speak to Victor Zazni’s wife. He typed in his name into the computer and there was a report about a previous assault charge. The report said that he attacked a man and started a bar fight. The charges were dropped at the end but an assault charge said a lot about a man. Maybe this wasn’t the only time he started a fight, just the only time he was caught. Maybe he had someone who wanted to hurt him.

Thano took his things and headed to the address where Victor Zazni lived. He after an hour and a half he arrived at a house. He parked his car, knocked at the door and heard a few small dogs barking. A man opened the door.

“Can I help you?” The man asked.

“Hi sir. I’m Thano.” He took out his wallet and showed him his badge. “I have a few questions I’d like to ask you if you don't mind. Can I come in?” Thano asked.

“Yes, of course. What is this about?” The man asked as he opened the door to let Thano into the house.

“Let’s go sit in the living room and I’ll explain.” Thano said looking around, especially at the shoes, to see what size they and model they were. Who knows, maybe they matched the crime scene.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” The man asked.

“No, I’m fine.” Thano replied. “What’s your name, sir?”

“I’m Lucas Zazni.” The man replied.

“Well Lucas, I’m here because yesterday evening we found Victor Zazni dead.” Thano said.

“Oh…” Lucas said with a calm voice.

Thano knew that people reacted differently to the news that their loved one was dead. Some cried, some fainted or fell into shock. Then there were the ones that hated their husbands, boyfriends or lovers and reacted with a smile and good riddance, but Lucas, Lucas didn’t fit in any of the normal grieving categories that Thano saw as a detective in his 20 years. The only category that Lucas fitted in was the I did it category.

“What happened to him?” Lucas asked still calm.

“He was shot in the back of his head, executed really, while walking with a woman he was having an affair with.” Thano said trying to get any kind of reaction from Lucas.

“Then that can't be Victor.” Lucas said.

“What do you mean by that?” Thano asked curiously.

“Victor and I were married for nine years, we love each other and he would never cheat on me. He told me he was on a business trip this week. I’ll call him and you’ll see that you have the wrong man.” Lucas picked up his mobile phone and dialed Victor’s phone number. A phone started to ring in Thano‘ pocket. He took out a plastic evidence bag with a mobile phone inside it. The mobile phone was ringing. It stopped as soon as Charlet stopped the call.

Lucas looked at the mobile phone with a cryptic look on his face, not saying anything.

“I think this means that your husband is dead.” Thano said.

“I would like to be alone now if you don’t mind detective.” Lucas said.

“No problem. Here is my number. If you remember anything about something strange your husband did call me.” Thano gave his card to Lucas as he was leaving the house. Lucas took the card and closed the door behind Thano not even saying goodbye.

Thano was now sure that Lucas killed Victor and Mellany Bruke. Three things gave him away. The first thing was that he used the past to describe the relationship with his husband, he said we were married instead we are married. The second thing was his reaction to the mobile phone, when he killed his husband Victor and his lover Lucas probably wanted to take Victor’s mobile phone to make it look like he was on a business trip. But today’s mobile phones all look the same and he took the mobile phone Victor used to talk to his lover instead of his normal mobile phone. The last thing was the reaction to the news of Victor's death after he saw Victor’s mobile phone.

‘So I know who the killer is. I just need to prove it. Maybe the forensics team has something I could use.’ Thano thought as he walked to his car. He got in and headed to the police station.

On his desk, in the police station, was the forensic report. It was already late but he decided to read it and go home after that. He read the standard stuff, the blood matched the blood of the victims and the blood splatter was consistent with the shooting “Jada, jada, jada… I already know that. Nothing new.” Thano murmured to himself. “Oh! This is new! There was male DNA on the left cheek of Victor Zazni, probably from saliva. Both footprints from the crime scene were from a very expensive model of shoes that matched the ones I saw at Victor Zazni’s place.”

‘That’s it. Lucas probably kissed his husband goodbye. That's how I'm going to get him. I just need his DNA. I just need a warrant.’ Thano thought and felt a piercing pain in his chest. He couldn’t breathe, his vision started to blur and the pain in his chest got even stronger. Thano fell down on the floor and the last thing he saw was his colleagues rushing towards him with concerned looks on their faces.

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Chapter 4. The straight way

‘If I go left towards the main street, I'll get stuck in a traffic jam. If I go right and through the back streets, that should take me longer because of all the traffic lights. The fastest way is if I go straight through the tunnel. At this time of night, it shouldn’t be crowded. I should go straight. ’ The light turned green and Thano went straight at the traffic light.

Driving through the tunnel, he had an odd feeling that this situation was somehow familiar to him but he couldn’t pinpoint how or why. ‘Maybe I had a similar case at some point.’ He thought.

Thano arrived at the crime scene just as the coroner was examining the bodies.

“Hi. What do we have?” Thano asked the coroner and immediately stopped walking towards the bodies. ‘I was here before. “Please tell me that these two are not Victor Zazni and Mellany Bruke.” He said to the coroner.

“Yes, they are. Do you know them?” The coroner asked.

“No. I mean I don’t know them but I know who they are. Did they die because somebody shot them in the head from behind?” Thano asked.

“Yeah… How do you know that? Are you all right? You’re starting to scare me Thano. ” The coroner said.

“Check the man's left cheek, swab it for DNA and get it to the lab as soon as possible. If you can, could you have the results on my desk in the morning? Please” Thano said.

“Why?” The coroner asked confused.

“Just do it. Please, I’ll owe you one.” Thano begged and walked towards the forensics team.

‘How did I know all that, the names and the way they were killed? How did I know about the man's cheek?’ Thano had an odd feeling that something very wrong was going on.

“Hi, guys. Can I ask you something?” Thano asked the forensics team.

“Yeah, detective. What is it?” One of the forensics guys said.

“Can you do me a favor? The two sets of footprints you found, can you hurry it up and find the shoe models that match the footprints and have it at my desk in the morning? Please.” Thano said.

“I don’t know...” The forensics guy started to say but was interrupted.

“Please. It’s very important. I’ll owe you one.” Thano begged

“Ok. I’ll see what I can do.” The forensics guy said.

Thano sat in his car as the coroner and the forensics team were finishing their jobs. As soon as Thano saw the crime scene, he started to remember things that made no sense. He remembered the future. ‘How can I remember the future that didn’t happen? I just got here, I know who the victims are, how they died, that they had an affair, and that the male victim’s husband, Victor’s husband Lucas is the killer. I remember talking to him and I remember how I knew he was the killer. But how?’

The DNA result from the cheek and the forensic report on the footprints will be done tomorrow so Thano decided to go home and try to sleep or at least figure out what the hell was going on. Why is he remembering the future? As he was driving home, he thought about the memories that he remembered. The odd thing about the memories he remembered was that all of them were just memories from tomorrow.

Thano arrived home and went to bed. He lay on the bed thinking ‘If I only remember the events from tomorrow does that mean that I solve the case in one day. But, why do I remember two sets of memories of tomorrow then? This doesn’t make any sense. It’s as if I was talking to Mellany’s girlfriend and Victor's husband at the same time, but that’s not possible.’ Thano’ lay on the bed, struggling to understand how could he have two sets of memories of the future, but at one point, he fell asleep.

Thano woke up feeling exhausted. He got dressed, got in his car and headed to the police station, grabbing a coffee on his way there. On his desk were two reports, one from the forensic and the other from the coroner. The forensics report matched the two sets of footprints to two very expensive model of shoes that matched the ones he saw at Victor Zazni’s place. The coroner's report had the DNA result from Victor Zazni’s cheek swab. Thano ran the DNA through the database and got a hit. The DNA belonged to Lucas Zazni. The DNA was on the record because Lucas Zazni also had an assault charge, the same assault charge from the bar fight as his husband. ‘I got you now!’ Thano thought and immediately called the district attorney to get a warrant for Lucas Zazni’s arrest for premeditated murder.

Whit the evidence Thano had against Lucas the judge signed the warrant. Thano and two police officers headed to Lucas Zazni house, Thano knew he‘d be home because he remembered, and when they got there they knocked at the door. Lucas opened the door and said. “Can I help you?”

“Yes, you can. Lucas Zazni I am arresting you for the murder of Victor Zazni and Mellany Bruke. You have the right to remain silent. If you do say anything, it can be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have a lawyer present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed for you if you so desire.” Thano read him his Miranda rights while he took him to the police officer's car.

In the police station, Thano was greeted by applause and cheering. Everyone was amazed that he solved a case in one night. Colleagues shook his hand congratulating him and patting him on the back for a job well done. Even the chief was amazed and proud to have such a good detective on his force.

‘Who knows, maybe I’ll get a medal for solving this case.’ Thano thought. His colleagues, curious to find out how he solved the case so fast, surrounded him and started asking him questions. Thano didn’t tell them the truth, he just said that he had a gut feeling about this one and did it the old-fashioned way, the true detective way.

They all laughed and at one point Thano felt a piercing pain in his chest. He couldn’t breathe, his vision started to blur and the pain in his chest got even stronger. Thano fell down on the floor and the last thing he saw was his colleagues, surrounding him, with concerned looks on their faces.

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Chapter 5. The end of the road

Thano woke up at the pain in his chest was gone, but he wasn’t in the police station or the hospital. He was sitting on something completely black, surrounded by complete darkness.

“What the…” He started to say and stopped as he saw someone walking towards him.

The figure was walking slowly towards him, behind it there were several people that looked like Death’s slaves. As the figure got closer, it looked bigger and bigger. The figure was dressed in a black robe and stopped a few feet away from Thano.

“As we agreed. I have done. It’s your time now.” A voice echoed inside Thano’ mind. It was a strange and disturbing feeling.

“Agreed to what? My time for what?” Thano said.

The figure took a few steps and raised its head towards Thano’ head. The hand under the robe was made of bones and as it touched Thano’ forehead memories started flowing into his mind.

This wasn't the first time he was here talking to the figure dressed in black, talking to Death. He was here two times before and he made a deal with Death. He challenged Death to a game. If he wins, Death will let him solve his last case and in case he dies, Death will reset the events from the beginning of the case with his memories intact and after he solves the case he will die. If Death wins, he will serve Death, for as many years as Death wanted, as the people that were serving Death now.

Death agreed and Thano chose the game and set the rules. Death let him because Death never lost a game. The rules were that neither Death nor Thano could change their shape or parts of their body and the game was Fruit Ninja on a Smartphone. Two Smartphones appeared and on each, one the game started. Thano had no problem slicing the fruit on the Smartphone screen but Death couldn't do anything, the Smartphone screen wouldn’t respond to the bony fingers of Death. Death lost and agreed to let him solve his last case.

With all the memories back, everything that happened to him finally made sense to Thano.

“So I was destined to die anyway from a heart attack?” Thano asked Death.

“Yes, it was your time.” Death answered.

“What now?” Thano asked.

“Come with me. You will see.” Death answered.

The end

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The inspiration for the story is the old myth about playing a game against Death, playing chess with Death. I thought about how could somebody win a game against Death in modern times and it occurred to me that Smartphone screens wouldn't react to bony fingers of Death. I used that for inspiration for the story. I hope you like it :)

Thanks for reading :) Every comment is welcome

#tw dead body #tw death #tw character death #tw crime

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newstfionline · 3 years

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Saturday, July 24, 2021

Virus’s impact (AP) The eruption of COVID-19 last year caused the proportion of people working from home in the U.S. to nearly double. The share of employed people working from home shot up from just 22% in 2019 to 42% in 2020, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was among the striking findings of an annual government survey that documents the far-reaching impact the viral pandemic has had on Americans’ everyday lives since it struck in March of last year. Because of the pandemic and the widespread social distancing it required, people on average spent more time last year sleeping, watching TV, playing games, using a computer and relaxing and thinking—and less time socializing and communicating in person—than in 2019. Adults also spent more hours, on average, caring for children in their household. The survey also lends support to concerns that the pandemic worsened isolation for millions of Americans. With people working from home or attending school online, the time they spent alone increased. Among Americans ages 15 and over, time spent alone each day increased by an average of an hour. For those ages 15 to 19, it rose 1.7 hours per day.

Medical debt (NYT) A new study put the amount of unpaid medical bills held by collection agencies at $140 billion last year, up from $81 billion according to a similar analysis carried out in 2016. The analysis looked at 10 percent of all TransUnion credit reports and found that about 18 percent of Americans have medical debt that has been sent to collections. Over the period from 2009 to 2020, the largest source of debt owed to collection agencies became medical debt. The $140 billion, to be clear, is not an estimate of medical debt; that figure is far higher, as the $140 billion is merely the debt that has been passed along to the vultures.

Crews make progress on huge Oregon blaze (AP) The nation’s largest wildfire raged through southern Oregon on Friday but crews were scaling back some night operations as hard work and weaker winds helped reduce the spread of flames even as wildfires continued to threaten homes in neighboring California. The Bootleg Fire, which has destroyed an area half the size of Rhode Island, was 40% surrounded after burning some 70 homes, mainly cabins, fire officials said. The fire, which was sparked by lightning, had been expanding by up to 4 miles (6 kilometers) a day, pushed by strong winds and critically dry weather.

Thousands of bullets have been fired in this D.C. neighborhood (Washington Post) Markeith Muskelly, a barber who has spent half his 52 years cutting hair in Southeast Washington, has seen people get shot on the street outside the shop where he works. Last fall, he saw a man die there. The shop is tucked into a corner of the Benco Shopping Center, a mainstay in the Marshall Heights neighborhood for six decades. Its plate-glass window has long offered a view of one of the most dangerous streets in the District. In the neighborhood where Muskelly works, gun violence has affected generations, bringing a sad realization that, for some, that the danger may never end. A Washington Post analysis shows that in a recent period of a little more than three years, crime scene technicians found 2,759 bullet casings—byproducts of shootings involving rifles, pistols and shotguns—in about a one-square-mile area that includes Benning Road in Marshall Heights, with Benco between them. Bullets have struck people, pockmarked parked cars, embedded in walls of homes and shattered windows of businesses filled with patrons. Patrol officers carry “quick clot gauze” used by troops in war.

Volunteers hunting for Mexico’s ‘disappeared’ become targets (AP) The mainly female volunteers who fan out across Mexico to hunt for the bodies of murdered relatives are themselves increasingly being killed, putting to the test the government’s promise to help them in their quest for a final shred of justice: a chance to mourn. Those who carry on the effort tell tales of long getting threats and being watched—presumably by the same people who murdered their sons, brothers and husbands. But now threats have given way to bullets in the heads of searchers who have proved far better than the authorities at ferreting out the clandestine burial and burning pits that number in the thousands. Two searchers have been slain the past two months. Fear has always accompanied the searchers. They go to wild, remote, abandoned places where terrible crimes have been committed. But up to now, they mostly shrugged it off.

Cuba’s communist authorities have long feared change. Street protests show the risk of resisting it. (Washington Post) On a farm not far from the town where Cuba’s protests first erupted this month, police investigators last summer carried out a major sting operation. Their target was not a dissident activist, but a dairyman nicknamed El Rey del Queso: The King of Cheese. His offense? Operating a clandestine factory that produced tire-sized hunks of cheese for private sale in Havana. Authorities arrested the King, confiscated hundreds of pounds of yellow queso and produced a news report about the bust on Cuban state television depicting him as a villain. Cuba’s communist authorities have for decades treated private entrepreneurs as a threat to be contained, not encouraged. Long after China and Vietnam embraced market reforms, using material prosperity to buttress authoritarian rule, Cuba has clung to an economic model based on centralized planning and state control. The July 11 protests that shook Cuba’s rulers showed that model might be their biggest vulnerability, as its weak foundation is further eroded by the decades-long U.S. embargo, additional Trump-era sanctions and now the coronavirus pandemic. The country’s economy contracted 11 percent last year, according to government data. Cubans are spending hours in lines to buy basic goods they can barely afford. Hospitals have been overwhelmed by covid patients, and medicine is scarce. Power outages are turning stifling summer heat into an explosive fuse. “Unless the government makes profound changes, I think people will take to the streets again,” said Camilo Condis, a Cuban entrepreneur and business advocate.

Haiti leader’s slaying exposes role of ex-Colombian soldiers (AP) As the coronavirus pandemic squeezed Colombia, the Romero family was in need of money to pay the mortgage. Mauricio Romero Medina’s $790 a month pension as a retired soldier wasn’t going far. Then came a call offering a solution. When Romero answered the phone on June 2, another veteran, Duberney Capador, offered what he said was a legal, long-term job requiring only a passport. But Romero had to make a decision fast. “Talk about it with your family and if you are interested, see you tomorrow in Bogota, because the flight is the day after tomorrow,” Romero’s wife, Giovanna, told The Associated Press, recalling the conversation. A month later, Romero and Capador were dead and 18 Colombians were reportedly in custody, accused of taking part in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. It’s a case that dramatizes Colombia’s role as a recruiting ground for the global security industry—and its murkier, mercenary corners. Colombia’s Defense Ministry says about 10,600 soldiers retire each year, many highly trained warriors forged in a decades-long battle against leftist rebels and drug trafficking cartels. Many—including a number of those involved in Haiti—have been trained by the U.S. military. Those soldiers make up a pool of recruits for companies seeking a wide range of services—as consultants or bodyguards, in teams guarding Middle Eastern oil pipelines or as part of military-like private security in places like the United Arab Emirates and Afghanistan. The UAE paid Colombian veterans to join in the battle against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Italy makes health pass mandatory for many leisure activities, in bid to pressure the unvaccinated (Washington Post) Italy on Thursday significantly ramped up pressure on its unvaccinated population, announcing that a digital or printed health pass would be necessary for accessing a range of everyday leisure activities, from theaters to indoor dining. The decision puts Italy in a rare category along with France among Western nations that have been willing to leverage certain freedoms and equalities now that vaccines have become widely available. Italy is essentially betting that it can revive its slowing vaccination campaign—and avoid future, onerous restrictions—by creating heavy incentives for inoculation, in the kind of step that would be politically unthinkable in the United States. Italy is looking for ways to avoid a new round of closures and curfews. For now, every Italian region is “white”—meaning that life proceeds almost as normal, and people can stay out as late as they want. That has made for a joyful Italian summer.

‘Messy’ fight (Washington Post) KUNDUZ, Afghanistan—Around 3 a.m., a small team of elite special forces were halfway through an operation to retake a sliver of territory along the city’s northern edge when a police unit assisting them refused to advance. Hours later, the police fled, ceding the territory back to the Taliban. For weeks, the Afghan military has struggled to hold provincial capitals such as Kunduz after a surge of Taliban attacks that came as U.S. forces withdrew and U.S. air support dropped. Afghan ground forces are increasingly used to fill the void. Their capabilities are uneven, however, resulting in government advances that often rapidly evaporate. Experienced and motivated elite units are leading the battle to retake territory. But the troops called up to secure those gains—army, police and irregular fighters—often have little training and are less inclined to fight. First Lt. Abdullah Ansari, 30, led the elite unit retaking territory house by house in Kunduz earlier this month. He said the debacle on Kunduz’s northern edge made him miss working with U.S. troops. “Now everything is just messy,” he said.

Death rates soar in Southeast Asia as virus wave spreads (AP) Indonesia has converted nearly its entire oxygen production to medical use just to meet the demand from COVID-19 patients struggling to breathe. Overflowing hospitals in Malaysia had to resort to treating patients on the floor. And in Myanmar’s largest city, graveyard workers have been laboring day and night to keep up with the grim demand for new cremations and burials. Images of bodies burning in open-air pyres during the peak of the pandemic in India horrified the world in May, but in the last two weeks the three Southeast Asian nations have now all surpassed India’s peak per capita death rate as a new coronavirus wave, fueled by the virulent delta variant, tightens its grip on the region. The deaths have followed record numbers of new cases being reported in countries across the region which have left health care systems struggling to cope and governments scrambling to implement new restrictions to try to slow the spread.

Typhoon to bring heavy rains to Taiwan, China over weekend (AP) A typhoon is forecast to bring heavy rains to Taiwan and coastal China over the weekend, days after the worst flooding on record in a central Chinese province caused at least 51 deaths. Forecasters say Typhoon In-fa is moving toward China and expected to make landfall in Zhejiang province either Sunday afternoon or early Monday morning. Zhejiang’s bureau of emergency management said on its microblog Friday that it is raising its risk warning to the second-highest level and calling on all localities to take preventative measures. Those usually include recalling fishing boats to port and relocating people living in vulnerable coastal communities. Fujian province to the south has issued similar orders. On its current track, the eye of the typhoon is expected to pass north of Taiwan while still bringing considerable rain to the island.

#headlines #news

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johnboothus · 3 years

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Terry Wheatley Is Innovating Wine Brands Both Old and New

On June 8, 2021, Terry Wheatley, president of Vintage Wine Estates, quietly marched the company into the future. Representing portfolio brands such as Owen Roe, Viansa Sonoma, and Girard Winery, the VWE team launched a $690 million IPO on the NASDAQ. These are all brands included in the Vintage Wine Estates portfolio, overseen and managed by Terry Wheatley.

Wheatley has dedicated her career to building brands and shaping careers in the wine business. She has held both managerial and executive positions within E&J Gallo Winery, served as both director of marketing and VP of sales with the Trinchero Family Estates, and founding partner of Canopy Management. In 2018, after four years as VP of sales and marketing for Vintage Wine Estates, she was tapped to become the company’s first female president.

Wheatley has founded charities, lent her time, skills, and expertise to a variety of philanthropic causes, and is raising money and awareness for issues related, but not limited to, social justice, entrepreneurship, and preventive health causes such as breast cancer. She is the founder of Wine Sisterhood, a 400,000-member lifestyle social media platform where women connect with one another through wine; Angels Share, a nationwide initiative addressing food insecurity; and Tough Enough to Wear Pink, which equips rodeos and western events in the U.S. and Canada to plan fundraising for breast cancer awareness.

Throughout her 40-plus-year career in wine, Wheatley has been recognized by numerous organizations for her innovative vision, sales expertise, and overall excellence in the wine business. Speaking with VinePair, she shares insights about her career, her struggles, and the ways she supports women in the wine business; as well as the ways Vintage Wine Estates is helping small wine brands, winemakers, and vineyards by preserving vintage wine brands while helping to shape their futures.

1. Tell VinePair readers more about Vintage Wine Estates (VWE) and what the company does.

VWE is a wine company with a portfolio that appeals across demographics and wine tastes. Our mission is to reinvigorate legacy wine brands and launch young brands while giving them the tools needed to be successful or continue their artfully honed winemaking craft.

When VWE purchases a wine brand, we are invisible but impactful. We are here to make a struggling business successful by pulling out inefficiencies that they don’t know how to do. We typically maintain as much of the original architecture of the business including current staff. That’s very important to us as a company because we don’t want to homogenize the purchase. We want to be good stewards of the land that we purchase. We invite the family to stay on board and we try to keep the personality, winemaking style, and sourcing that attracted us in the first place. We may update the logo and polish or rebuild the existing property, but we strive to always keep the charm or magic of the brands we acquire.

2. You are set to lead Vintage Wine Estates to its IPO this June, making VWE a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ global market. What would you say to women who are now following your career?

Be prepared to work hard and then work even harder. Surround yourself with people who believe in your vision and partner with a company who values the work and contributions of women. Two, honor your word and live up to what you say you’re going to do. Third, go ahead and establish lofty goals. Know that nothing you dream of is insurmountable. Be willing to give it everything you’ve got because that’s where the real work begins!

3. VWE has a special program that enables consumers to become shareholders in the company. Can you tell us more about this?

When we designed the shareholder passport program, we were thinking of the people that we do business with. Our suppliers, the farmers, the consumers that purchase our brands or really the general public. We wanted to give people who don’t have millions of dollars to invest in our brand a way to participate and profit from our success. The Shareholder Passport is our “sharing” program which gives our supporters an opportunity to be partners or shareholders in VWE. It’s a very approachable program where you own a part of 52 wine brands. Shareholders also will receive an invitation to the annual shareholders meeting held in the Napa Valley, among other perks and benefits. It really is a great program.

4. What makes VWE so special as a company?

I am honored to be the first female that has led a multi-million-dollar company public — but much prouder that over half of the managers in our company are women. I work very hard to increase the female representation in the organization. In fact, our CFO, head of operations, marketing, chief digital officer, director of our wine clubs, and all of our tasting rooms are all female-led departments within VWE. This has happened because the founders and current leaders of VWE have all committed to increasing the female presence throughout the company.

5. There has been a wealth of publications describing the experiences of those in the wine industry due to the compounded effects of Covid-19, recent weather-related tragedies, and the overall slim margins in wine production. It’s been reported that independent or small family-owned wine producers are struggling to keep their doors open. Does VWE have a strategy to address this and help small producers who are struggling?

The majority of our portfolio are small wine producers who needed help continuing or successfully increasing their reach in the wine industry. Now you have companies who have, for instance, been devastated by recent wildfires who now are in a terrifying situation because of the effects of Covid. These are companies whose business plans were built upon partnerships with successful restaurants, tasting rooms and wine clubs with little to no distribution plan, and they are now in serious trouble. This is where VWE can step in and help. We offer help with streamlining/improving the winemaking process, marketing and distribution. We want to maintain the integrity of the company but bring our skills in marketing, finance, and our vast network of winemakers and supplies in order to elevate the brand and continue their legacy in the wine business.

6. Let’s talk about the businesses and/or philanthropic platforms you’ve built or led. Why does Tough Enough to Wear Pink hold a special place in your heart?

There is a long history of breast cancer in my family. My grandmother died of breast cancer. My mom had a double mastectomy when she was 38 years old, and I had one when I was 48 years old. My daughter has had multiple biopsies as well, so I have a huge interest in eradicating this disease. Early in my career, I knew I wanted to be involved in the fight against breast cancer. I supported local initiatives such as City of Hope (a cancer research center in Los Angeles) but I wanted to do even more.

I co-founded Tough Enough to Wear Pink in order to involve the sport of rodeos and the Western community in the fight against breast cancer. To date, we are so proud to say we’ve raised over $32 million for local and nationwide breast cancer charities to launch awareness campaigns to spread awareness and encourage testing!

7. Why is philanthropy, and D&I initiatives, so important to you as a businesswoman?

2020 was such a profound year with everything that happened with the racial awakening and the Black Lives Matter movement. I reached out to our communications manager and said, “We need to find ways to support Black women in the wine business.” Currently, we are exploring ways, such as scholarship or mentorship, we can help grow their careers in wine. We’re also looking at a couple of [BI]POC-owned wine and spirits brands to partner with or acquire. There will be more on this coming up soon.

Separately from VWE, I serve as chairwoman of the board for CannaCraft. We are developing ways to level the playing field for people of color in the cannabis industry. Whether it’s through strain development, farming, or brand development, we want to push forward with supporting the needs of the community. Why is the African- and Mexican-American community incarcerated more over cannabis infractions than other groups? That’s just stupid, which is why supporting the Last Prisoner Project along with CannaCraft is so important to me as well. What’s the point of all of this success if you aren’t making a real difference in lives?

8. Where would you like to travel to explore wine excellence when you are ready to take a break from conquering the world?

I would love to go back to Florence, Italy! Maybe split my time between California and Italy. That would be such a great thing to do.

9. If you could share the success of the IPO with anyone, who would it be?

That’s easy: Ruth Bader Ginsburg! She was amazing, a trailblazer, and a force of nature. I hope my career is as long, impactful, and successful as hers was and continues to be.

The article Terry Wheatley Is Innovating Wine Brands Both Old and New appeared first on VinePair.

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wineanddinosaur · 3 years

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Terry Wheatley Is Innovating Wine Brands Both Old and New

1. Tell VinePair readers more about Vintage Wine Estates (VWE) and what the company does.

2. You are set to lead Vintage Wine Estates to its IPO this June, making VWE a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ global market. What would you say to women who are now following your career?

3. VWE has a special program that enables consumers to become shareholders in the company. Can you tell us more about this?

4. What makes VWE so special as a company?

6. Let’s talk about the businesses and/or philanthropic platforms you’ve built or led. Why does Tough Enough to Wear Pink hold a special place in your heart?

7. Why is philanthropy, and D&I initiatives, so important to you as a businesswoman?

8. Where would you like to travel to explore wine excellence when you are ready to take a break from conquering the world?

I would love to go back to Florence, Italy! Maybe split my time between California and Italy. That would be such a great thing to do.

9. If you could share the success of the IPO with anyone, who would it be?

That’s easy: Ruth Bader Ginsburg! She was amazing, a trailblazer, and a force of nature. I hope my career is as long, impactful, and successful as hers was and continues to be.

The article Terry Wheatley Is Innovating Wine Brands Both Old and New appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/terry-wheatley-vintage-estate-wines/

0 notes