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death2normalcy · 2 years

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This is definitely going to be a long installment, since it’s the ‘Noeasy’ videos, and there are a lot of them. The good news is that I’m at a point where I’ve now seen most of their videos already, since I’ve seen all of the Oddinary ones. I’ll still talk about those, but they won’t be my first thoughts, since I’ve already watched them.

*I’m going to add this disclaimer on all of them. These are just my opinions, these opinions are coming from someone who has only been a Stay for 2 months. I may miss stuff or think of things differently than other people, I don’t know. I’m just commenting on how I feel. Also, these are my opinions on the music videos as a whole. I’ve already talked about the songs themselves, and who I think stands out in a video may not be who I think stands out in the song.

Mixtape: Oh - I don’t necessarily wish I had been a Stay when Hyunjin was on hiatus, just because he’s one of my favorites and I would have hated that. But I do kind of wish I had been a fan back when this video was released and to experience some of the joy and relief that fans must have felt when they saw him in this one. Because of the Hyunjin of it all, I’d say he’s definitely the one who stands out here. Although, it’s another video where the boys spend most of it isolated, so they all have their moments. I know that this one is like, a continuation of that one love triangle one and then like, bits of another one, I kind of had to look up the explanation, lmao. Kind of sad we didn’t get a happy ending then, but still, a good video. (Also, a small note, but I love the simple or minimal makeup the guys have here. Some of them barely looked like they were wearing much, although I’m sure they were, but I love when its tone down like that.)

Thunderous - LOOK. This is my favorite video, hands down. The looks are top tier, the choreography is some of my favorite, the song itself is fantastic, everyone shines in this video, it’s so good. I can’t really say much else, I love the concept, I love everything about it, if I’m being completely honest. I love the little bits of animation, the nods to Korean culture, the editing, ugh, just all of it. I can’t possible pick a favorite, BUT. I will, because I’ve stated multiple times before on my page that Chan stands out for me here and he still does. But they are all so good here either way.

The View - I didn’t pick up on this originally, but is this video connected to Mixtape: Oh? The cake at the end kind of tipped me off, but I’m not sure. (Okay, looked it up and there are apparently a lot of nods to that story line in this video, I’m a dumbass.) It’s all very cute and sweet, and I love it. I love the looks here, I’m always here for the boys being soft. I love videos like this because it has them just being carefree and having fun and it’s so nice to watch. This is a fun, laidback video and I appreciate it a lot. No favorites, except maybe Changbin and Felix, but really, they all do great.

Sorry, I Love You - This is a difficult video to talk about without talking about the song, which I’m trying to avoid doing as much as I can. I love that it’s them singing live. The eye contact is weird, but I love it and I get it. They look soft, which I love. It’s hard to say anyone stands out or is a favorite here, since the concept of the video makes that difficult, but I’m being biased, I’d say I love Changbin here.

Secret, Secret - This one is very similar to the one up there, which makes sense, since they were filmed back to back. I’d say this one is a little more relaxed in little ways, but I still feel the same way about it. Everyone still looks soft, the eye contact is a bit much, and no one really stands out here. It’s a simple video, but with these two songs, the videos fit.

Cheese - A very fun video. Very chaotic, but its half the boys brand at this point. Everything about this is all over the place, the editing, the concept, the boys, I love it. I agree with everyone that Jeongin shines in this one, that’s a given. If I had to pick someone that wasn’t him, I’d maybe go with Felix or Chan. It’s hard, I think they’re all so funny and great here. It’s another video of the boys having fun and being chaotic, and I love that.

Red Lights - What can I say about this one that I haven’t already said or hasn’t already been said by someone else, lmao. It’s so good. The combination of Chan and Hyunjin, visually, is stunning. The choreography is so damn good. Absolutely in love with the moments where they fully mirror each other. Love the white outfits, but the black outfits are my favorite. Love the use of ropes and chains to represent the theme of the song. Love the color palette of this video. I refuse to pick a stand out, they both do perfect here.

Surfin’ - This video is so cute, SO CUTE. I love the this trio. I love the concept. I love them starting off with the dance practice, and then moving into the real video. I love how chill it is. The choreography is cute and fun, and ah, I just love this. I refuse to pick a favorite, and I was going to list some of my favorite moments, but there were too many, it’s just a fun video that I really love, lol.

Gone Away - I love that each of the unit songs and videos have such a different vibe. This still isn’t my favorite, despite me being in love with the vocals, it’s just too soft. But I like that this video had a full story line. All three boys shine here, just like the other unit songs. It’s a great video, just not a video I normally vibe with, since it’s so sad and soft.

#Stray Kids #skz #skz thoughts #Noeasy #only three more posts to go!#the last one will be delayed #but still #after this i have one more series to do #and then i may just calm down with the stray kids stuff #lmao

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holdtightposts · 3 years

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Elizabeth Oslen when asked about a “Luke Skywalker level” cameo on WandaVision.

Paul Bettany’s response.

And who was this super famous guest star that Bettany has extraordinary chemistry with?

Himself.

And I absolutely loved it. 2 Paul 2 Bettany.

To be fair, it technically is a “Luke Skywalker level” cameo. Remember when the cast of Star Wars guest starred on the Muppet Show and Mark Hamill invited a guest onto the show?

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mean-scarlet-deceiver · 2 years

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duck reviews the rws books

the three railway engines: man, this railway used to be a goddamn mess

thomas the tank engine: thomas would have never hacked it on the Great Western

james the red engine: uh, james? i just cracked a piston laughing at you cheeking off gordon? like, you used to be a normal, likeable engine? wtf happened to you mate

tank engine thomas again: this is still not very Great Western but i admit it’s all utterly charming

troublesome engines: *wide-eyed horror* i am so glad i wasn’t around for this era of the railway

henry the green engine: ah, yes. the one where henry is made a useful engine overnight just by giving him… the coal that is standard-issue on the Great Western.

toby the tram engine: i’ve got something in my eye…

gordon the big engine: i liked the part with the queen. also the part where gordon ran into a ditch like an enormous prat.

edward the blue engine: i unashamedly love literally everything about the last story… except i would have been in favor of james getting banged up at least a little

the four little engines: i wanna be able to run on the skarloey railway!

percy the small engine: features both percy’s and mine finest moments. 11/10

the eight famous engines: ALL THOSE OTHER STATIONS ARE FAKE NEWS

duck and the diesel engine: city of truro visits!!!!!!!!! also, i think i’m in it or something, idk i just re-read the first story over and over again

the little old engine: if i did get to run on the skarloey railway the first thing i would do is to bash sir handel’s stupid buffers in for him

the twin engines: starring the fantastic engines who put gordon and henry in their place in three seconds flat and in the process helped me finally reconcile myself to own my own scottish heritage

branch line engines: kudos to toby for retaining his sanity, i would not have been so mild-mannered about ANY OF THIS

gallant old engine: i am a sucker for these stories where the steam engine brings the train home Despite Everything

stepney the “bluebell” engine: good engine, good times, two headlamps up

mountain engines: … i’ve got something in my other eye…

very old engines: i wish nancy worked our railway! :/

main line engines: the title makes no sense, but i got to meet boco and then tell the big three off proper. overall, easy 9/10

small railway engines: i seriously thought donald and douglas were pulling my wheel. but i’m so glad i was wrong.

enterprising engines: these are some of my favorite memories of sodor 😀

oliver the western engine: i’m still cross about the publishers changing the title, but aside from that “Little Western Engines” is a 10/10 book <3

duke the lost engine: … i’ve got something IN MY HEART *sob*

tramway engines: dumbasses. you’ll notice we do none of this shit on my line. /affectionate /butalsojudgey

really useful engines: THESE ARE DEFINITELY NOT SOME OF MY FAVORITE MEMORIES OF SODOR. stupid book. -1/10

james and the diesel engines: yeah, this one wasn’t exactly fun to live through, either. what is your damage, james. i’m asking really.

great little engines: begging your pardon, but this book was mostly good for helping to put me to sleep

more about thomas the tank engine: i prefer my own line to the main line… but literally anything would be better than being assigned to thomas’s line. omg.

gordon the high-speed engine: as usual when it involves gordon, there’s lots of noise and fuss, yet i can’t actually understand half of what’s going on

toby, trucks and trouble: on the other rail, thomas’s line without thomas is bangin’

thomas and the twins: this book gave me a headache. i’m glad none of this involved me at all.

jock the new engine: mike and jock. whatta pair.

thomas and the great railway show: city of truro is mentioned, so this book is an automatic 8/10… despite that, unlike the big three, i can quite frankly admit i’m jealous

thomas comes home: … as usual, thomas’s branch line seems so much more chill when thomas isn’t there. just sayin’.

henry and the express: i cannot tell you how salty i am that i did not get to see red!henry for myself

wilbert the forest engine: he was a good bloke, he deserved a more interesting book than this

thomas and the fat controller’s engines: yeah, that was the year wildlife was really out of hand on our railway. also, don’t tell gordon i said this, but it was complete bullshit that he didn’t get to pull that train. (seriously DO NOT TELL HIM that i admitted this.)

new little engine: sir handel is like the james of that railway. geez.

thomas and victoria: i’m starting to think young christopher has completely forgotten the little western exists :/

thomas and his friends: y’all would be forgiven for any frustrating sense that you still have no idea what pip and emma are actually like

#ttte #the railway series #thomas the tank engine #ttte duck #ttte thomas #ttte percy #ttte city of truro #ttte stepney #ttte james #ttte gordon #ttte henry #ttte sir handel #ttte pip and emma #just an old bit of silly i've had sitting in my drafts for ages #houseboat got me into a duck mood tonight so i dusted it off and finished it #suggestions to make certain books funnier definitely accepted some were tougher than others #incorrect ttte

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mostlymovieswithmax · 3 years

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Movies I watched in May

Sadly, I kind of skipped writing a post for April. It was a mad month with so much going on: lots of emails sent and lots of stress. I started a new job so I’m getting to grips with that... and even then, I still watched a bunch of movies. But this is about what I watched in May and, yeah… still a bunch. So if you’re looking to get into some other movies - possibly some you’ve thought about watching but didn’t know what they were like, or maybe like the look of something you’ve never heard of - then this may help! So here’s every film I watched from the 1st to the 31st of May 2021 Tenet (2020) - 8/10 This was my third time watching Christopher Nolan’s most Christopher Nolan movie ever and it makes no sense but I still love it. The spectacle of it all is truly like nothing I’ve ever seen. I had also watched it four days prior to this watch also, only this time I had enabled audio description for the visually impaired, thinking it would make it funny… It didn’t.

Nomadland (2020) - 6/10 Chloé Zhao’s new movie got a lot of awards attention. Everyone was hyped for this and when it got put out on Disney+ I was eager to see what all the fuss was about. Seeing these real nomads certainly gave the film an authenticity, along with McDormand’s ever-praisable acting. But generally I found it quite underwhelming and lacking a lot in its pacing. Nomadland surely has its moments of captivating cinematography and enticing commentary on the culture of these people, but it felt like it went on forever without any kind of forward direction or goal. The Prince of Egypt (1998) - 6/10 I reviewed this on my podcast, The Sunday Movie Marathon. For what it is, it’s pretty fun but nowhere near as good as some of the best DreamWorks movies.

Chinatown (1974) - 8/10 What a fantastic and wonderfully unpredictable mystery crime film! I regret to say I’ve not seen many Jack Nicholson performances but he steals the show. Despite Polanski’s infamy, it’d be a lie to claim this wasn’t truly masterful. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) - 8/10 Admittedly I was half asleep as I curled up on the sofa to watch this again on a whim. I watched this with someone who demanded the dubbed version over the subtitled version and while I objected heavily, I knew I’d seen the movie before so it didn’t matter too much. That person also fell asleep about 20 minutes in, so how pointless an argument it was. Howl’s Moving Castle boasts superb animation, the likes of which I’ve only come to expect of Miyazaki. The story is so unique and the colours are absolutely gorgeous. This may not be my favourite from the legendary director but there’s no denying its splendour.

Bāhubali: The Beginning (2015) - 3/10 The next morning I watched some absolute trash. This crazy, over the top Indian movie is hilarious and I could perhaps recommend it if it weren’t so long. That being said, Bāhubali was not a dumpster fire; it has a lot of good-looking visual effects and it’s easy to see the ambition for this epic story, it just doesn’t come together. There’s fun to be had with how the main character is basically the strongest man in the world and yet still comes across as just a lucky dumbass, along with all the dancing that makes no sense but is still entertaining to watch. Seven Samurai (1954) - 10/10 If it wasn’t obvious already, Seven Samurai is a masterpiece. I reviewed this on The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast, so more thoughts can be found there. Red Road (2006) - 6/10 Another recommendation on episode 30 of the podcast. Red Road really captures the authentic British working class experience. Before Sunrise (1995) - 10/10 One of the best romances put to film. The first in Richard Linklater’s Before Trilogy is undoubtedly my favourite, despite its counterparts being almost equally as good. It tells the story of a young couple travelling through Europe, who happen to meet on a train and spend the day together. It is gloriously shot on location in Vienna and features some of the most interesting dialogue I’ve ever seen put to film. Heartbreakingly beautiful.

Tokyo Story (1953) - 9/10 This Japanese classic - along with being visually and sonically masterful - is a lot about appreciating the people in your life and taking the time to show them that you love them. It’s about knowing it’s never too late to rekindle old relationships if you truly want to, which is something I’ve been able to relate to in recent years. It broke my heart in two. Tokyo Story will make you want to call your mother. Before Sunset (2004) - 10/10 Almost a decade after Sunrise, Sunset carries a sombre yet relieving feeling. Again, the performances from Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke take me away, evoking nostalgic feelings as they stroll through the contemporary Parisian streets. There is no regret in me for buying the Criterion blu-ray boxset for this trilogy. Before Midnight (2013) - 10/10 Here, Linklater cements this trilogy as one of the best in film history. It’s certainly not the ending I expected, yet it’s an ending I appreciate endlessly. Because it doesn’t really end. Midnight shows the troubling times of a strained relationship; one that has endured so long and despite initially feeling almost dreamlike in how idealistically that first encounter was portrayed, the cracks appear as the film forces you to come to terms with the fact that fairy-tale romances just don’t exist. Relationships require effort and sacrifice and sometimes the ones that truly work are those that endure through all the rough patches to emerge stronger. The Holy Mountain (1973) - 10/10 Jodorowsky’s masterpiece is absolute insanity. I talked more about it on The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) - 10/10 Another watch for Grand Budapest because I bought the Criterion blu-ray. As unalterably perfect as ever. Blue Jay (2016) - 6/10 Rather good up to a point. My co-hosts and I did not agree on how good this movie was, which is a discussion you can listen to on my podcast. Shadow and Bone: The Afterparty (2021) - 3/10 For what it’s worth, I really enjoyed the first season of Shadow and Bone, which is why I wanted to see what ‘The Afterparty’ was about. This could have been a lot better and much less annoying if all those terrible comedians weren’t hosting and telling bad jokes. I don’t want to see Fortune Feimster attempt to tell a joke about oiling her body as the cast of the show sit awkwardly in their homes over Zoom. If it had simply been a half hour, 45 minute chat with the cast and crew about how they made the show and their thoughts on it, a lot of embarrassment and time-wasting could have been spared. Wadjda (2012) - 6/10 Another recommendation discussed at length on The Sunday Movie Marathon. Wadjda was pretty interesting from a cultural perspective but largely familiar in terms of story structure.

Freddy Got Fingered (2001) - 2/10 A truly terrible movie with maybe one or two scenes that stop it from being a complete catastrophe. Tom Green tried to create something that almost holds a middle finger to everyone who watches it and to some that could be a fun experience, but to me it just came across as utterly irritating. It’s simply a bunch of scenes threaded together with an incredibly loose plot. He wears the skin of a dead deer, smacks a disabled woman over and over again on the legs to turn her on, and he swings a newborn baby around a hospital room by its umbilical cord (that part was actually pretty funny). I cannot believe I watched this again, although I think I repressed a lot of it since having seen it for the first time around five years ago. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1 - (2011) I have to say, these movies seem to get better with each instalment. They’re still not very good though. That being said, I’m amazed at how many times I’ve watched each of the Twilight movies at this point. This time around, I watched Breaking Dawn - Part 1 with a YMS commentary track on YouTube and that made the experience a lot more entertaining. Otherwise, this film is super dumb but pretty entertaining. I would recommend watching these movies with friends. Solaris (1972) - 8/10 Andrei Tarkovsky’s grand sci-fi epic about the emotional crises of a crew on the space station orbiting the fictional planet Solaris is much as strange and creepy as you might expect from the master Russian auter. I had wanted to watch this for a while so I bought the Criterion blu-ray and it’s just stunning. It’s clear to see the 2001: A Space Odyssey inspiration but Solaris is quite a different beast entirely. Jaws (1975) - 4/10 I really tried to get into this classic movie, but Jaws exhibits basically everything I don’t like about Steven Spielberg’s directing. For sure, the effects are crazily good but the story itself is poorly handled and largely uninteresting. It was just a massive slog to get through.

Darkman (1990) - 6/10 Sam Raimi’s superhero movie is so much fun, albeit massively stupid. Further discussion on Darkman can be found on episode 32 of The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast. Darkman II: The Return of Durant (1995) - 1/10 Abysmal. I forgot the movie as I watched it. This was part of a marathon my friends and I did for episode 32 of our podcast. Darkman III: Die Darkman Die (1996) - 1/10 Perhaps this trilogy is not so great after all. Only marginally better than Darkman II but still pretty terrible. More thoughts on episode 32 of my podcast. F For Fake (1973) - 8/10 Rewatching this proved to be a worthwhile decision. Albeit slightly boring, there’s no denying how crazy the story of this documentary about art forgers is. The standout however, is the director himself. Orson Welles makes a lot of this film about himself and how hot his girlfriend is and it is hilarious.

The Mitchells vs. The Machines (2021) - 4/10 More style over substance, Sony’s new animated adventure wants so much to be in trend with the current internet culture but it simply doesn’t understand what it’s emulating. There’s a nyan cat reference, for crying out loud. For every joke that works, there are about ten more that do not and were it not for the wonderful animation, it simply wouldn’t be getting so much praise. Taxi Driver (1976) - 10/10 The first movie I’ve seen in a cinema since 2020 and damn it was good to be back! I’ve already reviewed Taxi Driver in my March wrap-up but seeing it in the cinema was a real treat. Irreversible (2002) - 8/10 One of the most viscerally horrendous experiences I’ve ever had while watching a movie. I cannot believe a friend of mine gave me the DVD to watch. More thoughts on episode 32 of The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast. Don’t watch it with the family. The Golden Compass (2007) - 1/10 I had no recollection of this being as bad as it is. The Golden Compass is the definition of a factory mandated movie. Nothing it does on its own is worth any kind of merit. I would say, if you wanted an experience like what this tries to communicate, a better option by far is the BBC series, His Dark Materials. More of my thoughts can be found in the review I wrote on Letterboxd.

Antichrist (2009) - 8/10 Lars von Trier is nothing if not provocative and I can understand why someone would not like Antichrist, but I enjoyed it quite a lot. After watching it, I wrote a slightly disjointed summary of my interpretations of this highly metaphorical movie in the group chat, so fair warning for a bit of spoilers and graphic descriptions: It's like, the patriarchy, man! Oppression! Men are the rational thinkers with big brains and the women just cry and be emotional. So she's seen as crazy when she's smashing his cock and driving a drill through his leg to keep him weighted down. Like, how does he like it, ya know? So then she mutilates herself like she did with him and now they're both wounded, but the animals crowd around her (and the crow that he couldn't kill because it's Mother nature, not Father nature, duh). Then he kills her, even though she could've killed him loads of times but didn't. So it's like "haha big win for the man who was subjected to such horrific torture. Victory!" And then all the women with no faces come out of the woods because it's like a constant cycle. Manchester By The Sea (2016) - 6/10 Great performances in this super sad movie. I can’t say I got too much out of it though. Roar (1981) - 9/10 Watching Roar again was still as terrifying an experience as the first time. If you want to watch something that’s loose on plot with poor acting but with real big cats getting in the way of production and physically attacking people, look no further. This is the scariest movie I’ve ever seen because it’s all basically real. Cannot recommend it enough. Eyes Without A Face (1960) - 8/10 I’m glad I checked this old French movie out again. There’s a lot to marvel at in so many aspects, what with the premise itself - a mad surgeon taking the faces from unsuspecting women and transplanting them onto another - being incredibly unique for the time. Short, sweet and entertaining!

Se7en (1995) - 10/10 The first in a David Fincher marathon we did for The Sunday Movie Marathon, episode 33. Zodiac (2007) - 10/10 Second in the marathon, as it was getting late, we decided to watch half that evening and the last half on the following evening. Zodiac is a brilliant movie and you can hear more of my thoughts on the podcast (though I apologise; my audio is not the best in this episode). Gone Girl (2014) - 10/10 My favourite Fincher movie. More insights into this masterpiece in episode 33 of the podcast. Friends: The Reunion (2021) - 6/10 It was heartwarming to see the old actors for this great show together again. I talked about the Friends reunion film at length in episode 33 of my podcast.

Wolfwalkers (2020) - 10/10 I reviewed this in an earlier post but would like to reiterate just how wonderful Wolfwalkers is. If you get the chance, please see it in the cinema. I couldn’t stop crying from how beautiful it was. Raya and The Last Dragon (2021) - 6/10 After watching Wolfwalkers, I decided I didn’t want to go home. So I had lunch in town and booked a ticket for Disney’s Raya and The Last Dragon. A child was coughing directly behind me the entire time. Again, I reviewed this in an earlier post but generally it was decent but I have so many problems with the execution. The Princess Bride (1987) - 9/10 Clearly I underrated this the last time I watched it. The Princess Bride is warm and hilarious with some delightfully memorable characters. A real classic!

The Invisible Kid (1988) - 1/10 About as good as you’d expect a movie with that name to be, The Invisible Kid was a pick for The Sunday Movie Marathon podcast, the discussion for which you can listen to in episode 34. Babel (2006) - 9/10 The same night that I watched The Invisible Kid, I watched a masterful and dour drama from the director of Birdman and The Revenant. Babel calls back to an earlier movie of Iñárritu’s, called Amores Perros and as I was informed while we watched this for the podcast, it turns out Babel is part of a trilogy alongside the aforementioned film. More thoughts in episode 34 of the podcast. Snake Eyes (1998) - 1/10 After feeling thoroughly emotionally wiped out after Babel, we immediately watched another recommendation for the podcast: Snake Eyes, starring Nicolas Cage. This was a truly underwhelming experience and for more of a breakdown into what makes this movie so bad, you can listen to us talk about it on the podcast.

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coffeeshoptalkks · 2 years

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the NTs as seen by a (dumbass) entp

because its been a while and i’ve found more people to psychoanalyze :)

pt. 1 (all 16)

ENTJ:

still haven’t met many more of you

probably cause i avoid you like the plague

sorry not sorry

this is pOtentially my major advisor

if so, much love my guy, you’re also like 65 so aren’t having many of the problems a 20 year old ENTJ would be having

actually now that i’m typing this hes most likely an ENTJ

Te / Ni / Se / Fi

only thing that throws me off is the Se/Si cause I’ve seen him use the same thing over and over again

but he doesn’t strike me as an ESTJ/ISTJ

that man is walking NT

actually, yeah, 100% an ENTJ

also potentially a 8w?

idk

the man doesn’t take bullshit and damn do i appreciate that

hes a hardass but fair and my entp 8w7 ass respects the living hell out of that

i will say however, that this is a mentorship / mentee relationship and that a lot of this dynamic works because of that inherent power dynamic and also my great amount of respect to him

outside of that and also that hes older so obviously more developed functions idk how well it would work between peers

but as a mentor? fantastic

INTJ

by now i have met 4 of you

3 of them are women

the statistics on that are fking insane

anyway

still love and adore you

still having a Fe/Fi problem when you start looping / are underdeveloped (its a IXTJ thing in general tbh)

one of the INTJs is about 10 years older than me, works in finance, (Ni makes it a fantastic fit, its patterns and intuition of the stock market i mean come oN)

shes incredibly interesting because i absolutely adore her, def more on the introvert introvert side, but also shes married to an ESFP?

fun story, a different INTJ i now live near had a tiny crush on an ESFP for a hOt second until he decided to be fucking stupid and go crashing into an Fi hell

granted hes super unhealthy and nobody likes him so take that as you will

its just what happens with unheathy Fi, no hate to ESFPs, they get enough as is

anyway

INTJ and ESFP

i don’t exactly understand the appeal of the relationship, the INTJ is the one holding it together (enneagram 9 like? stepping down and self-forgetting to keep the peace) but i’ve known both these people for so long and they wouldn’t have gotten married (or stay dating for upwards of 8 years) if they didn’t genuinely care about each other

i’ve seen two out of four of you in an Ni/Fi grip and its kinda yikes tbh

like, for one of you i just feel straight up bad for and the other one i want to hit over the head with some Fe (in my defense his sister was dying and he didn’t want to go see her cause like... it hurt too much?.. like, my guy.)

but the sisters better(ish) and hes back to normal so chilling

other INTJ is just straight up fking depressed rip my gal i love you

and then we have one normal one hanging around

tbh the largest problem here is the Fe/Fi difference especially when the INTJ doesn’t accommodate other people (and sometimes me)

my own growth of Si and Fe has def shifted that as i now have a chronic medical condition and im like. gUys just get up and get me some water it is not that difficult i am literally ill lol

more on that in the ISTJ section

ENTP

INTP turned ENTP lol

not actually

had an interesting mistype earlier with a friend

the friggin toxic empathy made me think inferior Fe but it turns out thats just *trauma* and his Fe is really damn high so its an interesting balance

ADORE

YOU

ENTP 8w7 sp/sx and ENTP 2w3 sx/so

i know this isn’t enneagram but now it is lol

i don’t particularly worry about him cause i know he’ll be fine

i love him

hes fantastic

we kind of enable each other but not really

its a really nice dynamic, would highly recommend

INTP

i found oneeeee (twoooo cause i didn’t look at this for six months and am now continuing it cause im meeee)

so turns out the person i thought was an INTP was just an ENTP and don’t mind both of us being clowns, sometimes it happens

this intp was fking impossible to type

bounced around with INTP for a while, then somebody suggested ISFJ with an Ne grip that i entertained for like 2 minutes and then i had a good good good convo with her today and was like

okay

INTP

we got it

the problem with typing her was the developed Fe

the argument for ISFJ was (1 INTP/ENTP and ISFJ share the same function stack) and 2. a developed Fe

turns out that just what happens with good parenting lol

what i’m assuming is some kind of IXFJ mother?

i’m an ENTP with an ISFJ mom and thats about 85% of the reason my Fe is developed

and because Ne has got to connect everything and also our dynamics with out mothers have some similar characteristics i’m starting to put two and two together

might be a post on that later we’ll see

fucking

funny

does crazy shit (not actually, just shoving face into cake) when kind of stressed out or anything

the Si tertiary is a personality quirk rather than something really problematic

she just refuses to get venmo and we all give her shit for it but its not causing overt problems and there are just a few other hills that she will die on

thats the difference between tertiary Si and inferior Si, no matter how developed

second one :)

immediate click with him tbh

easiest INTP to spot too

i really do think that part of it is the fact that hes a male and wasn’t really *hiding* his XNTX kinda quirky social awkwardness

idk, hes got the same tritype as me for enneagram so a really easy mirror spotting thing

we shouldn’t be left alone after 10pm cause we’ll start typeracing with an INFP instead of studying for bio

love you guys

#mbti #entp #intp #entj #intj #mbti humor #mine #cstks

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everybodyscupoftea · 3 years

Text

keeping a secret

pike jj x reader (ft. cody and tyler)

family secret santa in which the boys can’t keep a secret

this made my heart soft btw so y’all are going to melt

(warnings: cursing, light editing)

Secret Santa never worked the way it was supposed to. The four of you drew names the weekend after Thanksgiving, and when you got together to exchange gifts, you had pretty much figured out who had who.

“There’s a forfeit this year,” you interrupted their excited chatter, clutching Cody’s name in your hand, “if I find out who everyone has before we open gifts because of y’all’s dumbasses, you all have to buy me a gift.”

Tyler scoffed, “How is it our fault, maybe you’re just nosy.”

You raised your eyebrows, “So last year you didn’t borrow my chapstick and accidentally slide your slip of paper back into my pocket with the chapstick? And then JJ didn’t literally try and buy my gift while I was in the same room?”

Cody snorted, “She may have a point.”

“Yeah, I have a point. Y’all are sucking the fun out of it, so please, keep it a secret for fuck’s sake.”

“Mhmm, sure. Um, J, what were you wanting for Christmas this year?” Cody asked, grinning at you.

“I’m going to kill you,” you threatened, flipping him off, before pulling your phone out, “everyone send what they want in the group chat.”

You watched Cody’s message roll in and had to hold back a scoff at a date please.

“Cody, you’re being difficult,” Tyler complained.

“Fine,” he huffed and sent something else.

Idk kitchen shit i guess

Now that you could work with.

“You know,” JJ mused from where he was lying on your bed, “I think that you have me.”

“Pardon?” you asked.

“What’d you get me for Christmas, I know you have me for Secret Santa.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, “I’m not going to ask how you came to that conclusion, but I want to make it absolutely clear that if you try and ruin Secret Santa again, I will kill you.”

“You won’t,” he answered, confidently, “but I know because Tyler obviously has Cody after the text thing. And I have-” you lunged across the bed to clap your hand over his mouth.

“Maybank, I thought I was clear.”

He smirked and licked your palm until you jerked your hand back, JJ answered, innocent tone of voice, “I was just going to say that I have someone other than myself.”

“Sure you were.”

As you moved to stand, he frowned, grabbing your wrist, “I promise I’ll drop it. Can we study?”

“That’s what you’re here for.”

Wanna go to the mall this afternoon

Came onto your phone in the middle of your class, and you sighed, reminding yourself to respond to Tyler once the lesson was finished. Your professor let the class out early, and you responded, walking toward your apartment.

Yeah sure. What time?

Now. I’ll pick you up at your apartment

Okay I’m not quite there yet

I know. I’m sitting outside

You snorted, not even remotely surprised. He was parked right outside your building, looking down at his phone, and you ducked, sneaking around the front of his truck before popping up and tapping on the driver’s window.

He jumped high enough that his head slammed into the roof and screamed so loud and high pitched that even you flinched. Tyler grabbed his chest and glared at you, flipping you off.

Laughing, you ran around the truck and climbed into the passenger seat and asked, “What’s up, creep?”

“Nothing much, asshole.”

“To the mall?” you said, buckling up.

“Yeah, gotta get my Secret Santa gift.” You gave him a look, and he glanced over at you at a red light, “What?”

“Ty, baby, please tell me you’re not bringing me to spoil Secret Santa.”

“I’m,” he paused, “not?”

“Uh huh. Well, I hope you’re buying one for me too, that’s the deal.”

“How do you know I’m not getting one for you in the first place.”

“Tyler,” you warned, “I swear to god.”

“Darling,” he answered, “I’m not religious.”

You groaned, “I’m going to kill you before your driving does.”

“I need help,” Cody told you, sitting down with a dramatic frown.

“With what?” you tossed your notebook aside to give him your full attention.

He smiled sheepishly, “Can you wrap my gift for me?”

“What?”

“I know you’re joking. Did the three of you plan this? You’ve all done this.”

“Done what?”

“Tried to ruin it for me.”

“Nope, it’s honestly coincidental and absolutely hilarious.”

You rolled your eyes, “I’m not helping you.”

“Fine,” he pouted, “I guess that my person will be very disappointed, don’t want to upset-” and before he could answer, you kicked out and hit his thigh hard.

“Cody, you’re going to make me do something drastic.”

He smirked, “Oh yeah, like what?”

“I’m going to spoil it for you. I know how much you love Christmas.”

Cody looked conflicted, “Damn, you’ve kinda got me there.”

“Wrap your own damn gifts.”

You showed up to the frat house in your pajamas, ready to exchange gifts. Cody was in the kitchen, finishing up some snacks for the group, and you leaned against the counter, “Good afternoon, sir.”

“Good afternoon, ma’am.”

“Excited for today?”

He beamed, “Of course.”

Tyler stumbled into the kitchen rubbing sleep out of his eyes, and you gaped at him, “Bro, it’s 2 p.m.”

He yawned, scratching his stomach, “I’m catching up on sleep.”

“From what?”

“Life, bro. It’s exhausting being alive.”

Which, fucking true. You held your fist out for him to bump, “Feel that.”

“Nap later,” he suggested and you nodded.

JJ came down the stairs next and tilted your chin up to kiss you hello, tapping his fingers on your jaw a few times before pulling back.

Tyler made a gagging noise and reached for a mug of coffee Cody poured. JJ rolled his eyes, “Don’t be bitter.”

“Can we just open gifts?” Tyler whined.

You laughed and nodded, “Yes, let’s take a seat, shall we?”

Cody looked at you warily, “Why the tone?”

“Tone?” you asked, faking innocence.

JJ side eyed you, “You know?”

“I know.”

Tyler groaned, “Literally how? Who blabbed?”

“Cody did. He drunk texted me asking what JJ wanted.”

He smiled sheepishly, “I have zero recollection.”

“Okay but how did you figure out the rest?” Tyler interrupted.

“You have me, we didn’t buy anything at the mall that time we went, but you followed me around all afternoon, trying to figure out what I was interested in.” Tyler narrowed his eyes, “That obvious, huh?”

“It was. Which means JJ has you because I have Cody.”

Pushing himself back, JJ laughed, “Got it in one.”

You crossed your arms, “So I will be accepting gifts from JJ and Cody in the near future, thanks.”

Cody sighed, “We figured you’d find out, so we actually already ordered them, just not in yet.”

“Oh my god,” Tyler muttered, “y’all are awful.”

“Hey,” Cody pointed at him accusatory, “just because you weren’t at fault doesn’t mean you get to take a moral high ground, you’re the one who ruined it last year.”

“Yeah,” JJ added on, “I’m the only one who gets to take it.”

“You ruined it the first year,” you reminded him, “well, Brooke did I guess. She texted me asking why the fuck you were spending more money on my gift than hers.”

Tyler choked on his coffee, “What?!”

JJ’s jaw dropped, and you suddenly realized you’d never told any of them about it. They all stared at you, waiting for a response, “Yeah, she was mad I guess.”

“Jesus Christ,” JJ muttered.

Cody laughed, “God she was the fucking worst. That’s why your gift was cheap sweetheart.”

After a few more seconds of laughter, JJ finally interrupted, “Okay, we should actually exchange gifts.”

“Right, so, I had Cody,” you started, passing over your gift.

He tore into it and pulled out the apron that said plant mom in a script font with plants scattered randomly all over the front. He snorted, “This is fucking fantastic.

“Thank you,” you beamed, “but there’s actually more, so don’t get stuck on the apron.”

Cody pulled out a set of hockey tickets, two for the upcoming Hurricanes Leafs matchup and gasped, “Dude, oh my god, I’m going to kiss you right now.”

Laughing, you puckered your lips, “Any time, baby.”

JJ chuckled, “Mr. Steal My Girl, huh?”

“Maybank, she’d leave you in a fucking heartbeat for a Leafs player, we both know that. I’m not quite as great, but I’m close,” Cody fired back, softening it by sliding his gift for JJ across the table.

Picking it up, JJ shook it a few times before digging through the bag. He made a weird face and pulled out a pair of boxers. His jaw dropped and Cody was very clearly holding in laughter.

“What is it?” Tyler asked, eyebrows furrowed.

Wordlessly, he held them up and flipped them around so everyone could see daddy issues written across the ass in pink writing.

You and Tyler busted out laughing as Cody sat, arms crossed looking smug. JJ was clearly unsure how to feel, close to laughing, until Cody took pity, “Don’t worry, bro, there’s more in the bag.”

Sure enough, JJ pulled out a new wallet, one he’d been eyeing for months but hadn’t pulled the trigger on because it was a bit out of budget. Smiling softly at Cody, he told him, “Thanks bro, love you.”

“Love you too, J.”

“No sappy hours early,” Tyler interrupted, “give me my gift.”

“It’s 2 p.m.,” JJ muttered but passed the box over to Tyler anyway.

He tore into it and JJ jolted forward, “Dude, it’s breakable, chill.”

Inside was a nice tea set and a box of fancy teas. Tyler blinked a few times, in awe of the contents, “Woah.”

“I know you like tea more than coffee, and we never have any here, so I figured I’d set you up.”

“I-” Tyler cut himself off, “wow, this is really thoughtful. Thanks buddy.”

“Anytime. I’ll tell you where I ordered them too so if you like one you can order more. I kinda just got a starter pack.”

“Yeah, that would be sick.”

JJ squeezed his shoulder and Tyler cleared his throat, passing a small bag across the table. You picked it up, curious, and pulled the tissue paper out. After looking, you let out a loud laugh, “Great minds, huh?”

“Great minds,” Tyler nodded, folding his hands.

“What is it?” JJ asked, leaning over.

“Leafs tickets. Two of them.”

“Well,” Cody said, “guess we can all go now. Sitting in different places, but we can make a trip of it.”

Tyler lit up, “I didn’t even think about that!”

“Boys night,” Cody cheered.

“Fuck yes,” you agreed, clutching the tickets to your chest.

“Oh,” Tyler leaned forward, “there’s something else, but it’s in my room, be right back.”

He disappeared up the stairs, and JJ stood to grab his wallet to start switching everything over. Cody looked pleased, and Tyler came running back down a few seconds later with a box in his hand.

“This too,” he huffed out, collapsing back into the chair.

“You’re going to break that one day,” you warned him, tearing into the wrapping paper. Inside was the pair of running shoes you’d talked about the day you went to the mall with him and you smiled, “Thanks, bud.”

“Mall trip successful,” he responded, taking the last sip of his coffee before standing again, “who wants tea?”

“Me,” you answered, standing with him while Cody started pulling out plates for the snacks he’d made.

In the loudness of everyone talking over each other, you just had to smile. Sure it was chaotic, but it was your family, and you loved them all dearly.

“Oh,” you remembered, “Cody and JJ I expect my gifts on Christmas Eve, thanks.”

Cody groaned and JJ squeezed his shoulder, “You have no one to blame but yourself.”

for day nine of @obxmermaid‘s holiday challenge: secret santa

#pike!jj #jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank x you #jj maybank fic #outer banks #outer banks fic #cody and tyler #obxmermaidholiday #frat!jj

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v0idl1nq · 2 years

Text

꒰ °v0idl1nq's 360 starlings event prompts°꒱

summary:: here are the prompts for the event!! credit to tumblr, pinterest, and my friends for these<33

Romantic Prompts:

"don't get your hopes up"

"stay away from there"

"that was bad"

"it's almost over"

"you're on your own"

"stop ignoring me"

"we're going to be late"

"you're a liar"

"I've had enough"

"don't be like that"

"we need to practice"

"you're going to hurt yourself"

"let me do the talking"

"you should know better"

"I can't let that happen again"

"I understand where you're coming from"

"I'm in love"

"let me know"

“I’ll be careful”

"you're never alone"

Random Dialogue Prompts

"Be forewarned: I'm about to become ten times more insufferable."

"Since when do you knit?" "Since when did I give you permission to be all up in my business? Exactly. So shut up."

"Get in here, right now!"

"And I've been clear on that since the beginning."

"Give me the keys!"

"There's no way, there's just no way."

"Since when?"

"Is this what love is supposed to feel like?"

"I'm not going to let how I look, dictate the way I live my life."

"I feel like I'm gonna throw up." "It's cuz you're always on that phone!"

"I hate you." "Marry me."

"Life is a highway, and I'm always stuck in traffic."

"Bestie I will tear you to shreds."

"Your mother didn't carry you for nine months for you to behave like this." "You don't know my mom at all, do you?"

"Great, so out of two hundred-and-sixteen passengers there's not a single pilot/captain/doctor on board, but we've got five marine biologists, two graphic designers, ten chefs, one Banksy impersonator, and four composers. Fantastic. We're all gonna die." "Anyone here a funeral directory by any chance?"

"Why would you lie about something like that?"

"Stop being so dramatic." "There's a bone sticking out of my arm!" "And?"

"¿Como es?" "I don't speak french, sorry." "*visible confusion*"

"Boo, you psychopath."

"Make no mistake, vengeance will be ours." "Grandma-"

Fake Dating and Marriage Prompts

“are you kidding me?”

“this is against the rules…”

“why are we doing this again?”

“i don’t care about them anymore, i care about you”

“they’re staring”

“these things usually don’t go to plan, you know”

“are you sure?”

“put my hand down dumbass”

“nobody’s around right now…”

“its always been you”

“this is easier than i thought”

“i feel like neither of us are faking this”

“you’re really that touch starved, huh”

“quick, they’re coming!”

“can i kiss you- or is that against the rules” “fuck the rules”

“Will you marry me? Again?” “As many times as it takes.”

“Marry me.” “Race you to the altar, ready set go!”

“I’m sorry I lost the ring.” “As long as I don’t lose you, we’re fine.”

“No fair! I was going to ask you!" “I’ll make it up to you, promise.”

'I can fix them' Dialogue Prompts

"Perhaps you can. But not soon enough, I think."

"You could break them further, too."

"I'm pretty sure that's not your job."

"I don't think they plan on giving you the chance."

"Have you asked them about it? Or is this just about you?"

"Alright. I'll give them one more chance."

"Have you thought about what it'll do to you?"

"Delusions have always been your strong suit."

"You can't even understand their motives, how are you going to change their mind?"

"I was under the impression that you were highly unskilled in this area."

"Why settle for a temporary fix? Why not dig deeper, and if we exacerbate the problem along the way, ah well."

"They're standing right there."

"Will you now? Or will you take this opportunity to twist them into whoever you want them to be?"

"I don't care."

"Your optimism is admirable. Or stupid."

"Or I could just kill them."

"Or I could maim them a little, see if that makes a difference."

"Why are you telling me?"

"And they'd let you, probably. Poor bastard."

"Forget that, we have bigger things to worry about."

"You've said that before. I'm not sure I believe you."

"Is that loyalty speaking or stubbornness?"

"Doesn't matter to me. I won't be here much longer.""You're pathetic when you're like this."

"I'm sure they appreciate the sentiment."

#v0idl1nq's prompts #꒰ °v0idl1nq's 360 starlings event

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teacherintransition · 2 years

Text

Looking for Someone When No One is There

Conditioning and expecting can often mislead us from the life we live now …

Our choices have permanence that we don’t understand right away and it can lead us to look for ghosts…

This column has been a written path to a new life for me and I hope it’s given some guidance to others walking a similar road. In my mind, as I’ve adjusted to a new way to live; I’ve looked for my voice, my wisdom, my style of expression of the challenges of retiring, “but to keep on livin L-I-v-I-n!”*. Painting has been an arduous search for a style of sharing what I want to say visually. The writing has been more forthcoming; I’ve gone from a pedantic to a more didactic approach; a good thing since I often don’t have a clue. Realizing that one is more often than not…a dumbass, can be liberating for an aspiring writer or chronicler of daily events with lessons being learned. The writing feels more relaxed…more a stream of consciousness kind of vibe. Hell, I’ve written this column for a year and a half and am working on a book with twenty four chapter thus far… that’s gotta account for some understanding of what’s going on …right…right?

Yeah, Mr. Middle Aged Hemingway or Shakespeare; you can write a complete sentence and develop a coherent thought, but oh, you still have much to learn my friend…about yourself and the complexity of being a “teacher in transition.” Case in point: for years my wife would often hear me complain about being inundated with current and former students and parents everywhere we went. Eating at a restaurant? I’d hear my name yelled across the dining area…nice. Shopping? The kids are behind the counter and while checking my purchases out …take special notice of my size and my choice in garments…no embarrassment here. Street festivals? Walking down block by city block, running into kids on every corner and bouncing between them much like a pinball being bounced around by Roger Daltrey a la “Tommy.” (If you don’t get that cultural reference…just lead paw paw to his rocker and give me a blanket) Other examples abound and to anybody who heard me gripe about it lo’ these thirty years, one would assume that Mr. Rich didn’t like it when these things occurred.

This is the part when irony slaps you across the cheek to announce a lesson is to be learned, a conception shattered, you’re about to realize you didn’t know anything, “you don’t know …now ya know!”** Recently, my wife and I were enjoying the local El Dia de Los Muertos festival here in Nacogdoches. It was a great soirée with music, fantastic food, arts and crafts and superb recognition of of the cultural practices of Mexico. My wife noticed me turning my head and stopping and looking randomly and asked, “what are you looking for Brent?” Sarcasm true to form, I replied, “wild women.” It didn’t garner knee slapping, raucous laughter from dear Kim thus I replied a more credible answer, “I don’t know.”

We walked a bit further and my ever perceptive spouse looked over at me and asked, “baby, are you ok, you look sad like you might cry?” Yes, my wife calls me baby… let’s move past that; she had correctly assessed my state of mind. I looked at her and said, “you know, that last seventh grade class I taught at lufkin…they are seniors this year.’ “ …and the senior class at Huntington, I only taught a few of them.” Kim wasn’t sure what my point was as we talked. Irony …here it comes. I expressed that I was looking for ghosts…before long, I wouldn’t know any current “former students” of mine to pester me in public. “I thought that be a good thing,” Kim said. I realized it was terrible… soon, no one would be a student of mine…no student in Diboll, Lufkin or Huntington would know me. Whenever a kid wanted to see me or got excited to hang out in public, I was reminded that I was making an impact. I realize there are thousands of former students out there, but they were ghosts of the young kids they were once who needed me. Hell, the students that were at Diboll are all in their mid-40’s. It was never a concern that I was getting older, as long as I could work and help young people I felt ageless, I felt valuable. I look for them and no one is there.

This is the struggle of the transition… we are all replaceable, life goes on without you and you have to find a new dream…a new sense of self worth, but the other one was so damn cool. I taught, I made a difference, I felt important. I felt like a ghost looking for my students and no one is there. This is a saddening state of mind, but also a challenge to make yourself relevant personally; to seek out a new adventure…to look out for yourself yet still inspire. My writing, my art is my legacy just as certainly teaching three thousand young kids who are now putting to use my instruction. I hope it was enough.

*”Dazed and Confused;” Linklatter, Richard; Gramercy Pictures; 1993

**”Juicy;” Wallace, Christopher; Sony Music; 1995

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writing-bakugo · 3 years

Text

Pavlov ~ Katsuki Bakugo

A/n: this comes from my headcanon from the other day lowkey had this written for over a week but never found the motivation to edit it.

A/n 2: Keeper of the Lost Cities is mentioned in this so if you don’t know Keeper I’m sorry read it it’s a great series! Also, this is my first x reader piece I’ve ever written (except for the headcanons) so I hope you enjoy!

“I don’t know,” Bakugo finally sighed, cracking under Kirishima’s curious gaze. “I get so damn angry at her. Who gave her the right to look so good all the time or laugh so fucking adorably?”

Kaminari glanced at Kirishima, before the redhead cleared his throat, “what do you mean angry at her?”

“I don’t know,” Bakugo rolled his eyes, “I just want to get fucking mad at her every time she’s with Midoriya! Like the hell she doing hanging with that nerd and not us?”

“Bro,” Kaminari grinned, “you like her!”

“The fuck? Someone like her? Fuck no.”

Kirishima cleared his throat, “I mean think about it man, she’s amazing. And you get mad when she’s not talking to you, mad when she ain’t here, think she’s adorable, man, it doesn’t add up...unless you like her.”

Bakugo glared at his two friends, before stalking off. Why would he, Katsuki Bakugo, like an extra?

But second year came to an end, and he still found himself getting so angry—by now he’d figured out it was his own feelings he was angry at since he knew that he was deeply infatuated with you.

Obviously, he told you. What good would it bring to keep it in?

“Hey moron,” Katsuki called you over. You were a bit confused, since he’d only talk to you when you guys were training and needed a partner.

“What’s up?”

Bakugo glared at you, “be my girlfriend.”

Your jaw dropped, did you hear right? Bakugo just told you to be his girlfriend? What right does he have to say that? After blinking a few times, you shook your head, “sorry Bakugo, I kinda have a thing for Izuku.”

The hell? You had feelings for Deku? You—amazing, beautiful, funny, annoying, clumsy—turned the great Katsuki Bakugo down because you had feeling for Deku?

Bakugo took a deep breath, calming the rage bubbling up, and shook his head, “he’s dating pink cheeks.”

“I know,” you frowned, thinking about every forced smile when Ochaco gushed about her and Izuku’s most recent date. “But that doesn’t change anything for me.”

That was the end of the conversation. Bakugo had feelings for you. You had feelings for Deku.

Summer at UA always came and went quickly. It felt like yesterday that you and Bakugo stood outside the school taking about your feelings.

The first day back, you joked around with Ochaco and gushed excitedly about the trip she and Izuku took when Bakugo passed by, shoving your favorite candy in your hand. You stared at it in confusion and watched Bakugo stalk off to talk with Kirishima.

A week passed and every morning, without fail, Bakugo brought your favorite candy first thing in the morning. He didn’t say anything—just shoved candy in your direction and kept walking.

Another week passed, and the confusion wore off. It wasn’t, “okay why is Bakugo bringing me candy?” But, “I wonder when I’ll see Bakugo?”

Three weeks into the new routine, Bakugo handed a book you’d never read into your hand along with your favorite candy.

Four weeks into it, another book.

That soon became the new routine. Every Monday morning, a book of your favorite genre would accompany your candy bar.

Something happened in the new book, Keeper of the Lost Cities, that you just couldn’t contain to yourself. You asked your best friend, Ochaco if she’d read it, but she simply shook her head.

After asking four other people, including Izuku, and they all never even heard of the book, you timidly approached Bakugo.

“What do you want?”

“Hey Bakugo,” you gave an awkward smile, “you know the book you gave me this week?”

“Keeper, yeah. What about it?”

“Have you read it?”

“Yeah. I read every book before you get them.”

You froze at that statement, before grinning, sliding into Izuku’s seat, “oh my gosh! If I’d known that I’d have told you all about my theories. But! Can you believe that Sophie chose Fitz over Keefe? I mean Keefe is clearly the better choice and Fitz just throws fits all the time like come on!”

Bakugo stared at you, before sighing, “Fitz only cares about himself and his image. Keefe doesn’t care about any of that and just wants Sophie to be happy.”

“Exactly!” You grinned, “I wonder what the Great Gulon Incident was?”

Bakugo nodded, “the author’s supposed to release that soon, she said it’d be in Keefe’s pov.”

You two talked and talked. You talked until the bell rang and you talked while Bakugo made you both dinner. Bakugo was a fantastic cook—and even held off on the spice for your sake.

That soon became the new routine.

Every morning you woke up excited to see Bakugo, excited for candy, for a book, and for Friday and Saturday—when you and Bakugo spent 24/7 with each other, you talking about the book, him offering some side comments, theories, cooking, and cleaning.

The other students quickly noticed this new change in behavior.

“I wonder if Katsuki could make bulgogi,” you wondered aloud, pushing the cart after Ochaco and Tsyuu.

“You like Bakugo,” Ochaco suddenly blurted out, not able to contain herself anymore. She’d wanted to ask you about it for a few weeks now, but never found the right time.

“Huh? No!” You shook your head furiously, “I don’t like him.”

“Sure,” Tsyuu grabbed something, tossing it into the cart, “that’s why you’re always with him and talking about him.”

“I don’t like him!” You groaned, “he’s arrogant and self absorbed and only cares about himself.”

Still, you thought to yourself, he’s not like that at all. Katsuki’s honest and caring and kind and somewhat gentle in his aggressive behavior. Is he really all that bad?

The next few days, that’s all you could think about. Why were you always so excited to see him? You didn’t like him, you liked Izuku, right?

“Hey Katsuki, can I talk to you?” You approached with a frown, interrupting his conversation with Kirishima and Kaminari.

He nodded, and you clarified that you wanted to talk alone. Thing 1 and Thing 2 gave each other curious glances, and Bakugo stood up, confused by your demeanor. You never talked to him while...sad?

“What’s wrong, Teddy Bear?”

You opened your mouth but quickly shut it at the nickname, cheeks flushing. You had to look away from his smirking face to even think. “I like Izuku.”

Bakugo scoffed, but you continued, finally looking up at him, “so why am I always so happy to see you Katsuki? When Izuku walks into the room all I can think about is if you’re gonna join or what you’re doing.”

Bakugo sighed, “that’s because I’m in love with you, dumbass.”

You stared at him, before shaking your head, “no. That doesn’t explain why I feel these things!”

“Why not? Why is it so hard to accept that you have feelings for me?”

You sucked in a breath, as if a train struck you down. Why is it so hard to accept he has feelings for you? Would it be all that terrible if you had feelings for him? Izuku is Keefe and Bakugo is Fitz—why would you choose the man that throws fits? That would be ridiculous and irresponsible. Still, was Bakugo really Fitz?

Ochaco complains all the time about the way Izuku parades her around, like she’s a tool for more publicity. But that hadn’t mattered because that didn’t mean anything to you—if it were you you wouldn’t complain at all—you’d just be happy to be by Izuku’s side.

But would those things bother you?

Would Bakugo do those things?

Was Bakugo Keefe after all? Was he the one who ran off and made the reckless decisions?

“Go on a date with me,” Bakugo suddenly said, pulling you out of your thoughts, “we can go to your favorite restaurant.”

Your eyes widened. How did he know that was your fav restaurant —in fact, how did he know anything was your favorite?

“But I-I-no. I can’t.”

Bakugo scoffed, “really? Or are you scared of your own feelings?”

You finally relented, and went on a date with Katsuki Bakugo.

After all, you were just so happy to be near Katsuki.

#bakugou x reader #bnha #bnha imagines #bnha bakugo katsuki #bnha x you #bnha x reader #katsuki bakugo #bakugo katsuki #mha katsuki #katsuki bakugo headcanons #bakugou imagine #bakugou x you #katsuki x you

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theobligatedklutz · 4 years

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ray falling head over heals for rose when he went to one of their shows to support his cousin nayelis, drummer of rose & the petal pushers. she played piano and guitar and he was awe struck by the sheer joy she had playing and interacting with the crowd; it was infectious. his palms were sweaty when nayelis tugged his arm and shoved him in rose's direction. rose looked so self assured. (he finds out later, she was nervous, too. nayelis told her about ray, she thought they would be a 1/2

ANON, YOUR MIND.

So I'm going to cry. But I am also going to take your hcs and run with them:

Nayelis is 15 when she meets Rose. She is this confident, beautiful woman and she works the room with an unimaginable charm so naturally, she and Nayelis become best friends in a span of a day. Their love of music is what really brings them together. Rose shreds on the keyboard and guitar. She is incredible. They end up writing a ton of songs together and Rose quickly learns that Nayelis is soft inside but rough around the edges, poetry epitomized.

Rose introduces Nayelis to her childhood friends, Kiera and Ashlyn. And the four of them can't seem to get enough of each other. Kiera is chaotic, can chug seven sodas in a matter of minutes (three minutes is her best record) and it's literally never a dull day with her in sight. Ashlyn is the one who gets them out of trouble most of the time - and they get into trouble a lot - and is perpetually tired of their shenanigans but lets it slide because she secretly loves them too much.

And so forms Rose and the Petal Pushers with Rose as lead singer and guitarist, Nayelis as drummer, Kiera on the keyboard and Ashlyn on the bass.

At 17, she meets Sunset Curve working the Orpheum Theatre. They are up and coming, they sound fantastic and their music touches Rose's soul. The lyrics to Now or Never seem to resonate with her at a deeper level than most songs that bounce around the walls of the theatre. She is absolutely digging their vibe even after Reggie, their bassist, tries terribly to flirt with her- I mean “size beautiful” come on now. But Bobby is the dorkiest, attempting to nervously ask her out after his other band mates go out for hot dogs. That whole incident sours drastically when the news of Luke, Reggie and Alex's death reach them.

Bobby and Rose end up somehow getting closer after the tragedy, they go on a few dates too but it doesn’t stick. It just never becomes romantic between them so they end up being good friends.

At 21, Rose and the Petal Pushers get a lot of gigs because Rose has an "in" with most of the cafes and clubs around town. Since 16, she's bounced from job to job waitressing and bartending so of course she does. And they are popular amongst the teens like no other. They rise even higher when they produce a demo, get even more gigs and it's at their set at the Oracle Theatre that everything falls into place. Rose is swaying to the music, feeling like the strings of her guitar have become part of her, her limbs, everything is so natural and every beat sounds like the badum badum badum of their hearts, it all feels like a dream and Rose realizes this is what she is destined for when she hears the roar of the crowd as she sings the chorus and she can't help but laugh into the lyrics just a little. The crowd takes it all in like they're in desperate need of her infectious joy.

Nayelis introduces Rose to her cousin, Ray, afterwards. She's mentioned him before, how he was a really amazing photographer and he could really do a rad album cover for them. But she had also mentioned Ray was totally her type and "are you trying to set me up with your cousin?" "So what if I am, Ro, music has been your life pretty much all your life. Live a little." "I'm fine, thank you very much." But Nayelis had failed to mention that Ray is adorable.

He's fidgeting and she can't help get nervous because he's cute. There's this shine in his grey? green? eyes like he knows Rose, like they've connected somehow. There's a raspyness to his voice, like he's a little out of breath, as he tells Rose she was fantastic up there. And Rose tries to be smooth, she really does but Ray is still looking at her like that and of course, she gets more nervous but she's got practice being something she's not: confident.

They dance around each other like the dumbasses they are. Nayelis can't stand it, it's so painful to watch. Somehow they've ended up friends, really good friends. Ray is willing to pluck the bright hot stars right out of the night sky for Rose and Rose has Ray withdrawals whenever he's not around. They seem to fit together like a puzzle, Rose's rambunctiousness and Ray's softspokenness.

He brings Dahlias for her whenever he shows up to "hangout" and one day, Nayelis just about loses it when he shows up at band practice- they are practicing for the Orpheum, it's their big night in two days and Ray is here and Nayelis knows that if she wants Rose to bring lovejoylife into their performance, she needs Rose and Ray to get their shit together so she gives fate one last chance before she'll butt in and do it herself.

She drags Ashlyn and Kiera out the door, tells Rose they're going to take a small break and leaves her cousin and best friend alone in the garage. And Rose doesn't waste any time dragging Ray over to the piano - "I wrote a little thing for you, I wanna show you" -, they sit down, sides pressed together and shoulders brushing and she starts delicately playing a soft tune on the piano. Her voice comes in after a little while into the music and it is so beautiful, so angelic, Ray feels light. And the song is about seeing so many faces but not recognizing a single soul, not until you came into my life and then everything turned sharp and full and vivid and colored. Her nimble fingers move against the keys in a graceful dance. Her side profile is lit up by the sunlight filtering through the windows and with that voice, she seems like she doesn't belong on earth, she looks otherworldly. Ray knows she's singing about him and it makes him giddy, he feels like he's going to float off into space. Rose stops suddenly then and turns her face towards him and he freezes. They are so close, there's merely an inch between them. And she kisses him, soft and slow, much like her fingers against the piano and her silky voice. And he kisses back like he's been waiting for a lifetime and honestly, he has.

Kiera, Ashlyn and Nayelis watch from the garage window with goofy smiles plastered on their faces. They play the best show known to man at the Orpheum that Friday.

It's nearly July in 2021 when Julie finds a fraying fading photograph cleaning her dad's folders off the dinner table. It falls out from one of his many work binders and Julie picks it up slowly and carefully. Julie's mouth falls open. There are four girls in the photo, they are standing in a garage much like the one they have. The girl with the wild curls is definitely her mother, unmistakably so by that bright smile on her face. She's wearing a guitar against her hip and has the rock-on fingers up. And Julie takes a minute to take in the other women and then recognition dawns, there's the drummer, Aunt Nayelis Molina, her faded brown hair longer and tucked into a pony tail. There's Kiera Simmons, Flynn's mother, she looks the same as she does now - and Julie is shocked because how does she still look so young??- her braids flailing about as she pretends to play the keyboard. And then there's Ashlyn Wilson. Same features except her hair is shorter and dyed pink at the tips, she's wearing more leather and has a bass against her side. And oh my god, it all makes sense. These are Flynn and Carrie's moms standing together on a stage next to her mom and Aunt Nayelis. They were in a band together. Rose and the Petal Pushers is the name written on the drumset- the same name on the ticket in her mom's clothing chest. And it all makes sense! How Carrie and Flynn had always been by her side, how she has known these girls since she was old enough to remember.

Something else dawns on her, she understands now why she felt such automatic attraction to Luke on stage. She brushes a finger against the guitar settled on Rose Molina's hip. Guitar. Luke somehow unknowingly reminded her of the same energy her mother had when she played the guitar on stage and for her in the studio. The same connection to the audience. The same willingness to leaves pieces of themselves with the crowd. The same love for music and mayhem. And Julie stands there in silence because this world is too small, time is too short and too grand simultaneously, there are all these webbed connections she didn't even know about and it should be overwhelming but it all slots together perfectly.

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pancake-man · 3 years

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PRUMANO SECRET VALENTINE

My gift for @canadiatuxedo for @prumano-week‘s secret valentine!! I went with the prompts Bakery and Fantasy AU, which turned out less fantasy and more medieval times? Anyways, sorry it’s late, I really hope you like it!

AO3 link

The world is a vast place, and Gilbert had travelled the whole thing round three times before he stumbled on a town named Lumin. It was nestled in tall mountains, and so small it hardly deserved a name. Normally it wasn’t the sort of place Gilbert would stop at, but one does grow tired of large fantastical cities eventually, and so he decided to try his luck somewhere more… quaint.

(This was his excuse, anyways. What actually happened was that Gilbert ran out of money halfway to the great city of Aveni and the carriage he hitched a ride on had unceremoniously dropped him in the middle of nowhere and driven off without looking back. Gilbert was stuck there until he earned enough money to grab another ride, but who knew how long that would take in a town that relied more on trade than money)

A small town, Gilbert thought, was the perfect place to start his fortune. So he had set forth with nothing but the clothes on his back and his flute, eager to entertain the town with his beautiful voice, stories, and musical skill.

Now he sat on a fountain in the town square, exhausted from a day of playing his heart out. His poor flute seemed just as tired, sitting quietly on the stone beside him. In his cap he’d only received a few copper, not even enough to rent a room, let alone buy himself a ticket out.

As Gilbert began to reason a back-up plan, his nose picked up a smell drifting on the breeze. Rossinia has one main street with the town square, the church(which doubled as town hall), a small inn, and a small number of shops. Gilbert gathered his things and stood, following the scent to the bakery. He counted his coins. Four copper. Enough for a roll, at least. Maybe a sausage if he was lucky.

Gilbert pushed open the door to the bakery and was immediately greeted by the warm scent of baked goods. He hadn’t realised how chilly it was getting outside until he was surrounded but hot ovens and warm rolls. His mouth watered. He went to the counter to order and-

“Fuck off, we’re closed!” Came a cry from the back. Gilbert leaned around the counter and saw the back of a young brunet working the oven. He had a large iron rod and was poking at the coals. He leaned over to add more and Gilbert’s mouth watered for a different reason.

“Um, I just need something small?” Gilbert looked around for a menu with prices, but there wasn’t one to be found. Of course not, because that would make sense.

The man in the back room cursed again, threw the door to the coals shut, and wiped his hands on his apron before stomping out to the front. He looked about ready to tear Gilbert a new one when he paused and gave him a once over. Gilbert stood up a little straighter and pushed his silver hair back self-consciously, and gave the man an eye himself.

He was short, even compared to Gilbert, which didn’t happen often, and seemed only a few years younger. He had dark curly hair and tanned skin, and the brownest eyes Gilbert thinks he’s ever seen(and he’s seen a lot of eyes). His lips and eyebrows seemed permanently pulled downwards, but with his pudgy cheeks it was the opposite of intimidating. He wore a green short-sleeved tunic and an apron, both of which were covered in flour and served the added bonus of showing off his (very nice) arms. Really, he was pretty cute.

“You’re not from around here,” the man said with a scowl.

“Eh, yeah, I’m just dropping by. Travelling bard, yaknow how it is,” Gilbert hefted his flute as evidence. The stranger’s scowl didn’t let up.

“What kind of dumbass comes to a town like this for money? You’d be better off in Aveni or something.”

“Oh, this is just a stop. Consider yourselves blessed to get to hear my amazing playing,” Gilbert winked and leaned on the counter.

The man calmly pulled a rag from the pocket of his apron. “Hair and eyes like yours don’t seem like a fucking blessing.” He whipped Gilbert’s arm off the counter with the rag. “And nobody wants to hear your shit music.”

Okay, ouch. Both the rag and the comment. Gilbert jingled his cap. “I’ll have you know I earned four coppers today, thank you very much. My music is awesome.”

His cap was snatched from his hands before Gilbert could react, and the man poked through the change before handing it back with an eyeroll. “Yeah, you can get about jack and, let me check, shit for that. I might have a stale bread roll in the back for that much.”

Now Gilbert’s easy air fell. That was a high price, though he supposed it made sense considering how far they were from any actual people. “That’s… it?” He poked through the coins again. “I can work for a bit more or something. I’m not very strong, but I’m smart. I’m Gilbert, by the way.” He stuck out a palm as a way of calming the stranger’s (frankly unwarranted) dislike of him.

“Tch,” the man batted Gilbert’s hand away. “Don’t care.” He stretched and looked around the room. “I guess I can give you a fresh one…” he started.

“Oh! Awesome!” Gilbert grabbed the man’s hand anyways, shaking it vigorously. “That’s really nice of you, yknow I’ve had a pretty tough week and it’s good to know there’s nice people even in a weird town like…” and on he went.

The man looked taken aback, too stunned by Gilbert’s sudden change in demeanor to comprehend any of his babbling, let alone retrieve his hand. “Oi!” He finally snapped, cutting Gilbert off mid-tangent. “I’m not your damn friend, capiche? I’m just giving you extra because you look like a fucking ghost and it makes me feel bad. I mean shit, when was the last time you ate?”

Good question. Gilbert had snacked plenty on stolen goods from his ride’s bag, but it had been a while since he’d gotten a proper meal. He shrugged. The man threw his arms up. “You see! I hate people like you, wandering from town to town and expecting people to take care of your dumb ass because you can’t take care of yourself. You’re lucky you’re cute, for fuck’s sake! Even with the weird eye thing, I mean seriously what the hell is up with that? It’s fucking weird. And-”

It was Gilbert’s turn to cut him off. “You think I’m cute?” he asked, feeling his ears start to go red.

There was a pause before the man was shaking his head, clearly flustered. “No, I didn’t mean- I barely even know you! That’s a weird thing to say to a complete fucking stranger! What the fuck, Lovino?”

There was practically steam coming out of Gilbert’s ears as he attempted to parse what just happened. He’d been hit on before, sure, but never by anyone this pretty, and never so outright. The red eyes usually threw off anyone who actually found him hot, and even without them Gilbert wouldn’t consider himself ‘conventionally attractive’, whatever that meant. The only thing his mind managed to pick up on was “Lovino? Is that your name?”

Lovino was working his fingers through his hair and looked up at that. “Yes?” he squeaked. “I mean! No! Fuck you!” He grabbed the nearest baked good, a warm pretzel covered in butter, and shoved it at Gilbert. “It’s free! Fuck off!” He said and pushed Gilbert towards the door.

Gilbert was still tasting the name Lovino on his tongue and went on instinct. He ended up outside, pretzel in hand, wondering what the hell just happened. Turning, he could see Lovino (Lovino, he thought again) hurriedly closing the place up. It was bright inside the bakery. The light spilled through the windows and into the quickly-darkening street. Gilbert looked up to see the last bits of sun dip behind a mountain.

By the time he turned again, the bakery was dark, and the door to the back room was closed. There was still bread on the shelves and flour on the floor, but apparently Lovino had decided that was enough and the day was done. A chill blew down main street, and Gilbert stuffed the warm pretzel into his mouth. Maybe he could find a stable to sleep in… Or even better, a barn.

The next day found Gilbert again in the main square, cap on the stone before him and flute pressed lightly to his lips. Today he caught the children headed home from a day of school, and they were eager to gather round and listen to his stories. Being children, they only had two copper between them, but they more than made up for it with sweets, shiny rocks, and marbles. This brought Gilbert up to six coppers and enough sweets to make a meal(anything adults say about ‘vegetables’ and ‘health’ is a lie).

Even while doing his bit, Gilbert only needed to glance up to be able to see the bakery across the street, and Lovino inside, very pointedly ignoring him. The butcher, the cobbler, and even the bishop were kind enough to step out and listen to Gilbert’s tunes, but Lovino kept his back to the windows whenever possible. It was cute, Gilbert thought. The more he watched the man, the more he felt a tightness in his chest.

Six copper… Hardly enough for a carriage, but a perfect place to start saving. Gilbert chewed on his lip as he counted out his day’s earnings. The sun would set soon, and most people had gone home or were in the process of closing up their shops. Surely he could spare a few coin, right?

Gilbert went into the bakery.

Immediately he was greeted by a snort, and “You again? I told you I don’t do handouts! And also to fuck off!”

Gilbert grinned and deposited his earnings on the counter. “No handouts, today. Turns out your town actually enjoys my awesome music.”

Lovino poked at the copper like it was a venomous spider. “You didn’t steal it?” That was actually rather insulting. Gilbert’s eyebrows knit together. “Of course not! I was out by the fountain all day. If you’d bothered to look up, you’d have seen me.”

There wasn't a response, instead Lovino stared at Gilbert. Or right behind him, it wasn’t clear. Gilbert looked about and back to Lovino. He had such deep brown eyes, Gilbert could write songs about them. "You have hay in your fucking hair," he said, in a voice that was absolutely melodi-

"Eh?" Gilbert raised a hand to pat at his hair. "Where?"

"It's right- no, you're missing it. Just, shit, let me-" Lovino leaned across the counter, his dark fingers combing through Gilbert's hair, and Gilbert forgot to breathe. Lovino pulled back with a large clump of straw, and the two looked at it for a moment.

"Huh," said Gilbert. "I dunno how I missed that."

"Haybrain," Lovino scowled, and turned to toss the straw in a wastebasket. "How the hell did you get that much hay in your hair anyways? Sleep in a fucking haystack?"

"Uh, yeah, actually." Not far outside of town, Gilbert had found a nice barn to sleep in. It was small, and brown, and missing a door, but it still had a good haypile, and not too many bugs, so he counted as a win. "I've slept in worse places though, no big deal."

The coins made a scraping sound as they were pushed across the counter to him. "So you're a hobo," Lovino said and began packing a bag full of rolls. "How much shit have you eaten since that pretzel?"

Gilbert's ears turned red again. "I prefer awesome travelling bard, but yeah, sure, hobo. And I'll have you know," he turned up his nose, making light of the situation, "that I recieved a fortune's worth of candy from the schoolchildren today, and it has fed me quite well."

"A haybrain hobo who steals from kids, sure." A smile twitched at the corner of Lovino's lips if Gilbert squinted just right. The baker closed the bag and handed it over. It was still warm from the oven. "I don't do handouts. You owe me." Gilbert began to go on his grovelling spiel when Lovino held up a finger to stop him. "Nope. I'm serious. Go play your dumb songs until I'm closed, then I've got a place for you to stay until you fuck off to Aveni or wherever. But you work for your keep, capische?" Before Gilbert could respond, Lovino pressed his finger forward and into Gilbert's lips. "Capische?"

Gilbert nodded. Lovino pulled away, satisfied. "Okay, then help me clean this shit up. Nobody gets a proper dinner or sleep until this place closes, and it's gonna take a while since somebody fucked me over last night. So stop fucking distracting me with your pretty, stupid face."

"My what?" Gilbert managed to ask.

"Your pretty fucking stupid face. Here." A broom handle was shoved into Gilbert's hands and he was directed into the back room to sweep the hearth. In the time it took him to clean the ashes, Lovino had put up all the unsold items, washed all the dishes, wiped down the counters, and shut the blinds and locked the door.

Gilbert wiped a sooty arm across his face and smiled. "Anything else, Lord Lovino?"

Lovino frowned at him. "How in the fuck did you manage to get that covered in soot?"

"I've never had to clean a fireplace," Gilbert shrugged. Lovino groaned.

"Fine, I might have a shirt or something that would fit you."

The only thing left to do was blow out the candles. Lovino made him resweep the shop front anyways before he deemed the bakery clean enough to close, and put out the lights. He led Gilbert upstairs to a small living quarter. There was a fireplace with herbs strung to dry above it, a small shelf lined with jars, a trunk, and a table with one chair, but Gilbert's eyes were drawn to the bed. The only bed. The small only bed. Now his whole face was red.

Despite Gilbert's best efforts, Lovino caught this, and his eyes widened in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, I didn't- I didn't even think about that," he blustered through a series of surprisngly curse-void apologies while digging through the trunk. "Just, here," and he threw a tunic at Gilbert's head.

Gilbert caught it easily. It was a plain red linen tunic, and seemed only a bit too big. He looked at Lovino. "Aren't you going to turn around?" A squeak of shame and Lovino turned his back. Gilbert slipped off his sooty clothes with a promise of "I'll wash them tomorrow," and put on the tunic. "Okay, you're good."

Lovino looked back and froze, bottom lip between his teeth. Gilbert pulled one of the sleeves up from where it had slipped off his shoulder self consciously. "Is there still hay in my hair?"

"Nope!" Lovino said, far too quickly. "I mean. No. You look great. I mean fine. I mean you look like shit. I'm going to bed." He swiveled on his heel and went back to the trunk, procuring a pile of furs, probably saved for cold winter months. "The floor should be fine enough, at least better than a hay stack, for fucks sake. Figure yourself out." With that, Lovino threw himself into the bed and turned his back to Gilbert.

"This'll be fine, thanks," Gilbert began, but it was clear Lovino was ignoring him. Eh. He put his flute and his cap on the ground and spread out the furs, then laid down. He wasn't used to sleeping this early, so instead he studied the eaves of the ceiling above him. He rolled over, stared at the back of Lovino's brunet head.

Lovino was an interesting person. Gilbert had met lots of interesting people in his travels, but none quite like this. People were generally either kind or not, but Gilbert had never met someone kind enough to open their home to a complete stranger, who then pretended to hate everyone and everything. He didn't understand. He wanted to understand. It was weird.

"Lovi?" He asked the back of Lovino's head. Silence. Then:

"The fuck did you just call me?"

"Why do you live alone?"

Another pause, this one longer. Gilbert almost asked another question to break the tension before Lovino responded. "Cause my family all had better places to be. Why do you travel alone?"

"Cause I left my family behind," Gilbert answered, easily. Lovino shifted in his bed. "Are you lonely?"

"No. Are you?"

"Yes." Lovino stiffened. Gilbert rolled onto his back. "I was never really close with my folks, even before I left. It's hard to miss what you never had, but I miss it anyways."

Quiet stretched between them. Gilbert could hear Lovino's breath slow, to the point that he almost thought him asleep. "Are you cold?" came Lovino's question, whispered so softly Gilbert hardly heard it.

"Yes," Gilbert lied.

He heard the sound of blankets shifting, and when he looked over, Lovino was staring back, his blankets open in a welcome. Neither said anything. Gilbert stood from his nest and shuffled into the already warm bed, pressed himself against Lovino's warm body.

"Fuck!" Lovino shouted, kicking away his feet. "Your feet as cold as balls!"

Gilbert laughed and shoved him back. "That's just because you're too warm. Sorry, Lovi."

Lovino rolled so his back was too Gilbert, his legs pointedly pressed to the wall and away from Gilbert's. "Fuck you," pause, "Gil."

(I realised only afterwards that this would’ve been better from Lovi’s perspective but, eh. Two lonely losers who managed to find each other. Gilbert ends up staying in town and working at the bakery, probably also teaching music lessons or something. Lovino gets to buy a bigger bed. It’s gay. Sorry you didn’t get a kiss. Happy Valentine’s Day!)

#hetalia #hws #hws prussia #hws romano #prumano #prumano secret valentine #prumano secret valentines #my writing

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shera-dnd · 3 years

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Face Turn - The Finisher

Here we are, folks. After nearly two months we have reached the big finale.

What started as just a silly prompt from Freezerburn week 2020 has now turned into nearly 20k words of some fun gay shit, and it’s now finally ending

Gotta say it was nice having stuff to write out of love again and not just to pay the bills. Can’t wait to finish my next little project, so I can share it with you nerds.

Spoilers: it’s more RWBY AU shit, because I got back into this show again someone help me

ANYWAY here’s the AO3 link and let’s get on with the fic

The kiss had been a stupid and impulsive spur of the moment decision, but she hoped she managed to sell it like she’d been planing this the whole time. The mix of cheers and boos from the crowd told her she did a good job at that at least.

Yang lying on the floor and laughing her ass off like an idiot was also proof that she did a fantastic job today.

She shook her head at her favorite dumbass as she climbed down next to her, offering her a hand.

“Aww, you really wanna break kayfabe just for me?” Yang teased.

“Who said I’m breaking shit?” She taunted back as she yanked her up with a single pull.

“Kiss me again,” Weiss whispered to her.

“I’m not sure that’s gonna help with the rumors”

“I don’t care,” she insisted. She didn’t want to look like some creepy predatory lesbian trope to the audience, so she needed to show that she didn’t do that just to win, “we’ll just flip the fans off while we do it.”

Now that earned a smile from Yang.

She held Weiss’s face with one hand and flipped the crowd off with the other as she leaned forward for a kiss.

After retreating backstage the first thing they heard was the last thing they wanted anywhere near them. A very angry Blake Belladonna.

“I spent hours arguing with the other writers to let Yang win this, and you two just had to go and pull that on me!” She shouted as she marched up to the two of them, “if that kiss hadn’t been such a genius move, I’d be kicking both your asses right now.”

“Phew!” Yang exclaimed, happy that she would get to keep her hide, “no more out of script kissing, I promise.”

Weiss turned to glare at her after that comment and she quickly amended.

“In the ring, ice queen, in the ring.”

“Good,” Weiss nodded and then gave her another kiss, for positive reinforcement.

Blake cleared her throat to get their attention again and wordlessly raised her brow in question. She looked more amused than surprised by this turn of events.

Yang hooked her arms around Weiss as they both turned to explain things.

“Well, you see--”

“Yang, what the hell!” Ruby’s familiar voice shrieked down the corridors. Her boots screeched as she broke her momentum to turn around and stare down her sister, “have you two been together this whole time!?”

They both blinked at her in surprise and looked at each other. By their smug grins it was clear that the two had been struck by the same terrible idea at the same time.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yang shrugged as she pulled Weiss closer to her.

“Yeah, it was all kayfabe stuff,” Weiss played along, brushing her hand over Yang’s arms.

“Ugh,” she groaned, “you guys are the worst!”

“What do you mean?” Weiss continued, turning to hook her arms around Yang’s neck.

She expected Yang to go in for the kiss, but instead she decided to surprise everyone, by poking Weiss’s nose with her own and nuzzling them together.

For a moment there Weiss was pretty sure she forgot how to breathe and maybe she took a little too long to recover from that.

“Ew ew ew!” Ruby stomped in place, “no. No more PDA allowed! You two already kissed in front of thousands of people! Twice!”

“Aww, aren’t you two adorable,” Blake commented, shaking her head at those two idiots, “come on, let’s hit the Fang. It looks like we got two wins to celebrate tonight.”

“Ugh, can we at least shower and change before that?” Weiss complained, not wanting to hit the bar in her smelly wrestling clothes.

“Fine,” Ruby replied, before adding, “separate showers you two!”

Weiss rolled her eyes as she left. Sure the idea of showering together sounded pretty nice, but for the actual showering together part, not whatever Ruby expected them to do without her interference.

By the time she was back from her - solo - shower, Yang had already finished getting ready and was now teasing poor Ruby relentlessly. The reason for all that teasing was the red haired woman standing next to her, trying really hard not to blush at everything unfolding around her.

That’s when Weiss decided that she was gonna be a little shit.

She put on her best Schnee scowl and marched up to the group.

“Who is the little shit?” She greeted in the tone she used for cutting promos.

“S-Salutations!” The woman stammered in surprise, “I’m Penny. I’m uh--Ms. Rose’s colleague.”

“And who the fuck is that?” She asked, trying not to laugh at how spooked the poor girl was.

Ruby was having exactly none of that.

“That’s my name, Weiss. I’m Ruby Rose,” she explained, “and stop trying to spook my friend!”

Well that was embarrassing.

“I thought you were a Xiao Long!”

“It’s complicated,” Yang interjected.

“Alright, alright,” Weiss dropped it, raising her hands in admittance of her defeat, before she turned to face their guest, “sorry for that. Hope you enjoyed the match though.”

“I did!” Penny answered with excitement, “it was very different from what I expected.”

“I could say the same,” Blake commented, “and I wrote it.”

“Alright, we get it,” Yang chuckled playfully, “you can roast us for it once we get some drinks.”

“Oh you two can bet your asses I’m gonna roast you,” she threatened, mostly as a joke. Mostly.

With that they made their way back to the White Fang, and Weiss couldn’t help but smile. It reminded her of what Yang had said, about the four of them - and now Penny - making the most of their time together.

Except this time Weiss wouldn’t leave - she had promised, after all - and this warmed her heart with a feeling she hadn’t felt in a long long time. Hope. That her future will be a bright and happy one.

It was almost funny to think, how from what felt like her darkest moment, came all this.

So she offered Yang her left hand and together they walked onwards to whatever their lives had in store.

#rwby #Freezer burn #freezerburn #weiss schnee #yang xiao long #wrestling au #fanfic

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sanstropfremir · 3 years

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kingdom episode 3 baby!!!!

listen. i’m not gonna lie i was nervous as hell for this episode. i saw that preview like everyone else and unfortunately i have ears so i was convinced the ateez stage was going to be a trainwreck. i was absolutely banking on sf9 and skz to do something even mildy interesting to save me from the ear damage and having to talk to extensively about why that disaster happened. but somehow i woke up in an alternate universe and you know what? with the exception of that high note the ateez stage fucked. i know. i don’t believe it either. i think i’m still in shock.

i’ll do individual breakdowns in order of favourites within the episode and then at the end i’ll put my personal ranking of all six. thank god i don’t have to do a stage breakdown again; if they change it again for next week i will scream.

ateez

a miracle happened. i don’t have to fight any of the staff at kq. i don’t understand either. jongho is so fucking lucky that the rest of the group pulled all that energy out of their asses because if they had been even a single iota less serious about it that stage would have flopped worse than a dead fish. i can’t believe we got this level of camp b movie schlock in the first full stage, and they stuck the landing. incredible.

fine i’ll address the elephant in the room. personally, i don’t think jongho is that good of a vocalist. he’s not bad, and he does have the potential to be a good vocalist, he just doesn’t have the training, and this is the issue with all of ateez. hanya talked about this before and i’ll say it again: he can’t switch to his head voice and he’s destroying his vocal cords by attempting to hit notes in his mid range that he should just jump to head voice for. frankly i’m surprised he got anywhere close to that note in his mid, but his technique is just not there and he’s gonna do some real damage to his voice if he doesn’t take a break and also get a good vocal coach. you can already hear the degradation in sound from their debut stage to now, and that’s in less than three years. ok i’m done talking about vocals that’s hanya’s turf, i’m pretending that that high note doesn’t exist and we’re moving on. also im in love with btob’s reaction it was fucking priceless.

costume

look, i have a one track brain and that brain can only think about seonghwa corset. seonghwa corset? seonghwa corset.

i know it’s not a real corset nor is it properly laced and i know this would never happen in a million years but a kpop mr pearl trend? i would die. just fully expire. there’s no coming back from that for me

yes i have laced boys into proper corsets before and yes it is as hot as you think it is (when it’s not work related, obviously)

ok now that i’ve got that out of my system for the moment, the costumes are actually pretty good. i’m a little obsessed with hongjoong’s coat although I know it’s stupid. fur? always, I love it, you’ll never change my mind it makes everything better. i own a lot of it and i wear it all the time. this is also a pretty good example of how to do a more modern styling within a very specific and recognizable genre.

i don’t hate the backup dancers’ costumes either, even though they would look a lot better in a not-pirate themed hiphop stage. because there is already a modern tint with the boys’ costumes, it’s not that much of a leap to the dancers, and they actually use the dancers and the camera really strategically to not put much focus on them.

the only real standout issue is the blacklight/contortionist moment, which is too gimmicky for me and doesn’t fit the rest of the theme. i do understand the purpose of them: you need a transition point from the upper deck to the more fantastical inner ship area, and blacklight paint is a really easy, cheap, and fast way to get four new costumes instantly. do i think they could have done something better though? yes.

set

this was actually a smart reuse of that pirate ship set. i know i clowned on them in the first stage that they could move on from the pirate gimmick but honestly? i’m glad they didn’t. this was fun as fuck. but also two stages was enough you can move on now.

i love how they actually used the weird double stage function that the false prosc creates for an actual architectural and narrative effect, instead of just sort of operating as though it’s just another place to travel just because you can. we are on the deck of the ship, and then we go inside the ship. it’s simple and effective. you don’t need to do a crazy amount of crossover to establish a dynamic sense of place.

i hate the ateez kingdom logo. i hate the ateez logo in general. get it out of there, at least you could have made something more fun and pirate themed.

would have loved to have seen them return to the hourglass at the end, especially if they got one that was specifically set for 4 minutes. would have been a nice bit of symmetry but i suspect it was struck before the kraken bit.

the kraken bit??? i was not at all expecting that and honestly? dope as hell. that big tentacle is just a custom inflatable santa claus that you see around christmastime and what a brilliant use of such a simple mechanic, especially to have it come through that weird little triangle arch they have upstage. smart way to use the existing architecture.

yes it is a gimmick but here’s why it works rather than just looks tacky like every other gimmick we’ve seen so far: it had a function within the narrative. this is so important. show us there’s a reason it’s there!

lighting

i didn’t love it but they did actually make some smart choices. the outer deck is warmer toned and has some good atmospheric effects, and the inner deck is cold tone and specifically lit with pin lights to imitate the light coming through portholes in an actual ship, which is so smart thank you lighting designer

also a very clear arc with the lighting, blue -> orange -> blue/red -> orange/multiple -> blue

sound

i actually kinda liked this remix? it fit theme and had a very clear dramatic arc. also i like wonderland, so sue me.

staging

WE DID IT, WE FINALLY GOT A CLEAR NARRATIVE FROM AT LEAST ONE GROUP! wonderland was actually a great choice for them because it’s a really good indicator of exactly how hungry they are. i was a bit worried that it would fall flat because it kinda rides on mingi but they actually pulled it off. i have literally no idea where they pulled all that energy from but holy shit you can practically lick the attitude off the screen. i’m also very impressed by the amount of information they managed to fit into that four minute narrative. we had a full conflict/climax/resolution, as well as a really clear understanding of the tenacity and drive of the group, as well as the desire to support one another in achieving their goals. bravo.

ok so like i said in the set section, they used that pirate ship bridge really effectively to create two different but connected spaces. this is a really smart way to make it seem like you have two spaces while having to only build one set. it was also one of the best ways to utilize this dumbass stage so it doesn’t just look like you’re running arbitrarily from area to area because you can.

also levels! levels are so important for staging but also hard to do in this context because you have to be able to move really quickly in and out of full group formation, but I think they did a really good job here.

continued point: the kraken arm worked because it was the conflict they needed to overcome in the narrative, so it had a function within the performance. also related: all the tricking and jumping also served a purpose within the narrative too. it was either used for fighting (yeosang kicking all those dancers on beat) or a demonstration of teamwork (jongho flinging yunho around on the floor). also frankly excellent use of choreographic formation with the backup dancers, each formation had a specific function and was meant to highlight ateez without being overbearing.

not a whole lot of camera choreo, but a fairly good long take at the beginning and the editing wasn’t too obnoxious which I think was more chance than intent, but i’m not gonna look a gift kraken in the beak.

sf9

i actually really liked this stage, and i really like that sf9 has established their colour as effortlessly elegant, which does set them apart from the rest of the groups. this stage was really choreographically complex and they made it seem so easy, so real props to them. however, like with ikon’s stage, there were a lot of good ideas that just weren’t followed through enough for me.

like ateez, song choice and theme were very well intertwined with this one, there was a lot of thought put into this stage. the pun with ‘jealous’ and ‘jilleosseo’ and having a fairytale/magic mirror narrative? fuckin GALAXY BRAINED. incredible. the implication that not only taeyang but the entire group is the evil queen from snow white? chef’s kiss. should have committed harder and put one of them in massive cloak à la king taemin mama 2020. instead it was subtle enough to not try to step on ateez’s schlocky camp toes but still just as serious and i love that. do i wish they pushed it farther though? also yes.

costume

not gonna lie, i had my reservations on the costumes when we saw the previews of them in the waiting room, but the thing about stage costumes is that they always look bad when not on stage. if they look good in the waiting room you’ve done something wrong. and i loved them on stage. big fan of that quilted vest/pseudo stomacher. please can we have a corset trend? y’all already adopted bondage harnesses, c’mon a little corset won’t hurt. also a good example of a modern spin on a recognizable genre.

i wish the backup dancers weren’t in all black but i am fighting single person battle against the entire entertainment industry on that one.

set

extremely simple with a few smart utilizations. had a feeling this might have been a budget thing, as it had a similar kind of vibe with ikon’s stage, but the use of the mirrors was smart and a fun device that served the purpose of the narrative.

working with mirrors on stage is really fucking hard, so kudos to them for giving it a go. for the most part it was pretty effective. especially with the combo of moving mirrors and moving lights AND moving camera, you’re kind of asking to either blind your audience or at least give them a headache. i once saw a production of the magic flute that had a rotating mirror setpiece and i swear i nearly went blind due to the constantly flashing reflections. you have to really be careful with directionality and reflection, especially with the added element of a camera. also you never use real glass mirrors on stage, it is unbelievably bad luck and theatre people are the most superstitious demographic on the fucking planet.

i kinda loved the draped gold dais. i have nothing else to say about it other than fun!

lighting

a lot of this was very weirdly lit and i’m not sure why. the quality on youtube is terrible and cameras already have trouble picking up detail in low light, and throwing a whole bunch of primary red over that (the colour with the longest wavelength and therefore disappears the easiest in the dark. also human eyes are not very good at distinguishing variations in the red spectrum) and the red costumes made it extremely difficult to tell what was happening.

i will give them props for dramatic lighting usage, especially for the two way mirror trick and for using the floor as a primary lighting source at the end, which i think groups should be using more of. how often do you have a lighting source in your floor!!! almost never!! use that opportunity!!

sound

i actually enjoyed this remix too. it was well suited to the dramatic nature of the stage. i think the sound byte at the beginning is ‘mirror mirror on the wall who’s the worthiest of them all’ but it also could be ‘who’s the worst of them all’ and that would be also fitting and kinda funny.

staging

again, not a lot of consideration for camera choreo in a meaningful way, and like the tbz stage I think the clarity in the actual choreo got hampered by the editing. because there was a lot of choreographic precision that went into making this work and it wasn’t totally obvious from the way mnet edited it.

a lot of them are actors so it works that they’re leaning more towards dramatic stages rather than the sort of performance type stages we’ve seen so far. i like this choice for them as it gives them a very obvious colour but they’re almost on the verge of making it look too easy, which does them some injustice.

next to ateez, using that long uninterrupted traverse was my favourite use of this stage. doubles as an easy way to build the atmosphere of a palace corridor/throne room with the rug, and to feed the drama of the piece.

skz

ok i have some…..things to say about this stage. so far i have not been kind to skz which makes me look like i hate them and i don’t, i promise. there were a lot of really interesting things happening in this stage and there some really successful ones, and i liked this a whole lot better than their intro stage, but their overall choreo and thematic dedication is really killing me. i’ll explain.

costume

I don’t hate them but also…….why? I got the good self vs evil self/internal struggle theme but the costumes don’t really have anything interesting to say about that. as far as modern style costuming goes i think they’re on the more interesting end, but they don’t push it far enough. there’s a few western art history visual motifs and honestly? they should have gone whole hog and whited out their faces/hair and made them look like classical sculptures. that would have been hella fun, especially with that little statue and marionette sequence, plus the shadow/leash manipulation.

this time it was actually intentional that the backup dancers were in blacks and i appreciate that.

why on EARTH did they have that ridiculous makeup that didn’t read on stage? theatre makeup and tv makeup are different, you can’t just do a light purple eyeshadow and expect to read under blue and red light. someone needs to bring an actual theatre makeup artist in and get these boys in some real crazy looks. see previous point about full-face white pancake. more extreme makeup please and thank you!

set

i liked the use of internal architecture within this massive weird stage space and they used the corridors quite well. i didn’t really like the mix of baroque scrolling and also graffiti, it wasn’t quite connected for me. this has been a common theme among this round and i think it comes from budget/props pulls rather than anything else.

also there was a distinct feeling of trying to fill the main stage space with bodies as opposed to atmosphere. this can work in some specific cases but the intent wasn’t strong enough for me. it just felt like a lot of people on stage, especially in the end choreo.

lighting

the general lighting was fine but not particularly inspired. the low light in the beginning was actually quite well done, especially combined with the fog, but in my opinion was not dramatic enough. you have a pseudo art history theme happening, pump that contrast and push the chiaroscuro!

ok stay with me, i’m gonna say something extremely controversial that might actually get me cancelled. s*per j*unior’s burn the floor did everything this stage was trying to do on a smaller scale and better. look i know ok, this is a like, a double atom bomb hot take. just forget everything you know about them and watch the performance video. tell me that’s not some of the most interesting choreo you’ve seen in kpop. if you’re going to work with practical light you need to COMMIT. not just steal the solar lanterns out of my mom’s back garden.

i have a lot of opinions on using practical light and alternate light sources in performance because it’s a huge part of my practice and this just....wasn’t interesting enough for me. push it further!

(I will wait for the subs on the full episode because there has to be a reason they chose that specific shape of lamp. if not i gotta ask jyp why he’s raiding my mom’s garden)

sound

god’s menu has such specific imagery associated within the lyrics and choreography that this stage was a bit dissonant for me. especially when seen in conjunction with two stages where the narrative was tied explicitly to the lyrics of the songs. i think maybe if it hadn’t been grouped with these other two stages i would have felt differently. the other groups chose to do songs were a little more abstract and allowed for more visual experimentation, but to go so blatantly against the food metaphor didn’t really work for me and i had a tough time divorcing the association. I found the arrangement to be a little lacking in energy for me towards the end but otherwise it was pretty interesting.

staging

Definitely a better performance overall that the intro stage. almost all of the gimmicks this time had relevance to the theme which i appreciated. the marionette bit and the shadow/mirror were probably the most interesting but i wish they were better lit.

there was a lot of back and forth in the blocking that made the stage feel repetitive and also aimless? like there wasn’t a very clearly established directionality within the internal space, so it felt like treading over the same ground for no purposeful reason. and again, not a lot of intentional camerawork.

i really liked having the dancers under the big sheet, it fit well enough within the ‘war between internal selves’ theme, but also had a loose tie to the art imagery. again, i really wish they had stuck to a clearer visual theme. it makes them stick out especially in this grouping of stages, but also across all the groups as whole because almost everyone had a clear(ish) visual idea.

holy shit that’s a lot of backup dancers. i don’t really feel like that many were necessary and the sheer number of them took away from the emphasis of the group. with all of the other stages (except for tbz) it was very clear who the centre of attention and emphasis was, and with both skz and tbz they got swallowed by the sheer scale they were trying to operate at. bigger is not always better.

---

this is a tough round to rank because none of these stages are bad, there’s just some that are, in my opinion, more successful than others. all of these stages do very well in specific elements but fall short in others which also makes this ranking difficult. i’m evaluating these based on whether they were successful to me, as i’m pretty sure this ranking will probably not all be popular opinion, but whatever i like to live on the edge.

btob – visuals, vocals, narrative, swords? what more do you want me to say? also i watched the full episode and minhyuk did rehearsal with a real bokken and i think i am in love with him now.

ateez – honestly not sure if i would have ranked this first if that high note hadn’t been a mess. i love camp nonsense and i genuinely think this was a well designed stage. i can’t believe i keep saying that but it’s true.

sf9 – this stage was really solid, just could have been pushed farther. i think it has a really good sense of drama and it’s a pity that sf9’s colour is more subdued, because i think they’re going to be stuck around the 3rd/4th position for the rest of the show.

ikon – ikon is only ranking this high because although i am disappointed in the wasted potential of this stage, they NAILED the camerawork and actually brought in someone to block the steadicam into the choreo. also they’re incredible performers. i say this every time, but their stage presence, although maybe lower energy that they normally would be, is still not to be fucked with.

skz – i think this one is the most ‘meh’ for me. while i liked a lot of the elements here they just didn’t push it far enough and the lack of narrative and general aimless choreo led to me not having any strong feelings yea or nay.

tbz – to be quite honest the lack of costume unity is a big hit for me. all elements of design are equally as important but because of my personal practice and experience i tend to put a lot of weight on good costume and spatial design. i don’t actually like game of thrones also, so I feel mildly offended on behalf of michele clapton, who had did a fucking incredible job and doesn’t deserve to be slandered like this. also the lack of cohesive choreography and the overblown lighting made this difficult to watch, no matter how good i thought the rear projection/stretch fabric dance was.

any questions or opinions you wanna share hit me up! see you next week!

#im ready for the angry asks about that s*ju opinion because that is a spicy one #kingdom #kingdom review #kpop analysis #im so surprised by these stages i cant believe ateez stuck the landing #i saw the preview for next week also and the new round looks wild so im ready #text

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goldenraeofsun · 3 years

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just say yes

The latest installment of this verse... or 5 times Dean tries to propose to Cas.

Dean bites his lip as he scans the menu. What the hell is branzino, and where the fuck are the prices? He flips the flimsy piece of cream-colored paper over, but no dice.

Thank god there’s a steak listed among the five lone entrees. It’s probably five times his normal dinner price tag, but Dean already made peace with putting off buying that 30 year anniversary Rush album. It’ll still be there after his next pay check.

Cas eyes him over the top of his own menu. “What are you thinking?”

Marry me.

Dean doesn’t say that, though. He has plans. Keep his trap shut until dessert. Tell Cas he’s going to hit the head. Pull a waiter aside and ask for two glasses of champagne. Return to Cas. Hopefully not shit his pants as he proposes. Drink champagne. Go home and have fantastic engaged sex.

Dean has high hopes for the last part of the plan.

“Dean?”

Belatedly, he says, “The steak.”

Cas hums. “That does look good.” He ducks back behind his menu. “I was thinking of getting that too. But maybe not.”

Dean takes a hasty sip of water. “Get the steak if you want it, man. We don’t go to places like this often.”

“I think I’ll get the honey glazed salmon.”

“Sounds good,” Dean says lamely. He drinks more water. At this rate, he won’t have to fake the bathroom run.

Aren’t they supposed to have alcohol by this point? They’ve been sitting at their fancy-ass table in this fancy-ass restaurant for nearly fifteen minutes.

Maybe he shouldn’t have picked the newest five-star restaurant to propose to Cas. He’s already on edge from the pressure, and the pristine white tablecloth isn’t helping. He can already see five ways he’s gonna stain it. There are several forks in front of him. For fuck’s sake, this place has an actual chandelier. Dean hadn’t honestly thought they existed outside of billionaire mansions and Disney movies.

The live music is nice, though. A sedate piano tinkles in the background, barely audible over the buzz of polite dinner conversation.

Dean catches a glimpse of himself reflected in the dark windows to the street. He looks a little sweaty, but not as nervous as he feels, thank god.

This is stupid. He shouldn’t even be nervous.

They’ve talked about marriage before. They’re adults in an adult relationship, so popping the question out of the blue would go down like the time Dean swept Cas away for a surprise camping trip. Turns out, Cas did not like camping. Which Dean would have known if he had asked anytime in the past four years.

But… that marriage conversation was two years ago. Dean wasn’t ready then; they both weren’t. Cas was still in a bad place with Jimmy and Claire, and Bobby had just died, so they weren’t about to roadtrip to Vegas anytime soon.

Now, Claire can have a civil dinner with her parents, and the hole Bobby left in Dean’s life can go unnoticed some days.

The deal is, Dean can’t chicken out tonight. He already told Claire to make herself scarce. She can sleep at her parents’ or at Krissy’s, Dean doesn’t care, as long as she is not crashing on their sofa when they get back from dinner.

Dean would rather read a hundred plagarized student essays on The Very Hungry Caterpillar than admit to Claire he failed to ask Cas to marry him.

So, proposal time.

The waiter comes by with their drinks and takes their orders. Conversation is a little stilted, but hopefully Cas chalks it up to Dean being outside his comfort zone in this fancy-ass place. There’s no steady thunk of darts hitting a board or clack of pool balls in the background to put him at ease. Just that lame piano.

Cas makes porn noises over his salmon at first bite, which Dean totally doesn’t get. It’s fish.

“How’s your steak?” Cas asks as he surfaces and dabs his mouth with his cloth napkin.

Dean belatedly slices off a piece of his meal and pops it in his mouth. A generically bland compliment dies on his tongue. Jesus Christ - that’s some good cow. It practically disintegrates before he can chew. “Great,” he tells Cas honestly.

Cas hums in contentment.

“And since you’re practically at third base with that salmon,” Dean starts, “I take it-”

“Oh my god!” a woman’s voice squeals behind them.

Dean reflexively turns his head in the direction of the commotion. A few tables over, near the center of the restaurant, a man is down on one knee, and - son of a bitch.

Dean watches, his mouth hanging open, as the woman shouts, “Yes, of course, yes!” Waiters walk past their table with a whole fucking bottle of champagne. People at nearby tables fucking clap.

Dean resolutely turns back around to face Cas, at a loss for words that aren’t extremely loud swears.

“Isn’t that nice?” Cas says mildly.

“Yeah, very nice for them,” Dean says through gritted teeth.

Of all the goddamn nights. Of all the goddamn restaurants. What are the goddamn chances?

Dean slices into his steak with extreme prejudice. If he could murder the happy couple, he would. With zero regrets.

Fuck it all, Claire’s gonna be insufferable.

A CHARMING B&B IN VERMONT

Dean wakes up delightfully cozy with Cas spooning him from behind. No memory foam, but the bed is delightfully springy anyway. It was definitely what they needed after a full school day and a nine-hour road trip. Luckily, the owner of the bed and breakfast, a charming older woman actually named Mrs. Butters, was happy to wait up for their late check-in last night. She even had hot cocoa waiting.

Dean had held out a slight hope they could christen their room before they turned in for the night, but Cas passed right out before Dean turned on the lights. Poor guy had to deal with three sets of angry parents, and it was only the second week of school. Something about how their supposed-genius kids should be in AP Latin instead of the Fun Latin class - aka the one for dumbass seniors.

The mid-morning sunlight filtering in from behind the plaid curtains casts everything in a warm glow. The room itself is beyond charming. There’s a legit fireplace next to the bed, and they’re currently nestled under a patchwork quilt. The wood panelled walls give a distinctly rustic feel to the place, despite the reasonably sized television screen mounted on the far wall.

Dean turns over in bed so he’s facing Cas instead of the door. He resists the urge to poke him awake, and instead prods with a gentle, “Cas.”

Cas grumbles wordlessly. Fucker doesn’t even open his eyes, although Dean can tell from how his breathing changes that he’s awake.

“Cas.”

Cas wrinkles his nose and shoves his face into the pillow. “What, Dean?”

Dean can barely make out the words, but he gets the gist from the million times Cas has done the exact same thing. “I smell bacon.”

Cas’s eyes slit open. “So?”

“Don’t you want bacon?”

Cas huffs, and Dean can tell the exact moment he resigns to waking up. “Then go get the bacon. Nobody’s stopping you, Meat Man.”

Dean wiggles in bed, jostling the whole mattress. “Come on, babe.”

“I was sleeping.” Cas raises his head to look squint out the window. “It has to be before ten am. Since when are you a morning person?”

Since today is the day Dean is going to propose.

Instead, Dean reminds him pointedly, “Bacon.”

“Ugh,” Cas groans as he sits up. “I expect at least a blow job after breakfast if we’re leaving bed this early.”

Dean slaps his ass and jumps out of bed before Cas can retaliate. “Up and at ‘em!”

“I hate you.”

“Love you too, Cas.”

* * *

Claire 11:02 Did you ask him yet? If he said no I’ve got chunky monkey waiting

Claire 11:31 That was a joke Uncle Cas will say yes Theres no way he wont

Claire 11:40 If you’re not answering because of sex don’t tell me

Dean sighs as his phone lights up with Claire’s latest text. In the bathroom, Cas hurls again.

Dean 11:41 No proposal

The bubbles showing Claire’s typing start almost immediately.

Claire 11:41 Are you serious? He’s not goin to turn you down!!!

Dean 11:41 Food poisoning

Claire 11:42 HAHAHAHA

Dean scowls at his phone.

Dean 11:44 Not now, Claire.

Claire 11:44 Wait Seriously?

Dean 11:44 We think it was something he ate at breakfast

Claire 11:44 Oh fuck I’m sorry for laughing

Dean rereads her text. He hasn’t ever received a straight-up apology from Claire before. Unsure of how to respond, he sets down his phone and gently pushes open the bathroom door. “How’re you doing, babe?”

Cas, slumped over the toilet and looking like death warmed over, raises his head an inch. “It seems to be easing up.”

“Really?”

Cas vomits into the toilet again. He groans.

“Shit,” Dean mutters as he crouches next to Cas. He rubs his back with one hand. “Do you think you can get some water down?”

Cas nods, so Dean straightens and fills a glass next to the sink.

As Cas drinks, Dean runs a hand through Cas’s sweaty hair. His forehead has a sickly sheen to it, and the back of his neck feels hot.

“Dean -” Cas breaks off to cough the water right back up into the toilet. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, no,” Dean says quickly as he refills the glass. “Don’t be sorry. This isn’t your fault.”

“But you had all these plans,” Cas moans as he takes the water to try again.

“We’ll do ‘em some other time.” He wets a washcloth and wipes down Cas’s forehead.

“Before Thanksgiving,” Cas rasps, “we’ll come back. I don’t want to miss the leaves changing.”

“Of course,” Dean says soothingly. He moves the washcloth to the nape of Cas’s neck. “On the bright side, you’ve been puking for, like, an hour. There can’t be much left.”

Cas, the dramatic bastard, nearly brains himself on the toilet seat with the force of his next hurl.

HOMEMADE DINNER

After the disastrous fancy restaurant and B&B, a homemade dinner has to be the way to go. They’ll be in their own goddamn house - that has to cut down on the number of things that can go wrong.

Dean spends a whole week deliberating on what to make. He could do his usual burgers and fries routine, Cas’s favorite, but it should be special.

He settles on beef wellington. Pie for beef!

It’s a bitch to make - both because puff pastry from scratch is no joke, and hiding his first experiments from Cas means inventing increasingly convoluted reasons to get him out of the house. And, sure, every Youtube chef and Great British Bake off contestant has said store-bought puff pastry is fine, but Dean doesn’t want fine, he needs perfect.

Dean picks a day when Cas has Model UN afterschool. It’s in the middle of the week, but at least Cas is guaranteed out of the house until six at night.

By 5:58, Dean is ready. The Wellington is cooling on the counter; the red wine has been breathing (whatever the hell that does) for the better part of an hour; and he’s showered and made himself presentable.

His phone pings at six pm on the dot.

Heart sinking with foreboding, Dean taps the screen.

Cas 6:00 I’m going to be late for dinner. There was an accident with chemistry club a few minutes ago. The building had to be evacuated.

Dean 6:00 Are you OK?

Dean takes a moment to hammer the heel of his hand against his forehead. One fucking break. That’s all he’s asking for. One goddamn evening to go right.

Cas 6:00 Yes, and the kids are too. They’re airing out the halls now, but we won’t be let in for another half hour.

Dean picks up the wine with the hand not holding his phone.

Dean 6:01 What time do you think you’ll be home?

Cas 6:01 7:30 maybe? I’ll keep you updated.

Dean swigs back a gulp straight from the bottle before he can answer. Fuck this.

Dean 6:02 Great! I’ll order pizza when you’re on your way back

Cas 6:02 Meatlovers?

Dean 6:02 Unless you’d like something else

Cas 6:02 No thank you :)

Dean flips on a recorded Jeopardy! episode as he cleans up the kitchen and texts Charlie. He has a free dinner waiting for her if she can hightail it to his place in the next hour and never speak of it again.

HOMEMADE DINNER #2

If Dean is anything, he’s stubborn. John Winchester raised no quitter. Try, try, and try again. And try a fourth time, when the first three go sideways.

Burgers, this time. They don’t need a days’ worth of prep. And they’ll go over well.

“Dig in,” Dean says as he sets the plate down in front of Cas.

“This looks delicious, Dean,” Cas says sincerely as he picks up his burger.

Dean waits, and he can see the moment Cas tastes the molten cheese stuffed in the middle of the patty. His eyes go wide with surprise.

“Like it?”

Cas nods vigorously and inhales the rest of his burger in record time.

“There’s enough for us to have thirds,” Dean says smugly.

Cas smears ketchup all over patty number two, and beams at him. “These make me very happy.”

Dean laughs. “That’s the goal-”

Cas’s phone rings.

Dean falters.

Cas stares at him expectantly, waiting for Dean to continue.

“You should get that,” Dean says, his shoulders slumping as he sets his burger down. It’s probably a bad sign he was already half-expecting things to go south. “It’s probably important, or whoever it is would’ve texted.”

“We’re in the middle of dinner,” Cas protests even as he reaches in his pocket to pull his phone out. “It’s Claire,” he says, baffled, before he picks up. “Hello?”

Cas sets down his half-eaten burger. He listens, his brows slamming down forbiddingly as Claire’s voice gets louder and louder, but still not loud enough for Dean to make out actual words. Silently, Cas takes his napkin off his lap and pushes his half-empty beer in Dean’s direction. Finally Cas says, “Yes, of course, Claire.”

Dean frowns as Cas lifts his gaze up to meet his. “Jimmy and Amelia?” he mouths.

Cas shakes his head, speaking into his phone, “Does Kaia need a pick up from the hospital?”

Dean goes cold. Kaia was actually one of his favorite students. While she was in his class, she won a Scholastic Gold Key and honorable mention for two of her horror novellas and always did the reading. But Dean and Cas haven’t seen her since she broke up with Claire the summer before college.

“Is she okay?” Dean asks quietly.

Cas’s mouth thins. He gives a short nod.

Dean sighs and picks up the plate uneaten burgers. He can probably reheat the patties. The fries won’t keep, though, so he leaves the plate in front of Cas. He shoves a few in his mouth and gets to his feet.

He’s halfway through cleaning the frying pan when Cas gets off the phone with Claire.

“Are you heading out?” Dean asks gruffly while he gives the iron a particularly hard scrub.

“Yes,” Cas rumbles as he wraps an arm around Dean’s waist. “I’m sorry to cut dinner short.”

“Hey, it’s Kaia. ’Course we gotta help.” Dean forces an understanding smile on his face. “I’ll make up the couch while you pick her up?”

Cas squeezes him gently before moving away. “Thank you.”

“You got time for the cliff notes on what happened? Why’d you get the call?”

Cas leans against the counter next to the sink. “Kaia was in a car accident. She’s a little banged up, but mostly fine. A few bruised ribs and a possible concussion.” He shakes his head, disbelieving. “You know Kaia was never especially close with her foster family, so Claire got the emergency call.”

“Huh.” Dean grabs a plate to clean. “It’s been two years since the split.”

Cas shrugs. “I’m not sure what their situation is. I know Claire was surprised. She’s already in her car, and she should be here by midnight. Hopefully she recognizes Kaia’s injuries,” he frowns, “and they won’t try any… any ‘hanky panky’ tonight.”

Dean laughs, and if it’s slightly higher than normal, Cas doesn’t seem to pick up on it. He grabs Cas and kisses him square on the mouth. “You are ridiculous. Nobody says hanky panky. What the hell is wrong with you?”

Cas scowls. “They have to be well past kissing at this point.”

Dean snorts a laugh. “Yeah, that ship has long sailed, dude.”

Cas throws his hands in the air. “We don’t have enough sleeping surfaces to separate them.”

Dean sets the dirty plate down to face Cas fully. “Do you really think they’ll get back together? Kaia broke Claire’s heart not too long ago.”

Cas throws him a look like he wonders where the hell Dean’s logical brain has flown to. “Are you asking if I think couples can get back together after a harrowing break up?”

“… no.”

Cas shakes his head ruefully. “You’re more like Claire than I ever was, and you took me back.”

“Huh,” Dean wipes his hands off on a dishtowel, “you might have something there.”

“You do call me the smart one,” Cas says as he pushes off the counter and heads to the doorway. “It has been known to happen.”

“Smartass,” Dean corrects loudly as Cas grabs his coat and keys.

“Semantics.” Cas doubles back to kiss Dean a proper goodbye, and it’s just as electric as it was when they were seventeen. Cas tastes like Dean’s cooking, and he’s been letting his stubble grow out, the short hairs rasping against Dean’s palm as he cups Cas’s cheek.

“I love you, Dean,” Cas says as he draws away.

Dean grins. “I know.”

Cas huffs an almost-laugh as he heads back towards the door. “Now who’s the smartass?”

IN BED

Cas, the son of a bitch, falls asleep before Dean can wring out a second orgasm out of him. Such a godamn shame. Just goes to show, they really aren’t teenagers anymore. At least Dean got to use the new vibrator he bought for the occasion and the edible panties.

Dean flops back in bed. Maybe he should put the proposals on pause. Clearly, marriage isn’t in the cards. He can be a bit dense when it comes to Cas and him, but there’s dense and there’s denial.

It’s been two and a half months. Five proposal attempts. They’re nearly halfway through October, and he’s no closer to getting a ring on Cas’s finger than he was in late August, sweating bullets in that stupid fancy restaurant.

He can’t keep planning and failing to propose to Cas every other week. One, he can’t handle the stress and constant brainstorming. And B, he’s way behind in writing college recommendations and grading his freshman’s essays on Animal Farm.

Cas isn’t going anywhere. Dean isn’t going anywhere. So Dean can cool the proposals for now and start fresh in January.

SCHOOL ASSEMBLY

“I hate these,” Dean mutters to Benny. He frowns across the top rows of the bleachers where the seniors are supposed to sit. There are a few notable faces missing, but nobody that belongs to Dean’s homeroom, so he couldn’t give less of a shit. Below them, sit most of the juniors, and pretty much all of the sophomores and freshmen.

“It’s thirty minutes, brother,” Benny says, patting his arm. “You’ll live.”

“Shows what you know,” Dean grumbles back as Jody strides to the middle of the gym, microphone in hand. He asks Benny, “Do you know what this one’s about? Bullying? Cliques? Hugs not drugs?”

Benny shakes his head.

Jody sighs loudly into the mike. Clearly, she wants to be here just as much as he does. “Thank you all for coming,” she starts like any of them had a real choice. “First things first, Halloween is in two days, and while costumes are allowed and encouraged, don’t be racist.” She grimaces. “God help me, I don’t know why I still have to say that. If you are unsure if your costume is racist, it probably is. Wear something else. Secondly…”

Dean tunes her out. Instead, he scans the bleachers again, this time looking for Cas. He should be with the other sophomore homeroom teachers, but there’s no sign of him. Dean frowns. He can’t remember the last time Cas played hooky. And never without Dean. Dick move, Cas.

Movement at the edge of the gym catches Dean’s eye, and he watches, puzzled, as two students roll out one of the old projectors. The overhead lights turn off.

Is Jody seriously going to make him sit through a slide show? They’re wasting a prefectly good Friday morning on a goddamn PowerPoint?

The projector flips on, and the first photo is… of Dean.

What the fuck? His mouth drops open in horror. In the picture, he’s in his junior year of high school - he can tell from the hair - with a bunch of people he hasn’t seen in fifteen years. Plus Cas, who’s at the next table over in the cafeteria, head bowed over a book and slightly out of focus.

There’s a click, and text scrawls along the bottom of the screen, Destiel Met in Edlund High School Fifteen Years Ago!

The projector flips to the next photo, this time showing Dean’s senior yearbook picture.

More than a handful of students peer excitedly in his direction, undoubtedly hoping for a reaction.

Scowling, Dean cranes his neck to search the crowd for Charlie’s flaming red hair. She’s the only one who refers to the two of them as “Destiel”. Everyone else uses their names like sane people.

But the projector clicks to a photo of Cas, and Dean can’t help getting distracted. In the picture, Cas is alone at a table in the library. God, he was cute back then. His cheeks were a little fuller, and his hair was curlier. He still had the same intense blue-eyed stare, though. Patented Cas.

It all started with a tutoring session. Young Mr. W needed help in Latin, and our future Latin teacher, Mr. N, was up to the task!

Dean is going to kill Charlie. He tries to get to his feet - maybe she’s hiding behind Jo or something. But Benny’s hand grips his upper arm, holding him in place. “Don’t,” Benny says softly.

“What?” Dean demands as he tries to shake Benny off and fails. “Do you know what the hell is going on?”

“Stay.” The corners of Benny’s mouth twitch like he’s fighting a smile. “Watch.”

Dean huffs a breath and turns back around. If it was anyone else, Jo or Charlie, he wouldn’t trust a word out of their mouths. Benny, though, he’s not the type to make Dean sit through this without a good reason.

But that’s all ancient history. Destiel really got started five years ago, in this very gym.

The projector shows a picture of their class reunion, when Dean met Cas after ten years of no contact. They’re standing pretty close together (but that doesn’t mean much with Castiel What-Is-Personal-Space Novak), and they appear deep in conversation.

Since then, they have been inseparable.

Dean and Cas at a softball game. Dean and Cas at homecoming. Dean and Cas at GSA’s pride party.

Here’s to fifteen more years of Destiel!

The students clap and cheer with more than a few laughs.

Musical Interlude! flashes in front of a picture of Dean playing guitar to a group of pajama-clad students at last year’s Senior Lock-In.

The lights flip back on, and Dean blinks as his eyes adjust. By the time the spots have cleared from his vision, the projector has been wheeled away, leaving the main floor of the gym empty.

A staticky crackle echoes around the gym. And - is that Def Leppard playing on the speakers?

As the intro to Rock of Ages plays, the cheerleading team troops out from the locker rooms.

They start a routine Dean’s never seen before. To Rock of fucking Ages.

The cheerleaders sings along with Joe Elliot, “What do you want?”

Dean’s mouth falls open as the entire high school chants back, “I want rock and roll. Long live rock and roll!”

By the time they get to the “Rock of Ages” chant, all the students are on their feet, clapping along with the beat and cheering.

The song dies down soon after, and Dean, a broad smile on his face, turns to Benny. “I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I dig it.”

Benny laughs. “Good. He’ll be pleased.”

Dean’s just about to ask who he is (he’s 99% he knows), when Cas walks out from behind the bleachers.

Cas takes the microphone from Jody. He coughs nervously, waiting for the students to settle back down. “Thank you,” he says to the cheerleading team. “That was... awesome.” He glances up at the assembled students and teachers. “Dean-” he pauses as the cheers and clapping start up in earnest “-can you please come down here?”

But Dean’s frozen to the spot.

Benny gives him a not-so-light jab with his elbow. “Go on.”

Dean shakily gets to his feet and makes his way to the gym floor, and he swears his legs are about to give out from under him.

“Alright, you got my attention,” Dean says with forced bravado. “What’s up, Cas?”

The students hoot and holler.

Cas reddens as they die down again. Clutching the microphone in a death grip, he says, “Dean, we have been together for a number of years.”

Dean grins, a wonderful, all-consuming giddiness filling him the longer he stands in front of Cas. “I know, dude. I was there.”

The students laugh and someone, probably Jo, wolf whistles.

Cas swallows. “I wanted to do this here, where we first met, where you first asked me out on a date, where we had our first kiss.”

“Don’t tell ‘em about all our firsts on school property,” Dean says in a stage-whisper, “or Jody’s gonna have an aneurysm.”

Over a fresh round of student laughter, Jody puts her head in her hands. Donna, the school guidance counselor, pats her a few times on the back.

“Dean Winchester,” Cas says, and, shit, his hands are shaking. “I have loved you for more than half my life, and I look forward to far more than fifteen years by your side. Will you marry me?’

Dean’s not stupid. He had a strong hunch, ever since Rock of Ages played - aka the cassette he put in the Impala the first time he took Cas for a drive fifteen years and a lifetime ago - that this was what Cas was leading up to.

He’s mostly surprised Cas had the guts to pop the question this way. There was a reason Dean tried to keep his proposal plans mostly to the two of them. One of them is practically a social hermit, and it’s sure as shit not Dean.

“Just say yes, jerk!”

Dean spins around, nearly tripping over his own feet in surprise. Fuck, that’s Sam. His giant of a brother is hovering right outside the gym’s double doors, beaming at the pair of them. Claire gives a little wave from where she’s half-hiding behind him.

Dean turns back to Cas. He can’t think about Sam right now. Or Claire. Or the five hundred students with their eyes on them.

Only Cas.

“Cas,” he says, and it feels like the whole room is holding their collective breath, none more so than Cas, who looks like he’s about to pass out. “Man, I’ve loved you since I was seventeen. Of course I’ll marry you.”

Cas lets out a shaky exhale of relief, and Dean laughs. He takes the microphone from Cas’s now slack grip, steps all the way into Cas’s personal space, and kisses him.

The cheers from the assembled students are nearly deafening.

#destiel fanfic #fanfic #destiel #teacher dean #teachers au #teacher castiel #profoundnet #established relationship #fluff #the story of us verse #5+1 fic #rae writes fic

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