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#or anything else good and real in my life
acerathia · 2 days
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had to write this..... aventurine x reader
cw: gambling, gun use/russian roulette, glorification of violence
The weight of metal rests heavy against your skin, sliding against cloth with each step you take. There's no real goal for your walking, aimlessly wandering between the tables loaded with coins.
Usually, you would take a seat, try your luck. But today, today the thrill of a simple gamble was just not enough for you. You need something more, a notch more dangerous, more daring.
Despite your restless energy, despite knowing what could finally discharge you of this wanting electricity running in your veins, you have no other choice but to look somewhere else for anything to satisfy you long enough. But not even the money turned out to be the temptress it used to be.
So, with twitching fingers, you continue to be on the lookout. On the lookout for nothing but restlessness.
After some time, you end up at a random table, your coins heaped in front of you, cards in your hand, face unmoving. A glance between the dealer and the others, only to catch the eye of a blond, his eyes behind a pair of shades, barely hiding his eyes and the glint in them.
You feel your eye twitch as you watch how a grin spreads over his face as he leans back into his chair, the rings catching on the slightly moving cards.
Before you knew it, you had lost the share you had bet, everything on the table going towards the blond.
Slowly, you stretch your fingers, feeling the anticipation bubbling inside you as you are handed another hand. But the cards never seem to matter, he always won every round. His gaze unwavering, the coins clinking against his jewelry as he lets them roll between his fingers. Not once have you noticed him tense up, not even the slightest tick that might tell on him.
And that is something. Something that made a grin curl around the edges of your lips. You had never lost this devastatingly before, and every loss of coins, every win of his made your heart beat with a certain thrill. And you had to take your chances.
After everyone has gotten their new hand, you turn towards him, your free hand touching on the hidden metal.
"All of this has been fun and good. But how about we raise the stakes?" you ask him directly, not caring about anyone else on the table.
His grin seems to sharpen. "What's your wager?"
A grin of your own breaks over your face, all teeth and thrill. With a quick snatch, you get the gun out, putting it on the table before sliding it towards him.
His eyes dart towards it before returning to you, some kind of realization in his eyes, yet the same kind of anticipation you're feeling.
"My life."
With your answer, you put the cards down and motion for him to pick up the gun.
"There's one bullet inside. And to make it more interesting, we point it at each other," you explain, raising your arms to the side as if welcoming him.
"Hm, interesting. But what does the winner get? High stakes mean high reward."
His retort brings your focus back to him. Cocking your head, you answer: "It's simple, really. The winner gets it all!"
You're aware of the risk, of the way you're putting everything on the line. Yet, the thrill coursing through you with every glance you share is worth everything.
And, you're curious. Whose luck would be the first to run out?
Without trying to negotiate, he picks up the gun, letting the cylinder roll with a swing of his fingers, the rings deliciously resounding against it.
With a click, he points the gun at your forehead, his eyes trained on you. You watch his every move, the twitch of his mouth, the glide of his fingers against the trigger, and all you do is grin at him as another click resounds. An empty chamber.
With ease, he points the handle towards you, and your fingers touch as the gun exchanges hands, a touch filled with electricity, with a certain charge you both share.
You put your finger on the trigger as he leans back once again, his arm over the back of the chair, almost like there is no gun pointing towards him, the danger something he basks in. A click, another empty chamber. His grin widens, as if he already knew this is going to happen. Maybe he did, his luck overwhelming.
You give him the gun, and you can't help but notice the way he deliberately grazes your fingers with his, and if your skin wasn't already shivering due to the game, it would be overcome by goosebumps at his touch.
The touch has given you something, made you bolder, so, the moment he points the gun at you once again, you grab it and press it into your skin as opposed to the distance from before.
This put you closer to him, also, you looking up at him, as his fingers slide over the trigger. Yet, for a moment, you both just stare at each other, your widened eyes in anticipation meet his curious ones. He pulls the trigger, an empty click.
Yet, that wasn't satisfying enough. You ket your fingers glide over his, hot leather against your trembling fingers, over the trigger, and you push it once again.
At least you tried to, as the trigger jams up. And no matter how often you pressed, no shot wants to leave the chamber.
Your grin immediately slides off, leaving it slightly tilted as you back off to take the gun into your hand, inspecting it. You'd have to take it apart to see the problem, something you couldn't just do at the moment.
A sigh, you put the gun into its place against your heated skin. But before you could say anything, he speaks up.
"Well, I guess we have to postpone our gamble. How about we discuss the details over a drink?" His eyes trail over your face, intently watching your every twitch, almost like you're still playing poker.
And you're not someone who backs down from any challenge, be it gambling or talking.
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puzzled-pegasus · 2 days
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Do you ever just think about how awful it is to be a demigod before you know about it?
I've been thinking about it a lot lately. How much demigod kids and teenagers don't fit in with mortal society. Their mortal parents don't know what to do with them, even if they do care for them immensely. They are labeled as troublemakers, as bad kids, as mentally ill, as freaks and monsters who see things they shouldn't see and have an aversion to authority that they shouldn't have and a strong sense of justice and an inability to sit still, read, play, act, feel normally. Percy got in trouble for getting into fights, for speaking impulsively, he was mocked and spoken down to and expelled from lots of schools who couldn't handle him and he didn't know why until he was twelve years old. Sally wasn't able to tell him why.
Annabeth was the product of her father's relationship with a goddess, and he loved her for a while, but she wasn't a normal kid. When he fell in love with a mortal and Annabeth didn't get along with her or her kids, he chose the mortal side. How could he understand Annabeth's side? She was just a badly behaved kid, while his new wife and children were the normal good ones.
Jason always knew he was a demigod, he was accepted and praised and tons of expectations were placed on him from a frighteningly young age. Part of the reason the others resent him and see him as a sort of golden child is because he was placed on a pedestal and he will never, ever know what it was like for all of his friends to be looked down on as children, to be scolded for things they didn't understand and told that the things they saw and experienced constantly were not real.
Piper was always loved by her father but I think he loved the idea of her, he loved that she reminded him of the beautiful woman he met years ago. He was always kind to her and usually gave her things she wanted, but he couldn't always spend time with her as his job got busier. Piper sensed that her father's attention was occupied by something else, and as he got busier, she felt less supported and stole things and got in fights and her dad didn't know what to do with her after the BMW so she was sent to a troubled teen program where she was bullied for her disabilities and her race.
Leo feared his power because it killed the person he loved the most, and after that, everything in his life was hell. He didn't feel safe anywhere, he didn't have anyone he could trust, and adults saw him as a troublemaker who would never amount to anything.
The books don't emphasize these things as much with any of the other demigods, or maybe Annabeth, Percy, Piper, and Leo are the best examples we have. I just. They're so tragic. They're all my children all of them. I love them and I feel so sad for them
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Paring: jeonghan x you
Requested: yes [Can you please write something angsty for prince DK? Or if this is too vague, what do you think about a bet au with Jeonghan?] [By anon]
Genre: angst, coworkers to lovers, fluff, fuckboy au, opposites au, bet au
Warning(s): misogyny, jeonghan is an asshole and so is seungcheol, [if you find more pls inform ]
Summary: Jeonghan had plans on never talking to the quite coworker they hired, but like doesn't always pan out the way we want to. But when you add money to the problem, plus both your feelings, you have the perfect recipe for disaster.
Word count: 5.2k
Other works
disclaimer: this is not the exact representation of the subjects in real life. I just use them for my inspiration.
a/n: I request each and every one of you to comment on this fic don't be a silent reader it helps me as an author to understand my readers and i would love to communicate with all of you. Constructive criticism is always welcomed by me so do talk about this fic or send me an ask. Plus, if you loved it enough don't forget to reblog, it will help me reach a larger audience.
a/n 2: i hope it was what you wanted, thanks for the ask btw!
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Everyone at the office knew that Jeonghan was a free spirit, he worked hard and partied even harder. He like living his life in the most happening way possible. Be it weekend trips, bike trips to the mountains or staying in the countryside for a week and working remote while enjoying the serenity that comes with it, he was down for anything.
Funnily enough he was referred to as the least energetic person in his friend group. So, one can imagine overzealous they normally were.
His work more often than not was impeccable, no one could fault him at all. The rising star of the corporate world they called him at the office. In his five years at the job the man had garnered more approval than anyone else.
He liked his life, and he would not trade it for anything else.
Now, unlike Jeonghan you resided on the other side of the spectrum. Your kind of life was pretty monotonous waking up before your alarm, making your bed, skipping meals, and surviving on coffee, reaching, and leaving work on the dot and crying while rewatching your favorite shows, was your kind of life. You like staying in during the weekends and cleaning up the mess you make in your living space during the weekdays and trying everything in your power to not upset your cat while doing so.
Its calm, chill, maybe a bit boring but it worked for you and brought you peace.
You were the newest recruit in your office and from the first day you captured the attention of most of your coworkers for your meticulous and polite words.
More often than not you refuse to talk to your coworkers ensuring that there stays a professional boundary between you all and if they would not catch onto your behavior, you would politely decline them.
Never that interested in networking, you refuse to talk to more people than you need to.
Jeonghan caught onto it pretty early, but why did it matter to him what you did, so like everyone else he went on his own way and simply chose to ignore you.
Ten months into your new job was when you first had a real conversation with the man. It was pretty late at night, both of you had to stay back for overtime. That was when you saw him struggling with his presentation for the next day’s meeting.
That day you broke the ‘no talking to my coworkers rule unless and until it’s very important’ rule.
“what’s the problem?” you politely asked the man.
“Oh, I am having slight problem with the numbers here,” the man replies looking visibly confused and surprised.
“If you want, I can help you out” you kindly stated as Jeonghan casually just turned his laptop towards you.
So, for the next one and half hours you both sat there and diligently worked on the presentation and by the end of it the material looked rather good and presentation worthy.
Looking extremely grateful the pretty man said, “I am so thankful you helped me out today, so why don’t I repay you by dropping you off at your house, it’s pretty late you know.”
Looking at your watch you politely replied, “no worries, plus if I rush a bit, I can catch the last bus home so please don’t bother.”
Jeonghan looked bummed at this, but he was obliged nonetheless as he knew you to be an introverted lady and he did not want to make you uncomfortable.
--
The next time you and Jeonghan had a conversation, was again at a night when you both were staying at the office over time. By this time, you have become pretty comfortable with each other, not enough to hold a conversation but enough to spare a quick nod and a smile while passing by each other’s cubicles.
He was done with the day’s work and was about to leave the office when he noticed you hunched over your laptop looking frustratingly at your screen which showed you an open excel sheet with infinite numbers.
Feeling like he owed you the help, Jeonghan strode towards you and calmly said “let me see.”
Jumping in shock you looked at him and replied, “oh no don’t bother I can figure it out you should go home it’s pretty late you know.”
Tsking at your reply he grabbed a chair to sit beside you while saying “it’s only fair, you helped me out so I should help you now.”
You let him, in actuality you needed that little help from him, the data entries were annoying you and you absolutely did not like it one bit.
Just like that time passed by again resulting in the clock to show that it was quarter past one by the time you both were done.
This time though Jeonghan shut down all your protests to go about his own way and your reluctance to inconvenience him with a simple “it’s pretty late and I won’t let you get followed by some creeps on the road plus the last bus is gone anyways so you are coming with me.”
On the way he stopped at a convenience store to get some dinner for you both and you devoured your ramen while chatting with him.
You both were pretty similar, in some cases for example you both had this extreme love for Legos that existed beyond measurable amounts, both of you loved your pets to death, albeit his was a rock and yours was a cat, but as he said “we don’t discriminate peoples pets here, they can have what they want to but given its legal and safe for the pet.”
On the other hand, Jeonghan liked you too, he was happy he could be the first one to break your shell to meet the real you and he was proud of this. It was close to an achievement for him.
--
“Han like this new chick in his office.”
Joshua loudly announced to the group of boys sprawled in his living room one evening. Jeonghan’s friends had come to his house to hang out and to get drunk out of their wits to forget the stress of the tedious weekend they had. They were all friends from college, now working jobs in the most contrasting industries ever like Seungcheol was the manager for their states football club and Soonyoung was a choreographer working with famous celebrities, Hansol on the other hand was the proud of a pet shelter and the one and only Joshua was an English history professor who most days worked overtime at the university. But at the end of the day, they were all the loud and obnoxious assholes he knew and loved from his younger days, and nothing could compare to that.
“Really you never told us about this one hyung?” Mingyu enquires.
“Nah she is just a new hire at the office, does not like talking to people at all. She is more antisocial than Wonwoo’s ass.”
“Really now, antisocial?” Seungcheol enquires, not missing Jeonghan’s defensive tone.
“Yes, Cheol antisocial, plus I don’t even know her enough,” the male says while rolling his eyes at his friends interest with you.
“Maybe you could talk to her and get her out of her shell, you are a pretty good mediator in our group I think you could do that,” pipes up the ever so benevolent Seokmin.
“Yes, you could,” Seungcheol joins him smirking a bit.
Now thoroughly annoyed Jeonghan exclaims “no I cannot. The only way someone can get that stuck up bitch out of her shell will be fucking her or something and I do not want to do so!”
“What if I pay you, will you do it then,” Seungcheol says still smirking.
“Do what?”
“Fuck her enough to get her out of her shell.”
The whole room goes silent at that statement.
“Hyung, I don’t think it’s right,” the youngest of them, Chan, suddenly speaks.
“Yes, its morally incorrect man,” Jeonghan agrees.
“I will pay you, plus life is pretty boring. This will give us something to talk about for at least the next year,” the oldest explains still smiling a bit.
“I agree with the others, its emotionally taxing and nothing good will come out of doing something like this man, plus what are we teenagers making bets about emotionally harming others?” Joshua says.
“Jeonghan, you do it and I will give you a thousand bucks,” the oldest says calmly. At the same time all the men in the room let out an exasperated sigh, knowing there is no winning with this stubborn man, while hoping silently that Jeonghan does not succumb to the greed.
But alas they were wrong, so wrong. An amount that lucrative will only be passed by a fool and Jeonghan was no such thing. He stood up from his place at the loveseat and confidently strode over to Seungcheol.
“You better keep your fucking word,” he says while shaking the older man’s hand.
While Seungcheol smiles and says, “you know what you complete the bet within the next six month I’ll give you a five thousand and if you don’t end up doing it, you gotta pay me pal.”
--
After that evening with his friends, Jeonghan was pretty stressed, because why should he not be? Making you sleep with him is hard enough, but making a situationship out of it sounds even harder. Now he thoroughly regrets accepting the bet.
You on the other hand are pretty happy and quiet as you often are. Very much unaware of his internal turmoil, as you keep talking excitedly about the new Lego death star you bought.
Yes, you and Jeonghan have bonded quite a bit these past few days, he likes spending time with you too, and so do you. It is a nice and comfortable friendship you both have built, and you like it.
“Why don’t you let me come to your place this weekend, and we can build the set together. We can get takeout later too,” he suddenly speaks up shocking you with such forward proposition.
“Well only if you want to though no pressure, it’s just that I really wanted to build the death star and was planning to buy it but like couldn’t make enough time to do –”
“Sure, you can come,” you speak up stopping his nervous rant.
“Are you sure?” Jeonghan asks just to make sure he heard it correctly.
“Yes, I am, it will be fun to build the Lego set together,” you say smiling.
“Yes, it would be, but like are you really sure,” he says again to make sure he is really not hard at hearing.
“Jeonghan if you ask me once again, I will take back what I just said.”
This makes him stop talking at all and he proceeds to show you his beautiful smile, making you feel a bit giddy inside.
“So, I will come this Saturday and we shall make the death star cuz we can,” he sings, making you bark out a laugh at him.
Little do you know you just poured a cool bucket of water on the burning flames on anxiety inside Jeonghan’s brain and he is extremely happy about that.
--
The next Saturday comes rolls in slowly, the tedious and boring week is over, and it is time for self-care and a lot of friendship building activities or that’s what you thought.
The man was mad and when you say mad you mean it. The Lego making only lasted for like two hours before he had hidden all the pieces of the part that you were making, resulting you to search for them all over the house. Moreover, after diligently searching and finding nothing, you had given up when he had produced all those pieces from his pockets shocking you to the core.
This little stunt had made you force him to pay for the takeout and when you were both fed and watered, he had proposed a game of chess. Only problem, you never knew one could cheat in this game too. He moved the pieces wrong.
Result. You both had the pettiest fight ever wherein the man with all his might tried to convince you that the rook was indeed supposed to move diagonally.
“You don’t understand, that is how the game is played. Are you sure you ever played this before?” he had asked.
“Hani you are wrong, please the rook never in its whole life moved diagonally, it always moved straight.”
“Maybe that is what your problem is, you are so uptight, you refuse to accept the differences in our opinions!”
“Oh, now I'm uptight, you are only being this difficult cuz you are losing!”
“I wouldn’t if you let me play the rook diagonally.”
“But that is not how it is played! Why don’t you—"
All your rants stop just like that, it took you at least five business days to actually realize that Jeonghan had kissed you. But once you got over that shock, you closed your eyes and moved your lips along with his.
Jeonghan, thoroughly exasperated by your intense argument, impulsively sought to quiet you by placing a soft, lingering kiss on your plump lips. Almost immediately, regret washed over him as he feared he had acted rashly at the worst possible moment. Mentally preparing to distance himself from you for the rest of your time together, he was taken aback when you reciprocated the kiss, instantly dissolving all his worries and leaving him pleasantly surprised.
You broke the kiss to take a breath, both looking visibly flustered.
“Do you want to stay the night, or do you want to go?” you asked him while looking at him with your sparkling eyes, making Jeonghan want to glue his ass to your house, but he being the gentleman he was declined the offer.
“I would really like to take you out on a date. As I really like you, so I won’t spoil my chances with you by staying tonight.”
To say you were surprised would be an understatement. You always thought of the man to be a Casanova, so the idea of him taking you on a date while simultaneously insinuating that he won’t take any harsh steps with you was a nice little change and you were all for it.
--
It was all smooth sailing after that.
Jeonghan took you to an amusement park for the date next Sunday and oh boy did you enjoy yourself to the fullest.
Both of you had the time of your lives. Making sure to go on every ride, play every game and eating every junk you found there. By the end of it you were visibly exhausted and elated with how the day went.
The following day you were visibly happier in the office and even had a small conversation with one of your coworkers.
This went on for the following month, with each and every date you opened up to Jeonghan more and more, and so did he.
He loved spending time with you and vice versa. It was during your regular Friday movie nights, a ritual you both had established as you both liked watching movies and bonded while talking about them, when Jeonghan absolutely bored with the movie scooted a bit too close to you in hopes of gaining your attention by annoying you, a typical Jeonghan move. When you both ended up making love on the couch.
This was only the start of a lot of escapades you would have with the man.
After that one night, Jeonghan was all over you at all times. Be it at the office or be it at home he was with you or texting you all the time. Your nights were now filled with heavy make outs and intense love making sessions.
Everybody at the office knew about you both. On top of that you were more extroverted than ever. You even went out with your coworkers for an office dinner. Somehow, Jeonghan was praised for the change he brought in you, and like his ‘kind’ self, he declined all those compliments with a gracious smile.
He didn’t like to say it out loud, but he liked your changed self, more than your reserved one. Plus, he also took credit for the change, but it’s not like he would tell you that anytime soon.
--
 It was almost five months into dating Jeonghan, when he asked you to meet his friends. You knew he had a very loyal group of friends and you had never met them before. On the contrary Jeonghan had met your one and only best friend within only three months of dating. In the most best friend manner, the lady has hated his ass the whole-time side eyeing him constantly and leaving petty remarks here and there. But that night she had called you and told you something she didn’t ever say for any of your boyfriends “I can see he loves you a lot. For the first time you chose the correct guy.”
Getting your strict best friend to like Jeonghan was like clearing the first hurdle of your relation. For the first time, you were proud of your choice in men and especially your boyfriend.
“Oh, I would love to meet them, but would they like me,” you were rightfully concerned about the boys liking you. As much as you were independent, you would like to gain the approval of your boyfriend’s friends like any girlfriend.
“They are dorks through and through, they will love, don’t worry” he had said while kissing your forehead to calm you down.
“Plus, you will fit right in, they are nice people,” he later added.
--
That evening, Jeonghan had taken you to the Korean BBQ place downtown where they all were meeting. The night had started rocky but within an hour you were having fun with Mingyu and Seokmin, all worries forgotten. Jeonghan had looked at you with pride blooming in his chest with how happy you looked with his friends, enjoying yourself.
It seems that all the twelve of them had liked you a lot saying you were the perfect partner for Jeonghan, someone who could ground him at the same time let him be himself.
The BBQ party came to an end, but the boys still had a lot of energy, so they went to the karaoke next taking both you and Jeonghan with them. Although you were thoroughly exhausted, you had complied to go, seeing Jeonghan have so much fun was a sight you didn’t want to miss.
You had gone to the bathroom the first thing right after reaching the karaoke place, to wake you up and also to do your business. Seungkwan had accompanied you claiming, “all that soju and walking has made my bladder shake like never before!” it’s not a lie though, they did drink like it will be the last time they ever get to drink.
As you came out of the restroom, Seungkwan gave you a kind smile and said “I have never seen Jeonghan this happy before, not even with us. I'm sure he likes you a lot.”
Smiling at him you said, “I think I love him; I have not said that to him yet, but I really think I do.”
With a sassy ‘good for you’ from the one and only Boo, you both made your way to the room that your group had booked.
As you reached closer, you could hear all the boys talking to each other.
“I approve, she is an angel, she even consoled Soon when he cried” said one of them making you smile a bit. By this time Seungkwan had stopped with you too eavesdropping on his friends as he is as dramatic as one can be.
“She is nothing like what you described her to be you know, she is nice and kind and far from being stuck up,” someone else said.
“Nah she is not, that stuck up once you get to know her, contrary to that she is very cheery and I like her you know,” Jeonghan had replied making you feel extra giddy inside.
“Hey bro if you like her that much maybe we should call off the deal we made, I see how much you like her and if you ask me, I will say she is a keeper,” with this statement, a silence washed over the whole group. You looked at Seungkwan to understand what was happening, but the man refused to look at you still stubbornly pretending to listen to the conversation.
“I said I like her, not like her enough to let go of the five thousand you offered” you suddenly heard Jeonghan speak making you even more confused about the whole ordeal.
“I think you will regret it you let her go hyung,” Seokmin suddenly said with a very somber tone generating a lot of assertive noises from the group.
“She won’t bring me five thousand, plus I fucked her got into a relationship with her and made her the fun-loving bitch she is now. It was a tedious process, but I completed my work, so I deserve the money.”
It was hard hearing the man you loved so much make such a degrading comment. At this point you were shaking with emotions so much that even Seungkwan who refused to look at you during this whole time, had to hold you steady.
“Did you know about this,” you asked him.
The boy with his eyes downcast just nodded his head.
��I won’t even ask you why you didn’t tell me about it, I get it you are his friend makes sense.”
“Hey none of us wanted him to do anything like this, but your Jeonghan is unstoppable sometimes and about the wrong things.”
“I think I should get going, I’ve heard enough.”
“Hey y/n we like you a lot, so please stay in contact with us later, no matter what your verdict is,” the younger man pleaded with glistening eyes, making you almost accept the request out of pity.
You ignored everyone and strode into the room bustling with men, heading straight for the couch. Without hesitation, you grabbed your bag and, as you walked out, approached Jeonghan and delivered a firm slap to his face. "We're done," you declared before exiting the room without glancing at anyone else.
--
The minute you had left, Jeonghan felt his life crashing down on him. The looks of disapproval from his friends and the pure disappointment that radiated off you caught him off guard. He had thought he could get out of it with both the girl and the money, but suddenly he realized he didn’t even need the said money, he only needed you. The weight of his words came to haunt me as soon as he had spoken them.
He immediately attempted to follow you but was stopped by Seungkwan, “did you see her face, if you follow her now, she will resent you more. Not like you don’t deserve it, but you are still my friend.”
The tone of his voice showed how much he was upset with Jeonghan. So much so that the younger male could not even look at his face.
“You are my hyung, but you know what I like her more, never have I ever thought you would do something like this,” he continued, “I hope she never forgives you.”  
Hearing that Jeonghan couldn’t control himself and punched Seungkwan and a fight broke out. The boys trying their best to resolve it.
“It’s already a mess, can you both stop making it worse!” Mingyu said as Seungkwan punched Jeonghan back square on the jaw.
“Tell that shit to not meddle in my business then” comes Jeonghan’s voice.
“Maybe if you didn’t break her heart I wouldn’t, she was a fucking nice person,” Seungkwan shouted back as Mingyu dragged him out.
The night was ruined, and it was all because of Jeonghan.
--
That night you came home and cried your heart out ignoring all the calls from Jeonghan and the other boys, with whom you had exchanged numbers during the hangout. Thankfully, it was a Sunday the next day, so you didn’t have to look at the man who broke your heart, but it pained you so much to even move a muscle. It was like your heart was ripped out of your body. The pain was immeasurable.
There were at least a hundred missed calls on your phone and thirty of them from all of the boys. Your best friend come to your place that Sunday and tried her best to console a sad you, but nothing could stop you from beating yourself up for trusting a man like him. it’s true you loved him, and you regrated doing so, you didn’t blame Jeonghan for breaking your heart, you blamed yourself for being weak enough for you to let Jeonghan do so to you, for letting the man step all over you like you were a piece of trash that had no place in the normal world. The degrading things that he had said about you kept echoing in your ears, making it hard for you to think of anything else.
It was like you had forgotten all about your vow to never let anyone step over you and take away a piece of you from yourself. You were so hurt that you refused to see Jeonghan at all. So, on the next Monday you asked your HR for a weeklong leave and the kind lady obliged owing to your stellar performance at your department.
You turned off your phone that week and went to stay with you friend as the house was too lonely for you and the more you stayed there, the more you felt the memories of you and Jeonghan coming to haunt you.
--
On that Monday, Jeonghan woke up with a newfound determination. He was resolved to confront you and explain that his hurtful words from that night stemmed from his own inability to accept his feelings. He believed that once he clarified his side of the story, your compassionate nature would lead you to forgive him. He was even prepared to humble himself, willing to beg for your forgiveness if necessary. However, fate intervened when he discovered you had taken a week-long leave from the office.
The realization of consequences hit him suddenly. Yes, he understood the gravity of his actions, but he was willing to face any repercussions if it meant having you back in his arms. Anything seemed bearable compared to the thought of losing you.
By Wednesday, Jeonghan found himself standing at your doorstep, desperately knocking, hoping to speak with you. To his dismay, a neighbor informed him that you had been absent since Monday. His heart sank realizing he had missed his chance to reconcile with you.
He had made a solemn vow to himself that he would reach out to you no matter what obstacles lay in his path, willing to go to any lengths to make amends. However, he now realized the depth of his mistake. Reflecting on his actions, he understood that he should have heeded the advice of his friends earlier, but it was too late for regrets.
Jeonghan's determination to win you back consumed him. He felt a deep pang of regret for not acting sooner and for failing to appreciate the warnings from his friends. Now, facing the reality of your absence, he grappled with the weight of his impulsive behavior.
In the days that followed, Jeonghan resolved to wait patiently for your return, determined to seize any opportunity to make things right. He hoped against hope that he hadn't irreparably damaged the bond between you. Each passing day without you served as a sobering reminder of the importance of listening to his instincts and valuing the counsel of those who cared about him.
--
The next week you opened your phone to see it has blown up with Jeonghan’s messages and there were a few from Seungkwan asking you if you are okay and telling you that he had punched Jeonghan for being an asshole to you and that most of the people didn’t agree with Jeonghan’s antics but its hard to stop Jeonghan when is like that.
Taking pity of the boy you and answered him accepting his apology and telling him you were happy that he punched the guy.
His answer came immediately, saying he was happy that there is no bad blood among you two and he prefers you more than Jeonghan anyways making you laugh at his cuteness.
When you returned back to the office, the first thing you did was hand them your resignation letter. The next thing on your list was avoid Jeonghan till you leave work, at which you were pretty successful.
And just like that you were done with your time in the office and were moving onto another job before Jeonghan could even get hold of you.
--
Its has been three years since and life had never been better. You became friends with Seungkwan, Seokmin and Soonyoung immediately. You four hangout quite frequently. The three younger men like you a lot too. It’s a strong bond you have created with them. If anyone asks you would say the only good thing that came from your ex was the friends you made while with him.
On top of that you also have been in a relation with a man who treats you right and loves you to death. Its like you have at last reached the light at the end of the tunnel.
--
Jeonghan on the other hand drowned himself in work after you left, the man tried his best to forget your existence and was very thankful his work helped him do so. But whenever he was out with his friends he couldn’t stop himself from asking about you and always he got the same answer of ‘none of your fucking business’ from Seungkwan.
But it was different this time, it was the ever so kind Seokmin who answered him.
“Hyung she moved on, and you should too.” Hearing that he stood up, he didn’t know why. Would he go to your house and beg for your forgiveness again or will he call you while asking you to give him another chance?
Truth to be told, he didn’t know.
“Hyung please don’t mess this up for her. She is happy,” Seokmin spoke up again, kindly holding his hand to pull him down back onto his seat. It felt like Jeonghan’s life has come crashing down on him once again. One lone tear left his eye, too embarrassed to cry in front of his friends, he puts up a happy front while saying “of course Seok, I would do nothing to hurt her.”
All his friends looked at the man in pity, hoping that faith was kinder to him. but they couldn’t deny that he single handedly destroyed his life either. He was still their friend and he deserved to be happy to but so did you. The man sat in silence for some time till Joshua loudly declared he wanted to go to the arcade and all the others enthusiastically agreed, happy about the distraction.
That is when Jeonghan realized life has gone on and not stopped for anyone, the time he was supposed to seize his moment has passed and it wont ever come back. He now has to live his life without the presence of one of the most precious thing he ever had the privilege to possess, your love.
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a/n 3: thank you all for reading !!
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dnftopia · 16 hours
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dnf + guilty as sin lyric analysis (delusional version)
I was validated by 1 anon so Now i need to do this. Its very crazy (WARNING!)
My boredom's blown deep This cage was once just fine Am I allowed to cry?
this part is soooo pre-meetup dnf. "my boredom's blown deep / this cage was once just fine" reflects so much on both of them -- dream having to watch all his friends meet george from across the world while being stuck in his house for years, and george being bored in london while also barely leaving his flat.
their cage was "once just fine" because we know that before they realized that they wanted to live together and just wanted george to visit, they were fine being across an ocean. But once the visa application started they expressed pretty clearly how much it affected their mental health to be apart from each other -- hence "am i allowed to cry"
I dream of cracking locks Throwing my life to the Wolves or the ocean rocks Crashing into him tonight, he's a paradox I'm seeing visions, never mad or bad or wise
"i dream of cracking locks" might as well be a metaphor for the visa aka their lock to the door keeping them apart. and "throwing my life to the wolves or the ocean rocks" is clearly a metaphor for controversy or the general public (the wolves). at the same time dnf are apart they're also becoming increasingly famous, dealing with newfound controversy and criticism.
"crashing into him tonight, he's a paradox" -- use of the word paradox makes me feel like there's some differing use in the meaning of the word "crashing". like the painful feeling of crashing against ocean rocks (controversy) versus crashing against him being comforting (dnf relying on each other for support and love). and "i'm seeing visions" -- wanting to be with each other sooo badly it encroaches on both their waking thoughts and their dreams
What if he's written mine on my upper thigh only in my mind One slip and falling back into the hedge maze Oh what a way to die
this is pretty clearly a "what if my feelings are unrequited" type thing to me. what if i'm his but he doesn't see me as his? one slip (i.e. a slip of the tongue revealing too much of their inner feelings) could ruin everything. Which like. in any friends to lovers relationship i feel that's a very real fear
I keep recalling things we never did Messy top lip kiss
do i have to say anyhting for this one WE KNOW DREAM THOUGHT ABOUT KISSING GEORGE. MULTIPLE TIMES
How I long for our tryst Without ever touching his skin How can I be guilty as sin?
yeahhh more pre-meetup dnf longing for their eventual meeting. without ever meeting each other, and without george ever seeing dream's face, somehow they still want each other
I keep thesе belongings locked In lower casе inside a vault Someone told me, "There's no such thing as bad fights, only your actions talk" These fatal fantasies given way to labored breath taking all of me
they keep their feelings locked up Ohh my dnfies. "there's no such thing as bad fights, only your actions talk" is like an actions matter more than words thing or alternatively could be flipping the saying "keep fighting the good fight" on its head a bit. again "fatal fantasies" of what could be post-meetup consume both of them so fully it's difficult to focus on anything else
We've already done it in my head If it's make believe Why does it feel like a vow? We'll fold apart somehow
THIS ONEEE. "we've already done it in my head ... / why does it feel like a vow?" Like come on. we know dnf have had many conversations about their future together and they're both fully committed to staying together as long as they can. the question for them is whether the other person feels that platonically or romantically
My bed sheets are a blaze I screamed his name Building up like waves crashing over my grave Without ever touching his skin How can I be guilty as sin?
Yeahh. dont need to go into detail on this one because we all get it. #DNFESEX!
What if I roll the stone away? They're gonna crucify me anyway
aside from the Dresus comparisons. "rolling the stone away" in the context of christianity symbolizes rebirth and an intrinsic change. To me it could be seen as a metaphor for coming out publicly . "they're gonna crucify me anyway" -- we literally saw this happen with dream in real time. he doesn't come out and he's accused of queerbaiting, he comes out and people invalidate him and call him names LIKE. This hurts me
What if the way you hold is actually what's holy? If long suffering propriety is what they want from me They don't know how you've haunted me so stunningly I choose you and me, religiously
even if they face vitriol and public scrutiny DNF WILL ALWAYS CHOOSE EACH OTHER TO THE POINT OF RELIGION!
Thats it the end. Thanks for reading peace and love Please support me and my crazyisms
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not-goldy · 2 days
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All I gotta say is thank goodness Jikook didn't let me down & enlist with someone else, because I would've threw in my shipper hat. The way everyone is losing their minds with excuses & miserable. Could never be me. There'd be no reason to stay in the shippersphere, cause it would be proven they're not real, cause I'm sorry, you don't enlist with someone else when you have a chance to be with your partner. You'd go ALONE if there was a reason you didn't want too together. Not disrespect your partner & go with someone else. And this is why everyone is mad, cause they know it too. Going alone is one thing, that wouldn't affect them being real. Going with someone else, yeah you wouldn't find me making a 100 excuses for them, cause the outcome would still be the same. My ship isn't real. I'd take the hint. You don't make a life decision to enlist like this with someone other then the person you are closest too. Does it mean they're dating? NO, I'm not saying that. I'm saying, would it mean they aren't dating if they enlisted with another member or outside friend, yes. It would be the straw that breaks the camels back. That or them claiming someone they have leaked pics with or go public holding their partners hand or out right telling me to get out of my imagination. I'd pack it up & peace out & immediately stop thinking they're together & just enjoy their friendship. You'd never hear me making excuses again because I'd always remember they chose someone else, when it really mattered & wouldn't bat an eyelash to their behavior anymore. And seeing how people still ship their favs after Taennie and now enlistment. I REFUSE to reach that level of braindead insanity. No thanks.
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I see what you mean but I hope you are exaggerating when you say you will throw in your shipper hat had jikook enlisted with other people.
Cos, if it were Vmin enlisting together that wouldn't be sooooo like ship shattering you know 🤧
I mean it's Vmin.
But then I get you cos if jikook are a couple you'd expect them to do couple things.
Enlisting together IS A BIG DEAL
If there were best friends or a couple in a group it's more likely they would be the ones to enlist together. And since Vmin didn't do it together, we are left with the couple.
I for one will not chalk it down to the fact Jikook are "friends" which is why they enlisted together for the simple fact they don't hold themselves out to be the besties of the group.
I recall saying to someone that Vmin calling themselves the soulmates of the group affects the status of Jikook as friends cos on the face of it,one would think Jikook were the soulmates of the group- for whatever soulmates means and whatever its worth.
You can't call yourselves best friends when yall are best friends with other people in the same group😩
Which of course is not to take away from Vmin's friendship.
But it begs the question, if Vmin are soulmates what are Jikook and I don't think Jikook themselves have cared to straighten it out.
Had they not enlisted together there are others out there who would never have assumed perhaps that they are the closest in the band. Simply because they are lost in the crowd and are drowned by lots of barrel ships making loud noises.
The barrel is noiseist when it's empty.
But of course if Jimin could serve 2 years with another person away from JK we would all pack our bags and close down shop cos then it would be so obvious we are WRONG about them.
I recall us expressing concerns about them not being able to handle being away from eachother for 2 whole years and the trip they took together before service was consoling because it's very normal for couples to want to spend quality time together before sending eachother off.
I won't lie, I felt that trip was too short and too close to service to mean anything to me💀💀💀💀💀💀
My reasonable expectations was for them to spend a whole lot of time (however short) together factoring in their schedules and the fact some of them were released from work so they could spend time with friends and family before leaving.
So when I heard they were still filming content for hybe so close to leaving for MS I was concerned. Either hybe wasn't thoughtful enough or sensitive enough or these people didn't really have intimate relationships or relations that mattered to them. Cos if they did they would want to spend sometimes with them before leaving.
Like I don't expect them to spend a week with their friends right before leaving, but a week with family would be reasonable.
I've said and will maintain this position, Jikook behave very much like any reasonable couple hiding their relationship in broad day would more so than any traditional ship I've seen in a decade.
You can lie about who you are intimate with but you can't hide that intimacy. not for this long.
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manorpunk · 3 days
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2️⃣
‘Comprador’ refers to an agent of a large multinational corporation whose typical job responsibility is taking a small underdeveloped nation and turning it into a vending machine for a natural resource - oil, coffee, coal, minerals - then getting that nation so dependent on selling those raw materials to that company that they effectively control it.
Unrelatedly, the Global Logistics Network was the single largest anything of 2069.
They weren’t a monopoly, no, no, no. They were… you see, the crowded and fragile system of intercontinental shipping was simply too important to be left in the hands of any single nation. You all saw what happened when the Brits monopolized it, and when the US monopolized it after them. You’ve seen how nations owning major canals turns them into a hive of corruption. Shipping belongs to the world, which means it belongs to the GLN.
They were headquartered in Qingdao, a major city in the Shandong province of China. Don’t be fooled, China fumbled the past few decades as much as everyone else, but every institution needs a head, and every head needs a headquarters, and the headquarters of the Global Logistics Network were located in Qingdao. The complex of skyscrapers that comprised GLNHQ was large and populous enough to form its own city-state, a closed loop of offices, gyms, fabricators, dormitories, labs, shops, copackers, cafeterias, and warehouses. You could spend your whole life there without ever setting foot on the earth itself. Many did.
Such was the Global Logistics Network. Like capitalism rising centuries ago from the sclerotic and shambling remnants of feudalism, the GLN rose from the old ways of hyper-financialized over-leveraged capitalism to create something new, something so new it didn’t even have a name yet. Much like the transition from feudalism to capitalism, things were better overall, but good lord, what a low bar to clear.
Towering above it all at the top floor of the central skyscraper sat Meng “Harold” Jianli, sole co-founder of the GLN. One might wonder how someone could be a ‘sole co-founder,’ and the answer was that the GLN was so powerful and omnipresent that its leader could have called himself a living god for all the power that sat upon his person. He certainly had more power than those who had historically claimed the title of living god.
But Meng “Harold” Jianli was no god, living or otherwise. Despite the vast power seated upon his person, or perhaps because of it,he looked rather disheveled, with a jowly face like splotchy old parchment, a sagging belly, and a crudely functional flat-top of black hair. His suit was slack and rumpled - his weight had a tendency to fluctuate wildly thanks to the stress.
It was stressful, being in charge. Past a certain point, you don’t really get more powerful, you just have more people to babysit and more fires to put out. He had to keep an eye on Novo Karo Bioresearch, or they’d be so excited to show off their new research that they’d start doing eugenics. He had to keep an eye on Vae Victis Engineering, or they’d get so excited testing out their new tech that they’d start a world war. And now, with his hands steepled and his brow furrowed, he had to keep an eye on the vtuber that the American League had elected president.
 He stared at Sunny Roosevelt. Sunny smiled back and gave him a little wave.
“I am willing to work with you, miss Roosevelt. The GLN is willing to work with just about anyone, it’s one of our biggest strengths.” He shifted effortlessly between ‘I’ and ‘we,’ treating the two as synonyms. “The issue is, we are still trying to figure out what your administration actually intends to do.” 
“Hmm.” Sunny put a finger to her chin, pursed her lips, and looked upward. An ellipsis appeared over her head.  “You got a copy of my campaign objectives, right?”
“Are you referring to this?” He held up a single sheet of paper, on which was written ‘make anime real’ in 48-point font and nothing else.
“Yep!”
“And you think this qualifies as a roadmap for your presidency.”
“Personally, I think it’s quite ambitious.”
Harold puttered his lips. “Miss Roosevelt-”
“Please, call me ‘mommy.’”
“Miss Roosevelt, I understand that you are standing on rather shaky ground. The National Board of Directors is being dragged away from the provisional US government days,” he said, which neglected to mention how half of the National Board of Directors were former GLN big names, “and the new state congress acts more like a rehab clinic for celebrity podcasters than a governing body,” he said, which stood just fine without caveats.
“I understand,” Sunny said, nodding and still smiling, “I’m a bimbo who’s in way over her head, so you’re going to unveil the GLN’s big five year plan and tell me to follow it like a good little girl.”
Harold was already in the process of lifting a hefty unlabeled binder, intending to thump it dramatically atop his desk, but the accuracy of Sunny’s comment left him slightly deflated. “I prefer to think of it as an advisory-”
“And then I’ll kiss up to you during our conversations,” Sunny continued, “but stall and drag my feet when it comes to actually implementing anything, and you’ll say,” she loosened her face and dropped her voice, “dammit Sunny, are you trying to play me for a fool?”
“I don’t sound like that. I don’t sound like Richard Nixon,” Harold protested, sounding kind of like Richard Nixon.
“And then I’ll say, it’s not me, it’s the state governors, they just refuse to cooperate. The new congress is one big old boy’s club. Even the Board of Directors is demanding overly-detailed descriptions of everything before they’ll sign off on it, it’s malicious compliance!” Sunny hung her head and threw her hands, wailing, “you set me up to fail, Harold. You set me up to fail, you rat bastard!”
“Are you done?”
Sunny straightened back up. There was that smile again. “Yep. That was fun.”
“In any case, while I understand you are currently something of a figurehead, even figureheads cannot afford to do nothing. Not when a third of the country is still lacking even the barest measures of centralized government.”
“What, you mean the Midwest Autonomous Zone?” A little question mark appeared over Sunny's head. “I mean, yeah, but it’s not like that started with the fall of the old US. Missouri was a dump long before the thirties.”
“Be that as it may-”
“That’s the 2030s, because we’re in the future.”
“Miss Roosevelt.”
“Please, call m-”
“No. Miss Roosevelt, why did you become president if you are so averse to actually presiding?”
Sunny shrugged and let out a huffy little sigh. “Look, most people weren’t exactly begging to have America back. Not even Americans. They don’t want someone with a bold, inspirational vision. Bold, inspirational visions are what start world wars, for George’s sake. I, for one, believe that bench-warming is not just a good idea but a moral imperative.”
“George’s sake?” Harold repeated.
“Saint George Washington. Oh, right, America’s got a brand new religion now, it’s called Founderism. We took the whole Founding Father worship thing and made it an official heresy. Also, Jesus was a small business owner.”
Harold grimaced and considered leaving the former USA to the wolves for a few more decades.
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I believe this episode is Hunteri Heroici or something like that. I laughed at this a little too much. Cas literally took that little bag out of Deans bigger bag (I don’t know what to call it) and started picking through it. What I find interesting is that Dean doesn’t say anything to Cas. Dean isn’t the type to let people pick at his stuff yet he’s letting Cas do it. I was thinking maybe it’s Sams bag but I don’t think Cas would touch Sams stuff. I don’t think he cares enough to find out more about him.
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Dean said he needed his 4 hours of sleep (you can function on only 4 hours of sleep I’ve done it almost every night since I was 15 and when you’re used to it it’s not that bad) and Cas said I’ll watch over you. He’s looking directly at Dean so he’s offering to be Deans guardian angel not Dean and Sams. It’s adorable because a few people have called Cas Deans angel and it’s obvious Dean is Cas human.
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If anyone else was looking at their dad’s journal Dean would’ve grabbed that out of their hands told them to f*ck themselves and probably threatened to kill them. It’s a very cute way to start this very emotional scene. I love that when Cas yelled at Dean because he told him he wasn’t going back to heaven Dean took that to mean Cas needed to talk. Dean isn’t good with his emotions but the fact that he listened to Cas and tried to help him shows growth. The look of shock and worry on Deans face when Cas said he was afraid if he went back to heaven and seen what has happened because of him he’s afraid he would kill himself was heartbreaking.
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I just found this look on Cas face when he seen Dean trying to hide his porn hilarious. Cas watched porn infront of Dean and Sam so I don’t think Cas would judge him.
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This is definitely the look of oh hell ya by boyfriend can get anything.
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This broke my heart. Finding out Cas was tortured and he’s traumatized by it was heartbreaking. How can anyone do that to that adorable angel.
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I really wish Dean felt comfortable to be himself. He’s clearly a nerd. He wanted to LARP when him and Sam were looking at it online. He had a smile on his face until he thought Sam was looking at him then he went back to his normal face. He loved it when they actually did it, he wouldn’t let Sam see him playing with a sword, he likes ballet and pop music. He’s so scared of Sam laughing at him or making fun of him that he won’t be himself.
In LARP And The Real Girl Charlie asked Dean if he broke up with someone. Interesting she used the word someone not a girl which is what you would say to a straight guy. She obviously could tell Dean was thinking about someone. Personally I think he was thinking about Cas and Benny. Cas because Dean knows there’s something wrong with Cas he just doesn’t know what and Benny because of how he told him they couldn’t talk anymore. I know some people see Dean and Benny as more then friends thing but I personally see them as just friends. Dean likes having someone else in his life other than Sam. Normally it’s Cas but when Cas was still in purgatory Dean liked talking to Benny but once Cas was back he didn’t need to talk to Benny as much.
Yet again a gay moment happens to Dean. Aaron could’ve come up with any excuse for following Dean. He even could’ve said he was trying to get someone elses attention but he clearly sensed the best option was to pretend to flirt with Dean. Dean got flustered and banged into a table and then when he found out the flirting was fake he was disappointed.
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fairdale · 10 hours
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to william herondale, with love
you have two options when it comes about will.
you can choose to stay in the surface, to think of him as a sassy, sarcastic, superficial and selfish man who doesn't give a shit about anything nor anyone except for jem, who makes insensitive jokes and doesn't care if he hurts people.
or you can choose to know him. the little parts of him that make him wonderful, sweet, delicate and caring. and, oh, how much love will fill your heart when you realise how much he deserves to be loved.
and how much he craves it.
will is sarcastic, yes. he's funny, he pulls off jokes like it's nothing, he makes people laugh, he sings the demon pox song and makes everyone think he's a little crazy.
but he's also the kid who left his family too young because he thought he was cursed and he loved them too much.
he's also the kid who thought no one could ever love him anymore.
he's also the kid who felt terribly lonely after leaving his family.
he's also the kid who wanted jem to be his parabatai so badly he didn't care he was sick and that he would leave him too soon.
he's also the kid who didn't want people too close to him because he loved them and didn't want anything bad to happen to them. jem was different. it wasn't just because he was sick, it's because he was jem. because jem saw who he truly was when no one else did. his heart beat because jem's did as well.
he's also the man who loved to read. the man whose name will still be dancing in the walls of the library centuries later. the man who found a safe place between books.
he's also the man who was so in love with tessa he tried to break the curse after years of living like that, because his love was so pure, so deep, so real, he had to do something.
he's also the man who put his hands into the fire to save jem's yin fen, because he couldn't imagine a life without him. because he didn't want a life without him.
he's also the man who was desperately in love with tessa, but made himself scarce because he couldn't put his own happiness over tessa and jem's. because he saw how good they were to each other.
he's also the man who held jessamine in his arms when she died too young.
he's also the man who let jem go when he told him he didn't want to live like that anymore even though it would forever break him and he would take a part of his soul with him.
he's also the man who went to save tessa even when he felt his heart getting carved out of his chest when jem died.
he's also the man who learned how to have his sister next to him again, the man who went back to his parents even if he were terrified.
he's also the man who made sure tessa never doubted for a second that he was devoted to her.
he's also the man who travelled the world with her and wrote her letters to show his love.
he's also the man who made sure to love his children loudly, to tell them he was proud of them and that they weren't monsters.
he's also the man who fought against injustices in the clave.
he was also the man who died surrounded by his loved ones (because he was, in fact, so loved).
he was also the man watching jem and tessa's wedding dream since the other side of the river, being happy for them.
will was the man with a heart so big he didn't know what to do with all the love he held in it.
when someone asks me, but why do you love him so much? well, how can you not? how, when he tried to love so quietly but he was screaming, when he was trying not to care but he cared more than anyone.
will herondale was, is and forever will be the character i hold closest to my heart, the character who made me laugh, cry and love the most.
"he lies consistently. he always invents the story that will make him look the worst."
"but it was there, in the touch of his hand on her cheek, in the softness of his voice, in his eyes when he looked at her. it was the way she had always dreamed a boy would look at her. but she never dreamed up someone as beautiful as will, not in all her imaginings."
"all my life, since i came to the institute, you were the mirror of my soul. i saw the good in me in you. in your eyes alone i found grace. when you are gone from me, who will see me like that?"
"against his own will, almost, will felt himself understanding; he would have done anything, he thought, told any lie, taken any risk, to make tessa love him. he would have done— almost anything. he would not betray jem for it. that was the one thing he would not do."
"don’t you see, will? you’re a person like me. you are like me. you say the things i think but never say out loud. you read the books i read. you love the poetry i love. you make me laugh with your ridiculous songs and the way you see the truth of everything. "
"when she tilted her head up and brushed his lips with hers, he cupped her face in his hands. so many years, he thought, and each kiss was new as the break of day."
"wo men shi sheng si ji jiao," said will, and he saw jem’s eyes widen, fractionally, and the spark of amusement inside them. "go in peace, james carstairs."
"and in the shadows they’d whispered, reminding each other of the stories only they knew. of the girl who had hit over the head with a water jug the boy who had come to rescue her, and how he had fallen in love with her in that instant."
"she remembered when will had died, her agony, the long nights alone, reaching across the bed every morning when she woke up, for years expecting to find him there, and only slowly growing accustomed to the fact that side of the bed would always be empty."
"i don’t know how to live in the world as a shadowhunter without will. i don’t think I even want to. i am still a parabatai, but my other half is gone. if I were to go to some Institute and ask them to take me in, i would never forget that. i would never feel whole."
"i miss you. we miss you. someday, we'll all be together. not too soon, my angel tessa. i can wait."
...
"my name is herondale," the boy said cheerfully. "william herondale, but everyone calls me will."
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exhuastedpigeon · 1 day
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Buckxtommy? Eww 🤢🤢 tommy is racist
I wasn't going to answer this because you're clearly a child without the ability to understand that characters, like real people, can grow, but actually I'm going to answer it and it's going to be LONG.
This got really long so I'm putting it under the cut but if you don't want to read it there's the TLDR:
Tommy was, at best, a passive member of the boys club at the 118 when we first meet him and at worst an active member who made Chim and Hen's lives harder when they first joined, but as the shitty people left the 118 and were replaced with less shitty people, Tommy starts to become kinder and more accepting and less of a toxic macho man.
He's friends with Chim and Hen when he leaves the 118. He's been away from the 118 for probably 7-8 years at this point and in that time he has clearly continued to grow.
People can change. People do change. Sometimes it takes meeting new people to spur that change and sometimes it takes a change in scenery. For Tommy it seems to have taken a mix of both to get him to where he is today - a funny, sweet, kind, queer man who is willing to STEAL A HELICOPTER and FLY INTO A FUCKING HURRICANE because someone he worked with for a few years almost a decade ago had a hunch. He believed Hen and Chim. He trusts them and they trust him.
So here's my question anon? Why don't you?
And now for the very long part under the cut...
When we first meet Tommy Kinard in Chimney Begins he is a part of the old boys club that is the LAFD and the 118. He's a person surrounded by shitty people and he adapts and behaves like them.
We don't know much about Tommy, but by the end of the episode he accepts Chim as a teammate and friend because Chim proves himself to Tommy. Do I think you should have to prove yourself to be accepted? No. But i understand the thought process because you're relying on people to have your back and save your life. We also find out Tommy's favorite movie is a romcom - not your typical toxicly masculine answer.
He shows growth in Chimney Begins and I cannot stress this enough, at the end of that episode Chim and Tommy are friends. We don't have an exact date at the end of Chimney Begins, but we can assume based on when Bobby joins and when Hen joins that it was at least a decade prior, if not more to where we are currently in canon.
In Hen Begins Tommy is still a part of the boys club at the 118, but you can see that he (and a lot of the team) don't actually agree with Captain Gerard, but he's their boss. They can't exactly call him out because that puts their own job on the line. You can see Tommy look at Gerard like 'what the fuck' when he calls Hen a "diversity hire" but he doesn't say anything in that moment - Chim does and Gerard brushes him off.
Sal makes a gay joke about Tommy in this episode and Tommy plays it off as a joke because what else is he suppose to do? Tommy looks uncomfortable when Gerard starts going on about female recruitment in the LAFD and him saying/implying that female firefighters aren't as strong, etc. He doesn't say anything, but I ask? Would you be brave enough to risk your job for someone you just met a few months ago?
When Hen gives her big speech Tommy looks back at Chim and sees him nodding. He looks at Chim because (I think) he's reminded of how they treated Chim when he first started. It's Tommy that says Hen's instincts are good after she disobeys orders and goes looking for another victim (who would have died if she hadn't). Tommy and Sal shake her hand and then Tommy pats her on the shoulder and says 'you're good'.
This interaction is both similar to and different from Tommy's 'moment' with Chim. Similar because it seems like Tommy needs new firefighters to prove they can be there before he trusts them and different because the Chim and Tommy moment is framed as the start of a friendship and that moment with Hen and Tommy is framed as the start of a good working relationships.
The next scene is Hen talking to their new interim captain about how her colleagues are impressed with her and how they've filed complaints against Captain Gerard. We can assume that Tommy was one of those colleagues.
Then we get Bobby Begins Again - Tommy is laughing and joking with Hen about how long the new captain will last. Tommy even asks to place a bet on credit and Hen jokingly says he better pay because she knows the bookie.
Tommy is shown to be a part of the team - the Hen and Chim team - on calls. Yes, he's still friends with Sal but he's much less likely to be at Sal's side when Sal makes shitty comments. Tommy even tells Sal to stop when Sal starts going off on Bobby.
The next scene we see Tommy in is him hanging out with Hen and Chim at a bar - when Hen tells them that Bobby didn't fire Sal, he suspended him and found him a new spot, Tommy takes that information and accepts Bobby because he finds out he's a good man and a good captain.
Then we see Tommy, Chim, Hen, and Bobby hanging out, sharing war stories. We even hear Tommy talk about 'scars helping him get women' because he's still not out with the team yet - he's still hiding that part of himself because he isn't ready yet (and because that wasn't a part of the storyline for Tommy at the time).
The rest Tommy's part in Bobby Begins Again is just showing how the 118 is becoming more than just a team - family dinner for example. Tommy smiles and is excited at the idea of 'family dinner'.
When he leaves the 118 Hen and Chim are happy for him and celebrate the move because it's a good career move for him. They even smash his face into the cake!!!
AND THEN in Broken Chim calls Tommy to ask him for a favour. A favour that saves the 118s asses.
That doesn't even touch on the Tommy of today - the Tommy who is brave and kind and trusting and funny. The Tommy that Chim is friends with, that Eddie is now friends with, that Buck has a HUGE crush on.
If you like the Firefam (which I'm hoping you do since they're the main cast of the show) I would hope you also trust their judgement. If they like a character who wasn't great in the past but has grown, we should see that growth and hopefully like them too.
You can dislike Tommy all you want, but don't try to tell me it's because 'he's racist' because that isn't true. He's evolved like people do. We should want more characters like Tommy because they remind us that just because we've done something shitty in the past it doesn't mean we can't grow too.
Anyone who says OOH TOMMY IS A RACIST HOW CAN YOU LIKE HIM clearly doesn't watch the show. Just because his development happened off screen doesn't mean it didn't happen.
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starlightshore · 2 days
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Gotta say, I love how you made so many posts criticizing people who see Chara as an abuser, yet in your own AU you depict them as a cruel, vindictive bully who tries to turn Asriel's family against her, drives her to suicide, then guilt-trips her into getting back together with them. Yet Asriel is somehow the real abuser because she's mad at them for ruining her life. I am by no means a Chara hater, but that seems a little inconsistent.
// CW: discussions of suicide, long post
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wow, what an incredibly uncharitable reading of my work! thank you so much!
okay, jokey-positive aside. i shouldn't respond to bad-faith criticism like this because it's not worth my time as it's unlikely you'll actually hear me out in response. I've been online long enough to know you don't feed the trolls.
but, I'm an optimist at heart and I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that you're actually upset with me and do want to have a civil conversation and are not just here to spew hate and drag me down.
Ask Fallen Royalty, the tumblr version wasn't handled the best as it was my first attempt at really trying to write this subject matter and I felt I didn't tackle it as well as I could have. that's something I plan on fixing with the rewrite.
that said, I have never called either of the siblings abusers.
they're flawed, mentally unwell and traumatized young adults/teens who are in no way equipped to handle the situation they were put in.
they both did awful things. Asriel packaged their trauma in a sanitized way for profit and sympathy points believing it'd benefit Monsterkind. they did so without asking Chara for permission. Then later, at Christmas, Asriel abandoned their family to go solo ruling. That's shitty! That's objectively really shitty but it's a very understandable reaction.
Asriel is taught that money is what moves the world and they believe they're soulless and a faker. That if anyone were to know their secret they'd hate them. so prevent that hurt, they cut everyone else out.
That's completely why Chara goes from "oh man I miss Asriel I wish I was good enough to have them beside me again ):" to 180 "Actually screw them for leaving me i hate them for this. i don't deserve to wallow in pain waiting for someone who can't even bother to text me back" them cutting of asriel is an understandable reaction for anyone, let alone a teenager! could they have been more gentle? yeah. could they have tried to fix things? yeah! but they're not a villain for not having the emotional maturity or foresight to handle a complex situation like that. they're like, literally 15/16 at this point of the story
chara also wasn't trying to drive people away from asriel? i really don't know what you're referring to with this aside from Chara deciding to tell the (at the time they believed) truth that Asriel is Flowey. At that point, Chara literally thought Asriel was replaced by Flowey. That they were two different people. That's not to isolate them- its to be honest with the family with this huge news. Toriel is shown not to care that her children are flowers, it would have never mattered to her as we see immediately that Chara is a flower and Toriel doesn't care.
chara also didn't drive Asriel to suicide. that's a blatant misread of the text. It's not that Asriel decided to die right after Chara decided to cut them off. and it's NOT like chara handed them a loaded gun or told them to do anything. all they did was say "don't lie to our family and don't talk to me, i don't want to be friends with you."
Asriel didn't decide to die until they felt their weak support system was breaking down. Yun wanted to be with Mew Mew, the Band broke up (Shyren, Napstablook and most recently Mew Mew quit), they made a big stupid movie that they hate (the epitome of their fake narrative on the silver screen), and because they ditched the premiere to check on chara (who was missing) their agents are pissed off.
Mew Mew then talks about how troubled Flowey/Asriel is and how being a secret flower hurt their social life. (The relationship with Flora being a strong example) like, Flowey always sabotages or loses those they care about because everyone else has their own life and they don't open themselves to create connections that last because they're running away. it's the culmination of everything going wrong that drives them to that point.
plus, it's hammered home later in Flowey's introspection that they feel horribly guilty for their actions as Flowey. parading as their perfect King when they secretly killed a majority of mosnterkind and did who knows what else is like. majorly fucked up.
i'm unsure if you forgot or chose to ignore the larger narrative or what's happened, but these things are in the story. they're both messed up individuals who have a hard time communicating their feelings -Chara literally brings up having emotional dysregulation disorder and CPTSD in the epilogue. Asriel's imposter syndrome and-gestures to Flowey) is also a clear indication that they've got some fundamental mental health issues that prevent them from understanding themselves and others.
it's a story about broken people who lash out against each other but ultimately come together in love.
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they care so so deeply for each other! they're family. messing up (especially as children, teenagers etc) doesn't mean you shouldn't be written off as disposable. you're ALL capable of fucking up severely but you have the chance to grow and better yourself. you owe it to those who are willing to give that chance to do better. that's what the story has always been about.
I will admit that I plan on working on the pacing and giving chara more sweet moments so it doesn't come across as harsh -I don't want either sibling to be seen as a "villain" or """""abusive"""" as you call them. Except, yeah, Asriel is meant to be seen as an antagonist for a brief while, but that's set up Chara to come to that realization just the same as the audience should.
i hope this helped you understand what i was going for. if you wanna talk further I don't mind, but please talk to me as a real person. we're on the same page that abuse is bad. that people shouldn't treat each other so horribly. i don't excuse either of the character's interactions but i want to show empathy and understanding and that they can grow past that. i sincerely hope we can come to a shared perspective. if you wanna, i'd love to talk about i can make this message more clear, i'd love some proper criticism! i hope you have a lovely day and that you please be more considerate to how you to talk to others as I could have very easily read this anon hate/trolling.
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I always see positivity on here and motivation to keep going and everyone makes it seem so easy but I want to be real for a sec. I truly hate this 3d. It’s so exhausting and I constantly worry over my future. I’m on the fourth day of my fast and I’ve gone so far into constantly f4st1ng that I’m afraid to eat anything because I’m scared my metabolism is so slow that I’ll gain a $h1t ton of w31ght. I’m stuck in this cycle and I don’t know if I’ll ever get out of it. I think I want to. I’ve tried a couple of times to recover but I can’t. I tried to be nice to myself and eat something but I felt awful and bad after and immediately purg3d. A lot of my current 4n4r3xla started because of my BED that was caused by tr4uma from my dad. I struggled with it for years and was always in pain and discomfort from it so what else could I do but just stop eating completely. And now I’m here. Everyday I’m exhausted. I’m embarrassed because I can never eat in front of people and don’t go out with them for that reason. This has taken over my life and I just want to be okay but I’m so terrified of going back into b1ng1ng that I avoid eating a single grape. I look at myself in the mirror and think I look ph4t and have had no progress but when I step on the sc4le I surprise myself. I eat a banana for the entire day and then feel awful about it and am harsh on myself. And then there’s days where I put on an outfit and think it looks good on my body and then Im thankful for this entire 3d. This is all just so tiring. I’m by no means trying to talk anyone out of this or influence anyone. I just feel really alone in this and have no one to talk to about my struggles so I’m writing it here. I know this community is supportive so I know I can rant here. I don’t know guys, I’m just feeling sad right now. Tomorrows a new day though, we’ll see how it goes :))
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revasserium · 3 days
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a rumination on falling in love; aka the terrifying and strange reality of "dream girl" becoming "real girl"
or, what happens when an only child who has only ever loved in fiction falls in love in real life instead
this is not for you. unless, of course. you, like me, have felt like this before. which is to say, this might be for you. but it most definitely is, 100%, for me. so read on if you'd like. or, close out and move right along.
i am very lucky, i think, to have had the childhood that i had -- only child, two loving parents. but not only that, two loving parents who were good at loving and also good at parenting (which are two very distinct and different things and somehow, at least in my semi-limited exposure to people around my age, is becoming rarer and rarer these days). i am lucky to have been allowed to grow as i have -- to never question that i am loved, unconditionally and endlessly, to never question whether or not i have something -- because of course it's mine -- i've got no siblings to have to share anything with.
now, to some, that might be a sad, lonely thing, but i never thought about it that way. because i was never taught to think about it that way. and contrary to popular belief, it hasn't made me (or at least so i think) stingy or "bad at sharing" -- it's actually made me rather an over-sharer. i always have snacks at the office, i try to offer advice freely, i spot dinners/outings when i can, i like the joy it brings to share things not only to the people being shared with, but also to me -- the person doing the sharing.
but the double-edged sword of only-child-dom in upper-middle class america is time -- the huge, gaping excess of it, giant swaths of it after school, great big chunks of it on the weekends, the seemingly unbridgeable chasm between turning off the light and falling asleep. later, i'd learn that undiagnosed adhd and very high performing manic depression are to blame for most of my vibrating sense of need to fill every hour of every day with some kind of productivity (this, unironically, is why i love new york city -- the frenetic energy of it matches my mental wavelength so that i can feel "productive" even when i'm just walking down the street or sitting in a bar).
but back then, i -- and by extension my lovely parents -- tried to fill it with stuff -- 2 different art classes, ballet, swimming, piano, debate club, singing, chinese school, and of course, with my still yet unfilled hours -- reading and writing. to say i was raised by the books i read would be an understatement. to say i am nothing more than a massive conglomerate of those characters that resonated most with me in those books would be parenthetical to the fact that i'm also built by all those characters i've ever admired or wanted to be. i am, in the most cliche, literal, non-lampshaded sense "that nerdy book girl" who made it her entire fucking personality to be... that nerdy book girl. and this, amidst the stratospheric rise of "not like other girls" media and rhetoric -- it was not healthy (it still isn't), but it was a large part of who i was. and a lingering part of who i am today.
my overactive, adhd-driven imagination served me well, then. into the stories i delved, and what i couldn't find in my normal every day life, i found in narrative. long before the tiktok-ification of "book boyfriends" came the voices in my head that sounded like all the would-be book boyfriends i'd ever have -- everyone from edward cullen to kakashi to four (that one guy from divergent who only has like 4 fears, which in retrospect is so, so cringe, but alas) to fictionalized versions of one direction members. the list goes on. i used to be able to hold entire conversations, play out entire scenes with these mental constructs with impudent ease. spend hours in my room by myself just imagining.
it was like astral projection -- my body, here, my mind and my soul, somewhere else entirely. and this i believe (to this day) is the core of a lot of my writing and creativity. and also the core of a lot of my philosophies and beliefs. the ability to sink into a dream, a scene, a story.
and then. i fell in love.
and sure, it would be much too cliche to say that misery breeds good art so a happy artist would (at best) produce mediocre art/writing/whatever. because i've also seen fantastic art produced by very, very happy artists. the sad truth is only that it's much rarer than the alternative of the painfully mainstream tortured artist.
but to some degree, i think there's an inkling of truth in that saying. because having a real-life boyfriend, with all the real-life machinations and strings of having said real-life boyfriend has made it, somehow, much harder to access that old imaginary part of me. like a child growing up and losing the ability to "make believe" the way they used to. except, i know it's still there. there are still moments where i touch it, where i dip my toes in and it always feels like coming home.
and it's more than just the normal adult-ish responsibilities of going to work and paying bills, making dinner and shopping for groceries. doing laundry and investing in your roth ira. because before real-life boyfriend, i still did those things and i was still able to seamlessly get to that "elsewhere place". somehow, it is the physical presence of real-life boyfriend that seems to act as a "grounding agent". he is home, so i can't go to that other place. or, i can kind of get there, but i've always still got one foot steeped in reality.
it is not a necessarily good or bad thing, just an observation at most. but it does create this new "space" for the "want" of that elsewhere. for the want to being able to slip into that creative asphodel like i used to -- blink and i'm there. so i find myself often sitting at my desk, wishing, and then wondering what it means that i can't. that it isn't always and immediately accessible to me anymore.
perhaps absolute solitude was the unquestioned prerequisite for so long that i'd never noticed it until the solitude was no longer available to me. or perhaps the book-boyfriends are just shy creatures, afraid of the blaring daylight that real-life boyfriend might shed on their ultimate two-dimensional beings.
or perhaps that was always a "safe space" that i'd created for myself, and now real-life boyfriend has created a safe space for me too, and the venne-diagram of the two space spaces overlap just so, making a less singular space of each of them in turn. i don't know, but it's an interesting thought.
it's always struck me, now thinking back, that i've never been even remotely interested in having a real-life relationship before now. but that i've also never questioned if i wanted the current one that i'm in, if this was "the one" or if it was "good for me". and in that too, i know i am very lucky. few people can say that they struck gold the first time they've ever tried.
i know for a fact i wouldn't be this happy, have this good of a life if real-life boyfriend weren't here. he has made me better in ways that i do not have words to describe. but i'm also terrified of the earthen grounding-ness of him. i've spent my entire childhood and most of my adult life with my head in the clouds, taking the necessary trips back down to earth when i had to but... it feels strange to be "here" more and more. there's a hole inside of me where "that" heaven should be.
but two things can be true -- i am happy here; i still yearn for that elsewhere.
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powderblueblood · 3 days
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BEAUTIFUL!
ronnie ecker recounts the last first day of the worst of her life or i wanted to rewrite beautiful from heathers the musical, hellfire and ice version. warnings: first person narrative (ronnie's pov), swearing, era-typical misogyny, bullying and slurs, mention of eating disorders, everyone's a dick, everyone's kind of gay for lacy doevski. wc: 3.8k
September 1st, 1984. 
First day of the end of your life. It’s hard not to get a little intro-outrospective.
If I was a diary keeping person, which I’m not because I don’t like to leave a paper trail outside my own goddamn academic brilliance, I’d write something like this. 
Dear diary, I believe that I’m a good person–y’know, relatively speaking, if you don’t count that one time I bit that one kid for catcalling me. But, here we are! First day of senior year! And I look around at these kids I’ve known all my life and I ask myself–what happened?
We’re in the hallway, bottlenecking toward the cafeteria. It’s right around lunchtime, so everyone’s getting a real good look at everybody else, categorizing who they hate, who they hate more, who got boobs over the summer. God, do we ever stop slinging shit at each other, even when we think no one’s listening? There’s a constant cacophony in the hallways of Hawkins High.
Freak! Slut! Burnout! Bug-eyes! Poser! Lard-ass!
And no one does anything about it. 
It’s pretty sad, considering where we came from. 
We were so tiny, happy and shiny, playing tag and getting chased.
Freak! Slut! Loser! Shortbus!
Singing and clapping, laughing and napping, baking cookies, eating paste. Especially me. I was crazy for that shit.
Bull-dyke! Stuck-up! Hunchback!
Then we got bigger, that was the trigger, like the Huns invading Rome. “Shit, my bad!��� That underclassman I just walked straight into looked terrified. And for good reason.
Welcome to my school, this ain’t no high school. This is the Thunderdome. 
Trailer trash!
For the very first very last time, I crane my head around the swamped hall and try to recall where my new locker is. First star on the right, and I wiggle in my combination and dump my books inside. I take a second, shoving my head inside the cool metal darkness (voluntarily, for once) and mutter, “Hold your breath and count the days, we’re graduating soon–”
“–Christ. College will be paradise, if I’m not dead by June.” 
I crane my neck out. Two lockers up from me, elegant fingers pull open an identical door to mine except hers, of course, already has a vanity mirror hung up inside. She checks her reflection, not like it ever needs checking. One of her faithful little redheads stands beside her, smacking bubblegum so loud it makes my ears pop.  
“You are so melodramatic, it’s crazy.” 
“What was that?”
“Nothing…”
It sucks how the chrysalis of adolescence has made most of us completely obnoxious. I try not to be a sucker for nostalgia, but I can’t help but remember how much easier this was in middle school. Waking up on a weekday didn’t have to be like living in a segment of Creepshow. 
I know, I know, I know, life can be beautiful. No plastic Jesus on my dashboard (or… handlebars, I guess) but I pray, I pray for a better way. If we changed back then, we could change again… 
Then I get a whole shoulder of dork, right to the face. Bubblegum snaps between snorts, I can see that he’s been shoved my way. Yeah, we could be beautiful…
“Ow!”
Just not today. “Hey, are you okay?”
This Jansport sporting asshole twists his face up right in mine. “Get away, nerd!” Jesus Christ.
The choir of angels go on–I’m just trying to make it to the cafeteria and grab a fucking chicken pot pie. I’m starving, and I could use a little less soundtrack.
Freak! Slut! Cripple! Homo! Homo! Homo! 
But, listen. It’s not a total nightmare. There’s light at the end of the tunnel. Things will get better soon as my letter comes from Harvard, Duke or Brown–
–or, NYU, if we’re being really serious. 
“Wake from this coma, take my diploma–” God. This chick’s voice seems to cut through the din of the hallway like a bell, “Then I can blow this town. Dream of ivy covered walls and smoky French cafes…”
“Sooo uber pretentious!”
“Watch it, freak!” I don’t even need to turn around to figure out who that’s directed at. But, I’m a little preoccupied with singing my own tune, here! Muscling through to the lunch line, grabbing a tray while I–
“–fight the urge to strike a match and set this dump ablaze. Hey, Ronnie!” 
Dude, shut up! I swing around, trying to spot the owner of that very different, very familiar dulcet tone when some duckbill hat wearing dickwad upends my lunch tray. Dressed in Hawkins Tiger green and gold, this is one of many prize dickwads. 
Bear with me, I’m trying to place him.
“Ooops.”
Andy Sweeney. Indiana’s worst point guard… “whose true talent lies in being a huge dick.”
Did I mention before about that lack of filter between my brain and my mouth? I patch it up pretty good most of the time, but sometimes…
“What did you say to me, skank?” Andy demands of me all darkly and shit. It’s scary. Even if I’ve got a foot and a half on him.
“Aaah!” I recoil, looking at his flexing fists, “Nothing.”
I back up from him, way way up, leaving my mess of a lunch tray on the ground. Even though that makes me feel shitty–when did I become the guy who left stuff for the already harangued janitorial staff to clean up? 
We were kind before; we can be kind once more… 
Head down. Stalk through. Find the Hellfire table. But, not before someone chucks me lightly on the arm. 
“Agh!” I holler before I register him. I am totally on edge. “Hey, Eddie.”
“Hey,” he grins in a sardonic way that says I cannot believe we’re putting ourselves through this again. 
Eddie Munson. My best friend since pre-pube. The closest thing I’ll ever have to a brother, unless Granny finally lets me get that gecko I’ve always wanted. I’m almost eighteen, for Chrissake, I should be allowed. 
Anyway, Eddie rocks. We know this. Look at him. 
“We still on for movie night?” he asks.
I beam. Our first day of school comedown tradition. “Shit yeah, you’re on Jiffy Pop detail.”
Eddie’s got a little pep in his step and it jangles his wallet chain. Dude can’t help but attract attention– almost all of it unwanted. “I rented Evil Dead.”
“Hohoho, again? Wait, don’t you have it memorized by now?”
“What can I say?” Before I can even warn him, Eddie’s backstepping straight into– “I’m a sucker for a gory ending.” 
“Eddie Munson, king of the trailer park! What, you didn’t qualify for free lunches this year?”
A hand comes down hard on the age-old tin lunchbox Eddie’s carrying. The clatter it makes against the lino makes me want to cover my ears and hide, especially when I see Eddie’s face. Total resignation. It’s humiliating. 
This guy?
Tommy Hagan. He’s the smartest guy on the basketball team, which is kind of like being the tallest dwarf.
“Too goddamn easy, man!” he guffaws, and I would try to figure out what farm animal he most resembles, but apparently I’m too busy–
“Hey! Pick that up! Right now!” –being the hero.
“I’m sorry, are you actually talking to me?” Tommy also tries to tower over me, but I’ve got a decent number of inches on him too. 
My cheeks blaze.
“Yes, I am. I wanna know what gives you the right to pick on my friend. You’re a high school has-been waiting to happen. Tell me, Tommy, do you actually have a personality outside of sticking your nose right up Steve Harrington’s ass?”
Tommy gets closer and closer. So close that I can see the nose hair move as he huffs through his freckly nostrils. His finger points right between my eyebrows.
“… you have a zit right there.”
Cue rapturous laughter from the peanut gallery. 
Dear diary…
Why do they hate me? Why don’t I fight back? Why do I act like such a creep? Why won’t he date me? Why did I hit him? Why do I cry myself to sleep? 
Somebody hug me! Somebody fix me! Somebody save me!
Send me a sign, God! Give me some hope here! Something to live for!
The doors of the cafeteria burst open and Tommy’s attention is thankfully wrenched away from me. Everyone’s attention is wrenched away from me. Because we’ve all been waiting for this.
They enter the caf in a solid formation, so solid that people part for them. Some gazing, some gawping, some glaring. The name calling ceases, the bullying pauses. 
This is the royal court. They float above it all. 
Tina Burton, head cheerleader. Her dad is loaded. He sells engagement rings. 
Heather Holloway, runs the yearbook. Badly. No discernible personality, but her mom did pay for implants. 
Even the lessers are notorious. Carol Perkins has been having sex since, like, seventh grade. Cass Finnigan’s been pretending to save it for Jesus but giving a backdoor key to whoever buys her peach schnapps. Nicole Summers invented three new slurs last year alone. 
And finally, Lacy Doevski. 
The Almighty. 
She is a mythic bitch. 
These girls, they’re solid Teflon. Never bothered. Never harassed– 
“I would give anything to be like that.”
And I know I don’t sit in that thought alone. Glancing around the tables, the coagulation of cliques, I can hear the desire coming from my classmates. 
I’d like to be their boyfriend. If I sat at their table, guys would notice me. I’d like them to be nicer. 
“What’s the over-under on one of those harpies getting kidnapped, taken to some abandoned warehouse to be photographed naked and left for the rats?” Eddie mutters into my ear as we slam ourselves down at our regular table. 
I roll my freakin’ eyes. “I told you that your Barb Holland theory was insane.”
Eddie shrugs, flipping open his recovered lunchbox. “Just sayin’... They never found a body. Anyway, my money's on the ice queen. If everything they're sayin' about her dad is true, she is prime ransom material.”
“You are so unnecessarily twisted.” But my eyes are still following the crown jewels. I notice that Lacy, Tina and Heather all rise to the girl’s room immediately after they finish their minimal lunch. 
I interrupt Eddie and Gareth’s too-intense-for-lunchtime debate about the morality of posthumously publishing The Silmarillion. “I have to take a leak.” 
As I gently push the door of the bathroom open, I can see Tina standing nervously at an open stall door. Heather is ralphing like her life depends on it. The reptilian arch of Lacy Doevski is bent towards the mirror, touching up her lipstick. 
“Grow up, Heather,” Lacy says in this voice that could weirdly be misconstrued as concerned,  “Bulimia is so sophmoronic.” 
Tina grimaces. “Maybe you should see a doctor, Heather.”
From inside the stall, Heather’s voice echos. “Yeah, Heather– I mean, Tina. Maybe I should.” 
I’m about to open my mouth, say something about ginger ale or peppermint tea, but Mrs O’Donnell enters behind me. I dive into a nearby stall, pretty confident I haven’t been spotted. But, I leave just enough of a crack in the door to watch everything that unfolds out there.
“Ah, I should have known–”
Heather vomits again. Damn, how can she pull trig so much on so little?
“–the witches from Macbeth always travel in a trio.” Her heels click over the cracked, yellowing tile, but the way Lacy turns from the mirror gives even O’Donnell pause. “Perhaps you didn’t hear the bell over all the vomiting. You’re late for class.”
Hey. Idea. I dig around in my backpack and scribble on a piece of paper, leaning against the bathroom door.
“Heather wasn’t feeling well.” Lacy says. Again, confusing enough to sound kind! “We’re helping her.”
O’Donnell chuckles all airly. Like she’s any match for her. “Not without a hall pass, you’re not. Week’s detention.”
That’s my cue. I scurry out of the stall, presenting O’Donnell with–
“Um, actually, Mrs O’Donnell, all four of us are out on a hall pass.” I gulp and glance at Heather, who’s finally hauled herself off her knees. “Yearbook committee.”
It’s super hard to breathe as O’Donnell inspects my handiwork. It hits me that this could go horribly, horribly wrong, and I can feel Lacy’s eyes boring into a hot spot on the back of my head.
O’Donnell arches her eyebrow. “I see you’re all listed. Hurry up and get where you’re going.”
She goes to hand the note back to me, but Lacy intercepts. Once the coast is clear, she takes her time looking it over. 
“This is an excellent forgery,” she tells me. A drop of freezing sweat runs down my back. “Who are you?”
“Uh, Ronnie– Veronica Ecker,” I stumble. “We were lab partners last year?”
Lacy’s eyes narrow. She doesn’t remember taking the lead on coolly dissecting a frog in front of me, it seems.
“Doesn’t matter. I crave a boon.”
She holds her glare on me. Jesus, why do I feel like I’m about to have my throat slit? “What boon?”
“Um. Let me sit at your lunch table. Just once. No talking necessary. If people think that you guys tolerate me, then they’ll leave me alone…”
What? It worked for Nancy Wheeler. Even if she had to boink Steve Harrington to do it, but I can't quite stretch that far.
The girls all chorus in laughter at me. Oof. 
“Before you answer, I can also do report cards, permission slips and absence notes.” Dude, I cannot tell you where this boost of bravery (or foolhardiness) is coming from.
“How about prescriptions?” Heather asks.
“Shut up, Heather,” Lacy cuts. 
“Sorry, Lacy.”
Then, she zeroes in on me. Takes slow steps toward me, just like Tommy Hagan did. But her stare is tearing strips right through me. I even freaking hunch as she gets closer.
“For a greasy little nobody,” Lacy says, her voice dropping low so I have to strain to hear her, “you do have good bone structure.”
Tina and Heather must already be tuned into this Lacy-only frequency.
“And a proportional body,” Tina adds. “If someone didn’t catch you during a basket toss, you’d probably only kind of fracture your spine. That’s very important. 
“Of course, you could stand to de-hobo your wardrobe.” Heather goes so far as to flick the flappy pocket on the front of my overalls. “Salvation Army much?”
“And ya know, ya know, ya know…” the shiniest jewel in the crown hums, tapping her lipstick tube against her cheek, “This could be beautiful.” Her painted fingers pinch my chin and turn it down toward her–because I’m fucking tall. “Mascara, maybe some lipgloss and we’re on our way. Get this girl some blush– and Heather, I need your brush. Let’s make her beautiful.”
A manic looking Tina produces a vanity bag out of absolutely nowhere. “Let’s make her beautiful…”
“Let’s make her beautiful?” Heather snarks, but Lacy shoves a hand in her face. 
Her eyes turn on me again. Dark and sparkly and… and… smiling. At me. “Okay?”
“Okay!”
Then, whaddaya know, smash cut, it’s the next freaking day. I don’t know how that works, but I don’t see another goddamn narrator so pipe down. 
The halls are their usual shitshow– Billy Hargrove shoves the new Hellfire freshman, Gareth, into a locker. Eddie hauls him up by the collar and they run headlong into a gaggle of girls, who all scream because every nerd that plays a fantasy game is contagious. 
“Don’t you dare touch me!”
“Get away, pervert!”
“What did I ever do to them?” Gareth yelps, exasperated. Hard not to feel bad for the kid.
But Eddie’s sage about it, even though he knows it’s as unfair as I do. “You’ll get used to it, freshman.”
“No, dude!” Gareth pushes back, verging on a panic attack, “Who could survive this! I can’t escape this–I think I’m dying!”
O’Donnell, hot on the tardy check, appears behind the both of ‘em. “Who’s that with Lacy?”
“Damn. Someone got a welfare increase,” Nicole Summers hatefully snarls.
“Who’s the babe?” says Andy Sweeney.
But Eddie Munson, oh-ho, Eddie Munson settles his eyes into slits. Anytime, any place, he’d know–
“Veronica?!”
“Veronica?” Cass and Carol caw.
“Veronica?” Steve and Tommy mimic. 
And Lacy Doevski… she looks to her dutiful right, and smirks. “Veronica?”
And you know, you know, you know, life can be beautiful! 
My whole life, I haven’t had a choice but to be one of the boys. My best friend’s a boy. I’m in a band with all boys. I’m surrounded by boys all the time who make gross boy jokes and do stupid boy shit. Nobody, not even my Granny, even though she fucking rules, ever asked me if… if I wanted to put on a skirt and get my goddamned nails painted. And it’s not as if I mind being on the more masculine side of things but, shit, is it so wrong to want something? Even if I believed what I was pretty much dragged up to believe, by all my friends and the world at large around me–that being a chick was totally dumb. Couldn’t I try it on?
You hope, you dream, you pray, and you get your way! 
Lacy beckoned me into her walk-in closet, which was about as big as my bedroom and smelled of gardenia, and put me in a pleated skirt set that she said didn’t fit her temperament anymore. ‘But it’d work for a novice.’
Ask me how it feels, lookin’ like hell on wheels–
“You gotta be fucking kidding me,” Eddie seethes as I pass, carried on the cloud of Lacy’s perfume.
‘My god, it’s beautiful!’ I’d said, spinning around in the stupid, flippy skirt. 
“Those bobbleheads totally morphed her!”
‘I might be beautiful!’ I mumbled, fingering the diamond studs she put in my ears that she made Heather pierce.
“She looks like–like–” Gareth chokes.
And when you’re beautiful…
“A girl!”
… it’s a beautiful fuckin’ day!
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
Now, at first, I think I’m fucking flatlining, expecting to wake up with goddamn tubes down my throat and shit– but I’m not. I’m in my regular old bed, with my regular old alarm clock screaming at me. I smash my hand down on it and jerk up, out of the covers.
First place I go is my wardrobe. 
I feel the physical sensation of my heart dropping like a lead kite when I flick through my old thrift store samesies and Granny Ecker hand-me-downs to find no such minty plaid skirt set. 
Just a dream. 
Which is such a bullshit conceit. Sorry to break it to you. 
I admit defeat and pull on my overalls, scrunching my ballcap over my head and muscle out the door. I’m already late, for me. 
But–then, there’s an apparition hovering at my mailbox. 
Someone who excitedly takes notice and waves when she catches me staring, arm stretching out of her fur-trimmed peacoat��which is looking a tiny touch shabbier than it used to these days. 
“Happy early acceptance day, asshole!” Lacy Doevski sing-songs. Sing-songs. Which is… something I have to readjust to, given the liminal version of her I just experienced.
“Oh.. jeez,” I mutter, feeling dazed still, “I forgot that was today.”
Lacy’s brow gets all pinchy. “You okay? You look like steamed dogshit.”
“Thank you so much,” I drawl sarcastically, “It’s nothing, I slept funky. Where’s Eddie?”
Lacy shifts in herself a little, tucking hair behind her ears and avoiding my eyes. “How should I know?” Right. That. The daylight version of this little tryst they pretend they’re not having. Honestly, if the two of them would just bang it out– well, maybe things might be worse off and this weird little platonic ménage à trois of ours would be totally ruined forever, but at least I’d have to stop tiptoeing around them. “Come on, are you gonna open it or what?”
Oh, right. There’s a whole gravity of a situation supposed to be happening here.
I kind of feel the saliva gathering at the hinges in my jaw, you know the way you do when you’re about to puke your guts up? But then, I remember. Bulimia is so sophmoronic. 
I yank open that rusty mailbox and a thick, thick envelope with a New York University imprint sits inside. I yank it out.
Lacy stares at me like I’m the dude holding the thing the Ten Commandments were written on. 
I’m not drawing this shit out. I am not teasing myself, dude, you couldn’t pay me to–savagely, I rip the envelope open, which makes Lacy cringe. She probably has a little knife for these sorts of things, knowing her. 
Dear Veronica,
Congratulations! I am delighted to inform you…
“Holy fucking shit.”
“Well…?”
I thrust that hot, heavy paper right into that pretty girl’s face. “Full. Goddamned. Ride.” 
Lacy gasps, grasping the letter so hard it leaves claw marks. Her eyes shake back and forth, reading and re-reading the whole acceptance ream. It’s weird, and I know it’s weird, but I’m standing there, looking at her and trying to make her make sense with the Lacy that showed up in my dream. That girl existed, and she was mystifying, in a horrifying way. A total reign of ice cold terror. But now, I’m staring at Lacy, who’s all short, weird angles and specific enthusiasm and… it’s hard to see how those two girls ever lived in the same body. 
She’s a little Whitman. She’s got those multitudes. And, actually, so do I.
“I knew it!” Lacy hisses, “And I want you to know that I’m not at all bitter. While I should be celebrating early acceptance with you, I’m glad–”
I grin at her. “You’re a little bitter.”
“Fine, I’m a little bitter, but I’m mostly excited. New York City, Ron! That’s transformative!”
“Yeah… speaking of. Lacy?”
“Yes?”
Dreams are meant to be prophetic and shit, right?
“Doyouwannagivemeamakeover?”
She cocks her head at me. She still hasn’t let go of that acceptance letter yet. “What?”
“Do you.” I take the envelope from her hands. I know she’s capable of identity theft. “Want to give me. A makeover.”
“Huh?” Her fingers stay curled around imaginary paper. Oh, my god.
“You heard me! And I hate repeating myself!” I flail a little. I get like that, quick to bug sometimes. “Look, you said it, New York is gonna be… transformative. I’m going to be a freaking lawyer, dude, fingers crossed, all going well.”
Lacy nods, not a hair out of place, with perfect confidence,“You are.”
“And when was the last time you saw a lawyer wearing fuckin’ overalls?! Huh? The people vs Howdy Doody?”
“I like your overalls.” I know she’s saying this because it’s the right thing to say, and she’s been practicing doing that really hard. She also might like them now, after repeated exposure, in a Stockholm syndrome sort of way. 
“But they don’t scream esquire,” I impress upon her. And it’s true. I truly do believe that I can’t set foot in New York fucking City looking like I just fell off the back of a turnip truck–nor do I want to. 
It takes a big fat beat, but her face changes. Lacy looks almost dastardly–dark, sparkling eyes like Lacy from the dream. She looks me right over, making the calculations of how to reupholster tragically unfashionable me in her mind. And then she arches her eyebrow.
“Well, remember… you asked, Veronica.”
19 notes · View notes
stephaniebrownslover · 14 hours
Text
Guys I have an idea.
What if I made Jeff The Killer like BoJack Horseman???
Guys don't leave please guysssssss it's so dark hereeeee
Okay now that I think about it, I'll ramble about this a bit.
Either I'm on to something or on something.
Also BH characters as creepypasta characters random BoJack Horseman dialogues as Jeff under the line and how other pastas would react.
And the only Jeff portrait I like is @jeffthekillerzblog 's Jeff because he's like a real life :3
THEIR FIRST TWO LETTER IS SAME THEY'RE THE SAME
...
GUYSSSSSSS TOBY AS TODD JUST IMAGINE
Lol just kidding but I think Toby and Todd would actually get along. Like they would just chill around and build random shit and talk about nonsense stuff. Their silly goofy traits are kinda similar so they would understand each other most of the time. Great minds think alike.
Okay okay let's talk about Jeff Horseman stuff before drifting away the topic.
First of, I think BoJack Horseman is not a character do defend. Yes, he tries to fix his mistakes but it was too late for him. He needed to change before all the shit happened. He needed to go to rehab or therapy before.
I'm not saying it's all his fault but just look at Diane. She had her own trauma and even though she was feeling bad most of the time, she wanted to get better. She worked for it in time instead of BoJack.
Yes, BoJack is a traumatized character but Todd was right about "You can't keep doing shitty thing and then feel bad about it!" because BoJack did this always.
Now back to Jeff. He has a similar trait with BoJack. I think Jeff has BPD most likely and he has serious anger issues. That's not a good mix as you can guess. It causes him to make mistakes and hurt people he actually gives a shit about and even though this makes him feel bad later, he won't do anything about it.
He wants to change, he wants to apologize from Jane and Nina and Liu. He wants to be a better person. He hates this life he build but he's been in this hell so long that he doesn't know a way out. He thinks it's too late for him and for treatment after all the people he killed and hurt.
Just like BoJack but in a different way.
BoJack hurts people close to him mentally and Jeff hurts people close to him both mentally and physically.
They both doesn't want to live their life and they would rather be like anyone else does.
They would hate each other if they met because they would see the other as a mirror. Or something like they could be in an another universe. And this would scare them as hell.
Jeff might be a surface character but I think that's because of his creator portrays him. I have like/hate relationship with him because of how badly he portrayed in almost every work.
He was not a pure evil monster, he was a 13 year old kid with untreated mental issues and body trauma. And no one was there to teach him this was not right since this motherfucker is very stubborn and he killed everyone who could.
Both of them doesn't want to die no matter how shitty their life can became. They want to live. They want to see the next day even though they would hate it. They think they deserve to live after all the things they had gone through.
They want to believe that they have a chance for redemption without caring about their past mistakes.
Also if Jeff would be an animal, he thinks he would be a wolf but he'd actually be a horse. That's like his spirit animal.
Take random BoJack dialogues as Jeff and other pastas' reactions to that.
...
Jeff: Rehab was supposed to be a fresh start. But no matter how many starts I get, there's always the same ending. Everything falls apart, and I end up alone.
Clockwork: Then get a new life man, this shit is not that hard.
Jeff: Shut up bitch! I'm having a moment here!
...
Jeff: Same thing that always happens. You didn't know me. Then you fell in love with me. And now you know me.
Nina: Eat shit and die asshole. You ruined my life.
Jeff: Fucking let me apologize whore!
Nina: Okay. I'm gonna kill this bastard. Don't hold me!
Kate: No one's holding you.
Nina: I said don't hold me!
...
Jeff: I'm the one who has suffered the most because of the actions of Jeffrey Woods.
Jane: What about Liu or Nina or even me?
Jeff: Nah, Liu's fine and he hates you.
Liu: No, I don't.
Jeff: He doesn't know what he's saying. And Nina loooves me.
Nina: No I don't!
Jeff: She's high on my awesomeness.
Jane: Shup the fuck up you dumbass.
...
Jeff: There's gonna be plenty of people around when I kill myself!
Masky: Not me.
Hoodie: Nah, I'll be there to celebrate.
Jeff: I hate all of you.
...
Jeff: Really makes you think, though, huh? Life, right? Goes by, stuff happens. Then you die.
Toby: W-who the hell are you?
Jeff: Yeah, you're right.
Toby: I am?
Jeff: Nah.
Toby: Of cour-se I am.
Who wants part 2 for incorrect quotes??
17 notes · View notes
codename-mom · 2 days
Text
Cookie jar
Summary: The team is on the field without Hotch who's on a leave for some days, but they have to call him anyway. Suddenly, something happens and everybody worry about Jack.
Characters: BAU team and Jack Hotchner
Contents: TW a child is hurt (but everything is fine) and a tiny bit of angst because can't be anything else but anxious.
This is a text written for the KidFic CM challenge organized by @imagining-in-the-margins.
PS : English is not my mother language so they are necessarily mistakes. Sorry about that.
___
The team had gathered in the room the police had assigned them – a cubbyhole, so to speak, cluttered with cardboard boxes and mops – and Derek dialed Hotch's cell phone number. The latter was on leave for a few days. His men were reluctant to call him when he did, so that he could enjoy his time away from Quantico to the full, but they had no choice. The first clues found in the field echoed those of an old case the director and Jason Gideon had worked on in the past. As the latter had vanished into thin air, they could only contact the former.
He picked up after several rings.
“Hotch?”
“One moment, he stopped him on the spot. Jack, I said no. I’m coming back.”
Morgan had put his phone on speaker so that everyone could follow the conversation, and so they all heard the TV gradually fading away, until it was almost muffled. They imagined he must have gone to his bedroom, or some other room where he could close the door behind him.
“What's the matter?” he asked, in an annoyed tone.
“Sorry to bother you,” apologized Emily, trying to appease him.
It wasn't certain that this impromptu call was the cause of his irritation, but if in doubt, it was best to try and smooth things over.
“Tell me,” he ordered, his intonation unchanged.
“We've potentially got a resurrected serial killer,” the ex-policeman attested.
“If I tell you: branding on the shoulder, chains on the ankles and whipping. Does it speak to you?” went on Dave, next to him.
A silence passed, during which he had to return to his memories.
“… Yes, but the culprit was sentenced to life.”
“Actually, he passed away last month, Derek clarified. But the last victim was killed on Monday.”
“His accomplice was released for good behavior last year, but his file disappeared, Prentiss explained from across the table. Can you remember his name?”
“I imagine you've already searched the digital archives for this information.”
“Affirmative, confirmed Penelope, who had come with them for the occasion. And there’s nothing. The guy just disappeared.”
The agency manager fell silent again. For a long time. The profilers stared at each other, tense.
“Hotch?” impatiently asked Morgan.
“Just a moment, I'm trying to remember, thundered his superior. His name was… De…”
A loud crash and a breaking glass could be heard in the background, and everyone froze as the giant shouted:
“Jack!”
A door opened and footsteps moved away from the handset. Clearly, the giant had left his phone behind. Tension gripped the whole group, their senses on the alert and their hearts pounding against their ribs. 
“Did we kill tiny-Hotch?” moaned Garcia, on the verge of tears.
In the distance, the voice of the father calling his son made them fear the worst. Then the little boy started screaming at the top of his lungs, and everyone shuddered.
“Apparently not,” ironized Emily, who wasn't putting up much more of a fight than her colleagues.
“What do I do? wondered Derek, unsettled by the situation. I hang up?”
“Maybe he'll come back to us,” Spencer stated uncomfortably.
“I don't think so,” objected JJ, listening intently to the distant din.
“Why?”
“This is clearly the cry of a child in real pain.”
As the only mother in the unit, they trusted her judgment without a hesitation.
“Well, maybe I'll hang up now,” voiced Morgan, ready to press the button.
“Wait,” advised Rossi.
Jack was still crying loudly, perhaps a little quieter than a few moments earlier, but more importantly, they noticed that the sound was now moving. And he grew weaker and weaker until he disappeared completely.
“It sounded a lot like a door slamming,” Prentiss claimed, her eyebrows furrowing.
“You can hang up now,” Dave confirmed.
Derek obeyed sighing. He hadn't expected such a turn of events and now felt guilty about what had just happened. He knew the kid a little and he was always delighted to see him, his eyes shining with admiration every time. Like his counterparts, he didn't know what had occurred, but feared that something grave had happened, which would leave neither the child nor its progenitor unscathed.
“It could have been worse,” pointed out JJ.
Everyone looked at her, bewildered.
“Are you kidding? Retorted the brunette. I don't know what’s going on, but it's serious enough that Hotch left with him.”
“Yes, but Jack was crying.”
“So what?” inquired Morgan, confused.
“That means he was conscious,” Reid attested confidently.
The man who had taken over the leadership of the team when Aaron was absent took a long breath and ordered his peers to get back to work in spite of everything. They worked with this question in the back of their minds: how was Jack doing? Based on the thin clue left by their superior, they searched, groped, and modified their profile until they found a certain Denis Porter, who turned out to be their unsub. All this in record time. Since they were in the neighboring state, they returned to the Quantico offices while it was still daylight. Immediately, the worry that had been nagging them all came back to mind, and synchronously, they looked at their phones. None of them had received a message, which didn't reassure them at all.
“Penelope, do you have any way of knowing which hospital he was admitted to?” inquired JJ.
“Why do you ask? teased her colleague, who immediately took to her keyboard. I'll do it right away, my little ones.”
She typed the toddler's first and last names into her search engine and the result appeared almost instantly on her screen. All gathered around the analyst in her colorful lair, they read the information at the same time.
“Let's go,” commanded Emily, leading the way.
A few minutes later, they jumped in two Bureau SUVs and headed for downtown Washington DC, following the itinerary on their GPS. They parked quickly and hurried to the reception desk. The nurse behind the counter was somewhat surprised to see the herd arrive, armed and determined, but was reassured to see Derek's warm smile. She directed them to the pediatric emergency room on the other side of the building. Together, they made their way through the corridors until they reached another admissions department, where they were given the room number.
They shared a similar fear at this moment. They dreaded discovering the state of the youngster and prayed the titan wasn’t ready to drop again. He'd already suffered enough; he didn't deserve to be in even worse shape. Morgan didn't have the courage to knock on the door, which was ajar but not wide enough for them to see what was going on inside. Rossi did it for him.
“Knock, knock!”
“Come in,” Hotch reacted, in his usual tone.
They took a few steps and saw the boy lying on a bed, in a hospital gown, his head turbaned, but grinning from ear to ear. His father was sitting in a chair on the other side of the bed, and a brief chuckle lifted the corner of his lips. Relieved, all the agents took Jack in their arms one after the other – except Spencer, who simply banged his fist against his. The girls added a kiss on his cheek and told him he was very brave. The effusive reunion over, Aaron declared:
“Denis Porter.”
“Yes, we found him,” Dave replied, squeezing his shoulder.
“Good.”
He didn't have the expression of someone satisfied with their work. He still looked distressed.
“What happened?” said JJ, asking aloud the question they'd all been asking themselves.
“Mister wanted a cookie. I pointed out to him that it wasn't the right time, but he waited until my back was turned to take one.”
“And?” bounced Prentiss.
“Well, he had his cookie. A lot of cookies. And the jar itself.”
The adults' gaze swiveled towards the injured boy, who gave them his best little rascal smile. He had no regrets about what he'd done. Some of the visitors felt sorry for him, once again showering him with hugs, while the others shook their heads in disappointment.
“Concussion?” continued JJ.
“It’s what we’re waiting to see. He has been under observation since 3:30 p.m.”
They reflexively glanced at their watches. He had been here for almost three hours.
“He looks okay, Derek remarked as he sat down on the bed next to him. Right, buddy?”
“Yeah.”
“Tomorrow you'll be a hero at school,” affirmed Rossi, leaning against the bedposts.
“Yeah!” exulted Jack, proudly.
“Because he took a cookie jar to the forehead?” judged Emily, eyebrows furrowed.
“Scars,” Reid whispered, in a tone of obviousness.
“… Guys...” sighed the three women in unison, as they saw the same victorious expression on the faces of their male comrades.
Someone knocked on the door and a nurse entered, a little disconcerted to see so many people in the room.
“Mr. Hotchner?”
“Yes,” responded the interested party, rising to his feet.
“Can you come with me for a moment?”
Instinctively, he turned to his offspring and met his irises.
“We'll look after him, Hotch, Penelope reassured him, having grasped the source of his apprehension. Go.”
His teammates nodded in support, and Aaron very gently kissed his son on his bandaged forehead before leaving the room. Without them needing to ask, the hero of the day began to tell them all about his adventures, dwelling on unimportant details, forgetting the end of some of his sentences to go back and move on to something else, and surely exaggerating certain facts. All this with boundless energy and plenty of grand gestures that definitely appeased them about his state of health.
However, Morgan saw the nurse pass by again in the other direction out of the corner of his eye and was puzzled not to see Hotch reappear immediately afterwards. He waited a little longer, in vain. He apologized to his fellows and returned to the corridor. He discovered the giant a few yards away, leaning against the wall, a document in his hand. His pupils turned towards the ground, he seemed lost. Derek felt a vise tighten around his throat. What if…?
“Trouble?”
“What? gasped the manager, rudely jolted from his thoughts. No. This is the exit voucher. Everything is fine.”
The former policeman relaxed.
“So why the long face?”
The agency head lowered his nose, dodging his gaze, before sighing. Then he lifted his chin and turned his dark irises on him.
“… How did your mother do it?”
“To what?” he reacted, taken aback by this private question.
“To raise three children on her own into perfect adults.”
He couldn't help but burst out laughing, even though his interlocutor had spoken very seriously. At least he understood why he looked so downcast when all the indicators were green. As usual, the ex-prosecutor scourged himself for not having been able to protect a loved one, when there was no reason to do so.
“I'm not sure she'd say that,” he joked to lighten the mood.
“You arrest serial killers and, from what I've seen, your sisters don't seem to be into organized crime.”
Seen like that, indeed, his mother had done a very good job of keeping them on the straight and narrow. But that didn't mean the road wasn't full of bumps.
“Hotch, what happened was an accident, as it happens in every family in the world. I did the same stunt when I was a kid and, obviously, I'm fine.”
It was the truth. He himself had taken a tin of candy on the corner of his skull when he was a little older than the director's son. He had climbed onto a chair and then onto the kitchen counter before stretching out to grab the object of his desire, which his mother had placed as high up in the room as possible. In the end, he found himself in the emergency room with a huge lump on his forehead. The images were no longer so clear in his mind, but he still remembered his mother's concern as she brought him unconscious to the hospital. The same expression of anguish and guilt appeared on his neighbor's face.
“Hotch, Jack's moving, he's talking, and he's got clearance to get out of here. So, everything is okay.”
“Then why do I feel like the worst father in the world?” he retorted, not daring to look up.
He almost replied that it was because he had very low self-esteem, but restrained himself to give him a more consensual, but no less correct answer.
“You were scared for him, it’s normal.”
“But it's not just that, he despaired, peeling himself away from the wall to walk down the corridor. I constantly asking for help. To Jessica, to Haley’s mother, to my own mother… even JJ. I’m incapable of taking care of him all by myself.”
Morgan was touched despite himself by the disarray of his opposite, who was still struggling to adapt to his new life as a single father. Not being in his situation, he couldn't really give him advice, but could always try to make him see reason.
“Hotch, I think all parents ask other people for help. My mother would ask other women in the neighborhood for advice, and some of them would even babysit us. Your mother must have done the same thing, JJ does and I'm pretty sure Haley did too. You're no more incapable than anyone else.”
He and his sisters had spent entire afternoons and weekends at their aunts' so that their mother could work or simply have time for herself, and none of her children had had the audacity to reproach her in any way.
“… I wish I could be as sure as you are.”
Derek rolled his eyes and held back from kicking his butt. His propensity for only seeing the glass as half empty annoyed him to no end, but he tempered his urge to strangle him by reminding himself that the context wasn't helping either. So, he chose a gentler method.
“Does Jack smile?”
“What?” exclaimed Aaron, raising his nose.
“Do you see Jack smiling?”
“Yes.”
“Laugh?”
“Yes.”
“Does he tell you he loves you? Without you having to tell him beforehand or giving him something he wanted?”
“Yes.”
“So, everything is good.”
The giant analyzed the exchange they had just had, and his subordinate saw his features gradually relax. He fixed his gaze in his again and, with a pale smile, said:
“… Thank you.”
Morgan's lips stretched warmly, and he laid a hand on his shoulder in return. The two men then went to the little boy's room, where his father told him the good news.
___
This idea jumped in my head after my first watch of season 5 and this dialogue between Derek and Hotch, where Derek has decided to write his own report to leave more free time for him to take care of Jack (because he knows what it is to be a single parent).
That scene was so cute, that I needed to imagine another peaceful moments between the two of them. Because we all know that they appreciate each other more than they will confess it. Because boys are boys...
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Get Enough: I’ve been looking for love but it gets me nowhere
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One of the most emotionally raw things Paul has ever put out, the lack of attention given to ‘Get Enough’ is baffling. Some random thoughts on the song:
If we’re looking for songs that might have real personal meaning to him, one that starts by recounting a memory and includes a quotation, seems a pretty good bet.
So, can we identify who he is addressing in the song?
“It was a time when we walked by the docks, I told you, "I need you all of my life", and watching the tugs rolling by together, do you remember?”
Docks? Liverpool, John?
“Now and then I see your face”, seems to seal it. We know the importance of the phrase “now and then” to Paul and, as has been pointed out, he has spoken of how if he recognises a face in one of his paintings, it is more than likely to be John.
Then there’s “I keep looking for love but it gets me nowhere”? Who would have foreseen Paul singing that in 2018? How has that gone largely unnoticed?
It is hard to escape the John associations. Could there be anything else going on in there too, though?
Well, it is kind of odd that having managed to be non-gender specific throughout the song, at the very end he changes “get enough of” to “get enough girl”. Why do that unless, and I know this is a crazy idea, he’s actually talking about a girl? That the song at least in part, is about an ex?
It might also be worth pointing out that, with regards to the docks reference, he never stopped going back to Liverpool or the Wirral. He could have taken a walk by the docks with someone that he brought home when visiting his dad. Yeah?
A lot of the criticism of the track on fan forums focused on the use of auto-tune, ignoring that it is being used as a device: distinguishing the current thoughts of the bridge from the reminiscence of the verse. Maybe those current thoughts are so raw that they need some distancing effect as he sings them.
The glorious release of the bridge at 1:58 with that odd, barely audible spoken word passage underneath. Not in the speaker’s first language? Lennonesque wordplay? I’ve no idea but, if we find out it could open up a lot about the song.
While we’re speculating madly and oscillating wildly, one more thought? Could the memory described in ‘Get Enough’ be the same one evoked in Paul’s ‘New Moon Over Jamaica’?
Both songs reflect on a memory: “I’m living with an old memory” (NMOJ) ; “it was real, do you remember?” (GE)
Both reflect on somebody he used to be with, an old love. Watching the moon triggers the memory in NMOJ and is part of the memory in GE.
NMOJ is set at New Year. GE was, very unusually, released as the clock hit 12 at New Year 2019.
“New moons and new years and old love’s don’t mix” (NMOJ)
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