#stuff in my local second hand shops is so good and cheap

[cinnabargirl]

The Chad second hand shop versus the virgin vintage boutique

#stuff in my local second hand shops is so good and cheap #idc if its from 2019 or the 70s if i like it i like it #also the vast majority is locally sourced from ppl throwing away or donating their clothes #vintage shops on the other hand… #the vintage shops that plague barcelona sell super overpriced clothes #like this one time i saw this blouse from the 70s with a chunk of it cut out and a weird stain going for more than 30€ #also for some reason they import in bulk from america in these shipping containers #so they pollute a shitton #and they always sell the same shit #the same stupid hawaiian shirts and the same garish windbreakers #i legiterally look down on ppl who i can tell buy fron these places #oh and not to mention the greenwashing they donbc they technically are secondhand but the aforementioned antics #show that they are not lol

[x-brik-x]

I'm seeing a lot of people say that punk fashion is expensive and inaccessible, which is very wrong. here is a list of some ways you can make punk fashion easier, cheaper and more accessible for you, since that's... kinda the whole point.

others are encouraged to add onto this!! (just don't recommend corporations like amazon. not cool.)

1. patches!! you don't need to buy them. DIY patches are not ugly or boring. in fact, they are encouraged here!! DIY, in my opinion, is always the best thing to do when it is an option and is safe to do so.

2. speaking of DIY, spikes!! you can make them!!

cut the top and bottom off of an empty can. cut down the middle of the cylinder and flatten it, so it's just a flat rectangle of metal.

cut out a shape that is kind of a third of a circle, but around 3/4 of the curved edge is taken up by triangle shapes. (I'm not very good at describing, so here's a badly drawn picture)

roll it into a cone, leaving the 4 triangles sticking out at the bottom. this bit is optional, but you can fill it with hot glue to make it more sturdy, just be careful touching the hot metal. I tend to hold the cone by one of the triangles with a bit of fabric wrapped around my fingers for this bit. cut 4 small holes in your fabric in this kind of shape:

and put the spiky bits of triangle through the holes. fold the triangles in on themselves to secure the spike in place. boom. spike obtained. this is one I made and attached to a little piece of fabric to test this method out:

3. battle vests!! (like the base jackets). the best places to buy these are charity shops and second hand websites in my opinion, but if anyone else knows any better options, please reblog with those!!

a good trick I find works well on eBay is to filter search results to your country (or state? can you do that in the US? idk) so that a: fast delivery because local, and b: all the sellers of everything that shows up are in YOUR TIME ZONE.

why is this important? when people sell something for really cheap, it goes FAST. check eBay at like, 2am or something. all the scalpers in your area are asleep. grab the cheap stuff while they can't.

4. sewing!! want patches, but can't sew for whatever reason? I've heard of a lot of people with joint conditions like arthritis complain about the inaccessibility of patch stuff, and that does sound extremely annoying, however:

safety pins!! while they are still a little fiddly, they're much less work so you don't have to fiddle about for long. if you can, you could even ask a friend to help, since it doesn't take long at all I'm sure someone will be willing to help out!! (I know I would, but that's just me, and I love this kind of thing). safety pins on clothes are also widely considered to be a symbol of solidarity, so if anything, you're adding some extra love and meaning to your patch pants/battle jacket.

if that's still too fiddly, fabric glue is always an option. unfortunately this means you won't be able to remove/reposition patches, at least without leaving a massive patch of residue, but if you're ok with that then fabric glue is probably your best bet.

for people who prefer sewing: as for where to get the thread, I've heard a lot of people recommending dental floss, as it's apparently much cheaper and works just as well. I haven't tried this myself so can't confirm that, but I thought I'd share it regardless.

5. where to get fabric!! old clothes. rip em up. you don't need any kind of fancy fabric from the craft store. my patches are made of old jeans that I grew out of.

don't have any old clothes and you don't want to waste any good ones? I'm not sure about other countries, but in the UK, as long as you're not on private property (trespassing), dumpster diving is perfectly legal.

I definitely ;) do NOT encourage ;) trespassing rich people's land ;) to steal from their dumpsters ;)

or tbh it doesn't matter too much how rich the person is, since it's all going to landfill anyway. if it's in the bin, it's free game, but you didn't hear that from me. ;)

please add onto this where you can!! and if I missed something or got anything wrong, add that on too!!

#diy punk #patch jacket #battle vest #patch vest #punk vest #diy patches #punk battle jacket #battle jacket #punk patches #patch pants

[purringfayestudio]

Faux Fur Sources

I sometimes get asked where I get my faux fur fabrics, so here's a list of sources, and a little about each. They are US based unless otherwise stated, and I have purchased from all of them.

BigZFabric

A great affordable place to get both realistic and solid faux fur. I use a lot of their animal and wolf furs, as well as their half-shag/beaver (1/2") and short shag (1"), but they have lots of cool things. As a company they're great about listening to the needs of their customers and several fur and minky lines are a direct result of community requests.

Howl Fabrics

My favorite place to get solids, which come in matching beaver (1/2"), teddy (1"), shag, and luxury fox. There are sometimes realistic furs in their fox section as well. They also recently started carrying minky. They're a great small company to support!

Mohair Bear Making Supplies

Where I go for realistic faux furs in small quantities, as you can buy anything from 1/16th all the way up to by the yard. You need an account to purchase, but it's super easy to sign up. Based in the UK.

FakeFurShop

A huge selection of faux fur, both solid and realistic, high quality or economical. Based in the Netherlands, so shipping to the US is painful, but worth getting what isn't available in the US. This is my most expensive source, aside from specialty things on Etsy.

Honorable Mentions:

FursuitSupplies: They have some good quality solids. I don't use them too often because they're so popular that the things I want are rarely in stock.

Fur Addiction: Based in Australia, they have some neat high quality stuff sometimes.

Etsy: There's a ton of faux fur and other fabrics available on Etsy, sometimes some really unique stuff. You just have to search for it.

Less Used

Mendel's: sometimes carries different things, but sadly with Shannon Fabrics discontinuing faux fur, their selection has fallen drastically.

Fabric Depot: Some weird niche stuff, but sometimes I get something interesting from there. Some of my old furs are from them before they shut down and then popped back up.

SY Fabrics: Some old stuff on there which is neat, but they keep messing up my orders and their return window is too small to matter. But may still be worth the gamble now and then.

Fabric Empire: lower quality furs, but much of what they have can be found on BigZFabric.

Joann: I have one locally that I've gotten a few things from. It's really hit or miss though.

Fabric.com: this site no longer exists, sadly. I list it only because it's where I got a great number of my furs over the years. It sounds like they may eventually be absorbed into the main Amazon site, but I'm not holding my breath. I'm not a fan of supporting Amazon anyway.

Don't forget to check your local small business fabric shops! As well as second hand stores for faux fur pillows and coats in good condition. Sometimes cheap blankets from discount stores work great as well.

I hope you find this useful! I'm also always happy to help someone hunt for a specific fur if you can't find what you're looking for, too.

Happy sewing!

#collecting fabric is a hobby on its own #I've been collecting faux fur for 8 years now and I have SEEN THINGS #art plush tips and resources #Aliexpress also has faux furs but I've never bought from there #feel free to add on your sources! #long post

[lantern-hill]

hey! i hope this isn't weird but i wondered if you could post about a good way to get into film photography? i'd like to buy a cheap little camera and start fooling around without having to invest too much, but I don't know where to start that will let me get decent pics but not go all-in as a hobby yet. i saw your tag so thought maybe you could help :)

hey! So first of all to be clear all of this advice is specifically about 35mm which is what I have experience with. There are other mm films and I know nothing about them.

I actually have a good amount of detail about buying film cameras at the end of this post. The only things I would add is that you can consider renting from a local camera store - you'll have to find one anyways so you can get your film developed, and a lot of them have rentals.

you can also ask them about where to find cheap film cameras in your area if the staff are hobbyists like they often are in stores that service analog. in my area FB marketplace is the place to go, but it might be a different website or market where you live.

The good thing is since you're buying second hand you're also buying stuff that was made pre-enshittification, and you're also buying stuff that has already survived two decades, so I personally have found quality isn't a major issue as much as price and finding a cam that's not broken. my first film cam was from the 70s, dented and damaged, with a corroded battery slot and semi broken light meter and degrading focus function, and I still did okay with it once I figured out its quirks and how to make it behave.

Also, don't rush into it. If you can't currently find anything that seems good, wait a little bit. It's kind of more like online dating than shopping.

If you're trying to dip your toes without spending a lot you probably want to start with a point and shoot. There's more advice about this in the post I linked. Just keep in mind you won't be able to control focus, you probably won't be able to zoom, and you will probably have to use flash in low light. this makes the results and experience very different. all my nicest pics are on SLR personally, but point and shoot is better for capturing a quick moment while out with friends. Having both is useful.

Finally since I made that linked post the price of Fujifilm Superia has gone up and I would now recommend Kodak ultramax as the low end color film instead.

Good luck and tag me if you ever post your pics, I'd love to see them!

#ask tag #film tag #tabby speaks #org

[janiedean]

Hi Lavi! I’ve just arrived in Rome for a 3 month stay! First time here so I was hoping for some local advice on things to do/see/eat :) any tips will be appreciated! P.S the ask function on the web version seems to be broken :/

hello anon! first of all sorry for replying so late yesterday I got home at like eleven something and I conked out X_X and thanks for the heads up wrt the ask, it's weird because on my web it works but I'll do a double check

that said WELCOME TO ROME I HOPE YOU DON'T END UP LOATHING YOUR STAY THANKS TO HORRID PUBLIC TRANSPORT, that said let me check because I think I had a tag exactly for stuff to do/see in rome let me see if I can give you a round up

eating advice

basic italian + advice on where to go

anyway I realized half of the posts in that tag are in italian so I'll just go at it again at random (and if you ever need advice or anything feel free to ask :D)

if you're here for three months you can take it easy and see all the stuff I mentioned in the second post with all the time in the world, also the vatican museums are free on the last sunday of the month so if you want to wake up early and brave the crowd you can save a bunch of money ;)

that said in between than the usuals - the center with coliseum/roman forum/trevi fountain/piazza del popolo/piazza venezia/campo dei fiori/piazza navona route - there's the free caravaggio paintings in the churches that I always recommend seeing asap - two are in santa maria del popolo (in piazza del popolo), three are in san luigi dei francesi (behind piazza navona), one is in sant'agostino (also near piazza navona)

also going by sculptors not counting of course sant'agnese in piazza navona (borromini) with the bernini fountain in front of it, there's san carlo alle quattro fontane (borromini) which has weird opening times but it's 100% worth visiting - that one is nearer termini station at the quattro fontane street crossing, and on the way there's also santa maria della vittoria near termini where not many ppl know there's bernini's ecstasy of st. theresa (idk every time I bring people there without telling them what it is they all go !!! omg !! XD)

always talking churches, ofc you're gonna visit st. peter's at some point (count that after covid they made it kind of harder to go in so get ready to queue), concerning basilicas I'm more partial to st. paul (there's a convenient metro station thankfully), santa maria maggiore (behind termini station) and san giovanni (there's a metro station), and in the san giovanni area (which is like in the middle of termini/coliseum) there's also san clemente which has protochristian catacombs and tunnels and is very cool to visit

talking about protochristian basilicas, sant'agnese and santa costanza are a bit out of the way but they're the earliest we have and very much worth visiting

musei capitolini are a must for archeological stuff and the roman museum next to termini is a must for ancient rome (there's also the terme di diocleziano in front of termini which are also cool)

for less commonly visited museums, centrale montemartini is v. cool because it's a former factory that houses roman artifacts

always close to termini there's rione monti which has santa prassede (lovely church with ancient mosaics) and a lot of second-hand shops/nice places to eat/have brunch

if you're interested in anthropology there's the museums in the EUR neighborhood which have a lot of cool stuff tho idk if they're still open because they were doing a renovation a while ago honestly I have no idea

when it comes to eating/going out etc go to san lorenzo for cheap drinks and nice food, it also has a lot of local flavor™ and it has my favorite surviving record shop in this city lmao

trastevere is also a must-go tho it's very gentrified these days but also very good food/drinks/brunch options, the church in the main square is a great visit and I think it's one of the few medieval-ish ones we have before baroque took hold and it's still v. good to eat, I think I mentioned a few places in the first post

idt I mentioned mr 100 tiramisù near piazza navona until now so I'll do it now because it has the best tiramisù and you can have it in 100 different variants ;)

campo dei fiori is also top notch for drinks and food also it's my favorite place in this city and camping under giordano bruno's statue is <3, also there's an independent bookshop nearby named fahrenheit 451 where you can look at a copy of said book bradbury gifted the owner and has a nice selection of stuff, they also have an english section that's not that extra but they're nice to visit

there used to be the angloamerican bookshop too for english stuff which used to be larger now they moved in a smaller place but it's still a thing, their prices are what they are but what can you do, otherwise there's some nice used english bookshops in trastevere I think in via della lungaretta but anyway if you walk through the place you'll find them fairly soon

at the piramide metro stop you'll find other than the eponymous pyramid the not-catholic cemetery which is imvho a lovely place to visit there's keats and shelley being buried there and a bunch of other famous people (italians mostly) but yeah I like going there X°D

in that spirit, right under the spanish steps there's the keats/shelley house museum dedicated to the aforementioned poets as it's the house where keats died and I haven't been in ages but it was a v good visit

in that spirit, remember to visit villa borghese AND to go to the galleria borghese museum aka one of the most important we have with prompt reminder that you need to book in advance and you only have two hours to visit so you need to time it right

in that spirit also check out the barberini musem (more caravaggio and other painters)

that said your museum priority should be the vaticans but again you have three months to see them so ;)

also go to san pietro in vincoli for michelangelo sculptures ;)

also I think I said it in one of prev. posts but for coffee go to sant'eustachio near piazza argentina it's the best

also I don't remember if I said it in the eating advice post but be kind to yourself go to the jewish quarter (always near campo dei fiori/piazza argentina) in via portico di ottavia, pick a restaurant (my favorite is the full-kosher ba ghetto it's at the beginning of the street) and try roman jewish food because it's heavenly and for the love of yourself even if you don't usually like artichokes do get jewish artichokes you'll thank me for that but again all of them are good I just think BG is superior

also in the same street if you go before 2pm there's a homerun pastry shop at the left corner of the street (it doesn't have a name but there's queues outside) where they make jewish sweets until they run out and they have excellent dark cherry pie which is to die for (in alternative there's another bakery just round the corner which has a more modern look/feel which is also great)

if you're here three months you're probably here for hannukkah and you should probably visit it then too they make special food and they have like events and such

do not ever eat in places where they give you the standard menu ie pizza/pasta + coffee + drink especially in the center that stuff is tourist trap and the food sucks you won't spend much more if you go to a normal restaurant unless it's extra fancy and you get like one dish and not two and it'll be way better

do not go up on the st. peter's dome it's a longass line and you pay and the view is meh, go to the gianicolo hill or the pincio terrace in villa borghese and your view will be better and 100% free

the public transport sucks ass like it does so expect the buses to pass whenever they like and the metros to work just if it's the A line, anyway I'd advise you to get a monthly ticket thrice so you can take buses/trains/metro/tram within the city and to download citymapper which is the most reliable app for all of the public transport here in my experience (there's probus roma as well but citymapper is more accurate as far as I've seen), also if you download one named mycicero you can buy tickets through it and have them on your phone all the time if you'd rather not get the piece of paper or go through the hassle of getting the plastic card

only take taxis if you're ready to pay a lot for it

also now that I think about it

if you wanna take a detour one day go to tivoli to see villa adriana it's amazing

you can go to castel gandolfo for the pope's summer residence which I think is now open to the public but I could be wrong

if you take the infamous train to ostia from piramide station you can go to ostia antica which is an archeological park with great roman ruins, that is if you survive the trip /s sorry that train just generally sucks but if you take it that one time it's okay XD

near the vatican there's a great japanese pastry shop named hiromi cake which if you're into that kinda sweet you might want to visit

if you shop at supermarkets todis is the most convenient, carrefour is the most pricey, coop is like most economical-but-good in between non-discounts and conad is midway, naturasi is for like natural stuff/bio things and it's pricey af (IK YOU DIDN'T ASK THAT BUT I FIND SUPERMARKET ADVICE GENERALLY USEFUL SO XD)

if you need a doctor it's free, idk how it works for foreigners staying long but in case you might need one and you aren't sorted out on that yet ask for the nearest guardia medica and they'll sort you out if you're outside, if you're at home get someone to call them and they'll arrive at your house (if you go to the hospital you might have to pay a fee but it's usually 20 euros for everything)

... okay I think I exhausted myself but if you want more info or need help or whatnot feel free to either send another ask or dm me using a throwaway if you don't want to deanon, enjoy your stay!!! <3

#anonymous #ask post #welcome to rome #sorry this is so late #i managed to wrap it up after hOURS rip

[gear-project]

when was sol accused of being gay by a hooker?? Like when did that happen

It was a misunderstanding caused when Sol visited a Bar somewhere in America just prior to GGX events in 2181 (the actual event takes place in the Golden Disc Saga: Guilty Gear X Drama CD).

At the time, Sol just wanted to have a private drink in peace, but the woman named Hardy wouldn't leave him alone:

---------------------------------------------

Bartender: Welcome.

Sol: Alcohol.

Bartender: What'll it be? Scotch, bourbon, beer, wine? I can make cocktails too.

Sol: Gin. Straight.

Bartender: I have some good British gin.

Sol: Another one.

Bartender: Y-yes, certainly.

Hardy: Hey there, handsome… looking good.

Sol: Huh?

Hardy: Treat me to a glass too.

Hardy: Hey, won't play along? There just aren't any other good men in this bar…

Bartender: Thank you for waiting.

Sol: Get lost.

Hardy: What is this? Trying to make a fool out of me? You couldn't buy cheap beer with this money. Oh? Or maybe you're… gay?

Bartender: Hardy, don't pick on the customers…

Hardy: He's such a poor turn-out. You can't call him a customer…

---------------------------------------------

Shortly thereafter, a bunch of P.W.A.B. Agents (Street Punks dressed as fake Police) entered the bar looking for a certain Axl Low whom had run away from them.

Axl himself had also entered the bar, not knowing the situation, and was slightly inebriated from his previous bar excursion, even hitting on the girl Hardy.

The P.W.A.B. "agents" found Axl Low talking with Sol casually and a bar fight ensued... only, they just so happened to ruin Sol's drink.

Sol, knowing that Axl was trouble and that whomever he was mixed up with was also trouble, and also in a bad mood over the drink decided to burn the bar down.

After "grilling" (almost literally) Axl Low for some answers, they set out to find a local pawn shop where Axl had found some illegal Blacktech that the P.W.A.B. Agents (fake cops) were investigating.

But, Hardy (and the Bartender) demanded compensation for Sol burning down the place.

---------------------------------------------

Hardy: Now wait just a second.

Axl: Oh miss, were you still here?

Hardy: Not "still here"! I won't leave until I get compensation for my dress!

Axl: Hey, sorry, but… just think of it as an accident and give up, okay?

Hardy: It's not okay! Looks like you have important stuff with that tablet and that black-whatever but hey! To live with my child I have to have money!

Axl: Wh-… you're a mom, miss?!

Hardy: That's right! I came to live here with my child! Even in a place like this, if you've got money you've got something to eat! Doesn't matter how dirty the money is… it's money! If I can earn it… then we can live!

Axl: I see…

Hardy: It looks like the Police are after you… but you know… I can just go inform them right now…

Axl: Come on, give us a break…

Sol: …quiet.

Axl: Chief, don't! Now that I've heard that, we've got to do something…

Sol: This should certainly be enough now, right?

Hardy: Th-this is… gold…!

Axl: This is about 1000 world dollars…!

Sol: Let's go.

Hardy: S-so much… you're not going to say "give it back" now, right?!

Sol: Do whatever.

---------------------------------------------

Sol basically handed her a wad of cash as compensation for burning down the bar and ruining her dress, despite her rude treatment of him prior.

Goes to show that even Sol has a good side, even if people get false impressions of him from time to time.

(And, for the record, he still had harbored feelings for Aria back then... he just never showed it on the surface. Though he would later express those feelings to Jack-O'Valentine, as we all eventually came to know.)

Still, to this very day, Sol's favorite drink is Gin, straight, on the Rocks!

Ky would later confess, that even after exploring the most expensive drinks in Illyria Castle, Sol would always go back to Gin (Bourbon).

#Sol Badguy #Axl Low #Drama CDs #Hardy

[alostlittleriverlotus]

Learning Not To Drown

Basically it's the title of one of the books I've been reading lately and it's pretty heavy. I'll be honest, it honestly does trigger my trauma.

Anyway, I have a lot of thoughts swirling around in my head due to it. I got to, I suppose, what can be considered the climax. It's intense and pretty hard to take it which is fitting considering it's difficult for the main character, Clare, to take in.

All I know is I hate her mother, oh my god, I hate parents that act like that SO much. Also partly like my own, haha.

Either way, Learning Not To Drown by Anna Shinoda is so damn good. It's an emotional read and can definitely be triggering, but I certainly, thoroughly enjoy it.

I was searching through a local second hand shop, their special cash from trade-ins in my purse. I was looking for the perfect books that would interest me, ones that I knew would be good for my trauma. I found The Dangerous Art of Blending In and was looking for the second one. Then I found this one, for a very cheap price (considering the other stuff I had, I ended up only having to pay a few cents for all of it!) It was the first book I read, my dyslexic ass thought it said "Learning To Drown" lolol. I was already drawn in and read through a good few chapters on the first day.

I mostly look for fantasy or YA books that'll trigger my trauma to read. I've found a lot of different books and I'm reading plenty of them. Learning Not To Drown was definitely an easier read due to the shorter chapters so that probably contributed to why it's much farther along than my other books. The other one I'm really addicted to reading because it's easy is Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin which genuinely feels like the author just fucking wrote me. That's actually the book that inspired me to make this blog. Their therapist had recommended it so they sign up for Bloglr in the book and start posting. That is the exact reason I made this blog myself lol. But it's about Riley, a genderfluid teen that is not out, as they hope for a new chance at this school they transferred to.

What I like the most is that, a reviewer of the book had pointed this out, their assigned gender is NEVER mentioned or revealed. I really like that because it's very true it doesn't matter. I envision they're afab because I'm afab (more relatable for me :p and my experiences), but that's such a nice thing to see their assigned gender never ever mentioned. Sometimes it genuinely feels like this character is just reading out my thoughts and feelings. I really love it so far.

Back to the original topic, I'm nearly done with the book and I just had to get my love for it out there because oh my god I am in love with this book. It feels so raw and real especially with the abuse shown within the book,

If it had trigger/content warnings, I would say: Abuse especially emotional/verbal, physical assault, sexual assault, trauma/PTSD flashbacks, in depth descriptions for things like nightmares and such (I can find them relatable due to my own experiences so thought I'd throw this one in), and discussions around a family member that has been to prison (a lot of issues around the rumours and reputation in a smaller town that comes from it.) Oh and there are slight self harm/suicide mentions in the book.

Trigger warnings/Content warnings for Symptoms of Being Human (with what I have read), I would say: Some dysfunction/abuse mentions, transphobia and homophobia, use of slurs, racism, general bigotry, descriptions of anxiety attacks (I'm hyperempathetic and just reading or seeing what people feel can trigger it in me, that's why I mention it), dysphoria experiences/descriptions, small mentions of suicide.

Again, I'm not super far into Symptoms of Being Human. Checking my book, I'm on chapter 16 which is about between 1/3 and 1/2 of the way done so there still could be more triggering content in later chapters.

I do recommend both these books and they're good reads. I dunno who might enjoy them, but I know that I did :)

Anyway, I got my thoughts out and I'm gonna go back to reading and being emotional lol :p see ya later, dudes!

#reading #books #book lover #symptoms of being human #jeff garvin #learning not to drown #anna shinoda #novels #ya novels #ya books #what i'm reading #special interest #special interests #autistic #mentally ill #trauma #dysfunctional family #toxic family #toxic parents #young adult #fiction

[keirametzbrassknuckles]

So where are you getting your coat?? (That you mentioned in your post about your new handbag- congrats on that btw!)

Personally, I need a heavy duty professional women’s overcoat and would love to save money by getting it second hand. But I do all my second hand shopping in local thrift stores which are unlikely to have this specific thing in my size at this time of year. So, since I never shop online idk where I should look tbh. Also I guess we just take a leap of faith that the coat will fit/look nice on us when it arrives since there’s no way to try them on, right??

Honestly I'm a huge proponent of depop and poshmark.

You will always run into the anxiety of buying online and the thing possibly arriving and not fitting due to sizing fuckery or other issues (rip those vintage YSL heels I bought once) but unlike other online retailers they're a (literal) closet industry so the sellers are generally very responsive to any questions about sizing, or texture of material or whatever else. You can also barter on both platforms which I find wonderful (Just keep in mind that on poshmark an offer is an automatic buy if it's accepted. Highly dangerous if you like to drunk bid like I do). Both poshmark and depop are great ways to get designer/high quality lightly used clothes, perfume, skincare, homegoods etc for very inexpensive relative to the msrp especially if you're shrewd and good at bartering. It also solves the problem of stuff in your locale being not in your size because you're sourcing from everyone with a sellers account across the country so the range of sizes and fits is usually more diverse (<- take with a grain of salt. I am on the small end of the spectrum so can't speak for the ease of finding larger sizes but i have trouble finding stuff in my size too and buying online has solved that problem)

A feature (bug?) Is that you do really have to know what you want and be good about sticking to your guns money-wise. For those who like to shop based on vibe alone it's difficult to find cool items by happenstance because you do have to search by tag/item type/brand and theres so much stuff you just may never find the perfect thing unless you know what you're looking for in advance. For those (me) who have a list of unachievable designer pieces ti aquire it's very hard not to simply jump on something because it ticks a box and "it's cheap! Comparatively! Imagine if I bought it new! I'm saving money and being responsible!" Is a very easy lie to feed yourself while you're legitimately considering dropping $200 on a pair of fucking tabis that you know you'll never wear.

But yeah around 50% of my clothes and 100% of my (*cough* legit *cough*) designer items are from either depop or poshmark and I can't recommend them enough.

#this was very long anon im sorry #but there are three things i care about in this world: art history the witcher and designer thrifting #and somehow you stumbled upon one of them

[jakesimfromstatefarm]

notoriously yours | jay park

✰ summary: jay park is a rich kid. it’s safe to say he has everything every broke college student on his campus could dream of and more. but the one thing he doesn’t have, which money definitely can’t buy, is a girlfriend. and his friends won’t see of it. literally.

so what happens when his friends bet him to date someone for more than three months? what happens when jay decides that fake-dating someone would be easier than actual dating (because god forbid Jay–the campus’ notoriously known fuckboy–decides to commit to something once in his life)?

and what happens when that someone is you, his childhood best friend he hasn’t spoken to in years..who has absolutely no interest in being in his life anymore?

✰ pairing: jay park x y/n [ft. members of enha]

✰ genre: fluff, comedy, angst | fakedating!au, college!au, childhoodbestfriends!au, (kinda) e2l!au

✰ warnings: cursing, nothing suggestive but jay's a fuckboy so slightly suggestive themes, mentions of parental neglect/leaving, it's hella long (and i thought my last fic was long)

✰ wc: 14.7k (how did i get it this long oh lord)

✰ author's note: picture creds go to original owners/editors! peep that edit of jay that lowkey inspired this entire fic 👀also this took me so, so long bc i lost motivation half way thru and bc college is a thing,,,so i honestly don't know how to feel abt it so pls bare with me :')))) ALSO the dividers are weird bc idk how to add more than 10 pics for the dividers so pls excuse those ٩(× ×)۶i hope u guys enjoy!! <333

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Jay Park is a rich kid.

Jay Park has enough to buy every textbook he needs for his courses without having to look up the free versions online. Jay Park has enough to bribe his professors to let him pass every class with a perfect 4.0 GPA (but because the boy has morals, he doesn't). Jay Park has enough to afford a car to drive to his furthest class from his dorm building instead of walk or bike like every other college student, meaning he also has enough to afford a parking spot on campus (those things aren't cheap!).

Jay Park walks around your school's campus like he owns the place (and considering the amount of money his family has donated to the school, he practically does), looking like he just walked out of your local coffee shop's newest fashion magazine. His blonde hair is never seen untouched, his attire usually consisting of an undoubtedly high-end all-black fit, accessorized with multiple earrings and rings that probably cost more than all the overpriced textbooks you had to rent out this semester. It's safe to say that everyone knows Jay Park.

Bottom line is, Jay Park has everything.

Well, his friends beg to differ.

In their eyes, Jay Park has everything but a simple factor in the equation of love (or whatever love is to the minds of a couple of 19 year olds): commitment.

So yes, it's safe to say that everyone knows Jay Park. Because everyone knows he's the campus' rich fuckboy. (What's a college fanfic campus without one anyways?)

Jay doesn't go unreminded of this by his friends, to the boy's annoyance.

Jay is aware of this on a Sunday afternoon, in his dorm building's first floor lounge, where he and his said friends are having a study session.

They're doing anything but studying.

In fact, no one has any books out or anything. Not a single laptop in site.

"You don't think it's the slightly bit concerning?" Jake's words are muffled as he continues munching on the fried chicken that he spent majority of this study session debating if he should have it delivered through UberEats or not.

"I really don't, no," Jay shrugs as he continues mindlessly scrolling through his Instagram feed. They're having the same argument conversation that they've revisited multiple times over the course of their friendship, one that Jay has been lectured on too many times for his own good. He thinks his friends could become his new parents if they really tried.

"Look at it this way, okay. You're about to graduate college in a couple of years, into the big world. Like the actual, adult world. And that means you'll have to settle down. Which you can't do when you. have. no. commitment!" Jake punctuates each word with a single clap of his hands, desperate to get his point across.

Jay simply rolls his eyes. He looks over to Sunghoon, who's minding his own business, not bothered by the same topic he's heard over and over again. His eyes tell Jay you're on your own, in response to his blonde-haired friend's look of despair.

Jay thinks that maybe he should get new friends. Yes, that's the only solution here.

"My love life," Jay reaches across the table for a drumstick from the greasy tub seated in Jake's lap until Jake swats his hand away, "is none of your business. Also, ouch."

"Uh, it kinda is. Because of you and your reputation around campus, it kinda affects us, your best friends. How do you think we look, hanging out with the guy who's known to ghost every girl in existence after one night with them? No offense to you," Jake deadpans to him. Jay mentally reconsiders the term best friends.

Tough love. Jay tells himself it's tough love.

"Yes, because every girl totally hates Jake Sim, the teacher assistant of a physics class who volunteers at the pet shelter every Sunday and brings their pet golden retriever to campus every two weeks," Jay rolls his eyes at his Australian friend.

Jake sighs. "Okay, then I'm coming from a place of worry for you."

Jay groans. "Again, none of your business!" This doesn't stop Jake. He comes from good intentions, really, but Jay wants nothing more than to stuff the kid's mouth with some of that chicken to shut him up.

"What are you gonna do if one day you meet someone you like, genuinely like, and you screw yourself over because you've never been in an actual relationship before? A real, committed one. Like one that lasts at least three months."

"You don't think I can last three months in a relationship?" Jay questions the boy currently taunting him.

"Honestly? No. What's the longest relationship you've been in?" Jake cocks an eyebrow at his friend across from him.

One month and two weeks. But Jay's smart enough to not say that out loud.

"I can so last over three months," Jay mutters more to himself than Jake.

Jake laughs at that, pausing to take another bite of the drumstick in his hand. "Jay, I am willing to actually bet you. Bet that you wouldn't be able to." He leans back on the couch, the ball now in Jay's court.

Jay freezes, looking up from his phone, narrowing his eyes at Jake.

"Forget it, Jake. He's not gonna agree even if you offered him money," Sunghoon finally perches from beside him. Well he's not wrong. It's not like Jay is exactly in need of more money, per say.

"What kind of bet are we talking here?"

Sunghoon's right. Jay doesn't need the money, but he does hate being wrong. Even if it's over something as stupid as this matter.

Caught off guard by the blonde's answer, Jake blinks blankly at him and takes a second to think.

"Hmm..what about...what about if you can date someone for at least three months, and I mean an actual, committed relationship, then I'll do all of your physics homework next semester."

Jay's eyes sparkle at that. If there's anything he despises more than commitment, it's physics.

"And if I win, you have to buy all of my textbooks," Jake sits back from the edge of his seat with a smirk lying on his face.

Jay pauses to think about it. I mean, what does he have to lose? A couple hundred dollars over college textbooks? No. Because he just simply won't lose.

And maybe he'll learn what it'll be like to actually be in a committed relationship for once. Maybe he'll finally learn what it's like to actually devote yourself to someone, open up to them. He shivers at the thought. Never mind. He'll warm up to it. Baby steps.

Nonetheless, what could go wrong? Even if he does lose, at least his money would be going somewhere productive––towards his friend's education. Jay was probably gonna use that money on something useless like a blanket that resembles a tortilla (a burrito blanket, he calls it)––something he doesn't necessarily need, but must have, he would argue.

"Fine. Whatever, okay. Deal," he grabs Jake's extended hand in front of him and shakes on it.

Jake's impressively smiling at the boy as Sunghoon lets out a sigh, in disbelief with the two guys he calls his best friends.

Jay concludes that this will be easier than his Introduction to Photography 101 course he took his freshman year. How hard is it to find someone to date the Jay Park? Surely, everyone will be lining up once Jay switches his FaceBook relationship status from "it's complicated" to "single".

Turns out, it's not as easy as his class where all Jay had to do was take pictures of a pretty sunset, slap a VSCO filter on, and call it a day.

He comes to this realization on a Wednesday evening, as he's seated at one of the many study tables lined in the middle of the campus' library, staring down at his phone's dry iMessage app, with his laptop and blank sheets of scratch paper scrambled across the entire table, as an attempt to look half as studious as the other students studying in the facility.

Turns out, being known as the campus' fuckboy who ghosts every girl on campus isn't a good thing when it comes to wanting to find a real relationship.

He comes to this realization after failing to receive a single text back to the many ones he sent out throughout the first half of his day. The ghoster gets ghosted. Oh how the turn tables.

Jay groans dramatically as he tosses his phone on the hard surface of the table, earning himself a harsh shush from the librarian filing books in the aisle beside him.

He sheepishly smiles back as an apology, directing his attention back to his open laptop screen, where his untouched calculus homework stares back at him––his mind preoccupied with the looming threat of Jake's bet. Not that it was threatening in any way, per say, but Jay just hates losing. And from the looks of things, it's safe to say that Jay won't be celebrating any victories anytime soon.

Jay thinks he should just change his identity and just transfer to some boarding school in Switzerland. Yes, that's a much better solution than admitting defeat to Jake.

Jay sighs as he lies his head on the table, figuring he might as well just write the check for Jake's textbooks now. He wonders how he got here in the first place. Not how he got into the bet, and definitely not how he's sitting in the middle of the library, having yet to start his calculus homework due at 11:59PM tonight (he should really start that).

But no, he wonders how he gained the reputation as the campus' playboy. To be fair, his friends (mainly Jake), are constantly reminding him of his notorious habits. But how did they come a habit in the first place?

The idea of being in a relationship is nice, sure, but the commitment that comes with it? The idea of being dependent on someone? It's scary, vulnerable, and one that Jay can't picture for himself.

Maybe some people just aren't meant to be paired. Maybe some people, like Jay, like being independent and are meant to stay that way.

But Jay also likes affection. He likes the fleeting, warm feeling he gets every time he finds himself under someone's sheets. He likes the short-lived comfort he receives from someone else's touch, even though he knows it's going to cease to exist the second he steps out of those bedroom's doors. He just likes affection, simple as that.

That and he's a 19 year old teenage boy with needs, what did you expect?

And so what if he likes the idea of affection minus commitment? Is that so bad? Apparently it is, to people like his friends and the entirety of his school's campus, at least.

At this rate, he might as well pay someone to date him.

Wait. Jay lifts his head off the table's surface in realization.

He might as well pay someone to date him.

There's no harm in that, is there?

He wouldn't have to endure through an endless amount of dates to find someone he clicks with, then continue going on dates with said clicked person, all while trying to develop an actual, serious relationship.

He'll win the bet, get his physics homework done for an entire semester, and some lucky girl out there will be making profit for the small price of hanging out with Jay Park for three months.

And lucky for him, Jay knows the perfect candidate for this scheme.

Simple as that.

Just as long as said perfect candidate says yes.

And as long as Jake and Sunghoon don't find out. Or else Jay might really have to move to Switzerland after all.

You love your friends, you do.

Hana and Heeseung have been there for you when others haven't––they were by your side when you knew no one entering high school, and they were still by your side when you were all graduating said high school. Needless to say, you're eternally grateful for friends like them.

But right now, in this moment––with you seated in the middle of the campus' library, trying to write your essay, as your two friends blabber on and on about the most recent gossip across from you––your two friends could be your villain origin story.

But again, you love your friends, you do. So you don't have the heart to tell them to leave. You've managed to naturally tune out most of the conversation, anyways, for this––your friends coming to hang out while you're trying to study––is no rare occurrence by any means.

"Oh yeah, Jay Park texted me last night."

You hate how your brain's filter suddenly turns off at Hana's words.

You hate how your ears catch the sudden mention of Jay Park's name.

You hate how the thought of Jay Park gets to even occupy a single brain cell of yours.

You hate how you even know who Jay Park is. Well, knew.

Past tense. Because up until eighth grade––when Jay decided to just suddenly pretend you didn't exist––he was attached to you like a koala to a eucalyptus tree.

And if you had asked past Y/N, ideally, Jay would've never left your side. Ideally, he would've never left you to fend for yourself when entering high school. Ideally, he would've stayed your best friend through out all four years of high school and ideally, you would've eventually told him how you really felt about him after growing up with him all your life. And maybe it would've lead to a completely different story. But for the sake of this fic, we don't live in an ideal world.

So yes, if it wasn't for his attendance at the very same university as you, you would've forgotten about the boy who brought you the painful memories of your childhood.

And since the universe clearly doesn't work in your favor, avoiding Jay Park's existence like he's the plague would have to suffice. And it works.

For the most part.

Until some people, bring him up uninvited into your conversation. Like now, for example.

"When was the last time you guys talked anyways?" Heeseung mindlessly asks as he reaches across the table to grab one of the many snacks you usually bring to your study sessions.

"Uh..like a few weeks ago. Give or take. Whenever you threw your house party. Can't say there was much talking involved however," she teasingly says with a giggle and wiggle of her brows.

Heeseung's rolling his eyes as you scoff and chuck a nearby crumpled piece of paper that was once one of your many essay drafts at her.

She bats it away right as it's about to hit her face as she laughs. "Doesn't matter anyways. He ghosted me the next morning, as he does with everyone else. Telling you this now," she extends a finger right at you, "stay away from Jay Park. That kid's just bad news."

You nod in response, mentally telling her she has nothing to worry about.

Been there, done that.

College. Ah yes, the very concept of spending four years of your life imprisoned on a campus where you'll be tearing your hair out from stress and spending all your life's savings just for a laminated sheet of paper with a golden stamp at the end of it all. We live in a society.

Because of said college, and all the weight that comes along with it, you had adapted a strict daily schedule in order to not completely lose your mind. It's a simple schedule really, one of a typical college student who's just trying to get by everyday with as little mental breakdowns as possible.

Wake up, get ready, go to class, go to the library to do your homework, walk all the way across campus to get back to your dorm, shower, then sleep. Oh and eat, of course. And maybe if time permits, be an actual social being and socialize.

It's gotten you this far into the college life without dropping out so, you conclude, you must be doing something right.

Sometimes, if you're feeling nice to yourself, you'll tweak the schedule a bit to fit in some exceptions. Maybe squeeze in a little trip to the bubble tea shop that's on the other side of campus, or maybe get dinner at that one dining hall that you don't usually go to because of the unncessarily long lines (but because they serve ice cream, you go anyways). It doesn't matter what the exception is, you still plan it out to fit into your schedule somehow. Everything is planned out.

Sometimes, however, the universe disagrees with your schedule, to your demise. Such as today, for example.

Because what you didn't expect for today was for a particular blonde-haired boy who you haven't spoken to in almost six years (but who's counting?) to approach your table in the library––a table you were sure no one could find you at, as it was quietly tucked away in the back corner, right next to the Astrophysics shelves. Because who browses the Astrophysics aisle for fun? Actually, maybe Jake Sim would. Anyways.

You definitely didn't anticipate a visit from the boy you've been actively avoiding, so you definitely didn't expect the first words coming out of his mouth when he sees you for the first time in six years to be:

"Fake date me."

You blink up at him.

Yeah, definitely not expected.

But you only let it phase you for a split second, until you feel a slight annoyance beginning to bubble up deep inside of you.

"Wow, hello to you too Jay! It's been what––half a decade? Yeah I've been pretty good, thanks for asking!" The sarcasm is practically dripping off your tongue.

You don't know what runs through Jay's mind, but apparently it isn't common sense––or the ability to read the room. Because next thing you know, he's sliding the chair across from you out from underneath the table and making himself at home.

And he's smiling right at you.

Curse him and his smile.

But no, you're not giving into it.

Not yet, at least.

"What do you want?" You deadpan at him when he makes no sign of making the next move.

"A girlfriend," he deadpans right back at you, as if he was casually telling you what he wanted for dinner. As if you two were close-knit friends that could approach one another without any proper greeting. As if you two had kept your friendship all these years. As if you two even had a role in each other's lives.

"Can't help you there," you scoff, deciding to not even question his lack of manners on top of his uninvited presence.

"Aren't you gonna ask me why?"

"Well gee, seeing that the first few words you decided to say to my face for the first time in forever were a demand, a demand to date you no less, then....no," your monotone voice says as you keep your eyes focused on your laptop screen, not daring to look at the boy across from you.

In the Introduction to Sociology course you took your freshmen year, you had learned of one important term: interactional vandalism. Textbook definition being: "ignoring signals of disinterest in a conversation, leading it to an offense."

Your definition being: "are you oblivious or just plan dumb, read the room!"

This was interactional vandalism, alright. Whether Jay's truly oblivious or just trying to annoy you until your head explodes (it's really the former, but you're convinced it's the latter), he takes your signals of disinterest and tosses it right out of his head to continue the conversation.

"I'm stuck in this stupid bet with Jake--do you remember him? He bet me that I couldn't date someone for more than three months and I figured having someone fake date me would be easier than actually dating someone, right? That's where you come into the equation," he proposes as he leans back in his chair, as if he had just finished a sales pitch to a prospective customer looking to buy a car.

You couldn't believe this. You're 98% sure this has got to be a prank. You're mentally preparing for a camera crew to jump out from in-between the library's aisles any moment now and scream into your ears that you've just been punk'd!

The remaining 2% of you, however, wouldn't put it past the two boys to get themselves in such a situation. The last memory you had of Jay and his friends were pretty much their childish selves back in middle school. And by looking at the current scene unfolding in front of you...it's needless to say they haven't changed much.

"Again, can't help you there. Ask one of the many girlfriends I thought you had." Ouch.

"But Y/N, you've known me all your life--"

"Up until you dropped me a few years ago but sure, let's call it that."

"--and convincing other people is gonna make me look--"

"--desperate? Yeah."

"C'mon, Y/N. What do you have to lose anyways?"

"Uh..my dignity? Pride? Self-respect? Sorry Jay, not happening," you turn your attention back to your unwritten essay in front of you, mentally checking out of this conversation. This would be a good time for that camera crew to jump out now.

"Look, no one else is gonna do it, Y/N." Jay has always been stubborn, you suppose. But so are you.

"Yeah, because you've managed to push every being of the opposite gender away from you. You gave yourself this reputation in the first place," you give it to him straight. It's not like you had a relationship with him to uphold anyways––Jay himself broke that friendship years ago.

Jay hates that you're right.

You're always right. He remembers how he used to always go to you for advice and clarity on the world's biggest problems. Granted, the world's biggest problems to him at the time equated to what he should dress up as for the fifth grade Halloween party, but still. A tough decision, for the mind of a ten-year-old.

You abruptly stop typing and begin putting your laptop and textbooks away as you huff in frustration. There's no point in trying to get your work done now. The longer you stay arguing with Jay, the bigger your headache gets. The longer he continues to occupy any part of your brain, the bigger your headache gets.

Getting up from your seat, packed and ready to slam your head into your pillow, you turn to the blonde one last time.

"Look Jay. We went on our separate ways years ago. If you weren't so notoriously known around campus and my friends would stop talking about you, I would've long forgotten you. I'm sorry you're in this situation, really. If I were you, I'd just tell Jake I can't do it. Or don't, I can't tell you what to do. Just don't get some innocent girl involved in whatever stunt of yours this is."

Jay stares at you, mouth agape, as you find your way out of the library and through the main doors. By the time he comes back to his senses, he realizes how he looks plain stupid––standing in the middle of the library, the look on his face screaming befuddlement, to say the least. Jay quickly makes his way out of the building, in hopes of convincing you one last time.

Jay catches sight of your figure already half-way down the walkway that connects the library to the main quad of your school's campus. Geez, you walk fast.

Not fast enough to outrun Jay's legs, however. If Jay running after you through the middle of campus in order to convince you to fake date him doesn't show how desperate he is to win this bet, I don't know what will.

"Wait, Y/N!"

You groan to yourself before turning to face the boy who can't seem to take a hint and leave you alone. You stare at his out-of-breath state as he heaves up and down from the slight jog he had to endure to get to where you are. If you're humored by him chasing after you, you do a good job of hiding it.

He meets your unimpressed state before stating his final proposition: "I'll pay you. Five hundred dollars."

You nearly stop breathing.

Now this catches your attention––after all, you're but a broke college student who's just trying to survive. And preferably not by feeding yourself instant ramen cups every night.

And so, naturally, you begin rethinking about the opportunity presented in front of you. You narrow your eyes at the boy as you weigh your options.

The first problem being, it's Jay Park––the bane of your very existence. You spent the last few years of your life pretending he didn't exist...for good reason. Not only did he do you dirty when you were merely a couple of 13-year-olds, but you just didn't want to be involved with someone like him. Someone known for his nature, someone who left your own current best friend ghosted. And not that Hana herself would care, for she has called herself the "female Jay Park", but you're sure this would be breaking some rule in the girl code handbook. Plus, if you agree to this, you'd be betraying 13-year-old Y/N, the one who decided to never speak to nor think of Jay Park again––which by now you've failed, but you get the gist.

Second problem being, three months is a long time. Three months is practically the rest of this semester, and did you really want to spend the rest of the semester tied down to the label of being Jay Park's girlfriend? There would have to be some negative connotations that came along with that title, right? No offense to Jay, but being his first girlfriend since, what, high school could make you come off as..naive, for lack of a better term. As if the only person you could settle for was Jay Park. As if you barely had any standards for yourself. Again, no offense to Jay.

Needless to say, if your school's debate club had to argue on why you shouldn't be doing this, you're sure the negating side could win with these two reasons alone.

But before you're rejecting the boy currently standing in front of you one last time, you find yourself mentally listing rebuttals.

First of all, you'd be getting paid. And again, you're merely but a college student living the stereotypical broke college student life––burdened by the costs of tuition, textbooks, and midnight McDonalds runs for when you're out of aforementioned instant ramen cups. Five hundred dollars could provide you with more than enough chicken McNuggets to last you the semester, and maybe some more to treat yourself to an online shopping spree.

Second of all, it's not like you were going to do anything better with your next three months anyways. It's safe to say you were too busy being a diligent student to actually look for anyone to date, per say. And if anything, having a fake boyfriend might actually be helpful in your case. Your mom would be off your ass about how you're still single, for one. And two, your friends (though it's really just Heeseung) would stop trying to hook you up on blind dates with guys that you would choose Jay Park over any day (and that really says something).

Third of all, it's Jay Park. As much as you despise the kid, you still know him. He's not a complete stranger to you, no matter how much you try to deny it. It could be worse, it could be a complete rando asking you to date him. At least you two have some sort of history, which would take care of the typical small talk and getting to know each other bit of this equation. And truth be told, you'd be lying to yourself if you said you weren't a tad bit satisfied by the fact that Jay chose you, of all people, to pull off this stunt with him. You don't know if it's the nostalgia of your childhood memories rushing back to you, but it reminds you of the endless schemes you two used to plan behind your parents' backs all the time. Granted, your childhood schemes––such as the both of you faking sickness so you could skip school together––don't even fall close to being in a fake relationship with one another, but still. It's the thought that counts.

All of those reasons plus, Jay isn't the worst to look at. He may have a spoiled reputation, but at least he has his looks going for him, you'll give him that (you're still secretly wondering when and how did he get his glow up, but don't tell him that).

And so by the guidelines of a college student's logic that states the pros outweigh the cons, you come to the overarching conclusion that maybe, this won't be so awful after all.

"Five hundred?" You ask, just for clarification. Jay's immediately nodding at your words. You continue to ponder on your thoughts as he stares at you hopefully.

The silent atmosphere of your campus heightens the tension so much, you swear you're in one of those overdramatic pausing scenes that occur too many times in k-dramas.

You sigh, then nod.

"Okay," you're internally praying that you won't regret this decision. "I'm in."

The next time you see Jay is at 12:17PM on a Friday afternoon, as you're exiting the doors of the lecture building that's home to your awfully long Capitalism in the Western World class.

You're going down the steps of the building, mentally deciding where and what you're going to treat yourself to for lunch––as the three hour lecture you had just attended drained all the life and energy out of you––when you hear the slight call of your name.

Turning to the source, you're met with a waving Jay, leaning against the passenger's side of his car, parked in front of the lecture hall building you were currently leaving.

Great.

You walk over to where he's casually waiting––he's unaware of all the stares he's attracted from fellow students leaving the same lecture as you. Can you blame them? It's not everyday you see a sleek, black BMW that probably cost more than your tuition pull up in front of your Friday afternoon lecture. It's not everyday you see Jay Park waiting for anyone outside of his said sleek, black BMW that probably cost more than your tuition.

"Hi," you simply let out as you plant yourself in front of him, not sure whether or not to question him why are you here? Surely, he wasn't waiting for you?

"Hi," he smiles down at you. There's a beat of silence. "I was waiting for you."

Bingo.

"Oh. What are you, my chauffeur?" You raise an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"Maybe. I am your boyfriend, after all," he says into the air, loud and clear, as if he wanted people to hear. Well that is the point, you suppose.

But still, all you want to do is smack the smirk right off his face.

Before you have time to put your next question into words, he answers it for you.

"I'm taking you out for lunch," he declares as if you have nothing else planned for the day. Well, to be fair, you didn't have anything else planned for the day. Except for your usual library run. But you figure the library could wait.

"Oh, like on a date?" You raise your eyebrows teasingly at him as you get into the car, Jay holding the door wide open for you. "Is Jay Park treating me to lunch as a date?"

Jay fights the scowl (or is that a smile?) growing on his face as he bends down to meet your eye level from inside the car. "Don't flatter yourself, princess. We've got fake lives to live."

"Call me princess one more time and you won't have a real life to live," you flash him a sarcastic smile and slam the door in his face.

Jay meets his own shocked reflection on the passenger's side window.

Cute.

"When you said you were taking me out to lunch, I expected like...I don't know...the diner on campus. Not whatever this is," you mutter to Jay as the two of you are brought to your table by a waitress at an upscale sushi restaurant, one that is undoubtedly out of your usual budget, but for sure an upgrade from your dining hall's pizza you were planning to have. You should've figured as much, the drive here was a little more than out of the way from campus, and who are you kidding, it's Jay Park you're eating with.

You stare down at your current outfit, which consisted of a hoodie you've owned since your junior year of high school and leggings that you threw on without second thought this morning––because you didn't exactly wake up and decide I'm going to go to a fancy sushi bar for lunch today!

"Why are we here anyways?" You ask him when you're both settled in your seats and the waitress walks away after listing the chef's specials for the day.

"Oh, they have killer dragon rolls here, you have to try it," Jay tells you nonchalantly as his eyes rake the menu in front of him, blocking your view of him.

How dense can one be? Your hand snatches his menu as you stare into his unamused eyes.

"No, Jay. I mean, why are we here? It's not like anyone's around to see us put on a show anyways."

"Oh. I figured," Jay's quick to grab the menu back from out of your hands as he continues, "that we should sit down and establish how exactly we're going to deliver this performance. After all, you're stuck with me for the next three months."

Again, smacking the smirk currently resting on his face would satisfy you beyond relief. Just once.

"If I drop out halfway through, do I still get $250?" You tease, leaning back.

"Ha ha. Funny. No," he narrows his eyes at you from across the table. "It's all or nothing."

You dramatically huff to make a show just for his annoyance.

"Worth a try. But sure, let's solidify this. What's the game plan?" You sit up in your seat, leaning over the table as if the two of you were hosting a secret meeting.

"It's simple really," Jay mirrors your actions, face leaning in close to where yours is hovering over the table. "Just pretend to be deeply in love with me for three months, and try not to actually be charmed by my cunning looks."

If someone gave you five dollars for every time you've already rolled your eyes at him today, you wouldn't even need to be in this deal for the five hundred dollars.

"Wow, smooth. Can I just remind you you're the one paying a girl to be in a fake relationship with you because you're just not competent enough to find an actual girlfriend?" You lean back, arms crossing over your figure.

Jay, unfazed, laughs, tongue briefly hitting the inside of his cheek. "Touché."

Your eyes go back to the menu in front of you as a silence falls over the table. Because you're not a loaded trust fund baby who comes to fancy five-star sushi restaurants for lunch on a daily, you don't recognize half of the entree names on the menu. You spot the dragon roll Jay suggested, but seeing that a basic California roll is less expensive, your natural broke-college-student-instincts figure the California roll shall do.

"Okay, in all seriousness," Jay begins as he puts his menu down. "It's simple really. We'll just go on weekly dates and post cute pictures of each other once in a while and a little after three months, I'll just say it didn't work out. I'll give you the five hundo and boom, we move on with our lives."

It's clear Jay's put some thought into this. Safe to say he's put more effort planning this out than the amount of work he's been putting into his classes. Someone's got their priorities straight.

You're impressed to say the least––you figured Jay would just be the kind to go with the flow and wait for the situation to unfold on its own and maybe blow up into flames. But seeing as he was just as serious about winning this bet as you were with making five hundred dollars, your doubts about this entire situation were slowly withering away.

Don't get it wrong, though, you still despise him. To an extent, at least.

"And don't worry about the dates. I'll pay on your behalf, as the loving, doting boyfriend I am," Jay finishes with a wide, cheesy smile you can't help but return a growing smile back at.

"Well then, as the loving, doting girlfriend I am, I shall gift you coffee, breakfast, all that fun couple stuff, whenever you please. Or maybe unannounced, if I'm feeling nice," you figure you should pitch in as much if he's paying for all your dates. And deep down, you find the idea kinda cute. But don't tell anyone that.

"Wow, look at us. We should become Dispatch's couple of the year already!" Jay exclaims, earning himself a small giggle from you, which pleases him to say the least. He thinks that maybe when this is all over, he'll hopefully make a good friend (well, for the second time) out of it.

And you're thinking that maybe the next three months won't be as bad as you initially had thought.

As the two of you delve deep into a debate about who would be the better significant other to each other, the waitress comes over to take your orders.

And because you're laughing and Jay's brightly smiling at you from across the table, you order the dragon roll.

The second time Jay takes you out––this time he gives you a heads up to get ready––it's at a, once again, high-class steakhouse.

The third time, you insist on the on-campus diner that's popular amongst the student population. Partially because you feel bad for the amount of money he's spent on you (even though he couldn't care less), but mostly because if you have to put on another fancy dress to just eat an overpriced meal that doesn't even fully satisfy your hunger, you might lose your mind.

And by this third time, Jake is aware of this newly blossomed relationship.

"Three dates! I didn't know you had it in you, going on three dates with the same girl!" Jake excitedly exclaims as he jumps into the empty spot on Jay's dorm bed and shoves his phone's screen into Jay's face.

The smaller screen displays Jay's most recent Instagram post: an image of you sitting behind your too-small-to-be-this-expensive-steak and smiling right into Jay's camera––a memory that brings a smile to his face:

~ ~ ~

"C'mon! We said Instagram posts would be a part of the deal! How else can we convince people we're dating?" A pout rests on Jay's face as he stares at you from across the table in the middle of the extravagantly decorated restaurant he picked out for your second date. You remember your eyes bulging out of their own sockets when you saw the "$$$$$" rating Yelp gave the place when you searched it up earlier.

"Okay, okay! One picture," you give in, already slightly annoyed that you were here instead of the comfort of your own bed, where you could be rewatching your favorite Netflix show for the third time. But because you made a deal and because you're desperate for money, you had to follow through––so here you were.

You flash an unconvincing smile to Jay's camera, which doesn't satisfy him, to say the least. "At least pretend you're somewhat enjoying this date," he frowns at you.

You sigh, until a thought crosses your mind and a smile grows on your face. "Only if you get me boba afterwards."

He narrows his eyes at you, but then meets your smile. "Sure, whatever you want. But only because I've been craving some mango milk tea lately."

"You're a fruit milk tea kind of guy? Sorry, but I might have to fake break-up with you," you tease as you take a sip of your overpriced drink to go with your overpriced meal.

Jay scoffs, feigning hurt by placing his hand over his heart. "Ouch. But before you break up with me, let me get this Instagram post in."

"Wow. Your priorities are so straight," you roll your eyes at him, eliciting a cheeky smile from him as he watches you through his held up phone screen.

"3,2,1."

"Hey, I wasn't ready! That was like mid-laugh!" You reach over the table to grab the phone, but not quick enough for him to put his phone back into his pants' pocket.

"Nope, nuh uh," he laughs as you quickly sit back down into your seat, not wanting to cause a scene in an establishment as proper as this one.

"It's fine. It's a good picture, you look cute," he casually lets out, unaware of the blush rising to the surface of your cheeks, thanks to the fact that you were suddenly interested in playing with the left-over food on your plate.

"Jay! Delete it, I'll let you take another one," you whine from your seat, imagining just how bad a candid picture of you could be.

"Ugh, fine. Ever so picky." He playfully rolls his eyes at you as he takes his phone out and opens the camera app as you prepare yourself.

"Okay, how's this?" Jay turns the phone screen to you after he takes a few snaps on his phone.

"I approve," you grin at him as he goes through the pictures himself, unaware of the smile growing on his face.

"Okay now delete the first one," you point your finger at him, narrowing your eyes at him.

"Okay, okay! Bossy," he laughs as he raises in hands in surrender.

When Jay gets home that night, he recovers the image from his Recently Deleted folder, telling himself it's for the sake of the memory.

Obviously.

~ ~ ~

"It's not that big of a deal," Jay mutters from his spot as his eyes go from the Instagram post to his Exile and Belonging in Modern Literature reading that's due tomorrow, bright yellow highlighter in hand. Typically, you'd find the reading buried deep at the bottom of his school backpack. But because Jay ran into you this morning and because he complained to you about the amount of work he's fallen behind on and because you had threatened him to do his work or else you're not going on another date––a fake date that is––with him, he figured he should at least get one reading done and annotated, despite his strong dislike for highlighters (they hurt his eyes, okay?)

What he doesn't know, however, is how your threat was completely full of bluff––but don't tell him that.

"It is so a big deal, for you at least!" Jake hops off the bed and lands on the wooden floors of Jay's dorm room so hard, Jay winces and sends a mental apology to the poor person who lives below him.

Jake suddenly gasps. "I have to meet her, Jay! As your best friend, it's practically mandatory that I meet her."

Jay opens his mouth to protest, but not before Jake interrupts him once again. "Oh! We can bring Sunghoon too, it'll be so fun! The best friends meet the girlfriend."

Jay can't think of anything worst. Jay imagines that bringing you to meet his best friends would just intimidate you out of dating him––fake dating him, that is. Obviously.

He stares at his friend in agony then back at the reading in front of him––the one Jake said he'd come over to help annotate, but the intention completely left Jake's head the second he heard about Jay's recent dating life.

"You don't have to meet her," Jay says pointedly. "Plus, you already know her."

Jake frowns at his friend's excuse. "Yeah, but that was in middle school! This is different."

Jay's hands shuffle through the reading's pages in front of him as he realizes there's no way the two of them are going to finish the assignment at this point. He supposes he'll have to save death by blindness from highlighters for another day and hope you still agree to go out with him.

Jake suddenly gasps in realization.

"Oh my gosh! Childhood best friends turned college sweethearts," Jake says so dreamily, he might as well plaster heart eyes on. Hopeless romantic, this one.

Before Jay can argue, the piercing sound of three loud knocks echo through the small room, followed with a:

"Jay, are you in? It's me!"

Jay stills at the sound of your sweet voice. He whips his head to Jake, who is also frozen in place.

But the widened-eye boy is quick to come to his senses––unfortunately quicker than Jay himself––because the next thing Jay knows, Jake's eyes are lighting up and he's running to the door, ignoring Jay's screaming whispers through this seething teeth that were somewhere along the lines of Jake––stop, I swear to god if you open that door I'm gonna fucking--

"Y/N!" Jake swings the door wide open, revealing an overly excited him and a frozen Jay half-way to the door, as if he was about to grab the very boy welcoming you in. It's as if we're living in a Sims game and the player clicked pause on this very moment.

Jake's eyes are wildly going back and forth between you and your supposed boyfriend, as if he was waiting for Jay to run over and smother you in hugs and kisses...or something couple-y like that. Jay wouldn't know.

"Uh––hi," you're awkwardly standing inside the room now, a relatively large paper brown bag resting in your palms as you look around for a surface to place it on. Jay makes his way to you without a second thought, quickly taking the bag out of your hold.

"You seemed stressed out earlier, so I figured I could bring you some food as a little pick me up. I didn't know what you liked, so I kinda just got a little of everything from the dining hall. Nothing fancy," you're rambling, but smiling so excitedly at him, Jay doesn't know what to say.

Instead, his mouth slightly drops open as he stares at you in awe, mostly because he's not used to being on the receiving end of such spontaneously generous actions––all while Jake's still excitedly looking back and forth between the two of you, as if he was expecting a marriage proposal to come next.

"Oh wow. Thank you. Really," Jay, still touched by your simple act of kindness, softly says as he places the bag on the limited amount of empty space on his desk surface––the rest of it is covered with his untouched textbooks and unfinished assignments. He wonders if you did this out of playing your role or just because you wanted to. He internally hopes it's the latter. "Seriously, you didn't have to do."

"Nah, don't worry. I wanted to," you shrug with such a genuine smile that Jay realizes he actually missed your smile.

Despite having seen you during your brief run-in this morning when you were fetching your morning coffee, Jay realizes he missed you. The two of you haven't been seeing each other recently because of your busy schedule and if Jay didn't realize it before, he's now sure he missed your company and presence around.

Weird.

"Well, you two have fun! Sunghoon needs me for something," Jake suddenly chirps from his place near the front door, halfway through with putting his shoes on already, breaking the comforting silence that fell between the two of you.

Jay frowns. "But you said you were free all da––"

"SUNGHOON IS CALLING BYE!" And before Jay can even register what's happening, Jake's out the door without another word.

"Er..sorry about him, he's...weird," Jay scratches the back of his neck as he returns to his spot on his bed, mentally setting a reminder to yell at Jake later for leaving the two of you alone. Jay doesn't know exactly why, but he's nervous at the fact that you're here in his room. It's not like you two are complete strangers––or whatever you guys were before––anymore. "Good job on your part, though. How'd you know Jake was here?"

"Oh uh, I didn't"," you let out an awkward laugh. "I just felt like doing it."

Heat rushes to Jay's cheeks and he's not sure 1) what this newfound feeling is and 2) how to respond, yet again.

Having expecting you to leave after dropping the food off, Jay's taken by surprise when you take your shoes off and come over to his bed to look at the pile of work he's spread out.

"Is this everything you have to do?" You question the stressed-out boy as you flip through the various assignments, readings, and essays he put off in the past week.

"More or less," he groans. This is no rare occurrence by any means––Jay being behind in his work––but this time, Jay realizes he may actually be in deep shit, considering he has no idea where to begin.

Right as Jay's expecting a scolding from you, he looks up to meet a look of sympathy on your face. "Well, I mean, I'm pretty much done with my day. I can try to help, I recognize some of these readings from last semester."

Jay thinks to himself that the universe has sent him an angel through the form of you.

"Really? Wow, you were't kidding when you said you'd be a good girlfriend," he sends you a surprised look.

"I'm just being nice, Jay. A concept I'm sure you're not familiar with," you remark back at him, causing his forming smile to grow into a laugh.

"I can too be nice! Need I remind you of who's paying you $500, covering all of our dates AND giving you rides to class everyday?" He remarks pointedly at you, a teasing look resting in his eyes as you're reminded of the first of many times he's come to pick you up before class:

~ ~ ~

You're late.

This never happens.

But then again, your life's been a series of unexpected occurrences lately. Such as the fact that you're currently known as Jay Park's girlfriend, for one.

You're scrambling out of bed once you take one look at your phone and realize shit, you're already late for class. Throwing on whatever articles of clothing your eyes land on first, you're already mentally groaning at the fact that you'll have to skip breakfast and run across your campus to get to said class.

Curse your professor for hosting her lecture at the furthest possible building away from your dorm. Curse the architect who decided to make your campus so large.

You're running down the steps outside of your dorm building's doors when you're abruptly stopped by a familiar sounding cough. You look up from trying to gather all your belongings together at once to meet the gaze of the source of the sound––Jay.

"Wow, you're a mess," he smirks as he gets up from the spot on his car he was leaning against to make his way over to you.

"Gee, thanks! Good morning to you too," you flash him a sarcastic smile before your default frown quickly makes it way back onto your face.

"Aren't you gonna ask me why I'm here?" He grins as he grabs hold of your backpack to sling it across his own back as the two of you walk towards his car.

"Why are you here, Jay?" you sigh, your sarcastic tone hard to miss.

"To give you a ride to class, of course!" He's beaming at you, as if he's a pre-pubescent teen who just won their first girlfriend a prize from the arcade's claw machine.

Oh. That explains the car, you figure. Deep down inside, you're relieved that you'll no longer be bursting through the lecture hall's doors as a sweaty mess––a result of having to run across campus to get to class.

Determined to not let your satisfaction completely show, you resort with a little smile directed towards Jay as he opens the passenger door for you.

The second your enter Jay's car, the strong scent of coffee hits you, and your attention is targeted at the two small cups of coffee sitting in the cupholders of the car.

"Breakfast?" Jay asks as he enters through the driver's side and reaches into the backseat to whip out a small pastry bag. A small, deliciously smelling, pastry bag.

Okay, well. You suppose you could drop the annoyed act now.

Your eyes widen with joy as you grab the bag from him and open it to reveal your favorite breakfast sandwich. He's been taking notes, you'll give him that point.

"Okay, you win. Thank you," you grace him with a soft smile before taking a bite into the glorious gift in your hands.

"Of course, I was just feeling nice," he grins at you as he starts his car. "But don't get used to it." His tone is serious, but his smile directed towards you says differently.

And the fact that he still showed up to drive you to class the next morning.

And the next.

~ ~ ~

"And need I remind you who has to date your dumb ass for the $500 in question?" Your eyes narrow at the boy who can't seem to get that damn smile off his face.

Jay sticks his tongue out at you, ending the conversation. Really Jay? What are you, five? Well, mentally––probably.

You're looking around his minuscule dorm room for a place to sit down, and Jay can't help but feel embarrassed now that you're here, in his messy single studio room that pretty much reflects how Jay treats every other responsibility of his oh so hard life: neglected.

"Uh...here, you can sit on my bed," Jay immediately offers as he moves to the side to make room for your presence––and it isn't much, considering the university only provided him a twin XL bed which is definitely not built for two grown college-aged kids.

If you told yourself a few weeks ago that you'd be shoulder to shoulder on a bed belonging to the guy you cringed at the very thought of, you wouldn't have believed yourself. You wouldn't have believed yourself if you said you were actually glad Jay let you stay instead of kicking you out after delivering the food. Huh.

Weird.

"You know, this kinda reminds me of when we were kids. I always carried us through those horrible multiplication tests in the fifth grade," you wink at him as you settle in the spot next to him, hands grabbing hold of the papers in his lap.

Jay let out a laugh, nudging your shoulder with his. "Hey! The twelve times table is hard, okay?"

You roll your eyes at him––a habit of yours he's noticed whenever the two of you are together, but more recently, he thinks it's been more out of fun than annoyance.

He wonders why.

When Jay had first brought up the idea of bringing you as his date to his father's company dinner, you had expected a fairly fancy five-star restaurant with a formal dress code––for you've become accustomed to Jay's lifestyle. Turns out, your expectations can continue to be exceeded. Because what you had expected to be a simple dinner with a few other business men and women turned out to be an entire party, hosted in a hotel whose interior resembled something close to a castle (Or what you assume a castle looks like, as you've never personally been into a castle yourself, but this hotel is close enough).

Your eyes sparkle at the extravagant columns and diamond chandeliers hanging high above you, and Jay smiles at the expression on your face; like a little girl being brought to the amusement park for the first time ever.

"Wow, this is...wow," you mutter as you drink in the scene in front of you: people dressed in formal attire likewise to yours and Jay's, mingling and drinking what you imagine to be beverages that cost more than your entire life's worth.

Jay laughs from behind you, "Yeah the company goes a little...extra when it comes to these company dinners."

You scoff as you look up at him. "Oh really, you don't say?" You look around and you're suddenly aware of the many people surrounding the two of you and the attention you've acquired ever since entering the building.

"Jay, people are staring." You shuffle closer to him, your voice lowering down to a whisper.

"Well, it's not everyday the son of the company's CEO brings his girlfriend with him, so...looks like we'll be the talk of the party tonight. Smiles on," he winks at you, and you just know he's loving the attention the two of you are receiving right now.

"Jay Park? Is that you?" You hear a warm voice call out from behind the two of you.

The two of you turn around to meet the owner of the voice, a middle-aged woman dressed in an evening gown that matches the pattern of high-end brands you've been recognizing ever since arriving.

"Mrs. Lee! It's so nice seeing you again," Jay cheerily addresses the woman as the two of you bow in greeting.

You internally giggle at the thought of your Jay being so picture-perfect in the eyes of his father's co-workers.

"This is Y/N," he continues, his hand finding its way to your back, protectively resting it there as you go to introduce yourself. "My girlfriend."

You swear you feel goosebumps rise from where he's lightly touching you, and more so when he introduces you as his girlfriend.

You tell yourself it's just your nerves. Yes, that's it, you're just nervous. I mean, you're in a room filled with people who could easily pay off all your college loans with just a snap of their fingers, who wouldn't be nervous? Right? Right.

"Y/N! It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I've heard so much about you!" Mrs. Lee excitedly exclaims as you turn to Jay with a slightly confused look plastered on your face. He mirrors your expression as he shrugs, moving to stand behind you completely, bringing his hands to rest lowly at your hips.

His hands feel like feathers on the thin fabric of your evening gown, so light, so delicate, as if he's unsure if he's crossing a line. It leaves you wanting more, wanting to naturally lean against him and his warmth. You quick to shake the thought of your head as Mrs. Lee chirps up again.

"Jay's father is always talking about how you've been keeping Jay pleasantly busy nowadays! Good thing too, about time this poor boy settle down for someone as beautiful as you," the woman rambles on as you feel a blush creep up on your cheeks at the thought of Jay talking about you to his dad. If only they knew.

"We should probably go find our seats, I think the dinner is beginning soon," Jay says from behind you, saving the two of you from having to listen to Mrs. Lee's story of how she's known Jay ever since he was five years old and seeing him grow into this mature, loving, young man is so amazing. Oh look! I have baby pictures.

Yeah, he was more so saving himself from embarrassment.

The two of you bid your goodbyes before Jay gently uses the hand on your back to maneuver you through the crowd of socializing business moguls.

"She's not wrong, you know," you feel Jay dip his head so he's speaking near your ear, his warm breath tickling your earlobe, as the two of you make your way through the large foyer room.

"Hm?" You hum in question, turning your head up just enough to be able to make eye contact with him as he responds to your look of confusion.

"You look beautiful tonight," he says, eye contact not breaking once. You freeze in your steps.

You stare back at him in silence. Oh.

Your mind is panicking as it flips through your mental book of responses, unsure of what to say back. But because your mind is cloudy from staring at a put-together Jay in a dark navy suit to match your dress (mixed with the nervous butterflies in your stomach––have they always been there?), the only sound that's able to leave your lips is the small stutter of a:

"Huh?"

Wow Y/N, you had one job. A simple "thank you" could've sufficed! And you went with "Huh"?

You felt like a fifth grader who just learned from a friend of a friend of a friend that their crush likes them back.

"U-um. Mrs. Lee. What she said about you. You look good, really," somehow your nervousness made its way over to Jay now––his eyes flickering from yours to anywhere, anything, else in the room––the awkward tension growing tenfold each second.

Goddamnit Y/N, this is just Jay you're talking to, get a grip.

You're knocked back into reality when he slightly nudges your back to continue making your way to the main ball room, where the dinner is being held.

"Is that a compliment from the Jay Park?" Your smirk can't be seen by Jay, since he's still trailing behind you, but he can definitely hear it through your tone.

"Don't make me take it back," he chuckles, his words felt against your neck, leaving behind a tingly sensation you're not sure why you're feeling. You're glad he's behind you, so he isn't able to see the blush creeping onto your face for the second time tonight.

Jay gives a small nod to the people behind the check-in desk stationed at the entrance as the two of you waltz right into a large ball room lined with countless circular dining tables. So much for a small business dinner.

As the two of you approach one of the tables placed at the front of the room, you notice a familiar figure seated next to the seats reserved for you and Jay.

"Y/N!" Jake exclaims as he gets up from his seat to greet the both of you. "I'm so glad you made it, Jay was so excited to bring you tonight. Deadass would not stop talking about it."

Jay lets out a noise that falls somewhere between a cough and a goose being strangled, his widened eyes warning his talkative friend to just shut up. He's silently cursing the company for always seating his and Jake's family at the same table for these events.

"Aw, is that so? He's lucky he's cute or else I wouldn't have agreed," you grin, winking at your assumed boyfriend sitting next to you.

"Hey, YOU were the one excited to come! I recall a certain someone's face lighting up when I suggested we go shopping for tonight," Jay immediately retorts.

"Only because you were buying," you giggle, causing Jake to laugh as well.

"Damn, Jay. Tough," Jake jokingly adds as you laugh alongside him. The scowl sitting on Jay's face expresses the opposite of what he's feeling right now: warmth filling him up from the sound of your laughter and the image of you getting along so well with his best friend.

"I'm gonna get us some drinks, you two have fun making fun of me," Jay narrows his eyes at the two of you as he gets up from his seat. You bid him off with a smile before turning back to Jake.

"No but really though, this boy would not stop talking about you coming tonight. Then again, he doesn't really ever stop talking about you," Jake nonchalantly says, not knowing how much he was exposing his friend to you right now.

You raise an eyebrow up in response, "Oh really?"

"Seriously! I don't know what you did to him, Y/N, but this Jay I've been seeing recently is new. He complains a lot less about life nowadays, especially on the days he sees you," he leans back in his chair as his comment brings a smile to your face. Little does he know.

You stretch your neck up to find the boy in question and spot him right as he's returning to your shared table, two drinks in hand. You lock eyes with him from across the room and without a second thought, you're giving him a genuine smile that he's immediately returning.

Your heart beats faster at the view.

You wonder why.

It's 3:07AM when you hear the first ding.

You're not 100% sure as of why you're awake at this hour on a Tuesday night––perhaps a combination of your restless thoughts and feelings not letting you sleep plus the typical stress that comes hand-in-hand with the life of a college student.

It's 3:09AM when you hear the second ding, and you brush it off, assuming it was just Heeseung spamming you with memes again––something he does often when he also can't sleep (you found this out the hard way).

It's still 3:09AM when you hear the third ding, and at 3:10AM , you finally reach over and decide to acknowledge the being who's bothering you at this godforsaken hour.

Jay [3:07AM]: Y/N

Jay [3:09AM]: hi

Jay [3:09AM]: r u awake rn

Y/N [3:10AM]: unfortunately so

Y/N [3:11AM]: why are you up

Jay [3:11AM]: come outside

Y/N [3:13AM: jay it's 3am

Jay [3:13AM]: ye and? don't tell me ur a college student with a curfew

Jay [3:14AM]: plus im alrdy waiting for u outside so u have no choice

Jay [3:15AM]: :)

You groan at your bright phone screen currently illuminating your dark dorm room.

You ponder the consequences you may have to suffer tomorrow if you stay up any later than you already have. But considering the fact that you're probably just going to stay awake lying in bed for god knows how long anyways, why not?

(And you would like to point out that this decision has nothing to do with the fact that you haven't seen Jay in a few days and that maybe a tiny, tiny, tiny, part of you may have missed his presence. Nothing.)

And since that logic is obviously valid (you really gotta work on justifying your life choices), you're suddenly grabbing a hoodie from your closet and hoping it'll be enough to keep you, who's merely in an old band t-shirt from high-school and pajama shorts, warm.

The breeze hits your skin the second you open the doors to your dorm's building, and you're met with the view of Jay's sleek, black BMW that probably costs more than your tuition. He waves at you from the driver's seat, motioning for you to get in.

"To what do I owe you the pleasure at this hour," you deadpan at him with a stone-cold voice as you enter through the passenger's side door, hoping your tone was enough to hide the fact that you're giddy at the fact he invited you out at 3AM in the morning. Like a high-school girl sneaking out of her house to meet up with her bad-boy boyfriend that her parents dislike.

The second you enter his car, you're instantly comforted by the warm air blasting through his vents and his playlist softly playing in the background. Jay's pajama pants and messy hair give you more than enough information to know that he probably just rolled out of his own bed as well. You don't know why, but your view: Jay in his oversized hoodie with his unkept hair in front of your dorm building at 3AM on a Tuesday night, gives you comfort in weird ways you can't explain even if you tried.

But it's obviously just your cloudy, 3AM mind not thinking straight. Obviously.

"When I can't sleep, I go on drives around campus. It helps clear my mind," he says, looking over at you to give you a quick smile before starting his car. "Plus, SnapMap said you were still awake, so...figured you'd wanna join."

"Oh so what, you're my stalker now? You're not driving to the woods to kill me now, are you?" You tease, an eyebrow brought up. Jay lets out a laugh from beside you as he begins to drive further into your campus.

"Guess you'll just have to wait and see," he throws you a wink before reverting his gaze back to the road, mindlessly driving to wherever the road decides to take him.

A comfortable silence falls in between the two of you as Jay continues to drive endless routes around your campus. You look over to the boy driving next to you and take in his features––you don't know what changed, but you no longer feel the same anger or annoyance bubbling within you when you're around him. You're not sure when this changed, but you figure it's just the effect of desensitization. After all, you've been spending so much time with him, you're bound to get used to it. Right?

"Why were you up?" Jay finally asks after a few minutes of just the two of you silently basking in each other's presences.

"Ah, you know. The usual. Endless thoughts running through my mind, stress from school, nothing new," you sign, giving him a soft smile followed with a shrug.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

You answer him with silence as you search your head for the answer.

"I don't know. This is kinda weird, isn't it?" You don't know why you get a sudden surge of confidence, but before you can stop yourself, you find yourself rambling on. "If you had told me a month ago that I'd be here driving around with you when it's nearly 4AM, I would've laughed in your face."

Jay doesn't know whether to laugh or scoff. "Is the idea of hanging out with me that unappealing to you?"

You give him a serious look back. "I mean, up until a month ago when you needed me for whatever this game is, you literally pretended I didn't exist."

Oh. Awkward.

You freeze at your own words, mentally screaming at yourself for letting the words leave your mouth. Why, why, why.

"Y/N..." Jay says after clearing his throat after a few seconds of silence.

"No it's fine, it was a joke," you awkwardly cough and direct your attention to anything else around you right now. The view of your campus' buildings zooming by. The clicking of Jay's blinker when he switches lanes. The quiet roaring of his car's engine. The nervous tapping of his fingers against the steering wheel.

The rest of the ride is excruciatingly silent as he exits the main road and into an empty parking lot of some administration building made out of glass that has too many floors for you to count.

You don't know why you feel your heart beating in your throat as Jay puts the car into park––why you feel uneasy. You slightly turn towards him in your seat, hoping to pick up any sign of well...anything from him.

You don't know why you feel a twinge of guilt––it's not like what you said was necessarily wrong. If you were being honest, you were slightly bothered by how the two of you seemed to silently agree not to mention your past all this time. You were always one to seek answers, to seek closure. You couldn't help but bring it up––Jay was your best friend during those years. For him to just wake up one day and pretend you were nothing to him hurt you, and you couldn't help but still wonder what in the world you did to initiate his actions.

"I'm sor–" You're interrupted with his timid voice, as if he was almost afraid to speak.

"I'm not good with people." He's nibbling on his bottom lip, fingers nervously picking at a spot on the steering wheel.

You're opening and closing your mouth, unsure how to respond. You're 100% positive you look like a fish right now. Good for you.

"I don't know why. Jake calls it commitment issues but in order to have commitment, people have to stay in my life. And people just...don't. They're all bound to leave at some point. So what's the point of putting in effort into relationships if they're just going to leave you at the end?"

You're stunned by his sudden confession, not having been prepared for such a heavy topic to arise between the two of you. Up until tonight, your interactions had always been light-hearted and easy––you guys got along well. You didn't know this is how he felt all along.

But you knew where he was coming from.

You knew what Jay had gone through as a child––his mother having left him and his dad when he was young. You remember when your parents had told you the news at the young age of 13, and you remember the pain and sorrow you felt for your then friend. All you wanted to do was go to him and comfort him, but he had already cut you out from his life by then.

"Or maybe I'm the problem. My dad barely acknowledges my existence because he thinks giving me an allowance is all the parenting I need, my friends probably only stick around because they feel bad for me, you wouldn't even be here if it weren't for the bet, and, fuck, I'm literally known as the campus' fuckboy," Jay continues, falling deeper and deeper into the hole he dug himself.

He hates this, he hates opening up and feeling vulnerable, so he doesn't know why he's doing it now. He doesn't know why he feels comfortable voicing out his fears and worries when he's around you. But he does know it's a new feeling––one he doesn't know how to deal with.

"Jay," you lace your voice with as much comfort as you can provide. None of this is his fault, you want to tell him. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything," he says with a hint of bitterness and you can't tell if it's directed towards you or the topic at hand.

You're completely turned in your seat now to face him––despite the fact that he refuses to meet your gaze, afraid that looking at you is gonna bring out the most vulnerable in him. "You can talk to me. Talking about it makes it a lot easier. I'll always be here for you, as a friend."

Jay doesn't know what it is or why, but something in him snaps at the sound of a certain word falling out of your lips. Friend. Friend.

Friends don't make his heart beat nervously whenever he's around them. Friends don't keep him up at 3AM in the morning, pondering about his feelings for them. Friends don't provide him with this new, warm comfort he's become accustomed to whenever he's around you.

Deep down, Jay knows you didn't mean to add fuel to the fire. But because he's strong-headed, stubborn, and hates how vulnerable he feels next to you, he unleashes his emotions without thinking about the destruction coming along.

"It's none of your business, Y/N. Forget I said anything. You're just a toy for this stupid game and when it's all over we can go back to our own lives and forget this ever happened."

His sudden words cut deep, but they hurt him more than you. The second the words tumble out of his mouth, he's hit with the feeling of instant regret washing over him, and the lump forming in his throat restricts him from finding the right words to take them back.

The silence that falls between the two of you this time is different. It's a cold silence. A loud silence.

Jay feels his walls coming back up around him––the ones you managed to get through––and all he wants to do is apologize but he's terrified. Terrified of seeing your reaction, terrified of losing you again. For the second time.

You tell yourself he doesn't mean it. You tell yourself that he's just enduring more pain that one should ever receive.

But you also tell yourself that this wouldn't be the first time Jay leaves you in the dust.

You tell yourself that you're foolish for ever believing a friendship, or more, could come out of this act at the end. That you're so naive for feeling those stupid, stupid butterflies you've started to notice in your stomach whenever you see, or even think of, him.

"Okay," you begin with a firm tone. You're hurt, but you refuse to show it. You won't let him hurt you for a second time. Not again.

"Just...find me when you need me. As your fake girlfriend or just...me. I'm still here for you," is the last thing you say before un-clicking your seatbelt and leaving his car, beginning your walk back to your dorm hall.

Jay is unsure about many things in life. He's unsure about what he wants to do in the future, he's unsure of where he's going to settle in life, heck, he's unsure about what to have for lunch tomorrow. But he's sure about one thing.

That he's wearing his heart on his sleeve right now, and it's all because of you.

That you've become this new lifeline and he has to choose between holding onto you or drowning.

When Jay wakes up the next morning, his first gut instinct is to get ready to pick you up for class. But today's different. Jay doesn't know where the two of you stand now, especially after last night.

Jay doesn't know how to deal with this combination of unknown emotions he's been feeling lately. They didn't come out of no where, by any means, he realizes. They've been slowly growing over the past month of seeing you so often––like a plant he's been watering overtime, not expecting it to bloom into a flower so suddenly––but he figured it was nothing more than just enjoying the company of a friend.

Until he realizes that the term friend just doesn't suite you anymore––not to him, at least. And that scares him. It scares him that you've made him genuinely smile more in this past month than he ever has in his 19 years of living. It scares him that when he's around you he can't comprehend his own thoughts, his feelings. It scares him that you make him vulnerable, that you've changed him. That you've managed to make the walls that he's spent so long building and polishing to crumble with a simple tap of your finger.

In a perfect world, Jay would have already told you all this––he would be unafraid of how you would react, unafraid of your rejection, unafraid of losing this growing relationship with you. But alas, we don't live in a perfect world. And so when Jay drives to class that day, he drives right past your dorm building.

"Where's Y/N?" is the first thing Jake questions when he enters Jay's car that morning, confused by your absence, having been used to you being in the front seat every morning when Jay goes to give Jake rides to class as well.

"I don't know," Jay mutters, unemotional eyes focused on the road in front of him, not interested in continuing a conversation that involves thinking about you.

Jake hesitates as curiosity gets the best of him. "Did you guys get into a fight or something?"

Jay's hands tighten around the steering wheel of his car. "Or something. Let's just leave it at that."

There are a few beats of silence before Jake speaks up again.

"Well, I guess this works out because I wanted to talk to you about something."

Jay continues to stare straight ahead of him, focusing on just trying to get by without mentally beating himself up at the simple thought of you.

The simple thought of you and your smile. Your witty remarks. Your stupid eye rolls. Your laughter. Your kindness. So much for not thinking about you.

"I'm calling it off," Jake's words catch Jay off guard.

"Huh? Calling what off?"

"The bet. I'm calling it off. I don't care about the textbook fees I'll have to pay next semester. Look, fight or not, you and Y/N are good for each other, everyone can see it. And I really don't want this to end up being one of those messed up teen TV shows where the girlfriend finds out the entire relationship was based off of a stupid game and then they break up and the boyfriend falls into eternal sadness and regret. And I don't wanna see you sad, dude. So yeah! Congrats," although he's admitting defeat, Jake's beaming widely, just content with the fact that his best friend has finally found happiness through the form of you. "You win."

But Jay feels like the opposite of a winner. Because even though his only intention coming into this was simply winning the bet, his life isn't as simple as it was a month ago. Because he discovered something much more valuable than some stupid textbook fees or five hundred dollars or getting his physics homework done for an entire semester.

Something he's scared he's already lost.

You.

⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺

The next time you see Jay is at the same time and place as when he first ever appeared to pick you up––at 12:17PM on a Friday afternoon, as you're exiting the doors of the lecture building home to your awfully long Capitalism in World History class. This time, however it's different.

Because this time, it's one month later, and Jay Park is no longer a forgotten side character in the story of your life. This time, you're frustrated because it's been three days since you've last heard from Jay. And because it's been three days since you've last heard from him, you can't focus on anything else, and because you can't focus on anything else, you're falling behind on every other aspect in your life. Jay's somehow managed to become the center of your life without even having to be present.

Well, up until now. Up until you go down the steps of your lecture hall's entrance and look up to be met with a figure leaning on a car you're far too familiar with. You freeze in your steps as you make eye contact with the boy you've been thinking about non-stop for the past month three days.

Your mind tells you to walk away, to just follow your flight instinct instead of fight, to just go back to your normal life. But here's the thing. Ever since Jay's made his way back to your life, it's been far from normal.

And if you're being honest, you had no interest in going back to your normal life. Normal's overrated anyways. You find your legs bringing yourself over to him, your heart leading the way.

"Hi," you simply say, planting yourself right in front of him.

"Hi."

"What are you doing here?" You already know the answer, but you want to hear him say it.

"Waiting for you," Jay doesn't hesitate in answering you. This time will be different, he tells himself.

"I can walk myself home, thanks," you state, but your actions tell differently, as you make no sign of moving from your spot in front of him.

Jay's mind contemplates telling you everything. About how he regrets that friendship-breaking decision he made that one fateful day in the eighth grade, about his true feelings, about how he first suspected these feelings when he was 11 years old and saw you in your fancy get-up for the sixth grade dance but put it off as a little crush, and about how the same feelings grew into something so, so much more in the present. But seeing that putting all these thoughts into words would involve more than one functioning brain cell (which is all he's convinced he has in the moment, for the view of you staring up at him, looking like that, has his brain short-circuiting), he settles with:

"He called it off. It's over. The bet."

"Oh."

Silence.

Okay, Jay. This is your chance. Say it.

"Is that it?" You lift an eyebrow, awaiting for more explanation. When it doesn't come, you slightly nod and start backing away. "I'll see you around then."

Is that it? Do the two of you just go back to your respective lives now? How can Jay do that, when he doesn't even recall what his life was like before you entered it––and especially when he has absolutely no interest in going back to that life?

Fuck it.

"Y/N!" He stands up straight, a newfound confidence taking over. This time will be different, he tells himself. Because now, he knows what he wants. For sure.

You turn towards him, to see him already making his way towards you, stopping in his steps when he finds himself close enough to you that he can't concentrate anymore.

"I'm sorry for ditching you in the eighth grade. I'm sorry for ignoring you since then. I'm sorry for dragging you into this stupid mess and for pushing you away and I'm sorry for calling you a toy. Because it's far from truth. I like you. A lot. And––and I'm scared. I'm scared of what this means for us, because I just keep messing things up and all I know is that I don't wanna wake up tomorrow and realize you're not in my life anymore and––"

"Woah, woah, Jay. Slow down," you look up at him, the corners of your lips threatening to curve up into a smile. "You're an idiot, you know."

Jay's never really confessed his feelings to anyone before, per say, so he doesn't really know what to expect. But he's watched enough Netflix rom-coms in this lifetime (which is still not that many) to know that hearing the words "you're an idiot" isn't what you're supposed to hear after pouring your heart and soul out. Surely not, right?

"I––I'm not sure how to respond to that," he quietly says, searching your eyes for a sign, for anything. You giggle at his sudden shyness as you grab both his arms and look at him right in the eyes.

"It's okay. I get it, if anything, I'm also scared. But you somehow got me wrapped around your stupid finger, and I hate it," you smirk at him, your hands slowly making their way up his arms to circle around his neck.

Jay's hands naturally fall at your waist as he lets out a breathe he didn't even know he was holding as he returns your smirk. "Well, I could say the same about you. And I also hate it, for your information."

"Hmm, is that so? I guess it cancels out then, right?" You smile at him as he's pulling you in so close, your head turns cloudy.

Jay grins at you, his eyes holding so much joy and endearment as they quickly flicker down to your lips before returning to your own eyes. "I guess this only means one thing then."

"Mm, and what's that?"

And before Jay can answer––and because your life's been anything but normal lately––you make the first move this time, moving your head up to close the small gap between the two of you.

His arms instinctively tighten around you as you capture his lips with your very own, and Jay swears he's about to lift off into space right now. He's on cloud nine, and he makes no plans to touch the ground ever again.

The kiss quickly becomes fervent, all the pent-up tension that the two of you had for one another finally finding its way out, all the words that were previously left unsaid finally expressing themselves. You don't even care if you're being judged by the conservative faculty members of your school right now, or by the looks of fellow students walking past the two of you.

You try your best to keep yourself from smiling as he continues to press his lips against yours, his hand moving to hold your chin, guiding your mouth with his.

Before you find yourself getting carried away, you step back to take a breath, resting your forehead against his chest as his hands rest against your back. He smiles at the sound of you giggling against him.

Jay takes a step back to take one look at you and realizes, in this moment, that change can be good. And he's willing to undergo this change. As long as it's with you.

⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺ ⸺

The next morning, you bounce down the steps of your dorm building's entrance to meet the wide, bright smile of your ex-childhood-bestfriend-turned-fake-boyfriend-turned-real-boyfriend waiting for you in front of his car, small pastry bag in hand. You smile back at him.

Jay drives you to class that day.

And everyday after that.

. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : – ⭒ ⊹ ⭒ – : ✧ : -˚̣⋅ .. ⋅ ˚̣- : ✧ : – ⭒ ⊹ ⭒ – : ✧ :

✰ let me know what you think! if u made it til the end, mwah :') <3

#finally finally finally #im so sorry this took so long #anyways #enhypen #enhypen imagines #enhypen fics #enhypen scenarios #enhypen oneshots #enhypen jay #jaypark #enhypen jay park #park jongseong #jay park #enhypen fluff #enhypen angst #enhypen x reader #enhypen jay fluff #enhypen jay angst #enhypen jay fic #jay park x reader #enhypen jay imagine #enhypen jay oneshot #jay fluff #jay park fluff #iland #iland jay park #iland jay #iland imagines #jay #kpop

[ramblingandwritings]

Purchase Receipts and Neighborly Hatred

Harley Quinn x reader smut. 18+ for filth

Here's the entire paper thin plot. Harley comes home from the store and you have kinda kinky, kinda goofy sex with your girlfriend. Congratulations. This is lighthearted and the reader is gender neutral

You heard the door to your apartment slam as Harley excitedly ran in with bags. You were just sitting on the couch watching her as she quickly set the bags down on the coffee table in front of you.

You recognized that the bags were from a local sex shop before she opened her mouth. "So, I got some things that we've been talking about." She lightly gestured at the bags before she started pulling items out. "I got us extra lube, the good stuff too not that Astroglide cheap shit. A couple new buttplugs, they had cute gems on them and I couldn't resist. Some rope for the real fun stuff, sugar! And lastly these!" She just dumped the remaining toys out onto the table. There was vibrators and dildos of all shapes and sizes ranging from bullet to hole wrecker.

You just looked them over before looking at Harley's excited face. "Whaddya think, honeybun? I think we should put them to good use."

She moved towards you before straddling your lap. You started to open your mouth but she cut you off with one whiny drawn out please, she was giving you puppy dog eyes as if you needed convincing. "I wasn't even going to say no, Harley." "Oh thank god, I have been raring to go since I picked these bad boys up." You moved to kiss her and she met you halfway, the kiss turned to a heated makeout session before you could even process it. You pulled back enough to pull her shirt off and unhook her pink bra. You started kissing down her neck, making your way down to her breasts. She let out a breathy moan as you sucked one of her nipples, one of her hands grabbed the back of your neck to pull you away from her. "This feels great but I think we should take this to the bedroom." She stood and grabbed handfuls of stuff from the table before running off to the bedroom like a thief in the night, giggling as she went. When you got to the bedroom, she had already set up a towel and stripped herself naked. She dramatically flung herself onto the bed, causing a couple toys to bounce to the floor. "Oh shit." She grabbed them from her position on the bed before blowing on them. "Five second rule." She confidently stated. You smiled at her antics, never a dull moment with her.

You started to walk over and she opened her legs while her hands went to spread her pussy open, giving you a good look at the wetness dripping from her. "Like whatcha see?" She smiled at you and lightly tapped her clit. You grabbed one of the vibrators and brought it to her lips, she took it in her mouth, getting it nice and wet. When she pulled her mouth off it, you turned it on and went to tease her slick hole.

She let out a moan when you started to press it inside her but before the tip of the toy could fully slip into her, you pulled it back and started rubbing it against her erect clit. You grabbed one of her hands keeping her pussy spread and encouraged her to hold the vibrator while you grabbed the lube and a toy. You slicked up your fingers started playing with her ass, prepping her tight hole for a plug. You heard her gasp as you started pressing the toy into her. You pushed it in til you could only see the the blue gem and her hole clinching around it. "I knew buying that was a good choice." "You actually bought this stuff?" "Shut up, I got a receipt and everything."

You took the vibrator back from her and she whined at the loss as you removed it from her throbbing clit, but her hand immediately went back to holding herself open. "What do you want, Harley?" You saw her pussy twitch, "I want you to fuck my pussy, sugar. Been wanting it all day."

You rubbed it against her before you slipped the vibrating toy into her, the loud swears and moans that came out of her mouth mixed with the slick sounds of you fucking her wet cunt. You could feel her walls gripping the toy and you knew she wouldn't last much longer. You turned the vibrator to a higher setting and stuffed it deep into her hole while you reached for a bullet vibe you two already had. You pressed it to her clit and that's all it took to push her over the edge. Her body shook and she screamed as her pussy gushed, soaking the towel beneath her. You kissed her thighs as she came down from her high, her hole still spasming slightly.

You heard the upstairs neighbor banging on the floor with something and yelling at you two to keep it down. You and Harley shared a look before you both started dying of laughter. She grabbed one of the larger toys and chucked it at the ceiling, it hit with a loud thud and you heard the neighbor scream "Goddamnit!" Harley just started cackling harder. There was probably going to be a passive aggressive note attached to the front door that would no doubt get stuck to the fridge with a novelty magnet right next to the weekly shopping list. "You wanna see if I can get this to stick to the ceiling?" She held a suction cup dildo in her hand, you nodded at her and she threw it at the ceiling. It thumped against the ceiling but still stuck to it. You both cheered, "I didn't think it'd actually work!" "Me either!" Yeah, there was definitely going to be a note

#Harley Quinn x reader #Harley Quinn #NSFT #DC x reader #minors dni

[awed-frog]

what are your views on islam?

Well - I’m still learning, and I don’t claim to be an expert on the subject. But I got interested several years ago, read many books, met a lot Muslims and ex-Muslims and non-Muslims people raised in Muslin countries in my life, and through all that there’s a fairly homogenous picture that emerges.

Let me just start by saying I have nothing against Muslims as people. Religion can play a positive role in a person’s life, and is often understood as a purely cultural phenomenon by many believers. I met Muslims who were perfectly happy to give gifts for Eid and that’s where their faith started and ended, just like it happens for many Christians. I visited a lot of Muslim-majority countries in the 90s and early Noughties and was always welcomed very warmly everywhere. In fact, reading about the recent radicalizations of those countries was one of the things that made me interested in learning more about Islam.

First of all, I think the big difference between Islam and other major world religions is that Islam was deliberately conceived to be a political entity in a way other religions were not. For instance, Judaism is not about conversion or empire-building, and Christianity and Buddhism were founded by two rebels dissatisfied with their own religion who had zero interest in building anything on the ‘reality-based’, politics-heavy side of life. So even if Christianity and Buddhism ultimately became state religions in various countries, they had to be twisted and remolded in order to fit that role. Islam, on the other hand, was created with the explicit purpose of being an all-encompassing state religion, and thanks to many Muslim leaders’ tactical genius, profound devotion and lack of scruples, it was wildly successful in that role. What this means to modern non-Muslim states with sizeable Muslim populations is that there’s a lot of stuff, from bank transactions to shopping, eating, healthcare, legal disputes and work that really pious Muslims need a parallel system for. And obviously the creation of parallel systems within a nation state is something that’s generally not desirable and can cause a lot of trouble down the way.

A second thing about Islam is that it went through the same philosophical arguments Christianity was having in the West, but unfortunately the ‘wrong’ side prevailed - and by that I mean the ‘question nothing, God is always right’ anti-intellectual side. You often hear people wondering why Islamic science and general progress seems to stop after the Middle Ages, and while there’s generally a lot of overt bias, underlying racism and ignorance in the idea, there’s also a basis of truth. By conquering most of the Middle East, the Muslim world found itself inheriting the rich melting pot of cultures and ideas that stretched from Byzantium, through the Persian empire, to and beyond the Indian borders and found its natural heart in the vibrant, multicultural city of Baghdad. Almost immediately, erudite philosophers like Al-Kindi (801–873 AD) started to turn this inheritance into something even richer: he and his disciples, the Mu’tazilites, were arguably the main drivers of the Islamic golden age. They studied and discussed philosophy, medicine and science thanks to books and experts from the four corners of the world, and the Islamic world flourished as a result. But then, in the 10th century, the ongoing theological dispute between the Mu’tazilites and their opponents was finally lost for good: the Mu’tazilites were branded as heretics and hunted down, their works destroyed. Since the other side basically saw no way to reconcile Islam with philosophical enquiry or scientific thinking, those pursuits were mostly abandoned. And that continues in the most extreme currents of Islam today, although their leaders can be very selective in what they do and don’t consider haram (most of them, of course, are perfectly happy to use glasses, modern appliances and the internet).

And a third thing is that a lot of what we now consider as simply ‘Islam’ and defend tooth and nail against Islamophobes was heavily influenced by Saudi Arabia’s extreme version of Islam, which spread like poison over the last 30 or so years through ‘charity’, mosques, carefully trained imams, and ‘schools’, and that’s how countries who’d taken centuries to develop their own version of Islam - which was generally moderate and ‘normal’, and mixed in with other faiths and local pre-Islamic traditions - turned into something that’s barely recognizable - often to the dismay of their own - Muslim - citizens.

As ever, the West and other big powers weren’t much help here, what with colonization, racism, proxy wars, actual wars, their profound and stubborn ignorance of how Islam works and their exploitation of Muslim soldiers in various wars and Muslims workers to do cheap labour in Europe in appalling conditions, but this is not just about the West. There are powerful forces in the Muslim world itself who think there is only one ‘true’ Islam and that Islam can only work as a state religion, and who are deliberately funding a well-oiled machine to brainwash Muslims - and non-Muslims - into believing this. In this sense, the work they do is not that different from how some cults operate, only it’s on a much larger scale. And our governments, through inefficiency, ignorance and greed, are mostly content to let these influences do their job unhindered.

(From feminist Tunisian and Turkish mothers who are appalled by their daughters’ insistence in wearing a veil to old people in Albania tearfully wondering why their sons used their university money to covertly join ISIS and die in Syria, there are a lot of heartbreaking eyewitness accounts who show just how quick this transition was.)

Despite the work of hundreds of moderate imams, activists and philosophers, and despite the desires of a majority of Muslims everywhere, on the whole I’m not optimistic about the future. I think that the most extreme parts of the religion will continue to be preached and to spread, that the Middle East (and the world) will be more unstable and dangerous as a result, and that our politicians will never agree on a way to make any of this better - or even have the will to. 

#ask #islam #history #religion #religious extremism #islamic terrorism #saudi arabia #i mean all that money #and not a single decent university #that's why #they don't care

[troublesometrollhunters]

(I'm new to the whole ask thing- usually just read-) but; imagine for reader being a witch, douxie and her falling in love-?

You meet at Zoes music shop.

It's a chilly day so you dove inside a store for shelter or maybe just something to do. You're looking through some cheap records for fun with a scarf wrapped tight around your neck and he's never seen you before so he's curious. Not wanting to appear creepy he slowly approaches to see what your looking at.

"Oh do you like Papa Skull?" He questions.

You blink and pause your browsing. He smiles emabrassed looking away and you faintly blush. You nod no and shift so he can see the records your really looking at.

The good old classics hidden behind the discounted newer but last season albums.

"I like more classic records. Older bands." You explain. He notices your into rock and old pop. Behind the Papa Skull there are records like The Beatles, AC/DC, Prince and more vintage rock music. Douxies heart fluttered seeing you liked the same records as him.

You were wearing a satchel bag and looking at it he noticed a yellow submarine pin and some music patches. You also had college books and he wondered if you were a music major? Maybe music theory? That'd be awesome to make a new friend who likes music.

However the conversation seems to have run dry as you hum going back to the records you were looking at.

"Yellow Submarine is a personal favorite." He blurts out wanting to continue the conversation. Turning to look at him his face goes red as you hum at him softly.

"Yeah?" You question curiously. He nods hair bouncing up and down frantically and he blushes embarrassed. You smile seeming happy to talk to him. "I'm new in town. Just transferred to the local college here. I'm guessing your a local yourself. Could you show me around some time?" Holding out your phone Douxies face is a red mess. Smiling he nods putting in his number before you take your phone back waving over your shoulder as you leave.

Flinging your scarf over your neck as you leave he smiles before he begins muttering curses.

He realizes a second too late he forgot to ask for your name and your number so you'll have to text him first.

~~~

A week later and he gives up hop on finding you again. You hadn't texted him yet and he hadn't caught you in Zoes shop since that fateful encounter.

Deciding to cut his loses he heads to a local cafe to drown his woes in coffin and muffins. Walking through the door small bell going off he pauses.

Same bag. Same scarf. And similar clothes.

Getting closer it was indeed you ordering. You were polite tipping the server as you chewed on some black licorice, his favorite candy.

Laughing with the cashier you wave after paying and sit down.

He watches enraptured as you sit with and earbud in casually humming. You munch on your treat as you wait for your order to be called from your corner booth.

Douxie can't help but beam in glee at his luck. Quickly ordering he wonders if he should approach you or if he could maybe magic you into looking in his direction. Would that be too obvious? Clicking his tongue leaning against the baristas serving counter he smiles at you fondly thinking of what to do.

The answer comes when you see him and wave.

"It's Yellow Submarine." Remembering how he said that was his favorite song and how he never gave a name he laughs and comes over hoping the nickname was a good sign.

"The names Douxie love but I have to admit the nickname you picked is unique." Your laptops in front of you and Douxie can't help but peak at what your doing as he sits down next to you. You seemed to be writing some kind of paper.

So you were a college student. Wicked.

"Douxie?" You question saying his name as if tasting it. "I like that. I'm (Y/N)." Sticking out your hand you smile and he smiles back shaking it.

"What are you working on?" He questions.

"Oh just some academia stuff. I'm not really focusing on it just kinda day dreaming." You shrug and he smiles. The cafes lights were a low warm color. The light bounced off you and you looked beautiful. Your hair was practically glowing, your eyes were soft but had a hidden knowledge to them, and your smile. Your smile made Douxies heart flutter.

He chuckled at something you said and chuckled. Your tongue and lips were stained black from the licorice you ate making him happy for some reason.

You were just amazing and he barely knew you. He's about to ask why you hadn't texted when your orders are called.

"I'll get them." He offers and you nod watching him leave." He slides back into the seat next to you and soon you fall into a fun conversation work forgotten as you sip your drinks.

Realizing the time you give him a wave and say something about leaving. He nods and throwing away his cup he curses realizing he now had your name but not your number.

~~~

He doesn't see you again for awhile. Not in Zoes shop. Not at the cafe and sadly no where on campus.

He looks for you, in a respectful way of course but no matter what he does he's never able to run into you or find out what classes your taking.

It's late fall now and the leaves had all changed colors. Red, orange, and yellow blurred past him and crunched underneath him as he walked. The air felt crisp and as he took a deep breath in he could feel the seasons magic.

Walking through the leaves kicking them up Douxie feels defeated and like it's not meant to be.

He pauses crunching stopping. There you were. Sitting under a tree as leaves swirled around you, you were on a bench reading a book and listening to music. He's not sure if he should approach you but pauses when you look up and smile at him. Waving you pat the bench taking out your earbuds and he shyly comes forward.

"Hey Doux long time no see." Your smile brightens as he sits next to you and his heart flutters.

"Yeah I never see you at the cafe or at Zoes. We must have different schedules." He states. You shrug.

"Maybe. Maybe not. My life's pretty hectic." You hum and he nods in understanding.

Curious he glances at your book.

"Whacha reading?" He asks staring at thr cover. You fumble trying to hide it but he sees and is shocked.

"Oh it's nothing just-" You stumble and he smiles.

"I know there was something about you." He hums before smiling excited. He must have been attracted to you because he could sense your magic! "Your a mage." Pausing mouth open in shock you stare at him, and he notices the leaves shifting around you.

Chuckling he smiles holding up his hand. Snapping his fingers blue magic dances around them and you blink before staring in awe. "Don't worry love I'm one too." He says proudly and your face lights up.

Smiling as your own fingers spark with magic he reaches over for your free hand. Pausing you take it and he smiles feeling it fit perfectly against his.

"... (Y/N) would you maybe want to go on a date sometime?" Pecking his cheek Douxie touches his face starstruck as you smile getting up.

"Anytime." You hum before collecting your stuff getting up and walking away. Smiling too happy to complain about forgetting to get your number again he pauses as a ding rings through the air.

'Its a date submarine.' Blushing he holds his phone close.

It was a date.

#douxie #douxie x reader #wizards #wizards x reader #hisirdoux casperan #hisirdoux x reader #hisirdoux casperan x reader #toa hisirdoux #toa hisirdoux casperan #wizards hisirdoux casperan x reader #wizards hisirdoux x reader #wizards douxie x reader #wizards douxie casperan x reader #wizards hisirdoux casperan #toa hisirdoux casperan x reader #toa hisirdoux x reader #toa douxie x reader #mage reader #magic #toa zoe #wizards zoe #zoe #toa archie #wizards archie #archie

[pidgeonspen]

Carey’s dad, Bernard! I gave him heterochromia based on my URL namesake, a childhood dog of mine named Pidgeon, who had one blue eye and one brown. 

Bio under cut! CW for descriptions of death, illness, and mentioned suicide! 

Name: Bernard Jess (Birth name: Ralph Ellis) Playlist: Here! (Spotify)

Age: 48 Occupation: Con artist Location: Varies; travels around Northamer in his RV Birthplace: Sand Blast City  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral 

Species: Dog (Based on tricolor Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) Sexuality: Bisexual

Personality: +Positives: Charismatic; Clever; Exuberant; Jolly; Optimistic; -Negatives: Conniving; Fraudulent; Cowardly; Selfish; Opportunistic A real “people person” at his core, Bernard knows exactly what to say to get people to drop their guard around him. Armed with his wit and a silver tongue, he picks his marks and runs his scams, playing his short cons and booking it at the first sign of trouble. While he isn’t shy about his lifestyle of lying, cheating and bullshitting his way through life, he does truly love his wife, and holds the memories of his mother and father close to his heart. Likes: Bluegrass; Country music; Whiskey; Swindling people; Dislikes: The law; working; his hometown; dwelling on the past; violence; hospitals  Hobbies: Acoustic guitar, fishing, storytelling, people-watching

Backstory (remember to heed the content warnings above!): 

 Born to Shirley and Maverick Ellis in the smog-filled, dome-covered rogues gallery known as Sand Blast City, Ralph had a fairly average childhood. While he attended school, his mother Shirly worked as a waitress in a dingy but well-known diner and his father, Maverick, worked the nearby mines. The Ellis family were very poor, and young Ralph often wore hand-me-downs and frequently struggled to keep up with his peers, making him a target for bullying. 

When Ralph was 9 years old, Maverick perished as the mine collapsed. Shirley took a second job in a desperate effort to both pay for his funeral, and provide for their son. Ralph found himself targeted by bullies even more, though found support from other children who lost family in the mines. Life went on, the Ellis’ struggling to make ends meet and cope with the death of Maverick. 

With no one to babysit, Ralph began heading into the diner after school, sitting at a booth and doing his homework. Over the years, he came to know its patrons, became familiar with its regulars and staff, and slowly began to master the art of people-watching. Ralph would sit, and listen, and watch these people - and got an earful of all the latest gossip. He learned that the man living in the apartment across had a nasty divorce and was a recovering alcoholic. The mother of one of his bullies was working the streets to keep food on the table. The stories of the neighborhood gambler, the old woman who also lost her son in the mines, the local politicians, of the baker who was having an affair, of the rich tourists who would make yearly stops in town - Ralph knew everyone. 

And just like that, school life had become easier. No one would dare cross Ralph Ellis, because Ralph had all the dirty laundry on everyone - kids were less keen on bullying him when he threatened to expose their families as drug addicts or whores, or when he could tear their family apart with news of an affair. It wasn’t long until Ralph realized the power he held over his peers, and began blackmailing them into doing favors, such as carrying his stuff, doing his homework, and buying him clothes -- for the first time in his life, Ralph was able to wear more than hand-me-downs from the local thrift store.  Life was starting to look up, and things were good.

Then it wasn’t. When Ralph was 15, his mother discovered she had cancer. They couldn’t afford treatment, and Shirley certainly couldn’t stop working her two jobs. Ralph took up a part-time job as a delivery boy, then a full-time job as Shirley’s condition worsened, dropping out of school to help. Within a year, she passed away. 

And suddenly, at the tender age of 16, Ralph found himself orphaned, and within a few months, homeless. Despite everything - his father working his whole life and dying in those rotten mines, his mother taking two jobs, and Ralph himself giving up his education and taking up work - the Ellis family just couldn’t get ahead. Honest work didn’t pay. But he remembered coasting along in school, being able to pull peoples strings and manipulate others into working for him. He remembered the woes and weaknesses of the people around him. In a dog-eat-dog world, Ralph was determined to make his mark and make the most of the lemons life gave him. 

Then, when Ralph was 19, a great plague swept over Sand Blast City. People were dying in the streets, and even more were panicking, desperate for a way to save themselves. Ralph saw an opportunity - his customers already trusted him, and he’d made it this far. It was time for his biggest, and riskiest, con yet. With a few local herbs, clean water, and a bit of cheap cold medicine, Ralph began marketing his miracle potion, promising immunity from the plague. With help from his silver tongue and the trust of the locals, the potions flew off the shelves. Ralph made more money than ever, and was, briefly, toted as a local hero. He knew he should have packed up shop and gotten the hell outta dodge, but he wanted to milk this operation for all it was worth. He stayed, intending to make and sell more of his miracle tonics… 

And then, the plague got him. 

 The virus wracked Ralph’s body. For days, he lay by his wagon, delirious with high fever, struggling for breath, believing this would surely be his end -- and it almost was. Family of his customers tracked him down, furious that their loved ones weren’t protected as advertised. They beat the sickly con artist, and left him at death's door.

Ralph survived by the skin of his teeth, although not unscathed; as if a reminder of his treachery and what he’d done, his lungs were ruined, leaving him athsmatic, with a persistent cough and physically frail. But Ralph was nothing if not determined - as soon as he was well enough, he high-tailed it out of Sand Blast City.

Ralph would spend the next 5 years as a vagabond con-artist, selling cheap or bootlegged wares, which he either stole from yard sales or breaking and entering homes, pulling cat-in-a-bag cons and change raising, and continuing with his snake-oil salesman act. He often found himself being chased out of town, or on the run from local bounty hunters for crossing the wrong people. He also began using different names, switching his alias every few months or every year. 

Then his life was changed when he stumbled into the Southern Baronies; an uppity, bountiful region famous for its large chao gardens and wine exports. It was then he met Margaret Blanche, one of Josiah Blanche’s daughters.

The Blanche’s were a prestigious family, renowned for their famous vineyard and exports, as well as owning the land upon which the Chao Garden was located. They were filthy rich, and acted the part -- which may be precisely why when Ralph, under the name ‘Bernard Jess’ - showed up, Margaret was smitten. ‘Bernard’ was exciting; he was handsome, charismatic, entertaining, funny, and judging by the stories he told the Blanche family, he led quite an adventurous life. Margaret had grown so bored of her life and wanted what Bernard had. Likewise, Bernard wanted what the Blanche’s had - their lavish lifestyle and money. He had come to them with the intention of robbing them blind, but found himself enamored with Margaret.

Josiah, of course, didn’t approve. He forbade the young couple from seeing one another, and had Bernard escorted from the property, deciding the young man wasn’t good enough for his daughter. Bernard knew he couldn’t really do anything about it, and focused on his cons with the other families in the Baronies. He and Margaret occasionally crossed paths during this time, and the two would spend time together in secret. Margaret fell more and more in love with the whimsy and rebellious attitude Bernard had towards life, and when it came time for Bernard to leave the Baronies, Margaret ran away with him

Life on the run together was golden. The two of them staged robberies, worked cons, and had made a small name for themselves. However, within a year, things suddenly took a turn when Margaret realized she had become pregnant. Fearing for her future, she pleaded with Bernard to take her back to the Baronies -- this had been great fun, but she was already tired of living off meager meals and on the run, and the pregnancy scared her. She wasn’t cut out for Bernard’s lifestyle, but promised him that upon returning, they would marry and he would join the Blanche family proper, and be able to leave this life behind.

And so they returned to the Baronies… Only to be humiliated by Josiah and the rest of the Blanches as they sneered and mocked and chastised Margaret for her stupid naivete and revealed that during her year-long romp with Bernard, they’d completely disowned her. Margaret, Bernard, nor their unborn child would see a penny of the Blanche fortune, nor were they even allowed on the property. Margaret was disgraced, disowned and suddenly, for the first time in her life, left with absolutely nothing. She was terrified and heartbroken, and all Bernard could do was be a shoulder to cry on - while knowing all too well this was his fault. 

Bernard managed to make a very small arrangement with Josiah to make things just a little easier; on the very edge of the Baronies, hidden out of sight so as to not tarnish the view of the Chao Gardens and beautiful manors, was a small trailer park known as Barrow Creek. Bernard convinced Josiah to at the very least buy them a small plot of land, allow them to set up a RV to live in so Margaret could, at the very least, have a roof over her head. Josiah agreed, and the young couple moved into their new home.

Carey was born that year.

Margaret hadn’t wanted the child; as far as she was concerned, this was more Carey’s fault than Bernard’s. It didn’t help that Carey had been born with a defect - her left arm hadn’t formed past the shoulder. The baby was weak, requiring constant care and attention, and oh, how Margaret wished to smother the life from it and be done with this burden.

It was only on Bernard’s insistence that Carey was kept alive and fed; already, he was scheming how to make the most out of the situation. He felt nothing towards his daughter but inspiration -- he could make this work to his advantage. A disabled child would bring out the sympathy in people, making his cons go a lot smoother. People would give money out of pity or adoration for the disadvantaged family, he could spin a thousand sob stories about how she lost her arm, open donations to go towards putting her in school or getting her a prosthetic - in reality keeping the money for himself - and the possibilities for profit were endless.

For much of her infancy and childhood, Carey was toted around during Bernard’s many schemes, helping rake in donations from charitable and kind people. As she got older, Bernard got Carey more and more involved in his cons, reciting lines with her and having her partake in more elaborate schemes. He also taught her the art of picking pockets, breaking locks, lying, and stealing. By age 7, Carey was doing all this and more, being made to cook and clean and was expected to earn her keep for living with them, with Bernard making sure she understood that she was a financial burden unto her parents, all while using his charisma and manipulation to keep her adoring him.

However, during all of this, Margaret’s mental health was declining. 

Gone was the bright, sheltered woman who wanted a life of risk and adventure - Margaret was bitter, angry, and jealous… but never directed any of it towards her husband, instead taking it out on their daughter and anyone else unfortunate enough to cross her path. She spent most of the day drunk and unhappy, or waiting for Bernard to return when he’d drive with Carey out of town to run a con. 

Bernard was oblivious, for a time - and when he did become aware, he tried to ignore the problem. The rising tension between Margaret and Carey, Margaret’s drinking problem, and their growing debt were all things he tried to brush off, even as Margaret attempted to drown Carey out of jealousy for her spending so much time with Bernard.

By the time Carey was 10, the Baronies were no longer safe for the Jess family. People had wisened up to their act, the bounty hunters were closing in, as was the law. Desperate to get some cash for the road ahead, Bernard conspired to rob the Blanche’s estate. It would be a final sendoff, the last big gig before the Jess family laid low for a long time. Margaret was eager to reclaim what she’d left behind, but Carey had grown ill from neglect. She was sick with pneumonia, and thus sluggish and of little help - and so Bernard put her on guard duty, to keep an eye out if the cops or other signs of trouble appeared. 

The heist didn’t quite go as planned.

In the end, the cops were called, and Bernard had shot and killed Josiah in an altercation. As Bernard and Margaret fled the scene, they left behind Carey purposefully, knowing the cops would stop for the small, sickly child. This allowed the couple to make a clean getaway, while ridding themselves of Carey’s burden. 

It has now been 13 years since that day. 

Bernard’s working alone now, with Margaret having taken her own life a few years ago. He carries that weight with him, knowing full well he ruined her life and that his neglect led to her deteriorating mental health. He still wears their wedding band, and insists on remaining loyal to her memory, though he does oftentimes feel lonely. 

It’s difficult to pin where Bernard is at any given moment, as his cons often see him travelling all over Northamer. He’s still running his cons, hoping for that one big break and dodging bounty hunters and cops at every corner, keeping his past and his regrets close to his heart and hidden under lock and key.

#my art #my sonic fcs #sonic oc #sonic fc #OC: Bernard #ref sheets #they always say yeehaw but never ask haw yee :-(

[everybodyscupoftea]

the plug

college au jj x reader

word count: 3025

warnings: drinking, cursing, mentions of jj’s dad, four year age gap (20yo jj and 24yo reader)

synopsis: you’re the pogues’ alcohol plug and jj’s favorite person

a/n: this was an anonymous request, age gaps are kinda sensitive, nothing here happens until jj is almost 21 but please be careful out there folks; also i got kinda carried away 

You grew up in the Outer Banks, spent most of your time surfing or playing soccer for the local school’s team. Your house was near the Heyward’s shop, and you picked up odd jobs working Kook events all throughout your high school years. When college rolled around, you started working at the Wreck with Kie.

The Pogue and Kook rivalry never particularly interested you, it seemed frivolous, and after a brief stint on the mainland, you realized the world was so much bigger out of the scope of the Outer Banks. Your refusal to participate was what originally drew Kie to you. The two of you hung out after work on Friday nights, you had access to good weed and were willing to share. Eventually she invited you to a party her friends were throwing.

Honestly, you weren’t exactly over the moon at the idea of partying with a bunch of 17-year olds, but the idea of free beer and a night on the beach seemed promising. You figured you could say hey to Kie’s friends and slip away to walk by the ocean.

Until the afternoon of the party rolled around, and you found out that they had no alcohol. Kie scrambled to explain that the guy who normally sold them beer underage had moved and someone stricter had taken his place and refused their fakes. You sighed and stood, “How much do you need me to get?”

“Wait, what?” Kie asked, taken aback.

“Beer. You want packs or a keg?”

She blinked a few times, “We normally get a keg or two.”

“Let’s go.”

You led Kie to your car and cranked it up, immediately turning up the AC as high as it could go. She plugged her phone in to play some music as you drove to the nearest liquor store to the Boneyard.

“Stay here, I’ll be back,” you told her, and she nodded, promising to sit still. The guy inside was in fact different from the guy who used to sell to you and your friends underage, so you fished out your ID. You knew you looked pretty young for your age and had to resist rolling your eyes when he stared at it intensely for a few seconds before charging you for the keg.

When it was filled, he helped you carry it to your car and the two of you set it in the back. Kie stayed still and quiet in case he tried to card her for some reason too, but you weren’t too worried. Soon enough the two of you were back on the road, heading toward your house for a quick change of clothes.

“Can I borrow something?” Kie asked, looking a little nervous.

“For sure, Kie, take what you want.”

You were only there for about 30 minutes before leaving to get the keg to the Boneyard before party time. Kie was really excited to introduce you to her friends, they’d been hearing all about the cool college girl she’d been hanging out with in her spare time, and they were really interested to see who had her so enthralled.

Pope was the first to greet you, recognizing you from when you worked with him and his dad. He nodded at you with a small smile, and you returned it. John B shook your hand with a huge grin, babbling on about how awesome it was to have someone willing to buy them alcohol again. The last of the group, JJ, was the quiet one.

You weren’t sure what he thought of you at first, it was easy to see he was hesitant to just accept anyone, but you did buy him alcohol. He offered you a fist bump and a small smile before telling you, “Really appreciate the plug.”

“No prob, new guy was pretty suspicious, sorry for your loss.”

JJ let out a loud laugh and warmed up to you instantly. From then on, he followed you around. Whether it was hanging around the Wreck while you were working and he was free, or asking to smoke with you some weekends. Kie thought your new shadow was hilarious and she would send you videos of JJ talking about how funny you were or how pretty you were. It was…endearing.

And then you graduated college and got into grad. You wanted to finally move off the island, and with the money you’d saved up from the Wreck, you finally had enough money to rent an apartment just off Chapel Hill’s campus. The Pogues came with you to help you move all your stuff, which you were grateful for.

You let them handle pizza and went to go pick up alcohol for the group as one last hurrah before they left. John B picked through the bag you brought back with a watery smile, “Gonna suck throwing parties without our favorite plug.”

“Aren’t you dating Sarah Cameron now? Get Rafe to buy your alcohol.”

“He hates us,” JJ whined, “not everyone is cool like you.”

You pointed the bottle in your hand at him, “That’s right, don’t you ever forget.”

And then that was it. You were onto the next, without the Pogues. Or, so you thought.

You’d gotten a job at a coffeehouse just off campus while working through your grad degree. It was easy and brought in a surprising amount of tips, and the atmosphere was really chill, so you loved it. Mostly you dealt with regulars, until one morning. You had your back to the door when it opened, making another coffee, and you called over your shoulder, “Be with you in a sec.”

A familiar, slightly deeper voice, answered back, “All good.”

Whirling around, you grinned widely at the boy, “JJ! Long time no see, bud.”

His eyes widened and he laughed, “Holy shit, dude, you work here?”

“Have for the last few years. What can I get you?”

JJ smiled widely, “Actually, just got hired, I’m here for training.”

You passed the customer their coffee and wished them a good day before turning back to JJ, “Okay, go wash your hands and I’ll grab your hat.”

The rest of your shift was spent goofing off with JJ, every so often interrupted by a customer, and you showed him the ropes. He picked up on it pretty quickly, only stumbling through using the register a few times.

“What brings you here?” you finally asked.

JJ took his hat off and ran a hand through his hair a few times, “Family shit. My dad was an asshole and I wanted to get out. I started picking up extra hours at the hotel, but my dad knew where I was, so I decided to just move to the mainland and start over.”

“Fuck,” you muttered, “sorry to hear that. Everything okay now?”

He nodded, “Yeah, um, started taking a few classes at Chapel Hill, and Pope’s family is helping me keep rent until I get my feet under me.”

“That’s nice of them.”

“Yeah, I just, I needed to start over. And I saw the hiring sign on the door, so I stopped in a few days ago to apply.”

You nudged his shoulder gently, “If you need anything, gimme a call, yeah?”

JJ blushed and nudged yours back, “Yeah.”

Because of the small number of customers, most shifts at the coffeehouse were solo shifts except for opening and closing. You and JJ both had mostly afternoon classes which meant that the two of you were scheduled several times a week together opening and closing.

One night you had soft music playing while he was doing dishes and you were sweeping and mopping the dining area. JJ watched you dance around with the broom, small smile on his lips, and when you caught his eye, he looked away with a blush.

“J,” you called out, trying to catch his eye again.

He looked back, blush still present on his cheeks, “What?”

“You hungry?”

“Oh, um, yeah, I could eat.”

You motioned out the window, “That place has fire po-boys for cheap if you want to get one with me after.”

JJ stared at the lit-up restaurant across the street before shrugging, “Sounds good.”

Thursday closing shift dinner became a thing after that. One of you would call in your food and pick it up before going back to one of your apartments to eat and do homework. JJ had a quiet focus to him that you liked, it helped keep you calm while scrolling through mounds of research you needed for your final paper.

He had one afternoon shift a week, unbeknownst to you, and walked in for it one week to see you laying face down on one of the tables near the counter. JJ paused, glancing over at the guy he was replacing in confusion. Your coworker shrugged and clocked out without saying anything else.

You felt someone crouch down next to your table a few minutes later and he softly called your name. Opening your eyes felt like a chore since you’d had them squeezed closed for so long to block out the anxiety over your paper that for some reason wasn’t writing itself.

“Want some coffee?” he asked, as soon as he finally saw your eyes.

The thought of caffeine made you want to throw up, and you made a face before finally responding, “How about some tea.”

“What kind?”

“Surprise me,” you told him tiredly.

JJ squeezed your shoulder once and walked back around the counter to start making you a drink. You woke your laptop back up to see the word count of 406 staring you straight in the face, and just as you went to put your head back down, a steaming mug of tea was placed in front of you.

“That should help,” JJ told you, smiling softly.

And shockingly, it did. It was warm, and with JJ’s steady presence, you were able to knock out over 1000 words before you had to leave for your afternoon class. He called your name just as you went to push the door open and you turned around, “What?”

“Text me if you need anything else, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Unintentionally, you let JJ worm his way back into your life. One of the classes he struggled with you’d already taken so you fished out your old notes and tutored him for the rest of the semester through it. Sometimes he’d show up at your closing shifts he wasn’t scheduled on and sit at the bar doing schoolwork and distracting you. He did at least always help close which was a huge improvement from when you worked at the Wreck and he showed up to cause problems.

One night was interrupted when the door swung open five minutes from closing. You sighed, not wanting to dirty anything you’d just cleaned, and forced a customer service smile on your face. To your surprise, Kie walked through the door, beaming widely at you.

“Long time, no see!” she called out, opening her arms for a hug.

You beamed and set the rag down on the counter, wrapping her up tightly. She squeezed around your middle hard and you sighed, “Missed you, Carrera.”

“Missed you too.”

She sat next to JJ and the three of you caught up while you and your coworker finished the closing duties. You nodded at her to leave when she held up the garbage bag to let you know she was heading out after a trip to the dumpster.

Kie stood, “Okay, we have to meet up with everyone else, none of us have seen JJ’s apartment yet.”

“Hope you cleaned, JJ,” you told him, bumping your elbow into his side with a laugh before continuing, “last time I was there it was questionable.”

“It’s clean,” JJ defended himself, “you caught me on a bad day.”

“Bad month, more like,” you retorted, laughing when he flipped you off in response.

Kie watched the two of you, amused, “Wow JJ, you’ve come a long way.”

John B and Pope stepped out of the restaurant next door, hands full of food bags, before you or JJ could respond and greeted you just as eagerly as Kie had.

“Getting the gang back together,” John B cheered, lifting two of the bags in the air.

You originally had plans to drink wine and watch the new season of Stranger Things, but the prospect of seeing some of your old friends was too enticing. JJ’s eyed you as you shifted on your feet, “You sure you guys want me butting in.”

Kie rolled her eyes, “We thought you knew we were coming in. JJ said he’d tell you.”

“Hey, don’t pin this on me, I wanted it to be a surprise!��� he defended.

Pope spoke in what you think was meant to be a mockery of JJ’s voice, “Don’t bother bro, I’ll just text her and let her know.”

With a laugh, John B added, “It was just like old times whenever we needed alcohol and you’d be all ‘I’m going to visit her at work today, we’ll just swing by and get some after, I’ve got this’. The nostalgia was overwhelming, J.”

JJ scowled at his friends as the teasing continued. You’d known about his crush on you back then, tried not to encourage it because you knew you were leaving and because of the underage situation, but it was funny to hear about it from the other side.

“Okay, so we headed to JJ’s place?” you finally interrupted, saving him from the merciless teasing.

“My place,” JJ confirmed and you broke apart into two separate groups, one in JJ’s car and one in yours.

Kie rode with you and took control of the music, like always. You smiled, “Really is just like old times, huh?”

A few weeks later, one of the Thursday night shifts, JJ seemed less enthused than normal. You didn’t want to pry but you were worried about him. After a few more half answers from him, you finally stopped drying the dishes, “Maybank, what’s going on?”

“My fucking-“ he trailed off for a few seconds before shaking his head and continuing, “my dad called asking for money. Apparently, he’s broke and he owes his dealer. I just can’t, god I can’t fucking escape him.”

He wasn’t crying, but you’d never seen JJ’s jaw so tense before and your heart ached for him. You dried your hands off and pulled him into a tight hug, “Your dad is a piece of shit and you deserve better.”

“Do I?” he asked, almost hysterically, while he tried to pull away.

You didn’t let him go far, “Yes, you do. You’re a good guy who deserves to be happy and successful and far away from his dad’s reach.”

“I wish I could see it like that,” he murmured, voice breaking halfway through. JJ’s whole body shuddered a few times as he fought tears harder than he ever had before. He didn’t want to break down in front of you and look like a child.

“How about you go get dinner, I’ll go buy some alcohol, and we meet at my apartment and watch movies tonight.”

JJ’s lips quirked up into the briefest smile you’d ever seen, “Stepping back into that plug role, huh?”

“Turn 21 then,” you told him, shoving him away gently.

“Two months, and then I’ll finally be able to start repaying my alcohol debts.”

“You’re going to be buying me drinks for years, J.”

He held his pinky out, looking significantly more cheered up, “I promise.”

You linked pinkies with him before pulling him into one more hug with one last thought, “You’re going to have to stick around for a while to keep that promise.”

He cleared his throat, almost nervously, and you pulled away, confused. JJ wouldn’t look you in the eye when he spoke, “Surely you knew.”

“What?” you weren’t really prepared to have the conversation that seemed to be happening.

“That I liked you, idolized you practically. You were so cool and older and you dealt with all my shit.”

“J,” you warned, not sure if you liked where it was going.

He let out a sad laugh, “Please just be honest with me, you knew right?”

With a sigh, you pulled your hat off and clutched it in your hands, “I knew.”

“Fuck,” he mumbled, hands shoved deep in his pockets. JJ looked up at the ceiling with a sharp inhale before continuing, “Fuck, I’m so sorry if I made you uncomfortable. And then I came here and started doing it again.”

And you had to stop that train of thought right there, “Woah, wait, it doesn’t bother me, JJ, you know that right? Like I do enjoy having you around.”

Eyebrows raised, JJ finally made eye contact with you, “What?”

“Well I mean,” you shifted your weight from one foot to the other, suddenly unsure how to continue, “I guess it was a little weird when you were in high school, but it’s not so bad now.”

“What?” he repeated, faintly this time.

You rolled your eyes, “Fucking hell, JJ, really?”

He held his hands up in defense, “Hey, I was walking into this conversation ready to get rejected, let me be surprised.”

“I cannot deal with you, go buy the food, oh my god.”

JJ grinned at you cheekily, “Is this a date?”

You hated him. So much.

He grabbed your hand and squeezed, “Are you asking me out right now?”

“I’m about to rescind the offer if you don’t quit.”

“I can’t believe the day has finally come. Kie is going to flip her shit,” JJ told you, leading you out of the empty shop.

“God, what have I gotten myself into,” you muttered.

JJ stopped walking and looked at you with a soft smile, all traces of teasing gone, “Hey,” he got your attention, “thanks for everything, now and then.” Before you could answer, he continued, “Best plug I ever had.”

“God dammit, JJ!” you exclaimed and his laughter echoed down the empty street as the two of you walked to the po-boy place, hands swinging between you.

#jj maybank request #jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank x you #jj maybank fic #jj maybank fluff #outer banks fic #outer banks #obx #the plug au

[the-moon-loves-the-sea]

Second-hand cultural impact of charity work??

Oh, yes. Well, basically, what I was taught is that dumping stuff or money directly into a community is genuinely helpful only in a disaster. At that point, the community’s resources have been wiped out, and tangible help is a relief. But in the long run, the community needs sovereignty and sustainability; continuing to pour money on them because it’s easy for you does nothing good.

One of my teachers had worked on a community development team in Masai territory. He liked to tell how they got the bright idea of building outhouses all over the area. They spent a lot of time and money on it. The Masai, used to burying their crap, were incredibly grossed out by the idea of pooping over stinky holes surrounded by flies. They asked the team why on earth they hadn’t asked the community elders--they would have said they needed a schoolhouse, not poop houses. That stuck with my teacher. He said the first rule of coming into any community as a developer is never make your own plans. Let the leaders lead.

The other thing I was taught is to develop the assets that are already there. If you bring in a bunch of clothes from the outside, say, and sell them for cheap, the local weavers and importers and tailors and clothing shops are going to lose business. The community will be clothed, but at the expense of a bunch of peoples’ livelihoods. Or if you bring in a bunch of farming equipment from elsewhere, the crops will get planted and harvested quicker, but when the equipment breaks down the farmers won’t have easy access to replacement parts, and they’ll lose the harvest they can’t manage. So when you see a lack of a basic resource like clothes or food or equipment, you have to resist the temptation to just distribute it, if it’s not recently lost--if it’s something they’ve never had. Instead find local projects that could supply the need and support their development.

Because the reality is that you’re really not needed, most of the time, in the broad sense. Most communities can solve their own issues, given resources and time. An outsider is unlikely to know their problems better than they do. Coming into a community, you need to be prepared to limit yourself to one thing: the thing you’ve got that they want. You have outside contacts? Help them advocate for themselves with the government or the medical/legal/educational establishment. You have new health-related info? Introduce it to local teachers, doctors, leaders, and let them decide if it’s applicable and practical and how to teach it. Medicine? Don’t give it out yourself; distribute it to community clinics. Land restoration techniques? Run them by the older farmers and landowners first and let them train the others if they think they’ll work. But mostly--work yourself out of a job if you can; get them the resources and get out of the way.

#asks #infodumping about that thing i studied #for the jobs i loved #but were not always that effective at actually helping people

[luvdsc]

I think you’ve mentioned traveling to viet before and I know you’ve said you are viet so I was just wondering if you have any recommendations for someone going there for the first time in terms of food/places to go/things to do? I’ve done research but I always like getting second opinions from individuals, not just travel blogs or buzzfeed bucket lists. No pressure to reply fast or at all really, I think you’re still on a break (or semi-break?) from tumblr??? I just wanted to send in an ask before I forgot lolololol 🥰

hey, honey bee !! 🌸 yes, i've traveled to vietnam around three years ago? ooo omg okay, time to go back through my insta stories because i document everything about my trips on there aklsjdhfas but yes, i'll list a few foods/places to visit/things to do that i rec! and yes omg i always prefer hearing from individuals about their trips more too since i know them and if their personalities are similar to mine, i might enjoy the things they did? and travel blogs and articles online seem a little more commercialized and go for only the touristy things 🤧 also, this is gonna be all over the place and in different cities because i don't remember exactly where these places all are 😅 i hope this helps, and please let me know how your trip goes if you visit vietnam, sweetpea !!! 💕

also, please be careful of pick pocketers, and vendors will try to scam / jack up the prices on things - you have to haggle with them and be super firm when you don't want something or you're gonna end up buying stuff you don't need. everything is also super duper cheap there because of inflation 🤧

food places:

ngọc châu garden - i loved this restaurant, and we went there twice for lunch!

try the local fruits! i love love love the tropical fruits being sold on the streets, and they're super fresh and yummy

i don't know how brave you are or if your stomach is willing to take this, but truly, the best food would be the street food. it's definitely not the cleanest and would violate the usual health violations, but those asian aunties who settle on a random corner of the street and sell the food out of the baskets they carry around truly make the best, most authentic foods out there. we mostly ate like this, so i don't have exact names for restaurants unfortunately

places to visit:

hồ hoàn kiếm - this is just a really pretty lake in the hanoi, and you can take a nice walk around it. i saw some kids doing a lot of kpop dance covers nearby too :')

hội an - this is the oldest town in vietnam, and it's so so sooo beautiful. it was my most favorite place to visit in vietnam. the town is so beautiful, and they have lanterns hanging everywhere, and the hand made crafts being sold are gorgeous. also, there's a river going down the middle of it, and they light candle flowers and float them down, and aaaa i recommend visiting here the most 💛 we stayed here for a few days to just explore the town and walk around to different shops and such, and yeah, i highly recommend visiting! they also had a bar dedicated solely to mr. bean???

da nang - they have the prettiest beaches !!!! this is what they're known for, and i went to an bang beach and i got such pretty seashells and had a wonderful time relaxing there. they also have incredible seafood being sold right on the beach fronts too, and it's all still fresh and it's like in asian stores where the fish / shellfish are still swimming, but better since they literally just caught it, and you get to pick what you want to eat

bat trang pottery village - the dishes and pottery sold here are so incredibly pretty, and i had to stop myself from buying everything aksljdhfas

chợ bến thành - they sell literally everything here, like fresh produce? cute tourist stuff? random trinkets? super authentic looking luxury bags? you name it, they have it. you have to be really careful of people forcing you to buy things tho, like one lady grabbed my sister's arm and wouldn't let her go after she looked at one of her fake gucci wallets until i told her to let her go in vietnamese askldhf it was lowkey funny how vendors think my sister and i aren't vietnamese and discuss scamming us / jacking up the pricing, and then i speak with them in viet and they suddenly are offering discounts aksljdfa

things to do:

visit a floating market - there are a bunch of these in vietnam, and you usually have to get up early to see them, but it's so worth it! it is a literal floating market. vendors are selling super fresh fruits and veggies and other goods from their boats in the mekong river, they’re tossing the produce to one another across the boats, and it's amazing to see. and also buy some of the local fruit! it's amazing

thang an ninh binh grotto tours - you're on this tiny boat that's rowed by someone else, and they take you on a stunning ride through the caves and grottoes (if you're super claustrophobic, then i would not recommend the route that goes into the caves because it gets really low in there, like we had to bend forward and get down because the ceiling was that low). this was my favorite!

hạ long bay boat tour - this boat tour is absolutely beautiful as well, and the views are different from the one i mentioned above. i highly recommend this one as well! also, we did a bit of super easy kayaking at one of the stopping points during this tour, and it was this peaceful secluded water area surrounded by lush geeenery and cliffs, and it's just incredible

we visited one temple, and it's beautiful, but due to some political reasons and such, the vietnam history they tell during tours is not correct, and my family and i felt uncomfy about that, so we didn't visit any other historical places. but i would recommend visiting temples and pagodas if you appreciate architecture! they are super gorgeous, and the views from the top are amazing

#asks #anonymous