#i might do oka some point

[comfy-nezt]

redesigned that one girl from that one game :]

#osana najimi #yansim osana #osana miyagawa #yandere simulator #i might do oka some point #dont expect much art for this game from me #im just doing what needs to be done #artists on tumblr #birbb art

[reachartwork]

how to write fight scenes

many people have told me that Chum has good fight scenes. a small subset of those people have asked me on advice for how to write fight scenes. i am busy procrastinating, so i have distilled my general ethos on fight scenes into four important points. followed by a homework assignment.

Fight scenes take place on two axii - the physical and the intellectual. For the most interesting fight scenes, neither character should have a full inventory of the other's abilities, equipment, fighting style, etc. This gives you an opportunity to pull out surprises, but, more importantly, turns each fight into a jockeying of minds, as all characters involved have to puzzle out what's going on in real time. This is especially pertinent for settings with power systems. It feels more earned if the characters are trying to deduce the limitations and reach of the opponent's power rather than the opponent simply explaining it to them (like in Bleach. Don't do that). 1a. Have characters be incorrect in their assumptions sometimes, leading to them making mistakes that require them to correct their internal models of an opponent under extreme pressure. 1b. If you really have to have a character explain their powers to someone there should be a damn good reason for it. The best reason is "they are lying". The second best reason is "their power requires it for some reason".

Make sure your blows actually have weight. When characters are wailing at each other for paragraphs and paragraphs and nothing happens, it feels like watching rock 'em sock 'em robots. They beat each other up, and then the fight ends with a decisive blow. Not interesting! Each character has goals that will influence what their victory condition is, and each character has a physical body that takes damage over the course of a fight. If someone is punched in the gut and coughs up blood, that's an injury! It should have an impact on them not just for the fight but long term. Fights that go longer than "fist meets head, head meets floor" typically have a 'break-down' - each character getting sloppier and weaker as they bruise, batter, and break their opponent, until victory is achieved with the last person standing. this keeps things tense and interesting.

I like to actually plan out my fight scenes beat for beat and blow for blow, including a: the thought process of each character leading to that attempted action, b: what they are trying to do, and c: how it succeeds or fails. In fights with more than two people, I like to use graph paper (or an Excel spreadsheet with the rows turned into squares) to keep track of positions and facings over time.

Don't be afraid to give your characters limitations, because that means they can be discovered by the other character and preyed upon, which produces interesting ebbs and flows in the fight. A gunslinger is considerably less useful in a melee with their gun disarmed. A swordsman might not know how to box if their sword is destroyed. If they have powers, consider what they have to do to make them activate, if it exhausts them to use, how they can be turned off, if at all. Consider the practical applications. Example: In Chum, there are many individuals with pyrokinetic superpowers, and none of them have "think something on fire" superpowers. Small-time filler villain Aaron McKinley can ignite anything he's looking at, and suddenly the fight scenes begin constructing themselves, as Aaron's eyes and the direction of his gaze become an incredibly relevant factor.

if you have reached this far in this essay I am giving you homework. Go watch the hallway fight in Oldboy and then novelize it. Then, watch it again every week for the rest of your life, and you will become good at writing fight scenes.

as with all pieces of advice these are not hard and fast rules (except watching the oldboy hallway fight repeatedly) but general guidelines to be considered and then broken when it would produce an interesting outcome to do so.

okay have a good day. and go read chum.

#writing #creative writing #writing tip #writing prompt #pro tip! #long post

[alotofpockets]

Overworked | Alessia Russo

Pairing: Alessia Russo x Reader

Summary: Alessia realizes that you're overworking yourself and decides to take action into her own hands when you keep pushing yourself.

Masterlist | Woso masterlist | words: 1.2k

Work was asking a lot of you during this time of the year, it was a busy period in general with Black Friday, and the holidays coming up. These months were known to everyone in your department to be the busiest of the whole year. Usually you were barely able to handle the pressure during this time, but now the pressure was even bigger. 

Throughout the past months your department had been expanding. Business was going well, which meant that the workload was increasing. The company hired a total of four new people over the course of three weeks. You were grateful for this as the work would be able to be divided amongst more people but before the new hires would be able to work in full capacity, they had to finish training, which each member of your team gave them in smaller parts. It took quite some extra time to train the newest additions to your team but of course their education and being well rounded in their new functions was very important.

While training the new hires, two of your team members were expecting a baby at the end of the year, meaning they are out on maternity leave. On top of that, a coworker just quit, and if that wasn’t enough, people were getting sick one after another.

All in all, you were stressed about getting everything done in time. You would come home from work, eat dinner with your girlfriend, and then excuse yourself to finish up some work. Most times finishing up something turned into hours overtime. Your girlfriend subtly tried to take you to take breaks but those hints were mostly ignored as you kept typing away. 

“Darling, please come to bed.” You heard Alessia say from behind you. You paused your work for a second and turned around. She leaned against the doorframe of your home office, she was wearing a pair of soccer shorts and an oversized t-shirt, her comfy look accompanied by a messy bun. Normally you would drop everything to join her in the coziness and spend the evening cuddling up with her in bed, but you knew that if you stopped now you would be even more stressed tomorrow. “You go ahead, I’ll join you in a bit.” Alessia knew better than to push, so she walked over to place a kiss on your forehead. You had to fight the urge to melt into her touch. “Don’t make it too late, please.” 

The next morning when Alessia woke up, you weren’t in the bed with her. She got up and walked to the home office right away, thinking you might have worked all night. When she saw you working in your pajamas, one of her old jerseys and a pair of sweatshorts, she knew you had been to bed at some point. She walked downstairs to make the both of you some coffee. “Hey, I figured you could use one of these.” The girl pulled you out of your focus. “Oh, thank you, darling. I hope I didn’t wake you.” Alessia shook her head, “No, don’t worry. I have to leave to go to training in half an hour.” 

Alessia sipped her coffee from the lounge chair in the corner of the room. Knowing she would not be able to pull you away from the work you needed to do, she chose to sit with you, to be able to spend some time with you. She was worried about you, never before had she seen you this stressed, or overworked. It was hard for her to let you keep going, while she could see you weren’t doing alright. She made a mental note to ask her teammates for advice later today. 

You managed to get a lot of work done, so you allowed yourself to have a proper meal with your girlfriend. Alessia plated the food, fully believing you would take yours upstairs to continue working but when she saw you sit down at the dining table, she quickly sat down across from you. “Hey Less, I’m sorry for not being very present at the moment. I promise I will be better when work slows down a bit.” You say between bites. “It’s okay, you don’t have to worry about me, I know it’s a busy time.”  

That night was the first time in a week where Alessia felt you get into the bed at night. She gave it a moment before rolling over and cuddling into your side. Your exhaustion accompanied by the warmth of your girlfriend made you doze off quickly.

Alessia was surprised to find you still sound asleep next to her in the bed when she woke up. She looked at the time and realized it would only be a couple of minutes before your alarm would go off. Knowing you had slept so little in the past couple of weeks, and seeing you still sleep so deeply now, she made the decision to get out of bed and turn off your alarm. She quietly made her way downstairs, careful to not wake you. Once she was out of hearing distance, she grabbed her phone and called your boss. 

It wasn’t until hours later that Alessia heard noises coming from your shared bedroom. She found you stumbling around, trying to get your clothes on as quickly as possible. “Why didn’t you wake me?” You ask as soon as you see Alessia walk in. “Hey, hey, calm down.” She says while moving your way to help you stay balanced. “What do you mean calm down, Less? It’s 1pm. I am so late, my boss is going to kill me.” Alessia hadn’t really thought this part of her plan through but by the amount of sleep you got, she knew that she made the right decision. "Because your boss thinks you’re sick.” Your eyes shoot up at hers. “Alessia Mia Teresa Russo, why does my boss think I am sick?” 

Alessia’s eyes widen at your use of her full name. “Please don’t be mad.” She started avoiding your eyes at first, then she remembered why she did it. “You haven’t slept properly in weeks, and I can see that it is taking a toll on you. I woke up a little before your alarm and realized that you were still asleep. I knew you needed this sleep, so I called in sick for you. I apologize for doing it behind your back but darling, you needed this.” You sat down beside her on the bed. “You’re probably right. Only one day though!” Alessia nodded, already happy that you were agreeing to take it easy for the rest of the day. “Plus you are ordering food from my favorite place because I am starving.” Your girlfriend smiled up at you, “Deal, now get comfortable because we’re gonna watch that movie you’ve been wanting to watch.” 

After some delicious food, you start the movie. Spending the rest of the day cuddled up with your girlfriend. You realized just how much you missed her these past weeks, and were grateful that she went to these lengths to take care of you. “Thank you, Less.” You whisper in her ear before placing a kiss on her cheek. “Thank you for always taking care of me. This was exactly what I needed, you know me so well. You are the best girlfriend in the whole wide world.”

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#alessia russo #alessia russo x reader #alessia russo imagine #alessia russo x y/n #woso #woso x reader #woso imagine

[writingroom21]

The Nanny

Pairing: rafe x nanny reader 

Summary: Being Wheezie’s nanny was great. The only downside is dealing with the oldest Cameron, Rafe. What happens when his fascination with the nanny becomes a reality?

Warnings: 18+, masturbation, and voyeurism

Wc:3.0K

Chapter 1: Did you enjoy the show?

The sun was beating down on you as you laid out on the beach chair. Wheezie has been begging you all week to go to the beach with her and as per usual she disappeared. A breeze passed by you causing goosebumps to raise across your body. The sound of waves crashing filled your ears as you flipped the page of the book you were reading. “You know I didn’t think my dad pays you to lounge at the beach.” The voice of the one person you do not want to see right now creeps up from behind. You lift the sunglasses as you peak behind you to be greeted with Rafe Cameron. The oldest out of all of the Cameron children and one of the main reasons that even at Wheezie’s age she has a nanny. Your head turns to look at him over the chair you laid on. He’s wearing black swim trunks, your eyes look up at his body and see the chain dangling on his collar before meeting his eyes. Thank god for sunglasses, he would never let you forget checking him out.

“Actually he does. Whatever Wheezie wants she gets, today was the beach.” Your head turns to face the water again, glasses shading your eyes from the sun. The sound of sand shuffling can be heard as Rafe gets closer. His shadow casts a dark film over your body as he looks down at you. “Nice swimsuit, sunny. Really makes your tits pop.” A few snickers come from behind him and with a quick glance behind him you can see Topper and Kelce. “You should wear this around the house more often.” Rafe’s hand goes to caress the strap holding your top up. “Stop it.” You say and swat his hand away from you squirming in the chair to get away from him. 

Through the corner of your eye you can see Wheezie coming back with some of her friends. Standing up you gather all your things, slipping your shorts back on to show off your ass. You might hate the flirting at times but it sure is fun to mess with him. “Come on baby, don't be like that. Why don’t you come hang out with us? I promise you’ll have a good time.” The sound of his voice has this underline of suggestion to it. Narrowing your eyes you stare at him for a second. Rafe has this little grin on his face that royally pisses you off. Who does he think he is? “The next time I want to be left unsatisfied and disappointed I’ll make sure to call you.” The edge in your voice only made his stupid grin grow even more. “Trust me baby.” He steps a little bit closer to you. “I would have you begging me for more when I’m done with you.” He whispered eyes staring at yours behind the sunglasses. 

A scoff leaves your lips as you take a step back. “You’re right. Maybe I” You pause for a second to look at his blue eyes. He’s standing a bit straighter now, you actively have to look up at him. “Maybe after your minute is over I’ll definitely want more. I know how much you love having girls beg you to make them cum.” Which was true. Having to live in the same house as him let alone the same floor has proven that point. “It’s just sad you can’t make them cum the first time.” You shrug your shoulders as his face drops. Topper and Kelce’s laughs ring in your ear, infuriating Rafe as he shoots them a death glare over his shoulder. “Oka-”

“Hey!” Wheezie yells as she gets closer to us. “What are you doing here?” she asks the older Cameron. “Just enjoying the view.” Rafe replies with a shrug. His eyes raking up and down your body landing on your tits once again. ��Gross.” You chuckle a little at her reaction. It's good to see that someone else is tired of his constant flirting.

Ever since you got the job a year ago, Rafe was always flirting with you. The small touches and whispers in your ear have been endless. Ward has scolded him so many times that you're surprised even talks to you. It’s not that Rafe isn’t attractive, he is but it's his personality. If that beautiful face hadn’t been so cocky, entitled, or rude you may have already slept with him. Actually you would probably still sleep with him but after hearing girl after girl. As well as dealing with the fall out of each heartbreak, you were all set. You didn’t want to be another notch on his belt and that’s all he sees you as.

“Come on Wheeze. Why don’t we go get some ice cream? I think I saw that cute boy working today.” You send her a wink as your arm wraps around her shoulder. The both of you couldn’t even get a few steps in before Rafe calls out to you. “You aren’t taking my little sister somewhere so you can felt with some fucking guy.” His eyes burn into the back of your head. Stopping and turning your head to look back at him you grin. “The boy isn’t for me, it's for Wheeze. I don’t think my boyfriend would like me flirting with someone else.” The ease in your voice made Rafe clench his jaw. The jealous green monster he hates so much tapping at his shoulder seeing you walk away.

The two of you continue walking, not looking back as he yells out to you. “What boyfriend? Sunny, I'm talking to you, what boyfriend?” Topper and Kelce can be heard trying to get his attention as he keeps calling after you. You keep walking as Wheezie turns to look back at him. The two boys now in front of him holding him back as he tries to follow the both of you. She looks at you for a second and then back to him. “Since when do you have a boyfriend?” Her brown eyes shine behind her glasses staring at me. “Since a second ago.” Looking over at her you both laugh, continuing to the ice cream shop that’s down the road. 

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The sunset was painting the sky with hues of orange, reds, and purple. It looked breathtaking as you sat in the kitchen scrolling on your phone. A video of a puppy playing hide and seek with a baby made you laugh. The sound of footsteps filled the room, Rafe’s voice following along. “What are you laughing about?” “oh sorry I was just texting someone.” You giggle, he steps further into the kitchen making his way to you. “Let me guess that little boyfriend of yours.” Bitterness and a hint of jealousy are laced in his sentence. You place your phone down as you twist your body to face him. 

He looks good. The white t-shirt clings to his arms as he leans down onto the island next to you. “What could he have possibly said that was so funny.” There’s that jealousy again. You lean in a little closer to him, eyes flicking to his lips just in time to catch him liking them. You look back to his eyes, noticing him doing the same. “He was telling me about this douchebag that he met at this party. I think you might know him, he’s this little trust fund baby who thinks he rules the world.” A huf escapes his lips and he leans in a little closer. Lips so close to each other that when he moves his lips they lightly brush yours. “He sounds like an asshole.” He straightens up and walks to the fridge.

Opening it up he takes out a water bottle without looking back at you. His arms flexing distracts you for a moment and you’re glad that he can’t see you. Rafe closes the door and your eyes dart to the rest of the room not looking at anything particular. “It’s sad you are dating him. Maybe that trust fund baby can teach you a good time.” He winks at you when he walks by taking a swig from the bottle. “Very funny I don’t think he would be able to handle me. Plus why would I leave someone who can actually get the job done.” You shrug, picking the phone back up to look busy.  You can see Rafe stop in his tracks from the corner of your eye. “Baby I would rock your world to the point that you would forget your own name. That little boy would look like a rookie once I’m done with you.” With that he just walked away leaving you blushing. 

There’s a slight ache between your thighs and you clench trying to relieve it. Before you can make the mistake of following him Rose walked in. “Hi sweetie. Would you be able to do me a favor? Ward and I are going to the Bahamas for a week to finish up some business deal. Who knows what Sarah will be up to while we are gone and god knows what Rafe will be up to. I swear those two will send Ward to an early grave. Anyway, Wheezie is going to a week-long sleepaway camp with some friends. I know it’s not really your job but can you keep an eye on the other two. We really need to get this deal done and I don’t need them ruining something just to have Ward leave.” She barely looks at you or anything for that matter as she parades around the kitchen, staring at her phone the whole time. Her eyes look up at you waiting for the response. “Of course I can. I’m here to help out in any way.” She smiles at you and grabs a wine glass. “Thank you, You’ve honestly been a big help around the house. I haven’t seen Wheezie this happy or Rafe this well behaved. It's like we needed you.” She chuckles and pours the red wine into her glass.

Her statement took you by surprise. You knew that Wheezie was doing a lot better knowing that she has a stable environment. But the statement about Rafe didn’t make sense. Sure he flirts with you all the time and on rare occasions make sure you are okay at a party. But that’s just because he wants to sleep with you and he knows that if anything happened to you Ward would be upset. You’ve seen Ward yell at him countless of times and know how much Rafe wants his fathers approval. It honestly breaks your heart seeing how hard he really tries. “That’s only because he has to be nice to me. But I’m glad I’m a positive influence.” She takes a sip from her glass tilting her head as she looks at you. There’s something behind her eyes that you can’t make out.“You may not see it but he cares about you. He’s different around you.” She goes back onto her phone as she leaves. “But what do I know? You never know what that kid is thinking. Oh do you mind bringing Wheezie her suitcase? It's in the closet in the hallway.” “Yeah.” You call out stuck in place. 

After a moment you snapped out of it and made your way to get the suitcase. Grabbing it you drop it off in her room. “Here you go kiddo.” You barge into her room. “One suitcase for your travels.” She is standing by her dresser going through it and tossing clothes everywhere. “Do you think this is good to bring?” She’s holding up a dress the two of you got a few weeks back when you were at the mall. “Depends, do you plan on spending the week doing camp activities in that dress?” You reply sitting on the edge of her bed looking at her. She walks over, putting the suitcase next to you as she starts to pack. “It’s not for camp. A cute boy in my grade is going and it’s for when he asks me out.” You laugh, swiping the dress from her hands before she can pack it. “Very funny young lady. When you are at camp you will be doing camp activities, not boys.” You fold the dress putting it back into her drawer before closing it. 

“Uhh.” She cries out, flopping onto the bed. “You’re no fun. It’s fine he wouldn’t have asked me out anyway.” Glancing at her you can see her in deep thought. “He would be stupid if he didn’t. You are so beautiful and amazing. Anyone would be lucky to have you.” You crouch next to her on the floor and she turns her head to the side to see you. “Thank you.” Your right arm reaches up and pushes her hair out of her face. “Just telling the truth… Now finish packing, we don't need a repeat of Cabo.”  You both giggle and you leave her alone.

Making your way down the stairs to your room the sound of a door catches your attention. It closes softly, barely loud enough to hear it. You stop midway on the staircase just in time to see Rafe make his way from your room across the hall to his.  

What was he doing in your room? Rushing down the rest of the stairs you burst into your room. Nothing looks out of place, everything is exactly where you have left it. The bed was still made, your desk perfectly intact, your nightstand has the book you left there last night. If everything was still there what was he doing? Looking around once again you can’t find anything. Your legs start to move before you can think about where you are going. Even though deep down you know exactly where. 

Not even thinking you open Rafes door but stop as soon as you see him. He’s laying on his bed, the shirt he was wearing earlier pulled up to his chest. Your eyes scan down his body and your eyes widen seeing what he is doing. Rafe's right hand is wrapped around his dick stroking it in fast strokes.  “Fuck baby. Just like that, feel fucking amazing.” But what really catches your eyes is the red lace fabric he has pressed up to his nose. He takes a big sniff before bringing the panties down to his dick. You thought Rose's statement shocked you but you are truly frozen now. It’s like every muscle in your body gave up and every neuron in your brain died. No matter how much you wanted to say something or move you couldn’t. The grip you had on the door tightened as you heard him moan.

“Oh god.” His strokes get faster making the veins in his arms pop out more. Another moan leaves his lips. The noise draws your gaze up to his face, which was a mistake because you could ignore the throbbing happening in your shorts. But Rafe’s eyes were screwed shut, head thrown back making his neck look biteable. Yeah looking at the pleasure expression he had right now was a mistake. The little voice in your head telling you to run starts telling you to join him. “Fuck Sunny don’t stop.” Your jaw drops hearing your nickname. The one he gave you a few weeks into working here. 

“Knew you were a slut. Begging me to teach you a lesson.” A sloppy smacking noise reaching your ears. He was thinking about you? You knew he wanted to fuck you but you never thought he would steal you panties just to get off on the thought of you. “Bet your dripping right now. Soaking those little shorts of yours.” This made your eyes shoot up to look at him. Crystal blue eyes meeting yours as his pupils dilate enveloping the sea of blue. He moans as he cums moaning out your name without breaking eye contact. White ropes shooting up and coating his toned stomach. You can feel the blood rush to your face at the thought of being caught watching Rafe masturbate. Well more of the fact that you like watching Rafe himself off. 

“If I knew you were into voyeurism I would have left my door open a long time ago.” He chuckles, running his hand over his buzz cut. “I-I’m sorry. I saw you come out of my room and I.” The words die on your tongue watching as he gets up from the bed, wiping off his cum with my panties. His moans keep playing in your head as you just stare. He makes his way over to you, striping from his shirt leaving him completely bare in front of you. “It’s okay I liked that you watched me. Maybe next time I won’t have to use your panties.” He taunts waving the red lace in your face. 

With your brain not functioning no comebacks came to mind and you didn’t feel his hand wrapping around your waist. “So tell me if I reach into those pretty panties will you be as soaked as I think you’ll be.” The soft fabric brush against your lips finally snapping you out of whatever daze was put over you. You push him off of you and snatch the panties out of his hand. “You fucking wish asshole.” You exclaim practically running out of the room to yours and locking the door.

Your chest rises and falls in fast motions trying to have you catch your breath. What just happened? The events keep playing in your mind as you throw the solid garment into the hamper and go to wash your hands in the ensuite bathroom. Scrubbing furiously you get the remnants of his cum off of your hands. You lean against it with your head hanging between your shoulders. It wasn’t until you licked your lips and tasted salt you remembered the moment. He had wiped the painties on your lips before you had stormed off. You still had his cum left on your lips.

#rafe cameron #rafe outer banks #rafe x reader #rafe smut #rafe cameron smut #obx

[sohnric]

best years – j. haknyeon

pairing: ju haknyeon x fem! reader

genre: early 00s au, established relationship au. fluff !!! sooo fluffy it makes ME feel single. casual engagement i guess ?? tamagotchi mention for all nostalgic girlies <3

warnings: honestly not sure some swearing i'm sure. other than that the reader has hair long enough to play with

word count: 2.5k

a/n: thank you best friend @csenke for beta reading this as always it means a lot to me i love you so bad. also tagging @okkotsu-simp kyuzu bc she told me to and @winterchimez because.. hak fic...

Most things with Haknyeon aren’t planned, grandiose or romantic. Sometimes, you just take a step forward together, holding each other tight, no questions asked. Much like today-- who would've thought that a Tamagotchi toy evolving would lead you to take the biggest step of your life?

this fic is a part of the @deoboyznet 'the love letter collective' event o:) oh and also a spin-off to my 90s au universe! (go read millennium bug and to. my first for 10 years of good luck!)

September 2007

A sweet strawberry is placed in between your lips as you lay on the blanket, the sun shining into your eyes making you squint and shield your vision from the scorching beams. You blindly bite into the juicy fruit, enjoying the freshness of it in your mouth, knowing that this might be the last time you can taste the red miracle this year, since fall is quickly approaching despite the warm days of early September.

Your ears are filled with the noises of the birds chirping in the distance, the occasional buzz of a bug flying by your face, and apart from the sounds of nature, also the occasional humming of your boyfriend’s voice and the tech noises of the toy in between his fingers.

“He finally evolved into an adult!” Haknyeon gasps and places the Tamagotchi into your point of vision, shielding you from the view of the cloudy, blue sky. Eyes falling onto the little device, you snicker at the man and nod, looking up from your position in his lap to meet his gaze.

“Stop gendering our child, Hak.”

“I’m pretty sure that when we named him John, we wordlessly agreed on it being a boy,” your boyfriend’s hand drops, the sharp sun once again piercing your gaze when there is nothing making a shadow fall over your face.

“For all we know, John can be a girl.” 

“Y/N-” the man sighs, the slightest tinge of irritation already in his voice. As if the fact that you were both fully grown adults taking care of a toy for children wasn’t strange enough, now you have to argue about the identity of your little animal.

“It’s an it,” you conclude. “I think we can agree on that, can’t we?”

Your boyfriend rolls his eyes, but doesn’t argue with you further. The view of him crossing his arms at his chest and averting his gaze from you has you burst out into laughter– he was clearly upset about something, and you’re fairly certain that this was not the matter.

“What?” you pry, letting out an airy laugh slip from between your lips.

“You didn’t even acknowledge that it evolved,” he peeps, sighing. “But if you don’t care, it’s okay, you can just go back to what you were doing before, which was nothing–”

Now it’s your turn to roll your eyes at the boy, humored with his childishness. Taking his palm into your hand and holding it up in front of your face again, you gaze at the toy in between his fingers and hum in acknowledgement. “It did!” you nod. “Good job. You finally didn’t let it die–”

“Now, that only happened twice–”

“Three times,” you correct him, watching with amusement as your boyfriend sighs again and chews on the inside of his lip, the sight of him from below more entertaining to you than watching the clouds. You know that by the logic of the Solar system, there’s only one sun allowed in this universe– but looking at the sky shielded by your boyfriend’s head, his tan skin glazed in the warm orange hues of the late afternoon, you think he’s the personification of the greatest star itself– for you that is, at least.

“Okay, well, three times. But I’ve got a hold of it now,” he says, nodding to himself. “So that means we can get a real kid now,” he says, face stoic and serious, as if he really meant what just came out of his mouth.

Laughing to yourself, you shake your head in disbelief. “I’m sorry, get what now?” you grin. “I wasn’t aware that I was a part of this deal.”

“You agreed to it, though,” Haknyeon nods, flicking your forehead. “You must have not paid attention again, but we definitely shook hands on it.”

“Wait,” you say, sarcastically humming and brushing your chin, a playful act of being lost deep in thought, “no. I still don’t remember any of that. So as long as you don’t have a written proof with my signature and the date on the bottom, I don’t think we can proceed with this arrangement, Mr Ju. We can, however, settle on getting a dog–”

“So you don’t want children with me?” he asks, looking down at you with big eyes. Thinking that it’s all a part of a joke, you try to play along– going as far as even shaking your head in disapproval.

“Hell no,” you drag out, furrowing your brows in deep unsettlement. “To have a clone of you running around our flat in a few years? That sounds like my worst nightmare,” you hum, snickering to yourself. “Besides, we forgot to buy toilet paper last week. What makes you believe we can take care of another human? Hell, that damn thing died 3 times before it grew into an adult, Hak…” you sigh, the tone of a know-it-all you like to use on him so much whenever you joke around not quite hitting the boy in the right way this time.

“Ah,” he hums, fingers suddenly playing with the strands of your hair sprawled out like the beams of the sun in his lap, his face now shielded with a cloud. Haknyeon chews on the inside of his cheek for a second before a bashful voice reaches your ears, making you look up to meet his eye. “I think it wouldn’t hurt to at least try…”

Noticing the playful sparkle in his eye completely gone, your heart stammers, skipping a beat. Stomach dropping, you jump to rescue. “Wait… you thought I was being serious?” 

Haknyeon shrugs, pouting for a second before a rosy tint flashes over his cheeks. “You sounded convincing…” he says, laughing. “Besides, it’s completely up to you if you wanna have kids or not, I was just a little taken aback–”

“Stop being silly,” you say, shaking your head. “I should stop being sarcastic all the time, it’s doing a lot of damage recently.”

“Like when MB!Y/N thought you were being serious when you told her it was embarrassing to cry on her wedding day?” Haknyeon laughs, remembering the memory from only a few weeks ago.

“Exactly!” you agree. “I still feel bad for that, by the way. Now I know why nobody liked me in high school–”

“That’s not true,” Haknyeon denies. “You keep forgetting the fact that I had the hugest crush on you, Y/N.”

“Well, you were always very subtle about it.”

“I was shy.”

“I think you were just trying to be cool,” you say, poking the inside of your cheek with your tongue, taunting the boy.

“Well, it worked, didn’t it?” he laughs, moving his hand up to your head and cradling it, going as far as gently scratching your scalp. “Back to the topic at hand, though. Do you… Have you ever thought of us having kids together?”

Looking up at the man you’ve been dating for the last 4 years, watching as his face morphs into pure wonder, your heart sores when you stare at his features for long enough– even after all this time. You bet you see a hint of sunlight reflecting in his orbs whenever he pays you a look, and the apples of his cheeks catch a light strawberry color whenever you compliment him still, even after so many years. It’s kind of adorable, really– you two have always been an open book, honest with each other– but neither of you were really big on romantic gestures or big confessions.

You two do everything casually. You don’t tend to make a big deal out of things. Somehow, your relationship naturally progresses through all the crucial stages without paying it a second thought. Sure, you two have been on dates– the title wasn’t established for a long time when you first started going out, though. For you and Haknyeon, you were just two people hanging out and enjoying each other’s company. 

The title of your relationship gained an official name as naturally as the seasons change– after many afternoons spent together doing various things, Haknyeon just asked you if you wanted to be his girlfriend. You agreed, no questions asked. It felt casual– it fit like a puzzle to the dynamic of your energies. You didn’t need big words or gestures. In the mundane reality of your lives, you two always had each other– without taking each other for granted, you both somehow always knew you were a given to each other. Both of you always knew you had the other person to fall back on– your security, your other half. There was no need for big words in a connection like yours. It just felt right. 

And yes, you do talk about everything. Most things, at least. But somehow, the topic of having children together hasn’t really come up seriously until now– only in passing, mentioning it as a matter of course for most relationships. You don’t blame Haknyeon for getting so serious at this moment.

“Yeah,” you say, voice soft and gentle. “Come on, Hak. I imagine spending the rest of my life with you, what makes you think having children isn’t in the equation?” you say, choosing to be serious with him for once. 

“I dunno,” he shrugs. “I mean, you were kinda right about the toilet paper thing, though–”

“I know, I know…” you sigh, “but I bet the oxytocin will get the job done.”

“Look at you using big biology words so suddenly,” Haknyeon jokes, making you roll your eyes and flick his chin.

“Be serious for once!” you laugh out, making the boy grin at your little outburst.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry,” Haknyeon says, the pad of his thumb suddenly glazing over your cheekbone. The touch is tender, managing to cross the words always somehow left unsaid, yet always somehow understood– your brains and hearts on the same wavelength, buzzing at the same frequency– before your boyfriend casually drags out: “That’s good to hear, babe, ‘cause we’d make the prettiest babies. Would be a shame to let the good genes go to waste.”

“Tell me that,” you confidentially whisper. “They’d be mega smart too. They’d get that after me, obviously–”

“Hey!”

“I’m joking, I’m joking,” you laugh, shielding yourself from the hands of your boyfriend already reaching to give you a playful flick to your forehead again. “I do think we should wait a while before having children, though.”

“Not that I don’t agree with you, but why?” 

Hands blindly reaching for another strawberry to chew on, you watch your boyfriend easily pluck the fruit out of the basket and hold it up against your lips, helping you with your task. Thinking over your answer, picking out your words carefully, you chew and stare at the boy as he helps himself to a strawberry himself, the two of you gazing at each other in a fond silence.

“I think we skipped a few steps. We live together already, so that’s a start, but I’d like to get married before having kids,” you shrug, licking your lips off the watery sweetness, watching your boyfriend take in the new information.

Haknyeon hums, nodding to himself. “Makes sense,” he admits. “And when do you see us doing that?” he asks, genuine interest coating his saccharine voice.

“Not really sure,” you admit, snickering. “I haven’t thought about it much until now.”

“Hm,” Haknyeon hums in thought, the two of you staring at each other, chewing on your strawberries. There isn’t much contemplating behind your boyfriend’s words before he says them, but nonetheless, it doesn’t even catch you off guard– much like not many things do in your relationship. Somehow, you’re always perfectly synced. “Now seems like a good time, doesn’t it?”

“I mean… it doesn’t seem like a bad time, that’s for sure,” you shrug.

“We’ve been dating for a long time,” Haknyeon says, as if to further strengthen his argument. “Hell, I can’t believe Eric managed to get married before me.”

“Are you only saying this because your younger friend got married last month?”

“No,” Haknyeon says, although he sounds a little unconvincing. “But it certainly was a wake up call, in a way.”

“A wake up call?” you repeat, big eyes staring into your boyfriend’s soul.

“Yeah,” he agrees, “kinda realized when I didn’t see you catch the bouquet. A part of me was secretly hoping you would.”

“Stop being cheesy, Hak. That’s not like you,” you say, although there is something sweet, thick like honey, swirling in your stomach at his unusually rich wording. The male laughs in your face, enjoying the way he has you flustered with his confession.

“Would you do it, though?” he asks, grinning.

“What? Marry you?” you ask, raising your brows at him. “As in… right now?” you clarify, watching as the male purses his lips at you, seemingly thinking about it for a heartbeat.

“I mean, not right now, because we’d have to arrange the wedding and all, but yeah. Like, as soon as we can, is what I mean,” he says, dragging a stray hair out of your forehead.

Staring at him for a second, contemplating your next words, you feel your heart squeezing with something akin to excitement, your fingertips tingling with the reality upon you. “Ju Haknyeon… is this you asking me to marry you?”

“Yeah,” Haknyeon nods, shrugging. The whole situation is absurd– no one is down on their knee, no ring is present, no big events or confessions are taking place. Yet, the moment still feels perfect– it flows naturally into the trajectory of your life, makes total sense in the grand scheme of your relationship, happens unexpectedly, but doesn’t quite shock you in the tiniest way. It’s just another afternoon for the both of you– doesn’t matter that you’re taking perhaps the biggest decision of your whole life.

You don’t contemplate for even a second.

“Okay,” you say, watching the boy’s eyes light up.

“Okay,” he repeats, nodding. “Let’s do it, then.”

“Let’s do it,” you say, watching the boy beam down at you just like the sun, something in the air changing, yet, the two of you still stay the same.

Haknyeon takes your hand into his, opening your fist before he slips the keyring off the Tamagotchi onto your ring finger like it’s a promise, pressing the toy into the palm of your hand and making you hold it tight. His hand stays on yours when he leans down, lips crashing against yours, offering you all his love in the simple action. He tastes like strawberries and the past 4 years of joy. 

Faces close to each other when you pull away, Haknyeon talks confidentially into your ear. “We can go ring shopping tomorrow.”

“You better buy me a very expensive one–” you joke, cut off by your own laughter as the male gently bites into the tip of your nose, teasing you and making you frown, pushing him away with gentle force against his chest, right where his heart is.

Most things with Haknyeon aren’t planned, grandiose or romantic. Sometimes, you just take a step forward together, holding each other tight. You love each other in a casual way– the same way you know that when you wake up, there will be sun, and when you go to sleep at night, there will always be stars– you know that as long as you're alive, you and Haknyeon will always have each other. That’s the calm way in which you two love.

#dbn: love letter #deoboyznet #the boyz x reader #ju haknyeon x reader #the boyz fanfic #the boyz drabbles #the boyz scenarios #haknyeon x reader #haknyeon imagines #the boyz fluff #haknyeon fluff

[the-roo-too]

i remember seeing you saying you wanted some le sserafim requests so here i am ig i hope you don’t already have too much of them. yunjin x reader where reader is added to the lineup and gets close to all the members except yunjin who acts cold towards her for no reason. but then she finds out it’s actually cuz their dance/ singing coaches keep comparing them saying yn is better… so she became jealous for no reason. <3

cool with you -> bandmate! huh yunjin

-being a replacement member is hard, but being compared to the replacement member is harder

warnings: unfair treatment ig?; jealousy; kinda mean girl chaewon ehehehheehhehe

genre: enemies to lovers-ish

notes: i made the reader be a replacement eheehehehehehheheehhee

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

getting added to the group after the debut was a bit rough, but your members made it bearable. le sserafim debuted as 6-members girl group and (funny story) their second mini album had 6 performers too.

during the period between the debut and the first comeback, a member of the group that you never got to meet, garam, left because of some scandal. then, they added you!

while at first you thought the group would be distanced (because no matter how you look at it, you replaced the girl) they didn’t care. even better, the oldest two immediately started treating you as one of their own. the younger two also looked up to you as their unnie, especially manchae. even the public didn’t seem to mind your presence all that much.

but of course things couldn’t be too pretty for you.

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

“okay, let’s try from the top?” you all nodded to the choreographer, standing up from your break.

“chaewon unnie, could you pass me my water?” you asked your leader softly, hoping to get one last sip before continuing the practice. weirdly enough, she didn’t notice you speaking to her, as she was focused on yunjin.

the american walked back from the choreographer with a frown on her face, as often these days. her eyes suddenly met yours and her grimace deepened.

huh yunjin: the one member that didn’t like you.

you really had no idea know why, but every time you as much as stood within two meters to her, she’d glare at you.

“are you okay, unnie..?” her unreasonable hatred towards you would never stop you from trying to befriend her…

her shoulder bumped into yours as she walked. “i’m fine.”

…because you might or might have not liked her.

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

yunjin didn’t like you. that was easy to say. did she hate you though?

she stopped in her tracks to ponder over the thought.

she shouldn’t hate you. it wasn’t your fault the choreographer noticed a similarity in your dancing styles and kept pointing it out to yunjin.

it was well after practice finished as she was walking to the dorm (courtesy of staying back to perfect the dance). she knew chaewon was probably worried.

or was she? she’s been staying late in the studio ever since you joined the group.

yunjin was so lost in her thoughts she didn’t even realise she arrived at her dorm.

rummaging through her bag, she fished out her pair of keys.

*click*

the doors were unlocked. chaewon was probably waiting. will she be scolded again?

yunjin sighed. she always gets.

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

“you’re late again.”

yunjin ignored the comment from her leader, placing her bag next to the doors. she took of her shoes and put them in her place.

weird, your pair was missing.

“we were worried.”

“i know, unnie.” she fought the urge to roll her eyes.

“…y/n was worried too.”

“okay.”

chaewon walked up to the younger girl and placed her hand on her shoulder, turning her forcefully, but not too hard.

“i don’t know what is your problem, but you need to resolve it. it’s affecting the group, even the public noticed you two!”

“oka-“

“don’t okay me, damn it!” chaewon sighed, running her hand through her hair to stop the stray strands from tickling her face. “y/n went to look for you.”

“huh? why would she?”

“because i asked her to talk with you. because you’re too much of a child to do that yourself apparently.”

yunjin frowned at her leader. “what goes between me and y/n is not of your business, unnie.”

“find her before i make it my business.”

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

yunjin cursed herself for never bothering to ask for your number. it made finding you much harder. there was still one thing she could do…

now her phone rang, the line quiet. she should’ve expected that, idols don’t tend to pick up unknown numbers.

“hello? yunjin unnie?”

she was a bit taken aback. you had her number?

“y/n? you have my contact?”

“i got it from chaewon unnie… i got you a iced coffee, she said you stayed back after practice so i thought you might be thirsty, unnie.. where are you?”

her heart skipped a beat (she denied it in her head) as she heard your words.

“i’m..” yunjin cleared her throat. “i’m outside our dorm, where are you?”

“oh, i think i can see you, unnie!” the call ended and she heard fast footsteps approaching her. she turned around and saw you running to her, trying not to spill the mentioned coffee.

as you got closer and closer, she couldn’t help but wonder why did her face feel so hot all of a sudden?

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

yunjin closed the doors behind you. when she glanced around the room, there was no chaewon in sight. at least she didn’t have to listen to anymore of her rants.

“unnie..?”

yunjin looked back at you. “yes?”

“why do you.. hate me?” no. she didn’t hate you. she shook her head slowly.

“i don’t.”

“you do, unnie..”

“i don’t hate you, y/n. i just.. i’m not fond of you..?” she saw the look of hurt flash in your eyes.

“i don’t understand why, unnie!”

“stop yelling, you’ll wake the others up.” her voice was cold, yet she felt bad when you looked away from her.

“can we just… talk? please unnie, i want to know what i did wrong..”

a scowl appeared on yunjin’s face. “that’s the problem. you didn’t do anything.”

“huh?”

“you’re just so perfect, everyone loves you! you appear in the group after debut and suddenly its not about being a good dancer but ‘y/n is in the group only for a while and she’s better than you’.”

she saw you freeze. “what do you mean…?”

“i’m tired of being compared to someone who barely got in the group.” she walked away after that. she probably shouldn’t, her words were more hurtful than she meant them to be.

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

practice the next day was awfully calm. yunjin wasn’t called over by the choreographer this time, much to her surprise. instead, you walked over to the trainer.

“you made up yet?” chaewon appeared on her side, drinking from her water bottle as she looked at the american.

“not yet, unnie.”

“oh? i thought y/n told the choreographer that she shouldn’t get the solo part in the song because she wanted to share it with you or something.”

“what?” yunjin whipped her head to look at you, then back at chaewon. “i-i’ll be right back, unnie!”

she speed walked do you immediately. as you noticed her approaching, you gave a small smile.

“yunjin unnie?”

“you gave up your solo part? why?”

“oh..” you giggled softly. (i’m sorry 💀) “i thought that if i didn’t have a solo part.. my dancing wouldn’t be that visible and the choreographer would stop comparing us..”

“yah..” yunjin flicked your forehead. “you’re stupid. you don’t do stuff like this just because i’m jealous!”

“i didn’t want you to be upset, unnie!”

“i’m upset now, y/n. go to choreographer and get that part back right this instant!”

“but unnie..”

“no but’s. if you do that, i’ll come to buy *you* iced coffee today instead of staying back, okay?”

she smiled when she saw your eyes shining like a little kid’s. “okay, unnie!”

maybe, just maybe she didn’t have to dislike you.

➶-͙˚ ༘✶

#yunjin #jennifer huh #yunjin huh #huh yunjin #le sserafim #lesserafim #jennifer #huh jennifer #lesserafim x reader #le sserafim x reader #yunjin x reader #huh yunjin x reader #jennifer x reader #kpop x reader #fxf #gxg #wlw #chaewon #sakura #eunchae #kazuha

[notroosterbradshaw]

It’s Only My Heart (Save Yourself)

about: Rooster’s very bad, terrible day. Super angst and maybe a glimmer of hope at some point.

word count: 7.3k

warnings: angst, language

masterlist.

"My God, if you are not a sight for sore eyes," Jake Seresin shook his head, slowly taking you in from top to toe.

"You're all dressed up," you smiled, acknowledging the Navy's traditional ceremonial kit and gloves. "Very slick, Bagman."

He gave you his trademark, megawatt grin that didn't quite meet his eyes. "What are you doing here? Thought you were tearing up the East Coast, living the dream!"

Completely embarrassed, you hated that nothing could be further from the truth. But that was a story for another time. He enveloped you in a warm hug as you gave him a gentle smile. "Gig," you motioned behind you to the band setting up, the gentle thrum of a snare drum and bass echoing gently.

"You're playing?" he pulled back with a raised eyebrow. He blinked, almost like he didn't believe your answer.

"Yeah," you smiled at his confusion. Something reflected in his bold blue eyes and he held up a finger.

"Hold that thought, huh?" he gently released you and wandered away, catching a look over his shoulder as you went back to your bandmates to warm your vocals up a more. 

There was still plenty of time before the wedding reception, but you always wanted to give your all, and ensure the best part of the day was the happy couple cutting a rug on the dancefloor, with love, joyous grins and laughter. "Where's the playlist?" you asked your guitarist and band manager, Tom, as he handed you the info. It was perfect. The couple's first dance was to Adele's version of "Make You Feel My Love". You adored it and knew how to make it perfect for the couple too.

“Jesus Christ," Rooster sighed to himself. This could not be happening. Not today, of all days, this just could not be happening.

Removing his cover and sitting it protectively under his arm, he debated his dumb luck. There you were, eyes closed and lost in the song you quietly rehearsed. Still magical as you basked in the late afternoon light that poured through the bay windows behind you. Fucking ethereal, he realised. He had to get to the bottom of this as he carefully walked into the reception hall of the hotel the wedding was being held. His throat tightened as he approached you, the lyrics of the song clearer.

"'Dream a little dream of me,'" you crooned and grinned as the band gave themselves some kudos, ready for the evening's festivities. You turned your back to face your guys and chatted about switching up a few songs, depending on the vibe of the wedding party and guests.

"That was really beautiful," some guy told you, affectionately patting your shoulder as you ducked your eyes bashfully. You were never one to take a compliment easily.

Before he knew it, Rooster was before you. "It is you," he said, just quietly enough for you and your bandmates to hear, a little bewildered, as you and your bandmates turned to face him. If you weren't holding the mic stand, you might have lost your footing.

"Holy shit, Rooster. What are you doing here?" a blink and you'll-miss-it fondness gracing your features. He didn't return it.

With a gentle scoff, he replied, "What do you mean, what am I doing here? I thought you were in New York."

"I have been back a few months," you admitted. God, you were getting sick of admitting that. It sounded more pathetic every time.

"Of course you have," he started pacing. He paused, raised his long index finger, and continued to pace. If it wasn't so dramatic, it would certainly be comedic as your bandmates behind you bit back their chuckles.

"Uh, do you know this guy?" your band's manager, Tom, whispered, standing with you.

"Ex-boyfriend," you answered softly, heat prickling your face.

"Ex-boyfriend?" Rooster's ears pricked up and his deep voice cracked a little, and you cowered a little. "I think I was a little more than that." True. He was the love of your life.

"Okay, okay. But Rooster, you need to calm down. Maybe I should have mentioned I was back, but you made it pretty clear when we broke up that you didn't want to see me again.”

"You broke up with me to go to New York," Rooster calmly reminded you. "Follow your dreams, or whatever. Do not pin this... on me."

"Do you need something, man?" Tom asked. "Because all you're doing is intimidating her and that's not cool with us."

Rooster stopped and inhaled. This Tom dude wasn’t wrong and Rooster reflected, hoping to recall his cool, reminiscing on all his years of psychological training to put his body and mind through the worst of human conditions. All of that training escaped him as the moment unfolded. Of all things, he'd never want to scare or hurt you. "You have absolutely no idea, do you?" he almost accused. "I fucking texted you about this."

"I didn't get it," you said, softly. "Sorry, Rooster." He'd been blocked on your phone for so long... it had hurt too much to keep receiving his texts and you having nothing but failure to respond with.

"Well, you hadn't responded to any texts for years, why would you have started with that one?" He'd definitely fine-crafted the art of sarcasm.

"What the hell is going on, Roost?" you asked softly, embarrassed for this scene he was causing.

"This is my goddamn wedding!" he exclaimed, loosening his tall collar. He felt like he was going to have a panic attack and retreated himself. He needed air, his throat constricting.

You felt as if your heart fell out of your butt, a horrible concoction of shock... and terrible sadness. "Oh," was all you said. Well, this escalated into literally the worst day in a matter of seconds. "I didn't know - "

"How do you not know?" he demanded. "You're the fucking wedding singer."

"She's not the MC, she's never the MC," Tom spoke up. "I talk, book the gigs; she sings."

"Just the singer," you told him meekly as Tom looked over the call sheet and handed it to you and you about wanted to die. "Lt. Bradley Bradshaw and Ms Hayley Wills. Okay. Roost, I'm sorry," you looked at Tom, panicked. "I won't do this, I'll go. I won't ruin the evening for you guys."

Tom nodded, patting your shoulder. "It's okay - "

"How did you not know?" Rooster refused to understand. "This is my wedding day. Has my name not crossed your band's lips once?" he was astounded.

"No, only your bridezilla and all the changes she wanted to make up until about two hours ago," Tom warned as you raised your hand, not wanting to hurt Rooster more. "Hardly mentioned you. Can't imagine why, though," he sneered.

"Tom, it's okay," you didn't need him making the situation much, much worse.

"It's cool, man. We'll return the deposit and start packing up - " Tom continued, giving your bandmates the sign to wrap it up.

"You can't go. I've got 100 assholes I don't know watching me get married in - " he checked his watch. "Less than five minutes, depending on how late Hayley wants to be and make me sweat more than I already am."

Sighing, you carefully stepped off the stage and approached Rooster, guiding him with a light touch on his bicep that he didn't shrug away (even if it scalded him). You moved him away from your confused, protective bandmates who were about ready to take his head off. Without a word, he followed you outside into the choking humidity, no relief from the breeze off the water. “Go get married. I will leave; the band can stay. No one has to know - “ you tried as he whipped his arm away from you.

”But I’ll fucking know,” he hissed, pounded his chest, wanting to scream it at the top of his lungs. The last thing he needed to do was draw more attention to the situation.

"Okay, okay. Calm down. I get that you're upset, but I didn't know and clearly neither did you, so we're both equally as pathetic here. Your day can still go on without a hitch. I'm sure your bride is on her way now and your guests are probably wondering where the fuck you are. So stand up straight," he immediately did so. "Go find a mirror, take a shot with Bagman, and man the fuck up," you hated every word you said.

He frowned, his height towering over you suddenly. "I hate this."

You wanted to ask if he meant you or the day, but kept your trap shut. You were beginning to think a little of columns A and B.

He inhaled sharply, in hopes of calming himself. "I told myself I would never allow myself to be alone with you ever again," he looked back at your bandmates through the sheer blinds of the reception room. They'd taken the initiative to put your guitar away and start putting your kit near the door. Bless them, you thought. "And here you are, on my wedding day. I don't even want to get married," he confided. "I never did. Even when we were together, it was just a piece of paper. Why do you need it if you love someone? Shouldn't love be enough?" he rambled.

You nodded, with a shrug. "Sometimes people just need it, Rooster."

"But I don't. And she," he waved towards the rest of the hotel, putting his bride-to-be in the 'people' category. "She does. She needs the fanfare, the show. The dress. The band," he spat the last part as Hangman came into view and approached you both steadily. "Make sure I'm in my uniform. Make sure everyone knows who I am, what I do. My badges gleaming. It's 75 fuckin' degrees!"

"Rooster... Hayley is here and the guests are asking questions," Hangman said quietly. "Do you want me to go and say something?"

"What do I say?" Rooster retorted and Hangman was understandably speechless. "Just buy me some time."

Hangman nodded and made a very hasty exit.

"What am I supposed to do?" he asked you. "I cannot get married, knowing you're here."

"I'm leaving. You'll never have to think of me again," you tried reassuring him. "Tom can cover the singing, he will find a believable cover for me in case Hayley asks questions. Just breathe, and try and have a good day."

"No," he shook his head, finally meeting your gaze. "No. Know that I know you're back? I can't - I don't - " Rooster struggled to get out and you stopped, desperately wanting to hold him - hating how angry he was at you, how much he despised you in this second. "I was madly in love with you, and you left me like I was fucking nothing to you. You broke my heart! I thought about following you every day for a year and you didn't call or text me once."

Panic washed over you a few moments later when you heard, "What do you mean, 'he's just getting some air', Jake?"

Tears streaming down your face now, you dropped your eyes. The situation was escalating much faster than you had the ability to process. Guilt-riddled and in a predicament you never thought imaginable but you weren't veiled in an invisible cloak of obscurity and people could see you both now. And just to Rooster's side in your eye view, a vision in white approached, her dress moving whimsically around her. She was beautiful, everything you'd ever imagined for him. Just spectacular.

"Fuck," he rubbed his face. His entire relationship was hanging by a moment and he hoped and prayed that you both couldn't make more of a mess of this than you'd done already.

"Bradley, sweetheart? What's going on, why aren't you inside?" she asked nervously. "Is something wrong?"

He had the balls to reply, "Baby, I don't think I'm supposed to see you yet," he kept his back to you, his eyes telling you not to make a goddamn sound. No problem, you had no interest in acquainting his fiancee.

Credit to her, Hayley wasn't buying what Rooster was selling and she stiffened. "Don't bullshit me. Why are you out here? Are you getting cold feet?"

Of course he is, you wanted to reply. Things like this weren't natural to Rooster... he hated being the centre of attention, he choose when and how he'd be put on display and you knew this just wasn't him. Eloping? Yes, you could see him eloping. On a beach, a sunset, some tropical island, a cocktail function later with a handful of people you'd bothered to invite - and just like that, those thoughts you'd pushed to the back of your mind years ago were bopping in your heavy brain again. All those dreams of when you thought you and Rooster would celebrate this day and you just wanted to be sick.

"I'm just nervous," he admitted, turning to face her, bad luck be damned (how could it all get worse though?). Even he had to admit, even at his worst, she looked absolutely stunning and she was right there... waiting for only him. "You look beautiful."

"Who is this?" she disregarded Rooster's terms of endearment.

"I was just getting some air, walking past," you kind of lie. Argh. Shut up, you told yourself. Let Rooster handle this. You glued your eyes to the decking below you, wishing it would disintegrate and you'd just disappear.

"No... you're the singer," Hayley realised.

You waved gingerly. "Hi."

"Hi," she broke into a small, relieved smile. "Baby, are you coming in?" she asked Rooster as he tensed.

"I will be right in," he said. And you didn't know how well Hayley knew him, but you know without seeing those soulful hazel eyes that this man was lying through his teeth.

"Hold on... Do you two, like, know each other or something?" She certainly wasn't buying anything, you gave her credit, she had learned the wiles of Bradley Bradshaw. She was smarter than you were giving her credit for.

"No," you both lied terribly. Hayley stepped back to gaze at you both in her focus. "Brad, is there something you need to tell me?" Ew, he hated being called Brad.

His resolve breaking, he introduced you only by name although you figured she'd know that, but different contexts now. "My ex."

"Your ex-girlfriend?" Hayley asked as so calmly that it cooled your blood.

"Yes," he replied numbly.

"Oh, my God," she said softly. "The wedding singer?" she asked incredulously. "How the fuck could I have been so goddamn stupid?"

Right? 

"Did you do this on purpose? Not tell me?" she suddenly flared up, the accusation in her voice rising as she closed in on Rooster.

"No, I didn't," he answered. "Trust me... there is nothing I would have wanted less. Believe me, when I tell you I simply did not know. You were pleased with the band, frankly, that's all I needed to hear. You've done all this yourself..." he rambled. But Rooster's eyes changed. You had only seen this rage once or twice, not including today, but his ability to keep his rage in tact had always been a slight downfall of his. Oh dear, you hated when Rooster smartened up because reason had found him and good things never happened when Rooster let the beast out. "Because like everything in this wedding, it's been what you wanted. If you wanted the band, you were just going to get the band anyway,” his tone must have stung his bride-to-be because the wave of bitterness hit you like a little ton of bricks.

Oh, that didn't help the situation, you thought, turning to try and leave. "Don't you go anywhere," Hayley hissed.

"This is between you two - " you tried.

"True. But you've always been there," Hayley said evenly, moving past Rooster to approach you. "Always like a shadow in the background. When I met Bradley, he made it no secret he had been hurt before and that he needed someone who he could trust fully. And that is me."

"I don't deny that," you admitted.

"You destroyed him."

And while it hurt to hear Rooster say, it felt a shit tonne worse to hear someone you didn't know say it so explicitly.

"I brought him back to life, my family adore him, only for you to come back today. How could I be so goddamn stupid? It's like I practically invited you to wreck our day," she paused to retrieve her gorgeous heel from where it was caught between the wooden planks through the layers of sheer fabric.

"I swear, I'm not here to ruin anything. I didn't know Rooster was getting married today."

Hayley gave a bold, mocking shrug. "Well, I guess now you do."

"Okay," you said, your nerves shot, you'd had enough. "You two are a mess. Clearly, the issues between you are way bigger than me. I've tried to be polite to now, but fuck it. Hayley, Rooster, good fucking luck to you both if you manage to get yourselves married today. You clearly belong to each other. I don't need this shit. Goodbye, good fucking riddance. Your dress is lovely, by the way," you told her quickly, it really was, as was the woman who wore it before her, as you desperately held back the bird and walked away.

"It's Rooster's mom's dress," she replied after you and you slowed to look to Rooster as his eyes dropped. He gave you credit, you knew exactly what Hayley was wearing and commended you for keeping your trap closed.

"This is Carol's dress?" you played up for him and him only but he didn't reply. He knew you were just trying to poke the bear.

"You knew her?" Hayley asked.

"Yeah, I grew up down the street from Rooster." You stopped yourself before you told her she let you dress up in it all the time as a child, it was your dress well before it was ever hers. That would certainly have been the final nail in the coffin of an awful, terrible day.

"So this was probably supposed to be your dress too," Hayley exploded, face red with rage. "Jesus, get me out of this place. Get me out of this shitty dress," she turned, and for the first time, you noticed a couple of dozen people around you, bearing witness to what was embarrassing to you... was probably a helluva lot worse to Rooster and Hayley. "And get me the hell away from him."

It took hours for you to stop thinking about the horrors of the previous day. The last time you checked the clock was about 2am and the alcohol in your system had helped you finally pass out, amidst the misery of your bedroom spinning and thoughts of lost love tearing you apart.

Hearing an incessant knock at whatever time it was frightened you as you noted the time on your phone. 4:30am, it blared as you sighed and reached for your UVA hoodie. "Good Lord," you muttered as the knocking continued. You shuffled down the hallway to the door, telling whoever it was to calm the fuck down. Opening the door to Rooster, maybe you weren't entirely surprised, but a little alarmed as he almost fell through the doorway. "Woah," you tried to help and pushed him upright.

He was still in his suit nix the jacket, the collar undone, his curls unruly and his face flushed from booze and frustration.

"Sorry," he mumbled quietly.

All you could ask was, "You lost?"

"Must be," Rooster replied, exhausted as he slumped against the doorframe, chewing his lip. "She, uhh... she thought it was best we not get married... today," he mumbled.

"Oh, Rooster - " you said, eyes welling as your heart broke for him.

"Or ever," he drawled.

"I'm so sor - "

"Yeah, I know. You're sorry. The sorriest you've ever been," he said meekly. "You know, I didn't even realise this was still your place. I just assumed you got rid of the lease when you left," he rambled. "Lucky guess, huh? Could have really pissed someone off if this wasn't your place," he snorted.

Failing to see the funny side, you replied, "I sub-let. What are you doing here?"

He inhaled sharply. "Nowhere else to go. Penny had to close the bar at some point. Can't go to Hayley's. Too embarrassed to show my fuckin' face on base."

”Come in, Roost,” you took his clammy hand in yours, guiding him into the apartment, and he followed numbly. "Drink?"

”Least you can do,” he said, voice terse. "I drive past here to our - Hayley's place - all the goddamn time and always see the light on. Now I know you were there, just living your life..." he stopped at a photo of you and Pheonix at the zoo one day, grinning and giggling, both gorgeous and sun-kissed. "She knows you're back, right?"

"She's known a while," you confirmed. Pheonix had seen the whole showdown between yourselves and Hayley and followed you home, damning any nuptials Rooster and Hayley may have had. She brought over the first 2 bottles of wine you shared to drown your sorrows together - a true friend.

"Can't believe she kept it from me." You knew it must have hurt him to learn his close friend keeping such a big secret from him.

"I asked her to keep quiet."

"She did a good job. She didn't know you were working yesterday?"

"Not your wedding," you sniped. "This isn't about her, Rooster. Please don't drag her into it."

"No, no," he agreed calmly. "You're right. I'm just wracking my brain, right?" he drawled. "How have we not bumped into each other? This is a small town."

"I'm not dumb enough to go where you frequent, Rooster," you rolled your eyes. Seemed fairly obvious to you.“Take a seat,” you instructed with a sigh as he meandered into the living room. It looked the same as when he spent every waking minute there. You went to the cabinet and collected a tumbler, a double shot of whiskey. You knew he’d already been drinking but this poor bastard… you helped ruined his life today.

Wandering back to him slowly, you watched him sit in his old spot and look up at you. “I don’t know why I’m here. I shouldn't have come to see you,” he accepted the glass and sipped, easing back and rubbing his face. “Hayley put me back together and you walk back into my life for five minutes and destroy it all again.”

Wasn't getting any easier to hear.

“I can’t believe this has happened,” he put his face in his hands before looking back up with an incredulous smile, unbuttoning his cuffs and rolling his sleeves half up his forearms. You didn't like that smile.

”I don't know what you want me to say, Roost.”

”Stop calling me that. You don’t get to call me that anymore," he warned, there was no humour in his tone.

“Okay. I'm kind of fucking sick of talking anyway,” you sighed, sitting cross-legged on the coffee table before him. He was wretched and still as beautiful in his way. Maybe as handsome as before. The boyish innocence was gone though, and there was a man about to start his life over again. The guilt was swallowing you whole.

“Hayley's a good girl. She cares about me, she loves me,” he looked up and was simply defeated, you wanted to hold him desperately and fought every urge not to do so. “I’ve never been more embarrassed. Having to tell everyone that there wasn’t going to be a wedding today. Thought her old man would put his fist through my teeth. But I maintain that I didn’t do anything wrong."

"You didn't," you reassured him. It was on you both.

"And here I am anyway," he reasoned with his demons and continued to internalise.

Answering would only end up with a barrage of pain and insults so you stayed quiet. Rooster leaned forward, sipping the amber liquid just like he had a million times before in the same seat he found so much comfort. His eyes started from above your messy hair, they softened when he met your eyes. “And you haven’t changed a bit. Just as beautiful as the day I dropped you at LAX, with your dreams that were bigger than me and fuckin’ suitcase. I looked you up Fleet Week last year,” he confided. “I saw you had a show in Brooklyn and I was gonna come see you, make sure you were okay. Just to see with my own two eyes that you were okay in the big city without me."

"Did you come?" your eyes were trained to stay with his, but the pain dripped from his eyes unbearably.

He shook his head, but after all the booze he'd consumed, it was just a messy roll of his head. "I thought it best I didn't."

"I would have loved to have seen you."

He rolled his eyes. "Of course you would have. Whipped into a frenzy of old memories before you up and left again like I was fuckin' nothing to you."

"Do you have a single thing to say to me that isn't in the shape of an insult? Because I'm kind of done with this today. You can leave if you don't have anything constructive to add," you muttered, eyes watery. His face softened as he scooted closer to the coffee table, legs wide and he grabbed your ankles and dragged you closer to him, his palms grasping the hoodie for dear life. You were clinging to each other and it was killing you at the same time. The word vomit spilled from your lips before you could stop your, restraint failing in his close proximity. "When I left... I didn't call or text you, Rooster, because I knew the second I heard your voice, I'd be on the first plane back home, begging you to take me back. Begging you forgive me and my fucking ego. Thinking that I had a chance to ever make it."

He sighed, gently wiping a tear away with his thumb. "You deserve all the success in the world, sweetheart. You took your chance. It took me a long time to understand that. I guess I thought that maybe one day you'd come back to me... but I couldn't expect you to stay here while I was gone for weeks and months on end. I was a selfish asshole too."

True.

You stayed silent for a while, happy to study him, reaching to touch the scar that ran across his Adam's apple. It bobbed under your touch and Rooster swallowed hard. "Please don't touch me," he begged. "I will lose all resolve."

But you ignored him as your finger continued tracing the others that ran scant on his chin and the left side of his jaw. You knew what the sensation did to him, and it wasn't the intent to drive him crazy, but the temptation of him so close was starting to affect your mind and body. "Did she love these as I did?" you dared ask; and your heart raced as his eyes fluttered closed, his cheek falling lightly into your palm. "Cherish every blemish because she knew what you went through to get them?" you continued, your thumb padding his bottom lip as his breath hitched.

"Please, stop," his tired eyes half-lidded. A mix of lust and drunk... on you. His phone sounded abruptly, interrupting the revelry. You looked down, saw the callsign and dropped your touch as he sighed. You picked up his phone and he didn't stop you.

"It's okay, Mav. I've got him."

"Thank Christ," Pete sighed. You were hearing his voice for the first time in years. "I thought he'd done something stupid."

"He has. He's with me," you told him. A small chuckle replied you and the line went dead.

"Why did Mav call?" you asked. Rooster and Mav's long-running feud saddened you.

"Long story," he sighed. As long as he had Maverick back in his life, you hoped Rooster was a little less lonely.

"Does everyone hate me?"

"Naw," Rooster said softly. "Worse, they miss you. When Hangman told me you were here today, he felt like he'd seen a ghost. Like someone was playing a practical joke on him," he bit back a laugh, a half-smile gracing his features and he relinquished your touch, falling back into the couch. "I get the ghost bit though."

"I'm here, Rooster."

"Yup. In my UVA sweater that you never gave back," he licked his lips, dragging in a deep breath.

"I love this sweater," you admitted, bringing the collar to snuggle into your face. And it was all I had left of you after I walked away from you.

"Always looked better on you anyway," he gave a slow chuckle.

"Roost?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, easing back into the couch, his eyes closed as he nursed the whiskey to his lips. He took a slow sip and raised an eyebrow, trying to maintain his attention but the alcohol had taken over, the heat of the moment had gone with Mav's call and you were both back to your corners, preparing for the next round. Deciding against telling him how much you missed him and were happy to see him, even in the day's circumstances, you told him to put the glass on the table and lay down. You'd get him a blanket and pillow so he could finally give in to the sleep that was beckoning him. "You're probably right."

"I'll be right back," you told him, getting off the coffee table and walking slowly to your room, finally able to breathe. Realising that since you opened the front door, it was like someone was standing on your chest. Rooster was back in your life in a way that you'd never expected. But he was back and it was like you'd never found the courage to leave him. You had no idea how you'd be able to get over him this time.

Finding a blanket in the cupboard and a pillow from your bed, you wandered back down the hall to find him exactly how you'd guided him, snuggled into the cushions on his side and already asleep. Not surprisingly, the adrenaline had to wane at some point. You took a mental picture of how sweet and relaxed he looked for the first time today and lightly covered him with the blanket before you went back to your bed. But there was no way you could sleep again, not with him just a room away. Checking your phone, you went to his number and unblocked it, littered with all the texts you never saw when you left. Hundreds. A lot that he missed you, did you miss him? Can I visit? Are you coming home for the holidays?

Then nothing for a year. Finally... the last one, six months ago:

I'm getting married.

And there it was. "Shit," you bemoaned, realising how easily avoidable today was in hindsight. But also? How relieved you were now you had Rooster back in your life. What does that look like? You didn't know. But he was mere feet away and you would be patient to find out. As long as you could find a way to be near him, laugh with him again, it would be enough.

He was an enigma to you now. So close, yet so far. For three years, you tried your best to pretend that Bradley Bradshaw didn't exist and in a single moment, he came back screaming into focus. He still looked every bit as handsome as you'd remembered, even the moustache, new for you, surprisingly wasn't a dealbreaker, just so masculine. He was definitely in better shape, losing the last of the puppy fat that you always adored but Hayley had reaped the benefits. But his voice... oh, God, his voice, even when angry at you could still bring you to your knees. The gravelly rumble was still delightfully laced with honey, maybe deeper now with age.

Convinced the last three years were a mistake, you put your head in your hands and cried for all the failures, but also for the strength you had to walk away from a man you were so terribly in love with the try and see if you could make it without him. Maybe you could have, but the universe had other plans for you both. Not knowing what else to do, you picked up your phone and texted Natasha.

You: He's here and I don't know what to do

You weren't surprised when you saw the little dots indicating she was texting right back to you. "Just don't tell him you're still in love with him. Not yet. Do you want me to come and get him?"

You: No, he's passed out in the living room atm. Why are you up?

Pheonix: Left sound on my phone in case R texted or whatever. Kind of expected the worst tonight tbh

Pheonix: You know he's in love with you. But you can't rush this. You know what's coming: good things. But now you have to adjust to being in each other's lives again 🫣

You: Bullshit logic. Hate fucking could be amazing 🥵

Pheonix: But you don't hate each other. That is why you found it so easy to hurt each other today...

You: Deep 🫡

Phoenix: Try and get some sleep. But don't be surprised if he's not there when you wake up.

You were more surprised when you saw him at the door to your room when you woke up, still in what he wore last night, but barefoot. Stretching and hangover in full effect, your eyes raw and like sandpaper, you tried to look like a functional human adult as he gave a half-smile. "I made coffee," he said. "But you didn't have any sweetener," he nodded to the cup on the bedside table he'd left before you rose.

"Thank you," you smiled appreciatively, taking the warm mug into your palms and letting the aroma envelope you. "I don't take sugar anymore," you admitted after all the years he tried to get you to quit it.

"Imagine that," he said, amused at the development.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like shit," he admitted. "Head killing me, body feels like it's been ejected about two hundred times."

You stayed quiet. You didn't need to talk about that kind of stuff this morning.

He remained in place, very good after years of being told to stay to do it exactly. He was scared to cross the threshold to your bedroom, but you didn't want him to approach either. You'd be a lost cause if he took another single step. "I'm sorry for how I acted yesterday."

"What, like your horrible ex-girlfriend wrecked the biggest day of your life?" you slowly sat up. Thinking about it, you added, "Honestly, how were you supposed to act?"

"Better," he told you and it quietened you. He didn't want your apologies, he was taking ownership of the situation and you were so proud of him. "I know better. I was a dick, and I hate how I treated you - both of you."

"I accept that. But you don't have to apologise. It was a lot," you tried to reassure him, but it was his redemption hour and he was on his box.

"You didn't mess it up. I did," he sighed and sat down, stretching his lean legs out as he leaned against the doorframe. "I never wanted to get married - I just thought it was the logical next step, you know? I was spiralling and you were the one there that took the brunt of it."

"I shouldn't have come. I will do better research next time about who I'm singing for," you pledged (and would continue to do so).

"Hayley wanted you there. She didn't know."

"Well, now she does."

"And so does everyone on the Island," he rubbed the back of his neck, tensing, his lips in a tight line. "I thought marrying her was the right thing. I'm not getting younger."

"Yeah, how old are you now? Like 63 or something?" you teased the two-year age difference between you.

"Knock it off, I'm not dead yet," he rolled his eyes. "We're not spring chickens anymore. What are we doing with our lives?"

"Clearly making messes of them."

He actually laughed, a hearty, raspy, oh-so fucking sexy Rooster laugh. "I said knock it off. You're such a pain in the ass."

"Hey."

He hummed in reply, sipping his coffee, and looking at you over the rim of the mug.

"It's not like you do to do what's expected of you, Roost."

"Mav said the same thing," he said, quietly.

"I'm so glad you two cleared the air. Whatever happened was worth it," you told him honestly. "You need him and he needs you. You're family."

He shrugged, nonchalant. "Only took half-killing us, though," he bit his lip, knowing you would ask what the fuck he was talking about.

"WHAT?" you howled.

And he proceeded to tell you the story about the squad and their near-brush-with-death mission. And even though he made it out relatively safely in the end, you kind of wanted to kill him yourself. And Mav, for what it was worth. "Oh, my God," you said, eyes watering, body shaking by the end of it. And although you knew you shouldn't have, you bolted from the bed into him, crushed against his chest, openly wailing that you could have lost him and you would have been no better for it if Natasha had to tell you as such.

A gentle 'oof' escaped his lips as your force made contact with his torso and he smiled. "It's okay, it's okay," he said softly, patting your back tenderly. "I'm still here and making terrible life choices."

"It was a fucking one-way ticket to your grave, you idiot! I am not even surprised with Mav."

Rooster chuckled quietly. "It's okay, really. He saved us."

"You're both idiots," you conceded.  

He gently pulled you back and wiped away the tears from your face. "Oh, darling. I lived to tell the tale. Don't live in the past," he whispered the latter part. "Or at least that's what my shrink says," he adjusted your posture and sat you across his lap - close, intimate and forcing you to face your demons head-on. "God, you beautiful disaster," he teased, a gentle laugh escaping his lips and he combed his long fingers through your hair lightly, tangling in your hair as they did so many moons ago, gently calming you. "Did you mean what you said last night? About if Hayley loved me like you did - "

Hiding your eyes, you played with his collar instead. "Can we not?"

He ignored you. "No one has ever loved me like you," he said softly, terribly nervous again. "I've been through some shit. But losing you was the worst thing I've ever been through as an adult. It took me a long time to learn that I pinned too many things to us; a home, a family, a life. Then you were gone and I was debilitated. But now you're back, I'm not expecting anything. I know I'm a mess too. But if - after..." he tried, stumbling over his words and holding your chin to meet his gaze. "I just want to be your friend. Just to be in your life, that will be enough for me."

Thought it killed you to say, you told him, "Things are complicated now. More than they ever were before."

"I know," he nodded. "We're older. No one said wiser." Swallowing, he continued, "Tell me this is all in my head, and I will believe you," he said confidently.

"It's not in your head," you told him delicately. "I have missed you every day since I left. Leaving was the stupidest thing I ever did. And I regret it every minute. But you have a lot of stuff to clean up... and I'm not sure I should be there for that. You need to see Hayley and apologise and sort your life out. I don't need to overcomplicate or distract you."

"But you're such a good distraction," he mewled, he thumbed your cheeks in his rough warm palms. His eyes tested you, dared you to look away.

"Don't," you warned again. You were waning though, and he knew it better than you did. He was watching you keenly, just waiting for his chance. You brought yourself here, he'd remind you, just like you used to. A position like this was never romantic, it always led to a certain wildness in you both -

"To be honest," he said. "If Jake didn't see you yesterday... we wouldn't be here."

"So we thank Bagman?!" you asked incredulously as Rooster laughed heartily, his head lolling back and resting against the doorframe and it was absolute bliss - god, you'd missed that breathy tinkle of joy and you sighed, able to fight just a moment more to keep him serious.

He relaxed and his eyes dropped, nodding. "Yeah, okay. You're right."

"Bradley," jolted back to your gaze by his name on your lips, you added. "I am so in love with you. I've always been in love with you. I'll wait for whenever this all works out for us."

"I know," he nodded, a glimmer of hope returning to his handsome features, he leaned forward and kissed you, just once, just chaste, just to test the waters. He inhaled, evening his breath - how lucky for him considering you'd stopped breathing somewhere in the conversation.

"Don't start, I swear. I'll be a lost cause if you kiss me," you begged, your fists clutching his collar and your knuckles turning white, taunting you just like you had the night before when you reminded him how you knew every devastating scar on his skin. You loved and moved each other in a way no one would ever understand.

"Don't start what?" he whispered, moving your hair from your face to trace the rim of your ear with his steady finger. A tactile asshole when he wanted to be, the use of his hands was his love language and he was going straight for the jugular. He knew every nuance of your body and mind and it left you brutally exposed for defeat.

"Rooster," you warned. "Don't."

He laughed quietly, your tone betraying you - not force, just accepting your fate and you'd lost. "I'm not doing anything," in his other palm, he gripped your wrist and brought it to his lips, the bristles of his moustache as he placed a tender kiss on your pulse. "It's racing," he tormented you. Goddamn heartbeat selling you out. It raced like a hummingbird when you were in his presence. It never changed. Its effect on you still pushed you to the absolute brink and made your head spin. "Just say the word and I'll stop."

But the words were lost as you moved to your knees and brought his face to yours. He adjusted his legs, allowing you more room and his face remained passive, daring you to say no. But as in most instances with him, the words were lost only to the actions.

A/N: the tag list no longer exists. To keep up to date, give @notroosterbradshaw-library a follow x

#rooster #rooster x reader #rooster x you #rooster x oc #bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster imagine #rooster fanfic #rooster angst #bradley bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x you #bradley bradshaw x oc #bradley rooster bradshaw x you #bradley rooster bradshaw x oc #bradley rooster bradshaw x female reader #bradley rooster bradshaw imagine #rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw fic #rooster top gun #top gun maverick #notroosterbradshaw #hangman #maverick #top gun fanfiction #phoenix

[odusseus-xvi]

q!BAGHERA post because I am ecstatic

I want to talk about what happened yesterday (just in case, this isn't about drama or whatever this is talking about what the evolution of the character might be, no discourse, no drama, this isn't the subject of this post) because of HOW MANY POSSIBITIES IT OFFERS for Baghera and how TERRIFYING they all are.

Let me tell you I am terrified (ecstatic I love the angst gimme) because Baghera yesterday, discovered what BBH did (only partially, she doesn't know about the torture yet.. OH and when she does...). But that's the thing. She was upset at BBH, but what's worse is what BBH did to her. As of late Baghera has been lost, scared, and while everyone has moved on in their grief (they are all still grieving obviously, but they are at a point where they have grieved quite a bit and are now trying things) she has not even gotten the occasion to at all. She is trying to grieve her missing children AND her childhood she remembered she never had, AND Bad which is very obviously looking terrible, but everyone is moving along, trying to pass on to other things or trying to find solutions. Forever comes and tell her to try and be happy, but how can she ?

Here comes yesterday. Here comes BBH. I always suspected, and it was proven multiple times that Baghera was very much his moral compass. But at the time she came back, it was already to late. It was done. He did the mistake. And the thing is BBH is one of the only ones she decides to trust with some of her secrets, because it's her bebou, it's her partner in crime. It's the father of her children. And Bad decides to do the same, except HE puts her at test. She doesn't know it yet, he asks her to make the promise not to tell anyone and not to intervene. She oblige, obviously. And he shows her.

And she is shocked, she is starting to stress out. She is obviously angry at Bad, and at the same time... She promised, but it's fucked up, but it's her best friend, but it's too similar to her childhood she has to help, but it's Pomme's father she can't betray him. And when she makes it clear to Bad she is not happy he starts behaving in a way he never did with Baghz (when I tell you I got chills) , when he lied to her before it was mostly playful, but there it felt like manipulation, he cut her words short, "Is he oka-" "Yes he is don't worry.", he doesn't let space for her to be mad.

She promises to Ron. "I'll get you out of here. Give me one or two days"

And then when Forever etc. comes around she is still processing all this and she makes a quick decision, a terrible one. She lies to them. She protects Bad. But it's also to protect Ron. She may have an occasion to free him. And in that moment, she hates what she is doing. She doesn't want to lie but Bad has put her in an impossible position. And in trying to solve everything, to not betray anyone, she is forced to betray everyone. And she realises it. She hates it.

And that's where we get for what happens then. Because she is already lost and lonely, and one of the only person she could have used to get out of this downward spiral has betrayed her. He has lied and made her betray everyone else. And she will have to betray him soon. She will feel truly alone. She feels like she betrayed Forever, and in a way she did. She feels terrible, she can't trust him anymore, she has crossed the limits herself, she is too afraid. The French suspect her of things, she suspects them in return. (obviously she will still play with all of them because cc!Baghera is still friends with all of them, what I mean is she will just bottle up all those feelings again.)

That leaves three options.

First is Fit. But even if there is mutual respect in their respective secrets, that respect includes NOT giving away their secrets.

Second is Jaiden. "We have to stick together." But unlike anyone else, this will most likely end up in a downward spiral as well. They will just comfort each other in their compassion for Cucurucho, and in the end their past with the Federation.

Last is her "true and only" family. When she will truly be alone, there will be one option, that will always remain open.

The Federation.

Basically, unless there is an unforeseen turn of events, that can always happen, I want to say she is doomed.

And I can't wait to see what cc!Baghera comes up with.

#qsmp #qsmp baghera jones #qsmp baghera #qsmp forever #qsmp pomme #qsmp badboyhalo #qsmp bbh #qsmp french #qsmp fit #qsmp jaiden #qsmp federation

[crookedkryptonitebeliever]

This is just me rambling and stuff, and this is the only way i could get out my monty brainrot and a little bit of yves brainworm out of my head, but just ignore it if it's cringe or too insane

I think with the way Yves would take care of me thoroughly and know me so well would unsettle me at times, but ultimately it would probably cement his place as a comforting and caring platonic partner in my head 😭😭 cause i know i would be thinking like "oh! He's so inspiring! I think he's the perfect role model for how i should take care of myself and love the people close to me ^^" <- absolutely missing the point and every romantic gesture i would misunderstand (what lacking romantic experience does to a mf) as something he does with other ppl, even though i would imagine that he's barely seen with anyone else than his darling :'); or maybe he would account for the fact that i misunderstand things? But i have a feeling that he would catch on to the fact that I'm a bit of a blockhead

Imo i think that i would choose Monty over Yves, despite everything that he did for me; maybe because he's done so much for me, i would probably feel immeasurably guilty even if he does say he likes doing it and personally, the power imbalance in both his material and physical qualities as well as the lack of vulnerability would intimidate me 🫠🫠 errr in a way, Monty I love so much because of how loving, protective and accepting he is, he's got characteristics that are close to my type!! (might also be the fact that to some extent, he can be controlled :3); he's endearingly trying his best and flopping a lot, but at least he listens to valid criticism 🥰🥰 he's... Cute... And maybe because of the food too, since receiving and giving food is a big sign of love for me <3 His messiness is a bit of a charm to me, because personally it takes a lot of guts and vulnerability to show someone how messy you are physically and mentally, or well, maybe its pity over the depression mess 😔 One thing i want to know is if he'll ever get immune to his darling's romantic and sexual advances and throw it right back similarly? Or is still gonna be giggling and kicking his feet on the bed over it? And i wonder how his reaction would be towards a darling that starts off meek and quiet, but gets more dominant and pursues him as well? Man, i want this guy pegged <3 And to get him pregnant <3 I want to give him backshots that make him better or worse :3

Anyway, this is also a way of grieving over not choosing Monty over Cyprus 😔 because i read Cyprus first before Monty and i regret picking him for the poll 🤧 but, I'm looking forward to any potential Monty content and how this silly guy locks in or flop <3

Boy oh boy do I have the ask for you

Thanks for the ramble anon it was a good read 👍

Well Yves does act accordingly to your personality. If you are pretty clueless BUT would accept him as your ONLY romantic partner for life, he would be extremely straightforward, cutting to the chase and be clear in what he wants the relationship to be (it was exhibited in Best and Worst of Both worlds)

But if he predicts that you will reject him or eventually cheat on him later in the relationship despite all the measures to stop you from doing so, he will remain platonic. And his prediction model is horrifyingly accurate. Mans will even reject YOU if he knows you can't keep it in your pants 💔

Oh yeah if it's vulnerability you're looking for Yves is ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT the man you're looking for homie 😭 he is THE fort knox of mental illness, you can (almost) never catch him lacking and is always locking in while Monty is human

Literally Yves isn't actually human anymore

Here are other pieces of writing that has monty in it, idk if you seen them yet but it was all clumped together with Yves's MASSIVE sections

What makes Monty wanna fuck you (the lower half of this post is just Yves waffles)

Montgomery as a dad (scroll to like half of it to skip Yves's part)

Yves isn't necessarily okay with being only a platonic yandere

#yandere #yandere oc #yandere x reader #yandere male #oc yves #yandere concept #tw yandere #yandere oc x reader #yandere x you #male yandere oc x reader #oc Montgomery

[haternextdoor]

The rivals will never come, let's be honest. So here I am reviewing them as a writer. Buckle up, I'll tackle all 10 of them. We'll give them all a rating and then calculate the arithmetic mean to see how "good" of a writter Pedodev is.

I will automatically take 5 points from a character rating because (except with Osana) their actions aren't shown in-game. The attitude, acts or behavior can tell us a lot about the characters, but with yansim rivals they are just "she's nice", "she's mean".

Osana: 10/10

Why? Sure, she might not be the best character, but from a writting standpoint, she is the best. She has qualities, flaws, internal and external conflict and actions, language and behavior that indirectly characterizes her.

Amai: 3/10

Just qualities no flaws. Boring. And she doesn't do shit in the story. Give characters flaws, those are sexy.

Kizana: 6/10

Gets a pass cause she's a bad character and makes sense for her to only have flaws.

Oka: 2/10

Overloved by fandom. She has like flaws but damn, she just seems uninteresting. Also, from her, I expected qualities. After all, she's a club leader.

Asu: 3/10

Litterally same story as Amai

Muja + Mida: 1/10

Do I even have to explain? Even from a writting standpoint they are dogshit

Osoro: 8/10

She gets a high pass because she has both qualities and flaws and there is some known lore to her. Probably my second favorite. Also bonus point because she has a major flaw that overshadows the good ones. I am a sucker for these characters

Hanako: 3/10

Bro, she is the ebodinment of the word 'cringe'. I'll never stop hating on her clingly possesive ass.

Megami: 4/10

What do we have? Little miss Waa Waa I have bad past but everyone likes me yet still I'm sad waa waa. Cry me a damn river. At this point, I'm just biased. Only one bonus point because she is important.

Now let's do a little calculation

(10+3+6+2+3+1+1+8+3+4)÷10= 4.1

If you are going to make a video game with lots of characters, try to make them compelling

#yandere simulator #writter review #osana najimi #amai odayaka #kizana sunobu #oka ruto #asurito #muja kina #mida rana #osoro shidesu #hanako yamada #megami saikou

[howlingday]

A GL can do anything they can conceive of and have sufficient willpower to enact. Interdimensional travel is something that Hal Jordan has done before, but it's not something he does often as it is a struggle. So how long after the RWBY x Justice League crossover do you think it will take before Jessica opens a portal so she can visit her knight?

"Okay, here goes."

Jessica closed her eyes and focused her mind on a singular figure, a singular point within space and time. Her heart swelled as her throat tightened. She felt like she was going to explode and crumple at the same time!

She placed a hand on her forearm as she felt her power build within her.

"In brightest day, in blackest night,"

Her body warmed itself until it felt like an inferno at her fingers.

"No evil shall escape my sight,"

Shining blue eyes smiled at her, temporarily breaking her focus, but she doubled down.

"Those who worship evil's might, beware my power!"

Her eyes shot open as she reeled her fist back and punched forward!

"GREEN LANTERN'S LIGHT!"

A green portal swirled open before her. Sweat beaded on her brow as she panted. This was her first time using her ring for something on this scale. She huffed as she looked to her ring. She could feel most of it's power was drained, but she came prepared. Her lantern hung on her belt, fully charged and ready to recharge her ring.

The portal shook, but held. Inside, she saw it; Remnant was on the other side. In the distance, she saw someone running across a sunlit field. Behind them was one of those terrible, black monsters known as the Grimm. She didn't hesitate, even as the portal shut behind her.

The Grimm ran on all fours like something out of a nightmare, but it wouldn't be the first time she fought one of them. Focusing her ring, she charged forward with the train's cowcatcher in front of her. The creature was hit and rolled some distance away.

Jessica blinked and she suddenly felt heavy. She could feel her ring's power fading. The portal must have taken more out of her than she thought. She looked up to find fiery red eyes glaring at her, getting closer. She tried to muster enough strength for a barrier, but she couldn't.

As it drew closer, Jessica felt something in her heart. It's imposing size towered over her, and she recognized the feeling. It was fear. And it was terrifying. She shut her eyes as it snarled and lunged at her.

"Are you oka- Jessica?"

Her heart fluttered, shifting from fear to joy as she looked up to see those beautiful blue eyes once more.

"Jaune!" She smiled. Reaching up, she took his hand, feeling him pull her up with modest strength.

"What are you doing here?" Jaune asked. There was a bit of stubble growing on his chin. How much time had passed?

"I... I came to see you." Jussica blushed, earning a blush from the knight as well. White armor had expanded since she last saw him, reaching down his chest and covering his thighs. "Sorry I didn't call ahead."

"Uh, yeah, it's fine." He looked her up and down. "Did you get taller?"

"You could say that." She giggled. Years had passed since their farewell. Along with her growth in height, she'd also grown a bit elsewhere, too. This was his first time seeing her with longer hair. "I... I missed you."

He smiled. "I missed you, too."

#rwby #dc #rwby/justice league #jessica cruz #jaune arc #knight light #knightlight

[crgasmpuppet]

penn badgley (circa 2015) x female!reader.

warnings: smut. lmao.

hi i don't know if people even read penn badgley/joe goldberg fics at this point but i am obsessed with this man and wanting to swallow his kidz so. lmk how u like it lol.

-wulf hailey

————

laying on my floor and listening to music louder than most humans should physically be able to withstand is probably one of my favorite past times.

especially with my eyes closed, which might not really be a good idea. there could be a murderer waiting in the shadows at any given moment.

yeah, oka-

"holy shit!"

something knocks at my window and i scramble up and backwards looking for a weapon and end up with a shoe. i mean, at least my reflexes are fast. ish.

i hear a deep laugh come from the window and realize who and what scared the absolute shit out of me. my best friend in the whole world, penn. not to mention my crush for the past 11 years since him and his family moved in next door. another boy-next-door cliche, huh?

i turn down the music to a normal volume and walk to the window, shoe still in hand.

"penn dayton badgley, you scared me half to death!" i scream, smacking him in the arms with every word. he giggles maniacally.

"you should've seen your face! holy shit that was the best thing i've ever seen!"

“you aren't funny." i say, my cheeks burning . i roll my eyes and pull him inside. he falls through the window and lands on his ass, springing to his feet in the blink of an eye.

he's wearing my old, triple sized, brooklyn nets sweater (we have jointly never watched one basketball game in our lives) and a pair of grey sweats. classic.

"cat like reflexes. unlike you." he laughs, grabbing the shoe from my hand. "really?"

"you cant blame me! what weapons would a teenage girl have in her bedroom?"

he gives me a blank stare.

"hey, i wasn't near any of them!"

i sit back on the floor, while penn flicks through my records. he picks a few out and shows them to me. childish gambino, chance the rapper, and the cure.

"what a spread." i say sarcastically.

"whatever, you big bully. pick one."

"definitely the cure. you already knew before you asked."

"i know i just wanted to be cute." he fake pouts as he puts the record on and sits down by my side. plainsong starts to play, and i nod my head to the melody.

"yeah, it's too bad you suck too hard to be cute." i reach up to push his head of scruffy brown hair and he fake dies with his hand over chest.

“how could you say that? now i’m doomed to an eternity aloooooone…”

"get up, hamlet. this isn't theatre." i laugh. "you're so dramatic, it's almost cute."

"you think i'm cuuute." he snickers and pushes me over slightly.

i bob back up. "i said almost."

"yeah, whatever." he says, getting up to turn up the music. i get up to go and sit on my bed, "the grounds really hurting my ass.".

he turns to me and turns back to the record player. "boohoo, how do you want me to fix it for you?"

i cross my arms and pout. "maybe i wanted you to kiss it for me."

"ew, gross. you have cooties." he chuckles as he sits down on my bed, pushing me over to get more room.

"it's not my fault you're so long." i laugh. "maybe you should lose a few inches."

"you know what? you're right. i think some parts of me are too big. i think people might get jealous." he says, cockily.

lovesong starts, and it makes me forget whatever he's talking about. "shut up and let me listen to my music, you fucking nerd. you know this is my favorite!"

he realizes and closes his mouth in the middle of his "hey!". i close my eyes and he does the same.

whenever i'm alone with you

you make me feel like i am home again

whenever i'm alone with you

you make me feel like i am whole again

i feel a thumb brush my cheek, and i open my eyes slowly to see penn's deep brown eyes staring down at me. they almost look black.

"what are you doing?" i choke out, wishing i had never said them in the first place. my cheeks are red hot, and i wish his hand wasn't on it so he couldn't physically feel my embarrassment.

"are you nervous?" he asks, his big brown eyes searching for an answer in the cast expanse of mine.

whenever i'm alone with you

you make me feel like i am young again

i loosen my shoulders, that i didn't even know were tense, and look up at him fully.

"no."

whenever i'm alone with you

you make me feel like i am fun again

as soon as the last ounce of word comes out of my mouth, his mouth has replaced it. his full lips press into mine and i see fireworks going off behind my closed eyes. i squeeze them shut and push into him harder, taking his bottom lip into my teeth and biting it, maybe a little bit hard.

his big eyes open and look at me. i can feel them and i look at him, too. i let go of his lip softly, seeing it pull back to his teeth. it feels like a fucking eternity until he nods and pulls my leg over his till i'm on his lap.

he presses his raw lips into mine, his hands on my hips, squeezing them and leading them slowly onto the bulge in his sweatpants. i can't help but let out a breathy moan, immediately clapping a hand over my mouth.

penn looks up at me with those gorgeous puppy eyes and i forget my fucking middle name. he takes my hand down from my mouth and puts it to his, putting my thumb into it and letting it rest on his bottom teeth. the sight makes me melt into a puddle, and i fall back into his kiss again.

however far away

i will always love you

we both let out little pants, both of our mouths constantly open like we were scared that if we closed them, we would never be able to open them again.

however long i stay

i will always love you

i felt his hand slip down the back of my pants, stopping for a second to grip my ass in the nicest way possible, before his two middle fingers reached my clit. he twirled his fingers around and then slid them up.

"you're so fucking wet." he moans, barely getting the words out. "are you always like this?"

i nod slowly. "it's kind of embarrassing."

he grabs me by the bottom of my chin, pulling me back to his mouth. he slowly circles and teases me, while putting a hand up my shirt to play with my nipple.

he pauses, and pulls back. he puts his thumb up to my mouth, and slides it in. he looks at me with those deep brown eyes, and my mouth closes around his thumb, sucking on it.

he takes it out and rubs the cold wetness on my nipple, making me yelp a little before clapping a hand to my mouth once again.

penn takes my hand down again, looking at me.

"don't cover your mouth. i want to hear all the little things you say when i'm not here."

"penn- holy fuuuck." i squeak out, before he flips me back over to my back and climbs on top of me. he grinds on top of me, his hard dick sliding up to my clit perfectly.

"oh my fucking god, i need to be inside you." he almost whines, his teeth gritted and eyes closed in euphoria.

“please, penn. i need you so bad..” i trail off into sweet nonsense.

he looks at me with a sweet smile. "i've always seen the way you look at me. those pretty eyes. i've always wanted to see them like this."

"like what?" i hesitantly ask.

"hungry for me."

i'm genuinely speechless, and i guess he can tell, so he kisses me with so much animality that i can barely breathe. his lips lead down to my jaw, down my neck until i finally sit up and take my shirt off.

"wow, how smooth." he snickers, planting kisses down and around my chest.

"shut up, penn." i say, breathily. my mind is going a million miles an hour, yet i cant point out a single thought.

in a swift second, my pants are off, with no help to penn, of course. i cant believe this boy can tie his own shoes sometimes.

"what did you say?" he asks, his voice calm and collected.

"i said shut up, penn." i laugh. "you don't scare me."

"i don't wanna scare you." penn whispers, his hand slipping down into my panties. i automatically feel his fingers at my clit, and i feel another hand at my throat.

"i just wanna touch you." he smiles, going down my stomach again and littering it with kisses.

"i wanna feel you." he says kissing my thighs, softly. i buck my hips up with every kiss, a white hot fire between my legs. well, actually 2.

"i wanna love you." he says, looking up at me. his eyelashes tickle my thighs, and i look down at him, my eyes wide.

"and i wanna fucking ravage you."

"p-please." is the only word i can get out before he pushes a long, slender finger inside me.

"oh my fucking god." he moans, his head falling onto my thigh while he pushes his finger in again. "i cant believe you can get this wet."

"it's all f-for you. goddd, it's all for you."

he smiles up at me. "i know. do you know how long i've been waiting for this? god, you're so fucking perfect." he says, sliding his tongue from his fingers up to to my clit and i shudder.

"holy fuck, penn." i moan, running my hands through his long brown hair, gripping onto it and bucking my hips up.

he moans against my pussy, the vibrations shooting up my body, making explosions go off in my mind. he pushes his fingers in and out, sucking on my clit with ease.

he comes back up to kiss me, adding another finger inside me.

"are you ready, baby?" he asks me, sweetly. i nod, a little too aggressively and he chuckles, unbuckling his belt and shucking his pants off and throwing them somewhere to the floor.

he kisses me, his tongue sliding inside my mouth. i suck on it, making him moan into my mouth. he grabs his dick, teasing me with it by sliding it up and down, looking me in the eyes.

he slides it in, slowly, gritting his teeth and breathing out a moan. "you are so fucking beautiful. god, you're so beautiful." he chokes out.

"mmmph, penn. fuck, you're so good- "

"a-ah, fuck baby. you feel so fucking good. i don't ever want to fucking l-leave, fuck, babe." he brings my leg up above my head, going as deep as he can. the headboard is smacking the wall so hard it's nearly chipping at the drywall.

“p-penn, im gonna c-"

"it's okay, baby, i've got you. i-im going to, too, fuck-"

penn's eyes damn near roll back into his head, as he groans out the most guttural and gorgeous moan ever known to man as we both cum at the same time.

"holy fuck, baby, you're gripping me s-so fucking h-hard." he says, his eyes squeezed shut, leaning on top of me and biting my shoulder.

i take a sharp inhale, the pain subsiding to pleasure as i buck my hips up, making penn shudder and moan before he pulls out and lays next to me.

i take time to catch my breath before i feel a pair of arms wrap around me. i look over to see penn looking at me with those big brown doe eyes, and i look away, embarrassed.

he turns my face towards him, closing his eyes and pressing his lips onto mine. i smile into his mouth, our tongues fitting together perfectly.

we pull away at the same time, and he's already smiling at me. he's almost laughing.

"what are you laughing about?" i start laughing because he's laughing.

"nothing, nothing. i just-" he hesitates. "i've been waiting for that for so fucking long." he kisses the top of my head.

"me, too. that was perfect." i respond. i literally cant stop smiling.

it's silent for a little bit. it's a beautiful, comfortable silence.

"would you want to be my girlfriend?" he finally asks.

my eyes widen, and i look back up at him.

“are you serious?" i ask. "i cant tell if you're joking."

he looks at me, his eyebrows furrowed. "are you crazy? i've wanted you since i've moved here. it's definitely fate."

"you're such a fucking nerd." i say, giggling. i kiss him on the forehead.

he gets up to pull on his pants, and walks over to the records he picked out.

"because the internet. of course." i roll my eyes at him.

"you don't get it. donald glover is a musical fucking genius, baby."

he comes back and lays down, pulling me into his arms and resting his head on mine.

no matter what you say or what you do

when i'm alone i'd rather be with you

fuck these other niggas, i'll be right by your side

till 3005

hold up.

#penn badgley #joe goldberg #you

[o-uncle-newt]

A lord, a Belgian and a priest walk into a manor house

I mentioned in my previous post about the book Enter Sir John that next I might write about Leo Bruce's classic murder mystery pastiche Case for Three Detectives next- et voila, as Amer Picon Hercule Poirot might say, I am doing it! In this book, after a gruesome locked room murder in a manor house, three detectives who are SUSPICIOUSLY SIMILAR TO Lord Peter Wimsey, Hercule Poirot, and Father Brown arrive on the scene freakishly quickly to each attempt to solve the case (and one up each other just a bit while doing so), all the while talking over Sgt Beef, the very straightforward cop just doing straightforward police investigation who keeps trying to tell them that he's solved it.

VERY GENERAL SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK BELOW- as in, no names or specifics but describing some broad plot points

***

Spoiler-not-spoiler- Beef solves it. I promise it's not a spoiler, it's the point of the whole book! That said, I'm not going to focus so much on the actual mystery, its IRL solution, and its mechanics because they don't end up being really relevant (to say further would be a spoiler)- all I'll say is that the solution is fascinating. I'm also not going to talk much about Sgt Beef, who, because he is there to be routine and boring with his investigation, doesn't make much of an impact IMO except to be somewhat sarcastic and speaking in some very phonetic Cockney (or whatever "'e got 'im by the froat" et al is meant to sound like). He also has one MASSIVE and consequential fuckup that I won't spoil and that annoys me a lot from a plot perspective.

What I really want to talk about are the detectives, because they are the fun part. First I'll say that the book is narrated by the natural sidekick- a man named Townsend (if his first name is mentioned it passed me by) who is, essentially, a wannabe Watson/Hastings. He finds himself at the scene of the crime, is thrilled to discover that he gets to hang with these amazing detectives, and gets annoyed by the presence of the wet-blanket Sgt Beef and his attempts to spoil the fun. He shadows all the detectives, becoming first awed and then disenchanted and then awed again as he moves from detective to detective, seeing their amazing deductions and then seeing their fellow detectives shooting them down in turn. Seeing his journey as the eager sidekick who gets slowly disillusioned as he realizes that maybe the amateur sleuths aren't all they're cracked up to be is very fun.

Who are the sleuths? We have Lord Simon Plimsoll, Amer Picon, and Monsignor Smith, and if you couldn't figure out who they're parodying just from the names then basically everything else about them will fill you in. They're all very good pastiches, though my favorite was Monsignor Smith just because Bruce got exactly how to write a Father Brown parody. I've seen people say it's a bit too nasty, but as someone who's enjoyed Father Brown stories for nearly two decades I thought that he captured his speaking style and mannerisms perfectly- with lots of vague allusions and parallelisms and odd mystical statements. One of my favorites:

"If there was only one [rope], it would be better. It would be much better. But I'm afraid there are two. And yet- who can say? One rope makes a noose."

It kinda sorta means something, but doesn't actually, or if it does we're not being told what, and it sounds ominous and wise. That's basically Father Brown in a nutshell.

Amer Picon as Hercule Poirot is fun- there isn't a lot of meat to the parody besides him basically just talking exactly like Poirot (and like Poirot, who had his Hastings, Poirot seems to be the most oka with having Townsend following him around), but Bruce is so good at it that it doesn't matter, as the mannerisms and speech patterns really make you think you're reading Poirot. And the fact that the narrator is SO incredibly Hastings-like makes Picon even more Poirot-esque, which is great.

Lord Simon Plimsoll... well, as a fan, I'm of two minds. He has a very entertaining entrance, where he rolls up in style-

"He stepped out of the first of the three Rolls Royces, the second of which contained his man-servant, whose name I later learned was Butterfield, and the third, a quantity of photographic apparatus."

Clearly this isn't Wimsey, who would never show up anywhere without some iteration of his Daimler, Mrs Merdle, but it's what you'd write about a PARODY of the kind of character Wimsey is. After that he's mostly just cheerful, droppin' gs, and using whatever random slang he has the opportunity for. On the one hand, it's pretty much what someone observing Wimsey from the outside would see (though there could have been more arcane French quotations), and so it can't be faulted for that- one difference between the Wimsey books and the Father Brown/Poirot books is that in the Wimsey books we frequently get in Wimsey's own head and see him behind closed doors, which gives him more depth; it's fair enough in that case that in a book narrated by a looker-on he would only see the outer quippy shell. On the other hand, for a fan, that made the parody seem more one-dimensional and less apt. It doesn't help that Bunter Butterfield isn't really around much in the book; that might have helped a bit.

(I would note- if Bruce wanted, given the tone of the parody particularly of Father Brown, I bet he could have done some really blistering parody of Wimsey being all overwhelmed by his nerves and his conscience, and I'm not sure if I'm glad he didn't because I would have resented it or if I'd have loved it as it would have made the whole thing feel more Wimseyish.)

All that is good, but what's REALLY great in this book is that Leo Bruce gets not specifically the detectives themselves, but the way that the detective stories they star in function. This is, again, something that I think is less the case with Wimsey than the other two, but the following quote is reasonably illustrative:

"Lord Simon, gently sipping his brandy, so obviously considered it all to be a most absorbing game of chess, 'something to occupy a chap,' that for a moment I lost all patience with him. And the brilliant little Picon, whose humanity was more evident, he too could not help enjoying his own efforts- and that disturbed me. Certainly I had never known Mgr Smith actually hand a man over to the Law, but even that was partly because the criminals he discovered had a way of committing suicide before he revealed their identity."

This has the same issue as the rest of the Wimsey parody- Wimsey from the outside is not especially interesting, and Wimsey from the inside is generally imperceptible by narrators who don't know him, so while a Wimsey fan will read this and say "not true!" it's pretty reasonable for an outside observer seeing him try to solve a crime. The Picon description rings pretty true- he shakes his head at things that bother him, but he still gets a lot of pleasure from the chase. And the nature of Father Brown's investigations is well summed up here- as is another section where the narrator observes that Mgr Smith was probably losing interest because there were no supernatural things that would turn out to be even more horrible because they were natural, and no demons or symbols of human evil.

...or were there?

Because my actual favorite thing here is the ending, and this is where the semi-spoilers come in because I will be mentioning some very general plot points from the book. The genius thing here, essentially, is that each of the solutions posited by the three parodic detectives is exactly the kind of solution that would occur in a book by their counterparts.

Plimsoll's solution is first, and it's classic Sayers- it's about a woman's inheritance and the complex web of relationships and personal circumstances that compel a person to kill that woman in order to get her money. Sayers returns to the inheritance plot frequently (including in three books in a row, crazily enough) and it's nearly always a woman who has a rapacious relative who will scheme for her possessions.

Picon's solution comes next, and it's, if anything, even more classic Christie- a love triangle and collusion between lovers. Whether because of her own life experiences or not, love triangles are very, very common across Christie's work, and this is a classic example of the kind that she wrote.

Mgr Smith's solution is just as classic Chesterton- it involves the weakness and evil in the heart of a clergyman, who Smith says is possessed by devils and/or insane. That clergyman is, of course, Protestant. I rest my case.

Writing this book was clearly a feat- Bruce had to not just figure out the essence of each of these detectives' stories, but also to construct a mystery and setting which could provide the clues that could be used to construct a murder along the detectives' usual lines. And not only does it indicate a lot of skill, it also is entertaining to read, and those things don't always manage to go together.

Anyway, while I do have some quibbles overall, if you're a fan of any of these detectives, I highly recommend this one!

#classic mystery fiction #case for three detectives #leo bruce #lord simon plimsoll #lord peter wimsey #dorothy l sayers #amer picon #hercule poirot #agatha christie #monsignor smith #father brown #gk chesterton

[absolutebitchgetter]

The problems of CS. Combined in one.

Since the CS ninjas are onto me, i shant give up. You will forever hear the tunes of the rumours of ABG'S unbanning.

Heres all the CS posts i can find:

All of this might share the same topic, and thats a feature of how Comic Studio doesnt - or probably will never - fix its problems. Insane. I know. However, why am i not giving up if we cant fix it?

To save people's sanity.

Im trying to get unbanned so i can prove i am trying to become a better person, and save people's mental health by pointing out thr flaws in:

-moderation

-people

-studios

-controversy

-kids

Its honestly pretty scary how kids are exposed to Jayst- i mean the toxicity of comic studio, and also how the experienced CS users are saying its worse than fucking Twitter.

Where can i begin with the fucking moderation? Where were they when i was getting banned? One is treated like an angel after the fucking outrageous calls he does. How long was i banned? 8 months? Yes. 8 Fucking Months. Above Half a year. One has literally made DOXXING JOKES TO ME and made me fear for my life. One in the cs discord takes someone elses side when i ask for a spoiler for Binding of Isaac (a pretty scary game). One is just fucking horrible at moderation. And one is probably biased after i did a few too many pings in a server. A server i owned btw, no one stopped me. You know who you are. :)

To name a few very shit studios,

-Probably fucking most of them

Probably 10% of the studios get used.

And a lot of them are just fucking shit.

We have a fucking NICK JR studio for like 2 YEAR OLDS.

When is there a fucking Despicable Me comic studio?

To name types of people:

Suspected pedophiles

probably pedophiles

pedophiles

nazis

racists

homophobes

transphobes

xenophobes

sexists

anti semetic

Jokes aside tho there are lot of people i named that are actually one of the things above. There are also lots of fucking toxic people.

To my next point

popular beats all apparently

If your popular, dont fear of being banned! You fucking wont be!

I can name, a shit ton of people that should be banned but wouldnt because they have a shit ton of followers and that would get a lot of people to quit the site.

-Puffyy (Should i say more?)

-Jaystar (☠️)

-Onion_Rabbit (Threw about users like hell, faked harassment, legit got people to witchhunt me (December 2022), was toxic to me before i got banned (unfairly) (July 2023)

-Deathzy (A fucking mpreg and sex comic untagged, did the same as Onion_Rabbit July 2023, has known cases of being cocky as fuck when they get their way)

-SarahKomik (Has threw about users under the bus pretending to victimise themselves over the slightest of out of context things. The current situation with Oka is one.)

-Zappy (The same as above.)

Theres a lot more! Holy fuck

This community has a complete fucking hivemind too.

When popular users say "this person has done something bad (slightly or horrible) target them guys" and when they say "dont harass this person pls" they're praying that the mods dont fucking mob them. Oh wait.

Its like a lot of people have pointed out popular beats all!

Also, this is how people say "fuck the rules" (e.g, Oka and me)

If you have any problems, comment it, You probably shouldnt have but if your a snowflake, combat me.

Oh yeah i also forgot Tammy got knocked about like the school thot at summer time with the football team. They need apologising yall. This is the reason why people quit, my point above. Tammy quitting is one of the worst things to happen to CS.

#comic studio #is fucking balls #and this one is for the champions #your mother #monke #cold monkey in the freezing cold weather someone save him

[wrestlersownmyheart]

“Chances Are” Ch. 12 (Book 2 In the “Chances” Series) Finn Bálor X OC

Pairing: Finn Bálor X Female OC Summary: After a traumatic childhood and a murder attempt that left her with a heart condition, Miracle Seanoa wants nothing more than to find some peace and fulfillment in her life. Working as a writer for WWE, she's shocked when Stephanie McMahon takes a gamble on her skills and assigns her to a new RAW roster member. None other than Finn Bálor—the man who'd long ago saved her life and captured her heart.

Finn Bálor left his career as a police officer behind in order to chase his true dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Working incredibly hard within NXT, he soon finds himself drafted to Monday Night RAW. He's shocked to see Miracle again, but even more shocked is he to see what a stunning woman she's become.

However, someone else has had his eye on Miracle for a long while. With his infatuation turning to a deep, dark obsession, he's not going to give up on her easily. Finn will have to resort to his past skills as a cop, to protect the woman he loves.

Because if her weakening heart doesn't kill her, her stalker just might... Disclaimers: I own nothing or anyone associated or affiliated with WWE. I own only the original characters. This is just a fictional story that came from my imagination.

Chapter Content & Trigger Warnings:

Chapter 12

Two Months Later…

Miracle was just finishing putting her laundry away when her phone rang. Without thinking, she picked the phone up and answered it without looking at the Caller ID. "Hello?"

"Miracle, thank God… I've been trying to reach you for days."

"Finn? What's wrong," Miracle asked. Truth be told, she'd been avoiding his calls, knowing they'd simply weaken her resolve.

"Gerald quit his job. He's disappeared according to his family-his brother. Baby, you need to come home."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Miracle shook her head to clear it. "You still think that Gerald is the one who attacked me? Finn, it's been two months and I've not heard from him or the attacker. Don't you think they'd have found a way to reach me by now?"

"Maybe he's trying to throw us off," Finn said softly. "I don't know, but something is off about all this, Miracle."

"Listen Finn, don't freak out. But, the attacker sent me roses right before I left my apartment. But he's not done anything else since then-"

"HE WHAT?"

"I said don't freak out," Miracle scolded. "My point is that I'm safer here. He knows where I live in Florida. He has no idea where I am right now though."

"I need to see you, love."

"I'm sorry, Finn."

"It's been two months. How much time do you need?"

"As much as I need," Miracle replied.

"You can't run from me forever."

"Maybe not," MIracle shrugged even though FInn couldn't see her. "But I'm still hurt Finn. That pain hasn't gone away yet."

"I'm sorry."

"I know you are, Finn, but that doesn't change anything."

A twinge of nausea hit her stomach then. That was happening more and more lately. Usually when she thought of Finn and how much she actually missed him. Her call waiting signaled she had another call.

"Listen, Finn, I need to go. I have another call coming through."

"No, wait. Put me on hold. Come back when you're done. I'm not finished talking to you."

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Okay, okay. Hang on." With that, she went to her other line and answered, "Hello?"

"Hey beautiful, did you like the roses?" A voice rasped.

For a moment, the comment didn't compute. "Wh-what? Who is this?"

The line clicked.

Breathing shakily, she went back to the line that Finn was waiting on. She tried to calm herself before speaking. "So, what else do you want to talk about?"

"What's happened?"

Amazed he could read her so easily, she shook her head and fought the dizziness that was threatening to claim her. "N-nothing."

"Baby, you sound terrified. What. Has. Happened?"

"Nothing, Finn. Really. Just a prank phone call."

"Why are you trying so hard to be brave? He called you, didn't he?"

"Yes, okay? Yes."

"You need to come home."

"No. It was just my cell phone number. He doesn't know where I am."

"Please, Miracle. I'll beg if I haf'ta."

"Daddy knows where I am," she confessed. "If I need anything I can contact him."

"That's not good enough, lass."

She could have sworn his voice cracked. "I'll be fine, Finn. Don't worry about me. I have to go. Bye."

With that she hung up and tossed her phone aside. Immediately, it started ringing. Checking it, she saw it was Finn again. She ignored the call.

The nausea intensified. To the point she wondered if she would be sick. She groaned softly and laid down on her bed, willing the sickness away.

}i{}i{}i{}i{}i{

Over the next few days, her symptoms of dizziness and nausea only grew more persistent. In fact, she blacked out at one point. Luckily she landed on the sofa. It frightened her enough upon waking though, that she headed to her car and went straight to the urgent care clinic in town.

Now, as she finished filling out her paperwork and handed it in, she sat and waited for her turn to be called back to an exam room.

The wait was not long as there weren't many people ahead of her. Soon she was seated in the exam room and her vitals were being taken.

"Your blood pressure is a bit elevated but nothing too serious. What are you seeing the doctor for today?"

"I am having some chronic nausea and dizziness. I actually passed out on my sofa earlier today. I thought it might be the flu or a stomach bug or something."

"Goodness. Well, we'll certainly get to the bottom of what's going on. The doctor will be in in a few moments."

With that, the nurse closed the door and Miracle waited about ten minutes before a doctor came in.

"Hello, Ms. Seanoa. I'm Dr. Newell," He introduced himself. "What can I do for you today?"

"Well, I am hoping you can help me find out what's wrong with me. I have chronic nausea and dizziness. I'm so tired all the time-"

"Can I ask you when your last period was?"

"Well, yes, it was…" She stopped to think. "It was… Actually it's been a couple months since I had one. That can't be right."

"Is there any chance you are pregnant?"

"Oh, no! No, I couldn't be… I-"

She did recall Finn's little mishap while they were making out, however. That was a couple of months ago.

"Oh, God…" Miracle said softly. "I- I think I possibly could be."

"We'll run a test. It'll take a few hours to get the results but I can have the nurse call you with those."

Miracle nodded, now in a daze. I'm pregnant, she thought to herself. It's the only thing that adds up.

She drove home after having her blood drawn. She was sure what the result would say. She could practically feel the little life bubbling up in her womb.

"What will Finn say," she wondered aloud. "What will Mom and Daddy say?" Then a dark thought hit her. "What will my cardiologist say?"

But at the end of the day, it was her baby. Hers and Finn's.

And no one could take that away from her.

}i{}i{}i{}i{}i{

Hours later, Miracle got the phone call that she was indeed pregnant. The doctor referred her to an OB-GYN and in the meantime prescribed her some prenatal vitamins. Now she had a decision to make. Who to tell first? Her parents, or Finn. Telling Finn would mean revealing to him her location, because she was not going to tell him over the phone. Likewise, with her parents.

"I'll invite them to the cabin," she thought aloud. We could have dinner and I could tell them then.

Before she could change her mind, she picked up her phone and called Ella.

"Hi, Mom," she greeted when Ella picked up. "Listen, I have something important to tell you and Daddy. Do you think you could make the trip to Uncle Jeff's cabin?"

"Of course, baby," Ella replied. "Your father is on a trip, but I'll pack for me and Nathan and grab a flight to Nashville International Airport. Joe will have to take a redeye flight because he's in L.A. right now for a show."

"Okay. Be safe, Mama."

"You know I will," Ella retorted.

After saying their goodbyes, Miracle ended the call.

"How in the world do I explain to Mom and Daddy that they are going to be grandparents," she thought out loud. I'm scared of how Daddy will take the news. What if he hurts Finn?

Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly, trying to relieve her stress. The last thing she wanted was a miscarriage. Ever since it occurred to her that she was pregnant, she wanted nothing more than to have Finn's baby. How Finn felt about it was unknown to her, but no matter what, she was having this baby.

"So, Finn, you can get on board or get out of my way," she thought aloud.

Deciding to take it easy the rest of her day, she took a walk outside in the woods and enjoyed the sunshine.

Little did she know, a pair of stone cold eyes watched her as she hiked through the woods, seemingly not a care on her mind.

}i{}i{}i{}i{}i{

Joe's phone rang and he immediately answered it upon seeing that it was Ella.

"Hi, baby, what's up," he greeted.

"Miracle says she has some important news to tell us and she wants to do it in person. Can you get a flight to Nashville tonight after the show?"

"Of course," Joe answered. "I'm off for the next two days anyway. What's this news about? Did she say?"

"No she wouldn't say. I'm going to try to get it out of her before you come if that's okay with you. It has me worried, I can't lie."

"It's fine. As long as she tells me as soon as I get there," he reasoned.

"I'll talk to you later. I need to get me and Nathan packed and get to our flight."

"Okay, I will see you when I get there. I love you, Ella."

"I love you too."

The two hung up and Joe went about his business of getting ready for the show, his mind full of worry now.

"What could be such important news," he wondered, lacing up his boots.

"News about what," Finn asked from nearby, eager to hear anything about Miracle.

"None of your concern," Joe replied with a glare. He'd still not fully forgiven Finn for his aiding in Miracle being hurt, even though he did save her life. "Family business."

"Is she okay," Finn demanded. "Really, Joe. I need to know."

Joe puffed out a sigh, "She's fine as far as we know." He glanced up at Finn then. "And thanks for telling us about her attacker sending her flowers. I doubt she would have ever told us. The only reason I didn't go drag her back here is because she has a point. The guy doesn't know where she's living right now, he did when she was in Orlando."

"I still think she'd be safer here. With us," Finn retorted.

"Well, she happens to disagree," Joe shot back. "At the first sign of any danger I'll bring her back, you can bet on that."

"She's a plane ride away," Finn grumbled under his breath. "How in the world would we get to her in time?"

Joe shot him another glare, but said nothing.

Even though Finn's instinct was to go find Miracle and drag her back with him-caveman style-he tried his best to ignore those instincts. They would only push Miracle away further.

"She's got to come back sometime," he thought out loud. "She's got to."

If you want on my tag list, just ask! 🙂

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#Finn Balor #Finn Balor Imagine #Finn Balor X OC #Finn Balor Fan Fiction #Finn Balor Fan Fic

[lume-nosity]

nerdy bf kazuha hcs !! (ugh yk kazuha is so yk like he's 🥰🥰 and like kazuha is so 😍😍😍😍 and then when he 😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘

contains: highschool au, mentions of other characters, mentions of getting high lol, kazuha wearing glasses 😋😋😋 (i hc that this man is blind. thick glasses, like a 200+ grade on his glasses.)

notes: here in the philippines, you just sit in one classroom with all the same people. so basically you and kazuha are in the same section, and he sits riiiight beside you. aside that this is vv messy lol, and my first time writing a hc format !, this was to make up for that kazuha fic for valentines that i didn't write lol

how is he like before classes?

he's running with you, why? he woke up late and rushed to class with you 💀

you're probably bugging him while he's spending free time in the library !!; "i need to study, dear..", he says, as he continues to be favored by most teachers...

of course — you have your own things to do and such so, you and him may just be staring at each other... until he's caught off guard by a mutual friend.

since kazuha and you decided to make your relationship public, kazuha has been suffering a few stolen haikus. you two have very few fingers to point, yet not a single one has been recovered.

how is he during class/in the middle of the day?

he's insufferable and cute, but mostly insufferable in the good way.

he's good at studying. he is smart, very, but when it comes to his "deep poems" it's probably something he scribbled while he was high lol.

in your row, (from left to right) you have kazuha, you, ayato, and yoimiya. whenever the other two aren't paying attention, kazuhas definitely teasing you.

...

"why don't you understand? it's quite simple..."

"just let me copy a few missing sentences??"

"no 🥰"

"little shit."

...

and oh man when you're daydreaming infront of him??? and he sees it???? AND YOU'RE STARING AT HIM FIXING HIS GLASSES?????? damn bro he's so fine

kazuha, while being a good student and never causing any fuss (at least nothing serious), might be reprimanded by teachers for paying attention to only you. jesus, it's a miracle you two have not been separated away just yet.

good lord he's honestly so demonic 😭, like you'll ask him "hey 'zuha, can i get some notes from you? i didn't copy fast enough.." and then he'll deny you for a bit before letting you copy 💀

and yk whats sexy and cool? volunteering to answer — you get nervous each time he raises his hand though...

does he bring you back home?

you bet your ass he does, and he's on time too. your poor boyfriend (not really, he does this willingly) multi-tasks while walking you back home, he's writing an essay or something 💀

maybe he might've been writing a haiku that'll be stolen if he doesn't put it away, but who knows? because it certainly isn't you.

...

"what 'cha writing?"

"a haiku, why?"

"can i see? please? just one, tiny glance.."

"as much as I'd like to, no sadly. i'm not finished oka-"

...

you proceed to a) attack him verbally, asian mom style b) keep staring in hopes that you'll be able to see it or c) snatch it away from him (never been successful)

...

i made this to deny and cope because i have a crush on my guy friend now because omg i... i think i... like him 😟 pssst some of the teasing kazuha does is very much based on my crush 🤯

i'm so disappointed in myself

my goodness

this is really good… i can clearly picture that whole thing in my head. kazuha with glasses… so fine tbh. (aha i have glasses too we could be twinning then)

kazuha please let me copy your notes fr like i’m too tired for school HDHAJC

also… did i read that last part right 👁️? another mutual has a crush on someone too?

wow, interesting, seems like a bunch of my mutuals have crushes that i wasn’t aware of? it’s cute, really. (not in a teasing way but in a more genuine way because i’m audibly going ‘aww’)

if you really do feel that way towards your friend, and would like to end up with him, (or you’d like to shoot your shot) i answered an ask similar to that here

either way, no matter what you do, i hope it works out well <3

#📬 lume answers #💛 lumes mutuals #🤍; riri! #genshin impact x reader #kazuha x reader #love this kazuha prompt sm <3 #it’ll live rent free in my mind #and also #dude if another mutual tells me that they have a crush too #then i’d be the ‘wingman mutual’ GSHSJCI