#why does he have a hazer?

[scugdump]

hey if its alright, is it ok if you draw a Slugcat OC i made in my head? let me describe him, his name is Void, he is a royal purple slugcat white white eyes that glow in the dark, stars all over his body that also glow in the dark, just more dim then his eyes, and he has an orange galaxy pattern on the end of his tail, that does not glow in the dark, he is a bit shy, he very rarely talks because he is super quiet, and he is a little more on the smaller side, is a little slimmer, he is very peaceful and harmless, and will run if attacked, and he is lighter then he looks, and in a way, is always in lower gravity, and was made by an iterator OC i made myself as well

(and if you do end up drawing Void, thanks, would have been my first request on Tumblr that actually happened)

i still don't know how to draw galaxy designs so excuse the horrible attempt at drawing a galaxy design

other than that, i love this little creature and wanna give him a hug but since hes so shy i gotta settle for a cookie

#rain world #rain world slugcat #slugcat #slugcat oc #others ocs #why does he have a hazer? #i imagined him using its ink to hide his glow in dark areas #so he could hide better #literally everything that could see him would see him if he didnt hide it

[hawkeyeslaughter]

Do you have any (minor) headcanons that you have little to no evidence for but you just believe them as if they were the truth?

oh god of course i do

— the nurses taught klinger how to hem , alter , even make some of his own clothes ; he gets so good at it that sometimes they just come to him with their needs

— the uke ( ? ) that hawkeye has hanging in the swamp ? he knows how to play it surprisingly well , he just never does unless drunker than usual

— radar put soles in his boots one time that made him taller and it took even hawkeye like a solid week to figure out what was different about him ( once he did , though , radar had no refuge from the teasing )

— the nurses hold regular gossip sessions and sometimes compare notes on the guys of the 4077th

— margaret knows how to cut hair , taught herself how to cut her own ( because she got sick of barbers not cutting it the way she wanted ) . has more than once had to come to the rescue of nurses who have marred their hair by taking the scissors to it

— in college bj was a relentless and revered hazer ( which is funny considering he barely got through his own hazing )

— hawkeye’s use of petnames ( “ darling “ , “ sweetheart “ , “ baby “ , etc etc ) are all picked up from trapper . prior to meeting him he hardly ever used them

— when oliver got his orders home , trapper and hawkeye threw him a rager in the swamp and were very badly hungover for their actual goodbye the next day

— father mulcahy has that thing where he hears a tune and can instantly play it on the piano

— charles falls asleep regularly during movie nights hawkeye and beej drag him to , usually on hawkeye’s shoulder

— trapper is colorblind . not like , drastically colorblind , but hawkeye finds out one day and teases him absolutely relentlessly for it

— trapper and oliver always did this bit where they pretended they were whispering things and wouldn’t tell hawkeye what they were saying because it was funny to watch hawkeye get all huffy and annoyed with them

— henry has to do the right / left things with his hands all the time ( PLSASE ITS SO STUPID )

— margaret has a crazy sweet tooth + sometimes bj asks peg to send sweets back specifically for margaret

— potter’s horse or pet names in general very rarely alter because he just can’t be bothered to come up with new creative ones . besides , tried and true always works

— klinger is a pool shark . idk why he is he just is . he has pool shark vibes

— trapper briefly considered going into pediatrics

— charles sometimes has very serious conversations with the camp strays ( mainly just voicing whatever he may be thinking of at the particular moment )

— radar sometimes likes to imagine he’s the protagonist in a superhero world and i mean why not . little dude is literally psychic

— hawkeye has a habit of ripping at his nails , klinger regularly checks them and manicures them for him

— the nurses and swamp rats regularly get involved in prank wars . the nurses are far more clever than some people realize

— hawkeye and trapper stood back to back once to see who was taller and had radar judge ( hawkeye tried to bribe radar to say it was him )

— one time margaret made frank cry so hard he threw up . good for her

— bj has weirdly good reflexes and can catch things while barely looking up , he has a habit of saying “ i knew i should’ve gotten into baseball “

— charles does that thing where someone asks him to do something and he says “ no “ while actively doing it

— the swamp rats are all actively ready to swing on anyone who upsets one of the nurses and that goes double for margaret . sometimes they actually do

— hawkeye has a pair of roller skates . do with this information what you will .

— father mulcahy is a self - taught painter

— henry tells the same stories more than once and hawkeye , trapper , and radar have a mutual agreement to pretend they’ve never heard them whenever this happens

— hawkeye and radar have made many a pinky promise , and never once did one get broken

— charles is surprisingly a god awful secret keeper , he tells most secrets to margaret

— henry is scared shitless of cats

#sorry i had so many i got started and i genuinely could not stop #i hope you guys like my silly silly headcanons #holds hawkeye and charles and trapper and margaret and henry gently : they do this because i say it #my friends my closest friends #townes answers asks ! #m*a*s*h #mash #mashposting #mashblr #mash 4077 #lgbt #lgbtq

[rocketturtle4]

Arthrit was my Favourite Character and I want to write about him; My reflection on the SOTUS Franchise as a newbie

In brief: I am attempting to understand the growth of Thai BLs by watching ABL’s understand the history of thai bl list on the Thai master post. I’m more interested in the growth and change on screen than the tracking of different actors/directors etc. but I do enjoy reading about those things. I am concurrently understanding the history of All BL by watching the Foundation Syllabus lists as well, I am not planning to review everything, but I adored SOTUS and I’ve started following @waitmyturtle’s journey through oldgmmtv and was surprised by our different initial takes on SOTUS and to a lesser extent the SOTUS franchise so I thought I’d share my own feeling about the shows. Yes I know ‘twas a while ago.

I don’t know anything about the actors as people and have minimal knowledge of the IRL ship drama (just aware that there was drama)

Disclaimers:

THIS POST IS LONG (LIKE LONG LONG), and I cut out so much you wouldn’t believe

Obviously, these are my own thoughts, I am not expecting everyone or even anyone to agree, I’m just sharing.

I only talk about Arthrit and Kong in this post, I enjoyed the side couples but I was much more invested in the main one and that’s what I want to talk about.

Not defending Gay for you as a damaging trope

Not defending blushing maiden and sex negativity as damaging tropes

Damaging tropes suck and being aware of them while viewing content is important for not internalising their message for yourself or your perception of others.

I’m demisexual FYI (My sexuality suddenly felt relevant halfway through my reflection so Imma put it here)

General SOTUS Thoughts

In writing this I have realised my attachment to Arthrit started later in the franchise than I thought but eh still mostly going to write about him.

Bullying/hazing (I didn’t mind this time) – I don’t like Hazing or bullying, but the way it was portrayed here, as a form of relationship building which was openly discussed as damaging and then improved on as part of the arc was fine for me. It was about recognizing the good parts of a practice and removing the bad and I was cool with that.

Kongpob (I’m a fan) – He’s hard working, he’s snarky, he’s clearly got good learning habits and cares about his education, he’s supportive of his friends and he stands up for injustice. I was definitely watching SOTUS for this character in the beginning.

Disparate personalities and positions of power (And the different ways our leads present as authority) (there’s also obvs age dynamics at play)

Arthrit is older but also the shyer and less expressive, his assumption of leaderships feels less aligned with his personality and so he cares more about maintaining his professionalism, first as head Hazer and later as an employee while Kong is an intern. (This does not make him a bad leader I think he’s a good one).

Kong is a natural leader, shown overwhelmingly by his standing up for his peers and their inclination to elect him as the campus star and then as the representative (which he runs away from cause he’s already got enough on his plate). His comfort with his own authority is a part of his pursuit of Arthrit and also his differing experience with Authority. (I think the way he bonds with P’Paga the scary office lady is a great example of this difference, he has good instincts).

This feels important to me as Arthrit is holding onto that authority a lot tighter than Kongpob, he’s working to maintain it because it’s NOT natural.

OKAY Onto Arthrit’s Arc and why I found it so impactful.

First up I can tell you the exact moment I fell in love with Arthrit’s character, it was right…

Here (Please study hard P'Arthrit)

(His eyes my good people, they had me and they never lost me) (I literally learnt how to GIF just so I could keep this moment forever) (Episode 13) (I mean, I found a GIF generator) From this point on I was watching this entire franchise for the way Arthrit emoted with his eyes first, and everything else second.

But let’s back up slightly.

My take on Arthrit’s emotional arc through the early parts of SOTUS was essentially:

Why is the first year defiant-flirting with me?

This first year is incredibly clever and that’s dangerous because it could undermine my authority and I want this program to be successful (He did recommend him as campus star, and comment to himself/his friends about not underestimating Kongpob, we had clearly early signs that Arthrit thought Kongpob was pretty amazing, he just couldn’t show this because of this authoritative position) (also age dynamics = a big deal in Thailand)

Then we had the sleep confession (He’s never really sleeping)

Arthrit’s panic over the fact that his sort of friend, definite nong who is a guy apparently had feelings for him

This manifested as his removing himself from Kongpob to work through and process his own emotions, my personal feelings on this were that Arthrit’s reaction was more confused than disgusted and he was trying to avoid a confrontation so he could figure himself out without hurting Kongpob. (There was also some unresolved feelings in here for his highschool friend that needed to be dealt with).

Not the ideal move and poor Kong was so confused and got hurt anyway but then we got to

“I don’t know you well enough Kongpob… But I want to know you more”

Now I seriously appreciated this because I often feel frustrated when characters emotions just immediately match: like one person confesses and two days later other person is like, oh turns out I am also madly in love with you. Boom. Couple. (This does sometimes make sense in the story, just not always).

Arthrit’s emotional response of: Yes I think I like you but I’m still figuring it out so do keep flirting with me so I can keep figuring it out…

I liked it.

Now immediately after this, Arthrit kisses Kongpob (mutual kisses yay!). I don’t take this as say, a final cementation of their relationship (as the kiss often seems to be treated, especially in K BL) but as an expression of interest.

Kiss = I am interested in you romantically, let’s flirt more/date to get to know each other so our feelings can develop.

Then we got to see Arthrit melt (the eyes conveyed it, I adored) honestly it was their tiny little movements that I liked the most and you can’t see that here but still.  

Also his shy little smiles.

I totally think that the attraction here is not conveyed by Arthrit’s character the same way Kong’s but to me this reflects

Kong’s more straightforward and open personality + plus his self confidence (Seme dynamics definitely factor into this since these are characters not real people)

Arthrit being more uncertain as to his own emotional state, AND his greater shyness with expressing his emotions publicly (uke dynamics obvs - but not too pronounced I think). I like how the actor conveys these emotions. (whether or not it was intentional)

People have different levels of comfort with any kinds of PDA and that’s okay (look I’m not sure if blushing maiden trope arguably comes into play here but to me some people are shyer of affection than others and I personally feel that for Arthrit, this early on, his emotions were pretty clear and his responses makes sense.)

And then at the end of episode 13 we handed over the gear

In episode 14 we had a bit of drama because it’s early days and Arthrit is just realising he likes a popular boy

Jealously thou name is Arthrit

But things get resolved (by accident by Kongpob’s gift, amusing) and so we have the public declaration (like the kiss earlier this is instigated by Arthrit which I appreciate because he’s the one with the boundaries being crossed in this scenario). His little smile and duck down to hide his face felt very authentic because he’s not a PDA person and so he feels a bit embarrassed about drawing attention to himself.

And they had a good convo afterwards too + Kiss etc but I really want to get onto:

SOTUS S

(Because episode 15 of SOTUS is over the time jump it's included here)

Thoughts on the stuff that happens during the time jump (e.g. the end cut scenes of some episodes).

We had 2 scenes which stuck in my mind from this time, the piggyback ride ("you are my faen after all") after Kong hurts himself.

(THE EYES)

AND

Arthrit handing over the metaphorical power to the future head hazer.

I personally felt this scene was super important because it showed us:

Arthrit simping all over his boy being authoritative and flirting back with the same lines Kong had once used, in a public space.

Arthrit’s continued uncertainty, NOT (in my opinion) with the idea of being openly affectionate with his boyfriend (what do you call his face above if not openly affectionate) but with having his professionalism undermined by being asked to kiss said boyfriend in front of a whole group of his peers while he is technically their leader (plus they will tease him).

Look it's dark here, and I know my love of his eyes and their emotions is irrational but to me that gaze says: “you know I love you, but why are you doing this HERE.” @waitmyturtles, this was the thing I found most discrepant about your thoughts and mine, to me Arthrit’s emotions were conveyed so clearly by Krist, even in SOTUS but especially in SOTUS S. I was so absorbed by Arthrit sometimes I got completely distracted from Singto’s (excellent) portrayal of Kong.

Onto the main timeline of SOTUS S

(How many of my images of Arthrit being a simp can i put it here to justify my having them in the first place) (I restrained myself a lot you have to believe me)...it turns out I hit the limit, enjoy!

(I started doing a quick flick through the show to check my continuity but then I wanting to add stuff so I stopped and I'm trusting my brain)

We get an early sign that their relationship is going strong with their mutual missing of each other: Arthrit’s visit to campus and seeking Kong out because he misses him, and Kong telling Arthrit he has a duty to him as his faen and convincing Arthrit to stay the night with him because he misses Arthrit.

(They're both so doting naaaaww)

Later, we have this scene where Arthrit goes to tell his coworkers he has a faen and gets interrupted ("well I…") Now we don’t know this for sure, but he drew himself up and prepared to face it and then sort of deflates when he missed the chance, so I’m projecting and that’s what I think.

There’s some bumps in the road while they navigate their new seperation and Kong hits a boundary of Arthrit’s he clearly didn’t know existed when he showed up at Arthrit’s work. (I think this is again more of a personality thing, Arthrit is still figuring out his position and authority in the company and feels very unsure about having his male faen show up to his office without warning. This is not the university space where everyone around them knows they’re dating, it’s DIFFERENT. Kong on the other hand is the kind of guy who totally would have interrupted everyone at that dinner to be like, actually I cook dinner for my man. All. The. Time.) Anyways, they talk, Kong visits work in a planned way, and things are more settled and physical (have some more photos, justify my having them in the first place)

until…Kong shows up at work, and then after they sort of talk, Kong shows up next door.

Now while writing this I had a personal realization that I need to check in about (detailed in small text below the next photo) but first.

This moment makes everything else in the Arthrit’s arc make sense to me, to me he’s feeling uncertain about fundamental aspects of their relationship, rather than purely being temporarily hurt by Kongpobs actions, he internalises this uncertainty about their communication.

This is then kind of resolved but then made much worse by Kongpob moving in next door. (Yes Kong says it's to be close while giving Arthrit space, but doesn't Arthrit deserve to be part of that decision?) (We don't see how much they communicated prior to this, but it seems to me that Arthrit's point here, about losing faith in their ability to talk to each other is super relevant)

(Personal note, how secure I feel in a relationship directly affects how comfortable I feel physically in the relationship, and I don’t mean ‘I’m sad so I don’t feel like having sex right now’ I mean, ‘the foundation of our relationships feels less stable and as a result my comfort with physical things, especially sexual intimacy feels significantly reduced’

I THOUGHT THIS WAS NORMAL Y’ALL

Having sat and thought about it right now, I don’t think that’s actually the case for the majority? like not all the time at least? This made me think about my personal reaction to watching Nevertheless a few months ago (a kdrama) and I was crazy uncomfortable with the discrepant emotional comfort vs physical desire plot, (I finished it, because I had to, because leaving in the middle would have been worse but just, No.) I mean I get sex without feelings, sure, or with budding feelings, but sex while you’re feelings have moved from stability to instability or are just floundering in instability without resolution?. Possible? Absolutely. Comfortable? No way.

Is this a demisexual thing? (I'm demi if you missed the disclaimer at the top) Is this a me thing? I am going to examine this more but for now you have my facts and perspective and we’re moving on)

(also this relationship being kind of ace has actually been put forth by ABL (here) and most likely others. I had previously read this post and moved on (because I hadn’t seen SOTUS), so I just wanted to say this is not a Tumblr revelation, just a me revelation)

I may be projecting but…

I adored the way the actor continued to show Arthrit’s foundational uncertainty in where their relationship was going/at, through his discomfort with being physical with Kong even after he’d consciously forgiven him. (Okay definitely projecting)

Episode 7, where Kong gets hurt by the door and is forgiven, but Arthrit still seems kind of uncomfortable with the physical side of things both here and in the next episode.

Plus the excellent scenes where Arthrit keeps telling Kong off for giving him food and then ends up yelling, and Kong goes back to being uncertain about where the line is. (Arthrit needs to talk more I'll admit it).

Arthit during the scene where Kong professes his uncertainty, because it's another screenshot I already had. (HIS. EYES.)

BUT because Arthrit realises he's hurt Kong, they talk about it and tada: Arthrits more comfortable physically again next ep, because he’s more certain of his relationship again.

We get beaches

(seriously Arthrit’s little smile, I’m dying) and fun times and kisses

(I have so many screenshots in here everyone, it's concerning)

And then:

Arthrit get’s double shaken again (Dad + Photo) (and he processes things by taking physical space. AGAIN.) (still totally relatable but I’m actually kind of annoyed with him for not saying a word to Kong now that I’m writing it down, I was not at all annoyed when I watched it, for the record)

And then Kong goes “OKAY THAT’S IT” and expresses his (totally justifiable) uncertainty about what is going on, because Arthrit keeps not being clear and can’t they actually talk about things!! So Kong gives him back his gear and leaves. My take on this was basically:

Kong: You need to be sure you want to be with me.

Arthrit: wait what, you’re leaving? But you’re always there? You’ve been hurting? Oh no I’ve hurt you? *cries* *Processes* *Publicly declares feelings* There I fixed it.

To me, Arthrit was never uncertain about whether or not he Loved Kong (Is this in question?, I don't know), he was just navigating the stability of his existing relationship in a new environment with many new revelations. And I believe that, because, even through the uncertainty, Arthrit continued to stare at Kong with such intensity that I couldn’t look away.

Hmm despite that, I think this reflection has actually left me a little bit less obsessed with Arthrit (definitely a good thing, I realized after I finished SOTUS S that I have 48 screenshots of Arthrit’s face staring at Kong with different adoring expressions and that is… too many).

For me, Arthrit’s emotional arc was so captivating because of the way Krist acted throughout, his expressions (HIS EYES) and the links between his emotions and his physical comfort were compelling and I was sucked into his emotional journey above all else. Did the actor intend this? I don’t know, but I had a great time. I almost feel like I need to rewatch SOTUS S just to pay attention to Singto more because he was kind of sidelined for me.  

OUR SKYY SOTUS (the quickest summary because the words are totally out of hand)

(I totally had more pics from our skyy but I've apparently hit my limit oops)

We had some lovely relationship comfort and stability followed by compelling drama and then resolution. I loved it.

The drama is basically just Arthrit going: oh no you’re leaving, what if I make things harder for you, what if things end, how will I live, *get’s bad advice about breaking up* we should take a break because I love you way too much.

Kong: You complete moron, I love you and that’s why we’re supposed to stay together, now I’m leaving tomorrow, and you better prove you love me too by showing up.

Arthrit: *takes time to process* Oh yeah cool cool, I totally love you a lot *shows up and decides to travel with him for a little bit because these boyfriends be clingy*

But with all the excellent acting.

(Tiny note, my understanding is that this performance might be more compelling because Krist is expressing more emotions, but I took that as the first time Arthrit had actually tried to talk about and express his feelings, due to feeling stable enough to do so (all previous space taking was emotional processing). So there isn’t a single scene in SOTUS or SOTUS S where I would have expected this level of emotion (except for when he realized Kong was leaving because Kong was hurt). I would have found it confusing because Arthrits clearly a brooder. So he doesn’t talk to Kong while he’s hurting (an incorrect choice but one he continues to make) and so only the attempt to speak about his emotions here induces this level of physical display.

I cry more when I try to talk about my emotions, anybody else?)

CHEERS FOR READING

ALSO, I appreciate all you Tumblr master posters so much more now (I swear I already appreciated you lots!! but seriously I thought this would take like an hour or two and it DID NOT - and I'm not even meta-ing just throwing my thoughts on a page)

#sotus #sotus the series #sotus s #sotus s the series #rocketturtle4 catches up #thai bl #analysis #our skyy x sotus #Arthrit sotus #Arthrit x kong #rturts is wondering #Rocket4Reviews

[thebroccolination]

Back in January of 2021, I made a thread on Twitter praising SOTUS S, so I'm gonna post it here for safekeeping (with some inclusions and edits – there's no character limit here yay) because it's still one of my favorite threads.

SOTUS S - One of My Favorite Series in Terms of Writing and Why I Love It as Much as I Do

One of my favorite aspects of SOTUS S is also something I see it widely critiqued for, so lemme heap some well-deserved praise on my beloved series.

I think Arthit's awkward, uncomfortable, and almost cold behavior is realistic, because That's the Point.

Allow me to explain.

Okay, so here's the timeline as I understand it:

• SOTUS takes place during Kongphob's first year and Arthit's third • The special scenes at the end of SOTUS S episodes are during Kongphob's first/second year and Arthit's third/fourth year • The main storyline of SOTUS S is set during Kongphob's third year as head hazer and Arthit's post-graduation entry into the working world

The reason I start by outlining that is to highlight a brilliant thing SOTUS S does with two timelines compared to SOTUS, which only has one:

SOTUS S shows us two very different stages of their relationship.

When they were in university together and part of the same world:

and

2. After they've been separated into different worlds:

That difference fuels and contextualizes the central conflict of SOTUS S: Arthit closeting himself and his relationship from his coworkers.

So why does he do that?

Well, Arthit is two years older than Kongphob, and when they start dating, he already has an established level of status at their university. He has a close circle of friends who stand up for him and sacrifice for him, he has the respect of his juniors and seniors, and he also maintains a high academic standing. It tracks that Arthit at this stage of his life is at his most open and confident with his relationship with Kongphob. Everyone knows, and he's fine.

At the end of SOTUS, he happily tells everyone that they're dating. This is immediately after they've publicly exchanged a matching set of bracelets that Arthit bought to replace the SOTUS string.

When Kongphob's car breaks down, Arthit shuttles Kongphob to his next class on the back of his bike. Kongphob asks if he can hold onto him, Arthit says no, and then he only smirks and shakes his head when Kongphob cheekily holds onto him anyway. (It's what they're into, don't kinkshame them.)

While talking about an upcoming meteor shower, Arthit's immediate reaction to Kongphob telling him they won't be able to see it in Bangkok is to earnestly suggest they take a trip to see one together.

And when Kongphob is absolutely delighted, this delights Arthit.

When Kongphob keeps up his "but I wanna see the meteor shower" bit, Arthit offers to take him to the planetarium.

At which point, Kongphob just goes in for the move he intended from the start:

This is why Arthit's reluctant to ever give in: there's no game of chicken Kongphob would ever lose at.

Then Arthit actually gets his own extremely rare Uno Reverse moment:

I fuckin' love this scene. Look at Kongphob's face. This is, like, the thousandth time he's envisioning their engagement, wedding, and honeymoon simultaneously.

(Did I have to go through that whole scene to prove any kind of point? NOPE. I just really like it. They're idiots. <3)

In another scene that I interpret as shortly following SOTUS and the start of their relationship, Kongphob hurts his foot and Arthit offers to carry him on his back. The way Kongphob looks up at him is like a knife in my heart; and then when Arthit actually follows through and carries him, he's so happy.

He also surprises Kongphob with a gift on Valentine's Day in the middle of campus in broad daylight. He finished his work early purely to see Kongphob. I think he's genuinely one of the most devoted boyfriends we see in all of Thai BL.

While they're at university together, Arthit's never closed off about their relationship. Everyone knows they're dating, and Arthit does not mind. (I mean, he was the first to approach Kongphob when Kongphob was visiting their university, after all. He also initiated their first kiss. Grabbed him by the tie, even.)

The thing is, Arthit is also shy. He's pretty well-established as an introvert who intellectually understands the SOTUS system, but he isn't naturally good with people, and it leads to all the issues with the system that we see in SOTUS. In his defense, though, we do find out that it was even worse when he was a first-year, and he is actively trying to do a better job. He's just, y'know, obsessed with 0062 and probably doesn't know anyone else's name. (I kid, but…do I though. Do you, Arthit. Speak up.)

In the main storyline of SOTUS S, though, Arthit is closed off. He does mind. He's afraid. So much more than he ever was before. And why?

Because he's left the world where he was known and respected and loved. That's the world Kongphob still lives in. When Arthit comes back to campus for the string-tying ceremony to support Kongphob, he's in Kongphob's safe space, not his. It isn't where Arthit belongs anymore, and it's clear from his body language that he knows it.

His new world, his new community, is at work. In sales. As an introvert. It's a department where he doesn't feel comfortable, one he actively wants to transfer out of. In this series, he's not an introvert in a position of power like he was in SOTUS; instead, he's an introvert on the bottom rung of a company. He came from a world where cogs are treasures that represent the heart to a world where cogs are cheap and replaceable because they're a dime a dozen.

This is why SOTUS S is mostly from Arthit's perspective: in SOTUS, Kongphob was the one in a new world figuring out his place there. By taking away Arthit's comfort zone, he's the one who has to confront his flaws and improve.

One of my favorite scenes is in episode one. Arthit is out to dinner with his new coworkers, and he's only given ONE opportunity to talk about his boyfriend naturally. His coworker asks indirectly if he has a significant other, and he's nervous but ready to say yes—and then just as he starts to speak, he's cut off, and the courage visibly drains out of him.

That's it. He's pressured himself back into the closet.

No one at that table said anything negative about queer people. No one gave him even a hint that they would be prejudiced against him, but he's in a new place and he's already so shy he's made faster friends with Bonus, the office fish. That's the flaw he has to overcome: he overthinks, and then he spirals. (He does it in Our Skyy too, which I love because fears often manifest in different ways, and it can take years to fully overcome them. Arthit does grow and change over time, but he's still inherently shy and anxious, and he's never framed by the narrative as in the wrong for that. He's only ever framed to be wrong for the harmful decisions he makes as a result of his fear.)

We saw him spiral in SOTUS when he admitted to Knot his fears about a potential future relationship with Kongphob. Kongphob absently mentioned his niece to Arthit one time and Arthit sent himself into a tailspin thinking he'd never be enough for Kongphob because they'd never be able to have biological kids so obviously Kongphob would resent him for it so why even start anything when their relationship would inevitably end in a fiery plane crash at the base of a smallish mountain in the Himalayas.

You can almost hear Arthit's mind working during that restaurant scene: he's new in a department he doesn't feel suited to, he's on the bottom rung, he doesn't understand certain office protocols that have already gotten him yelled at by a very senior supervisor, and his senior John is actively taking advantage of his kindness and politeness using the excuse of sharing the same alma mater (the memories of which Arthit loves and cherishes, and where he met the person he loves most). Now, because he didn't speak up when it was natural to, he feels he has to hide his relationship, too. And why not? What if they are bigoted? What if they do think less of him? What if he never gets a place in the production department? What if what if what if.

And that's on top of what Kongphob says to M at the start of the series: that they hardly see each other because of Arthit's job and Kongphob's hazing activities. We see in a shot that's framed through Kongphob's perspective that Arthit seems tired and disheartened even when he's with his friends after work. This is why I love the writing in SOTUS S: it's a Big Fish in a Small Pond Becomes Small Fish in a Big Ocean story. (His company is even called Ocean Electric, which is probably a coincidence but still amuses me. And again, he makes friends with a small fish in a bowl.)

It's also at its core a story about how an openly queer character loses their confidence when they enter the working world. And boy do I have experience with that, so this series hits a very deep chord for me.

Okay, back to SOTUS S. To Kongphob, specifically.

We're shown that Kongphob doesn't realize how much things between them are changing. He still lives in the safety of their university where he's head hazer, where Arthit was his boyfriend and a senior he and everyone else admired. Through no fault of his own, Kongphob probably can't conceive of Arthit feeling afraid the way he is.

When he shows up at Arthit's office, this is probably no different in his mind to meeting Arthit somewhere on campus after class. And thanks to the post-episode scenes of their past, we see how close they were before Arthit graduated, how much time they spent together. For Arthit to panic and tell him with annoyance, "You should have told me before you came here," it's no wonder Kongphob is taken aback and obviously hurt.

But because Arthit is still near the start of his character arc, Arthit won't tell him what he's feeling. I'd venture a guess that it's mostly pride. He's two years older than Kongphob, and while Arthit repeatedly makes the choice to use polite Thai pronouns with Kongphob that equalize them more and put them on more even ground with each other, he still feels responsible for him and their relationship. (It isn't made clear in the series, but the SOTUS S novel explains that the biggest part of why he's dismayed when he sees the portrait of Kongphob's family is that, again, he spirals and panics about their relationship potentially hurting Kongphob, who in Arthit's eyes now has much more to lose through bigotry than he does.)

Instead of confiding in Kongphob, Arthit asks for advance warning in the future. Not because he's afraid of being outed—his actual fear—but for practical reasons that don't sound unreasonable (he might be out or meeting with a client), so Kongphob accepts his explanation and doesn't question him.

The scene after this is crucial, because it shows that while Arthit's taken a hit in how he acts publicly, he's still devoted and affectionate privately. They have dinner together, Arthit gives Kongphob head hazer advice, accepts Kongphob's invitation to attend a hazer event and visibly just enjoys goofing off with him. Arthit adores Kongphob, and he shows him in his own way where he's comfortable.

And of course, Kongphob isn't perfect, either. He has his own communication issues, he oversteps Arthit's boundaries just like he did in SOTUS, and he considers everything thoroughly before he ever brings it up to Arthit. He's gone from an upstart first-year who questioned everything Arthit did, to the one who's holding their relationship together by taking on every obstacle for both of them, which ends in his emotional collapse later. He even refuses to cry in front of Arthit (in ALL THREE iterations of SOTUS).

That's what makes their relationship feel so authentic to me. They're both at fault by not talking about what's going wrong, and it's relatable and painful because we're shown that they're just trying to protect themselves and each other. In every iteration of SOTUS, Arthit's biggest fear is that their relationship will negatively affect Kongphob, and Kongphob's is…losing Arthit.

The problem has never been that Kongphob and Arthit don't love each other enough.

The problem is that both of them keep trying to take the lead from each other until their biggest fears bring out their worst flaws: Kongphob pushes, and Arthit runs.

It's why their resolution at the office party is so perfect, even if it had to give lethal doses of secondhand embarrassment to some members the audience. (Good job, Arthit, no one'll even remember the beach photo now.) This scene addresses both of their fears simultaneously, because they're intertwined: Arthit chooses to prioritize his relationship above all else, and by doing so, he proves to Kongphob that he won't lose him. He doesn't just apologize and say he'll do better: he takes a bat to the emergency glass and says, "There. Now we're public again."

And luckily Kongphob's, y'know. Very into that.

Arthit reclaims that confidence he had back in university in a scene that parallels the rooftop party in SOTUS, but now it's not just in front of their peers: it's before the world.

#kiranokira meta #sotus meta #sotus the series #kongart #kongarthit #krist perawat #singto prachaya #i always wanted to add more to the thread but twitter doesn't work like that #ahhhh i could talk about kongart all day i love them so much #sotus sotus sotus [cheerful chanting]

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL

May 2021 Wk 4

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Close Friend Ep 6 fin: (Imagine You/KimmonCopter) - Fan gets a VR of his idol, they fall in love, but does it transfer to reality? A unique story and great casting of Kim & Cop into roles that stretched both actors. My favorite of the series and a good closer. Close Friend as a whole is so uneven I can’t recommend it, but individual episodes (3 MaxNat, 5 JimmyTommy, 6 KimCop) are okay.

Top Secret Together Ep 3 - no subs as yet but I still found it enjoyable. I like this series, it’s quiet. Sure, the only really unique touches are the office setting and the gay advice dads, but honestly I’LL TAKE IT. Of course my favorite couple is the hazer + freshie back at uni. What can I say? I’m a sucker for the old OLD tropes. (Should I just do a SOTUS+S rewatch this weekend to get it out of my system?) 

Y-Destiny Ep 9 - Look, I’m just not a fan of the rake archetype BUT my favorite combo for this is another player, and BL almost never does that. But ta da! Y-D wins with f-buds + high heat pulp (well I suppose this is university-set Cheewin). I don’t love honest-gay messy in a long haul series (Friendzone... shudder) but I don’t mind it in short form. So I think this may be my favorite installment in this series so far.

Fish Upon The Sky Ep 8 - *big fat sigh* I thought they were going to redeem Pi by having him be genuinely nice to Meen, but no it was all to do with a dumb pin. Even though he suffers from crazy stalking in this ep, I still don’t like Pi but I’m TOTALLY on his side. Is FUTS taking us on a light weight The Effect journey? Because at this juncture I think I’d prefer that. 

Nitiman Ep 4 - honestly it’s like Nitiman is vested in showing FOTS exactly what it’s doing wrong. Both shows introduced faen fatales this week. But Nitiman did theirs with a sympathetic character, genuine interest on both sides, bisexual confusion, and sweetness. In every way the opposite of (and superior to) FOTS. Even claiming, outing, and stalker characters are happening but treated differently. It’s like parallel universes. Not sure how I feel about the ending kiss though. Still, this is my favorite currently airing show. I look forward to @heretherebedork explaining to me my own feelings and why I want to forgive Bbomb the kiss but not Mork for anything. Since I’m evidently morally hypocritically confused. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Love is Science? (Taiwan) Ep 10 (BL subplot) - Taiwan is experiencing a C19 surge right now so this series will be delayed at least 20 days. 

Be Loved in House: I Do (Taiwan) Ep 3 - dropped with subs thank heavens, all the usual tropes when you pair grumpy + tsundere: challenges, bets, crashing into beds, veiled threats... oh my! Gay boys in stripped sweaters giving advice in cafes is my new favorite thing. It’s the BL version of the “bartender is my psyche” trope. Still finding the boss character creepy. About Hank Wang (plays Shi Lei) anyone else obsessed with his sanpaku eyes? Just me? Fair. Also he keeps reminding me of Pluem Purim, I have no idea why. Something in the mannerisms, I think. They don’t really look alike. (This show may also be delayed.)

My Lascivious Boss (Vietnam) Ep 8 - continues to be good, we now have 2 faen fatales, blackmail, worried friends, and the secret identity slowly devolving. Looks like we get at least two more episodes and could be as many as 12? Very much enjoying this show. 

Most Peaceful Place 2 (Vietnam) Ep 3 (AKA 6) fin - it was fine, they always rush the ending a bit in Vietnamese BL. I found the first season much stronger than this second one over all. But since they aired in the same year and there’s only six total I feel like they should be judged as a whole. So I guess I’ll say, RECOMMENDED with serious pacing issues and some plot drag particularly in the second half. 

Gossip 

The cast of Until We Meet Again met together, ostensibly for their own amusement but speculation is that it has something to do with Between Us AKA Hemp Rope. 

Breaking News

Singto’s next starring role BL got announced Paint With Love. Between him and Ohm, they seem to be attempting to corner the market. I’m in favor. Singto plays Met, a wedding organizer, who hires Phap, a poor artist, to work on a wedding painting. Phap messes something up and ends up having to work for Med on a more permanent basis. Yet another office set BL from Thailand, following in Japan and Taiwan’s well suited footsteps... we hope. Phap is played by Tae (the original Forth in 2 Moons). No side dishes announced as yet. 

Pornographer Playback is airing, the third in the series from Japan (first 2 = The Pornographer AKA The Novelist & Mood Indigo). Not recommended unless you want non-BL gay cinema with high heat, and don’t mind the mess Japan always doles out to go with it. Such as: morally flexible characters, crass manipulation, gaslighting, cheating, seduction of a minor, so much smoking, het porn, and ambiguous, sad, or depressing endings. Part one of this final installment has dropped, part two is not yet available. No subs (even if they say they have them, they’re autiogen nonsense.) 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Some shows may be listed later than actual air date for International accessibility reasons.

Things are looking dire. What will we do with our lives? 

Upcoming 2021 BL master post here.

Links to watch are provided when possible, ask in a comment if I missed something.

#asian bl #thaibl #thai bl #Top Secret Together #Y-Destiny #close friend the series #Close Friend #Fish Upon The Sky #Nitiman #taiwanese bl #taiwanese drama #Be Loved in House: I Do #Love is Science? #vietnamese bl #Most Peaceful Place 2 #My Lascivious Boss #this week in bl #epiode recaps #Paint With Love

[bldreamer]

BREATHE | ForthBeam

2moons2 : ForthBeam

Summary: Beam skips class to take care of his sick boyfriend. Genre: Fluff. Hurt/Comfort. Flu.   Warnings: Tiny bit of swearing. 

A/N: I was supposed to write MorkSun and this came out instead. Requests are welcome :)

Beam sets his eyes on Forth from across the courtyard.

Even amongst a sea of blue engineering shirts, he’s always been easy to spot, with his cocky smile, script tattoo, and his brash silver chain around his neck.  

Today, he’s more noticeable than usual, eyes closed, slumped over the canopy picnic table, with his head resting on his folded arms and his back rising and falling.

It’s not out of the ordinary for Forth to take a nap in between classes. But he’s never so timid and meek about it. He’s usually completely sprawled out, taking up the entire length of the bench with his uniform shirt tucked under his head and his legs dangling off the end without a care in the world.

With a quiet sigh, Beam sits himself down under the canopy next to his boyfriend. He’d seen this coming, and to be completely honest, he’d expected it sooner.

The flu has been spreading around the engineering faculty like wildfire for the past month and after listening to Kit whine for five days straight about Ming’s sick induced clinginess pushing him to his wits end, it was only a matter of time before Forth succumbed to the stubborn ugly virus.

Beam slowly reaches out to thread his fingers into Forth’s hair, lightly scratching his scalp. A small smile spreads across his lips when he hears a muffled moan.

“How are you doing there?” he asks when Forth turns his head but doesn’t open his eyes.

“Mhh. Fine,” his boyfriend croaks, and Beam winces at the sound.

Forth, like most gruff engineers Beam has met, is prone to be quite the drama queen when it comes to the little things. Splitters, papercuts, dry lips, you name it, Forth is a big baby about it. He stubbed his toe on a chair leg walking through the canteen a few months back and anyone would have thought he’d had his entire foot amputated without anesthetic.

But when it comes to the big things, the stuff that matters or the things that hurt, Forth downplays them like he’s trying to achieve the olympic gold medal in avoidance.

“What’s the truth?”

Forth shrugs with his head still on the table pillowed on his forearms, blinking his eyes open. They’re red and sore, and they match his blotchy cheeks. “M’okay, Doc.” 

“That bad, huh?” Beam says lightly.

Forth huffs.

“It’s early,” he comments. “What are you doing here?”

“Ming called Kit. He said you looked terrible when he saw you in the hall.”

Forth tuts. “Fucking brat.”

Beam is usually inclined to agree. He’ll make an exception in this case as Forth mumbles something about ‘the next time I see that Nong.’ Forth may treat his boyfriend like he’s made of fine china, but Beam has seen Forth mid-hazer meeting. He doesn’t envy the nong who gets on the wrong side of him.

“Why didn’t you just stay in bed?”

It doesn’t usually take much to persuade Forth to play hooky. Especially when he’s horny. It’s a true testament to how awful he feels.

“Missed you,” Forth mutters. “Wanted to see you later.” His voice sounds like he’s been chewing on sandpaper for the best part of the morning.

“You could have called. I thought you’d love the idea of me playing nurse for the day?” He’s joked about it more than once. 

Right on queue, Forth mumbles something Beam doesn’t quite get but he suspects it’s something explicit from the tiny smirk that creeps into the corners of Forth’s lips.

“Even now you’re thinking with your downstairs brain?” Unbelievable. 

“My blood supply knows its priorities.” 

“You have a fever,” Beam says, moving his hand from Forth’s hair to cup his cheek to feel the heat radiating from his skin.

“You burn me up, Doc.”

Beam decides to ignore the lewd comment that would usually earn Forth a whack. Especially when his boyfriend turns his head to cough into his elbow and it sounds awful. Wheezy and wet and painful.

“How long have you had a cough?”

Forth shrugs.

“Does anything hurt?”

He breathes out slowly, like he doesn’t have enough energy to properly sigh.

“How's your head?” Beam urges. “Honestly.”

A pause.

“Pouding,” Forth answers.

“Did you take anything?”

He shakes his head fractionally. 

“We’ll stop by the pharmacy on the way home.”

Beam doesn’t realise what he’s said and how causally the phrase slipped from his mouth until Forth lifts his head and frowns wordlessly.

“Your dorm or mine?” Beam urges, trying to breeze past it.

It’s something Forth keeps bringing up, he asks at least once a week. It’s not that Beam doesn’t love him -at least, he’s getting there- but they’ve only been dating for six months. It’s far too soon for them to be moving in together, a point he keeps pushing whenever Forth comments on the matter.

“Your place,” his boyfriend answers, slowly pulling himself upright to lean into Beam’s side. “Let me borrow one of your shirts,” he says, his cheek hot on Beam’s collar. 

“Sure,” Beam nods. “How's breathing?” he asks when he notices how shallow his breaths are.

“Fucking hard, babe.”

Beam swallows.

“I know.” He pushes his hair back from his forehead, feeling Forth nestle into his neck. “Tell me if it gets bad. I’ll kill you if you’re stupid enough to get pnemonia as well as the flu.”

“Your bedside manner could use some work, Doc,” Forth complains in his croaky voice, but he’s smirking again. It’s wobbly and effortful, but as obnoxious as ever.

“Lucky you give me plenty of practise.” Between this and Forth’s many -luckily minor- knuckle scuffs, he should be an expert by the time he graduates. “Are you ready to go?”

“Five more minutes,” Forth murmurs, with tired eyes and a content look on his face.  

“What are you smiling at?” Beam asks curiously.

His boyfriend hums. 

“I like it when you worry about me,” he says.

“Tsk.” Beam rolls his eyes, but there’s no real heat behind his expression. “Get better soon, idiot.”

“Doctors orders?”

“Doctors orders.” Beam nods, brushing his fingers through Forth’s soft hair. “Let me know when you’re ready.”

Forth nods, closing his eyes and sinking onto Beam’s side.

Beam checks his watch. His next class starts in ten minutes and it's probably important but he can’t find it in himself to care at this moment in time. He’ll borrow Pha’s notes -Kit’s are always weirdly passive aggressive and impossible to follow- and catch up over the weekend while Forth sleeps it off.

With any luck, they’ve caught it just in time before it has a chance to grip its claws deep into Forth’s immune system and wipe him out for over a week like it did with Ming.

Jokes about his bedside manner aside, Beam hopes he’s learned enough to know how to properly take care of his sick boyfriend because otherwise, he really chose the wrong faculty.

“Breathe,” he reminds his boyfriend when he can feel him straining. “You’ll be okay. Just breathe.”

~Fin.

#forthbeam #2moons2 #beamforth #forth x beam #beam x forth #bl fanfiction #my writing

[reviewabeautifulstory]

Sotus the Series Episode 15 Review (Final)

Aw last episode! For all that I don’t like some of it, I have absolutely loved most of it so I’m sad to see the end already!

The seniors look absolutely adorable as freshman in the flashback!! It’s interesting to see the parallels between Kong and Arthit too. Both are smart and don’t hesitate to offer their assistance to their friends and neither back down from the punishments they were given. And I think Kong and his friends got the better deal because Arthit’s hazers back in the day look downright terrifying!

I can actually see a little bit of how early episode Arthit was influenced by Tum. I think Arthit used him as role model for his own head hazer days. It’s so funny seeing the seniors had all the same arguments that the freshman had in earlier eps but it’s practically a mirror image of everything from the earlier eps.  

It’s interesting how although the traditions of hazing get passed down, each new group of hazers puts their own little twist and stamp on it but the lessons are ultimately the same even if the techniques to get those messages across must grow and change with the times.

I loved this ep! It was a great way to wrap up the series. Showing the evolution of the Sotus system as a parallel to the characters – Kong and Arthit have grown and changed for the better and each left a mark on the Sotus system that made it better, that’s proper engineering right there, always improving on what came before.

Kong’s way of hazing is tough still but works – he does give that guy singing constructive criticism so he actually gets it right. Arthit looked so proud of the new head hazer!

It’s great to see that Arthit and Kong two years in the future too! And that even though they are both busy, with Kong at uni still and Arthit now a working man they still make time together. They are still flirty and teasing but there’s a layer of familiarity and comfort to it now.

This a slow burner series and I mean slow burner. I didn’t enjoy the hazing at the start, that was a bit too far sometimes for my taste. Arthit and Kong's started out as very confrontational but once they were on an even footing and the actors were given more emotion driven scenes they really shone. Despite some of the hazing content, this was a consistently solid series. It knew where it wanted to go and how to get there and it didn’t have any missteps. I can definitely see why its thought of so highly! 

#sotus the series #sotus episode reviews #kongpob x arthit #arthit x kongpob #sotus kongpob #kongpob #arthit #sotus arthit #Thai BL #BL series #bl drama

[whyamistillwatchingtheseshows]

I’m not sure where in the show you wanted me to place this fic. Also, hopefully you mean 2moons2 ForthBeam, because that’s who I write for. So I placed it after that fight Forth has with the Engineers, Beam patches him up in the car and then they go to that dinner...but I also added something sexy that wasn’t in the show at all...because why not? Also, wanted to sort of encapsulate the song If I Can’t Have You...because the song kinda makes me think about how you just want someone so much and can’t get them off your mind. Frankly, I can get carried away with these two @scarletjemun

As much as he tried, Forth couldn’t hide the wincing from Beam. “Does your head still hurt?” He asked Forth. The Engineer attempted to ignore him by shovelling food into his mouth. The doctor-in-training asked him again, “Does your head still hurt?” 

“It’s your fault anyway,” Forth grumbled. “You had to get in the way. Engineers are stubborn and often pick fights, it’s nothing the Head Hazer couldn’t handle.” Forth knew that he was saying the wrong thing, because the Doctor went quiet. Beam averted his eyes and started to close in on himself. “Hey,” Forth gently kicked him. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” he grinned. “I’m fine. You patched me up and now you’re also feeding me. Clearly, someone cares.” 

Beam sheepish smiled, but he didn’t know what else to say. Forth helped him out. “So, are we going to talk about us?” 

“Us?” Beam gasped as if it were a surprise. Of course, he’s thought about it. It’s the only thing on his mind ever since their first drunken night. Beam is now certain he didn’t have to be drunk for it to happen. He would’ve asked Forth to sleep with him either way. 

“Yes, us, because I plan on flirting with you...well,” Forth laughed. “I was going to say I plan on flirting the pants off of you, but we kind of already did that.” Beam kicked him. 

“Finish eating. I have to go pick up Kit.”

“Why? Did his car break down? I was hoping you’d drive me back so I could get my motorcycle.”

“Well, I have to help Kit, so you might need to call Lam.” Forth rolled his eyes. 

“Kit cannot call anyone else?” Beam wasn’t sure, but there might’ve been a hint of begging in Forth’s voice. He wasn't going to lie. That begging sound was music to his ears. 

“I promised Kit like three days ago so I have to keep the appointment.” 

“Seriously? Well, I’m not done eating so Kit will have to wait.” Forth snatched Beam’s plate. The plate he didn’t finish. 

“Smooth,” Beam murmured. “Fine, I’ll text Kit. Maybe Pha could help him out.” Forth never looked so happy and in that moment when he saw the excited smile on Forth’s face, Beam understood his feelings. Though, he’d always be incredibly nervous about them. 

---

“Why are you parking your motorcycle?” Beam asked as Forth hooked a leg over it and placed the helmet on the handlebars. 

“I’m coming up to your room.” Forth didn’t let Beam argue. He yanked keys from Beam’s hand and ran past him. Beam rubbed his face. He caught up to Forth as he was unlocking the dorm room. Forth gave him a smile and when the door closed his back was planted against it. 

“Um, I was thinking we could just talk. Just a few days ago someone called what we did a one night stand and…I just- Beam-” Forth was stopped by lips against his. The Engineer grabbed Beam by the shoulders and pried him away. “Just wait,” Forth put a hand to his chest now. Beam looked up at him. “Oh, who am I fucking kidding?” Forth grabbed his face and re-connected their lips. They did not stop. They did not come for air, even when Beam jumped and hooked his legs around Forth. It was no surprise that Forth could catch him and even walk backwards towards the bed. Forth sat down on the edge, hands scrambling to take off Beam’s shirt. He stopped himself.

“Wait, wait,” Forth finally broke their kiss. “Are you sure? Because even though this is your room, I have this sinking feeling that if you wake up thinking this is a mistake you’ll run away anyway.” Beam didn’t respond. He just gave him that same exasperated look he had when he was drunk. That same lonely look and Forth knew that he’d fall for it every time. They locked lips and just as Beam was about to lean in and lay Forth onto the bed, he was flipped onto his back.

 “Did you really think...?” Forth chuckled, pinning Beam’s arms above his head. “No.” Beam didn’t object. He already liked it this way. Their lips met for another feverish kiss. 

--

The next morning Forth’s hand reached out and the spot next to him was empty. He furiously sat up but then he heard Beam’s voice from the sofa. “Well, let’s hope you didn’t have classes because it’s noon. I was starting to get worried that maybe you had a concussion.”  Forth closed his eyes and then scrambled out of the bed and without warning climbed into Beam’s lap. Apparently, Beam forgot what to do so Forth had to grab his hands and placed them around him. 

“Good morning,” Forth nuzzled into his neck and finally Beam’s hands figured out how to squeeze him into a hug. 

“Would you please get off me?” 

“You didn’t say that last night.” 

“Don't make me shove you off.” Forth rolled his eyes and scooted down to the sofa. He didn’t remove his legs from Beam’s lap. Beam gave him an incredulous look. Then he decided to make Forth work. 

“I’m hungry,” the doctor announced. It took seconds. Forth jumped from the couch, and hurriedly grabbed his pants.  

“Don't worry, I’ll get you lunch.” Beam pursed his lips into a small smile as he grabbed one of his books from the coffee table. He missed out on studying last night so he needed to do some today. When Forth finally finished dressing, he kissed Beam on the cheek and he left to get them food. As the door closed behind Forth, Beam knew that no matter what he was somehow safe with that man. Forth who understood him. Forth who was there when he was feeling lonely. Beam cracked open the book and tried to keep his thoughts away from Forth, but that was never going to get any easier; he cares about that stubborn, sexy, charismatic Engineer way too much.

#forthbeam #2moons2 #fic requests

[heretherebedork]

Hiya there! I just came to the realization that Mork has only like.. 2 friends in the whole show.

Premise: Another university setting (cause why not) with ML and their “use-to-be” rival. Both had a huge misunderstanding and absolutely despised each other. When their friends had enough of their constant banter, they decided to trap them in a classroom to talk it out. They came to an understanding and decided that they were.. tolerable.. and decided to start at the stage 0 they never got to.

I mean, he's only been shown with two friends, it's true. But I wouldn't want to be friends with that kind of manipulative person either. And I strongly suspect that Mueng Nan is just as manipulative but in a 'nicer' way... that congratulations for the public declaration? Bleeegh.

Okay, onwards to our enemies to lovers premise with a great friendship group!

So, ML is a sporty engineer type, ended up as head hazer and is generally the right person for that. He's strict and stiff and while he does care about other people, he's also very good at pretending like he doesn't.

But Rival is very different. He's more femme and gentle and very empathetic. He's also in engineering but he's there because his father insisted and refused to allow him to study in comm arts the way he actually wanted.

They falling out happened the summer before University started. ML was excited about being an engineer and the SOTUS system and is super stoked to be hazed while Rival is much more nervous and doesn't think it's going to end well at all.

This is their miscommunication. ML is increasingly aggressive about how great the hazing system is and Rival is increasingly frustrated because he thinks it sounds really awful for him. They're at a crossroads and basically cannot get past this argument.

MONTAGE. There's an entire episode that's dedicated to their actual hazing and their extremely different experiences. ML loves it, Rival hates it... and when they see each other during the process the hatred only intensifies because they absolutely cannot agree.

Their friends are BEYOND frustrated. This is obnoxious. May, June, July and August are their friends because why not? May is the girlboss, June and July are twins who both get to have secondary couples with com arts majors (may or may not describe these, tbh) and August is token hetero boy who ends up dating a fantastically pretty engineering girl who's a 1000x smarter than him.

It takes until their second year for them to lose it, though. A full year of this infighting BS making everyone miserable and May is the one who finally suggests just... forcing it.

And that's how ML and Rival end up locked up together in a classroom with a threat to 'figure it out or starve to death' from their very dear friends.

It starts out... bad. They're still fighting, they're still yelling about the SOTUS system and the roll of the group and just... everything.

But, seriously, there's only so long you can fight. ML is the one who finally gives in. He's tired of fighting and he misses their friendship. For all that he's stricter and harder, he's also always been the one to take care of others.

Rival can't, and doesn't want to, keep the fight up one-sidedly. But he also doesn't know where to go. Which is when ML suggests restarting their friendship entirely. He just wants this to be over with, he's missed Rival and their friendship.

So they start over. Everyone is very happy that they're starting over, frankly.

What no one suspected was that Rival had a long-term crush on ML. He'd never expected it to go anywhere, fight or no fight. But after a year of fighting, a year of avoiding him and then suddenly having ML everywhere again... it's hard. It's very hard. And ML is frankly very excited to have Rival back in his friendship circle.

And, one day, both drunk at a party... Rival kisses ML. Rival is far, far more drunk than ML is, he's goofy and laughing and he kisses ML and proclaims how cute he is riiiight as he passes our drunk.

ML, June and July end up taking care of Rival, which is where ML hears about June and July's romances for the first time and starts to kind of wonder how he feels about Rival.

Rival doesn't remember the kiss at all. ML does. ML tries to talk around it, tries to get Rival to remember it but... nothing. He was blackout drunk.

But ML starts to think more. And talk more. And soon enough he's head over heels for Rival and has no idea how to say 'we've already kissed, let's start dating'.

Rival isn't exactly oblivious but he's also not exactly sure what's going on. ML is suddenly closer to him, hanging around and literally on him regularly. And it's Rival who finally stops and asks WTF.

ML, a bit reluctantly, explains the kiss and the feelings. And the insecurities come out as well. Which just makes Rival reluctant to try. So they agree to try for one month. One month of dating and then they'll talk.

The month is super up and down. There are amazing moments and horrible moments and everything in between. Right at the end of the month they end up in a fight about public affection and it looks pretty bleak to everyone outside of them. The entire friend group is losing their minds because they are not doing through this again!

And so they do the first solution that worked... they lock them in a classroom again! FULL CIRCLE.

It works again. Because forced communication does work!

HAPPY ENDING, Y'ALL.

Oooof, this one feels longer than usual. Sorry.

#premise anon #ilu premise anon #write my own bl #wow this just didn't want to end

[earthfluuke]

tagging game: top 5 bl dramas/series and 5 honorable mentions you would recommend

thank you @izzy-jellybaby, @emisfritish, and @weilongfu for tagging me!!!

rules: jot down your top five bl dramas / series that have made their way into your heart and five honorable mentions you would recommend to newcomers. tag ten users you think would like this game. 

to be honest, this is really just going to be a top 10, because all these shows and the actors in them are my babies and i feel bad pitting them against each other (cause i’m weak)

top favorites

1 - love by chance

this is the drama that got my love for thai bl started. i was in such a dark, sad place when i first found lbc, and it really pulled me out of it. i will always be thankful for that. there are obviously parts of this show that i absolutely detest and wish weren’t in it, but putting those aside, this show has my whole heart. ae and pete were the first gay couple in media that i saw that made me think “these two could actually be real.” they have such a sweet, wholesome, realistic relationship that brings me nothing but joy. every time i go back to watch this show, i feel the same things i felt the first time i watched it.

2 - until we meet again

a recent show but an amazing one. i have nothing but good things to say about this show. for one, it’s got a fantastic plot, two, the cast is probably my favorite bl cast ever. and three - the most important thing - deanpharm. i adore these two more than i could ever say. they are so healthy and good and perfect in every way. as with aepete, they’re so realistic to me. every scene with the two of them feels so authentic. not to mention they’re sweet as sugar, and i live for that in my ships. i was crushed when this show ended, and i go back and rewatch scenes constantly because i love it so much.

in no particular order

3 - theory of love

this show stars the kings offgun, so of course it’s on my list. the entire concept of this show is so cool. i love how every episode is named after a different movie, and the film theme is kept throughout the entire show. also the switch from third’s point of view to khai’s point of view halfway through the series was a really interesting, different take that i don’t think i’ve ever seen in any other show. the character development? *chef’s kiss* gun’s crying gets high honors, because god damn, that boy must have been dehydrated. also, offgun redemption kiss. that victory was so sweet.

4 - 2moons2

if you know me, you know i adore this show, but more importantly, the cast. those six boys are what really make this show as good as it is. the fact that they all came in as new actors still astounds me. but putting them aside, i just love how soft and sweet this show is. if i need a pick me up, this is my go to. there are moments from all three couples that give me all the warm feelies in my heart. i am so so so excited for 2moons3, i literally can’t wait much longer.

5 - dark blue kiss

is this a surprise, coming from my polca ass? didn’t think so. first things first: TAYNEW. now that that’s out of the way, pete and kao make me so happy. despite the obvious flaws in this show (looking at you, non), the two of them really showed what it’s like to be not only a long term gay couple, but also the struggles of figuring out how to come out. that entire scene by the pool where they were discussing why they have to prove themselves more because of their sexuality? that HIT ME in my SOUL. oh, and don’t even get me started on that anniversary scene. i also love morksun torturing rain with their love by jumping into his bed every night. if you look past the bad parts of this show (again, LOOKING AT YOU, NON), it’s very sweet and incredibly real at times.

6 - he’s coming to me

talk about underrated but amazing. well, how could it not be, with the king himself, singto prachaya, as the lead. i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again: he’s coming to me was a straight show made for a gay couple. what i mean by that is that the plot isn’t focused on the relationship. instead, it’s focused on something broader with a relationship added in, which is something more straight couples are given than gay couples. and what a wonderful relationship it is. mes and thun are so cute and yet so emotional too. one minute, they’re acting a fool and the next they’re crying to each other. for every fun scene this show has, there’s one that breaks your heart (in the best way). that coming out scene made me literally sob, it was so fantastic. not as many people have seen this one, but they SHOULD.

7 - sotus

an absolute classic. ignoring some of the drama that comes along with this show, i really like it. the plot is really interesting, and i love the large cast of characters. the episode where all the freshmen get there gears? when the hazers ask if they can be their seniors? talk about water works, because i bawled. again, the king himself, singto prachaya, is in this so. that obviously gives it some points. it’s just a really good starter bl.

8 - great men academy

p’tangmooooo. god, i can’t, i love these boys. this came out at the height of me trying to watch every thai bl possible in the shortest amount of time. and watching it was such a treat. the cast, oh my god. amazing, fantastic, phenomenal, iconic. tangmolove is so adorable. james, PLEASE come back to acting so we can get a season two where we see the two of them as a couple. i need it so bad. i wish this show was more available to international viewers, because it’s so great, pretty short, and just such a fun watch.

9 - history3: make our days count

...okay so what we’re going to do is ignore the last episode and say that hao ting and xi gu lived happily ever after. okay? okay. moving on from that, my heART. sometimes, shows don’t need to have big, intense plots. sweet, romantic shows are just as nice. and oh my god, does this show tick off the sweet box. every episode had my heart aching by the end, because hao ting and xi gu were so sweet. it’s just a nice story about two young boys learning how to navigate a relationship. hao ting is so whipped for xi gu too, which is always a plus. his little munching he does at him? he’s a certified puppy.

10 - our skyy

some people will say this doesn’t count, but i say it does! and besides, i’m pretty sure i’ve rewatched all 5 episodes more times than any of these other series combined. i just love the premise. taking 5 couples we already know and love and giving us more of them? genius. each episode is so cute in their own way, and i wish that they would make a second season. maybe more episodes so we can have the couples from the first with some new ones too? that would be my dream. if you’ve watched any of the shows that precede our skyy, i highly recommend checking out that couples’ episode!

i tag: @0ffgun, @functionalasfuck, @bldramagalore, @pallyson, @bl-fan, and anyone else who would like to do it!!

#stfu madeline #tag game #bl tag game

[unpopular-bishop]

star tear disease

It runs in Kong’s family.

He knows that his parents love each other, but that his mom was blind before she met his dad and doesn’t remember who she’d cried so many stars for. He knows that his eldest sister has had to wear glasses since high school, when she and her first boyfriend broke up just before semester break, and his middle sister is very, very careful not to get too close to other people outside of their family. He knows that his grandfather wears glasses for color blindness. He never met her, but he���s heard that his great-grandmother managed to escape any sort of love damage even if she is the one that introduced it into the bloodline. He knows that it’s a rare condition, and that at least it isn’t as painful and deadly as Hanahaki; but he thinks he would find a jar of petals prettier than a jar of dull metal like what his oldest sister collected.

He’s never cried stars, but he saw it once, when his sister had been standing in their driveway while the familiar moped of her ex had steadily drifted from view. Even during the day, they had glimmered and sparkled so bright. Bright enough that they’d dazzled him for a few moments, watching from the living room window. He’d found the nerve to run outside, to try to stop her before she caused any permanent damage, and he remembers the soft, bell-like tingle-lingle-lings of bright-hot metal falling from the corners of her eyes in his dreams sometimes. When he’d scooped the tears up once his mother had brought his sister inside, having been sent back to collect them before anyone thought to snatch them up and sell the little stars, they had been warm and still just glimmering with fading light, like little fireflies. There had been blood, but he’d tried not to notice.

He’d asked to keep one and his sister had smiled wanly and agreed, so he’d taken the first one he’d touched.

He had studied it, felt the sharp points and memorized the shape, imagined these forming in his eyes and slipping down his cheeks. For something he knew to be so painful, so damaging, the sounds had seemed so - soft. Pretty.

He kept the tear, carefully wrapped and set aside in his box of trinkets and keepsakes, and he keeps it still, though he doesn’t look at it as often as he once did when he was younger.

-

Arthit is - a surprise.

Kong didn’t go to school to get a boyfriend, as his Phi puts it later, but he falls in love all the same. It’s accidental and not quite slowly but not all at once either. It’s the thousand little things - Arthit’s dedication to his juniors and to SOTUS; to his friends; the way he smiles and tries to hide how pleased he is when he’s complimented; how smart he is and how hard he works at his studies. The way he pushes and picks at Kongpob but never goes too far. The way he lets Kongpob push back even when Kongpob does go too far. The little glances he steals when he thinks Kong isn’t looking. Some oranges and a bland face that tries its best to hide the worry.

One day, he wakes up and realizes he’s fallen so deeply in love that there’s not a thing he can do to stop it. He blinks, and thinks of his sister’s tear still gently folded away in his keepsake box, and tries not to worry about it. Arthit has pushed him, but he’s never made him cry. Even if Kongpob is alone with this feeling, even if he has nothing from Arthit except being Phi-Nong, it is enough.

Still, he savors the colors of the world just a little more now, with the threat that he’s one emotionally distraught moment away from losing them.

Kong has never been a crier anyway, but Kong has also never been one to fall in love, either.

-

Arthit is so warm, even with the space between them. Kong can’t help but stare at him, even in the dark of the room. Today has been nice. He can almost pretend it was like a date, except for how Arthit had no idea it was a date.

Now, because of a freak accident and Arthit’s unwillingness to push Kong on that awkward conversation from earlier, he is allowed this, this little moment he never thought he’d be allowed.

Arthit is so warm. Kong feels the words bursting from him, warm and bright. He does his best to keep them dim, quiet, but he has starlight and space matter in his body, wanting to come out. His love has never been a subtle kind, never been one that is supposed to be hidden. It’s his family’s curse and their gift, to love so vividly, to mourn it’s loss so brightly.

-

Arthit hangs up the phone.

Kongpob cries before he even realizes what’s happening.

It hurts. Not the stars, though those do hurt - like little pinpricks of pain that quickly build until it’s more of a stabbing. His heart hurts worse. He never realized that this is what his sister, his mother, his grandfather had to contend with while little rocks formed under their eyes and slipped free fluttering, glittering, faintly kaleidoscope colors. This rending of the heart, the knowledge that his love isn’t reciprocated. That Arthit will never want him in the way he wants Arthit.

His heart aches, and his face aches, and he’s scared about what will happen if he keeps crying, but none of those things actually stop the tears. Just make them worse, until the twinkling, bell-like ringing is echoing all around the dorms. The sound is less beautiful when it plays soundtrack to his heartbreak. He presses a hand over his eyes, but that hurts worse.

Not knowing what else to do, he collapses to the ground of his balcony and calls his sister.

-

He doesn’t remember the conversation. His sister says its a gift from the stars, that he won’t look back and remember the heartache and start all over again. He has blood on his shirt and smeared on his hands in the morning when he wakes with dim, blurry vision and crusted flakes of red at the corners of his eyes.

He has no one to call, no one who knows except his family, who are far away. He stumbles to the bathroom, washes his face. His sister says to keep his eyes closed, let them rest as much as possible for the next few days. She will have their doctor send a note to the school so he can miss classes for the rest of the week while he recovers his vision. He keeps them open long enough to collect the little metal pieces on his balcony, does his best not to think of the ones that may have escaped over the edge, that someone else may have picked up and kept. His pain, in the hands of a stranger.

He understands why his mother had him collect his sister’s tears, and the act of trust that was her allowing him to keep one. He doesn’t think he could release a single one of these to another person.

He collects them into a napkin, sets them on his desk, and then collapses and sleeps. He plans to spend the next few days resting his eyes for as long and as often as he can, refusing to think of anything except the audiobooks he listens to to pass the time. Nothing upsetting, nothing that may cause him to cry again. He doesn’t want to be blind - but, more importantly, he wants desperately not to forget. Even unloved, even with the proof of Arthit’s lack of feelings toward him in a small pile on his desk, he doesn’t want to give up a single moment. Even losing their conversation last night was a loss nearly too great to bear. He doesn’t want to lose any more.

-

“Sorry, M.” He says into the phone, “I’ll have to do a make-up assignment or something.”

“Are you really sick?” M says, worried. Kong has to smile. He has good friends.

“Sort of. I just need to rest for the rest of the week.”

“Do you have food? I’ll bring you some.”

“That would be good, thank you.” He doesn’t have food. He’s used to going out to grab a quick bite when necessary.

“Okay, I’ll go after classes are over. And Tew wrote notes for you, I’ll bring those, too.”

He gives M his order for one of his usual places, something simple and, just a little, heartsick. He thinks he wants pink milk instead of iced coffee. Just something to make him remember. He misses Arthit already. He can’t imagine that this is what his life will be, just a little ache that is Arthit-shaped. How had his mom moved on? His sister? He might ask, when it isn’t so fresh.

His sister express-mailed a special bandage to him the day after he called her. It’s specially made for people with their ailment, a thick strip of material that rests over the eyes. One side is cool and meant to be covered in ointment. He’s very diligently been reapplying it and resting it over his eyes, cleaning them regularly and not straining his vision. His mom has asked him to go to a doctor when the week is up, but he thinks he’ll be okay. The world is just a little bit duller now, but that could just as easily be because he’s now in a world where he knows he won’t ever get to hold Arthit’s hand.

He’s wearing the bandage when M knocks on the door. He knows his room well enough that he doesn’t need to take it off so he slowly makes his way to the door and unlocks it.

“What are you wearing?” M asks immediately.

“They’re called pajamas, M.” he says with a smile, which immediately drops when there are two noises of amusement. “Who else is here?”

“I ran into P’Arthit at the stall.” M says, like that’s a normal thing to say. Kong feels his heart go still, his cheeks go hot. He didn’t, doesn’t, never wants Arthit to see him recovering from this.

“Nong says you’ve been missing classes.” Arthit says in his severe hazer voice, but Kong’s familiar enough with him by now to know that’s an act. One Arthit takes seriously, but an act nonetheless.

“Eye problems.” He manages to respond and then turns to go back into the room. He knows M will follow, but Arthit has always been more polite than Kong or his friends. There’s a chance, if a small one, that a lack of direct invitation means he just - won’t come in.

Obviously, Kong forgot how shameless M could be.

“Come in, Phi, we shouldn’t just stand in the hallway.”

Kong carefully sets down on the edge of his bed, tries to remember what he has out. He paused his audiobook a few minutes ago, having finished a chapter, but he tends to be pretty neat with his clothes and has no dishes out right now because he’s been getting delivery. His school supplies are probably neatly set aside on his desk, or at least haphazardly set aside on his desk.

He knows the lights are off, but the curtain is pulled because he’s felt the sunlight on his skin for most of the day.

“So,” M says and Kong can hear him setting a plastic bag down on the table, “Are you okay? Do you need anything? What’s wrong with your face?”

“Nothing’s wrong.” Kong says, and then figures he should elaborate if he wants M and Arthit to leave, “I’m just - it’s nothing important. I just need to rest my eyes.”

“Did you stare at the sun too long?” M jokes and Kong feels a painful sort of twinge.

“Something like that.” He smiles and knows it probably doesn’t come off well. Arthit is silent.

“Well,” M brushes past it, picking up that Kong won’t share more, “I brought your notes. I also talked to the teacher for you and she’s willing to give you an extension on the project, so don’t worry about anything except recovering. By the time you come back, we’ll be done and whatever topic you get, we can help!”

“Thanks, M.” Kong slowly curls his fingers into the blanket by his leg, smiling more genuinely, “I’m sorry I can’t help right now.”

“You help enough.” M dismisses, “Everyone is asking about you, so I’ll make sure to let them know you’re doing okay.”

“Please tell them not to worry about me. I’ll be back on Monday.”

Arthit is suspiciously quiet, and it’s making Kong a little nervous. He strains his ears and he can hear their breathing in the quiet of the room, but he can’t place where either of them are except for ‘in front of him.’

“Okay, well, we’ll head out and let you rest, then. I think Phi just wanted to make sure you weren’t faking.”

“I’m not faking, P’Arthit.” Kong says with a quiet huff. He isn’t annoyed - it’s just...it’s not kind of Arthit to check in on him like this. It gives him hope, when he’d be willing to take anything as a sign to keep fighting right now. It would be kinder for Arthit to ignore him until his heart takes the hint, as much as Kongpob misses him, wants to hear his voice.

“You aren’t.” Arthit finally speaks up, and there’s the lightest sound of bells, and Kong feels his smile freeze in place.

“Please don’t -” he starts to say, and then stops. They’re for Arthit, aren’t they? If anyone has a right to them, it would be him.

“Are you collecting metal?” M says innocently and Kong nods before he can think about it.

“For a personal project.”

“Extra credit?” M asks suspiciously and Kong laughs against his will. Trust his friend to take all of this at face value except that Kong may be secretly hoarding points to better his grade.

“No, not for a class.”

M hums noncommittally. “In that case, I have to go, so I guess I’ll see you later. Are you coming, Phi?”

“I…” Arthit pauses, barely noticeable except for how Kong is hanging on his answer. “Need to talk to Kongpob, first.”

He can see M shrugging even without his sight.

“Get better soon, buddy.” M pats Kong’s shoulder, light and careful so he doesn’t surprise him, “Let me know if you need anything else. I’ll call again tomorrow!”

“Thank you.” Kong says and means it. He hears M leave, closing the door firmly behind him. The room stays quiet after he leaves.

Kong sits still. He breathes in and out, listens intently while trying to pretend he isn’t. He wants to rip the bandage off, but even if he did, he’d still have to go wash ointment out of his eyes before he could properly see and it would do more harm than good. It hurts to apply in the first place, and he’d have to re-do it and it would throw off his timing in regards to how often he has to use it, and -

And, at the end of his excuses, he’s scared to see what Arthit’s face looks like. He wants to imagine it, wants to soften his eyes and his smile so that he looks happy when he’s standing in Kong’s room.

“They were out of pink milk.” Arthit finally speaks up and Kong hears the scrape of a chair as Arthit sits down. “Nong got you iced coffee instead.”

“That’s okay.” Kong shrugs. The pink milk had been a minor lapse in judgment anyway.

“Exams are coming up.” Arthit continues like Kong hadn’t spoken. “It’s not good to not take care of yourself so close to them. They’re important and affect the rest of your time here.”

“I know, Phi.” Kong nods along, settling in for a lecture. If this is all he gets, then he’ll take it.

“If you need help catching up, ask one of us. Knot is good at studying but Bright is better at cramming, if you need help.”

“What are you good at?” Kong can’t help but ask.

Arthit sucks in a breath and then doesn’t say anything for a long few moments. “If you need help with policies or laws or ethics.”

Kong nods again.

“Thank you, Phi.” he feels the blanket under his fingers and curls his hand tighter. “It really is okay. I strained my sight.”

“I know what those are, Kongpob.” Arthit snaps back, and Kong immediately feels guilty. Arthit sounded - upset.

“It’s okay, P’Arthit.”

“It isn’t okay!”

Kong...finds himself smiling again.

“Why are you smiling? This isn’t funny! You -”

“Thank you for worrying about me.”

“Who’s worrying about you!?”

“No one, P’Arthit.”

“That’s right, except for your little friends, who are doing a project without you! You need to be more careful!”

“I know, P’Arthit.”

“Have you gone to the clinic? Called anyone? Are you eating?”

“I haven’t gone to the clinic.” He tries to keep the warmth out of his voice, “But I called my sister, who has experience recovering. M just brought me food, Phi.”

“Well -” Kong hears the bag crinkle and then feels a warm box thrust into his lap, “Eat!”

“Right now?”

“Right now!”

He eats right now. Arthit mutters and Kong hears him bustling around the room. The cabinet opens and then the sink runs, then there is a clink as something is set on the table. Water, Kong imagines, taking another careful bite of what he thinks is an omelette.

Arthit lets him eat without lecturing him, and Kong doesn’t feel like he’s being stared at so he imagines Arthit is either looking around the room or is just staring at the pile of stars.

He eats his fill, which isn’t as much as he should eat but is more than he’s been forcing down the last few days, and then closes the box back up. It’s been taken before he can think to set it aside, and then a glass is being carefully handed over, a warm hand on his to help him find it. He drinks slowly, savoring the attention. It’s the last time he’ll accept it, he promises himself.

He knows Arthit is only doing this because he feels guilty. He knows Arthit doesn’t care about him like he cares about Arthit, that to Arthit he is just a particularly stubborn nong. He knows that doing all of this is making Arthit feel better, even as it’s tearing Kong’s heart up all the more, so Kong will let him do whatever he wants for now, and then he will very firmly not let it happen again. He knows. He knows.

He hears the twinkling again, that pretty sound. He can’t help but like it, even still, and can imagine Arthit trying to oh-so-carefully touch, only to pull back abruptly when they make noise.

“It runs in my family.” he says into the new quiet. “On my mother’s side.”

“I thought it was really rare.”

“It is. I don’t know how rare in Thailand, but most people don’t talk about it, I think, anyway.”

“Did it...does it hurt?”

“No.” Kong lies, and then thinks better of it, “Not...not a lot. After a while, it can, but not as bad the first time.”

“And this was the first time?”

Kongpob nods slowly. “They get bigger, the longer you cry. I bet there’s some interesting science behind it.”

“Don’t do it again.” Arthit sounds like if he just orders Kong to not love him anymore, to not cry for him, it will work. Kong almost wishes it would, but only almost. He probably doesn’t care about the science. Honestly, neither does Kong. He just knows what he knows.

“I’ll try, Phi.” he says loyally.

“Don’t -” Arthit breathes sharply, “You shouldn’t - not for me. If it’s for me. I’m not worth that.”

Kong frowns, setting the glass carefully on his nightstand so he has his hands free again. He doesn’t know what to do with them, but he wants them free, anyway.

“Of course they’re for you, but...it isn’t something controllable, Phi. Please don’t feel guilty. This isn’t your fault.”

“I made you cry.” Arthit cuts him off firmly, “That was - not kind. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize for not returning my feelings.” Kong doesn’t want that, not that. He’ll take the coddling, if that is what Arthit needs, but he doesn’t want this, not even if it will make Arthit feel better.

“I...I shouldn’t have hung up like that.” Arthit says, sounding a little helpless.

“It’s okay, P’Arthit.” Kong says and means it.

“It isn’t. I really...I really hurt you.”

“Getting rejected hurts.” Kong finds the strength to say, “But it isn’t your fault that you don’t love me.”

Arthit doesn’t say anything back and they fall into silence. He hears the chiming again, and this time it doesn’t stop for a few minutes. He lets Arthit sit with his thoughts, laces his fingers together in his lap and forces them to be relaxed.

“Will you be at the wedding?” Arthit eventually says over the gentle, sweet sounds.

Kong nods.

“I’ll...I’ll see you there.” Arthit says awkwardly and Kong nods again, plastering a smile on. He hears Arthit get up, feels him pat his shoulder twice like M did, and then Kong lets him walk out of the door without another word.

Kong puts his head in his hands and squeezes his burning eyes shut as tightly as he can. He wants to remember every moment of this, no matter how badly it hurts.

-

Later, Kong wraps the tears up in a handkerchief and sets them in the keepsake box with his sister’s.

-

Much, much later, he melts them and the few he cries after into liquid and forms two silver rings with them. When he and Arthit wear them and hold hands, they clink together and make the sweetest sound he’s ever heard. Like bells chiming or stars falling.

#sotus #kongart #mine #tags: kongart week 2020 | day 6: star tear disease | kong can't pretend he doesn't cry if his tears are stars #wc: 3.7k #ao3 link on first line #KongArt Week 2020

[venactricisfics]

Training Day

Part 1

The Unit Based Story

"Did you kill it?" I smile at Beau's crate filled with the fluffy guts of the stuffed squirrel Charlie gave him. Beau gives me a look that confirms he did, in fact, destroy the intruder. I open and clean the crate. Beau watching me intently. 

"It takes you being surrounded by all this sweat testosterone to bring out your inner puppy?" I clip his leash to his harness. "PT time." 

I step out the back of the cage, dressed in a grey army t and black shorts and walk with Beau toward the track.  The run was invigorating. Opened up my mind to all the new that happened since I came to Fort Griffith. It was still me and my dog. But for the first time, I was falling in sync with people. Or at least I hoped I was. 

Beau ran through the obstacles three times before it was time to head back to the cave. We were running drills before our next mission. I had to prove how I meshed with the team with and without my dog. 

"Shit, " the locker room was full of guys, I wouldn't be able to change before the drill. I get Beau settled and grab my weapon from the locker. I didn't go overlooked by any of the men there. 

"It's true, " I hear a man scoff, "they have cracked and are letting women in here." 

"Women shouldn't be trusted with heavy firearms, " another says. 

"Really?" I cock a brow turning towards him, "Why is that?" 

"Women just have bad aim, " he stumbled over his words. 

"I have four brothers, I guaran-damn-tee you that men have worse aim than women, " I look between the men. "But you don't have to worry about Lil' old me. I don't fire a gun with my pussy so it's all good." His mouth falls open. 

"Damn, " I hear Charlie's voice smiling from behind me as I slam my locker closed. "That would be an interesting party trick." 

"Probably, " I relax a little and tighten my holster strap around my thigh and tug it tight to keep from rubbing against my skin. Once I had my kevlar on I was happy to only have shorts and a t-shirt under. The training area is hot as fuck. 

I listen as Mack runs through the drill instructions. Jonas and Col Ryan would be watching, judging. I supposed to see how well I actually fit. 

The room was divided into five sections. Mach assigned us our spot. We were responsible for taking out the pseudo threats without hurting the pseudo hostages. The hostages I noticed was the other team, including the two men who doubted me. 

I pushed all the shit from before away. I'd known guys like that my whole life. I couldn't let them get in my head. I didn't have shit to prove to them, just to my team. 

"Bet she's shit without that dog to protect her, " I heard one say as the door swings open. I push it down. No fear, no anger. I couldn't express it, at least not until the job was done. 

Bullets flew, expertly, each one of my teammates taking down their assigned targets. I aimed and fired. Narrowing my eyes at the target. Instead of a hole being blown through the paper target, an explosion of pink paint erupted. The two men just laughed as target after target was covered in pink paint. I changed my clip and fired again. More of the same. 

My cheeks burned with anger but I didn't react. They wanted to see me cry. To see me wash out of the Unit. 

"What in the fuck happened in there, Mitch?" Mack shouted as we left the staged room. "We run drills with live rounds." 

"I know, " I told him, "I loaded both clips with live ammo before I went for my run this morning." 

"And you left your clips in your locker?" Bob asked his voice calmer. 

"Yes, " it started to sink in, "Laurel and Hardy were in the locker room when I got back." 

"We'll take care of it, " Mack stated. "Come with me." He leads me back into the staging room. He scans each of my targets. The pink paint splatter a perfect bullseye. "Give me your weapon, " Mack says to me. I nod pulling my gun from its holster. He slides the clip open and pops the round out of the chamber. He drops the trick bullets in the laps of my hazers. 

"This is not a fucking game, " Mack inches his face closer to them, his fingers curling tight into the man's shirt. "You feel me?" 

"It was just a joke, " the man responded. 

"Does it look like any one of us is fucking laughing? You do shit like that in the field you get her and the rest of us killed," Mack pushes him back hard and draws his fist back landing it in his face. 

"Enough, " Col Ryan's voice barks from the doorway behind us. "Let him go Mack." Reluctantly Mack releases him.  "As for the two of you, " the Col's eyes narrow. "You pull a fucking stunt like that again you'll be booted so far out of the Unit you'll forget its existence." 

"Yes, sir, " they say in unison. 

"Get the fuck out of here, " Col Ryan orders. The two stumble over each other to leave the room. 

"You alright, Mitch? " I'd been watching the entire scene play out in shock, I barely heard Hector's voice over the noise in my head.  

"Yeah, I'm fine, " I told him. "No one other than my brothers has ever defended me like that." 

"We're your brothers now, " Bob said.  The rest of the guys nodded in agreement. 

"Carlito, " Mack grins, "is like that stepbrother that wants to fuck you." 

"Why you gotta make it sound like that?" Charlie scoffs. Though his lips curve into a smile. 

"I'm strangely ok with it, " I felt the weight of everything lifted from my shoulders. 

#the unit tv #michael irby #fanfic #mayans mc fanfic #mayans mc

[jojotichakorn]

Sotus: Review (& General Info)

About the Series:

Summary: To “officially” become an Engineering Student, every first-year must go through the tough SOTUS system. Arthit is a third-year and the Head Hazer of the system this year. Kongpop is a first-year, who must go through that unfair system, but hates the idea of it. He keeps arguing and speaking up at the SOTUS gatherings Arthit organizes, which obviously pisses the third-year off. Can they settle their differences and find common ground? More importantly, can something unexpected come out of their conflict? (Trailer)

Couples: Main gay couple.

Running Time: 15 episodes - around 43 minutes each - 11 hours in total

Cast (& their Instagram pages): Singto Prachaya (Kongpop), Krist Perawat (Arthit), New Thitipoom (M), Oaujun Korn (Tew), Fluke Teerapat (Wad), Ice Ittikorn (Knot), Gun Chanagun (Prem), Off Jumpol (Bright), Natthawaranthorn Khamchoo (Tutah), Neen Suwanamas (May), Jan Ployshompoo (Prae), Wawa Maripha (Maprang), [more].

Where to watch? YouTube

Related Shows: Sotus S (sequel), Our Skyy (1/5 episodes is a sequel to Sotus S, the other 4/5 episodes are unrelated).

My Review:

Rating: 7.5/10

Short review: 

It’s hard to say if this show’s pros outweigh its cons. 

On the one hand, it’s funny and cute, the plot is actually interesting, the characters are amazing, the acting is good, the relationships are beautiful, and it tries to introduce you to some parts of the culture, which is both very interesting and makes it easier to understand some things that happen in other BLs. Besides, you can see so many of the actors we all grew to love just starting and being adorable babies.

On the other hand, there are those last two episodes that kind of ruin the show just a little bit and manage to fit so much problematic shit in them that it’s actually kind of impressive. Plus, there is, of course, the unfortunate fact that the actor playing Arthit is homophobic. 

Overall, do I recommend it? Yes, to pretty much everyone. But I realize there are reasons not to watch it, too. At the end of the day, it’s obviously your own decision to make.

Extended review (under the cut):

Sotus is one of those popular BLs that most people have probably already watched, but a lot of newcomers look at with skepticism, unsure if it’s worth their time. And I’m going to tell you right from the start: yes, it absolutely is.

For starters, the plot here is actually pretty good! The romance is, of course, the central point of the show (as it should be since it’s literally the reason why we’re all here), but the show actually tries to work with a lot of other plotlines as well. Sotus is probably the only BL that tries to immerse you into the culture as much as it does, and I still catch myself watching other BLs and going “oh yeah, I know how this works – I remember it was explained in Sotus”. The show has its own pacing and it is admittedly a little soft, but it doesn’t really get annoying and it fits, unless the only thing you care about is the romance because it does take a lot of time to properly get there. There’s a lot of adorable moments, cute little details and I honestly don’t think I’ve ever laughed at any BL as much as I did at Sotus – there’s a real comedic element there, and it’s actually funny. It has a lot of beloved tropes – anything from jealousy to oblivious mutual pinning. As much as I dislike angst, I actually like the angst Sotus has – it makes sense, isn’t overly dramatic and is resolved in a nice, satisfying way. Not everything is entirely perfect, though. Apart from minor complaints about the plot, I’d say that they definitely tried to take on too many plotlines. Some of them feel a little unfinished and some scenes seem like they’re there on purpose, to develop them later, but whatever it is they brought to the viewer’s attention is just never brought up again.

Sotus actually cares about its characters outside of their romances and tries to develop them properly. Thanks to that, you will 110% fall in love with the main character right off the bat, because he’s genuinely amazing and I shit you not whenever any of the boys in other BLs do something dumb, my mind immediately goes to “ugh I miss Kong”, because he’s honest, mature and very refreshing compared to other BL mains. All background characters are genuinely fantastic too – you will remember all of them, you will care about most of them and one of them will probably become one of your faves. The friendships in Sotus are also amazing – they’re actually believable, healthy and just really wholesome. The romance part is very cute as well - wee see the main character slowly falling in love with his crush and it all comes to a rather beautiful conclusion.  

Because Sotus let so many now popular actors get their foot in the door, so to speak, the acting is actually good. Singto’s performance is great from start to finish and there’s a whole list of actors, who play less significant roles, but who try very hard nonetheless. Newwiee, Off, Gunsmile, Oaujun – the list goes on.

I wouldn’t say Sotus handles its LGBTQ+ topics particularly well. I have to mention there’s a first and only lesbian among all BLs in this show, but it’s only briefly discussed and the main character ends up outing her to his boyfriend, which is obviously not great. The main character also straight-up says the cursed phrase: “I don’t like men, I only like him”, so that makes you want to die three times over. There’s also a “stereotypically gay” character that’s there mostly for laughs and isn’t really treated seriously. And just as a cherry on top – there’s a scene just full of cis clownery.

Now, to the shittiest part of this whole thing. I swear to Gods, it feels like they just fired whoever wrote the first 13 episodes of the show and got someone significantly shittier to write the last two, because they feel awfully different. The previously mentioned moments of “I don’t like men, I only like him”, the outing, the cis clownery – all of it happens in those last two episodes. Besides that, the characters suddenly get pretty OOC, half the storyline just doesn’t make any fucking sense and the other half is just them showing us what we already know, because they’ve told us about it episodes ago. The saddest part? Episode 13 has perfect closure. It doesn’t feel like there should be some kind of a follow-up. But then suddenly episodes 14&15 step in, and they go heavy on the drama and introduce complex problems that end up being resolved in the dumbest of ways.

Wait, did I say the shittiest part? Sorry, that was second shittiest. The shittiest of cherries on top is something that stops a lot of people from rewatching the show or watching it altogether. The actor, who plays one of the main characters, Arthit, is homophobic. Now, whatever you want to do with this information is your business, but you definitely need to be aware of it.

Ultimately, do I love this show? Yes. Do I think it’s great? Yes. Do I think no one should ever watch episodes 14&15 and just live with the nice closure episode 13 provides? Yes. Do I understand there is at least one valid reason not to watch it? Also yes. But, at the end of the day, it’s obviously your own decision to make.

#there it is babes #there's a secret link in there ;) #oh and #lbc is next #sotus #archer's bl recs

[mittensmorgul]

300, and other random observations

Last night Mel and I were scouring the episode looking for the expected obvious “300″ to jump out from some random door or building number, or appear SOMEWHERE in the episode the way 100 did in 5.18:

or 200 did in 10.05:

In case it isn’t obvious from this image, this is the 200 Motel:

So I was looking for the 300 in 14.13, and weirdly didn’t find anything quite this obvious. I rambled a bit about my search here on @drsilverfish;s post:

http://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/182669346730/14x13-lebanon-some-silent-storytelling-notes-on

But I saw some interesting things in the pawn shop and around Lebanon that I can appreciate, as well as some very well hidden “300″ references. Basically this is just my Jerry Wanek appreciation post, because what a guy!

All screencaps are from hotn.

The one thing I’d overlooked as a HUGE “300″ is the most prominently featured guitar in the shop:

That one right in the middle, raised up above the others, looks a bit downtrodden. It’s missing its strings, first off. While another guitar is labeled “PLAY ME!” this one isn’t playable at all. And yet it might be the rarest instrument in the shop, and with a bit of tlc could easily be worth thousands. It’s a ww2 era Gibson ES300. Between 1942 and 1946, Gibson only produced a few acoustic guitars, since metals for the electric pickups were needed for the war effort. I think this could be one of those guitars. So talk about a big, blaring 300. Unstrung, a product of war, seemingly unplayable, but with care and attention, possibly the most valuable and precious instrument in the shop. Easy to see why it’s given pride of place.

But again, this isn’t an obvious 300. You kinda have to know something about something to even recognize it among all the other second-hand guitars.

(also lol at the giant tv in the background that makes us think of 13.16)

(and lol at the tuba that makes me think of the house of horns or whatever from 6.06. This show has such a bizarre history with pawn shops...)

Under a cut because this got way longer and more rambly and tangential than I intended >.>

There’s a lot going on just at the register:

Roadhouse Monkey, “You break it, you buy it,” and the sign that says “Your baby daddy sitting in jail? Sell your gold and get bail!” with the weirdest assortment of random jewelry pictured on it... and oddly a mala draped around the register itself. Clearly this dude hasn’t been using his mala for meditation practice.

In the post I linked above, I already described their entrance into the secret back room, where everything was “one of a kind” and we immediately saw two identical goblets. Go read that post for more on that. :D

Behind the goblets, it almost looks like a heart frozen in a block of something. But what the shop owner points to is a Hand of Glory, which was the central magical item from 3.06, the plot of which had to do with people who committed acts of violence against family (and the spell they found to banish the ghost killing people forever contained the first use of the word “Castiel” on the show).

He goes on to point out “gris gris bags” and “anointed dove’s blood.” Gris gris bags are protective talismans, which my brain immediately associates with Gordon Walker. He traded his to Bela for the Winchesters’ location in 3.07, and after giving it up, he was turned into a vampire and then killed by Sam. I can’t remember any use for the dove’s blood in canon...

It’s hard to see, but one shelf over is a Jason Voorhees style hockey mask (which is interesting to me because of 14.04 and the horror movie callbacks that were referenced later in 14.13 again at the movie theater in Lebanon playing All Saint’s Day and Hell Hazers). Not to mention as we talked about during 14.04, the original “monster” they were supposed to fight with in 3.10 in their nightmares was Jason, but Kripke didn’t realize they couldn’t obtain the rights to it, so that scene had to be cut. So in a roundabout way we get another reference to that iconic scene between Dean and his demon self, rejecting John’s influence over him. Beside the mask is the first of three Centurion Helmets we see in the episode (actually the second instance is probably this helmet again, but in a different context, in the box the teens steal from the Impala and take into their party house, along with the teddy bear Sam plays with here in a minute).

There’s the spray bottle of Dragon’s Breath, that looks like an innocent bottle of perfume with the squeezy bulb, but shoots out a gout of fire. 

Inside his safe, along with the skull of Sarah Goode, executed during the Salem Witch Trials, is an odd assortment of things, double-locked inside this already secret room:

It looks like a clock of some sort, a brass globe, and a genie’s oil lamp. But it’s the fact he had the skull at all, stolen from a murdered hunter that they knew, meant that he’d been involved with that horrific crime, like the previous references to Bela who traded in these artifacts (and had sold the hand of glory when she’d needed to destroy it to save her own life... I mean this was pretty heavy Bela parallels here), the owner turns the Dragon’s breath on them and pulls out a saber:

It’s called “Chrysaor.” Whether the one from Spenser’s “The Faerie Queene” that belonged to Sir Artegal, the Knight of Justice, and had supposedly been used by Zeus to battle the Titans, or to the offspring of Poseidon and Medusa and the brother of Pegasus, or whether it was a nod to Assassin’s Creed (I honestly think it’s the former and the latter is a bonus here...)

This reminded me SO MUCH of Gog and Magog and their Special Swords forged by a god, with the reference back to Zeus and the Titans here, AND to the actual circumstances around how Dean managed to kill them. Because Gog and Magog... just would not shut up. Dean even lampshades the fact this guy stood there with the sword over his head, raised above Sam sprawled on the ground the same way Cas was in 13.14:

But he talked long enough about Cas’s “beautiful death” that Dean was able to stab him from behind, just as he was able to shoot the store owner now, because he wouldn’t stop talking. Forged by a god, touched by God...

Then we see the store’s secret ledger:

I honestly don’t want to know what’s in the “genitalia jar.” But these entries are dated from 1956. How long has this shop been into this sort of shady business? At least as far back as the original MoL was operating in the US (they were annihilated in 1958 by Abaddon). And there’s even a reference to a “Men of Letters membership discussion” in the ledger:

Of interest on the next page is a lock of hair from a victim of HH Holmes (taking us back to 2.06), as well as trinkets associated with Vlad the Impaler and Napoleon, a “bag of sorrows,” and a “razor of the damned.” Among other items of interest.

But here’s the page with the magical pearl:

And nowhere in this book does it say the pearl “gives you what your heart desires.” It says, “a pearl that grants wishes.” So... where did Sam get that additional information? I find it fascinating how things that are written in books are interpreted in a much broader fashion by the reader-- first Dean with the book Billie gave him in 14.10, and now Sam with this entry in this ledger.

Because this has been happening a lot.

For example in the scene immediately prior to this, the kids outside are talking about the Winchesters when they actually drive up. Their conversation is really interesting:

Eliot: People say they’re brothers. All I know is I was standing right here when-- when I heard this BAM! from the trunk of their car. And then, this like, shallow breathing. Max: No way. Flower Shirt Girl: Eliot, you’re creeping Max out.

I have to assume this was when they still had Garth in the trunk of the car, and just :’). Eliot is making some assumptions, but he’s much more terrifyingly accurate than he probably could guess. And Max’s flippant comment in her next scene proves it:

Eliot: I mean think about it. Where do they even come from? Them or their weird sidekick with the trenchcoat. Or what about the kid with the dumb Bambi look on his face all the time? Max: So what, it doesn’t mean they kidnapped Bigfoot or whatever.

And they all laugh, and Eliot calls them dicks. :P

And all of this makes me think of how the show spent the early part of the season teaching us how to read between the lines, to fill in narrative gaps, and to parse the subtext to understand exactly what it was they were actively not showing us.

Like in the scene at the party house where the John Wayne Gacy clown appears, we don’t see Dean thrown by the clown (just as we didn’t see the other boy who was attacked escape from the clown), nor do we see Sam light the fire that burned the cigar box tethering the ghost. But it’s clear that Dean was thrown because we saw him land, and Sam obviously eventually got his lighter to work because there’s the evidence of the flames.

Also, did they bring that old pickup truck from the bunker? Because they should DEFINITELY drive that thing more often. :’)

And Eliot follows his instincts, wanting to know what’s up and witnesses the ghost going up in flames. And he knows what he saw, and doesn’t even question it. When Sam confirms it, he feels so validated. Just like us when we read the subtext and fill in the blanks.

I have no idea how I got here from rambling about finding the 300′s in the episode but here we are.

OH. Right! The Centurion Helmets!

The first we see was in the shop pictured above. We see it again at the Party House in the Establishing Shot inside, nestled in a box with Sarah Goode’s skull, which was the original Macguffin that led Sam and Dean to that pawn shop in the first place, which enabled them to find the pearl to even be able to make this wish at all:

And the second and third Centurions are on the wall of B&E Pizza:

(and the one on the other side of the menu board hasn’t been screencapped yet, but is much more clearly visible than this one because Cas lights it up:

Three Centurions. Each of whom commands a century, or a group of 100 soldiers. So I’m going to use the fact that the show is actively telling us to notice and read between the lines, and assume we’re seeing yet another 300.

Especially after Misha’s tweet joking about it: https://twitter.com/mishacollins/status/1093606706532282371

#spn s14 spoilers #spn 14.13 #spn 300 #this is a jerry wanek appreciation blog #but this is like... borderline lamp crack levels of appreciation here... #spn 13.14 #spn 6.06 #spn 6.07 #spn 5.18 #spn 13.16 #spn 10.04 #spn 2.06 #spn 8.12 #spn 11.05 #spn 14.04 #the roadhouse monkey #wherein mittens thinks out loud to the general dismay of her followers #this is actually a rambling nightmare of a mess but hey i got like 3 hours of sleep last night so whatever #read at your own risk i guess lol #spn 3.10

[thebroccolination]

⭐ star~

Heeeehehehe, thank you for indulging me, Anon!

Okay, so, one of my favorite fics that I've ever written is A Life of Abundance, which has Arthit trying to help Kongphob tell his mother that they've decided not to have children. Since the inability to bear biological children someday was one of Arthit's canon worries in SOTUS, I wanted to explore a future where they've mutually decided that's not something either of them actually want. But of course, breaking that to a parent who ardently wants grandkids is another battle entirely – and a much more grown-up couple problem.

Despite the sadness on the side of Kongphob's mother, I wanted the tone of Arthit's POV to be sort of light and almost serene to reflect how far he's grown from the end of Our Skyy. So much of the SOTUS trifecta is focused on Arthit's anxieties, so I wanted to give Arthit the confidence and Kongphob the anxiety for once.

Arthit opens his eyes and takes in the guilt on Kongphob’s face. “You’re impossible,” he groans, rubbing his face with both hands. “Kong, we talked about kids before we got married. Why haven’t you told her yet?” Kongphob pries Arthit’s hands from his face, holds them at an awkward angle on top of Arthit’s chest, and says, “Because I know she’ll be sad,” and then has the grace to wince sheepishly, presumably at how it sounds aloud.

I think Kongphob's the kind of person who has firm ideals and stands by them, but he'll put his own needs aside if he decides someone else is more deserving. Arthit calls him out on having a hero complex in SOTUS, and it's a flaw that Kongphob always kind of carries with him throughout SOTUS, SOTUS S, and Our Skyy. (He won't cry in front of Arthit, for example, and he keeps his worries and fears from Arthit until he's at his breaking point.)

The few scenes we get of Kongphob with his parents in SOTUS S show that he's a dutiful son and he's very affectionate with his mother, but he also doesn't seem to confide in them the way, say, Pete does with his father in Dark Blue Kiss, or Gun with his mother in My School President. He has a lot of respect for his parents, and he's The Only Boy in a wealthy Asian family, so I imagine he has a decent amount of pressure on his shoulders.

Meanwhile, Kongphob seems to see his relationship with Arthit as a subject too precious and intimate to ever discuss openly. If you watch him in canon, he never really opens up to anyone about Arthit – even before they start dating. So I think there's a good likelihood that Kongphob's Good Son role would clash hard with his Good Partner role to the point where he'd have no idea how to handle it.

Cue his husband, former head hazer Arthit Rojnapat, the first one to call out Kongphob on most of his personality flaws.

Afterward, Kongphob claims that he tried to bring it up and his mother smoothly segued into sending him a list of adoption agencies that explicitly welcome applications from same-sex couples. Kongphob doesn’t tell Arthit that he forced a smile and thanked her for the gesture, but Arthit really doesn’t need him to; the sheepish wince says it all. Truly, there’s no coward on Earth equal to a mama’s boy who’s been asked to disappoint his mama.

Above all, I didn't want to make Kongphob's mother a villain in this story. I think parents don't always mean to put pressure on their children, especially older parents or just parents from family-oriented backgrounds and cultures. We don't have much to go on for Kongphob's mother, but based on the little we see, I think she's the kind of person who would just assume her son wants to hit all the traditional milestones, even if he's married to a man.

“But you love kids,” Supinya says to Kongphob miserably. Arthit bites his tongue. It’s clearly a last-ditch effort because Kongphob has never interacted casually with a human child in his entire life, not even when he was a child. Arthit knows this even without having been there himself.

I added this bit because it amused me and because Kongphob himself never actually seems that interested in kids, let alone in raising their own one day. Also, Arthit knows Kongphob better now than he did when they were students and he had a penchant for sending himself into doom spirals over problems he invented by himself. (I love you, my sweet trainwreck of a son.)

This fic also has maybe my favorite ending to any fic I've ever written.

Kongphob hums, petting his hair with smooth, even strokes of his hand. “I like your whole family. They’ve always been so nice to me.” “They love you,” Kongphob says. “Who wouldn’t?” “You didn’t, early on.” “Not true. There’s never been a day I haven’t loved you, P’Arthit.” “Even though I can’t give you kids?” He doesn’t open his eyes, but he does curl a playful smile. “Even so,” Kongphob says. He bends and kisses Arthit’s forehead. “This life is for us. We can have kids next time.” A quip catches in Arthit’s throat. Instead, he catches Kongphob’s hand and holds it to his chest. His life has overfilled with light time and time again, summoned by the simple honesty of a man who never learned to do anything but love him unabashedly with every iota of his being. They fall asleep on the sofa, that hum of energy singing between them.

I think it's the closest I've ever gotten to encapsulating why I love them and how much. They're such a special pairing to me, and I never get tired of revisiting their story because of how much they adore and respect each other. The way they use formal language with each other even though the literal beginning of their relationship is all about power dynamics and hierarchy. Arthit still calls his younger partner "khun" and treats him with utter equality, and Kongphob is obviously enamored from the word "go".

I love them a lot, and I think this fic is the closest I got to portraying why.

#kiranokira answers #kiranokira fic #kongart #sotus the series #sotus #kongarthit

[absolutebl]

Q: Is SOTUS worth watching? 

I couldn't get past the first episode because the bullying was so disturbing. 

A: I love it, but bullying isn’t a trigger for me. 

It’s a really slow burn so you’ll have at least 6 episodes of the hazing before the tables turn, but then they really do turn. You’ll learn at least WHY Arthit is doing it, even if you maybe will never truly understand. But I would say that this is used to justify the bullying, so be aware of that. 

You do get to see Arthit and his defenses crumble - in the context of being head hazer. He will also crumble for Kong... but that comes much later. 

In Defense of SOTUS

The dynamic is really interesting because Kong is not only being hazed, he is younger than Arthit and thus supposed to be culturally submissive due to Thailand’s prescribed familial codified age dynamics. I happen to really love it when the seme character is younger because of this obstacle. As the one doing the courting, Kong has a lot to go up against, not just a gay relationship and the hazing, but also an age dynamic that restricts his agency. 

So what justifies watching SOTUS despite the hazing?

1. The killer chemistry.

Krist and Singto don’t have much physical attraction (I like to think of KongArthit as an ace homoromantic pairing), but their emotional and chemical feedback is seriously glorious. But if you prefer high heat like TharnType or Why R U, this is not your series. Gen Y has many of the same dynamics in place but without the hazing and KimCop show better physical attraction. Try that instead. 

2. Enemies to lovers.

If you really like this trope and you love it when the seme has to WORK to earn his uke, then this is the dominate drive behind SOTUS. There is even a kind of quest narrative, where Kong has to win all of the freshy games in order to win Arthit’s heart. 

3. Fantastic coming out sequences.

Arthit publicly comes out to their friends/colleagues 2x in the 2 series, and each time is glorious. (Although family coming out doesn’t come into play.) Also Arthit has most of the sexual agency, he tends to incite what few kisses there are, which I like. 

4. A consistent longer series.

The follow up series, SOTUS S is also really good, as is their Our Skyy installment. This makes SOTUS more consistent than many BLs. SOTUS S has a “secret office romance” foundation. I really like that we get to follow them out of college and into the workplace. 

5. Great friendship rep.

Both Kong and Arthit have wonderful surrounding friendships. SOTUS is also the first BL to at least have consistent, present, female friendships, and a lesbian character. 

6. Heritage.

If you’re interested in the foundations of BL, SOTUS is important because it took Thai BL mainstream internationally in a way that its forerunners (like the truly special Love Sick) couldn’t. It’s also the pilot for GMMTV to get seriously involved, they have the production values and $$$ that previous (and current) BL outside this parent umbrella doesn’t. SOTUS also established some BL specific tropes, like Engineering = gay, gear and gift exchange symbolism, and pink milk (although technically that’s originally sourced in 2 Moons). 

7. Lack of OTHER damaging tropes.

Aside from the hazing and a certain amount of sex negativity that seems endemic to low heat BL SOTUS is pretty safe in other arenas, like statutory rape, non-consent situations, and queer femme vilification and mockery. It does highlight gay-for-you, but many don’t find this as objectionable as I do. 

Frankly, there is a reason SOTUS is one of the pilot Asian BL’s picked up by Netflix USA. It’s sanitized for a wider audience. I don’t object to popularization in my queer media (on the grounds of pro-normalization as part of the queer acceptance battle), but some queer folk have justifiable objections to this and to SOTUS. 

In the end what I love about SOTUS is that what it does well, it does REALLY well and where it’s successful it’s REALLY successful. Thus it’s a stand out in several categories and only concerning in a few. Frankly, there’s not a lot of Thai BL I can say that about. 

Alternatives? 

However, if bullying is a serious trigger for you but the OP trigger of suicide is NOT then you should 100% watch Until We Meet Again instead. It’s got killer chemistry in all couples, and is unquestionably one of the best written, paced, and plotted Thai BLs. 

And if all you want is some intensely fluffy uplifting nonsense where all the offenses are bog standard to Thai BL and all the tropes are equally bog standard, then you want 2gether. It’s what I would call archetype BL, and ridiculously adorable on the strength of the charisma of the two leads. 

(source)

#sotus #sotus s #our skyy #kongarthit #kongpob x arthit #kongpobarthit #thai bl #thaibl #thai bl history #trope analysis #bl tropes #romance tropes #romance tropes in bl #why should you watch this #defending sotus