#2015 Sing-Off tour

[jules-has-notes]

2015 Sing-Off tour

The first Sing-Off national tour in 2014 was a rousing success. So, even though the show's fifth "season" was reduced to a one-night holiday special, the second tour was expanded. The schedule was nearly twice as long, packing in 56 cities over the course of 9 weeks.

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Rehearsals

The singers didn't document their rehearsals for the second tour the way they did the year before. Why? Because the VoicePlay guys lost most of the first of their two allotted practice days to weather related flight troubles. Once they finally made it to upstate New York, it was crunch time on the group numbers with their new compatriots to be ready for opening night.

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Performances

Not only did the second tour visit more cities, for one night it was also livestreamed through Live Nation. Thanks to the forethought of an Exchange fan, the full Louisville concert from March 25th — including season 5 winners the Vanderbilt Melodores — has been archived in one convenient place.

(But because more is better, I've also provided links to audience recordings of individual songs from other stops on the tour.)

[0:00:25] Overture — Sing-Off opening theme & judges' comments compilation

[0:01:15] Group opener — "Under Pressure" by Queen & David Bowie ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[0:04:40] Introductions — Geoff Castellucci & Adam Chance

Vanderbilt Melodores set

[0:06:20] "Trumpets" by Jason Derulo ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:09:18] "Take Me to Church" by Hozier ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:13:40] "Lay Me Down" by Sam Smith ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:19:30] "Wiggle" by Jason Derulo, feat. Snoop Dogg ** additional performance — Nashville, TN show (15 March)

[0:22:30] Transition banter — Adam Chance

The Exchange set

[0:23:20] "Runaway Baby" by Bruno Mars ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[0:26:30] "Sing" by Ed Sheeran ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[0:29:25] introductions

[0:31:40] "Love Runs Out" by OneRepublic ** additional performance — Verona, NY show (17 February)

[0:33:55] "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (17 February)

[0:37:30] history of The Exchange

[0:39:20] "Georgia On My Mind" by Ray Charles (off mic) ** additional performance — Los Angeles, CA show (12 April)

[0:41:45] banter, merch shilling, & contest promo

[0:43:35] "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan

[0:49:35] Vocal percussion showcase — Mark McLemore, Jonathan Lister, Layne Stein, Richie Steighner, Kurt Zimmerman, & Tony Huerta ** additional performance — Santa Rosa, CA show — part 1, part 2 (9 April)

[0:56:08] Transition banter — Mark McLemore

VoicePlay set

[0:57:15] "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:00:10] intro banter

[1:00:55] "Wow! Vol. 1" medley — "Beauty and the Beat" by Justin Bieber; "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj; "Animals" by Maroon 5; "Birthday" by Katy Perry; "Steal My Girl" by One Direction; "Drunk On a Plane" by Dierks Bentley; "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj; "Let It Go" from Frozen ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[1:06:10] introductions

[1:07:55] "Aca Top 10 — Broadway" countdown — "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist" from Avenue Q; "Sherry" from Jersey Boys; "Belle" from Beauty & the Beast; "Seasons of Love" from Rent; "Master of the House" from Les Miserables; "All That Jazz" from Chicago; "He Lives In You" from The Lion King; "Popular" from Wicked; gentle mockery of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark; "Phantom of the Opera" from Phantom of the Opera; "Hello!" from The Book of Mormon ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:12:00] audience time

[1:13:45] Auditions, featuring Brian ** additional performance — Huntsville, AL show (17 March)

[1:20:40] banter & merch shilling

[1:22:05] "Elvira" by The Oak Ridge Boys ** additional performance — Huntsville, AL show (17 March)

[1:27:45] Transition banter — Geoff Castellucci

Street Corner Symphony set

[1:28:30] "Down on the Corner" by Creedence Clearwater Revival ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February) — first two songs

[1:31:12] "Hard to Handle" by The Black Crowes

[1:33:50] "Voodoo" by Street Corner Symphony ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:38:33] banter

[1:39:38] "Johnny B Goode" by Chuck Berry ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:42:35] introductions

[1:44:10] "Creep" by Radiohead ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:47:30] audience thanks

[1:48:25] "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[1:52:20] Transition banter — Adam Chance

[1:53:10] Group closer — "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2 ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:57:00] Encore — "Fix You" by Coldpay (off mic) ** additional performance — Buffalo, NY show (24 February)

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Addenda

Award-winning barbershop quartet Forefront weren't included in the streamed video, but they did a great job warming up the crowd at the Louisville show.

Although they didn't perform it for the streamed concert, VoicePlay and Street Corner Symphony's cover of "Don't" by Ed Sheeran that had served as the tour announcement was included in at least some of the shows during the tour. There is a video of it from Red Bank, NJ.

Because they'd used most of their songs from the competition during the previous tour, VoicePlay's set was comprised of numbers from their established stage rotation, a recent addition to their "Aca Top 10" series, and one medley exclusive to the tour that featured video clips from some of their season 4 compatriots.

At the Seattle show, The Exchange slipped a version of "Can't Hold Us" by local boy Macklemore into their set.

The eldest Lister brother, Richie, was on the tour with Street Corner Symphony for the first few weeks, then handed his microphone off to Kaleb Jones for the rest of the run.

While Layne was away for one weekend to be in his sister's wedding, first Richie Steighner from The Exchange, and then VoicePlay's hometown pal Antonio Fernandez stepped in to cover percussion.

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Shenanigans & reunions

When you put 16 creative guys in close quarters for two months straight, they're going to get up to some nonsense eventually. During this tour, it manifested most notably in the form of a Nerf war that then escalated to water guns and Super Soakers.

Of course, sometimes their friendly combat happened in the form of many colorful pixels.

Video games are a great way to pass the time on the road and make friends.

And sometimes they just enjoyed each other's talents.

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VoicePlay tossing Twinkies into the crowd every night meant that sometimes they needed to resupply, which Hostess apparently helped out with.

And sometimes they had extras to distribute at the end of the night.

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Surprisingly, one of their victims auditioners early in the tour turned out to be a Paul Simon fan.

♫ "Why am I soft in the middle, now? Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard." ♫

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Swinging through Florida meant that VoicePlay's family and friends could attend one (or more) of the shows.

Guess which of their significant others hadn't worked in entertainment. Hint: It's the one who heard the photographer call for a "kiss pic" and went in for a full snog.

And their buddies in The Edge Effect joined them as the opening act for two of those three dates.

Having a day off at home also allowed Tony to pick up everyone's favorite member of the backstage crew.

Fletcher is a good boy, and friend to all.

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Emoni Wilkins, VoicePlay's partner in crime for the first Sing-Off Tour, popped in to visit during their shows in Nashville and Louisville.

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One of their rare days off in Minneapolis coincided with a break in Home Free's touring schedule, so Tim Foust came to hang out with his Sing-Off colleagues.

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The Filharmonic from The Sing-Off season 4 and the first tour were the openers for all three southern California stops. Jeremy Lewis from the AcoUstiKats also came to visit at the Los Angeles show.

Jazz a cappella group m-pact opened for the Riverside, CA show, which reunited VoicePlay with their pal Jarrett Johnson, who had helped with their 2012 album, "Once Upon An Ever After".

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The boys got to see DeeDee Yancey again when Ten opened for the final two nights in Dallas and Houston.

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Side trips & meal times

There wasn't much time in the schedule for tourist activities, but some of the guys did manage to see a few sights.

And there were many snacks and meals along the way.

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Press coverage

There were several nice write-ups about the show in various outlets, both before and during its run, as well as a few television appearances.

A pre-tour interview with Geoff covered the a cappella scene in general and gave hints of the tour to come. The resulting article by Alan Sculley appeared in both The Sun Chronicle (Attleboro, MA) and the Detroit Free Press.

A very nice recap of the Providence, RI show by Jathan Fink was published on the website for the New Bedford, MA talk radio station and on his personal blog.

When the tour passed back through NYC, VoicePlay stopped in to visit with Nick Lachey at his new gig on VH1's Big Morning Buzz. The guys also got to meet actress Jane Lynch and social media darling ToastMeetsWorld while they were there. The video doesn't seem to be available anywhere anymore, but there are still a few pictures.

Alix Jansma of Boston University's Daily Free Press had nothing but praise for music director Deke Sharon — an alumnus of both Tufts University and Berklee College of Music — and the tour itself, particularly VoicePlay's set.

Local outlets in Florida were, of course, proud to have VoicePlay bringing the show back to their home state. The Broward Palm Beach New Times had a nice preview interview with Geoff by Natalya Jones for the Coral Springs stop, and Boca Raton Magazine published a lovely recap.

Crew member Jacklyn Krol provided a backstage peek on the Stage Right Secrets blog.

The VoicePlay boys had an early morning appearance on the local NBC affiliate in Kansas City to promote the tour, show off their talents, and give the hosts an impromptu a cappella lesson:

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If you've made it all the way to the end of yet another very long post, I hope you enjoyed yourself, and maybe found something interesting.

#VoicePlay #Street Corner Symphony #The Exchange vocal band #2015 Sing-Off tour #live performance #a cappella #music #video #behind the scenes #includes Twinkies #long post #link-o-rama

[randombush3]

labor omnia vincit

alexia putellas x reader

words: 7538

summary: well, it’s how you meet your wife (posh + becks style)

content warnings: a little bit of drugs and alcohol

notes: HEY HEY HEYY. this is a TRILOGY and here’s the first part. enjoy the build up x

2015. London. 

You groan at the thought of singing another word. The mug set haphazardly on the ledge reserved more for instruments than crockery, half in the air after the last time you returned it to its place, is now empty. There is no hot water left to soothe your burning throat, and there is no patience remaining in your finite store. 

The girls, on the other hand, seem to soldier on. A harmony is incorrect? They sing it again. The producer, a fat old man called Dave whose taste in music might rely on his taste in women, isn’t a fan of a certain beat? They are thinking of ways to change it. 

Ever since your single was released two years ago, this has been your life. Or, at least, the less glamorous side of it. The other side, consisting of sold-out arenas, exclusive clubs, and a world tour that only increased your total domination over the music industry, has been paused while you and the girls slave away on the second album. Apparently, you’re being uncooperative. You would call it boredom. 

“It’s four in the morning, Dave,” Anya states, jabbing out her index finger towards his Rolex, paid for with the revenue from the last single you released. It topped the charts for days. Dave glances down at the clock face with a grunt. “Look, Y/n’s already left us and gone to bed.” 

“Still here,” you murmur, rather unconvincingly, from your spot on the far-too-comfortable sofa behind the mixing desk. Sprawling out even further, you wrap your legs around the third member of your group, Gio. She squeals as you pull her on top of you. “I want to go home, though.” 

“Don’t we all know it,” Gio giggles. She’s had at least six cups of coffee since you arrived at the studio for the second recording session of the day – a solid nine hours ago. That was only after a break for a late lunch or early dinner (whichever your dietician preferred to call it). 

“We need to finish.” 

“I need to sleep,” you reply. Gio scrambles off you in time to avoid the glare you are sent by your producer. “And I’m not sleeping here again. Last time it gave me a crick in my neck and I’m fairly sure the cleaner felt me up.” 

“The sexy cleaner is mine,” Anya declares, jerking you upright. Your stomach lurches with emptiness. “Otherwise, I agree. Let us fuck off home. Please, Dave.” 

He looks at the three of you, bags under your eyes, making long rubbed off (or cried away, in Gio’s earlier over-emotional state). You have changed out of the outfit the paparazzi pictured you in earlier, opting for the stained, grey joggers you folded away in your Birkin. Anya and Gio snuck in so that they weren’t caught in their pyjamas. 

Dave sighs. 

“Tomorrow, don’t go for lunch with any of your silly boyfriends. Come here for noon, and we’ll finish when we finish. We’re getting this album done, and you can’t fire me until it’s out.” 

His sense of humour is appreciated, even if his work ethic is not, and you practically bolt out of the studio, friends in tow. 

Anya grabs your hand as you rush down the corridor, making your way to the exit. “No lunch with your boyfriend,” she repeats Dave’s words, mocking his gristly voice. You roll your eyes, snatching your hand away from your friend before pushing open the back door of the studio, heading towards your new BMW i8. 

You have been friends with Anya Kazi and Giovanna Bartoli since the age of two, meeting them on the first day of nursery, specifically after cutting one of Gio’s ringlets off with safety scissors. Though Anya happily clapped along, she did not defend you, and so you went for her hair as well. Your teacher, hoping to quell the budding animosity, placed all three of you in time-out, where a united front was formed. It hasn’t been broken since that moment, though a few years ago, you were terrified it would be. You, with a well-concealed preference for women, however, have managed to keep your friends. They assured you that they 1) already knew and 2) could not care less. 

“You don’t even like cars,” Gio scoffs at the sight of your latest purchase, your last name printed proudly on the number plate. “Was this an ‘I’m famous’ buy or did your daddy get it for you?” 

“He emailed me a few recommendations,” you answer off-handedly, sliding into the driver’s seat, switching on the ignition. It growls with a mean, menacing precision, the engine’s quality known and heard. “And don’t pretend that your family doesn’t have a Roll-Royce parked in the driveway of their million-pound townhouse.” 

“You are just as much from Hampstead as I am, girl.” 

You roll your eyes, stifling a yawn. Anya pulls out in front of you, no doubt speeding off to avoid the boy-racers you and Gio become at this time of night. 

Your flat has progressed from that of the one you shared with the girls in Princess Park two years ago. It’s nicely decorated, you like to think, with most of the work being done to it while you were touring. 

The walls are hung with artwork; some your own, some not. The canvases and frames adorn every room, dictating the vibe, declaring your individuality to any visitors who choose to admire the paintings and sketches. Then, if they were to look at the shelves dotted around the space, they’d see books with matching themes to the art. Your living room has a print of Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’, blown up in a gilded frame, hanging above your green leather sofa, adding colour to the white walls, and then a bookshelf filled with navy-bound novels about whatever you fancy. You’re quite chuffed with the design, though it was really the interior designer you hired who came up with the idea. 

Without a second glance to any of the intricate details of your home, you stumble your way to the bathroom, going through the motions until it is time to get into bed. It’s a big bed – one that often feels too big for just one person – but the mattress is inviting and you dive into a deep sleep head-first, knowing you will not be getting up until someone calls you tomorrow morning. 

…

Barcelona, seven hours earlier. 

The bar is busy, as most are in Barcelona at this time of night, and the girls are out for dinner and a post-training drink. The wine glasses have deceived them all, though, because they have been emptied and refilled a few more times than Xavi would be impressed with. 

A young, budding star does not drink during the season, the alcohol drought both self-inflicted and encouraged by every coach who promises to take her far. Her eyeliner must be smudged by now, but Alexia can’t leave yet because Jenni has promised that she can stay over at her place and she needs her to take her back. 

The reason for her temporary relocation is that Alexia is fed-up with her mother’s pestering, seeing as it is only one week into the season and she is already being called a workaholic. She can’t stay in that house tonight, especially when her little sister is the complete opposite: sleeping with anyone who gives her a chance and never doing anything that will help her future. Eli Segura is baffled by the lack of balance in her life – two daughters, two extremes – but she is the most concerned with her eldest, angering Alexia to no end. 

Alexia is also fed-up with this conversation. It’s all the girls seem to be talking about these days, utterly consumed with this new English girl group just like the rest of the world. 2sday has completely taken over all interesting topics of discussion, and Alexia doesn’t think she can handle being asked which one of their songs she likes the most one more time. 

She likes them, she guesses, but so does everyone. Todo el mundo is in love with all three members. 

The girls are discussing who their favourite is. 

“She’s Italian though, and that’s cool of her,” Jenni argues, putting forward her case for Bartoli as if she chose to have parents from a certain country. Alexia hums in thought, thinking of the pictures she saw from the world tour – how long her legs are, tanned and sculpted and shown off nicely by the mini-skirt she wore. “Did you know that her little sister is a model? She’s called Cristina or something. The beauty is practically in her DNA.” 

“Aren’t all three of them models?” asks Marta pointedly, finger tapping the photoshoot on the magazine cover.

“Well, all three of them are sexy,” Jenni replies, remembering just how enamoured the world is with the three break-out stars. “Ale, which one is your favourite?” The magazine that had sparked this conversation is slid towards the twenty-one-year-old, and she looks at the picture on the front page: you, Gio, and Anya, all dressed in oversized suits with nothing underneath, hair slicked back and eyes piercing, ‘girl power’ brandished over the bottom of the photograph. 

“Y/n L/n,” Alexia answers easily, fascinated by the sculpture of your face. She thinks you are beautiful, in a less crass way than her teammates. “And you lot sound like men with the way you talk about them.” 

“Ooh, Alexia is getting all high-and-mighty,” Jenni teases. “Looks like it’s time to take the baby home.” 

“She’s cranky because she’s tired and it’s past her bedtime,” adds another teammate, though Alexia is too wound up to really care who. 

They all make little pouty faces at her as she finishes the last of her glass of water, the clear liquid standing out against the deep red of most of the table. Jenni rolls up the magazine and swats her shoulder with it, before handing it over to its owner and finally allowing Alexia her rest. 

In silence, they sit in her car – an old Ford in need of replacing but not on the footballer’s list of things she will buy with the money they are now getting. FC Barcelona Femení has become, at last, a fully professional team, and Alexia looks ahead to the future with a hopeful dream and the knowledge that she will need to work hard if she ever wishes to become the best. Jenni has become a good friend ever since she joined the club last year, and she brings a global ambition to the friendship that she knows Alexia does not have. Jenni is from Madrid, and plays for Barcelona because she can, not because it is her club. Her team is the same as her grandfather’s, and she often expresses to Alexia her wish to play for them someday, as well as scoring in every league she possibly can. Young Alexia Putellas has never once considered stepping foot outside of Spain. 

Not only that, but her father died three years ago and here, in Barcelona, is where she feels closest to him. She cannot fathom a life past the plazas and the cobbled streets of her home. And she’s glad. She’s safe here, and she needs nothing more than her team, her family, and a football at her feet.  What more could she possibly want? 

As she settles on Jenni’s sofa, blanket pulled over her body, head resting on a plump cushion that smells faintly of Jenni’s dog, Alexia decides to watch whatever is on TV right now. Jenni, in an attempt to learn English, has found an English news channel that seemingly reports on ‘exclusive’ celebrity news. There you are, plastered on the screen, your picture zoomed in to the point of the pixels blurring.

The woman speaking has a high-pitched and critical voice, saying words that Alexia does not hear. She stares at your picture, considering the life you have, imagining that, one day, footballers like her have the stardom of Beckham and Messi and Ibrahimovic. Though she herself does not crave that exposure, well aware of her shyness, she thinks about the future with a wistful sigh, lost in her dream as the English woman narrates what she can see, judging how you have opened your mouth to take a bite of the food, listing the brands you are wearing. 

And, in her weird, exhausted haze, she sees your face. It’s probably only because you’re on the screen and she’s staring at it, but you are there as she pictures the growth of women’s football. You’re there in the stands as she plays in front of a sold-out Camp Nou, cheering and singing along to Catalan chants she knows you’d never actually know in real life. Slowly, she falls asleep, and, just before she closes her eyes, you are there: back to her, dressed in a familiar shirt. Alexia. 11. Somewhere in a far-off fantasy land, Alexia Putellas marries you that night. 

…

It’s Sunday. 

You drive to your parents’ house in Hampstead, only twenty minutes away from the flat you now live in, to reluctantly attend their weekly Sunday Roast. Before, it was a condition of remaining on the booking list for the annual family holiday, seeing as you had declared university was going to wait until after your gap year and then had become a popstar instead. Now that both you and your brother can afford to come anyway, the tradition is there for sentimental value. A world tour made you realise how much you love them all, even your annoying older brother. 

Your parents are lawyers who met at university and found love in a city that they never moved out of, both of them doing extremely well for themselves. They raised you and your brother to ski, horse-ride, and attend prep schools and public schools, although boarding school was not quite desirable. Your dad speaks in a booming voice, received pronunciation an act used for court, slight Mancunian accent lilting his words whenever he relaxes. 

“Darling!” your mum exclaims, surprised at your attendance just like she is every week. “Come on in, come on in. Daddy has the footie on, and your brother is on his way. Don’t you have songs to sing? How come you’re here?” 

Ushered inside your own home, you smell the brief scent of your family before adjusting to it all and fitting right back into the chaos. There’s beef in the oven, and the roar of the crowd playing faintly from the kitchen where your dad must be preparing the potatoes. He’s proud of his potatoes. 

You slip off your shoes – a new pair of Uggs – and follow your mother to the kitchen. Dad is there, doing exactly what you’d expected, hands working instinctively as his eyes focus on the TV, mouthing along with the commentary as Manchester United take on their opponent. “Sit down,” Dad says as soon as you walk in, pointing at the stools tucked into the island. “We’re not doing too badly, and today should be an easy win.” 

“I know. I do watch the football without you, Daddy.” 

He tuts. “Yeah, but you don’t get the same level of commentary on your own. Plus, United isn’t even what I wanted to talk to you about. I have thought of a publicity move that you should definitely make – it would really help you guys out.” You entertain his suggestion, knowing that’s what dads do, sitting back on the stool with a smirk on your face, already thinking of an interesting way to tell him he is being stupid. “So, what I was thinking was that you guys do a half-time show! You love football, and the girls love footballers – what isn’t to like? Plus, I bet any club would jump at the chance to make some money from extra tickets sold just to see you.” 

“And you haven’t already contacted our manager?” you check, finding your father to be quite unpredictable and rash. His ego is also far too inflated by clients who don’t see him for the kind but bumbling fool he truly is, and so he often takes it upon himself to put forward any ideas he has to your management team, much to everyone’s inconvenience (the last thing they need, amongst sorting out photos of you snogging girls and your friends in various compromising positions, is an old man telling them what he thinks will boost your image). “It’s a good idea, I must admit. I’ll bring it up.” 

“Good stuff.” There’s a clang of metal as the potatoes go in the oven too, and the fridge opens with a pop as your dad begins to fish out the carrots and parsnips to complete your meal, Your mother is responsible for everything else. “Try to get it at Barcelona or Real Madrid,” he says off-handedly. “Imagine singing in the Nou Camp. That’d be crazy.” 

“Not the appearance I dreamt of when I was little, but I’d still get to touch the grass,” you agree. 

“Y/n, we knew you’d never be a footballer. You haven’t got the coordination for that.” They tried to support you, they really did, but then music lessons took over and the sport became a form of entertainment, not exercise. “Women’s football is really something, though. In twenty years, it’ll be good. Maybe you should invest.” 

“I know zero women’s footballers, apart from – what’s her name? Kelly Smith. The English one?” 

“The Arsenal player, yeah. It’s a shame we don’t have a proper women’s team.” 

“Should I fund one?” you joke, but his face lights up and he has taken you seriously. “Okay, I know we’ve been successful thus far, but we haven’t raked in that much. Who knows! It could all go to shit and I could end up right where I started, in my childhood bedroom with no degree and no choice but to mooch off my parents.” 

“I get the sense that you’re slightly stressed about this album,” Dad says slowly, smiling wide, proud to have worked you out. He has always been good at that; knowing what you are feeling. It is a wonderful trait for him to have, seeing as your mother struggles with emotional connection of any kind. She is too much of a corporate big-shot for that, anyway. 

“It’s killing me.” You sigh, slumping on the stool. “It’ll be released and then we’ll hop on tour and I’m so tired. Anya has a crush and Gio’s dating someone and now all of our songs are about love and I just… I don’t know about that. I don’t know if I will ever know about that.” 

And, though he hesitates, Dad walks around the island and places a hand on your shoulder, telling you that you will find the right man someday. 

Deep down, he knows that the daughter who loved to watch football and never once commented on their hairstyles or pretty faces – the girl whose crushes on members of boy bands always seemed half-hearted and forced – is not a daughter who is going to bring home a man one day, with a smile on her face and a ring on her finger. He knows. It is quite possible that he has always known. Whether he is going to bring it up before you feel comfortable to talk about it is a different matter, especially since your mother has dreams of her daughter’s husband that she has whispered to him ever since they found out their second child was a girl. 

Sunday is pretty routine, which you are grateful for. Your brother, also a lawyer, discusses his latest case, resembling the stories your father used to tell at the dining table: stories you’d both yawn at when you were younger. You dish out a few industry secrets, recounting your most recent trip to Cirque Le Soir. With disdain, your mother berates you for any possible drug-usage, scolding you for something you have not admitted to but somehow knowing that you are guilty of it anyway. It feels much like the family dinners of your teenage years, but you suppose that pop stars never really have to grow up and decide that it isn’t all bad. After all, you drive home in a very stylish car.

Then, the week starts with another gruelling, waste-of-time day at the studio, where you go inside before the sun comes up and emerge long after it has set. Dave is decently pleased with the vocals so far. There are another seven tracks to go, but most of those are being written by other people. Mark Ronson, you’ve heard, is open to working with your group. It’s all very exciting, even if you feel like you have run a marathon by the end of the day. 

On Tuesday, you remember to tell your manager and publicist (she’s a woman of many talents) about your father’s idea. At first, her reluctance is extremely evident, but it later dissipates once she thinks about it, having promised you and the now-excited girls to see what she can do. 

You are on a private plane to Barcelona before you can realise what is happening. 

Bags packed with more make-up and spangled underwear than proper clothes, and sunglasses shielding your hungover eyes courtesy of last night’s consoling of a newly-single Giovanna Bartoli, you try your best not to vomit while in the air and even squeeze in a spot of light reading. The girls laugh (wincing at the sound) when they see you revisiting the Aeneid. You like Virgil, though, so you don’t mind. 

“How many days are we here again?” Anya asks, equally hungover. 

“Three,” replies your manager, not bothering to look up from her laptop. “Today, tomorrow, and the day after. Please check if the players are married before you do anything with them.” 

“I’ve sworn off men,” mumbles Gio miserably. She stretches her legs out with a sniffle, and then draws them back in to protect her broken heart. “If I’d get off with any woman, I’d like her to be Spanish.” She clears her throat, the lump of tears disappearing as she retrieves her GCSE-level Español, giving it a shot. If not to be serious than to at least piss you off. “Hola. ¿Cómo estás? ¿Quieres dormir conmigo?”

“What? And then you’re going to shove your tongue down her throat?” Gio looks at you with a smirk. “That is not how you kiss a woman.” 

“Hey, you can’t keep them all to yourself!” 

You laugh, though your manager’s attention has been caught and she is already showing her disapproval. “It would be better that I did if that’s how you think it works.” 

“None of you are kissing women.” 

“That’s not fair,” Anya protests, upset that she didn’t even get to join in the conversation before it got shut down as swiftly as a rowdy houseparty in an American teen-movie. 

“I agree. That’s not fair on Y/n, who actually needs to kiss a woman so her knickers aren’t in a twist all the time.” 

“I’ll twist your knickers in a minute,” you threaten, fist raised to Gio in good humour.

“See what I mean? She needs to let off some steam.” 

“Well, do it discreetly if you must. Do your shows, go out with the players, and bring whoever into your bed as long as they have tight lips and no vendetta against you. Gio, we’re going to have to say something about him ch–”

You gulp, not wanting your friend to cry again. “Wow, the view is really nice,” you interrupt, catching Anya’s appreciative nod in the corner of your eye as you splay your palm on the glass of the aircraft’s window, marvelling at Barcelona’s plazas and cobbled streets. Imagine this being your home, you think to yourself. 

…

Jenni is squawking when Alexia makes her way into the circle of players during their drinks break. Alexia knows her friend is excited to go to the men’s game later on today, but she hadn’t realised it is to this extent until she gets grabbed by the forward and shaken as though she is a snowglobe. 

“I got the golden ticket,” Jenni shouts in her ear, making their teammates around them laugh. “Me, you, and Mario are going to the match tonight!” 

“I already knew that?” They don’t really get free tickets, but they can be heavily discounted. Tonight isn’t a super big deal, though Alexia may stand corrected. “Was I not supposed to know that?” 

“Of course she doesn’t know,” Mariona says, squirting some of her water at the midfielder. She recoils from the droplets, but they land on her training top anyway, and Alexia is already pissed off with the entire world. “Alexia, do you seriously live under a football-shaped rock?” 

Alexia takes a moment to brush off the teasing, picturing the bursting trophy cabinet that is almost within her grasp. “Yes, and it is very homely.” 

“Madre mía, you are one of a kind,” Jenni says with a sigh, movements less aggressive as she drapes an arm around Alexia’s shoulders. “Guess who’s singing at half-time tonight. You’re going to drool so much that the people below us will think it’s raining.” 

At this, Alexia knows exactly who Jenni is talking about, and she blushes though it could easily be mistaken for redness from exercising. 

“I just think she’s pretty,” comes Alexia’s slightly defensive reply. They walk to the middle of the training pitch, rejoining the team as Xavi explains a confusing drill. Neither really listen. 

“Is this your first celebrity crush?” Mariona jibes, overhearing the conversation and finding it necessary to join in. Any excuse to poke fun at the baby of the team. 

Jenni ruffles Alexia’s hair, ruining her neat ponytail. “Alexia’s in love with a straight girl,” she sings. 

It’s then that the whole team chooses to get involved, ears perking up at the mention of Alexia’s lovelife – a more or less forbidden topic. Their captain, Marta Unzué, even chimes in with a ‘we’ve all been there’. Like a stroppy teenager, Alexia folds her arms over her chest and turns to focus entirely on football, something that she knows she loves and loves her back. They leave her alone for the rest of the training session. 

She even manages to forget about what comes after the first forty-five minutes of the match, sitting comfortably in a stadium that is her version of heaven. 

You, on the other hand, cannot distance yourself from the nerves of performing in no less than ten minutes. 

The players were nice when you accompanied Anya to speak to them, and they spent a good while fumbling their way through English to invite you all to join them tonight at Pacha. You took photos with Messi and Neymar to show your father. 

The outfit, if you can call it that, is tight and could possibly show your entire bum to eight-five thousand Culers tonight if you’re not careful. Silver eyeshadow glistens in the mirror when you peer at your reflection, inspecting the bejewelled bralette and tiny shorts you are wearing. 

Anya and Gio, who both look dazzling in their own silver combinations, tell you that it is time to get your microphones sorted. When you stand in the tunnel, ready to go out, you see that they have laid out a sheet on top of the grass so your heels don’t ruin it. Part of you wishes that you were in a football strip and boots. The music starts before you can get too reminiscent. 

You sing with the same adrenaline you always get, and the crowd becomes a blur in your mind as you lose yourself to the melody. The bass hits your heart just like the lyrics do – especially since this song was written by Anya about her last boyfriend – and you hold back tears as the choreography leads your limbs in an energetic dance that must be entertaining to watch. 

When it finishes, and your chest is rising and falling quickly as you try to catch your breath, Alexia thinks you almost catch her gaping at you. Your eyes seem to be scanning the stands. Maybe you see her. 

Maybe that is why you, in your big, black hoodie and paparazzi-proof baseball cap are sitting in the stands of Estadi Johan Cruyff the very next day. 

Alexia does not point you out to her teammates. You make it clear to all who recognise you that you are trying to be incognito, and either the fans at the stadium have no knowledge of popular culture, or they are granting you your privacy.

She is now the entertainer, shining under the spotlight of the bright sun, a ball at her feet like that is where all balls were made to be. And you watch carefully – she can feel it – but you do not stay long enough for her to even think about approaching you. 

…

2016. Somewhere in the sky between LA and New York. 

This time round, the tour has confirmed your hatred for all plane journeys, hotels, and sold-out concerts. 

You’re dead on the inside, numb to the glitter and sparkles of your life, and your eyes are always halfway to being sealed shut in the deepest slumber humanly possible. 

There are a few things that ease the disdain you have for your career, but none of those compare to the channel you have found that streams Barcelona Femení’s football matches. Your excuse, made to no one other than yourself, is that Manchester United has no women’s team. Of course you’d watch them instead, if you could. 

“This is peak lesbianism,” Gio comments, her fifth time saying the exact same thing, prodding a napping Anya to alert her to your boredom-killer on the flight. You’re glad these planes have wi-fi. “We’re in America, which has all the women’s football in the world, and you still choose to watch your crappy little stream on your cracked iPad.” 

“If you hadn’t decided to jump out at me, the screen would be just fine,” you grumble, transfixed on the way Alexia Putellas dribbles with the ball, turning and passing to Jennifer Hermoso who slots the ball right into the bottom-right corner of the net. The pitch looks damaged, and you really have researched how you can help out the sport, but it is hard to dispute anything the girls say about your crush on an unknown squad member when everyone knows you could get your football fix from the Premier League. 

You’re yet to tell anyone that you have just bought this season’s Barcelona shirt. You’re not sure if you’d be invited on the family ski trip if your father were to find out. 

“Sorry, sorry,” replies Gio, hands raised in the air, a gesture of surrender. In hindsight, your response was clipped. “Didn’t mean to distract you from such an important task. When will you tell us who it is that you fancy? We’ve been waiting for you to come to us, but, fuck me, you’ve got tight lips.” 

“And, before you say it – we’re not nosy. We just care. And we find it cute.” 

“And…” 

“What?” you practically grunt, biting your tongue as a hefty challenge sends Alexia Putellas face-first onto the patchy grass. It makes your heart jump. 

“Well, it’s not like she won’t want you, so make your move.” 

“Just like you made your move on Justin Bieber?” She winces. “We did warn you, babe.” 

“It’s alright,” Anya comforts with a small smile, though you are well aware of how funny she also found the situation. Being in LA, as a celebrity, is always an interesting experience. In Gio’s defence, she did not know about a certain model standing right behind her, and you are fairly sure she had run off to do lines with someone or other earlier. “But, yeah, seriously. Y/n, do you want us to guess?” 

“Go on. Guess.” You smirk, because they’ll never–

Anya’s hand flaps as she puts her privately-educated memory to good use. “What’s-her-face?” she squeals, hand slapping down on her thigh as the name eludes her, the flapping resuming once she remembers. “Alexia Putellas!” 

You rip your eyes from your cracked screen, widened in horror. “How did you know?” you ask, voice a whisper as you swallow your shock. 

“You talk about her all the time. ‘Ooh, she’s the future’ this, ‘watch her grow’ that. Just talk to her. She’ll fancy you back.” 

“She’s not a celebrity. Normal people don’t slide into people’s DMs like we do, and I have no clue whether or not she can speak English,” you reason, having said the same thing to yourself every time your finger hovers on that feature of Instagram. “And I don’t like her? You saw me kissing–”

“God, drop it. You know she kisses anyone with a mouth, and you also know that you’re lying your arse off. Whoever this footballer is, just talk to her. If anything, it’ll be good for you to spend time with someone who isn’t going to drag you right into their own closet.” 

“Closets in LA can be very big,” you say with a sigh, having already received a lecture about the damage-control your publicist always seems to be doing. You don’t really think it’s ‘damage’ if a photo of you enjoying yourself with someone, but your publicity team deems any picture of you with a woman one to be locked away in some encrypted file and never released in the papers. 

…

You: Hola! Congratulations on the win. :)

You cringe so hard, but you send it anyway, your friends leaning over either shoulder as they egg you on, wishing your closet gobbled you whole and spat you out somewhere further away than Narnia.

Alexia, in Barcelona, groans at the sound of her phone buzzing, wondering who on Earth is texting her this late. 

And she drops the device on her face when she sees what the notification is. 

Because it really does not make sense, and she is not used to the idea that women’s footballers could one day fraternise with celebrities like you without feeling out of place. (And she’s had a crush on you for about two years and you’re texting her at midnight to congratulate her.)

You, on the other hand, are gripping onto your phone with trembling hands, holding on for dear life. Anya, who claims her C in A-level Spanish was unjust and incorrect, is brainstorming your next message, adamant that you’ll seem cooler if you display some knowledge of her mother tongue. You don’t tell her that, of course, Alexia’s first language would have been Catalan, because you don’t want it to be obvious that you have done a little bit (a lot) of research. 

Gio tucks a strand of your hair behind your ear for you – a comforting gesture. “Hey,” she says kindly, “what’s the worst that could happen?” 

She tries. 

She fails. 

You have compiled a list within a millisecond. “I don’t know,” you start, but, oh, you do. “She could screenshot the conversation and leak it to Twitter? Or she’s not a lesbian and she is disgusted that I am? She could have a girlfriend? She could think my account’s been hacked and report me and everything’ll be deleted? Or all of the above?!” 

The chat is still open on your phone, but you can’t see past your tidal wave of anxiety. 

“I think you’re just nervous.” Understatement of the century. 

Before you can make a snide remark saying exactly that but to Anya’s face, your message is no longer the only one present. 

“She replied!” you shout, volume a concoction of fear and excitement and a thousand emotions in between. 

Alexia: Gracias por ver :)

“Thanks for watching,” Anya translates. 

You exhale. “Okay. Done. No more.” You ignore both of their facepalms with the sort of blissful ignorance you’re sure only delusional people possess, but it is better to have a healthy heart rate than to understand the lyrics to whatever ballad the two of them have in the works. 

…

“Kiss her.” 

“What?” 

“Just kidding,” Jenni giggles, winking at Alexia and stealing her glass of something-not-too-strong. 

The team has been invited to a party with the men’s team, all because their favourite girl group is back in town and are treating the club like a pit-stop on their way to Madrid for the European-leg of their tour. The album has been in the top ten worldwide ever since it was released.

Alexia looks good tonight, as said by Jenni who thought her wardrobe consisted solely of football strips and Barcelona merchandise, and she revels in her little secret. Your little secret. She hasn’t told anyone that you messaged her two months ago, even if the conversation ended with her response. 

Which is why Jenni is set on teasing Alexia about her non-existent chance with you, especially when you have spent your entire night on the other side of the reception room, deep in conversation with Neymar Jr., who is not shameful about his appreciation for the plunging neckline of your tight dress. He has a girlfriend, but Alexia has seen enough tabloid headlines to know that most famous people don’t care. 

Your glass is always full, though that is your own doing. Something about the way a pair of hazel eyes have been watching you from the minute you walked in makes the air around you feel heavier than it should, and alcohol helps to dull your fluster. 

Anya and Gio have circled back a few times, adding to their persuasion each lap. When you see Gio heading your way, a small smile playing on her lips as someone or other trails behind, you excuse yourself from your conversation with your personal hero (who, sadly, would be able to describe your boobs but not your face if he were asked) and clasp your fingers around her forearm, pulling the two of you even further from a certain women’s footballer on the other side of the room.

“She’s staring,” says Gio in a low voice, leaning in to speak into your ear. “She’s staring at you like she wants to eat you.” 

“I’d let her,” you reply, lips loosened from the champagne you’ve been drinking. “She is beautiful.” 

“She is still staring.” 

You decide to be bold. You stare back, and Alexia is trapped, frozen to the spot. “She is so beautiful.” 

“Now you’re both staring.” 

“I’m going to talk to her.” 

“You should,” she encourages, slurring. The blur might come from your distraction, your drunkenness, or her own intoxication. You don’t care. 

Absently, you nod. “Yeah.” 

She presses her fingertips between your shoulder blades, cold hands making you shiver. “Go. You got this.” 

“Yeah.” 

She pushes you away from her, in Alexia’s direction. Your feet carry you on what feels like an inevitable path. 

And you… walk right past her, out of the door, and into the warm air of the evening to have a smoke instead. 

Behind you, Gio lets out a silent scream, turning right around and giving up on your happiness because what more can she do? And Alexia, who is confused about what just happened and bored of this event anyway, is glad to be given an excuse to leave. 

Except, you are blocking her exit, cigarette pressed to your lips as you inhale the smoke like it is a lifeline. She frowns, lips a tight line of disappointment, really. “¿Tú fumas?” she asks, though she knows both the answer and of your incompetence when it comes to her language. 

You let your eyes meet hers, and Alexia shivers, though she tells herself it is only because it’s November. “Hola,” you reply. 

For some reason, Alexia is drawn in. She steps closer to you, and you don’t have anywhere to go, backed against the wall you are leaning on. You’re drunk, and the cigarette has burned down to a stub of orange and black. She’s also drunk – less so than you – and she has nothing to lose right now. She is no one, in her mind, and you are far from prudish. 

She decides, once she is barely ten centimetres away from you, that your dress is provocative, but it only adds to your existing beauty. You push your chest out, standing up straighter. 

The dance is very still, and very silent, but you can imagine what it feels like to kiss her and you know that she is thinking the same thing. 

“You can, if you want to,” you whisper, hoping she understands. 

Luckily, she does. 

Alexia fumbles her way through the first tentative second, shocked that this is what she is doing, but she finds her footing and relaxes into the taste of champagne and cigarette smoke, the heat of your body sparking a fire within her. You pull her closer, pressing her body into yours, and you are now consumed by desperation. The kiss grows messier, and Alexia’s hands begin to roam, mind lost in a haze of desire. She is explorative but she is gentle, and you gasp into her mouth as her tongue pushes past your lips and a hand settles on the curve of your bum, the other cupping your jaw. 

Briefly, she wonders how many girls you have done this with. You seem experienced. The thought, while a little disturbing, sort of spurs her on, feeding into her competitive nature. This will be unforgettable for her regardless of the outcome because it’s an interesting story to tell, but what about you? Are you even aware of what you’re doing? Are you straight? No, you can’t be. You messaged her, so you started this. She is only… finishing it? 

You sense her distraction, pulling back with a blink and a deep intake of fresh air. She tries to move back, afraid of what comes next, but you don’t let her go, clutching onto the hardened muscles of her arms to hold her in place, ready to kiss her again.

The moment is spoilt by a voice – an English voice – and the theft of your attention. Your eyes, previously hooded and dark, widen as they flit towards the door behind her, terribly upset that your friends have developed the worst timing known to man. Gio shouts again, telling you that it’s time to go. You have to get to Madrid, and the pilot would be incredibly annoyed to hear that the flight was delayed because you were too caught up in snogging a girl you may or may not fancy. 

“We really need to go!” Anya repeats, growing impatient with you as you debate giving up your entire music career. “Like, it is insane how badly you need to get your arse over here to say your goodbyes and then jump in the taxi to the airport with us.” 

“Can it just–”

“No!” they both shout in unison. 

You sigh, looking at Alexia, the proximity prodding at a feeling low in your stomach. She doesn’t squirm under the intensity of your gaze, instead sporting a lazy, blissfully ignorant grin. And you’re about to break her little heart. 

“I have to go,” you say softly, forehead resting on her shoulder as you mumble your words out. You have a duty to your job, or, as Virgil puts it: labor omnia vincit. Work conquers all.

“You have to…?” she tries. 

“Go.” 

“Tiene que irse,” Anya translates, reminding you of her presence (and her much better comprehension of Spanish). “Ahora.” 

“Ah.” Alexia’s hand cups the back of your neck as you raise your head, and she kisses you, though the kiss is short. 

You pat your body down with a sudden haste, wandering past your alcohol-clouded thoughts to remember the location of your ticket, reaching down to grab your clutch from where you’d dropped it on the floor while having a smoke. It pops open as Alexia watches your movements, and you retrieve a pen and a scrunched up ticket (you have no idea why that’s in there, but you are grateful that it is). 

“Here.” You hand her the ticket, pressing it into the palm of her hand and then sealing your goodbye with a quick peck to her lips. 

Then, you are gone, running off at an impressive speed in those heels, chasing your friends into the building. 

She pauses herself in time for a moment, drawing back her grasp on reality as her thoughts still and she breathes in your lingering perfume. And then she blinks – blinks her way back into midnight in Barcelona. 

She opens her palm to see what your gift was, unfolding the piece of paper with an overwhelming curiosity that almost rips it at the edges. 

A boarding pass from London Stansted to Barcelona-El Prat Airport, decorated in fresh, black ink.

Scrawled on top of the flight details is something much more valuable than the entrance into First Class the paper allows. 

Eleven digits. 

Twenty-two-year-old Alexia Putellas, the catalyst for change in women’s football as the world knows it, suddenly sees her future set right out in front of her. Because there you are.

#woso x reader #alexia putellas x reader #alexia putellas #woso #woso fanfics #barca femeni #fc barcelona

[omegalomania]

fall out boy live performances i think about Often

the reunion show medley. how many goats do i have to sacrifice for you guys to do this one again.

disloyal order of water buffaloes, specifically the version that opens with the piano and the rest of the band comes crashing in at the second verse. my GOD man what do i have to do to make you do this version again

death valley live. thats all.

the time they did their stayin out all night remix live with wiz khalifa

the thriller aol sessions version is so good that i thought it was the studio version with mild reinstrumentation at first lol

the medley they did in 2015 where they mashed up all their hits and even managed to sneak in the uma thurman riffs at the end

can i link the entirety of the knights of columbus set? i'm gonna do that. go watch it. it's glorious.

i feel like not enough people talked about how good church sounded live. i actually kinda like it a little better than the studio version. patrick drops down an octave for some bits of the final chorus and i always love hearing his chest voice.

obviously i have to link one of the few times they've played headfirst slide into cooperstown on a bad bet live. they did (coffee's for closers) at this show too and i think about it always.

they didnt do where did the party go live that often because it is MERCILESSLY heard to sing live but my GOD. when they did it. my god.

that one performance of the kids aren't alright where pete screams alongside patrick for the entire last part of the chorus ruined me in ways i have difficulty articulating.

the way way early version of sugar we're goin down they played live in 2004 before they changed all the verses

anytime they'd do just one yesterday live and patrick would do the bridge and kill it every time

the acoustic version of sophomore slump or comeback of the year they did for a private show in 2007. (they did this acoustic again in 2013 and i love that version too)

that one time they segued seamlessly from the chorus of alone together to my songs know what you did in the dark

MISS MISSING YOU LIVE YOU ARE EVERYTHING TO ME

any of those rare rare times they would do yule shoot your eye out live

when they did patron saints of liars and fakes at one of the reunion shows. don't touch me.

the acoustic session of tttyg songs (grenade jumper, chicago is so two years ago, saturday) they did that's on the my heart will always be the b side to my tongue dvd. they are so so so SO small!!!!!

save rock and roll live is like. so important to me personally it never fails to bring me to my knees. but specifically the time they did it for the mda telethon in 2014. joes backing vocals come through sO clearly and its SOOOOO AAAAAA

also the time they did save rock and roll live for vevo. BIG ouchie.

okay also the time they dedicated save rock and roll to bowie after he passed because pete gets VERY VISIBLY EMOTIONAL OVER THIS and i can't handle it.

we don't take hits we write them literally Only exists in live format so i have to give a special mention to that. what i would give for a studio version though...

it's hard for me to pick a favorite moment of the time they played wrigley field during mania tour. i was lucky enough to catch a livestream of most of the show and it was frankly magic. someathing has to be said for the energy in the way the show began...and for the way it ended.

im incapable of not bringing up the immortals acoustic version they did during boys of zummer. i cant NOT. joe and patrick sound sO GOOD TOGETHER VOCALLY, OKAY

i'm like a lawyer with the way i'm always trying to get you off, acoustic sessions.....im okay.

remember when they opened some of the monumentour shows with THIS IS THE TAKE OVER, THE MOTHERFUCKING BREAK'S OVER cause. i do.

if youve never seen the stripped-down piano version of young and menace and only heard the studio instrumental i beseech you to watch the live version. i will never forget hearing this live. the whole stadium got so, so quiet in what i could only describe as reverence.

you know that one text post that talks about patrick getting all emotional during a performance of what a catch, donnie and then just sniffs a little and says "i'm a loss for words...which is a good thing i have a microphone, right? so i can keep talking." well this is that exact performance.

#fall out boy #*making poasts #this started off as me hunting down more live performances to rip for my work ipod #i have most of these already. not all though. #anyway it turned into a list of me having big emotions. unsurprisingly.

[daisyblog]

When Three Becomes Four

Harry's House Masterlist Summary: Oliver becomes a big brother.

Oliver: Aged 3

2015. It was certainly a year to remember. From One Direction's stadium tours, touring with a two year old, Zayn leaving the band, Baby Styles number two on their way, One Direction deciding to take a break - a hiatus they said - to celebrating Oliver's third birthday.

As much as YN had enjoyed touring with the band, watching them grow bigger and bigger each time, and watching Oliver soak up every moment and watch his Daddy and uncles sing and dance each night. She was relieved when they had decided to take a break, because touring with a baby and toddler was just not ideal.

It had been two days since the boys performed their last performance on The X Factor. It was an emotional day - YN watched as each of the boys took in the bittersweet moment. They had been non-stop busy for five years. Flying from one country to the other. performing night after night. They loved it, but they deserved a break.

Like when they were expecting Oliver, YN and Harry had chosen not to find out the gender of the baby. They would often sit in the evenings when Oliver was sleeping and discuss what they thought their second born would be.

Cuddled up on the sofa, YN's leg covering Harry's - his hand placed on her growing bump. Taking them back a few years ago to when Oliver was in there. Except the few changes, Harry's hair was long, YN had also decided to dye her hair a lighter colour and Oliver was now here, sleeping soundly upstairs.

"I think we're having a girl" Harry spoke out loud, his hand moving in soft motions against YN's bump. A big grin covering his face, dimples popping out.

"Why?" YN asked, feeling calm as Harry's hand drew circles against her skin. She could feel herself slowly starting to be pulled into sleep at the relaxing motion.

"Dunno...just got the feeling ya know" Harry began to explain "And I think she's going to look like you..literally your double..but with my personality-"

"So she's going to be sassy and a diva" YN joked, a little giggle leaving her lips. Harry tried to act hurt but the laugh fell from his lips.

"Yeh..'cause Ollie's my double but he's got your calm and quieter ways"

Anne and Robin had come to stay, like they had when Oliver's due date was near. They had offered to take Oliver out for a little walk and play in the park to give YN some time to rest.

"Peas mummy..I go to ark with Gama and Gampa?" Oliver's little pleads could be heard as he stared up at her with his father's eyes. And the little mispronunciations were just so adorable. How could anyone say no?

YN chuckled as he bounced up and down in excitement, repeating "peas" over and over. "Of course you can Olls..go and get your shoes please".

"Oh Mum..watch him on the road, he's started running off..and don't push him too high on the swings, he doesn't like it..also there's a really big slide there that we don't let him go on 'cause he'll try and go on it-" Harry's rambling was interrupted by YN.

"Harry..babe..calm down, Olls will be fine with your Mum and Robin" YN reassured Harry as he ran his fingers through his long hair, giving it a little shake.

"Yeh..I know..sorry..I just worry" Oliver's loud footsteps were heard as he ran back into the room, now wearing his shoes. In the last few months, he has become really independent and wants to do a lot for himself.

"Harry..he'll be fine..I promise I'll keep you updated the whole time" Anne reassured her son, rubbing his arm slightly to comfort him. "C'mon then little man..let's go and have some fun" Anne spoke to Oliver as she helped him to put his coat and hat on.

"Gama?" Oliver's little voice spoke, as Anne kneeled down in front of him. Zipping up his coat, feeling a sense of deja vu as she remembers doing the exact same thing with Harry.

"Yes my darling" Anne looked up into the little green eyes staring back at her. Innocent, sweet and the image of his father.

She loves Gemma and Harry, they are her babies and always will be. She even loves YN like a daughter. But there was something about a grandchild. It was special and a feeling like no other, especially when Oliver spoke the next few words. "I wuv you".

Robin smiled at the scene in front of him, knowing how much those words would mean to his wife. Harry and YN looked at eachother with proud smiles, their eyes communicating for them. Being in the biggest boyband and becoming a young Dad, Harry received some negative comments, YN too. But looking at their little boy now, polite, kind and loving, they couldn't be any prouder of him or themselves for raising him into the sweet boy he is.

Anne rubs her finger across Oliver's little cheek "I love you too my sweet boy..more than all the stars in the sky", before pulling him into a tight cuddle.

---

Anne, Robin and Oliver had left about half hour ago. Anne had already sent a photo and a video of Oliver running around the park and laughing as he went down the slide with Robin catching him at the bottom.

After half hour of fixing things around the house, and making the most of a busy toddler being out of the house. The couple find themselves lounging on the sofa, a random film playing in the background.

YN wasn't sure if it was her hormones, the fact that being intimate was pretty much nonexistent whilst pregnant, touring the world and looking after a toddler or if it was the effect Harry had always had on her. But sneaking a look at Harry, especially with his hair tied back into a bun, she could feel her tummy start to flutter. She craved him.

Making a bold move, she moved so her knees were either side of his thighs and she carefully placed herself on his lap. Harry was taken by surprise but his hand naturally landed on her hips. "Uh..hi", a giggled escaped his lips, feelings a blush creep up onto his cheeks.

YN didn't reply, not with words anyway. She leaned down and captured his lips with his. It was urgent, rushed and messy. Their lips didn't break, both afraid to waste another moment. Harry hands wandered from her hips to her thighs to her bottom. YN's hands wandered from Harry's neck, to the back of his head, to trying to run them through his long locks.

As their actions become needier and they craved more form eachother, YN urged Harry to lie down. Not breaking apart. "Fuck, I've missed this" Harry spoke against her lips.

"Mhmm" YN agreed, lost for words as Harry left small kisses up her neck, knowing that was her weakness. Their hands still wandering around eachother's bodies, pulling and grabbing.

Just as Harry was going to make the next move, he felt a warm liquid between them, making him stop his movements. Snapping back into reality, as YN's bump sat between them, he'd realised what may have happened. But Harry being Harry, he couldn't resist making a joke. "Either you're very wet for me...you've pissed yourself...or your water's have gone".

YN took a frustrated sigh, slightly annoyed that of all the times her water's could have broken, it was when they were finally alone and trying to make the most of it. "I just wanted some sex..was that too much to ask?" a slight playfulness could be heard.

Harry threw his head back, feeling amused but aware of the large problem sat in his shorts. "Told ya..it's a little girl and she's gonna keep us busy, and clearly stop me from getting any".

"I guess it's time to have a baby" YN smiled down at Harry, him mimicking her grin.

---

It was like the minute YN's waters broke, the cramps and contraction came in full force. They had stayed at home for as long as possible. Harry had phoned his Mum to explain the situation and they agreed it may have been best for them to take Oliver to Gemma's to stay whilst they were still at home.

YN was holding onto the chair, in their kitchen. Swaying her hips back and forth, trying to ease the pain as she breathed through the contraction. Harry right behind her, a lot more relaxed this time around, knowing what to expect. He rubbed circles on her back, trying to provide some comfort.

"They're getting closer together..I think we should head to the hospital now" Harry suggested as he looked down at his phone, where he had been timing each contraction, noticing how sooner they were coming.

Harry gathered all their hospital bags, including the babies, and packed them into the car. When they arrived at the hospital, noticing how YN was hunched over in pain, trying her best to breathe through yet another contraction, she was wheeled into a private labour room by a midwife.

They had arrived an hour ago. YN was now wearing a hospital gown, whilst she laid on the bed. Harry sat to her side, holding her hand that wasn't clasping onto to the gas and air. She took in a large amount of gas and air as she felt another contraction hit.

"You're doing so well YN..keep going and you should have a baby by tonight" the midwife, Sophie spoke as she looked on at the scene in front of her.

Harry was taken back, when YN turned to him with a scowl, "You're not coming near me again...I can't do this fucking pain again", as she began to breathe in the gas and air. He was confused, only a few hours ago she was straddling him and wanting to be intimate.

Like the midwife read his mind, "Don't take it personally, we hear that quite a lot..she's in a lot of pain and doesn't mea-"

"I do mean it" YN managed to get out, as she went back to the gas and air, fighting the pain.

The next few hours involved, many more contractions, lots of gas and air, YN changing into different position, Harry rubbing her back and whispering words of encouragement each time as she worked through the pain.

It was around 10:32pm, when a stronger contraction hit, causing YN to cry out in pain. "I-I...I think I...I need to push". She had done it once before, she knew the feeling. Sophie, the midwife, lifted the hospital gown and could clearly see the babies head.

"You're doing amazing YN...keep listening to your body and soon you'll have your beautiful baby in your arms" Sophie encouraged as she began to gather the essential ready for the baby's arrival. Harry held onto YN's hand, and brushing the hair away from her face, leaving a small peck on her head.

At 11:10pm, YN pushed for the last time. A loud piercing cry filled the room. Tears flowed down YN and Harry's cheeks at the sound of their baby entering the world on the 15th of December 2015. Harry leaned down, leaving a kiss on YN's forhead.

"I love you so much...you're amazing" Harry spoke into YN's ear, still amazed at how women could do such a wonderful thing, as bring life into the world. "Thank you for the best gifts in life".

Interrupting their moment, Sophie spoke as she placed the newborn onto YN's bare chest, encouraging the skin to skin contact. "Congratulations Mummy and Daddy..meet your beautiful baby girl".

A baby girl. Proving Harry right, she had her mother's eyes, turned up nose and petite lips. The mini version of YN. It was in that moment as they both sat and stared at the little baby laying on YN's chest, that they knew their family was now complete.

---

It was the next afternoon, YN was resting in bed, a white blanket covering her body. Harry was sat on the chair next to the bed cuddling their daughter as she had just finished a bottle of milk. The door squeaked open, Anne peeping around as Oliver ran in straight toward his Mummy.

"Mummy!"

"Careful with Mummy Olls" Harry stepped in as he saw his son run and jump up on the bed, clearly he had missed her. He smiled as Oliver wrapped his arms around YN's neck and YN leaving small kisses to his cheek, before signalling his family to enter.

Anne took in the scene of her son holding his daughter in his arms. A rush of emotions hit her. Her second born, holding his second born. She quickly snapped a photo of the two, before going over and giving YN a quick cuddle and checking she was okay.

"Come and meet your sisters Ollie" Harry spoke. Oliver reluctantly moving from his mother side, and walking slowly towards them. He looked at the little baby in his father's arms, slowly bringing up his finger to touch his sister's hand.

"Baby?" His sweet voice spoke "My baby?". Making everyone chuckle at the innocence and the loving side of the little boy shining through.

"Yeh..she's your baby sister..do you want to know her name?" Harry asked, his mini him staring back with wide eyes, nodding eagerly. Anne, Robin and Gemma's ears listening intently, desperate to know the name of their new granddaughter and niece. "Emilie Lily Styles".

liked by harrystyles, annetwist and 982,233 others

ynln Emilie Lily Styles 🧸💗 15/12/2015 View all 10,822 comments

gemmastyles Luckiest Auntie in the world 💙💗

annetwist My beautiful family is growing ❤️ I love you all very much xx

niallhoran Congratulations guys! My favourite little family xx

louteasdale Awwwwww 💜 A little girl!

ellaanneselley Aww congratulations! Can't wait to meet Emilie 💓

lottietomlinson Congratulations salts 💘 Beautiful name xx

louist91 Congrats! So happy for you both and Ollie x

deeselley Lovely news! Congratulations darlings ❤️

liampayne Amazing news! Congrats you guys!! xx

liked by ynln, jamescorden and 2,723,065 others

harrystyles Four Hands. Four Hearts. One Home. View all 15,232 comments

ynln Love you all 💙💗💙💗

annetwist Beautiful ❤️

jamescorden Congratulations guys! Wonderful news x

nickgrimshaw Aw cute! Congratulations you guys!

mrbenwinston Amazing news H. A big congratulations to you, YN and Oliver.

zayn Congratulations to all of you x

ritaora Congratulations!! Love from Auntie Rita xxx

ollymurs Congratulations to your little family H. I'm slightly gutted my name wasn't used again 😂

onedirection Wishing your family all the best!

Tag List: (let me know if you would like to be added) @walkingintheheartbreaksatellite @harryssattelitestomper @haarrrys @hittiesontour @theekyliepage @itsmytimetoodream @harrys-flower

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[watermelonsugacry]

I know you’re busy but I adore your series and I was wondering if you ever thought of band member yn going through some kind of emergency on stage like someone threw something at her or she has breathing problems whatever you want to do. But like how would the boys react and such. Absolutely no rush on responding just putting it out there. All my love

anon: Anything bad like injuries or threats happen on stage and boys and harry get a little protective? Ily

A couple of moments come to mind:

In 2015, the band was all singing at the end of the catwalk. YN and Harry share the front side as they sing but right as they all go to rotate their side, some fans throw and splash water on the two of them.

Getting water thrown on stage was nothing new for the band, Louis and Liam constantly have water fights at least one time for each show, but this time was different. Harry sees the way YN flinches her head back harshly and takes a couple of steps further up the stage, putting a hand over her eye.

He glances at the crowd with furrowed eyebrows before following her to put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Y'alright, lovie?"

"Yeh," She scrunches her right eye closed, blinking a few times and gently pushes a finger under her lashes to help ease some of the stinging. "Was fookin' beer, that one."

After holding onto her shoulders and crouching down to her eye level to make sure her eyes looked okay, it was time for him to take charge of the situation. YN continues the song as if nothing happened but notices when Harry doesn't come by her side like he's supposed to.

She looks over her shoulder and sees how Harry walks back over to their previous spot, a water bottle uncapped in one hand as he beckons the guy who threw the beer with the other. YN laughs behind her hand as she watches Harry drench the fan—who looks like he's having the time of his life—in water as revenge.

When he walks back over to her, she puts and hand on his back and leans her head to rest on his shoulder as a thank you—an interaction that had fans screaming their heads off.

After the song is over and the boys ask what happened, Harry's the first to speak up.

"He threw beer and it when in YN's eye. She doesn't even drink beer!" He retorts, making everyone laugh. "Please, carry on. I have nothing left to say to you," Harry sasses back as he passes the guy in the crowd.

"I do," YN says before showing the fan her middle finger with a sweet smile. The audience roars in a mix of screams of excitement, disbelief, and laughter as they see her break out from the 'good girl' image she constantly puts out from her management team. The boys cheer her on as they know more than anybody in the room how little she gets to express her feelings the way she wants to.

...

On the Where We Are Tour, the band stands in their usual lineup formation as YN sings the bridge for What Makes You Beautiful.

As she sings, all their attention turns to a fan lifting up their neon pink sign that reads: YN, you can have this 1 D with an arrow pointing down to himself.

YN huffs out a laugh, cocking her head to the side with a quick raise of her eyebrows at the attractive bloke in the front row.

The fans get a kick out of the way all the boys immediately furrow their eyebrows and give the guy dramatic, nasty looks. They all begin to shuffle closer around her until they eventually have her trapped in the middle of their huddle circle. Louis even takes a quick, threatening stomp towards the bloke, his arms bent and flexing down by his sides.

...

And you guys remember when YN took care of Harry when he had the stomach flu? But he told her not to because he was contagious and she was too stubborn to listen?

Well...

YN hops up onto the elevated section at the end of the stage on the Take Me Home Tour. After she belts out her high note for Love You First, she can't help but put her hand to her stomach, makes a small "O" with her lips, and lets out a deep breath. She carries on with a smile, giving a couple of waves and blown kisses to the fans in the seats next to her, and continues to sing along.

But before the song is over, she runs backstage to go empty her stomach. When she gets back, she takes a seat next to the boys who are sitting on the end of the stage she was just on as Niall and Louis talk to the crowd for a bit before the next song.

"I hate to say I told you so," Harry teases as he hands her a water bottle, one which she gladly takes gulps out of.

"Then don't," She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand before tossing the plastic bottle on the floor by their mini towels.

"Wha's going on?" Zayn leans over when he sees her place her head in her hands.

"She threw up," Harry explains.

"Why?" Liam pipes in as he goes to stand in front of his bandmates. "You pregnant or somethin'?" He teases with a chuckle.

YN huffs out a laugh at the suggestion and she lifts her head up to see how the boys have grown quiet with concern written all over their faces.

"Wha—no, m'not pregnant. Come on, lads," She scoffs with a laugh. "H passed his stomach bug onto me."

"I dunno," Zayn continues to the playful banter. "You have been spending an awful lot of time with that one bloke."

Harry snaps his head up at the comment.

"Oh yeah, what's his name again?" Liam taps his fingers against his chin in fake contemplation.

"Matt," Zayn says with a snap of his fingers.

"Okay, first of all," YN counters back with a wave of her hand. "M'gonna have a long talk with Perrie about telling yeh things. Second of all, m'not discussing my sex life with you guys."

Not like there was anything to tell for the time being anyways, she thinks to herself.

"And finally, stop talking like that. Yeh about to give poor Harry here a heart attack," She pats Harry on the chest with a giggle, snapping him from his worried expression. "Malik, cover me high notes for C'mon C'mon, yeah? My throat's killing me right now."

And with that, she stands up to walk back to the middle of the stage to join the other two band members.

"We were just teasing, man," Zayn reassures Harry with a pat on the back.

"Yeah, H. We all know your crush on her is still growing strong," Liam adds with a smirk. "YNrry for life or whatever the fans say."

"Shut up," Harry scowls before following YN as the two boys stay chuckling behind him.

SINCE 2010 masterlist

Taglist:

@wobblymug @be-with-me-so-happily @ashtongivesmebutterflies @kiwiskiwiskiwi @darlingdesire @obsesseddd @hopefulwastelandcreation @cacapeepee @breezie-b00 @harrysfolklore @theekyliepage @sunshinemoonsposts @nervousspiderling @tbslonelyhes @tenaciousperfectionunknown @harrystylesrecs @certified-nalayak @itsjustsel @iknowyouthinkimbulletproof @gviosca @behindmygreyeyes @twobluejeans @allisonxmcu @theemeraldbutterfly @jean-love @marvellover-sam @b-reads-things @reveriehs @rach2602 @thurhomish @perrypughstyles @luvonstyles @mxltifxnd0m @teamspideyman @c00chiemonster @juiceboxrry @s8tellite @folklorehrry @illicithallways @claramllera @eunoiaax @hoya122 @nichmedder @sleutherclaw @gloriousmoneyrascalbiscuit @harianaswhore @teawithcyb0rgs @vrittivsanghavi @vc55bughead @futuristiccroissantlampsludge @onecrazydirectioner @valluvsu @itsgabbysblog @awkwardbisexuall @rosehel @sucker4angstt 

#harry x 1dbandmember!reader #since 2010 series #harry styles #harry styles x reader #harry styles blurb #harry styles x you #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x y/n #one direction fanfiction #one direction #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfic #harry styles writing #harry styles one shot #harry styles fluff #harry styles fake social media #harry styles love on tour #harry styles icons #harry styles fic #harry styles and y/n #harry styles and reader #famous!reader #famous!yn #harry styles masterlist #harry styles concept

[producedbyhan]

"Want so BAD" - Lee Know, HAN (A messy essay)

I'll start off by saying I'm hesitant to post this. I don't really condone RPF and/or shipping of real people in most cases. However, I will be discussing why I believe there is some chance that Minho and Jisung are trying to tell us something with this song, and the possibility that "I love their friendship" reactions to the song are not necessarily what they wanted.

First off, some background for those that don't know. LGBT+ Koreans in the entertainment industry (especially idols) cannot come out, unless they want to risk losing their career. There are only a handful of people who have come out, and they have been either removed from their company, fired, or blacklisted by the media (i.e, they cannot appear on TV, radio, etc). There was one instance of a boy group which had 2 members being open about the fact that they were dating for several years, yet when one of the members had to re-debut in a different group, his company insisted they were “just close colleagues.” There is another instance of a soloist who had to fund their own debut through part-time jobs, as no labels would sign them due to being open about their sexuality.

Discrimination is also a serious issue - in the Anti-discrimination Act (2007) by The National Human Rights Commission of South Korea, the section prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation was withdrawn, and there are no federal laws against LGBT discrimination. In March 2015, the Ministry of Education banned the teaching of homosexuality or any other non-straight sexual orientation in sex education classes. Pride parades in Seoul are minimal and irregular, and face threats and violence from several different protest groups. On the 2019 Franklin & Marshall Global Barometer of Gay Rights, developed nations averaged a grade of B. South Korea, however, was one of only three countries to earn an "F," [1] and countries that receive an F are "persecuting" their LGBTQ+ communities. Men also have to face the additional issue when it comes to forced enlistment, where same-sex sexual activity in the military is illegal, sexual minorities can be marked as having a “mental handicap” or “personality disorder,” and hazing is widespread.

Now, onto the song - released on October 14th, aka. national "I love you" day. Not everything I mention will have a reference link, but I'll try to include an example here and there.

I'm not going to chart their entire history because we would be here all day, but some of the things they've shared are: Jisung's story about how they first met [2], and how they've always bonded over being movie partners [3] and their shared fear of heights (and amusement park "dates"). While they've always been close (can-kiss-each-other-on-the-neck-and-flirt-constantly-like-a-couple-close) the teasing from the other members has really ramped over 2023, with nearly every other member telling them to marry. They themselves have also been calling each other their s/o several times while on tour [4] and in a rachalog. Jisung also did a freestyle rap about love on tour that included "Should we go to the Han River today?" something Minho asks him to get him out of the dorm. In some parts of this song they sound like they're directly singing to each other, for example "For me, it's always you" being echoed back to the other.

Jisung said he was looking up flower language. The official birth month flower for October (When Minho's birthday falls) is the cosmos flower. [5]

Call and response from Han to something Minho said in their 2022 Two Kids Room.

Parallels to Jisung's song "Volcano", released just before Valentine's Day earlier this year.

I'll embrace the wounds you shed To me, you're already a sin I can't refuse because you're sweeter than evil

I can't live without you you're the only one, even if I die Even if I'm reborn over and over again, it's only you I want to give only to you my heart is burning When I'm thinking of you, my mind is Like a volcano

If it wasn't about each other, I have to wonder why they would make the cover art a collage of them together (none of these being pics we've seen before), some at the Han River, with the song lyrics decorating them. Other SKZ-RECORDS, be it solo or duets have a photo/image taken specifically for them... Even the title of the song itself reminds me of the beginning of the year when Minho commented "I want?? someone like you" on Jisung's IG post.

And finally, Minho and Jisung had both been quiet about this song both before, and after it dropped (something that never happens with SKZ-RECORDS - Jisung in particular is very talkative about them and usually spoils it in advance, does a Q&A, or goes live) until he broke the silence with this and everything it might imply.

To conclude. I think there's some chance that putting out this song to the public is the closest they can get to confirming there's something between them without irreparably hurting their future. While it's technically possible that this could all be a series of coincidences, I do feel that they knew exactly how this could be perceived by longterm/serious fans - if you know you know.

#minsung #han #lee know #stray kids #skz #want so bad #minho #jisung #was also going to mention how jisung to date has never put anything gendered in his writing and case 143's well. existence. #but I think we all know that anyway #this post is a bit disorganised might adjust it later

[smolwritingchick]

The Bangtan Gal Chapter 59- ISAC 2015 Chuseok Special

Chapter Summary: Jen shows off her studio and gets noticed by her celeb crush. BTS plays Smash. Volleyball becomes a new competition for the ladies at ISAC as Jen finds it to be her calling while the guys dominate in running. Jen does a V-Live

Words: 14,000+

Author's Note: Again, not sure if they are still active on Tumblr but also @darlings-illustrated created Jen’s V-Live outfit for this chapter. <3 credit to them! :)

----------

After her outing, Jen spent the rest of the day relaxing in her room, in good spirits. She was grateful for Sam Okyere and his kindness. She was looking forward to seeing him again and even assisting him with his future charity projects.

While she chilled in her room, she felt bored and didn’t feel like doing anything until an idea popped into her head.

Why not broadcast a V-Live? 

Grabbing her phone, she signed in, naming the broadcast, ‘Jammin’ With Smartie’, setting the camera in front of her as she sat on the bed. She made sure the camera showed her entire body while she sat pretzel style.

Immediately viewers began popping in at a rapid rate, surprising her. Guess they really wanted to see her. 

It made her feel good.

“Hey, hey!” she spoke in English, waving as the comments started flowing in

‘JENNIEEEEEEEEE’

‘Ennie! Miss youuuu’

‘Hope you come back to America! We miss you!’

‘Come to London!’

‘QUEEN!’

‘MOM! Finally, we get a V-Live with you!’

Jen started laughing when she read comments from ARMY calling her mom. 

“Mom? That’s new. Ahahaha.”

‘Hi Jennie!’

'Can you speak in Korean?'

"Yeah, I'll go back and forth," she replied in Korean before going back to English.

‘Jen get some rest, it’s late!’

“It’s not that late. I’ll sleep soon. I wanted to see how you all were doing.”

‘Come to Brazil! Brazil loves you!’

“I would love to come to Brazil. It will happen one day!” she guaranteed. “I want to travel more and see more ARMY around the world. Hopefully, we can have a big world tour one day. I definitely want to go to Europe. I always think about Europe when it comes to tours.”

‘Those curls are poppin!’

‘So cuteeeee’

‘I love youuuuu’

“Where are you??’

“Where am I? I’m in my room~!” she responded as she continued to read the various comments. “I was bored so decided to do this and spend some time with y’all.”

‘How are you?’

‘I hope you’re eating well!’

She checked out the number of viewers. “That’s a lot. Over 60,000 already? Sweet. I hope you guys aren’t watching this late at night. Get some shut-eye, it’s good for the soul. And don’t worry, I will be sleeping soon. Yes, I am eating. I’m eating a lot actually. I was kind of stress eating a little bit but I’m fine, now.”

‘Please take care of yourself’

‘Don’t stress!’

‘What did you do today?’

“I’m trying my best. Idol life can be hectic. What did I do today? I hung out with Sam Okyere! I had such a great time with him! He’s mad cool. We ate African food. I never tried it before since I grew up eating Soul Food in my household in America. It’s so good! I'm definitely telling my family to start making African food."

‘Excited for ISAC?’

“Hell yeah, I am. Getting to wrestle and play volleyball? I’m a bit worried about the volleyball. I haven’t played volleyball before so it’ll be interesting to see how I do. But I’ve been practicing and watching YouTube videos for advice. But the wrestling, I’m confident about that.”

‘Can you play the guitar?’

“You want me to play something for you? Sure. For a while now I have been working on a Shawn Mendes song. He’s bae, of course.” she laughed. "I admire Shawn so much. I would love to sing with him one day. Even make a song together. Ah...okay. Let's see...ah, I know. I'll play Stitches for you!" she grabbed her guitar. 

‘Yay!’

‘I love when she spoils us’

'Awwww her bright smile when she spoke about Shawn. I hope they meet!'

‘Yes!’

“I’ve been practicing the song for a while, making sure I get the notes down. I wanted to focus more on the emotion of the song to have a greater impact while singing,” she spoke as she made sure the guitar was tuned up.

As soon as she began the first notes of the song, ARMY noticed a change in her demeanor as she continued to play. They noticed how focused and happy she was when she played the guitar and it looked wholesome to watch.

“I thought that I’ve been hurt before. But no one’s ever left me quite this sore.” she sang softly, strumming along lightly.

‘Her voiceeeee &lt;;3’

‘So, can I ship her with Shawn now?’

‘Getting goosebumps already.’

“Your words cut deeper than a knife. Now I need someone to breathe me back to life.” she continued to sing while her strumming got stronger as she sang out with her voice getting a little louder.

“Got a feeling that I’m going under. But I know that I’ll make it out alive. If I quit calling you my lover. Move on~"

‘Loveeeeee’

‘Stop being my bias wrecker!’

“You watch me bleed until I can’t breathe, shaking. Falling onto my knees. And now that I’m without your kisses. I’ll be needing stitches. Tripping over myself, aching. Begging you to come help. And now that I’m without your kisses. I’ll be needing stitches.”

ARMY noticed that her breath control had improved as she produced a consistent tone while singing smoothly and warmly.

“Needle and the thread gotta get you out of my head. Needle and the thread, gonna wind up dead. Needle and the thread, gotta get you out of my head, get you out of my head. You watch me~!” She stopped strumming and held that note for a few seconds before strumming again, “Bleed until I can’t breathe! I’m shaking falling onto my knees. And now that I’m without your kisses I’ll be needing stitches. I’m tripping over myself. I’m aching begging you to come help. And now that I’m without your kisses, I’ll be needing stitches. And now that I’m without your kisses, I’ll be needing stitches. And now that I’m without your kisses, I’ll be needing stitches.”

She strummed softly for the final note and exhaled. 

“That was fun.” she chuckled lightly and set her guitar down. “How’d I do?” she checked the comments

‘Come thruuuuu sis!’

‘Yassss boo!’

‘Honestly, I’ll be the first to say that I wouldn’t mind Jennie singing me to sleep because her voice is so soothing.’

‘Shawn Mendes needs to see this ASAP!’

‘You did so well!’

‘You make us so proud!’

‘Represent Jennie!’

“Ah...thanks, everyone,” she replied and looked up when she noticed Hobi sticking his head out of her door with a bright smile. “Oh, hey Hobi! Did I wake you?”

“Yeah, I was awakened by a sweet voice. At first, I thought it was Jungkook singing like he usually does in his room but as I walked down the hall, I noticed it was coming from your room. That was you? With the guitar?”

“Uh, yes?” She smiled shyly.

“Whaaaaaa, munchkin, you’re improving.”

“You make me so happy. Thank you.” She pretended to cry, touched by his words.

After her V-Live, she went to sleep while ARMY made various videos of her cover and tried to get Shawn Mendes’ attention on Instagram and Twitter so he could watch her video. 

They knew how much it would mean the world to her if she was able to get noticed by him.

For the past few days, ARMY had tried to get his attention, asking him to watch her cover and to check out her Instagram. They would speak highly of the Bangtan Girl and how much she admired him as an artist.

After remaining persistent and dedicated for Shawn to notice Jennie, they finally reached their goal and began to tag BTS in Shawn’s recent tweet and also tagged Jennie in Shawn’s recent Instagram post.

On Instagram, Shawn reposted a 15-second video of her playing stitches with the caption, ‘Wow, she is amazing! I love this! Who is this girl with the guitar?’

ARMY was quick to flood his comment section, freaking out that he noticed Jennie.

‘Finally you noticed her!’

'AHHHHHHHHHHHH JJennie_JW HE NOTICED YOU!'

'Jennie is about to lose her shit'

'SOMEBODY TAG JENNIE! JJennie_JW'

‘OMG! JJennie_JW look at this!’

‘That’s Jennie! She’s an African American member of the Korean Pop group, BTS. Check them out, they’re great!’

‘Jennie from BTS! She is a former member of Amity! She’s amazing, I’m so happy you noticed her! Her profile is JJennie_JW’

‘I love when my favs recognize each other. This is just made my morning!’

#GirlWithTheGuitar began to trend on Twitter while Shawn’s fans began to also be intrigued by who she was because they were confused as to why ARMY kept commenting about someone named ‘Jennie’ and ‘Miss Bangtan’ on his page.

Meanwhile, with Jennie, she was in Yoongi’s studio with Taehyung. She sat on one of the chairs, spinning around on it.

“Ah, you have a small pimple on your cheek.” Taehyung pointed out and giggled.

“Stop.” She tried to cover it.

“Hehehehe, it’s cute.”

“Stop talking about it.” She groaned.

“Ah, it’s just saying hi.”

“Oh my God, stop talking to it.” She laughed with him.

“I watched your V-Live this morning!”

“Oh, you did? What did you think? Too much? Too little?”

Taehyung smiled. “I loved it! You really like Shawn Mendes, don’t you? You always gush over that guy. Someone has a crush?”

“Ahaha, nah it’s not like that. I just really admire him.”

“So a big crush.”

“No!” she exclaimed as Yoongi walked in and set his bag down.

“Get out Taehyung, we’re about to work.” He called out. 

“Hey! Don’t be so mean.” Jennie scolded the Daegu rapper while Tae frowned. “Tae, don’t make that face. Ugh, see what you do, Yoongi?”

“He’ll live.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’ll hang with you later, Tae. And don’t worry, I will find a way to get you into Cypher.”

Taehyung grinned at her statement, ignoring Yoongi’s protests. After he left, Yoongi and Jen prepared their rap lessons and after a couple of hours, they took a break.

“Smartie, you may want to take a look on Twitter,” he responded, looking up at his phone.

“Something wrong?” she asked, confused, and took out her phone. 

Their notifications were blowing up like usual but something about Shawn Mendes made her stomach drop.

What about Shawn Mendes?

Was he hurt?

Was he coming out with new music?

On BTS’ profile, she realized that one of the members had retweeted his tweet, ‘Jennie, I think your fav noticed you~~ hehehe #V’

Shawn had tweeted a screenshot of her V-Live on the app, ‘BTS_twt This was so good! Wow! Thank you for covering my song &lt;;3’

She let out a scream of excitement and immediately got up from the chair, while Yoongi began laughing at her.

“Holy shi-“ she continued to look at the various screenshots that ARMY had been tagging her in and she realized that he was following her back on Instagram. 

She dropped her phone and ran out that door excitedly as the Daegu rapper’s laughter increased in volume.

His phone buzzed and he looked down to see Namjoon texting him.

Namjoon: I assume Nie Nie realized that Shawn Mendes noticed her and started screaming, running around the building?

Yoongi: As expected

A few minutes later, Jennie ran back into his studio. 

“Got it all out of your system?” she heard the rapper ask with amusement in his voice.

She wiped the tears from her eyes, trying to pull herself together as she picked up her phone. 

“Not all of it!” She responded. “Like you have no idea how big this is! This is crazy!”

She tweeted Shawn back, ‘ShawnMendes OMFG THANK UUUU! I LOVE YOU! You have no idea how much this means to me #Jen’

On her Instagram, she began to film herself for a 15-second video, “G-guys, guys, Shawn Mendes just noticed your girl. He noticed your girl, JW! Miss Bangtan! Jennie! I am on cloud nine~! Come throuuuuuugh! Thank you so much ARMY!”

She posted the video with the caption, ‘IM CRYING! Shawn really just noticed your girl! #Blessed #ThankYouARMY’

“What a kid.” Yoongi chuckled and left to go to the bathroom.

After calming down, she scrolled on Instagram to some of her fan pages that she was happily following and came across a video of The8 from Seventeen talking about her.

He had expressed his interest in meeting her when asked which idols he would like to get closer to. He also mentioned that the other members of Seventeen think she seems like an easygoing person to hang out with, eager to see her at ISAC. 

She has kept her eye on Seventeen for a while, enjoying their music. She’s heard of The8 especially and was aware that Chinese is his first language. She wanted to learn a little more Chinese to be able to speak to him.

Sure, she did not look like anyone’s ideal type around here in Korea with their beauty standards but her personality was more than enough to make her admirable with her kindness and outgoing nature. She always appreciated when other idols spoke highly of her and mentioned that she was doing well in the industry.

Once she liked the video, fans noticed quickly, commenting that she liked the post and hoped that they would meet each other.

“Smartie.”

Jennie looked up to see Yoongi walking in with a familiar face behind him. She widened her eyes and opened her mouth once she caught who was with him.

There stood her sister, Vienna, with an awkward smile on her face. 

“Hey.” she waved.

Standing up, Jennie ran up to her, wrapping her arms around her tightly. “’Enna! What are you doing here!?”

“Rap Monster let me in the building when I reached out,” she responded, pulling away while Yoongi left to give them some privacy. “I uh, came to see you and apologize. And to thank you for what you did for my tuition.”

“The hell? You couldn’t have called?”

She really flew across the country to say Sorry?

“I wanted to see you. Damn, I’m so jetlagged,” the college student exhaled and sat down. “So this is what you go through? Plane after plane? Country after country? City after city? Just to perform? And participate in other activities? Waking up early on top of that? This is...so tiring. Being on that plane for almost a day. Ugh, my acting can’t even compare. I don’t know how you do it, JW.”

Jen let out a chuckle and sat with her. “Tell me about it. My body took months to get used to living in Korea and traveling from place to place for events. I can’t even describe how exhausted my body was when I first started in BTS.”

“I see. Well, you’re still here,” Vienna smiled softly. “Look, I-I’m sorry. For everything. For all those things I said. I was just so frustrated. But there will be plenty of opportunities for me as an actress. Broadway will be in my future real soon. I just know it,"

“Hey, it’s fine. I forgive you. I'm sorry too. I love you. Even if we butt heads at times, nothing will ever change that,”

“Even after all that hurtful stuff, I said?”

“I know you didn’t mean it. Just like I didn't mean the hurtful things I said to you. We're fine."

“I’m lucky to have a little sister like you. I’m really proud of you.”

“And I'm lucky to have a big sister like you. I'm proud of you, too,” she gave her a tight hug and they stayed like that for a while. Pulling away, she asked, “So, shouldn’t you be in class?”

“Shouldn’t you mind your business?” Vienna teased as Jennie rolled her eyes

“So, how long you staying for?”

“Wow, you want to kick me out, already?”

“Well, you really should be in class.”

“You’re joking right?” Vienna stared at her in disbelief.

Jen paused before laughing. “Yeah, I’m joking! Let’s have some fun while you’re here!”

“That’s the Jennie I know.”

“So, does Alani, mom, or dad know about this? That you’re here?”

“Um...not yet.”

“As expected.”

--------

Back at the dorm, the members agreed to have a video game night of playing Super Mario Smash Bros on the Wii U. Jennie sat on the couch with Vienna, Jimin, Taehyung, and Hobi while the rest of the members sat in chairs or on the floor. Jen and Namjoon would occasionally translate to Vienna on what was going on, and the college student was eager to watch the chaos.

Creating a Twitter video, Jen spoke in her Native tongue, “ARMY, we bout to play smash bros. BTS may not be a group anymore after this. Wish us luck because friendships will be lost.”

“Let’s do this thang!” Jimin shouted in English, causing her to laugh as she stopped the video and tweeted, ‘Friendships will be lost...no hard feelings, mkay? #Jen’

For the first match, it was Jennie vs Jimin vs Namjoon vs Jin. They went to the character select menu as the epic video game music continued to play.

“Let me guess, Rosalina & Luma?” Jungkook declared.

“Damn right,” Jen replied and selected them. “I’m at my best when I use them.”

“Ahahaha, for future reference, we may have to kick some people out of Bangtan due to frustrations in this game so let’s try to have a clean and fair fight, all right?” Jin announced.

“We’re choosing the Norfair stage.” Jimin picked.

“NO!” Jen yelled.

“YES!” Namjoon yelled back

“I hate that stage! We just started playing, can we choose a more sane and civilized stage?” Miss Bangtan pleaded

“Nope! Suffer.” Namjoon laughed evilly.

Jennie shook her head in disbelief. “This is so uncharacteristic of you. I am appalled.”

3!

2!

1!

GO!

“Wait! Wait! I wasn’t ready!” Jin yelled as his character, Luigi, began to get punched around by Jimin who giggled hysterically.

Jennie decided to go on a defensive route and stay away from all the fighting until she found an opening, watching the character’s movements.

“No defensive this time, Jen Drop.” Namjoon’s character, Sonic, went right after hers as they began fighting around.

As the game went on, Jimin started laughing when his character, Yoshi, accidentally fell off the map.

“How?!” Taehyung laughed at him with Jungkook.

“It was an accident!” Jimin exclaimed

Meanwhile, Jennie managed to kick Jin off the map to eliminate him until he could respawn again.

Jin frowned. “Why, Jennie? Why would you do this? And stop taunting me, Jimin!” The oldest member yelled over their laughter.

Before they knew it, the giant lava wave began to come up to the screen while Jennie managed to kick Namjoon out of one of the safe areas so she wouldn’t get hit. But suddenly he paused the game

“Hey! We are not doing this, you can’t do that!” she shouted.

“What are you talking about!?” Namjoon shouted back, trying to look innocent.

“Stop pausing the game!” 

“I accidentally pressed pause!”

“Stop lying!”

Namjoon unpaused the game and managed to get into the safe area with her while the lava wave came through. Unfortunately for Jin, he spawned just in time for his character to get hit again, knocking him out of the match again as everyone laughed at him.

“This is how you treat the oldest?” Jin asked.

Near the end of the round, Jennie and Namjoon were the final ones in the match, with Namjoon occasionally trying to find slick ways to cheat by messing with her controller and pausing the game constantly to distract her. The lava wave in the game came once again and he managed to make her character face its wrath, to win the match.

‘GAME! The winner is! Sonic!’

“Looks like I won!” He happily announced

“What is you talkin’ about!?” Jennie yelled. “Friggin cheater!”

Next was Yoongi vs Jungkook vs Taehyung vs Namjoon, who battled each other in the Final Destination stage. After giving her controller to Taehyung, Jen watched as Jungkook used Mario to trash his opponents.

“Can you at least go easy on me!?” Namjoon exclaimed.

“I don’t think that’s happening,” Yoongi replied.

With no surprise, the Golden Maknae won the match and proceeded to take on Hobi, Taehyung, and Jimin this time. Before Jen knew it, it was her turn to play again. She ended up groaning when she watched Jungkook select Ganondorf as his character.

“Why?” She complained. “Why would you do this? I hate playing against him, he’s so damn hard!”

“Exactly why I picked him.” The Golden Maknae smirked, still proud of his winning streak. 

He had won four games straight.

She rolled her eyes and selected the Wuhu Island. As the match began, the players continued to fight around the platforms that were moving occasionally.

“Stop trying to take me out, Kook!” She attempted to evade his attacks before he could take her off the map. “I hate you, he got me struggling over here with this character.”

Unluckily for her, her character fell into the water and sank down, getting taken out as she rolled her eyes.

Hobi, playing as Ryu from Street Fighter, begins to shout, “Hadoken! Hadoken! Hadoken! Hadoken! Hadoken! Ha-“

“Shut up!” Yoongi shouted, causing him to squeal in surprise.

As the match went on, Jungkook caught Jennie with his final smash as she angrily handed the controller to Namjoon. 

“Fuck outta here!” She snapped while Jungkook laughed hysterically.

It was down to Jungkook and Hobi. The members mainly cheered on Hobi because they wanted to see Jungkook lose.

“Did he get him?! He did!” Jimin yelled when Hobi hit Jungkook with the final smash, beating him as everyone cheered.

“You sure you don’t want to play?” Jen asked Vienna.

“Why not?” She took Jungkook’s controller after Jen told him to give it to her. ”I don’t know how to play, though.”

After Jen told her the basic moves, Vienna chose Kirby to go up against Yoongi, Hobi, and Taehyung. They battled at Hyrule Castle 64 as the main theme of The Legend of Zelda played.

“W-wait stop falling off the edge of the map. Jump up! ” Jen laughed and tried to coach her sister. 

After a few moments, she continued to get the hang of it, taking out Yoongi’s Pikachu character.

“What? That connected?” Vienna asked, bewildered.

“You knocked him out of the map but the battle isn’t over yet, keep fighting.” Jen encouraged.

“That’s some disrespect, right there,” Vienna complained when her character was taken out the map by Taehyung.

“Ah, fuck this game!” Yoongi rage quit and handed the controller to Jin instead so he could take over. He got frustrated when he kept getting beaten down by everyone.

“Really, hyung?” Jimin giggled.

“He’s just a little upset.” Namjoon teased.

When Vienna suddenly realized that she won the game, beating Taehyung, she responded in shock, “Wait, I won?!”

“Good job!” Taehyung happily said, placing his hand out for her to high five him, while the rest of the members applauded her efforts.

“Thank you! Good game!” She beamed and turned to Jennie. “That was fun! You’re in good hands here. I like their vibe, up close and personal. It’s like you’re not away from family.”

Jen returned her smile and nodded. “Thanks, Vee. I agree.”

“All right, let’s play teams now,” Jimin announced.

“I call Jungkook.” Jennie declared, high fiving the Golden Maknae.

“NO!” Namjoon and Jimin shout.

“Noooooooooo~!” Taehyung and Hobi complained

“Absolutely not.” Jin shook his head

“Hell no,” Yoongi added.

“And why not?” Jungkook asked with irritation while Jennie scowled at the members’ disapproval of her choice of partner.

“No JenKook for this because you always win together. Change it up.” Namjoon demanded which caused the 97 Liners to look displeased by their demands.

“I call Jennie!” Taehyung shouted and clung to her.

“What...?” Jungkook frowned, narrowing his eyes at the 95 Liner. “How come he gets to-“

“And I call Jungkook~!” Jimin hugged him as Jungkook let out an exasperated sigh. 

Jen shot Jungkook an apologetic smile and prepared to play.

Jennie and Taehyung battle against Jin and Namjoon, easily getting a win when Jen took out both of her opponents with Rosalina & Luma’s final smash.

“No! No!” Jin complained

“OP! That is OP! So overpowered!” Namjoon shouted.

Miss Bangtan danced in victory with Tae, ignoring their protests, “Hey! Hey! Hey!”

As an hour went by, Jimin spoke, “I want to see Jungkook and Jennie battle each other.” 

His idea made the 97 Liners' interest rise as they glanced at each other.

“I’m down, are you?” Jen asked.

“Bring it on.” The Golden Maknae responded.

Jennie chose the same character while Jungkook chose Shulk. For their first battle, they chose the Gaur Plain stage as the theme played.

3!

2!

1!

GO!

As soon as the fight began, Jennie and Jungkook clashed, trying to get as many hits as possible while avoiding falling off the map. Jungkook managed to juggle Jennie up in the air with perfectly timed strikes before blasting her off the map. A confident smirk came across his lips as he waited for her character to respawn.

Jennie kept calm, making sure to keep a cool head while fighting back. Her heart began to race faster as they continued to play, aiming to win. The members watched them game keenly, with no words spoken as they watched them back and forth.

Jungkook managed to knock her off the map to win the game as she roughly ran a hand over her face.

Frustration was clear on her face for a moment before she got calm again. They played again, picking the same stage. Jen glanced at the top of the screen to see and hear, Mechanical Rhythm, playing in the background for the stage, setting the mood for a more aggressive gameplay

“And she’s getting mad.” Jungkook teased, trying to get under her skin.

Jennie decided to ignore him and remained focused. 

All that was heard was the rapid button mashing and battle cries of their characters. Once she began to continuously strike his character off the map, the Golden Maknae began to become vigilant of the direction of the battle.

'She got this,' Vienna thought as she watched her sister focus.

"See ya!" Jen lightly said once she swiftly got behind his character and kicked him straight to the sky for a finishing blow.

"Shit!" Jungkook shouted.

‘GAME!’

“YES!” she shouted, standing up and fist pumped.

“AHHHHHHHHH!” the members yelled, jumping up and down while Vienna grinned and applauded.

The winner is, Rosalina & Luma!

The Golden Maknae was visibly disappointed by his loss, remaining silent while everyone celebrated her victory.

“Final round! Who will win?” Jin laughed

“That was just luck. I let you win.” Jungkook responded.

“We’ll see about that in the final round,” Jen replied.

For the final round, they fought furiously, both equally matched. Once they saw the smash ball spawn, they aimed to hit it. She managed to destroy the smash ball just before him and caught him in Rosalina’s final smash. She watched as Luma expanded bigger and started to repeatedly attack Jungkook’s character, boosting up his percentage rate and then he was blasted out of the map

GAME!

“WOO!” She jumped up.

“OH MAH GOD!” Jimin yelled while the rest of the members started yelling and jumping up and down with her

“She beat Jungkook!” Jin celebrated

Jungkook placed his controller down and huffed, displeased at his loss while some of the members teased him by shaking him while laughing at him. 

Jennie took a seat right next to him on the carpet with her phone in her hand. She took a victory selfie with a bright smile on her face with an annoyed Jungkook in the background. 

She tweeted, ‘#Bodied’

Standing up, Jungkook grabbed a pillow and tossed it across the room before going straight to his room while everyone continued laughing

“Ahahahahaha! Yooooooo! He tossed the pillow!” Vienna cackled. “He’s so mad.”

After another hour of gaming, everyone decided to head off to bed. Jennie let Vienna sleep in her bed while she took a visit to Jungkook’s room, wondering if he was still upset that he lost. She’d be feeling the same way since they both enjoy winning.

Who doesn’t like to win?

Shutting his door after walking inside, she saw him sulking while playing on his phone. He was still feeling bitter about the loss.

“So, we not friends, now?” she teased and took a seat on his bed. 

Instead of replying, he ignored her and placed the covers over himself.

“I hope you know that won’t get rid of me.” she grabbed his covers and got in the bed with him, facing his back. He sighed and tried to move away but she moved against him, hugging him from behind. “We still not friends?”

Ignored again.

She suddenly pressed her soft lips to his cheek, taking him by surprise. 

“How about now?” she asked but didn't get a response. 

The Golden Maknae felt his cheeks warm up but he continued to be stubborn while pondering if she’d kiss him, again. Seconds later, he felt those lips against his cheek repeatedly.

“Now?” She asked again.

Kiss.

“Now?”

Kiss.

“How about now?”

Kiss.

“Now?”

Kiss.

“Now?”

Kiss.

“What about now?”

Kiss.

“How about now?”

Kiss.

“Now?”

It was getting harder to ignore her as he was greeted by her kisses all over his face. He was losing the battle in fighting the big grin appearing on his face.

“I see that smile! Now answer, we still friends?” she spoke and he tried to ignore her again. “I’ll stay here all night if I have to. I guess I have to be the big spoon, so be it. So, we still not friends? I know you hear me.”

She laughed, snuggling up against him tightly as he started forgetting about his anger from losing the game.

Jungkook sighed and turned around, wrapping an arm around her to bring her to his chest. 

“I can’t stay mad at you...” He grumbled.

“Good. Now good night.” She snuggled against him.

“Y-you’re staying?”

“And having to deal with Vienna’s wild sleeping? I think not. Besides I like sleeping with you. You’re so warm and comfortable. Like a friggin human heater. Unless you want me to leave-“

“Stay, please,”

The next morning, Jungkook woke up with Jennie sleeping on his chest. He briefly watched her sleep and smiled. He pondered what it’d be like to wake up to this every day if they were a couple. Good morning kisses were guaranteed as well as him trying to make her stay in bed with him.

Gently moving her, he got out of bed and placed the covers on her. Stretching his arms, he headed out of the room, noticing that Jin already made breakfast because of the smell of food. Saying their good mornings, Jungkook grabbed a plate and took it back to his room, placing it on his nightstand for Jen to eat.

When he went back into the kitchen, he noticed Vienna sitting by the table, eating with Jin while trying to speak English with him.

Vienna noticed Jungkook and smiled warmly. 

“Hey. Morning.” she greeted while Jin went to make plates for the members when they woke up.

“Good morning!” Jungkook greeted while smiling shyly.

She typed something in her phone and slid it to him. He looked at it and it read, ‘Sorry for the language barrier. I don’t know Korean but found this app to help translate. I’ll cut right to the chase. There’s been a question I’ve been wanting to ask you since I met you. You like my sister, don’t you?’

He looked up, surprised, and averted his eyes, looking shy. 

That immediately gave her an answer.

She chuckled and typed something else on her phone before sliding it back to him.

‘I’m not angry. I’m happy. I love my sister and I would do anything for her. And watching you...I see that your feelings are genuine and that you deeply care for her. You’ll make a cute couple. You have my full support. :)’

He read and looked up, nodding. “Th-thank you.” He responded softly.

“You’re welcome,” she replied and went back to eating.

After breakfast, Jennie and Vienna hang out in Seoul to bond. When they were shopping at a local store, Jen had found an emoji head and tried it on. 

Vienna thought it was funny and took a photo, posting it on her Instagram with the caption, ‘My heart &lt;;3’

Not long after, Alani facetimed Vienna. “Oh gosh, I guess she saw the post.” Vienna laughed and accepted the call. 

The screen revealed Alani shaking her head while Jennie popped up next to Vienna, waving.

“Yo, I hate y’all...skipping class, Vienna? Leaving ME to present our project!?” Alani yelled. “Ima kill you when you come back! Are you kidding me!?”

“Wait you left Alani with your project?” Jen exclaimed

“Well...I mean...I did my part.” Vienna grinned sheepishly

“Yes, this girl left me to present alone!” Alani yelled angrily.

“It’s good practice for what you want to do.” Vienna shrugged. “Don’t be a snitch and tell mom or dad. I’ll be home soon.”

“I cannot believe you! I could’ve gone with you!”

Jen was surprised by her statement while Vienna laughed. “That wasn’t what I was expecting.” 

"Hey! I can be rebellious, too!" Alani exclaimed. 

------

Later that day, an African American female college student hung around Dunkin Donuts, filming a vlog for her YouTube channel. She was with two of her American friends, a guy and another girl, who sipped on their coffee, eating breakfast sandwiches.

“Hey guys, we are back with another video. It is day 3 of us being in Seoul, and we’re here eating Dunkin Donuts. Say hi!” she panned the camera to her friends and they rambled about their excitement for their upcoming semester of studying abroad.

While her friends were talking, she turned to do more people watching but froze when she noticed Jennie.

“Wait a minute is that-oh my God, guys, I think that’s Jennie from BTS.,” she said quickly with a whisper. She panned her camera to Miss Bangtan and Vienna who were waiting for their order. “What the heck is she doing here!?”

Her two friends widened their eyes and covered their mouths. 

“Holy sh-no way is that really her?” her female friend exclaimed as their hearts started racing.

“Guys, we are in the same building as Miss Bangtan, how great is this?” her guy friend responded.

“Should we say hi?” the Youtuber pondered.

“No! We should be respectful.” Her female friend disapproved.

“And miss an opportunity to say hey to our favorite K-pop idol? Hell no, I want to say hi. We’re not screaming in her face or anything.” her male friend said.

“I dunno...should we?” the Youtuber wondered.

“We should do it.”

“Won’t it be rude?”

“Yelling and screaming in excitement in her face is. But as long as we’re not too crazy, I honestly don’t see what the problem is with approaching your favorite idol.”

“Jennie looks so mad though, should we approach her?” the female friend added.

“Remember that Jen always says that she has a resting bitch face?” the Youtuber brought up.

“True...”

The Youtuber handed her friends the camera and she got out of her seat, making her way to Jennie. Butterflies were in her stomach as she inched closer to her idol. She even went over what she planned to say in her head.

When the Youtuber watched Jennie and Vienna turn around, she froze as she locked eyes with Miss Bangtan. 

“Um-I uh, annyeongh-hello-haseyo-um-i uh-hi.” She stuttered, trying to say hello.

“Hi.” Jennie let out a chuckle. “You good, girl?”

“I can’t even speak, right now. If I can’t even speak in my own language, what makes me think I can speak in Korean?” the fan sighed. “I’m sorry, I just wanted to say hi, I can’t believe you are in front of me. I’m trying to create a Vlog for YouTube and then you showed up, throwing me off guard with your beauty and I’m just embarrassing myself in front of you.”

“Awww thank you! You don’t have to be so nervous. You’re fine! I encourage fans to say hi!” Jen reassured while the girl’s two friends appeared next to her, nervously saying hi. “How are you guys? You eat this morning?”

“Yes, we did. We’re college students. Studying abroad.”

“Wow, really? When did you come to Korea?” 

“A few days before to know our surroundings until it’s time for the Fall semester to start.”

“Wow, enjoy it to the fullest. I always hear that some people want to get closer to their favorite K-Pop idols and all while being here but still take time to learn the culture and go sightseeing. Learn the history and even more of the language. It’s a beautiful place and South Korea isn’t just about K-Pop, you feel me?”

“Definitely. You inspired me to study abroad here. I was always nervous to step out of my comfort zone and go to another country. But when you did it, especially at a young age, away from family, it motivated me. This is my second time studying abroad. I went to Spain last summer. I’m glad I did it, I’m learning a lot about myself and trying new things. Now I’m a senior in college, here in Seoul.”

“Wow, that means so much to me. It’s good to get out there, you will learn a lot. I always think it’s fascinating to learn about other cultures. Especially the food, that’s always a plus. Do you know some Korean?”

“Only the basics.” the YouTuber’s female friend responded while their guy friend agreed.

“I’m at an intermediate level but I’m so nervous to be in front of you, I couldn’t show you my Korean skills or even speak in proper English.” the Youtuber responded which made Jennie laugh at the way she said her statement.

“We managed to grab seats for ISAC, too!” the male friend beamed

“No way, for real? That’s dope. Make sure you cheer on Bangtan.”

After she took photos with the three students and did a quick shoutout when being filmed for the vlog, Jennie offered them some of her munchkins and wrote encouraging messages on their notebooks with an autograph.

‘Don’t stay in your dorm during your semester. Go out, take the train and travel around South Korea!’

‘This is a great experience to learn more about yourself and another country’s culture. Enjoy every second of it and have a blast.‘

‘Cherish the people you meet along your journey here in Seoul. Learn something new while you are here.’

-----

Just before the ISAC event, Big Hit released a Bangtan Bomb called, ‘Training Smartie for ISAC 2015’

The video contained multiple clips of the members overexaggerating and eagerly yelling words of encouragement while training her.

As she lifted weights, the members would yell encouraging words such as, “Let’s go smartie!”, “Let’s go! Feel the power!”, “Believe in the power!” and she managed not to laugh at their yells as they jumped up and down.

For a bonus clip, Jennie was seated at the table with Suga and Jungkook next to her. She began eating a big plate of Lamb Skewers while Suga and Jungkook cheered her on.

“Eat!”

“You got this! You got this!”

“Chew it well!”

“You must eat well for wrestling!”

--------

On the day of the event, Bangtan arrived, already in their assigned outfits while Vienna walked with Jennie.

“I don’t know what the hell is going on. What are they saying? And why do they keep staring? It’s starting to piss me off-excuse me don’t touch my hair!” Vienna exclaimed.

Jennie cringed and pulled her away. She turned to one of the staff members and bowed slightly. 

“Please don’t touch our hair without our permission. It’s rude, all right?” she responded in Korean.

“Is that your real hair?” the staff member asked.

“Yes. It is our natural, real hair,” she responded as they looked amazed and confused.

As the two sisters walked away, Vienna mentioned, “I don’t want no one looking at me cross-eyed. It’s rude to stare.”

“I mean...you’ll get used to it. It can be annoying,"

Around 300 idols made of ten teams were participating today and it was packed with various fandoms supporting their favorite groups. Once Jennie escorted Vienna to sit with the Big Hit staff on the seats, she waited for the event to start.

She stood with Bangtan backstage, waiting for their team to be called out so they could walk out.

“Now the players are entering.” The commentators announced.

“Team Female-vengers: Kara, Rainbow, Dal shabet, EXID, Minx, GFriend.” was the second team announced.

“Ah, Hayoon~.” Jennie beamed when she saw her happily walk out with G-Friend.

“How you feeling?” Rapmon stood next to her.

“Nervous but excited too. I really hope I do well in these two games. Wrestling and volleyball? I trained as hard as I could for this. I have a great feeling about this ISAC.”

“You’ll make Bangtan proud no matter what happens. Just keep a cool head and remember what we told you.”

“Ditto.”

“Team Who’s your boss: Noel, Wonder Girls, Jeong Jinwoon, Changmin, Lee Hyun, MissA, Baek A-yeon, BTS, Bestie, GOT7.” was announced next as they walked out. 

BTS walked out with big smiles on their faces, while Jennie looked on amazed at how many people showed up this time.

On the electronic display, it showed various idols. When it showed Jennie, who wasn’t aware that she was shown at first, ARMY screamed loud and proud. Jin nudged her and pointed up at the screen. She looked up and widened her eyes, chuckling before waving.

The fact that she was on the same team as Wonder Girls was astounding and she was even on a volleyball team with two of the members. It’ll be a great experience.

After saying the oath, the event started with Women’s Ssireum. There were teams consisting of three members and they played the best out of three. The time of play is one minute and 30 seconds. Jennie was teamed up with Baek A-Yeon and Haeryung from Bestie. They were stretching together and talking strategy.

For the preliminaries, Kyoungri from Nine Muses went up against Hyerin from EXID for the first match. Jennie was standing around with Bangtan, focused as she watched them closely.

“Breathe,” Namjoon said encouragingly behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Don’t be discouraged. They’re not ready for Miss Bangtan.”

“Thanks.” she smiled and they took a seat.

Jungkook sat next to her as they watched closely at the two wrestling. Hyerin had attacked by effortlessly using her feet to trip Kyoungri down in 2.06 seconds.

“You see how she goes for the legs?” Jungkook pointed out. “She aims to trip her opponents. Watch your feet if you go up against her.”

“All right,” she responded.

“Do all that you can to stay on your feet. When you see an opening go for the takedown,”

Throughout the entire round of Nine Muses and EXID, Jungkook pointed some stuff out to pay attention to, mentioning strategies on how to take on the girls. Fansites that attended ISAC, filmed the BTS members and updated their Twitter accounts on what was going on. Once they snapped a photo of JenKook watching closely, with Jungkook whispering strategy in her ear, they tweeted the photos with the caption, ‘Mentor and student. JenKook look focused!’

Fans would immediately tweet,

‘97Liners, I ship!'

'If he whispered in my ear, I would’ve DIED! How can she just sit there so calm?'

'Jungkook is such a great mentor!'

'There is no way she was that calm when you have the golden Maknae whispering in your ear’

'He was probably giving her advice on the wrestling. Y'all thirsty! It ain’t that deep!’

Matches such as Girl's Day vs AOA, Apink vs Red Velvet, Tara vs Secret, and Mamamoo vs Sistar occurred until it was time for Jen’s team to go up against G-Friend. AOA, APink, T-ara, Nine Muses and Mamamoo all advanced to the semi round and it was down to either G-Friend or Bestie/Baek A-Yeon & Jennie. Umji, Eunha, and Yerin represented G-Friend in this match.

“First we have the plucky Miss Bangtan representing BTS and is teaming up with Baek A-Yeon and Haeryung. Last year, she had a running relay and fell down.” the commentators recapped, showing her falling on the screen.

The sight of her falling, caused Jen to roll her eyes, seeming irritated at the sight. They were doing her dirty because she fell. It was over and done with. 

“They really bringing up this crap again?” she grumbled under her breath, shaking her head.

She stepped up on the platform while Yerin waited for her with a bright smile since they were great friends. The two winked at each other before giggling.

“Go, Jennie! Go, Yerin!” Hayoon, along with the other G-Friend members cheered. 

Jen exhaled and glanced at Jungkook who gave her a reassuring smile.

“You got this. Remember what I told you,” he mouthed and she responded with a curt nod and turned back to Yerin.

The two of them bowed to each other and positioned themselves while kneeling.

“JENNNIEEEEEEEEEEE~!” Jimin yelled with Taehyung, applauding.

“Munchkin! Munchkin! Munchkin!” Hobi chanted while Rapmon and Suga laughed with one another, feeling second-hand embarrassment.

“Miss Bangtan has quite the fanboys, it seems. Who will win? Jennie or Yerin?” the announcers wondered.

Once the whistle blew, Jennie immediately used her strength to lift Yerin high in the air and slammed her down on the mat. 

Jungkook slapped his hands together and stood up with a big grin on his face, fist pumping.

“Yes!” he yelled.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!” Bangtan jumped up, applauding her victory while ARMY and the rest of Bangtan supporters began screaming for her.

Yerin started laughing, covering her face while Jennie helped her up. 

“You all right, sis?” she hugged her.

“Yes, I’m fine. You’re so strong.” Yerin giggled.

“Wow! That power!” the commentators exclaimed as they went to a slow-motion replay. “The strength of Miss Bangtan should not be underestimated!”

“Winner! BTS’ Jennie!” was announced as male idols watched the performance, surprised and mesmerized. 

Some were whispering to themselves about her and smirking in approval.

“Atta girl!” Zico from Block B, shouted, cheering her on with the rest of the Block B members.

GOT7 also became her cheerleaders as Bam Bam stared at her with heart eyes, placing a hand over her heart. 

“I think I’m in love,” Bam Bam mentioned to Jackson, who cackled at him, slapping his arm.

As the fansites filmed videos and posted it on their social media, as fans commented,

‘Some of the boys look pleased’

'So who is gonna be the next idol to speak on how much they admire Jen? Cause some of them are staring hard af and I'm here for it'

‘Hahaha some of the guys look like they wanna marry her’

‘Bam Bam watching with that pleased look on his face, ahahah.’

‘Sexy, beautiful and powerful! Go gurl!

‘She FLEW HER DOWN! DAMN’

‘The girls’ faces hahaha they look so scared to face her now’

‘Look at her face in the beginning! She looked like, “Oh shit, I’m dead.’

‘I’m ready to see Jennie at Wrestlemania now.’

‘She took that so seriously ahaha.’

‘Can Jennie throw me like that too!?’

‘Force to be reckoned with! She didn’t come to play! She definitely redeemed herself from last time.’

‘How did she get so strong!? OMG Jungkook what have you been teaching her!?’

‘Flipped her like pancakes. Didn’t even last two seconds!’

‘She-she just picked her up and slammed her down in 2.0 seconds!’

‘I blinked and Yerin was on the mat. What happened!?’

‘I love how the guys are smiling so hard.’

‘That Captain America strength right there! Miss Bangtan 100%! Represent us!’

Jennie was smiling brightly at the cheers and applauds for her efforts as she bowed and waved. 

After leaving the mat, Hayoon ran up to her to hug her. “That was amazing!” she said and started giving her repeated kisses on her cheek.

After speaking with G-Friend, Jennie went back to Bangtan who had given her high fives and compliments such as, “Well done.” And “You’ve worked hard.”

“You did it!” Jungkook high fived her and pulled her to his chest for a warm hug.

“We did it.” she corrected him as she wrapped her arms around his back. The rest of the members joined in for a group hug before sitting back down to watch the rest of her team wrestle.

She cheered on Baek A-Yeon as she went up against Umji and managed to slam her down on the mat to make her team advance to the semi-round. 

“Yeah!” Jennie jumped up and ran up to Baek A-Yeon with Haeryung to celebrate their advancement.

As the last round started, Jennie sat back down with Taehyung wrapping his arms around her from behind, sitting behind her. Jimin sat in front of her, laying his back between her legs while Jungkook hugged Taehyung from behind.

They watched as Baek A-Yeon went up against Sung-a from Nine Muses and lost the match when she was slammed down. 

Jennie stood up and walked to the mat, preparing to wrestle Sojin. They bowed to each other and got in position.

As soon as the whistle blew, Sojin tried to catch her off guard by going after her legs but Jennie stood her ground and lifted her up to slam her down within five seconds.

“Sorry.” Jennie grinned and helped her up while Sojin reassured her that she was fine.

The fansites had filmed Jungkook smiling proudly and in the end, Jen’s team had won a Bronze medal for their efforts when Haeryung fell short against her opponent. After they received their bronze medals, Haeryung began to cry. 

“Wait, why are you crying?” Jennie went to console her with Baek A-Yeon.

“I let the team down. I’m sorry,” she responded, sadly.

“Hey, you did not let us down. We tried our best and we had fun. Thank you for your hard work. You’ve done well, girl. Don't even worry about it.” she reassured her, wiping her tears as the fansites filmed their conversation.

The three ladies join in for a group hug, thanking each other for a job well done for wrestling.

When the interaction was posted on Twitter, people praised Jennie's kindness and sportsmanship.

While soccer began, Jennie chilled with Bangtan, taking out her bun. Before she prepared to fix it, Taehyung grabbed her hair tie and got behind her, fixing her bun for her. She was surprised at how delicate he was to not hurt her. He placed her hair in a high bun and got in front of her to place a strand of curls on each side. Once he was done, he patted her head and smiled.

She took out her phone and checked it out. “This looks really good, Tae.”

Wandering around after catching up with some idol friends, Jennie decided to finally approach The8, greeting him in Chinese. 

“I only know a little bit of Chinese but I will try to learn more so there can be less of a language barrier between us.” her Chinese was broken but he smiled at her efforts and managed to understand her clearly.

‘Wow...handsome.” he responded in English which caused her to chuckle

“Beautiful.” she corrected.

“Sorry, sorry.” he bowed, feeling embarrassed.

“It’s all right. Can you recommend me some Chinese dishes I should try? I love Chinese food.” 

“Yes, of course!” he started naming some of his favorite dishes. 

As they spoke, Joshua approached them and greeted them.

“Hey! Great job on the wrestling.” Joshua said in English.

“Oh, thank you! I had a blast. You’re Joshua, right?”

“Yeah, it’s nice to finally meet Miss Bangtan. I’m actually from Los Angeles.”

“Ah, west coast. I’m from the east. East side is better just so you know.” she teased and they shared a laugh. “The both of you two are so cute.” she pointed at the both of them.

“You’re cute, too. The8 is really fond of you. He always talks about how kind and hardworking you are.” he gestured while The8 was looking at them back and forth, confused since they were speaking in English.

“I saw the video. It always gives me a giddy feeling when people tell me that. It makes me feel really good. Hey, can I have your Kakao Talk?”

“Yeah, of course.” he took out his phone

“I want your Kakao Talk too, The8.” she gestured to him and he took out his phone. 

After getting each other's Kakao Talk, Jennie continued to bring The8 into their conversation.

“Joshua also plays the guitar. We saw your V-Live. You were great.” The8 smiled.

“Really? Thank you! Oh gosh, I feel so embarrassed, I didn’t think some idols would watch it too.” she responded.

As she continued to wander around, she even met Yeeun from CLC, remembering that Yeeun was eager to meet her. They compared their classes for the upcoming school year and noticed that they’ll be sharing a few classes together. They will definitely have more time to hang out and get to know each other.

Throughout the event, Hayoon would cling to Jennie, hugging her from behind, while she laughed.

“Why are you affectionate, today? You must want something.” she assumed, since last time she wanted some of her smarties.

“No, I’m just happy to see you. I haven’t seen you in a while.” Hayoon replied.

While she was being hugged, Jennie would look around at the crowd and noticed fans wearing USA clothing and waving American flags to represent her. She smiled and pointed them out, feeling even more good about herself. She even spotted Vienna in the crowd and waved, blowing kisses.

“LOVE YOU!” Vienna shouted from her seat. The college student noticed some ARMY trying to get her attention. “I don’t speak Korean but it looks like you want to take a selfie, so sure.” she gestured for them to give her their phones.

Jennie and Jimin migrated to the basketball court to support Suga who was currently warming up for the basketball finals match. Jimin and Jennie were standing where the staff seats were while she took photos on her phone.

“Suga got this in the bag. He should be fine.” Jennie said.

“Yes!” Jimin praised when they watched Suga make a shot in the basket while practicing.

When the game started, Jennie and Jimin became cheerleaders for the Daegu rapper.

“MIN YOONGI~!” Jimin shouted. “Lee Changmin! Jung Jinwoon! Lee Hyun-hyungnim!”

“WOO HOOOOOOOOO! YEAH!” Jennie shouted. “YOU GOT THIS FAM! I SEE YOU BOO, I SEE YOU!”

Suga had put his head down, while his teammates started laughing at their enthusiasm for their groupmate.

Due to their heated cheers, Jimin and Jennie sat on the sidelines to watch the game. Every time Suga’s team made a shot, Jimin and Jennie would jump up from their seats and cheer.

“That’s my Suga!” Jennie shouted proudly, happily applauding. “I am a proud little sister!”

“Yoon! Gi! Yoon! Gi! Yoon! Gi! Yoon! Gi!” Jennie and Jimin chanted as the game progressed.

Yoongi’s team ended up winning and earning gold medals.

Before Jennie knew it, it was time for Volleyball as she stood backstage with the stylists, preparing her outfit. She wore a long sleeve shirt and black shorts with knee pads. When Jennie put on the shorts, she noticed they were a bit too small.

“Ah...I told you to get a bigger size. My ass is bigger than you Korean women. And I have wider hips.” she exclaimed while the stylists giggled.

“We came prepared, don’t worry.” 

They brought in a backup pair which fit much better. She checked out her outfit in the mirror and turned around to look at her behind. 

“All right, it’s covering up everything. Ah, I’m freaking out.” Jennie rambled.

When she was all dressed up, she walked to the gym, where the volleyball court was already put up. She gathered around the members as they helped prepare her.

“Ready, sweetie?” Jin smiled.

“A little nervous.”

“You’ll be just fine.” Yoongi patted her on the back

Taehyung gave her water while Jimin began massaging her shoulders to help her relax.

“I have the tape.” Namjoon brought up and grabbed one of her hands while Hobi grabbed her other hand to start taping her fingers.

“Remember, be careful, spike some balls and win.” Jungkook reminded her. “Use your golden defense skills.”

“I’ll be sure to do that and more.” she nodded.

Hobi cupped her face, pressing his lips to her forehead. He smiled softly, “You got this, Jennie! Show those ladies why Bangtan is great!”

She nodded and started to grin, high fiving each member before walking up to the court to meet with her teammates.

Representing Team Who’s The Boss, Jennie teamed with Baek A-Yeon, Hyelim & Yubin from Wonder Girls and Min and Suzy from Miss A. Their opponents were from Team the Return of The King which consisted of Hyuna & Gayoon from 4Minute, Yeeun & Seunghee from CLC, and Hayoung and Naeyun from APink.

“Here we are! This is the first time we are having a volleyball event at ISAC. Miss Bangtan will be starting to serve, representing Team Who’s the Boss.” The commentators mentioned over the roaring cheers of the audience.

Jennie exhaled sharply, as her heart raced while having the ball in her hands. 

‘I can do this...’ she gave herself words of encouragement. 

Just before she could serve, she heard loud screaming.

“JENNNNNNNNNNIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEE~! You Got this!! Goooooooo

Jennnnnnnniiiieeeeeeeee~!”

The screaming caught her by surprise and she turned around sharply to see Jimin, J-Hope, and Yoongi hollering for her. Rap Monster had facepalmed, shaking his head while Jin and Jungkook were giggling, clapping to themselves.

Her teammates began giggling at her enthusiastic group members and thought it was cute that they were cheering her on. 

Jennie had let out a loud laugh and blew some kisses at Bangtan before turning back to her opponents.

“GO JENNIE!” another scream caught her by surprise but this time it was actually from Hayoon who was standing on the sidelines with the rest of GFriend, cheering her on. 

She had shyly looked down after screaming so loudly but Jennie had appreciated her cheers.

‘Okay...let’s do this.’ she began bouncing the volleyball by slapping it with her palm as it hit the ground then back to her palm, numerous times. 

The loud sound began to intimidate her opponents as they tried to get ready.

Raising the ball in the air, she jumped up high for a powerful spike. The ball ended up hitting the ground on the other side before the opposing team could hit it and Jennie earned a point for her team. Loud screams from ARMY were heard around the arena while some watched, stunned at the spike.

“YES! That is my child! I raised her! That is my beautiful little girl!” Jin yelled happily.

“WOOOOOOO! ATTA GIRL!” Namjoon shouted. 

A proud smile came across Jungkook’s lips as he nodded in approval, applauding her efforts. 'That's my Jennie,' he thought proudly.

“Whaaaaaaa, what a powerful strike from Jennie of BTS! Wow!” the commentators went on.

She was surprised as her teammates went to hug her. “I can’t believe I got that.” she started laughing while Yubin and Hyelim smiled sweetly, patting her on the back.

The game progressed with Bangtan watching closely as they saw the concentration in her eyes. They admired her efforts because she truly had worked hard. Jen soared with her defensive skills as she effortlessly blocked the ball, which caused some of her opponents to get annoyed that they couldn’t get a point.

“Ah, Jennie, stop blocking my spikes!” Hyuna whined.

“Not sorry.” Jennie replied with a grin.

“Are you seeing this!? Are you seeing this!?” Taehyung grabbed onto Jimin and started shaking him. “She keeps blocking the ball! They’re gonna win!”

“WOOOOO! Go, Jen!” Jackson, Bam Bam and Mark became some of her hypemen throughout the match.

Jen’s forearms began to sting from the constant hitting of the ball as the game went on. Her team was well in the lead, thanks to Yubin and Suzy soaring in setting the ball for their teammates to spike, Hyelim being great at passing the ball to her teammates and Baek A-Yeon specializing in spiking with Min. Jennie had made sure to jump up and throw her hands up to block the ball whenever she could with her teammates, which helped tremendously in the game.

"Miss Bangtan's defense is dangerous," the commentators pointed out at how effortless she made blocking for her team.

Once Hayoung served the ball, Hyelim managed to hit the ball, passing it to Suzy who managed to hit the ball over the net. Yeeun dove down, hitting the ball as she connected with the floor while Gayoon passed the ball to Naeyun. Naeyun spiked the ball and Min hit the ball back. Yubin and Baek A-Yeon watched it fly near them and Baek A-Yeon managed to set the ball. 

“All yours, Jennie!” she gestured as Miss Bangtan jumped up and spiked the ball across the court.

Once they saw that the ball hit the floor before their opponents could hit it, they happily yelled in excitement.

“YES!” Jen screamed and fist pumped over the loud cheers and screams from the crowd. 

She started jumping up and down while her teammates threw themselves at her, and they all fell to the floor while hugging. When they got back on their feet, they celebrated all around the arena while Jen did aerial cartwheels around the arena in celebration.

Bangtan started laughing wholeheartedly that she still had the energy to jump and cartwheel around. They immediately ran down to the volleyball court to celebrate with her. J-Hope picked her up over his shoulders and ran around with Bangtan as they all cheered and celebrated. 

"Jennie! Jennie! Jennie!" The boys chanted.

The volleyball team received gold medals for their efforts. When the team was interviewed, Jennie thanked her teammates for working so hard to be victorious and praised them for their hard work. She had a blast with them and hopes volleyball continues to be an event in ISAC.

Meanwhile, Bam Bam had been watching her, smitten by her athleticism in the volleyball game. After some pep talk from Jackson, he finally decided to approach her, bringing a water and towel for her to wipe her sweaty face.

“Have you played volleyball, before?” he asked.

“I kid you not, this was my first actual game.”

“Wow, well you need to teach me some time because you were amazing out there.”

With the Maknae Line, Jimin was on alert when he noticed that Bam Bam was starting to flirt with her as she had covered her mouth while giggling and shyly averting her eyes. Once he nudged Taehyung and Jungkook to point out what was going on, Jungkook shot Bam Bam a sharp stare.

“All right, relax, he still has a dating ban so we should be okay,” Taehyung reassured.

“I hope so,” Jungkook grumbled.

Going backstage, Jen had Namjoon snap a photo of herself with her arms outstretched and a proud smile on her face. 

She tweets, ‘I came, I slayed, I conquered. Getting 1st place at ISAC feels so good. We winning! Yay us! #BlackGirlMagic #DidntTripThisTime #JEN’

For the final event, which was the final of Men's 400m relay, Jennie approached Jungkook from behind, placing a hand on his shoulder while smiling. “You ready?”

“I hope so. I really want to win.” he tilted his head to the side.

“You’ll do well. I’ll be waiting for you at the finish line, Golden Maknae,” she reassured him.

Those words motivated him to do well. Running and passing the finish line, to see her there, cheering him on. It brought a smile to his face.

Seventeen, B1A4, Teen Top, and BTS were the teams going up against each other. Jennie stood on the sidelines with GFriend and Yeeun.

“Let’s go Jimin!” Jennie shouted, clapping as her heart began to race. 

Once the idols started running, the arena started screaming. Jimin passed his stick to Taehyung as he dashed in his line tailing behind Sandeul from B1A4. 

“You got this Tae!” she began jumping up and down with GFriend and Yeeun.

Once Tae passed the stick to Hobi, he ran behind Jinyeong, before passing it to the last runner, which was Jungkook.

Soon as Jungkook zoomed past, everyone, he created a big gap as he aimed for the finish line. 

“Yes!” she happily yelled, continuing to watch him run. 

She started to migrate near the finish line, waiting for him to finish. ARMY began screaming as soon as Jungkook ran through the finish line. 

“The last runner from BTS is so amazing!” the commentators exclaimed while Rapmon and Jimin ran after him.

Jungkook kept running until he saw Jennie happily running towards him. He ran up to her and embraced her, rejoicing in his victory

“Ahhhh I’m so proud of you!” she wrapped her arms around his neck. 

They both felt a collision when Jimin, Rapmon, and Tae ran over, joining in the hug and they ended up tumbling onto the floor as the rest of the members joined in, laughing.

Yeeun ended up giggling with GFriend. “Ah, Jungkook and Jennie are so cute~!”

“I know! He looks so happy, too.” Eunha added with a smile.

“I haven’t told Jennie but I really ship her with Jungkook. Don’t you agree?” Hayoon asked.

“I know me too. I bet we’re not the only ones” SinB mentioned as they all agreed.

--------

A few days later, Jennie sat in her little studio at Big Hit with her camera videotaping her live for another V-Live. She sat in her chair, spinning around, while the views continued to multiply. She always had her V-Lives in English, enjoying speaking her primary language. But also tended to accommodate those who wanted to hear some Korean and Japanese. Some even asked for Chinese although she was still learning and needed work on it.

After a few moments and checked out the screen and waved. “What up, what up??” she smiled.

‘BABE!’

‘Hiiiiii’

‘ahhh I love you so much!’

‘Love u JW!’

“Welcome to the Smartie Factory!” she presented. “My own little studio, haha. Just like Suga, J-Hope, and Rapmon. This is where I create my covers and work on my music. Let me give you a tour.” she took the camera and showed off the computer. “So, this is where I have all my music on. I recently transferred my stuff from my laptop. I had this studio for a few months now and finally have the chance to show it off. Remember all the stuffed animals I received on White Day? Ahahaha, they’re all happily here to cheer me on while I work.” 

After showing everything, she set it back down on the desk while she sat and faced the camera.

“Sadly, there are no Smarties, right now, I ate them all. I’m so upset, I just had some yesterday. Sometimes I think the guys steal some of my smarties because there is just no way in the world I don’t have any left.”

‘How was ISAC?’

‘I saw videos of you at ISAC! You did great!’

‘You killed it at ISAC!’

“Yes, ISAC was sooooo fun! Mad fun! I had a great time, a better time than last year. At least I didn’t fall! I was so annoyed when they kept bringing up me falling last year. Just let it go, you know?” She continued to read the comments.

“Hahaha you say that some guys were looking at me? Who? Let me know the tea.” she spoke eagerly with amusement. “And yeah, I did meet more people! I finally got to meet some Seventeen members. They’re mad cool. The8 is very kind and cute. He accidentally called me handsome when he meant to say beautiful. I am trying to learn more Chinese so I can speak with him more and also to speak with more of our Chinese ARMY. I want to be able to communicate with you all without much of a language barrier. So please bear with me. I’ll be learning. You know, I get a kick out of my friends getting so confused when I speak English. And even Korean. It’s funny to see their reaction. I feel that way too when I’m not familiar with a language.”

‘The black community is so proud of you’

‘I love your self-determination’

“Well, I’m very proud that I’m representing the black community up here.” she beamed while reading the comments.

‘Did you see a lot of ARMY at ISAC?’

“Yeah, I did see a lot of ARMY at ISAC. I even saw some of you wear some USA merch. That was really cool of you to do that. I ran into some lucky ARMY after the show. Please don’t be so nervous to talk to me. I’m just a normal person just like you, just more known for her talents, that’s all. Like say hey, I’ll say hey back. While on Tumblr, I read that our supporters would probably die or pass out or wouldn’t be able to talk in front of their favorite idols. But I don’t want to miss an opportunity to meet my passionate supporters, so please don’t feel that way. I’m human, let’s have a brief conversation and chill.”

“Oh! For a while now, I was making some of my own music,” she added. “But lately I kind of got a little discouraged. I won’t scrap it, I’ll just leave it on my computer until I find the motivation to work on it again. My goals are to create music for myself one day and release it for you.”

‘Release it!’

‘Please release it!’

‘Don’t tease us like that’

‘Do I need to fly to Korea? Release it!’

She smiled softly. “One day I’ll release it. I want to rerecord everything though. My vocals are improving, so that’s good. I had this notebook and...” she trailed off

She remembered her young self, back in Amity, constantly writing a couple of songs in her notebook. Back when the other members were getting called out to work on their solo songs. Excited and eager she was, patiently waiting for her time to share a song that she wrote. She kept the notebook to herself and didn’t tell anyone.

When Hailey found out, she wanted to use Jen’s written songs for Amity’s next album but Jen refused because she couldn’t just give songs so personal away like that. It caused more of a rift in her relationship with the group.

But before Jen knew it, she had lost the notebook right before she left the group and hadn’t seen it ever since. But then recently, with Amity’s new album out to help promote their world tour, Jen noticed that some of those songs on their album were the songs she had written in her notebook. Crazy enough, some songs were tweaked for a more sexual tone and sadly, defeated the purpose of the written songs that she spent weeks working on because she wasn’t a professional songwriter and just wrote what came to mind.

Jennie shouldn’t have been surprised but soon as she heard those familiar words, she teared up and cried in her room. It discouraged and hurt her that they would do something that. They weren’t going to let her or Angelina live it down that they wanted to leave, huh? She couldn’t do anything about it but move on. She had spoken with Namjoon about it and vented to him. Yoongi was in the studio with them and she remembered the Daegu rapper suggesting to create a diss track. But her rap skills weren’t up to par just yet to go that way. And Amity, well, they just weren’t worth it and Namjoon agreed with her reasons.

Throughout this year, Amity would constantly poke shots at her and Angelina on social media because they’ve been winning awards like the Grammys. But Jennie and Angelina wanted quality music, not quantity.

Jen wanted to sing songs that were meaningful to her. She was glad she was here because Big Hit gave her more musical freedom, unlike SongStress Entertainment. It would be a while before she could begin writing songs again. The wound had not healed yet.

She sighed and shook the negative thoughts out of her head. “I had written a couple of songs but lost the notebook to it,” she responded. “Someone that I thought I could trust, now is singing those songs that I had written. But it’s okay. I hope to make better songs. So, bear with me.”

“Why do you stay in BTS when there’s some so-called “ARMY” that won’t support you but will support the other members?” she read a question. “Well, because I love what I do. And I refuse to let someone have that power over me to stop doing what I want to do in my life. It’s crazy, people always are there to see you fall but don’t say much when they see you do your own thing and succeed. But all these antis and haters, they can take a seat and watch me thrive. I ain’t going nowhere. Oh, so I was on Tumblr, right?” 

‘Uh oh...’

‘Oh nooooo’

‘What did you see!?’

‘Hide your fanfics!’

“You guys come up with some interesting fan blog names of me. Let’s see...um...what were they? Oh yeah, Jenniesyummythighs was one. MunchkinsBooty was another.” she laughed. “Uh, IAmJenniesBoobies was another I came across. HireJennieForNike is one I really like, they really should hire me. I’d be a great model for them. I’m so enthusiastic about their product.”

‘Lmaoooooo omg’

‘Hahahahahah’

‘LOL can you blame us?’

“So, ARMY, I have a question to ask you. I’m curious. So whenever I’m on Tumblr, I usually like to check the BTS tag, right? So, um...what is this about a Sub Jennie, I’m seeing lately? Should I be concerned?” she deadpanned, looking serious with a genuine voice.

‘DEAD’

‘OH SHIZ’

‘DELETE YOUR BLOGS’

‘SHE CALLED US OUT’

‘UM’

“Uh huh. That’s what I thought. But who said I was a sub?” she asked curiously but ended up laughing at how she asserted her question, shaking her head. “I didn’t mean it like that. I meant literally, who said I was a sub? Where did that even start? Ugh, I think I accidentally just gave you story ideas. Let me be quiet. My statement came out dirtier than I intended.”

‘OMG which one are you?’

“Ah, I should keep it PG. I’m not about that life.”

‘Do you read them?’

“No, I don’t read your fanfics. That seems like taboo territory for me. I don’t want to feel some type of way around anyone you write me with but you do you guys. I like the mood boards that you make and also the fan art. I came across this Hunger Games AU mood board and I thought it was so good. I love the Hunger Games and I enjoy mood boards so make more of those, please.”

“I saved some of my favorites on my phone. I like some of these users on Instagram and follow them. Here." she pointed out some famous K-Pop fanart pages on her phone. “I will try my best to see all your stuff. If you make the hashtag #JWFanart then I’ll always check that tag on Instagram and Tumblr. I’ll like the stuff on Instagram when I can.”

“Oh, and by the way, all of your MLTs of me that I randomly came across, seem to be all wrong," she pointed out. "I remember seeing this one statement that said who is most likely to kiss first. Y’all put me allllll the way at the bottom. I highly recommend that you reconsider that. I'm not afraid to kiss somebody,"

“Another thing, why y’all think I’ll be a crazy ass girlfriend? Like jeez, I’m mad chill, I promise you. Is it because of the I Need U music video with the cheating scene? I was just acting! And who is most likely to cheat? Why did y’all put me at the TOP of the list!? Bruh! Who do you think I am?” she called them out. "Like, no! Absolutely not, you wildin’, don’t play like that!”

She laughed again. “All right, I’m done teasing. Y'all enjoy whatever your imagination takes you,"

With Jungkook, he was in the Big Hit building, in a dance studio with Jimin and Taehyung, watching her V-Live on his phone.

“What kind of girlfriend do I think I’ll be?” he watched her read a comment in Korean. “I feel like I’ll be so cheesy, to be honest. I’d like to do some nice things for my future significant other, to show how much I appreciate them. I’m not sure what yet. I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. Gosh but the thought of dating someone, I’m like, you really want to put up with me? Me? Of all people?”

“Absolutely.” the Golden Maknae spoke, answering her statement.

“I’m so weird, are you sure?”

“That makes two of us.” he continued.

“I’ll admit, sometimes I have my fears. I try not to overthink it but some days I’m like, man I hope the person I date won’t get bored of me after a while.”

“I’d never get bored of you.” He guaranteed.

“I’m pretty sure a lot of people get those thoughts and overthink things. I feel like I'm a terrible kisser and need to get better at it. I apologize in advance to my future lover.”

“It’s okay,” he murmured under his breath with a smile.

"I guess when I do date, I'll get better at kissing. So I hope my future significant other doesn't mind me kissing them a lot,"

"I'd love that," Jungkook added

Jimin and Taehyung saw Jungkook immersed on his phone with a smitten smile on his face and they decided to see what he was up to. 

“I bet he’s watching Jennie’s V-Live.” Taehyung teased.

“I know. Look at him, trying so hard not to smile.” Jimin giggled.

Jungkook glanced up and narrowed his eyes. “Shut up!” He tried to get away from them as they tried to watch what was going on.

Back to Jennie, a comment popped up and she read, “When you start dating, you’ll improve your kissing skills. You can kiss your boyfriend whenever you want.”

Jen let out a soft laugh and nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. And for those out there, don’t change yourself for anyone. It’s their loss if they can’t appreciate you for you. There will be someone out there for you, so don’t sweat it if you don’t think you won't find someone special. Be patient. It’ll be worth it.”

‘Can you please sing for us?’

“You want me to sing? It’ll cost you. How much?” She teased and took out her phone. “I’ll put my music on shuffle and see what pops up.”

The first song to come on is a rock song. “I’m a little bit of a rock and metalhead. But let’s choose another song. You know one day I would like to create some type of alternative or rock song while playing my guitar. That would be so cool. Or maybe collab with a rock band, one day. K-Rock or not, it’ll be fun. Maybe, we’ll see what the future holds. I want to be more active with my guitar. I enjoy that style of music because the guitar just sounds so good with it.”

She pressed shuffle again and Love by Keyshia Cole came on. “Ah, this song! How come all these throwbacks are popping up on my phone, huh Spotify? Really?”

She pressed shuffle again and Pon de Replay played. “Ahhhh 2005 Rihanna. This was my song!”

She started moving her shoulders, bumping to the beat. “I love Rihanna’s evolution as an artist. I hope I can have the same type of evolution as her, music and appearance wise. I want to be an amazing artist just like her! The way she thrives in so many genres of music! Nicki Minaj too! So versatile! I hope to be just like them in music. Rock Star is one of my favorites from Rihanna! I want to be a rockstar! Black women in rock are amazing! It'll be a dream to work with them! I don't care what it is. Modeling, music, anything! I adore them!"

She pressed shuffle again as Ridin by Chamillionaire popped on. “Ooh! This song too!”

She started bouncing up and down on her seat to the beat while ARMY started laughing at her enthusiasm. “They see me rollin’, they hatin’, Patrollin’ and tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. My music’s so loud, I’m swangin’. They hopin’ that they gonna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty. Tryna catch me ridin’ dirty.”

She pressed shuffle again and Right Thurr by Chingy came on. “Oh~ another throwback! I haven’t heard this in a minute! Okay, Okay, let me get back on track and stop fooling around. Let’s find a song to sing for you.”

Unconditional by Kehlani came on.

“Ah, okay, I’ll sing this. I highly recommend her music.” she looked at the camera and laughed shyly “You guys are gonna make me nervous.” she pressed her hands against her cheeks

Back to the Golden Maknae, he couldn’t contain his smile as he watched her sing sweetly to Kehlani’s song.

“Whipped!” Taehyung teased.

“Shut up!” he yelled and smacked him on the arm as he continued to try to watch her V-Live.

With Miss Bangtan, she sang, “Sometimes I come home and I’m sweaty from the day. And my hair’s all in a messy bun cause I had to get it out my face.” She pointed to her messy bun. “And I rather lace my sneakers up cause high heels ain’t my thing.” she showed off her Nike sneakers on her feet as she wiggled her eyebrows goofily which caused some ARMY to type in various comments indicating that they were laughing and amused at her movements.

“And I don’t see a flaw in that, I never want to change. So if you love~ me like you say~! You’ll be a man, grab my hand, take me as I am~!” she got out of her seat to dance and sing around.

I wanna l-l-l-l-l-l-l-love unconditional

I wanna l-l-l-l-l-l-l-love unconditional

‘IM CRYINGGGG’

‘Protect this child’

‘Why is she so adorable!?’

‘Ahhhhh I love this girl!’

After the song, she got back to her seat to check out the comments. “Protect me? Ahahaha! I guess I have some issues, don’t I? All jokes aside, I’ve been so excited to show you how much my singing has improved that I’ve been working on a number of covers to share with you on SoundCloud, probably near the holiday season as an early Christmas gift. Okay, let’s check out what’s next on the shuffle.” she pressed the next button.

Ain’t It Fun by Paramore came on and she started jamming. “Ooh, yes!” she jumped out of her seat to grab one of the biggest teddy bears from her White Day stuffed animal stash, and began to dance with it.

‘And I thought Jungkook was the weirdest, AHAHAH’

‘This is the true personality of Miss Bangtan. LOL'

Back with Jungkook, he started laughing hysterically. This was too adorable.

Instagram Models by Charlie Puth came on next when she changed the song, sitting back down.

“Oh! This song! Make sure y’all stay away from these Instagram models! Men and women! They will get you! Stay away from these people, man! Don’t give them clout, brah! Do not! Give them! CLOUT!” she yelled and spun around in her chair.

As the Maknae Line was leaving the dance studio, they began to walk near Jen’s studio. 

“Hey, Jungkookie, you should see Jennie and join her,” Jimin suggested with a mischievous glint.

“Ah, I shouldn’t.” The Golden Maknae shook his head, taking out his earbuds.

“I think you should.” He opened up the door and quickly shoved him in.

“Hyung!” he whispered in a hiss while the door closed silently.

Jennie, unaware that Jungkook was in her studio, continued Lil Wayne’s rap. 

“Uh, she just wanted to be popular. Uh, she just want ten thousand followers.” she pulled up her Instagram page, showing it on the screen. Setting her phone down, she shook her head and gestured with her hands, “Lord, she posted, she posted, she posted. They like it, they like it, repost it. She party promoting, she hosting. She posing, legs open, provoking. It got my head smoking. I tried to act like I don’t notice. Emotions, emotions, emotions, Lord!” 

She dramatically fell out of her seat as ARMY typed in LOL and laughing emojis while the chorus came back on

‘I am cryinggggg XD’

‘hahahahahahhaha’

‘Omg, she must be on a sugar high from those smarties.’

‘I'm high key happy that she is so comfortable with us like this. She used to be so reserved. She’s so goofy now ahaha’

Meanwhile, Jungkook silently started laughing and wondered when she’d notice him as ARMY noticed him in the background.

She got back to her seat to continue the next verse and she pretended like she was about to cry as she dramatically lip synced, “I had to leave that ho alone and get my mind right. I had to go talk to my friends, I had to find Christ.” She placed a hand over her heart and the other high up in the air, reaching the sky.

Once she saw a comment about Jungkook being in the room, she quickly turned around and widened her eyes. 

“How long have you been there!?” she exclaimed while he started cackling. She quickly paused the song while he grabbed a seat to sit next to her.

“Long enough.” he teased.

“Wow. Well, Jungkook make sure you stay away from these Instagram Models, mkay?’

“Duly noted.”

“I’m serious. They nothing but trouble.”

“I’m aware from what I just saw.”

“Hahah.” she turned to the camera. “ARMY! Look who stopped by, the Golden Maknae after he just watched me act goofy. Say hello to ARMY.”

“Hello!” he waved. “ARMY, Jennie is weird, isn’t she?”

“And you’re not?” she turned her head to meet his gaze as a big smile came across his face.

‘OMG, the way he’s looking at her! I ship it!’

‘I love their friendship so much. They are friendship goals.’

‘Aw, the way Jungkook is smiling, I want him to smile like that more often.’

“ARMY! Thank you so much for getting Shawn Mendes’ attention. I’m still stunned he noticed the cover. ARMY, you are truly one of a kind. Thank you so much for this.”

‘You are welcome!’

‘You deserve it!’

‘We ship you and Shawn!’

“You ship us? Hahaha. I do have a little crush on him. Hopefully, I’ll meet him one day and attend one of his concerts.”

“You like him?” Jungkook brought up.

“Not as much as you like IU.” she teased, causing him to smile shyly. “So when are you going to talk to IU?”

“When you are going to talk to Ailee?” he countered

“L-let’s not get into that. I’m not prepared.” She responded, making him chuckle.

‘Who would you date out of all the members of BTS’

“Who would I date? Shawn Mendes,” she answered with a grin

‘Who would you want to collaborate with?’

“Shawn Mendes.”

‘Who would you like to meet?’

“Shawn Mendes.” She answered again, causing Jungkook to poke the inside of his cheek as she continued to talk about Shawn.

‘Hahahah Jungkook looks a little jealous!’ he noticed a fan comment.

Did he really make it that obvious? 

He had hoped Jen didn’t see the comment. 

He needed to work on having a poker face and keep his jealousy in check.

“I’m gonna go. I’ll see you back at the dorm. I’m going to get something to eat first, did you want anything?” Jungkook got up from his seat.

“Lamb Skewers.”

“I’m glad our minds think alike.” he happily accepted her request and said goodbye to ARMY, exiting the room.

“As the year will be ending soon, I’m hoping that soon we can have some fan meets in America like there are in Korea and Japan. I want to be able to connect one on one with our American supporters just like we do here. So I’ll see what I can do.” She mentioned.

“I have also been writing out some more goals. I want to work more on my breath control when singing. I'm getting better at it. I’m currently working on trying to inhale a good amount of oxygen that flows out my lungs smoothly while I sing my verses to songs with ease. I've getting some vocal lessons to help with that, so I hope you look forward to my improvements as the years go by. I am striving hard to improve and reinvent myself. Especially with my live singing.”

Before she could speak again, she heard a loud yell from outside the room and watched Jimin and Taehyung run into her studio, locking the door.

She sat there, bewildered, and questioned them, “What the heck? Can’t you see I’m trying to talk to ARMY?”

She was cut off by their giggling. “We pranked Suga and Rapmon. We made it seem like we put water on their computers.” Jimin mentioned.

“Oh no, you didn’t.” she looked at them in horror.

‘Oh shitttt, Jen’s face says it all’

‘RIP Jimin and Taehyung’

“Can we please hide in here?” Taehyung asked,

“I hurt my finger, can you get me a band-aid?” Jimin asked.

“I wish I could band-aid your mouth.” Jen retorted, earning giggles from the 95 Liners. She turned to the computer when she heard hard knocking on her door. “U-um, ARMY, our time will be cut short. I need to fix the mess that these two goofballs created. Thanks for hanging out with me today. Love you, bye!” she turned off the V-Live and got up from her seat.

She smacked Jimin and Tae upside their heads, causing them to yelp.

"That's for bringing the drama to my studio!" she scolded.

“Smartie!” Yoongi yelled on the other side of the door.

“Yeah!?” She called out loudly.

“I know they’re in there! Open the door! Why is it locked!?”

“Because I was having a VLive with ARMY!”

“Bullshit, where are those two!? I'm trying to work on this damn album, and they spilled water on my fucking computer!“

Jennie rubbed her temples while Jimin and Tae panicked, and scrambled around to find hiding spots.

Yoongi was not in a pleasant mood.

“SMARTIE!” he banged on the door, causing her to flinch.

“Look what you got me into!” She whispered harshly to them.

Somehow, Namjoon managed to work on opening up her door, which caused Jennie to push the door shut with Taehyung and Jimin. Loud screams and curses were heard as the rappers tried to push the door open after they unlocked it.

“Not the door! NOT THE DOOR! My door!” she yelled when Namjoon accidentally dented her door, barging in to go after the poor 95 Liners. “Take this outside! Take this outside, right now! I just cleaned this studio up!”

#bts 8th member #jungkook x oc #bangtan boys #jungkook fanfic #jungkook #jungkook scenarios #jungkook imagine #bts scenarios #bts imagine #bts fanfiction #jungkook x black oc #bts x black girl #kpop black oc #kpop oc #kpop fluff #kpop scenarios #bts fluff

[foxes-that-run]

Sweet Creature

Harry said that Sweet Creature is about one person, and that he will never say who, adding if he would never tell them it wasn't about them. I think the protagonist has changed since it was written. It was a closer in the Live on tour set, and often emotional like this time in New York.

It was played once on HSLoveOT at Wembley. Harry talked about Gemma first bringing him to London for xfactor and he’d “like to play a song for her tonight”. He thanked London. So its matured in meaning and he sung it to Gemma, who had a baby 8 months later:

19 February 2016

At the Troubadour (at 21:40) on it's launch 19 May 2017, Harry said Sweet Creature was written a few weeks after his birthday 1 February 2016. It was written at the Village in Los Angeles. There is a photo of him at the studio on the 19th February. He also said it was the first song he wrote “for” the album (1:22). Harry said that one song (two ghosts) was written before leaving the band but everything on debut except 3 songs were written between July and December 2016.

Sweet creatures opening melody is similar to Blackbird by the Beatles. Blackbird is a McCartney song, interestingly, Harry was photographed with Ringo at the Clive Davis Grammy party. From I'm Not Happy (possibly the same night) and Pop Tart it might have been the first time they saw each other after the 2015 BBMAs 8 months earlier, 1D had been touring for most of that.

Cry “O sweet creature!” then kiss me hard

‘Sweet Creature’ appears in Shakespeare’s Othello. A tragedy, Othello is newly married to the beautiful (and faithful) Desdemona. The villain, Lago resents Othello and drives him mad by insinuating that the handsome and charismatic Cassio had an affair with Desdemona. Lago tells Othello that he heard Cassio talk in his sleep:

In sleep I heard him say “Sweet Desdemona Let us be wary, let us hide our loves.” And then, sir, would he gripe and wring my hand, Cry “O sweet creature!” then kiss me hard…”

It’s a really interesting reference. On one hand, Harry is singing with genuine affection and fits the imagined role of Cassio. However, as described in Woman Harry was jealous and he’s also the villain, messing with CH, in a laughably effective way.

If the Othello reference holds, Desdemona had also not cheated on Othello. But by 28 February Harry tweeted 'You can shake an apple off an apple tree.' And by April 29 that may have changed (Illicit Affairs / I did something bad).

Lyrics

[Verse 1] Sweet creature Had another talk about where it's going wrong But we're still young We don't know where we're going But we know where we belong

In out of the Woods and interviews about it Taylor talked about the relationship being tentative and plagued by challenges and poor communication.

Harry did not know where he was going, One Direction was broken up and although he started recording he had not signed a solo record deal.

TS and HS were unable to let each other go for years, often singing about belonging, or eventually being together. Particularly Someday, Satellite, As it Was, The 1 and End Game.

[Pre-Chorus] And, oh, we started Two hearts in one home It's hard when we argue We're both stubborn, I know But oh

'Two hearts one home' references Hopelessly by Crosby, Stills and Nash hoping on Harry’s Another Man Mix Tape. “They are One Person / They are Two Alone”, Nash was longing for Joni Mitchell, an idol of Taylor’s. This line is often read as referring to Gemma and when played it again in 2023 Harry agreed. However I think it wouldn’t have been dropped from the set if it was about Gemma.

In 2016 though, his 'home' was not a building. In the first 2 minutes of the Fine Line interview with Zane Lowe Harry talks about not feeling at home and feeling lost in his house in London on a 5 day 1D break, and glad when it ended. Taylor was a home of the heart, a part of his world and separate to the band. Woman Exile has more on ‘home’.

The idea of one’s sweetheart being home is in the Notebook, Harry’s favourite movie. Old Noah says it to his kids when they ask him to come home with him, his wife is his home.

[Chorus] Sweet creature, sweet creature Wherever I go, you bring me home Sweet creature, sweet creature When I run out of road, you bring me home

‘When I run out of road’ reminds us of the amount of Driving in Haylor songs. But this is referring specifically to Harry’s anxiety going solo and trust/hope that Taylor would be there for him. 7 months later in New Years Day she agreed: “I'll be there if you're the toast of the town, babe, Or if you strike out and you're crawling home”

[Verse 2] Sweet creature Running through the garden Oh, where nothing bothered us But we're still young I always think about you and how we don't speak enough

I think here though the Garden is the beach at Taylors Rhode Island home, (bought when they first dated) where the 1989 and 1989 TV covers and rolling stone beach shoot was. This shoot is referenced in the videos for Style and End Game.

Similar lyrical references are in Cruel Summer (snuck in through the garden gate to seal our fate), Blank Space (Rose Garden filled with thorns) and Betty (In the Garden would you trust me).

Not speaking is also a common theme, best put in Fine Line: "Spreading you open Is the only way of knowing you", and The 1: "And if you wanted me, you really should've showed."

And he posted this when it was released

#haylor #sweet creature #harry styles #Youtube #harry styles debut #hs1

[mvndfvelds]

a guide to ghost ! (pt. 1)

i have the biggest hyperfixation on ghost and i decided making a guide would be good for new fans (and, honestly, for my own reference) !!

please correct me if any of this is wrong :) !

.

part 1. the papas:

.

papa nihil (papa emeritus zero) :

appears in the ghost chapters.

father to papas i, ii and iii.

(possibly) illegitimate father to papa iv.

NOT played by tobias forge. does not sing on stage at any point, only lip-syncs in MVs.

died march 3rd 2020. however has been revived repeatedly on-stage during the "impera" tour to play his sax solo.

^^ (left) younger nihil in the "kiss the go-goat" MV. according to cannon lore, he was the front man of ghost in 1969.

(right) nihil performing his sax solo during "miasma" ^^ live.

.

papa emeritus i (primo) :

frontman of ghost during the "opus eponymous" album from 2008-2012.

retired and replaced by papa ii.

WAS played by tobias forge.

killed on the 30th april 2018 (along with his brothers, papas ii and iii) by his parents (nihil and sister imperator) - this can be seen in the ghost chapters.

(right) embalmed and presented for the "prequelle" ^^ and "impera" tours.

.

papa emeritus ii (secondo) :

frontman of ghost during the "infestissumam" and "if you have ghost" eras between 2012-2015.

fired from the clergy and replaced by papa iii.

WAS played by tobias forge.

killed on the 30th april 2018.

(right) embalmed and presented for the "prequelle" ^^ and "impera" tours.

.

papa emeritus iii (terzo) :

frontman of ghost during the "meliora" and "popestar" eras from 2015-2017.

dragged off stage and replaced by papa iv.

WAS played by tobias forge.

killed on the 30th april 2018.

^^ (left) terzo demonstrating his unmatched kazoo skills! - i'm completely normal about him <3

(right) embalmed and presented for the "prequelle" ^^ and "impera" tours.

.

papa emeritus iv (cardinal copia) :

formerly cardinal copia, but made papa emeritus iv by papa nihil - can be seen in the ghost chapters.

IS played by tobias forge !

often referred to as "popia" for the shits and giggles <3

current frontman of ghost since april 6th 2018.

has been frontman for two albums so far, "prequelle" and "impera"

he is the most fleshed out character in the ghost universe due to the ghost chapters.

^^ (left - after surgery) he has the broadest range of outfits, all of them being very impressive.

(right - before surgery) this IS, shockingly, the ^^ same guy !! here is our beloved popia on his tricycle in the ghost chapters. the drastic change of appearance is explained later in the ghost chapters, it's said to be part of a "two-in-one" plastic surgery.

#ghost band #the band ghost #ghost bc #papa terzo #papa emeritus #papa emeritus 4 #papa emeritus iii #ghost lore #guide to ghost #band ghost #papa primo #papa secondo #cardinal copia #popia copia #popia #im so normal about them

[broadwaydivastournament]

Broadway Divas Tournament: Round 1B

Andréa Burns (1971) is probably best-known for her scene-stealing performance as Daniela in In the Height (2007), but her career has spanned the gamut, from Broadway, off-Broadway, regional, and beyond. Credits include the original company of Songs for a New World (1995), On Your Feet (2015), and most recently The Notebook (2024), which is now in previews on Broadway. She has described herself as "a Venezuelan Jewess from Miami who grew up loving Broadway." She is also best friends with fellow Diva Katie Finneran, whom she attended high school with.

Our oldest Diva at 83, Mary Beth Peil (1940) began her professional career as an acclaimed leading soprano in opera, not musical theatre. It was not until her forties that she made the transition as one of, if not the, first opera singer to move to musical theatre. After performing the titular role in Kiss Me, Kate, she joined the touring production of The King and I opposite Yul Brynner and followed it to Broadway where she earned her first Tony nomination. She has since gone on to an illustrious nearly-four-decades long musical theatre career with shows like Sweeney Todd (1992, 2002), Follies (2011), and Anastasia (2017).

PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT:

"Every time I hear this woman sing, I'm newly astounded by her range. That upper register is crystal clear, gorgeous to listen to. She has been consistently booked and busy these last few years, especially, with two Encores! shows in the same season - scene stealing both - a lovely off-Broadway show, and now she's back on Broadway where she belongs."

"Let me be perfectly clear. I want to fuck this old woman. Mary Beth Peil is the oldest Diva in this tournament, and my admiration for her is inclusively carnal, in addition to loving her immense talent. I saw her in "Cornelia Street" in 2023, this horrid little off-Broadway show, and she was the only saving grace. I got to sit front row as she drunkenly danced less than two feet in front of me. She had on a flimsy little lingerie top and her cleavage practically spilled out into my face. I was in love."

#broadwaydivastournament #broadway divas #broadway #musical theatre #tournament poll #andrea burns #mary beth peil

[lovebombs4life]

the story of us - c.t.h

requested: yes! “Could you do a calum x reader, please?!

They are together since sgfg era (they met at a concert of her) and you could write their story (like timeline)”

a/n: i love this idea so so so much. i’m tweaking some of it just a bit, but i hope you enjoy it :) this took me like 2-3 days to write. i have two other requests i haven’t even started in bc i love this one so much.

cw: swearing, implications of drinking and sexual activities

———

2015

being a small artist was so exciting, but so exhausting. trying to get publicity and more recognition sucked, with a big capital S.

my life has completely changed when my manger had called me, asking if i wanted to be an opener for an uprising band, 5 Seconds of Summer. of course i immediately said yes.

i had seen them before live. they opened for one direction when they were first starting out. they were incredible, and opening for them would be such a dream. tour started next month, giving me time to catch up on all their music.

their voices were unbelievable. i remember hearing amnesia when i had been broken up with last year, and listening to it now, i no longer think of him. now all i can think of is how beautiful it sounded.

i looked into the band, searching up common stuff about them. calum’s tan skin and tattoos has drawn me in. his hair was beautiful, he was beautiful.

i couldn’t let that distract me from being professional when we met. i pushed aside those feelings, waiting for tour to start.

———

a month later

i shook with excitement as i was being driven to the first venue. i had yet to meet the boys, and to say i was nervous was an understatement.

as we pulled up to the venue, i could see thousands of girls already standing outside, waiting to get in. my stomach flipped at the sight. sure i’ve performed live before, but this was a lot more than i’ve ever played for. i shook off the nerves of performing, focusing back on my first impression with the band.

the car parked, and i stepped out, walking to the entrance of the venue. i was lead by a security guard to the large dressing rooms. the sounds of laughing and yelling were heard through the door before i walked in.

“everyone, this is y/n y/l/n, your opener. y/n, this is the band.” the security spoke to me, leaving me with everyone. they all looked at me with soft smiles. my eyes landed on calum, my breathe hitching as he watched me walk through the door.

“i’m sure you already know, but i’m luke, that’s michael there, ashton, and calum.” luke smiled brightly. they all stood up, taking turns hugging me.

“it’s great to meet you guys. it’s crazy that i’m your opener. it feels like i saw you guys opening for one direction just a week ago, but here i am opening for you this time.” i spoke, waving my hands around.

calum chuckles at my actions. i blushed, smiling at them. “we’re excited that you’re here. your music is fantastic, and we’ve already seen some posts from fans saying they can’t wait to see you live.” calum said.

“i’m glad. im incredibly nervous. how long until i’m on?” i asked, looking for a clock. “little less than an hour.” michael piped up, looking at his phone.

my eyes widened, not ready at all. “i’m gonna go warm up a bit, see you all later!” i said, walking into my own seperate dressing room.

i began my warm ups, and before i knew it, i was halfway through my set. “alright everyone, we’re gonna slow it down a bit, and i’m gonna do an acoustic cover, how’s that sound?” i spoke into my mic. the crowd went crazy.

i chuckled as i put my mic back on the stand, grabbing my guitar. “so this is one of my favorite songs actually, and it means a lot to me. it’s called everything had changed, by this super cool chick named taylor swift. if you know the words, sing along!” i announced.

i started strumming my guitar, listening to the muffled screaming through my ear pieces. i smiled as i saw calum watching me from off stage. he gave me a smile and a thumbs up. my heart fluttered.

i turned back and sung the words. i knew my face was red as it was, but if i could see myself i knew i would be bright red. calum mouthed the words as i sung, making me giggle a bit.

once i finished the song, i said my goodbyes to the crowd. i passed calum, giving him a high five. “that was fantastic!” he cheered, pulling my arm back and giving me a hug. i pressed my face to his chest, taking in his scent.

i needed something to subside this little crush that was lingering in my mind. “thanks cal! just thirty more minutes then you guys will be on stage! they’re all going crazy waiting for you.” i laughed.

he watched me as i walked away, going to my dressing room to grab a snack.

soon enough the boys were due to go on stage. i walked around to the side of the stage, watching calum as he plucked the strings on his bass. i sung along to every song, watching calum the whole time.

every so often he would turn his face towards me, watching me as i danced around and sung with him. he would laugh and shake his head slightly.

the concert went on, and i could see some fans pointing to calum as he kept looking to the side. i giggled, thinking how they’d never know he was watching me. it was such an innocent thing, but i knew we’d have to keep things professional in the end.

“alright i want everyone to scream the words to this with us! i wanna hear you loud and clear and i want to see you jump!” luke yelled.

“i just want to say before we start, this song is going to be dedicated to the most gorgeous girl ive ever met. this is ‘she looks so perfect’” calum spoke, winking at me.

i blushed madly as the crowd went wild. after the show, calum handed his bass to a stage manager, and grabbed my hand, pulling me to his dressing room.

“what are you doing to me cal? my mind is going a million miles a minute just thinking of you.” i spoke, running my hand through my hair. he chuckled.

“i know it’s all so soon, but i believe in love at first sight, y/n. you make me crazy.” he spoke, getting closer to me. he held my hips as i wrapped my arms around his neck.

“let’s just see where it all leads, yeah? let time consume us.” i spoke. he nodded, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

this was only the start.

———

2016

after tour, i kept in touch with all the boys, but especially calum. soon after tour, we started dating. just a few months ago, we moved in together, sharing an apartment.

since moving in together, we’ve had countless movie nights, date nights, nights where we’d cook with each other, sick days, and so many other things. we’d already been together for a year, but it felt like we’ve been together for years.

“y’know, i really love you.” calum spoke softly as he played with my hair. my head was resting on his bare chest, tracing his tattoos. we’d both just gotten done showering, deciding to lay down and get ready for bed.

“i really love you too cal.” i blushed, looking up at him. his sweet eyes stared down into mine, giving me a soft kiss. i put my head back down, listening to his heart beating.

———

in the morning i woke up in an empty bed, looking for cal. i shifted around, finally getting up. i grabbed a pair of calum’s boxers and a sweater before walking out of our room. i could hear the soft sound of guitar from down the hall.

as i walked into the living room, calum started humming, stopping every so often. i knew he was in the middle of writing. he looked up when he heard my soft footsteps on the floor. “hey! i wanna read you these lyrics, wanna know what you think.” he spoke. i smiled, sitting down next to him.

i grabbed his journal, reading what he wrote. “i’m not sure if i’ll bring it up to the boys any time soon..” he trailed off as i read it.

“we know we’re classic together like egyptian gold.

we love us.

it don’t matter,

be combative or be sweet cherry pie,

it don’t matter just as long as i get all you tonight.”

he hummed it as i read, squeezing my leg. “cal that’s beautiful! you’ve gotta bring this one to the boys.” i encouraged. he blushed, pulling me closer to him.

“it’s about you. doesn’t matter if we stay in or go out, just as long as i’ve got you. as long as i get to love you.” he spoke. i blushed, pushing him back against the couch. i straddled his hips, kissing him.

“why don’t you show me how much you love me?” i asked him. he smirked, grabbing my waist.

———

2018

“i can take you out, oh, oh! we can kill some time, stay home!” calum sang, watching me as i danced from the crowd. i smiled at him as he watched. he signaled for a security guard to come close, speaking to them briefly before they walked to me.

“calum says he wants to bring you up on stage, follow me please.” he spoke. i nodded and followed. once on the side of the stage, i was handed a mic.

i listened as calum spoke. “i wanted to bring out a very special girl, my wonderful girlfriend, y/n y/l/n!” he announced. i walked out on stage, waving to the crowd.

“hello! i’m going to be honest, i didn’t know calum was going to bring me up here!” i laughed. the boys were still playing. they were at the bridge in valentine, playing it slowly.

calum took his bass off and set it down gently. he walked to me, grabbing one of my hands. “y/n i’ve loved you for the past 3 years, and im forever going to love you,” he began. i turned my head in confusion.

“you’re the most wonderful person i’ve met in my life. you’re the one who inspired this song, and what feels like millions more. you’re my muse.” he continued, letting go of my hand and grabbing something in his pocket. he set his microphone down, getting on his knee.

my eyes widened. i handed my microphone off to a stage hand, turning back to calum. he held a small velvet box, opened to show a beautiful diamond ring. “will you marry me?” he yelled to me over the sound of the crowd. i nodded my head quickly, my hands over my face. i got down to his level, holding out my left hand. he slid the ring onto my finger, pulling my face in for a kiss.

tears fell from my eyes out of excitement. “i love you!” i yelled to him. “i love you!” he yelled back.

he was the one i was going to spend the rest of my life with.

———

2020

it was CALM release day. calum and i have been together for five years now, and married for a year.

our wedding was very private, but we took plenty of pictures to share with the fans. i’ve never been more proud of calum.

calum was at another interview today, and of course i was by his side the whole time. i stood off set, watching as they talked about the album. “what’s your guys’ favorite song off the new album, and why?” the host asked. they all looked at each other, thinking of their answers.

“easily mine is wildflower. y/n was a big inspiration for that song, and she even helped us write and produce some of our music. which i want to mention, her new album comes out in two months!” calum smiled at me.

after the interview, he captured me in a tight hug. “you have no idea how proud of you i am, cal.” i kissed him. “and you have no idea how proud of you i am, y/n.” he spoke as we walked to the car, leaving for the next interview already.

———

once we got home from celebrating the album, calum and i decided to relax in bed having a movie night. we decided on watching ‘juno’, one of our favorite movies.

“have you ever thought about having one?” calum asked. i looked up at him confused. “one what, cal?” i questioned.

“a baby, y/n. have you ever thought about having one?” he explained. i smiled at him. “of course i have cal, i’ve always known i’ve wanted to be a mother some day.” i watched his eyes flicker to my lips.

“what about having a baby with me?” he held on tight to me as he asked. i nodded my head. “all the time. it’s been in my mind since before we got married.”

“what do you say we make one?” he said, stroking my hair. my eyes widened. “now? shit if you’re down, let’s do it.” i laughed. he climbed on top of me, and i prepared myself for the night ahead. calum was a determined person, and i knew he’d go all night if it meant getting me pregnant.

———

a few weeks later i had woken up, feeling like absolute shit. i sprung up from the bed, running to the bathroom. while throwing up everything from my system, that moment, i knew i was pregnant. since that night i had stopped drinking alcohol and switched to decaf coffee just to be sure of no issues. calum had stopped smoking, and we could do was wait to have a positive test.

once done, i quickly scrambled to grab a pregnancy test from under the sink. i did my thing and set it on the counter, result side face down. “calum?” i yelled from the bathroom.

he hurried into the room, thinking i was hurt. “are you alright? what’s wrong?” he asked, grabbing my face, holding me close. that’s when he had seen the test on the counter.

“you really think..?” he started. i nodded my head. “i woke up with morning sickness. i know it may not mean anything but, i don’t know, ive just got a feeling.” i said. he held onto me, standing with me while we waited.

i grabbed out my phone, setting up my camera to record our reaction. i was so sure, but at the same time it could’ve been nothing.

i had taken some videos before, and they were negative, but that was me just waiting to see if it’d happen. of course, calum was with me during each, but for this one he held me tighter.

“ready?” i asked him, the video already recording. “as i can be.” he replied, smiling. i grabbed the test from the counter. “okay. one, two, three.” i spoke, flipping the test over. i studied the lines, but quickly saw two solid pink lines. i covered my mouth, showing calum. his eyes widened grabbing the test from me, looking at it for himself.

“we’re pregnant.” i stayed, watching him set the test down. he grabbed me, squeezing me tightly. “i’m gonna be a fucking dad!” he cried, kissing me.

“we’re gonna be parents!” i squeaked, tears slipping from my eyes. i grabbed my phone, ending the video. i took a picture of the test, and sent both to my family and calum’s.

we were flooded with congratulations from our families. we waked back to the room, laying with each other. we both posted the video and the picture on our social medias, announcing to the world that we’re going to have a baby.

———

nine months feels like a life time, but also so short once you have your baby. on november 8th, 2020, we had our beautiful baby boy, charlie.

calum and i spent every waking moment loving him, and loving each other. being home from the hospital was a relief, as we were able to finally have alone time from friends and family.

this was the start of our small family.

———

2022

5sos5 released just a few months ago, and charlie was soon turning two. time has flown by, but everything is absolutely perfect.

luke had brought up the idea for calum and i to make another version of ‘Older’, knowing our voices went well together. we decided to do so, and released it. the song was beautiful as it is with luke and sierra, but it felt so much more special now that calum and i had an official song together.

calum and i sat together by our fireplace, enjoying the warmth in the cold weather. we had just found I’m pregnant again, and we’re basking in the love of each other. charlie was asleep in his crib, the baby monitor close by incase he started to fuss.

calum got up, grabbing my hand to come with. he walked me to the kitchen, grabbing his phone out. he searched something up before hitting play, and propping open the refrigerator door. “you’re so cheesy. i love it.” i giggled.

he grabbed my waist, clasping one of our hands together. i rested my other hand on his shoulder. he swayed with me, just as we did for our first dance after getting married.

he kissed the top of my head, holding me close. “you’re so perfect, y/n. i’m so in love with you.” he spoke softly.

“i’m so in love with you cal. you were meant just for me.” i spoke, pressing my lips to his.

“as forever comes closer,

hope the world will spin slower,

i don’t want to get older.

i don’t want to get older.”

#calum hood #5 seconds of summer #5sos #calum 5sos #ashton irwin #luke hemmings #michael clifford #5sos5 #michael 5sos #ashton 5sos #luke 5sos #calum hood imagine #requested

[jules-has-notes]

Don't — VoicePlay & Street Corner Symphony music video

What better way could there be to announce the second Sing-Off tour than a collaboration video between two of the featured groups? VoicePlay teamed up with season 2 runners-up Street Corner Symphony, and teased that another group from the upcoming "season 5" holiday special would be joining them for another trip around the country spreading the good word of a cappella music.

Details:

title: The Sing-Off Tour presents: Don't (VoicePlay and Street Corner Symphony)

original performer: Ed Sheeran

written by: Ed Sheeran & Benjamin Levin

arranged by: Geoff Castellucci

release date: 8 December 2014

My favorite bits:

starting simple with Eli, Geoff, and Layne, layering in the rest of VoicePlay, then seamlessly passing it over to Street Corner Symphony

Chance's smooth slide into the basement

the harmonies on the first ♫ "I don't wanna know that, babe." ♫

passing the ♫ "knock knock knock" ♫ back and forth

Layne, Kurt, Geoff, and Chance's "instrumental" solos, highlighting their individual styles

the full jam of all eleven voices coming together for the final chorus

ending on one big unison line

Trivia:

The two groups had recently headlined back-to-back concerts at the 2014 Kettering National A Cappella Festival in Ohio.

This video served as a sneak preview of the tour, since the two groups performed the song during some of the shows.

VoicePlay had previously featured guest singers on inset screens for their "Feel This Moment" and "Talk Dirty" videos, and collaborated with another entire group for "Survivor".

Adam Chance from Street Corner Symphony later replaced Chris Rupp as the baritone for season 4 Sing-Off winners Home Free.

The original Ed Sheeran video features dancing by fellow reality show veteran Phillip "Pacman" Chbeeb who competed on season 5 of So You Think You Can Dance (2009), and with his group I.aM.mE on season 6 of America's Best Dance Crew (2011).

#VoicePlay #Street Corner Symphony #music video #a cappella #2015 Sing-Off tour #music #video

[seasurfacefullofclouds1]

https://x.com/louiestream/status/1728960764097261792?s=46&t=3v6fUO8HxEhcPbcR8Jxopg

this makes me so much more proud of louis than i already was (which is like. the proudest i have been ever of anyone) because yeah i do love his voice on mitam but he was clearly straining to reach this note on eotd and you can hear it. the whine/moan at the end is hot to me but if they had toured this album and he had tried to hit this note it would’ve hurt him. like, comparatively, the high notes in btm are very similar but sound worlds healthier and more supported.

i feel like that just goes to show how hard he’s worked to improve and utilize the unique aspects of his voice in a healthy way that’ll be better for his voice in the long term. and then if you compare that to H’s performances of toxic or hopelessly devoted to you - who has (imo) relied on his misplaced confidence in his abilities and lack of regard for the health of his voice instead of focusing on longevity. his vocal chords sounded like they were toast to me back in 2015 if he didn’t start caring and i think we’re hearing the ramifications of that now

I agree with you to some extent, and I’ll add a few thoughts, if you don’t mind. Here’s the audio.

The thing about laying down vocals for MITAM is that … I just don’t think they put that much finesse or care into the act of recording. They tried their best, they wrote the songs that they could, but they were writing while touring and recording in hotel rooms, recording in the middle of the night after a full concert, recording while mentally and physically exhausted, and at times drunk or hung over or high because they had zero down time.

Their voices also sound nearly destroyed. In the same song, End Of The Day, Harry sounds like he’s pushing high notes out of a throat that was fried to a crisp. The notes sound like they came from a tortured animal.

Louis’ voice in I Want To Write You A Song was literally two vocal cords beaten to a pulp, rubbing on a sanding belt. I bet it took him weeks to recover.

They wanted to finish the album so they could push out a release in November, a month for big sales. Harry wanted to start his solo career. The album was heavy on autotuning and Julian Bunetta’s overproduction. It sounds heavy and noisy. Drag Me Down’s lyrics, compared to Strong or Love You Goodbye, are perfunctory and cliched.

But the album still had some real gems because 1D is 1D; their voices sound good together.

To your second point— regarding deliberative work on vocal quality.

Louis had lost so much confidence in his voice between year 1 and year 5 of One Direction that he really had to work to dig himself out of a confidence hole. Vocal cords are muscles and singing is a sport, and much like golf or baseball, yips happen. You lose control of your voice and suddenly your falsetto is gone, your chest to head transition is crap, your intonation goes off the road.

Louis is still in the process of working it out, but here’s the thing.

Even while admitting that he’s scared out of his mind, that he’s shitting bricks, that he always second-guesses himself in the first 30 minutes of a concert, Louis is fearless.

Louis sings songs like Too Young and Bigger Than Me live, in an acoustic setting, at radio stations and on television, with no electronic amps covering up mistakes or second takes.

Louis never, ever lip syncs. It’s live, with live voices and live instruments, every time.

Louis shows us the process of rehearsals. He doesn’t have to do rehearsals, and he doesn’t have to take each concert seriously, but singing is a sport, and it requires a warm up, and he does it.

As I said, Louis is still in the process. He still has moments where intonation is off, but his voice is better than it was, it is more expressive and more theatrical. His recordings are better now. He is able to tour and do three consecutive nights of 100-minute shows without ruining his voice. 80 concerts this year, and more to come. If I know Louis, I know he will continue to strive for better.

[the-pink-album]

So 1989 TV is here and this is it. This is the re recording I was waiting for. It means a lot to me for so many reasons, and it felt like a good moment to talk about the why.

As much as I love Red and all too well and beging again are so dear to me, and therefore I was so excited about Red TV, truth is I wasn’t a fan when the original album came out, and less so for the other two albums we have Taylor’s version now. So I couldn’t quite go down the memory lane for those. I don’t have the connection of being in the fandom in that era.

But i do have that connection with 1989. Is when I first got to really know about Taylor. It was a funny road, getting there: see back at the end of 2014 two things were happening: i really loved blank space and shake it off. So much so I wanted to check the album. I liked it. I was also becoming a Harrie. Bc somehow even if I didn’t follow 1D blogs he was all over my dash, and I tried to resist it, I didn’t want to stan the guy… I was in my mid 20’s way over boybands… it feel silly to be so taken by a 20 year old guy.

So… while I was in denial I was still watching interviews and following along Harrie content on tumblr and on a few they mentioned Taylor. And that’s how I was introduced to Haylor… and the Pandora Box was opened.

And then there was Style. An amazing pop song on it’s own. But also a song about Harry Styles and how it ain’t the easiest to let the guy go… and it sounds over the top but I never had quite the thrill as singing that song when you’re in the process of falling for a certain artist. It made me feel happy, silly and young. It was in ways like falling in love but without the risk of getting your heartbroken. And Taylor gave me the soundtrack for it, and I don’t think I would have become a Harrie in the way I did if it wasn’t for Style.

Style isn’t the only Harry song in 1989, and in the process of getting through those, of seeing Harry through Taylor’s eyes I got to know her too, and she was amazing. Her lyrics were something else (the amount of love i also have for You’re in love… is insane). And so along with a Harrie, a lowkey swiftie was born. (Nowadays while I still would say i’m more of a Harrie than a swiftie, I love Taylor, I feel for her and if I could I would love to tell her I’m going to be forever grateful for Folklore in particular those two songs that feel like she wrote them just for me)

I went from checking tumblr on my free time to endless scrolling between two fandoms, both of which where also touring which meant really fun times here, (and crazy ones too) and if it came with a lot of discourse, fandom fighting, (and getting to know Taylor in a very particular point of her life) also i the moment, those were really happy times. (Yes, even when Harry was clearly 💔 at the 2015 BBMA) I really loved being here for all of it.

2015 was the year that brought me to the two artists that would be a huge source of comfort for the years to come. I often refer to 2015 as my last happy year, in reality it’s just that it was the last time I felt young and carefree and the world didn’t seem as overwhelming. It also gave me friends here that while I don’t talk much to them nowadays they were there for me when life got my heart broken, and to this day I still remember the wise things they told me. I will always remember that year with a fondness and smile, bc nothing has ever been as so naively happy since.

So I’m really excited to revisit and album that was a huge part of that time in my life. It will also remind me of Haylor, I just can’t separe it from that album and in truth I love that. Since 1989 the glimpses we get of Haylor are like Harry said once the most amazing unspoken dialogue ever. Theirs is quite the tale.

So 1989 TV for me is a really special time, that will never be not haylor related, and i’ll be in that headspace for a while. Yes, i know the album is about her, and reclaiming it for her, not about a relationship. But as Taylor herself would say, these songs are also about us, and I want to remember the why and how I came to love her so.

#taylor swift #harry styles #1989 tv #haylor

[droughtofapathy]

The Gilded Age's Broadway Divas: Peggy Scott (Denée Benton)

The stylish and erudite Peggy Scott is the bridge between the whites of New York and the oft-overlooked Black elite. Her story is often separate from the vapid society scandals our other ladies are deeply entrenched in. While they sip tea and bicker about opera boxes, Peggy hides from a lynch mob in a barn and kisses a real-life historical figure with a wife and child at home. Great.

Denée Benton made her Broadway debut in my personal favorite show, Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812, one of Tumblr's personal favorites as well, apparently. In it, she played the young ingenue, Natasha Rostova, marking a significant victory for young Black women who never get to play romantic leads, especially in traditionally white stories. She then went on to join the Natasha-Eliza pipeline and took on the role of Eliza Schuyler in Hamilton, a character originated by Philippa Soo, who had previously played Natasha in the first few off-Broadway productions of Comet. Full circle. Adding to the pipeline, Shoba Narayan who was an ensemble member and Natasha understudy also went on to star as Eliza in one of the touring companies of Hamilton.

Before and after shooting season two of The Gilded Age, Denée returned to the stage to star as Cinderella in the Encores! Into the Woods production last spring. More on that later.

#1: "No One Else," Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 (2016)

Now, when I call classical sopranos a dying breed, I am not saying they no longer exist. Denée Benton is one of the few young sopranos in the theatre, and we all dearly hope she continues to grace our stages rather than transfer to the lucrative world of film and television as so many do. Denée's singing voice in this is just exquisite. I saw it four times on Broadway, and I'd have seen it god only knows how many more if it hadn't closed.

Great Comet was a critical success in its off-Broadway life. Based on a 72-page slice of War and Peace, it follows Natasha Rostova as she navigates young love and all the scandal that entails. It is a beautiful production no matter where you see it. Whether it was in the tent in the Meatpacking District, or the gorgeously renovated Imperial Theatre. Unfortunately, it was an expensive endeavor that did not pan out financially for producers. Broadway was just a little too big. But it has since had a robust regional and international life, spawning productions in Brazil, Japan, and across the U.S.

On-screen mother Audra McDonald (Dorothy Scott) sang this song in April of 2015, several months before Denée would take over the role of Natasha. Like mother, like daughter. Audra's rendition has since been taken off youtube, and I am bereft. But I can link you to an audio HERE.

#2: "On the Steps of the Palace," Encores! Into the Woods (2022)

Concluding their 2022 season, NYCC launched a wildly successful production of Into the Woods, one of Sondheim's most beloved works. Here, Denée plays Cinderella and we all know and love that story. Broadway itself has had at least four Cinderella stories, and I'd argue this one is the best adaptation. But the competition is...not fierce. (With condolences to Bad Cinderella's Grace McLean, fellow Comet cast member.)

The Encores! production then transferred to Broadway in July of 2022, but by then Denée was filming Gilded Age and did not transfer with it. So of course, who came in to replace her? Philippa Soo. And, when the show's original cast move on and the new cast came in, Denée Benton was back in the saddle as Cinderella again. Isn't theatre a wonderful thing?

The above is just a brief clip of Denée during Encores! If you want a full bootleg, let me know.

#3 "Maybe This Time," 11th Annual "Living For Today" Fundraiser (2018)

Showcasing her range, as more than just a lyrical soprano, Denée took part in a night of Kander and Ebb music to benefit the Gilana's Fund alongside other Broadway actors like Betsy Wolfe, Lesli Margherita, and Bebe Neuwirth, my beloved.

This song is, of course, from the classic Cabaret, now returning to Broadway this spring in a reimagined production from the West End. Bebe Neuwirth to star as Fraulein Schneider. It's all connected.

And once again, Audra McDonald has also sung this song. And it's as marvelous as you think.

Someone please mount a production of Light in the Piazza where it's a dual cast situation. On A days, give me Ruthie Ann Miles and Anna Zavelson for Asian!Piazza, and on B days give me Audra and Denée for Black!Piazza.

LINK TO MASTERPOST

#the gilded age #peggy scott #denee benton #natasha pierre and the great comet of 1812 #into the woods #sondheim #kander and ebb

[yuzukahibiscus]

Special Blu-ray BOX REI YUZUKA

The Special Blu-ray BOX series delves into the many angles of the Top Star’s charms and character. A special A4 package with 1 Blu-ray disc, 1 CD and 10 photo cards in this deluxe version!

Quatre Reves Online Renewal 1st Anniversary Campaign“Yuzuka Rei Mini Standee” Collection!

For people who pre-order a "Special Blu-ray BOX REI YUZUKA” on Quatre Reves Online, they will be get a Quatre Reves Limited Novelty “Yuzuka Rei Mini Standee”. So please take the opportunity to use Quatre Reves Online. "Campaign period: July 14 2023 - September 21, 23:59PM JST For Quatre Reves stores, we will present the novelty depending on the first-come-first-serve basis. We do not accept pre-ordrers. The campaign will end after the novelty are all distributed.

DISC1 — Blu-ray Original Recorded Video and Selected Stage Digests

Special MV A cover of “♪READY STEADY GO”, the song released in 2004 by L’arc~en~Ciel, the popular band running at the top of the Japanese rock scene. Please look forward to this “new Yuzuka Rei” that will sing this accelerating rock tune.

Kawamoto Alexander / Choreographer As a backstage dancer for many famous artists such as Momoiro Clover Z, Watanabe Naomi, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, and Fujii Kaze, he has performed live, on TV, and in music videos. He is expanding his activities as a choreographer in the Fujii Kaze "Matsuri" MV. Appeared as Mr. Pinky in the 2022 musical "Hairspray". Also active as a model and talent.

Yamanaka Yuki/MV Director Affiliated to amana inc. in 2015 and has been involved in the production of numerous commercials as a production manager. Started working as a director in 2018, producing videos in a wide range of genres, mainly commercials and music videos. Mainly specializes in creating stylish images of dance and fashion. Affiliated to isai inc. in 2022.

Making video The making video documents closely on the [song] recording, still photoshoot and the MV recording. It will be full of Yuzuka Rei’s OFF-side charms in her natural state.

Stage history digest A stylish depiction of Yuzuka’s stage scenes. Don't miss the dance scene collection of the new edited version selected by herself! Video digests of “Boys Over Flowers”, "Haikara-san ga Tooru", "DANCE OLYMPIA", "Cool Beast!!", “MAYERLING”, “A Battlefield for the Two of Us” and others.

DISC2 CD Music Selection —— A special CD with 20 live songs in past performances

2014 Flower Troupe Bow Hall Performance “Nocturne – Memories of a Faraway Summer Day” – Memories of Summer

2018 Flower Troupe National Tour Performance “Melancolique Gigolo –A Dangerous Successor–“ – Daniel’s theme

2018 Flower Troupe National Tour Performance “Exciter!!2018” – Exciter (rep.)

2019 Flower Troupe Akasaka ACT Theatre Performance “Boys Over Flowers” – theme song

2020 Flower Troupe Tokyo International Forum Performance “DANCE OLYMPIA" –Welcome to 2020–“ – DANCE DANCE DANCE

2020 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Haikara-san ga Tooru” – Taisho Romance Song

2020 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Haikara-san ga Tooru” – My Haikara-san

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Augustus – The Illustrious One–" Prayer ‒ O gods of the seven hills"

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Augustus – The Illustrious One–" The Courage You Gave Me

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Cool Beast!!” – Cool Beast theme song

2021 Flower Troupe National Tour Performance “Sorrowful Cordoba” – “Sorrowful Cordoba”

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Genroku Baroque Rock” – Flowers of Edo

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Genroku Baroque Rock” – Fireworks are glittering, glittering

2021 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “The Fascination –Flower Troupe 100th Anniversary and to the Future Beyond–“ – The Fascination theme song

2022 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Years of Pilgrimage ~ The Wandering Soul of Franz Liszt” – Franz Liszt Idol

2022 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Years of Pilgrimage ~ The Wandering Soul of Franz Liszt” Days of Pilgrimage (Dreams of Love)

2022 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “Fashionable Empire” – Welcome to Fashionable Empire

2022 Flower Troupe National Tour Performance “Love Burns in Firenze” – Elegy of Love

2023 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “MAYERLING” – Ephemeral Love

2023 Flower Troupe Grand Theatre Performance “ENCHANTEMENT – A Luxurious Perfume” – Enchantement theme song

Special Bonus —— With 10 A4-size Original Photo Cards!

Genki Ito / Photocard Photographer Graduated from Nihon University College of Art in 2008. After working at a studio, he became an independent cameraman in 2014. Joined symphonic in 2016. Active in a wide range of fields, including advertising, fashion, and music. In music, he has taken many jacket photos for LiSA, Masaki Suda, Hinatazaka46, and others.

#yuzuka rei #flower troupe #hanagumi #takarazuka #takarazuka revue #hibiscustranslation