#Equal Protection Clause

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

The Obama-appointed Judge who was overseeing Disney’s lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recused himself on Thursday over a relative’s ownership of 30 shares of Disney stock.

The case was transferred to Judge Allen C. Winsor, an appointee of President Trump who previously upheld the state’s Parental Rights in Education law. That law, known to its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, is at the center of the Disney-DeSantis controversy.

Disney sued DeSantis in April, alleging that the state had engaged in a campaign of retaliation against the company over its opposition to the bill. The state rescinded Disney’s special governing district in Orlando, and then reconstituted it under the control of five DeSantis appointees.

Disney has argued that the state has sought to punish the company for protected speech, and is seeking to overturn the state’s actions.

The lawsuit was initially assigned to Judge Mark E. Walker, whom President Obama appointed to the bench in 2012.

DeSantis’ lawyers sought to have Walker removed on the grounds that his previous comments in other cases show he might be biased against the Governor. In one case, the judge noted that Disney might lose its special status because, “arguably,” it “ran afoul of state policy.”

Disney’s lawyers, led by Daniel Petrocelli, argued that was not nearly enough to merit disqualification.

Walker agreed with Disney and denied the DeSantis motion on Thursday, saying it was “wholly without merit.”

“In fact, I find the motion is nothing more than rank judge-shopping,” he wrote. “Sadly, this practice has become all too common in this district.”

However, Walker also noted that his relative owns Disney stock, and that he therefore has an ethical duty to step aside.

The case will instead go to Winsor, who previously served as Florida’s solicitor general. In that role, he defended the state’s law outlawing same-sex marriage in 2014.

In February, Winsor dismissed a lawsuit from students and parents who alleged that the Parental Rights in Education law had caused schools to remove books with LGBTQ themes from libraries and to remove LGBTQ lyrics from school musicals.

That lawsuit was brought by Roberta Kaplan, who won a landmark gay rights case at the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. v. Windsor, in 2013. In the Florida case, she argued that the law violated the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause, as well as Title IX, which bars sex discrimination in education.

Winsor dismissed the suit twice, ruling both times that the plaintiffs had not shown that they suffered enough harm to warrant standing in federal court.

“Plaintiffs have shown a strident disagreement with the new law, and they have alleged facts to show its very existence causes them deep hurt and disappointment,” Winsor wrote. “But to invoke a federal court’s jurisdiction, they must allege more. Their failure to do so requires dismissal.”

Walker, the Obama-appointed Judge, had previously ruled against DeSantis in high-profile cases. In November, he blocked a law against “woke” ideology from taking effect at state universities.

Walker also struck down state voting restrictions last year, finding that the state had a “horrendous history of racial discrimination in voting.” DeSantis called the ruling “performative partisanship” and appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which reversed Walker’s ruling earlier this year.

#us politics #news #variety #2023 #Disney #republicans #conservatives #gov. ron desantis #florida #Judge Allen C. Winsor #Parental Rights in Education #don't say gay bill #Judge Mark E. Walker #Daniel Petrocelli #Roberta Kaplan #republican homophobia #First Amendment #Equal Protection Clause #title ix #11th Circuit Court of Appeals

[todaysdocument]

Complaint, Ludtke v Kuhn, 12/29/1977. 

Journalist Melissa Ludtke sued MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn over the Yankees’ policy of banning female reporters from the locker room. The Court found that the policy violated the equal protection and due process clause of the 14th Amendment. 

Record Group 21: Records of District Courts of the United States

Series: Civil Case Files

File Unit: [Melissa Ludtke and Time, Incorporated v. Bowie Kuhn, Commissioner of Baseball, et al.]

Transcription:

[on top right side, rubber stamps,

first stamp; "77 CIV. 6301"

second stamp; "U.S. DISTRICT COURT, FILED DEC 29 1977. S. D. OF N. Y."

third stamp; "COMPLAINT JUDGE MOTLEY"]

[on top right side, handwritten, "1", circled.

handwritten inside of second stamp, under date, "12:01"]

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK

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

MELISSA LUDTKE and TIME, INCORPORATED,

Plaintiffs,

-against-

BOWIE KUHN, Commissioner of Baseball,

LELAND MacPHAIL, President of the

American League of Professional

Baseball Clubs, THE NEW YORK YANKEES

PARTNERSHIP, ABRAHAM BEAME, Mayor of

the City of New York, JOSEPH

DAVIDSON, Commissioner of Parks and

Recreation for the City of New York,

and DENNIS ALLEE, Director of the

Economic Development Administration

of the City of New York,

Defendants.

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

[underlined] Jurisdiction

1. Jurisdiction of the Court is invoked pur-

suant to 28 U.S.C. § 1343, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, the United

States Constitution, and by reason of the doctrine of pendent

jurisdiction.

2. The amount in controversy exceeds $10,000,

exclusive of interests and costs.

[underlined] Parties

3. Plaintiff Melissa Ludtke is a woman employed

[on bottom right of page, handwritten "1", circled]

[page 2]

time high of 40,781,061.

18. Time publications reflect the great public interest in baseball by devoting substantial editorial resources and news coverage to baseball.

19. The public interest in professional baseball extends far beyond the results or play-by-play descriptions of the games. For example, sports fans want to know how the players think how they played in a particular game, how the players relate to one another and to their owners, coaches and manager and, in general, what the players are like as human beings.

20. In response to that public interest and to increase fan interest and attendance, defendants Kuhn, MacPhail and the New York Yankees encourage and, together with the City, profit from news coverage going beyond the mere results of the games. Accordingly, they have permitted reporters access to players in the clubhouses of major league baseball teams immediately after professional baseball games.

21. Access to the clubhouses of major league baseball teams immediately after games, however, has been and continues to be limited to male reporters. Accredited female reporters, including plaintiff Ludtke, have been and continue to be barred from such access solely because of their sex.

-8-

#archivesgov #December 29 #1977 #1970s #women's history #14th Amendment #equal protection clause #due process clause #baseball #MLB #sports #Yankees #New York Yankees #Yankee Stadium

[a-queer-burrito]

The overturning of Roe v. Wade through Dobbs v. Jackson isn't just a political or policy issue, it is a legal issue that effects more rights than just abortion. To explain: Roe v. Wade was applied to states through the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment and fell under the Equal Protection Clause.

As the 14th amendment states: "no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

The Court historically has used this Equal Protection Clause to say that states can not implement laws that restrict rights, including the right to privacy. The 14th has been used to strike down discriminatory laws, which is where disability rights comes in. Despite this, it is mostly legislation (e.g. ADA, Fair Housing Act) that protected our rights, as opposed to the 14th.

There are still state laws that allow for disability related discrimination, including but not limited to: limiting rights for voting, marriage, family relations, and other vital areas of personal autonomy. With the opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson placing the authority of regulating abortion up to the states, it weakens the reach of the 14th's Equal Protection Clause since the Due Process Clause has come into question.

Although we have federal legislation protecting our rights, this opinion means that the courts could possibly not strike down discriminatory laws in the future. As so, it is our responsibility to fight against Dobbs v. Jackson, not just for our sake, but for everyone- women, LGBTQ+, POC, and every disabled individual in the United States.

#roe vs. wade #roe v wade #dobbs v. jackson women’s health organization #dobbs vs. jackson #14th amendment #due process #due process clause #equal protection clause #equal rights #women's reproductive health #womens rights #lgbt rights #disability rights

[bigdadskypilot]

From a friend. Particularly poignant at the moment.

We have lost a battle. We cannot surrender and lose the war. To borrow a phrase…on this we must pledge our fortunes, our honor, and our lives. The elimination of references to the sacred and the divine is intentional. They no longer have any place in this fight.

#separation of church and state #anti trump #atheist #atheism #anti religion #fuck republicans #anti christian #anti christianity #second amendment #fourth amendment #fourteenth amendment #equal rights under the law #equal protection clause

[erik-even-wordier]

The commenter urges us to focus on equal protection of people of all religions or none.

Instead of demanding something the Constitution doesn't guarantee (i.e., a wall of separation), secularists ought focus on something it does: equal protection for all citizens, as guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. Borrowing from India, they might advocate for the equality of all believers (and non-believers). "Equal-rights secularism" would highlight the legal inequalities that conservative Christian political activism fosters.

Thus, no county clerk could deny a marriage license to a same-sex couple in the name of religious liberty. No single notion of when life begins could assume the status of law....

Borrowing from [French] laïcité, American secularists might emphasize how privileging the rights of a few religious groups threatens order. When worshipers congregate during a pandemic, that's not free exercise, but reckless endangerment. When extremists storm the U.S. Capitol, that's not protected free speech, but sedition. Even colonial-era constitutions stipulated what the First Amendment somehow never mentioned: Your free exercise can't threaten public safety. American secularists should demand equal protection, literally.

#u.s. history #separation of church and state #secularism #equal protection clause

[trench]

Why overturning Roe v. Wade is dangerous for everyone

Why overturning Roe v. Wade is dangerous for everyone

I’ve never been a fan of abortion. I realize that no one is actually a ‘fan’ of abortion, but you know what I mean. Anyway, back in my more conservative days, I called for the overturning of Roe v. Wade. My reason for opposing abortion was not related to religious reasons, even though I was raised Roman Catholic. I was adopted, and because of this, I felt like if abortion had been legal in the…

View On WordPress

#14th Amendment #abortion #Equal Protection Clause #Roe v. Wade

[katierosefun]

every once in a while, i feel a little bit annoyed with myself / question whether i can actually become an attorney . . . 

. . . and then i remember that one time a big corporate attorney tried to ask me whether interracial marriage is actually legitimate (”like, does the constitution actually allow that? because i’m a textualist”) in a random bar, and then i grit my teeth and get back to studying because if that asshat can become an attorney, then surely. surely--

#caroline talks #literally as i'm putting together my outline about substantive due process right now . . . #thinking about the 14th amendment due process + equal protection clauses . . . #and realizing that oh yeah these two are separate #but wanting suddenly. so much more to dropkick that one guy. #anyways <333 i can't believe i literally smoked a cigarette with him tbh #just thinking about it i swear i can still taste the cigarette in my mouth and it makes me want to throw up lmao

[aiiaiiiyo]

#Staunch advocate for African-American rights Congressman Thaddeus Stevens #1792-1868. His early draft of the 14th Amendment included the Equal Protection Clause #the Privileges and Immunities Clause #and the Due Process Clause. All Americans are in his debt. #L0st_in_the_Stars #oldschool

[moleshow]

in the midst of talking about how powerful blackmun’s dissent in deshaney v winnebago county is, i realized that i was engaged in an act of conversational terrorism

#if you ever find yourself about to explain the equal protection clause to someone #stop do not pass go

[urcrookedneighbor]

Fuck people who say we don't have the luxury of despair. Fuck people who say despair is a luxury.

#i know they have their reasons #I know we have to pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off and not give up #but don't tell me despair is a luxury #not everyone can hold on #not everyone can effectively repress their feelings #not everyone can compartmentalize #it was a horrible opinion by strictly legal terms alone #it was a horrible opinion by strictly moral terms alone #don't tell me being overwhelmed by despair isn't the right reaction to two men entirely dismissing the idea that women rely on Roe #it's ok to be filled with despair #Pauli Murray was a trans man who significantly advanced the legal arguments for Brown and Reed #Reed v. Reed is the case in which SCOTUS recognized protection of women under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment #He also had breakdowns in his life #he was sometimes overwhelmed with despair #this is a marathon and sometimes you have to pass the baton #I understand that despair can have dire consequences #I understand that not everyone can allow themselves to feel the depths of their despair #I understand the danger of despair and inaction #but I am not motivated by spite #Despair is an emotion like any other #The goal is not to be overwhelmed by despair #but sometimes you don't choose the better coping skills #and sometimes you have to scream alone in your house and sob and read a man not even give you the decency of a good opinion #while he shatters and weakens the rights and gains and rule of law that the American compact is built on #and cites primarily to a water rights lawyer as his historical source

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, said Saturday that he believes the Supreme Court was "clearly wrong" when it decided in a historic 2015 ruling that same-sex marriage was legal under the Constitution.

Obergefell v. Hodges, a landmark LGBTQ rights case, was decided in a 5 to 4 ruling in June 2015. The Supreme Court decision made it illegal for any state, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories to deny a marriage certificate to same-sex couples, citing the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

In a video uploaded to YouTube from his Verdict+ podcast, Cruz discussed what was described as the "vulnerability" of the Obergefell ruling. He argued that the ruling was not correctly decided, making a similar argument to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in his concurring opinion when the top judicial body formally overturned Roe v. Wade, which ended a woman's right to an abortion, in late June.

"Obergefell, like Roe v. Wade, ignored two centuries of our nation's history," the Senator argued in the clip from his podcast. "Marriage was always an issue that was left to the states. We saw states before Obergefell—some states were moving to allow gay marriage, other states were moving to allow civil partnerships. There were different standards that the states were adopting."

The Texas Republican contended that the "democratic process would have continued to operate" if the Supreme Court had not ruled the way it did. "In Obergefell the Court said, 'no, we know better than you,' and now every state must sanction and permit gay marriage," he said.

"That decision was clearly wrong when it was decided," Cruz said, complaining that the Court was "overreaching." The GOP Senator then pointed out however, that the Supreme Court's ruling overturning Roe suggested that same-sex marriage will be treated differently.

"In Dobbs, what the Supreme Court said is 'Roe is different because it's the only one of the cases that involves the taking of a human life and it's qualitatively different,'" he explained. "I agree with that proposition."

While the majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito did argue that the decision specifically concerned abortion, and that "nothing in this opinion should be understood to cast doubt on precedents that do not concern abortion," Thomas' concurring opinion raised alarms within the LGBTQ community.

Thomas wrote that the Supreme Court "should reconsider all of this Court's substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell." The Justice contended that those precedents were "demonstrably erroneous."

Griswold v. Connecticut established that married couples have a right to purchase and use contraception without government interference. That case was decided in 1965. Lawrence v. Texas in 2003 established that criminal penalties for sodomy or private sexual acts between consenting adults are unconstitutional.

"We have a duty to 'correct the error' established in those precedents," Thomas continued. "After overruling these demonstrably erroneous decisions, the question would remain whether other Constitutional provisions guarantee the myriad rights that our substantive due process cases have generated."

Cruz's views on Obergefell are not new. He has long criticized the decision and voiced opposition to same-sex marriage. After the decision was handed down in 2015, the Republican lawmaker told NPR in an interview that states not involved in the specific lawsuit should disregard the ruling.

"Those who are not parties to the suit are not bound by it," he said. Cruz also said in that interview that he'd make opposition to gay marriage "front and center" to his 2016 GOP presidential primary campaign, which he ultimately lost to former-President Donald Trump.

Unlike Cruz, Trump showed some support for the LGBTQ community in his first presidential campaign. The then-GOP presidential candidate briefly waved a rainbow flag with the message "LGBTs for Trump" written on it during an October 2016 event in Colorado. However, when Trump became president his administration supported and pushed for policies that many LGBTQ advocates viewed as homophobic and opposed the community's rights.

A large majority of Americans support same-sex marriage. Polling by Gallup from May 2021 showed that 70 percent of the U.S. population approves of gay marriage. That included a majority of Republicans (55 percent) as well as 83 percent of Democrats and nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of political independents.

Newsweek reached out to Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ advocacy group and LGBTQ political lobbying organization in the country, for comment on Cruz's remarks.

#us politics #news #newsweek #sen. ted cruz #2022 #scotus #us supreme court #obergefell v. hodges #roe v. wade #same sex marriage #lgbtqia+ rights #lgbtqia+ #lgbtqia+ representation #equal rights #14th amendment #Due Process Clause #equal protection clause #YouTube #verdict+ #justice clarence thomas #justice samuel alito #dobbs v. jackson women’s health organization #donald trump #npr #2016 election #gallup poll #Human Rights Campaign

[pokuc]

#The court ruled 6-3 #saying the practice “violate[s] the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.” #Affirmative action #fuck

[silurisanguine]

Now that the Parasite in chief has had her platinum Jubilee, i thought id share some fun facts about the monarchy in the UK and the Queen in particular. All of this information is easily found online.

-The Queen negotiated clauses in the equality and Diversity Act so she wouldn't have to hire 'coloured or foreign' staff in the palace. that clause is still there today.

-The Queen tried to use The State Poverty Fund to heat Buckingham Palace even with her own personal fortune.

-She lobbied the Scottish Parliament 67 times to ensure that new wildlife protections laws woudn't apply to her estates there.

-The main throne she sits on is worth an estimated £40,000,000,000. Her jewellery Collection worth circa £5,000,000,000 made with 28, 578 diamonds and gemstones, almost all of which were stolen from countries Britain invaded and enslaved...sorry colonised. She also banned the Police from searching her estates for stolen artifacts.

-Her crown estate is one of the largest property owners in the country. It has over 26 Royal residencies, inc 9 palaces that remain mostly empty and property portfolio that generates £300 million per year. Yet she had a family thrown out during the covid eviction ban for a £32 unpaid bill.

Her son is a nonce ( pedophile) that she protected through a £12 million payout.

-The 'free' book that was sent to every school to tell kids how wonderful the queen is cost the taxpayer £12 million.

-She has £420 million personal wealth, which doesn't include that for-mentioned crown estate or her antique furniture or her jewellery collection or all the stolen gold.

-She and her family cost the tax payer £345 million per year in security and other protections.

-The jubilee cost the tax payer £28 million , set aside by the chancellor for the purpose of funding it. Whilst there are currently 14.5 million people living in poverty here in the UK.

Celebrating the incredibly rich, racist and privileged whilst millions of our own citizens are suffering is disgusting.

#The British Monarchy #Parasite in Chief

[cheeseanonioncrisps]

I really want the show to go into more detail about Husk's backstory as an overlord, partly because I feel like it's something the fandom is kinda glossing over and partly because it's lowkey one of the biggest obstacles that a Husk/Angel relationship would have into overcome.

'Loser Baby' emphasises the similarities between Angel and Husk's situations, but it also (probably deliberately, since Husk is the one leading it) brushes aside one of the most major differences between them.

Namely that when Husk tells Angel that he's not the only one who sold his soul, he's not just singing about himself.

Husk sold his soul to Alastor, yeah (or lost it at least, which amounts to the same thing), but he also traded in souls. He was that “psychopathic freak”, and was operating fro long enough to achieve Overlord status.

And, honestly? Having your soul owned by Husker back in the day probably sucked.

The one benefit of soul contracts for the person selling their soul is that they seem to get a fair amount of say in how the contract is written.

Angel's contract, for example, apparently has a clause stating that he's only under Valentino's jurisdiction when he's in the studio. (Which, btw, puts a whole other spin on why Val is so pissed when he moves out of studio accommodation and into the Hotel.) And Val is apparently bound to that. Even though he's pissed off and actively wants to put Angel in his place, he can't make any moves against him in the club.

Equally, since most overlords seem to be associated with a specific location/industry, you can generally choose who your working for and therefore roughly what kind of stuff you're gonna be doing.

In practice there seems to be a lot of manipulation and coercion going on on the part of the Overlords making these contracts— they're not fair by any means— but the sinners signing them are theoretically at least guaranteed the right to a (somewhat) informed choice and some control over the deals they make.

Having an Overlord who uses human souls to pay his gambling debts, however, completely undermines all that.

Imagine going into work for your job running the roulette games at the casino only to be told that the boss played a bad hand in a game with Valentino, and so you're a sex worker now.

Or being traded to someone who has you fighting turf wars for them, and realising that your contract doesn't have any clauses to protect your personal safety because you only signed up to be a bartender.

Or selling your soul for a job near your home and family so you can guarantee their protection, only to be traded to someone whose territory is on the other side of the pentagram.

Husk is a victim of his own addiction, yeah, which is one of the reasons why Angel relates to him. But his backstory implies that there must be a significant number of people out there who were also victims of Husk's addiction, and may not be as sympathetic. Dude basically owned other people as property (… we have a word for that) and then literally played games with their lives.

And like, I'm not saying he hasn't changed. He seems more empathetic on the show than his backstory would imply, and apart from anything else, he's had a pretty clear object lesson about what it's like to be on the receiving end of that sort of thing. (Ngl, I'm pretty sure one of the reasons Alastor keeps him around is because he's the type to find the irony amusing.)

But like, he's in this place where he can relate to Angel Dust's situation, while at the same time probably also being able to relate to Valentino and Alastor's perspectives (although I doubt he was quite as bad as Val to work for).

And I'm curious as to what would happen, later in the series, if the gang met someone who had sold their soul to Husk at one point. Someone who would also be able to relate to Angel's situation, but with Husk as their version of Valentino.

#hazbin hotel #angel dust #husker #huskerdust #meta #hazbin hotel meta #yeah i just got thru watching this series and I have Thoughts #alastor hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel headcanons #valentino #hazbin hotel spoilers

[tanadrin]

What’s the case for an upper and lower chamber?

In my opinion, none.

The historical situation is that the upper chamber had more power and the lower was a sop to the common folk and petty nobility: this is why the House of Commons was formed (originally from knights of the shire and the representatives of cities that had been granted special rights by the Crown), and only later, after a very long process of constitutional evolution in Britain, did the Lords transform into a consultative body that was adjunct to the Commons, where the real power lay. For a while, even after you started to have something that looked like modern government in Britain, you still frequently had PMs drawn from the Lords--and still could, in theory, except that the convention is they come from the Commons.

In the U.S. example, the goal was simply to split the difference between a popular chamber (the House) and a chamber representing state governments (the Senate, whose members could be chosen by any method provided for under state law, but originally were usually chosen by state legislatures). This is because the people who drafted the U.S. constitution hated and were suspicious of popular democracy, because they were rich landowners and slaveholders whose positions were untenable in the long run if everyone in the country could vote and was equally represented.

Obviously they didn't put it like that--they spoke of the hotheaded hoi polloi, the changeable will of the people--but they were massive Romeaboos, and all the populist leaders who whittled away at the Roman republic managed to do so because they were willing to centralize power, to take it away from the baronial elite of the Republic, and to use that power in service of people further down the org chart. In service of themselves too, of course--these were not altruists--but it was the particularly Roman instantiation of the crown-vs-barons struggle, where the common folk usually side with the Crown, because the barons are bastards who abuse them directly.

(Very many "tyrants" in history were "tyrants" only in that they gave a raw deal to the barons in their particular social order, and very many events which we now describe as movements toward a more equitable distribution of power were in fact a very shitty deal for the majority of the population--the peasants--because it gave the barons even more license to abuse their serfs.)

And the American founders knew all this, and they were all barons, and they didn't like the idea of a federal government that was too effective, so they sprinkled it with veto points and also totally failed to anticipate the rise of modern political parties. (Which weren't exactly what they had in mind when they warned against factionalism--that was more about sectional interests. But still, they did totally fail to anticipate how this system would work as party politics developed.)

In a system of democratic government like the U.S. has now, where it is widely acknowledged the rule should be "one adult citizen never convicted of a felony who can get the day off work to stand in line and has a photo ID = one vote" the U.S. Senate is an inexcusable anachronism. Indeed, the Supreme Court has ruled that state senates modeled on the exact same principle as the U.S. senate (say, one county one senator, as the constitution of my home state Tennessee has it) are unconstitutional, because they violate the equal protection clause.

More recently, many countries have approached the idea of an upper chamber as a sort of "chamber of experts" meant to review and advise on legislation. This kind of makes sense in theory, I guess, but if voters want subject-matter experts to make policy, they can vote them in; in practice, any system of appointment or ex officio qualification is going to select for political lackeys without democratic mandates, and it's also just a bad idea to have people with significant power over the legislative process who do not have democratic accountability. The problem of creating legislation is never that we don't have enough smart people willing to offer their opinions; the problem is brokering functional compromises between interest groups and resolving incentives that push the process toward dysfunctional outcomes, which isn't really something you can fix just by fiddling with the composition of your upper house.

So in most modern parliamentary democracies, upper houses are reduced in power. Either they can't veto bills permanently (Lords), they can't originate money bills (Lords again), they only have input on certain matters (German Bundesrat), they're full of government appointees to ensure the government always has a majority in them (Irish Seanad), or the lower house can overrule them on most matters (Japanese House of Councillors). And the reason why is obvious: if your democratic mandate comes from the lower house, if that's where your government is being formed in a parliamentary system, if the whole principle of government is meant to be collective self-rule by the body of citizens, an upper house that is a check on that power is either definitionally redundant or a brake on democracy.

There are ways to ensure that a lower house is both representative and does not devolve into factional chaos. Proportional representation, four-year terms, constructive motions of no confidence (again, parliamentary systems only), etc. Plenty of countries and subnational entities have unicameral legislatures and are perfectly stable: Sweden, Norway, the Baltics, Portugal, Mongolia, South Korea, Peru [ok bad example nvm], all the states of Germany, all the provinces of Canada, most of the provinces of Argentina, Queensland, the vast majority of the states of India, and the three devolved legislatures in the United Kingdom.

Therefore in my opinion there is no good democratic case for an upper house. And all the undemocratic reasons why you'd want one are bad. Too much democracy is, in fact, a very rare problem for systems of government to have!

#thanks for the ask btw anon #i love getting to rant about the evils of bicameralism

[euphoricfilter]

Rope Bunny || ‘Helping Hands’ Halloween Special

Pairing: Caretaker! Yoongi x Kindergarten teacher! Reader

Genre: Fluff || Smut || Established Relationship || Non-idol AU

Summary: Yoongi had never been too fond of Halloween. Hated that one tacky day of the year with every fibre of his being. All it takes however, is your little surprise to convince him that maybe, just maybe, Halloween isn't all that bad.

Word Count: 7.3k (i don’t know what happened)

Tags/ warnings: fluff, smut in the forms of: bondage, reader get's tied to the bed, vaginal fingering, penetrative protected sex (because that's cool), slight dacryphilia, playboy bunny costume, implied predator/prey play, implied pet play, aftercare, halloween slander, ew they're still in love

Notes: this can be read as a stand-alone without reading the first part of this mini-series! however you can read ‘helping hands’ here! as minor references are made.

for my love, @4amj3zz who i love with all my heart <3 thank you for the playboy bunny idea!

my full masterlist

+ + +

It was no secret that Min Yoongi hated Halloween. The holiday—if you could even call it that—was a waste of time and money.

Halloween was a poor excuse to spend too much money on tacky decorations, and an easy excuse for candy makers to profit off one singular night each year. Frauds if you asked him.

Yoongi had never understood why parents let their children stumble from door to door in goofy costumes, asking for an inexplainable amount of sugar from strangers; the whole agenda a little backwards when ‘stranger danger’ is drilled into our heads as children. And now, kids have enough candy to give themselves a sugar high until Christmas rolls around, and an equally questionable Santa Clause fills their stockings with enough chocolate until the easter bunny comes.

He never understood why parents would buy a new, tacky looking costume each year when maybe they could be saving up for their child’s college tuition fees. And don’t get him started on adults dressing up. Min Yoongi was convinced that Halloween was the only night a year adults could dress in skimpy outfits, and no one would bat an eye. And a few too many sleazy men get a couple of hours of eye-candy to keep their imaginations running wild for the next couple of nights.

Now, Yoongi isn’t one to judge what others like to wear. He doesn’t feel it’s fair to judge, when he rotates the same 4 black shirts each week and might change it up with a new colour when you beg him to match outfits. Yoongi’s issue lies with the fact that it was the end of October.

The cusp of winter.

Where each night should be spent sat in front of the heater with stupid amounts of coffee (or in your case, hot chocolate) and a nice, cosy blanket wrapped around both your shoulders while a movie plays as you run your cold toes down his legs.

He wonders if cases of pneumonia or frostbite are at an all-time high on the 31st of October with the way some people dress themselves.

However, the absolute bane of Yoongi’s existence is all the pumpkin flavoured crap that nearly every franchise in the country liked to overprice in the month of October.

No, he didn’t want a pumpkin spice latte. No, he didn’t want the pumpkin tart instead of your usual sugared doughnut and his tiramisu.

It was Yoongi’s downfall when he was buying food for Holly, and suddenly the pet shop owner had asked if he wanted pumpkin favoured treats for his dog. Yoongi loved Holly as much as he loved you but he’s more than certain his puppy couldn’t give a flying fuck about a pumpkin flavoured biscuit.

The one thing that Yoongi did like about Halloween, however, was the excuse to watch scary movies. You on the other hand couldn’t stand them, burying your head underneath his arms when anything remotely spooky came up on the TV of an evening. So unfortunately, Yoongi hadn’t gotten his adrenaline rush as of late with a few too many trashy thrillers.  

“How do I look?” you give your boyfriend a twirl, black dress flaring around your thighs prettily.

Yoongi just blinks up at you, trying to ignore the pointed hat you’re wearing that grates at his eyes.

“What are you supposed to be?” he asks, raking his gaze down your body. Any excuse to give you a once-over.

“A witch obviously” you roll your eyes, if the spiderweb tights, hat and cape weren’t enough of a give-away.

“Isn’t that… basic?” Yoongi dares to ask and your shoulders slump forwards.

“Yes, but I don’t think a bunch of 4-year-olds are going to know who I am if I dress up as… I don’t know, MJ”

“MJ?”

“From Spiderman, Yoongi. We’ve watched all 8 movies, plus the animated one”

“If you were MJ does that make me Spiderman?” Yoongi drawls and you sigh.

“No” you shake your head and Yoongi’s eyebrows furrow, “You don’t believe in Halloween, so you don’t get the privilege to be my Spiderman.”

Yoongi scoffs at that, no real venom in his expression as he watches you fix your hair in the vanity mirror.

“Oh” you turn to look at your boyfriend, “Don’t forget to pick up that package at the post office after work today either, okay?”

Yoongi nods, puckering his lips for a kiss. You oblige, leaning down so the brim of your hat brushes the top of Yoongi’s head as your lips press against his own.

“Love you” he whispers, breath fanning your lips in the way where goosebumps prickle the skin of your arms.

“Love you more!” you smile, “And, don’t be late tonight. Remember I have a surprise!” you giggle, and Yoongi would have been a little more worried if you hadn’t been so happy. On more than one occasion you’d tried to surprise your boyfriend; once trying to cook a three-course meal, however you hadn’t known cans can’t go in the microwave. That had led to your boyfriend having to work over the weekend to replace the wretched utility machine.

He smiles as you skip out of the bedroom, chunky boots thumping on the hardwood floor as you flit around the house for anything you may have forgotten last minute. Even though your boyfriend had made sure to pack your work bag the night before, since he knew you could be a little slow in the mornings and he knew you didn’t need the added stress.

<3

Yoongi’s foot taps impatiently, dull pat pat pat of his sneakers bouncing off the walls as he leans against the post office’s desk. Fingers numb as he scrolls through his phone, weather bitter outside the heated post office. The old man that was at front of house had wandered out back to get his package and seemed to be taking his sweet, sweet time riffling through piles of unclaimed mail.

Yoongi’s phone lights up, a message from you; asking what time he would be home because you’d gotten his surprise all ready. And no matter how much Yoongi loved you, he was still a little sceptical of what your surprise could be.

You had never been good at keeping secrets, always blurting out little hints which would evidently lead to him to your little plots, only to act like he never knew what you were up to when the time came for you to surprise him. Because your smile was worth a little acting if it meant he got to see you looking so happy. Like he had been the one to surprise you, and of course he’d reward you with a sweet kiss that always made your cheeks flush the prettiest pink.

[4:56 pm]

My love:

Yoongs how long will you be? I’ve finished setting up your surprise and I’m getting impatient :’(

[4:57 pm]

Yoonie:

Soon, the old guy that works here is slow.

[4:57 pm]

My love:

:(

He should really get someone to help him with all those packages…

Maybe we could help

[4:58 pm]

Yoonie:

You barely have time to take care of yourself. There’s a flyer on the door saying they’re hiring; a few high school kids will probably start applying soon now that the holidays are almost here.

<3

Yoongi takes a look at your package. You hadn’t told him what you’d bought but from the looks of things it was from that little doggy clothing shop you loved. If Yoongi thought he spoiled Holly too much, don’t get him started on you.

He doesn’t bother pulling his keys from the back of his jeans, knowing you were home, instead he knocks.

Only to be answered with silence.

Yoongi knocks on the door again, no stranger to your habit of dancing around the bedroom with your music blasting through his speakers as you tidy up the mess, you’d made during your morning rush.

Only to once again be faced with nothing.

He leans his ear against the door, cold wood numbing his cheek as he narrows his eyes, hoping to hear any sound coming from the apartment.

Assuming the best, he guesses you’d forgotten to pick something up at the shops and decided a little early evening walk was now squeezed into your meticulously planned Halloween schedule.

Get home. Clean while Yoongi picks up package. Cook together. Bathe together. Maybe watch a Halloween movie, only if it isn’t scary. Roast marshmallows on the balcony. Read together. Brush teeth together. Wear matching pjs. Get the fluffy blanket for bed from the dryer. Talk about each other’s plans for tomorrow. Maybe sleep.

Yoongi easily slips his pair of keys from his pocket, the jingling bouncing off the walls of the empty hallway. And he hears the neighbour’s dog bark at the sound.

The lights are on when he pushes the door open with his foot. Your work shoes neatly placed on the rack, an empty space for his own sneakers to sit comfortably beside your own.

“Y/n?” he calls out, kicking the door closed behind him, “You home, my love?”

He hears shuffling from the other room, your silk bedsheets ratting you out that you’re home.

Yoongi dumps the brown box onto the couch, the little pattering of Holly’s feet bringing his attention to the floor as he kicks his shoes off.

Yoongi bends down, pulling a strip of tissue paper from the dog’s mouth. “Gross. You can’t eat that.”

He pokes his head into the kitchen, the dog’s bowl still half full of dinner, so you hadn’t forgotten to feed him. But it seemed his little dog had gotten distracted in the process of his meal, and you may be the main culprit. Yoongi didn’t even know what to think. For the first time since you’d started dating, you had kept a secret, and he didn’t have an inkling of what it could be.

Were you proposing?

That was meant to be his job. He had the ring and everything.

He just hadn’t worked up the guts to ask you yet.

What if you really were proposing? Should he say yes and then tell you he also had an engagement ring? Or should he say no?

That would be stupid.

He wanted to spend the rest of his life with you, but he wanted his proposal to be more than perfect.

Not that you wouldn’t make it perfect.

What if he said no and you got the wrong idea?

What if you decided to break up with him?

God knows what he would do if that were to happen.

Maybe you weren’t proposing…

But your surprise.

It wasn’t dinner, he knew that much. You hadn’t set the table, nor was there any food simmering on the stove.

Maybe you’d bought ugly matching pyjamas again.

But what if you were proposing?

He wanders towards your bedroom; a slice of dim orange lamp light coats the floor in its heady glow from where the bedroom door is slightly cracked open.

And Yoongi stands there for a moment as he hears you hum to yourself; and his new assumption is that you’re probably lying-in bed as you watch something from your phone, headphones plugged in as he hears nothing more than your voice.

Maybe you’d forgotten all about your little surprise and although you’d been hyping him up all day, with teasing glances across the cafeteria at lunch, and light brushes of your fingers over his chest as he passed you in the halls; Yoongi would much rather you have forgotten your little proposal if it meant he could be the one to get down on one knee.

However.

Yoongi feels as though time stops when he pushes the bedroom door open.

There you are, sprawled out on your stomach, legs kicking up behind you as you rest your chin the palms of your hands. Open book long forgotten, the pages flipping closed by themselves. You hadn’t bothered to crack the spine, design too pretty to tamper with, and although later you’ll whine about losing your page, maybe even blame it on your boyfriend, right now the look on Yoongi’s face was funny enough for you not to care. Whatever little love story you’d been invested in suddenly meaningless as you look into Yoongi’s eyes, love and lust mingled into one as he stares at you, mouth agape.

And you wonder if you’d ever seen Yoongi make such an expression during the course of your relationship.

It’s not often you splurge on an outfit for the bedroom; truthfully Yoongi had never been all that bothered. You could be wearing a chunky sweater and sweats for all he cared, and he would still get bricked up at just the thought of you, with what you hide beneath layers of clothes. Though, it was never an unwelcomed surprise when you did choose to go and buy something that makes you feel a little prettier than usual.

“Is that a playboy bunny costume?” he gapes, eyes glued to the delicate black ears that sit prettily atop of your head. Frilly little collar and bow snug around your neck with matching little cuffs that encase your pretty wrists. The epitome of sex. All his. And god, did Yoongi love you.

He thinks you put all the other playboy bunny models to shame as you smile up at him, warm orange glow cast over your face in a way that makes Yoongi think you look almost angelic. Almost, if it weren’t for the skimpy little outfit you had on, that did wonders to highlight every part of your body that Yoongi loves most. Though he supposes it covered your pretty little pussy too much for his liking, nothing his fingers can’t fix.

“Yep!” you smile, “Surprise!” your radiant smile a little too innocent for what was about to happen.

Yoongi opens his mouth, only to close it. His extensive vocabulary, years of studying a thesaurus for lyrics that flow like poems suddenly evaporating to nothing more than the image of you dressed so prettily in his bed.

His eyes flit back up to your ears, lacy and black and they just looked so perfect on you. And it leaves Yoongi wondering if some part of him liked your little bunny ears more than he should, something primal vibrating in his chest with the need to just defile you, with how soft and round and absolutely perfect you look, a pretty little bunny all his for the taking.

“Did I really make you speechless?” you ask, eyes wide with wonder and Yoongi can only be baffled at how good you’d been able to keep this a secret.

Yoongi had always been a man of few words, and over time you’d been good at deciphering his wants without him having to open his mouth but this, this Yoongi, whose head looked empty apart from you, was something new.

“Seems so” he takes a few steps towards the bed, unintentionally hesitant as he wonders where to touch, “Oh fuck—” he groans, head tipping back, “is that a tail?” he gapes, shameless as he watches your butt wiggle. Hand pulling his jeans away from his crotch, blood rushing south as he just stares. Enamoured by the little ball of fluff that sits perfectly above your pert behind.

“It’s really soft. Wanna touch?” your index finger toys with your bottom lip, shiny with gloss and little plumper from where you’d been biting it.

Yoongi kneels on the edge of the bed, tips of his fingers brushing over the faux fur tail. His hands trail downwards, index finger running over your covered core; feeling it pulse as he applies a little more pressure. Chocked groan catching in his throat as he feels the material dampen under his careful touch.  

“Was this your idea?” He asks, ignoring your evident frown when he pulls his hand away from where you needed it most. Instead choosing to run it through his hair, grown out from when you’d first started dating, and perfect for you to pull when he makes home between your thighs.

“Someone at work brought up the idea” you tell him honestly, legs still kicked up behind you; the flex of your thighs entirely mesmerising to Yoongi that you can only wonder if your boyfriend was actually listening.

“You didn’t have to do this you know” Yoongi leans down to run his nose along the length of your jaw, the vanilla perfume he’d bought you on your birthday making him smile. Though you didn’t smell like him, he had been the one to pick out the scent, so he supposes it sates that little possessiveness he has over you when you aren’t together.

“Do you not like it? I thought it would be fun, especially since it’s Halloween” you say, albeit a little distracted as Yoongi presses open mouth kisses along the apples of your cheek, painting them ruby red with your own natural blush. Yoongi’s kisses always did make you flustered, he had never been very shy with his tongue, and he made sure you knew it.

“I like it. Fuck that—I love it. I just don’t want you doing anything you’re uncomfortable with” he whispers, continuing his onslaught of wet kisses, though he now trails them down the length of your bare neck. Addicted to the taste of your skin, making sure it glistened with his saliva.

“I’m okay with it. Made me feel pretty and sexy” your mouth falls open as his teeth nip your skin, red and purple roses blossoming as he sucks on the skin of your neck, painting you like an artist would a canvas.

“You’re always pretty and sexy” Yoongi grumbles, pushing himself to sit. And if he pretends not to notice the way you trail after him, that’s his own secret. The two of you like magnets, hard to pull away once pushed so close.

You follow Yoongi in sitting up, now giving your boyfriend a full view of how your little playboy bunny costume pushes your breasts together.

Yoongi swallows thickly, tongue coming to wet his lips as his fingers itch to touch you. He pulls away when he’s nothing more than inches away from touching your heated skin, and your shoulders drop at that. Pitiful pout tugging at your lips as he shuffles off the bed eagerly.

“Wait here” your boyfriend tells you, and you take a peek at his steadily growing erection as he scuttles towards the closet.

“What’re you looking for?” you ask, leaning back on your arms as you watch Yoongi rummage around for a certain box. Your fingers trail down the length of your body, index finger toying with your clit over the thin cottony fabric. You couldn’t help it that Yoongi had riled you up, hole clenching, begging to be touched, filled, you’d take anything just to have that sweet release that taunts you while your boyfriend shoves box after box and piles of clothes out of his way, in looks for something.

“Some ropes for my little rope bunny” he mutters, patience steadily growing weary the longer he’s away from you, watching as you play with yourself from his peripherals. Yoongi think’s all coherent thoughts are slowly trailing down to his dick, throbbing almost painfully in his jeans as you continue to squirm under the careful touch of your fingers.

“They’re on the top shelf. Velvety box”

“Thanks” your boyfriend throws a soft smile over his shoulder, you feel your own lips tug up at that.

“Hey! No touching” he points an accusatory finger at you, eyes trained on your hand that you grind against.

It had been surprising, how open about sex you had been once you’d gotten closer, more comfortable with Yoongi. And he thinks you must be the horniest person he knows. You’d been shy, a little reserved about being so intimate with him that it was beyond a surprise when you’d gotten comfortable enough to touch yourself in front of Yoongi without a care in the world. He never minded, always eager to please you sexually, and he felt proud even, that the two of you had progressed so much in your relationship.

“Can’t help it” you giggle, falling back onto the bed as Yoongi brings the box back over towards you.

You feel his fingers replace your own, tugging the crotch of your costume to the side to side a finger through your slit, your cheeks heating red at the lewd squelch. Your thighs twitch at that, hips bucking to try and get Yoongi to push at least a finger inside of you.

Your boyfriend, however, seems to have other plans, pulling his hand away from your pulsing core. Instead, he flips open the lid of the box, neatly wound coils of rope lined delicately inside. He’d indulged, buying a plethora of colours to spoil you with when you wanted to be tied up.

Your boyfriend had gotten good at cuffing you to the bed with ropes, had practiced over and over after you’d confessed one night you liked the idea of being completely at his mercy. Begging him to at least let you touch him while he makes you cum. Something about Yoongi being a little mean in bed always riled you up, your cunt shiny with arousal as he plays around with your body a little.

“Arms up, baby” he nods his head towards the head of the bed, “Nothing too crazy today” he reassures when you scoot your way up the bed, head resting comfortably on a couple of Yoongi’s pillows as he shuffles up the bed.

He’d watched so many videos online, making sure that the first time the two of you tried playing with ropes there was no chance he would hurt you in the process. The product of his practice showing as he cuffs you to the head of the bed with ease, looping the ropes expertly around your wrists before he weaves them between the bars of the headboard, chunky knot keeping you attached to the head of the bed. He slips two fingers between the ropes and your wrist to ensure it wasn’t too tight and your skin wouldn’t be nicked or burnt in the process.

You watch him bite his lip, friction of his jeans against his erection sending a jolt of pleasure up his spine. Your boyfriend’s head tipping back to ride out the shuddering arousal that wracks his body.

You tug at your restraints, checking if they would hold, “Loose enough?” Yoongi asks, and you nod, “Words, darling”

“It’s good” you whisper, breath getting caught in your throat at the deepening lust in Yoongi’s eyes as you lay sprawled beneath him. Left to writhe under his hands, completely at his mercy.

“And you remember your safe word?”

“Red”

“Good girl” he throws his head back, palming over his jeans to alleviate some of the discomfort, underwear starting to soak through with precum.

“Can you get a condom?” Yoongi asks as he unzips his jeans, sigh of relief tipping off the ledge of his lips as the pressure on his cock is alleviated.

“No, not really” you snort, and Yoongi looks up at you, mouth dropping open. If he wasn’t mildly embarrassed, he may have started drooling a little at the image of you laid perfectly for him, ever so pretty as you wait patiently. Your core glistening in the lamp light, hole winking rhythmically, calling your boyfriend to sink his hard cock into your tight heat.

“Sorry” he grumbles, tugging his jeans off, throwing them somewhere behind him before leaning across your body to pull open the drawer of his nightstand. He’s glad you’re tied up, little velvet box shoved to the forefront of the drawer next to the box of condoms and he can only thank his lucky stars you’re unable to see it.

“Can you take this off” you toe at his hoodie, exaggerated frown tugging at your lips. Growing restless as you boyfriend fiddles with your condom stash.

Yoongi leans down to kiss your pouty lips, “not fair you’re still basically dressed” he whispers, pressing another kiss to your lips.

“Not my fault you got ahead of yourself and got the ropes out” you smile as he presses another kiss to your lips, revelling in the feeling of your minty breath fanning his skin.

“Couldn’t help it” he tells you as he pulls his hoodie and shirt over his head, leaving him in nothing more than his boxers, “Looked too pretty to let you hop off”

You ogle at his bare skin, so smooth, begging you to mark him up.

Yoongi had always had soft, milky skin, pretty and smooth and perfect for you to press kisses down his stomach as your fingers trace his happy trail, a pathway to what hides in his pants. A part of his body that was yours, somewhere no one else would ever get the pleasure of seeing. Or having the pleasure of touching.

Your eyes widen at that, “Are you into like predator, prey play?” you gape, wad of slick seeping from your folds at the prospect of your boyfriend being into something so… primal and raw. By no means was he vanilla but this came as a surprise to even you.

“No” your boyfriend laughs, fingers tugging down the neckline of your top to free your breasts, low moan rumbling up his throat as they bounce.

He leans down, tongue laving up your right nipple with spit before his teeth tug at them, intent on making them red and puffy and ever so pretty and sensitive. You let out something akin to a squeak, surprised by the jolt of that delicious pleasurable pain that jostles down your spine straight into your core.

“Feels like it” your mouth falls open, breathy moan dripping off your tongue like sweet honey as Yoongi presses a wet kiss to your neglected nipple, making sure it shines in the bedroom’s lamp light.

“I’m sure it’s something we can look into” you feel his warm breath fan against your skin as he talks. Goosebumps prickling in its wake.

Your hips lift off the bed when you feel your boyfriend’s greedy fingers push the fabric of your costume aside that covers where he wants you most, cotton fabric brushing against your clit, a lick of pleasure kicking your hips up, knee knocking against Yoongi’s stomach. He slips a finger into your awaiting hole, groaning against your neck as he gently thrusts it into you, velvet walls pulling him in.

“Another one, please” your hips buck in rhythm with his fingers, a second finger easily sliding into you. You feel a dribble of arousal push out of your hole as Yoongi continues to increase the pace of his fingers, determined to find that little sweet spot that’ll make you see stars.

“Ah” you jolt forwards, teeth catching your bottom lip to subdue any more moans, something so embarrassing about the borderline pornographic sounds that tumble from your lips in quick succession.

“I wanna hear you, darling” Yoongi pushes himself up to meet your eyes, determination etched in his brows as he soaks in your pleasure.

He slips his fingers out of your cunt, kissing away your frown as he haphazardly tugs his underwear off. Beyond the point of caring for foreplay, his cock pulsing as it slaps against his stomach, pearly beads of precum staining his skin clear as he reaches over to grab the condom, he’d dropped to sate your needy cunt.

“I love you” he reminds you as his deft fingers tear the foil wrapper open, and you don’t care to look where he throws it as you watch him pump his cock a few times before he rolls the rubber down his shaft.

You lick your lips, Yoongi’s mouth tugging into a cocky smirk as he catches it from the corner of his eye.

You’d never been a big fan of male genitalia, something unappealing about them. However, in all your years of living, Yoongi may have the prettiest cock to ever grave this earth. Curved just right that it nudges that little sweet spot inside of you, girthy enough that you can feel the stretch as he pushes into you.

“Like what you see, little bunny?” he taunts, hand coming to wrap around his thick cock, tipping his head back as he languidly strokes himself; a shame you couldn’t touch him really.

You tug at the ropes that keep you bound to the bed, a pathetic whine falling off your lips that sends arousal straight to Yoongi’s cock, causing it to twitch in his palm.

“Fuck, doll. I could get off right now, and you would have to watch”

You stare at your boyfriend, refusing to look past his waist as he continues to jack himself off, only hoping your eyes could convey just how much you needed him.

“I can’t do anything if you don’t tell me what you want” Yoongi’s voice comes out gravelly, another wad of your arousal dribbling down onto the sheets.

“Fuck me. Please Yoongi, fuck me” your hips roll upwards, arms tugging at the ropes, anything to get some sort of friction.

Yoongi takes a moment to look at you, the epitome of sin laid out all for him. Your nipples still shining with his spit, your cunt glistening with your own arousal, pitiful as it had slicked up from a few heated kisses and a couple of fingers teasing you. Your little bunny ears lay a little askew from where you’d been writhing around, desperate for some form of release. However, Yoongi liked to tease, liked to make the build-up to your orgasm worth it.  

“I was thinking of cumming on those pretty tits of yours” he drawls, thumb brushing over the head of his cock, thighs clenching with pleasure.

Your eyes turn teary at that, and Yoongi thinks that by some miracle his dick hardens just a little more, “Doesn’t look like you like the sound of that” he frowns, mocking you.

“Yoongi please” you sniffle, and your boyfriend would have been worried by the pearly little tears that cascade down your cheeks if he didn’t know you liked to be teased a little, your safe word was there for a reason.

“Please what, doll? I’m not a mind-reader”

“Please fuck me, it hurts” your hips buck up into nothing; another pitiful snivel at that, your fingers taking a-hold of the ropes around your wrists, “wanna touch you, please Yoonie”

“Yeah?” he asks, and you nod.

Yoongi leans down, pressing a warm kiss to the apple of your cheek before he lowers his lips to yours. You think you can taste your salty tears on his lips, his tongue licking up into your mouth when you let out a breathy moan. Yoongi makes light work of toying with your clit, making sure you were slicked up enough to take him.

Two fingers were never usually enough prep for you without there being a little burn on your behalf, but he felt a little mean today, pent up frustration from a long week at work. And he knew you liked to feel the stretch, having confessed during your first time together that you didn’t mind him being a little rough; encouraged it even.

“Please, please, please” you whisper into his mouth as he moves himself over you, pulling your thighs so they rested over his own, your restraints pulling taught as he moves you further down the bed.

“Okay, my love. Gonna fuck you now, okay?” he asks, running his hands over your thighs.

“Yes. Yes please” your thighs twitch in anticipation.

You watch Yoongi as he lines his length up with your hole, dragging the head through your slit to lube up his cock before he gently pushes in. His mouth falls open as you let out a breathy moan, thighs pulling him closer as he slips further into you.

“Slowly, darling. I don’t want to hurt you” he holds his hips in place, shallowly thrusting to help you accommodate his size.

“I’m okay, please—I need more” you shake your head, bunny ears barely holding on as your back arches, another attempt to get Yoongi to hurry up and move. He relents, hips kicking forwards to thrust the rest of his length into you. You moan, arms tugging to try and touch your boyfriend, only to feel another wave of tears coat your cheeks as you can’t hold him.

“You okay?” he asks.

“Forgot I can’t hold you” you tell him and Yoongi chuckles, leaning down to press a kiss to each of your cheeks.

“Want me to untie you?” he asks, running his nose along the wet skin of your jaw.

You stay silent for a moment, before giving him a simple nod.

“Please”

“Anything for you, my love” he smiles, and you feel a little less distressed as he unknots your restraints.

Yoongi inspects your wrists, a little red from where you’d tugged a little too hard but nothing a little soothing cream couldn’t fix after he’s finished with you.

“Ready now?” he asks, and you’re surprised he hadn’t slipped out of you yet.

You nod.

“Words, baby” he reminds, and you scrunch your nose up at that.

“Ready, please fuck me now”

He laughs at that, pulling his hips back before thrusting back into you. You scramble to hold onto him, nails digging into the clear canvas of his back, your lust and love written in the red marks that paint his skin, matching your own art that he’d bitten and sucked onto your own precious body.

Yoongi’s head falls into the crook of your neck, hips relentless as he continues his onslaught of thrusts, crude slapping of skin on skin dulled out by your own staccatos of breathy ‘ah ah ahs’ filling the room as Yoongi harmonises with his own throaty groans. Practically folding you in half as your thighs squeeze your breasts together.

“Gonna come. Cum with me” he moans, angling his hips to try and find your sweet spot.

“There, there, there” you tell him, voice pitching higher as your body jolts up the bed. Bunny ears long forgotten as they lay abandoned on your pillow.

Yoongi pushes himself up to watch your face, breasts catching his attention as they bounce in time with his thrusts. “I love you so much” he groans, snapping his hips upwards.

He leans down, spit dribbling onto your right nipple before he leans down and takes the sensitive skin between his teeth.

“Play with yourself, doll” he groans.

Your hand trails between your bodies, slicked with sweat as you gather your own arousal onto your fingers, bringing it up to circle your clit. Your hips buck up to meet Yoongi’s halfway, your fingers drawing tight circles on your sensitive bud.

“Gonna cum” you tell your boyfriend, continuing your onslaught on your clit, pleasure licking up your spine.

“Me too. Together, okay?” his pelvis smacking into your own.

You feel his cock twitch, your fingers strumming at your clit in quick circles as you fall over the edge, vision turning white as your fingers cramp up, nails raking over your sensitive pearl, causing your thighs to clench, pulling Yoongi so he was completely buried in your cunt.

Your pulsating walls were enough for Yoongi to cum as well. His hips rolling sluggishly, no rhythm as he helps you ride out your high, his cock starting to soften as your thighs start to shake around his waist.

“Too much” you tell him, hips jolting as his pushes himself all the way in once more before pulling out.

Your chest releases a stuttering breath, skin glistening with a sheen of sweat. Yoongi pulls the condom off, tying it before he throws it in the trash beside the vanity, grabbing a rolled-up towel to help wipe up your slick stained thighs. He’s gentle as he does it, not wanting to push you into the worst kind of overstimulation.

He collapses beside you once he’s done, towel somewhere with his forgotten clothes on the floor, a task he’ll deal with later. “That really was a surprise” he hums.

“It was hard to keep a secret” you say, voice a little hoarse, “The package arrived like a week ago and I wanted to show you so bad”

“Thank whoever at work gave you the idea” he teases, frowning when you bite your lip, a little guilty, “What?” he asks, heart dropping.

“Well, you can thank them.” You give him a little smile, “It was actually Seokjin that said you’d like it”

“Why the fuck is Jin giving you advice on your sex life?” he gapes, arm falling over your waist.

“I really don’t know how we got onto that conversation” you tell him honestly, head tilting cutely in that way it does when you think, “But then he was telling me about that girl he’s dating—the one with kids, and he said he came home from work one day and she was wearing this really pretty lingerie”  

“Where does the playboy bunny come in?” he asks, watching your eyes light up.

You look down at your costume, bunched up around your waist, “Well I then asked Jungkookie what he thought about the idea because you know Jin can be a little… extra; and kook said maybe go for a costume or something for Halloween but make it sexy”

“And he suggested a bunny? That’s fitting” Yoongi snorts, thumb gently rubbing over your bare skin.

“No, it was actually Taehyung. Kookie must have told him about my idea, and he sent me this link to a website, they had some really cool stuff on there, we could try roleplay one day. They had a cat costume as well with little socks that have toe beans and a collar and everything”

“I’m starting to think you’re into pet play” Yoongi teases.

“Oh, no, I meant for you” you giggle, kissing away the crease in his brow as he narrows his eyes.

“Oh yeah!” you push yourself up on your elbows, ignoring how Yoongi watches your breasts bounce with the motion, “I bought Holly bunny ears too. I was gonna show you, but then… yeah” you scrunch your nose up at the state of your costume, “I think this needs a wash before it goes anywhere near the dog”

“Is that what you made me pick up” Yoongi closes his eyes, “the amount of shit that dog has, he doesn’t need bunny ears, darling”

“But I wanted us to match, it was gonna be so cute, but you couldn’t keep your dick in your pants long enough for me to go through with my whole Halloween plan before we had sex. Plus, I bought another little jumper for him as well so it wasn’t a wasted trip before you complain” you huff, and Yoongi can only smile, enamoured that even though you looked moments away from passing out from exhaustion you still seemed to have a little fire lit within you.

“Don’t act like it wasn’t your plan from the start, I bet you weren’t even reading” he accuses, and you gasp, ever the dramatic.

“Was too. And the guy took the girl out on a date before they fucked” you perse your lips.

“Is that so?” he muses, “We can always go on the date now” he peers over at the clock on the wall, “I don’t feel like cooking, it’s too late. Why don’t we order in?” he turns towards you, pressing a kiss to your collarbone, “Then we can catch up on that series you liked the look of”.

“Oh, actually I bought pumpkin spice ramen for us to try”

“You what?” his mouth falls open.

“Huh?” you raise your eyebrows, “talking about the time, I really should pee and then shower, I feel sticky”

“Hey! You know I despise pumpkin spice anything, you’re not getting out of this one” he follows you as you push yourself off the bed, stripping out of your costume. It lays discarded on the floor as you wander into the bathroom, Yoongi not far behind you.

“Yeah, but it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience. When are we ever eating pumpkin spice ramen again?”

“Never” his eyebrows crease in mild disgust and if he wasn’t so cute then maybe you would have been a little more offended.

“Exactly, it could taste like ass for all we know” you shrug, “And then you can justify your pumpkin spice hatred”

“It’s already justified” he tells you as he turns the water on, nudging your butt into the shower as he follows behind.

“Whatever, you’re lucky I love you” you muse, turning around, pushing yourself on your tippy toes to press an innocent kiss to his puckered lips.

“Love you too, I’ll make pumpkin soup next weekend”

“So, you do like pumpkin” you gape.

“Yeah” he smiles, “Only when it isn’t a marketing scheme”

You sigh, shoulders falling. “I really do love you” you can’t help the smile that tugs onto your lips.

“I love you more, as a matter of fact” he angles the water so it soaks your body.

“Crazy, science actually says that I love you more”

“Science is usually a bunch of bullshit. I dropped out of college anyways, science means jackshit”

“You’re unbelievable” you lean your head against his chest, heart beating languidly as he reaches over for your shampoo, lathering it up in his hands before he helps you wash your hair.

“Science proves that I may be unbelievable but a certain someone can’t seem to get enough of me” he replies, fingers expertly massaging your scalp.

“I wonder who that is”

“The woman I wanna marry”

Your eyes snap open at that, pulling away from Yoongi as you just stare at him.

“What?”

“What?”

“Marry? Me?” you point at yourself, eyes wide with wonder as your boyfriend shrugs.

“Who else?” he drawls, trying not to smile at the precious image of you, soap sudded hair, cheeks rosy from the steaming hot water, as you look at him like he had been the one to hang the stars in the sky.

“I don’t know, are you secretly dating someone else?” you narrow your eyes, wiping a dollop of shampoo from your forehead as it threatens to fall into your eyes.

“Guess you’ll never know” his lips tug into a smirk.

“This isn’t your proposal, right? I literally haven’t said yes and that’s probably really shitty of me”

“God no” Yoongi groans, “I’m not proposing in the shower, doll. I thought your surprise was you proposing” he admits, and you can’t help the laugh that bubbles up your throat.

You slap a hand over your mouth, “I hadn’t even thought of that, holy shit, were you disappointed?”

“What? No. I was relieved” he shakes his head, damp strands of hair stuck to his forehead, “I really want to be the one to propose and I almost shat myself thinking you were doing it tonight”

You snort, “Would you have said yes?” you ask, rinsing your hair, beckoning Yoongi over with a nudge of your head so you could wash him.

“I mean, yeah” he lets out a long breath, “and then told you to take it back so I could ask you instead”

“You really are unbelievable” you shake your head, “Does this mean I should expect a proposal at some point in the near future?”

Yoongi thinks back to that little velvet box that still sits in his nightstand drawer, then he narrows his eyes down at you, “I don’t know, should you?”

You smile up at him, “I love you”

“Jokes on you, I love you more” he turns you away from him, tugging your body wash from the shelf. “Ah Ah” he shushes you when you try and speak, “No more of that, just let me take care of you and then we can try your shitty ramen while we watch corpse bride or some other lame kids movie”

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