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specialbrewbutterbeer · 2 years

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Unorthodox (Pt. 1). (Robert 'Bob' Floyd x Kazansky!Reader)(+ a bit of Ice and Mav)

Word Count: 6760

TW: Mentions of throat cancer and death (no one dies in this, it's broadly fluff), alcohol consumption, swearing, implied marriage of convenience (See AN)

AN: I know this wasn't requested- and you're all still waiting on Recall pt2 but I'm just trying to perfect that before I post it, but meanwhile have a Bob fic! There was a gap in the market for it so I went for it since I had the inspo. I also decided to lean into the IceMav stuff in the background of this fic- Implying a marriage of convenience between Ice and Sarah- though I like to think he's just bi and it's a bit more than that, a person can love two people- similarly I didn't want to get rid of Mav and Penny's relationship. It's basically up to you what you think their relationship is. I also decided to whack some music in that I totally didn't steal from the 'sky dancing 🤘' playlist on Spotify :)

Enjoy! (Requests are open, I'm slowly working through them, and feedback and replies are really needed! I wanna know what you guys think of what I write!)

REQUESTS (OPEN)

MASTERLIST

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"Hey Papa-" (Y/n) spoke with a smile on her face, dropping her handbag off of her shoulder and onto the floor in the hall. She kicked off her sandals and approached her father, who had waited and watched her come inside from the door of her study. She was always glad to see him.

"Baby girl-" He croaked and held out an arm, into the crook of which she gladly tucked herself before she wrapped her father in her own arms. She'd always been a Daddy's girl, he'd probably only ever been really mad at her once, and to be fair- she was glad he had been and she knew he'd been right about it.

She walked with him into his study, she could feel how thin he was these days, and the fact that he'd spoken any words to her was a miracle - though no matter how much it hurt, he always tried to speak to his children.

(Y/n) Kazansky was the eldest of her siblings, and was a carbon copy of her Dad - cocky and sure at times but broadly responsible, intelligent, a quick and critical thinker, good at putting up the barricades when she needed to work, pretending like she was cold- but exactly like her father, she melted into a warm, squishy and soft person the remainder of the time. Especially for family and friends.

She had gone away to college across the country when she was 18, but despite being excited about it, ended up hating everything about it. She couldn't put her finger on what it was but she just didn't enjoy a second of it, her only solace was coming home on break.

To her total surprise, her Dad had sat her down when she'd come home at the end of her first year and told her to drop out. She had been the nost scared of telling him that she was miserable at college- but he'd seen it. He knew people, his own daughter especially, well; she had been so clearly not herself and was getting nothing positive from her experience that he couldn't bare it anymore. So she did, she came home and sobbed when she walked back in the front door with all her stuff. She felt like a failure, now she was a college drop out- and again it was her Dad who fixed everything for her, told her that life wasn't worth living she didn't love what she did everyday, if her work was a burden then she'd be torturing herself, and they were privileged enough that she didn't have to do that.

So she found a job she actually enjoyed and worked hard at it, with all the same drive that had made her Dad so successful. Now she was head of her team and most importantly, happy.

She never regretted staying living at home. She was in her late twenties now, but the house was big enough that it had never felt cramped with them all staying. She especially didn't now that the famous Tom 'Iceman' Kazansky was sick. He'd been sick before, on and off. The throat cancer started as treatable, and just came back every couple years more and more aggressively.

Being at home meant spending as much time as she could making memories with her Dad, helping look after her younger siblings whilst their Mom took their Dad to hospital appointments, and making sure that her siblings would be able to remember their Dad as well and as fondly as she would. Now they knew where it was all heading.

(Y/n) sat down across from her Dad as he lowered himself into his chair and coughed.

"How you feeling Papa?" She asked, leaning her head on her hands on the desk and looking up at him adoringly like she had done since she was a kid.

He just nodded and smiled and she gave him a look of 'I know you're not telling me the truth'. He laughed, as much as he could laugh, and typed on his computer monitor.

'I'm feeling fine. Don't worry about me, Sweetheart.'

"You say that like it's easy Papa." She read and looked back to him.

'What about you?' He typed, moving swiftly off of the topic of himself because he justifiably didn't enjoy it.

"I'm alright." She smiled. Normally she'd go into plenty of detail but today she just didn't feel like it.

'and work?' He typed again.

"Work's fine. My boss is putting me up for an industry award next month." She nodded and smiled softly as he Father broke into a much bigger smile.

'I'm proud of you, Baby girl.' He once again typed out.

"I know Papa. You never let me forget it for one second." She smiled and her Dad leant forward just a little and stroked her hair softly. She'd never really be grown up in his eyes.

After a while, her Father looked at the clock.

'Your brother needs help with his homework. Can you help him out?' Ice typed out.

"Trying to get rid of me?" She laughed.

'It's work stuff' He typed and smiled. She knew him too well.

"You'll never give it a rest, will you Papa?" He shook his head. Still smiling.

'Love it nearly as much as I love you, Sweetheart.'

"No use buttering me up now, I'll still get you back for making me help with Math." She laughed and stood. She leant down and kissed her Dad's cheek before heading out to find her brother. "Love you too Papa."

After quite a long argument with her brother about algebraic equations and how he didn't wanna do them- (Y/n) decided to give up. She didn't often give up, but her brother was stubborn and would rather text his girlfriend than study. To be fair, he was usually better at studying but considering the circumstances in the family, which (y/n) knew he wasn't coping great with, she just cut him some slack.

She wandered out through the house, a little aimlessly, looking for her Mom to ask if she needed any help with cooking dinner or anything else. She heard the study door open, and peeked around the corner.

"Pete?" She asked, watching him emerge from the doorway and rushing to him.

He looked around and saw her, a smile growing on his face.

"(Y/n)" He smiled. "How are you?"

"I'm good- What about you? Papa, you never told me Uncle Pete was in town?" She spoke, looking to her Dad who was stood in the doorway. He gave a look of 'really? You're a sap'.

"Well, here I am." He smiled and held his arms open for a hug which she gladly indulged in. "I'm good kid, just came to talk to your old man."

"Oh, you're work stuff?" She put 'work stuff ' in air quotes and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah - I'm back at Top Gun, if you can believe that." Mav spoke with a gentle smile and a sigh.

"Really?" She was slightly taken aback but Mav nodded. "Wow- I wouldn't have guessed that." She raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"It's where I'm headed now, if your Dad's done with me?" Mav grinned and looked back at Ice.

"Show him the door" Her Dad spoke croakily, in as much of a faux menacing tone as he could manage, and winked at his daughter. He still had a stupid fatherly sense of humour.

The two men hugged a lingering goodbye and Kazansky retreated, with a nonchalant wave, to his desk, watching the pair through the door with a smile. She'll be looked after even without him there. She'll always have a Dad, even if her Papa ain't there. He was glad about that.

(Y/n) hooked her arm through that of the man she had always known as family, who was her Godfather in fact, and they started toward the door. He'd always been there, at her Dad's side. He was a constant presence in the house, if not at the table for dinner and sat in her Dad's office, in the garden chasing (y/n) and her siblings with a garden hose (and her Dad) when they were little, crashing in their spare room and appearing in the morning for breakfast like the drifter he sometimes was, seeming to swap exclusively between the Bradshaw's and them, then it was hearing his voice on the phone drifting out through the house as her Dad put him on speaker and cooked for his kids or attempted to put shoes on his youngest who didn't want to cooperate (Ice would put the kid on the phone to Mav, then somehow he'd always convince them to do as their Dad asked), the pictures in scrapbooks, the pictures on the wall- their Top Gun class picture, his and her Dad's photo on the deck after their first flight together on Ice's desk next to that years Christmas picture, and ones of his kids and wife.

"How you doing? With your Dad?" Mav asked, looking down at the young woman.

"Oh- You know, looking after Mom, preparing for everything." She nodded.

"You know you can call me anytime if you need anything." He spoke sincerely.

"I know Pete." She nodded and patted his arm with a content smile. They were quiet for a moment. "You're an instructor again I guess?"

"Uh- yeah." Mav nodded.

"I'm told that went well the last time?" She teased with a laugh.

"Very." He grinned.

"You'll be sprinkling some unorthodox methods in your lesson plans, I've no doubt." (Y/n) laughed, thinking back on the stories she'd been told.

"Yeah-" Pete nodded admittantly. "You been down to the base recently?"

"Not for a while- Papa doesn't like me going there without him to chaperone; not since I took a leaf out of your books and got engaged to a pilot. Still the only time I've ever seen the guy really mad with me." She grinned. Pete just laughed.

"You demoted the guy to just an ex-fiance? That's cold (y/n)."

"Hey, we didn't even divorce! It was annulled! The guy doesn't get that privilege, Papa was right, he was an ass." She rolled her eyes as they reached the door and stood at it.

"Yeah- alright, makes sense." Pete shook his head with a smile. "Glad you and your Dad still share that high self esteem."

"I knew I was a prize to be won- You of all people know how a young pilot likes an Admiral's daughter. Shame I didn't know that my Dad was telling the truth when he gave me strict orders not to go out with pilots." She laughed and Pete could only agree. "Talking of that- You seen your Miss Benjamin again yet? She's living around here again you know."

"Well- actually, yeah." He spoke like he was still surprised about it.

"It go well?" (Y/n) grinned, immediately knowing that Pete Maverick Mitchell wasn't so stunned by any ol' lady.

"Something like that." He nodded with a slightly absent smile.

"Ooh- well, if any woman would be able to tame you, it'd be her." (Y/n) laughed as she teased the elder man.

"Yeah- Well; what about you kiddo?" He stopped and looked at her expectantly.

"What do you mean what about me?" She scoffed as if it weren't an obvious question.

"You've not got any fancy man? There's no one for me and your Dad to chase off?" Pete raised an eyebrow and gave a teasing smirk.

"No! I don't exactly get out much anymore, and even when I do I only find these dumb hotshot pilots who are younger than me and treat me like some piece of meat to ogle- not relationship material." (Y/n) spoke very matter of fact and ended with a little twitch of her nose.

"Good- that's the talk your Dad wants to hear." Pete nodded crossing his arms and leaning back on the door frame.

"I said not relationship material, not that-" Her eyes lit up and she grinned.

"Stop there! I've heard enough." Pete laughed and put a hand up. "Never should have told you what your Dad and I got up to back in the day..." (Y/n) rolled her eyes and grinned still. "Glad you're having fun, kid." Pete winked at her and gave her a playful nudge.

"Alrighty- well I guess you've gotta head off?" She sighed after a moment, sad to see him go. She got along with him very well, he held a place in her heart and he was like family to the Kazanskys.

"Yeah." He nodded with a solemn smile.

"I'll see you soon Pete. Thanks for coming." She nodded as he opened the door and turned to give her a hug.

"Anytime kid." He spoke sadly and softly, embracing her and then turning down tbe path. She stopped a few paces down and turned again- just catching her as she went to shut the front door, having watched him leave. "Hey, (Y/n)?" He called out.

"Yeah?" She looked up at him.

"If you've got time, you wouldn't want to help me out with one of my 'unorthadox methods' would you?" He asked, the idea having occured to him as he'd neared the gate.

"Uncle Pete- How could I ever say no to such a good influence as yourself?" She gave a smile and they shared a look that they'd always shared, since she was small, that meant trouble.

Less than an hour later she was sat on the edge of the decking behind the Hard Deck, looking out to the sea, whilst Penny and Maverick stood in the doorway of the bar, flirting like teenagers.

She leant back on the heels of her palms, letting the slotted wood dig in and reveled in the heat of the low sun. People normally expected her to stay home, what with how her Dad was doing- but he refused for life to anything but normal. That why he still tried to talk even though it hurt, why he still walked around even though he was nowhere near being the strong built pilot he had once been- instead he was a thin stick of a man, it was why he still worked. Normal people would have retired, travelled the world and completed some sort of bucket list, spent time with family. But he loved it too much- he wanted his family to remember him as the driven, motivated and stubborn old sap that he was- not as sick. So he insisted things just continue. This was how he wanted to enjoy what time he had; doing what he had always loved and what he always would love, with his wife and kids and friends around him.

So when (y/n) had texted her Dad to say she was going out for a bit with Uncle Pete (though she didn't dare elaborate on what they were up to) she received the thumbs up and the usual 'tell me when you're on your way home and stay safe.' text. And Pete got a 'Don't let my kid do anything you or I would do Mav'.

She heard a vehicle pull up in the lot and smiled to herself, pulling her sunglasses from her nose and eyes and perching them on her head.

After a few minutes there was another, and another and she could hear people talking, calling eachother over.

Mav glanced at her and she gave a cheeky smile. He returned one and gave a nod. She loved the stupid shit they got up to.

She stood and pulled her cropped linen shirt back over her shoulders- it was supposed to be a sun cover but she'd long since neglected to use it for that. She wore a sky blue bikini and she knew she looked damn good in it. That was half the fun of what was coming next.

First, she picked up the little portable radio that sat next to her, playing quietly bluetoothed to her phone and playing one of her playlists. She slung it over her shoulder, and then hooked a football, which had been nestled nearby in the sand, waiting for her, under her arm and waltzed on around the corner. She could just see a glimpse of the group clad in khaki uniform.

"Yeah- outside the Hard Deck, that's what he said." She heard a voice. Someone looked up, having noticed the music first, but saw her and looked away quickly- surely assuming it wasn't relevant to their mysterious instructions.

She continued closer, counting 1, 2, 3, 7- 10 and 12. That was all of em, plus Hondo- who she knew well and was keeping his mouth shut about what he knew the exercise was.

Another one glance at her, looked her up and down with a smirk but again turned away.

She looked like any other beach goer, pretty hot, a slightly darker tan on the shoulders and legs and a touch of pink on her nose- even slightly freckled.

"Hey, Boys and Girls-" She spoke, unable to get rid of the smirk on her face. Most of the group turned to her and noted her confident stance and twinkle in her eye. "Looking for Maverick?"

She spotted Bradley Bradshaw, he was tall- and she remembered him from the Top Gun 86' class reunions which she and all the families were dragged to. Plus Mav had brought him round a few times when they were kids, their Father's had been friends after all. All the pilots in that class who knew his Dad well wanted to keep an eye on him. Poor kid was always paraded around those events cos of his Dad, usually stuck to Mav or his Mom like glue. (Y/n) was usually paraded around as the eldest kid of the class first placer- and since he was rising in the ranks as she got older, as the kid of an Admiral. She never knew Bradshaw actually became a pilot- she knew he'd not got into the academy first time round, what with Mav pulling his papers, but didn't know much more. As usual her Dad kept 'work stuff' seperate from home (except Pete, of course, he was everything), so she didn't know he was around at all. She was glad for him, it never sat right that Pete had interfered, even if she could guess why it was that he did.

The one who had glanced at her, 'Hangman' she read from his uniform, went to speak with a bit of a smirk going, but it was Bradshaw ('Rooster'?) who spoke first.

"Yeah-" He looked like he recognised her for a moment, though she didn't expect him to- and he didn't seem to have enough confidence in the recognition to point it out. "You seen him?" He spoke with a hint of suspicion.

"Yep." She grinned and threw the ball toward the group of confused airmen, it was caught in the hands of a spectacled pilot. "He's put me in charge. I'm your referee." She winked and turned. She heard a hearty laugh and some chatter. Instinctively they all just followed.

Mav waved at them from the deck and threw her a whistle, which she caught as she passed by.

"Meet (Y/n). She doesn't bite-" He laughed as he looked at the pilots faces, all slightly confused but slightly amused by equal measure. "She's just got a damn good eye for detail." He grinned.

"Gotta know the rules before you bend em'" (y/n) laughed. "Now- I'm afraid I'm gonna need you guys to strip off and get sweaty- Pronto." She spoke, teasing was half the fun.

Mav watched as suddenly all of his pilots were the most cooperative they'd been the entire week and within about two minutes were split into two sides and running up and down the beach with football in hand.

He hated to admit that the little girl he'd watch grow up could be considered attractive by anyone in that way, but he knew that's how young men saw her. He hoped that it would drive them to put their all into the game- show off a bit. It had worked so far. Plus, he liked that (y/n) was getting out of the house- he'd always encourage her to do stupid shit (not dangerous stupid, but maybe a bit dumb), he had to be the fun one even if she was an adult now.

"Hey- Pete. The sides are uneven." She called up to him.

"Yeah- what about it? Realistic isn't it?" He laughed as she put her hands on her hips.

"Hangman says it's unfair and he's getting pretty moody about it." She raised an eyebrow.

"That's just cos Bagman's loosing-" Pheonix called out.

"I am not loosing! And I am not being moody!" Hangman spoke with with a lightness and laugh in his tone that was unfamiliar. He wasn't being quite so arrogant today- competitive? Yes. But he seemed to have momentarily mellowed. The activity agreed with him.

(Y/n) turned to him and raised an eyebrow, giving a look of 'what did you just say?'.

"Yes, Ma'am." He nodded when he saw it and she just laughed. She'd practiced that one on her brothers before, always commanded respect. She couldn't have been more her father's daughter.

"So, Pete-" She started before Mav put his hands up and shook his head. "You put me in charge old man! I'm telling you to come even the field, so give the lady up there something to look at and play the game!" She laughed and Mav sighed. He couldn't argue it and joined them.

As she watched the pilots play, watching for foul play, she couldn't help but think that they were all so typical of pilots. She liked em, but Hangman was clearly a peg above the rest in his own head, Bradshaw (she didn't know how used to Rooster she was when she thought of him as a sky little blonde kid in her head) seemed to take himself too seriously, they were all powerful personalities. She thought they were attractive, but broadly uninteresting. She wasn't looking for anything like that anyway.

She scanned the field of play, and awarded a point to Coyote as the game began to lapse into fun more than anything serious. It'd already been an hour or two. No one was paying attention to the time.

It didn't help that she kept getting distracted. She wasn't sure why, but her eyes kept drifting and she'd find herself watching one man in particular- for no particular reason- instead of the game.

She liked watching how he watched his colleagues - how his eyes darted about and he seemed to calculate things in an instant before a muscular arm would shoot up into the air and signal for someone to make a move. He had enough faith in his teammates that just once glance back at them was enough before he was moving onto the next step. His face would be deadly serious as he ran, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as they slipped, but break out into a grin as something went well- and fade back into a stern concentration as his mind swirled through the strategy of it all. He wasn't perfect at it; he was playing football- that wasn't was he was trained to do, and he looked delighted at himself everytime he ended up with the ball- and yet knew exactly what he wanted to do with it, where to put himself and who to pass to.

(Y/n) didn't know what about that she seemed drawn to but she kept catching herself. So much for an 'eye for detail'. She had an eye for detail alright- just the wrong damn ones tonight. She could only laugh at herself.

Mav eventually tapped out. She glanced back at him as he sat down, and noticed Simpson walking across the sand, looking as stern as usual.

She approached as he started talking to Mav, and smiled.

"Miss Kazansky-" He nodded.

"Sir." She spoke courteously but stood at an angle that meant she could glance back at the game. Simpson seemed for a moment to not know what to say to her, and he looked like he was about to ask something attempting to be sentimental about her Father. People didn't know how to talk to her these days. But equally he just seemed confused as to the necessity of her presence. "I'm referee." She nodded.

"I see." Simpson spoke slowly. "Who's winning?"

"I think they stopped keeping score a long time ago." Mav laughed, looking up at his boss.

"Yeah..." She agreed, meaning to laugh but instead sounding slightly unsure as she looked back and once again her eye was caught by a young man. That was until another dispute came about- "I still get to hand out points though." She laughed and took a springy jog toward the group.

The teams had dissolved by now, but since (y/n) was still there with a whistle and her thumbs up was needed for points (as meaningless as they were now) the group all threw their hands in the air and ushered her over.

"Hey- (y/n), you see that?" Coyote called, and it was echoed.

"He was over the line!" Pheonix argued- and pointed down at a line that they'd drawn in the sand which now barely existed.

"Now come on- (y/n)? That was clear!" Hangman laughed and looked between her and Bob, who was stood out of breath, the ball in his hands, leaning over. He pushed his glasses up and stood- saying nothing but looking at her expectantly, a smile twitching at the edge of his lips.

In truth she had no idea what was happening. She was watching him- but she was watching him, not what he was doing in terms of the game. She was deciding that she thought he was cute.

She slowed from her jog and walked over. Soon she was close enough that she was looking up at him. She used the opportunity to look him up and down, slowly. Suddenly the group fell silent. They were all hanging on this now.

He was clearly quite muscular - even if he hid that under the baggy t-shirt he wore instead of none like the other guys. His expressions were generally soft, he was pretty especially even when he was sweaty.

"No. He gets the point." She smiled and looked up at him through her eyelashes as she did. He lit up and was quickly swept up by Rooster who half tackled him whilst the entire gang cheered.

She laughed as she watched him get hoisted onto Rooster's shoulders and his colleagues start chanting his name. She walked behind, shaking her head as she thought about how teenage she was being- letting a guy win just cos she thought he was cute.

She looked up at Pete, who was still sat in his fold up chair, the radio playing next to him. He had a twinkle in his eye. Today was his idea of fun. If only he'd had the chance to do something dangerous in a jet she was sure he would have considered it perfect.

She looked past him, to see Penny ushering the group inside- the bar wasn't usually open today, but she would allow the group a couple rounds.

She walked along, slowly, just sorta watching everything as she headed for the bar. Pete stood as the group reached him long before she did. He had that stupid familiar grin on his face.

Rooster put Bob down and the guy was surrounded by his peers quickly, all thumping him heartily on the back and still cheering.

Someone turned and called (y/n) to hurry up, she shook her head with a laugh- which only encouraged the rest of them to call out to her. She just laughed, she didn't want to run, but she was surely on her way.

Pete took up a jog toward her, his own laugh on his lips.

"Pete! Don't you dare!" She realised what he was up to when he was just a few yards away- as the pilots cheered and her eyes widened.

"Maverick!" She yelped.

He knew he was in trouble then. Sarah had banned callsigns in the house- 'Someones Mama worked hard on that name you know- and if you hadn't noticed, we're not in fighter jets. The Navy would never have such nice carpets.'

Before she could stop him, he'd lifted her on his shoulders in a fireman's carry- which prompted more cheers from the pilots as she and Mav just laughed, her sunglasses slipping from her face and onto the sand.

"Just like when you were a little kid." Mav grinned and spoke as he carried her toward the bar, collecting the group as he went.

He finally put her down inside, as the rest headed for the bar. She gave him a playful punch in the arm- to which he just laughed and headed behind the bar to help Penny.

She shook her head and laughed.

"Hey-" She heard from behind her. She turned, but didn't need to, the man the voice belonged go had circled to face her. She didn't even have time to say anything before he seemed very close to her and she realised who it was.

"You dropped these?" He spoke, holding out her sunglasses to her with a little, calm smile.

"Oh-" She felt her cheeks heat up and preyed they weren't flushing pink. "Thanks." She smiled and softly took the glasses from his outstretched hand. She never got flustered, but my my did she feel like a teenager.

"Anytime." Bob nodded and didn't move for a moment, wether or not he knew he was holding the tension, keeping her stunned and not breaking eye contact, was an interesting question. Either way he was doing just that.

Before he could, (y/n) decided to throw caution to the wind. She hadn't felt like this in a long time.

"Can I get you a drink?" She asked quickly and looked to the bar- before she totally melted in front of him.

"Uh- yeah, please." He nodded.

(Y/n) had to move away from him before she froze up, so she moved toward the bar- glancing back to see him follow.

"What can I get ya?" She asked, feeling a little more her smooth and confident self. This was not usually a difficult task.

"Just a coke, thanks." He smiled and nodded as (y/n) leant on the bar.

"You don't drink?" She looked up at him. He shook his head.

"No- never been my thing." He smiled, content and cool in that answer. Clearly pretty secure in himself, not one to be pressured into anything. She liked that. It was kinda hot.

"I like it." She smiled and waited a beat as he met her gaze for a moment. "Cheap date." She spoke that bit unknowingly quietly- still slightly dazed.

She chatted to him for a while, and they joined the others playing pool at one point. God- she really did like him. He was a little quiet, but not exactly shy. He was intelligent and interesting. He was pretty funny too- at least she thought so.

It was a pretty chilled out evening- as Mav and Penny looked on from the bar, sat with their own drinks.

Eventually (y/n) looked up at the clock.

"Wow- how did it get to be that late?" She spoke to herself.

"Time flies when you're having fun, (y/n)." Hangman spoke leaning on his pool cue and winked at her.

She rolled her eyes playfully. She now knew he was just sorta like that- he was definitely flirting but he seemed to flirt with anything with a pulse so she didn't exactly take it personally.

"Well, I still gotta get home-" She spoke, trying to think of how to get there. She'd got here with Mav, he probably he expected he was gonna drop her home too.

"I can give you a ride." Bob spoke, more confidently and keenly than even he had expected to sound. She turned and looked at him. She didn't hesitate to answer- but Bob still followed it up with "If you- want?" He suddenly seemed back to his mildly awkward self. "I haven't been drinking so-"

"Thanks- I'd like that." She cut him off and smiled, finally sensing her confidence coming into it's own like she was used to.

He nodded and smiled, tipping the last of his drink past his lips before standing.

He put his hand out to her as he stood in front of her and she gathered her things, her purse and phone, then the jeans and t-shirt she'd been wearing earlier in the day before she'd changed into the bikini she was wearing.

She looked up and instinctively took it as she stood.

"Thanks." She mumbled, with a twitchy, shy smile.

Bob just gave a soft, warm smile, and again she just couldn't look or she knew she'd never move again. She slid her hand from his and headed to Maverick. Bob stayed still, watching her- and not even processing that the entire rest of his colleagues were watching the entire exchange, totally fascinated.

"Pete-" (y/n) smiled.

"Kid." He nodded.

"Thanks for today." She smiled and gave him a tight hug.

"You're welcome." He smiled as he squeezed her tight. "Give my love to your Mom and Dad- alright?" He asked, and she nodded.

"I'll see you soon, Pete." She spoke. "And you too Penny." She smiled and gave another hug to the woman.

"It was lovely seeing you again darling." She nodded.

"Not too soon, (y/n)." Pete spoke slowly, as yhey shared a knowing look. They knew what next time would be.

She nodded and gave an almost bittersweet smile.

Then she turned back to the group- swapping it for a grin as she saw Bob walking toward her.

"It was great meeting you guys! I hope this mission of yours goes well- fly safe and come home!" She waved as Bob stood by her.

A chorus of goodbyes and mirrored sentiments came up.

Soon they were out the door and heading toward Bob's old beat up pick-up.

"You know who that was don't you?" Hondo spoke as soon as they were definitely out of earshot.

This gained him some confused looks from the pilots.

"(Y/n) Kazansky. Admiral's daughter." He grinned as he spoke smoothly and drank. Knowing he'd unleashed some good information.

"Oh shit-" Rooster spoke, half laughing, half realising he was right when he'd first thought of it and assumed he was wrong.

"And my Goddaughter." Mav called across to add to the conversation.

"My god- Bob doesn't know what he's in for." Hangman laughed.

"If you think I would have let any of the rest of you take her home- You're idiots." Mav laughed.

It was a pretty normal journey, the pair chatted- then a lull came in the conversation. She watched the streets go by through the window and listened to the radio.

"Oh, Bobby-" She smirked and Bob's ears perked up and he immediately felt heat in his cheeks at the nickname. She sighed as she spoke it. "My Daddy always told me to say away from pilots... Such a cruel thing- when you're sat so close to me." She smiled and shook her head before glancing at him. Her eyes drifted from watching his scan the road, to his jaw and lips and neck, to his hands as they turned the wheel.

After a few moments he took his eyes from the road on a quiet street, and glanced right back at her. As her eyes made their way back to his face, she was almost stunned to find his to meet.

Once they did, a smile crept onto his face- one that let on something.

He turned back to the road.

"I don't fly the plane. I'm a WSO, not a pilot." He spoke, his smile remaining.

"I know." She breathed.

Again, there was quiet.

Soon they pulled up outside the addresses she'd given.

He switched off the ignition and looked over at her. He gave a soft smile. She gave a little smirk.

"Get out." She spoke. He looked at her for a half a second then did as told.

He stood beside the truck, holding the door open and looking in. "Now close the door and turn around. I'm gonna get changed." She nodded.

"Yes Ma'am." He spoke under his breath, taking one last very quick look at her in her bikini before once again taking the instruction.

"What a gentleman." He heard her tease, the smile on her lips almost audible.

He chuckled to himself and looked down at his shoes as he waited, his hands clasped behind his back.

Soon he heard the door of his truck open and close again.

"You can look." She spoke as she rounded the front of the truck.

He looked round at her. There she was, blue jeans and white t-shirt. Classic.

He smiled once again. He didn't think he could stop, she was too pretty.

"Thanks for the ride, Bobby." She used the nickname again and stood close.

"Anytime." He spoke breathily, slowly- with a small nod as he leant back on his truck.

She moved her hand up and tucked a small rolled up piece of paper behind his ear.

She smiled and couldn't break the eye contact. He didn't move a muscle.

He looked so pretty in the dusk light. The damp strands of hair that fell across his forehead, how the oversized loose shirt sat over his shoulders, the shine in his eyes and his overall aura of calm. It was magnetic to her.

She finally moved to turn away, and as she faced away from him, he acted on impulse- putting his hand in the back pocket of her jeans and spinning her back around, plunging into a deep and very tender kiss.

She melted into it- though she didn't expect it from him.

His hand stayed in her back pocket, his other rested on her hip, ring finger through her belt loop. She wasn't going anywhere though.

Hers rested on his chest.

Eventually they pulled away. She was flushed pink, he was strangely calm.

He looked at her, and looked up behind her- noticing the Admiral stood at his front door watching with a stern look on his face. Bob gave a sheepish smile.

(Y/n) glanced over her shoulder, and gave a breathy laugh before looking back. Bob looked back to her.

Slowly he let go of her, and she let her fingertips trail on him.

"Call me, Bobby." She smiled as she turned away again and headed for her door.

He nodded and breathed out as he watched her go.

"I surely will..." He spoke to himself.

"He's not a pilot, Papa." She smiled as she walked in the door. "He's real sweet."

Ice closed the door.

"I saw." He spoke slowly, looking unimpressed. "I know my aviators." He told her. He handpicked these guys, he could recite their records like the alphabet by now. He handpicked them to fly missions, not to audition them for son-in-law. Even so- he had to admit, Floyd's record was clean as a whistle. He had commendations and good reviews across the board.

"Bob!" Fanboy spoke as he walked back into the bar. Suddenly he was swamped and surrounded by his peers who were patting him on the back and chattering.

He smiled sorta shyly as they did.

"What'd you do?" Pheonix teased, not expecting anything.

"Kissed her at the door-" He answered- leading to another cheer.

"Man- you know she's Admiral Kazansky's daughter? Right?" Coyote spoke, amazed and with a laugh.

"You didn't?" Bob returned with a little smirk at the corner of his mouth as he looked around.

If they hadn't lost their shit before then- they did as he said that.

"Dude- you've got some balls." Hangman slapped him on the back and laughed. "I mean- that's real crazy stuff."

Mav shook his head at the whole lot of them, taking a drink and smiling. As he did, he saw his phone light up in his jacket pocket, hung on a chair.

I'm assuming you're responsible for what I just saw?

Depends

Floyd.

I wouldn't let our baby girl go home with any old pilot

He's not a pilot

Exactly

You're dangerous

I am

Love you too Ice

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

PART 2 HERE

TAGLIST:

@thespeeder @fangirlinc @inglourious-imagines @gh0strr @idfkwhyimhere4357 @dempy

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drbtinglecannon · 2 years

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Taking a second to focus on my favorite background bits of this wonderful beautiful gigantic cast picture by Dresden Douglas (their Tumblr is "dresdoodles" give them some love!!! I did not tag them here so I'm not hitting them with a notification full of my stupid observations haha)

Obviously gotta go to Darius & Eber first. Look at the utter disgust upon Darius' face even touching Hooty (or maybe it's directed at Eber for being willing to bite Hooty), meanwhile Eber is bitebiteclawmaim-ing Hooty but despite the claw marks they seem to be ineffective. I wonder how much of Eber's attacking is for his own safety/curiosity vs trying to save his bestie Darius from the Ick™. They're just my favorite "opposites that are besties for life" duo I could talk about these goobers forever

Skara & Viney (& Puddles)! My girls! They're wearing their Emerald Entrails uniforms! Personally I think they're a cute ship but even platonically I love how different they are yet have become their own little duo within the flyer derby team

THE BATTS *hiss*. Katya & Derwin looking at each other & doing the pose like total cuties, meanwhile Amber is making SUCH a face haha. Did anyone else imagine food fanfic chick from s1ep1 would end up fleshed out & important enough to be part of her own little corner of a massive art piece containing most of the show's cast that's hanging in a gallery dedicated to the show?

Gilbert & Harvey Park and Perry Porter, the Dads. So Perry focusing on work still even in this moment is condemnable honestly, dude is tangled in a coil of Hooty & is like "I need to report on this". Meanwhile Harvey has big watery eyes & Gilbert has a soft smile. I love the detail that Gilbert appears to be carrying Harvey, it matches with him being a construction witch (so probably fit) & also it's a funny reflection to Willow with her looking more like Gilbert & also being the Buff™ friend

Mattholomule & his big bro Steve!! Rip Steve this isn't the first time -- or even second time -- Hooty's taken him out, and it probably won't be the last. I love getting the brothers next to each other, helps show how similar they look. Matty is fairing better than Steve but he seems to be struggling himself. That's fair, boys, Hooty is certainly unpredictable

Grandma lesbians made it, good for them

You know that Gwen&Dell are looking at how happy their daughters & grandkids all are, like you know the scene before then is a dream come true kinda soft feeling that they've wanted for their daughters for decades

I love the fond expression on Emira's face looking at Edric, vs the confusion/surprised one on Alador's face. Edric's fine tho look at him he's having fun. Odalia can't even look at her family and is just absolutely scowling, but Kikimora is right beside her so horrible trash women Odalimora canon

You KNOW that Willow fanboy is shouting "WOooOOOooo GO WILLOW" seeing her & Hunter together. I think it's extra funny Boscha is right next to him looking like she's sucked on a lemon with Kat shrugging at Amelia but neither looking surprised by Boscha's antics. (as someone who always hated bos//low it's just such funny staging imo, I know it's probably not that but it's still funny)

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thecomfywriter · 28 days

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Writing Likable Characters

Hey y’all! How is everyone? It’s your girl, @thecomfywriter, back after… a long time. Let’s not talk about it lol I have no excuses and you’re not here for life updates. Anyhow, I’m back! And today’s topic is a doozy, not because it’s complicated, but because for some reason, it’s unnecessarily difficult to actually make a character likeable and worth rooting for. Considering most stories want readers to emotionally invest themselves into their characters and like them— well, we see the issue, don’t we?

In this post, we’ll explore the fundamentals of character development, why it's important to create likeable characters, and how to create characters readers can emotionally invest in. There’s a great benefit to creating characters readers actually care about, whether they’re protagonists, side characters, or even (shh….) the antagonists. So without further ado, let’s get into it.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Topic Overview:

1.0 Why Have Likeable Characters?

2.0 The Common Characteristics

NEXT POST: Is it possible to create an unlikable character worth emotionally investing in?

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1.0 Why Have Likeable Characters?

It seems obvious, but once you break down the purpose of a likeable character, it becomes easier to identify the fundamental characteristics and traits that most likeable characters possess.

Suppose you go to a dinner party with your friends one night. There, you meet a variety of new people. ‘A’ is a tall brunette, with wide eyes and an even wider mouth. ‘B’ is a short and plump woman, with curly blonde hair and the occasional grey streak in between. ‘C’ is a scrawny man with a long face, a crooked nose, and a bow-legged stance. And ‘D’ is a blue eyed man with spiky green hair, tattoos all up his arms, and a silver septum piercing in his nose. Now, I’m going to ask you: ‘Who of these four people do you like ?’

Pretty freakin’ hard to answer, huh?

Now suppose I gave you the same scenario, but I tweaked it just a smidge. You go to a dinner party where you meet a variety of people. ‘A’ is a talkative woman who only stops to take a deep breath and inhale a gulp of her red wine. She is loose and flamboyant while she talks endlessly about the various adventures she’s been on during her time off as a travel nurse. But while her extravagant storytelling is more than entertaining, you find it difficult to get a single word in when talking to her because somehow, the conversation always steers back to herself.

Meanwhile, ‘B’ is a preppy and bubbly woman who works as an elementary school teacher, but you never really discovered that until the end of the conversation, when your mutual friend asks her how ‘the kids’ are, and the origin behind her soft-spoken tone and expressive eyes clicks in place. Your conversations together mainly center around your mutual love for animals— her with her dogs and you with your cats. Though she overapologizes and tends to be a bit more passive with all other topics of parley, the conversation is otherwise lighthearted. She is the first person to leave, however, cutting your time together short when she realizes the time and suddenly her dark circles seem to get darker. She is the one to redirect you to ‘C’, who is a professor at a prestigious university in a neighboring town. He looks quite formal and acts even moreso when he offers to shake your hand and requests the full length of your name and background.

As a complete contrast to ‘B’, ‘C’ is entirely reclusive and apathetic— outwardly, that is. There is an aire of stiffness around him, with his tall posture and unintentionally impressive vocabulary. Your conversations deviate from topic to topic, never dwelling too long on one discussion but always exploring it to a level of depth that surprises you. Whatever point you make, ‘C’ presents a counterargument, and what could have started as a regularly subjective opinion transforms into an interesting delve into the nature of peaceful arguments. While the conversation is more than cordial and definitely leaves you feeling a bit more intelligent and curious than before you met him, you can’t help but notice the lack of impression or reaction from ‘C’ whenever you spoke. It is only when ‘D’ swings around and introduces himself to you that you feel more assured, as he informs you that everyone who talks to ‘C’ leaves the conversation feeling a bit judged.

‘D’, you discover, is a freelance photographer who asks you if you would like a photo of you and your friends. You end up talking about his photography career, looking through his portfolio with awe— he is remarkably skilled and filled with a plethora of experience. Like your conversation with ‘B’, the tone is lighthearted, but this time, a banter is exchanged between yourself and the extremely witty ‘D’. His little quips are sassy, occasionally sarcastic but the follow-up laugh and pat of the shoulder relieves you from taking anything too seriously. While ‘A’ was entertaining, ‘D’ has a sense of humour that wonderfully matches your own. He is touchy, with every joke he makes being paired with some form of physical contact, but you discover he is like that with everyone as he expands the conversation to the entire dinner party circle. Occasionally, when his joke doesn’t land, he’ll do an awkward chuckle and make a self-deprecating comment to release the tension. But the tension never really dissipates when he makes jokes about his ex. Nevertheless, his smile is bright and his body language is always oriented towards the person he is talking to. You can’t help but feel properly heard when talking to him. The eye contact is unwavering and his every response is a testament that he was genuinely listening.

Now, if I asked you— who of the four do you like? Is it a bit easier to respond?

The difference between the two is a bit obvious (intentionally, to make things a bit clearer). The amount of substance allotted to each character increased with the second scenario. While the descriptions of the characters in the first example were confined to their appearance, the second scenario offered interactive exchanges with each character that allows you as the reader to fully imagine this person, even without the physical descriptors, and visualize the interaction with them beyond a surface level. In short, the first scenario gave you caricatures; the second scenario gave you people.

Why do I give you this very obvious statement? Because the more you think of your characters as characters to be liked or disliked, as opposed to the actions and interactions they have with their peers (in story) and their audience (the readers), the more shallow they will seem and the harder it will be for readers to connect to them, much less emotionally invest in them.

If you want to create profound characters, expose your characters to scenarios that showcase their interactions with that environment and the people in that environment. Allow the readers to feel like the character is someone they know in their life, someone they can relate to or envision, whether it be themselves, their mother, or their chatterbox coworker from HR.

Real characters evoke real emotions.

—-

2.0 The Common Characteristics

Before we get into a general list of likeable characteristics, let's highlight two terms and define them to differentiate them. Introducing… charm and charisma! Similar, but not the same.

Charm: this is your golden ticket, and also the hardest to nail. Charm is essentially the presence a person carries, and how attractive it is to outsiders. Not attractive in the sense of romantic interest. Attractive in the sense that this person has a draw to them. Their personality is inviting, unique, and confident. They have an ability to put other people in ease in their presence and are welcoming and inviting while also keeping people engaged. Charming people are attractive because their personalities and presence in a room makes you want to stay near them.

Charisma: the way I define charisma is magnetism. Its one of the components to charm that acts as the hook, line, and sinker. Charisma is a person’s humour, their body language, their tone, the way they look at you when they speak, whereas charm is the agglomeration of charisma, style, confidence, and personality.

Okay, now for the list. You can pick and choose characteristics from the following list to create your own unique combination for your characters, but its not enough to have characters “have” these characters. Remember part one of this post. How your characters demonstrate these characteristics is fundamental to how charming and charismatic they are. Also, the influence these traits have and relationship they have with other characters.

Likeable traits:

Intelligence: people generally respect intelligence in a person. There are different types of intelligence though

Wit: how quick-thinking a person is. Think of someone who is witty— they’re quick with their responses and multifaceted. IMPORTANT: multifaceted. If you’re just quick with your responses, you’re quippy. But to be witty, your responses have to display intelligence through introspection or observance in a humorous tone. It’s a hard thing to master, which is why witty people are usually highly respected and considered inexplicably charming.

Shrewdness: think of this through the example of schemers. Shrewdness is a meticulous, detailed type of intelligence that is sometimes used in negative connotations to describe people who are cunning and use their intelligence for malevolent intentions. But in general, shrewdness is about being practical, decisive, and considerate of multiple factors before coming to a decision. It displays thoroughness and patience in deliberating one’s thoughts and actions. Personal opinion that is not at all unpopular: shrewd villains >>>> MWAH!

Cleverness: I like to think of these people as atypical with their intelligence. They find out-of-the-box solutions to problems and are able to apply creativity to problem-solving.

Knowledgeable: this is what people think of when they think of trying to make an intelligent character. The typical approach to writing a genius is making them know everything. And while many intelligent/smart people are knowledgeable, it's typically because of the underlying traits they have that drive them to pursue knowledge (i.e. curiosity, focus, passion, wonder, skepticism, objectivity). Focusing on those aspects of your character rather than what they know itself is what will sell your character as intelligent rather than a human encyclopedia.

Introspection//Observation: this is emotional intelligence. Being able to assess people’s intentions, their emotional states, predict their reactions, and also being able to understand and connect to their own emotions. Emotionally intelligent characters are honestly so lovely, so refreshing, and such an underrated type of intelligence. To be able to read and predict human behaviour is so extremely impressive and also allows your character to alter their behaviour depending on their audience, which can add to their charisma and charm

Kindness: no one likes an asshole. It’s really as simple as that. People enjoy the company of people who are tender, caring, compassionate, empathetic, and not mean. It’s safe company, and company that makes others feel better about themselves. Entirely welcoming, which is why its so charming to be kind and gentle.

Humour: I could do a whole separate post on different types of humor. But to summarize it lightly, to write a character, it’s more important to try to humor the reader than the other characters. Humor is subjective, but adding genuine comedy rather than ingenuine reactions from other characters and telling the readers that ‘Character A is funny’ doesn’t have the same effect as inciting genuine laughter from the reader. Different types of humor include:

Witty humor: as I mentioned earlier, it carries an added advantage of intelligence to the mix. These can include light jabs between friends, but if done incorrectly, can make the character seem mean. So good luck lmao

Dark humour: hard to pull off tastefully. General rule with attempting dark humour though? It's all about boundaries. It's dark humour if you're joking about your own experiences, traumas, or something personal to you/your character. Doing it on the expense of someone else's experience is called being an asshole.

Sass//sarcasm: use this sparingly. Sass is fun with banter, but imagine hanging out with someone who answers everything with sass or sarcasm. Sounds exhausting? That’s because it is. Also, quick differentiation: sass has personality and a bit of zest to it; sarcasm is deadpan and mocking. Compare the following dialogues:

Sass: “Hey Jocelyn! Jeez… Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.” “And clearly someone else woke up on the right side.”

Sarcasm: “Hey Jocelyn! Jeez… Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.” “You don’t say.”

Trustworthiness: the most inviting thing about a person is knowing they’re not a backstabbing, shit-talking, macking asshole. Someone you can trust your secrets with is someone you can be vulnerable around, which is one of the foundations of creating intimate relationships. Having a character who blabbles off other character’s secrets, or even just petty gossip, is not a demonstration of trustworthiness. Valuing a person and truly listening to them while they speak, and then asking them about how private they want to keep that information— oof that’s a keeper right there.

Good listener: just to bounce off the last point, being attentive and showing your character cares about the people around them, their interests, and what they have to say is such a likeable quality because it appeals to the part of everyone (including your reader) of wanting to be sincerely heard. Your character doesn’t have to be devotional. But it’s about being respectful.

Okay, a bit more of a condensed list now so I can wrap things up:

Empathy: understand others’ emotions and being considerate towards other perspectives

Humility: no one likes an arrogant prick. Don’t make them Mr. Humble either (Mr. Humble in the sense of being humble to the point of being rather pretentious or being a doormat. Like, a person can acknowledge their achievements, be proud of themselves, have confidence, and ALSO be humble by not being braggy and arrogant about it)

Honesty: telling the truth, yes, but also being sincere in how they conduct themselves.

Reliability: no one likes mr. flakey lol. Being able to depend on someone strengthens relationships, and the moment a character exhibits this quality for the reader to view, the reader is able to attach themselves to this character

Optimism: optimism is fun! Optimism makes people feel hopeful. Yeah, pessimism used for comedy with sarcastic characters is a whole trope. But it’s only likeable if executed correctly. Otherwise, pessimism can be a drag. Think of pessimism as the risky route vs optimism as the safe route.

Resilience: showing a person’s willpower and their will to live by enduring hardship is one of the most respectable qualities, because its a quality we all wish to emulate in our real lives and understand takes a great deal of effort to actually be successful in.

Generosity

Patience

Authenticity

Open-mindedness

Courage

Gratitude

Adaptability

Selflessness

Fairness

Integrity: what are your character’s values? How true do they stay to their values? How strong is the needle of their moral compass? This one is massive to creating a character who reader’s respect, because efining a person’s value system allows them to become intimately familiar with the character’s perspective of the world, their ethics code, and their morality. Even if they cannot agree with all of the values of the character, a character who stays true to their values and has integrity is commendable, and therefore in most cases, respectable (hint hint, this is a huge transition to my next post lol)

Essentially, creating likeable characters is about trying to charm your readers with your characters' personality and presence, to the point where the reader would genuinely want to be friends with this person in real life. Having their actions match their narrative description and their in-story reputation also adds to your reliability as a writer. If you’re trying so hard to convince me as the reader than Jonathan is a real stand-up, charming guy who is a huge womanizer; smooth-talker all around to the point where he is able to get positions and extort favours from people because he has such a way with words… but then all of Jonathan’s dialogue sounds like a piece of wet cardboard was brought to life, I’m going to start thinking you as the author are rather delusional, think I’m dense, or have no idea how smooth-talkers actually sound. But what I’m not going to believe is that Jonathan is what you say he is.

—

Okay! That’s all for today, folks! Stay tuned for my next post on writing unlikable characters that readers still want to root for. Also! I’m thinking of short story prompts for you guys to practise your writing with on this account, now that I have the chance to be a bit more active.

Why do I have more opportunities to be more active?

I FINISHED MY BOOK, BABYYYY!!! LETS GOOOOOO :D

Yeah, so I might post some excerpts of my own wip here. Currently though, I’m in the editing phases, and then querying!!!

Okay, anyways, toodles! Have a great rest of your day or evening! <3

#writers #writing #wip #writing community #writerblr #fiction #writers tips #writing tip #tips and tricks #writing tips #character development #charming #character #characters #ocs

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mdhwrites · 4 months

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Is Amity a Good Person?

This is not if she's a well written character. A judgement of that is a part of this but the bigger point is just: Is Amity a 'good' person? Does she appear to actually care about others? Does she choose selflessness over selfishness? Etc. etc.

And part of this is going to be subjective. To some people, not being mean is enough to make someone nice. Other people will ask for a bit more, especially out of a fictional character. Hell, you can even see it with most fictional parties. The lancer character who is meant to contrast against the hero is usually a pretty dickish person but you might still call them good because even if they're cursing while doing it, they are still putting their life at risk in order to save a town or the like. Meanwhile, you probably wouldn't call Vegeta a nice person, even by the time of Dragon Ball Super because he is still mostly selfish, even once he's explicitly no longer trying t get stronger regardless of the consequences to others.

So what does Amity do that is actually nice?

...

........

Oh, were you expecting me to start listing things she does? Because I have bad news for you.

See, one hang up I have with going "Amity always wanted to be a good person and so even if she loses her drive, motivation, etc. she gains the personality of a good person," is that Amity doesn't do fucking anything to earn that. She isn't unpleasant. After S1, she isn't trying to murder people or actively bullying people but like... Cool, you upgraded from Mega Bitch to Background character. Why do you claim that's a new personality instead of the death of one?

Because being a 'good person' is actually more complicated than just not being an asshole. Being nice to your friends? Of course you're nice to your friends. You care about them (put a pin in it). Noticing when your partner is in pain and wanting to help them? You supposedly love that person, much like why you might be nice to family, so OF COURSE, you put in a little extra effort.

A good person, at least in a narrative, doesn't need the excuse. They help because it is the right thing to do and then their personality dictates how they go about doing so. Maybe they write wiki pages to share their knowledge in a free way so people can benefit from it. Maybe they help out at a soup kitchen because it gives them a chance to be more directly kind and they have the time for it. Or maybe it's just that when they see someone who is potentially having problems, they risk whatever it may lead to be asking this complete stranger if they're okay.

Amity doesn't do this. In fact, as far as actually giving a shit about anyone other than Luz, she's AWFUL at it. Hunter is her kindest moment to a theoretical stranger in the series but it is still characterized by her being suspicious, judgemental and not giving him a chance until the dude is suicidal and has drawn a dozen parallels between them. Even then, she does it as part of mimicking Luz, at least with the joke she immediately makes of how 'this always works for Luz'. Then you have poor fucking Willow. This is a girl that Amity abused, especially for her powerlessness and helplessness, for YEARS. Amity even knows explicitly why Willow should hate her. What her crimes are. But... Then 'good person' Amity, showing 'care' for her friend, treats her as powerless after having thought she didn't need to do shit to be allowed to come to Willow for advice (Labyrinth Runner and Falls and Follies respectively). That is TOTALLY someone who always just wanted to be a good person and is dedicating themselves to that instead of any of their old dreams and desires.

The only person or thing she puts any effort into post S1 is Luz. She doesn't care about anyone else besides that. Belittle Eda for not focusing on taking of Luz in a tangible way during Eclipse Lake? Check. Feel justified to give marching orders to literally everyone in the house just because she's Luz's girlfriend during that same episode? Check. Including Willow, who she has done NOTHING to make up for at this point? Check. Hell, even further: Not give a fuck about stopping Boscha while Luz could just step out of the splash zone around Willow during Winging it Like Witches? OF COURSE NOT. She only gets involved once Boscha's only focus is going to be on Luz.

That. Is not. A good person. Not if the only people who matter are those she deems are worthy of mattering. Changing from actively crushing those other people to just being entirely indifferent to them and their plights is not as a big of a deal as you all seem to think it is, not for it to become the only defining trait of a character's personalities and motivations.

Are they evil? Bad? No. But anything beyond nice is giving such a character a LOT of credit. A rogue isn't Robin Hood just because they only steal from the rich. If they're still lining only their pockets and the pockets of their friends with their thievery, they're still selfish and self centered, they just have code. That's called Lawful Neutral, or Lawful Evil, in D&D for a reason. Not any form of good.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

#the owl house criticism #toh critical #toh #the owl house #amity

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dilf-whore · 2 years

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my kind of girl (part 5)

previous || next

pairing: billy hargrove x f!reader

genre: friends to lovers! , fluff

summary: you grow closer and closer with the redhead you tutor… and maybe with her stepbrother too

A/N: part 5! sorry it’s pretty short but i hope you guys still like it nonetheless. let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! alsooo this would probably be an 8-part series 😗. thoughts/comments are also appreciated! send in requests too 💗

requested: no

requests are OPEN

masterlist

・°☆

A few days has passed and the middle school’s Snow Ball is coming up, leaving Max all jittery and excited. Billy would often spot her in front of the mirror trying on some jewelries or go through her hair and do a bunch of hairstyles.

Meanwhile, you and Billy have grown closer, he’s technically attached to your hip. Despite judging eyes around you, everything just seem alright whenever you’re with him - you really enjoy his company. He’d wait for you outside the classroom and grab your bag for you. He would also find himself quickly smiling like a fool whenever he sees you. The past few days were nothing but pure bliss for Billy. He can’t seem to point it out but, he sure does feel some odd things he never felt around a girl before.

It was lunch time, you and Billy were sitting across each other as he talks about his life back in California. “You know, I’m a pretty good surfer” he says, taking a bite from his food. “That’s so cool! You used to go to the beach often huh?” you ask as you place both your elbows on the table, resting your chin on the back of your hand. “Uh-huh, my mom would bring me there and we’d just - have lots of fun” he replies.

You take a sip from your juice box and lean closer towards Billy, “tell me more about her”. His body perks up, you smile as you see his beautiful blue eyes suddenly twinkle.

“Well first of all, she’s gorgeous of course i got my handsome face from her! she’s so supportive, and caring. There’s this one time...” You watch him talk about his mom with his whole heart, hands making gestures - moving from one place to another, your food already forgotten as you both got so invested.

He grabs his wallet in his pocket and takes out a photo of him and his mom. “That’s her” he points at the blonde woman. You hold the picture, fingers brushing against each other, “she’s gorgeous Billy. You both look so happy here”

・°☆

The night of the Snow Ball finally comes and you’re at Max’s room doing her beautiful red curls. You braid the front part of her hair and bring it to the side to show her face more. You clip it in place, earning a soft “ow” from her.

“Sorry, had to make it a little tight so that it won’t get ruined” you say as you apply a little blush on her freckled cheeks. You hold her by her shoulders and make her face the mirror, “you’re so pretty” you compliment. An awkward smile forms on her face, not used to being dolled up.

“Thanks Y/N. Still feel weird with this hair and face stuff, but I still love it though. I appreciate it”

A soft knock is heard and you signal the person to come in. Billy opens the door and stares at Max - a smile threatening to form but he’s too shy to do so, “you look great, Y/N did a good job” he finally say. “Ready to go?” he asks.

・°☆

Billy parks beside the middle school gym, Max hops out of the car and goes to you and his step brother, “are you sure that you’re really okay with waiting here the whole night?” you nod in response. “Especially you?” Max adds as she points at Billy, remembering how he’d leave her behind if she’s late even for a minute. But, that was before he learned how to be patient, “yes, I’m sure” he replies.

“Okay then” she says as she runs off, waving you both goodbye.

“so... what should we do while we wait?”

You go in front of Billy with a grin, “we can dance” you suggest.

ABBA’s Dancing Queen is playing in the background and you start swaying your body side to side and move your arms to the beat. He puts his weight on his car, crossing his arms as a small giggle escapes from his lips. You continue to dance along and do twirls from time to time, Billy watches your hair flowing perfectly as you move and your figure being perfectly lit by the moonlight.

"You’re so pretty” he mumbles to himself.

・°☆

taglist: @slytherinintj13 @shatfairy @ribyourtoplip @1950schick @stephhevring @uglynuggy45 @sincerelii @jelly-donuts @eddiemunsonsbitch86 @mess-in-side @ineedtherapypleaseomg @koroktsuya @anitatvd @piizzaprincesss @cherriebat @gloryekaterina @younxii @angelbbygrl @inprixssss13 @variety-fangirl @loudbluepancake @xcallmetaniax @ainhoamunson @fanatics30 @daddysfavoritesexkitten @mochamori @squishiejiminiee @yellenabelovaa @glxwingrxse

#stranger things #stranger things x reader #stranger things imagine #stranger things headcanons #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things fanfic #stranger things scenarios #billy hargrove #billy hargove x reader #billy hargrove imagine #billy hargrove headcannons #billy hargrove scenarios #dacre montgomery #dacre montgomery x reader

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yamcha-thelonewolf · 4 months

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🫂Toriyama forgets, Yamcha doesn't!

This time I want us to relax a little bit. My last analysis, The Heart's Savior, was very challenging both for me who wrote it and for you who read it, so now it is only fair to lighten the load.

In a poll, I asked you whether you would prefer to know more about Yamcha's life as a fighter or as an ordinary earthling, and if you remember, the second choice won. So here I am analyzing a little trivia that has nothing to do with battles. Well... Sort of! Martial arts still has something to do with it, but it only serves as a background. In fact, I will tell you about an extremely strong friendship, not because the bond is actually intense but because it goes against the narrative choices of Toriyama and Toei Animation. Believe me, guys, this analysis could maintain the connection with a character we hear little about now. Lastly, just because I know it's a kind of topic that many people like, I'm going to talk somewhat about one of Yamcha's many looks.

Let's be clear, this is just my theory, it's quite silly, but at least it might make you smile a little... Well, I hope so!

Before we begin, it seems only fair to warn that the following is likely to be coincidental. Dragon Ball has never dwelled on details, at least not the ones I care about, so it is highly likely that this topic is meaningless. But... What if it doesn't? Assuming Yamcha has a life of his own in this show, talking about it might be worthwhile... Because it would once again show what a beautiful person he is in everyday life.

So... Let's get started!

Don't worry, I told you. I am not going to talk about Yamcha as a fighter, but as I had anticipated it is necessary to understand how incredible he is as a normal earthling.

We are at the end of the Fortuneteller Baba Arc. Goku has finally found out where the last dragon ball is and so sets off with Upa to resurrect his father Bora. Meanwhile, Yamcha and the others await their friend's return at Baba's palace. It is during this wait that Yamcha reflects at length on his own life and he finally decides to ask Muten to make him his pupil.

A new orange Gi is definitely needed!

Freeze! It is not the Turtle School uniform that I want to talk about. Let's go back for a moment... A few hours before the 22nd Tournament begins.

Alright! We've got it!

We are on the plane bound for Papaya Island. Bruce Lee Yamcha has completed his training under Muten, and with this proud pretty face he lets us know that we are going to see some good things. He also seems more mature. He is in his 20s. Guys, many things could be said about this drawing, but in this case I will simply dwell on his outfit. This is the first time we have seen Yamcha in such an elegant look. We were used to seeing him in martial artist outfits or otherwise with looks more suited to his wild nature, so this is a very nice surprise. For a change, he looks great. I mean, you can dress and style him any way you like: Yamcha has the incredible power to be charming in any way. Yes, even with that bowl hair from DBZ...

Jeez, I love him. Let's go back to our outfit now.

Some will remember it for sure, but for those who do not know I want to let you show that this dress has its own origin.

One more step back now.

We are in the 21st Tournament Arc. Yamcha is in town with Bulma and he's training on his own. Muten's only pupils are Goku and Krillin. Many people do not pay attention to it, but if these two boys managed to get into the Turtle School it is because of a character who unfortunately met a brutal end in the show: Lunch.

The deal is clear: If Goku and Krillin can find a nice girl to stay at the Kame House, then Muten can train them. It is the only way to access. So we can safely say that if Goku has become so strong, it is also thanks to Lunch. Fortunately, she is found in her quiet form, but soon her secret would come out...

...Whatever! Goku and Krillin can finally train under Muten. Well, there really would be so much to say about Lunch. She is a character who deserves a lot. She should not have disappeared at all after the great contribution she made to Goku and Krillin. Not only that. She even defeated some Red Ribbon soldiers, she helped Yamcha defeat some criminals because he had a broken leg, in a filler she saves Goku from an attempted "kidnapping," and among many other things she allowed to find front row seats during tournaments! Seriously, she would deserve a separate post.

If we look at Lunch as a function of the protagonist, it is undeniable that she was the mother Goku never had. At least in her good personality.

The same of course applies to Krillin. Let's think it through. She cooked for them, cuddled them before bed, and who knows how many other mother hen things she did. Goku definitely lacked such a figure, so this is also why I consider Lunch an important character in his growth. If Bulma is more like an older sister, Lunch is definitely his mommy. Have you noticed that? Every person Goku meets represents a family member. It's extremely cute.

Be that as it may, as proof that Lunch is a real mom to the two pupils, she decides to give them a nice gift at the end of their training.

Tadaaan! Okay, I admit that Goku and Krillin are really funny dressed like this. They look like two little gangsters, something like Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro as kids, but that's okay. Lunch sewed these outfits for them, and that's what matters. It was done with love.

Seeing her satisfied like a loving mommy getting excited for her kids going to school for the first time always moved me. Although in this case the destination is the tournament, the meaning is the same: Lunch gave importance to their big day by honoring it with this outfit as awkward as adorable.

Well, friends. Now that the puzzle is almost complete, we can go back to our boy! As I said at the beginning, Yamcha begs Muten to make him his third pupil. Once inside the school, it doesn't take long to realize that for all of his three years of training he has been dealing with Lunch as well.

It should be mentioned, however, that the two had actually met for the first time during the Red Ribbon Arc, when everyone leaves to help Goku.

This is the first real moment when they meet. Lunch is in her "evil" form, but a little later Yamcha will also make the acquaintance of her good side.

This meant that during these three years he also cohabited with Lunch, who must surely have cooked for him as well. I think it's a really interesting detail. Unfortunately, we don't know what has happened during these three years, but I would like to point out that this is the first time Yamcha has dealt so closely with a girl other than Bulma. Imagining that he is still very shy with girls, I have no doubt that he has been embarrassed many times in being so near to her. Stop!, I'm not saying he had feelings for her, but she is still a pretty girl, most of the time very naive as well as sensual, so I wouldn't be surprised if Lunch made Yamcha blush without even meaning to. By the way, it would be interesting to analyze Bulma's feelings in this situation, since she has visited Yamcha several times. I don't think she was ever jealous of Lunch, but she may have punched her boyfriend in the head a few times anyway just because.

...They were so cute...

Okay, now the topic is clear, isn't it? The bond between Yamcha and Lunch is one of the least explored things in Dragon Ball. There is no point in talking about it because it leads nowhere, but believe me, for an earthlings fan it is worth discussing.

First, let's start by saying that this is a different relationship from that she had with the other two pupils. If with Goku and Krillin Lunch was able to act like a caring mother, the same cannot be said for Yamcha. Yamcha is not a child like them. He is almost the same age as Lunch, so the relationship must be absolutely equal: they are two friends. Nothing more, nothing less. This does not mean that Lunch took less care of Yamcha. Surely she must have avoided giving him a good-night kiss and things like that, that is.

As for her second personality, it becomes more complicated. We will never know whether "Bad" Lunch felt attracted to Yamcha. We know she loves wild guys and Yamcha certainly is, but I don't think she was that disloyal to her friend Bulma. In short: I am convinced that there was never any sexual attraction between Lunch and Yamcha. They have always been two great friends, proving that friendship between boys and girls can exist.

So... Maternal or not, one thing is certain: when the big day comes again, Lunch gives her gift to Yamcha too.

I don't know how many of you have thought about this. I'm sure I'm not the first one who has thought about it, but geez... It's a detail that has always excited me for no real reason. Perhaps because it is one of those details that indirectly deepens the relationships between Dragon Ball characters, which are unfortunately poorly told.

I mean, try to think of the scene!

Yamcha at that time was not really the type of guy to wear stuff like that. He has lived for many years in the desert, where it is not necessary to wear fancy clothes because the only priority is to survive. Yet in the desert, we don't know how, he also learned good manners, especially with girls. I'm sure he did everything possible not to disappoint Lunch's expectations. Yamcha has always been like that. In order to please others he has often sacrificed himself, so I think something like that happened in this case as well. Let's try to put ourselves in his shoes. He may be gentle and all, he surely must have thanked Lunch for this, but how much he must have cringed wearing this?

It is a bit like putting a bow tie on a wild wolf...

This is precisely how I imagine him: deeply embarrassed and on the verge of sinking underground. "Boy, I feel so ridiculous!"

Don't worry, silly, it actually fits you much better than you think. I don't believe anyone found him as funny as Goku and Krillin were the first time they wore that thing. Anyway, I assume that this is why we don't see himwith that Al Capone hat. "Hell, I can accept the dress... but spare me that thing!!"

Here you can see Yamcha now comfortable in his elegant look and Lunch by his side totally unaware that she was the one who sewed it for him. By the way, I think it's superficial to say this but... It's really nice that she handmade this dress for Yamcha. I mean, his body is much bigger than Goku and Krillin's. She must have struggled a lot! It's a proof to how much she loved Yamcha, too.

Come on, look at her! Here Lunch is as worried as everyone about Yamcha's condition after Tenshinhan broke his leg. The way she addresses him does indeed have something maternal about it, but it mainly shows that she has become attached to him over those three years.

She is so precious...

...even when she is about to kill Yamcha and Bulma in one shot.

Gosh, I love her! It is so nice that everyone has learned to accept Lunch as she is. Yamcha is like that. He always accepted his friends, no matter how they are, he is always there for them and always took care of them. I am convinced that he loved Lunch as he loves everyone else.

So... the topic could end here, but it is not like me to conclude so trivially. I like to go beyond the impossible, in fact even this time I want to extend the whole situation.

The real point of the topic is another.

Unfortunately, Lunch's fate is the most horrible of all. In truth, I don't know which is worse between being forgotten and being ridiculed throughout the show. Let's just say that neither Lunch nor Yamcha were lucky. They also have that in common, besides the fact that both are very close to Tien. I would call it the trio of outcasts. However, if we at least know what happens to Yamcha during DBZ, we know nothing about Lunch. The last time we see her is in a bar, completely drunk because Tien is dead. Another appearance, which is really brief, is during the Buu Saga, when she gives her energy to Goku. I consider these two scenes to be frighteningly sad because in both cases we see her alone and that hurts me a lot. It is as if she has lost contact with her friends. After all, she could not even return to the Kame House because it was now inhabited by Krillin, Android 18 and their daughter. There was no place for her anymore. This hurt even more, because we really don't know what happened to her. Finally, she appears without ever saying anything in the OVA Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!!

This is quite consoling, but it is not enough. Her presence is highly unnecessary. I think she was thrown into the rabble just to actually pay homage to those who were Goku's friends, but what's the point if she doesn't even say a word? She certainly deserved more since she had been forgotten for almost two decades.

Whatever... Thank goodness Yamcha exists!

He is seriously the hero we do not deserve.

Well yes, Yamcha may be the one who partly solves this great riddle:

...What ever happened to Lunch all this time?

The truth is that there are no answers. Everyone can imagine what they want. One can think that she stayed with Tien (although DBS has ruled out this possibility for the umpteenth time), one can think that she opened a food truck or that she came to visit Muten sometimes. I personally believe that she has not completely lost contact with her friends. At least, not with Yamcha. I mean, we've seen how Yamcha is not the type to quit. When it comes to loving someone, Yamcha is always in the front row. This makes me believe that he has not stopped seeing Lunch. He is too loyal to forget a person who has done so much for him. Plus, if we add that Yamcha was left alone at one point in the story, it makes even more sense that he spends his time with an equally "lonely" friend. I imagine Yamcha as a very nostalgic guy. It would be unthinkable for him to exclude such an important memory as Lunch from his life.

At least, that's how it is for me. Until now I didn't know it for sure, but a few days ago I had an epiphany. That's when I realized that maybe Lunch is still there, we just don't see her.

Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might, 1990.

Did you notice anything?

Oh god yes, it's that damn gangster outfit again. I mean, the dress sewn by Lunch. Although it is difficult to identify the timeline of this film, it is still clear that we are in a context far away from OG Dragon Ball. At first I anticipated that all this might just be a coincidence, but personally I like to believe that there is much more behind it. Assuming that indeed it is the dress made by Lunch, we need to consider one thing: it can never be that one she gave him for the 22nd Tournament. It would be really old, plus I don't think it would be able to hold up Yamcha's new body. He's now in his 30s, he has not only grown taller but also added a lot of muscle mass. It is practically impossible for him to have been able to wear it. So... Maybe Yamcha asked Lunch to renew that old dress? Think about it, it makes sense to me. Yamcha is also very cheap. Being a former thief, he knows the value of money well and knows that it is easier to lose it than to find it. He is really funny, but also very cute.

The money accumulated through baseball certainly does not change his stingy nature, that's why it is not strange to think that he turned to Lunch. Of course, also as a matter of affection. I think Yamcha is a guy who is very attached to things, especially if there are a lot of good memories behind them.

I mean, something could have happened like, "Hi Lunchie, how are you? Long time no see, it took me so long to find you! Let me guess, you're hiding from the cops, right?" and then... "Anyway, I wanted to ask you a favor. Going through my closet, I found that fancy dress you had sewn for me for the Tournament. Do you remember? Here it is. I tried to wear it but I only gained a hole in my pants. I'll let you guess where. So... Could you fix it for your bestie?"... So she would say: "Are you kidding, Yamcha? There's no way I'm going to fix that! I'll definitely sew you a new one!"

If so, we could assume that they are still in contact! It would really comfort me to know that Lunch is still part of the gang, even if we don't see her. Yamcha in this case could seriously be the link, simply because he is brought up to be.

That would be great.

I want to believe it.

After all...

...Toriyama may forget his characters, but Yamcha will never forget his friends.

Thank you!!

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thorniest-rose · 5 months

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(Hi I’m back again!!) Okay actually I think Tommy and Carol joining the party. The bitchiness of the party would get upped a good 60%. Tommy doesn’t know how he even got here, and he doesn’t know how to check his ego but he absolutely screams bloody murder when he sees a demigorgon; which is fun because he’ll totally deny how scared he was immediately after. (Nancy, having shot at the demigorgon, just gives him an unimpressed look like 🤨). Carol, meanwhile? I love Carol. I also love the idea of bubblescoops because IMO Carol would be the epitome of that trope of “bitchy mean girl with strangely homoerotic subtext to all her girl friendships, has perfect makeup, is so good at being deadpan that you can’t tell if she’s being genuinely nice to you or mean nice to you” and Robin sees her and falls in love (of course). Robin isn’t even bothered that she can’t quite tell if carol’s being jokingly bitchy or not. Carol homoerotically applies lip gloss to Robin (you know, like totally normal friends do). Steve definitely has the BEST gossip circle with bubblescoops. Also, I can’t decide if Nancy and Carol would get along like a house on fire or if they’d hate each other’s guts. I think Tommy and Carol have no idea how to interact with the kids of the party. Just, many thoughts.

Oh my god yes yes yes!!!! I love the idea of Carol and Tommy joining the party, it's so much fun!! Tommy and Steve could finally mend their broken friendship and be completely homoerotic with each other (while Eddie spits bullets in the background) while Carol can be bitchy to the max and have a big rivalry with Nancy (before they fight alongside each other and grow a grudging mutual respect) and completely enchant Robin, who grows the biggest crush on her. It would be SO good. Yes omg and they'd be so awkward with the kids but I do think Carol and Erica would get on amazingly and Carol would glefully encourage how much Erica roasts Eddie 💕💕💕

#asks

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blackbutlerfandomnerddomain · 8 months

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SO I WANT TO SAY THIS BEFORE I FORGET!!

I noticed how each chapter of Twisted Wonderland's manga series based off each game and their chapter with each Yuu/MC/the reader and viewer is different in a way of what would help contrast the focus of the story.

Examples being Enma Yuuken is strong and obvious extremally masculine there fore "strong" in looks than Riddle who's "strong" in the sense of brains and magic as he literally bulldoze across any set back to be the top of his school to a degree of being Housewarden a mere weeks since joining as a new student vs. this one guy who has no magic and only seemingly became a student regardless of background or magic history and is able to make plenty of friends when he can't think of anyone outside of Trey and Cater and Chenya to call his friend, maybe even doubt if they even see him as his friend.

Then we have Yuuka Hirasaka who is confident, kind, loyal, and brave as shit, proving her point by risking her safety for a animal in the road. Leona, try as he might, wouldn't even give a chance to prove he can do that because everyone already doesn't expect much from him, or at least that's what he said. He's confident for a different reason, also if you remember how things run back in the Sunset Savannah you'd argue Leona feels extra bitter and more in need to try and prove worth more cause he grew up not only looked down on by his magic and potion in the royal line but also is honestly scared of the women around him. He's more confused with Yuuka especially since she doesn't show much fear to him

Next we have Mito Yuuta who I love the most so far due to what may come. Azul is confident and arrant as a show off little shield cause of his own self insecurities especially his image, specially his body and it's weight. He was relentlessly picked on by everyone besides his mother mainly due to his weight which from that level of trauma he's willing to work hard to become the smartest, the strongest, the most respected, and hottest out of spite not cause he generally feels that he wants to, to him he needed to. And it's obviously still stuck on him enough to not take pictures regardless how much money he would make and even making Yuu(soon Mito) to break into something dangerous and steal the only picture of his childhood he was unable to hide in the mind set of destroying it, regardless if he thought it would work or not. Meanwhile Mito Yuuta is a big guy who's okay and proud of his shape and eating habits and kind of like the ones before he him he actually has people who want to his friend vs. the unknown certainty that Jade and Floyd aren't technically his friends, they openly claim him as entertainment and if he got boring they'd leave him.

In other words there may be a chance other chapters would have a similar method with not just the design choice but personality design of future Yuus to contrast against the "flaws" of the chapter's "bad guys or villains"

I want Chapter 4 to be a girl, maybe make her beautiful in some way or have the personality of Jasmine from Aladdin that way the weird vibes of Chapter 4 being super hella romantic and even more ship baiting in any and all forms feel right, not to mention that scene of Jamil hypnotizing us in the kitchen DISNEY GIVE ME THAT AMAZING ART WORK OF JAMIL JUST LOOKING AT THIS GIRL AND MAKE ME AS CONFUSED IN MY SEXUALITY AND FEELINGS AS YOU DID WITH JASMINE AND ALADDIN WHEN I WAS 10 YEARS OLD!!!

I also think having Chapter 5's Yuu whatever gender (maybe male or masculine based cause there's a pattern it seems) but either make them somehow cuter than the ones before even if it's one trait or maybe give them something like a birthmark or scar of sorts that would somehow deem them "ugly" the their world but Vil would be lowkey obsessive of slowly as that was his character is, he's so obsessed proving he's beautiful and good and smart and strong to the point he obsessed over others and their flaws

Though with Chapter 6 I'm stuck on just cuz I want a sassy Meg type Yuu but also want a tall handsome muscular man who's like Hercules and everything Idia most likely would wish to be including with open mention of having great relationship with their family or maybe even them being an orphan

What are your guys' thoughts and opinions?

#twisted wonderland #twst yuu #enma yuuken #yuuka hirasaka #mito yuuta

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write-now-ggs · 8 months

Text

IU (Soloist)

Wc - 19,200 Video

"Love Poem"

As the quiet buzz from the air conditioner hummed in the background you were lost in complete thought as your lovely girlfriend delicately traced her finger tips over your inked skin. The two of you were enjoying each other's presence before you had to leave in a few hours for her work schedule. While you were lost in your mind enjoying the feeling of her on your skin, she was scrolling through her phone. You didn’t even have to look over to know that she was reading comments on your shared social media page.

When it came to said shared social media page, it was all Jieun’s idea. It felt strange considering she was probably one of the most recognizable figures in the entertainment industry but when it came to something she wanted you just couldn’t say no to her. She had proposed the idea of starting the account over two years ago because as she stated, she wanted a place to record the moments of your relationship. At first when she initially brought the idea up you were completely against it, you were worried that someone would find out who she was and that her public image would be ruined because she was dating you.

Luckily throughout the lifespan of the account no one has figured out who she was thanks to how surprisingly well she was at disguising herself. You yourself had nothing to hide from the public so you were now unofficially officially the face of the account meanwhile Jieun was the real mastermind behind it. With every picture she took and uploaded she wrote a loving caption to go along with it, all the words that were posted all came from her heart and from the feelings she strongly felt about you. Anyone that stumbled across the account could quickly understand how much this woman loved you and how much she loved to write about you. Oh but just what would happen if those same people realized that the same woman that wrote these loving paragraphs about her girlfriend on social media was the same woman, that dedicated many songs to the same girl, had many hit songs that were constantly reaching the top of the music charts all over the country..?

The account had managed to amass a pretty huge following for it just being a couple’s public love diary, the attention you had garnered from the account had made you feel a bit uneasy. Your experience with social media before meeting Jieun was that it was a place to keep up with family and friends who you hadn’t seen in a while. You never expected to have thousands of people all over the world waiting on the newest picture from your girlfriend.

When you first started dating Jieun she had tried her best to explain everything about her lifestyle and career to you but that was much different than living it yourself. You were fine at first with supporting your girlfriend being in the spotlight, but now that you were thrown under one as well, albeit a much smaller spotlight, you couldn't help but feel some uneasiness in life. You were fine with living an ordinary life and working an ordinary job but now you had to deal with the whole new territory that came with social media. You didn’t consider yourself a social media figure in the slightest but you did have to deal with occasionally getting offers from different companies to sign a contract under them. While you hadn’t done that, you, well more like jieun, had accepted a few small gigs for some modeling content. Your most recent gig was for an online shopping mall that Jieun had often frequented, she had snatched that deal for you in an instant.

But well I guess all this came with dating the woman that made your heart leap out of your chest everytime she looked at you. You would do anything for her and if that meant having to deal with random fangirls commenting about their favorite imaginary “ships” under your post then so be it. It didn’t seem to bother Jieun so you just rolled with it, even when people would comment big names in the industry as being the second half of the relationship in the pictures. You had felt almost flattered that these random people thought you could be in a relationship with all the names in the comments but still, no one was more perfect for you than Jieun. She was the only person that existed in your eyes.

It wasn’t until Jieun had started uploading videos of you a few months ago that the comments really started to ramp up on the guessing game of who Jieun was. The videos usually just consisted of her poking or annoying you in some sort of fashion throughout the day with your account's signature black and white filter slapped over it. The videos were really nothing extraordinary that would reveal who Jieun was. Well that was up until she uploaded a video where she was laughing in the background. Soon the comments were filled with people saying she laughed just like “Iu”. When you saw that you instantly panicked and you told her to take the video down. Jieun being the voice of reason had told you that taking the video down would only seem more suspicious and to just give it time, people would soon forget about it. You hated to admit defeat but she was right, soon the comments were filled with other people’s names.

Luckily for the both of you, Jieun’s entertainment company already knew about the account and they were completely behind Jieun. If anything were to happen they were prepared with statements for that situation.

“Don’t move…” Her voice was quiet as it broke into your deep thoughts.

“Hmm, okay..” You hummed in response as you did what she said, which was nothing. You stayed still for her.

You heard her phone’s camera make a noise followed by a satisfied hum from her.

“Am I good to move now..?” You spoke without moving your mouth to emphasize your dedication to not moving for her.

She let out a soft laugh, “Yeah you’re free to move now, silly.” She planted a kiss on your cheek before moving back to finish whatever it was she was doing on her phone.

You leaned over to look at what was keeping her occupied, “What are you up to..?” You saw a picture of your new tattoo on her phone as she typed in a caption.

“I just thought it would be nice to update everyone on your new art piece.” She looked up at you with the sweetest smile.

“Ahh I see, you better add in there that you helped me settle on this design.” You looked down at your left wrist where your newest addition to your tattoos sat. It was nothing crazy, just a simple outline of all the continents.

“I did, and…. Posted.” She smiled as she waited for the influx of comments to hit.

You watched her from where you were sitting, just adoring the way the light of her phone settled on her face, accentuating all the features you loved about her.

“Oh wow, they really like it. Told you it went really well with your other wrist.” She looked over at you before pointing at the tattoo you had on said wrist, it was a heart that had a simple airplane completing the outline of the heart on the right side.

“Yeah, you’re always right.” You smiled as you thought about both tattoos. You had gotten the heart a few years before meeting her and now with the irony of dating someone who traveled all over the world to perform sold out shows it couldn’t have been any more perfect. You had originally gotten it because when you were a bit younger, you had a job that had you traveling to different countries all the time.

Jieun let out a small sigh as she leaned her head on your shoulder, “I want one so bad.”

“Easy, then get one.” You leaned your head against hers.

“No, you know it’s not that easy for me to just go out and get one.”

“Hmm, why not..? Plenty of people in the music industry have them.” You spoke in genuine confusion.

“But those artists are different than I am. I have a certain image to uphold. You know this.” She closed her eyes as she spoke to you.

“I know that Jieun, but that shouldn’t stop you from doing something you want. You could always just get a small one somewhere people won't see it.” You paused for a minute before smiling, “Well not too small to where it would look like a little mole.”

Jieun let out a small chuckle before lightly hitting your arm, “I hate you.”

“Haha I love you too.”

The two of you sat in comfortable silence before Jieun checked the time on her phone. “Hmm we should start getting ready now, he’ll be here soon.”

“Oh, sounds good.”

“Are you finished getting dressed..?” You heard her ask as soon as the shower turned off.

“Yeah, I’m good to go.” You sat on your bed as you waited for her to finish up in the bathroom.

A few seconds later she walked out with a towel wrapped around herself and another one wrapped around her hair. She stared at what you were wearing before humming to herself.

“What’s wrong..? Do I look bad..?”

“No, far from that. It’s just I have something else I want you to wear.” She walked over to your shared closet and you followed right behind her. She looked around for a bit before finding what it was that she had in mind. “Here it is, try this on instead.” She handed you the piece of clothing before walking out and back to the bathroom.

You did as she said, slipping your other shirt off and putting on the one she gave you. “Oh wow..” You looked at yourself in the mirror and noted the way this shirt exposed your shoulders.

After a few more minutes Jieun had walked back out of the bathroom in her sweatpants and a random sweater she probably stole from your side of the closet. “Nice, that looks way better than I expected.” She smiled happily like a little girl with a crush.

“It’s nice, where’d you get it from..?”

“Oh, you remember that photoshoot you had last week for my favorite online mall..?”

“Uhm, yeah. Why?” You tilted your head to the side when you couldn’t figure out why she brought that up since she couldn’t go with you to the shoot.

“Well you remember how you took Hanteo with you?” (Her manager)

“Yeah, you didn’t want me going by myself.” You looked to the side as you tried remembering everything.

“Well while you were in the middle of shooting, I video called him and he took me on a virtual tour of the set. Then in the back I saw this shirt and I knew it would look beautiful on you. So I had him ask around to see if he could buy the shirt from them. We kept it a secret haha.” She ran her fingers on the fabric of the shirt.

“Oh wow.” You looked down with a lovestruck smile, “Hmm, well why this shirt specifically for today..? You could’ve kept this hidden until we had dinner out together.”

“Well if you must know, it's because I want to be able to see this whenever I look into the audience today.” She pointed to the tattoo of a paper plane you had on your right shoulder.

“Oh, I see. Well if it makes my princess happy then I love it. Thank you for the shirt.” You planted a gentle kiss on her lips before pulling away to smile at her.

Her face immediately flushed red, “Okay let’s go before you make it impossible for me to leave.” She grabbed your hand before pulling you around to the front door.

You were giggling the entire time she was dragging you to the front door. You put your shoes on then helped her with hers. You both walked out once you had everything you needed.

Her manager had greeted the both of you when you got into the car.

“Are you ready for today..?” He asked Jieun as he pulled out of your driveway.

“Of course, I always am.” Jieun smiled when you reached to hold her hand in her lap.

“Okay good, well get comfortable the traffic is going to make it a headache to get there.” Hanteo gave the two of you one last smile before looking ahead as he pulled into the road.

The ride to the venue did indeed take longer than you were expecting, luckily you spent the whole trip joking around with Jieun. She kept taking pictures of you from the most random angles while you kept trying to snatch her phone from her hands to take some of her as well.

After pulling into the back of the venue her manager turned around to tell the two of you that you made it.

“Thank you Hanteo, we appreciate the ride.” You told him before opening your door and holding it so Jieun could step out.

“Of course, that’s what I’m here for.” He stepped out of his own door before walking around the front of the car to take a stack of papers he had in the passenger seat. “I have to go hand these out real quick but you two feel free to head inside.”

“Okay, we’ll see you later then!” Jieun smiled at him before grabbing your hand so you could walk inside together.

“What were those for..?” You asked Jieun about the papers Hanteo had.

“Oh it’s about today's schedule for the show, he has to hand them out to everyone. His email wasn’t working all week so he just decided to physically hand them out. You know how hard headed he is when things don’t work like normal.”

“Ah I see,” You reached out to open the door to the venue, “After you.” Jieun stepped through the door first and you quickly followed behind her.

You both walked towards her dressing room, hand in hand, as she told you what she looked forward to the most tonight.

When you both made it to her dressing room she sat in the chair left out for her in front of her makeup station, and you went and sat on the counter near her. You took a few seconds to admire the way she looked at herself in the mirror. When she finally noticed you looking at her in silence she couldn’t help but smile.

“Why are you looking at me like that..?” She asked you as she looked to see if anyone was around.

“Like what..?” You smiled at her as your head tilted to the side.

Her face completely flushed red as she used her hands to cover it. “Like that, stop it.”

You couldn’t help the laugh that her actions gave you. “Jieun, my love, you’re going to have hundreds of people staring at you in a few hours, what’s the big deal with me just admiring you for a few seconds..?”

“Okay but that’s different, all those eyes don’t even come close in comparison to yours.” She peeked through her fingers to look at you before squealing and closing her eyes shut when she saw you moved to stand near her.

“Haha so cute…” You leaned down to whisper in her ear, “These eyes have also seen more of you than all those people combined.” You kissed the top of her head before moving to sit back on the counter you were originally relaxing on.

Jieun removed her hands from her face to look at you in complete shock, her face was as red as a ruby as she stumbled over her words, “Huh.. wha- why would you say that…?”

You couldn’t help but laugh at her reaction, “What’s wrong..?” You plastered an innocent look on your face as you watched the way she reacted to your actions.

She was unable to say anything else as her crew walked into the dressing room, all of them engulfed in their own conversations.

“Oh,” The lead make-up artist looked at Jieun’s face in confusion before turning to look over at you. “Are we interrupting something here..?”

You couldn’t help but laugh as Jieun’s face only got more red with embarrassment. “Haha no no, you didn’t. We were just talking.” Your head tilted to the side as you thought about your actions, “Hmm well more like I was admiring my beautiful girlfriend from all the way over here and she was getting flustered by my amazing compliments.” You plastered that same innocent face from earlier as all Jieun could do was shoot daggers at you with her eyes. Oh those beautiful eyes of hers.

“Ahh I see, well sadly I’m going to have to ask you to refrain from making her flustered. The red on her face is not going to make this easy on us.” The lead make-up artist joked with you, she often worked with Jieun on many projects so the three of you were pretty well acquainted.

“My bad, my bad, I’ll try to hold myself back. It’s not my fault that this woman gets easily embarrassed when it comes to me complimenting her even though we’ve been dating for almost five years now.” You rolled your eyes in a playful manner at her.

Jieun was still glaring at you as she crossed her arms over her chest, “Mmm compliments… sure if that’s what you want to call that…” She mumbled to herself as she held her own little huff and puff party.

“Oh, is that a new piece..?” The lead make-up artist asked when she walked up to where you were sitting to get some of her equipment, referencing your new tattoo.

“Oh this,” You held your wrist out to her so she could get a better look at the artwork on it, “It is new, Jieun helped me pick it out.”

“ooh she did..?” She examined the tattoo before looking over at Jieun, “Well she certainly has a good eye haha.”

Jieun’s eyes darkened as she looked you in the eyes, “Yeah I do have great taste, thanks for noticing.”

You met her eyes before laughing to yourself, “Anyways, I’m going to go see what outfit they have prepared for you.” You hopped off the counter and walked over to where she was sitting, “I’ll be back in a little bit.” You planted a soft kiss on her cheek, “You look so beautiful.” You walked away so she could get her makeup done.

“Ugh the two of you are so perfect for each other it makes me sick.” Jieun’s lead make-up artist said as she placed everything she needed in front of her.

“Haha, thank you for the compliment I suppose..?” Jieun spoke her response in a questioning tone as she didn’t know if she meant what she said as a compliment.

“It is a compliment, I promise.” She started to pull Jieun’s hair out of her face before she got started on her perfected craft, “When are the two of you going to finally tie the knot..?” She asked as she finished clipping Jieun’s hair back.

“What..? Well uh, I’m not sure haha.” Jieun once again couldn’t help but get flustered at the question.

“Wait, she still hasn’t asked the question yet??” She asked Jieun in shock.

“No she hasn’t, why has she said anything about it..?” Jieun looked up at her with all the concentration in the world.

“Hmm no she hasn't, but I just figured she would have proposed already. I mean the two of you act like you’re already married anyways haha.”

Jieun looked down at her ring finger on her left hand, “Maybe someday…”

With Jieun thinking about your future together, you were busy bothering her main stylist about the outfit she was supposed to wear for the event.

“This is what she’s wearing..? Wow, are you trying to give everyone in the crowd a nosebleed..?” You looked at the beautiful sundress that was hanging on the clothing rack in front of you.

“You know not everyone in that crowd has as big of a crush on your girlfriend as you do, right..?” Jieun’s main stylist grabbed the dress off of the clothing rack so she could bring it to Jieun’s dressing room, with you following right behind her.

“Well that doesn’t matter, Jieun herself is just too beautiful for this world so putting that dress on her would give just about anyone a nosebleed.” You answered in a “matter of fact” tone as you tried to keep up with her pace.

“Listen, all that matters is that this dress fits the theme of her album so we’re sticking with it. If she causes a national uproar in reported nose bleeds then that will be PR’s problem, not mine.” She opened up the door to Jieun’s dressing room so she could walk over and show her what the outfit choice for the event was.

And with her response you were silenced as you shuffled into Jieun’s dressing room passing by all the new interns working with the hair and makeup crew.

Jieun was engulfed in conversation with her main stylist as she showed her the dress while Jieun was getting her makeup done. You just observed them all from the back of her dressing room as you didn’t want to get in the way.

“Oh, excuse me, can I just grab that real quick.” One of the interns you passed by earlier was standing in front of you with a nervous look on her face.

“Hmm? Oh I’m sorry.” You quickly moved out of the way when you could see how overwhelmed the young girl looked. “Are you okay..?”

“What..?” The young girl looked up at you once she finally grabbed what it was that she needed. “Oh yeah I’m fine haha, I just have to hurry or I’ll get in trouble.” The girl waved the object in her hand at you before scurrying on.

You stared at where the girl was standing before deciding to go and find her, stopping to grab a water bottle along the way. You hadn’t realized that Jieun had watched your entire interaction through the mirror as all you had in mind was helping out the poor brand new intern.

It didn’t take long before you saw the young girl scurrying back towards Jieun’s dressing room with a new object in hand. You moved in front of her to get her to stop walking.

“Oh sorry, excuse me.” She stepped to the side to walk past you but then she looked up at you in shock when you moved over as well to stop her again.

“Hey, stop.” You smiled at the young girl, “Take a break.” You reached for the object in her hand before replacing it with the water bottle you had in your hand. “Slow down young one, don’t overwork yourself. I can take this for you, please catch your breath and relax for a little bit.”

“Huh..?” The girl looked up at you with the biggest eyes that quickly seemed to water up.

“I’m assuming you were bringing this to Yeonha..?” You were able to assume that this was going to Jieun’s make-up artist given the items.

“Oh yes, she had asked me to hurry with those brushes.” The young girl answered you with reddened cheeks.

“Okay well I can take them to her for you, please go catch your breath and relax, there’s plenty of time.” You had been to many of Jieun’s work events to know that Yeonha was a rusher when it came to getting everything done even when she would have plenty of time.

“Thank you so much.” The young girl slightly bowed her head at you before blinking away at the tears that began to form in her eyes.

“Haha it’s no problem, I know how Yeonha can be, trust me you won’t be this stressed out all the time.” You smiled at the girl before turning away, you held the object in the air waving it slightly. “I’ll get this to her, enjoy your break.”

The young girl just stared at you in amusement as you disappeared down the hall.

You walked up to Jieun and her make-up artist, handing her the object you had in hand.

“Hey, Yeonha, you need to go easier on the interns.”

“Huh?” She looked at what you had in your hands in shock, “Where did you get that..?”

“I got it from that poor girl you have running in laps down the hallway, she looked burnt out so I told her I would bring this to you and that she could take a well deserved break.” You shrugged your shoulders before placing the object down in front of Jieun on the make up counter.

“Oh uh, thank you.” She looked between you and Jieun, unsure of what to say.

“It’s all good, just try to take it easy on her, interns aren’t used to everything yet, just try and ease them into it.” You gave her a small smile before looking down at Jieun. “I’m going to go ahead and walk out to my seat so you can finish getting ready.”

“Huh? Wait..” Jieun held onto your hand so she could get up from her seat, “Don’t forget this.” She walked away to grab something before coming back with one of her albums. “Gotta fit the part.” She smiled at you before placing it in your hands.

“Ah right, is this one of your special editions..?” You asked with a joking smile since you knew that Jieun loved writing you random messages and doodles in the albums that she gave you.

“Of course it is.” She let out a small giggle before pulling you into a small kiss. “I’ll see you out there in a bit, just try not to look like you’re too in love with me.”

It was your turn to laugh at her before leaning in to whisper into her ear, “Why, do I make it hard for you to hold back..?”

Jieun pulled away to glare at you, “Shut up before I kick you out.”

You let out a bigger laugh, “Haha well I didn’t hear a no.” You gave her lips a small peck, where you would’ve opted for her cheek but due to her make-up being done you wanted to be nice to Yeonha, “Well, I’ll see you out there Miss IU.” You sent her a wink as you said her stage name before walking out of her dressing room.

“Ugh that girl…” Jieun stared at you as you walked away with a dumb grin on her face.

“Okay love bird get over here so we can finish your make-up.” Yeonha put her hands on Jieun’s shoulders so she could turn her towards her seat.

You walked around the venue for a bit to see if anyone needed a hand with setting anything up before walking to the seat that Jieun picked out for you. You had just gotten done helping the stage crew bring out some decorations for her first performance so now you sat down bored as you waited for the doors to open to the public.

You figured now was as good a time as ever to look through her new album. You had seen everything from a behind the scene’s perspective so being able to see the final product in front of you was awesome. No matter how many releases you’ve been by Jieun’s side for, you would never get tired of unboxing the newest product of her hard work. You flipped through every single page slowly to admire all the pictures of her and all of her scribbled notes directed towards you. The smile on your face looked like it would never disappear as you flipped through the pages.

“Oh,” You got to the end of the pages and were now reading her album’s dedication section. “This is a note to the person who is there for me everyday and night no matter what. Whenever I feel lost they’re always there to reassure me that I am on the correct path. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me, even the things you don’t know that you helped me with, I hope to one day properly repay your kindness.”

You didn’t notice the way your eyes welled up with tears until you blinked. “This girl.” You smiled as you ran your finger down the page before closing the photobook.

A few moments later you could hear the sound of people walking in and talking, you looked up to see a line of fans walking into the venue, many of which were carrying huge cameras. You were able to pick up on some familiar faces in the crowd since they would frequent many of your girlfriends events. The rows began to fill up and soon so was your own row. The seat next to you was now occupied by a talkative fan who hadn’t stopped talking about Jieun’s latest album to the girl next to her.

“Hey, I like your tattoos, they’re pretty.”

It took you a minute to register the fact that the hyper fan was talking to you, “Oh thank you so much.” You sent the girl a small smile before looking at your phone.

Jieun had sent you a message so you quickly checked it and made sure no one around could see the contents. “I’ll see you in five minutes.” She attached a photo of her in the dress you saw earlier and you swore that she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

“Oh, that dress is dangerous.” You replied to her message before putting your phone away.

After a while of waiting in silence a very familiar figure appeared on the stage in front of you and the once quiet room was now filled with loud cheers. After waving at everyone in the crowd she began to perform the first song on her short set-list.

Unlike everyone else in the crowd you enjoyed her performance without recording anything and you just made yourself comfortable in your seat as Jieun sang to the crowded room. Before meeting Jieun you had only been to a small handful of concerts but none to any artist you were really into, just some random pop up events that your friends would drag you to, but now here you were at what felt like your millionth performance of Jieun’s. You enjoyed every single one of her performances like it was your first time watching her sing.

She made it through the rest of her set-list without a problem and then everyone watched as the staff brought out a table and a chair. Jieun had her microphone in her hand so she talked to the crowd as she stood at the edge of the stage.

“Haha did you all like the songs..?” She listened to the crowd cheer in response, “Well I am glad, I’ve been working on this album for the better part of a year now.” The crowd cheered again and everyone watched as she went to take a seat in the chair behind the table.

The staff of tonight's event soon started to direct the different rows into a line so they could walk up and get their albums signed. You watched in amusement at how she smiled at everyone that stood across from her and the way she easily made small talk with everyone.

The first two rows on the right side of the room were nearing the end of their turn on stage so now it was your row’s turn to line up. You were always surprised by how well behaved her fans were when it came to events like this. When she first told you about her career and work events you expected everything to be hectic, but to your surprise it was quite the opposite.

You couldn’t hide the smile on your face as you heard the girl in front of you fangirl to her friend ahead of her. You enjoyed hearing the different things all of her fans had to say about her every time you were near them, it was like you were learning a new fun fact about her every event.

It was now your turn to get your album signed so you walked past all the familiar faces of her staff before placing your previously vandalized album on the table in front of Jieun.

“Hey stranger,” You sent her a soft smile as your eyes took in her beautiful appearance from up close, “You look gorgeous.”

Jieun’s cheeks flushed a light shade of pink as she listened to your compliment, “Thank you.” She avoided looking you in the eyes as she opted to look down at your album so she could sign it.

“A lot of people showed up today, were you nervous..?” You asked as you watched her flick through the pages to find an empty one to write a note.

Jieun shook her head before landing on the one page she left free from her graffiti, “Not really, most of the faces in the crowd are pretty familiar by now.” She closed up your album before sliding it across the table to you with a beautiful smile.

“Ahh I see.” You picked up the album and you returned her an identical smile, “Well I have to go back to my seat now but just a quick tip. Try no to look too in love with me, you’re making it pretty obvious.”

Jieun rolled her eyes at the cocky grin on your face before plastering a fake smile on her face, “You’re so lucky I love you.” She spoke through her teeth as she waved at you like you were any other fan in the crowd.

You let out a small chuckle, “Hell yeah I am.” You gave her one last smile before walking along the stage. You could feel her eyes on you as you made your way to your seat. Well what you didn’t know was that there were other eyes on you as your familiar face started to make sense to some of the people in the crowd.

You sat down with your girlfriend's album in your lap and a dumb smile on your face as you watched her from your seat.

You were zoned out, lost in your own thoughts, up until you felt someone lightly tap on your shoulder. You looked down in surprise when you were met with the eyes of the girl who was seated next to you.

“Oh, yes..?” You straightened your posture as you waited for the girl to speak to you.

“Hi, I’m sorry to bother you but I just had a quick question to ask you. Would you mind..?” The young girl asked you for permission as her friend peeked over her shoulder.

“Huh..? Oh sure, go ahead.” You didn’t take any concern with her request as you figured she was probably going to ask you to take a picture of her and her friend. You got these requests pretty often at Jieun’s events.

“Okay well my friend and I couldn’t help but notice how familiar your tattoos looked so we just wanted to ask if this was you..? You don’t have to answer if you’re uncomfortable, it’s just that both of us are fans of your account.” The girl was holding her phone out towards you with a picture of you and Jieun in it, well your face was the only one anyone could see anyways.

“Oh uh,” You looked at her phone then back up at the girl's face before looking over at Jieun on stage then back at the phone. You were racking your brain for answers to give the girl, what would Jieun do in your place..? “Yeah that’s me.” You rubbed the back of your neck as you didn’t know what to expect next.

The two girls looked at each other and shared a gasp once you admitted to being the one in the picture.

“Oh my god that’s so awesome, can we please get a picture with you..?” The girl's friend asked you.

“Huh..?” You were super confused as to what you were supposed to do, you had never been recognized in public before so for this to happen at one of Jieun’s events was mind numbing.

“You know, like a picture..?” The first girl said as she made a picture taking motion with her hand. “I’m telling you we’re both big fans of your account.”

“Oh uhm, sure. Sorry I’m not used to this.” You admitted to the two girls as you let out a shy laugh, “And for the record that account is all my girlfriends work, I don’t want to take any of the credit for it.”

“Oh my god that’s so cute, I can’t.” The girl opened up the camera app on her phone and then you were standing with each girl on either side of you. “Smile.” The girl said as she took a few pictures.

“Are they okay..?” You asked her as she checked the pictures.

“Yes they’re great, thank you so much.” The girl showed her friend the pictures before they both moved to sit back down in their seats.

You followed along, sitting back down in your own seat, with a bright blush of embarrassment on your cheeks. You let out a small breath as you thought they were done talking to you, but you were quickly mistaken.

“So where is your girlfriend..? Is she here with you..?” The girl asked you as she looked around the venue.

“Uh well something like that..” You mumbled quietly before shaking your head, “Oh no actually, she’s working today. Uhm she’s a big fan of Ji-” You paused and blinked a few times, “IU, she’s a big IU fan.” You smiled in a way to convince not only the girls but also yourself of your little white lie.

“Awe so you’re here to get her a signed album from her favorite artist..? That’s so cute, the two of you are such couple goals.” The girl and her friend shared a squeal.

“Haha yeah…” You wiped away some sweat that had built up on your forehead.

“I know this is going to sound like we’re crossing a line, but can you show us what she looks like..? You don’t know how curious we are.” The girl’s friend asked you. “The two of you just make the cutest couple, even if we’ve never seen her face, just from the words she writes about you we can tell that she is beautiful.”

“Oh I’m sorry.” You slightly bowed your head to the two girls, “I can’t do that. My uh girlfriend is just really private.”

“Oh but you said she runs the account, no..?”

“She does, it’s just that if her workplace see’s that she’s dating a woman uhm she can get fired.” That sounded believable right? You asked yourself.

“Ohhhh.” Both the girl and her friend said at the same time.

“That makes so much sense, I’m sorry for bugging you over that.” The girl offered you a sincere apology, “Well thank you for taking the time out of your day to talk to us.” The girl smiled at you before the both of them went back to talking to each other.

“Oh my god..” You buried your face in your hands as you tried to calm yourself down from having a panic attack.

Once you had managed to calm your breathing down you lifted your head to look up at the ceiling, counting to ten slowly as you breathed in and out. When you finally looked forward, your worried face quickly caught Jieun’s attention.

“Are you okay..?” She mouthed to you in a subtle way.

You gave her a slight nod before mouthing back to her, “Later..”

She sent you back a small but subtle nod before turning her attention back to her fans on stage.

The rest of the event went on fine, but you felt like you couldn’t enjoy it with the big knot that your stomach was now in. You kept catching the girls next to you glancing over so you tried your best to just act like any other fan of your girlfriend but it was just so weird to you. You were sure they could see right through the act. “They know, they know, they know.” Those words repeated over and over in your head.

Soon the venue began to empty out as Jieun had just finished performing two encore songs and she finished saying her goodbye’s to everyone. Your row was one of the last one’s to empty out as you stayed seated with your head spinning.

The two girls that were sat next to you had thanked you once again for the picture before walking out.

Once everyone had made their way out of the venue, you and the cleaning crew were the only people left in the empty room. You finally stood up after your many minutes of pondering thoughts. You then heard small but quick footsteps running up behind you and then you suddenly felt someone’s weight on your back. The quiet giggles quickly gave up the person’s identity.

You couldn’t hold back your smile as you quickly put your arms around Jieun’s legs to hold her in place on your back.

Jieun reached over to plant a small kiss on your cheek, “How was it..? How did I do tonight..?”

You turned your head to look at her, “You did amazing, like always. Everyone in the crowd loved your songs.”

Jieun let out a small giggle before reaching for her phone, she held it out in front of you as she captured a few pictures. She hid her face behind your hair but her beautiful smile was still visible. Once she felt like she took enough pictures, she jumped off your back and you turned around to face her. She gave you a small kiss before holding your hand in both of hers.

“You look tired, are you okay..?” Jieun moved one of her hands to place it on your cheek.

You leaned into her touch as you gave her a small nod, “I’m okay now.” You turned your head to plant a soft kiss on her hand.

Jieun’s eyes were still filled with concern even after hearing your words of reassurance. “Okay well do you want to head to the back so you can tell me about what had made you look so stressed out earlier..?”

“Yeah, let me just grab my stuff.” You walked away from Jieun to grab your album and then the two of you interlocked fingers as you made your way through the venue and into the many hallways of the back.

On your walk to her dressing room you gave her a rundown of your interaction with the two girls.

As you made it to the door of her dressing room she suddenly fell very quiet. The two of you just stood by the door in silence as it looked like Jieun was going through an internal conflict.

Jieun finally looked back up at you, “I think I’m ready to tell everyone about us.” Her voice was very soft and quiet so it took you a minute to understand what she said.

“What?” You looked at her in complete shock as your body froze.

Shock, yes such a strange and bizarre emotion but your body was enveloped in it. But then a wave of relief rode over your body as you thought about how you wouldn’t have to hide the biggest secret of your life. But then fear quickly took over every inch of your body. Jieun was the love of your life. What if this decision was a huge mistake..?

“Oh, you dropped this.” You had picked up a phone that had slid on the floor of the bus and then proceeded to hit your shoe. You were handing it back to the girl in the seat behind you since she was the only one it could’ve belonged to.

“I’m so sorry, I’m so clumsy how could I have dropped this.” The smaller girl laughed before reaching for her phone. “Thank you so much, uhm..?” She raised her eyebrow as she gave you the hint to introduce yourself. And so you did, “Well it’s nice to meet you, my name is Jieun.” The smaller girl introduced herself as well.

“Oh well, it’s nice to meet you, Jieun.” You held your hand out for the girl to take.

“The feeling is mutual.” The girl gave you the brightest smile as she returned your handshake.

You finally pulled your eyes away from her mesmerizing ones as the bus came to a stop. You looked out the window and quickly jumped up. “Oh I’m sorry, this is my stop.” You sent her an apologetic smile before grabbing your stuff to rush off the bus.

The girl smiled before standing up as well, “Well looks like it’s mine now too.”

“So I’ve given it a lot of thought since we’ve been friends for a while now but uhm.” You paused as you had to look away from her eyes, “But, did you like want to maybe, like you know..?” You made an awkward hand motion as you couldn’t figure out how to put your thoughts into words.

“Hmm..? Like uhm what..?” Jieun teased the flustered girl that stood in front of her.

You took a deep breath before speaking your next sentence, “Do you want to be my girlfriend..? It’s okay to say no but somewhere along our friendship I started to get romantic feelings for you and I was just hoping that they would be mutual.” Your face was completely flushed red as you tried to avoid looking Jieun in the eyes.

Before she responded she let out a little giggle that caused you to look at her, and to your surprise she was nodding her head. “I would be honored to be your girlfriend.”

You couldn’t believe your ears, you thought you had mistaken what you heard. Jieun then swiftly pulled you into the softest kiss of your life. There was no mistaking what she meant now.

“Finally, it took you long enough.” Jieun said once she pulled away from your first official couple kiss.

“Oh my gosh, why do you own so much crap? This is so heavy.” Jieun whined as she carried one of your boxes into her neat apartment.

“Hey to be fair you’re the one who bought me most of this stuff.” You smiled at her antics as you walked in with the heavier boxes.

Jieun placed your box on the ground in the living room before moving to flop on the couch with a loud grunt. “Oh my,” She let out a small huff, “I don’t think I’ve ever had to…”

Before she could continue to complain you leaned down over her on the couch and you planted a small kiss on her lips. You felt her smile before she moved her hands to hold your face in a sign of defeat. You pulled away far enough for your noses to still be touching as the both of you smiled.

“Okay, okay I get the message loud and clear.” Jieun moved her head side to side to rub your noses together before she moved to give you another kiss. This time pulling you on top of her on the couch.

The two of you shared a sweet moment together before you moved to lay next to her on the couch. Your arm was wrapped around her waist and your face lay nuzzled in the crook of her neck.

“Finally, I’ve had to listen to you complain since we got on the elevator.” You smiled against her neck as you heard her groan in annoyance.

“Ugh I hate you.” She turned her body so she could face you.

You let out a small gasp, “You hate me..? Oh no, it looks like I’m going to have to move out before I even got the chance to finish moving in.” You moved to try and get up from the couch but you were soon stopped by Jieun.

“Don’t you dare leave me yet. At least wake me up with some breakfast in bed or something.” She wrapped her arms around you so you could lay in place with her on the couch.

You let out a soft chuckle as you surrendered to her touch, “Okay, okay, I won’t leave.”

“Hey, wake up.” You whispered in Jieun’s ear, “Jieun get up.” You placed down a plate of food on her night stand before moving your hand up to her forehead to play with her bangs.

“Hmm…” Jieun mumbled tiredly as she leaned into your touch.

“Wake up baby.” You planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

“I love you, but if the building isn’t on fire then don’t wa- wait.” Jieun’s tired voice came to a halt, “Do I smell food.” She opened one of her eyes to peek out at you.

You couldn’t hold back your smile at how cute she was, “Yes, I made you some breakfast. So hurry and get up to eat before it gets cold.”

She let out a small groan and then you helped her sit up. “Thank you.” She smiled at you tiredly as you placed the plate of food in her lap.

“Mhm.” You hummed happily as she began to dig into the food. You couldn’t help but stare at the woman you were deeply in love with.

In what felt like an instant, all of your favorite memories with Jieun replayed in your head as you stared at her with blank eyes.

“Baby, hey, are you okay..?” You began to hear her voice break through the fog in your mind. She grabbed both of your hands to pull you towards the end of the hallway where no one was around.

Jieun placed both hands on your cheeks. She held your face in her hands as she looked at you with all the concern she could muster. “Why are you crying..?” She asked you softly.

“Huh..?” You asked in confusion, “Crying..?” You couldn’t even feel the tears that streamed their way down your cheeks. “Jieun..” Your eyes began to water up even worse as you moved to pull her into a hug.

“What’s wrong, hmm..?” Jieun hummed against your body as she hugged you.

You pulled away to look at her, “These are tears of joy, I promise.” You grabbed one of her hands so you could plant a small kiss on her knuckles, “I can’t believe this is happening. My heart, it can’t handle this.” You let out a small sigh, “It only ever beats like this because of you.” You placed her hand over your chest so she could feel the rapid beating of your heart. “You’re the only person that can make me like this.”

Jieun smiled gently, “So then what are these tears about..? Hmm..?” She tilted her head to the side as she waited for your answer.

“It’s just, it feels like this is a big step forward for us. It feels unreal.” Your shoulders dropped as you looked down at the ground. “Wow..” You shook your head before continuing, "I've waited for what feels like an eternity to be able to let everyone know we are together. Not because you are 'IU the famous celebrity' but because you're 'Jieun the one girl who can make me feel like no one has before'. I want people to know how much of a beautiful person you are inside and out, how happy you make me, how you take care of me when I'm not feeling the best, how you always reassure me everything will be okay and most of all, I want people to know of the love I hold for you in my heart."

When you looked back up at Jieun you weren’t expecting to be met with her tear stained cheeks. It was your turn to dry her face, your thumb delicately tracing over the small streaks on her cheeks.

“Are you okay..?” You leaned your forehead against hers as she closed her eyes.

“Mhm,” She hummed as she took in a deep breath, “I’m fine, it's just you always catch me off guard with your words.”

You pulled away from her so you could look her in the eyes, “Well they’re not just empty words, they’re my true feelings put into word format. I mean everything that I say when it comes to you. I seriously do love you Jieun, and I’m willing to do any and everything you need me to do.”

Jieun looked at you for a few seconds as she thought about what to do next. She let out a small breath before smiling at you, “Okay then, let me talk to Hanteo real quick so I can see what we can do.”

Jieun tried to walk away but you grabbed her arm to stop her from leaving, “Wait.”

Jieun looked at you in shock but then she decided to let you say whatever it was that you needed to say. “What’s wrong..?”

“Jieun, I know I’m okay with people knowing about us, but are you one hundred percent sure you’re okay with this..? We live two separate lives, this news coming out wouldn’t hurt me as much as it would your career. Are you sure you’re willing to risk everything for us..?” Jieun had spent her entire lifetime building up her successful career that could quickly fall in ruins at the mention of any news that the public would disagree with. You wanted her to be super sure about her decision.

Jieun held your hand in both of hers, “Yes, I’m sure.” Three words. It was that simple to her. There was no contemplation on her part, she was ready for everyone to know about your relationship. She didn’t care about anything else, much less the public’s opinion about her relationship. “Whatever happens to my career could never come as close as us not being able to be together. I would choose you over everything else in this world every chance that I get.” Jieun’s tone was as sincere as it’s ever been, she wanted you to know she was serious. “If no one accepts me for who I am and who I love, then what's the point of keeping this career up if I can't be happy.”

And with that final statement from her, you knew there was no changing her mind now. “Okay then.” You matched the expression she wore on her face, “So we’re doing this..?”

“Mhm.” Jieun hummed in response.

“Wow, we’re doing this..?” You repeated your sentence as more of an exclamation as the situation finally resonated in your head. “We’re doing this!” This time it wasn’t even a question, it was more of a cheer. You pulled your hand away from her grip so you could jump up and down in celebration. “We’re doing it!!” You continued to cheer, putting a smile on Jieun’s face, until you felt all the extra energy in your body dissipate.

“Haha are you okay now..?” Jieun asked once you settled back down from your impromptu cheer performance.

“Ooh yeah, just a little dizzy.” You placed a hand on your head, your current state being a result from you jumping up and down while spinning in a circle.

Jieun couldn’t help but laugh at your current state of being. “You’re so cute.”

It was now your turn to blush as Jieun’s words made their way into your heart. You were used to being the cheesy one in the relationship so you being in this state was a rare sight to Jieun.

“Ahh so cute.” Jieun couldn’t help the small squeal of excitement she let out when she saw you in your flustered state. “Oh the way I love you is insane.” Jieun wrapped you up in her arms so she could squeeze you. The cuteness aggression she was feeling was serious.

“Jieun stop…” You couldn’t handle her teasing you like this, so pulling away with a smile you turned away from her. You buried your face in your hands, the warmth on your face was a surprise to your now warm hands.

Jieun’s eyes widened in adoration, she loved seeing you being so flustered by her actions. She considered this moment as payback for how you were teasing her earlier. She beat you at your own game essentially.

“Cute.” Jieun mumbled as she moved to hug you from behind. “Come on, let’s walk to my dressing room, I still have to find Hanteo so I can talk to him about all this.”

It took you a few more deep breaths before you pulled your face away from your hands, “Okay.” You nodded before turning in Jieun’s embrace. “You lead the way?” You asked her as you looked into her eyes.

Jieun couldn’t hide her smile when she noticed just how vulnerable you looked in that moment. “Mhm.” Jieun released her arms from your waist so she could hold your hand. She led you down the hallway and to her dressing room. The both of you walked in as everyone was packing up all their items. “Wait for me here..?”

“Okay, but don’t take too long.” Your voice was quiet as you were still feeling shy from her actions earlier. You loved to tease her but when it came to being the one being teased you just couldn’t handle it.

Jieun’s smile widened, “Mmm okay, I’ll try to hurry.” Jieun spoke with a pout as her voice sounded like she was speaking to a lost child. Jieun cupped your face so she could give you a kiss before walking away.

You walked to the back corner of her dressing room so you could sit in one of the empty seats. You slowly spun in the chair you were sitting in as you looked up at the ceiling, mind racing about all the possible outcomes of your relationship going public.

After what felt like an eternity, but was really just thirty minutes, a familiar hand stopped your chair from spinning. You instantly smiled as soon as your eyes landed on the familiar beauty in front of you.

“Having fun..?” Jieun asked you in a light hearted tone as she moved to sit in your lap.

You had a small pout on your face as you shook your head, “About as much fun as I can have when you’re not around.” You paused to let out a sigh, ”Which is not much at all.” You responded as you gently wrapped your arms around her while she got comfortable against your body.

Jieun giggled quietly before letting out a small breath, “Hmm well I have some good,” She paused before tilting her head up to look at you, “And some bad news.” She reached up with her hand to place it behind your head, gently tilting your head down so you could look at her.

“Okay,” You looked her in the eyes as your hand gently traced up and down her side, “What’s the news..?”

“Oh wait,” She moved her hand away from your head so she could dig her phone out of her pocket. She called over someone in the room, when you looked up you noticed it was the overworked intern from earlier. “Hi, sorry to bother you but would you mind taking some pictures for me..?” Jieun asked the now flustered girl.

The young girl looked at you and then at Jieun with shock written all over her face, “Oh sure.” The girl grabbed Jieun’s phone from her hand.

You looked at Jieun while the young girl fumbled with the phone, “You never miss the opportunity for a picture, do you..?” The dumb smile on your face was met with the proud one on Jieun’s face.

“Of course not babe, you should know this by now.” Jieun moved her face to hide it in the crook of your neck, using your hair to cloak her face.

You readjusted your hands before looking up at the camera, the intern had been snapping pictures of the two of you since she managed to open the camera application. When you smiled at her she froze before accidentally dropping Jieun’s phone.

“Oh my I’m so sorry.” The girl quickly reached down to pick up Jieun’s phone before being stopped by Jieun placing her hand on the girl's arm.

“Hey don’t apologize, it’s okay. Thank you for taking time out of your day to do that for me.” Jieun moved off of your lap so she could pick up her phone.

The girl quickly bowed her head at you and Jieun. “Sorry.”

“Hey it’s okay, really.” This time you spoke to the young girl, “Sorry if she held you up from doing what you needed to do.” You gestured to Jieun who was now looking through the pictures that the girl had taken. “She gets tunnel vision when it comes to a photo opportunity.”

“Oh, okay.” The girl stared at you with big eyes. “I didn’t mind.”

“Haha okay, well we’ll leave you alone now.” You bowed your head at the girl before placing your hand on Jieun’s back so you could make her bow to the young girl as well.

“Oh right, thank you so much.” Jieun smiled at the girl once she was upright.

The girl scrambled off after that so then the two of you moved back to sitting in the chair together.

“Okay well you got your pictures, are you going to tell me the news now..?”

“Mhm but wait, look at this one…” Jieun held her phone up to your face to show you a picture.

“Oh.” Your eyes widened in surprise by how good the picture actually was. You were smiling at the camera but the photo was snapped right at the moment the intern lost her grip on it so it was a little blurry but just in the right way.

“Right..? It’s my favorite one.” Jieun giggled before putting her phone away. Jieun cleared her throat before speaking again, “Okay so I talked to my company and they told me that as long as I’m one hundred percent sure about my decision then they would stand behind me for everything. They only have one condition, and that’s for us to announce our relationship through a live broadcast.”

“Oh, so I’m assuming the broadcast is the bad news..?” You asked Jieun after what she said weighed in your mind.

“Yeah, I just wasn’t sure how you would feel about it. If you don’t feel comfortable about it then we can just cancel this whole thing.”

“Oh no Jieun, don’t worry. I want to do this just as much as you do.” You smiled at her, “As long as you’re with me I’ll be okay.”

Jieun admired you for a minute before responding. She knew making that decision was hard for someone in your position. You never cared about being in the public’s eye but now you were essentially being thrown into it because of her career. She would be lying if she said she didn’t feel super selfish for making you make this decision and also super guilty for all the sacrifices you had to make when it came to dating her. She often wondered if you would be happier with just having a normal relationship with anyone not in a public position such as hers.

“Jieun, are you okay..?” You moved a hand up to hold her face when you saw her having an internal battle.

Jieun nodded her head as she avoided looking you in the eyes, “Yeah, I'm sorry. I just can’t help but feel like I'm forcing you to do this. I’m sorry for putting you in this position.”

“Jieun, no, you’re not forcing me to do anything. Don’t say that, okay..? I want to do this. I promise.” You leaned down so you could plant a soft kiss on her forehead.

Jieun finally looked up at you, “Okay, then when do you want to do the broadcast..?”

You shrugged your shoulders in response, “It doesn’t matter to me. Talk to Hanteo and your company, whatever works for them will work with me.”

“Alright then,” Jieun let out a heavy sigh, “I’m nervous.” She admitted to you in a hesitant tone.

“It’ll be okay. If anything were to happen I’ll be right by your side.”

Jieun leaned her head against you before closing her eyes, “I know love, thank you.”

“Of course baby.” Your voice was gentle when you noticed just how tired she was

Everyone had soon cleared out of the room and only you and Jieun were left alone, a few staff members filtered in and out of the room occasionally. Hanteo had walked up to you to let you know the car was ready for you outside.

You looked down at Jieun, who had fallen asleep on you a while ago, you slid your arms underneath her so you could slowly pick her up so as to not wake her. You carefully made your way out of the room and towards the car outside. On your journey to the car she had wrapped her arms around your neck as she mumbled something in her sleep.

You and Hanteo walked to the car together as you discussed Jieun’s decision. He told you he was genuinely surprised it took her this long to come to this decision since he always knew her as someone who always wanted to get everything done as soon as possible, not caring about any of the negativity when it came to something she truly believed in.

Once you made it to the car, Hanteo opened the door for you so you could slide Jieun into the back seat. You quickly got in so you could lean her head onto your shoulder so she could continue sleeping. Hanteo moved to get into the driver's seat so he could get the two of you home as soon as possible.

In what seemed like a flash, a week had passed since Jieun had settled on her decision for your relationship to go public. After a lot of back and forth of planning, her and her management team had come up with a fairly simple but effective plan.

The day after her fan meeting she had uploaded the pictures she had taken when it ended, (The one she took while on your back and then the one where she was in your lap) and in the caption of the pictures she had mentioned that the two of you would be having a broadcast. Then on her own personal account she started following your couple’s account and then she liked the post about the broadcast. These two simple steps led to a huge whirlwind of events.

Many people in the comments started to speculate about how it was Jieun in all the photos, well for once these delusional guessing comments would be right, and by just having her personal account following your couple’s account the followers completely blew up. Now you weren’t someone who cared about any of the numbers on anything as this page was mostly like a public diary about your relationship, but even you were impressed by how huge the numbers grew. Your account went from where it sat before to having almost half of what her personal account had. Plus a few of her fellow celebrity friends started following it as well which also caused a huge movement of people discovering your account, well Jieun’s account.

Continuing on with the plan, Jieun had posted a countdown with the numbers sort of being blended in on the pictures she would post to her story. Some people had quickly caught on but the rest had to find out about it through fan accounts on different social media pages. It soon became like a treasure hunt to find the ticking numbers embedded in her photos. Only those ticking numbers matched up with the scheduled live broadcast for your couple’s account.

It didn’t take long for your own personal account to be found by her fans and the people who followed your couple’s account. You quickly had to move to delete many of your embarrassing pictures from your teenage years as you had barely used the account nowadays. Jieun took it upon herself to help you update everything on it. The theme of your couple’s account soon took over your personal account.

“You okay, are you nervous..?”

You looked up when you heard Jieun enter your bedroom, “Uhm, hmm.” You shook your head before speaking again, “Not really.”

“Are you sure..?” Jieun asked as she moved to sit next to you on the bed.

“Yeah I’m sure Jieun, we’ve been together for nearly five years now, I think it’s time for people to finally know the truth.” You moved to lay your head in her lap, your eyes shined as you looked up at the woman who made your life better every second she was in it.

Jieun let out a small laugh before placing a hand on your cheek, staring down into the eyes she loved very much. “I think you’re right. It’s time to let everyone know.”

“Just a few more hours to go and we will finally have nothing to hide anymore.” You couldn’t help but melt in her touch as her thumb lightly grazed over your cheek.

“Ugh, I seriously don’t know how I was able to keep us hidden this entire time.” Jieun leaned down to place a gentle kiss on your forehead.

“Hmm, well I’m seriously surprised no one has ever figured it out yet, especially with the way you look at me in public events.” You had a little laugh at the look she sent you.

“Shut up, I hate you.” Jieun pulled her hand away from you so she could place both hands behind her so she could lean back.

You wrapped your arms around her waist and moved to nuzzle your head into her stomach, “Oh come on, don’t say that. You love me.” You had a smile on your face as you could feel her laugh.

“You’re so annoying.” Jieun let out a long sigh, “But I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t true. I think I might even love you a little too much, you turd.”

“Ha, that’s impossible.” You stopped moving your head to look back up at her. “Because I love you way more than you love me.”

“Oh do you really?” Jieun’s head tilted to the side.

“Mhm, I do.” Your arms tightened around her waist so you could give her a gentle squeeze.

“Prove it.”

“Hmm?” You let go of her waist so you could use your arms to lift your upper body up so your face would be even with hers. “And how do you want me to do that..?” You would be lying if you said the look on her face didn’t give you butterflies.

“Do you really need me to spell it out for you?” Jieun leaned closer towards you.

“Not really, but I just want to hear you say it.” Your head tilted to the side as a confident smile took over your features, completely ignoring the warmth that enveloped your entire body.

“Oh really..?” Jieun raised an eyebrow at your answer. “How long do we have until our broadcast..?”

“Uhm,” You broke eye contact with Jieun so you could look at the clock on the nightstand behind her. “About three hours or so.” Your eyes locked back onto her now darkened ones.

“Good, that’s plenty of time.” Before your brain could register anything, Jieun had pulled you down onto the bed with her.

Ahh Lee Jieun, the only woman who could turn a silly little joke into a crazy competition. Not that you were complaining or anything but jeez this woman drove you insane.

“Oh, I definitely won here.” More than an hour had passed since your antics earlier and now you were hovering over Jieun’s reddened face.

“Unfair.” Jieun mumbled before looking away from you.

“What..? Unfair?? How..?” You placed a hand on her warm cheek to tilt her head so she could face you. But before she could answer you let out a small chuckle, “Oh you look so pretty like this, Jieun.” You whispered in her ear before planting a kiss on her now sweaty temple.

Your voice had sent a shiver down Jieun’s back, she tried her best to conceal it from you but she was very unsuccessful. “You’re unbelievable, you didn’t even give me a chance.” Jieun rolled her eyes at you.

“It’s okay love, I enjoy loving you more.” You finally moved to untangle your body from hers so you could lay next to her. “I’m going to hop in the shower, you coming with..?” You turned your body so you could face her.

“Of course I am, just give me a second to lay here for a bit.” Jieun sighed before placing her arm over her eyes, “I need to realign my chakras.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at how random your girlfriend was. “Oh you’re so cute, I love you.” You leaned in to place a kiss on her cheek. “I’ll go get the water started, feel free to join once your chakras are done aligning.” You moved to get off the bed.

“Wait…” Jieun whined as she threw her arms around your body.

“What’s wrong..?” You turned to look over at your girlfriend.

All she did was whine before sticking her lips out to you.

Once again you couldn’t help but laugh at her, “Why are you so cute..?” You gave in to her request as you leaned in to gently kiss her lips before moving on to peppering little kisses all over her face. “Insane Jieun, you drive me insane and I love it.” You smiled as you spoke to her in the softest voice you could muster.

Jieun’s eyes were filled with all of the adoration in the world as she stared into your own love struck eyes. You finally pulled away from her after what seemed like a lifetime of staring into the others eyes.

“Okay I have to get up now, we don’t have much time left baby. We gotta wash up, so hurry up with your chakras.” You had a goofy smile on your face as you moved away from your bed and into the bathroom. “Don’t take too long now or else I won’t help you scrub your back.” That was the last thing you said before turning on the water to the shower.

“I still can’t believe you’re still this bad at drying your hair after all these years.” Jieun complained as she sat next to you on the couch in your living room, towel in hand as she gently dried strands of your hair,

“Well why would I try to get better at it when I can just have you do it..?” You lifted your hand to place it on hers, stopping her from drying your hair. “It should be okay now, we only have a few more minutes left.” You tried pulling the towel out of her hand.

“Ugh fine, but if you get sick later from your hair being damp I don’t want to hear it.” Jieun let go so you could take the towel from her.

Once you pulled the towel away you turned to face her, “Well whose fault is it that I needed to take a shower right before the broadcast..? Hmm..?”

Jieun turned her head to look away as she shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t know. Crazy mystery.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at the scene in front of you, “Yeah, mhm, mystery indeed.” You shook your head at Jieun before getting up with the towel in your hand.

“Go put that away, I’ll set everything up for the broadcast.” Jieun finally looked back over at you. “And stop looking at me like that before I kick you.” Jieun grabbed her phone that she placed on the coffee table in front of her.

“Okay okay, I’m going.” Jieun had placed her foot on your leg so she could lightly push you along.

Once you put the towel away you walked back into the living room, the sight in front of you instantly making you laugh. You sped up so you could jump over the back of the couch and sit next to Jieun.

“What’s happening babe, I thought you were the expert in this stuff..?” When you had walked back into the living room you had seen Jieun struggling with something on her phone so you had to take this opportunity to tease her.

Jieun let out a small huff before looking over at you in annoyance. “It’s not like you would do any better.” Jieun had the phone up to her face. “Oh, ahh!!” Jieun threw her phone on the coffee table in front of you.

“Huh, what’s wrong..?” You looked at the phone then back over at Jieun.

Jieun pointed to the phone before whispering, “I accidentally pressed start, go stop it.”

“Oh, hold on.” You reached for the phone then you were soon greeted with your own face on the screen in front of you. You froze for a second before looking around to screen for a button to end the accidental live stream. “Oh, I found it.” You clicked on the red button up in the corner of the screen then you gave the phone back to Jieun.

Jieun let out a huge breath as she placed her hand over her heart, “My goodness that scared the mess out of me.”

“Did they see your face..?” You moved closer to her, putting your hand on her arms to try and calm her down.

“I don’t know, I was trying to swipe out of the app but I accidentally hit the button and then I just threw the phone. I don’t know if anyone saw anything.” Jieun sighed before shaking her head. “I’m sorry, this might have been a bad idea.” She let go of her phone, letting it fall onto the couch so she could place her hands on her head.

“Jieun, it's okay.” You slipped your hands underneath her so you could turn her to face you. “Breathe baby, it’s going to be okay.” You moved her hands away from her face so she could look at you. “Breathe.” You whispered to her.

Jieun nodded her head before struggling to calmly intake air.

You moved her hair behind her ears so you could look at her face, “It's okay, just breathe.”

You worked with Jieun for a few more minutes until she was finally able to calm down. You hated seeing her panic like this but it also wasn’t something new to you.

“Better..?” You spoke to her in a gentle voice when she finally looked you in the eyes.

“Yeah, I’m okay now.” Jieun’s voice wavered as she answered you with a nod.

“Hey, everything is going to be okay. Don’t be too hard on yourself for a simple mistake. It happens, at least now we know it works.” You spoke the last sentence in a light hearted tone so she would know it was supposed to be a joke.

“Mmm well I guess you’re right.” Jieun finally cracked a smile.

“There we go, all better.” You ran your fingers through her hair before giving her a soft kiss on the forehead.

Jieun’s smile lingered on her face as she watched you, “Did you still want to do it..?”

“Hmm, what..?” Your head tilted to the side as you questioned what she meant.

“The broadcast, do you still want to do it..?” Jieun clarified what she meant as she looked into your eyes.

“Oh the broadcast.” You couldn’t help the smile on your face, “Of course, as long as you’re okay to do it.”

“Yeah I’m fine now, I’ll just leave this to you.” She placed her phone in your lap.

“Okay love, we’ll start it whenever you’re ready then.” You took her phone from her to examine the screen.

Jieun stood up from the couch so she could grab a glass of water from the kitchen. She didn’t want to admit it to you but she was very nervous about this whole situation. She didn’t want you to get hurt because of her and she knew people would be ruthless to whoever she was in a relationship with. As she stood at the edge of the kitchen with her glass in hand, she watched you sitting on the couch scrolling through her phone.

“Hey Jieun, uhm people are starting to comment about us saying we’re past the ten minute timestamp you posted about on the story thing.” You were scrolling through all the recent comments on the post Jieun had uploaded a bit ago talking about what time you two would begin the broadcast.

Jieun looked over at the clock on the stove and saw that the two of you were indeed behind schedule. Jieun took a small breath in before walking back over to sit next to you on the couch. “You can start it whenever you want, no pressure.”

You looked between Jieun and her phone, “No pressure.” You repeated what she said. “Okay, just a few more seconds then. I think that I’m now the one who needs her chakras realigned.” You flashed her a smile when you referenced what she had said earlier that evening.

“Oh, it’s actually kind of quiet in here, isn’t it..?” Jieun looked around the living room before standing back up.

You just watched as she walked over to the smart speaker you had in the living room then she asked the speaker to play some music. You couldn’t help the laugh you let out when she jumped in surprise at how high the volume was at first.

“Oh, found it.” Jieun whispered as she turned the volume down to a reasonable level.

Once Jieun sat back down next to you you looked at her phone, finger hovering over the “Start Live” button.

“It’s okay baby, whenever you’re ready.” Jieun whispered to you before gently placing a kiss on the side of your head.

You looked over at her with a small smile, “Okay then, this could either be the beginning of paradise or hell, but for you it is worth it.”

Jieun leaned against the armrest of the couch so she could get out of her phone's camera frame and she watched you with so much love in her eyes it was crazy. “Let’s hope it’s paradise, because that’s how these past few years have felt.”

You gave her a small nod before focusing on the screen in front of you. “Here we go, 1.. 2.. 3.” You spoke to yourself before finally clicking on the button that you’d been staring at for what felt like forever. All you could do was stare at the screen for the first few moments as you watched people continuously join the broadcast. The number grew way faster than you expected, the shock was evident on your face. You finally began to introduce yourself once Jieun nudged you with her leg to snap you out of your trance. You looked over at her then back at the phone, clearing your throat, you began to speak. “Oh wow, hi.” You smiled shyly at the camera as comments went flying by on the screen. “There sure are a lot of people here tonight haha.” Your head tilted to the side as you read some of the comments. “Okay well let me get started then.” You cleared your throat again before looking at the camera lens instead of the screen.

“Hello, thank you all for joining in tonight as we have some crazy news to share with everyone, but before we get to all that I just want to say a few words. I apologize in advance if I come off as incoherent or scattered brained, my girlfriend is actually the professional in all this public speaking stuff so please cut me some slack. But here we go, I want to first of all thank you all for being so supportive of this account and our relationship. I know a lot of you have been following this account for a long time and some of you even since the beginning. We both never expected this account to get the attention it got, it kinda just started off as a way for my girlfriend to record our relationship. She’s a very busy person so she loves to record any moments of us together when she can so that’s how this whole account started off. This was entirely her idea so I don’t want to take any credit for it, I’m just grateful that about a third of our relationship is always available for us to look back on.” You looked over at Jieun with a heartfelt smile before looking back at the camera. “Now, I guess I shouldn’t delay this topic any further so let’s get to it. One of the hottest topics about our account is who my girlfriend is and why she doesn’t show her face. Well she’s here to introduce herself to all of you out there, but I just want to give you all a small warning.” You pulled the phone closer to yourself so you could whisper, “My girlfriend is very very beautiful so just be prepared.” You moved the phone back to its original distance from your face.

Jieun laughed at your antics as she watched you in amusement.

You looked over and locked eyes with her, “Ready..?”

Jieun admired you for a few seconds before nodding her head, “Mhm.”

Your smile grew even bigger then you looked back over at the camera. “Okay, well I’m going to hand this off to her now, she’s kinda the professional in all of this so yeah. Here you go love.” You handed the phone to Jieun.

She continued to keep her face out of frame until she was ready. Then slowly she moved closer to you, moving the camera to capture both of your faces in frame. Jieun didn’t say anything as all she could do was stare at the way the comments flew by faster than she could read them.

“Gosh Jieun, how do you manage to look even more beautiful on screen.” You spoke your genuine compliment as you looked between the Jieun next to you and the one on the screen in front of you. “Crazy.” You shook your head in disbelief at her beauty.

Jieun began to blush like crazy when she heard your compliment. “I guess it’s my turn to introduce myself, no..?” Jieun whispered to you.

“Mhm, go ahead baby.” You reached for her hand that wasn’t holding the camera. “You got this.” You reassured her with a gentle squeeze of her hand.

Jieun looked between you and the camera as she built the courage to speak. Then finally she introduced herself. “Hello everyone, it’s nice to finally meet you all on this account. My name is Lee Jieun but a few of you may know that I also go by another name. And that name is IU.” Jieun’s eyes on screen reflected the comments that were speeding by on screen. “I know this may seem crazy, but yes, that has been me in all these pictures on this account. What do you think, did I do a good job at hiding my identity..?” Jieun asked the viewers as she had a small smile on her face. “I just hope that you all now understand the reason behind me being secretive about my identity on this account for the past two years.”

The two of you sat in silence after her last sentence while you both tried reading some of the comments. You finally decided to speak up to help break the silence.

“See, I told all of you that she was very beautiful.” You looked away from the screen so you could look at Jieun’s profile, “Very, very beautiful.”

Jieun placed the phone in your hand so she could move to hide her face in the crook of your neck. “Stop that, you’re making me shy.” She whispered to you which caused you to laugh.

You held the camera up to show everyone watching the scene that was happening between the two of you. “Haha, did you hear that..?” You asked the viewers watching. “She’s shy.”

After a small while the comments began to slow down and you were finally able to fully read them. You nudged Jieun so she could look at you. “Look, they’re all pretty much positive.” You gestured to the phone in front of you.

Jieun finally pulled away from you so she could read the comments as well. “Oh wow…” She mumbled as she stared at the screen.

“Yeah wow.” You agreed with her statement of shock. “I guess everything is going to be okay now, hmm..?”

“Hopefully.” Jieun spoke in a quiet voice.

“Hmm,” You looked between Jieun and the screen. “Well, I feel like we should tell them about ourselves, shouldn’t we..?”

“Mhm, we should.” Jieun nodded as all she could do was stare at you in admiration at how you were able to lead the livestream even though this was your first time doing anything like this.

Your eyes grazed the comments that were flying by, filled with questions. You read them outloud to yourself before finding one that you wanted to answer.

“How did the two of you meet..?” You read the comment out loud then you looked over at Jieun, who was still just staring at you. “Do you want to tell the story or do you want me to..?”

“You can do it…” Jieun answered as she avoided looking you in the eyes.

“Okay,” You planted a gentle kiss on her forehead before clearing your throat and looking back at the camera. “It was about seven years ago now, and believe it or not we first met on the bus. Crazy right..?” You smiled as memories started to flood your mind. ��I was in my first year of university here and I was heading to a study group at a cafe near my campus. I was still fairly new to the area so I had gotten on the wrong bus at first so when I boarded the one Jieun was on, I was already running late. And Jieun, well actually where were you headed to..? You never told me.” You looked over at Jieun.

“Oh, it was my day off so I was just visiting a bunch of different bakeries and cafes around town.” Jieun answered as she moved to lean her head on your shoulder so she could look at you through the screen in front of her.

“Oh, interesting.” You smiled when you felt her lean on you. “Continuing, she was in the seat behind me and she had suddenly dropped her phone which slid forward, hitting my shoe, so like any other sane person in the world, I picked it up to hand it to her. But man, when I was handing her her phone, the look on her face was unbelievable. The way she looked at me in that moment still gives me butterflies to this day.” You couldn’t help the smile on your face as you continued to tell the story of your first meeting.

Jieun happily sat with you, occasionally chiming in to help with some of the story telling, she didn’t know if it was the huge amount of weight that was no longer on her shoulders that made her feel even more comfortable leaning on you. You were her happy place and she would never deny that. You had then given the phone to Jieun so you could explain this part of the story with your hands.

“And yeah, all that has led up to here. I can’t believe I’ve had to deal with your crazy self for this long.” You laughed as you looked at Jieun.

“Ha, you’re the crazy one here, not me.” She playfully slapped your shoulder.

“Sure, as if that’s not a lie.” You had a sly smirk on your face as you watched Jieun.

Jieun glared at you before breaking out in a bright smile, “It’s insane that I love you so much that I can’t even pretend to be mad at you.”

You let out a joyful laugh before moving to quickly wrap her up in a hug, knocking her phone out of her hand in the process. “Oh, oops.” You leaned over to pick her phone up from the ground, “I’m sorry about that, are you all okay..?”

While you were talking to the camera Jieun stared at you from behind, “Dummy…” She mumbled in a not so subtle way.

You turned away from the camera to look at her, “What did you just call me..?”

Jieun had a mischievous smirk on her face as she answered you, “Dummy.” This time she spoke with way more haughtiness.

“Oh really..?” You stuck your tongue to the side of your cheek as you nodded slowly. “This is how it’s going to be huh..” You had a small smile on your face as you moved forward to lean her phone against a candle you had on the coffee table. “Okay then.” Once you had the camera set up you turned around to face Jieun. “Dummy, is it..?” You asked before moving to jump on top of her. “Say sorry.” You laughed as you began to tickle the squirming girl beneath you.

“Hahaha, n-no, n-, hahaha, never!” She laughed loudly, barely letting the words out.

“Say it,” You couldn't help but laugh at how infectious Jieun’s laugh was.

“No!” She yelled as her laugh got even louder.

“Say it.”

“No!”

Say i- woah!” Before you were able to even realize it, Jieun had wrapped her legs around your waist, quickly moving to flip the two of you over. Uh-oh, now she was the one on top.

“J-jieun,” You let out a giggle, “Stop!! You’re going to make me pee myself!”

“Ha ha, Karma punk.” Jieun now sported that same mischievous smirk from earlier as she tickled.

By now you had completely forgotten about the camera and broadcast as all your focus was now on getting revenge.

Somewhere in between your squirming around you were able to grab her arms to stop her from tickling you, you quickly moved to tackle her back down underneath you. “Ha! Got you.” You quickly stood up from the couch and moved to pick her up and throw her over your shoulder, once you had her where you needed her, you began to spin around.

Jieun was laughing so hard tears began to stream down her face.

Once you stopped spinning her around, you carefully dropped her back onto the couch, proceeding to throw a pillow at her. Jieun quickly scrambled to sit up so she could throw the pillow back at you.

You caught the pillow as it flew towards you, “Haha loser, I caught it!” You teased, sticking your tongue out at her. You turned around to look for a bigger pillow but then that soon became a big mistake as Jieun took that opportunity to jump on your back.

The two of you continued to play around like children for a while until you finally remembered about the broadcast that was still live streaming your whole play fight. Jieun was currently on top of you on the couch, attempting to do some wrestling moves when you reminded her about the camera.

“Huh?” She paused in the middle of one of her moves, “Oh no.” She cleared her throat then she rolled off of you to sit down, trying her best to seem normal.

You couldn’t help the huge belt of laughter at the sight of her, “Oh you’re so cute.” You wrapped your arms around her and peppered her in kisses all over.

Jieun was laughing while trying to free herself from you, “S-stop, haha, the, the, the broadcast.” She managed to get out in between her laughter.

You finally pulled away from her with the biggest smile on your face. “Okay, okay. I’m sorry. I can’t help myself. You’re just too cute.” You planted one last kiss on her lips before grabbing her phone off of the coffee table. “Oh wow.” As you sat back down you looked at the number of people watching, it had more than doubled since the moment the two of you started playing around.

It was now time for the broadcast to end and Jieun was the one who was in charge of that as you now sat asleep hugging her from behind. Your head was leaning on her back as your arms were wrapped around her waist.

Jieun couldn’t help the smile on her face as she watched you from the screen, man was this girl in love.

Jieun looked back up at the camera to begin speaking again in a hushed tone as to not wake you up. “Well I hope this wasn’t too much of a shock to my longtime supporters but I don’t regret this decision. This relationship is a huge part of who I am and I just hope that you can all continue to support me for who I am and not because of who or how I love. And I mean that with all the sincerity in the world.” Jieun paused to turn her head to look at you, “I love her a lot, she makes me so happy it’s hard to even put it into words.” Jieun looked back over at the camera, eyes looking over the comments, “She’s someone very special to me. She makes me feel things that I didn’t even know were possible. There’s no one out there more perfect for me than her and she has never made me feel anything less than special.” Jieun didn’t notice how a tear had escaped from her eye as she spoke her truth, “I have to go now, thank you for all of your support. Bye.” Jieun waved at the camera then she cut the broadcast off.

“Jieun, I’m not sure about this. I’m nervous.” You whispered as you followed her into the dressing room you were now sharing. Yes sharing, not her dressing room, but one for the two of you.

After the news about your relationship went viral everything quickly changed for you. You had to resign from your job due to people constantly pestering you about your relationship with one of the biggest artists in your time. Then outside of that people with huge cameras began hunting the two of you down everywhere you went and you were constantly getting bombarded by reporters trying to reach out to you.

The day after the news came out Jieun decided to take the two of you on a vacation to a small village in a secluded part of the country so you could have some form of peace together. Your couple's account was the hot topic of every news outlet in the country so you went from barely being in a light to being on everyone’s phone in the country.

Once the two of you came back from your impromptu vacation, Jieun’s manager had requested for you at her company. When the two of you showed up both Hanteo and the CEO of her company were waiting for you in one of the meeting rooms with a contract. After a lot of discussion you and Jieun figured this was the direction you were meant to go in, Jieun couldn’t have been happier for you as you signed the contract. Jieun admired your beauty more than anyone else in the world and now you would have an even bigger opportunity to share it with the world. This definitely wasn’t the way you expected your life to go but for Jieun, all of this was definitely worth it.

So all of that leads to this moment, the producers of the show “Happy Together,” had reached out to Jieun’s manager to ask if the two of you were willing to appear for a special episode they were planning on shooting. You had left the decision up to Jieun and she agreed to it once the two of you had talked about it for a while.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. Just be yourself, there’s absolutely nothing to worry about, okay? I’ll be right next to you the entire time.” Jieun reassured you by placing a gentle kiss on your knuckles.

“Okay…” You nodded in response before letting go of her hand so she could get her makeup done. You sat on the couch in the dressing room as you watched her through the mirror.

Then soon it was your turn to sit where she was. You definitely weren’t used to the feeling of someone doing your makeup but you had seen Jieun do this a million times so you tried your best to sit still.

After the two of you were made up you sat in the dressing room together just talking. Jieun had begun to post old pictures of the two of you together on both your couple’s account and on her personal account so that was the topic the two of you were talking about.

There was a knock at the door then one of the producers you had introduced yourself to earlier walked in. He informed the two of you that he was going to give you a rundown of today's episode. He walked the two of you through the set as he explained what to do. “So when this door opens the two of you will just walk through and introduce yourselves, then you can walk towards the couch and sit down. If you begin to feel overwhelmed just let us know, this isn’t being broadcasted live.” He spoke the last sentence more towards you.

It was almost laughable at how opposite both you and Jieun were at the current moment. She was cool, calm and collected as she smiled at everyone around, meanwhile you were on the brink of freaking out and looking like you could vomit any moment now.

Once the producer walked away, Jieun turned to face you. “Hey look at me, it’s going to be okay. Take a deep breath.” She rubbed your arm as you did what she said. “It’s going to be fine, okay..? If you need me to, I can talk for the both of us.”

“That would honestly probably be the best choice here, I don’t want to embarrass the both of us.” You gave her a small smile.

Jieun moved in to hug you tightly and you soon felt yourself relaxing in her embrace.

“You know I love you, right..?” Jieun whispered in your ear.

You nodded before whispering back, “Mhm, and I love you too.”

Jieun continued to talk to you in an attempt to calm you down as they began to film.

After a couple of minutes the door the producer mentioned earlier opened and it was now time for the two of you to walk onto set. Jieun held your hand tightly as she led the way.

You felt super nervous but Jieun never once let go of your hand, soon all the introductions were over and the two of you sat down on the couch designated for you.

As the show progressed you were finally able to calm down as you soon noticed how friendly everyone was on set. This was honestly one of your favorite shows to watch in your free time so actually being able to be on set was super awesome.

At one point Jae-suk had motioned towards you and Jieun while smiling, “The two of you haven’t let go of each other's hand since you walked in.”

Instead of Jieun you spoke up, looking down at your interlocked fingers, “Yeah I guess we haven’t.”

You looked up to look at Jieun, her eyes immediately locking onto your own, a proud smile on her face.

The two of you then shared a laugh when Myungsoo told a dumb dad joke about your situation.

Towards the end of the show Jae-suk had brought up the topic of the public's response to your relationship. Not in a way that was invasive but more as setting up the discussion for normalizing queer relationships in the country and in the Media.

“Well,” Jieun began, “There was a huge amount of support from people outside of our country and by people from the younger generations. I ignored many of the unpleasant responses as I know that our relationship is just as valid as anyone else’s relationship, so to anyone out there saying that we’re setting a bad example for their kids then I’m sorry but I have to disagree. If two people in a healthy and loving relationship is a bad example for kids then I’d hate to see what a ‘good’ example would be for your kids.” Jieun spoke in such an eloquent way that helped disguise the disgust she felt to the people who spoke ill of your relationship.

You just had to take a moment to admire how she sounded so professional to the camera but yet she was essentially telling people to screw off.

The smile on your face wasn’t missed by Jae-suk as he soon asked you for any input you wanted to add.

You looked over at him and nodded, “Well just like Jieun said, we both care for each other very deeply and this was a huge decision we both agreed on after years of being together. I knew this choice was going to hurt her career in some form or another but I am glad to know that we can show young people that it eventually gets better. That they are normal and there is definitely not something wrong with them. I know if a celebrity I looked up to as a kid had this in common with me then it would’ve made life a lot easier on me. Not saying that my parents didn’t support me, cause they definitely do, it just would've made everything that was going on in my head make more sense. But now I get to wake up to this beautiful face everyday and I couldn’t be happier.” You looked at Jieun. “And as a bonus, Jieun isn’t as stressed anymore about hiding such a big part of herself from her fans. So I want to thank all of her fans that decided to stick by her side. I thank all of you so much for accepting me and our relationship. I promise to take care of Jieun and to always be there for her.”

Jieun’s eyes began to water as she listened to you, then Jae-suk asked her if she wanted to add on to what you said.

“Oh sorry, just give me a minute.” Jieun smiled as she turned her face away from the camera. With the hand that wasn’t holding yours, she patted her finger around her eyes. “Sorry.” She apologized to the cast and crew.

“No, no, don’t apologize.” Jae-suk reassured Jieun with words of encouragement.

“Okay well,” Jieun started once she was able to collect herself, “We really do hope to become a beacon of hope for young people everywhere so that they know they will always be loved and accepted by us. We both know how it feels so trust us when we say we love everyone out there who may feel like they don’t fit in with society's normalized standards. You will all become happy in the future, I wish things didn’t take such a long time but in the end I promise it will be worth it.”

Everyone on set couldn’t help but get emotional at what the two of you were saying and Jieun wasn’t helping once she said that she was starting an outreach organization to help give young kids resources to help process their feelings. She stated that she had wished that this was something she had around as a kid so instead she wanted to be the one to establish this organization. Jae-suk even chimed in saying that he would also like to help out sometime. You couldn’t have been prouder of the woman sitting next to you. Always so caring to everyone.

Overall your experience on the show was amazing, everyone from the cast to the crew was incredibly nice to the both of you. You were glad that you were both given the space to share more about your relationship to people out there who still doubted that relationship was anything more than a publicity stunt.

After the cameras stopped rolling you thanked everyone for allowing the two of you on the show and then it was time for you to leave.

You and Jieun walked outside hand in hand following behind Hanteo.

“I knew you would do an amazing job, I’m so proud of you.” Jieun said once the two of you were seated in the car.

“Well I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, but you being there with me really helped out.” You had a small smile on your face as you talked to her.

“Then I’m just glad you didn’t have a panic attack.” Jieun kissed your cheek, causing you to look at her, “I’m seriously so proud of you.” She planted a soft kiss on your lips before putting her seat belt on.

Once you had made it home you had asked Jieun if she wanted to go on a walk to see the sunset.

Of course she agreed so as she waited for you by the door you ran into your shared bedroom to slip something into your pocket. You quickly rushed out to meet her at the front door, and even though she didn’t say anything, Jieun knew there was something up with you.

The two of you walked along the scenic pathway you frequented on her days off, hand in hand, talking about everything and anything that came to mind. Jieun would pause occasionally to take pictures, as always, and you couldn’t help the smile on your face as you admired her.

You had stopped walking once you made it to what you considered the most beautiful spot on the path.

“What’s wrong..? Are you thirsty..?” Jieun asked in concern when you pulled her aside.

You couldn’t help the small smile on your face as you shook your head, “No, I’m fine. I just wanted to ask you something.”

Jieun raised an eyebrow at your strange behavior, “You know you can ask me anything right..? You don’t have to ask for permission.”

“I know love, but I think I might need at least some permission for this question.” Before Jieun could say anything else you moved to get on one knee. You pulled out a little black box from your pocket, opening it up towards her and it revealed a simple yet beautiful ring. It had both of your initials engraved onto it, and it was topped off with a beautiful but appropriate diamond. “Lee Jieun, will you marry me..?” Your voice wavered with a bit of nervousness as you asked her the big question.

“You can’t be serious??” Jieun’s face was riddled with shock as her eyes began to water up. “Yes, yes of course! A million times yes!”

You couldn’t help but laugh as your own eyes began to tear up, you slid the ring onto her ring finger then you moved to envelope her in a big hug.

“Finally…” Jieun mumbled before pulling away from the hug so she could kiss you. “You took your precious time with this love.”

“I know baby, and I’m sorry it took this long. I just didn’t want to ask you before we went public, I didn’t want to pressure you into feeling like we had to go public. I was happy waiting until you were ready.” You held Jieun’s face in your hands as you admired her eyes. “I love you.”

Jieun’s eyes continued to water, “I love you too.”

“She’s my fiance, yay! She’s my fiance, yay! She’s my fianc-”

“Are you okay..?”

“Oh my, Jieun, you scared me!” You had jumped up in surprise when you heard Jieun’s voice behind you.

It was later that night and you were washing the dishes from dinner as Jieun showered, you didn’t expect her to finish up this fast… so yeah she might have caught you celebrating to yourself.

“Are you that excited to be engaged with me..?” Jieun wrapped her arms around your neck once you turned around to face her.

“Are you joking..? Of course I’m this excited Jieun. I’m sure I’m probably the happiest woman on earth right now.” You placed your hands on either side of her waist.

Jieun had a smile on her face as her eyes looked back and forth from your eyes to your lips, “Well I think there’s probably one woman on earth who is happier.”

“Oh really..?” You raised an eyebrow at her. “And who would that be..?”

Jieun leaned in closer, “Me.” She whispered to you before leaning in to envelope you in a loving kiss.

“Oh they’re loving this picture babe.” Jieun smiled as she showed you her phone screen.

“I told you, it’s my favorite one.” The photo on her phone was one of her in frame while holding your hand on up to the camera. You interlocked fingers showing the newly found rings on both of your ring fingers. This was the first picture on your couple’s account that featured just Jieun’s face.

“I liked the one with both of us in it, but you insisted on this one.” Jieun opened up her gallery to show you the picture she was referencing.

“Baby you can just post that on your account, no one’s stopping you.”

Jieun gasped, she stared at you with the widest eyes. “You’re so right, I forgot I could do that.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at her antics, “You’re so cute baby, don’t ever change.” You planted a kiss on her cheek before laying your head on her lap. You looked up at the woman you loved the most and your heart was super content, there was no better feeling than this.

#Iu #iu imagines #Lee Jieun #Lee jieun imagines #oneshot #girl group imagines #soloist imagines #write now ggs #kpop oneshots

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juniperhillpatient · 1 year

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The Avatar & the Firelord Re-watch

This is the episode where we finally learn the truth about Roku's past & the Fire Nation Royal Family's history with the Avatar. It's a really interesting episode & further illustrates the ongoing parallels between Aang & Zuko. The story really does come down to being about these two characters & how they are able to do better than their ancestors (or past lives.) I'm such a sucker for narratives about new generations doing better than their past narrative incarnations, so no wonder I love this show.

[ID: Sozin & Roku wearing Fire Nation robes. there is a sunset in the background. end id]

I loved all the flashbacks to Sozin & Roku. Especially when Roku had just been ignored by a girl so he lay in the grass & Sozin just started putting grass on his face. True friendship moment.

Also, this is where the Fire Nation's imperialism & colonialism come into play - "I've been thinking, we should share this prosperity with the rest of the world. [Cut to a shocked Roku with the camera closing in on him.] In our hands is the most successful empire in history. [Back to a close-up of Sozin.] It's time we expanded it." Yep, that's where the Fire Nation's evil started.

The parallel scenes between Aang & Zuko learning about their past work really well. I also like how we got various scenes throughout Sozin & Roku's lifetimes illustrating the gradual decline of their friendship, & the increase in Sozin's hunger for power. Meanwhile, Zuko & Aang's story is the opposite - they are enemies & have been for a long time & they're slowly building to friendship. This show is really, really well-written.

I need someone with more insight than me on Iroh to weigh in on what was going on with him in this episode because I'm not sure what to think of his speech to Zuko. @peony-pearl do you have any thoughts on the scene between Iroh & Zuko where Iroh tells Zuko he has a great capacity for both good & evil? If I'm putting you on the spot, no pressure, just ignore this tag. I just feel like there's a lot to analyze but my mind is empty lol

I loved the scene between the Fire Siblings when Zuko asks Azula about history & she teases him but gives him the answer. It's such a normal sibling moment filled with banter & soft affection. I live for domestic fire siblings scenes.

Then we have one of my favorite Gaang moments in the whole show -

Aang: Roku was just as much Fire Nation as Sozin was, right? If anything, their story proves anyone's capable of great good and great evil. [Cut to an aerial shot of the hardened lava wave.] Everyone, even the Fire Lord and the Fire Nation has to be treated like they're worth giving a chance. [Shot cuts to a close-up of Aang's face.] And I also think it was about friendships.

Toph: [Camera pans to Toph, and cuts to a close-up of her face.] Do you really think friendships can last more than one lifetime?

Aang: [Catching Toph's hand.] I don't see why not. Katara catches Toph's other hand.]

Sokka: Well, scientifically speaking, there's no way to prove that ...

Katara: [Annoyed.] Oh, Sokka, just hold hands. Sokka stops talking, and without moving, he thrusts out his hand to hold Katara's. Shot cuts to an aerial shot of Team Avatar, holding hands, and looking out toward the ocean.

I just love this scene. I love Aang's quote, I love the softness between the Gaang. Also, Sokka what the fuck you are best friends with the Avatar who just went on a spirit journey. Why are you like this?

Anyway, this was a great episode & I know there's more to analyze but that's all I have for now! Tune in next time for more rambling :)

#atla re watch #the avatar and the firelord #atla book 3

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rosewalkersjayaforever · 9 hours

Text

Chaos at the bottom of the sea.

Pain and loss

Nya merges with the sea like Nyad, only Kai is not standing in the background, but will try to stop his sister, attention will also be paid to ninja, Pixal, Wu and Benthomaar, not just Jay

Nya was next to Jay and watched with a sad look and pain in her heart how bad and hard it was for him, he was barely breathing, as if he was going to suffocate. Turning around, the girl noticed Benthomaar standing near the window, remembering the story of Nyad, which was told by the Merlopian, the water master thought about it and since there was no other choice, she let go of her boyfriend's hand and approached the prince.

— Bentho, do you remember you told me the story about Nyad? How could she defeat Wojira? — the girl asked, what did he look up to.

— She merged with the sea —Benthomaar replied, not paying attention to her, as he looked at Jay, who was sick from the amount of salt water in his lungs.

— But how is this possible? How did she do it? — The brunette continued to persistently ask her friend.

— She opened up to the full power of the ocean and became one with him — then he looked at the girl, and after that Nya looked at the sea outside the window, where fish were swimming, Benthomaar quickly realized, he would not let her do this, as happened with Nyad.

— Don't even think about such things! — Nyad had defeated Wojira, but she had lost herself... what she had done... could not be undone… She's gone forever.…

But the blue-eyed one was no longer listening to the Prince of Merlopia, she was still looking sadly at the sea, and then she heard the cough again. It was Jay, and the girl herself had now approached him. When she got closer to him, she heard his hoarse breathing, he had already turned pale and was barely opening his eyes, this kind of hurt her. Nya took her beloved's hand again.

— Don't worry, Jay.… I will fix everything, but you need to be patient and please don't leave me… I'll feel bad without you — the water ninja whispered.

Gripe opens the door, scaring Kalmaar, and his crown falls.

— My Lord! The ninja is still not visible! — The King of Merlopia turns to him.

— They're here, keep looking! Search each of these buildings if necessary.

— Yes, my lord — he nods. — Meanwhile, we've found someone who claims to know them.

— What? Who! — The Merlopian asked.

— He refuses to talk, but we found this on him — he pulls out a framed photo, it shows a police commissioner with a ninja, showing the villain, who grinned.

— Take me to him! Immediately! — Kalmaar demands.

***

The sun had just glanced, illuminating with its rays, the ninjas were fast asleep, except for Nya, she still held Jay's hand, then looked at the others as they slept in different poses, but hearing coughing and heavy breathing, she turned back to Walker and put her palm on his cheek, stroking.

— I wish we had more time, but we never had a break ... — said the water master, holding back tears and tenderly kissed the brown-haired man on the cheek, the girl got up and headed for the door, and at that second the guy's blue eyes opened and Jay followed the movements of his beloved when she I was leaving the room, although it was a little blurry.

Closing the door, she walked over to the sea, while watching it move under the influence of the wind, then Nya looked back at the door. There was no other way to improve the situation, she would have risked anything to get Jay better.

Tears came out of her eyes and she whispered goodbye:

— «I love you...» — it was addressed to Jay, her Ying. Having made her decision, she took a deep breath and dived into the water, starting to spin and do a spinjitsu, as it was with Cole, only now under water. She allowed the water to pass completely through her body, as Benthomaar said, to open up to the full power of the sea, her eyes began to glow white.

Meanwhile, Jay is suffocating and the sea water from his lungs comes out, while he woke everyone up.

— Jay? — Wu asks.

— What's going on? — Lloyd asked.

— The water is being pulled out of his lungs! — Zane exclaimed.

When the water was completely out, Jay began to cough, gulping air.

— How?.. — Cole didn't have time to say it when a bright glow seemed to dazzle everyone outside, and then everyone turned to the sea.

— No! — Benthomaar realized what Nya was going to do, merge with the sea, as Nyad had done several thousand years ago.

— What is she doing? — The elder asked Benthomaar, everyone was looking at her.

— She is trying to merge with the sea, but this is something that cannot be undone! She will be lost forever! — The Prince of Merlopia replied, to say that the others were shocked is to say nothing.

— We have to stop her! — everyone except Kai and Jay run out of the room to stop the water master.

— What...? — Jay asked, barely opening his eyes.

— Jay, how are you? — The fire master asked.

— I'm fine..Thank you for asking— the lightning master smiled — What's going on? What did I miss? — before the elder Smith could say, looking out the window with Walker, they see the silhouette of a girl.

— Nya?.. — getting up from the sofa, Kai helped him of course and both brown-haired men come to the window.

After completing her transformation, Nya was blue like water, her eyes turned blue-white, she had water lines and patterns on her, and a wave was depicted in the middle of her chest. After looking at her hands to the end and looking out the window, the elemental ninja notices her brother and beloved. Smiling, she floats up to the window and puts both palms against the glass, where Jay and Kai's palms were, blue-eyed smiled, and amber-eyed was still shocked in disbelief, looking at his sister in her new form.

In the distance, the roar of a Wojira could be heard, changing its face to gray, and in an instant it took off from its place, floating away.

— Nya... — Sister, wait! — but they will be quickly thrown back by a powerful wave.

After leaving the door, the master and his students rather run to the sea, where the brunette was, noticing the blue glow under the water.

— Nya! Nya, come back! — The son of the FMS called, but Nya did not hear her teacher and sailed on and on.

— She's going after Kalmaar — the others turned to the two who cared about the girl — She's going to fight him! — And we're going to help her! — Jay barely holds on, his legs gave way, he almost falls, but Kai quickly grabs him tighter so that the winner in the «Prime Empire» could stand on his feet.

— Jay, but you can barely stand — the master said regretfully.

— I don't care! I have to go! I have to help her! — Walker declared — Just like me! — The blacksmith's son agreed with his friend.

— Okay, then we are with you — Garmadon's brother said with a smile, then the ninja smiled, Pixal with Benthomaar, and Kai and Jay in response.

***

— Who are you?

— I'm the Police Commissioner — the policeman replied.

— The Commissioner? — Kalmaar repeats in confusion, and Gripe turns to him.

— I think it's some kind of lord. Like a king.

— I am a representative of the law. My job is to protect the people and property of this city — the Commissioner smooths his hand to his chest.

— Then I'd say you didn't do a good job. Where is the ninja? Tell me, and I'll show you mercy.

— Even if I knew, I would never tell you.

— I'll ask for the last time — the King's trident starts attacking, pointing at the police — Where are the ninjas? The Merlopian demanded, aiming his weapon, the Commissar just shakes his head, refusing.

Kalmaar wanted to attack, but then the building began to rattle. Wojira's eyes light up outside the window, looking inside the building and she slides up the building, warning that someone is approaching, noticing that glow. Kalmaar and other the merlopians are running to the roof. The king of Melopia walks over the head of a Wojira, then he found out that it was the girl he was fighting with when the blue glow was approaching them.

— It's her! That girl who tried to stop me! — Kalmaar exclaimed, and then Nya abruptly surfaced in her aquatic form and a tornado from the water.

— I'm not a girl at all! My name is Nya! — the water spirit said angrily in a distant voice, there was also a kind of echo in it, he activated the amulet of the Storm with his trident, Wojira raised her head and pushed it towards her.

— You're going to pay for meeting and pissing me off! — she exclaimed and the struggle began.

***

Nya started throwing jets of water at Kalmaar over and over again, he dodged, but he couldn't even defend himself and threw him back. The girl landed on the sea snake, it was clear from her expression that she was very angry, angry, he pointed his trident at her, but she slipped past him. She stopped behind and hit the Merlopian right on his back, using her element to throw him away again. The King stood up with his mouth full, looking at Nya:

— You have become one with the ocean!

Like that Nyad! Stupid sacrifice! — He raised his trident at the water spirit again, shooting at her, but it didn't do her any harm. — It won't do you any good! — he kept shooting, but they passed through her as if she had become a ghost. She angrily approached the King, knowing that she could defeat this tomboy — Don't expect that you can defeat me and Wojira! — Nya got tired of his chatter, as well as himself, so she kicked Kalmaar in the face.

The rest arrived on their elemental dragons, when their dragons disappeared, the ninjas landed on the roof, the Wojira roared, rising higher and higher than the buildings of the city and was a few meters away from them, then they noticed Kai's sister in a new form and how she fought with the Merlopian Kalmaar.

— Nya! — shouted both brown-haired men, she stopped the fight, the jets of water disappeared, turning towards them, where the voices of Kai and Jay were.

— Kai? Jay? — the elemental ninja asked in a puzzled way, the others were sharply surprised by the girl's distant voice along with the echo, except for themselves, they smiled at the creature they loved, but soon both guys noticed the danger, paying attention to Kalmaar. He stood up, preparing another attack, but in a different way.

— Nya! Look out! — Smith and Walker shouted, but it was too late. The king of Merlopia sent a powerful stream of energy, hitting her, this time he did not pass through her, as he had done before, the girl literally disappeared, friends, brother and teacher were afraid — NO!

Kalmaar grinned, and they got angry, especially Kai, damn it, he killed his sister right in front of his eyes, he will pay for it. The son of Trimaar stood in front of the Wave and Storm amulets again, hitting one of them. — Destroy the ninja! — The King ordered, the snake let out a roar again and shot at the ninja with the help of the elements of water and wind, and knocked them down. Kai, Wu and Jay collided and three fell, the blue ninja nunchucks fell into the sea. When he got up and did not find his weapon, his attention was attracted by the staff that the master had used for many years, he quickly took it and, together with Kai, rushed to run to the villain.

— Jay, Kai! Wait! — The elder shouted, but they were too busy, they ignored their teacher, both pushed off with a staff and climbed onto the Wojira, the two of them fought with the Merlopian in turn.

— My sister! You're going to pay for taking her away from me! You bastard! — You'll pay for it! — You killed my girlfriend and my friend's sister! — they shout, but Kalmaar didn't care, and thus the blue ninja and the red were defeated.

— Stupid attack! — the son of Trimaar points at them with his trident — Your emotions are blinding you! — He declared as the fire and lightning ninja tried to stand up.

They managed to get up, coming to their senses, they were still furious, their anger seemed to possess their minds. Without thinking anything through, they jumped up again, attacking King Kalmaar, but in vain, he was able to throw them off the Wojira and the ninjas fell screaming. Kai flew into the ocean, and Jay landed on one of the fins of the Queen of the Endless Sea.

— You're a weakling! Enjoy your last rotten breath while you have the chance, ninja! — the Merlopian wanted to attack again, but suddenly the Prince of Merlopia Benthomaar attacked him from behind, kicking him. Jay rolled and fell again, but was quickly caught by his best friend Cole.

— Are you okay, Jay? — the dark-haired man with dark green eyes asked, worried.

— Yes, Cole..It seems, yes, I'm fine — he smiled, as always stupidly, to which the earth ninja grinned — And where is Kai? — Walker asked anxiously.

— He fell into the water... — So what are we standing for? We need to help Kai soon, before the water gets into his lungs! There will be no second chance! — the blue-eyed man declared, and he and Bucket ran to the sea rather to help their friend, they hope that they will save him.

***

— You are not my king! — Bentho shouted, throwing a spear at Kalmaar, who defended himself by covering himself with his trident, but unfortunately the trident was blown to pieces, the prince managed to land with his new friends.

— What have you done? — The King of Merlopia shouted, Wojira's red eyes turned blue again, she hit the building in order to get rid of the arrogant parasite that she had upstairs and knocked the Merlopians off their feet. — Destroy them! Destroy it! — Kalmaar tried to hit the Storm(Wave)stone, but nothing came out, his trident was broken into two parts, and the sea snake was only angered more. With a roar, the Master of the Sea threw off the Merlopian, throwing him into the air and when he falls, screaming, she swallows the son of Trimaar whole. Benthomaar just stared at the sight sadly, shaking his head. Yes, Kalmaar awakened a giant snake, killed their father, Ninjago was flooded, because of him Jay almost drowned and died from a lot of salt water in his lungs and Nya merged with the sea, but still he was his brother, although not so good and wonderful.

— LET'S RUN!!! — Lloyd shouted when the Queen of the Endless Sea releases a discharge from her mouth, but a huge water ball crashes into Wojira's head, the others turn around and their gaze fell on the dragon, which consists entirely of water.

— Is that's Nya? — the team leader asked, pointing with his finger.

The water dragon growled angrily. — It looks like her—and she looks pissed — Cole added.

The sea beast hurled the dragon into the building, causing others to stumble. The dragon-shaped Nya shakes her head, growling. Wojira attacks the ninja again, everyone flees, until Nya interferes again, grabbing the snake and throwing it into another building. Wojira dives under the water to knock down the dragon, which consists of water, she again climbed out to her full height, wrapping around her. She is released, then purple lightning flashes in the sky and disappears after the third time.

— No! — Sister! — Nya's brother shouts, watching her evaporate again.

The Master of the sea again draws attention to the ninjas, they retreat in fright, she opens her mouth again, controlling the fury of the storm, the others let out a scream, tightly closing their eyes. It began to rain heavily, and a flash of lightning flashed behind Wojira, causing her to turn around in disbelief.

Nya began to spin, turning back into human form.

—Nya...— the lightning master spoke softly with the fire master, watching Nya fly like a rocket. The water spirit then extended her fist to gain speed. The Wojira let out a roar, and the girl in the new form came closer and closer until she destroyed the amulet of the Wave. After the blue stone was destroyed, a shock wave emanated from it, knocking over the ninja, and Wojira was electrocuted, she rose into the sky, unable to control the force of the Storm anymore, after which she was destroyed. As soon as the sea beast disappeared, the storm subsided, and Nya emerges from the water, landing on the roof where the ninjas were. They began to congratulate the girl, she just turned around and looked at them in surprise, as if she was seeing them for the first time.

— Nya! You did it! — Jay exclaimed, smiling. He wanted to hug his Yang, but he walked through it, as it was with Cole when he turned into a ghost. Freckled gasped in surprise, he wanted to touch Nya, but could not, the others had worried expressions on their faces.

— Ha, it's going to take a little getting used to. But we'll figure out a way to get you back. Don't worry.

— Back? — Nya asked, confused by what her brother meant.

— To a normal life. You know, the old you—Jay kept his optimism with a smile. The elemental ninja looked at her hand. — Back to normal? — The brown—haired men looked at each other before looking at Nya again. — Are you okay? — Smith asked, puzzled.

Nya didn't answer anything, she watched the clouds dissolve, becoming white clouds again, the shining sun came out, and the sea also appeared.

— Do you hear that? — Do we hear what? — Kai asked, confused.

— The sea… It's so loud… Such a powerful one...— his sister replied, looking at the sea in fascination.

— It's calling her — the Prince of Merlopia explained, and the girl's figure began to ripple at that moment.

— Nya — both guys gasped.

— I'm sorry. It's hard to keep this shape — she apologizes.

— What do you mean by «shape»? — Jay asked — This is how you should look!

— What I was. Yes — the blue and red ninja stared at the girl, not knowing what to do in this situation. — I have to go now. I will remember you.

— Remember? What are you talking about? Where are you going? — the former red shogun, running after his sister.

— Nya! Stop it! Listen to me! — Walker also joined the conversation and stood in front of Nya — There's something wrong with you. You have to concentrate. You have to focus, you have to turn back — but she didn't listen to her Ying and also went through it, Jay shivered from the cold, as if he had fallen from a waterfall.

— Where are you going! Answer me! — Kai demands, but Nya still didn't answer, she jumped onto the ledge of the roof.

— Nya, I'm begging you. No matter what you hear, no matter what you experience. Fight it, Nya. Remember who you are. Remember — Master Wu begged, coming closer. He hoped that Nya would remember and come back. The girl turns to her teacher, brother and friends with a smile. — I am Nya. I am the sea. We are one.

— Nya! You don't belong there! Your place is here! With us! You're my sister! You're Jay's girlfriend and Yang! You are the daughter of our parents! Maya and Ray! You are a disciple of Master Wu and a friend of our friends, you are not the sea! You're one of us! We are a team! And you're just going to leave us?! — he shouted, forcing her to jump off and return, then he fell to his knees — I promised that I would always protect you… But I didn't hold back... — tears flowed from his eyes, the hothead didn't want to show his weakness, but he couldn't, he didn't want Nya to leave.

Then he heard footsteps approaching, he raised his head and saw his sister, merging with the Endless sea, she touched his cheek, gently stroking.

— And you kept your promise, Kai. I am grateful to you — she said, as always with a smile. She came up to Cole — Cole, I considered you an older brother and always will, even when you fell into the dark, I always blamed myself because it was my fault that this happened to you, but now that you're alive, I was so happy, so glad, I wanted to hurry you up a hug. That's what, always stay on earth, even when you're lonely, because this is your element — then she hugged the master of the earth, and he didn't care that his clothes were wet and the girl was cold, now it wasn't up to that.

— Zane, when I found out that you were a nindroid, I was shocked, but you were still and will be our friend, our brother. And when you sacrificed yourself, defeating the Overlord and «died», I was horrified, it hurt me a lot, but learning that you were alive and seeing you in this form, you have no idea how happy I was to see you again. But now it's my turn, don't be a machine, find joy in the darkest of times — and also hugged the titanium ninja again.

— Lloyd, when you were still a kid, you stole candy from everyone in Jamanakai to be like your father and also released snakes, you were an annoying, naughty boy, but despite this, you admitted your mistakes and it's okay, all people make them. Then you became a green ninja, I didn't even think that this would happen to you, I really thought that it would turn out to be Kai or Zane, but know, Lloyd, you are a good leader, you take care of others, of your team members, as a leader, you lead the team and are responsible for It's a responsibility. I understand how hard it is for you, but do not hesitate to call us, talk to us and we will always listen and help you, you have a kind heart and you have always been like a younger brother to me.

— Pixal, I couldn't even imagine that you would turn out to be the new Samurai X when I fought with you, but I'm happy for you, because I'm a water master now. You can take whatever you want from Samurai X's cave. You can take blueprints, tools, and old mechs as well to preserve the Samurai legacy.

— Bentho, you are our family now, and you are also our new friend and we are glad for that, you have a new home—this is a monastery and we are your family. Thank you for telling me the story about Nyad.

— Master Wu, thank you for teaching me to become a ninja, a water ninja. You were much more than our teacher, you were like a father to us, and we were like your children.

— Jay, you're an annoying chatterbox who tells jokes we don't understand, not as funny as you saw yourself, but you could cheer us up, you always helped, supported us when we needed help. And you have no idea how wonderful you are, a kind and cheerful boy, I have never met someone like you, Jay, you have always been and will always be an optimist, you will always make us laugh and I like it. I love you, Jay, my boyfriend, my Ying — Jay's hot tears ran, and his lips trembled, he bent his head as Nya stroked his face, and then hugged him. He also didn't care that he was wet and Nya was icy, as with the previous participants. There was Kai, Nya's brother, the son of a blacksmith and a master of fire.

— Kai, my beloved older brother. Please stand up — he obeyed — Thank you for raising me, for bringing me up, for always being by my side when our parents left for reasons already known to us. Thank you for saving me that first time in the volcano, you saved me as much as I saved you. You continued to protect me even when I didn't need it myself, you were afraid of losing me, just like I was afraid of you. But before I leave, I want you to know that I will always be with you, I will be with you, in your hearts, we will have to part on such a note and there is nothing we can do about it, you are a wonderful and the best brother in the world and I am glad for that, you were my father, mother, by a parent… Thank you for the childhood you gave me, without you, I do not know what would have happened next. I love you, brother — Kai did not expect that Nya would do this, after all that he did for her, his sister, and he was glad of it, glad that Nya was happy and he too, but he did not want her to leave, brown-haired hugged the water spirit tightly, he could not do anything He let her merge with the sea, but now it's too late, it can't be fixed, tears began to flow, but he still let her go, It would have been bad if she had stayed, the girl had little time to return to where the sea called her.

The elemental ninja returned to her former place, she looked at the others again, they had sad faces, It hurt, but she can't do anything about it, the ocean is calling her and she must go, she must return to it and be happy. She doesn't want to say goodbye to her family like that, it was too early.

— Nya... I... love you... — Jay said softly, he could only say that — And I love you! All of us, we will miss you, Nya! After all, you are expensive to us all! — she just smiled sadly — Tell mom, now I understand that this is how cookies crumbles. You are my friends, my brothers, my sister, my teacher. Goodbye — these were her last words, everyone wanted to take off and stop, but they didn't, they just stood and watched as Nya turned, raised her arms and jumped into the water.

— NO!!! NYA!!! — COME BACK!! SISTER!!! — Kai and Jay run to the edge, then the others run up, the water from the streets returns back to where it belongs — SISTER!!! NO!!! — the amber-eyed one jumps onto the ledge, summoning a fiery dragon and chased after the blue glow — KAI, WAIT! — but Wu was ignored again, the fire ninja wanted to touch his sister, but it was too late, she disappeared over the horizon, the fire ninja clenched his hands to his white knuckles, angry at himself that he could not stop her.

***

— Kai, are you okay? — Maya asked, approaching her son.

— How can I be calm, Mom?! My sister left, she merged with the sea, and I couldn't do anything! She didn't deserve this! — Smith blamed himself.

— Kai..But you couldn't do anything if you wanted to, the sea called her and she came back to him. It hurts me too, because Ray and I lost our daughter, but we have to hope for the best. I am sure that Nya will come back someday and we will become a family again, as before, she will remember us again. I didn't have time to say goodbye to her either... — The elder Smith put her hand on his shoulder.

Kai lifts his head slightly and looks at his mother.:

— She told us to give you something. Something about cookies...

— Cookies? — Maya asks, arching an eyebrow questioningly.

— Yes, she said: «Tell Mom that I now understand how the cookies crumbles» — she looked stunned. — Did she say that?

— Yes, why? What does it mean? — Kai and Nya's mom smiled.

— This is only understood with your sister — Maya tenderly stroked her son's hand. Then Ray's wife left Kai alone, as Jay arrived.

— How are you?.. I can't even imagine what it's like for you, because she was your sister — the lightning master said sadly.

— Not really, but I'm holding on somehow.. It's the same with you, because she was your girlfriend and Yang...

— It's all my fault... — Freckles said without raising his head.

— What makes you think that?.. — Kai didn't understand what his friend meant.

— I had to get out of the car by myself! I could have waited for you, but I didn't wait and got into trouble! Because of me, Nya gave up her human form and merged with the Boundless Ocean...

— You're a fool, Jay.. — the former red shogun laughed — Nya sacrificed herself to save not only you, but all of us and Ninjago! Why can't you understand that?

— We would have found another way to defeat this sea reptile if I hadn't ruined everything! But Nya, she could have consulted with us and she didn't... It's all my fault, Kai! I couldn't do nothing, I couldn't stop…

— I didn't do anything either, I wanted to save my sister, but I also couldn't.. But you are not to blame for this, Jay, just like me, Kalmaar is to blame and he deserves for all these sins that he has done, he will be fed to Wojira. And you weren't the only one who loved her either, we loved her too, she was expensive to all of us. When there was seawater in your lungs and you were unconscious, my sister was always by your side, she would have done everything possible to save you and she did, being merged with the sea. Nya is a hero and always will be, she knows how to surprise in her unusual ways. She loved you, Jay, so don't beat yourself up about it.

— Just like she loves you...I think you're right.. Thank you, Kai — the lightning ninja thanked him — You're welcome, buddy — the brown—haired man grinned — And now we have to go.

When Jay and I entered the courtyard of the monastery, I thought that the whole city had come, there were a lot of people and there were those whom we encountered and met, they were all here to thanks Nya for what she did, she saved Ninjago, the whole world. We started the funeral, stood next to a large white vase, and in our hands were bowls filled with water, Master Wu began his speech:

— We gathered here today to honor the memory of Nya — while the teacher was saying this, each of us began to pour water from a bowl into this jug, which depicted the blue ocean — the Inventor, Samurai X, ninja, master of the water and our dear friend. Her courage and strength saved us over and over again — I also saw my mother crying bitterly from the loss of Nya, and my dad comforted her, he held on, but I could see a couple of small tears in his eyes — And even though we couldn't save her, we will always remember her. Wherever she is, she is in our hearts now — after Wu finished his speech, he, I and the ninja from Pixal lowered our heads and closed our eyes.

— I knew you'd come here — I was startled by this, when I turned my head towards the voice, I saw Skylor.

—Oh, hi, Skylor — I waved at her — What are you doing here?

— I came to check how you are and I see that you are holding on — the amber craftswoman smiled faintly, I turned away, hearing her take a deep breath, she sat down next to me — Kai, everything will be fine, I know that words are not enough, it can say anything, but do it..I know it's not easy, but just you know that you have friends, Master Wu and I, if you need help, we're always there to help you. And even if the team splits up again, as it was with Zane, I will always be with you, I will do everything possible to make it easier for you and make you always happy, as before — I was surprised and turned to her, she noticed that I was crying, she was surprised, because she and others have never seen me cry, I wanted to calm down, I didn't want to show my weakness, but I didn't do it well, I just couldn't, she hugged me without words, and I just snuggled up to her, she comforted me, stroking my back and kissed the top of my head — I love you, Kai — I raised my head to look at her amber eyes, like mine — I love you too, Skylor — she smiled, and I answered her and we kissed. We turn around with a smile and look at the sunset, as well as at the sea. It's so beautiful...

— I love you, Nya, my little sister. You are free now and probably happy, but know that our friends, Jay, Master Wu, our parents and your older brother will always love you very much and miss you — the last lonely tear rolls down my face — I am sure that we will meet, Nya, and be together again, we will be happy, as before.

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