#Netflix really does exist to get on my nerves and my nerves specifically | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jiminrings · 3 years

Note

hey hannah! hope you are doing great darling ( ˘ ³˘) ♡ i may have a request in mind, a university/college au with jock!jk and shy art major!yn or an olympics au? with olympic athlete!jk and olympic athlete!yn (you decide which sports!) thank you so much in advance ♡

never (k)not you

pairing: jungkook x y/n

wordcount: 5k

glimpse: established relationship ft. jock!jk and shy art major!y/n, y/n gets an unexpected pep talk and jungkook doubts himself, and either so much tears or so much dUST according to kook

notes: baby ok FIRST OF ALL, i’m so sorry i only got to write this now :(( it’s been three months since you sent in this request bUT well it’s here now :D thank you so much for requesting and waiting!! i really hope ur still here or else i-i... will lose it

if you squint, best friend!tae is actually rich kid tae both from the art major drabble and insufferable!!

lunch with taehyung either makes the both of you the LOUDEST motherfuckers in the planet or it’s just comfortable silence

comfortable silence’s more common whenever the two of you are in public because to put it simply

he’s cold and you’re shy!! makes sense

but god just mention his girlfriend’s name oNCE and he’ll talk your ear off and you get genuinely excited when he is

he just needs to mention gouache for less than a second and you will genuinely freak

then suddenly the both of you are the chattiest beings ever and absolutely no one will yield until they get the final say

but this

this just feels weird...

because it’s lunch and you’re not talkative and the silence is most definitely not comfortable

you just know tae has something up his sleeve and will probably catch you off-

“are you and jungkook a thing?”

...

......

it’s never actually registered in your head that you and jungkook are a THING but absolutely no one knows

literally no one

not even the dust living underneath your bedframe!! or if guardian angels existed, then they’d probably be clueless as fuck

lol wait what was that cold gust of wind on ur arms

jungkook is the dreamiest man alive and he’s been your boyfriend for what?? two years now??

and the two of you, and more of him actually, insisted to keep it private

your relationship is none of anyone’s business and it uh.,. it literally seems to be that way because sometimes even yOU forget that you’re in a relationship

jungkook avoids you like the plague and you keep to yourself like you do with all your gouache

this dynamic of no one knowing has been so instilled in you that tae’s innocent (?) question is enough to make you spiral little by little

taehyung was just harboring an idea ok

because like two days ago when you went out with him and his girlfriend for ice cream, jungkook was there too by himself

and that just seems like pure coincidence

but then they dOn’t seem like coincidences anymore when he realizes on the same day how many classes he was in where you were in

and you don’t even have the same major!!!

or when he’s walking you home because your apartment is literally on the right side of his girlfriend’s (changbin’s on the left) and he’s taking every possibility he gets

but it just so happens that uh... jungkook’s always there from a distance? like when the two of you are walking and that guy just hAD to be there at the back??

goddamn it tae should’ve gotten his parents’ offer for personal security while he’s studying in campus :((

“woah woah wOAH what’s the matter?” you panic when he shoves you inside your apartment the moment you manage to open it

“this fucking jungkook guy is either stalking you or me and it’s starting to get on my nerves!!”

“... taehyung-“

and then he realized that oh... ok... i see

what if this guy has a crush on you??

but it didn’t make sense because why would this soccer guy (no offense) that’s a jock (no offense) who always either looks high with how giggly he is (no offense) or bereaved with how he scowls (no offense) could POSSIBLY like you???

you who’s the art major (no offense) with your clothes almost exactly like he is (no offense) that he has an inkling that either you were copying him or him copying you (no offense) and the shyness that you absolutely wouldn’t talk to anyone unless they go first and tHAT even became a tough cookie for him!! h i m

wait

on another thought...

that does make sense

you and jungkook are more likely to be a couple than anyone else more alike to either of you, no offense :D

and the way now that you’re frozen and scoffing like ur voicing mater’s engine in cars

“w-what? FUCK no!!”

mhmmm

yeah that’s the spot

taehyung means this in full offense but you’d be absolutely bankrupt if ever you wanted to try your hand at poker when your tell is literally cussing in capital when you’re flustered

this is the equivalent of your mom leaving you by the line to the cashier at the grocery when she needs to get something and you’re next at the line and you have no money on you and you’re too hesitant to tell the person behind you to-

“why? are you thinking of asking him out?”

he hears you seethe and that’s only the second time he’s heard you actually do that so he may have straightened his posture a lil

you wouldn’t hold it against taehyung because jungkook is one fINE specimen and tae doesn’t stare from that description anyway

you just can’t help but feel a lil.....

ಠ_ಠ

because you know that jungkook is yours and when it comes to things like these, you can’t do anything about it

how could you??

fine... if taehyung tries to-

smack!

the fact that your friend has a gigantic palm for one doesn’t soothe the gears in your head

you’re positive that your brain actually shook inside your head for a split second

“i already have someone, dumbass.”

taehyung has to remind you again to which you immediately awe in remembrance, a sheepish smile on your face bc for a moment, you actually considered begging for tae to back the fuck off without making it seem you’re already with jungkook

he waves you off because you’re about to coo at him again, a small smile on his face because he wouldn’t forget how he’s so lucky

it’s nice to be in love!!

you should probably try it some time

but then again, taehyung’s starting to think that you’ve been in a longer relationship with jungkook than him in one, so he thinks that he should be the one taking notes from you

“can i, uhm, ask how did you know?”

you don’t mind swallowing your pride because you already know you can’t bullshit your way out of this one, a timid look on your lap

sheesh

tae’s pride seems to swell up because his suspicion’s right just by oNE singular try

“because i’m rich kid kim :) don’t you know that?”

see now this is only one of the few times that he’d gladly take his title

rich kid kim was coined by the courtesy of changbin, his girlfriend’s friend :/

it just seemed to STICK on everyone else after then

changbin was the first to narrate his actions like he’s the lead star of a poorly-produced netflix film

what’s wrong with rich kid kim? is his greeting every time he crosses paths with changbin

he was just pissy that oNE time!! it was ONE time

taehyung thinks of the whole jungkook situation and relates it to him as much as possible because ya know,,, he is the main star and koo’s just a second lead

ok changbin’s netflix narrations are really rubbing off on him

“think of jeon jungkook as an elitist that everyone wants to be close with, and yet he actually looks like one of the good guys — like me — and he looks like he wants to shoot himself in the foot when he gets offered caviar oNE more time, and then you’re like uh, the comic relief???”

he spews his interpretation all in one breath effortlessly and you’re just blinking slowly to try and digest it all

it’s oddly too specific

hol up now why does it sound like he’s been actually waiting for you to ask him that

HOLD ON YOU’RE THE COMIC RELIEF???

“a clowN?” is what you react first and tae can’t believe that that’s the only thing you picked up from his perfectly sound analogy

“uhhhh like a bartender? a waitress? someone that isn’t a socialite,” he shrugs as he tries to make amends, remembering that the last time he went to a rich kid kim party, no one was technically in pennywise shoes nor juggling bowling pins

“are you trying to insult me tae?”

:((

yIKES are u gonna cry

“what?? no!! no!!” he launches from his seat as if he was falling and that catches him a couple of glances from rich kid kim loyalists (there’s a lot of things he’s unaware of), about to punch the floor if only their lord and savior didn’t take it in stride, “i’m not trying to insult you, but it’s how you take it, y’know?”

his nonchalance puts you on the edge even more, launching from your seat and uh you don’t exactly have any concerned fanbase there to worry for you

“so i sHOULD?? tae you’re basically saying that-”

alright that’s it

he needs to actually get through you this time because more often that not, you are so fucking stubborn that it beats him

he glares at you, eyes looking comically large and pissy as he’s stopped in the middle of slurping from his cup noodles to talk some sense into you

it feels like an eternity until he finishes his noodles and you were almost tempted to just eat the remaining portion to fasten his pace

“in rich kid kim terms, or reality y/n terms?”

you’re almost too scared to answer but you already do before you can even process, raising two fingers

and for a moment, you think tae’s actually gonna go easy on you!

whew you definitely aren’t prepared if-

“do you come out together by the main door? or from the back?”

your eyes are as large as they could possibly be and if you stay in that same shocked and taken-aback state, you’d need to look for those creams with how much your eyebrows and your forehead are creased

u-uh well now that i think about it-...” okay maybe you and jungkook don’t come into uni by any of the several hundred main entrances at all, but that doesn’t mean-

“does he hold your hand? carry your backpack? doesn’t matter if you have a dumbbell in there or not, does he carry it?” tae lists item after item, racking through his mind as these were also all the things he does, and all the things he’s picked up from everyone

“does he bring your water? lend his hoodie when you’re not even sniffling? pick a fight when someone even looks at you the wrong way? read something relatively romantic in english lit, then text you about it? brag about you to his friends? does he-...”

...

....

okay

you are awfully too silent for even your nature

tae was blissfully obvious just two seconds ago when he was enumerating boyfriend traits (that he himself exhibited, excuse you) left and right

then he started to realize that you weren’t stuttering nor interjecting on the side

he’s :O when you’re standing up from your seat, straightening out your hoodie, one that isn’t jungkook’s, that you’ve been anxiously wrinkling for the past ten minutes

“excuse me, tae. i have uh.. i have a lot to think about.”

everything he’s said made a solid number on you because not even distracting yourself becomes successful

not even your mini fixation on gouache helped you because so far it really sucks

it’s become a routine of jungkook to come over to your apartment almost everyday that it practically feels he’s living with you

he knows where you keep your milk and how cold you want the AC to blast and how you organize your groceries

and yet jungkook can’t-

“koo do you love me?”

it’s a question that was sprung so suddenly because come to think of it, you’re knitting and jungkook’s head is buried in your thighs while he tries to take a nap

he doesn’t bother trying to figure out your thought process because it’s a question that’s so simple that it seemed trivial

jungkook’s a dream when he nods and hums to your thighs, making you tread your hands on his hair instead of your roll of yarn

“mhmmm. more than life itself.”

he loves loves you!!! he doesn’t even know why you’re asking

“okay,” you hum back, crouching down to press a kiss on his nape that he appreciates because he’s a little ticklish on that spot, “hold my hand tomorrow then.”

:-)

jungkook launches from his position on your thighs, sitting up immediately that it’s gotten him dizzy

“... w-what?”

oh boy here it goes

you don’t feel like dancing around this issue anymore because after all, you do have the right to stick your finger in this!!

he’s your boyfriend i mean like what’s not clicking

“it’s not that big of a deal, jungkook. it’s not like i asked you to propose to me or something.”

his eyes widen more at that, his cheeks puffing out and it makes you realize that taehyung was right and it dOES look like he’s hiding a goldfish in there sometimes

you try to bite back a laugh at that but jungkook is devoid from any entertainment at all, looking like you just asked him to pick between you and the universe

“you uh want me to propose??”

he has his hand awkwardly caressing his nape and his cheeks flush as he’s trying to process things

yeah he DOES love you and he’ll marry you eventually but you’re doing this now!!! as in now??

how’s your wedding gonna work? god, can the two of you decide on the menu for your reception? does this mean your aunts and his aunts would mee?? no no that could not possibly be-

“you don’t need to,” you sheepishly mumble and you’re not gonna deny that marrying jungkook did cross your mind every once in awhile

you aren’t against it but marriage is not the issue at hand!! it’s just about him hOLDING your hand tomorrow and not forever now

“so you don’t want me to?”

...... christ where is this going to

there’s palpable tension in the air and you just feel like giving up, sinking further into the couch and koo’s reading TOO much into it

what if you slouching on the couch means you’re breaking up with him and you wouldn’t marry him even if he was the last person alive

“if you aren’t ashamed of me, or if you don’t feel like dYING when i’m five feet away from you and your jock friends-“

“lovie i-“

your ringless hand raises and prompts him to shut up, palms a little sweaty and fingers tired from stress-knitting

“then hold my hand. tomorrow. please.”

:-)

okay fine then

last night wasn’t exactly the best experience because you felt a little too distant even if he was enveloping you into his arms

last night, kook didn’t even dare to try and press mischievous kisses from your jaw to your shoulder because you felt untouchable with how wringed you were

then he had breakfast by himself much earlier and had to practically sHAKE you awake to whisper that he’s gonna leave earlier because he has a plan, and then proceeds to tell you to act as if you didn’t know that he has a plan, then go back to sleep and forget altogether that this literal rude awakening even happened

if you ask him, he is wearing the most boyfriend fit ever in this entire universe

which is uh his regular outfit of a fit shirt and a cool-looking jacket with chunk boots thrown on top of it

BUT!!!!

hear him out ok

he’s wearing a bracelet

uh huh

a bracelet...... that has the iNITIAL of your name

yuh how romantic is that

man both hallmark and netflix must be bankrupt because of jeon jungkook!! he’s sure of it

he just knows

the big deal of it all is jungkook waiting for you by the stairs, bouncing on heels out of displaced nervous energy because he’s too jittery to just coolly lean against the wall

“kook?”

you’re tilting your head at the sight, a little lost but more on fond as he smiles squarely

“y/n! it’s uh, it’s you! wow!!”

he exclaims but not without tucking his hands into his pockets and non-discreetly looking around your surrounding before he deems it clear enough, which is what you still find useless for him to even do it!!

the whole point of this is to not care!!

he’s gingerly placing himself beside you and although it’s not exactly what you asked for, it makes you sigh a breath of relief because it’s been tOO long that you’ve been next to him in this public atmosphere

he’s not exactly far, but he isn’t exactly bumping shoulders with you either

there are some glances alright

jungkook has a loose grip on you but you could fEEL how his hand is so sweaty

he’s just looking at the floor and he allows you to guide him because if not for you, he would’ve been bumping into both lockers and people non-stop

u actually have first period together but you typically sit rowS away but now he’s just sitting on the chair right above yours

he isn’t next to you but he’s literally above you, so maybe you’ll take it

you can’t exactly text taehyung how it’s going because he could see everything from where he’s seated at

this was supposed to be an enjoyable time :(

a nice, giggly, warm enjoyable time with jungkook

but being this unrestricted meant him being so rigid that quite frankly, you’ve grown sick and wary of it in less than an hour

you’re making your way to the library and jungkook’s sTILL following you when you were sure he wouldn’t have

and if you ask him, he doesn’t know either why he followed you

he jus did it without thinking even if it meant him taking quick steps behind you with his head down

he doesn’t know why you’re here and he feels a little guilty that he should know it if this was already a part off your routine

but this time, jungkook can’t look at you because this time, you’re the one who’s unreachable

who kNOWS what your empty stare could possibly mean

“we don’t have to do this anymore, y’know.”

that’s the quickest way to conclude it, nodding to yourself surely

meanwhile, jungkook is a millisecond away from a goddamn mELTDOWN

“w-what do you mean?”

“this!” you genuinely chuckle and even wiggle your hands around to make a point

he swears to god rn that he is gonna BLUBBER

“a-are you breaking up with me right now?”

his voice is already cracking and it reminds him that oh, yeah, the two of you are in the library and he’s about to cRY

you’re gasping when you take his trembling hand and jungkook wants to snatch it back and beg you to hold it tighter at the same time

oh no :-)

“it’s okay. i don’t mind anymore. and what, we’re gonna graduate like a year from now! doesn’t matter anymore.”

but wait it SHOULD matter

he’s gonna cry oh god oh god he’s gonna-

“you don’t need to change for me.”

:((

so that’s what

jungkook cries and it’s from relief that no, you aren’t breaking up with him

“o-okay,” he nods as he wipes his own tears that are blurring his vision and there’s sO much that he actually worries if it would budge his contacts

he just wants a hug from you to console him like you always do

but instead, you look around, settle on tapping his chin, then standing up

“cheer up. i’m gonna go eat lunch with felix.”

and then yOU’RE the one leaving him

quick

does he really look like a red-nosed, bleary-eyes, puffy-lipped mess??

say sike rn lads

jungkook clearly doesn’t look the best and he doesn’t exactly know what he was doing when he came out of the library and marched over to hang out with his friends like he always did

but something’s just different

he looks like someone whose world turned upon him and has nothing left to himself

surprisingly, it’s not hobi who’s the only one thinking of that

his friends are all ????

“y’okay man??”

namjoon’s the first to break the silence and everyone sighs because they were all holding a breath just by looking at jungkook’s distraught state

“yeah! just, uh, just —“

he’s back to being preppy in an instant but he can’t establish eye contact, swinging his arms by his sides and looking around just to look natural and gOD IS THAT YOU??

you’re you

you’re there, walking with felix and your backpack on hIS shoulder

.,., the same backpack that he’s bought you one birthday ago, on tHIS dude’s shoulder strewn as if he didn’t panic in between which variant should he buy for you

you look blissfully unaware that he’s cried himself just by thinking about you and your words and lack of actions just awhile ago

“nothing.”

jungkook grits out and suddenly, he isn’t sad anymore :D

just uh

just a lil frustrated :D agitated :D or maybe feeling a little inadequate and outraged :D

this other mini breakdown going on his head doesn’t go unnoticed because here he is, so close to injuring his fist with how tight he’s clenching it

the guys, however.,.,

seokjin whistles and goes as far to squint his eyes intentionally that he looked like a distraught chihuahua, immediately grabbing jungkook’s actions as he nods his head to your direction

“y/n, right?”

jungkook froze and everyone is just waiting on him, mouths a little parted because they’ve caught on jin’s little plan and somehow, he might’ve struck a chord sO hard that-

“keep your fucking dick in your pants, seokjin.”

WOAH WOAH WOAH WOAH

everyone’s reacting to his seething like a flock of seagulls to a piece of bread

yeah they’ve seen the youngest of their group mad, but not tHIS type of mad that he looks like he would’ve hit his hyung with a skillet upright if he had one onhand

everyone’s visibly offended besides seokjin, the man mentioned just amusedly shrugging his shoulders with a dimpled smile that unintentionally provoked jungkook even more

“told you,” yoongi gives up his last batch of cookies to namjoon, a long-winded bet finally coming to an end because of what was only supposed to be a harmless question by jin

“if y/n was your girlfriend, you could’ve just said so!!”

jin ruffles his hair and it doesn’t exactly take a genius to see how he cares for you!!

jungkook looks out for you in ways he couldn’t even notice doing

he always had two umbrellas in his backpack and when it was raining, he’d leave one on purpose by the front of this specific locker

hoseok actually borrowed an eraser without permission from kook once, but then he found a combination of tampons n napkins that he grimaced because what :// those aren’t even the good brands!! he has a sister and now has a handful of knowledge about monthly visits, so he takes note to talk to jungkook about it some time

there’s even an extra sweater in his backpack that always remains unotuched

one time, jimin complained that he was cold and turned to jungkook, full-well knowing that the fucker had oNE more sweater tucked in his bag, who just plains-out ignore him and even tch!s him under his breath

they somehow had a clue all along and now that jungkook realizes, he may be a little dENSE

OH RIGHT

WHY WOULD HE HAVE KEPT YOU HIDDEN

that’s entirely stoopid of him

what was the reason lmao

this time, jungkook’s more than eager to make it up to you

eVEN if you’ve insisted that nothing was wrong!!

it was just the last day before christmas break so it went by considerably fast-paced because even the professors were a little antsy to come home!!

that didn’t stop him, because clearly, jungkook holds your hand tight this time and he’s looking straight ahead

he looks proud

he feels natural and giggly the whole day that you couldn’t stop either because it’s a complete 360 from yesterday

wouldn’t absolutely stop holding your hand and following you

even kisses the top of your head like a kitten repeatedly

eVEN SAT IN A CLASS HE DIDN’T HAVE TO BE WITH YOU

something’s up with jungkook alright

the two of you are back again on the couch — you knitting, and him buried and napping on your thighs

it’s a bit of a shock when he grabs your hand all of a sudden, a half-sleepy and full-on dreamy look on his face when he’s looking up at you from being laid down on your lap

a red silicone band :D

you’re still speechless when he’s sliding it on your ring finger, admittedly getting the wrong finger the first time which is why he’s sheepish and holding back a giggle

“jungkook....?”

unsurprisingly, it looks good on you

he seems to think so himself when he’s giving you another one, holding his hand out and you’re doing the same without even an explanation present

“it’s a placeholder :)”

a placeholder?? hold on ur heart is a lil fragile

your eyes widen and your lips downturn on instinct, making him giggle as he smushes your cheeks to just let him explain

“all this marriage talk just had me thinking-”

“are you PROPOSING right now??”

both the mix of panic and excitement stains you clearly, mouth dropping open as you try to fumble for atleast something to wipe your face with

hee-hee

“maybe i am, maybe i’m not :)”

jungkook’s such a romantic it’s SICKENING

his mind drifts off and you can’t blame him!!

his family’s well-off so maybe he could cash in his next ten birthdays for a loan or maybe even a house to help ease the two of you in

maybe the two of you could even build it from the ground up

the two of you could also move into this nice apartment after graduation!! he’s been eyeing it for quite awhile actually

“you wanna get married early?”

“maybe i do, maybe i don’t :D”

jungkook’s faux nonchalance makes you grin yourself, the both of you knowing what answer he’d yield anyway

“as long as it’s you,” you declare surely, bending down to press a kiss on his nose that tickles him and makes his heart full

“as long as it’s me?”

jungkook smiles cheekily at your statement pressing kisses on the top of your thighs that’s got you fumbling at him to just embrace you immediately

he’s a little bulky with all the muscles he’s gained and worked on, a little pressured when he’s sitting on your lap upright and won’t absolutely stop kissing you sweetly

“you should start on knitting your wedding garter now :D”

#feedback pls and thank u :D hAPPY CHRISTMAS EVE!!!!#jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkook imagine #jungkook imagines #jungkook drabble #jungkook drabbles #jungkook oneshot #jungkook oneshots #jungkook au #jungkook x reader #jungkook x y/n #jock!jungkook #jungkook angst #jungkook fluff #jungkook fic recs

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jocia92 · 3 years

Link

(Google translated)

Dan Stevens, who grew up in Wales and south-east England, spent his summer holidays at the National Youth Theater at the age of 15, and he was drawn to the stage while studying English in Cambridge. Since his big breakthrough as Matthew Crawley in the hit series “Downton Abbey”, he has also repeatedly appeared in films such as “Inside Wikileaks - The Fifth Force”, “At Night in the Museum: The Secret Tomb” or “Beauty and the Beast” . Most recently, Stevens played the Russian Schnösel singer Lemtov in the Oscar-nominated comedy “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga” from Netflix. At the beginning of June, the German film “Ich bin dein Mensch” by Maria Schrader celebrated at the Summer Berlinale Premiere, which starts on 1.7. comes to German cinemas regularly. Stevens plays the role of a love robot in it. Unlike on the screen, however, the 38-year-old prefers to speak English in the zoom-conducted interview. He chose a brick wall with a lion motif as the digital background. No allusion to the song “Lion of Love” from “Eurovision Song Contest”, but a photo of the famous Ishtar Gate in Berlin’s Pergamon Museum, where “I am your human” was filmed last summer.

Mr. Stevens, in your new film “I am your human” you play a humanoid robot that is entirely geared towards fulfilling the romantic needs of a skeptical scientist. You yourself recently described the film as “delightfully German”. How did you mean that?

I wanted to say that here pretty big questions - such as what actually makes a person or how much perfection love can take - are negotiated in a very light-footed, elegant and sometimes humorous way. In my experience that is a very German quality. At least I have often seen with many of my German colleagues and friends that they are very good at not discussing difficult issues exclusively deadly serious and melancholy.

Where does your personal connection to Germany and the German language come from?

My parents had friends who lived in Bielefeld and we used to visit them in North Rhine-Westphalia during the school holidays. Traveled from England by car! That’s how I learned a little German as a child, and later I learned it as a subject at school. I even did a short internship there through our friends in Bielefeld. I really love the language. Funnily enough, I was later able to use my knowledge of German professionally, because my first film was “Hilde”, in which I was next to Heike Makatsch played the British actor and director David Cameron, who was married to Hildegard Knef. After that, I always hoped that there might be another chance to speak German in front of the camera, because playing in a foreign language is an exciting challenge. When the chance arose to shoot “I am your person”, I could hardly believe my luck.

Did you know the director Maria Schrader who gave you this chance?

Funnily enough, when the script for the film landed on my table, I had just watched the Netflix series “Unorthodox”, which she directed. I had also watched a few episodes of “Deutschland 89”. In general, I knew that she was a great German actress, not least because friends who knew their way around the German theater scene often raved about her. Working with her was a joy now. Her understanding of actors is quite instinctive and brilliant. I have seldom seen someone who can help an actor who is having difficulties with a scene with such simple means.

The fact that you had already seen “Unorthodox” shows, of course, how quickly “I am your person” must have been implemented in the past year …

Oh yes, that was really quick. In March I was still in New York and was about to premiere a new play on Broadway. But then the pandemic came, everything was canceled and I flew back to my family in Los Angeles. A few weeks later, Maria and I met each other via Zoom - and shortly afterwards I was sitting outside in a café in the Berlin June sun for the first time in months to discuss the upcoming shoot with her. That was pretty surreal because I hadn’t actually left the house since March.

Is it correct that you oriented yourself to Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart to portray the romantically programmed robot Tom?

In any case, these were role models that Maria and I spoke about. When you think of the game between the two of them, you always see an enormous clarity and directness. Cary Grant, for example, was always quite funny, especially in his romantic roles, but also flawless in an almost artificial way from today’s perspective. I found that very suitable for a robot. Apart from the fact that the ideas that Tom and his algorithm have of romance and love are certainly also shaped by the classic romantic comedies from Hollywood. Oh, the woman is sad, so I’ll bring her flowers! Such automatisms from the stories from back then were very appropriate for Tom now.

Keyword role models: Who shaped you in your career as an actor?

There were of course many. Jimmy Stewart was certainly something of a role model. My mom and I watched a lot of his films when I was little and I was always impressed by the kind of sweet tragedy that went into all of his roles. But maybe Robin Williams’ work influenced me even more. I always found the incredible variety of his films remarkable. He could make his audience laugh hysterically like no other, but also move them to tears in other roles. I always wanted to emulate this range.

In fact, the range of your roles is enormous and ranges from the Disney blockbuster “Beauty and the Beast” to a comic adaptation in series format such as “Legion” to bulky independent films such as “Her Smell” or the horror thriller “The Rental “, Which we just released on DVD. Is there a method behind this diversity?

Not in principle. I like variety, but I’m not just looking for roles that are as different as possible from one another. Rather, there are always similar factors that I use to select my projects. Sometimes there is a certain director that I really want to work with. Or the role itself is irresistible because it presents me with acting challenges. And sometimes a script is just fantastically written and I am interested in the topics it is about. With “I am your person” it was definitely the latter, especially since the timing was just right. In 2020 there were so many societal questions that ultimately touched the core of human existence. Such a script, which deals with something very similar in a light-footed way, was just fitting.

A few years ago you said in a questionnaire from the British Guardians that your greatest weakness was not being able to make up your mind. So every time you are offered a role, do you ponder whether you should accept?

No, no, when a script appeals to me, it actually does it very quickly. It’s such a gut feeling. If I’m unsure and skeptical, that’s a good indicator that this is not the right thing for me. That with the difficulty in making decisions related rather to something else. For example, it takes me forever to order in a restaurant because I can never decide what on the menu appeals to me the most.

You became famous with the role of Matthew Crawley in the series "Downton Abbey”. Did you immediately suspect at the time that something big was going on?

At first we were all pretty clueless. There are really many British history series, and we were one of them. When the first season aired in the US and was a huge success there, it was pretty unexpected. I never expected the impact the series would have on my career.

Barely ten years later, are you still being asked about the role?

Oh yes, regularly. Probably nothing will change about that either. I got out after three seasons!

In the meantime, however, the flamboyant Russian singer Alexander Lemtov from “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga” should also be a character with whom you will be immediately associated, right?

Right, it has been mentioned more and more recently when people recognize me on the street. This charming, silly film obviously had a nerve with the audience last year in the middle of the corona pandemic. Especially since the real Eurovision Song Contest had been canceled.

The film was the number one topic of conversation on the Internet for a while - and Lemtov GIFs and memes were everywhere. Did you follow that?

It was really hard to avoid it. I wasn’t looking specifically for what people were posting. But of course my friends passed a lot on to me, and there were already some very funny Lemtov things. But he’s also a figure made for GIFs.

Another question every British actor under 40 has to put up with these days: Would you like to become the next James Bond?

Oh, of course, everyone gets to hear this question again and again who meets certain criteria. But it is completely hypothetical. Although a few years ago I read in an audio book by Ian Fleming’s “Casino Royale”.

You mentioned earlier that you and your family have lived in the United States for a long time. How big is your homesickness?

I actually feel very comfortable in Los Angeles. But every now and then I miss the sidewalk culture of European cities. People on foot, street cafes, things like that. Last year the longing for it was particularly great, although it was of course clear to me that there was a state of emergency in Europe too. In any case, I found myself reading books that were set in Europe and made me homesick. Which is why the unexpected trip to Berlin was really a boon.

You are also an avid cricketer. That’s certainly difficult in Los Angeles, isn’t it?

There are quite a few cricket clubs here. The only problem is that the few people who do the sport here are so good at it that I have problems keeping up. That’s why I always lose sight of the matter here a little. Even as a pure TV viewer, it is not easy to stay on the ball, because of course there is no cricket broadcast here at prime time. But as soon as I’m home in England in the summer, I really want to play again!

#ich bin dein mensch #i'm your man #dan stevens #maria schrader #faz.net #interview #long post

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unpopularfanopinion · 3 years

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I apparently struck a nerve with someone and they blocked me. Just a tip dude, if you don’t like people arguing with you maybe you shouldn’t post on social media designed for reblogging, responses and rebuttles. You can still find websites that offer blogs with no comments.

But as I typed this all up i felt it worth sharing.

Pointing out similarities in ideas and actions between two group doesn’t mean I think one is equivalent to another. It means in some ways they are coming from the same place(doesn’t mean they’re going to end up in the same place) But I see you’re very good at putting words in other people’s mouths.

However you may think there’s a difference between a religious group attempting to ban a book over religious ideals, and people trying to force Ao3 to moderate to their standards, but I am going to ask what the difference is?

Also who is going to get to decide what counts as harmful/racist? I mean I get the feeling you’re something of a new-comer to this whole anti-shipping trend and aren’t aware of some of the context in history behind it.

Like the insanity of the Sherlock fandom where a contingent of people who really really preferred John topping Sherlock in their porn decided to accuse anyone writing Sherlock topping John as being pedophiles. (Surely you can understand the insanity behind that. porn written of two middle age men being pedophilia because the wrong man tops) To the point of accusing a surivor of being an abuser, as well as filming her having a breakdown(that they caused) and posting it online. https://fanlore.org/wiki/221B_Con (the 2015 con)

https://thegreenirene.tumblr.com/post/116696525144/what-happened-at-221b-con-2015-the-gender

There’s also the story that went around of a real life highschooler that was convince he had to break up with his significant other of several years because he had turned 18, but his partner hadn’t yet because him simply dating(not necessarily having sex with them) someone under 18 was pedophilia. (okay yikes)

And what about when you have people who claim that individual ships are inherently racist if you prefer them over a different ship. One example is from the Star Wars sequel trilogy where people tried to claim the Finnrose ship was inherently anti-black and racist and so people should ship Finnrey.

https://my-reylo.home.blog/tag/anti-finnrose-bs/ (rundown, with links and receipts although sadly some of the links no longer work)

So again who will get to decide? And before you say, the minors, survivors, and minorities who don’t feel safe you should try to understand that’s not a winning trump card. Because there are ALSO minors, minorities, and survivors(like me) who keep saying that they don’t feel safe in places where censorship takes place. That they find exploring the exact same topics that antis decry as harmful, helpful and therapeutic. That they don’t feel safe in places where they risk harassment, doxing, suicide baiting simply because of the fiction they like, or create.

I mean there’s an disabled artist who lost her job because of anti harassment.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XdfUJyVYhmaahTfbxLNU0W0yVz80hmptNrCQv7KSL6o/mobilebasic

An individual is not harmed merely by some piece of fiction existing out in the void. If they stumble on it without warning it can be upsetting, trigger pain, but that means them stumbling on it. Ao3′s tagging system does an excellent job at allowing people to not see what they don’t want to. There are a few tweaks and adjustment I wouldn’t mind seeing like a permanent exclude tags so I don’t have to constantly filter out specific tags.

I doubt that there is anything you can find on Ao3 that you would not also find examples of in any large public library

Take a brief look at New York’s Public Library eroticia for example

https://nypl.overdrive.com/search?subject=21

In the comics and graphic books section i found Sadistic Boy by tori maia, which contains examples of underage sex, adult/minor sex, rape, and incest(uncle/nephew iirc). As well as Bad teacher’s Equation which features a romantic relationship between a 16 year old highschool student and a 26 year old nurse who works at the school. Again this is the New York Public library, and I haven’t started looking at more of the books(although without Ao3′s tagging system it’s a bit harder to guess the contents with just the cover)

Is there any real reason you can think of why Ao3 should be held to higher content standards than the New York Public Library? I mean they’re both based in New York State, and go by New York State’s obscenities laws.

And I’m sorry for not including sources in my earlier posts, but I was on mobile and didn’t have all of my links.

But here’s a study discussing the sex on TV doesn’t influence teens as much as people previously thought

https://theconversation.com/sex-on-tv-less-impact-on-teens-than-you-might-think-61957

Also the relationship between fiction and reality, and the ability of various media to change and shape social norms is incredibly complex. Research attempts to discover how media can influence change, but that there’s both individual effects, social effects, and the effect can be different depending on if a person knows other people in their community have seen/heard the piece of media or not.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/political-science-research-and-methods/article/how-does-media-influence-social-norms-experimental-evidence-on-the-role-of-common-knowledge/23D65E06CAB2876B08F12E23CD5C0539

So keeping that in mind that fanfiction is still very much a niche hobby/activity and you’re unlikely going to find an entire community(of people who happen to be living in the same area definition) reading the same fic, Fanfiction’s ability to impact reality is pretty much non-existent compared to the latest offering from Disney, Warner Brother’s or Netflix.

I can have empathy for people who are uncomfortable or feel they are hurt when they see certain topics in fiction. However I wish they would try to have a little empathy for the people who find comfort and healing within that same topic. The solution is not censorship or people stop creating taboo fiction. The solution is right there in Ao3′s tagging, people who don’t want to see certain content can avoid it, people who do want to see certain content can find it. I’m sorry but I cam going to have a hard time finding sympathy for people who demand that everyone else cater to them and their feelings without a thought for anyone else's.

#Ao3 discourse

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ohwereusingourmadeupnames · 3 years

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You’ll Look At Me With Eyes That See

Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Rating: M (Mature) Notes: This little brain child came after a few too many Netflix Christmas movies and a few motivating conversations with my best pal, S. I love dogs and awkward dog owner Tony just wouldn’t go away! Word Count: ~5.2K Summary:

When Happy first mentioned getting a dog, Tony balked at the idea. After taking a look around his empty home, however, he started to warm up to the idea. With Happy's overly excited advice in hand, Tony takes a chance & peruses the local border collie rescue. When he brought the shy dog home, Tony never would've imagined the bond he would create - or the human connection that would follow.

Read on AO3 here.

Looking down Bo’s snoot, Tony sent out a good vibe towards Happy for the millionth time that day.

When Happy initially mentioned the addition of a dog to the Stark household, Tony couldn’t say no fast enough. Despite being so his entire life, Tony liked being alone. The comfort of the normalcy of his everyday life revolved around the isolation and freedom the little cabin in upstate New York afforded him. He picked his current location specifically for that particular characteristic. Why ruin the carefully cultivated environment by adding another living, breathing thing to the mix?

It didn’t dawn on him until a couple of weeks later that maybe, just maybe, Happy might’ve been right. Though there wasn’t any excess noise, or people taking up more space than necessary, Tony felt like something was missing. Well, he felt that way throughout his entire life, but it ached a little harder the longer he looked around the room and found empty spaces. Making it alone and enjoying it were too things Tony didn’t have much experience distinguishing. His entire life was about making it – a part of him wondered if he even knew what it was to enjoy anything.

The next time Tony caught Happy on the phone, he brought the topic up himself, the entire thing grating on his nerves as he spoke – anxiety and the slightest bit of hope weighing him down ever so slightly.

“So – about that dog,” Tony started with a slight hitch in his voice.

Though, he didn’t make it very far before Happy pipped up, a loud shriek of excitement radiating down the phone line between them. “I knew I could break you down! Tony, you don’t know how great of an idea this is. I told you about the border collie I rescued a few months ago, Rango – I’ve been so much happier since he came barreling into my life.”

At that point, Tony could do nothing but listen to Happy’s exuberant rambling about the foundation and how much he was going to enjoy every second of the whole experience. Before getting off the phone, Tony finally got to sneak a word in, the slightest hint of affection in his voice.

“Thanks, Hap – this was a great idea.”

Of course, when Tony felt that bubble of scorching apprehension sitting in the bottom of his stomach, the thought of telling Happy how good of an idea it was the previous night felt like a distant memory now that he was sitting in the waiting room – twenty minutes and a few pieces of paper between him and a brand new addition to the meticulousness of his life.

Despite the anxiety about the whole process, finding the dog for him was surprisingly easy. After wringing his hands for what felt like an eternity, Tony was led back to the kennels by a smiling tech, the girl’s hair swinging from one side of her head to the other as she walked. Deciding that the tranquility of the motion was much more soothing, Tony watched the pendulum of it the entire way, his heart slowing down to a manageable level by the time he could hear yips and barks.

“Alright, Mr. Stark – this is the crew. Our vet and dog trainer, Peter, does a good job with their training, but they get a little excitable when they meet someone new – don’t let it overwhelm you.” The tech said all of this with a smile, her eyes flashing with a certain affection that all dog people shared – there really wasn’t anything like wet doggy kisses and fluff under the palm of his hand.

Taking a couple of steps into the pin, Tony was immediately swarmed. Though the dogs didn’t try and take him off his feet, each one nudged and pushed in an attempt to get closer to him – all, of course, except one. With his hands down, Tony let his fingers brush against soft fur, the mere contact enough to calm down all of the raging anxiety within him. Using the newfound confidence, Tony pushed through the group until he was standing in front of the one dog that hung back.

“That’s Bo – he’s our resident shy guy.”

Tony crouched down then, a soft smile on his face. “Hi, Bo,” he muttered softly, his hand extending so that the back of it was on offer for sniffs and introductions. A soft nose touched his skin a moment later, Bo’s head ducking to take him in. As if something clicked in that small moment of contact, Bo took a few steps forward until his body pressed against Tony, the pressure something collies were known for. Sucking in a breath, Tony let the grin on his face grow – it seemed as if he found his dog.

The process of getting Bo home wasn’t all that complicated. Since he was a trained service dog, Tony decided to sign up for the training course the foundation’s vet put on – if the dog was trained, the least Tony could do was get on board and train himself, too. The tech shot him a coy smile as she continued to talk up the vet – Tony knew he was missing something but went along with it all the same. Having Bo’s lead pressed into his hands made it all worth it.

That happened two weeks ago – two weeks in which Tony took a break from his editing duties in a desperate attempt to find a rhythm with his new pal, to fall in line with the demands of not only caring for himself efficiently, but the newest addition, too. It started off a little slow, both Tony and Bo trying to figure out where they fit with each other. Yet, as the days past, Tony felt a sort of comfortability settle between them. Tony liked the warmth pressed against his leg at night and Bo seemed to enjoy the hour long walks they took to taking later in the evening when the sky burst with color and painted the most serene of pictures.

In fact, things were starting to go so well that Tony completely forgot the dog training courses he signed himself up for. The text message reminder he asked for during the paperwork process reminded him the night before and then again, a few hours before the class was set to take place. At the time, signing up for the training seemed like a good idea. He wanted to know everything he could about Bo’s care, but he didn’t factor in the need to actually get out of his house and make the journey back into the public domain. He already made the monthly pilgrimage to get the dog.

Still unsure, Tony clicked Bo into his lead and left the house, anyway. He paid the fee to get the information, the least he could do was make an attempt to actually go (even if leaving the comfort of his house physically felt like the most impossible challenge to date). Getting out the door with Bo by his side made it all a little easier, though he hated to admit it. Giving in to the idea would mean that Happy was right; and he hated giving his old friend any sort of kudos, even if he deserved them.

Grinning with that thought in mind, Tony climbed into the car and let Bo get settled before backing out and making the ten-minute drive into the little town that surrounded his mecca of isolation. In the wintertime, when the roads were covered with snow and ice, the trek was almost impossible (and that was how Tony liked it). With a couple of minutes to spare, Tony relaxed back into the driver’s seat, his head turning to catch Bo’s glance.

“We can do this, right bud? It’ll be okay. We can survive the masses for a little while.” Tony ran his fingers through soft hair as he spoke. The dog pressed into his hand then, Tony understanding that was as much of an answer as he was going to get. Sucking in a deep breath, Tony nodded, let his fingers pass through Bo’s fur a couple more times, and turned off the car. By the time they got out of the vehicle, Tony was right on time.

Things were fine until Tony actually walked into the door. Instead of the big group he expected, there were two other dog owners and their pups idling around. There was the smallest bit of chatter happening, but no overwhelming noise like he initially thought there’d be. The front area of the waiting room was transformed into a large empty space, the coffee table and chairs obviously moved elsewhere. The sudden anxiety of being in a crowd dissipated easily; Bo nudged his hand, looking towards the other dogs in the room.

Before he could get his lead off and release him into the company of the other pups, a door opened, and all of the oxygen was pulled out of the room. When Cindy, the tech he worked with when he first got Bo, mentioned the vet, Tony immediately thought of someone older with graying hair and a soft smile. Instead, he was met with a young man with shoulder length hair, well-kept facial hair, and the brownest eyes Tony could remember ever seeing. They were deep and open, smooth in a way that Tony wanted to dive in and learn all of the secrets kept within them.

Bo gave a little huff then, Tony’s hand still gripping the dog’s collar (probably very tightly now that the entire world moved the second he saw the most handsome man to ever exist). Loosening his grip, Tony tried to swallow the lump that quickly grew in his throat. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt such an instant connection and immediately cursed Happy for this amazing burst of good fortune. A dog and a handsome man all within the same month – how could he ever handle the load of anxiety and excitement that threatened to overwhelm him?

Things got started not long after that, the abrupt nature of it allowing Tony to forget about his little dilemma for the entirety of the hour – an hour in which Tony watched Doctor Peter Parker talk about the facets of dog training, the man every so often running a hand through his hair as he spoke about the ins and outs of companion dogs and their mannerisms. By the time the training came to an end, Tony couldn’t decide if he liked Peter’s beauty or the brain that held so much knowledge more.

After finishing up and getting Bo clipped back into his lead, Tony stood idly around, wondering what the protocol for chatting up the teacher was. Like he understood Tony’s apprehension, Bo pulled him forward, the length of the leash allowing him to get a few steps ahead without Tony noticing. Looking up when he felt the tug, Tony rolled his eyes, a small smirk overtaking his lips. It was like Bo and Happy were conspiring against him – both pushing him in the direction he knew he needed to take.

Walking after Bo, Tony tried to play it cool when the sexy vet, Dr. Peter Parker, turned and dropped his hand for the dog to smell, a smile slipping across his gorgeous cheeks.

“Hi, buddy. I heard that you got adopted,” Peter said softly, his words for the dog and dog alone. When he looked up, Tony felt his heart stutter – they’d been within the same proximity all night, this feeling overtaking him each time they so much as caught eyes. With him so close, Tony could see the slightest upturn of his nose and the long lashes that enhanced the deep chocolate of his dreamy eyes.

“You must be the new owner – I’m happy to see you’re going to keep up his training. Bo’s been one of my best students since he came to stay with us.” Peter paused then, a hand slipping out between them. “I’m Peter – Peter Parker.”

Without hesitation, Tony gripped Peter’s hand, a shy smile dimpling his cheek, the red of his patented blush filling in the dip of his cheek. “Tony Stark,” he replied softly, his fingers squeezing Peter’s in a snug embrace. “I’m always behind continuing education.”

The answering grin just about knocked Tony on his ass, Peter’s cheeks crinkling at the corners with the quirk of his lips. “I like the sound of that. Does that mean I’ll see you next week?” He bent down then, running a hand through Bo’s hair – “and this little guy, too.”

“You bet – I signed up for the weekly course. I’m new to the whole dog owner thing, I thought I should get a little training for myself, too.” Tony felt his blush creep further down his face, his neck now in flames with the moving heat. “I kind of don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Looked okay to me,” Peter said quickly, his eyes flashing with something Tony couldn’t quite pinpoint. “But – I’m committed to making the best out of our dogs and their owners as I can. Take this.” He dug in his pocket for a second before producing a business card, the blocky Doctor Peter Parker across the front apparent and confident, much like the man handing it to him. “Give me a call if you find yourself not knowing what to do. I can make a house call.”

Unable to keep the dopey grin from overtaking his face, Tony pocketed the card and made up as good of an excuse to leave as he could. Aside from Happy and now Bo, Tony didn’t have many beings he felt comfortable with. Yet, standing in front of Peter those short few minutes, Tony felt good – strong and confident in a way that didn’t happen often – hadn’t happened in such a long time.

In a desperate attempt to save himself from further embarrassment (and a probable cardiac episode with all of the blood rushing straight to his face), Tony made a hasty exit, Bo’s leash clasped tightly in his hands.

“I’d say that went pretty well, huh boy?” Tony mumbled in Bo’s direction, his hand burying itself in soft fur as he spoke.

In his signature style, Bo pressed his body back into Tony’s hand, the movement answer enough.

----

Over the next couple of weeks, Tony went out of his way to ignore the card sitting on his workshop desk – the shiny block letters of Peter’s name almost taunting him every time they caught his eye. He went to their weekly training sessions, blushed his way through them, and attempted to not make a total fool of himself whenever he got the chance to speak to Peter. With each new time Tony saw the man, his crush got a little more serious – so serious in fact, Tony found himself doodling Peter’s initials all over the draft he needed to edit before the end of the week.

The childish nature of the feeling inside of him was new – throughout his young life, Tony didn’t have much time to let butterflies settle in his stomach, or impossible feelings overtake him. He was too busy surviving. Now, as a grown ass adult, Tony found himself grinning every time his heart raced, and his palm started to sweat when Peter came to mind. It should’ve rocked him to his core, the idea of wasting brain bytes on anything but the normal – but it didn’t; instead, Tony found himself with more energy and the companionship of a smile he didn’t really know existed.

By the fourth week of classes, Tony was feeling kind of desperate. He knew walking into the office later that night, Bo would get the best training and in between the commands and tricks, Tony got to have his fill, too. Yet, as the days past and the thoughts of Peter multiplied themselves in his brain, Tony wanted more. Of course he did – Peter’s smile lit up the room and the mere presence of the man, whether in his thoughts or in person, could make all the bad thoughts go away. No one, not even Happy, gave him such a feeling of comfortability.

Sighing, Tony forced down the thoughts, his brain mentally preparing to pine from a far, instead. With a rare free moment from his editing work, Tony decided to head to the workshop and work on his latest piece of woodwork. Though he kept his name from the business and picked drop-off places far from his home, Tony enjoyed his carpentry immensely – it didn’t hurt that the extra source of income brought him a lucrative cushion in which to fall onto when the book work got a little slow. The habit started as stress relief and managed to stay that way, despite the demand his work continued to foster.

Since bringing Bo home, the dog would follow Tony down the steep hill into the workshop, his tail wagging furiously the entire time they spent down there. Tony didn’t know what he did to have access to such a level-headed pet, but he was thankful for it – Bo didn’t have many demands and those that did exist were easy to carry out and minimally demanding. Nothing beat the companionship, though – Bo’s presence brought a new element to his life – no matter how reluctant he was to admit it to himself or Happy when he asked for the fiftieth time during their next phone call.

It took a few minutes for the two of them to get settled in, Tony adjusted the temperature and placed Bo’s bed a little closer to the source of heat. It didn’t hurt that the pup would be within reaching distance if Tony suddenly found the need for comfort, either. When he felt ready, Tony started the soothing rhythm of sanding his latest project – the edges of the table would come together nicely once he finished the little detail work.

He looked up every so often to make sure Bo wasn’t getting into anything, his eyes moving from one side of the workshop to the other at least a couple times every few minutes. Catching some movement out of the corner of his eye, Tony put down the sander, dusted himself off, and pulled the goggles from his face, a small grin slipping up his cheeks. “What are you up to, Bo?” Tony asked, a curiousness in his voice as he watched the dog walk to the front of the workshop and then back, his snoot down towards the floor until he was suddenly pressed up against Tony.

Leaning down, Tony ran his hands through the soft fluff on the top of Bo’s head, taking the moment to simply enjoy the feeling of the hair in his hands. As his head was pet, Bo looked up at him, the dog’s purpose of the walk to the front of the room now obvious – Peter Parker’s card was between Bo’s teeth, his slobber making the corners turn in on themselves.

“Hey, how’d you get that?” Tony gave Bo a cursory pat before taking the card from his mouth, his index finger tracing the raised edges of Peter’s name despite the sticky spit coating the entire thing. Shaking his head, Tony couldn’t help but laugh – in all his years, he never saw such an act of unsubtlety, and he was best friends with the biggest oaf of them all. He flicked the back of the card for a moment, then made a decision – if the dog, who only knew him for a few weeks, thought he needed to do this, the least Tony could do was try.

“Alright, I get it. I should’ve done this a couple of weeks ago, I know.”

The answering huff from Bo stole a laugh from his chest, his eyes glowing with affection, despite the apprehension that tried to pull him under as the seconds past.

Card in hand, Tony pulled out his phone and went about plugging in the number – he couldn’t decide whether he wanted to give Peter a call or simply send him a text message, so he allowed himself to dawdle while he made the final decision. After thumbing out a couple of messages that sounded ridiculous, Tony said fuck it and hastily pressed the audio button. By the time Tony felt the need to back out, the call was three rings in – the sound of Peter’s voice answering on the fourth ring really driving the finality of the situation home.

“Hi! I hope Siri got it right and this is Tony Stark,” Peter answered cheerily, the few short words already working to drive Tony crazy.

Sucking in a barely audible breath, Tony forced himself to speak, his words coming out rushed for just a moment. “Hi – yeah, it’s me. I mean, Tony Stark. Hi.”

He slapped himself for the awkwardness, Tony’s heart pounding so damn hard against his chest. “You said I could give you a call if I ever needed any help. Well, I need some help.” The whole thing was lame, and he needed to come up with a problem with the perfect Bo in the mater of moments, but it seemed worth it – Peter’s voice was so warm coming down the line.

“I did say that and would love to help. Can it wait until I see you this evening? Or should I get in the truck now and head your way?”

Tony drew his lip between his teeth, hazel eyes looking around the workshop and then down at Bo – his voice stuck in his throat. Coming to his rescue for the hundredth time, Bo leaned his body weight against him, the dog’s cold nose pressing against the back of his hand. Whatever it meant, Tony felt the instant bit of comfort radiating from the collie. “Bo’s been getting into some of the stuff around my workshop. I hoped you could come and decide how to best doggy proof everything.”

Bo looked up at him then, his body weight still pressing against Tony, his eyes glaring back at him as if he actually understood the words coming out of his mouth. Grinning, Tony gave his pup a soft pat against his head, fingers lingering in the soft fur. Despite the small white lie, Tony felt pretty good about his invitation – in the weeks since getting Bo, he did mean to accident proof a few things in his workshop. Bo didn’t get into things or hadn’t up until that point; but he wanted to feel good about it, anyway. It didn’t hurt that it gave a perfectly good excuse to have Peter come out his way.

The rhythmic voice of Peter brought him out of his thoughts, Tony catching the tail end of “give me your address and I’ll be right out.”

Shaking himself, Tony managed to babble out his address and the needed directions to get to his driveway after turning off the main road. He hoped, probably for the first time in his life, that this certain someone would find him, despite the self-brought upon isolation. Not everyone could handle his way of living, his need for space, hell – the amount of space he surrounded himself with was an obstacle in and of itself.

Bo, having sensed the shift in his thoughts, pressed his wet nose against the inside of Tony’s wrist, the sensory shift bringing him back to his workshop, the smell of shaved wood sitting in his nostrils an instant comfort. Looking around, Tony moved a couple of paces to his right, his hands running over the surface of his workspace to brush the sawdust off – the rest of the place was relatively well put together; Tony’s OCD didn’t allow him to keep much clutter when he was working.

Unable to remain idle while he waited for Peter to arrive, Tony picked up one of his tools and got to work on some of the small detail work at the edge of his almost put together table. The person commissioning the piece liked Celtic knots, so he distracted his nervous belly with the soothing movement of the design flowing from his fingertips.

It wasn’t until the crunch of tires on the road outside could be heard that Tony came out of his zone – his mind actually feeling clear after his little departure from the there and now. Sucking in a cleansing breath, Tony brushed himself and the table off once more before grabbing Bo’s lead and clipping him in. They stepped out of the workshop right as Peter got down from the cab of his truck, the door closing behind him.

“This is a gorgeous place,” Peter said, an open and honest smile slipping across his cheeks. His gorgeous eyes roamed over the land he could see, a look of wonder overtaking them. “I’ve never seen such a thickness of trees before.”

Letting his own smile slip, Tony let Bo pull him forward, the dog leading their way over to where Peter was standing a few feet away. “I had to chop a lot of them down when I first bought the land. Most of what used to stand makes up my house,” Tony replied softly, one of his hands moving to point to the log cabin he built from the ground up.

“That’s even more impressive. Did you construct everything out here?” By then, his eyes were on his workshop, the size of the building almost the same as the main house.

“The workshop was the first thing I got up and running. I moved out here about ten years ago – the hustle and bustle of the city was just too much. It’s quiet out here; lots of room to open up and breathe, y’know?” Tony narrowed the distance between them then, their shoulders knocking as the space was filled. “Come on – I’ll give you a tour.”

As they walked around, Tony told Peter about the process of getting the buildings together and all of the man-hours it took to make everything just right. They looked around the workshop and came up with simple solutions to the doggy-proofing problem, both men more than aware of the rouse Tony used to get Peter there. By the time they made it back to Peter’s truck, several hours were behind them. Tony’s face hurt from the permanent smile that wouldn’t disappear, despite his internal pleading; the last thing he wanted to do was look even more overeager than he already did. Their chemistry was amazing, he wasn’t going to deny that after multiple hours of seamless conversation.

Without the lead clipped to his collar, Bo walked around them as they milled around Peter’s open truck door, his tail occasionally brushing against Tony’s arm. The small comfort of the contact kept Tony in the moment, his eyes watching Peter’s every move – despite not getting along with most humans, Tony could read them impeccably well; facial expressions and body movements said so many things the individual didn’t.

Like, for instance, the shuffling of keys from hand to hand, or soulful brown eyes glancing down at Tony’s lips every couple of seconds. From the moment Peter gave him his card and mentioned house calls, Tony understood that there was interest there. Over the last few weeks of attending classes and catching a little bit of conversation before running for dear life, Tony could feel Peter’s attraction growing; the feeling so much like his own that it took until that very moment to separate his want from what he could feel rolling off of Peter.

In that moment, Tony felt a firmer grasp on what he wanted – what he’d been craving since the very first time he saw the vision that was Peter. Narrowing the space down between them, Tony caught Peter’s eye, his hand reaching to grasp the narrow hip in front of him. Peter nodded at him, the slightest blush rushing to the apple of his cheeks. Tony let his fingers grip the dark blue jeans sitting enticingly on Peter’s hips, the tips of them digging in ever so slightly.

“Is this okay?” Tony mumbled, the rest of his body already following his hand’s path, all of him so excited to finally feel the press of Peter against him.

Instead of answering, long fingers made their way into the hair on the back of Tony’s neck, Peter’s nails scraping his scalp slightly – the feeling of it all almost overwhelming.

Peter closed the space between them, his nose brushing against Tony’s. “I’ve wanted this since the second I saw you – you were so shy, but so gorgeous. Your salt and pepper hair and notice-me-not smile; I’m surprised we made it this long.” Without another word, both men shifted, their lips meeting for what felt like the only kiss that would ever matter to Tony ever again. A soft noise slipped from his chest, the feeling of total contentment too much to keep bottled deep within. Unlike the rest of his feelings, Tony wanted to revel in this one; he wanted to keep it at the forefront and hang on to it for as long and as tightly as he could.

The way Peter tilted his head to deepen the kiss had Tony moving into his space even more, the needed to have every piece of their bodies pressed together almost too much. Tony let another noise spill from him, the press of chest to chest something he didn’t remember missing. Peter was obviously fit, his jeans hugged his ass and thighs in the best of ways, and the solid color button downs he wore highlighted the narrowness of his hips and the tight chisel of his chest. Yet, Tony hadn’t imagined how right that firmness would feel – how, now pressed together from head to toe, Tony could picture everything between them with clarity. His brain felt fuzzy with the thought (and probably the lack of oxygen, too). Pulling back, he let his lips linger against Peter’s, their breaths harsh and ragged between them.

The next moment, a shrill bark had them jumping apart, both Peter and Tony looking exasperatedly at the dog currently wagging his tail, looking slightly like the true victor. Tony rolled his eyes, an affectionate huffing breath falling from his lips.

“You’re right, Bo – it is about time.”

Tony turned back to Peter then, his hands clenching against the rough jean fabric. “He is right, right?” Tony questioned, the barest look of hope taking up residence in his eyes.

Grinning, Peter pulled him back into a chaste kiss, their lips barely touching before he pulled away. A soft thumb swept along Tony’s cheek then, the skin barely tickling the edge of day-old stubble. His smile grew when Tony met his eyes, the touch just reassuring enough.

“He hasn’t been wrong yet.”

#starker #you'll look at me with eyes that see #and i'll be your lover too #bobbie writes #Peter Parker/Tony Stark

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surveys-at-your-service · 3 years

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Survey #335

“on my forehead, a birthmark / remove it with the kiss of a knife / even if it causes me to die”

Do you recover well from surgery? Judging by the two surgeries I've had, oh yeah. I was hyper as hell when I came home from getting tubes put in my ears as a little kid, even though the doctor said I'd be very sleepy. Then, after my cyst removal, I was put on very strong painkillers but was still warned it was going to be a painful recovery, when it totally wasn't. I literally only took painkillers the first day. What addictions have you had? Caffeine, technology. Would you change your name if you became famous? Nah. If Cupid were real, would you hire him to make someone love you? No. I don't want somebody forced to love me. Ever been to an auction? No. Which word(s) do you generally use to describe someone attractive? (e.g. “fit”, “sexy”) It kinda varies with gender. Women I tend to call "beautiful" or "gorgeous," sometimes "hot" or "cute," while men I usually refer to as "handsome" or "hot"/"sexy." The last person you kissed - are they older or younger than you? She's a bit younger. When was the last time someone wanted you to do something, and you refused? Hm. I dunno. I have a hard time saying "no," so. When was the last time you had Pop Tarts? What flavour were they? Many months ago; I kinda stopped eating them because they're truly not filling and just a load of sugar that veils itself as an actual breakfast choice. But anyway, I liked the chocolate sundae ones. Have you ever felt a temperature below 0? No. Did you ever play Spyro? I LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!! SPYRO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those games were my CHILDHOOD, and it's half the reason I'm dying for a PS4 to play the remastered trilogy. Speaking of which, it'd be awesome if they remade the The Legend of Spyro trilogy as well. I might just like those games more than the originals, but that's a bold statement I'm unsure about. Have you ever dated someone who was of a foreign origin? I dated a Hispanic guy for less than a day. Have you ever read any of your idols’ books/autobiographies? Ozzy Osbourne's, yes. I'm just fucking waiting for Mark to write one, but he's always said he has so little interest in writing about his life. DO IT, YOU FUCK. Do you own any succulents? No. I think they're pretty, though. Do you have a drone? No. What’s your favorite Netflix series? *shrug* What is something a lot of people like but you don’t? Summertime. The heat, the humidity (at least here), the sunburn from just standing outside for ten minutes... I hate all of it. The ONLY two things I enjoy about summer is swimming and then flowers, though spring is the more floral season here anyway. Do you have revenge fantasies that you never actually play out? They've... happened. Did your first real significant other change you at all? Pretty sure forever. Are you waiting to have sex until you’re married? Once upon a time, that was the plan. Now, nah. I'd just want to be in a healthy, stable, and long-term relationship. What do you think about divorce? It's sad, but necessary for some people in order to be happy, which everyone has the right to be. I used to be very firmly against divorce except in extreme cases like abuse, etc., and I'm still definitely no fan of it and think couples should do their best to work things out, but it's incredibly unfair to believe that someone should be stuck for the rest of their life with a person they just don't love anymore. Getting married can be a mistake; don't damn people forever to be chained to their bad decisions. Do you remember the first time your heart broke? What was the reason? It was probably when Dad just abandoned us. What's the worst prank someone has ever done to you? I don't think anyone's ever pulled a sick joke on me. Have you ever seen someone sleepwalk? Yes; my little sister deadass tried to walk outside late at night. Thank God I was on the computer in the living room and stopped her. What song are you listening to right now? I just turned "Mutter" by Rammstein on. When is the last time you cursed? I'm not re-reading, but I have probably cursed fifty times in this survey already. It's so deeply ingrained into my vocabulary. Are there any words on your shirt? No; it's just a plain gray tank top. Why do you forward forwards? I never do because they annoy the fuck out of me. How many people are you interested in at the moment? Just one in a healthy and logical way. I can't be truly interested in Jason because like come on I haven't spoken to him in four whole years. My PTSD just ensures I never forget the memory of who he was, who probably no longer even exists. I mean, look how much I'VE changed in four years. Do you know any mechanical stuff about cars? Nnnnope. Who was the last person (apart from family) that you spent time with? What did you get up to? Apart from family, I have no idea. If you have pets, when was the last time one of them got on your nerves? Venus never does, but Roman can get on my nerves sometimes when I don't let him lay on me when I'm on the laptop in bed. He's a large cat (not overweight, just a big male cat) and blocks the screen big time unless he lies down properly, which he doesn't always do. He still tends to win when he tries to come over, but sometimes I'll block him with my arm, and this spoiled brat will actually slap it a few times before walking away lmao. Would you rather live in a house with a swimming pool or an indoor cinema? Absolutely a pool. I want one badly. Do you own a credit card? If so, do you currently owe any money on it? Could you afford to pay it off tomorrow if necessary? No. How many hours of sleep do you typically get each night? Is that enough to function or would you rather have more? Especially lately, I don't get nearly enough. Like at the time I'm answering this question, it's 4 AM, and I've been up for almost a couple hours. I struggle with falling asleep, I will ALWAYS wake up at least once in the night, and I jerk awake from nightmares regularly still. It's a big reason why I pretty much require naps. Does your house have a loft/basement? Are they functional or do you just use them for storage? We only have an attic. Do you suffer from road rage? What kind of thing tends to set you off or wind you up while driving? No. I'm way too timid of a driver to get that outwardly pissy about stupid people. I'd just judge them in silence, haha. What kind of animal did you last see in the wild? Is that a common sight where you live? Because of just how common they are, I'm going to assume this excludes birds, in which case it was probably a squirrel? Yeah, the normal brown ones are common. Do you post a lot on social media? If so, what kind of thing do you tend to post on there? Since I was fucking stupid enough to post a suicide note on Facebook (I don't want to hear a goddamn thing about "attention seeking," I genuinely wanted to say goodbye), I almost never, ever, share things about my personal life. Even before, it was rare for me to actually share what's going on with me. All I really do now is share relatable, wholesome, or funny shit I find, as well as political things I'm in firm agreement with. What are some habits you have in common with your parents? I pace like my dad, and it drives people crazy because it apparently makes them anxious? I can't think of an obvious one I have with Mom, but I'm sure one exists. Where's your favourite place to swim - the ocean, a pool, river, lake etc? I feel safest and most clean in a pool, but c'mon, swimming in the ocean is so much fun. When you're saving your place in a book, do you use a bookmark or fold your pages down? Or something else? It depends on the book, it seems. Especially if someone else owns it, like in school or something. Is any part of your body hurting at the moment? Is there a specific incident that caused the pain? My legs always hurt. I've shared enough as to why; it wasn't an actual, singular "incident." What was the last thing to make you laugh out loud? OH MY FUCKING GOD. So in group therapy the other day, one of the girls had her bearded dragon out, and he was being aggressive. I think he tried to bite her aND SHE SAID WITHOUT REALIZING HER MIC WAS ON, "fucking dickhead," and everyone d i e d. She's a really cool chick, I'll miss her when I'm finished with PHP. Who was the last person you heard sing? Myself, surprisingly enough. I barely ever sing. Do you bite your lips a lot? Yes, especially when they're dry. .-. What part of your body would you never get pierced? Anyone who gets a piercing "down there" has a greater pain tolerance than this bitch right here. Have you ever dated someone with tattoos? Juan had quite a few. I don't remember if Tyler did... but I think maybe a The Legend of Zelda-related one? Have you ever failed gym in school? No. Are you scared of dogs? No; I love dogs. What is the saddest movie you’ve ever seen? Man, idk, I'm a little bitch when it comes to emotional movies. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is high up there, as is of course Johnny Got His Gun. Old Yeller, too. Which one of your friends is most likely to be famous one day? Why? Sara's gonna write a fuckin book series ok you can't convince me otherwise. What is the worst present you have ever gotten? Damn dude, what an ungrateful question. I'm just appreciative someone even thought TO give me something. Do you shave your arms? My armpits, yes, but not my arms themselves. How many people have you dated? I only count three as even remotely serious: Jason, Sara, and Girt. Have you ever performed in a play? I remember back in Sunday school as a tiny kid I played Mother Mary in one we did in class. Do you chew gum? I have been more lately since my doc upped the dosage of one of my mood stabilizers (which I think is actually helping); I mention that because apparently a side effect is dry mouth, and it's the fucking Sahara in there. He advises those who deal with it to always carry around hard candy or something like that for the sake of forcing salivation, so gum works for me. How old were you when you first started dating? I was in the 7th grade when I had my first "boyfriend," but it was total puppydog love. I started dating my first "real" bf when I was just shy of 16. Are/were your parents strict? Dad, no. Mom, only to a degree that I feel was pretty reasonable. She only ever wanted to prepare us to be functional, independent adults. Didn't work so well on me though, ha... Do you wear glasses? Yes. God, I need new ones. I'm blind as hell. What do you miss most about your childhood? Being so outgoing and happy to just be weird lil me. Do you write “To-Do” lists? Not really, no, but I do have notes on my phone about a couple things, like a bulleted list of planned monetary investments by importance, as well as a list of drawing ideas. Do you have a favorite quote? What is it? I don't, really. There's loads I like, but no one favorite. Could you survive as a vegetarian? I pretty desperately want to, but I don't know if it's realistic. I am so, SO picky, and without meat, it's very questionable as to where I'd get an adequate source of protein. I still want to try again though once I'm at my goal weight. Has anyone ever asked you for your autograph? Lol no. Has someone of the opposite sex ever told you that you were sexy? Yeah, but that was a looong time ago when I was actually some semblance of pretty. Do you prefer to take your showers at night or in the morning? I used to be someone who firmly stood by nighttime showers, but now I'm all about them in the morning. It's a nice way to wake up and start the day with productivity. Could you handle living with a male roommate? I mean, I lived with my then-boyfriend once, but I'm going to assume you'd consider him more than a "roommate." We lived with our two other friends, though, also a couple, and I was totally fine with living with them. Has anyone taken their shirt off in front of you? Yes. Do you like Freddy Krueger? His concept is very scary, but all the movies I've seen bits of have always been super cheesy. Which do you prefer, Naruto or One Piece? I haven't seen either and really aren't interested. What do you think of Rob Zombie? I've never really watched his movies, but I'm a fan of his music. What’s you fetish? I don't have one. Have you ever been in the “friend zone?" Well, what I'd call a "fake" one with Jason after the breakup until I was blocked on Facebook. I know now he absolutely did not want to be friends; he was trying to appease me. Is the area you live in more liberal or conservative? Definitely conservative. Do you know anyone who had to have tubes put in their ears as a baby? Yeah, me. Were either of your parents baptized? I'm certain Mom was, but idk about Dad. I think so. The last concert that you were at, was there a mosh pit? No. What was the last computer game that you played? World of Warcraft. Does your bathroom have a theme to it? No. Are any rooms in your house themed? No. What was the last thing that you recorded? I think Mom and I singing "happy birthday" to my late dog Teddy; we knew it would be his last. Do you like the show Futurama? Not really. Have you ever been in a choir class? I was in the elementary school chorus, as well as the choir at my childhood church. Are you ashamed of any of your family members? No, only myself. Were you a chubby child? No. Did you ever have senior photos done? No, even though I wanted them. Who is the person you dislike the most? God, this is so petty... but it's the girl Jason dated after me. I know it's childish as hell to feel like she "took" him from me, and I just feel this horrible hatred towards her that is entirely uncalled for. I just can't get myself to move past it. Do you take part in paying the bills for your household? No, as I'm unemployed and also don't have disability, so I literally can't. How do you usually celebrate New Years? I really don't do much. Sometimes Mom will grab a pack of daiquiris, but that's pretty much the extent of it. Does the place you work have music playing? What sort? N/A What was the last job interview you went to? At a local grocery store to work in the deli. Got the job, lasted there for not even two hours. :^) Do you know anyone with autism, mood disorders or learning disabilities? Autism and mood disorders, yes. I myself may have high-functioning Asperger's (yes, I know that term doesn't technically exist anymore, it's just the umbrella term of "autism," but w/e). Have you ever had an immediate relative pass away of cancer? My grandmother died of pancreatic cancer, and it's pretty much guaranteed that, unless there's some sudden accident, my mom will die of cancer, too. Hers got too bad to entirely eliminate every trace of cancer cells, so it will inevitably re-emerge at some point, just obviously some place else given that she had a total hysterectomy. Would you rather work in an office, warehouse or on a retail shop floor? Office. Are you a fan of sweet, sour, salty, or savory snacks? I enjoy all of those, but sour I think tops the list.

#survey #surveys #questions #lyrics: ''mutter'' by rammstein

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horoyois · 4 years

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the heavy-handed husband | knj

pairing: reader x namjoon

word count: 883

genre: fluff

summary: you have to explain to your husband how things work in his own house. part of a series of quarantine events.

a/n: this is the official opening for quarantine week with lum! seven days, seven drabbles (hopefully hehe), seven sweet boys. there’s a Friend’s reference in this one, i think is pretty obvious, but jic you fint that dialogue weird. as always, thank you so much for reading and please don’t be a silent reader!

“Baby, where do we have the spray thingy we normally use to clean the bathtub?”

You sigh. It’s the eleventh time your husband asks something alike in the last thirty minutes. This is getting annoying for several reasons now. For starters, with we he means you, because he doesn’t normally do chores. Main reason of why he’s absolutely clueless right now.

Quarantine has been wonderful… marriage-wise. You’ve spent a lot of time with Namjoon, time you normally lack. You’re finally done with that Netflix show you two have been trying to finish since last year. You two have been planting and gardening together to help you connect with nature. You’ve spent an entire day cuddling in bed, although Namjoon was not especially keen on that. Your quarantine checklist has been getting shorter as days pass, and you have been dreading this day since you two decided how to manage your locked up days.

When Namjoon proposed confidently that you should “totally do a spring-cleaning together” you knew this would happen. You don’t blame him at all, he’s a busy man and your job gives you freedom enough to take charge of the house and all that it involves. And you don’t mind, really, because you are all for that homey shit. Yes you do the cooking, yes you do the cleaning.

What really gets into your nerves, though, is absolute negligence. And that’s the only thing your husband has been portraying since he burnt the toast and the toaster this morning. You’ve been explaining thoroughly how do you usually clean the house, and not only has he retained an entire 1% of the information you gave him, but he’s also doing whatever the fuck he wants with your cleaning products. And you can’t have that. Not on this household.

“You mean the bathtub cleaner?” You’re being mean and he notices. He exists the bathroom, glasses sliding slightly down his nose, sweatshirt sleeves rolled up and shorts letting his thighs all out. Why does this motherfucker have to be so sexy and so annoying at the same time? And you married him. He looks surprised and you get even more annoyed because he shouldn’t be this cute while I’m angry at him. “It’s right where I told you yesterday that we have all the cleaning supplies? What are you using it for?”

“I was gonna use it for the sink since you told me that-”

“I told you that it is specifically for the shower, Namjoon. Not the sink, not the toilet. The shower and the bathtub only.”

He furrows his brows and looks at you, “Why are you being so bitchy, don’t do that,” He runs to you with the used cloth on his hand, droplets of dirty water finding their way to your newly-cleaned parquet floor. His long arms round your waist, pulling you closer, and he kisses your hair gently, “See? We’re bonding.”

You have decided to commit murder.

“Listen, Joonie,” You’re pushing him gently to get him off you. This way you can look him directly into the eyes and let him see that you’re not that mad, just a little bit annoyed. You wish he’d appreciate your effort to sound soft. You should really work better on that, though. “I love you with all my heart, but your big clumsy ass is getting on my big neat freak ass’ way.” He stifles a laugh with the back of his hand. “I don’t mind explaining you how do we do things around here at all, but please, no free will on my cleaning routine. I don’t like things clean, I like them Monica clean, and I know you get what I mean. So now sit your juicy ass down and watch me clean, I’m pretty sure I look sexy while I’m at it, and maybe later we can water plants together between tender kisses and actually bond without exalting my murderous instincts.”

He opens his eyes widely at your discourse, and decides to protect his marriage (and life) by doing as you say and sitting down on the sofa. He watches as you bee line around the house with a thousand and thirty different products, one for each corner and some. He observes amusedly and waits until you’re done. You plop yourself down right beside him and make grabby hands at him, making him laugh softly at you as he sits down a bit to let you cuddle into his chest.

“I almost died, right?”

“Absolutely.” His laugh is a little bit rougher now, as if he can’t believe how much of a freak you actually are. You hit his shoulder playfully. “Don’t laugh, murdering you would be a pain in the ass, cleaning blood stains from the rug and all.”

He snorts. After a bit more of playful banter, you both fall on a comfortable silence, exhaustion weighting on you both as you sigh softly and kiss his jaw.

“Hey,” he says in a whisper so quietly that almost gets lost in between deep breaths, “Thank you for doing this every time for us. It’s nice, you know, seeing how you work so hard to make this house feel more like a home.”

You smile sweetly and sit down a bit so you can kiss his lips.

“My pleasure, Joon”.

#kim namjoon #bts #namjoon x reader #rm #namjoon imagines #bts imagines #namjoon fluff #namjoon drabble #f: asoqe #mine

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princessnijireiki · 5 years

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I keep seeing posts + tweets about this & it's working my nerves, so I'll say my 2¢…

ppl on here are mad @ chris evans for being in "red sea diving resort" on netflix, but did not remotely have the same energy for when oscar isaac played an idf agent, so tbh I'm really not trying to hear shit abt "playing an israeli character/soldier/spy is inherently zionist & everybody should #cancel the actors."

not that I care abt this movie especially, I haven't watched it & probably won't ever bc a review I read trashed the hell out of it lmao, but y'all don't get to have it both ways… "excusing" bs y'all invented on the spot for horniness exceptions, giving pro-israel & pro jewish self-governance narratives a "pass" if and only if they're talking abt nazis like it's fucking woke™️ bingo (not that post-war politics aren't far more complicated irl when you talk abt jewish statehood and the israeli-palestinian conflict, but it's just Real Inch Resting what people support in what contexts 🤔), but then in literally Any Other Story w. these israeli characters, incl historically factual ones or ones not even about zionist politics to begin with, it's supposed to be damning for the actors or directors or whoever the visible target of the moment is to blame a whole film on…

and it's also just v funny to me what "causes" people tend to triumph vs ignore, and to what end (not palestine as a cause in and of itself but like— What Is The Goal Here, yk?), esp bc literally the last decade-plus of chris evans's superhero filmography are probably more overtly imperialist than this netflix original movie, and then also like… it just smacks again of the weird blood libel against gal gadot & how ppl on this site are still v vocally divided about her, as if sharing vs not sharing pictures of wonder woman is a political alignment (or moral alignment) compass— even for ppl who've paid to watch her movies, not sharing .gifs is considered an ethical stance one can take… it's absurd & it's wild & it keeps repeating itself…

when also with stuff like "red sea diving resort," what is the problem specifically, yk? is it that ppl don't like that it's israeli-flavored white savior heroism? does the film actually contain propaganda, or is it actually gonna have any kind of social impact, or would you just hate it for existing regardless? what are you personally doing for palestine beyond getting pissed at whiteboy actors who aren't even israeli? would this energy be better served doing literally anything else besides bitching at or about tumblr users for the "crime" of… sharing gifs of a popular white actor fresh off of a multibillion dollar set of franchises, who lots of ppl are horny for to begin with, bc he did a nude scene… where regardless of the content of the film itself, those same ppl might never engage with it beyond ogling this shirtless dude?

I'm not saying you can't hate it for whatever your personal reasons are, but it comes off like a lot of holier than thou bullshit from ppl reaching for a way to make this issue deeper than it is when it becomes an excuse to harass others— bc ultimately some dumbass netflix movie is not in any material way contributing to the oppression or suppression of the palestinian people, since all it is is a poorly executed one-dimensional drama ft chris evans in a lacefront toupee about events ~40 years ago, that's not hurting anybody.

blacklist it & move the fuck on.

#oh boy it's time for an unpopular opinion™️

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dreamingbrownie · 5 years

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Tagging games #5

I’ve been tagged by @fandom-glazed and wanted to do this anyway, so here we go! Tagging anyone who wants to do this ^__^ 1. what’s your favorite way to dress? Black all the way. I’m a fancy goth on the inside and trying (but most likely failing) on the outside. 2. If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be? Not to be so voulnerable to the people that mean a lot to me would be nice. Not getting attached so fucking fast. 3. What movie/game/etc. helps you calm down? I tend to love movies reducing me to a sobbing mess, so that doesn’t count as calming me down, does it? As for a series, I’m all for Merlin BBC at the moment which I watch unfrequently with @fandom-glazed on Netflix and usually laugh my ass off at Arthur and Merlin’s antics. :D 4. What does your room smell like? Dust, nailpolish, some tea and the slightly burnt smell of my old heaters. 5. Do you like to organize? Hell fucking no. I’m an ADD person, nope, I don’t. 6. What kind of music would you listen to if you could only choose one? German rock / gothic rock. Unheilig, Staubkind, Blutengel, Lord of the Lost, Letzte Instanz, that kind of thing. Not that either of those bands would ring a bell with most of tumblr users, I assume. 7. What song is your aesthetic? Oh man, making me choose there is mean. Ghost Love Score by Nightwish, Stand my ground by Within Temptation, Morgana by Lord of the Lost. Hard and heavy. 8. What color do you think goes best with your personality? Crimson like my hair right now, probably. 9. Do you believe in auras? Nope. 10. What do you wish you hated, but actually like? Ballet. To wish for having been introduced to how to ruin your body in the most beautiful way as a child is kind of unhealthy. 11. Vague about your crush(es) Valentin Winter / van Porcelain. That man. Go to his tumblr @valentinvanporcelaine and dare ask me again why I’m addicted to his aesthetics. 12. Is there someone you have mixed feelings towards? Yep. Not talking about specific people in my personal life here tho. 13. Talk about an AU or story you came up with Oh boy, here we go. If you get me started on my vampire novels, we’ll be here all day and I won’t even be half way finished. I adore my own characters to a decree that might be weird, I ship some of them and the main gay pair Count Louis and his life long best friend and personal vassal Chris, later Knight of Alderton, to death and writing anything with those two idiots in love soothes me so much. The main trilogy (A shimmer of Red, Black and Silver respectively) is huge (as in 200k for the first, 140k for the second and 110k as of yet for the unfinished third) but not finished yet, I’m almost there and would have been a year ago if I’d just get my arse out of the Fantastic Beasts Fandom and saunter off to writing my own stuff again. Unfortunately, Albus and Gellert own my ass at the moment and I’m overflowing with plotbunnies that won’t go away on their own. I know my mind. I need to write them all down before I get any peace at all. Lol. 14. Do you like makeup? No, not really, I like sharp-winged-eyeliner though. 15. Do you prefer space or the ocean? Ocean all the way. Space is fascinating and I’m a massive nerd for SpaceX because their projects are so promising for the future of mankind, but standing at the shore, being able to breathe properly again (asthma kid here, hi) and cry from sheer relief of hearing the waves crash against the cliff or roll onto the beach again is my life blood. I’ll have that next week again. Fucking finally. The sea soothes me so, so much and I suffer from constant longing for distance. We have a very fitting word for the feeling in German. Fernweh. Roughly translated to “I want to get far away from here so much it hurts.” Yeah, that’s the German language right there for you. 16. If you could pick any planet besides earth, where would you live? Pandora, probably. You know, three meters tall blue humanoids, a captivating nature, trees large enough to be a bother for the planet’s rotation, probably? Yeah. I’d like that very much. 17. What form of government do you like the most? (capitalism, socialism, etc.) I’m quite content with the German system of Social economy. Pure capitalism, socialism and communism are shit, don’t work in the long run and should just be abolished altogether. 18. What animal would you keep as a pet, if you could? Give me a black cat, please 19. What do you think our purpose is in the universe? To find our place between the stars, become a multi planetary species and to develop a way that’s not as destructive to the planet we inhabit. There’s a beautiful sentence that sums it all up in Interstellar from Cooper: “We might have been born on earth, but we don’t have to die here.” 20. Do you believe in god(s)? Nope. Atheist all the way. Before anyone misunderstands me, though: believe whatever you want to, I don’t judge people for their religion, it’s just so not my tea. 21. Is there a song you can’t handle listening to, even though you like it? Yep. Chasing cars by Snow Patrol. 22. What ex do you miss the most, if you have one? Mean question. I only have an ex-girlfriend and sometimes I miss her gentleness and how instantly she saw right through me, but she replaced me, we’ve been done for a bit more than five years now and I’m over her. :) 23. Do you like soft, fluffy blankets or rough/smooth blankets? Soft, fluffy blankets all the way. 24. What is your favorite thing to learn about? History. What do you think I’d study that for? :D 25. What country’s history do you find the most interesting? Man, that’s a mean one again. I’m pretty solid on English history, but I don’t know the first thing about Asian history altogether because german schools don’t teach that and we’ve got a different subject for Asian culture in university so it’s not included in my must-do-schedule too, but I’d like to learn more about it soon. 26. What do you think about genderbent ____ (insert someone here) Nope, noping right out, nopedinopenope, not my tea. At all. 27. What breakup was the hardest, if you had one? The one I had was... bad. Not talking about that here any further tho. 28. Do you have someone where you can’t decide if you like them romantically or just as a friend? A couple of weeks ago, my answer would have been yes, but I’ve got that all sorted out now. Not dwelling on it, though. It doesn’t matter. 29. What do you think about tumblr discourse? Ughhh. Exhausting most of the time. I loved the metas in the Sherlock fandom before it all fell apart and I like Fantastic Beasts metas, but people get so emotional so fast that normal discussions are all but impossible here. 30. What instrument do you wish you could master? Piano. Still salty that I’ve been forced to stop that as a child. 31. How easy is it for you to be honest? Very. I’m a very honest person and I’m shite at lying. 32. Do you have any strange interests? Fandoms, probably? xD I find fossils infinetely fascinating, anything conserning dragons (that sounds strange in context, I’m well aware that they don’t exist) and the way stars are born in large nebulas is something poetic to me. 33. Do you have any strange fears? Strange? I dunno, I’ve just about ran out of the kitched screaming at the top of my lungs when a fucking spider dropped ON MY HEAD yesterday evening, you tell me if that’s strange. Drowning would suck a lot, I guess. Anything that makes you suffocate. Nope. 34. What food do you binge on when you’re lazy? Toast with something on it. I did that in exam week last week, not because I’m lazy but because I just did not have the time or the nerves for cooking. 35. When you get angry, how do you show it? I go all quiet and drill my posture to absolute perfection until it hurts. You’ll notice when I’m mad. Seldom happens, though, I’m hard to offend. 36. Do you have any impulsive movements? (twitches, ticks, flapping, etc.) Picking fingers. Bad habit that I’m trying to get rid of. 37. What do you listen to music on? YouTube and Spotify on the PC, used my phone a massive lot for that during the summer too but now with all the layers of jackets and coats and such it’s a bit hard to stuff my large phone anywhere. 38. Are you left brained or right brained? Uhhhh what? I’m right handed, but I don’t think I have any tendencies otherwise. 39. Earbuds or headphones? Earbuds. 40. Do you like light blankets or heavy blankets? Light blankets for around the flat, heavy in bed. I’d like to be able to breathe.

#tagging games #tagging games part five #not hp

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jonathanalumbaugh · 6 years

Text

Weekly Digest

Dec 23, 2017, 4th issue.

A roundup of stuff I consumed this week. Published weekly. All reading is excerpted from the main article unless otherwise noted.

Read

When women are discussed on the main economics discussion forum, the conversation moves from the professional to the personal...

Even with generous subsidies, low-income people are still unlikely to buy health insurance...

Managers are biased negatively against minority workers, and this, in turn, makes the minority workers perform worse...

Living standards may be growing faster than GDP growth...

The World Bank’s $1-a-day poverty line inadequately deals with local context, and a better measure can be derived through more complicated math...

Decriminalizing sex work makes it safer and more common...

Poor kids who grow up in rich neighborhoods do a lot better than poor kids who grow up in poor ones...

Better trained doctors mean fewer opioid related deaths...

After a bad outcome, female surgeon’s referrals went down much more than male surgeons...

The average worker does not value an Uber-like ability to set their own schedule...

Foreign finance has led to more inequality...

Preschool programs targeted at the poor don’t work nearly as well as universal pre-school programs...

Shocks to the economy in certain sectors can have larger effects on the entire economy than previously thought...

— 13 economists on the research that shaped our world in 2017

Comments section: Pilote345 - NO WONDER: Recently, the pilots' pay was less than it was in the 1980's. They might be trying to improve, but for example, I just now found Allegiant Air found pays MD-80 1st Officers $34,440.00, not much more than the $15/hour crowd wants for starting burger flippers.

— Airlines battle growing pilot shortage that could reach crisis levels in a few years

— APOLLO 10 0N BOARD V0ICE TRANSCRIPTION

Under Schmidt’s leadership, Google notched its fair share of not-quite-not-evil missteps. After getting everyone hooked on Gmail and Search, the company started to erode some of its original privacy promises.

— Be Kind of Evil

“People want to cast it as a choice between policy or technology as a solution but those should exist hand-in-hand. We would have never gotten renewable energy prices where they are today without really ambitious public policy. It shows the importance of bold goals,” Brown says.

— California Poised To Hit 50% Renewable Target A Full Decade Ahead Of Schedule

“Keep your phone away from your body,” the state health department writes. “Although the science is still evolving, some laboratory experiments and human health studies have suggested the possibility” that typical long-term cell phone use could be linked to “brain cancer and tumors of the acoustic nerve,” “lower sperm counts,” and “effects on learning and memory.”

— California says the only safe way to talk on your cell phone is to text

Developer infatuation with Chrome is not good — because competition between browsers is good.

— Chrome is Not the Standard

The initial physical deployment of 5G networks alone could pack a major economic punch. A 2017 Accenture report forecasts the cellular communications industry will invest $275 billion in new networks, which will create up to 3 million jobs and add some $500 billion to the United States’ gross domestic product. Longer term, researchers expect the new 5G networks to help stimulate productivity growth to rates not seen since the 1950s.

— The Coming 5G Revolution

In early tests, the company claims the feature helped to reduce ghosting behavior on its service by 25 percent.

— Dating app Hinge rolls out a new feature to reduce ‘ghosting’

Liberated from the diamond and pointing calmly eastward, perhaps a designer’s pure intent is revealed—direction for an otherwise aimless walk in the woods.

— Decoding the Mysterious Markers on the Appalachian Trail

Trade the ginkgo biloba for a bag of spinach during your next stop at the store: Leafy greens may be your best resource for boosting memory... The study involved 960 people, all between 58 and 99 and without dementia. Everyone enrolled in the study was part of the Memory and Aging Project, which has been ongoing since 1979 at the Knight Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at Washington University.

— EATING SALAD EVERY DAY KEEPS BRAINS 11 YEARS YOUNGER AND PREVENTS DEMENTIA, STUDY SHOWS

— Edward Snowden on Twitter

Commander Persera swam out into intergalactic space last week, she says in a forum post, piloting a ship called the Jack of Flames. The reason for the trip is simply to go further from Sol than anyone else (a previous record was set by one Commander Deluvian, who travelled 65,652 lightyears from Sol along a similar route). But also, she says, to bring a canister of mugs from the infamous Hutton Orbital space station into the void and leave them there. Just because.

— Elite Dangerous pilots are scrambling to rescue an explorer stranded in the void between galaxies

[Eminem says] that he's not making his music for other artists who aren't fans to begin with.

— Eminem Responds to Vince Staples’ Criticism of Him

Reports so far claim the spec will offer support for low, mid, and high-band spectrum from below 1 GHz (like 600 and 700 MHz) all the way up to around 50 GHz while including the 3.5 GHz band. It’s been said that the first 5G networks for consumers will begin rolling out in 2019 and this will continue throughout 2020.

— First 5G Specification has been Declared Complete by the 3GPP

As Brian and his wife wandered off toward the No. 2 train afterward, it crossed my mind that he was the kind of guy who might have ended up a groomsman at my wedding if we had met in college. That was four years ago. We’ve seen each other four times since. We are “friends,” but not quite friends. We keep trying to get over the hump, but life gets in the way.

— Friends of a Certain Age

Comment section: Blaming Amazon for this is wrong. The people make a choice to work for them. This is an indictment on our society that forces these people to have to work. Amazon isn’t a charity that should have to take care of people. But it’s all of us who are to blame.

— A Glimpse Inside CamperForce, Amazon's Disposable Retiree Laborers

Effective filmmakers, no matter their genre or taste, put their fingers in the air, feel for a current, and then make art that either complements or pushes against it. They distill the world they live in, which is why there’s no such thing as an apolitical film.

— How Big Screen Sci-Fi and Horror Captured 2016’s Political Paranoia

The Legislative Analyst’s Office predicts California will eventually make more than $1 billion annually from taxing recreational marijuana.

— HOW RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA IN CALIFORNIA LEFT CHEMISTS IN THE DARK

What makes for an effective office environment? Random encounters with your coworkers. And food. Lots and lots of food.

— How to Build a Collaborative Office Space Like Pixar and Google

Fidelity suggests having your yearly income saved at 30, three times your income at 40, seven times your income at 55, and 10 times your income at 67.

— How Much Should You Have Saved at Every Age?

HCI (human-computer interaction) is the study of how people interact with computers and to what extent computers are or are not developed for successful interaction with human beings.

— Human-computer interaction, from University of Birmingham

The company says it is now focused on “on developing and investing in globally scalable blockchain technology solutions,” but, as reported by Bloomberg, it has exactly zero partnerships in the works with crypto firms

— Iced Tea Maker's Stock Price Triples After Adding 'Blockchain' to Name”

9 “Should you invite someone who assaulted you to your wedding.” No.

— It Came From The Search Terms: “I Can See The Sun In Late December”

The best way to cook a steak is medium rare. Plenty of people will disagree with this statement, for different reasons.

— Medium Rare: The Best Way to Cook a Steak

It sounds like it was made by an algorithm. It checks off so many boxes it could land in anyone’s “Because you watched” recommendations.

— Netflix’s first big movie “Bright” feels like a blockbuster built by an algorithm

State law that is rarely invoked requires tied elections to be settled by “lot.”

— Oyster shucking? A duel? No, Virginia will pull a name from a film canister to settle tied election

— Parents give teacher wine with son's face on label

— Reggie Watts: Fuck Shit Stack

— Reggie Watts: Humor in music

Self-efficacy is defined as a personal judgement of "how well one can execute courses of action required to deal with prospective situations".

— Self-efficacy (Wikipedia)

The problem Haven aims to address is known as an “evil maid” attack. Basically, many of the precautions you might take to protect your cybersecurity can go out the window if someone gains physical access to your device.

— Snowden's New App Turns Your Spare Android Phone into a Pocket-Sized Security System

After doing a lot of online research and making a terrible mess, I thought I could make a tutorial for humble people like me. If I can do it, you can do it too.

— The Ultimate Guide to DIY Screw Post Book Binding

The robot obediently appeared in the distance, floating next to Miller. Miller then walked into the same space as the robot and promptly disappeared. Well, mostly disappeared, I could still see his legs jutting out from the bottom of the robot. My first reaction was, “Of course that’s what happens.” But then I realized I was seeing a fictional thing created by Magic Leap technology completely obscure a real-world human being. My eyes were seeing two things existing in the same place and had decided that the creation, not the engineer, was the real thing and simply ignored Miller, at least that’s how Abovitz later explained it to me.

— We Need to Talk About Magic Leap's Freaking Goggles

What’s this mistake so many make? It’s using your current job title as your headline.

— What Your LinkedIn Headline Reveals About Your Self-Confidence At Work

With the Dec. 14 repeal, Comcast and others will be able to charge content companies exorbitant fees without, technically, blocking. This fundamentally changes how the internet works, argues Ryan Singel, a fellow at the Center for Internet and Society at Stanford Law School.

— What will happen now that net neutrality is gone? We asked the experts

The story [Cat Person] stuck with me because I, too, have felt like the story’s main character, Margot. I have belittled myself to make a man in a vulnerable situation feel more comfortable. I have allowed myself to spend time with boys who I did not like that much but who I felt I owed my time to because they really liked me. And I have also taken part in the practice of ghosting- ignoring somebody who is texting me, instead of outright rejecting them. With time, I have gotten much better at being straightforward when someone is interested in me and the feeling is not reciprocated, but I still do the dance many women do: We exert energy into finding the most polite, passive way to get ourselves out of uncomfortable situations with men.

— Why Women Are Ghosting You

#weekly digest

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lalainajanes · 7 years

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THESE PROMPTS LAINE HOO BOY kc + “I bet I can dance/move/act like that and I don’t even have to be a dancer/stripper/actor/whatever wait are you turned on?” sex

I Like Your Style

When his doorbellrings at 8:17 PM on a Wednesday, when he’s not expecting a soul, Klaus decidesto ignore whoever thought that dropping by - uninvited and unannounced – was a good idea. His phone hasn’t made a soundall evening and surely, if there were some sort of emergency, someone wouldhave tried to call first. He shifts on the couch, sinking deeper into thecushions, and continues with his Netflix surfing.

He cannot concentrate,idly scrolling without really absorbing anything, as the doorbell will not stopringing. If anything his guest becomes morepersistent, making the irritating ringing infinitely more so by tapping out a melodyof short chimes and long clangs that are familiar. And not in a good way.

Klaus is given a briefreprieve, a moment of blessed silence, and he thinks he just might have managedto out stubborn the doorbell maestro.

Only to be immediatelytreated to another, equally impassioned, performance. Which just about pushesthe limit of Klaus’ patience.

He tosses his remoteaside and pushes himself to his feet before stalking towards the front door. Apassing glance at the mirror in his hallway tells him he’s probably not fit forcompany, he’d already showered and hadn’t bothered with a shirt, but since he’sreasonably certain he doesn’t actually likehis visitor – he might not be able to place the song but it was awful – he doesn’t feel the need to makehimself presentable.

An impulse he regretsupon first opening the door. Caroline Forbes might not have been invited but,standing on his porch in a yellow sundress, her blonde curls loose about hershoulders, she’s far from unwelcome. Klaus is already fully aware of herquestionable taste in music and, since it had been a boon to him just lastweek, it’s in no way a deal breaker. Her lovely blue eyes widen, her sunnysmile dimming slightly as her eyes drop, raking over his torso. There’s a hintof shock, no healthy amount of interest, and more than a dollop of heat as hergaze lingers over his shoulders and flickers lower.

Perhaps there’ssomething to be said for not being presentable. He might even flex a little as he crosses his arms and leans againstthe wall just inside the doorway, silently waiting for Caroline to realizeshe’s quite shamelessly objectifying him and failing to be subtle about it.

It’s unfortunate that thereare no witnesses because Klaus knows she’s likely to deny it later.

Caroline visiblyshakes herself, her spine straightening, and meets his eyes once more. There’sa brief flash of chagrin but determination quickly masks any embarrassment.When she speaks it’s cheery, “Hey, Klaus. Are you busy?”

He glances down athimself pointedly, “Not particularly. Why do you ask?”

“Because I think it’stime we settle our little disagreement.” Caroline tells him.

Klaus wracks hisbrain, trying to figure out what she means. He and Caroline disagree –frequently and often at great volume, much to the amusement of his siblings andtheir assorted friends – so narrowing it down isn’t easy. He’d seen Carolinejust last Sunday, at a dinner at Rebekah’s (a monthly affair where she orderedgourmet takeout, plated it on her designer table wear, and pretended like sheknew how to operate her range). Caroline had spent the evening gleefullytaunting him about his love for the pop group they’d taken in a few days prior.Klaus had been roped into chaperoning Henrik who, in the midst of an epicteenage puppy love, had wanted to take his girlfriend to see her favoritegroup. Klaus, unwilling to face a crush of teenagers alone had, in turn, manageto cajole (and bribe) Caroline into tagging along. He was supposed to help herpaint her living room this weekend, the price they’d agreed upon.

He’d gotten off easy,really. The flashing lights, high pitched screams, and so called music had beenalmost bearable with Caroline at his side, bright and joyous and dancing alongwith the crowd. At one point she’d turned in his direction and he’d quicklyfaced the stage, adopted a look of concentration so she’d not realize he’d beenintently watching her, and not thespectacle he’d paid an exorbitant amount of money to witness.

He’d overdone it andCaroline had taken his feigned interest in the performance as a sign that hewas a secret girl groupie (her words, not his). She’d been texting him gossipabout the band member’s tumultuous love lives and links to interviews posted onYouTube ever since.

He’s mostly beenignoring it, certain that any heated denials would be taken as further proof ofhis supposed ardor. Eventually, he and Caroline would find another subject tospar over. They always did.

What pressing disagreementdoes she thinks needs to be solved immediately? Klaus has to admit he hasn’t aclue.

She shifts her weightwhen he remains silent, hefting a large bag he’s just now noticing higher onher shoulder. “I’m going to need your bathroom for like twenty minutes. AndI’ll have to borrow a chair.”

That just confusesKlaus all the more. “I’m lost, sweetheart.”

She lets out anannoyed huff, pointedly keeping her eyes trained on a point somewhere to theleft of his head. “You told me all your drooling at the concert was over the‘grace and athleticism’ of the dancing, remember? Which I called bullshit on,of course. But you were all blah blah blah artistry blah blah blah years oftraining.”

Klaus fights a wince,recalling that particular argument. It wasn’t his finest moment but he’d had tocome up with something to explain awaywhat she’d seen as fascination. And then Caroline had gotten so offended,calling the choreography ‘cookie cutter sexbot thrusting’ and he hadn’t beenable to resist countering, just to see her color heighten and her hands gesturewildly as she attempted to prove her point.

It was his usual instinct,one he rarely bothered fighting. Really, it was a miracle Caroline hadn’trealized his interest. Every single one of their mutual acquaintances hadremarked on it. Klaus suspected there was even a betting pool.

“And you’re going toprove me wrong… how?”

Caroline’s smile is aslow thing, hinting at an ace up her sleeve, and Klaus is both wary andintrigued. She meets his eyes, hers filled with challenge, “Why don’t you letme in and I’ll show you?”

Wordlessly, Klaussteps aside, waving her in. Sucks in a harsh breath when she pats his stomach,her hand lingering in a way that feels deliberate. She doesn’t look at him,merely strides ahead. “Living room first,” she calls. “We’re going to need tomove some furniture.”

He still has verylittle idea of what’s happening but Klaus follows Caroline’s lead. Obliges herwhen she asks him to push his couch against one wall, the coffee table againstanother. She seems to consider the rug but then decides it can stay. She avoidshis gaze, manner brisk and businesslike, only stopping when he taunts her aboutit, pride stealing across her expressive face. Her eyelids grow heavy when shelooks at him a new weight and anticipation there. She stands close to him,closer than necessary, doesn’t shy away when his skin brushes against her barearm or her clothed back. When the room has been rearranged to her specificationsshe nods her satisfaction. “Perfect. Time for wardrobe. I’ll be right back.”She collects her bag and strolls from the room before Klaus can think to pepperher with questions.

He settles in to wait,finds he can’t mourn the change in his evening’s plans. Not when it seems likeCaroline’s are going to turn out to be far superior.

She strives for calmas she changes, rolling on the shimmery fishnets and wriggling into the blackleotard she’d tracked down yesterday. The scoop neck was modest but it was cutlow in the back. Somehow it still managed to keep her boobs in place soCaroline figured it was worth the drive out to the dance shop she hadn’t evenknown existed until this plan had occurred to her.

It had seemed geniusat the time. Now, minutes away from actually doing it Caroline can maybe admitthat it was a little crazy. That she didn’t do her best thinking in the middleof the night when she’d been tossing and turning and mentally rehearsing newrebuttals and quips for the next time she saw Klaus.

She notices her handsstarting to shake when she retrieves her makeup bag and she sets it downcarefully, taking a deep breath. Clown makeup was not on the agenda for theevening. Though if her lipstick happened to get a little smeared later on shewouldn’t exactly object.

She eyes her phone,resting innocently on the countertop and debates calling one of her friends fora chat. They’d all been dragged to a dance class over the last week, some moregood naturedly than others, and they’d probably be good for a pep talk (Elena)or at least willing to listen to her vent her nerves (Bonnie).

If Caroline called Katshe’d likely even get yet anotherlecture about how she really didn’t need to try so hard, that she could havesaved herself the muscle strain and expense if she’d just shown up at his doorin a trench coat and some fuck me heels. ‘I don’t even like him, Caroline,’she’d said, after taking a deep drink of wine. “And I hate lending people my shoes. But I will do it, for you. And forme, so I don’t have to listen to your verbal foreplay ever again.”

Caroline had insistedthat it was just her duty to prove to Klaus how very wrong he was. She’dspecifically come today because no one thought Wednesday was an appropriate day for a booty call. She’d beensnippy and irritated that her friends hadn’t bought a single word of herdenials.

Standing in Klaus’bathroom, jittery and nervous but also excited, Caroline’s beginning to realizethat she might owe each of them a round of ‘I told you so.’

Assuming this wholething didn’t blow up in her face and she had to flee to another state inhumiliation.

She’s totally going toblame it on the fact that he’d opened the door looking rumpled and delicious,more skin on display than she’d ever seen. Her carefully rehearsed speech hadfled and she’d had a brief, verydistracting, fantasy about dropping her bag and reaching for him with nofurther preliminaries.

Those kinds ofthoughts about Klaus weren’t exactly new. His face had been popping up in herfantasy repertoire regularly, beginning back when he was just an acquaintancewith nice hands and a voice that she was sure was made for dirty talk. He’dbegun appearing with more frequency as they’d gotten to know each other becauseas much as he infuriated her sometimesshe always walked away from their little spats feeling energized, ready to go anotherround.

It was only natural,she’d told herself, to wonder how their dynamic – the push pull of it that lefther heated and excited – would translate with them naked.

Caroline draws herselfup to her full height and pushes those thoughts away before they can take root.Right now wasn’t the time, she refuses to be blushing and nervous when shewalked out there. Her motives might have shifted but she still had a point toprove. Caroline concentrates on fluffing up her curls in the mirror beforereaching for her makeup again, taking a deep steadying breath. She had a planand she was committed to executing it. She’d just get through the steps she’dlaid out, nice and easy, one after the other. It was time to get her game faceon.

Pessimism wasn’t herthing and at least, if things went horribly, going to insane lengths to win anargument was totally in character. She could spin it, weather the friendlyribbing that came her way, and go back to being Klaus’ friend slash adversarylike nothing had happened.

If she took a shot andfell flat maybe she could finally get over her silly little crush. And on thebright side, if her shot hit its mark, she wouldn’t have to. Her friends wouldstill mock her, of course. But Klaus was totally petty enough to join her insome serious revenge PDA so Caroline thought she’d still come out a winner.

He paces, curiosityraging, straining to hear anything from down the hallway, itching for the tiniesthint about what Caroline has planned. The use of the word ‘wardrobe’ was particularlyintriguing, suggesting that Caroline was in a state of undress in his bathroom,something he struggles not to dwell on knowing full well his attire won’t hidemuch. Unfortunately, not a peep makes it to his ears, and Klaus is left totorture himself with possibilities, most likely too good to be true, until the bathroomdoor creaks back open and he hears her step out of the bathroom.

At which point he throwshimself on to the couch, crosses his ankle over his opposite knee, all in aneffort to look natural and nonchalant.

It’s a waste as he’scertain the way his lips part, body stiffening, in shock as Caroline walks backinto the living room are most illuminating and he’s grateful his legs willobscure the visible tent in his sweats caused by his swelling cock. He swallowsheavily, taking in the sleek lines of her body, lovingly outlined in verylittle fabric. What covers her clings deliciously and his hands itch to skimover her curves. He’s always liked her legs, had vivid desires involving them wrappedabout his hips, and they seem especially endless and tempting in the stockingsshe wears. Caroline tosses him a smirk, flipping her hair over her shoulder,resting a hand on her hip. “My eyes are up here,” she taunts.

Klaus clears histhroat, “Caroline, wh…” he trails off, uncertain of what he means to ask. ‘Whatare you wearing?’ “What are you doing?’ “Why are you all the way across theroom when you could be in my lap?’

He should probably workup to that last bit.

Her laugh is warm, atouch mischievous. There’s a slight relaxing of her posture, her confidenceradiates in the swaying of her hips as she takes a few steps towards him.There’s nothing but innocence in her expression, too much to be natural. “I’mproving a point. I haven’t taken a dance class since college but I bet I can doit just as well as those girls you were eyeing.”

He takes a second todigest that, to ponder the implications. “You’re going to… dance? Now? Inthat?” He’s helpless not to gesture, cringing because he knows he sounds like an imbecile.

Caroline’s fingertipsstroke across the neckline of her top, head tipped to the side quizzically, “What’swrong with what I’m wearing?”

Klaus clenches histeeth together because what he’d wanted to blurt out – that the only thing wrong with the clingy black scraps offabric she had on what that he wasn’t entirely certain he could remove themexpediently – was probably unwise. “Nothing,” he manages, clipped and terse.

Caroline doesn’t seemto take offense, if anything she looks pleased. “Well, now that we’veestablished what I’m doing here, why don’t you take a seat? I’ll be out of yourhair in under a half hour, don’t you worry.”

She breezes away,towards the kitchen, before Klaus can argue with her assumption that he wantsher gone.

No matter. He’ll makea point of mentioning it later.

Caroline worksquickly, dragging one of Klaus’ kitchen chairs into the center of his livingroom, hooking up her phone to his stereo system. It only takes a moment – she’dmonopolized the music at a party he’d thrown once or twice or every single timeeven though he complained incessantly – and she doesn’t let herself look athim.

A girl only had somuch self-control.

He hadn’t bothered toput a shirt on and he wears only a pair of sweatpants, slung low enough thatit’s entirely possible he’s not wearing anything underneath them. She wants toask him about the tattoos, wants to discover the texture of his skin, to see ifhe’ll shudder when she traces his hipbone with her tongue.

She’d want to throwherself at him even if he hadn’t been watching her every move with lustdarkened eyes, the lines of his body taut, a struggle painted clear across hisface.

He wanted her. Of thatCaroline had no more doubts.

She gets intoposition, facing Klaus with the chair in front of her, setting a hand on thetop rung, letting her hair fall down to curtain her face. The music begins,slow and sultry, and she begins to sway her hips in time, bending deeper with everyeight count. Caroline’s certain she hears a noise, a tiny pained groan, andbites the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. She swings a leg over thechair, pausing to turn in profile and run her hand along her thigh as shecatches Klaus’ eye. She spins, and drapes herself across it, extending her legsand dipping low over the other side, arching her back to pull herself up, herhand coming up to play with her hair. She twists, facing him, easing her thighsopen as she glances up to gauge Klaus’ reaction and stills once she sees thathe’s moving. His jaw’s clenched tight and Caroline’s eyes widen when he loomsover her. He pauses for a second, his eyes tracing a hot path down the line ofher body. She fights the urge to squirm but then Klaus is dropping to hisknees, cupping her jaw and tugging her closer. She goes willingly, eagerly,slipping off the chair and grasping his shoulders for purchase. Klaus smilesinto the kiss, wrapping his arm around her waist and hauling into him, chest toknee, shoving the chair away carelessly. He pulls back enough to speak thoughthe patterns he’s tracing along her spine are distracting. “Perhaps I’llconcede. Just this once.”

Her laugh is breathy, “Yeah,you’ll concede. You really are into the whole cheesy choreography thing, huh?”

He shakes his head, atouch exasperated, “I barely saw those girls, Caroline. I was looking at youand you almost caught me.”

She doesn’t botherfighting the pleased smile. “Noted. Totally kicking myself for putting all theeffort into learning a routine now. I didn’t even get to the good part.”

Klaus increases thedistance between them, intrigue flickering across his face, “The good part?””

Caroline’s not havingthat. “Later,” she murmurs, burying her hand in his hair. “Assuming you don’tsuck at the sex thing.”

Klaus is unable totake that as anything but a challenge, just as Caroline had intended. He useshis arm to lift her, his hand coming up to cradle her head as he lays her onher back. He props himself up on one elbow, settling into the cradle of herthighs and leaning down to kiss her once more. There’s less urgency now, theheat builds slowly, his tongue teasing and stroking as their breath quickensand her hips push up searching for friction. Klaus’ hand begins to wander, hestrokes her throat and her head tips back with an encouraging sigh. His mouthmoves to her throat as his fingertips trace her collarbone, hooking into theneckline of her leotard. He tugs enough to bare one breast, his fingertipsgentle on the slope before finding her nipple. It begins to firm under histouch, tightening under the roughening circles of his thumb. He glances down,lips parted. “Lovelier than I’d imagined,” he murmurs. His hand leaves her,head dipping. His lips close over her nipple, Caroline arches up with a moanand he attempts to push the fabric further down. It resists and Caroline letsout a noise of protest as he pulls back, brow furrowed, “How does one removethis?”

She’d laugh at howpuzzled he seems, makes a mental note to make a joke about it later, but it’snot the time for humor, not with her skin tingling and a persistent achebetween her thighs. She pushes him back slightly, hooking a leg over his hip sohe doesn’t go far, and tugs a strap down her shoulder in impatient jerks. Theother quickly follows and Klaus seems eager to help, rolling the leotard down hertorso. Caroline hooks her thumbs in her tights, wiggling her hips so they comeoff too. Klaus freezes for a moment. “You weren’t wearing anything under that,”he mutters, almost to himself, sounding strained.

He’s stoppedundressing her and Caroline’s not having that. Letting out an annoyed huff shegets one leg free, biting her lip to keep from moaning when she presses againstKlaus’ cock, straining behind a single layer of fabric. “It’s not very forgiving.I didn’t want lines. Besides, pretty sure I am not the only one going commandohere.” This time she grinds up deliberately and a shudder wracks Klaus’ frame.She runs her nails along his spine, one drifting up to tug at the curls at thebase of his neck, the other pushing under the waistband of his sweats. His headbows, a harsh breath panted against her throat and he rears up, shoving theirremaining clothes aside. This time she’s helpless to resist the urge to reachfor him, sitting up when he moves to hover over her again, pushing at hisshoulder until he gets the hint and rolls onto his back.

Caroline wraps herhand around his cock, slinging a leg over his hips and shaking her hair back.She strokes him, rubbing her thumb along the tip of him, relishing his harshinhale. Just like when they argue Klaus is completely unwilling to let her win,rolling himself up and brushing her hands aside. He angles his head and kissesher, tempting her to part her lips with a lush swipe of his tongue, a hand onher hip urging her to move against him. Her mouth falls open as she sinksdeeper into the kiss, thighs widening as she searches for friction. She gaspswhen she feels his fingers, parting her folds and coming away slick.

She’s been turned on sinceshe started to dance, ready for him to be inside her since he’d first put hismouth on her nipple. Klaus seems intent on teasing her with light indirecttouches to her clit that tighten the knots in her stomach but give her norelief. His other hand is greedy for all the skin it can reach, smoothing overher back and ass, sneaking between them to palm a breast. Caroline bites downon his shoulder and Klaus hisses, taking the hint and easing a finger inside. “More,”she rasps, soothing the mark she’d left.

He obeys pressing his handtightly to her. She begins to ride his fingers in earnest, thighs tremblingwhen the heel of his hand rubs against her clit. He groans, leaning back towatch her face, “Just like that Caroline. Do you know how many times I’vethought of you like this? Trembling and breathless and wet because of me.”

Hopefully nearly asmany times as she has. He curls his fingers, rubbing against a spot inside ofher that has her head falling back and her vision going hazy, “Tell me,” shedemands, in a voice that’s hoarse and edged in need.

Klaus obliges, and she’dtotally been right about his voice. Thickened with his own arousal it’smesmerizing, “The little dresses you favor make it impossible not to thinkabout sneaking my hand underneath your skirt when we’re at a bar or out todinner. I’d stroke your thighs, a silent question, and you’d spread them forme, eager for my touch. In my mind you’ve been wet and hot around my fingerswhile I’ve gotten you off under a table while you flush prettily and try not tosquirm dozens upon dozens of times.”

Caroline swallowshard, rolling her head forward to look at him. His face is tight with strain,lips reddened and swollen. She manages a broken inhale, scrambling to puttogether a coherent sentence, “Well, we are supposed to do drinks on Friday…”

He makes a harshnoise, low in his throat, his hand easing away from her. Caroline’s mouth dropsopen but his next words stills her protest, “I need a condom.”

She shakes her head, “Ihave the implant and I don’t have anything. Are you…”

“Disease free? Yes.”

That’s good enough forher. She trusts him and she wants him and stopping right now when she’s soclose seems like torture. She lifts up higher onto her knees and reaches down,their fingers tangle but they get him positioned and Caroline sinks down with amoan, looking down to watch him slide inside of her. He grips her hips tightlywhen he’s all the way in, his body a solid line of tension against hers. Shefights the hold, needing to move, andhe eases up with a groan, reaching to tease her clit again when she begins tomove. It’s probably not graceful, more frantic than finessed, but Klaus doesn’tseem to mind, little noises of need spilling from him every time she takes himback inside of her. Their skin heats and slickens and soon she’s short ofbreath and the best kind of dizzy.

Caroline cries out as his fingers rub againsther with more purpose and she begins to shake, gripping him as her orgasmbuilds. “You’re so close, sweetheart,” Klaus murmurs. “Let go for me.”

She slumps into himwhen it hits her, muffling her cry in his skin and Klaus’ arms tighten aroundher as he lets go, snapping his hips up into hers as he chases his own release.He bites out a sharp curse, a reverent whisper of her name, before he collapsesback onto the floor, Caroline following him down. They shift for a minute toget comfortable, and Caroline squirms as he slips out of her before settlingagainst his chest.

The music’s longstopped and she lays her head over his chest, listens to his heart slow as hesifts his hands through her hair. When she feels like she can talk without wheezingshe peeks up, only to find Klaus’ eyes closed, his expression content. As if hefeels her watching his eyes slit open and he smiles, “Something on your mind?”

So many things.

She bites her lip andKlaus’ eyes flare with a new rush of heat as he watches, “Okay, first, Ilegitimately did not plan to seduce you.”

Klaus appears dubious,“You planned to dance for me, wearing what you were wearing, but it wasn’t aseduction?”

Okay, fine, when youput it like that it sounded bad.

“I didn’t consciously decide to seduce you,” sheamends.

He presses his lipstogether like he’s trying not to laugh. “Well, remind me to do something nicefor your subconscious someday. It obviously has discerning tastes.”

She pokes him in theside, narrowing her eyes in a glare. He couldn’t seriously be mocking her,could he? They were naked and she could feel their combined release coating theinside of her thighs.

Klaus hauls her upwith his grip on her hair, kissing her until her lips soften and cling to his. “I’dintended to ask you to dinner for ages. We always just seem to sink intobickering before I can manage and then it seems like bad timing.”

“Oh,” Caroline says,slightly mollified. “Maybe you should be less of a dick then.”

Klaus laughs, “I thinkthat’s unlikely. Perhaps you should be less easy to bait, hmm?”

Caroline has to admitthat also seems unlikely. She sits up and notes the way Klaus eyes her breastshungrily. She moves away before he can make the move he’s clearly considering, “Compromise,”she offers. “We bicker while we dodate things. Starting with food. Now.”

Klaus reaches over hishead in a stretch, and she kind of can’t fault him for ogling her boobs, notwhen she takes a very long look at the way his pale skin stretches over thelean muscles of his abdomen, letting her eyes linger on his cock that seems tobe twitching back into readiness. He doesn’t seem to mind the scrutiny, foldinghis hands under his head, “That’s a compromise I can live with. I’ve heardexcellent things about make up sex.”

Caroline doesn’t lookat him as she stands and makes her way to the bathroom. She’s going to needsustenance because she knows she won’t be able to resist picking a fight withthat statement lingering between them.

Could make up sex withKlaus even be better than the sexthey’d just had? Her legs are shaky and she feels fantastic so Caroline’sskeptical.

But not at all opposedto experimenting.

#klaroline #klaroline drabbles #klaroline smut #will I ever write a short thing again #this was totally my second fave one on that list though so no regrets #goldcaught

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theemichelleb · 5 years

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When They See Us (Netflix) - Miniseries Reflection

To be honest… I have no idea how to start this post.

A few weeks ago I watched Ava Duvernay’s interview on the Breakfast Club about this miniseries and how she came about taking on the challenge of telling this unbelievably difficult story. Our community is affected by these tragedies all too often and it makes it hard to want to have children that will have to grow up in a society that will never see them as children. Ultimately, I just want to put a thank you out there to Ava Duvernay for checking her DMs and responding to that message she got from one of the victims of this ridiculous justice system and running with the opportunity to shed light on this horrible part of their history.

“When They See Us” is the true account of what happened to Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana Jr., Kevin Richardson, and Korey Wise in 1989 when they were falsely accused, charged, and convicted of the tragic beating and rape of Trisha Meili, a white woman. This four-part miniseries walks us through the eyes of the boys from the night they were in Central Park until the day they are exonerated of all charges and released back into the world. Part 1 exposes the unjust tactics and tools used to interrogate and trap these boys in lies of committing a crime that they had no idea existed. Part 2 walks us through the trials of all 5 boys and how the justice system brings no justice to black people no matter how blatantly untrue a story being told against them can be. Part 3 shows us a snippet of what Antron, Yusef, Kevin, and Raymond endure during and after their release from prison; trying to integrate into a world that refuses to accept them because of these false allegations. Finally, part 4… we see the tragic circumstances and situations Korey Wise experienced for 14 years being moved from prison to prison trying to survive with a target on his back that NEVER SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE.

As a black woman I can never understand the tragedy of having that type of target on my back to the degree our men must live with it, but I can be angry for what they are doing to our men. This story is known… there are no spoilers to give or disclaimers to provide. If you don’t want to know my opinions on certain parts of this because you feel it may ruin the watch for you I understand, but please watch because this story NEEDED to be told. I don’t want this to be considered a review but more of a reflection because no matter the scale this affects us all, including myself. If you feel it’s “too hard” to watch or don’t know if you can “handle it,” they don’t deserve to have their story out there for you to not watch. Take your time, but watch… no excuses.

There were so many parts that hurt to watch and I’m often told I’m heartless because of my inability to cry at emotionally tear provoking movies or tv shows, but this broke me. I made it through the first 3 parts with anger and frustration but no tears, taking breaks and pauses in between watching. It’s going to take anywhere between 1-3 days to work through the series; approximately 5 hours altogether. For some, it may take longer. That’s how real it gets.

Watching Korey’s story hit me the hardest; that was what finally made the tears fall. The depiction of his truth and struggle was the hardest to witness yet the easiest to relate to. Not many of can say we’ve been directly arrested and blamed for a crime we’ve had nothing to do with, but anybody can relate to the fear of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and having something like that happen. Korey Wise went to the police precinct to support his friend, Yusef, and was left there. Not too long after being left he was used as a scapegoat to make this absurd story make sense to any other white person that would listen. Considering these boys were already being treated as animals it’s hard to believe the scenario could get any worse but lets add in the fact that he’s sent directly to prison, not a juvenile detention center, and beaten countless times by grown men that are actual rapists, murderers, felons, and so much more. Korey’s story is going to hit the hardest… just be prepared.

Watch this with your kids, your younger siblings, your older siblings, mentees, whomever you hold dear to you because this is real, and EVERYBODY in America needs to see what really happens to our boys. This isn’t something that you can turn away from and pretend as though it’s not happening everyday from police shootings to racial profiling. We wouldn’t change our skin even if we could, but America does need to change it’s privilege…

These boys were interrogated for hours without their parents. Parents were suckered and punked into handing over their kids to the system. This outrageous individual that is often referred to as the President of the United States, current day, was on news channels, taking out ads to have the death penalty imposed on these children that didn’t even know what truant or rape meant. Let’s be realistic… who in their right mind believes any BLACK MAN would willingly admit to raping a white women if they knew exactly what that meant? No man… and you think these five 14-16 year old black and brown BOYS understood what they were admitting to, alone with no parental guidance? Sitting in a precinct hungry and wanting to go home?

One question here… when has a rape EVER been THIS important to police? Rape gets overlooked, forgotten, disregarded, and ignored more often than it should even now with more resources than were available in 1989. Don’t be fooled… had that woman in the park been black and the supposed assailant a white male, there wouldn’t have been this much traction to find the attacker, let alone to create 5 attackers out of a crime scene that clearly only had evidence of their being one. This was a clear racial attack targeted at minorities that couldn’t protect themselves… more specifically blacks in America that have ALWAYS been discounted and created into animals that couldn’t possibly be human beings.

Linda Fairstein was disgusting, right along with Elizabeth Lederer, Robert Morgenthau, all of the cops that were gathering up boys, and the detectives in the precinct that coerced false confessions out of 14 year olds. Disgusting doesn’t even give justice to the horrific things these five went through, and the worst part is the shock value is gone. We’re not surprised at how the justice system fails and frames our people, it’s what we expect and that’s disheartening. You may watch and wonder how can we protect our children against a system that’s centered around seeing them fail, and I don’t have the answer to that. Knowledge is power, however. This takes me back to “The Hate U Give” and how Starr’s father teaches his children the hard realities of dealing with law enforcement and being black. Give your kids as much knowledge as possible to protect themselves; tell them don’t say anything without having you present, don’t resist or struggle unnecessarily, and don’t admit to anything especially something they haven’t done or don’t have any knowledge of.

Points that struck a nerve and hit me the hardest while watching:

Nancy Ryan should have pushed harder to take the case or have somebody else work the case because Linda Fairstein had a personal vendetta she was trying to resolve. I don’t know if she was a victim of rape or knows somebody closely who was and that made her act the way she did, but somebody needed to put her on a leash. I truly believe Nancy Ryan should have been that person, but I am happy she was the one that handled the confession from the real attacker in 2003. I understand the attempt to try and set Linda straight after everything, but babygirl waited a little too long to try to check somebody that flew off the deep end 4 years prior.

The black cop that tried to keep the detectives from interrogating Kevin after his mother left not feeling well… sir you could have pushed harder. I understand the remorse you probably felt by stepping back and watching that happen, but I’m sure there’s plenty of things you could have said to somebody or done to address the fact that they knowingly interrogated him ignoring the fact that his mother was sick and was coming back after getting her medication.

The audacity to connect Kevin’s eye being swollen and scratched to the struggle the rape victim put up when in reality he had a black eye from being smacked in the head by a cop with a helmet while they were tackling and herding black boys up like they were cattle… and this is NEVER addressed during the trial.

Antron’s father, Bobby, disgusts me. This man knew how the system worked because he had been locked up, but instead of protecting his son he forced his son to admit to being involved with raping that woman to keep his job and lifestyle up. I understand he’s passed on and God rest is soul where he is, but that struck a serious nerve with me. Protect your children at all costs, because nobody else will.

Yusef’s mom, Sharon, was a lot for me. I understand she was trying to protect her son, but this entire situation was bigger than just her and Yusef, especially when Korey ended up in this trying to look out for her son. No disrespect to any mothers out there because I definitely understand wanting to protect your baby, but they were all babies and they all needed protecting.

Ray’s step mother needs something… a beat down is what comes to mind, but I’m a lover not a fighter.

And just overall, the evidence that was missing, the stories that didn’t match up, the DNA sample that matched NONE of the boys, but some how they were still convicted.

There were so many other moments other than just that that even make writing this and reflecting on it almost as hard as it was watching it.

There has been a lot of buzz around this miniseries and for good reason. Ava Duvernay took her time on sculpting this and telling their tragic story in a beautiful manner. The actors portraying every person involved did such an amazing job and I can’t even begin to imagine how it must have been stepping into the shoes of anybody in this plot line; especially one of the five men that stepped up to tell their story in hopes that it would be heard and they would be recognized. All five men are hard working and it appears they are thriving despite the tragedies they endured to get to where they are present day. Again, I charge anybody that has decided this is too much to watch to reconsider. It may be hard to watch, but this is our history as black people and these men deserve to be supported by our community no matter how painful it may be to witness. The hardest part was going through it and they handled that part long ago, now, we should stand behind them and their efforts to stop this from happening to anymore of our children.

I recently saw a video from Clint Coley with him in a rap battle against some white cops and one line stood out to me… “You can’t say all lives matter, cause the black ones don’t.” Nobody should be able to watch this and continue to think our justice system is fair and protects all citizens. The thing white people will never be able to relate to is the fear that they may get that call one day about their son and they won’t be able to do anything about it. White boys are coddled and treated as though there’s every cure in the book for anything wrong they do, but black boys are thrown into jails and treated as adults with no comfort, support, or benefit of doubt. All lives can’t matter when that’s the reality of the world we live in.

So, do your community a favor… do your future sons and daughters a favor… do yourself a favor and watch “When They See Us.” It will make you mad, it will make you afraid, it will make you cry, but it will throw more fuel to the fire inside you that should be anxious to make a change for the generations coming after us. They will watch what you did and move accordingly. They will appreciate how you supported our community and follow your lead. They will be stronger for it, because that’s what you’ll teach them to be.

Be D.O.P.E. Support our men.

Release Date: May 31, 2019 Where I watched: Netflix

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