#but the one i wrote for Today isn't from his pov so :p

[multeasers]

“Besides,” she continues on, once he’s right next to her, her smile perking up once again, “since your birthday is the last day of the year, it’s as if us celebrating it is a way of welcoming in the new one! So if we celebrate you today and bring in blessings for you, it’s as if we’re bringing in blessings for the next year, too, don’t you think?”

He really can’t help the way he laughs, then, the action overtaking him before he can reel it in, but it isn’t because he’s agreeing with her; no, he’s laughing because the idea of it just seems so wrong. It’s so incredibly wrong that he just can’t help the amusement over it.

“Don’t laugh, I’m being serious!” She insists, her pout coming onto her features, but he isn’t fazed by it—if anything, he just thinks it’s cute of her to do. “Megumi and I went to all the trouble to even pick out a gift for you, and yet you’re already laughing at the cake!”

That makes his laughter die almost in an instant, a wave of confusion overtaking him as his mind processes her words. “A gift? For me?”

“Well, who else for? You’re the birthday boy, and birthday boys get gifts.”

…

What did I do, he thinks to himself, his face falling back into its neutral look; the look he takes on when he’s trying to hide how he feels. What did I do to deserve you?

No matter how much he tries to hide, though, he can’t hide from Himawari. She’s too smart, too smart for his tricks, and she always knew how he would respond to this, anyway, so all she does is smile at him. Her smile is so dazzling; it’s what drew him to her in the first place.

“…It’s cold.” He finally decides to say, coughing into a closed fist. It truly is cold, there’s snow falling at a leisurely pace all around them; they’re bundled from head to toe in thermals and winter clothes. Even Megumi is swaddled by two blankets instead of his normal one. “Let’s get home, alright?”

#💔📝 #for to...ji bday lets go king <3 #scheduling this for midnight my time LOL #it's a bit longer than what i normally put on these posts but #i feel like it's important to have the entire exchange #also this is from the fic i wrote for his bday last year #( which is also shockingly when i wrote my last jjk fic #a Shocker to me bc i hadnt realized it'd been a whole year ) #but the one i wrote for Today isn't from his pov so :p #also i dont think ive posted fic snippets for him so may as well start #i likely wont ever mention megumama ( himawari ) here she just happened to be in the fic

[stupidphototricks]

I'm jealous of kids today being able to grow up with the amazing YA books being written now ("now" for me being within the past 15 years or so), but I still read them even though I'm not Young. Here are a few of my favorite YA authors and books, in no particular order:

Patrick Ness, The Rest of Us Just Live Here TW: mental illness, suicidal thoughts I adore that there's a whole epic fantasy battle thing that we see pieces of in the foreground, but the book focuses on the characters in the background who are dealing with their own stuff.

Alice Oseman, Radio Silence and Solitaire TW: suicidal thoughts, emotionally abusive parent (RS), self-harm (S), eating disorder (S) You might recognize Alice Oseman as the author of the Heartstopper comic and TV series. They wrote novels too! Really good ones, although that's not surprising. Solitaire's protagonist is Charlie's sister Tori, and its events take place a year or so after the start of Heartstopper (possible spoilers for season 3, who knows?). Radio Silence is set in the same town I think another year later, and Aled (who was in the comics, but was renamed and somewhat reimagined as Isaac in TV Heartstopper) is a main character though not the protagonist. Nick, Charlie, and Tori make very brief cameos.

David Levithan and John Green, Will Grayson, Will Grayson TW: I can't think of any major triggers in this book, I apologize if I missed something. Obviously both of these authors have independently written other excellent books, but this one is my favorite, mostly because I love Tiny Cooper and his musical so much. This is the lightest (i.e. not dark, and not heavy) by far of the books here. It's mostly really fun but occasionally serious.

Jandy Nelson, I'll Give You the Sun TW: bullying, homophobia, suicidal thoughts, death I read a review of this book that basically said enough with the artsy language and metaphors, so maybe it isn't for everybody, but I found it brilliant. It encapsulates a thought or an idea or a feeling in a way you'd never expect, but that you relate to immediately. Also I think that having the POV switch between twins, but two years apart (one twin at 14, the other twin at 16) with a major life-altering event in between, is an amazing way to tell this story.

Rainbow Rowell, Eleanor and Park and Carry On TW: bullying (E&P), abusive family situation (E&P), vampires (CO) Eleanor and Park is set in the 80s with all of the requisite 80s accessories, and characters that will make your heart break in different ways. Carry On is a sort of Drarry fanfic spoof (and supposedly written by a character in a different Rainbow Rowell novel!). But the characters are so well-developed and engaging that you stop seeing them as caricatures and start caring about them in their own right.

Jesse Andrews, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and The Haters TW: vulgar talk (really just teenage boys trying to be gross), dysfunctional family situation (M&E&DG), death (M&E&DG) I can't overstate how much I love the writing style of these books. Always entertaining and often hilarious, it jumps from normal prose to an outline, to a film script, to a bulleted list, and always turns out to be the perfect way to show whatever is going on.

What's most important to me: In all of these books, the young adult characters are real people who are complicated, and surprising, and funny, and passionate. They may have serious problems but they can have fun and be silly. They screw up but they try to fix things. They love and support their friends, and their friends love and support them. Often there are parents who are also real people doing their best; I appreciate that in a YA book! For the most part these books don't have magically happy endings, but they do end in a good place, with hope.

#ya books #alice oseman #rainbow rowell #patrick ness #jesse andrews #jandy nelson #david levithan #john green