#i had to do some serious googling to find this picture

[asbealthgn]

(i am not immune to peer pressure so here's a continuation. part one here)

It’s so rare that Steve meets anyone nice anymore.

It’s just hard to find people. Dating apps suck, and ever since Robin and Nancy got together, they hardly ever want to go to bars together. And what’s he supposed to do, just drink alone and hope he stumbles across someone? 

Well, that’s exactly what happened today, sans drinking. He was heading for the bus stop, a tiny bit lost but he had a map and was pretty sure he could figure it out. He realizes he’s a tiny bit directionally challenged, and he’s still relatively new in town, and Robin and Nancy just moved to a new place, so it all came together to mean that getting there would take some puzzling out. All the same, he was prepared to figure it out on his own right up until he saw the super hot guy sitting at the bus stop and figured a little help couldn’t hurt.

And that’s how Steve ended up with an unexpected date (sort of) to Robin and Nancy’s baby shower (not a real baby shower).

Robin answers the door and smiles, then does a double take when she sees Eddie. Whoops, Steve probably should have texted her that he was bringing someone. He’d gotten a little caught up in the moment.

“Hey, hope you don’t mind I brought a plus one,” Steve says, hugging her before walking inside. Eddie follows him.

“No, no, that’s fine,” Robin says, voice a little strange as they take their shoes off and she shuts the door. “We’re all in the living room.”

They follow her through the kitchen and into the living room where half a dozen calico kittens and several adults are on the floor.

“Oh my God, they’re adorable,” Eddie says, leaving Steve’s side to get down next to the kittens. Steve gets a huge smile watching him. Fuck, he’s super hot and he’s now holding a tiny kitten, cooing at it? Steve might just get on one knee right now. Or both knees. Honestly, either one works.

If he were paying more attention to literally anything other than Eddie, Steve would notice that nearly everyone else in the room is also staring at Eddie. The only exception to that is El, who’s sitting cross-legged on the floor with the mama cat in her lap, both watching the kittens with the same wide-eyed intensity.

There’s a tap on Steve’s shoulder, and he turns to look at Robin. “Can we talk for a sec?” she asks, voice still odd.

“Yeah,” he says and follows her back into the kitchen.

She crosses her arms and leans back against the counter. “So are you gonna tell me what Eddie Munson is doing in our living room?”

“Oh, have you already met him?” Steve asks.

Her eyes widen. “Are you being serious right now?”

“Uh. Yes?”

“Steve, that’s Eddie Munson,” she says, “From Corroded Coffin?”

“From what?” he asks, though as she says, it does sound a tiny bit familiar. 

“Corroded Coffin?” she says, “It’s that band the kids love. Along with like half of America if they’re not completely scandalized by them.”

“So what, you’re trying to tell me Eddie’s famous?” Steve asks. Robin nods. “Hold on, this isn’t like Paul all over again, is it?” Paul was a guy Steve briefly dated a few years ago, and Robin had somehow convinced Steve that he was an Olympic athlete. In his defense, she had mocked up some seriously convincing news articles.

But Robin is shaking her head. “No, I’m serious this time,” she says. She reaches into her pocket and pulls out her phone. After a second she turns it around to show him the Google results for Eddie Munson. There are a lot of red carpets and pictures of him onstage. And damn, Eddie seriously is so hot.

“Alright, well, you definitely didn’t have time to photoshop these,” Steve mutters. Robin nods, patting him on the shoulder. How did he accidentally bring a famous guy over?

Just then, Eddie comes into the kitchen, a kitten in his hands. 

“Stevie, look at her,” he says, holding the kitten up.

Stevie? Robin mouths. Steve kicks her as he reaches out to scratch under the kitten’s chin. It mews at him.

“I asked Nancy—she’s terrifying, by the way,” Eddie adds to Robin, “And she said I can keep her.” He lifts the kitten to his face and it purrs as it rubs its cheek against Eddie’s. Steve is actually going to combust.

“Alright, well, I’m heading back in,” Robin says, voice back to that strained quality as she escapes the kitchen. Eddie doesn’t seem to notice, too busy whispering praise to the kitten.

Steve scratches under its chin again and it purrs at him. “What’re you gonna name her?” he asks.

“Don’t know yet,” Eddie says, “Isn’t she per—oh, hold on.” His phone is ringing, so he moves the kitten to one hand as he reaches into his pocket and pulls it out. “Hey Gar….Yeah, ‘cause you abandoned me….No, I’m in Japantown getting a kitten….No, that’s not a euphemism….Listen, I’m kinda busy, I’ll call you later, alright?…Yeah, see you, man.”

While he was talking, the kitten clawed its way up Eddie’s shirt and into his hair. “What’re you doing in there, sweet girl?” he asks, tucking his phone back into his pocket and reaching for the kitten. It’s gotten very tangled in his curls, though, and apparently really likes being there. 

“Lemme help you,” Steve says, stepping closer to Eddie and extricating the kitten. Eddie’s hair is very soft. Good to know. “Here you go,” he says, holding the kitten out for him.

“One sec,” Eddie says. He ties his hair up quickly (also hot, fuck) before taking the kitten back. He boops noses with it. “Such a mischievous little girl.” 

“Well, can you blame her?” Steve asks. He brushes a loose curl behind Eddie’s ear. “Your hair seems like a nice place to be.”

Eddie smiles at him, a dimple appearing on his cheek. “I’ll be honest, Stevie,” he says, voice getting a little lower as he moves closer, boxing Steve against the counter. “At first I just came along because you’re gorgeous, but I think I’ve fallen in love.” He holds up the kitten in one hand.

“You think I’m gorgeous?” Steve asks, feeling his face heat. 

“‘Course I do, big boy,” Eddie says, leaning closer and putting his free hand on the counter by Steve’s hip.

Maybe this is stupid and way too forward, but Eddie is so dreamy with his eyes and his dimple and his hair and the kitten in his hand, so Steve leans in and kisses him. It’s a little relieving when Eddie kisses him back, free hand lifting to his hair while Steve wraps his arms around his waist.

Steve doesn’t notice the front door opening or a new group of people that includes Dustin Henderson coming inside. He doesn’t notice them entering the kitchen and freezing as they take in the scene.

That is, not until Dustin shouts, “Holy shit, is that Eddie Munson?”

tagging a few people who asked for a continuation/asked to be tagged (sorry if i missed anyone!): @nburkhardt @stargyles @csinnamon-fox @manda-panda-monium @silly-jellyghoty @lifeisnotsobadonceyoustopcaring @starquirk

edit to add that this ficlet is complete and the last part is here

#gareth after finally coming to pick up eddie: oh my god that wasn't a euphemism?? #meanwhile eddie is just sitting there grinning like an idiot holding a kitten in one hand and steve's hand in the other #okay also everyone's tags on the last one were amazing #i wish i could have stolen all of your ideas but they did not all fit together #unfortunately #steddie #steve x eddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #stranger things #ficlet

[xxblairexxss]

Flushed

Pairing : Charles Leclerc x reader

Theme : Angst / fluff

Requested!

Your attempt to move on from your ex, Charles went terribly wrong.

Based on Google, the symptoms they mentioned were dizziness, abdominal pain, visual problem, trembling and reduced sense of control so I wrote based on it. I’m sorry if it wasn’t accurate! Thank you for the request, anon! I hope it lives up to your expectation!

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“Excuse me?!”

You jolted awake when your friend came bursting into the room with a bunch of chocolates and chips in her arms. Your hair was looking all disheveled, your eyes were red and puffy.

“What?” You brought the tissue paper to your face to blow on your nose before laying back down, tugging on the quilt to cover back your entire body.

“Y/N! It’s been months! You can’t seriously still crying over this. I mean, I get it, break up is sad but is this all what you gonna be doing?”

“I miss him!” Your voice became a muffle under the quilt and you heard Y/F/N groaned as she pulled the quilt away.

“Then call him. Tell him you miss him.”

“Should I?” You looked at her in surprise. She had always been telling you to move on, to just find someone else so you were expecting her to say the same thing over again. “No, I can’t do that. See, he doesn’t miss me as much as I do. I’m the one suffering here!”

“How do you know the break up doesn’t effect him?” She took a seat in front of you and went through all the chips she had bought with her. Her brows raised in excitement as she picked a salt & vinegar flavoured chips, offering you one when she opened it, to which you took and crunch on it.

“Because he doesn’t look like it? Have you seen his Instagram?” You scooted closer and dipped your hand into the chips packet to get another one.

“He’s a freaking Formula 1 driver. Have you ever seen Lewis Hamilton post a crying picture of him when he go through a break up?” She rolled her eyes, looking very much done with you. “What about the guy you were talking to last week?”

“Oh, I stop replying to him. Got an ick. But! I met this other guy.” You took your phone to click on the picture of the guy you were talking about and showed it to Y/F/N. “What do you think?”

“Let me see.” She took your phone away and stared, more like analysing the picture. “Sketchy. I would say no.”

“Why! He’s cute though.” You took the phone back and scrolled to a different picture. “See?”

“Oh, so now you are all interested with other guys just when I asked you to call your ex? I swear you be doing the exact opposite of what I told you.”

“It’s not like it was serious or anything. I still miss him. None of the guys I talked with could make me feel the same way like he did.” You turned off your phone and laid down by Y/F/N’s side, eyes trailing the details of your room for the hundredth times.

“Why don’t you try and go out with him?” She scowled at you jokingly when you turned to look at her. “Not Charles, idiot. That guy. Who knows a proper date could make you stop thinking about the Ferrari guy. One step at a time?”

“Do you think so?” You sat up and gazed at her in hesitation.

“I would prefer to see my best friend all dress up and going out on a date so I could hear some tea instead of hearing you wail over the same guy for another month.”

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“Too much?”

The date didn’t happen until another week after your conversation with Y/F/N as you weren’t exchanging texts everyday with the guy, Alan, and he didn’t mention anything about a date until the weekend arrived. You were actually contemplating to say yes because you had a hunch of something but you weren’t sure what it was and decided to dismissed it as ‘a feeling everyone gets when they try to move on from their exes’.

“Too much? Are you really asking me that? You look absolutely phenomenal!” Y/F/N walked to the dressing table and picked a few shades of lipsticks. “Try this one. It’s gonna pop your look even more.”

“I feel like I’m betraying Charles for this.” You closed the cap of the lipstick once you put it on and fixed the smudge on your eyeliner with your picky finger.

“Stop talking about Charles! You are on to a new adventure and a new dic–“

“Okay, I’m off!” You immediately stood up after applying perfume on your insides wrists and neck, walked back to the bad to get your handbag along with you.

“I just finished the longest shift in the world! Don’t wake me up and keep the tea hot until I wake up tomorrow, okay? Enjoy your date and go crush that dic–“

“Stop it!” You yelled back and slammed the door.

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“You look beautiful.”

“Hi!” You stopped when you were by the side of the table that he had sat. He looked exactly like how you pictured him. Fancy and well formed would be the words to describe him. He had told you beforehand that he would arrive a little early to the restaurant, asking you if you would mind about it to which you said no because it didn’t feel right to make him wait for you.

He greeted you with a hug and you were slightly taken aback when he ran his fingers through your hair, sniffing it as he pulled away. “You smell nice.”

“Oh, thank you.” You smiled back and took a seat as he pulled your chair out.

“I was actually going to wait but the waiter recommended a drink so I ordered it for you. I hope you don’t mind?”

“No, not at all. Thank you.” You placed your small bag on your lap and took a sip from the drink. It looked like a pinã colada so you were expecting a sweet taste on your tongue but this one had a weird smell and tasted salty. “Wow, it’s really strong!” You cringed as the drink hit your throat, thinking it could be a twist drink menu from the restaurant.

“Is it? Should I order a different one? Excuse–“

“No, no. It’s totally fine.” You waved your hand and he retreated his hand from calling the waiter.

“So, what’s up? Wait,” He shook his head and laughed in disbelief. “That was really bad. You are so beautiful it made me speechless for a while.”

He carried the whole conversations and you knew he would. He was also the one who had been picking new topics for you to talk about through texts. He looked exactly like his pictures, yes, but the way he approached certain topics were somewhat interesting, you would say. You saw the way he talked about women and though it was very subtle, he sounded haughty but you weren’t gonna jump into conclusion as maybe, just maybe, he had a bad day today so some of his emotions were conveyed through his way of thinking.

But it was hard for you to deny the discomfited feelings when he kept on touching your hand whenever you put it on the table and you had to continuously taking a sip from your drink just so it gave you a reason to pull your hand away.

“Y/N?”

“Yeah? I’m– I’m sorry I got distracted. What were you saying?” You shut your eyes as you felt yourself spacing out.

“I was asking if you ever had a pet.”

“Yeah? Yeah! I used to have a dog but he passed away like, last year. I’m sorry but I think– I am not sure– but–” You placed your fingers on your temple area and applied a pressure on it. You realised that you started feeling the room spinning around when you focused on him but everything around him swayed, making you nauseous. Everything he said went from clear words to a mumble to nothing at all. Your ears were ringing so bad they were no longer registering anything he said and you only see the way his mouth moves over and over, as if you had put it on mute.

“Is there anything wrong?”

“Yeah, I don’t– I don’t feel really good.” You winced from the pain on your head and took his hand as he stretched out his arm.

“Do you want me to bring you home?” He stood up and for a split second, you saw a smirk. You realised you had been spacing out, disoriented every second now. You didn’t know why, but you knew something was wrong. It couldn’t be from your food as you never had any food allergy. You felt completely fine before you left the house, exhilarated, even. But the little smirk that he had divulged as he offered you a hand sealed everything together.

You quickly retracted your hand and struggled to push the chair back, feeling suffocated as if it was trapping you. “I– I need to go to the bathroom. Excuse me.” You took your bag with you and tumbled when you tried to walk past him.

“Are you sure? Do you want me to walk you there and wait for you?” He held your waist, even pulled you closer as you felt his breath on your neck.

“No, it’s– it’s okay. I’ll be back. I– yeah.” You pushed him away and saw he trailed his eyes from your neck down to your chest, making you grapple to breath. Stepping aside, you held the wall as you took a few steps, leaning against it as you shut your eyes, trying to shake off the dizziness.

“Ma’am, are you okay?”

“Yeah– yeah, I’m fine.” You gave a little smile and continued walking to the bathroom, nearly toppled over a couple of times. You could feel the eyes on you from the workers and customers and there it was, again, the smirk from Alan as he looked at you from the table, hands in his pocket, looking full of pride.

The bathroom was empty, which was a relief and you scurried inside one of the stall and clumsily tried to lock the door, your hands shaking as it felt as if someone was chasing after you. You were now on the floor, your legs gave away as soon as your felt, not safe, but shielded from whatever it was outside.

You tried to unlock your phone but your blurry eyesight and trembling hands made it hard which caused your phone to lock itself from the repeated wrong passcode inputs. “No, no, no, no. Please.” You pressed everything that appeared on the screen and it was finally ringing to which you quickly placed it to your ear. “Please pick up. Please, please.”

The ringing stopped and you were greeted with a soft breathing sound from the other hand. You took in a shaky breath and wiped your tears with the back of your hand. “H–hello?”

“Y/N?” It was Charles.

“I– I don’t know– I don’t–“ Your words were stuck in your throat and you couldn’t stop sobbing so everything became a mess. None of your words were spoken, every sob you took made you feel more and more breathless.

“Y/N? Hey, hey, hey. Slow down. Where are you?”

“I’m at La Table and– I think– something in my drink– my head hurts.” You mumbled and pulled your phone away where you heard footsteps coming.

“Y/N, hey, Y/N, listen. I’m coming to you, alright. Stay on the phone with me. Can you do that?” You nodded but he was expecting to her your voice. “I need words, Y/N. Say something.”

“Yes…”

“I’m heading to my car. Can you tell me where you are?”

“I’m in the bathroom. Can you please–” You flinched when you heard a knock coming from outside your stall.

“Baby? It’s me.” It was Alan. Then came a woman’s voice after his. “Ma’am, we thought you weren’t feeling well so we brought your boyfriend.” The knocking sound came again.

You were trembling so hard that the phone nearly slipped off your hand. You pushed on your leg to scoot as far as you can from the door. The bathroom was big, bigger than usual but it still made you feel like as if there wasn’t enough room for you.

“Charles– I’m– I’m scared.” You whispered, and flinched when they knocked on your stall again. “They– he is outside.”

“I’m 5 minutes away, Y/N. I promise. Fuck!” He slammed his hand on the steering wheel when the traffic light turned red before he could pass.

You turned you head to the door when you heard the clicking sound as the door came unlocking, the handle being pushed down from the outside. “Ma’am, we are unlocking the door for you.” The worker had an extra keys and they had permission from Alan, which they assumed was your boyfriend and guardian to unlock the door and you scurried deeper against the wall. Your phone had now fallen on the floor and long forgotten.

“Baby,” Alan crouched down on his knees and brushed the strands of your hair away, one finger trailing down to your neck and you shook your head in urgency, shutting your eyes and you trembled in fear.

“No, no. I– please, no.”

“What do you mean? I’m your boyfriend. I’m taking you home.” He pulled you by you wrist so your hand were no longer covering your face but you kept your eyes shut, too scared to look at him in the face.

“Look at me, baby.” He gripped on your chin roughly, jerking you which made you opened your eyes in fear. You saw he was looking back, checking if the worker was still there before bringing his face to your ear. “Behave, or I’m gonna make it worse for you.” You felt his tongue under your ear and it caused you to shiver with feart.

“I– go home– I wanna go home.” You saw he pulled a face, nodding as if he was mocking you.

“I can’t wait to go home too, baby.” He bobbed your head, his grip on your face still stayed.

“Move.”

“What?” You heard he said and as you shut your eyes, refusing to look at him in the eyes any longer. You were no longer felt any force on your cheeks but you could still feel his presence near you, in front of you.

“I said move, bastard!” Charles pulled his back by clenching roughly on the back of his collar, pulling his out of the stall, away from you.

“The fuck is wrong with you?!”

He ignored the man and immediately went in front of you. You had your face hidden against your knees. “Y/N,” He timidly tried to hold your trembling body, hands went to grip on your shoulders. His touch was different though you weren’t aware of your surrounding. The significant difference between the touches made stop quivering a little. “Y/N, princess, it’s me.”

“Please– please don’t leave me.” You unable to form any words, slowly lifting your head to seek comfort from whoever in front of you when you found yourself in someone’s embrace as Charles pulled you into a hug, the familiar comfort inundated your heart when his arms tightly wrapped around your shaky frame.

“I’m not, I’m not. I’m right here, Y/N. I won’t leave you.” You didn’t see it but when he stroked his hand on your back, it was shaky. It felt like he had been holding his breath ever since he received your call and now only could he finally filled his lung with air. He didn’t know and hadn’t properly check if you were hurt but you were in his arms, no longer a phone call away where he could only imagine the worst.

“I am so sleepy– I can’t– everything hurts.”

His hand went to stroke your hair as he shushed you, realising that you still couldn’t speak properly. “It’s okay, princess. It’s okay.“

“Who the fuck are you? Let me handle her.”

“Lay your hand on her and I’ll fucking break it. ” Charles pushed the guy away, sending him tumbling back. “Can you stand up? Y/N, hey, look at me. I need you to stand up. Can you do that for me?”

Charles patted you on your cheeks when he saw you were spacing out, your eyes getting droopy. “Fuck it.” He went from crouching to kneeling down as he wrapped his arms around your back and your knees, standing up and your head was leaning against his neck.

“Head hurts. My– stomach.” Your words became a mumble against his skin as you were falling asleep and he leaned his cheek against your forehead, trying to reassure you.

“I know, Y/N. I know.” He took your phone and bag, hanging it on his arm before trying to walk out from the bathroom.

“Y/N–“

“Go fuck yourself.” Charles pushed the guy by his elbow, causing him to crash against the sink. “I’m not done with you yet.”

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When you woke up, you were in an oversized shirt, Charles’s shirt. Your skin didn’t feel moist from all those skincare and makeup products and you had a gel-cooling pad on your forehead. Your head was still throbbing but it was better than what you felt last night.

“Y/N?” Your turned your body to the back, facing the door of the bedroom and saw Charles walked in. “No, no. Just lay down.” He straighten his arms to halt you from sitting up and he crouched down by your side of the bed so he could meet your eyes. He the. caressed the side of your face, letting his hand so stay cupping on your cheek as he gently stroked the temple of your head. “You scared me a lot. Does your head still hurt?” The warmth of his hand, the comfort of his gaze, the reassuring smile could pull you back to sleep. Long gone all the insecurity and perilous feelings from yesterday. You felt sheltered and secured just from his touch. The touch that you had been yearning.

“No, not anymore.” You smiled at him back taking his hand in yours and brushed your lips on the palm. “What’s wrong with your hand?” You frowned and trailed the cuts on his knuckles, stopping when you see him grimaced.

“I got into a fight. It’s nothing, princess.” You haven’t heard the nickname for the longest time ever but it still gave you butterfly.

“A fight? With who?”

“No one. It’s not important.”

“Can you lay down with me?” You saw he blinked, looking at you as if he was asking you to repeat the words.

“Is it– is it okay? I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“Please?” Charles gqve in when he saw your look, almost pleading and stood up to get on the bed. You scooted closer, your head finding its way to its home, against his chest as you felt his fingers playing with your hair.

“Why did you do it?” Charles asked, breaking the silence in the room.

“Do what?”

“The date. Why did you go on a date?”

“I–“ You drew in a breath. “I was trying to move on from you.”

“Why?” His hand is now on your back and you felt your shirt tugged a little as if he was trying to snake his hand under it but held himself and went back to stroke your back, hand against your shirt.

“Because I miss you.” You fixed your head on his chest, your legs are all tangled up with his.

He didn’t say anything else and you felt like you were chagrined, feeling rejected, even slightly ashamed for being too blunt with your feelings. You knew you shouldn’t have said that. He probably had been talking to someone else by now.

“I miss you too.”

“Hm?” You tilted your head when you heard his voice cut all the thoughts in your head.

“I actually miss you a lot, princess.” He looked down and beamed when he met your eyes on him.

“But you don’t look like it.” You muttered, making him chuckle.

“What do you mean?”

“Your Instagram, it doesn’t look our break up effect you.” He chuckled even more and leaned his head against your hair. Your voice was so full of diffidence he found it adorable.

“My Instagram doesn’t speak for my feelings, silly. I miss you, a lot. I always wanted to call you but I couldn’t, scared if you would find it annoying. When I got a call from you last night, I thought you were gonna said something, anything about us but I heard you whimpered and my blood ran cold. God knows how many speeding and disobey sign traffic tickets I have gotten by now.”

You giggled and turned yourself facing him, your hands fondled with his chin, feeling the stubble poked against your skin. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even know I was calling you. I didn’t want to call you, actually because I wasn’t sure if you would come because, you know, we broke up.”

“We broke up but you are still important to me, Y/N. You always will. I would even take the damn flight if you called me from a different country. Just– don’t call me when you are on a date. No, no more date for you.”

“Why? How am I able to move on if I can’t go on a date, Charles. I can’t keep on crying over you.” You shook your head, looking dejected. You needed to move on. That was what Y/F/N had been telling you. You couldn’t keep on hoping for something that you, yourself didn’t even know if it was worth the wait.

“You don’t have to move on. I’ll be taking you out on your next date. And your next next date. And your upcoming date. All of your dates, basically.”

You sat up almost instantly, hand was still on his chest and you blinked. “What? What do you mean? Are you doing this just because you felt bad for what happened to me last night because if that was the reason, then it’s totally fine. I–“

You felt his lips on yours. It was the kind of kiss that was enough to speak for all of the unspoken words to which he didn’t even have to say anything else. The kind of kiss that erased all your insecurities, all unanswered questions you had been keeping in your head. He pulled away and leaned his forehead against yours. “It means I still love you, princess.” His lips is back on yours as he pulled away, again. “A lot.” Lips were back to mould against yours. “And I don’t want to see you go out on a date with someone else. No more silly date, okay?”

✧.* tags! @i83andrew @cltrlne @karmabyfernando @ohthemisssery @ru-kru @tastebaldwin @f1obessed @aundercover @love4lando

let me know if you would like to be removed or added to my tag list! or if I missed anyone!

Wanted to also point these out. The other symptoms mentioned were difficulty to speak and slurring words, hence why none of the words she said made any sense. Feeling confused, where the reader asked Alan to bring her home and memory loss, where she didn’t ask about what happened last night since she couldn’t remember large sections of it. Hope it makes sense! 🫶🏻

#charles leclerc x reader #charles leclerc imagine #f1 imagines #charles leclerc #charles leclerc imagines #f1 imagine #f1 x reader

[tallymonster]

Careless Whisper ❤️ AO3 link ❤️‍🔥

Summary: Zesstra is a stripper and she just got off work. She turns on her computer and watches a very steamy streamer.

THIS IS PURE SMUT TRASH, IT IS NOT SERIOUS. If you come to my asks being an asshole, your ass will get BLOCKED.

A/N: there's a lot of emojis and out of character speak going on here. Do not take anything written here seriously, this was done for fun. Consider this a love letter to my friends on the Astarion Brainrot discord and to the ones who let me use their Tavs in this wild idea I had one day when I got too stoned and started to write on Google docs. Might be a one off, might be a thing, who knows?? Either way, enjoy! Happy Valentine's Day 😘💕

@cursedhaglette who let me use Halia (goldengalhal)

@tragedybunny who let me use Sera (SeraQueen)

@micropoe10 who let me use Colette (EcoGirl)

@just-a-refrigerator who let me use Elora (slutty_songstress)

And @bhaalbaaby who let me use Penelope

Thanks guys, I love love love you all 💕

Zesstra flops onto her bed with her laptop and a giant glass of wine in her hand. Another shitty day at work, but what's new? Being a dancer at the Fae Cabaret wasn't the ideal thing, but fuck, if the money wasn't worth getting her ass slapped for 10$ extra dollars in her tip pile.

Today though, was the last straw. The creepy rich dude who comes by every once in a while came by tonight, and did his same bullshit. She could practically recite his opening line “Hey gorgeous, why the sour face?” followed by a stupid smarmy laugh.

Zesstra smiled, put on the fake giggle, and slapped his shoulder. Next, he buys her the cheapest mixed drink, and of course, he gets himself an expensive glass of whiskey he never finishes.

She tries her hardest not to roll her eyes after he makes some degrading comment about her coworker, grimacing while he rants about some meeting with important people she doesn't give two fucks about.

Whatever, that's all in the past now. Tonight was about Zesstra, of course. It's her blessed time off and she was going to spend it the only way she could truly enjoy it.

Zesstra turned on her computer and went through her socials. The public one for family and close friends, some messages from the girls at work, nothing too exciting.

Then she flips to the slutty socials, the ones where she can post pictures from work. She answers some messages on her pay per post site, adds more lewd photos from her various shopping sprees, and scrolls for a few minutes. Messages pour in offering her the world for a few seconds of her attention, but there's really only one place she wishes to be.

Zesstra thinks back on the one bright spot in her nights. A regular she only knows as “The Lawyer”. He's a good looking elf, perfect silver hair, gorgeous face, dazzling red eyes that lock onto her as she walks the floor of the club.

He usually doesn't say much, but when he does Zesstra swears she’s heard that silky voice somewhere before. She put that thought to the back of her mind. Tonight was about seeking her own pleasure.

Clicking through the streaming sites she visits on nights when the images of him won't leave, she finds that her favorite creator, an asmr streamer called ProfaneDelight, just began his stream. Zesstra clicks on his name and pops her headphones on. She drinks more of the wine, and closes her eyes as his voice begins to fill her ears.

“Good evening, darlings.” She watches as he enters the frame of the video, his tight red shirt and black pants hug his body. The camera is at the most unfortunate angle, since it won't allow her to see his whole face which she assumes matches the delicious sound of his voice.

“Have you been waiting all day for me?” He huffs softly, a small laugh follows, “What a good audience you are…” His breathy tone sends shivers down her spine.

Zesstra kept her eyes on the screen as his hands come up to the desk he stands behind. She notices the black leather gloves with red piping along the edges that cover his hands.

“You know I can't stand to be away from you.”, his voice drips, seductively. “I bet you think of me while you do the most boring things.”

Zesstra can't help keeping her eyes locked on his hands, she tries not to, but her mind starts to imagine The Lawyer’s hands there instead.

“Do you get excited when you see time passing by as I get closer to coming back to you?”

His right hand comes up to the top of his shirt, slowly undoing a couple of buttons. A breathy sigh followed his hand as it lowered itself down his torso. Zesstra bites her lip in anticipation, taking another slow sip from her wine.

Her eyes follow his hand as it comes to a stop at the waistline of his pants. The heat rises to her cheeks when she sees the outline of his cock as the gloved hand cups it.

A strained groan escapes his lips, she can already feel the effects of his seduction working on her body. Her cheeks are heating up just by watching these slow teases.

Zesstra swallows more wine, watching as he opens his shirt more. The pale skin of his core seemed to shine in what appears to be candlelight. The soft yellows of the light bathe his body, the shadows cast highlight the muscles that are slowly exposed.

“Ah ah aaahh” he teases, “if you want more…you know what to do, darlings.”

Zesstra smirks mischievously, the money she earned tonight would be put to great use right now. She types a quick message and before she could type it she hears the ping of a donation from someone called goldengalhal.

goldengalhal sent 20$ “Starting off right, love. There's more where that came from 😘”

Zesstra rolls her eyes and sends her 25$ donation, 5 more than whomever that is. Back on the screen she sees her name and message pop up.

TestyZesty sent 25$ “couldn't wait to come home, looks like I got here just in time…”

He laughs and begins to slide one of the gloves off near the microphone. The soft scratching sound of the fabric rubbing against his pale hand sent more shivers through Zesstra’s skin.

As the glove comes completely off his hand, he taps on the mic, Zesstra sighs contentedly and licks the wine off her lip. She notices his fingers, and does a double take. They look familiar? She pours the last bit of this bottle into her glass and leans back to watch more before jumping to conclusions.

“Looks like we have someone who came by at the right time…little TestyZesty…my dear, what are you so testy about? Anything I can help with?” His lips curl into a little smirk, “I hear I give wonderful stress relief…”

Zesstra shoots up on her bed, her wine swivels in the glass and almost spills due to her abrupt reaction. “No fuckin’ way.” her jaw drops and she begins to type her response. Suddenly, another donation pings, this time from a SeraQueen.

SeraQueen sent 50$ “I had a bad day at work, can I get a little love too 🥺”

“Of course, dear. Hope your day can improve now that you're here, my Queen.” he responds with all the sweet words they all love.

Zesstra scoffs, “Biiiiitttttch, please.” she giggles and sends her message. As soon as it pops up on screen, she hears his melodic voice begin to read it.

“Work, irl shit. Life sucks, then you die. You make it better though.” she sees a small smirk on his lips, Gods, she would kill to suck on those lips. “Oh, don't be so nice to me, Zesty…you make me want to be nice back..” He draws out the last bit of that sentence, making the hairs on her arms stand on end.

The second hand comes up and begins the same languid dance of slipping the matching glove off. Bit by bit he takes the glove off each finger, a soft moan flows out of those pretty pink lips when he finally releases his hand from the offending accessory.

He strokes the microphone with his fingers as more soft, breathy moans leave his lips. “You're all so eager to get me exposed aren't you? All these adorable messages just for me?”

“You have no idea…” Zesstra grabs the second bottle of wine that sat on her nightstand, she unscrews the top and drinks straight from the bottle. More images of her Lawyer pop into her head, but her mind decides to think of the way he ran his hands all over her when she took him into the private rooms at the back of the club a couple of nights ago.

No matter how many times she's been told not to let people touch her, she can't help letting him do it every time they're alone. He was paying for the whole experience, of course, but sometimes she wonders what they would get away with if she were the one paying him.

She snaps out of it the moment she hears another donation ping from an EcoGirl.

EcoGirl sent 150$ “do you like to garden? Because I have a hedge that needs tending 😏”

“Oh no, little love. I can't mess up these immaculate hands…then how would I be able to make these streams?” He giggles a bit and stands to remove his belt. It's like a little game of back and forth comments and donations from different people.

Among the many she notices a comment from a slutty_songstress “how do I get you to sing for me? bet you make wonderful sounds 👀”. He apparently noticed that one as well, he reads it out and huffs into the microphone.

“I don't usually do private performances…most of the time I’m the one getting the dance done for me…” A skewed smirk grows on his face, as if he's trying to play coy.

Zesstra’s mind begins to fire off with unhinged horny thoughts. She would do anything to give this man a dance he would never forget. People do love her aloof drow attitude, who’s to say he wouldn't?

Before she could stop herself, she drops another donation.

TestyZesty sent 100$ “what kind of dancing? Are you going to the ballet or stopping by the Cabaret? maybe I'll see you there? 😘”

Another cheeky comment, sure to get his attention. He laughs again, and bites his lip. “Well, I do enjoy both, but I do hold a special place in my heart for the girls at the Fae…have a few in mind actually.”

Within seconds the chat is flooded with questions on who the girls could be. Zesstra sees a few of her coworker’s names flash up on the screen, most notably, Penelope, the pink tiefling with a huge fan base, and Nym the other drow girl who worked part time at the strip club.

Some even mentioned Nym’s brother Sorm, but he had given up the cabaret after finding himself a job as a model after one of his regulars hit it big during Faerun Fashion Week.

Penelope and Nym are Zesstra’s friends and friendly competition. Most nights where the three of them work, they'll place bets on which one of them will get hit on first (Penelope), which one will get a four figure tip (Nym), and who can get the client the most drunk within 30 minutes (Zesstra).

She giggles as the comments keep flying, eventually, one commenter names her!

“Have you seen Zesstra?? She's kind of a bitch but total dommy mommy energy 🥵”

Zesstra cackles like a banshee, “That's right, babes, fear me!” She takes a long drink from the bottle, amused that someone out there thought of her.

Back on stream, the delightful treat in front of her sucks his lip and releases it with a pop, “Darlings, I will never kiss and tell, but I do know one of my little friends is here right now.”

Zesstra sputters into her wine glass, she cannot believe what she just heard! Is he trying to imply that he's a possible client of the Fae??? There's no way, he's probably talking about the ballet that her cousin Octavia is a part of. But then again, how many of those girls sit in their room after a performance and flick their bean to this shit?

She chuckles the thought out of her head, and focuses her attention on the screen. She starts to type a message when a donation pops up.

goldengalhal sent 200$ “I do ballet, maybe you’ve seen one of our performances? I'm the prima ballerina at the Gate’s Performance Hall.”

“Good for you, goldengal. I do appreciate the arts, and I do love dressing up for the occasion, but….there's just something about the girls at the Fae that gets me going…”

Zesstra’s brain short-circuits. “OH MY FUCKING GODS.” Could he be one of her regulars????

Another donation. EcoGirl sent 50$ “CAN WE GET BACK TO THE MATTERS AT HAND?? our boyfriend is still wearing a shirt. 👀”

Zesstra laughs and sends her donation, TestyZesty sent 69$ “i agree with EcoGirl, can we get back to these pressing matters? In particular, the rest of those buttons 😏” An amused chuckle comes out of his lips, he stands and Zesstra could see him lean in closer to the microphone.

His hand slides down his chest, following along the line of buttons at the front of his shirt. The almost hushed sounds flowed from his lips. A strained groan here and a breathy moan there. Zesstra’s skin prickles under his teases.

His hands linger on the buttons that hold his shirt closed, one by one he begins to slide his fingers over the closures, his pale skin becoming more visible by the second. More soft whines and moans fill Zesstra’s ears, the vibrations pooling down in her core.

He leans over and speaks directly into the camera “I hope you all are pleased with yourselves, I don't usually let you all have this much power over me, but I figured with it being Lover’s Night, I would give my little pets a treat.”

He blows a kiss to the camera and begins running his hand down his neck, slowly trailing his hand down his now exposed chest. A low groan, almost a growly noise flutters out of his throat as he pulls the rest of his shirt open. The red silky looking fabric hung off his shoulders as his hand lingered on his waistband.

“Shall I keep going, lovelies? What do you think?”

The messages fly on the left hand side of Zesstra’s laptop screen. One after the other they compete for his attention until another high donation drops.

Slutty_songstress sent 200$ “off with the shirt, please (respectfully)”

“Well, my songstress, since you asked so politely…” The last word is drawn out, he lets his shirt drop from his shoulders, his hand throws it off and palms his cock again. He sucks his lip into his mouth, Zesstra could see what looked like a fang pop out the right side.

More breathy moans fill her ears as she begins to remember earlier in her night, when her bright spot waltzed into the club. She watched as the Lawyer walked up to the bar, he leaned on the counter and began to text furiously. Zesstra didn't usually feel so flustered because of a client, but the way he looked at her was not usual of the other patrons.

When she walked up to him he looked straight at her eyes and smiled. “Hello, beautiful.” She smiles back and leans over the bar, letting her shoulders drop, pressing her upper arms together to puff out her chest. The little game of playing it cool failed under his gaze.

They talk for a while before she hears her name being called, at the same time he checks his watch and notices the time. “I’m late to a very important meeting. Looks like we have to part ways, gorgeous. Maybe next time, we can have some time together? Perhaps away from these prying eyes?”

Zesstra could never properly hear him, no thanks to the loud ass music Alfira played behind the DJ booth, but she was pretty good at reading lips by now.

He slips her a note and winks as she bends down seductively to shove the little scrap of paper inside her platform boot. The moment ruined by Nym, who comes to pull her up on stage. Soon after she finishes her set, she pulls the little note out and reads it.

Zesstra’s jaw drops and sees that it's a business card for one of the most elite law firms in Faerun. It was a plain white card with his name, Astarion, and number written on it. On the back there was a note that read “I helped you once before, don't hesitate to ask again.”

She had given him her landlord’s number when they were trying to pull some shady shit and not fix her leaky shower. One call from “her lawyer” and it was done.

Seems like this was her chance, and given the amount of alcohol she's drunk so far, Zesstra decides to text the number.

“Hey, Astarion. It's Zesstra. Pretty bold of you to give me a business card.” She hits send and throws her phone on the nightstand. She'll check it later, he was probably busy at that meeting he mentioned.

Back in her room, she snaps back to reality yet again when she hears the sound of hundreds of messages scrolling past. Apparently in the time that she was in her daydream, her streamer had already undone his pants! She scoffs and types out a message.

TestyZesty sent 123$ “Holy shit, I looked away for five seconds and you sluts got his pants open??”

Zesstra hears the sultry voice reading her message out loud with a little wince at the end, “I guess if you were paying attention, you wouldn't be surprised.”

Her throat feels dry, she clenches and swallows. “You're all so sweet, letting me ramble like this…I wish I could see your face when you let me do whatever I want to you.”

Zesstra was already extremely turned on from seeing her crush earlier and the way she could feel his eyes studying her reactions.

“Touch yourself. I know you want to.”

As if she was being compelled to, her hand begins to trail down her center, slipping into her tiny shorts. She feels her wetness coating her fingers, her body opening up under his commands.

“Be good for me, I could be really good for you…” he slips his pants down, and she hears them hit the ground. His hand moves up to his waist, pulling at the fabric of his skin tight boxers, his cock very clearly hardened by this point.

“Oh fuck…” she slips her shorts completely off, spreading her legs on both sides of the laptop sitting on her bed. Her left hand goes back to work herself open while the right is tugging her bra up to play with her nipple.

“Give me what I want and I'll give you what you want, darlings.”

Another flood of donations and messages ring out, Zesstra wishes they would all just shut up and enjoy the show, but it's all part of the game.

EcoGirl sent 100$ “pleeease, I need to see this man cuuuuummmmmmm 🥵”

“As you wish, dear. Any particular way? Or is it the dealer's choice?” his voice drops as a sharp exhale escapes with a pout, his muscles tense and release as he runs his hand over his cock.

“Tell me how you want me to.” a sigh, and a moan, “I really wanna come for you all, you've been so good to me tonight..”

Two donations come in at the same time, each opposes the other.

SeraQueen sent 350$ “love the teasing, keep going, we love anything you give us”

goldengalhal sent 420$ “fuck your hand. Let us see your cock leak.”

“Ooh, the war begins…So direct, goldengal, and sooo generous…thank you, love. I do like what SeraQueen adds though, maybe I can give both of my generous beauties a compromise?’

He runs his left hand down the front of his boxers more, his breath hitches and stutters. His fingers teasing the length of his cock. He pulls the camera and the microphone down a bit and flops into the chair behind him.

TestyZesty sent 422$ “you look comfy, just how I imagined when I think of riding you when I touch myself.”

Zesstra had to take her hand off her tit to type that, but she could tell it had an effect on him. As a stripper, she could pretty much tell when any of the patrons got too excited by the dance. This guy clearly loved the attention he got doing these streams in more ways than one.

He begins to pull his boxers down, teasing them all with how slowly he was inching the fabric off. As soon as his cock is freed, it bounces back, bobbing with a twitch. “Is this what you think about, Zesty?”

TestyZesty sent 100$ “ fuck yes. I want to milk you, you drive me crazy.”

A pleased hum that turns into a moan follows as he runs his hands up his thighs, digging his nails into his skin. Zesstra can see the red scratch marks grow bright against his pale skin. Gods, she would love to bite down and see how pretty he would look bruised with little love bites all over.

He wraps one hand around his cock, the other continues to work his way up his toned chest, tweaking a nipple as he begins to lazily stroke his cock.

TestyZesty sent 100$ “get yourself nice and hard, I wanna have a good image of you underneath me.”

“Let me give you a better image then, darling Zesty…”

Zesstra is rewarded with a louder moan, he strokes himself a little more, grabbing a bottle off camera with his other hand. He flips the top and drizzles what looks like lube all over his cock.

EcoGirl sent 50$ “yesyesyesyes get it nice and slick, daddy. I would suck you all day if you let me.”

SeraQueen sent 240$ “you have the prettiest cock, so thick too”

“Oh EcoGirl, you like it when daddy fucks his hand? Would you like it to be your cunt instead? Maybe you and Sera can share?”

Zesstra clenches around nothing, she can't take it anymore and reaches down to fully indulge in herself. She begins to circle her clit, stroking slowly, trying to imitate the movements of his hand on screen.

His hand now coated in a combination of lube and precum slides up and down his hardened length, the muscles on his thighs flex and he lets out more breathy moans. “Let's see who can get me to come all over their beautiful tits, I do love it when they're covered with my come, bouncing in my face.”

Zesstra strokes down her pussy, her slick entrance is so desperate to be filled by him, to be the only one bringing him pleasure. She lets herself wander to the place in her mind where Astarion is the one making her mewl underneath him.

goldengalhal sent 300$ “faster, I love it when you can tell how desperate you are to come.”

He huffs and does as he's told, his hands find their places on his cock and on his balls, both working in tandem to ruin him for the audience. With one hand he strokes himself more, building up speed. His other cups his balls as his fingers spread, moving down towards his frenulum. He arches his back, thrusting into his hand more desperately.

Zesstra wants him to cry out for her like this, she wants to be the one to make him feel as good as he does for her, all she can bare to think of is his cock sliding inside her, splitting her open and taking what he wanted.

Waves of pleasure crash into Zesstra as she watches him stroking his cock faster, she can see how everyone's words affect him. The way his chest stutters as he's getting closer to his own high. His hips thrust up into his soaked hand, seeking release, his breaths growing more ragged and strained.

Zesstra's fingering herself in time with his thrusts, she lets the images of Astarion flood back into her head, his hands all over her as she grinds herself onto him during her dances. She rubs the heel of her palm into her clit faster as she feels herself getting closer, the moans and breaths in her ears pushing her closer to the edge.

“That's right, come for me…let me fill you with my come, get you nice and full for me. Have my seed drip down your legs as you go about your day…” a stutter followed by a strained groan “fuck yourself faster, I want to feel you come for me.”

Zesstra feels herself winding up more, the tension ready to snap at any moment, when she hears his moans grow louder and more primal. He's desperate to come and she would do anything to get that to happen. She keeps her eyes locked into his hands.

With her free hand she sends the last donation she thinks she can type before the lust fully takes her.

TestyZesty sent 69$ “come for me, gorgeous. Let me see you come and coat your beautiful skin.”

“Yes darling… gods, I'm so close… are you gonna come too, Zesty? Come with me, sweet girl.”

As if on command, Zesstra can feel herself crossing over the precipice, her body writhes and clenches as her cunt squeezes down on her fingers. She rides her orgasm out as she hears him panting and whining.

“Yes yes fuck you're so tight and wet, I can't take it anymore, fuuuuck…” he twists his hand on the rise of his hand, giving the head a bit of a squeeze. He thrusts into his hand with little shallow movements, his fingers from his other hand grip on his balls as he fucks his hand.

His body is clenching, tensing up more and more as he pushes himself over the edge, his cock twitches as he comes. The thick liquid coats his hand as it drips down. His body shudders as he keeps fucking his hand through his climax.

His moans stutter and his hips tremble. His waist and stomach are coated with his come, an obscene display for such a composed subject.

“Looks like I gotta clean up here, darlings.” he pants with a small laugh, his breath shallow and chest heaving. “For my little messenger, I hope you liked it. Expect a response from me soon, pet. Good night, loves.”

The stream ends, Zesstra thinks that little sign off was strange, but everyone has their thing. As she's coming down from one of the best orgasms she's had, she hears her phone ring and notices that Astarion has actually texted back! His meeting must've just ended, perfect timing.

When she opens the message, she nearly dropped her phone from the whiplash from throwing her head back. As plain as her own red eyes could see, was a short text. “You were pretty bold tonight, yourself, testyzesty…” Zesstra gasps, her eyes are as wide as dinner plates. “OH MY FUCKING GODS?!?!”

She immediately feels her hands trembling wildly. All she could think about was him, and it turns out that it was. Zesstra’s brain immediately blanks out when her phone rings again. “Did you mean what you said? Do you really want me like that?”

She quickly types a response and sent it back “I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Come now, dear. Don't play coy.” his response reads, “Pretty easy to figure out it was you, not many girls mention seeing me at the Cabaret. Thought you were trying to drop a hint? Figured you recognized my voice from earlier?

Zesstra didn't even think about it, the club is so fucking loud, her mind races at the fact that now she knows that he definitely got off to her watching him. “Did you always know?”

“No.” he replies.

“So then…you meant to give me your phone number tonight?”

“Yes. Let's just say, you intrigued me. Besides, you're not the only one who has a public and private life. I was hoping to let you in on my little secret eventually, but it seems life had other plans for us.”

Zesstra cannot believe what's going on right now, her mind is racing through the hundreds of times he's come through the club. The sudden departures and strange late night meetings, it all makes sense now. There were never any meetings…well, not with other lawyers at least.

“So….what happens now? I know who you are, you know who I am…do we keep going down this path or do we split ways?”

“I think you're a rather curious little kitten, why don't we see how far down the rabbit hole we can go? I'll send you my address. Let me know what you decide on.”

Zesstra bolts out of bed, she puts on the skimpy dress that hangs on the bathroom door. She slips it on and gathers some things before running to the door. As she makes her way down the stairwell of her building, she gets his address. She bites her lip and replies “I’m on my way, see you soon.”

#bg3 #astarion #baldur's gate 3 #baldurs gate 3 #astarion ancunin #bg3 astarion #astarion bg3 #astarion smut #everyone is out of character #it is what it is #happy valentine's day

[solarpunkani]

Milkweed Lovers Everywhere, Heed My Warning

By all means let me know if I'm wrong here, but if I'm not wrong then we're looking at a serious (at least to me) problem.

I've been trying to stray away from Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) and towards more native species in my area--things like swamp, sandhill, etc--and Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa) fits in that category for me. It's hard to find native milkweed plants in stores--even places I've gone to in the past that had a handful of native species are currently only selling Tropical Milkweed. Even still, I know that there's been a good bit of buzz around growing native species, and some stores I've visited have said they're trying to find vendors with native species--they're not only selling Tropical for lack of trying.

So imagine my surprise--and delight--when I go to Lowe's and see Asclepias tubersoa blazoned on a plant label!

And imagine my surprise when it's being sold right next to Tropical Milkweed and looks almost identical to it.

I was immediately suspicious--especially considering the red flower buds on the 'Butterfly weed'. I've grown Tropical Milkweed for several years, and while it's been awhile since I've seen a Butterfly Weed plant outside of a photograph, these definitely didn't look like what I'd seen. Not to mention, I'd only heard of Asclepias tuberosa flowering in orange or yellow--not red. Of course, at the same time, I'm not a professional botanist, and a quick google search did declare that butterfly weed can grow in red (though the images all look like asclepias curassavica to me...).

(Image from the Native Plant Database. Looking at this picture, I should've realized where this was going sooner...)

So I did the reasonable thing and bought two of them. I figured if the red buds somehow turned orange and were actually Butterfly Weed, then I'd be perfectly satisfied. If they turned out to be Tropical Milkweed, well, I simply would give them to my neighbor who's fond of them, or find something else to do with them.

(I feel the need to emphasize; there are a lot of people online who are in the 'if you plant tropical milkweed you're a horrible person and intentionally killing monarch butterflies' camp. I am not one of them; it's not invasive in my area of Florida, it just takes a little bit of extra managing in terms of cutting it back in October/November.)

I ended up in the same Lowe's again today, shopping for my mom, and took a peek at their plant selection. Lo and behold, I found the Butterfly Weed, and...

This sure does look like Tropical Milkweed to me, and to others in my gardening server, yet it's still labeled as 'Butterfly Weed.' Also, I didn't see any Tropical Milkweed on any of the shelves--at least, nothing labeled as Tropical Milkweed. Instead, all I saw was Tropical Milkweed disguised as Butterfly Weed.

This is, in my humble pollinator garden enthusiast opinion, a problem. At best, Lowe's--or the company they source their plants from--is mislabeling their plants on accident. Which could cause problems if people are buying the plants and putting them in a place that's not quite the right condition for them, or create severe disappointment if someone's excited to grow the native Asclepias tuberosa only to end up with something else entirely. At worst? Lowe's--or the company they source their plants from--are aware that people want to grow native milkweed and are either unable to or too lazy to grow them, and would rather try to get away with selling Tropical Milkweed--which has been growing increasingly controversial in some gardening circles--and still reap the benefits and profits of selling native milkweed species.

However, I'll be real? I'm not sure what exactly to do about it. So I guess I'm just letting everyone know; if you see 'Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)' in your local Lowe's, at least double check. Otherwise, you may plant Tropical Milkweed/Scarlet Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) instead.

#milkweed #gardening #flowers #pollinator gardening #pollinator garden #Lowe's #tropical milkweed #butterfly weed #asclepias curassavica #asclepias tuberosa #outdoor gardening #flower gardening #ani rambles #out of queue #idk how legible this post is but I hope its at least SOMEWHAT legible yknow?

[creature-wizard]

Toxic Individualism In Modern Witchcraft

The modern witchcraft movement is very much a product of the 20th century, and one thing it picked up from that was a pretty individualist way of thinking. This isn't all bad, since it helped normalize people being allowed to do spirituality in a way that truly resonated with them, rather than following whatever an institution prescribed for them.

But as many of us know, western individualism comes with a lot of really toxic shit, encouraging and even enshrining apathy, cruelty, and social Darwinism. This, unfortunately, is very much an attitude you occasionally see within modern witchcraft.

This is sometimes expressed through a "let 'em sink or swim" attitude. For example, you might see people bristle at the idea of warning people about dangers such as toxic plants; "well, they should know to just research this themselves, if they get hurt, that's their own faults." Never mind that most of us live in a socioeconomic environment where "natural" tends to be equated with "safe," and few people were taught any real amount of research skills. (Most people don't know how to research beyond "type a thing into Google and click the first link" or "watch a video on YouTube and follow the algorithm.")

There's this sort of idea that witchcraft and the occult is this kind of Darwinian proving ground. You're either just born having what it takes, or you're not. Supposedly, there's no need to warn people about red flags, fascist rhetoric, pseudohistory, or anything, because supposedly, the "worthy" will just be able to find their own way on their own. Anyone who doesn't make it? Anyone who ends up poisoning themselves or falling down the alt right pipeline or abused by a predator? Couldn't be helped; they were never "meant" for this path anyway. It was simply too much for them. Why, if you really think about it, it was their own faults for daring to reach above the station they were born for, anyway.

This is a completely irrational view, because it's simply not how things work. People aren't born having research skills, critical thinking skills, or knowing the difference between real history and pseudohistory; they're taught these things. And some people are statistically much less likely to receive a good education than others. There are a few people who beat the odds and end up better educated than most people in their socioeconomic status, but this doesn't mean that they were born with inherent greatness; it just means that they were curious and lucked out in finding the right materials.

As many of us also know, Victorian-era eugenicists believed that members of the upper class were just inherently better. They had the genes for intelligence and strength of will. (Yeah, that whole modern occult fixation with willpower has some dodgy origins, too.) They just ignored that whole thing where they lived in a socioeconomic system designed to keep most people in poverty. If they ever saw someone beat the system, they attributed it to that person being born exceptional for some reason. I would highly recommend that anyone who hasn't done so already watch Shaun's video, The Bell Curve, which criticizes the book by the same title that effectively tries to argue for Victorian-age eugenics, to get a better picture of this whole thing.

Toxic individualism also encourages thinking of individuals as main characters on some kind of hero's journey, where every pain they suffer and every mistake they make is a vitally important part of their journey and growth; so much so that any effort to prevent them from making mistakes or suffering harm is hindering their personal growth.

Sure, people do often gain valuable insight from their mistakes and suffering. But it's absurd to claim that this is always the best way for people to learn and grow, especially if there's a risk of serious harm for themselves or others. Certainly it's much better to learn from a friendly Tumblr post that essential oils can give you chemical burns or harm your pets than experience it first-hand. And it's much better to learn what far right rhetoric looks like beforehand so you can recognize it when you first see it, rather than get drawn into some far right belief system and perpetuate harm on vulnerable minorities for any amount of time. (This whole thing of acting like you're life's main character and other people are basically just NPCs on some hero's journey that you imagine yourself to be on is so immensely fucked up.)

And finally, if anybody out here finds themselves thinking, "but nobody should expect help from others; after all, I didn't get any!", I'm gonna tell you: it shouldn't have been that way. You didn't not get help because that's just how the world works; you didn't get help because that's how modern western socioeconomics are created to work. Toxic individualism is a construct, and it's one that we can dismantle and replace with something better.

#witchcraft #eugenics #social darwinism #spiritual eugenics #spiritual darwinism #victim blaming #individualism #toxic individualism #anti communal behavior

[silvervioletvalentine]

❣️! Strange love !❣️

Pairing : max verstappen X femOC (Cherrie)

Word count : 6.1k

Warnings: pure fluff / Cherrie being a menace. Max permanently being exasperated. That’s it I think xoxo

As Max stepped out from their bedroom in confusion after a while of not hearing his girlfriends loud voice bellowing out the lyrics to the songs that were blaring from the radio in the kitchen , he could only hesitantly poke his head around the corner with trepidation .

Because when his girlfriend went quiet , it was not a good sign.

The only time she ever shut her big mouth up was either when she was sleeping or doing something that she knew he wouldn't agree with.

Which was a lot . Because the love of his life apparently liked to keep him on his toes and was determined to give him Grey hair as soon as possible.

He spent about fifty percent of his time worrying about racing and the other fifty percent worrying about what the hell Cherrie was going to do next.

She was an absolute nutcase who didn't seem to ever think twice . She just did whatever strange idea popped into her head without even considering the consequences.

It was often Max that was left to deal with them. Rushing to fix whatever mess she had made and apologise to anybody that she had brought into her chaos as well.

He got asked a lot about why he was with her if he spent half the time scolding her or dragging her away from bad decisions.

She wasn't exactly the type of girl that people pictured him with.

She wasn't serious . She wasn't level headed or competitive . She wasn't like him at all.

Instead she was loud , obscene and careless. And barely ever did she take anything seriously .

He could remember the time that he had crashed a few months ago and instead of his girlfriend fretting over him and being in tears with worry, he had returned back to his trailer to find her waiting for him with some hello kitty plasters in her hands and a mischievous smile on her pretty face .

He hadn't been in the best of moods so he had huffed in annoyance at her .

"You can't be serious!" Yet he had stood still and let her plaster one on his cheek where there was the smallest of scratches from where he had pulled off his helmet too roughly.

She had merely laughed and patted him on the shoulder with a shrug . "That looked insane on tv. What did you do that for? Made my heart jump!" She had exclaimed as she hurried back over to the couch to continue watching the rest of the race that was playing out.

Max had gaped at her , hands pressed firmly on his hips in disbelief at what he was hearing.

"I didn't do it on purpose!" He had exclaimed looking at his girlfriend with a small pout when she had started to cheer on Charles in front of the tv instead of coddling him like he had stupidly expected.

Huffing to himself as he pulled off the rest of his suit and flung it aside , not caring where it landed.

He was too busy side eyeing Cherrie moodily , wanting her to make a fuss over him .

Having at least expected more than a little pat on the shoulder! But he should have known that his adrenaline junkie , uncaring , so fucking strange wonder of a girlfriend would act like this.

He had once watched her get stung by two jellyfishes and laugh about it. Forcing him to take a picture of her painful leg while he nearly had a full blown panic attack , hurriedly Googling if you could die from jelly fish stings.

So him crashing into the wall and getting out completely unharmed probably didn't even make her flinch.

She was a nutcase!

"I can't believe you're cheering on another man after I've just lost like that! Don't you have any pity for me Cher?" He couldn't help but wine as he threw himself down on-top of her so that she had no Choice but to pay him attention.

She had just smiled and ran her fingers through his hair , still not taking her eyes away from the screen not matter how hard he huffed and puffed.

"You haven't lost . You'll win the next race and then the next one after that .." she simply replied. Letting out a small cheer as Charles overtook Lewis around the corner bend.

Ignoring the way that Max was scowling up at her from her lap as she did so. Instead she just gently patted his cheek and even gave it a little pinch.

Realising that she wasn't going to give in, he let out a loud sigh of defeat. Snuggling his face into her thigh as he wrapped his arm around her leg and got more comfortable .

"You think I'll win?" His voice was quiet and unsure, needing reassurance after that little disaster of his.

There was no hesitation in her voice as she answered him "every time you get into that car I believe that you can win Max. I wouldn't be dating you if I thought you were a loser!" She joked .

Referring to the comments that had been made about her being after his money and only dating him for the fame. Cherrie thought they were funny because she hadn't even been that interested in him at first .

And max had spent the whole summer stubbornly following her around until she agreed to go on a date with him.

And well, the rest was history.

He was stuck with her annoying ass now.

But he had wanted her annoying ass first , so it was all his own fault really .

He had known how odd she was from the beginning. The first time that he had saw her while on holiday , she had been stood in front of a board with a smile on her pretty face while a blindfolded man threw knives around her head.

Watching the way she had giggled after it was done and asked the man if she could try doing that to him as well , and well, he had been hooked since then.

And true, she stressed him the fuck out sometimes but she also gave him some of the best , funniest and most insane memories of his life .

Everyday was an adventure with Cherrie by his side , she would drag him along to all this crazy shit that he would have never even had known existed if it wasn't for her.

So when people wondered why he was so firm in his belief that she was the one , he merely smiled and told them the same thing.

It was the way she made him feel.

She made him feel normal, she made him feel alive.

Since the moment he had met her butterfly's had become a permanent residence in his chest, no matter how much time passed between them, he still looked at her smile and felt the love right through his whole fucking being.

'But she makes you worry!' They would frown in confusion as to why he was willing to put up with a woman who permanently did stupid shit and had him on the edge of his seat.

I love her . He would simply reply. And when you loved someone you constantly worried about them. It was normal.

Perhaps his girlfriend wasn't exactly a hundred percent normal but the feeling he got whenever she did something stupid was.

But mostly it was because she loved him too. And she liked him.

She liked being around him no matter what mood he was in.

A lot of people didn't like to be around him because they thought that he was too brash and blunt , too boring and serious .

But not Cherrie.

She loved him and she liked him.

She had told him that she loved hearing him rant to her about the troubles with his car and crew even though she hardly understood the terms he was saying.

It's your passion. She had whispered to him one night after he was finished telling her about how he wasn't satisfied with the new engine that had been fitted and tested that day. Any other woman would have bored out of her mind but not her.

Never her.

Instead she had a pretty smile on her face as she rested her chin on his bare chest and looked up at him with a soft sigh. Contentness a heavy blanket around them.

You mean everything that you say. I can feel it.

And he loved her and liked her too.

He loved being by her side in the morning while she sat up in bed and tried out some brightly coloured eyeshadow that would start out on her eyes and then spread down to her Cheeks.

Getting Glitter everywhere as she drew art on her face without a care in the world while he silently laid back in bed and took pictures other without her even knowing .

He loved watching her try new foods after he had spent all night convincing her to do so. The way that she would scrunch up her nose and let out a little hum as she tasted it. Although she would never admit that he was right . Instead she would just swap their plates around and give him a apologetic kiss.

He loved the way that he was the one that she ran to when she had news or even just to tell him stupid shit that meant absolutely nothing.

He liked that he was always the one that she wanted to know about it first .

He liked the way that she would take the lead in a busy crowd and reach back for his hand without even saying a word. He would let her pull him to whatever destination she had in mind, knowing that no matter what they did she would make him happy.

He liked the way that she wasn't afraid to stick up for him either. Having picked up on some of his own bluntness and curses , she wouldn't hesitate to go up to someone that had wronged him and call them out. Refusing to budge until she had forced that person to apologise to him face to face , sincerely.

Max thought it was funny that his five foot four girlfriend was such a wildcard. It always was the short ones that were the craziest after all.

What she lacked in height she made up for in impulsiveness .

His friends often liked to tease him about how he looked like a concerned father with a naughty child that was acting out . He supposed they weren't that wrong to think so.

He knew that he was the mature one in their relationship, that wasn't a secret .

So with her lack of loudness making him uneasy , he walked into the kitchen with worry and then paused by the doorway at the sight in front of him.

Making direct eye contact with his girlfriend who was sat cross legged on their dining table with only her lace knickers on, with scissors held up to her head as she tried to cut herself some bangs. A heap of hair already covering her lap .

He could see that she had also hacked at the ends of her hair too. It now rested to the middle of her waist instead of the bottom of her back like it had an hour ago.

He sighed loudly , not at all surprised.

“We have dinner in half an hour Cher." He stated matter of factly as he glanced down at his watch with worry.

"Was now really the right time for a new look?" He asked her as he walked over to her and gently took the scissors from her hands before she could do any more damage to her pretty hair.

She just smiled and laughed a little at the look on his face . Smoothing her hand over his smart dress shirt with a appreciative hum.

"You look handsome." She told him as she leant up to kiss him. Momentarily forgetting about the mess of hair she was dealing with.

Max didn't. He let her kiss him for a moment longer before pulling away and looking sternly down at her.

Patting down her new bangs so he could see how uneven she had cut them, shaking his head at her in exasperation.

"You look insane. Couldn't you have waited baby? Keep still a minute while I fix it.." he told her firmly as he began to fix her bangs for her.

Lifting up the scissors to her hair and Cutting off the longer pieces till they were all even , grabbing the brush from beside her and brushing through them to make sure that it was right.

Missing the way that Cherrie was gazing at him fondly as he focused on cutting her hair. Sectioning the rest of her her hair into two parts and pulling them to the front of her chest so he could see what he was working with.

"My dress is low on the back so I wanted my hair to rest at the end of the fabric so it covers it." She simply informed him of her brilliant idea.

He rolled his eyes in amusement as he started cutting the end of her hair straight.

Typical. He thought with a smirk .

“why the bangs then? What does that cover?" He murmured with a small smile, one that he just couldn't help but let out whenever she was near.

Cherrie just hummed "absolutely nothing. I just thought they'd look cute. Don't you agree?" She pressed when he was finally done. Shaking out her hair and shooting him a pleased grin , her dimples showing.

Max wiped down the hair from her skin the best he could , trying to ignore the fact that the love of his life was sat in front of him with just a thong on.

They had a important dinner to get to. He reminded himself firmly as he tore his eyes away from her pierced tits and back up to her glimmering eyes instead .

"Don't play cute with me. You know I think you look good in anything." He warned her playfully as he helped her get down off the table.

"We're going to be late. You can be the one to tell them why this time! I'm not covering for you again!" He told her seriously. Fed up with her constant lateness.

Having been the one to take the blame the last time she had made them late because she wanted to finish watching the football match first. Even though max had told her that they could simply record it on their tv so she could rewatch it when they got back instead.

You would have though he had told her to kill one of the players with the disgraced look she had shot him at his rational suggestion.

“It’s not the same! I want to see it as it happens! That’s like messi being in our house and instead of seeing him we just get someone else to take a video so we can watch it when he’s gone! Don’t be ridiculous Max!” She had yelled at him dramatically before shoving a football jersey over his head and grabbing the beers, shoving one into his hand with a grin as the game started.

So Max had been forced to yet again lie to his friends.

'I couldn't find the car keys. Sorry guys .'He had told their friends with a grimace as he held out the seat for his girlfriend who was already tipsy from downing beer after beer during the match , once they finally arrived an hour later .

Cherrie absolutely buzzing from her teams win. She hasn’t stopped beaming since he managed to finally drag her out of their home and into the car.

He supposed the face paint with her favourite players number on her cheeks really hadn't helped to sell his lie either.

But Cherrie refused to be the one to take the blame despite everybody knowing that the reason he was always late was 99.9% always her fault.

Cherrie just huffed at him as she pulled her dress over her head , wiggling her body from side to side as she tried to adjust it. Leaving Max to stare at the low neck and cut out sides and back with an open mouth.

Swallowing Thickly as he looked at her in awe. Feeling like he was going to have a stroke as he tugged at the collar of his shirt , his skin flushing just from the sight of her.

He didn’t think that there would ever be a day where her beauty didn’t make him breathless.

"Please baby! They're already pissy with me for making us late to your birthday party a few weeks ago!" She whined as she leant down to slide her feet into some high heels. Placing her hand on his shoulder to keep her balance .

Max snorted as he ran his fingers through her newly cut hair to help it frame her face like he knew she liked it.

"Once again. That was your fault. Because only you could make me late to my own surprise party." He mused beyond amused at the reminder of that day .

His friends had spent two hours in a darkened room waiting for him to come through the door so that they could jump out and surprise him.

Only Cherrie had taken him one look at him wearing the new tight shirt and even tighter jeans that she had bought him before dragging him to the backseat of his car .

It was only after the third orgasm that she had came back up for air with a shocked gasp , eyes wide as she blurted out 'your party!' Before quickly pulling her dress back down and dragging him out of the car while he hurried to button up his jeans again.

His friends had taken on look at his lipstick covered face and neck , as well as her swollen lips and messy hair before rolling their eyes and scolding her for not being able to keep her hands off him while max just helped himself to his cake while laughing hysterically .

Cherrie looked up at him pleadingly as he ushered her out the door while muttering about how late they were. Again.

"Please max! Just tell them that you had stomach troubles or something! I don't want them to know it's my fault again!" She pleaded to him.

Max merely shot her a unimpressed glance as he shoved her into the passenger seat of his car with a huff.

"Absolutely not. I'm not taking the blame this time! Forget it! You’re on your own with this one!”

Max gave their friends a apologetic smile as they finally arrived at the table, everyone looking up at them exasperatedly .

He glanced between their unimpressed expressions and his girlfriends pretty face with her newly cut hair and sighed in deafest.

"Sorry we're late ..I had some stomach troubles." He blurted out .

Shooting cherrie a look as she tried not to giggle from beside him.

Having already known that he wouldn't let her take the blame no matter how much he wanted to throw her under the bus.

He loved her too much to actually do it.

Charles looked over at him with a concerned frown "like food poisoning or something? I hope there's not a bug going around." He questioned him worriedly.

Max grimaced as he pulled out a chair for Cherrie and carefully tucked her into the table before sitting down beside her. Placing his hand on her thigh.

"Maybe. I'm fine now though. Don't worry." He muttered not looking at him in the eye in case the lie was written all across his face.

Then he ended up catching eyes with Daniel who was already grinning between them, his cheek in his hand as he eyed Max’s girlfriend in amusement.

"New hair?" He asked making max frown at him in bewilderment as he wondered how the hell he had noticed so quickly .

“You didn't have bangs this morning Cherrie ." He said knowingly.

Then max remembered that Cherrie always met up at the cafe with Daniel after her morning work out and fought back a annoyed groan.

Turning his head to squint his eyes in disbelief at his sheepish girlfriend who had seemed to forgotten that little detail .

"Did you cut them while max had the shits?" Daniel joked. Already guessing what had happened but ribbing him for it.

"Max has the shits?" Pierre called down the table , only catching the end of what he said.

It seemed to set a chain reaction as everybody started questioning him about his bowel movements .

Max's Face went bright red as he glared at his giggling girlfriend who he had lied for. Shaking his head with a annoyed huff as he pinched her thigh in retaliation.

"No I don't have the shits!" He exclaimed a little louder than he meant to. Making a few peoples heads turn towards their table.

He wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it. He was going to take Cherrie with him too for putting him in this awkward position!

Their was a pause before Cherrie snorted and muttered "try telling that to our toilet."

Max smacked the back of her head .

"That's it! No wine for you!" He yanked the glass from her hands with a scowl. Sliding the bottle away from her as well in punishment .

That was the last time he covered for her. He lied to himself . No more!

He ended up telling his health coach that he had injured his wrists from his gloves being too tight when he asked him why his wrists were red.

Too mortified to admit that it was because Cherrie had the idea to tie him up and make him see god an hour before he had to get to the paddock.

Just another normal Wednesday.

As Max stood by the side of the track that overlooked a lake, looking over the barrier down at his girlfriend who has thrown herself in after stripping naked , he couldn't help but sigh.

Hands on his hips like a concerned parent as he watched  her splash around , frown deepening even further as Daniel also threw himself in as well.

He had just won p1 and Cherrie had decided to skinny dip to celebrate . He mightn't have been so annoyed if it wasn't for the hundreds of cameras that were following them around all day.

He really didn't want his girlfriend's naked body to be seen by anybody but him.

Feeling his blood pressure rise as he watched Daniel splash at her as the both of them laughed loudly , playing Around like little kids.

"Not so close Daniel!" He snapped down to his also naked friend in exasperation and worry as he saw how close the both were to each other . He did not want any part of Daniel's body to be touching hers.

Daniel just laughed and grinned up at him cheekily .

"Who's going to keep her warm then?! Just get in! It's nice!" He called up to him , Cherrie shouting her agreements as she leant her arm against his shoulder and beamed up at him happily .

Seemingly not giving too shits that everybody could see her tits as she waved up at him happily.

It was times like this that max often wondered if she did drugs when he wasn't looking.

It would make a lot of sense. It really would.

"Absolutely not! All of you need to get out and put your clothes back on! Especially you baby!" He shouted at them sternly as he took the towels from his assistants hands that he had asked her to run for.

Daniel cooed at him "aww he's nicknamed me baby how sweet! I knew you'd come around to our love Max!" He teased him. Deliberately putting his arm around cherries bare shoulder just to wind him up some more .

Max hated it when the two of them were together because all Daniel ever did was encourage his girlfriend to do crazy shit and instead of talking her down from the ledge , he jumped off it with her!

"Shut up! Watch your hands Daniel! I'm serious!"

Cherrie just laughed at his furious expression, not caring at all.

"I'm so proud of you by the way! Watching you get soaked with champagne was really hot!" She shouted up at him honestly.

Eyeing his sticky racing suit with a raise of her brow "are you sure you doing want to jump in and wash it off?" She double checked.

Max just deadpanned at her. Shaking his head with a exasperated groan. Giving up.

"You're very lucky that I love you Cherrie because you're getting on my nerves." He informed her bluntly before pulling out his phone and pressing a familiar contact.

He then looked at her in the eye smugly as he brought his phone up to his ear.

"But If you won't listen to me then I guess I'll just have to call your father-" he threatened her. Pulling out the last card in the pack, the one that he knew would work without any hesitation.

Grinning slyly when she let out a sharp gasp and quickly pushed herself away from Daniel who was calling him a party pooper as they both pulled themselves out of the water.

"Don't ring him! You bastard!" She ran over to him completely naked . Making him pocket his phone in amusement . She then Let him wrap her up in the towel till she was swaddled in it like a big baby.

Chuckling to himself as he wrapped one around her hair too, rubbing at the fabric to dry her quicker .

Daniel side eyed them as he wrapped himself in his own towel . "Are you sure you're not her daddy max? You're always telling her off like one!" He joked while laughing.

Max couldn't stop the smirk that pulled at his lips , eyes twinkling as Cherrie placed a kiss on his neck and whispered in his ear about how she was going to personally congratulate him for winning when they got home.

"I'm just a concerned boyfriend who doesn't want the whole world to see his girlfriends boobs." He said as he then wrapped her in a dressing gown as well. Flipping the hood up to keep her warm.

Daniel just smirked "too late mate." He then turned to look at Cherrie with a friendly smile .

“They’re very nice. Lovely and round." He told her casually as though he was complimenting some fruit .

Cherrie beamed back at him happily. "thank you! Grew them myself!" She joked . The both of them ignoring Max's eyes glaring daggers at them.

Shaking his head with a disbelieving huff as he decided that he had enough of the two of them being around each other .

He hauled his girlfriend away before they decided to do some more stupid shit together that would make his blood pressure rise rapidly.

"Love you." Cherrie muttered to him quietly as they made their way back to his trailer . Tucked underneath his arm where she belonged .

Max softened , any annoyance he felt quickly fading at the honesty in her voice .

He just sighed fondly and gave the side of her head a gently kiss .

"I love you." He simply replied. So utterly in love that it overwhelmed him.

Because If be didn't love her like he did , he would have ran away screaming from her years ago.

She was an absolute pain in his ass.

It was a clear fact that was further proven to him when she tried to breakup with him one night after they had been arguing over why he thought it was a bad idea to get a dog.

He couldn't believe what he was hearing when she first told him that she wanted a pug.

He had looked at her in disbelief , feeling the need to remind her the obvious.

“You're allergic to dogs." It was said bluntly and in bewilderment as he wondered what the hell she was going on about.

They couldn't get a dog when she was allergic to them! Had she gone mad?

Cherrie had frowned at him like what he told her was a lie . As though she didn't start sneezing and coughing up a lung whenever she touched one.

"I can take medicine to help. I want one Max. It's too lonely when you're not here with me !" She had exclaimed , upset  with him as she threw herself up off the bed .

Flicking on the lamp as she glared down at him unhappily .

It was three o'clock in the morning and max couldn't believe that she had woken him up for this shit.

Rubbing at his eyes tiredly as he squinted up at her from the bed. Judgement across his face. He found it hard to have patience with her when it was this early in the fucking morning!

He had just been nodding off too!

"Don't be daft! You'll make yourself ill! And how can you be lonely when you constantly have those hippies around here when I'm gone? Don't think I can't smell the lavender oil that they leave behind!" He warned her. Huffing in annoyance.

Cherrie just wouldn't let it go. Tired and emotional herself and max had known that it was a bad idea for them to watch a heartbreak chick flick film before bed.

But he had still let her put it on anyways .

And now he was paying the price because his girlfriend was a melodramatic drama queen who had watched a film about a man who didn't love his girlfriend anymore , who had also refused to let them get a dog in the film as well.

Clearly she had gotten it into her head that they were doomed to be like the characters too. Having tested him all night long with utter bullshit.

"They say a man is falling out of love when he spends more time on his phone when his partner is right beside him to talk to." She had muttered with a scowl when he had been replying to some work emails on his phone before bed.

Knowing that she had heard it from that stupid movie , he had merely glanced up at her in amusement .

"Do you like your diamond jewellery  and expensive clothes?" He had returned to her . Their huge closet filled with her shit already giving him the answer .

She had just frowned harder. Not answering him.

He smirked triumphantly "these emails I'm answering about promotions will get you more of those things . So shut your trap and get back into bed." He scolded her.

Only perhaps he should have settled her mind further than that before they went to sleep.

Maybe then she wouldn't have been trying to break up with him because he wouldn't let her get a dog.

"We need to break up max . This isn't going to work. You obviously don't understand my needs anymore-"

Max Couldn’t have scoffed any louder if he tried. Finally Sitting up in the bed with a loud, annoyed groan as he eyed her in disbelief .

"Your need to annoy me you mean?" He yawned, casually leaning back against the pillow with a small amused smile playing on his lips .

The look on his face only seemed to piss her off even more but he couldn't help it.

She was being completely ridiculous!

She then sniffled loudly, dialling up her drama.

"why are you smiling? Are you happy that I'm not your girlfriend anymore?" She almost cried . Glaring back at him tearfully.

Max just snorted , rolling his eyes at her .

“We're not breaking up stupid. Now Get back into the bed!" He snapped at her tiredly .

Pointing sternly to the space beside him, impatiently patting it to further get his point across when she made no love to do as he said.

"No! You obviously don’t want me to be happy!"

"Because I don't want you to get a pet that's going to make you never breathe properly again?!"

"You're being dramatic! I'll just take the medicine for my allergies!"

Max groaned  loudly , covering his face with his hands as he tried not to lose his shit at her.

"Me? You're being crazy." He ground out "I never said we couldn't get a pet. Just not a dog that you’re allergic to !"

There was a long pause before Cherrie blinked away her tears and cautiously approached the bed again.

"A cat?" She murmured hopefully. Already crawling back into the bed and sliding underneath the covers now that her hysterics were over. Knowing that she was about to get her own way again.

Perhaps also opening that bottle of wine during the movie was a bad idea too.

Max had forgotten how emotional she got after drinking it. It was like she went through five stages of grief when she drank red wine.

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders with his eyes already closed, kissing the side of her head with a little laugh.

"Fine but you're changing the litter tray." He warned her. Feeling her smile brightly against his chest.

"I will! I promise! You won't have to do anything!" She had promised him gleefully . Giving him a kiss before promptly falling back to sleep now that she had gotten her own way.

Leaving max to sigh to himself as he tried to go back to sleep. Having a feeling that she wouldn’t be that helpful at all.

It just wasn’t in cherries nature to pick up cat poo.

Yet another lie of here that was proven as two weeks later he was knelt down with a grimace as he cleaned out the litter box for the fluffy ginger cat that was nudging him against his leg.

Glaring up at his girlfriend who was dancing around the kitchen while singing to the radio , without a care in the world.

Instead she was too busy rambling on about how she was going to get herself some pole dancing lessons, jumping from one subject to another. Filled with endless ideas ths never seemed to stop.

Sighing to himself as he finished cleaning it up and set out some food for the fur ball as well .

Then he got to his feet and pursed his lips as he eyed the love of his life with a feeling of acceptance.

This was going to be the rest of his life.

Pretending that he wore the trousers in their relationship and acting like he wasn't ready to do anything he could to make her happy .

Even if it meant cleaning up cat poo so that she didn’t have to.

So with that thought in mind, how he must be crazy to love her even more than he did yesterday despite how much she drove him up the wall.

He knew it was time.

He walked over to her and gently grabbed her hand , making her look over at him with a curious

smile on her pretty face.

"What's up handsome?" She had chirped obliviously at him. Leaning forward to give him a quick kiss.

Not even noticing the way he pulled something out of his Jean pocket and slid it smoothly onto her finger , his eyes locked with hers as he let out a small laugh at how oblivious she was.

"I'm gonna be your husband." He decided to tell her bluntly . 

Because he had no doubt in his mind that if he decided to plan a fancy proposal that she would somehow find a way to ruin in.

Not on purpose but that was just the way she was.

So instead he settled on simply letting her know instead.

Cherrie looked at him with wide eyes before finally noticing the diamond ring on her finger.

Then she did the most her thing possible and laughed loudly in response .

Casually shrugging her shoulders as she wrappped her arms around his neck and gave him a soft kiss.

"Okay. Sounds fun." She simply said once they pulled away to breathe again .

"Yeah?" He grinned . Looking between her eyes to be sure. His heart squeezing in his chest, so full of love for his little pain in the ass.

She just beamed back at him happily. As in love with him as he was her .

"yeah. I'm gonna be your wife."

Then she tilted her head cheekily "can we get married in Vegas after you win the race there?" The pure confidence that she had that he would win that race made him grin like a lovesick idiot.

Squeezing her hips and blinking back happy tears from his eyes as he kissed her again and again and again.

They could get married in the basement for all he cared. As long as she was officially his to worry about for the rest of his life , he didn't care.

She may have been a little strange but she was his wildcard  . Nobody else's.

He wouldn't change her for anyone.

#max verstappen imagine #max verstappen x reader #f1 imagine #f1 x reader #formula one imagine #f1 fic

[power-handmaiden]

what I want to (re?)gain from reading all these tinglers.

Long ass personal ramble below because this is my blog where I ramble about things now

I used to draw all the time and even longer ago I used to write and at some point I just stopped because I got hung up on whether I was "good" at these things things or whether it was a waste of my time creating such "trivial" things rather than art with "meaning" or maybe of I should be spending my time on more "useful" skills. Why write if you're just going to write gay fanfiction? But when I tried more "serious" things to "develop my skills" and also do things like proofread and edit, it just wasn't fun anymore and the hobby was dropped. Drawing lasted longer and I never dropped it so completely but I think smartphones put a damper on it. Once we all got little Google machines in our pockets I was never just out somewhere doodling freely, there was always the option to look up a reference, to draw the thing Correctly, and then time would pass where I was trying to find a picture of a ram's horns at just the right angle, and my number at the DMV would be called or whatever else I was waiting for would demand my attention and I would never even set my pencil to paper in these moments when I used to doodle.

I also felt like I could never express sexual ideas as much as I wanted to because of the "quality" of my work. Making "bad" art was one thing, everyone in the learning process does that, but sharing "bad" sexual art? Well, everyone on the internet forums I frequented was *justified* in reposting their art to mock them and linking to their online galleries for passersby to point and laugh personally, I thought at the time. How dare they be horny and express it in an appropriate adults-only space without mastering their craft first!

There's a lot holding me back. I deeply miss drawing and writing. I miss how freely I used to be able to just do them without the mental block telling me I need to run certain steps for Quality when I never did intend to do these creative things as a profession or anything?

Why is it so easy to sit down and "waste time" playing a video game or scrolling the internet, but so hard to spend the same amount of time drawing something for fun?

here's where Chuck Tingle comes in. He is someone who just DOES IT. This is the writing of someone who is not overthinking the process like I am when I become too paralyzed to create. And, I cannot stress this enough. IT'S SO GOOD. I LOVE IT SO MUCH. So much fun, joyful art has come from a process that I had convinced myself was something to be reined in and feared. The free act of creation that I'd convinced myself was nothing if I didn't learn to refine it into something "respectable". Ideas that would definitely not have passed a committee vote but make the process of reading all these stories one after another so exciting.

Even when I hit the occasional one like today that doesn't hit well anymore, it's evidence of someone who was creating from the heart, in the moment. Weirdly, they make me feel that yearning even stronger, with the knowledge that I know I'll love future stories.

I still haven't gotten there yet but I hope the love I find in these stories eventually breaks down the mental walls I've built and makes me feel free again to DRAW SOME GODDAMN LESBIAN FURRIES.

#personal

[its-time-to-write]

ch. 4 - hustling for the good life

table of contents Oh hey it’s Jamie’s side of things

also. I don’t proofread. yes I’m sorry, no I won’t change my ways.

takes one to know one

Here’s the thing. While you’ve been hopping around London, doing interviews and press and meeting all sorts of talented musicians, Jamie’s been doing his own work. Namely, badgering Keeley about his chances with you.

“She’s really pretty,” he confessed in the car on the way home from Isaac and Stella’s. “She’s like, fucking I don’t know, ethereal or some shit.” Keeley’s basically passed out, which is why Jamie is talking so freely. He knows she won’t remember shit. 

“Learned that word the other day,” he continues, “It’s like something you see can can’t totally understand. Or like, out of your league. Anyway, that’s her. Think she was all freaked out, though. Maybe too many people. Weird, innit, international star like her anxious in a crowd of people. But I really liked talking to her. Fuck, Keeley, she’s smart. You can tell in her lyrics.”

Keeley responds with a snore.

Jamie chuckles. “Yeah, alright, we’re almost to Roy’s. Don’t breathe a word of this to anyone, yeah? Like I said, not like she’d go with someone like me anyway.”

—

Jamie severely underestimated Keeley’s ability to retain juicy gossip. Yeah she was sloshed, so much so that Roy had to carry her inside and onto the bed, but that didn’t stop her from sending Jamie a text the next morning that said, ?????? and a gif of your face.

Jamie replied in kind. ??????

U fucking kno what im asking, Keeley replied. U like her.

Jamie responds, that aint a question, keels

Fine, Keeley writes, here’s one

What the fuck did you mean, ‘someone like me????’

Jamie grimaces and puts his phone down. He’ll respond to that later but now, he has to go running around the field and puke his guts out because Roy’s a fucking sadist.

—

Jamie’s been a fan of your music since, like, your first single. He’s not even sure how he first heard it but he did, and then he’d listen to it when no one could catch him.

Then you started gaining popularity, and it was more acceptable for him to listen to your soft yet upbeat songs. He came home one weekend to find his mum playing Blue Glass on a speaker in the kitchen, and they sat down at the counter and listened to the entire album, not speaking the whole time while Simon puttered around cooking dinner.

He’s followed your career through the trade from Manchester to Richmond, then back to Man City and then Richmond again. 

And yeah, he’s had a little bit of a crush.

But god, there’s no fucking way he has a shot in hell. Sure, he’s the Premier League’s top player, but you? You’re on another level.

Paps don’t even bother trying to slander you anymore because they’ll never find a speck of dirt on you. There are always pictures of you volunteering, or visiting kids in hospitals, or petting dogs or some shit. Stuff that’s usually staged, but with you it isn’t.

You’ve never had a scandal hit the papers, always been spotted out with a famous model/actor/singer boyfriend who has never once been seen cheating on you. Jamie wonders if anyone could even consider cheating on someone with as much talent and kindness as you seem to possess.

Anyway, you’d never go for someone with his relatively checkered past. All you have to do is google “Jamie Tartt,” and there he is, making out with models, headlining cheating scandals, and having sex in fucking jacuzzis.

Yeah, you’d never go for it.

But as he’s at training, running drills and practicing goals, he keeps thinking about the way you looked with your feet in the pool, hair blowing softly in the breeze.

He decides to have a serious chat with Keeley.

—

He turns up to Keeley’s house and fucking Roy’s there, except this time it’s not really a surprise. Roy opens the door, scoffs, then walks away. 

“Prick’s here,” he calls to Keeley somewhere in the house, except it’s not as angry as it used to be. Jamie can almost trick himself into thinking it’s affectionate.

“Hello to you too, grandad,” he says to Roy’s back. Roy grunts and heads to the kitchen, presumably to finish making dinner. 

Keeley bounds down the stairs and wraps Jamie in a hug. “Glad you’re here, babe. Now we can have a good chat.”

She leads him to the couch and hands him a fluffy pink pillow, one that Jamie remembers throwing across the room more than once. Fuck, there’s another reminder why he shouldn’t even be thinking of seeing you again. He couldn’t properly emote when he was with Keeley, so how’s he supposed to navigate a serious relationship?

“Oi, stop overthinking,” Keeley says, snapping her fingers in front of his face.

“Weren’t overthinking,” Jamie replies automatically. “And since when are you a mindreader?” 

Keeley grins at that. “I’m not. Your face was just all twisty and shit, which means you’re actually using your brain for once. So come on, out with it.”

Jamie’s not entirely sure where to begin, but he opens his mouth and everything sort of comes spilling out. How he talked to you for ten seconds and is pretty sure he’ll never actually love again. And he’s convinced himself that he might have a shot but then he’s reminded of all his shitty choices and thinks he’ll never measure up but god fucking damnit, he wants something real and yeah, you’re another celebrity, but there’s something about your eyes or maybe it’s the way you move your hands, but he knows for sure that if you were just a regular girl he saw on the street, he’d feel the exact same way. 

Except neither of you are like, actually regular people, but for different reasons. And his fucking shitbag of a father is always looming in the back of his mind, especially since playing Man City the other week, and he won’t let his dad try to have any sort of hold over you because that would be shitty. So anyway, he’s pretty sure that’s everything and he’s probably going to die alone.

Keeley says, “Whoa,” with big eyes once he’s finished, and for a moment Jamie thinks she’s going to call a mental institute, but then she cocks her head and says, “Jamie, you do know that nothing’s actually happened, right? Like, you haven’t even asked her out?” and Jamie realizes that he’s been knee deep in his mind for a fucking long time.

“I mean, Roy’s no saint,” she continues while Roy shouts, “Oi!” from the kitchen, “and we still got together.”

Jamie just looks at her.

“Alright, bad example,” she says. “But hey, you’ll never know if you don’t try. I mean come on, you’re Jamie fucking Tartt! You’re like, the best footballer in all of England! And you’re right fit,” she says just loud enough for Roy to hear.

“I can’t cook for shit,” Jamie says miserably, and Roy barks out a short laugh while Keeley pats Jamie’s arm.

“You’re way too far in your fucking head, babe,” she says sympathetically. “Take it one day at a time, yeah? You don’t even know if you’ll see her again.”

table of contents

#jamie tartt x reader #jamie tartt fanfiction #jamie tartt imagine #jamie tartt x y/n #jamie tartt x you #jamie tartt #ted lasso

[e-dubbc11]

Songbird Pt. 2

Photos are not mine. They are courtesy of Pinterest/Google

Pairing: Billy Russo x F! Reader

Warnings: Some swear words, tears, mentions of PTSD and suicide, sex is mentioned

Word Count: 4.2k-ish

Summary: Continued from Part 1. Billy can’t stop thinking about you. His usual charm isn’t working so he tries a different approach and he starts to wear you down.

A/N: I will say, I’m having fun writing this little series. Like I mentioned in part 1, there is a playlist that goes along with it and the two songs I used in this part are Happy by Leona Lewis and Angel Standing By by Jewel. I highly encourage you to listen to that playlist. It’s linked in the masterlist for this series.

As always, thank you for reading!  I appreciate it so much and comments, reblogs are welcome and encouraged. Don’t be shy to tell me your favorite part. 💕💕 💕

She was all you could think about on your way home last night, lying in bed, and the following day. Out of all the songs she sang last night, the one that struck you the most was Paint it, Black. You knew what the song was about…grief, depression, and loss of hope.

Those were three emotions you knew all too well so maybe she did too? Her performance was so raw and full of passion. It could have all been just for the audience, to give them a good show but there was more to it than that. There was more behind those beautiful eyes of hers.

She really did have beautiful eyes.

Eyes that locked on yours more than once last night although you could tell she didn’t want to but she couldn’t help it. The times you’ve seen her in the building, you pictured her underneath you, fucking her.

To hear her scream your name as you slammed hard into her over and over again crossed your mind on more than one occasion…actually it was every time you saw her.

She would have been just another notch on your belt which is what you were used to, you didn’t have feelings, or form attachments. That’s not what you wanted but she was different, so what changed?

Music did things to you that you couldn’t quite explain and you definitely did not want to admit, especially to a woman. In the group home, music was your escape. You could tune everything out and it made you forget about being alone even if it’s only for a little while.

To choose a song like that, there had to be reasoning behind it. Maybe it helped her through her grief or depression. You had the strongest urge to tell her these things even though you barely knew her.

Her words repeated harshly over and over again in your head. “You’re gonna have to try a little harder than that.”

She wasn’t like the others. All you had to do for most women was to open your mouth and say “hello” or smile at them. Their panties practically fell off all by themselves, you didn’t have to try at all. She was challenging, mysterious and sexy. You actually liked the fact that she didn’t let you get away with just a wink and a smile.

But you didn’t know what to do. How can you prove to her that you were interested in her and not just interested in her because you wanted to sleep with her? Trying to win her over was as difficult as trying to capture a smile in a bottle. She may not have said yes to your invitation for a date but she didn’t flat out tell you “no” either.

The way she pulled you in close by your hair, your bodies sharing the same space and her harsh whispers made you so hard. It was all you could do to NOT have a low moan fall from your lips as she whispered into your ear.

She did seem interested but impervious to your usual charm and charisma. You wanted to do something for her to show you were serious but what could you do? Flowers and candy seemed cliché and she’d see right through that.

She was performing again tonight at the same club, you would have to think of something before then.

You

It wasn’t that you didn’t find Billy Russo attractive, of course you did. You just didn’t like the playboy, manwhore vibe he gave off, which he obviously was. Out of all of those women he brought home, none of them brought anything to the table? They didn’t have things in common? He really would just fuck them and then tell them to leave.

But he walked in off of the street and into the club because he heard YOUR voice, with a date in tow, and ignored her so he could pay attention to YOU.

He was already making an effort to change that nickname.

There was something in front of your apartment door when you arrived back from your sound check for tonight. It was a beautiful cherry wood box with a note attached.

You brought it inside and set it down on your dining room table. Butterflies danced around in your stomach, somehow you knew it was from Billy without even opening the note.

The box looked and felt expensive, it had weight to it. Unfolding the note, a little smile stretched across your face. It WAS from Billy.

I couldn’t decide which kind to get for you so I just bought them all. There are six kinds in there that are supposed to be good for singers. I hope you like it. –Billy, The Penthouse Playboy

Unless he knew off the top of his head which kind of teas were best for singers, Billy had to either ask or look it up.

He was actually taking this seriously. But why? Was it because he actually liked you or was it because he wanted to see if he could get you into bed?

You opened the box. Inside, neatly arranged and separated by type, were six kinds of tea. Ginger, chamomile, licorice root, throat soother, green tea, and an immunity booster tea.

Well, you did tell him he was going to have to do better than relying on his charm. Billy certainly did better than you had expected him to. This was…a very thoughtful gift. But would he continue to try this hard?

Time will tell.

Billy

It was killing you not knowing if she liked her gift or not. You paced the room as your muscles stiffened worrying about it. You did all the research about which kind of teas were good for singers and you went to a specialty tea shop to get the best and freshest ones.

You could easily find ten women that wouldn’t make you work this hard at earning a date. But you didn’t want anyone else, you wanted to be the object of HER affection.

You found yourself periodically checking the stairs outside your penthouse to see if she was there, practicing. And desperately wanting her to be there so you could listen, wondering what she would be singing tonight.

When she practiced alone, there was something special about her voice being stripped down with no music, she could hear it but you couldn’t and you actually didn’t need to.

She sounded perfect without any music playing and you couldn’t wait to see her tonight.

You

The crowd was almost the same size as it was last night, give or take a few more because it was Saturday night, date night. There were quite a few couples out there as you scanned the audience from behind the curtain. He was at the same table as last night and he was alone. You were surprised he showed up again tonight.

Billy was dressed in a gray sweater and black jeans. One look at him and you could tell he was a confident man and used to getting what he wanted. He was a man used to having women crawl over themselves to get to him but not used to being second best which is why you decided to tease him a little and make him jealous.

Some of your regular groupies were front and center again tonight and again they brought you bouquets of flowers so you paid them a little extra attention tonight during a song called Happy.

I could stand by the side

And watch this life pass me by

So unhappy

But safe as could be

So what if it hurts me?

So what if I break down?

So what if this world just throws me off the edge

My feet run out of ground

I gotta find my place

I wanna hear my sound

Don't care about all the pain in front of me

I'm just tryna be happy

I just wanna be happy, yeah

Looking into your other admirers’ eyes as you sang, touching their hands, and gently brushing their shoulders as you walked by was driving Billy crazy. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see him…flaring fury in his eyes as he took sips of his bourbon.

But you started to feel bad for teasing him like that but at least he knew what it was like to play second fiddle and Billy Russo did NOT like it at all.

Moving from table to table in the front row, you finally made your way over to your left where Billy’s table was to sing just for him.

Holding on tightly

Just can't let it go

Just trying to play my role

Slowly disappear, oh

But all these days

They feel like they're the same

Just different faces

Different names

Get me out of here

He handed you a single red rose that had been resting next to his drink and his eyes softened when he looked at you from the piercing stare they had been before. Holding the microphone away from your mouth for a split second, you leaned down to whisper in his ear. “Thank you for the tea box, I love it.”

You held that rose for the rest of your show, and you didn’t mean to but you loved it. You loved that he didn’t buy you a massive bouquet of flowers like some of these other guys did, that’s not what you wanted. Between the tea box and the rose, it was getting harder and harder to resist his charms.

So what if it hurts me?

So what if I break down?

So what if this world just throws me off the edge?

My feet run out of ground

I gotta find my place

I wanna hear my sound

Don't care about all the pain in front of me

I just wanna be happy

It had been so long since you had been truly happy. Your set list wasn’t just a bunch of covers, they were a diary of songs that you needed at some point during the course of your life.

Some days you would listen to the same song over and over again because it was the only way you could feel better after having a bad day, a bad week, a bad month.

You didn’t know anything about Billy, but you could tell that hell was burning behind his deep dark eyes. A man like that definitely had a secret or two but so does everyone else.

Maybe you were almost done playing hardball with Billy Russo.

Billy

Over the next few weeks, you learned her schedule. You assigned people to tail her every day. She worked a regular 9-5 office job for an excellent contractor company, her favorite addition to her coffee was cinnamon, she spent time in her favorite bookstore every Wednesday, and she visited the cemetery every Thursday.

After some digging, you found out the grave she was visiting was her ex-boyfriend that killed himself after she broke up with him.

She probably blames herself so that would explain some of the songs in her setlist. You barely knew her and yet you were absolutely intrigued by her which has never happened before.

You didn’t develop feelings, but there was a reason you caught her singing in the stairwell that night. And since that night, you had eavesdropped on her a few more times and actually felt really bad for doing it.

She thought she was completely alone out there, vulnerable, and you were just on the other side of that door spying on her.

After a long day at work, you came home to a note under your door.

I’m going to be at the club tonight if you’d like to come. I can put your name on the list so you don’t have to pay the cover. Let me know. –Y/N

And it had her number on the bottom. It had been a number of weeks and you still didn’t have her number until now. It was almost 19:00, she was probably already there and more than likely she started at 21:00.

You quickly pulled out your phone to text her.

“I’d love to come see you tonight…and thank you for giving me your number.”

Almost as quickly as you sent her a text, another one came in right after.

“Who is this? How did you get this number?”

Very confused you started to type back but another message came in right behind it.

“I’m just kidding…I’ll see you soon, Billy”

A shy smile stretched across your face and you shook your head while looking at her text, you really were smitten with her.

**********

You

You hated to admit to yourself that you enjoyed seeing Billy in the front row on the nights you performed. He gave you a single red rose each time and he didn’t know that you saved each one, they hung upside down in front of your kitchen window.

Each time you looked at them, it was hard not to smile. You never saved any of the other flowers you received from admirers, you let the club keep them.

Now that he had your number, he would text during the day while the both of you were at work and he’d call when he got home at night.

It was nice just talking and joking with him and it almost made you forget about what a playboy he was, and he hadn’t even asked you to go out with him since that first night he watched you sing at the club.

You were…friends.

It had also been a long time since he had brought any woman home with him. You knew this because he would call at almost the exact same time every night and while he didn’t talk much, he loved to listen to you talk so he never stopped asking questions.

And any time you would ask him questions, he would divert back to you. The two of you would be on the phone until late in the evening hours.

He was so secretive or he just really didn’t want to talk about his past. There were things from your past that you didn’t really like talking about either…maybe you would eventually though.

After one particularly long winded story of yours, he surprised you with a question.

“So do you think I’ve earned that date yet, y/n?” He asked.

Biting down on your lower lip to keep from smiling, you answered him. “What did you have in mind, Billy?”

“What about coffee, on your way home from work tomorrow?” He asked, his voice was soft and smooth like warm honey.

Tomorrow was Wednesday. You always stop at your favorite bookstore on your way home from work on Wednesdays but they also have a café inside.

“Well I always stop at the bookstore on my way home on Wednesdays but they do have a café inside if you’d like to meet me there.” You said.

“I’d love to.” He said.

You were thankful that you were on the phone with him and not face to face because you felt the warmth rise to your cheeks and you started to blush.

“Ok, great. The place is called Shakespeare & Co. and the address is 2020 Broadway. I’ll see you tomorrow around 5:15. Don’t be late or I’m leavin’.” You joked.

“Oh I won’t be…I’ll see you tomorrow. G’night y/n.” He whispered.

“G’night Billy.” You replied.

Billy

Of course you knew the bookstore she was talking about, you knew it had a café inside which is why you asked her out for coffee on a Wednesday.

There were a lot of things you wanted to tell her like how you had her followed, how you knew about her ex, and how you discovered her favorite singing spot in the building but you were afraid of her reaction. You were afraid she would be angry and she’d never want to see or speak to you again.

The last thing you wanted to do was lie to her. For the first time in probably your entire life, you actually cared about someone, someone other than yourself. You did things for her that you never did for any other woman. You catered to her, went out of your way to give her a gift that you knew she’d really like, and paid attention to her.

And in return, she made you laugh which was difficult to do, she never wanted anything from you, and she made you feel like you were the only person in the room when she sang.

But she needed to know the truth even if it meant she would be angry.

17:15…you arrived right on time and found her sitting with a book in hand at a table with two coffees. She had on a black sweater, soft waves in her hair and she looked absolutely beautiful.

“I’m not late, am I?” You asked.

A smile stretched across her face and showed off the little laugh lines by her eyes.

“No, no…you’re right on time, Mr. Russo. Now you can tell me if I got your coffee order wrong but you strike me as a black coffee drinker, possibly with one sugar which is why I left the sugar packet next to the cup…just in case.” She said.

You flashed her a slight smile. “I do like it with one sugar, gotta be at least a little sweet, right?” You said.

“You have a sweet tooth…noted.” She said with a warm smile, motioning like she made a check mark on a piece of paper.

She asked you how your day was. It was a small gesture but you really loved that about her, she always asked about your day and you asked about hers. You asked her about the book she was reading and about the pile of books on the table that she was going to buy.

You loved to read too, books were really all you had on deployment, and told her that one of the reasons you chose the apartment you did was because it had a library.

After making small talk for awhile, you felt it was time to confess.

“Y/n? Part of the reason I asked you out for coffee today was because I knew you were coming here anyway. I know you come here every Wednesday.” You told her.

The line of her mouth tightened, she was clearly uncomfortable.

“H-how do you know that, Billy?” She choked out.

“Because I put a tail on you. I wanted to find out more about you since I didn’t know anything and—“ You said.

She interrupted you. “Wait…what? You had me FOLLOWED?!” She said with disdain dripping from her voice.

“I did but let me explain.” You said.

She narrowed her eyes. “What else do you know?!” She asked.

You responded. “Well, I know you like to add cinnamon to your coffee, I know you come here every Wednesday and I know that every Thursday you—“

You stopped short, trying to finish the sentence but you couldn’t do it.

She had tears in her eyes, they were sad and angry at the same time. “You know I visit Corey every Thursday, don’t you. Just say it.” She said.

“I know you visit Corey every Thursday.” You said, trying to match your anger with hers. You really had no right to be angry but she could have told you.

All of those late night conversations and not one mention of him, but there were plenty of things you haven’t told her yet. You knew it wasn’t really fair to be cross with her.

She pushed herself away from the table and grabbed her coat. She left her coffee and the pile of books on the table and walked out.

“Fuck.” You muttered to yourself as you watched her walk away from you, without turning back.

You

How could he invade your privacy like that?! If he wanted to know more about you, he could have just asked. He didn’t have to have you followed, you were more hurt than anything, and couldn’t stop the tears from streaking down your cheeks on your walk home.

You could have told him about Corey, it’s not like you didn’t have ample opportunity with all of your late night conversations. But it was still really hard to talk about even though it had been a long time since he passed and you still felt like you were to blame.

It was your fault, you broke up with him and broke his heart, but Corey was also a soldier with PTSD, like Billy. He carried a lot of guilt and pain that had nothing to do with you and you felt like he needed help but it wasn’t fair to either one of you to continue with a relationship that was unstable.

The guilt still consumed you, it gave you nightmares and you didn’t tell Billy any of that. It felt like you were probably both to blame for the mess you were in at the moment.

You had a gig at the club coming up in a few days and had been practicing a new song with the band but you hadn’t really tried it by yourself. It was mostly vocals and very little instrumentation so your vocals had to be on point. You decided to practice the song tonight.

Waiting in the stairwell until Billy got back made you extremely nervous. You were half expecting him to get off the elevator with another woman that he just happened to pick up on the way home but you were surprised to see that he got off the elevator alone with a dejected look on his face and you noticed he had the books in his hands that you had planned on buying before abruptly leaving like you did.

Feeling a sharp pain in your chest at the sight of those books, your heart swelled and a gasp escaped your lips. You couldn’t believe he bought them for you.

Instead of practicing, you thought about knocking on his door and apologizing for storming out. You didn’t approve of what he did but maybe you did understand why he did it. You decided to practice first and apologize after.

All through the night,

I'll be watching over you

And All through the night,

I'll be standing over you

And through the bad dreams,

I'll be right there baby,

Telling you everything is gonna be alright

And when you cry,

I'll be there baby

Telling you you're never nothing

Less than beautiful

So don't you worry,

I'm your Angel standing by.

You burst into tears after you were finished, there were so many emotions you were feeling about Billy, about Corey, and thinking about how all you wanted was to be happy again. Billy made you happy, you had been smiling a lot more and it was because of him.

Suddenly you heard a gentle knock on the glass and you turned slightly to see him staring fondly at you, his liquid brown eyes told you he was sorry and you turned the handle to open the door for him.

“That was beautiful.” He said. “I also know you come out here to practice sometimes.”

You tried to smile but all you could do was crash into him and sob into his chest as he wrapped his arms tightly around you and just let you cry.

“It’s all my fault, Billy! He’s dead because of me!” You sobbed uncontrollably.

Through your tears, you managed to tell Billy about your relationship with Corey and told him everything that wasn’t in the newspaper. And he just sat with you on the top step, holding you, stroking your hair and he listened. He listened as you told him everything.

He spoke softly. “Listen to me, y/n. Look at me.”

You lifted your head that was resting under his arm to look at him.

“What happened to Corey was NOT your fault. You gotta stop blaming yourself for it because it’s not your fault. I’m gonna keep telling you that until you believe me.” He said. “I’m sorry for having you followed and I’m sorry for eavesdropping when you practice here, I just…I just love listening to you sing.” And he gently brushed the tears off of your cheeks.

Tears still pricked your eyes as you bit down on your lower lip before asking “You do?”

“Of course I do…you think I come to the club just to drink? They don’t even have GOOD bourbon.” He said.

You chuckled a little through your tears and composed yourself long enough to tell him “I think you might have earned the right to a new nickname tonight, Mr. Russo, although I haven’t decided what it’s going to be quite yet.” You said with a warm smile.

You could feel a smile stretch across Billy’s face as he gently pressed his lips against your forehead.

He pulled away to gaze at you as he said “Well I can’t wait to hear what is, my little songbird.”

Tag List: @mindidjarin @saintmurd0ck @wheresthesunshinesblog @rafaelakelley @idaoftheburningmind @snowkestrel @xdervyxccgh @mattmurdocksscars @fakehappy27 @music-indie-tv @fictional-hooman @kayhi808 @munsonownsmyass @gijos @celestialams @idek-what-to-put @anastasianeedstoread @ratsys @k-marzolf @nutmeg17 @rosaleenablack @vaguekayla @qu1etwolf

Others that’s might enjoy: @itwasthereaminuteago @fluffyprettykitty @jvanilly @simple-lovebot @russosafehaven @mrsbillyrusso @imagine-a-fictional-boyfriend

If you’d like to be added to (or removed from) my tag list(s) for the ever so handsome Billy Russo, just let me know and thank you again for reading! 💕💕💕 If I tagged you but you didn’t want to be, just let me know and I’ll never do it again.

#billy russo #billy russo x reader #billy russo fanfic #billy russo imagine #billy russo angst #billy russo fluff #billy russo fanfiction

[bcacstuff]

Why are people saying the Shutters pic is a latergram? If you look at the IG for the woman who took it she’s traveling down the CA coast with her family and staying/eating at nice places. Why is everything a conspiracy in the fandom. It’s also likely he left the swank business write-off accommodations and is staying with AN now that his shill-a-thon is over.

It's mainly on the shippers accounts the picture is disputed and determined as latergram. Why? Because they can't make things fit, they haven't been able to put him and C (and all their boos for that matter) at the same location since the premiere in NYC. No proof for anything. Though, we don't see where C is or what she's doing, which leaves a lot of room to speculate and make things up, we can see where Sam is and what he is doing. And that doesn't look anything like hiding a wife with 5 boos or more.

So yes, what to do, when there's no factual evidence of anything and the proof that is there shows the contradictions in full color. You create chaos and doubts. I saw a lengthy post about a house in the hills in LA based on follows of years ago. That's the proof... yeah, right. Wouldn't stand up in any courtroom right? Against a friend whom he's seen with all the time and owns a house in HH in LA and several recordings are done there. A house often used as place to stay for friends that are over, like we've seen Valbo posting proof and AN. Now go figure what proof would be admissible in court and what wouldn't?

Anyway, fortunately this isn't all that serious to have a court with a jury to decide on it all. Lol... they're just 2 actors from a show. So what's the fuzz about. And it's so easy to determine if you just look at things with an open mind and not with some tunnel vision better known as confirmation bias.

To come to the real part of your question. The doubts that are thrown out there is the hair length (hmm, what does that remind me off... oh wait, didn't they try to make me look ridiculous for a certain timeline last year for that? 🤔) So much looking at things with a certain bias.

Yes, his hair looks slightly longer in the Shutter pic. compared to maybe Sunday, and i've seen one that triied to compare it with the boat footage where his hair is constantly in the wind and blown backwards....

Anyway, ever heard of grooming? His hair needs constantly grooming, we all know what it looks in front now don't we? If you haven't just pause that video of the servedup podcast at the sec he briefly takes his hat off (and puts it on right away)... No, I'm not posting that still.... 🤐

And well the scar, c'mon shipppers, he's frowning and that scar is hidden by the frown. That was an easy one

And if the fan pic of yesterday didn't convince you yet about the clothing. Yes, yes, I know the Tuesday pic had short sleeved T-shirt, and in the fan pic of yesterday no sleeves. Both pictures are RT. He wears the same clothes, just another shirt under the vest.

The ultimate proof though is the water bottle... (poor shipper that couldn't find out the logo, try Google lens, first hit 💥 ). It's the Mananalu water bottle of Jason Momoa. Which if you just take a brief look on the Shutter IG account, you see they serve them in the rooms.

Blimey... you say, but but but... they could have served them for longer no? Well, just find the post of on the Mananalu IG account of 14 February 2022

Well, we have to look for a date he was in LA then after 14 february 2022! He was in LA for the OL premiere, March 7 2022 but not at Shutters, he stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel, as always when he's there on OL's account. See, that's where timelines come in handy... (and why shippers hate me so much for it).

Anyway, he was there summer 2022, recorded a live IG in his room and another promo announcing his gin. But, talking about hair lengths, I don't need to remind you what his hair looked at that time, now do I?

So far this lesson of sleuthing.... (get your facts right, check, double check and keep an open mind)

[harlowcomehome]

“We came all this way to lose.”

Part two: here

You had met Jack a few years ago and in such an organic way that you didn’t see him the way so many other girls did. Truthfully, that’s what made you so interesting to him. You didn’t look at him like he walked on water, you talked to him and treated him like a “normal” person and that’s what intrigued him and drew him to you.

You were working a regular full-time retail job, not knowing that the person you had been helping was a famous rapper the entire time. You noticed immediately that he was attractive, you would never deny that but you talked to him like you would anyone else.

“Let me know if I can help you find anything else” you smiled as he and Urban (who you didn’t know at the time either) sorted through racks. Both men flashing you a smile as you walked back to the front of the store.

You immediately noticed everyone else you worked with being incredibly odd and noticed the other lead manager locking the doors so nobody else could come in.

“What’s going on?” You whispered to her and she laughed.

“You don’t recognize him?” You peeked down the isle that he and Urban were in and you looked back at her.

“No?” She shook her head before pulling up pictures of him on google.

You smiled “he looks so different in person.”

She read your expression “you seriously don’t know who he is do you?”

You giggled and shrugged, looking up to see that Jack was approaching you.

“Do you mind if we try some stuff on?” He kept eye contact with you, you felt your entire body heat up. You nodded and he followed you to the back, where you dropped the keys nervously before eventually unlocking a room for both Jack and Urban to try things on.

They had been back there a while so your manager nudged for you to go make sure that everything was okay, and the conversation you walked in on wasn’t what you expected at all.

You truthfully listened longer than you should’ve.

“You can tell she has no idea, just ask her” Urban laughed and Jack told him to keep his voice down but it was too late. Urban had noticed you were standing there and his face turned bright red, clearing his throat to alert Jack.

Jack who was normally good at keeping it all together especially in front of women was now the color of a cherry tomato and you couldn’t help but think it made him cuter than before.

You smiled trying to pretend not to notice the exchange “I just- well I wanted to know if you needed my help with anything?”

Jack couldn’t speak and just shook his head, you smiled at him and Urban, walking out of the fitting room to Urban laughing out loud.

You walked back up to the register, a smile plastered all over your face.

“You think he’s cute? Don’t you?” Your coworker teased.

You shrugged.

“He is your type” she smiled and you gasped.

“I have a type?” She nodded and you smiled, noticing that both Jack and Urban were walking back up to the register with all of the clothes in their hands.

“Everything huh?” You teased, trying to ease the awkward tension from what happened earlier.

Jack who hadn’t even realized he was holding his breath, let out a sigh of relief “ yeah, I’ll always take the advice of a pretty girl” he smiled, and you did too.

You made small talk the rest of the transaction, and handed him and Urban their bags when you were done.

You had noticed Jack kept his eyes on you the entire time, but you tried to convince yourself it wasn’t anything serious.

Urban took Jacks bag from him and nodded to him before walking toward the door alone.

“Do you have plans tomorrow night?” Jack smiled and you could feel your heart beating faster and faster.

“I- I mean-“ you stuttered and he smiled “good.” He pressed down on your receipt printer and ripped off a piece of paper, writing a number down.

“Call this number tomorrow” he smiled and looked at your name tag “I’ll make sure to tell them Y/N is calling.”

He smiled and started to walk away before you had the chance to respond.

“Wait, what’s your name?” You giggled and he shouted it at you “Jack!” all before he ran to catch up with his friend that had left moments earlier.

You remember thinking that was the smoothest thing in the world, being told later by Jack that he practically had an anxiety attack in the parking lot just moments later, worried you thought it was corny and not attractive.

The next day, you waited until the evening to call, not wanting to seem eager.

The voice of another woman picked up, which caused you to want to hang up immediately.

“Wait, is this Y/N?” The woman replied and you just responded with “Mhmm.”

She held back a laugh “I’m Jacks manager, we have a ticket for you if you want to come to the show tonight.”

You felt a wave of relief come over you, and she felt it too, the both of you sharing a laugh over the phone.

You arrived at the venue, worried you were overdressed, but you weren’t really sure what to expect and you just wanted to look your best.

Neelam, Jacks manager met you at the box office and walked with you inside. Jack wasn’t that big at the time, meaning he was an opener tonight and he was about to go on.

You had made perfect timing, and you were honestly excited to see him in what you assumed would be his element. You noticed his friend from yesterday immediately and stood beside him “Urban” he said with a smile as he shook your hand, “Y/N.”

The two of you stood in a somewhat comfortable silence before Jack started to perform.

You realized quickly that Urban also took photos of Jacks performances, “ do you do that for every show?”

Urban shrugged “usually.”

When Jack was done performing he walked over to you, beads of sweat dripping off his forehead.

“What did you think?” He smiled, hoping you’d have something positive to say but instead you shrugged “I think? I think you’re really sweaty.”

He laughed to himself, walking over to a small vanity in the back with his things sprawled across it.

You followed him over to it, “I mean, honestly?” He looked at you, like he was about to pass out, still waiting on you to say something positive about his performance.

“I think you’re really good” you giggled, playfully hitting his arm.

“My mom always told me not to fill a mans head up with too many compliments or he’ll be full of hot air” you giggled and he laughed too.

“Is that a thing? Like a real saying?” You both continued to laugh together and you shrugged. “ I honestly, have no idea.”

You heard the roar of the main performer go on stage, you peeked around the corner and Jack watched you with a smile, “do you want to stay and watch?”

You bit your lip, out of nervous habit and looked over at him “I want to do whatever you want to do.”

He smiled “do you want to go get something to eat?”

You nodded “that sounds good.” Jack grabbed your hand and made sure Neelam and Urban were distracted before you bolted out of the back exit.

You didn’t let go of Jacks hand, letting him lead the way into the back parking lot.

“Won’t your manager and friend wonder where we went?” You giggled as you got into the passenger side of the car. He shook his head “they’ll be fine.”

He started the car and the two of you giggled, something about this just felt euphoric and fun, and so out of your comfort zone.

Jack pulled up to a small local pizza place you had been to several times before, you smiled as the two of you got out of the car.

“Normally this place is way busier” you said surprised and Jack smiled “most people are at the show.” You nodded and followed him inside, eventually sitting down at a booth across from one another and just talking for hours. It wasn’t until you heard his phone go off that you realized how long you two had been away from the venue.

“Shit” he whispered to himself and you smiled “did I get you in trouble?”

He smirked at you “something tells me this wont be the only time, pretty lady.”

He was right, he usually was and you always hated that.

After that night, Jack continued his tour, the two of you talking every day either over text or FaceTime. He constantly begged you to come to another show, knowing that you couldn’t but still hoping you’d try to.

When tour was over, just three months later, he promised to come see you and he kept that promise.

He spent more time in your hometown than he anticipated but something about you made him feel comfortable, normal and safe. There was no denying that he was becoming more and more popular but that didn’t matter much to you, he was still just Jack. Jack who got embarrassed easily, who laughed too loud in public, and Jack who easily became your best friend within a matter of months.

“Are you sure you have to go home tomorrow?” You sighed, as you laid on his chest.

He smiled “Why? You going to miss me or something?”

You smiled softly, not able to form words. He looked down at you, noticing your eyes were closed tightly “are you tired?” It was then he noticed a single tear rolling down your cheek.

“Did I say something wrong?”

You sniffled, sitting up beside him “I’m just going to miss you, like a lot.”

You laughed, feeling foolish for becoming attached so quickly.

“Don’t cry” Jack scooted closer to you, wrapping his arms around you. “You can always come with me?”

His suggestion made you freeze, it wasn’t that you didn’t want to, you were just surprised to hear him say it.

“And stay where?” You sniffled, the reality hitting you immediately “and what would I do for work?”

Jack smiled “I have my own place, it’s a lot bigger than you parents place. And, when I say I have a place I mean Urban and I have a place and you can stay there with us.”

You nodded “but what would I do for work Jack, I don’t want you to feel like you have to take care of me, thats not fair to you.” Jack paused, truthfully he hadn’t thought that far ahead, he would’ve taken care of you if he could but financially that wasn’t an option even if your stubborn self would let him actually do it.

His silence made you second guess yourself, assuming he regretted even saying it. You stood up and wiped your eyes “it’s fine Jack, maybe we should call it a night and I’ll just see you next time you’re in-“ he kissed you to stop you from finishing that thought.

“Give me a month, just one month and I’ll figure it out” he made sure to keep eye contact with you. You nodded, falling asleep on him for the last time until you moved to Atlanta.

You remember thinking to yourself how insane this was, it was never in your character to be so impulsive but something about Jack was different, and you felt safe doing anything with him. You had no idea how hard it was going to be for you to live with two messy guys, but although you would get annoyed you loved them both.

You ended up working closely with Neelam, essentially being an assistant manager and helping with other clients so her main focus could be Jack. You didn’t mind the distraction, it gave you and Jack enough space but kept you close at the same time.

There was no denying that Jack was continuously getting the recognition he deserved, and you were there every step of the way, even if it was in the shadows. You didn’t mind it, you understood quickly that was the best thing for Jack to do. You didn’t mind having to share him either, you knew who he came home to and he never gave you a reason to feel insecure about that.

It wasn’t until TWTAS was being recorded, that you felt the shift in your relationship. Jack was more forgetful, less present. He had forgotten your birthday, and all the traditions you usually did when it came around. To say you were sad would be an understatement, you had moved away from your family and friends to start a life with him, making him and everyone around you a “second” family of sorts. So that hurt, but he always made up for it in someway so you tried not to complain too much.

You chopped it up to Jack being busier, he was needed more, he was important now. He was constantly being pulled in several different directions, so you just assumed he was tired, and having a debut album deadline didn’t help.

You had been in denial for a while now, assuming that one day things would just be okay again. You thought maybe after the album dropped things would be okay, and when they weren’t you knew it was serious. You had several conversations with Jack about the future of your relationship, you wanted to get married, and maybe have some kids but most of the conversations ended the same way.

“So much is unknown right now, let’s just go with the flow” was said to you so many times now that you felt like that phrase was practically tattooed across your forehead.

Jack had eventually become cold, and distracted. It wasn’t intentional and you knew that but you couldn’t continue to put your own feelings on the back burner while he lived out his dreams, it had been eating you alive.

Jack was walking around the house you shared together in a panic, and you couldn’t figure out why.

“What’s going on?” You asked, leaning against the doorframe.

“I have that award show tonight, and I can’t find my shoes” he sighed. “Do you know where they are?” You shrugged, earning a sigh from your now very annoyed boyfriend.

“Why are you so touchy? I thought the awards were on the 21st anyway?” You said feeling defeated. Jack looked over at you confused “is today not the 21st?”

You shook your head “nope, it’s the 19th.”

He sighed as he sat down on the couch “I haven’t had a second to breathe lately, I’m sorry.”

His apologies came more frequently these days, and you normally accepted them and tried to move on but today you couldn’t do that.

“Can we talk?” You sighed, sitting beside him on the couch.

He groaned “That sounds like what people say when they want to break up.” You stayed silent, not knowing how to react.

He noticed the change in your demeanor when he said that, and he sat up straight “wait, do you want to break up?”

“I don’t want to break up but-“ before you could continue he talked over you.

“I need you though, you’re going to do this to me now, at my most delicate moment? You’re not thinking about how I feel, you’re only thinking about yourself.”

You had never been so angry, was he essentially calling you selfish? You couldn’t wrap your head around why he’d even escalate to that so quickly.

“Can you let me talk?” You sighed, holding back tears.

Jack was silent, trying his best not to cry. His hands were shaky, so he put them inside his hoodie to hide them from you from noticing.

“Why would you want to break up? What am I not giving you? Tell me how I could possibly do better?”

You sensed a tone of anger coming from him, which wasn’t expected. He usually handled things calm, you were usually the firecracker and to see the roles reversed was disheartening.

“I just feel like things between us have been different, for a long time now.” Your voice was trembling. “I don’t want to be the one to hold you back Jack. You know I’d never do that to you.” You sniffled, as you watched the man you loved and adored heart break in front of you.

“You don’t hold me back Y/N, why would you say that?” His lips were trembling, and his voice shook.

“I can see the change in you” you sighed “and in us, can’t you?”

“Just tell me you don’t love me anymore” his voice was more stern, less shaky now and you could tell he was getting angry by the flush in his face.

“Jack, it’s not that I don’t love you anymore, I do it’s just that-“

“I don’t love you anymore” That once sweet southern drawl metaphorically stabbing you like a knife.

You hadn’t mentally prepared to hear those words, you felt like time stood still in that very moment. The entire room was silent, you felt every emotion at once. Your vision was blurry, your chest tightened, you couldn’t breathe and your heart was physically breaking.

The door slammed shut, leaving you alone yet again. This great big house feeling even bigger and lonelier than ever before.

#Jack Harlow #jack harlow concepts #jack harlow blurb #Jack Harlow fan fiction #Jack Harlow x reader #Jack Harlow Angst

[hella1975]

Hi hella!!!

I feel like i always start these off or end them by saying that these things are going to be incomprehensible in some way, mainly bc i have trouble translating whats going on in my mind into written words so i really dont know how much of my list thingies make sense to you but this one is especially probably going to not make much sense. (also bc i send them a lot when im either very tired or not sober, but i am sober and wide awake rn so this might be a different kind of incomprehensible)

I found one of my old drafts for an ask from around a year ago and it was a follow up response to the last chapter you posted at the time, so im not sure how its going to sound without the context of that specific chapter, but i also mentioned in one of my other asks that i add stuff in last minute and that ask i added a shit ton of stuff so i dont have any of that pretyped out so im going by memory.  But im sending it again bc i havent seen you answer it 

(please do not interpret this as ‘why didnt you answer my ask >:/’ or me rushing you to answer asks or anything like that, but like I said its been a year so im assuming tumblr ate it.  If not and you just havent cleaned out your ask box and you find the original, congratulations you’ll know what i originally said.  Bc idk how accurate this will be)

SO

Theres two different ways that you seem to write metaphors (idk if thats what theyre called im not caught up on my literary terminology)

 (im scrolling through your blog rn looking for my other asks and tumblr really did you dirty in your asks system like i started scrolling and the third one down was from 2021 and im fighting for my life trying to find my tag (thank you for my tag btw its very useful to me))

Anywho, most of your metaphors ( to me) can be split into two categories.  Theres the simple ones and the complex ones.  Now this might seem obvious but im going to explain to you how these have different effects on my brain.  

An example of the ‘simple’ ones is  

““If Nanook’s tone had a note of seriousness, then Zuko’s was the entire orchestra.”” (idk what chapter this is from its been a while)

You have a lot of these kinds of whatever the haick kind of literary technique this is (is this a metaphor i’ve been trying to google it for like ½ an hour and i cant figure it out) BUT these type of things that are simple and easy to process is one of my favorite things about the way you write.  I think this is a very common technique but the way you do it to me is just a lot more unique than the ways ive seen it done before.  Its extremely fluent with the voice of the characters and brings a perfect kind of vibe to the ‘conversation’ (or story, text, whatever) and it paints the picture of what your trying to say perfectly.  I also really like how these types of things arent ever in Zukos pov a lot (sometimes it is, but not nearly as much, I’ve noticed) and its not in the more serious like revelations that you drop these in.  Like I said, it adds to the voice of the characters, bc of the contrast of Zuko constantly having revelations and dramatic archs and stuff, and the other characters just in general being a lot more calm.  Its like when youre listening to a song and you have the lyrics and the like ‘main’ music behind the lyrics, but then when you listen to the song a lot you notice the smaller, like backup music that adds a lot to the song and makes it a lot more enjoyable than if it was just the lyrics and the louder more up front music.  

Then in contrast you have the bigger ‘metaphors’ 

An example of this is ‘You curse in words already invented’ 

THIS IS MY FAVORITE LINE IN THE ENTIRE FIC.  

OF ANY FIC OR BOOK EVER READ

AND THIS IS WHY

When I tell you I could not figure out what this meant for months I am AWFUL with stuff like this and interpreting it my english teachers hate me bc of it.  Id have the question ‘why were the curtains blue’ and my answer would be ‘bc the people who decorated the room like blue maybe theyre interior designers and it goes with the room 😊 and thats so hot of them bc i love blue too’  

But even thought i couldnt figure it out it stayed in my head and i probably thought about it once a day (i mean this literally, i think about that part all the time) and i cant remember the context for that or anything but i do remember that i knew it was a wonderful phrase.  

I’ve mentioned in my other asks how whenever im reading anything at all that you’ve written (whether its tams, or toab, or in the tags of something even if its like 10 words), everything you type comes out so fluidly like a formula or a color wheel or however i put it last time i talked about this.  And this is on the prodigious end of the spectrum of this.  

But phrases like that are another part of the fic, theyre like the lyrics of the song.  Like the phrases that gets all the attention and gets put in fanart and that gets quoted in comment sections because they deserve that recognition and you deserve that recognition and are just a reminder of how incredibly talented you are.  

I mean that in the most sincere way that i know how to express.  

I am constantly in awe of you and your writing style, and i really do think of you as one of the most talented writers of everything ive ever read.  

And something else worth mentioning is that it isnt just your ao3 that portrays that.  Like if I were to just read your ao3 I’d be like ‘oh wow this person is an amazing writer’ But your tumblr persona plays into it a lot more (In my opinion).  Because then you see like more ‘backround’ stuff on ao3.  And more of your system (im not articulating this in the way i mean it very well) and you get privy to the fact that you’re not a 30 year old with a masters in english and that you’ve never had any formal education on writing.  I vaguely remember you talking about a story about a sailor (??? i might be misremembering that) that you wrote when you were a child and thinking ‘oh wow so she’s always been like that’.  And its stuff like that that you dont get on ao3 that kind of reaffirms how incredible of a writer you are.  

And this (to me) makes you a really easy person to admire.  (ik i touched on this in a different ask but i dont remember if it was one of my list asks or not) but as someone who probably isnt going to ever be able to get an education around writing, it kind of reassures me that i dont need that to be great at it.  

(i kind of feel like a lot of the stuff in this ask is too like ‘simple’ or obvious to be given a lot of weight, but this whole thing is about the kinds of things you do that brings me personally joy and the metaphors are one of them so)

Also on an off note when i was looking through your asks to try to find my tag, I noticed that i send you a heavy percentage of your anonymous asks (mainly without my alias) and I thought that was funny.  But also i hope it doesnt come across as obsessive or weird, I swear i do that to a lot of people on here, I’m just a very social person.  .😂

Also Im in your tbos server (lurking in the shadows) and someone pointed out that whenever you do the reaction emojis you always do the white ones, and thats going on the official ‘my favorite things about hella’ list because that was genuinely one of the funniest things ive seen. 

Also the ‘anytime you type its very fluid (im too lazy to scroll up and see how i put it rn) also carrys on to discord.  I think that i could probably block out the user names and be able to figure out that its you talking every time, you have a very distinct way of talking.  

Also i wanted to mention that every time you answer these i read them again and i want to say like 1/3 of what i sasy, i have no recollection of. And i never have any idea what im talking about. so i think thats funny.

LIST ANONNNNNNNNNNNNN BAWLING MY EYES OUT HELLO BABY WELCOME BACK FROM WAR IVE MISSED YOU IM JUST HERE LIKE THIS RN

#this is so something i needed to hear rn bc always during exam season i 'lose' my ability to write like even the writing i do get done #just feels so fucking stale and awful imo and i just have to force myself to push through or else ill have a crisis about it #so i started studying in DECEMBER and it's now almost february exams are done but i CANT get out of that mindset for some reason #like ive been in a really bad writing flunk where im ABLE to write but the stuff i do write just feels genuinely terrible #like im losing it about dog teeth atm bc this story i was so in love with just feels so basic and underwhelming on a reread #and idk how much of that is me being insane and perfectionist and how much is valid criticism #so being told that actually there are people who not only enjoy my writing but are so thoroughly convinced it's a fundamental part of me #and something i am inherently GOOD at to the point even the way i talk CASUALLY is telling of it is just. oughhh im pacing my room #and the fact it doesn't HAVE to be my pretentious prose shit sometimes the more 'basic' stuff is STILL good. you're in my walls #i cant believe you're in the discord i hope you say hi!!! i dont bite!!! <- lying #also those assholes can take my silly white emojis from my COLD DEAD HANDS. white thumbs down will never die #ask #list anon

[the-final-sif]

Kind of related to the situation, but I want to ask a serious question on something you mentioned, about making fake media look 100% authentic through clone apps and screenshoting to fuck up the metadata of the picture. It's scaring the hell out of me, have we really reached a point that there are ways to fake evidence and make it look real even if that evidence is tested by actual professionals? In other words, if the evidence can no longer be proven real or fake by computer pros, that all we have left are character witnesses? The sheer idea that someone could fake something about me on some app I am known to use and destroy my life just by using some app clone software they found on google is making me freak the fuck out!

Sorry if I'm not making sense, but thanks for all the info you post! Helped me calm down and look at the situation with a clearer mind

Well, so, I think the problem here is that you've forgotten a key element: evidence absolutely can still be proven real or fake, just not by people on twitter. An actual courtroom is different from a court of public opinion.

This is not new by any means. People have been able to pass off convincing fake information since information has existed as a concept. Since any method of documenting information has existed, there have been ways to fake those methods.

I've mentioned them before, but the Cottingley Fairies are the perfect example of this. It's a series of 5 photographs taken by two young girls, appearing to show the girls interacting with fairies in the 1910s-1920s. The photographs the girls took were extensively examined for any signs of alterations, and the girls were even given a camera with plates set up such that no alteration was possible. The images produced were examined by experts, and nobody was able to find any sign of editing or alteration to the photos.

How did they do it? Easy, the girls had cardboard cutouts made from a popular children's book. The photos were unaltered, but they were photos of cut outs. Not photos of real fairies. The girls were 9 and 16 and playing a prank for fun. They admitted to how they did it much later in life, and explained that they had been too embarrassed to admit that it was a prank at the time.

That evidence was both fake and undetectable by experts through examination of the photographs. Much like screenshots, screen recordings, etc, can also be fake in ways undetectable to experts. You set up an app clone, write whatever you want, then screen record that. The app clone is the cardboard fairy cutout. That's part of why I urge people to not leap to conclusions based on whether they think a photo or video is edited, rather than considering whether the underlying content has been altered.

However, here's the thing, this only holds up on social media. Once you actually get into a court of law, this no longer works. Because in a court, the actual company who has the data (ie, twitter, instagram, phone companies, etc) can be asked to provide logs of what actually occurred. And that's what actually happens. Nobody goes into court with a screen recording and gets to submit that as evidence without some method of authentication.

The issue at hand isn't that there's no way to know what is or isn't reality, the issue at hand is that people often aren't willing to take the time to authenticate information. Some people aren't willing to be skeptical of the things that they are told, and run with information before they've been able to verify it. They conflate an image or video being unaltered with the underlying information being unaltered. They then misrepresent this information to others in a vicious cycle of misinformation. It is a real and present issue, and it's not new.

Back in 1920, the photos of the fairies were published to mixed reactions. Some people believed wholeheartedly that they were real and empirical proof of fairies. A lot of people didn't. Some people pointed out possible issues, and got dismissed by believers. It was a topic of conversation for awhile, and then it died down. People believed what they wanted to believe for a long while, and the truth finally came out in the 1980s.

The difference between what happened back then and what happens today isn't a difference in how willing people are to believe misinformation or how easy it is to create misinformation, but rather a difference in how quickly misinformation can spread, and how much misinformation people are exposed to. That's what worries me.

I don't have a solution for this problem as a whole. But what I can say is all of us can do our part to evaluate sources of misinformation, be careful about what we spread and how we spread it, and do our best to provided corrections when we feel we are able. Deep breaths, question things in a responsible manner, and be ready to wait for the actual truth of a situation to come out.

#sif answers #Anonymous #misinformation #dream discourse #discourse #sif speaks

[enteroctopusdarkysilis]

Here’s my take on a batch of custom Nexo Knights minifigs !

Closeups and thoughts under the cut

So, in no particular order, the closeups, with comments and comparisons with the actual characters from the original Lego theme (also, because of Tumblr’s image limits, I had to badly stitch together my pictures, sorry-)

1) Mace

Pretty cool one, and the only girl in the team in the original cast, who also happen to have troubles because her dad is the king. But eh, none of that here, so she get the cool cloak I assign to any cool red character I can find (yes, you’ll see it again many times in the future). The overall design is pretty nice (mostly this face, the other one on the brick is not as good; the printed armor, which is from season 4, is pretty nice, and does a nice job with the large dark piece (coming from later Hero Factory sets). The weapons are from the Chima theme (and so is the cloak !). The hairs are from the only Tron set, which should have been continued as whole theme but eh-

2) Axel

Stupid and muscular originally. Well, now he’s got a Large Axe (Bionicle) to stand to his name. The helmet is all Nexo, but with some custom brew of mine, and so is the shield. Also, the custom arm was possible because the large chest has a technic pin.

3) Clay(more)

Not room much modifications on the base character (s1). The sword is from a season four version of the character, the shield is homemade with some fun pieces I had lying around. The two arms are modified from the Ultimate set. …which I transformed in guns…Yeah.

4) Aaron

Green ! Always had a cooler weapon. The armor is from the mech set, the chest piece is from s3-4, the Google’s are from the Ultimate set, and the shoulder thingy is from Boba Fett. I kept the original shield with some added pieces, which is made to fly (like with the original al character) but changed the face to give him a more serious expression. The weapon is mostly from the original crossbow, with some nice twists (the beam on the first image is from a ninjago sword).

5) Lance Whatever their name is now

Really a bad character : rich, 'very pretty', egocentric. So, well…I took the armor and made an entire new one. I really like them, but it might be because it took an awful lot of time to figure out the weapon (transparent white piece similar to the green beam mentioned above). Armor-wise, it’s s1 body, with a grey pauldron (Clone Wars) and a light grey kama (…Also Clone Wars). The hairs are a really cool piece from a Ninjago set, and the head…Come from a City ski set. But the orange visor makes it work !

6) Never remembered the name of that one

Original character is a very smart kid with not much development in the show. Well, firstly I made him an adult (legs are from a black widow figure), and then I decided to push the technical side a little. So, full suit with crystal swords, which works ! Most pieces are actually from the theme, except the red dots (Ninjago again), the crystals in the back (Power Mine [really a cool theme !]), and the helmet (City firefighters + Ninjago…again). It was the first one I made, which made me do the others.

I might get them in a diorama at some point, to set them against the very many custom monsters from the same theme (which were already much cooler than the original minifigs). In fact, most of the theme was really cool, the two sad points are that it was discontinued, and the TV show was…Well, it didn’t push much sci-fi nor fantasy, so I had to do the job.

Now, with that post I have finally revealed my three favorites things to do with legos : Dioramas, Big Mechs, and Custom minifigures (plus any Clone Wars related stuff, but it’s probably just as much because of the fandom aspect as it is the Lego aspect). One day perhaps, I’ll get all three of these aspects in one epic scene, but I have no idea of how for now, so maybe later~

#lego #lego moc #lego minifigures #nexo knights