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jongbross · 5 months

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Ok so i can’t stop thinking about Baek’s photo at JD’s wedding , so can u do one where he meets again with the reader (ex) at one of their closest friends wedding and he revives all their moments together

Thanks

pairing: byun baekhyun x reader word count: 767 genre: fluffy with a tiny bit of angst i guess? warnings: mentions of alcohol, mentions of sex a/n: this was really cute and fun to write, thank you for requesting <3

baekhyun had a beer in his hand. the whole party was at the dance floor, enjoying the last moments of the reception before the newly wed couple left for the honeymoon.

still, he didn't feel the need to be there, celebrating, when he had you beside him.

it's been too long since the last time baekhyun saw you personally - because, in his dreams, he met you constantly. everyone, including you, knew how much he loved you and how he didn't want to break up with you two years ago.

the break up was your fault, you wanted it in the first place. it made sense at the time, to part ways with baekhyun, but seeing him again now... you couldn't even remember why you left him.

"that girl is still single", he commented, pointing at one of the bride's friends. "she can't seem to find someone. it's been what, three years?"

"four. she tried to flirt with you at my birthday party that time, remember?", you mindlessly said.

"oh, that's right!", baekhyun chuckled. "junmyeon was more offended at that than you were..."

you laughed too, at the memory of one of baekhyun's best friends lecturing the girl about how disrespectful she was towards you that night.

"he was so drunk...", you reminisced.

"he was just being junmyeon", baekhyun shrugged. "you remember how he called me the next morning to also say how rude it was that we both left the party earlier?"

"gosh, i just wanted to sleep that morning! why did you have to put the phone on the speaker?"

baekhyun laughed. "the lecture was for both of us, my love."

you hated how the pet name still made you shiver.

baekhyun took another sip of his beer, a big one. his pretty eyes scanned the venue, analyzing every face, sometimes shining whenever he'd see someone important to him.

"it's beautiful...", he whispered.

you wanted to agree, but you knew he wasn't talking about himself.

"what is beautiful?"

"the wedding, the people celebrating them", he looked down at his hands. "i always thought we would be the first ones to get married though, not them."

you cleared your throat at that, making baekhyun look at you.

"i'm sorry, i didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, i just... i had to get that out of my chest."

you mumbled a tiny "it's okay", turning your attention to the party as well - but the way you could still feel baekhyun staring at you only made your stomach flip.

suddenly, like the universe was playing in baekhyun's favor, a song started to play; the song you and baekhyun always claimed was the perfect soundtrack for your relationship. promptly, he got up from his chair, putting his beer at the table and offering you a hand.

"would you dance with me?"

"baek..."

"for old times' sake... please", he softly said, and in his eyes you could see the longing.

so you took baekhyun's hand, allowed him to take you to the dancefloor. you let him put his hands around your waist, while you wrapped yours around his broad shoulders - all for old times' sake, of course.

you allowed him to guide your body, slowly moving to the beat of the song you knew so well.

"you remember the first time we danced to this song?", but it was you who was asking now.

"how could i forget?", baekhyun whispered, resting his chin on your shoulder.

it was right after you got accepted into a new job, and baekhyun had finally got to rent the new apartment he wanted. everything was working out for the two of you, so to celebrate you made dinner together, got slightly drunk with wine, danced to that song in your living room and made love on the floor. you were so in love.

now, you were at another job; baekhyun was still living at that apartment, even though it felt empty without you; you still knew the recipe baekhyun taught you that night, and the wine you two drank together was still baekhyun's favorite. and still, he was so in love with you.

"i miss you", he confessed, only for you to hear. "i-i'm sorry, but i do..."

as the song came to an end, baekhyun tried to get out of your embrace, but you only pulled him back in as another ballad started to play. you didn't know that one, but you knew you missed baekhyun too.

"shhh", you soothed him, caressing his neck. "you don't have to be sorry. just hold me a bit longer, please."

you didn't have to ask it twice.

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lovelytsunoda · 1 year

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holding out for a hero ( iii ) // platonic! mercedes amg

summary: a holiday party at marcus armstrong's house brings changes to y/n's life, in the form of both a british f2 driver she'd rather not show her face around ever again, and a very awkward milestone.

pairing: platonic!mercedes amg f1 x reader, brief olli caldwell x reader

warnings: first kisses, a slew of emotions i don't want to unpack, it's going to be cute and angsty all at the same time, self-deprecation, basically the same warnings as the rest of the series tbh, mentions of an alcohol allergy, paul being a little shit

author's note: this is lowkey based on the story of my first kiss from last december . . . i actually hated it all and we're back to the drawing board on that whole dating thing. i fear my standards may be too high.

this series would make such a good sitcom tbh

"marcus, for the last time, i don't do parties." y/n insisted, frowning at the face on her phone as she stride out of the mercedes building in brackley. "i don't care that i already know most of the people who are going to be there, or that the guys are bringing their girlfriends. the answer is no."

"come on!" marcus armstrong begged on the other end of the facetime call, laughing as the young intern clumsily zipped up her tommy hilfiger jacket, hiding the bottom half of her face under the collar as the wind whipped her face, flakes of snow beginning to fall from the winter sky. "it's not as bad as you're thinking it's going to be. it's literally just at my house, my younger sister is going to be there."

y/n snorted. "come on, armstrong. if you think telling me that your teenaged sister is going to be at the party is a drawing factor, you need to reevaluate things in your life. besides, liam is going to be there and it's going to be ultra painful to see him and his girlfriend being all loved up."

silverstone had been a huge knock to y/n y/l/n's self-confidence. it had taken a lot for her to allow herself to be that vulnerable. to dance in front of the rowdy group of boys, to let her guard down long enough to meet new people, to have a good time.

to tell liam lawson that she thought he was cute, just for liam to shatter her heart into a million peices without even meaning or trying to.

god, she wished she could stop being so sensitive sometimes.

she hadn't been to another race since. she also hadn't spoken directly to liam, occasionally being looped into things on the group chat. as far as she was aware, red bull were shipping him off to japan with cem bolukbasi to run a superformula test.

she was heading back to her car now, the cold air turning her fingers numb as she clutched her phone, digging in her pocket for her car keys.

"i'm not doing it, armstrong."

"and why the bloody hell not? you had a great time in sliverstone, and i'll have james keep liam away from you if that would make you feel better."

y/n had opened her mouth to say something when she felt a pair of hands clapping her on the shoulders.

"she's going." susie wolff insisted. "come on, y/n. you need to get out more. you deserve to let yourself have fun."

"but this party isn't going to be fun, susie."

susie grinned, hands in the deep front pockets of her trench coat. "you won't know unless you try it, kiddo." she turned to the phone. "marcus, she'll be there!"

____

y/n stood in front of her mirrored closet door, smoothing her fingers over her hair, drawn back into a tight half-up ponytail kind of style.

"you look great, kiddo!" angela cullen's voice faintly filtered through the phone speakers, a kelsy karter song playing softly from the turntable in the corner.

"ang, i'm going to make a fool out of myself out there." y/n groaned. "i hate parties!"

"but you know these guys, y/n. you know marcus, you know clem and you know fred. you'll be fine. with that being said, if you want to leave early, call one of us."

"oh, you'll definitley be getting some kind of call." she rolled her eyes, stopping the turntable and sliding the shiny black vinyl back into it's sleeve, fairy lights twinkling above her. "what if they don't like me, angela?"

"and what if they love you?"

after bidding the physiotherapist her goodbyes, y/n pocketed her phone and padded across the dusty apartment floor to her kitchen. the apartment felt too big for her to live in on her own, and technically she didn't, but it's not like her roommate was ever home. she sighed to herself, opening the fridge to stare at the almost empty shelf, making a mental note to order her groceries.

if there was anything that gave her anxiety, it was grocery shopping. there was a voice in her head that always seemed to tell her that the cashier ringing her groceries through was judging her, or that that mother with two kids in a stroller was frowning at the nutritional index of meals she hadn't even made yet.

she grabbed the plastic container with the kirkland signature logo, groaning to herself as she realized that the lettuce in her pre-made ceaser salad had gone off.

"fuck me." she muttered, throwing the entire thing in the trash before grabbing a ziploc container filled with sliced peppers, that way she had at least eaten something before she went to the party.

just in case her anxiety stamped out her appetite

her nimble fingers sailed across the keyboard as she texted clement, asking for a ride to marcus'. she had no idea where she was going, and she didn't want to be lost in london this close to the new year.

i'll be at the apartment in twenty, and i've got my girlfriend with me. she can't wait to meet you! you're going to have a great time at marcus'

she took a deep breath, reminding herself to calm down a little. it was just marcus armstrong's house. what could possibly go wrong? they're the same people she had such a great time with at silverstone, right?

_____

she regretted going to marcus' almost as soon as she walked through the doors to his massive penthouse. at the track, they could pretend that they were all the same. but not here, not out in the real world when y/n walked through the front doors of his doorman building with glass elevators, his penthouse that was bigger than even the townhouse she grew up in with her parents.

in the kitchen, marcus had stacked a sturdy tower of martini glasses. behind them, felipe drugovich was standing on a kitchen chair with a bottle of ferrari trento champagne in his arms.

"i've always wanted to do this!" the f2 champion shouted. "come on, guys. someone get this on tape!"

"dear lord, what are the twenty stooges doing now?" she groaned, leaning against the wall next to jehan daruvala.

jehan laughed. "making a champagne fountain because liam said he saw it in a movie once. felipe wanted to do the honors of puring it, and nobody wants to argue with the f2 champ, especially when he just found out he's not getting a race seat next year, but logan is."

"shit. i guess the feeder series system just isn't working like it used to."

a chorus of cheers from the kitchen island disrupted further conversation, the warm lights shining down on the last person that y/n wanted to see. god, motorsport was a small world, wasn't it?

liam lawson locked eyes with her from across the apartment, giving her a sad and sympathetic smile. she bit her lip to stop from grimacing, meekly waving back.

nobody else knew what had happened between her and liam, and she preferred to keep it that way.

"y/n!" marcus shouted, throwing his arms in the air and waving her over. "come join us!"

"have a drink." clement encouraged, trying to pass her a glass of champagne.

she shook her head. "give it to your girlfriend, novalak. i'm actually allergic to alcohol."

calan williams narrowed his eyes, skeptically sipping from his own glass. "that sounds fake."

y/n laughed, moving closer to the kitchen island. "its a genetic thing. i can't handle anything more than a cooler or a mixed drink. anything stronger will have me throwing up for hours."

"i think there's some smirnoff ice in the fridge." marcus suggested, pointing towards a large cabinet front. ayumu iwasa opened the cabinet, revealing the fridge behind it.

fucking rich people.

"what the hell, pass me one of the peach smirnoff coolers in the door."

"to felipe!" dennis hauger shouted, hefting his beer into the air, arm full of tattoos on display. "our 2022 champion!"

"and to logan, my old teammate!" liam lawson added, throwing his arm around logan sargeant's neck. liam looked drunkest of all, though it seemed like all of the drivers were a wreck. "williams racing's last hope."

she spent most of the night wandering around marcus' massive house, ducking in and out of conversations. she appreciated that the drivers were trying to help her feel at home, but there was still a small part of her that wanted to flee, to run away and sit at home with her emily henry book or watch a korean psychological thriller.

"so who's actually sticking around next year?" jack doohan asked, slumped across marcus' living room sofa. "aren't they cleaning house in f2?" his buzzcut was growing back in, his shaggy blonde hair fitting his face much better, although the look still seemed odd since the length was at that awkward stage.

"it's dennis, you, ayumu, jehan, enzo, theo, me, amaury, roy, ralph." fred vesti started counting off on his fingers, a drunken slur underneath his words if one listened carefully.

"and i'm not going anywhere any time soon!" ralph boomed. "i'm like fernando fucking alonso, motherfuckers! 2023 is going to be my year, just you wait and see!"

"yeah right! the championship is as much yours as it is clem's!" marcus shouted back with a laugh, an aperol spritz in hand as he messed with the stereo.

"oh, fuck you lot." clement laughed, curled up in an armchair with his girlfriend. "you didn't need to do me like that in front of ines, come on, have some class."

"am i forgetting about anyone?" fred hummed. "i skipped clem, but am i missing anyone else?"

"what about zane? he's coming back, yeah?" amaury suggested.

"dude, it's a miracle that you're coming back." dennis snorted. "i thought you were gone for sure after that speeding ticket fiasco. how long did you lose your license for?"

sitting on the couch in between jack and olli caldwell, she felt suffocated. she drew her arms in on herself, trying to create a bubble of space from the aussie on one side and the briton on the other. her palms felt sweaty, her chest heavy.

"are you okay?" olli asked her softly. "do you want to get out of here? we can go for a walk, take a breather?"

she nodded quickly, her voice soft. "please? i love you all, i really do, but this is a bit much."

"yeah, come on. let's grab your jacket." olli encouraged, taking her by the hand as they both slipped out of marcus' living room.

not that anybody noticed they were gone. or that they had left together.

once they were both outside, y/n felt better. the cool breeze on her face, the twinkling christmas lights that had been lit up glowing in the haze as snow began to fall gently.

"so where are you off to next year if it's not f2?" she asked, fingers still laced with olli's as they walked down the sidewalk.

"endurance, i think. alpine are still sponsoring me as a driver, so laurent has been a hige help in trying to find me something else. it's something different, and i'm looking forward to it. what about you?"

"i have no idea." she answered truthfully, dropping olli's hand. "my internship runs out before the season starts in bahrain. then it will be back to the real world, the world where i'm on my own with my five friends and my roommate. i'm hoping that toto will keep me on next year, but i also realize that he might not have that control. it would be a shame to leave, though. i feel like i've finally found my place in this world."

they stopped walking, y/n leaning against the brickwork exterior of marcus' condo complex. olli stood in front of her, hands in his jeans pockets, his breath turning into mist in the air.

"i'm sure it will all work out. and even if mercedes don't take you on, there are so many other motorsports in europe that you can try. and you'll always have us, y/n. any time you want them, i've got wec tickets for you."

"thanks, olli. really."

they drifted into a silence, somewhat easy, somewhat not. olli's hands came up to press against the wall, his face just milimeters from hers. her heart started pounding, anticipation building in her bones.

is this it? is it really happening? is olli caldwell going to kiss me?

and then he leaned in, his lips pressed against hers.

y/n y/l/n had just had her first kiss.

_____

"so let me get this straight, you finally got your first kiss, a boy actually wanted to go out with you, and you're turning him down?"

"well, when you put it like that!" y/n groaned, face in her hands as she slumped back in her desk chair.

it was the week after marcus armstrong's party, the group sitting in the legal department at the mercedes f1 factory in brackley. she had already told the full story, and her face was pinker than a crush cream soda.

"i just don't understand what your train of thought is here, if i'm being honest." george chuckled. "so caldwell kissed you. what's the big deal?"

"because it was my first kiss, george! i've been thinking it over all weekend, and i felt sick to my stomach when olli texted me the morning after." she groaned, running her hands over her face. "you're going to laugh at me when i tell you why."

"i promise you, we aren't going to laugh, y/n." lewis said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "all of what you're feeling is normal."

she sighed. "it didn't feel the way that the books said it was supposed to feel."

"that's your big reasoning? really?" nyck's tinny voice rang through the speaker on mick shumacher's phone. in abu dhabi, the reserve driver had officially been traded to scuderia alphatauri, and by extension, not allowed into brackley to be privy to this conversation. so, naturally, he was facetimed and looped in anyways.

"mick, can you please mute the traitor." y/n groaned, reaching for the german boy's phone before mick laughed and pulled it out of her reach to mute the call himself.

on screen, nyck was still talking.

"i know it sounds stupid, but i've felt sick about it all weekend. what am i supposed to do, guys?"

"i think that your feeling are vaild, first of all." mick began, "and that maybe olli came on too strong."

mick's finger slipped, unmuting the call enough for nyck to shout. "did i not just say that? were you not listening?"

"you have so much time, y/n." lewis said with a small smile. "but i hope you've learned something about yourself from this, yeah? maybe this was the boost of self confidence that you needed?"

she had thought about the kiss all weekend, hoping that she could make it make sense, and that she wasn't overreacting. and it's not like olli had done anything wrong, although french kissing was a little much for the first date, even when it wasn't even a date, and she was trying to convince herself that telling olli she just wanted to be friends was the best call.

and then, digging deeper, she had to ask herself if she was even ready for a relationship. because when the idea was finally breathing down her neck, the idea of olli, and going on a date, and sharing so much of herself with someone else, it scared the shit out of her.

"he put his tongue in my mouth, lewis!" she whined. "god, i sound like a child."

"he what?" a muffled voice called from the other side of her desk, followed up by a thump and frantic whispering.

"what the fuck?" y/n mumbled, getting out of her desk chair and leaning over the glass cubicle wall. "paul?"

with a shit eating grin on his face, paul aron slipped out from underneath the table, kimi antonelli just behind him. while paul didn't look the least bit apologetic, kimi looked like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole.

"i am so sorry, miss. we shouldn't have been listening." the italian boy bowed his head. "but blame paul, it was his idea."

"what, i wanted the office gossip." the estonian boy shrugged. "he french kissed you, and you friendzoned him? that's a little sad."

"paul get out!" y/n snapped. "or i'll call toto and bono!"

the threat of toto wolff was enough to get kimi and paul to dart out of the room faster than the freca cars that they drove. toto didn't know about the kiss, mainly because she knew that he had otmar and laurent on speed dial and would find a way to put the fear of god into oliver caldwell for hurting his intern.

the bond that she had formed with the wolff family wasn't something she would have traded for the world. she found herself calling or texting toto's daughter rosa more often, with the two being of a similar age.

she just hoped that toto liked her enough to keep her around for another season.

"there are plenty of fish in the sea, kiddo." susie wolff added, striding into the office. "and don't worry, i'm not going to tell toto. although, paul and kimi might. take this as a learning experience. and don't take any advice from this lot." she added, whacking george in the back of the head with a file folder.

"why did i feel like that was directed at me?" the man from king's lynn groaned.

"the right boy will come when the time is right. god knows i met toto later in life. and look at us now." susie continued, pulling y/n in for a hug. "come on, we have an investor meeting with monster, and toto wants you there."

"me? he wants me in a meeting with our biggest sponsor?"

lewis laughed. "you need to start giving yourself more credit. you are so loved here, y/n. you have a future in motorsport law, a future here."

mick, lewis and george all exchanged a look, bright smiles on their faces.

"what are you not telling me? is toto keeping me on for next year?"

"we aren't allowed to say anything just yet." george started. "but, i think toto has a soft spot for you."

"put it this way: you'll know before bahrain, and you might want to pack some summer clothes." susie smiled.

Tags:

@magnummagnussen @diorleclerc @daydreamingleclerc @scuderiamh @sidcrosbyspuck @libraryofloveletters

#mercedes amg petronas #lewis hamilton x reader #george russell x reader #mick schumacher x reader #toto wolff #formula 1 x reader #formula one x reader #family are the friends we meet along the way series #olli caldwell x reader #Spotify

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frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe · 1 year

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video stores, shopping malls, and ren faires

remember that post about getting three whole ideas from listening to my soundtrack playlist? uh..yeah, so here's part 1 of 3!

on AO3: video stores, shopping malls, and ren faires | song for this chapter

Working at one of the last remaining Family Video stores in America has its highs and lows.

High: going days without seeing a customer. Low: no idea when the hammer will fall and you’ll be laid off when this branch closes too. High: usually on shift all day by yourself. Low: you’re usually on shift all day by yourself.

(Un?)luckily for Robin, she found herself inundated with four visitors on her shift today.

The first two arrivals were the newest addition to their trauma bonded group (and subject of her best friend’s affections) Eddie Munson, along with his closest non-inducted friend Gareth Emerson.

She glances up at the two as they enter. “Hey, Gareth…what’s up fucker?” she says to each of them in turn.

“Rude.” Eddie says, mock offended, “We go through hell together and all I get is ‘fucker’.” he shakes his head and tsks, leaning his weight on the counter in front of her.

Robin just shrugs, straightening up to stand instead of being hunched over the counter like a shrimp. “That’s how it goes, Munson. Y’all here to rent something, or just bother me?” she asks, rubbing her elbows where they had been pressed to the linoleum countertop.

“Bother you. It’s not like you were busy anyway.”

She acknowledges that with a nonchalant frown and raise of her brow, and hunches back over her twitter feed.

“What’s gonna be the subject of today’s Munson Rant, Emerson?” she asks in his direction.

“Why’d you ask hi–”

“Steve Harrington, what else?” Gareth shrugs, coming around the counter to sit on the spare stool with her.

“Ah, the tried and true favorite.” She nods in understanding. “Let’s hear it then, Munson, what indiscretion has our beloved mother hen done that you’ve latched onto this time?”

Eddie’s quiet, so she looks up from her screen. He’s gaping at the two of them like a fish, eyes darting between her and Gareth.

“Oh! Sorry,” Robin puts her phone face down on the counter and pillows her face on one hand and gesturing for him to continue with her other “You have my full attention.”

Eddie still doesn’t continue, so she turns to Gareth with a sigh, “Care to start us off, Gare-bear?”

“Gladly. This time it was ‘Does he even know what he’s doing when he looks like that?’--don’t ask me what ‘that’ is, I have no clue,” Robin nods along, leaning on her left arm to turn towards Gareth. “Then: ‘Does he know how attractive and unfair he’s being?’ and ‘I can't let myself get suckered in, Gare.’.”

“Oh, you’d love to get suckered in by Steve Harrington.” Robin rolls her head side to look at an incredulous Eddie, waggling her brows.

“What I want and what is theoretically possible are two very different things, Birdie.”

“He speaks!”

“Shut up, Gareth, you two are the worst. I come to you in confidence about my trials and tribulations and all you do is mock me. Mock me!”

“Trials and tribulations..” Robin shakes her head at him. “Two things you wouldn’t be going through if you just admitted your feelings for him!”

“I don’t have feelings for Steve Harrington!”

“Yes you do!” Gareth and Robin both answer.

“I can’t have feelings for that airhead. (“Hey! Take it easy on that poor sweet Dingus!”) I just can’t okay?”

“‘Can’t’ doesn’t mean ‘Don’t’, Eddie.”

“Semantics won’t get you anywhere in this argument, Gare. I do not have feelings for King Steve.”

Robin clenches her jaw at Steve’s old nickname, but stays quiet.

“Here, let me continue for him,” Gareth also seems pissed, “‘Ooh, I’m eddie and I’ve had the hots for Steve sinc—“

“I can’t do it again!”

Robin and Gareth both look over at Eddie at his outburst

“I can’t fall for another straight guy. I don’t have it in me to keep it going, so I’m trying to reverse psychiatry myself into dropping the feelings, okay?”

“…It’s reverse psychology.”

“Semantics, Gare, I thought we already talked about this.” Eddie waves him off, already pacing and chewing on the end of a lock of his hair absentmindedly (‘Ew’, Robin thinks.).

“Look, we all know he’s hot and perfect (“If you say so.” mumbles Gareth); All those damn freckles and moles that are just begging to be kissed, his stupid perfect face with those kind, dreamy eyes, his gorgeous body and hmm that chest hair…” (“Ew..” Robin says, aloud this time.).

He shakes himself out of the thought and continues on. “He loves those kids like they’re his, puts everyone else first to a fault, he pulled me out of literal hell!” He stops his tirade and turns to face her and his friend behind the counter. “I need you to tell me everything you can that he’s ever done that’s gross, or or shitty, just.. anything, Robin, please. I can’t deal with a crush on another unattainable straight man. I won’t survive it. Especially not if it’s Steve Fucking Harrington.”

Robin is quiet, glancing at Gareth briefly before turning her attention back to Eddie. “Sounds like you’re already in love with him Munson.”

“Don’t curse me with that, there’s no way I’m in love with him.” he starts pacing again.

“Uh, yeah way? Did you not just hear yourself? You just went on for like 10 minutes about all the shit you love about Steve!” Gareth points out.

Eddie stops just to blink at him.

“Also, I’m not about to slander my best friend just to make you less horny for him.” Robin cuts back in.

“Not…slander…just—“

“Sorry man, you gotta face facts. You’re head over heels for him.” Gareth cuts him off.

Eddie’s frown deepens. “Nope, no way, I’m not in love with King Steve—

“Stop calling him that you little—“ Robin explodes at him, but takes a breath and continues. “You know damn well he hates that nickname, especially with all the work he’s done to put that part of him behind him.

“And as much as you want to deny it Munson, you are also his friend—or at least he thinks you are—and his friend wouldn’t go around calling him shit he doesn’t like!” She can’t hold back by the last word and shouts it into the empty store.

The other half of her unexpected visitors arrive then.

Robin takes a calming breath at the sound of the jingle above the door, and turns to face her pseudo nephews. Her beloved Dingus’ first-born son, and his youngest, Dustin Henderson and Will Byers.

“Hey kiddos, whatcha need?” Robin checks in first, making sure there’s nothing actually wrong before stepping into her half annoying older sister, half cool uncle role.

“Nothing,” Dustin shrugs, “Just supposed to meet Steve here so he can give us a ride home.” he gestures over his shoulder towards the arcade.

“In that case, welcome to Family Video! We are doing a two for one rental deal right now, your father is bemoaning his feelings about your mother in the corner,” Eddie sputters nonsense at that implication (“Their father?? What the hell, Buckley?!”) but she ignores him and barrels on “and no you can’t have any free candy.”

“Aw man.” Dustin says, at the same time Will asks “Eddie has feelings for Steve?”

Robin and Gareth both groan as Eddie goes back into his rant.

“No! …No matter how good of a guy he might be or how hot he is, that’s just a curse I need to learn to live with if I’m going to stick around you goblins and…”

She has an epiphany then; his almost unhinged levels of ranting about how he very much “does not” have feelings for her best friend reminds her of something. So she pulls out her phone and opens YouTube.

“Hold that thought Munson,” she interrupts him mid-soliloquy about Steve’s arms or chest or something, “You three, you’re all theater kids right? Or musically adjacent?” She addresses Dustin, Will, and Gareth.

“What the hell’s happening right now..” Eddie tries.

“Uh yeah?” Dustin says, confusedly looking at the other two for confirmation, who also nod.

“Okay, back me up on this then.”

Robin starts playing the song over the bluetooth speaker she has behind the counter and immediately the four boys catch on, Eddie groaning in frustration and dropping himself face down on the counter.

‘If there’s a prize for rotten judgment, I guess I've already won that.’

“Sounds like Eddie.” Robin states to nods from the other boys, sans Eddie, who responds with a muffled “Fuck. You.”.

‘No man is worth the aggravation,’

“Steve is!” Will yells over the music, Robin pointing at him in emphasis, and catching Eddie’s expression softening already when he turns his head to smile minutely at Baby Byers.

‘That’s ancient history, been there, done that!’ to which Eddie gestures annoyingly towards the speaker, head still on his elbows.

Robin rolls her eyes at him, but starts singing along with the muses; Gareth, Will, and Dustin catch on quickly, adding onto the tune. “Who d'ya think you’re kidding? He’s the earth and heaven to you, try to keep it hidden…”

“C’mon munson, I know you’ve got some pipes on you!” Robin goads good-naturedly at Eddie.

–

Watching his friends (and his children, apparently) tease him and dance around through his bangs wins him over, and Eddie starts singing along with Meg.

“No chance, no way, I won’t say it, no, no..” he waves his arm out with a shake of his head, standing up from the counter to stalk across the floor.

His friends grin manically, Dustin and Will start over-performing the lyrics as they sing along with the muses, Will catching Dustin in a dramatic swoon. “You swoon, you sigh, why deny it? Uh-Oh!”

“It's too cliche! I won't say I'm in love!”

Eddie lets himself get into singing along; well, half singing, half speaking along to the lyrics as he keeps going, especially with the next set of lyrics hitting a little too close to home.

“I thought my heart had learned its lesson, It feels so good when you start out…My head is screaming, ‘get a grip’, UGH!” he grabs hold of his hair at the root in half-mock frustration. “Unless I’m dying to cry my heart out!”

He bellows out lungfuls of frustration along with Meg’s longer notes as his friends poke holes in his already shaky denial of his feelings in time with the muses.

“You keep on denying who you are and how you're feeling, baby, we're not buying. Hon, we saw ya hit the ceiling!”

Okay, singing long and loud aloud like this is starting to help, actually.

“Face it like a grown-up, when ya gonna own up that ya got, got, got it bad?!” He almost loses it when the four of them do exaggerated jazz hands at him.

“No chance, no way, I won't say it, no, no.” He shakes his head again and turns away from them towards the front window.

Of course, because the universe hates him, Steve arrives just then with Max in the passenger seat, in time for the song and his friends to tease him with the perfectly timed line: “..check the grin, you’re in love!”

Damn, he was actually fucking grinning like an idiot just seeing Steve’s car pull into in the parking lot.

He scrubs the grin off his face with his hands, grabbing onto his hair like a crutch and turning his back to the window.

At this point, he’s fully into the performance. “This scene won't play, I won't say I'm in love!”

“You're doing flips, read our lips, you're in love!”

“You're way off base, I won't say it (“He won’t say it, no)!

“Get off my case, I won't say it!” he spins back around…and what a mistake that was.

His (horrible, traitorous) friends continue on as he watches the scene unfolding in front of him: Steve has carefully unfolded Max’s wheelchair, making sure each part is locked into place, before moving to help her stand and take the couple shaky steps to her seat with a kind, patient smile.

“...It's okay, you're in love…”

Oh.

He has to catch himself on the counter in front of him, knees suddenly weak.

Oh.

“At least out loud, I won't say I'm in love…”

–

“Hey guys, what were you singing? It looked like fun!” Steve asks as soon as Max is inside and over the lip of the doorway.

“Uh, nothing, c’mon Gareth, we’ve got that…thing.” Eddie does a vague grabby motion towards Gareth, who’s coming around the front of the counter. “Cool t’see ya, Stevie, catch you later!”

Eddie basically books it out the door, still held open by the handicap button, with Gareth trailing behind at a normal speed.

“Hey Steve, bye Steve.” he says as he strolls past.

Steve watches them go with gooey affection clear on his face, much to the delight of the gathered peanut gallery.

“You’re so mean to him” Max chides, “That shit was playing so loud even you could hear it from the parking lot.”

“You could!? Oh man, poor Eddie.” Dustin says with a gummy smile.

“Why poor Eddie?” he asks, keeping a straight face.

Dustin’s face falls and he and Will blurt “NOTHING.” and “NO REASON.” at the same time.

He lets them sweat for a bit, but Robin’s not-so-subtly-hidden laughter gets the best of him.

“Why are you laughing? Steve do you…do you already know?” Dustin asks, worried.

Steve shrugs, “I've had my suspicions, but I want him to get there himself first before I fully put the moves on him.”

“Put—put the moves?? You like Eddie??”

“No.”

“Steve what the hell, that’s super shit—”

“I've basically been in love with him since my scoops era.”

The silence is somewhat expected, only Robin knows he’s bi officially, but there had to have been some hints or signs that they’ve picked up on right? Steve really hopes this doesn’t turn into losing any of them.

“…In love?” Will’s voice is quiet.

“Scoops era?” Max and Robin ask in unison.

Steve silently breathes a sigh of relief. “Yeah, back before the fire? Dusty, you were there, remember?”

It takes him a second, but sure enough: “Oh shit!!”

Part 2 here!

okay confession, this is fully self-indulgent. all the way down to the fake st gang twitter feed because they always make me die laughin

also, yes, the title is a spoiler for where the other two chapters will be set

hope you enjoyed this brainrot!

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ugotnojamzzz · 1 month

Text

Mistake Prequel Pt.1

California

Word Count: 2.3k

Pairing: ex!Jungkook x Reader

Genre: kind of Angst, Hurt, ex!Jungkook

Synopsis: idk at this point, sorry. But here’s the jest of it: Y/N, a very successful singer-songwriter was close friends with the members of BTS for several years. She had a relationship with Jungkook that ended painfully. Now they’re stuck trying to navigate the whole exes-to-friends dance, and somebody is bound to get their toes squashed.

Disclaimer: English isn’t my native language, so I apologize in advance for mistakes and awkward wordings to come.

Chapter soundtrack: California – Lana Del Rey

(By the way, for every ‘Chapter Soundtrack’, basically the idea is that it’s a song that YN eventually wrote with that chapter of her life in mind)

Oh, I'll pick you up, If you come back to America, just hit me up. 'Cause this is crazy love, I'll catch you on the flip side. If you come back to California, you should just hit me up.

________________

YN sat on the sandy shore, her satin robe gently swaying in the breeze as she stared out at the endless expanse of the ocean before her. She was on the set of a fellow artist's music video shoot, patiently waiting for her turn to be on camera.

The rhythmic crash of the waves provided a soothing backdrop to her contemplations. In her hand, she held a Berlin postcard, its surface adorned with her friends' familiar scrawl.

A faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she traced the words with her fingertips, savoring the sense of connection it brought. It had been ages since she'd received one of those.

With a soft exhale, she reached into her purse and retrieved her phone, fingers deftly navigating to dial a familiar number. As the call connected, she brought the device to her ear, anticipation fluttering in her chest.

“Well, well, well,” Jimin’s voice echoed, “to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Hello to you too,” she smiled, “am I interrupting?”

“Not in the slightest” he replied, “we just got back to the hotel.”

“Shit-” she muttered, running a hand through her hair in frustration. Time difference, you idiot. “You must be drained. I can call at another time if y-”

“And wait another two months for a phone call?” her friend interrupted, his laughter cutting through her concerns. “Not a chance.”

There was a beat of silence. She knew she should’ve reached out earlier.

"I got your postcard," she finally said, her tone warm. "How did you even get my new address, Jimin-ssi?"

"You know I don’t kiss and tell," he teased, his voice tinged with amusement. “Why? Don’t fancy mail anymore?

"Oh, you know, I can never be too careful,” she quipped, a playful smirk tugging at her lips, “so many stalkers out there."

"Guess that means you found the strand of pubes I slipped in there," Jimin joked.

"Gross," she groaned, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

“Eh, you love it” he replied without missing a beat.

“So, how is Europe treating you?" YN asked.

"Well, we’re in Stockholm right now, you know how it is," he replied, a hint of amusement in his voice, “people are very… tall and morally upstanding."

"And how is everyone doing?" she inquired nonchalantly, though her curiosity lingered beneath the surface.

"Good," he replied, but there was a moment of hesitation before he continued, "Jungkookie’s doing okay, I guess." YN almost sighed in relief, grateful that Jimin had spared her the need to ask.

"You guess?" she pressed, sensing his uncertainty.

“Was Hobi unavailable today?” he asked.

YN winced. She had been found out. She usually talked to Hoseok about Jungkook stuff. Of course she did, Hobi was one of her closest friends. Only, after a while, he had called her out on her shit and told her that she should have the balls to ask for news herself. You do know you won’t be friends again if you don’t try and talk to each other from time to time, right? She'd been pretty much in the dark ever since.

A heavy silence lingered between them before the boy broke it, "You saw the articles, didn’t you?"

YN didn’t reply, but her silence spoke volumes. There had been a bunch of articles in the press lately, and a lot of fans on social media expressing concern over the looks and demeanor of BTS’s maknae.

“Well, you know,” Jimin continued, his tone reassuring, “he has been a little more off than usual. Then again, it’s hard to know if it’s the touring schedule that’s getting to him.”

She sighed inwardly, wishing she’d had the courage to pick up the phone and dial Jungkook's number. She had wanted to reach out so many times but was always held back.

Just then, a commotion erupted in the background, the distant sound of voices and laughter coming through in indistinct snippets.

"Hey, I got YN on the phone over here," Jimin declared to whoever was there. YN's heart skipped a beat as she realized that other members had joined, their boisterous greetings suddenly echoing through the phone.

“YN, I HAVE A NEW VIKING HELMET TO SHOW YOU!” Tae, of course.

“Tae stole my helmet after he lost his, actually.” And there was Joonie.

Suddenly, a voice, rough around the edges yet achingly familiar pierced through the chaotic backdrop of their conversation.

"Hi, superstar."

Her breath caught in her throat at the sound.

"Hey, Jungkook," she replied softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

She heard the click of a door on the other end of the line and quiet finally returned. They were alone. "So, what's the occasion?” Jungkook asked casually, “Don’t tell me you’re missing us already."

Her lips curved into a wistful smile at his playful tone, "Oh, you know, just wondering when I’ll get to see your faces again," she replied, "if you ever come back to America, that is."

His laughter echoed through the phone, a comforting sound that washed over her like a soothing balm. "Yeah, who knows when that’ll happen," he admitted, the weariness of their never-ending tour evident in his tone. "Don’t worry, though," he added, "your favorite band will probably play the city of angels soon enough."

A grin tugged at her lips as she teased, "Are the Beatles planning a reunion?"

Jungkook's laughter filled the air once more. "Oh, come on," he chuckled. "And then they wonder why we’re taking the long way home," he mumbled, his words laced with mock-offence. In that moment, as their laughter mingled, she felt a sense of peace wash over her.

"For real though," she said, her smile softening as she spoke, "you should come by sometime.”

"Meh,” he shrugged, his tone nonchalant, “California weather isn’t really my cup of tea."

Of course, she thought with a hint of amusement. He never liked the dry heat. Always complained about it. The boys used to joke that it was the Busan in him. You can take the man out of the city, but not the city out of the man, right?

Still, YN wasn’t discouraged. They'd always found a way to make the best of it before. They could do whatever they'd want. They could hit up all the old places, reminisce about the good times. Maybe throw a rager of a party, get his favorite liquor off the top shelf and dance 'til dawn. Like old times. LA had many flaws, but it had always been a great time touring there with the boys.

"Come on," she insisted, her voice gentle yet persuasive. "I’ll even pick you guys up from the airport."

"Princess treatment, huh?" he teased, "Tempting."

There was a beat of silence. This was her shot.

"So," she said softly, her voice betraying a hint of apprehension. "Everything's alright with you?"

“Didn’t get the dirt from Hobi, huh?” he taunted.

“Answer the question, punk,” she replied gently.

"Yeah, yeah,” he replied, his tone casual and breezy, “everything's been great."

YN played with the sand absentmindedly. She wished she could tell him that he didn't have to act all strong and cool with her all the time. She wished she could only reassure him that she would always think the world of him, always see him as the brightest of the brightest stars. No matter what.

But instead, she remained silent, her words trapped within the confines of her mind.

"What about you?" Jungkook's voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

Caught off guard by the sudden shift in focus, she found herself faced with yet another dilemma. There was plenty new with her. Too much, perhaps. Or too much for small talk over the phone, at least.

"Well, you know,” she replied with a forced nonchalance, “same old, same old."

“Oh," he paused, "okay.”

She winced at his noticeable disappointment, knowing she was keeping him at arm's length, too. On top of being a coward she was a hypocrite.

"Hey,” she interjected, changing the topic in an attempt to lighten the mood, “guess where I am right now."

"Oh, I’m not falling for that one" he chuckled, his amusement evident even through the phone. She once had a habit of ending up in the most unexpected of places, much to the group’s amusement and occasional frustration.

"It's nothing like that, Jeon," she reassured him, a small smile playing on her lips as she thought back to their past adventures.

"Well, go on then," he urged, curiosity piqued.

“That little beach in Santa Monica,” she revealed, waiting for his reaction.

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, and she couldn't help but wonder if he remembered. After all, there had been many beaches over the years, and the beach bars hadn't exactly helped them keep track of them all.

"The one right across from Jack’s," she added, hoping to jog his memory.

“Aw shit,” Jungkook blurted out, “the one where Tae-?”

“That’s the one,” she confirmed with a chuckle.

Yeah, it had been quite a night for them. A soft smile played on her lips as memories flooded back with vivid clarity. Drinking and dancing on the beach, the salt on her skin, and the pink cocktail umbrellas in her hair.

Jungkook had drunkenly written out a love declaration on the wet sand, to which she had responded with a nauseous heave, both from how horribly cheesy the gesture was and from the alcohol churning in her stomach.

Only it was Taehyung who had ended up bearing the brunt of their drunken escapade, his stomach unable to handle the excesses of the night. She remembered the sight of him retching into the sand, the clear water tainted with vibrant hues of Tequila Sunrise.

“Any remains?” Jungkook asked, his tone light but tinged with curiosity. She found herself wondering whether he was referring to the remnants of Tae's unfortunate mishap or to his own words carved in the sand. She shook off the thought.

“No,” she shook her head, “seems the tide took care of it.”

“Lucky for us,” he remarked.

“Yep,” she echoed, “lucky for us.”

There was a brief moment of silence between them.

“So, are you taking a day off to call old friends while you work on your tan?” Jungkook inquired, breaking the silence.

“Uh, well- not really,” YN replied, her voice faltering slightly. “I’m here for, uh, it’s- like- like a work thing.”

“Oh shit,” he began, “well, I don’t want to hold you up-”

“No, no, it’s fine,” she interjected quickly, not wanting to end the conversation just yet, “I’ve got plenty of tim-”

"Y/N, time for your closeup!" a booming voice interrupted her, and YN's head snapped to the side to see the director in the distance, holding a megaphone.

"…You were saying?" she could practically hear Jungkook's smirk, and he could practically see her eyeroll.

"Okay," she mumbled reluctantly. "Rain check?"

"For sure," he agreed, "you haven’t even gotten to tell me what’s new with you."

"Right," she said, waving to the filming crew to signal she’d be there in a moment.

There was another moment of silence. They’d never been any good at saying goodbye.

"I meant it, by the way," she said suddenly, her voice filled with sincerity.

"Huh?" Jungkook replied.

"If you come back to California, you should hit me up," she reiterated.

She heard him sigh gently. "Alright,” he said, his tone soft and warm. “I’ll catch you on the flip side, superstar."

"Catch you on the flip side, playboy," she replied, a bittersweet smile tugging at her lips as she hung up the phone.

She got up, brushing the sand off her robe as she made her way towards the set.

As she approached, her heart skipped a beat when she saw pretty-boy hopping towards her, his sparkling green eyes lighting up at the sight of her.

"There you are, love!" he exclaimed, sweeping her off her feet and spinning her around in a whirl of excitement.

"There I am," she replied with a smile, her heart fluttering at the warmth of his embrace.

"Thanks again” he said, “for doing this, I mean," he continued with a radiant smile.

"Are you kidding? You couldn’t keep me away if you tried," she beamed. “And you’re not shooting my face, anyway, right? So, it’s not like anybody will recognize me," she added with a playful wink, slipping off her robe to reveal her bikini and handing it to one of the stylists.

He eyed her with a gentle grin, admiration evident in his gaze."Alright, I'll swing by craft service, and I'll be right back. You do your thing, love," he said, his voice filled with warmth and affection. "I trust you." With a final smile, he headed off, leaving her to prepare for the shoot ahead.

She was quickly ushered to the filming spot, where she was briefed on the various angles the director had in mind as the stylists worked on final touch-ups.

"Not a bad day to be Y/N, huh?" a makeup artist declared with a knowing grin.

Caught off guard by the comment, YN hummed inquisitively, "Uh?"

"Well, it's not every day your boyfriend writes a hit song about you," the makeup artist elaborated with a wink.

“Oh,” YN nodded, "right."

As she looked to the horizon, her mind involuntarily drifted to the countless songs another boy had written and sang about her, what felt like ages ago. Most of them had never seen the light of day, let alone the inside of a recording studio; destined to remain tucked away tenderly in the corners of her memory, along with images of messy sheets and late-night drives. But that soft, gentle voice echoed in her mind, still.

“Totally,” she added with a polite smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

After a moment, the styling team scattered. The music started playing and the cameras finally began to roll.

“Tastes like strawberries, on a summer evening…”

___________

Guess who’s baaaaack???? Hope you all liked it! Please interact lol, I am desperate for any reaction at all. Help a girl out, army. Xxx

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the-whispers-of-death · 1 month

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i need stone with a dilf. just a rich ass old man

Well, technically Stone is with the Older!Neighbor in one of the AUs (I hc all of my Reader drabbles, OC & 141 ones, as alternate universes so that they can all function without overlapping with each other 'cause we want to see the OCs with multiple different pairings) but that Reader isn't rich or a DILF.

I can't see Stone with someone who is rich, simply because that man is very minimalistic and tech-averse. The man doesn't have a TV or a phone because he wants to stay technology-free as much as he can while being a soldier. He drives a beat-up Jeep because it works (still don't know how, considering he rarely uses it) and he doesn't see the need to get any of the newer models. The only thing rich!Reader would be able to give him are astrology books, medical books, and vinyl records of Bollywood movie soundtracks.

That being said, DILF!Reader could totally be a thing. Stone is cold and stoic when you first meet him, so he probably shouldn't meet your kid(s) until after he's warmed up to you, but he is step-father material. I mean, he's blunt which might make the younger kids cry, but he'll play with them. He doesn't care if he has to sit in a chair meant for children to have a tea party with them, he'll do it if they ask.

I can totally see him buying a ton of parenting books because God knows he did not have the best parents and thus no good parenting examples to reference. He'll try his best though and will listen to your advice. And he's so gentle with the kids, holding them tight but not too tight, just enough for his hold on them to be secure.

Fun fact, there was a version of Stone in my head who had gotten pregnant when he was sixteen (it's a whole thing) and had a daughter who was the only one who saw his soft side. He gives girl dad vibes.

Please ask me more about Stone and his daughter, I have so much to say.

#call of duty #cod mw2 #cod mwii #call of duty modern warfare 2 #cod #task force 141 #task force 141 oc #call of duty oc #cod oc #task force 141 oc: stone #call of duty oc: stone #cod oc: stone #tyler's asks #Tyler answers asks

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caraetdeul · 11 months

Text

Sweet Nothings from your Lips

Lee Jihoon x reader

Sweet Nothings: A phrase meaning words of affection exchanged between lovers.

You know you truly love someone when every single word that comes out of their mouth is a sweet nothing to you.

A/N: another drabble for my carat readers! This is just pure fluff and hopefully you all enjoy it as much as I did writing it. Thank you and happy reading caratdeuls! 🫶

~Main Masterlist~

It was a quiet day. No emails, no phone calls, nothing. But even then, Jihoon was still ever the busy bee. He's the type of person that when he starts something, he will be too focused on perfecting it to notice anything else. This also includes forgetting to eat, sleep, and occasionally, take a bath. So it wasn't a shock for you when he didn't immediately reply to your texts in an attempt to check up on him, only finding him in his studio, hunched over his desk, working.

You heard about this new project of his about three days ago when he took you out on a coffee date. It was something about a movie's official soundtrack that he was paid to produce. He usually tells you about the projects he works on at the moment in order to let you know what to expect of him in the next few days. He doesn't want any arguments between the two of you to stem from his workaholic tendencies so he tries to be transparent to you as much as he possibly can. And because of this, it only made you love him even more.

You slowly entered the room as quietly as possible, hugging the plastic containing your take out food, trying not to disturb him. Closing the door to his studio, you placed the food on the small table near the sofa. You then slowly walked to where Jihoon is. Noticing how focused he was on whatever he was working on, you slowly wrapped your arms around him from behind as to not startle him.

"Hi love." You said softly, kissing him on the cheek. You felt him relax under you, all of the stress and tension in his body melting away from your touch. He turned his head to look at you before saying hi as well.

"What are you doing here?" Jihoon asked, still admiring you from the side.

"I just wanted to see you."

"Don't you have anything else to do that's more important?"

"Nothing is more important to me than being with you, Jihoon."

He would've fallen off his chair if you weren't hugging him at the moment. Even after 2 years of being in a relationship with you, he still can't believe how he got to be with someone as amazing as you. You complimented him in so many ways that he wasn't even sure if you were a real human being.

You weren't really paying attention when you said that to him. It was more of an "isn't it obvious" kind of statement for you so you didn't think much of it. It was only a few minutes after you didn't hear any reply from Jihoon that you stopped trying to comprehend what he was doing on his computer and focused on him. What you didn't expect to see was him looking at you as if you were the reason why this whole world began in the first place. You blushed as you looked away, trying to distract yourself from how intense his gaze on you was. You cleared your throat for a bit which then snapped Jihoon from his dazed state.

"So I know you haven't eaten anything since our breakfast together and that's why I brought you your favorite." It was only then that he noticed the smell of food wafting from the plastic on his table by the sofa. He watched as you unlatched from him and walked towards it, preparing the food you brought on the table.

"Come on, Jimmy. You need to eat." He smiled at the nickname as he took off his headphones and stood up from his chair. Jimmy was a nickname you gave him after learning about his work. In your own words, he was "such a genius that he should be named Jimmy Neutron instead. And look at that! You both have the same first syllable!".

He took the chopsticks and bowl of rice from your outstretched hands before sitting down right beside you on the sofa. You then started talking about your day as he listened attentively while eating. You were always in this small bubble of yours whenever you were talking enthusiastically about something. So each time you talk, Jihoon will always give you his undivided attention. And as someone that has been told before how much of a bother you were for being so talkative, his efforts didn't go unnoticed at all.

And so the night went on like that. You, munching your food while talking his ear out and him, listening to your voice like it was the best melody he has ever heard.

Taglist: @moonwonuu @belladaises

#caraetdeul.blr #seventeen #seventeen au #seventeen fluff #seventeen x reader #seventeen x you #seventeen x y/n #lee jihoon #lee jihoon x reader #lee jihoon x you #seventeen woozi #woozi x reader #woozi x you #woozi fluff

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heathersproship · 3 months

Text

I WENT AND SAW MEAN GIRLS YESTERDAY

Went in with low expectations, but hoping to like it. Listened to some of the soundtrack a few days ago and wasn’t exactly impressed. But I didn’t blame the rearrangements—not entirely. Some of it was questionable, but maybe it’d be like with NPMD where I’d like it more when I had the visuals to go with it (I vastly prefer The Summoning live, and also High School is Killing Me, rather than the studio audio). And for the most part, I was right! I had a nice time.

See below the cut for my thoughts on the songs, other details, and some Janis analysis.

First Things First

We started off strong with the garage setup and Cautionary Tale. The vertical screen on a horizontal one doesn’t bother me, so I love the whole bit with the phone, and Janis plays guitar!

What Ifs was a song I didn’t listen to beforehand, and I understood most of it til Cady got to school. Then I had no idea what she was saying, either because the music was too loud or she was singing too softly, or both.

Meet the Plastics (though really it’s just Meet Regina) was good. Loved the lights flickering and Regina’s hypnotic voice like a siren luring the unsuspecting Cady in. Or an anglerfish.

Stupid With Love was actually not that bad... in the first half. Once we were out of the classroom, it fell off for me. I suppose they were going for a dreamy walking-on-air cloud nine “too in your own little world to notice the world around you” vibe, especially at the very end, but Angourie’s soft vocals didn’t do it for me. I expected a burst of energy since they’re outside and have the freedom to move and be loud with it.

Apex Predator was beautiful visually. Musically, I’m still not sure what to make of Damian singing Cady’s lines when they were about Janis. It’s strange. Couldn’t even have her think them? Record Angourie in a booth to get a feel for how big she can go, play it over a few shots of Cady’s face or the scene in front of them, Cady looking at Janis as she secretly compares Janis and Regina while Janis and Damian are warning her about Regina? No?

The build-up to What’s Wrong With Me was good—love the usage of the music box—though the song itself was a bit awkward. It’s sad all the same though, and that’s the point.

Sexy was good. Blink and you’ll miss the Easter egg.

Someone Gets Hurt was visually stunning. My one gripe is that Aaron has ONE line. Just one. And he doesn’t even sing it because the actor just doesn’t sing (did they hire him for his looks? The fact that he was in TSITP, which I haven’t seen? Why hire someone who doesn’t/can’t sing... for a musical??). Couldn’t they get someone to dub him? It’s just one line. Was that too much to ask? Disguise Damian’s voice if you have to. Giving it to Regina was certainly a choice they made.

Revenge Party was a fucking banger. It’s so fun and hella camp, and I love that they reinstated one of the OG verses (two if you recognize the piñata line from another verse). Also like how the “yes, bitch!” line was also back, unlike in the Broadway recording, though I don’t think that exchange needed to happen twice. I love Janis just loudly popping up with “And ugly crying!” during the bit with the sprinklers like girl shut up you’ll blow your cover! But then there was also that weirdass decision to have it go handheld when Cady goes to get the candy cane. Did not like that, what the hell was that?

Damian singing the iCarly theme in French lmao okay sure.

Someone Gets Hurt Reprise was just as good as the original, I love it. My only nitpick is the wording. “Obsessed” rather than “in love with” though that might have something to do with the doll.

World Burn was epic. Except... okay. Regina waltzed right into school with the Burn Book in hand. What if someone saw her? And then her just deliberately dropping and leaving it on the floor. And people really walked past it before someone finally picked it up? Really? The payoff is excellent, just the setup was... questionable.

Now that I’ve seen it, I definitely like this version of I’d Rather Be Me a lot more than I did before. Especially how it ends. (Though Barrett is still bae.) There’s possibly an allusion to the music video with the running in the halls and going about the school. But my God, Auli’i fucking did that! And again, very glad they kept the curse in the OST.

If that was a reprise of Stupid with Love... here’s an idea: just stop. The horse is already dead.

I See Stars was? Fine? Tbh I don’t really remember it. Probably because the girl who doesn’t go there takes over halfway though. Way to pull your weight, Cady. Angourie did well for some things, but singing really isn’t her strong suit. Again, why hire actors who don’t have the range for a musical?

Other things:

I love that Janis does embroidery here. It just fits.

Did not like the sanitization. How can this be Mean Girls without one mention of “social suicide”? You can keep the bouncing boobs thing and blatantly asking if Cady wants to have sex with Jason, but the band geeks are “corny-horny” and not “sexually active”?

Heyy Ashley Park!

Cady scaring the shit out of Janis and Damian will never not be funny. They were even watching the same scene of the same movie!

I was really hoping to get a flashback of Regina and Janis, with Janis actually burning the doll, rather than Damian acting it out with the toys. Or at the very least, a shot of Regina’s backpack on fire (that would’ve been a great teaser image). So we can get an idea of what Janis was like before, if she went along with the fashion rules like “pink on Wednesdays” or if she was always a little off-beat and Regina pushed her further into it. Maybe even see if she was the queen bee as some people believe was the case back in the day.

Love the bit with music people in the tree and Janis telling them to stop lmao. I love when they do things like that.

Analysis:

So one of the main differences between this Janis and her predecessors is that once this Janis gets to a certain point, she’s satisfied and actually wants to stop so she and her friends can just enjoy their time together rather than asking Cady to take a single night off before, presumably, letting it go on longer. This makes the party betrayal hurt worse when Cady says she wants one more lunch with the Plastics, as it looks like she made the active choice to trade up rather than just forgetting about Janis and Damian in her attempt to ensnare Aaron. Janis’ satisfaction also makes her singing IRBM more justified than in the musical because the movie took away a crucial aspect of her character which made her a Mean Girl to begin with: her anger.

This iteration of Janis just doesn’t have the same level of pure rage that drives her the way Regina does—rage which made them two sides of the same coin—because in this version, Janis is actually gay. The whole conflict in the original was Regina labeling Janis as something she wasn’t, and 2004 being a more homophobic time in history was how it was able to fly. In the 2018 musical, when that was no longer the case, they had to add in another layer with Regina pretending the issue was that Janis couldn’t accept she wasn’t one of the six people invited to her birthday party, before revealing the real issue was the same as the first: Regina pushing a label onto Janis (though Barrett says she played Janis as a lesbian, this was not explicitly confirmed nor acknowledged within the show itself, and is therefore no more canon than Regina being queer because Renee Rapp says so, closeted or not). With Janis being canonically queer here, this takes all the power out of Regina labeling her a lesbian in the first place because yes, yes she is, and? Rather than the problem being about the label, now the problem became Janis’ reaction to the bullying that ensued.

While she had to leave school due to how bad the bullying was in all versions previously (frozen out in the original—according to Regina she dropped out; and having “space dyke” Sharpied on her locker in the musical—according to Damian her parents pulled her out) this is the only time we know of where she retaliated. By burning the plush (and also Regina’s backpack) with a Bunsen burner. Her own actions resulted in her getting kicked out rather than being forced out by circumstances beyond her control, and the choice to do it this way shows that a) while what happened to her was more insidious, she’s also slightly less of a victim than her predecessors, and b) she knows better than anyone actions have consequences—a line of dialogue explicitly absent in the movie’s opening number. She was content to stop where they were at, quit while they’re ahead, because her desire for revenge was satiated and she was ready to move on. Have lunch with Cady and hang out like they always meant to. She’s no longer a Mean Girl. While there was an injustice done upon her, she’s not so scarred by it she’s letting her rage get the better of her to the point it spirals out of control. She was ready and willing to stop. But Cady wasn’t.

And I don’t know how to feel about that.

I think that’s it.

#Mean Girls #Mean Girls 2024 #Janis 'Imi'ike #Janis Ian #Janis Sarkisian #Regina George #Cady Heron

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bikinikillarchives · 6 months

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youtube

Kathleen Hanna featured on the track "Heartbeat" on Mike Watt's 1995 debut album, “Ball-Hog or Tugboat?". Starts at 2:19.

"Hello! Mr. Watt. This is Kathleen Hanna returning your phone call, 'bout 3:45, on Monday, and it's about that fuckin' record that you asked me to do something for. And I guess I'm responding to that now 'cuz I have a few minutes and I just wanted to tell you...uh, I have a friend who was raped by, fucked by, whatever you fuckin' wanna call it by a guy on your record, gonna be on your record; he's a big rockstar! Yeah, when he was 27 and she was 13 he was a big rockstar too. And uh, I don't know if the phrase, "power imbalance" means anything to you. But uh, I'm just not so sure I wanna be included in your little white rock boy fuckin' hall of shame here, you know? And I'm just like, "do I wanna be sandwiched in between some of these guys that are just doing the whole, like, big-white-baby-with-an-ego-problem thing?" I mean, [sigh] get over it! It's so boring. It's like, a lot of these guys should just fuckin' quit music and become lifeguards at like Wild Waves or some shit, so they can just like get their fucking, you know, anger management thing going, they can just get their power trips out on the kids, they can just do the whole thing. Maybe they'd be actually saving someone's life; "hey! Don't run by the pool. No cutoffs." You know? That's what I hear when I hear some of this, you know, music by a lot of these fuckin' guys, you know? And I mean, I guess what I'm saying is, "I'm just too cool. To be on your fuckin' record." You know? It's like, I really don't wanna perpetuate or be included in a thing where it's just a bunch of like, I don't know, just like this new- the music coming out by guys right now in the sort of like rock world or alternative rock world or used-to-be-punk world or whatever. It's like the whole, "I'm a straight, white, middle class, male, rockstar guy, but I'm so fuckin' oppressed. I'm a loser baby why don't you kill me." [Sigh] Yawn. Like super fuckin' yawn. So yeah, I guess what I'm saying is: No. No. No. No, I'm not interested. No, I don't wanna be on your fuckin' record. No. But, um. Mr. Watt. Dude. Babe. Sir. Uh, you need to get me my fuckin' Annie soundtrack back like soon 'cuz you've had it forever and I know you haven't even fuckin' listened to it yet. So just like, gimme a call and tell me when that's going to happen. And, um. I'll talk to you then. Bye."

info from Addict.com under cut.

ATN: How about "Heartbeat" [the answering-machine message from Hanna on Mike Watt's 1995 album, Ball-Hog Or Tugboat?, during which Hanna says she's declining to appear on the record because an alleged rapist is also on it]?

KH: Yeah, that's different.

ATN: Now he called you up and asked you to do the actual song that your message is tacked onto?

KH: He didn't ask me to do a song. He didn't even ask me to do anything. I forced my way onto that record. OK, I'm going to tell you the truth. You caught me in an honest mood, 'cause usually I lie. That's really bad. I'm probably going to hang up the phone and have a total seizure, a panic attack. I'll be going, "Oh my God, I told the truth to someone." I met Mike Watt, I don't even remember where. And he was telling me about his album. And I said, "It sounds like there's only one woman on this whole record, and there's, like, 300 guys." I was like, "What's the problem?" And he was like, "Do you wanna do it?" He didn't even know me. I don't even know if he knew I was in a band. And I said, "Yeah." Then I walked away, and I was visiting New York City and staying in a friend's apartment. I just spent an hour thinking about what I would want to do. The whole idea was that I didn't want to be on the record, and I kind-of said I wanted to be on the record to be annoying. And then I was like, "Uh-oh, I kind-of said I would do this." I don't think he gave a shit whether I did it or not. He just was like, "Whatever, you can do it." He's a pretty nice guy, a pretty funny guy, a pretty smart guy. Then I was like, what do I wanna do? And I was like, Oh my God, do I really want to be on a record with fuckin' Henry Rollins at this stage of the game? I mean, I love Black Flag, but c'mon. And I was like, this is really weird company to be keeping. I was like, "I don't want be on it, but I do want to be on it," so I decided to record that ambivalence. The way I figured I could do that was to record me rejecting being on the record. So it's this whole thing of recording my absence. Or recording the absence of resistance. That was my idea, to have a record of absence on the record. It also made it an interesting thing because of the idea of authorship and ownership. People didn't know if I really had left that message on the machine, and then he just put it on without my permission. Or if I left the message on his machine hoping it would go on. The thing is, there was no machine, it was just a recording. He never really had my Annie record. I made that whole thing up, I barely even know him. It's just art.

ATN: It's perfect. It's almost Andy Kaufman-like. I have written down here to ask you if Watt asked for your permission.

KH: Yeah, he did. It was a specific art piece, and I can say it now because everyone's forgotten about it. Actually my friend from junior high heard it on the radio. I was like, "Oh my god." She's like, "You sound like such a freak, what's wrong with you?"

from Mike in 2020: "This song [Heartbeat] was going to be an instrumental. But it was like 45 guys on the record and I thought, “man, I gotta have more women on this”. So I got Carla. Petra and her sisters did some singing, played some violin… I asked Tifanny, a friend of J. Mascis, if she would sing. Actually, this song is made up of a Dos song, and a song I’ve written for the Minutemen, I put them up together. Anyway, the one person who asked to be part of this project was Kathleen Hanna. So, on this song, Tifanny sings the words that I wrote, and the words that Kathleen Hanna, I guess, recited, those are her words. I was in New York City, and I was already down with the studio. Thurston was with us. And he said: “You know what, we can use my answering machine, from the studio”. So, he had Kathleen call him up and leave the message you can hear in the song. So, that’s the recording. It’s not a real message, she makes up this… Some of that stuff is very real, but some of that is made up, for sure. That’s the way Kathleen is, she mixes up things together, but the impression you get by listening to that, is like she doesn’t want to be on the record. But that’s the complete opposite of the reality, she wanted to be on the record, she asked me to. But that’s what you can do with records, you can mess up with reality. I have been asked a lot about that. That’s the story. Kathleen wanted to be on the record, she was. You know, her husband’s on there. Ad-Rock. They’ve been married 26 years, she told me that I had something to do with it. But come on, I was just trying to make a record. The same thing happened to Nels Cline and Yuka Honda. I made a record, you know, usually when I make projects, people don’t marry each other, but sometimes it happens. (laughs)"

#kathleen hanna #1995 #mike watt #rape ment.

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elisysd · 7 months

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14. It could be so sweet, if only I were naive

Masterlist - Previously - Next

Chapter soundtrack: Envy the Leaves - Madison Beer

Ethan was brooding and in a foul mood as he was about to board his plane for Singapore. He didn’t know why or more like he knew but didn’t want to admit it. Julia was giving him the silent treatment ever since that fateful karting day and he didn’t understand what he could have done wrong to deserve it. She had not replied when he had sent her that picture, she had opened it and seen it but left him without a reply. Not that he wanted one, but still, a thank you was not too much too ask. And it came at the worst moment, right when they were supposed to soft-launch their relationship. He had to resist the urge to go to her place to see her, more than once, but refrained himself when he thought about what he would tell her.

So he was in a bad mood, something that Ludwig quickly noticed when Ethan arrived in the airport, dragging his suitcase behind him, with more violence than necessary.

“Did you eat a mean cookie to be this violent with this poor suitcase that didn’t ask for it?”

“I’m fine.”

“Clearly. Should we buy another suitcase just in case this one doesn’t survive the flight?”

“No use. I’m fine.”

“Sure, you are.”

“I said, I’m fine. Don’t insist!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Never said you were not.”

“Julia is ignoring me.”

“Oh, so here we are. You miss your little girlfriend, isn’t it cute? Never though I would see this day, but there is a first time to everything.”

“She is not my girlfriend!” said Ethan making the whole queue waiting at the security looking at them.

“Sure, fake girlfriend if you want to get into technicalities. So what happened?” he asked, a half-smile on his face.

“That’s the thing, I don’t know. We were fine, I thought we were on the right path to become good friends and then she decided to distance herself without any explanations. I hate her sometimes.”

“What did you do?”

“Why would it be my fault?”

“Because you are you. You are a problem in itself Ethan.”

“Jeez, thank you for the vote of confidence, mate, I appreciate it.”

They were briefly separated as they were getting through the security controls and met a few minutes after at the gate. Kyle was already there, clearly waiting for them, a book in his hands. He was wearing glasses, something new that took aback both Ludwig and Ethan.

“Since when are you wearing glasses?” asked his teammate.

“I had an appointment with the doctor, my sight is not so good since a few weeks so now I have to wear them to see if it makes everything a little better.”

“Okay, grandpa.”

“Mind you, Romy find me really sexy when I wear them. She loves them.”

“Yeah, no, too much information that I don’t want to know.”

Ethan abandoned them for a while, he didn’t want to hear all about how Kyle and Romy were more or less an item. Or about how Kyle was happy. Or questions about Julia. He opened his social media and as if fate had decided to play with him, the first thing he saw was a story from Martin where Julia was appearing in the background, smiling to the cameras. A wave of anger washed over him. He knew she was always travelling with her dad, so it shouldn’t have surprised him to see her there. But for a reason that he couldn’t pinpoint, Martin being in the picture, quite literally, bothered him. He put his phone back in his pocket with rage and went back to his friends, plopping down beside Kyle with a sigh.

“No news of the girlfriend?” Ludwig teased him.

“What do you guys know about Martin?” asked Ethan, ignoring his friend.

“Well… not much. I mean, not more than what you know.”

“He is a pretty laid back dude, really nice. But he is pretty discreet. Doesn’t talk much. “ replied Kyle.

“Does he have a girlfriend?”

“Oh… I see now. You are jealous. You are scared of him going to your Julia.” said Ludwig.

“She is not my Julia, first of all. And second of all, I’m not scared. Why would I be? He is not that good looking and not that good of a driver.”

“Well the girls comments under his Instagram posts say a whole other story….”

“Shut up, for fuck’s sake, Lud.”

Ludwig looked at Kyle in hope to find an ally but was welcomed by a shrug. They were used to Ethan’s mood swings by now. The plane ride was uncomfortable as hell, between Ethan’s groans whenever Ludwig was mentioning Julia and Kyle trying his best to keep his best friends in check. To make it even better they even went through turbulence one hour before landing in Singapore and it’s therefore completely drained that they finally arrived. Ethan couldn’t wait for a shower and to sleep. He wanted to be alone with his thoughts. He loved his friends to death but sometimes they were too much. Especially Ludwig.

So as soon as he retrieved his suitcase, he took the first taxi that was waiting for someone, barely acknowledging Kyle and Ludwig and left. The ride to the hotel was made in complete silence and for the first time he found it appeasing and enjoyable. Singapore was his least favorite track of the season. Another city one, with barely enough opportunities to try something. It would again be all about track positions and it was boring to him. Finally, he arrived at the hotel and as he was to step inside an all too familiar silhouette was waiting at the front desk . Someone that was trying to avoid him for the past few days.

“Julia? Hey… I didn’t know you already arrived.”

“Yeah… about that… I’m not really staying. Skoda messed up the booking and I don’t have a room, so I’m just waiting for Romy. I’ll stay with her.”

“You sure? You could stay with me, you know. That would be more logical than you staying with her. We are supposed to be a couple, it wouldn’t shock anyone.”

“I don’t want to stay with you.” she said hastily and Ethan couldn’t help but feel a bit hurt.

“But you prefer to stay with Romy?”

“Of course, she is my best friend!”

“Joolsie, we are supposed to soft launch our relationship, starting this race weekend. How do you plan for us to do it if you avoid me?” he asked, clearly annoyed and angry.

“I’m not avoiding you.” she replied, crossing her arms against her chest, in a defensive posture.

“You didn’t answer my text. You know the picture I sent you.”

“Oh Gosh… I have a life Ethan! And I didn’t know you were expecting an answer!”

People were starting to look at them and seeing the unsolicited attention, Ethan grabbed her arm as he dragged her with him in a corner, away from prying eyes and ears.

“What is wrong with you?” she angrily whispered.

“I could say the same about you! Martin? Really? After everything we talked about? What are you playing at?”

“I’m allowed to have friends!”

“We’ve already had this conversation! He doesn’t want to be your friend!”

“That’s not what he said!”

“Oh please, you are not naive.” he sighed.

“And so what? What if indeed he wants to be more than my friend?”

“Yeah well, he will have to back off, you have a boyfriend.”

“A fake one.”

“He doesn’t know that.” she replied, clearly trying to rile him up.

“What are you trying to say?”

“What if I wanted to be more than his friend? Did you think about that?”

He opened his mouth to reply but no sound came out of it. He didn’t understand why but the perspective of Julia kissing Martin and being all lovey dovey with him was making him want to punch a wall. Or to throw Martin in a wall, there could be opportunities during the weekend, still he didn’t like this feeling that was viciously snaking around him.

“Well he will have to wait in line, for now, you are with me.”

“Wait in line? Do you hear yourself?” she said.

“We have a deal Julia!”

“I’m not a freaking business transaction! Or your property! You have no rights on me.”

“Yeah, that much we established. You are annoying, you know that?”

“You are insufferable!”

“I wouldn’t be if you weren’t so… so…” words were failing him.

“So what? Come on, say it!”

“So you!”

Julia was about to reply when her phone buzzed announcing the arrival of a new text. She quickly checked it and felt relief when she saw that it was from Romy, saying she was there. Without another word and giving him one final look where Ethan believed he saw a hint of disappointment in it, she left. Romy noticed straight away the change in her best friend’s behaviour. It was the way she carried herself, he posture stiff and her eyes locked to the ground.

“Trouble in paradise?” Romy asked as Julia was taking place on the passenger seat of the Audi.

“Yeah, we can say that.”

“Do you wanna talk about it? Because I thought you were staying with Ethan, to be honest. I wasn’t expecting your call. Or more like I wasn’t expecting you to ask to stay with me.”

“It’s just… complicated, you know. Team policies and he needs his good night of sleep, I don’t want to bother.”

“Yeah because for sure if you’re here, sleep will be the last of his priorities!” said Romy with a wink making Julia blush.

“Romy!”

“What? Come on you can tell me. How is he?”

“Do I ask how is Kyle with you?” argued Julia.

“No, but you could ask me. I would tell you.”

“But I don’t want to know!”

“You are boring, Ju.”

Julia tried her best to hide her embarrassment. She never really thought about Ethan that way. She didn’t want to, it would turn into a rabbit hole she didn’t want to dig herself in. This one time seeing Ethan shirtless in the gym was enough to give her thoughts she didn’t want to have. Intrusive ones, peeking through the night when she was sleeping soundly. The warmth of his arms brushing against hers, and the shiver she got from it were not something she liked to think about, it was always giving her a warm feeling in her lower belly. She must had made a stupid face as Romy asked her what she was thinking about.

“You are all red.”

“I’m not! it’s just that it’s hot outside and I need a cold shower.”

“Sure.”

Romy showed her room to Julia before telling her that she had commitments to honour, leaving the brunette on her own. Julia tried to occupy her mind to avoid thinking about Ethan , but she understood that staying inside would do no good, she stopped sulking and left the room, her drawing notebook with her. In the lobby she found probably the last person she was expecting to see. Martin was laughing with Elijah as a blond woman with a Ferrari shirt was talking to them. probably someone from the staff, thought Julia who kept walking towards the exit. As she was about to step outside, she heard footsteps coming in her direction as if the person was running and she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Julia? What are you doing here? Are you here to see your dad, he has a meeting right now but you can wait with us. We just finished to shoot a challenge for Ferrari’s social media.”

“Uh… no, not really. Truth be told, I’m staying with Romy. Skoda forgot to book me a room so…” she shrugged.

“Oh shit. Ethan didn’t tell you that you could stay with him?”

“Yes, he did. It’s just… me whose the problem, I guess. It’s complicated.”

“Yeah I bet it is. You must have signed tons of NDA when they learned about your relationship. You know to avoid manufacturing resources to leak.”

“That's the thing, they don’t know yet. So, we are laying low.”

“Oh? So you guys are not official, then.”

“We are. It’s not because we are not public with it, yet, that it’s not serious.” she replied, defensively.

“Yeah sure, sorry, if I overstepped.”

“It’s fine.”

“You were about to head downtown?”

“Yeah, I juts need to forget some stuff. I have a lot in mind.”

“I wanted to visit, do you mind if I join you?”

She wanted to say yes, that she minded. It was not a good idea, especially when Singapore was filled with journalists. It would just need one picture for things to blew up out of proportion. She knew that but he was good company, he made her laugh and forget everything. She felt good with him, calm, peaceful. It was welcomed when with Ethan she felt like drowning in an ocean where very time she was trying to stay a float another wave was throwing her under. But still, she ended up accepting and Martin made a move to tell her that he was letting her take the lead.

They walked around Singapore, stopping to some places to take pictures. It felt easy, conversation was flowing, she didn’t have to pretend and the Ethan topic was avoided by tacit agreement and Julia didn’t really see the time flying. They ended up sitting somewhere not so crowded after getting take away.

“I hope Ethan won’t get too mad knowing that we spent the afternoon together.”

And there it was, the elephant in the room. The way too big elephant in the way to small room.

“Ethan is complicated. And i’m complicated too. And we are stubborn and hot-headed, it doesn’t help sometimes.”

“But do you love him?”

That was the question she hoped no one would ask her because she didn’t want to answer. She wasn’t in love with Ethan but was she attracted? She wasn’t blind and she was just a human being, after all. She appreciated him. His presence, his sense of humour, how he was there for her when Louis ran away and how he tried to protect her. He had been a true friend. And she couldn’t help but wonder if there were no lingering feelings. Being there for her, sending her this picture of her and her brother, trying to keep her with him and she almost thought he was about to kiss her. Did she want to be kissed?

“Julia?” repeated Martin.

“Yeah? Sorry, I zoned out for a moment.”

“I saw that. You don’t have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable. It’s not any of my business, after all.”

“No, no it’s just… we have history. Not the best if I may add. We’ve known each other since we were kids and we were not the best of friends back then…” she explained in a laugh. “But years went by and we kind of lost touch, he was often away and i was caught up in my studies. We met again this year and… here we are.”

“You don’t seem happy, though.”

“In every relationships you have ups and downs. Today is a down. Tomorrow will be a up. It’s difficult to adapt and to go from enemies to lovers. Sometimes, most of the time, we bicker like when we were kids. But he has seen parts of me that not a lot of people know about. He had seen me at my worst and I did too.”

“It doesn’t answer my question, though. About love.”

“Is it bad if I say that I don’t know? Does it make me a bad person?”

“Not necessarily. You can grow to love someone. As long as you are happy. Which leads me to my second question: are you happy?”

“I guess I am.”

“But you’re not sure.”

“And what about you, are you happy?”

“No. Not entirely. But I will be, someday.”

She smiles softly and looked at her phone. Texts from Romy were there asking her if she wanted room service or if she would rather eat outside, her dad was checking up on her as well but she had nothing from Ethan. She wasn’t expecting anything, not after their fight but she would have loved a reminder of him, being there alone with Martin, she couldn't help but feel like she was cheating on him, which was crazy. She didn’t. There was nothing else than a deal between her and Ethan. Nothing else. She must have looked to her screen for a little too long as Martin started to stand up and extending his hands to her. She pretended not seeing it and they both walked back to the hotel. In the lobby, they said their goodbyes before heading their separate ways.

When she opened the hotel room door she was welcomed by a blonde tornado throwing her arms around her.

“I’m so happy to have you here, despite the circumstances! It’s been so long since we had a sleepover. So tell me, what did you do today?”

“I went out, I visit the town with Martin and…”

“Martin? Why?” Romy cut her, giving her a suspicious look.

“Because he asked if he could come…”

“And you said yes?”

“Is it bad?”

“Of course it’s bad! You have a boyfriend!”

“And Martin is my friend…”

“Martin doesn’t want to be your friend he wants to take Ethan’s place. Julia! You are not dumb!”

“Martin knows about Ethan. And he respects it.”

“Yeah, no. If he respected it he would back off. But he doesn’t.”

“He didn’t make a move on me, Romy. It’s fine!”

“And I should give him a medal? That’s basic respect, I sure hope he didn’t try anything. But it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t want to. Julia, you are entertaining his feelings. That’s not fair. Not to him or to Ethan that then again is your boyfriend, your lover, the guy you are sleeping with! Fuck! Stop being blind and oblivious.”

“Martin is nice….” Julia tried to defend herself. She knew it was wrong, whatever was going on between martin and her. But hearing her friend saying it out loud was making it worse than what she had imagined.

“Being naive doesn’t have a good look on yourself. What is wrong with you?”

Julia sat on the bed and look at her feet as she was playing with her fingers.

“It’s… can I be honest with you? And most importantly can you promise to not judge me or say anything? It has to stay between us.”

“Julia… you are scaring me.”

“Ethan and I, we are not really dating. I’m saving his ass because of what happened, the scandal, you know. And… he helps me out to prove to my dad that I’m good at my job. Basically.”

Romy didn’t say anything, only dropping next to her friend and taking her in her arms.

“A lot of things make sense, now… It doesn’t excuse your behaviour with Martin, though. It’s still a dumb idea, I stand by it. But Ethan… Julia, are you sure you guys are only faking things? Because I’ve seen how he looked at you during his birthday party and I heard how you talked about him… It didn’t seem fake to me. You got me and you are my best friends. Surely it doesn’t mean nothing.”

“I don’t know… Maybe Ethan is just good at pretending.”

“Maybe.”

“And now I’m stuck. Because I truly like Martin’s company. I feel good with him, safe. Ethan is always up to something, I never know what to expect and it’s terrifying.”

“Martin is your comfort zone and Ethan is not.” simply said Romy. “You know what they say with the comfort zone, kitten.”

Julia shrugged.

“I’m leaving you alone with your thoughts. For what is worth, I think you should talk to Ethan, it would help you sort your thoughts out. I won’t be mad if when i come back you are not there. And if it helps you in any way, I’m team Ethan.”

After her conversation with Romy, Julia couldn’t help but feel guilty. Even if nothing happened with Martin, and she intended to keep it that way, she was feeling bad and remorseful towards Ethan. He didn’t deserve any of what she had put him through. She opened her contacts and scrolled down until she found his name, with a red heart next to it, something silly she had added after establishing their fake relationship. She wasn’t expecting him to answer but he did after a short while.

“What do you want?”

“I want to say sorry.”

“About what? Our fight, you leaving with Romy or your little date with Ferrari’s boy?”

“All of that. It wasn’t fair to you and our relationship. I should have agreed to stay with you.”

“Why didn’t you?”

She bit her lips and pulled her knees up against her chest.

“I don’t want to make things weird between us, if we sleep in the same bed.”

“Joolsie, you know me. I wouldn’t have given you the bed. The sofa is quite nice and comfy.”

“Thanks for your consideration!” she said, slightly offended.

“I’m joking. I would have taken the sofa and given you the bed.”

She felt embarrassed. She could hear his breathing from the other side of the line. The only thing she wanted was to take a taxi and go back to the hotel to run into his arms. But she was so scared of what it would mean and how it would change everything that she wasn’t sure it was a risk she was willing to take.

“Romy left me alone. That’s not what I imagined when she said that we would have a sleepover.”

“I’m alone too.” he whispered.

“Maybe we can be alone together? If you want?”

“I don’t want to be alone together with anyone else, Julia.”

“Good. Me too.”

The line went silent, both of them not knowing what to say. Julia closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

“Does your offer about me staying with you still stands?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“I’m waiting, then.”

It didn’t even take half an hour for her to arrive to the hotel. She walked fast to the elevator and it’s almost out of breath that she arrived in front of his door. She barely had the time to know that the door opened revealing Ethan in a very laid back outfit.

“Hey…” she said.

“Joolsie…”

“I’m sorry. I overreacted and I’m stupid. And you have every reasons to be mad.”

“I’m mad. Because we are friends and you don’t trust me and you act like I’m disgusting to you.”

“Are we? Friends, I mean.”

“You are annoying and you’ve been acted like a bitch with me. But you are my friend. Now come inside.”

She felt uncomfortable all of a sudden, she didn’t know where to put her suitcase or where to stand.

“So where should I sleep?” she asked.

“The bed is big enough for us to fit without touching each other but if you don’t want to, I can give you the bed. Bear in mind that I would love to sleep in it on Friday and Saturday. I need to feel rested for the race.”

“I guess we can share the bed.”

“Perfect. I was scared you were going to fight me on something.”

Julia didn’t answer taking her pyjamas out of the suitcase as well as her toiletry bag and locked herself in the bathroom. She came back a moment later to see Ethan adding a few pillow in the middle of the bed.

“I called the reception to know if we could have some more. I’m making our border so we don’t end up on the other person’s side.”

“That’s thoughtful of you.”

Ethan shrugged as if it was not a big deal and got inside the bed. Julia joined him soon after as he switch of the light and it didn’t take long before she fell asleep.

Author's note: I know I said I wouldn't upload before Saturday but... I couldn't wait to post lmao.

What do you think will happen next? Let me know your theories, I love to read them.

Don't hesitate to leave a comment or an ask, as well as reblogging and leaving a like. It helps a lot for the story to find its audience. I also have a taglist for this story, so if you want to be added so you never miss a chapter, let me know.

Taglist:

@herondalism @aundercover @musingsbyshreya @karmabyfernando @reengard @mycenterfold @smoooothoperator

#writing #fiction #charles leclerc #max vertsappen #charles leclerc fanfic #max verstappen fanfic #f1 fanfic #f1 story #f1 fic #f1 x oc

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pluviophile-bookworm · 1 year

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Schmicago is Over and Done... so here are my thoughts on all of it (extra long post)

Episode 1: Welcome to Schmicago

In all honesty, I was fully prepared not to like this season bc I’m really not (or at least was not) that into this era of musicals, but all I needed was the start of Welcome to Schmicago and I was so completely in. Thank you to all the geniuses who made it possible.

No but… the second time round that the word ‘farrago’ comes up in the lyrics of the episode’s title song, I well, I was literally thinking ‘what the hey’s a farrago’, and the Narrator says ‘look it up’ — it’s like they’re reading the viewer’s thoughts. I love it. That’s the self-aware humour I’ve come for. Also, I did look it up and farrago means a confused mixture. I like it. It fits.

This is killing me (in the best way) — when they say ‘endings that are tragic’, the Narrator holds up a strand of Melissa’s hair. I love the double meaning.

I love love love this! At one point you can clearly hear Kristin Chenoweth saying ‘peas and carrots, peas and carrots’, and Josh and Melissa are like ‘Please don’t talk all at once, we can’t understand you’. Love that bit of theatre inside humour.

‘Do you have a cigarette, darling, I’m simply desperate’… what an introduction to Dove’s new character, Jenny Banks. Or, as I immediately dubbed her when I saw her, Liza Jr. I feel like I’m going to like her.

‘Fifty’s not that old’ — this coming, of course, from Keegan-Michael Key, who is 52 in real life. And ain’t he living proof of it, too.

I am loving Does That Shock You (I assume that’s the name of the song) [It’s Do We Shock You, actually, but there was no way for me to know that back when the episode aired, now was there?] — it’s like, ‘look, there’s a man and he’s wearing a dress’, ‘I like both boys and girls’, and, most hilariously, ‘I’ve experienced an orgasm. A female one.’ Goodness, this doesn’t shock me or Josh and Melissa, but it sure as the stars would render the people of Schmigadoon catatonic. And I love that, for some reason.

No but the cabaret girls… Annie, Kate, Molly, Tessie, Pepper, Duffy and Elsie. Like… a certain bunch of orphan girls from the same time period as all musicals referenced here take place. Plus Cabaret’s Elsie, of course. That’s basically as if… the girls grew up to become showgirls, which actually isn’t too far-fetched. And Ariana DeBose as the EmCee is slaying it. I love all of this. And Ann Harada is Madam Frau. Lady Lady. Cool! I love it.

‘My true passion is power [dramatic pause]… electricity’ I love love love all of this.

And Jenny Banks does a Cabaret-style number with chairography a la Mein Herr. Which is funny because Dove is just one of a whole bunch of people in this cast who would do (or, in certain cases, have done) a killer Mein Herr. Either way, I just know this will be one of my most replayed songs once the soundtrack comes out. When is that, btw? [That was yesterday, and I can fully attest to the above prediction being true.]

This number isn’t even subtle about what it’s doing. About as subtle as Va-Gi-Na or the Coming Out Reprise were last season ‘We’ve had a fine affair, but please get out of mein hair.’ I love this more than words can say.

Episode 2: Doorway to Where

The Narrator is just everything… ‘schmigadee-death… penalty’, anyone? Lovely.

Ahhh we’ve got Aaron!! That man’s voice makes me swoon in a way I didn’t think was possible to someone of my… identity. If you get what I’m trying to say. [What I’m trying to say is I’m aroace, but I do have a thing for voices, and for unconventionally attractive faces, except the latter isn’t relevant in very conventionally attractive Aaron’s case. He’s all voice to me. He could sing the phone book and I’d be done for.]

No but… his solo once again mentions squirrels and robins, and I’ve got to wonder why… like, is it just a reference to You Can’t Tame Me (my beloved), or is there something else? But also, his new character, Topher, strikes me as the only one who hasn’t changed quite as much — he’s once again a free spirit singing about squirrels and robins and wow, this is just utterly self-referential, isn’t it? I love that.

‘Please. Mr Flanagan was my father… after he lost his medical license.’ I love that. And I’m going to love Jane Krakowski’s character in this, I feel like. ‘First we court the press, then I press the court.’ I adore sentences like that. Sue me. But only with Bobby Flanagan as my solicitor.

Ok, so this one I caught. Melissa’s showgirl audition is set to a number evoking I Hope I Get It from A Chorus Line. Good going, me!

‘Dad was in the military. You know, the type with a whistle. He used to force my brothers, sisters and me to perform for guests at dinner parties. God, I hated when he did that.’ I see you, Sound of Music. I see you clear and bright. ‘So this one night I begged him for a taste of champagne’… ok, so you’re Liesl, are you? Well, funny, because all I can think of is Cecily as Liesl in that one SNL sketch with John Mulaney.

Ok but when Melissa meets Topher, she’s like ‘You look… groovy’, and I was like, his ‘pants’ are not really high-waisted in this one, though. But there’s a good chance he’s both high and wasted at any given time. I mean, so I imagine, he’s a hippie. Not to stereotype people, but hey, everyone is a walking steretype here.

When Topher’s buddies come to bust him and Josh out of jail on the happiness bus, Josh is like ‘it’s literal? I thought it was a metaphor.’ To which I say… ‘It’s not a metaphor, oh no, it’s something more — it’s a literal bus’. How’s that for a reference?

Episode 3: Bells and Whistles

Ok we’re on to episode 3 and… ‘ Rizzo, ChaCha, Doodie/ Zuko and Kenickie’… why, hello Grease! I didn’t quite expect you there, but of course that was a mistake. And also, in a number starring Danny Bailey/Zuko Aaron Tveit himself, no less.

I see you, Miss Kristin Hannigan! And I’m loving it. Mrs Lovett x Miss Hannigan has never made so much sense before. Add in some Mme Thenardier for good measure, and you’ve got the ultimate composite character.

No, I swear, between Kristin and Alan, this is giving me huge Thenardier vibes, even if it’s actually meant to be a homage to Sweeney Todd, I believe. I’m loving it either way.

Ok, so… Alan’s character, Butcher Dooley Blight, is Jenny’s father here. I love it. But oh wow, this got really bloody and dark and gory really fast.

This might as well be one of my favourite courtroom scenes. I mean, ‘On the grounds of Brooklyn’ is still my go-to, but Bells and Whistles, and Fosse jazz hands are truly something else.

‘Why am I flanked by fools’ is the new ‘I’m surrounded by idiots’, and I love it. No but, his song is actually about wanting love from women who don’t want him. He’s giving Phantom. And, oh gosh, the resounding bass note it ends on… almost more impressive than a high note.

Episode 4: Something Real

Well, it’s true that Dove and Aaron are, in my humblest of opinions, the two people whose characters from this season and the previous one are most alike — I mean, she’s a cheerful girl whose cluelessness may or may not be (and in this one definitely is) just an act and whose father would kill for her sake, and he’s a free spirit who sings about robins and squirrels (even though Danny’s ‘pants are really high-waisted’ whereas Topher would rather forgo any trousers at all because ‘flowers don’t wear pants’... which I think is a valid choice, wanting to emulate a flower. Go for it) — so, in a way, what I called has very much come to pass. Now how this is going to turn out by the end is a whole other matter, so we’ll have to wait and see.

Also, here’s a post I made the day the s1 finale came out, and... I was a bit blindsided, but I had the spirit:

Ok so the Narrator may be a bit of an arse to Mel and Josh, but I love him. I want Tituss Burgess to narrate every show in song.

Topher, arriving at the junkyard: ‘The prodigal son has returned. Someone write that down.’ The Fansie in me, knocking over about three walls at once: ‘I got a pencil!’

S1 Josh: ‘I’m not singing if you’re not singing.’ S2 Josh: ‘Talk to Daddy, talk, talk to Daddy’… now that’s what I call character growth. And that aside, this is just such a fun number. I can see myself listening to it on repeat once the soundtrack drops (which I need now btw). [Ah, yes, the ‘I’m not having an argument that’s part of a musical number’ to ‘I am not a man of many words’ to ‘Talk to Daddy’ pipeline. We stan.]

Whoever decided to pair up Dove and Aaron for a duet is a freaking genius. I need to know who that was so I can send them flowers to thank them for this vocal match made in heaven.

‘More romance’? If there’s one thing I don’t like about Schmigadoon/Schmicago, and it’s just this tiny little thing, really, but… it’s that it seems to emphasise romance as the ultimate solution, the single bringer of happiness. Only, I suppose, it will end up subverting that by the end of the season. Which would be nice if it does, indeed, happen. [Well... not exactly. But next season maybe... hope springs eternal.]

Ok, a scene centring around Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming together in any sort of context is always welcome, but I’m just a bit too distracted by Dooley eating his mash using his cleaver as a spoon. It’s too funny!

No but the way he said ‘Life is just a pile of shit’… it spoke to my soul… somehow.

I have never, ever in my life laughed at the sight of someone openly discussing making children into meat, but if anyone can sell such a number, why, it’s those two. Marvellously morbid.

I hear you, ‘It’s a Hard-Knock Life’. I hear you loud and clear. Or should I say… It’s a Hard-Knock-off Life… ight I’ll see myself out. But who would have thought that mixing Annie with Sweeney Todd (and a sprinkle of Oliver!) would make such a delightfully dark and scrumptiously sinister song? Also, those tap-dancing children are so amazing! I wish we would get more than a number per season from them, but I always take what I can get. [This is another contender, along with Kaput and Talk to Daddy and Bells and Whistles, for my May Top Tracks on Spotify... what will end up happening remains to be seen, but the number of times I’ve looped those just since they were released there yesterday is already large enough to put them all in the top 20 if not the top 10.]

So this now marks two different songs I know where ‘scrumptious’ is rhymed with ‘presumptuous’ (Truly Scrumptious from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, of course, being the first), and in neither of those songs do these words sound like they should rhyme. This must be what Mel meant by that comment about imperfect rhymes, you know.

Doesn’t this just go to prove that you could sell infanticide to me if it’s accompanied by a musical number, and I’d eat it up with a spoon, or even a cleaver if I had one handy… what does that say about me, I wonder…

Episode 5: Famous as Hell

Cecily is such a star! (hey, nice alliterative phrase there) But for real, she is. Also, is this supposed to be Maybe This Time? I’ll know for sure once I watch the Schmeakdown, but I think it is, if not intertwined with something else as well.

Ok but the tribe seems to have imprinted on Josh like a bunch of baby ducklings. He’s their mama now. I love that.

I’m thinking the Narrator’s name should change to the Instigator. Love that for him.

‘Another damn rhetorical question’ might just be funnier than ‘Schmigadee-death penalty’. Either way, I love Tituss Burgess and what he does as the Narrator, or the Instigator if you will.

Ooh… I love this. Famous As Hell seems to be the sort of number which references everybody’s themes, and I love that in a number.

Ok so nobody should be subjected to 12-show day, but, like, as an obsessed fan I’d be there all day for it. Still, don’t make people perform until they bleed. Then again, this is Schmicago, so…

Wait a sec… so that’s what ‘substitutes become expedient’ meant? Not just the obvious ‘children-for-animals’ substitute, but ‘orphans-for-Kratt’. Well. I’m thinking Kratt wouldn’t make a very desirable load of sausages, though. Oh, great, now I’m considering it. I’m in so deep I’m losing awareness of how gory this all is.

Are those the twins who played the white-faced women in ASOUE, playing another pair of white-faced women? Why yes, it is them, Jacqueline and Joyce Robbins. Nice.

Ooh… ‘You’ve been getting my roses? — Moses supposes I have.’ I loved that. I’ve been wondering if Singing in the Rain could make it into the farrago, and it seems like it has.

Ok, now Kratt is definitely Phantom. Kidnapping Mel just after she’s become a star on stage and essentially going like, ‘you marry me or the man you love dies’. Also, what kind of a cliffhanger was this? I’m dying. How on earth will I make it to the finale? And there are so many knots to be untied, too many loose ends to be tied up… that’s an ambitious setup for the finale. [It was, indeed. Bit of a rush to untangle and tie up everything, it really was, but I loved it nonetheless.]

Episode 6: Over and Done

Ahhhh Ariana DeBose solo at last!! I’ve missed that so much. And a Dreamgirls solo at that! I found she was really underutilised this season, which sucks because she’s a queen, but is also completely understandable because there were so many plotlines even without her being at the forefront. Still though…

‘I shut down a dream ballet, I will shut down this’ Yes Mel, be in control of the narrative devices even if you can’t control the narrative… that is so poetic in its way. I love it.

Idk how I came to this thought, but Sgt. Rivera upon being told he has to kill Josh is giving the huntsman from Snow White. Can’t say I love that for him because it’s a really tight spot to be in, but his reaction is still one of my favourite moments.

Ok but like… is Ms. Codwell reluctant to let the orphans be killed now? What exactly was it that made her change her mind? And also, these poor kids are so death-happy, I can’t even begin to comprehend the black comedy of it all. It’s not even black comedy anymore, it’s saccharine tragedy.

Also, if Dooley and Ms Codwell get married, does that mean Kristin is going to be Dove’s mum once again? Because at first I enjoyed the subversion of them being completely unrelated here, but I’m starting to miss them as a mother-daughter duo. Maybe s3 can amend that? Whatever, just please let there be a s3.

Ok but Topher being a JCS homage all season and his tribe digging everything he says, and then once he pulls a literal Jesus, ‘turn the other cheek’ and whatnot, they’re sceptical? Idk, but I kinda dig that just bc I find it (1) funny and (2) totally reasonable.

I can’t… the Somewhere Love Is Waiting for You riff as Dooley reunites with his daughter… it’s too much. I’m going to cry. I was already going to cry, but this really is too much.

Ok but even when he doesn’t intend it, Dooley sure is good with that cleaver. And the narrative pulling a Phantom on the Phantom shout-out character… now that’s what I call poetic justice.

Yeah, sure, I’ll drink to that too. From now on I want all the villain death announcements to be done via Kaput reprise. Ding Dong the Witch is Dead who?

Rocky Horror Sgt. Rivera isn’t what I ever expected, but I’m digging it. I’m actually tearing up. What is with Schmigadoon season finales and making me sob my heart out? I need to have more of that.

Now excuse me for crossing my fandoms over here, but the tribe’s ending is giving Ordinaryish People by AJR: ‘Your hippie friends call you a sellout cos you buckled down and got a job’… indeed.

Goodness, Something Real with Topher and Jenny was one thing, but with Mel and Josh it feels that much more… real. I mean. Tell me it doesn’t. I’m not crying over the cheesiness that is a musical ending number, you are. Except I am, too, of course. How could I not be?

I did not have Narrator x Rivera on my bingo cards for this season, but like, ‘I don’t hate it’. I actually wish I could see it play out.

What’s better than Leprechaun Martin Short? Leprechaun Martin Short x2. I am living for every bizarre, out-of-left-field thing this finale throws at me. I really really really want more.

Ok but, as a lover of child-centric musicals, I now need a s3 with Josh and Mel and their little one in a land with more than one child-centred musical number. It’s not a want, it’s a need.

#schmigadoon #schmigadoon s2 #schmicago #schmicago spoilers #an extra long reaction post for good old times' sake

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xjustonemoremiraclex · 8 months

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rwrb thoughts from someone who hasn't read the book (yet)

The good/general thoughts:

pleasantly surprised by the acting! which I know sounds mean, but listen, I saw these guys in other things and I wasn't suuuper into them, so it was a nice surprise lol

THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THE TWO again, pleasantly surprised by that lol they played off each other SO well

10/10 soundtrack, it definitely took inspiration from older rom-coms and I loved it <3

PS I really liked all the side characters! I wish we'd gotten to spend a little more time with some of them, but everyone was pretty great <3 also, all the women were awesome, and I am very gay and very in love <3

Ok, I really, REALLY liked how they showed the two of them texting each other, and the whole editing around it. It was pretty cute

I was living for all the latine songs at the new year's party, that was a nice touch

ok, when everyone was getting down at the party and alex and henry stayed up and stared at each other and time slowed down, I know it was supposed to be romantic, but I have to say it: it was also the funniest shit I've ever seen lol

henry at the party is giving both 'i have social anxiety and my only friend here is a social butterfly and keeps leaving to be with other people send help' and 'i thought you invited me here as a first date kind of thing but you're dancing and making out with other people and i'm feeling so betrayed rn :('

'christ you're as thick as it gets *kiss*' LMAO

Listen, I'm not usually into rom-coms (I say, like a liar), but I was pretty happy with the writing, in general. I laughed at all the funny parts, got emotional over all the dramatic ones and swooned at the romance bits. Great job, everyone

'I just can't afford for you to fall in love with me' LMAO babe, we're WAY past that. On both sides

ok, full disclosure: I don't really like sex scenes all that much (there's nothing wrong with them, I'm just very ace lol), so I usually just use my phone while they're happening, and while I did that a little bit here too, I was still paying attention, and honestly, they were pretty sweet. They did a good job. And, like, I have no idea why the film was R-rated lol you literally don't see anything

again, love the little montages that show the passing of time, while also showing they're keeping in touch and getting to know each other better and stuff. It makes the relationship between the two and the way it's developing feel a bit less rushed, which is nice

ZAHRA MY MOST BELOVED

YES PLEASE I WANT TO SEE THAT POWERPOINT PRESENTATION THANK YOU

KARAOKEEEE

alex giving an impassioned romantic speech to henry, about to confess his love: // henry:

'I didn't want to break his heart' - oh, honey, you already did :(

'to tell you that I love you, knowing that you wouldn't say it back' brb sobbing

NOT CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE 😭😭😭

'because when they write the history of my life, I want it to include you and my love for you' help i'm dying 😭😭😭😭😭😭

MIGUEL DON'T THINK I DON'T KNOW IT WAS YOU please die in a fire <3

alex's speech was really good by the way 🥺

LOVESICK HOMOSEXUALS LMAO ZAHRA MY BELOVED

'baby' screaming crying throwing up jgdkfk

I FORGOT THE KING WAS STEPHEN FRY why is this so funny to me

SEQUEL WHEN

The... less good?/general questions:

Kinda wish there'd been a bit more enemies in my enemies-to-lovers film

'he just grabbed my hair in a way that made me understand the difference between rugby and footbal'' - please, I beg you, someone smarter than me - what the fuck does this mean 😭 ppl are LIVING for this quote and I'm like ??????

this is probably me being stupid and ignorant lol but why would alex's relationship cost his mum the election? like, from what I've seen, her government has been very pro-queer, that's not really a secret, so her son being queer and in a relationship with a man shouldn't lose her any voters..? the people who are against 'the queers' were not going to vote for her in the first place, soooo..? me is confused

honestly, this is probably an unpopular opinion, but... the king was not that bad? like, i'm not saying he's not kind of homphobic and kind of a dick lol but i get the impression that everything stems from the whole thing about sticking to tradition and public image and bla bla. Like, again, obviously, part of that involves homophobia, but I think that on a personal level, he... doesn't really care? Even at the end, he's like 'ok, are you absolutely sure about this, cause there's no going back. Yes? Really? Well, go off I guess *long-suffering sigh*'. Like, I got way more homophobic vibes from phillip than the king idk 🤷‍♀️ (I really hope I don't have to clarify that this only applies to the film, and not like, the real life crown lol)

Sooo, as I said, I haven't read the book yet, but I've seen some posts about it, and I think after watching the film I've realized that it's biggest flaw is that it's that - a film. It's a great film, don't get me wrong! And it's pretty obvious I really liked it. But damn, I'm a firm believer that book adaptations only work as series. They don't have to be super long or anything, but there is just no way to fit everything in a book in a two hour film. And yeah, when you're adapting something you have to make some changes, but Idk, it's kind of a shame that you lose so much (and even without reading the book, I can tell there's a lot of stuff missing). In any case, I can't talk too much about it until I read the book, but yeah 🤷‍♀️ It does seem like they did a good job, though - like, it genuinely can stand on its own really well, but I guess I'll have to find out for myself

Also, tagging @silassstingy bc I promised her my thoughts on the film and she might give me some interesting insights on some of the stuff I mentioned, cause she's a queen like that <3

#rwrb #all in all I give it like a 9.5/10 #I'm docking half a point bc it made me cry multiple times which was VERY rude(?)

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lovelytsunoda · 2 years

Text

hungry eyes // alex albon

summary: rainy days for alex and y/n means movies, slow dancing, scented candles and soft sex in front of the fireplace

authors note: the stranglehold that dirty dancing has on me is unreal. pleas do not be surprised if a dirty dancing themed wedding dance appears on on here in the near future.

its a day of cancelled plans for the couple, as alex had planned out the entire weekend to a T after coming home from the latest grand prix

“babe, it’s okay!”

“but we were supposed to go biking, and then i had a whole romantic lunch planned-”

“alex, it’s fine. really.”

spending the morning watching eighties movies

starting with the breakfast club

followed up by footloose

which has alex dancing around the living room like an idiot before tripping over the coffee table and scaring the cats

and then dirty dancing

“babe, we have to try the lift!”

“um, sweetheart, that’s not smart. you tripped over the table just trying to follow along with footloose.”

“yeah, you’re probably right.”

the rain shows no signs of stopping as the sun sinks lower in the sky

y/n lights some candles while alex stokes the fire

the cold is beginning to seep into the house, an involuntary shudder coursing through y/n’s body

alex comes up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and draping his body over her

“you cold, love?”

“not anymore.” y/n hums, pressing a gentle kiss to alex’s cheek

inspired by the afternoon of movies, alex puts on the dirty dancing soundtrack from his phone

‘hungry eyes’ starts playing, and he reaches for his girlfreind’s hand

“alex, honey, what are you doing?”

“we are going to dance. it’s not like there's much else to do. besides, its romantic!”

gently swaying together in the middle of the room, her head resting his chest

soft, gentle kisses that slowly turn sexual

hands roaming under sweaters

it’s such a romantic atmosphere that alex can’t control himself

“wow, somebody has very hungry eyes” y/n remarks after alex takes her sweater off and spends half a second too long staring at her boobs

alex deadass takes like five minutes to laugh after that one

blankets wrapped around their bodies

the most sensual missionary possible, y/n’s legs wrapped so tightly around his body, allowing alex to hit deeper angles every single time

not an inch of space between their bodies

moans swallowed by kisses

eyes rolling back in pleasure

“alex, oh my god-”

so many declarations of love

alex trying to make this perfect moment last forever

he’s a boob man, you cannot tell me otherwise.

he pays soooooo much attention to y/n’s tits the entire time, kissing them, massaging them, marking them with hickies

“you’re so perfect, my love. i love you.”

“we fit together perfectly, like we were made for each other.”

afterwards, they’re both lying next to each other by the fire, still wrapped in blankets

the cats are with them, snuggling with the young couple

“if this is how you get when we watch romantic movies,” y/n starts, giving alex a gentle kiss “then maybe we should watch them more often.”

“after the rain stops, you and i are practicing the dirty dancing lift.”

“fat chance, racer boy.”

anyways, ‘hungry eyes’ ends up being played at their wedding a year later

and yes, they do the lift.

#alexander albon x reader #alex albon #f1 x reader #f1 imagine #hey siri play hungry eyes from the dirty dancing soundtrack #lovelytsunodas eclectic music taste

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cursed-elo-images · 5 months

Text

INCORRECT ELO QUOTES PART 4

This version contains three quotes featuring Mr. Blue Sky and Mr. Night because I have no idea what I’m doing with my life anymore!!!

p.s.: I should make it clear that these incorrect quote posts are not going to contain an equal amount of quotes as I cannot count that many of them as it’s too time consuming, but I do try to have a good amount of them in a post and that each post has roughly a similar amount of them.

*Melvyn sends more than 5 messages in a row*

Jeff: I ain’t reading all that.

Jeff: I’m happy for you tho.

Jeff: Or sorry that happened.

Jeff: So Mel, how did your first time cooking dinner go?

Melvyn: Pretty good if I do say so myself.

Jeff: Oo! Okay, what are we having?

Melvyn: Alright, so for appetizers, we have a potato.

Jeff: A whole potato?

Melvyn: Yes. And then for the main course, we have grilled cheese sandwiches!

Jeff: These just look like big slabs of black.

Melvyn: Because that's what they are!

Melvyn: And then for dessert, we have chocolate.

Jeff: These are just chocolate chips?

Melvyn: They sure are!

Melvyn: And then for drinks, we have toast!

Melvyn: *lifts up a glass of blended toast* Bon appetit!

Jeff: Bev...

Bev: Oh no, 'Bev' in B flat.

Bev: You're disappointed.

Bev: Jeff, what are you doing?

Jeff: *shaking a cat shaped piggy bank* I’m just trying to figure out how much change I have inside.

Bev: You could always take it out and count it.

Jeff: Where’s the fun in that?

Bev: If there are no questions, we’ll move on to the next chapter.

Jeff: I have a question.

Bev: Certainly, Jeff. What is it?

Jeff: What’s the point of human existence?

Bev: I meant any questions about the subject at hand.

Jeff: Oh.

Jeff: Frankly, I’d like to have the issue resolved before I expend any more energy on this.

Hugh: Uptown Funk would've made it into the Shrek Soundtrack.

Bev: That's the truest statement I've ever heard.

Jeff, on the phone: I better go…kay, call me later… byeeee!

Bev: Friend of Yours?

Jeff: Nope, wrong number.

Bev: ???

Bev: Caffeine no longer keeps me awake while I work, so instead I have Jeff periodically send me texts saying ‘we need to talk.’

Bev: It gives me the right amount of adrenaline and fear I need to keep going.

Jeff: Hugh, I need some advice.

Hugh: You need advice from ME?

Jeff: Yeah, frightening, isn't it?

Bev: Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Hugh: *sighs* That’s true…

Hugh: But two negatives make a positive!!!

Jeff: I wouldn’t put it in those words exactly.

Bev: Why not?

Jeff: Because I don't know what they mean.

Bev: I made tea.

Jeff: I don't want tea.

Bev: I didn't make you tea. This is my tea.

Jeff: Then why did you tell me?

Bev: It's a conversation starter.

Jeff: It's a horrible conversation starter.

Bev: Oh, is it? We're conversing. Checkmate.

Jeff: Hugh, no.

Hugh: Hugh, yes.

Mr. Blue Sky, Hugh & Jeff: *screaming*

Mr. Night: *runs into the room* What's wrong, Jeff?!

Mr. Blue Sky: Wait, why are you asking Jeff that when Hugh and I are also here?

Mr. Night: Because Jeff wouldn't scream unless it's an emergency. You two scream whenever you have the chance.

Mr. Blue Sky: Shh, here comes Mr Night!

Jeff: Quick, Hugh, start talking about boring nerd stuff!

Hugh: You know, nerd culture is mainstream now, so when you use the word “nerd” derogatorily, it means you’re the one that’s out of the zeitgeist.

Jeff: Yes, that’s perfect. Just like that.

Hugh: Where is Mr. Night?

Jeff: I'll do you one better, who is Mr. Night??

Mr. Blue Sky: Here's a better question, why is Mr. Night?

Bev: So you're looking for information on this thing, huh? Well, I feel like it must be from far away.

Richard: What makes you say that?

Bev: If it's something even I don't know about, then I'm sure nobody else must have a clue. So it's gotta be from some faraway place. Impeccable reasoning, isn't it?

Richard: Bev... You don't have a clue about this thing, do you?

Bev: *screams in anger*

Richard: What's that?

Bev: Chocolate.

Richard: What's chocolate?

Bev: Candy. Do they not have candy where you're from?

Richard: Yeah. Grapes, nuts.

Bev: No wonder you're so bitter.

Bev: Richard is not a morning person. Or a night person. There’s really only about seven minutes a day you are fun to be around.

Richard : The best part is you never know when I’m coming.

Richard: Well Bev, I have to say, I'm really disappointed.

Bev: Well, you didn't HAVE to say it. You could've just thought it.

Richard, to Bev: Well, one of us has to be wrong and it’s not going to be me.

Bev: Are you busy?

Richard: Yes.

Bev: Cool, listen to this...

Bev: Just so everyone knows, don't ever try to climb a tree at night carrying a strobe light, owls DON'T like it.

Richard: ...what happened?

Bev: I made a VERY bad mistake.

Bev: *walks to cabinet, removes oreo box, takes half a sleeve, throws empty box out* Hi!

Richard: Hey- what are you doing-?

Bev, shoving an oreo into his mouth: I am saving space :D

Bev: Oh, hey, I didn’t see you come in! You should have come by and said hello!

Richard: Oh! Yeah, I uh...

Richard: Didn’t want to bother you.

Richard: Or talk to or listen to or be around you.

Bev: Man, it smells like wrongdog out here.

Richard:

Richard: Bev, are you alright?

Bev: *sobs*

Richard: Can we talk? One 10 to another?

Bev: I’m an 11, but continue.

Richard: Where did you get that tomato soup?

Bev: It’s actually a bowl of ketchup I just microwaved.

Richard, answering the phone: Hello?

Bev: It’s Bev.

Richard: What did he do this time?

Bev: No, it’s me, Bev. It’s actually me.

Richard: What did you do this time?

Richard: You believe me?

Bev: Richard, you’re the last good person on this planet. I‘d believe cartoon birds braided your hair this morning.

Bev: Any tips on how to make someone like me?

Richard: Try to make them laugh all the time.

Bev: Oh, wow! You actually help me for once, and it's even good advice!

Richard: Yeah, the more they laugh, the more time they spend with their eyes closed, so it'd be easier.

Bev: I literally cannot believe I let you talk me into this.

Richard: I literally said “I have an idea,” and you just went along with it without question.

Bev: Who's in charge here?

Richard, shrugging: Usually whoever yells the loudest.

Richard: Whatever happened to the concept of less is more?

Bev: But if less is more, then just think of how much more 'more' will be!

Bev: Come to think of it… You’ve always been nice to me.

Bev: I mean, you listen to all my problems-

Richard: No, Bev I just simply stand here while you talk, there’s a big difference.

Bev: I made this friendship bracelet for you.

Richard: You know, I’m not really a jewelry person.

Bev: You don’t have to wear…

Richard: No, I’m gonna wear it forever. Back off.

Bev: This is getting embarrassing.

Richard: Getting? We’re already there!

Bev: So uh, for this party and everything, do you, uh...

Richard, sighing: You don't know how to dress for this, do you?

Bev, panicked: WHAT IS CLOTHES???

Bev: I taught my dog, Pongo, a new trick. *throws ball* Fetch!

Pongo: *just stands there*

Richard: He didn’t do it.

Bev: I taught him to ignore social conventions and think for himself.

Bev: COMPANY IS COMING! I WANT THIS PLACE LOOKING LIKE DISNEY ON ICE IN ONE MINUTE!

Bev: RICHARD IF YOU HAVEN'T MADE YOUR BED THROW IT AWAY IT'S TOO LATE TO MAKE IT NOW!

Bev: GET RID OF THE COUCHES, WE CAN'T LET PEOPLE KNOW WE S I T !

Richard: Wow, it sure smells like wrong dog in here!

Bev: Oh buddy...

Richard, already sobbing: ASK.

Richard: Hi, I'm Bev's emergency contact.

Counter Woman: You're here to pick him up?

Richard: I'm here to remove myself as his emergency contact.

Richard: Can I have some?

Bev, mouth full of cheesecake: It's really spicy, you wouldn't like it.

Richard, to Bev: Well, one of us has to be wrong and it’s not going to be me.

Richard: I don’t even have time to tell you how wrong you are.

Bev: Okay?

Richard: …

Richard: Actually it’s gonna bug me if I don’t, so—

Bev: Let's all agree that going up the stairs on all fours is actually the best experience on earth.

Richard: Conversely, going down the stairs on all fours is actually the most terrifying experience on earth.

Hugh: I will beat all of you in Rock, Paper, Scissors. You go first.

Richard: Rock.

Hugh: Paper.

Hugh: *Pulls a glass a water from out of nowhere*

Richard: Where did you get that?

Hugh: My pocket.

Richard: How do you keep a glass of water in your pocket?

Hugh: Skills.

Hugh: .. .----. -- / … --- .-. .-. -.-- (translation: I'M SORRY)

Richard: What's that?

Hugh: Remorse code.

Richard: I'm even angrier now.

Hugh: Why are we friends?

Richard: Poor decisions on your part.

Hugh, acting tough: You guys don't want to mess with me.

Richard: Yeah, Hugh will straight up cry in public. Don't try him.

Hugh: Exactly, I will straight up-

Hugh:

Hugh, tearing up: Richard, why would you say that?!

Richard: Hey, what’s the name of the guy who lives down the hall?

Hugh: His cats' names are Walter and Rose.

Richard: That's not what I asked.

Hugh: That is all the information I have.

Hugh: Go big or go home!

Richard: Please, for once in your life just go home. I'm begging you. Go. Home.

Hugh: I'm going big!

Hugh: Are you busy?

Richard: No.

Hugh: Want to do something?

Richard: Why would you try to ruin this for me?

Hugh: The Ocean is a soup.

Richard:

Richard: Do elaborate.

Hugh: What are needed for something to be a soup?

Richard: Erm... Water, salt, some form of vegetation, and personally I prefer some meat in mine.

Hugh: *Tilts head*

Richard: The Ocean is a Soup.

Hugh: The Ocean is a Soup.

Hugh: *walking around disappointed after visiting an aquarium*

Richard: Hugh, what did you think a tiger shark was?

Hugh: So, I've been thinking Richard-

Richard: That's dangerous.

Hugh, T-posing in the doorway: Greetings, Richard.

Richard, not looking up from his coffee: Good morning, problem child.

Hugh: I regret nothing!!!

Richard: I regret everything!!!

Hugh: It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s free: pouring river water in your socks!

Richard: Why would I do that?

Hugh: It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s free!

Richard: I called you like ten times! Why didn’t you pick up?

Hugh: *remembers dancing to the ringtone*

Hugh: I didn’t hear it.

Richard, throwing a pokeball at Hugh: Hugh, I choose you!

Hugh, not looking up from their book and catching it: You need an Ultra ball to catch this Legendary Pokémon.

Hugh: Advice of the day kids, if you ever meet someone who calls Gatorade flavors the actual name of the flavor instead of just the color then they are a certified nerd.

Richard: Yeah but you have to specify, frost glacier or cool blue? You can’t just say blue because there’s more than one blue.

Hugh: Blue and light blue, nice try nerd.

Hugh: And if you have any suggestions, please put them in the suggestion box.

Richard: That’s a trash can.

Richard: Just say when.

Melvyn: When.

Richard: I-

Richard: Now or later?

Melvyn: Oh.

Melvyn: *is visibly upset*

Richard: Melvyn, what happened? I haven't seen you like this since you found out candyland wasn't an actual country.

Melvyn: Hey.

Richard: Hey?

Melvyn: I can't sleep. :/

Richard: I can. Goodnight.

Richard: Melvyn, say aluminum again. It's the entire source of my serotonin during these trying times.

Melvyn: *sigh* Only for you, buddy. Alyoouminnieeum.

Richard: We need a plan to beat them.

Melvyn: Okay, listen up. First, we fill their shoes with wet cat food.

Richard:

Melvyn: Judge me all you want, I get results.

Melvyn: I just got the best idea I've ever had in my entire life!

*Later*

Richard, to Melvyn: That was the worst idea you’ve ever had in your entire life.

Richard: *trying to get five seconds of sleep*

Melvyn, poking Richard’s arm: Richard Richard. Richard. Richard.

Richard: WHAT?

Melvyn: …We’re out of Capri Suns—

Melvyn: Everything’s fine, Richard.

Richard: Melvyn, I know your relationship with the english language is strictly casual, but you- I- *deep inhale* ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU WHAT’S NOT FINE.

Melvyn: I’m not being weird. Am I being weird?

Richard: Yes, and that’s coming from me.

Melvyn: You might not know this, Richard, but I am a flawed person.

Richard: I do know that.

Richard: State your name, rank, and intention.

Melvyn: Melvyn, Melvyn, fun.

Richard: *Turns on the kitchen light*

Melvyn: *Sitting at the table, eating bread*

Richard: It’s four in the morning.

Melvyn: Turn the light back off.

Richard: Am I right, Jeff?

Jeff: I’m almost certain you’re not, but to be fair, I wasn’t listening.

Richard: I ran into Jeff in the kitchen at 1 AM last night and when I asked him what he was doing, he just shrugged, said “these are my roaming hours,” and wandered off, strumming vaguely on his guitar.

Jeff: Don’t be sad!

Richard: Why not?

Jeff:

Jeff: I don’t have a good answer.

Richard: What’s the difference between a stalagmite and a stalactite?

Jeff: “Stalagmite” has an “m” in it.

Richard: Everyone knows that Santa is an invention designed by the big five corporations to sell tinsel and video games to an unsuspecting public.

Jeff: The whole “childhood wonder” stage just blew right past you, didn’t it?

#electric light orchestra #hugh mcdowell #melvyn gale #jeff lynne #bev bevan #mik kaminski #richard tandy #kelly groucutt #incorrect elo quotes

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helenofjupiter · 5 months

Text

assigning taylor swift songs to bridgerton couples (part 2)

with explanations that no one asked for (proceed with caution)

part 1 for a, b, c and d

eloise & phillip - i hadn’t even read the book and i knew paris was their song. i feel it captures their essence. “no, i didn't see the news 'cause we were somewhere else” while benophie are just as deep in the countryside, i think philoise truly don’t care about anything that goes on in the ton. “i want to brainwash you into loving me forever” i’m not sure why this line in particular stands out to me in context of their relationship. maybe because going into it they both had their agenda. also phillip constantly thinking he has to find a way to make eloise stay forever. “confess my truth in swooping, sloping, cursive letters” i think this one is self explanatory. secondly electric touch, i was hesitant about this one cause i’m just not a fan of this song sonically but the lyrics were too on point. “just breathe, just relax, it'll be okay // just the first time ever hanging out with you” - eloise sitting in her carriage on the way to meet a man who basically proposed to her without meeting once. from phillip’s “i've gotten used to no one callin' my phone” when eloise shows up and the servant’s “hey, we got a caller” and phillip going “wtf no one comes here, you sure about that”. also “i've grown accustomed to sleeping' alone” yeah eight years will do that. “i was thinking, just one time maybe the stars align, just one time and maybe I call you mine”

francesca & michael - so i have a story regarding this one. as i got to the second half of the book and the spice started flooding in, i felt like the need for some equally sexy music in the background and i remembered (honestly don’t know how i ever forgot) the altarpiece of taylor’s music false god. truly all the stars aligned, while i read the words “she felt cherished. worshipped. loved” miss taylor swift sang “we'd still worship this love”. other than that it does fall into the vibes category. tho if one day we are blessed enough to actually get their season i am expecting every social media feed to be drowning in edits of franchel to this song. but also alternatively to don’t blame me. again, sexy. well the spice in this book was just on another level and i also couldn’t figure out if taylor has a song about being in love with your cousins spouse for six years. i think this is more from michael’s perspective. i mean “i've been breaking' hearts a long time” he even broke mine by being fictional. “if you walk away i'd beg you on my knees to stay” michael stirling would absolutely do this and frankly i can’t stop picturing it. if we do get to them in the show some glorious day, this is my official plea to include this song in the soundtrack.

gregory & lucy - speak now is the somewhat lazy choice but have you read the prologue timed to this song. “i hear the preacher say, "speak now or forever hold your peace"” the church went silent “there's the silence, there's my last chance. i stand up with shaky hands, all eyes on me” the priest stopped his drone, and every spine in every pew twisted until every face was turned to the back. to him. “horrified looks from everyone in the room but i'm only looking at you” she said nothing, but he saw her. // she looked so beautiful. i rest my case. it was really hard to pick a song for them because there’s so many twists and turns in the book so my honourable mentions are haunted (when gregory convinced everything is solved and then lucy goes and marries another man) and daylight. finally i settled with ivy. “my pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand, taking mine but it's been promised to another” i mean lucy has been promised to another man from the start of the book. it just fits them, okay (can you tell i’ve been writing this for four hours at this point).

hyacinth & gareth - dear god, hyacinth is my favourite character in the whole books series. i adore her but for the love of god i could not figure out what songs to choose for hyareth. it was truly a headache and if anyone has any suggestions, please do not hesitate to tell me. because they are such a chaotic and energetic duo, i wanted something that would fit them musically but ended up picking cowboy like me and peace. both are truly in the vibes category, i don’t have much of an explanation. in cowboy like me “and the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to fuck this up” felt kinda reminiscent of the whole polt line with gareth and his father who wasn’t really his father. peace has a little more substance to it. in my head this is more from hyacinth, she is wild and you will never get bored with her but she can also be a lot and tiring. “you know that i'd swing with you for the fences, sit with you in the trenches. give you my wild, give you a child” this is who hyacinth is, she is a ride or die, and i truly believe she would sit in the trenches with gareth.

#bridgerton #eloise x phillip #philoise #francesca x michael #franchel #gregory x lucy #grucy #hyacinth x gareth #hyareth

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beefromanoff · 8 months

Text

Going Under Ch. 16

summary: Bucky and Gianna reunite and the team strategizes to hold a press conference.

characters: Bucky Barnes x OC

soundtrack: big jet plane - angus & julia stone

warnings: fluff, pop star fantasy x love story, set in an AU where the Avengers reunite after Civil War, pre-infinity war, slight angst, hurt/comfort, lonely reader/OC.

author’s note: this one is a little longer, but still short - is the slow burn taking too long to burn?!

chapter list

_________________________________________

Steve had been gone less than an hour when Gianna began to get restless. Her phone was nowhere to be found. Well, none of her belongings seemed to have made it to this pristine medical suite. There was a large screen built into the wall in front of her, but no remote in sight.

Sighing, she leaned back into the surprisingly plush bedding. There was a time when all she craved was a few moments of peace, left alone in her room. Now, everything in her was praying for that peace to be interrupted. Specifically by something dark haired and 100+ years old.

Whoosh.

Gianna’s eyes blinked open as she heard the door part to allow someone in. Not just someone, but the interruption she’d been hoping for. Her chest flooded with relief at the same time her stomach filled with butterflies.

Bucky stepped into the room, sheepish eyes looking tentatively up at her.

“Hi,” She said breathlessly, kicking herself for not thinking of something wittier.

“Hi,” He paused, holding his hands up. “I come bearing gifts.”

Gianna hadn’t even noticed his hands being full. Eyes widening, she sat up straight in bed and pulled her legs in to sit cross legged so he’d have room to join her.

“You didn’t!”

“I did. Hot dogs, a blueberry scone, and the biggest Coke I could find.” He strode across the room and sat beside her on the bed, accepting the nonverbal invitation. “The hot dogs aren’t from the stand on 17th, though. I thought they may not be good if I went all the way back to the city.” He shrugged, offering her one of the two paper bags in his hand.

“My hero,” She snatched them both from his grip, tearing open the smaller one and taking the large pastry out before pausing. “For more reasons than just this.”

For a moment, their eyes met with quiet sincerity. Bucky opened his mouth to speak, to apologize, but Gianna interrupted him.

“But mostly just the scone.” She winked, taking a bite and letting crumbs litter the bed. He laughed, thankful for their prompt return to normalcy but still wishing he could tell her how sorry he was.

“How do you feel?”

“Better now,” She said through a full mouth. “A little stiff, head kinda hurts. I haven’t moved a whole lot since I woke up though, I could be giving myself too much credit.”

Bucky nodded, eyes wandering over the cut on her eyebrow and bruising peeking through the top of her gown.

“So what’s the deal now?”

“What do you mean?” His eyebrow furrowed.

“Did Dr. Cho communicate with Tom? He’ll need to know my discharge date.” She paused in between bites. “The label doesn’t do well with my unplanned downtime. When I had my appendix out, they had to reschedule my appearance on Fallon and you’d have thought the sky was falling. They still only moved it back one day. The whole internet was talking about how I must have had a drug problem because of how awful I looked, meanwhile I was just trying not to tear my stitches in the little dress they stuck me in.”

She was so nonchalant about such a horrible experience that Bucky felt a knot of anger in his stomach. He shoved it back down before responding, choosing his words carefully.

“G…I don’t think it’s such a good idea for you to go back to the tour.”

Gianna froze, looking straight back at him with a hot dog clutched in her hand.

“That’s not an option, the label would never go for that. My contract is airtight, if I don’t fulfill my agreement then I have to pay back all the money I've made in the past five years.” She looked down at her lap. “I was seventeen when I signed with them. I didn’t know I was supposed to talk to an attorney before I signed.”

Frowning, Bucky rested his hand on her knee. “Let’s not worry about that right now. Just focus on healing and eating the most well-deserved hot dog of all time.” He gave her a soft smile, watching as she nodded and went back to eating.

As she wiped her face with a napkin, the door slid open again to reveal a sharply-dressed Tony Stark and Pepper Potts.

"Hey, lovebirds. We need to talk," Tony said, a serious expression on his face. He stepped into the room, Pepper close behind.

Gianna and Bucky looked up, surprised. "What's going on?" Bucky asked, ready to jump to the defensive if more bad news was about to be thrown their way.

"We need to get ahead of the news cycle. Our PR team is suggesting hosting a press conference to address the situation and reassure the public that Gianna is safe," Pepper explained. “Your management agrees.”

“We’ve been through this a time or two, kiddo, and if you don’t get to say your piece then the media will write their own.” Tony added.

“Yeah…I get it.” Gianna spoke slowly, unsure what she’d even say considering she had the fewest details about the attack of all three people in the room. As if reading her thoughts, Pepper spoke again.

“We’ll have a private debriefing first, give you all the information you want to know. It would be monitored by our team, they’d send a list of approved questions and make sure things run smoothly. Anything you don’t want to answer, you don’t have to.” She gave a reassuring smile. Gianna was put at ease by the calm and comforting energy she seemed to bring into the room.

"Whatever you think is best," Gianna said, her voice quiet. “You’ll have to find me a brush or something, though. I don’t think this is my best look.”

Tony scoffed. “Haven’t you heard, heroine chic is all the rage these days.” Pepper gave him a sharp elbow in the side before smiling softly again.

“I can do you one better.” Even her eyes reflected the warmth of her smile when she spoke. “I’ll see to it that your belongings are all brought to your room and that we have wardrobe options available for you. I’ll get your measurements to our personal shopper. I’m thinking something Chanel, classy but feminine. Oh, and I assume you’ll want your own makeup artist?”

Gianna nodded. I want this woman to adopt me. Wow.

“Good, because Tony’s makeup artist is fully booked.” Pepper gave a wry smile and winked. “If you need anything, just tell FRIDAY to send for me.”

“Hang in there kiddo,” Tony called as he turned to follow Pepper through the door. “Oh, and Barnes, keep the extracurricular activities to a minimum. These medical beds aren’t built to withstand whatever your idea of a passionate reunion is.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, cheeks flushing despite himself. As the door whooshed shut behind them, Bucky reached for Gianna’s hand, careful not to rustle the IV on the back of it.

Bucky squeezed her hand, offering his support. "We'll get through this, together," he said, his eyes meeting hers. She nodded, the sudden overwhelm of the whole situation making her eyes watery.

“Hey, hey…” Shifting his body to face hers fully, Bucky reached out and cupped her cheek in his hand. A single hot tear cascaded over his fingers. “What can I do?”

Gianna gave a watery smile. “You’re already doing it.” She reached up and rested her hand over his, leaning her cheek into his palm. “It’s just…a lot.”

“Yeah. It’s not exactly an average work day.”

“You know you were the first person I looked for? When…everything happened. I didn’t even know what was going on. My ears were ringing…my head felt like it weighed a thousand pounds…all I could think of was just getting to you. If I could just lift my head and look for you, everything would be okay.”

Bucky’s face fell. “I’m so sorry…I should have been there. I shouldn’t have left your side, even for a second, I-”

“Don’t do that,” Gianna tilted his head up and met his gaze. “You’ve been everything to me on this tour. You’ve been my company, my sanity…you’ve been so much more than you had to be.”

“But the one thing I was supposed to do was protect you. I failed.” His voice was gruff.

“Look at me,” She tilted his head up again. “I’m here, aren’t I? Whatever the plan was, it failed. Not you. I’m all in one piece, that’s probably more than whoever came after me can say now that you’re done with them.”

Bucky gave a half-hearted smile.

“Seriously, Buck, I’m a little bruised. That’s all. I’ve seen you eat an apple that’s in worse shape than me.” She gave him a light shove.

“Hey, there weren’t many options in that green room and I knew better than to dig into your candy stash.”

“If you want to see a real diva, just take away my sour gummy worms.”

They let their soft laughter die out and sat in silence for a moment.

“I’m glad you’re okay.”

“I’m glad you’re here.”

Gianna leaned her head onto Bucky’s shoulder like she had so many times before. This medical suite replaced the back of a suburban, but the comfort and familiarity was unwavering.

“Ms. Cruz, Sergeant Barnes. Wanda Maximoff is requesting access to Ms. Cruz’ medical bay. Should I send her in? She would like it to be noted that she’s baked strawberry cupcakes as a gift.”

Sitting up straight, Gianna looked equally confused and intrigued at the electronic voice that filled the room. She met Bucky’s eyes and shrugged, smiling. He spoke up to respond.

“Sure, FRIDAY, send her in.”

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