#i was deleting some photos from my phone and i saw the art from the 5th anniv and i just had to draw this

[pineapple-frenzy]

He's tiny

#badass temple #kuko harai #jyushi aimono #hitoya amaguni #hypmic #my art #i was deleting some photos from my phone and i saw the art from the 5th anniv and i just had to draw this #like he's so smol next to jyushi and hitoya ajdjkajdksjjd #and he would do this cause he's a menace akjdksjdk #n e ways i have so much hypmic stuff saved in my phone and i'm not deleting any of them #i'm running out of space but i refuse to delete my collection of dumb hypmic shit ydjakdjksjs

[fortunekookie07]

Before you start reading this one, I'd just like you to know that Chryssikyu is 100% responsible for this one. All it took was one thought and I had to write something. Also I'm not capable of writing smut, it's beyond my capabilities. This is as far as I can go. So sorry. Without further ado I present to you

Call Me

You huff looking down at your phone for what feels like the hundredth time that day. Rafayel has once again ignored your phone calls. Answered text messages? Keep dreaming!

This is the same man who got super pissy and dramatic when you didn't answer his call right away. It was always something like, "I guess I'm not important enough for you to take my calls." Or something of the like. Yet somehow, you managed to find his dramatic pouty self adorable.

Today, though? Not so much, you were sorely tempted to let a cat lose in his studio for not taking your calls all afternoon. He'd know it was you, though. You were the only one he'd admitted to of his extreme dislike (read fear) of the furry creature. Revenge would be had. Thus, you just didn't have the heart.

After another hour and still no response, you decided to pay him a visit. So you take the twenty minute trip over to his private art studio/home.

Walking up the path, you see nothing out of the ordinary, the same plants and pathway as always. Just as you reach the door, you hear music. You pause, Rafayel certainly liked music. He'd recommend some artists to you before. It's just that he'd never played any in his studio before. It was usually quiet. That was how he preferred it.

Hesitantly, you turn the knob slowly and carefully so as not to make a sound. Thank god Rafayel had regular maintenance done on his doors. They never squeaked or creaked. He detested that sound.

You remove your shoes and leave them in the doorway. Something just telling you not to make any sounds. Carefully searching the downstairs studio reveals that he's not here, but the further you venture in the louder, the music is.

You realize you hear two voices, one coming from a female and the other, definitely male. You freeze, oh my god, is Rafayel singing?!? The male voice is amazing. You've never heard anything like it, so you keep going almost as if his voice is luring you in.

At the top of the stairs, the living room is situated, a wide space. Rafayel had personally designed the room, and it reflected him greatly. The huge wall to the back was his own painting of the sea. One of his greatest works. Sadly, not many would ever see it. He rarely had company over, and even fewer of them were invited up to his living quarters upstairs. You were one of two people to be given that privilege.

This wasn't the most amazing thing, though. There, in front of the large sofa, was Rafayel singing and dancing using his paintbrush as a microphone. He was completely oblivious to your presence.

You quickly took out your phone and snapped a few photos before recording. The song ended then, and he turned around, seeing you holding your phone and trying not to laugh.

His ears instantly went red as a scarlet blush bloomed across his face. "How long have you been standing there? It's rude not to announce your presence." He partially covered his face, his eyes darting away. Then he saw that you were holding your phone camera pointed at him. "Are, are you recoding me?!?!?" He asked Incredulously his blush, deepening as he made to grab your phone.

"Delete it!" He swiped for the sleek device, but you managed to dodge his frantic hands. "Nope! This is all mine now. " You wagged the phone in his face before stuffing it down your shirt. Rafayel would never be so bold to get it now. You poked his cheeks, and he swiped at you again.

"Do that again, and I'll spit bubbles at you." He said, rubbing his face and trying to hide his red face. "What have you been doing? I've been trying to call you all day." You put your hands on your hips and raise a brow.

"I was trying to get inspiration and then decided to listen to some music. You know the rest." He crossed his arms and turned away from you in a humph motion. Still embaressed at having been caught.

When you asked what song and he gave the title, you frowned. "That song is like twenty years old. Why are you listening to that?" You'd heard the song before, just not in a long time. "It came in the station I was listening to." He defended.

"Next time, don't ignore my calls. Did you forget you wanted me to go with you to buy supplies for your painting?" Rafayel's face brightened, and his eyes were almost twinkling. You thought you had him until realization hit him.

"Hand over your phone first. You took pictures. If they aren't perfect, I'll delete them." He held his hand out expectantly.

"Nope! These are all mine." You grinned at the pout on his face, certain he would not venture to get it. You were about to find out how wrong you were

He reached towards you going for your shirt. Swatting his hands away, you "No touchy!" He only grinned in response. "Oh, I'm going to touch alright." The wicked glint in his eyes sent your heart racing. "Rafayel!" You say in warning backing up. The only escape is the stairs behind you.

You turn to dash down them to another room below. We'll that was your intention anyways. Right behind you is that blue fish. You stop short. That was all the time he needed. His arms snake around, you pulling you into his firm chest and holding you tight.

One of his hands plays with the bottom of your shirt, his fingers tapping your bare stomach underneath. His head burries into your shoulder, and he whispers your name against the bare skin of your neck, sending shivers down your spine. A groan escapes your lips.

"I've got you now." He says, and you feel his grin before he is kissing your neck and making you squirm. You through your head back and sigh, leaving your mouth at his attention. His fingers are drawing patterns lightly on your stomach, and shivers shoot down your spine.

"This will end if you give me the phone." His voice is low and husky against your neck. "No-o." Your rebuttal is more of a moan at this point. Your brain is hazy as Rafayel starts on your buttons. The first one comes open with a pop, and his fingers are quick to trace more patterns on your stomach.

"Are you going to give me your phone?" He asks, nibbling on your ear. "Ahhhn," is all you manage to get out. The second button is popped, his fingers part your shirt, and the cool air makes you shiver against his heat. "How about now?" You manage to shake your head. The third button is undone. His fingers are just below your bra now. "Rafa...!" Your voice is breathless as he takes the last three buttons in one go.

His seeking fingers quickly pull your shirt open, exposing your chest and the stashed phone. "I'm taking it now." His voice is low and husky as he nips your ear again. His hands slide up your sides slowly. He's definitely teasing you now.

With your mind in a daze, you try to grab your phone, but his nimble fingers are faster. He grabs your wrist and then laces your fingers together. He kisses each of your fingers and the back of your hand before turning your head towards him and pinning you with a piercing stare.

Rafayel's blue-pink eyes are so heated and deep, you're about to fall in. Like you are looking at a quietly raging sea. He slowly leans in, dragging the moment out, and you let out an impatient whine. With your free hand, you wrap it around the back of his neck and draw him in closer. He brings your joined hands down lower, wrapping them around your waist and drawing you closer back. And then finally, finally, his lips press against yours.

You're so lost in his kiss that you don't even notice him delicately drawing your phone out of its hiding place in your bra and slipping it into his pants pocket. He lets go of your arm and then turns you around before hooking his hands around your knees and hoisting you up to his height. Your legs go around his waist, and then he's kissing you again as he walks to his bedroom.

****************************************************

As you lay in the bed with only a thin sheet covering you and Rafayel's arm for a pillow, you finally remember what started all this. "My phone! Rafayel, where is my phone?" He hums not fully paying attention. Just laying beside you with his eyes closed. You pink his arm as you sit up. "You stole my phone!" You can't even be mad at him. You fell for his distraction.

Sitting up, you look around the room for clothes. Spying his black pants, you leap off the bed and dash over to it. Sure enough, your phone is in his pocket. As fast as you can, you email a copy of the video you took and the pictures to yourself before looking at him triumphantly.

He's just sitting up resting an elbow on his knee, supporting his head with his hand, watching you. "Do you want a picture of me so badly?" He asks in a provoking tone. Deciding that you've had enough of his games, you walk over and grab his face with both hands. "I prefer the real thing." You say stealing a kiss before slipping away again.

"I've got to go now, I have a mission. I'll be gone for a few days. Don't forget to call me this time!" You hurriedly dress yourself and turn to leave the bedroom before he's grabbing your arm and pulling you back. "Come straight here when you're done." He says a serious look in his eyes. "I miss you when you're gone." You turn and hug him. "I'm just a phone call away." You kiss him again and then head out the door.

#love and deepspace x reader #love and deepspace #love and deepspace rafayel x reader #love and deepspace fanfiction #love and deepspace fic #@chryssikyu

[petite-madame]

Was going to dm you about something that I don't know if you know or knew about but I ended up downloading a coloring app on my phone after seeing an add where it has some SPN photos that people can color but what made me delete the app is when I accidentally refreshed my screen and saw one of your SPN artworks that I think might be stolen. That app is called Movie Color, Color By Number

Hi anon ^^

Thank you so much for letting me know and for taking the time to contact me, it's very kind of you. 💗

Don't tell me about this app, I've been receiving messages left and right about it from people from the Supernatural fandom (thank you so much for still being around guys 🥰). I tried to report the app but it didn't work, these people are still using my work without permission.

Me, waiting patiently for the app to take down my art or at least that the Google/Apple store do something about it

These apps and Facebook sponsored ads are a plague. I've been trying to fight these a-holes for years. Oh, and how could I forget that seller on Amazon that sells blankets of my artworks! I report them, they get banned and reappear under another name 2 months later. 🙃

I'll see what I can do. Thanks again for contacting me anon, I wish you a great weekend. 💕

#pmasks

[drvnkd4zed]

Hiii, I recently followed u and I rlly love your fics! I live for it🤌🏻 Can you possibly do OT7 Idol!Enha x nonidol!reader where they are out on a date and they’re almost got caught by dispatch or media?? (If possible please add a little fluffy night date or whatever comes in your mind date) thank u so much🫶🏻

Enhypen almost getting caught by medias on a date with you (enha x nonidol reader)

thank you so much for this request! I hope I this came out as you wished! ✨

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Jungwon

I think Jungwon would be very annoyed, because even if he understands why dispatch wants you two to be revealed as a couple he doesn't want your relationship to be known. He's worried that you would receive lot of hate and malicious comments by the fans, so he prefers to treat you some good food at home rather than in a restaurant. "I'd love to try that new restaurant near the center, jungwon~" you'd ask him whining. He sighs as he puts his jacket on. "What would you like me to order?" He asks you smiling. "I can go there instead, it's fine as long as they don't see us together right?" "Yeah, but it's late and I won't let you go there alone. Let me save you from the dark this time" he says.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Heeseung

Heeseung's always mocking the idols who get caught in their relationships, but once you two almost got caught, you just stare at him in silence while he's torturing his hands out of stress. "What if they'll post the photos online?" He asks. "What if people find out about us??" He asks again. "We'll get through it, you just have to deny everything" you reassure him. You sit near him, putting your head on his chest. "I'm worried about you. You're not an idol so people can approach you very easily" he explains. "It's okay, Heeseung. No one will be in danger. Just calm down~ nothings out yet. They might delete it if you deny about the relationship" you explain. He smiles at you. "Thank you for being so patient with me. I'll make sure no one hurts you".

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Jay

Jay's going to be very mad, but at the same time he'd like to be at the center of the attention because of this dating rumor. He wants to show you off, to show people that you're his and only his. You'd be the panicked one among the two. "If they want to release it, I'll pay them enough to shush. Even if I wouldn't be so sad if people knew how beautiful you are. I feel so good knowing that I can look at you closely, like a piece of art".

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ jake

Jake's most likely to freak out inside while showing a emotionless smile. You'd just look at him speechless, because you've never seen him like that before. He looked like he was in outer space. "J-jake?" You call him and he looks at you, without saying a word. He calls the ceo and ask him to delete every scandal, with a soft, sweet and embarrassed voice. "S-s-sorry, I think you saw the photos, c-can you please ask them to delete them? I-i am not in a r-relationsh-ship, we're just f-friends". The ceo would melt hearing Jake's innocent words and would accept his request. "We're safe, baby" he says putting the phone down. "What did you say??" a voice from the phone keeps talking. Jake's eyes gets bigger in surprise, then he hangs up. "You're an idiot" you say.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Sunghoon

Imagine you two get caught while drinking boba at the local bubble tea shop, then you see people taking photos of you, immediately you realize they're from dispatch's staff. You tap sunghoon's shoulder and you point the people to him. He takes a few steps further as he looks at you confused. "Who are you? Why are you talking to me?" He asks, almost yelling. You want to laugh but you want to play along with him at the same time. "I thought you were my friend, she was standing here few seconds ago" you reply. "Be careful next time! You interrupted such a romantic moment between me and my bubble tea". You'd roll eyes and walk towards the exit, texting him: "I think we fucked it up". "No, we did great" he replies. "You kept staring at my lips...".

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Sunoo

He has a foolproof way to confuse the medias. Whenever there are dating rumors about you, he would just say "ew, no", with a disgusted gaze. You know he's kidding, and you'd just laugh once you two are out of the media's sight. "Me in a relationship with you? Ew, I don't think you'd last a day" he says mimicking how he acted in front of dispatch.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Niki

You two are walking around the city talking and laughing together, when he notices something is off. "I feel like we're being observed " he states. You look around to find few people staring at you two holding some cameras. "Niki, look there" you point them to niki. "I think they're watching us-" before you could finish your sentence, he ran away. He was already totally out of your sight. Few seconds later, you receive a message from him. "Let's meet at the dormitory with the boys, I'll buy you something to eat on the way home".

Hope you guys liked it ~ I'm sorry if this didn't came out good enough 😭

#enhypen #kpop #heeseung #jay #jake #sunghoon #sunoo #jungwon #niki #enhypen reactions #kpop imagines #kpop requests #kpop reactions #kpop edits #enhypen reaction #enhypen imagines #enhypen kpop

[wutlaikalikes]

Threads

This post is mainly my early thoughts, you can keep scrolling.

Honestly, for someone who doesn’t like making new unnecessary accounts, I don’t know why I made one. lol I guess there’s still a side of me that likes to make sure I can get my usual username.

I have been thinking of deleting my instagram account for a while. I made an IG account to have a place for my nail art and special effects make-up photos. But I have moved most of it on another Tumblr blog together with my drawings and DIY props.

So today, I made a Threads account. I got really annoyed as soon as I made one since one of the first posts I saw was that you can’t delete Threads without deleting Instagram. Well, since I am thinking of deleting my Instagram at some point, I wouldn’t feel bad about deleting both.

But I am going to give it a try or rather I’m gonna keep it active just in case any of the Holostars members make an account. I kinda don’t see that happening actually cause HoloPlus might come out soon. Right now, it's like talking to a void since I plan on just following mainly Holosutamin or Holostars related accounts. I don’t know if following people would guarantee that the only posts I’ll see are just from those I’m following. I don’t think hashtags don’t work yet. Also as someone that is mainly in front of the PC rather than my phone, Instagram and Threads kinda sucks.

As much as I’m tired of Twitter, it's the best way to keep up with the content I like to support.

I really like using Tumblr recently. It's really not a good social media site but then again this site is initially marketed as a blog site (if I remember correctly). I honestly just don’t like how conversations / post replies look like on this site. But as a blog, I quite like it. There is an ask box which I never opened and there’s also an option to open private messages which I have opened but might not respond to. (I’m very introverted even online lol)

Algorithm, kinda sucks too cause even though I set up my preferred tags and only interact with my preferred content, I still don’t see fellow Holosutamin and I would still see posts I’m not interested with.

But as they say there is no perfect “something”, its either you work with it, work around it, or quit.

However, It's still really early to say that Threads is going to be the “Twitter Killer”. It needs to have some unique features. The only thing going on for Threads that would help it go against Twitter is the fact that its associated with Meta.

#blog

[lgcarin]

ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ 2ᴋ22       ʟᴇᴇ ᴀʀɪɴ (ʟɪʟʟʏ)

what are the top 5 most used apps on your phone?

of course i have ‘bubble for rbw’ just for oneus because they’re the only relevant group, just don’t tell anyone i said that... i have the snow app to take photos and decorate them up when i’m bored, though i don’t ever really show them to anyone because i forget they’re even in my phone until it’s too late. oh! i also have this game called furistas cat cafe which is super cute and fun to play, plus it helps pass the time by especially during schedules when we’re in the waiting room. i also have tiktok where i watch random videos, even those of fans who make their own little dance challenges to our songs, or even do unboxings of our albums we have so far. the last app? would be my music app where i stream all of oneus’ songs all day, everyday because i have to support them even when i’m sleeping. 

what is the most random note in the notes app?

the most random note would probably be my list of oneus photocards that i still haven’t gotten, but i’m working hard towards getting them! now with their newest album out, i have to do my very best to get every single photocard that’s possible. if i manage to get seoho’s collection done, i’ll be moving on to the other members as well, in case you haven’t realized he’s like my main bias of the group so of course his photocards get their own special note in my phone.. it’s titled ‘future hubby’s photocards’ and i’m not even ashamed to admit that i even have the note titled as that because he’s obviously hubby material. really though, i even have the list of how many of each album of theirs i have bought even trying to obtain the complete sets of photocards. it’s a hard life being a fan of such a talented group.

what was the last message or call you’ve received and who was is from?

from that one ‘mama’s boy’ who is delusional and has a big ego, also seems like an airhead and i wonder why i ever even dated him in the first place? i must have been crazy or something.. i even deleted his number out of my phone the first time, boy thought i was playing ‘hard to get’ when i didn’t know who was texting me, then he realized (maybe) that i really didn’t know who he was. now he’s saved in my phone as ‘cute but still mama’s boy’ so that i remember to ignore his texts in the future unless i’m really bored and need some sort of ‘entertainment’ to pass the time by.

what were the last 5 songs that you’ve listened to?

this is easy! first would be ‘Same Scent’ by ONEUS (of course) because the song is amazing and i just can’t quit listening to it. second song would be... you guessed it! another ONEUS song! which is another song off of their MALUS album ‘STUPID LOVE’, a song i’m pretty sure that many can really vibe with.. okay, so the last three songs i’m sure you’ve already figured are also ONEUS songs, but is it really that surprising? next up we have ‘LUNA’, an absolute favorite of mine. not only is the song addicting, but so is the choreography, and even the outfits as well! next is ‘TO BE OR NOT TO BE’ because... well, duh! they’re even hotter with dark concepts... pfft. last, but certainly not least, we have ‘No diggity’ which of course is a bop and something we can all agree on that the song is addicting and makes you want to stop and dance wherever you’re at.

what were the 5 most recent online searches?

oh, so there’s like me searching up seoho a bit... or a lot... then there’s a recent search for some fun halloween baking ideas, you know since halloween is coming up soon and all. then there’s some search for a diy project i saw on tiktok recently for like a cute shelf that someone made, though after looking at all of the steps to even building it, i don’t think it’ll ever get done... another search is for some cute halloween nail art, again since the holiday is coming up, and i have a few ideas on how i want to do my nails. the last one would obviously be halloween costumes. i won’t spoil what i’m planning on being, but just know that i’m already getting prepared for the spooky holiday.

what are your contact names for all of the group members?

Eunhye: best leader in the world~ Yejin: jin-jin unnie Hayoung: ‘april’ showers bring flowers~ Minji: minji-ji

#lgc:cupdate004 #{ aka arin's phone is nothing but oneus and she's not even ashamed of it tbh lol }

[zucchini888]

What can you smell right now?

I kinda smell the clementine I ate awhile ago. I might boil some to make the house smell nice in conjunction with vanilla incense.

What was the last thing you bought online?

Skinnyfit and Ka'Chava products.

If you drink coffee, when was the last time you went a day without having one?

I go months without any, my cold brew machine didn't get me hooked.

Do you have any appointments coming up?

Several got cancelled, but I have a GP with fasting labs coming up in July. I need to lose weight to drop my cholesterol levels.

Do you put appointments in your phone’s calendar app to remember them?

Not in the calender app, I use a different list app.

Will you be visiting anyone’s house in the next week or so?

Probably Dk and Tammy.

Have you ever been to a petting zoo? What animals did you pet?

Many. I also used to volunteer at the aquarium and they have a touch tank at one of the stations I monitored.

What was the last movie you saw in theatres?

Avatar 2: Way of Water.

Do you know anyone who has done a PhD?

Samuel-Gilbert.

How many unread emails are in your inbox right now?

None I clear it out everyday.

What four apps do you keep on the home bar on your iPhone? (Sorry, I’m not sure if Android has an equivalent!)

Phone, texts, Mozilla and Email.

Have you ever used Tumblr? Do you still use it today?

I had one years ago but I just Rebooted this one that I created over 3 years ago right around the time I got hired at Sonic on my 30th birthday!

Are you tired right now?

No, I drank too much caffeine.

What’s your favourite day of the week and why?

Sunday nights because Mondays imply that I'll usually be busy.

How far away is the nearest major city?

Raleigh is two hours away, Charlotte is four.

Do you own an electric kettle?

No, but my mom did and her water dispenser had a hot water heater built in.

Are your eyebrows wispy or bushy?

Tweezed but not too thin.

Have you ever lost your wallet or purse? Did you have to replace a bunch of things?

No, thankfully.

Do you use the same username everywhere, or switch it up a bit?

I switch it up. I like to be semi-anonymous.

Where are you right now? Describe the room or place to me.

I’m in my living room. It's clean but slightly cluttered bc Blonde Linda needs to pick up her box and I need to use up all these old art supplies and hygenic supplies. I still have items I need to trash and oh shit I forgot it was Friday. It's about to smell like vanilla incense in here.

Do you prefer big dogs or small dogs?

Big dog breeds that have been miniaturized such as miniature Shar-pei's, or just small dogs in general, because the bigger the dog the bigger the shit.

Are you good at understanding heavy accents? Which accents would you say you’re the best at understanding?

New Yorker and Mandarin-English and a tad of Spanglish.

Have you ever played on a real life pinball machine, or just on the computer?

Both! It's been awhile though.

Do you have a lot of word documents or notes on your computer?

Not really. I had a lot of racy photos that got deleted off of my old purple Macbook though.

What’s your favourite Ben & Jerry’s flavour?

I used to like Phish Food and Half-Baked, but I'm honestly a Milk n' Cookies girl now.

Have you ever been to a school reunion? How was it?

Nope. I regret not going to the OLQM one in 2010.

How many nights a week do you generally cook at home?

As of recent almost every night, since Dk owes me money I had to get food from a food bank so I made good use of that.

What colour are the street signs in your neighbourhood? Are they the same all over town or do they vary?

Green with white lettering, and mostly the same all over town. In some areas they are blue and white.

Do you have good grammar and punctuation skills?

I think so.

Have you ever tried vegan chicken? Did you like it?

I have and it wasn't that bad.

#BoredomKiller

[thinkingofsimpyboisinc]

Man, here's an actual story and not short sentences or anon asks.

WARNINGS: Obsession, talk of NSFW, stalker (it's simpbur, y'all.)

'Out of everything I could have done with my life.....'

'Why did I choose freelance was the way to go?"

Right out of your highschool life, you wanted to go to university. Of course, to do that you would need money. And to get money, you'd need a job. You hated social situations, was bad at almost everything, and couldn't stand the smell of grease. So your only solution was freelance art.

Of course, occasionally you'd get the odd commission, things you'd have to turn down because you just thought of it as so disgusting. You've dealt with art thieves, choosing beggars, Karens. You thought you experienced it all, but you could have not been more incorrect.

It was a regular Monday and you scrolling through your emails. Reading every commission, replying to most. You had just went into your junior year at your university and was living quite well. Just you, your apartment, and your cat. Everything was going exactly as you hoped it would, until you saw his email.

"Subject: MARRY ME PLEASE I LOVE I LOVE YOUILOVEYOUILOVEYOUILOEVYOUILEOVEUOU"

'What the fuck? Who is this freak?' It wasn't as if you hadn't dealt with creepy guys before, but nothing this strange. You were scared to read the email, yet your curiosity was too much to resist.

With slight hesitation, you opened the email.

You swore it was almost an entire novel wrong, most if not all if it was extremely difficult to read let only understand. They were all drawn out sentences about his "needs" for you. 'How does a human being even manage to write 3 paragraphs on how much he wants to see his cum get stuck in my hair and on my eyelashes?' Quite a few of it was illegible and most times he repeated himself and said things he said over and over again.

As far as you could tell, it was all talking about how much he wanted to sleep with you. First two paragraphs were only about him marrying you and you later carrying his children and how much he'd 'love to see you swell with his offspring.' The next three paragraphs were about how much wanted to cum on you and in you. "Even if it got inyour wyes, it doesnt matter. I'll love to see it and so would suou." You almost vomited but the misspelled words made you feel better. The next paragraph was about how much he wanted to see your tits/dick bounce when you rode him until he fell unconscious.

You didn't bother reading anymore, scrolling to the bottom so you could hit the delete and hope he'd catch the memo. But before you could, some photos listed at the bottom caught your attention.

The first two were, as expected, pictures of his cock. However, the third one as a photo of you. Not from a stream or Instagram photo, but just you at the local supermarket. It had clearly been taken by someone who wanted to stay hidden, the side of a shelf very prominent. Judging by your outfit, this photo was taken just last Friday. The fourth was of an apartment door. At first, you didn't understand, but you noticed the familiar plaque of your apartment number. Whoever this was knew you where you lived.

You didn't bother looking at the other photos, quickly grabbing your phone and backing away from your computer. You dialled the emergency number, but before you could get a word out, a large crash came from the kitchen. You already knew who it was.

"911, what's your emergency?"

#thinking of simpbur #simpbur #simpbur x reader #simbur smut #simpbur x you #//simpbur #yandere wilbur

[hangovercurse]

I’d Drop it All for You

Pictures of you and Pete are spread all over the internet, causing a whirlwind of hate to enter your social media.

Request: “Pete content please! anything !!! smut fluff whatever”

Pete x Reader

Warnings: Cursing, depictions of depression and anxiety

A/N: *Insert normal spiel about respecting A.G. and only using her for plot purposes. No harm intended.* Also I wrote most of this after a meeting with my therapist so... enjoy :) (He’s so cute in this gif I wanna kiss his face)

Word Count: 1820

You weren’t one of those people who loved being the center of attention. You knew that being in the spotlight also meant constantly living under a microscope, and you decided a long time ago that that was not for you.

But you were lucky enough to work as an assistant art director at just 24. You were hoping that The King of Staten Island, your newest project, would help get your name out into the professional world. But that wasn’t the only thing to come out of the film.

It happened unexpectedly, you showed up on set the first day, ready to do whatever the art director required of you. You couldn’t help but be slightly distracted by the lead actor and writer, Pete Davidson. He was so kind and funny, and he wasn’t uptight like everyone else.

After a few hours of filming, he came up to you, introducing himself. He said he “wanted to get to know everyone working on the project,” but you didn’t see him introducing himself to anyone else. You two started talking during breaks. Then he started sitting with you at lunch. Then he was asking for your number.

In a matter of weeks he was asking you out to dinner, taking you to a cozy restaurant that you absolutely adored. He walked you home, his hand grazing yours until you intertwined your fingers.

It was all very romantic, so when Pete asked if he could take you on another, you obviously said yes. Flash forward two weeks and he finally got the courage to ask you to be his girlfriend, even though you were both exclusively seeing each other already.

After filming ended 2 months later, you were still working on the film in post, which meant you had an excuse to stay  in Staten Island with Pete. After about 2 weeks in post, you spent more nights in his bed than your hotel’s.

Nearly 6 months later and you were happier than ever. You were splitting your time between your small apartment in the Bronx and Pete’s basement apartment. Pete introduced you to most of his friends, and you introduced him to yours.

But other than your small circles of friends, you kept your relationship fairly quiet. Pete doesn’t have social media and yours is strictly professional, so there are no pictures of you two together. You weren’t hiding each other, you loved each other, you just had no reason to tell tabloids. And you were perfectly happy with that.

Which made it so much worse when various news sites had pictures of you two holding hands. Had they been anyone else you would’ve thought they were cute, walking along the South Beach oceanside at night.

Pete had been in the SNL studio all day when the pictures were released, while you were in his apartment, trying your best to focus on the photoset in front of you. The production team wanted the film to scream “teen romance,” which basically entails subtle pink undertones and a higher saturation. But you couldn’t quite get the coloring right, probably because you weren’t actually focusing on the colors.

You sighed, looking at the time and realizing that Pete won’t be back until sometime after 2am, which was a whole 5 hours away. You let out a huff, pushing away from the desk and making your way to Pete’s closet and searching for one of his hoodies. They always smelled like him (and weed), so it was a comfort to you.

You crashed onto the bed, finding the phone that you had tossed there a few hours earlier. Turning it on you were surprised by the number of notifications you were getting. You knew the photos had surfaced but you weren’t expecting this.

Your Instagram was blowing up with new follows, likes, and comments. It was kind of exciting at first until you started reading some of the comments.

I mean, we knew he would downgrade from Ari, but this is like… really far down.

This girl really thinks she’s special just bc Pete’s dating her. Hun he could do so much better

Who is she?!? Literally no one.

Someone needs to show her how to dress

That hairstyle is not it honey

Pete Davidson is dating YOU??? He could do sooo much better

Ari was prettier sorry not sorry

The entire comment section on your last post, a picture of you on the set of your latest film, was pretty much the same. There were some nice comments, but a lot of mean ones.

And you couldn’t help it, you couldn’t stop looking at them. It felt so cliché, but it was like all of your deepest insecurities about being with Pete were thrown out on the table.

You knew that Pete had a fairly large following, and that a lot of people had really strong feelings about him. You had expected that if and when your relationship went public you would have a lot of people watching you, scrutinizing you. But you didn’t care because Pete was worth it.

Now you weren’t so sure. It wasn’t that you couldn’t handle people talking bad about you, because you definitely could, even if it hurt. You just weren’t expecting the amount of people comparing you to Ariana or saying that Pete could do so much better.

And it only bothered you so much because you felt it too. Your inner demons loved to remind you that Pete had dated Ariana fucking Grande and now he’s dating you. Anyone could see an obvious downgrade.

You turned your phone off and threw it on the opposite side of the bed, trying to think positive thoughts. “I am in control of my own thoughts and emotions. I am catching my negative thoughts and fixing them.” You murmured your therapist’s mantra to yourself, but it was too late. The thoughts had already taken hold of your mind.

Your eyes started to water as you could feel the heavy feeling in your chest set in. You pulled the hood over your head, pulling the straps to hide as much of your face as possible, and pulling your knees to your chest. You laid like that for a while, tears falling as doubts ran through your head. Once you had effectively exhausted your thoughts, you went numb. Your tears had stopped, but you couldn’t move. This wasn’t an unfamiliar feeling, but it sure wasn’t pleasurable.

There was a sort of buzzing throughout your body, almost like the feeling when your foot falls asleep, but everywhere. It seemed to block out your sound, as you didn’t hear the basement door open. You only knew that Pete was home when he sat beside you on the bed, pulling the hood off your face.

“There’s my beautiful girl.” He smiled at you. You tried your best to fake one back, but you honestly couldn’t find the energy. Pete pulled you so you were sitting up, back pressed against his front. His arms wrapped around your middle as he pressed a kiss to your temple. “What’s goin on?” He murmured against your skin.

“Did you see them?” You asked, your voice quiet and hoarse.

Pete let out a sigh, “Yeah, I saw them.” He paused, his hold on you getting tighter, like he was making sure you couldn’t leave. “I’m sorry baby. I know you didn’t want it to be a whole big thing.”

You turned your head to face him, “It’s not that. I really don’t mind that people know. We weren’t trying to hide anything.”

He smiled, “Yeah, I know I just- it was nice having this to ourselves.”

He wanted to hide you. He’s embarrassed of you.

Your inner dialogue never seemed to shut up.

You turned away from Pete, trying to hide the tears forming in your eyes. “Yeah.” You whispered.

“What’s wrong, you’re still upset.” He rocked you in his arms, kissing the top of your head. You shrugged in response, not trusting yourself to talk. “You can talk to me, y’know.”

You nodded, leaning further into Pete’s chest. “People found my Instagram.” You murmured, looking down and tracing the arrow tattoo on his hand.

“Whaddya mean? I thought it was public?” He furrowed his eyebrows.

You sighed, wishing you hadn’t said anything. “Yeah, it is. But after all the articles people started following me and shit.”

“I would ask how that’s a problem but I deleted my Instagram so I can’t really talk.” You could tell he was trying to make you feel better, but you couldn’t seem to get out of your haze.

You shook your head, deciding to drop the matter. “It’s not, I’m just being overdramatic.” You sighed, putting on a fake smile and facing him fully. “Wanna watch a movie?” You asked, trying to change the topic.

He gave you the I-know-you’re-bullshitting-me look, which made you look down. “Something’s bothering you, Y/N. And you’re trying to pretend it doesn’t because you think your feelings aren’t valid, but they are.” He tilted his head, trying to meet your eyes that were still trained on the bedsheets below you.

“Where’d you learn that one?” You chuckled half-heartedly.

“Rehab part 2” he smiled, hand coming to your jaw to tilt your head up. “C’mon, talk to me. I wanna help.”

You huffed, moving towards the opposite side of the bed where your phone laid. You opened it, finding your Instagram, and showing him the comments. His eyebrows furrowed as he scrolled through the comments. When he decided he’d had enough he put your phone down, grabbing your waist and lifting you onto his lap so you were essentially straddling him.

He leaned his forehead against your own, your noses touching. “That’s all bullshit, you know that, right?”

You looked down, biting your lip. “Y/N you’re the most amazing, most beautiful woman I’ve ever met, okay? I’m in love with you, not anyone else.” Pete’s eyes were searching yours, trying to figure out what was going on in your head.

“I know.” You sighed, “It’s just hard to be with you and not compare myself to her. And then all these people started to do it too, and they kept saying that you could do so much better and you can. So, I dunno I guess I just kind of spiraled.”

Pete captured your lips in a long, passionate kiss. “Y/N. There is literally no better than you. I can’t do better because you are the best woman I have ever loved. “

You pulled Pete in for another kiss. “Thank you, Pete. I love you.”

“I love you too. If this happens again, I want you to call me. I don’t care what I’m doing, I’d drop it all for you.” You smiled, sitting in the arms of the guy you loved. The thoughts didn’t just magically go away, but for a brief moment in time, you were happy.

#pete davidson #pete davidson imagine #pete davidson x reader #pete davidson angst #pete davidson fluff

[local-ground-apple]

Can i get a oneshot where Azul finds out about reader's secret "pics of Azul Ashengrotto when he's not looking" magicame account lol

oh yes, the only magicam account that got more followers than Vil and Cater

wait for “Oh Azul, your radiant beauty is an art” discourse under the cut.

alternative title: Koebi-chan turns into sneaky snake to immortalise the beauty of local octopus who for once doesn’t know how to turn this situation into a contract feat.  neighbourhood-friendly eels dying from laughter

“Azul, I think you should see this”

Jade passed his phone to Azul who was engrossed in his paperwork. With a heavy sigh, he shifted his attention from recent golden contract and looked at the screen. His eyes widen at the sight of pictures.

Pictures of him.

Lot of photos on one blog titled: “Pictures of Azul Ashengrotto taken when he’s not looking”

,,It’s surprisingly quite popular account”

Jade remarked not sparing a single glance at Azul who was going through an existential crisis. He was anxiously scrolling through countless picture taken, as the description of magicam account stated, when he was not looking.

Him doing some homework, him preparing a special golden contract, him burning his fingers on boiling hot tea or even him looking at the star-studded sky.

When someone could have taken those pictures? Why? Does he have a stalker? Wasn’t he the one who occasionally stalked people?

Multiple questions run through Azul’s head as his hand run through his hair. He let out a heavy sigh, not even bothering to listen to Floyd who was having a time of his life. Eel sat comfortably in his chair and was dying from laughter.

Azul’s secret admirer and stalker? That octopus having a secret fan-blog? How amusing~~ What unfortunate soul could be so engrossed in that fishy businessman?

“Who runs it? Names, Jade, I need names.”

Oh, so octopus entered the “feral disposure mode”, remarked Floyd who licked his lips in anticipation. Oh how he couldn’t wait to squeeze some poor, unfortunate souls.

“Ohhh, yess, we could squeeze that little admirer of yours”

,,I doubt Azul will let you after I reveal who it is”

Jade cut in, making everyone confused. Floyd’s wide grin slightly faltered and Azul raised an eyebrow.

“Ne, ne Jade, don’t keep us in suspension~~”

“It’s Y/N.”

The sound of your name entailed various reactions. Jade only chuckled seeing Azul going through another crisis, as his eyes widen and he was left utterly speechless, while Floyd was (once again) dying from laughter.

“Koebi-chan? THAT Koebi-chan??! It couldn’t get funnier!”

Exclaimed Floyd while Azul was still engrossed in his thoughts.

It suddenly made sense.

The way you would observe him, constantly on your phone when he was taking care of contracts or paperwork. Stealing secret glances and giggling and always dismissing his questions when he asked what made you laugh.

Given that you were dating Azul and he was a busy businessman, you were a rather special guest at Mostro Lounge and recently you’ve been spending there more time than in your own dorm.

“I mean it’s kind of fair. I send you to spy on her and she spies on me in return”

Remarked Azul with a heavy sigh, quickly pushing up his glasses and standing up. He was determined to leave his cabinet before Leech twins tease him or make fun of that blog any further. He caught a glimpse of Floyd opening his lips to throw some nasty and vicious remarks at him and Jade’s eyes were glowing with mischief.

It was high time to evacuate and excuse himself of the room.

Azul had a bigger fish to take care of than Leech twins.

It seemed that his angelfish gone a little bit too far.

                                                            …

,,Y/N dear, could you perhaps explain this?”

,,Right, Shrimpyy~~!! Why would you take so many pictures of Azul when you could just admire me!”

Azul’s deadly calm and cold voice as well as two pairs of arms wrapping up around you, successfully pulled you out from redoing mock papers for alchemy. You let out a loud shriek and jumped at the sudden contact.

Ignoring Floyd and his tightening with each passing second grip, you focused on the screen which Azul was practically showing in your face.

“Oh, you found that?”

You were stunned. You knew the day of your doom will come sooner or later, so you were prepared for every possible scenario. Yet, that didn’t stop you from screaming internally as multiple thoughts run through your brain.

Oh shit. I knew that was a bad idea. What were I thinking? That guppy brain of mine! Please sir, don’t let those eels squeeze me. If that’s how I shall go down, at least I’ve left a worthy legacy.

Azul quickly remarked your flushed face as you fiddled with your thumbs nervously. You tried to wriggle out of the twins’ grip, but your attempts were quickly proved to be futile. Much to Floyd’s dismay you soon stopped struggling and instead you decided to fake your confidence.

Baffle them with your bullshit, usually seemed to be a good strategy.

The other choice would be to seduce Azul, but you weren’t sure if you were able to put on the show right in front of twins.

“I took excellent pictures, didn’t I? I even made sure the light was perfect on each of them. Oh, look at this one! You looked suuuuuper handsome that day, didn’t you? You’re rarely that cheerful and your smile causes flowers to bloom in a 50 meter radius. So it’s only natural that I felt the need to make that look last forever~”

You ignored Floyd’s laughter, subtle chuckles from Jade and Azul who was not only confused and wasn’t sure whether he should scold you or ask you to continue rabbiting on. His face flushed and he tried his best to still appear “collected and calm”, but you could see through his façade.

Azul was actually flattered that you found him worthy of not even a single picture but a whole blog dedicated to his beauty, as you phrased it.

“Y’know, you’re a walking art and I couldn’t help myself but to immortalise it!”

You exclaimed with a bright smile and you lower your head slightly, so hair could do you a favour and hide your embarrassment which was written all over your hair.

“Awwww, Jade, aren’t they such cuties~~~”

,,I think we should leave them alone Floyd”

And with that Jade excused them, leaving you with frustrated Azul who kind of wanted to scold you for taking pictures without his permission and kind of wanted you to shower him with even more praises.

He was greedy, insatiable and desired more.

You giggled seeing his flushed face. You hesitantly came closer, standing right before him. You quickly cut the remaining distance and your forehead touched his, resting in that place. Azul sighed deeply and his gloved hand reached to run through your hair.

“What should I do with you, angelfish, hmm?”

,,Well, you could perhaps kiss me?”

You suggested with a sly smile, making Azul let out a barely audible chuckle. He slightly shook his head and you felt the tension leaving his body.

“You know there’s price for that.”

“Dang, you want me to delete that blog, don’t you?”

,,Y/N you should delete that blog, so my image could appear more professional”

You pouted dramatically, pulling away from him. Before Azul could clarify himself, you cut him.

“Well, that’s a shame depriving all those people from your radiating beauty!”

Well, maybe you were going a bit overboard with the amount of praises and dramatic power it entailed.

Either way, Azul lost it.

Instead of collected and meticulous octopus you saw a determined and frustrated man who was more than eager to protest.

,,No, no, Y/N. I should be THE ONE who should be complementing you and worshipping you, but about that price”

He exclaimed and you only giggled in response as Azul took you in his arms. He began leaving delicate, butterfly kisses on your neck in breaks incoherently mumbling praises.

Your lips soon got captured by chapped lips which tasted like water and salt into a delicate, gentle kiss. It almost made you forget about the slight sadness you had felt when Azul asked you to delete your blog. Instead his next words between nibbling on your skin, made you stunned and worried.

“Instead I should make a blog full of pictures of you, my angelfish, to return the favour”

“W-wait!”

“But could you perhaps continue with your whole “Oh Azul, your radiant beauty is an art” discourse. I would love to hear more”

BONUS:

“How did I not find out about this earlier? I’m literally tagged in every picture”

“I blocked you”

“YoU wHaT”

#twisted wonderland #disney twst #twst wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland writing #azul ashengrotto #twst oneshot #twisted wonderland imagine #twst x mc #twst x reader #twst azul #twst azul x reader #leech twins #azul ashengrotto x reader #azul x reader #twisted wonderland scenarios #twisted wonderland x mc #floyd leech #jade leech #octavinelle #requested #feels for tweels #save that poor guppie brain of yours #twst fluff #azul #jade #floyd #azul's radiant beauty

[krys-loves-otome]

Fictober 2021, Day 3: I've Waited For This

Fandom: Ikemen Vampire Rating: General Pairings: Theodorus Van Gogh & Abigail Clarke (OC); Vincent Van Gogh x Abigail Clarke (OC) Summary: After over 100 years and a chance of pure luck, Theo had found his brother again. Warnings: Takes cues from Vincent’s Dramatic ending but nothing is too explicitly stated, but hint of slight spoilers either way; original characters; oc lore building; oc x canon children mentions; pregnancy; use of Dutch when it’s not a language I speak so if the usage is wrong, my apologies, I worked with the resources available to me to the best of my ability and understanding; is Theo crying the tiniest bit a warning? Because he does that too. Thanks to @tsundere-mitsuhide and @scummy-writes for beta reading for me!

My Fanfic Masterlist

Also on ao3!

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Theo read over the email once more, staring longingly at the attached photos. An old lady was selling her niece's husband's paintings. She'd told him over emails how they had been reluctant to sell them at first, but money was starting to get tight, so they really didn't have a choice in the matter.

It was a story he'd heard at least a hundred times, artists who thought they could make it big in the art world just by getting in touch with a dealer to sell their artwork. He'd almost deleted that first email, until he caught the preview images of one of the attachments.

Those photographs, even as just a bunch of pixels on his phone, stirred his heart, like an old hole filling with warmth it hadn't felt in a long time.

Those familiar brushstrokes and colors… He could recognize Vincent's hand thousands of kilometers away and yet, he could hardly believe he had found his brother again, after parting over 100 years ago…

He looked at the pictures again, admiring the technique of whoever his photographer was. They were from a standard cellphone camera (not a great quality one either) but there was some skill in the presentation: good lighting, good staging, background elements weren't distracting from the subject… save for one of the last photos. The painting itself was gorgeous (as was Vincent's usual fare of works) but the last one was quite large, too big for their previous staging, almost too big for the camera to take in all of it evenly, so he could see two sets of tiny hands and almost out of frame feet on opposite sides holding up the massive painting.

He didn't really mind it, kids and pets accidentally photo-bombing client photos (though a tad unprofessional) wasn't that uncommon in his line of work, but it did give him another reason to come see what this old woman was doing with Vincent's paintings. One of the kids, (the younger one he could presume, based on their hands and feet size being smaller than their sibling's) also had part of their face peeking out. A familiar set of blue eyes stared back at the younger van Gogh. The nose and the chubby cheeks were all familiar to him too. If it wasn't for the light brown hair on their head, he'd swear he was looking at his brother as a young child, barely more than four or five. It reminded him of their youngest brother too, Cor, when he was that little. Chubby cheeks like that ran in the family, it seems.

With a small sigh, he clicked his phone off and put on his hat, exiting the car.

The address that the old lady had sent him was in a rural area, the field behind the house spread as far as his eye could see. The house itself was a good size, not as massive as le Comte's mansion in Paris, but decent-sized for a small family to run around in. He grinned when he saw the unoccupied painting easel on the porch with a few toys scattered about, a clear sign that at least one artist lives here, along with the kids he saw in the photo.

His ears perked up when he heard the door opening, seeing the figure of a blonde woman walking towards him. Once he got a good look at her, his breath caught in his throat.

So… Vincent did find Abby again, he thought with relief.

Her eyes also widened in surprise, her hand not holding the door curling against her chest.

"…Theo?" Her voice was soft, like she never had to raise her voice in her life, the way he remembered how she always spoke.

He removed his hat, trying his best to give Abby a smile. Walking up the steps to meet her halfway, he took in the woman he once remembered from over 100 years ago. Her hair was longer, fuller. She had even ditched the oversized sweaters in favor of a white sundress that showed her shoulders with comfortable house shoes. She and Vincent didn't stop at just two kids either, judging by the beach ball under her skirt, he thought with a smirk. It explains being tight on money, soon having three little mouths to feed. He wondered if any of them had his sweet tooth (or will have, in the third one's case).

"Long time, no see, Hondje. Miss me mu-!"

He could barely get the words out as the woman at the door rushed towards him, wrapping her delicate arms around him, hugging him as best her body would allow. She surprised him, this girl that could barely look him in the eye and shook like a chihuahua if anyone so much as looked at her funny back when they all lived in le Comte's mansion… was hugging him tightly, little tears forming in her eyes.

"Easy there, Hondje." he chuckled, "crush me any harder and your new pup might be squeezed out like old paint."

That did it. She immediately released him, her face flushing pink in embarrassment. There was that girl he used to know, the one that followed his brother around so she could watch him paint, no matter what mean word he threw her way to discourage her.

He was glad she never did listen to him.

"S-sorry," she said, "it’s just... I thought we would never see each other again after..."

He held up his hand to stop her.

"No need for apologies. It wasn't your fault, what happened then. It's nothing more than bad memories now. "

She nodded slowly, her hands curling into her chest, a familiar gesture even after all these years.

"It's good to see you again though, Theo." Her smile was warm and relieved.

He chuckled again. "Thank your old lady for finding me. If it wasn't for her pestering emails to sell the paintings, we probably never would have met again."

Abby laughed.

"It was strange she suddenly wanted pictures of Vincent's paintings. She can be a shrewd crone sometimes…"

"You weren't looking to sell them?"

"...It was more of her way to clear the number of his paintings that are in the attic. And the garage. And the basement… the closets… our bedroom… the room that's going to be the new nursery…" She brushed some of her hair behind her ear in embarrassment, her voice quieting the more places she mentioned.

"Oh!" She said, "Would you like to come inside? We don't have to keep talking on the porch like this."

"Sure," Theo said with a grin, "show me what you've got in your kennel, Hondje."

With a small giggle, she opened the door for him, revealing the front family room, another scene of at least one artist living there as well as at least two children. Canvases were peeking out behind the couch while papers were scattered across the floor with childish crayons scribbles and paint splatters across all of them. If he let his eye linger on the walls long enough, he could also see other traces of crayons and markers marking the walls, mostly of the same scribbles he could see on the papers, but he couldn't help an internal snicker at seeing a more advanced drawing amongst the wall scribbles.

Turning his head, he also spotted a wall of photographs, detailing the little life Vincent had thus far with Abby. He saw the two of them with a field of sunflowers behind them; one of her in a simple but beautiful white dress; one of Vincent holding a small baby in a blue blanket with tears in his eyes; a picture of all three of them with the old lady; a candid shot of Abby and Vincent as he kisses her cheek as she's laughing; one of Abby holding another baby while a little boy with blond hair and big brown eyes looks on in wonder; the little blond boy again holding a big trophy with the biggest smile on his face; one of Vincent smiling and waving to the camera in a straw hat and gardening gloves; one of the two brothers covered in mud beside a pond, proudly holding onto a comically large frog; and a fairly recent shot of Abby hugging her two boys, Vincent hugging all three of them, smiling brightly and laughing. Theo tried his best to ignore the fact that his eyes were misting up, just a little, but Abby smiled all the same.

"He found me… after about a year of searching. Neither of us had a lot and we shared a tiny apartment in the city for a while, making ends meet as best we could.

“Then… Well, we found out our little family was going to grow." She looked fondly at the picture of Vincent holding the tiny baby in a blue blanket. "Vincent tried so hard to support us on his own, taking on odd jobs, almost giving up painting to make sure we had enough to eat and a place to stay.”

Abby frowned, as though vividly recalling those days as if they were yesterday.

“He was so tired and aching some days, but he always smiled for me, always rubbed my aches away when I desperately wanted to do the same for him. No matter how much I begged him to let me help out too, he still said no, wanting me to focus on being healthy for our baby."

She then turned to look at the photo of her, Vincent, their first baby, and the old woman.

"Then, he was hired by my Auntie, to help maintain her house." She smiled, "neither knew she was related to me until they were making small talk one day and he was talking about being a father soon. She knew of our living situation and, being stubborn like she is, offered her home to us. She said I could do light housework in exchange for living there. Vincent almost refused at first, wanting to prove himself on his own, but Auntie insisted."

She laughed lightly.

"She wasn't too happy to see me coming into her house six and a half months pregnant with Vincent in tow. She had quite a few stern words for the both of us but put us up immediately, giving us a guest room and a nearby room to use as a nursery, free of charge. We've been here ever since."

Theo nodded, glancing through the photos as if memorizing them as best he could. Abby stepped closer, placing her fingertips on the photo of her two boys, smiling warmly.

"Their names are Theodorus and Wilhelm. We call them Theo and Will for short."

Theo's ears perked up at the mention of his name, his heart jumping for joy. He felt touched at his name passing on to one of their sons. The other name though, he thought irritably, sounded too close for comfort to a certain playwright he had no interest in seeing ever again, even after 100 years. He couldn't promise his fist wouldn't fly on sight of that playwright, but he kept that thought to himself.

"They’re at their friends' house today for a sleepover so you probably won't see them today, unfortunately. And Auntie has gone on a bingo championship tour with her girlfriends over the week, so it's just me and Vincent for today."

She paused for a moment, jumping a little before laughing again, smoothing her dress over her belly.

"And Cora too. She's excited that you're here."

Theo smirked, glad at least one of the kids (presumably) liked him.

“Is that her name, Cora?”

“Anna Cornelia, actually, but she always responds to Cora. Or when Vincent calls her his snoepje.”

Theo smirked, part of him proud that Abby’s pronunciation had improved over the years, the other part thinking his brother referring to his future daughter as a little piece of candy was cute.

"Where is Broer anyway?" He hadn't seen or heard another presence in the house since he entered so he wondered if Abby was alone.

"He was painting in the field behind the house. I was going to bring him some lunch in a bit when Auntie called and said that some painting appraisers were coming by today. I made sure he had his phone on him and an alarm set to tell him to come home when it's lunch time, in case he forgets or I couldn’t come to him in time."

She paused again, clearly trying to think of the right words to say.

"…Since you're here, would you like to come with me?"

-------

The afternoon sun pleasantly warmed Vincent's back, easing the reminder that he had been painting all morning and now he felt stiff. He chuckled to himself as he straightened up to look at his work thus far.

In front of him was a landscape painting inspired by the grass and flowers scattered about, the beginnings of summer just touching the nature surrounding him. He could picture his boys running and rolling around in the fields when they came home the next day. There were also some of Abby's favorite flowers near his easel. He made a note to pick them for her when he found a good stopping place for his painting.

Speaking of a good stopping place, his stomach growled to remind him of the time. He laughed.

"Guess you didn't need an alarm, did you?"

He set his brush and palette on his stool as he stood up, stretching his arms above his head.

"Mijn lieve should be making something delicious right about now. I think I'll stop early today and surprise her at home."

He hummed softly as he began putting his supplies away when he heard a sweet voice calling out to him.

Ah, there she was, just on the horizon, walking towards him in her pretty white dress. Vincent smiled brightly, wiped his hands on his painting apron, and started to amble towards her, intent on helping her with whatever she had brought with her.

As he got closer to her, he saw she wasn't carrying anything, just picking her way through the grass as best she could bare-handed. Vincent raised an eyebrow. Had Abby changed her mind and decided to come and get him after all? It was sweet of her but he worried she might overexert herself. He was about to call for her to stay where she was, that he would come to her, but soon saw she wasn't alone.

A man was following behind her, wearing grey pants with a white button shirt with the sleeves rolled up, carrying the old picnic blanket and basket. Had she invited the appraiser to come meet with him? It was kind of him to carry the basket and blanket for her. Odd, but kind regardless.

No, the man behind her looked familiar. It shouldn't be possible and yet…

The other man spotted him then, his eyes going wide. Vincent felt his own doing much the same.

"Theo…"

Abby stepped back as Theo set the basket and blanket down, watching as the brothers walked slowly towards each other in disbelief. Once they were close enough, Vincent hugged Theo so tight he felt his bones shifting and Theo’s feet were lifted off the ground.

When Vincent finally set him down, wiping the tears that were forming in his eyes, Theo took his chance and returned the bone-crushing hug, hiding his face in his brother's shoulder. Vincent laughed and patted his head.

"Het is oké, broertje." Vincent reassured him, pulling away to wipe away Theo's tears. "Het is oké."

"Broer…"

"Ik ben een kei, Theo. Lang niet gesproken."

Theo choked out a laugh

"Het duurt te lang…"

"Ja, het is."

When they pulled apart once more, Theo gave Vincent a solid pat on the shoulder and walked with him, joining a smiling Abby on her picnic blanket. The three sat together, Vincent gave a quick kiss to Abby’s cheek and held her and Theo close, the sweet reunion not leaving anyone’s eyes dry. And after waiting one hundred years, Theo was glad to finally have his family back together once more.

#fictober21 #fictober 2021 #fictober #krys's adventures in fanfiction #ikemen vampire #theodorus van gogh (ikevamp) #abigail clarke (oc) #vincent van gogh (ikevamp) #cw: pregnancy #had an idea similar to this a while back but this is what came out #like in the original idea was angst tinged with Theo finding Vincent but he was old but had lived a good long life #so sad with happy and/or bittersweet ending #but this came out instead and became super sweet #the dutch mentioned here is what I found via google sources so if it's wrong I'm sorry #snoepje was explained I think #mijn lieve is an endearment like my dear or my love #much as I love schatje from cybrib I kind of liked lieve in this context #from my limited understanding anyway #Vincent reassuring Theo that it's okay which is close enough to the English equivalent I think folks can get the gist of it #It's been a long time since we've seen each other #yes it has been #that sort of thing #-je added to the end of some words makes it it's diminutive form #like hondje is Theo is calling you a little dog #snoepje is a little candy #so by process of elimination #since cybirb gave us broer for Theo calling Vincent his brother #broertje means little brother #or close enough to little brother as said by google sources #still probably not right but I hope I at least got the message across

[todoroki-waifu]

Atsumu x F! Reader

Scenario: When you try to subtly confess to Atsumu.

Word Count: 1,970

Genre: Fluff and humor.

Warnings: Cursing, female reader, and some OOC-ness (maybe?). My first time writing for Atsumu and the rest of the Inarizaki team. 

————

“I get that she’s the most beautiful here, but we are here to check out the art, too.” Atsumu jumps slightly at a voice and hand on his shoulder. 

“‘Samu!" 

"Could you be any more obvious?" 

"I-I wasn’t doing anything!” Atsumu huffs, a blush attacking his face as he shakes off his brother’s hand. 

“Why don’t you ask her out already before someone else does?" 

"I’m working on it!" 

"Hey, who’s that with __(y/n)?” Suna chimes into their conversation, nodding to where you had been standing and admiring a portrait. The two see a man conversing with you, both of you very engaged in whatever topic that was being discussed. He brought out a small electronic device, looking a bit nervous as he showed you the screen. 

“He’s probably going to ask for her number.” Osamu replies indifferently, but did a quick glance at his sibling.

“What?!” Atsumu immediately leaves the group.

“Wait, but doesn’t that guy-” Aran questions, but Kita cuts him off while the others hold in their chuckles.

“Let him figure it out." 

——-

"So if you put your-” While you were listening to the young man who approached you, a familiar face made himself known.

“Hey, buddy, is there a problem over here?” Atsumu suddenly inserts himself in between you and the stranger. He stands tall, looming over the shorter male.

“N-no, there is no problem.”

“Atsumu-kun, he was just-” You placed a hand on his arm and tried to explain the situation.

“Don’t worry, __(y/n)-chan. I got this.” Atsumu gently pushes you behind him to hide you.

“Was there something you needed from her?” He continues. 

“No, si-sir. I-I was only trying to-”

“Well, if you ain’t got any business with her, I suggest you beat it.” The blonde twin glares at the male hiding behind his black device. He smirks victoriously, watching the scared stranger run away. He turns around to find you with your arms crossed and an incredulous look. 

“Why were you so mean to him?”

“Mean? What do you mean? Wasn’t he trying to hit on you?”

“What? No! He works here! He’s a staff member." 

"But didn’t he have his phone out to get your number?”

“Get my..-you mean his Ipad? He wasn’t trying to get my number, he was asking for my email so he could send a survey for us to fill out on how satisfied we were with the staff and the place." 

Atsumu had no answer, processing what he did to the innocent and diligent worker and to you. You must think he’s a crazy idiot for sure. 

"As funny and adorable that was, you’re coming with me to apologize.” You grabbed his hand, dragging Atsumu to find the man who he wrongly yelled at. 

“Yes..” He pouts, but obeys. You’re zipping through the crowd until you finally spot your target.

“He’s with someone else, but we’re waiting until he’s finished and I’m not letting go until you do." 

"I-I wasn’t gonna run away.” His cheeks heat up at your clasped hands, avoiding your gaze. 

“Just in case.” You continued to look forward, __(e/c) eyes too shy to meet his brown ones. 

“Thank you though,” You break the short pause, “I know it was a misunderstanding, but it’s nice to know that someone has my back.”

Atsumu directs his head to you, but is unable to see your face since it’s turned away with your finger busying itself with a strand of your hair. 

“Of course. Always.” Your heart skips at his soft reply. You feel a gentle squeeze on your hand and respond similarly, fighting back the smile that was eager to present itself.

“Oh look! He’s done. Let’s go.” You gently pull him towards the staff worker once he has finished speaking to the other customers. You’re about to release his hand, but Atsumu keeps a tight grip. Probably he’s nervous about admitting to his mistake, you assume. 

So you hold his hand just as tight, figuring he needs the support. You knew how much of a big baby he was.

But really, Atsumu was using this as an excuse to hold you just a bit longer. His fingers felt right in between yours. 

——-

You managed to take some great pictures wherever it was allowed, but the artwork that forbade photos, you captured in your memory. After touring around the entire museum, you and the boys were starting to feel hungry, so everyone agreed to eat at the nearest restaurant.

You saw a few people scattered outside and you volunteered to ask the host how long the wait would be. Osamu steps behind his brother and lightly taps the back of his knees with his.

“Remember, that guy works here." 

"Shut up, 'samu! I know that.” Atsumu huffs, red cheeks puffing out slightly as his friends laugh loudly. They stop as soon as you near them, telling the boys that there was a table open that could accommodate your party.

You sat in between the Miya twins which made you both nervous and happy. Your crush on Atsumu was getting worse every day yet you didn’t hate the feeling. You distracted yourself by looking through the menu, all of you deciding to share a couple appetizers before choosing your individual meals. 

“What are you getting, __(y/n)-chan?” Atsumu asks, brown eyes looking at you as he lowers his menu.

“Hmmmm, I’m not sure yet. I’m caught between number 8 and 9.” You point to the items on the main course list. 

“Oh! I was going to get the number 8. How about I get 8 and you get the 9 and we can just share? That way, we can get a taste of both. I’m curious about number 9 also.”

“Really? You wouldn’t mind?" 

"Yea, of course I wouldn’t mind!” He grins, folding the menu before placing it on the table. You copy him and wait for the server to collect your orders. 

You then bring out your phone, taking pictures of the boys and the restaurant’s interesting decor. Despite your school’s motto, you liked to keep the memories. 

“Ne, Atsumu-kun, mind if I borrow your phone? Your camera is better than mine.” Your cell phone was a few years old, but Atsumu just replaced his and you were waiting to upgrade yours. Part of you was glad that you hadn't yet because you were going to use this opportunity to see how he feels about you. 

“Sure. Here ya go.” He hands you his phone. 

“Thanks!” You start taking pictures of yourself, really impressed with the photo quality. 

“Take a selfie with me.” You change the camera view as you hold out your hand in front of you and Atsumu.

“You’re so far! Get close to me like you actually like me.” You say jokingly as you hear a few, muffled snickers around the table. Atsumu stutters a response, but you interrupt him when you start counting from three. 

“Ready? Smile!” You take a few shots before looking at each one closely.

“Yeck, I’m deleting that one. I look gross in there.” You weren’t satisfied with how you smiled and your eyes looked like they were in mid blink. 

“What? Don’t say that. You’re gorgeous!” Atsumu looks up at you after he watches you remove one of the many pictures. You blush at his statement, dodging his stare.

“Oh, ummm. ..t-thank you." 

"You don’t gotta thank me. It’s the truth.” Atsumu murmurs, but it’s coherent enough where you could understand him.

“Get ready with your orders. The waiter is coming.” Kita sees the server walking towards your table. You went first and while everyone else was focused on the waiter, you quickly dragged your finger around on the phone screen. You immediately closed what you were doing and handed Atsumu back his phone. 

Your heart was beating fast, but you kept a calm smile on your face as you casually made conversation with the volleyball team. None of the guys knew about your crush, afraid that they would make fun of you. Not that you believed they would, but you weren’t comfortable telling anyone yet. 

Except for today. 

You finally were going to tell one person about your crush and that person was Atsumu. You planned everything out for a while, thinking of every possible situation that could happen and how you would approach it. You were surprised at how smoothly your idea was going, but that made you even more uneasy. 

But you already made your move and hoped that he would notice the little message in his phone. 

———

Dinner was both fun yet stressful. Every time Atsumu would check his phone, your heart would jump at the thought of him seeing what you put. But he made no reaction so you assumed he had yet to see it. 

And you were fine with that. You’d prefer if he read it at home instead of in a public place. 

Everyone went their separate ways after the restaurant except you and the Miya twins. Your house wasn’t too far from theirs so they walked most of the way with you. Once you were close enough, you waved goodbye to the brothers.

“Bye! See you soon! And don’t forget to send me those pictures later, okay, Atsumu-kun?" 

"Yeah, I will! Bye, __(y/n)-chan!” Atsumu waved back before turning away with Osamu.

——–

Unfortunately, he never sent those pictures. He must have forgotten, but with how many days has passed, you believed he probably felt awkward with the little note you put. 

If he saw it. He never acted any differently when you saw him at school.

Maybe he never did see it? But you were too afraid to ask so you were just going to live quietly with your heartache. 

——-

“Oh, shoot! I forgot to send those pics to __(y/n)-chan!” Atsumu says loudly while he and Osamu walk home from practice.

“You haven’t sent them yet? It’s been a week.” Osamu shakes his head. 

“I forgot! I was too busy thinking of a way to tell her I like her. I gotta make sure it’s perfect.” The setter takes out his phone and taps on the photo album icon. As he selects and scrolls through the photos, his eyes become rounded at one particular image. 

It was a selfie of you and him, sitting close, cheek to cheek as you both smile happily. What made him pause was the heart drawn over the two of you with the words ’yes or no?’ written at the bottom.

“Ahh! ’s-samu! Look, look!” He shows his phone to his brother. “I think __(y/n)-chan likes me back! She put this on our picture!”

As soon as Osamu sees what’s on the screen, his eyes also widen slightly then suddenly smacks his brother at the back of his head. “Dumbass! That photo has been sitting there for that long already?”

“I told you already, I forgot! And she never said anything! Other than to send the pictures after we ate- Oh my God, 'samu, I really am a dumbass!” Realization hit Atsumu harder than his brother’s slap.

“I knew that a long time ago. Now, why are you still here talking to me? Shouldn’t you be talking to __(y/n) instead?" 

"You’re right! I gotta text her!” Atsumu’s hands were working fast in trying to find your text message conversation. Before Osamu could even make a snide comment, Atsumu becomes aware of a better alternative to communicate with you. 

———

On your way home, you received multiple texts from Atsumu, all saying the same thing.

Yes!

Yes!!

Yes!

Yes!!!!

’The hell? Yes to what?’ Right when you were about to reply, you saw an incoming call from the setter who made your heart skip a beat daily. 

“Hello?” You answer. 

“Yes! __(y/n), yes! I want to be your boyfriend!”

#haikyuu!! #haikyū!! #haikyuu #hq #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu drabbles #one shot #haikyuu one shot #hq oneshots #atsumu fluff #atsumu x reader #atsumu miya x reader #atsumu reader insert #atsumu x you #atsumu drabble #atsumu oneshot #atsumu imagines #submission

[trippin-over-my-fandoms]

I’ve seen this done before but here are my modern!rdr2 social media headcanons for the Van der Linde gang.

some of these are LONG and then some are shorter. doesn’t mean I love any of them any less however. I just did my best with all of them. 

* I treat the gang as family especially for my modern au 

Dutch

frequently uses Facebook and has dozens of friends he doesn’t even know. like if he gets a friend request he’ll accept it. John tells him he might as well just make his page public and Arthur pleads with him to make a facebook PAGE so that his random friends will stop liking posts that Arthur tags Dutch in. 

Dutch has no idea how to make a facebook page. 

he also has a Twitter and a massive following at that. He’s VERIFIED. 

all of his twitter posts are vague though

are they a joke? are they political? is it what he’s eating for lunch that day? literally no one knows.

Hosea

also has facebook but doesn’t use it because why does he need to look at pictures of events he was at. he only uses it to see things he didn’t partake in

also has snapchat but just to keep up with the kids 

because life360 was too much to deal with for everyone

and snapchat is cool

also he can and will spam you with bitmojis 

Arthur

used to use facebook a lot but stopped because he was tired of his posts getting likes from people he didn’t know and friend requests from people Dutch was friends with. 

plEASE

he has a private facebook for a reason, he doesn’t want other people to know his business. 

he also has an instagram but anything he posts on facebook also goes on there. it’s not aesthetic or pretty or anything and he doesn’t even caption over half his pictures. 

he literally only uses social media so that his friends and family know he’s alive

has snapchat because of Hosea but barely knows how to use it 

doesn’t get why everyone wants to use snapchat when teXTING AND CALLING ARE RIGHT THERE

John

the question is what doesn’t he have.

john has been trying to make it big on social media since youtube came out.

his youtube used to have videos on it but he deleted them because they were cringy and arthur liked to send them to the group text. 

plays twitch games on the weekends and sometimes with Jack but he thinks most of the subscribers are there for his kid since most of his solo streams don’t do as well

has a twitter, doesn’t follow Dutch, literally envies that he’s verified. 

he’s tried everything but no matter what he does nothing pans out

uses tiktok to promote twitch streams

instagram feed is mostly selfies of him but 99.9% of the time he’s wearing sunglasses and the caption is some random quote 

also has facebook but only to appease Arthur and Dutch, he doesn’t even have a profile picture. Claims only boomers use it. 

an avid reddit user. if he’s got problems he’ll go to reddit. claims reddit saved his life. everyone’s tired of the story so they stopped asking. 

also uses snapchat more than he should and the only social platform he has more than 100 followers on. 

Charles

same as arthur and has both facebook and instagram and posts the same on both except his are pleasing to look at. 

they’re unintentionally aesthetic 

he uses a psd on all his pictures and won’t share what it is

has monthly life updates that start with some inspirational or deep quote and then text that pushes the instagram word limit

also has a deviantart , has shared psds there before , constantly tries to convince Arthur to get it. 

used to use tumblr but he forgot about it

Abigail

the definition of a facebook mom. 80% of her facebook posts are about Jack or parenting. 

Instagram is similar but also different, she’s actually a relatively successful influencer with over 1,000 followers. 

all of her friends and family (who have instagram) follow her

has snapchat solely for the cute bitmojis and to send John adorable snaps of Jack playing with all the fun filters. 

she also won’t take a selfie unless it’s with snapchat because she no longer trusts her own camera. 

also uses pinterest and has a collaborative board with all the ladies. 

but in general, on her own, she has too many boards. she uses pinterest for EVERYTHING 

Sadie

bold of you to assume she uses social media. 

she does just not a whole lot. 

checks it once in the morning and once at night. 

except pinterest because how dare Abigail get her into it. but even pinterest she only uses in downtime. 

has facebook and instagram but there’s maybe only five posts.

if anything she’ll post on her story

will only snap Abigail and Arthur otherwise she doesn’t use snapchat

all of the social apps are mostly offloaded on her phone anyways

if she needs to know anything she just checks the group text which she has on do not disturb because they text way too much. 

Molly

she’s verified on instagram 

it’s also the only social platform she’ll use, which frustrates Dutch because he wants to be friends with her on facebook

but she’s happy with just instagram 

she keeps it simple 

and the main theme to her posts are fun outfits in her ever expanding closet

the other posts are usually of plants that she’s managed to grow. she’s not the best at being a plant mom but she’s still a good one to the ones she’s managed to keep alive. 

the only thing she contributes to the pinterest board are her own pictures of her plants which are overly aesthetic. 

Karen

started out with a normal instagram account then made a spam account which she ended up using way more often.

all of her posts are extremely chaotic

and usually reposts from her snapchat

has a reddit just to troll John

reposted his cringy youtube videos to reddit and got hundreds of upvotes

if you wanna see the most raw and chaotic videos of Arthur and John then she’s the one to follow. 

also if you wanna see Abigail when she’s not all put together. 

is the reason there’s so many memes in the collaborative pinterest board

Mary-Beth

has a instagram but also has a second instagram for art and book reviews

or basically anything she’d post on her tumblr

which is her second most used social

also uses facebook but only because she is an admin for one of those multifandom blogs. 

also begs Arthur to get a deviantart. 

uses pinterest most but only second to Abigail

literally the queen of pinterest DIYs

Micah

has twitter

as far as anyone else knows that’s all he has

maybe he has snapchat?

maybe they saw him on snapmaps once? 

all he ever does with twitter though is retweet anything Dutch posts.

yet somehow he has so many followers. 

Lenny

anyone who has snapchat has streaks with Lenny

even Hosea who doesn’t understand why it’s a thing

he also posts a lot on facebook but it’s mostly travel or vacation photos everyone is just a tad jealous of. 

Lenny always seems to be busy but still has time for streaks with his friends. 

he’s also an up and coming youtube vlogger

Sean

also has reddit to troll john

but he also legitimately uses it too. 

he’s also really popular in the minecraft subreddit , don’t ask

also has twitch and also has way more subsribers than John

and a youtube which he’ll upload (overly edited) twitch streams to

everyone subscribes to him but they don’t tell John that.

also has a tiktok and is up to date on all the trends because of course he is

Kieran

got facebook when he was 10 and just never left.

literally doesn’t use any other social media

he’s not in the group text either so he has to facebook message Arthur to know what’s going on. 

but he shares a lot of memes and cute pictures of animals

he used to follow Dutch but unfriended him when he was the only thing he ever had on his activity feed. 

Susan

has facebook but claims she doesn’t have time to use it

Arthur knows this to not be true because she will like a lot of his posts. 

she’s also guilty of liking every single picture in one post or album. 

Arthur has also caught her looking at memes and using recipes she finds on there. 

also part of the pinterest board but never contributes. 

Trelawny

he has an account for everything

like

litereally

everything. 

even whatsapp and linked in and kik

even tinder

the only one anyone knows about are his facebook, twitter, and instagam

but there’s no posts on any of them except twitter

he’s also verified

but for unknown reasons

any posts on his facebook are ones he’s tagged in

he’s also in a lot of facebook groups

Strauss

runs a subreddit

a paid facebook admin of several pages

the only person who actually knows this is Dutch because Strauss has told him about it

he has no online presence whatsoever out side of those.

Javier

spotify king

has over 500,000 subscribers on youtube

uses instagram but as another platform for his music

edits his own album covers

top tier playlists too

Tilly

aesthetic queen

the most put together and pleasing to look at instagram feed next to Charles. 

uses pinterest a lot as inspiration and for making moodboards.

also uses tumblr to share moodboards

part of the sims global community facebook group

she keeps saying she’s going to start a youtube vlog but hasn’t yet

keeps trying to convince John to let her help him with his youtube.

she also uses twitch to play minecraft and sims

oh and she set up a minecraft server for everyone

Bill

facebook boomer

that’s it

I don’t know how else to put it

probably shares heavily republican posts

Swanson

didn’t use social media until tiktok.

he doesn’t do dances or anything but he does post weirdly obscure and chaotic videos that end up trending on more than one occasion

it’s usually drunk ramblings in his car that end up being hilarious

or videos of the others almost dying or ending up in the ER

Pearson

facebook boomer but make it cool.

also shares conservative posts but less offensive ones compared to Bill’s

likes almost every post any of his friends share

also comments on them too

Uncle

does he have social media? no one knows for sure. 

yet somehow he knows what’s going on

even if nobody can find any of his social accounts or have ever seen him using one before let alone doing anything on his phone other than playing cheesy mobile games.

#rdr2 #red dead redemption 2 #modern rdr2 #arthur morgan #dutch van der linde #hosea matthews #john marston #charles smith #molly oshea #sadie adler #karen jones #sean macguire #mary-beth gaskill #susan grimshaw #josiah trelawny #kieran duffy #bill williamson #leopold strauss #tilly jackson #javier escuella #micah bell #lenny summers #abigail roberts #orvill swanson #simon pearson #rdr2 uncle

[takalzuoom]

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐

I’m gonna kill him when I get my slimy, little hands on him.

It was his idea. This party. Saying stupid things like, ‘Oh yeah y/n, you’ll have so much fun don’t worry. ‘try to make some friends to add to our of studio Ghibli cult’

And here’s my favorite - ‘ I’ll be right back I have to get more alcohol ‘

Yeah, he got his alcohol all right, being shoved down his throat by some tumbling girl.

Really rin? A gymnast? He could’ve done so much better...

This is hell, not just because I’m that sad little troupe of a college kid sitting against the wall at a party- the oh so famous red solo cup in my clutches as the dubstep pounds in my ears.

Well with what’s left of them that is.

Once again, I pulled out my phone and tried scrolling through something- anything to make my mind busy with something and not look like a total loser.

Photos, settings, old text messages YouTube- not like I could watch anything with all this noise. Typing gibberish into notes, shuffling a fake laugh- it's an art at this point as I scroll through the same photos, deleting a few to add a bit of flamboyance

And finally- Instagram where I saw the out-of-reach Fort Lance. It’s not like the algorithm is out to get me or anything, or maybe it was. Maybe it saw how bad I was moping and got a kick of it by rubbing salt in the wound. I should just cut my losses and focus on where I am now- vandrum university…

The second best figure skating college in japan.

I took a long sip from the cup.

It might have not been their figure skating team I came across, but it still rose some bile from my stomachs as i saw all their stupid smiling faces as ice was behind them. As you guessed it was their stupid hockey team. Not sure if they’re the best or not, it i know that they’re rivals with vandrum and that if you even wear the color blue and white combo you’ll get nasty stares from your peers.

Looking over the photo, yeah sure I could admit a few guys are cute- like this akward champ, with his forced smile that looks like the Cheshire Cat had one too much taco belle. Or even his stiff shoulder and hazed eyes. Poor thing obviously didn’t get love as a child and probably has mommy issues.

Don’t get me wrong he’s still hot

I went to take another swig, but of course, I was met with musty air.

One thing you never do in a situation like mine- run out of an alcoholic drink at some party.

Why do you ask? Oh, nothing- now it’s just another reason to seize through the ocean of human drugs and hormones.

I swear I saw at least three different couples leave the floor, some in fewer clothes than internet-famous teenagers.

And that’s a hard feat.

“We’re fine. We’re all fine, we'll just go through the sea of newlyweds, go get some fruity vodka, come back to our little abode, leave 10 minutes later and kill rin in the morning while he’s still having a hangover. And oh I obviously deserve to cheat a day with Doritos as I’m going through this little crisis. Perfect”

My phone's buttons dug into my skin as I pushed off the wall. My body felt hotter than before as I started making my way closer to the center.

And of course the further into danger I went the more I realized how bad of a spot I was actually in as I saw the couples pinned against the walls like family portraits in a suburban mom’s dysfunctional home, grinding like their lives depended on it.

Yeah I’m gonna absolutely kill him later.

And like in the matrix, I was dodging the unaware masses who were on the outskirts of the - as I like to say, ‘hormonal mosh pit.’ Bodies swaying erratically as some rap song came on as the middle of the floor went screaming the curses out like nothing, partying so hard the floor was just barely creaking from all the unexpected movements.

As per usual things don’t go according to plan and like a domino effect, I was shoved harshly into another couple as they let out a barely audible yelp.

Whipping her head around as the stoned looking guy could only glower, while the slightly taller girl was seething as she pressed a short painted nail at me. “ watch where you’re going, bitch”

“ oh I’m sorry I didn’t mean to, someone just bumped into me and I just happened to “

Her brows grew ever so tighter as she stepped up to me, her chest practically touching mine as she made her presence known. Running her free gelled hand through her frizzy black hair, her eyes gleamed in delight as I couldn’t help but shrink back by the side.

“But you did it, didn’t you? I'll have you know that”

She took another step forward as I stepped back a bit. I took a quick glance to her side to see the guy’s back turned to us as a faint light illuminates his silhouette.

Wow. I’m about to become the next ‘Criminal Minds’ episode and he doesn’t even have the audacity to watch? The nerve

“Babe there you are! I've been looking all over for you !”

??hhuh??

A light voice said as I felt a hand too large to be human encircle my shoulder as I stumbled into a larger, harder chest I craned my neck up and squinted eyes in an attempt to see the guy who swooped in and saved me.

But fortunately for Batman, the room was too dim to make out a peep, and the erratic laser lights didn’t help either as I could only make sense of a few of his features. Like his freakishly tall stature that could make Shaq a little self-conscious, a bowl cut, big brown eyes, and a small smile.

“ Is this your partner?” She tutted.

Looking over to where she was standing, hip propped and boy toy at least facing our face. She glanced between the two of us as her face scowled more and more by the second. when a quick smirk rose to her cherry-stained lips.

Humming, she gave me a final check before ‘smiling,’ I say loosely as it looked as if she was forced to take a family photo on vacation no one wanted to go on. “ Hah, good luck” she mused before dragging the frazzled boy deep into the sea of college kids as he looked back at us confused\\ before following her.

Man, what a bitch.

“Tell me about it”

I jerked my head to look at the guy who just saved me.

“ shit I was supposed to say that in my head, uh sorry about that- and thank you so much by the way!” I rambled as I felt my neck heat up. Turning around, I took a step back to fully take a look at him.

And I was right about him being an absolute unit and having a bright smile.

He rubbed his neck nervously as he looked down at me… to be truthful, I feel 100% violated with how tall he is- can’t be more than 6’4? 6’5? I'll give him a pass since he literally saved me from Cruella Devil.

“What, oh no you shouldn’t be thanking me- I should be apologizing since I am the host of the party” he paused, scanning the room as he frowned a bit.

“Well one of them I suppose, although it seems that my teammates and fellow co host are getting a little too… uh, comfortable with the guests”

Man, even in this god awful lighting I can still see the flush of his cheeks. It could be from either alcohol or seeing people hit it like animals, I’ll leave it undecided. I couldn’t help but smile as I looked around too, looking for his friends as they probably were having the times of their tiny little lives, doing things their parents didn’t pay them to do.

I chuckled for a second as I moved out of the way of an incoming group of friends.

“Yeah, I get what you mean”

“What?” He asked, leaning down a bit with his hand to his ear.

“I said, I get what you mean! My friend totally ditched me too!”

He nodded a bit as he went to his full height to look around again. Pointing a few feet away towards the ‘snack bar’ I couldn’t make out one thing he said as I tried to read his lips. Which was more of a challenge than you’d think with all the factors of height, lighting and having my other senses stimulated more than I would have liked.

“What?”

He leaned down to my ear, cuffing it with his hand as he yelled “I said! Do you want to go to the snack bar?? I can barely hear myself think!”

“Shit! Yeah- you didn’t have to scream” I mumbled the last part, though even if I talked at a normal volume he still wouldn’t have heard it. But it's the thought that counts.

Almost like in a corn maze, we made our way to the snack bar as I followed him like a lost puppy as he was parting the Red Sea with how tall he was- no doubt muscle on him too due to him being one of the hosts. But I swore I saw at least 2 different women give him a good, long look as we passed by.

Of course, their eyes widened when they saw me, as anyone would look small compared to mr.green giant.

Once we reached the snack bar, he took a seat on the stool as I leaned against the countertop, grabbing a handful of chips as he got comfortable. Was I nervous? Of course, the panicked munching of chips was evident as much. Chew chew chew chew c’mon hurry up! He’s gonna look and think you’re gross if he sees you!

“Sorry about that, I just couldn’t hear myself think,” he said as he faced me, that same smile on his face. Swallowing quickly, I wiped my mouth quickly befforeAnd now that I got it. A better look at him, I could admit that he was quite the looker with his perfect eyebrows and well-structured face.

He wore a simple outfit, nothing special about a back shirt and ripped jeans. But it did look good on him.

Playing off with a smile, I grabbed more chips as he looked around the room once more. This was getting awkward...

“ So how do”

“What club”

Oh.

Uh

“Sorry about that you can t”

“No, I’m sorry I interrupted you”

“Right “ I chuckled nervously, cracking my fingers as I glanced at him again and to the floor- and spoke of the devil.

“ you see him?” I leaned towards him as I pointed across the floor and to the other side of the dance party. Of course, he had a bit of trouble seeing, as I tried pointing to him a bit more.

“The one in the ripped jeans- well one of the ones in them. Hold on uh- with eh spiky-ish hair that’s flat on top”

“Oh yeah- oh. The one making out”

“Yep.” I interrupted as I scooted away from him, suddenly becoming conscious of the heat of his breath. When did he lean in to get a better look? I’m not sure.

“He’s my friend who said he was going to stay with me but the second his cup emptied- 5 minutes- he left to get some other thirst quenched.”

He laughed a bit as he looked at me, closer to eye level due to sitting, and slouching as he covered his mouth.

“ uh, see the really beefy guy with spikier hair- “

“The guy by the doors?”

“No that’s Bokuto, I’m talking about the guy by the stairs”

“Brown right?”

I continued his sentence, as I smiled and pointed towards a guy with a black and gold jersey who was- like half the others in here. Sucking face.

“Yep. My friends since high school and team captain of the hockey team. Aka the friend who is supposed to be co-hosting with me. “

Nodding dramatically as we saw his friend lean in and guide the girl he was with up the stairs. If they were trying to be discreet then they were doing an awful job and whoops and cheers filled the air as his friend waved to them as if he were some celebrity.

“ oh my god” he groaned as he quickly went up to leave

“I’m sorry- we share a room and I’m not going to let his fling crash and me sleep on the couch. Oh crap! I forgot to wear my jersey too” he groaned as he kept glancing back at me.

“Oh-oh, it's fine, don't worry about it. If you want ill be here” I looked at the table “ eating.. my- I’ve always had a sweet tooth for sour cream and onion “

And with that comment, the doors to heaven closed as his face dropped. Slowly sitting down onto the stool again with his head in his hands.

“And there goes morning practice”

“ ouch, sorry about that”

He waved me off as he took a chip.

“Don’t worry about it, he warned me something might happen- I just thought different”

…

…

…

“ haha yeah”

…

…

…

Abort mission abort mission!

“I should probably get going since my friend obviously isn’t going to get a ride with me, and I want to try to go to the ice before practice”

Looking up with wide eyes, he nodded slowly as he stood up god damn is he tall what the hell.

“ Oh yeah totally. Do you mind if I walk you home or- I mean. To be a good host and all since you don’t seem like you’re enjoying yourself too much”

“ oh uh, that’s fine. “ I laughed nervously as we started walking.

“ don’t worry I’m not looking to sleep with you or anything- I just want to make sure you get home Albright- and I’d rather not be in here with all of this “ he gestured towards the mosh pit.

“Not my scene, with all the raging hormones and everything.”

“ Wait same. I've never understood my friend likes it so much “

“ yeah- it's just hormones, drugs, and alcohol. “

“Exactly!” I yelled as we reached the door, letting myself out as he followed closely behind me with a shuffled laugh.

“Yeah I don’t see the whole point of it when you could be with friends doing who knows what- or even a partner”

I snorted as I turned to him, the music slowly fading away as we reached the driveway and saw more people entering through the backyard.

“Oh absolutely. I would kill to just sit home and snuggle with someone as we watch reruns of some stupid show on Netflix.”

Sighing, I felt a soft vibration of my pants as he heard him agree. Though his hand on my shoulder as he guided me down the driveway and onto the sidewalk. The lights of the street lamps illuminating a path as he removed his hand from my shoulder as fast as he placed it there. It was a bit quiet. Peaceful even as he walked side by side down the road.

“Sorry about that- just wanted to make sure we went in the same direction you know”

“Oh yeah, totally I know what you mean. Oh my god- I don’t know your name I’m sorry I must’ve seemed so rude.”

“ what oh no sorry it was me who was rude- since I’m the host and everything”

“Oh yeah totally- I mean no wait sorry I don't wait I’m sorry to hold on” laughing nervously as I looked at the sky, he was laughing so hard he crouched down and held his head.

“Stop it's not that funny I swear- I didn’t mean it that way- stop laughing I don't even know your name!”

“Thomas” he breathed out. Eyes gleaming in the dim light and smile beaming as his cheeks filled with cherries. “I’m Thomas Adriah, and you?”

“Y/n. It’s nice meeting you”

“It’s great meeting you too”

𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 :

@coconois @kuroohoeee @spirits-child

𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 :

…. IM SORRY I GOT CARRIED AWAY WITH THIS- ITS OVER 1K AHH

WHEN I WAS WRITING THIS IN DOCS I THOUGHT IT WASNT GONNA BE LONG ENOUGH BUT LOOKING AT IT NOW- AH

IM SO SORRY- ILL MAKE THE WRITTEN PARTS SHORTER LATER ON-

I SWEAR THIS IS A WHOLE DRABBLE 😭😭

#atsumu imagines #atsumu x reader #haikyuu smau #kai…🌊 #miya atsumu #takalzuoom #haikyuu x reader #adriah thomas #miya atsumu smau #miya atsumu x reader #kageyama x reader #rin x reader #suna rinatro #bokuto koutarou #bokuto x reader #anime x reader #haikyuu!! #meian shugo #sakusa kiyoomi #hinata shoyo #hinata shouyou #ushjima wakatoshi #hoshiumi kourai #osamu x reader #miya osamu #akaashi keiji #akaashi x bokuto #x reader #tobio kageyama x reader

[shoichee]

hello! may i ask some tips about the instragram acccunts the GoM + kagami could have? like of sort of post, amount of followers, stuff like that THANK U and have a great day !!

THIS IS ACTUALLY HILARIOUS SINCE I BREATHE OFF OF INSTAGRAM LFMAO

[Headcanons]

Kuroko Tetsuya

HELP WHAT IF HE HAS NO PRESENCE ON SOCIAL MEDIA TOO—

professional lurker

never comments on anything unless it’s to congratulate under a friend’s post or something like that

probably started using it because Ogiwara moved from letters and texts to just... instagram (technology advancements, jazz hands)

his account is on private, and he only lets people he knows follow him

all of his posts are pictures to commemorate something or just really wholesome group pictures

DEFINITELY has that picture of the GoMs at his birthday OVA

DEFINITELY also posted the big birthday picture taken at the end of the party

and also had typed very sappy BIG paragraph captions for both of these posts, talking about the journey and him being grateful… y’know, him being him

HIS ENTIRE COMMENT SECTIONS ARE JUST EVERYONE SOBBING AND KEYBOARD SPAMMING??? ONLY LIKE MIDORIMA AND AKASHI POST COHERENT RESPONSES UNDERNEATH

@kiseryouta: kuROKOCCHIIIII!!NEJWIEISK

@momoiowo: TETSUU (ʃƪ˘･ᴗ･˘) YOURE SO SWEET REEEE

@a_daikiii: i stg quit being so corny no one died yet🙄 and @momoiowo relax smh

@shin_chan77: I suppose I can express some form of gratitude for being in my life despite you being a blood type A. (insert a giant paragraph after this)

@4k4shi: This was very touching to read, Kuroko. I’m very glad that our… (insert him going down memory lane)

Murasakibara has no comment LMAO

his entire Seirin team are his hype men under his posts

his profile picture is literally the gray default blank head because he didn’t even set up a profile picture for himself

he has like 20 followers max or something?

8 posts? like, he only posts on special occasions or big events

his occasional stories are always comprised of Nigou and blurry Kagami pictures/videos running away from Nigou UH OH (courtesy of @dust-of-fandoms)

@tetsuya11 for his user handle

@dust-of-fandoms JUST MADE AN INSTAGRAM FOR HIM HERE!!

Kise Ryota

uses his instagram account as a portfolio for his modeling career

majority of his posts are actually pictures he managed to snag from his frequent model shoots

it looks SO professional… but then you look at his IGTVs and his reel videos

his reels are either short clips of mini vlog series he does whenever he visits the GoMs or when he’s recording his Kaijō teammates doing tricks and dunks

his IGTVs are either skincare tutorials, fashion advice… or just… unexplainable, out-of-context shitposts of Kise running away from what fans assumed “a green-haired man” or some “captain”

follower account?? 124k

who wouldn’t resist a hot model?

DEFINITELY HAS A TIKTOK I CAN FEEL IT

@kiseryouta with an official verification next to it

people either love him or hate him

posts a casual selfie from time to time, and people praise him for “being real” LMAODOA AND HE’S JUST STARING AT HIS PHONE LIKE “??? IMIG BUT I JUST FELT CUTE TODAY”

his captions feel fake LMAO like: “Wow! today’s so pretty today!” as he puts a selfie post OR “What’s your favorite game?✨” under a professionally-shot model picture that does not correlate with the caption???

has posted shitposts on his stories and his fans are utterly confused… only the GoMs get it LMAO

Midorima Shintarou

ONLY reason why he has social media is because Takao convinced him that he could let everyone know the daily lucky items for each signs for every post he makes

so for the first 2 months of having instagram he just casually posts a “daily horoscope” report(?) for the day

his content attracted in all the astrology fans and people who are devoted to tarots

and he’s CONFUSED.

… Takao may or may not have played a hand in messing with the algorithms to expose his account to bigger audiences

once Midorima finds out he’s MAD LMAO *insert Takao pain noises*

either goes down two paths: just casually continuing to post the daily Oha Asa predictions without interacting with anyone OR deleting his account and making a new PRIVATE one just for communication/lurking purposes

so he can honestly have 10k followers if he chooses to be a horoscope account or like 3 followers on his private, take it or leave it

maybe he has two accounts if he feels that having instagram has its merits

definitely has a shit ton of random stuff/posts in his saved collections

boomer energy, like… what’s a “reels” feature?? people talk to their phone camera and record that?? he’s squinting really hard and scratching his head

either has 356 horoscope posts on his “main” or like 19 posts on his private

has a rubber duck as a profile picture for BOTH ACCOUNTS HELP HIM

@oha_asa_ for his horoscope account or @shin_chan77 as his personal because he doesn’t know how to change his username (thanks, Takao LMAO)

Aomine Daiki

he doesn’t give a shit about instagram LOL

it’s MOMOI who handles his account because he doesn’t wanna bother with it LMAOO

she would tease him and try to “encourage” him to stop lazing around by taking pictures of him whenever he’s snoozing and posting it

but he’s so damn good-looking that his sleeping pictures got some traction with new fans

Aomine is still sleeping

his account also has pictures of him eating at Maji burger or at a café, and of course Momoi is the one snapping these photos of him

he started caring about it a little more once Momoi told him that he can post videos of himself doing trickshots and one-on-ones to potentially find worthy rivals over the internet and meet up

so now his account (videos, reels, IGTVs) are all riddled with basketball/small parkour footage shot by yours truly, Momoi

so his fanbase is split between thirsty people and people who genuinely admire him for his skills… but I mean there’s also people in both categories, anywho

he’d totally follow his favorite Japanese idols on IG if they had one

also would follow any NBA-related accounts/players he admires

has like 2.7k followers (but growing really fast) with like 176 posts of videos and random pictures of him

his profile picture is literally a picture of him sleeping by Momoi

@a_daikiii

Momoi Satsuki

LOTS OF REALLY cute, playful selfies, and a lot of them are used with cute filters from the Snow app

sometimes would post herself doing a really cute Tiktok dance while in her school uniform

she doesn’t post too much; she’s actually more into posting IG stories and making highlights out of them and then making highlight covers have a coordinating theme together

very aesthetic theme on her feed overall hehe

definitely uses her account to comment on other GoMs posts, often commenting something snarky on Aomine’s and Kise’s

actually has 1-2 IGTVs on the Vorpal Sword’s big game against the Jabberwocks

doesn’t have much of full-body shots/outfit pictures other than mirror selfies because Aomine refuses to take good pictures of her

only when she sees Kise or Kuroko is when she can ask either to be a photographer

she’s definitely gotten a few small collab offers from small businesses, but she usually ignores them because it’s not exactly her thing

her profile picture is just a selfie with a sketch-line cat ear filter

uses a bunch of emoticons on her bio, captions, comments, everything

⌒(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)⌒ or ☆⌒(＞。≪) or .₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑*̑˚̑*̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑*̑˚̑*̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑*̑˚̑*̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇.ෆ˟̑*̑˚̑*̑˟̑ෆ.₊̣̇. you get the picture

967 followers… that looks way too specific, but it’s somewhere around there; a lot of them came from Aomine’s account after they saw who’s been taking his pictures, and they wanna learn more about her??

around 40 posts?

@momoiowo

Murasakibara Atsushi

Himuro showed him how to use the app, but Murasakibara doesn’t find ANY USE FOR THIS LMAOO

he’d probably only get on it to look at food on the explore page and drool about the cuisines

keeps tabs on local places/restaurants/shops on instagram; those are probably the only accounts he’d follow tbh

it’s probably like ONE post and it’s an old picture of a dango on a plate he ate like 2 years ago

I have this image in my head that he has a really cute bento art as his profile picture?? can you imagine a Rilakkuma-shaped rice as his PROFILE PICTURE?

his bio is definitely: “hungry”

and that’s it

27 followers, and it’s literally just his Yōsen teammates, the GoMs and probably some other classmates of his

his captions are literally empty or 1-2 words

@oomaib0

Akashi Seijuro

only uses instagram because it’ll be beneficial for his company and to expand social networks, plus getting those sweet business deals and engagement

he doesn’t mind seeing really wholesome videos on the explore page though

when he wants to relax, a cat video melts his stress away

laughs to himself while he reads all the shenanigans underneath the GoMs’ posts

DEFINITELY loses a few brain cells seeing trolls and idiots on the internet… especially on controversial or political ones LMAO

he at first had to REFRAIN himself and take deep breaths before he just scrolls on, but he eventually got used to them and can now easily ignore them as easy as he breathes air

he actually enjoys shitposts and meme videos?? like he may not completely understand the meme trends sometimes, but he’ll still find it amusing enough for a chuckle

he ends up being the one who uses instagram the most? like Kise posts a shit ton, yeah, but Kise doesn’t really sit down and just scroll endlessly; Kise releases out content, while Akashi consumes the content

he reasons with himself that it’s to study his current demographics for the company, and while that may be true, Akashi just enjoys social media, plain and simple LOL

he does get to study the behaviors of all the generations using the platform, young folks and old folks alike, and it does get him excited in using his analytical skills to try to figure out people BEHIND a screen rather than those in front of him

it makes a really good challenge for him when he wants a good mental exercise

he has a post or two about his horses, his manor, and a video or two on him playing his violin?? but most are business-related, them being advertisements or business contracts/offers… things like that

his highlights are all about Q&As regarding the company, his background, his skillsets, etc. like an actual resumé

actually links current world issue cards/petitions on top of his company website; he’s quite an advocate

he actually doesn’t post about basketball because that’s something very close to his heart since it reminds him of his late mother… having that mixed in with his company-related posts feels wrong to him

27k followers, most of them are business-related accounts AND some are some followers his father bought for him without Akashi’s input to inflate engagement, etc.

@4k4shi… oh he thinks he’s SO CLEVER FOR MAKING THIS USERNAME LOL with the 4 being his jersey number and the 4s looking like As… AKASHI PLEASE—

his profile pic is like a professionally taken picture, nothing less for our king

his grammar and syntax are impeccable on social media; after all, he’s still being judged for how he carries himself even on the media

Kagami Taiga

mukbang guy… DEFINITELY

hot guy eating nine plates of steaks

IGTVs are filled with mukbang videos because Kuroko said he could make a living off of his appetite

HE COULD MAKE MONEY OFF OF JUST EATING? SIGN HIM UP.

on his posts, he posts dishes he makes for the day/is proud of and talks about the dish and ingredients briefly in the caption

that, or he has pictures of his new basketball shoes LMAO

or all of his basketball merch

HE’S DEFINITELY POSTED PICTURES OF LANDMARKS AND OTHER ICONIC PLACES HE’S TRAVELED TO (*cough* in America)

has a generic Jordan brand logo against a dark background as a profile picture

doesn’t have his face anywhere unless it’s in a mukbang video

279 followers or something

why do I have a feeling that he’ll accidentally blow up when Alex takes his phone to do a quick selfie on it?—

@taiga10

#knb #knb headcanon #knb headcanons #kuroko no basket #kuroko tetsuya #kise ryota #kise ryouta #midorima shintaro #midorima shintarou #aomine daiki #momoi satsuki #murasakibara #murasakibara atsushi #akashi seijuro #akashi seijirou #kagami taiga #kuroko's basketball #generation of miracles #gom #kiseki no sedai

[royivia]

The Neighborhood

Sibyl Campbell wasn’t even mad when she woke up on a hot ass May morning in her room, drenched in sweat. Instead, she bypassed anger and went straight to resignation because the HVAC system in the Robert Moses Houses was broken — again — and she didn’t have the time or the energy to bitch about it. In fact, the heating and cooling stayed shutting off across Groundview Gardens. It had become a predictable kind of disappointment in the neighborhood, more so than flooding during superstorms or the fact that no matter which part of the neighborhood you were in, you could feel the rumbling of the shuttle every seven minutes.

Sibyl had spent all night coughing and turning in her bed from the claustrophobic heat that agitated her asthma. Her mother had already gone to work, otherwise, she would have heard Mildred Campbell yelling in indignant patwa over the phone at an Arcadian Realty & Management representative “to fix the damn AC” before she threatened to call 311 on their ass, and report them to the city. Both Mildred and the AR&M rep knew it was an empty threat, but to shut her up, they’d call someone who’d tinker with the system and the air would come back on for a couple of days or so, before it chipped out. And then, the routine would start again.

Sibyl checked the weather. It was already ninety-five degrees. She took a puff from her inhaler and scrolled through her timeline. The same picture of a little girl with a big bright smile captioned with different variations of “RIP Destiny’’ and prayers for her family flooded her feed. Sibyl forced herself out of bed. The sweat on her body made her feel uncomfortable. She hauled a clunky, old portable air conditioner out from her closet and plugged it into the wall. Management would fine them for the spike in their energy use, but she didn’t care. She pushed the power button on, and waited for the box to cough out some hot air before it eventually cooled the room down from a humid haze to a lackluster lukewarm.

#

SOIL had been trying to meet with AR&M, the neighborhood’s collective management company, about the HVAC problem with little to no success for close to three years. They had circulated petitions. Tried shaming them in the local news. They even considered organizing a rent strike, which would have done nothing because everybody who lived in Groundview Gardens received subsidies from the city that made rent practically free. And as much as people were pissed about freezing their asses off in the winter or not being able to breathe during the summer, nobody was tryna fight free rent. So, SOIL decided to annoy the shit out of their landlords instead. On their way into their coolly ventilated corporate office buildings, occupying their lobbies, picketing in front of their luxury condos, and most effectively, managing to damage one, or two, of their solar-powered generators in the hottest month New York City had ever seen. A few arrests and some pissed off rich people later, management finally agreed to hold a town hall to hear from their tenants, which meant SOIL’s next plan of action was to convince as many people as possible to show up. Nefi Ramos saw it as a challenge that they could surely accomplish. Her neighbors were like camels to water in a desert. They were thirsty, and had learned to go without for as long as they needed to, but lead them to a watering hole, and they would drink.

“It’s too fucking hot,” she shouted into her megaphone. She was standing in front of one of the many large screens around Groundview that cycled between ads for things they couldn’t afford and AR&M’s infamous “neighborhoods of tomorrow” promotional video. Most people just used the screens to check train arrival times and the air quality. The next shuttle was two minutes away, and the air was currently “unsafe for vulnerable groups.”

“Are we just supposed to take this shit?” Nefi asked. “We don’t deserve to live like this.”

Around her, the rest of SOIL handed out cold bottles of water, popsicles, and fruit cups from coolers filled with melting ice, along with flyers to people walking towards the train platform. They walked past the demonstration uninterestedly, only stopping long enough to take a bottle of water. Everyone had gotten used to Nefi shouting at them to care about things beyond their control, and learned to tune her and the rest of her angry SOILders out, taking their flyers every now and then only to chuck them into the nearest trash can. This morning, a few people did stop to listen for a second or two, the heat getting the better of them, before they saw the time flicker on the screen behind her, and realized that they’d be late for work.

Sibyl, her camera always strapped to her body, snapped a few shots of her neighbor. Nefi was like a loud older cousin who wasn’t afraid of a little trouble, or frankly anything. She both awed and terrified Sibyl.

“It’s time for these slumlords to sweat,” Nefi went on. “We need to organize. Our voices are stronger together — ”

“What makes you think anyone gives a shit about what happens to us down here?”

Mr. Solomon had been on his way to the bodega to buy his morning loosie, but stopped to sit in his walker, taking a moment to catch his breath.

“That’s exactly what they want us to think, vecino.” Nefi softened her voice in that way she did when she was trying not to shout. “The more we believe that we can’t make them pay attention to us, the longer they get away with treating us like shit.”

“I remember when they first moved people into Groundview.” In the midst of reminiscing, Mr. Solomon started coughing aggressively, prompting someone to hand him a bottle of water which he drank quickly before continuing. “We were protesting and shouting in the streets, but they didn’t care then. They’re not gonna care now.” The history lesson quickly turned into yet another heated debate about neighborhood politics between him and some of the other SOILders trying to convince him to take one of their flyers. Sibyl used the opportunity to catch Nefi’s attention, who waved her over enthusiastically.

“Yo, did you hear?” Nefi handed her a fruit cup. “We finally got a meeting with the overlords! Are you gonna come?”

“Nahhh, Nefi. You know that’s not really my thing…I’m not an activist.” Nefi was always trying to recruit her for some radical ass shit that just never seemed worth the trouble of explaining to Sibyl’s very Jamaican mother.

“Nobody said you had to be. You live in this neighborhood, and have just as much say about what happens in it as the suits who own it.” Nefi sensed Sibyl’s hesitation. “Please Sib! Come so we have more people in the room. You don’t have to say anything. We just want those dicks to see that we have power. People power!”

Nefi was very proud of the fact that she had an uncle, or it might have been a second cousin, who had been a member of the Young Lords and, drawing on their legacy of fighting for the liberation of Puerto Ricans, was always going on about the oppressive nature of renting, and self-determination for poor people, and community empowerment, and, and…

“Aight — I’ll go,” Sibyl assured her, trying to cut her sermon short. Nefi hugged her and thanked her a million times before shoving a stack of flyers into her arms to pass out and post up around the neighborhood.

#

The singular garden in Groundview Gardens was usually ten degrees cooler than anywhere else in the neighborhood. It was created — not by the architects who had designed New York City’s newest development, but instead — by the community out of desperation as an escape from their cramped apartments. During the days, the older folks used it to grow their herbs, medicines, and flowers for their healing practices. The local farmers grew produce that fed the community. After school and on the weekends, all the kids hung out at the community center at the heart of the garden where they learned to dance, make art, and play music.

By the time Sybil got there later that night, Groundview’s collective of artists had already transformed the greenspace into their Saturday night hangout. One of the DJs was spinning records. People were dancing, drinking, smoking, having a good time. Dante, Sage, and Felix had bottles in their hands when Sibyl joined them at their usual spot. Their clothes were covered in colorful patches of spray paint.

“Did you finish it? When do I get to see it?,” she asked them excitedly. She hadn’t seen her friends in about a week, which meant they were either done with their latest mural or were taking a break before they disappeared for another few days. “Soon.” Dante looked tired, but excitement danced in his eyes. “Shoot anything good lately?” He leaned in reaching for her camera, but she quickly pulled back from him.

He laughed at her and took a sip of beer. Dante was her oldest friend out of the trio. There was a quiet protectiveness between the two of them Sibyl hoped they could always maintain.

“It’s been a minute since I last checked.”

“How come?” Dante asked.

Sibyl usually couldn’t wait to hold herself up in the darkroom at the community center to develop her film, but she had been putting off her latest batch. She’d fallen in love with photography while taking classes at the center as a kid. So much so that one day, her mother came home with an old film camera and Sibyl never put it down. That first summer, she ran around the neighborhood asking to take people’s photos. It felt so natural to her, though it had taken a while to gain people’s trust. Take their pictures for what? What was she going to do with them? Skeptics, but curious, they eventually agreed. They’d uncomfortably pose or force a smile, and then immediately ask her to see it because if they didn’t look good, she’d have to delete it. Then she’d explain how film photography worked, and they’d cuss her out for wasting their time.

Weeks later, she’d find them again — at the corner store, or at the People’s Garden, and give them the glossy prints she’d developed. Through her lens she could see they were secretly afraid she’d see the things they’d all spent so much time and concern trying to hide. But those things would all melt away when they’d see themselves — some for the first time — with the same worth and value she saw in them. After that Sibyl didn’t have to ask. They booked her for quinces and graduation parties and engagement photos. People would stop her when they saw her around. “So you not gonna take my picture? Girl, you know I look good today. Quit playing and snap something quick,” and they’d pose with more pride than before, as if to officially celebrate the triumph of living, something they didn’t know they had accomplished until they saw proof.

After seeing so many of her neighbors’ pictures, some of which she took, circulate in online memorials, something lodged itself in the pit of Sibyl’s gut. She couldn’t fully identify what it was, but it left her with little energy to feel or do anything else outside of going to school and work. But she didn’t know how to explain that to her friends without being weird or bringing down the mood, so she just said, “Been busy with school.” She quickly changed the subject before anyone tried to press her on it.

“Are ya gonna go to the town hall?”

“What town hall?” Sage asked.

“The one with management. About the HVACs.” Sibyl handed them flyers from her bag. “I promised Nefi I’d go, but I don’t want to go by myself. Someone come with me?”

“Pass,” Felix snorted.

“I’ll go. Should be fun,” Sage said with a smirk on their face. “I wanna hear what those assholes say their excuse is for not fixing shit.”

“I’ll save ya the trip. Sorry, you’re too poor for us to care,” Felix mocked. “It’s not like they’re all of a sudden gonna have a conscience ya know.”

“You mad negative bro,” Dante said.

“What?” Felix asked animatedly. “You really trying to spend the rest of your life down here? We all need to focus on getting the fuck up outta here instead of asking them to fix some janky ass vents.”

It’s not like anybody was trying to spend any part of their lives in Groundview, but lately it seemed like the rest of their lives wouldn’t take so long. The sound of the shuttle, more muffled than anywhere else, reverberated throughout the garden.

“I’m out the first chance I get,” Dante admitted. His answer wasn’t surprising to any of them, but this was the first time Sibyl heard him say it out loud. Dante was one of the more talented and disciplined artists in the collective. It would only be a matter of time before he blew up and left.

“What happens when ya leave though?” Sage was upset. “You get out, but what about the rest of us? Not everybody can up and leave right? Shouldn’t we try and make shit better for everyone.”

“That’s a trap, Sage. Shit’s not gonna get better,” Felix said harshly. “Does it ever hit ya, like really hit ya that there’s no future for us here? Everybody’s so busy working to get by, we don’t even have time to realize how fucked up everything is.”

“I’m not saying it’s perfect.” Sage shot back. “I just don’t think we have to turn our back on our community. That’s fucked up.”

“Don’t take it so personally, Sage,” Dante cut in. “Nobody’s turning their backs on anyone.”

“Besides, no offense to Nefi n ‘em,” Felix said, “but everybody’s wasting their time if they think those suits are gonna fix anything.”

Sibyl listened quietly. Groundview was all they ever knew. She had never considered leaving it, and yet she also was afraid to admit that she thought Felix might be right.

#

The middle school auditorium only had like fifteen people — half were members of SOIL — in there that Tuesday night, which was more than Nefi had expected. The handful of people who told her they wanted to go to the town hall, but couldn’t, were either working, or would get home too late from work and would have to cook dinner or iron school uniforms for the next day. Everyone else couldn’t be bothered; like Felix, they thought it was a waste of time. That nothing would come from it. Sibyl didn’t show. No one who attended the town hall actually thought anything would come from it either. If AR&M had wanted to do something, they would have done it a long ass time ago. The people who did show up were mostly Nefi’s elderly neighbors who were always ready to spit their anger into a mic because if they weren’t going to get a solution, they would at least get to cuss someone out, and have an audience to witness it.

Nefi worked her way around the room to thank people for coming. These things always felt like family reunions to her. Old friends hugging and catching up because they hadn’t seen each other in a minute, with work and family and life moving everybody in this or that direction, even though they all still lived in the same neighborhood. She finished up her greetings and joined the rest of SOIL, huddled at the front of the room. They went over the order of speakers, before Benjy, the group’s designated peacemaker for the evening, asked everyone to quiet down and get seated so they could start. He reminded everyone to keep it civil. Then one by one, people got up to the mic to direct their anger at the empty faces in tailored suits, sitting at the table in front of them, who could all care less about the people shouting at them. There was a lot of finger snapping, and “that’s right” and “tell-em’s” from the crowd throughout.

Finally about half an hour in, a young woman, with a little girl clutching on to the left side of her body, got up to the mic.

“My name is Mercy Brooks, and this is my daughter Angelique.” Her voice was shaking, in that soft, angry, pissed off kinda way that warranted attention. Nefi hushed the crowd down so that she could speak her peace without interruption. “My daughter’s asthma acts up almost every day. She can’t breathe. Ya should be fucking ashamed of yaselves. Our babies are dying down here. Is that what we deserve because we can’t do better? We just supposed to take that shit. You ever thought about what it’s like to live down here, huh? I’m sure ya don’t cause if you did, you wouldn’t think it was right to keep people living like this. Or do ya not care cause it’s not your kids?”

There was silence from the table, which was worse than feigning any sympathy or remorse. It set the room off into chants, which meant it was over from there. AR&M security shut that shit down quick right on cue, and if you weren’t arrested that night, you were brusquely escorted out. Management promised to set up some vague kind of task force with representatives from the neighborhood, but it led to nothing. A fucking disappointment, that’s what that shit was. And it wasn’t a surprise to Nefi or anyone else, but it hurt all the same. A few weeks later, that same woman who got up and spoke, her daughter Angelique died because they couldn’t get her to the hospital in time after she had an asthma attack. AR&M still hadn’t fixed the vents in their housing complex. And they still didn’t change the filters or fix the ducts in the other housing complexes so that it wouldn’t happen again after that. SOIL kept trying to drum up some kind of anger. Anything to get people to feel something. To do something.

Murals of Destiny, Angelique, and every other person who had died that year quietly popped up around the neighborhood. Vigils and altars with flowers and prayer candles accompanied them. But as much as people were upset or sad, no one knew what else to do except mourn and move on because it was clear to everyone that no one gave a damn about them. And so, what was the point?

##

They called it the Subterranean Housing and Inner-City Tunnels project, or S.H.I.T. for short. A plan to provide affordable housing for everyone who had experienced the worst housing crisis New York City had ever seen. People were evicted left and right. Families were priced out of their homes and neighborhoods. The shelter system, swelled beyond its limits for decades, finally collapsed. The streets and subway were overrun with people in sleeping bags and blankets. So nothing new, but it finally annoyed enough people to warrant action.

Naturally, the city contracted its most blood thirsty developers, AR&M, to help solve the problem, which was kinda like asking an arsonist to put out a fire they had proudly started. To no one’s surprise, they didn’t want to forfeit any of their luxury condos that sat empty while people slept on the streets. Instead, they struck a deal to create the largest scale of public housing of its kind, in exchange for absolute, unregulated freedom. The only problem was there was literally no land left for them to develop because they had already bought it all. And then one day, the chief architect of S.H.I.T. had an epiphany when he felt the uptown 6 train rumbling beneath his feet. There was an entire part of the city he had yet to consider. Where a majority of the people who needed housing were already living. Sprawling housing complexes with multi-unit apartments appeared overnight 150 feet underground, with the pilot site in the South Bronx. A new subway station and miles and miles of foot tunnels connected New York’s newest neighborhood to the world above it.

There were protests, anger, outrage! That the country’s most progressive city could so blatantly, and quickly!, shove all of its poor people out of sight only seemed to bother the poor people because everyone else praised S.H.I.T. as the most innovative solution of the 21st century. New York City had done the impossible, and housed every single person. That was grounds for celebration and federal funding. Plans were quickly announced to roll S.H.I.T. out across every major city in the country. To ease people’s concerns, the mayor at the time, eyeing a presidential run, promised that his own city’s underground neighborhood would just be temporary — transitional housing at best. Transitional to what, no one could answer. Temporary until when? Until they could think of something else. One year became five, became ten, etc., etc.

In time, AR&M and the city eventually added a couple schools, a hospital, a library, and a sad excuse for a park that residents eventually turned into the People’s Garden. Folks opened up bodegas, 99 cent and liquor stores, and made themselves at home. It didn’t take long to accept living where they did as another fact of life because they had no other choice. Over time, the plan to move everyone back aboveground disappeared from the city’s housing briefings. Then, the briefings disappeared altogether. The high rates of asthma and chronic bronchitis that seemed to come from living in Groundview occasionally made the nightly news, but not enough to cause major concern or stop neighborhoods like Groundview from popping up across the country.

There were still those who remembered life before Groundview, and vowed to move out of the neighborhood as soon as the opportunity arrived. They kept the dream close to their hearts. And if it didn’t happen during their lifetimes, they’d make sure it would happen during their children’s. More realized it was a fool’s dream and moved on. Eventually though, everyone adapted to the vibrations of the shuttle inside their kitchens. The white, fluorescent lighting that lit every corner of their world like a harsh, artificial sun. The damp, muggy air that arrested their chests if they tried to breathe too freely. And the humming of the massive ventilation systems that heated and cooled their cramped, windowless apartments — when they decided to work.

#

An Artist’s Treatise on Survival

I don’t know how we do it sometimes. That is, put up with all the shit that life throws at us. Work jobs that exhaust us with little in return. Take care of our families with little to no support. Do so much with so little. And still be able to smile or laugh in the midst of it all. Then, I remember: it’s because we have to. No one else is gonna pay our bills if we don’t. No one else is gonna put food on our tables for us. No one’s gonna bail us out. Naturally, you learn to hustle. To channel your frustrations into working around the way things are because trying to fix things that were built broken takes time you don’t have when you’re just trying to get by.

What gets me even more is how we’ve perfected survival itself as an artform, and created whole new types of living from abject desperation. We wasn’t supposed to, much less find reasons to enjoy life, but we did anyway. Some even take on the added challenge of trying to make life more bearable, more enjoyable, for the rest of us. For example, sometimes when it felt like there wasn’t much to appreciate. That you were resigned to the fate of being alive and not living and didn’t deserve any better. You’d see a mural. On the way to the laundromat. Or the corner store. While you were running errands. Or walking home, bone tired, from the train after another long, shitty day at work. And like all good, beautiful things, it reminded you to breathe. You didn’t always know who created it. Or couldn’t remember if it was there the day before even though you’ve walked that way millions of times. You just knew that it was, in its own way, encouraging you to make it to tomorrow. Bright bursts of color and story interrupting the mundane, tiresome every day you’d come to accept with no protest. After a while, it becomes easier to accept a simple truth about living. That we can still manage to find a reason to laugh, to enjoy life, despite it all, and that we can be the source of our own power. It’s kind of audacious of us to still try and find joy even if it means creating it for ourselves. Maybe that’s why we do it.

#

At first, it started off as harmless tagging, and they kept it up chasing the thrill of not getting caught. Then they tried to outdo each other. It became a sport: who could paint the better mural. Get the most buzz around the neighborhood before they got painted over. But the better they got, and the more the murals looked legit, the longer they stayed up. Until they stopped painting over them altogether because people loved them so much. They didn’t belong to the creators anymore. They belonged to the neighborhood. And before they knew it, they’d created something much bigger than any of them could have imagined.

The tunnels just seemed like the next natural step for the graffiti artists in Groundview. Miles and miles of blank walls? Dante, especially, saw something to keep him busy after his brother died. Besides, painting murals felt like the only thing he could do. He’d stopped going to school. He’d just paint. When he ran out of ideas to paint, he asked Sibyl to see her portraits, and he started replicating them across the neighborhood. He was relentless — portrait after portrait. Sage and Felix started helping him out because they worried he would lose it, spending all that time in the tunnels by himself. He was grasping for something, but he didn’t know what it was. Until he saw it, lying on the ground near a garbage can.

The Groundview Residents’ List of Demands

The People of Groundview Gardens demand financial and social restitution for all residents, especially those who developed chronic health issues from living underground and/or have lost loved ones because of it.

The People demand New York City move all Groundview residents back above ground into rent subsidized apartments.

The People demand New York City disband all underground housing policies so that no one else has to live in Groundview Gardens or any other housing project like it.

Until the first three demands are met, The People demand Arcadian Realty & Management fix the HVAC systems in every single housing complex it owns and regularly maintain them.

Once Groundview Gardens is fully evacuated, The People demand New York City turn the entire neighborhood into a public memorial to commemorate the loss of life, preserving the art and The People’s Garden.

After the town hall, and the supposed task force, proved to be a bust, SOIL had created the demands to deliver to the city. They circulated leaflets with the five bullet points, but no one would take them seriously. Dante himself, admittedly, had checked out, and had ignored SOIL’s literature, up until that point. The demands appeared overnight on the walls of the tunnels in bold white paint for everyone to see. They were the last thing everyone saw coming into Groundview and the first thing they saw from the shuttle on their commutes leaving the neighborhood.

#

Nefi kept waiting for the moment when her neighbors would suddenly realize that they were angry — very angry. They’d decide they were fed up once and for all and refuse to settle for less anymore. They’d riot in the streets. They’d protest in front of AR&M’s offices. They’d refuse to go into work until something changed. Their anger would get everyone’s attention. Her own rage had burned intensely inside her for as long as she knew herself. She learned to channel it through SOIL trying to make Groundview a better place, even though everyone told her it wasn’t worth it; it wasn’t possible; it was a waste of time. But it was either that or literally set some shit on fire. But, it didn’t matter how many rallies, tenant meetings, town halls, or demonstrations SOIL organized. Nefi learned that she couldn’t have a revolution without people. And the people? They were tired and overworked. They didn’t have time to overthrow anything. And, even though no one would admit it, they were also afraid — afraid of change, of what they could lose, of realizing that something greater than what they had come to know was possible. So to save themselves, and Nefi, further disappointment, they rebuffed her again, and again: Nefi you need to chill. Girl you’re doing too much. Don’t waste your time. Nothing’s gonna change. After the town hall, and years and years of holding hope, the fire inside Nefi dulled until she couldn’t recognize herself anymore. She conceded her rage for high-functioning hopelessness. She withdrew from her friends, from her neighbors, from SOIL, only tapping into enough energy to wake up, go to work, and make her way back home. The days bled into each other, so much so that when the night Nefi had been waiting for eventually came later that August, it caught her completely off guard. It caught everyone off guard because it wasn’t the HVACs or the deaths of toddlers, or even the wrath towards AR&M that finally set people off. But it shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone who’s lived in New York City long enough because it was the one thing that could incite the level of large-scale anarchic rage Nefi had been holding out for — and that was the MTA.

#

The night in question, the air was hot, muggy, and heavy with potential. Like any other evening, people were heading home from work, the collective exhaustion weighing down on their bodies, stamped into their faces. They waited together, huddled in a sweaty mass on the sweltering Third Ave-138th St. platform for a train that felt like it would never come. When an empty shuttle finally did arrive in the station, the doors opened to the grating sound of a man’s voice coming through the train’s speaker system:

“Attention passengers. This is your conductor speaking. Due to unplanned construction up ahead, we are disbanding all trains to Groundview Gardens at this time. I repeat, we are disbanding all trains to Groundview. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

This shit had happened plenty of times before. A disruption of service that made it difficult to get home. Everybody was so used to it and had even come to expect it. The inconvenience of being poor and powerless consistently working against them. It too had become a predictable kind of disappointment. Even the audible, collective disapproval was muted and slightly rehearsed, nothing more than a reflex. They would have to find their way home, some two-odd miles on foot, through the tunnels. But that night, Ms. Claudette, who had been on her feet all day at work taking care of her elderly patient and still had to go home and iron her scrubs for the next day, was fucking tired. She had paid her fare. And, she had paid her taxes. She had also paid her dues in this country — twenty-seven years worth of struggle and debasement — for what? This could not be it. Life could not just be disappointment. The least she expected was that the train would get her home like it was supposed to. She decided that she was going to let the conductor have a piece of her mind.

“This is nonsense. Tell me, just tell me, how am I supposed to get home?” Her boisterous St. Lucian accent traveled well beyond her.

Folks who heard her echoed in agreement, hyping her up. “They have the nerve to raise prices for this shitty ass service,” someone said loudly. They all collectively decided to board the empty train. The construction workers in their hard hats and massive boots, the women with their large tote bags and their tiredness neatly folded away into themselves. They were all going to sit on the train, until it started up again. It was going to take them home.

The conductor was tired too. Nothing as deep-seated as his passengers, but something not too far removed. He had no skin in this game though, and his job didn’t pay him enough to care. He was annoyed; they were keeping him from clocking out. And so, after listening to a bunch of people passionately curse him out, he told them to, and I quote:

“Write a letter.”

It happened so fast. I mean, when I say shit popped off before anyone could swallow their spit. Someone knocked over the trash cans on the platform. Someone else, set them on fire, with what to this day no one really knows, but their latent anger seemed to have ignited what they didn’t know was inside them.

The riots lasted for weeks. People boycotted the MTA and didn’t go to work.

The restaurants aboveground shuttered because they were understaffed. Construction on all the new developments stopped because the workers, a lot of whom lived in Groundview, refused to show up. People aboveground had to stay home because their nannies and house cleaners weren’t able to come and relieve them like they had come to rely on. Groundview had forced the city to come to a complete stop. The mayor held a press conference saying she didn’t condone the behavior of the vandals at the train station. SOIL led protests and demonstrations in front of city hall until she had to hold a second press conference to apologize for her statements at the first press conference. She promised she was going to make sure that it would never happen again — not just the riots, but the unnecessary deaths in Groundview, the resentment the residents felt towards the city. They were going to fix the HVACs, and the MTA! They were going to heal the great divide the city had long thrived on once and for all, if, and only if, the workers called off the strike and went back to work. It sounded so sincere, everyone wanted to believe it. Tired of holding all the power, they asked SOIL to represent them at the bargaining table. Deals were made. Hands were shaken. And things went back to a semblance of normal with a few slight adjustments.

#

Sibyl was heading out of her apartment when she saw a piece of yellow paper on her front door.

60 DAYS NOTICE TO INCREASE RENT

Mildred Campbell 207 167th St. (GG), Unit 10E

Beginning September 1, 2041, the monthly rent will go up an additional 5% for all units located in the Robert Moses Houses. Please make the appropriate adjustments within the AR&M digital payment system.

We appreciate your continued tenancy.

Sincerely, Arcadian Realty & Management

Pieces of yellow paper were taped to every single door she passed on her way to the train. It had been a year since the last time the heating or cooling had stopped working. Everyone held their breath celebrating, just in case that was when the heat would shut off or the air would decide to stop working again, but it never did. The number of deaths and hospitalizations went down, and everyone seemed content enough after the strikes and boycott ended, to go back to work. The trains even went back to running as efficiently as possible for the MTA, always teetering on the edge of collapse, but never actually approaching it for fear of recreating another opportunity for mass rebellion.

On her way to the shuttle, Sibyl saw a group of people congregating near one of the murals. She clutched her camera in her hand, ready to raise it to her face, when she heard a voice she didn’t recognize shouting through a megaphone. It belonged to a man she had never seen around the neighborhood before, and he was walking backwards while talking to a group of people Sibyl also didn’t recognize.

“Groundview is the latest up and coming neighborhood in the city,” his voice echoed. “Some of the most promising young artists have gotten their start in this urban — ”

She didn’t stick around to hear more.

After the riots, small groups of tourists descended regularly on Groundview like vultures to see the murals they had seen in viral photographs. They’d rudely block the paths from the train platform, or take up way too much space on the footpaths of the tunnels posing in front of the murals for pictures. Not long after that came the opportunistic hacks who had never stepped foot in Groundview before, running “culture tours’’ around the neighborhood. The residents felt like they were stuck in some sick and twisted museum. Out of annoyance, they banned the tours and non-residents from the People’s Garden, preserving their one last sanctuary in the community.

Sibyl had been in the middle of it all the first night of the riots. She was on the subway platform on her way home from classes and started snapping pictures once she realized what was going on, catching the fervent energy better than anyone could describe to everyone else who wasn’t there. She had no idea her photos would end up everywhere. But they did, and they not only helped draw attention to the plight of her neighborhood. They also drew attention to the wealth of talent germinating underneath the city. Her photos of her friends, their murals, and the other members of her neighborhood, had also attracted a lot of attention that felt good to the young artists who all of a sudden saw opportunities previously unavailable to them right at their doorsteps.

The shuttle arrived on the platform before her. Sibyl boarded the cool air-conditioned cart; the beads of sweat on her skin quickly evaporated. Nefi had warned them to be careful early on. “These things always end up having you exploit your own people for a cheap come up, and it’s never worth it.” Everyone thought she was trippin’. There Nefi was again just looking for another cause to fight now that her crusade against A&RM had seemed to come to an end. Even Sibyl thought she was overreacting at first. People were finally paying attention to Groundview. If she and the rest of the artists could help show the world how important the lives of the people who lived there were, maybe things could change for the better.

The train disappeared into the tunnel towards the 138th St. station. A lot of things had quietly changed over the last year and a half. Many of the families who had lost loved ones, including Dante’s, received settlements from the city and moved out of the neighborhood, leaving a sizable number of the apartments empty. Leading to perhaps the most visible addition to the neighborhood. AR&M had a couple of the younger artists looking for their own big break paint over SOIL’s list of demands and replaced it with a more “aesthetically inviting” message for the new visitors to the neighborhood: Welcome to the Mural District. Sibyl had only heard the tour guides call it that, in an unveiled attempt to rebrand Groundview. It didn’t take too long to find out where they got it from. The name and the welcome sign led to intense debates between the artists in the collective, including her friends, about people selling out and what they owed to each other as artists and their neighbors, which led to a few people splitting off and doing their own thing. The mural made Sibyl sick to her stomach, and she tried her best to avoid seeing it on her commutes. Then one day, someone started covering it up with black graffiti making the message unreadable.

No one knew who it was because they never got caught, but it didn’t matter to AR&M. Like clockwork the next morning, they had cleaners paint a fresh welcome message over it in time for the daily tours at noon. When the welcome message started appearing on the AR&M screens, the screens started getting covered in graffiti too. After a few months, Sibyl expected the guerilla painters to give up and move on, but they didn’t. Fresh graffiti kept appearing over the mural and on the screens, prompting AR&M to deploy their clean up crews, and then the routine would start again. Sibyl looked out the window in anticipation. “OURS.” The word, written over and over again across the mural, quickly came into view and then vanished out of sight.

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