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ilysumu · 4 years

Text

heather - miya atsumu

synposis: you’re longing for someone you can never have, and after the heartbreak, atsumu miya is the only force that can heal you

genre: angst + fluff

word count: 5196

characters: y/n, atsumu miya, suna rinato, “heather”

a/n: happy (early) birthday tsum tsum, i love u most. hello he deserves the entire world i said what i said and no i will not be taking constructive criticism. and also a huge thank you to namu for being my beta reader and editor, you made this story so much better <3 i love u so much!!

The wintry sun rose to signify the beginning of a new day, and you wonder if it’ll be the same as always. It was basically tradition now – you complaining about the cold weather and Suna begrudgingly passing you his jacket with a mutter of a complaint that held no bite. And to that you’d glance pleadingly into his tired eyes, on the first day of winter, asking for his unparalleled warmth.

But today, it seemed as though Suna had no jacket to offer – the girl beside him pulling the sleeves of a jacket that engulfed her small frame. A barely audible whisper of complaint escapes your drying lips, creating puffs of condensation as the icy air meets your warm breath. Blowing air into your paling hands, you decide to ignore Suna’s preoccupied glace. Too preoccupied to keep traditions. Too preoccupied to see the warmth you needed.

Today felt more like winter than ever before. In the way that cherry blossoms no longer graced your eyes and the pale pink petals no longer fell on your head (the ones to be brushed off later by Suna). Or maybe it was the absence of his jacket hanging on your frame, the black one with his jersey number plastered upon it.

You stare at the vast sea of dirty white snow surrounding you, taking in the unforgiving season. You never particularly favoured the slippery snow beneath your feet, but you admit that it prettied nature in a way that summer, autumn and spring never could.

Yet the beginning of winter this year, was an empty nothing. It wasn’t the day where you’d marvel at the snowflakes that landed on your gloves or the day where you laughed with Suna pointing out the lopsided snowmen parked on the streets.

It seemed the season bought a storm of constant longing. Yearning to turn back time, to change something; anything, to keep Suna beside you.

Sparse clouds cover the sky some adorned light grey foretelling more snowfall - and you swear she looks more beautiful in this light. Giggling behind a sleeve-covered hand at something Suna had spluttered. Her hands reacquaint with the cold air only to hit his chest lightly. Suna smiles – like he did with you. Softly. With eyes blazing with warmth.

Her silky brown hair shines as the sun peeks from behind a cloud. The harsh, glaring sun which did nothing but point out your imperfections, seems to compliment her beautifully. It was unfair – and you blamed it all on winter.

But you remember nothing blooms in winter. Silently and maybe in denial - you laugh. There’s no way that they’re more than friends. Maybe I still have a chance, and that ‘maybe’ was the sole string keeping your heart from falling apart.

Your thoughts are interrupted by nearing footsteps stomping on the frozen blades of grass and when you turn around, your senses are wafted with a familiar scent of citrus and lavender. You crinkle your nose at Atsumu’s touch, being squashed in a semi-comfortable embrace. A part of you feels that his action is necessary because you’re no longer thinking about the beautiful girl beside Suna and the jealousy eating away at your heart – you’re focused solely on Atsumu’s tight embrace.

“How are ya guys?” he laughs. Atsumu’s pulling off each finger of his woollen gloves, and they’re soon off with a final tug.

“We’re good! How are you Sumu-san?” she smiles, enthusiasm dripping from each word. She’s bright and bubbly even on a 7AM Monday – something about that seems to irk you, teeming you with relentless resentment.

“Good good,” Atsumu distractedly responds, handing you his gloves. Your mind involuntarily drifts to Suna and his ignorance of your shivering body. Alas, he only had one spare coat, what more could he do, … right? Your hands thank Atsumu, reaching outwards to seek a new warmth, but something in your heart hesitates.

“Thanks Sumu, but-“

“Yer hands look like they’re about to freeze off! Take them, will ya!” Atsumu protests, and you grudgingly take them, slipping your hands into the warmth that was previously occupied by Atsumu’s.

Atsumu is grinning playfully, and it takes everything in your willpower to not jab him, “Thank you Sumu.”

Your hands finally feel warmth, and it’s all thanks to Atsumu Miya.

------------

You smiled at her, as she entered the classroom, and she grins back, before comfortably seating herself next to Suna. The fleeting feeling of bitterness swipes your tongue, that it was your old seat. And for the nth time this winter, you can’t but gaze at them, at her.

You begin to wonder why he looked at her like that. Like she was everything in the world and more. It was the first time that you’d thought that maybe you did lose him to her.

Perhaps he was in love with the glow in her eyes, or the skip in her step. Maybe he liked the way her walnut hair cascaded down her shoulders or the way she was so disarmingly unaware of her natural beauty. It appeared that she was kind, beautiful, academically talented and most of all, everything you couldn’t bring yourself to be. You don’t think you’ve ever witnessed such overwhelming perfection in your life.

Soon, you’re Suna’s teasing tone from across the classroom, and seeing the light crinkle beside his eyes – both rarer than a blue moon. All of it, for her.

Yet still, your heart refused to budge, holding onto the pitiful thought that Suna was not yet bound in a relationship. The glimmer of hope motivated your heart, but not without the accompaniment of unbearable yearning. It was the agony and envy that was a constant reminder that you were no longer the only one beside Suna.

Lips pursed, you stare outside the window, chin resting on your hand, as you observe the vast whiteness of the snow outside. It appears that even in this weather, little rabbits refuse to shelter themselves in the cold, leaving tiny indents in the snow as a trail and sifting through the snow in hopes to find a snack. Perhaps that too was the fate of your hungry heart. Famished, and foraging for a love that wasn’t there in the first place, yet refusing to back down even during the harshness and the coldness of the winter.

You smothered a laugh when you realise you were comparing yourself to a rabbit. How goddamn pathetic-

A loud bang interferes your insidiously self-deprecating thoughts and your eyes travel the classroom before landing on the figure who rushes to sit beside you. He pulls the beanie off his head and runs his hands though his sandy hair, all whilst listening to the teacher’s protests about his tardiness with a half ear.

He leans to the left, tapping your nose and smiles. Goofy and big yet decorated with warmth and fondness. “Hey Y/N.”

“Buzz off ‘Sumu, focus on your work,” you groan, pushing his finger away from your face. Yet, a small smile manages to surface.

Mind floating again, you reminisce how adamant Atsumu was to sit next to you when the seating arrangements changed. He was practically begging the teacher – coming up with a plethora of excuses just to sit next to you. You can’t help but smile, remembering the growing frustration flashing the teacher’s face. Atsumu proposed a lengthy list of reasons as to why this was “the best course of action”. And with a last promise to try harder, she reluctantly accepts.

You remember how Atsumu grinned at you, after the promise he’d so proudly made. He looked so happy to be beside you.

--------

Managing Inarizaki wasn’t as hard as you anticipated, with Kita around, they weren’t rowdy, except for Atsumu that is. Your uneasy relationship with Suna didn’t affect your duties as manager and for the professionalism you displayed, you felt a small ounce of satisfaction. The gym was filled with noises of grunts of exertion and squeaks of shoes. It smelt like axe – but it nothing you weren’t already used to.

Usually, Suna would help you set up the nets. But as of late, he was preoccupied by her. She sat there, glossy lips pouted with concentration, quietly listening to him blabber about volleyball. Suna specifies the rules with uncharacteristic patience, teaching her how to serve.

You look away from them, and continue your struggle to reach the top of the net, before giving up and calling for help, “Can someone-“

But before you can finish the sentence, the material is yanked from your hands and put in place.

“Thanks ‘Sumu,” you respond, voice filled with sincere gratitude. Oddly, you find yourself questioning why you’re inclined to thank Atsumu for such a small action. But you hold back, not grasping the concept of your thoughts and settle on a smile which he returns.

You glance back at Suna, watching as he simpers softly at the sight of her attempting to spike the ball. She falls into a fit of laughter, after the incredible fail, and even Suna is chuckling lightly.

And now more than ever, you wish with every bone in your body that you were her.

As practice begins you stand with the clipboard, ruminating the beginning of your friendship with Suna. He seemed to be dismissive when you joined the team as manager, but he eventually warmed up to you.

You fell for Suna as soon as your eyes landed on his dark hair and calculating eyes. And you fell hard. He had always been pretty to you; more beautiful than any human you’d ever witnessed. And as each moment passed, as dusk turned to dawn and as seasons changed, you felt yourself become more and more tangled within his grasp. And soon you find yourself as a puppet that craved only him.

Right now, however, you’re left with nothing but a gaping hole in your heart replacing what was once overwhelming love for him. You think it’s best to rid yourself of your fantasies before she and Suna become official and you have no time left to breathe or heal without seeing a physical reminder of your failed love daily.

Everything seemed to have changed so quickly, yet you were latching onto the past wondering if it was just a sick game fate was playing with you.

------

It was spring now, and your body can’t help but feel lethargic.

Walking to the lunch table, you see Suna with her in hindsight, dismissing the rough pang in your heart.

Atsumu calls you over and you plaster on a smile, seating yourself beside Atsumu and Aran.

“How you manage to get her is beyond me...” Aran laughs, as Suna smiles awkwardly as his eyes dart to you. It seems that he had forgotten to tell you, nervous of your reaction. He didn’t know how you felt towards him, all that he knew was hearing something of this importance from a third person was likely upsetting. Suna didn’t seem to notice the way you were worlds apart by now, and maybe. he never will.

“Huh?” your ears perk, the conversation sparking interest. Your heart feels like it’s beating at 24395km/hr nervous of the response youre bound to receive.

With a harmless chuckle Aran replies, “Suna is off the market.”

“Oh..” you trailed off, “Congrats.”

Something in your heart just cracks.

There was something that you had forgotten. After winter comes spring, where everything seems to blossom – flowers, trees … relationships. You begin to think this spring is even more unforgiving to you than last winter.

Fate seems to be pulling quite a number on you. And your eyes glossy eyes are a tell-tale sign.

You’re clutching onto the wood of the seat, and almost immediately, Atsumu’s eyes travel to the pool starting to form in your eyes

“Are you okay Y/N?” she asks, concerned look washed over her face. You despise that you cannot seem to hate her no matter how deep your heart is filled with envy. Because she’s so genuinely worried and completely unaware.

“Your eyes are watering…” she points out, as if not blatantly obvious already.

You stole him, you think vehemently. And you want to yell – to do something… anything other than sitting there with tears in your eyes.

“Hey! I just remembered Y/N was allergic to these!” Atsumu pushes the branches of a nearby tree away as if it had personally insulted him. Had it been under different circumstances, you would have applauded his acting skills.

Your hands shook, a physical manifestation of the hurt that gripped your heart, “We should probably go to the school nurse.”

“Oh,” she responds, “I can take-“

“Don’t ya worry about it! I’ll take her,” Atsumu interrupts frantically, wrapping an arm around your shoulder.

And when you’re walking away from Suna, your heart seems to break even more. He was the only person your heart leaped toward. It seemed that strings of friendship that held you two together were cut off.

Yet, still after so much instilled pain, you couldn’t find it in yourself to blame him or her.

You blame yourself for being weak, for being unworthy. You ponder, maybe if I was more beautiful, more-

Your thoughts are interrupted by Atsumu, “It’s not your fault, ya know.”

“If I was pretty like her-“ you’re stopped by Atsumu’s jab.

“You are pretty, Y/N,” he smiles, peering at your tear-stained face, “Probably the prettiest girl in the whole wide world.”

“You sound like a twelve-year-old confessing to their crush.” You scoff, not believing a word that left his mouth.

“Well, they’re just my thoughts, take it or leave it,” he objects, wiping a falling tear from your cheek, “It’s okay if you cry by the way, I’m here, your personal tear-wiper.”

His bold proclamation causes you to stare into his eyes, nearly ripping into a laugh at the absurdity of his words. Yet when you gaze deeper, you can’t detect even a sliver of a dishonesty.

“1000 Yen per minute,” he finishes, and upon hearing that, you let out a giggle between the hiccups.

And for a split second, for the tiniest amount of time, it felt as though your heart was healed.

-------

Days transform to weeks as you begin avoiding Suna and his newfound girlfriend, merely because your heart cannot handle the anguish. It hurts to see them together and so much so that you had no idea that something emotional could physically hurt this bad. Your breath still stutters when you see them and every so often your eyes sting but it is getting better.

You’re getting better.

No longer stuck third-wheeling (or even fourth-wheeling when Atsumu was around). You worked your schedule around them, sometimes even feeling mildly childish for doing so. Still, you knew it was what had to be done if you were to ever heal.

As per your new routine, you woke up earlier and taking the longer route to school – all to avoid crossing paths with them. At first, it was a chore, but eventually, you began enjoying the beauty of the rising sun that painted the sky with brilliance. The way the bright, burning star, peaked over the horizon held a sort of unspoken beauty.

The birds sung their morning songs and the trees were decorated with the dews layered onto them from the chilliness of the night. The occasional car zoomed by and it was always fun to guess the colour of the car before it entered your line of sight. So far, you had guessed a whopping three out of the eleven correctly. I’m so good at this, you think.

You tilt your head upwards, glancing at the clouds decorated by the sunset, hues of red, orange and yellow painting them so beautifully. You wish you could capture the beauty of it, but a single photograph could never hope to contain such beauty. You knew this from your thirteen failed attempts at snapping a picture on your brick-like Nokia.

Walking on the edge of the sidewalk, you balance yourself, arms outstretched, even wobbling for dramatic effect.

It’s the small enjoyments in life that entertain you now. And one day, you hope you can look Suna in the eye and thank him for making you focus on other things. Suna had forced you to occupy your time and thoughts with him. Now, a large part of you breathes easier knowing that he no longer consumes your entire being like he used to.

When you reach Atsumu’s place, you don’t knock, afraid you’d wake his parents, but shoot him a quick “here” text. Sometimes Osamu joins you, grumbling about how you two always left him out. But you can’t help that you felt more comfortable with Sumu.

“Isn’t it pretty today?” you ask when you see Atsumu from your peripheral vision.

“Yeah,” he whispers, eyes never leaving you.

Alas, your eyes were fixated on the dancing colours spewed out in front of you and you miss the heart-warming gesture.

“Here, let’s take a picture!” Atsumu suggests, smiling and flipping open his phone.

What you weren’t expecting was for him to grab your shoulders and point the camera towards the two of you. Atsumu grins and the surprised look doesn’t leave your face as he presses the button. A candid, if you will.

When he flicks back to the photo, your heart seems to leap out of your chest. Did Atsumu Miya always look that gorgeous?

As you let Atsumu inspect the photo, your eyes don’t leave him. They trail his face out of curiosity and you admire the way the wind softly blows his hair out of his face.

Atsumu had this sort of unassuming attractiveness about him.

He was devastatingly beautiful, and it was about time your heart realised.

Atsumu had spent the last few months healing you - mending a heart he never broke. And in turn, you’d grown more and more accustomed to his presence. Some part of you felt disappointed in yourself with the fact you’d practically replaced Suna with Atsumu. But a larger part of you was terrified that history would repeat itself.

---------

A blush creeps across your face when Atsumu’s practicing his service ace. What the hell is wrong with me, you fan yourself, a futile attempt to look normal. Atsumu insisted you stay behind with him as he finishes perfecting his newest weapon. Your gaze doesn’t leave his figure and for a second even Atsumu anxious with your sharp stare. You survey his moves and stance drooping as he grew more fatigued and before you can yell a ‘time out’ you hear a thud and see Atsumu hurling to the ground.

A chemical reaction within sparked as you rush to grab the medical kit (nearly tripping on the bleachers yourself). To your vast (and thankful) surprise, it was a mere sprain that just needed some bandaging and an icepack. Still, your hands shake, as you bandage his ankle.

Atsumu wants to huff – not wanting to be babied – but shifts after seeing your worried eyes. Holding back, lips apart, Atsumu freezes under your touch.

“This is why you need to be careful, Sumu,” you scold, pushing the ice against his ankle, “And stop overworking yourself.”

Atsumu grins, “I’m fine thanks to you! Consider the debt for being your tear-wiper repaid!”

A small chuckle escapes your lips as you push your hair away from your face, “You’re an idiot.”

Somehow, with such little words, and even with such a painful memory, you grin like a fool after his joke. And he stares, eyes wide and not sure how to continue with his life after being blasted by your perfect smile. Atsumu hasn’t seen you smile like that since Suna brushed the cherry blossoms from your hair. He truly thinks that it was long overdue, your happiness, that is.

“Gah,” he utters, brain not fully synchronised with his mouth.

Feeling like you pried too far into his space, you edge a little bit further away. Atsumu is in the midst of his third mental breakdown of the minute, but slowly his speech is catching up to speed with his mind. Naturally, he was already sweating from practice, but with you in such close proximity, he thinks his sweat glands are overworking times a thousand.

“We should probably get going now-“

“You should smile more often,” Atsumu says lightly, in a tone contrary to his ordinary – rarely audible.

Endearment and warmth surge through your veins, heart pooling with blissful emotion. You’re staring, you tell yourself, yet somehow neither of you can pull away. You stay like that for a while, mind and body temporarily glitching as you gawk at Atsumu’s words and his glistening skin. Cheeks coated champagne, your heart finally feels like it’s beating again, since Suna.

“Umm, okay,” you murmur, rubbing your arms slightly, and smiling again for good measure.

And Atsumu swears that his heart just catapulted into space.

-----

It wasn’t like Atsumu couldn’t handle a bad day, but when it was a bad week, you can tell instantly by the lack of energy in his voice. You knew when Atsumu’s arm didn’t automatically fall around your shoulder that he was tired. His throat was dry and his muscles ached. He didn’t feel like himself, and it was finally your turn to at least give a gist of repayment for all he’d done for you.

Atsumu had been overexerting himself for nationals, pushing rest and sleep on the backseat. Caffeine and weird-smelling energy drinks replaced his normal diet. But most importantly Atsumu hadn’t been spending time with you. It was understandable – it’s not like you were his significant other – but you missed the familiar warmth in your heart when his arms were wrapped around you.

“Okay time out, Atsumu,” Kita says, realising Atsumu had far pushed his limits by now, “Go home, rest up, and we’ll see you tomorrow.”

Atsumu whined, stomping his feet similar to that of a toddler. Some things never change. Kita and the others nodded goodbye to you, as you also began packing up your things and throwing them a small wave.

It’s almost dark now, some clouds still painted orange from the remaining sun. You loop your hand around Atsumu’s drink before snatching the 4th energy drink of the day from his hands (yes you were counting). Atsumu protests, caught off-guard, thinking, this wasn’t like you.

“You’ve gotta stop this, Sumu,” you spoke, quietly, putting the drink back in his bag, “This isn’t going to help you win nationals.”

Atsumu huffs, again, fully knowing you’re right, but his ego unwilling to admit.

Your eyebrows squeeze together, hands curling to fists and then straightening. Letting out a shaky breath, you pull the woolly cardigan closer to your chest. You hope Atsumu says something – anything, as the silence was growing heavier and more awkward.

You opt to break away from the silence by peering at the stars which begin to glow as the sun fully submerges. The night has a special kind of beauty, even more beautiful than the sunset – at least for you. Even with the surfeit of light pollution from the street and house lights. The sky, completely freckled with stars now, is beauty within itself and it takes a while to pull your eyes away from them. The crescent moon accompanies the glimmering stars dully and your eyes finally gaze over to Atsumu’s figure.

Atsumu drifts in and out of focus, body feeling completely numb and absolutely fatigued. He squeezes his eyes shut, opening them again widely in efforts to somehow gain more energy. With hesitancy, you pull his sleeve, leading him to a nearby seat.

“You’re tired and… well, I – let’s just sit for a while,”

Atsumu seats himself beside you, blinking, mind trying to comprehend what you’d just muttered.

The air was humid – yet still held a sharpness to it. You suppose it was trying to tell you something about the boy sitting beside you. Atsumu’s face held a focused grimace, aimed at the concrete pathway and you wonder if this has something to do with nationals. Hands ghosting his shoulder, you pull away, for the millionth time.

“I can’t help it.” Atsumu begins, “I have to get better, I can’t let myself be mediocre.”

You’re staring at him, somewhat perplexed, knowing the pain of being second best.

“You’re already so good Sumu,” you reassure, looking at him softly.

“That’s just- not enough, I saw Kageyama during the training I had – he was just so, naturally perfect,” his voice breaks ever so slightly that you almost don’t notice. But Atsumu knows you did, the moment your arms wrap around his body.

“Sumu, you’re talented too,” you say gently, “You’re probably the best setter in the whole wide world.”

“Hey!” he perks up, before a smile flutters to his lips, “Quit stealin’ my lines!”

“Who said they belonged to you,” you grumble playfully, crossing your arms and looking away.

“I did! And It’s totally trademarked or whatever.”

You grin at him, as he leans on you lightly, placing his head on your shoulder. He’s glancing at the glowing orb in the sky, cherishing the moment with you.

“Hey, Sumu,” you start, “Promise me you’ll eat the meals I bring you from now on.”

He huffs lightly, to which you take some offence to, glaring at him.

“Fine, promise,” he sighs, interlocking your pinkies, connecting the thumbs.

“And, promise me, you won’t drink those trashy energy drinks!” you almost exclaim.

“Whaaat?? What about two a day?”

“No.”

“Yer not my mother,” he rolls his eyes, facing away from you. Soon, he’s whipping his head around again to voice another offer.

“One?” he begged, eyes sparkling slightly, and lips pouted.

“Sumuuuu,” you groan, “You know how bad they are!”

He looks like a puppy almost, begging you for the treat in your hand.

“Fine,” you murmur, connecting your pinkies once more as Atsumu yelps with joy.

-------

As days turn to nights, and weeks to months, it was winter again. And you had forgotten your coat, again. Old habits die hard, you huff. Pulling your gloves on tightly, your eyes trail forward, stopping at the tall blonde figure walking towards you with a grin and a wave.

“Y/N,” he breathes, slightly huffing from his jog to you, “I figured that-“ a breath, “you’d forget,” another breath, “yer jacket.”

Atsumu’s smile is blindingly bright, as he passes his jacket to you. You’re staring at him in pure awe, cheeks flushed with rose. Blinking and dumbfounded, you take his jacket, putting it on yourself. And god – it was so damn warm.

“Sumu..” you trail off, eyes still wide, “you remembered.”

“Of course,” he replies, slightly kicking the snow at his feet.

“Thank you,” you beam, eyes twinkling with pure admiration for the scruffy haired boy. You notice the snowflakes piling on his hair as he looks down at you. On your tippy toes, your hand reaches the top of his head, brushing them off his hair.

“There,” you say breathlessly, causing a blush to spread on Atsumu’s cheeks.

“Thanks,” Atsumu responds, almost immediately looking away, prying away from your touch.

There’s a lack of shallowness in the winter air, it’s full and light – softly blowing the hair from your face. With the snow falling gently, so naturally you hold out your palms and with a light giggle you blow the snow falling in your hands away. The streets were covered in thick blankets of snow, decorated with little snowmen with lopsided faces and quirky carrots – something about this winter was different, and you couldn’t seem to pinpoint it until your gaze met the figure beside you.

Atsumu wasn’t different, yet something about this made him feel different. His jacket didn’t appear foreign like Suna’s -- it was familiar, warm… cosy. You gaze at Atsumu, reddened cheeks and a soft smile resting on his face and inhale sharply.

His eyes trail your figure, cheeks ablaze at how the sun seems to compliment your face. He loved the way your hair glistened in the sun, how the cold coated your cheeks with rose. Fiddling with his sleeves, he hesitates, before brushing off snow on your head. And you’re looking at him almost immediately, with doe eyes, wondering the origins of the warm fuzzy feeling in your heart.

“Atsumu…” you trail off, looking at the ground, “thank you.”

“W-wha? It was just a few snowflakes, don’t ya worry about it!”

“Not that.” Your memory begins to grow hazy when you think about Suna. Atsumu is looking at you with anticipation, hoping you’d say something.

It wasn’t like you’d understood love properly and you still don’t think you do. It has always been vague and idealistic for you, never seeing it – only ever reading about it in books or seeing it personified fictionally in movies. But, when you were with Atsumu, the line between friends and lovers seemed to have blurred, in such a beautiful way.

“For helping me, through everything in the last year. You helped me heal myself and I wouldn’t be the person I am now, without you.”

Atsumu’s eyes widen as he takes in your words; and soon it’s replaced with a grin. He’s almost involuntarily wrapping his arms around you pulling your body close to him.

He’s so incredibly warm, you think, the smile never leaving your face.

You are overflowing with awe and endearment and complete paradise as you bask in his warmth. You wonder if it’s spring again, heart blossoming with complete and utter happiness. And you’re not afraid anymore – not of rejection, of unrequited love. Because, for the first time, you were a priority.

Heart beating at sickening rates and hands sweating litres upon litres of water even in the chilliness of winter, you’re pulling away. Atsumu is looking at you, gazing deeply into your eyes with hands on your shoulders as if you might break with his touch. His eyes glimmer, hope.

Before you can react, Atsumu’s kissing you – and you’re kissing back. The snow continues to fall quicker and quicker, yet, there seems to be something special about kissing in the snow. It isn’t like what you anticipated, when watching binge watching romcoms – it was so much more special, intimate and more. You’d fallen in love with the way Atsumu’s lips moved against yours the way you fell in love with him, slowly.

And for once you thank the universe and destiny for the longing, the pain and the heartbreak. For you knew that you would not have known such love without it. You’re grinning brightly at Atsumu after pulling away as both of you release shallow breaths. After all this time, what you needed was right in front of you.

“I think I’m in love with you, Miya Atsumu,”

Atsumu rests his cold and calloused hand on your cheek, smiling while gazing down at you.

“I’m in love with you too,” he replies, squeezing the other hand he’d been holding. And you can see the truth in his eyes, glimmering, glowing like the sun, shining like his love. Eyes pooling with tears, you grin like a fool, wrapping your arms around him once more.

Maybe winter wasn’t so bad, after all.

thank you for reading! if you liked this, then please check out my other works here.

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deltaengineering · 5 years

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Spring Anime 2019 Part 3: the doldrums

Spoilers: There’s going to be top tier shows in this season eventually.

Also spoilers: not today.

Araiya-san! Ore to Aitsu ga Onnayu de!

What: Anime schlub has to sub in for his father, who is a professional “girl washer”. He’s not supposed to go full lewd. He does.

❌ Unlike Nande Koko ni Sensei ga, this is actual porn. You just have to go looking for the full version, because the TV version is half as long (3:30) for some reason. I dunno, probably just a tight, moist timeslot.

❌ Well, it’s still Japanese porn so even uncensored you get mosaics all over the place, so maybe look for alternatives anyway.

❌❌ It’s porn, with all the writing, production and subtitle quality implications that brings.

Gunjou no Magmel

What: People explore the mythical continent Magmel in search for treasure and fame. A shounen protagonist watches them all die.

♎ This is based on a manhua, and you can tell by the typical tone problems. Everything about the characters is like an adventure shounen for the younger set, but it’s pretty violent and full of death.

❌ There’s nothing wrong with the above per se, but it doesn’t work. I would say it plays its hand too eagerly, so it comes across less of a subversion and more as just really juvenile.

❌ Beyond that incongruence, there doesn’t seem to be much to it. People walk into a meatgrinder while our protagonist is cool and sometimes slapsticky. Wow.

♎ It looks pretty okay, but there isn’t much effort or style to it. Hey, it’s not actually by some fly-by-night operation but by Pierrot, and they know a thing or two about (cheap, long-running) shounen.

❌ Well, they made a Chinese ripoff of Made in Abyss. I suggest you watch that instead. Or maybe Hunter x Hunter.

Isekai Quartet

What: The main characters of Re:Zero, Tanya the Evil, Konosuba and Overlord end up in a high school together.

❌❌ BUT IN A HIGH SCHOOL is only slightly less creatively bankrupt a concept than isekai itself, and only slightly less common as well.

❌ This doesn’t change my opinion that all of these shows aren’t very good. At least it reinforces my opinion that Re:Zero is the least bad and Overlord is possibly a bit better than it appears.

✅ The adaptation of the character designs to SD Flash animation is done well. In particular the Tanya characters looks better than in their own show and Ramrem are Nendoroids anyway.

❌ Going by the looks, this is building on the Re:Zero SD specials. Of course, the Re:Zero characters appear the least and Konosuba characters appear the most. It makes sense, because their bad comedy aligns best with the bad comedy of this show.

❌❌ I don’t think it’s funny and I have no love for any of the franchises/characters, which makes it a complete waste of time.

Namu Amida Butsu!

What: A bunch of bodhisattvas hang out in between fighting sins. You can’t spell “bodhisattva” without “bod”.

❌ This is very clearly an anime based on a mobile game where very pretty boys wear very elaborate clothes, so the character designs are eyesearingly garish as usual.

✅ Imagine my delight then when the first thing they do is to put them into frumpy tracksuits. That’s the single best joke I’ve ever seen in one of these. In fact, the whole episode is mostly based on fish-out-of-water comedy that’s not very unique but pretty funny when applied to these dreamboats.

✅ This looks a cut above the usual as well. About as good as Doga Kobo’s Touken Ranbu, which is the closest thing I can think of.

❌ The wild swing from cute boys doing cute things to fighting the bad mans is pretty clunky and it’s only going to get worse as a plot establishes itself.

❌ This is probably the best of these shows I’ve seen yet, but that doesn’t really mean all that much. A few decent jokes is not enough to carry something like this.

One Punch Man S2

What: The meme is back, baby. What, a second season opinion on this? Yeah, know that I think that OPM was fairly okay apart from the overreliance on its one joke.

✅ That one joke doesn’t even appear in this episode, which is the best thing they ever could have done. In fact, OPM S2 seems to hardly even be a comedy anymore. As someone who liked the setting more than the humor, I approve.

✅ I still like Saitama and Genos as characters as well. Plus, it never stops amusing me that One Punch Man is better at social commentary than MP100 and MHA combined, simply by virtue of being at least a little subtle about it.

❌ However, they replaced the joke with drama that wears out its welcome and a shitton of exposition. Neither of those are something I particularly want to see either.

♎ Of course the talk of the town is that this show moved from Madhouse to J.C. Staff and there has been a severe visual downgrade. Even though I will happily accept that downgrade in exchange for the show annoying me less, I can’t deny it’s there. I’d still say that it looks okay on its own merits, it’s only in comparison to the occasionally stellar looking original that it suffers.

♎ Since I’ve made it through S1, I’ll at least attempt to watch S2. It’s different but seems to work out to about as entertaining for now.

RobiHachi

What: Robby is a galactic gigolo and flies around with his straight man Hachi and a robot vacuum cleaner. Now that you say it, that does seem familiar.

❌ I had my problem with Space Dandy, but for all of its faults it was at least visually appealing. RobiHachi has the bare minimum of visuals and is so reliant on the banter between its leads that it might as well be an audio drama.

❌ Yeah, that banter. I don’t think it works at all. There is no wit and and barely any charm to it, which makes the whole thing extremely tedious. I checked the runtime when I felt like it was going way longer than the usual 24 minutes, and I found I was 8 minutes in.

❌ So the show does put an extraordinary amount of faith in the chemistry between its leads, to the point where there’s not much else (apart from the obligatory mecha parody that any sci fi comedy anime is required to have by law).

♎ I kind of feel bad for this show because at least it feels like it’s going for something that might have potential. It’s just incapable of pulling it off in a manner that doesn’t bore me to tears.

Strike Witches - 501-butai Hasshin Shimasu!

What: OG Strike Witches, the baseline unimaginative 4koma comedy.

❌ I’ll just say that it’s baseline unimaginative 4koma comedy that fails (like most of these do) and move on to a more interesting topic:

❌❌ Which is the way this looks, i.e. shockingly bad. Barely animated skits can still look acceptable, but this is a barely animated version of something that looks like a 4th grader’s crayon attempt. And yes, I’m not expecting everything to look like glossy moeshit. I’m just expecting the comedy spinoff of glossy moeshit to do so.

❌ It’s Strike Witches. Without butts.

Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki

What: 3:30 regional/tourism anime about Nagoya, which is apparently full of strangely-accented catgirls that confound Tokyoites.

✅ This looks cute. Strike Witches could have looked like this, you have no excuse.

❌ Do you think Japanese regional accents are funny? If not, I don’t think this show is for you.

❌ The humor is shrill and obnoxious, which puts a pretty hefty dent into the cuteness.

#anime #Araiya-san! Ore to Aitsu ga Onnayu de!#Gunjou no Magmel #Isekai Quartet #Namu Amida Butsu!#One Punch Man #RobiHachi #Strike Witches - 501-butai Hasshin Shimasu!#Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki #impressions #spring2019

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lia-nikiforov · 5 years

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Spring 2019 Anime Anticipation rundown

Whilst I finish writing my monstrous Fall-Winter review, let’s have a quick rundown of the new shows I’m looking forward to for the upcoming spring season.

Sequels: Attack on Titan 3 part 2, One Punch Man 2 (worried about the full staff rehaul though), and Bungo Stray Dogs 3. Nothing much to add in that regard, they’re all pretty high profile.

Must watch

Sarazanmai: I don’t know what’s the deal with MAPPA, ever since Yuri on Ice they’ve been pumping out unique stories one after the other, with great quality and visionary creators with strong points of view. Sayokan, Utsumi Hiroko and now they even got their paws on Ikuhara. I’m so excited to see a new original story from Ikuni, specially to see him for the first time addressing the male experience of which he’s always seemed to have a negative opinion. I’m seriously seriously super hyped about this one, the plot sounds cuckoo bananas and the style is vibrant and exciting. (First impressions of the pre-screening are coming out and everyone seems super hyped!!!)

Fruits Basket: Unlike American anime fans my age, I never watched the original Fruits Basket anime. I did however read the whole manga (and still own it) and I love it to pieces. Knowing how upset Takaya had been with how the first anime turned out, I’d never held hope of getting a readaptation, and I’m so happy and excited that it’s actually happening! I’m really happy that Takaya had this chance of seizing control of her own creation and having it adapted the way she wants to. Can’t wait to see it.

Carole & Tuesday: I guess this section is all about creators whose work I already like, this time at the hands of Shinichiro Watanabe and BONES, my other favorite studio. They also seemed to have gone out of their way to make interesting casting choices, specially the singing voices and I’m really looking forward to that. I also love the stylish production and character designs

Optimistic about:

Kimetsu no Yaiba: Although not as hyped as Neverland, I’ve heard good things about this series and the plot sounds interesting. I do tend to try out most Shonen Jump stuff anyway. I’m worried about ufotable’s involvement though, for all their visual pizzaz, all of their recent productions after Fate/Zero have been lacking in storytelling.

Namu Amida Butsu! Rendai Utena: It has fantasy elements mixed in with some sort of historical setting and I like the character designs. The plot sounds otherwise generic but giving it the additional dimension of making them characters from the Buddhist pantheon could make it interesting and educational. It’s a coin toss

number 24: This one was announced very recently and it looks like a quieter, softer take on rugby compared to All Out! Although I’m not against campy bombastic sports shows (hello I love Yowapeda and All Out), i think the trend of more thoughtful down-to-earth sports anime have given us real gems like KazeTsuyo and of course YOI, so i’m very intrigued by how it’ll turn out. Bonus points for being college-centric.

Curious about

Mix: So this one’s kind of a sequel of a classic and critically acclaimed baseball anime called Touch which I’ve never watched. It’s entirely possible it won’t be possible to watch it without knowledge of the previous series, but I want to give it a shot. Maybe this can be the anime that gets me into baseball, something many before have tried and failed at

Fairy Gone: On one hand the plot sounds like a cool fantasy concept, on the other for some reason it gives me Goblin Slayer vibes. I’ll check the first episode

Kono Oto Tomare!: I wasn’t initially interested in this one but i’ve seen a few blogs I follow showing hype about the series and it’s another music-themed anime -which tend to turn out really bad, with few exceptions. The designs remind me of Ao Haru Ride or Ore Monogatari. I’m also interested in hearing koto music and how much variety there may be for that instrument, as I’ve only ever heard a couple of pieces in my life and am not too familiar with its music

Mayonaka Occult Koumuin: I like anime about youkai and other supernatural beings *shrug*. The designs don’t look super interesting to me so far, but as you can see this list is quite short, so I may have time to check it out.

And that’s it for now, please let me know which shows you’re looking forward to in this upcoming season and if you think maybe i’m missing out on something!

#spring anime #sarazanmai #fruits basket #carole & tuesday #kimetsu no yaiba #number 24 anime #namu amida butsu!: rendai utena #mix anime #fairy gone #kono oto tomare!#mayonaka occult koumuin #anime anticipation

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seoulfulcity · 6 years

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July 7, 2018: A Humidity and Noraebang Cocktail

안녕하세요,

This week started off really wet with 100% rain and thunderstorm and a humidity that never went below 95%.

Sunday, July 1, 2018: I had to shower multiple times in the day because I could not even walk down Anam-dong without being drenched in both rain and sweat. Although, all my pores opened up and I had good skin for a few days.

The day was pretty slow - I met up with Anthony, Bonnie, Valentino, Sophie, Matt, Jason, Joyce, and Thai and was introduced to Bonnie's roommate Deedee and her friend who showed us that you eat raw spam in China. We ate at a barbeque place next to Chicken Bus called Seorae (서래 갈매기).

Later that night, Valentino, Matt and I met up at Valentino's room to watch Train to Busan (Busanhaeng/부산행) on Netflix; but since we're in South Korea, it did not give us the option of English subtitles so we watched Taegukgi: Brotherhood of War (Taegukgi Hwinallimyeo/태극기 휘날리며) on YouTube instead.

Monday, July 2, 2018: It was a regular night that started with Minki-hyung (민기형) taking me, Matt, Florence, Wendelyn, Sophie, Thai, and Joyce to have chicken galbi in a place called Chuncheon Dakgalbi (춘천닭갈비) where the owner called me "greedy" for setting up two side dishes (banchan/반찬) for each table and claimed that it was too excessive and we wouldn't be able to finish it. Culture shock, I guess? Since, Korean barbeque places in Los Angeles give us a set of banchan (반찬) per person, rather than per table, most of the time. Hyunjic-oppa (현진오빠) joined us towards the end of our dinner.

We went to a karaoke (noraebang/노래방) place nearby ending our night at one in the morning. There were nine of us for a total of ₩14,000, so we decided to have two people not pay and have the other seven of us pitch in ₩2,000 each. Hyunjic-oppa (현직오빠) had a bright idea and asked the worker at the noraebang (노래방) to draw two of our school IDs from a hat to decide. Minki-hyung (민기형) and I did not end up paying for noraebang (노래방) that night.

Tuesday, July 3, 2018: The sun started shining and puffy white clouds filled the sky. Everybody decided to go outside to enjoy Seoul without the rain for the first time. I walked the entire Anam-dong with no idea where to go or what to do just because I only wanted to be outside. The humidity was still unbearable though. It stayed within 90% throughout the day, so I gave in to the Asian mini fan culture and bought myself one from the nearby Daiso store.

Walking back from Daiso, I saw a really attractive worker in Baskin Robbins, so I bought a Puss in Boots milkshake and stayed in to study for my Korean class enjoying my view.

I was getting over budget very fast so I did nothing special that night besides another soju night with Valentino, Matt, and Cara in a place called 88. Valentino finally got around and visited Myeongdong to buy his sim card and his Korean starter pack that included a black face mask, a hat with the South Korean flag (Taegukgi/태국기), and a white pair of Adidas shoes.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018: My actual ISC buddy never had the time to meet with us until this week, so he scheduled a lunch with each of us individually to get to know each other. His name is Hyungki-hyung (형기형) and it was his first time being a buddy for the summer program. He had a part-time job for the summer, so it was difficult for him to find the time to meet with us as a group. He asked me what I have not tried in Seoul yet and suggested bossam (보쌈), spiced belly pork in a restaurant that specializes in it called Ssago (싸고). I enjoyed it so much I later dragged Matt and Valentino to the same location later in the week.

After my lunch with my actual buddy, I decided to skip my only summer class to tour around Seoul and visited SMTown Museum in COEX mall with Sophie. Luckily, my Korean professor did not give out any paperwork or homework that day so I didn't miss much. Sophie and I walked around COEX mall before going into SMTown Museum and just missed the 3 PM EXO show in the theater. The next show was going to be at 7:30 PM with SHINee, and I was not willing to wait four hours and pay an extra ₩10,000 to watch a live concert.

The SMTown Museum ticket was only ₩18,000 and it had areas for each SM artists. At the main lounge were bookshelves of all the albums and an entire timeline for each SM group, such as EXO, Super Junior, TVXQ!, NCT, SHINee, Red Velvet, Girls' Generation, and f(x). Then they have an entire section dedicated to each SM group which includes the outfits they wore in their music videos and concerts.

We returned back to Anam later in the afternoon and met up with our friend group to spend the night together again. Florence showed me a machine in Daiso that dispensed customized stickers with your name on it. So, I got one with my name (크리스) and Korea University (고여대학교) in Korean. I also introduced Florence and Valentino to my favorite restaurant in Anam-dong that specializes in chicken steaks (Dakgup Neunshin/닭굽는신), which is near the KU entrance by Anam Station (안암역) on the second floor of Namu Playstation Console Game Room. If you ever get to visit Anam-dong, make sure to visit this place. It's a regular and casual hangout for the KU students, if you want to be surrounded by local Koreans and not by foreigners and tourists.

In South Korea, you decide if the restaurant is good or not by their kimchi - so my kimchi tasting skills have been really improving.

The kimchi at the chicken steak restaurant was still my favorite one though. I ate at that place the second day I arrived in Seoul after orienting myself to the campus with Tommy, and met two girls from Venezuela and Romania who have studied in Korea University for four years, and told me the fun fact about kimchi being the deciding factor on how good the restaurants are. They both agreed that the kimchi at my favorite chicken steak restaurant was one of the better ones.

Since it was Fourth of July, the Americans in our group (Valentino, and Matt, and me) dragged the group to a coin noraebang (코인노래방) to sing American songs, especially "Party in the USA". It was ₩500 for two songs, so we did not pay by hour and worry about wasting time finding songs. We stayed in the coin noraebang (코인노래방) for five hours and only spent close to ₩9,000 the entire night.

We tried looking for fireworks or sparklers to light up by our dorm or even the Han River, but to no avail. Our friends back in America were posting fireworks snaps and celebrating Fourth of July with American and Mexican foods, and it made me feel a little homesick; I still did not want to go home though.

We ended the night at McDonald's, since what was more American than McDonald's anyway?

Thursday, July 5, 2018: Another regular day. My Korean professor still taught the class in full Korean, cafeteria food was still filling, and my wallet was still trying to take a break from all the spending.

After class, I went to the CU convenience store next to Frontier House to grab a quick snack and bumped into Simi! We haven't seen each other since orientation day, so it took us a while to catch up with each other. I invited her to the Seoul Summer School Festival in a club in Itaewon called B-One Lounge Club Friday night, which was a huge club party for all the international students from the big universities in Seoul - Yonsei, Hanyang, Ewha, Seoul National, Korea, Hankuk, Sungkyunkwan, Hogang, Chung-Ang, Ajou, and many more.

After the conversation, I met for dinner with Davy, Sophie, Thai, Matt, and Joyce for some budae-jjigae (부대찌개), which is a sausage stew with gochujang (고추장), red chili paste in a place called Biya, which was basically next to the Frontier House stairs. Thai and Sophie could not stand eating spicy food, so they both settled in for the unlimited tater tot side dish. Thai also drowned the jjigae (찌개) with water and ramen to hide the spicy taste. Thai and Davy were disappointed since they asked Minki-hyung (민기형) for a hotpot location, and Minki-hyung (민기형) suggested to eat at Biya (비야). I guess he had a different idea of what hotpot is because jjigae (찌개) did not end up satisfying Thai and Davy's hotpot cravings.

After the dinner, we went around Anam-dong and settled in a restaurant, which specializes in seafood, called Shingshing Oring Eobada (싱싱 오링어바다), just under O-Bar Whiskey and Beer, to drink some apple-flavored sojus since the previous bars we checked out did not offer it (apple-flavored soju is our favorite drink).

Matt bought a 1.5L Milkis bottle from a nearby GS25 store and brought it in the the restaurant to mix with the apple-flavored sojus, since he wanted us to taste this easy-to-make cocktail.

Matt ordered shrimp tempura in horrifyingly-embarrassing Korean that our cute Korean waiter was laughing the entire time Matt was talking. It's funnier since Matt is Korean but does not speak a word of the language, so everybody he interacts with here in Seoul expects him to be fluent with the language. They start laughing or let out a sigh of disappointment whenever he says a Korean word in a heavy American accent. He had an experience with an Uzbek worker in a 7/11 store nearby where he asked for a cigarette in terrible Korean and the Uzbek worker laughed at him and spoke to him in fluent English to stop Matt from further embarrassing himself.

After mixing our first round of apple-flavored soju and Milkis, the cute waiter came over with his translator app and told Matt to not bring in outside drinks to the restaurant "from now on" so he mixed the Milkis with our sojus under the table throughout the rest of the night.

We went to the same coin noraebang (코인노래방) right after.

Friday, June 6, 2018: I was running on a few hours of sleep since we got home very late from the noraebang (노래방) and I had to wake up at 7:30 AM for the K-Pop flash mob hosted by the school. After getting home, Sophie asked me to help a drunk student she ran into back to his room in Frontier House since only guys can enter the building. The guy was very stubborn and I was very exhausted and needed to rest. I dropped him off after a good hour of him drunkenly eating his ramen and told his roommate, who was surprisingly still awake at that time, to knock on my room if he needed any help.

We learned the choreography to Red Velvet's "Red Flavor" in the Tiger Dome (Hwajung Cheyukgwan/화정체육관) from 9:30 to noon to perform the flashmob three times on camera at the main plaza in Korea University. The school gave away BT21 goods, signed CDs from Blackpink, SHINee, BTOB, and ONF, and four tickets to see KBS “Music Bank” live that afternoon to those who participated in the flash mob.

After the flash mob, I napped until it was time for us to go to Seoul Summer School Festival. I met with Matt and Valentino for a quick dinner at the bossam (보쌈) place I had lunch in with Hyungki-hyung (형기형) earlier in the week.

Valentino had both his phone and wallet stolen from the night before when he went out with his fraternity friends in Made bar in Itaewon. He fell asleep and woke up early in the morning with only his phone case left. So, both Matt and I have been helping him out paying for things and offering our phones so he kept up with our group Kakao Talk conversations, etc.

We met with Minki-hyung (민기형), Thai, and Sophie at Anam Station (안암역) after the dinner and headed to Itaewon just in time for the event to start at 11 PM. Bonnie, Joyce, Florence, Wendelyn, Lina, Simi and her roommate Edan, Salli, and Carolina were going to catch up with us later in the night. Hyunjic-oppa (현직오빠) and Hyungki-hyung (형기형) couldn't join us because they needed to study and do homework.

Valentino was initially denied entrance to the club because he was wearing his Adidas jogging pants, so he had to take the subway back with Sophie to change to a more acceptable pants. We left the club to drink some soju by the GS25 store next to the bar and met up with Bonnie, Wendelyn, Florence, and Joyce who were in line. Just behind them were Lina, Bruno, and Davonte, who I was meeting for the first time.

Lina actually messaged the group chat saying she wanted to get to know and hang out with us more, so that was why I was familiar with her - although, we didn’t see each other for the rest of the night after that. Not long after that at midnight, Simi and Edan came, while Salli and Carolina arrived around 2 AM.

Every time I went outside, I always took the chance to get some chicken skewer (dakkochi/닭꼬치) from the ahjumma just next to the entrance of the club - so much that she knew which sauce I wanted spread on my skewer. Hint: it’s teriyaki sauce.

I introduced the non-Americans to the cocktail called Adios Motherfucker (AMF), which is known in the US to black people out. Minki-hyung (민기형) finished the drink in one sip and Florence had to take him home at midnight - an hour after entering the club.

We left B-One a little past 5:30 AM in broad daylight. We had more skewered teriyaki chicken outside the club and headed back to our dorms.

It's currently 6:32 PM and I woke up just four hours ago, basically sleeping through breakfast and lunch; so I'm writing this blog waiting for the cafeteria to open for my first meal of the day at 7:30 PM. Luckily, I did not wake up with a headache, although my legs and feet are currently sore from seven hours of standing up and dancing.

Recently, I've been wanting to take a break from Korean foods, especially chicken and every form of soup. Every single restaurant around here serve mainly those two and I just wanted to eat something different - perhaps Japanese or Mexican food? I aimlessly walked around Anam-dong to look for a non-Korean restaurant to eat at and came across a tonkatsu place where they served a Japanese-Hawaiian fusion plate in Eunhwasu Sikdang (은화수 식당). After the filling meal, I bought a pack of banana milk and sweet bread from a convenience store and sat down to eat at the Central Plaza overlooking the Main Hall of Korea University that was beautifully lit up at night.

Michael (Inseok/인석) messaged me to meet Valentino at the Frontier House stairs since Valentino lost his phone and had no way to contact any of us since Kakao Talk wanted verification from his phone number attached to his account. Jordan and Matt joined us a while after and had banana milk and bread together.

It is Nay's birthday and they're all planning on going out to a bar in Hongdae tonight. Jordan was headed to Itaewon in a bit to visit some gay clubs also.

I think I might sit these down to take some time to recuperate. The night life here in Seoul doesn't stop, apparently. Until then!

고마워요, Chris 「크리스」

Update: I just met up with Thai, Davy, Hyunjic-oppa (현직오빠), Hyungki-hyung (형기형), Wendelyn, Matt, Valentino, and Florence for chicken and soju in Chicken Bus (치킨버스) and to watch the World Cup match between Sweden and England. I left earlier in the night to sleep, while Thai, Davy, Hyunjic-oppa (현직오빠), and Hyungki-hyung (형기형) stayed in the place to finish the game. Wendelyn, Matt, Valentino, and Florence headed to Hongdae for to continue drinking for Nay's birthday.

#abroad #international summer campus #isc #ku #study #summer #korea university #seoul #korea

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magicalgirlartist · 6 years

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West City Public Library, Part 30: Red Ribbon

Summary: A censorship group has set their sights on WCPL. Bulma 100% doesn't need this right now. Word Count: 4370 Notes: I tried to be fair because this is a real-world issue but like. Have you guys ever seen the ALA or CLA top banned/challenged books lists they're a fucking joke. From the ALA alone, Drama by Raina Telgemeier and George by Alex Gino were #2 and #3 respectively in 2016 for including LGBT+ characters. The Holy Bible was #6 in 2015 for, I shit you not, "religious viewpoint." Two Boys Kissing was at #5 in 2016, up from #10 in 2015, for LGBT+ content and "other," including "condoning public displays of affection." I wish I was kidding, guys.

You can probably see why I, a liberal lesbian librarian, had a hard time painting these people as anything other than strawmen. I have met people like this; I work with people like this. So tough cookies.

(I will say, however, that this was written before the ALA's 2016 list had come out, so it's not super well reflected here.)

Krillin plastered his best customer service smile on his face and tried to tamp down his urge to scream. "I'm sorry you feel that way, sir. I'll take it under advisement."

The man slammed the novel on the desk and Krillin allowed himself some pride in the fact that he didn't flinch. "Under advisement isn't good enough! Leaving this book around where children could get at it...it's disgusting."

"Sir, Go Ask Alice is part of our teen collection." Krillin picked the book up and gently placed it on the ever-growing pile of books people had challenged at his desk. "So not only is this technically the wrong department, it's not going to be taken out by anyone with a children's library card. Our system is set up so that children can only take books and other materials from the children's section--"

"But a teen or adult could take it out and leave it lying around where a child could read it," the man argued. "Besides, it shouldn't even be in the teen section. It shouldn't be here at all."

"The teen section is a perfectly reasonable place for Go Ask Alice." Krillin turned to Namu, who was very pointedly pretending to ignore the argument by typing up the Reader's Advisory department's program schedule for the month. "Namu, could you grab one of the challenge forms for me? I can't reach from here."

"It is not." The man drew himself up to his full height and Krillin grimaced. Why did people always do that to him? He got it, he was short, they didn't have to rub it in, geez. "It contains heavy drug use, sex, and teenage pregnancy. It's absolutely inappropriate for anyone under the age of eighteen."

"Just a second, sir." Krillin took the form from Namu and grabbed a pen. "Alright, so, Go Ask Alice, on...Namu, what's the date today?"

"The fourteenth."

"Thanks." He handed the pen and paper to the man on the other side of the desk. "Sir, if you'd fill out this form for me with your reasons for wanting to have this item removed from our collection, we'll take it into consideration."

"Into consideration?" The man bristled, wrinkling his nose. "No, it has to be gone, do you understand? Gone completely."

"I don't think you understand how the process works," Krillin said gently. "When a complaint is made, the book goes under review with the employees of the affected department as well as administration and the appropriate members of the library board. Together, they discuss what to do, and a decision is made. I can't just outright remove books from shelves on my own authority." He smiled apologetically. "This is the best I can do. But I promise it'll be looked into."

The man hesitated, then nodded. "Well. Thank you, I guess." He picked up the pen, his sleeve riding up his arm as he wrote. Krillin caught a glimpse of something red around his wrist and grimaced. Oh. So that's what this was. Couldn't just be some conservative kook, no, it had to be one of these guys. He forced his customer service smile back onto his face when the man handed the form back. "There."

"Thank you, Mister, uh..." Krillin glanced at the sheet. "Blue. I'll get this looked at as soon as I can."

"I'll be checking back in on the status of the inquiry," Blue warned.

Krillin's smile never wavered. "Of course. Have a nice day."

Thankfully, he seemed to take that as an indication to leave. Krillin slumped into his chair and let his smile drop, a scowl twisting his features instead. "I hate everything about today."

Namu patted his shoulder as he walked past. "You did great. I'm going on break."

Krillin sighed and reached for the phone. This needed to end, and fast.

"They call themselves the Red Ribbon Army."

Krillin scrolled down the webpage open on his tablet. "According to their website, they're 'crusaders for safety,' but really all they do is annoy people. Red Ribbon members identify themselves by wearing a red ribbon around their wrists and using colour code names." He shifted through the stack of challenge forms. "In the last month, they've been submitting constant complaints to Reader's Advisory, Children and Youth Services, and Info Services. The only reason we know it's them is because they all sign their forms with things like Blue, Silver, Black, and Yellow. I haven't seen anyone named Red yet, though."

"Have all the complaints been from them?" Bulma asked.

"No," Yamcha piped up. "I got one the other day from a law student named Todd who said one of the books we had about preparing for the bar exam was out of date and useless. That's a legitimate complaint and I told him I'd bring it up."

Bulma nodded. "We'll definitely replace that one with something more up to date. But is that really it? Are the rest of them from these Ribbon guys?"

"They even put it on their website." Krillin handed her his tablet. "Apparently they're against libraries, because we allow access to 'unsavory' material."

Bulma snorted as she scanned the tablet. "Unsavory? It's nothing you couldn't find at your local big chain bookstore. Or on the internet, even." She tossed the tablet on the table and looked around at the rest of them. "Ideas?"

"We could always just ban them," Recoome suggested.

"We can't ban everybody who asks us to make sure our collection is up to date and appropriate," Yamcha said. "If we did that, we'd have to ban Todd, too, and he hasn't done anything wrong."

"Can we streamline the process a little?" Piccolo asked. "Dragging everybody into a meeting to discuss a book is time consuming, especially if we have to get the board in on it."

"That's a good short-term solution." Bulma crossed her arms and rested them on her stomach. "But it won't stop them from coming in constantly."

"How about a change to the challenge policy?" Yamcha asked. "We can say that only one complaint can be made per person per month. That'd force them to slow down, at least."

"Make them leave their library card number with their name, too," Krillin added. "That way we can check to make sure they're not just going to a different department."

"Oh! Oh!" Recoome waved his arm in the air. "Make it so they can only challenge a book if they have a valid card! If they ain't a patron they ain't got no right to demand we change our collection!"

Krillin blinked up at him. It was surprisingly well thought out for Recoome. Usually he just sort of blundered around.

Bulma glanced at Jaco. "You're getting all this, right?"

Jaco paused his frantic scribbling to glare at her. "I'm an elite assistant for a reason."

"Just checking. So, boys." Bulma steepled her fingers and looked at the ceiling in thought. "We're going to make three changes to the challenge policy: only patrons can submit challenges, no more than one challenge per patron per month, and we meet no more than once a month to discuss the books." She counted each change off on her fingers as she said them. "We're also going to ask the board if we can oversee the challenges without their help. Honestly, I'm not sure how well that's going to go over, but I can at least ask. And if we're not meeting too often, the time commitment shouldn't be as high." Bulma looked around. "That about cover it?"

"Hey, um, question." Yamcha raised his hand. "What's to stop them all from getting library cards just to make complaints all the time?"

Bulma shrugged. "Nothing. But at least this way we can keep track better."

Yamcha grimaced. "Remind me to apologise to Tien later. His department might get real busy soon."

"Can we stop being so nice to them if they were assholes first?" Piccolo asked.

Recoome glared at him. "Guess."

"Worth a shot," Piccolo muttered. "What if they're complaining to me about same-sex relationships? Or Yamcha, for that matter? Are we allowed to laugh in their faces or what?"

Bulma giggled and Recoome glared at her, exasperated. "Oh, come on," she said, "you have to admit that'd be great."

"No laughing," Recoome said, shaking his head. "But if they start using slurs, call Recoome and we'll get them banned."

Krillin breathed a sigh of relief and thanked his lucky star that Recoome was here now instead of Cell. Sure, Recoome sometimes spoke in the third person and he was kind of terrifying and he was a loudmouthed idiot. But at least he wasn't Cell.

Piccolo fixed the man with the deadest, blankest face he could manage. "You can't be serious."

The man pointed at the book on the desk, face red with anger. "What part of this don't you understand? This book promotes sinful relationships--"

"It's about penguins," Piccolo interrupted, picking up the book in question and flashing the cover at the man. "Penguins. It's a picture book based on a real story about two real penguins who really raised a chick together in a real zoo. Here, I can look it up for you."

"They're HOMOSEXUAL penguins!" The man folded his arms, giving Piccolo a good look at the ribbon tied around his wrist. Out of the corner of his eye, Piccolo saw Chiaotzu lean over the Circulation desk to see who was shouting about gay penguins at two in the afternoon. Well, at least someone was entertained. "You can't put homosexual characters in a picture book! Think of the children!"

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Piccolo folded his hands and reminded himself that Recoome would kill him if he punched a patron. "Sir, I'd like you to check the date on your phone and remind yourself what year it is."

"You're treating this serious issue like a joke," the man snapped.

"That's because it kind of is."

"I want to speak to your supervisor!"

Piccolo grinned. "I am the supervisor." From the office, he heard Selri giggle, and he mentally patted himself on the back. "Look," he said as the man started turning red again, "I'll get you a form and we'll put it on our 'challenged' list. It'll go in for review."

"Good." The man nodded, smug now that he'd seemingly gotten what he wanted. "I don't see why you had to be so--"

"When we're done reviewing it," Piccolo continued, like the man hadn't spoken, "it'll go back on the shelf where it belongs, because it's the 21st century, gay people exist, gay parents exist, with children, and hey, gay children exist, and maybe they'd like to see a little something of themselves or their parents in a book, or maybe their parents love them and want them to know that same sex relationships are okay, and this book can give them the tools to have that discussion. Or maybe they just want to read a picture book about penguins. The point is, you aren't the first person to contest this book, you won't be the last, I haven't had coffee in over an hour, I am cranky, I forgot where this sentence was going. Libraries only remove items from the collection for very specific reasons and this case fits none of them. We're not going to ban a book because some guy thinks same-sex relationships are too 'adult' for children." He tossed the book on a pile, folded his arms, and stared the man down. He'd said his piece. Recoome could chew him out later if he wanted, but he'd said his piece.

The man narrowed his eyes. "Give me the form."

Piccolo shrugged. "Alright. But you're wasting your time and mine." He stuck his head into the office. "Selri, grab me one of the new challenge forms and go help Mai with today's craft, alright? Looks like I'll be away from the program room longer than I thought." The girl nodded, blue hair bouncing around her face, and handed him a sheet of paper before ducking out of the office. She smiled at the man on the other side of the desk as she passed. He ignored her. "So, if you could just fill this out, we'll be on our way." Piccolo slid the form and a pen across the desk and stepped back.

"Fine." The man snatched up the pen and started writing. Piccolo sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. God he hated his job some days.

"Is this a bad time?"

Glancing over, Piccolo let himself smile when he saw Nail approaching the desk. "No, it's fine. Hi." Nail stopped on the other side of the desk, next to the man with the ribbon. He always kept his distance while Piccolo was working, at Piccolo's request--he was still on the clock, and some modicum of professionalism had to be maintained. Besides, Piccolo had never been one for public displays of affection.

A thought occurred to him. "Dende's not here today."

Nail grinned and hefted the bag on his shoulder. "I'm not here for Dende. I have the rest of the day off, so I'm here working on a group project for school. Just thought I'd stop by and say hello to my boyfriend first."

Piccolo flushed--he still wasn't used to having someone call him their boyfriend--and glanced at the man filling out the form. He'd raised his head and was squinting between the two of them.

A decision was made, and Piccolo leaned across the desk to brush his lips against Nail's cheek. "Thanks," he said, pulling back. "I'm done my shift at six; want to go for dinner after? Since you have the day off."

Nail was blushing and Piccolo bit the inside of his cheek. Nail never blushed. He was so cute; how had it taken him so long to figure out he was in love with him? "I--yeah. I'll come back here around six and we can head out?"

"Sounds good. Thanks for coming to see me." Piccolo squeezed Nail's hand. "See you at six."

"Six. Yeah." Still blushing, Nail turned and scarpered towards the stairs.

Piccolo turned back to the man from the Red Ribbon Army. "All set? I'll take that." He deftly picked up the form and set it on the pile. "Anything else I can help you with?"

Glowering at Piccolo, the man turned away. "No."

Piccolo stretched as the man walked off. He thought he'd handled that fairly well. He glanced over the form. "Oh, sir," he called after him. "Mr. White, you forgot your library card number."

White turned around and glared at Piccolo with open contempt. "I don't have one."

"Then I'm afraid you can't file a challenge." Piccolo shrugged and tossed the form into the recycling bin under the desk. "Library policy."

"What?" White stalked back over to the desk. "I've never had this problem before."

"Recently a change has been made to the policy," Piccolo said smoothly. "Library card numbers need to be written on the forms for our files." The practised words flowed easily, and for once Piccolo was actually grateful for Jaco's pedantic ass making them all memorize patron interaction scripts before changing the policy. "If you don't have a library card, you can't file a challenge."

White jabbed his finger at Piccolo's chest. "You can't do that. You're making it up to make me look bad."

"Sir, you're doing a fine enough job of that all on your own." Piccolo mentally kicked himself. Antagonising a patron never went well for him.

Sure enough, White puffed himself up and raised his voice. "You can't treat me--a patron--like this! I demand to speak to whoever's in charge."

"First of all, without a library card you're not really a patron," Piccolo pointed out. "Just a guest, really." He sat down and reached for the phone. "And I'm sure our Human Resources representative would love to speak with you."

Jaco stuck his head into Recoome's office. "More forms for you."

Recoome held out his hand. "Thank you. Recoome didn't realise banning someone for screaming profanities about an employee was such a boring process."

"Yeah, it's a little more complicated than just having Upa and Bora escort him from the premises." Jaco leaned in the doorway. "How're you getting on so far? Crazy shit to have happen in your first week."

"Could be worse. You should see what Recoome had to deal with over at City Hall. Everyone was backstabbing each other all the time." Recoome shrugged. "Some guy yelling at me about having a gay guy working in the children's section is pretty tame in comparison."

"You only say that because it wasn't really directed at you," Jaco pointed out. "It was directed at Piccolo."

Recoome grunted. "Probably. Well, it might make Recoome's job harder, but hopefully everyone else's job is easier now."

Jaco edged into the room and reached for Recoome, hesitating before patting his shoulder. "I don't know if anyone else has said anything yet, but I for one am glad you're here. Our old HR guy was...a problem."

He was rewarded with a giant grin that was missing a few teeth. "Thank you."

Jaco patted his shoulder a couple more times before backing off. "Well, I should get back to work. Good luck with Red Ribbon."

"Recoome will need it," he sighed, shifting through the forms.

"Well, on the bright side, library memberships have gone up, but because these assholes aren't actually taking out any books our borrowing statistics are skewed." Tien shook his head and poked at his tablet. "I get that this was the only solution they could come up with, but it's making our department look bad."

Chiaotzu patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Bulma knows what's going on, and she'll keep that in mind when you send the statistics report. Hopefully this will blow over soon now that we all know about it."

"I hope so." Tien set the tablet down and stretched out his back. "I'm going to the cafe for break. Want anything?"

"Coffee, two sugars." Chiaotzu glanced at the doorway to the Circulation office. "And a new coworker."

"Har, har. Shu's doing his best." Tien patted Chiaotzu's back and headed towards the front doors. "I'll see you in a bit." He pulled out his phone as he walked, no doubt to text Yamcha and ask if he wanted anything at the Ox Cafe, too. Chiaotzu sighed. Honestly, when Tien and Yamcha finally started going out, he'd been a little worried that he'd be losing his best friend to a relationship. Thankfully, that hadn't happened, but it was still a little weird seeing Tien and Yamcha nearly attached at the hip when he'd always been the one attached to Tien.

Well, whatever, it was nice to see Tien happy. And he wouldn't want to see them break up for anything.

"Where's Tien?"

Grimacing, Chiaotzu looked up at Shu. "On break. Why?"

"I need someone to check my shelving cart before I take it out."

Chiaotzu stood up. "I can do that. You watch the desk for a minute; I'll be right back." He propped his hands on his hips. "And remember, if someone with a red ribbon comes to the desk, you...?"

"Ask them what book they'd like to complain about and send them to the appropriate desk." Shu rattled off the instructions like they'd been drilled into his head, which they practically had been by Recoome and Jaco.

"Good." Chiaotzu scurried into the back room. Shu could organise a book cart faster than any of the other pages they'd ever had, and he was usually mostly accurate, but he was inaccurate enough of the time that someone still had to check for him. He grabbed the footstool in the corner and started checking the spine labels.

Surprisingly, Shu had only messed up once, and it was an easy oversight to make. Chiaotzu hopped off the stool and gestured to the cart. "All yours. Only one slipup today! Good job!"

Shu beamed at him. "Thanks! Okay, I'll be in the stacks then!" And off he went.

Chiaotzu wandered back out to the front desk and grabbed Tien's tablet. He added another cart to the day's tally and was about to start compiling a pick list for Shu to work on when he was done when a voice interrupted him.

"You work here, right?"

He bit back his automatic response of "what makes you say that, smartass?" and instead looked up. A middle-aged Japanese man leaned on the desk. A flash of red under purple sleeves caught Chiaotzu's eye and he sighed. "Yes," he said. "Can I help you?"

"I need a library card. This the right desk?"

"Absolutely." Chiaotzu fished around for a new card form. With all the Red Ribbon people lately, they were starting to run low on forms. He'd have to photocopy a few more. "Fill this in. I'll also need some ID with your address."

The man fished out his wallet and handed Chiaotzu a driver's license before methodically filling out the form. Chiaotzu tried not to sigh as he went into the back to photocopy the license. Yet another Red Ribbon here to mess up their statistics and waste people's time. Fantastic.

By the time he got back, the man had finished filling in his form and Chiaotzu handed him his license back. "Thanks. Let me just get this set up." Tien often said Chiaotzu was the best at setting up new patrons in the system, and Chiaotzu was proud of that fact, but he took his sweet time with the Red Ribbon people. "Sorry for the wait," he lied. He held up his hands. "Tiny fingers."

The man--Murasaki, according to his form--laughed. "Not to worry!"

Chiaotzu shrugged and went back to work, pulling a new card out of the desk drawer they were kept in and scanning the barcode to connect it with Murasaki's account. "Okay, so sign on the white strip here and you're good to go." Chiaotzu handed him the card and sat back.

"Excellent. Thanks!" Murasaki scribbled his name down and handed the card back to Chiaotzu. "I'd also like to take out a few things."

Chiaotzu blinked. This was the first time he'd ever seen a Red Ribbon member actually borrow anything. "Oh. Okay. Hand them over, I guess." He opened the circulation software and scanned Murasaki's card again.

Murasaki deposited a grocery bag full of picture books on the desk. He grinned sheepishly when Chiaotzu raised an eyebrow. "I'm babysitting my grandkids tomorrow," he explained. Chiaotzu nodded and reached for them.

If nothing else, at least this guy wasn't going to screw their statistics up any further.

Bulma tossed a newspaper onto the desk proudly. "Never underestimate the power of press," she gloated.

Jaco picked it up. "'Shushed No Longer: the Growing Book Banning Problem at WCPL,'" he read. He looked up at Bulma. "What did you do?"

"Called in a few favours," she said smugly. "I know a guy who works at the paper, and he got them to run an article about our problem."

"'Libraries have always stood for freedom of information,'" Jaco read aloud, "'but they've also always come under attack by groups who disagree with their materials. Even in this progressive age, there are people who want to dictate the types of materials West City Public Library can and can't have on their shelves. According to WCPL CEO Bulma Briefs, this has been an increasing problem lately.'"

"I never referred to the Red Ribbon Army by name," she explained. "That'd just give them credibility. But they ran this article two days ago and we haven't had a single issue since. And you should see the comments online! We actually have the public's support for once!"

Jaco shook his head. "Congratulations. You solved book banning."

"Don't be like that." Bulma crossed her arms. "I know this is just a temporary solution. But at least I got things to quiet down a little before I go away on maternity leave." She gestured at the paper. "How would you like to be the one dealing with all that while I'm off having my baby?"

"Alright, fine. Thank you." Jaco handed the newspaper back. "You know, one of these days you're going to get yourself in trouble trying to solve things like this by yourself."

Bulma shrugged and started to shuffle back towards her office. "I figure if I'm gonna piss people off, go big or go home."

"Okay, so, um, sir. If you could just calm down--"

"Calm down? Calm down?" Red's face was the colour of his namesake. "You tell me I'm not allowed to file a challenge against this...this filth, and you want me to calm down?"

"Library policy," Yamcha started, "states that only one challenge can be made--"

"Per person, per month, I heard you, I'm not stupid." Red sneered. Yamcha folded his arms and kept his face as blank as possible. "But that's a stupid fucking policy and I want to know who I complain to about it!"

"You can always submit a comment on our website," Yamcha suggested, hoping it would get Red to leave him alone.

"On your website." Red scoffed. "Do you know who I am? Do you have any idea who you're dealing with?"

Yamcha looked at the record still up on his screen. "According to our records, you're Red Sosui, you just got a card last week, and you've already filed a complaint this month, at Reader's Advisory, about A Wrinkle in Time, which was the wrong department by the way--"

"I'm the leader of the Red Ribbon Army," Red growled.

Yamcha nodded. "Oh, that hate speech group. We've had to ban a few of your members already for harassing staff. If you keep causing a scene I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Red drew himself up to his full height (which wasn't much), snarled "This is not the end of this," and stormed out.

Yamcha shook his head and added a note to Red's record about the altercation. "I'm pretty sure it is," he muttered.

#dbz #dragon ball z #writing #fanfiction #library!au #west city pl

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myraelvira · 3 years

Text

What Happened To Randy Sellers?

Randy Lee Sellers was born on September 6th, 1962. He was born to Wanda and John Cotton. Randy had a younger brother, Tyran Renard, that was born in 1967. He was considered to have been from the Visalia/Morning view area of Kentucky.

Randy was in Alternative school at the time, and according to anecdotal evidence, he was considered one of the ‘bad boys’ in his area. “Randy was in and out of trouble most of his teen years and the local cops were quite familiar with him.”.

On August 15th, 1980, Randy was at the Kenton County Fair in Independence, Kentucky, when he was arrested for disorderly conduct and public intoxication. Allegedly, he got into a fistfight with someone at the fair, and the cops were called. The police believe that Randy was under the influence of drugs at the time, and even struck one of the cops after he was put in the squad car.

As the story goes, Randy was dropped off by the police about one mile from his family’s home in Visalia. Some reports say that Randy provided unclear directions to the house, and others claim that the officers dropped in him at the location as a favor to Randy. Either way, Randy never returned home and was never heard from again.

A man named Jack Isles, an alleged friend of Randy’s, stated that he was at the fair on the night of Randy’s disappearance. In an article, he stated that he regretted not having offered Randy a ride home that night. “I wish I could have told him to come on home. Let him go with me. I wish he was here, God-honest truth with you.”.

At first, it was believed that Randy had drowned, with his footprints near the Licking River which hugs the Visalia area. The footprints matched a set of hiking boots owned by one of his relatives, and there were marks that someone may have slipped and fallen into the water. When authorities searched the river to find nothing, they then believed that the footprints were left by people searching for Randy.

Many people believe that a man named Donald LeRoy Evans murdered Randy. Evans was a drifter that was eventually sentenced to death for the murder of a child in Mississippi; he claimed that he picked Randy up along Route 177, the main road in the Visalia area. Allegedly he took Randy to Kincaid Lake State Park and shared a beer with him. Then he supposedly shot Randy in the head with a .45 and buried his body, on that night in 1980. Evans also claimed to be responsible for other unsolved cases, including the death of Kimberly Dawn McClaskey. Evans was rather notorious for having preyed on people in rest areas and parks.

One of the reasons why Evans was considered a possibility is because he actually confessed to the murder in Mississippi and led authorities to the body of the girl. He also confessed to a murder in Florida of a prostitute that was found in a hotel room. He told authorities details that led to a set of his prints. So at least twice over, he confessed to murders that were proven to be tied to him.

Authorities searched Kincaid Lake State Park for Randy’s body in 1994, 14 years after his disappearance, but nothing was found. Evans was never charged in the case, and police were not even sure if he was involved. His claims though, were considered credible. Another one of the main reasons people believed that Evans may have been responsible, was because he drew a crude yet accurate map of the park.

When they went to search for Randy’s body, there was nothing there. Evans initially stated he buried Randy 3 feet deep in the ground with some sheet metal that he found. Then later, he changed his story to having sort of just covering Randy’s body with some forest brush.

There have been multiple searches in order to find Randy or even his body, yet none have turned up anything. In 2018, there was a search in March at the Kincaid park where a rescue team’s dogs picked up the alleged scent of a decaying body. Apparently, the area the scent was found matched the area that Donald Evans claimed to have buried Randy’s body. There was the belief that the map Evans drew was potentially misinterpreted at first, when they searched for Randy in the 90’s. In the recent past, some people believed that reading the map in a different way (or upside down) could reveal more information and potentially find Randy (which to me, doesn’t prove that the map was accurate in the first place). It is unknown what came of that search, if there was any dead body at all. In my personal opinion, I do not see how a body can still be decaying 38 years after the fact. Interestingly, the case was still considered open, as of 2018.

Randy’s mother believes that her son hitched a ride with Evans to the park, in hopes of seeing her since she was staying there with a friend at the time. As recently as 2019, Wanda Cotton has been reported stating that she believes that Evans killed her son. Wanda said in 2019, “I believe in my heart, that Randy was killed by Donald LeRoy Evans.”. She believes that Randy’s body is somewhere in the park, with a marker to remember him, and another woman who was killed.

Randy’s physical appearance is described as having been 5’9”, 149 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes. Randy had a birthmark on the crown of his head, a scar above his left eye, and a surgical scar on his right knee. He had a scar on his left elbow, from an old fracture. There was a tattoo of the letter ‘R’ on his right forearm, though other sources state that it was on a forearm. He may have had a crown on tooth, and wore a beard on his chin at the time of his disappearance. He was last seen wearing a black shirt, blue jeans, and work shoes.

The reason I bring this up now, is that there is an interesting John Doe that seems to match that description. On doenetwork there is John Doe 419UMOK. He was found on April 9th, 1995 in Crowder, Oklahoma next to a Jane Doe. The Jane Doe was estimated to have been 18-30 years old, 5’6”, with long light brown almost blonde looking hair. Jane wore black denim size 10 pants, blue underwear, a red pullover shirt, white socks, and a white bra. She had 2 rings on her left hand, one of a yellow metal band, and other of a single white stone. John was estimated to have been 20-30 years old, 5’7”,with brown/light blond hair, with a light brown mustache. He wore a green denim pair of pants (31/34) black and white checkered briefs, a t-shirt, and a leather jacket. He had a ring on his left hand, a yellow metal band, with 14k and TW inscribed on the inside. He also wore a watch that was still working at the time their bodies were found, though it was an hour behind the current. Most interestingly, is that this doe had a tattoo of the letter ‘R’ on his upper left forearm. He also had a tattoo of a cross on his upper left arm. Both bodies were found decomposing under a tree near Lake Eufala, and seemed to have been dragged about 50 feet from a dirt road. Though it may seem far fetched that this doe may have been Randy, the tattoo was a detail that I could not omit.

[NOTE: This doe has been excluded from Randy]

There are some interesting things that I have come across with Randy’s case, whether it be from online errors, to just random things. The first thing, is that on Randy’s page for the doe network site, he is listed as female, all other sites correctly list him as male. For some reason, the main photo used to show Randy’s most recent appearance when he disappeared, has black markings that make it look like he was wearing a black shirt. The full version of the photo is included on the namus profile for him, and it shows that he was shirtless. I know that this means nothing, but I can’t understand why someone would “photoshop” a fake shirt on a picture of him?

Through reading about this case, I have not came across a lot of information on Randy’s background. There is the info that he was in alternative school, and the anecdotal that he was a bit of a bad boy. There is a personal story on a post on websleuths were someone said that Randy was pretty familiar with the cops, so the idea that they didn’t know where his house was at was asinine. I haven’t even heard anything about the night of the fair, and I am curious what the fight that Randy had was about. Was it just a drunken brawl? Was there a reason that he got into the fight other than being drunk? Who was the person that he got into a fight with? Was it an adult or another teen? Was it perhaps someone related to a cop or a big official? How long had Randy been in alternative school for, and what the reason why he was there exactly? Did he have a hard time with his family? Did he ever talk about running away possibly?

I think that it is important too, to look at a map of the area as a whole. The Visalia area is not that far from Ohio.

There a few does from that area that may be plausibly close to being Randy.

https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/1712/details?nav

https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/6715?nav

There have been two facial progressions of Randy, one in 2006, and another in 2011. I will be completely honest, I think both are terrible. The first one from 2006 is honestly terrible and does not look like him at all. The second on from 2011 is closer, but it does not seem too accurate. This honestly reminds me of the Reet Jurvetson case where the drawings of her when she was Jane Doe were completely different from how she really looked. Personally, I think that Randy looked almost exactly like his father, down to the nose and hairline. I don’t understand why they did not go with a progression based off of that.

Unfortunately, on December 10th, 1990, Randy’s younger brother Tyran committed suicide. He is buried at Mother of God Cemetery in Kenton Vale, Kentucky.

There is still uncertainty as to what happened to Randy. Many people, like his mother, believed that he was murdered by Donald Evans. Despite looking for the body 14 years later, there has not been any evidence that Randy was buried in the park. Though at the same time too, a 14 year gap of looking for a body that may have been buried in a shallow grave leaves more than enough time for nature to naturally scatter the pieces. Others believe that Randy may have been killed by the police, potentially just tired of a ‘juvenile delinquent’. Rumors have said that police killed Randy, and buried the body on property of a policeman.

Randy’s parents, John and Wanda, are still alive today (as of 2020), and are still looking for answers as to what happened to their son. In 2019, it was revealed that John had been diagnosed with cancer. The parents expressed their worry that after they eventually pass away, who would remember Randy. Fortunately, research teams and the press have shown that people are still thinking about Randy, even to this day.

[SOURCES]

http://charleyproject.org/case/randy-lee-sellers

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/06/04/randy-sellers-missing-case-kenton-county-towson-university/1338652001/

http://www.pollyklaas.org/missing/kids/randy-sellers.html

https://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/kenton-county/police-renew-search-for-randy-sellers-in-1980-missing-person-case

https://local12.com/news/local/randy-sellers-parents-plead-for-tips-in-his-case-nearly-39-years-later

https://billiongraves.com/grave/Randy-L-Sellers/25146466

https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/5174/details

https://www.namus.gov/UnidentifiedPersons/Case#/5170?nav

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/136164576/_

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/14dmky.html

https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/1712/details?nav

https://www.websleuths.com/forums/threads/ky-randy-sellers-17-visalia-16-aug-1980.31947/

#randy sellers #missing person #missing people #cold case #donald leroy evans

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joyfulfartwombat · 5 years

Text

http://www.recitequran.com/tafsir/en.ibn-kathir/96:1

READ Tafsir

96 Al-Alaq The Clot Ibn Kathir – English

Chapter

Verse 1

Page 597 This was the First of the Qur’an revealed ﴿ بِسۡمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ ﴾

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. ﴿ ٱقۡرَأۡ بِٱسۡمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ • خَلَقَ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ مِنۡ عَلَقٍ • ٱقۡرَأۡ وَرَبُّكَ ٱلۡأَكۡرَمُ • ٱلَّذِى عَلَّمَ بِٱلۡقَلَمِ • عَلَّمَ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ مَا لَمۡ يَعۡلَمۡ ﴾

(1. Read! In the Name of your Lord Who created.) (2. He has created man from a clot.) (3. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous.) (4. Who has taught by the pen.) (5. He has taught man that which he knew not.) The Beginning of the Prophethood of Muhammad and the First of the Qur’an revealed

Imam Ahmad recorded that `A’ishah said: The first thing that began happening with the Messenger of Allah from the revelation was dreams that he would see in his sleep that would come true. He would not see any dream except that it would come true just like the (clearness of) the daybreak in the morning. Then seclusion became beloved to him. So, he used to go to the cave of Hira’ and devote himself to worship there for a number of nights, and he would bring provisions for that. Then he would return to Khadijah and replenish his provisions for a similar number of nights. This continued until the revelation suddenly came to him while he was in the cave of Hira’. The angel came to him while he was in the cave and said, “Read!” The Messenger of Allah said, « فَقُلْتُ: مَا أَنَا بِقَارِىء »

(I replied: “I am not one who reads.) Then he said, “So he (the angel) seized me and pressed me until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said: `Read!’ So I replied: `I am not one who reads.’ So, he pressed me a second time until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said: ﴿ ٱقۡرَأۡ بِٱسۡمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ ﴾

(Read in the Name of your Lord who has created.) until he reached the Ayah, ﴿ مَا لَمۡ يَعۡلَمۡ ﴾

(That which he knew not.) So he returned with them (those Ayat) and with his heart trembling until he came (home) to Khadijah, and he said, « زَمِّلُونِي زَمِّلُونِي »

(Wrap me up, wrap me up!) So they wrapped him up until his fear went away. After that he told Khadijah everything that had happened (and said), « قَدْ خَشِيتُ عَلَى نَفْسِي »

(I fear that something may happen to me.) Khadijah replied, “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your relatives, you speak the truth, you help the poor and the destitute, you serve your guests generously, and you help the deserving, calamity afflicted people.” Khadijah then accompanied him to her cousin Waraqah bin Nawfal bin Asad bin `Abdul-`Uzza bin Qusay, who, during the period of ignorance became a Christian and used to scribe the Scriptures in Arabic. He would write from the Injil in Hebrew as much as Allah willed for him to write. He was an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadijah said to him, “O my cousin! Listen to the story of your nephew.” Waraqah asked, “O my nephew! What have you seen” Allah’s Messenger described what he saw. Waraqah said, “This is An-Namus whom Allah had sent to Musa. I wish I was young and could live until the time when your people would drive you out.” Allah’s Messenger asked, « أَوَ مُخْرِجِيَّ هُمْ؟ »

(Will they drive me out) Waraqah replied in the affirmative and said, “Anyone who came with something similar to what you have brought, was treated with hostility and enmity; and if I should remain alive till that day then I would firmly support you.” But Waraqah did not remain. He died and the revelation paused until Allah’s Messenger became sad according to what we were told. Due to this grief he set out a number of times with the intent of throwing himself from the mountain tops. However, every time he would reach the peak of a mountain to throw himself from it, Jibril would appear to him and say, “O Muhammad! You are truly the Messenger of Allah!” Therefore, his worry would be eased, his soul would be settled and he would return (down from the mountain). Then, when the revelation did not come again for a long time, he set out as he had done before. So when he reached the peak of the mountain, Jibril appeared to him again and said to him the same as he had said before.” This Hadith has been recorded in the Two Sahihs by way of Az-Zuhri. We have already discussed this Hadith’s chain of narration, its text and its meanings at length in the beginning of our explanation of Sahih Al-Bukhari. Therefore, whoever would like to read it, it is researched there, and all praise and blessings are due to Allah. So the first thing that was revealed of the Qur’an were these noble and blessed Ayat. They are the first mercy that Allah bestowed upon His servants and the first bounty that Allah favored them with. The Honor and Nobility of Man is in His Knowledge

These Ayat inform of the beginning of man’s creation from a dangling clot, and that out of Allah’s generosity He taught man that which he did not know. Thus, Allah exalted him and honored him by giving him knowledge, and it is the dignity that the Father of Humanity, Adam, was distinguished with over the angels. Knowledge sometimes is in the mind, sometimes on the tongue, and sometimes in writing with the fingers. Thus, it may be intellectual, spoken and written. And while the last (written) necessitates the first two (intellectual and spoken), the reverse is not true. For this reason Allah says, ﴿ ٱقۡرَأۡ وَرَبُّكَ ٱلۡأَكۡرَمُ • ٱلَّذِى عَلَّمَ بِٱلۡقَلَمِ • عَلَّمَ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ مَا لَمۡ يَعۡلَمۡ ﴾

(Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous. Who has taught by the pen. He has taught man that which he knew not.) There is a narration that states, “Record knowledge by writing.” There is also a saying which states, “Whoever acts according to what he knows, Allah will make him inherit knowledge that he did not know.” ﴿ كَلَّآ إِنَّ ٱلۡإِنسَـٰنَ لَيَطۡغَىٰٓ • أَن رَّءَاهُ ٱسۡتَغۡنَىٰٓ • إِنَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ ٱلرُّجۡعَىٰٓ • أَرَءَيۡتَ ٱلَّذِى يَنۡهَىٰ • عَبۡدًا إِذَا صَلَّىٰٓ • أَرَءَيۡتَ إِن كَانَ عَلَى ٱلۡهُدَىٰٓ • أَوۡ أَمَرَ بِٱلتَّقۡوَىٰٓ • أَرَءَيۡتَ إِن كَذَّبَ وَتَوَلَّىٰٓ • أَلَمۡ يَعۡلَم بِأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَرَىٰ • كَلَّا لَٮِٕن لَّمۡ يَنتَهِ لَنَسۡفَعَۢا بِٱلنَّاصِيَةِ • نَاصِيَةٍ۬ كَـٰذِبَةٍ خَاطِئَةٍ۬ • فَلۡيَدۡعُ نَادِيَهُ ۥ • سَنَدۡعُ ٱلزَّبَانِيَةَ • كَلَّا لَا تُطِعۡهُ وَٱسۡجُدۡ وَٱقۡتَرِب ۩ ﴾

(6. Nay! Verily, man does transgress.) (7. Because he considers himself self-sufficient.) (8. Surely, unto your Lord is the return.) (9. Have you seen him who prevents) (10. A servant when he prays) (11. Have you seen if he is on the guidance) (12. Or enjoins Taqwa) (13. Have you seen if he denies and turns away) (14. Knows he not that Allah sees) (15. Nay! If he ceases not, We will scorch his forehead) (16. A lying, sinful forehead!) (17. Then let him call upon his council.) (18. We will call out the guards of Hell!) (19. Nay! Do not obey him. Fall prostrate and draw near (to Allah)!)

http://www.recitequran.com/tafsir/en.ibn-kathir/96:1 READ Tafsir 96 Al-Alaq The Clot Ibn Kathir - English Chapter FOLLOW US Verse 1…

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houstonlocalus-blog · 7 years

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Go on a Caffeinated Tour of the Research Triangle

Post from Girl Eats World Leave a comment/read the entire post here

My name is Linda and I’m caffeine-dependent. Since moving to the Research Triangle area of North Carolina, I decided to use coffee as my way to get to know the area and the people. At first it was just a means to leave the apartment and not spiral deeper into my homesickness, and then it quickly evolved into a fun way to get to know the area and the locals. What resulted from my tour was a list of coffee spots to satisfy all coffee whims.

1. Bread & Butter

503 W Rosemary St, Chapel Hill, NC 27516 http://www.chapelhillbakery.com/

Bread & Butter is a cozy coffee shop and bakery in Chapel Hill, just minutes from the UNC campus. They have mismatched worn furniture, a greenhouse style window, and the best brioche. I hear their brioche cinnamon buns are worth a try too. With reliable wifi, quiet atmosphere, and plenty of table space, Bread & Butter is the wonderful place to hunker down with your projects.

2. Caffe Driade

1215 E Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27514 https://www.caffedriade.com/

I had Caffe Driade on my list of places to check out, unaware that I drive by it almost daily! Caffe Driade is tucked into a wooded oasis for you to sip, think, and feel. There are also wine and beer and pastries you can purchase. It’s a perfect date spot under the stars at night and a great pensive space during the day.

3. Cocoa Cinnamon

Multiple Locations http://www.cocoacinnamon.com/

Cocoa Cinnamon has three unique locations and on my second day as a North Carolina resident, I went to two of them! The latest location has sugary churros and drinking chocolate. The churros come in unique flavors like orange and cardamon. I can’t wait to take myself out there for a solo date soon and try more of their lattes.

4. Parker & Otis

112 S Duke St, Durham, NC 27701 http://www.parkerandotis.com/

I’m creating a list of places to take my family and friends when they come and visit. Parker & Otis is on this list! Great spot for brunch, lunch, and breakfast. There’s a gift shop that I could spend hours in, perusing their stationary, journals, and knick knacks! I just know a few of my girlfriends back home would adore this space.

Tip for your first time: there’s a counter to order your food and a separate coffee bar counter.

5. Morning Times

10 E Hargett St, Raleigh, NC 27601 http://www.morningtimes-raleigh.com/

When I polled the locals about what coffee shops are must-visits in Raleigh, every single one of them told me that Morning Times is a must. It’s adjacent to and associated with Raleigh Times, which is also a popular eatery in Raleigh. They have an iconic sign at their front doors that spell out COFEE in pretty pink neon and their maple lattes provide a cozy nod to the fall season.

6. Monuts

1002 9th St, Durham, NC 27705 https://www.monutsdonuts.com/

I only sampled their donuts and lattes here and they were a delight! I hear that on the weekends there are long lines and crowds for weekend brunch. So if you’re looking for just an afternoon recharge, I recommend going on a weekday like I did! I especially liked their chocolate coconut cake donut which funnily wasn’t what I would have ordered. I let the cashier pick her favorite donut to add to my loot. So glad I did!

7. Guglhupf

2706 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707 https://guglhupf.com/

A beloved cafe, bakery, and restaurant in Durham, Guglhupf is not only fun to try to pronounce but also fun to visit. Guglhupf is popular for brunch and their dessert game is a strong one. Their leafy patio makes me happy! Remember to stop by their attached bakeshop and pick up some croissants to take home! I enjoyed their chicken salad and look forward to going there for brunch!

8. Namu

5420 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707

What sets Namu apart from the rest of the coffee shops on this list is that they also serve Korean food alongside their lattes! Read more about my solo date to Namu here.

9. La Farm Bakery

248 NW Cary Pkwy, Cary, NC 27513 https://www.lafarmbakery.com/

If you love bread and pastries, I’m willing to bet you’ll love La Farm Bakery. I could smell the buttery breads and pastries from their parking lot! I took myself on a lunch date there and only wanted to grab a coconut latte and croque madame, but the angelic server presented me a white chocolate baguette sample. After tasting it, I instantly added one to my order to take home with me. Usually white chocolate anything makes me cranky. (CALL IT WHAT IT IS, “NOT CHOCOLATE”.) But as soon as I tasted their white chocolate baguette I was hit with both joy and sadness. Joy to have experienced such heavenly delight, and sadness that I couldn’t make a life of eating their white chocolate baguettes.

10. Bean Traders

105 W North Carolina 54 #249, Durham, NC 27713 http://www.beantraderscoffee.com/

Bean Traders make their pies in house and they have delicious and interesting coffee drinks to try. I had the habanero dark chocolate cold brew coffee to wash down my chocolate pie. This place was buzzing with happy people and activity.

11. The Pie Hole

810 9th St Suite 130, Durham, NC 27705 http://www.thepieholela.com/

Speaking of pies, if you’re obsessed with pies, there’s a place just for you here! The Pie Hole! Originally from LA, they recently expanded to Durham. I’ve missed their Shepherd’s Pie and Cereal Killer Pie since the moment I finished them off the last time I visited. Read more about them and gawk at the delicious photos on my dedicated blog post.

12. SOLA

7705 Lead Mine Rd, Raleigh, NC 27615 http://www.solacoffee.com/

Sola will always be special to me. It was my first coffee shop experienced when I came to the area a few months before moving here. I have a friend named Cassie I met online as a teen who turned into a penpal. We met each other for the first time at Sola. I’m so fortunate that seventeen years after meeting her online, we’re now just thirty minutes away from each other! Sola has a full menu and serves beer too! I quite liked their prosciutto sandwiches.

13. Blend & Co

127 E Front St, Burlington, NC 27215 https://www.theblendandco.com/

Tucked in the charming downtown of Burlington, North Carolina is Blend & Co. The light and airy space is Instagram friendly. And you can order smoothie bowls alongside your coffee. I’m going to be bold and say it. Smoothie bowls are better than smoothies! Blend & Co. also has a very cute mobile coffee trailer.

14. Jubala

Multiple locations http://www.jubalacoffee.com/

What makes Jubalya unique is their biscuits! What a pleasant and pillowy snack to have with your lattes. I got the peanut butter and honey biscuit. Their biscuits almost had the texture of a scone.

So that concludes my recent caffeinated tour of the Research Triangle area of North Carolina. Many thanks to these gems for giving me beautiful spaces to meet new friends, write in my journal, and crank out work.

Now back to you! Did I miss any of your favorites? Please leave a comment and enlighten me!

Follow my eating adventures and happenings on Instagram. You can also see what is catching my attention in the food world on Twitter and Facebook.

Possibly Related Blog Posts (automatically generated)August 28, 2017 Newly-Opened Namu Serves Coffee with a Side of Korean FareSeptember 11, 2017 The Pie Hole Expands to the East CoastSeptember 25, 2017 MOFU Shoppe Brings Friends Together in Raleigh with Asian FlavorsMarch 1, 2017 Where to Find Buttery Croissants in Austin, TexasMarch 5, 2015 Austin Coffee Shops

The post Go on a Caffeinated Tour of the Research Triangle appeared first on Girl Eats World.

Post from Girl Eats World Leave a comment/read the entire post here

Go on a Caffeinated Tour of the Research Triangle this is a repost

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courage-a-word-of-justice · 7 years

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Erased 6 – 13 (not including the digest) | Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu 1 - 4 | Eldlive 1 | Prince of Stride: Alternative 1

The idea from now on for SGRS: Expect first time watches for this show (for the second season) and don’t expect ratings after each ep. Once all 2016 shows are done (rewatches or not), expect the 2016 ranking.

The idea from now on for POSA: Once all 2016 shows are done (rewatches or not), expect the 2016 ranking.

(ep 6)

Even with only subs, you can hear the seriousness in the manager’s voice.

Asagi beer, LOL.

This speech bubble style really works in the camera angles’ favour.

Airi’s mother reminds me of Midoriya’s mum from Boku no Hero Academia.

Shinji-go. “Go”… I didn’t really know how to explain it so I let Wiktionary do it for me.

I really love Airi’s motivational quotes around this point. So much, that I used it as motivation all through 2016…although I didn’t get any great results from it…

(ep 7)

Okay, that scrolling scene with the kids…that’s just cheap. They aren’t even animated.

It says something like “Preserve water” or “Water is important” on the wall behind the tap.

That “stand out in the hallways with those buckets” is pretty typical for an anime. I wonder whether any real Japanese person has done that, though?

Oh yeah. I think I was initially attracted to this due to the fact it looks a lot like Detective Conan when you see Satoru negotiating the future by changing his past.

I think I had to learn what a “patsy” meant for this scene, but a patsy is just a substitute, specifically in this case for collateral damage.

Does that mean Kenya lived (or lives) in a big house?

(ep 8)

Wait – wait? How did Gaku know how Kayo was safe…unless he was the murderer? I didn’t question that the first time, but this just makes the ending even worse. This dude’s already proved he doesn’t act on compulsion like Satoru does, so that adds to it.

That joke about Satoru being 29 does get a bit worn out when it gets used here…

Mt. Hakodate…I’d heard of it from Touken Ranbu. It’s a good place for low level swords, IIRC.

POP Noodle, LOL.

Crying in media is much more emotional if you can hear the crying, unfortunately. That’s why I passed on “Kayo’s first homecooked meal” for the Crunchyroll Awards.

(ep 9)

Akemi’s (Kayo’s mother’s) eyes were so off model before the shovel scene, it made it hard to take Akemi seriously.

It’s weird how much Gaku looks like he should be Satoru’s dad.

Akemi was “Takashima” before she was “Hinazuki”, and her partner’s name at the time of her divorce was Kazuo.

CGI car…again. Geez.

I think the kanji for “closure” mean the ending curtain, like that of a play, but I can’t quite remember their literal meaning…

“I have to stop somewhere.”

Gaku’s talking about his experiences somehow reminds me of a chat I had with Elucida on the Boueibu chat. Probably because the instigator of the chat had to apologise…

I wonder if the man (Gaku) was lying about the lollies?

“I am a man.” – Translation choices make Hiromi seem a little too macho for his girly looks, haha. *cringes, because I hear emphasis on “am”, with a lesser emphasis on “man” in my head*

I just realised – Kayo won’t go to Mt Hakodate as she’s supposed to anymore…It makes me sad on the inside.

(ep 10)

Holy plays, Batman! Romeo and Juliet for an 11 year old is pretty far fetched considering I only read it when I was…um…16 or 17. I haven’t even read King Lear yet so consider me out of this. (Shucks...even though I used to be an avid reader, I’m only ordinary now, huh?)

LOL. In the end, Kenya really is a little kid, getting all offended about hideouts, haha.

I thought the “getting rid of someone’s alone time is a good thing” sentence was a bit weird until I realised what context Hiromi used it in.

“On the outs”? I didn’t know what that meant until I checked it up. Well, considering I make my own phrases up a lot and I tend to omit small words in the vein of “wut dis?”, maybe I’m just too slang for the subbers.

CGI bus? Man, you ruined the solemn mood a bit, Mr Bus.

See? These CGI cars (and truck) are why I have gripes with CGI transport. It sticks out too much. However, for something like Ajin (which can only be found in CGI form), I don’t mind it so long as everything else about it is good. Speaking of which, I still have yet to see Ajin (as of the point of typing).

“…spirit and drive.” – Because the camera focussed on Gaku’s hands just then, I had to LOL in my head a little.

Manabu = Gaku by virtue of alternate character reading. Isn’t kanji great? (sarcastic)

This sublimation, I presume? I checked it up once, but it was never of any use.

(ep 11)

The Spider’s Thread, as told by Ryunosuke Akutagawa. Bungou taught me about it, but I’m not sure the Bungou instance is the one I first met it in.

This fourth wall breaking…it’s somewhat disturbing, but that’s the mood the staff were going for. Very effective.

I’ve always wondered why the “Boku” in the titlecard had a different font. Maybe the staff just didn’t have a “boku” in the font they’d written the title in…

I guess it must be my warped perception of beauty due to bishonen, but when Satoru is lying on the bed with slightly sallow cheeks, he almost looks…beautiful. (That’s a scary thought, isn’t it?)

“Future”…such a powerful name, since it happens to be the name of the baby, too.

Imagine if Kayo and Yuri Katsuki’s (Yuri!!! on Ice) backstories were stitched together.

A gingko leaf. They have a very distinctive shape…(Reminds me of Fusae Campbell from Detective Conan.)

Gaku is just represented by a black silhouette in some frames. Basically, you could call it another Detective Conan reference of sorts.

(ep 12)

The problem with the ending that I have, if you don’t know already, is that it suddenly makes you realise that Satoru would either die or have planned/have some caveat to get out of/around a potential death. Unfortunately, they don’t show you when he’s made those plans, thus being deceptive by omission if they were even made.

CGI hamster wheel…?

By the laws of ordinary protagonist writing…I give you the ending. The ending that dissatisfied me so much, it definitely left SGRS first for 2016.

They never explained how the rail was pulled open either, come to think of it.

Hey, it’s Boys’ Flight. The magazine he was reading earlier in the show. Don’t remember what ep, though.

Hey, did I ever mention to you that I tried to open up an Erased wiki, only to find one already open? There’s still two wikis existing right now for some reason, though.

Well, it’s been a wild ride. Thanks all, if you’ve been coming along with me and hope to see you again soon.

(SGRS ep 1)

Zony, LOL. Did Sony exist in that era?

If you observe the left flag when Yotaro stops at the front of the theatre, you can see the characters for “Amakentei” (rain-bamboo-stand, or something like it). That’s Kappei Yamaguchi’s character…Update: Must’ve been a mistake on my part. Amaken is a critic, but not a rakugoka himself.

Yotaro’s still got all the mannerisms of a gangster, LOL. (Including interrogation technique.)

There’s a sign in the back of Yotaro when he talks to Yakumo for the first time. It says “Sumi” (top – bottom) “Sushi” (L – R).

Yotaro uses the word “tanomu”, which is a respectful way of saying “I beg of you”. Very respectful. The most polite kind of respectful.

Mukojima? Huh? I guess that’s a deliberate bungling of Konnichiwa? (Update: Nope.) However, I’m still a noob to rakugo myself, despite having created the wiki to spread some Yakumo love.

Note for later: Shinigami has a distinctive “Ajaraka mokuren kyuraisu tegeretsuno pa!” in it.

What’s the old man writing?

It’s a transformation of sorts, from Yota being nervous to showing off what he’s got. That’s what makes SGRS so powerful.

I was pondering this since the start of the performance, but Yota’s shark-like teeth make him a very distinctive character. Then again, there’s always that one cue or other to tell you that a certain character is in the house.

Should a woman only have her beauty? I never believed it and that’s what I set out to prove in my stories, but…social mores were different back then, so I can’t speak for Konatsu.

Oh! I completely forgot about this guy (Mangetsu) until he came back in ep 14.

Notes for later: “Namu myoho renge kyo…”/a pilgrim climbing Mt Minobu

There is a slight irony in a woman telling a man to “man up”. Subbers, you put that there.

(ep 2)

Oh? Were you wondering what those “notes for later” were for? The wiki, naturally. SGRS’s only presence is me most days, so I’d better keep it up to date.

This show never fails to make me laugh, even if the laughter gets more subdued the second time.

Apparently people get sento and onsen confused a lot. Sento are normally cheaper smaller establishments compared to onsen, as far as I know.

Why is there a cat in the room?!

The “Hatsu” in Hatsutaro means “beginning”, while the “Kiku” in Kikuhiko is a chrysanthemum, so…yeah. Take it as you will.

“…your first time?” (laughs behind back) No wonder Haruko Kumota was a BL mangaka before she did SGRS.

Even without the volume, the visual language can tell you Kiku’s doing something wrong. That’s the power of this show.

“Akanbou” is a Japanese word for baby, as you may have guessed. However, people seem to use the word “aka-chan” more these days. Thus, another guess tells you that “shiro” is white and “ao” is blue. Right again.

You can almost hear the voices even with only subs! Amazing!

Fish cake. Technically called kamaboko, but “fish cake” is the translation for it so I guess I shouldn’t be such a weeb.

(ep 3)

“…it’ll become standard in the rakugo world.”

Oh, the cat is Yakumo 7th’s.

Mosquito coils? When were they invented?

CGI train? I barely noticed it there. Plus…poor Kiku. He never gets the girls.

Kagurazaka.

Were sento really cheap enough to be five coins?

(ep 4)

Do those girls count as off model?

The texture on the bricks of the restaurant are hyperrealistic…I like it. Better than that messed up CGI you get on most cars in anime these days.

Kuma -> Kumako. I wonder why.

As I’ve noted on the wiki, the pun about the samurai involves the word samui (cold). Therefore the original pun would’ve been “now you die out here in the cold, samurai”, but if you’re going for lame jokes that work seamlessly into the rakugo, then…the samu-die joke pretty much does its job.

There was the word “open” twice in one sentence…subbers, you need to proofread sometimes.

The “treasure sacks” pun is on kintama…welp, I won’t explain it, but “family jewels” apparently works just as well.

If Mukojima is a place, then why were people saying it in ep 1?

LOL, Matsuda. Going “I won’t have anything to do with this” is bound to get you in trouble nonetheless.

Yakumo’s heart is so clearly not into it. You can tell from the body language.

(Eldlive 1)

I’m here because I fell out of love with Hibari a while back and I need to give Akira Amano another chance. Also, Lane Brick…maybe.

Wait. It’s a Mukuro! With glasses! That foreshadows the pain I’m gonna be in for.

Welp, considering I read the manga this was adapted from not too long ago (as of the time of watching this), it’s pretty faithful. Even if it does look visually pretty, I did come up with a story like this once but it never took off when it came to writing the story. Considering it also bears some similarity to One Wish They Never Wanted, it’ll never take off now.

Finally(!) Something to laugh at. Reborn injoke.

…Unfortunately, with the faithfulness of the manga comes the pervasive problem – I thought Eldlive was a bit subpar. I could see all the right tropes were there to make a hit, but I couldn’t see any real talent showing through, as if Amano’s resigned herself to doing only shonen because Reborn succeeded. It was Hibari that taught me you can have a cute bird sidekick instead of a monster designed from scratch, so why can’t Eldlive do that too?

Drew (the voice) is getting annoying already. Shaddap!

…another “unfortunately” is that Lane Brick isn’t too pretty compared to how I like my bishonen, but YMMV on that.

I didn’t check it when I read the manga…but Jean Renoir.

Great. (sarcastic) Bungou humour, to boot! That wasn’t in the original…and it’s just grim, too.

These mammary jokes aren’t doing it for me either, although they were in the original.

Verdict: Not taking it.

(POSA ep 1)

Prince of Stride was a new experience for me, as I thought I needed to add “sport anime” to my repetoire at the time. Unfortunately, I still haven’t gotten past my biases against sport anime even after finishing this…

Welp, I take back what I’ve said about OPs in the first episode. If it’s a good OP, it helps to set the norm.

CGI basketball. One of the weirdest things on the list of “things given CGI form in anime” to date, because it’s mostly cars.

Sad life. When people in a rejected club see that twist coming, it’s like a 4th wall break…kinda sorta.

Did I ever mention that this show is motivational? It’s really good for that, and colourful so it’s good for desktop wallpapers. (Also, it has a summer theme to it, so while I swelter, lemme just watch a show about running…and sweating…bad idea? I guess so. (sarcastic) However, there isn’t any better season to watch it in. Sweat – or imagined sweat – isn’t good any season of the year, so might as well watch it while I still have time.)

Tsurugiya…if Google-sensei serves me correctly…it’s in Osaka…? Update: I knew he came from somewhere in the country, but Hyogo is a different place to Osaka…

“Blue Sonic”. Well, it’s not like there would be a magazine called Sanic. Or Knuckles, for the matter.

What’s with the panda, though? Although, as some very obvious foreshadowing tells you, (Kyosuke) Kuga used to have his locker here.

How in Dante’s Inferno did Kohinata get the measurements of Takeru already?!

I checked up kabaddi last time, but eh, I’ll do it again.

I still think Fujiwara’s leg thing is creepy.

I dunno anything about Sun Tzu…but…lessee here. This quote is it, I think.

Who was the Relationer in the previous Stride Club?

What’s with the cat on the poster?!

“…is really hot…” – Is that what sets the shippers off? Or is that just a subbers’ choice of words?

They always blab aout weird things on the next ep preview. At least it’s not boring.

For some reason, my ad blocker isn’t working on AnimeLab any more…*sighs*

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