#seeing hozier later in the summer | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

tempting-andromeda · 9 months

Text

Fuck it writing for rdr2 now

Nsfw headcanons

Warning: smut, knife play, somnophilia, power dynamic, spanking, hair pulling, bruises.

Characters

Arthur Morgan, John Marston, Dutch Van Der Linde, Charles Smith, Javier Escuella, Sean MacGuire, Lenny Summers, Kieran Duffy,Micah Bell, and Eagle Flies.

Arthur Morgan

He likes for sex to be intimate but he gets a rise out of things escalating. Like you two are in bed about to sleep but like 20 minutes later your legs are over his shoulders and he’s shushing you to stay quite.

He doesn’t force moments between you two he likes when it’s natural.

He laughs softly at you if you get too eager for him. He teases you and degrades you for it softly like “Really? This desperate for me? Guess I gotta give you a good time don’t I, Girl/boy.”

He likes to hear you talk during it even if it's just jumbled moans. He'll ask you questions like “That feel good?” and he likes a response but he doesn't force it (unless he's being rough then he'll stop moving and make you reply)

Sex is personal for him so he likes to make you feel good and sometimes he completely forgets about himself.

John Marston

He likes being in control but simultaneously he likes when you’re in control as well. He’s a complicated man.

He’s so fucking eager. Sometimes he forgets about foreplay but once he remembers he focuses on making you finish until you’re barely able to take him.

He’s real into dirty talk. He simply cannot shut up. He’s between your legs describing how you taste.

He has a high sex drive yet he cums quickly. He goes multiple rounds to make up for it though.

He’s so sensitive. He tries to pretend he’s not but after a while he starts begging you to bite his neck or use your mouth on him.

Dutch Van Der Linde

He likes a power dynamic. He likes being dominant and he doesn’t like that changing. If you try to top or be dominant he sees it as a challenge.

He’s into humiliating you but he doesn’t like bringing it out of the bedroom. He likes seeing you on your knees as he sits in a chair and he likes making you beg to suck him off.

He likes brats. He’s into the challenge and he likes making them submissive. It’s a huge thing for him if you act all bratty.

He likes to lightly smack you but doesn’t actually apply pressure unless he’s spanking you. Like if you back talk or something he grabs your face and uses a stern voice and after you say “yes sir” he lightly taps your face.

Really likes to stand back and admire you after he’s done with you. Looking at your panting frame and fucked out face. It makes him so proud. If he could he’d have a picture of it.

Charles Smith

He’s super into passionate slow sex. Pressing his forehead against your chest as he praises you but sometimes he can’t seem to hold himself back and he fucks like his life depends on it.

Like he’ll have your legs spread in a nearly humiliating way but he’s complimenting you the whole time, praising your very existence.

He likes when you wrap your legs around his waist. It makes him feel like you’re desperate for him as well and it drives him crazy.

He’s a munch. No doubt about it. Sometimes it’s the only thing he wants to do. He’ll lay in between your thighs like he’s starved.

Having sex with Charles is like experiencing a Hozier song first hand. At the end of every night with him you have absolutely no doubt he worships you.

Javier Escuella

He’s into knife play but he’s not entirely into drawing blood. He’s into cutting your clothes off of you. Like completely ignoring the buttons on your shirt and instead just running his blade along the buttons, snapping them off.

He’s real into hair pulling both ways. He likes fucking you from behind to pull your head back so he can kiss you and he likes when you pull his hair in missionary.

Possessive. No doubt about it. I feel it in my bones. He always asks you who you belong to before you cum and he gets a huge rise out of it. He makes your scream out his name at least once every time y’all have set.

He’s super into quickies. He likes to pull you away for a bit and absolutely destroy you and then go back to what you were doing and watch you struggle to pretend like nothing happened. It’s a huge turn on for himz

He likes to cum on you instead of in you. He’ll finish in your chest, back, stomach, face. He’s so into it. He likes knowing you’re a mess for him and you’re allowing him to do this to you.

Sean MacGuire

He’s huge on praise. He needs you to tell him he’s big and that no one makes you feel this way. It drives him crazy.

He’s super messy when he fucks. There’s something about it that makes him feel prideful that you’re a mess and he’s a mess.

He likes to humiliate you but in a different way from Dutch. Dutch does it for the power dynamic and he does it just because he likes the idea that he’s the only one allowed to do this to you.

He’s a head pusher but he always makes it up to you afterwards by making you pull his hair when he goes down on you.

He likes having sex in semi public places. It fills him with such adrenaline he’s trying to go again afterward.

Lenny Summers

Hes into handjobs. More than anything. If you put your hands in his pants he’s nearly crumbling that instant.

He likes when you go down on him randomly. Like he’s reading a book and suddenly he’s getting head or waking up to head? It’s so attractive to him.

He knows what you like and what you don’t like and his fingers are magical. Sometimes he tries to multitask and do something else while he fingers you but he ends up giving in and giving you all of his attention.

He’s real nervous at the idea of people catching you two so he just whispers a lot of praise in your ear. He feels horrible degrading you but he tries.

He moans at everything. Like if he goes down on you, he’s moaning the whole time. If he’s touching you he’s still moaning. It’s just attractive to know he’s doing something that arousing to you.

Kieran Duffy

He likes when you tell him what to do. He’s real clumsy most of the time and if you lead his hands and body and tell him what to do he’s determined not to fail.

His dirty talk is mostly him asking for reassurance like “am I doin’ good?” Or it’s just him worshiping you.

He whimpers and whines so easily it’s like he’s getting fucked. (Or he is) he gets real embarrassed afterwards but he doesn’t try to stop

He begs to touch you even if you’re not holding him back or telling him he can’t. His hands could even be on you and he’s begging to touch you.

He moans so loud when he cums. He always tries to cover his mouth to muffle it or he buried his face into you to prevent anyone from hearing.

Micah Bell

He’s rough. Real rough. A night with him probably ends with a few bruises and a sore body and he’s real smug about it too.

He likes watching you pleasure yourself. Sometimes he’ll touch himself as you do so and after you both finish he won’t touch you.

He loves edging you. Sometimes he pulls away right before your climax and wait for you to beg. Once he got up and nearly left just to see your reaction.

He likes shoving your face into the pillow as he fucks you from behind. It makes him feel dominant and like he’s in control.

His praise is really rare so he saves it for a special moment. He’ll have you hanging off the side of the bed as he bellows your back out and he makes sure you hear him when he speaks, grabbing you by the back of the neck just to whisper something like “look so pretty from back here, slut.”

Eagle Flies

Experimentalist to the core. He wants to try everything at least once. He thinks it’s a huge trust thing to experiment with intimacy.

He likes showing off his strength and stamina so he likes to lift you up to fuck you. He can last so many rounds too so by the end both of you are panting and tired.

He says “I love you” during sex. He feels so intimate to say it and he likes to make eye contact as he does it. He knows it’s cheesy but he likes to say “I love you” while he finishes

He likes to talk about your sexual fantasies and tries to recreate them as best as he can. He feels like he has to prove that he’s better than some fantasy and he never fails.

2K notes · View notes

rookthorne · 10 months

Text

⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂ 𝐀 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

Intuition was something that every woman grew to trust, and when it told you that something was wrong with your loveable, charitable idiot, you knew that it was right. You just had to take matters into your own hands and slow the mountain of a man down — bring him back to earth in the best way you knew how.

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 ☘︎ Lumberjack!Bucky Barnes x F!Reader

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕 ☘︎ 1.3k

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 ☘︎ Tooth rotting fluff

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 ☘︎ Good luck with the visuals in this one, chaos kittens.

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒔 ☘︎ NFWMB by Hozier ☘︎ Alps by Novo Amor, Lowswimmer

჻჻჻჻჻჻჻჻ 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕 ☘︎ @buckybarnesevents Hot Bucky Summer ჻჻჻ Week 10 — Massage — Masterlist

𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐲 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐬, 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭

“I’ll be back in a bit, baby,” Bucky announced as he grabbed his woollen plaid jacket from the coat rack by his front door. “Don’t let them,” he pointed at the two dogs cuddled next to you on the couch, “throw a party without me, y’hear?”

“‘Kay, Buck, be safe,” you replied, grinning at him over the book you were reading. “Can you get me some chocolate, please?”

“Yep,” he called as he walked out the door.

Both Koda and Sarge sighed and rested their heads back on your legs, leaving you in a comfortable silence – one you harnessed to read a new book that you’d grown obsessed with.

It was only a moment later when the thud of the door closing brought you to your senses, and you looked up to see that the sun had just started to set, but that wasn’t possible. Bucky had just left…

“‘M back, Clover,” Bucky called, his boots thudding as they hit the floor of the entryway of his cabin.

“Bucky?”

He appeared in your line of sight, brow raised. “You got sucked into that book, didn’t you?” There was a light chuckle in his words like he was amused over the fact that you’d lost time. “It’s been a few hours, baby–I got held up with Lee; he needed a hand. I texted you.”

You scrambled for your phone and found it was late afternoon, and Bucky had, in fact, texted you that he would be out a bit longer than he had hoped to be. “Huh. Sorry.”

Bucky shook his head and took the bag in his hand to the kitchen. “No apologies. I brought you your chocolate too.”

“Thank you,” you sang, grinning widely as you stood up from the couch and stretched. “I suppose you want dinner?”

There was a quiet hum in reply, and you walked up behind Bucky, enveloping him in your arms while you rested your cheek on his back. It was silent for a moment, and you began to sway the two of you as Bucky chuckled quietly, when it was interrupted by a sharp exhale – a wince.

“What’s wrong?” you asked immediately, pulling away to look him up and down. “What happened, baby?”

Bucky turned to face you, his expression sheepish, when he winced again – his shoulder twitched, and it looked tense, even from where you stood. “It’s nothin’, baby,” he murmured, his hand on your shoulder as though to move you to the side, but you stood steadfast.

“Doesn’t look like nothing to me. Go sit down in the living room–in front of where I was sitting.” His mouth opened as though he was going to argue, but you held a hand up to stop him. “Please, just go sit down.”

“Alright,” Bucky sighed, and he walked into the living room as you watched, and he sat on the ground in front of your seat with a quiet grunt.

You eyed his form for just a moment – his shoulders were drawn tight to his ears, and there was a grimace of pain and exhaustion on his handsome face. He looked drained; no longer full of life as he so often was.

“Oh, Bucky,” you murmured and strode into the bedroom to retrieve the bottle of oil he used on you for your aches and pains – his hands working the knots and points of pain out of your muscles with such ease and no hesitation.

When you appeared in the living room, bottle in hand, Bucky looked up at you quizzically. “What’re you doin’, sweetheart?”

“Never you mind, nosy,” you teased, and you sat behind him, knees on either side of his broad shoulders. “Take this off,” you said, pulling at his shirt. “Can’t work my magic with it in the way.”

“There’s a word missin’ in there, baby,” Bucky purred, and you rolled your eyes.

“Please take your shirt off so I can ogle at your sexy body,” you deadpanned. Bucky only laughed, and he worked his shirt up and off his back, his back muscles shifting as he did so. “Thank you.”

Bucky huffed and leaned back into your thighs. An idea struck you, and you placed the bottle down next to you, out of reach of the curious noses of the two dogs that watched, enraptured by their two favourite people. “I’m just gonna–” Your fingers gently carded through his hair, the brown locks soft to the touch and parting easily around the gentle pull. A low moan fell from Bucky’s lips, and you watched his shoulders relax. “Feel good?”

“Mm,” Bucky hummed, pushing his head back into your hands. “Does–don’ stop, please.”

You didn’t. You were careful when your fingers snagged on a knot, but otherwise, you gently brushed through Bucky’s hair, stopping only to scratch his scalp and at the nape of his neck – a low moan fell from his lips from the ministrations of your hands, and he fell further into a state of relaxation.

“I’m gonna rub your shoulders now, babe,” you whispered against the back of his head, and you placed a kiss there when he made a quiet noise of ascent. “You just stay nice and relaxed for me.”

Carefully, you unclipped the lid of the oil and poured some onto your hand, keeping the noise of shock in your throat of how cold it was. You rubbed your hands together to warm the oil up – the last thing you wanted and needed was to startle Bucky with a cold touch and interrupt his vague state.

You started slowly, placing your hand on either side of his neck and rubbing outwards and down his shoulders, then back up again, keeping the pressure light but steady. Each pass of your hands pushed against the constellation of knotted muscle that lined the planes of his shoulders. You pushed harder and harder as you worked until Bucky finally moaned with relief when you hit the spot midway between his neck and the top of his arm.

“Fuck, that feels good,” Bucky breathed, slumping further back between your legs. His head brushed against your stomach. “Please don’t stop, baby.”

“I won’t,” you promised, smiling softly.

The ensuing silence was only interrupted by Bucky’s sighs and moans of relief as you worked, and the quiet hoot of owls outside the cabin’s window – the sun long having set since you started.

“How’re you feeling, babe?” you asked quietly, hesitant to disturb the peace.

Bucky shifted and leaned back, the top of his head pushing into your stomach so he could look up at you. You smiled down at him, your hands still rubbing circles on the top of his shoulders – the dazed look on his face made him look sleepy, entirely content to be between your feet and at the mercy of your hands.

“Feels s’good,” he mumbled, sighing through his nose. “Don’ wan’ you to stop.”

You chuckled and kissed his forehead, but he whined and pouted. “Such a big sap,” you whispered, and you kissed him softly on the lips, a chaste touch that you revered. “But it’s dinner time, babe. Lemme treat you. And to do that, you have to get up, so I can get up–the food won’t cook itself.”

“Fine,” Bucky sighed, and he slowly sat up. “Fuck, what did you do to me, sweetheart–it doesn’t hurt-”

“You need to tell me these things, Bucky,” you admonished, getting to your feet. “I can help you. I have a thing called intuition. It’s no use lying or trying to hide these things from me.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice.” Bucky stood up with a groan. “C’mere,” he said, and he held his arms out. You moved into them without question and sighed happily against his chest, his warmth seeping into your bones and very soul. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

A soft kiss met the crown of your head, and you smiled contentedly. “Anytime, Bear–now, c’mon, let’s have some dinner.”

⠈⠂⠄ 𝐢𝐧𝐛𝐨𝐱 | 𝐥𝐢𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 | 𝐚𝐨𝟑 ⠄⠂⠁

⠈⠂⠄ 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 | 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 ⠄⠂⠁

#bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x f!reader #bucky barnes x reader #bucky x female reader #bucky x f!reader #bucky x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes oneshot #bucky barnes fluff #hotbuckysummer2023 #rookthorne's works

280 notes · View notes

3hobbitsinatrenchcoat · 8 days

Text

I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the very heart of me

Dorym Week, Day Two! (we aren't talking about these early EST upload times >.>) Today's work was inspired by the song prompt: "My life was a storm since I was born, how could I fear any hurricane?" ~ Francesca - Hozier

Title is from Aragorn's speech before the black gates because I couldn't help myself XD

I’ll post all my drabbles to AO3 later, but for now enjoy them here on tumblr.

(Beware minor spoilers for Episode 95)

-----

The first thing Orym noticed as he felt the snap of teleportation magic release was the bitter, biting cold.

He thought he was used to the cold; Zephrah’s place above the clouds meant that even the longest summer days were cool and the winters could be brutal. But Zephrah had nothing on the endless expanse of blinding white he saw when he opened his eyes, the air so cold he could feel his breath become brittle before it ever left his mouth.

Suddenly glad for the layers he had bought before leaving Zadash, Orym wrapped his arms tightly across his chest and squinted across the barren landscape. In some deeply unsettling way it reminded him of the desert surface of Ruidus, only cold and pale instead of vibrant bloody red.

Behind him he could hear the murmurs of the rest of the Hells getting their bearings. Well… some were murmuring.

“Fuck! That’s frigid!” Ashton’s voice rose above everyone else for a moment and Orym bit back a laugh.

“I’m not sure what you expected from a snowy wasteland,” drawled Dorian, a familiar lilt to his tone that told Orym he was also holding back humor.

“I mean. Snow. Obviously.” snapped Ashton, though there was little bite to their words. “Shit, godsdamn it… I’m sinking. Fearne can you…”

“Well, if you wanted to climb me like a tree all you had to do was…”

Orym tuned out whatever Fearne said next as a gloved hand landed on his shoulder, squeezing lightly. He looked up into Dorian’s face and felt his heart skip at the small smile he found there. Reaching up, he patted his own mittened hand against Dorian’s. The genasi’s smile widened a fraction before his gaze flicked away to take in the desolate view. Orym watched uneasily as the smile fell into a grim stoicism that was becoming more and more common with his friend.

“When Lady Keyleth said we would be heading to the ruins of Aeor I honestly expected a more visible city,” he said after a moment.

“That is because most of the city is buried,” Essek said, gliding past them to peer into the distance. He turned his head slightly to glance over his shoulder with a small twitch of his lips. “And to avoid scattering our remains across several miles of tundra wasteland I had to teleport us well outside of the crash site. As my dear partner would say: Magic does some… funny things closer to the ruins. ”

“Well that’s good to know,” muttered Dorian under his breath, quietly enough that Orym knew no one else could hear. “It’s not like every single one of us relies on magic to survive or anything.”

Orym squeezed his hand tighter. “It’s alright, Dor. We have each other’s backs if things go wrong.”

“I know. I just…” Dorian let out an explosive sigh, breath a cloud of fog in the frigid air. “It’s strange, I think. To be venturing into the ancient ruins of a city so much like my own childhood home and yet so very alien.”

“It’s alright to be worried,” Orym said. “I think we all are, especially after the last few days.”

Dorian turned to face him fully, pulling his hand away only to kneel in the snow in front of Orym, bringing their eyes level. “I’m not afraid,” he said, taking Orym’s hands in his own. “How could I fear Aeor… how could I fear anything with you by my side?”

Orym ducked his head, breaking the eye contact that made his heart flutter in his throat. “Quite easily, I’d imagine.”

“Maybe,” Dorian’s hand cupped the side of Orym’s cheek, warm through the leather of his glove. “But it won’t be so bad if we face it together.”

“Maybe not,” Orym agreed quietly, letting Dorian lift his face back into eye contact. “We’ve weathered other storms before, how is this any different?”

Eiselcross’s chill might be biting and bitter, but Dorian’s gentle smile warms Orym all the way to his toes. “Because this time I’m not leaving your side.”

#dorym week #day 2: Francesca by Hozier #dorym #dorian storm #orym of the air ashari #my writing #fanfiction #critical role #cr spoilers #kinda #no beta we die like bertrand bell: dick out and unafraid

40 notes · View notes

cleolinda · 23 days

Text

Weekend links, May 5, 2024

My posts

It seems like it couldn’t possibly be true, but Lauren Bacall seems to be the first “Lauren,” and you can see in the U.S. baby name graphs when she hits the screen. I’m leaving open the possibility that someone female, somewhere, was named Lauren before 1944, but as a Lauren, I haven’t seen evidence of it yet.

Reblogs of interest

Late-breaking news: Bernard Hill (best known as Théoden in Lord of the Rings) has passed at age 79.

The Hot Vintage Lady Polls: Reminder that I’m not affiliated with the Hot Vintage Brackets (or any brackets); I just like vintage ladies and get easily obsessed with things. Greta Garbo and Rita Hayworth are in danger this time (I am letting the chips fall where they may with Ava). I would say I don’t understand people, but I’m sure Audrey people don’t understand me, either. That said, the Flaming Chaos Elmo inside me wants to see the Hepburns matched against each other.

@hotvintagepoll is also running polls to cast an imaginary vintage Dracula movie, as a treat.

Speaking of: Season’s Greason’s, Dracula Daily fans! Good Friend Jonathan’s time loop begins again.

May the Fourth be with you (And also with you)!

New music from Garbage! “Better Not Lie to Me,” “Revenge and Hurt,” a cover of “Song to the Siren,” and a new mix of “Bad Boyfriend” with Dave Grohl on drums this time.

New music from Dua Lipa! I’ve liked all the singles a lot so far, and ”Whatcha Doing” is the album song I like the most as of this writing. Good luck to Dua this week cracking the Billboard Taylor 100!

Hozier Watch 2024: At first I was just poking fun at myself for having links here two weeks in a row, and now it’s just a thing? I see this “All art has political dimensions” gifset go by at least once a week, but I’m reblogging it this time for the user discussion.

(“I wrote a song called the Monster Mash, so you should play that. That’s one of mine.”)

“Here are some more articles about the increasing number of First Nations who have been able to reintroduce bison to their lands.”

How to spot fake news (namely: slow the fuck down)

The illustrious career of clip-art wolf Lumpy Kiba

Call an ambulance… but not for Alfred Pennyworth

No one was doing it like costume designer Eiko Ishioka

Crab Cake (Scott Fraser, 2019)

Unhinged lifestyle editorials, a triptych

Video

Honestly this dual mating dance was my favorite video this week

The Donna Summer song that Brian Eno called “the sound of the future”; I added a video of her performing it 22 years later, and he wasn’t wrong

This seems fine: An... upside-down... deer guitar that...?

Watch for the exact moment this dad realizes why his child thinks mothers in labor foam at the mouth

Come for Werner Herzog’s fear of chickens; stay for a quote that will blow you straight back to Journalfen 2004

This video of birds eating seeds and drinking orange juice is also self care

Eventually someone will stop Chocolate Guy, but today is not that day

The sacred texts

Hope is a weapon. Hope is a skill

Personal tag of the week

Cats, including this cat full of love, designed by poll, and the two types of kittens.

#weekend links #odds and ends #linkspam

20 notes · View notes

i-got-the-feels · 5 months

Text

25-21

@chaeyoojung 1

The transition from yellow to blue to show how his one quality he adored also became something that hurt him

My Demon

@dingyuxi 1

My salvation!!!! And his determination and selflessness to save her

Vigilante

@chaeyoojung 1

I already told you and will tell you again and again that I adore this set. His entire character arc. How he chooses to be vigilante is seen sooo well here.

Castaway Diva

@khaoray 1

This is beautiful!!! Their dreams are fulfilled. This is such a happy edit AAAH my heart

See You In My 19th Life

@dingyuxi 1

Something about her selflessness to die for him. Something about how he fiercely remembers and protects her memory. I love how that is shown so well in this set.

@liveasbutterflies 1

I cried in the scene. I cried after seeing this set. She was loved so loved by her mom.

Daily Dose Of Sunshine

@moonlightsdream 1

I adore how your chose their beach and bustop for this dialogue set.

Extraordinary Attorney Woo

@kdramaladies 1

Everytime I hear this dialogue and see this set I cry. The color combination of b/w and golden is so beautiful.

@sjoongki 1

This is one of those edits that will forever affect me. Their shilloutes! Amazing job love ittt.

Alchemy of Souls

@kdramaladies 1

This was the set that made me watch the show. It's beauty, yes. Also it manged to make me feel curious about her.

@kalena-henden 1

The journey! The symbolism! Beautiful set.

@seawherethesunsets 1

The gif of him gently kissing her eyes! Beautiful!!

@liveasbutterflies 1

I love how this set has shown naksus journey.

Little Women

@deokmis 1

A show edit. A show based on a book. And the said books quotes are combined with tv show adaption characters. My nerdy heart is swinging. And beautiful quotes are choose with characters.

Flower of Evil

@deokmis 1

Will I reach a drama where this quote doesn't wreck me? No. The gif with "makes my demons go away" Insaneeeeeee

The Eighth Sense

@dramaism 1

The journey!!! I am a Sucker for these edits. And seeing them get together at the beach casually without any grand declarations was soooo them. And of course the consequences later. That's when the grand declarations come in. Something about how things are simple when it's just the without the involvement of the world.

The Glory

@deokmis 1 2 3

1) Take me to church + them?? The way he knew she intended to use him and he let her!!! Perfect choice for them and perfect selection of scenes!

2) The fact that Jae joon died not knowing who his killer is because he is color blind. But we know!! We know how he killed him so that ye seol will be safe. Uff. Isolating the red to bring out the detail? Amazing

3) Death is my hand + the tattoo gif!! No thoughts. Head empty.

@smittenskitten 1

Isolating the green color!! The talent. They way it celebrates an important arc of the show

Beyond Evil

@khaotunqs 1

The yellow with blank and white!! Beautiful. I didn't like to be touched because I craved it too much!!

@magicaldreamfox1 1

The scene he arrests him, always makes me cry. And the words being "how often will you repent" uffff

@l-tyrell 1

He did everything because of his love, his guilt, his regret. It's gorgeous set. Also gotta listen every hozier song now because I believe it goes perfectly with the tone of this show

@ladyverdance 1

Lee dongsik was a ghost after all the deaths he survived. He was only kept alive by his grief, guilt and love for people he lost. His purpose to avenge them. Beautiful set

Summer Strike

@chinzillas 1

The words+ scene you have chosen so well about how she felt trapped in the daily drudgery of life. And how he chooses to break free. Beautiful!!

The Devil Judge

@gusucloud 1

The motif of fallen angel. Something something devil was an angel before he fell. Love the coloring with golden hues

@natahjikio 1

Was she evil? Yes. Was she a surviour and a badass? Yes. Adore how you did justice to all sides of her in this set

@yilinglaozu 1 2 3

1) he knows gaon is righteous and idealistic. Having him in his life will only hurt them both. He knows Yohan is too hurt and disillusioned to believe in a fair world. He knows they will only hurt each other. Yet they simultaneously hurt and heal each other

2) shut up. Yohan was all alone until he had gaon. Good lord no words.

3) gaon getting to see the real Yohan. Beneath the confident indifferent Yohan. Him willing to change himself and his world views because what is world without Yohan? Beautifully bought out in this set

@spicyvampire 1

The he loves you too words with them saying goodbye!! Tan give me a break

Things to note

These include edits that I found in 2023.

These include edits that gave me the feels.

Thank you for your art. They make the experience of watching the show all the more fun. It helps in appreciating the characters. It helps me see them in new light.

Looking forward to see more of art from amazing artists on here.

To, people I didn't tag - tumblr tagging limit sucks. Your art is beautiful simply because it's made. You made it with a feeling and that in itself is beautiful.

Also, the tag is #becauseigtf in case yall wanna tag me in future :)

#2023 wrap up #thank you artists

47 notes · View notes

sunofpandora · 2 months

Note

Hii… just wanted to know if Virago is done with or if there’s more to the story. I’m absolutely obsessed with your writing and keep checking the app to see if there’s a new chapter lol. This is in no way me pressurising you to update, I just loved the fic :)

Hello beautiful anon!

I dont think I can explain how much I value your touching words. The fact that someone is keeping up with what I post and genuinely interested in what I write just melts my heart. When anons like you, and other readers do things like this, I get teary eyed tbh.

Sorry about that lol.

Anyways, back to business.

So I have some good news! Virago is FAR from over. Like, super far. I have 18+ chapters planned for virago along with some other projects.

I’ve planned 2 new stories coming this summer, and a continuation of virago as well.

On my master list you can find the already posted chapters 1, 2, and all three parts to chapter 3.

I haven’t figured out all the chapter titles yet, and some of these may not be the same later on, but for now, here’s the chapter titles and parts I do have (again, there are probably more than 18 chapters. These are just what I’ve thought of so far.)

If anyone can find the hozier lyrics, I will take your hand in marriage 👆🏽

(Neteyam is so hozier coded in this story tbh.)

#precious anons ❤️#avatar the way of water #neteyam x reader #neteyam #jake avatar #neteyam sully #avatar fanfiction #lo’ak x reader #neytiri #neteyam x you #kiri sully

25 notes · View notes

dellalyra · 1 year

Text

FAMILY FORMATIONS - THE PROPOSAL

Summary: The proposal.

CW: fluffy, fem!reader, nsfw but not like badlyyyy like a lil smutty

A/N: imma do the wedding too and all of the requests but this gave me brain ro

Recommended Listening:

Wasteland, Baby! - Hozier

Bartender - Lana Del Rey

After Hours - The Weeknd

Masterlist

Satoru walks back inside the door to the cottage and closes it behind him. He had a bag of all of your favourite snacks hiding a bottle of champagne and a box with your favourite cake from the small patisserie you both loved.

He had planned this ‘stay at home date night’ down to the very last detail, even having bought a new picnic blanket. He laid everything out on the blanket outside in the middle of the garden you oh-so-carefully tended. It was your pride and joy (second to Satoru and the kids of course), so it was the ideal setting for the evening. With it being only 7pm and mid-summer, the sun was still gently shining over the scene and the air was warm and balmy – he wondered briefly if Mother Nature knew of his plans for tonight and decided to help him out by making it perfect.

He knows you’re upstairs, getting ready for your date and he swallows his nerves and takes a deep breath. He wasn’t used to being nervous, he’d never had to be before. But fuck, was he nervous now. He heard Nanami’s sharp but reassuring voice from earlier echoing in his mind.

“Of course, she’ll say yes, Gojo.”

He patted his jacket pocket to make sure the blue velvet box was still there, double checked the blanket and food and the bottle of champagne hidden in one of your flower patches (are they lilies? Lobelia? No – lilacs. Yeah, lilacs. Hey he remembered!) and then found a pebble and tossed it at your bedroom window.

“Rapunzel, rapunzel let down your hair!” He shouted upwards.

The window flung open and a true, real life princess, his princess, poked her upper body out.

“With your height, I’m sure I don’t need to, can probably just crawl in.” You joked down at him.

He then sees you disappear and seconds later you appear at the back door, and god you were perfect.

Wearing a floral sundress, with a corset style top and falling just below your knees – the white dress was covered in tiny pink delicate flowers and Jesus did it fit you just right. As you strolled toward him, checking your flowers along the way – he noticed the swell of your breasts as they fell from the top of your dress and the slope of your neck, your hips swaying with the dress and the curve of your ass accented by the corset top of the dress when you bent to pick a rose. He shook his head; he’d entertain those thoughts and the tightness of the front of his trousers later on – fuck, he wanted to cage you and that delectable fucking body underneath him and make you squirm.

You smile as you reach him and he notices, as usual, you’re barefoot. The evening sun is illuminating how unbelievably bright you are and for a moment his breath is stolen from a chest because you have to be an angel to glow that much, surely?

You lean on your toes, kissing him on the cheek.

“Hi, ‘toru.”

“Hi princess. Take a seat.” He says as he gestures behind him.

You gasp in shock at the spread in front of you. All your favourites, strawberries, jam tarts, fairy cakes, some cheeses and cured meats and ooh the white chocolate and cherry cake you love along with a big jug of pink lemonade.

“Oh my god ‘toru! What’s all this for?! What’s the occasion?” You squeal, excitedly plopping down on the blanket and looking at everything.

“What? Can’t I just spoil my pretty princess for no reason?” He smirks, taking his spot beside you and popping a strawberry into his mouth.

“You always spoil me ‘toru, but this is extra spoiling!” You giggle, gripping his jaw to turn him to you so you can kiss his strawberry stained lips. He looked so fucking handsome shining under the sun, surrounded by colours and flowers and he was just so breathtakingly beautiful you couldn’t tear your eyes away from him. His jacket was beside him, and the short sleeved white button down was unbuttoned a few buttons at the neck exposing the milky expanse of his chest and collarbone, and you spotted a dribble of lemonade making it’s way down the column of his throat and you just couldn’t help yourself – so you leaned in and kitten licked the droplet away, eyes coy looking at him through those fluttery lashes.

He couldn’t give in yet, even though he was sure he was tenting his trousers by now – he had to do this now, the timing was far too perfect.

This was exactly what was planned, not by him, but by you. 6 years ago, sipping vodka lemonades on the moonlit roof with all four of you together – long, semi tipsy conversations about hopes and dreams being shared with giggles and far-in-the-future promises. You had said as Geto asked (with a sly wink towards Satoru) how you’d want to be proposed to. Only just in your second year, you and him had been pining for each other for a year – but were still nothing but best friends. You’d talked about how you wouldn’t want anything over the top, no photographer or audience (you fake gagged at this), just you and whoever (in your head, it was Satoru), you’d want to be outside, isolated, you’d want a unique ring, nothing outlandish or gaudy and you didn’t want overdrawn, long winded speeches or declarations of love – just the simple question. That was your dream proposal, and he memorised the details right there and then – determined to be the one who made it reality.

After 20 minutes of snacking and chatting away and giggling about everything and nothing, you started telling him about your plans for your butterfly garden at the back corner, and the moment came as you turned to look in that direction and he knew in that moment that you were everything and more to him, alight with happiness and passion.

He softly said your name, then poked you in the ribs.

You turned to poke him back but froze.

He was leaning toward you, broad shoulders turned to you and celestial eyes staring into your very soul and in those long, elegant, powerful hands was a tiny open blue velvet box, the gold clasp sat atop the lid. On a matching cushion inside it – sat the most beautiful piece of jewellery you had ever seen, like something from a magic fairytale. Tiny filigree gold housed a shiny marquise diamond and two dainty sapphires on either side.

You froze and sucked in air in shock.

You looked up to his eyes again, seeing nothing but sheer love, sincerity and pure adoration reflected back at you.

“Marry me?” He said, boyish smile lighting up his face at your reaction.

You shook out a breath, you didn’t need a second to think so you just lunged at him and wrapped your hands around his smooth cheeks and crashed your lips into his, you felt his arms around your waist pulling you onto his lap and you couldn’t pull yourself away, tears beginning to wet your cheeks.

He pulls away first, hand firm on your waist.

“Is that a yes, then?” He smirked, very proud of himself.

“It’s infinite yes’s, ‘toru. It’s yes in every universe, yes forever.” You giggle out through tears, peppering his face with tiny kisses.

He grabs your hand and then slides the ring onto your finger, a perfect fit. Was that why Shoko insisted on borrowing some of your jewellery last weekend?

He smiles up at you, bright and blinding.

He cradles your face in his hands.

“My beautiful, incredible, amazing, sexy princess, my angel forest fairy – I can’t wait to call you my pretty little wife.” He says, pressing kisses into your neck and sucking marks into your exposed décolletage.

“I can’t wait to introduce you as my devilishly handsome, kind and loving husband Satoru.” You reply, hands gripping his hair and pulling slightly, making him growl into your chest. His hands grow firmer on your hips and your centre is guided to move along his solid length beneath you.

“Fuck, my little wife, so fucking pretty. God, and you’re all mine.”

“All yours, ‘toru, and I always have been. Aa-ah, fuck baby, more – please, upstairs.” You whimper, breathless and full of love.

At that, he scoops you up bridal style and begins to stride back to the house, stopping to tell you to reach into you lilac bush, you pull out a bottle of champagne and throw your head back laughing at him, to which he just lets out a chuckle and a cheeky smirk takes over his face.

“It’s hydration, gotta practise for our wedding night, the house is all ours and I’m not letting my fiancée leave the bed for at least two days.”

#gojo satoru #jjk #jjk x reader #gojo satoru x reader #gojo x reader #gojo fluff #anime #dad!gojo #gojo smut #pixie writes: family formations #family formations drabbles

134 notes · View notes

apple-grass-and-smiles · 5 months

Text

i get along without you some nights

Summary: Spending the holidays without someone you love is a strange, surreal, scary situation. Everyone handles it differently, everyone wonders about a different world, and, eventually, everyone makes it through the holiday. And then the next. And the one after that. And so on and so forth until things get at least a little better.

Six different characters, six different holidays, and six different ways of approaching not having someone they love to celebrate with.

OR: A Secret Santa gift for @y3ll0w-b3ntl3y! I hope this piece brings you some happiness/joy/laughter. You can either use the AO3 link above or read the fic below the read more!

A/N: Hello, my friends! Long time no see! This is a piece for y3ll0w-b3ntl3y as part of the Prodigal Son Secret Santa that whats-a-terrarium organized. Hopefully it’s a good gift! The title is adapted from “Almost (Sweet Music)” by Hozier because I was so desperate for a title that I actually googled “Hozier lyrics loss”.

This idea has been floating through my head since mid-November and has had a few different iterations. I lost a very, very close family friend this summer and have been thinking a lot about how people get through their first holidays without someone they love and this was born from that. The vignettes are roughly saddest first and they get more hopeful from there. JT’s vignette is just texts, which will hopefully be clear but if not, now you know.

TW: Mostly canon-typical things. Alcoholism, some depression. Jessica’s is the most graphic/intense and can be skipped as needed.

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

The Christmas tree was already up when Martin was… (Jessica was still trying to find the polite term for it, trying different ones on) taken away. Normally Jessica insisted on no hints of Christmas in the home until the Thanksgiving dinner had been cleared from the table, but Malcolm had campaigned valiantly to put it up early. As per usual, Ainsley had joined in, asking Jessica to make an exception to her rule and then Martin had given Jessica that look, the one that had been crumbling her resolve since the day they met.

The tree was decorated as part of Malcolm’s family birthday party. Great aunt Mildred and Birdie and all the other Miltons covered the tree in ornaments from Chanel and Tiffany and made snide comments at the humble Hallmark ornaments Martin produced from his own meager collection. (Jessica had joked to Martin as he held her in his arms that it was not worth it to use an ornament hook to kill her family members. The irony was not lost on Jessica, no matter how much wine she drank.) The final result had been the definition of a Milton Tree. Nothing but matching ornaments, the kids’ handmade ornaments hidden in the back of the tree or so close to the trunk so as to appear invisible. The tree was perfect from the gold star to the Hermes tree skirt.

Jess hated it.

So she and Martin let the kids stay up well past their bedtime so as to un-decorate and re-decorate the tree, making it their own. Laughter had filled the home as Martin lifted Malcolm to put ornaments at the top of the tree and Ainsley skipped around the room with her fourth (fifth?) cookie, singing “Jingle Bells” at the top of her lungs. Jessica tried to capture the moment, to bottle it so she could reminisce on and sip at it like a fine wine.

Two days later, Jessica Whitly stood next to the tree while officers asked her questions and her husband became a stranger to her and she watched her children’s childhoods begin to melt away and all she could do was say no, I didn’t know anything over and over and over. The whole time the Christmas lights her husband had strung so lovingly around the tree with the precision of a surgeon (and The Surgeon) shone just to the right of her face.

Two weeks after the arrest and eight days before Christmas, Jessica was drunk because that was all that was left to do. Her kids were broken, her husband was the monster who broke them, she was the useless maiden who watched as it all happened and did nothing, and now she was spending more money on alcohol than anything else. Every happy moment she’d bottled up of her time with Martin and her children was ruined. And standing there, completely unchanged despite Jessica’s life having crumbled to ash, was the Christmas tree. It mocked her. Mocked her desire for a family, a partner, a happy life. It had to go. And her cocktail provided insight into what to do with the stupid tree.

It was only midmorning when Jessica began her drunken battle against the tree. Ornaments were thrown to the ground and shattered. She rubbed her hands raw trying to get all the pine needles off of the branches. She took a pair of scissors to the tree skirt until there was no hope of ever saving it. Custom ornaments celebrating her engagement, her wedding, Malcolm’s birth, her 5th anniversary, Ainsley’s birth were all crushed under high heels. For the grand finale, she pushed the tree to the ground and poured a generous helping of liquor for herself before dumping the rest on the tree. She had the lighter in her hand when Malcolm’s trembling voice cut through the haze, “Mom, don’t; not in the house.”

Jessica turned to see her children huddled together on the stairs, watching her. Ainsely was mostly hidden behind her brother but both looked at her with expressions she recognized from that horrible night. Expressions that showed surprise to discover that their parents were capable of such violence and destruction. And part of Jessica was broken that they would think that of her and another part was furious because how dare they compare her to the man sitting in a cell with more pending charges than she cared to count. Martin had always been the fun parent, the one who encouraged them to pester Jessica about breaking perfectly good traditions, like waiting to set the tree up until December first, and now, right before Christmas when there was supposed to be joy and peace in the world and her children were supposed to have not a care in the world, he was the lowlife who left Jessica to clean up after him.

She’d clean up after Martin, make the kids go to school in January, be sure their clothes fit, tell the chef what to make for dinner, go to the charity events so it was clear her family was thriving. She would get along just fine and make sure her children did too. But first, the tree had to go.

Jessica sent her children to their rooms. Then she set the tree and everything it symbolized ablaze.

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

Dani’s 17th birthday was on the three-month anniversary of her dad’s death. She had just started to get to the point where she could go a day or two without crying and she had finally stopped setting the dinner table for the whole family. She had even remembered to ask for four tickets at the movies instead of five. Her heart was still a gaping wound but it wasn’t as raw.

Then her birthday rolled around, bringing with it a promise that her father would never be able to keep.

Her father had been taking her and her sisters on special father-daughter dates for their birthday for as long as she could remember. According to him, gifts were good but experiences were excellent. When she was five, he’d taken Dani to a carnival and let her ride the carousel as many times as she wanted. For her 10th birthday, he took her to get her ears pierced and let her pick out earrings that she knew were above her family’s price range, revealing the extra cash he’d been saving just for that occasion. For her 16th birthday, her last ever one with him, they dressed up in their nicest suit and dress, washed his dingy old car until it shined, and drove to the fanciest place they could find. They hadn’t even ordered appetizers before they decided that no place had a right to charge $100 for a house salad and snuck out to eat at the greasy spoon a couple miles away. Dani had spilled ketchup on her pale purple prom dress and she, her dad, their waitress, and the cook had spent 15 minutes getting it out. It had been perfect, an absolutely fitting end to a tradition Dani looked forward to throughout the whole year.

This birthday there wouldn’t be a father-daughter outing to the beach like Dani had planned. Instead she sat through a calc test where she knew none of the answers, ate a truly pitiful cafeteria attempt at spaghetti and meatballs, and hid in bathroom stalls to cry. When Dani had been out of her fifth period class for far longer than her bathroom hall pass allowed, the school counselor was dispatched to find her. Dani had never spoken to the counselor before her dad died but at this point they were on a first name basis. (Dani saw it as a good sign when the older woman introduced herself as Elle, short for Danielle. Something about their names fitting together like puzzle pieces made her feel safe.) Dani finished the day in Elle’s office, completing work that could have been written in Greek for all Dani knew.

Before her dad died, going home after school was usually a relief. Now it felt like walking into his funeral over and over. Her mom had tried her hardest to bring the Powell house back to life, adding colorful art with motivational messages and insisting on opening the windows to let in fresh air, even when it was raining and the humidity made Dani’s hair resemble a lion’s mane. But she had to go home, couldn’t dream of scaring her mom by being late, and at least at home she could sleep until tomorrow rolled around and it wasn’t her birthday anymore.

Even 10 years after her 17th birthday, Dani won’t be able to remember what happened after school that day. Pictures indicate that she had cupcakes and she had sat through her sisters and mom singing “Happy Birthday”. She doesn’t remember anything else. In fact, the rest of that school year and most of that summer are lost to Dani. Her therapist will say it’s a common way for people to manage grief, that the depression will ease with time, that all of it is completely and utterly normal. Dani figures it was her brain’s way of ignoring that her dad wasn’t there. Dad couldn’t be missing from her memories of her birthday if she had none.

Every birthday after that one hurts in some way, sometimes for the full 24 hours and other times for only a split second. Her 18th is full of anger at her dad for not being there. Her 21st involves her bawling while drunk in some random bar about how she wishes she could be with her dad, even if it meant not being around anymore. She writes a seven-page letter to her dad on her 27th, updating him on every detail of the last decade as if he were still alive. Her 32nd brings a sense of acceptance, of knowing that as much as she misses him and wishes he could be there as she blows out her birthday candles, she wouldn’t trade the life she has for anything.

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

Edrisa had never spent the Fourth of July in the US until she was 26. Summer was the ideal season for her parents to do research in far off lands, which meant it was the season where Edrisa packed a couple bags and left home to follow them on their travels. But this year she couldn’t make the trip. Or, more accurately, she was purposely not invited on the trip. It wasn’t surprising that she had been excluded, but it still hurt.

She had always been closer to her parents than anyone else in the world. Friends were few and far between and even when she did manage to make one, she never felt as comfortable in her skin with them as she did in a hut in a random country with her parents. (And, yes, maybe she wasn’t giving her friends a chance to get close to her and, yes, maybe she wasn’t trying her hardest to make connections, but still.) The comfort meant she kept going on research trips long after she turned 18, kept running back to the safety of the trio that made up her family.

But then she told her parents she was hoping to be a medical examiner instead of pursuing internal medicine like she had originally planned. She hadn’t realized how much that original plan meant to her parents but her announcement led to a debate that grew into an argument before becoming a full-blown, knock-down, drag-out fight. That had been over her spring break in April and she and her parents hadn’t spoken since and it was tearing her apart.

Edrisa prided herself on her resilience though and so she planned to make the most of this first Independence Day in her home country. And if that distracted her from her parents’ radio silence, then that was a nice bonus. Edrisa had accepted every invite she got from various colleagues and coworkers, crammed her schedule full of pancake breakfasts, barbeques, block parties, and firework shows. She saw the same few scenes of Independence Day in four different places. She ate no less than five hot dogs throughout the day. By the end of the day, she had spent a total of 160 minutes watching fireworks. But no amount of hot dogs or fireworks or dramatic speeches could dull the voice in the back of her head that was wondering what her mom and dad were doing.

Had Dad gotten sick from sketchy water yet because he didn’t let it boil long enough? Had Mom found the scarf she wanted to buy to add to her collection? Were they seeing souvenirs and thinking of her? Which coworkers were they with? Darrell? Synthia? Nasir? That guy with the cool tattoo sleeves whose name Edrisa could never remember? Did they remember that it was the Fourth of July?

Edrisa arrived back at her tiny apartment far past her usual bedtime, Edrisa curled up on her couch, skipping between TV channels for something she could fall asleep to. By the time she stumbled on the fifth channel playing Independence Day (always that one speech; surely there was more to this movie than this one speech), she had accepted that the universe had clearly determined her entertainment for the night.

Edrisa settled in to see how the movie ended as one guy (the President? He was in a suit giving a speech and that seemed like enough of a context clue for Edrisa) delivered his, admittedly very moving, speech. “And should we win the day, the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice, we will not go quietly into the night. We will not vanish without a fight.”

Maybe it was the actor’s delivery or the music or fate, but Edrisa found herself ruminating on the same line over and over: “We will not vanish without a fight.” It seemed absurd to compare her fight with her parents to humanity fighting off aliens, but good advice was good advice. Edrisa didn’t want to give up on her family. If she wanted to patch things up, to help her parents see why she didn’t want to work with living patients, to not have to suffer through another Fourth of July block party where she didn’t know anyone, she was going to have to put up a fight. And so she pulled up her e-mail as Will Smith did heroic things and wrote to her parents. She poured all the feelings she’d felt that day, all the melancholy and anger and grief and longing, into the e-mail, took a deep breath, hit send, and turned off her TV. (Edrisa will be well into her 60s before she actually sees Independence Day all the way through. She did have the President’s speech memorized more than 25 years before that.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

February 14th, 2010-

Tally: Happy Valentines babe <3 <3

JT: Love you!

Tally: How likely is it that your sergeant is gonna let you off early today?

JT: -1000%

Tally: Did you try the “it’s my first valentines with my wife” angel?

Tally: Angle!

JT: Salazar isn’t going to budge. No seniority, no chance of going home early

Tally: But you’ll try anyway right…? (:

JT: Only because I love you. If you don’t hear back from me it’s because Salazar has sentenced me to work overtime for the next month.

Tally: Fingers crossed!

Tally: Anything?

Tally: It’s been 10 minutes, are you alive?

Tally: JT ANSWER ME OR I’M POSTING YOUR FULL NAME ON FACEBOOK!!!!!!!!

JT: He laughed me out of the room

JT: And now I’m on parking violation duty for the day

Tally: Sorry babe…

JT: Wish I could be with you ):

Tally: Maybe I could go and violate some parking laws…? What do you say, Officer Tarmel?

JT: This is why I married you

Tally: That and the fact that I’m nice enough to wear those heels you love to go and get a parking ticket

JT: your my dream girl ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanksgiving had always been Jackie’s holiday. Ever since their first Thanksgiving together, Gil and Jackie had agreed she would handle Thanksgiving and he would put together Christmas dinner. Jackie had taken immense joy in her perfect Thanksgiving dinners. As if by magic, she made sure the food was done cooking all at the same time, the turkey was never dry, and she had an apple pie so good she would print the recipe to hand out to guests.

The last two Thanksgivings before Jackie had passed away had been pale imitations of the ones they used to have. The first one, Gil ate some Chinese food while Jackie curled on the couch and nibbled at saltines because the chemo made her too nauseous for anything else. The second was spent in the hospital, discussing funeral plans because Jackie wanted to make sure Gil knew exactly what she wanted. The first Thanksgiving after Jackie died, Gil offered to work so another officer who had just had a baby could be home for the holiday. Gil worked a 13-hour shift, finding reasons to stick around long after he could have gone home. The second Thanksgiving, he went to DC to see Bright, hoping that being in an unfamiliar city would help stave off the sadness that he would never have a Thanksgiving with Jackie again. Bright had gotten called in for an emergency and Gil had spent the day wandering through the city by himself.

Gil runs out of ways to avoid Thanksgiving the third year. He has too much overtime so work is a no-go. Bright is back in New York. Gil doesn’t particularly want to travel at Thanksgiving again and definitely not by himself. He considered helping at a shelter but apparently the rest of the city has had the same idea because Gil was informed that no additional volunteers were needed.

He plans to approach the dreaded Thursday like any other. He’ll make a normal meal. He’ll watch a football game he had missed earlier in the week instead of the Thanksgiving games. He will close his curtains so that if a balloon from the parade somehow magically makes its way to his part of town, he won’t see it.

Gil’s in the middle of heating up canned tomato soup and making a grilled cheese when there’s a knock at the door. He opens it without looking through the peephole, hoping it’s the turtleneck he ordered to replace one that Bright destroyed earlier in the week. The shipping e-mail had said it should be arriving that day. Instead, he finds JT and Tally with four food containers. “It’s just the sides. We were going to bring some turkey but Tally says it’s inedible so…” JT shrugs as he places the food on the table and explains what is what. There’s creamed corn and mashed potatoes and Gil’s stomach rumbles despite his best efforts. The visit is very brief (Tally’s family is headed to their apartment and they need to clean up before anyone gets there) and the food is wonderful. It’s not Jackie’s, not by a long shot, but it’s different enough that it feels odd to compare them and that’s a blessing.

Gil has just gotten through half of his mashed potatoes when there’s another knock at the door. Again, he hops up, hoping to find his turtleneck on the other side. Instead, he finds Bright, smiling, with Ainsley and Jessica standing behind him. Gil has experienced a Whitly Thanksgiving once, many years ago. It’s just one step down from a black tie affair and Gil had spent most of the four-hour meal prepping to break up a domestic dispute between the various Milton relatives. It had been one of the most unpleasant holidays he had ever experienced and he had spent dozens of holidays working as a police officer, which always promised at least one tragedy.

Thrown off by seeing the Whitly crew instead of a FedEx employee, it took Gil a moment to realize that Bright was holding an entire turkey. His confusion must have shown on his face because Bright leaned towards Gil and, in a rather loud stage whisper, said, “I told Mother it made no sense to bring a whole turkey, but you know how she gets when she sets her mind on something.” Ainsley chuckled behind Bright and Jessica looked between both her children with a look of overexaggerated offense.

Gil’s manners kicked in after a moment. “Do you want to come in? I can’t eat a whole turkey alone,” he gestured with his hand to invite them in, but all three responded by shaking their heads.

“Thank you, Gil, but we can’t impose,” Jessica said in her tone that indicated there was no room for disagreement. “There’s no need to play host on today of all days.” The subtext was clear: I wouldn’t want to have to pretend to be okay on a hard day; I won’t make you. It was a kind thought but as he watched the little family walk back to the car, Ainsley and Bright joking with each other, Gil wasn’t sure if he would rather them stay or leave.

The turkey was delicious and Gil was nodding off in his favorite chair when the third and final knock of the evening came. Gil got up, again feeling the excitement of getting his new turtleneck because surely that’s the only reason someone would be at his door at 9:00 PM on Thanksgiving.

“You’re not my turtleneck,” Gil bemoaned as he opened the door to see Dani.

She scoffed, “Nice to see you too.”

“Sorry, I’ve just been waiting for the turtleneck-”

“You ordered to replace the one that got ruined in that fire Bright set?” Dani raised her eyebrows, proud of finishing his sentence.

Gil chuckled, “You and I may spend too much time together.”

Dani made her way into Gil’s living room, comfortable enough to not wait for permission. “I brought you something,” Dani said while extending her hand that held an opaque Tupperware. Her voice was tinged with nervousness; it reminded Gil of a kid handing in a test they thought they might fail. “It’s definitely not perfect and I don’t think I baked it long enough but hopefully it’s okay.”

As Dani spoke, Gil opened the container and was met by a smell so familiar and beloved that it brought a tear to his eyes. The smell was the perfect mix of apple, cinnamon, and nutmeg; a smell so connected to Jackie that Gil could have sworn she was in the room. He couldn’t resist tasting it, even though he suspected that Dani might still be talking, unaware that he had been transported to happier years. She was right, the pie could have done with another minute or two but besides that it was perfect. No one else had ever gotten it this perfect. He couldn’t even get it this perfect and he helped Jackie make her pie at least a dozen times.

“Dani,” Gil was fighting back the emotions that were threatening to overwhelm him. “This is just right. How… How did you get it just right?”

Pulling a stained and folded piece of paper from her back pocket, with a look of surprise on her face, Dani responded, “Jackie gave me the recipe that first Thanksgiving, right before she got…” Right before she got sick hung in the air, unsaid. How many times had Gil seen Jackie pass out this recipe? And yet no one had ever made the pie correctly. What made Dani different? He unfolded the recipe like it was a precious artifact. Scrawled in Jackie’s messy handwriting in the corner was a note: Top secret! To make this correctly add apple cider syrup (about ½ cup). Love, Jackie.

Gil didn’t even try to contain his laugh. Of course, Jackie, his Jackie who was so competitive and always up to something mischievous, would never give out her full recipe, not even to him. And of course, Jackie, his Jackie who was endlessly compassionate and always looking out for people, would have the foresight to see that Dani would be the type of person to bring him pie when Jackie was gone. Even now, his wife was amazing him and making sure he had a proper Thanksgiving.

As Gil fell asleep that night, his phone buzzed. More out of habit than anything, he reached for it and found an e-mail. The subject line? “Men’s gray turtleneck delivery delayed to 1/31”. Gil groaned. Now if only one of his team members would show up with a turtleneck!

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

Logically, Bright gets the value of New Year’s. It's a clear chance for a new beginning, a perfect time to reflect on the past, and, of course, an opportunity for one more party before the holiday season ends and everyone returns to their normal lives. It all makes sense in theory.

Theory isn’t reality and the reality of New Year’s has never met Bright’s expectations. New York on December 31st is always brimming with tourists who want to see the ball drop and make the city claustrophobic. Reflecting on the past year usually includes remembering a laundry list of mistakes and horror. Planning for the new year just results in people expecting something that never comes. And, to be completely honest, he has yet to attend a New Year’s Eve party that he didn’t regret the next morning. Nothing about midnight on January first makes anyone a new person.

Despite all of that, Bright’s loft was decked out for a New Year’s Eve party thanks to a bet. He had been so confident the janitor had killed their victim and JT had been equally confident Bright was wrong. So the bet was made: if Bright was right JT had to reveal the letter that came after the J in his name; if JT won, Bright had to throw a New Year’s Eve party. It had not been the janitor, but the janitor’s identical twin brother who killed the victim. Despite his best efforts to convince him otherwise, Gil ruled in favor of JT and now Bright had a party to throw.

Mother had, of course, taken matters into her own hands, insisting that there was no way Bright could throw a New Year’s party as well as her event planner could. He had tried to convince her that this would be a small party with just a few people from work and that it truly did not require an event planner who would charge at least $4,000. His efforts were in vain and now he could barely recognize his own home through the catered food, the enormous number of gold and silver decorations, and the pièce de résistance: a disco ball that was far too big for his apartment.

Perhaps it was fitting that he couldn’t recognize his home under the decorations. Life had become increasingly unrecognizable since that day in Vermont with Martin and the Woodsman. The day his father had tried to kill him and Bright had instead murde– killed his father. (His army of therapists had been working diligently to help Bright change the way he spoke about the event; shifting from Bright murdering Martin to Bright having defended himself. It was a very slow process.) Bright didn’t recognize himself most days and his safe spaces had dwindled rapidly. There was court and mandatory time off and 72-hour holds and so much therapy. There were hard conversations to be had and confessions to be made and apologies to be given by the dozens. Now, still far from okay but no longer on the edge of insanity, Bright was facing a completely foreign idea: a new year without his father.

Martin Whitly would not see a single second of 2022.

Malcolm Bright would get to see all of them.

Malcolm had never had a year without his father. Never had a chance to see what he could be without Martin. Never even considered that one day he wouldn’t feel torn between Claremont and the real world where people were sometimes cruel but mostly kind. Maybe Bright didn’t buy into the idea of New Year’s because he’d still be carrying his trauma and demons and flaws whether it was December 31st, 2021 or January 1st, 2022, but it did seem worth celebrating a year where he would only carry the ghost of his father, instead of the real thing.

So, despite the party being entirely over-the-top, Bright made the most of it. He laughed with his friends, played party games and lost at all of them in spectacular fashion. He ate some food that wasn’t licorice and Dani literally applauded him for it. He got to hold JT’s baby who smiled at Bright and for a moment he enjoyed being with someone who did not find him strange or odd or shattered through with trauma. Kisses and hugs were shared at midnight and it felt like maybe beautiful things were beginning.

By the time 2:00 AM rolled around, it was just Bright, sitting on the floor, his back against his front door. The loft was a disaster and Bright was certain it would take years to de-glitter the space. The sirens outside were loud and more frequent than normal and if he squinted, Bright could see snow falling lightly outside. He leaned his head back against the door and released a long breath, thinking about how this year, as ridiculous as it was, felt different, felt lighter. It was enough to make him laugh. The noise bubbled up out of his mouth involuntarily and startled Sunshine awake from her perch just a bit above Bright’s head. She chirped indignantly, as if scolding him for waking her up. It made him laugh even more. He apologized to her and pulled himself up to start heading to bed.

“Happy new year, Sunshine. I think it’ll be a good one.”

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

A/N: For a person who has only just started using emojis in the year 2023, not using them in Tally and JT’s text was shockingly difficult. I hope you enjoyed seeing me flex my very limited memory of emoticons. Also, I googled secret ingredients for apple pie so if you make one with apple cider syrup and it’s bad, it’s not my fault.

Also, I’m sorry to all my Ainsley fans; on hour six of writing so she did not get a vignette. (Though there’s totally something to be said for a piece about Ainsley at Halloween.) Sorry that she’s the only main cast member who didn’t get some love.

Thank you for reading! If you’re someone who is going through holidays without their loved one, I’m sending you hugs, warm blankets, and your favorite beverage. I hope this maybe brought a bit of catharsis or hope. May all of you have a wonderful 2024, full of loved ones, good food, and lots of pleasant surprises. And most importantly, may 2024 bring us the miracle of a season 3!

#psonsecretsanta23 #prodigal son #and I am not tagging all the characters that are in this but they're mostly all there #didn't Tumblr use to have a horizontal line you could put in your text so you don't have to type ----- to separate sections?#did I imagine that?#silence emily #have fun with this; I wrote it in 6 hours with no breaks after thinking about it for at least 2 months #grief man. it's crazy

7 notes · View notes

popentertainmentconcertreviews · 19 hours

Text

Hozier & Allison Russell – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion – Camden, NJ – May 25, 2024

Hozier Takes Fans to Church.

Following the release of his newest album Unreal Unearth, Hozier kicked off his 2024 Tour playing cities across the US including Houston, Los Angeles, St. Louis, and Camden, where we were lucky enough to catch the show. Fans traveled from states away to attend the show and after being there, I understand why.

The night began with an enchanting performance by Canadian singer-songwriter Allison Russell, who has worked with Hozier on several occasions. Russell’s performance was raw, soulful, and spiritual all in one, mesmerizing all 25,000 attendees. An opening act rarely has an impact on an audience, but Russell was one of the few who beat those odds. Fans were just as tuned into her set as they were Hozier’s, which was beautiful to see. Luckily for attendees, the end of Russell’s set was not the last we would be seeing her that night – she came out later to sing “Wildflower and Barley” alongside Hozier. Her performance was absolutely incredible.

When Hozier finally took the stage, the arena shook with anticipation. The lights began to dim, and the buzz of fans grew louder and louder until all anyone could hear was the opening notes to “De-Selby (Part 1).” Though the lights were dimmed, you could make out the silhouette of everyone’s favorite Irishman. The atmosphere grew even more electric when the stage lit up and Hozier’s powerful vocals filled the arena. Right off the bat, it was obvious that he has an amazing stage presence and knows how to connect with an audience. Hozier then went on to play fan favorites “Francesca,” “From Eden,” and “That Would I.”

Not only was the music at the concert magnificent but each song was accompanied by captivating backdrop visuals that coincided with a thematic stage setup, mimicking that of a forest. The visuals and production value were off the charts. With each song, came different colors and vibes, which made the performance that much more enthralling.

Throughout the evening, fans were sent through a whirlwind of emotions as Hozier took the audience through his catalog, mixing old songs with new ones. When he began playing “Too Sweet,” every single person in the venue jumped to their feet, ready to dance and scream the lyrics, and oh, they did. Up next was “Almost (Sweet Music)” which sent fans into a frenzy, as it is a fan-wide favorite. Every. Person. Knew all of the lyrics. It was such a beautiful thing to experience. Moments like this prove that music has the power to bring such a diverse group of people together, even if it’s just for a few minutes.

After performing his hit single “Take Me to Church,” Hozier disappeared from the stage for a few minutes. Fans anticipated his appearance for the encore on the main stage, but he surprised them by performing his last three songs on a b-stage in the middle of the stands. The encore included “Cherry Wine,” “Nina Cried Power,” and finally everyone’s favorite ballad “Work Song.” It is such a rarity to see artists connect with their supporters as much as Hozier does.

Hozier’s 2024 Unreal Unearth has made it to my list of must-see tours. Between his incredible catalog, unmatched stage presence, and stunning stage production, you’re doing yourself a disservice by not attending this tour. Not only would fans be satisfied with his impressive and cumulative setlist, but non-fans would have just as good of a time due to Hozier’s showmanship and talent. I’m not kidding when I say this is one of the shows of the summer.

Kayla Marra

#Hozier #Allison Russell #2024 #Concert Reviews #Freedom Mortgage Pavilion #Camden #Kayla Marra

2 notes · View notes

caelwynn · 16 days

Text

Shane and Noah Kahan

After falling into the very deep well that is Hozier's discography thanks to Sterling, I started keeping tabs on Hozier during his Unreal Unearth tour via social media. When clips of him performing with Noah Kahan started popping up, they led me to give Noah Kahan's Stick Season (We'll All Be Here Forever) a spin.

That album caught my attention hard and fast because I fucking love a good banjo. Even more so, I love songs undergirded with deep-rooted anger and seething resentment, and good lord did that album deliver. Know who else I think of when it comes to deep-rooted anger and seething resentment?

Shane.

That underlying tension between having fond memories and a lingering love for a place you grew up in versus the anger and resentment of the fact that you're still stuck in that same place, that others escaped but you wound up back there or never even got to leave in the first place? That is what I envision lies underneath Shane's other issues with his past, his drinking, and his depression.

More detailed thoughts on individual tracks (plus potential spoilers for the Tristan mod and Choices) are underneath the cut:

"Northern Attitude" is such an excellent representation of his headspace in the early parts of the Choices.

The sense of shame and yet hope wrapped up in the kind of poor/broken family that "Come Over" elicits.... *chefs kiss*

"Homesick" feels like he's commiserating with Sterling over becoming trapped in the valley all over again, while "New Perspective" feels like an argument he'd have had with Tristan and/or Mona at one point, with him filling either side of the conversation depending on where you are in his timeline.

Of course, there are the numerous songs reflecting on past relationships, such as "All My Love," "Strawberry Wine," "Halloween," "Still," and "Your Needs, My Needs," and they all make me think of Shane's relationship with Tristan over the years, the love he bore for his best friend who instead of falling for Shane, fell for his sister. It's a bedrock of anguish and guilt that underlies his anger for Triss abandoning Mona (and in Shane's mind it was abandonment. There's no way he's dead. They never found a body. He's out there, somewhere, and Shane is left behind to do a piss-poor job of raising Triss and Mona's daughter because all he sees in her are ghosts).

Another song that makes me think on his relationship with Tristan is "Everywhere, Everything." They grew up together, first during summers as children, then as teens at the same high school, and eventually attending the same university and living together. And while Shane can't think of Tristan at all due to the pain, I attribute a certain degree of his suicidal tendencies to that desire to join both Tristan and Mona in death.

While not directly applicable, I feel "Orange Juice" captures a bit of the dynamic between Shane and Sterling after Sterling's 8-heart event. It has that tension that can occur when two people who used to indulge in the same bad habit but then one of them decides to stop–the fear the person still indulging feels of getting left behind by their friend, as well as the desire to support them and yet to also pull them back down. Because if they can escape, then that means you can too, and you're choosing to continue doing that bad habit.

There are songs that fit his later arcs as well, especially "Growing Sideways" and "Call Your Mom." And "You're Gonna Go Far" as a conversation he'd one day have with Jas.... 😭

Ironically, the song that I think best represents his relationship with Callie, "Save Me," actually comes from Kahan's debut album, Busyhead, but Stick Season (We'll All Be Here Forever) as a whole feels more representative of Shane's character in Choices.

If you're interested in what albums I associate with other characters in Choices, check here.

#noah kahan #hozier #stardew valley #sdv #stardew valley fanfic #sdv fanfic #stardew choices #stardew shane #sdv shane

6 notes · View notes

luvring · 1 month

Note

Rn I’m just sleeping and being whimsical but there are summer plans, I’m going to a convention with my friends in early May, I’m helping a friend out with a short film, and uhhhhhh OH FUCK I FORGOT IM GOING TO SEE HOZIER IN AUGUST I CANT WAIT

WAIT SO AM I OMG??? well my conventions r later but I Too am seeing hozier. THIS WILL BE FANTASTIF!!! (< does not know a lot of hozier songs and is mostly going bc her friends are.)

what kind of convention is it!! I always assume it's anime/gaming related But One day i'll be wrong and bring up cosplay and be embarrassed. i love conventions though < walks around the artist alley like 8 times and keeps spending money. i still don't know who i want to cosplay this year. scratches head. i'll figure it out probably.

and a short film... Woah. that is so cool like for real OMG???? are u liek.. acting in it... or r u more #behindthescenes. i hope it goes awesome!! the closest thing i've done to that is. a midsummer night's dream in grade 10. ider who i was but i definitely edited it and cringed watching it in class! My God....

#🧾nia.answers #<3 realdarknesshasloveforaface #i hope ur sleeping and whimsy r very restful and whimsical!

2 notes · View notes

deadcactuswalking · 2 months

Text

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 13/04/2024 (J. Cole's Might Delete Later, David Guetta/OneRepublic)

Hozier’s “Take Me to Church” peaked at #2 for four weeks. The first week, “Uptown Funk!” blocked it, but for the most part, it was halted by Ellie Goulding’s “Love Me Like You Do”. This week, just under a decade later, Hozier can finally claim his UK #1 as “Too Sweet” lands its first week at the top, skipping straight up from #4 last week. I’m personally not complaining as it’s a great song, but I will be complaining because under it, we have J. Cole. Welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

As always, we start with our notable dropouts, those being songs exiting the UK Top 75 (which is what I cover!) after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we bid farewell to: “exes” by Tate McRae, “I Remember Everything” by Zach Bryan featuring Kacey Musgraves, “vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo, “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus and some long-term bottom-feeders like “Someone You Loved” and “Everywhere” by Fleetwood Mac. Like much of everything else this week, it’s a bit of a mixed bag.

We only have one returning entry, but it’s pretty interesting and surprisingly high: Thanks to the specific surge of TikTok traction to a Summer Walker remix, “Hell n Back” by Bakar, which peaked at #20 just last year, is back for another run at #26, already nearing its peak position that I honestly expect it to surpass soon enough. As for the gains, we see healthy boosts for “We Ain’t Here for Long” by Nathan Dawe at #49, “Worth It.” by RAYE at #46, “Jump” by Tyla, Gunna and Skillibeng at #43, “if u think i’m pretty” by Artemas at #39, “Saturn” by SZA at #30, “Happier” by The Blessed Madonna and Clementine Douglas at #21, “Back on 74” by Jungle at #19 - really glad this is still at it - “Belong Together” by Mark Ambor at #14 and finally, of all hits, “Austin” by Dasha finds its place in the top 10 at #8. Maybe this is a fluke, or maybe Dasha is a pop star in the making. I guess time will tell.

As for our top five, we start with… Artemas, joy, and “i like the way you kiss me” at #5, then the usual suspects: “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims at #4, “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé back to down to #3, Bentley Boonemobile with “Beautiful Things” at #2 and of course, Hozier at the very top. Now for whatever debuted on the rest of this chart this week… trust me, it’s mostly not very good.

New Entries

#67 - “Cry” - Benson Boone

Produced by Malay

Bento Box’s debut album with a name stupider than the nicknames I give him on this show debuted surprisingly low at #16 - that’s lower than Feeder, man. And I like Feeder. Regardless, I did like those two singles, I have yet to hear the record, but I’m sure there’s some good on it, and I’m happy to say that this would be included in that. Now why is pretty simple, it starts with a melancholy ballad produced by Frank Ocean’s go-to, Malay, but that doesn’t last long as it’s scrapped for a more propelling pop rock chug. The lyrics go from woe-is-me to bitter and toxic bitching about his ex, in icky falsetto deliveries only accentuated by an ugly, distorted vocal chop that does not fit at all. There’s an obvious vocal glitch that was kept in and doesn’t sound intentional in the first verse, but it adds to the genuinely infuriating song full of straining and one-note riffing, as well as a second fake-out with him briefly trying to see her perspective. The song’s ugly, it doesn’t flow and it makes me hate the guy singing it, but that seems to be the intention, with which it completely succeeds. Three-for-three, Ben 10, keep it up. I wish you were comfortable with swearing though, it would hit a little better… I know, that’s rich coming from me.

#64 - “Good Luck, Babe!” - Chappell Roan

Produced by Dan Nigro

With Olivia Rodrigo’s producer and some sleeper traction for her debut album from last year, Missouri singer Chappell Roan seems primed for a big 2024 breakout, especially since she’s on tour with O-Rod. Her last album was a bit of a queer concept record and this seems to be following in similar footsteps, being about compulsory heterosexuality, feeling like you are conformed into heteronormative behaviours despite being queer. It details a secret relationship wherein love cannot be fully reciprocated due to that circumstance, and it’s treated tastefully with enough drama for most of the song for it to feel both worthwhile and not mundane, as well as not making some grander statement. The bridge irks me a tad, not allowing for the nuance of gay women marrying men and framing it in a way that seems more bitter and honestly self-serving to her narrative. Even if it’s from a different perspective, it seems a bit tasteless and awkward tonally with the rest of the song, especially given this is a classic synthpop track in the vein not of the retro pastiche or indie revival but standing damn near to Wham!’s “Last Christmas” and struggling to tell the difference kind of synthpop. That makes it slightly unique but in terms of the vocal melodies Ms. Roan lays on top of that sound, it fails to capture me all too much, and I’m also really struggling not to hear a mashup on the verses with “I Just Called to Say I Love You” by Stevie Wonder. The lyrics sharing soime similarities aren’t helping either. This is far from bad but both sonically and lyrically, it trips over, in a way that seems like it might be on purpose, and I do want to give this song credit for tackling an interesting, niche topic and having a morally grey depiction of it. That’s impressive for the pop charts, I just don’t really enjoy the final product. Sorry.

#59 - “Feel It” (From the Original Series Invincible) - d4vd

Produced by Gray Toomey, Noah Ehler and Sam Homaee

For some brief background, Invincible is an Amazon animated series based on the comic books starring Omni-Man, and the second part of its second season has just concluded, with the crew recruiting d4vd of… “Romantic Homicide” fame, because, of course, for a soundtrack single. Now for the song and okay, this is quite similar to the Benson Boone song from before. Firstly, it vaguely aligns itself with alternative R&B and indie pop in its groove, guitar tones and delivery and secondly, on a lyrical and vocal level, I’m pretty sure I’m also supposed to find d4vd a bit overwhelming and annoying, given how this girl thinks he’s crazy and he’s being inescapable to her. There are a key differences: A) this is not a rock song, it’s a synthpop haze with too much reverb, echo and overdubs - probably enough studio manufacturing to kill a small elephant. B) d4vd is neither funny nor really aggressive, he is simply being a nuisance towards the woman in the name of love, and has some creepy undertones regarding how she treats the woman in this story being uncomfortable with his advances, even if this relating to a fictional character in the series, it fails to translate beyond that. C) there is not much space left in this mix for any real emotional resonance, because he’s half-rapping and the song is filled to the brim with effects. It’s difficult to even focus on the narrative given the sheer amount of layers. Finally, D) this is a pick-up, not a rejection, so the annoyance feels like encroaching on territory rather than having any solid catharsis. All this is to say that the song just fails on all of its levels, but fails honestly. I can absolutely see someone liking this even having over-analysed it like I have, and its crime is not translating well to an audience it didn’t really intend to have, considering I’m not a d4vd fan and I’ve never seen this show. I can envision this getting pretty big and whilst I do not like the song one bit, it’s hard to complain about, really. It’s just refreshing, especially in a J. Cole week, to have a song that I don’t like for storied but largely impersonal and constructive reasons. To put it simply, I just don’t feel it.

#53 - “Crocodile Tearz” - J. Cole

Produced by T-Minus

I wrote a pretty extensive and scathing review of J. Cole’s latest mixtape, Might Delete Later. It’s #7 on the albums chart this week, and debuted three songs here this week. I am going to keep these entries brief as can be, because that review is there for you to read on my RateYourMusic 2024 listening log, the account’s exclusivelytopostown. Most of that log is in a scattered first-impressions style but that review is very thought-out, reflective and in-depth, so I’m quite proud of it. I’m tempted to format it and upload it separately as a review to this blog, though I don’t want to flood my page with such negativity. To cut it short, I think this mixtape is frankly embarrassing, as even moving away from stagnant and dire trap-adjacent production mostly headed by a clearly tired T-Minus, Cole is so unconvincing and insecure in his flexing that it becomes difficult to listen to, especially when he has all the technical lyrical skill and little personality to back up those flows, so they end up soggy and awkward. When he in any way attempts to be conscious, introspective or even commenting on his “place in the rap game”, he becomes downright insufferable and really just shows his ass rather than his pen. This song in particular has some of the dullest production Cole has ever rapped over though there are not many particularly corny lines here, other than how his dogs only shed tears in emojis and how he’s so much better than those girls on Instagram, right? Cole’s insistence on claiming himself superior to entire groups of people based on an intellect or higher spirituality he shows no proof of existing never gets old.

#38 - “7 Minute Drill” - J. Cole

Produced by T-Minus, Conductor Williams, Al Hug and Elyas

Okay, genuine question: how do I ethically tackle a song that has been rescinded by its artist, that days after release, has been disowned by the person who wrote and performed it, expressing live on stage that he regrets it and wishes it to be removed? Surely giving harsh criticism to a song that already makes him feel bad is just kicking a man when he’s down. Firstly, if you consider Cole’s position to be “down”, then you and me both are in the trenches and secondly, whilst I understand that the industry demands quick responses and can make the bureaucracy of releasing a track based on heated emotions quite frustrating, there is the option of just leaving it alone and not releasing anything, especially because “7 Minute Drill”, referring to the song process used to make it, not its runtime or genre, is framed more as a warning shot than a full-on diss. He didn’t even send the angry message before deleting it and walking it back with apologies. If anything, this song, like really the whole album, proves Cole’s insecurities about his self-instated “middleman” promo package and media representation. Cole just doesn’t have either the heart, or lack thereof, to make an actual diss track and also has nothing but good things to say about Kendrick - even in this diss track, he praises his musical output and fabricates outright lies about the albums’ reception to make it appear disrespectful. If you want any sonic criticism, the T-Minus beat is a practically unlistenable parody of “Like That” but Conductor Williams, as he always does, pulls a smooth piano jam in the back half that sadly cannot save the pathetic bars placed upon it. Next.

#37 - “I Don’t Wanna Wait” - David Guetta and OneRepublic

Produced by David Guetta, Brent Kutzle, T.I Jakke, Tyler Spry and Timofey Reznikov

Sigh… I quietly predicted this to myself. Once I’d seen EDM do-overs of “Gangsta’s Paradise”, “Better Off Alone” and “I’m Blue” hit the charts, a sinking feeling inside of me knew that O-Zone were not safe, and by God’s, Guetta has gone and done it. And he bought the hacks at OneRepublic with them, so no, let’s talk about that original song, because I think it’s genuinely great. Those synths glitch and buzz out more than you remember, having some pretty cool interplay with the deeper-voiced verses, and whilst yes, there is a nonsense hook, and the rest is in the band’s native Moldovan dialect of Romanian, you don’t need to know the language to find yourself humming the refrains in your head. The flip-phone beep after he says “beep”, the call-and-response “Alo! Salut!” and obviously both the “maiya-hee, maiya-hoo, maiya-ha” and “numa-numa-ey” choruses, they are so embedded into my brain, and that can’t just be by memetic coincidence, it’s a brilliantly written song and well executed. And obviously it was a hit - in the UK, their only hit, peaking at #3 in 2004 whilst Mario Winans’ “I Don’t Wanna Know”, also a classic, was #1. What’s most frustrating about this Guetta rendition is that “Dragostea din tei” was already milked dry for sampling, long before his 20-year anniversary last year. Most famously, it was sampled in a Newgrounds meme, but other than that, T.I. took it to #1 in the US with Rihanna on 2008’s “Live Your Life”, which was already a comical attempt at making it serious (consider it starting with T.I. shouting out the troops in Iraq), but you know what Tip and Rihanna DIDN’T do? Remove the nonsense lyrics - Rihanna does re-sing real lyrics in the nonsense melody, but they start and end the song with the original sample, there’s no hiding where it came from. They work because they’re nonsense, we do NOT need a Ryan Tedder rewrite! “Live Your Life” peaked at #2 here, but it was blocked by a single from The X Factor so it’s basically an honourable #1, I don’t like it much but it has a heart and charm that Guetta and Tedder could not successfully pull off even in their “prime”… which coincides pretty comfortably with when T.I. released that song. Have fun chasing the past, boys, maybe you’ll find your talent and creativity hidden back there.

#29 - “H.Y.B.” - J. Cole and Bas featuring Central Cee

Produced by DZL, T-Minus, Cedric Brown, AzizTheShake and FNZ

I quite like Bas. He doesn’t exactly a consistent brand of sound, instead shifting through a pretty eclectic array of pop-rap styles, though often maintaining both trap and Afrobeats influences, and therefore, his work tends to be a bit hit-or-miss when you consider the full-length projects. Regardless, he has genuine pop perfection on those albums - what ties his albums together is Bas, a lighthearted but experienced presence who is full of hooks and catchy flows, as well as often genuine heart that makes the variety of styles feel connected via that vocal throughline. This is his first top 40 hit in the UK, and it really bothers me that Cole do not push Bas further, as this could have easily been at least his second given he released a Jersey club-inspired single with AJ Tracey last year that could have absolutely smashed over here. It was one of my favourite songs of 2023, and still gets me really excited - if there’s anything Bas is great at, it’s just letting you loose and allowing for a dropping of the same pretence that has defined J. Cole’s every move. Cole puts Bas on his albums as a gesture but is seemingly unwilling to promote the man’s solo music. This may be because of how obvious it is that Bas, whilst maybe not as technically lyrical, has the pop edge over Cole, and could honestly be way bigger if given a chance to a mass audience or even bigger features like Cench over here, who is completely fine in his verse. This is just a sample-drill track wherein Cench does fine, Bas is cool but is only granted the hook - telling - and Cole embarrasses himself by reciting the alphabet without the letter L because he doesn’t take those. You got outcharted this week by two Benson Boone songs, Teddy Goddamn Swims and the song that dissed you in the first place still at #11. Please, stop lying to yourself, it’s not healthy.

Conclusion

Guess Best of the Week Boone strikes again with “Cry”. Jesus, I thought I was better than that. It’s even the only song I actually like out of our debuts, which is fantastic, so there won’t be an Honourable Mention. Instead, we can throw out a Dishonourable Mention for J. Cole’s “Crocodile Tearz”, whilst he ties for the worst. Both “7 Minute Drill” and David Guetta’s “I Don’t Wanna Wait” with OneRepublic feel like very cynical and regretful songs, made not for response but reaction and no, in art, those aren’t necessarily the same thing. Hopefully, we’ll have a more pleasant week on the horizon, there are pop girls by the dozen with Dua Lipa, Perrie of Little Mix, Sabrina Carpenter, Mimi Webb and perhaps most importantly, Future and Metro dropped the sequel. For now, thank you for reading, long live Cola Boyy, and I’ll see you next week!

#uk singles chart #pop music #song review #j. cole #might delete later #bas #central cee #d4vd #chappell roan #benson boone #onerepublic #david guetta

3 notes · View notes