#some of its actual football facts and some of its stereotypes

[drudyslut]

— summary: it’s your first year at NC State and you meet football star Rafe Cameron.

— pairing: football star!rafe cameron x cheerleader!reader

— warnings: really none. some language, Rafe is the stereotypical football star, mentions of a party.

— note: this is going to be a mini series! i just need my fix on football!rafe cameron so badly, i couldn’t rush this. also, i did some research on NC State, so some of the places named are actually places on campus at NC State😂

❥ game on — r.c

“Yes mom, i’m going straight to cheer tryouts and then back to my dorm. I have a lot of homework believe it or not”

You sigh, gathering your books and making your way out of the classroom. Your mom had been hounding you since you’d started college, not taking it very well with ‘letting her baby go’ which, you understood, but you wished she’d let up a little.

“Okay honey, you know I just worry about you” your mom says through the phone, making you smile softly and nod your head even though she couldn’t see you.

“I know mom! But I promise i’m okay. I gotta go, getting in the car to go back to my room and change for tryouts. I’ll call you later”

“Okay sweetheart, love you”

“Love you too mom”

You pull the phone from your ear, sighing as you toss it in your car followed by your bag and your books. You settle inside the comfort of your car, running your hands down the sides of the steering wheel and resting your forehead against it.

Your mind was racing, thinking of all of the things that are already happening in your life and questioning whether or not trying out for cheer was even worth it. You’re completely lost in your own thoughts when a knock on your window startles you.

“Shit!” you whisper shout, lifting your head and looking to see who it was. You knit your brow in confusion when you notice a guy you didn’t know standing outside of your car, an annoyingly beautiful smile on his face.

You slightly roll your window down and raising your brow, “Yes?”

He smirks, leaning his arm against your car and bending his head down to speak, “Just noticed you looked stressed. Thought i’d come ask the pretty girl that’s parked beside me if she’s okay?”

You chuckle softly and let your head fall. Was this guy serious right now? “Uh, yeah she’s great” You respond sarcastically, lifting your head slowly, finding his bright blue eyes again.

“You sure? You don’t seem alright”

You mutter a curse under your breath, realizing he wasn’t going to give up unless you gave him something. “Yeah, uh, it’s just my mom, she’s been hounding me every day since I left for college”

He grins, only slightly satisfied with your answer but he continues to press you, “Mhm, just your mom?”

You scoff, “Yup. Look, I don’t even know you, you don’t want my life story, okay? Now if you don’t mind, I have to go get ready for cheer tryouts”

His ears perk up, an amused smirk working its way across his lips, “Cheer tryouts huh? That mean i’ll be seeing more of you then?”

You quirk your brow and chuckle, “Yeah, what’re you some hot shot football player?”

The tone in your voice was sarcastic, but the grin on his face told you he was in fact a football player, making your stomach turn and feel even more annoyed.

“I’m Rafe. Rafe Cameron. Hot shot football player, nice to meet ya…” He trails off, extending his hand out for you to shake and waiting on you to give your name.

“Y/N. Nice to meet you, Rafe”

“What’s wrong with hot shot football players? I’m the best damn quarterback this school has seen, projected to be a top five pick for the NFL draft”

“Nothings wrong with them, just.. Not my type”

Rafe chuckles, leaning himself back against your car and crossing his arms. “Not your type? But you’re a cheerleader? Aren’t we like… Meant to be together?”

You roll your eyes, growing annoyed with him and his banter. “Most definitely not” You pause, turning your key to start the car and lightly placing a hand on his back, trying to shove him away from your car. “Now again, if you don’t mind… I have to go”

He pushes himself off of your car and nods his head at you, “I’ll see ya on the field gorgeous”

-

“Alright ladies! Welcome to tryouts for the 2024 season. I’m your captain, Natalie, and this is your co-captain, Macie. We only have ten spots available on our squad, so, that being said you must impress us today to claim one of those spots”

You stand in line, glancing around at your competition and smiling softly to yourself. They all look good at best, but you knew you were going to kill it. It was highly unlikely that you didn’t make it, I mean you had only cheered since you were six, you only took eight years of tumbling classes, did competition cheer for three years, and you even packed your already full schedule with dance classes to help better your movements.

You snap your attention back to what was being said, “If you make the team, a roster list will be posted in the Fountain Dining Hall on main campus Friday by five PM. Good luck ladies!”

“Crazy seeing you here” A familiar voice says from behind you, making you turn your head slowly.

You roll your eyes when you see Rafe, dressed in his practice gear, helmet held tightly in one hand while the other firmly gripped at his shoulder pads, that damned smirk on his lips.

“So crazy, almost like I told you an hour ago i’d be here!” You respond sarcastically.

You hear him chuckle, shifting his helmet in his hands and placing his free hand on the back of your arm, making you pull away from his touch.

“Hey, why can’t you just be nice to me? I’m just trying-”

“Cameron, what’re you doing? You still like harassing my cheerleaders?” Natalie says, cutting him off and making his face turn a bright shade of red.

He places a hand over his heart in mock offense, a big toothy grin being flashed toward her, “I’m hurt, Nat. I thought you knew me better than that”

She rolls her eyes, placing a hand on her hip and popping it out, “I do know you, Rafe. So go on, go to your practice and leave my girls alone”

Rafe rolls his eyes, placing a hand on your shoulder and dipping his head down to whisper in your ear, “I’ll see ya round?”

You give him a sarcastic smile, waving your hands at him in a ‘shooing’ motion, “I’m sure you will. Bye now”

He shoves his helmet onto his head, giving you one final glance before he jogs off to the practice field. Your mind was spinning, why did he make you so nervous? Football players were not your type, especially not guys like him. Cocky, so full of themselves, but something about him piqued your interest.

“Alright, next up we have Y/N Y/L/N”

You push Rafe to the back of your mind, taking a deep breath and stepping forward for your tryout.

-

“Y/N! Hey wait up!”

You’re almost to your car, exhausted from the tryouts, when you hear Rafe’s voice calling for you. You roll your eyes and suck in a sharp breath, turning quickly on your heels to face him.

“Yes, Rafe? What do you need now?”

“Just wanted to walk with you to your car” He says, that damned smirk you’ve grown accustomed to seeing plastered on his face.

You sigh, “Okay? What’s your deal? You know i’m not- You know i’m not interested in you.. Right?”

He adjusts his bag on his shoulder, a small chuckle falling from his lips, “So full of yourself huh? You think i’m interested in you? Pff, I just didn’t want you having to walk alone at night”

You roll your eyes, adjusting your own bag on your shoulder and continuing your walk to your car.

Rafe rushes to your side, his hands grabbing your bag and slinging it over his other shoulder. You open your mouth to protest but he quickly shuts you up.

“Just let me help you out, okay? Stop being so ‘guarded’ or whatever it is you’re trying to be, I just want to be friends”

You roll your eyes and cross your arms around yourself, “Sorry, I just- I don’t typically ‘make friends’ very easily and… And well I have a bad history with football players, so i’m not very trusting toward you”

Rafe nods his head, his blue eyes burning into the side of your head. You keep your focus straight ahead, not wanting to break and make eye contact with him. You liked him, but not in the ‘oh i have a crush’ type of way, but he’d been kind enough so far, and he was beautiful. That much you couldn’t deny.

“I promise you, we’re not all the same. It may seem like it, but we’re not”

You break, turning your head and finding his eyes. You give him a small smile, “I know, I just have a hard time trusting. My last relationship didn’t end so well, and he was a football player, he kind of ruined the hype over y’all for me”

The two of you finally reach your car, you quickly unlock it and open the passenger door, using your hand to signal for him to just toss the bag inside. He drops the bag into the seat and you shut the door, rounding your car and opening the driver side door.

“So, I guess i’ll see ya” You say softly.

You quickly get into your car and shut the door, turning the key and bringing the engine to life. You’re about to put the car in reverse when you hear a knock on your window.

“What’s up?” You ask, staring up at Rafe as he smiles down at you.

“Uh, just wanted to see if you wanted to come to this party tomorrow night? It won’t be anything crazy, just one of my friends birthdays, I think it’d be good for you to get out, have some drinks”

You bring your bottom lip between your teeth, tilting your head to the side as you contemplate the idea.

“I’ll think about it?”

Rafe smiles, letting his head fall before he brings it back up and finds your eyes again, “Cool, cool. Can I give you my number so you can let me know?”

You jokingly roll your eyes, “Sure”

You grab your phone from the top of your bag, handing it to him and watching as he quickly enters his number into it. You hear a small ding come from the pocket of his sweats, narrowing your eyes at him, “Did you just text yourself?” You ask, a small laugh falling from your lips.

He smirks, handing you your phone back and pushing himself off of your car, “I did. Now I can text you instead of waiting around on you to text me”

You can’t contain the laugh that comes from you, you couldn’t lie, you were flattered by his desire to be able to get ahold of you.

“Smart man”

“Goodnight, Y/L/N. Text me when you make it back to your dorm safely?”

“Night, Cameron”

RAFE TAGLIST: @ivy-34 @rafeism @f4ll-for-you @drewstarkeyslut @lizcameron @m-1234 @dilvcv @thewitchesofart @rafesgfxo @unsaidjaelinrose @abbybarnesstuff @itsmytimetoodream @thatsthewaythechrissycrumbles @r1vrsefx @alexisbaumann2004 @moremaybank @mel119g @rafetopia @rafemotherfuckingcameron @jjmaybankisbae @lexasaurs634 @lyndys @presleyanswrites @carma-fanficaddict @rafescokenostril @madzzz0797 @slytherhoes @jscameron @jjsmarijuana @ijustwanttoreadlols @luversgirl @sugarcoatedstarkey @skyesthebomb @nirvanaissogood @daivny @vhour

rafe masterlist | taglist form | moodboard

#rafe cameron #drew starkey #rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron fanfiction #rafe cameron x you #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron au #football player!rafe #football au #college au #rafe x you #rafe fanfiction #rafe cameron brainrot

[yellowkitkieran]

Christening (Kieran Tierney)

Masterlist

Word Count: 2.3k

Summary: NSFW! Kieran insists on breaking in the new house in Spain.

The thing about Kieran is, he is a surprisingly territorial man. 

When you met him, on your first date you'd gotten the impression he was a soft, shy sweetheart of a man that couldn't hurt a fly. You liked that about him, drawn to the fact that he didn't fit into the traditional footballer stereotype. He wasn't a partier, wasn't pictured with a new woman every week, and kept his nose clean. 

Your second date was attending one of his matches, when you discovered what a passionate hot head he could be in the right circumstances. Calling out the ref for a bad foul, stepping in to defend his teammates and advocating on their behalf, and in the same breath nearly ripping a striker to pieces for flinging insults. 

But a month into your relationship, you discovered the true Kieran, on a night out with your friends when another man tried to put his hands on you. Kieran hadn't hesitated to put his tongue down your throat and prove exactly who you belonged to. 

And quite frankly, he hasn't stopped since. 

When he played for Arsenal, Kieran made it unfailingly clear that you were his. Rarely a day went by that he didn't find some surface to bend you over- one of his favorites being the bench in the center of the Arsenal dressing room, when no one was around to see but anyone could walk in and interrupt him claiming you. 

Now, in Spain? Clean slate. New people for you to meet. New places to enjoy and discover. And as you're already well aware, Kieran intends to find his favorites sooner rather than later. 

"Look darling, I'm only saying that it doesn't feel like home." Kieran tosses his boots in the foyer, and you're of the mind that this does feel like home, what with the bits of dirt now marring the white tile in the same fashion as it had in your London flat. "It's just… it feels cold, like we've got no connection with it. It's too big!"

"Hearing you say that is a first." You hide your snicker behind your hand, smiling as you shut the door with your hip. Kieran rolls his eyes, that playful spark you fell in love with dancing in them. 

"And you'll never hear me say it again. Like I was saying- it just doesn't feel like us? It was nice of Sociedad to provide it, I cannae discount them for that but it just isn't right."

You set your grocery bags down and move his boots to the boot tray where they belong, attempting to corral the mess before it gets out of hand. Kieran pats your bum in a silent apology as he passes, on his way to the kitchen to put away the frozens you bought to fill the freezer.  

"Give yourself a chance to adjust," you insist as you have ten times already this week. "We've only just got here. It doesn't feel right because it's not London. It's not forever, it's just for now but we do have to learn to live with it… and besides, we have to make a few memories of our own before-" 

You realize your slip up when Kieran's eyes lock on you. You know that look- its his 'I may actually fuck the living daylight out of you if you continue that sentence' look. His pink lips purse ever so slightly, as if anticipating a kiss. His head tips, drinking you in you without restraint. 

You shouldn't let him, you really shouldn't because you've got to cook dinner and finish unpacking your clothes and a million other things you've been putting off since your arrival. 

But… 

But.

You shift on your feet, calculating your next words carefully. This could go so many ways, though there's only one thing you want… 

"We just have to make some memories of our own before it feels like ours," you continue, "you know, something… unforgettable. Something we think about every single time we come home."

Flames lick down your spine when Kieran's eyes glaze over. They drift down your chest, past your midriff exposed by your crop top, and darken when he notes the way your pleated skirt has hiked up on the walk inside, leaving your legs exposed. 

Oh, you were in for trouble. And you'd welcome it with open arms. 

"Kitchen or dining room first?" 

It amazes you how quickly Kieran can turn you into a puddle- and not just metaphorically. His buttery accent with his soft r's and rolling tongue have your thighs slick in seconds when paired with the testosterone dripping off the words.

How could you ever say no, when a simple sound has you starved for him?

"Kitchen."

The choice has barely left your mouth before Kieran's strong arms wrap around your middle and he tosses you over his shoulder, fully at his mercy already. You're powerless to resist when he sets you rather unceremoniously on the marble counter, grinning when the sudden cold against your legs makes you squeal. 

"Kieran-"

"Yes?" He's already attached to your neck, aware you're powerless to resist him the second he sucks a mark onto the delicate skin. Your mind fills with clouds when he leaves another on the opposite side, twin to the first. He licks over that one, then blows cool air over it to raise goosebumps on your skin. 

"We… we…"

"Should fuck? Yeah I know darling." Kieran's hand is already lifting the hem of your skirt, the callouses on his palms scraping your outer thigh. You don't have it in you to resist, nor do you want to. All you can think about are those sweet, nimble fingers curled inside you, stroking that spot that has his name dancing on your tongue-

Quicker than you can process, Kieran reads your mind and acts. Two of his fingers push inside you, coated with his spit, sliding in easily with how wet you already are. God, so full, he's already so much and he's barely started. 

"We have to christen every room," Kieran murmurs in your ear. "We've done the bedroom and the bathroom so far but those are boring, don't you think?" His fingers start to move, pumping slowly whilst you whimper. "Can't have my darling getting bored. Have to keep you satisfied, or else I'm not treating you how you deserve, am I?" 

In truth you barely register a word Kieran says. You're too focused on the drag of his fingers on your walls, on not coming embarrassingly soon. His voice is what has you on edge, the husk that's come over it in the moment. He's unlocked that primal side of him that usually was reserved for match days. But when he turns that side on for you? Without fail you know you're in for the best sex of your life. 

"Garden next," you half moan, meeting his dark eyes with your half lidded ones. You're drunk on him, on his fingers stretching you out. All of this is only foreplay, you have to remind yourself. Because there's more coming, much more. 

"Oh, we can certainly have some fun in the garden, darling. You wanna make sure the neighbors know my name yeah?" Kieran chuckles when your head bobbles on your shoulders, like you can't nod fast enough. "Aw don't worry doll, we'll get there after this. You look hungry though… should I feed you?"

You moan in response to his question, unable to do much more. Your hips buck involuntarily when Kieran withdraws his fingers, licking them clean while he steps back to make room for you to kneel in front of him. Kieran steadies himself with a hand on the edge of the counter when you yank down his trousers. His significant, proud length strains against his boxers. You flick your tongue over the wet patch of fabric near the tip, delighting when his cock twitches under your tongue. 

You don't wait another second to pull him free. Kieran is heavy in your hand. One of his hands fists in your hair and he pushes, pushes, pushes until you're forced to open your mouth and take him. Kieran moans the second he feels your tongue glide over him, guttural and raw. 

"Fuck me darling that mouth is fucking perfect. Keep working your tongue- good giiiirl. So good for me." The praise has your thighs squeezing shut, your hands tucked between them. You know better than to try and help yourself when Kieran is in one of these moods; doing so may mean he fucks your mouth, gets his release and then leaves you on your own as punishment for doing his work for him. And right now, that is the absolute last thing you want. 

Some combination of spit and come drips down your chin as you bob your head. You don't bother to wipe it off. Kieran likes it messy and you are more than happy to oblige, especially when he's rutting his hips like this. He hits the back of your throat again and again, forcing you to relax and take it. The slight pain that accompanies it only heightens your expectations for when he's finally inside you, stretching you out until you're begging for him to move. 

Moans and grunts echo in the room, both Kieran's unfiltered ones and yours muffled by his cock. You gasp for air when he pulls you off him, looking up through your lashes to find him utterly feral for you. A bead of sweat drips down his abdomen, right down the center of his abs. You want to lick it off, so you do. His stomach ripples under your tongue, betraying him to reveal how much he enjoys that surprise. 

"Up," Kieran orders, grabbing your arm and spinning you around. Your cheek brushes the marble countertop when he bends you over it, the contact light but the chill felt through your entire body. A hiss escapes through your clenched teeth. Kieran only laughs. He grabs both your hands and holds them tight behind your back, "don't act like you don't like it. I know you do, you can't lie to me." 

When you open your mouth to reply with a snappy retort, a moan comes out instead. The head of Kieran's cock pushes into you and all hope of coherent thought is lost. Everything is him, the feeling of it, the tingling stretch as he fills you to the brim. 

Once Kieran's hips are flush with your bum, he sits there. Waiting. Teasing you, like the tease he is. It isn't until you start squirming and trying to fuck yourself back onto him that his breath comes hot on your ear, "always so eager. For someone so innocent, you sure are hungry."

"Well maybe if you'd fucked me more since we got here-"

You cry out when Kieran's hips snap forward, feeling like he's split you in two. Your vision blackens around the edges and your heart stutters in your chest. You lose your train of thought, narrowed in on his movements as he draws out only to slam into you again. 

"You were saying, doll?" 

"I… I- fuck Kieran, don't fucking tease!" You whine when he pulls out fully, leaving you empty. You're desperate and needy but you don't care; all you care about is having him inside you. 

When Kieran enters you again, this time he's punishing with it. Your hips bump the counter with each thrust, and you're positive you'll have bruises in the morning. When his hand circles your throat and forces you up and back against his bare chest- where did his shirt go? Lost somewhere in the haze- your pussy clenches around him and Kieran grunts in pure satisfaction. 

"I swear, I could fuck you twice a day and it still wouldn't be enough. You're just that greedy of a slut, aren't you? Never can get enough of this cock." You can hear the smile in Kieran's voice and it only turns you on more. You love it when he's confident like this, empowered by your helpless mewels as he continues to fuck you senseless. 

A searing heat fills your chest when Kieran's hand comes around to drift down your torso, anticipating his next move. Your breathing quickens, chest growing tight until his finger finally meets your clit. You moan when he brushes over it, nearly panting when his impossibly deeper voice sounds near your ear, "are you close darling?"

"Y-yes- yes! Yes Kieran I'm close, but I want you to come in me first-" 

"Of course I will darling, I can't leave you empty can I? And besides, this is a christening… you know that means I'm filling you in every. Single. Room."

Kierans finger rubs circles over the sensitive bud as pleasure builds in your gut. You hold on, dangling impossibly close to the edge but determined to hold on for him. Your core throbs with each snap of his hips, so close you swear you can taste it. 

Finally, Kieran cries out and you feel him coat your insides. He continues fucking you through it, until you feel him dripping out to coat your thighs. It's then that you can't hold it any more, your limbs going white hot and ice cold at the same as you finally find your release. 

Sweaty and panting, Kieran remains inside of you while he kisses down your spine. His thumb traces shapes on your hip while you come back down to earth, smiling over your shoulder when you can see clearly.

"Hi darling," Kieran murmurs, a cheeky grin on his flushed face. "Good start to our weekend, I think."

"I think our ice cream has melted," you sigh, nodding to the tub left on the counter. Kieran laughs and wraps you in his warmth, his arms around your middle. 

"I love you enough that I'll go out and buy you some more tonight." 

"After another round though, yeah?"

"That's a given."

#kieran tierney fanfic #kieran tierney imagine #kieran tierney fantasy #kieran tierney #kieran tierney smut #kieran tierney fanfiction #kieran tierney fic #jac writes #forbidden fruit

[dreamii-krybaby]

Random Thad analysis.

Yo so I just realized smth

Thad can actually become a pretty good fighter against DDs and will probably join the main squad in the future

Hold up lemme explain-

So we all know thad is based off a stereotypical jock right? But,he is also implied to be an American football player

TLDR: wild adhd bisexual girl does mental gymnastics to explain why a random robot jock mainly plays A. Football. And with enough practice,he can become a good fighter,which he is already quite decent at it.

If you look at his betta design you can see shoes with spikes at the bottom,after researching a bit these sort of shoes are used by football players,rugby players and American football players.

Tho it seems in his final design his shoes ended up becoming average sport sneakers,now it could be just bc this shot is blurry,but they seem to have lack spikes. Despite that I still think related to American Football. And why? Easy his hat design.

Look at the back of his hat, it has an American football symbol! With a cable connected to it? (Probably some design choice to make it look cool).

And the fact he is also jock just makes it all clear,like even if he played other sports or hasn’t touched American football he still makes a decent fighter.

why would this make him a good fighter?

Easy,experience. Sports mostly help you improve some of your skills(like speed,strength,fast problem solving,cooperation and in some,throwing precision,but in rugby and A. Football is tackling) Yes sports don’t automatically turn you into a professional fighter but it can help you a bit. (Also btw the season one trailer reveals what seems to be a basketball gym (the one with 2 corpses hanging upside down,you can actually see a head tossed in the basketball ring) so yes there are gyms at the colony,and yes,indoor A. Football gyms exist).

Not only that we have also seen put up an ok fight against threats:

In the pilot for example,despite being thrown across the room 2 times (1st one by J and 2nd one by V) and being stabbed in the chest twice (also one made by J and the other by V) and clearly leaking a bit more oil than the usual. My man still could stand up and still tried to put up a fight with a random pipe he found.

In EP2 he doesn’t really fight at lot (in fact he reminds me of a damsel in distress,fun seeing that dynamic switching up genders) it could be bc Eldritch J was a new thing to him and was probably taken over by shock. Tho this scene makes me think that while he has taken captive by Eldritch J my man was probably fighting for his dear life. As by simply raising his fist he was able to scare off the AS,which could be just a funny lil gag,but a hoe can dream.

I think with enough practice and him learning how to calm himself in stressful situations he can become a pretty good fighter.

If he does end up joining the gang (which will probably occur) he can be a great ally and friend! (Perhaps even boyfriend-).

Anyways am in love with this fucker and I like how they switched up the stereotypes with him (being a typical jock,who you think its a bully but it’s actually the friendliest character. Him,a boy being the damsel in distress while uzi a (badass) girl,being his lifesaver and saving his ass twice. And finally a jock with a chill personality. (Ive also realized how all the main male characters have a softer or much more chill personality compared to the main female characters)).

#murder drones #murder drones thad #md thad #thad md #thad murder drones #murderdrones #the beloved <3 i love this man sm I would want him to be my boyfriend or friend

[s0lar-ch3ri]

hey new draft making

i keep putting this off, but it today arrives! a ramble about ryan selucreh to fill tghe tag for once

(spoilers for mythborne ahead BUT ITS BEEN OUT FOR A WHILE FOR FREE NO PATREON REQUIRED PLEASDE CHECK IT OUT I NEED MORE MYTHBORNE FRIENDS IN MY JRWI MUTUAL CIRCLE)

so who even is ryan selucreh? well, hes a football jock and a big oaf, the stereotypical strong dumb athlete kid. however, theres more to ryan that we're diving into, years after the oneshot ended!

one thing to note on ryan is how his powers were gotten in a mix of ways aster and connor did. aster was born with them (assumed cause goddess mother), connor got them from a book (recieved from searching, wasnt born with it), ryan got his powers from squats. silly, sure, but like i said, its like the inbetween of the two. he has the power himself and doesnt need a book for them or anything, but he wasnt born with them either. i also wanna note how asters powers are like life (plants and the sun, both can symbolize life) and connors powers are like death (decay and disintegrating, both are related back to death), but ryans powers cant be "like" anything. its not something super showy, hes just super strong (strong enough to rip a mountainin half im pretty sure was confirmed).

lwts get into those comments ryan made, and how its reflected across the 3 episodes. yeah, the comments on faking his personality around people and how he doesnt know who he is anymore.

first showing of this is with the j crew. charlie gave a good idea (he was nicknamed jyan), but condi says he told them that. granted, it was probably to be funny, but theres other options to that. ryan missaid his name out of nervousness, the j crew misheard him, he wrote his name really wrong, so many different options that also are pretty comedic. yet, ryan told them he was jyan to join their team.

on the floatball jersey he wears, they didnt even have a 10 for him, simply a jersey with a 1 and a "poorly painted 0". did someone else use the 10? why didnt they have one? another way ryan changed for people symbolically, wearing one number but being another.

ryan joins in with the omnious curse speech despite it not being planned. an attempt to keep fitting in with his group there.

hell, ryan even was an ass to connor before when he was with the j crew, yet wasnt when he was with connor and aster alone.

he even goes out of his way to try and save asters dad, an act of carrying for her and her father. hes such a friendly and caring dude that hes trying to fit in with them all to keep up their friendships.

thats what makes the whole "i dont have a real personality" line mean so much. because he really doesnt. all that can be seen as his personality is simply to appeal to another person.

HELL IM FUCKING CONNECTING IN THE FACT THAR RYAN WAS A HISTORY MAJOR TO THIS! WHO EXPECTS THE JOCK TO LIKE HISTORY? NOT ME, I THOUGHT THAT WAS CONNOR, AND THATS WHY ITS SO INTERESTING, CAUSS NOTHING LEADS YOU TO BELIEVE RYANS INTERESTED IN THAT SHIT!!! ryan barely talks about his past or anything, minus the memory (but that was only to save professor aeliana), BUT HE DIDNT FUCKING BRING IT UP. kinda ironic, the character whos past is pretty unknown is in classes learning about our past.

oh yeah did i ever mention his parents are dead? cause they are (confirmed by condi a while back)

maybe thats why he tries to be so appealing to everyone, to make up for that missing link. i mean, its not like that event wouldnt have some impact on you (also no jrwi pc has gone to therapy from what i know so safe to assume he has no coping skills PLUS ITS A CONDI PC YPU THINK HES MENTALLY STABLE??).

another thing i learned: ryans last name is a backwards hercules. fun call back to the name, yeah, but the actual story may have some weight here...

the screenshot doesnt give the full story, of course, so i will. the picture leaves out how the reason he went through hardships was because he was driven to madness. according to research, hera was mad at hercules being born (for he was the product of zeus and a mortal woman), so she made him go crazy and slaughter his family. to make up for it, he was given 12 impossible tasks to do.

am i saying the full story applys? hell fucking no! i dont think ryan killed his parents or anything, but i think the jist can apply. a man trying to be forgiven by people for wrongdoings that wouldnt have happened if said people didnt make those wrongdoings happen. ryan trying to get the validation of his friends and acquaintances by pretending to be someone hes not, which wouldnt be needed if he could see friends accept people as themselves. given impossible missions (be someone else) to appease those who he looks to (whether its to the side or up to).

another thing to note is theres no episode cover with only ryan on it. cover 1 has all 3, cover 2 has background faceless frat members and connor, and cover 3 has only aster.

it could be from how there was only 3 episodes of mythborne, yet this could be solved by having all 3 in a cover at once. while it would have been a lot, they had all 3 in the first and a total of 4 characyers in thr second cover. this of course was a purposeful choice, and it shows in a way who the focus is meant to be on in that ep (all of them, connor, aster).

so why coupdnt ryan have been focused on in episode 1? yeah he was directly related to the chaos (j crew being first vicitms and shit), yet that clearly had a more general showing. its because ryan isnt a character who can be focused on. he crutches to his friends like a team relys to eachother, thats how he has purpose, thats how hes even a person.

i woulsnt even doubt the stupid bit being an act! to play in a sport, you actually do need good grades (in my school experience, above a C+ in all classes), and ryans been on this team since he started college (infered from dialoge with j crew member), probably since kindergarten even (has known j cre since kindergarten). he learnt it from them, and found it to be a possibly appealing trait of himself to others, everyone likes the lovable idiot! sure, what he does to play an act can be extreme, but if this is really thr coping mechanism i think it is, its not too much for him (also wanna note how of all characters ryan is the biggest stereotype caharacyer).

the 3rd episode btw seemed a lot from the cover and namr and all like the whole world was a fake (for me atleast), and isnt it fitting that ryan was the first to fall off the stage? the man, who had an identity crisis outloud for once after it seemed like one friendgroupd was about to learn his secrets, the first to exit stage down (stage direction jokes). hes been playong a play himself for what feels like his whole life by now, he doesnt need a script.

i came in here to talk about ryan, put him under a microscope, see who he is. really, ryans a shell of a person, a muscle soulless being pretending to be a person someone can love and care about. maybe he too thinks about how connor had changed inside to save him. whatever it is, i think ive not learnt from this who ryan selucreh is, and maybe if he gets aomething like this, he can learn himself who ryan selucreh is.

#chilling in solar lights #jrwi #jrwi podcast #jrwishow #jrwi show #jrwi spoilers #jrwi mythborne #jrwi ryan #ryan selucreh #the rambler. #this took a turn for sure #oh well we gottaa #just roll with it #sorry #jerwee supreme

[blankblueblur]

I remember a few years back, I made a Sports AU for MyStreet.

Aphmau was a new boxing member who met Aaron, a former wrestler, who also started boxing for some reason and they have their whole enemies to lovers story. I actually didn't really write much about the romance itself, just more about the sports. I think down the line I changed it from boxing to Judo, but then switched it back to boxing.

Now thinking about it, maybe it would be more interesting if she used to be a boxer, he used to be a wrestler and then they were united via judo cause it's like a defensive sport rather than a fighting one.

Katelyn, instead of being a volleyball player, she did Karate. Mostly because I thought it fitted with her more hotheaded and fight-y demeanour from highschool. And then later down the line she'd start struggling with her sport because she relys too much on her anger and negative emotions, so she starts doing meditation to help with it and improves over all as a person, a sorta full circle moment.

Nana/Kawaii-chan was a gymnast. I later realised how much this fell into the "Meif'wa synonymous with cat" stereotype and tried changing the sport. I considered making her a ballet dancer because it fit with her pink, cute, coquette aesthetic, but reflecting on the fact that this fitted into her "Kawaii-chan persona" which was superficial and basically a coping mechanism for her lack of individuality in her family, this didn't seem like a good option (in my own personal opinion).

I did think of writing about her trying to fit in with the ballet dancers and then realising she actually likes a different sport. But like, this was a funny silly AU and doing plots with character development was not the plan, so I left it at that. I also considered roller skating , but it's usually a team sport rather than an individual one, I also considered ice skating for her, but didn't think she'd suit being in a cold environment all that much. So I just left it at gymnast.

She was going to have a whole encounter and duel with Zane, a fencer, (which she loses) but it makes her decide to take a different sport, which was archery. So she technically did both gymnastics and archery in this AU.

Travis and Dante where Tenis players. Travis was originally a ping-pong/table tennis player who later did Tenis after Dante introduced him to the sport, but I decided to rewrite that, for some reason that I don't remember. I did consider badminton but just stuck to Tennis.

Zane did fencing, (at the time, I forgot that originally Vylad did fencing in Phoenix drop High) I think fencing fits Zane better since it's stereotypically seen as a posh and elegant sport, which is perfect for his stuck up attitude. Also Kacey would do fencing, which is how Zane ended up bullying him. And as I said, he'd have a whole confrontation with Nana which would start their budding (one-sided) friendship which later turned into romance. I did consider him for Ballet, but then decided that Kacey would be a former ballet dancer who started fencing, which would be the reason why Zane picked on him (cause he a BITCH)

(Also, I'm a Zane fan, but he's a bitch for 80% the series. It's an irrefutable fact)

For Garroth, I remember being stuck between making him a rugby player or just keeping him with baseball. I think I decided to make him a rugby player just for the sake of changing things up (since this was an AU)

I changed Laurence to a swimmer, cause football is basic AF (I'm not saying it's a bad sport, its just a lil boring. Also I refuse to call it soccer, the entire sport is played with your feet, it's called FOOTball), also I considered making him some kind of surfer or something.

Cadenza was a dancer, I don't remember what type of dancing it was but I remember it was multiple, I think it was flamenco along with some type of Middle eastern dancing, like belly dancing.

I know this sounds really sus, but I remember choosing pole dancing for Lucinda AND HEAR ME OUT, it's such an impressive sport, takes a lot of core strength to do and it's kinda like gymnastics but on a pole. Honestly I consider it one of the most underrated sports just because people associate with stripers, which are two completely different things, but this sport is such an art, at the time I just felt like it fitted her. I also think she did some kind of dancing along with Cadenza, but I don't remember which one.

For Vylad, I chose rock climbing for him, just cause it's not just a sport about physical strength, but mental strength requiring a lot of endurance, also it's very nature related. I imagined Vylad just going out in the wilderness and climbing a massive rock or mountain just for the fun of it.

Gene was a hockey player

Sasha did ice skating or figure skating, which ever they called it. (fits her better than KC tbh)

And sadly I don't actually remember what I chose for Zenix. All I can remember is that I wanted the Shadow knights to all have some snow or ice related sport.

For Ivy and her two friends Alex and Lily, I thought it'd be fun to put them in a roller derby team, I thought it was pretty funny to have them together fighting as a team in roller blades.

Teony was a cyclist, her calves were unmatched and she was always on time, for anything and everything cause she cycled there. I do remember changing her to a badminton player at some point but I don't remember which one I stuck with in the end.

I think Michi was a ballet dancer and, in present time I think she's better suited for it than Nana. I also WOULDN'T make her a villain or antagonist, omg, she'd get along with Nana and they would have fun together as besties. She would be a bit mean and snarky but she would be like a sarcastic opinionated friend who is blunt with you and defends you no matter what and that u can always rely on. (I just wish Jess stopped writing Michi as an awful person 🙏)

Kai was also a swimmer and Nicole did Karate with Katelyn.

And think I just made Kim stick to yoga, like in MyStreet. (I just don't remember if I came up with something different at the time 😭)

Also, I'm writing these from memory cause I came up with this back in 2017. Idk if all these sports suit the characters now that I look back on it.

At the time I didn't add Skate boarding cause when I googled it, it was very unclear if it was considered an actual sport or not, so I didn't add it in. I didn't add running because I thought it was boring at the time (I'm sorry to all track runners 💀)

Also, I didn't add much dancing because that could be its own AU, a whole dance AU because there's so many dancing styles, from modern to traditional and stuff, I thought it would be too much, so I just stuck to basic sports.

But yeah, I just remembered this out of nowhere and thought it'd be fun to share.

#aphmau #mystreet

[grilledkatniss]

(It’s time for some questions….)Do you like spicy food? Describe your country in five words or less (not using its name). given the opportunity would you climb a tree today?

I enjoy spicy food, but not when the spice eclipses the taste of the rest of whatever it is I'm eating, and if I'm low key trying not to cry, then I'm not enjoying it at all. If it's too spicy it numbs my mouth, again, not enjoying it. If the "taste" is "spicy" then I will probably not enjoy it. Spicy tomato, yes. Hot sauce made of like chili peppers and bell peppers and different sort of peppers.. and tomato? Probably, yes. When the source of spice is unidentifiable and it's just like a processed homogeneous powder based red/orange shart looking thingy, then no, not even with tomato in it.

----

Oh boy, let's see. We're gonna have to pretend sentences with no punctuation are one single word.

1.Mate.

2.Football.

3.Never-ending economic crisis and a monthly inflation rate of over 12% (it's actually closer to 20).

4.Often doesn't identify as a Latino country even though it is indisputably located in Latin America/Italian accented Spanish/sometimes called the Paris of LATAM because of it eurocentric architecture.

5.Gets branded as a racist country because of the lack of black (African/easily identifiable percentage of African descendance) representation, when in fact our racism is aimed instead towards brown skin colored people (mostly easily identifiable stereotypical Latin American/South Asian).

(not much to be proud of about this country other than Messi..did I give it away? We have 3world cups and chant olÉ olé olé olé in all stadium shows.)

----

Mmmaybe not today, it just started to rain.

#i really wanna move out of rhis country already. anyone know someone in canada that could hire me to do anything? ill accept any job #awkwardifying life #asks #ultimate julie question binge quest

[digitalmedia-curation]

Sexism and Video Games

Now video games are more or less the last thing people think of when it comes to how sexuality, gender diversity, and the like have been influencing society to this day, but it has been shown to be a part of that influence greatly. From the beginning, games have had the impressions we leave on gender roles that greatly influence its functionality and different themes. One accurate depiction would be the clothing and armor options for your character in most games, which has gotten a lot of recognition and jokes on how sexist it was. Since men are known to mostly play video games, they are created to show what men typically want to see. So for male characters, their outfit designs would typically be burly, large, and knight-like while the females would have dainty feminine clothing that reveal most of their body. In one particular game I played, Monster Hunter, this exact function was more or less displayed in some of the armor designs you get to choose from. On the male side, you can hardly see your own character under all of the armor, in which most of the choices could be comparable to riot gear, football uniforms, or the types of machine-like outfits you would see in certain movies. In contrast, there are specific female options where it doesn’t even cover a lot of skin, and leaves the character rather exposed in some places, not acting as armor at all and just accessories. This type of function is made to appeal to the male viewer as it was made based on the stereotypical gender norms made by society. At first there was no real visible issue regarding it, but then as the times would change there have been more and more people noticing this fact. Most of them thought that this was seen as humorous, and some had even made some memes off of this recurring function.  At the same time, there are people or gamers that don’t think of it as a laughing matter, mostly the female players. Personally, I never saw it as that big of a deal, and most of  the people I had played with have never given it that much thought either, but at the same time, I understood what the conflict was all about. Although, there was one particular friend I had that actually grew attentive of this fact. We played games together frequently, and so I had noticed how she grew more and more conscious of this fact the more she played certain rpg games. At one point, she had ended up switching to a male character because she felt like the outfits and armor choices for the female character would make hers look like a stripper and that she no longer felt comfortable with it. 

 On YouTube, there have been a large number of videos that have been categorizing this topic as a display of sexism to expose the female body in such a revealing and seemingly sexual light while giving the male body the standard and sometimes iconic looks. Not to mention, as stated prior, there have been memes and humorous videos on the topic as well to show how there are some people who don’t take it as seriously to others. There was one comical video by VivaLaDirtLeague that was a prime example of this, which showed how a male and a female character talked to the same npc and was given the option between an armor breastplate or a staff. When the male chose the breastplate, he received the standard metal armor you would typically see on knights. However, when the female made the same decision to go for the breastplate, she was given a skimpy metal bra while the person said it had the same value as the male version, and one player suggested she try it on then and there. Humor aside, this is just one example of how females are typically discriminated against and sexualized even in the gaming community, and the main reason it has gotten away with it scott free is because nobody looks at video games the way they look at other news topics.  Plus, chances are, people still won’t be giving it much thought in the future as well.

[dejwrites]

name: nile st.patrick age: 17 (pre-timeskip), 24 (post-timeskip) height: 195 cm (6'5) zodiac sign: aquarius mbti: istj team: the nagoya blue devils position: middle blocker

oc background info for @kewrai

sports have always been a thing in his family. his mom was a cheerleader, his dad played football, his oldest sibling did gymnastics. it was kinda expected and stereotypical for many people to expect nile to play basketball. he was quite tall for his teenage years after all. when his parents got divorced and he moved halfway across the country to japan with his mom, he didn't actually expect to fall in love with volleyball.

when you see him, you may think he's the most intimidating thing ever due to his tall and huge stature, but once you get to know him, he's actually a complete sweetheart. don't let the resting bitch face fool you.

likes: his family, music, cooking, japanese candy, reading, volleyball, his friends, traveling, the beach, graphic t-shirts, motorcycles/dirtbikes,

dislikes: loudness early in the morning, when people talk to him when they clearly see him listening to music, rude people, early morning practices, awkward silences (which is odd considering that he sometimes be the reasons its an awkward silence in the first place), snoring,

fun facts:

— got the scar on his cheek from defending his crush in the fourth grade from some snotty nose boys.

— stares in imaginary camera like he's in the office when his teammates say something out of pocket

— if he wasn't a professional volleyball player, he would be a chef.

to answer many people's question, yes he's single.

#— oc pro team ! #꒰ ა ♡ ໒ ꒱ — oc: nile st.patrick

[talenlee]

Story Pile: Unseen Academicals

Story Pile: Unseen Academicals

When considering the Discworld series of books, it seems at times that it’d be almost boring for me to discuss them, because they’ve been so important to my personal history and interests that it’d be a bit like ‘oh, hey, this thing I like, but obviously I would, wouldn’t I, because I’m that basic that I kind of got my personality from a series of fantasy novels.’ Every single one of the books that I love, I can almost hold up and say ‘this book was basically written for me, as a person,’ given my interests. And if I could pick the one Discworld book to hold up as an example of me in a book, the things and ideas and experiences that all hold together for me, I think there are definitely books that I think of as cooler and better and having amazing moments and important lines in them. I could name Men at Arms with its maxim that a good man will kill you without a word. I could name Hogfather with its line you have to believe in the small things that don’t exist. I bet I could look stylish as hell if I could invoke Feet of Clay‘s maxim that all days are holy or none are or Monstrous Regiment and you are my little lambs, so many cool lines that would flatter my ego to talk about how this book is a good insight into me.

But there’s a Discworld book that kinda, without meaning, hits me with both barrels, reveals a second shotgun, fires another pair of barrels, and then reloads both of them again.

Hi.

This is me, pretty much.

SPOILERS after the fold.

Unseen Academicals is a 2009 main-series Discworld book centered around some new, original characters, and includes the Wizards of the Unseen University as your structure around it. In the Discworld you can kinda lay books into (overlapping) plot tracks that show progression of kind of greater meta plots. One example is that the city of Ankh Morpork, a single location, goes through stages of development under the reign of the Patrician Lord Vetinari, the city-state’s Tyrant. At first the city is a wreck, then there’s a story about the institution of a useful multiracial, cosmopolitan Watch, a legal system separate from the political system, newspapers, the postal service, the mint, and here, the conversion of street gangs playing football into an actual established league with standard rules and culture. It’s one of the charming things about the series as it grew over time, where Pratchett kept wanting to address the question of ‘how does this world exist the way it does,’ in those ways of worldbuilding, where things don’t just spring into existence because we have them here.

It’s a story about football.

Except it’s not really about football, it’s about everything else but football.

It’s about how people react and what they use football to do and how they live and react and interact in the context of football. It’s about the people who play and why they play and why they don’t play and what it is to be part of the moments of the play and the way that chaos can be shaped and shared and connected to one another and it’s about the crab bucket and it’s definitely, definitely about football.

Soccer, I guess.

But wait, that’s not all, it’s also following the story of Mr Nutt, who is an orc. He’s the only orc we’ve seen in the Discworld so far, and only the second mention of orcs at all. The fact he’s an orc is central to the mystery of the story, but that mystery is secondary to the point of the story; being an orc is not that remarkable, but being seen as an orc, being treated as an orc is extremely remarkable. The story has all these questions hanging on it, built around the idea of being an orc, with the stereotypes of what people believe, where those stereotypes come from, and what that lived experience is if you don’t have a society telling you what you are.

Indeed, the question of living in a society is a big part of Nutt’s story: There’s how one society treated him, and how the society of Ankh Morpork reacted to him agnostically, then how they react to him as an orc, and how people, expecting those reactions prepared for that reaction.

And mixed in with that it’s this story about a guy, isolated from people with a lot of catechism in his head struggles to try and live a life as a person with only the rules in his head to try and tell him how to be anything. Especially since he’s obviously very smart and capable of intense violence that he always keeps extremely under control, because he’s supposed to keep it under control. Being an orc, and being therefore, associated with intense, military campaigns of, for lack of a better term, zerg-rushing people in wars, is also used as a sort of example of the overinvestment of military research used badly. Orcs in this setting are basically impossible to kill (there are methods, but you don’t get a lot of opportunities to get good at them), strong enough to kill any human one on one, get back up from being heavily injured, intensely prosocial and inclined towards teamwork.

And they acted violently because they were forced to.

They were cutting edge super soldiers, a generation of Captain Americas, and then they were deployed in blind droves, lions led by donkeys but like, also materially like lions proper. Crafted by Igors, led by humans and left over as a result of a dreadful experiment, almost exterminated and left sad, lonely, and isolated. The idea, as with so many things in Discworld sciences, is that people, almost universally, are people, and we are shaped by our experiences, that our surrounding circumstances are a big tube you get poured down and what spoots out the other end is you. Orcs, sure, you got the history, a real history, of orcs as a war machine in full Tolkeinesque fashion, but that was a thing that was done to them, as well as a thing they did.

Know what else is one of the major plot threads in this? University life. The life and management of the educational facility, the ways that these groups were in communication with one another, and just what it meant to have a lot of meetings. So many meetings. It’s a weird thing I grew up into, working at a university and seeing the ongoing question of researchers and tutors as we interact with students and lectures and the comedic angle of what a university looks like when the university and teacher treat the whole arrangement the same way.

It’s a funny B-plot but it’s also got all these elements to it that feel weirdly congruent. The way that you have to plan everything, that sort of strange, slow, grinding, the way that a narrative built out of the process of making a game, of formalising a street game, is presented as being like parking a big slow bus. And then there are so many jokes, so many jokes, that are about the way people in university spaces tend to be. Then that gets amplified by the way that the book serves as a sort of multi-layer reference document.

Because when I started reading Discworld books, I started from the first book, The Colour Of Magic, and I thought that Discworld was the story of Rincewind. I thought this because I had played the demo of the videogame and I got it in my head that okay, this guy is the central character of the whole story. That is a false idea, but that idea can be mistakenly constructed if you read the books in a rush – The Colour of Magic chains into The Light Fantastic then we have a diversion to Equal Rites and Mort and then, we get Sourcery and… suddenly a dead nothing and no appearance of Rincewind for six years and eleven books with the book Interesting Times. But that meant that I did see those stories as being ‘the proper’ core of the stories (which wasn’t even vaguely true).

Those four Rincewind books (Eric wasn’t considered part of the core at this point) were in my mind ‘default’ Discworld. They were about what Discworld was meant to be about. And that meant I reread those books and I noticed a lot there. And Unseen Academicals is full of little nods and winks to those earlier books – like Rincewind pulling off a sock to interrupt a wizard duel with a brick, or the danger of the Luggace, or how in Sourcery there’s a single, minor mention of orcs and that’s the only other time they show up in Discworld.

There’s more, of course. There’s story about the Crab Bucket. About star power, about skills and talents and pursuing your dreams and about the way we unconsciously hold people back while we try to draw them in, about how we learn to be people and how we don’t respect people when we treat them like they need us and they didn’t ask us to, and god damn there’s so much in this book that feels like it was written so I could wave the words of someone much better at writing than me over my head so you could get it by reading it.

This is a book about games, about rules, and about culture.

In Half Real Jesper Juul describes games as being made of real rules and fictional worlds. In a game’s context, the football doesn’t know what the football is, but football knows what football is, and it only knows those things as much as there is football happening, as long as the fiction of the goals mattering is being recognised by the real rules.

And of course, there’s the poem, from near the ending, which is as best I understand it, an almost rapturous, shamanic expression of what it is to be part of the game, and why the game matters.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Media #StoryPile

[finanmoghra]

this is an introduction post for the owner of this blog cause i want to

hi! my name is carolynne (there is a chance that i'll delete this post after some time cuz i don't use my actual name on internet), but i answer by lynn! fun fact about my name and nickname is that by the time i was born you couldn't register a name that had 4 consecutive consonants, but my father manage to do it cause my mother wanted, we joke that i was born as an outlaw (that must be why i relate to uhtred so much)

im from Brasil and as much as i want to move abroad, i love this country so much, principally my hometown Rio de Janeiro! im kinda of the brazilian stereotype, i love samba, carnaval, beach and football, oh man i love football! ( following the topic just to say that my team is Flamengo, which is considered to be the 2nd biggest football team in the world) but i hate hot weather, what is a problem for someone who lives where i live

at the moment im at fashion school, my first semester! i wanted to study fashion since i saw barbie: a fashion fairytale, im not joking that was my first inspiration, and although im having problems with my college im having a pretty good moment in this area of my life.

random things about me:

i did an exchange program to Cambridge, UK in 2020, it was my first travel abroad

besides my own country, i have been to england, france, belgium and netherlands

i visited all that countries above in january 2020 and ended my tour right before covid shut out everything

besides tlk, im a supernatural freaky

i have only been at 3 big concerts my whole life, two of it of harry styles and the other one, louis tomlinson

once i cut my hair like velma's just to attend a halloween party

and my hair was at my waist height

i have a big scar on my back from the time i was trying to do something like doctor strange opening a portal (it was not what i meant to do, it was before mcu hype) and i burnt myself

in my lifetime i had broken 6 fingers

i come from a chinese family, so when my ancestors(idk if its the right word for this case) came to brasil and had my great-grandfather he was registred with his father name and surname together as his own surname and now my family has an unique surname

like, no one else has it

this is it, feel free to introduce yourself or ask me something!

#me

[smokeybrandreviews]

Culture Vulture

I had no intention of weighing in on this Travis Kelce/Taylor Swift sh*t because it’s outside my wheelhouse. I don’t care all that much about NFL football anymore and I wouldn’t call myself a Taylor Swift fan. Plus, the zealotry on both sides is kind of a turn-off. I’m old enough to remember the crowds Michael Jackson brought in during his Eighties/Nineties prime. Swift, as large and dedicated as her fan base is, could never. I wouldn’t consider myself a fan of her music, I find it kind of juvenile and mostly harmless, but witnessing so many MAGA Cultists lose their sh*t over it is uncomfortably hilarious. Like, bro, really? Taylor Swift is a psy-op? Because she’s a massive celebrity who uses her voice in ways that she’s passionate about? Word? Sure, whatever. It’s all just white noise to me, which is why I was giving it no attention. That is until I hear someone in my real, actual, life, refer to a fade as the “Travis Kelce.” Excuse me? I had to double check what this dude looked like. Did he have some crazy, Dennis Rodman, type sh*t on his head? Was he going full country with a mullet-hawk? Nope. Mans still just had a high-and-tight. That’s basically just the white people version of a hi-top fade. I literally turned to this man who said that ridiculous sh*t, looked him in the eye, and asked, point blank, “The f*ck is you saying to me right now?”

For those of you who are new around here, I am Black as f*ck. Specially, the giant, scary, black man type of Black as f*ck. In my lifetime, I have had three main hairstyles; Buzzcut, Afro, and Fade. These three cuts are integral to my culture, specifically the fade. Now, I take mine a little lower than most. I prefer to start the fade just above my ears, with a low two or three up top. That allows my waves, when I have them, to pop. And that brings me to another point; The fade is basically the foundation for just SO many of our culture’s hairstyles, it’s absurd. Waves, the Caesar, making Twisties look respectable, and cleaning up Dreads. It even makes that weird, nappy headed trend I’ve seen, that thing kids do with the sponge or whatever, look professional. Hell, I occasionally use the Fade to clean up my Fro from time to time. Yes, there is a thing called an Afro Fade and it is glorious. It’s more a Taper, but even that is a type of Fade. Obviously, the fade isn’t an Black invention, the military has been using the High-and-Tight for decades, but we, as a culture, have adopted it as our own. That sh*t is as intrinsically Black as Hip Hop or Soul food. And like all things Black, it’s appropriated by the Whites and I hate it. The “Travis Kelce”? Really? Right in front of my Black History Month?

The most ridiculous thing about this whole scenario is the fact he adopted the fade while dating a Black woman. That’s right, Travis Kelce, started rocking the “Travis Kelce”, after his Black woman told him he’d look good in a fade. Kayla Nicole gave that man all of his swag and he took everything she offered until he didn’t anymore. She has come out recently to say some not-so-nice things about mans but the fact remains, this wave of popularity, everything that gave Kelce the aesthetic which captured Taylor’s attention (and the nation, apparently), was given to him by a Black woman. Story as old as time. Black women are commodities used to build your brand. White woman are the trophy you claim once you reach a level of success. “He gon leave your ass for a White girl.” Usually, that’s a Black man stereotype but I guess it’s any men at this point. I can get into that all day on its own, and I might (it is Black History Month), but this rant is more about how White culture steals so much from MY culture, and never gives anything back. I mentioned Hip Hop, but it’s everything. Our slang, our swag, our music, our whole vibe; Snatched, sanitized, and gentrified, for bland ass White tastes. A few years back, someone tried to claim Bo Derek rocking box braids was this fashion forward, shattering of industry norms, and that sh*t was, straight up, a way for slaves to smuggle food into the fields. Box raids are called corn rows because they look like rows of corn AND because they could hide crop seeds to later plant for their own purposes. That’s how sh*t like rice and certain grains made it to the Caribbean. Enslaved Black people did that, but let’s credit the White super model from Long Beach with making them popular. Even though Cornrows have been a staple of Black culture since actual slavery times and, arguably, before. That sh*t is gross and we’re seeing it again with this “Travis Kelce” bullsh*t.

Black women are built thick. They have curves. They have breasts. They are genetically voluptuous. I imagine that has something to do with our origins in Africa but I’m not trying to get into an anthropological thesis right now. I know lack girls who were teased for having a dump truck. They were ridiculed by cats for having a fat ass. Along comes Kim Kardashian. Who, admittedly, had a relatively shapely bottom being of Persian descent, got those ass implants. Now, all of a sudden, everyone wants ass implants. All the little middle class White girls want their Daddies (be them sugar or otherwise) to buy them a BBL. Something Black women were ridiculed for, has been snatched, sanitized, and gentrified so White women can basically just cosplay as us. More than one Kardashian has done this sh*t. Iggy Azalea exists. Black women can’t even have their god given physicality, without White people figuring out a way to take that sh*t! The problem isn’t just Travis Kelce and his absurd attribution of the Fade, it’s the entirety of how “American” culture is just Black culture and no one gives us credit for it. Every profitable aspect of American culture, is just Black culture. Literally, around the world, the only aspects celebrated by America, are the Blackest parts. Street fashion is wildly popular in Europe and Japan. Never mind that the bulk of KPop sounds like early Nineties, New Jack RnB, the fact that they fry chicken is a thing. That sh*t is a staple of their cultural identity, and it came over with Black GIs during the Korean war. You think Grime would exists in London without American Hip Hop? We made Jordans hot and now they are a worldwide, billion dollar, brand. We made Champion hot. That sh*t was budget rack, K-Mart, junk until we decided otherwise. Black people are the taste makers of this country. We are why American pop culture pops so hard, but I gotta hear about the f*cking “Travis Kelce” like I didn’t rock a fade with a lightning bolt part, back in the fifth grade. Use us until they use us up. In every sense of that statement.

The wildest thing about this whole situation? Yo, we share. We want people to enjoy US. The fact that Kelce got put on to the Fade in the first place, is proof of that. We love bringing people into our culture. We are crazy supportive. When you’re out doing your thing, and you see a gaggle of the Blacks doing theirs, we will encourage you to join us, to shake your tail feathers right along with us. Don’t matter if you’re good at it or not, it’s that energy we want you to have, that vibe we got. Even though this country hates us and is literally founded on the bodies of my ancestors, we still love. We still accept. We still support. And that’s the real tragedy ion all of this. You don’t need to steal or misappropriate or scavenge. We are very willing to accept you into the fold, as long as you are sincere. Eminem was fully embraced by Black people on the merit of his battle skills. White kids took to him because he looked like them but, when all of the backlash and controversy happened over his lyrical content, Black people supported the f*ck out of him Jim Carrey has gone on record to say that it took the Wayans taking a chance of him, in order for Hollywood at large, to deem him safe enough in which to invest. Ace Ventura happened as a direct result of In Living Color. The Black culture is one of Community. We raise out kids together. We accept strays who don’t have that stable family unit. I have, an Indian, White, and mixed little sister; None of whom are related to me by blood, all of whom I’d go to jail for. My best friend, rest in peace, called my momma, “Momma”, and he treated her as such. The White kid who lived behind my childhood home, had issues with bullies and we let him hang out in my home until late then hop the fence to avoid getting jumped. Hell, a former friend of mine’s ex-wife walked to my house, in the middle of the night, barefoot and in her pajamas, because she was too afraid to be at home with her then husband. She felt safe enough to come to me with that sh*t because of the love. To this day, I would do for Renay without hesitation. That’s just how we’re raised. That’s just who we mare as a people. I know, better than anyone, that this will fall on deaf ears. This is America. But it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to steal sh*t from us. We are more than willing to share. We are more than willing to put you on. We find joy in that. We find love in it. It’s just such a shame that sentiment isn’t shared. But, of course it isn’t. The next time I go to a barber shop, I gotta ask for a Travis Kelce now because he has been ordained the inventor of the f*cking Fade.

#The Travis Kelce #Fade #Some ol' bullsh*t

[smokeybrand]

Culture Vulture

I had no intention of weighing in on this Travis Kelce/Taylor Swift sh*t because it’s outside my wheelhouse. I don’t care all that much about NFL football anymore and I wouldn’t call myself a Taylor Swift fan. Plus, the zealotry on both sides is kind of a turn-off. I’m old enough to remember the crowds Michael Jackson brought in during his Eighties/Nineties prime. Swift, as large and dedicated as her fan base is, could never. I wouldn’t consider myself a fan of her music, I find it kind of juvenile and mostly harmless, but witnessing so many MAGA Cultists lose their sh*t over it is uncomfortably hilarious. Like, bro, really? Taylor Swift is a psy-op? Because she’s a massive celebrity who uses her voice in ways that she’s passionate about? Word? Sure, whatever. It’s all just white noise to me, which is why I was giving it no attention. That is until I hear someone in my real, actual, life, refer to a fade as the “Travis Kelce.” Excuse me? I had to double check what this dude looked like. Did he have some crazy, Dennis Rodman, type sh*t on his head? Was he going full country with a mullet-hawk? Nope. Mans still just had a high-and-tight. That’s basically just the white people version of a hi-top fade. I literally turned to this man who said that ridiculous sh*t, looked him in the eye, and asked, point blank, “The f*ck is you saying to me right now?”

For those of you who are new around here, I am Black as f*ck. Specially, the giant, scary, black man type of Black as f*ck. In my lifetime, I have had three main hairstyles; Buzzcut, Afro, and Fade. These three cuts are integral to my culture, specifically the fade. Now, I take mine a little lower than most. I prefer to start the fade just above my ears, with a low two or three up top. That allows my waves, when I have them, to pop. And that brings me to another point; The fade is basically the foundation for just SO many of our culture’s hairstyles, it’s absurd. Waves, the Caesar, making Twisties look respectable, and cleaning up Dreads. It even makes that weird, nappy headed trend I’ve seen, that thing kids do with the sponge or whatever, look professional. Hell, I occasionally use the Fade to clean up my Fro from time to time. Yes, there is a thing called an Afro Fade and it is glorious. It’s more a Taper, but even that is a type of Fade. Obviously, the fade isn’t an Black invention, the military has been using the High-and-Tight for decades, but we, as a culture, have adopted it as our own. That sh*t is as intrinsically Black as Hip Hop or Soul food. And like all things Black, it’s appropriated by the Whites and I hate it. The “Travis Kelce”? Really? Right in front of my Black History Month?

The most ridiculous thing about this whole scenario is the fact he adopted the fade while dating a Black woman. That’s right, Travis Kelce, started rocking the “Travis Kelce”, after his Black woman told him he’d look good in a fade. Kayla Nicole gave that man all of his swag and he took everything she offered until he didn’t anymore. She has come out recently to say some not-so-nice things about mans but the fact remains, this wave of popularity, everything that gave Kelce the aesthetic which captured Taylor’s attention (and the nation, apparently), was given to him by a Black woman. Story as old as time. Black women are commodities used to build your brand. White woman are the trophy you claim once you reach a level of success. “He gon leave your ass for a White girl.” Usually, that’s a Black man stereotype but I guess it’s any men at this point. I can get into that all day on its own, and I might (it is Black History Month), but this rant is more about how White culture steals so much from MY culture, and never gives anything back. I mentioned Hip Hop, but it’s everything. Our slang, our swag, our music, our whole vibe; Snatched, sanitized, and gentrified, for bland ass White tastes. A few years back, someone tried to claim Bo Derek rocking box braids was this fashion forward, shattering of industry norms, and that sh*t was, straight up, a way for slaves to smuggle food into the fields. Box raids are called corn rows because they look like rows of corn AND because they could hide crop seeds to later plant for their own purposes. That’s how sh*t like rice and certain grains made it to the Caribbean. Enslaved Black people did that, but let’s credit the White super model from Long Beach with making them popular. Even though Cornrows have been a staple of Black culture since actual slavery times and, arguably, before. That sh*t is gross and we’re seeing it again with this “Travis Kelce” bullsh*t.

Black women are built thick. They have curves. They have breasts. They are genetically voluptuous. I imagine that has something to do with our origins in Africa but I’m not trying to get into an anthropological thesis right now. I know lack girls who were teased for having a dump truck. They were ridiculed by cats for having a fat ass. Along comes Kim Kardashian. Who, admittedly, had a relatively shapely bottom being of Persian descent, got those ass implants. Now, all of a sudden, everyone wants ass implants. All the little middle class White girls want their Daddies (be them sugar or otherwise) to buy them a BBL. Something Black women were ridiculed for, has been snatched, sanitized, and gentrified so White women can basically just cosplay as us. More than one Kardashian has done this sh*t. Iggy Azalea exists. Black women can’t even have their god given physicality, without White people figuring out a way to take that sh*t! The problem isn’t just Travis Kelce and his absurd attribution of the Fade, it’s the entirety of how “American” culture is just Black culture and no one gives us credit for it. Every profitable aspect of American culture, is just Black culture. Literally, around the world, the only aspects celebrated by America, are the Blackest parts. Street fashion is wildly popular in Europe and Japan. Never mind that the bulk of KPop sounds like early Nineties, New Jack RnB, the fact that they fry chicken is a thing. That sh*t is a staple of their cultural identity, and it came over with Black GIs during the Korean war. You think Grime would exists in London without American Hip Hop? We made Jordans hot and now they are a worldwide, billion dollar, brand. We made Champion hot. That sh*t was budget rack, K-Mart, junk until we decided otherwise. Black people are the taste makers of this country. We are why American pop culture pops so hard, but I gotta hear about the f*cking “Travis Kelce” like I didn’t rock a fade with a lightning bolt part, back in the fifth grade. Use us until they use us up. In every sense of that statement.

The wildest thing about this whole situation? Yo, we share. We want people to enjoy US. The fact that Kelce got put on to the Fade in the first place, is proof of that. We love bringing people into our culture. We are crazy supportive. When you’re out doing your thing, and you see a gaggle of the Blacks doing theirs, we will encourage you to join us, to shake your tail feathers right along with us. Don’t matter if you’re good at it or not, it’s that energy we want you to have, that vibe we got. Even though this country hates us and is literally founded on the bodies of my ancestors, we still love. We still accept. We still support. And that’s the real tragedy ion all of this. You don’t need to steal or misappropriate or scavenge. We are very willing to accept you into the fold, as long as you are sincere. Eminem was fully embraced by Black people on the merit of his battle skills. White kids took to him because he looked like them but, when all of the backlash and controversy happened over his lyrical content, Black people supported the f*ck out of him Jim Carrey has gone on record to say that it took the Wayans taking a chance of him, in order for Hollywood at large, to deem him safe enough in which to invest. Ace Ventura happened as a direct result of In Living Color. The Black culture is one of Community. We raise out kids together. We accept strays who don’t have that stable family unit. I have, an Indian, White, and mixed little sister; None of whom are related to me by blood, all of whom I’d go to jail for. My best friend, rest in peace, called my momma, “Momma”, and he treated her as such. The White kid who lived behind my childhood home, had issues with bullies and we let him hang out in my home until late then hop the fence to avoid getting jumped. Hell, a former friend of mine’s ex-wife walked to my house, in the middle of the night, barefoot and in her pajamas, because she was too afraid to be at home with her then husband. She felt safe enough to come to me with that sh*t because of the love. To this day, I would do for Renay without hesitation. That’s just how we’re raised. That’s just who we mare as a people. I know, better than anyone, that this will fall on deaf ears. This is America. But it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to steal sh*t from us. We are more than willing to share. We are more than willing to put you on. We find joy in that. We find love in it. It’s just such a shame that sentiment isn’t shared. But, of course it isn’t. The next time I go to a barber shop, I gotta ask for a Travis Kelce now because he has been ordained the inventor of the f*cking Fade.

[alt-pocalypse]

Day 5

Today we went to the mall to get some armor at Dick’s. There were a few zombies to handle in the parking lot who knew we weren’t like them because… car. While fighting them off we actually found another group of survivors! Some of them were alt like us and others had more normcore vibes but they were clearly a coordinated unit. Most of them had blunt objects like golf clubs and planks of wood, others had handguns and a couple had… pocket knives.

I don't need to explain to you why a pocket knife is a terrible idea when it comes to zombies. As long as their head and brain are still intact nothing can phase them! N’s machete is fine because they can lop the heads off and then stomp them out, but a friggen switchblade?!

After we had cleared out the parking lot we talked with the other group a bit. We learned that they were called Team Z because that was the name of their project zomboid discord server. Learning that they all played zomboid explained a lot about how some of them managed to survive. Nyxx used to play it with Amy a lot but she kinda lost interest after a while. We exchanged some things we had learned with Team Z and they gave us some tips as well. N wrote them down in its survival notebook.

After that we went into the mall, trying to look as zombish as possible as we went. We entered through the big craft store. It was kinda funny when we had to hold back Raven from taking nonessentials until later. Eventually we made it to the Dick’s and got some stuff. We each grabbed a helmet, mostly football helmets but Nyxx and Wood both got lacrosse helmets instead. We got some football gear to help pad us up a bit. We also snatched knee and elbow pads from near the roller skates.

After we had gotten all of that in our cart, which N pushed for us, we decided to have some fun! We started at the hot topic because apparently we are walking stereotypes and we got some things to decorate our tents as well as some cool new accessories. I grabbed some band posters, Raven decided to restart their funko pop collection from the ground up, wood got some hoodies, Nyxx nabbed a handful of pins and patches, and N got some cute hats.

Whenever N wears a hat they don't look so intimidating. They’re super tall and Wood never explains to us what they talk about so they’re kinda mysterious. When they put on a hat though, all that goes out the window and they look super inviting. Once, back in school, they wore a froggie bucket hat and the eyes on the hat kinda offset the fact that their actual eyes are never showing. I wonder what color their eyes are. They’re probably green like Wood’s. I should ask Wood if they know at some point.

After hot topic we went to the back of the Spencer's and laughed and after that we went to a music store. We can't actually play any of these vinyls but they look really cool. Raven is planning on putting some on the wall of their tent. After that we went to the skate shop because everything is free and skateboards are cool. We might try and build a halfpipe out of junkyard stuff. The mall was a lot of fun but I don't think I need to go over all of it. That was most of our day. I can't wait to tell you about tomorrow, bye!

#alt teens #alternate universe #zombie apocalypse #fictional characters #text post #day 5

[horseshoegirl]

Set Me Alight: Part 2 - Abracadabra

📜Hey, All 💛I didn't intend for there to be a gap between this part and the last, but I had to take some time away. Unfortunately and sadly, my grandmother passed away two weeks ago. She had been ill for some time, and I had been helping to support her care at her home since I last posted.

Anyway, thank you all for the support on the first part!!! I love how you all have taken to Midge! I've changed the lineup a little bit as I decided to make this its own part! It's like I said, I'm just letting my mind take me where it wants to go for this one!

❗️+18, Strong Language, Enemies to Lovers, Original Female Character, Short OFC, Bradley Bradshaw x Natasha Trace, flashbacks to college, strong language, insecure Midge, Alcohol, Halloween, mentioning stereotypes and pranks (scaring someone). 

#3.6k Words

Part 1 | Masterlist | Part 3

*THAT Morning Four Years Ago*

It wasn't one of Natasha's brighter ideas. No, it was probably one of the most foolish things she could have ever come up with since deciding to come live with you. But you suppose, in the end, you understood why she wanted to do it. 

Your shared apartment off campus was ideal for this type of thing. Away from prying eyes, away from campus security and the head of the dorm rooms. It belonged to your Aunt, once a warehouse now completely renovated into an industrial apartment. So Space was never an issue and you had no neighbours, hence why she wanted you to stay here as you completed your fine arts degree - every college frat boy and popular girl's dream come to life. 

It was also probably one of the reasons why Nat came up with this idea, wanting to get you up and out of your studio long enough actually to meet people. If you weren't going to detach yourself from a paintbrush, from your school notes, she was going to take matters into her own hands and bring people to you.

Halloween became her perfect excuse to do just that.

When she broached the topic of throwing a party one night as you stood in front of a massive canvas, you immediately wanted to throw your painter's palette at her head. Take college and a party on a night where anyone had any excuse to dress up as who they wanted and drink whatever they wanted to spooky season-themed music and put them together?

A terrible idea. Plain and fucking simple.

 It warranted trouble and unnecessary drama. Drama you wanted no part in. These things always got out of hand without meaning, too, and you knew someone would manage to hook up in either one of your bedrooms or even the bathroom before the night was over. Or passed out drunk on the floor.

She didn't protest when you said no. In fact, she left it alone for the rest of the week.

Then came the subtle bribes. 

A cup of coffee in a new Halloween-themed mug was in her hands as she woke you up one morning to ensure you'd make it to class on time. When you came home from working at the campus art store, there was a new set of black and orange acrylic paints sitting on the kitchen island. She had even planned a Halloween movie night - Practical Magic and Rocky Horror and Beetlejuice - with all the fixings and morsels of candy you could eat.

She asked you again two weeks to the day. While you were slightly more willing to agree that it might be a nice idea, you were still cautious about having a party... particularly about who she would invite.

While she might have left her sorority after all that drama, Nat still had friends in that community she was close with. Friends, you were positive, talked shit about you behind your back without really knowing you. The question of why Nat would befriend someone like you was probably the main course for the dishing of gossip.

Bradley would also come, which you didn't mind whatsoever. You liked him, and he treated Nat well. But Bradley's presence would warrant an invitation to his friends - literally the entire football team. And their friends. And their girlfriends.

Your answer was the same. 

"Still no."

But the bribes didn't stop there. No, they extended into multiple drives to Party City while saying the two of you could go to the big art store on the corner of Brant Street - the one you always said you wanted to go to but never had the time. It was in the Amazon orders that showed up at the door, and it was in the pack of Lime White Claws she'd bring home from the liquor store. It was the playlist full of instrumental Halloween covers, almost always on repeat as the two of you studied together.

Nat had been conditioning you to give in all along, slowly wearing you down while she prepared for the eventual, forthcoming yes.

When you finally figured it out, you were mad. Mad that she would do something behind your back like this and think she could treat you like that. But it didn't last long. Instead, you came to the realization that maybe she had been missing the social interaction that came with living with a sorority. That she had been missing her friends. She was living here now, and despite your best efforts, she still needed to know this place was hers as much as it was yours. 

Maybe hosting a Halloween Party wouldn't be a bad thing after all?

The morning of the party, you had woken up early. Earlier than Nat. It was still dark out as you dragged the many boxes of supplies and decorations out into the living space. You had thrown a few pieces of rolled-up fabric over your shoulder and tossed them into the big armchair once you figured out what boxes held what decorations. The first box had the string lights the art department had loaned you, and when you opened it up, readying yourself to untangle the monstrosities, you had the surprise of your life: uncovering a realistic spider thrown into the mix. 

Curse the bloody art department for playing a prank on you. 

When Nat finally got up that morning, sunlight now streaming through the windows, she was welcomed to the sight of said lights having been strung along the ground, ready to be put up and hung from the wall. She had to step around carefully and through the wires, worried about stepping on a light bulb, as you had aligned them all with the wall sockets, already attempting to daisy chain the hell out of them.

"Maeve?"

"Over here!" you called out.

Nat followed your voice down the hall, only to find you standing on a ladder, plastering the stripe of LED lights into the edge of the wall and ceiling. The piles of fabric had been pooled on the top step, and she figured out you were attaching them at the same time as the lights, letting the material fall down the wall to create an interesting ambiance for tonight.

"This is..." she trailed off, looking at all the boxes and materials you'd spent your waking hours organizing. You turned on the ladder, holding on to the edges of a black piece of fabric.

"It's a lot, I know," you quickly answered her. "But you told me to go crazy with decorations, and I am an artist."

"It's not that..." she trailed off, reaching down to scoop a handful of spiders into her hand, letting them fall back into the box. "I'm just wondering if we should have started yesterday."

You placed your hands on your hips, eyeing her carefully. "We couldn't have. You had that test, and I had that art project to finish."

You may have gone overboard for a simple Halloween party. But you wanted this to be special... and you ever half-assed anything in your life if you could help it.

"We can manage, don't you think?" you tried to convince her, turning back to hook the piece of fabric in your hand into the ceiling. 

Nat reached into the back hem of her sleep shorts, finding her phone plastered up against the skin of her back. "Nope, I'm going to call in the cavalry."

"The cavalry?" you questioned aloud. The second you let the black fabric fall to the ground, you realized who she was talking about.

"Oh, no way!" you shouted out, immediately stepping down from your advantage point to stop her from sending that text. Already, Nat had stood in the process of writing out said message when you hit the floor. You cursed yourself for leaving out so many tripping hazards as you raced to stop her.

"As much as Bradley would help because you asked him to, all the other guys on the team are going to scoff and laugh and not see the worth in something like this!"

Nat only laughed at your protest, hitting send and holding her phone out of your reach as you lunged for it. "You clearly don't know them like I do."

"No, I don't," you argued back, trying to swipe at her phone, hoping once you managed to get it, you could hit resend on the message before Bradley saw it. "I'm a small geek of a person that doesn't do all the popular group shit. I'm not even in their league!"

"That's not true, and you know it!"

Nat used your height to her advantage, holding her phone high above her head, well out of your reach. You even tried to jump, but Nat quickly saw what you were attempting to do. "Maeve, stop it," she chided playfully but with an undercurrent of seriousness. "You always sell yourself short. Those guys aren't the judgmental jocks you think they are. You need to meet people! Mingle!"

Giving up on the battle for her phone, you dropped your hands to your hips, cocking your eyebrow. "Really? Sell myself short?"

Nat grimaced, dropping her hand. "Sorry, poor choice of words."

You weren't mad. Not really. Cause the second you dropped your hand, you lunged, successfully grabbing her wrist only to peel her phone out of her hand.

"Maeve!"

You knew each other's passwords, so getting into her phone wasn't an issue. But it was too late. As you went to swipe for the message, there, on her screen, was a reply from Bradley.

We'll be there after lunch &lt;3

"Shit!" You shouted out, dropping your head back on your shoulders. With your eyes closed, you held out her phone, urging her to take it back. She stood there with an amused smile on her face, crossing her arms as she took you in. 

"It's not going to be that bad, Maeve." 

"You don't know that," you cried out. "I don't want our place to turn into some frat house blowout." 

"Frat house blowout? Really?" she laughed, taking her phone back from you. 

"You know what I mean." 

You finally opened your eyes hesitantly to see a soft expression across Nat's face. Her optimism was infectious, one of the many things that drew the two of you together as friends. It brought you back to that moment in time when the two of you realized that in that small corner of the library, you'd have to pull an all-nighter to get your assignment done. 

It was that same face staring back at you, wide and hopeful, asking you to trust her. 

"The football team isn't that bad. It's only Bradley's friends who are coming to help out. I promise they will behave and at the first sign of trouble, or the first art diss, they will have to answer to me, okay?" 

You bit your lip, working the soft flesh hard between your teeth. "The first art diss, I don't care, I'm unleashing my wrath." 

Nat punched the air dramatically, her eyes sparkling with excitement and sheer amusement. You shook your head, wondering if you were going to come to regret this. 

"Besides," she added causally. "A lot of them are single?" 

You grumbled out a string of words, stomping off as best you could with the lights in the direction of your room, willing whatever you needed to get through the rest of the day would grace you with its presence. 

Nat was still laughing when you slammed the door. 

—

"You got your costume ready?"

You smirked at her words, knocking her shoulder as she sat next to you on the couch. You teased out, "Wouldn't you like to know?"

All had been forgiven once you remerged from your room, realizing that maybe a little help wouldn't be such a bad thing. The feeling didn’t last long, though, your head now full of completing thoughts such as, “They are not going to like me,” and “They are going to fuck up your decorations so bad nobody is going to want to come back.”

Maybe your guests will get too drunk to notice.

Nat smiled at you, all toothy and wide. "Maeve! You spent hours at that sewing machine. And here you were, so against having a Halloween party. Come on... I know you... you're excited!"

Hiding your emerging grin, you shook your head, pinning another spider into the fake cobwebs. "It's an art cliche, according to your standards."

She pouted, handing you another handful of the tiny black things. "Just tell me, please?"

Cupping the creepy fake things into your hand, you regarded her sad expression with a shake of your head, knowing you'd have to give her a little bit of detail if you wanted to get out of this one without completely spoiling the surprise.

"It's orange and inspired by a piece of artwork. That's all I'm going to say on the matter."

Nat dramatically stopped her foot out of good fun, making you chuckle.

"You're the one who didn't want to take that bird art history course I recommended. The orange would have been a dead giveaway."

"If it's anything like the dress you helped me make for mine..."

You shushed her, handing her the cobweb so she could put it in one of the boxes next to the couch.

The two of you were trying to organize the decorations for what you wanted into boxes and spread them across the apartment to make it easier for the guys. The hallway to your bedrooms, the bathroom, the kitchen, the living space, everything save for the things you wanted to tape to the ceiling and the lights, all had multiple piles. 

After you finished with the cobwebs, the two of you decided to cut lengths of streamers and start taping them to the ceiling in intricate patterns. Standing on a ladder, you reached out for a couple at a time from Nat, who was handing them to you with ease. You had your earphones in as you worked, as did Nat, who routinely counted out the same lengths of black and orange streamer each time. 

She suddenly tapped you on the leg, and you twisted on the step, pulling out an earphone.

"I'm going to make sure the drinks are ready for when the team arrives."

You waved her off, pushing the tiny device back in, hearing nothing but music as you stretched to pin the end of the streamer up against the junction of the wall.

You worked for a little bit more, alternating between the orange and black material, hoping it would look like what you pictured inside your head when all was said and done. That was until you felt another tap on the outside of your thigh.

Twisting on the ladder, you half expected to see Nat handing you another cutting of orange streamer. Only, you came face to face with Bradley, way too close for comfort, a shit-eating across his face. You shrieked, and the action was enough to make you lose your footing on one of the higher steps. 

Unfortunately for you, you lost your grip on the side of the ladder, and you flailed out your arms in some last-ditch attempt to save yourself. Your eyes instinctively slammed themselves shut against your will, and no matter where you flung your arms out to grab onto something, your arms only cut through thin air.

It happened in a matter of seconds, and you were hopeless to do anything but fall. 

Awaiting the impact of the hard floor, you stocked up, bracing yourself for the pain. Instead, you were surprised when you hit a pair of soft, strong arms, your body being cradled sideways across a massive chest.

It took you a second to realize there was an actual hand gripping your waist. And another holding your legs. The grip is tight, and whosoever arms you in, they feel secure, protective even. You even go as far as to say the chest you're pressed against is also reassuring, the sensation of firm muscles beneath the fabric of his shirt expanding and contracting against your body grounding. 

With the knowledge you weren't going anywhere, nor were you falling to your demise, you opened your eyes up to the face of your timely saviour. But it wasn't the outline of his nose or the sharpness of his cheekbones that drew you in. It wasn't the colour of his hair or the smile stretching across his face either. It was, to a pair of eyes, the greenest shade you had ever seen.

His mouth was forming words, but you couldn't hear what he was saying over the music blasting in your ears. Panting hard, you shifted in his arms, leaning down so he'd set you back down on your feet gently. Your fingers trailed down his arms, feeling the strong muscles flexing underneath your touch as you regained your footing.

You pulled your earbuds from your ears, gasping out, "What?"

"He said I shouldn't kill one of our hosts," Bradley pipped up from behind you, fiddling with one of the remaining balls of the streamer.

There was a quip forming somewhere in the back of your mind, readying itself to be unleashed on Bradley. Something along the lines of, “You don’t say?” or the more vulgar, “What the fuck were you thinking scaring someone on a fucking ladder?” but they never came.

You were too entranced by the man currently standing in front of you, a self-assured smirk across his face.

“Thank you,” you managed to exhale instead. The man dramatically bowed, holding out his hand palm up in a grandiose gesture that reminded you of a gentleman from a period drama. Still leaning over, he lifted his head, the same smirk still plastered across his face.

“Jake Seresin,” he offered coyly. “Your saviour.”

You laughed softly, trying to stop the shake in your hand as you reached for his. “Saviour, huh? Are you in the business of saving women from falling off ladders?”

Jake's reply came with a twinkle in his eye and a soft squeeze of his hand, "Just the pretty ones."

Warmth spread across your cheeks, and embarrassment flooded your chest. You hoped the blush wasn’t too noticeable or that your pulse wasn't jumping out of your throat. 

“Oh, don’t fall for his charms, Maeve. I mean, he has some redeeming qualities, but Casanova here is hardly worth a catch,” Bradley remarked with a casual smile, catching the ball of streamer he tossed up only to throw it at Jake. 

Jake’s hand flew up, grabbing the flimsy material effortlessly somewhere behind you. Standing there, you couldn’t help but feel a flutter in your stomach as he brought his hand between the two of you, handing it to you. You took it without bothering to look at his hand.

“Maeve,” he rolled the name off his tongue. “You don’t hear that name that often. It’s that Irish?”

You opened your mouth to reply with something about how it literally meant, ‘she who intoxicates,’ when Nat suddenly turned on a speaker, the apartment literally sounding like something out of a nightclub to remixed Halloween music. She ran towards you, and Bob, Ruben, Javy, and Mickey were on her heels. The second she was within arm's distance, she hooked her arm through yours, calling out, “Shots!”

You shot Jake a desperate look, mouthing, “Help me,” as you let Nat drag you away from him. Jake chuckled, following the pair of you to the kitchen with Bradley making a grab for the hair on the back of his head, successfully pulling him into a headlock only to mess up his hair.

Nat let you go when the pair of you reached the counter, making for the tequila first before Bradley. As the others crowded your kitchen island in search of a drink, Jake placed a gentle hand on your back, guiding you to the empty side of the counter. He seemed at ease as he carefully swiped two tiny red solo cups from under Nat's nose as she started taking orders from the rest of the group and placed them down on the counter. 

Jake reached for the bottle of whiskey and held it out between the two of you. He shook the glass bottle, making the brown liquid slosh around.

"Wanna shot?"

You nodded once, watching admiringly as Jake expertly twisted the cap and poured out two shots into the tiny red cups. From behind his frame, you could see the pumpkin Nat and you had carved a few nights ago into a Jack Skellington face, silently judging you. Setting the bottle aside, he handed you one of the cups, and you fought with yourself not to fumble it.

He held his up as you let your hand remain frozen mid-air, a toast on his lips. But somebody shouted out, "Wait!" and Jake dropped his hand, turning to face them with a scowl. 

"Everyone get over here!" Nat yelled out, pulling you away from Jake by your arm again before you could even utter a thanks. She made sure everyone gathered around in a circle with their chosen drink in hand before she lifted her cup up high.

"Cheers!" she shouted. Everyone mocked her shout, lifting all the tiny cups up to hers. The plastic crunched as they touched, liquid sloshing over the sides. Your laugh echoed Nat's as your hand became soaked, and on the opposite side of the circle, your eyes caught Jake's as he grinned at the sight of you.

You smiled right back, never taking your eyes off him as your lips met the tiny rim of your red solo cup.

She doesn't hate him yet!

Tag List:

@desert-fern @sarahsmi13s @teacupsandtopgun @fanficfandomlove @dakotakazansky @startrekfangirl2233 @hookslove1592 @dizzybee03 @kmc1989 @lynnevanss @dempy

@shanimallina87 @wildxwidow @keyrani @atarmychick007 @buckysteveloki-me @trickphotography2 @stargazer-88 @tinytotontheoversizedpony @alldaysdreamers @The-dark-and-the-mystery

@formulafun @djs8891 @bookchik15 @wretchedmo @redbarn1995 @a-court-of-roscoe-and-baby @yuckosworld @mrsevans90 @wren5650 @eli2447

Taglist Form for those who are interested!

-Lucky/Wickett/Em

Part 3: You're so Vain - In progress

#horseshoegirlwrites #jake seresin fanfiction #hangman x oc #hangman fanfiction #jake seresin #top gun fanfiction #top gun au #hangman top gun #top gun fan fiction #top gun fanfic #top gun fic #top gun hangman #top gun maverick fanfiction #top gun maverick fic #top gun x reader #jake hangman x reader #jake hangman x you #jake seresin fic #jake hangman seresin x reader #jake hangman seresin imagine #jake hangman seresin #jake seresin imagines #jake seresin x oc #jake seresin x reader #jake seresin x you #jake seresin x y/n #jake seresin imagine #hangman seresin x reader #hangman x reader #hangman x you

[thevisibilityarchives]

If I Was Your Girl (2016), Meredith Russo

LGBTQIA+

Summary: This school year, Amanda’s plans consist of two things: keeping her head down, and earning grades high enough to get her out of the Bible Belt and into college in the Big Apple. Like most plans, however, hers don’t go accordingly upon the discovery that in her new town, where no one knows who she is or what she’s been through, Amanda easily finds the love, acceptance, and happiness she deserves among friends, family, and even Grant, her football playing boyfriend. But what if they did know? It’s that question that creates a wall between her, one secret of many in this little town. But unlike everyone else’s, if Amanda’s gets out it could ruin more than her reputation: it could endanger her life--again.

Full review: Released in 2016, If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo opens with a scene familiar to many queer readers for generations past. Timidly, Amanda arrives to greet her father for the first time in years, an awkward reunion heavily weighted by the pain of the unspoken: abandonment, abuse, and rejection. 

Yet from the onset, there is a clear light at the end of the tunnel. Their reunion marks a turning point in their relationship, as Amanda moves in with her father following the Obligatory-Low that marks any suicide survivor’s life. For even in his hesitation, his discomfort, there is a sense that he sees her. While he murmurs statements like “I’m old fashioned” and Amanda reminds him that her name is now in fact Amanda, and no longer Andrew, the legal name on her birth  certificate, it feels that her father grapples less with the fact that a woman now stands before him, and more the fact that a woman who he was never there, for now, stands before him. His awkwardness is rooted led in acceptance. He’s resigned, the details in the book revealing there’s no doubt Amanda is who she has always been. Instead, he’s embarrassed about himself, angry at being faced with his own failings and a daughter who hasn’t been broken by them. Amanda’s story is altogether both unique and familiar, playing into the arcs of common issues present among lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, transgender and nonbinary individuals, and teenagers in the throes of romance. Yet in its essence, Russo’s novel buries these themes deep, swaddled into a Hallmark-movie-worthy YA-read that made me brutally aware that I’d never actually read a teenage romance before that wasn’t a subset of the fantasy/sci-fi genre.

The formula is rather simple: just a small-town girl, livin’ in a lonely world. Girl meets boy. Boy and girl bond over some she’s not like other girls moment (it’s Star Wars and Neil Gaiman). Girl and boy catch feelings. Girl and boy fall and love. Girl and boy have some sort of emotional hang up that could be resolved by a single conversation that won’t happen because that would negate the plot of the book. Drama happens because of the lack of said conversation. Drama resolves. Happily ever after. Cue don’t you, forget about me…

There are a few mild curveballs Russo throws our way to keep us on our toes, stereotypes she occasionally swaps around and paths taken unexpectedly. Her “baby steps” approach to Amanda’s character as a transgender teen is likely the most surprising thing about the book, albeit understanding, a choice made to help her connect better with a cisgender audience and reach a wider swath of audience (no book bannings for this author!). 

Amanda is written as someone who began hormone treatment young and has had both top and bottom surgery which are not common as a whole in the U.S. at only 16% of the population as of 2022. Despite public outcry from right-wing radicals, Reuters reports the latter is considered “The ultimate step in gender-affirming medical treatment is surgery, which is uncommon in patients under age 18.” (Respaut and Terhune, 2022)

Throughout the trauma and pain of Amanda’s life, she experiences a well-deserved happy ending that young LGBTQIA+ members and allies have come to expect departed from generations of depictions of trauma. I cannot help but wonder what this book would feel like to read as a trans person, the privilege Amanda is granted for “passing”, and the sheer financial implications it imposes on a family that doesn’t even seem to be well-off. Ultimately, her life is all that matters, as is the idea that perhaps in the hands of a young reader, this book could impose a ray of hope. 

It is worth noting that this author has faced accusations of sexual assault and domestic violence detailed here (the following post contains deadnames FYI, and belongs to conservative commentator. It was one of the few remaining resources I could find with factual references to the scenario, which only felt fair to provide in the case of SA allegations.). The goal of this archive is to spotlight representation, and in doing so comes the acknowledgment that representation is not without complication. 

Citations:

https://www.sdlgbtn.com/16-of-transgender-people-in-the-us-have-had-sex-reassignment-surgery/

https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-transyouth-data/

#thevisibilityarchives #tva #trans representation #trans fiction #trans character #lgbtq characters #diversity #ya fiction #books

[djungelskog-and-strudla]

#dont kill me #its just for shit and giggles #some of its actual football facts and some of its stereotypes #no malice behind this whatsoever #world cup #wc #wc18 #wc 2018 #russia 2018 #fifa #fifa world cup #fifa 2018 #australia nt #argentina nt #uruguay nt #peru nt #brasil nt #colombia nt #mexico nt #panama nt #costa rica nt #chile nt #senegal nt #nigeria nt #morocco nt #egypt nt #tunisia nt #saudi arabia nt #iran nt #japan nt