#then again compared to the off white dolls she looks great lol

[freaky-flawless]

Who the hell is Lenore??

#monster high #monster high dolls #i mean...she's cool looking #dont love the idea of introducing new characters as collector dolls tho... #i have no reason to care for her beyond her design and even then its just...idk its good but im not blown away enough to want her #then again compared to the off white dolls she looks great lol #but give me something...whats she like...what are her hobbies... #her pets cute ill give her that #text post

[eternally-smitten]

Drabblecember - Baking Together

pairing: Natalie x Trevor Philips

summary: Trevor feels a bit bad about not being as good at baking as Natalie, but he tries to keep up anyway

word count: ~1.2k

author's note: okay so I guess I'm just obsessed with writing baking fics with Trevor because this is the third one I've written with this exact prompt LOL. this also ended up being a lot more angsty than I initially intended?? wack.

“God fucking dammit!” Trevor winced as he cracked the egg too hard, getting goopy yolk all over the counter.

“Hey, don’t do that.” Natalie said in a monotone voice without looking up from her bowl.

He slowly turned his head to shoot her a glare that she couldn’t see, “Gee, thanks. We should really bake together more often, don’t ya think?”

She sniggered and peered at him from over her glasses, “You’re the one that wanted to do this with me, hon. Don’t blame me for your idea.”

That was true. Trevor has watched her bake all the time and always felt bad for leaving her to her own devices. He figured it couldn’t be that hard so he asked her if they could do something together. Natalie suggested cookies since they’re usually easiest to make and he happily agreed. But here he was, covered in raw egg and trying his best to scoop tiny pieces of shell out of the bowl.

“I’m sorry, here,” She pulled him to the side and took his spot, “Roll the dough into balls after washing your hands. I’ll do this for you.”

He grumbled a little as he ran his hands under the warm water, “Can’t trust me to do it myself?”

She fished the piece of shell out with her fingernail and flicked it in the trash can, “No, it’s not that. You were just gettin’ frustrated and I wanted you to actually have fun with me.”

Trevor’s hard face softened a little at that, “Aw, darlin’, I always have fun with ya. I’m just shit at eggs.”

“Oh, trust me, I know.” Natalie joked, “That’s why I won’t let you make them anymore. That’s my job.”

“Hey now!” He dipped his now clean hands into the flour bag and wiped a little on her nose, “I’ve made good eggs before!”

She crossed her eyes to look at the white dusty spot on her nose, “Sorry T, I don’t count ‘slightly burnt’ scrambled eggs as ‘good’.”

Trevor chuckled at her crossed eyes and started to roll some already made dough into little balls, “It counts in my book, doll.”

He cradled the cookie dough carefully in his hands and mimicked what he watched Natalie do just moments before. Baking came so naturally to her and he couldn’t wrap his head around it. She made it look so easy but he struggled with it a bit. Cookies were easiest, she said. He couldn’t help but feel a bit bad about himself. He felt almost helpless compared to her.

He realized he was rolling the same ball of dough for the past few minutes now, so he cleared his throat and presented it to Natalie, “Uh, how’s this?”

“Perfect!” She praised, “Just plop it on the tray over there and make a few more!”

“Alright,” Trevor did as he was told and moved on to the next piece of dough. Once again, he replayed how she did it and followed it as closely as his memory would let him. 

Nothing usually got to him this bad. Work? Hardly ever unless someone really pissed him off. Heists? Never unless Michael pissed him off. Ron or Wade? They were just pests, really. But baking with Natalie? He was more anxious than he let on. It wasn’t even that he didn’t entirely know what he was doing although that was part of it. It was more the fact that he wanted to impress her. Trevor wanted Natalie to see someone she could be proud of. Someone to say “That’s mine! He made these great cookies with me!” and to say it with pride. But whenever he was in the kitchen, he felt like a bumbling fool who was out of his element.

“T?” Natalie asked, pulling him out of his head, “Are you alright?”

“Huh?” He looked at her for the first time since he started rolling this second ball, “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, darlin’. Just fine. Why?”

She scrunched her nose up, a telltale sign that she didn’t believe him, “You’ve been rolling that ball and staring into the sink for like, five minutes.”

“Oh,” He threw the ball on the tray and went to grab more to make another, “Sorry about that.”

Her hand grabbed his wrist gently and pulled it away, “Come on, don’t do that. What’s up?”

“Nothin’.”

She sighed, “If you’re not enjoying yourself, you can just tell me. I won’t be offended. I know I’m not…the easiest to work with.”

“No, no!” Trevor grabbed her face with his dough covered hands, “That ain’t it at all.”

“Then what?”

He froze and sighed, “I just ain’t good at this like you. I dunno, I wish I was better, I guess.”

“Is that it?” She squeezed his bicep reassuringly, “Oh, T, it’s okay. I wasn’t good at this when I started. Hell, I still fuck up!”

“I find that hard to believe, sugar.” Trevor gave her a skeptical look.

“No, really!” She giggled, “Man, the first cake I ever made was a mess! My god, I filled my little cake pan too much and the damn thing exploded in the oven. My entire house smelled like burnt cake for the rest of the day.”

He let out a raspy, halfhearted laugh, “That actually sounds kind of good.”

Natalie shook her head and gave him a dead serious look, “You’d think so but no. Absolutely disgusting. Don’t even get me started on the shit show that was decorating that same cake.”

“You’re tellin’ me you tried to frost it after?” Trevor asked, cocking an eyebrow up.

“I wasn’t going to waste that whole cake!” She paused to think about that memory, “Even though I actually did end up chucking it because it was too destroyed to be saved. Anyway, my point is that I’m not perfect. Both in general and at baking. I’m not gonna judge you for slipping up and making a mistake.”

He shrugged, “I just wanna make you proud, honey.”

Natalie frowned a little, “But you do.”

“Aw, shucks. Now you’re makin’ me blush.” He joked with a hint of sincerity in his voice.

“And listen, as much as I love being touched and held by you, your hands are uh, really sticky.” She grimaced a little at the feeling on her skin, “Would you mind uh-” “Oh!” He let go of her face and gave her an awkward smile, “My mistake.”

She giggled and wiped the residue off with her hand, “Jeez, you even got a chocolate chip on me! Gross.”

A devilish smirk spread across his face, “Here, why don’t I clean it off for ya?”

Before she could reply, Trevor practically pounced on her and licked a stripe up her cheek.

“Oh, my God!” Natalie squealed, her voice cracking, “Gross! Don’t eat raw cookie dough, you heathen!”

He laughed and hugged her tightly, giving her a swift peck on the cheek, “You always know how to make me feel better, darlin’. Even when you’re lecturing me.”

After that, he felt a bit more confident in the kitchen. Soon enough, they were ready to pop their cookies in the oven and wait for them to be ready. Just like Natalie said, she still made mistakes because she accidentally left them in for too long and the edges turned black. Even then, because they were made with love, they tasted perfect to Trevor.

#my stuff ♡ #"=⌕ unprofessional professionalism/ #drabblecember #drabblecember2023 #self ship fanfiction #ok to rb!

[iguessweallcrazyithinktho]

loving you is the antidote

Summary:

Harry  meet you at the gala and you both spent the whole night talking. He didn't get your number and he thought that was the end of you both, but later you both found your way back to each other while filming the Golden music video in italy.

Warning: fluff

Word count: 3.9k

Title: loving you is the antidote

Pairing: harry styles x reader

author note: been waiting to post this lol

Masterlist • requested closed. Don't send any!

Please don't post any of my content anywhere else without my permission. Comments and reblog welcome!

Here's how it started.

You woke up to your alarm blaring. Any other day you would hate that, but today you were quite grateful for it. You were going to the met gala for the first time in your career as a model. It was exciting.

You hopped out of the bed. Before you left your room you grabbed your phone before walking down the hallway to the kitchen. 

It was 11 in the morning, birds were chirping and the sun was casting light on your kitchen. It felt nice against your skin as you pulled out your cereal and milk. You walked over to the island and took a seat and began to eat your breakfast while you scrolled through Instagram. 

You didn't notice it at first, but you got a dm from someone you really adored. When you finally noticed, you gasped loudly

It was Harry Styles

You just couldn't believe it. The spoon in your hand, feel from your fingers as you pressed his contact. A message popped up and you began to read them.

Hi it's Harry styles. I just wanted to say I really admire what you do. I hope we can meet if you're going to the met gala tonight because I am. We can talk if you'll like, just really want to meet you. See you then hopefully. Love H.

The last bit made you smile a lot. You were really thinking about messaging him back, but you decided to surprise him until you got to the gala.

You finished up your breakfast with a racing heart. Harry styles out of all people liked what you did; he admired it. That made you shocked, at the same time giddy, also nervous. 

After you finished your breakfast, you got up from the table, placing your bowl in the sink. As soon as you turned your phone began to ring. Walking back to the table, you picked it up seeing that it was your manager Sara.

Quickly you picked up. "Hi Sara." You practically screamed into the phone. You already regret it. 

"Wow you're quite exciting. What happened? it's almost 9 in the morning, you're never this happy." Sara chuckled. You knew she was shaking her head. 

"Sorry Sara. It's just… I got a message from someone special today." 

"Ohh who?" She asked flirty. You laughed. "It was from harry styles. He wanted to see me at the met gala. He said he admired me." You began to beam as you remembered that message.

"Wow y/n lucky you." Sara laughed. "Well if you're going to see him at the gala then me and Jenny have to come over and get you ready." 

"I'm ready to get ready." You nodded even though she couldn't see you. "Okay well I'll see you in about…" Sara looked down at her watch. "In about an hour. I'll see you till then ok?" 

"Okay Sara." You said your good-byes to each other and ended the call. You exhaled after sitting your phone down on the kitchen counter. You were going to take a nice warm shower before Sara got here because it was always needed

You walked out of the kitchen, down the hall, to the bathroom. You inched over to the shower, turning the on knob to the hot water. While it got warm, You began to stare at yourself in the mirror for a few minutes, Harry styles still on your mind.

When you noticed you were daydreaming you quickly snapped out of it. "Gosh." You muttered to yourself. You turned to the shower seeing the glass steaming with fog. You began to strip from your pajamas until you were bare as the day you were born. 

Slowly you got under the warm shower. Your muscles relaxing as a sigh passed your lips. Water trickled down your skin as you stood under the shower head. It felt amazing, and you'll love to stay in there forever, but you had things you had to do and that wasn't an option.

You began to wash your body. After about 5 minutes you were satisfied by how clean you were and turned off the shower head. You got out, right after wrapping a towel over your damp body, before you walked over to your vanity to begin your morning routine. 

You bopped your head to Golden that was now blasting on your phone as you got yourself ready. You just loved Harry's angelic voice as he sang from his heart. 

You were so in your element you didn't notice Time was moving quickly. The doorbell rang making you jump slightly. You got up out of your vanity chair and Walked to the door.

Opening it, you were met with Sara and your makeup artist and stylist. "How are you y/n?" Jeffrey, your makeup artist, asked as you let them all in. "Um…" you drew a long breath. "Pretty good."

You shut the door behind you before turning to look at them. "That's amazing. I heard the very famous Harry styles adores you." He gave you wiggly eyebrows as he sat his makeup case down. You began to blush at his knowing. 

"Yes he does adore me. He wants to see me later which is pretty exciting." You clashed your hands together, smiling widely. Your stylist Maria laughed, "well take a seat. We're going to glam you up for this big day." You smiled at them and took a seat at your dining room table. "Work your magic."

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*

two hours later they were all done. Your makeup was done, so was your hair. You decided on a white Versace dress to wear to the gala because it made you feel sexy and look sexy. Your team agreed on that last statement when you walked out of your bedroom with it on.

"Oh my gosh y/n you look amazing honey." Jeffrey said. 

You twirled around, showing off the lace dress. "I love it, it looks so nice." Sara walked over to you. "Are you ready to go?" She smooths out the dress before looking at you.

"I'm more than ready." You said, beaming. "Alright then," Sara clashed her hands together. "Let's go then."

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*

The drive to the gala didn't take long. You were so giddy to go. It was probably mostly because of Harry. As you pulled into the driveway of the art museum, Jeffrey made sure your makeup was perfect before you even stepped out of the car. 

Sara stepped out first before a guard helped you out. You took a deep breath as you saw people everywhere. You put on a smile as the door was shut behind you. 

Slowly, you walked up the steps, the photographer calling your name for you to look at their camera. You posed, giving them every angle. 

You eventually reached the top of the stairs. Waiting up there was an interviewer wanting to interview you.

"Y/n, how are you?" She asked you, holding the microphone up to you. "I'm great. Really excited to be here." You looked at the interviewer, ready for her next question. 

"What are you wearing tonight?" 

"Um… I'm wearing versace. I've wanted to wear this dress forever. I'm very excited to be wearing it." You laughed at the end of the sentence before smiling. 

"Well it's your first time to the gala, are you excited to see anyone?" She looked at you, waiting for your answer. You were dying to say Harry styles, but you know what kinda drama that could start. So you said some other people you were actually excited to see. "I'm excited to see Blake lively and Zendaya." You kinda lied.

The interviewer went with it and asked you a few more questions before she ended. Sara then led you to where the party was. You breathed a sigh of relief, but your heart was beating fast. Harry styles could be anywhere in the building. That excited you a lot. A waiter came over to you with a glass of wine. You took it right after you thinked him. You stood in the back and looked around at the sea of people. They were dressed beautifully from head to toe. You felt kinda shitty because your dress wasn't much compared to others. But a voice made you forget about the others around you.

"You look stunning."

You turned to your left to see the one and only harry. Your eyes met with his emerald eyes and it felt like you both were the only two in the building. A smile appeared on Harry's face as he walked closer to you. The pit in your stomach filled with butterflies the hurted, but in the most amazing way.

 "How are darlin'?" Harry asked. "Um… I'm great." You were flustered and Harry noticed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to bite." He winked at you, making you giggle a little. 

"Uh so you want to talk?" You asked him,  sitting the champagne glass on the bar top that was behind you. Harry nodded lightly. "Yes, I would like to talk. Follow me."

Harry began to lead the way. You followed him, trying not to freak the hell out. Harry led you to a room where only a few people were. They were in their own little world so of course Harry brought you back there.

"Here sit beside me." Harry sat down in a chair and you sat in the one beside him. "So," Harry started, looking at you. "I just wanted to chat with you because you're pretty amazing."

You felt your face heat up at his words. "Thank you. You're pretty amazing yourself." Harry smiled, showing off his dimple. "Stopped, you're making me blush." 

You chuckled at him. "No seriously you are. Your singing is unbelievably amazing and it just makes me forget about the world and smile." You looked off into the distance as you thought about those nights where you were belching lights up in your house by yourself.

"Thank you for making music." You turned back to Harry seeing him look at you with a smirk. "You're a doll. Well I'm going to say your modeling is awesome. I hope that doesn't sound weird but yeah it is."

“No it’s not. Thank you again.” 

You and Harry kept talking. You both were flirting with each other like crazy. You would notice Harry's eyes falling to your lips as you talked. It made you flustered. You weren’t going to lie, you were doing the same thing. 

You both didn’t notice that you had been talking for an hour until Sara came and told you that you unfortunately had to go. You looked back as Sara walked away. 

“Well i gotta go.” you stood up and exhaled. “It was nice to meet you.” you turned to see harry getting up. “Same here.” he stood in front of you. His lips were pressed into a thin line as he looked into your eyes. You smiled slightly as shivers ran across your sink. Harry inched closer and closer to your lips, his eyes flickering to yours and to your lips. Both yours and Harry's hearts were racing. 

Time stopped as Harry's lips touched yours. Your whole body tingled as he kissed you. The kiss was sweet, but had so much passion in it. You wanted to stay like this forever but you knew you couldn’t. You pulled away from Harry's lips, resting your forehead against yours. 

“I have no words.” you muttered as you opened your eyes. Harry pulled away, looking at you. “Same. I really enjoyed this day with you, hopefully we meet again.” Harry said as he took his hand, brushing it over your cheek bone. “Well I should go before Sara comes and yells at me. Bye harry.” 

You waved to him as you walked away, leaving his sight. Harry watched as you walked away. He knew you were going to be on his mind all week and he wouldn't have minded that.

Harry sat back down in the chair. A smile appeared on his face as he leaned back. You were something special.

-:-:-:-:

It's been a whole month since you've seen Harry. He was on your mind constantly. You loved every thing that happened on the night of the Met gala, but one thing you regret was not getting his number. 

 On the other side of the world, Harry was feeling the same way. You flooded his mind constantly. He fell asleep smiling as he thought about you. He wished he would've been smarter and got your number, but he couldn't go back and now he had to live with it.

Harry sat on his couch, his guitar tucked in between his arms and his thighs as he strummed away. He was coming up with some new music for his next album. The sound of his guitar filled Harry's ears. This song he was playing was about you and how close he was to getting you. He was really indulged in singing, so much  when his phone rang it startled him.

He picked it up seeing that it was jeff. “Jeff?” Harry said. “Hi harry, so i was thinking we could do a music video for golden. What do you think?” 

Harry suckedin his breath as he thought. “Um… I do like the sound of that. When do you want me to do it and where?”

“Um I was thinking today you can go to Italy and film like a 70s style music video. And I have the perfect girl for the video.” Jeff laughed on the other end of the phone. Harry smiled at Jeff's words, getting extremely curious. “Who is it?” Harry questioned. Jeff sucked in his breath. “Uh you have to go to italy to see.” 

Harry shook his head laughing at jeff. “Okay you convinced. I’m going.” Harry got up and finished the call with jeff. After he hung up, Harry made his way to his bedroom to pack. He opened his closet and pulled out his suitcase. He began to stuff a few pairs of pants and trousers in his suitcase. When he had enough for a few days, he zipped up his suitcase and walked out of the room with it.

Harry wondered who Jeff was going  to pair him with for the music video, but he’ll eventually see. Before Harry left he called Anne to tell her where he was going. She was still a huge Mama Bear. When he was finished with the call, he drove his way to the airport. 

Watermelon sugar was blasting on the radio. Harry could help but belch out the song because you know it's his song. After about 15 minutes Harry arrived at the airport. He parked, got out of his car before making his way to the airport. After going through security he walked through the terminal. Of course while waiting to board some fans asked for a picture. He didn't mind so he took some pictures  with a few. When Harry was finally in his seat by the window, he put in his airpods to listen to some 80s music and began to read a book. 

2 hours and 30 minutes later Harry arrived in italy.  Harry quickly unboarded so he wasn't seen. His taxi was already waiting for him when he exited the huge building. Harry put his bag in the trunk before getting into the back. The driver pulled away as soon as Harry buckled his seat belt. He was making his way to the hotel where Harry would be staying. While the driver was driving to his destination, Harry's eyes were outside of the window. 

He loved italy a lot. It almost felt like his second home. He just felt so safe and welcome here. 

"Alright we're here sir." The driver looked at Harry through the mirror. Harry looked at the guy, "okay, thank you." Harry said, reaching for his wallet. He tipped the guy a generous amount which earned a thanks. Harry smiled slightly at the guy before opening the door, taking his baggage and walking into the hotel. 

Harry was quickly checked into a room. Once he got the key card he was off to the elevator. He was hoping to get in a nap before they filmed anything. 

With his slinder, run clad fingers, Harry pressed the up button. It didn't take long for the door to open up. Harry walked in and sat down his luggage with an exhale. The door was about to shut 6 seconds later, but Harry heard a distant voice.

"Hold the door please."

And Harry did. He put his hand out and the door opened again. The voice that Harry heard now had a face to it. You walked into the elevator, smiling, not even aware who was beside you. 

"Thank you for that. You pressed your floor before turning to see who it was. Your jaw practically dropped to the floor when you saw Harry.

"Harry!?" You were shocked. You didn't think you'd meet him again; yet here you both were in the same hotel. 

"Y/n… How.. how are you?" Harry asked, stumbling to find his words. "I'm okay. I'm here to do a music video with someone." You said smiling. 

"I'm doing a music video." Harry said. "Wait that's why Jeff was so giggly, it was you." Harry smiled causing you to do the same. "Well I guess our managers were thinking the right way." You laughed. "I'm happy I'm here. Especially know that you're as well."

Without hesitation Harry kissed you. God how you missed his lips. His tongue ran across your bottom lips before he kissed you zealously. You moaned a little as you cupped his cheeks deepening the kiss.

Unfortunately you both pulled away when the elevator dinged. You were breathless and so was harry. "This is my floor." You picked up your bag. "Um I'll see you later?" You said looking at Harry.

He nodded, "of course” you smiled at him as you walked out of the elevator. As soon as the door closed you squealed excitedly. Smiling, you walked down the hall to your suit that you were staying at. You struggled to get the key card in the slot from smiling so much but you eventually did and walked straight, tossing your bag to the ground. You fell back onto the bed with your arms wide open. You couldn’t stop smiling.

The italian sun outside of your window cascaded down on your body making you feel golden. 

----

Harry was feeling the same. As soon as he entered his room he started doing his happy dance. He was more than happy, he was ecstatic. You did that to him. Harry calmed himself down before plopping down on his bed. He ran his hands over his hands trying to stop the smile on his face. He knew he couldn’t so he decided to sleep on it for an hour or so before he started filming.

Harry changed into some joggers and pulled off his shirt before getting comfy under the blanket. He fell asleep with a smile on his face(and also on his tummy hehe).

-

About an hour later, Harry woke up to his phone ringing. He adjusted from his sleep before reaching for his phone on the nightstand. “‘Ello?”

 “Harry,” it was jeff. “ are you ready to film?” Harry sat up as soon as Jeff asked that. “Yeah. I just took a little nap.” he cleared his throat. “Okay be down stairs in 5 minutes, bye.” Jeff hung up before Harry could say bye, which Harry thought was rude. 

He just pushed that out of his mind as he got out of the bed. He put on some shorts and a white button up shirt. Before he left the room he made sure his hair was perfect before grabbing his phone leaving the room.

Down the hall, near the elevator you were waiting for him. Harry of course smiled when he saw you because he didn't expect you to be waiting.

“Hi, what are you doing here waiting for me?” you walked up to him “well I ‘m scared of elevators.” you pouted your lip as you joked. Harry laid, “alright come on.” 

He pressed the down button and waited for the elevator to open. “Wait how'd you get up to my floor then?” Harry asked, looking over at you. The way your eyes grew large as Harry caught you in your lie made him laugh. 

The elevator opened and you and Harry walked in. you pressed the main floor and watched as the door closed. As you both went down, you couldn’t help looking over at harry. He was looking at the floors as they changed. You can see slight dimples in  his cheek telling you he knew you were staring at him. You just chuckled softly before turning back, turning away, looking back forward.

The elevator soon came to a stop letting you and Harry off. Harry politely let you walk out first before he followed. Some crew that was helping film were waiting for you and harry to take you to the location you needed to go. You and Harry followed them outside before walking in the warm sun a block down to the filming location. When you arrived the director gave you and Harry simple instructions. 

“Harry was up first driving the car and running. You watched as his curls blowing in the wind and how he made funny faces. You couldn't help but laugh to yourself at how adorable and hot he was. 

you didn’t do much during your takes. so it was mostly you and Harry doing a little talking, giggling, and danced playfully. He was such a fun person to be around and you wish you could be with him Every day if it was possible.

After filming various takes the director called it a day. Your eyes were on the sky watching as the sun rays painted a golden picture on the sky. You didn't notice but Harry was looking at you with a smile. 

Your skin glowed so nicely as the sun shined on you. A little smile played on your face making Harry chuckle quietly to himself.

He took it upon himself to walk over to you and wrap his arms around your waist. Of course you knew who it was - it made you smile.

"Hi Harry." You said leaning back. Harry looked at you as you looked up at him. "Hi y/n." Harry looked at the sky before speaking again. "You know something, when I left the gala I couldn't stop smiling. You were the first person that ever made me feel so free and so not famous. And when I forgot to ask I thought I lost my chances with you forever. My mind was going crazy; couldn't stop thinking about you for a second and how stupid I was to not get your number. But you know what?" 

Harry looked at you. "What you mumbled. "None of that matters because I'm right here with you right now and there's nowhere I want to be."

You smiled softly at him. "I can say the same." You turned in Harry's arms. "I was going through a hard time before I met You. Not to be cliche or anything, but loving you is the antidote and I mean that." 

Harry smiled before he cupped your cheek, kissing you tender and sweet.

The end

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*

I love this. My longest fic too

best believe I got more coming

@captainamerica-is-bae​

#harry styles #Harry styles x reader #Harry styles x black reader #Harry styles x y/n #harry styles x you #harry styles smut #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fluff #harry styles fanfic #harry styles x female reader

[virtual-toast]

Scream Queens VH1 recap - Season 1 Episode 2

Michelle, Sarah, Kylah, and Jessica come back from the grand ballroom and the rest of the girls are shocked and/or pissed that Jo-Anne went home instead of Kylah. Lindsay says “This house will mourn the loss of Jo-Anne” and Sarah, in tears, calls her “such a sensational actress”, which are both super melodramatic reactions, you knew Jo-Anne for three days, but okay. Meanwhile Kylah has no idea why everyone is upset that she’s still there haha.

The following day sees Kylah declaring the house has been divided into the “queen bitches” (herself, Michelle, Lina, and Angela) and the “more homely girls” (Marissa, Lindsay, and Sarah). I’m assuming she’s put Tanedra and Jessica in the latter category too but she doesn’t mention them specifically. The bitchy girls talk shit about the other girls behind their backs, specifically about how they think Sarah didn’t deserve to win the previous episode, that she’s ugly and annoying, etc.

The girls meet up with Shawnee who tells them they have 15 minutes to dress themselves up and impress a casting director (Kelly Wagner, who seems pretty cool tbh) with the winner getting a guaranteed callback. While getting ready, Michelle and Angela mention that if the winner is not one of the bitchy girls, the competition must be rigged. An awful lot of confidence for week 2, lol.

The girls go back into the room with Shawnee and meet Kelly. They take turns doing a sort of one on one interview / audition, which I’m gonna summarise in dot points because they each get a small amount of screen time:

Lindsay talks about being a child actor and Kelly says that means she probably actually has a harder job than someone just starting out. Lindsay is wearing a weird sort of frilly top and skirt with polka dots but it somehow doesn’t really work for her shape, and Kelly mentions it as well as Shawnee straight up calling her frumpy. True, but also, rude.

Lina goes up and immediately shakes Kelly’s hand. She doesn’t even get a word out before Kelly is like “yeah no, don’t shake casting directors’ hands, personal space / germs” etc.

Kylah talks about playing Price is Right with her brother which Kelly says is a bad choice because she’s automatically associating herself with being a model rather than an actress. Kylah proceeds to mention that she wants to “get ugly, get dirty, like Halle Berry did in Monster.” cringe

Marissa gets up and starts off on this huge spiel about how horror films are like modern Greek tragedies and everyone is just staring at her like GIRL WHAT.

Michelle introduces herself and Kelly asks if she primarily does theatre because of her big personality. Michelle proceeds to brag about being Miss Teen Texas.

Jessica is wearing a smart-casual outfit of jeans and a simple white top with her trademark giant hoop earrings. Kelly comments on her look being unique. Jessica is kinda speaking like a cute little girl who doesn’t want to let the evil out??

Angela mentions how she thinks she has the stereotypical horror “look”. Her outfit isn’t relevant but I have to mention it anyway - it honestly looks like she cut the top off a blue evening gown to wear as a shirt?? and then just jeans. Like idk.

Sarah introduces herself and Kelly immediately comments on her unique nasally voice.

Tanedra tells Kelly that she has no formal training. Kelly says “And you think you can beat out all these girls?” and Tanedra’s like YES. Fuck yeah get it girl.

So Kelly goes ahead and gives her overall impressions - Kylah has no personality, Angela has the best horror look, Lindsay looks like the best friend rather than the leading lady, Marissa is the one she didn’t remember, and she liked Jessica’s personal style. Ultimately she gives Jessica the guaranteed callback, and also sends Lindsay and Marissa for makeovers which Michelle finds hilarious.

The girls go back into the house and Kylah proceeds to have a tantrum about not winning, stating that if the casting director was a man the results would have been different. But get this, she DOES NOT CHANGE EXPRESSION THE ENTIRE TIME. Even when she’s yelling “I’M ABOUT TO CRY” she literally just has this blank look on her face like is she actually made of wax?? Meanwhile Lindsay and Marissa have their makeovers, Lindsay gets a cool short reverse A-line bob cut and looks really badass, while Marissa gets her hair dyed jet black and cut in choppy layers. It looks fine but you can tell by her face Marissa is not happy.

The girls go to Homa’s class and since the week is all about first impressions, they have to do freeze frame shots of particular expressions, I guess so they can see what they actually look like vs. what they think they look like or something. Most of the girls do pretty well, Tanedra kills it again, Marissa bombs, and Kylah once again LITERALLY DOES NOT CHANGE EXPRESSION. What the fuck.

Back at the house the girls are all gushing over Lindsay and Marissa’s makeovers, Michelle voices her jealousy despite earlier thinking it was hilarious, and Angela is mad that she’s no longer the only one with her “look”, even though she and Marissa don’t look the same at all, the only similarity is the colour of their hair?? Marissa goes and has a cry about her hair because she’s now lost all her confidence and honestly it’s actually kinda sad / hard to watch.

The next day they find one of the rooms in the house has been filled with creepy dolls and of course one of them is actually a person that jumps out and scares them because omg what a funny prank haha. The “doll” tells them their director’s challenge is a photoshoot which many of the girls are stoked about. They’re basically given generic horror themes and have to shoot the poster. Dot points again!

Lina gets “Tie Die” and her costume is literally a length of rope that’s wrapped around her. She immediately cracks the shits and goes into full blown diva mode, complaining about her costume, how apparently difficult her theme is compared to other girls, telling the makeup and hair people how to do their jobs, etc. Whaaaaat, Lina is a bitch?? This is brand new information!! Unfortunately she still does a really good job with the photoshoot.

Lindsay gets “Blinded By the Fright” and her costume is a hospital gown and white contact lenses, which she has difficulty putting in but is EXTREMELY polite about it with the makeup lady (a nice juxtaposition to Lina’s bitch fest). Lindsay also does really well in the photoshoot.

Kylah gets “Thin Skin” which she comments sounds like a porno, lmao. Her costume is literally just black liquid latex painted all over her body and the other girls are fucking FROTHING with jealously. Kylah proceeds to completely bomb the challenge, giving absolutely no emotion and James literally has no idea how to direct her.

Michelle gets “Don’t Go in the Water” and is basically just wearing a bikini, but then James dumps a bottle of cold water all over her. She does really well in the photoshoot.

Sarah gets “Blood Skate”, her costume is just a bloody ice skating outfit, and she does okay.

Tanedra gets “Prom Scream”, she is wearing a bloody prom dress, and she does really well.

Jessica gets “The Butcher’s Girl” and she’s literally wearing a hat, gloves, no shirt, just an apron and shorts? And there’s blood? This one confuses me. She does okay.

Angela gets “Monster’s Wedding” which some of the other girls (correctly) complain is SUPER easy - she’s literally in a wedding dress posing with a bloody hand prop. She does fine but I mean all she has to do is stand there and smile??

Marissa gets “Mummy Maker” and she’s wrapped in what I assume are bandages but it looks like toilet paper? She’s pretty covered, including the bottom half of her face, and she’s supposed to be seductive but honestly it kinda just feels like an awkward interpretive dance??

The next day back at the house, Marissa vents to the other girls about her insecurity with her new hair. Like I know it’s just hair but it’s kinda sad, they completely changed her look which obviously fucks with her confidence. The girls get their photoshoot posters and everyone is stoked except Marissa (rightfully) and Lindsay, who basically has an anxiety attack and hates hers even though everyone is telling her how great it is. Whoo boy I relate to Lindsay so hard. Jessica reads the list which summons Marissa, Kylah, Lindsay, and Lina to the grand ballroom. They all think they’re at the bottom except Lina, who of course thinks she’s top shit.

In the grand ballroom, Lina gets pulled forward and despite doing well in the challenge, the judges straight up read her for being a bitch, which is hella satisfying let me tell you. Lindsay gets pulled forward and the judges tell her that she did an awesome job and that she needs to go easier on herself, before awarding her the week’s leading lady. Marissa and Kylah are predictably the bottom two, Marissa gets told she’s overthinking everything and Kylah just that she’s completely emotionless. Kylah gets the axe and Marissa lives another week.

Stay tuned for Season 1 Episode 3!

#scream queens #scream queens vh1 #vh1 #saw #saw 6 #saw vi #john homa #james gunn #shawnee smith #reality tv #lindsay felton #michelle galdenzi #tanedra howard #angela anderson #jessica palette #sarah agor #lina so #marissa skell #kylah kim #recap #tv recap

[hyunsunglix]

deadlines | h. jisung

pairing: han jisung x reader

genre: fluff + college au

requested?: no i just love college boys

word count: 2.4k+

a/n: kicking it off strong w my first post on here lol anyway i had a little too much fun writing this AND i even threw in some cameos ... if u catch them u get a gold star so watch out -sam

“this is so hard!” you whine, slumping over onto the chemistry notes you hadn’t bothered to finish. you turn your gaze towards your friend, kyungjoo, who gives you a fake sympathetic look.

“i know, y/n, i know, it’s just so hard for you to sit here for two hours and stare at him-“ she points her pencil at a boy sitting a few rows in front of you- “the whole time.”

“it is!” you defend yourself, although your heart isn’t truly in it, because the boy kyungjoo’s pointing at has caught your attention once again.

he looks like any other student in a typical 8am class- messy hair, sweatpants, hoodie. looking over the lecture hall, you probably would have missed him if you didn’t already know where he sat. which, for the record, was on the left side, fourth row, surrounded by other guys from his fraternity. of course.

as you tune yourself further in to the guys’ conversation, and begin to ignore whatever life advice kyungjoo is trying to give you now, you realize that the fraternity is talking amongst themselves excitedly- really excitedly.

“who are you bringing?”

“chan, your girlfriend is coming right? and minho’s coming too?”

“changbin, you’re going to have a hell of a time getting enough beer for all of us.”

and lastly, “are you gonna do it tonight?” “of course i’m gonna do it tonight; can’t wait any fucking longer.”

a party. of course there’s a party. there’s one practically every friday night, and every friday night, you don’t go. you use the age old excuse of “oh, i wasn’t invited!” but you know nobody needs an invite to a frat party. you’re just waiting for one anyways.

you tell this to kyungjoo as you come out of your dazed state. she laughs at you, telling you maybe she’ll take off to the frat party and have a little fun with someone while you stay in the dorms, staring at the blank chemistry notebook that’s taunting you right now. it seems to get closer, and closer, and closer- until your professor’s voice rings throughout the hall.

your body lurches, and your spine hits the back of your chair almost involuntarily. the sound of it is comically deafening compared to kyungjoo’s quiet laughter, and the whispers of the frat boys just a few rows in front of you.

“for part of your midterm assessment, you will be required to complete a group project- your own presentation, adequately covering a section of one of the units we’ve completed in class thus far. remember, the best way to learn is by teaching. your groups have been assigned at random; if you have any problems with your group members, please speak with me privately. to save time, i’ll be putting the list on the board.”

then, projected onto the whiteboard, is your fate for the next week. you scan the list for your name, your name, your name… for a moment after you see it, you forget if it’s even yours, because all you can see is the name han jisung sitting right underneath it.

y/n. han jisung.

han jisung. y/n.

you reach desperately for kyungjoo, nearly choking her in your own panic. “oh, are you doing electronegativity?” she muses. “i’d be pissed if i had to do that, too.”

“no, i-“ frankly, you don’t even know what section you’re covering; it doesn’t really matter now, anyway, because you’re convinced you’re fucked no matter what. “just look, kyungjoo!”

she manages to stop her gaze from wandering the lecture hall, up and down the aisles like a kid in a candy store, and squints at the board. her eyes blow open the moment she sees your name, but she forces them back and grins at you. “aw, have fun you little lovebird!” she squeals as a member of her own group tugs her away from you. you think you might actually choke her later.

the students are clearly splitting off into their groups, so you feel pressured to do the same- but not before you scout out jisung, and check (and then double check and triple check) to make sure it’s not too weird if you walk straight up to him right now. it’s not. “what the hell were you expecting?” you whisper to yourself as you walk towards the front of the room. it feels like a hike, miles long, and it could be placebo, but you swear you’re a little bit winded by the time you reach his desk.

he beats you to the punch. “hi, y/n.”

“hi, jisung,” you reply, leaning ever so slightly over the tabletop. “who else is in our group?” you try not to let any nervousness show in your voice.

“oh, jiwon is working with us, but she’s, ahem, ‘sick’ today.” the air quotes he puts around the word “sick,” are almost endearing, until the image of a hungover jiwon- kyungjoo’s friend, an absolute doll you’ve had the privilege of meeting a few times- pops into your mind. “oh, yikes.”

“yeah, yikes is about right.” he pauses, shaking his head at nothing, then looks back up at you. “sit down.” he motions to the chair next to him.

you grasp for conversational straws as you take your seat, “so, i heard your frat is having a party this weekend?” dumb question; of course they’re having a party. you know they are.

“yeah, we are!” the tone of excitement he had when talking to his friends comes back, and it makes you smile. “oh my god, y/n, you should come!”

the smile drops off your face, an expression of pure shock left in its trail. “really?”

“i mean, as long as you’re down for it. it’ll be fun; a ton of people are gonna be there.” he gives you a little nudge with his elbow, and you feel yourself falling into his trap. it’ll totally be fun, won’t it? you think to yourself. you take one look at jisung and decide, yeah, it will.

“i’ll come.”

his smile is even wider than yours. “great; it starts at 9, but you can come whenever. and you don’t have to bring anything, just yourself.”

“i’ll probably come with kyungjoo, is that okay?”

“oh, that’s perfect!”

+

“that’s perfect!” kyungjoo tells you as she adjusts your outfit in the mirror. you would beg to differ, but you keep your mouth shut, because kyungjoo looks stunning herself- so if she thinks you look good, that must mean something, right?

you run your own hands down your outfit’s front. sheer material, sprinkled with baby blue glitter, covers you from your neck down to the middle of your thighs, and its sparkle almost distracts from the delicate white slip dress you wear underneath. kyungjoo passes you your shoes and steps away as you put them on, since they give you quite a few inches over her already shorter frame. “i don’t want to be seen next to you,” she jokes.

you head out of the dorms together, wrapped in jackets to protect not only yourselves, but also the shock factor of your outfits. you don’t want to give everything away just yet, especially not to any of the boys sitting out on their frat houses’ front porches because they think they’re too good for anyone’s parties but their own.

the few people on the front lawn turn a blind eye to you and kyungjoo, so you slip through the door without anyone noticing. inside, the air is heavy with the scent of alcohol and the sound of music. mentally, you start preparing a plan to split up with kyungjoo and search the place for jisung- the idea of not having anyone to attach yourself to makes you jittery, but jisung was the only reason you showed up, really, so you’d be damned if you didn’t find him, you have to find him, but you’re getting a little hot in your jacket, so you start to unzip it- and then you see him.

amongst the lazy sway of the party, his dash through the kitchen and into the foyer is hard to miss. that, and he runs straight into you. as he uses your shoulders to steady himself, he pushes your jacket off. you barely hear it hit the floor- time slows and your senses numb as you watch jisung give you what might be the slowest once-over of all time. “y/n,” he mumbles. his voice proves he’s more drunk than you expected him to be. “i’m glad you showed up.” it’s not a you look good, which is what your heart really wanted, but it’s a start- until it ends.

a wide-eyed blonde girl, someone you recognize as being a few years older than you, comes up behind him. “jisung,” she says, her voice like a siren’s song. he turns slow, too slow for her taste, and so she tugs his arm. “jisung,” she repeats, louder this time. this draws the attention of some of the people in the kitchen, and a boy from the football team comes out. “han!” he claps his hand on jisung’s back.

more people follow, and jisung’s eyes widen as he’s pulled in a dozen directions at once. under pressure, you let go of his hand. you didn’t even realize you had grabbed it, yet you missed the feeling of it as soon as it was gone. kyungjoo slips her hand into yours in jisung’s place, and drags you into the living room. “come on, we’re gonna have some fun!”

your idea of fun at the beginning of the night hadn’t been eavesdropping on the sorority girls’ game of never have i ever, but as time dragged on, you managed to trick yourself into thinking it was interesting- jiwon was there, at least, so you and kyungjoo had an excuse to hang around. eventually, she stood up and left the circle, saying something about getting more drinks for the group. “jiwonnie, can you get us some too?” kyungjoo pleads.

“i thought you weren’t drinking tonight,” you whisper to her.

“change of plans.” she gives you the same look she gives you when you talk about jisung, and you’re forced to nod.

jiwon enters the room again with what must be an armful of beers. she passes one to each girl seated on the floor, then hands one each to you and kyungjoo. you expect her to rejoin the sorority girls, but she climbs onto the sofa next to you. “y/n, i thought you’d be with jisung.”

“yeah, i thought i’d be, too,” you sighed, not meeting her eyes.

“yeah… he’s looking for you, actually.”

you nearly spit out your drink. “what? but he ran off with- with-”

“yuju.” jiwon finishes. “but that didn’t last long, he’s not that into her and she’s not that interesting, anyway. he’s looking for you, y/n.”

she’s begging the question, so you ask. “where is he?”

“outside, on the deck.”

you make your way across the house with the beer that you didn’t need and weren’t going to drink, finally feeling like you had a place at the party. when you spot jisung on the deck, he’s sitting on the railing, a spot next to him that looked as if it had been saved for you- your place.

“hey,” jisung greets you as you climb over the railing, guessing you’re just another sorority girl there to butter him up. but when he turns to look, you swear you can see his eyes sparkle from something that’s not the moonlight. “y/n,” he whispers.

“jisung.” you grin like a giddy schoolgirl, even though you know there’s lipstick staining your teeth and the slightest hint of alcohol on your breath.

“where were you?” he asks.

“i was with kyungjoo. you were with yuju, right?” you hope you’re wrong.

“yeah, for like, a minute. and then i came outside to wait for you.” he waited for you. the thought makes your heart jump, and then sink, as you realize you were the one that kept him waiting for so long, kept him with yuju, away from you.

“how was she?” you want to smack yourself as soon as the words pass your lips. you barely know yuju, all you know is no matter what jisung says about her, it’s going to upset you. your mind trails through dark hallways and crowds of people, thinking about jisung and yuju drinking, talking, laughing with each other, all while you were silent in the living room.

“fine, i guess… but i’d rather have been with you.” he pulls you into his side. you can feel it, you can see it, you can smell his cologne and just barely imagine what his lips would taste like, all while the world roars around you with a vigor that makes you feel small.

“sorry for keeping you waiting.” your voice is so soft you feel like it might get lost in the hum of the night, everything buzzing around you like you’re trapped in a lightbulb on the verge of blowing out.

“it’s okay, i’ve got all the time in the world.” his hand drifts up your side, tapping with his fingertips the same way you would touch a crystal glass. seconds that feel precious to you chip away from your body.

“do you really?” you blurt.

“yeah, do you not?”

“i mean, i wouldn’t say i do.”

“maybe you’ve got a little more time than you think.” there’s a cadence to his voice, which matches how he sways from the drinks he’s had. you look at him, slow, and he looks back at you, slower, with hair and eyes like molasses.

and then he crashes into you, sugary sweet and warm, and you feel yourself melting into him like it’s the only thing you have left to do. it’s the only thing you can think about, anyway, with it sticking in your mind so hard you feel like you’re reliving the same three second every time jisung pushes his lips against yours again. when he finally pulls away, you can barely catch up, leaving you with your shoulders drooping, your eyes half-lidded, licking your lips like there’s still something left on them, and you want it, bad.

“why’d you do it?” you ask, skipping over telling him how much you enjoyed it. there’s no way he doesn’t already know.

“i told myself i’d do it tonight.” he strains to keep his voice slow once again; the world inside his head moving far too fast after kissing you. “couldn’t wait any fucking longer.”

#stray kids #han jisung #han #stray kids imagine #stray kids drabble #stray kids scenario #han jisung imagine #han jisung scenario #jisung imagine #jisung drabble #jisung scenario #stray kids fluff #han jisung fluff #stray kids x reader #han jisung x reader #skz imagine #skz drabble #skz fluff #🌎.sam

[thoughtsofdarc]

The Butterfly Effect - Part 5 - The Ex

Bucky Barnes x Reader 

Words: 1450

A/N: This took me forever to write... Almost 4 hours for just about 1500 words. I’m getting so frustrated, that my hands don’t work proberly. The pain ain’t getting worse, so i take that as a good sign, but now it needs to leave, and take the numbness with it too.  Anyway... Enjoy this next chapter - We are working our way through the clichés... But who are we trying to be kidding? They are clichés for a reason right ;)  

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4

Bucky is the perfect man. He's sweet and caring, always asking how I'm doing and is actually listening to what I tell him. He's funny and makes me laugh over and over again, the more he can make me laugh the happier he seems to be. He's the perfect gentleman, observant, present and making me feel important, even if I'm talking about boring stuff like laundry.

He's sooo handsome, like taken out of a photo shoot for some high end fashion magazine. Sometimes, I even feel a tad to normal, even boring, compared to him. But he always acts like I'm the most beautiful girl in the world.

Not to mention, he is the best kisser I have ever laid my lips on. He takes my breath away, and makes me longing for more whenever he leaves, giving me butterflies in my stomach just by thinking of him.

Everything I've dreamed of. Except, I'm not really sure where I got him.

"So, have you... you know... done it yet?" Natasha cocks an eyebrow, a teasing smirk on her lips as she sips her coffee.

We are sitting at the coffee shop again, the one where Bucky gave me his number, hidden under a cookie.

I raise my eyebrows in surprise and look around to see if anyone heard her very direct and very private question. Luckily for me, it doesn't seem like anyone is paying us attention.

"No! What, no...? No!" The words come out as a stutter, and I cringe when I hear just how flustered I sound. Way to go y/n, that will definitely make her believe you.

 Natasha laughs as she squints and point a finger at me "You just said no, tree times. Don't hold back on me... how was it?" She leans in, ready to hear all the juicy details. So typically Nat!

 I sigh, deeply as I play with the handle of the coffee mug.

"I'm serious Nat... We haven't. I'm not even sure that we are official. I mean, we've been out more than enough to think we are, but... It's like it never goes any further than dates, holding hands and mind-blowing goodbye kisses" I look at her, sadder than I intent to.

 "Oh Sweetie! I'm sorry... I thought you..." She trails off and I nod, understanding what she means.

"Well, if he can't get his ass in gear and officially make you his, I see no other choice than for us to go out and have some fun tonight. There's this new bar a few blocks from my work and I've been dying to go. It's been ages since the last time we went out, and also this is going to be one of the last times having a girls night out before I officially becomes Mrs. Barton"

 "Nat, I don't know..." I start, but she cuts me off very quickly.

"Y/n, I'm not saying you have to find another guy... it's just a girls night out. Clint is working late, and I really want to go... Please?" She looks at me with her puppy dog eyes as she tries to hide her smile. She knows I can't refuse, and yelp out a celebrating "Yes!" when I agree to go.

 "Y/n, stop fussing, you look great!" Natasha swats my hand away from the hem of the dress she has lent me.

"But it's so short!" I whine and tug on the fabric again, trying to make it cover a bit more of my thighs but to no avail.

It does look great, and it hugs my curves all the right places. My ass looks great and with the high heels matching the dress, I look like a million dollars.

But this outfit will get me attention and something inside of me keeps reminding me, that I don't want anyone else's attention but Bucky's.

 Once seated at the corner of the bar, after having ordered a drink each, I relax a bit. There's a cozy atmosphere. I'm typing out a message, only listening halfheartedly to something Nat is saying, barely hitting send before the phone is snatched from my hands. "No phones!" she says sternly and put it in her purse.

"But, I was just texting Bucky, letting him know..." I start, but she cuts me off quickly by adding "And no, Bucky! This is girl's night out, remember?"  

 I smile sheepishly and nod. Clinking our glasses together, we are already deep in conversation again.

 "Y/n?!" I hear a familiar voice and immediately my eyes widen, cringing when I see the recognition in Natasha's eyes.

I turn around, and surely there he is, the one ex I don't want to meet ever again.

 "Brock, hi" the words are short and not inviting to further talk, but Brock being Brock he ignores the clear dismissal in my voice.

 "Y/n, it is you! I thought my eyes deceived me... You look fine" His words are slippery and hold more than just a compliment. That guy never did want anything else but my body.

"Still just the two of you like always, hmm?" He's eyes roam both Natasha's and my own body like they were food and he was a starving man "I thought I heard you had gotten married Tash. Settling down in the boring life as a housewife? And yet, here you both are just like the old days. Nothing's changed huh?"

 Natasha's eyes are hard and cold, she never did like Brock, and looking back I don't blame her.

She holds up her hand, flashing the beautiful ring that Clint gave her "Everything has changed, Brock. Now go away... we're having a girl's night here"

 He laughs, ignoring her completely as he moves closer to me, putting his hand on the small of my back, his eyes roaming my cleavage "Let me buy you a drink Y/n"

He signals to the bartender to make new drinks, even though I say no.

 Brock never was one to listen to others. And my discomfort is clearly showing to everybody in the room, except from him.

 When Brock puts his other hand on my thigh, Natasha is just about to jump up and yank him away from me, but someone else steps in close and lean in to kiss my cheek. Doing so, he comes in between Brock an myself, making Brock have to let go of me.

 "Hi Doll! I'm sorry I'm late. I got here as fast as I could, but traffic was a pain" Bucky's velvet voice rings sweetly in my ear, and I can't stop myself from grinning widely when I look up at him. Even Natasha looks happy to see him interrupting.

 He leans in and plants a quick kiss on my lips, making me sigh out loud before he turns to Brock and extend his hand.

"Hi, I'm Bucky, y/n's boyfriend... And you are?" The words are cold as ice, and leave no room for Brock to question what is happening.

 "I'm leaving..." He mumbles and turns around to walk away.

 I beam up at Bucky, who looks like he is watching a cockroach following Brock with his eyes. Natasha smirks looking from me, to Bucky and back to me, before she says

"I'll be right back, I have to give Clint a call" She winks at me as she stands up and makes her way towards the ladies room.

 "Thank you for saving me there..." Looking at Bucky, seeing how handsome he looks in dark jeans, tight navy-blue pullover and his hair pulled up into a bun. His blue eyes meet mine and his lips curl up in the smile I've come to love and adore.

 "Couldn't let that beast put his hands on you, Snow White" He answers and I have to giggle at his words.. "Wrong Disney Princess, Park Guy"

 His eyes wander over me. For a second I swear his eyes takes a darker shade of blue and he clench his jaw as if he is holding something back before he whispers "God, you are beautiful!"

 The waiter comes over and places the two drinks that Brock ordered before, in front of us as he says "One beer for the gentleman and one 'Blue Butterfly' for the lady" before he smiles shortly and quickly turns away to takes the next order.

 We both chuckle when we hear the name of the drink. I let my finger run over the cool glass before I turn to look at him, a shy smile on my lips

"So... My boyfriend, huh??"

 Bucky's eyes looks deeply into mine, his smile never leaving his lips as he puts his hand on my cheek

"Only if you'll have me?"

Part 6

Tags:

@bexboo616 @happylittlethingsss @mizzzpink @fangirling-all-the-way-tbh​ @owhatshername1 @sinceimetyou @alextittle @todorath @tbetz0341 @fortheloveoflamp @whimsicalatbest @buckysjuicyplums @mynameisreallycoolbutitstoolong @kalisaysfuck @shitmymomsay @mjgonzalez-01 @projectxhappiness @kuollut-talven @lol-haha-joke @caplansteverogers @loki7ms @who-cares-rn @cc8302 @buckysarm4 @altyex

#Bucky #Bucky Barnes #The butterfly effect #Darc thoughts #bucky x reader #Bucky x you #Bucky Barnes x reader #Bucky Barnes x you #Bucky imagine #Bucky Barnes imagine #Bucky Barnes drabble #Bucky drabble #Bucky fluff #Bucky Barnes fluff

[cviperfan]

OKAY DEATH NOTE 2017 THOUGHTS

Under a cut for length not spoilers because honestly who fucking cares

-So the movie commits many sins but principle among them are two 1) The Death Note is basically just a vehicle for gore porn, pretty much indistinguishable functionally from any other 'Cursed Object' type horror movie.  There's lip service paid to the suspense trappings of the original work but Wingard is clearly much more interested in the kind of brutal deaths that can be extracted from the Death Note's flexibility of options and far less in the moral quandaries that such an object would create, and Wingard's pre-release interview that expressed an interest in creating a Hard-R version of the story was at least for me a clear indicator that he was Wrong for the project, since grisly deaths are not what makes the story interesting, or in fact are even a priority.  The fact that the default way the Death Note kills in the original canon is a heart attack (by all intents a fairly 'clean' method of death) is there for a reason, as is the 2017 version's curious decision to specifically omit that detail.

(In Wingard's interview he expresses a desire to include the "adult themes of anime" which specifically include "nudity, swearing, tons of violence" to him, which suggests that his familiarity with the medium starts and ends with Ninja Scroll and nothing else and that he probably didn't actually watch Death Note outside of a cliffs notes he had an intern scribble out or something)

2) And this is much more fundamentally antithetical to the original work, but Light's transition from Villain protagonist to Reluctant Misunderstood Anti-Hero.

in the original canon it's certainly possible to find Light's end goal aspirational, even if the actual empathy with Light himself doesn't last very long, and part of the paradox of the manga/anime is Light being a pointedly and unmistakably Terrible Person while also being a compellling and interesting protagonist.  Even if you don't necessarily want Light to succeed, watching him operate and maneuver through various obstacles on the path to his goal is fascinating on its own terms.

Death Note 2017!Light, by contrast, is given great, excruciating measures to make him Highly Sympathetic to the audience, and indeed we are meant to interpret him specifically as a Good Kid Who Took A Wrong Turn and is now Way In Over His Head.  His mom died at the hands of Joe Chill a crook who got away with it, giving him a nice clean Batman justification, he's bullied at school, is extremely concerned with his actions being percieved as good and perhaps most crucially, tries to limit his body count outside of criminals (American!Light reacts extremely negatively to the mere IDEA of killing his dad when he calls Kira out, whereas canon!Light, while certainly not enthusiastic about the idea, was right there weighing the pros and cons, reasonably prepared to do so if he proved to be enough of a problem).

He doesn't even use the Death Note initially of his own volition; Ryuk has to be there to straight-up Devil on His Shoulder-him into it (in a hilariously over-the-top introduction, more on that later), and Misa (sorry, MIA) is constantly pushing him to go darker when his resolve wavers, and indeed seems way more into the idea of using the Death Note on a visceral level than Light is.

All of this is contrary to one of the crucial points of Death Note in its original form-- Light was a person of privilege surrounded by a loving family and with infinite potential who had absolutely no reason to have become a power-hungry arbiter of "justice" with a god complex, and yet when a bit of power happened to fall into his hands that's exactly what he became.  He didn't need a traumatic event or a bad situation to become Kira, just the possibility that he could do it and get away with it.  

But even in a Death Note adaptation where the first death we get is someone's head being cut off at the jaw with a fucking ladder, this seems like too dark a conclusion for Adam Wingard to come to, so even when his body count starts rising we get constant excuses and reminders that he's A Good Kid, Honest, He's Really Trying To Do The Right Thing He's Just Got So Many Bad Influences That Pushed Him This Way and in the face of the original work's frankness (and Wingard's talk of "adult themes") this just comes off as cloying and toothless.

Nevermind that in light (heh) of the extremely whitewashed nature of this adaptation, the almost fetishistic effort of the writing team to sanitize Troubled White Teen Boy Light Turner (Who Has His Whole Life Ahead Of Him) of as much active culpability as possible is certainly quite telling isn't it

Okay that out of the way, time for some just Random Bad Shit lol

-just so we know exactly what we're dealing with and what director Adam Wingard thinks is cool one of the very first shots of the movie is Misa (sorry, MIA) at cheerleading practice but see she's not like THOSE OTHER SHEEPLE who are all ACTUALLY PRACTICING AT CHEER PRACTICE SHE'S A COOL DISAFFECTED REBEL BECAUSE SHE DOESN'T WANNA PRACTICE AT CHEER PRACTICE god look at these PHONIES all having fun and laughing OUR GIRL IS SO COOL SHE'D MUCH RATHER SMOKE AND LOOK BORED WHAT A BADASS -And like later in the movie she's all to Light "I'M A CHEERLEADER nothing i ever did mattered before i met you!!" like then WHY ARE YOU A CHEERLEADER WHY WERE YOU THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE?????? YOU CAN DO LITERALLY ANYTHING ELSE MY KIDDO -So the Light/Mia relationship is kind of a mess because not only do they try and play it up as the emotional lynchpin of the narrative (no, for real) but the reversal with Mia being the one who becomes super obsessed with the Death Note (even to the point where she tries to set up Light to die so she can get it) and her being the Other Bad Influence on Light really manages to make even the original Death Note's bad track record with its women fucking shine by comparison.  If the original Light/Misa dynamic was basically a Joker/Harley setup written by someone who understood that it's an abusive relationship, new!Light/Mia is the Hot Topic Romanticized Joker/Harley but also Joker is the Real Victim here apparently -Like they literally get off to using the Death Note together and make out while scanning the internet for targets-- like there COULD absolutely be a place for there to be commentary on Bored Well-Off White Kids abusing power for the fun of it, but again there's no room for insight when there's those practical gore effects to throw around -Dear god there is not a HINT of subtlety in this fucking thing, an especially egregious stylistic choice when the manga/anime is (while ofc prone to Light's.... extreme and borderline comically evil reactions) overwhelmingly grounded with-- especially compared to many anime and manga in general-- comparatively moderate supernatural elements and touches, especially in terms of its visual detail and art direction.  Wingard's Death Note on the other hand, has thunderstorms AND flickering lights that accompany Ryuk's appearances until they... don't (ARE YOU PICKING UP THE SUBTLE FAUSTIAN ELEMENTS HERE AUDIENCE????????), a trip through a Spooky Dark Abandoned Mansion that features a close-up of a busted doll accompanied by a creepy child's laugh NO REALLY IM SERIOUS and deaths that frequently end in torrents of blood because that's what we're really here for apparently -Speaking of a lack of subtlety, while I get the logic in casting Dafoe for Ryuk he ends up being both underutilized and a sadly uninteresting choice, since the apparent direction for him to go more Norman Osbourne really takes away any degree of ambiguity Ryuk has as a patently neutral party in the whole thing (at least as far as the original goes; this really wants to set him up as a Red Herring possible antagonist in a thread that goes absolutely nowhere and ends up meaning nothing).  Like I think he could have worked if the performance was a little lower-key and he had not-terrible writing to work with, but at least someone's having fun in this mess so wth -L fans are gonna be fucking pissed off because HOLY HELL they didn't not fuck him up either -Canon L: Sherlock Holmes but with sweets instead of hard drugs and also he sits weird sometimes -Death Note 2017!L: Fucking Weirdo Asshole With Bizarre Rituals galore and also he can't sleep without Watari awkwardly singing the greatest hits of Celine Dion SHUT UP IM SERIOUS because okay -So the wierd race bullshit definitely doesn't stop at Light because the framing of L (who is played by Keith Stanfield, a black actor and OH BOY I CAN ALREADY HEAR THE IMNOTRACISTBUTS COMING IN) is pointedly, aggressively antagonistic.  Rather than giving Stanfield the collected, analytical, somewhat awkward detective characterized in the source material, Death Note 2017's L's erratic tics and behaviourisms are meant to make the audience find him uncomfortable rather than compelling in his own right, because autistic-coded super detective is such an interesting and not at all gross and played-out formation of a character.  Because again, the movie has no real interest in being suspenseful or focusing on the cat-and-mouse game, L figures out that Light is Kira with very little deduction or buildup, and indeed aside from a pointedly brief midpoint conversation and a completely stupid and pointless chase scene near the end, the two barely interact, so the whole aspect of two strong wills directly competing within inches of each other is tossed aside. -Also WHO THE FUCK THOUGHT A SCENE OF A YOUNG BLACK MAN BEING SLAMMED INTO A TABLE AND NEARLY CHOKED OUT BY A WHITE COP WITH ANGER ISSUES AND A SELF-RIGHTEOUS STREAK IN DEFENSE OF A GUILTY WHITE KID WHO ULTIMATELY GETS AWAY WITH IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TASTE WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT -Speaking of poor taste we couldn't find more than one Japanese actor for a speaking role (Watari, natch, with barely a handful of lines) BUT WE CERTAINLY COULD FOR THIS SEX CLUB SCENE WITH A ROOM PACKED FULL OF DEAD JAPANESE PEOPLE IN FETISH GEAR -Ryuk himself also looks Fuckin Bad and they know it since the overwhelming majority of his shots are him BLURRED THE FUCK OUT IN MIDDLE DISTANCE OR OFF IN THE CORNER -"many people have tried to write the 4 letters in my name into the Death Note but nobody has gotten farther than 2 :)" your full name was literally in there but ok -"all the deaths have to be physically possible" Ferris Wheel magically collapses for no reason to facilitate a death -"I need L's full name to kill him, I'll just take control of Watari with the Death Note EVEN THOUGH WATARI IS A FUCKING ALIAS" and also if this was in fact his real name and L knew it WHY WOULD HE HAVE LET HIM GO AROUND WITH HIS FACE UNCOVERED LIKE????????????????????????????????? -Reveals L without ceremony during the nightclub murder investigation/pretends like there's a mystery and a reveal to be had for the audience and awkwardly attempts to re-enact bits of the original introduction to the character anyway

Ultimately there's more that I'm probably forgetting but wow Death Note 2017 is just impressively dumb.  Like, original Death Note could get pretty dumb especially in the last half, but that was more a case of working itself into a corner over time and its reach extending beyond its grasp on occasion.  This just has no aspirations to even try.

Like, shit, I honestly don't like Death Note all that much but I can at least appreciate that it has some weight to it and made an effort to build a complex character-driven narrative while proposing a thoughtful moral paradox, which is more than I can say for the 'fans' who wanted to adapt it and decided this was the best possible approach lmao

#death note 2017 #WHENS THE RIFFTRAX

[taillow-suift]

Crashing Wavelengths - Prologue (First Draft)

I’m back. Sort of. I’ve been writing. It’s a story I’ve always been wanting to do for a long time and I figure this is a good time to start executing on it. Remember that idea I had about the mystery behind Misty’s parents? Well, I’m gonna do it. Let’s see how far I go. I’m going to be posting first drafts of my story chapters on Tumblr to test the waters. Then after enough feedback, I’ll post revised versions of it on my ff.net account. This prologue might start off slow. But here goes nothing lol.

Summary: Ash attempts to reconnect with Misty shortly after his return to Kanto. But the ramifications of the Lumiose terror attack complicate their reunion as remnants of Team Flare remain at large. The wounded organization’s activities for some odd reason begin taking special interest in Misty’s familial past involving her mother’s research and her father’s navy background. Naval intelligence officers soon become involved, setting the two sides in a crash course with Ash and Misty at the center.

Droplets from gray overcast clouds pelted the car. The captain thoughtlessly zoned out in the ceaseless drumming of metal and glass. His eyesight fixed on the clear stubby beads left undisturbed by the idle windshield wipers. Entranced, the naval officer remained in his seat, his hands still gripping the steering wheel.

“Captain?” asked the blond pony-tailed woman in the passenger seat next to him.

Captain Angelo Harrison continued gazing at the windshield, not heeding the request made to him just now. Lieutenant Commander Jill Bosman was beginning to lose patience. They were parked for about ten minutes since the engine was turned off. The captain claimed he wanted to finish his coffee before disembarking. But Jill could clearly see that the styrofoam cup in the cup holder now only had dried dark stains at the rim of its base.

“Captain, sir,” she demanded.

This time she was no longer asking for his awareness. The sudden force in tone snapped Captain Harrison out of his daze. 

“Sorry about that,” he apologized while shaking his head into the present.

“Sir, are we going to do this?” asked Bosman, acutely relieved that her captain was no longer spaced out.

“Yeah,” the captain weakly affirmed, “Yeah, we’re gonna do this, just, just need to get my bearings.”

The captain took a deep breath. He squinted his eyes, his sight trained on the windshield again. But this time his focus was ahead on the building in front of the car. He exhaled. 

 “Bosman, would you believe that the building in front of us is the home of a navy commander?” he canvassed half-rhetorically.

The intelligence officer tried to pierce her vision through the refracting pods of liquid littering the fogged up glass. She could faintly see a building with an oversized Dewgong fixed on top of it. The building was colorful, almost circus like. It was definitely unusual for a decorated officer of the navy to call home.

“I would say it’s kind of hard to believe, sir,” she reflected in her answer, “But it fits with what I remember of Commander Waters talking about his wife and family.” 

“Hell of a wife,” the Captain remarked, “Four adorable girls. The youngest just turned a year old.”

The Lieutenant Commander’s acquaintance with Jonas Waters was mostly from intelligence briefings and after-action reports at headquarters, the Vermillion Naval Shipyard. She didn’t know the commander as well as Captain Harrison did. She remained silent, politely waiting for more cues to respond.

The Captain continued, “I told Jonas that marrying a gym leader didn't seem like a good idea. I mean, sure, they both liked the open water and the open sea. But he had to realize how, well, weird it was for a navy guy to marry someone in the League.”

“And how did he feel about that, sir?” Jill Bosman probed, finding a chance to superficially indulge her commanding officer.

“Oh, he agreed with me,” Harrison said amusedly, “But he also said he was practically married to the sea. So, might as well make it official by getting hitched to a water gym leader.” The captain lightly chuckled remembering the quote. 

Jill realized the captain was trying waste time. She cut to the chase. “I know this is hard, Captain,” she allayed.

The short-lived smile on the captain’s face quickly faded. Angelo Harrison took another deep breath of the chill humid air. The air temporarily soothed his anxious stomach. He allowed the sound of raindrops take over again as he took another brief reprieve of silence. The sinking feeling in his stomach returned not long after. With an audible sigh, he lifted his white khaki military cap he was resting on his lap.

“Alright,” he announced. He fit his cap over his black hair. “Let’s get this over with, Commander.”

“Aye, sir,” his Lieutenant Commander confirmed, fixing her own cap.

Captain Harrison and Lt Commander Bosman climbed out of their car into the cold midday shower. Their dress white military uniforms faintly darkened with spotted patterns from the falling water. The two officers briskly stepped along the path leading to the glass doors of the Gym, not wanting to prolong their exposure to the unfavorable weather. As soon as they entered, they saw two girls, one with purple hair and another with pink hair. The little girls were chasing each other around the main lobby. Angelo recognized them as Jonas’s daughters.

“Hey give that back! That’s mine!” demanded the purple haired girl.

She kept swiping at the doll in her sister’s hands. The pink haired sister countered by jerking her arm in sync with her sibling’s attempts to steal.

“Nuh uh, it’s not yours,” claimed the girl in possession of the doll, ”Mom says we have to share!”

“That’s not sharing, you’re just keeping it!”

Angelo interrupted the girls. “Why hello there, Lily, Violet. Can we speak to your mom?”

The daughters paused their altercation and looked at the pair.

“Oh, hi Uncle Angelo,” greeted the purple haired girl, Violet, turning to face the navy officers.

“Hi Uncle Angelo,” greeted the other sister, Lily, still holding the doll above her head, “I’ll get her for you- MOM! Uncle Angelo is here to see you! HEY!-”

Violet had grabbed the doll from Lily’s hands and started running towards the stairs leading to the gym residence.

“Hey you thief!” accused Lily, “Give that back!”

Lily started running after her sister. Miriel Flowers entered the lobby from the gym’s pool stadium and caught a brief glimpse of her daughters’ chase.

“Lily! Violet! C’mon! How many times do I have to tell you, no running in the gym!” she tried to loudly warn her daughters. 

Miriel sighed knowing that her daughters likely didn’t hear her. She brushed the crumbs of Pokemon food still stuck to her hands on her white and blue spring wetsuit. The gym leader looked up at Angelo and Jill, smiling with a slight tinge of embarrassment. Her husband’s colleagues just saw her daughters not quite behaving as she would have preferred.

“How are you doing, Angelo?” she welcomed. She reached out to hug her husband’s best friend.

“Miriel, I hope things are good,” said Angelo, accepting the embrace, “The girls look, animated, as ever.”

“As you can see, I’ve been teaching them how to share,” she sarcastically replied with feigned pride while disengaging from the hug.

“Well, hey, I’d say you’re doing a great job!” Angelo jokingly agreed.

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll be giving to charity soon enough when I’m finished with them,” she japed, “Though the first three don’t compare with how much a handful the little one is. Can you believe it? She crawled into the mouth of our Gyarados the other day. The poor fella spit her back out. Guess she didn't taste so good.” 

Miriel jokingly exaggerated a shrug. It was as if her baby daughter should have at least been worthy of being eaten by a creature as majestic as her Gyarados.

“Oh no, is she all right?” Angelo worriedly expressed.

“Yeah poor girl was crying all day,” recounted Miriel, “But Daisy has been helping out getting her calmed down. She’s strong though! She’s a redhead just like mom. Girl just needs to sleep it off.” Miriel followed her assertion with an cocky wink.

“Taking care of a gym, taking care of four kids, and now I hear you’re applying for a new research grant?” Angelo remembered.

Miriel’s green eyes brightened a bit from an opportunity to talk about her research. “Why yeah! Submitted some grant proposals down to Cinnabar the other day hoping to get a few bites from the faculty. With any luck we’ll start getting some funding to gather hard data on Tentacool and Tentacruel migratory patterns and social dynamics soon. Honestly can’t wait!”

“I mean, don’t you worry you’re overworking yourself a bit? Handling a gym, doing the marine biologist thing, and being a mother?” asked Angelo.

“Oh, don’t get started on me too,” Miriel warned while flinging her wrist in playful dismissal. “I hear enough of that from Jonas. I just tell him I can get a good handle on things so long as he comes back on time from his deployments.”

Angelo grimaced at the remark. Miriel was expecting her husband to come back home soon. He didn’t want to segue the discussion so soon as to why he and Jill were there. But he was aware it was only a matter of time that they’d arrive to this point.

“Speaking of which,” observed Miriel, “How’s Jonas doing on his deployment? And who’s your friend here?”

It was now or never. “Miriel, this is Lieutenant Commander Jill Bosman,” he explained, soberly shifting his tone, “She’s with the Naval Intelligence Division.”

Jill, finally sensing an opportunity to engage with Miriel, offered her hand. “Hello Mrs. Flowers, it’s nice to finally meet you.”

Miriel looked unsettled from the sudden change in frequency. She shook the woman officer’s hand with visible hesitation.

“Angelo, what’s this about?” Miriel tried to ascertain, “What’s going on?”

Jill attempted to blunt what was in store for Miriel. “Mrs. Flowers, perhaps you would like take a seat before we go on?”

“I think I’m fine standing,” resisted Miriel, “Angelo? Are you guys actually here to talk about Jonas?”

“Er, we really think you should sit down, Miriel,” Angelo sidestepped, trying to guide her shoulder to one of the gym lobby benches.

Miriel jerked out of his grip. She spun around to make direct eye contact with her husband’s best friend. “This really is about Jonas, isn’t it?” she probed, “You wouldn’t be here unless something happened to him.”

Her eyebrows sharply furrowed. A large crease appeared on Miriel’s forehead. Angelo and Jill couldn’t offer anything but silence. They looked at each other in a futile attempt to regroup their strategy. This wasn’t going as smooth as they planned. Miriel, evidently uncomfortable with the stillness and its implications, became frank.

“He’s dead isn’t he?” she speculated. Her voice wavered with anxiety just from the thought.

At that moment, Captain Harrison and Lt Commander Bosman understood the jig was up.

“We’re not sure,” the captain ashamedly admitted.

Miriel’s horrible assumption was left unrefuted. The confirmed ambiguity surrounding her husband’s safety was more than enough to overwhelm the gym leader.

“Oh Arceus,” she sobbed. She raised her right hand to her mouth. Her legs weakened as her knees almost buckled. She reflexively twisted her feet causing her flip flops to squeak. She was still standing but Jill could tell that emotions were overcoming the gym leader’s posture. She latched on to Miriel’s shoulders in case she lost balance.

“I got you,” assured the Lieutenant Commander, “You ready to sit down, Mrs. Flowers?”

Miriel silently complied with Jill’s suggestion. The naval officer guided her to a bench. Upon being seated, she shielded her bare legs with her crossed forearms and stared at the floor tiles of her gym.

“Just tell me what’s happening,” she coarsely begged, still staring at the floor. 

“We, we lost contact with the NSS Levi several days ago,” Angelo stuttered, already regretting the lead up to this moment. “We’ve been conducting search and rescue operations ever since to find out what happened to your husband’s ship.”

“We’ve only found small pieces of the Levi’s hull approximately 24 hours ago east of the Orange Archipelego,” Jill continued, “From what we’ve salvaged, we’ve had to conclude that the NSS Levi was destroyed.”

Miriel closed her eyes and slowly inhaled. “Did you find any bodies?” she whispered.

“We can’t confirm any casualties so far,” reported the captain.

Miriel gave a labored exhale. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” she lamented.

“I know, Miriel. And I’m so sorry for dropping this all on you without any warning,” Angelo atoned, hoping that it would be a salve, “We’re trying our best to find Jonas and his crew alive.”

“So what the hell happened, Angelo?” the gym leader demanded, finally looking up, “What happened to my husband?”

“We don’t know,” answered Angelo, “That’s what we’re trying to figure out.”

“But how can you not know? How can the navy with all its men and resources not be sure of what happened?” pouted the gym leader, her voice raised an octave signalling her anxiousness.

“Mrs. Flowers,” interrupted the Lt Commander,  “Until we find the rest of the Levi’s hull, we can’t make a conclusive assessment on what really happened to the ship.”

“That’s Tauros crap,” Miriel breathed with impatience, “Navy ships report speed, heading, and position constantly over radio. I do marine research and sail boats too. This makes absolutely zero sense!”

“With all due respect ma’am, our radio logs aren’t helping us determine how far off course the ship had gone after losing contact with HQ. My team has been trying our best to triangulate-”

“Mom! Misty is crying again!” 

Jill looked to her right to see a blonde girl standing before the lobby staircase and cradling a crying infant.

“I think she’s hungry!”

Miriel quickly wiped her eyes. She swapped her distraught face with an assuring smile. 

“I’ll be right there honey!” she pledged without letting her voice stammer, “Just, go back upstairs!”

“Uh, okay!” the blonde child reluctantly obeyed.

The mother and the two naval officers patiently waited until Miriel’s oldest and youngest were back up the stairs. Jill cleared her throat and swallowed in an attempt to fill the dead uncomfortable air. She was used to briefing sailors and admirals. But briefing distraught civilians was never something she was trained to do.

“My team has been doing its best to triangulate where exactly we lost contact with the Levi using other methods.” Jill resumed in her most professional demeanor she could muster. “But we don’t know if we have enough data to look in the right places.”

Miriel looked down at her knees and pressed both her temples with her fingers. She sulked, her face growing tenser by the second. “I can’t believe this,” Miriel fumed, “You have satellites, GPS, radio, sonar-”

“Unfortunately those resources haven’t been helping us with the unique circumstances of your husband’s disappearance,” Lt Commander Bosman calmly explained.

“And those ‘unique’ circumstances,” questioned Miriel, connecting her tired eyes with the intelligence officer, “What are they?”

Jill craned her head towards her commanding officer for a cue. The navy captain met her gaze by closing his eyes and shaking his head.

“I’m afraid we can’t disclose that at the moment,” coldly replied the intelligence officer.

Miriel stood up to protest this time. The stress in her face, the vehicle that had conveyed her anxiety and worry, now was delivering frustration and rage.

“No. No. How could my husband just drop off the face of the earth during peacetime under clear skies and calm waters?” the gym leader contended, “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Miriel, please, it’s been a couple of hard but productive days,” Angelo tried to assure her, “These investigations take time.”

“Don’t patronize me,” the gym leader warned with intolerance, “You say you’re doing your best but in all honesty, you people either have no clue what’s going on or you’re hiding something. Either way, in a week or two, you’re probably going to come back here and tell me you’ve given up. I just know it.”

“That’s not going to happen,” countered Angelo, “We may be working on limited intel but-”

“What was his mission, Angelo?” Miriel impatiently snapped, “Why the secrecy?”

“C’mon, you know we can’t tell you that, Miriel,” the captain sternly swore, supporting his words with the best stoic face he could forge.

“And why not? What, am I a threat to national security? Are you people covering up something? What is it?”

Angelo kept his lips shut. Miriel contemptuously let out a puff of air from her nose. She sat back down on the bench she stood up from. 

“Classified huh. I guess I should’ve known letter, being the good sailor’s wife.”  

“You have to understand, this has nothing to with you or-”

Miriel shut her eyes in defiance. “Whatever. Whatever you tell me the next week you come back here, that either Jonas is still missing or he’s really been killed, you won’t have his body,” Miriel Flowers dispassionately concluded, “I know how this story goes.”

Jill wanted to challenge the gym leader’s claims about what she understood. But Captain Harrison canceled her attempt by putting his arm out in front of her. Neither party had anything else to say. The subsequent lull allowed the showering rain to assume the ambiance of the Cerulean Gym lobby. The gym leader in front of them had now buried her face in her hands. 

“Miriel, I’m really sorry,” Angelo could only offer.

Miriel looked up at the two officers. Her eyes were red and glazed with tears. She slid the blue left sleeve of her wetsuit across her face. The excess moisture forming in the corners of her jade eyes disappeared.

“Just go,” Miriel ordered. She rose from her bench and began walking towards the staircase leading to the gym residence.

“I have a baby to feed. And a husband to find,” Miriel Flowers declared.

“And I’m going to find him with or without your help.” 

_

Jill clenched the arm rest on her passenger side door. She stared aimlessly at the passing green foliage draped along the Route 6 highway. The journey from Cerulean City back to Vermillion Naval Shipyard had been mostly silent save for the drone of the car engine and the sporadic beat of the windshield wipers.

The naval intelligence officer took another glance at Captain Harrison. Focused on the road in front of him, the captain had said nothing since the start of their drive back to Vermillion. Jill kept making furtive glances to see if she could subtly catch his attention. She wondered if she could verbally extract some timely clue about his thoughts. The captain was usually chatty, wanting to always talk about fleet logistics, personnel changes, and the latest intelligence assessments. But the captain understandably locked himself away in his zone, just like the moments before they visited the Cerulean Gym.

Once again, the Lt Commander had enough of the silence. “Captain?” she broke.

“What is it, Bosman?” Captain Harrison acknowledged more readily this time, still keeping his eyes on the road.

“Do you think she was serious, sir?” Jill asked.

“About what?” the captain attempted to play dumb.

“About finding Commander Waters,” the intelligence officer clarified.

Captain Harrison didn’t offer a response. Jill tersely reiterated her request again. “Sir?”

“I don’t know,” the captain evasively responded.

“Well what if?” Jill Bosman continued to press, “What if we assume she really was serious?”

“I think any spouse of a serviceman would want to know what happened to a loved one,” vaguely answered the captain, sounding slightly vexed, “Enough to say emotional stuff like that in response to classified data.”

“But what if enough to really go out and do it?” Jill wondered, “I mean, she is a water Pokemon gym leader. I’ve heard they can read or see things about the sea that the navy can’t despite-"

Angel gave out a frustrated sigh.

“If she does try, then I doubt she’ll get very far,” the captain curtly disputed, “How would she? We have half of the Vermillion fleet out there right now. Working on sensitive intel your team recovered from those terrorists, those guys that called themselves Team Aqua. Despite all that? All dead ends. Nothing.”

“So you think she would eventually give up then?” deduced the Lt Commander, “Just like we will when the brass finally calls it?”

“No one really gives up,” the captain reflected. “Maybe the mind gives up. But.”

The captain paused, realizing he trapped himself with his own words. “But never the heart,” he continued.

“She,” the captain followed, almost trying to soothe himself with an lie, “She just needs closure.”

Jill read between the lines. She smelled the hypocrisy in his words. She could tell the captain was projecting. 

“Sir, you know as well as I do that we didn’t give her much of a chance to have that closure,” pointedly observed the intelligence officer. 

Captain Angelo Harrison could only acknowledge Jill’s statement with a muted vacuum. It lasted until they arrived to Vermillion City. It was a unspoken admission that she was right. 

#my fan fiction #Pokemon #Misty #Pokeshipping #fan fiction #first draft

[koreaboundfan]

Busan

So I had to just go to Busan. I have seen dramas filmed in and about Busan and it was on my bucket list. I am really glad I went this whole weekend! It was a bit of an ordeal for comfortable Americans, like myself, to have to manage all the buses, trains, walking, etc. I walked to my bus stop 1132 and took that to Taereung where I caught Line 6 just for one stop to Seokgye, got off and walked a lot to Line 1 and took that to Seoul station. That’s were I walked a lot more and got to the KTX station up on top and bought my ticket to Busan. I walked to the gates where everyone who was waiting was sitting on these pretty bleachers to see what gate their train would be at. Just fyi - it only shows the gates to go to for trains departing about 30-40 minutes into the future. Ten minutes of waiting I see gate 8 and its a mad dash down two flights of stairs. The seats were luxurious and comfy. I was able to have free internet for most of the ride as provided by KTX as long as we weren’t in a tunnel. 

South Korea is full of hills, small mountains, and deep green trees and bushes. I guess I was really amazed at all the beautiful forestation and mountains with full cities in the valleys. I highly recommend you take the train south at least once to see it. I can only imagine what it looks like in the fall! 

Getting off the KTX train was an adventure as you had to go out the main doors and down about 4 flights of stairs to get to the metro lines. There I was a bit confused as route 1004 was actually train 7. Thanks to two beautiful young Korean ladies who walked up to me and asked if I needed help, I made it to the right train. Then off the train and about 4 blocks of walking I was about where I needed to be. Thanks to public internet, I could use my map with great accuracy to find my hotel down this alley type street. In SK, there are stores, restaurants, you name it, tucked away on literally every nook and cranny of street space. Basically there is no ‘backdoor; or backside to a store. There are TWO stores for every single building, unless it’s a rich store who owns both the front and the back. :) 

After checking into my hotel with the owner and her cute 12 year old daughter, I was shown the Korean way of using your key. It goes into a slot in your mini hallway to turn on all your room electricity. When you leave with the key, everything goes off to save the bill. Next are the slippers you have to use as you are not allowed to use street shoes in any home or hotel room. I then had to use the bathroom so bad after all the train/bus riding and walking. This is where I saw and used my first real Korean shower.  See, this country does not have bathtubs, only showers with no shower curtain and a drain in the center. You can take a shower, brush your teeth in the sink all while soaping up! For those reading who have watched the K-dramas, or dramas from China or Thailand, will know exactly what I am talking about. I will post pics later in my blog so be sure to look for those! 

With wet hair I walked back a few blocks to ‘The Hyundai” department store where I was told they had everything and a food court. Well, it’s like a Korean Macy’s just full of helpful people giving you cups of tea, little cookies and trying to get you to buy some expensive item. Thanks to google translate I was able to determine that they did not sell any type of hair products for covering the roots of your hair. I did manage to  get suckered into buying ‘White Musk’ violet version that older and quite attractive, Gong Yoo endorsed. It smells delicious, and like Korea on the trains - cute Korean women dressed to the 9′s, and smelling good. 

Desperate for a root touch up, I walked into a salon two doors from my hotel. Again Papago translator to the rescue and we determined that Korea does not sell this product. So with that I thank the Chinese government for tossing out my can of gray root cover up and decided to let these nice folks give me a $40 hair dye cover-up. Wow! They matched my hair color exactly, shampooed my hair (even though I just did it lol), got a head massage, water/tea and little dumpling, and good conversation with the family.  They stayed open late just for me to get this done too. They wouldn’t take a tip, which is just like Korea - no tips for anything. 

Dinner, heck I hadn’t had lunch either! So I walked again, about 3 blocks across from the big street and found this chicken place. I had the famous chicken and beer thing everyone says you have to have here. It was good and I was given a fork and tongs to pull the meat off the bone. There will be none of this eating with your fingers here! There is a little bucket already lined with a bag for your bones along with a pack of wet wipes on the table. I had half regular and half of the soy sauce wings and lost my sense of all flavor. Soy sauce crunchy fried chicken is the bomb - they know how to do this chicken thing RIGHT! Served with cut small radishes, along with Korean mustard and more sauce. I went ahead and asked for the famous Korean beer - at only .50 cents why not? It was good, and a perfect match to the chicken.  I was happy sitting alone but the 5 Korean college kids invited me to their table saying “no one should be alone”. They were nice, one kid had applied to SM and was hoping to be an idol even though he was 19. He sang a bit for us and his friends gave him a hard time.  I had been secretly enjoying their banter and laughter from my table. One student had a contagious laugh that was just awesome. I thanked them for their company and walked back to my motel even though they insisted on walking me. 

I was asked to coffee in the morning from a language friend here in Busan. I said yes and agreed to 9:30am since he was teaching the junior high kids at church. On Sunday morning he calls me and said he was already out front 30 minutes early! Way to panic a tired American who probably shouldn’t have drank beer the night before since I’m not a regular alcohol consumer. The coffee and company was nice even though my new friend had to leave and apologized for not be able to show me around Busan. 

I said goodbye and went back into my hotel to grab a bite of breakfast. I gave the rest of my wings to the other owner, who gratefully accepted them for his lunch. I just didn’t want to walk around all day with the chicken and have to pitch it later from the warmth of my backpack. Breakfast was good but the best was being able to try on the Hanbok, traditional Korean clothes, and get a picture. 

I walked in and out of shops, not actually finding what I wanted so I decided it was time to catch a bus to the beach. Gwangali Beach was beautiful, 75 degrees and a little cloudy with a generous breeze! After all the previous sweating and melting, it was a welcomed relief for this lady. I spent about 45 minutes down at the beach and then started to walk around the shops. I found BBQ - the chicken place endorsed by BTS for the crispy friend chicken with pure coconut in the breading. I asked for a half order and waited for this chicken, sitting at a side table watching all the people walking to the beach. 

The chicken arrived, same utensils as the previous night. looking just like the picture on the door and the menu. I was in love at first bite! IT was just as crunchy as the commercials and had a little spice to it that I cannot identify. All I know is that it was good and I sat there talking briefly to the husband and wife who owned this restaurant. Both in their 60′s, the husband delivers food on his scooter. The wife knew she had an internet order for delivery by the bell that rang. I watched as she would get up and go check the order and start cooking a new order. Oh Korean chicken I love you and will miss you so much when I have to leave. 

Next I walked around at the shops but still did not find what I wanted to get for my kiddos. So, it was time to go get on a long bus ride to Seomyeon, the shopping district. I managed to get dropped on the opposite side of Lotte, the largest store and mall in Busan. Problem is how to get across the street as their were no walkways across this 6 lane main street. I decided to try the train station entrance since there was also on the other side. Guess what?  The entire train station below was crammed with underground shops! Such a steady stream of shoppers and commuters that you could barely make it across the way. I finally made it to the Lotte entrance and entered. Immediately I could tell this was a huge store - larger than the Hyundai Store. I would compare it to Von Maur on crack. I went up and explored all 6 floors and yet not one Kpop item anywhere to be found. I did find something called the ‘Main Event’ area where people were clamoring for items just put out at 60-90% off regular price. I watched as people bent over and squeezed in between other shoppers in a display that resembled a Blue Light Special back in the days of K-Mart. Only this was like a BLS on steroids selling Cabbage Patch Dolls for $5 instead of $35 like they were back in the day, lol. There were equal amounts of men and women fighting for the items and I was entertained just watching it all. What really amazed me were the male salesmen in the cosmetic area. One they were dressed better than me, second the smelled better than me, and third their makeup was flawless. Men both old and teenagers were all over the counters looking at moisturizer with sunblock in it, foundation to cover imperfections, and tinted lip gloss with yet more sunblock in it. Let’s face it, Korean men take good care of themselves physically and mentally. They are good with their masculinity, and were skin products to protect their skin. Why is skin care only limited to women in the rest of the world? ?Just why? Spiritually, more Korean men attend church than American men per percentage of population. So for the guys back home who want to call these guys ‘feminine’ or ‘gay; - it won’t bother these Korean men at all. They are very secure in their lives, are healthy, take care of their bodies in and out, and wear pink teddy bears embroidered on their $200 shirts. They also have a flock of women following after them as well...

Well, after the fiasco of shopping frenzied budget minded folks I was ready to get closer to the station while also window shopping along the way. I finally made it to buy my ticket back to Seoul and almost didn’t make it back in time! Seats were selling fast on all trains but this lady managed to get my economy class at 1825. That was over an hour later than what I wanted but it was better than being stuck in the station until 2100. Time for a coffee, get on free KTX internet, and write down my train and bus routes just in case I wouldn’t have internet later on when I ‘needed it’. i watched people come and go, talk, hug, laugh, run, and chat along during that hour wait. I already knew this but I have to say it again, “People are people”. They love, cry, say goodbye, give giant hugs when they see their loved ones, get married, hubbies all carry tiny babies on the trains, women rub their pregnant tummies while their husbands protectively walk besides them. What I did notice too is that Korean couples are just plain cute. The men are protective over their women, not like they are going to be robbed protective, no it’s more like caring protective? They open doors for older women, those with bags in their hands, carry the babies, ask if their girlfriend or wife is “okay” as they walk long ways, and just seem more attentive to others feelings. Maybe because this is a culture where others are supposed to be thought of first versus yourself. You see this on the buses and trains here in Korea. They have special seats for pregnant women, elderly, or handicapped. You can sit in those seats as long as their isn’t a need. I watched over the last two weeks the same scene play out over and over again - a younger person, including myself, would get up and offer their seat to a grandma/grandpa or obvious person who was not feeling well. It’s automatic, not a second thought to it, they just offered their seat immediately. Many times the elderly men would try to offer me a seat and I would nicely say “no”. The two times I did take a seat I gave it up the second a women older than me got on board. Respect for the elderly and those older than you - it’s built in, it’s taught from birth, it’s a good thing, it works and it’s amazing to witness. 

Off my soapbox of Korean societal praises, don’t worry I’ll be back later lol. Long walk to line 1 to catch my train in reverse back to Taereung. Two stops away the conductor tells us all to get off because of a problem. No worries, the trains run every 6 minutes and bam, there was another train and back on schedule. Off perfectly and walked to the correct side of the station to be on the correct side of the street. Buses actually follow the flow of traffic for their routes - go figure. Only 3 stops and I was off and walking the few blocks back to the university and to my dorm building. First thing I noticed once coming outside for the bus ride? Humidity had returned to Seoul while I was gone - welcome back sweating lol. A nice shower and a made bed waiting for me. Maybe tomorrow I can get a ton more pictures uploaded for ya all. Night!