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nagito-kissmaeda · 3 years

Text

Mr. Komaeda’s Lesson

THE FILTH ARRIVES

Summary: You should really proofread your assignments before submitting them... AKA: Professor Komaeda fucks you over his desk (literally my dream) Word count: 4258 Contains: she/her pronouns, explict sexual content, unsafe sex, professor/student relationships, gentle dom nagito (he’s very gentle i swear) Read on AO3 ミ☆ Please send me a DM or an ask if you’d like me to write something for you!

The soothing smell of camomile lemon tea wafts around the small office. The blinds are half open, casting the orange light of the setting sun across the smooth leaves of a peace lily that resides in a pot hanging in front of the heating unit. The warm air rocks it gently back and forth. The atmosphere in the room is light and pleasant, but it does nothing to ease your nerves.

“Do you want some?” Professor Komaeda asks as he pours himself a cup of the aforementioned camomile lemon tea. He has a little teapot sitting on his desk, it’s very cute.

You clear your throat, fidgeting in your seat, “No thank you, I’m fine.”

“Okay, let’s get started then, shall we?”

You’ve been dreading this meeting for weeks now. Your professor had been very insistent that this wouldn’t be a discussion about the quality of your work, but more about what he could do to help you maintain focus in lectures. There was also a brief mention about your most recent assignment, he said that he wasn’t concerned, but did want to run through a few things with you.

He was very polite about it, which makes the true nature of your distraction only more reprehensible.

“So, first I want to start with a simple question. How are you doing?”

“Uh, fine?”

He nods and takes a sip of his tea, “No problems outside of our classes? You don’t need to answer if you aren’t comfortable.”

“No i- uh. I’m fine outside of classes too.” You fidget again, twisting your hands in your lap, “I’ve been...tired? But that’s my fault, I stay up too late.”

He hums thoughtfully and rests his chin on the palm of his hand, “Could that be having an affect on your focus? I can see that you have been distracted in our most recent lectures and just want to make sure it isn’t a fault of myself or my material.” He laughs a little to himself, “I know I can be a little boring sometimes.”

Professor Komaeda is not boring. He’s probably the most engaging lecturer you’ve ever had, passionate about his subject matter and very enthusiastic about class participation. He also wears really tight trousers and has long dexterous fingers that you can't help imagining inside of your-

“I mean, being tired could be the problem?” A bold faced lie.

“Well in that case there isn’t much more I can suggest than a good night's rest.” He gives you a long look that makes you squirm in your seat, “I only graduated a few years ago myself, I understand the urge to make the most of your day, but you can’t keep burning the candle at both ends.” He takes another sip of his tea, a drop misses his mouth and rolls down his chin. He catches it with his thumb, which he then brings up to his lips and sucks. You swallow deeply, tearing your eyes from where his lips are meeting his skin. Your knee starts bouncing. Nerves.

“Would it help if you sat a little closer to the front of the lecture hall?”

It wouldn’t. Especially not on warm days when he loosens his tie and undoes the first three buttons on his shirt. You spent a whole lecture transfixed on the dip of his collarbones once. Not great for your note taking, “maybe I’ll give that a go next week” you say. Another lie.

“Okay, try that out and let me know if it helps.” He gently sets down his teacup and starts working his white hair up into a bun. His fingers are so delicate as he combs through the strands, pulling his hair up and away from his pale throat, exposing the length of it to your hungry eyes-

A noise escapes from your mouth. Almost a whine, but not quite. Professor Komaeda doesn't say anything, but his intense eyes meet yours for just a moment. You clench your thighs together.

“Are you ready to talk about your assignment now?” He asks, picking the teacup again. It’s decorated with sunflowers, almost criminally cute, “No reason to be nervous. I want to make it clear that this matter hasn't had any affect on your grade, just some advice for next time.”

You nod shakily. Despite all of his reassurances, you are still very nervous. Partially because you wanted a good grade, partially because you had worked on that essay day and night with the intention of impressing him. So stupid.

He gives you a pleasant smile and rifles through his desk for a moment, pulling out what you quickly recognise as a printed copy of your essay, “Take a look, i want to see if you can figure it out first.”

“Um...okay…” You skip past the title page and into the meat of the essay, reading through all of your points and making sure there weren't any obvious spelling mistakes. There wasn't anything that you could see, “Sorry...um...what page is it on?”

His teacup clinks when he sets it down again, leaning forward on his elbows and resting his chin on his hands. You can feel your heart fluttering in your chest, your palms are getting sweaty, “It’s on the title page actually. I’m surprised you didn't notice it.”

You shoot him a quizzical look and flip back to the first page. Your stomach plummets.

Titles have never been your thing, summing up an entire essay in just a few words isn’t easy, so you usually use a placeholder right up until you submit it. You remember changing it, you remember triple checking it was changed before you emailed it through. But something must have gone wrong because in big bold capital letters, the title of you assignment reads:

ESSAY SO GOOD PROFESSOR KOMAEDA WILL FUCK ME OVER HIS DESK

Your hands are shaking, the edges of the paper crinkling under your tight grip. You are going to fail...you are going to be expelled...you are going to-

“Ah. I see you’ve realised your mistake, hm?”

Your head shoots up, forgetting for a moment that he is still sitting across from you.

“Professor...I-I’m...obviously I’m…” you can’t get out a goddamn sentence, your mouth has all dried up, “I don’t even...I can’t…”

You are taken aback, when Professor Komaeda giggles. It’s a light little sound, he covers his mouth with a hand, “You are very bold, aren’t you?”

“I….”

“No need to worry, I’m not reporting this to the dean or anything like that. I see no reason to expel you over a silly little mistake like this one.”

“You...You dont want me to drop you class?”

He laughs again, you shrink under the intensity of his green eyes, “I’m not going to make you, no. If the situation isn’t going to make it even harder for you to focus during lectures, you can still come to class. I won't stop you, it is your choice.”

He is being remarkably cavalier about all of this, it’s almost unsettling, but you don't want to drop his class so you can't help being grateful, “Thank you so much, I...I promise i won't do this again.”

Professor Komaeda hums aloud, eyes half lidded as he looks at you from across the desk, “Won’t do what again?” he asks, though honestly its more of a purr, “Won’t think about me fucking you, or wont make the mistake of writing it down?”

Hearing the word fuck drop from that perfect mouth of his sends you into overdrive. Your thighs are clamped so tight together that your legs are shaking, you can feel yourself breathing hard, “I...uh...I....” you swallow, “I won't do...either?”

“There's no need to lie to me.” He breathes, standing up from his chair and rounding the desk. You can feel yourself quivering in his shadow, he towers over you. Your breath catches in your throat when one of his hands makes contact with your chin, slowly lifting your head up until you meet his eyes. His expression is positively hungry, “I want to make something very clear. This is your chance to leave, if you do we will never speak of this again. If you don’t, well…”

All you can do is stare at him, mouth going dry with realisation.

“Your essay was very good, by the way.” He leans down until his nose is almost pressed against yours, you can smell the tea on his breath. You can feel the warmth of his skin, you can count his eyelashes, “Good enough that i’ll fuck you over my desk if you still want me to.”

In a moment of hungry lucidity, you grab him by the tie and tug his lips down to yours. Colliding in a positively ferocious kiss. You feel him laugh against your mouth before he slips his tongue in between your lips and traces your upper row of teeth, his tongue is wet and warm, your thighs are rubbing together as you grow desperate for any sort of friction. Professor Komaeda must be in a similar state, because he grabs you by the waist and tugs you up to your feet. Pressed firmly against him like this, you can feel the evidence of his arousal through his slacks, a moan escapes you when you feel his hips buck.

He laughs again, pulling away from your mouth to press a hot kiss to the side of your throat. You feel his long fingers toying with the hemline of your skirt, slowly slipping up underneath it, “These pretty little things…” he whispers, tugging on the top of your thigh high stocking and releasing it with a snap, “do you wear them for me?”

There’s no point lying anymore. You can’t stop shaking, “I...yes…”

You feel him moan against your skin, sinking his teeth into the join between your neck and shoulder, “Did you really think I wouldn’t take notice? Of the way you undress me with your eyes in class, of these tiny little skirts you started wearing?” He grabs a handful of your ass and you squeal, “you’re so gorgeous. You could have anyone in that class if you wanted, but here you are with me-“ he grinds up against you, cock warm and hard through his slacks, “-I don’t understand what I’ve done to deserve this.”

His voice is so soft and gentle, even while he’s palming your ass and grinding his hips against yours, he still talks like he’s giving a lecture on historical literature. It’s hot, how easily he is able to maintain his composure while you are little more than a quivering mess beneath him, but still...you want to see him come undone.

You hear more than feel your knees colliding with the wooden floorboards. Professor Komaeda is unable to give little more than a surprised look before you have his slacks and boxers shoved halfway down his thighs and his cock in your mouth. He lets out a shocked little moan, burying his long fingers into your hair as his hips stutter forward. Now that was the reaction you wanted.

“Oh...ohhhh-“ he whines, slowly moving himself in and out of your mouth as you tease his head with your tongue, “ahh...your mouth feels so good, angel.”

You were not expecting him to call you angel. It’s like a bolt of lightning to your cunt, your hands jump up the dig deep into the meat of his thighs as you moan downright salaciously around his cock.

“I can feel you moaning.” He whispers, “I can’t believe how much you’re enjoying this” you look up at him through your lashes and see his cheeks are red, his perfect lips are swollen from his biting them incessantly. You moan again just from the sight of him, he hisses and his hips cant forward deeper into your mouth, “wow. You...You really like doing this don’t you? Wrapping your perfect soft lips around my filthy cock?”

Filthy? That makes your eyebrows jump. You could always tell that your professor had some sort of inferiority complex, but you didn't realise it was...this intense.

“S’pretty.” You managed to slur around him, “Tastes good.”

He laughs again, it explodes from his mouth and shakes his shoulders. Unbridled, almost wild. He grins down at you, “I’m sure it doesn’t taste as good at you.” He purrs, tucking your hair behind your ear, “get up on the desk.”

Well, you weren’t going to say no to that. You give his cock one last long lick before standing back up from the floor, just before you hoist yourself up on the table, Professor Komaeda grabs you by the wrist, “Panties off, please.”

You feel yourself turn crimson, but dutifully shimmy out of your panties and let them drop to the floor. He smiles at you, hands curling around your waist as he leans into your ear, “that’s my girl.” He whispers, and lifts you up onto his desk. His hands are cold on the bare skin of your thighs peeking out from the top of your stockings, your stomach twists and curls as he slowly edges your legs open, and drops to his knees between them.

“Oh my god…” you squeak, he’s staring up at you with a look that is downright sinful and he doesn’t break eye contact, even when one of those perfect fingers slips inside you, “agh!”

He chuckles warmly, gently thrusting his finger in and out of you, “you’re so wet, angel...I can’t imagine why someone like me is making you so aroused, but I’m not complaining.”

His finger curls inside of you, and your hips jolt, “Mmph! Pro-Professor I-“

He smiles saccharinely as a second finger pushes its way inside you, “Nagito.” He corrects, pressing a hot kiss to the inside of your thigh, “We’re well beyond the need for formality. Don’t you think?” You cover your mouth to muffle a squeal as he adds a third finger. Your knees are wobbling and you can barely breathe, he’s just sitting between your legs and grinning at you, “Now let’s see if you taste as good as i imagine, hm?”

He pulls your clit in between his lips and sucks. You have to bite down on your hand to keep yourself from screaming, “F-Fuck...Nagito...I--hng!”

“It is after hours, you know.” He whispers, you can feel his breath on your cunt and you shiver, “There’s no reason for you to restrain yourself.” He licks your clit again and moans, “Haa...It may be selfish of me, but i want to hear you. If you’ll let me.”

“Oh god-” You hiss out when his tongue starts circling around you, “-keep doing that, and you’ll hear me alright.”

Nagito giggles and peers up at you, “Then I suppose I'll get back to work.” He hoists your thighs over his shoulders, and starts eating you out in earnest. You lean back on your elbows, and watch his soft white hair bob between your thighs as his tongue works it’s magic, he alternates between running the flat of his tongue up the length of you and focussing directly on your clit. Your toes are curling, mouth wide open with a constant stream of moans and whimpers that you have no hope of stopping. It feels so good, you had dreamt about this alone at night in your bed and even in those fantasies it hadn't felt this good.

His fingers slip out of you, but before you even have a chance to complain, they are replaced with his tongue. You moan so loudly that it rumbles through your chest, your hips rise up to meet his mouth and his hands curl around the soft flesh of your thighs, tugging you even closer. He groans. The wet muscle is slowly thrusting in and out of you when he presses down firm on your clit with his thumb, “I--mmph...Nagito m’gonna cum…” your hips are grinding relentlessly up against his face and you can feel your hair sticking to your forehead with sweat.

“Cum for me, angel.” He whispers, thumb rubbing your clit in brutal circles, “I want to feel you squeezing around my tongue.”

You throw your head back in a howl as his tongue slips back inside, the desk rattling with the force of your quivering hips. You can hear the slick sounds his mouth is making against your cunt, the way he is panting and moaning just from the taste of you. The tightness in your stomach grows unbearable, then he curls his tongue upward, and it snaps. You see whiteness behind your eyes, thighs shaking with the intensity of it. You can feel the vibration of Nagito’s moan inside of you and his fingers dig tight into the meat of your thighs. He’s enjoying your orgasm almost as much as you are.

When he finally pulls away from you, the lower half of his face is glistening with your wetness. He gives you a pleased smile, eyes half lidded as he brings his wet fingers up to his mouth and licks them clean, “I knew you would taste good.” He whispers, wiping the mouth with the back of his hand, “Think you can cum again, angel?”

Just watching him suck on his fingers is enough to get you going again, “Yeah, I definitely can.”

He laughs and stands up from the floor. His cock is flushed red and dripping, you suddenly realise he hadn't touched it that whole time, he must be painfully hard at this point. You lick your lips, you can't help it. He follows your line of sight and smiles, “Be a good girl and bend over the desk for me, please.”

You slide down off the desk, ready to follow his orders but quickly stop yourself, “Oh. One second.”

“Hm?”

You grab the teapot from the desk and quickly rest it on the windowsill, “Sorry. That was a disaster waiting to happen.”

“Ah, yes. You’re right.” His hand slips up to your cheek, thumb resting on your lips. He smiles when you pull it into your mouth and suck, “I’ll have to thank you for saving my carpet. Unless you see any other hazards, i would still like to fuck you.”

That word again. It sounds doubly filthy when he says it, the way his lips mold around it is downright sinful. A shaky moan drops from your mouth as you turn around and do as he asks, your breasts are squished up against the sturdy wood, and the desk is a little too tall for you, your feet are dangling just above the floor. You’re shaking with anticpation, and it grows even worse when you feel the warmth of Nagito’s palm caressing your ass, “For my own peace of mind…” he whispers, his other hand running a finger up the length of your sex, “When do you graduate?”

You laugh, “It’s a little late for that, isn't it, Professor?” you feel his hand still on your ass and you clear your throat, “Uh, this is my last semester. A few months.”

He sighs pleasantly, “Ah, that’s good. This has been very fun, though i'm not sure we should do it again.” You feel the head of his cock kiss your entrance and hiss through your teeth, “At least...not for a few months.” You can hear the smirk on his face.

“I’ve waited this long.” You say, grinding backwards into his cock, “I can wait again.”

He leans down until his mouth is right beside your ear, “Good girl.” He whispers, and finally thrusts inside of you. It feels so good, he fills you so well. Your cheek is pressed firmly against the hard wood of the desk and a pathetic little mewl escapes your mouth at the feeling. You cunt already dripping from your last orgasm, you take him so easily, so smoothly. It feels like he is meant to be inside you.

You feel a hand on your lower back, pushing you further down onto the desk and Nagito hisses through his teeth. Pumping slowly and deeply inside of you, like he is savoring it, “You’re doing so well, angel. I--fuck...You’re so warm.” his breathing is laboured, the rhythmic sound of his hips hitting your ass is echoing around the room, “I still can’t believe you’re letting me do this to you. I must be the luckiest man alive.”

“Please...more!” you whine, trying to force him deeper inside of you with the movement of your hips.

Nagito lets out a strangled moan and starts pounding faster, one of his hands slipping down between your legs to circle your clit, you cry out at the extra stimulation, toes curling inside of your shoes. The desk is shaking with the force of his thrusts now, there's a cute little statuette of a frog that falls down to the carpet with a clatter, but he doesn't stop.

“You feel so good, darling...I--I don't think i can-” a groan rips through him and you can feel his thrusts growing sloppier, “-you’re so good for...so perfect...I can't hold--ah ahh” he swallows, “Please, angel, i want to feel you cum again.”

You’re close, mouth raw from panting and moaning, legs going numb from behind suspended in the air. Then, the finger on your clit presses down firm and his cock grinds up against your g-spot. That is all you need, you come unraveling under him, the walls of your cunt clenching impossibly tight around him.

“Ah, yes!” He cries, grabbing your hips and pounding you desperately, relishing in the feeling of your hot, tight cunt. Milking him dry, “Good, girl. So good for me.” Then, he cums, you feel his cock throb deep inside of you as his hips stutter and slow.

It is only now that you are hit with the realisation. You just fucked Professor Komaeda. Holy hell.

All you can do is lay there while he slowly pulls himself out of you. Wincing a little at the wierd feeling of emptyness. You manage to roll yourself over, laying flat on your back with your legs still dangling from the desk. Nagito laughs and presses a kiss to your cheek, “Are you alright?”

You laugh weakly, “We’re going to get in so much trouble.”

“Not if no one finds out.” He tucks some of your hair behinf your ear, “Don’t worry about it, I’m very lucky with this sort of thing.”

“I just dont want you to get in trouble.”

He giggles, “That’s very kind of you, but this was as much my choice as it was yours.” he runs his fingers down your cheek and gives you a gentle kiss on your lips, “I meant what i said, about meeting up again.”

You manage to pull yourself up until you are sitting upright, you give him a sleepy smile, “Yeah, me too. I like you a lot.”

“How very sweet of you to say, angel.” He presses his forehead to yours and tangles your fingers together, “Let’s get you cleaned up now, hm? Can’t have you walking home like that”

To be honest, you aren’t sure you can walk at all.

____________________________

A few months later, you are sitting in the local cafe and applying for some jobs on your laptop. You did well on your final assessments and graduated with flying colours. It’s only a few more days before you need to officially move out of the dorms, and finding a new apartment (along with a job to pay for it) has not been easy so far.

You huff and push your hair back from your face. Your phone pings, and you ignore it. It’s been pinging for the past few minutes and you are not in the mood to check it. The job you are currently applying for made you retype all of the information in your resume even though you just uploaded it, and you are not happy.

The phone pings again and you groan, grabbing it and flipping it over. It looks like it’s just the group chat, as loud as always. As you go to close the message notifications though, you see one from about ten minutes ago that isn't from your group chat. Your heart is racing.

Hello!

I still have your number from when you asked for an assignment extension at the beginning of last semester. I hope you don't mind me using it. It’s been a few months, I'd like to see you again, if you wouldn't mind.

-Nagito

Oh shit. Your heart is beating a rapid tattoo in your chest. You had been so caught up in the job hunt and apartment hunt that you had all but forgotten about...this. You swallow and manage to force your shaky hands to type.

Oh hey!

It’s nice to hear from you. I’m free this weekend if you want to meet up, I still live in the dorms though, so it’ll have to be your place.

It's only about a minute before you get a reply.

Lol! I was thinking we could start with coffee, but I'm not going to lie and say i wasn’t hoping it would end up in my bedroom.

This weekend works for me. I can pick you up around 11?

You smile at your phone, cheeks turning crimson.

Sounds good. I’ll see you then.

You quickly update his contact details in your phone from Professor Komaeda, to Nagito <3.

#komaeda x reader #nagito x reader #komaeda nagito #nagito komaeda #danganronpa #danganronpa x reader #danganronpa fanfiction #sdr2 #super danganronpa goodbye despair #FILTH

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cakejots · 3 years

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this is us trying, Chapter 3 - The Decision

In this AU, they don’t know each other outside of the suit. And in this AU, Ladybug and Chat Noir love each other. But in this AU, Chat doesn’t want their identities revealed.

Written for @ladynoirjuly 2021

notes: this is a coherent story based on all the prompts; each chapter contains at least 3 prompts

Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 | Ch 8 | Ch 9 | Ch 10

Read on AO3

8. Admiration

Ladybug shifted from her spot at the top of Notre Dame’s North Tower, awaiting Chat’s arrival. The time it took to get in contact with him again wasn’t very long, but it was longer than the intervals between their dates. She understood that he has his own life to live, and sometimes, their schedules just really couldn’t match up. But for this time, in particular, she couldn’t help but feel that he was avoiding her.

Was it really a coincidence that he got especially busy right after he left her alone on that rooftop? She didn’t know.

Even though Ladybug had arrived 15 minutes earlier, she had that irrational fear that he wouldn’t turn up. She knew Chat wasn't like that, he always keeps his word. But she couldn’t help it, the possibility that their relationship could take a turn for the worse frightened her.

Luckily, before her thoughts could spiral out of control, Chat landed a few metres away from her.

Relief flooded her chest as Chat slowly stood from his crouched position. She was about to run over and throw her arms around him when his words stopped her.

“I’m really sorry for what I’ve done that day.” Chat wasn’t at his full height, his body posture was humbled and he was rubbing his hands.

“What I did was horrible, and I’ve no excuse for the way I treated you that day.” He had his head lowered and his eyes glimpsed at her ever so often, to see if she was listening to him. “I understand if you want to walk away, I just hope you’ll forgive me.”

Her eyes harden, posture standing even taller than before. Ladybug eyed him. This was the second time he had talked about her leaving him.

“I’m not going to walk away, Chat.” Her eyes softened as he flinched from her sudden rush of words. “But I’ll be lying if I said that didn’t hurt. I just want to know why it happened.”

Tears filled his green eyes as he fixed them on hers. His face held a sombre expression, as though it physically hurt him to be saying those next words.

“My lady,” he pleaded with a voice thick of desperation. “Forgive me, I promise I’ll tell you one day. Just… I can’t— not now…”

Ladybug sighed.

“Please know that,” he quickly rushed to her and embraced her tightly. “I didn’t regret giving you that kiss! Never.”

Ladybug raised her arms and tightened her grip on him as he trembled.

“Thank you for your assurance, Chaton.” She pulled back and surveyed his face. “I’m aware that this is a bit insensitive, but could you wait here for 5 minutes? I’m just going to get some stuff.”

Chat grew uneasy. To be alone on a cool night? He was reasonably unsettled, especially after what had confronted him just moments ago. Ladybug said she wouldn’t walk away, but now she’s asking him to stay here? How could he not be worried?

“Just 5 minutes,” her fingers grazed his face. “I promise you’ll enjoy our date even more after I bring those things here.”

He should trust her. He knows he could trust her. After all, she had said she wouldn't leave. It happened once, it can happen again.

“We can call each other while I’m—“

“It’s okay, my lady.” He pulled back and smiled. “I’ll see you in 5 minutes.”

Ladybug wasn’t convinced that he’s okay, but she gave him a peck on the cheek to ease his doubts. “I’ll be back before you know it!”

And true to her words, she came back in 3 minutes, with two pillows, a thick blanket, and a laptop in her arms.

Chat eyed them quizzingly.

“We, are going to get comfortable and watch montages of ourselves!” She sat beside him, the Ladyblog web page now visible on her screen. “Looking at how awesome we were would give us that extra endorphins boost, don't you think?”

“We are still awesome now, what are you saying?” He wrapped the blanket around them.

She giggled. “We should do some parkour sometimes.”

Bundled up in blankets with their limbs tangled, they sat there watching the best moments they had while battling Akumas, fondness for themselves and for the other clear on their faces.

Ladybug has always been like this, trying to solve whatever issues that arise. It’s how they’ve won battle after battle. Even after the threat is gone, she’s still trying to salvage the situation, no matter how small it is in the grand scheme of things.

Chat was immensely grateful for what she had done tonight. The videos had really calmed his nerves and brought back all those euphoric memories he once had. The reason why he was doing this in the first place. The joy his lady had brought to him whenever he spent time with her. The love and admiration he felt for her as she stood up against Hawkmoth on their first day as superheroes, despite Ladybug believing that she wasn’t suited for her calling.

The love…

He tightened his hold around her.

“You alright?”

“Yeah, just mesmerised by how cool we are.”

How could he have forgotten? How miraculously amazing she was. No. She still is, up till this very day. Even after 6 years. Even after he denied her what she wanted most following Shadowmoth’s defeat. Even after what he’s done to their relationship. She never walked away from him, and is still trying to rectify the situation.

He wasn’t making it easy for her, even though it should’ve been after the final battle. It’s really unfair to her.

And yet, she’s still here, she still chose to stick with him.

This can’t go on.

He took hold of her hand and brought it to his lips. “You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

9. Cinema

“Come on, come on, come on, we’re gonna be late!” Chat hurriedly pushed her into the cinema, worried that they wouldn't make it to showtime.

“Wasn’t that 5-hour binge-watch enough?” Ladybug was obviously excited about the movie, but she couldn’t allow him the satisfaction so easily.

“Of course not! This is the sequel to the series!” He continued pushing as if there’s nothing entirely wrong with his behaviour.

“And we’re heading to a cinema now. Didn’t you say you wanted us to be as discreet as possible?” She raised her eyebrow despite Chat not being able to see her face.

“Yeah, but it’s the premiere today! We won’t be able to watch it on the laptop.” They stopped at the cinema hall entrance and Chat scanned his ticket for the seat number before he continued pushing. “Also, watching in a cinema after hours of watching from a smaller screen is just a different experience, no?”

They finally arrived at the row where their seats were, but he continued resting his hands on her shoulder, guiding her to her seat before finally letting her go. “Besides, Parisians won’t kick us out after the ‘patrol’ stun we pulled.”

She rolled her eyes. “I mean we did do our job when something happened.”

Although animated films are popular in France, this particular one didn’t attract as many audiences as those action-packed animated films, which was a blessing and a curse because they would be able to get away with minimal attention on them, but also so many people are missing out on this greatness.

“Anyway, do you think we’ll cry again?” She rubbed her tear-stained eyes, “I don’t think I’ve any liquid left in me for that.”

“Nonsense, there’s definitely more in you,” he cupped her cheeks to have a better look at her. “And you still look so pretty even after all that crying.”

“Oh, quite the sadist, aren’t you? Does my crying bring you joy?”

“Come on, Buguinette, you can’t deny it was phenomenal.”

“Yeah, you’re right. It is phenomenal. But couldn’t we spread it out even more? The watch time on that series I mean.”

“I… I won’t have time for the rest of the week,” his smile fell as his hands caressed her cheeks. “I’m really sorry.”

“No wonder you wanted to spend the whole day today,” she teased. “Well, no worries about it! I love spending time with you.”

He moved his hand to hers and placed a kiss on her knuckles. “Thank you, my lady.”

And that’s when the lights started dimming. They relaxed into their respective seats, but not without interlacing their hands together.

The movie, of course, had delivered what the series had set out to do. The cinema was filled with sniffles and sobs and Ladybug and Chat Noir were certainly not spared from the experience. They were tearing like they had been all afternoon, the only difference was that they weren’t able to hold the other as tightly as they would’ve liked due to the armrest in between them.

And they didn’t realise the importance of tissues until that night. They had to go to the toilet to clean their face and clear their noses before continuing with other plans they had had for the night.

10. Moonlight

As they left the establishment, they were surprised to see how the gleaming of the silver orb that hung in the sky rivalled that of The City of Light.

Chat proposed spending the rest of the night at the top of the Eiffel Tower, given that it has been a while since they were there. And immediately regretted that suggestion when he remembered that their last memories of the Eiffel Tower were of him expressing his wishes to hold off the reveal right after the final battle.

But Ladybug eagerly agreed and was already well on her way. He had no choice but to follow through.

When he arrived, he was awestruck by the moon. He has—

“—never seen the moon this big! Wow!” Ladybug proclaimed as she took in the moon in all its beauty.

She was captivated by the glamour of the moon, but to Chat, it seemed as though she was basking in the moonlight. Her suit gave off a shimmering red glow not often seen and her dark hair looked midnight blue under it. Her back was towards him, but as she turned around to move towards the spot next to him, he felt his own heartbeat quickened. The brilliance of her blue orbs awed him, they were of a pigment he had never seen before in her eyes.

“Wow indeed.”

They moved to sit side by side on the edge and took in the view of the moon and of the city. Did they really enjoy this view of the city weekly before? Has it always been this beautiful?

“You know,” Ladybug started, breaking the silence. “I’m really glad he chose what he did in the end.”

“Yeah, they finally got together.”

She peered upwards. “It wasn’t an easy journey, but I’m so satisfied with that ending. I’m sure everyone was crying tears of joy too.”

That animated series as a whole was about conveying your feelings to the ones you love. Which he did, a lot. He was never one to shy away from declaring his love for her. But why did everything change after the final battle? Why did he change after the final battle?

His heart must’ve been tired of what his brain was trying to reason about, and thus led him to pick this series to watch, and eventually the movie. All the answers were there.

He knew his lady well enough and was certain that she wouldn't walk away. She has proved that time and time again.

So what was preventing him from being with her, when he very much desired to have a happy ending with her as well?

In some ways, his current predicament was similar to Gilbert’s. He was afraid. He was afraid that she’ll abandon him after she found out who he really was, and what he’s done.

But…

Chat looked over to see Ladybug moonbathing and enjoying the light breeze. Was it too much to hope for a happy ending himself? He knew damn well how Violet felt throughout the whole ordeal of trying to get Gilbert back by her side. Did he really want his lady to end up that way eventually, when he had the ability to prevent that?

No. That’s too brutal. The world was already cruel to him. But if he could prevent that cruelty and enable her to witness how beautiful life can be, how pleasant she had made life for him, he’d do it.

“Chaton?”

Those eyes that looked at him as though he hung the stars in her sky. Those wide blue eyes that never gave up on him despite his failure to give her what she wanted most. Those worried, concerned eyes, so full of love.

He was choked up with emotions.

“I love you.”

Ladybug inhaled sharply and stared at him unblinking, unsure if she misheard those words.

She reached out to him slowly. “Can… Can you say that again?”

“I love you.” He took her hand and squeezed it, leaning in to press his warm lips against her cheek.

He pulled back to see tears in the corner of her eyes.

“My lady?”

She still stared at him as her tears started to trickle down her face.

His hands flew to her face. “My—”

Ladybug threw her arms around him with such vitality that they toppled over. “I love you too!”

He pulled her in to close any gaps between them, so very glad that she still felt the same despite all that has happened. She planted a heartwarming kiss on his cheek as Chat landed on his back.

They basked in each other’s warmth and presence. He stroked her hair and she melted into him, happy tears flowing as her kitty was starting to declare his love for her again, verbally.

“My lady, can we meet up again tomorrow?”

“I thought you said you were busy?” She giggled.

“I did,” he grinned. “But who said anything about meeting during the hours of the day?”

#ladynoirjuly2021 #ladynoirjuly #ladynoir #mesfics #miraculous ladybug #fanfic #mlb fanfic #ladybug #chat noir #alternate universe #light angst #fluff #hurt/comfort #this is us trying

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crowdedimagines · 5 years

Text

It’s Just PR - Shawn Mendes

ft. Harry Styles;)

“You know that this wasn’t my choice.” Shawn tries to reassure, his hand reaching up to brush against my cheekbone.

“I know, that doesn’t mean that this doesn’t suck.” I roll my eyes.

Shawn has just informed me that for Senorita they need to do press together and act like a couple, without ever fully confirming the relationship.

“Please, don’t be mad.” He presses kisses to my cheek.

Shawn and I have been dating for nearly two years, but we’ve never come out to the public. Between the two of our jobs in the public eye, neither of our managers thought it was the right time. Shawn has always had the single boy persona to attract more fans, I’ve never really questioned it. This is the first time they want him to be in a relationship. Unfortunately, not his real one.

“What do you want me to be then?” I get up from the couch

“Not mad at me.” He runs a hand through his curls.

“This isn’t fair.”

“I know.” He reaches out his hand for me to rejoin him on the couch. He knows I would never be able to say no to his big brown eyes.

“We’ve been waiting so long to be able to come out to the fans, and now this is just going to be pushed back even later. We’ll never be able to just be free and be us.”

“It’ll only be for the summer. After that, we’ll give it a little time, and then we can come out and I’ll tell everyone how you’re the woman I love.”

I can’t help but smile at his words.

“We’ll get through it, I promise.” He presses a reassuring kiss to my temple.

The past three months have to be the longest ones I’ve ever experienced. Time after time of Shawn canceling because the have paparazzi sessions planned, or they need to get photographed making out on the beach. I never thought it would get to this point. I never thought Shawn would let it go so far.

It all became too much when Shawn told me he was performing with her at the VMA’s, an event that we would usually sit next to each other for. An event that now he has to perform with her, sit with her, and most likely walk the carpet with.

“Are you kidding me?” I groan.

“This should be the last time! Summer is almost over and after that we can just fade to the background. Then one of us will talk about the breakup in an interview. We’re almost there!” Shawn says, obviously trying to be optimistic.

“That’s so much time already! You know that they are going to drag this out and milk is as long as they can.” I get up from his dining room table. He had cooked supper for once, which I should’ve caught immediately as a sign he had bad news.

“This is it, this is the last time. After the VMA’s I don’t have to see Camilla again. Just a little bit more time with her. It’s just PR.” Shawn follows me as I pick up my items from around his house.

“I just don’t get why it’s been going on for so long.” I turn around to face him as I put on my shoes, “It still didn’t make it to number one on the charts. The fans know that this is fake, they aren’t stupid. Why are you guys still even trying?”

I finally look up and catch the look in his eyes. Anger.

“Really? How can you be so selfish?” He yells, any sense of him trying to comfort or ease me is gone now.

“Me being selfish? Are you serious right now? You think that I’m being the selfish one?” I throw open his front door, unlocking my car with the keys in my hand.

“Wait-” He follows me, “That’s not what I meant.”

Shawn places his hand on my door so I can’t shut it.

“Please don’t leave on terms like this.” He frowns.

I shake my head and a humorless smile graces my face.

“I need to, I can’t be here right now.”

I reach out a hand to place on his cheek and he leans into the touch. It makes me long for the days when this was so common.

“I just need some space right now.”

Only a few days later I was reminded of the VMA’s at the final fitting for my outfit.

“And you’re sure I can’t just back out of this?” I groan.

“No, you know how good publicity is for this! Plus you’re nominated for an award, you should be excited to go.” Joan, my manager insists.

“I just don’t want to see the performances.” I roll my eyes. “I just know that they have to be all over each other and I just have to sit there by myself and watch. Act like nothing's wrong for the cameras. It’s bullshit.”

“It’s one night.” She smiles, “And, what if you brought a date?”

“What?” I laugh and turn to face her, making the woman altering my dress let out an angry huff.

“You have friends in the industry, just ask someone to come with. Walk the carpet with you, sit at your side. It could be fun!”

Joan’s words stick with me all the way through the night. While sitting on my kitchen counter desperately debating back and forth. I shouldn’t feel guilty, Shawn has been doing way more than this for months, and most times unapologetically.

“No, there’s no way.” I say to myself and slide off the counter. I reach out to my phone, the first thing I come across on Twitter is new paparazzi shots of Shawn and Camila. His arms wrapped around her waist, whispering god knows what in her ear. Not even an hour ago he was spamming my phone with messages trying to talk to me, and this is what he’s been up to.

“Fuck that.” I grumble.

I close out of Twitter and start dialing before I can think twice.

“Y/n? Uh, hey, it’s been a while.”

“Hey, I need a favor.”

It didn’t take much convincing to get Harry to do me this favor. We aren’t the closest of friends anymore, but in our years in the public eye we’ve always managed to check in on each other. We’ve nearly crossed the line of friendship a few times, but ultimately decided that we didn’t want to lose each other because the media could just ruin it.

“Oh my god, are you Harry Styles?” I tease, running up to him for a hug. He lets out a loud laugh and rolls his eyes.

“You look absolutely smashing.” Harry grins, he reaches out a hand to spin me around. He’s successful in making me laugh.

“Thank you.” I grin, “I have to say, you look handsome as ever.”

His dimples grace his face and he turns us towards the car before I can see if he’s blushing.

The ride from the hotel we got ready at isn’t far at all to the VMA’s. Harry gets out first to offer his hand and usher me out of the car. The fans get louder and the camera flashes almost start instantly.

The woman running the event is giving us directions on where to go. We take our first few steps onto the carpet and start posing. It takes Harry pinching my side to pull my attention from smiling softly towards the camera.

“I think you’ve caught his attention, love.” He whispers.

I glance over Harry’s shoulder and he’s right. Shawn is by himself on the carpet, which is surprising, and he’s glaring in our direction. His jaw is clenched tight, I break eye contact before I can stair any longer.

“That’s not all this was about.” I reassure, “I wanted to go with you and have someone by my side. To actually have someone’s support. Pissing him off is just a nice bonus along with the nice PR.”

We finish the rest of the carpet together, ignoring all of the questions about dating and focusing on maintaining a polite smile. More people guide us to where our seats are. We are close to the stage which is unsettling knowing the acts that are to come.

Harry and I walk towards our row, which is the second from the front.

“So what awards are you up for tonight?” Harry asks, pausing before sitting down so we have a moment to stand before sitting for the next couple hours.

“I-”

“Y/n, I need to talk to you.” Shawn suddenly comes up to where we’re standing. I don’t even know where he came from, he should probably be back stage or something.

“I don’t think that is a good idea.” I keep my eyes away from him, hoping to avoid whatever drama he is about to create.

“It’s been three days and you don’t return any of my messages or calls. This is the only time you can’t just ignore me.” He persists yet again.

“Mate, maybe later-”

“And what the fuck are you doing here with him? Are you kidding me? You’re mad at me so you find some other dude to fuck?” Shawn interrupts Harry without even a second of hesitation. People around us are staring, starting to listen to hear whatever is going on. Shawn’s voice is far from quiet at this point.

“Harry, I am so sorry for the way Shawn is acting right now.” I turn to look at Harry, completely ignoring the temper tantrum Shawn is throwing. Harry nods understandingly and being perfectly him. I take my cue to look at Shawn, “I think it would be best if you get the fuck away from me because I am not going to maintain this nice persona because people are around much longer.”

I motion for Harry to take his seat and I join him. Shawn just continues to stand in the isle, debating saying something.

“I’m sorry. It’s just-” He lets out a loud breath of air.

“What? Hard seeing me here with someone else?” He nods solemnly and I lean in closer before whispering, “Well, why don’t you go find your girlfriend.”

part two?? harry as a new love interest?? give me feedback:)

#Shawn Mendes Imagine #shawn mendes imagines #shawn mendes fluff #shawn mendes x reader #shawn mendes x read #shawn mendes x you #shawn mendes #shawn #harry styles imagine #harry styles x reader #Harry Styles

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letterboxd · 3 years

Photo

The Other Bill and Ted.

As No Man of God hits theaters and VOD following its Tribeca premiere in June, director Amber Sealey talks to Dominic Corry about her Ted Bundy two-hander and answers our Life in Film questions.

Amber Sealey has been very acknowledging of the fact that her new film is one of many to center around the horrific crimes of serial rapist and murderer Ted Bundy. As she outlined in her Tribeca Q&A with Letterboxd, one way she intended No Man of God to stick out from the pack was through the use of consciously silent background characters who represent Bundy’s voiceless victims.

The structure and source of the film also help distinguish it from other Ted Bundy movies: No Man of God is based on the recordings of FBI agent Bill Hagmaier (played in the film by Elijah Wood), who was tasked with interviewing an incarcerated Bundy in the years leading up to his execution, in order to help determine whether or not he was criminally insane, which could’ve helped to remove Bundy from death row.

With many of Bundy’s victims never officially attributed to the killer, Hagmaier also sought to draw confessions, and something resembling remorse, out of Bundy, to help bring closure to those victims’ families. As detailed in the film, much of which was taken directly from transcripts of the interviews, Bundy and Hagmaier’s relationship was complicated, and the intimacy that develops between them informs No Man of God in often uncomfortable ways.

Luke Kirby and Elijah Wood in a scene from ‘No Man of God’.

Wood (also a producer on the film) and Luke Kirby turn in career-high work as Hagmaier and Bundy, respectively, while Sealey textures the film with some of the most emotive stock-footage montage sequences this side of The Parallax View. Among positive reactions to the film, Claira Curtis, in a four-star review, writes: “Perhaps one of the most successful elements lies in Amber Sealey’s uncentering of the ‘genius’ moniker that has followed Bundy through his years of infamy.” On the pairing of Wood and Kirby in the leading roles, Connor Ashdown-Ford notes that “the chemistry between them both is so authentic it’s darn right unsettling”.

Unsettling is right. Late in the film, Sealey depicts a real-life TV interview that took place between Bundy and evangelical preacher/author/psychologist James Dobson (played by stalwart character actor Christian Clemonson), who uses Bundy to forward his anti-pornography agenda. Throughout this scene, the camera lingers on a young female member of the TV crew (played by an uncredited Hannah Jessup) as she silently reacts to being in Bundy’s presence. Emblematic of Sealey’s aforementioned philosophy in constructing the film, it’s a moment that appears to be having an impact on audiences, as detailed in Nolan Barth’s review: “She might have one of my favorite performances of this year? She shows us fascination, guilt, disgust and fear in like only 30 seconds of screen time. Give her an Oscar. Please.”

In an awkward incident that represents a perhaps unanticipated effect of there being so many contemporaneous movies with the same subject matter, director Joe Berlinger (Metallica: Some Kind of Monster, the Paradise Lost trilogy), who recently directed both the Zac Efron-starring scripted Ted Bundy biopic Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile and the documentary Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, sent an email to Sealey ahead of No Man of God’s Tribeca premiere about remarks she had made while discussing how her film differentiated itself from the existing Ted Bundy movies. He felt she had accused him of glorifying Bundy. After Sealey took the exchange public, she explained to Variety that she had never singled out Berlinger’s films in any of her remarks.

In a conversation with Letterboxd, Sealey delves into her approach to No Man of God, and talks about some of her filmic inspirations.

‘No Man of God’ director Amber Sealey.

There is really effective and creepy use of stock-footage montages in this film. Sometimes you see that sort of thing at the beginning of a film, but it’s interesting that you keep going back to them after using them in the opening credits. What was the thinking in using those montages and how did you select the footage? Amber Sealey: The thinking for those was a couple things: One, we don’t leave the prison, and I wanted [the audience] to know a little bit what’s going on outside, in terms of the cultural zeitgeist, like what’s the tone of the time? What movies are popular? What books are popular? What are people wearing? I wanted to have there be a kind of cultural touchstone outside of the prison, but at the same time I wanted it to represent potentially a little bit of what was going on inside Bill’s mind. So the story of the montages as they go on, it gets a little bit more fucked up, for lack of a better word, for Bill, inside of his head.

We were originally going to shoot the crowd scenes [of protesters outside the prison] and recreate them and then because of Covid restrictions, we couldn’t do that anymore. So then I knew we were going to be using archival footage for the crowd, and I didn’t want the archival crowd footage to suddenly jump out as being so different from the rest of our film. We’re shooting on an ARRI camera, [so it’s] not going to look like a Hi-8 from the 1980s. I needed to incorporate this look, this ’80s grainy look into the rest of the movie so that it feels like it’s part and parcel of the film, part of the storytelling.

We got [the footage] in different ways. I have an old friend that I’ve known since I was like, two, he lived next door to me, and my cousin, they both had video cameras in the ’80s and would film everything. So some of that footage is old family footage of their family or friends. There’s a couple shots in there of my neighbors when I was growing up. Then some of it, we did a lot of research on [stock-imagery services] Getty and Pond5, just finding archival footage that we could use that really told the story that we wanted to tell with the montages. It was a lengthy process finding all of that footage for sure.

What was Bill Hagmaier’s involvement in the film? Bill is an executive producer on the film, so he was very involved. The transcripts of those conversations between Bill and Ted, we got from Bill. Bill gave us so much great stuff to work with—the newer FBI files that he was allowed to share with us and the recordings, and when the script was originally written it was written based off of those recordings, and the writer originally spoke to Bill and then when I came on board, I talked to him and then I changed the script, even more from conversations I had with him. He was just a resource.

Almost every [character] you see on screen, those are real people, and he hooked us up with a lot of those real people. I spoke with the prison guards and the wardens and all of that. Then he was just a resource in terms of like, I would ask him, “what color were your shoes?” “Did you carry this kind of briefcase or that kind of briefcase?” Because it was important to me that all that production-design stuff was really authentic. I liked to know, like, “what were your haircuts like then, Bill?” So he was available to talk about the emotional side of things, and then the real just humdrum kind of things. He’s just a lovely guy, he’s really supportive of me and of the film and he just wanted to be accessible as much as he could and he was. He’s a very humble, generous person.

Aleksa Palladino plays civil-rights attorney Carolyn Lieberman to Luke Kirby’s Ted Bundy.

What films did you watch, or cite as reference points in preparation for No Man of God? Literally hundreds and hundreds of movies. When I’m looking for my creative look, I just watched so many films, and a lot of old films. I’d have to go back and look at my look book to tell you all of them but I pull images from the weirdest places. But once I get past figuring out the creative look of the film, I don’t then like to watch the movies a lot because I try to really make it its own thing and I worry too much that I’ll be copycatting other artists and I want to try [to] avoid that.

What’s your favorite true-crime movie? Oh god, what was the one about the guy who like, went to the bathroom and confessed, accidentally? He forgot his mic was on? Do you remember that one?

The Jinx? Yeah. Even though it’s a documentary, I’m going to go with that.

What’s your favorite big-screen serial-killer performance? It has to be Luke Kirby. Luke Kirby as Bundy.

What was the first horror film you saw? My dad had me watch Cat People when I was nine. Does that count?

The Val Lewton one? The ’80s one.

Oh, the Paul Schrader one? Yes! The Paul Schrader one.

Nastassja Kinski in Paul Schrader’s ‘Cat People’ (1982).

When you were nine years old? Yeah. I also watched Blue Velvet when I was nine. Oh wow, thank you Dad.

What’s the most disturbing film you’ve ever seen? Most disturbing, hmm… Kids.

What film made you want to become a filmmaker? It was Michael Winterbottom’s Nine Songs. My first film was a reaction to that movie. I’m a huge Winterbottom fan. That’s a great movie, but also it advertises itself as being a real relationship and real sex and I watched it and I was like, well that’s not like any… it was like two models, you know? Their sex scenes were like a perfume ad and I was like, well that’s not what real sex looks like for real people. I made my first feature after that.

What’s your go-to comfort movie? Oh, so many, let’s think. The Proposal. I love Trainwreck. I really like rom-coms, like if I’m sick or something, I’ll watch rom-coms. Roman Holiday, stuff like that.

What’s a classic that you couldn’t get into or that you think is overrated? Umm. Star Wars. I’m trying to think, there’s something else that I just don’t like… everyone loves that singing movie. What’s that singing movie that when Moonlight won the Oscar, it got announced?

La La Land. Yeah. I was not into that.

What filmmaker living or dead do you envy/admire the most? Yorgos Lanthimos. Or Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

If you were forced to remake a classic movie, what would you remake? Grease.

Who would be in the cast of your Grease remake? Oh I don't even know but it would be much darker. It would still be a musical and still be funny, but much darker.

I would like to see that movie. I would too.

Related content

Diego’s list of films featuring the FBI

Boris1980’s list of films about serial killers

Follow Dominic on Letterboxd

‘No Man of God’ is in theaters and on VOD from August 27, 2021.

#amber sealey #luke kirby #elijah wood #ted bundy #bill hagmaier #fbi #serial killer #thriller #courtroom #fbi movies #letterboxd

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cilldaracailin · 4 years

Text

Crazy Little Thing Called Love

Hello my Tumblr lovely’s.

Here is the next part in this story.

Hope you all enjoy.

Thanks so much for all the love and comments on this one so far :)

Suze xx

3 “The ache for home lives in all of us. The safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.”

“So, what was that all about? The ID?” Asked Taron as they sat down on the base of the stone statue, the little green area on the opposite side of the canal much quieter than the town and where the parade had been, only a few people walking around heading home after the parade and duck race.

“Jane is in the musical society and is a fan of yours.” Robyn smiled. “She knew who you were as soon as you walked up even with the green hair and shamrocks on your cheek.”

“And that I wasn’t Dean Edwards?” He chuckled.

“She is a huge Elton John fan and adored your performance in Rocketman. Believe me, I saved you from an onslaught of questions and pictures.”

“You really haven’t told anyone about me, have you?” He asked her quietly, pulling at the orange fabric on the duck in his hands.

Robyn looked to Taron, taking in his strong side profile, noticing how he kept his eyes on the duck in his hands. “Not really no.”

“Can I ask you why?”

Robyn looked away from his face and to her own hands. “It’s not that I haven’t been sharing the news around that I know you and of course my friends and family know what happened in Florida as well as the gospel choir and musical society and of course the parents and the girls in work…”

“So, a lot of people really know.” He interrupted with a little smile.

“Those who are important to me know Taron. I am not keeping you a secret, but I am not shouting from the rooftops that my new best friend is a wonderfully talented actor with a heap of awards under his belt. You know how much I love you Taron and how important you are to me, how important our relationship is to me and I have seen first-hand how horrible the unwanted media attention is for you and for me too that I don’t really feel the need to share what we have with those who don’t deserve to know about it. You are a very special person Taron and only those who I can trust get to know about you.” Taron reached over with his free hand as she spoke and held her right hand tight in his left. “I know it’s a bit different for you because at times you live your life in the public eye and I am there with you too and you know I am ok with that Taron, you know that.”

“I do.”

“But I only share the most precious things in my life with those I fully and truly trust and believe it or not, it doesn’t include most of Kilcreen. By only introducing you to those I have full faith in, means my home will always be a sanctuary for you Taron, a place you can come to when you need too. Somewhere you can freely walk around without your hat and eyes on the back of your head on the constant look out for a rouge photographer.”

“And I know that means a lot to you too. Even though you accept that aspect of my life, I know it is something you can find difficult.”

“Taron you know I don’t…”

“I know Robyn and when you accompany me on the red carpet and stand willingly with me, I know you are there to fully support me and be there for me without a question and the way you keep protecting me is something I don’t think I will ever get used too but I appreciate that being photographed when you are just out getting a coffee with me is something very unsettling for you at times.”

“At times.” She agreed. “So like I said, it’s not that I don’t want my world to know about you, I just want to keep a bubble for you when you need it and Taron, I honestly don’t mind getting photographed with you. It gives me more photos for my wall!” She laughed as he let go of her hand and went straight to tickle her. “But on a serious note, I am always here for you ok? No matter what and like I said, it’s not that I don’t want to share you, it’s just I need to be absolutely sure those I can share you with will be respectful to you.”

“Jane’s not one of them?” He asked.

“Oh, she is. Don’t worry but it’s not the time or place for a photo opportunity and I already gave her the piece of paper you signed for me when we went to The Prince of Egypt together.”

“The one you pushed into your bra.”

Robyn laughed. “Yeah that one.”

“You still gave it to Jane after it had been in your bra?”

Robyn’s nose crinkled up as she looked at him. “Jane has boobs too and wears bras.”

Taron laughed a little nervously. “Not where I was going with that chicken but ok sure. Just you gave her the piece of paper you had in your bra.”

“She really didn’t care Taron. It had your signature on it and I really didn’t need it.”

“Or to sell it on eBay.” He added.

“Nope.”

“Robyn?”

“Yep.”

“Thanks for asking me to come over for St. Patrick’s Day and for keeping my bubble for me when I need it.”

“Anytime rocketman.” Robyn slipped right arm around his waist, inching a little closer to him, laying her head on his shoulder.

Taron looked at the duck in his hands, which was now looking a little bit sad, his costume and feathers destroyed with water. “Poor rocketman.” He pulled a very soggy orange feather from the duck. “Though to be fair, after I had finished filming in that outfit, I looked pretty much the same. It was so hot and I was so hot and was melting in that onesie.”

“I can only imagine.”

“And the weather was so unbelievably heated and humid. It was so uncomfortably muggy.”

“Some of those outfits looked very heavy and stifling.”

“That dress was a killer.”

Robyn chuckled. “Your face never showed that though.”

Well I am an actor.” He replied. He pulled the envelope which he got from Jane with the prize money from winning the duck race from his coat pocket. “This is yours.”

“Erm nope.” Robyn lifted her head from his shoulder and pushed it back towards him. “That is your prize. Your duck won.”

“Because you bought it for me.”

“Because you wanted one Taron.”

“Because it is a Kilcreen St Patrick’s Day tradition. This is yours.”

“Absolutely not Taron. It’s your prize.” Robyn took the envelope from him and pushed it inside his coat. “Yours.”

Taron took the envelope out again. “It’s ours and we keep it for when we meet up and do things together, like having dinner later or a few drinks. So…” He opened the envelope and took the notes out and split the money in two. “You keep half and I keep half and when it’s gone it’s gone so we spend it wisely and keep cwtch away from it.”

Robyn laughed and she put the money in her purse, while Taron did the same for his wallet.

“I can’t believe you bloody won. I have had a duck in this race since it started and never won.”

“I told you Robyn. You are my good luck charm. Have been since I met you in Florida.” Taron leaned over and went to kiss her cheek but we met with a face full of hair as Robyn turned her head as the loudspeaker set up on the green for the day squeaked as a voice started to speak.

“And now we have a performance from Kilcreen’s Gospel Choir, directed by Maddie Lyons.”

“Shit!” Robyn scrambled to her feet cursing. “Shit fucking shit balls!”

“Robyn?”

“The gospel choir! The performance after the duck race! I bloody forgot!” Taron started to laugh as Robyn brushed herself down. “What are you doing! We need to go!”

She bent down and grabbed his hands, yanking him to his feet and took to a run, still holding onto his right hand, almost dragging him behind her, until he caught up. She sprinted up the stone steps and down the bridge and road that led into the The Square, glad that Taron kept up with her. They moved through the crowd, Robyn apologising as she bumped into people as they went, still hauling Taron behind her. She stopped suddenly, Taron bumping into her.

“Stay with my mam.” She instructed him a little breathless from their quick run and with a mouthed apology to Maddie, snuck into the choir group, finding her place in the front row, still trying to catch her breath as she joined in with the song they were singing, picking up on the harmonies easily.

Lizzie looked to Taron who was grinning and trying to catch his own breath. “And you were?” She asked him.

“On the green by the train station. Lost track of time.”

“Hmm I am sure.” She looked to his hands and saw the duck he was holding. “So, you won then?”

“Ahh yeah, I did,”

“What did Robyn decorate that duck as?”

Taron blushed a little. “Erm it’s actually like one of the costumes I wore for the Elton John movie.” He explained. “Feathers and all.”

“You wore something like that?”

Taron chuckled. “It was a bit more elaborate but yeah I did.”

“I actually think I remember.” Lizzie replied. “The one at the start of the movie?”

“That was it.”

“And Robyn made the duck look like you?”

He laughed again. “Not me exactly but more so the outfit.”

“Uh-huh.” Lizzie answered turning her attention back to the choir as they started to sing another song. “Sure Taron.”

Glancing at the duck in his hands, Taron looked up to where Robyn was standing in the choir, his heart hammering in his chest and not from the quick dash they had made to get to her choir. He caught her eye and immediately saw a blush rise to her cheeks and knew it matched the ones on his.

“So, you invited Robyn to another event of yours?” Asked Lizzie having heard the choir sing the song they were currently singing many times before, she was happy to miss it and engage in a little chat with the man beside her, not yet having the chance to talk to him on his own.

“Yeah I did. It’s the premier in London for the movie I finished filming in February.”

“The one that was stopped because of what happened in Florida?” Asked Lizzie.

“That’s the one. Matthew, the director, put a lot of hours in to make sure it was ready for the original release date in April and I really want Robyn to go with me. It’s because of her that I was even able to finish filming.”

“Robyn was telling me you are working on a new film at the moment too?”

Taron nodded. “Yeah. That was the reason why I was late coming over. My schedule is pretty full on and it changed at the last minute. Matthew is the director for this one too and he finalised his cast at the weekend and organised a last-minute script read through. Just something I had to go to.”

“But you still made it here.”

“I promised Robyn I would.”

“And when I first met you, I asked you to look after my daughter and you promised me you would.”

Taron heard the change of tone in Robyn’s mothers voice and he closed his eyes as he waited for yet another lecture from another strong woman. “Lizzie…”

“I know you love her Taron.” His words were not only cut off but caught in his throat and he turned to look at Lizzie seeing so much of Robyn in her features and his eyes moved to meet hers. “And I also know she loves you too and you don’t need to look at me with that doubtful look. I don’t want to bring the subject of New York up but for Robyn to still be fully giving her all to you after that, I know she loves you. It’s been a while since I have seen her excited over a weekend away or a phone call or a teddy bear.” Taron smiled. “You made her day with that present, believe me. Even I tried to find one for her and could not.”

“Sometimes my job does have its perks. I was so happy to find something to make her smile.”

“You make her smile Taron, frustrate her too but definitely make her smile.”

“I try too. Lizzie, I can’t explain to you how important your daughter is to me.”

“You don’t have to Taron. Your actions, the majority of your actions show me that, but I just want to say one thing Taron. Robyn has been deeply hurt in a past relationship. I don’t know if she ever talked to you about Keith?”

Taron nodded. “She mentioned him once or twice.”

“Fucker, if you excuse my French. I tell you something, if I ever see his face again…” Lizzie’s words trailed off. “Sorry Taron.”

“It’s ok. I don’t actually know the whole story but I know he was a fucker as you call him.”

“As her mother you can understand that I will never let any man hurt her again and I know you are not him Taron and from how Robyn speaks about you after she has been with you, I know you treat her with the upmost respect and to be fair, I don’t think I need to worry about Robyn standing up for herself.”

Taron nodded his agreement. “I have seen it first-hand. It is not something you need to be concerned about.”

“But I just need you to promise me that you will look after her. She has this strong exterior but underneath she is a vulnerable young woman who just needs to be loved without question. I am not going to lie to you Taron, some aspects of your job worry me.”

“The media.” Sighed Taron.

“Got it in one.”

“I can’t promise you that I can keep every photo taken of us together from the media Lizzie, but I can do my best to try. I have a wonderful team who work with me.”

“And I have already seen how hard they work for you and I very much appreciate what you have done for Robyn so far but just the things people write about the two of you, about Robyn.”

Taron groaned. “Please don’t read them Lizzie. Robyn doesn’t read them. I don’t read them. I understand it is hard not to, but it is the only way to deal with it, by not reading it. Unfortunately, it is just something that comes with my job and it is very unwanted attention I get.” He reached for her hands. “Mothers just have a knack for knowing things and you are right, just like mine was. I love Robyn and I mean properly love her like head spinning, goose bumps and racing heart love her. She has been a constant comfort in my life since I met her and gotten me through some tough times and saved my life but please trust and believe me that I am always there for her too when she needs me and always will be no matter what. She is a beautiful, intelligent woman who literally holds my heart Lizzie and I promise to treat her with the respect and love she deserves, the same she has shown me.”

Lizzie smiled. “Thank you, Taron.” She leaned in and gave him a close hug. “And before you even think about it, Robyn hates massages.”

“Sorry?” Asked Taron confused.

“My daughter is very good at giving them but hates them.”

Taron felt his whole face flush and as the hug ended, he saw a wicked smile on Robyn’s mother face. “You heard about that then.”

“I am her mother. She tells me things.” Lizzie watched as his blush stretched to his neck. “And I need you to make sure you look after yourself because I need you to look after her.” She smiled at him. “She loves anything to do with her hair though.”

Taron smiled back. “I figured that one out already.”

Lizzie lifted her hands and placed them on his cheeks. “From what I have seen Taron, you are well fitted for her, but she is my only child.”

Although Lizzie’s tone was a little light, he could hear the warning in her words and nodded under her hands. In the same way as Robyn did, Lizzie stroked his cheeks a little before her hands fell from his face and she turned her attention back to the choir.

He had expected a speech at some point from Robyn’s mother and it wasn’t the angry one he had been waiting for but rather an almost plea for him to look after Lizzie’s most precious possession, her daughter. Her words spun around his head. Robyn loved him? Well he knew that. He knew Robyn loved him; she had told him herself. In fact, she had told him less than ten minutes ago as they sat on the green but Lizzie spoke as if Robyn’s feelings ran deeper.

“Hey Taron!” Robyn’s dad came and stood beside his wife. “Enjoy the parade?”

“Yeah I did.” He answered, his thoughts still on the conversation with Lizzie. He shook his head, deciding he just didn’t have the energy at the moment that it would take to think it through and turned to look at the choir as a cheer went up around him and Robyn took the few steps forward to the microphone.

“Happy St Patrick’s Day!” She spoke. “Thanks so much for sticking around to listen to us having a good old sing song. We have been working on a new song and sure we’re going to give it a whirl and see what happens with it. It’s not what we would call performance ready but if you know it sing along.” Robyn looked for Taron in the crowd and gave him a quick little wink and before she moved and picked up her guitar, Taron recognising the instrument as hers straight away having played it himself. He stared her down and once she started playing the opening riff, his whole body rose with surprise his face going straight into a smile.

“Know this one?” Lizzie asked him seeing his face light up.

“Might just know it.” He answered, his eyes closing as the music for Tiny Dancer filtered through the speakers, Robyn taking the lead vocal as she played guitar, the choir supporting her with a wonderful chorus of harmonised ohhs and ahhs.

Taron pulled his phone from his pocket and quickly opened his camera to video the performance. He wanted to keep a copy of it but also have one for Elton too, knowing he would want to see this and would thoroughly enjoy not only the gospel take on his song but the fact that Robyn was singing it. For the second verse, the whole choir joined in with Robyn and she took a step back from the microphone, so her voice didn’t carry louder the others. He naturally just sang along, enjoying how the crowd around him joined in too, the beautiful acoustic version of the Elton John song along with the crowd making it an exquisite version. Robyn stepped forward to take a solo verse again and her eyes locked on his the whole time and he knew she could see him singing along and he gave her one of those full grin smiles he had when he was truly in his happy place.

This song was more than just a song from the movie he was in, more than just an Elton John hit. It was the song he had in his head as Robyn taught him to control his breathing in the 7/11 when he was panicking, the one she had gently sung to him as he lay in pain in the ambulance and the song he had taken to singing while he was in her kitchen when he visited her, even videoing himself singing it on Robyn’s phone for her. It was their song, one that they had bonded over, one that brought a tear to his eye as he just closed his eyes and listened. It already held such a special place in his heart from his time filming Rocketman but now it held such a different emotional connection and he would always associate it with Robyn. He had heard Kilcreen’s gospel choir perform before, even joining them for a rehearsal and their harmonies were so on point, the difficulty increasing as the song moved through to another verse, Taron hearing Robyn’s voice taking the chorus herself again. He didn’t even think about singing along and naturally did so, his own voice louder than those around him but he didn’t care. He had to sing along and even with the slight crackle and wobble in his voice from tiredness, he didn’t stop until the song had finished, only himself and Robyn ending the song, Taron a little flustered that he had kept going when everyone else had stopped but he was so caught up in the music he hadn’t noticed.

As a huge cheer went up for the performance and Taron was brought down to earth as he had been floating on a music high. He looked to Robyn and saw that once again her eyes were locked with his and he mouthed ‘thank you’ to her and she nodded back to him, before she moved to put her guitar back taking her place back in the front row. The choir sang for another ten minutes and had finished their set just as a few drops of rain started to fall, the crowd starting to disperse quickly as the rain threatened.

“Taron, John and I am going to head on home. We normally have a meal with my sister who lives next door us on Patrick’s Day. She cooks us up a proper Irish meal.”

“Robyn isn’t going?” Asked Taron, wiping away a single raindrop from his forehead.

“She normally does but don’t you have plans for the day? Something about Guinness and a céilí?”

Taron nodded. “Yeah that was the plan but if she normally has dinner with her family…” Taron’s voice trailed off.

“Robyn can have dinner with us whenever she wants Taron. She only gets to see you for two days. She planned a completely Irish themed evening for you. Go and enjoy yourself.” Lizzie gave him a quick hug. “She wants you to have a good night so go and do so. It was so lovely to see you again.”

“Thank you Lizzie and you too. I will look after her for you.”

“I trust you completely with her.”

With another goodbye to her parents, Taron then turned to look toward the choir all of who had already left, just Robyn and Maddie staying behind to tidy up. He strolled over to them. “Need some help?” He asked, getting a big grin from Robyn who nodded. “What can I do?”

With some instruction from the two woman and with his help, the three had all the wires, cables and speakers put back in Maddie’s car as well as the microphone stands, music stands and keyboard within fifteen minutes.

“Thanks so much Taron. That made my life a lot easier.” Said Maddie.

“No problem. Thanks for the performance. I think Kilcreen gospel choir might be my favourite.” He laughed.

“You are already a member Taron, no need to suck up to the musical director.” Laughed Robyn as she swung her guitar case on her back.

“You know where we practice Taron and are welcome whenever you want.” With a quick goodbye, Maddie hopped in her car, giving the horn a beep as she drove off.

“So Tiny Dancer?” Asked Taron as he turned to Robyn. “Who came up with that song choice?”

“No idea.” She answered him, shrugging her shoulders and it was an awkward hug that Taron gave her as he held the duck in one hand and he couldn’t wrap his free arm full around her guitar. “Guess you liked it then.”

“It was beautiful. Haven’t heard it sang like that before.”

“Heard you singing along.” Robyn answered him as he let her go. “You should have come up and joined us.”

“You didn’t need any help and I thought you didn’t play in front of people.”

Robyn shrugged her shoulders once more. “Guess I changed my mind. We should make a move before those clouds actually break into a proper shower. I just need to drop this home before we head for some food.”

“That is fine by me.”

#Taron Egerton #Taron Egerton Fanfiction #Taron Egerton Fanfic #Taron Fanfic #Love #Friendship #Cuddles #Laughter #Protection #Bubbles #Singing #Thoughtfulness #St. Patrick's Day #Gospel Choir #Tiny Dancer #Mothers #Robyn and Taron

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alitheamateur · 5 years

Text

The Grind- Chapter 24

“Stop givin’ her your back, baby. You know betta, damn it!” Colton beat the cold canvas of the ring in constructive dissatisfaction, unintentionally distracting me from Tia’s chokehold attempt.

We were doing daily training now, with the match only two weeks away. Ryan, wasn’t exactly giddy towards accepting this challenge and jumping on this particular horse, the undoubted distraction it would from my column at the Pilot. I swore, and sensibly assured him I could juggle both hefty responsibilities, but the extreme lack of sleep on my calendar these days was proving an obstacle.

Cardio and weights with Colton routinely every morning in the basement of his place at 4:30 a.m., showered and off to work by 8, then grappling and fight training every evening with my trio. Cal would often sideline for emotional support, too. The fact that Mr. Ritter and I now shared a bed each night, his & her vanity’s in his newly remodeled bathroom thankfully equipped with a bathtub large enough for the both of us, and breakfast in his nook every morning made alone time easy, thankfully. I moved in swiftly after the details of my match with Katrina Bexley from Franklin Park were on paper, accepting Colt’s offer to share a home with him happily.

The contents of my place were relocated to our home within a couple of days, before the cool of Pittsburgh autumn disembarked. He let me sprinkle a feminine touch here and there without dispute, and even bought me my very own pink punching bag for the basement as a housewarming welcome.

“Livvy, c’mon! Take her down, you’ve got it!” My boyfriend turned trainer encouraged.

His part in my preparation had been a surprising positive for our relationship. I could tell, despite how frightened he was for my welfare, that the common ground of fighting we now shared was one he appreciated. He kept up my diet plan with me, avoiding to dare come home with pizza, beer, or burgers, and most nights we’d watch his old fight films, or any other female matches he could dig up online. He’d rest his back on the arm of the plush sectional I’d brought from my old apartment, I’d settle between his legs resting my head on the muscled pillow of his core, and he’d talk me through each move listing the do’s and don’ts.

I carefully counted the seconds, waiting for the exact moment to pummel Tia to the mat, fearing I would misstep. Then, like I’d been doing it my entire life, I locked her into a double leg takedown, and she grunted in discomfort when her head bounced like a ball off the canvas.

“Touché, LC! That was excellent. I’ll bust your nose if you do it again, but it was perfect,” Tia pulled the slimy mouthguard from her teeth as she stood to her feet.

The ring at the Temple had become as much my home as the one I was creating with Colton these days. I often showered in the locker room there at night after sessions, allowing me to crawl directly in bed after the short drive home if need be.

“Hit the sauna with me before you head out?” I asked Tia, hopefully.

We were on much sturdier ground now, and she’d even spent a handful of nights at our house for dinner. Colton and she were teetering a little on the line beyond civil, giving me hopes of a friendship for the two of them in the works.

She came out of her latest match victoriously, and Colt & I were there to support on the front row. However, her eye had suffered quite the beating in the bloody battle, so she was out of commission to compete for at least 6 weeks recommended by her surgeon.

“I’d love to. God knows I need it. But I have an early shift in the morning at the boutique, so I’m gonna head out.”

Colton snuck up my back stealthily during our conversation, wrapping his arms around my neck to kiss my cheek, and the sweat soaked hair stuck to it.

“I think I may know somebody else who has a few extra minutes to occupy the sauna with ya’, 2-1.”

“Ahhhh, fuckin’ hell, you sleeze. I’m out on that note,” Tia made a gagging reference then grabbed her bag to retreat.

Colton sat aside me on the oak bench of the spacious sauna, with my feet swung over his toweled groin so he could massage the aching, knotted muscles of my calves. It was quiet the first several minutes, so I took the peaceful silence as an opportunity to close my eyes for some long overdue rest. The two of us had already “christened” the very room a few weeks ago, so I knew that nagging plea from Colton had been satisfied and he wouldn’t be begging me. For at least another few days.

“Have you talked to your parents lately? Since you told them about the fight?” He asked, his words breaking through the thick, white steam of the sauna.

He had yet to meet my parents in person, but I settled for a Skype introduction before I moved in. Something felt eerily unsettling about moving with a man when my parents didn’t even know his hair color. My mother, however old, but very clearly not dead, almost yelped when Colton’s fetching smile came into view of the camera, and even dad complimented his “impeccable politeness.”

“Yeah. Dad texted the other day to ask if it would be streaming online so they could watch. I’m sorta shocked at how excited he is. I didn’t think he’d be over the moon about the idea of his daughter getting her face beat in.” I jerked when my personal, irresistible masseuse worked over a deep dwelling tender spot in my leg.

“I think you should have them out here, babe. He’s excited that your competing in somethin’ again, I betcha. They could stay in the guest room at the house,” he calmly, yet very suggestively stated.

Dad being proud of me again, and the thought of hearing his cheers from the stands, was a fond idea, no doubt. But, the possibility of having him come so far, only to get my sorry butt handed to me, and disappoint him once again, wasn’t keen to me.

“I love you, Colt, but we’re gonna have to agree to disagree here. I think having them here, to watch the fight, would just create way too many unnecessary nerves for me, ya’ know?”

He never said another word that night in the aspect of my mom and dad, and we made the journey home.

Later in the same week, Colton took me to a sweet spot in his precious ‘Burgh to help me check fight night attire off my checklist. He knew what I liked, and more importantly, what I needed to avoid feeling too constricted, and asked if he could call in a favor so the seamstress could have it made up when we arrived. The Pilot was sponsoring me, along with Temple Fitness, and Andrew tossed his hat in for The Grind, as well. I was grateful they’d been so generous with sponsorship donations, and considered it an honor to wear their banners.

The address Colton drove us to was a hole in the wall, and I would’ve considered it abandoned and drove on by had I passed the place myself. But he heeded the tailor was a gem, and one of the finest ladies he’d ever met. When we entered, a teeny bell atop the door jingled, and a teenage girl staring into a book at the counter raised a smile to greet us.

“Hey there, Tessa. How ya’ doin’?” Colton acknowledged the girl by her first name, clearly proving he frequented the place often.

She beamed a candy apple blush at Colton’s ‘hello’, her no older than 16-year-old heart skipping a beat. I didn’t blame her. When I was her age, Nathan Rogers made me quiver that very same way. Was there a single, heterosexual female within 5,000 thousand miles that didn’t want to lick my boyfriend like a melting popsicle?

“I think ya’ grandmother has something ready for me to pick up.” Colt leaned upon the counter, as if feeding into the poor girls drooling response. Much like my own reaction the very first time I laid eyes on him.

“She said you’d be by today. Let me grab it for you!” Tessa jumped from her seat to answer her favorite customers beckoning call.

“That poor girl almost tripped over her own tongue when you walked in here, Ritter. Don’t smile at her like that too much. Give the female population at break, damn it.” I nudged him once the girl disappeared behind the stock room door.

“You gave them a break when ya’ took me off the market and claimed me, baby,” he stuck his tongue out playfully and winked. Of course.

“Oh, what I service I did for my fellow man, huh?” I countered his cheekiness with my own gentle pinch to his toned rear end.

When the young clerk emerged, she unfolded a black pair of elastic, compression shorts trimmed in pink. The letters of my name printed boldly across the waistband, the young lady observed Colton and I, hoping to gauge any reaction of satisfaction to the product.

“I thought about having Sally put ‘Luscious Liv’ on ‘em, just to stick you with a shit ring name like the one I got.” Colton snidely declared.

“Thank God, you have a heart and decided against that one. For your sake, smartass,” I grabbed him by the face to shake him flippantly. “I love them though, Colt. And, I just might love you, too.”

“Appreciate it as always, Tess!”

Tags: @torialeysha @eap1935 @littleluna98 @mollybegger-blog

A/N: Apologies for the brief chapter, my angels. I’ll make it up to you! I’ve got lots I need to be writing, but it seems my brain is on vacation. Doing the best I can for you all, and hopefully you’ll hang in there with me!

#Tom Hardy #tomhardy #tommy conlon #tomhardyfanfic #tom hardy fanfiction #tomhardyfanfiction #elizabeth olsen #thegrind

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thekrazykeke · 6 years

Photo

So we ended the last part on a dramatic note. I left all of y’all wondering, ‘what’s in the box?’, everyone was clamoring and screaming, claiming ‘its a spider or snake’, one beautifully funny comment that it was M’Baku’s idea of a prank! 😂This part, we discover what happened to the reader and what sinister forces are moving against her.

Let’s begin 😘

Continued from here.

@elaindeereads @autumn242 @punkrockwxnnabe @palmsofgranate @strawberrysoftkitten @wikiwakanda @lovemekaycee @managingmischiefdaily @gothambrat @marvel-snatched-my-wigs @youreadthatright @lovelylittlekittn @muse-of-mbaku @keya168

The plant attached to Y/N’s chest is deceptively beautiful.

Erik can almost be fooled into thinking that it’s just a bouquet of wildflowers or something, except the minute he even reached in her general direction to remove the plant, a vine-like appendage tightened itself around her middle and the thing let out this eerie screech-roar sound that chilled his blood, making him hastily back off.

“Bast protect us.” T’Challa murmured, running a weary hand down his face. “It is a Black Mercy.”

“A what?” Brows furrowing, Erik tried to communicate that he needed to expound on his words.

“Black Mercy.” Shuri piped up. “To summarize briefly, this plant is indigenous only in Wakanda. However, perhaps because of it’s...” For a second, she paused, looking for a diplomatic word. “Temperamental nature, many years ago, even before our father’s reign, whole entire Black Mercy fields were burned to ash.”

He’d called T’Challa the second Y/N had hit the ground and wouldn’t wake up. The plant, this Black Mercy, hadn’t been any bigger than a nickel then, and in less than an hour and a half, rapidly had gotten larger and that much more aggressive.

Erik hadn’t expected both his cousins to pop up for some reason.

Yea, he’d made progress with reconciling his behavior and all the shitty things he had done to people over the years, to try and be a better man going forward in his relationship with Y/N, but while he and T’Challa, for the most part, buried the hatch and were trying to act like family instead of just former enemies...

A proper conversation with Shuri hadn’t happened yet, and he ain’t stupid enough to think it’s water under the bridge.

That’s what this lunch/dinner thing was supposed to be about; he’d spend time wit his girl and get a handle on how the teenager acted like in his presence, scared, uneasy or whatever, he’d deal with it and proceed from there.

“A’ight, how we gettin’ this thing off?” Raising an eyebrow at the teenager, the former soldier gave her most of his attention, he couldn’t stop glancing down at his fiancee. “By fire?”

“Ah, it is not so simple as that, cousin...” T’Challa drawled.

Clenching his jaw, he stared at the royal with irritation, “Nigga, if you don’t cut the mysterious act an’ tell me how to fix this s--” Erik’s hands waved threw the air with agitation and the plant... Hairs standing on the nape of his neck, he turned around just in time to see that a vine-like appendage slither up around Y/N’s neck. Feet moving of his own volition, he is about to step forward and try and get it off, again, but a firm hand on his chest stopped him.

“Don’t.” Shuri stated, tone firm. Erik shook his head, about to shrug her hand off, but her next words stopped him. “You must not approach with the way you’re behaving. The Black Mercy attaches itself to a host, then traps them in a waking dream state based on their feelings. If this is not handled correctly or if it perceives you as a threat, it will kill her all the quicker and then latch itself onto another, going from person to person, feeding uncontrollably.”

Body trembling with the need to move but also realizing the depth and gravity of the situation, Erik shook his head, clenching and unclenching his fists at his sides. “...So, she sleepin’?”

Removing her hand, Shuri nodded.

“She ain’t in pain?”

“Beyond the initial ‘bite’ the Black Mercy does not tend to harm it’s host. Keeping a person compliant and docile as it drains it’s vic...” T’Challa was making a slashing motion across his throat and Shuri snapped out of her ‘SCIENCE!’ mode, lecturing tone becoming sheepish, “A-ah, no! Nope. Y/N is not in pain, not at all really.”

Erik glanced between the two, shaking his head at their antics before looking at Y/N, so still and sleep, unaware of this sentient death trap attached to her. “So, I’ma ask again: how we gettin’ that thing off?”

“What state of mind was Y/N in prior to all of this? Happy, sad, thoughtful?” T’Challa inquired. “Clear your mind and embrace that particular emotion only. Talk to her, remind her of all the reasons that she has to cast aside the dream world and return to reality, to you.”

“And after that?” Erik doesn’t want to leave anything to chance.

“Brother and I will be doing the hard part. Once Y/N is awake and free of the Black Mercy, we only have a few precious seconds to burn it to ash, because during that time it will immediately attempt to attach itself to another host.” Shuri explained. “T’Challa has the added protection of the suit, which leaves you and Y/N vulnerable.” Pressing a kimoyo bead on her wrist, Erik’s eyebrows raised to his hairline as familiar kitty gauntlets appeared on her hands.

“I will be on burning duty.”

“Sister, when did you make the, uh...” T’Challa hesitated, eyes darting to Erik then away.

Shuri shrugged, expression innocent. “Research purposes.” Becoming more serious, she looked between both men. “Enough playing around. Are we ready?”

“Clear your mind.” T’Challa reminded Erik just before the suit materialized from the necklace, covering his entire body.

‘I’d clear my mind if you’d cut it out wit this Yoda shit!’ Feeling the sting of irritation, he pushes the feeling down and away, gaze focusing on Y/N. Recalling her goofy victory dance, her playful words and her smile.

This time, when he reached for her, the Black Mercy did not react aggressively, though a leathery ‘tongue’ licks along his arm, but ultimately allows him to move Y/N so that her head is lying in his lap.

He doesn’t want to risk moving her bodily just yet.

Erik allowed himself to remember when she’d throw her head back with laughter, shoulders shaking as he hollered at the TV while watching If Loving You is Wrong reruns with her. He remembers how her nose scrunches up and she snickered, describing the childhood crushes and the awkward first kiss.

Mouth opening, the words come surprisingly easy, “You told me that there ain’t been one boyfriend you had that all of your siblings and cousin Breanna could agree was good enough for you. Whether it was the way he walked or talked, or somethin’ else, they always clowned on the dude and eventually drove him away.”

The Black Mercy chuffed and a vine unwrapped itself from Y/N/s throat. Erik figures that means it’s working.

“An’ you made excuses for why you couldn’t or shouldn’t date. It was no point in bringing the guy to meet a family member, let alone all of’em, because it just ended the same way. So you focused on yo hustle instead. You went to work an’ back to the apartment, that’s it.”

The vines are rapidly unwinding from her torso, shrinking down.

“If you wake up an’ look me in the eyes, I’ll tell you a secret. Something I ain’t tell you about the first time we met. What made me want to holla atchu asap.”

Y/N’s eyelids are fluttering and Erik’s so focused on her face that he nearly misses the warning, dodging to the side as T’Challa shouted something indistinct, then lashed out with his claws at the Black Mercy which had revealed a ‘mouth’ with rows and rows of jagged teeth, as his hit landed, an unsettling screech-roar escaped. Rolling with Y/N tucked against his chest, heart beat pounding, he glanced down to see that she’s starting to wake up. Glancing up again when that eerie screech-roar resounded through the house, increasing in higher pitch and frequency as Shuri used her gauntlets to burn the devil plant.

“Nn...” Using her fist, she rubbed at her eye.

“...T’ hell is that smell? Did you fart while I was sleeping?”

Almost against his will, Erik laughed, genuinely amused. “Yep, sho did.”

Smacking his right pec, Y/N’s mouth twisted up. “Nigga, you nasty! What I tell you ‘bout that shit?! Light an incense or somethin’!” Hand covering her nose, her head turned and she goggled as she caught sight of T’Challa and Shuri. Again, she smacked his chest.

“You let me sleep while yo family was here! Oooh, I can’t believe you!” Then she sent him the look of death.

“Ay, you was tired. I know the consequences of not letting you get yo rest. The dragon comes out.”

“N’Jadaka...” T’Challa sent him a scolding look, trying to convey with him to stop teasing and tell the truth.

“Forreal, one look at her when she heated I ain’t let her get the last chicken wing or something equally petty and I turn to stone.”

“That’s a Basilisk power.” Shuri and Y/N said at the same time.

“Jinx!” The princess crowed.

“You read Harry Potter?” Y/N raised an eyebrow, sounding impressed.

Shuri snorted. “The movies are horrible.”

Throwing her hands up and whooping, she stuck her tongue out. “Someone in yo family has taste!” Y/N declared. “He likes the movies.” She added, voice disgusted.

“But those books are a classic. A bit racist, but it was written by a colonizer, so...”

Y/N all but died.

Cupping his hands over his mouth, “Nerds~” Erik said laughingly.

Eventually, later that night, Y/N does remember that she hadn’t just ‘fallen asleep’ and has a mini freak out, only relaxing when reassured repeatedly that there aren’t many, if any, Black Mercy fields left to speak of.

“So, in the future if you ever decide to visit Wakanda, there won’t be any greenery that is harmful to you except the normal plants you should avoid, or what might cause an allergic reaction.” Shuri promised, sounding thoughtful, twirling a forkful of spaghetti. “Wait, do either of you have allergies?”

“Nah.” Erik is busy with his plate, using the homemade garlic bread to swipe up the spaghetti sauce, lifting it to his mouth and finishing it off with two big bites, chewing.

“Me either.” Y/N added, cutting another piece of garlic bread and putting it on his plate, which he accepted without a thought, mouthful, he made a ‘it’s good’ type of hand gesture. “Is y’all sure I can visit? I mean, I don’t want to cause any issue.”

“There should not be because I’m permitting you to do so.” T’Challa stated, reiterating the fact that he is king and his word is law without explicitly saying so, there’s a nonverbal assurance that if there’s an issue, to bring it him, that you picked up on. “This is delicious, by the way.” Shuri passed him the bowl which had a mix of bbq and fried chicken, using the fork, he added two pieces of each onto his plate. “Did you add lemon to the sauce?”

“Family recipe.” Y/N replied, adding some extra spaghetti to her plate. “We don’t swap those ‘round here.” Not even glancing in Erik’s direction, she swatted his fork away from her plate, twirling the spaghetti around the utensil before lifting it to her lips.

T’Challa nodded, accepting that tidbit of information for what it was, instead digging into his meal again.

After dinner is finished and Erik did the dishes with his cousins helping (hindering, really, playing in the water), it’s time for them to go. Y/N surprised Shuri by giving her a hug though the younger girl is quick to hug back, and T’Challa earned a half hug and a quip to take it easy.

The king joked that life would be boring if he did so.

Y/N retreated to the bedroom first and Shuri already walked outside, a car ready for them in the parking lot.

“One thing that’s been bothering me.” Erik spoke in a low tone. “That plant is only found in Wakanda, but it was addressed to Y/N and sent here. Who sent it? Was that even meant for her?”

T’Challa said nothing for a moment and then he sighed, seeming to be weighed down. “I only alerted the elders about Y/N’s existence after you told me that you proposed.” Erik’s features became thunderous and he held up a hand. “I know what you are going to say, but it is better that they remained in the loop. You have always been royalty, only recently, you’re an acknowledged royal, a part of the Golden Tribe like Shuri, Mama, and myself. Even if you do not bring her to Wakanda, if the two of you decide to expand your family, your child will not be denied. Also, by telling them of her, they cannot force an arranged marriage onto you.”

“So whatchu sayin’ is that one of those snooty elders from the Tribes tryna take her out so I can what? Be a free man? Ha!” Jaw tensing, Erik looked at his cousin in the eye, daring him to lie to him, to omit more truths.

T’Challa remained unruffled by his tone and attitude. “I’m saying that it is a possibility, one that I will be exploring extensively, but until I know for sure, I implore you exercise restraint.”

“If these holier than thou mufuckas tryna take the one good thing I’ve got going for me, the woman that I...” He paused, faltering. “That I love, then nah, fuck that. Restraint goes out the window and I’ma kill’em all. No second chances, no apologies. I’ma kill’em.” Even if that meant that he lost his ‘officially recognized’ title, then whatever, so be it. “Don’t play wit me, this ain’t a joke, nigga.”

“I am doing my utmost to find the culprit.” T’Challa assured him.

“Just...give me some time.”

“You can take all the time you need. Don’t mean I’ma wait before acting if you pussyfooting around and take too long.” Erik replied flatly.

That statement chilled T’Challa to the bone because he looked exactly like he had when challenging him for the throne, when he declared that he’d spent his whole life waiting to kill him.

#mcu #erik killmonger #mcu imagine #erik killmonger imagine #marvel #black reader #marvel imagine #erik killmonger x reader #black panther #erik killmonger x black reader #black panther imagine #thekrazykeke

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maknaesdancersrappers · 6 years

Text

Warm (14/16)

prologue

cotton, wind, blow, blouse.

hair, flower, aroma, scent.

cold, eyes, ice, dive.

touch, warm, melt, lips.

a/n: i cried writing this one

You’ve noticed ever since your 7th anniversary, Taeyong has been distant and jittery around you. It started with him blankly staring at you when you would tell him about your day and it would take a few calls of his name for him to snap out of it. Next, he would always come home late, either from working overtime or hanging out with Johnny ever since he moved back to Seoul from Chicago.

When you consulted your best friend, she said it might be the infamous ‘7-year itch’ that happens between couples; when the relationship starts to recede. You argued that it can’t be because he’s always just as passionate and enthusiastic when you two would fool around in bed.

“Well, maybe he just wants sex. You two are still unbelievably celibate.” She scoffs and under her breath she grumbles, “I still think his pepper is an inch.”

You scold her when you caught what she said, shoving her shoulder.

“Then he’s probably cheating on you! Like, are you sure he’s really working overtime or meeting Johnny?”

You frown at her suggestion, “It’s not like him to lie.”

“Remember that little incident with what’s-her-face and wanting to have him ‘study each other’s anatomy’ back in senior high?”

That left an unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach and it stayed there until you got back home where Taeyong was browsing through the usual stack of papers he brings home from work in the living room.

He looks up from the file he was holding, his eyes a little red and the bags under them were darker than usual. “Oh, hey.” He briefly stands up to kiss your cheek before plopping back down on the couch. “Have you eaten? I made some beef stew.”

“I’m still full… Aren’t you going to bed yet?”

“I will in a while. I’ll just sort these out.”

You nod and get ready for bed, trying to forget the suggestions your best friend had mentioned earlier.

Taeyong clambers onto the bed just a few minutes after you settle in and as he was about to scoop you into his arms and warm you up from the cold airconditioning, his phone rings. He mumbles an apology when he sees your dismayed expression before getting up and answering his phone.

“Why are you calling? Ya! I’m thinking it through, wait, I’m in the same room as her.” He says into his phone in a hushed tone, thinking you didn’t hear him as he slips out the room.

Your chest tightens, thinking what through? And why did it matter that you were in the room.

“Maybe he’s cheating on you.” Your friend’s words echo in your head.

You fell asleep before Taeyong came back to bed and when you woke up the next morning, he was gone already. He left a note by the breakfast he made you, telling you he had to go work early, and you can tell he was in a rush because of his handwriting.

As you dusted your face with setting powder, your gaze lands on the small jewelry box Taeyong had gotten you for your birthday 2 years ago. You haven’t been wearing any of your jewelry since you only used them for night outs or formal events, but today you felt like wearing at least one of them. Upon opening the navy faux leather box, it was a mess of tangled chains of necklaces and bracelets on one side and neatly arranged rows of your earrings where rings are supposed to be. You see the rose pendant he had gotten you before and untangle it from the others. On the leaves, it had his initials and since you felt so distant with him the past weeks, you decided to wear it.

But it had still bothered you all morning about Taeyong’s actions and your friend’s words still haunted the back of your mind. You hated it that it made sense in your head, but you refused to believe any of it. You were so out of it during work that your boss had advised you to take the rest of the day off.

You barely worked in the morning, yet the second you got to your apartment, fatigue started to set in. Without another thought, you open the door and toe off your shoes on the mat. You thought you were seeing things, but you see Taeyong’s loafers--the one he wears to work--on the mat, and what made you feel ten times worse were the black pumps beside it.

“Taeyong?!” You didn’t mean to actually screech, but when you hear more than one hurried footsteps inside the living room, you repeat yourself and stomp towards the noise.

“[Y/N]!” Taeyong awkwardly stands in the middle of the living room, hands behind his back and looking flustered. “W-what are you doing home so early? Are you sick? Are you okay?”

“Am I okay?” You scoff, “Are you okay? What are you doing home so early?”

“I, uh, forgot some papers.”

“Oh, did you?” He nods his head at your question. “Did you bring a co-worker with you, huh?”

His eyebrows furrowed together and as if a lightbulb went off in his head, his eyes widened. “Uhm, I--”

“Where is she?” You demand as you looked around the room. When you feel his hand on your shoulder, you push him off and glare at him with wet eyes. “Are you cheating on me?”

“No! You know I would never even think of that!”

“Then whose heels are on the mat?”

“Miyoung’s!”

You and Taeyong had never screamed at each other like this.

“Who the hell is that?!”

“Johnny’s girlfriend!”

And as if on cue, the front door shuts and Johnny’s voice booms, “Hey, Taeyong, the flower shop only had peach roses, [Y/N] is fine with that, right--oh…” He walks into view with a three large bouquets of the roses he was just talking about. “A-am I late?”

On the corner of your vision, you see Taeyong shake his head while covering his face with a hand.

“Late for what?” You asked, calming down a bit.

Suddenly, a girl runs out from the laundry room and went straight for Johnny. She looks at you with a tight smile. “Hi, uhm, I wish we met on better circumstances, but I think it’s best that Johnny and I leave. Let’s go, hun.”

“Wait, what’s happening?” Johnny looks at her and back at Taeyong, but she hushes him.

“Hush, Taeyong can handle this.” She says, glancing at him and gives him a thumbs up, mouthing “You got this.”

When they left, you turn to Taeyong and wait for him to explain.

“Uhm, do you want to sit down first?”

“No, I’m good standing up.”

He sighs, “Okay. Uhm…” His eyes fall on your neck, making him reach out and touch the necklace you wore. “You haven’t worn this in a while.”

“Don’t change the topic. What the hell is happening?” You snap at him and he offers you an apologetic smile.

“When I bought this, the store also had these rings; really expensive rings. And I knew I didn’t have the money to buy them so I didn’t think much of it until I saw this one particular ring. I immediately thought of you and I don’t know why I did, but when the lady who sold me this necklace offered to reserve the ring for at most 3 months, I took it.” He pauses to swallow. “After I gave you this necklace, I started working different part time jobs so I can save up for the ring. I didn’t even have enough when the 3 months were up, but my mom lent me the money because she knows how much I wanted it for you-- how much I love you.”

Taeyong pulls out a square box from his back pocket and you recognize the packaging as the same one that came with the necklace from years ago. “So I’ve had this for 4 years because I didn’t know when to give it you; I kept waiting for the right time, and if you came home a little later, I could have given it to you like I planned.”

You stare up at him, “But, we already celebrated our anniversary… w-what’s with today that you have to ask Johnny and his girlfriend for help?”

He inhales deeply, closing his eyes as he slowly exhales. With one last breath, he gets on one knee and holds your hand, gazing into your eyes.

“I swear to God, I had a whole spiel to tell you, but you came too early and now I can’t remember most of it.” He chuckles, “And I feel like I should apologize for taking so long to do this, but [Y/N], you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. You’re patient and understanding with me, you know how to put up with me, and I’m--I’m me because of you. I loved you for 7 years and I promise to love you even more for the next years to come,” He opens up the square box and reveals the most elegant ring you’ve ever seen. “Will you marry me?”

You don’t even realize that you had held your breath or that you’ve began crying until you attempted to answer him. “Wait, I just feel so stupid for thinking that you were cheating on me.”

He shushes, vehemently shaking his head. “No, no, it’s okay. Please answer me, baby. One word, yes or no. And whatever it is, I’ll accept it.”

You choke back your tears at the thought of him understanding if you reject his proposal, “Of course, it’s a yes!” You pull him up from the floor and throw your arms around his shoulders.

He hugs you back, wrapping his arms around your waist and you feel it: the warmth of his body that you missed so much; the warmth that made you feel that you were home.

“Is this really happening?”

He laughs, breaking the hug off to put the ring on your finger. “Why? Are you having second thoughts?”

“No!” You cry, briefly admiring the ring before returning your attention on Taeyong, who wipes your tears with his thumb, “Never.”

a/n: i will always cry while writing marriage proposals bc its the only time i allow myself to be so cheesy and im so soft rn it didnt help that taeyong had apple hair for inkigayo :c

this is still open (u kno if anyone else is interested in getting to know me)

follow me on twitter? @ohyesjaehyun

#nct #nct u #nct 127 #nct 2018 #nct scenarios #taeyong scenarios

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redvelvetreel · 6 years

Text

Red Velvet Reel 5.2: Recipe for Disaster

[Fic Directory]

Pairing: [Married] Spicyhoney (Underfell Papyrus x Underswap Papyrus)

Summary: Edge takes Stretch out to eat (& lets Stretch drive his car) at the Factory Cheesecakes(TM) after an unfortunate batter-spilling situation. Talk about lots of stuff.

Characters: Edge (Underfell Papyrus) & Stretch (Underswap Papyrus) with mentions of Chara (Underswap Chara) & other characters.

Contains: Mpreg/Skelepreg! Dubious Science (Magic?) Fiction to Explain Monster Biology! Lots of headcanons! Hints of deeper issues with Chara!

Warning: Mentions of poisoning/attempted poisoning that were thwarted. (Potentially unsuccessful anyway because skeleton?)

Rating: Teen and up!

Note: Hey! This chapter is pretty lighthearted overall, but mind the warning about attempted poisoning! It’s very minor, but, you know. If you’re curious what the warning is for exactly, its- (SPOILER: Chara pours dishsoap into Stretch’s batter, and he realizes this so he spills it instead.)

The most surprising thing that happened that day, it turned out, was Edge tossing him the keys to the car.

“Are you sure-?” Stretch started to ask, looking up from the keys resting in his palm to find his husband already sitting in the car. Buckling himself into the passenger’s seat and engrossed with something on his phone.

Well, stranger things had happened... Stretch slid into the driver’s side with only a little hesitation, shifting the seat back to a more comfortable angle for his legs. “Do I set a course for home, Captain?”

“To The Factory Cheesecakes, Ensign,” Edge answered, sounding distracted as he was still tapping away at his phone.

“Aye aye, Sir.”

“Steady as she goes.”

Heh. Stretch was content to drive without speaking, listening to one of the new songs from that Aerok group playing on the radio. Undyne would be betrayed if she knew he was listening to any A-Pop groups other than m00nsh1n3, but these GLOWEE boys weren’t half bad...

“I don’t know why your friend is so anti-phone calls,” Edge finally put the phone down, rubbing at his good socket as though it hurt, “Having to send hundreds of text messages over the course of several minutes seems infinitely worse than speaking for a few seconds.”

Stretch gave a noncommittal hum as they waited at a stoplight, shrugging, “Maybe if you used your reading monocle like you’re supposed to-“

“It’s not a monocle!” Edge sank into his chair with an aggravated sigh, “I’m not going to use anything in public that advertises I can’t see perfectly without assistance!”

Stretch bit back the obvious reply that the literal claw marks ripping through his socket did more than enough 'advertising’ than glasses ever could.

“Besides, I don’t need it!”

This was an old argument he absolutely did not want to get into right now. “So what does the good ol’ Doc say?” Stretch asked instead, “Asgore was right about the glowing stuff?”

“Yes,” Edge leaned his head against the window, looking displeased, “It’s a first quarter symptom that occurs across all monster types, although it’s most noticeable in darker-hued monsters. Dramatically, sometimes- Moldsmals are able to match the brightness of the Underground’s magic crystals by the 10% mark.”

Stretch nodded, drumming his hands on the steering wheel, “That’s really cool. Why don’t you glow like that, then?”

He squinted, glancing at his husband with an impish smile. “Or do I need a reading monocle too?”

“It’s most likely a defense mechanism for the Moldsmals, and any other dark-hued monster,” Edge sounded annoyed, pointedly ignoring his bait, but the mood passed quickly enough, “Other monsters are less likely to step on them if they’re bright enough to see, since they are rather small. In worse situations, they would also be able to camouflage themselves with crystal clusters.”

“Sounds reasonable…” Stretch nodded, pulling into the crowded parking lot as he started looking at the rows of cars.

“By the blue truck,” Edge gestured to a free parking place on his side, “Brighter colors, on the other hand, have less of a need to stand out, resulting in a more muted glow. When Pancake is at 24%, my body should be able to light the space directly around me for a few feet. Helpful to a certain degree Underground, but useless on the Surface.”

“I guess that’s also why we didn’t notice,” Stretch bypassed the spot for one at the end of the row. He wasn’t about to risk letting a truck dent or scratch the car when he was driving it. “There’s a lot of natural and artificial light in our apartment, and pretty much everywhere up here, so it doesn’t really stand out much.”

“Mmhm,” Edge seemed to agree, unbuckling his seatbelt as the engine shut off, “Apparently the eyes have the brightest glow, but I can’t imagine that really stands out on a skeleton.”

He turned to face Stretch, “Are my eyes noticeably brighter?”

Stretch leaned forward as Edge kept unnaturally still, making a show of ducking his head to either side as he scrutinized his husband’s eyelights. They seemed… exactly the same, but then again, he was still under 15%, right? At least under 20. Maybe it’d really kick in another week from now.

Stretch pressed their mouths together in a chaste kiss before Edge could get concerned, leaning back to unbuckle his seatbelt with a wink.

“Eye think they’re beautiful, as always, darlin’.”

The surprised silence was short, with Edge quickly getting out of the car with an embarrassed flush to his cheeks. “I wanted an actual answer, you sap,” he tried to sound annoyed, but Stretch had plenty of experience picking up on his husband’s flattered and pleased undertones. He also didn’t miss the way sharp claws brushed against his fingers as Edge very deliberately waited for him to catch up.

“You’re going to glow, too, by the way,” Edge told him pleasantly, a mischievous glint in his bright(er?) eyelights.

“Me?” Stretch blinked, looking around as if to confirm Edge was actually talking to him, and not some other random person in the parking lot.

“You have objections?” Edge asked wryly, instinctively tensing when Stretch looped his arm around his shoulders. He forced himself to relax, leaning into his husband’s side, trying to keep his tone light, “Take it up with Pancake- it’s all their idea.”

“I would never!” Stretch did his best to sound solemn, giving Edge a squeeze before pulling away to put his hands in his hoodie pocket, keeping close enough their elbows brushed together. The one upside to parking so far away from the door. “I guess it makes sense, though. Monsters may not have obligate symbiotic relationships with their partners during pregnancy, but the importance of a positive and supportive emotional environment for the healthy development of the souling encourages more involvement. Certainly more intraspecific interactions than non-magical animal species.

“In this context, mutual bioluminescence wouldn’t just be an external indicator for others, then. It’s also establishing a more direct link with their non-pregnant parent as a form of, uh, emotional reassurance, I guess? But it’s a somewhat physical bond? Psychic? Hm. “ He rubbed at his chin, frowning at his other hand as he started counting something on his fingers, “I don’t remember. It’s been a while since those mandatory Physio-Repro classes in high school, I’ll have to dig around for my old textbook or something.”

Stretch looked up suddenly, “I do have a question, though.”

Edge didn’t say anything at first, expression carefully blank if not a touch alarmed, “If you, of all monsters, don't understand something, I'm not sure what you expect me to say-” He drew himself up to his full height, looking much more determined, “But I will do my best.”

“Heh.” Stretch grinned, taking the stairs two at a time to cut in front of his husband, “I was just wondering, you hungry? Even after a whole day spent making and eating pancakes with your delightful kids?”

Sighing wearily at the comment, Edge looked earnestly confused, “Of course not. Why?”

“Of cou-?” Stretch gestured at the restaurant with an expansive sweep of his arm, “We're just here for the ambience then?”

”I'm not hungry,” Edge sounded impatient, moving off to the side, away from the main doorway and other patrons, “But I know you are.” Edge hesitated, crossing his arms over his chest as he glanced at some of the lingering dampness on Stretch’s hoodie from where they had cleaned the batter earlier.

“You’re not that clumsy, Papí,” Edge sounded almost absent-minded as he leaned forward to pick at a dried speck Stretch had missed along his collar, “Chara put something in your batter that made it inedible, didn’t they? And you pretended to slip and spill it on yourself so no one else would accidentally eat it. It was too much salt, or something?”

“Or something,” Stretch agreed, putting his hands in his hoodie pocket and worrying at his ring. Soap. It was dishwashing soap. He probably would have been fine, since he didn’t have any organs to poison. But he was pretty sure that much soap was probably dangerous for humans. And since he had made his super delicious ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ batter and played it up so much, a lot of those kids would have wanted to sample it. The whole point of this exercise had been to share different flavors and toppings, bonding and sharing for caring or something.

Was it a “prank” that had just gotten out of hand? Did they know soap in that quantities was probably not good for humans? Had they been banking he would just find a way to hoard his pancakes and eat them all himself? Were they trying to get back at everyone else in the room, too? Should he tell Edge about it? Asgore or Queen Toriel? Probably, but what would he even say?

“Stretch?” Edge called out softly, the beginning of a worried crease between his browbones, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m good,” he smiled breezily, still feeling unsettled and conflicted, “Just thinking of what flavor cheesecake best conveys: ‘I told you so! That little demon has had it out for me since day one! And the more you try to defend me from them, the angrier they get and the more they hate me and the worse they act!’ I’m thinking probably anything that doesn’t have chocolate, ugh.”

Edge looked far from convinced, but he let the matter go, expression softening into something apologetic, “Chara was in rare form all day- I suppose they didn’t take to the news as well as I was hoping. Apparently, they’re having issues with Asriel too- pushing him down, pulling his ears, things like that. They’re jealous and angry, and I guess Pancake just made things worse. I’m sorry-”

“Ah, c’mon, Babe,” Stretch walked towards the front door, holding it open from the inside as Edge followed him in, “You’ve got nothing to apologize for. I’ll just keep avoiding them, they can pretend I don’t exist, and we’ll both be happy! Well, I’ll be happy, and they’ll hopefully go back to their usual, slightly less angry self! Let’s just focus on delicious cheesecake and ignoring huge, complex issues!”

“But-”

“Oh yeah, I nearly forgot!” Stretch turned around after exchanging a few pleasantries with the host, eyelights gleaming as he clapped his hands together, “This restaurant is notorious for its dim lighting, so we can check out that whole G-L-O-W thing too! And it’s still bright enough that no nosy people will be able to tell. Ever the brilliant strategist and awesome hubby- catering to my sweet tooth and insatiable curiosity. Love you, Babe.”

“I-” Edge sighed, face growing hot as he pointedly looked away, failing to suppress a smile, “You.. too... In that case, I think the flavor you’ll probably want to order is Tiramisu. After you’ve had something more filling and nutritious, of course.”

Stretch made a face, sticking out his tongue for extra emphasis, “Ugh, no way- it’s so bland! Maybe like salted caramel for something a little more mellow.”

“Key lime, then.”

“Oh, mango key lime!”

“Ugh.”

[End of Recipe for Disaster]

[Part 1] [Part 2 - Here!]

#spicyhoney #Underfell Papyrus #underswap papyrus #skelepreg #fanfic #redvelvetreel #Warning: attempted poisoning!#it's very minor but u kno what u can handle #overall fluffy and cute I hope tho?#pregnancy headcanon and dubious 'science' to back it up lol

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kyusako · 5 years

Text

Relationship Worries

Well surprise, surprise. Let's be honest here: I'm lost in life as usual. Then again, isn't any other 21 year old as well?

Okay, so much has happened since I last wrote. I broke up with my ex 'Senpai' in March. To be honest, I didn't like how he had changed his attitude towards me.

He had been super irritable, constantly picking fights and arguments out of nowhere and I was crying every day, both from my own erratic hormones and from my fear of him.

As much as I tried not to admit it, he treated me as though I was in the military. I mean, I know I couldn't blame him for being in it, but there's something wrong if you're talking to your girlfriend the way your sergeant or whoever talks to you.

It took me different people warning me that it wasn't healthy in order to snap me out of my denial of his behavior and insistence that everything was my fault.

Since then, I had been meeting new people through a dating app. It seems desperate and pathetic to some, but I did it mainly because my best friend suggested that it would make me feel better as I could go on there and reject people until I see cat or dog pictures.

Her logic: rejecting others = fun + goodbye heartbreak.

So I went on a quest to find myself some new gaming friends.

And I did meet many people. In fact, many even became my good friends. Some of them, I have deemed to be my brotherly figures. My 'oniichans' as I call them. It's nice, and they're there for me whenever I need them, without expecting much in return. I also had two crushes which stayed crushes. Nothing official.

Then I even had an actual relationship. Unfortunately, this was short lived, the shortest I've ever had. It lasted from May to June. Just a month. Wow.

I thought that he was perfect: cool, cute, the type of guy I had always wanted since I was a little girl. But as I mentioned, it was a failed relationship. And it's the first one that wasn't ended by me.

Note that I did not do anything bad in this one, okay? It's just... I guess he decided that he didn't want to be in a relationship, despite how great I seemed that he thought we could have had a future together. And it seems that there's no chance for us to stay. I mean, I had doubts that it would really work out anyway, since he was constantly not wanting to talk to me and then being all apologetic for not talking to me. I'm like, why not just talk to me then? Dammit!

So then... Well... Fast forward, not soon after I broke up with him, I decided to look for another guy. I mean, why mope around all the time? So I went to the app where I found him and looked at more profiles to make more friends, I guess.

And then I found him.

He's different from all the others. He's nice... Genuinely nice. So much so that it makes me uneasy. I guess I'm used to guys being... Difficult in some ways... That to meet someone without any obvious issues just makes me... I don't know... unsettled?

I met him last month, my first message sent on the 6th of July. Though I think I may have typed it on the 5th. But the app counts it from when the message is received, okay?

I think I was randomly swiping around (and I usually ignore most people), when I saw him. He seemed like an average person. Normal picture (though pretty cute), nothing too much more than what all the other guys usually write. But then again, now that I think about it, he did write much more than the usual guys, which is something I like.

More importantly, I did like what he wrote. The type of person he seemed to be grabbed my attention. A guy who isn't distant, seems to have things in common with me (including being a PC gamer—very important), seems to be open to a long distance relationship (I know, I'm guilty for the third time now). So I wrote the first message, asking about the games he played, nothing different from all my conversation starters with other people.

But I don't know what it is about him. It was easy talking to him. Maybe it's his shyness that gives him a bit of a charm in the way he talked to me. Maybe it's also the fact that he was willing to play games with me and hang out with me.

So then, we've been talking for about a month now. And somewhere in between, I confessed that I really like him. He replied that he liked me too. We both did it shyly and awkwardly. I mean, I was the one who brought it up out of nowhere. And somehow were both unsure if the other meant as a friend or more. I clarified with him at a later date, and it turns out, yeah. We both meant it as more than 'just friends'.

And as it also turns out (because I asked), he doesn't mind having me as his girlfriend!

Note: this was just a casual talk. It's not official yet!

I should be happy, but... Well I mean, I am, but... I just worry... In addition to my failed relationship, I confessed to two other guys (not at the same time, mind you!) that I had a crush on them. They liked me back too, but were not looking for a committed relationship. So that's three guys in a row that are like that to me. Gee... Thanks...

I believe he's different though. At least, from what I read from stalking his profile *ahem*. It seems he does want his relationships to be long term and serious(?). But... I don't know. I just can't help but think of all the other guys whom I thought wanted to commit but didn't.

What if he changes his mind about me? What if he's not all that I thought he was?

I want to try and see how things go but I'm scared to proceed. I mean...

What if he learns about my past and doesn't believe that I like him for him?

He's been super considerate to me so far. He keeps me company every day. We play games together. He listens to me when I talk and when I'm in a bad mood, he worries about me and asks if there's anything he can do to make me feel better. When I'm crying and rambling to him, he listened and checked on how I was feeling.

The thing is, that's how the other guys were. Somewhat. And that didn't turn out great. So... I worry. I know I shouldn't judge and think he's like all the others, but I don't know. And that makes me uneasy.

I guess I should take things slow. For real this time. Let us get used to each other more. Let us slowly build things up till the time is right. I mean, it'd be easier if he initiates it, but I don't know. I'm just gonna see how things go. I mean, we are good friends and hang out pretty much every day, whether it's through our Discord calls or messages.

Side note: he does greet me every day the moment he wakes up, which is already a step up from some people *ahem ahem*.

Also I asked him when it was that he even started liking me. He said he couldn't remember exactly when, but he liked me shortly after we met. Not sure if he meant that as on the day itself or like a week from that, but ahhhh!!! It just warms my heart!

To top it all off, I introduced him to my friends to play Dead By Daylight and my best friend agreed that he's really nice and she doesn't get any bad vibes from him so far, so yay!

#relationships

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compartmentalisinghmpf · 7 years

Text

TLTL review, now with fewer redundancies, more coherence. 2040 words.

I just finished my second read of this, the first half of what I can only think of as the first book of the Terra Ignota duology/trilogy. (Actually it's going to be a quartet, but these first two volumes constitute one novel, and nobody can tell me otherwise.)

It's a different book on the second read. For one thing, it is infinitely more disturbing. As it's already fairly disturbing on the first read, that increase is quite an achievement...

Too Like the Lightning comes with a front page full of warnings, which somewhat understate things, even, and these are both a clever element of the worldbuilding, and to be taken absolutely seriously if you have any pre-existing issues in the listed areas. If in doubt, contact someone who has read the book and ask for specific, yet minimal spoilers. But, really, only if you think it may be necessary! Take it from someone who usually doesn't mind spoilers: you don't want them, here. Unless you really need them, that is.

I want to stress that the book's increasing creepiness is really just one aspect of the whole, though, although a fascinating one. There's more going on here than that, much more. This book made me think a lot on the first go, and it's made me think a lot on the second, and I'm still not sure I've figured out even ten percent of it, nor whether I agree with very much of what I think it may be saying. I get the distinct impression agreeing isn't the point: thinking is. Rarely have I encountered a book that trusts its readers so completely to make up their own minds. This is a book that wants you to argue with it.

Too Like the Lightning is set in the 25th century – a 25th century in which humankind is still mostly Earthbound, only taking slow steps towards terraforming Mars. Earth, made small by incredibly fast global transit, has seen three hundred years of peace. It is politically unrecognisable, ruled by seven great “Hives“, which people can join or leave voluntarily, independent of geography. The “nuclear family“ of our day no longer exists. Work takes up a very small amount of most people's time.

For reasons that become clearer eventually, our narrator, Mycroft (this is, by future-historical coincidence, a common name in his time; a nice, subtle touch of worldbuilding), chooses an 18th century style for his narrative - complete with constant 4th-wall-breaking of the “gentle reader“ variety. Also, complete with old-fashioned pronouns like “thee“ and “thou“ -- and “he“ and “she“, for which the narrator apologises frequently, because gender, in Mycroft's 25th century, is as taboo as openly practiced religion. The books are in large part about how both of these ideas return to disrupt a world that seems in many ways utopian.

Mycroft, we soon find out, is a convict, and in his world that means, by and large, a slave, albeit a somewhat humanely treated one. Despite or because of this, our narrator is in high demand with the world's mighty and powerful, and thus gets a front-row seat at the beginning disruption – or rather, would get a front-row seat, if he were ever allowed to sit down for more than a minute. He works hard for his pre-packaged sandwich – variously as a spy, as a statistical analyst, as a translator (he speaks seven languages, which is apparently borderline illegal), or even simply serving drinks while the mighty conspire. How he happens to know and matter to all the powerful becomes both more understandable, and much, much more bizarre to contemplate as we find out more about him.

(Beyond a certain point you realise that pretty much every single relationship in these books is deeply strange, and that together they all form a mind-bogglingly complex cat's cradle of dependencies, rivalries, attractions, animosities, alliances.... Yet nobody, but nobody has stranger relationships than Mycroft, who shifts social roles a dozen times a day, or even a dozen times in the same conversation, from slave to trusted specialist/advisor to … things I cannot mention here, because this is a book where surprise really is vital. It is a social rol(l)ercoaster ride, and sort of exhilarating, if you enjoy that kind of thing. (I do. A lot.))

There is another claim on Mycroft's time, however - an even more important one – and this is where things gets strange[r]: Mycroft has, for eight years, been raising a foundling child, in greatest secrecy. This child can bring inanimate objects to life.

And this is – perhaps, probably – not the only divine influence in Mycroft's life.

So, all of a sudden we're contemplating questions that hardly anyone, outside of Gene Wolfe, would think to put into SF.

Rather like Wolfe's Solar Cycle, Terra Ignota feels like a complex clockwork machine made out of interlocking and interacting bits of philosophy and metaphysics – a smidgen heavier on the philosophy, perhaps, and rather a lot more heretical than your average Wolfe. Unlike most philosophy-themed sf, the sources here are 18th century Enlightenment ones, as well as older ones, seen through an imaginary 25th century's view of the 18th century's view of the even more distant past (are you dizzy yet?) And, of course, seen also through the lens of our very particular and unusual narrator's point of view...

Let's focus on that narrator for a moment, even though I can't talk about him here, not properly, not without spoiling things. Mycroft addresses the reader directly, from the very first sentence, and even has recurring arguments with them, explaining why he makes certain narrative or word choices, defending them or, sometimes, caving to his imaginary reader's objections. Almost without noticing, you are pulled into a close embrace by the text, by its narrator. It quickly begins to feel intensely personal. What Palmer is doing here, with our relationship with Mycroft (again, I can't be more specific without serious, serious SPOILERS), must be deliberate and instrumental to the book's/series' workings. (Or rather: it better be...) Two books in, I can see some of the moving parts and how they interconnect, but I'm still not sure what the final shape will be.

This is an unsettling book in many respects. Some things are troublingly absent in it, or present in a troubling way. For instance: the book's world is very Eurocentric, despite perfunctory nods to Asian cultures. Africa – excepting Alexandria and Casablanca – is only present in the form of the rarely mentioned “Great African Reservation”. In context, it is clear that this is not just a nature reserve, but rather a space in which older forms of cultural/political/social/religious organisation are preserved - other reservations mentioned are Tibet, the Vatican, and a Pennsylvania Mennonite one. In 2016, this relegation of Africa to, essentially, the past feels so out of step with current debates that I suspect it must be deliberate, and part of a Point About to Be Made sometime later in the projected series – a comment on our collective blind spots rather than the author's own blind spot in action. (Though, of course, I may be extending too much credit here. Time, and the sequels, will tell.)

Gender is the most obvious thing to be disturbed by here, though, and inevitably the most discussed, because it's constantly front and centre. Gender, in Mycroft's 25th century, is not a Done Thing anymore – literally. Gender – officially - isn't being performed any longer, or rather: people consciously perform gender-neutrality. The default pronoun is “they”. Our narrator, however – a self-described pervert - insists on gendering (nearly) every character we encounter. Mycroft assigns gender partly due to archetypical ideas of what is “feminine” and “masculine” - roughly: caring/nurturing denotes femininity, physical dominance denotes masculinity. Yet unlike most people would in our day, he applies these simplistic standards across sexes. In addition to this, he also uses gender situationally. For instance: he genders a young, physiologically female character male because they are the apprentice/assistant of a powerful, physiologically male character - but later, when they are interacting with their mother, he genders them female for one paragraph...

What is disturbing about Too Like the Lightning's approach to gender is not so much what Mycroft does with it, though – that is mostly destabilising in a productive way. And Mycroft's opinions on many things, as he himself admits, are easy to discount; he is, as he says, “easy to call mad”. The book as a whole – the larger structure of meaning being built here - seems to imply some uncomfortable things about gender, too, however, which aren't quite so easily ascribed to a somewhat deranged point of view. I say “seems”, because at this point I'm really not sure what the final tally on any of the themes introduced here will be. It is entirely possible that the first two volumes of the series take such great care to set up elaborate ideological structures so they can then proceed to knock them down, further down the road.

Another area in which I suspect I may be disagreeing with what the book(s) is/are saying so far is ideas of violence and war, and their role in human nature and human history, but that is not something I can touch on very much without spoiling things in a serious way. I suspect that here as in other areas Palmer doesn't so much want to convince us of a particular proposition but rather give us a fully realised image of a particular worldview, not to endorse nor to denounce it, but rather to demonstrate the sheer alienness of another historical period. The future is every bit as strange a country as the past.

Ada Palmer does not grant us the relief of even a single character we can fully understand, whose opinions we can comfortably agree with, to contrast with her 25th century's mores and ideas, and to guide our sympathies and opinions in reacting to the book's world. Instead, she fully immerses us in the worldview of another culture, and it is very easy to (mis)read that as the book endorsing that worldview. This makes for uncomfortable, but also, I think, mentally stimulating reading. We are expected to read critically, to always be aware of the distortions of perspective; we are supposed to read like historians.

I'm actually not sure these books are entirely successful in every aspect of what they attempt – though it's always hard to judge an unfinished work. There are some pacing issues, and large (really: LARGE) parts of the plot are either nearly impenetrable on the first read (and still pretty obscure on the second), and/or feel kind of implausible. For that matter, a fair bit of the worldbuilding is... implausible is too strong a word. It feels convincing while you're in the story (or rather, the lacunae feel like the sort you inevitably experience when you get to see a world through the filter of just one particular point of view), but when you stop to think about it for too long, some of the holes feel very hard to fill.

And then there's the miracles... Those require a different kind of suspension of disbelief, which, I think, not every reader of SF will be willing to extend the book.

There is also a sense of the books' world being built entirely to accommodate a number of interlocking philosophical thought experiments. In a recent post, Ada Palmer herself described Too Like the Lightning as setting up a Rube Goldberg machine. This gives the whole proceedings an overarching feel of artificiality, which is only increased by the fact that these thought experiments are mostly based in 18th century thought, and feel somewhat removed from many present-day concerns, if not always in subject then at least in their approach.

Despite all quibbles and reservations, however, this is not just an impressive debut but one of the best – one of the most alien, one of the most thought-provoking – science fiction novels I have read. It's also, despite all the philosophy, the theology, despite the artificiality, and despite the fact that large parts of the plot consist of people having long, involved conversations about the theft of, essentially, some notes for an unpublished newspaper article, an unexpectedly gripping one.

Read this book. Then argue with it.

#ongoing Terra Ignota spam #TLTL review #new and improved version

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mew-cake · 7 years

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So my homework this weekend for english class was to write a short story on a prompt the teacher gave us, and this is what I wrote.

Prompt: Everyone can lie three times in their life, then they vanish. This is the story of a person who lied three times in one day.

btw i made it sad and gay here we go

“Now, can anyone tell me why we must always tell the truth?” Inquired the biology teacher. A few kids raised their hands. Each one had marks on their forearms. One, two...some of them even three. Each mark signifying a lie they’ve told in their life. And then there’s me. My skin is as blank as snow.

The teacher called on a boy sitting next to me. He quickly skimmed over the open book before reciting his answer. “Because if we lie more then three times, we vanish!” He looked at me with a smug grin. It’s funny. How many marks on your arm signify how close you are to disappearing forever, and yet children always like to use them as a tool for power. Whoever has the most marks is in charge. I’ve actually heard stories where kids my age vanished while trying to be the best. It’s a shame.

“Correct!” Called the teacher. She pointed to a diagram on the board, showing pictures of people’s tally marks. “As you know, every time a human lies, a mark appears on their skin. If they lie anymore after that...poof! They’re gone forever!” The teacher always tried to make class fun, but in this case her cheerfulness to the subject was unsettling. I hated the idea of vanishing. Just fading away all of a sudden. At the moment, the only thing fading away was my concentration. That’s when I caught a glimpse of someone handing me a piece of paper.

My partner in crime, Sammy, always sat next to me in class. I took the paper and carefully unfolded it.

“This upsetting you? I know this topic makes you uncomfortable…:(“ I smiled faintly, picking up my pencil and replying before I passed it back.

“Just a little, but I’m used to it by now.”

“Still! I’m gonna worry about you, Emily. I love you.”

“I know you do… I appreciate it.”

“Wanna hang out after school?”

“Always.”

When the bell rang, Sammy and I got up. We spent most of the day together. The day felt like it dragged on forever, but finally school was let out. I was the only one of the two of us to have a licence, so I was always driving her around. We went out to a local cafe. After placing our orders we sat outside. The sun was warm, shining down and dancing on our skin.

Sammy was worried about me, I could tell. She looked up at me, watching me fiddle with the straw in my drink. Eventually she spoke up.

“Why didn’t you wear your band today?”

She was right. Normally to avoid harassment, I wore a sweat band to hide my lack of tally marks. Even though almost everyone at school knew about my lack of lies. At this point I just wear it to make myself feel better.

“I forgot to put it on this morning. Left it in the car, which is why I have it now.” I lifted my wrist, showing off the band. It wasn’t anything special, just a blue band with a yellow star. “I just wish that I didn’t have to wear it all the time. It gets so hot during the summer!”

“Yeah...I’m so sorry about that.”

“Why are you sorry? It’s not your fault…”

“I don’t care. I’m gonna worry about you.” I sighed. Sammy was always like this; thinking about others long before she thinks about herself. Which worries me considering what she deals with. My eyes wandered over to her wrist. Three tally marks. She’s been keeping her relationship with me a secret from her parents. If they found out, they would take her away. By now she’s been able to dance around the subject, just barely telling the “truth” without outing herself. But everyday I worried she’ll tell another lie, and vanish…

All of a sudden, Sammy’s expression turned grim. “Sam?” I asked her. “Sam, what’s wrong?”

“Oh! Hello Emily!” My skin practically jumped from my form, turning around to see Sammy’s parents. I quickly turned back to Sammy. She couldn’t lie again. She couldn’t lie.

“H-Hey, mom…” My partner’s voice sounded nervous. She was scared. With me here, her parents might ask a question too direct, too straightforward that she couldn’t dance around.

Her father raised a brow. “What’s wrong, Sam?” I saw my friend freeze up. She had to say something...I wouldn’t let her.

“We were just talking about school!” I intervened. “She had a bit of a rough day. Tests and all, you know?” My breath felt cold. I could feel a mark etching itself onto my arm. Thankfully the two adults before us couldn’t see. Good thing I put my band on before we got out.

“Awe, that’s a shame. Sam dearie, did you fail anything?” Good, her question was vague. Sam could respond generically. Which she did, saying that she hadn’t failed any tests. Thankfully that wasn’t a lie, considering we didn’t even have any tests today. Her mother smiled sweetly. “That’s so good to hear! And what about you, Emily? How are you lately?”

“I’ve been good.” My voice felt so strained. It tried so hard not to shake and give away my obvious lie. “Same as always, you know?” I felt it. Another mark on my skin. I wasn’t okay. I was scared; terrified!! I had never lied in my life, and now I just lied twice in a row.

“Well, do tell us if Samantha is any trouble.” The father chimed. “We know she has some troublesome secrets, but we do want to respect her privacy.” Yeah, she has secrets. Secrets that if they found out, Sam would be in danger…

“Secrets?” I laughed. “Nah, Sam’s an open book!” Shoot, why did I say that?! I felt a third mark on my arm. I was close to my limit. If I lied again, I’d vanish.

“Emily, dear…” The mother spoke in soft worry. “You’re shaking…”

I yelled at myself mentally. I messed up. I messed up so horribly. All of a sudden, I felt someone grab my arm. Sammy stood up, smiling sweetly to her parents. “Sorry, but we gotta go! Em’s anxiety is getting to her, I think…” She looked at me, and I quickly nodded. It was my anxiety, and fear of vanishing… The two adult simply nodded, wishing me to get better, and Sammy and I bolted away. Slipping into a bathroom and going into the handicap stall, my back hit the wall and I slid down, curling up.

Something about lying felt so wrong, so horrible! That wasn’t what I was worried about, though… I lied three times! I’ve gone fifteen years without ever lying, and all of a sudden I panicked. I had to, though. I had to protect Sammy, I couldn’t let her lie again! I couldn’t let her vanish. I sobbed for what felt like forever, until suddenly, I felt warmth… Warmth that could only come from someone special.

Sammy held me tight. With shaky hands, I weakly returned the hug, sobbing into her shoulder. Between hics, I told her how I felt. How I was feeling. Lying felt wrong, like it was against my nature. Not only that, but I’ve always had a horrible fear of just...fading away. Vanishing without ever meaning anything to anyone. And now that I’ve lied three times, that reality might be upon me soon.

“Em, you’re an idiot…” Sammy muttered. I looked up at her, eyes red and puffy from crying.

“I-I’m sorry!” I barely managed to spit out. “I-I panicked! I couldn’t let them find out about us o-or anything so I just panicked and-” I couldn’t finish. My breathing was so fast, my head felt so light I thought I was gonna faint. I was ashamed of myself. I worried Sammy, I brought myself closer to my own worst fear. Shaking my head, I just pulled away from my friend.

“I just want to be alone…”

The tally marks started burning.

We both knew what had happened. I quickly grabbed the band covering my tally marks, practically throwing it across the bathroom. They were glowing bright red, burning worse than anything I’ve felt before. I grabbed my wrist, tears practically pouring from my eyes at this point. “No!!” I cried out. “No no no!! N-No I didn’t mean-!” It didn’t matter.

No matter how much I begged or cried, nothing was going to change my fate. I was going to fade away. I could feel it happening. It felt like I couldn’t breath, but that wasn’t because of the lies. That was my own panic and horror.

Suddenly, Sammy grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to look at her. She looked determined. But...why? Her girlfriend is fading in front of her...how can she be so calm? And that’s when she said it.

“Emily, I hate you.”

My eyes widened. As soon as she said that, I saw her tally marks begin to glow as well.

“S-Sam…” My voice sounded so broken. “W-Why-?”

“Because there’s no way I’m making you go through this alone! You’ve told me how much you were scared of this...so I’ll say it again. I hate you, with all my heart...:”

More tears fell, but tears of joy this time… My shaky hand reached up, holding her cheek and smiling. “Sammy...I hate you too…”

We sat there together, holding each other. Even as we faded away, it was so warm… I’m scared. Sammy is scared...but we’re scared together. I close my eyes, relaxing my body and waiting out our disappearance.

“I love you…”

#cake's writing #imma reblog this in the morning and after school #cuz im #actually kinda proud of it???#i mean it could probs be done so much better but #for what it is yeee

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theinnerhalf · 7 years

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2016 in review: Highlights (1/7/2017 7:10 PM)

2016...I feel like it’s fair enough to say that I’ve had a pretty bad year when it comes to 2016. Despite being in one of the worst mental ruts I’ve ever been in my whole life so far, despite having one of the WORST semesters out of my whole entire academic career, despite having the person multiple people have dreaded on becoming the president elect being actually elected into office, and despite every low point and difficult moment I may have gone through...looking back at these photos have reminded me that 2016 hasn’t been ALL bad...which is good haha...through these photos, experiences, and memories, I’m reminded that life’s got sooooo much more to live for.

As Drake put it, “I learned working with the negatives could make for better pictures”. Here is my year, 2016, in review.

January 2016:

The first month of the New Year. My expectations for the beginning of the year were high. Fresh new years resolutions to work on, weight to lose, countless improvements to be made...The defining points of the first month of this new year were made when we had to say our temporary farewells to EJ as he had to return to his military duties and had left to go to Hawaii. Before he had left, the squad had been complete for once in a long time and had even one of the best (in my opinion) holidays ever. Seven became six again and I just remember riding in the Donn’s van with everyone else in silence...

A following highlight in January would be the annual and ridiculous college signing day that Donn, James, and I celebrate at Ross by trying on several hats and items of clothing and just continuously cracking jokes. This made it in my highlights of the year because I don’t remember ever laughing that much in so long and it was just a really REALLY good day. The last photo in January was a really helpful and needed study session that ended up with me passing the first exam of the year.

February 2016:

February was definitely a fun month for me. I was living in a Life of Pablo aesthetic, I took a trip out to Austin that was truly one for the books, had my first edible there, tripped wayyyyy out of my mind and nearly called 911 on myself due to the fear of myself dying. If it wasn’t for my friends that were there for me, I probably would have done something to really screw up my life so I’m forever grateful for the experience and that moment but I’m confident enough to say I’d probably never do that again...The Austin trip that I had taken with Jared’s group of friends was truly different and quite an experience yet at the same time, it was the same on multiple occasions.

The last photo shown in February was a fishing trip I had taken at about 2 AM in the morning. Completely and utterly spontaneous. The group caught absolutely no fish, the weather was bitterly cold, I was exhausted but being by the water, the sound of the ocean, the peaceful yet unsettling darkness the surrounded every bit of us, being with company, and witnessing an breathtaking sunrise over the horizon was something I couldn’t resist experiencing.

March 2016:

The only highlight that made it for this month was the trip to the Houston Rodeo, which actually got postponed due to bad weather the first time which was a huge disappointment considering that the Rodeo was going to end within the week. This was a big thing for me especially because I was just DYING to eat carnival food as well as putting into consideration that as a Houstonian, I hadn’t gone to the Rodeo in almost 10 years...The trip to the Rodeo fulfilled all my cravings as well as being able to around friends and family in an environment specifically meant for entertainment and I enjoyed every single moment thoroughly.

April 2016:

In April, I took another trip out to Austin to go visit Hamilton Pool in much better weather. I could never seem to get tired of this place...knowing that it wasn’t man made and even more so that it’s in Texas and just three to four hours away?! It’s lovely. It’s captivating. It’s sooooo serene. As for the other picture, that was taken during a photoshoot from a hangout with Steph and Megan. It was just a REALLY good day haha.

May 2016:

The only highlight within this month was one day being fully dedicated to museum hopping through the outstanding art museums Houston has to offer. This was made possible through Houston’s free museum days that take place on every Thursday of the given month and it was decided that both my sister’s and I would take this chance to seize the opportunity and rest our eyes upon several masterpieces through four museums: Houston’s Contemporary Art Museum, Houston Museum of Fine Arts, The Rothko Chapel, and lastly, the Menil Collection.

The Contemporary Art Museum was a museum that tested the boundaries and means of what art can be and what art really is. At the time being, the Contemporary Art Museum had quite an unsettling and creepy exhibition by Mark Flood. The exhibition made my skin crawl with disturbing messages and twisted images of pop culture icons and celebrities. The Houston Museum of fine arts is hands down, one of my favorite places in all of Houston. I’ve been there multiple times and I never get tired of the same paintings. The Rothko Chapel was undeniably different compared to all these museums and was indeed like an actual church chapel. The walls of the chapel were adorned with what seemed to be all solid black square/rectangle paintings but it is said that if you stare just long enough with focus, you start seeing things within the blackness of the painting. The Menil Collection was something I ended up really liking due to the vast majority of selection it had, from paintings, to sculptures, to historical artifacts. This day served to be in incredible source of inspiration as well as something to feed the creative side of me that yearned for more artistic content.

July 2016

The second half of my summer was undeniably better than the first half and was really only when summer break had started to pick up the pace (notice how there isn’t a highlight for June). A good portion of July was spent practicing for conference from 10pm-4am in the dance studio of my gym with Andre and Vicky. Our performance was to the song All We Got by Chance the Rapper featuring Kanye West. We managed to finish our choreography within an hour before our performance due to a lot of the procrastination and mental dance blocks we had. As a result, majority of the moves towards the end of the dance were half assed, super simple, or inside joke movements. Despite it not being the cleanest it may have been due to the time crunch given, we still ended up in first! Though it felt like it was being in first place through default...

This marked the second dance win in a row for me during conference and I’m really looking forward to a threepeat in 2017 for the Seattle conference and will be my final and retirement performance for the youth. Again, a thousand thanks to Andre and Vicky for putting up with the horrendous practice times, me, the inconvenience, and the stress all for this performance and would not have made it anywhere close to what it has been if not for them...

The other highlight for July was the Drake concert for his Summer Sixteen tour! The only downside about it was that I was supposed to experience it with the whole entire squad but ended up experiencing it by myself LOL. Despite thinking that it’d be disappointing experience because of me spending it alone, it was honestly the exact opposite...Drake is by far one of my favorite rappers/artists and being able to see him perform live was truly exhilarating from start to finish. I sang my lungs and heart out to the max, I danced all throughout and did not take a single seat once Drake was performing. This being the very first actual concert that I attended, it definitely goes down as one of my favorite and biggest moments of 2016.

August 2016

August provided a good close to the summer with a couple of good hangouts with the people who I hold most dear to me. The first picture was definitely a highlight of August although it wasn’t entirely ALL good haha...Devin, Janelle, and I went to buffalo bayou park to look for this bridge with “love locks” with a certain hole in the fence to get an aesthetically pleasing shot of the skyscrapers of the city. The three of us initially wandered around the park aimlessly looking for this bridge, got lost on the way, rented bikes to ease our search, and found the bridge. After taking pictures, we headed back to where we parked, only to get lost again because we had to find a place to return the bikes to a spot that was near Devin’s car. Everything after was simply a mess...although I’ll admit, it was a little bit fun...

September 2016

THIS MONTH...this month really was a defining point for the relationship I have with my one and only, Diana...In this month, I was able to go with her on our very first date at Dish Society. This was really only made possible because this was the first month I had been added to the family car insurance, giving me the ability to drive on my own to wherever I want. And one of the first places I wanted to go to was her...

On our first date, I remember being so...starstruck...speechless even. I was a nervous wreck at most and being with her was something I had trouble comprehending. Have you ever been in front of someone so beautiful they leave you incapable of anything? I WAS A MESS!!! I remember every single time I’d loo up at her as I was eating, I’d have to immediately look back down at my food because I swear I would’ve lost it...I know I’ve written about her eyes in multiple older posts but there’s just something astral and otherworldly about the way she looks at me and with her eyes alone. So deep...so mesmerizing...so captivating and just simply so intoxicating. I could feel myself have googly eyes at her and I apologized for being so shy...

Towards the end of our date, we both retreated into my car in the pouring rain and I proceeded to take her home. We shared our very first kiss in the car and I could only describe as the closest I may have been to heaven...I was sick at the time too but she insisted haha...I felt weak, not due to the sickness but really the rush I got from being with her alone for the first time.

The other set of photos containing her was our second date! Two dates in one month and was the day I had officially made her mine, specifically on September 30, 2016. I honestly could have asked in a much smoother and profound way than I had but I still couldn’t contain the feeling I had within me while being with her. On that day, Diana became my first...and hopefully the last one as well...

October 2016

My birth month! Despite my birthday not being a highlight for this month, I had two other highlights that were able to make up for it. The first highlight of this month would be the small trip that Devin and I took to Dallas just to visit Keise as chance for them to be together as a couple and to go and visit the state fair. I mostly third wheeled for the time there as they were being a couple while I served as their main photographer for the night. During the night, Devin and I played fair games, carelessly blowing money off on an explicitly rigged basketball game for our significant others, but to no avail, we failed. I blew off about 50 dollars on that stupid game trying to win Diana a dog plushie only to find a cheaper and much easier fair game to win.

Devin and I settled for this odd water gun game, and with his help, I was able to win a teddy bear for Diana. After blowing 70 dollars just to win a teddy bear, I began to sulk only realizing that the two of us could have been playing this game much earlier on to save us and our wallets the pain...NONETHELESS, the night was filled with walking, food, sights, with two people who I sincerely enjoy their company despite remaining a third wheel. It was a highly fulfilling night and I wouldn’t change it one bit (maybe except for the fact that Devin and I could’ve saved a LOT more money).

The second highlight for this month was being able to experience World of Dance again for another year straight! Knowing me, saying that I love dance would simply be an understatement. Dance was my life! Dance IS my life! Seeing those incredibly talented people move their body to music as a canvas for art is such a beautiful and almost spiritual thing for me...Not only was I able to watch dancers but also witness Andre come in first place with Houston’s one and only SoReal crew!!! Coming in first with a total grade of 98, Andrew Baterina’s retirement performance couldn’t have gotten better than this.

November 2016

November’s highlight was the trip to Florida with the Ravara kids excluding Donn. This trip was meant to happen back in September for my little sister’s 18th birthday but was postponed due to a hurricane that hit coincidentally, on the same days as the trip. But anyways, THIS TRIP THOUGH. I have the biggest heart for all things Disney because growing up, that’s all I would ever watch as a kid other than tv cartoons. Although this wasn’t my first trip here, it remained jaw dropping as some of the experiences I had gone thru the first time were not exactly fresh on my mind...but for the Ravaras...I could see their face light up with every single little thing and detail and I was extremely glad I got to experience DisneyWorld with other people than my family. It’s reputation as the world’s happiest place did not seem to fail my family, the Ravara kids, and me.

December 2016

The final month of this bittersweet year...It may have been my favorite month actually out of all the months knowing how festive things can get. For the first highlight, it’s this jar full of cute notes for Diana. It was in a way, an advent Calendar as well as a gift for a happy three months that we’ve been together and also a way to show my endless appreciation for who she is and all that she’s done in my life.

The second highlight of this month would be the one I would not have expected to happen at all in my entire lifetime! For years and months of trying to convince my dad to buy a Scion FR-S, we roll out the dealership in the FR-S’ successor, a brand new Toyota 86!!! Lord, it felt like a dream...The process of buying this beauty of a car was honestly such a stressful moment in the dealership that I was so close to calling it off and telling my dad it would be perfectly fine to roll out in a Corolla. I would have...considering the financial situation our family is in, so this was a surprise...it really was. I promised to help pay for it though, because my dad deserves so much more than to sacrifice his peace and comfort of his finances to make his only son happy. I couldn’t tell you how overjoyed I was at the dealership and even more so about how much I love the man that’s taken the role of our mom and dad for several years after my mother’s passing.

Last but undeniably not least, the final highlight of this year really goes to the woman who has made not only this year, but myself complete. I can genuinely say that she is my other half without doubt and that I love her for everything that she is. Even when not shown as a highlight in previous months, she has been there with me through it all and I couldn’t exactly say where I would be now as a person if it were not for her...I came into 2016 with high hopes, and through the middle I felt lost and almost broken, but towards the end, I find myself happier, more content, more full of life, and filled with a greater purpose other than just taking care of myself and getting through each day like the next...all because of her. I love her...I really do.

That ends it for 2016. Thank you for all the high’s...as it serves a way to enjoy and appreciate life’s little and big moments as well the low’s for being there to remind me to humble myself as well as a chance to learn and grow for the better.

It was a relatively shitty year, but thank you nonetheless.

I pray 2017 has just as much if not more highlights than 2016, and I also pray for the strength to overcome all the difficulties next year may have for me...Here’s to 2017

#ATX #Diana #Appreciation post #LONG ASS POST #procrastinated af #Toyota 86 #DisneyWorld #2016 #2017 #New Year

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newstfionline · 4 years

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Loud sex, thunderous dancing: how coronavirus strains neighborly ties (The Guardian) Locked-down Americans are learning more than they ever wanted to know about their neighbors. One day a month into quarantine, Christie was leading a Zoom board meeting of the local political club where she’s president when the floor in the unit directly above started creaking. It was just as she feared: her upstairs neighbor had decided to engage in loud intimate activities. Americans are spending more time than ever at home and that means redefining relationships with neighbors—for better and, sometimes, for worse. Disturbances like a baby crying or a particularly thunderous living-room dance-off can quickly drive the best-intentioned neighbors to despair. A Maryland police department recently entreated local residents to put on pants before retrieving mail. Coronavirus has also brought neighborly connections to new heights. Italy’s balcony singalongs have been repeated around the globe and across the country, from Boston to Indianapolis to Wichita, Kansas and San Jose, California. Residents of Marin county, California, have organized a nightly howling. Harriet Riley, a writing instructor in New Orleans, was at first distraught about the prospect of having to cancel her annual crawfish boil, a beloved Louisiana tradition. That is, until she realized there was still a way to connect. “We set up a long table at the end of our driveway with the four ice chests of crawfish,” she said, and each family had just one designated person approach. “Everyone took their crawfish to their front porches and we laughed and yelled around to each other. We also saw some neighbors that we don’t see as often. The crawfish really brought everyone out.”

Shift on shopping habits (CNN) With much of the wealthy world stuck at home in front of their screens, curious shopping habits are emerging. According to an analysis of digital retailers by Adobe Analytics, customers seem to be saying no to pants, and embracing the pajama lifestyle. Pajama sales were up 143 percent between March and April, but sales of pants were down 13 percent. Despite the shift in habits, they are unlikely to be enough to offset the overall slump in U.S. consumer spending. “It will take a long time for sales to get back to normal and for people to feel comfortable heading back to stores,” Sucharita Kodali, a retail analyst, told CNN.

Manhattan Faces a Reckoning if Working From Home Becomes the Norm (NYT) Morgan Stanley. JPMorgan Chase. And Nielsen, the research firm. All of them occupy large amounts of expensive commercial space in Manhattan—and all of them expect to occupy considerably less space once the pandemic passes. “They were forced by the crisis to figure out how to function productively with workers operating from home—and realized unexpectedly that it was not all bad,” Matthew Haag reports. “When the dust settles, New York City could face a real estate reckoning.” The same could happen in other cities. “Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey emailed employees on Tuesday telling them that they’d be allowed to work from home permanently, even after the coronavirus pandemic lockdown passes,” BuzzFeed News reported.

Couples turn to ‘minimonies’ to salvage wedding plans (AP) Couples trying to salvage weddings put on hold by the coronavirus are feeding a fresh trend in the bridal industry: the “minimony.” Rather than wait, they’re getting hitched alone or with a few local loved ones looking on at a safe social distance as other guests join virtually. Then they plan to reschedule larger celebrations when allowed. “We were about to put a $15,000 deposit down on a venue when coronavirus hit,” said Kate Whiting, 35, in Northern California’s tiny Lake Almanor Peninsula. “Why would I want to wait to marry my best friend?” The 300-guest wedding of her dreams, and those of her 40-year-old fiance, Jake Avery, will happen once a COVID-19 vaccine is in place. For now, a close friend recently ordained will marry them in their yard June 6. Their approach, born of necessity, is a play on micro weddings, the first choice for some couples looking for a more intimate experience or unable to afford splashier affairs. The average cost of weddings pre-pandemic was teetering at just under $34,000, and the average guest count at 131.

Mexico prepares to start getting economy back in gear, looks to U.S. (Reuters) Mexico’s government said it will on Wednesday set out plans to reboot the economy after weeks of disruption from coronavirus, in a move that is likely to see highly automated industries lead the way in coordination with U.S. business partners.

Latin America’s Outbreaks Now Rival Europe’s. But Its Options Are Worse. (NYT) Deaths doubled in Lima, rivaling the worst month of the pandemic in Paris. They tripled in Manaus, a metropolis tucked deep in Brazil’s Amazon—a surge similar to what London and Madrid endured. In Guayaquil, a port city in Ecuador, the sudden spike in fatalities in April was comparable to what New York City experienced during its worst month: more than five times the number of people died than in previous years. As the coronavirus’s toll eased in New York and in European capitals, a devastating wave has struck cities in Latin America, one that rivals the worst outbreaks in the world, an analysis of mortality data by The New York Times has found. Brazilian cities are resorting to mass graves to bury rows of stacked coffins. Hundreds of Ecuadoreans are still searching for the bodies of family members who went to hospitals and never returned. And while the catastrophes in Europe and the United States were closely monitored, playing out under intense international media scrutiny, much of Latin America’s pain is unfolding far from global view, under governments that can’t—or won’t—offer a full tally of the dead.

Brazil and the military (NYT) As Brazil grapples with its gravest health and economic challenges in a generation, and President Bolsonaro flounders under the pressure, the specter of the armed forces is looming larger over public life than at any time since the fall of the military dictatorship in 1985. As scandals have engulfed his presidency, the right-wing former Army captain has broadened the powers of the generals and former generals in his administration, allowing one to introduce a large economic aid package, undercutting his own finance minister. His most radical supporters are urging a military takeover of the government—and Bolsonaro has attended their rallies, amplifying their calls. Most Brazilians view the possibility of a military intervention into domestic affairs as remote. But the threat, no matter how distant, has further unsettled the unpredictable political situation in this nation of 210 million. More than 11,000 people have died of a disease the president has dismissed as a little flu. The economy is collapsing. Many hospitals have reached capacity. The jobless poor are worried about going hungry.

American Travelers to Be Pariahs in Europe? (The Daily Beast) Gone are the days of the American abroad, at least for those hoping to summer in Europe this year. The new models on how to reopen European travel do not have room for the American tourist for the foreseeable future. The European Union is set to release new guidelines called “Europe Needs a Break” on Wednesday that will recommend replacing travel bans with what they are calling “targeted restrictions” based on contagion levels and reciprocity among European and neighboring nations, many of which have been under draconian lockdowns. The key to any successful reopening in Europe is based entirely on risk assessment, meaning anyone coming from a nation deemed risky or careless will be the first to be banned. Simply put, anyone who has been under the lax American approach to the pandemic, which has been the laughing stock of Europe, won’t be welcome any time soon. Americans, instead, will have to focus their getaway plans closer to home, like Latin America or Canada.

Coronavirus Renews Pride in U.K.’s Health Service (NYT) With its offer of free health care to all, based on need, the N.H.S. embodies qualities that Britons like to think represent the best of their nation. Now, with the health workers risking, and sometimes losing, their lives while the government is accused of mishandling the coronavirus pandemic, the health service—which was regarded before the crisis as deeply troubled after 10 years of austerity and neglect—has become a rallying point for the nation. “It is hard to explain how deeply embedded in our national psyche” the health service is, said Sarah Wollaston, a former lawmaker who chaired the House of Commons Health Select Committee. “Politicians mess with N.H.S. at their peril, because it is a national treasure.” Even before the virus struck, the health service, though struggling, was probably still Britain’s most respected institution. As a source of national pride, it ranked first and significantly above the royal family in one 2016 survey.

Portugal to take 500 refugee children from Greece camps (Reuters) Portugal is to take in 500 children from Greek refugee camps as soon as restrictions on movement imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak are lifted, the country’s Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva said on Tuesday. At least 5,200 unaccompanied minors live in Greece, many of them under harsh conditions in camps on islands in the Aegean, and concerns are mounting over how the disease has affected this vulnerable group.

Germany to start easing border controls from Saturday (Reuters) Germany will start to relax from Saturday some border controls introduced in March to slow the spread of the coronavirus with the aim of having free travel in Europe from mid-June, Interior Minster Horst Seehofer said on Wednesday.

Coronavirus drains Vatican coffers as income falls, deficits loom (Reuters) The pandemic has wreaked havoc with the Vatican’s finances, forcing it to dip into reserve funds and implement some of the toughest cost control measures ever in the tiny city-state. Against this bleak backdrop, top Vatican administrators held an emergency meeting in late March. They ordered a freeze on promotions and hirings and a ban on overtime, travel and large events. The pandemic has also drastically slowed the flow of funds from the Vatican Museums, which received some 7 million visitors last year and are the city’s most reliable cash cow. The museums, which generate an estimated $100 million yearly, have been closed since March 8 and are not expected to open until late May at the earliest, resulting in up to three months of lost revenue. Adding to the income shortfall, the two Vatican departments that manage real estate holdings in Italy offered reduced rents for commercial tenants whose businesses have been affected by the pandemic, such as some 600 stores and offices in Rome.

China seals off northeastern cities to contain new coronavirus outbreak (Bloomberg) China is sealing off cities in a northeastern province that borders North Korea as a growing cluster of cases threatens to undermine its hard-won containment of the coronavirus epidemic. Jilin city, the second-largest city in Jilin province, saw bus and rail services halted and residential compounds closed off on Wednesday after the discovery of six new cases of infection. Recently reopened schools were closed again. These six people had contact with another cluster in the adjacent city of Shulan, which was earlier put under lockdown on Sunday, suggesting that some amount of undetected spread has already taken place before authorities ordered renewed restrictions.

Built for a global economy, Dubai now threatened by virus (AP) Dubai built a city of skyscrapers and artificial archipelagos on the promise of globalization, creating itself as a vital hub for the free movement of trade, people and money worldwide—all things that have been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Now, with events canceled, flights grounded and investment halted, this sheikdom in the United Arab Emirates is threatened both by the virus and a growing economic crisis. Under pressure even before the outbreak, Dubai and its vast web of state-linked industries face billions of dollars in looming debt repayments. And though it was bailed out a decade earlier, Dubai may not be able to count on another cash infusion, given the crash in global oil prices.

Saudi Arabia to enforce nationwide 24-hour curfew for Eid holiday (Reuters) Saudi Arabia will enforce a countrywide 24-hour curfew during the five-day Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday later this month to help stem the spread of the coronavirus, the interior ministry said on Tuesday. The curfew will apply from May 23-May 27 following the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. Until then, commercial and business enterprises will remain open as they now are and people can move freely between 9 a.m. local time and 5 p.m., except in Mecca which remains under a full curfew.

#headlines #news

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viralnewstime · 4 years

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Never have streaming services seemed more crucial to our collective consciousness than right now. In these uncertain times, we’re all looking for a way to escape, whether it’s through home workouts, baking, or something a little more thrilling.

Thankfully Aussie legend Stan has the goods with a slew of brand new thriller releases. So dim the lights, grab a bowl of movie-grade popcorn and get ready to stay in, sit back and enjoy.

Penny Dreadful: City of Angels

What: A spiritual descendent of the original Penny Dreadful story, the brand new series Penny Dreadful: City of Angels is a twisting, supernatural crime caper set in 1938 Los Angeles – a time and place deeply infused with social and political tension.

When a grisly murder shocks the city of Los Angeles, Detective Tiago Vega (Daniel Zavatto) and his partner Lewis Michener (Nathan Lane) find themselves embroiled in an epic story that reflects the rich history of Los Angeles: from the building of the city’s first freeways and its deep traditions of Mexican-American folklore to the dangerous espionage actions of the Third Reich and the rise of radio evangelism. Before too long Tiago and his family are grappling with powerful forces that threaten to tear them apart.

Why should you watch it? If the action-packed trailer alone, with its sinister lighting, old-school gangster guns, grizzled but dreamy detectives, explosions, horror, occult references and supernatural undertones isn’t enough to convince you, then consider this: one of the TWO major battles the show is built around sees Magda (Natalie Dormer) face off against the literal personification of death Santa Muerte (Lorenza Izzo) who just so happens to be her sister! It’s the demonic family feud we’ve all been waiting for, and the city of sinners is the perfect place for it to go down.

If Penny Dreadful: City of Angels was a band it would be: Slipknot (there’s a LOT going on and it’s ALL awesome)

When to watch: Right now, right here.

The Gloaming

What: A powerful and provocative crime thriller set against the surreal landscapes of Tasmania, and from The Kettering Incident creator Vicki Madden, the Stan Original Series The Gloaming is a crime TV masterpiece not to be missed. When an unidentified woman is found brutally murdered, Detective Molly McGee (Emma Booth) uncovers chilling evidence that links the body to an unsolved crime from over two decades ago. Driven to finally get both the truth and justice, Molly teams up with ex-partner and old-flame Alex O’Connell (Ewen Leslie), only to be thrown headfirst into a murder mystery that rapidly goes from routine investigation to something much more insidious. As political corruption and shady business intertwine with sinister crimes and occult practices, The Gloaming becomes a genuinely unsettling puzzle.

Why should you watch it? If the above paragraph wasn’t enough to convince you, consider this: self-isolation has likely taken your brain to some strange and dark places this month, but none of them will be as deeply disturbing, unsettling and unexpected as the events depicted in The Gloaming. This is the type of murder mystery that will keep you awake until you’ve binged it all in one day, and the pay-off is absolutely worth it. It also scores bonus points for a stellar cast, the gorgeously ominous fog-covered Tasmanian scenery and the episode titles, which are all amazing (eg. The Mark of the Witch).

If The Gloaming was a band it would be: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

When to watch: This one is perfect for when you want to escape into the great outdoors (and not just for some essential exercise). Every episode of this Stan Original Series dropped as part of the platform’s massive summer line up, so you can jump right in.

Better Call Saul

What: Joining the universe of Breaking Bad, one of television’s most critically acclaimed shows, Better Call Saul is a darkly comedic crime series centred on Walter White’s criminal/lawyer, and tracks his transformation from small-town attorney James ‘Jimmy’ McGill (Bob Odenkirk) into the dodgy, lowlife, scam artist, alter-ego, Saul Goodman.

Set six years before Breaking Bad kicks off, Better Call Saul gifts viewers a front-row seat to the series of extraordinary, and extraordinarily tragic, events that forged one of television’s most truly despicable beings. Set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, we get inside the mind of McGill as he takes on a job as the lawyer for a former police officer whose skills allow him to enter the criminal underworld.

Why should you watch it? If for some reason the prospect of another five seasons of critically acclaimed TV featuring Bob Odenkirk as he becomes Saul Goodman wasn’t enough reason for you to watch alone, the welcome return of fellow Breaking Bad alumni Jonathan Banks as hitman Mike Ehrmantraut, and malevolent chicken king Gus Fring played by Giancarlo Esposito, should do the trick. Simply put, if you were addicted to the greatest television show ever made (or just like good TV), then you better watch Saul. If Better Call Saul was a band who would it be? Kyuss

When to watch: Every episode of all FIVE seasons are available right now, so get streaming before the final season drops next year and we say goodbye forever. Bonus: If you’ve never seen Breaking Bad, you can also stream every episode of the series – there’s a solid month of self-isolation viewing sorted!

The Little Drummer Girl

What: Based on John le Carré’s best-selling literary masterpiece, The Little Drummer Girl is an immersive thriller series about a fiery actress who, upon meeting a mysterious stranger in Greece, is drawn into a high-stakes international espionage operation.

Set in the late 1970s, the pulsating drama stars the fantastic Florence Pugh as Charlie, the unfulfilled British actress and idealist whose resolve is tested after she meets Alexander Skarsgard’s Becker while on holiday. It quickly becomes apparent that his intentions are not what they seem, and their encounter entangles her in a complex plot devised by the spy mastermind Kurtz, played by the incomparable Michael Shannon. Charlie takes on the role of a lifetime as a double agent in the ‘Theatre of the Real’, but despite her natural mastery for the task at hand, she increasingly finds herself inexorably drawn into a dangerous world of duplicity and compromised humanity.

Why should you watch it? The Little Drummer Girl blurs the fine lines between love and hate; truth and fiction; and right and wrong, and will leave you in a state of near-constant suspense as layers upon layers of depth and intrigue are added each episode. And thanks to the international settings, it’ll feel like you’ve taken a trip to the other side of the world, multiple times, without ever leaving your house.

If The Little Drummer Girl was a band who would it be? Placebo

When to watch: All episodes of the thrilling British miniseries are available to stream right now.

Supernatural

What: When Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) Winchester were children, they lost their mother to a mysterious and demonic supernatural force. All grown up, the brothers embrace their inner Buffy as they traverse the country seeking truth, vengeance, and their missing supernatural hunting father, kicking the ass of whatever force, human or otherwise, dares try to intervene.

Along the way, Sam begins to develop disturbing powers, including the ability to see graphic visualisations of people’s deaths before they happen. It’s these premonitions that then give additional purpose to the Winchester brothers’ quest as they try to prevent these lives being lost

Why should you watch it? Put simply, Supernatural is one of the best shows of its genre ever made. With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 93% across 14 (yes 14!) seasons, it’s a genuine masterclass in TV worldbuilding, with every episode playing a crucial role in the telling of a truly epic paranormal tale that expertly blends horror, mystery, drama and thriller conventions into one supernaturally good show.

If Supernatural was a band who would it be? Coheed and Cambria

When to watch: When you feel like some sibling bonding time, tuck into all 14 seasons of this iconic series on Stan.

Parasite

What: A pitch-black modern fairytale thriller, Parasite follows the near destitute and increasingly desperate Kim family as they infiltrate the ludicrously wealthy Park family, one lowly service job at a time, in a calculated effort to survive. A symbiotic relationship is forged, yet beneath the surface a parasite dwells, feeding on greed and class-discrimination, threatening to expose the truth.

Parasite is a film best enjoyed without any further context, so we’re not going to spoil the plot any more – all we’ll say is you’ve never seen a film t like it, and it’s very likely that once you’ve seen it, you’ll never be the same again.

Why should you watch it? After winning 4 Academy Awards, including the historic accolade of being the first foreign-language film to ever win ‘Best Picture’, and the Palme d’Or at Cannes, Parasite is South Korean director/writer Bong Joon-Ho’s (The Host, Snowpiercer, Okja) masterpiece. Perfectly cast and brilliantly layered, every single shot, plot twist and piece of dialogue uttered in Parasite is absolutely essential in adding to the omnipresent suspense. It’s funny, haunting and thrilling all at once, but the scariest and most shocking quality of all is just how POSSIBLE it seems. This is a movie that will haunt not just your nightmares, but your daydreams as well. Stop reading this, and watch it immediately. That 99% Rotten Tomatoes score didn’t get there by accident.

If Parasite was a band what would it be? Envy

When to watch: After being fast-tracked from cinemas, Parasite is already available to stream so get to it – just make sure you’re emotionally prepared.

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Start your 30-day free Stan trial now.

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