mutual pining simply never misses. the yearning. the stupidity. the desperation while also thinking themselves alone with it. the rattling relief at the revelation. the way it works in so many scenarios— friends to lovers? a banger every time. casual hook-ups/friends with benefits while they both want more? show-stopping, spectacular, incredible. enemies who are so deep in denial it just makes them madder at each other? utterly unmatched every single time. slow burn, fast burn, burning while already fucking. mutual pining really just is that girl like truly who does it like her
Daredevil Born Again
X X
@imnez-daydreams @pepper2605 @bullseyelover @midnightslark @htchnr
I loved that one scene where Karen is patching up Matt in the foreground, but it's Castle in the background the camera is focused on. Because he's eavesdropping. He's been wondering the same thing--why did Karen call him? And then he decides to act macho, chewing pain killers and making out like getting shot doesn't hurt because he's damned if he'll look weaker than Murdock in front of her.
And of course Karen sees through it with a single look, leaving him stumbling over his words. There's too many that need to be said, a crushing wave that dams up at the back of his throat. Maybe over a cup of coffee he could let the words seep out. They could start with a cup, then another. Maybe dinner after that. Make up for lost time...
Frank thought pushing Karen away was the only way to keep her safe. Then the Snap happened, and he learned just how wrong he was.
___________________________________________________________
“You gotta walk away. Right now. That’s what has to happen, you hear me?”
Frank’s voice is unwavering, but his eyes are pleading as he stares at Karen. She’s standing at the foot of his bed like a sentry, her arms folded defensively across her chest. She’s wearing one hell of a poker face, but the look in her eye is obvious. He’s hurting her, and he hates himself for it.
“You don’t get to do this,” she exclaims. “You don’t get just… decide who gives a shit! That’s not on you, Frank.”
“Not on me?” He looks to the side, a huff of dry laughter rising from his throat. “No, it is on me.” Throwing off the scratchy hospital blankets, he swings his legs over the edge of the bed with more effort than he cares to think about.
“Because I know you, Karen. You’re strong, and you’re brave, but you’re so goddamn stubborn; you’ll do whatever it takes when it comes to me.” He pauses, dark eyes boring into her. “Tell me I’m wrong.”
But she just turns her head away, scoffing.
“Yeah.” Frank hums. “That’s what I thought.”
He pushes himself to stand. More effort. The cuts on his face and the bruises on his body weigh him down, but not as much as the knowledge of how he got them. He’d been one-upped by Russo, played like a jackass; beaten. Beaten so badly that Karen dropped everything– the good, stable life she’d been building for herself– to sit by his side and wait for him to wake up.
“You put yourself before others,” he says. “And I can’t let you do that. Not for me.”
Blue eyes, alarming in their brightness, shoot toward him. Karen motions toward the door, where Midani and Amy are probably waiting somewhere outside, hearing every word. “So it's okay for them to risk everything, but not me?”
It isn’t, but that’s beside the point. This is different. Everything is, with her.
“What do you think’s gonna happen?” He growls.
He takes slow steps in Karen’s direction. It’s like wading through water, trying to get to her, being drawn in and pushed back by the same current. Part of him thinks it’d be easier to just lay down, let the current sweep him in, but he knows that life isn’t meant for him, not while breath still fills Billy Russo’s lungs.
Frank allows his expression to harden. He has to puff out his chest, show his teeth; be the monster everyone thinks he is.
Everyone except Karen.
When she looks at him, he sees something else behind her eyes. He’s now sure what it is— or maybe he is and is too much of a coward to admit it— but he knows it's dangerous. Every time he sees it, sees her , his heart rattles a little harder against his ribcage; whispers things he knows he can’t have. That feeling has no place here. He needs to change her mind; make her see him like the rest of the world. Maybe then she’ll walk away… so he doesn’t have to.
_____________________
Continue reading here.
...I heard your heartbeats.
DAREDEVIL | S02E06 "Regrets Only"
matt had to pack a box of foggy's things. he had to run his fingers over the avocados at law desk nameplate and put it away forever. that's enough now. give foggy nelson back. matt murdock's suffering knows no true bounds but that's enough.
The art of conversation
Fanfic is a free hobby.
It's one of the last few things we can have as a society that's free. You can engage, for free. People give you things (art, stories, etc), for free.
Don't buy into the consummerism just because it's everywhere else.
You don't have to consume everything you interact with. You don't have to use things, just because they exist.
You're allowed (still, for now), to have things that are enjoyable for free.
Do you realise how insane the world is? We don't have many places where we can just be, for free anymore, but ao3 is. Did you notice we don't have ads in ao3? We don't have pop ups? Where ELSE do we not have that?
Where else can you just go and not have to wait for a commercial to be over or for ads to be on the sidelines?
I don't think the younger people understand, but the whole of internet used to be like this. YouTubers would do Youtube for free, just because. You couldn't monetise your internet presence before.
Ao3 is like a little preserved corner of the internet where the old internet used to be, and it's being attacked by people who do not understand that free things are allowed to exist without judgment.
Please don't ruin this for us.
Some of us need it.
Well fucks? Get to it!
Frank and Karen
Daredevil Season 2 + The Punisher + DDBA