found a thrift shop of alt/goth/punk clothing based in my country 🫶 was then shot 57 times bc they keep not having plus sizes its like they want me dead
I’m really struggling still my will to live is at an all time low I have no support nothing going on and no motivation I appreciate all the help so far it’s July 16th words of encouragement are also welcome
IDK I think if cis men are being told that being fat will lower their testosterone and make them Insufficiently Masculine, and cis women are being told that being fat will raise their testosterone and make them Excessively Masculine, and fat trans people are being denied the right to medically transition if they're fat, and thin trans people are warned against HRT because it will make them fat (and this is said about both testosterone and estrogen HRT), and androgynous-presenting people are told that only thin people count as androgynous...
Then maybe...
Maybe...
Maybe the weight loss industry is just using Gender to enforce fatphobia.
“majority of white people see anyone brown as subhuman” “ugh! that sucks….. its just like how some ppl r a little rude to me, a white person, for having green hair!” no. thats different, i promise u its different
I’m so proud of senshi for making it so far in the tumblr sexyman poll. I think it’s so beautiful that tumblr has reached a point where a short fat hairy bearded man is the pinnacle of sexuality for a large swath of this userbase. it’s like when you see before & after pictures of a rainforest recovering from deforestation. nature is healing and we can fight god
anyone who uses the r slur at this point needs to just be recognized as a hateful bigot and we cant be quiet about it anymore. genuinely. get mad at people for this. point it out and be annoying about it. no you cant reclaim it you just want an excuse to be bigoted
If you saw me post this at midnight no you didn't.
Anyway HUZZAH I return with a new chapter! I'm not gonna lie I stopped trying to upload consistently. College is kicking my ass.
Cute Normal Arlo chapter + Set up :3
--------------
This morning at work you were a little blindsided.
“Listen, we need you to quickly update the Hero Gala article before we publish it for the afternoon news. We need it before lunch.” Your chief editor begs an older man with blue eyes and deep wrinkles. You blink, surprised. This usually doesn't happen, yeah there's quick time lines but this quick for something everyone has known about for months? An event so soon? But you nod and immediately set to work. By the time you have a polished draft you're satisfied with, your brain feels fried.
You quickly check the time to make sure it's not too late. It's half an hour to lunch, so you're a little early. After a few edits, you crack your knuckles, and submit your final draft to the chief editor. You poke your head into the editor's office to tell him you sent the draft. Then, you head back to your desk and check your phone. You call Arlo, shoulder pinning the phone to your ear as the tone rings.
“Hey! Where did you wanna get lunch? I heard there's some food trucks near the butterfly park, maybe we could check it out before we head over?” You beam, packing your bag.
“Huh…? What time is it?” You hear him grumble, sounding a bit hazy. Did he just wake up? His voice is kind of sexy and husky when he's just woken up. You try to focus, shaking your head. You can think about his sexy-tired voice later.
“It's 12:45.” You hum back, “Did you just wake up, ‘Lo?”
You hear a thump and quick shuffling. He frantically apologies.
“I slept through my alarm, I'm so sorry! I'm… um, I'll be a little late. I-I'm sorry, my dear.” He stutters, evidently embarrassed.
“Don't worry, I'll meet you there. I'll wait so we can eat together. See ya.” You chuckle. You hear the shower turning on at his end.
“Uhhh I should be there by 1! Love you.” He rushes, before hanging up.
—----------
The sky was clear and high, so you sat down after ordering an iced drink and set your work bag beside you to save Arlo's spot. You idly sip your drink, allowing a minute to just enjoy the day. Families walk around, clearly either walking to or from the butterfly garden. Despite this, the day is slow, so you don't feel bad about reserving your boyfriend the spot beside you. Your mind lingers to him, wondering about his unusual behavior.
It was weird that Arlo slept in late. You're certain he opens the library at 9 AM, but there was always prep work to do so he had to go in earlier… so it was weird he was asleep at 12. You consider the odd timing before checking your clock. He's fifteen minutes late…? He's never been more than five minutes late. But it makes sense, his apartment is ten minutes from the library which is a few blocks from the park you're at. Eh, everyone is entitled to an odd day, you suppose.
You tell yourself everything is fine as your thoughts drift. Mostly back to the Hero Gala article. And then to Zenith and the conversation you had about it. He suspected Techbyte would cause a problem. But crashing the event with the biggest heroes? That's actually stupid not even you wanted to do that. You consider taking off work to potentially stick around just in case.
Then there's the big problem. Zenith is getting cocky. You still haven't put the bastard in his place. Oh, when you see that fucker again you’d-
“Hey! Thanks so much, I…” Arlo beams, waving as he trots over. You jump, startled. You set your bag aside to let him sit at the bench beside you. All your anxieties dissipate, lingering for a mere moment as guilt before leaving entirely. His hair is still damp, smelling clean, something woody with a eucalyptus or minty undertone. It smelled really nice, probably his shampoo.
“Penny for your thoughts?” He hums, casually resting his arm behind you. You shake your head. That's concerns for later.
“Nothing important, just thinking about the Hero Gala. How have you been?” You beam, setting your coffee aside.
“Good, good… I was needed for a project for um.. A colleague.” He says, ruffling hair damp hair, seeming to sense how it's slightly unruly. It looks peachy-gold when the sun hits it. His hair has so much less volume when it's wet… it's kind of cute to see.
“You took a shower.” You observe, admiring him. He chuckles, sheepish, scratching his beard.
“Yeah. I, uh, wanted to be nice and clean. I didn't want to be muggy.” He chuckles. He looks… good. Tired, but good.
“Let's grab something to eat, hmm?” You hum, standing.
—--------
You sit at one of the several park benches with tables, digging into your meals. There were a few food trucks around with a nice variety, so you got something you liked.
Arlo takes a bite of his salmon burger, seemingly quite hungry.
“So, you've been busy. A project?” You note. He pauses, tensing ever so slightly.
“Yeah, um… a project of sorts.” Arlo says, setting his burger down. He clasps his hands in front of him, elbows on the table. Oh okay, that's a weirdly serious shift in demeanor. You let the silence linger for a moment.
You respond casually, “So, what's going on?” He thinks, before taking his glasses off and rubbing his forehead.
“I… can't exactly talk about it.” Arlo hums, a little pensive. You can't help but pause.
“Can't?” You probe, leaning in. Arlo tells you everything, what's going on…? Arlo bounces the hand holding his glasses before putting them back on.
“I shouldn't talk about it, it's private. I had to sign an NDA.” He admits, quickly, like pressure leaking from a stabbed balloon. You pause again.
“Can you say the company?”
“I… am helping consult the police on a case.” He says, after a pause, to choose his words carefully.
Okay, that's super weird.
“What does the NDA cover?” You probe. You had probed about NDAs before, it's part of your job sometimes.
“You're worrying too much. I'm just helping consult, I'm not chasing down bad guys. At least not directly.” He chuckles, weighted. He goes to pick up his burger again but you set your hand on his. He's being weirdly evasive and you want to get on the same page as him.
“I'm worried.” You state, clearly. “You're acting unlike yourself. You're missing work, and waking up late, and I'm worried this or something else is stressing you out.”
Arlo’s face tenses for a moment, before he flips his hand palm up, cradling yours. He rubs a thumb over the back of your knuckles, slow. His eyebrows grow heavy, focused. Arlo opens his mouth to speak before closing it, proceeding to rub his red-ish beard in thought.
“It's about the NDA. And I can't say what it is. But… Someone on the police force knew I helped develop something…” He trails off, pinching his chin between his first finger and thumb. He stacks words like delicate cards to make a little building.“I can't talk about what it was. But it was a long time ago before I came to Comet City.”
You pause and nod. Now you just had more questions. You weigh them before looking up to meet Arlo's eyes. He looked so… tired, worn out. You nod, giving a little smile. You give Arlo's hand a squeeze.
“I won't pry.” You sigh. You didn't want to add to his burdens by prying and pushing. You lean in, taking his other hand.
“Just… let me help. Even if it's just sitting with you.” You say. His eyes go wide before he relaxes, giving a small, tired smile.
“Actually I'd like to walk a little. The butterflies will be gone by late afternoon.” He hums, setting aside his half finished burger. Odd.
“We can finish quickly...” You say, gesturing to his burger. He pauses, looking confused for a moment before shaking his head.
“I wasn't all that hungry.” He says, gathering your trash and getting up to throw it away. Arlo never finished just half a meal. He either wanted to put it in his lunchbox to eat later or finished most of his meal.
He returns, dusting his hands off before offering one to hold.
—---------------------
“Ah, and that one is Monarch Butterfly! In Mexico their migrations correlate to their celebration of The Day of the Dead so they've become a symbol of the souls of deceased loved ones.” Arlo beams, pointing to an orange butterfly with black stripes. You watch it, as it flutters around a little green plant with red flowers.
You point to a similar looking one, fluttering around. Arlo leans forward, eyes narrowed before standing back up straight.
“Ah! Good guess, but that's a Viceroy Butterfly! Their host plants include the poplars and willows while monarchs have milkweed as their host plant!” He chimes in, as you hold hands and wander to another area.
He points to another butterfly, a little light brown one.
“Ah! A Common Buckeye! Their host plants are snapdragons. Those spots on their wings confuse and startle predators to attack their wings instead of their delicate bodies.” He says, letting go of your hand to gesture towards the butterfly. You put your hands on your knees, leaning in to admire the little thing. It opens and closes its wings a few times, exposing the interesting marks on its back.
“Reminds me of eyes.” You muse, standing back up and taking his hand.
“That's actually part of their startling effect! Many animals use camouflage to mimic eyes to deter attacks or to hide a predator's eyes.” He rambles, gesturing with his free hand. Oh god you were so in love with this man it made you feel stupid. In a good way.
You walk back to your car with him, still holding hands as he rambles animatedly.
“... And the oldest butterfly fossil found dates back to around 40 to 50 million years ago!” He gushes, giving you the brightest smile you've seen from him in a while. “It follows the diversification of flowering plants occurring around that time.”
He pauses once he notices where you are. “Ah… time for you to go.” He sighs. His eyes dart from you, to your car, and back again. Both of you are reluctant to let go of each other's hand.
“I want to see you again, soon.” He says, softly.
“I'd really like that.” You hum back, before leaning in to kiss his cheek, “The Hero Gala is in two days so I'll be busy writing for it, and I'll be busy a little after that too, but… I'd really like to see you soon.”
He stares at you, a forlorn but nods in understanding. He kisses your cheek in return before you get in your car. You roll your window down to say goodbye but Arlo speaks first.
“Are you going to be at the Gala? I will be.” He says, a little hopeful. You sigh and shake your head, Zenith stupid fucking face intruding in your mind.
“I'm afraid not, ‘Lo. I'm just writing about it. They'll need me at Starlight Reads.”
He nods, “Yeah, I don't want to be there but I agreed since the library is a community center and the Gala wants to represent us.” It makes enough sense, since the Hero Gala tries to include all important people involved in making the community better.
“I can't change your mind? I'm sure the Gala allows dates.” He hums, offering you a little coy smile. You're tempted for a moment before resigning.
“I'm sorry, I can't… I'll be needed to help quickly get the edit drafts during the event, I'll be needed at the office.” You murmur, pained. Arlo sighs but shrugs.
“Makes sense. But I'll be thinking of you.” He sighs, fond.
“To be honest, I'd hate being cooped up with those big shot heros. They're so…” You scoff, trailing off.
“Meretricious?” He offers after a moment of thought. Ah shit you didn't know that word. Sometimes Arlo forgot even though you weren't as well read as him, despite your avid reading. You trusted it meant ‘annoying’.
“Whatever that means.” You chuckle, pointing at him, “But, you're right. I'd rather eat glass than spend too much time with them.” He chortles back, hearty and genuine before giving you a final goodbye and leaving to head back to his car.
—-------
“We need you to attend the Hero Gala to interview the big shots.” Your boss says. You almost curl into the nice cushioned chair you're seated in and burrow, never to be seen again. But you don't because you're a professional.
“I thought Nancy was in charge of that.” You state, neutral. “Did something happen to her?”
Your boss sighs, almost a groan of exhaustion.
“Ms. Eisen got the flu, poor thing. But, she can't go. I really wanted her there.” She muses, wistful. Ah, the new girl. You remember her, she wrote the gossip column about you and Zenith.
“A shame, it would have boosted her career, would have looked good to get something well-written in the Hero Column with her name on it.” You murmur, tense. Truth be told, you didn't want to go. But saying no to your boss was a really stupid idea.
“I need you there. I admit I wanted Ms. Eisen there to boost her career and I trusted her skill. I wanted to promote her.” She says, focused. She rubs her hands together, slowly. “The Hero Committee wants this to look good so I need a strong voice.”
Ah shit you didn't want to be there. Fucking hell.
“Your focus will be to interview and write about the bigger heroes. Don't waste your time with anyone aside from the A-class. If you can nail an interview with Zenith, it'd be a very golden article.” She stresses. “We have other writers covering the exposition, we just need to do our best on what the Committee wants.”
Ah goddamn it. Fuck. Zenith, face to face. Him and his stupid face and his big grin and bright teeth.
“Of course.” You say, pleasant and calm.
At least it would be in civilian attire and not in a position he'll try to gnaw your tongue off again. You leave the office and start writing a text to Arlo, updating him. You likely couldn't spend time with him during it, but it's important he knows since he already asked you about your attendance.
You sit at your desk and crack your knuckles. You've got some emails to send to the Hero Committee PR team. Snagging good interviews won't be easy but it's important to start soon.
