“Riya, I have just one thing to ask of you. Will you get health insurance?” - Everest Redwood, looking like he was about to propose to her while surrounded by a group of people.
Yeah, Everest was absolutely one of the first people to insist that Riya gets therapy and insurance in the actor au. The very idea of anything awful happening to her again is enough to make him spiral into a rabbit hole of worry.
Also, I didn't mention this, but he owns a book of latin curses (like actual curses, not swears, though he does own a book of Japanese swears). I think you can put together why he has one of those.
I like to think out of everyone in the cast, Riya has the highest spice tolerance.
She’d eat sushi with wasabi paste and she’d just brush it off like it’s nothing.
Meanwhile, Ashley is dying from it.
Zaid probably has a high spice tolerance too.
I can honestly imagine Riya and Zaid having to help ease their partners (Everest and Ivy respectively) into being able to handle high levels of spice, something about that is just hella adorable
and speaking of Ashley basically dying
-
(in the actor au)
Riya: are you alright?
Ashley *basically on death's door after trying wasabi* AAAAAHHHH
Synopsis: Riya and Everest had agreed to have Everest's niece Kyoka over for the weekend. This leads Riya to have thoughts.
Timeline Placement: After All Stars
Content Warning: It's kinda suggestive, nothing too bad, just some really intense flirting
"Night, night, Auntie Riya..." Kyoka murmured, yawning as sleep overtook her tiny little body.
Riya chuckled as the little four-year-old easily drifted to sleep. "Good night, Kyoka." The actress pressed a kiss against the toddler's forehead before she turned off the lights, and leave the room.
"You're a natural with kids, Riya." Everest said, pushing himself off of the wall he was leaning against. He went up to his girlfriend and reached up to cup her cheek. "Kyoka adores you."
The taller of the two leaned into her boyfriend's touch, a soft smile on her face. "I know. We're not even married, and she happily calls me Auntie."
Riya let out a little huff and gently smacked Everest on the shoulder. "You know I can't understand you when you speak Japanese unprompted!"
"That's how I feel whenever you speak Hindi around me unprompted!" Everest shook his head before standing on his tippy toes to kiss Riya. "Anyways, I think how sweet you are to kids is one of your best qualities."
That was all it took to make the brunette blush and giggle nervously. "Oh, you." She took a deep breath before continuing. "Do you... do you think... do you think we could just... be like this?"
Everest paused, tilting his head to the side. "'Like this'?" He asked, blinking his eyes.
"A... a family. A-and not us just watching over your niece. Like... well, having a family?"
It took Everest a moment to process what Riya meant before even his hair turned red from how much he blushed. "Oh..." he murmured. "Mmh... I... well, I'll be happy with whatever you decide for your future, if possibly having a family in the future is something you want to do, you're not the only one."
Riya couldn't help but smirk at how flustered Everest got. "I'd like that, Ever." She leaned down to return the kiss he gave her. "I think you'd be a good dad."
"Ah, really?" The flustered ravenette giggled and wrapped his arms around Riya's waist. "Well, you'd make an amazing mom."
"Oh, you're just saying that." Riya scoffed, wrapping her arms around Everest.
"And if I'm not?"
"And if you're not?"
"Then we'll have to see when that time comes."
Riya cupped Everest's cheek. "When the time comes, hm? And what if that time was right now?~"
"猫! Not in front of Kyo's room!" Everest put his hand over Riya's mouth to shut her up. He took her hand and dragged her to their bedroom. "Alright, now you can continue the dirty talk."
Riya smirked and pinned Everest to the bed. "Oh, I plan too." She leaned down, gave him a kiss, and whispered. "And don't forget, you're the one who chose to deal with me, लोमड़ी."
On the night Riya almost had the unspeakable done to her, Eesha called their parents about it in Hindi.
What followed was a massive argument between them because their parents blamed Riya for what Johnny tried to do, while Eesha was angrily fighting back, which escalated into her confessing to murdering several r**ists and transphobic people.
“हाँ, सही कहा! मैंने उन रेपिस्टों और उन ट्रांसफोबिक माता-पिता को मार डाला, और मुझे इसका कोई पछतावा नहीं है! इस घटना के लिए मेरी बहन को दोष देने के लिए तुम दोनों की ऐसी-तैसी!!” - Eesha Sharma, 2023, probably.
into the translator you go
translated: Yes, that's right! I killed those rapists and those transphobic parents, and I have no regrets! Damn you both for blaming my sister for this!
Everybody, Eesha is a total G, give her a round of a-paw-sause 👏🏻
Also yeah, uh, fuck the Sharma parents. This is exactly why Riya takes Everest's last name when they get married (👀)
Fun fact: Johnny wasn’t Eesha’s first victim. She’s helped some gals back in India kill r**ists and transphobic people because of the country’s flawed definition of it. That’s how she knows what poison is enough to kill.
Also, Riya wasn’t at the scene when Johnny died. She got so drunk that someone carried her back to bed, tucked her in, and kissed her goodnight, being extra sure to lay her on her side so she wouldn’t choke.
fuck yeah, Eesha! Kill them bigots!
Also it was definitely Everest who brought Riya to bed. Hell, he went to bed with her just to keep her company <3
Beloved, for this January 3 Full Moon in Cancer, Selene is moving close, asking you to let your heart be cradled instead of constantly holding everything together for everyone else.
Tonight’s Full Moon in Cancer is a Selene moon: soft, tender, mothering, and fiercely protective of your emotional body. This is the kind of moon that brings everything up to the surface, not to overwhelm you, but to finally be soothed.
Here is your free Full Moon Goddess Message from Selene:
“Beloved, put the weight down for a moment. You are not failing because you are tired; you are tired because you have carried too much alone. Under this Cancer full moon, you are allowed to rest in my light like a child in safe arms. Breathe. The to‑do lists, the roles, the expectations can wait while your heart remembers what softness feels like.
You do not have to earn my presence. You do not have to be ‘caught up’ to be worthy of comfort. Right now, your only task is this: exhale what you have been holding in your chest for weeks, and let the tears or the silence come. I am here for all of it.”
If this message lands for you, place a hand on your heart, take three slow breaths, and whisper: “Selene, please hold me while I rest.” That alone can be your ritual tonight.
Come closer, moon‑child. Your nervous system has been operating in survival mode for so long that calm feels suspicious. You keep telling yourself, ‘Once things slow down, I’ll rest,’ but the truth is, you’ve been building a life that never slows down. Your inner tides are begging you to stop treating rest like a reward and start treating it like oxygen.
Under this Cancer full moon, I am not asking you to fix your entire life. I am asking you to tell yourself the truth: where are you abandoning your own needs in order to keep the peace? Where do you tuck your emotions away so no one else is ‘inconvenienced’ by your humanity?
Your body remembers every time you pushed past your limits. The headaches, the tight shoulders, the late‑night scrolling, the numbness, these are not random. They are love letters from your cells, saying: ‘We cannot live like this forever.’
Tonight, I invite you into a different kind of devotion.
Place one hand on your heart and one on your belly. Feel where your breath stops. Let it deepen slowly, without force. Then ask:
Where do I need mothering in my own life? What kind of care do I always give others but never allow myself?
Do not rush to fix the answers. Simply let them be seen in my light.
(Read the entire premium message through the link)