#Reason number one I tried to go grocery shopping for myself once and I bought soda | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

dicktective · 1 year

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[werner herzog in the mandelorian vc] eye would like to see 'CALIFORNIA HERE WE COME' 👀

bahahaha well it's written partly by myself and party by kat but i'll share some of what i wrote:

It starts with Robin.

Not that he was ever the sort of person to believe in like, fate, or God, or whatever, but every single action--every single moment up until this exact moment in time--started with her.

Beneath him, as his feet dangle knee deep in the depths of the cold morning surf, he tries not to feel overwhelmingly suffocated by this particular fact. Because he can’t hate Robin. He can’t. He knows that none of this is actually her fault--that he and he alone was in charge of the series of spurious, half-baked ideas that lead to this particular sequence of events--but god, why didn’t she try and stop him?

Oh, right.

She had.

She had tried to tell him this was a dumb idea--just wait it out for another year, dingus’; we can move in with each other then--and Steve had looked her, scoffed with his eyebrows raised cheek achingly high, and let an incredulous: fuck that.

So he bought a van.

He put in his two weeks notice with his boss at Sears--the older woman was almost sad to see him go--said he had a way with the customers--and took out a bank draft.

He bought a van, packed it in a moment of ill-conceived anger directed vaguely towards his father, and spent two days driving to California. He got lost only once (or maybe twice), but when he showed up outside the dormitories of UCLA, unshowered and half asleep from two uncomfortable nights spent sleeping curled up on the floor behind the driver seat, Robin had nearly killed him.

He had to listen to her rattle off a list of all the reasons why dumping half of his savings into a stupid van (a really, really ugly one, she added) to follow her halfway across the country was crazy! And also, Steve, where the heck do you think you’re going to stay? I already told you before I left you can’t crash at the dormitories and apartment prices in downtown L.A are crazy.

“The van,” he had simply told her. As if this van was going to be the solution to all of his life's problems.

“The van,” Robin had parroted. “The van with no mattress, no running water, and no way to cook a meal in it.”

Steve had just shrugged, but one of the first things he had done was go pick up a crappy mattress from one of the local Salvation Armys.

And for a while it was fine.

He spent a few days parked outside the dormitories and they would get lunch together, or sometimes hangout in the park near the campus library and there was even the occasional movie night when Robin's roommate was out visiting her boyfriend.

But then classes picked up and Robin got busy. The security guard at her dormitory complex told him politely if not firmly that because he wasn't a student at the university he couldn't keep parking there overnight. There was no place to shower and he couldn't keep sneaking into the building with Robin to wash his clothes without getting dirty looks.

Also eating a steady diet of gas station food--of bagged jerky and teeth-rottingly sweet snack cakes--was really starting to do a number on his stomach.

He didn't tell her his.

Instead, he went back to the same Goodwill where he had picked up the mattress and bought a surfboard.

He smiled and told her half-truths about how amazing this all was. Of mornings spent at the beach and afternoons getting sun tans. Of all the sites he was seeing. The people he was meeting. Of this killer wave he hit the day before and God, Robin, you should have been there to see it.

Robin always laughs and smirks and rolls her eyes when he talks about it all. About surfing at sunrise (she still doesn’t fully believe that it’s something he’s capable of, he believes), of the late afternoons spent sleeping on the beach, of the weird cat he sometimes gets to see when he’s grocery shopping in the gas station near the freeway.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself, Steve,” she had told him. “I’m glad this is working out.”

The water beneath his board swells in a sudden and unnatural crest and Steve’s fingers clamp down on its edges, steadying himself just to stay afloat.

Then, he turns and looks to the beach. People are slowly arriving, slowly unpacking beach towels and folding metal chairs. There’s a kid with a ball and a family with a dog and a group of teenagers perched in a huddle near the sandy stairs leading to the boardwalk. Steve sighs and begins to paddle the board back towards shore.

He woke up to another parking ticket. It was there, plastered in its disgustingly muted pink under the rubber edge of his van's windshield wiper. It’s another thing he won’t tell Robin. Another half-truth.

Because a part of him really wanted this. A part of him had wanted her to be wrong.

She isn’t though--and rarely has been.

But again, Steve won’t tell her this. He can’t.

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justjessame · 3 years

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Starting Over Chapter 39

I woke up wrapped in the security of Bucky’s arms - and wearing my nightclothes which I have to admit took a few extra beats to catch up to remembering the cause - but his lips were on mine and it didn’t matter why. Nightclothes, late nights, even gunshot victims sleeping their pain meds off on our couch didn’t matter - not when Bucky was kissing me awake.

“Brooke!,” the tiny voice that called my name had both mine and Bucky’s eyes snapping open and widening. “Buck kissed you up like Rora in Sleepin’ Beauty.” And then a round of toddler giggles that had both of us pulling away with what I had to think was a silent prayer of gratitude for our fucking nightclothes.

There, with her tiny chin propped on Bucky’s side of our bed and her dark eyes staring up at us, was Bryn. And now that we were WIDE awake, I could hear voices downstairs - and if I wasn’t completely fucking insane - I was hearing MORE than just Connie and Sharon’s.

While I kept Bryn occupied, Bucky slid out of my side of the bed. A three year old does NOT need to see what Bucky Barnes is packing early in the morning, trust me. I pulled her up into the bed with me and grabbed the remote to the TV.

“What do you want to watch?” After putting it on her favorite early morning cartoon, I settled back against the headboard and smiled when I realized that Byrn had compared Bucky to a prince. “Bryn?” She hummed and I slid my fingers through her loose curls. “What’s the prince’s name in Sleeping Beauty?”

“Phillip.” It didn’t come from Bryn. It came from the doorway and a very masculine voice. I glanced over to where Bucky stood, fully dressed now and I grinned with a raised eyebrow. “What? She told me while we were talking about her dolls and our tea party.”

I nodded and he came over to join us. “Did you do any recon?” He snorted. “What would you call it? Super sneaky Winter Soldier ninja snooping?”

Shaking his head, he kissed me again. “I did.” He sighed. “Sam, Chris, Carrie, Connie, and Sharon.” I knew my eyes were wide enough to be in threat of falling out of my head, but for fuck’s sake. “Come on, Bryn,” he held out his arms and she hopped up and jumped into them. “Let’s go downstairs and see if we can get some breakfast ready for Brooke while she gets ready for the day.”

I contemplated staying in bed. Our house had been invaded - and while I’d sworn that I’d answer my phone and door, I hadn’t been given the OPTION of answering - they’d just barged right the fuck in. Giving myself about five minutes to stew and wallow, I finally rolled out of bed and grabbed some clothes to toss on. A stop in the bathroom to brush my hair and my teeth and then downstairs to meet the invaders.

They were in the kitchen - ALL of them. Gathered around the table and island, watching as Bucky worked on another omelet - omelets I corrected as I came in and moved closer to him. Sam was drinking coffee, and I almost asked where he’d gotten it since he was drinking out of one of my mugs, but then I noticed that someone had started up my parents’ coffee maker. I hadn’t tossed it out, of course I also didn’t buy coffee for it - Connie shook her head and nodded toward the bags of groceries that she’d clearly put away before we woke up.

“Morning,” I greeted our guests, “everyone.” Started strong, but the landing left something to be desired. “To what do we owe this -”

“Well,” Connie came over and wrapped her arm around my neck. “I knew that you probably hadn’t had a chance to go shopping for groceries since you got back.” Whispering very quietly in my ear that she knew exactly WHY I hadn’t and she APPROVED of why. “I thought I’d do a run while Bryn and I were out -”

“We saw how much she grabbed and -” Chris volunteered, grins growing. Such good samaritans and great friends. “We couldn’t let her struggle. She had her own stuff, yours, AND Bryn.”

Carried piped up, “we stopped by her house and dropped hers off first. When we got here, Sam had just arrived.” She was beaming - and why not? She just met the new Captain America, after all.

“Since I have a key for emergencies,” Connie finished the tale with a shrug.

I nodded. “You have a key for emergencies and groceries are an emergency.” Bucky’s shoulders were shaking, and I knew he was enjoying this shit immensely. “And letting Captain America in - I mean, I’m sure he made it sound like it was an emergency.”

Sam was taking a drink when I said it and he snorted, spewing coffee just a bit. “Don’t make it sound like I was being all sneaky or something, Brooke.” He sputtered.

I raised an eyebrow and reached for one of my tea towels. Tossing it to him, I waited while he cleaned up. “It’s broad daylight, I highly doubt you were being sneaky, Sam.” He nodded. “So?”

“So?” Confusion glowed on his face.

“The reason for your visit?”

“Ah,” I shook my head as realization dawned on his face. “Sarah -” shit the print, but he went on. “She and I wanted to invite you and Bucky to a celebration back home.”

They were planning on a huge party in Delacroix - and for good reason - hometown boy makes VERY good. And now that they weren’t selling the boat, or house, I could see why they’d want to have a party. Bucky glanced at me over his shoulder, wanting my input on whether we should go or not, but in this instance the ball was in his court.

“Yeah,” Bucky agreed, plating our breakfast - for all eight of us - and lining them up on the island for us to carry into the dining room. “We’ll drive down.”

“Drive?” Sam was curious, carrying his plate and refilled cup of coffee into the dining room. “Renting a car instead of flying?”

We settled around the table and I shook my head when Bucky moved to sit at one of the sides. “Head, Bucky.” His eyes went wide, but I stood firm. OUR house, and he was the man of it. Everyone waited to tuck in until he sat, and then I took my seat. “Yes, drive, Sam.” I smiled across the table at Bucky, who was staring at me like he was amazed by me again. “We like to take our time - Bucky and me.” That got a few chuckles, but then everyone took a bite of their food and suddenly no one was laughing - because once again they were surprised by Bucky Barnes.

Our guests didn’t stay too long. Bryn understood that it wasn’t the day for our tea party, since she hadn’t brought along any princesses for it. I watched as Bucky got down on his knee to have a long conversation with her - privately, they told the rest of us, and I smiled when she hugged him tight at the end of it.

“I think Bucky has a fan,” Sam was beside me, watching Bryn with Bucky. “Seeing him like this -”

I felt my smile growing. I loved hearing anyone’s tone change to reflect them seeing him in a new light. “You think this is the Bucky that Steve knew, don’t you?” He hummed an affirmative. “It is,” I bit my lip as Buck turned, his gaze meeting mine. “He’s always been there, Sam. Just took him a little longer to surface than he expected.” Bucky came closer to include me in Bryn’s goodbye hug, and got me to promise her that sleepover too, despite my misgivings. A kiss to her soft cheek and she was handed off to Connie.

“We’ll let you two get back to -” I rolled my eyes as Connie waggled her eyes in her attempt at being suggestive. “Bye, Brookie.” She was grinning when she gave Bucky his own parting, then Chris and Carrie gave us a less gregarious, but no less friendly goodbye, leaving just Sharon and Sam behind.

“And then there were two,” I murmured, getting a chuckle from Bucky, coupled with a soft sigh.

“I heard that,” Sam offered, carrying a stack of dirty dishes to the kitchen and shooting Sharon a dirty look when she hissed while she tried to grab some to help. “Sit your wounded ass down.”

She glared at him, but with a hand on her side, complied. “Hey,” I got her attention and tilted my head toward the hall bathroom. “Want me to have a peek at your bandage?”

“Do you have -” she bit her lip, and I nearly laughed at her conundrum. Does she insult me by asking if I have first aid experience after I gave her clothing and a roof over her head or does she humor me?

“I took some classes,” I assured her. “My parents liked to make sure all the bases were covered.” Helping her carefully to her feet, I got her to the bathroom where one of the many family first aid kits lived. Opening it up and setting it on the countertop, I saw her eyes widen. “I told you - my parents liked to keep the bases covered.” Our first aid kits weren’t something you bought at a local pharmacy or online. “Mom was an RN,” I gestured for her to take her place on the toilet seat again. “She made sure to keep me up to date on my safety classes.” Every CPR class, first aid requirement, and anything else she imagined a layperson might need - she signed me up for. I helped Sharon with the loose shirt Bucky had grabbed out of my drawer, and smiled at the wrapping the ER had put on her wound. “Good news,” I bent down and took a closer look. “You haven’t started bleeding through the packing and wraps, so I don’t have to rewrap you.” She sighed and I chuckled. “Damn it,” I glanced up to see her looking down at me wearily. “I kind of hoped to use you for practice.”

She shook her head and a tiny smile threatened to creep onto her lips. “It hurts like hell though.” She started to pull the shirt back into place. “Gonna make getting back on the road a trial,” I was just opening my mouth to tell her she didn’t have to rush when she stopped me. “Thank you, Brooke, for your and Bucky’s generosity and hospitality, but trust me, I should go - and soon.”

I nodded, standing up to help her to her feet. She was taller than me, just like every other person in my life. “Take my number,” I watched as she pulled a phone from her pocket and I rattled off the number while she tapped it into the contacts. “If you need me or us -”

“Thank you,” she smiled, a small one, but I thought it might be genuine. “Steve would have liked you.”

“So I’ve heard,” I shook my head and put the first aid kit away. “Do you need another change of clothes?” Sharon wouldn’t hear of taking more from me, and insisted that she had a car coming to take her away. “If you’re sure -”

“I am.” We left the bathroom to the sounds of Bucky and Sam in the kitchen, soft music not hiding the sounds of them bickering over how to fill the dishwasher. “You’re going to have your hands full.”

“Yeah, I do,” I agreed, shaking my head as I listened to the two of them, their back and forth, and thinking that they sounded more and more like brothers. “I think they’re getting more -”

“Partners,” Sharon nodded. “They’re a team now.”

“Scary.” I heard a soft knock on the door and Bucky’s head appeared in the doorway between the kitchen and dining room. “I think -”

“It’s for me,” Sharon offered, hand back on her wound. “Time for me to go.”

“You sure?” It was Sam who asked, coming up on Bucky’s left, arms crossed over his chest. “You could stay, I could always -”

“I think you’re making enough waves, Cap.” I bit my lip at Sharon using the nickname so soon. “I can wait for my pardon.” She was moving toward the living room, with me behind her in case she stumbled. “I’ll just grab my small pile of stuff and be out of your way.” She grabbed her clothes - the ones she’d changed out of and turned to find me waiting at a close distance. “Hovering? That’s a very Steve Rogers trait, Brooke.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ll be fine,” she assured me, moving her hand from the bandaged side and sighing. “Keep those two out of trouble.”

“Yeah, right.” I muttered, opening my arms, thinking what the hell - a hug was warranted. She allowed it, awkward though it was. “Stay safe, Sharon.”

“I’ll try.” She murmured. “You too, ok?”

I nodded and then she pulled away. I busied myself with the living room while she said her goodbyes to Sam and Bucky, thinking that less was more in the case of Sharon Carter leaving our house. I had just folded up the blanket and put it with the pillow when I heard the front door open and close.

“And then there was one,” Bucky murmured, wrapping his arms around me. “What do you think the chances are that Sam goes home to prepare for the celebration and lets us follow behind?”

“Slim and none,” Sam offered, leaning against the archway between the living room and the entryway. “Sarah doesn’t need me to plan a party, and I have a couple loose ends to tie up here in NYC, so -”

“Don’t put away the blanket and pillow, Brooke,” Bucky kissed my cheek. “The couch has a new guest.”

#bucky barnes/oc #the falcon and the winter soldier #alternate universe #mention of smut #fluff #Family Fluff #FLUFF AND SMUT #humor

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frobster · 4 years

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Offer of a Lifetime: Chapter 2

Both chapters now up on ao3!

☆☆☆

Peter stayed where he was for a moment, shocked by what had just happened, before his phone buzzed again and brought him back to himself. He looked down at the number of missed messages and quickly read through them, MJ becoming increasingly frantic when Peter didn’t immediately answer.

> Peter: So, James was just in my apartment

> Peter: Also, he told me to call him Bucky

The buzzing started again before Peter could even lock his phone. He ignored it as he went around getting dressed, pulling on underwear and sweatpants before checking again.

> MJ: PETER WHAT THE FUCK

> Ned: BRO ARE YOU OKAY???

> Peter: I’m fine. He left. Gave me a week to think about his offer. Also said he would leave me alone completely if I turned him down

> MJ: And u believed him???????????

> Peter: He didn’t give me a reason not to. There weren't any threats, and he did wait wait a whole day before contacting me

> Ned: Sugar daddy already getting to you smh

> Peter: Come on, you know it would be amazing to have a sugar daddy

> MJ: Ya but this one could put u in a lot of danger

Peter bit his lip as he thought. MJ was right. While it was his dream to be a kept boy and never have to worry about anything, he wasn’t sure if it was worth the dangers associated with Bucky. He would definitely need the whole week to think.

> MJ: We’re gonna talk more tonight. I’ll see u at 7:45

> Peter: Sounds good

Bucky was at the forefront of Peter’s mind for the rest of the day. He didn’t really have anything to do until the evening, so he lounged around much like the previous day and tried to find more on the internet about Bucky.

“Where did that name even come from?” Peter muttered to himself as he clicked on yet another tabloid article. The gossip papers had a lot to speculate about him since they loved to lie about crime and drama. He mostly skimmed the articles since they all seemed to be sensationalized and mostly rumors.

One thing that stood out to Peter was the consistent inclusion of a broad blonde man almost always on Bucky’s right. The few pictures that weren’t blurry or grainy made the man seem relatively attractive, and Peter had to wonder if he was a past fling or just a confidante. Bucky obviously liked men, given his interest in Peter, but that still didn’t confirm anything.

The day oozed by in a cloud of laziness - naps, articles, snacks. Peter didn’t leave the couch except to get a snack or use the bathroom. By the time 6pm rolled around, Peter finally got up to start getting ready. He never took too long, but he didn’t want to rush either. The weather was still decent, so he decided on a pair of shorts that would help show off his legs and a mesh tank top that wouldn’t really cover anything. Beneath the shorts, he had red panties. Even if it led to him getting misgendered more often, the panties did help him get more money out of clients.

Peter ran his hands through his hair to make it fluffy and messy, swiped some gloss over his lips before tucking the tube into his bag, then looked at his measly pile of shoes. There weren’t many to choose from and most of them were bought purely for style rather than function. He ended up going back to his room to grab a pair of knee-high socks before sliding on a pair of black high-top sneakers. People still liked scene twinks, right? The socks would help keep his legs warm too once the sun went down and the air got cooler.

Picking his outfit didn’t take very long, so Peter was left with almost an hour until he had to leave. Then he remembered that Ned and MJ went grocery shopping for him, so he took a tour of his own kitchen to see what they got for him. Most of it was canned goods so it wouldn’t go to waste if he didn’t eat it quickly, but there were some fresher foods too like prepackaged salads and frozen chicken.

Settling on the chicken and a salad, Peter hauled out the bag of chicken tenders to check the required oven temperature. He got the oven set and preheating before wandering back to his couch and flopping over the back of it. Upon checking his phone, he finally saw the few messages from Bucky that he missed while showering.

> I’m coming to visit soon. Try to look presentable.

Sent almost as soon as Peter stepped into the shower. He grimaced at the bad timing and scrolled down to read the rest, sent after Bucky had left.

> Obviously you did not see my message beforehand, as I assume a towel around your waist and a bare chest is not what you would typically consider “presentable”.

> You have until next Wednesday to make your decision. If you do not give me an answer before then, I will assume you’re uninterested and leave you alone, like I promised.

Peter sighed and reread the messages a few times. Then he saved Bucky’s contact number before taking another screenshot to send to his friends.

> Peter: See? I told you he would leave me alone if I turned him down

> MJ: I guess he may not be such a terrible person…

> Ned: He literally runs the New York mafia

> MJ: Yeah, but he knows how to treat a boy right

> Peter: I’m feeling heart emojis. Should I change his name in my phone to Daddy?

> Ned: NO!!!!!!!

> MJ: skjghalfaldfk YES

> Ned: Do NOT encourage him!!

Peter laughed to himself and quickly changed Bucky’s contact name to ‘Daddy’ followed by pink and purple heart emojis. Then he took another screenshot of the saved contact and sent it to the chat.

> MJ: I expect updates every time he texts you. We have to decide if he’s good enough for our baby

> Ned: I will not approve of Peter being the kept boy of the HEAD OF THE NEW YORK MAFIA

> Peter: Aw dad, you’re no fun

> Ned: Don’t make me ground you

> MJ: Not allowed, Peter and I have work tonight

> MJ: Maybe daddy will bring us some coffee

> Peter: Hey! Only I am allowed to call him daddy

> MJ: Aw, possessive already? ;)

> Peter: ...maybe

> Ned: I’m doomed. We’re all doomed

Their casual, friendly conversation continued for a while until Ned had to put his phone away for class. Peter and MJ switched to single texting as they talked about their plans for that night. She had got them a new corner a few blocks away from where Bucky had picked Peter up, but they both knew that Bucky could find them again if he really wanted to.

The oven soon beeped so Peter got up to put a couple chicken tenders on a pan and into the oven. He set a timer on his phone then looked around his apartment as he tried to figure out what to do to pass the time.

But rather than finding something to do, Peter just realized how shitty his apartment really was. The walls were thin and dirty, there was a crack spiderwebbing up the wall in a corner, the floors were stained and worn out from countless tenants. He sighed and slumped against the kitchen counter, a cheap laminated wood that creaked even under his slight weight. There were multiple different bug problems through the building - cockroaches, ants, spiders, wasps. He had a roach problem in his own apartment, leading to all food in the cabinets needing to be canned so they couldn't chew into it.

It was exhausting to live in poverty. Peter hated his apartment but it was all he could really afford. The life insurance policy from his aunt was used to pay off his surgery bills and the rest was funneled to any other medical costs that came up, including his hormone prescription. While he did have some money in savings, it would not be enough to allow him to live somewhere better. He was losing money faster than he made it back.

Bucky’s offer was slowly becoming more and more attractive.

When the timer went off on his phone, Peter swiped it away before carefully taking out the tray of chicken. He set it on the stove to let it cool while he took out the prepared salad bag and set to mixing everything together. Then, since he didn’t feel like using multiple dishes, he cut up the chicken on the baking pan and scraped the pieces into the salad bowl.

“Yeah, I can provide for myself,” Peter said to himself before taking a bite.

The salad was filling and Peter actually felt like he had a decent amount of energy. He took the time to wash all the dishes he used rather than trying to jam them into the dishwasher, brushed his teeth, reapplied his lip gloss, then checked the time.

MJ had sent a few more messages with details of their shift that night, and Ned announced the end of his class and the offer of searching Bucky more. Peter bit his lip as he considered it. If he was going to really give Bucky’s offer some serious consideration, he felt he needed to know the man better. Or he could just text Bucky.

Before he could chicken out, Peter sent a quick text to Bucky and pocketed his phone so he could finalize his outfit and wait for MJ.

> Peter: If you want me to live with you, I’m gonna need to know more about you.

There wasn’t any reply before MJ arrived. Peter sighed as he looked at his lack of notifications before he tucked his phone away, grabbed his bag, and headed out to meet MJ.

There was some tension in the car as a lackey drove Peter and MJ to their new corner. The random guy was humming along to music on the radio while the other two held hands in the back of the car. He didn’t say anything as he stopped at a new corner and unlocked the door, a clear signal for them to get out.

Peter stepped out with his mini backpack shouldered and fixed his shorts once he was standing. MJ followed him out and fixed her skirt too, her own bag slung across her chest and accenting her cleavage. Another reason why MJ was slightly better off than Peter was her assets. People just tended to want her more often than him. He wasn’t upset about that, he knew his friend was gorgeous and she deserved the attention and money. He just couldn’t help but feel a little jealous of her slightly better financial state.

“Did Bucky say anything else?” MJ asked as the car drove off.

“Nope. I don’t really know what he would say,” Peter replied, hyper-aware of his phone in his pocket. He couldn’t remember if it had buzzed while they were in the car since his mind was wandering. Already, just one day after meeting the man, Peter couldn’t stop thinking about Bucky.

8pm wasn’t very late, the bars were just starting to fill up. Peter and MJ had time to talk before people would start showing interest in them. The sunset was nice to watch and offered a serene backdrop to the chaos of their lives, purples and reds blending together like the mundane and unusual of the past few days.

“I would think that he would try to sweeten the deal somehow, y’know? You’ve clearly been hesitant about accepting his offer, so wouldn’t he want to tempt you?” MJ looked at her nails and flicked a speck of invisible dust off the shiny finish, then winked at someone who was looking at her as they stepped into the nearby bar.

“I dunno how much sweeter the deal could get. He offered to pay for everything for the rest of my life, or leave me alone without any trouble. It’s a win-win situation.” Even to his own ears, Peter knew it sounded lame. He was so tempted to accept Bucky’s offer, and MJ could clearly hear that in his voice.

“You deserve to know more about him at least. Even Ned had a hard time finding anything on this guy. And now that we know he’s got some dangerous connections, it would be in your best interest to find out everything you can before making a decision, especially since you’re tempted to agree.” Peter MJ would’ve been an excellent counselor. Maybe she still could be. If they ever found themselves in a position to start saving up money, she could put it towards college classes.

“Yeah, I know. I’m just not-” Peter cut off when he felt his phone vibrate against his ass. He reached into his back pocket to pull it out and blinked as he read the message.

> Bucky: We could discuss that over dinner, if you’d like. I know you’re working, but I could talk to your boss and have him pardon you for the night.

Before Peter could reply to the text or finish what he was saying, MJ snatched his phone away to read the message.

“Hey! Give that back!” Peter squawked as he tried to grab his phone back.

But MJ was taller than him even without the heels she was wearing, so she just held the phone up and angled it down so she could read the screen. She laughed aloud when she read the message and finally lowered her hand again so Peter could have his phone back. He huffed as he stuffed it into his pocket again without bothering to answer.

“It’s cute that he’s already offering to cover your shifts for you. Maybe he’ll even give you some cash to make up for missing a whole night,” MJ teased with a grin. Peter felt too flustered to really register that she seemed to be encouraging him to leave with Bucky.

“There is nothing cute about this situation,” Peter huffed, cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment. He wasn’t really sure what he was embarrassed about. Maybe he didn’t realize how tempted he was to accept Bucky’s offer until MJ gave him that little nudge.

“Well, you’re pretty cute. It’s cute how often you blush when we talk about him.” MJ’s tone was more genuine that time, and Peter felt a little surprised.

“Did Ned tell you something else about this guy? Why do you seem so supportive of him now?” There was another buzz in Peter’s pocket but he ignored it, wanting to hear MJ’s answer first.

“You deserve a good life, Peter.” She looked at him, entirely serious, and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’ve been through so much and you’re only nineteen. I want you to be happy, to have opportunities that we could never find in this line of work.”

“MJ…”

Before Peter could say more, his phone started buzzing like he had a call. He sighed and reached into his pocket, making a brief note that it was Bucky calling before he answered.

“Hello?”

“You didn’t answer my text, Peter. So I called your boss anyway. I’m coming to pick you up. Would MJ like to join us for dinner?”

Peter just squeaked, his jaw dropped open as he tried to think of what to say. MJ rolled her eyes and snatched the phone away again so she could talk for him.

“Hi, Bucky. Peter would love to go to dinner with you, but he seems to have forgotten how to speak.” She snickered at whatever Bucky said, Peter watching with wide eyes as she spoke with him so casually. “Aw, thank you! I would love to join you for dinner. If you intend to steal my boy away, I have to see if you’re worth his time.”

“MJ!” Peter finally came back to his senses and made a grab for his phone, but she held him back just like before.

“Yeah, that was him. He’s just so excited to see you again. We’ll be waiting for you!” MJ hung up the phone before handing it back to Peter with a grin. “He will be here in about fifteen minutes so zip up your hoodie and try to not look like such a whore.”

Peter swatted at MJ’s arm, making her cackle loudly as she pulled a balled-up shawl out of her bag to wrap around her shoulders and cover up her chest. She tended to wear shirts that showed off her cleavage but now that she wasn’t actively trying to attract customers, she wanted to look more modest. Peter had a sleeveless hoodie that he zipped over his mesh tank top, though he started to feel overheated after just a few minutes.

The hoodie got unzipped again as Peter rocked restlessly in place, anxious and eager to see Bucky again. MJ was updating Ned since Peter was too scared to look at his phone, snickering to herself every now and then.

Soon enough, a sleek black car pulled up. The windows were so heavily tinted that they looked black, but neither of them had to guess at who was inside. MJ tucked her phone away and Peter stepped closer to her, seeking out her familiar comfort as his nerves spiked.

The back window rolled down and a familiar face was revealed. Bucky looked at them both before nodding and pushing the door open.

“Come on, we got reservations in twenty minutes,” he said as he shifted to a seat on the other side of the car.

MJ stepped in first then tugged Peter in with her. She sat across from Bucky and not-so-subtly nudged Peter over to sit next to him. The seats were smooth and cool, and Peter was thankful for the air conditioning that let him zip up his hoodie again to hide his chest. Bucky had already seen him shirtless, but he felt awkward about it now.

The car pulled away from the curb as soon as the door was closed. Peter didn’t have a chance to buckle in so he swayed and ended up leaning into Bucky for a moment. He blushed and scooted away so he could clip his seat belt, then sat quietly and picked at the hem of his socks.

“So,” MJ started casually. “You’re who Peter has a crush on.”

“I do not!” Peter insisted, head snapping up so he could glare at MJ. She just grinned at him as Bucky made an amused sound.

“A crush, huh? That’s cute.” Bucky tucked his phone away and looked over to Peter with a smirk. “Have you given my offer any more thought?”

“It’s been like, six hours,” Peter pointed out, feeling a little more confident with MJ there to back him up.

“Plenty of time to think.” Bucky was watching Peter, eyes glued to him as he waited for a proper answer.

“I mean…” Peter sighed and slumped back against his seat. He did want to say yes, to agree and let Bucky carry him off into the sunset like some perfect romantic dream. It just didn’t feel real.

“We need some proof that you’re the real deal,” MJ finally said.

Bucky’s gaze flicked over to her as he raised an eyebrow. He clearly wasn’t someone who was used to being challenged like that, and for a moment, Peter feared for MJ. But then Bucky laughed and Peter’s heart skipped a beat at the sound.

“Conveniently enough, that is why I invited you along tonight. It’s good to know Peter has a friend looking out for him.”

“Two friends,” MJ corrected. “Ned has been diligently mining through the internet for information about you. He is the only reason why I agreed to dinner.”

Peter huffed as a faint blush dusted his cheeks. MJ was acting like her and Ned were his parents, and he was feeling a little embarrassed about that. Sure, he was the youngest out of the three of them, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t handle himself.

“Two friends,” Bucky amended. Then his gaze turned back to Peter and he reached over to gently rub the boy’s back. “You can relax, Peter. I promise my intentions with you are honorable.”

“And what exactly are your intentions?” Peter looked up again, finally meeting Bucky’s eyes.

There was a moment of hesitation and even MJ could feel the electricity hanging between Bucky and Peter.

“I want to take care of you the way you deserve. To spoil you, pamper you, give you anything you could ever want or need.” Bucky sounded honest and there was no nervous tic that would clue Peter in to a lie. But he still couldn’t believe it.

“Why?”

Another pause. Bucky looked torn between brushing it off and turning to a new subject, coming up with some flowery words that didn’t really answer the question, or actually telling the truth. He took a deep breath to steel his nerves, and decided on the last.

“You are beautiful. Handsome, gorgeous. Whatever term you’re most comfortable with. You are like a work of art, and I don’t want to see you waste away in the streets. You deserve so much more and what am I gonna do with all this money anyway? Hell, you could turn me down here and now and I would still send you money every week. I just want you to be happy.”

Peter blinked. He hadn’t expected such an emotional answer, but he felt touched by it. A quick glance over to MJ showed that she felt affected by it too, her eyes wide in surprise. For all the research the three of them had done, they never would’ve thought Bucky was the sentimental sort of guy.

“Oh.” Peter’s voice was faint as he tried to process all that Bucky said.

Bucky swore under his breath and leaned back in his seat. He had moved closer to Peter as he spoke, but now he felt he should give the younger man some space. But to everyone’s surprise, Peter reached out and set a hand on Bucky’s knee before managing a smile.

“I appreciate that, Bucky. I really do. Thank you.”

There was a beat of silence before Bucky cleared his throat and nodded. He gave Peter a tight smile, seeming a little less confident than when they first got in the car. Then the car stopped before anyone could say anything else and Bucky looked away to the window beside him.

“Ah, looks like we’re here. Don’t worry, it isn’t anywhere too fancy. I figured you two wouldn’t really be dressed for that.”

Bucky’s confidence seemed to slowly come back as he smirked and got out of the car. Then he held out a hand for MJ, and reached out again for Peter once she was standing. But unlike with MJ, Bucky didn’t let go of Peter’s hand. And Peter didn’t really mind.

☆☆☆

#winterspider #peter parker #Bucky barnes #bucky/peter #mcu #marvel fic #offer of a lifetime #my writing #hello. this was written weeks ago and i only just now posted it #oops

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purplesurveys · 3 years

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1063

survey by pinkchocolate

Have you done any of the same things as me this year? (2020 edition)

Planned a shopping spree with a friend?

Visited a shopping centre/mall? Malls are extremely commonplace here and honestly they already serve as the main tourist attractions if you find yourself in Manila, which is why Manila has never been a popular tourist destination itself (foreign tourists usually head to neighboring provinces, which is smart on their end). I’ve been to malls at least 20-30 times this year, but that’s only because of the pandemic. I probably go close to 50-70 times in a normal year.

Had lunch with a friend? Yeah I caught lunch with Angela a couple times at the start of the year. I had a one-photo-a-day gimmick on Instagram, and I’m pretty sure I have a photo of her in there during one of our lunch dates.

Ordered pizza at a restaurant? Again, at the start of the year. Gab and I loved Italian restaurants so we definitely ordered pizza several times.

Been in a department store? I needed to briefly enter one a couple of weeks ago to look for gift wrappers.

Bought pretty new lingerie?

Had coffee with a friend? Yeah Gab and I had study dates at coffee shops every single week. Now, obviously, I just take myself.

Bought DVDs?

Had a cold?

Bought toiletries as a gift for someone else?

Had dinner in a restaurant with your family? Yeah I’m fairly certain we did this at least a couple of times between January and early March. The last time I dined in anywhere was a month ago, but I was only with my parents and my siblings didn’t come along.

Had one of your kitchen appliances break? Our plumbing is a little fucked in general and sometimes we’ll have minor leaks on the floor. My dad’s knives have also gotten a bit dull, so I got him a new knife set for Christmas. But no damage to appliances.

Watched a movie at the cinema?

Struggled for food when the panic buying began? We struggled in that it was a bitch to enter the groceries at first. My dad did the grocieries for us during that time and that was back when they strictly enforced the number of people allowed in the supermarket at one time; and no matter how early he queued, there was always already a line that got there before him. He’d wait around three hours and once he was finally let in, a bunch of alleys or sections in the grocery would already be empty or at least close to becoming empty. We never went hungry or had to skip meals or anything like that, but I do remember having to make do with lesser-known brands we never used before because sometimes those would be the only options left at the grocery.

Wanted to hug a friend, but didn't because you had to social distance? I hugged Angela when I saw her a couple of days ago, and I also hugged Gab when we were still together.

Felt afraid of Covid? My fears over it have tamed over the year, to be honest; but I’m still wary, of course. I hate it when people stand near me and I follow the safety protocols everywhere I go.

Felt afraid to leave the house? Only during the peak of the virus, from March to around May or June. Nowadays I kinda have to go out every now and then for the sake of my sanity.

Deliberately avoided watching the news because it made you feel upset? I mean I took up journ lol so I always watch the news, no matter how upsetting it can get. The one and only time I remember asking my sister to switch the channel was when there was a report on animal abuse.

Had to cancel plans for your birthday? I didn’t have plans for it in the first place, or at least I didn’t have the chance to make them yet, so I’m glad there was nothing to cancel.

Spent your birthday at home? This was the only choice I had. My birthday fell on the most serious and strictest phase of the quarantine, and this was back when nothing was open yet.

Collected a parcel from your doorstep? Online shopping is a norm for me now, lol. I used to not trust it, but now I probably buy at least one item a week.

Eaten an entire box of chocolates in one day? I don’t even like chocolate that much. That sounds so uncomfortably sweet.

Drank fruit flavoured cider?

Eaten birthday cake? Sure, we had cake for my mom’s, my aunt’s, and my cousin’s/godson’s birthdays.

Had a grandparent move into long-term care? My remaining grandparents are all fortunately still very healthy.

Kept a journal of your thoughts and feelings during lockdown? This is technically it, whether’s there’s a lockdown or not. I tried starting a journal after my breakup, but I couldn’t keep it up because my wrist strains easily from handwriting now, hahaha. I find that doing surveys suffice.

Had distressing dreams/nightmares related to the pandemic? No, but about other pressing events in my life.

Felt concerned about your financial situation? Not mine but my family’s.

Returned to a social platform that you took a break from? I left Facebook for a few months after the breakup. I’m back on it again because I had missed the memes, but I also want to permanently delete that account for good, open a new one, and just add the people I want to keep having in my circle. Like I love Gabie’s family to death but I don’t see the point in being Facebook friends with them still, and it actually feels kinda awkward now still seeing them on my list. Idk. We’ll see. I might keep my account or start a new one altogether.

Missed a past hobby or interest? I mean I missed going to malls and bars and going out with my friends, if that counts as an interest. I had to do much less of that this year.

Started a new hobby? I started doing embroidery about a month ago, and a few days ago I started working out. My body is as sore as all fuck, but at least it makes me feel good about myself. For the new year, I also plan on starting a skincare routine after 22 years of not doing anything with my face lol and maybeeee start experimenting with coffee and buy different kinds of beans just because?? Idk, I have a lot of cute hobbies planned out for next year haha I’m excited to see how it goes.

Joined some new Facebook groups? Both for work and personal purposes, yep.

Made some new friends online? I definitely like that I’ve become closer and more familiar with the survey community here. I feel like I barely interacted with anyone pre-Covid, when real life was still a bit more hectic and when it was more difficult to find time to relax and sit down and read everyone’s answers. I also became friends with Justine, Angel, and Bianca when I started as an intern at my workplace.

Felt annoyed because you saw someone without a mask? Everyone wears a mask in public, and there are always people assigned to monitor and lightly scold those stubborn enough to take their masks off. So this isn’t the case, but what I do find annoying is when people stand or walk too close to you. Just last week at the grocery this lady was close enough to be breathing down my neck when I was lining up at the cashier; being non-confrontational for the most part, it felt like being in the deepest pit of hell.

Felt like people were staring at you when you wore a mask? I feel like people are more likely to stare at people who DON’T have a mask.

Bought new stationery? My sister has tons of stationery in her room for whatever reason; when I need one to write short notes or letters, I just ask for some from her.

Video-called your extended family and friends? For sure. We did this a lot especially during the earlier parts of the year.

Written a letter to someone you missed?

Disagreed with the behaviour of a friend?

Felt surprised when someone wanted to be your friend? No one directly said it to me; but as an intern on my first day of the job, it was a really pleasant surprise to find that the co-interns I was going to be with weren’t boring, unemotional cogs who just aimed to do work. They were HILARIOUS from the get-go, was confused as fuck about work, and I could see they just wanted to make our tiny intern family a close-knit and happy group, to which I gladly agreed and went along with.

Bought a new pair of shoes? I got new shoes meant for my first job interview, but I haven’t gotten any brand new sneakers in a while :(

Replaced some toiletries that you ran out of during lockdown? I guess? Toiletries are necessities, so.

Bought some new books? I read new ones, but I didn’t buy them. Some I saw copies of on the internet; one was given as a gift to me.

Bought new cosmetics? I don’t use those.

Received a belated birthday present?

Received a present from a friend overseas?

Discovered a new author that you liked?

Felt like you were drifting away from people you were once close to? *A person. Yeah, well.

Found out that someone you knew had contracted Covid? She’s a mutual friend from my high school days. We aren’t close but we’ve kept in touch by still following each other on social media. She wrote about her experience with Covid on a blog entry.

Realised you had formed a deep connection with someone? I got a lot closer with Andi both because we had to work together for our thesis and because they were there for me, unconditionally and untiringly, when I was coping with my breakup and was in rough shape.

Worried about the financial situation of someone close to you? Of my family, like I said, yes. We had to sell the Vitara because the money that pours into the household monthly isn’t enough to keep paying for it. To be fair, that car was a very big impulse buy by my dad, so we didn’t and don’t feel too bad about losing it hahaha.

Let your guard down to someone? I don’t think so. I was on red alert this year since Gab increasingly broke my trust.

Had an issue with something on social media? Yeah, but I don’t want to get into it. That was such a long time ago and is so irrelevant now.

Felt disconnected from others? I deliberately did so three months ago, so much so that I had acquaintances I barely talked to since graduating talk to Andi and ask where I’ve been.

Changed your internet provider? We’ve had the same one for like 8-9 years now. It works pretty okay for five people who stream videos all day, so we haven’t felt the need to switch.

Felt fortunate/thankful? I mean I’m here, scar-less, and happy with myself on December 31, 2020, right?

Tried some new foods that you enjoyed? Baked sushi is so fucking good.

Re-read a book that you loved? Crazy Is My Superpower by AJ Mendez (aka my favorite girl wrestler, AJ Lee) is always a good read to come back to.

#survey #surveys

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krreader · 6 years

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BTS reacting to forgetting your birthday/anniversary and finding leftover food waiting for them.

pairing: bts x reader fandom: bts warnings: language genre: angst ; fluff

a/n: most of them are really angst-y, but I did manage to squeeze in a bit of fluff here and there :’) hope you like it! ♥

ask box | masterlist | fandoms | faq | multifandom reader blog

kim seokjin

How could he have forgotten about this? He had been the one that had made plans for this night, for god’s sake! It was Jin that wanted to make you dinner and treat you, since it was your birthday, after all. He had wanted to go grocery shopping and prepare the dinner while you were still at work and then he wanted to surprise you with it and shower you with so much love and gifts..

..and now he came home only to find dinner already sitting on the table, but he had definitely not been the one that had made it.

He had let you make your own birthday dinner and then hadn't even showed up in time to eat it with you.

You were just walking back into the dining room, about to clean it all up when you found him standing at the end of the table.

“(Y/N), I'm..-”

“Don't.. just don't,” you shook your head and grabbed your plate, “When you didn't call, I figured it was because you wanted to surprise me. I thought you'd be waiting at home for me and at least had some food prepared. And when you weren't here I thought, okay, maybe something came up, might as well make dinner myself, he surely will show up soon. So I waited for two hours. And now it's midnight. So congratulations, Jin. You missed my birthday.”

“Please, let me make it up to you, I can make something else.. we'll celebrate, we can..-”

“I just told you. You missed my birthday. There's no reason to celebrate anymore,” you shoved the plates into his hands and looked up at him with tired eyes, “If you want to do something useful, clean up. I just want to go to bed..”

“(Y/N), I..-” his voice broke when you left the room with slumped shoulders. And yet again, he could hear your heart breaking into another million pieces. Soon, there would be none left.. ”Happy birthday,” he muttered under his breath, before walking into the kitchen and beginning to clean, being so incredibly disappointed in himself.

min yoongi

“Were we supposed to have dinner?” Yoongi laughed, as he walked into the living room, “Why's the table set?”

You hugged the pillow tighter against your belly and gulped down hard, whispering, “Just wanted to surprise you..”

“Why?” he sat down next to you and took off his shoes, “Especially like this? We don't usually do romantic dinners.”

“Yeah.. was a stupid idea, I guess.”

He had thought you had been acting weird, but he was tired and all he wanted to do was fall into his comfortable bed and sleep for more than four hours for once. So he had pushed all alarm bells telling him that something was wrong aside and had went to the bathroom to get ready.

It was only the next day when he was back in the studio and checked his calendar, that he found a red circle around the day before and in capital letters he had written: “ANNIVERSARY”

That one fucking day he wasn't in the studio had to be yesterday, so that he didn't see it, huh? He leaned back against his chair and brushed his hands over his face, hating himself more and more with each passing second, before he reached for his phone and dialed your number, over and over again, since you didn't answer.

So eventually, he just decided to leave a message: “Uh.. hey babe.. it's.. it's me,” he let out a breath and let his fingers trail over the letters, “Took me a bit to realize what day yesterday was and uh.. I'm not sure whether you're really angry with me or just disappointed and you have every right to be. I'm not going to make up an excuse as to why I forgot it, I was just stupid and a fucking idiot, that's the bottom line of it. I'll make it up to you, if you let me, though. I'll make the next couple of weeks the best you've ever had, I promise.”

But see, you knew that when you heard the message an hour later, that he'd break that promise. That he couldn't keep it, just because his job wouldn't let him. Yes, he did treat you for the next three days, but after that it was back to the same old.

And you were starting to wonder whether or not you could do this for the rest of your life.. whether or not you could continue to forgive him for not caring nearly enough as you did.

jung hoseok

“Hey, love! I'm home,” he yelled through the apartment, as he took off his shoes and walked into the living room, only to find it empty and cold. Odd.. you wouldn't be sleeping yet, right? It was only 8:30 PM.. that would be too early..

He started searching the rooms, finding the kitchen in a messy state and a second later, the dining table completely set, with what looked like a dinner for two. His suspicion began to rise, realizing he must have forgotten something. But it was only when he saw all the presents on the coffee table, that he realized what it was.

“No, no, no,” he quickly pulled out his phone and indeed, today was your birthday. He missed his girlfriend's birthday. Well, he technically didn't miss it. It was still time and he even had a present for you that he had bought weeks ago. Now he just had to pull it off like he had always planned this night to go like this.

So he snuck into the bedroom, finding your back facing the door and he quickly grabbed a small box out of his drawer. Then he joined you in bed and wrapped an arm around your middle, whispering a: “Happy birthday to the most beautiful woman in the world,” into your ear.

“You forgot, didn't you?”

“What? No, I didn't! Look, I even bought you a present,” he carefully shook the box in front of your face.

You sighed deeply and turned around, turning on the light on your nightstand in the process, “I know you forgot.. you haven't texted me all day.”

“Well, I didn't want to ruin the surprise.. come on, just open it!” he gently nudged it into your hands, hoping you would just accept it and not probe him more about why he didn’t talk to you sooner.

And even though you were still a little upset, you couldn't help but wonder what was inside. And when you opened it a moment later, you were greeted with that same necklace from Tiffany's that you and him had been looking at a while back. You had told him then that you thought it was incredibly beautiful and that you always wanted to have one of those.. that you always wanted a guy to buy you a necklace like this and tell you..-

“You can think of me every time you wear it.. how much I love you.. and how much I'm never going to stop loving you.”

He definitely forgot about it, but when he said these words so earnestly and carefully secured the necklace around your neck, you couldn't help but pull him towards you and kiss him.

kim namjoon

Namjoon was just so goddamn tired.

Comeback was hard on all of them, but as the leader, he always felt like he had to do more than the rest. He had to spend more hours in the studio, had to attend all the meetings and had to make sure that everything was going smoothly.

But with so much of it occupying his brain, he unfortunately forgot a very important day. Something that he only realized when he stepped inside of the dark apartment and found the dining table full with food that he liked and a burnt out candle. And that's when it hit him.

“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath, beginning to massage his temples.

You and him had your anniversary today. And not only did he forget it, but he had not texted you once today, too busy with running from the studio, to dance practice and to Bang.

It had only been three weeks ago when you and him have had a massive argument, that revolved around him not having enough time for you anymore. You knew that he was busy and you always tried your damned hardest to understand that he often had to put his career first. But after his career, there was Bangtan, then there was the company, then there was ARMY.. and it just seemed like you weren't important at all..

Back then, he had told you he'd try to pay more attention to you. He'd make time for you and he'd show you how much you meant to him.

But the cold food in front of him only proved that he yet again broke another promise. For a split second, his heart began racing at the thought that you might have finally had enough and left him, his feet carrying him to your bedroom to see if your things and you yourself were gone. But there you were, on your side of the bed like you always were when he came home these days. Thinking about it now, he couldn't remember the last time he saw you smile or heard you laugh.. the last time he looked into your eyes and not just at your sleeping form.

With a heavy sigh, he carefully sat down next to you on your side of the bed, gently brushing your hair behind your ear.

“I'm sorry.. I'm sorry I forgot. And that I wasn't here to tell you how much I love you. I'm sorry I'm not around as much as I used to be anymore and I'm sorry you have to be alone so much. I'm sorry that I'm probably breaking your heart at least once a week, because I continuously let you down,” he leaned down to press a kiss against your temple, “You deserve better than me.. and even though it’s going to break me when you finally realize that, I won’t hold it against you..”

park jimin

It suddenly all started to make sense.

That text message he had gotten from you hours ago, where you asked when he'd be home and that you couldn't wait for tonight. That you had something prepared for him and that you hoped he'd like it.

Back then, he had thought you had bought new lingerie or something and the entire night when he was out with the boys, he couldn't help but wonder what it would look like. He couldn't help imagine what the night would turn into.

But now that he was actually standing in the apartment, more specifically, in front of a dining table with cold food, he realized that you had thought about something entirely different. Because today was your anniversary. And Jimin had completely forgot about it.

“Jagi?” he carefully pushed open the bedroom door and found you typing away on your laptop, “Hey..”

“Hey,” you didn't even look up at him. God, he really fucked up this time, hadn’t he?

“I uh.. I'm home now,” he tried to smile, “Want to go have dinner? Maybe to that restaurant that we went for our first date?”

“Not hungry. If you are, you can warm up the food on the table.”

He bit his lower lip and slowly took a step forward, “(Y/N), I..-”

“I don't want to hear it, Jimin. I'm sure whatever you were doing was more important than me.. it always seems to be these days.”

“What? No, that's not..-”

“It was one night,” you finally looked up at him, a sad smile on your face, “One night that I wanted to feel like you and I were okay.”

“But we are okay!”

“Really? Is that why you rarely spend time with me anymore? Why you rather hang out with your other friends and quite a lot of female friends? Is that why you forgot our anniversary?” he didn't have an answer to any of it, because he knew that it was his fault. So he just stared at the floor with slumped shoulders, “Forget about it. I'm used to the disappointment by now. At least I now know I don't have to put any effort into this relationship anymore, since you don't seem to care about it anyways.”

“Please, can I just say something?”

“No, because I don't care whatever it is that you want to say. And also, I think you should go back to the dorms tonight. I don't want to see you right now.”

He thought about doing it anyways.. thought about telling you something that he hoped would make it better. But maybe what you needed right now was a bit of space. So he turned around, even if reluctantly and right before he left, he whispered, “I love you, (Y/N).. please don't ever think otherwise..”

kim taehyung

The second he came home and realized why the dinner table was set, he ran back out and over to the nearest convenience store. It wasn't what you deserved and it wasn't what he wanted to give you, but only five minutes later, a completely out of breath Taehyung stood at the foot of the bed with a small bouquet of flowers in his hands, “Happy birthday.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, putting the book down on your lap, “Did you just run?”

“No?” he lied, but the heavy rising and falling of his chest told a different story, “Maybe?”

“You felt bad for forgetting about it, didn't you?”

“Well, obviously,” he didn't even lie about forgetting your birthday. He felt like you at least deserved the truth. Tae sat down at your side of the bed, his one hand on your covered thigh, “You're my girlfriend. I should remember at least her birthday.. it's the day the world made sure that I would be a happy man one day.”

“Oh god,” you laughed and shook your head, “Stop being so cheesy, please. It's alright that you forgot, it really doesn't matter that much to me. You know I'm not a big fan of birthdays anyways.”

“But I'm your boyfriend..”

“And you're right. When I realized you forgot, it did hurt.. but then I figured I'd just leave the plates and all on the table and you'd realize that you forgot. And.. well.. here you are.”

That was.. actually really clever. God, he really had an intelligent girlfriend.

“Take these flowers for now. And next weekend, you and I will go on a trip.”

“Will we?” you giggled, as you took the flowers, “Where to?”

“Wherever you want to,” he leaned forward and gently kissed you, “I'll pay for it all.”

Well, in that case..

jeon jeongguk

He had walked straight into the kitchen when he came home and wanted to make himself some instant ramen. However, when he walked towards the dinner table a moment later, he found various foods already sitting on it.

“Huh?” he turned his head and tried to see if you were still up and sitting in the living room, but it was way past midnight. So why did you leave this here? And why was it set for two?

He decided to investigate and walked into the bedroom, only to find you sitting upright in bed, clearly trying not to fall asleep, but it seemed to be getting harder and harder.

“Wondered when you would show up.”

“Oh.. I didn't think you'd still be up,” he smiled happily and walked towards you, wanting to kiss you, but you pushed away his face. Quite roughly, too, “Hey!”

“The fact that you still don't seem to know what you forgot is only making me more angry.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I mean, maybe you're right.. maybe celebrating a one year anniversary isn't important, I mean.. pff, who cares about that, right? Who cares about the plans one made with his girlfriend four months ago.”

Shit.

The anniversary!

That had been today! How could he have forgotten about it?

“(Y/N), I swear I didn't do it on purpose, I..-”

“Well, obviously. But it doesn't change the fact that you did,” you pushed the covers aside and got out of bed, suddenly wide awake, “I waited for hours, Jeongguk, only to find out, via Snapchat, that you're out with the boys. On OUR anniversary. If you had at least worked.. but no, you were having fun with your friends and left your girlfriend alone on the one day she shouldn't be alone.”

“If I had remembered, I..-”

“Am I not important enough to you anymore that you don't think about these things?”

“What?! No, that's not it! I just.. I just forgot.. I can't tell you anything else, because it's just as simple and stupid as that.”

“But it's not simple to me.. I wanted this night to be perfect, because it was our first anniversary. I wanted it to be something we would look back on when we're older.. but maybe that's exactly the point. Maybe I'm the only one that thinks that far ahead.. maybe you don't plan on spending your life with me.”

“I..- I didn't..-” he began sweating, not because he was nervous, but because he was just too overwhelmed. Of course he wanted this to last with you, he loved you with all his heart, but it was also his first real relationship and he didn't know what to do to make it better, “Please.. tell me what to do or say.. to make it better. I’ll do anything.”

“Right now, nothing will make it better. I think you should leave for the night and.. I don't know..”

“Can we not talk about this some more? I'll tell you how much I love you and how much I need you and..-”

“You can do that some other time.. but right now, I just want you to get out, Jeongguk. I want you to leave.”

“I won’t go.. I'll sleep in front of your door if I have to..”

“Then do.. but I don't want you inside the apartment.”

And so he did.

The next morning when you woke up, you actually found him curled up in front of your door, shivering like crazy. And yes, he fucked up and he hurt you a lot.. but he definitely proved how much you meant to him by staying. So you immediately woke him up and helped him inside, making sure he was warm, before you left for work. And when you’d get home, you could talk about it again..

#bts imagine #bts reactions #bts x reader #bts #bangtan #bangtan reaction #bangtan boys #kpop #kpop imagines #kpop reactions #bangtan sonyeondan #reader #bangtan x reader #bangtan boys x reader #requests

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that-vegan-thing-blog · 5 years

Text

My Story

I am in the process of transitioning from a mostly plant based diet, to an all plant based vegan diet. Here you will get the good, the bad, and the ugly of my journey. From the effects on my health and well-being, to my experience with recipes and different vegan foods. I am a notoriously picky eater, and my husband loves to joke about when we first met because all I would eat was a plain cheeseburger with ketchup. So this journey will be a challenge for me, but my hope is that my tastes adapt to this new lifestyle so that I can live a long healthy life.

So a little back story on yours truly! I was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, in the typical conservative household, and we at the typical US diet of meat, carbs and vegetables. My mom did her best to feed us healthy foods, she recycled, and tried to instill a sense of health personal care in her kids. I was always a relatively skinny kid, but my dad loved to tell me I was “fluffy”, so I was pretty insecure about even the smallest amount of fat on my body.

Fast forward to the year I turned 20, and the universe gifted me with something I will forever be thankful for, my son. He was an unexpected surprise, and his father did not stick around after the stick turned positive. It’s safe to say that was a rough time, and once he was born my weight dropped to an unhealthy level do to me trying to raise a newborn, go to school, and work to support him. I would not be who or where I am now without the help and sacrifice of my parents who let us live with them, and my mom stopped working to watch my baby boy so I could work and build us a life. My mom continued to try to make healthy food for me in the form of things like Salmon, Rice and Peas, Meatloaf, Spaghetti with meat sauce (for real though, her spaghetti is out of this world!) and garlic bread, you know, typical Italian momma foods. Despite her best efforts, my depression and exhausted left me with next to no appetite, and what I did eat was not about nutrition, but comfort.

We got through it, and when my son was 3 we met my now husband. He and I fit together immediately, and like a lot of couples who fall in love and feel happy and comfortable, we got very over weight. We would go to Buffalo Wild Wings one night, and order the pizza the next. For the first six months things went this way, and it wasn’t until we got engaged a year later that we realized we needed to shed some of those wings from our waistlines.We were married one year after we got engaged (May the 4th be with you!) and I had lost about 20 pounds. During that time I was of the mind that a “Calorie is a calorie” and as long as I stayed within my calorie restriction I would lose the weight, nutrition aside.

So my son was 5 at this time, and within a split second of being married we were expecting. Now it’s worth noting that my pre-pregnancy weight for my first child was 169, and I got as high as 199 during that pregnancy. My second pregnancy STARTED at 198, and stopped at 230. This second pregnancy turned out to be much more difficult as my pubic bone had, for all intents and purposes, split. Walking was very difficult, and even sitting was hard if I wasn’t reclined back. I had to leave my work a month prior to my due date due to my inability to walk or sit at a desk. During this pregnancy, as a lot of women do, I ate whatever sounded good at the time. Cinnabon, pizza, cinnabon-pizza, and after my son was born, I didn’t really lose much weight. I stayed right around 230 until he was about 9 months old, and that’s I realized that I didn’t like having my picture taken anymore. I didn’t like looking at myself in the mirror, I wouldn’t buy clothes if they were the slighted bit form fitting, because I hated the body I was in.

So we bought a treadmill, and I got serious about my exercise and again, staying within my calorie restriction. I lost 30lbs in about 6 months, and when the weather got warm I bought a new bike and starting biking. I worked my way from only being able to go around the block, to riding 15 miles a day in an hour. In the summer of 2017 my best friend, who was vegetarian, was going to be moving to our city and staying with us for a few months. I had been toying with the idea of vegetarianism for a while, but was struggling to break old habits. I decided to go vegetarian while he lived with us, so he did not feel like the “odd man out” in our house, and I just never went back. I did still eat pepperoni pizza, because I felt that I was more likely to stick with a mostly plant based diet if I did not cut out all the things that I enjoyed. The weight dropped off, and in the end I hit my goal of getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 169. I was so happy when I saw that number on the scale, that my subconscious went “oh cool, goal achieved! Time to celebrate with pizza!” and I celebrated with pizza, and cereal, and more pizza. I also received a medical diagnosis during this time that set of a string of anxiety and depression, that is something I will discuss at a later time. As the weather got cold again, my motivation to working out faded, and I continued to eat poorly. Needless today, I did not stay at 169 for long.

Here we are now, I have stayed on my mostly plant based diet for almost two years, and despite this last winters terrible eating and lack of exercise, I have only gained back about 20lbs of the 60lbs that I had lost. I realized a lot of the old feelings of shame about how I looked were returning, despite not being nearly as heavy as I was before. So I busted out my trusty calorie tracking app, and went back to making sure I stayed within my calorie restriction. Then one day while I was at work, I decided to throw on the documentary, “What the Health” which my husband had watched a year prior, and his immediate response was, “I’m going vegan” I laughed at my meat loving husband, and suggested maybe he just cut back on his meat intake first.

I watched What the Health, and was immediately horrified that not only had I been eating this stuff for years, but also feeding it to my kids (my littlest LOVES yogurt). I did not think it wise to immediately change my views because of one documentary so I began researching. I watched TED talks and youtube videos from people like Mic the Vegan and Earthling Ed, and realized just how much this lifestyle hit home for me. I have not always been conscious of my impact on the environment, but one of my reasons for transitioning to a mostly plant based diet was due to cruelty in factory farms, and animal farming effects on the environment. I decided I would try a vegan diet for a week, and see how I felt and if the food was satisfying enough, but I was not optimistic.

I am currently on day 5, and there have been uncomfortable parts, like bloating and gas, and on day two I felt a little like I was drunk all day, not to mention I have the shortest temper known to man at the moment.

On the other hand, I feel AMAZING. I have been struggling with my depression the last couple of months, and this week I have felt HAPPY and energized. I am finding myself drawn to upbeat music, that makes me want to just dance around. My son and I sat down and watched some Earthling Ed videos last night, and had a long talk about health and the environment (keep in mind that he is 9 now) and he said he wants to go vegan as well, so this weekend we are going grocery shopping and are going to learn new vegan recipes together.

I don’t know if I will be able to stick with this lifestyle long term, but I am certainly going to try. I will share with you here my ups, my downs, my trials and my errors. I will give you a first hand look on what it is to go from a meat lover to a vegan, so you can see what it is like.

Thank you for following my journey.

Namaste.

#earthlinged #micthevegan #vegandiet #healthylife #newadventure

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squishysvt · 6 years

Text

Best Friend! Yuta

Word Count: 3.1k

A/N i havent posted in like 5 years and i have no excuse and this wasnt even requested but there is an extreme lack of yuta content and i decided to make it myself smh ANYWAYS i liked writing this a lot and feedback is encouraged!!! lov u lil squishies muah <33 -Admin Madi

ALSO this was inspired by this post from @xuxi-rolls and this post from @youaremychwingum which are both amazingly cute blogs and people so go check them out!

Backstory first! You two met in the 3rd grade when he was deep in his anime phase and you were obsessed with collecting erasers that were shaped like weird things such as lipstick tubes and paintbrushes

Yuta stole the paintbrush one and started using it like a sword like a character from his fav anime and boy when you saw him do that were you were like “im gonna do it. Im gonna kill him”

You literally stomped your lil sketcher clad feet over to his desk and YANKED that shit from his chubby fingers with zero remorse

And he started crying and you felt bad and were like “well fine you can have it i guess”

And he immediately stops his FAKE crying bc hes a snake and sticks his tongue out at you as he snatches the eraser back

And you went into full Attack Mode and you two got into a small fist fight and the teacher had to break it up it was nasty

Anyways after you two went through the next year having some major beef, yuta apologised bc he’s a gentleman and even bought you a new eraser!

It was shaped like a dinosaur and you loved it so much that you instantly forgave him bc you didnt have an eraser in that shape yet!!

And he was beaming after seeing ur face light up like that and proudly pulled a matching dino eraser from his back pocket and was like “we match!! We can be best friends now!”

And you Loved that idea you were like yes okay first order of business: more erasers

Anyways you two just instantly clicked bc ur sense of humor was v v similar and life became so much more enjoyable with having him there to share the experience with you

Throughout ur many years of friendship, Yuta had always wanted nothing more than for your friendship to be comfortable, honest and loving

You’re the one that he rants to, gushes to and confides to so your friendship to him is so precious

And as you grew older and gained more freedom, both of you started to do more things outside of school like go on late night drives, go to the movies, amusements parks and out to eat every other day

And it became natural and routinely that going days without one another felt weird??

And you and yuta have discussed the idea of maybe you two being soul mates, but in a completely platonic way

Like you were two halves meant to come together

And yuta liked to reinforce this idea bc when it comes to being lovers, you shouldn’t be looking for your other half, but rather looking for the person who already makes you feel whole

And so when y’all graduated from high school you immediately got an apartment together!

It’s definitely not very fancy or anything since you both only had part time jobs here and there during the school years and summers, but it’s better than nothing!

And although yuta and you are similar, your styles are where you really begin to differ

While he wants to have pictures of mountains and gardens hanging on the living room walls, you would rather have mirrors shaped like suns and fairy lights behind the couch

And obviously after some friendly banter, you come to an agreement that a painting of pretty outside scenery at night would look great with some fairy lights to compliment it!!

And so your apartment quickly becomes a mesh of your style with his and it’s oddly nice?? Like who would’ve thought that yuta’s knick knacks from japan would look so cute next to your family photos

It’s a two bedroom apartment but you both end up sleeping on the couch in a heap more often than you’d like to admit

You’re both in uni doing ur own things so when its time to come home and relax, you’ll find yourself curled up next to him on the couch with your laptop open and writing a paper while he’s munching on some snacks and watching a game of soccer he missed bc of classes

And you’ll quickly fall asleep bc papers are boring!! And yuta doesnt want to move bc your laying on him and doesnt want to disturb you so he’ll just quietly cheer to himself when his team scores and eventually falls asleep

But sometimes he has no problem lightly shoving you off and going to his own bed bc the couch isnt really that comfortable and hurts his back after awhile, but he brings your duvet out so its more comfortable for you at least

And although you two are pretty much joint at the hip, your bedrooms are private from one another

Like its nice being with yuta, but its also very important that you have time to yourself and so neither of you are intrusive when the other person is in their room with the door shut

If either of you need anything you’ll just shoot each other a text or quietly knock on the door rather than just barging in which is something that both of you really appreciate

And you obviously have other friends besides yuta that you love dearly! And you make sure that you get to see them often and that yuta goes out with his friends too bc its easy to get sick of each other no matter how much you love one another

And this makes for your friendship to be healthy! Which is like, the most important thing bc being your own person is important and having close relationships/friendships is also important! But its easy to get too attached and end up hurting yourself down the road

And yuta is aware of this as well and so it makes things a lot easier bc he knows when you need your space and when to distance himself if he needs it too

But living with yuta is a lot of fun!

He likes to cook sometimes so you’ll always have a full tummy with yuta around!! And if he's not in the mood for slaving over the stove, he’ll just make some instant noodles and call it a day

He really tries to make as many traditional japanese dishes as he can so he can have a slice of his home whenever he’s feeling down, and he just really enjoys sharing that part of his life with you too

Undoubtedly his favorite part is when he gets to hand feed you with a spoon and witness the look on your face as you chew bc it’s really rewarding for him

Sometimes your schedules kind of clash on days so whenever he’s home and you’re in class, he’ll make food for himself and leave you tupperware containers of food in the fridge for you to heat up when you get back bc he knows you’ll just crash and not eat which is really bad

And yuta cares about ur health!!! He’s attentive as heck!!

But you’ll do the same thing for him, and even if you aren't a world renowned chef, you’ll lay cash on the counter for him to call in a pizza or something quick

If you know he’s been craving something then you’ll leave the number for the place next to the money you leave so it makes ordering a bit easier for him!

Also, yuta is very organized! Sometimes he’ll throw his jacket here and there or have some things where they shouldn’t be, but yuta really likes having a clean and tidy apartment!

He hates doing the dishes, but he’ll literally do anything else

He likes to vacuum for some reason you dont know but you’re like okay have at it! One less thing i gotta do! And he’s really happy once he’s done bc BAM you have clean floors

And you’ll just be sarcastic about it but in a loving way and he laps that shit up bc sarcasm!!! His second language <333

You two have a nightly routine that ensues when neither of you are busy the next day so you’ll watch a movie on netflix you’ve been eyeing together and crash

Sometimes when yuta gets home on these nights you’ll still be in the shower or getting ready for bed, and yuta will come in and sit on the counter and you’ll talk about your day and just chill while shampooing ur hair (which yuta is obsessed with btw..he loves touching and playing with it)

But he’ll just be there,,listening closely and telling you about his own day while drawing squiggly images on the mirror like hearts and stick figures holding hands (its always you and him, but when you ask, he insists its him and winwin)

And you laugh bc boy does ur bff ever have a massive crush on sicheng!!

But yuta is just cute and likes your platonicness with him

Bc he really does love you! People often ask you two if you’re dating and you can see why people would ask that bc you and yuta are super close, but it’s also kind of an odd thought to both of you bc yeah you love each other but,,,not as lovers

And so you’ll laugh it off and talk about it afterwards bc you really cant see each other in that light because you tried dating in high school and it just felt kind of weird

Yuta loves to tease and joke around with you, sometimes be a little (read; lot) sarcastic with his jokes but he really does care about u and thats how he shows his affection!!

He’ll hold ur hand when ur out at the grocery store or shopping together and likes to pat your head and plays with your ears but thats about it for physical affection!

You’re emotionally bonded more so than physically which is not a bad thing uwu

Yuta finds it kind of hard to openly joke around to the same extent with others as he does to you and knowing this makes you feel really special

Like yeah!! Thats right!!! Im his best friend!!

Yuta also LOVES to dance with you

It doesn’t matter if it’s serious or not, he will not hesitate to pull you up onto ur feet and have you dancing with him

ESP to sistars shake it! Y’all have so much fun when that song comes on

At first this was embarrassing but then yuta would just NOT stop shaking his butt so you were like oh well lets both look cutely dumb i guess

And you’ll get noise complaints a lot bc the walls are thin and you’re moving around, creating a lot of noise and you feel especially bad when this is all happening at like,,,3am

Anyways you live kind of a fast pace life so whenever you gotta be somewhere you kinda fly out the door with ur feet shoved into ur shoes with the backs down and yuta will silently come behind you and remind you to slow down and will bend down and personally make sure they’re on properly so you don’t trip and die

It annoys him sometimes bc you should be taking better care of yourself and he’s not always going to be there to look after you and that worries him!!!

To allow him to sleep a little better at night, he bought you slide on shoes that you can easily shove on and fly out the door so he won’t have a heart attack at the thought of you falling down some stairs due to the hastiness of which you put your sneakers on improperly

And he’s also the one who is like “hey its been a couple of months so i bought you a new toothbrush bc dental hygiene is important” and you’re like “okay nice i just bought some new toothpaste on sale the other day, it’s minty so i think you’ll like it”

And this is how you two co-exist in ur shitty lil apartment

Yuta is also into soccer so you always make sure to go and support him at his games! Even if they’re just practices or whatnot, you’ll always be on the bleachers cheering for him!

Which yuta LOVES because he’ll point you out to his teammates and be like “thats my best friend, ugly, right?” and they’ll just laugh bc of his teasing and they can tell you two really get along

And yuta is uwu x100 at this

Anyways yuta likes to show off and do fancy tricks like sliding on the grass to get the ball and he’s all dirty when you get back to ur apartment together and you wont let him touch anything bc that means more cleaning which neither of u have the energy for

So you’ll basically make him take VERY large and wide steps towards the bathroom so he can shower and leave minimal dirt behind as he does so

And then he’ll come out of the shower with wet hair and clean up the tracks he left with a paper towel but he’ll go in circles for a good 30 seconds wiping up dirt and then water from his wet hair

And you’ll observe him and laugh for a bit before you’ll drape a fluffy towel over his head and he’ll pretend to be scared and ask who turned off the lights

To which you nudge him and call him a dork, but when he takes the towel off and get to look at his face, you tell him he did a great job at the game and his eyes will change from playful teasing to filled with genuine love in .5 seconds and he’ll instantly wrap you in his arms

And you’ll find warmth in his embrace and wonder why he smells so good and then you’ll realize he’s using your shampoo

You’re like okay well, sigh, whatever its okay bc hes cute i guess so we can share

And then yuta will pull away, give your head an affectionate pat and go work on a paper or something due for school

Which you both do a lot of late night paper writing sessions and so when he tells you he’s retreating to his room for the night you’ll go and cut up some fruit and gather some snacks he likes and bring them to him before he becomes too absorbed in schoolwork

And he does the same to you except he brings you a lot of water since its “important to stay hydrated~!” and will cover you in his favorite blanket bc he claims it “helps you write better papers”

And you arent allowed to refuse bc one time you tried to and yuta was like “okay well i guess i’ll be moving out then” and you’re like okay i know you’re joking but its hot in here i dont want to have a blanket on me

And yuta starts to dramatically pick things off of shelves until he’s saying things like “i’ll be out by morning since im not appreciated” and you’re rolling your eyes so hard you think they’ll go to the back of your head but its like okay fine thank you for your magic blanket houdini

Yuta just winks at you and does a theatrical bow before putting everything back and leaving you to write your magical paper

ANYWAYS thats what most nights are like, full of playful banter and fun talks

You also both THRIVE off the dollar store which is literally everything bc you two get so excited going in there!

They have everything so its like?? This place is my Second Home and i Love it Dearly

And yuta likes to buy candy there since its so cheap and one time when you were looking for a new broom, he wanders off and comes back with his hands behind his back and is like “guess what i found!!!”

And this is nothing new because yuta gets excited about the cutest things so you’re like “gum?”

And his smile gets all wide and bright like i KNOW you know the one im talking about, it’s literally kept me alive for the past 18 years

And he’ll bring his hands out and WOW ARE THOSE ERASERS THAT ARE SHAPED AS SMALL ORDINARY OBJECTS??

And you just want to CRY bc thats literally the sole being of your friendship in his HANDS!

Yuta is proud as heck and buys two matching ones for you two and they’re of paintbrushes in honor of the one he snatched in the third grade!

Which makes your heart so happy and content

But thats the effect yuta has on you! Someone who always manages to have you smiling and happy with life

But he does end up buying candy bc its basically your duty as a human to buy some expired candy from the local dollar store

And yuta really loves the flavor blue raspberry, esp if its sour and he finds a bag of sour jolly ranchers and goes nuts

And he picks out and religiously eats only the blue ones, a red one makes the cut here and there, but you’re like?? Yuta?? Can i atleast have ONE? And he rarely ever shares but its like okay whatever enjoy your cavities heathen

And you’ll clown the shit out of him bc his tongue is blue, his teeth are blue and the area around his mouth is blue and you cant just let that pass

And he’ll laugh when you try and come up with palpable things to call him, and when you’re both giggling uncontrollably, he’ll try to kiss your cheek bc he’s all sticky and he knows that would drive you mad

And its the same with his fingers bc theyre all blue and sticky too and he’ll hold your hand so hard that your fingers stick together and youre like yuta!!!! But you really secretly enjoy it

And then you’ll go home with bags full of god knows what and struggle to find places for everything but its okay bc the memories that come with the plastic bags and erasers from your childhood remind you why you love yuta as much as you do

Can you tell i love yuta yet or is this au too vague <3333

#yuta #nct yuta #yuta nakamoto #nct imagine #nct scenario #yuta imagine #yuta scenario #nct au #yuta au #NCT 127 #nct 2018 #admin madi

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icharchivist · 6 years

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Hiya Icha! I was wondering (I'm writing a fanfic of MLB) what's the usual wallet contents of someone from France? Do you usually have a driver's license? How important is your National Identity Card? Are you dumb to bring it with you on a walk to the grocery store? I tried looking up wallet contents and that got me no where ;;;

Heya!!

Aahh no wonder this mustn’t be easy to find omg :O but if you ever have questions about random French stuff, i’m always there to help out!

(and good luck for your fic of MLB omg i’m cheering for you!! I’m kinda curious about it too tho i’ve caught myself reading a few MLB fics lately dkjfhd)

Anyway down to the questions:

-Depends for the Driver’s license, We cannot pass our license before 18yo so it depends on how old the characters are. Once the person is supposed to have a license it is common that they keep a driver license with them in a wallet. (i’ve seen instances of adults putting the license in the car along with the Grey Card, but younger folks tends to keep the license on them if needed).

-It’s always good to have your ID with you. From experience i’d say a young teen will be far less likely to carry it around (most parents tends to keep it safe) but if the teen tends to be away from home often (and especially in the capital like Paris) it would be likely they keep the ID with them still at least for Safety. Around 15yo we pass an important exam at the end of Middle School which require the ID to pass it, and another similar exam at the end of Highschool (18yo). Most people i’ve known kept their ID in their wallet since 15yo because it’s when it becomes handy to have one with you.

-It’s not dumb at all to carry it with you in a grocery store, just don’t bring it out of your wallet unless you’re being asked about it. Shops are supposedly not allowed to sell you alcohol if you’re under 16 or 18 (varries depending shops and i’m pretty sure soft Alcohol like Beers get a free pass)(just slight reminder 18 is the age we’re allowed officially to drink alcohol) and cigarettes shops are not allowed to sell you those unless you’re 18 - and therefore they might ask you for your ID as you buy them. However it’s not really required and rather pretty rare? Most shops don’t really bother asking, even if you look significantly young, depends on how much they care about ethics and such. (signed someone who bought alcohol and cigarettes for her parents at 14yo without ever being asked about it by the shopkeepers).

-It’s pretty rare that an ID card is important to bring along, but it is a must if you are writting checks for exemple, as most shopkeeper will ask you your ID to check that the names are the same, so that happens. We rarely pay in checks for casual shopping tho, a lot of shops have a no-check policy. Pubs usually couple down as coffeshop and like usual shops, it depends on how tight they are on policy if you order Alcohol but they’re likely to leave you alone. I think Nightclubs may ask you for your ID but idk for sure about that.

-It’s pretty much a safety precaution just in case, if you get an accident, or rare cases in which you can be asked for it. It’s good to have, but it isn’t required a lot so some people can completely forget about it. Also note that a passport works just as well.

As for General Wallet Content: erg I can only take mine as exemple but basically i’d say:

-An ID (I personally had both my ID and Passpord for a while but now only my ID)-Cash if you can (whenever it’s small money with coins and paper currency) but obviously it depends on how much money someone has on them ahah (it’s just handy bc some shops, like bakeries, will not take the credit card for small amount of money, so having little money is always handy)-Credit Card (There’s possibility to open account pretty young, only parents’s managed. You can have one that is only your management from the age of 15/16 I think? Depends on Banks and offers, usually Teens Accounts are restricted on some levels but it really depends on the Banks and what the parents allow. By 18yo though it’s to be expected to have a proper Credit Card though)

-A Driver Liscence, if you’re above 18 and if you passed it.-A Bus card/Metro Card/A Multipass. Depends where you live but since it’s MLB i’ll focus on Paris: If someone takes Public transport in the city they will either have to buy Tickets at each stations/each time they enter a bus, or they would get a specific Card on which they would put money regularly in order to just pass the card while getting in public transport. I’m almost certain there’s a slight discount on the price if you get them with your special card. Said card should be used normally both on Bus and on Metro without problems. When you live in a city where public transport is as useful as it is in Paris it’s a must to have. A standart Metro Ticket in Paris is about 1€75 If I remember well? Not sure for Bus but I think it’s 1€10 a ride.

-Your Vital Card (”Carte Vitale” or “Carte Verte”) and eventually a Mutuelle Card. Both are Health care stuff - Your Vital Card will be asked anytime you go to the doctor or to pharmacy to buy stuff. Usually giving it then will assure your visit to the generalist doctor and some prescripted medications will be paid back by the SECU (Social Security, the Health Care basically). (Note tho that some specialized doctors will eventually only pay back half the price if you don’t have an assurance covering their service. They’re also more expensive than regular doctors). a “Mutuelle” is basically an assurance, either your parents’s or a student one that can allow some discounts depending on what you paid for. Note that not everyone are covered with assurance but everyone has a Vital Card. When you’re under 16yo you’re under your parent’s SECU so normally you don’t have your own until then, but once you have one you’d rather keep it with you at all time.Also note the Vital Card is usually Chipped as it connects you to the database, but most Mutuelle Cards are usually just a piece of paper or a hard card, rarely chipped.

-A Student Card- Especially since begining of High School, but in recent years i’ve seen they spread it to Middle School too - Depending on your school, usually. A bit after I left Highschool, i’ve learnt they started to ask students for their Student Cards when they entered the School just to check they were students and not squatters. In UNI it was often used also with your ID during exams, with a specific student number on it that followed you around. But most importantly, and I’m certain it now extends to Middle School, it gives you discounts in some shops or activities. For exemple Cinema is 10€ for an Adult but can go to about 7€ if you show your student Card, albeit i think there’s another tarriff for under 15 (in which case the ID is the interesting one to bring out). Some shops like Office Stuff or Libraries will give you discounts on the stuff you buy if you show your card. If in a Specialized supperior school you may have also special discount depending your field of study (When I was in art school i had a discount on more art supplies than the discount of usual students thanks to said card).Depending also on the school’s budget and such the cards can be plastered paper to cards with microchips that you can use to interreact with some school stuff. UNI again had a whole internal bank system where you could put money in your student cards so you could use it on student spaces like cantine and cafetaria and such.)

-Linked but not exactly: Middleschoolers/Highschoolers are likely to have a specific Cafetaria card from their school with them. Again depends on the school, but they’re mostly chipped cards since it connects to the money your parents put on the school’s account in order for you to get to the Cafetaria. (I bring it up also bc i was puzzled learning lunch meals were free in the US ahah). It’s a must for students who eat at school. Students who can afford to come back home for Lunch usually don’t have one/don’t need it and if for some reasons they need to eat at school they can either request for one or get a paper ticket. (My Highschool rather encouraged us to use our friends’s card and pay them back later which was awkward af).

-Fidelity cards in general. (Silly but god i have tons of those i don’t use in my wallet, usually they are free or if not very cheap and it gives you discounts on stuff so you end up Hoarding them. Those are also easily given to teens so it can be usual for a Teen to have say, a Fidelity card to a candy shop, a Library card, stuff like that.)

-All the recieps bc you’re too lazy to put them elsewhere until your wallet is drowning in recieps.

-erg I also personally have painkillers in my wallet bc it’s handy but idk how many people do that. Likewise for all the rest of superfluous things. Speaking of, pictures of you/your friends/your family. It’s not uncommon to have those in your wallets, it’s not /too common/ either, but i’ve seen it, i’ve done it, so it happens.

I think those are mostly the basis covered? If there’s any need for clarifications or more infos my inbox is still wide opened ;O Hopefully that will help!

Take care and good luck with your writting!!

Wish you well!❤

#ichafantalks mlb #ish???#french stuff #french talks #anyway i'm here for french ref anytime you need!#lamp shader #ichareply

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ficdirectory · 6 years

Text

Somewhere Inside (Disuphere series #4) Chapter 28

(To listen, click here) - 16:18

Levi’s doing his best not to hyperly scan for Carla. So far, she hasn’t shown up. But he has seen people who look like her from a distance. It’s enough to set his heart racing.

He’s planning to take his break at 11:30. It’s just about then when he spots Dominique and Francesca behind one of his regulars - an elderly lady he loves - but who always wants quarters or dollars (depending) back for her smaller change. It’s tedious. But it makes her day, so Levi tries to be efficient. Getting Betty what she needs and keeping the line moving.

Finally, the line is moving. He gives Betty her change. Checks out the grumpy guy behind Betty who’s bought out the snack cake aisle. Then, Dominique and Francesca. He waves. Smiles. But they’re both tense. Dominique has sent Francesca ahead of her in line.

“What’s up?” Levi asks quietly.

“A store guy was following us…” Francesca warns. “Dominique said I should go in front of her in case he’s still back there.”

Levi casually glances. “Nope. No store guy.”

“We didn’t break any rules,” Francesca insists as Dominique puts their bread, cereal and plastic container of donuts on the belt.

“I know,” Levi says, sympathetic. “Listen, I’m about to take my break. Wanna meet outside? Maybe at the car?”

Dominique nods stiffly. It’s not lost on Levi that she hasn’t said a word. Just silently pays for the groceries. She’s handing the money over when he catches sight of the tattoo on the inside of her wrist. The date 4/26/11. Almost ten years ago exactly. He wonders what the significance is.

“We’ll meet you,” she says in a voice that’s eerily calm. Her face is a practiced mask. She smiles. If he didn’t know her, he’d totally buy it. “We’ll be out front.”

“Okay.”

Dominique’s not oblivious. In fact, she’s the opposite. She is painfully observant. It’s why she noticed Levi noticing her tattoo, signifying her own baby’s approximated due date. She’d had to wait until she was eighteen to get it - seven years after the fact. But it was a small way to remember Taylor.

She swallows back the lump that’s risen to her throat.

“That guy called me your daughter…” Francesca points out, ogling the donuts in the bag.

Dominique blows out a breath. “I know,” she says, forcing a smile.

“Did it hurt your feelings? To have him say it?” Francesca wonders.

“Mm-mm,” Dominique denies.

“Then, why are you crying?” Francesca asks quietly.

Stunned, Dominique reaches up and touches her own face. Feels her own tears there. “It’s nothing,” she denies, smiling hard.

“Do you feel sad he said you had a kid like me?” Francesca asks bluntly.

“No, babe. I don’t. It’s not you, I promise. It’s...I’m gonna tell you something that’s private. Okay? I had a baby once. While it was still inside me, it died. So, when he said daughter, I thought of her.”

“What’s her name?” Francesca asks.

“I like to keep that to myself.” Dominique insists, wiping her eyes.

She looks out at the parking lot, not forgetting to keep an eye out for Pearl’s mom. Dominique sits still on the bench. Francesca leans against her.

“I won’t ask her name anymore,” Francesca reassures. “And I won’t share what you said with anybody. I promise. Not even Jesus or Mariana.”

“Thank you,” Dominique says, kissing her head. “To be clear, though, I’d be lucky if my daughter had grown up to be anything like you.”

“Really? You don’t think I’m not good enough because of CP?” Francesca asks.

“I think CP is part of what makes you good enough,” Dominique insists, kissing Francesca’s head.

“I really want a sloth,” Francesca sighs. “Even a toy one or something.”

“Why?”

“‘Cause it’s slow like me,” Francesca says, matter-of-fact.

“Hmm. Well, I will keep my eye out.”

By the time Levi’s outside Dominique’s tears are dry. They walk across the parking lot to his car.

“I’m so sorry that guy followed you…” Levi apologizes. “I tried to look into it, but I’m basically a peon, so…”

Francesca snickers. “That sounds like a bad word…”

“It means, I don’t have much power,” Levi explains. “It’s Spanish.”

“How are you doing?” Dominique asks.

“Well...I thought I saw my trauma once, from far away, but it wasn’t…” he shares. Levi squints. “Are you okay?” he asks Dominique. “Your eyes are red… Were you crying?”

“What if I was?” Dominique challenges.

“That’d be okay. I’d wanna know if there was something I could do to help…” Levi ventures.

There’s silence until Francesca crinkles the SuperOne bag. Levi looks in the rearview mirror. Sees her stealthily sneaking a powdered sugar donut hole into her mouth.

He smiles. “Can I have one?”

“Yeah, give Levi some. It’s his lunch break,” Dominique says.

He accepts the plastic container and opens it. Takes out a few. Eats them.

“Does anybody want a piece of bread? Francesca offers. “Or some Frosted Mini Wheats?”

Dominique laughs. “You are too much. Levi, Francesca wants a sloth. Did you know that?”

“I did not know that,” Levi answers. It hasn’t escaped him that Dominique has dodged his question about helping...unless this is her answer. Carrying on. Not getting stuck in whatever happened. He checks the clock on the dashboard. “Listen, I gotta go back to work for another hour and fifteen. He tosses the keys to Dominique. “If you wanna drive around.”

“No, we’re staying…” Dominique insists.

“But the peon hates us…” Francesca points out.

“Hey!” Levi laughs.

“I meant the mean guy is the peon. Because it sounds like pee on…” Francesca clarifies.

“Here. Let me have your phone. Can you keep it on you?” Dominique asks.

“On the DL…” Levi says, perplexed.

“Okay, so we’re in town. That means I have service. So we will text you. Text me back if you need anything.”

“Can I have your phone? I wanna add my number,” Francesca asks.

“Can you tell it to me fast?” Levi asks.

Francesca rattles off her number. Then, Levi has to run to make it back to Lane 4 before he gets in major trouble.

The rest of his shift passes in a blur. When he gets off at 1, he finds Dominique and Francesca still in the car out in the lot. He checks his phone as he walks. Finds silent videos of them smiling and waving. Selfies. And one text that reads: we are still out side love francesca

“Thanks for these, guys,” Levi says, scooting into the driver’s side.

“No problem.” Francesca answers.

“Uh, are we still on for ice cream? Somebody wants to know…” Dominique casts her gaze furtively behind them.

“Oh yeah. Definitely still on for DQ. It has food, too. So we can pick up actual lunch.”

Honestly, all Levi wants is a large vanilla ice cream cone. It’s simple, but it screams childhood to him. And good memories. They drive thru and Francesca gets a dilly bar. Dominique gets a vanilla cone, too, but a small. She offers money. Levi notices how her hand trembles.

“I got it. You got the groceries. And we still have life jacket shopping.” Levi reassures.

“Are you sure?” Dominique checks. “I don’t, like, owe you anything?”

“This is friendship stuff. Debt doesn’t accumulate over friendship stuff,” Levi says simply. Everybody gets their ice cream. He pays. Then he tries to drive one-handed, while willing his ice cream not to melt all over him.

“This is a great lunch,” Francesca enthuses.

“Right? Don’t tell your brother and sister,” Levi cautions, smiling.

“Except we don’t keep secrets. Unless it’s like for respect. Like if a person trusts you with their trauma stuff, you don’t go blab it. But ice cream shouldn’t be a secret.” Francesca explains.

“I guess you’re right. Tell them if you want,” Levi shrugs. He can see Dominique passing napkins back to Francesca.

It’s a quiet ride out to Target in Baxter. Levi pulls into the only open space he can see. It’s a long way away from the door.

“Can I just stay in the car and wait?” Francesca asks. Levi checks out the rearview mirror. She’s half-lying on his backseat.

“What’s wrong, babe?” Dominique asks.

“Nothing, I just wanna stay here,” Francesca insists.

“You can tell us. We won’t get mad. I was really hoping to get you a life jacket you wanted. Don’t you want that still?” Dominique checks.

“I do,” she sighs. “But my legs are really tired,” she comments softly.

“You guys wait here,” Levi insists. “I’ll be right back.”

“I don’t want a hospital wheelchair!” Francesca calls at Levi’s back. She’s still lying down, practicing being a sloth.

“Hey,” Dominique reprimands.

“What? I don’t. They’re old. And big. And I can barely push them,” she complains.

“Okay, but don’t yell at Levi,” Dominique reasons.

“But I just did it ‘cause he was already far away…”

Just then, Levi’s back. Francesca sits up. He opens her door. She looks out. Sees the thing. For people with disabilities and also grandmas and grandpas that can’t walk long distances.

“That’s a Caroline’s Cart…” Francesca says, wary.

“Yeah, I was hoping it’d be free with how many people there are inside today. Looks like we lucked out.”

“No,” Francesca denies.

She sees Dominique look at her and cross her arms, like Francesca said something rude.

“I mean, no thank you,” Francesca remembers. “I’ll just wait for you guys out here.”

“Babe, we are not leaving you out here in the car alone. Talk to us.” Dominique says, turned in her seat. (Because Dominique probably knows if Moms ever found out Francesca got left in a car by herself, they’d get all angry about it. And blame Francesca, probably. Because that’s what always happens.)

“I can’t! I can’t use that! I’m not allowed!” Francesca screams, her voice breaking. (She always talks too loud when she’s emotional. It’s annoying but she can’t help it.)

“Who says?” Dominique asks, gentle. Kind. Her usual way, even though Francesca doesn’t deserve it.

“Moms…” Francesca pouts. “They say I can walk, so it’s not for me. I have to not use it so somebody else with a real disability will get to…”

“Babe, you have a real disability. It means you get tired quicker because you use more energy for the same stuff we do. Just because you can walk doesn’t mean you should exhaust yourself doing that, or wait in the car instead of coming inside with us.”

“I have to ask permission,” Francesca wipes her eyes. “If Moms find out I’ll probably get yelled at. If I asked first, maybe it won’t be so bad. Can I call Mari? Or text her a picture of that with your phone and ask?

Dominique gives Francesca her phone, the code already put in. Francesca takes a picture of the cart. Types: Moms say no but can I use this? My legs are really tired from walking. This is Francesca. Bye.

“Oh. She might not get the text right away,” Levi says, worried. “You guys don’t have cell service at your Grandpa’s right?”

Francesca’s shoulders slump.

“Can I forward this to Pearl? Ask her to show Mariana?” Levi asks.

Francesa nods. Dominique forwards the text and the picture to Levi. Levi sends it to Pearl. In seconds there is a ping back:

Mariana’s face is there. It’s a video. “Don’t listen to Moms on this. Use the thing. It’s an accommodation. We get to have those because we’re humans. Love you. Have fun with Dominique and Levi. Bye.”

Slowly, Francesca gets out of the car. The seat of the cart looks very high, but Levi says he can lift her if she’s okay with it. She is. Once she’s in, she buckles the one seatbelt across her lap just like in the car.

“Dominique can you push?” she asks. Being in the cart means you’re breathing the same air, practically, as the person pushing. Like almost face to face. She trusts Levi. But not as much as Dominique.

She nods and starts pushing. It helps having Dominique right here to look at, because it distracts Francesca from anybody pointing or staring. Francesca feels one person do it. But she ignores them.

Levi leads the way to the kids’ section.

They find the life jackets. And the size that fits Francesca. There’s a gross red and yellow one. A pink and purple one that’s too girly, Mom would say. And a light green and light blue one. “Can I have that last one?” she asks.

“Here. Lean forward,” Dominique says helping her slip it on and zip it. “How does it feel?”

“Like I can’t move very good. It’s awkward.”

“Well, it has to be secure. If it’s too big, you could slip out of it.” Dominique explains. “Does it hurt anywhere?”

“No.” Francesca says.

“Okay. This is the one you want then?” Dominique double checks.

Francesca nods.

“Wow, you definitely know what you want,” Levi sounds impressed. He keeps looking over Francesca’s head and back and forth.

“What are you looking for?” she asks.

“Nothing,” he reassures, but it doesn’t look like nothing.

They don’t give her the money in the checkout and make her pay. Dominique does. When Francesca hears that the life jacket is $40, she almost tips over. That would take her months to earn in allowance.

“It’s too expensive,” she whispers to Levi.

“It’s fine. What do you guys say? It’s a basic need, right? You need to be safe. More than just on this trip.”

When Dominique doesn’t quite have enough money, Levi offers some, and Francesca feels terrible for being such a baby about the ugly life jacket at the cabin. She shouldn’t have made a big deal. Should have just worn it.

Francesca’s quiet as Dominique pushes the cart to the doors, and outside.

“It belongs inside,” Francesca protests.

“I know. I’ll run it back in,” Levi reassures.

He does. There are a million things about this trip that Dominique and Levi act like are no big deal, but back at home? They would be The Biggest Deal Ever.

“What’s wrong, Francesca?” Dominique asks once they’re driving again.

“It’s too much…” she protests quietly.

“It’s not. I wanted to do this for you. Levi did, too, right?” Dominique asks.

“Definitely,” Levi says. “You guys were there for me. Now we wanna be there for you.”

“But I can’t ever pay you back. I’d have to save every bit of my allowance until summer, and Moms always forget to give it to me anyway.”

“Remember what Levi said to me about the ice cream money?” Dominique reminds.

But Francesca can’t remember. Her brain is too full of stress.

“This is friendship stuff. Friendship stuff means you don’t have to pay anything back…”

“But that’s so much money!” Francesca insists. “It’s probably why Moms never got me one in the first place.”

“Babe, your safety matters.” Dominique insists. “I’d buy you 100 life jackets, no question, if they’d keep you safe.”

Francesca blinks. “That’s like… $400!”

“$4,000,” Levi corrects, but not in a mean way.

Dominique elbows him. “Don’t tell her that!” she whispers, smiling.

Francesca’s eyes almost fall out of her head they are so wide. That’s how shocked she is.

“You’re worth any price,” Dominique says, turning and looking Francesca right in the eyes.

“Thank you,” Francesca says softly. “For buying me this. I’ll take good care of it.”

“I know you will. Thanks for coming with us today.” Dominique tells her. “It was fun talking about sloths with you.”

Levi looks so confused. “Did I miss something? Are sloths a thing now?”

“You missed a lot about cute sloths,” Francesca insists. “But don’t worry. We’ll tell you everything. First, there’s this really cute baby sloth…” she says.

And Francesca gets comfortable, talking. Realizes that today with her friends was stressful, but it was also pretty great.

#fic: somewhere inside

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beautyindisguise00 · 6 years

Text

What were you doing at 9:30 last night?

Saturday night September 8, 2018 10:40pm

Tonight the last person you kissed calls you and tells you he wants you what do you say? “yeah babe, I want you too but are you drunk?” hahaha. he’s at his brother’s bachelor’s party this weekend and we haven’t talked in a while. I told him he can’t drunk call me. lol Who was the last person to drive you somewhere? uhhh, hard to recall since I drive myself everywhere all the time now but probably one of my siblings When was the last time you cried? a few days ago. after my boyfriend’s volleyball tournament. it was small but mostly an angry cry. hahaha Are you texting the last male you cuddled with? no, because he’s hanging out with the guys this weekend

When was the last time you totally broke down? when my grandma passed away.

If you could have one thing right now what would it be? money. Has a friendship ended recently that you wish had not? not really. Recently kissed anyone with the name starting with a L? hahaha. my boyfriend’s name is Lee so yes :) What will you be doing in the next 2 hours? watching tv to fall asleep What are you currently listening to? Mistresses

Are you angry with someone right now? nope Do you have any plans for the weekend? well it IS the weekend and my plans were to grocery shop and get things done with school and other things I was supposed to finish Has the last person you kissed ever took their shirt off in front of you? ohhh yeah Who were you with Friday? myself most of the night If the last person you kissed, saw you kissing someone else, would they be upset? beyond upset Are you missing someone? soooo much Do you believe your ex cares about you? probs not. not in a bad way Are you wearing jeans, shorts, sweatpants, or pajama pants? a sweater and panties. it’s almost time for bed Do you want to say something to someone? babe, I hope youre having fun and call me soon because I miss you! Anybody you’re looking forward to seeing soon? family and friends Have you ever read an entire book in one day? nope. haha can’t do that Was yesterday fun? eh How fast does your mood change? depends really. but not too fast Would you ever get in the passenger seat of a car with someone who’s been drinking? of course not Do you really, truly miss someone right now? I miss my boyfriend so much. I just want him to give me a call good night

Have you ever had an alcoholic beverage? yes Do you ever feel like you just HAVE to sing out loud? for certain songs - yes Have you ever watched RuPaul’s Drag Race? If yes, what makes it enjoyable? nope

Do you own a TV? If so, what do you watch on it? just bought my own tv; watch stuff on Netflix, hulu, and tv Do you have Netflix/ViaPlay/other similar online channel?: Netflix and hulu Have you ever watched Nostalgia Critic or Nostalgia Chick?: uh, I’ve never heard of it What is the strangest type of food you have eaten?: I don’t really like to eat strange food so I don’t know What is the strangest type of candy you have eaten?: nothing really What would be your most ideal profession?: wedding planner or teacher :) What kind of rides do you enjoy the most at amusement parks?: any that does not flip me upside down Have you tried those coloring books for adults?: nope What is a topic you definitely don’t want to talk about with anyone?: politics mainly because I am clueless about it all Someone is about to take your picture. How do you react? smile, pose or make a silly face Do you frequent any “funny pictures” site? If so, which one? uhm..nope. Do you wash your dishes by hand or do you have a dishwasher?: by hand. Do you ever get a chance to stay home alone? If not, why not? a few times Are you/have you ever been engaged? If not, would you like to be one day?: someday! :) Are you/have you ever been married? If not, would you like to be one day?: again, someday! What makes a person ugly?: A shitty personality. < Yep. <<< I agree. <<<<<lol this! What makes a person beautiful?: someone who’s just nice :) What is the craziest hairstyle and color you’ve had?: I don’t do anything crazy with my hair Is there a book that you are currently reading?: currently, no Do you prefer an actual book or ebooks? Why?: actual book! I like holding the book and turning actual pages What was your first gaming console? besides the ones my brothers had, I really wanted a wii Is there something you’re eagerly waiting for? What is it? being done with school Is there something you’d like to change about yourself? there’s a few things. Have you ever had a sunburn? Where on your body was it? nothing too bad. if anything, my nose Do you have or would you like to have a tattoo? If so, where? my cousins and I are thinking about getting a tat to remember our grandma What was the last present you gave someone? $100 Have you ever had a serious injury? nope, I’m very cautious especially when it comes to pain What’s under your bed?: boxes What is something you’ve been meaning to get done but haven’t yet?: studying for FORT Do you enjoy traveling? absolutely! Where do you carry the things you need with you when leaving the house?: my purse or backpack On a daily basis, do you prefer to go by car or by bicycle? Why? car because the places I travel to are far Do you know your ancestry? a little bit but it’s so confusing Which hair color would you never want to have? full blonde What has been the most beautiful place you’ve visited? cave point or clearwater beach

Where was the very first kiss you had with the last person you kissed? my freshman dorm room. on my bed :)

Are you texting anybody? I wish!

What were you doing at 9:30 last night? something naughty with my boyfriend before he left to hang out with the guys for the weekend

Are you listening to music right now? nope

Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos? my cousin texted me about getting tats for my grandma recently

Has anyone seen you kiss the last person you kissed? probably

Looking back, did you ever waste too much time on a someone that treated you badly? I don’t think I wasted too much time but it helped me learn about how I should really be treated my others

If your doctor told you TODAY that you were pregnant, what would you say? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?

Have you hugged someone within the last week? yes

Are you a couple with the last person you kissed on the lips? I am :)

What woke you up this morning? my alarm that I should have turned off.

What’s your relationship with the last person you texted? sister

Did you cry at all today? nope!

Will your next kiss be a mistake? most likely not

When is the next time you will kiss someone? probably in two weeks.

Are you older than the last person you kissed? nope

When is the last time you consumed alcohol? Monday night

What were you doing at midnight last night? watching tv

Have you ever been given flowers? yes

Can you honestly say that at this point in time you’re happy with the way things are? in a way, yes

What are you excited for? graduating in the spring

Did anyone call you babe/baby today, who? my boyfriend via text

Has anyone said they love you in the last week? the babe has

Last time you smiled? today

Would life be the same without alcohol? for sure

Ever had sex in the bathroom? nope

Who are you dating? my boyfriend

Who’s the last person you talked to about sex? uhhhh, Kassie, my coworker

Have you ever sat in the back of a police car? nope

Are you stubborn? ohhh yes

If you took a drug test right now, would you pass? for sure

Who was the last person to be on a bed with you? its been a while but my boyfriend

Do you tend to hold a grudge? not really

Who is the last person that pissed you off? don’t remember

What’s a fact about the last person that texted you? she’s really good at singing

Would you date someone who was addicted to drugs? no, I could not.

What was the last alcoholic beverage you drank? mike’s hard lemonade – strawberry lemonade and then I took some weird shot

Do you care if people hate you for no reason? yes

Who was the last person to play with your hair? probably carter, kid from work

Who was the last person you kissed on the cheek? kids from work

Would you ever get plastic surgery? nope

Have you ever had so much to drink that you still felt drunk when you woke? not too often

Is there currently anyone else in the room with you? nope, just me

Have you ever tried a weird flavor of vodka? salted caramel is pretty good

What is the wallpaper on your phone? my boyfriend and I in florida

Why did you call the last person you called? to talk to him – my boyfriend

How many windows are in the room you’re in? just one

Do you have Facebook friends that you’ve never actually met? nope

When was the last time you had your photo taken professionally? high school for cheer season

How far from your house is the nearest supermarket? like 5ish minutes

If you could wake up and speak any language fluently, what would it be? I took French in high school but I’d say Spanish

Can you count your number of serious relationships on one hand? yes

How about number of sexual partners? hahaha. I wouldn’t need my hands

Has anyone told you they missed you lately? yesterday

Was yesterday better than today? sure

This time last year, were you single? nope

Do any of your friends dislike each other? my boyfriend and best friend for a bit but now they’re good

What are you doing right now? re-watching mistresses

Have you ever liked someone but were afraid to tell them? all the time

What happened at 9:00AM today? I was on my phone

Do you have a best friend? my boyfriend

Are you scared to fall in love? I was

Do you think ex’s can remain friends? some, not all.

Are you one of those people that always answer their phones? if I know who’s calling then I usually answer

Hate it when you go over to someone’s house and do absolutely nothing? yes

Are you one of those people who gets jealous of boys/girls your current bf/gf dated? not too much but once in a while when we casually bring them up

Were you single for your last birthday? nope

Did you talk to the person you like today? for a little bit through text this morning

When was the last time you were in a car with someone besides family? friday, my roommates and I; we were going to noodles

What are you wearing on your feet? nothing

You can get a puppy or a new car. Which do you choose? oh my goodness! that’s had. but I’d say car for now because I don’t have time to take care of a puppy since I’m not home and I cant have pets in my apartment

Is it easy to make you cry? sometimes

Think back to August, were you in a relationship? yes

Any drama in your life right now? nope

Did you sleep alone last night? I did

When was the last time you received flowers? What were they for? uhm……my boyfriend came to visit

Have you ever been physically or mentally abused? How did it effect you? nope

Do you consider yourself a vengeful person? If so, why’d you think that is? nope. I’m learning to let go

What one quality do you have that you are proud of? I’m a good listener

When have you felt the most proud of yourself? For what reason? chasing one of my dreams for the second time but handling myself when I didn’t achieve it

Have you ever had a near death experience? If so, how did it feel? I’ve been in one car accident before but I wasn’t that bad.

#beautyindisguise00 #gettoknowme #q&a #questions

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some-rfa-imagines · 7 years

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Hello meow~ What are your HC'S on how Seven would react if while he was pushing MC away and stuff in the apartment, MC got an anxiety attack? Like it just reminds her of things that happened in her past and she gets stressed and just ends up in tears. Thank you!

hi hi meow~! (ฅ'ω'ฅ) You’re both very welcome! I’m super excited to write this.

I hope it’s okay that I mix these two? If you want me to re-write, don’t be afraid to tell me! This will be based mid-seven’s route so spoilers but for writings sake let’s say he had to go home, for some reason, at some point, somehow, after making sure MC is okay?? Unknown isn’t taking the opportunity for some reason,,, must’ve found some ice cream or something.

I made it a oneshot just because I found it a little easier to merge the two. Kitsuneoftheorganization, if you’d like the HDCs anyway, just tell me and I’ll write them for you!

And anon I totally get you, I’ve been craving angst and emotional wreckage for the past couple days too. Sorry it took so long >

MILD SPOILER WARNING AND ANXIETY ATTACK/BREAKDOWN WARNING

READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

Oh, little mid-writing note: MC’s breakdown/anxiety attack is loosely based off of what I, myself, have experienced. Please do not come telling me what is and isn’t right - these attacks are different for everyone and they can be treated differently for everyone. Seven only reacts the way that I know for a fact can help (as in, the way that helps me). I don’t want anything to be untrue so I’m sticking to what I know. Okay, continue~

Luciel was unfocused. He had had to return to his house for work reasons. Since he didn’t want MC to worry, he upped and left while she was out grocery shopping. It had been a few days since then and in between working for the agency and tracing/attacking the hacker, he’d been skilfully avoiding MC entirely.

Okay, so he knew it was a bad idea, but what was he supposed to do?! He sure as hell wasn’t getting her caught up in all of his chaos again. He was keeping an eye on the CCTV so that should be fine… right?

Speaking of which, he glanced at the clock quickly. 5:23AM. She wouldn’t be awake, right? It should be fine if he checked quickly, right? Swiftly he swapped his monitor screen over to the Security Necessities, Apartments K200-250 and Elevator CCTV (helpfully abbreviated for the sake of you, MC, to SNAKE.TV) screen, the CCTV that allowed him to keep an eye on MC. He flipped through the cameras quickly, noticing the door to her bedroom was open, letting him see into the room slightly. It was empty, blankets messy on the bed and lightless.

Eyes narrowing, he switched through the cameras until he came across the living room and kitchen camera. There he saw MC pacing along the tiles and wooden floor boards. She was checking her phone every two seconds, fidgeting and squeezing her eyes tight every other. She tugged at her lip forcefully with her teeth, tearing into the soft skin and drawing blood. He closed his gold eyes for a moment clenching his hands into fists on the desk. He didn’t want this. Mentally shaking his head, he continued to watch the CCTV.

Meanwhile, over at Rika’s apartment MC was… exhausted. She was stressed, she was tired, she was anxious and she was mad. She was livid beyond belief. Seven, after promising to “be her guardian angel” or something, had abandoned her then ignored her for the past four days! In the chatroom, in texts, in phone calls, even through CCTV! She could swear she saw the cameras face away every time she even so glanced at them.

And so, she threw a vase. It was a cheap little thing she’d bought from some department store just to lighten up the room a little bit. It was filled with yellow carnations and water so as it smashed on the kitchen tile, it soaked through her socks. Shards of glass cut through the bright blooms. She stood there for a moment, watching the cold water seep through the cracks in the tile and the threads in her socks. Goosebumps rose on her arms, the chill of the tiles and the bite of morning air running their frozen fingertips along her feet and neck.

Now, you’d think that such an experience would shake someone out of it but really all it did for her was send her further into her distressed state. She spun around, eyes glazed over and with a quick swipe of her arm, she shoved all of her paperwork off of the table. Her jacket was soon after swiped off the back of a chair and flung into the wall, shaking a picture of her parents that hung in it’s way.

“Stupid Luciel! You fucking coward! You’re such an asshole!” She shrieked, tears cascading down her face. Pillows were torn off the couch, a chair kicked across the room, all of her notices and reminders were torn off the fridge along with the magnets that held them. MC carelessly slammed a lamp into the opposite wall, watching with ragged breath as it shattered, sparking before sliding across the floor, cracked pieces glinting in the dim light.

“I hate you Luciel!”

She turned and grabbed the nearest thing, a picture frame on the breakfast bar. Her tear-filled eyes blurred out the faces in the frame and her anger blurred out her sense of judgement. In one swift motion, she tossed the frame haphazardly to the ground. The glass broke. The picture began soaking up the water from the carnations. MC’s eyes widened. Snapping out of her thoughtless rage, she collapsed to her knees, picking up the photo.

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” She rushed to grab a handful of tissues, trying to salvage the photo as best she could. “Oh, god, what have I done…” She whimpered. Her numb fingers dropped the photo and the tissues. With the photograph and tissues now on the bench, she sank back down to the cold tile, pulling her legs up to her chest. From there, she sat in silence, her head buried in her knees. The ticking of the clock filled the emptiness and MC tried to make herself smaller as it went on. Her head pounded painfully and she just wanted to disappear.

“Luciel, why…?”

Luciel ran as fast as he could, steadily approaching the tall apartment complex. Mentally, he thanked the agency for pushing him through years of physical training. The colours of dawn broke out across the sky. Soft pink, orange and blue hues spread throughout the vast expanse and lit up the world around him.

He rushed into the lobby, passing the reception and going straight to the elevators. In his arms, he held nothing but his phone and a tub of ice cream. The elevator doors slid open and he ducked inside, pressing the little glowing ‘14′ and tapping his feet impatiently.

“Without you, I feel broke, like I’m half of a whole. Without you, I’ve got no hand to hold. Without you, I feel torn, like a sail in a storm. Without you, I’m just a sad song…” He became acutely aware of the elevator music, which honestly seemed pretty appropriate for the current situation.

All too slowly, the elevator dinged and he stepped out. Following the empty corridor, he found the apartment, quickly pressing in the code and pushing open the door. It was almost completely black, only the slightest signs of the sunrise peeking through the curtains. Still, he could see the faint outline of MC, huddled against the breakfast bar.

“Oh, MC…” He whispered, quietly shutting the door and stepping toward her. She stiffened, looking up slowly. “MC, I’m so sorry…” She shuffled away from him slightly and he stopped.

“W-Why…?”

He ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t know, really. “I- I was scared. I guess. I, uh, well, I need to follow the rules of the game. I… I think I’m just scared of what route you’re trying to take.” His eyes flickered over to the photograph on the bench top. It was a bunch of smaller photos, collaged together. He could clearly see a selfie of the two of them in the middle. The first time that she took his route. She followed his gaze to above her as tears welled back up in her eyes.

Tucking her face back into her knees, she spoke softly. “Saeyoung, I didn’t mean- I- I didn’t-” her voice cracked. “I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean it…”

Luciel looked back at her and his eyes softened. “Hey, MC…” her sobs and hiccups broke through the silence. He moved toward her again, sliding down the wall and sitting next to her. “I- I know. I know MC. I know… It’s okay. It’s all okay.”

“B-But I- I- I- I- I was only, I- I was only trying to, I was only trying to get it- get it once- I h- hurt you…”

Luciel smiled weakly and took her hand in his. “Nah, I’m only code and binary numbers, remember?” He slowly drew circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. Her face emerged, tear streaked and red from crying. “Oh, love..” Saeyoung opened his arms and she leapt into them, tightly wrapping her own around his torso. She buried her face into his chest her body wracking with harsh sobs once more.

“I- I’m so- I’m so sorry…”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s okay. Cry as much as you want. We have all the time in the world,” Luciel whispered soothingly, stroking her hair.

They sat like that for a while, the area around them slowly lighting up with the coming of day. Eventually, he felt MC relax in his arms and he pulled away slightly, looking at her face. Her eyes lay closed and her breathing had evened out. She finally looked peaceful. Smiling gently down at her, he shifted her into his arms. Standing, he carried her into the bedroom and lay her gently on the bed. He brushed a few stray hairs from her face and kissed her forehead gently.

“I love you so much MC. Never forget that. And I’m so, unconditionally sorry.” He walked out of the bedroom, sighing to himself as he put the (now melted) ice cream tub into the fridge. Checking his phone, he saw a chatroom notification. Yoosung complaining about a test that day? He suspected as much.

“Saey…” He looked up at the sound. What? Peering into the bedroom, he saw MC drowsily looking at him. “Saeyoung… could you please… I mean… could you please stay…?” She mumbled. Saeyoung smiled lightly.

“Of course.”

Sorry I had to end on a nice note. I just love him so much and I think I’m not good at ending angsty things on an angsty note. Oh well.

Bye bye! *poof*

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clockworksteel · 6 years

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In my post on goals, I mentioned that I started reading Mr. Money Mustache (which apparently started on Sept 21) and actually made some changes as a result. I thought I'd take this time to go over the results of that, as well as document my current monthly spending (averaged based on the last 3 months).

To briefly explain what Mr. Money Mustache is, it's a blog aimed mostly at the middle class on the subject of early retirement, with a focus on frugality rather than on making even more money. He advocates limiting car use (including not only biking to work, but using a bike trailer for groceries), doing your own housework as much as possible (including repairs), avoiding buying junk you don't need, and watching the price on the things you do, as well as investing the saved money. I'd specifically gone looking for early retirement advice for some reason, and have started dreaming of retiring at 40 instead of my original target of 60, which I thought was already pretty good. I feel like I'm implementing his advice pretty slowly, but here's what I can identify clearly happened or was at least partially motivated as a result of reading the blog.

Installed my own handtowel holder (also partially attributed to my New Year's goal, but I definitely felt extra encouragement from the blog, such as perhaps from http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/09/13/domestic-outsourcing-practical-or-wussypants/

Bought a large container of rolled oats and started sometimes having oatmeal for breakfast instead of toast. Also started paying more attention to prices at the grocery store, resulting in buying store brand bread and getting containers of unsalted peanuts for snacks instead of cashews. Also started buying bags of real apples instead of only applesauce. (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/03/29/killing-your-1000-grocery-bill/ and http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/08/23/grocery-shopping-with-your-middle-finger/ although for best results I should really find a store that sells lots of things in bulk rather than doing all my grocery shopping at Wal-Mart)

Bought some weights for the house, which my workplace even paid for with the wellness reiumbursement program (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/05/17/get-rich-with-olympic-barbells/ is relevant, although mine is a small set with 3lb, 5lb, and 8lb free weights, because I'm fairly wimpy: maybe next year I'll go for the olympic barbells)

Reduced my monthly contribution to emergency savings in favor of investing more (Haven't fully implemented the ideas, but http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/04/22/springy-debt-instead-of-a-cash-cushion/)

Bought a hair clipper and cut my own hair (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/05/30/get-rich-with-the-universal-mens-grooming-device/)

Signed up for Mint.com because I'd stopped actually tracking my own expenses around late 2016 (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/12/12/watching-your-stash-with-mint/)

Accepted Azure's preferred temperature of 62 F as the standard temperature for the house after it got colder, except on Saturdays, where I get an extra 2 degrees (http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/11/18/first-understand-then-destroy-your-home-heating-bill/)

Convinced a lower income friend to let me just pay off their credit card debt, since I was indirectly paying it off anyway as part of monthly assistance payments I'd started giving them when they were regularly going hungry due to money trouble. This money came from my too-large-anyway emergency savings. (related to http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/04/18/news-flash-your-debt-is-an-emergency/ and http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/11/11/get-rich-with-the-position-of-strength/ although I might be distorting the concepts a bit)

...I think that's everything. I already walked to work before starting to read MMM so I can't exactly count that. But anyway, I promised a record of my average monthly spending too. In order to hide my income a bit, this will only literally be spending: not investing or saving. I'm also excluding the optional portion of my house payment that's being done to pay it off faster, because that's more like investing, and paying off the one friend's credit card due to how super unusual that expense was (and it being more like an investment to me). Also the 3 month period used to take an average for this was Sept 11 to Dec 10 (inclusive) and did not include any Christmas shopping (because I hadn't done any by that point in time). So yeah, here are my expenses for my household of two people:

Grocery shopping (including anything spent at Wal-Mart even if it wasn't food): 438.36 Restaurants and pizza deliveries: 46.18 Mandatory amount for house payments, including $417.27 of property tax: 880.39 Car payment: 365.14 (my past self, of course, deserves a friendly punch in the face for buying a new car, but the interest rate is lower than on the house so it just gets minimum payments) Car insurance: 89.75 (technically paid yearly to save money and wasn't within the last 3 months, but needs to be kept in mind) Gasoline: 18.53 Phone: 60.18 Internet: 124.84 (this will be coming down soon to $97.43 due to removing services and buying my own modem instead of renting) Natural Gas: 12.77 (11.75 is the base charge, and we only heated at all in one month: this'll be bigger the next few months. Hot water is electric though.) Electricity: 181.89 Water + Sewer + Trash: 53.12 (it's all one bill, charged quarterly) Entertainment: 64.58 Money given to friends: 143.33 (ongoing months will have this number at 100) Cost of benefits from work: 80.76 (pretax money which includes health insurance, a dental plan, and a vision plan) Other: 193.49

Total: 2753.31 Total if all debts were paid off and with expected reductions noted above: 1854.31 (I was curious what things will fall to “automatically”)

"Other" for the three month period includes:

My new modem (which at 190.79 contributed 63.60 to that average all on its own, nearly a third of the whole category, and it'll save money in the long run hopefully)

Some tools (hammer, level, stud finder, hedge clippers)

Cooking related things (cheesecloth, rolling pin, bamboo steamer)

Assorted small items that happened to not be picked up at Wal-Mart (Pads, gloves, rubber bands, anti-itch gel, kleenex, erasers, toilet paper, freezer bags)

Batteries for smoke alarms

A hair trimmer

A new handtowel holder

An electric fly swatter

Disposable gloves for handling food

A hand vacuum

Amazon prime membership (charged yearly, but I adjusted it as if it was monthly, since I did the same for car insurance, which wasn't charged in the last 3 months)

A sketchbook (I think Azure gave me money for this, so it may be a little weird to have it in my spending, and the same goes for the erasers)

Patreon payments

Places to focus on reductions for in the future:

May want to switch to a prepaid phone plan for myself and Azure: we don't use phones much at all

Can probably negotiate lower car insurance since I drive so few miles, especially after the car is paid off (which it will be in Mar 2019 on current pace)

Entertainment spending can certainly be lower: Switch games are expensive. Even if I play the same amount of video games, humble bundle/store, Steam, GoG, and itch.io would be more efficient than how I've been the past few months.

I intend to learn how to cook the foods Azure normally prepares so that if they don't feel like making a thing sometimes we don't have to default back to pizza

I've started replacing bulbs with LEDs

Faster showers or a low flow showerhead might help with electricity costs (and a little with water): I bet hot water is a subtantial amount of that cost. Insulating pipes might also be sensible if they need it.

Considering dropping my vision plan from work for a few years: I haven't actually gone in for a checkup with it yet, out of nearly 6 years of having it. I think I need an appointment soon (and maybe have for a couple years), so I should make sure to actually use it once, then not renew it.

Although I'm not really in charge of dinner or Azure's breakfast/lunch/snacks, so I don't have influence over a large portion of food costs, I could try to optimize my lunches better: I've only really tried with breakfast so far. Perhaps after I learn Azure's recipes to reduce ordering out, I can learn some of MMM's recipes and take over an evening or two.

Known increases in the future:

I'd like to get Azure some health insurance while they’re still living here

When I retire, my health insurance will cost more because no company will be subsidizing it

Although I'd like to say the "other" category will be going down, I'm buying an air conditioner next year. It might help summer electricity costs since it'll be replacing a window unit that I tried cooling more than a small area with by using some fans

There is likely a cat in my future

So yeah, hopefully by continuing to cut spending and getting additional raises at work I can cut years off of my working career. After that, I'm likely to take up streaming on twitch and/or trying to make a game as hobbies.

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vincentpennington · 5 years

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Holiday Gift Guide 2019

It’s that time of year again, when I share some of my favorite things in this 2019 Holiday Gift Guide! As in years past, I recommend only items that I have personally purchased myself and truly love. You won’t find ugly sweaters or any junk that won’t stand the test of time. In fact, some of these items are holdovers from previous holiday gift guides because I think they’re well-made, well-tested, and will bring joy for many years to come!

Gifts to help you sleep

Good sleep is the ultimate gift! And as a recovering nightshift worker, it’s the one thing I prioritize above all other aspects in my life. Every night, my aim is to get high quality sleep in a dark, cool room for at least 7 to 8 hours—and I’ve personally tested a bunch of handy aids that help me achieve the maximum in high quality sleep!

Oura Ring

I LOVE my Oura ring and won’t stop telling everyone how great it is! It’s hands-down the best sleep and activity tracker on the market, and every morning I synch it with my app to assess my readiness for the day. Yes, I have a subjective sense of how I feel in the morning, but as a natural-born rule follower, I crave objective data to nudge my sleep-promoting behaviors in the right direction. For example, if my Oura ring tells me my readiness level is high I’ll make an effort to go the gym even if I’m feeling lazy. Conversely, if Oura says my readiness is low due to poor sleep or an elevated body temperature, I’ll opt for a brisk walk instead of going balls-to-the-wall at the gym. My Oura offers up all sorts of data to help me figure out how to optimize my sleep—and it looks pretty slick, too! Get one here.

Luna Weighted Blanket

I bought a Luna weighted blanket earlier this year, and it has been one of my favorite additions to my bedtime routine. It feels like I’m getting a cozy hug all night! The heaviness of this particular blanket is perfectly balanced; unlike some other weighted blankets, the heavy parts don’t end up migrating to one side or corner, leaving the blanket lopsided. Truth be told, it took me a couple of sleeps to get used to it, but now I can’t sleep without it. We now have weighted blankets on every bed in the house! Get the one here.

’Lectrofan White Noise Sound Machine

When I was a nightshift worker, I wore earplugs to block out all sounds when I slept during the day. However, they didn’t work well because ear plugs often fall out, feel uncomfortable, or fail to block out sharp, abrupt noises.

Nowadays, I use the opposite tactic to help me sleep—a ’Lectrofan white noise machine. The constant fan-like sound lulls me to sleep and masks outside noise and disturbances. I pack it with me whenever I travel, and it definitely drowns out big city sounds and adds a relaxing hum that helps me drift off to slumberland. Get one here.

Tempur-Pedic Eye Mask

I have been a happy owner of a Tempur-Pedic eye mask for many, many years. I’ve tried plenty of other highly-recommended eye masks, but for me, none of them have worked as well at blocking out light and not squashing my eyeballs into my skull. I’ve purchased quite a few of these eye masks, though the only reason I’ve had to replace them is because I keep accidentally leaving them in hotel beds. Get one here.

Need more items to help with your sleep? Here’s a list of other items that help me catch my zzzs.

My Favorite Kitchen Gear

I’m keeping my kitchen gear gift recommendations short and sweet this year—mostly because these four items will level up everyone’s cooking for many years to come.

Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus (6-quart)

I know there are a bazillion variations of the Instant Pot, but this newest model is the one you should buy for your pals—and yourself! The new Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus is an improvement on and evolution of my two favorite models, the Ultra and Duo Plus.

Why is the Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus the best model to buy?

Improved venting for quick pressure release!

The inner pot now has stay-cool handles to make it easier to remove!

The inner pot has a flat bottom for better browning AND you can use it on other cooktops!

An easier interface for programming the Instant Pot and a digital display!

Want other options? Click here are my four favorite Instant Pot models ranked in order. But as I said, my number one pick is the Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus, and you can get one here.

Thermapen Mk4

The super-accurate, quick-reading instant read Thermapen Mk4 thermometer has been my trusty companion in the kitchen for a few years! Plus, it’ll be be marked down 25% for Black Friday starting 11/27/19. Get one here.

Chef’s Choice 15 Trizor XV EdgeSelect Electric Knife Sharpener

There’s nothing that helps a cook better in the kitchen than a sharp knife. I have my own favorite chef’s knife, but I can’t tell you which one’s best for you; to see how they feel in your hand, you really need to personally test out knives yourself. But once you pick out the perfect knife, you’ll need to keep it sharp and the Chef’s Choice 15 Trizor XV sharpener is fantastic and super easy to use. Get one here.

Magic Mushroom Powder

Magic Mushroom Powder is my go-to all-purpose seasoning that makes everything taste better! Use it in place of salt in all of your favorite recipes and everyone will compliment you on your culinary creations. But don’t just take my word for it: Dylan Dreyer, an anchor on the Today Show, proclaimed our Magic Mushroom Powder as her favorite food seasoning!

You can buy cute tins of Magic Mushroom Powder nationwide at a Whole Foods Market near you or make it yourself by following this recipe!

Want to see what other kitchen gear I stock in my kitchen and pantry? Go here to check out all of my recommendations!

Fun Gifts For Active Folks

Got a pal who loves traveling or getting their fitness on? These items may just put a spring in their step (literally)!

Bellicon Classic 44” Exercise Trampoline

I recently splurged on a Bellicon indoor mini trampoline/rebounder and my whole family has the best time jumping on it throughout the day. It’s definitely the priciest rebounder on the market—I waited a whole year before I bit the bullet—but I haven’t regretted the purchase. I bought a 44-inch Bellicon because I wanted a low impact, high energy workout I could squeeze in at home between sessions of tapping on my laptop. I literally jump on the rebounder for a few minutes every hour to get my heart pumping and to put a big goofy grin on my face. Get one here.

DJI Mobile 3

If (like me!) you use your mobile phone to shoot a lot of video, you’ll love the DJI Mobile 3. This lightweight portable and foldable gimbal is great for stabilizing your phone—no vibrations or shakiness! Good luck prying it out of your kids’ hands after they discover how it’ll level up their home videos! Get one here.

AfterShokz Aeropex Open-Ear Wireless Bone Conduction Headphones

Earbuds just don’t fit in my weirdly shaped earholes properly, and I’ve always had a difficult time finding the right pair. But then, I got these bone conduction headphones where the sound is conducted through your cheekbones—leaving your earholes open. YES, YOU HEARD ME RIGHT! Plus, they’re super cool, lightweight, and I can still hear traffic (or my kids) while I’m listening to my favorite podcast. Get one here.

Body Back Buddy Trigger Point Massager

When I suffered from frozen shoulder last year, one of the items that made me feel better was this self-massager. It’s cheap and effective, and I use it to press out any tight muscles on my shoulders, back, and neck. Small victories, man. Get one here.

Favorite Books and Cookbooks

Our family loves books and cookbooks. If you love food and/or laughs, these books will fit the bill!

Nom Nom Paleo Cookbooks & iOS app!

I know I’m biased, but my favorite cookbooks of all time are the ones that Henry and I created. I love them SO MUCH, and we think it’ll help your whole family learn how to cook and find shortcuts to deliciousness!

Click on the links below to buy:

Nom Nom Paleo: Food For Humans

Ready or Not! 150+ Make-Ahead, Make-Over, and Make-Now recipes from Nom Nom Paleo

Nom Nom Paleo iOS app* (2014 and 2019 Webby Award winner!)

*If you got a new iPhone and the app is acting funky or missing recipes, simply delete the app from your device and download it again for free!

¡Estás Listo O No! (Spanish version of Ready or Not!)

Psst! If you want to gift (for others or yourself) the Spanish version of Ready or Not!, ¡Estás Listo O No!, you can buy it by clicking here! You can also get it with free worldwide shipping, by clicking here.

Dear Girls by Ali Wong

I am a HUGE fan of the brilliant, gut-bustingly funny, and downright filthy Ali Wong. Her new book is a collection of letters to her two daughters, and each one is hilarious, touching, and illuminating. Get it here.

No Crumbs Left by Teri Turner

My buddy Teri Turner is an inspiration inside and outside of the kitchen. Her debut cookbook, No Crumbs Left, is filled with incredible heart and amazing recipes! Get it here.

The Vibrant Life by Amanda Haas

My friend Amanda Haas is the coolest. Not only is she an amazing cook, mother, and entrepreneur—she just published a fab book that helps women live their best life. Amanda’s book has amazing gluten-free recipes and tons of tips she’s mined from her expert pals on everything from the healing powers of yoga, acupuncture, meditation, humor, and even sex! Get it here.

Vietnamese Food Any Day by Andrea Nguyen

Andrea Nguyen is the queen of South East Asian cooking, and her latest cookbook teaches you how to make delicious Vietnamese food with staples you can find at your neighborhood grocery store. This is not a gluten-free cookbook, but many dishes are adaptable! Get it here.

Looking for more gift ideas?

Check out my Amazon shopping page here filled with all my favorite things!

Previous holiday gift guides from 2018, 2017, and 2016!

Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013) and Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017)!

The post Holiday Gift Guide 2019 appeared first on Nom Nom Paleo®.

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thewitchandthebeasthimself · 7 years

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The Witch and The Beast Himself: Chapter 16

On my way to the store, the walk I took in the cool, relaxing evening made me take interest in everything going on around me. I really noticed the people passing by on the sidewalk, the cars going in the opposite direction that i was facing, and giant screens on the colorful, tall buildings covering the news. It's so weird how this place is vastly different than what I'm used to in Salem, but I've somehow already gotten used to it.

Is that what Anri meant when she said being here would begin to feel normal?

Once I made it to the store, I shopped around for things that I needed to get for the apartment such as paper towels, toilet paper, laundry detergent, etc. I thought about calling Erika and the others for a ride back, but I decided against it since I was only going to be getting one bag of groceries, plus I could take advantage of the exercise.

Something felt strange about this trip; it's almost as if someone is watching me? All through the shop, I stood in place for a second to see if I could sense any familiar energies, but once I thought I could feel one, the sensation vanished.

At the checkout lane, I put everything I needed in front of the cashier before feeling the obscure energy near me again.

Wha-- who is that? I thought as the impalpable energy fluctuated in and out of my senses. I looked in both directions to see if the energy would move closer to me or further. It’s definitely not the energy of a spirit. It feels… oddly familiar? What is it?

“Excuse me?” The cashier brought my attention back to her, who had finished scanning my groceries quicker than expected. “That’ll be 1500 yen.”

I turned back to her, embarrassed that I let my senses get the better of me in the moment.

“Okay,” I dug my wallet out of my purse and paid the amount by cash. She stuffed my receipt in a brown paper bag along with my groceries, lifted up the groceries from the bottom and handed the whole bag to me, which i took from her the same way. She nodded and thanked me for shopping there, to which I nodded back and walked out of the store.

Upon leaving the store, I turned left and walked down the street to my apartment. The energy became more vibrant as I walked down the street, still mysterious as ever. I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk holding my bag of groceries in both hands to see what the owner of this energy would do. As the energy came closer, it finally occurred to me that the owner of this energy was Manami. I can only assume that her energy is different this time because her intentions with me are different, and the only way to get my attention would be to stop me directly. I turned around to find her walking up to me, her hands gripping the straps of the pink backpack that was over her shoulders.

“Oh hey Manami, what are you doing here?” I asked, greeting her with a small smile.

She smiled back, despite her energy telling me that this smile was for show. “I was actually looking for you! Would you mind to come with me for a second? I want to talk to you.”

“Umm, how about I just give you my number?” I asked, politely dismissing her proposal to follow her. I saw no reason to trust her guidance. “I just bought groceries and I need to get them home.”

“I can see that, but it’ll only take a second.” She said rather cheerfully, keeping the act up.

I sighed, briefly pinching the bridge of my nose and mentally preparing myself for whatever this dangerous girl had in store for me, “Okay fine, but I need to go soon.”

“Don't worry, I promise I'll make it quick, just follow me.” She said as she turned around and walked the opposite direction. I followed behind her, adjusting my grip on my groceries. This was clearly a bad idea, but I did have unanswered questions that needed to be addressed. As I crossed the street with her, I sensed that she was leading me to the alleyway that stretched far off into the other side. I sensed the familiar sinister energy of… Blood Diamonds?

Could she really be working for Izaya? It was hard to say for sure, considering the hateful feelings she had towards him, but I really wanted to give her the benefit of a doubt.

“What is your obsession with alleyways?” I asked as we crossed the street.

“None really,” she replied, slowly losing her sincerity on the surface. “It's where I like to talk business.”

“I don't have any business with you.” I said.

Oh yes you do, her resentment towards me was so strong that I was able to hear this crystal clear, unspoken thought as if it were my own. I continued to brace myself for whatever was coming.

Once we reached the alley, she fell behind me to check if anyone was coming. I quickly spun around as I felt the sudden intention of killing me cross her mind. The energy I associated Blood Diamond members became stronger as I walked further into the alley. Once she turned around, she waved her hand high over her head past me, as if she were signaling to someone behind me. Sure enough, the energy appeared the turn hostile as it swooped in behind me; I quickly perceived that whoever she was signaling to was waiting in the shadows to grab me. I took a deep breath in, and imagined myself in a small, strong bubble that could only cover me. On the exhale, I let my bag of groceries drop to the ground I allowed this image to manifest around me, the energies that approached me crashing into it. I turned to the left to find four men wearing red shirts, groaning as scrambled to their feet.

She really works for him! I thought as I stared in shock at the men behind me. I turned my attention back to Manami, who stared at me with a confused expression, but managed to keep her composure.

“No wonder he suddenly likes you so much,” she scoffed. “You're some kind of 'super-natural'. He hates them, but he sure loves destroying their lives.”

“That doesn’t matter right now,” I spat, strengthening the bubble around me. “If we’re gonna talk, I will be talking from this bubble until all of you leave. So what was it that you wanted to talk about? Business?” I asked, referring to her mention earlier.

She sighed, accepting the fact whatever laid before her was reality and what she had planned for me would now be ineffective. She waved her hand above her head again to signal to her group of Blood Diamonds, as if to shoo them off. As they walked past us and out of the entrance, some of them gave me suspicious looks as they walked past, their blended thoughts mixing into my own consciousness. I ignored them as I listened to her speak again, " I just wanted to know what kind of work you were doing for Izaya Orihara and why.”

“I’m not working for that psychopath and I never will,” I said. “I thought it was you working for him? Don’t you have some of his gang with you?”

“I still do,” she admitted. “But he screwed Rio and I out of luck, so I decided to stick to my original plan to exploit him for who he really is.”

“And who is he exactly?”

“I'm sure you have an idea, since he stabbed you,” she held her hand out to gesture my stab mark for proof. “Izaya is a psychotic, ruthless killer. He's very indirect with his methods, but with the right, sultry words, he has the capability to push people into certain things, such as the idea that killing themselves would make this world a better place. Rio and I were victims of that. A lot has happened since, such as dating Rio and agreeing to work with him to seek that he finally ate his own words. But he hasn't and he took over a project that belongs to me. So at this point, I want to bring him into the light and reveal to Tokyo that he is responsible for the suicide of twelve girls, who had taken their own lives because of his influence.”

“Twelve?!” I repeated, putting my hands over my mouth in horror. I pictured him in my mind, remembering the last few moments of his actions towards me. “Shit, I… I had no idea it was that bad. I suspected that he was a killer.”

“Well now you know, and you're gonna help me with this.” she said. She crossed her arms and added a stern tone in her voice “I noticed that he was weirdly fascinated with you so I decided to find you myself, but you exposed yourself to us instead that day.”

“Both of your energies were strongly connected to him.” I said. "It was strange."

“And now you know why. Now that that I've filled you in, would you be willing to help us out?”

“What's in it for me?”

"I'm a lot less itching to murder you for spying on us.”

“That's ridiculous," I replied, taking her idea of their relationship as being too obsessive.

“Think of it this way,” she said. “You spied on us while we were spending time together, and we already have to put up with enough of his crap. You can make up for that by helping us out.”

Didn't she just want to kill me for following her? I thought. What made her change her mind? Was it because I showed off some of my power?

“Okay, fine,” I said. “I'll do it. But we should make a truce, or something. I don't wanna feel paranoid when you're around.”

“As long as you stay out of my private life, you'll have nothing to worry about.”

“Okay, then it's a deal.” I said, releasing the bubble around me.

“Making deals with the witch now, Manami?” an abrupt, familiar voice chimed in from behind her. She turned around, prompting me to look past her to see who it was.

It had been a couple of days since I seen him last; I watched in silence as the man who tried to kill me swung around from the side of the building to rest his elbow on Manami’s shoulder. Cunning as ever, he glared at me with the same malicious smile, as if he'd just dropped in on something he didn't want to miss. His strong energy that is exclusive to him seemed to pulse through the whole alley as he made his appearance, causing me to wince and instantly relive the day he almost took my life.

Manami smacked his arm away, making him laugh and spin in a circle. “You know you were supposed to look for a chance to destroy her, right? But instead you rummaged through my files for her information.”

“Fuck off,” Manami growled, drawing her tiny flick blade and slowly stepping back towards me.

Izaya laughed maniacally, with a small sense of playfulness. “What a shame. Once again, I’ve taken you under my wing and this is how you repay me? By stealing important information from me, then arranging a plan with the witch against me? It's like I don't even know you anymore! What did our mutual friendship mean nothing to you?"

“Don't talk to me like that, creep! Nothing I've done to you could even COMPARE to the pain you've put me through since I've met you!" She yelled, standing on her tip toes to be at his level of vision. "First you try to kill me, then you take something of mine that I built from the ground up?! Well I have news for you. I know what you've done, and I've finally got you figured out. You're much worse than I thought. You're a killer, and I am going to prove it. You will be sentenced to something much worse than death, and I'm gonna be there for the day that I get to see you rot like the scumbag you are. I will make you regret EVER crossing paths with me!”

I turned to Izaya, who laughed again, “You need to let that anger go. Do you know how belligerent you sound right now? Even if that were true, and even with the information you stole, you'll never be able to prove it.” he leaned in closer to her face and tilted her chin up with his forefinger, his face still plastered with that malicious smile. She lowered the knife in her hand, letting it dangle at her side as he inched closer to her face. Nearly whispering, he said, “In fact, you're still as weak to me as the day you tried to kill me in the hospital. You are, and will always be, inferior to me.”

He took his finger off of her chin and backed away, grunting in approval and crossing his arms as if to admire his handiwork. She hung her head, with a shook, terrified expression on her face. I could sense that not only did she feel humiliated by him, but she felt defeated by his words. And he was enjoying it.

I took a deep breath in, imagining the anger I personally felt towards him, allowing flaming, hot fire to energetically manifest inside me. On the exhale, I formed a fireball in one hand, and began walking towards him. I stopped a few inches from him to keep my distance.

He turned his attention to me, taking note of my motives.

“You've already tried that magic trick on me and it didn't work out for you.” he said, noticing the fireball in my hand. As ready as I was to throw my fireball at him, I decided that I didn't want to make anymore of a scene than what was already happening. I stopped, letting the fire go out.

He let out a small chuckle, saying, “I knew you didn't have it in you. Well I'm done here, don't even think about returning to my office later, Manami. Au revoir. ” he said as he turned on one heel and walked away, leaving her with her head hung. She let the blade fall out of her hand and clink on the ground as she dropped to her knees and buried hed face into her hands.

My anger vanished as I looked at her, thinking of anything I could possibly do to help out. I understood how she felt all too well.

“Hey…” I started, beginning to put a hand on her shoulder.

“Don't.” she said, looking up at me. I stopped, then let my hand fall to the side.

“He'll pay for all of this some way or another." she said. "And I don't know how the hell you did all of that, but I know that i still need you on my side. So are you really willing to help me or not?”

“I told you I would.” I said, not giving it a second thought. Although i had more questions for her, I felt like I fully understood the circumstances of our new acquaintance and that our motives are now in synergy.

“Great, I'll be in touch.” she said, picking up her blade off the ground. She stood up, put the blade in her pocket and pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket. She handed it to me, then shoved her hands in the pocket of her hoodie, turning and walking out of the entrance of the alley. I unfolded the piece of paper then took my phone out of my pocket to save her number. Finally, I looked up as I thought back to something…

I’ll be in touch? How could she do that if she didn’t take my number, but gave me hers instead? Oh wait… she was working for Izaya… Jeez, what have I gotten myself into this time? I'll still do it but if this “business” is going to work, she's going to have to stay true to her word.

Picking up my bag of groceries, I walked out of the alleyway to my apartment, thinking about my interaction with Manami and Izaya, relieved that nobody was harmed. I was also relieved that it went so well despite the circumstances, but I'm now working with someone that I still have suspicions of. I guess the only thing I can do in this position is work cooperatively with her and hope for the best.

#durarara #shizuo heiwajima #durarara shizuo #izaya orihara #izaya durarara #shizuo x reader #x reader #durarara fanfiction #fanfic #durarara fanfic

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briennejamie · 7 years

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I’ve decided to drown myself in Evak and the boy squad writing to make myself feel better and since SKAM is on hiatus so here’s a little plot that has been floating around in my head for the past couple of days :)... (also on AO3)

Title: Welcome Home

Summary: After living in London for almost a decade, Even and Isak decide to move back to Norway together. While grocery shopping, Isak bumps into the boy squad for the first time in years, and little do they know that Even even exists let alone that he is just around the corner. One-shot.

“I used to know where everything was in this goddamn store…” Isak Valtersen’s frustrated mumbling rung in his own ears as he stood looking from shelf to shelf of the grocery store he was currently scouring. He used to know where everything in this store was so well, but having not been in Norway for so long he’s not that surprised. Places that used to be his, felt new and unfamiliar.

Isak backed up in the aisle, searching for the exact brand he needed, his eyes traveling quickly across each row before landing on the ever so clandestine item.

“Thank god,” he sighed in relief. He was pretty sure Even would laugh at him if he had to call him to come help. ‘It’s your town, baby’ he’d say he was sure. It was a good thing Isak loved him so much.

Isak placed the item into his cart and was about to continue on his shopping expedition when he heard his name being called from the other end of the aisle.

“Isak?” the voice sounded to be in disbelief, tone eager and mixed with excitement.

Isak turned his head to see Jonas. Jonas Noah Vasquez just standing there, a grin pulling at his face and eyes. That same hair, face, eyebrows, everything just the same, spare a few more mature features and light crows feet that were just beginning to form around his smiling eyes.

“Jonas!” The two practically ran into each other, embracing vigorously, patting each other on the back, their voices bubbling with laughter.

“I can’t believe it! You’re back?” Jonas still sounded like he couldn’t believe his eyes, but there was the underlying jubilance at the prospect of his best friend coming back to Norway.

Isak sighed out a laugh. “I’m back.”

They hugged again, and over Jonas’s shoulder Isak could see Magnus and Mahdi approaching their grins the same as Jonas’s.

“Isak, holy shit!”

“Bro, what the fuck!”

Their yells made Jonas and Isak pull apart again, allowing Isak to go and hug his other two friends.

“He’s back,” Jonas told them. Isak nodded, his heart beating, his breath heavier, adrenaline flooding his system from the happiness of seeing his friends again.

“I can’t fucking believe this you guys, I was going to call you tomorrow to tell you I was in Norway. What are the fucking odds,” Isak laughed.

“Fucking hell, bro. This is fucking awesome! The gang’s back together!” Magnus exclaimed.

"We were just shopping for this party that's going on at Jonas's soon, holy shit bro," Mahdi laughed before asking, “How long has it been?”

Isak blinked rapidly, drawing the numbers in his head. “Seven years.” There was a pause.

“Shit,” Jonas breathed out. The boys hummed, nodding their heads.

Isak suddenly felt a wave of guilt rush over him. “Fuck, guys, I’m sorry.”

Jonas furrowed his eyebrows. “For what?”

“For not calling, for just fucking dropping off the face of the planet like that,” Isak confessed. It was something that he would think about often, if he should visit, call, text, anything. Life just got in the way every time, and sometimes he just didn’t call because it was easier. It was easier to not call then try and make plans with the friends he knew he would probably never actually see again, spare the visit to Norway once every year or two.

“Fuck that,” Jonas responded. “We know how hard it was. You moving to London for school was shitty enough, and when it came down to it everything that was happening just got in the way. We know you tried, fuck, we all tried.”

Isak had missed his best friend.

“Preach,” Mahdi commented, raising an invisible glass.

“Yeah…” Isak pieced the words together in his mind. “Once school started my life was so busy I barely had time to breath let alone try and keep up with everyone, I didn’t even call my parents most of the time. After meeting up the first few summers, once I was done with school and I got that job in London there was just no way I could keep living two lives like that, you know?"

The boys nodded, little “yeah”s floating in the air.

“Bro, we get it. We were all building our lives, and besides it wasn’t like you never called or texted. It was just a bunch of shit,” Magnus reasoned.

“Exactly.”

Isak grinned again, now that all the tension was gone. “So, what’s been going on? I need to know everything,” he exclaimed.

Jonas laughed. “Well, you know I got married.”

Isak smiled even brighter at hearing that, but then he remembered: Even was in the vegetable area of the store, and Isak was going to have to unload this great secret onto all of their heads.

“Yeah, man, I’m still pissed I missed the ceremony because of my job. How’s Mia?”

“She’s great, like really great. We bought a house a few months ago.”

“That’s awesome.”

“They’re so fucking in love dude, you should see it,” Magnus joked. Mahdi nodded in agreement and Isak was again reminded how much he missed all of them.

“Yeah well, even Magnus and Mahdi here have long term girlfriends so they can fuck off.” Magnus and Mahdi both shrugged, giving their “guilty as charged” looks.

“That’s great,” Isak said, his mind drifting to Even again.

“You dating anyone?” Magnus asked.

Isak had to take a breath in, and let it quickly and shakily vacate his lungs. “I’m married.”

Looks of shock and incredulity coated the faces of each one of his friends.

Jonas was able to collect himself first. “Are you serious?” He almost looked hurt that his friend hadn’t told him, but then again Jonas knew him too well for that.

“Yeah.” Isak held up his hand to show them the silver band that clung to his ring finger.

“Holy fuck,” Magnus exclaimed, hugging Isak again.

Once Magnus let go Mahdi and Jonas both gave their little looks of approval.

“It’s actually part of why I’m moving back here,” Isak began. “I’ve wanted to leave my job for a while now, and I got some job offers from different labs all over the place. One of them was here in Norway, and my…” he stuttered for the best word, “spouse is also from Norway so it just seemed perfect.”

“When are we gonna meet her?” Magnus questioned, his tone filled with excitement.

“Well…” Of course it was then Even decided to come find Isak, he always did have perfect timing.

“Hey, babe did you find the-” Even paused, raising his eyebrows at the scene in front of him. “Hi.”

“I did find it, thank you for all the help,” Isak joked, hoping to show Even that everything was okay. He seemed to understand the message because his face broke into his usual grin.

“Of course,” he responded.

Isak took a deep preparatory breath in. “Even, these are my friends from Nissen. Jonas, Magnus, and Mahdi. Guys, this is Even, my husband.” While ever since meeting Even in London, falling in love with him, marrying him, Isak had been comfortable with these ideas of “boyfriend” and “husband” and “gay” it felt like a grand moment to finally say those words to all the people who he was too afraid to tell before when he was still young and naive.

After a period of silence brought on by pure shock, Jonas, once again, broke the ice. “It’s great to meet you.” He leaned forward to shake Even’s hand, as did Mahdi. Magnus however was not nearly so graceful.

“Holy shit, your husband ? Your tall, fucking hot husband? Bro, you’re gay and you have a husband ? What the fuck,” Magnus’s word vomit never ceased to impress. Even laughed out of the sheer ridiculousness of it.

Isak rolled his eyes. “Yes, Magnus. I’m gay and this is my husband.”

Magnus nodded his head slowly, processing. “That’s fucking awesome dude. The diversity of our little group is getting better by the second.” Mahdi just had to smack him upside the head for that one, Magnus blurting a little “hva faen?”

Even laughed once more, pulling Isak to his side and pressing a kiss to his cheek. Isak rolled his eyes again, this time in the fond way that was reserved for Even.

“That’s right, we’re married,” Even gloated. “I managed to catch Isak Valtersen, I’m a legend for that, don't forget it.”

Isak couldn't help his smile. “Oh, my God Even. I can’t believe you.”

Even scoffed. “Yes, you can.”

Isak grumbled in the fondest way possible, looking at his husband, Even looking back at him, his mouth forming that little smile that he could never stop whenever he saw Even.

“I think we’ve found a couple worse that Jonas and Mia,” Mahdi joked with a touch of seriousness.

Jonas and Magnus laughed, before Jonas smiled brightly at his best friend, his hand clasping his shoulder and suddenly it was like he'd never left.

“Welcome home.”

#text #mine #writing #skam #evak #isak valtersen #fanfiction #fanfic #jonas noah vasquez #mahdi disi #magnus fossbakken #even bech næsheim #alternate universe #one shot #my writing #ao3

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