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daisiesforlacey · 4 years

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clouds - chapter 2 : cirrus

Pair: Julie x alive!Luke

Summary: After her mother’s death, Julie Molina moved away from Hollywood, across the country, to Ithaca, New York. She’s left behind her two loves in life: her best friend, Luke, and her music. There, she finds new friends and enemies, new experiences and joys, she might even find herself. Every night, Luke calls Julie to talk about the clouds. But what if Luke is hiding something?

Word Count: 3,344

Warnings: angsty??? I mean we gotta move the story along soooo

Note: I started writing this and it got away from me! I think this series might be longer than originally intended, but that’s not a bad thing. I can’t wait to delve more into Alex, Reggie, and Carrie’s storylines, but for now, here’s this! Please please comment, like, reblog; feedback is always appreciated :)))

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The morning had been much chillier than the previous day. On their way to school, Julie and Flynn had bundled up in their favorite sweaters and scarves, along with matching thermoses of tea. Julie had tried to stuff her hair into a wool hat, but after failing miserably, she settled on tying her hair back into a ponytail. Flynn had offered to help style her curls that morning, but she had declined.

The ground next to the sidewalk was blue with frost and they could almost see their breath if they squinted hard enough.

In Ithaca, the winter was dryer, she had found that her lips chapped more often and she seemed to constantly have the sniffles. In L.A, when it got colder, it mostly rained, snow was far and few between and was never terribly enjoyable; the second it hit the ground it would become this sort of grey sludge. One thing they both shared was the unpredictability. Seeing the sun one day did not often guarantee a warm week, which left Julie to keep an array of coats of different thicknesses.

There weren’t too many clouds to see, if she tried hard enough, she might be able to make out a flying saucer. She shook her head, spaceships were too easy and basic; anything could be a UFO.

As they walked and the sun slowly rose, they talked about their upcoming day; if Carrie was going to be tolerable, if they would be getting new music projects, and who was buying lunch.

Luckily for Julie, she could already feel the air warm up, unfortunately, the conversion had shifted to Luke.

“How is your friend? Liam, or whatever?” Flynn asked, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

“Luke,” Julie snorted and looked down at her hands, “He’s doing well, he didn’t see too many shapes yesterday, so our conversation was relatively short.” Flynn knew about their nightly calls, but Julie had left out most of the reason they happened. Flynn didn’t need to know how much she missed her friend, she didn’t want the other girl to feel inadequate.

“It’s really cool that you guys still keep in touch, if all of my friendships drifted apart that nicely, Carrie…” Flynn drifted off into thought at the mention of Carrie. Contemplating Julie, frowned, she didn’t particularly like to think that she and Luke had drifted, but she supposed they had literally done just that.

“Well when you have a history like Luke and I have, it’s impossible not to talk to him.” Julie didn’t mention that he seemed to be a part of her that was now missing, or that Luke had this sort of magnetism that drew anyone and everyone to him, or that when they wrote songs together she had felt more alive and seen than anything.

Those things didn’t need saying, those things had been left in L.A.

But in here she had Flynn and a small town and a family.

A broken family, she thought.

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As Nick finished his guitar solo, his lacrosse buddies whooped and hollered in the small music room.

It was smaller than the one back home, but just as welcoming. Cinder block walls had been covered with sound absorbers and music posters ranging from “hang in there” cats to major and minor scales to student made flyers, advertising the school dance coming up.

Their mascot, a yellow and black cougar, had been painted on the wall by an art club some time ago. It was slightly lopsided and its snarling mouth looked more mangled, but the sentiment was there.

Julie had zoned out long before Nick had started, staring at the chipped paint on the wall. She knew the second she walked up to the piano to play, she would freeze. No amount of mental preparation could prepare her to set her fingers on the ivory keys and play something, anything.

“Okay, we have one last performance,” Her teacher said, “Julie.”

The girl looked up slowly. She stumbled toward the piano with hesitant steps. She sat down with a sigh and opened the sheet music. Her blood was rushing and her head was pounding. The room seemed to blur and spin, but was also eerily still and quiet.

She could feel the eyes of her classmates boring into her skull. As they watched her, she could guess what they were thinking, here we go again, I wonder if she’ll actually play this time, just get on with it.

Julie knew that Flynn was trying to encourage her, even from where she was sitting, but she couldn’t bring herself to look at the girl.

“Take your time,” Her teacher assured.

Julie might take forever.

She opened the case of the piano and grazed her fingertips on the keys. They were cold and unforbidding. The second she pressed one of the keys she knew that she would break.

Memories of her mother would come rushing back; every scraped knee, every hand holding in the parking lot, every crush whispered in secret, every night spent over the stove learning what spice goes in when, every uncontrollable fit of laughter.

She would remember every Christmas and Easter that they would break out her Abuela’s Arroz Con Leche recipe, every concert they went to where they would scream lyrics until their throats were raw.

Every failed test that her mother had stayed up late to help her study for, every flu shot where her mother still held her hand, no matter how old she got.

Every note written or melody sung would fill her mind. She didn’t know what would happen when it did, and she desperately didn’t want to find out.

She stood up, “I’m sorry.”

Julie thought she heard Carrie say some snarky remark and that Flynn had retaliated, but she couldn’t have been sure before she was rushing out the door.

After the school day, Flynn and her walked home as quickly as they could, sometimes sprinting. They needed to beat Julie’s father home after he picked up her brother, Carlos, up from his own school. She was praying that he hadn’t heard the news that she was out of the music program yet.

She groaned as she saw his car already in the driveway

Flynn quickly hugged her, “It’s fine, he’ll understand.” She withdrew from the hug and held Julie at arms length with a sympathetic smile before they had to part. Flynn waved as she unlocked her front door and stepped inside.

Julie took a sharp breath in before doing the same.

---

“So is ‘Clocks move faster / cause it’s all were after’ the first pre-chorus or the second pre-chorus?” Reggie ran his fingers through his hair, his nose scrunching, “Because wouldn’t it just make more sense to have the same pre-chorus on each verse?”

The brunet’s bass was slung over his body as he rested his hands on the body of his guitar. He looked over to Luke, who was crouched over his lyrics.

Luke shook his head , his air already dripping with sweat, “It’s the second pre-chorus, the first is ‘Clocks move forward / but we don’t get older.’” He semi, sang, strumming along on his guitar. “Changing it up adds movement, we don’t want to bore the listeners. It keeps the theme of staying young at heart.”

Reggie nodded and plucked at his bass, testing out different rhythms. Moving his hands up the neck and over the strings, he finally settled on some semblance of a tune, repeating it over and over again.

Alex joined him, adding a hit on each of the beats of the song. This gave the song a drive and pounding rhythm, working with Luke’s line of ‘Electric hammer to the heart.”

Luke stood up after scribbling something and added his guitar part over it, humming along with the melody, and soon they got well into the song, improvising along the way. There were still some wrong chords and off beats, but they had the bones of what they felt like would be a hit.

Luke had gone from humming to singing, Reggie and Alex joining in. Luke felt his pulse quicken as he grinned.

“‘We ain’t searchin’ for tomorrow’,” Alex sang, to which Reggie echoed, “‘Cause got all we need today’.”

Luke bopped along, “‘Living on a feeling that’s been running through our veins.”

They looked back and forth to each other, knowing what was coming next.

Reggie was supposed to have a line to end the bridge, but it hadn’t been written yet. Luke had spent hours trying to come up with something, but it just didn’t click, every line he wrote either changed the meaning of the song or was too clumsy.

Luke sighed as they all stopped playing and he cast an apologetic gaze to the bassist, “I’ll get it. I promise.”

The boy in the flannel just shook his head, “No worries bro, we’ve done a lot in,” He checked the clock on the wall and his eyes widened comically. “Five hours…”

This mock practice session had started in Alex’s garage right after school after Luke had presented them with a song at lunch.

“It’s totally us,” He had said, sliding to the table with a lunch tray and a scribbled mess of paper, beaming, “Totally mid 90’s. And look, you-,” He pointed to Alex who looked excited but skeptical, “Can start the bridge and you-,” Luke turned his attention to Reggie, “Can echo, ending with…”

Luke trailed off, he didn’t have an ending line yet, he knew it had to be perfect. Everyone knows you can’t end a bridge without a call to action, something that stirred and emotion so deep that you couldn’t help but sing along.

He sighed as his mouth twisted, “I don’t know, I haven’t found the perfect line yet.” He looked down at his chicken scratch, then slid the paper across to Alex, who examined it.

“I like it, have you decided where the harmonies should go yet, or nah?” Alex flipped his blond hair back, after adjusting it in his snapback. He was already trying to decide what type of beats he would do, where the drum fills would be, and what he should consult Reggie on.

The makeshift band had a process: Luke would write a basic lyric and chord progression and then he would bring it to the guys. From there Alex would come up with the heartbeat of the song with Reggie. Reggie would work with Luke to see what melodies he should be playing and how he and Luke would bounce off of each other.

When they came together, the three friends would look at who sang what, harmonies, and fill in the gaps in the music. They worked like a well oiled machine

But lunch had been 7 hours ago and it was now 8 o’clock, well past when Luke should have been home. The boy jumped as he looked outside, saw it was dark, and cursed under his breath. He quickly put his guitar on his stand and grabbed his book bag, then ran out with a wave to Reggie and Alex.

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow, if I’m still alive,” he called before getting on his bike and going home.

The air was damp and it had just rained, making the pavement slippery. Despite being almost winter, the weather was warm enough to where he only had to put on a shirt and jeans to be comfortable.

On his way to his house, Luke looked to the sky. He cataloged some shapes of dark clouds, moose, cat, spaceship, he thought. He chucked to himself, anything could be a space ship, it wasn’t creative enough, all the cloud had to be was somewhat circular.

His mind drifted to Julie and what she would have to say about these clouds. She would probably smile, her adorable gap showing, and tell him all of the wonderful odd shapes she would see.

“There, right there, a cat chasing a dog,” She would say, “No, no, scratch that, a dog chasing a cat chasing a pigeon. Wait sorry, a shark without a back fin. Or maybe a line of ducklings crossing a street.” Then she would narrow her eyes as the clouds shifted and formed new images, “Well now I don’t know what I see.”

Luke would then look over and tell her that everything she saw was amazing, even if it was truly unremarkable. She was always able to see things he couldn’t, even if it was something as menial as a cloud. She could look at him and know exactly what was wrong no matter what; he didn’t know if she was truly super powered, or if he was super transparent.

Which was why he was glad she couldn’t see him on their calls.

She knew about Reggie and Alex, they had met before she left, but she didn’t know that they played music together. She didn’t know that Luke was writing songs with them like he used to with her. He didn’t want her to feel replaced.

And as far as she knew, his parents were completely fine with his music. They may have had little gripes here and there, but she thought that was the extent of it.

As he arrived at his house and opened the front door, that wasn’t the case at all.

“Lucas Patterson!” His mother yelled from the kitchen, “Do you have any idea what time it is!”

Luke winced as she ran into the living room, wiping her hands on a dish towel. He could see that the dining room table had already been cleared and the leftovers put away.

“It is 8:14! Would you like to tell me why the hell you missed dinner again for the third time this week? No wait! I bet I know! Let me guess, you were at Alex’s!” Her eyes were steel. It wasn’t a question, they both knew the only thing that would keep him out at night would be music with the guys.

He gripped the strap of his back pack before looking at the floor, his knuckles white. “I’m sorry Mom. I just lost track of time, you know how I get.”

Emily smoothed her brow with her fingers as her husband walked in from the kitchen. “At least tell me you did your homework.”

Luke didn’t answer.

His mom threw the dish towel to the floor, “Luke we had a deal! You can keep playing your guitar and going to ‘band practice,’” She used air quotes, “As long as you did your homework before then and always made it home for dinner. Always! Your family and school work is important! I know you don’t think so, but as long as you live under our roof, you abide by our rules!”

He threw his hands up and scoffed, “I’m not going to stop playing music, it’s my life! And you can’t stop me! I am sorry if I miss a few family dinners a week, but isn’t that fine if it means I’m happy?”

His mother looked at him like he had sprouted another head, “Son, I know it’s been hard ever since Julie left, and I know you miss her but--”

“But what Mom? There’s nothing I can do about it, she’s in New York! And the only thing keeping me connected to her is music, and right now, you don’t even let me have that.” Luke stormed through the living room into his room.

He dropped his bag down with a thunk, and sat on his bed, smashing his head into a pillow and screaming. He regretted that he didn’t bring his guitar back, if only to take out his anger by shredding on volume 10.

The day kept getting later, and while he didn’t like calling her while angry, he dialed Julie’s phone number.

The phone rang a couple times before she picked up, “Hello, this is Her Majesty Queen Julie Molina, what is your concern peasant?” She said in a haughty voice, before her façade broke with a giggle.

“Well Your Highness, I have come to discuss today’s weather.” He replied, playing along, her voice instantly making him feel better.

“Today we have seen a couch, a baby, and many many trees.”

“I have also seen many trees; they are very common in the sky.” Luke laughed, “I may have also spotted a suitcase and an umbrella. Sadly my Queen, the rain made it quite hard to see too many shapes.”

Julie clicked her tongue, he could see her face now, her nose scrunched and her mouth down turned, “That is a downright shame. Is there any news to report?’”

Luke perked up at that and rushed to get the words out of his mouth, “Actually, yeah. I wrote a song, ‘Now or Never,’ and it’s actually not that bad. Except I can’t figure out this one line, and it’s been bugging me all day.” He huffed, “Do you wanna hear it?”

She replied just as giddy as he is, “Of course!”

The brunet then launched into singing an a cappella version of his song from memory, stopping here or there to say things such as, “A harmony would totally go here,” or “Add a little guitar riff and it’d be perfect.”

He kept going until, “‘Living on a feeling that’s been running through our veins’. And then of course another line, and then the chorus.” He was staring at his popcorn ceiling now, smiling like a kid in a candy shop.

Julie paused, then said, “We’re the revolution that’s been singing in the rain.”

“What?”

“That’s it, that’s your missing lyric.”

Luke froze, she really couldn’t get any more perfect.

“Queen Julie, you are a genius!” He jumped off of his bed to grab a scrap of paper off of his messy desk before writing down the lyric. “You songwriting genius! If you have stuff like that flowing through your brain, how aren’t you playing it?”

He didn’t mean to bring it up, it just sort of happened. But it was true, how could she be so good at writing and let it go to waste?

Julie cleared her throat, “Well actually--”

“You sang again? I knew it, I knew you would!” Luke cut her off.

“Well no,” She rushed out, he could already see her running her hand over her face in exasperation. He has to stop interrupting people. “I got kicked out of the music program. I haven’t played anything since I got here, and I couldn't either today. I guess that was the last straw, because my teacher called my dad and said that unless I could play something by the end of the week, I need to choose a new elective.”

They sat in silence.

Luke played with his hands, knitting his fingers together and pulling them apart before an idea came to him, “What about your mom’s song. Not for class I mean! But, if just to sit down at your piano again and play something, what about that? She wrote it for you after all. And then maybe afterwards you’d be good to play for your class and boom! You’re Julie, songwriting pianist extraordinaire again!”

“I-I don’t know about that, Luke,” She swallowed. Right before her mom passed, they had written a song together, but she hasn’t even been able to look at it since she moved. If she sat down to play it, she’d be accepting all of those memories back. But then again, if she needed to sing anything it would be her mother’s song. They had taken a few months to write it, and Julie’s mom had completed it before…

“I mean maybe. I’ll see. I’ll try.” Julie nodded to herself and gave a determinant look to her wall. Tomorrow morning she would go to her garage and play her mother's song.

“You promise?” Luke asked tentatively.

“I promise.”

“Alright. I guess I should go, it’s probably pretty late where you are. I’ll see you soon?”

Julie nodded, “See you soon.” Then hung up.

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ironwoman18 · 4 years

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Double Dates part 2

Chapter 2: The Ratatouille Challenge

Luke retuned home after came back from a case. He was tired and just wanted to sleep.

When he opened the door, there was Penelope cooking in his kitchen. Sergio on his couch and Roxie looking at Penelope from her bed.

"H...hey Penelope" he said walking in. She has a pink pajamas on.

She turned visibly surprised "Luke? I thought you could come tomorrow?"

"We found a good lead to catch the unsub early and we decided to come today. Why are you here?" He lifted his eyebrow and he put his gun in his save box.

"Well, there's a broken pipe in my apartment, and here was the only place I can go so..."

"Oh..." Said Luke and walked to her, he leaned in and kissed her softly "it's ok you can stay here as long as you want" he smiled and she smiled back.

"I'm making dinner. Veggie tacos" she smiled big showing him the pan with some vegetables.

"That looks great" he kissed her head and walked to his bedroom to change. He put on a short and a tank top then walked back to the kitchen "you can sleep in my bed, I will go to the couch"

"Oh... No I don't want to bother you" she said worry.

"I could never let you sleep in a couch so don't you dare to start an argument, am I clear?" She nodded "good let's eat" she grabbed a tortilla and filled it with vegetables and poured some sause and handed it to Luke then she made some more tacos and both walked to eat it and talked while do it.

"So what do you and Max planned for Reid and me?" He smirked at her.

She got excited "well we found a restaurant that hosted cook-offs, where couples feud cooking dishes, the judges picked two food dishes and the couples has to cook the one they gave them"

"Oh my... I just know how to make pasta with cheese. I suck cooking nena"

"Fear not chéri. I will do it" she smiled and kissed his cheek. He laughed.

"Ok I will trust you" he stood up and held the dishes and glasses then went to wash them.

Meanwhile Penelope looked at him from the table. She never dated someone like Luke. He was so different from any other boyfriend she had. Shane was an idiot and he was more into be better than her, not into make her happy; Kevin was so sweet and she shared so much with him, but he was so insecure and not very athletic; and then Sam... Sam was not proactive or with crazy ideas, he was so sweet and kind but she needed someone different.

Luke is athletic, like Morgan; he was sweet and kind, she loved the little cat he gave her after a case; he was proactive and protective, the dates he planned were so perfect, she melted with every detail he planned.

And according to Phil or Lisa he was not like this, he was not sweet or caring, but with her he was different, and so was her with him.

At first she was mean because she missed her chocolate thunder but then he won a place in her heart and she was mean as a secret flirting way.

"Penelope?... Earth calling Penelope..." She shakes her head and looked at him "are you alright?"

"Oh yeah newbie I'm alright" she said playfully the nickname she gave him. He rolled his eyes but smiled.

"She will keep calling me newbie, Roxie" he laughed.

"Did someone ever tell you that you act like Kristoff talking to her?"

Luke laughed as he finished to wash the dishes "I will go get my pillow and blanket" he smiled at her and walked in his room returning with both things "goodnight nena" he said putting them on the couch.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to be uncomfortable in your own apartment"

"Penelope, I'm perfectly fine with this, I won't let you sleep here" he looked at her patting the couch.

"I was thinking... That bed is big enough for both of us" she bit her lip "if you don't mind sharing" he smirked, looked down and back at her.

"If you don't mind, I don't mind" he stood up and both slept in the same bed. She did not want to rush things. It will happen sooner or later. She was not like that but Luke was different and so was she.

The next day was Saturday and it was their double date. So they practice cooking together. She taught him some things and he was a quick study so he learned it.

The date was at eleven so at one they could eat.

When they arrived, Max and Spencer were already there. Spencer looked at them and waved.

"There's lot of people here"

"Yeah it's a popular date place and it's a fun way to interact" said Penelope looking at them.

"Yeah it does. Max and I had been practicing this morning" said Spencer looking at his girlfriend.

"Spencer is pretty good" she said without reveling how much "how about a friendly competition?"

"Oh my God... yes!" Said Penelope.

"Wait what?" Luke was shocked.

"I trust you newbie" he raised his eyebrow "it will be fun. Beside I never saw or heard of Spencer cooking so I'm sure we will be fine"

Max smirked "so we have a deal?"

"Yeah but first... The winner will pick the next double date" said Penelope "because I want this to happen again. I love you too. You are like a Disney couple, because Derek and Savannah are Barbie and Ken so you are... Um... Cinderella and her prince"

They laughed "ok I would like it" said Spencer "I some ideas if we win. Since phantasmagoria will be next week"

"Oh yeah you mentioned it. It was tempting so let see if the good doctor win" he laughed and nodded.

They waited some more until it was time to walk in the restaurant.

The place was big, full of long tables, stoves, knifes and other things to cook. There was a man with a chef jacked on "Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The W Pier. A restaurant school where the students of the chef school come to have experience with a true kitchen" he said "I'm Chef Martinez. Today we will cook some Hispanic food. And then we will eat them. Each couple will have a spot with the ingredients and the recipe, and of course everything you will need to cook. Pots, pans, knifes, spoons, forks... Everything" everyone nodded "now we will have a twist...." He smirked and all of them got nervous "the dynamic of today it's called 'Ratatouille' Challenge" which means that one of the couple will cook and the other will read and say the instructions. Like Remy and Linguini" Some people were afraid, mostly men "the Remy will be the women and the Linguini will be the men"

Luke looked at Penelope "did you know that?"

"I knew about they used dynamics but they never mentioned this"

"Well apparently it's something new" they looked at Spencer and Max and Luke said "can we cancel the bet?"

"No" said Max "are you chicken out?"

"NO" said Penelope "we can do it, I thrust you" she held his cheeks.

"Thank you but I don't trust in me" he sighed. She kissed him then she pulled away "umm ok that gave me hope and trust in myself" he laughed.

"Ok let's see. We labeled the tables with the last name of the couples. Most of you are boyfriend- girlfriend so we had to write both names. Please come here and look for your place" every couple walked there. Spencer and Max were next to Luke and Penelope "Ok the dishes you will be cooking today are from Hispanic countries"

Spencer and Max had to cook the Bandeja Paisa, a Colombian dish and Luke and Penelope had to cook Pastel de choclo.

"What the heck is a choclo?" Said Penelope reading the title of their dish.

"Ok people. One more rule. The girls will said the instructions one by one but in the moment you need help boys, you can raise your hand and one of our assistances will start the timer. She can be 5 minutes, that's all. No more time so you have to pick the right moment"

Luke looked at the ingredients and rubs his beard "Jesus..."

"Ok let's beginning... Now!" The men started to look the ingredients and their girlfriends to read the instructions.

"Ok Luke according to the translator choclo is corn. It's a Chilean dish and looks nice" she said.

"Ohk sounds good. Let's make this"

Meanwhile Spencer and Max started to cook "the Bandeja paisa is from Colombia. And it's a big meal" said Spencer.

"Good to now sweetheart but concentrate in the cooking because the red beans and the pork have to go in the pressure cooker" he nodded and did as she said.

Luke and Penelope were cooking the ground meat with some peppers and onions.

The two couples were working nicely but the others were a mess. Some men did not like to work blindly or there were arguments because they made the food different from what they had been telling.

Thankfully for Max and Penelope, their couples worked good under pressure and followed instructions.

Luke got lost once or twice during the cooking but managed to get thru. Spencer's memory helped him listened to Max's next instruction while working and remember what to do next.

At the end Luke requested Penelope's help to finished the dish while Spencer did not need the extra help but requested so she could some arepas, a circular corn bread from Colombia and Venezuela.

They finished and the chef congratulated them and invited them to take a seat, order wine and eat what they cooked.

Spencer, Max, Luke and Penelope sat down together and ordered a bottle with four cups.

"I never worked this hard in a kitchen" said Luke cutting some of his dish.

"I like to cook but I never make something like this" added Spencer.

They laughed "so Spencer let's try this" said Penelope getting some red beans and an arepa "oh my God... It's delicious" she smiled eating more.

After that they made jokes and ate the food. Then they were agree to order some dessert.

They ate some arroz con leche, since it's the Latin American night.

When they were about to leave Penelope said "we never figured who won the bet"

"I think Luke and I did a good job both and we both won. I'm normally super competitive but today I think it's a tie"

"I'm agree with Spence" added Max "but maybe next time we can pick the next one?" Max bit her lip.

Penelope nodded "yeah... This idea was fun but I think our next double date should be calmer" they laughs and nodded.

Then both couple leave. Luke and Penelope walked to his car and he said "Chica..." She looked at him "can I pick want we will do and with who?"

"Of course you can" she said smiling, this is something she liked about him "what do you have in mind?"

"Ok the next couple should be Matt and Kristy" he smiled "the activity it's a surprise" she laughed and nodded.

"Fair enough" she said "let's see what Mr Newbie have in mind"

OOooOOooOO

So... What do you think? Was it fun? I hope you enjoyed it and I already have the idea for this date.

The next chapter will be one of the cutest couple in the show.

#criminal mind #spencer reid #maxine brenner #maxcer #Penelope Garcia #luke alvez #garvez #fanfiction

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karasuno-writings · 4 years

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Please can i have a cute milk tea date scenario with akaashi and fem!s/o????

Of course!! I thought the idea was lovely and I kinda decided to be self indulgent and emphasised on the environments because I love being descriptive whoops. I did like how this turned out tho!! Also for those of you who don’t know what horchata is, it is a Mexican drink made of rice, cinnamon and sugar and it is really good! It comes from the making of “arroz con leche” which is essentially sweet milk rice! I took a milk tea of horchata today and it was so good!! So yeah!

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You stood in front of a picturesque shop, the wooden support of a brick facade was covered in ivy and flower which complimented the intricate plant pots that were hanging from rusty looking metal holders, twisting all the way to the ground. You smiled, taking a deep breath in as you opened the door.

A small bell rang as you stepped in, waking up a cat that lazily lay on top of a pink velvet pillow. You looked around, searching for your boyfriend which was not one to arrive late to a date. However you did not see the familiar black hair or blue eyes, so you decided to walk over to an empty table next to the window where the light hit just right. The aroma of the brews and herbs filled the in air, giving the place a pleasant and relaxing feeling to it. Spider plants hung from the ceiling and scenery paintings covered the red brick walls. You understood why Akaashi decided to bring you here.

As you were lost in thought you heard the bell rang and were met with a soft gaze as you looked up. He started heading over to you, nevertheless you waved at him, making him smile and wave back gently. He moved his hand out from the back where he partially hid it and held out a bouquet of beautiful assorted flowers, a slight blush appearing on his cheeks as you grabbed the gift.

“They just looked lovely, like you...I knew I had to buy them” He sat down in front of you and held both your hands over the table after you set the colorful arrangement next to your seat.

“Thank you Keji, I love them” He closed his eyes and placed a soft kiss on your left hand. He then stood up and still holding your right hand pulled you over to order. The two of you lined up behind a mother and her child who has arrived seconds before you. His thumb rubber over your hand as you waited and looked over at the menu, it was a milk tea shop and the list of flavors all seemed delightful.

“What do you usually order?” You turned to look at him, who was now looking at the tabby from before, stretching on its pillow.

“I really like the spiced chai they serve here, actually I have not tried any other drink”

You nodded, pleased with his response. However, you wanted to see if you could order something else, thankfully the menu provided a description of each of the drinks. The fragrance of the herbal tea made your mouth water for the strawberry calpico, however one name called your attention and you decided to order it as you walked down the line. You looked at Akaashi, your finger pointing at the tea he had previously ment, nodding in agreement.

“Good evening! What will your order be?” The woman behind the counter kindly asked while you dug in your pocket for your wallet.

“Good evening, it will be a spiced chai milk tea and an horchata milk tea, please” You smiled kindly as she wrote down your order.

“Wonderful, would you like something to eat?”

“A salted caramel tart please” Akaashi said without skipping a beat, you nodded in agreement of the desert you know would be shared.

“It will be 25.2 please”

You took out the money to pay, however Akaashi raised his hand over yours to stop you. You smiled at him, knowing that he wanted to pay for both of you. As soon as he handed the money to the woman with a polite thank you, you squeezed his hand and planted a soft kiss on his cheek.

“Thank you my love” You whispered quietly just before you moved away to return to your seat.

Shortly after the same woman came to your table with a tray, smiling as she left the teas and tart on the table. You looked at it and immediately knew you had come to the right place; the caramel on the tart glistened a beautiful shiny brown looking soft and gooey enough for it to hold its shape, surrounded by a crispy golden crust and topped with two squares of dark chocolate. You smiled at your boyfriend, who held out a fork for the two of you to share, which you complacently grabbed.

“This is great!” You said as you finished a bite of the delicious treat a cozy feeling spreading through your body, grabbing a chocolate on the top. Your boyfriend took a sip of his tea, and you drew the square close to his lips and fed it to him as he took half the chocolate, so you ate the remaining half.

“Can I try yours?” He said, curious as to the taste of the milky white rice and cinnamon drink. You smiled and nodded, grabbing his as an ask for his permission. Akaashi placed his hand on top of yours and handed you his tea, then grabbed yours.

“It is really good Y/N”

“Yours is too!”

The hours passed by, the two of you chatted the evening away and soon enough it was beginning to turn dark, the dim orange lights of the tea shop turning on one by one; the place looked different than before, it was a new atmosphere thanks to the lack of natural light, however it was a good kind of different. The plants glistened as if covered in water droplets, and from the window the sunset could be appreciated, it was charming.

“We should get going Y/N” Akaashi said standing up, and grabbing your bouquet for you. He held his arm out as you stood up, you wrapped your hands around it. You stepped outside as the night started to fall, the bell ringing once more behind you. As a gush of cold wind reach the two of you, Akaashi took off his jacket and wrapped it around you, smiling softly.

“Let me walk you home”

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not-giving-up-on-shance · 5 years

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21 Questions

@lance-coolerthanspace-shirogane tagged me to answer 21 questions, fkadfjdfa thank you <3

Rules: Answer 21 questions, then tag people you want to know better.

Nickname: Lath, nekozawa senpai, pistachito.

Zodiac: A very lazy sagittarius

Height: 5'1″ (i’m a smol bean)

Last thing I searched: lmao cms to feet to put my height

Favorite Musicians: wow mmm I haven’t listen to a specific musician but I will say, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Marina and the Diamonds, Grimes.

Song stuck in head: Bizarre love triangle from New Order

If you had a time machine, would you go back in time or visit the future? ok sometimes I think going to the past, 10 years ago a friend of mine passed away in a car accident, and yes, I guess everyone with a relative or close friend would say something similar, to go back in time and at least telling them few words (if you can’t change the events).

Do I get asks? none, what’s that haha

Following: mostly vld artists

Would you rather be rich or famous? Rich yes B^)

Amount of sleep: cof cof 8 -9 hours, I sleep a looot

Lucky number: 11, bcs it’s my birthday

What I’m wearing? sports short and a crop top that makes me look like winnie the pooh

Dream job: professional cat hugger

Dream trip: to go to Asia and visit China, Filipines, Japan, etc

If you were an animal, what would you be? I think I would like to be a horse, they look so careless and free

Favorite food: Hamburgers, Pastor tacos, Sushi, Ramen, Pizza, Arroz con Leche, all of them yess >u<

What are some of your favorite books/films/shows/games/etc?

Books: Earth's Children books, Eragon, The Passage, Never Ending Story, he Pillars of the Earth

Films: Ahh well I will say I love Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, The Thing, Hellboy and Pacific Rim from Guillermo del Toro, And Spirited Away

Shows: Evangelion, Asobi Asobase (it’s very funny I recommend it if you are feeling down) Little Witch Academia, Voltron and Jojo’s Bizzarre Adventure Blattle Tendency and Stardust Crussaders. And Osomatsu-san but just the first season :p

And videogames? Bloody Roar 2, Silent Hill 1, 2 and origins, and Dino Crisis 2

Play an instrument? Nooo

Languages: Spanish and English

Describe yourself as an aesthetics: hoodies in dark colors and eyebags lol

I would like to tag @puppetmaster55 @succubustykisses @shadyzap

Only if you guys want to! And if any of my other followers wants to do this, feel free! Please tag me though, I’d really like to get to know you guys better! <3

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radadora · 6 years

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Wooo promo time!!

• hiya I’m jasmine online I go as nyx ( you can call me either one!)

• I love cats a lot it’s a little problem

• I need 18 followers for a special reason ;)

• I’m a catra stan at heart

• Atole de arroz con leche is my favorite food ( of you want you can ask me how to make it it’s really good )

• l cannot drink soda it burns my throat so I can never have a alcohol I would die

If you guys don’t mind spread this around!

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titaviner · 6 years

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Thank you @linoy-ashram for tagging me (like a month ago 😌)

1. Who are you named after? My parents couldn’t agree on a name, so I was born and I still didn’t have a name yet. They were at the queue to register me and a friend of my mother who happened to be with them for some reason suggested Miriam, and Miriam I am.

2. Last time you cried? Back in October when I had I didn’t know what to do with my life.

3. Do you like your handwriting? Not really? I mean, it is terrible but it has grown on me and it is difficult for me to understand other handwritings.

4. What is your favorite lunch meat? I only like pork, I love chorizo, fuet, morcilla and similar Spanish stuff.

5. Do you have kids? No?? Cats are a better option obviously.

6. Do you use sarcasm? Who doesn’t?

7. Do you still have your tonsils? Indeed.

8. Would you bungee jump? Yeah

9. What is your favorite cereal? I don’t eat cereals.

10. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? I don’t use laces in any of my shoes.

11. Do you think you’re strong? Mentally? Yeah Phisically? Not in the slightest.

12. What is your favorite ice cream? Stracciatella or rice pudding (arroz con leche, I don’t know if it is the same as rice pudding).

13. What is the first thing you notice about someone? Their level of confidence and social skills. Also see if they have any signature, unique or rare feature.

14. Football or baseball? My love for them is in the same level, which to be fair isn’t that high. I follow more football because it is much easier.

15. What is the least favorite thing you like about yourself? Maybe my ears? Probably my butt. Fortunately nowadays I have grown to like my body and parts I previously hated.

16. What color pants are you wearing? Stonewashed dark blue jeans.

17. Favorite smell? fried tomato when cooked.

18. Who was the last person you spoke to on the phone? A mail lady who finally found my lost package.

19. Favorite sport to watch on TV? RG, which is broadcasted in Spanish TV like twice a year. I also love to watch AG and waterpolo. Also MMA if you consider it a sport.

20. Hair color? Black

21. Eye color? Hazel

22. Favorite food to eat? My taste is pretty weird. My fav foods include such diverse things as bread, vinager, condensed milk, tried tomato and embutido (sorry, no english word for it).

23. Scary or funny movies? Neither really. Funny if I had to choose.

24. Last movie you watched? Brave, it was meh.

25. What color shirt are you wearing? Red and black lumberjack shirt.

26. Favorite holiday? I guess my village’s holiday? August 15th.

27. Wine or beer? I don’t really drink alcohol, and when I do its Jagger shots.

I tag @tetenaa @like-dudnik-in-1989 @kateua @lightandconcrete @fuck-yeah-oleg-verniaiev @rhythmicgymnasticsnews @rhythmicisourgrace and basically everyone who feels like doing this thing

#tag #personal

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comoeloceano · 7 years

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20 questions

Rules: answer the 20 questions and tag 20 amazing followers!

Tagged by: @s0ftgay , @caro-the-curious , and @actualmalakai

Name: León

Nicknames: idk does lion count ??

Zodiac sign: virgo

Height: 5'2"

Orientation: pansexual

Nationality: American

Favorite fruit: my love for mangos is infinite

Favorite season: spring on the west coast and fall in the east coast

Favorite book: I don't think I have one

Favorite flower: I love sunflowers and roses

Favorite scent: I love sugary scents and the smell of my mom's arroz con leche

Favorite color: black and pastels

Favorite animal: cats, dogs, and wolves

Coffee, tea, or hot cocoa: ice coffee or chocolate abuelita

Average sleep hours: 6 hours

Cat or dog person: I love both equally although i relate more to cats

Favorite fictional character: keith from votlron, yuki from yoi, and zuko from atla

Number of blankets you sleep with: 1-2

Dream trip: Japan, South Korea, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico

Blog created: around 2012 maybe??

I tag anyone who wants to do this (I'm so bad at tagging people lmao)

#lion talks

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theanimangagirl · 7 years

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About me

So I was tagged by @hella-flawless-amythyst, here we go!

Rules: Tag 10 (or not 10) friends you want to get to know better.

● Birthday: January 11th ● Gender: Female ● Relationship status: Single as a carrot ● Favourite color: Red, Pink, Royal Blue & Green ● Pets: Nope. She died on September ● Wake up time: 8 am on weekdays 1 pm on weekends ● Love or lust?: Love. But hey I am not complaining about lust ● Favourite food: Pizza ,Arroz con Leche and, tacos, tacos are good ● Met a celebrity?: No :( ● Last song listened to: Candy Store from the Musical ‘Heathers’ ● First kiss: On a party’s front yard slightly drunk with one of my guy friends.Still best kiss so far. My ex kissed badly ● Tall or short: 5′ 4″ or 1.60~ish meters. I am the average size of a Mexican Woman thank you very much.

I tag @hazeykatie2 @notexactlyanartblog @lsunnyc @they-look-like-cats @nightingalea113 @siphilemon @inquisitor-apnea @because-why @sarcasmfish @nerdy-letters @official-sokka

Muahahah

#about me

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rice-pudding-slaps · 3 years

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!!! THANK U

tagged by: @still-not-a-witch

Name/Nickname: I shall not share my name, but you may know that my friends call me Cereal Box

Gender: You know when you go out to eat and you ask for a coke but they dont have coke, so they offer you sprite.

And you dont dislike sprite but is not what you wanted, but you are really thirsty so you drink sprite.

And you spend the whole meal thinking "Man this would be better with coke". And you know it would be. But is not terrible having sprite. And you are really salty bc is not horrible but is not quite right? yeah

Star sign: Fun fact. I have no fucking idea. I could be Capricorn or Aquarius, but no one can figure which I am.

Height: short.

Time: uhhh 22:01

Birthday: January 20th!

Favourite Band: Don't really have one? I dont usually follow bands just listen to the songs. THO I would say 31 Minutos counts so im gonna say 31 Minutos

Favourite Solo Artist: Oh fuck this is hard. Silvio Rodríguez is definetly up there. Also Violeta Parra I adore her. And Ricky Montgomery also has a special place in my heart! (Very different vibes lmao)

Song stuck in my head: Cake to Bake from Aarzemnieki, The Starry Night from Starry (Musical) and Jellicle Song For Jellicle Cats from CATS share the podium today

Last movie I saw: CATS (1998)! which surprises exactly no one

Last show I saw: Brooklyn Nine Nine just now!

When was this blog created: About 5 months ago

Why was this blog created: I got into Cats and was starving for more content and instagram wasnt providing enough. So I came here!

What do I post: Mostly just Cats stuff. Tho sometimes I scream in spanish to the void

Las google search: uhhhh "How to look up the history of a cellphone's calculator"

Do I have other blogs: Nope! Just this one. Dont really plan on that changing. Im just here for Cats

Do I get asks: Not really! But I would absolutely love to! Im always open to chatting

Why did I chose my url: So there is this line in Bustopher Jones that mentions rice pudding, and I was so intrigued by it. Cuz I thought it was some flan with rice.

It was arroz con leche. I looked up the recipe and had that epiphany. I had to use it somehow. That absolutely broke me.

Following: 212

Followers: 125

How much sleep do I get on average: A good amount tbh! 5-6 hours of sleep!

Lucky number: 108. I will not explain further

What am I wearing: Hoodie, shorts and leg warmers!

Favourite food: CINNAMON ROLLS AND RED VELVET COOKIES. I love sweets so much. AND CALZONES ROTOS MMMMMM i would kill for those rn

Nationality: Chilean! From the land of the conchesumadres

Favourite song: Uff. That one is really hard. I would probably say Ojalá by Silvio Rodríguez rn.

3 favourite fictional universes to live in: First one Fairy Oak books. No questions asked. Peak cottagecore and wizardy. *chef kiss*

Pokémon! I know, cliché, but is just one of my childhood games I could not leave it out.

My neighbour Totoro. God, the peace and tranquility... please let me live there forever.

Tags tags tags: @0zzysaurus @la-isla-de-circe @per-the-jellicle-magician

(Obv just if yall want!)

#rice rambling and talking

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vyudali · 7 years

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Tagged by @purplepatchwork thanks! Warning: I’m not someone who can just choose one. . .

Rules : Answer the 20 questions and tag 20 amazing followers you would like to get to know better.

Name: Melissa

Nicknames: My friend calls me Meli sometimes.

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Height: 5ft 4′’

Orientation: Whatever floats my boat, man. Don’t care.

Ethnicity: Hispanic/Latina

Favourite Fruit: Mango, Avocados, Watermelon, and Grapes

Favourite Season: Autumn

Favourite Book: Shoot, I don’t have any idea. I’m really fond of the Scary Stories to tell in the Dark series (older print), since it’s what inspired me to go the ‘horror’ route early into my artistic interests. I still love the art in it. I’ve read too many to really pick a favorite

Favourite Flower: There’s this flower called the ‘Bat Flower’ Terra chantrieri that looks really awesome, but honestly I don’t think about flowers all that much.

Favourite Scent: Chocolate, peaches, mango, and the scent of a perfume oil I own called ‘Fallen Angel.’ Also fresh air.

Favourite Colour: Black, Purple, and Turquoise (I think I called it Dark Aqua at some point).

Favourite Animal: Bats, crows, and dogs for land creatures and angler fish, sharks, and manta rays for sea creatures. I’m particularly fond of deep sea fish.

Coffee, tea, or hot chocolate: None? Lol. I don’t drink any of it regularly, but if I was given a choice probably coffee (assuming it has cream and sugar in it). Don’t like tea and hot chocolate is only my preference when it’s homemade using the Abuelita or Ibarra chocolate. Arroz con leche is more my style.

Average Sleep Hours: Night before school day: 3 Off day: 7-9

Cat or dog person?: Dog

Favourite fictional character: Aph America is obvious so i’ll say Mikazukii Munechika because he’s pretty.

Number of blankets you sleep with: 0 unless I’m cold, then it’s 1.

Ideal trip: Haunted road trip during cold weather.

Blog Created: March 2013

Everyone I can think of has already been tagged lol.

#ramble #tagged #unless you want to do it val @ bloodycandles

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johnnypovolny · 5 years

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Lima (A big disorganized hodgepodge of memories...)

-I bought a surfboard! The other day I successfully paddled all the way out in the weaker current near the dock (which is still scary because you have to avoid getting pushed under the pylons of the restaurant) and into the large break way out offshore and catching like a 10-12 foot wave, easily the biggest wave I’ve ever surfed, so that was super exciting. It’s also just beautiful watching the fish jump and the cormorants dive for small fry, the sunset behind the islands off the coast, and the evening swarm of paragliders on the cliffs of the Malecon.

-I’m starting to make friends: I have a group of guys I met at the outdoor workout equipment in the Malecon who train together (and the group is growing). Our whatsapp group chat is nicknamed Los Hermanos Sudados (the sweaty brothers), which i think is hilarious (mostly because it was my idea). The guy I’m closest with (Jhon, a personal trainer from Venezuela) invited me to the beach with his wife and some friends last weekend and afterward we had dinner on the open air patio at their house and played cards. I also spend a lot of time with my neighbors Andres and Ricky, and have been on a couple of fun dates with girls I met at the surfing beach.

- A lot of the fancy/expensive restaurants that are on the 50 best list (Astrid Y Gaston, Osso) are very good but in my opinion not worth the big tab or the hype. The really impressive food for me has been at the more economical places like the dumpling tacos at Bao, fresh fruit, chupe, and ceviche in the Mercado Surquillo, lomo saltado in the menu del dia places, and the sandwiches and juices (pina or mango and grenadilla) at El Enano and El Chinito. Though my pumpkin risotto and pollo saltado at Tanta was incredible: that’s probably been my favorite higher-end meal.

-People here love grey Scottish terriers. I’m not sure if this dog is like a fashion or status symbol but they seem to be everywhere (like Subarus in Portland.)

-I live about 2 blocks from Parque Kennedy (the unofficial heart of Miraflores) and there are always people walking, buskers (watched an amazing group of 4 female singers kiling a harmony), street vendors selling sandwiches and anticuchos, and of course the wild cats (yeah, cats) that live in the park and are cared for by the people of the city. The city has a really live energy in general. There’s a bustle that makes it feel a little bit like if New York City was a surf town. So far, there’s literally nothing I don’t like about this town. The food is incredible, the prices are cheap, my apartment is amazing, the weather (and the women) are gorgeous, the sea is close by, and the people here are the most friendly I’ve met in my travels since Thailand. Everyone is helpful, kind, and extremely open to being friends right away (and the old ladies in the market call me “papito” and “mi amor”, which I find extremely adorable and welcoming). And in addition, I just really feel connected to the place I’m living, which is really fun- for the first time in my travels I have like my own place to live, walk past and greet the same people multiple days in a row (like the lady who sells arroz con leche, I need to learn her name). The one thing I haven’t really done much of is explore the nightlife, so I’m excited to make that happen soon!

-One evening, Fernanda (a friend from my surf beach) and I went to Malabar, the 38th best restaurant in Latin America. It’s a concept started by a chef called Pedro Miguel Schiaffino that focuses on recreating dishes from around the world using ingredients from the amazon and on avoiding preservatives, dyes, etc to create totally natural dishes. FINALLY, a high end restaurant that was worth the price tag! To me the fun of the meal was the contrast: in types and strengths of flavors (explosive strength from produce, subtle aromatics from herbs, etc), textures, and even temperatures. We had 6 things: Tika Masalu: a “banana ceviche”, raw sweet banana topped with cherry tomatoes, an aromatic herb that had a little bit of a thai/vietnamese food vibe, salty dried banana leafs that reminded me of nori, and a bright yellow sweet sauce. Jamon de Paiche: a cured “ham” made from the paiche, which is a giant amazonian river fish that gets to be between 7 and 15 feet long as an adult. Pato in Aji Negro: a braised or roasted leg of duck and a strip of rare seared duck meat with blackberries, more tiny herbs, a rich brown reduction, and some sort of crunchy roasted and crushed nut that also seemed like it would be really good in a desert with chocolate and caramel. Cocolon: AMAZING. A salty, savory, intensely flavorful stew of rice then fried in a large patty so the outside got crispy, served with shrimp, this sort of pork jerky, fried banana, and a “chorizo” (again made from paiche), and a drizzled in reduction/gravy made from the accompaniments. This is what I’ve always wished paella would taste like: something more approaching jambalaya. in terms of flavor intensity, but savory instead of spicy. Chocolate dessert (can’t remember the name) : A dense pastry of some sort of crumbly rust topped in a squishy white sweet filling (maybe coconut based?) and topped with a dome of dark chocolate but done with almost the squishy, pleasantly resistant texture of marshmallow. On the side was a crunchy roast nut that tasted kind of like caramel corn. This was one of my favorite contrasts of the night: the gooey chocolate-marshmallow texture with the crunch of the nuts. Coco y Pina: a coconut shell served with a sort of creamy, sweet flan made from coconut. The flan was served piping hot with a citrusy, bright, and freezing cold dollop of pineapple ice cream on the top and a drizzle of some sort of thin, sweet, brown sauce (might have just been simple syrup made from brown sugar). The contrast of this was insane also, hot, creamy flan and cold, tart ice cream. I also had a very passable old fashioned, which after months of not drinking any good whiskey was so welcome. Fer had a really cool drink made from gin with citrus juices, some sort of salty ingredient derived from cacao, and aromatic herbs in it, served tall: really complex and delicious. It was also really nice to have company, someone to agree with me and debate with me on the food, share the experience, and swap stories and chat together while we enjoyed. 5 STARS FOR DINNER AT MALABAR.

-My buddy Joanie that I met doing the salt flats tour in Bolivia came into town this week and we met up to go to the Parque de Las Aguas with some of the people from her hostel. The park is this huge greenspace with tons of different fountains, including a traditional circular one with arcing jets and a parthenon-esque backdrop, a tunnel of jets you can walk through, and a huge row of vertical jets that are lit up in rainbow colors and then every hour perform a show where videos of peruvian people and destinations are projected onto a curtain of fine mist, the jets performed dances of color change and movement, and lazer lights are used to create 3D animals and shapes in the curtain of water. We had a really good time walking around exploring (and in the harrowing cab ride on the way there, where we were nearly compressed between two buses merging towards each other), then afterward we got some mexican food near parque Kennedy. Super nice to see my friend again!

-Went surfing on Saturday and got two of the best waves of my life, back to back: they were still green when I caught them (fast moving swell that hasn’t crested and broken yet) so I got the amazing feeling of riding down the steep face from the top as the wave as it broke and then turning to chase unbroken portions of the face, pushing down with my weight to stay on the wave as it got less strong and then feeling following waves catch up and pick my speed up again. I rode probably 150 meters on each one and it felt so amazing- I finally felt like a real surfer for the first time. I love that “aha” moment in sports, music, etc- when you’ve been putting time and effort into something really difficult and you get the first glimpses of what it feels like to actually succeed. Amazing. After my session, Fernanda and I went to go watch the Neon Night, a night time surfing championship, lit up by the huge on the water at Playa Roquitas. We got there in time to watch the women’s and then the men’s finals. SO COOL. The guys especially were insane to watch: they absolutely charge along the face of the waves, stomping over and over to gain speed, and the curving up to leap off the top of the cresting wave and spin 3’s and even 5’s, impossibly landing and riding out in the whitewater. There was stage set up with a neon background and huge spotlights going into the sky and we watched a local band from Chorrillos (pretty well known based on the number of people singing along) perform a sort of rock-reggae-latin blend that I really enjoyed (I don’t like pure reggae very much but this was enough of a mix that it was really enjoyable and fit the tone of the event really well).

-Andres taught me to cook lomo saltado: cube the meat and rub with salt, pepper, and cumin. Add to a pot with sliced onion, tomato, soy sauce, and a splash of pisco or beer, stew down! Make rice and fry potato wedges and eat everything together!

-Got a couple more really good waves recently- I’m starting to be able to occasionally catch a wave as it crests and really drop into it from the top, which is a crazy sensation- I went one day when the waves were huge (we got a safety advisory text from the city of Lima civil defense service to stay off the beach because of abnormally large waves and all the surfers were like “nahhhh.. We’re getting in”). Caught a wave that like fell out from under me and it was amazing!

-Hung out with Sam and Erin a couple times when they were in town: once we got lunch in Mercado Surquillo and then in the evening met up with them and Fernanda to go out for many different beers and play ride the bus. Another time met up with them and their friends Kirsten and Nick to have beers at Nuevo Mundo, drink more beers at their hostel, and go to Chifa Hou Wha all together for a big chinese food extravaganza. I like all four of those Kiwis- they’re immensely open, interesting, and lovely people. I especially love to talk to Sam- he’s one of those people who just has tons of information and cool stories about the things he’s passionate about, and we have a ton of interests in common.

-Had a day of surfing where I met an older guy named Pablo, who’s a farmer and has a duck hatchery and almost got robbed on the highway one time. Caught some amazing waves including one where i was like pumping and riding along the face all the way to the end of the right break, screaming and hollering the whole time and afterwards he was impressed that I’ve only been surfing for a few months because I’m already standing up quickly! It was a day where I felt really in control and felt all the practice I’ve done paying off!

-OSKAKA: This is the best restaurant in Lima. I went solo the first time and had an amazing experience: an amazing drink with this sort of crushed pink sorbet on the top, steak and quail egg nigiri, shrimp nigiri with parmesan, ceviche made from smoked tuna and crispy sweet potato and these little balls of something that looked like salmon roe but green and with a yuzu ponzu sauce that will haunt me for the rest of my life, incredible slow cooked ribs, mixed seafood sauteed in spicy japanese butter served in shells on a bed of rocks interspersed salt on fire (yes, on fire), and so many other good things. I liked it so much that Sammya and I went back like a week later and had about 8 more things. Some highlights that I hadn’t tried before were a salmon and shrimp roll with this citrusy, creamy white sauce poured all over it that was insane and a spicy whitefish nigiri. I also had this drink that was like a rum old fashioned and came served out of a barrel over a ball of cacao ice (super tasty but not too different, just really loved the presentation). I had the same server (Leslie) both times, who was fantastic, and sat at the sushi bar where you can watch all the prep happening, so it’s like dinner and a show. Both times I went here, I left feeling that for once I got my money’s worth at a high end restaurant.

-I watched Peru play a Copa America game on a big screen set up in the street next to parque kennedy and loved that experience- it’s fun to experience this part of the world has for the sport. I also watched a few games (including a Colombia match) at El Parcero- it’s a Colombian bar so when they scored things went WILD and the sassy lady next to me kept pouring me tequila shots from their bottle service

-Close to the end of the trip, Andres invited me to this event in Chorrillos called The Toro Fest. Earlier in the day, for which I didn’t make it in time, there was bullfighting (Ricky participated and almost got stabbed with a horn). Then in the evening when I arrived (with Andrea, a really cool, down to earth girl I met and danced with when I went out to the bars in Barranco with an American friend named Nate), there was this competition happening in a little ring surrounded by crowded plywood bandstands lit by a string of warm yellow bulbs hanging along the top railing. First was singers, then drummers, then dancers. Basically people from the crowd would sign up and on your turn you had to go in, chug a beer, and then perform in the thing you’d signed up for. After watching you the crowd would be asked “Se queda o se va?” (“Should they stay or should they go?”) and roar its judgement. It was really fun- there was a guy with a huge afro who played the cajon like crazy and then a pair of dancers where the guy was a professional and was such a good lead got paired with a really talented girl who could follow super well, so they looked completely choreographed after never having danced together before. Andrea and I drank some beers and had a blast watching everyone- I wanted to join the singing competition but it was ending when we arrived. After the competition, everyone headed over to the main stage where we got to watch a live salsa band (apparently a super well known peruvian group)- a huge group of latino guys of various ages with horns and percussion in jean jackets, led by this high-energy black singer with a shaved head. They were awesome- It felt so much more electric dancing to a live group, we danced a ton and had a blast!

Overall- I really loved this city. I maybe stayed a little too long, but it was a lovely place of food, friendship, and adventure.

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