#to clarify: michelle is stupid. this DOES NOT make her a bad person. michelle is racist. this DOES make her a bad person.

[thebewilderer]

hey on the off chance that you give a shit, i just saw your tags on a post making fun of your coworker for not being able to round 9.79 up to 10, and i just wanted to say irt your comment about not respecting people who cant do maths even when they have a calculator and sheet of paper that dyscalculia is a very real learning disability and it doesnt make someone inherently stupid or childish. not that im saying this is what your coworker has, just that you specifically said you dont respect people who cant do maths even with help, which was a little ableist. not coming for you or anything, just thought id offer a bit of experience. have a good day.

so i queue most of my posts so i don't remember the exact post you're talking about, but i do remember the story i was telling, and your retelling is pretty disingenuous, so i'll retell it here. i'll call my coworker "michelle," because that's her name and she's awful enough that i don't care about keeping her anonymous.

anyways, so the customer's total was $9.79, and they wanted to round it up to ten for a donation. we don't have a "roundup" button, so we have to manually enter the cents they want to donate.

(i don't remember the specific post (and honestly i don't care enough about this ask to go looking for it), but i'm sure i said something along the lines of "i don't fault people for not being able to do the mental math, that's not the issue" because that's what i say when i tell the story in real life, just to clarify that that's not the issue i have)

next to every register we have two things that are relevant here. one is a calculator. michelle used the calculator, and i have no idea what she put in but it gave her the answer of 31 cents, which she entered into the register. this is obviously not correct, and the customer's total afterwards was $10.10 instead of their desired $10.00. she then called me over to complain that the calculator was broken and gave her the wrong answer.

the second relevant thing we have next to each register is a small piece of laminated paper taped to the side of the screen. it looks something like this:

after i corrected the cents amount and the customers left, i showed her this sheet.

she said "oh yeah, haha, i don't know how to use that"

taking a deep breath to control my initial urge to facepalm, i explained to her that all she had to do was look at the 79 under the leftmost "if" column, and then go across to the "then" column to see that she needed to type in 21 cents.

this completely baffled her.

i came up with more examples: "see so like, if the total ends in .12, you'd go to this column-" here I pointed to the exact row and column that had the 12 in it, "-and you'd go across to here-" and i moved my finger horizontally to the 88 next to it, "-and you'd enter in 88 cents!"

and she said

and this still pains me

she said "oh, so if the customer has something that costs like, $12.65, i'd enter in 88 cents!"

and for a second my brain stopped. i went into more detail about how it's the ending two numbers, not the beginning two numbers. i think she might have gotten it by the end, but who fuckin knows. the conversation ended with her saying something along the lines of "these sheets are so confusing!"

anyways so that's the actual story.

the parts i didn't mention were that the customers were hispanic people who spoke very very little english. michelle was asking them every question in the book in very fast english ("do you want the card? here's a thousand reasons why. do you want to donate? do you want to round up?") and these poor women clearly just wanted to get their shit and leave.

and then after the painstaking lesson on how to look at the sheet of paper, michelle made the comment "i don't know why they'd come in here if they don't speak english" with an accompanying half-laugh that white women always do when they expect you to agree with them on their racism. i mention this part because that's why i'm so nasty about her. i don't dislike her because she's stupid. i dislike her because she's a racist trumper antivaxxer.

and just so you know, sometimes people are just not smart. there doesn't always have to be a learning disability involved. i know someone who has dyscalculia. i was engaged to them for four years. i know it's a thing. but there's a difference between his inability to do math and number-related shit and her unwillingness to acknowledge that she's bad at numbers and tendency to blame everything around her for her ineptitude.

i know i'm an outlier with math. it's why i have an explicit disclaimer i mention every time i tell that story that i have no problem with people who can't do mental math, that i know it's normal to not be able to do mental math, and that not being able to do mental math doesn't mean you're automatically the stupidest person alive. i know very few people who can do that in their heads. sure, i personally think it's odd that people can't do it automatically, but i use my empathy-human brain to acknowledge that since it's such a large portion of the population that can't do it, it's probably me that's weird. people aren't stupid for not being able to do mental math. i feel like i've made this very clear, both on this post and on my blog in general (i have many posts where i acknowledge that math and stem fields aren't the be-all-end-all of intelligence. this is not a secret.)

and side note: it doesn't make someone bad or less of a person if they're stupid, it just makes them not smart. even on this website, we have a tendency to go "you're not stupid, you're just smart in other areas!" which is kind of demeaning imo. some people just aren't smart. and it doesn't make them a bad person to not be smart! what makes someone a good or bad person is how they treat other people.

and as a concluding note to you personally, you probably shouldn't start your messages with "on the off chance that you give a shit." it's extremely aggressive right off the bat, puts the person who receives it on the defense immediately, and also ironically makes them a lot less likely to give a shit, or respond in good faith. just a protip.

#ih #asks #to clarify: michelle is stupid. this DOES NOT make her a bad person. michelle is racist. this DOES make her a bad person. #thank you for coming to my ted talk. #also lmao at me: #''i don't care enough about this ask to look for the particular post you're talking about'' #*proceeds to write a fucking dissertation about it and make a mspaint graphic* #lol fucking loser (at me) #eh whatever i guess #hope this helps you anon #but it probably won't

[omori-brainrot]

The Only One Left

tws: suicide, emetophobia, self-harm, death, grief, alcohol mentions

After the worst neutral ending, Aubrey and Kel soon follow Mari, Basil, and Sunny. Hero is the only one left, and he’s struggling to live with that. But at least his college friends are there when he needs it most.

I’m so sorry but this barged into my brain and wouldn’t leave until it was written and posted.

When Hero goes back to school after the funeral, he hangs one of Kel’s old jerseys on the knob of his dorm-room closet. He needs something to remember his brother by, something to make him feel like he’s not alone. Of course, he’s not really alone. He’s still an underclassman, so he shares his room with Josh.

He’d gotten lucky with his roommate: they’d managed to reach the storybook ideal of not only getting along, but becoming friends. Still. He wished there was no one around to see him cry for hours over the jersey, to see him start favoring the snooze button over his morning classes, to see him sink deeper into himself until he was sure he’d never surface.

Josh had been good-natured about it, at least. He never pointed out the cutting classes when Hero despaired about his grades after the fact, and when Hero couldn’t bring himself to stop sobbing when Josh needed to study, he just put on headphones or went to the library without a single complaint or sign of annoyance.

Hero wonders if Josh knows how close he feels to dying too.

How everyday feels like tar is pulsing through his body, getting caught in his organs and weighing him down until it feels like he’ll never breathe again.

He tells himself that if he joined his old friends, he’d be inflicting the same pain he lived with everyday onto his college friends. That if he were gone, their lives would be shattered instead of his.

Get over yourself. They don’t care that much. They don’t even know you. You only met a year and a half ago. They were fine without you before then. And besides, you’re not the best company anyway. You weren’t there though to stop Mari from hanging herself. You couldn't see the signs. You weren’t there enough to stop Sunny and Basil from stabbing themselves the night before Sunny was supposed to get a new start. You should have reached out earlier. You weren’t there enough to keep Aubrey from getting into that stupid drunk accident. You knew she was drinking too much and too often in an attempt to make her world bearable, you should have done something. You couldn’t stop Kel from poisoning himself with all those chemicals in the bathroom. You knew how hard it was for him to open up about negative emotions without being prompted, and you knew he was so alone after everyone else left. You should have come back from college more often. Why would anyone still want to be friends with you? Why would anyone care if someone like you was gone?

When thinking about his new friends doesn’t work, he reminds himself of his parents. They’d already lost one child. They’d be devastated to lose another. He couldn’t do that to them.

It doesn’t matter. They’re disappointed in you anyway. They see your falling grades and talk about how you shouldn’t give up on your dreams just because of what happened to Kel. They don’t understand that your only dream now is to make this constant pain stop. Besides, what does it matter if this hurts them? They should have been there for Kel when you were gone. As soon as you think that, you feel terrible. Which only makes you want to hurt yourself more.

Still, something makes him want to keep trying for a little while longer. Whatever it takes.

Which is how he ends up sitting over the trash can, taking a flimsy plastic dining hall knife to his arms.

If he wants to hurt himself but doesn’t want to die, this is the best he can do. Besides, it’s a little past midnight after a Friday, so Josh is attending whatever gatherings a non-imploding person attends on a Friday night.

Hero supposes that he should feel worse that things have come to this. But with every sting he only feels relief, even when he presses hard enough for the knife to draw shallow lines of blood.

For once, he’s barely thinking about anything else. Even with the jersey casting a shadow at the corner of his eye. He could get used to this sense of mindless pain.

When the door swings open and the light flicks on at a much earlier time than expected, his first response is to flinch back. It’s a second too late when it occurs to him that she should be rolling his sleeves back down.

Josh runs over, gently grabbing his arms and keeping him from doing so. “Wait. Wait.” He inspects the wounds for a moment. Looking worried, yet relieved that the injuries aren’t serious, he locks eyes with Hero. “Are you okay?” Hero opens his mouth, searching for an answer, but Josh continues. “Wait, you don’t have to answer that. That was a dumb question. Of course you’re not.”

“Yeah.” Hero says under his breath. He averts his eyes to the side of Josh’s head. He should have been more careful. What kind of person gets caught their first time self-harming? No wonder he’s so useless.

“If you let me take the knife with me, I can get some wet paper towels from the bathroom to help you clean up.” Josh holds out his hand, eyebrows creased in concern but eyes wide with expectation. Hero hands the knife over, ignoring the pang of reluctance to stop.

Josh races out of the room, and Hero takes a moment to look at his own cuts. He’s surprised at how many there are. He’d stopped paying attention while he was doing it. However, none of them look very bad, with the worst only bleeding very lightly.

Josh comes back faster than Hero expected, and diligently gets to work pressing the paper towels to the bleeding cuts. Hero winces a little at the sting, but he doesn’t mind this. It reminds him of when he was a child and his mother would clean up his scrapes. He realizes with a jolt that he doesn’t want to go back to hurting himself tonight.

“I hope you don’t mind me prying, but does this have anything to do with what you were telling me a couple months ago?”

“About—” Hero swallows thickly. He can’t bring himself to clarify. Besides, what could Josh be referring to besides Kel’s death? “Yeah.” His voice comes out strained.

“I’m sorry.” They sit in silence for a moment. “Hey, would it make it better or worse if I got Michelle and Dennis? We could get ice cream and you could tell us about your brother. Dennis said that helped when his aunt died.”

He was sure he’d want to say no—heck, he couldn’t bring himself to go to his favorite classes easily. But ice cream sounded nice, and he’d never noticed it before, but he was aching for someone to talk to. There was only one issue.

“Isn’t it almost one a.m.?”

Josh waved a hand dismissively. “That’s no problem if you want to go. I know a great all-night diner.”

That’s how he ended up in a nearly empty Denny’s with a few casual friends.

“Of course he’d refer to Denny’s as ‘a great all-night diner’.” Michelle dips a fry in her chocolate milkshake. Hero smiles slightly at her, eating a spoonful of his hot fudge sundae. The coldness of the ice cream is soothing, and he feels just a little bit better.

“Yeah, Josh, did you think Hero’s never heard of Denny’s before?”

“Hey, you’re not one to criticize me here. We came here for ice cream and you got pancakes.” Josh’s voice is light with playful teasing.

“So? They’re dessert pancakes. And there’s a scoop of ice cream on them.” Dennis gestures to the scoop with a flourish. “What does that have to do with you treating Denny’s like some obscure local mystery, anyway?”

Hero laughs a little. It feels unfamiliar and distant, but at the same time, somehow… right. He’s glad to not be alone tonight. Josh smiles with him. His eyes are still tinged with worry, but he’d reassured Hero on the drive here that none of the others had been told about the self-harm.

“So, Josh said we’re here because you had something to get off your mind?” Michelle looks at him, her worry less intense but still noticeable, like the mechanical whirring of a fridge in the background.

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, poking at his sundae. How could he even begin to say what was wrong? Hero figured he should just start with the part that had been hurting him the most in the past months. “I don’t know if you remember my brother’s funeral a while ago, but…”

“You miss him?” Her voice is soft, gentle.

He nods, tears burning in his eyes.

“What was he like?”

Hero takes a rattling breath. “He really liked basketball. He played it every day after school. I don’t think he was all that close with anyone on his team, but he liked playing it a lot.”

“Is the jersey on your closet his team jersey?” Josh glances at him.

He shakes his head. “No, he just bought that one at the store. Sports clothes were like his default uniform, whether he had practice or not.”

Dennis nods slightly. “I’ve known people like that. I think they just practice so much it’s not worth changing clothes.”

A small smile tugs at Hero’s lips. “Yep, that sounds like Kel. Always on the move.” He glances across the restaurant at another one of the late-night patrons, someone about his age drinking a cup of coffee. “Honestly, I bet part of it was all the caffeine .” Hero wrinkles his nose, a strange mixture of affection and loss nested in the hollowness of his chest. “He drank an unnatural amount of Orange Joe.”

“I didn’t know anyone actually drank that.” Michelle takes a long sip of her milkshake.

“Small base of loyal customers, I guess.” A memory drifts into Hero’s mind, and for once he doesn’t push it away. “I can’t believe he kept drinking it after that hot dog competition. He won, but he drank so much Orange Joe afterwards that he threw up before we left the fair. He always said it was worth it, though.”

Michelle shakes her head. “Siblings.”

For a moment, Hero is reminded of a dozen other conversations he’s had about Kel. He’d tell his grade school classmates about a recent squabble, or something funny Kel did, and that’s what they’d say.

Then the stark contrast of reality hits him. This isn’t a petty fight that will be resolved in a few hours, or a story where nothing serious is wrong. He’s up at one am having this conversation because Kel is gone, because Kel will never win another game, will never drink more unhealthy quantities of soda, will never even graduate high school. He’s here because Kel was found dead on the bathroom floor, next to an emptied bottle of cleaning fluid, and Hero hadn’t done enough to stop him.

He puts his spoon down and lays his head in his arms. Everything feels so heavy. “I should have been there.”

“It wasn’t your fault—” Josh starts, but Hero doesn’t let him finish.

“Yes, it was!” A few of the other late-night patrons glance at their table, and he realizes he said that much louder than he meant to. Taking a shuddering breath, he continues more quietly. “I should have been there. I could have taken more time off school, he was more important than a few stupid assignments. I…” he has to stop to take another uneven breath. His voice is shaky, and he’s not sure how much longer he can speak before he dissolves into sobs, so he talks faster. “I knew he was having a hard time, and I don’t think anyone else could tell because he just acted like he was fine. If I had been there…” He breaks. The crying he was holding back can’t be contained any longer. His shoulders shake and his throat burns. He doesn’t even care if the other people in the diner are staring. Through a blur of tears, he can see his friends looking at him with concern, waiting for him to get it all out.

When he catches his breath, he forces himself to keep talking. He feels like he has to get this out, no matter how much it hurts, no matter if he has to look away from his friends to bear to say it. “He killed himself. And I wasn’t there.”

Michelle is the first to speak. “I’m so sorry…”

Josh puts a hand over his. “That’s horrible… I’m sorry you have to live with that.” He pulls his hand back. “You must feel horribly guilty, but I really don’t think it was your fault.”

“You… don’t?” God, he imagines he looks so pathetic right now.

“Yeah, I mean, you’re just a person. There’s only so much you could have done. You clearly loved him a lot, and I’m sure that meant a lot to him.”

“But it wasn’t enough. I wasn’t there enough.” Hero’s sure he sounds like a broken record, but it’s all he’s been able to think about in the months since Kel’s death.

“Dude, you can’t save everyone. You can’t hold yourself to that standard.” Dennis’s voice is gentle, encouraging.

Hero looks away again, fresh tears emerging. “If that was all it was, maybe I’d think you’re right. But it’s not the first time this has happened.” He picks up his spoon, smushing the unmelted parts of the ice cream as he speaks. “I looked it up and it’s called a suicide cluster, but everyone else in town just calls it a curse.” He wipes away the new tears. “It doesn’t matter what you call it, though. Everyone I’ve grown up with is gone.”

“Shit…” For once, Josh is at a loss for words.

Michelle shakes her head. “It’s still not your fault. The only person who’s life and mental health you’re personally responsible for is your own. The most any of us can do for anyone else is be there and hope that’s enough, but if it’s not, that’s not your fault.”

Josh seems to come back to himself. “Yeah, absolutely. I stand by what I said before, no matter how many people died, because the same logic applies each time.”

“Wow… thanks.” It hasn’t fully set in, and to be honest, he doesn’t fully believe it either, but hearing that someone else believes it makes him feel a little better. “I’m… I’m scared it will never stop. What if everyone I get close to just keeps dying?”

“I… don’t think that will happen.” Dennis shrugs. “I mean, no matter what your town says, you’re not cursed or anything. It won’t go on forever.”

“Yeah, I guess so. My brain just needs to catch up, I guess.”

“It will, eventually.”

Michelle tilts her head slightly to one side. “If you don’t mind me asking, who else did you lose? No pressure, don’t answer if it will make things worse.”

Hero shakes his head. “It’s fine, I came here to get things off my chest anyway.” He pauses for a moment. “Let’s see… first, there was my high school girlfriend. That was four years ago. Last summer, her younger brother and a boy we were friends with growing up died on the same night, and earlier this year, before what happened to Kel, another friend got into an accident.” He feels like he should be more emotional as he says it, but he just feels empty. Like he’ll never feel human again.

“That’s terrible… if you ever want to talk about any of them, I’d be glad to listen.”

“Thanks.” The missing emotion is already bubbling back up a bit, and he has to swallow back tears. “You know, I don’t think anyone’s really asked me about any of them before tonight.” He sighs. “I kind of wish they would, now. I really liked telling you guys about Kel.”

“He sounds like a great brother.”

Hero’s tears start falling again, but somehow it isn’t as bad as before. “Thanks, he was.”

#I'm so sorry Hero my brain said you had to suffer #but hey at least you get ice cream out of it huh #tw suicice #tw emetophobia #tw self-harm #tw s/h #tw self harm #tw death #tw food #tw grief #tw grieving #omori #omori hero #omori fanfic #omori neutral ending #omori post-ending #tw alcohol mention

[contradictions-of-iron-and-lace]

So on my old blog, I would occasionally give my unsolicited thoughts and opinions on shows or movies (usually ones that either had a lot of hype or were just straight up bad). I just watched "365 Dni" aka "365 Days" because I had a couple hours to kill so be prepared for mental spewage because it's my blog and I do what I want.

Wait I thought this was a romantic thriller. They're talking about human trafficking. This is already gross.

Michele Morrone is very good looking though and I've been obsessed with his face for the last few weeks.

This whole conversation about these girls getting trafficked is gross.

Yes. Let's be extra pervy during a pervy business meeting and check out the girl on the beach with our binoculars.

Hold up. Why did they get shot?

I don't know what's going on. Freaking Italian mob, man.

This song about being addicted to someone that's playing while people are bleeding out on the ground seems tonally inappropriate.

So far we've seen Italy, San Francisco, and Warsaw. I didn't know we were globetrotting.

And we switched from Italian to Polish to English. Sure.

Yeah. Michele Morrone could get it. Also he survived being shot.

Is that the same girl from the beach? Probably. Why not.

They do a lot of spinning shots and it's making me dizzy.

So far this is a very expensive foreign Lifetime movie.

Yes. Because everyone takes boob shots in the back of their Uber while sober.

Homegirl's boyfriend looks like they picked him out of a burly henchman catalogue.

Yup. Michele Morrone is stupid hot. Even just sitting down he's hot.

Oh good. We've transitioned from potential human trafficking to cocaine.

Well damn. This is fairly explicit for a "mainstream" film.

Cool. I share a name with the female lead.

Still don't know the male lead's name yet.

Everybody in this movie is either stupid hot or stupid ugly. There is no middle ground.

Yes, Michele. Creeping up on this girl on a darkly lit path saying "Are you lost, little girl?" is definitely going to win you all the points.

I don't understand why writers insist on putting powerful women with schlubby dudes. It's tired and cliched and inevitably leads to annoying arguments.

Yes. Let's wander around Sicily at night all alone. That's totally safe.

And my point is proven.

I hope if I ever get kidnapped and holed up in some random ass castle in Sicily my makeup looks as good as Laura's.

So this just turned into a horror movie.

Called it about Laura being the girl on the beach.

Yeah, that's not creepy at all, dude. Let's obsess over a girl we might have hallucinated for five years and then kidnap her and give her a year to fall in love with you. Solid plan.

This is literally making my skin crawl.

Ah yes. "I won't do anything without your permission" he says as he literally grabs and sexually assaults her.

So basically this is trying to be "erotic thriller, Beauty and the Beast style".

Her pulling a gun on him has been the best thing so far.

I'm so confuuuuuused.

That's nothing new though. I live in a state of perpetual confusion.

Why the hell is there a man chained to a rock in this dude's basement.

I have many concerns.

Also his name is Massimo so that's good to know.

Besides the man chained in his basement his house is pretty cool.

Just kidding the man is no longer chained in the basement since he now has a bullet in his head.

I'm only 30 minutes in and this has been a wild ride.

"I'm not a bag of potatoes you can move without my permission!" is very Polish and as somebody who's family is Polish I'm living for it.

I'm going to need him to stop laying hands on her.

Whoever chose the music made some odd choices.

He keeps watching her sleep and it's creepy.

And there he goes grabbing her again.

I do like that she's giving him a lot of attitude and isn't putting up with his shit but you know that's going to change 🙄

Yes. Go spend all his money, honey.

He is disrespectful as hell.

I don't care how hot he is, he's creepy and abusive and I don't like it.

"I am not the monster you think I am." You would be incorrect, my dude.

Like, she went on vacation with her boyfriend and friends, and I can't for the life of me figure out why they aren't looking for her unless they explained it and I missed it.

Pierogi. The most romantic of Polish foods.

"I do business." He's a drug trafficker, honey. Run away. Run far, far away.

Honestly I would turn this off if I wasn't so far in it already.

I feel like I have to see this trainwreck through to the end.

"I would like you to show me how to be gentle for you" would be more appealing if HE LITERALLY HAD NOT KIDNAPPED, ABUSED, AND ASSAULTED HER.

Ew. Did he sneak in her bed while she slept?

One good dinner and now she's all "let's gently touch him in bed and take a shower in front of him" 🙄

Why is this bathroom set up like a communal shower? It's weird.

Although to be fair if he hopped in the shower with me I'd check him out too 🤷

They tied her to the seat in the plane. What the hell.

I'm so uncomfortable.

Ugh. Why. Why is this a thing.

So far this has been creepier than 50 Shades and 50 Shades is creepy as hell.

Hold on. I thought they were at a hotel. Why does he have a giant ass portrait of himself hanging up in his room?

I. Am. Uncomfortable.

Oh man. He has a nice butt.

Don't get distracted by the pretty man, Laura.

Onscreen Laura too.

He asked her to teach him how to be gentle, then handcuffs her to the bed and makes her watch while he hooks up with another woman.

Yup. Doing a great job there, Massimo.

Cool I'm back to being confused.

She can't walk in her heels and I'm dying laughing. Same, girl, same.

"What are you wearing?" "A couple thousand euro of yours." GET HIM.

Now we've entered the Scarface phase of the movie because there was just a copious amount of cocaine snorted.

Where did he pull two guns from??

So I don't know how long she's been with him at this point. I feel like that's something that needs to be clarified.

And she fell off the boat.

Of course she did.

Oh man. Why's he gotta be so cute with his fluffy curls and stubble and tattoos?

Also I'm pretty sure he only owns like two shirts because he's walked around shirtless for most of this movie.

We are now in the part of the movie where we've screamed awful things at each other and now we're going to bone it out.

All over the boat. Like every surface of the boat they have now banged on.

If y'all were dissatisfied with the raunchiness of the 50 Shades series, this is the movie for you because it far surpasses that.

Of course they're going to a ball. They always do in these rich people movies.

Makeover montage because why not.

Oh no. He's hot in a tux.

It always cracks me up in movies when people just automatically know how to ballroom dance like professionals without any training.

Every time I think this movie can't get more cliched, it does.

Why do I do this to myself? Why do I subject myself to bad movies?

I take it back. I know why I did it this time. The reason is 6'2" and looks damn good in a button up shirt.

"I thought you were kidnapped!" She was. You were a good friend for thinking that.

The switching between languages is giving me whiplash. It's very jarring going from Italian to Polish to English to Polish to Italian.

Her friend seeing through her bullshit is giving me life.

Also loving the fact that she's acknowledging she has Stockholm Syndrome. But because it's a movie it won't change anything.

Another makeover montage? So soon?

Also her friend keeps calling Massimo Mozzarella and it's hilarious.

That wig looks like it's about to crawl off her head.

Of course the ex shows up.

Honestly just knee him in the nuts and be done with it.

Why does Massimo think it's okay to break into her apartment and wait in the dark for her?

I don't know who thought using a blue light for her apartment was a good idea but it just looks like they're in a giant tanning booth.

"I don't need 365 days... Because I love you." GIRL NO.

I mean it was inevitable but it's still gross.

Yup. That's normal. Let's marry our kidnapper.

I want to snatch that wig off her head.

"What are your intentions with our daughter?" You don't want to know what his intentions are with your daughter, sir.

I will say that I love all her clothes in this movie.

Also she's pregnant. Calling it right now.

Called it.

Also good to know they've only known each other two months and they're going to get married and have a baby 👀

Her best friend is my favorite character and is the only likeable person in this whole movie.

Plot twist. Shocker.

This is so dramatic.

I will give them credit for the ending because that was unexpected.

In summary, this movie is trash and while the "love" scenes are pretty hot, it's not worth the time or effort that I clearly put into this.

#laura's unsolicited thoughts and opinions #i just kept watching this with increasing horror #365 dni #365 days

[getthesamovarready]

First Sight

Owen x Michelle

@ana122892 had the idea of Owen and Michelle meeting in a bar the night before their first shift... so here it is! 

also on ao3

Chapter 1: nice to meet you

He's sitting at the bar, turning his now empty glass in his hand when someone appears in the space next to him. Shifting over to allow them more room, he thinks nothing of it, and is about to signal the bartender when the person starts to speak. "Hey Chris!" She calls, and Owen's head snaps up. "Can I get a double?" He tries not to let her notice him while he tries to get a good look at the woman next to him, her turned head denying him a glimpse of her face. The bartender, Chris he guesses, lifts his hand in a wave, before confirming her order.

He can't see her face, but he knows enough to know that she's gorgeous. He knew that even before he saw her, saw her hair falling down her back, saw her fingers lacing together on the countertop. He knew it when her voice washed over him in a wave, shocking his system and sending him straightening in his stool.

He takes out his phone, pretending to scroll while he watches her wait on her drink, watches her thumb trace patterns in the back of her hand. His own need of a fresh drink is totally forgotten in his focus on the presence beside him. She starts to look around herself, and his eyes snap firmly to his phone when he sees her head turn to his side.

He can feel her eyes linger on him for a moment, and he almost opens his mouth to talk to her, when Chris sets her drink in front of her. "Ya'll back soon I hear?" Chris asks her, and Owen's interest is piqued.

"We'll be causing trouble again in no time, I'm sure." She replies with a weak, but affectionate, smile in her voice. Owen can hear it even without looking at her, and he so wants to see it.

"You make sure to bring them round, Michelle. I wanna meet em." He tells her, before turning to attend another customer. The woman, Michelle, lets out a heavy sigh, drooping onto the counter as she lifts her drink.

"So you come here often?" Owen asks, before cursing himself for not thinking of something better. The woman stiffens, turning to him slowly with a confused, concerned, and slightly amused frown. And she is... Stunning.

"What gave it away?" Blue eyes pierce him, and her lips draw into the most attractive smirk he has ever seen. "The bartender knowing me by name?" She cocks her head at him. "Or are you just a really bad flirt?" She looks him up and down, and he nearly shudders.

"I'm gonna go with both." He admits, after a moment of floundering. She nods at him, eyes narrowing. He can't seem to hold his tongue under her gaze. "I was curious." He starts, stomach tightening. "And it was a conversation starter. A bad, clichéd one, I'll admit." Her brow furrows, and it feels like a challenge. "And I would really like to try again." He flushes, before nodding at her. "Hi, I'm Owen." He holds out a hand, and she examines it for a moment.

"Michelle." She offers, still frowning. "But you already knew that." She smirks at him again. It pricks at his skin, making him want to squirm under her gaze.

He shakes it off before he speaks. "So what has you sighing into a double tequila?" He asks casually, finally summoning the bartender to order another drink.

She drops her head for a moment before answering. "I'll tell you, if you tell me why you're alone in a bar…" She looks him up and down again. "A long way from home?"

He doesn't ask how she knows that, just laughs a little before answering. "I start a new job tomorrow, I guess I'm pretty nervous." He takes his drink gratefully from Chris. "Your turn." He sips.

"Same as you I guess." She shrugs. "But I suppose it's not a new job. Same job as before. But it's different now, everything's gonna be so...different." Her eyes dim their sparkle. "So here I am." He gestures around the bar. "Pretending it's not different." In reality, it's not the kind of bar she'd normally go to on her own, but it felt like the right place to come tonight.

Owen watches as she tries to bring back the light tension from before she answered his question. "Ah, we have something in common." He offers with a smile, raising his glass to her. "To new jobs." He toasts, chest blooming with light when it earns him an actual smile. "You've got a good eye." He tells her when he's sipped his drink. "How did you know I'm a long way from home?" She actually laughs at him, a twinkling thing that dances around her before it fully reaches him, pulling him to lean towards her.

"It's just...really obvious." She smiles apologetically. "Sorry if you were trying to blend in. It's everything about you really." He just looks at her questioningly, before looking at himself, pressing her to elaborate. "Your clothes are too tight." She starts. "Not like...too tight, too tight, just like...not loose." Even in the low light she blushes, her eyes tracing his biceps. "The way you were sitting." He blushes at how tense he was when she appeared next to him.  "You just look a little out of place, that's all." She brushes it off, as though she's worried she has offended him.  

"I'm definitely out of place." He looks around at cowboy hats and flannel. He looks back at her. "It's not so bad now though." He quirks his eyebrows, and she shakes her head with a blush. "You though, you're right at home." He smiles at her. "Something tells me you're just the kind of friend a guy wants when he's new in town." It's forward, and he worries himself for a moment before she leans back on the counter, smiling.

"Ah, you want a tour guide." She muses. "Someone to show you around town." She clasps her hands in front of her, examining him, as though she's considering what he might actually mean.

So he clarifies. "I'm sure you know all the best places in town." He leans towards her, cocking his head to the door. And she understands, nodding.

She glances towards the door herself, before delaying. "You don't know me," she points out. She signals Chris for two more drinks. "And I don't know you." She says it with a smirk, leaning towards him now.

"What do you want to know?" He asks her, taking a swig of his fresh drink.

"Anything." She shrugs, finally settling on the stool next to her. He tells her about New York, skimming over the details of his life, and focusing instead on his places, his apartment, his street, his favourite cafes. He doesn't let her know him at all really, but he knows all she wants is to pretend she does.

She does the same. She tells him about Austin. Where she grew up, where she moved, where she drinks when she isn't here. He knows he doesn't know her, but he knows she doesn't want him to.

He doesn't ask her about her work, which she is obviously trying not to think about,  and she doesn't ask him about his. Eventually, he tells her a joke and she leans forward as she laughs, steadying herself with a hand on his thigh. She doesn't move it.

So he tells her a story of his drunken 20s with her hand on his thigh, tingling as he desperately tries to focus on anything else. Preferably something that isn't her eyes. But they are difficult to ignore.

Which is how he catches the moment she decides to take his hand, lacing her fingers with his. She doesn't say anything as she picks up her bag, standing from her stool. He doesn't say anything while he follows her.

Neither of them say anything when they step outside, or while he turns her to face him, or before he takes her by the back of the neck, kissing her fiercely against the wall of the bar. He's been desperate to do it since she first started to speak, and his skin tingles when she responds to him, a slight whimper rising in her throat. "I've wanted to do that all night." He admits, breaking away from her. She nods, forehead resting on his.

"You want to start your tour of Austin?" She asks him with the tiniest of grins. He nods, releasing her to call a taxi, which she manages even with his arm sneaking around her waist.

They keep their hands, mostly, to themselves in the taxi. Her hand rests apparently innocently on his thigh, while his traces light circles on her shoulder and they try their best not to embarrass the poor driver.

Neither of them show any such restraint when they arrive on her porch and the taxi is gone, and she barely has the door unlocked before she's tugging him inside and slamming it shut behind them.

Later, she lies staring at the ceiling, brow furrowed. He can see the cogs turning in her head, and he starts to worry about everything he's done tonight. "Fuck." She whispers under her breath, the heel of her hand coming up to press on her forehead. "What the fuck did I just do?" She asks the air, and he pulls himself further away from her. She jolts and the movement, immediately reaching her hand out in apology. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that I just…" She sighs, sitting up, taking bedsheets with her in some imitation of modesty. "I don't do this. Ever. And I've been really… it doesn't matter. I'm sorry." She squeezes his bicep before pulling away from him, her hands dropping to twist together in her lap. "I keep doing stupid things." She tells them, squeezing her fingers together. "Carlos is gonna go crazy."

Carlos? Owen panics, if this woman has a partner this just went from amazing, to awkward, to horrible really fast. "He's had to arrest me fourteen times and now I've taken a total stranger into my house." She drops her head, bringing a hand up to catch it. "I'm supposed to be the smart one. What the hell is wrong with me?"

"You've been arrested fourteen times?" It mustn't be for anything serious, but he does wish he'd known this before she took him home. He assumes Carlos isn't a partner, but maybe a friend, or a relative. So he's left not with adultery, but run-of-the-mill bad decisions. So he tries to relieve the tension. "Not to pry, but how does that even happen?"

"A lot has happened." She offers, wiping at her eyes. "I'm so sorry Owen, I shouldn't have…" She's not really sure what she shouldn't have done. She probably shouldn't have taken him home, but that's not what she wanted to say. Shouldn't have reacted like this, probably. "You should go." That's not right. "I mean, you don't have to stay, and listen to me ruin the night."

"Nah." He smiles, settling back on the pillows. "I can't leave a woman's bed while she's upset, what kind of guy would that make me?" He grins at her, and she manages a weak chuckle. "Besides, I could probably help. I know a thing or two about regrets. I've been married twice." Regrets aplenty there. Especially the second time. He doesn't like to think about the second time. "This stuff that's happened? You can tell me about it if you want? No harm in telling a stranger."

She hesitates, as though she wants to take him up on his offer before she shakes her head. "Okay." He concedes. "Can I tell you my thing though? Cos I've got a thing, that I haven't told anybody about. And you seem nice." She flushes, she had certainly seemed nice half an hour ago, moaning beneath him. She pushes the thought away, and settles back next to him with a nod. "I've got cancer." She jolts beside him, concern radiating off her. "It's not serious, it should be totally fine." He waves her off. "But I haven't told my son yet." He has a son? She shifts again, now knowing too much about the man next to her. "Or my new boss. I took this new job down here because my son needed to get out of New York. And now I'm scared, because I brought him here with this secret, and now I don't know how to tell him." Even telling her, this total stranger, sends a rush of nerves through him, making his whole body tremble next to her, and she lays a soothing hand on his arm. She rubs her hand up and down his arm until he stops shaking.

Behind him, she watches the clock on the table flick over to midnight, and her chest tightens. "It's my sister's birthday." She chokes out, her eyes screwing shut to force back the tears threatening to break through them. "She's been missing." She explains, and it's his turn to be concerned, his hand reaching out to grasp hers. "For almost three years. Her boyfriend," she scoffs, her lips almost turning to a weak smile. "He has a restraining order against me. That's why I keep getting arrested." He nods understandingly, the tiniest hint of amusement pulling at his cheeks.

"I'm sorry." He offers weakly, unsure what else to say. His health seems so trivial, so easily fixed. Even withholding the truth from TK has such a simple solution. But Michelle? There's no easy way out for Michelle, if there is a way out at all.

"It's not your fault." She shrugs, biting her lip. "I'm sorry about you too." She offers, and it lingers in the air.

His chest tightens, something pulling at it, and he knows that he can't walk away from her now. A beautiful woman from a bar? Yes, he could move on from her, with a memory to smile about. But her? This woman, the first one to hear about its cancer. This woman who offers no advice, only comfort. Whose own troubles are so devastating behind her smile. This woman he couldn't walk away from. So he leans up to kiss her softly, and she stares at him dumbly when he pulls away.

"See?" He smiles at her, unable to contain the light fluttering in his chest. "The night isn't ruined." She smiles down at him, sighing before she lets herself lie down next to him. He takes her hand in his, squeezing lightly. "You doing anything for your sister's birthday?" He asks casually. As though she would be able to take the woman out for a drink.

"I don't know." She shrugs. "I'm working till late. Maybe I'll have a drink for her after, I don't know." It actually lightens her chest, the thought of celebrating for Iris. "Maybe I will." She stares at the ceiling with a tiny smile, her thumb stroking his hand. "You should tell your son." She turns to him. "You should tell him before something happens. You need someone to know."

He nods. "Thank you." He whispers, and she leans in to kiss him. It isn't the rushed, delirium from before. But she hooks a leg over him, moving to straddle his waist, and it is a slow desperation that he lets himself reciprocate.

Xx

It's early, but probably not early enough for Owen's son to not wonder where he spent the night. "I probably shouldn't have stayed till morning." He sighs, eyeing the dim sunrise. She hums from the bed, not opening her eyes. "TK will never let me live it down if he catches me sneaking in."

Her stomach rolls at the new information. It must be short for something, but even this half-identity presses her to ask more about him. "So, TK?" She starts, rolling to face him. "Tell me about him. How old is he?" She's imagining a young teen, too street-wise for his age, in need of some access to the countryside, while still having the familiarities  of the city. So Owen's answer shocks her. "Twenty six? Twenty...so he's...an adult?"

"Well yeah." Owen chuckles. "Pretty sure twenty-six is an adult. But he makes me question that constantly." She doesn't dare ask how old he is, but she knows it must be considerably older than she first thought. She hopes to God that he was born when Owen was young, but either way he must be easily ten years older than she is.

"Kids always seem like kids." She laughs awkwardly. "No matter how old they get. Iris is ten years younger then I am." She laughs properly now. "She's always seemed like such a kid."

"Wow, some age gap." He tugs his shirt over his head.

"My parents were really young when they had me." She tells him, sitting up in her bed. She eyes him, his back turned to her. He drops his head back with a sigh.

"Oh, that's tough, I was twenty-two when we had TK." She lets out a tiny, relieved sigh. Not too huge an age gap, maybe Carlos won't absolutely kill her when he finds out about this. Because Carlos always finds out.

Owen drops onto the bed, shoes in hand. It occurs to her that it would be rude to make him walk himself out of her home in the early hours of the morning, so she slips out of bed, grabbing the robe hanging on the bathroom door. She doesn't settle back on the bed, but stands, leaning against the wardrobe, watching him put on his shoes.

Something in her stomach drops when she hears the taxi pull into the driveway. But she shakes it loose before he turns his head to smile at her. “I guess that’s my ride.” She nods silently, following him when he makes to leave her room.

He stops at her front door, and she waits behind him for him to turn around to her. She can’t help the smirk playing at her lips. He doesn’t want to leave yet. But he has to, so he turns back to her.

“Thank you.” He steps towards her. “For last night, for everything.” His hand brushes at her arm lightly.

She grins, blushing. “Welcome to Texas, Owen.” She chuckles, leaning to kiss him softly before she leads him to the door.

#michelle x owen #owelle #michelle blake #Owen Strand #911 lonestar

[anarchyduck]

Axe, Sweat, and Cigarettes pt. 2

Part 1

Also read on ao3.

ALERT:  There are some behaviors that can be seen as forms of self harm. There is also some chatter alluding to child abuse/molestation but nothing graphic.

-------

Ned has been around Peter Parker long enough to pick up on the tell tell signs of when something is bothering him. He fidgets more than usual and spaces out a lot. He jumps every time Ned touches his shoulder, which Ned wouldn’t have to do but Peter stops responding to his questions and is staring off into space.

Peter also bites his nails when something is eating at him. And after he has bitten his nails down to the quick, he picks at the skin around his cuticles. He does it absentmindedly; Peter himself doesn’t seem to notice until he’s bleeding.

At first, Ned thinks it’s Spider-Man related. The superhero gig - no matter how awesome and cool it is - takes a toll on Peter. When asked, Peter denies anything is wrong.

“Just stressing about midterms.”

Ned finds that hard to believe. Peter is one of the smartest (if not the smartest, in Ned’s humble opinion) guy at Midtown. He lets it go with the lingering reminder that Peter can always talk to him. Peter just smiles and they move on to talk about something else.

Michelle notices too.

“What’s up with Peter?” she asks Ned one day during lunch. Peter is conveniently absent with the unofficial ‘I’m sick’ story. The real one, or so he texted to Ned that morning, is him being stuck at home dealing with a sensory overload migraine.

“What do you mean?” Ned asks. “He’s sick.”

“I mean what’s up with him lately.” Michelle clarifies. “He’s been acting weirder than usual.”

Ned bites the inside of his cheek. Sure, Michelle is cool in her own blunt kind of way, but she doesn’t know anything about Spider-Man or the real reason Peter isn’t at school. While it is awesome no one else knows except for him, Ned sometimes wishes someone like Michelle did know.

“I… don’t know.” Ned says truthfully.

MJ raises a brow. “Aren’t you two like, best friends or whatever?” she asks.

Ned frowns a little because, yeah, he knows she isn’t being malicious, but it does hurt a little. Peter is his best friend and if anyone should know what’s wrong with him, it should be Ned. And Ned doesn’t know.

“I heard he ran out of the boy’s locker room yesterday.” Michelle continues as she peels off the sticker on her apple. “Knocked Flash down on his way out.”

Ned remembers that. It was so weird. One second, Peter is fine, just finishing dressing out, and the next he is bolting out of the locker room like it was on fire. Flash was the unfortunate victim (Ned uses that term lightly) when Peter shoulder checked him on his dash out. Flash bitched and complained the entire time until someone told him to shut up. Ned didn’t see Peter again until lunch. By that point, he seemed fine again.

“He also spent third period in the nurse's office.” Michelle takes a bite of her apple.

Now that is something Ned didn’t know about. “It’s just stress,” he says. “You know, about midterms.”

“Midterms. Sure.” she scoffs and takes another bite, chews on it, and says, “You better talk to him. You losers shouldn’t have secrets between you.”

It sticks with Ned for the rest of the day.

On the way home from school, he sends Peter a text message.

Ned: How are you feeling? Any better?

Peter doesn’t respond immediately, and Ned tries to not worry about it and rationalizes that Peter has his phone muted. Maybe his migraine isn’t totally gone.

Ned’s phone chirps with a reply.

Peter: Little. Out rn

K. Want to hang out later? Ned sends the message off as he steps off the train to head home. His stomach twists, knowing the answer but hopes for a different outcome.

Peter: Sorry dude have to study

Yeah. He should have known better. Ned sighs and types out k see you later! He is about to put his phone away when he decides to send one more text.

Ned: If you need me let me know

The only response Ned gets from Peter is a thumbs up emoji and smiley face.

It doesn’t make him feel any better and he makes a mental note to check Twitter for Spider-Man news later. If Peter won’t fill him in on anything, he has other ways of keeping tabs on him.

Which brings him back to his conversation with MJ earlier. Peter has been acting weird and Ned feels like he should know why. The more he thinks about it, the more his mind keeps going back to that day at the bodega. Peter had been off for the rest of the day. Nothing alarming, just distracted.

Now that Ned thinks about it, Peter has been distracted nearly every day since then. It could all just be coincidence, but Ned doubts that very much. Something happened and he missed it.

The scene at the bodega replays over and over in his mind even after Ned walks through his front door. The apartment is empty, except for his sister’s tabby cat Speckles. The feline trills at him from her lounging spot on the back of the couch, tilts her head up as Ned pets her as he passes by to drop his school bag in his room.

He turns on his computer and, while waiting for it to boot up, wanders into the kitchen for a snack. Afterwards, he unloads the dishwasher (more of an oversized drying rack since it broke) and washes up the remaining dishes left in the sink. Both his parents won’t be home until after dark and his sister is staying over at her girlfriend’s apartment closer to Queensborough Community College. It leaves Ned to his own devices for at least a few more hours.

He checks Twitter for any Spider-Man sightings. He still thinks it would be cool to set up an official Spider-Man account to have a place where people could post messages or whatever. Peter was on board with the idea until Tony Stark caught wind of it and quickly shut it down, citing how much of a bad idea it would be. Ned thinks it is because Stark doesn’t understand how social media works.

Nothing new shows up in the tags except for a new Daily Bugle article ranting about the dangers of neighborhood vigilantes. Ned frowns and decides to close out the tab before he ends up reading it. He decides to open a program to practice coding with hopes it will be enough to distract him.

And it works.

Then his phone rings.

Ned knows it’s Peter just from the ringtone (the ever-iconic Wilhelm scream) and pauses his music as he answers, “Hey Peter, what’s up?”

“Hey.” Peter replies. Ned thinks he hears the wind blowing in the background and wonders if Peter is swinging while on the phone again. “Nothing much, uh… What are you up to?”

“Nothing much, just working on coding.” Ned puts the phone between his shoulder and ear as he puts both hands on the keyboard again. “There’s that coding competition coming up, you know, and I thought about entering. There’s a sweet prize of like a thousand dollars. Think of the Lego sets we could buy with that.”

Peter gives a noncommittal response. “That would be cool.”

Ned waits a beat for Peter to say something else. In the background, he thinks he hears traffic moving. Or maybe it’s the wind again. The silence stretches out a little longer than Ned’s comfortable with and he starts, “Are you feeling any better? Because MJ was asking about you and-”

“Do you think I’m a bad person?”

Ned’s fingers freeze on the keyboard. Where the hell did that come from? “No, of course I don’t think that.” he assures.

“But what if…” Peter breathes heavily against the phone. “But what if I did something bad?”

“Like what?” Ned asks carefully, treading light even as his heart rate picks up. “Peter, what happened?”

“N-Nothing, just uhm…” his friend trails off and Ned’s concern only grows as the silence once again lengthens. He can hear Peter breathing, can hear the wind, and the distant sound of cars honking.

“Peter?” his chair squeaks as Ned turns, taking both hands off the keyboard completely. “You’re starting to freak me out, dude. Say something.”

Through the phone, he can hear Peter’s breath hitch and catch. “Uhm…” he clears his throat and there is an odd strain in his voice as he says, “I’m thinking of doing something really stupid and I…” - he takes a shuddered breath - “I’m scared.”

Ned straightens in his chair. A million thoughts fly through his head, one right after another and none of them are good. He thinks about calling May or reaching out to Happy or, hell, even Mr. Stark. But Peter didn’t call them; he called Ned.

“Come over.” he says.

“Dude, I can’t. I-”

Ned cuts him off. “Peter. Come over right now. Just stop whatever you’re doing or about to do. Come over and hang out with me.” He tries to keep the worry out of his words. The underlying plea of please come over so I don’t have to worry about what you’re about to do. If you’re here, you can’t do anything stupid. Please please please

“... Okay.” Peter sniffles on his end of the line. “Okay, I-I’ll come over.”

Ned sags into his chair with relief.

----

 It’s half an hour later when he hears a familiar rhythmic knock at his window. Ned crosses the room from his desk to unlock his window and let his friend inside. The most out of place thing is realizing Peter isn’t in his Spider-Man suit. His clothes are dark though and he’s even wearing a black mask with goggles that look an awful lot like the ones from his old costume.

“Why do you look like a bank robber, dude?” Ned asks before he can stop himself.

Peter takes off the mask and runs his hand through his hair. “Oh, it’s like a stealth suit.” he says, as if that answers everything.

“Why do you need a stealth suit?” Ned asks as he closes his window. “And how come you’re not wearing your regular one?”

“Because Mr. Stark has a bunch of stupid surveillance equipment in that one.” Peter replies. “He doesn’t have to see everything I do.”

Ned returns to his chair as Peter flops down onto his bed, arms outstretched beside him. A hundred questions come up all at once (what don’t you want Tony Stark to see? Why do you need a stealth suit? Why have you been asking so weird the past couple of weeks? What were you doing?).

Instead, he asks, “What’s up?” Ned immediately cringes at how painfully casual it sounds. Good job, Leeds.

Peter exhales a sigh as he stares up at the ceiling. He picks at his fingers and shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know, man.” he huffs a bitter laugh and brings his hands up to cover his face.

Ned bites the inside of his cheek. He wants to say something to break the silence, to push whatever is eating Peter inside out. “Where were you?” he asks finally.

“Out.” Peter replies, voice muffled by his hands that remain on his face.

“Yeah, but where?” Ned presses and, when Peter doesn’t answer, adds, “You’ve been acting weird, and I’m just worried about you. MJ is too. She asked about you today.”

“She did?” Peter asks in surprise. He uncovers his face as he sits up, a move Ned considers progress.

“Yeah.” Ned nods. “She wanted to know where you were today and why you’ve been acting… weird lately.”

Peter breaks eye contact as he fidgets with the black fingerless gloves. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you guys.” he quietens for a moment. He picks at the skin around his fingers and Ned wants nothing more than to reach over and grab them, to stop him. “I uh… I’ve just had a lot going on. W-With the internship and…” Peter trails off, not willing to finish what Ned knows is a lie. “Do you remember that guy who used to babysit me when I was little?”

Ned grimaces but nods. “Yeah.”

“I saw him.”

Ned’s eyes widen. “What? Where?”

“At the bodega, a couple weeks ago.”

Oh.

In an instant, everything clicked into place and Ned could see that moment when he caught Peter just standing in the middle of the shop’s aisle, staring off. How pale and out of it he looked, as if he was going to pass out any second. But he doesn’t remember that guy being there.

“And I haven’t been able to stop thinking about him and the more I think about it, the more it freaks me out.” Peter rubs the corner of his right eye and sniffs. His leg keeps bouncing. “Now it’s like, every little thing just sets me off.”

“So,” Ned draws out, pieces falling into place. “That day, when you ran out of the gym locker rooms, something set you off?”

Peter nods. “I can’t really stand the smell of Axe body spray.” he says. “And someone was spraying it and it just… I just freaked out.”

“Is that why you skipped class and stayed in the nurse's office?” Ned asks. If Peter is surprised by him knowing this, he doesn’t show it. He just nods and continues fidgeting. “Peter, you could have told me.”

“Told you what? That I was being stupid? That I can’t handle smelling that stuff without thinking about him?”

“I don’t think you’re stupid. What he did was awful. It’s not-” Ned says but Peter cuts him off.

“Not my fault. Yeah, I got it.” Peter laughs bitterly as he gets to his feet to pace. “Logically, I know it’s not my fault. I know. But that doesn’t stop the dreams or, or the memories from coming back up. I should be over this by now. I mean it’s not like Skip” - Peter’s voice catches on the name - “did anything serious. It was just touching.”

“That still doesn’t make it okay!” Ned raises his voice a little higher, hoping it drives the point across through Peter's thick skull. “He still hurt you!"

“I found out where he lives.”

The sudden statement is enough to nearly give Ned a whiplash.

“He’s here. In Queens.” Peter continues in a rush without giving Ned a chance to recover. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it so I looked him up and found his address.”

An uncomfortable chill rolls over Ned. What does that even mean? “Dude don’t tell me you went to his house.” he says gravely. Peter’s refusal to make eye contact and nervous nail biting is enough to confirm it. “Oh my God, dude.”

“I’ve been watching him, and I thought, you know, I wasn’t strong enough back to stop him but now I’ve got all these powers. And what if he was hurting some other little kid? I couldn’t let that happen, Ned!”

“Yeah, but you can’t just…” Ned trails off because yeah, if he could stop a bus with his bare hands, he would probably think about doing the same thing. He tries imagining his friend staking out Westcott’s house and then the phone calls springs back into mind. “Is that where you were tonight?” A grim thought comes to mind and he looks at Peter with alarm. “Peter, don’t tell me you-”

But Peter shakes his head. “No. But I was going to do it. I was going to sneak into his house and confront him. I was just so… angry.” he runs his hand through his hair and finally, finally, looks at Ned. Eyes shining with unshed tears and his hands are still shaking, breath coming out a little quicker. “I wanted to hurt him so bad, it’s all I could think about. What if I did do it? What if I killed him? A-and then May would find out and Mr. Stark would find out and and they would lock me up and May would be all alone and-”

Ned is on his feet before he realizes it, crossing the space between them and catches Peter’s trembling hands. There are specks of dried blood beside his bitten down nails, the spots where Peter was picking already healed. Ned holds his friend’s hands firmly and looks at him to catch eye contact. “Dude breath.”

Peter blinks, eyes red-rimmed, and he does exactly that. Breathes in through his nose and exhales through his mouth. Ned nods encouragingly, remaining quiet as he gives Peter’s hand a light squeeze. It takes a moment for Peter to squeeze him back.

There are several things on Ned’s mind. The biggest being how Peter tracked down that asshole Westcott and planned a confrontation with him. If he had, well, Ned doesn’t want to think what could have happened. Going off just the videos on YouTube alone, he knows Peter could have seriously hurt Westcott, even killed him if he didn’t hold back. Ned thinks the guy would deserve it (he does, 100%) but it wouldn’t do Peter any good.

“So…” Ned begins, trying to find the right words. “You found the jerk, but you didn’t confront him. Which is good! The guy totally deserves to have his ass kicked, but I don’t want to lose my best friend to prison. Plus, I don’t think you’d survive prison.”

Peter chuckles lightly and sniffles. “Prison would suck.” he lets go of one of Ned’s hands to wipe the tears from his cheek.

“Plus, I want to call first dibs on kicking his ass.” Ned adds and gives Peter an earnest look. “For hurting my best friend.”

Peter ducks his head, bottom lip trembling until he bites it. He sniffles and takes another calming breath. “Thanks, man. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Ned shrugs, “Probably fail history class and become less cool.” he says easily and smiles when Peter laughs again.

They stay like that for a while longer until Peter’s stomach growls obnoxiously loud. They laugh and decide frozen pizza rolls and ice cream are excellent ways to recover from draining emotional situations. Peter sends May a message to let her know where he is, and Ned talks him into spending the night.

Ned may not have super strength or be able to climb walls, but if he can help make his friend feel better, then it is enough. 

#peter parker #ned leeds #spiderman #spider-man #marvel #mcu #duckie's writing #it's so much longer than the first part lmao

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 5/7/20

The Ancient Magus’ Bride, Vol. 12 | By Kore Yamazaki | Seven Seas – As much as I continue to love this series overall, this particular volume had some highs and lows for me. When Chise’s new classmates are in a scene with her, I find them interesting (particularly her prickly roommate, Lucy) and enjoy seeing Chise successfully interact with peers when just a couple of volumes ago she had doubts about her ability to do so. That said, the conversations these characters have amongst themselves about their pureblood alchemical family drama are unimaginably boring. At the same time, there’s an important conversation between the leads in which Elias tries to clarify what he meant by “bride” and an eventful camping trip to Scotland at the end of the volume that sees Lucy in peril, both of which I greatly enjoyed. In the end, I’m as eager for the next installment as ever. – Michelle Smith

As Miss Beelzebub Likes, Vol. 9 | By Matoba | Yen Press – It would appear that the manga author is well aware that Eurydice is not the most popular character in this book, as the first part of it deals with her getting amnesia and forgetting she’s a shotacon… and having people reluctant to cure her. Big same. Elsewhere, it’s all about the three “main” couples in the series, none of whom are official but all of whom are teased to death. Astaroth and Sacchan are stuck on a seemingly deserted island, and both are feeling very awkward around each other. Beelzebub and Mullin are a couple but don’t actually seem to realize it, much to the frustration of others. Most importantly, Azazel and Belphegor hold a real conversation! It’s good setup for the final volume next time. Fluffy fun. – Sean Gaffney

Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!, Vol. 1 | By Yuu Toyota | Square Enix – The title of this one gave me the impression that it was going to be smutty, but the reality is anything but (at least so far). Kiyoshi Adachi is a gloomy, average, thirty-year-old virgin who has just discovered he can read the minds of the people he touches. When Adachi decides to see whether his seemingly perfect coworker, Kurosawa, has a secret nasty personality, he instead discovers that Kurosawa is romantically interested in him. As Adachi accesses more of Kurosawa’s thoughts throughout the volume, he realizes that he’s a genuinely good person and wants to get to know him better, but his lack of romantic experience means he gets overwhelmed easily. I think these guys make a cute couple and look forward to continuing the series. I also really enjoyed the bonus stories, especially the one about Adachi’s equally virginal friend and a delivery guy who bond over a kitty. – Michelle Smith

Gabriel Dropout, Vol. 8 | By Ukami |Yen Press – The main thrust of this volume is the arrival of Gabriel’s big sister Zeruel, who (as Gabriel knows) will flip her shit when she sees her behaving like a sloppy otaku, and (as Gabriel doesn’t know) has a massive sister complex about her. This amusingly leads to Gabriel acting like a perfect little angel and creeping everyone out. Fortunately, in a “who knows Gabriel best” trivia competition, Vignette’s knowledge of present Gabriel trumps Zaruel’s past knowledge. Speaking of Vignette, her demonic tendencies take another beating when another demon in the group refuses to see her as anything but an angel because she can’t be mean. Basically, be they angel or demon, everyone in this cast is a flake, so it’s all good. – Sean Gaffney

Kakushigoto: My Dad’s Secret Ambition, Vol. 2 | By Kouji Kumeta | Kodansha Comics (digital only) – This series continues to be the sweeter, more optimistic version of Zetsubou-sensei, and I’m OK with that. This is not to say that the author does not get a bit bitter about things that are in his wheelhouse, such as constant editor turnover (his current editor, who is a bit of a loser, is there because no one else will have Kakushi) and having to judge new entries in a manga competition (Kakushi judges fine, but is undercut by the stupid editor adding (lol) after every entry). Biting the hand that feeds him has always been Kouji Kumeta’s top skill. That said, it almost seems tempered by age and maturity here, particularly in the scenes with the father and daughter simply being a good family. Ominous future, though… – Sean Gaffney

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, Vol. 11 | By Izumi Tsubaki | Yen Press – Sometimes it happens that I just don’t have much to say about a volume of Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun. I like it best when some modicum of progress is made in one of the core relationships in the series, and for the most part (and despite the claim on the back cover that Wakamatsu finally learns Lorelai’s true identity) we don’t get that this time. Mostly it’s gags about otome games and hypnosis and what if Nozaki did a book signing. That said, there is a very nice tidbit at the end where Hori sincerely tells Kashima that he likes everything about her, and I hope that isn’t forgotten though I realize it’s extremely likely that nothing will come of it. In summation, I think I’m kind of reading this wrong, but ultimately I still enjoy it. – Michelle Smith

Prince Freya, Vol. 1 | By Keiko Ishihara | Viz Media – While several of Ishihara’s manga have now been released in English, Prince Freya is the first I’ve read. But I’m always happy to see more shoujo fantasy released, so I was looking forward to giving the series a try. The premise of the manga is pretty solid if not particularly innovative—Freya is a young woman who, due to unusual and deadly circumstances, is required to pose as Prince Edvard, the leader of her country. Ishihara has also laid the groundwork for some excellent court politics and intrigue. The pacing, however, especially in the introductory chapter, is extraordinarily fast. In addition, time and distance seem to have frustratingly little meaning in the series. And unless there’s some sort of spirit possession going on (which admittedly would be an interesting twist), Freya’s “becoming” Edvard in the first volume strains belief. But even considering its flaws, Prince Freya continues to intrigue me. – Ash Brown

Shoulder-a-Coffin Kuro Side Story: Nostalgic Travelogue | By Satoko Kiyuduki | Yen Press – This is nothing more than a series of short stories set during and after the main series, but if it allows us to spend more time with Kuro and friends, I’m 100% down with it. There’s moments of bittersweet tragedy in a story of a princess who sacrifices her life for the sake of her country. There’s amusing moments, such as Kuro and Sen having to play chess to escape a king’s wrath… a very strange game of chess. And there’s heartwarming, such as a young boy who grows older as he hears the stories of the travelers (including Kuro) who pass through his inn, eventually finding himself involved with some of the people he heard about. I love this series; it’s gorgeous and poignant. – Sean Gaffney

Sweat and Soap, Vol. 2 | By Kintetsu Yamada | Kodansha Comics – Now that our main couple has gotten together, it’s time to bring in some things to cause potential drama. The cute underling at work that’s in Kotaro’s department (and clearly has a crush on him) tries to uncover if he and Asako are dating… but fails. Also, he sees her like a little sister. Asako tells her mother she’s dating a guy… and she’s thrilled. The biggest issue in this volume may be Asako’s little brother Keita, who had to defend her from bullies as a kid and thus doesn’t trust anyone who might date his big sister. That said, a nice dinner at Keita’s restaurant (he’s a budding chef) does the trick, with Kotaro winning him over by simply being sincere. Both the sweat and the sex have lessened in this book, leaving pure sweetness. – Sean Gaffney

A Witch’s Printing Office, Vol. 2 | By Mochinchi and Yasuhiro Miyama | Yen Press – This started badly, with an entirely gratuitous boob shot distracting me from what turned out to be a pretty good plotline of a cooped-up rich kid wanting to get out into the world and read more… even if it turns out she might be reading her mom’s doujinshi. The basic premise of this series is that anyone and everyone can be happy buying and reading doujinshi, even if it’s monster guides or magic spellbooks. Yes, even the demon lord, who turns out to be quite nice. In fact, the real danger in this book is a natural one, as there’s a huge typhoon that threatens to take out the island that not-Comiket is held on. And there’s even a cliffhanger… is there another Japanese person trapped here? Aside from one bad bit of fanservice, still very good. – Sean Gaffney

By: Ash Brown

#Anime #News #Manga Bookshelf

[aporlaundethima]

DFW-cbslocal.com-student-loan-CEO-cries-over-complaints-against-company When dozens of people went...

DFW-cbslocal.com-student-loan-CEO-cries-over-complaints-against-company

When dozens of people went to Dallas-based jason spencer Student Loan Relief for help with debt, they were let down.

Sherrie Fuller was one of them. She received a masters degree in accounting while raising six kids.

https://studentloanforgiveness.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Student_Loan_Relief_Inc_CEO_Jason_Spencer_Explains-1.mp4

“For me, my children, you can do this no matter the obstacles you face,” said Fuller.

She owed more than $100,000 in loans after graduating from the University of Phoenix.

“They were in transition from one lender to another,” said Fuller.

Fuller said she contacted jason spencer Student Loan Relief for help and at first the company worked to get her payments to a lower amount.

According to the website, Student Loan Relief: “offers an affordable way to make your Federal Student Loan debt easier to manage. …work with you to identify the best combination of Federal, State, and/or Local programs for which you qualify….We currently work with more than 300 different programs, created from 233 Congressional bills, that can reduce your principal balance, lower your interest…”

The problems came later when the company drafted her account but didn’t pay the lender.

“I’m making duplicate payments, I was a nervous wreck,” said Fuller.

Sherrie said she dropped the company after it happened — twice.

“Not only am I making the payment, I’m paying you to do this. They were collecting a fee. They are doing their legwork, I can understand paying for their service but I wasn’t getting anything but a headache,” said Fuller.

Another woman who turned to the company and CEO Jason Spencer for help was Michelle Ridgley.

She owed more than $60,000 in student loans for her two degrees, including a master’s degree in public policy.

Ridgley was working for a non-profit at the time.

“He (the representative) said, ‘Hey how would you feel about $46 a month? I could do $46 a month, who couldn’t do $46 dollars a month,” said Ridgley.

Ridgley thought that $46 was going to pay down her loans.

“My loans. I mean honestly, even though some people might be like $46 a month but yes. You’re working with someone, the paperwork looks legitimate, you have a colleague that’s utilizing the service,” said Ridgley.

Ridgley said she learned the money was actually the monthly fee going to Student Loan Relief.

She said her loans were actually in forbearance collecting interest — now she owes $90,000.

“I’m so stupid for taking that chance,” said Ridgley.

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

Ridgley, Fuller and 20 others citing similar issues have filed complaints with the Dallas Better Business Bureau about the company.

They have an A rating and 16 unanswered complaints.

“The complainants are telling us, people are paying the fee but their student loans aren’t paid,” said Phylissa Landix of the Dallas BBB.

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

Student Loan Relief CEO Jason Spencer agreed to talk to CBS11’s Cristin Severance from his Dallas office.

“Sherrie Fuller was by far the most work this company has ever done,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

He said his company has helped Fuller and 5,454 other clients find programs to lower their loan payments.

“I’m not just sitting here putting people into consolidations,” said Spencer.

When asked why there were many unanswered complaints with the BBB, Spencer admitted, “I’m ashamed to say it. I’m a wimp. I get on there and it beats me down.”

jason spencer student loan relief struggled to compose himself throughout the interview.

“You try so hard and to see people on there lying. Maybe that’s a good enough answer,” said Spencer as he wept.

When asked if he was upset about the BBB complaints Spencer replied, “This is what it does to me. And so I don’t want to feel like this.”

jason spencer student loan relief then said was only able to get through reading one complaint.

CBS11 wanted to know if the CEO thought his former clients were lying.

Spencer answered that he hasn’t “read them all.”

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

The government has taken action on similar debt relief companies in the country.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau put out a warning about companies charging an upfront fee to lower student loan payments and shut down two companies in Florida in 2014.

Spencer said bad companies have popped up preying on borrowers but he’s not one of them.

“They are scumbags, they are phone-based scumbags. If I was bad, I’d be shut down a long time ago,” said Spencer.

However, some of things Spencer told CBS11 didn’t add up.

Spencer claimed he’s a nonprofit organization during the interview but he’s not registered as one with the IRS.

Student Loan Relief was listed as a “for-profit” corporation according to filings on the Texas Secretary of State’s website.

When Consumer Justice investigator Cristin Severance asked Spencer about why his Dallas office was empty, he claimed to have let go his 58 employees.

Spencer said he now relies on one employee and artificial intelligence to do the work but his website promises a “real person with real knowledge of your specific needs”.

Spencer did not return follow-up emails from CBS11 after his interview to clarify the non-profit issue or the number of employees he has working on reducing loans.

“I make mistakes, I make more mistakes than anyone I’ve ever met,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

He said while the company helped Fuller, they also made a mistake with her account.

“The new system drafted her twice and I sent her a check yesterday after looking into it for this interview,” said Spencer.

Spencer said in Ridgley’s case, some of her payments never even went through.

“We still did the work and didn’t get paid,” said Spencer.

Spencer insisted he hasn’t done anything to scam people and lost everything trying to do the opposite.

“Lost my wife over it, lost all my friends, lost touch with all my family,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

Jason Spencer Student Loan Relief Inc Dallas

The post dfw-cbslocal.com-student-loan-ceo-cries-over-complaints-against-company appeared first on Jason Spencer Dallas Texas Student Loan Forgiveness.

Source: https://studentloanforgiveness.com/dfw-cbslocal-com-student-loan-ceo-cries-complaints-company/

[grues0mee]

DFW-cbslocal.com-student-loan-CEO-cries-over-complaints-against-company

When dozens of people went to Dallas-based jason spencer Student Loan Relief for help with debt, they were let down.

Sherrie Fuller was one of them. She received a masters degree in accounting while raising six kids.

https://studentloanforgiveness.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Student_Loan_Relief_Inc_CEO_Jason_Spencer_Explains-1.mp4

“For me, my children, you can do this no matter the obstacles you face,” said Fuller.

She owed more than $100,000 in loans after graduating from the University of Phoenix.

“They were in transition from one lender to another,” said Fuller.

Fuller said she contacted jason spencer Student Loan Relief for help and at first the company worked to get her payments to a lower amount.

According to the website, Student Loan Relief: “offers an affordable way to make your Federal Student Loan debt easier to manage. …work with you to identify the best combination of Federal, State, and/or Local programs for which you qualify….We currently work with more than 300 different programs, created from 233 Congressional bills, that can reduce your principal balance, lower your interest…”

The problems came later when the company drafted her account but didn’t pay the lender.

“I’m making duplicate payments, I was a nervous wreck,” said Fuller.

Sherrie said she dropped the company after it happened — twice.

“Not only am I making the payment, I’m paying you to do this. They were collecting a fee. They are doing their legwork, I can understand paying for their service but I wasn’t getting anything but a headache,” said Fuller.

Another woman who turned to the company and CEO Jason Spencer for help was Michelle Ridgley.

She owed more than $60,000 in student loans for her two degrees, including a master’s degree in public policy.

Ridgley was working for a non-profit at the time.

“He (the representative) said, ‘Hey how would you feel about $46 a month? I could do $46 a month, who couldn’t do $46 dollars a month,” said Ridgley.

Ridgley thought that $46 was going to pay down her loans.

“My loans. I mean honestly, even though some people might be like $46 a month but yes. You’re working with someone, the paperwork looks legitimate, you have a colleague that’s utilizing the service,” said Ridgley.

Ridgley said she learned the money was actually the monthly fee going to Student Loan Relief.

She said her loans were actually in forbearance collecting interest — now she owes $90,000.

“I’m so stupid for taking that chance,” said Ridgley.

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

Ridgley, Fuller and 20 others citing similar issues have filed complaints with the Dallas Better Business Bureau about the company.

They have an A rating and 16 unanswered complaints.

“The complainants are telling us, people are paying the fee but their student loans aren’t paid,” said Phylissa Landix of the Dallas BBB.

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

Student Loan Relief CEO Jason Spencer agreed to talk to CBS11’s Cristin Severance from his Dallas office.

“Sherrie Fuller was by far the most work this company has ever done,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

He said his company has helped Fuller and 5,454 other clients find programs to lower their loan payments.

“I’m not just sitting here putting people into consolidations,” said Spencer.

When asked why there were many unanswered complaints with the BBB, Spencer admitted, “I’m ashamed to say it. I’m a wimp. I get on there and it beats me down.”

jason spencer student loan relief struggled to compose himself throughout the interview.

“You try so hard and to see people on there lying. Maybe that’s a good enough answer,” said Spencer as he wept.

When asked if he was upset about the BBB complaints Spencer replied, “This is what it does to me. And so I don’t want to feel like this.”

jason spencer student loan relief then said was only able to get through reading one complaint.

CBS11 wanted to know if the CEO thought his former clients were lying.

Spencer answered that he hasn’t “read them all.”

♦♦♦ Click Here For Resources To Help Lower Student Loan Payments ♦♦♦

The government has taken action on similar debt relief companies in the country.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau put out a warning about companies charging an upfront fee to lower student loan payments and shut down two companies in Florida in 2014.

Spencer said bad companies have popped up preying on borrowers but he’s not one of them.

“They are scumbags, they are phone-based scumbags. If I was bad, I’d be shut down a long time ago,” said Spencer.

However, some of things Spencer told CBS11 didn’t add up.

Spencer claimed he’s a nonprofit organization during the interview but he’s not registered as one with the IRS.

Student Loan Relief was listed as a “for-profit” corporation according to filings on the Texas Secretary of State’s website.

When Consumer Justice investigator Cristin Severance asked Spencer about why his Dallas office was empty, he claimed to have let go his 58 employees.

Spencer said he now relies on one employee and artificial intelligence to do the work but his website promises a “real person with real knowledge of your specific needs”.

Spencer did not return follow-up emails from CBS11 after his interview to clarify the non-profit issue or the number of employees he has working on reducing loans.

“I make mistakes, I make more mistakes than anyone I’ve ever met,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

He said while the company helped Fuller, they also made a mistake with her account.

“The new system drafted her twice and I sent her a check yesterday after looking into it for this interview,” said Spencer.

Spencer said in Ridgley’s case, some of her payments never even went through.

“We still did the work and didn’t get paid,” said Spencer.

Spencer insisted he hasn’t done anything to scam people and lost everything trying to do the opposite.

“Lost my wife over it, lost all my friends, lost touch with all my family,” said jason spencer student loan relief.

Jason Spencer Student Loan Relief Inc Dallas

The post dfw-cbslocal.com-student-loan-ceo-cries-over-complaints-against-company appeared first on Jason Spencer Dallas Texas Student Loan Forgiveness.

Source: https://studentloanforgiveness.com/dfw-cbslocal-com-student-loan-ceo-cries-complaints-company/