#Guam homes for rent

[guam-realtor]

Discover the Best Guam Real Estate Agent at RomaGuamProperties.com

When it comes to buying or selling real estate in Guam, having a reliable and experienced Guam Real Estate Agent by your side can make all the difference. At RomaGuamProperties.com, you'll find a team of dedicated professionals ready to assist you in your real estate journey. Whether you're looking for your dream home, an investment property, or need expert guidance on selling your current property, their expertise and personalized service will ensure a smooth and successful transaction.

1: Why Choose RomaGuamProperties.com for Your Real Estate Needs?

At RomaGuamProperties.com, their commitment to client satisfaction sets them apart as the go-to Guam Real Estate Agent. Here are a few reasons why they should be your top choice:

Extensive Local Knowledge: With years of experience in the Guam real estate market, RomaGuamProperties.com has an in-depth understanding of the local neighborhoods, market trends, and property values. This knowledge allows them to provide valuable insights and guide you in making informed decisions.

Diverse Property Listings: Whether you're searching for a luxury beachfront villa, a cozy family home, or a commercial property, RomaGuamProperties.com offers a wide range of property listings to suit every preference and budget. Their website is user-friendly, allowing you to explore available options and find your ideal property effortlessly.

Professional and Personalized Service: The team at RomaGuamProperties.com prides itself on delivering exceptional customer service. They take the time to listen to your needs, understand your goals, and tailor their services accordingly. From property showings to negotiations and paperwork, they handle every step with professionalism and attention to detail.

2: Buying with Confidence - Your Dream Home Awaits

Finding your dream home can be an exciting yet overwhelming process. With a trusted Guam Real Estate Agent from RomaGuamProperties.com, you can navigate the buying journey with confidence. Here's how they assist you:

Property Search: Whether you have specific requirements or need assistance in defining your preferences, RomaGuamProperties.com helps you find properties that align with your needs. They provide detailed information, high-quality images, and virtual tours to help you make informed decisions.

Expert Negotiations: When it's time to negotiate the best price and terms, you can rely on the negotiation skills of the RomaGuamProperties.com team. They have a deep understanding of the local market and can effectively advocate for your interests.

Streamlined Transactions: From coordinating inspections and appraisals to guiding you through the paperwork and closing process, RomaGuamProperties.com ensures a smooth and hassle-free transaction. They work diligently to minimize any potential obstacles and keep you informed at every step.

3: Selling Made Easy - Maximize Your Property's Potential

If you're planning to sell your property in Guam, partnering with a knowledgeable Guam Real Estate Agent is essential to maximize its potential. RomaGuamProperties.com offers comprehensive selling services, including:

Accurate Property Valuation: RomaGuamProperties.com provides a detailed analysis of your property's market value based on current market conditions and comparable sales. This ensures that you set the right price to attract potential buyers while maximizing your return on investment.

Strategic Marketing: To give your property maximum exposure, RomaGuamProperties.com utilizes a variety of marketing channels, both online and offline. From professional photography and virtual tours to targeted advertising campaigns, they ensure your property stands out in the competitive market.

Expert Guidance: Selling a property involves complex paperwork, negotiations, and legal considerations. RomaGuamProperties.com handles all these aspects with expertise, ensuring a seamless selling process. They keep you updated on market feedback, offers, and assist in evaluating the best offers to achieve a successful sale.

Conclusion: When it comes to Guam real estate, RomaGuamProperties.com stands out as a trusted and reliable Guam Real Estate Agent. With their local knowledge, personalized service, and commitment to client satisfaction, they are your partner in finding your dream home or successfully selling your property. Visit their website today to explore their property listings and experience their exceptional service firsthand.

[guamhomeslizduenas]

Looking for your dream home in Guam? Explore an extensive selection of Guam homes for sale on GuamHomesLizDuenas.com. Whether you're seeking a beachfront retreat, a cozy family home, or an investment property, our trusted real estate agent, Liz Duenas, and her team have you covered. Start your search today and find the perfect home that fits your needs and lifestyle. Visit GuamHomesLizDuenas.com for the best Guam homes for sale.

[islepropertiesguam]

Looking for the best Guam military rentals? At Guam Real Estate Properties, we specialize in helping military personnel and their families find comfortable, convenient rental homes near Guam’s military bases. Our listings include a variety of properties, from modern apartments to spacious family homes, all located in secure neighborhoods with easy access to key facilities. Let us help you find the perfect rental that meets your needs and fits your budget. Visit Guam Real Estate Properties today to explore our available military rentals and secure your ideal home in Guam!

[batboyblog]

Things Biden and the Democrats did, this week #17

May 3-10 2024

Vice President Harris announced 5.5 billion dollars to build affordable housing and address homelessness. The grants will go to 1,200 communities across all 50 states, DC and Puerto Rico. 1.3 billion will go to HUD's HOME program which builds, buys, and rehabs affordable housing for rent or ownership. 3.3 billion is headed to Community Development Block Grants which supports housing as well as homeless services, and expanding economic opportunities. Remaining funds focus on building housing for extremely low- and very low-income households, Housing for people struggling with HIV/AIDS, transitional housing for those with substance-use disorder, and money to support homeless shelters and homeless prevention programs.

At the 3rd meeting of the Los Angeles Declaration group in Guatemala Security of State Blinken announced $578 million in new US aid to Latin America. The Los Angeles Declaration is a partnership between the US and 20 other nations in the Americas to address immigration, combat human trafficking, and support economic development and improved quality of life for people in poor nations in the Americas. The bulk of the aid, over $400 million will go to humanitarian assistance to the Venezuelan people. Inside of Venezuela over 7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance due to decades of political and economic instability. Over 7 million more have been forced to flee the country and live in poverty across the Americas. The aid will help Venezuelans both inside and outside of Venezuela.

The Department of Energy lead an effort to get the G7 to agree to phase out coal by the early 2030s. The G7 is a collection of the 7 largest Industrial economies on Earth, the US, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and Italy. To avoid catastrophic climate change the International Energy Agency believes coal needs to be phased out by 2035. However this has been a sticking point with the G7 since 1/3rd of Japan and 1/4th of Germany's energy comes from Coal. This agreement to phase out represents a major breakthrough and the US plans to press for even wider agreement on the issue at the G20 meeting in November.

President Biden announced a major investment deal in Racine, Wisconsin, site of the failed Trump Foxconn deal. In 2018 then President Trump visited Racine and declared the planned Foxconn plant "the eighth wonder of the world.". However the promised 13,000 jobs never materialized and the Taiwan based Foxconn after bulldozing 100s of homes and farms decided not to build. President Biden inked a deal with Microsoft for the land formally given to Foxconn which will bring 2,000 new jobs to Racine to help replace the 1,000 job losses during Trump's Presidency in the community.

200 tribal governments and the US territories of American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, published climate action plans. The plans were paid for by the Biden Administration as part of a 5 billion dollar Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program. The federal government is supporting all 50 states, territories, DC, and tribal governments to draft climate action plans, which will be used to apply for more than 4 billion dollars in grants to help turn plans into reality

As part of marking Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), the Biden Administration announced a number of action aimed at combating antisemitism and supporting the Jewish Community. This included $400 million in new funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. The Program has supported Synagogues and Jewish Community Centers with security improvements like bullet proof windows and trainings for staff in how to handle active shooter and hostage situations. The Department of Education issued guidance to all schools districts and federally funded colleges stressing that antisemitism is banned under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These actions come as part of the Biden Administration's National Strategy To Counter Antisemitism, the first ever national strategy addressing the issue by any Administration.

USAID announced $220 million in additional humanitarian aid to Yemen. This new funding will bring US aid to Yemen over the last 10 years to nearly $6 billion. Currently 18 million Yemenis are estimated as needing humanitarian assistance, 9 million of them children, and the UN believes nearly 14 million face imminent risk of famine. The US remains the single largest donor nation to humanitarian relief in Yemen.

The Department of Interior announced nearly $150 million to help communities fight drought. The funds will support 42 projects across 10 western states. This is part of the President's $8.3 billion dollar investment in the nations water infrastructure over the next 5 five years.

[fatehbaz]

In 1913, a year before the Panama Canal was completed, the journalist Frederic J. Haskin wrote that “the conquest of the Isthmian barrier was the conquest of the mosquito.” This was a period when America [had] [...] by 1902 taken control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Guam. [...] The connection between mosquito control and the United States’ imperial conquest can be seen in the work of William C. Gorgas, the Alabama-born Army surgeon who led efforts to eradicate yellow fever and malaria -- both mosquito-borne diseases -- during the first US occupation of Cuba (1898–1902) and was subsequently appointed Chief Sanitary Officer of in Panama. [...] Gorgas claimed that he had “made sanitary discoveries that will enable man to return [...] and again live and develop in his natural home, the tropics.” [...] In particular, the dwellings erected for the Isthmian Canal Commission (ICC) conjoined the management of mosquitos with manipulating the interactions between people of different races and social classes. [...]

Gorgas arrived in Panama in 1904 [...]. Gorgas and others saw sanitation work as indistinguishable from the military occupation in Cuba and the success of the canal construction in Panama. [...] Spraying was largely carried out by mosquito brigades, which checked households for compliance [...]. But [...] these brigades also policed the activity of local residents. [...]

---

There was much debate not only about who to enlist to build the canal, but also how to prevent organized resistance and revolt among them. 

As one official testified to the US congress in 1906, “there must be on the Isthmus a surplusage of labor. Otherwise, we will have interminable strikes.” [...] 

Furthermore, rather than one vulnerable workforce, Chief Engineer John Stevens believed that having several different nationalities and ethnicities would be easier to divide and create competition, compelling them to work harder.

In order to do this, the ICC created a segregated, dual payment system: the gold and silver rolls. [...] [W]hite workers from the US were mostly hired for skilled positions and received payment in gold. These “gold-roll” employees could spend leisure time in segregated clubs [...]. West Indians and Black workers from the United States were mostly assigned to the silver roll. [...]

[T]he gold- and silver-roll system constituted an apartheid society, a perverse reincarnation of the contemporary Jim Crow system that was in full effect at the time in the United States. [...]

---

Although the ICC offered free housing to all its gold-roll employees, silver-roll employees paid rent. [...] As late as 1910, Galician workers on the silver roll were still living in boxcars ventilated only by a few small punched openings. [...] When West Indians requested basic amenities like blankets and shelter to keep their clothes from being soaked in the rain, the US government responded that they didn’t even need sheds. [...] For white workers [...] Type 13 [housing types] not only features a wraparound screened porch as a circulation space, but also a prominent band of empty space surrounding the enclosed bedrooms [...].

The distinctions associated with the categorical, systematic definition of different domestic architecture for different classes of people follows a history of typology in architecture and criminology that was closely associated with scientific racism, social Darwinism [...]. 

George W. Goethals, who took over as Chief Engineer of the project from Stevens in 1907, responded to requests for mosquito nets and screens for West Indians by repeating a common and racist misunderstanding: “It is generally admitted … [t]hat the colored people are immune.” Yet in 1912, “as many as two-thirds of all West Indians reported sick or required medical attention … [m]ost of them catching malaria several times [...].”

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Structured by prejudice, anti-mosquito architecture allowed malaria to continue spreading while reinforcing racial hierarchies. [...] US imperial concepts about the tropics as a place [...] “[...] divided the civilized, temperate North from the heat, humidity and backwardness of the tropics.” [...] While managing the laborers through their relationship to insects -- and each other -- this low-cost architecture was crucial in the broader effort to turn the Isthmus into an imperial outpost and render the landscape tropical.

---

All text above by: Dante Furioso. “Sanitary Imperialism”. e-flux (Sick Architecture series). May 2022. [Bold emphasis and some paragraph breaks/contractions added by me.]

[whattheabcxyz]

2023-06-28

Singapore

Man threw Singapore flags & his own shorts into fire, then walked home naked - he had been drinking

Condo rents dropped 0.6% in May while HDB rates rose for 35th straight month

SIA chief Goh Choon Phong’s total annual pay jumps 86% to $6.7m

British cyclist crashes into Singaporean woman & her child @ East Coast Park - the victims were both injured; the cyclist left his number but has been uncontactable since the incident ...when caught I recommend he be caned, then deported, with his wounds still fresh & festering

Environment

Singapore: Oil slick spotted on shores of East Coast Park - some sea creatures were also found dead &/or covered with oil

Sports

Sport participation in Singapore hits all-time high - walking, jogging & calisthenics top 3 activities

Politics

Prigozhin heads into Belarus exile - won’t be long before he dies under suspicious circumstances

Singapore & US navies conclude bilateral exercise in Guam

Education

NUS enters top 10 in global university ranking for 1st time - it means nothing

Maritime

^ Last historical cargo boats in Singapore River to be removed from Clarke Quay

Society

Mentally ill woman wrongly convicted of 1980 murder may finally be released after 43 years in prison

Prosecutors to seek death penalty against Bryan Kohberger for Idaho murders

People

Actor Julian Sands confirmed dead 5 months after disappearing while hiking - his remains were found by hikers

Entertainment

Ryan Seacrest named next host of Wheel Of Fortune

Gossip

Ken Lim faces 5 more charges of sexual offences against 3 women

[awesomeforever]

March 30, 2022 // Franchising.com // ORLANDO, Fla. - Buddy’s Home Furnishings will expand its Virginia footprint through an agreement signed with WRE, LLC, an established multi-unit operating group with plans to convert six of their rent-to-own locations to Buddy’s storefronts. Owned by Robert Smith and Ernie Thompson, WRE, LLC has operated in Virginia since 2002. In 2018, after more than 16 years in the retail industry, the company stepped into the rent-to-own space. “We both had backgrounds in the furniture and retail industries,” said Smith. “After we went into business together, we saw a real need for alternative financing options in our community, which is how we were introduced to rent-to-own.” “In the past, balancing backend and operational issues along with merchandising has been a challenge,” said Thompson. “Thanks to the support of the team behind Buddy’s, we’ll now be freed up to focus more on our valued customers and supplying the community with everyday necessities.” The existing Virginia stores, previously known as Hometown Sales & Leasing, are located in South Hill, Blackstone, Ashland, Smithfield, Kilmarnock, Farmville. The conversions will take place over the next six months. “This feels like a fresh start for us,” said WRE District Manager Bryan Caulder. “Buddy’s franchise model is the perfect combination of what we’ve been doing and what we’ve been missing. I’m excited to see how much better we can be together and the impact we will have on these communities in Virginia.” “We couldn’t be happier to go into business with the team at WRE,” said Buddy’s CEO Michael Bennett. “They share our vision for growth, and we’re thrilled to expand our Virginia footprint alongside their dedicated team.” Buddy’s adopted the franchise model in 2009 and was acquired by Franchise Group, Inc. in 2019. The rent-to-own retailer recently ranked in the prestigious Entrepreneur 2021 Franchise 500 and Franchise Times’ 2021 Top 400 lists. For more information or to inquire about franchising, visit OwnABuddys.com. Buddy's Home Furnishings, a subsidiary of Franchise Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:FRG), is a retailer specializing in the sales and rental ownership of furniture, electronics, and appliances. Buddy's has more than 300 stores in the United States and Guam. For more information, visit BuddyRents.com.  SOURCE Buddy’s Home Furnishings ### Meghan StanfordPR Specialist See.Spark.Gomeghan.stanford@seesparkgo.com(678) 634-8090 Request Information Buddy’s Home Furnishings is backed by more than 60 years of proven success, is recession resistant and offers impressive unit economics. Several single and multi-unit development opportunities are available and in high demand. Franchising.com is produced by Franchise Update Media. Franchise Update Media has its finger on the pulse of franchising with unrivalled audience intelligence and market driven data. No media company understands the franchise landscape deeper than Franchise Update Media. P.O. Box 20547 San Jose, CA 95160 PH. (408) 402-5681 About | Advertise | Contact The franchise opportunities listed above are not related to or endorsed by Franchising.com or Franchise Update Media Group. We are not engaged in, supporting, or endorsing any specific franchise, business opportunity, company or individual. No statement in this site is to be construed as a recommendation. We encourage prospective franchise buyers to perform extensive due diligence when considering a franchise opportunity. Copyright © 2001 - 2022. All Rights Reserved.  Legal Notices | Privacy Policy source

[acquariusgb]

9/11 Bill POV

While Hillary was in Washington and Chelsea in New York, Bill was in Australia. Here's an extract from Man of the World by Joe Conason, describing the events from that day.

In Clinton’s suite at the Sheraton Mirage, a luxurious hotel surrounded by palm trees, he turned on the television to see the nightmarish images that would soon become a historic symbol of horror for Americans. Across the bottom of the screen, a crawling ticker listed the names of passengers on the four flights hijacked by the al Qaeda terrorist teams. Suddenly, Clinton saw the name of a friend, someone who had worked with him for years, a man with a family of his own. “Oh my God,” he breathed.

He knew Chelsea was in New York City, visiting a friend before her scheduled departure for England. Now he had to find out exactly where she was and who was with her, but nobody had been able to find her yet. When Hillary finally got through to his room, she pretended to know already that their daughter was safe, hoping to calm him—even though she felt inwardly frantic as her Senate staff continued to try to locate their daughter.

By her own account, Chelsea had been watching television at her friend’s apartment in Union Square when the second plane hit, and quickly tried to call her mother in Washington—but as she spoke with an aide in Hillary’s office, overburdened phone lines went dead. In a panic, she left the apartment and headed downtown, searching desperately for a pay phone to reach Hillary’s Senate office again. She was standing in line at a pay phone, about twelve blocks from the disaster scene, when she heard the deafening roar of the second tower collapsing. She headed back toward Union Square, eventually found her friend, and they walked uptown, like thousands of other New Yorkers. When she found a working phone and reached Hillary, her mother burst into tears of relief.

At Clinton’s office in Harlem, Karen Tramontano and members of the foundation staff were meeting in a conference room with a panoramic southward view when they saw the first plane. Someone came running into the room and suddenly they were watching the catastrophe on television. Tramontano picked up a phone immediately, trying to reach Band in Australia.

With all flights into the United States canceled, the Clinton entourage was stranded in Australia. After talking with Band, Tramontano placed a call to Condoleezza Rice to ask for help. After some wrangling that involved more calls from Band to the Secret Service and to Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, the Pentagon dispatched a military aircraft to pick them up at Cairns Airport in Port Douglas. “It won’t be very comfortable,” Rice warned, “but it’s the only plane we have available out there right away.”

It wasn’t comfortable at all aboard the C-130 cargo plane and the trip took almost twenty-four hours. There were no seats, there was no food, and at thirty thousand feet, the interior of the plane was cold��very, very cold. They stopped in Guam and switched to a refueling plane, which was no better. Band had tried to scrounge some sweaters and other warm clothing at the hotel, but they were all bone-chilled, starved, and exhausted when the plane finally landed at Stewart Airport, a New York National Guard airbase about fifty miles north of Chappaqua. Almost immediately they departed for Manhattan, where they headed to Union Square.

Despite their ordeal, Clinton was grateful to have gotten home, unlike thousands of Americans left overseas with no way to return until the airports reopened. Among them was Al Gore, who had been in Vienna when the terrorists struck, giving a speech to an Austrian Internet forum.

Evidently the Bush White House was not prepared to provide military transportation for the former vice president, who could find no way to get back except via Gander Airport, a tiny facility in Newfoundland. From there, he and an aide would have to drive southward across the Canadian border.

While seeking help with their predicament, a former Gore aide—who had also worked in the Clinton White House—called the Harlem office. Gore and Clinton had exchanged messages within the first hours after the terrorist attack, but had not spoken yet. Distant as relations between their bosses had become, the staffers remained friendly. When Gore’s aide reached Tramontano, they talked casually about “the crap that’s gone on for far too long” between Gore and Clinton—who literally had not spoken since a bitter two-hour argument about who was to blame for the disastrous outcome of the 2000 election. She suggested that on the long drive down from the Canadian border, Gore might stop in Chappaqua. When Tramontano reached Clinton to discuss the proposed sleepover, she wasn’t surprised by his enthusiasm. That evening around 8 p.m., the former vice president picked up his cell phone to speak with the former president for the first time in many months.

“Why don’t you come down here, and then we’ll fly down together Friday morning?” Clinton asked. An Air Force jet provided by the White House would take them to the capital for the special memorial service on September 14 at the National Cathedral.

Hours after midnight, driving a rented car, Gore arrived at the five-bedroom colonial on Old House Lane. Clinton was waiting for them in the living room, where he had been napping on and off, and got up to greet Gore.

As he climbed the steps to the front porch, the former vice president noticed a refrigerator, sitting where it had been moved while the kitchen was undergoing renovation—a tableau that struck him as more hillbilly Ozarks than chic Westchester. Eyeing the fridge, he cracked, one Southerner to another: “Well, you’ve really come a long way, haven’t you?” At the door, Clinton roared with laughter.

They stayed up almost until dawn, talking mostly about the 9/11 attacks, their own efforts to deal with terrorism, and the murky times ahead. Chelsea met them in the morning at Westchester Airport to fly to Washington. On the flight down, Gore invited the Clintons to join his family after the memorial service for lunch at his home in Arlington, Virginia.

At the cathedral, a century-old Gothic Revival structure on the northern outskirts of the capital, Clinton sat in a front pew alongside President Bush and the other living former presidents, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush. He listened as the president delivered words of compassion for the bereaved and a warning to the enemy. He was speaking out forcefully in support of Bush at every opportunity, starting with his departure from Australia. He had canceled all of his speaking engagements abroad to remain in Manhattan, spending hours at local vigils and especially at the Armory on Park Avenue, where he tried to comfort families whose loved ones were missing and presumed dead.

“They cheered, they wept, they hugged him,” wrote a reporter for London’s Daily Mirror. “All around him, New Yorkers gathered, some to pass on their thanks that he had rushed to their side, others to grab his hand and use him as an emotional crutch. . . . All felt lifted to be in the presence of the man they had looked to for most of the past decade when their country was in its hour of need.”

The Mirror correspondent was not alone in contrasting Clinton’s instinctive leadership with the unsteadiness displayed by his successor in the early hours following the attack, although Bush soon righted himself and took command. America and the world had turned a page, moving beyond the petty controversies that had almost consumed Clinton in the days after he left office. Gaunt, somber, and worried, he and his fellow Americans now found themselves in a very different world.

Not everyone was willing to leave old habits behind, however, especially among Clinton’s most rigid detractors on the right. Even as Bush and congressional leaders prayed for the nation to unite, the habitual haters simply could not resist a fresh opportunity to target him. Nothing mattered more than proving (or at least asserting) that the terrorist attacks of September 11 should be blamed not on the current president, but the one who preceded him. Before long a writer for National Review warned, only half-jokingly: “If we members of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy don’t get back to our daily routine of obsessive Clinton-bashing, then the terrorists will have won.”

[guam-realtor]

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[guamhomeslizduenas]

Hire the best Guam Realtor – Real Estate Agent. Liz Duenas is a popular name in Guam Real Estate, visit our site for Guam Homes for Sale, Rent, etc.

[islepropertiesguam]

Embark on a journey to homeownership with Guam Real Estate Properties, your trusted partner and the best realtor in Guam. Our expert team is dedicated to turning your real estate dreams into reality. Discover personalized service, in-depth market knowledge, and a commitment to your satisfaction. Whether you're buying, selling, or investing, rely on the expertise of the best realtor in Guam. Visit our website now to start your real estate journey with confidence!

[semperreformanda]

I know Americans still struggle with poverty and healthcare and rising prices but…y’all still got it so good out here. I was by no means poor in the Philippines or anything but based off observation y’all are in a good place. You can get government assistance here, food stamps, whatever; Filipinos don’t really have that. During the pandemic when people got laid off the government handed out assistance and that was a LOT of money for an extended amount of time. If you weren’t paying rent you can live without a job comfortably for months. Meanwhile at the peak of the pandemic Filipinos got a few canned goods and $100, if you’re lucky.

When I got to Guam and my husband one day randomly decided to buy a TV for his mom, I was a little shocked 😂 my dad has a full time job but we never just bought a TV randomly, we would save up for months. I don’t know, it’s the little things like that I guess, that reveals first world vs third world differences.

I don’t know where I’m going with this 😂 but it’s just interesting to think about. People here are always like “oh I love the Philippines the food there is SOO cheap” and they go to restaurants I never tried because it’s expensive 😂 I used to feel bad spending 200 pesos ($4) for lunch but coming here to Guam and comparing prices…it’s so crazy. I don’t know

Sometimes I feel guilty knowing friends and family back home deprive themselves of pleasures because things are expensive. They survive off the bare minimum. And there’s nothing wrong with that! But just seeing the difference between living in a first world and third world country just puts things into perspective. Like I said we were middle class because my dad worked so hard for us, but he still doesn’t even like buying jeans for himself because he’d rather use the money for bills or whatever. It’s not like this here, for most at least. Idk it’s just interesting

[namjisoongi]

‘Homecoming’ (J-Hope ff) (part 4)

📍Plot: A day spent with aunt Lisa, Tiana, and Via.

As I was asleep, I felt something lightly shake my shoulders. I kind of got startled once I woke up to see aunt Lisa standing in front of me, “Sorry to wake you up, but I’m just letting you know that I’m getting some groceries from the store. You want anything on my way back home?” She asks, I sat up on the bed to stretch, “Can I have a Lemon Tea and a King Car, if you don’t mind?” I answered, “Alright, I’ll see you later, then.” She says, walking out of the room. “Okay.” I answer, getting out of bed and did my usual morning routine and headed out to the living room to see Tiana and Via awake as well. “Good morning, Adi.” I hear Via greet me, “Good morning girls.” I greet back at them. “You girls want some breakfast?” I ask, “No thanks, we already ate right after mom cooked. There’s more rice, eggs and bacon on the stove.” Via answers, “Okay.” I say, heading to the kitchen to make my own plate. “What are we watching now?” I ask as I sat down on the couch next to them. “We’re watching ‘Ron’s Gone Wrong’ on HBO.” Tia answers, I took a few bites of my food as we all continue to watch the movie.

(45 minutes later)

“This movie kind of reminds me of Big Hero Six.” I commented on the movie. “That’s what we were thinking before you came in.” Tiana says as I burped loudly out of nowhere. “Excuse me.” I say. Once I finished eating my breakfast, I digested on the couch while watching the ending of ‘Ron’s Gone Wrong’ with the girls before I start heading to the kitchen to clean my dishes. “Adi, I have a quick question.” Via says as she chews on another grape, “Shoot.” I say, taking a small sip of my water, “Have you ever thought of sticking around a little longer?” She asks, I set down my cup on the table in front of me, “Here? On Guam?” I ask, thinking of the context of her question, she nods. “I was just wondering. I mean, I know that you have so much to do back to where you’re living now, but it would be cool if you stayed.” Via tells me, “Hmm…” I say as I thought of an answer to come with, I leaned in a little bit, “Between me and you two…” I start to answer, “I thought of sticking around here a little longer as well. I mean, I could take more classes online, help you guys out with the house, and maybe find a job that would be suitable for me.” I tell them.

(10 minutes later)

After a few episodes of watching Full House, I got up from the couch to the kitchen and cleaned all of my dishes. “Girls, I’m home.” I hear aunt Lisa call out. They all walked into the kitchen to put all the groceries away, I helped out after I was done cleaning the kitchen. As I finished helping them out with the groceries, I went to use the bathroom. I closed and locked the door behind me, and sat on the toilet to do my business. I wiped myself after I finished my business, flushed the toilet, cleaned my hands and headed out of the bathroom. I looked around the house to check on the girls before I looked for aunt Lisa, I checked outside the garage to see that she’s feeding the animals in her little farm. “Hey, aunt Lisa. Um, I wanted to talk to you about something.” I say as I stood by the pig fence, “Sure. What’s up?” She asks as I watched her feed the pigs. “So, I was thinking… maybe, I should stay with you guys for a while longer.” I answer, waiting for her to respond. “Is this what you want? I mean, I don’t want to hold you back.” Aunt Lisa asks as she walks up to a different fence to feed the chickens and goats.

“I’ve been thinking about it with the girls and I decided that I would like to stay. I can talk to my school for me to take all of my classes online, I can start looking for a job and to be able to help you guys with rent, the meals, everything. I’m also willing to drop Tiana and Via off to school and to pick them up afterwards every day of the week.” I answer. “If you really want to stay and help us out, I wouldn’t mind that at all, but I’m going to set some house rules for you.” She says, setting down the stuff for the animals to eat and sat on a rocking chair.

“#1) Going to church on Sunday’s are mandatory. #2) While I’m still at work, you’re in charge of making the meals. #3) Keep the house clean, feed the animals, etc. #4) You are responsible to take the girls to and from school. If they are late or absent from school, it’s going to be on all three of you. Unless it’s an emergency. #5) Via and Tiana has soccer practice every day of the week right after school. #6) Always wear something decent while family and friends are over. #7) Treat others how you want to be treated. #8) No slamming doors when you are angry. #9) There is no maid in this house. If you make a mess, clean it up yourself. #10) Respect each other in this house. And lastly, #11) If you ever want to ask me to let you go hang out somewhere with some friends, be sure to be back no later than 2:00 a.m, got it?” Aunt Lisa says, “Got it.” I answered, memorizing the rules in my head. I went to a spot around the house that was quiet, and dialed my school to let them know I’m going to be on Guam a little longer. After a while of convincing them, I am able to take online courses.

I walked back into the house and went back into the living room again. “I’m so bored.” Via says, “Same.” Tiana says in agreement. “I have an idea.” I say as they both turned their attention to me. “Why don’t we as aunt Lisa if we could go for a drive somewhere?” I added. “Sure, why not?” Tiana says, we all walked out to the garage where aunt Lisa was still placed. “Mom, is it alright if Adi takes us out for a drive?” Via asks her, “Sure, but where are you all going?” She asks as she moves back and forth on the rocking chair. “I was thinking if we would look around the mall and maybe get some ice cream after.” I answered, she takes out the car keys from her pocket and hands it to me. “Be safe and be back in two hours.” She tells us. “We will. See you later mom.” Tiana and Via says before running to see who gets shotgun. I started the car and drove Tiana and Via to the Micronesian Mall to look around, and probably buy a few things. We made it to the mall, parked somewhere in the parking lot and started heading inside. We worked our way around the first floor before heading to the other stores on the second floor. “Let’s go check out what’s showing in the movie theater.” Tiana says and we followed her lead on the escalator to the second floor. We scoped through the movies with upcoming ones coming soon, and we decided to just look somewhere else. I noticed a Bestseller book shop a few feet away from the movie theater. “Hey, let’s go check in there.” I pointed to the shop. As we looked through each and every aisle of books, my eyes were set on some books. I decided what book I wanted to buy first, but I ended up buying all the books I thought would be interesting. After we looked inside the book store, we looked around the shops and bought some new outfits from half of the clothing stores. As the time went by, we all started walking back to the parking lot with some stuff and started driving back home.

I parked, and turned off the car by the garage. I helped the girls carry some of their stuff to the house. “Mom, we’re home.” Via calls out once we entered the house. We all put our stuff in the room, and tried on all the outfits we bought. “What you think of this outfit?” Via asks, wearing a baby blue sweater and pants, “Very blue.” Tiana comments. “Come on, I’m serious.” She says, “It’s cute…” She says as Via gives her a look, feeling a ‘but..’ coming up, “but it’s still very blue.” Tiana finishes. “Okay, you’re done. Get out.” Via says, throwing a pillow at Tiana’s direction. “This is my room too, so I’m going to have to say ‘No, thanks.’ because I’m not leaving.” Tiana says back.

(20 minutes later)

We hear a knock on the door, “Want to go out for dinner?” Aunt Lisa asks, “Okay.” We all agreed. “Clean your room first, it’s kind of a mess.” She says, Tiana playfully puts her hands up in defense, “Woah, there, mom. You need to relax.” She says. “You little shits.” Aunt Lisa says, laughing as she walks out. We all folded our new outfits and neatly organized it in the closets and started making our way to aunt Lisa sitting on the living room couch, who is almost finished reading her book. “You girls ready?” Aunt Lisa asked, putting her book down on the couch. “Yes.” We all say in unison. “Okay, let’s go.” She says, getting off the couch, taking her wallet and keys from the the table in front of her. We all parked in front of the King’s restaurant across the Guam Premium Outlet and Ruby Tuesday on Tamuning area, and waited inside by the front door and waited for us to be seated. “Hafa Adai.” A waitress greets us, “Table for how many?” The waitress asks, “4, please.” Aunt Lisa answers, “Right this way.” The waitress says, getting 4 menus and led us to an available table booth. “Thank you.” We all thanked, “No problem.” The waitress says before walking away to tend other costumers. I scanned through the menu and decided on ordering the rib-eye steak.

(5 minutes later)

“Are you ready to order?” The waitress asks, holding onto a pen and a little paper pad to write on. “I would like to an iced tea with a rib-eye steak, well done, with a side order of rice and some mashed potatoes.” I ordered. “Alright.” The waitress says, writing down my order. “I would like to have some water and coffee with the Chamorro sausage & eggs.” Aunt Lisa orders as the waitress writes it down. “I’m going to have the grilled salmon with some iced tea.” Tiana orders, “I’m going to have the same thing, too.” Via orders the same. “Is that all?” The waitress asks, “That’s all, for now. Thank you.” Aunt Lisa says, passing the menus back to the waitress.

(45 minutes later)

We all got our meals we ordered, prayed and started eating. “Can I have some of your mashed potatoes?” Via asks, “I could even trade you for some of my salmon.” She points to her grilled salmon. “Via, stop bother Adi and eat your food.” Aunt Lisa scolds. “It’s alright aunt Lisa. Here you go, Vi.” I say as I scooped some of the potatoes into her plate. “Thank you.” She thanks as she cuts half of the salmon and puts it on my plate. “Thanks.” I thanked her back.

(30 minutes later)

We all finished eating our meals, ‘I’m so full.’ I thought to myself. I wiped my mouth and got up to go pay for the dinner. “I’m gonna be right back.” I say, picking up the bill and walking up to where I have to pay. “Hi. I’m here to pay for mine and my family’s meal.” I say, giving them the bill with two $100 dollar bills. “You can keep the change.” I say as I walked to the bathroom to use the toilet and cleaned myself up. As I got out of the bathroom, I notice Daniel sitting by the window with a couple of people 5 tables in front of where I stood. I took a detour from him seeing me walk past him and left the restaurant with my family. “Today was fun.” Via says as we walked back into aunt Lisa’s car. I hear a sound coming from my phone, notifying that I got a message. I checked to see that Daniel’s name appeared on iMessage on my lock screen. As I looked at Daniel’s message, I saw that I still had mine and his picture together saved as my lock screen background, forgetting to change it. I went to the wallpaper on my settings and looked it one last time before removing it. I opened up his message to see a whole paragraph. ‘I should probably read this later.’ I thought to myself.

“Let’s ask some random questions ‘cause I’m bored.” Tiana says randomly. “Ooh, I wanna start asking first.” Via says, “If you had to choose between watching any movie or show of your choice, but it has to be muted without subtitles. Or…. only being able to watch something in a different language and have the subtitles be in that language. What would you choose?” Via asks, “I would choose to watch something on mute with no subtitles so I could try to understand what’s going on.” I answer. “Man, imagine someone walks in on you laughing at the TV with no sound on.” Tiana says, laughing. “I would be kinda embarrassed.” I answered, “I wouldn’t.” Tiana comments, “You wouldn’t?” Via asks her, “Don’t look so surprised, you know that I’m weird with my answers.” Tiana answers back, “True.” Via says.

(15 minutes later)

We all started walking back into the house. I went in the kitchen to get some water to drink, and I sat on the chair to check the message from Daniel.

Dani: Hey, I saw you leaving King’s with your family. I wanted to talk to you, but I completely understand that you don’t want to speak to me anymore. I also sant to say that I’m really sorry for everything from yesterday. I hope we get to work things out with our relationship sometime in the future because I know deep down in my heart that I still love you. 8:21 PM

I read his message, and decided to leave it until I felt like messaging back. I finished the rest of my water, washed it and went into the living room where Tiana and Via were watching an interview on TV. “What’s showing?” I asked as I sat on the couch next to Via. “We’re watching some BTS interviews on YouTube.” Tiana says and I nodded. One guy caught my attention, I looked at him for a few minutes to try and think of where I’ve seen him from. ‘Why does he look so familiar?’ I thought to myself, but I decided to forget about it since I get a migraine trying to remember something right now.

[solesurvivorpaigeargot]

I absolutely LOVE Sketchy Saturdays and I always look forward to them!! As for my question(s)? What made you decide to start doing it(I'm glad you do but I was just curious!)?

Hoooo boi the Sketchy Saturday Origin Story: I suppose there's two versions.

The short version reads " Moving stress, deployment depression, and isolation VS. my utter determination to DO SOMETHING whilst trapped in my home " -- Sketchy Saturday was the result of that title fight, so I guess the fandom won in the end? XD

The long version, however... Well, buckle up, cause this is gonna be a ride.

It may surprise y'all to know that two years I was eyeballs-deep in the South Park fandom. The blog still exists; my mainblog, JustCallMeButtlord, built to interact with the audience of my fanfictions-- the New Kid Stories, called NKS for short [gonna be porting those to Ao3 soon, just gotta figure out what robo-reader I'm gonna use to make a quick n dirty podfic out of the series as well as help me hunt down typos my eyes galze over]. The first 'season' of stories had ended, 8 completed fics, and I was puttering about with a bonus holiday story that was several months out of season. Not that I CARED because I was on GUAM where seasons don't exist and my time blindness gets even worse becasue without seasons changing it feels like time never progrsses even after being on the island for three cocksucking years.

I don't hate Guam, I am just not built for constant heat. I am a snow creature; I like below-freezing temperatures so I can layer up in fuzzy, fluffy things and drink hot drinks and cuddle loved ones and/or furry animals. It's a lovely island, I adored my first week there... I just wasn't made to live there.

HIlariously, NKS started out of the stress of moving to Guam. Two years and 8 fics later, the place we were renting was no longer within our price range and my hubby and I were forced to move onto base. Under the leader whom I refuse to name, military pay was given a precentage raise... but it was ripped out of bonuses and OCONUS pay. OCONUS is what a military member is paid when they're stationed Outisde the CONtinental United States. This usually means overseas bases like Japan, but it also means Hawaii, aaaaaand... GUAM. So that percentage pay increase for the military at large meant belt-tightening for every service member abroad, and we were forced to move onto base.

In case y'all haven't noticed by now, I'm a raging socialist with some issued with authority. I DO NOT LIKE EXISTING ON BASE. I do not like existing in a place where the national anthem plays twice a day, every day, at 6 AM and then again whenever the hell sundown is that day. And there's an unspoken rule no one tells you that when it plays you're supposed to stop what you're doing, face the nearest set of speakers playing the song, and stare in that direction with your hand over your heart until its over. That, if you're driving, you have to put on your emergency flashers and pull over. No one tells you this. NO ONE TELLS YOU THIS.

And then, before we had secured a place on base but we had set a move out date for the rental house, the Pandemic happened. While we were between homes. The base is talking full lockdown, Guam authorities want to shut down the island but businesses are terrified of not getting the tourist season business, we don't even know if we'll be allowed to move on to base.

Surprise, I stopped writing for a while... but I picked Fallout 4 back up again. I had been forced into the series years earlier by a toxic relationship, but the game itself hadn't been bad-- just the way I'd been forced to play it by someone who was firmly not in my life anymore. When confronted with character creation, I wasn't sure whom I wanted to make... but decided to go back to an old character. A VERY old character, whom I hadn't thought of since I'd finished ME3 at least 4 years prior, and a character I first conceived of when I was 14-ish... which is now about 15 years ago.

Paige.

I've talked before about how well Paige's story maps onto Fo4, but this was before I knew that. I knew the opening, her losing her kid, and that fit with her-- but something clicked while I was playing and the part of my brain that likes to create started wandering off. Soon enough I've got a couple chapters of a ficlet that I'm TOTALLY just writing as a personal one-shot to de-stress, no way I'm publishing this, I don't wanna get distracted from NKS, I got a whole 'nother season to write! Who cares if no one is reading it anymore because South Park Fandom doesn't like continuous plots.... right?

I was burnt out as hell, the move was looming, the Pandemic was getting worse and everything was getting scarier.

Then the news came through that hubby would be deploying again.

He wasn't supposed to, but the Navy decided the safest place for their sailors was the middle of the ocean, so if you WERENT in quarantine you were going on the boat and you were living there. Didn't matter if your spouse would be alone, unpacking a whole home by themselves.

I had a friend on base. We hung out. I met with my DND group on weekends; we all lived on base now, so we could meet up in like five minutes... and then restrictions tightened. You could be fined up to 5 grand for gathering in groups greater than 5, even outdoors, and detained if suspected of going to a home that wasn't yours. I still met 2 of my friends once a week for walks; get outside, be active, talk to other humans, but besides that? I was locked up alone in a new house in a place that I did NOT like existing in.... with a fresh new hyperfixation developing.

I think it was about a week into the new house that I made the new blog. At first I tried to run it side by side with the South Park stuff, but it wasn't long before all my attention was here... aaaand it also wasn't long before I was confronted with a lot of my own despair; of lockdown, of isolation, of watching a broken system crumble and not being able to DO anything about it, and I started to kinda lose my shit. I fuss-- I can't leave things alone, and I couldn't leave this feeling alone; of being fully and entirely helpless and hopeless.

And then I sketched a thing for a friend, and it made them happy. They were having a rough time, too, and I put something together because I couldn't think of anything else. And it helped. It lifted them up, and it lifted me up, too. Someone else had recently reblogged one of those pallet challenges that floats around Tumblr, and I decided FUCK IT LET'S DO THIS THING AND CALL IT SKETCHY SATURDAY!

Little secret, the very first Sketchy Saturday request? Was me. I was so scared no one would noticed the event, I sent myself the very first request, back when the event still took anons. Soon as that first picture was up:

BANG, suddenly four more; some people off anon. I met people that day, talked to them after the very first Sketchy weekend was over, chatted about the games and characters and art and writing and just... felt human for the first time in a really long while.

I figured I'd hold on to Sketchy Saturday until the deployment was over-- once hubby was back, I'd decide whether I was keeping it or not... but he came back, and I was still super into it, and he was supportive, sooooo I kept going! And then we did Sketchy Secret Santa, and people loved it, and my volunteers are excited about being Sketchy Elves and Secret Helpers and just OH MY GOD I DID A THING GUYS. I DID A THING-- that was just me all December and January long lmafo.

AND JANUARY! Because AH HECK, WE MOVING AGAIN! Because hubby finally got orders, and OH MY GOD we're going back to WA... but it's still a move half-way around the globe, and I was SURE I'd have to shut down the event for a month while we got our shit in order and NOPE, because here come the volunteers from Sketchy Secret Santa, and they wanna fill in all month long! Like... I didn't even ask for that shit, guys. They offered it so the event wouldn't have to take a gap.

Jesus I'm getting teary just remembering it.

So yeah. Sketchy Saturday is here because I got really lonely and stressed out while Fallout 4 provided me with some... catharsis for my situation, and then a pandemic happened.

And then y'all happened, and I'm still here. :D

[justcallmehitgirl]

Delicate (Tom Holland x Female Reader Smut)

Summary: You’re six months pregnant, and Tom is your best friend who wants to help raise your baby after your ex left you. Oh, and Tom happens to be in love with you.

Word Count: 5700

Warnings: LOTS OF SMUT. Language. Pregnancy!kink.

A/N: This is my first T.H. fic so I hope I did it justice. I’ll be writing more one-shots in the near future so please send me an ask or message if you want to be added to my permanent tag list.

Disclaimer: I do not know T.H. nor do I claim to know him. This is all a work of fiction and fantasy. Please do not take offense to any of the explicit content involving T.H. Please do not read further if you are bothered by this type of fanfiction.

You’re sitting on your couch idly flipping through the channels on your television when you hear the lock on the front door jiggle. You smile in relief, tossing the remote beside you, and turning your attention to the boy with wind-blown curly, brown hair pushing the door open with his shoulder. He has a bag of groceries in one arm and a bag of Chinese food in the other. You lick your lips and flex your swollen feet.

“Hi,” he huffs, shutting the door behind him with his foot and locking the door with his index finger and thumb.

“Hello,” you grin, eyes getting wide at all the food entering your apartment. 

You rub your protruding belly and lick your lips, the scent of Kung Pao Chicken and Spring Rolls wafting through the air. Tom walks over to you and bends down to place a soft kiss on the top of your head.

“How was work?” he murmurs against your hair.

You shrug. “Oh just the usual… lots of paperwork, lots of demanding lawyers… it also doesn’t help that I have to use the bathroom every two minutes either. Makes work a whole lot more tiring... always having to get up and down. Maybe I should invest in Depends…” you say, squinting your eyes in thought.

Tom scrunches his nose, walking over to the kitchen and placing the bags on the counter. “Let’s save the diapers for the baby, alright?”

You roll your eyes and try to push yourself off of the couch to go over and help him put away the groceries. You nearly topple over in the process, and Tom practically runs over to steady you.

“Hey, hey… slow it down there.”

“I know,” you grumble. “I can’t help it that I’m a planet.”

“You should’ve asked me to help you.”

Your brows furrow. “I’m six months pregnant, not an invalid,” you snap.

That was what had taken a toll on you. Not the morning sickness. Not being able to eat soft cheeses. But being coddled like a child. You had always loved your independence, craved it since you were a child and cherished it as an adult. But seemingly overnight you had to lean on everyone around you for help.

Tom looks taken aback for a moment but he keeps his hands on your arms. You look down at the ground, at the television, anywhere but his gaze, regret starting to flood your body. You slump your shoulders.

“I’m sorry, I just… hormones,” you shrug apologetically.

Tom nods and places a soothing hand on your back. “It’s alright, darling. I’ll make you a plate of food and bring it over to you, okay?”

You reluctantly nod in response before taking a seat back on the couch. You watch from the corner of your eye as Tom patters about the kitchen before turning your attention back to the television in front of you. 

—

“Is it your ex?”

You look up from your plate and raise your brows. “What?”

Tom purses his lips and fiddles with the fork in his hand. “I feel like you’ve been in a mood all night. Is it him? Did he try something?”

You quickly shake your head. “No, of course not. I haven’t heard from him in months. You know he’s out of the picture.”

Tom nods. “Alright.” 

Tom never liked your ex-boyfriend. He was a musician with an ego the size of Texas. Tom knew he saw other girls behind your back, coming home late with the strong scent of perfume and alcohol lingering about him. Tom knew he was using you. You had a stable job as a paralegal in one of the largest law firms in New York. He needed you, always making you pay for rent, groceries, you name it, he always found a way for you to pay for it. 

But Tom knew you loved him and that you wanted to support his career. You knew how much music meant to him. So Tom tried to get along with him, accompanying you to his shows, going on double dates, and even engaging in small talk with him. Even though he always wanted to throttle him while they were together, Tom did it for you.

You watch Tom deep in thought, placing your empty plate on the coffee table in front of you.

“Hey space cadet,” you tease, bringing Tom’s attention back to you.

You chuckle a bit.

“Where were you just now?”

Tom merely shrugs. “Oh… just thinking.”

“Okay,” you nod. You reach for the remote when he clears his throat. You turn your attention back to him.

“I was thinking about cancelling my trip.”

Your eyes widen. “What? No, why?”

Tom places his plate on top of yours. “I just think it’s bad timing... you know with the baby and all. I just don’t want to leave you alone.”

You shake your head. “Tom, you can’t. You’ve planning this for a year.”

“Yeah, well life happens,” he reasons.

“Your brothers would be so disappointed.”

“Yeah well, they’ll get over it. They’re not having a baby in three months.”

“You act like you’re going to be gone for ages, it’s only going to be two weeks.”

“Well two weeks is a long time, a lot could happen.”

“Tom, I’ll be fine. My sister will be here while you’re away.”

“That’s super comforting,” he mutters sarcastically.

Your younger sister was a freshman at CCNY who could barely get to class on-time and clean her dorm room let alone take care of you.

“It’ll be okay. Plus, I know you’re only a phone call away.”

“Yeah, but...”

“No buts, Holland. You’re going on this trip, you’re going to have tons of fun, make lots of amazing memories…  and hey, maybe you might even meet a girl,” you wink, “and then you’re getting your ass back here to rub my aching feet.”

Tom laughs, as you stretch out your foot and wave it in front of him. He catches it in his hands and places it in his lap, playing with the soft fabric of your socks. He traces his fingers over the zigzag pattern and smiles.

He would give up a year’s worth of vacations just to be here with you and the baby.

“You sure you’re going to be okay?”

You nod exuberantly. “I’ve made it this far, what’s two weeks?”

He smiles slightly, still a bit uneasy about it all. You can sense his discomfort so you place a hand on his.

“Thank you for being such an amazing friend, Tom.”

Tom can’t help but flinch at the word, ‘friend.’ 

“I honestly wouldn’t have made it through these past few months without you,” you continue, “I truly appreciate everything that you’ve done so far. My baby’s really lucky to have such a supportive father-figure. But...”

“Here’s the ‘but’ coming,” he jokes.

“But you gotta do something for yourself, okay? It’ll drive me insane to know that you’re going to be missing out on a vacation with your family to tend to me. I would kill to take a vacation right now so promise me you’ll have fun?”

Tom bites his lip, nodding reluctantly.

“Great, now let’s watch something scary, okay? After my day at work, I’m in the mood to see someone get axed in the face.”

Tom shakes his head and puts his hands up in defeat. 

“Who am I to argue with a pregnant woman?”

—

It’s 2:30 in the morning when he hears it.

“Tom?”

He stirs on the couch.

“Tom?”

He groggily opens his eyes and leans up on his elbows. He sees you leaning against the doorframe. His eyes trail down your body and he can’t help but gulp. You’re wearing an over-sized t-shirt and he can tell you’re not wearing any pants. He calls out your name, his voice hoarse from sleep.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

You nod. “I am b-but can you come to bed with me? I’m having trouble sleeping.”

You’re fiddling with the hem of your shirt, biting your lip and shuffling your feet.

He breathes in deeply and nods, removing the heavy blanket from his body. You take a step towards him and stretch your hand out. He takes it into his, squeezing your palm gently in reassurance. You lead him towards your bedroom. 

You walk into your room and let go of him, crawling onto the bed. He catches a glimpse of your lace underwear, and he feels his mouth go dry. He quickly looks away, trying to think about anything but your lovely ass swaying in front of him.

He walks to the other side of the bed and slides underneath the covers, silently praying he doesn’t get a boner beside you. 

It wasn’t unusual for him to sleep in the same bed as you. When your ex left you, he spent plenty of nights in bed with you, holding you and comforting you. You were devastated after he had left you. You had just told him about the baby, and he had gotten angry, accusing you of trying to trap him and ruin his career.

He had given you an ultimatum: him or the baby. You chose the baby and he was gone the next morning.

Tom naturally eased into the doting father role. He visited you often, sleeping on the couch, bringing you food, and helping you with your chores. His friends thought he was crazy for taking on the responsibility when the baby wasn’t even his. But he loved you. You were his best friend and you needed him.

But he also couldn’t deny his growing attraction to you.

He had always thought you were beautiful, but seeing you so maternal made something stir in his belly. He often found himself stealing glances at you, watching as you tucked pieces of loose hair behind your ears, bit your lip, and especially when you would walk around in just a t-shirt, the fabric stretching over your swollen stomach.

He doesn’t know when his feelings for you changed. He tries to pinpoint it in his mind. He looks back at the last twelve years that he’s known you and he thinks, ‘why haven’t I thought about you in that way before?’

You always had a special connection with him ever since you first met. Your dad was in the military and you moved around a lot, from Singapore to Guam to London. You were the quintessential ‘military brat.’ 

You were in middle school when you met Tom. You described yourself as a transient being, never truly fitting in at one place. You purposefully didn’t want to make new friends, lest you leave them for a new city and country the following year.

But Tom was friendly and outgoing, even though he was constantly teased for being a dancer. He immediately took a liking to you, telling you about his own dreams of adventure and travel. He found a kindred spirit with you. 

He invited you to sit with him and his friends during lunch, sat next to you on the bus, helped you with your homework, and showed up at your doorstep with the newest dvds his dad had purchased so you could spend the weekend binge-watching movies.

When you were in high school, your dad finally retired from the military and you moved for the final time to your dad’s hometown in New Jersey. Tom was sad, staying with you until the car came to take you and your family to the airport. But he promised he would visit you often, and he never turned back on that promise. He would visit you during school breaks and even when his career took off, he always found a way to be there for you. 

When you moved to New York a couple years ago, he rented an apartment a few blocks away from you. Albeit it was much nicer than yours, he was always very modest. He said it was convenient for his career since he had a lot of appearances in the city.

He shifts his body a bit to get comfortable, keeping a healthy distance between you two. He closes his eyes and tries to fall asleep, trying to keep any sexual thoughts of you at bay.

After a few minutes, you roll over on your side. He could sense you looking at him so he opens an eye and turns his head towards you before giving you a small smile.

“I see you staring, stop being such a creep,” he teases, trying to lighten up the mood, noticing the visible tension between you both.

“I can’t help it, my best friend is becoming such an adult.”

“Loading the dishwasher and taking out the trash hardly means I’m ready to be off my parents’ phone plan,” he laughs.

You smile and nudge his shoulder playfully. You let your hand linger for a moment, tracing his arm with delicate circles.

“Hey Tom?”

“Hmm?”

“C-can I ask you something?”

“You are asking me something,” he smirks.

You purse your lips and shake your head. “Forget it then,” you say in mock exasperation.

“C’mon, I was just kidding. What’s up,” he asks, motioning for you to continue.

“D-do you think I’m a selfish person?”

Tom rolls over so he’s also on his side facing you. He leans himself up on his elbow and knits his brows.

“What? Of course not. Why would you even ask that?”

You pause for a moment before responding. “So… I lied earlier. I am in a little bit of a mood… but you reassured me that I’m just being crazy and maybe it’s just more hormonal crap that I’m going through so I’ll just drop it,” you ramble.

He eyes you carefully and says your name in a low tone. You bite your lip. You knew you couldn’t not tell him.

“I… I saw Alexis the other day.”

Tom sighs heavily, scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably. 

“I wasn’t going to say anything,” you continue, “I didn’t want to upset you… but I saw her at Madewell, and well… I shouldn’t have even gone in there anyways because I don’t fit into anything they’re selling so that was a boo-boo on my end, and then I saw her at the register. I immediately tried to avoid her but then she saw me and chased me out of the store and said some pretty mean stuff and… and it just got to me.”

It’s a rush of words and you feel like you can finally exhale a bit at your admission. You knew how Tom felt about her and how upset he was at the demise of their relationship. You didn’t want to bring up old wounds but you also wanted to be open and honest with him. He had volunteered to be the father of your child afterall.

Alexis always hated your friendship with Tom. She constantly thought you were trying to steal him away from her, waiting for your moment to take him all for yourself. ‘You honestly didn’t think that big,’ you would laugh.

You tried to get along with her for Tom’s sake. You went shopping together, invited her to brunch with your friends, and even bought her nice birthday and Christmas presents. You really made a genuine effort, knowing it made Tom happy to see his girlfriend and his best friend getting along.

But you also knew there was also an unsaid tension between you that you couldn’t shake. She didn’t like that you and Tom hung out alone, that you would text each other all day, and that you would FaceTime him to vent about the attorneys at your office treating you like shit.

You couldn’t blame her though. Instead of having 100% of his attention, she had to share it with you. 

Tom reaches over and places his hand over yours. “You shouldn’t listen to what she says. You know how things ended with her… she’s just not over it and it probably makes her feel better to attack you then to face whatever issues she has.”

You remember it quite well. Tom had just told her that he wanted to help raise your baby, be your baby’s father, and she completely threw a fit. There was a lot of screaming and crying. 

‘No way, Tom,’ she screamed, throwing her hands in the air. ‘No way are you going to be in her life like that.’

Tom tried to explain to her that you needed him, and that your baby needed a father. He tried to make her understand, but she also tried to make him understand too. She didn’t want to be a mother, let alone some surrogate step-mother. She didn’t want to see him doting on another woman, caring for her and playing house with her. She didn’t want a part-time boyfriend.

And you knew she had a point. She wasn’t a villain in any of this. She loved Tom and she knew he would never love her as much as a child that he was willing to raise with another woman.

So when she yelled at you outside on the corner of 5th Avenue and West 19th Street, you didn’t really defend yourself. She was still grieving the loss of her relationship just like you had. The only difference was that you had Tom and she had no one.

“I know, but… I feel like everything she said was right. I feel like I cornered you into this, that I’m making you be a dad when it’s not your responsibility. This isn’t your baby.” 

Tom can’t stop the feeling of hurt overcome him, and you see it in his body language. You immediately feel a pang of regret.

You shake your head. “Tom, I’m sorry… I didn’t mean it like that.”

Tom licks his lips and shakes his head. He places a hand on your belly. “This baby is mine is every way that matters, okay? Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

You try to turn away, but he touches your face to make you look at him. 

“I’m here because I want to be here,” he continues. “Even if you fall in love again... get married… I’ll always be this baby’s father, and I’ll always be in your lives.”

You feel your heart swell at his omission, your eyes watering. You’ve always loved Tom, but this… this made you feel like you were floating on a cloud. Even your ex didn’t make you feel this loved by a man.

Tom lifts up your shirt to reveal your stomach. He glances down and sees that he’s also revealing your underwear. He gulps and quickly brings his eyes back up to your middle.

He presses his ear against your belly and closes his eyes, listening to the baby’s movements. The sound of him breathing fills the room and you both just lay there, enjoying the sensation. After a few moments, he lifts his head up and smiles at you. You can’t help but smile back.

He lifts his hand and cups your face. “I love you,” he whispers.

“I… I love you too,” you choke out.

He begins to move away from you but you grab his hand and entwine your fingers with his. He tilts his head and watches as you move his hand back to your stomach. He instinctively rubs your belly, but you bite your lip and shake your head.

You feel a rush of emotions. You’re breathing heavily, panting almost. You don’t know what you’re doing, and it feels like your hormones are kicked up to high gear. You feel needy and wanting, loved and secure. Tom had always been there for you. 

You had noticed the way he had started looking at you. He tried to be inconspicuous, but his gaze always lingered on you. You never addressed it though, not wanting things to be weird. You had lost your boyfriend, you didn’t want to lose your best friend too.

But tonight you wanted him to be more than your best friend. You feel butterflies in your belly, and it wasn’t from the baby. 

He tilts his head. “What is it?”

You move his hand down to the waistband of your underwear and you can see his entire body tense. He stares at you, mouth open and eyes wide. You don’t have to say anything, your actions saying enough.

“A-are you sure?” he stutters.

You touch his face, tracing his bottom lip with your thumb before nodding.

“I… I don’t know about this... you’re my best friend and you’re pregnant...”

You place a finger to his lips. “Please, Tom. I’ve seen the way you look at me. I want to make you feel good as good as you make me feel.”

“But you don’t…”

“Shhh… please.”

Tom’s body slumps a bit, a sign of him finally relenting to your advances. 

You lean in slowly.

“I just don’t want you to regret this,” he whispers against your lips.

You don’t respond, instead slowly pulling him down for a kiss, your lips pouty and eager. It’s gentle and tentative at first, two best friends exploring each other’s mouths for the first time. You place a hand on the back of his neck to bring him in closer to you. 

The kiss quickly turns more passionate, your mouth opening to allow his tongue to tangle with yours. You stay like that for a few minutes, just kissing and groping each other. You pull away suddenly and Tom groans at the loss of contact. You reach down and grab the bottom of your shirt, lifting it up and over your head. 

You toss it to the ground beside you and you hook your fingers underneath the waistband of your panties, shucking them down your legs. You look up over at Tom who’s staring at you, admiring your naked form. 

Your breasts have gotten bigger and denser since you got pregnant. Your nipples becoming larger and more pronounced as well. You begin to blush, thinking about how monstrous you must look. You start to cover yourself with your hands but Tom practically jumps on you, placing his mouth over yours in reassurance. 

You place your hands on the waistband of his shorts and push them down his legs, your mouth not leaving his. He kicks him off and pulls away for a moment to remove his shirt. You eye his muscles, reaching out to feel them underneath your fingers. He feels firm yet soft. His chest hairless and smooth. You had seen him shirtless plenty of times, but this was different... intimate. You run your hands down his body, savoring every ripple and touching every freckle. 

Tom looks at your hungrily. He places a hand on one of your naked breasts, kneading it carefully with his fingers. His touch is gentle as he explores your body, gripping your side and playing with your breast. Your hand finds his hard, slick cock and you touch it tentatively. He pushes his hips toward you, granting you permission to continue. You hold onto his cock more firmly and give it a few stokes. He closes his eyes and moans above you.

“K-keep going,” he hisses in pleasure.

You continue to pump his cock, your hand wet with his juices. You feel yourself moisten, wanting him buried inside you. You’ve craved this for so long, not having contact with another man since your ex left you. You touched yourself at night, making yourself cum with your fingers. But you missed a man’s touch, the feeling of naked skin against skin, and having a hard cock pumping in and out of you. 

“Please, Tom… I need you,” you groan.

Tom’s heartbeat begins to race and his breathing increases as he comes to grips with what was about to happen. He was going to fulfill a fantasy that he’s had for months. He blinks repeatedly hoping this isn’t a dream. He leans down and kisses you. 

“Straddle me,” he commands against your lips. You can’t help but smirk. Once you let go of him, Tom grabs your hips and swiftly lifts you, placing you on top of him. He runs a hand down your spine and you instinctively shiver. 

“Cold?”

He rubs his hands up and down your arms. You shake your head. A piece of loose hair covers your face and Tom reaches out to tuck it behind your ear, his hand lingering to comb his fingers through your mane. You lean down, balancing yourself on your arms as you kiss him. 

He keeps his hand entwined in your hair as he grabs your butt and positions your dripping pussy over his erect cock. Pulling his lips from yours, he kisses along your collarbone making you shiver and moan.

Your hand closes around his cock and you brush it across your inflamed clit making him jump a little before placing the head at your opening. He pulls back and looks up at you, placing his hands on your face.

“Are you ready?” he asks. “There’s no turning back after this.”

You understand what he means. You were about to cross a major line in your relationship. A line that you had never once crossed before. 

But you had already opened Pandora’s box, and there was no putting whatever you had released back inside. You were too far gone now, lust and longing taking over you. 

You nod eagerly, and he strokes your face.

“I love you,” he states. “I’ve always loved you.”

You want to ask him what he means but you’re mind is clouded by the thought of having his cock buried inside you. Instead you merely respond, “I love you too,” saving that conversation for later.

Tom removes his hands from your face, placing them on your hips. He breathes in and out before thrusting upward, slowly impaling you on his cock. He groans loudly, feeling how incredibly tight you are. You moan and bury your face in his chest. You keep your butt firmly against his thighs, giving yourself time to accommodate his thick member. Both of his hands patiently rest on your hips, waiting for a sign that you are ready to continue. 

He was in no hurry though, your snug warmth held him tight, the occasional flutter from your vaginal muscles rippling up his shaft. He was in heaven. 

After a few moments, you begin to move, slowly at first, your hips rocking back and forward in a rolling motion. You raise your head from his chest, rubbing your cheek against his. Your breathing is elevated but steady as your movements become more confident. 

“Oh… God… yes,” you pant.

You press down while moving your hips backward, grinding your clit into his pubic bone. You then rise up an inch or so, digging his cock into your g-spot as it withdraws. You rock forward, dropping your erect clit back into place against his pubic bone. 

“Oh God, you feel so good inside me,” you purr, your words adding strength to his hard-on. 

“Fuck, you’re so tight,” he grimaces in pleasure.

You bring your lips to his and kiss him deeply. He stabs his tongue between your parted lips, your tongues twisting and coiling in a heated battle. Tom grabs your swaying breast, rolling your nipple between his fingers. You break your kiss with a sudden gasp. Your hip thrusts are now reaching an urgent tempo as you feel your orgasm about to break through. Your nails sink into his arms as you throw your head back and cry out in ecstasy. Your grip on Tom’s cock subsequently tightens, making him moan. 

"OH… GOD… OH GOD… I'm cumming!” you scream.

Tom raises his hips to give you a firmer surface to grind your clit into as you ride out your orgasm. Your shrieks and moans rise and fall with the waves of pleasure washing over you. Tom holds onto your sweat-slicked breasts, attempting to continue stimulating you. 

Your movements change, driving yourself up and down on his throbbing member. This triggers a second orgasm, not as powerful as the last but equally as pleasurable. You keep bouncing, riding out the last aftershocks until you’re out of breath before collapsing against Tom, who lets go of your chest. 

You breathe in and out, trying to regulate your breathing. He runs his hand up and down your back soothingly.

“This feels so good,” you coo, snuggling into him. 

“Well I hope cumming like that felt good.”

“That wasn’t what I was talking about… it’s this,” you say, snuggling in closer. “I’ve missed this. It’s been a long time since I’ve been with someone... it’s just been so lonely.”

“It’s okay,” he says, placing a kiss on your cheek. “I understand.”

“Have you been with anyone since…”

You can feel Tom shaking his head. “No… I… I got too preoccupied with you and the baby that sex was the farthest thing from my radar.”

He smooths your sweaty, matted hair from your face and kisses your forehead. 

“I’m so thirsty,” you breathe, and he nods.

You sit up straight and dismount him momentarily. He sighs at the feeling of him slipping from your warmth. He sits up on his elbows as he watches you waddle out of the bedroom, your butt swaying with each movement. 

“Stay right there, lover-boy,” you call out over your shoulder before disappearing down the hallway.

His body slumps back onto the mattress and he breathes out deeply, a smile creeping onto his face. He looks down and sees his cock standing straight up, dripping with your juices. He bites his lip, realizing his need for release. 

You rejoin him on the bed a moment later, a glass of water in your hand. You take a sip, some water dribbling down your chin. He thinks you look so cute. You notice him looking at you and you remove the glass from your lips, frowning slightly.

“I look like a total mess, huh?”

Tom shakes his head and laughs.

“Not at all. I think you look like a well-fucked woman actually.”

Now it was your turn to laugh.

“Sure sure. Drink up, bud. It’s good for you.”

You pass him the glass and he takes it from you. He didn’t realize how thirsty he was as he gulps down the water. Once he’s done, he tries to hand the glass back to you but you just place a hand up, signaling that you’re done with it. He places it on the table beside him and lays back down, arms crossed behind his head.

You give him a peck on the lips before straddling him again, this time facing away from him.

“I want to do it like this,” you say, guiding his cock back inside you. You both groan in unison as he slides back in. “That way you don’t have to look at my fat stomach,” you add with a weak chuckle.

“Shut it,” he retorts. He sits up a bit and wraps his arms around your middle, running his hands over your swollen tummy. “You’re not fat. Don’t put yourself down like that. You’re absolutely, positively beautiful.”

“Psshhh, you have to say that.”

“I don’t have to say anything. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

You shake your head, a blush creeping on your cheeks. He places a hand on your cheek and turns your face towards him.

“Really… I mean it.”

You look into his eyes, enjoying the closeness and his loving words. You open your mouth to say something but then you feel his hard, throbbing cock pressing into your g-spot. “Ohhhh,” you moan.

He lets go of your stomach and slides his hands to rest on your hips. You sit up and begin bouncing on his cock. You lift your arms, running your hands through your hair. You flip it over one shoulder, looking back at him with a sly smile. He feels like he’s going to cum at that moment. 

You clench as tight as possible when you lift off his thighs, relaxing your grip momentarily when the head of his cock is just inside you. Then you clamp down and drop your weight into his lap, sending his eyes rolling in his head.

Tom is thrusting his hips in time with your movements. He can feel the pressure building in his balls and he knows it won’t be long before he came. You seem to read his mind, altering your rhythm to push him more toward the edge. Your body begins to tense and you know you’re about to cum again. You fall forward, supporting yourself with your arms, you butt bouncing with urgent need. His hand finds your clit and your body instantly begins to seize up. 

“Oh yes, Tom… that’s it, play with my clit… I’m, I’m almost there,” you groan, bouncing onto his lap faster. “Oh… oh yes, I’m cumming again!”

Tom is in complete ecstasy watching you cum. You’re panting wildly and moaning as you drive yourself down on his stiff cock and your convulsing pussy sends Tom over the edge. 

He can feel his balls tighten and his cock swell as the familiar surge of orgasmic energy radiates throughout his body. 

"Oh baby… I'm gonna cum… I’m gonna… cum!”

“Yes, cum for me… that’s it, Tom,” you encourage.

He pumps into you frantically, thrusting into you even after his balls have emptied. You finally collapse backwards, your back pressed firmly against his heaving chest. You can feel the layer of sweat covering your bodies start to cool. 

His arms encircle you, holding you tightly against him while his cock continues to pulse inside your quaking pussy. After a minute or so, you pull your body off of him and fall to his side. You curl into a fetal position, tugging the blanket to cover your nakedness, again self-conscious at being so exposed. He wraps his arms around you and you can’t help but revel in his embrace as you two drift off to sleep.

Reality could wait until morning.

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