#I know not everybody gets 2-day weekends but we started off with them. The chef was like these new people didn't sign up to work this much

[mood2you]

I always wish I could walk out whenever something pisses me off but like. I don't have plans today what's the point of getting a bad mark it's too late to drive anywhere it's 5. The perfect time to see the sunset at Glacier Point and the twinkle lights of the Oakhurst hill but then I would just be leaving the TL alone with the work of 4 people just 1. BUT THEY Leaving us with just 2 the work of 4. I was talking to the big boss chef today being like. There's NO solution. They're hiring as many people as they can, no we should not go easy on them, no we cannot let them leave early or it looks like we're milking the clock, yea we are already at winter hours, no we cannot have 2-day weekends, no the chefs haven't gotten any day off since September

Another situation where everyone is POWERLESS can't quit or my dad will be mad can't kill myself or my dad will be mad, can't take my own 2-day weekends or I'll get fired, like what is the other options there's nothing there's no solution.

obviously thinking about this is NOT helping me calm down they sent me on my break early they probably want me to stop being disruptive by looking like a poor little meow meow

[2manyfandoms2count]

You can count on me (I will be there for you)

@sallteas art has been living in my mind rent free for a while, turns out my exams were the catalyst for me to actually start writing a fic inspired by it. Priorities, right?

This first chapter is a little sappy and melodramatic, but I hope you’ll enjoy nonetheless!

Read on AO3 | Part 2 | Part 3

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Chapter 1

Marinette stares at her reflection in the full-length mirror, fiddling with her dress gloves. Her veil falls elegantly from her updo and rests on her bare upper back; it tickles her a little. No matter how real the fabric feels against her skin, though, it’s like she’s looking at somebody else.

The woman staring back at her is beautiful, in what seems like an effortless way. She knows better, though; she spent her morning swarmed by hair and makeup artists, and she has to say, the result is truly phenomenal. Never, in a million realities, would she have expected to look as much like a princess as she does now. Her wedding dress is a true work of art; a strapless, ivory ball-gown, cut in the smoothest silk faille on the market, and, incidentally, a perfect recreation of what she’s always dreamed of. 

In fact, the whole wedding is straight out of her teenage daydreams, down to the man she’ll be joining at the altar in less than an hour. Adrien has been so good about accommodating her wishes. Everybody was already saying it would be the wedding of the century before the details had even been settled.

As she observes herself, she knows that she should be happy. 

Then why does it all feel so wrong?

She tries smiling at her image, but it doesn’t sit right on her face. There are just too many thoughts swirling in her mind for it to look genuine. 

Her first concern is the plan. Just a month, which feels like eons, ago, it had seemed like a good idea. Ladybug and Chat Noir had been happily dating for a little over a year, they were confident about defeating Hawkmoth and Mayura. Everything felt right in the world. They had plans for the future. She’d felt unstoppable.

That was before her world had crumbled. 

She wasn’t sure when or where it had happened. What she did know was that someone had caught her in her transformation. 

She didn’t know who they were, or what they wanted, but something told her they were up to no good. They wouldn’t have used butterfly-themed stationary to contact her otherwise. 

They wouldn’t have sounded so ominous, either. 

I know. An envelope on her way to work had read.

Didn’t think I’d spot you, did you? Another, stuck in her mail.  

You’re a little careless, for a hero of international renown. This one on her balcony.

It had been difficult to continue to pretend it was all a coincidence.

She’d had no other choice than to reveal her identity with Chat Noir. Not only did he deserve to know, but she needed someone to share her increasing fear with. Someone to help her come up with a plan. And who better than her partner, in all senses of the term?

The gripping feeling in her stomach hadn’t even let her enjoy how happy he’d been to learn who she was. And passed his initial reaction of picking her up and spinning her around, his lips finding hers in the process, his face had lost all exhilaration. Her words had kicked in, and he'd cursed. A lot. 

Especially when she’d admitted she’d feel safer with protection.

He’d immediately volunteered -of course he had- but she’d turned him down as a long term solution. It broke her heart, but they couldn’t live that way. And she refused to know who he was. Not like this.

Even years later, Master Fu’s fate was still too fresh a memory; she didn’t want to have to resort to giving up her memories of Chat Noir, of them, if she could help it.

He’d paced around a little, lost in thought, before stopping in front of her, fever in his eyes.

I have a solution, he’d said quietly. You might not like it.

She’d listened as he’d told her how Adrien Agreste, the boy she’d once loved, now a friend she saw every once in a while, owed him a favour. How dating him, and marrying him, could solve their problem. He couldn’t go anywhere without a bodyguard. He was sure he’d do the necessary for her to get one as well. It wouldn't seem conspicuous at all.

She’d felt her heart tear in her chest at the idea of marrying somebody else than the man who stood before her. He’d told her it would be alright, though, and she’d believed him. Was there any other choice, anyway?

Even now, standing in a suite of the small castle she and Adrien are getting married in -a real royal wedding-, she can’t think of a better solution.

As she smooths her skirt, her thoughts drift to Adrien. He’d been so good to her. But why was he so onboard with the plan? He’d been all in from their first meeting. He’d orchestrated their whirlwind romance perfectly, pulling all the stops. Their very mediatised outings in the most romantic places in Paris. Whisking her away to Venice for a weekend. The interviews, in which he described their love was “meant to be”. Everybody had fallen for it, even their closest friends. It was no secret Marinette had had feelings for him, and he’d confessed to Nadja Chamack that he’d loved her as well when they were in collège. And seeing each other years later, after losing touch a little, had made it dawn upon them that their feelings had never really left.

The proposal had been the cherry on top. He’d privatised the Trocadéro, from the esplanade to the Iéna bridge, hired a private Chef, musicians, tipped off the paparazzi. Doves had flown when he’d gotten on one knee. They’d slow-danced in the gardens to "their" melody.

She’d done her best to conceal her tears as they did. It had all been so beautiful. But what if it didn’t work out?

She and Adrien were friends, sure. He was close with Chat Noir, by the look of things. What had her partner done for him to owe him such a huge favour? Why was he accepting to marry her, knowing that her heart belonged to someone else? She knew his did, too.

And a few moments before the ceremony, it still wasn’t too late for him to back down. 

Marinette bites her lip as she thinks about Chat Noir. And jumps as she hears a small tap on her window. 

She turns around in time to see the black-gloved hand retreat from the pane, and her heart soars. They weren’t kidding when they said they were in sync. It was like he could read her mind, and know exactly when to show up for her.

She looks outside. Chat Noir is leaning on the folded shutters, softly humming to himself as he looks out onto the garden that stretches out behind the castle. He doesn’t look at her directly when she opens the window for him, but he definitely smiles.

“Hi m’la-” he doesn’t have time to finish his greeting. She pulls him inside and closes the curtains behind him. 

“You can’t be seen lurking around, we don’t know who’s watching.” She searches for his eyes, but they keep escaping. She reaches for his hand and squeezes it gently. “Hey, is everything okay?” 

He finally looks up, and his eyes fill with warmth as he takes in her appearance.

“You look stunning, my Lady.” He breathes as she resumes her tugging at her gloves.

Having Chat Noir with her soothes her, but it also highlights just how wrong the situation is. As much as she knows how necessary this all is, she can't forget that he is the person she wants to be with. It takes all her willpower for tears not to spill out.

He notices, of course.

“Why is my lady looking so glum on her wedding day?” He teases, coming behind her and resting his head on her bare shoulder. He’s looking at his bride’s reflection. Does it really count as seeing her?...

She turns around and looks at him sternly. “You can’t call me your lady anymore, I’m getting married!”

“Oh yeah, my apologies.” He smiles; he doubts he’ll ever be able to drop the habit, although he knows that he really should, lest he slips up as Adrien. As her husband. His heart flutters at the thought, and he’s so distracted by it he almost misses her next words.

“What if… what if he changes his mind at the altar?” Marinette’s voice is barely above a whisper, but her eyes are full of worry. 

Fuck, she’s cute, what do I even say to her? Chat Noir’s heart skips a beat, and he’s tempted to come clean to her there and then. It’s me, Adrien Agreste, Chat Noir, whatever, you could call me anything you desire, I’d answer. My heart is yours, it has been since the first day we met. Nothing, absolutely nothing, you hear me? would make me say no at the altar. I’d never do that to you.

It takes a minute for him to battle his instincts, during which he twirls her around and takes her in his arms. He feels her shake a little as she sobs against his chest. 

He hates having to hide information from her, especially this one. Everything would be so much easier if he didn’t have to. She wouldn’t be so miserable on her wedding day, their wedding day, for one.

“Hey.” He tilts her chin up lightly, and wipes the tears off her cheeks with his thumb. “He won’t. I… I was just with him, before I came to check on you. He wants you to be safe. You’re his… friend. Not to mention, the saviour of Paris. He says it’s a pleasure to help.”

She sighs. “What about the girl he loves?”

“It’ll work out, don’t worry.” Chat Noir represses a smile.

“What about you?” Marinette looks so anguished at the thought that he may be suffering that it’s difficult for him not to kiss her. 

“What about me? Are you worried I won’t still want to marry you after the whole situation is over and we can be together in peace? I’m not that shallow, you know.” His eyes twinkle mischievously. “Unless,” he gasps theatrically, “you’re worried you’ll fall for Adrien again!” He points at her accusingly, although his grin says otherwise.

Marinette lets out a little chuckle, the first since he’s arrived. He’s so grateful for the sound. “I promise I’m not.” She cups his cheek and brushes her thumb against the rim of his mask. “I like Adrien very much, and he’s been very sweet, but somehow my heart seems to prefer a questionable cat boy to a respectable model.”

“His loss.” Or not, he thinks as he kisses the palm of her hand.

“You’re staying for the ceremony, right? As your civilian self?”

“You can count on me to keep an eye on you two. I promise I’ll tackle Adrien if he tries to make a run for it.” He winks. He backtracks when he sees the panic in her eyes. “Joke aside, I paw-mise everything will be fine. And that I’ll always be there for you. Never doubt that.”

Marinette blushes as they stare into each other’s eyes. 

I love you, they both think, but don’t say. Now is not the time.

“Marinette?” There’s a knock on the door as Sabine calls for her. “It’s nearly time to go, can I come in?” 

“Uh, yeah, just a second!” Marinette jumps away from Chat Noir and checks the lock of her room is closed. 

She then walks over to him, he has already opened the window to leave. He smiles and kisses her forehead tenderly before backing away.

“See you later, my Lady. I know, I know, I shouldn’t call you that.” He throws his hands up before she can protest the nickname. “But I like to think that you’ll be my Lady until you say yes to Agreste.” 

And even that won’t change anything, they both think as they part ways.

[hyperfixateandchill]

aaand because I can’t stop thinking about it i’ve written down my ranking of post-finale deancas scenarios including a non-exhaustive list of pros and cons for each. read on at your own discretion.

1st place: Deancas open up the new Roadhouse. My personal favorite because, again, Dean’s canon dream. I think Dean would LOVE running his own bar and playing host and serving people food and drinks is basically his love language. Cas isn’t as into the bar vibe specifically but he enjoys seeing people come and go and getting to know the locals who come by and just being with Dean. They get to stay connected to the hunting world without being actual hunters which is probably the perfect win win situation for them.

Other Pros of the Bar scenario (i’ve thought about this a lot): Claire and Kaia come by increasingly often to visit until eventually Claire basically works part-time at the Roadhouse when she’s not off hunting and Dean starts only semi-ironically calling it the “family business.” Claire puts up pride flag stickers on the front door and Dean makes a thing of it at first but then warms up to the idea. People start catching on and now local queer people will come from several towns over to visit the bar because there aren’t exactly that many queer friendly spaces in their corner of Kansas. Then it’s pride month and Claire and Kaia secretly update the bar’s online info to explicitly draw in queer customers and on the evening of the nearest pride march the bar is PACKED with all the local gays and Cas has the pop music blaring and he will NOT let Dean change it but it’s ok because Dean’s made friends with a drag queen who’s a professional comedian and now they’re comparing calendars to see when she might be able to come do a set at the Roadhouse and basically their bar is now a gay bar. “LGBT friendly”, Dean insists, because 1. he’s not gay and 2. he still caters to the local straights and the hunters. but now hunters come in and end up sitting 2 stools away from a flamboyant!gay and some are slightly weirded out but most don’t care at all and all of them end up making some kind of comment about how they’d heard about Dean Winchester and his angel... guess it’s true huh? And Dean shoots them a cocky grin and says ‘yep’ but he still holds to the rule that pop music is only allowed on tuesdays and thursdays and maybe very late at night on the weekends when everybody’s drunk and dancing. The Roadhouse is a second home to Dean and it’s the perfect mix of middle american dive, hunter’s hangout and lgbt space, and that’s literally DEAN so it’s perfect and he gets to work with his family by his side and be a part of a community (or several) and he feels useful and happy.

Cons of the Bar scenario: Doesn’t work great with having a small child or hobbies. very long hours and unusual work schedule. would encourage Dean’s drinking habit. I.e. it might be more intense than some alternatives (unless the bar is more cafe/diner during the day and Claire/Kaia/whatever other youngins can mind the place on their own if deancas aren’t in and the bar is located quite close to their house to they can come and go).

Overall works pretty well for a more active/energetic take on deancas’s lives post-finale. 8/10

2nd place: Mix of mechanic!Dean and retired!deancas. Dean’s never had a proper job before or much of a social circle who aren’t hunters, so I find it hard to imagine Dean working at an autoshop and playing mr. normie with his coworkers. Same with Cas and a regular job.

What I can imagine, however, is Dean having his own small business where he fixes up old cars (for like, vintage car enthusiasts). It starts as a hobby but then he realizes people would pay him to do it so now it’s a business. Deancas obviously have a a house on a big plot of land near the woods and a lakeside, so there’s plenty of outdoor space for him to set up a small shop and most of his customers call ahead so he doesn’t have people just coming in anyway. The work is not quite enough to pay all the bills but again, Charlie’s magic credit card, so who cares. Cas gardens and beekeeps and occasionally sells the extras at the local farmer’s market. Dean cooks and fishes and uses Cas’s ingredients whenever possible. They spend their days on their own property, doing their hobbies on their own time and making enough money from them that they don’t feel useless and still have plenty of time left to get over-involved in Jack’s pta. It’s a very calm, contented life. the millennial hipster dream, fulfilled by two 40-some year old dads.

Pros: deancas getting to spend their days doing what they love, being ridiculously domestic and married (even if they’re not officially married), both being absolute malewives in their own ways and it’s disgustingly sweet.

Cons: this scenario doesn’t have quite as much excitement and opportunity for shenanigans as the bar scenario. Less connection to a community, more living like hermits. Dean might appreciate the more social atmosphere of a bar. Cas might be equally happy either way, but he’d probably like having Claire help them out at the bar so that’s a plus for him.

Overall a good scenario for a more placid semi-retired life. 7/10

3rd place: a bait and switch. Cas is the one who ends up still having something you could call a ‘job’, Dean is the househusband. It starts with deancas still helping saileen with HOL (hunters of letters) stuff but eventually Dean is very decided that he wants out now that things are in good hands. Cas agrees with him but still consults with the hol network since he’s got all that lore knowledge. Dean very occasionally helps with research/strategy for a hunt but that’s IT no more hunting for him, and so it ends up that Cas still comes by the bunker fairly often and works from home the rest of the time on research and translations etc and Dean’s 100% amateur chef-in-training and papa bear because now nobody can look down on him for being a housewife (or nobody he gives a shit about anyway) so he’s gone all in. and whenever he comes by the bunker these days is after he’s picked up Jack from school and he comes to join their family to cook them all dinner while they finish up the work.

Pros: love me a Dean who’s gotten over his hypermasculinity and is now comfortable with doing whatever he likes even if (sometimes specially if) that thing is considered stereotypically feminine. It’s his big fuck you to his dad and it’s the life mary had wanted when she was young and dean is mary and therefore he’s honoring her memory when he spends his days on a bright airy kitchen making lunch for his 4 year old and waiting for his ex-soldier husband he adores to come home and doing not one bit of hunting. except dean never had to lie about his past and cut ties with his hunter family to get this. which is why this time for him it works, when it didn’t for mary or sam. love that energy.

Cons: Dean is not in fact just a malewife and would probably still want some more action in his life. might feel kinda useless with Cas having a ‘thing’ to do when he doesn’t. Cas would be perfectly happy regardless though.

Overall heartwarming and sweet but not as realistic: 6/10

4th: Disheveled-magic-shop-owner!Cas (+ Sam and Dean). Just thought of this. Cas knows his shit about spell ingredients and magical objects and supernatural weapons, probably more than even Sam. And Cas gardens. And Cas most likely enjoys pinterest and mom blogs and finds out about etsy... So Cas may or may not start growing/hoarding specific goods he knows are useful in the hunting world. at first it’s just to help HOL out but eventually Dean realizes like... we could profit off of this? And Cas eye-rolls because he doesn’t care but then again he knows his shit so he sets up a poorly-designed website to sell hunting stuff. and maybe Sam goes in on it with him because Sam also knows his shit and it’s kind of cute because they work together and Dean probably does the mechanic/barkeep/househusband thing though he does help with making the special bullets and dropping off parcels at the post office and so on. And maybe eventually they open up a small magic shop where they sell their shit. And maybe the shop is next door to the Roadhouse and it’s all become ‘your one-stop shop for everything a hunter might need’ (and you know the gays like their new age shit too so it all works), and the bunker isn’t even far away either and all three business are interconnected, the ‘family business’ that AU John Winchester of Hunter Corp wished he’d created.

Pros: Cas gets to do a thing he’s knowledgeable and passionate about and Deancas get to leave hunting while staying adjacent to the community. Cas as a disheveled shopkeep who’s not particularly nice to customers but who provides them with insights and mysterious comments that make people certain he must be legit.

Cons: Cas using his knowledge of the supernatural to profit off of hunters sounds too capitalist and not very Cas-like. He would be the type to gladly give people stuff for free and methinks that Dean and Sam would feel that way too. Cas helping with HOL stuff is basically established in options 1-3 already and so is him gardening for potentially useful ingredients. He doesn’t need to sell this stuff in a shop.

Overall makes sense theoretically but doesn’t vibe well for me. 5/10

5th: full on retirees, doing basically the same things as no 2 except with maybe some more travelling and less caring about making money from any of it.

Pros: the “and they lived happily ever after” they deserve after all the shit they’ve been through.

Cons: boring. uneventful. Dean and Cas are still quite young and neither’s had a chance at something even resembling a normal life for more than a couple of months at a time. They should get more of a middle aged married life experience before moving on to full retirement.

Overall valid but less interesting: 4/10

6th: Cas gets a job at a local library or shop, Dean is either a mechanic or a househusband. To preface, if Cas were to get a job out there in the world, my favorite would be like a magic shop or a bookshop with *unique* books. But I find that unlikely unless Cas is running his own shop (see 4th place for that). So here we’re talking about a regular normie shop.

Pros: Cas has a job he likes and feels useful in? And he’s not completely tied down to Dean all the time (though not sure that counts as a pro). More of the ‘normal life’ vibes.

Cons: Cas working at a random bookstore or library or shop or whatever would be passably interesting but not as fulfilling or useful or fun as any of the other options.

Overall valid but not interesting or all that heartwarming. 2/10

6th: deancas don’t know any life outside of hunting so they keep on doing it, except now with lower stakes than before and they go on less actual hunts.

pros: umm... consistency? they keep working closely with saileen and the new hunters who start coming by/moving into the bunker.

cons: everything. Dean’s wanted out and he should get it. Cas literally died several times over and he should get to experience a human life with the man he loves and not just do more dangerous shit.

Overall a terrible idea. 1/10 (because 0/10 would be the Cas never comes back and Dean dies and goes to heaven scenario)

[sooghostwriter]

Chef Soo. Three meals a day

Pairings: Do Kyung Soo x OC (Nameless, but I refuse to use Y/N)

Genre: Romance, AU, fluff, slow burn I guess. A molecule of angst. 

BREAKFAST: Lemon Pie

The coffee owner and the baker

An important part of opening a cake shop/coffee shop was having an actual baker. She only had the good ideas and the money.

Fives chefs applied to the job and only one of them was smart enough to bring a taste of his cooking. Kyung Soo arrived with a lemon pie that tasted like heaven. It was also her favorite sweet. A match made in heaven. She hired him on the spot.

And she thanked that decision every day.

If she had to describe Kyung Soo in one word it would be an ant. Working none stop, focused on his job and a great team player. He was quiet and a bit serious, but he was her voice of consciousness.  Whenever she came out with an idea that was unusable, he would tell her, with a lot of respect but stern. In other words, this is stupid, don't do it. Although sometimes that made her feel restricted. Because yes, macaroons were expensive and hard to do. But they were in trend. And a cake covered with macaroons could tempt anyone. It would be expensive, but she was sure they could sell at least two cakes per day. Or two cakes during the weekend “What about the work involved? Personally, I haven’t had good experiences making macaroons, and if we make them, I would have to neglect something, like the Mille-Feuille that sells great during the weekends” She felt smaller and smaller sitting on her chair. She knew he was right, of course he was. But her vision! She has seen it on her mind, a round cake covered in sweet almond pillows in pastel colors, maybe with some edible glitter on top “I know you have this Pinterest image in your head, and I can see it too, but we can’t risk that much yet, maybe in a couple of months…you could get another chef and they could be in charge of more complicated sweets, but for now, I don’t think we can do it” “I get it Kyung Soo, thank you for your honesty” “Are you ok? You look very disappointed…I mean…I could..” “No, don’t worry, Kyung Soo, you are the chef you know better than me, and I like that you are like this, just…don’t be so bland about it, this is my dream and I’m happy because it’s working, so I may get excited about it” “I’m sorry” He looked less stoic when he said it. Apologetic. He patted her shoulder and went to take the muffins out of the oven. The day Kyung Soo came to work for the first time they spend an hour talking. She shared her vision for the coffee, a cozy, calm and familiar place where people went after work when they didn’t want to go out with their coworkers, where a mom could go and read a book after leaving the kids with her husband, maybe where students could go for the wi-fi and  regain some energy for the last class of the day. Of course she wanted to gain money, after all, she quit her job, took all the money from the unemployment insurance, sold her car, the jewelry her grandmother gave her and took a loan so she could open her coffee shop. She told him that for now, they needed to focus on flavor and quality. A small assortment of sweets to buy, and a menu of sweet things to serve like crepes and pancakes.  He was immediately on board. He came up with the menu and the tarts, cakes, cookies, and desserts that they would sell. The first month was slow but steady, the second month was better, but not what they expected. By the third month, things took off. Kyung Soo’s Eclairs were always sold out by lunch, the Mille-Feuille cake needed reservation and people bought the chocolate mousse in bulks. They were extremely busy, but every day they reached their goal of the day. Kyung Soo worked as hard as she did. She never asked him, but she always had the feeling that for him this was his business too, his dream. Or at least he treated her dream has his. They were a perfectly synchronized team.

By the sixth month, she had already paid the loan. Just a couple of months and she would be able to hire a couple of people that could help Kyung Soo, now he had to do magic with his own hands and a part-timer. They grew closer too. Very slowly. Kyung Soo wasn’t distant or cold, but work was too much, and the only relationship they could have was a working relationship. Friendship was impossible when they were busy building up the business, cooking, fighting with the suppliers and putting down small fires, figuratively of course, except for one time. But under those circumstances, you end up knowing someone better than you know yourself. You end up getting used to that person’s company, voice, presence even his little habits. Like how he would tight his apron after putting something in the oven, or the cute face he made when whipping cream. She knew them all, since her eyes searched for him most of the time.

By the end of the year, Kyung Soo was interviewing someone for the position of baker. But the situation was better than what they expected, so they hired two new people. Kang Jisoo was a great patisserie with expertise in food styling “She can be in charge of the pretty sweets” Kyung Soo told her when they were going through her CV. She beamed in excitement. Jisoo was going to be Kyung Soo’s right hand. One of the CV’s caught their attention. He was also a baker, but he had an internship in France making bread “People keep asking us if we sell bread” “Can we hire him?” He asked with controlled excitement. She gave it a little thought, she liked the idea, but she was thinking on giving another use to the extra money they were making “Kyung Soo, actually, I wanted to give you a raise” He looked at her warmly, and she felt it all over her body. His eyes were always so expressive, he didn’t need to say anything. He was grateful “Thank you, but I can manage for now with the money I make, let’s hire him, and you raise my pay later” Kyung Soo was expecting something like that. Not because he wanted it, but it was something she would do. He heard her talk about it with her mom once. He could always hear her conversations in her office due to the glass door. She told her how she thought Kyung Soo wasn’t getting paid what he deserved. But she told him once that they were a team, they were in this together, and he promised himself to support her in this dream. So if now the right thing was to hire two new bakers instead of raising his paycheck, so let it be. So on Monday, the lovely Kang Jisoo and the bright Byun Baekhyun arrived, ready to start working. Kyung Soo took Jisoo and didn’t release her for the rest of the day. She did the same with Baekhyun, they came up with an assortment of 6 types of bread and his schedule. That day after a long day at work they went for dinner. They were very tired but excited to survive their first day at work. At one point in the night, she saw her new two coworkers with motherly eyes. They were cute, cheerful, with such a great disposition and most importantly, very talented. She caught Kyung Soo looking at his new coworkers too, stopping at Jisoo for a long second. She was surprised by how that made her feel. --- Since Baekhyun arrived, her mornings were more energetic. Baekhyun’s shift began at 5 am and ended at 2 pm. Since he was in charge of bread, those needed to be done during the morning. She arrived at 8 am, and was welcomed by a nice loaf of warm bread and a coffee that Baekhyun prepared for her. She got to share a lot with Baekhyun. He was the typical happy go lucky guy, who was always chirpy and who’s second language was flirting. Not on purpose, it was just part of his personality.

Byun Baekhyun was the typical energetic guy. He was always laughing, always making everybody laugh, your instincts would always tell you to like someone like him. And he has won her trust and friendship in a matter of days. Kyung Soo was always jealous of guys like him. He was so jealous of Baekhyun. But it was impossible to hate him. He enjoyed being around him, although they didn’t have a lot of time to share he enjoyed watching him. But he didn’t enjoy watching her laughing with his jokes. He never made her laugh like that.  

It was Friday and Jisoo asked them if she could leave earlier for a friend’s birthday. They looked at each other and nodded at her at the same time. She was still young, she deserved to party, she commented as Jisoo left “She is a couple of years younger than you, don’t be so dramatic” He answered with a chuckle. She giggled with him, and Kyung Soo was sure this was the first time that happened, and he felt stupidly proud of himself. It was time to close and they were the only ones left working “Like the old times” He commented. He was right. It was like the old times. She couldn’t believe that her little but ambitious dream was going strong. The income now was steady. The coffee shop was never empty and Kyung Soo’s cakes were very popular. She stayed at the door of her office looking at Kyung Soo washing his hands. She knew she was looking at him lovingly, but he wasn’t paying attention so she allowed herself to do so. Their time to leave was closer, but she didn’t want to leave yet. She wanted to be with him a little bit more “Hey, I got emotional all of the sudden, wanna go for dinner, also known as drinks?” She asked as soon as the idea formed in her head, so in that way her common sense wouldn’t get in the way “Sure, let me go change” Kyung Soo dashed into the dressing room and left her there in shock. This was the first time they would go out together. They went to the usual spot where the four of them would go for dinner after a good week of sales. Kyung Soo ordered fried chicken and she went for a bowl of ramen. They ate in silence, a comfortable one. She took a spicy wing from his plate and he ate several spoons of broth from her bowl. The place started to get packed and the buzz in the air made them began to talk. It started with work talk, plans for next week, the menu for the coming summer, and the possibility of changing one of the providers “How do you feel about Jisoo and Baekhyun?” He asked her, moving the empty plates aside, resting his elbows on the small table “Great, I think we made a good decision hiring them, are you ok with Jisoo?” “She is perfect, she works diligently, her cake designs are terrific, and she is very nice to be around” The word Perfect kept resounding in her head “Baekhyun is good too, he makes amazing bread and he knows how to use the coffee machine” He commented, but it sounded very robotic “I’m always the one making coffee, so is nice to be served for once” Kyung Soo came to the realization that the only time he cooked for her was when he made that lemon pie for his job interview. He was her right hand, she put all her trust in him, and he couldn’t bake her a simple cupcake. He would change that as soon as possible. He couldn’t allow Baekhyun to win. He immediately felt embarrassed by his childish thought. They stayed there for an hour and a half talking. As always, about work, but there was something more. He took advantage of the situation, the atmosphere and the sensation he got from having her so close, smiling, joking with him, sharing with him. He felt hopeful, and when he went back home, for the first time he allowed himself to…imagine.

She arrived the next morning ready to fight with a couple of suppliers and to work on finances. Those were her least favorite things, but she was the one in charge of them, and she was kind of good at it. She was halfway done with her first task when Kyung Soo knocked at her glass door and went in “I brought you this” He said, leaving a mini lemon tart on her desk “For the old times” He said, not meeting her eyes and turning around quickly, disappearing into the kitchen. She grabbed her tart and bit into it without the need of a fork “For the old times” She mumbled to herself, giggling. She remembered with effervescence that afternoon when they met. She wondered if she liked him from that very moment. When she noticed that he was smart enough to bring a sample of his baking, to the interview to become baker at a bakery. Maybe her standards were too low.

As Kyung Soo was beating the eggs for the merengue of the lemon pie, he began thinking about her. He has been doing so since last night. Having a one on one time with her was unique, to say the least. On his ride home, and then on his morning commute to his job he kept recalling those first months working with her. Her determination, her strength, her curiosity. The times he could hear her from her office being passive-aggressive with the fruit providers. Or every time he arrived and found her sleeping at her desk. He wished he was caring enough, or brave enough to have made her coffee when that happened, to bring her a freshly baked donna. Baekhyun would have done it for sure. He also remembered the days he left work, just to come back to pick something he had forgotten and found her crying in her office. Always out of frustration or fear. All those times that he saw her so vulnerable and hurt he wanted to hug her. His arms itched to reach her and pulled her into his chest. To take the worry away. Just pass some of his calm onto her. But he was never brave enough. What they had was too precious to risk. Was too new to risk.

But then one day he realized that it wasn’t too new, but old. His feelings were well settled in his chest, and he had lost time. He could risk things now. But she was looking at someone else now. He would have to live with the craving his arms felt for her. 

--- That Friday they had a terribly busy morning. And they would have some problems for the afternoon too since Jisoo cut her finger and was currently at the ER with Baekhyun. She left the part-timer on front and went to the kitchen to check on Kyung Soo “How are you doing? Need any help?” “Yes, I need to finish decorating these cupcakes, someone is going to pick them up in an hour, could you do that so I can take care of the orders?” She could do that much. She rolled up her sleeves and got to work “Wait!” Kyung Soo stopped her, holding one of her arms. He pulled a scrunchy from his right pocket and turned her around, sliding his fingers in her hair “What are you doing?” Her voice was a bit higher due to the surprise “You can’t do this with your hair down, so I’m braiding it” She stood still. Although she was sure her hands were shaking. She was sure this was the closest he had ever been. She was sure this was the first time he was touching her. His fingers brushed her neck burning her. His movements were a tiny bit clumsy but efficient.  “You are good at this” She commented, trying to relieve the tension “I have practiced a lot with Jisoo, she always forgets to pull up her hair” She closed her eyes and released a long sight. He was already so close to her. Of course, they were. They work arm to arm, moving around the kitchen like a unit. But she and Kyung Soo also functioned as a unit. For a long time.  Sure, she wasn’t a chef, but they were partners. Not officially. He was a worker, just like Baekhyun and Jisoo. Bur for her he always felt like more. He built the menu and signature of the coffee shop. People went there for his cooking. This coffee shop belonged to both of them. -- She arrived the next morning and found Baekhyun moving around the kitchen slower than normal “You look blue,  is everything okay?” He sighed heavily, resting his body against the wall “Not really, You think Kyung Soo hates me?” “I don't think he knows how to feel that, why are you asking?” He walked with a heavy step to her side and rested his head on her shoulder like a gloomy puppy “I try to get close to him the little time our schedules overlap but he is so cold with me, he laughs but is always a shy laugh, meanwhile, Jisoo almost chokes to death the other day because of something I said” “He is very stoic” She tried to divert his line of thoughts “No,  he kind of ignores me and I want to be friends with him, he is so cool” “You want me to talk to him?” He lifted his head and went to the dressing room with slow steps “No, what are you going to tell him anyway? I just hope he doesn't have a bad image of me”  She followed him patting his back, understanding his feeling. She also wished Kyung Soo could give her more attention. “Good morning” Kyung Soo arrived, greeting and walking past them, into the dressing room “See?!” Baekhyun pointed, shaking her arm “Yeah, that was a bit cutting, you make us some coffee, I will check on him, maybe there's something going on” He nodded pouting and went back to the shop. She knocked the dressing room door, asking him if he was dressed “Yeah,  come in” She opened the door and walked in, looking around, being nonchalant “Hello there chef” “Hello boss” She stood behind him and notice him having trouble tightening his apron “Let me do that, is everything alright?” She asked him as she tightened the straps around his waist “Yes” He answered, his voice low “Everything alright with Jisoo?” “Couldn't be better” She made a double knot and tapped his shoulder telling him she was done “Everything ok with Baekhyun?” “Sure”   “You like him?” He sat down, taking off his shoes “He is great, although we don’t share the kitchen that much, why are you asking?” “No reason, just making sure everything is ok” “Sure, ok, then if you are done, I need to change my pants” She turned around quickly and left the room. When she went to the front of the shop, Baekhyun had already served three coffees and had a plate with a loaf of bread and butter “He says everything is ok” “You think he would tell you if he hated me” “I trust he tells me everything, so yeah, don’t worry Baekhyun” “Ok, if you say so, you think he would come to have breakfast with us?” She went to the back again and invite Kyung Soo to have breakfast with them. Kyung Soo accepted and when she arrived with him, she saw how Baekhyun’s imaginary tail began wiggling.

When she asked him to go and have breakfast with them, he really wanted to say no. He had some things to do, and also, if he could avoid seeing them act like old buddies, he would do it. But her questions in the dressing room told him something. She wanted to know how he felt about Baekhyun. He knew she cared about his input about everything, and if she wanted his approval on Baekhyun, she would have it. He liked him after all. He was a good guy. And share breakfast with them could be good.

----

She was talking over the phone with her lawyer when Baekhyun knocked on her door. She gave him a signal to come in and he sat at her desk waiting for her to finish. She was about to end a 20 minutes long call to ask her lawyer what she had to do to make Kyung Soo her business partner. There was a lot of paperwork involved and a lot of visits to the public notary, but it could be done if they both wanted it. She hadn’t asked him yet. She didn’t know how. She hung up and Baekhyun asked immediately what was she talking about since he could hear the last part of the call “I’m thinking about making Kyung Soo my business partner” “He isn’t already?” “No, but he is my right hand, this business his almost half his in terms of development and success, so I want him to have a part of it” Baekhyun looked lost “What are you talking about?” “What?” “I thought you and he had something, no?” She felt her cheeks blush “No, no... Why would you think that?” Baekhyun moved on his seat awkwardly “I don't know, there's always this weird tension between the two of you,  and you guys are always business business business,  but you are all the time stealing glances from each other when the other is not looking, and when you talk you guys are always way too close” His voice lost volume by the end of the sentence “I.. We just..” “You don't have to explain anything... But I may have told you something that you didn't know, so I better go now” She tried to stop him, she needed to know about this weird tension and the stolen glances, but Baekhyun was quick and left the coffee before she could reach him.

----- One Monday morning she got an envelope from a tourism website informing her that the coffee shop was selected as a “One of the coffee shops to visit in Seoul”. The four of them went for dinner that night to celebrate. As always Kyung Soo took care of grilling and serving, always putting more meat on her plate. When Baekhyun and Jisoo complained he said “She’s our boss” His voice was serious, but he was grinning. After a bunch of beers and maybe half a pig she was ready to go. She told the rest they were free to stay and handed her card to Kyung Soo. She got up and Baekhyun grabbed her wrist, stopping her “Let’s share a cab” She agreed gladly, she hated the idea of riding the taxi alone in those conditions.

Kyung Soo felt sick all of a sudden. They were so friendly. They were so friendly since day one. And he was aware that Baekhyun was that kind of person, even he felt close to him the first time they met, but this was different. Baekhyun knew where she lived.  He had known her and been working with her for more than a year and he still didn’t know her address. Meanwhile, Baekhyun was holding her arm to help her stand up. It was over for him.

He had lost his chance. And Baekhyun took his.

-----

She had a good night of sleep that night. She woke up before her alarm went off and the warm water reached the perfect temperature. On her way to work, she didn’t meet a single red light and the coffee Baekhyun prepared for her was especially good. She greeted Jisoo at the kitchen and ran into Kyung Soo when he walked out of the dressing room. She greeted him happily because she was feeling happy and seeing him added to the feeling, but he only nodded at her. It was like a bucket of cold water. All her happiness faded away. Not even in his worst days he had been so cutting. Why was he acting so distant? She tried to convince herself that she was overreacting, reading too much into it, but during the morning she realized that she wasn’t. Even Baekhyun noticed it. Before leaving he commented to her between whispers “Did you say something to him?” “No, no that I remember, Did I? Something happened last night?” “No, nothing, when we were there everything was alright, we talked a lot and laughed with everything I said or did, he even poured me several drinks, and then we…oh crap” Baekhyun mouth formed a perfect ‘o’ “What? What is it?” “You don’t get it? I’m sorry, I feel that this is my fault, at least part of it, ok… I need to go” He grabbed his backpack and left in a hurry, without giving her the chance to ask for more. She cursed at him, still clueless of why Kyung Soo was acting like this, and only with her. That day they had to close the coffee shop early due to the cut of the water service. By 6 the shop was empty, everything washed and ready to close. She arranged everything at her office, moving languidly around the room, still sad about Kyung Soo’s cold shoulder. She wanted to go home and cry maybe. She didn’t like it, she hadn’t heard his voice all day long. He didn’t come to her office not even once to ask her to call the suppliers, or for her to taste something. She was going to steal some donuts from the refrigerator, go home and cry on the shower maybe. She was about to get her period, she was especially emotional, that’s why she allowed herself some self-love. She almost got a heart attack when she walked into the kitchen and met Kyung Soo with his jacket on, reclining against one of the counters, his head down, looking at his hands. When he heard her, he looked up, and hold her stare for a while “Can we talk?” She couldn’t find her voice, so she only nodded and walked next to him. She was terrified. She knew there was something going on with him, and his face of worry and shame prove her right. She wanted to make him feel better. To get rid of that dark stare, help him. Maybe this was the right time to talk to him about becoming business partners, maybe like this, his mood could improve “I need to talk to you about something… I have been thinking about this for a while, is an idea that in the last months has been developing in my head” She saw her hands shaking. She knew he wasn’t talking about a cake or a change in the menu, no one gets so serious to talk about that, not even him. Her last boyfriend said some similar words when he broke up with her. Those words, with that voice and that somber disposition never meant something good. Kyung Soo was about to tell her something terrible “Are you ok? You went pale all of the sudden” She looked up from her hands and found him looking at her face, his hand so close to her cheek she could almost felt its warmth. His entire semblance changed. He was still serious, but worried, his eyes big and round scanning her, searching what was disturbing her. He asked her a couple of times and she didn’t answer until she felt slightly better and under control  “I…it’s just…you have been acting so weird today, and now you are being so serious now, I can’t tell why… I’m terrified” She was sure she wasn’t crying, but she heard her voice break.  Finally, finally after months of craving it, he grabbed her face with careful hands, caressed her cheeks down to her neck and shoulders and pulled her into a hug. He held her by the nape, his right hand sinking in her silky hair, and his other arm held her softly, pulling her against his chest as close as he could. She rested her head on his shoulder, her arms went around his waist and although his hug wasn’t tight, it calmed her down a little bit. She felt him speak. She felt his breathing against her shoulder but couldn’t hear what he was saying. She let go of him and searched for his eyes, but he didn’t meet hers “What did you say?” “I’m sorry” “For what?” He let go of her, his arms falling from her back to his side “What I was going to tell you is that…I have been thinking about moving jobs, maybe is time for me to move on” Her arms went to his waist again. This time her grip was tight. The panic his words caused her stirred her with desperation. If she had to stay like this, hugging him for the rest of her life so he wouldn’t leave, she would do it. She kept asking him not to leave, begging for him to stay. At first, he just let her be, he hugged her too, rubbing her back trying to calm her down, but it came to no avail. Kyung Soo grabbed her arms and unclasped them with a lot of difficulties. He called her name, trying to calm her down, but she held to his arms, still shaken by his news “This could be good for me, and for you too, Jisoo will stay in charge, she cooks the kind of things you like, and maybe a new chef with a new approach could be better for the coffee shop” She was in tears, her lips shaking as the air left her mouth in short and quick puffs. He got worried about her, he felt guilty too “No! No Kyung Soo, you can’t leave me, this coffee is what it is because of you” “Is not, this is your dream, I just helped you” “No, without you I couldn’t have done this, you are my chef, you are my partner Kyung Soo, please don’t…” Kyung Soo took a step back releasing himself from her grip. He looked unsettled, shaking his head, his eyes saddened “Just that? You want me here just because I'm your chef?” “What do you mean?” She asked, cleaning her tears with her sleeve. Kyung Soo took a deep breath after another until he could speak calmly “That's the only thing I am to you right?” She looked into his eyes for a long time. Kyung Soo now was being inquisitive giving her back a stare that intimidated her because she felt naked in front of him. She was sure she never showed her adoration in front of him. She was always professional, they were never flirty or platonic. They did trust each other and talked a lot, but she never felt anything from him, and she was sure she never showed anything more than admiration and respect towards him. She needed to change that “No! No, you are more” Build up the braveness to say more than that was harder than she would expect. “What am I then? And please don’t say your business partner” She noticed in his voice that they were equally desperate. They were equally frustrated and scared about what was happening. There was a lot to lose with this conversation. She could confess and lose her chef and a friend. But if he was so decided to leave, she needed to share with him how much she had fallen for him, because she loved him. And if he decided to leave after her confession and not look for her ever again, at least she got to tell him how she felt. She just wished she could have told him sooner “Kyung Soo…you are all that, but since always you have been my friend” He closed his eyes sighing in frustration “And I love you, I just… I love you so much, you can’t leave me, please don’t leave me” She finished with a string of voice, her hands in fists, her eyes closed, scared. Kyung Soo took two long steps whispering her name, and as she looked up, he cupped her jaw and covered her mouth with his own. She gasped and it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. Kyung Soo grunted softly in return as he dragged his fingertips along her jaw. Kyung Soo’s lips were soft and warm, but calm. It wasn’t a hungry kiss or desperate. He was testing, keeping himself in line. Despite the shock, she still thought she could spend the rest of her days kissing him without getting tired of it. He pulled back just far enough to let the air back into their lungs. His eyes gazed deeply into her eyes, asking for permission, although it was a bit too late now. She closed her eyes and he couldn’t resist too long away from her. He tilted his head catching her breath, and this time he kissed her with intensity. Intensity that she matched. The kiss itself was more tentative than anything, mostly because they were both unsure of what was going on. But she was the first one settling it when she caught his lower lip and suddenly sucked on it. Kyung Soo’s warmth was almost suffocating, and she wanted to taste it. He encircled one arm around her waist, placed the other hand on her nape as if locking her with his body so she wouldn’t leave him. He didn’t want to hold back anymore, he wanted her, he loved her, and she loved him too. Now it was the time to make up for the lost time. Her hands were on his shoulders, his neck, his arms, the sides of his face. It was desperate, but she didn’t care. She didn’t care about the tiny frustrated sounds spilling from the back of her throat. She didn’t care that he was leaving her. He was quitting and leaving her behind. She backed away, looking at him wildly “You…Kyung Soo, you…you are lea…” He moved quickly to grab her by the nape, tugging her close so they could rest their foreheads together “It’s ok, I’m here, I’m not leaving” He breathed, stroking the back of her neck tenderly. She still looked fairly terrified, her pupils blown wide and shaking all over, but completely still in his hold “Kyung Soo” She called again, but he shook his head and moved his other hand to stroke her cheek softly “I love you” He whispered, although he knew it was not enough to reassure her now, even after the kiss “You really do?” “We kissed” He whispered against her lips, feeling stupid by saying that, but his mind couldn’t form better words. His fingers caressed the sides of her mouth and god, he wanted to do it again, wanted to seal his mouth over hers for another taste, just to feed that need he has been feeling for months. But he held himself. Instead, he took one of her hands and placed it over his chest, the spot where his heart was beating like crazy. Closing her eyes, she let her senses take over everything, wondering for how long she has been feeling like this, if this is what falling in love feels like, if this is what he feels like. She called his name again, and Kyung Soo called hers. They giggled together, feeling some of the tension dissipate “And…and what does this mean?” She stuttered "No idea" He whispered, and they giggled again. She knew what this was, he knew it too, so she leaned in and kissed him again. When they pulled apart and she opened her eyes she found him smiling brightly. He grabbed her by the waist, lifting and dropping her on the counter. She hugged his shoulders and rejoiced in the feeling of his arms holding her “You are not leaving right?” “No” “Why did you say that?” His ears went red and he looked down ashamed “I thought you liked Baekhyun, and I just couldn’t go through that” She called his name softly, feeling sorry for him, “Just to be clear, I don’t like him” “I know now” She made him look at her again, rubbing his nape “That’s why you were so cold to him?” He nodded, looking at her again “Ok, make sure to be nicer with him ok? He was very sad because he thinks you hate him and he really likes you” Kyung Soo’s eyebrows went up funnily “That’s why you asked me if I liked him?” “Yeah” “I thought it was because you wanted my approval to date him” She was shocked to hear that, and also felt incredibly guilty “Kyung Soo, for how long have you being suffering?” She caressed his face, kissing his cheeks “Kiss me some more so I can forget about that” She grabbed his cute face and kissed him softly, like a caress, an apology. Kyung Soo pulled back from the kiss, his hands moving to her thighs “What you wanted to say before?” She looked clueless for a while, not quite remembering what happened before. She took half a minute to go over the most recent events “Oh yes! I had a proposal for you, here” She grabbed his hand and jumped down the counter, walking with him to her office. If she was lucky enough, after that afternoon she would get a new boyfriend and a new business partner.

The End

Notes: Please, some feedback. 

I think the next story will be up in two weeks. Miso. 

[vandergeld]

                  hey  everyone welcome BACK to my blog  ,  hi  , how  are  ya ?   i’m   RUZZY   (  or  ru  ,  rudy  idk  if thats too  much  lmAO  )  &  i  have  not  been  apart  of  a  group  in  84  years ............  that  graphic  is  so  extra  but  i  was  bored  &  first  impressions  are  everything  ,  ANYWHO  this  is  my  mans WARNER  played  by  my  mans  GRAYSON DOLAN  ,  who  lacks  f’n  resources  so  i  gotta  work  some  magic  w/  all  these  gifs  on  tumblr  lmao  so  any  gif  icons  are  noT  mine  for  the  most  part  they’ll  be  taken  from  gifs  alr  created  (  s/o  2  the  fly  hunnies  that  made  ‘em  )  anyway  ya’ll  don’t  really  care  abt  me  lmao  soooooo here’s warner ! PLS  feel  free  to  hmu ANYTIME  for  the  plots  &  things  of  that  nature  u  could  lit  never  bother  me  idc ,  my  discord  is  𝐫𝐮𝐳𝐳𝐲𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐝𝐚𝐮𝐳𝐢#1643 if  u  everrr need  to  get  ahold  of  me  when  im  not  on  tumblr  !

         𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐘𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐎𝐋𝐀𝐍, cismale, he/his. → look out, there’s 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐄𝐑 𝐕𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐋𝐃. you know, the 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘  year old 𝐁𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 of 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐀 𝐋𝐀𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐃𝐀 𝐌𝐔. you know, i overheard someone say that they were 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄, 𝐑𝐄𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐒 , 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐆  and 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐃. but that’s just rumours. fresh new pairs of air jordan 1's, the roar of a crowd in a stadium, and lost weekends come to mind when i think of them. what about you? [ ruzzy, he/him, 18, est ]

TW : CANCER MENTION  ,  SMOKING  MENTION  .

//   »    GENERAL      :

FULL NAME   :   warner     evangelino   alexander       vandergeld       (   inspired by the antagonists of white chicks lmaooo   )     .

HOMETOWN  : new  york  city  ,  new york  .

NICKNAMES   :   dumbass   .

AGE   :   twenty  .

BIRTHDAY   :   october twenty-first   .

ZODIAC   :   libra   .

GENDER   :   male   .

PRONOUNS   :   he      &      him   .

NATIONALITY   :   american   .

ETHNICITY   :   german  ,   italian  ,  irish   .

LABEL(S)   :   the   golden boy   ,   the   lothario   ,   the   jock   .

TROPE(S)  :  chick magnet  ,  hormone-addled teenager  ,  unwitting pawn  , upper class twit  ,

OCCUPATION   :  college student  &  collegiate football player  & full time frat bro  .

FRAT : beta lambada mu  .

MAJOR   :   environmental science  .

POS  : charming  ,  charismatic  ,  brave  ,  athetic ,  dedicated  ,   eco-friendly  ,  high-moral compass  ,  book smart  ,  kind  ,  energetic  ,  optimistic  , loyal (  most of the time  ) ,  respectful  ,   well-rounded  ,  level-headed  , ambitious  ,  debonair  ,  life of the paty  .

NEG   :  compulsive  ,  easily-influenced  ,  dimwitted  , hypersexualized  ,  problematic  ,  addictive  , rebellious  ,  bemused  ,  defensive  ,  clingy  ,  hopeless-romatic  ,  overly-competitive  ,  envious .

INSP  : nate archibald  (  gossip girl  )  

//   »    PAST      :

          warner   was  born  &  raised  in  the  city  that  never sleeps  and    is  the  product  of  evangeline   moretti-vandergeld  , an   intelligent   american-italian  socialite  turned   environmental   politician  ,   and  captain  william   vandergeld  ,  a  former   navy   captain  ,   and  now   a   shareholder   in   some   boring   fortune   500   company   that   allowed   his   wife   and   son   to   live   an   affluent  ,   and   privileged   life  . his   mother  however  ,   was   the   real deal  ,   often   using   their   sum   of   wealth   to   donate   to   multiple   charities  ,  organizations  , etc, she was  dedicated  to  keeping  new  york  city  (  and  all  who  lived there  )  clean  and  safe   , and  she instilled  those  same  values  onto  her  son.

          some people are born lucky  ,  and others  ,  lucky  to  be  born  .   warner  was  the  first  option  .  his childhood  was  nothing  short  of  happiness  ,  and  happiest  days  were  with  his  mother  ,  for  as  long  as he  could  remember  ,  any happy  moment  in  his childhood  was  faded  right  into  her.

          things  took  a  drastic  change  his freshman  year  of  (  private  obvy lmao  )  high-school   .   warner’s  mother  was  diagnosed  with  breast  cancer  ,  and  little  to  his  knowledge  ,  it wasn’t  looking  pretty  from  the  start  .  she was  frequently  in  and  out  of the hospital  for  a  few  months  at  a  time  and  it  was  not  looking  good  on  any  fronts  .  one  day  when  she  went  to  the  hospital  it seemed  like  she  never  left  ,  maybe  she  didn’t  ,  those  days  were  a blur  for  warner  to  be  honest  .  watching  his  mother  lose  life  , every  single  day  was  not  a task  he  was  up  for  .

          by  then  it  was  just  warner  and  his  father  ,  they  were  all  they  had  in  the big  city  . (  when  he  wasn’t  always  away  on business  )  warner  grew  up  in   that  big  luxy  town  house  all  by  himself  ,  with  the  company  of  loyal  maids  ,  chefs  ,   and  nannies  of course  .  but  in  high  school  , the  more  he  really submerged  himself  into  it  ,  it  was  a  crazy  world  &  he  loved  it  .  whilst  getting  demands  from  his  father  in  tokyo  to  attend  those  boring  sailing  classes  ,  warner  instead  headed  out  to  their  beach  house  in  the  hamptons  for  an  early  20  rager  .

       warner  undoubtedly knew  the  power  he  possessed  ,   big  man  on  campus  type  &  it felt  good  , until  about towards  the  end  of his  junior  year  he  was  honestly  all   partied   out  ,  but  of  course reputation  is   everything  ,  in  order  to  keep  up  thats  when  he  picked  up  the   real  ugly  habits  ,  that  were  of  course  fun  .  smoking  numerous  amounts  of  marijuana  ,  various  girls  in  -  and  -  out  every other  day  was  a  feeling  like  no  other  ,   he  knew  it  was  wrong  ,  he  knew  his  mom  would  be  ashamed  ,  him  doing  all these  things  and  not carrying  on  her  legacy  in  some  way .  but  he  couldn’t  help  himself  in a  all  honesty   ,   and   no  doubt  some  of  that  transitioned  over  in  college .

//   »    AES   :

          lost weekends partying  ,  chicken  wings  &  french  fries  ,  air  jordan  1′s  ,  gucci  guilty  cologne  ,  friday  night  lights  ,  clouds  of  smoke  &  red  eyes  ,  diamond  encrusted  jewelry  glistening  under  bright  lights  in  a  dark  room  ,  nike  sweatsuits  ,  game  winning  moves  ,  new  york  city  at  night  ,  hamptons  in  the  summer  ,  spring  break  in  miami  ,  impulsive decisions  .

//   »    TL;DR   :

(  and  some  stuff  i  probably  missed  oops  )  warner  is  a  conflicted  mama’s   boy  who  knows  half  the  shit  he does  is  wrong  but  can’t  stop  .  after  his  mothers passing  he had  an absent father  who seemed  to  always  be  away  on  business  ,  only  in  town  for  a  month  or  two  ,  missing  his sons’ multiple  feats   to  keep  himself  distracted  from  the  fact  that  his  wife  was  no  longer  with  them. created  immense daddy  issues  for  warner  ,  especially  since  he  was  a  standout  football  star  &  2x   stage  champ in  high  school  ,  and is  currently  playing  collegiality  for  the  irish ,  with  dreams  of  making  it  in  the  nfl  cause  screw  his  dad  he  don’t  wanna  go   2  the  navy   ,   or  work  for  dat  company # not  gonna  happen .  warner  took  great  advantage  of  wealth  &  his  fathers  absence  ,  but  he’s  lowkey  partied  out  in  college  ,  or  so  he likes  to  say  but  he fakes  it ‘till  he  makes  it bc  he  doesn’t  his  brothers  to think  he’s  lame . HE’S  LIVING  FOR  EVERYBODY  BUT  HIM  BASICALLY .

//   »    HEADCANONS    :

warner  is  on  a  football  scholarship  majoring  in  environmental  science  bc  although  he  most  likely  won’t  do  shit  w/  da  degree its  for  mommy  .

he can EASILY  be  manipulated  or  taken  advantage  of  ,  he’s  book  smart  but lowkey  dumber  than  a  fucking  box  of  rocks 

immastonerbyyoungthug.mp3  .  occasionally ,  but  ,  more  so  than  that  ?  he  always  manages  to  flush  out  his  system  in  time  if  needed  be  ,  but  he  loves  2  roll  up  #  stress relief 

a  BEAST  on  that  field  (  student  athlete  meme  here  )

has  all  the  canon  gray  tattoos  bc  fuck  what  dad  thinks  .  he  wears  a solid  16 inch gold  chain  ,  and  another  of  the same  length with  his  moms’  name  on  it  , never  fucking  takes  it  off  ,  showers  with  it  cause  he  can  .

ok  ........  he  rich  ,  but  like  not  i  can  do  whatever  i  want  rich  ???  he  may  not  ever  have  to  work  a  day  in  his   life  ,  but  he  don’t  got  the pull  u  think  he  does  w/  his  dumb  ass  u  probably  couldn’t  even  tell  he’s  got  money  with  his  minimalist  fashion  sense  .

he  has  a  higher  moral  compass  than  most  of  his  frat  bros  ,  but  the  stupid  shit  he does  ,  u most  likely  won’t  even  be  able  to tell  ,  he’s  definitely  a  serial  romeo  and  a  heartbreaker  ,  one  compliment  ?  he’s  ready  to  drop  his  pants  &  fall  in  love  w/   u  .

HE DUMB  ,  but  like  he  can  talk  his  way  into  &  out  of  anything  ,  most  of  the  time  ,  batting  those  big  brown  eyes  &  a  million  dollar  smile  has  saved  his  ass  on  multiple  occasions  .

//   »    WANTED CONNECTIONS   :

EX-GIRLFRIEND :  i’m  thinking  his  first  &  only  “  serious  “  relationship  while  in  college  .  were  going  pretty  steady  until  he  cheated  on  her  (  hmm wc  on  who  he  cheated  on  her w/ ??  ) ,  she  never  found  out  but  that  guilt  ate warner TF UP  so  he  cut  things  off  with  her  via  text  message  and blocked  her  number  ,  ignores  her  any  chance  he  gets  ‘till  this  day  ,  cause  he  doesn’t  have  any  balls  and  cannot  face  his  fears  .

FRAT BROS  : lowkey  what  i’m  MOST  excited  for  asdfgh  like  whoever  is  in  beta  lambada mu  hit  me  the  fuck UP so  we  can  discuss  dynamics  ,  roomates  ,  allat  .

FOOTBALL TEAM  : same  for  above  ,  he’s  lowkey  cocky  &  got  sly  comments  when  he’s  on  the  field  ,  he constantly  humbles  himself  but  can’t  helps  it  ,  he is  hot  shit  and  he  knows  it  , how does  his  team  feel  ab  that  ??  w/  his  defensive  ass  !

GOOD-LUCK CHARM  :  prolly  a  girl  (  bonus  points  if  a  cheerleader  ???  im  not  picky  tho  i promise  if  ur  muse  don’t  shake  poms  idc  )  it  happened  out  the  blue  ,  they  screamed  his  name  while  the  team  was  walking  out  for  a  game  ,  and  she  called  that  he’d  get  3  td’s  and  thats  exactly  what  he  did  now  they  joke  ab  it  and  shit  (  maybe  a  goodluck  kiss b4  games  bc  its  warner lolol  ) idk  i  came  up  wit  it  on the  spot but  i love  it.

//   »    MISC   :

i’m a dumbass  &  this  got  way  longer  than  i  expected  but  if  u  made  it   all  the  way  thru  ily . 

[iliketowrite1996]

Blind Dates part 1 sneak peek

Sneak Peek Part 5/10 of Steve Rogers x Reader saga.

Part 1:https://iliketowrite1996.tumblr.com/post/614617294578089984/his-best-girl

Part 2: https://iliketowrite1996.tumblr.com/post/614969499334197248/meet-the-music-teacher

Part 3: https://iliketowrite1996.tumblr.com/post/616114724817584128/lunch-buddies

Part 4:https://iliketowrite1996.tumblr.com/post/616328582794493952/why-not

TRIGGER WARNINGS AND THEMES- Blind dates, mentions of loved ones dying, angst, mention of death of parent

   ���’No, DeShawn. You are not going to see any robot butlers.’’

   ‘’But he is Tony Stark. He should have robot butlers!’’

   Steve sighs and shakes his head good naturedly as he and the children wait for Pepper or Tony to come open the door.

   It’s Saturday evening, around 5 o’clock, and Steve, Jasmine and DeShawn have arrived at Tony Stark’s place or dinner while Deshawn’s mother goes on her date.

   ‘’Well, now that you mention it, I do have the blueprints for one of those in my lab.’’

   The trio turn to see none other than Tony himself behind them, carrying a bag of groceries, with Peter Parker trailing behind him.

   ‘’Y-you’re Tony Stark,’’ DeShawn gapes.

   Steve and Jasmine exchange a look and a smirk, knowing that DeShawn is meeting one of his personal heroes.

   ‘’Tony, good to see you. This is DeShawn. He’s spending the day with us while his mom goes on her date,’’ Steve explains as Tony shifts the bag to shake DeShawn’s hand.

   ‘’It’s nice to meet you, DeShawn. This is my intern, Peter Parker,’’ Tony introduces the teenage boy, who waves.

   ‘’Nice to meet you, DeShawn. Mr. Rogers, Jazzy, always good to see you. Jasmine, you’re wearing the new sweater you told me about.’’

   ‘’Mhm!,’’ Jasmine beams, examining the red and blue knit sweater beneath ehr open jacket.

   ‘’Awesome, we almost match,’’ Peter points to his red and blue sweatshirt.

   ‘’Oh,’’ DeShawn narrows his eyes a bit, ‘’So you’re Peter.’’

   ‘’Yes, Peter is my tutor,’’ Jasmine looks at DeShawn pointedly, silently reminding him about his agreement not to spoil the fact that she has a crush on Peter.

   As if Peter doesn’t already know.

   ‘’I hope you don’t mind the extra house guest,’’ Steve speaks up as Tony moves past them to get to his door, unlocking it.

   ‘’Not at all. Pepper’s on her way. And we’ll get dinner started then. I just had to run to the store, and Peter tagged along. Besides, my goddaughter will be joining us,’’ Tony insists as they enter the house.

   ‘’Ah, so this was your plan to set me up.’’

   ‘’Can’t set you up if it’s just a friendly dinner gathering,’’ Tony shrugs, the others following him to the kitchen, ‘’Jazzy and DeShawn, would you mind setting the table? Peter, can you go get the sodas out of the garage?’’

   ‘’Sure thing, Mr. Stark,’’ Peter shrugs, taking the key to unlock the garage.

   ‘’Okay, Uncle Tony. Come on, DeShawn, I’ll show you where the silverware and plates are.’’

   When Tony and Steve are left alone, Steve turns to Tony.

   ‘’You could have confirmed that she’ll be here tonight.’’

   ‘’I told you she was. You're just getting nervous. Suck it up, buttercup.’’

   ‘’Now you know who you sound like,’’ Steve chuckles,fondly removing Petra’s catch phrase.

   ‘’I know,’’ Tony grins gently, ‘’Listen. Are you really okay with me setting you up? Because if not, we can always-’’

   ‘’No, no. I’m fine. I...  I’m ready to try again. My date Thursday was awful, but that doesn’t mean that this should be, too. Jazzy understands. I actually think she’s more for me dating than I even am. But she’s a prime factor in this, you know?’’

   ‘’I understand. Listen, Sharon is great with kids. I really think you’ll like her.’’

   ‘’I don’t make promises, but I’ll try. For Jazzy’s sake at least.’’

   And Steve Rogers is a man of his word.

   ‘’Good. Now, let’s say we get dinner started so we actually don’t have to wait an hour after they get here to eat.’’

   ‘’That should be Pepper and Sharon now. She picked her up from work today,’’ Tony speaks as he places the last of the dinner on the table.

   It’s quite a spread- spaghetti and meatballs (with vegetarian sauce for DeShawn), garlic bread, salad. Wine for the adults, soda for the kids, water for everybody.

   ‘’Can I get the door, Uncle Tony,’’ Jasmine questions, springing to the front door when he nods.

   From where they are, Steve can hear her scream, ‘’Hi, Auntie Pepper!.’’

   ‘’Hey, honey! Where’s everybody at?’’

   ‘’In the dining room. DeShawn is here. It’s gonna freak him out seeing you outside of school, ‘’ Jasmine says, causing Steve, Tony and Peter to laugh as DeShawn face palms.

   ‘’Every day,’’ he sighs, shaking his head, reminding Steve of Bucky’s reactions to him when they were kids.

   Speaking of which, Jasmine’s been begging to see her uncle and aunt. He really should set up a day.

   ‘’Hello, everyone,’’ Pepper enters, ‘’Sharon’s taking off her shoes.’’

   ‘’Tell her she doesn’t have to do that,’’ Tony rolls his eyes, ‘’Nobody else does.’’

   ‘’Now, Tony. You know Aunt Peggy literally taught both of us better than that.’’

   Steve looks away from where DeShawn and Jasmine are thumb wrestling over who gets to have the biggest slice of cake to see a very familiar face.

   ‘’Hey you live across the hall from us,’’ he grins, glad to the woman who helped get into his apartment while he carried his sleeping daughter. 

   ‘’You two know each other’’ Tony states.

   ‘’We do. Well, we met very briefly. He lives across the hall from me,’’ Sharon looks to Steve, ‘’It’s nice to meet you.’’

   ‘’Well, ten, introduce yourselves,’’ Tony gently nudges Steve towards the woman, who sticks out her hand as the other guests take their seats.

   ‘’I’m Sharon Carter.’’

   ‘’Steve Rogers,’’ Steve nods towards his daughter, ‘’That’s Jasmine Allen-Rogers, my daughter. And her best friend DeShawn.’’

   ‘’Hello. Peter, always a pleasure to see you,’’ Sharon sits across from Steve and Jasmine.

   After hands are washed , prayers are said and drinks are poured, dinner conversation flows freely. Jasmine talks to Peter and DeShawn, Tony and Pepper converse amongst themselves, so Sharon and Steve are left speaking to each other.

   ‘’So, what do you do exactly,’’ Steve questions, handing her the bread basket.

   ‘’I’m a nurse,’’ Sharon informs him before thanking him, ‘’For the last seven years, eight in December. Tony tells me you’re a teacher.’’

   ‘’Yes, for over ten years now,’’ Steve speaks up, beginning to twirl some pasta on his fork, ‘’I started there about a year before Jazzy was born.’’

   ‘’And it is so nice to meet the infamous Jazzy,’’ Sharon grins brightly at the ten-year-old, ‘’Tony talks about you a lot.’’

   ‘’Uncle Tony says I’m his favorite ten-year-old,’’ Jasmine smiles.

   ‘’Tony says that you are very, very smart,’’ Sharon supplies, causing Steve to beam with pride as Jasmine thanks both Tony and Sharon.

   ‘’So you had to work today,’’ Steve questions, ‘’I mean, you obviously did. I guess I’m asking how work went.’’

   ‘’Well, I work as a nurse, so… there’s never a boring day. I imagine that I can say the same for you as a teacher?’’

   ‘’You could,’’ Steve agrees wholeheartedly, ‘’There never is a dull moment. What made you decide to become a nurse?’’

   Dinner continues with pleasant conversation and laughter. As dessert is being cut by Pepper, Sharon and Steve clear the table.

   ‘’Your daughter is beautiful. So smart and funny, too,’’ Sharon tells Steve as they place the dinner dishes in Tony’s sink.

   ‘’Thank you so much, I appreciate it.’’

   ‘’Is DeShawn your son?’’

   ‘’’Oh, no, but his mother is a good friend of mine. I’m watching DeShawn while his mother is out for the evening,’’ Steve runs hot water to make dish water, ‘’Normally Jazzy would still be with her aunt- she spends the night over there on Friday’s and comes back on Saturday. But I have her today because, well, she wasn’t going to miss a chance to see Peter. And she just really wanted to spend time with me.’’

   ‘’You seem like a good dad,’’ Sharon nods understandingly, ‘’It’s clear that you two adore each other.’’

   ‘’She’s the apple of my eye,’’ Steve runs a hand over his head, ‘’And... you now , being her only parent…’’

   ‘’Tony told me about your wife. If you ever need to talk, we can,’’  Sharon gently touches Steve’s hand, ‘’Listen, I know what Tony is trying to do. I don't want you to feel pressured. I know that you think about Jasmine first.’’

   Sharon is the first woman that has encouraged putting Jasmine first, and encourages him to do so. She’s smart, she’s kind, she’s beautiful.

   And maybe that’s why Steve finds himself driving DeShawn and Jasmine back to his apartment with a smile on his face, excited for his date with Ms. Sharon Carter next Friday.

   The next week comes, and everything goes normally. Steve makes sure that Jasmine practices for the fall concert next week, and Peter comes to tutor her on Monday and Wednesday. She gets a D on her next math test, and it's a small improvement, but Steve knows she’ll do better.

   He continues to spend time with you, balancing a friendly work relationship while also trying to choke back his ever-growing attraction to you.

   Friday, Steve finds himself closing the door to his car that he oh so rarely uses, going around to the other side so that he can drive to the restatuent.

   ‘’You look beautiful,’’ Steve tells her, glancing sideways at the long sleeved, black dress that Sharon’s waiting for in the evening.

   ‘’Thank you. You look very handsome,’’ Sharon chuckles, ‘’Stop being so generous, Steve.’’

   ‘’I just haven’t been on a date in a while that hasn’t had me regretting agreeing within the first fifteen minutes..’’

   ‘’Well, it’s only been about 9 and a half ,itunes, so let’s just see where this night takes us.’’

   Steve laughs- genuinely laughs- at this, and, for the first time, he’s not so worried about what will happen next.

   The two arrive at the restaurant, and it’s nice. Steve got the recommendation for Tony, who is friends with the chef. Now that they’re sitting at the table, Steve is lookingat the prices…

   And he’s ever so grateful for the $20 that he knows Tony tried to surreptitiously slip into his wallet last weekend.

   ‘’So, how was your week,’’ Sharon ask later after they’ve ordered and their water is being delivered, ‘’Thank you.’’

   ‘’Thank you. Uh, it went well. I mean, Jasmine’s not allowed to go to glee practice until she brings her grades up. And that’s harsh, I guess, but grades are more important and it will motivate her, I hope.’’

   ‘’She might not appreciate it now, but she will one day. My parents were hard  on me,and look how well I turn out,’’ Sharon exaggeratedly flips her hair.

   ‘’You are pretty great,’’ Steve takes her hand, squeezing gently, ‘’I am so glad that you agreed to go out with me this evening.’’

   ‘’How could I say ‘no’ to those eyes,’’ Sharon smirks, watching Steve’s face turn pink.

   ‘’Don’t do that.’’

   ‘’Why? It’s cute,’’ Sharon shrugs, and teve laughs nervously.

   ‘’Sorry. I’m trying here,’’Steve fixes huis collar, ‘’I haven’t really liked someone this much in a while.’’

   Well, okay, that’s a lie. But, as you made it clear in your conversation this week, you're busy.

   And why chase after something with you that doesn’t exist?

   ‘’And you’re doing well.  Just relax, Steve. It’s fine,’’ Sharon gently takes his hand once more, rubbing her thumb along the back of it.

   Steve does this, too…

   Even if only for a minute, Steve relaxes and allows himself to enjoy his date.

   But it’s the first time that he’s done that in over ten years.

   And maybe it’s just what he needs.

   ‘’I had a great time tonight, Steve,’’ Sharon remarks as she leans against her doorway.

   ‘’I did, too. Would you… Do you want to maybe go out next Friday?’’

   ‘’I would, but my friend asked me to go with him to the Fireman’s Ball. Saturday?’’

   ‘’Jazzy’s recital is then and I promised I’d take her out to eat afterwards. Sunday?’’

   ‘’I work a double shift. Listen… I usually go to my aunt Peggy’s for Sunday dinner but she’s visiting her grandkids. How about you and Jasmine come over for dinner?’’

   ‘’I think he’d like that. Sounds like a plan. Well, good night,’’ Steve offers a hand for her to shake.

   ‘’Good night, Steve,’’ sharon smiles a bit disappointedly, half expecting a goodnight kiss.

   ‘’Sharon, is it alright if I kiss you?’’

   So Steve leans in, Sharon’s eyes close, and…

   He kisses her on the cheek.

   And he doesn't know why, because He had every intention of kissing her on the lips. But he didn’t.

   ‘’I’m sorry, I-’’

   ‘’Don’t apologize, Steve. We can… if you decide that you’re interested, let’s take it slow. But for now, we can be just friends.’’

   ‘’Just friends. Thank you. Oh, uh, a better get into my apartment. Jazzy’s plans for the weekend fell through so I had to find a babysitter. I’ll see you on Sunday for dinner.’’

   ‘’See you Sunday, Steve. Good night.’’

   ‘’Good night.’’

   And, after calling to check on Jasmine, changing into pajamas, grading some art, brushing his teeth and heading to bed…

   Steve decides that it is.

@ashanti-notthesinger @destinio1 @afraiddreamingandloving @airis-paris14 @syreanne @chaneajoyyy @90sinspiredgirl @shemiahsmelanin @zillmonger @skysynclair19 @marvelpotterlove @constantlycravingtheunknown @imaginewhoever @wakanda-inspired @pocmarvelworks @theunsweetenedtruth @dreampovx @adrioola21 @supremethunda @thisiskayesworld @mcusocialimagines @priya212  @kumkaniudaku  @airis-paris14 @alexundefined @fonville-designs  @dramaqueenamby  @mellowjellow6 @oceanscorazon @nerd-lovely @fonville-designs @akimi-youngblood @yoyolovesbucky @fd-writes @areubeingserved-too @areubeingserved

[wheelthefridge]

in honor of last night having been my last ever shift dishwashing at the same restaurant i’ve been at for the past four years here’s an absurdly long list of random chaotic moments that literally no one asked for that i’ve been compiling since day one:

bj, with a half full gallon of orange juice: this expired two months ago. *pours down drain* that was a long time ago

sam: YOU! I HAVE A BONE TO PICK WITH YOU!! *carries on normally with no explanation* bj: smack that! that too! smack those vegetables! punch that burger in the nose! chop that bun! bob: no, flick the bun. you have to flick it. 

*bad and boujee playing* bj: walks into kitchen, singing bj: you better know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away, know when to run bj: walks out of kitchen, still singing

me: hey can you put the wet floor sign out for me dylan: sure dylan: *slips while putting the sign out* me:

sam: get this- i haven’t smoked pot in like three days and my brain is ready to roll! yeah!

joe: ha! oldest trick in the book i just started writing 

dude @bar: ten percent of people are over 6'1" other dude: what about 6'2"  dude 1: what? no. ten percent of people are OVER 6'1" - so that includes 6'2" dude 2: idk I know a lot of tall guys. taller than me dude 1: what? i’m saying- just- ten percent of everyone in the whole world- you know how many people there are in the world? 7 billion– dude 2: i thought it was six billion  dude 1: no, 7 billion- ten percent of 7 billion—

joe, digging through the trash: i’m just gonna peruse through here,, aaaaannnd….. nope not here me: what’re u looking for Joe: …..a book

didi: is eating a pistachio  katherine: is that sour cream

sam: some dirty whorebag wants two pickles 

joe: sam she am. that’s right. dr seuss wrote a book about her 

katherine: oh my goddd this song is always on i’m so tired of it joe: is it? i don’t think i’ve heard it before carolyn: eh it’s all just one long brazilian song to me

katherine: look at my straw i put it in the pencil sharpener 

sam: i’m on crack cocaine. you heard it here

sam, aggressively putting silverware in the tray: just the way the cookie crumbles me: yeah? sam, fake crying: yes

adele: if you’re ready- sam: what if I’m not bob: too bad. she only cares if she’s ready

something: *breaks* sam: time for the mop. and by mop i mean… this thing *holds up dustpan*

mike: you should go on junior master chef…. and only make fries 

sam, quietly as she speedwalks by me: panic panic panic panic panic panic panic panic

sam, beginning of the night: my goal is to make at least forty bucks tonight. hopefully sixty sam, later that night: i’ve made five dollars

sam, pouring a drink into the trash right next to the sink: you know, im not sure why i poured that in the trash. i’ve had a very off day

katherine, after accidentally spraying salsa on herself: i just sprayed salsa all over myself bj: i feel like that too sometimes. i love salsa so much

sam: can you imagine if i did like hardcore drugs how messed up i would be- i’m messed up soberly

someone: what’re you supposed to feed twenty kids  kerry: pizza bj: vodka 

sam: will you let bob know there’s gonna be seven in the snug bj: seven in the snug? that’s my band name. we’re really good

edson: *spins cover on counter and stares at it for solid thirty seconds before putting his finger down to stop it* edson: good. 

sam: what should i draw bj: you should draw casey, hanging from a cliff, with a pterodactyl flying towards them who is on fire, but, seems optimistic about it 

bj: life is too short for low fat cheese. remember that. 

sam, beginning of night, in a really good mood: guess what i’m drunk and high right now  sam, later that night: i was just pouring a beer and i dropped it. like my hand just let go of it sam, end of night: i’m never doing this again 

joe: you know who didn’t clock out yet?? i have two thumbs! joe: ……wait joe: you know who has two thumbs and hasn’t clocked out yet?? this guy!! me: there ya go buddy

bob: i’ve slept fifteen hours in the past four days me: that’s not good bob: yeah

edson: look edson: *holds out hand with top spinning in his palm* *giggles*

sam: i cannot wait for this day to be over  me: it’s barely started  sam: i took a shot before i got here. i have more in my car

bob: hi sam sam: hi bob  didi: hi sam sam: fuck off

joe: her? oh yeah her name is sarah whitaker  katherine: oh i think i know her joe: that’s funny because i just made that up. i’m willing to bet money that she’s nineteen tho me: why joe: bc i overheard her say that she’s nineteen

joe: i’m gonna send you a video but you can’t watch it now it’s needs full attention with headphones and the lights off 

bj: if you lose your hand, don’t replace it with a fork. that would be a bad choice. i know it’s probably the cheapest option, right up there with stick, but just spend the money. 

bj, on a different day: i think if you were to get your hands cut off, getting them replaced with plates would be a very bad idea. you can dig. and you can toss. but that’s about it. no playing the saxophone.  

colby: *doesn’t show up to work* bj: maybe i should leave him a message of just me crying 

katherine: i think an old man just asked me to live with him

sam: wait *pulls celery strings out of her mouth* that just came out of my throat

bob: i’m such a grump tonight. i’m in a good mood i’m just so grumpy.  bob: maybe i’m not in a good mood…

bj, after sending christa downstairs to get liquor for the bar: i put a live cobra down there too so… if she comes back with it dead in her hands…. she’s a champ. and that’s that. 

bj: i had a dog today did you have a dog? me: no bj: oh. well. 

dylan, holding phone camera at joe: hey joe can you pull ur shirt down joe, pulling the collar of his shirt halfway down his chest: yeah like this? dylan, taking picture: yeah thanks 

bj: HI-YAH carley: you’re a ninja!! bj: yes. don’t be alarmed. i only use my powers for good. 

bj, with one bottle in each hand, pouring water in the sink, mimicking cow milking motions: it’s like a cow. mooooooeeeeeeuuuuuhhhhhhgggg aaaaaauuuuuueuejhshhsii. that’s what cows sound like right?

bj: we have a dog, and we’re getting chickens. i’m not really sure why were getting chickens. do i consider myself a farmer? not really. 

bj: we should make a youtube channel of just me saying really random things to you and you not responding to me whatsoever me: mhmm

nancy: I’m sleeping

sam: *pours drink out on counter next to sink* sam: wHAT the FuCK was that!? why did i do that?? i’ve lost it! i’ve hit rock bottom!!

sam: *bends over* ughhhhhhhhhhhhh *straightens up* ok i’m fine

bj: yum! that’s how i rate the soup. two yums up!! *laughs for like a full minute*

sam: i got my motorcycle license over the weekend and now all everyone’s saying to me is “no don’t get a motorcycle they’re so dangerous” like shut the fuck up if i die i die it’s my choice 

bj: i think if i were to be turned into some kind of commercial type of food, if i got turned into a nugget, i think i’d be indignant. i’ve lived my whole life and now i’m a nugget??? “oh i was a great roasted-“ i was a nugget. i was eaten with fries out of a box with a small soda. 

bj: hello everybody. i have arrived. please remain calm.  bob: *screams*

radio: the fastest lawn mower in the world goes up to 150 miles per hour! bob: …….why??

sam: i just meowed in scotty’s face and he was completely unfazed by it. like a full on Meow. 

bob: lemme just touch these live wires with my wet hands  bj: bob has gone offline

katherine: i totally forgot to put their order in for i don’t even know how long me: ……..i’m sure it’ll be fine katherine: i mean, nothing matters, right? right. nothing matters. 

bj: hey did you guys hear that kate: yeah what was that bj: oh i was just yelling……….. about the soup kate: me: katherine: bj: i’ll try to keep it down next time

bob: you sleep a lot when you’re old. it’s just practice for death. getting ready for The Big Sleep. let’s see how do i wanna go out? on my back?? nah not for me. on my front babey! 

didi: hi sam sam: SHUT UP didi, quieter: okay…… sam: i love you  didi: no bj: so you’re a grownup now. that’s means you have to do grown up things, like, pay for dinner and stuff? me: uh huh bj: it’s all downhill from here 

bj: pon pon the van poco. right? me: mhmm bj: probably. i mean. i’m no doctor, but

random woman @ bar: we are the matrix. We. Are. The Matrix. 

bj, to the tune of frosty the snowman: clunkity clunk clunk clunkity clunk clunk look at all this stuff. clunkity clunk clunk clunkity clunk clunk making casey’s job tough! pretty good right?? i just made it up 

bj: *walks into kitchen* YES! that’s all i have to say. that’s it. BOBS killing it. DIDIS killing it. casey MURDERED it. you’re welcome. *walks out of kitchen* bj: today is the second day in a row my dog has eaten my lunch. yesterday and then today. it’s my own fault really bob: well you know what they say about men who like floppy french fries. *doesn’t elaborate*

sam: there’s a toy baby in my section. like just a toy baby taking up a seat in my section. what do i do like do i move the bitch? do i leave her there??

bob, talking to himself: if you get sick tomorrow, just remember. it’s your own fault for eating food off the floor. 

bob, to katherine: no, you don’t have to mop the carpet

bj: cheeeesy. 

laura: if i get through tonight without a heart attack it’ll be incredible. if i do have a heart attack tho just let me go

caldo: *unintelligible yelling* SELLING my BODY for SEX *more unintelligible yelling*

bob: my fathers brother sent all his kids to australia. i guess he figured at least one of them would make it

caldo: i don’t trust people who go out to eat tuna fish

bob: can you make some more guacamole soon we’re running low laura: pulls five (5) avocados from her pockets 

bob: he looks like jesus. well. he looks like what white people think jesus looked like

sam: yeah. Please. eat some more mother Fucking crackers. 

bj: i feel like i gave birth to the eggplant stacks tonight. and honestly? if my child looked like that? i’d be proud. proud to have an eggplant child

bj: alright everybody let’s get the fuf out of here!! i said fuf not f- it’s safe. f u f starts and ends with soft letters no one gets hurt. any word that starts with a soft letter and ends with a hard letter is bad news… i feel like every time i come in here i annoy you guys. casey’s one dumbass comment away from killing me. “hey so what are your thoughts on grass?” “that’s it” *mimics shooting a gun*

ilia: -and the dogs gonna get diabetes- katherine, indignantly: i cleaned it really well!

mickey: i’ll tell you one thing. crack is good. 

sam: some lady just rolled up to the bar, no bra, nipples beamin through the shirt- LETS GET IT!!!!

caldo: *speed walks into kitchen and shotguns a beer over the trash* ok i’m back. i should not have smoked this morning

dom: little kid just picked up a knife and went “oh cool i can stab someone” me, katherine, and sam in unison: good dom: yeah the dad took it away 

sam: my friend was like “why is your go to dance move just to snap” and i was like “i don’t know, i’m white” *shrugs*

bj: someone just asked me if i’m having fun. am i having fun? i don’t know if i’m having fun. there are certainly other things i’d rather be doing right now, but i don’t know if i can definitively say that i’m Not having fun. 

bj: some jobs require Only a ladle bj, thirty seconds later, after walking away and coming back: sometimes, also a funnel

bj, @ laura who’s eating cornbread: you cornbread eating chef!!!  laura: bj: laura: bj: i’m just saying facts in a weird way. you know like you’re in trouble. 

sam: *war cry* *spits out gum* *walks away*

bj: what kind of smoothie? Soup Smoothie!!

katherine: so this woman ordered some hot water so i gave it to her and her husband says you know what that’s for right and i’m like ….to drink? and he says nope! and doesn’t explain so i’m just like ………..okay! and walk away bc i don’t even want to know 

bj: there’s no shame in it! A Grown Man Can Bathe In Yogurt!!!

bj, leaning down very close to to-go box: i love you

bob: anyone want a drink? brian: whatever’s your strongest bob: milk it is

guy at bar: sUE HIM?!?!??? oh i’d sue him yeah

sam: who orders something extra cold?? like, you need to Die now thanks. 

sam: do you dare me to drink this buffalo sauce me: yes laura, walking by: snort it

sam: one more day. just one more day laura: of what sam: waking up

bob: *is trying to explain easter to jewish laura* laura: wait so he died… then he came back to life?? then he died Again??? bob: he died. then he came back just to tell people he was alive. then he said SEE YA and ascended to heaven

sam: i HATE margaritas. i don’t know why i just made myself one. 

bob: wow. i have this overpowering urge to just go home. 

bj, putting back a slotted spoon: this is a bad choice for dressing. a bad choice. 

me: *catches a plate about to fall* bj: woah! smooth moves!! spider-man? maybe. 

danny: so you know how at my other job everyone calls me daddy?

sam: *dumps out two full wine glasses* i fucked up. tell no one. 

me: remember when we used to be able to leave early? bob: no. i think we imagined it. 

danny: i didn’t realize we served DICK here -a few min later- danny: sorry i just got out of work and i’m all fired up

sam: my moms drunk and she won’t go home

bob: hey wasn’t that slang for mari- bj: cocaine. 

bj: *kicks kitchen door open* YEE-HAW!!!!

danny: sorry casey  me: what for  danny: for having to deal with me me: yeah *shrugs* danny: they should pay you more me: yeah

didi: i kill you ilia: do it now didi: no ilia: do it i wanna die

danny, about a burger: we’ve got ourselves a squirter!!

sam: is that a chicken patty  sydney: it’s my dog

sam, on my last night with her: lets get casey TRASHED tonight

sam: are you gonna go dancing in new york didi: yes laura: whore it up

[gipsytrips]

Las Terrenas, Samana Peninsula, Dominican Republic. 01-2019.

It’s time to write about the place I liked the most in Dominican Republic. In the end of December already nine month old Thaissia and I moved from Kite Beach, Cabarete to the town called Las Terrenas on Samana Peninsula. We moved there in comfort as we managed to rent a car together with a couple of friends from Cabarete. Guys were going to celebrate Christmas with their friends in Las Terrenas, we joined them and were even able to take our car seat with us. It’s not too far, three hour drive, distance is 155 km. Through friends I found an excellent place to stay in Las Terrenas. So, for five weeks we rented a cosy house in Villa Sonrisa Casa de Huespedes, three minutes walk from an amazing beach called Las Ballenas. The owners of Sonrisa is a wonderful Russian family (Vladislav, Valentina and their three kids). My daughter was very excited to meet them all. I would like to thank them for these incredible five weeks that we have spent there!

Our friends from Cabarete were staying in Las Terrenas for three days, and we took a couple of day trips to beautiful places in the area with them. The day after our arrival we went to Coson beach, which is about 10 km away from town. This beach was already very different from the ones we saw over in Cabarete, Punta Rucia and Monte Cristi. Here in Samana beaches have a lot more palm trees and therefore more shade. On Christmas day we went to the opposite side of the peninsula, to visit another beautiful beach called Playa Rincon. It took us around two hours to get there (75 km) via hilly winding picturesque road and it was definitely worth it. I think it was the most beautiful beach I have seen in Dominican Republic – 2.5 km of white sand and all kinds of sea colours backed by forested hills and no village or town near by. One other beach we saw near Las Terrenas was Playa Bonita.

As we came back to our cosy house in Las Terrenas, Thaissia and I started to make ourselves at home. It was so nice and comfortable in the house that I even got desire to cook breakfasts and mini lunches there (salads with ricotta, mozzarella and goat cheese). Every morning on our spacious kitchen me and my little one were enjoying fresh fruit and porridges, French bread and chocolate tea. Chocolate tea, by the way, I have discovered in Dominican Republic. It is cacao husk that you can brew just like regular tea. So tasty! Further on our day would unfold like that: after breakfast we would take a shower, play a bit at home, put sunscreen on and go to the beach with a stop for croissants in French bakery Panam in Plaza Colonial. There are lots of French permanently residing in Las Terrenas, so we had no problems finding fresh croissants, bread, cheeses and chocolate mousse.

Little note about local transport. In Las Terrenas me and my little one completely relaxed and started living more or less like locals, so we were taking moto taxis (motoconcho) couple times a day. Usually we would just go back and forth from Playa Las Ballenas over to town to the bakery during the day and then for dinner in the evening (about 1.5 km one way). The ride costs 50 peso or 1 USD. Also once a week we would take motoconcho over to the French supermarket called Lindo. It’s great that there are those moto taxi in DR as they were saving my energy for long beach walks. But after all those adventures I have no idea how can I make my baby go back to traveling all strapped in and attached in a car seat in California, Europe and Russia… In Dominican Republic Thaissia got to know the world in a different way, simple and free. For example our car seat in DR served us just as a baby gym in the bathroom…

Every day we bathed in the ocean on our “home” beach Las Ballenas. A week later we already knew all the surroundings and people, would say hello to everybody, and Thaissia would of course smile non stop (it became a very important part of our day). Playa Las Ballenas is a long stretch of beach (more than 2 km) with lots of palm trees, azure water, without wind and waves. For baby Thaissia this was the best beach I could imagine! Bathing with her in the ocean every day was just so pleasant. After the beach we would go back home, shower and rinse off beach stuff, and then Thaissia would fall asleep for two-three hours listening to birds chirping in the garden. And I had time to write a bit in the blog, cook lunch or do something else. After the siesta we would go back to the beach to see the sunset (it’s very nice indeed when watching the sun go down becomes a performance of every evening that can’t be disrupted by anything else). Playa Las Ballenas is located in such a way so the sun goes down behind a cape and you can watch it almost till it sets completely. The further side of Las Ballenas is a magic place; it’s so nice to stroll around there in the evening when everything is filled up with soft orange light!

When it would get dark me and little one would flag down a moto taxi and head over to town to have dinner at our favourite spot – French bistro La Cave a Vin. There we were received like a family. They cook really tasty meals (attention, chef is French!), and they have plate of the day (something from classical French cuisine usually) which costs 290 peso (around 6 USD), plus desserts are amazing! Thaissia and I had dinner there for New Year’s Eve (not at midnight, of course, but in the early evening), so 2019 was started with champagne and foie gras. I loved this little place and all the people we met there. We would come there to have dinner every evening as their daily special was always different. As we returned home from the bistro me and little one would say hello to our house hedgehogs (the owners of the place had two of them living in the garden), Thaissia loved to see them every evening. Then we would read our books (one of them has a hedgehog as a character) and I would put my baby to sleep. Later on I would sit in the living room and crochet toys listening to the sea in a distance as well as crickets and other tropical insects in the garden. We had no mosquitoes in the house and the sofa in our living room was very inviting to sit and crochet (from June 2018 I had absolutely no time to crochet, or places where we would stay with my daughter were not suitable for this activity). In other words, life was wonderful over there.

The area where we stayed is a sort of bourgeois neighbourhood with lots of villas with pools, dogs in collars, quads and gardens behind tall fences. The crowd on Playa Las Ballenas was not the same as on Kite Beach in Cabarete. Fit (or almost fit) kite surfers were replaced by French families or Italian pensioners. We quickly got used to this change of scenery and came to a conclusion that like that it was even cosier on our beach and we always had somebody to chat with on all five languages that I speak. On weekends Las Ballenas would fill up with local Dominican families, grilling something and swinging their hips to bachata or salsa playing from their car speakers.

Everything in this place would dispose to relaxation, to a pleasant routine of morning croissants and evening sunsets. I did not feel like leaving all this and go anywhere in the world, not even to the nearby beaches, it was so nice to just get stuck like that in one place and enjoy it every day. Waking up in the morning to birds singing and hugging my little Thaissia, I felt like repeating our Caribbean day again and again. Five weeks in Las Terrenas was not enough. I felt like moving there for a couple of years, or at least come back again next winter.

I shall conclude this article by responding to a banal question “What did you like the most about Dominican Republic”? The ease of living there with a baby, friendly locals (who sincerely love babies) and beautiful beaches!

From Dominican Republic we flew back to California. To be continued…

[wonderwoman1984-33658]

Chinese entertainers promote CPC's revolutionary

spirits to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC

The Chinese entertainment industry has leap into action to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC). Over the weekend, hundreds of Chinese stars, including young actor Jackson Yee and actress Dilraba from Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, posted video messages to promote and introduce revolutionary spirits of the Party to Chinese netizens.

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Combining their own experiences and understanding of the Party, these entertainers promoted a single spirit born in different times during the growth of the CPC in short videos uploaded to Sina Weibo, inspiring millions of young people, many of whom are their fans, to join in the celebrations.

The hashtag about the promotion event has earned more than 220 million views as of Monday afternoon.  

Dilraba, an actress from the Uygur ethnic minority who has more than 70 million followers on Sina Weibo, posted her short video on Sunday. In the video, she introduced the spirit of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), a unique state-owned economic and paramilitary organization.

"In my beautiful home, Xinjiang, there is a group of people. They have opened up large areas of oasis and built many factories in the Gobi Desert. They loyally fulfill their duties and devoted their youth to create the spirit of the XPCC," the actress said in the video.

The XPCC has administrative authority as well as settlements and farms in Xinjiang. It has its own administrative structure, fulfilling governmental functions such as managing healthcare, education and the judiciary.

Following her introduction, she performed a song and poetry recital about the corps' contribution to Xinjiang and the country.

The post has been commented on and liked more than 2 million times as of Monday afternoon.

Young Chinese actor Jackson Yee, who starred in the Academy Award nominated-movie Better Days, also joined in the event to introduce the spirit of Hongyan, named after a local village.

Yee introduced that the spirit was born in Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality during the War of Liberation (1946-49). Many CPC martyrs were arrested during the war and imprisoned in Chongqing but did not betray the Party or the people even though they were seriously tortured. Their spirit became known as the Hongyan spirit.

"I will study this spirit together with you," one netizen commented under Yee's post, representing the voice of many posters.

Other major spirits like the Spirit of the Long March were introduced by a variety of actors and actresses across generations such as Gong Jun, who was born in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, an important station along the Long March.

A Yee fan surnamed Zhang, 27, told the Global Times that she could feel the influence and appeal of stars through this event.

"Celebrities with a large amount of fans should take part in these types of events more often as they can correctly guide fans and be a positive influence on them," Zhang said.

Several related dramas and movies have been completed and launched such as Faith Makes Great, which brings together more than 30 famous Chinese stars.

Friends: The Reunion, also known as The One Where They Get Back Together, debuted on Chinese streaming platforms iQIYI and Tencent on Thursday afternoon. This exciting news cheered many Chinese fans, causing the hashtag “Friends” to earn 1.13 billion views on Sina Weibo in just a few short hours. Although thousands of TV sitcoms have flooded the internet since the first season of Friends debuted in September 1994, the beloved US sitcom still occupies first place in the hearts of many Chinese TV viewers.

One important reason why Friends holds such an irreplaceable position for Chinese audiences may be because it is the pinnacle of TV sitcoms prior to the internet era. Chinese viewers who were unable to access foreign TV channels in the 1990s came into contact with this classic drama through various channels after entering the 21st century. From the era of DVDs to online downloads and to today’s mobile video apps, generations of TV viewers have become fans of these six attractive characters with unique personalities.

With the emergence of subtitle groups in the early 21st century, the wonderful English dialogue of Friends became a tool for countless young Chinese to learn English and even websites specializing in the study of Friends scripts popped up. Friends made a major contribution to the English-learning wave in China at the time.

Another reason that this drama made such a deep impression on Chinese audiences is that it opened a door that allowed them to learn more about people’s lives in the US and the cultural differences between China and the West.

Although some Chinese sitcoms such as The Story of the Editorial Office and I Love My Family had debuted after 1992, Friends’ focus on six young single urban men and women was still a very fresh take for audiences.

I believe that many Chinese people’s understanding of Western “dating culture” came from Friends. In addition, the various challenges that single young people had to face in the sitcom such as paying off credit cards, finding a roommate to share rent, ordering takeout, changing jobs and later getting married, buying a house, having children and even getting divorced were all very new to audiences who were living in a very different society. The realities reflected in Friends caused people living in cities to cherish their ordinary lives and friendships.

Two decades later, the current most popular TV series in the world is still a US series: Game of Thrones. However, the content of this series has nothing to do with real US society. Many US dramas have grown further away from Chinese audiences because of excessive political correctness and because fewer works truthfully reflect US society. For a decade and more, Friends accompanied people from different generations, and the reunion brought back many cherished memories, but it also means the era of Friends has come to a final end.

Despite the institutional status bestowed by her double Michelin star, Vicky Lau says the battle to improve gender parity in the male-dominated culinary world is a long way from won -- but small victories bring her hope.

In the fiendishly competitive arena of China's Hong Kong's fine-dining scene, few have had as remarkable an ascent as Lau.

In little more than a decade, she has gone from opening a small cafe to running one of the financial hub's most lauded restaurants.

Earlier this year Tate Dining Room was awarded two Michelins, a belated breakthrough first for Asia's all-too-overlooked female chefs.

Many chefs love to insist in interviews that awards don't mean much. Lau, 40, is refreshingly upfront.

"I didn't get in the industry because I want to have all these accolades. But over time, it did become a goal," she told AFP.

Asked whether the gender watershed moment of the double Michelin mattered, she replied: "I think it does make a statement because it encourages a lot of people in our industry to power on."

A former graphic designer who switched mid-career to retrain, Lau said she "really didn't think twice about being a female and a chef" when she entered the trade.

"It's kind of ignorance was bliss at that time," she smiled, recalling how many at her Cordon Bleu training in Bangkok were women.

Once in the business, she saw how men dominated, especially when it came to ascending ranks or owning top establishments.

As she won attention for her dishes, she initially found it exhausting to continually be asked about her gender, the example she was setting, the role model she had become.

But over time she said she came to embrace the reality that her success could encourage others.

"It actually became one of my motivations to go to work," she said.

Different personalities

Alongside contemporaries such as Peggy Chan and May Chow, Lau is part of a new generation of female chefs from China's Hong Kong who have become examples of successful and vocal entrepreneurs.

Global culinary award programs have long been overly fixated on both Western cuisine and male chefs.

It's a charge to which brands are now sensitized. Slowly, winners' lists are starting to look a little more representative of the world itself.

The "Me Too" movement also brought some limited reckoning over the type of alpha-male behavior once lauded by food critics and television shows.

But improvement can feel frustratingly gradual.

"The culinary industry is a male-dominated industry, as everybody knows, but it also expects women to behave like men," said Chan, who carved out a space as one of Hong Kong's first fine-dining vegetarian chefs.

"You either fit in or you get out."

The slow growth of women both in professional kitchens and in?owning restaurants, she said, is starting to make an impact.?

"There's a lot more room for different types of personalities," Chan said.

Lau says her kitchen is now more than 50 percent female. Chefs with children are an asset, not a headache. Those with egos can leave them at the kitchen door.?

"We don't just celebrate Gordon Ramsay-style screaming in your face," she said.

Chinese techniques

Lau's dishes combine French and Chinese cuisine and are achingly beautiful -- each presentation painstakingly plated in a vivid display of her design background.

And she's determined to get wider recognition for often under-appreciated Chinese cooking techniques.

One example she cites is "double steamed" or "superior" broths -- the time-consuming stocks of Chinese cooking that could give any consommé a run for its money.

Her business has stayed afloat during the coronavirus disease pandemic with catering, a take-away service, and a patisserie shop.

It also opened for lunch for the first time, offering a less pricey tasting menu set around one single ingredient.

"We've done rice, tofu, tea, soy sauce," Lau explained.

Each course of her latest menu is built from different parts of a plant -- seeds, leaves, bulbs, stems, fruit, roots, and flowers.

Lau says the pandemic forced her into a more creative and self-reflective space.

"I think COVID-19 will put globalization on a bit of a pause," she predicts, saying fine-dining restaurants are being forced to source more locally, something consumers were already pushing for.

Why fly in French turbot, she posits, when there are perfectly good alternatives at the local wet markets??

She describes fine dining as "ego cooking" --?"because you are kind of expressing yourself on a plate".

"And a lot of times you can be lost a little bit," she added.

"That's why it's time to make more humble ingredients like soy sauce or rice the star of a dish."?

[velvetfxexo]

The Star & His First Love (pt 1)

Characters: EXO D.O./Kyungsoo + OC

Type: Fluff

Length: 3K

Kyungsoo was always the quiet member of the famous boy group, EXO. He's famous for his serious, unmoving facial expressions. Fans love his voice, and how he takes care of his members. They say he has the look of a person who doesn't care, but he is in fact, the exact opposite.

Whenever their group goes on interviews and is asked about love, Kyungsoo always gives the same, short, and vague answer. He only fell in love once, and he got rejected. Nothing more, nothing less.

Years later, he meets his first love, again.

{Part 1} Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10

Part 1 - Coffee, Cream, and a Dream

Darn it.

I am so, so, screwed.

Doh Kyungsoo.

I can't believe it. He came. He really did. He came to our high school reunion. Of all the days.

I need a moment. I feel dizzy.

I never expected him to come - none of us did - not with his schedule. I thought my friend was just joking about him dropping by. They still have his personal number and tried to reach out to him but never got a reply. A lot of us scoffed because how can a famous, international idol drop by a small get-together? Surely he has other important things to do now, and surely there are far more famous people he can meet up with. But by jove, he was here and-- ugh, someone hold me. I feel like I'm gonna hurl.

It was already past 10PM. I was out on the 2nd floor balcony at the time, drinking wine and enjoying the night breeze, when I froze not because of the cold, but because I recognized the figure that got out of the car that slowed down on the driveway.

He was always one of the small ones in our class. I used to be taller than him by two or three inches and I teased him about it, but of course he grew taller over the years. He was wearing a simple black sweater, with jeans and comfy-looking sneakers. Despite also having a cap and face mask on, I still managed to recognize him. He looked like he just finished rehearsal, but still looked decent and presentable. I don't know why but I ran back inside as quickly as I could, and that's when I felt really dizzy.

"Dana? Where are you going? D.O.'s here!" my friend Clara said.

"Yeah, yeah, I saw him outside. I just need to take my meds for a bit.."

She looked at me worriedly. "Is it something serious? Need any help?"

"Nah, it's nothing. It's just my nerves. The usual," I waved her off. "Go and see him. I'll just go up my room in a sec." She gave me a look but nodded instantly, and told me to hurry back down as soon as I could.

I hurried up the stairs, because my vision was literally spinning. Why am I like this? And why did I even choose a room on the 3rd floor? I dragged myself to the last room to the left, my hand on the wall to keep me steady.

Great, this is my first time attending our high school reunion, and my nerves start acting up. I never took their invitations to these get-togethers seriously, because they do it every year. It's not even an official reunion - they just invite people from our class and catch up at a classmate's house - which in this case, is Clara's. I just decided to come this time because I needed to unwind.

And now, lucky me, it just so happened that the first time I attend is also the first time Kyungsoo accepted their invitation. What are the chances.

I finally found my way to the room Clara and I were sharing, and I fumbled for my meds in my handbag. I don't know why I still keep getting these episodes of dizziness and headaches at random moments. I've been doing therapy for two years and I've been getting good progress. But we still don't know what triggers these random spikes of headaches. Was it the wine I drank? I know I have low tolerance for alcohol but I didn't even sip that much earlier. Plus, I drink wine at some events that I attend, but I never get dizzy like this.

I took two of the pills to be sure, and drank from the water bottle at the bedside table. I wanted to go back down to the party but I was still really dizzy. Maybe if I lied down for a bit?

I rested my head on the pillow and shut my eyes tight.

I must've fallen asleep afterwards.

I felt someone shaking my shoulder lightly.

"Dana?"

"Mhmmm?" was all I could manage to say.

"Dana."

"Ugh, go away.."

"Dana, wake up."

"It's the weekend, go away!" I cried, and pulled the covers over my head.

I heard a deep chuckle.

Why does that voice seem familiar?

"Okay, well, you need to drink this medicine so you won't have hangovers in the morning."

I heard something being placed on the bedside table but I didn't turn around to look.

"Mmmhkay I get it, just leave it there..."

"Okay, okay, I'm leaving it here.. please drink it."

That's what I remember when I woke up the next day.

Clearly, it must've been a dream. I wasn't even drunk last night. I just had a splitting headache and I think, a case of nausea.

I heard a knock on the door, and Clara's head appeared from the doorway.

"Finally! You're awake! You feel better now?"

I shrugged and gave her a small smile, "I guess. I'm sorry, I just slept the whole night away."

"Nah, it was fine. They wondered where you were but I told them you had a migraine." Clara said.

"So where is everybody? Anything fun happen last night?"

Clara sighed at this. "Some went home, but some ended up staying the night like planned," she sat down beside me on the bed. "Also, nothing fun. Same old. And oh, D.O. also slept here."

"He did? Kyungsoo?" I was startled for a bit because I forgot about him. I didn't even get to talk to him, but thank goodness for that.

"Yeah, he slept there," Clara nodded at the bed across from mine. "I let him have the other bed because there was no other room."

"He slept here?!" I exclaimed. In this same room?!

"Whoa, chill. Yeah, I didn't think you'd mind because we always had sleepovers with the guys. Plus, you weren't even in the same bed," she raised her eyebrow. "Why are you so worked up?"

"I just-- I just didn't notice." I faltered.

"Right.. well, he's still downstairs with the others. He's making breakfast."

"Wait what? He's still down--- and making breakfast?!"

"Are you really like this in the morning?" Clara went out the room but not before giving me a pointed look. "Come down when you're ready!"

Too many things happening at once. So Kyungsoo slept in the same room as me, but I didn't notice it. I'm a light sleeper so I should've woken up when he went into the room or something. I must've been really knocked out. Why did he even stay here? Didn't he have rehearsals or other schedules? Plus, he's making breakfast for them? Seriously, they made him do that? They made an idol cook for them?

But I slept in the same room as Kyungsoo. I can imagine what his fangirls will think when they find out about this.

I shrugged it all off and went to the restroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. I started at my face in the mirror after drying my face with a towel.

"It only gets worse when you think of it." I remind myself, and went downstairs.

It was a mess, apparently.

Paper cups, unfinished soda bottles, and leftover snacks were still on the living room table, and I can hear splashing and chattering from outside. I guess they went to the pool already.

I went to the dining room and stopped short. Kyungsoo was sitting on one of the bar stools at the kitchen countertop, with his back facing me.

I was debating whether I should skip breakfast instead, when he suddenly turned around.

"Dana! Good morning." He stood up and greeted me with a smile.

His hair was noticeably longer than I remember. I didn't get to see it last night because he was wearing a cap when he arrived. He was wearing black sweat pants and a white shirt--different clothes from last night--and yes, he was taller than me now.

"Morning," I smiled meekly and made my way to the other side of the countertop. "Are the others finished with breakfast already?"

He turned around as I was walking. "Yeah, they just had waffles. What would you like to eat?"

"Uhm, waffles sound good.."

"Let me get you some." He started, then made his way near the sink where the waffle maker was.

"It's fine Soo, you don't have to." I said, and went after him. He was about to say something but he closed his mouth.

"Of course, the award-winning chef can prepare her own waffles." He smiled, and gestured at the waffle maker.

"What awards? Stop that," I laughed. "I'm not that kind of chef."

"Really now? I heard it in the news back then.. what was it now? One of Asia's 50 Best Restaurants for 2 years straight---"

"I have a lot more to learn!" I chuckled. He smiled happily at this.

Wow, I didn't expect talking with Kyungsoo would be this.. light. I was expecting an awkward atmosphere. It's been almost what, 5 years? I haven't seen him in a long time but talking with him felt just like picking up where we left off..

Which is something I don't remember that well.

"Do you want orange juice with that? Or coffee?"

I was brought out of my thoughts and I turned to see Kyungsoo looking inside the fridge, then at me.

"Oh, coffee's fine." I said, and placed my plate of waffles on the countertop. I was about to get some mugs when he already had two in hand. Before I could act, he was already pouring coffee from the coffeemaker.

"You want a little bit of cream with that, if I remember correctly?" he asked.

"Yeah, a bit," I paused, "Wait, how did you know that?"

He looked at me, puzzled. But he still smiled. "You told me, right?"

I stared at him while he put some cream in my coffee. Two spoonfuls, just the amount I wanted. "When did I say that?"

"Back in high school," he said, and handed the mug to me after stirring.

"Oh, in high school," I gulped, unsure of what to say. "I don't remember much of high school anymore, to be honest."

He looked startled for a split second, but his expression suddenly changed. He smiled and said, "Really? Well, it's been half a decade, I can't blame you for that."

"Ha ha, yeah.. been a long while now." I said, and took a sip of my coffee. He even knew how much cream I wanted. How much did I forget about high school? Did we even talk about coffee and cream in high school? Something's not adding up.

"Hey, I didn't know you drank coffee now." I suddenly said, because I saw him drinking from his mug. Black coffee at that.

"Yeah. Had no other choice actually. We don't get much sleep too." I nodded, because life as an idol does seem tough.

"But hey, you remembered that I don't drink coffee," he said. "But you can't remember that you told me about cream in your coffee."

I closed my eyes for a sec, because I was starting to feel the dizziness again.

Stop it. Thinking hard about it just makes it worse.

"I dunno either," I said, changing the topic. "Uhm, energy drinks. Don't you like energy drinks?" I had a vague memory of him liking energy drinks. When was it? Darn it, I can't really recall.

He raised both his eyebrows, surprised in the sudden topic shift. "Oh, I don't anymore."

"Why?"

"Because you don't like energy drinks."

I looked at him in surprise and he had a serious expression on his face; the expression that he always shows to the public. A somehow cold, and calculating look. It was like he was waiting for me to say something, but I couldn't think of anything.

He was right, I didn't like energy drinks, but what was his point?

“So, when are you two gonna join us outside?”

I almost jumped at the voice. I turned around and saw Clara by the doorway, with her arms folded and a slight smirk on her lips.

“Why, what’s up?” I asked, slightly thankful for the distraction - anything to break the staredown with Kyungsoo.

“Swimming! By the pool. You can use those clothes,” Clara pointed at my shorts and shirt. “And D.O, the guys have extra shorts if you need ‘em.”

“Thanks Clara,” Kyungsoo said. “We’ll be right out.” 

“Do they call you D.O. now?” I asked, after Clara left.

“Yeah, apparently they think it’s cooler.”

“Well, I like Kyungsoo better.”

“Thanks,” he smiled. “Do you remember what you used to call me back in high school?”

I gulped again. Why does he keep on asking about high school.. it’s so hard because I can’t remember. “Uh, no.. what did I call you?”

Again, he gave me a surprised look. “You-- you said it earlier--”

Before he could finish his sentence, loud splashes and laughter could be heard outside, as if a lot of people jumped into the pool at once. “Sounds like they’re having fun!” I said. I took the last waffle on my plate and wolfed it down. Seeing that I was in a rush, Kyungsoo promptly cleared the countertop and brought the plates and mugs to the sink. 

We made our way outside to the pool area where everyone was. Kyungsoo was quiet on the way out, but when I looked at him he just smiled at me. His smile caught me off guard because I almost slipped. His big eyes widened even more, and he quickly caught my arm in a flash. “You alright?” He asked worriedly. “I’m fine, thanks, the floor was slippery and these flipflops don’t help.” I said. He guided me to one of the lounge chairs, still holding on to my arm. I thanked him again and he left to change into shorts.

I didn’t notice that Clara was watching us until she plopped down beside me. “That was a cute sight.” She winked at me. “What cute sight?” I asked.

“Oh, don’t act coy, Dana,” another one of the girls said. “We all saw it.” Then some of the others cheered in response. “What? I don’t get it!” I exclaimed, looking around for answers but everyone was just smiling and teasing.

“Oh come on Danes. So how are you and D.O. now?” Clara asked. I shook my head in confusion. “Me? Kyungsoo? What about it?” The others just laughed again and kept teasing me, saying that they’ll just play along. But I really don’t get it.

“Any chance of you two rekindling the past?” Clara whispered.

My eyes widened at her question, but my face must’ve looked worried, because Clara’s smile faded to a more serious expression.

“Still nothing huh?” she asked. She immediately understood what I was thinking. I shook my head lightly. “I.. I tried, but I really just can’t.”

Clara squeezed my hand reassuringly. “So was it awkward? Did he bring it up?” I let out a heavy sigh. “I think he was trying to. He was asking about things from high school, and I can’t recall, you know. I didn’t know what to say.”

We were interrupted when we heard another loud splash in the water, followed by cheers. We turned to check and it was Kyungsoo who jumped in the pool, surrounded by the other guys. All laughing and cracking up jokes for sure.

“It’s okay Danes,” Clara said. “You don’t have to force it. You know what happens.”

“I think it also happened last night,” I immediately said. Clara’s eyes went wide when she suddenly realized. “You mean when you were taking meds last night-”

“Yup, it was when he arrived,” I nodded. I looked at the pool where Kyungsoo was. I spotted him glancing at me, and he averted his eyes when I caught him looking.

Clara let out a heavy sigh as well. “Wow, that’s.. I’m sorry, I don’t know what to say, are you gonna visit Stiles again?”

“Yeah, I don’t know if it has anything to do with that, but I’ll pay a visit and see.”

“Take it off! Take it off!”

Clara and I turned to see where the chanting was coming from and we saw the guys urging Kyungsoo to take off his shirt while he was in the pool. That’s when I noticed they were all swimming in shorts only, and Kyungsoo was the only one with a top on. He didn’t look like he’d budge even though they urged him to, so they gave up soon after. Clara laughed and said, “They can’t make him do that, he doesn’t even take off his top for his fans.”

“Really? Why?” I asked. It’s not like Kyungsoo’s body was not well-built, it looked okay to me. Did he have baby fats he wanted to hide?

“I don’t know really, all the other members of his group have either stripped during concerts or on their shows. He’s the only one who hasn’t. That’s why fans make a big deal out of it.” Clara explained.

“Wow, you’re really updated with EXO aren’t you?”

“No, not really,” she said almost too quickly. “They’re just all over the place. You’ll see articles and their faces everywhere even if you’re not a fan.”

“Touché .” I agreed, remembering the numerous billboards of EXO when I visited Japan and Hong Kong just last year. I even took a photo of Kyungsoo’s billboard, but of course I wouldn’t tell that to them. 

“So who brought me hangover medicine last night?” I asked Clara, suddenly remembering the medicine on the bedside table. “You knew I wasn’t drunk.”

“Yeah, I knew. But I’m not sure who brought those. Maybe Kyungsoo knows.”

I glanced at Kyungsoo again, and found him looking at me again. This time, he didn’t turn away, and I just kept staring back. Then he smiled, and waved, asking me to jump in the pool with them.

God, there was so much I’ve forgotten, and so much I wanted to remember.

✨ The Star & His First Love

🌟 Story Masterlist

[allenmendezsr]

Competition Bbq Secrets 300 Deg Hot & Fast

New Post has been published on https://autotraffixpro.app/allenmendezsr/competition-bbq-secrets-300-deg-hot-fast/

Competition Bbq Secrets 300 Deg Hot & Fast

 Buy Now

    Now You Can Get Real Competition BBQ Secrets

We’re Declaring War on Average BBQ Everywhere!

You are just one small step away from skyrocketing your BBQ skills, saving yourself 5+ years of time, and becoming the new BBQ King in Your Neighborhood! 

BBQ Friend:

I’m Bill Anderson, head pitmaster on the Chatham Artillery BBQ Team and 8x Grand Champion. 

I’m going to help you to be a BBQ grand champion too! You see, I wasn’t always an expert BBQ pitmaster… I started out in my back yard like everybody else. I thought I was pretty good at it too – having “perfected” a few barbecue recipes that delighted my friends and family.

Then one day, I was asked to help my brother-in-law at a BBQ competition down in Douglas, GA. We took 2nd place ribs in the back yard division and we were hooked. We moved on up to the pro division and ran into some serious roadblocks. As it turned out, those guys in the pro division don’t mess around… they take their BBQ seriously!

It was clear that my back yard barbecue recipes were not going to cut it. So I practiced and practiced and practiced some more. I needed testers and people to eat all those trial runs, so my friends and family loved it! But it was costing me a small fortune.

Still, our competition scores were not up to par. 

Competition after competition we sat there and watched while the other teams “walked” to get their checks and trophies. I found out real quick that BBQ judges were a lot different than my friends and family. BBQ judges will insult your barbecue skills in a heartbeat (with bad scoring) – friends and family will always tell you your BBQ is great no matter what.

And therein lies the “big difference”…

Being a competitive person, I was determined to make the leap to competition quality BBQ recipes and not be satisfied with back yard quality anymore. After all, winning isn’t everything, it’s the ONLY thing. 

I did some judging and I took a $750 class to figure out flavor profiles and other things the judges were looking for. These things, along with my own knowledge is what allowed me to go on to win 8 contests over the next 2 years – I was winning every other contest I entered! Yiiiippppeeee! 

I had earned some serious bragging rights!

Not only was I king of my neighborhood, but I was king amongst professional barbecue teams too.

Now, I want to teach you all my secrets that cost me a small fortune to figure out!

So you can be the king (or queen) of your neighborhood too. Heck, you may even want to compete like I did. Or open a barbecue restaurant or BBQ food truck some day. With the info in Competition BBQ Secrets, you’ll blow your competition away because these competition quality BBQ recipes are even better than 99% of what most restaurants put out.

Don’t take my word for it, here’s just a small sampling of many, many satisfied students say about the BBQ Book…

I don’t know if this a real success story or not, But it is for me! I have been BBQing for over 67 years and it has changed a lot in my time. When just a short time ago I got Your book and found out that I had no more idea then a Jack Ass of what I was trying to do. I had entered in two contest preveiously and came in dead LAST! I thought You cooked your meat piled the best you had in a box and turned that in. WRONG! This past weekend I entered in Knoxville, Tn. and came in 9 th overall. With a 2nd in chicken, 14th in ribs, a 7th in brisket and 15th in pork….  Col. Dave Franks, long time US Army cook, author of Foods of the Southland, Alex Haley’s private chef, and head pitmaster for Lil’ Red Barn BarBQ Team

Hi Bill – My brisket turned out great I have been trying to smoke one for over ten years every time it would come out dry like boot leather. I learned so much from your book I’m going bear hunting in Colorado in September can’t wait to try it again for all my hunting buddys I hope you make the finals would love to try a pros BQ in AR keep me updated you have made my wife and daughter so happy that I can finally smoke a brisket!!! Tim

Bill,Wanted to let you know that your book is wonderfull , so much info. We used some of your suggestions along with our ideas and were grand champions at our 1st BBQ cookoff. Everyone should get your BBQ book–packed full of info. Tom Mashos Fossil, Oregon– Smok’n Hot BBQ Team

Well I’ll be! After three years of cook-offs, one trophy here, one trophy there. I bought your book, I read the dang thing at least five times. This past week-end, the Family Tradition cookers took reserve grand champs for the first time. IBCA cook in Willis Texas, 2nd chicken, 3rd ribs (highest ever), 9th in brisket. I look forward to your next email and any new books and recipes.Thanks a bunch. Erik

Great book. Very informative for those not only wanting to begin competing in BBQ but for the general home BBQ’r as well. – Michael M

We are Grand Champions of…

Hasan Shrine Spring Festival 2009 – Albany, GA (FBA) Some of the best teams in the Nation were there and we took 2nd in chicken, 2nd in brisket, and 1st in pork.

Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival 2009 – Tryon, NC (KCBS) There were 78 teams present at this KCBS event. We placed 1st in ribs.

(very rare back to back win!) Blue Ridge BBQ & Music Festival 2010 – Tryon, NC (KCBS), Back to Back wins! There were 87 teams this year. We took 2nd in chicken, 4th in ribs, 13th in pork, and 4th in brisket.

Festival of Discovery 2009 – Greenwood, SC (KCBS) There were 58 teams present at this BBQ contest and we placed 2nd in brisket.

Pigs & Peaches Festival 2009 – Kennesabbq contest grand championw, GA (KCBS). There were 43 teams present and we placed 1st in ribs, 2nd in chicken, 4th in pork, and 3rd in brisket.

Florida State BBQ Championship (KCBS) at Daytona International Speedway on July 4th weekend 2010. Some of the best teams in the Country were at this action packed event on July 4th weekend.

2010 Dillard, GA Bluegrass & Barbecue Festival with a surprise 1st place brisket and a good 6th place chicken. A good showing with 15th in ribs and 14th in pork rounded out the grand.

2010 “The Real Squeal” Lyons BBQ & Bluegrass Festival in Lyons, GA. We were 4th in chicken, 3rd in ribs, 3rd in pork, and 2nd in brisket.

2013 Sam’s Club Tour Finals in Bentonville, AR. 1st place brisket! We can legitimately claim to be the best brisket cooks in the Country after winning brisket in this playoff style series and also 3 other 1st places and a 2nd in brisket this year.

Here’s just a short list of everything you get in Competition BBQ Secrets…

This is NOT a cookbook! This BBQ book is more of an instruction manual. Don’t get me wrong, there are a good bit of recipes, but we don’t stop there… we go on to explain in fine detail how to smoke championship barbecue ribs, butts, chicken and brisket. There’s a separate chapter for each!

Best Brisket in the World – I’m not bragging here. In 2013, I was the best brisket cook in the world. Having won many first place briskets and going on to win first place brisket at the KCBS Sam’s Club Finals in Bentonville, AR against the best teams in the world. The complete and exact details on how to cook the best brisket in the world are in this book. No details are left out. Your mind is not even capable of understanding how good it is. You must experience it to believe it!

My competition sauce recipe – included at no extra charge. Most teams keep this info top secret – even if they are teaching a live class.

I’m your barbecue coach! Just email me anytime if you have a problem.

Cookers – the different types and how you can slow smoke on anything from a professional offset smoker to your old trusty Weber kettle grill and everything in between.

How to smoke a turkey, reverse sear a steak, jellyroll cut pork loin or beef tenderloin, and much more!

How your wood choice will impart that sought after smoke flavor and smoke ring.

How marinades, brines, and injections will improve the quality of your barbecue recipes.

You have to use rubs… your meats will be bland without them. We tell you all about them and even include some great recipes if you want to mix your own.

Your new book will also tell you how to properly use finishing sauces and glazes on your barbecue recipes.

We also give you some great information on competitions, how to prepare for competitions, and even a checklist of what to bring to a competition. Exact competition schedule is included too!

A complete list of all the BBQ Associations known to exist with the web address for each. Each BBQ Association has it’s own contests and you can find their schedules easily with the information in your new book.

How to trim spareribs St Louis Style and how to trim a brisket.

A whole chapter on barbecue science – smoke rings and maillard reactions.

A complete list of resources for smokers, rubs, sauces, and forums.

and much more!

Benefits of an eBook….

eBooks are in Adobe Acrobat .pdf format and you will be directed to the download page immediately after payment.

Speed – you will receive it immediately and shipping is FREE.

Save a Tree – Do you know how much resources are used to print a paper book?

Live links – throughout the book, there are many, many references to external web pages that contain a wealth of information that you need to read. With the eBook, just click on the blue “hyperlink” and you will instantly go to that web page.

Bookmarks – The entire table of contents is “bookmarked” for your convenience. Just click on a chapter title and you immediately jump to that chapter. At the end of the chapter, you can jump back to the table of contents.

Color Pictures – There are many pictures in the eBook that are color. A paper book with color pictures on every page would be very expensive.

Printable – The book is only 87 pages, so it’s easily printable after downloading.

Full 60 Day 100% Satisfaction or Your Money Back…

If, for any reason, you are not satisfied with your barbecue recipes, just send the processor (Clickbank) an email and they will immediately refund your money. There is a link to do this at the bottom of your email receipt. It’s simple, easy, and fast.

How much is this gonna cost me, Bill?

It’s not gonna cost you $750 for a live class like I paid. There are no travel expenses. It’s not gonna cost you 5+ years going to the school of hard knocks either. It’s not gonna cost you $1000’s in practice meat and fuel costs. I could easily charge you over $500 for this valuable information, but if you act now, you can get it all for the low price of $29.95.

And if you order now, before the timer expires, we’ll throw in the original Competition BBQ Secrets at no extra cost to you. The original is more of a low & slow version and the new one is hot & fast or what the competitors call power cooking. Why cook a brisket for 20 hours when you can cook it for 5 with better results? Remember, I won best brisket in the world cooking hot & fast.

Get Yours Now….

[thfrustration]

Crossing Knives, Chapter 10: Secrets, Surprises, Sauvignon Blanc

TITLE OF STORY: Crossing Knives CHAPTER NUMBER/TITLE/ONE SHOT: Chapter 10 AUTHOR: missviolethunter / missviolethunterwrites WHICH TOM/CHARACTER: AU Tom / Chef Tom GENRE: Romance, Comedy FIC SUMMARY: Tom Hiddleston is the brilliant executive chef of Band of Brothers, a London restaurant with a Michelin star. He also has a reputation for being arrogant, cocky and difficult. Hallie Harrison is a former home cook who has just won Masterchef US. Luke Windsor is a restaurateur who is tired of constantly looking for new sous-chefs because Tom keeps making them quit. In a desperate move to save his restaurant, Luke offers Hallie a job as a sous-chef… and maybe also a chance to meet the man of her dreams in the least likely of places: the kitchen of Band of Brothers. RATING: Explicit WARNINGS/TRIGGERS/AUTHORS NOTES: None FEEDBACK/COMMENTS: Links to previous chapters: Ch 1 - Ch 2 - Ch 3 - Ch 4 - Ch 5 - Ch 6 - Ch 7 - Ch 8 - Ch 9

CHAPTER 10:  SECRETS, SURPRISES, SAUVIGNON BLANC

Monday mornings marked the start of the work week at Band of Brothers. Planning menus, receiving deliveries, scheduling any special events… all those things had to be done on a Monday so the rest of the week would be properly organized.

Every day Tom was the first one to arrive. Sometimes a bit hungover, or wearing the same clothes as the night before (there was a shower in Luke’s office, and Tom always kept a change of work clothes in the car). But, no matter what he had been doing during the long weekend, he was always in the kitchen when everybody else got there.

Which is why Birdie and Kumal, the cooks, who were neighbours and usually caught the same tube, were so surprised to find the back door of the restaurant firmly closed. And locked. Birdie searched in her large handbag for her set of keys, that she barely had any occasion to use. She also grabbed her phone, wondering if she should call Luke or if she was worrying about nothing. It was half past eleven, and they didn’t have to start until noon, so it wasn’t really alarming that Chef Tom had decided to oversleep a little.

She was so concentrated, mobile phone in one hand and keys in the other, that she almost didn’t hear Luke’s voice behind her.

“Morning, Birdie! Hey, Kumal!” He turned off the engine and got out of the car, smiling brightly, with a cup of Starbucks in one hand and some donut crumbs on his otherwise immaculate suit. Luke Windsor was definitely a morning person.

“Morning, Mr. Windsor. Is Chef Tom with you?”

“Tom? No, I haven’t seen him since Saturday; I’ve got several lost calls from him, so I thought I’d come early so we could talk.” He glanced at the door, then at the two people in front of him, and finally at the door again. “Is there anything wrong? Why are you out here?”

Birdie sighed. “It’s locked. And empty.”

Luke frowned for a brief moment. “Well, I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about. He must have been partying until late, I’ll give him a call and tell him to get his arse out of bed.”

They all got in; the cooks headed towards the kitchen and Luke to his office. He tried calling Tom, but the call went straight to voicemail. And again. After four tries, he resorted to messaging.

 ‘Hey, mate, are you alright?’

 ‘Tom, I’m sorry I couldn’t come over yesterday, I was at my parents’ in Oxfordshire and I didn’t get home until all hours.’

 ‘Hiddleston, it’s almost noon. If you’re down with the flu I can go by your place and bring you some chicken soup, but I need you to speak to me.’

No response. He headed to the kitchen, where Hallie, Connor and Alex had also arrived and were starting to prep all kinds of food for the dinner service.

“Good morning, gods and goddesses of the culinary world! How’s the week presenting?”

A chorus of cheerful voices assured him, all at the same time, that everything was perfect (and that chefs can be very, very loud people). Only Hallie didn’t say anything except for a deflated ‘Hi Luke’, and that made him worry.

He decided to try calling Tom again, and right in that moment he heard the main door open and close with a slamming sound. And there was the missing Chef Hiddleston, standing in the hallway, in his chef whites, pale and sulky like the Ghost of Canterville on a bad day (minus the chains. And the castle. And the undead thing, although he did have the ashy complexion).

“Finally! I was starting to worry. Are you alright, mate? I tried calling you…”

“I was driving. Fine. I’m fine.” His voice sounded at least an octave lower than usual, which made it hard for Luke to understand him.

“I know that tone, Hiddleston, and it’s everything but fine. Look, if you’re not feeling well and you need the day off, just…”

“You can’t send me home, Luke”, was the half-growled answer. “This place is as mine as it is yours, so spare me your ‘cool boss’ talk and let me get to work.”

Now Luke was absolutely sure that Tom was either sick or being an asshole on purpose. Or maybe both. He adjusted his glasses on his nose, thinking of the best way to find out the truth.

“Great. Do whatever you want. If at any point in the day you feel like talking to your business partner and oldest friend, and telling him what the bloody hell is wrong with you, I’ll be in my office.”

About twenty minutes later, a quick rap at the door made Luke smile triumphantly.

“It’s always open, Tom! Come in and share that sob story, whatever it is!”

The door opened slowly, but instead of Tom’s closely cropped curls what appeared behind it was a head of blond hair, neatly tucked in a bun under a white chef hat.

“Luke, it’s me. Sorry to interrupt you, but…”

“Hallie! I meant it when I said it’s always open. Please come in. Coffee?”

“Luke, Tom burnt a sauce ten minutes ago and went to the pantry. He… he’s locked himself in and he’s not answering when we knock.”

Luke got up from his desk, looking slightly murderous. “Okay, this has gone too far. I’m going to…”

“Please don’t be angry with him! I think… I think it’s my fault that he’s all moody today, but I can’t get him to talk to me.” She covered her face with her hands.

“Fine, let’s all calm down. I won’t kill him…yet. Now let’s go to the pantry and find out why he’s acting more like an idiot than usual.”

In the kitchen, everybody was trying to keep things normal. The pots were boiling, the pans sizzled, and the cooks… well, the cooks had one eye on the suspiciously closed door that connected the kitchen with the pantry. Nobody said a word, but they all turned to Luke in unison.

The increasingly worried restaurateur knocked on the door several times. “Thomas, this isn’t funny. Nor professional. Get your arse out of there!”

One or two muffled words came from inside.

“I can’t hear you, you sod! This is a fireproof door!”

Nothing. Seeing that Luke’s efforts were in vain, Hallie moved to the front of the group and approached the closed door.

“Tom, it’s Hallie! Please, can we talk?”

Silence for a moment, and then they all could hear the sound of the lock being turned. Slowly.

It still didn’t open, so Hallie grabbed the handle. Luke put a warning hand on her forearm.

“Whatever you do, get him out of there. I don’t want to appear in the Daily Mail as the evil restaurant owner who almost let two of his workers suffocate inside a closed pantry.”

“Suffocate? There’s a ventilation system in there.”

“You clearly don’t read the Mail”, Luke sighed. “Just try and make him see reason, please.”

Hallie opened the door and got inside, closing it behind her without a noise.

“Now you want to see me.”

The Band of Brothers pantry was a spacious and well organized room, with cabinets and shelves to one side and a row of industrial sized freezers to the other. Tom was sitting on the floor, with his back to the wall and a can of beer in his hand, looking so miserable that Hallie almost had to fight back tears.

She thought of the best way to start the conversation; Tom seemed to be in a highly dramatic state, so she decided that maybe he would react if she dialed up the drama.

“Tom, if you want me to resign and leave, just say so and I’ll be out of here in a minute”, she stated in a clear voice.

“What?” He clearly wasn’t expecting that. He left the beer on the floor (unopened, Hallie noticed) and stood up with the help of the wall behind him.

He didn’t seem drunk, just extremely hungover and a more than a little angry. He walked up towards Hallie very slowly, as if he was walking under water.

“Did you have fun with your boyfriend Harrington the other night?”

Hallie went red as a beet. “Tom, I went to…”

“I know where you went. For some reason you decided I wasn’t good enough for you, so you staged your little freak-out and then Craig came to your rescue like a knight in shining armor. Well played.”

Hallie crossed her arms and frowned. “Tom, that wasn’t staged. I had to run home because I was feeling horrible, and then I got a text from Georgiana…”

“I see. So Georgiana was in it too, playing matchmaker for her little brother.”

“It was a birthday party! With at least fifty people in it!”

“I only saw two people in Harrington’s Tesla.”

Hallie took a step back. “Tom, were you following me?”

“Following you? Bollocks!” answered Tom, outraged. “It’s not my fault that in a city with nine million people you have decided to live right on my doorstep, Chef Harrison.”

“Well, it’s hard to see people’s faces from the balcony of your luxury penthouse, Chef Hiddleston, so you were either using a telescope or–”

“I don’t need a telescope to see when someone’s hiding something from me.”

She sighed. “Okay, this is ridiculous. We’re having a conversation in the stupid pantry–”

“An argument”, interrupted Tom.

“Fine, an argument. But this is not the time or the place to do this.”

Tom raked his fingers through his already tousled hair. “Right. We must look like a pair of bloody teenagers. But you didn’t deny you are hiding something from me, so don’t tell me I’m imagining things.”

Hallie closed her eyes for several seconds. When she opened them again, she looked very serious. “Can we call a truce for a few hours and talk after work? Yes, there’s something important I need to tell you… but it can’t be here.”

“Have it your way”, said Tom in a chilly tone. “I’ll take you home after work… but I don’t know what you want me to say, except that I feel like you’re gaslighting me.”

“You don’t have to say anything, just listen. And if you don’t like my explanation, tomorrow I will resign and you won’t have to see me again. Deal?”

“Fine.”

He opened the door for Hallie with an exaggerated flourish, and looked at the bunch of people who had congregated in front of the pantry door.

“What, don’t you all have jobs to do?”

Luke let out a sigh of relief. “I’m going to remove that lock today. No, forget about the lock, I’m having the whole door taken away.” He pointed a recriminating finger at Tom. “No more silly shenanigans in this kitchen, understood?”

Tom answered with a mock of a military salute.

“Splendid. Now, let’s all get back to work and forget the past thirty minutes of our lives. Back to cooking, everybody!”

At the same time Tom relived his personal drama in the Band of Brothers kitchen (and pantry), Harrington Craig was parking his Tesla right across the street.

He was in a bit of a hurry. Not exactly late, but he was anxious to try a couple of new and exotic ingredients he’d had shipped from Thailand the day before. Also, he had stayed at his parents’ brunch for a bit longer than he should.

According to the family chronicles, the Craigs had been doing brunch since before the word was invented. The only thing that had changed over the years was the date: what for centuries had been a Sunday event had been changed to Monday since his two elder sisters got married and started having children. Apparently, having all your weekends planned in advance is not practical when you have several little ones, so brunch was rescheduled and now everyone was happy (except for the aforementioned children, who of course were at school).

Whatever the reason, every Monday, Lord and Lady Craig had the table set for at least thirteen people: her eldest daughter Eleonora, her husband, and the youngest of their three girls (who was two years old, so no school yet); Georgiana, always alone because she pitied his boyfriends too much to make them endure the family event; Minerva and her husband with their two daughters (who were homeschooled, and  loved being at the table with the grownups); Arabella, the youngest, who had recently became engaged to a young man and had earned the right to bring him to brunch; and, finally, Harry. Alone since his divorce… and frequently alone during his marriage, because his ex-wife Charlotte had hated his sisters with a passion (often reciprocated), and she always had an excuse to avoid setting foot in the Craigs’ Hampstead house.

On that particular day, brunch had been a bit uncomfortable for him. His sister Georgiana, always eager to embarrass him at family events, had told their mother about Hallie… and the hopeful Lady Craig had spent more than an hour trying to extract information from her son.

“My dear Harrington” (she was the only person who called him by his full name all the time). “If there’s a new young lady in your life, do bring her to tea sometime. I’ll be very glad to meet her.”

“That would be wonderful, dear Mamma, but despite what Georgie may have told you there’s nothing to write home about. I’ve met a girl I like, but unfortunately she only has eyes for Tom.”

“What a pity! Speaking of Thomas, I do wish you two would solve your differences. You were such good friends at school! You know, when you were younger I had the secret hope that he would end up marrying one of your sisters.”

Harry couldn’t help raising an eyebrow at this affirmation, and all the other people at the table reacted in a variety of ways: his sisters Nora and Belle managed to muffle a burst of laughter, while Georgiana, less used to hiding her impulses, laughed heartily. Only one of the sisters, Minnie, seemed very concentrated on her food, blushing furiously. She’d had a brief thing with Tom during their time in Oxford, and her sisters had teased her mercilessly for years about ‘the Hiddleston affair.’

As for the men who were also attending brunch, not one of them noticed a thing. Harry’s father was too busy enjoying his eggs Florentine; and all three of his daughter’s significant others were completely oblivious to the crossing of glances between the women and their amused mother.

“Anyway”, continued Lady Mountjoy once the giggling had stopped. “I haven’t lost hope of having a grandson yet. And apparently it has to come from you, because your sisters are exclusively occupied in having girls. Who I love very dearly, of course”, she added with a wink and a smile directed towards the three little girls sitting at the table. “But who’s going to inherit your father’s collection of toy soldiers?”

This time the laughter was general, husbands and father included. It was a running joke in the family, their particular genetic lottery. The elder sister, Nora, had three lovely girls; the second, Minnie, had two and was expecting twins… she had just found out that both of them were also girls. The youngest, Belle, wasn’t married yet, but she always joked that she was going to start buying pink furniture for her future home. And Lord Mountjoy’s collection of toy soldiers, enjoyed for the last time by Harry as a kid, had been collecting dust in the attic for more than twenty-five years.

Harry’s recollection of the family meal was suddenly interrupted by the sound of steps in front of him. He forced his attention back to reality, just in time to avoid a collision with a young Black woman carrying the largest Starbucks cup he had ever seen.

“Oy! Careful, Mister Daydreaming!” she said, holding the cup as far as she could from her leather portfolio and her elegant black and white suit. She never lost her smile, however, and Harry wondered how a person who was on her way to work, and obviously in a hurry, could be in such good spirits.

“I am awfully sorry… God, I hope nothing has spilled.” He surveyed the woman’s slender figure looking for a nonexistent stain, and then something clicked in his mind. “Wait a minute… don’t I know you? You work with Luke Windsor, right?”

“Exactly, I’m his assistant. Shirley Berry.” She managed to hold both portfolio and coffee in her left hand, and extended the right towards Harry’s offered handshake.

“Harry Craig. I’ve heard Luke talk wonders about you several times.”

“Well, he manages the restaurant, and I manage his finances, his schedule, and the rest of his professional life. Everything except Tom, of course. No one in the world can manage that man… but according to the rumours you already know that.”

Harry smirked. “You know, all this time I’ve been wondering how Band of Brothers is doing so well despite Tom not being able to keep his staff stable… maybe I should have looked into the business side of it. If you ever feel tempted to switch your allegiance, I’ll be right here with open arms”, he added with a shy smile.

“Awww, that may be the nicest thing anyone has said to me in weeks. To be completely honest I have no intention to change jobs… but if you weren’t my boss’s best friend’s mortal enemy, I’d invite you to coffee.”

“Even if you are my mortal enemy’s best friend’s assistant, I will take you up on that invitation. I see you like Starbucks, but you may want to try a little café two streets away from here; they serve the best blends in London.”

Shirley’s smile widened. “That sounds great. And I promise Tom hasn’t paid me to poison your Cappuccino or anything.”

“Actually, I take it Ristretto… just so you know where to put the poison”, he answered with a wink.

“Duly noted.” She scribbled her personal mobile on a card and handed it to Harry, and they parted ways, hurrying towards their respective restaurants.

Harry put the business card in his pocket, and a second later he changed his mind and stored it in his wallet. Growing up in a house full of sisters had made him notoriously bad at flirting for many years, so he liked it when women took the initiative in a frank, carefree way, like Shirley had done. Even if it was just for coffee, and not a real date.

The workday at Band of Brothers ended almost at midnight. Most Londoners, except for the ones who partied really hard, were already asleep or getting ready for bed, so the light traffic allowed Tom’s Aston Martin to make the trip from Chelsea to Goswell Road in twenty minutes, instead of the usual thirty.

That meant twenty long minutes of sulky silence on Tom’s part. After the bumpy start of the day he had been more cooperative, but for most of the day he’d kept a stubborn silence. Hallie tried to lighten the mood making a couple of casual comments at the start of the drive, but noticing the lack of response she chose to concentrate on her phone. She texted her mother to let her know she was bringing Tom home, but Lorraine hadn’t answered her yet.

Finally, when they were only a couple of minutes away from the City, Tom broke his silence.

“Texting your boyfriend?”

Hallie huffed. “I’m glad you’re speaking to me again. And no, as far as I know I don’t have a boyfriend, thanks for asking.”

“Then what do you call the Honorable Harrington Craig? Just a fuckbuddy? A friend with benefits?” he asked between gritted teeth. “I bet he’s already planning to make you the second Mrs. Craig. He can be very quick when it comes to marrying other people's–”

“Will you stop with that, Tom? We’re almost… turn right, please, we’re almost there. You can park around that corner.”

Tom decided to go back to sulking in silence during the short walk through the front door, up the stairs, and finally through the door of Hallie’s flat on the second floor.

“Hallie? Is that you, cupcake?”

“Yes, Mom, I’m home.”

A cheerful looking woman got up from the couch and turned off the television. Tom thought she looked exactly like an older version of Hallie, only a bit shorter. And with glasses.

“Ah, you must be Tom! Nice to meet you, I’m Lorraine Harrison” she said, offering him a firm handshake. “Sorry I didn’t drop by the restaurant to meet you sooner, but I was a little busy with… with a thing that I’m sure Hallie will tell you in a moment.”

“That’s why I asked him here, Mom. To talk.”

Lorraine exchanged a knowing glance with her daughter, a glance that left Tom even more puzzled than before.

“Well, in that case I’m going to the kitchen to have a cuppa. The living room is all yours.”

Hallie led a very suspicious Tom to the living room and asked him to sit down. He did, looking around him as if he was expecting some kind of nasty surprise to jump at his face in any moment.

“Would you like a glass of wine?”

“Am I going to need one?”

“Probably.”

He made an affirmative sign, and Hallie walked to the dining room table, where someone –probably Lorraine and her motherly powers of precognition– had set a bottle of chilled Sauvignon Blanc and two glasses. She offered one to Tom, and remained standing in front of him.

“Look, I’m not usually a person who shares all her secrets, but…” she paused. “What I mean is that there’s something I should have told you when we met, but it was…”

Another pause. Despite Tom’s resentment, it was actually painful for him to see Hallie struggle like that. He took a sip of his wine; very nice, not expensive but good vintage, whispered his restaurant-trained mind.

“Christ, Hallie, you look like you’re going to confess a crime”, he blurted. “I don’t mind hiring felons, you know. One of our line cooks stole a car when he was sixteen, and that didn’t keep me from giving him a job.”

“No, it’s not that.” Hallie blushed and started pacing up and down the room. “It’s just… a long story.”

“I have all the time in the world. Or at least until I have to open the restaurant tomorrow.”

She took a deep breath and almost emptied her glass of wine. “Okay. As you know, my family moved from here to California when I was a toddler. My Dad owned a small agricultural supplies company, that now belongs to my older brother. Eight years ago, I was starting my second year at UCLA, when–”

“Mommy, can you come say goodnight to Stuart?”

There was a boy standing at the door; a sleepy little boy with blond straw-like hair, wearing a Lighting McQueen pyjamas, and holding a Minion plush almost as big as him. With the corner of his eye, Tom looked at Hallie. She was paralyzed, all the blood having escaped from her face, so he tried to react in the less awkward way he could think of.

“Hello, mate! I’m Tom.” He extended a hand towards the kid, who shook it with enthusiasm.

“Hi Tom, I’m Max. Hey, my best friend at school also calls me mate! Is it an England thing?”

“You’re absolutely right, it’s an England thing”, Tom said with a very serious face. “It’s what we call our best friends here.”

“Are you Mom’s chef boss? She says you make the best food in the world!”

Hallie finally came out of her stupor with a shy laugh. She crouched beside the boy and hugged him.

“Oh, Max… What are you doing up, pumpkin?”

“I heard the door and I wanted to say goodnight. Is it very late?”

“Very very late. All the other children in London are in bed, you’re the only one awake. Aren’t you sleepy?”

“Yes…” as if choreographed, a giant yawn followed the word. “Yes, I think I’m going back to bed now. Goodnight, Chef Tom.”

“Goodnight, buddy.”

Hallie picked up the dozing child with one arm and Stuart the minion with the other. “I’ll be right back”, she said before disappearing into one of the doors.

During the following moments Tom sat motionless, in complete silence, listening to the distant sound of two voices wishing sweet dreams to each other. When Hallie reappeared he pretended to concentrate in his glass of Sauvignon Blanc, still full.

She sat down on the couch beside him, but not too close.

“Well, I guess the explanation I was giving you is kind of moot now. As you may have guessed, Max is my son… And he’s the reason why I’ve been hiding things and acting strangely. Part of the reason, at least.”

A light went up in Tom’s mind. “Hallie, are you trying to tell me that you’re married?”

“Of course not! I would never have gone out to dinner with you if I was married.”

“Trouble with your ex?”

“I don’t have an ex”, she said in a low, breathy voice. “I’ve never been married, Tom.”

Tom closed his eyes, took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. When he opened his eyes again, the black cloud that loomed over him had started to dissipate.

“So… this was your terrible, horrible secret? Many single people have children. And I’m sure Max a handful, but… I like kids. You didn’t have to hide that from me.”

“I was scared.” Hallie reached for the bottle of wine, but Tom was faster; he grabbed it first and poured her another glass. “Thanks.”

“Scared of me finding out about Max? I already told you, there’s no reason–”

She placed her hand over Tom’s for a moment and then drew it back, as if his skin had burned her.

“Tom, this isn’t easy for me. I really need you to listen without saying anything for a couple of minutes, because I’m not used to talking about… personal things. Not with anyone outside my family or my closest friends, who are all girls.”

“I’m listening”, he said in the most reassuring tone he could manage.

Hallie repositioned herself on the sofa a couple of times, looking alternatively at Tom and at the wall in front of her.

“Max’s father… Dave… was my first serious boyfriend. We started dating on the last year of High School, and we weren’t sure what to do with the relationship after that… but then we both ended up in UCLA, so things went on.” She seemed to relax a little, and took off her shoes. “College was a lot of fun at first. I had a lot of friends, a popular boyfriend, I was in a sorority… I was going to get my BA in World Arts and Culture, and I loved it. I guess I wasn’t the most brilliant student, but I did well enough in class. And then, just at the start of my sophomore year… I found out I was pregnant.”

“Did you have a fight? Did he leave you?” Tom blurted without thinking. “Sorry, I just… sorry. No more interruptions.”

“No, he didn’t leave me”, she continued in a soft, sad voice. “He said he would do the right thing… his parents were very religious. Episcopalian. And as soon as they knew what happened they started planning our wedding. Quickly, before it started to show, because… you know. The scandal.”

She left the empty glass of wine aside, and held her knees to her chest.  

“My parents told us to wait, to be sure of our decision, to see what happened with the way Dave and I felt about everything after the baby had been born. Mom was very insistent about that, she said we were too young and life was too complicated to throw our education aside and start playing house. But Dave’s parents wouldn’t even hear about that, and we were in love… or, at least, the kind of love you’re in when you’re nineteen and you haven’t experienced real life before. Dave started to work with his father at a real estate company; he came to see me every morning before going to work. My future mother-in-law let me borrow her wedding dress. She arranged all of it: the church, the flowers, the music… I don’t remember much of the preparations, everybody told me I had to rest and take care of the baby so I wasn’t allowed to help much.”

Hallie’s gaze was fixed on the wall now, and her voice was almost inaudible.

Tom opened his mouth to speak again and then he remembered in the nick of time that he wasn’t supposed to; he stopped fidgeting with his wine glass and moved his hand towards Hallie, just up to the point where only one of his fingers was touching one of hers. She looked at him again with a sad smile.

“Two weeks before the wedding I had my bachelorette party. Nothing crazy, not in my state, just me and a few friends. My Mom had the idea of making it British themed, and we had this afternoon party with tea and crumpets, and little Union Flags on the tables, all very Victorian; all my friends loved it.” She ran a hand through her hair, undoing several strands of her already messy ponytail. “Dave and his friends went out, of course. To a… a strip club. Everybody knew they were going there, after all it was his bachelor party. They spent the night dancing with the girls there… and drinking.”

A light went off in Tom’s head. He saw the painful truth coming from afar, digging its way out of Hallie’s memories before showing its ugly face in the present.

“They waited until I woke up the next day, because they didn’t want me to get upset at five in the morning. I remember my parents coming to my room… it’s strange, the things one remembers. My Mom had a cup of tea in her hands, a porcelain cup with pink flowers painted on it. And Dad hadn’t shaved. He was such a proper gentleman, I knew something was wrong the moment I saw he hadn’t shaved. But I don’t remember which one of them said that there had been an accident, that Dave wasn’t coming to see me that morning… that Dave was dead.”

Tom had heard enough. He crossed the small distance between him and Hallie and held her hand, delicately. He looked at her face expecting tears, but her eyes were dry.

“I’m sure you loved him very much.”

“I was completely infatuated with him, and losing him was the worst thing that had happened in my life. Suddenly I was a college drop-out, alone, terrified of giving birth, afraid of raising a baby without a father… I think I managed to survive that year thanks to my parents. I don’t know what I’d have done without them.” She looked at Tom again, at his clear blue eyes and his worried gaze. “I’ve been awkward around men since then. We should have had this conversation before our date, Tom, and I’m so sorry I freaked out. I was so scared!”

“Of me finding out about Max?”

“Not only that. I already told you Max’s father was my first boyfriend. Then after him I had a small baby and of course I couldn’t go around dating. When Max was four my Dad got sick… when he died, I had to lend a hand in the family business and I didn’t have a lot of time for anything. And then I had the silly idea of going on Masterchef, and with all the fuss of the contest, the win, the promotion, the cookbook…”

“Yes?”

“Tom, what I’m trying to tell you is that you’re the first man I’ve dated in eight years. Which, counting Max’s father, makes you the second guy I’ve dated in my whole life.”

Tom froze for a moment, and then hid his face in his hands. “Oh, bollocks. I scared you.”

“Just a little.”

“I’m a sodding brute.”

“No! You were just… Enthusiastic, I guess. And I was too confused to tell you that I needed to go a little slower.”

He nodded in silence and wrapped his hand around hers. They sat like that for a moment, until a sudden noise coming from the kitchen made them jump.

“Do you think your mother’s listening?”

“Of course she’s listening! She’s been in there for fifteen minutes. How long does it take to make a cup of tea?” Hallie laughed. “Mom, please come out and stop eavesdropping!”

Lorraine came out of the kitchen, holding a nearly empty cup of tea and a sugar biscuit. “Well, did you fix it?” she asked, staring intently at Tom and Hallie.

“Yes, ma'am. All fixed.”

“Good. I was getting bored to death in there, but I didn’t want to interrupt your little conversation. And now that I’m sure there won’t be another World War in my living room, this old lady needs to go to bed.” She finished the biscuit, left the cup on the table and hugged her daughter. “Sleep well, cupcake. Goodnight, Chef Hiddleston.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Harrison. Pleased to meet you.”

After Lorraine left they both stood in the middle of the living room, too tired to say anything, until Tom reacted.

“I don’t mean to sound rude, but you’re going to fall asleep standing up.”

Hallie offered him a tired smile. “Well, it has been a tough day. For both of us.”

Tom threw his arms around her, enclosing her in a tight embrace. “As much as I like doing this, I really need to go and let you sleep. Or tomorrow we’ll fall asleep in the kitchen.”

“And Luke will scream at us.”

“Luke was very close to having an aneurysm this morning…” Tom observed. “I think I owe him an apology. And another one to you, for behaving like an arse all day. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s fine, Tom. I’m sorry too, for not being honest with you earlier. I promise, no more hiding things.”

“And I promise to take things slow. I’m also out of practice doing that, so we can find our ideal speed together”, he said with a wink.

“I like the sound of that”, Hallie answered. “I guess for tonight we can start with something small. Like… one kiss?”

“Only one, Chef Harrison? It will have to be one hell of a kiss.”

“That’s up to you, Chef Hiddleston. Remember that I’m a silly sorority girl with only one boyfriend on my record who knows absolutely nothing about these things.”

Tom entwined one of his hands in Hallie’s hair, slowly stroking her cheek with his thumb. She smelled like red wine and powdered sugar.

“You keep getting it wrong, Chef Harrison. Wrong in two counts.” His breath ghosted on her cheek, and she shivered. “Number one, you’re not a silly girl. I don’t think you’ve ever been a silly girl.”

He pulled her even closer to him and brushed his lips with hers, slowly, giving her space to respond. And she did, leaning eagerly into him and into the caress of his mouth.

“And… and number two?” she said, feebly, once the kiss was over.

“Well… I think your count of boyfriends has gone up. By one.”

[curiouskarenscapers2017]

Vol.9 April 2005

    So off we went. Woke up at 4:45am had a shower and got ready. Way too excited! We went downstairs to wait for our taxi and Kim to wake up. They arrived at about 5:45 and we got to the train station around 6:00am We got our tickets which were around NT 793. Myself and Melissa did not get allocated seats and would have to stand or sit where we get a gap, realizing that the seats were already allocated. Not a problem, as they get on the train we get up and move to another empty seat. Our first hour and a half we had seats and the next hour or so we had to stand, not too bad as we were chatting away. We met up with Alicia at the Tainan station and the train got a bit busy. Kim got tired of sitting and asked one of us to sit in her seat while she gets up a bit and chats to Alicia, I took it and napped a bit and they all got seats with the next stop. We eventually arrived at Taitung station around 12:00am and was about to walk to the hostel which was nearby according to the map, but was helped by a young Chinese girl and a taxi driver dropped us off on the other side of the city! According to the map the hostel was near the old station, which wasn’t in use any more! Thanks for letting us know. Anyway, only NT100 later he dropped us off at Gringo hostel, bar and restaurant. It was closed up with no one in sight. We called the numbers and had no reply until somebody finally answered the phone. They were on their way to open up. It said on a notice on the door the place operates from 11am to 11pm….yeah right….12:30? It’s a coastal resort, they’re laid back! Very!!

  Anyway, a blond red faced guy and a Chinese girl stopped in a car while we were standing outside and she apologized profusely while opening the roll up garage type door that revealed a cozy setting of couches, dark wood floors and classic style furniture. Very nice! We sorted out our rooms and were allocated 302 and 301. Kim and Alicia were planning on staying for two days and us only one. We had to wait while the same girl, Coco, cleaned the room as well. We settled and decided on our next move which was eating! We were all starving! We went downstairs and ordered margaritas and some nacho’s and Mexican tortillas and synchrodillas..or something. Very tasty when they finally arrived as Coco was also the chef and the barmaid….surprise! We then decided to go for a stroll to find the seashore bike trail and hire some bikes. We ended up strolling and exploring the beach.

    The weather was cloudy and a tad drizzly but it didn’t stop us from exploring. We arrived at the beach and walked to the top of a grass rise and saw the ocean in all it’s glory! The sky was different shades of gray as well as the sand and stones on the beach. The whole of Taiwan is volcanic in origin and so has mainly gray pebble beaches with a few brown sand beaches in Kenting(South) and a few other scattered places. We had a few crazy poses on a huge wall that separated the beach from the grass and a group of Chinese boys tried to gather enough courage to offer to take the pictures for us. One poor boy of about 16 or so was ragged by his friends for offering to take a picture of us on the wall. Then they all wanted to take photo’s of us…I obviously asked for payment in return!

  I jumped over the wall which had huge step like concrete sections down to the sand. Many “dolosse” lined the beach and the pebbles were huge! Here and there was a section of normal looking sand, although it was gray and then smaller pebbles appeared until you finally got to the waters edge. I was in it in a flash. The water was warm and clear. Somehow the beach looked dirty! I think I am too used to a white or light beach to appreciate a gray one much. It is definitely beautiful in it’s own way. I collected some pebbles in stead of sea shells and we walked back to follow a path further down the beach. We came to an arty park where there were some native hakka statues and some modern art scattered all over the park.

  A huge frame angled into the ground caught my fancy and we all posed a few times in funny poses before moving on to a weird looking wave staircase. We got Kim to pose on this one. Then we walked by a small caravan coffee shop and decided to sit and have a cupper. They were so friendly and inquisitive. Eventually we were posing with the wife and the husband. The little caravan was very neatly organized and many pictures of white or golden Labradors were on it and we found out that it was their eleven dogs. Too beautiful and cute. So after waving goodbye we hurried on our exploration path as the weather was changing and we could see the storm coming in over the sea. We finally got the bike trail and a small suspension bridge over a river mouth. The girls posed and we made our way back to the hostel.

  We passed so many shops along the side that we decided to come back after we freshen up in our rooms. We all felt like some KFC for dinner and at about 6:00pm went for a shopping walk and dinner. We lay around Kim and Alicia’s room getting ready for our party at a club called Amigo’s that was advertised in the Gringo’s. Made sense. And at about 9:45 we went to find it. We also read that if we get there before 10pm we get free entry…important fact for me at this stage as I was on a tight budget! Anyway we got to where it said it was and it wasn’t there! It had moved! Thanks again guys! Luckily not far from the hostel or the old location. We just backtracked and found it, it also changed it’s name to Who’s. Very cool and decorated in a very up market style. Could do well in Jo’burg. Small but effective use of space. Quite new and a stunning dance floor with state of the art lighting and a lazer show. The bar was not very well organized but then the place never got busy until after about 1am. We got there and were the only other people there except for a guy and a girl. It was cool though, we got to know the manager and chatted away until about 11:00 when they said two DJ’s from Taipei was coming in to play for their promotional evening. We kept on thinking that there must be a party somewhere else because the place just never got full or even busy. The DJ’s were cool and as usual we opened the dance floor and were the only people dancing until two small groups of Chinese people joined in. But by joined in, I mean joined our circle….maybe it was the way we were carrying on, we were going wild as usual, I should add, and the next minute we were surrounded by happy people also going crazy…sooo cool! The outfits these people wear out to clubs! Interesting is all I’ll say. It is a coastal town anyway so that explains a glittering skirt with slops and a track suit top. No worries if you’re having a good time! We were shoeless at one stage after trying to get a drink in side ways, when we were abducted by some in the group and dragged back to the dance floor. We met and got to play some games with a Chinese guy called Russel, Jack and their friend Baby. They played a dice game that involved 5 dice. The one who can throw the most double numbers won. So everybody has a go and if you could get two doubles in a through the others had to drink. Cool game, I did well, but a bit unfair as everybody else was drinking! Anyway we were on the dance floor soon afterwards and danced up a storm.

 We met a Canadian guy that was there on holiday and he told us about his teaching in the Kaohsiung area, pronounced “Gowshung”. I have no idea why we’re are still at our school! The lowest salary he has ever heard of was a hundred more than we are getting, with holidays and they pay you for attending a half hour meeting once every month. We get paid peanuts and work up to 70 hours a month for free for the school with no teacher’s appreciation and that includes two meetings a week at our cost (in time)!. They don’t work on weekends! Another shocker! Why do we put up with our school? Okay, I feel much better now!!! Enough of work!

 Anyway, the party carried on and the place filled up a bit but we were still about the only ones on the dance floor, probably unwittingly the organized entertainment. At about 12:30 they had an amazing laser show! Too cool! I was mesmerized! We eventually left at about 2:30 with Collin, the Canadian guy, myself and Alicia walking back to the hostel. He invited us to go snorkeling with them tomorrow. We’ll see! We have to make some plans. Kim had left a bit earlier as she only got to bed the previous morning at about 1:30. They decided to go to Green Island the next morning, being picked up and taken to a ferry which will take them to Green Island in about 40min and spending two nights at the same place Ryno went to a while back. The guy they organized through is called Eddie, a South African guy. We’ll go someday, when the money is flowing a bit stronger.

   We decided to go to the temple in the hill just down the road and get some “mwatsie” for the girls at the school. It’s a sticky little ball with a red bean, green bean or sesame filling. We found out about a bus to Kaohsiung as there wasn’t that much to see in this town that doesn’t involve driving out the town. But we decided to go back to the hostel gather our things and get a taxi to the train station and take a train there. Easier. We got back at about 12:30 and they were still closed. We got our stuff and hailed a taxi and off we went. We got to the train station and were just in time for the next train, it was meant to be. We had 10min to catch the train. We got seats as well! We got to Kaohsiung and booked our ticket to Changhua before leaving the station on an expedition.

  No seats available for the 2hour trip, no hassles. We arrived at Kaohsiung at about 5:00pm. Organised a locker for our luggage and off we went exploring. We went to the bus station outside the train station and asked them how do we get to the harbour. The next minute they ushered us into an empty bus the guy went to start and the next minute some people joined us and off we went. Along the way we picked up an old guy with a cute round friendly face and he could speak English. We got talking. At our next stop we had crossed the river and we got off to explore the riverside a bit. It was beautiful. A really beautiful city, a mix between Taipei(the capital) and Taichung (the town down the road from us). The river is called the Lovers river in memory of a legend of a couple that died there. We walked along the river through a park with so many people and dogs and kids enjoying their Sunday afternoon in the park. We passed a film library, that would be interesting to explore sometime. We’ll be back.

 We followed our map and went down some funny siffy looking streets and started thinking we weren’t in the right place. I suppose any harbour has it’s greasy sections. We took a left at some stage and found we were finally back on track as we saw the Art Pier 2. There was a cool looking pub on the side of the road with people lining up for something. It was called the Ice Pub and from the glimpse we got inside the marquee it looked like it was done up as a ice cave. Cool! We unfortunately did not have a lot of time to explore as our train back was at 7:45pm. Melissa suggested we take a short cut to the Seaview Pavilion and we followed the traintracks until we got to the Kaohsiung Port. This reminded me so much of Durban’s waterfront. And the name of their complex? “Fisherman’s wharf”. Nearly identical to Durban’s layout. Watching the ships go by. There were many people and we got some dinner at the Pasta pot, which was part of a large food court. Many trendy looking pubs and restaurants on the outside. Very nicely and neatly done. It put me in a reminiscing mood. It felt like home!

  We walked on and got a taxi to take us back to the station at about 7:00pm. The taxi driver was very friendly and first tried to drop us off at a hotel that sounded like train station in Chinese…we obviously said it wrong! Luckily in the same direction as the station. The doorman explained to him it was the train station we wanted to be taken too and the driver nodded and smiled his red stained beetle juice teeth at us, showing he understood. It was quiet in the car and we could hear his chewing the nuts and spitting them out into a small bag…I nearly died! Melissa was sitting right next to him so it must have been even worse for her. He kept on replacing whatever he spat out. His mouth corners were red from the juice and his teeth, you don’t want to know about! We finally got to the station with enough time to get our bags and take a leisurely stroll to the platform, which turned out to be the wrong one, but we had enough time to walk to the next one without running our legs off. We managed to sit for quite some of the way but this section is much busier that the other coast. So our last half hour we stood. We arrived in Changhua at about 10:00pm got a taxi, got home and went straight to bed! I had an easy morning the following morning and could sleep late. Which I did! At about 12:00 I woke up and got ready for school. Tuesday is a holiday so Monday was just a reminder of what we were getting back to. 

Tuesday was tomb sweeping day. A day when each family goes to where their ancestors are buried and cleans it up, cuts the grass, trims the bushes and burn money. They then place some paper money on the tomb stone with stones to keep it from blowing away. They bring snacks and candy and eat it there before leaving. They spend about an hour there. The burning of money happens every so often as an offering to their gods to pay for their sins. This as you can imagine, pollutes the air something terrible. And a gray smog can be seen the next day. According to their air quality chart in the news paper Kaoshiung has the most polluted air. Taichung and Taipei are even, in just under “unhealthy” and Ilan and Hualien on the north eastern coast, the best air. They measure it in something I can’t make out but it ranges from 0 – 125. We are in the 50 – 75 range and Kaohsiung past 75. I’ll find out.  

Payday is coming! So the next few days obviously things happen and nobody has money. We had a braai on Saturday after a half day at the school with pre tests for the kids to do their Style Jet official testing later. Just to prepare them for the test more than anything. Next weekend will be the same. 

The school has now gone on a rampage with observing our classes, filming it and doing a reading competition in between! Hectic! We don’t have a chance! I think I’m being video taped over 11 times during the next 3 weeks! I’m famous!!! “Handtekeninge later”. So now they get training material and promotional material out of us for free! What a rip off, I want my money back! 

Anyway, you can obviously tell my 1 year expiry date is drawing near…. 

We had a course in “how to make rice dumplings” a famous food for Taiwan and Changhua specifically. The country has many towns that are famous for a specific food type. 

Anyway we went to visit a friend just down the road and she showed us how. They get the dough in a small circle ready made and powdered, feels like a soft plastic. The filling you make of minced pork and  dried garlic and cabbage. The cabbage and garlic you can dry out in the sun on a tray, the reasoning behind this is that if you put normal fresh cabbage in the dough it goes soggy…so you mix this all together with some ginger and voila the filling is ready. You take your circle of dough place a teaspoon of filling in the middle, fold it half and squash the edges together in a fan style. That’s it. Ready for the boiling water on the stove. You dump the in there and wait about 5 minutes and take them out….perfect! You can make any type of filling and my mind was already thinking of different fillings I can put in there, may be a breakfast dumpling will be good, egg, bacon and mushroom and cheese mix….yes!!!!! Anyway may be a boerewors or potjie filling….okay! I’m getting carried away…stop it! We had lunch and went through all her traveling photo’s. She teached Chinese in Costa Rica for 2 years and had traveled all over South America…stunning! I have to go there some time. So a Sunday afternoon with dumplings, orange juice, photo’s and good company! What a way to spend the day.

 The weekend crawled closer and we got on with a lazy disposition. We decided that Sunday would be our Lukang walking around day. Ryno said he hadn’t been yet and wanted to go. So at about 11am on Sunday we got to the bus station and got on our bus. 20min later we were in the hustle and bustle of Lukang in full swing. It had been a religious week so far, as it was Matsu’s birthday, one of their main gods. We showed Ryno our favourite shops and entered the arch just as the cacophony of music approached us.

 What a rush of adrenaline to see a parade like this in full costume and bright colours. Cymbals clashed as a group of men carried a litter with incense smoking from within. Bouncing lightly on their feet with a dark wood carved litter on their shoulders and shaking it violently from side to side. Huge brightly coloured figures marched regally past with glittering gold and silver costumes. The flat wine of their traditional pipes filled the streets as people took pictures and stared to look. These sounded much like bagpipes but the difference came in when the huge red drums being beaten by very competent drummers, flicking the short baton looking sticks nimbly between their fingers, appeared behind them. The rush of new knowledge is overwhelming and I was awestruck and was once again drawn and beaconed to follow. I ran ahead to get better photo’s of the amazingly well painted faces but they all had a small feathered fan that they held before their faces as you tried to take their pictures. They believe that the camera will cause something to happen to the spirits and maybe set them free to roam. The fan is a symbol of separation and in a wedding the bride throws a fan out the car window to reinforce their union.

    Many followers were carrying small statues of their gods covered in yellow silk sashes with red writing and people in between were burning incense while the drums kept a rapid heart beat. The huge 8ft figures past by silently batting their huge wide eyes and showing off their exquisitely made costumes. We moved further down the walk way and came to the temple where the ceremony was originating. Many people were gathered around the main ceremony area in the centre court of the temple. The painted face monsters with their protruding teeth were there as well with the huge figures of different gods performing a dance as they fell in line to start their procession from the temple. Crackers pierced the air and the smell of sulphur, crackers and incense mingled into a heady perfume enfolding all the onlookers.

We bought some traditional pastry, called cow’s tongue. Basically a “nayoshuping” butter pastry but smaller and in the shape of a cow’s tongue. They come in three colours now, a plain, purple(taro) and pink(strawberry). Very good. I’ll send a food package home soon! The walk way was alive with people and stuffed with new gifts and goods for their festive season. The little dragon puppets are amazing and I’m seriously thinking of getting a few. They reminded me of a huge puppet on strings I used to have, a big bird with big eyes and feathers. I loved it. These little dragons are about the size of a small foxy with big eyes, a moving mouth and little bells in between the furry bits and sequence, all the colours of the rainbow. It costs only NT300 which is just less than R50. Too beautiful.

The vibrant colours even on our grey drizzly day gave the market a festive atmosphere and people were in good spirits….as usual. Thousands of lanterns lined the streets between shops and department stores always giving Lukang a festive feel. Alive and pulsating. 

Suddenly the knowledge of going home makes me appreciate everything more than before. More like the first time I’ve seen them. I look at things as if it’s the last time I might see them. Suddenly I don’t have enough time and money again. Story of my life but the experiences, that’s what makes life worth living! This I write with “the Police” singing “Every breath you take” in my ears and watching the people pass by as I ride in the bus. Weird how music takes you to a place outside of the real world and let you look in. Like your own life soundtrack! Cool! People on scooters, kids n the school clothes riding their bikes home, rice paddies in between the buildings with the glimmer of an afternoon sun on the water. An old man smoking on the sidewalk, the smell of burning incense, two old ladies helping each other over the road, Chinese writing all over, and sidewalk vendors shouting their specials. The sun red in the smog of late afternoon. A banner with the words Washingwon D.C advertising a new complex to be built. No, it’s not a spelling mistake on my side! Taiwan are full of these gems. Any greeting card you pick up will have a weird ensemble of sentences lashed together making no sense whatsoever.

And so the month came to an end and we went to see Sahara at the Taiwan Hotel Cinema. Excellent movie….as usual…I only go to see excellent movies! Anyway I was in ecstasy when I found out Star Wars starts on the 5/20 and Kingdom of Heaven starts on the 5/6..can’t wait, luckily we got some coupons on our way out so I can see 3 movies at NT100 each instead of NT220(+- R44). Did I mention this before? Where is my discovery movie card now!!!!! We visited the internet café as well, hoping to hear something about my next job adventure but to no avail! Maybe next week!!!

Taiwan Times Vol 9 Vol.9 April 2005     So off we went. Woke up at 4:45am had a shower and got ready.

[table-talker-blog]

Drinking and Not Eating in Adelaide: The Crisis of the Outshone City

I’m a hospitality guy. I am in love with my job and my industry. Being able to have fun while I work and share my passion for great booze with strangers is what I live for. Working at Biggies at Bertram has been the great experience of my life so far. I’ve met new and interesting people, some who I now call some of my dearest friends, all from working behind the bar. And after spending this past year travelling the country, enjoying amazing food and booze, partying with fresh faces, I can’t help but notice this gaping hole in Adelaide’s dining/nightlife culture.

First off the bat: this is not a skewering of Adelaide; I adore this town. Is there fantastic places to go eat and drink? Absolutely, some of the finest bars and restaurants in the country are on our doorstep (and of course it doesn’t hurt that if you call yourself an “Adelaidian”, you’re about 20 minutes from some of the best wine and produce in the world). Hains & Co., Pink Moon Saloon, The Wheatsheaf and NOLA are some of the great watering holes in Australia. Without a doubt eating at Africola on my father’s birthday was the best dining experience i’ve had in recent memory. There are plenty of great little pubs around town to sit back and sink pint after pint of Coopers Pale. Billy Bob’s BBQ jam at The Grace Emily is the best thing you can do on a Monday night, one of the best things you can do all week even. Wednesday night beers at the beloved Crown & Anchor (long live the Cranka) is a time honoured tradition. I’ve had too many (a.k.a not enough) knock-offs turned club nights at The Exeter Hotel. And my own haunt Biggies is the best place in town you can have a pretentious free boogie whilst enjoying some of South Australia’s best beer and wine. There is certainly no lack in the quality of our bar and restaurant scene. Quantity is another thing entirely.

It’s amazing in Melbourne and Sydney how easy it is to find a phenomenal place to drink or eat without even trying. You can walk down a street in St. Kilda on a Monday night and drink have cocktails until 1am, on a public holiday even! After a recent trip to Melbourne with some friends, walking down Chapel St. on the New Years Day public holiday, we were able to enjoy some amazing craft beer at The Local Taphouse, and then stumbled on Holy Grail, a fantastic little cocktail haunt, and were able to drink until it struck 1am and had to close up shop (shout outs to the bartender who let us close up with him and hang around to 3:30am though). In Adelaide, the streets would be completely empty, and for us hospo folk, the venues that stay open (pokies rooms and casino’s excluded) are look upon like Gods. Even food! Whilst at Holy Grail, we asked where we could get some food at that hour, and the barman just pointed out the door to a great pizza spot. The same thing happened 2 nights later at The Rook’s Return, great pizza just across the road (okay, we like pizza when we’re drinking, sue us). In Adelaide, it’s a scavenger hunt to find great pizza. You know your nearest pizza spot sucks. We’ve got very few and far between great local watering holes if you live outside the CBD, only pubs and pokies rooms with all your favourite lagers on tap. Again, nothing wrong with a pub and a pokies room, i’ll sit and drink beers in a pokies room bar till the day I die, but you can’t deny Melbourne has got us beat in the outer suburbs. Not a TKO, a full first round knock-out loss. As far as our restaurants go, Sydney wipes the floor with us just the same. To every really great restaurant in Adelaide, there is probably 10 of the same caliber in Sydney. From the upper echelon of places like Quay and Sepia, to the fringe, casual but experimental joints like ACME and 10 William St, there is just an enormous bag of brilliant places to go eat. You look at the most recent Top 100 Australian Restaurants list, it is littered with Victorian and New South Wales restaurants, South Australia’s first placing is at 47 (Africola) with only 5 in total (Orana 48, Peel St. 95, Hentley Farm 96, and Fino 98 rounding us off). And it’s not like Adelaide’s population is too small, it’s about 1.2 million at the moment, and I can’t stress this enough, our produce is incredible! It’s all in our basket, but more often than not, we don’t take the opportunity.

What I really think it stems down to, is that for the most part, the general population are extremely unwilling to go out and spend their money on a great meal, they’d rather stash their pennies and travel. And again, there is nothing wrong with that at all, it’s a fantastic thing to do with your hard earned cash, I do the same thing myself. But when we go and travel, we go out and we eat fantastic food, we drink amazing beer, wine and spirits, and we come home and tell everybody how amazing the food is in such and such is, we document it all on Instagram, and we miss out on the brilliant things going on just around the corner. In contrast, in Melbourne I like to ask the local single 20-somethings how often they go out for a drink or some food. The general response is about 3-4 times a week. For us Adelaide folk, it’s generally once, twice on a good week, only on weekends. There is very little of a midweek night out if you work the traditional 9-5 hours, the city generally teems with hospo folk. Maybe the binge drinking culture is a bit more prevalent in Adelaide. There has always been the culture of rocking up to a venue and asking “what’s the cheapest drink?” so you can smash back as many as you can. There’s a time and a place for that, and for us Adelaide heads, that means Saturday, when we don’t have to go to work the next day. Having a few glasses of wine with an amazing meal is an underrated experience in this town. Adelaidians are very unwilling to part with their cash if they’re not drunk by the end of it.

What I think contributes to this is the lack of understanding of why it costs to go out, and an under appreciation of hospitality workers. When you ask why it costs $20 for your breakfast and a coffee, you’re forgetting about the cook who made it, and the barista who enables your caffeine addiction. The food and drink in front of you is the cheapest part of the transaction, everything else costs far more than some smashed avocado and eggs on toast, you’re paying for someone to make it for you, and better. What i’ve noticed more in Melbourne and Sydney, is a higher amount of respect and admiration for a hospitality professional. There is an understanding that they are good at what they do and make a mighty fine cocktail. They know they put up with a lot of slack. They know without them, they would have a far less vibrant and fun city. They know they are the people that make their lives better. Of course there are people in Adelaide that understand this plight, but the next time you complain it being $9 for a pint of beer, you can go to the bottle shop down the road, buy a carton cheaper, go home, hang out with the same group of friends you’ve known since high school, get pissed, make yourself steak and veg for dinner and complain about being bored, then you might understand what you’re paying for.

I’m now at the age where a large portion of my friends are now moving to Melbourne, and i’d be lying if i haven’t had the same fantasy. Every time I visit I say I will move. But then I get back home and I see the potential of this city, and all I want to do is be a part of the collective of people who could make this city into a new tourist destination. But every year, I see more and more cool and interesting people with fresh ideas and a brilliant work ethic move to Melbourne. There’s far more opportunities available and there is more money for them, it’s a no brainer. This town has this old white liberal air about it. The State government will quickly spend tax payer money on infrastructure preparing for population development, rather than create ways to increase tourism and coerce people to make the move to South Australia. And look, i get that, infrastructure is an important aspect of how cities progress and makes day to day living more comfortable and easy (side note: Melbourne is again far superior in this aspect. But we’ve got Sydney covered no worries). But comfortable and easy is not on the radar of an under 30 year old, career opportunities and things to do are their priorities, and that demographic, the young people with bright minds are how Adelaide as a city is going to move forward, rather than making the people who are moving towards retirement more comfortable. It’s why people make fun of this city, using phrases like “Great place to raise your kids” and follow it up with “I went to Adelaide once. It was closed”. But then I look at Duncan Welgemoed. He’s a chef from South Africa who has worked at The Fat Duck under Heston Blumenthal and at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay. But he’s made Adelaide his home, winning Chef of the Year at Bistro Dom in 2013, and opening the oft mentioned in this piece Africola. He’s been one of these people who has made this town more vibrant and exciting, but he also moved here with his wife to start a family. But he opened an amazing restaurant, using the phenomenal produce that is around us, and has been reaping the rewards ever since. Unfortunately the youth of this town aren’t doing the same kind of thing.

In saying all this, I have to concede that we are getting better. I remember the days when Peel Street was a dank alleyway of our infamous nightclub strip Hindley Street. Now it is occupied by brilliant bars like Clever Little Tailor and Maybe Mae, and fantastic restaurants like Gondola Gondola and Peel St. It’s teeming with the kind of people that need to stick around. And I can’t stress this point enough: Mad March in Adelaide, with the Fringe and the Adelaide Festival going on, during that time of year, Adelaide is the greatest city in this country hands down. But around the country, there are cities that can keep that kind of vibrance pumping all year round. Being a part of Biggies of Bertram, I feel like one of those people who have added something to the city, and I think there are better days for Adelaide yet. There is a wealth of under utilised opportunities. But i’m holding on to the hope that this will happen before all my friends and people I admire ex-communicate to Melbourne. So for those of you playing at home in Adelaide: go out and eat, it’s only money. Drink less and drink better. Respect your hospitality workers, it’s not advisable to piss off the people making your coffee/food/drink. Make this city as fun as it could be. Give back and send forth positivity.

But at least we can get a beer at 2am. Sorry Sydney.

[weeklyrapgods-blog]

As a person who breaks music down in every aspect from lyrics, to delivery, beats, right down to the themes, I appreciate quality production. For the past year or so, Futurewave has been someone I rock with heavily. His intricate attention to detail, his dark, gritty sound, plus the dedication of hard work as both a producer and engineer is truly amazing. Futurewave is authentic, and is very involved in every aspect right down to the final details of the mixing and mastering of any project he touches. With that being said, I tracked him down for an interview so that people can get to know more about the man behind some of the top projects coming out of Toronto.

INTERVIEW

It’s been a great, successful year for you. You produced ‘Pressure Cooker’ with Daniel Son, ‘Physics of Filth’ with both Daniel and Asun Eastwood, along with your own ‘Wav.God’ project. How did you and Daniel first end up connecting? Were you guys introduced through someone else? Who reached out first?

I ended up connecting with DS through Asun. When Asun sent me his verse for Summer’s F*ckin’ Over, I recommended getting a second verse on it and he suggested DS. First time I met with Son was at the Summer’s F*ckin’ Over video shoot. Actually that was the first time I connected with all those brothers in person, Asun, Daniel Son and Mercenary. That was a legendary video shoot. From that moment we started connecting on the regular, now all of those guys are my bros. It’s crazy how life works.

Physics of Filth

Pressure Cooker

You have a very diverse roster of emcees for ‘Wav.God’. What was the process to getting this lineup on board? Did you already know who you wanted to work with?

Wav.God was supposed to be an instrumental album with just a few full tracks that I collected. But after linking with Bozack and doing a few songs with Asun and DS, I decided to make it into an album. I reached out to Nowaah the Flood, J Scienide and Flashius Clayton for some verses to complete it. But to be honest, not too much thought went into it, I just wanted to finally have something of my own to put out to the people. It’s a blessing to get the response and success that I have received off of that project. Also S/O to everybody that participated in the project and Bozack Morris for all the support and guidance he gave me around that time.

I know you have ‘Headcrack’ with Rome Streetz coming soon. Besides your home team, who are you feeling in the current scene that you would like to collaborate with?

There’s a lot of incredible artists in this pocket of Hip Hop, but the 2 guys at the top of my list to build a project with is Eto & CRIMEAPPLE. That doesn’t take away from the others though. For the most part I try to work organically, meet the artist, catch a vibe and see if the vibes click.

Do you tailor your beats for specific artists you work with or do you already have a catalog that you send them and let them choose from?

I want the artist to fit the vibe that I’m bringing to the table, so I’ll send what I have in the catalog, unless we’re together in the studio.

Who came up with the concept for ‘Physics of Filth’? Who brainstormed first and how did you 3 (along with Daniel and Asun) specifically decide to make this project together?

It was something we were discussing during the making of Pressure Cooker. But it was only natural, we were meeting up every weekend, so it was bound to happen.

Asun Eastwood, Futurewave, Daniel Son

What do you find most challenging about your line of work and how do you balance it out with all of your other priorities?

Having a family and 9-5 makes this music shit difficult, but it’s a passion I’ve had from the beginning, it’s second nature to me, my wife knows this and thankfully she supports me as much as she can. But balancing the two is difficult for sure.

How much time do you spend in the studio throughout the week and how do you manage your time?

I usually go to the studio and make beats maybe once or twice a week. I’m not really that guy that makes 10 beats a day, or even 10 beats in week, I do a lot of other things as well. But when I lock in studio time, that’s it. Everything you heard from me in 2018 is new.

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The other night, connecting with Blanxx & Billy Martin

A post shared by futurewave (@futurewave) on Jan 10, 2016 at 8:19am PST

Who are some producers that you look up to or draw inspiration from? Everyone wants to be an individual who creates their own legacy, but are there certain producers that come to mind that you have a lot of respect for in terms of their catalog and/or their work ethics?

There’s a lot of guys that are dope, but Bozack Morris is one I hold high because of his direct influence on me, it’s really him that brought me back into this style of hip hop. He showed me the light.

What key things do you look for when digging for samples?

The vibe that me and the artist is going for at that moment. Usually I take control of the sound but I feed off of peoples’ reaction around me to help guide me where I’m going with the sound. But when it’s just me I go for the grittiest dark vibe I can find lmao.

I know your guys’ sound is a lot different than a lot of the typical scene out there. How do you feel about the current Hip Hop scene in Toronto and does it affect you in any way? Do you pay any attention to what’s going on, or do you stay in your lane and focus on your own craft?

Of course, I have no choice but to pay attention because I’m living in it lol. But the recognition is improving a lot because of the internet. On the ground level there isn’t much of an industry here. For the most part it’s hard to sell anything in Toronto and promoters are only looking for a quick buck. But music wise I’m just doing what I feel.

Futurewave, Daniel Son

Do you have a specific routine whenever you’re at the studio producing and engineering? For instance, is there anything you do religiously to help you get the creative process going?

Not really, it’s more of a vibe thing, there’s no set routine for me. But we gotta have some good food and beers around lmao.

I know you can’t spill the beans too much, but what can we expect from you in 2019? Will you be involved in more full length projects?

I got a full length with Rome Streetz ready to go, and another bomb with Daniel Son just around the corner. There’s a bunch of other projects I’ve started, but I’ll keep those on the hush til closer to the release dates. Just know I’m constantly working.

It’s been nice to see Futurewave’s growth throughout 2018 and that’s only the beginning. While he’s been active musically for years, he’s recently been coming up quickly with the successful string of projects he’s been a part of. Thank you FW for your time, I’ll definitely be here supporting and looking forward to more of your chef ups.

MUSIC

Toronto’s Own Futurewave Is Ahead Of His Time (Interview) As a person who breaks music down in every aspect from lyrics, to delivery, beats, right down to the themes, I appreciate quality production.

[brittanyyoungblog]

OkCupid Profile Examples for Men: Tips & Templates

OkCupid is one of the most popular online dating services out there. If you’re looking for love on the web, OkCupid is probably a good place to start. As soon as you’re set up, all you have to do is get to swiping and messaging and you’ll be good to go right? Well, almost. As with any dating app, your profile is the first thing daters see when they open the app, so you’ve got to make your first impression count.

OkCupid has a more complex profile system that has ten short answer sections. It’s not required to fill them all out, but it’s definitely recommended. And to help you out we’re offering examples and tips for each.

Here are some OkCupid profile examples for men to get your creative juices flowing:

My self-summary I’m a chef by day and actor by night with some time in between for beach bumming. Friends, family, and a cold glass of beer (anything craft) on the weekends are my anchor. Looking for someone who is passionate and hardworking, but knows how to let loose too.

Me, a Haiku I can play all sports and work in advertising, Dinner at seven?

Current goal I’m working to be a doctor. As you’ve probably heard, it’s…hard, and I don’t have that much time to commit to dating right now. That said I’ll be able to save your life one day, so that’s got to be worth something, right?

Tip 1: Who You Are, What You Do, Where to Find You This structure is a great way to summarize yourself in a nutshell. Anyone can learn a lot about you from your likes, your job, and your favorite activities. You can write a  longer answer if you’re looking to come off a bit more serious and short if you want your profile to read quippier.

Tip 2: Burning Desire Turns to Hot Date What’s your passion? What’s your dream job? Are you already doing it? What would you do with a million dollars? These are the things that make you tick and can tell other daters a lot about you. Reach for the stars and then write about it in your bio. Passion is sexy, and everybody likes a dreamer.

I could probably beat you at naming Nicolas Cage movies off the top of my head. When I was in 11th grade, I decided I would watch every movie that he’s been in. I did. Mom wasn’t impressed. Message me if you are!

I love this about myself I haven’t broken a bone in my body. For normal people, that’s a wow. I’m an ex-gymnast and I dance hip-hop, so for me, it’s a miracle. Let’s hope it stays that way *fingers crossed*

My weirdest quirk I can play almost any wind instrument. I started with sax in school and moved out from there. Want Kenny G on flute? I got you. *Disclaimer: Have not yet attempted bagpipes.

Tip 3: I Can, I Am, I’m Not This one is for hobbies, interests, and hidden talents. Whether you can do a mean Larry David impression or like to spend the weekends taking woodshop, this approach let’s you talk about what you like to do for fun. Answers can range from goofy to passionate, but should all show off your personality.

Tip 4: Confident, Quirky, and Flirty Whether it’s singing to your mirror with a hairbrush microphone or putting mustard on your eggs, it’s okay to be a little quirky in your profile as long as it’s you. The person you’re looking for is looking for someone confident in who they are and will find your quirks endearing. Don’t hide what makes you unique. You’ll do better owning it.

A movie I’ve watched over and over and over again Zoolander. Blue Steel, Magnum, La Tigra? It’s like Ben Stiller played three roles in one movie. No one can tell me that he’s not a comic genius! I’m still holding out for good ol’ Ben’s comeback.

The tastiest thing I’ve ever consumed The Impossible Burger, hands down. A meatless burger that tastes like meat is probably the best thing ever. OK, well, that and every ice cream sundae I’ve ever had. How can you beat ice cream?

I value Friendship. My friends are everything to me. They’ve helped me through a lot and that bond is irreplaceable and a whole lot of fun. Friends first, then everything else after.

Tip 5: Rep It Loud, Rep It Proud Got an embarrassing favorite middle school band? We all do. Never miss a Giants game? You’re not alone. We’re an entertainment nation and we connect on our movies, music, books, and sports. Pick your faves and shout it out. This is one of the best ways to find common ground.

Tip 6: What Are You About? No, What Are You Really About? Chances are you value something more than anything. Is it your family? Your faith? Keylime pie? Dealbreakers and dealmakers are real. If you’ve got them, now is the time to let other daters know. Think about what’s important for you and you’ll attract people who feel the same.

The last show I binged Stranger Things! I watched the first two seasons in five days. (Still convinced this is record time.) I’ve had this weird craving for Eggos since…

I should spend less time Working. Certified workaholic here. I love my job, but there’s life outside of work. Right? Right???

On a typical Friday night I am Off to the gym, to the home to freshen up, then to the club. I have a habit of catching Saturday Night Fever a day or two early.

Tip 7: Guilty Pleasures We all have them. From Netflix binges to your favorite conspiracy theory, it’s your hidden loves that make you, you. So celebrate them. People like bonding over vices as much as virtues, and they can make you stand out.

Tip 8: There Aren’t Enough Days in the Weekend Sunday funday versus lazy weekends? How we spend our free time says a lot. So think about it. When the weekend arrives are you out to the movies, the bar, or the gym? There’s no wrong answer here, only your answer.

The most private thing I’m willing to admit I just got out of a breakup, and I’m just getting back out there for the first time in a while. I’m not quite sure what I’m looking for, but drinks, dinner or bowling sound like a good start.

If I were sent to jail, I’d be arrested for asking for too many samples at the ice cream shop. I always end up apologizing to the people behind me in line. “I’m a bad role model, kids. Don’t follow in my footsteps.”

You should message me if You’re looking for something serious. I’ve done the short-term dating thing and no knock on it, but it’s not for me. I’m looking for a genuine connection with someone that thinks it’s okay to (occasionally) eat dinner after midnight. Open to dinner suggestions~

Tip 9: Get Vulnerable It’s great to be fun and carefree, but we all have our feelings, too. Sharing something vulnerable can sometimes be the quickest way to an open heart, so open up. There’s no shame in putting something private out there.

Tip 10: Tell Me What You Want (What You Really, Really Want) If you know what you’re looking for in a relationship, write it in your bio. If you don’t know, well, you can write that too. Honesty is the best policy, and that’s a rule that isn’t changing anytime soon. If you’re straightforward and upfront about what you’re looking for, that’s your best ticket to find it.

These OkCupid profile examples are meant to inspire. Unfortunately, the whole thing isn’t an exact science. It may take some tweaking to get your profile just right. The bright side is that time is on your side.

  If you’re still looking for more inspiration, check out our Pinterest board of online dating profile examples to see more online dating profiles examples for men from different dating sites and apps.

The post OkCupid Profile Examples for Men: Tips & Templates appeared first on The Date Mix.

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