#Ok. Hides. Sits at the bottom of a pool and contemplates I think.

[warmspice]

Feeling like I'm going crazy a bit maybe I need to ummm I don't know usually I go crazy because I haven't talked to people but I think people are causing the crazy now..

[lightsburnbrite]

Things We Do for Love: Part 12

Third Part to Such a Thrill and The Devil is in the Details

Karina was in the process of fixing herself a cup of tea when she heard the signal that someone was at the gate. As soon as she recognized Marius's car on the monitor, Karina pressed the button to allow her brother to enter. While she waited for the car to pull up, Karina contemplated putting the dogs in their bedroom but ultimately decided against it. This was her home and Samantha practically invited herself so she would need to deal with the presence of Karina's dogs.

Opening the front door, Karina welcomed her brother and his fiancé in, directing them to put their bags at the bottom of the stairs. "I'll show you your room in a minute but I'm slow as anything going up and downstairs so you might just want to wait until Leon gets back."

Suddenly Samantha perked up. "Oh, he's not here?"

"He just ran to the store for a minute." Karina did nothing to hide the skepticism in her voice. "He'll be back in a minute."

Marius cleared his throat. "So you've done some redecorating since the last time I was here."

"Yeah, well, I've made things more my style." Karina offered a pleasant smile but Marius knew better.

"Oh! Can we get a tour?" Samantha chimed in, oblivious to Karina's frosty reception to her brother.

Karina smiled again through gritted teeth. "Of course."

Karina turned and gestured to the room they were standing in. She was half tempted to have that be the entirety of the grand tour, but she decided to play nice. "This is the great room, there's a patio right outside with a grill and different seating arrangements but chances are we won't be using that this weekend. The pool and the hot tub are to the right."

Motioning for them to follow her, Karina took a few more steps. "Kitchen and dining room. The pantry and wine closet are those steps."

"Wine closet?" Samantha interrupted. "I like the sounds of that!"

Karina forced a smile again. "Room temperature storage for reds and a temperature-controlled section for whites that are ready to be served. Help yourself to whatever you'd like."

She motioned that they'd be returning to the direction where they first started. "One guest room is down the hall, my office is there as well. Upstairs we have two more guest rooms and mine and Leon's room. Downstairs is the entertainment centers with a bar, pool table, and projector. We can put a movie on later if you want."

Karina was about to take them upstairs when Leon came in carrying a few bags from the market. "Hey, babe. I was showing them around. Do you want to take them around upstairs and I'll get dinner started?" 

"I mean, yeah, I can do that." He went to go put the bags in the kitchen, kissing Karina on the cheek as he passed her. "But I thought we could work on dinner together."

In her periphery, Karina saw Marius roll his eyes. It didn't click into her right away but in hindsight, Karina felt that Marius was jealous. At first, she seriously considered that he was jealous that Karina was getting the majority of Leon's attention and his affection but it wasn't until she spent more time around Marius and Samantha that Karina realized that he didn't seem completely happy with Samantha.

"Do you all really need to fix dinner together?" Marius attempted to deliver his question with some humor but it fell flat.

Leon shrugged. "Maus wanted to fix chicken fricassee and it's a lot of chopping things. It just cuts down on the prep time."

"Why do you keep calling her Maus?" They all turned to see Samantha with an exaggerated look of confusion on her face. "I thought her name was Karina."

"My name is Ekaterina but Marius couldn't say that so my family has always called me Karina instead." This was the first that Leon had heard as to why she went by a nickname instead of her full name and he couldn't help but feel like she was a little resentful about it. "Leon has called me Mausi since we were young, I was small for my age and I liked to annoy my older brother and his friends which included Leon."

Leon laughed. "It was definitely some mutual teasing. We went our separate ways as we got older but reconnected a few years ago and she's always been my Maus."

Samantha frowned slightly before changing the subject. "Oh. That's…sweet. I bet it's beautiful here in the Spring."

"Year-round, actually." Karina smiled but there wasn't any warmth behind it. Leon wanted to laugh because she was really good at pretending to be pleasant when she wanted to be but now she clearly didn't mind Marius and Samantha knowing this was simply a façade for her.

"You guys want to grab your bags so you can put them in your room?" Leon gestured towards their luggage before he moved closer to Karina. "Did you want to come up too?"

Karina shook her head. "I think the girls might like their dinner ow, anyway."

Leon started up the stairs and motioned for the other two to follow them. Once he reached the bridge that overlooked the great room and connected the two wings of the second floor, Leon turned to the left. "There are two rooms on either side, they're both pretty much the same size and both have full baths so I guess whichever one you want."

"I'm not sure how I feel about the guest rooms being all spread out." Samantha sounded concerned now. "How do we choose who we put where?"

Stopping at the end of the hallway which then split off into the different rooms, Leon wanted to say that maybe they should have considered a different option before asking to use their house but instead just smiled. 

"We've always put my parents in the guest room on the first floor and then my sisters with the older kids downstairs, there are a couple of bunk beds setup. My nieces and nephews have always liked staying there."

Leon stood aside and waited while Samantha decided which room they'd be staying in. After settling on the room that faced the mountains, Samantha turned back to Leon. "Can we see that master suite while we're up here?"

He shrugged before walking towards their bedroom. "This is the sitting or dressing area, the balcony opens up when the weather is nicer."

Samantha looked around and walked towards the vanity and trifold floor-length mirror. "This is amazing."

"Um, the bedroom is through here and the bath is to the right." Leon did a quick glance to make sure that nothing inappropriate was left out before stepping further in. "That's about it."

"We passed this on the way here!" Samantha moved closer to the chest where she saw a picture of Leon and Karina standing on the bridge with the Ramsau church behind them. Leon had his arms around Karina's waist while she had wrapped her arms around his neck, holding a bouquet of sunflowers in her right hand while they kissed. "Was this your wedding day?"

Leon glanced around, hoping they'd be ready to leave soon. "That was the church ceremony. We were married for about a year before that. We should be getting back downstairs if we're going to eat anytime tonight."

When they made it down to the main level, Karina was browning the chicken while Elsa and Ember sat at her feet.

"Can you put the dogs away?" Marius had seemed to be on edge ever since they arrived but his irritation with Karina seemed to be growing. "You already know the mutts bother Sam."

Karina frowned. "No. I'm not shutting my dogs away in their own house. You both asked to come here, remember?"

"Anyone want a drink?" Leon interrupted. "Water, wine, hard liquor?"

"Could you get me a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc for the sauce, please?" Karina turned to Leon and smiled, getting a laugh out of him. "Why don't you guys go play Call of Duty or whatever, I'll finish dinner."

Samantha let out a little squeal of excitement and Leon happened to catch Karina's scowl just before she put on a smile. "That's a great idea. We can do some sisterly bonding!"

Leon pressed his lips together so he didn't laugh at her suggestion, he was even slightly disappointed that he wouldn't be there to see Samantha's futile attempts at building a friendship with Karina.

He and Marius went downstairs and set up a quick game of Madden since it wouldn't be too long until their dinner was ready. After about 15 minutes, Samantha wandered downstairs. 

"Ok, I have to ask," Samantha dramatically flopped herself onto the sofa next to Marius. "How are the two of you related? And how are you even married to her? I tried for ten minutes to have a conversation with her and all I could get was one or two word answers."

Marius rolled his eyes. "We've never been even remotely similar. I have no idea what Leon sees in her."

"Haven't we had this conversation before?" Leon laughed as he shook his head. "You've been a dick to her pretty much your entire lives. Your whole family treats her like shit and yet you're surprised when she's suspicious of you? I mean, the only reason you're actually speaking to her again is that you want something from her."

Samantha sat up straighter, smart enough to realize that she had struck a nerve with Leon. "No, I mean…what I was trying to say is-"

"I mean it," Leon shrugged, giving only the slightest of hints as to how fiercely protective he had become of Karina. "I have no problem kicking you all out."

"I'm sorry," Samantha blurted out her apology. "I guess she's just more introverted than I'm used to."

Leon looked to Marius as if he was waiting for a snide contradictory remark but Marius looked away. "I'm going to check on dinner."

When Leon walked into the kitchen and saw Karina taking the enamel pot out of the oven, he knew it was close to being ready. He waited until Karina had tossed the dishtowel she used to hold the pot aside before wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her.

Karina instantly smiled as her cheeks flushed. "What was that for?"

"Just wanted you to know how much I appreciate you." He flashed a broad smile at her. "Need me to set the table?"

Pressing her lips together, Karina raised an eyebrow. "Yes…what did Marius say about me?"

"Nothing." Leon shook his head but didn't look up at Karina. Once he finally made eye contact, he shrugged. "Samantha may have mentioned something about you not being very personable."

Karina feigned chagrin. "Oh dear, I'd hate for them to feel unwelcome."

After Leon had set the table he returned to Karina's side. "You know, they're still in the basement."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Karina smirked as Leon leaned up against the counter, resting his hands on either side of her. "Are you propositioning me?"

Leon leaned forward so that his forehead was touching her's. "I'm not sure we have enough time for that but we don't have to tell them that dinner is ready just yet."

With a smile, Karina wrapped her arms around Leon's neck so she could kiss him. Leon pulled Karina against him, sliding his hands to give her backside a squeeze. Closing her eyes, Karina let out a soft giggle while Leon started kissing her neck.

"Um," Marius cleared his throat. "I don't need to see that."

Leon laughed as Karina's face blushed a bright red. "Oh hey, dinner's ready!"

Marius rolled his eyes as he walked towards the table, Samantha not far behind.

"What?" Leon's grin widened. "Am I not allowed to show my wife some affection?"

"It's bad enough that I have to acknowledge that my sister has sex, I don't need it shoved in my face that she's having sex with my best friend." He huffed as though that should have been obvious to Leon.

"You don't want to know that your sister is really good at-"

"Seriously!" Marius began to sulk. "Can we just eat?"

Leon helped to bring the food over to the table while Karina put a few bottles of wine out as well as a pitcher of water. They all sat in silence while savoring the first few bites until Samantha spoke up.

"This is delicious." She chewed a few more bites. "What's it called again?"

"Chicken fricassee. It's a pretty simple recipe." Karina responded without looking up from her plate. Then she frowned as though she was having second thoughts. "I can send the recipe to Marius if you'd like."

Samantha laughed. "Oh, you don't need to do that, I'm horrible in the kitchen. But you could make this for our engagement dinner."

Leon looked up, waiting to see Karina's response only to see her smile politely.

"I think there's been a miscommunication here." Karina continued to smile. "First, it's your dinner. You asked if you could have it here, which I graciously agreed to but I am not hosting. That means that everything from the menu to serving and any sort of entertainment is all up to you. I'm not your fucking servant."

Samantha's eyes widened as though she just realized she had struck a nerve with Karina. "I just thought…I have no idea where to even begin."

Karina stared at her for a moment, to the point where Leon thought she was going to mention how that wasn't her problem. Instead, she shrugged. "I can give you the name of a chef that I've used in the past. He is willing to cater."

[birdwholanded]

The Goldfinch (Spoiler)

If you want to read the Goldfinch for yourself to get your own understanding and opinion on it, read it for yourself before you read this because this is what I thought about it for myself.

    Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch is divided into the chapters Boy with a Skull, The Anatomy Lesson, Park Avenue, Morphine Lollipop, Badr al-Dine, Wind Sand and Stars, The Shop-Behind-the-Shop, The Shop-Behind the Shop, continued, Everything of Possibility, The Idiot, The Gentleman’s Canal, and The Rendezvous Point. At the beginning of the book there is a quote ,“He’s telling you that living things don’t last-it’s all temporary. Death in life. That’s why they’re called natures mortes. Maybe you don’t see it at first with all of the beauty and bloom, the little speck of rot. But if you look closer-there it is.” (24) I like this quote because I can relate to this. My grandfather passed away from cancer in December of last year while my aunt was also very ill with leukemia during the time. My hamster passed away and so did both of my parakeets. I didn’t know how to take it when my parakeet passed away at the bottom of his cage with his feet up in the air. It affected me a lot. My mom took him out of his cage and made him a nice home in a box with tissue paper and clothes so he could rest nicely in them. My mom and I had a funeral for him and said nice things about him and the memories that we had about him and then I buried him underneath a tree in my backyard. My hamster was breathing heavily and his heart stopped beating one morning when my dad woke up. He woke me up by coming into my room and telling me that he had passed away overnight. We put him in a nice box too and buried him by my parakeet. I did not know how to cope with the avalanche of sickness and death that has happened to my family members and my pets at the end of last year and the beginning of this year. I grieved in my own way because it was a really sad time. I felt like I shut off and became angry at the world because I did not understand why things happened the way that they did. My family also lost a distant family member this year from a heart attack.       People cope with loss in different ways too. It is very personal.       I enjoyed the section of the book where his mother gave him the painting to keep and hold on to to remember her by. It is a keepsake and an heirloom.   A mother was taking her student son to an art gallery in New York City but an explosion went off in the gallery while they were inside and everyone was rushing to try to escape the gallery. The son left, but the mother never did. She passed away in the explosion and the son has to come to terms with it and where he is going from there. He doesn’t have a home to stay at anymore so the social workers want to put him with his grandparents, but his grandmother’s back is going out and she can’t take care of him properly. He feels out of place and he doesn’t belong anywhere. “But suicide wasn’t the ansswer.” (93) He felt isolated and disconnected. He wanted to go back in time.     His father is not a presence in his life when he is living in New York. He is irritated and cold a lot of the time. He doesn’t  like to come home and wants to stay out drinking. It is described that he has a lot of stressors on his mind and that he even wants to move to Atlantic City and start over again. He is fearful. The son can’t look up to him because he doesn’t want to be involved with anything. The son is taken to a home where his friend is in AP classes and he is dedicated to his studies so he can’t do anything because all of his time is taken up. He watches old Turner classic movies to distract himself. Theo misses his mom and questions if he could have done things differently to prevent her death while he is staying at the temporary house. He wants to leave the house but he has nowhere to go. Theo wants to disappear and hide. He goes to therapy and while he is there he thinks about a girl named Pippa that he saw at the museum with his mom when the explosion happened. He cannot get Pippa off of his mind and he fantasizes about her. He meets with her and he finds out that she is moving away to Texas because her mother had passed away too so she is looking to start a new chapter in a new location. A fresh start.      He gets to move in with his father in Las Vegas and is charmed by his father’s lifestyle. It is a completely different lifestyle living with his father and girlfriend than living with his temporary housing family Andy and the Barbours. He meets a guy named Borris in his class in school and Boris lived in Ukraine and Russia and he introduced him to that culture. Boris is a main character in the book and is almost Theo’s wingman. Boris is not a good influence for him because he introduces him to a darker lifestyle.       Theo, the narrator of the story gets early admission to go to college and he goes into a European film class. His friends are taking classes like intro to Russian literature. The book, The Idiot by Doeskevsky is referenced too and philosophical things are taken out of the book and questioned by Boris near the resolution of the book. He has a painting called the goldfinch that his mother gave him. When the explosion at the art gallery happened, some paintings got ruined.       He discovers that his friend Andy had died and he is contemplating death some more.     I liked how the beginning of the book connected to the end of it in the way that it explains the characters’ fate and circumstances. At the beginning of the book he is in Amsterdam, but it is not explained why he is there until the ending of the book where he commit capital murder to save the painting his dead mother gave to him.  “It was a social and moral lesson, if nothing else. But for all foreseeable time to come-for as long as history was written, until the icecaps melted and the streets of Amsterdam were awash with water-the painting would be remembered and mourned. Who knew, or cared, the names of the Turks who blew the roof off the Parthenon? The mullahs who had ordered the destruction of the Buddhas at Bamiyan? Yet living or dead:their acts stood. It was the worst kind of immorality. Intentionally or no:I had extinguished a light in the heart of the world. An act of God:that was what the insurance companies called it, catastrophe so random or arcane that there was otherwise no taking the measure of it. Probability was one thing, but some events fell so far outside the actuarial tables that even insurance underwriters were compelled to haul in the supernatural in order to explain them-rotten luck, as my father had said mournfully one night out by the pool, dusk falling hard, smoking Viceroy to keep the mosquitoes away, one of the few times he tried to talk to me about my mother’s death, why do bad things happen, why me, why her, wrong place wrong time, just a fluke kid, one in a million not an evasion or copout in anyway but-I recognized, coming from him-a profession of faith and the best answer he had to give me, on par with Allah Has Written It or It’s the Lord’s Will, a sincere bowing of the head to Fortune, the greatest god he knew.” (701-702)      He describes going through drug withdrawals in some parts of the book and he talks about morphine, xanax, oxycontin, riboxycotin. He was snorting coke too. His father was taking vicodin which is hydrocodone. I didn’t expect for there to be so much discussion about drug use. The father relies on drugs to ease his situation. He got sober however. The father was addicted to drugs because of the relationship he had with his wife, the mother of Theo. The husband and wife got at each other’s throats and they would argue. He didn’t appreciate the situation he had when he was around her. He tried to escape. I think drug use is escapism but is also used for relaxation. Cigarettes, marijuana, alcohol are ok to use because they are soft drugs that put one at ease. When one starts to use hard drugs like cocaine, then it is not so good because they rely on it for its effects and get addicted to it. They have to get enough money for drugs too. It’s a cycle that is hard to break because one always craves the drug rush. I have smoked cigarettes and marijuana and I drink. I don’t care if people drink. I don’t care what people do unless it is illegal. I think that things are ok in moderation.     The Goldfinch is about appreciating every moment in life whether good or bad, its ups and downs because it's a very rare and precious thing. One has to appreciate life because at any second one’s relative could pass away in a car accident, shooting, etc not to say that it will happen, but anything and everything is to be expected and can happen. The Goldfinch is a rare creature that moves quickly. One moment it could be here and the next moment it can be flying away and migrating to a different location with its species to be never seen again for a while.  When I was reading this book, I went outside to sit in my backyard and continue to read and I had my parakeet and dog sitting outside with me. I went inside the house to get something, but my dog alo wanted to come inside the house at the same time while my parakeet’s cage was very close by. My dog was biting my pants trying to get inside the house first, and I had slightly kicked him trying to get him to stop biting me, but in doing that, my parakeet’s cage had toppled over into the flower bed by accident and my parakeet was free. She tried to fly away through a hole in our fence to get into my neighbor’s yard, however I was quick enough to come and get my mom to help save her, because I had thought that I had lost her. She did not go very far and was stuck in the fence. My mom was able to get a hold of her and put her back in her cage. I had fixed her cage after it had fallen down. It was scary because she could have easily been gone for good like my two other parakeets. My parakeet looks like a gold finch because she is golden and bright like the sun. I call her sundrop. Her name is Coronja.        ‘...if bad can sometimes come from good actions-? Where does it ever say, anywhere,that only bad can come from bad actions? Maybe sometimes-the wrong way is the right way? You can take the wrong path and it still comes out to where you want to be? Or, spin it another way, sometimes you can do everything wrong and it still turns out to be right?....What if all your actions and choices, good or bad make no difference to God? What if the pattern is pre set?...What if our badness and mistakes are the very thing that set our fate and bring us round to good? What if, for some of us, we can’t get there any other way?”  (745-746) This quote discusses predestination. The idea of if you will go to heaven or hell or some other universe. “Predestination is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God usually reference to the eventual fate of the individual soul.” (wikipedia.org) “Explanations of predestination often seek to address the paradox of free will.” (wikipedia.org) “Therefore as predestination includes the will to confer grace and glory so also reprobation includes the will to permit a person to fall into sin and impose the punishment of damnation on account of that sin.” (wikipedia.org)     “It’s not hard to see the human in the finch. Dignified, vulnerable. One prisoner looking at another...the bird looks out at us…” (766) From this quote I get the idea of reincarnation and that animals do have human characteristics. Animals have little souls that are like people. They have common traits that cannot be denied.       “...wade straight through it, right through the cesspool, while keeping eyes and heart open. And in the midst of our dying, as we rise from the organic and sink back ignominiously into the organic, it is a glory and privilege to love what Death doesn’t touch. For if disaster and oblivion have followed this painting down through time-so too has love. Insofar as it is immortal (and it is) I have a small bright, immutable part in that immortality. It exists; and it keeps on existing. And I add my own love to the history of people who have loved beautiful things, and looked out for them, and pulled them from the fire, and sought them when they were lost, and tried to preserve them and save them while passing them along literally from hand to hand, singing out brilliantly from the wreck of time to the next generation of lovers and the next.” (771) This quote talks about even though people are unhappy,achy, fragile, unhealthy and sick, there is still a bright side to things and to see things through, like my grandfather. My grandfather had given up in his elderly age and would lay on his couch and just watch the news or the stock market. He did not want to have that much of an existence when he got old. He had a stroke when I was ten years old and he could not get around that much and his speech was slurred. He had to go to physical therapy. The main message of the book is to say don’t take anything for granted and to be appreciative because everything can be taken away in an instant and your whole life can change by the small actions that you choose to make or not to make.  At the beginning of the story, the main character is on house arrest in Amsterdam and it ties in with the ending of the story to say that he is on House Arrest for the actions he decided to make. He cannot appreciate the city of Amsterdam and everyone there knows him as a criminal. He got charged with capital murder and has to stay where the cops knows where he is at.     People move quickly and do make poor decisions that affect them for the rest of their lives. Small choices have a great impact being if you commit a crime such as embezzling money, committing fraud, stealing, etc then you will have big punishments. It affects a lot of people in negative ways. People’s feelings can get hurt and everything can change for the worse in a matter of seconds.         It is difficult to deal with death of loved ones and animals and even the idea of it is scary and hard to come to terms with. When there are situations where one is faced with it, he or she can make harsh decisions that they will regret later on whatever they may be. Things can be altered so much that there could be no going back to the way things were. Small events can have a large impact. In the heat of the moment though, anything can happen, and regrets made. That is why it is important to be appreciative and loving to everyone, because people can grieve over the loss of their pet, over their loss of money, over the loss of a friend, etc. Even if you don’t want to wake up day after day after day because you did have loved ones pass away, you still need to wake up for yourself and see the good in everything because there are so many wonderful things to appreciate and cherish, so many opportunities to be had and loved and memories to be made. Love the pets that you have and love your family and friends. Cherish everything because everyone and everything is valuable and meaningful and adds to the quality of your life.       Theo comes to terms with his mother’s passing and grows from it and learns how to live with it.      Donna Tartt, the author of The Goldinch, puts in philosophical ideas and examples in this book that I appreciate. She uses quotes from Albert Camus, “The absurd does not liberate; it binds.” What I understand of this quote is absurdity doesn’t make one free, it ties one down and wraps one up. She uses another quote, “When we are strongest-who draws back? Most merry-who falls down laughing? When we are very bad,-what can they do to us?” This is said by the French poet Arthur Rimbaud. I get from this quote that who is there to watch people fall when times are hard? “We are so accustomed to disguise ourselves to others, that in the end, we become disguised to ourselves.” is a quote by François De La Rochefoucauld. Rochefoucauld is a noted French author of maxims and memoirs. He is part of the literary movement of classicism and is best known for his maxisms. “It is not flesh and blood, but heart which makes us fathers and sons.” by Schiller. I like this quote because people have hearts and want to enjoy the good things and get past the bad things that happen.    “We have art in order not to die from the truth.”-Nietzsche.     Tartt grabs philosophical examples from The Little Prince in some parts of the book.  

[lolabean1998]

Ali-cat part 4

Sweet Pea fanfic

“Sweet Pea are you ok? I think you should sit down.” Ali soothed guiding him to a seat by a table she had just cleared, she was used to handling drunks and knew what to do. “Sit here for a sec, I’m gonna grab you a glass of water.” she instructed politely before dashing off to grab a bucket and a glass of water, she hated clearing up vomit, better to be prepared and not need it. “Sip this and if you think you’re going to throw up please try to get it in the bucket, I’ll sort a lift for you when you’ve sobered up a bit.” She turned to continue clearing the pool table when he grabbed her hand pulling her towards him looking deep into her eyes.

“Please don’t leave me alone.” He whispered, his words clear as day, Ali smiled placing a calming hand on his broad shoulders and looking deep into his dark eyes. 

“I’ll be right over there, I’m not leaving you I just need to clear this side, that’s all.” She smiled gently pulling away and going back to work Swiping the keys to his bike from his jacket pocket. She carried a large tray of empty glasses to the bar smiling at Sweet Pea as she passed, but when she came back to her corner, he had disappeared. ~Lucky I took his keys then really, drunken fool would’ve killed himself driving in that state~ Ali thought playing with the keys secured to her hair band, hidden by her thick pony tail, it wasn’t the first set of keys she’d had to hide. Hog Eye waved her over when she had finished clearing the finally tray of glasses from the pool table, she placed the tray on the bar and skipped happily over. “What’s up Hog Eye?” She asked politely, smiling at a blonde haired woman stood beside him.  

“Told you she was polite, Ali this is Penny she’s giving you a lift back home. You did good tonight kid.” Hog Eye gave her a well deserved pat on the back before she disappeared outside following Penny closely.

“Thank you for the lift, it’s much appreciated.” Ali thanked as she jumped out of the truck when they reached her run down old house.

“No worries girly, see you at the bar tomorrow?” Penny grinned leaning out the trucks window.

“I’m working the day shift tomorrow so I can finish my homework and spend Saturday night with my mum, but keep an eye out for me on the lunch shift.” She smiled before jogging to her front door giving a final wave before heading inside.

Ali woke early Saturday morning to the sound of drilling and construction work, She quickly threw on a pair of ripped jeans and a torn hoodie before hurrying downstairs throwing her hair in a scruffy bun as she went and slamming her feet into a pair of torn up, old trainers when she reached the shoe rack at the bottom.

“Anything I can help with?” Ali asked a tall stocky man stood in the back room scratching his bold head as he scanned the ancient boiler in the corner.

“No you’re alright kid, just gotta figure out how I'm getting this hunk a’ junk off with out breaking it, can swap it for a new one if the parts are still good.” He replied still staring, puzzled by the boilers unique position.

“Well I can take it down if you want, I have time, I don't start work until 10.” She smiled swiping a screw driver from the toolbox behind her and getting started on the boiler. “Can you just check the stop tap’s off before I drain it?” She chuckled at the baffled look on the mans face.

“Yes boss, Cas is heading to Pops you want her to grab you something, its on us.” He offered, Ali grinned holding the screw driver between her teeth as she reached her hands behind the boiler to pull the water cap off. 

“Just my usual please,” She muffled, screw driver still held tight between her pearly white teeth. 

Cas appeared half an hour later carrying a large bag of food and 2 milkshakes, placing them on top of the table Ali had pushed underneath the boiler so it had less to fall should she mess up. 

“One large cheese and bacon burger with onion rings, curly fries and a strawberry milkshake for the worker bee in the corner and the same for me.” Cas stated cheerfully, sitting beside her friend and handing her a perfectly packed bag of food.

“Oh thank you Cas, how much do I owe you?” Ali looked at her friend apologetically, she felt bad for accepting the food but knew it would be rude to turn it down.

“You didn’t think I was actually going to let you have your usual curly fries and soda did you?” Cas mumbled through a large bite of her burger, wrapping an arm around her friend and squeezing tight. With Cas by her side the boiler would be down in no time.

“Ali, come here a sec.” Hog Eye waved her over casually, “Umm, are you aware that you are jingling?” Ali had forgotten about the keys still attached to her hair band.

“Ah, forgot about that.” She smiled playing with her headphones, whispers of tunes still playing merrily from them. “Whoopsy daisy” She sang putting her headphones back in and dancing her way back to the table was just clearing. “Oh Hog Eye, have you seen my phone? I think I left it here last night.” She called pulling her headphones out. Hog Eye shook his head in response before turning to Tall Boy.

“10 bucks says I know where it is though.” He grinned shaking Tall Boys hand. Ali danced and jingled her way over to the dart board to rearrange the tables and stand the chairs neatly beside them, when Toni popped up beside her making her jump.

“Holy rabies, Toni you scared the hell out of me!” Ali gasped clutching her chest, her English accent stronger than ever. “What’s up Topaz?” Ali smiled once she had recovered from her little surprise.

“Thought you might want this?” She grinned handing Ali her phone, “found it last night by the pool table.” Toni raised an playful eyebrow at Ali before disappearing behind the bar. Ali tucked her phone back in her back pocket before going back to dancing, cleaning and jingling her shift away. 

Ali was curled up in bed, reading her favourite book on British Folklore and myths when her phone lit up, ‘I need my keys back now Princess - unknown’. Ali stared at her phone in confusion, after a moment of contemplation she decided it was probably best to tell the phantom texter that they had the wrong number. ‘Sorry, you have the wrong number. Hope you get your keys back’ She replied, within seconds of her sending the message her phone bleeped again, another message from unknown. ‘Get dressed and meet me outside Ali-cat’ Ali frowned, peering out her bedroom window to see a rather annoyed Sweet Pea and a highly amused Fangs leaning against a magnificent Harley in her drive way. 

“Bugger,” Ali muttered climbing out of bed and throwing on a pair of jeans and a hoodie before climbing carefully down the creaky new staircase and shuffling her feet into her worn out sneakers. She tiptoed out her new, snow white, front door and jogged down to the boys waiting at the bottom of the drive, jingling as she went. “I’m so sorry about that, I completely forgot.” She apologised pulling her hair band out of her long mousey brown hair and handing it to sweet pea, before waving good night and turning to head back inside. “Hang on,” She paused turning back to the two boys, “How did you get my number?” She asked, concerned.

“How did you get my keys?” Sweet questioned raising a teasing eyebrow.

“Swiped them from you last night before you spread across the road like peanut butter.” Ali replied folding her arms and frowning.

“Thanks for the keys,” He smirked climbing on the back of the bike and saluting as Fangs sped away.

“JACKASS!” Ali shouted as she watched him disappear, “The little prick, Yeah thanks for nothing you arrogant git!” She muttered to herself as she made her way back inside, scrambling back into bed and returning to her book. 

She was just about to turn out the light and go to sleep when her phone lit up again. “ Dear lord, you must be kidding me.” She moaned picking up her phone to read the message, ‘You’re cute when you’re sleepy, thanks for the keys’. Ali scowled at the message throwing her phone under her pillow and snuggling into her thick duvet. ~Cas was right that boy is nothing but trouble~ Ali thought as her eyes grew heavy and she drifted off too sleep.

“Rumour has it Mr Birdy was cooking up drugs in school, That's what I heard any way.” Cas gossiped as the girls made their way out of their newly closed school. “I’m headed to Greendale, what about you?”

“Riverdale High,” Ali sighed looking up at the clear blue sky, Cas burst into choking laughter.

“Tough blow! You’ve got the worst one, Bulldogs vs Serpent all day every day and the Blossum bitch not including the rest like Hiram Lodge’s Daughter!” Cas emphasized in shock, giving her friend a bear hug whilst desperately trying to hold back the laughter fighting its way through. Ali smiled at her friend but she was terrified, she had only just settled into this school and made friends, now she was getting separated from them and being sent to a school known for its rivalry with the Southside and its hatred for the serpents. “Don’t worry Ali, I’m sure you’ll be fine, your not like those hooligans and I’ll come and see you all the time, we’re moving schools not continents!” Cas soothed when she saw the worry grow in her eyes.

“Yeah, us hooligans can protect you.” A dark eyed boy in a crown beanie joked.

“Thanks Jughead that’s really comforting!” Ali teased, she had been partnered up with him in English and the pair had hit it off, he had a flare for stories and generally wanted to learn. “I’m sure Fangs and Bean pole over there are going to be on their best behaviour and Not start a fight two minutes into entering the building.” Ali said sarcastically giving Jughead a playful grin. 

“Relax Princess, we’ll keep an eye on you.” Sweet pea grinned rest an arm on her shoulders, Ali scowled grabbing his wrist, swinging herself underneath and moving behind him, placing him in an arm lock. He stood defeated, his hand held firmly between his muscular shoulder blades, grazing his tongue along the edge of his front teeth and rolling his eyes. Ali smiled patting his shoulder with her free hand, positioning herself to the side of him so he could see her through the corner of his eye.

“Let’s make a deal, you do you and keep me out of it. Or you’ll be spending your Friday night with your left hand, instead of your right.” Ali mocked before dropping his hand and moving back over to Cas and Jughead who were cracking up at her quick wit. 

“You’ll regret saying that Princess, Northsiders don't play nicely with us Southsiders, Serpent or not.” Sweet pea warned rubbing his wrist.

“That’s where your wrong Sweet pea, see unlike you,” Ali placed a hand on his shoulder as she whispered in his ear moving slowly behind him to his other ear, “I’m likeable. So you see, it’s not me that should be worried, its you.” She whispered leaning closer, her lips brushing against his ear. Sweet pea tried to stifle a groan as she kissed his cheek before pulling away and linking arms with Cas as they wandered off to Pops diner. 

“Dude,” Jughead chuckled, “She’s got you hook, line and sinker.” He stated, looking at Sweet pea’s clenched jaw and balled up fists, but this wasn’t anger this was a new emotion, especially for Sweet pea. He was falling head over heels for the straight A, good girl and he felt completely helpless.

“Shut up Jughead.” He scoffed brushing rudely past him towards his bike.

Riverdale High was the complete opposite of Southside high, bright shiny trophies filled the immaculate glass cabinets, the walls were spotless with no sign of graffiti any where. The students were all prim and proper wearing designer labels and bright colours, unlike the Southside students who were sporting their usual dark clothing and leather biker jackets, their gang symbol shining proudly on their backs. Ali had just missed the confrontation by the welcome desk, with no car or money for a ride she had been forced to run to school making her late.

“Principle weatherby I’m so sorry I’m late, mum left early this morning and I had to run here and I got lost, I’m so sorry.” Ali panted when she was pulled into the principles office. He raised his hand to silence her and smiled.

“Ali you’re not in trouble, I just wanted to see how you were doing, 2 new schools in such a short space of time can be tough. If you need a hand with any classes or some one to talk to we are more than able to provide the help required by those willing to learn. You’re a straight A student Ali, lets keep it that way.” He explained handing her a list of extra curricula's and her new schedule before walking her to the door.

“Thank you, I’ll be on time tomorrow,” Ali paused before adding, “Hopefully, It might take a few try’s before I find my way with out getting lost.” 

“Not to worry, I’m sure you’ll be fine.” He smiled again before disappearing back into his office.

Ali made her way to her first class, Chemistry. She had missed the tour but luckily for her, she had a map of the school on the back of her schedule, making it easier to find her way round. She poked her head round the door to her class, glancing round nervously she spotted a large group of serpents sat at the back behind some very annoyed looking jocks, she figured judging by the blue and gold jackets they were sporting that they must be Bulldogs. Ali cleared her throat catching the attention of her new Chemistry teacher, who smiled brightly ushering her in.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, I think I’m in this class but I’m not entirely sure.” Ali muttered apologetically, all eyes now fixed on her, the attention making her feel smaller than a flea. “Sorry I’m late.” she apologised when her teacher confirmed her spot in the class.

“Not to worry, there’s a spare seat at the back, I’m sure Reggie can catch you up on what we’ve been doing so far.” The short stocky woman smiled pointing her to the empty seat next to a dark haired Bulldog. Ali smiled nervously as she perched beside him, her hands shaking as she pulled out her books, flicking through her workbook until she found a clean page. The boy smirked arrogantly at her, before beginning to explain their recent project to her like she was a small child.

“With all do respect, Reggie, is it? I’m not stupid, I can handle big words so if you could keep your antediluvian opinions to yourself and Just tell me what we’re doing now I would be So grateful.” Ali pleaded, smiling politely, her eyes twinkling when she saw the confused look flash across his face as she used a big word. “Before you ask, antediluvian means really old fashioned or outdated.” She smiled again before turning to her book and taking down notes. Leaving her new lab partnered stunned. Sweet Pea was sat directly behind them and hadn't taken his eye’s off Ali since the moment she appeared at the door and couldn’t help chuckling at the gormless expression on Reggie's face.

“She tends to have that effect on people.” He smirked to Reggie before turning back to his own books, glancing up every now and then to check on Ali.

@soffie-toscana @everheart12 @toothisafighter-blog   

Masterlist

[sunnyharley]

Kåt Jenter

Noora is tipsy. No wait, she’s not tipsy she’s drunk and she knows her future sober self will definitely regret drinking so heavily but for now that’s not her problem. Drunk Noora is too busy having a good time. No wait, a great time. The room is currently spinning and that’s partly due to the alcohol and partly because she’s making out with a girl. A very pretty girl with long blonde hair.-

 Well, it’s actually brown right now but the color is fading out at the ends and her real golden yellow roots shine through. It’s very soft too. She’s currently running her fingers through it and contemplates how great it would feel to caress the girls hair while she’s inbetween her legs and ea- 

 A loud crash rings loudly in the hallway and Eva’s loud, drunk, honking laugh is noticeable even between a door and loud music. Noora sighs mentally; if she were a good friend she would go out and make sure Eva’s okay. She blacks out constantly and has little to no inhibitions but then the girl she’s with decides to simultaneously kiss her beck while moving her leg inbetween Noora’s thighs. It’s pretty convenient that Noora decides to wear a skirt because the girls jeans are rough and provide a lot of stimulation for Noora to grind on. Eva possibly needing assistance temporarily escapes her mind when she moves her hips in a circle and rubs against the girl’s jeans. It’s delicious friction and honestly, she’s sure Vilde or some of the other girls will help Eva. She won’t be missed. 

 Her eyelids flutter when the girl stops marking her neck and leans back to ask her something. “Hmm?” She asks. 

 The girl huffs a small laugh before repeating, “I asked if you’re clean?" 

 Noora blinks through the fog of her alcohol riddled brain and thinks. She got tested a few weeks after coming back from London and even when she WAS with William they didn’t exactly have a lot of frequent sex anyways. He was always too busy helping his dad or typing up reports or going out for celebratory drinks with his big, elite coworkers. He was always so busy. Too busy for her. Too busy for love or affection or well anything really but she tries not to dwell on that. It’s over, she knows it is. That’s why she was so adamant on going out to the party; she needed to forget about him. Eskild had been kind and comforting for a week before trying to convince Noora to ”forget about that drittsekk, he’s not worth you being so upset baby bird.“ So she finally took his advice and wound up here, drunk, thoroughly debauched, and into the arms of a pretty girl who wanted to know…something…oh right! 

 She nods quickly, "Yeah I’m clean! I got tested a while ago but I haven’t had sex with anybody since then so…" 

 The girl breaks out a small smile, "I am too.” She rubs her hands up and down Noora’s arms, “So I was thinking-" 

 ”-Uh uh. Sounds like a dangerous situation.“ As soon as the words leave her mouth she already regrets them. Fucking hell, she manages to get with a hot girl only to immediately offend her. 

Luckily she has a sense of humor and only laughs and rolls her eyes. "I was thinking maybe we could trib a bit if that’s okay? It’s just because I think it’ll feel really great for the both of us but like, if you don’t want to we could do something else." 

 This girl is cute, Noora thinks to herself. She’s over here blushing about sex which is crazy because if anyone should be shy here it should be her. Noora’s never really done anything with a girl. I mean, Eva’s kissed her cheeks a few times at parties but she doesn’t think that exactly counts. She smiles and reaches up to the girls hands on her shoulders and squeezes them gently before saying, "That’s fine, I don’t mind what we do.” God that sounds kind of needy but it’s too late, sober Noora can cringe at everything she says later but right now? She really really wants this. They’re kissing now, much more aggressive than it was before. But Noora gives as much as she gets and she wonders if she’ll have bruises on her lips come morning. 

They slowly make their way to the bed discarding clothes as they go and when they lay back and hit the bed Noora is touching the girl from the waist up and she can feel how hard her nipples are against Noora’s own chest. She puts one hand on the girl’s soft hip and leans her other arm behind her head and continues to kiss her. She’s so soft everywhere and Noora’s hand doesn’t stay on her hip for long before she’s roaming her body, cupping one of her breasts before slowly going down to the waistband of her underwear. 

She leans down to whisper in her ear, “Can I take these off,” and when she nods with permission she sinks her fingers under the fabric and slowly pulls down. The girl lifts her hips a bit to help take them off and Noora quickly removed her own underwear before sinking back into the other girls embrace. Her heart speeds up when she realizes that they’re both completely naked now, there’s no barriers or places to hide. She’s naked with another person and she’s starting to get nervous about that fact when the girl stops kissing her to ask if she’s alright. Of course she is though, she’s fine, why wouldn’t she be?

 "It’s fine if you don’t want to do this,“ she whispers to her, running her hands softly up and down her back to comfort her. Noora doesn’t respond with words, instead she decides to show her that she really is okay. It’s normal to feel a bit overwhelmed when having sex with someone you barely know but she really does want this. 

She begins to kiss her way down the girls chest when suddenly a pinging sound echoes in the room. "Wait let me check my phone,” the girl says before leaning over the side of the bed to look through her jean pockets to retrieve it. She sits up and unlocks it, staring at the screen intensely before furiously typing out a reply. Noora nuzzles her shoulder before sneakily looking at her phone to try and get any clues about the girl’s name. She looks so familiar, which is partly why she flirted with her in the first place, but in her drunken state the name is far away and is a little cloud that just won’t come closer. 

 The text reads: Sara where are you?? Me and the other girls tried to look for you but we couldn’t find you! Are you hjemne nå? Let us know you’re ok 

So that’s her name! Sara! Of course it is! She’s partly excited that she can finally remember her name but another, more prominent part is worried how Eva would feel knowing she’s hooking up with one of her ex best friends. She glances back up to see Sara reply out: yeah I’m ok, ha det��� before she shuts her phone off and turns on her side to smile brightly at Noora, “Now where were we?” She laughs and stares at her for a moment before they mutually get closer and kiss, this time much softer than before. Sara hums in her mouth before slowly getting on top of her and shifts in between her legs. She grabs her short blonde hair and deftly swirls it inbetween her fingers before breaking their lips apart, “Want you so bad, Noora.” She can feel her cheeks heat up, “Yeah?” Sara only nods before marking her neck in the same place she was in before when they were standing in front of the door. 

She doesn’t know who’s room this or hell, who’s house this is but she’s about to christen this strangers bed whether they like it or not. She gasps and jerks her hips up when Sara bites a particularly sensitive part of her neck and she moans in response as if to say “you like this don’t you?” and she keeps kissing and biting that same spot. She can feel herself starting to get wet, her blood feels electric in her veins, and her clit starts to throb and harden. She breathes out a heady moan and slides her hands down Sara’s back, stopping at the curve of her waist and grips tightly when suddenly Sara sits up to look down at her. Their eyes meet, brown eyes staring into blue ones, and they both started breathing heavy a while ago too. Sara moves her hips forward until they’re both connected together, skin on skin. Noora can feel the heat from Sara’s body and when she looks up Sara is looking at her with a focused expression and experimentally starts moving her hips forward. Noora’s mouth flies open when Sara moves her hips in a way that aligns their clits together and Noora grips Sara’s hips and pulls her forward even faster. 

She’s biting her lip and scrunching her eyebrows, it’s already feeling too good like she could come at any second, when she hears Sara whisper hotly in her ear, “You don’t have to hold back, it’s okay.” And once she has permission her moans and cries for Sara to “go faster please” and “right there, right there so good” continue to fly out of her mouth. She’s so turned on, so fucking close, she can’t keep her eyes open but she looks up anyways, just for a moment, to watch Sara. She’s not fairing any better either to be honest, every other breath she has is followed by a low moan or a curse under her breath. 

She’s so amazing like this, it’s nice to know that Noora isn’t the only one losing control here, that she’s having the same effect on her that she does to Noora. She bravely says how good Sara looks, and how close she is, how she wants them to come at the same time please please. 

Sara only moans in response and tucks her head by Noora’s chin; still moving her hips in a delicious rhythm. Heat starts to pool in the bottom of her stomach and her hips gradually start to move up to match Sara’s thrusts. She bites that same sensitive spot on her neck from earlier and she knows it’ll mark up later, that her friends will ask questions in the morning but holy shit she’s really close and her body jerks up, only her head and lower back are on the mattress and she moans quite loudly, her eyes rolling back in her head at all the pleasure coursing through her body. After a few moments she vaguely feels Sara pressing her face at the base of her throat, moaning through her orgasm as well. 

 They spend the next ten minutes catching their breath but also cuddling. Sara rests her head on Noora’s chest while Noora runs her fingers through her hair. “We almost made it." 

 "Hmm?” Noora asks quietly. 

 "We almost came together.“ She yawns before rolling over on her back and leans over the bed to gather some of her clothes. "I should get going soon. My parents might expect me plus whoever’s bed this is will want it back soon.” She throws on her shirt sans bra opting to instead stuff it down into her purse.

 Noora wiggles her toes to wake her legs up and follows in Sara’s footsteps by sitting up to gather her clothes strung out all over the floor. When they’re both fully clothed albeit a little rumpled and sexed up with messy hair they stand in front of each other by the door again just like before. 

 "So…I’ll see you around?“ Sara’s eyes slowly blinking and looking into hers. Her smile is a bit shy as she asks. Noora gives a short nod in response.

She’s the first to open the door and walk out the room without looking back. It’s not a cold goodbye on her part just a swift one. The loud music rings into her ears louder and louder the closer she walks into the living room, past the hallway, before putting on her shoes and coat to leave. The metal lock clicks behind her as she steps outside into the cold night and makes her way down the short staircase, she can hear her feet hitting the concrete steps and then the pavement and the low humming of the street lamps as she makes her way back home.