#Sunday Sept 1st or something like that

[elodee]

Guess what I watched for the first time ever today

[ladykailitha]

The Caged Bird Still Sings Part 4

Just a heads up tomorrow is the start of my posting hiatus. I will still do WIP Wednesdays and will be posting headcanons and stuff like that during that time. I will begin posting again on Sunday Sept. 1st. I haven't decided which story will get each slot, or if I just post based on vibes. Most likely vibes if I'm honest.

In this we get the first of Eddie's presents to Steve, Eddie refutes the stupid Steve charges, and Steve remembers something important that he forgot.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

~

Steve was living it up in the pool. His parents had an outdoor heated pool, but it was more for leisure than laps because of it’s weird oblong shape. But this? It had an outdoor pool, but the indoor pool was Olympic sized. Like proper with the lane lines painted on the bottom and everything.

So he practiced his backstroke and butterfly. And by the time he got out his muscles were deliciously sore and his skin was wrinkly. He showered and then padded over to the sauna to relax his ache muscles.

As he was the only one there, he set the temperature to slightly hotter than warm but not scorching. He wanted to rest his muscles not sweat out every toxin in his body. Once he was feeling good enough, he got dressed and walked back to his hotel.

He looked at the swimsuit in his hand and realized he wouldn’t have do laundry here if he didn’t want to. Wow. His mom always made him do his laundry even though they had a maid who would wash his parents’.

Steve looked at his watch and decided it was time for some dinner. He threw the swimsuit into the laundry basket and went to go blow dry his hair. He pulled out his but then noticed the one already on the counter. His eyes flicked between the two and there was no doubt that the one the hotel provided was way better than his.

He put his back in his bag and turned on the hotel’s hair dryer. It never overheated or would start to smell half way through the process. He ran a little gel through his hair and spritzed his hair three times with the hair spray.

He admired himself in mirror a moment. He was good looking. He knew that. But he never in his wildest dreams thought he had the looks to pull a rockstar. Like that was crazy levels of confidence. But looking in the mirror just now, maybe he could see what Eddie saw.

Steve walked up the table that had his wallet and picked it up. He pulled out his fake ID, the one that got him this cushy hotel room. He wouldn’t be able to use it for god knows how long, but he wanted to keep it. As a memento of sorts. God. He was already feeling melancholic about the whole thing and it had only been five hours.

That was when he spotted it. On the bed was a big white box. He frowned and walked up to it slowly. He wasn’t worried about people getting in. This was a hotel. It was probably put there by housekeeping or even the concierge. He knew better than to keep anything in his room that might interest a snoop.

He just wondered who gave it to him. He picked up the card and read it.

-To my little Canary

A parting gift from me.

Promise me you’ll wear it and think of me often

-Your Eddie

Steve lifted the lid of the box and inside was the most beautiful silk pajamas he had ever seen. It was a short-sleeved button up that stopped just an inch or so below the waistband of the matching shorts. The shorts themselves weren’t very long, not quite booty shorts level, but close. Both in a soft, light yellow color. Perfect for summer time.

He ran over to the phone and quickly dialed Eddie’s cellphone.

“Hello?” the warm, dulcet tones answered.

“Eddie?” Steve asked, even he knew it was. He was just so excited.

“My little Canary,” Eddie purred. “I take it you got your present.”

“I did,” Steve said, twirling the cord around his finger. “They’re beautiful. I can’t wait to wear them tonight.”

“Good,” Eddie said, a smile evident in his tone. “I hope I go the size right. Did you do anything fun today?”

Steve told him all about his day swimming and the sauna. He even told him about the hair dryer because he was just that excited about it all.

“That sounds great, little Canary,” Eddie said, his fondness oozing through in his tone. “I’m sending someone by with a card that I will load money on so that you can get things like gas for your car and other things for your personal hygiene, as I assume you’ll want to buy that stuff yourself.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” Steve found himself saying, almost against his will. “Could have gotten by with the hotel toiletries.”

Eddie chuckled. “Probably, but I wanted to give you the option of a choice.”

Steve blushed deeply, glad that Eddie couldn’t see him in that moment.

“Look, little Canary,” Eddie purred, “we just got to our location and I have to go, but I’ll call you after the show and tell you all about it.”

Steve bit his lip. “Yeah, I’ll talk then.”

He hung up after they said their goodbyes with a sigh. He flopped on the bed and looked up at the ceiling.

Fucking hell. What was he even doing with his life?

His stomach growled. Well, for starters, he guessed he was going to dinner.

~

When Steve finished his meal, which was even better than breakfast...He never had a steak melt in his mouth like that before. It was so soft and buttery and the potatoes tasted of rosemary and garlic, the carrots were covered in a glaze that tasted of honey and something darker.

He shook his head.

Anyway.

When he finished his dinner he went back up to the room. He resolved that he would need to do more than just swimming to keep the delicious food off his waistline. He was going to have to check out the gym here.

Steve looked at the time and decided it was too early for bed, but he got into the new pajamas anyway. The shorts were pulled on first and fuck. Steve felt sinful just wearing the damn things. They cupped him in all the right places but when he moved or sat down they didn’t ride up or pinch. He seriously thought about not putting on the shirt at all. But the desire to see the full effect won out.

He pulled it on and buttoned it up. And just like the shorts, the top was form fitting but comfortable. The V in the neck from where the highest button went (it didn’t button all the way up) just showed a peek of his chest hair.

He admired himself in the mirror for several minutes before he forced himself to go back out to the suite.

Steve grabbed the remote and started flipping the channels. He was used to cable as his mother needed her HSN and his father needed the soccer score. Not because he was interested in the game, but because he’d bet on foreign games.

But either his parents only had basic cable or there were a bunch of new channels added recently. And he was willing bet it was the former.

He found a late night baseball game from a Japanese league and started watching that. He couldn’t understand the announcers and he didn’t know the players’ names, but it was still baseball, regardless the language.

Before he knew it the game was over and it was late at night, finally time for bed. He got all snuggled into bed when the phone rang.

“‘Ello?” he muttered sleepily.

“Oh, darlin’,” the warm tones caressed his ear, “did I wake you?”

Steve hummed in the negative. “Just getting ready to sleep. Tell me all about selling out Indy.”

Eddie huffed out a laugh. “I’d ask you how you knew Corroded Coffin sold out tonight, but you spent all of last night surrounded by my fans. Even the stupidest person on the planet would have had to pick something up.”

“Mhmm,” Steve murmured. “That’s me, stupidest person on the planet.”

There was silence on the line for a moment or two. “Who says you’re dumb, baby?”

“My parents,” he said softly, “my first girlfriend before I realized I was gay, my ex-boyfriend, you know the one my parents kicked me out for? And um...the kids I babysat for are all like super geniuses, so they get frustrated with me a lot.”

“Oh my little Canary,” Eddie cooed. “You’re not dumb. School smarts isn’t everything. I’m living proof of that.”

“That’s true,” Steve said, a little less sad. “I’m talking to a bona fide rockstar.”

“Hell yeah you are,” Eddie agreed. “But let me tell you about my night and see if I can’t lull you to sleep with the sound of my voice.”

“I’d really like that.”

So that’s what Eddie did, he talked and talked until he could hear the soft little snuffling of snores from his Canary.

“Good night, sweetheart.”

~

When Steve woke up the next morning, the phone was still dangling off the cradle from where it fallen the night before when he fell asleep listening to Eddie.

Eddie had a great talking voice. Dude should do books on tape or voice acting or something. Maybe he’d tell him the next time he called.

He stretched and yawned. He woke up just as well rested today as he had yesterday. Which meant that as good as the sex was, and it was amazing, it wasn’t as big a factor in his night’s sleep as he thought.

He got up and went to go grab a shower. He hadn’t had a chance to use it yet, as he had used the swimming pool’s showers yesterday. He ordered breakfast and then hopped into the shower, telling them to just come in and leave it next the sofa.

He dried off with one of the most luxurious towels.

Steve stopped for a moment. He really needed to stop comparing the hotel to the life he led before being kicked out. It wasn’t the same. It wasn’t even in the same state let alone ball park. His life here would always be miles away from the life he left behind.

New cage, same as the old cage really except real gold instead of merely gilded. Better food, furniture, amenities. Same limitations. Can’t drink, but he could smoke.

So he went out on the balcony to do just that. He brought his food out with him and just smoked, watching the busy crowd below him.

Oh shit!

He scrambled back inside the hotel room and fumbled around for his wallet. He pulled out a little laminated card and dialed the one on the top.

“Henderson residence, Claudia speaking,” the warm motherly voice answered.

“Mrs. Henderson,” Steve whined, almost in tears at the sound of her voice.

“Steve?” she asked gently. “Oh I was wondering when you were going to call. Dustin has been worried sick. He went to Family Video yesterday to return “Ghostbusters” and the snooty girl at the counter said you’d been fired for sodomy!”

He winced a little at the harsh word she used. “I–I’m gay, Mrs. Henderson,” he whimpered into the phone. This was it, she was going to turn him away too. Forbid Dustin from seeing him, then it would get around to the all the other parents and he wouldn’t be able to be around Holly or Will. And–

“Ah...” she said, just as gentle and warm as before. “Can you help it? Can you choose who you love?”

“No, ma’am,” he whispered, hanging his head between his shoulders.

“Then why would I care?” Claudia huffed in annoyance. “The first thing a mother should learn is to love your child no matter what, no matter who. Now, if Dusty gives you a hard time, you let me know. You hear?”

Steve felt a swell of pride in his chest, she might have not had been his real mother, but he should have known better than to bet against Claudia Henderson.

“Here, let me go get him,” she said softly. “Would you like me to explain it to him first?”

A lump formed in his throat as he choked down tears. He forgot he wasn’t isolated. He wasn’t cut off completely from people.

“Yeah,” he said, his lip quivering. “If you would.”

“Of course, sweetie,” Claudia said warmly. “I’ll be right back.”

Steve didn’t have long to wait. Soon there was the sound of Dustin practically screaming in his ear.

“Hey, bud,” he said when he could finally get a word in.

There was a sniffle. “Why didn’t you call me and Ma? We would have taken you in.”

Steve’s heart swelled again, this time in utter love for this butthead. “Because my dad would have seen to it that she lost her job at the library and with your dad having just passed, I couldn’t do that to you, to either of you, okay?”

There was another sniffle. “Okay...”

“Here,” Steve said, “I can’t tell you where I am right now, because no doubt my dad is trying to run me out of town, but I can give you a phone number to call. I might not always be there, but you can leave a message and I’ll call you back.”

“I guess that’s acceptable,” Dustin huffed. “Can I tell everyone you’re okay?”

Everyone meant his kids. Max, Elle, Will, Mike, Lucas, and Erica. And well, Holly, too. But she was too young to really understand what was going on. Technically Erica should be in that same category but she was too smart to be left out. Steve didn’t even bother trying most days.

“Yeah, bud,” he murmured. “You can tell people I’m safe. Just keep the number to yourself for now. I don’t want my dad knowing where I am.”

“Roger that!” Dustin said.

They talked for a few moments longer before Claudia took the phone back.

“I’m going to call the PTA calling tree,” she said, “and get the word out that you’ll be unavailable to babysit for the foreseeable future.”

Steve hummed. “I think that’s the part that upsets me the most about all this shit.”

“I know, sweetie,” Claudia assured him. “But we’ll figure it out.”

And he was absolutely certain if anyone could, it was Claudia Henderson.

He let out a sigh of relief for the first time since he was kicked out.

~

Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17

Tag List: CLOSED MAX LIMIT 50 REACHED!!!

1- @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog @beelze-the-bubkiss

2- @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @cryptid-system

3- @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

4- @justforthedead89 @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690 @forgottenkanji

5- @anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon

6- @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @disrespectedgoatman

7- @counting-dollars-counting-stars @tinyplanet95 @ravenfrog @swimmingbirdrunningrock @lingeringmirth

8- @gutterflower77 @a-lovely-craziness @just-a-tiny-void @w1ll0wtr33 @sticknpokelightningbolt

9- @scoops-aboy86 @kurofuckingshi16 @watermelonmite @eyehartart @dreamercec

10- @little-birch-boy @yearningagain @micheledawn1975 @blondie1006 @sadisticaltarts

[ms-m-astrologer]

The Week Ahead: August 26 - September 1, 2024

We’re in a waning Moon this week. This is not a good time to start anything, but it’s very supportive if you want to stop doing something. (Quitting a bad habit, for example.) While the Moon is in Cancer, it’s a good time to prune things that you want to grow back slowly (like a high-maintenance hairdo?); when it’s in Gemini and Leo, it’s a good time to weed (or get rid of unwanted body hair).

Lunar Phases

Monday, August 26, 09:26 UT - Last Quarter Moon, 3°38’ Gemini

The key phrases for the Last Quarter lunar phase are “turn away,” and “tear down old structures that no longer serve us well.” One way to determine what to do, is to look at what we have lost interest in. What bores us? What do we have a hard time focusing on? What are we using as a distraction? We’re probably mentally sluggish (Mercury rules Gemini, and is stationary), so we’ll be patient trying to sort through our thoughts.

Friday, August 30, 02:17 UT - Balsamic Moon, 22°12’ Cancer

The key phrases for the Balsamic lunar phase are “let go of the past,” and “envision the future.” This is a holiday weekend in the US, and if you have the extra time off, take the opportunity to nurture yourself. Even if you have to work*, you can still make sure you eat comfort food, hydrate, and rest.

* Ms M remembers long ago, when everybody had Labor Day off. We’d all remind ourselves to fill up our cars beforehand, as the gas stations wouldn’t be open on Labor Day. Sigh.

Void of Course Moon

Monday, August 26, 01:40 UT (Taurus) - 03:04 UT (Gemini)

Wednesday, August 28, 07:14 UT (Gemini) - 08:47 UT (Cancer)

Friday, August 30, 15:24 UT (Cancer) - 17:09 UT (Leo)

Monday, September 2, 00:25 UT (Leo) - 03:48 UT (Virgo)

Retrograde/Direct/Etc.

Pre-retrograde shadow: Jupiter/Gemini

Retrograde: Mercury/Leo (until Wednesday the 28th), Ceres/Capricorn (until Monday the 26th), Saturn/Pisces, Chiron/Aries, Uranus/Taurus (starting Sunday the 1st), Neptune/Pisces, Pluto/Aquarius-Capricorn, Eris/Aries

Post-retrograde shadow: Mercury/Leo (starting Wednesday the 28th), Ceres/Capricorn (starting Monday the 26th), Pallas/Scorpio

Transiting Ceres stations direct on Monday, August 26, 07:38 UT, at 7°29’ Capricorn. As she re-retraces her steps in this sign, between now and November 11, we can implement structured plans, with more of an eye on the longer-term. October 10-17 should be an especially productive time.

Transiting Mercury stations direct on Wednesday, August 28, 21:14 UT, at 21°24’ Leo. We aren’t out of the “Storm” until September 3, though, so continue to be cautious!

Transiting Uranus stations retrograde on Sunday, September 1, 15:18 UT, at 27°15’ Taurus. Those parts of our lives that feel stuck in a rut (even if it’s a comfortable rut), are “encouraged” to change, Uranus-style. Look for sudden surprises and disruptions. Uranus stations direct on January 30, 2025, at 23°15’ Taurus.

Ingresses

Thursday, August 29, 13:23 UT - transiting Venus enters Libra

Lasting until Sept. 23, we need to work hard on being more Eleanor Roosevelt and less Lady MacBeth. We want connection, and we need to be honest and reciprocal about acquiring it.

Monday, September 2, 00:10 UT - transiting Pluto retrogrades into Capricorn

One final visit, until November 19. A final chance to work on choosing integrity and responsibility - as opposed to being a status-driven control freak.

Et Cetera

There is one Opportunity Period this week: Wednesday, August 28, 08:47 UT - Friday, August 30, 17:09 UT. “Very good opportunity to implement changes and return to projects that were stuck during Mercury’s retrograde period.” (The next OP happens on Monday, September 9, so if you work with these be prepared!)

Format change - due to health concerns, this week I’m going to cut back on writing posts. Hence I went into more detail with this forecast! After this week, I will probably continue with a “beefed up” weekly and limit other posts to lunar phases.

______________________

Venmo Mary_Brack

PayPal MaryVBrack

Thank you!

[essiekuko]

that’s not fair nicole ur 5’2 ofc ur gonna be lower than 100lbs 😭😭

u guys like. i have heather duke in my pfp. how else did u expect me not to have an €d lmfao

finally getting back into f4st1ng, like it’s abt time. it’s almost christmas soon and like my whole family tree is coming over. i need my sk1nny comeback asap. my longest f4st was from sept 30 - oct 3 (mean girls day hehe) for 74hrs. i didn’t even know about keto, c4ls, i just had sunrise fast app and a dream lmfao. and i just did it just like that. now it’s nov and it’s pretty much now or never

it gets easier when u either sk1p the start of day m34l or end of day of m34l. like if u sk1pp3d brek/din u set urself up for a successful f4st. that and avoiding the kitchen at all times lmfaoo

idek anything abt berserk but i just b liking it cause of guts and casca. shld i even be liking it cause of guts and casca cause i feel like i shouldn’t like i feel like something bad happens that i don’t wanna know. which is why i’ll never read it (fanboys cry harder)

anyway i like that girl with the short blonde hair in the cute two braids i think? what era is this berserk even taking place in. looks either medieval or victorian.

i love misato sm. obviously not what she did. i mean i love mai sm, i especially like her hair and want hair like that soooo bad

this is probably the besttt mean girls broadway cast ♡ i still dk who sabrina played but ik she ate wtv role she got anyway

theres only 3 times in my life where i eat. when im on my period, when i have to study and during family events. rn im on my period AND i have to study smh. so i cant rlly f4st as long as i'd like. i rlly need to lock in especially now bc theres only abt 1 1/2 weeks left of nov and then its december and i srsly cannot be f4t in december. not again!!! my period ends this saturday so by sunday i'll start a big long f4st til the end of nov. and i made up this little challenge, i call it the advent calendar, where i f4st from december 1st to december 25 and christmas will be my big break. december is like perfect f4sting season, cause there's no more exams so no more studying and everyone's in holiday mode. i think. if i get my period before dec 25 it'll fvck everything up, cause even when i dont 3at i still get that stupid fvcking period w31ght g41n. hopefully if it does happen, it'll happen close to dec 25, but not on dec 25, but close so that by the time it's over i would've sl1mm3d back down. my old c4l intake used to be 600cal, but i notice i just 34t over that anyway, so it's 800c4l now and i dont even 34t all the way up to 800, i usually stop at around 750-780. as long as its under 1000 is all that matters. then i kinda get to thinking, if im gonna sk1p din and brek, why 3at at all lol. cause i always be 3ating at around 1-2pm if im feeling hmm idk a bit normal today. and i felt a bit normal today so i 4te unfortunately. but then again im on my period so im not normal??? also bc while i was studying i was falling over the table so i just got up and 4te immediately awww. more honestly, it's cause nobody was around. so i dove straight in and b1nged it out. thats a rlly bad habit but ik its not just my experience. 34ting when nobody's around and then f4st1ng when ur in the public eye. it should be more like this: 34ting when everyone's around to look normal and then f4st1ng when nobodys around. but then thats the thing, ppl want me to 3at, but i dont want to do what ppl want me to do, so i dont 3at kind of in protest of that. and obviously when theres no ppl around to tell me what to do........ and besides, i look normal enough. so who's gonna worry anyway??? i feel like i just annoy ppl when i dont 3at lol. shit i should've just come straight here when i felt hvngry in the first place. then i wouldn't have freaking 3aten at all lol.

OMG THIS. THIS IS WHAT I WAS TALKING ABT. if u want to see what im talking abt js search keyword 'live thru this' on my blog. also how do u do that 'below the cut' thing. cause my bulk posts are starting to annoy me.

miss destiny snow is BUILT DIFFERENTT i just had to say that before i move onto my next post but she rlly is!!!

I FOUND THAT ARTIST THAT SPECIFICALLY DRAWS THE UMMM THE THIGN!!!! THE TIGHN!!! THE THING!!! THEY DRAW THE STUFF1!!

[notfivefr]

22092025- Media diary or whatever #7

1) Game — Reverse 1999 : : (uninstall Enstar for this)

Reinstall this game bcs my tl sometimes show me r1999 stuff and it feeds my urge to play it. I installed this game when there was like 3 days left bfore their annv update, Windsong banner. Mcm biasa, gacha game got that returnee missions n stuff. I played bit of Windsong's story: abt a researcher conducts a leyline field research at a tiny snowy town. I don't really remember the plot of main story, so need to watch some recap on yt.

Gosh i forgot how beautiful this game artstyle is, and the ui too??? Whenever i play the story, i felt like crying like damn gorgeous art they need to release artbook fr.

Im speedrunning this game okayy,, reached player level 30, leveled up 6 of my characters (Sonetto, Dikke, APPle, Lucy, Getian, Bloodbourn) to Insight II, 2 episodes for main story, settled the beginner mission etc etc. Also new 6 stars characters i got so far are Windsong, Lucy, Getian (from annv banner), Toothfairy, Sotheby, Regulus, Ezra in span of 50 pulls honestly im tweaking (OKAYY HELP wtf is going on?? ). Also free 6star character, Semmelweis.

——— HSR : :

Omg i did so much. Finished Penacony's main story, Ruan Mei's story (I hate that damn bug with passion) , Topaz's story and otw Wardance's story. Kafka is considered fully build for me (my woman hitting that 45k raw burst dmg on average), half- build Jingyuan, Pela, tralblazer, robin etc. Istg building characters in hsr is actually diabolical it takes at least 2 months per character,, 240 resins per day is not enough. Especially to farm those damn relics.

At least i got my Robin tho. (She's sooo wife 🥰🥰)

2.5 banner with blackswan and Robin ;^; i need blackswan to make kafka team tho (istg if 2.6 banner got aventurine rerun imma uh idk bcs 2.7 is Sunday's patch i really cant choose honestly. Do i willingly wait for other aventurine rerun that idk how long we gotta wait or fomo bc im not Sunday's 1st gen haver :(((( )

Sunday

——— Genshin : :

Nothing much, i logged in, used resin (im still farming for mualani rn), claimed daily rewards. Not really played that much atm bcs for some reasons my ping just spiked up to 999ms whenever it enters battle mode idk what to do. Pissing me off honestly 😭. I need a new phone i guess.

Also 13 Sept is Albedo's birthday. Forcing my self to draw something bcs it's an obligation at this point.

This is actually my first time drawing his hair with reference in this 3 yrs.

2) vcr minecraft

Me keep refreshing my tl to translate their clip contexts lol. It's so funn need more vcr stuff. I love when everyone interact w each other. I think the most memorable one are, drunk Kanaria, izuru's team shenanigans, and i love the way izuru shows his gremlin side to other people outside of holostar. (i only watch izr idk everyone else lmao) Also the way they played LoL together after the server closed??? Hsshhs Sendo yuuhi is so cute and day1 is so funny. I genuinely hope they're friends now. Need more of their contents in the future.

—-—-—

That's all ig? Only spend my time grinding in games besides the irl stuff. Im going all out before intern ni. Before i got too overwhelmed to do other stuff gitu.

[spellsthename]

~Spell-Studies Fall 2020 Challenge~

~Spell-Studies Fall 2020 Challenge~

I love making challenges, and I thought that having daily prompts would be the best way to help keep track of the days!  I tried to pick fairly easy ones that way they are fun and lighthearted!  

Here are the parameters of the challenge!  The prompts will run Monday through Friday, so that weekends can be off days if you wish.  If you would like to also do the weekends as well I have prompts for those as well but they won’t be numbered rather they will be under “End of week one”, etc. Each prompt will have a corresponding date that way everyone can keep track!  Post daily or sum it all up on one big post (weekly, monthly, the whole thing!  

This challenge is about having fun and staying connected during the upcoming quarantined semester.  I know the prospect of entirely online school looks like an absolute drag to me, so let’s do something to stay connected through it all!  Hope all you lovelies enjoy!  Please tag me and the challenge too! I’ll be following #QuarantineFallStudyChallenge and #heyspell-studies feel free to @ me too!  Alright!  Down to the dates!

1. Monday, August 24th: What classes are you taking?

2. Tuesday, August 25th: What time does your alarm go off?

3. Wednesday. August 26th: Do you check your phone when you first wake up?

4. Thursday, August 27th: What is your favorite season? Why?

5. Friday, August 28th: Tea or coffee?

End of week one Saturday, August 29th: How did this week go for you?

End of week one Sunday, August 30th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

6. Monday, August 31st: What is your favorite thing about school?

7. Tuesday, Sept. 1st: Favorite school memory! (Not online lol).

8. Wednesday, Sept. 2nd: How do you take your coffee?

9. Thursday, Sept. 3rd: How do you take your tea?

10. Friday, Sept. 4th: Favorite study snack!

End of week two Saturday, Sept. 5th: How did this week go for you?

End of week two Sunday, Sept. 6th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

11. Monday, Sept. 7th: Currently reading!

12. Tuesday, Sept. 8th:  How do you take notes?

13. Wednesday, Sept. 9th: What is your goal aesthetic?

14. Thursday, Sept. 10th: Are you a morning person or a night person?

15. Friday, Sept. 11th: Day in your life! 

End of week three Saturday, Sept. 12th : How did this week go for you?

End of week three Sunday, Sept. 13th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

16. Monday, Sept. 14th: Song of the day! What are you jamming to?

17. Tuesday, Sept. 15th: What is your study playlist?

18. Wednesday, Sept. 16th: Study Schedule! 

19. Thursday, Sept. 17th: How do you organize your to-do’s?

20. Friday, Sept. 18th: Do you read motivational books?

End of week four Saturday, Sept. 19th: How did this week go for you?

End of week four Sunday, Sept. 20th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

21. Monday, Sept. 21st: What do you do for your self care?

22. Tuesday, Sept. 22nd: Fall starts today! What is your favorite thing about fall?

23. Wednesday, Sept. 23rd: Unpopular book opinion?

24. Thursday, Sept. 24th: What do you love about #Studyblr?

25. Friday, Sept. 25th: Unpopular #Studyblr opinions?

End of week five Saturday, Sept. 26th: How did this week go for you?

End of week five Sunday, Sept. 27th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

26. Monday, Sept. 28th: What is your to do list?

27. Tuesday, Sept. 29th: What is your biggest inspiration?

28. Wednesday, Sept. 30th: Positive affirmations!  What are yours? Write some!

29. Thursday, Oct. 1st: Post a pic of your study Space and your favorite drink!

30. Friday, Oct. 2nd: Hand writing tag! Upper and lower case, and cursive! 

End of week six Saturday, Oct. 3rd: How did this week go for you?

End of week six Sunday, Oct. 4th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

31. Monday, Oct. 5th: What are you proud of today?

32. Tuesday, Oct. 6th: How do you stay awake while studying?

33. Wednesday, Oct. 7th: Do you use Pinterest? (What are your boards?)

34. Thursday, Oct. 8th: Drop your Insta handle! (If you want).

35. Friday, Oct. 9th: Do you have any fun weekend plans?

End of week seven Saturday, Oct. 10th: How did this week go for you?

End of week seven Sunday, Oct. 11th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

36. Monday, Oct. 12th: Study alone or study with a group?

37. Tuesday, Oct. 13th: Do you color code?

38. Wednesday, Oct. 14th: Show us your annotations!

39. Thursday, Oct. 15th: What do your supplies look like?

40: Friday, Oct. 16th: Half way! How do you reward yourself?

End of week eight Saturday, Oct. 17th: How did this week go for you?

End of week eight Sunday, Oct. 18th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

41. Monday, Oct. 19th: Do you eat while you study?

42. Tuesday, Oct. 20th: Do you exercise?

43. Wednesday, Oct. 21st: It’s definitely getting cooler! Outfit of the day!

44. Thursday, Oct. 22nd: Have you ever meditated? If you haven’t give it a try!

45. Friday, October, 23rd: Long one, who is your ideal self? Or a self love entry!

End of week nine Saturday, Oct. 24th: How did this week go for you?

End of week nine Sunday, Oct. 25th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

46. Monday, Oct. 26th: Do you keep your notes when class is over?

47. Tuesday, Oct. 27th: How do you balance school, work and life?

48. Wednesday, Oct. 28th: Who do you live with? 

49. Thursday, Oct. 29th: Do you have a job outside of school?

50. Friday, Oct. 30th: Do you have a Halloween costume or plans?

End of week ten Saturday, Oct. 31st: How did this week go for you?

End of week ten Sunday, Nov. 1st: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

51. Monday, Nov. 2nd: Morning routine!

52. Tuesday, Nov. 3rd: Evening routine!

53. Wednesday, Nov. 4th: Favorite study tips?

54. Thursday, Nov. 5th: What is on your desk?

55. Friday, Nov. 6th: Some short term goals!

End of week eleven Saturday, Nov. 7th: How did this week go for you?

End of week eleven Sunday, Nov. 8th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

56. Monday, Nov. 9th: Some long term goals!

57. Tuesday, Nov. 10th: Tag your favorite studyblr!

58. Wednesday, Nov. 11th: If you could study anywhere, where? (and why!)

59. Thursday, Nov. 12th: Do you study language?

60. Friday, Nov. 13th: What is the view out your window?

End of week twelve Saturday, Nov. 14th: How did this week go for you?

End of week twelve Sunday, Nov. 15th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

61. Monday, Nov. 16th: Favorite school supplies!

62. Tuesday, Nov. 17th: Bath bomb bubble baths or long showers?

63. Wednesday, Nov. 18th: Name 3 things you love about yourself.

64. Thursday, Nov. 19th: Do you journal?

65. Friday, Nov. 20th: Have you ever made a vision board?

End of week thirteen Saturday, Nov. 21st: How did this week go for you?

End of week thirteen Sunday, Nov. 22nd: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

66. Monday, Nov. 23rd: Favorite type of weather?

67. Tuesday, Nov. 24th: Scarf or beanie?

68. Wednesday, Nov. 25th: What are you grateful for today?

69. Thursday, Nov. 26th: What studyblr advice would you give to others?

70. Friday, Nov. 27th: Holidays! What are you excited for this holiday season?

End of week fourteen Saturday, Nov. 28th: How did this week go for you?

End of week fourteen Sunday, Nov. 29th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

71. Monday, Nov. 30th: What is your “happy place”?

72. Tuesday, Dec. 1st: How are you feeling about education during a pandemic?

73. Wednesday,  Dec. 2nd: When was the last time you did something “scary”?

74. Thursday, Dec. 3rd: What habit do you want to break?

75. Friday, Dec. 4th: what habit do you want to make?

End of week fifteen Saturday, Dec. 5th: How did this week go for you?

End of week fifteen Sunday, Dec. 6th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

76. Monday, Dec. 7th: What is/are your creative outlet(s)?

77. Tuesday, Dec. 8th: Where do you see yourself in seven years?

78. Wednesday, Dec. 9th: What is one of your favorite holiday memories?

79. Thursday, Dec. 10th: Are you feeling ready for finals?

80. Friday, Dec. 11th: Is it really already over?!  What did you learn during this challenge? What did you like about this challenge?

[freddie-mercurial]

MAYCURY WEEK 2020

it’s that time of year again!  i’m hoping there are still some people about in the fandom who’ll be interested in joining in - i’m going to use the same timings as last year, so posting during freddie’s birthday week (31st aug - 6th sept), and i’m posting the prompts up today on brian’s birthday because it felt fitting!

as before there are no rules except that it should be about freddie and brian.  there’s no word limit, minimum word count, don’t worry about posting in line with specific days or even following the prompts - the prompts are just there as an extra nudge if anyone’s looking for some inspiration!  you can write anything, draw something, make a graphic, write a poem - anything goes, as long as it’s maycury!

for each day i’ve put a dialogue prompt, an au prompt, a specific brian/freddie prompt, and a queen song which you can use as a prompt in any way you want!

tag everything ‘maycury week 2020′ and i’ll make another collection at the end and do a round-up post of everything that’s been posted.

i hope people have some fun with this, i still adore this ship and these people and this band to the ends of the earth so i’m excited!!!

MONDAY 31ST AUGUST

“it’s always been you.”

parent/teacher au

during the hot space era, recording in munich, freddie’s out at all hours but ends up getting ditched in town at 2am.  things with brian have been tense lately but freddie’s stupidly drunk and doesn’t think twice before calling him to come pick him up.

scandal

TUESDAY 1ST SEPTEMBER

“are you ever going to kiss me?”

photographer/model au

while freddie’s running his clothing stall in kensington, brian decides to drop by to see if freddie can help him find some good stage outfits, since freddie’s always criticising the ones he wears for smile’s gigs.

somebody to love

WEDNESDAY 2ND SEPTEMBER

“i can’t sleep.”

pride and prejudice au

for their very first tour abroad, freddie finds himself on a plane for the first time in years, only he’d forgotten just how much he hated them.  he can feel himself starting to have a panic attack but thankfully brian’s there with him and calms him down through the flight.

princes of the universe

THURSDAY 3RD SEPTEMBER

“why are you looking at me like that?”

magic au

they’re on top of the world; gigging with mott the hoople, about to take america by storm, when brian collapses on stage in absolute agony (with hepatitis).  freddie’s never been more frightened in his entire life.

tear it up

FRIDAY 4TH SEPTEMBER

“do you want to stay in here with me?”

we work in the same office au

tim’s just quit smile and brian’s feeling despondent about his musical future; that dream’s as good as dead, and he knows he needs to focus back on his studies.  but then freddie shows up at his flat with a bottle of vodka and one hopeful, shining idea: they could form their own band.

who wants to live forever

SATURDAY 5TH SEPTEMBER

“do you even know how to knock?!”

vet/pet owner au

it’s freddie’s birthday and brian’s planned a big surprise for him but, before he can reveal it, he has to console freddie who has just found his first ever grey hair and is absolutely distraught.

don’t stop me now

SUNDAY 6TH SEPTEMBER

“you weren’t supposed to hear that…”

famous actors au

while recording at ridge farm, after another long, successful day of working on new material, roger and john head down to the local pub and leave brian and freddie at the barn.  it’s a warm, lazy summer night spent down by the pool and, as the sun sets, brian can’t help but think how glad he is that freddie came into their lives.

now i’m here

[orangeblossomstudies]

2020-09-13

So I haven’t been active in a bit and wanted to do this challenge but have been hella busy, so I'm gonna info dump this and hopefully be able to keep up after haha. Thanks for making this @spell-studies​!

-------------

1. Monday, August 24th: What classes are you taking?

- i’m taking two classes, Management of Information Organization and Museum Informatics.

2. Tuesday, August 25th: What time does your alarm go off?

- i actually don’t really have an alarm these days but I wake up around 10-11 most days because of my dog then I start remote work at noon.

3. Wednesday. August 26th: Do you check your phone when you first wake up?

- absolutely. i am very active on discord where most of my friends are, so I always check that and maybe read a few chapters in whatever I’m currently reading online.

4. Thursday, August 27th: What is your favorite season? Why?

- i live in Florida so my favorite season here is winter because that's the only time we ever get any semblance of a chill. outside where I live, I’d probably say fall though just because I’m not a fan of temperatures below 40 and its always so pretty and the atmosphere is just something I live for. 

5. Friday, August 28th: Tea or coffee?

- anyone who knows me knows I pick tea (I’m somewhat of a collector).

End of week one Saturday, August 29th: How did this week go for you?

- i can say that the last week of august was actually my first week back to normalcy as I’d been struggling with a back injury all month. this week was my first week in which I could do some, not all, of the basic every day things I’d been unable to do for what felt like forever (sitting down, driving, waking up even).

End of week one Sunday, August 30th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

- i actually didn’t have very many plans for the next week except for work!

6. Monday, August 31st: What is your favorite thing about school?

- right now nothing as my course load is excruciatingly boring.

7. Tuesday, Sept. 1st: Favorite school memory! (Not online lol).

- I honestly can’t think of one. I have an awful memory, so I’m at a loss here :/

8. Wednesday, Sept. 2nd: How do you take your coffee?

- if I have coffee, which is rare, I usually have blonde coffee with a decent DECENT amount of almond milk and enough sugar to make it not bitter at all haha.

9. Thursday, Sept. 3rd: How do you take your tea?

ooo. this one is hard as it depends on the tea. if it's a black tea/masala I might put in some almond milk and sugar crystals. for green teas, chamomile, florals etc I usually take it straight.

10. Friday, Sept. 4th: Favorite study snack!

- hot cheetos and watermelon ICE drinks for sure.

End of week two Saturday, Sept. 5th: How did this week go for you?

- skip

End of week two Sunday, Sept. 6th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

- skip

11. Monday, Sept. 7th: Currently reading!

- just, ya know, stuff. on a website. might have something to do with a mango...

12. Tuesday, Sept. 8th:  How do you take notes?

- currently I don’t as it’s not necessary for my classes but usually I’d take basic notes in class then rewrite them at home.

13. Wednesday, Sept. 9th: What is your goal aesthetic?

- grunge cottage core? don’t know if that makes sense but I’m not totally sure how else to describe it. 

14. Thursday, Sept. 10th: Are you a morning person or a night person?

- currently I’m a night person but I really enjoy mornings on days I have nothing planned--when I can actually get up for them.

15. Friday, Sept. 11th: Day in your life!

- nowadays I usually wake up around 5 because my elderly, dying cat needs to go to the bathroom or wants water. I’ll then go back to sleep around 5:30/6 and wake up somewhere between 10/11 to take my dog out. I’ll then lay in bed as long as possible before I need to shower and start work (remotely). On Fridays, I work 12-3. I’ve been working on some Slavery related papers from St. Augustine we have at the archive. I’m usually active on discord with my friends during this time lol. It’s a pretty relaxed job. The rest of the day was just relaxed, played a few online games and read a bit before binge eating and going to sleep O_O

End of week three Saturday, Sept. 12th : How did this week go for you?

- it was ok. nothing special. i did get some toner for my hair which I was excited for. I’m naturally blonde but the brassiness has been getting on my nerves recently as I’ve not been in the sun to lighten it.

End of week three Sunday, Sept. 13th: What is your plan for the upcoming week?

- work and classes as usual. I might go to my friends house for dinner as her and her fiancé now have their own place. Other than that I’ll just be chilling. 

[ladykailitha]

Posting Schedule and Story Update

I know, I know I don't have a posting schedule, not really. At least in terms of what gets published when, only the days of the week stuff gets posted.

Well for the next four weeks there will be one:

Never Hold Back Your Step...- Sundays

Well Met By Moonlight- Tuesdays

Icarus- Thursdays

Special- Saturdays*

But I'm also getting worryingly low on my backlog (like I'm about dip into single digit range) and I hate having it that low.

So what I usually do is take a week or so off posting and build it back up. And I would normally take the week of my birthday off (Aug 14) to play catch up, but...

Yeah, I'm planning on posting the final chapter of Well Met By Moonlight (werewolf Steve) on the 13th. One year after it's release and since I'm releasing on that day, it doesn't make sense to only post that day and none of the rest of the week.

Also depending on what I am doing on the 14th (as whether or not my husband works) will decide whether or not I'm doing WIP Wednesday that day because if I'm not really doing anything, than I would prefer hanging out with you guys and writing. But I'll keep you posted the closer that gets.

But if he does have it off, I'll take it off and have two days the next week to make up for it. It would also be that week that I would take off posting and probably the next week as well. It depends on how much I get done.

But here's the exciting part, during this time between now and Aug 18th I will continue to work on the exotic club one and will have a ton of fun chapters to share when I get back from my break.

I will still be doing WIP Wednesdays and posting ideas and meta and headcanons and all that fun stuff. And maybe some fun polls too.

Also it is looking like "Never Hold Back Your Step..." (boy w/a bat) will be only 17 chapters long (maybe only 16 depending on how much of the Mind Flayer fight I put in it). I'm hoping it'll be only 16 really so that it can end the same week as Well Met.

I think a lot of people are hoping for their favorite parts of season 3, but this story was never meant to re-write canon. It was just meant to look into the idea that Eddie picked Steve up as a lost sheepie between season 2 and 3. Something that at the time there wasn't a lot of.

We'll see.

But expect to see me start posting again on Sept 1st for sure or on Aug 25th, if I have a really good week. And I'll be kicking it off the exotic dancer one, which I'm really excited for.

*Sir Steve, Knight Protectorate will be finished this Saturday. Leaving the Caged Bird Still Sings (sugar baby!Steve/sugar daddy!Eddie) to take its posting slot on Saturdays.

Tagging my permanent list to make sure everyone who needs to see this can.

1-@mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog

2- @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @cryptid-system

3- @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

4- @justforthedead89 @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690 @forgottenkanji

5- @anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon

6- @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @disrespectedgoatman

7- @counting-dollars-counting-stars @tinyplanet95 @ravenfrog @swimmingbirdrunningrock @lingeringmirth

8- @gutterflower77 @a-lovely-craziness @just-a-tiny-void @w1ll0wtr33 @beelze-the-bubkiss

[ms-m-astrologer]

Transiting Mars enters retrograde zone

Timeline (current events in bold)

Saturday, July 25, 2020, 14:10 UT - transiting Mars enters retrograde zone, 15:14 Aries

Wednesday, September 9, 2020, 22:22 UT - transiting Mars stations retrograde, 28:08 Aries

Saturday, November 14, 2020, 00:36 UT - transiting Mars stations direct, 15:14 Aries

Saturday, January 2, 2021, 19:10 UT - transiting Mars exits retrograde zone, 28:08 Aries

Before I even get started, the main thing I want everyone to take from any of this is to SLOW THE F*$& DOWN. It’s a guarantee that anything you try to start &/or accomplish between July 25 and September 9 will be revisited, when Mars is retrograde - and then, re-revisited, after Mars stations direct.

My #1 source for Rx Zone issues, Martin Bulgerin (www dot biopscinst dot com), has this to say about Mars retrograde:

During Mars retrograde periods, we get to experience how we sabotage our own actions, preventing us from achieving what we desire to do. The ability to express your will-power seems thwarted. The key here is to discover what is keeping you from effective action and changing it. This inner nemesis may be an over active temper, an impatience with planning when you can rush into activity, or simply a lack of awareness that causes you to ignore useful clues. This is not a good time to initiate new projects that require perseverence, nor is it easy to work with others during this cycle.

In a perfect world, we took to heart all the lessons about effective Mars expression, back when Mars was in Pisces. We learned how to be more of a Zen master than a trigger-happy soldier. Unfortunately, this is 2020. As if it isn’t bad enough to have Mars Rx in his own sign, DURING AN ELECTION YEAR IN THE US, we have a series of difficult aspects which transiting Mars is going to “do” three times each: Mars will square Pallas Athene, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto, three times each; Mars will also conjunct Eris/Aries three times.

Anyway, here we are in the pre-Rx zone. Issues that we’re going to have to deal with, during the time Mars is actually retrograde, will begin to crop up. Ms M has a strong natal Mars and has seen the writing on the wall, so to speak, for a few days now. I suggest that, if you’re also the possessor of a strong natal Mars (or Aries or Scorpio, or the 1st or 8th Houses), make notes on your planner about issues that crop up. Date and time, like that.

I haven’t gone into detail about the aspects of a planet, in quite some time. If I were you, I would pay attention to the transiting aspects that you may have in your natal chart. For example, I have natal Mars square natal Pallas Athene; I’m going to feel that set of squares very strongly.

You may also want to pay attention to any of the aspects that will trigger something in your own chart, regardless of whether or not you have it natally. The Mars-Saturn square on August 24, for example, will ding my natal Mercury/Gemini.

Finally: a few hours after Mars enters his Rx Zone (03:50 UT on Sunday, July 26), the Moon transiting Libra will oppose him. If we’re awake and aware, we should definitely feel this thing beginning to ratchet up.

Monday, July 27, 21:46 UT - Mercury/Cancer square Mars/Aries, 16:20

Third of three. This is the first non-lunar aspect Mars makes, and sets the tone for the whole experience. From Merc’s point of view, Mars is insensitive, cruel, and selfish; from Mars’ point of view, Merc whines too much and never wants to stand up for itself. My suspicion is that Mars is going to pick up on something unresolved from the recent Mercury Rx (some perceived insecurity), and run with it. Be smarter than that.

Placements affected lie between 15:20 and 17:20 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 0:20 and 2:20 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Wednesday, July 29, 05:02 UT - Pallas Athene Rx/Capricorn square Mars/Aries, 16:51

First of three. You never like to see the warrior squabbling with the master strategist. Pallas Athene is telling Mars to follow procedures, perhaps, and Mars just wants to trash everything with his sword. Again, this may “just” manifest as some issue we’ll have to face more thoroughly during Mars’ retrograde.

Placements affected lie between 15:51 and 17:51 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 0:51 and 2:51 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Tuesday, August 4, 13:06 UT - Jupiter Rx/Capricorn square Mars/Aries, 19:44

First of three. If I were telling a story (and I kind of am), it’s almost like Mars didn’t like the orders he got from Captain Pallas Athene, so he’s protesting up to General Jupiter. Which I don’t think is “done” in the Army! We could get carried away and overconfident; we may consent to take on some project that is way, way over our heads and/or our paygrades.

Placements affected lie between 20:44 and 22:44 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 5:44 and 7:44 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Thursday, August 6, 07:30 UT - Neptune Rx/Pisces semi-sextile Mars/Aries, 20:28

First of three. Much of the reason for the typical Martian bravado and belligerence can be found in the fact that the sign which precedes it, in the Zodiac, is Pisces. Mars/Aries is a reaction to Neptune/Pisces. Mars is essentially trying to banish, or at least cover up, what it perceives as all the Neptunian insecurity. A very subtle situation arises where the two different fighting styles are contrasted. Take good notes.

Placements affected lie between 19:28 and 21:28 of all signs. You’ll probably feel that one of these planets is helping you, and the other is hindering you.

Thursday, August 13, 07:13 UT - Pluto Rx/Capricorn square Mars/Aries, 23:05;  Friday, August 14, 19:40 UT - Ceres Rx/Pisces (8:35) semi-square Mars/Aries (23:35)

First of three, for both of them. Mars is beginning to slow down considerably, giving us this sort of “two-fer” situation to deal with. We all know the mythology between Ceres and Pluto, right? Here, Pluto is the strict, traditional husband; while Ceres is the anxious, overprotective mom. Now here comes Mars, spoiling for a fight. Whatever arises from this, it should be easier to separate the issues during Mars’ retrograde, and address them more appropriately.

Placements affected lie between 22:05 and 24:35 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 7:05 and 9:35 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Sunday, August 16, 14:01 UT - Sun/Leo trine Mars/Aries, 24:09;  Monday, August 17, 05:28 UT - Mercury/Leo trine Mars, Aries, 24:21;  Monday, August 17, 16:39 UT - Eris Rx/Aries conjunct Mars/Aries, 24:29 (First of three)

I honestly looked at this situation and thought, “Hubris.” The braggadocio levels are off the charts. I’m thinking about all these so-called “militia” types we have in the US, the bunch of ugly idiots brandishing their guns all the time. And you know what’s really unsettling? August 17 is the beginning of the Democratic National Convention. Expect clown cars, I guess.

Placements affected lie between 23:09 and 25:29 of all signs. Planets in yang signs (Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Aquarius) will get more of a positive “boost” out of this, i.e., easier to express the energies.

Saturday, August 22, 14:04 UT - North Node/Gemini sextile Mars/Aries, 25:49; South Node/Sagittarius trine Mars/Aries, 25:49

First of three. The trine between the South Node and Mars makes it easy for us to “act up” in ways that have worked for us in the past. And in ways we’ve enjoyed acting up. However, we’re supposed to be going toward the North Node! We have opportunities here to “trade notes” and compare experiences with other people. There are smarter ways to get what we want. And we don’t have to fight all alone.

Placements affected lie between 24:49 and 26:59 of the yang signs Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, and Aquarius.

Monday, August 24, 18:19 UT - Saturn Rx/Capricorn square Mars/Aries, 26:19 (First of three);  Wednesday, August 26, 03:48 UT - Mercury (11:36 Virgo) sesquare Mars (26:36 Aries)

In case you were wondering, this is the week scheduled (as of July 24) for the Republican National Convention. Remember that astrological cliche about how Mars is the gas pedal and Saturn is the brakes? Maybe Mercury can be the backseat driver, snarking out unhelpful instructions?! (This is also when my school district plans on opening schools back up.) There is some absolutely infuriating situation which may be too impossible to extract ourselves from. Alas for us, the revisit of Mars-Saturn, during the retrograde (Sept 23-24), will feature Merc in Libra opposing Mars and squaring Saturn. (However, for the third and final Mars-Saturn square, Merc is otherwise occupied.)

Placements affected lie between 25:19 and 27:36 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 10:19 and 12:36 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Friday, September 4, 09:12 UT - Venus/Cancer square Mars/Aries, 27:55; Friday, September 4, 13:15 UT - Mercury/Virgo inconjunct Mars/Aries, 27:55;  Saturday, September 5, 01:54 UT - Sun/Virgo (12:58) sesquare Mars/Aries (27:58)

The final “situation” before Mars stations retrograde sees all the personal planets ganging up on Mars. (The Moon will be conjunct Mars on Sept. 5-6.) This is where Mars has to face facts - the old ways aren’t working any more. Venus is cutting him off, the Sun is backing up Venus (and being snarky about it to both parties), and Mercury is detailing all the ways he’s being ineffective. In the US at least there’s a long holiday weekend for Mars to contemplate all this.

Placements affected lie between 26:55 and 28:08 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 11:55 and 13:08 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

[suckitsurveys]

1 - How often do you change the sheets on your bed? What does your favourite bedding look like? I wash them every few weeks. We only habe one set that works right now. It’s light blue with a dark blue comforter. 

2 - When was the last time you had coffee with a friend? Mark is a friend. We had coffee a couple days ago.

3 - Is there snow outside right now? Is that a good or a bad thing for you? There isn’t. I’m fine with that.

4 - What scent was the last candle/incense/air freshener that you used? My neighbor gave me a candle called Unicorn Farts that smells like candy.

5 - When was the last time you listened to the radio? Sunday on my drive home from my sister’s. I was listening to the station that just plays Christmas music. 

6 - Do you always buy the same brands of food, or are you open to trying something new occasionally? Depends on what is on sale. 

7 - What did you have for breakfast this morning? I had oatmeal with soy milk and honey. .

8 - Is your job repetitive, or do you do different things every day? Repetitive.

9 - Do you have any superstitious beliefs? What led you to believe in those things? I’m just a little stitious. 

10 - When was the last time you took a painkiller? What was the reason for it? Sunday. I had a really bad headache. 

11 - Do you have any plans for your next birthday yet? When is your birthday, anyway? My plan is to hopefully be able to see people in person and maybe go on a trip. My birthday is Sept 2nd.

12 - What’s your favourite flavour of juice? Apple.

13 - Are any of your electronics on charge right now? Both laptops and my phone and my vibrator lol.  14 - Do you enjoy being busy, or would you rather take things a bit more slowly? I enjoy a good balance. I like being busy to keep my mind off stuff but I like relaxing a bit too. 

15 - What time do you normally get out of bed in the morning? During work I get out of bed around 7, which is when I am supposed to start work, lol. Ah the joys of working from home. 

16 - What’s your favourite type of bread? Garlic.

17 - How many animals are in the room you’re in at the moment? Assuming they’re pets, do they belong to you or another member of your family? I can see all three kitties from where I am; one is in a chair next to me, one is on the ottoman in our coat cubby, and one is in the tree in our bedroom. 

18 - When was the last time you washed your hair? Saturday. I’ll probably wash it tonight after I decorate and work out. 

19 - Would you rather clean little and often every day, or wait and do a big blitz on a Saturday morning? Depends on my mood.

20 - When was the last time you had a ready meal? What counts as a “ready” meal? Like, take out? I had takeout on Friday. 

21 - Are there any foods you only eat at a certain time of year? Yeah, the traditional holiday type foods.

22 - Do you find certain foods to be comforting in any way? What’s your reason for thinking that? Of course. Some foods have tradition and memories attached to them. Like my mom’s potato salad that I started making for holidays after she passed. Or my dad’s spaghetti sauce we used to eat almost every Sunday. 

23 - What’s your favourite way of eating potatoes? With my mouth. 

24 - How many people do you see on an average day? Are you happy with that number? On average, at least one: my husband. I see my sister and her kids and my dad pretty often throughout the week as well. I am good with that because I have to be. It’s covidtimes yall. 

25 - What’s your favourite kind of soup? Potato leek and lobster bisque. 

26 - How old is the computer you’re currently using? At least 7 or 8 years old, as it was my mother’s. 

27 - Do you play a lot of video games? Do you play these often? No. I play a lot of games on my phone though.

28 - When was the last time you went bowling? Oh man. I don’t remember. The last time I remember bowling was like 5 years ago at one of the kids my sister nannied for’s 1st birthday party. But I also feel like I’ve been since. OH! We went bowling for my birthday 2 years ago. 

29 - Have you ever walked out of a place of work before? Did you leave for good or what happened? No.

30 - Do you own a lot of blankets? Do you use them regularly? I wouldn’t say a lot, no. We have 2 comforters and some throw blankets. I’m using a cute fleece throw with avocados on it. 

[strouja]

Turned 55 - A day in the life

I did this 5 years ago when I hit 50 and figured I’d do this again.  To capture a moment in time and what I did on typical day, but it just happened to be my birthday Sept. 1, 2020

Late night working

I got inspired and decided to improve our security profile on our product on a very minor issue, but it would be nice do.  So after midnight, which made it my birthday I researched on how to only allow Transport Layer Security (TLS) version 1.2 (and not allow earlier versions) to parts of our system used for internal communications.  This is a minor issue as we lock this down for all customer access and this is just for our own “system to system” communication.  So I looked up how to do this for something called Kibana and WebSphere liberty.  I checked in config file changes into something called github for our product and sent a “pull request” to have an expert review it.

So it is now 1:30 am and I’m ready to call it a night.

Can we sleep now

The wife comes up to bed and we agree to NOT let our dog Winston sleep in our bed as he can make it hard for us humans to sleep.  I would have him stay with us but Linh is not in favor.

So he whines outside our door for a good 15 minutes or so.  Now we are ready to sleep.

All of sudden we hear him barking constantly.  He behaves as a guard dog and we are perplexed as there is never anything going on late at night.  This is relentless.  After about 10 or 15 minutes of this I go out to see what the hell is going on.  He is in the next room, on my 16 year old son's bed looking out the window barking at something in the darkness. 

So I put his LED collar on and let him run around the house and chase until his heart’s content.  He stays outside for 1/2 hour or so.  I entice him back in and close the curtains in William's bedrooms so he won't go crazy barking anymore.  So I think.   FYI my son William is passed out in the basement on a new giant bean bag.Now it is probably 2:30 and I'm finally ready to sleep.  But no, we hear Winston barking non-stop again. 

FYI this never happens, normally it is peaceful here at night and the dog does not bark at things past 9 pm or so. It turns out whatever animals he saw before are still out there and he can see them from the windows on the 1st floor.  My wife is fast asleep.  I can't sleep because of this and possibly from my short but pretty hard 10 minute bike workout earlier today and the more than normal amount coffee I had today.  I normally just have  one cup but drank some leftover coffee in the afternoon.I probably fall asleep at 3 am or so.I have a 9 am meeting I have to get up for.

Working for the Man - IBM

Since I work from home I am able to get up right before my 9 am meeting. Then I run a meeting at 9:40 with my boss and my boss’ boss to go over how to allocate our finite internal cloud resources that one team wants to consume all of it.  This is all done by Webex video & audio conferencing (like Zoom).

We have a bunch more meetings.  Then I get a break sometime before noon.

Catching last 20 km of Tour de France Stage 4

When I get a break I put on the TV and through my Roku 3 put on NBC Sports Gold (without ads and European commentary)  to see if today’s Tour de France stage is still on.  I find out the race is still live and it is mountain top finish and there are 20 km left.  So this is the perfect time to watch.  I catch up on work while hearing the race and glimpsing at it.  

Although I’m an avid cyclist, race myself, and lead a fast ride every week (normally 2 times a week but reduced to one because of covid-19 and with a smaller group), I’m not a big fan of pro bike racing because I know all the top names and riders are still doping.  So I know only a fully doped rider has a chance of winning today’s stage, especially because it is mountain top finish. 

Fixing my bike

After my ride on Sunday with my former teammates: Ray Plewacki, Vic Siegfried, and Dave Fuentes, I asked my buddy Ray P. if he can fix some shifting problem of my bike this week.   He texted me earlier in the day and he agreed to come over during his lunch break.   He arrives at 12:30 as I have another meeting going on.  I tell my boss I will have to duck out of the meeting.  He is fine with that.

Ray does his magic and does micro adjusting on my Shimano DuraAce Di2 electronic shifting.  I could not shift into one of the mid gears in the back.  Ray figured it out for me.  So I’m all set for Tuesday Night World Championships.

Bike Ride

I eat my Overnight Oats in the very late morning and later on eat my vegan lentil based meal I made yesterday in the instant pot.   I finish up work, then clean my bike (clean the drive train) and put bike in car.

I drive to bike ride and get FaceTime video call from my Don Cayelli on the ride over to wish me happy birthday.  We agree to have our families go to North Carolina in a few months for a mini-vacation.  We talk about a bunch of things and he asks how old the guys I ride with.  I explain that the average age is about mid 30s, one guy I am older than his parents.  The best and strongest rider by far is 40 years old, a former pro - Jason Schneider.   He would not dope and had to leave the pro ranks as a result, doping was rampant (I claim it still is) but was much more out in the open.  That is the only reason why his pro bike days were cut short.

There were some notable strong riders not here, 2 of the regulars - Alex Batres and Jason Boslaugh.  Them not being here makes it much more manageable for me as the top guys feed off of others and try to outdo each other, in this process this puts the hurt on me.   Many other super strong riders have not been here for anytime this year since we resumed these small rides because of Covid-19. Two notable people in this category are: George Croghan & Ferry Gijzel.

The ride tonight is very hard, 3 loops with hills about 12 miles each loop.  We average 22.5 mph with stopping for lights every loop.  So a pretty hard ride.  I stay with the lead group but make a mistake on 2nd lap and don’t follow a very strong move (that I was told about) and end up doing a few miles solo to catch many 3 people and pull us most of the way to the main group on “Bennett Road” and catch them at the light.

Here is the strava from tonight’s ride

https://www.strava.com/activities/3998711104

This is missing pics of the strongest rider - Jason Schneider

Getting heckled on the ride

On the ride I get comments from the 2nd strongest rider on the ride about joining AARP.  This kid is 27 and I am older than his parents. Spencer Lofgran is this person of interest. 

Close the gap on the ride

On the last lap I was gaped a bit on a flat portion - Lawyers road as I was behind 3 folks that were not continuing the ride and the 4 guys in the front started hammering.  The strongest guy comes back and gives me a massive push that pushes me past all the riders.  This was by far the strongest push I ever received on the bike

Catching up with Mates

In the parking lot after the ride my buddy Vic Siegrfried is there waiting to wish me happy birthday.    Here is a pic from Sunday ride with me, Ray Plewacki (middle) and Vic 

Catching up with former work mates - IT Legend

I drive home and call a good friend of mine from work Anthony Zawacki to catch up with him.  He was our best worker by far but in our last round of layoffs was dismissed.  He is an IT rockstar doing great at his new job.  He asks me a work question and that reminds me to contact a team using our product to help them avert a Kubernetes problem of an expiring certificate and to fix it before it expires.

Working for the man again

I get home and hop back on my new work issued MacBook Pro 16″ laptop to figure out the commands I want the customer to run. The commands are not in our official doc and I eventually find the commands that work.  I test them on my own test system at an IBM lab and give them to support to get to them to the customer.  I no longer have contacts with the on-site team as the main person I worked with left IBM. 

I then write a long slack message to our documentation person to explain why we need these commands in our documentation. I then give sample output of the commands and what we are looking for.

The next day I spend a few hours doing more testing and spend an hour with our doc person to make all the changes to our official doc that I then get out to our customers on this release of our product.

Birthday Cake

My wife bought a 2 cakes, chocolate mousse with raspberries and apricot tart. 

I eat 100% plant based foods (past 8 months or so) but broke that tonight to eat the chocolate mousse

We FaceTime my daughter Sophia at the University of Virginia (UVA), I light candles, and we sing happy birthday with Linh, Sophia (on iPhone), William and our infamous dog - Winston.  Here are some poor photos I took in haste.

Trippy Lights & Wall Art

As I’m heading to bed my son shows me the LED lights we bought him for his bedroom and some very funky psychedelic wall art whose appearance change dramatically as the LED lights change colors.  

[urbanadventureleague]

Three Speed October 2019 is coming! (Sept 27-Nov 3) 

 Hello, friends of Three Speeds! After taking a break for 2018, the Three Speed October Challenge is on for 2019!

The premise is simple: Ride your three speed during the month of October! Here are the basic stipulations of this challenge:

Ride a three speed bicycle

Three times a week

At least three miles (5 km) each trip

For at least three weeks during the duration of the challenge

During a five-week period that centers around the month of October

And those of you who successfully complete the challenge will qualify to get something! If you are not already a member, successful completion of the challenge will qualify for a discounted SoTS membership.

For 2019, the Three Speed October Challenge will run from Friday September 27th to Sunday November 3rd. All times local.

You can find all the tl;dr rules here.

While the basics of the event remain the same, there are some tweaks and revisions to the 2019 Challenge:

Starting with the 2019 challenge, you do not have to follow a traditional calendar week. It just has to be a seven day period.  For example, if you started your first ride on a Wednesday, your week ends on the following Tuesday. But most importantly, weeks cannot overlap. So if you start one week on a Wednesday, your next “week” can’t start until at least the following Wednesday. You just need to fill up three non-overlapping “weeks” during the duration of the challenge. (And yes, there can be gaps. The weeks don’t have to butt up against each other.) The first full week you can do is Friday September 27 through Thursday October 3rd. The last full week you can do is Monday October 28th through Sunday November 3rd.

The final weekend of the challenge, Friday November 1st through Sunday November 3rd, is designated as a Make-Up Weekend. During this “make up weekend” can only do one ride and one ride only to make up for a missed one for any previous “biffed” week. So you’ll still need to ride two rides during a previous week. Please note you can still do part of a regular week during this time too, if your final week happens during November 1-3.

In the past I allowed the possibility of doing two rides in a day. Since I made the calendar more flexible, I’m taking that away. So, you need to ride three separate and distinct trips in a week, each ride on a different day.

The prize pack for this year will consist of my new Three Speed October design that you see above. There are stickers, and there will be patches! These will be awarded to those who successfully complete the challenge. (Please note that there is a fee for getting the stickers/patches.)

And starting in 2019, there will be some bonus prizes! What can you do to get these bonus prizes? Well, I’ll be awarding one for each of the following:

Longest single ride. This one is pretty straightforward. (Must be contained to a 24 hour period.) If two or more people tie, see tie-breakers in item four below.

Best write up of your ride(s). Make them interesting!

Best photo. Must include in photo a bike you rode. If you are posting pics here to tumbr, or to Instagram/flickr, tag them with #threespeedoct2019 and make sure I know about them!

Most bikes used during the challenge. The maximum amount you can do is nine, one for each ride. (Sorry, you can’t switch out bikes during a ride to get more bikes in.) If two or more people tie, tiebreakers will include, in this order: “Naked” hub gear bikes will win over any bike with an attached derailleur (like a Brompton.) (Note: this does not include derailleurs used strictly as a chain tensioner.) Pure three speed hub gear bikes will win over four or five speed hubs. Age of bikes, i.e. older bikes win over newer.

If you are mailing in your Challenge Reports, a prize for most interesting package!

And what is the prize pack for 2019? Take a gander at this years design (above)! It will be available in both patch and sticker form. These prize packs will cost between $5 and $20, depending.

*****

Okay! You want to do this? Please fill out the Google Form here. Once you fill in this form, you’ll get the submission forms emailed to you! These Submission Forms will be sent after October 4, 2019.

The deadline for reporting your rides for the Challenge is 11:59 PM Pacific Time on Friday November 15 2019.

Don’t want to fill out online forms? You can submit reports via Post! If you want to do this, please get in touch first. You can email me at urbanadventureleague@gmail.com Or send me a letter or postcard to:

SHAWN GRANTON

P O BOX 14185

PORTLAND OR 97293

Do you have questions about the Challenge? Please drop me a line or comment.

[never-not-ever]

Follow up post from earlier, a little recap of the last year and how I got to this point in my life!

This time last year I was inpatient and I had lost hope in life. I was on a leave of absence from work and didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I had just gotten promoted at work to full time florist manager and after two months I got burnt out and starting relapsing. I went to residential for a few weeks and then immediately after checked myself into the hospital. I didn’t want to be a florist manager for the rest of my life and felt stuck because I didn’t even have my bachelors degree. After a few weeks of inpatient I discharged and started DBT therapy and twice a week DBT group therapy. I went back to work full time in September, something I had debated and talked a lot about when I was inpatient. I didn’t have a store of my own so instead of being a manager I was a floater and would cover managers vacations, sick leaves or just help out when they needed it. At the end of September I started a weight loss program which resulted in me getting surgery in January. I had lost some weight before surgery but the surgery has helped me lose even more and I’m still in the middle of my journey. In February I unfortunately started relapsing and I believe it was worse than last Summer. The self harm and suicidality was the worst it’s been since 2016. My girlfriend and I broke up and that actually brought me out of that relapse. We ended up working through things and got back together a few weeks later. A month later things were back to normal between our friends and families. We jumped right back on the wagon of thinking of moving out. She bought plane tickets to London that were extremely cheap at the time. I got transferred back to my old store where I started out as a manager and I’m there for good now. I also applied to go back to school and had to jump through hoops to get back in because I was suspended after 2016. I’m taking a couple online classes this Fall and I have a two year plan for my current job. I got a tattoo to cover up some scars and I’m feeling so confident in my recovery today. Hopefully in 2 years I’ll be working in the mental health field and this plan has helped me not feel so stuck at my current job, which I love, don’t get me wrong but I know it’s not what I was born to do.

So for the past month we’ve been jumping back and forth between wanting to/thinking we can move out and then thinking eh let’s just wait til after London in October (we’re going for almost 2 weeks!). A couple weeks ago we made the decision to definitely try to move out before London. We talked about our finances and thought we could make it work...

Over a week ago, Friday the 26th my girlfriend sent me a Zillow link to an apartment and I emailed them. Thank god I checked my Junk folder in my email because they replied back asking if I could come see the place on Sunday. My girlfriend had to work but I was free in the afternoon so I went and took videos. There was actually two units available and I guess I only took a video of one unit so they were kind of useless lol. But I drew out a floor plan of each one. The landlord is this super chill guy and I could tell it was going to work out! He sent us an application and a copy of the lease. On Thursday I brought my girlfriend back to look at both units and we made up our mind, gave him our application and waited. Thursday night he asked us when we wanted to move in and we had originally asked for Sept 1st but he asked if we could do Aug 15th and we can make it work so that’s what we’re doing! We go back tomorrow morning to sign the lease and take measurements for furniture! It’s so crazy to think that in the span of one week all that happened! Like I said it still doesn’t feel real and even though we’re scheduled to sign the lease in less than 24 hours in the back of my mind I’m still thinking something can go wrong, what if this doesn’t happen.. but I’m trying to push that thought down and keep the hope alive because after all, hope is what’s gotten me to this point.

This time last year I was binge watching OITNB on a locked inpatient unit unsure of my life. Today I’m making lists of everything we need to move out, about to sign a lease with my girlfriend and I have a plan for the next couple years if my life. I cannot believe how different my life is compared to this time last year and I’m so proud of how hard I’ve worked to get here.

[leonardo-capulet]

Uniform Attraction | Cris & Leo

Who: Cristian and Leo Capulet

What: Cristian find some of Leo’s old military things and puts them on to show Leo. Leo shows his appreciation for the look.

Where: Leo’s house.

When: Sunday, Sept. 1st

Warning: NSFW under cut.

“I’ll be right back,” Cristian murmured, still only dressed in his underwear after a scene at Leo’s as he disappeared from the living room back into the Dominant’s bedroom. He had initially been going to check his phone for messages, plugged in and charging on the nightstand, when something causing his eye in Leo’s closet, left open. Wandering over, Cristian curiously took a look, eyes darting across several familiar suits before he noticed several more formal military suits at the end, no doubt from when the older male had served prior to becoming private security. He eyed the piece appreciatively, wondering if Leo ever intended to wear it again, or if he kept it simply as a memento. Cristian glanced up then, noting the hat that sat on the shelf above it. Curiosity got the better of him as he gently reached for it to take a closer look. He also found an older pair of aviators by it, clutching both in his hands as he quietly moved to try them on in Leo’s mirror for a laugh. Not bad, he thought to himself, ready to put the items back when he thought Leo might find it amusing. While Leo never talked much about the time in his life before becoming security, the submissive didn’t think he would take the actions negatively, and prayed if anything he’d get a laugh out of Leo. Leaving the shades and hat on, Cristian popped back out of the bedroom and leaned against the doorframe casually, arms crossed. “Forgive me, Captain,” he spoke with a cheeky, relaxed  grin, looking to grab Leo’s attention. “I seem to have misplaced my uniform.”

Leo had been reluctant to let Cristian slip away after the scene they’d had. His eyes followed the submissive until he was out of sight, and then turned his attention to the tv again. It wasn’t until he heard Cristian’s voice that his eyes left the tv again only to hear the submissive call him Captain wearing his old uniform hat and his old aviators. He bit his bottom lip a moment as his eyes lingered over the male. Fuck if that didn’t make him want to show him just how much he enjoyed the sight of him in his military things. “Come here,” he commanded in a low tone that was accompanied by a gesture to have him move closer.

Cristian’s grin widened at the other’s command, moving across the room to where Leo sat on the couch. “Yes, Sir?” He asked, half tempted to crawl into the Dominant’s lap or even sink to his knees, but instead waiting patiently for Leo to make the first move.

Taking one hand he caught Cristian behind one knee, pulling it towards him so that one leg was on one side of him, and then he did the same to the other so that the submissive was forced to straddle him. Sitting him on his lap, Leo leaned forward, his lips ghosting a path up his neck as he let out a low growl, as his hands trailed up the submissive’s thighs, over his hips, and around his back. “Someone seems to have been going through my things...” Leo nipped at the sensitive skin of Cristian’s neck just under his ear.

Cristian slid into Leo’s lap eagerly, rolling his hips against the Dominant’s almost immediately. His hands slid around Leo’s neck and neck arched, encouraging the attention being given. “You don’t like it?” Cristian voiced hesitantly, gaze flickering from a spot on the wall down to Leo, despite not facing him as he spoke.

He gave a soft laugh as he pulled back slightly to get a look at Cristian’s face. He’d heard the hesitation. His hands slid down his back and to his hips, gripping him firmly as he pulled the submissive’s hips into his. “Believe me. I like it.” Leo leaned in again to kiss along Cristian’s shoulder. “I think I might like it better on you. You look good as a Captain,” he teased before moving his hips up into the other’s again.

A small laugh bubbled out of Cristian's lips, delighted and aroused in the other's embrace. The laugh dipped into a moan as he felt the other roll his hips again, sending a pang of want coursing through him. "That's c-complete nonsense, but if you keep doing that, I'll steal your clothing more often."

Hearing the laughter from the other male drew a smile from Leo, but the moment that it turned to a moan the smile only grew. He loved hearing that reaction out of him, he wanted more of it. He ran his tongue along the hollow of Cristian's throat before letting his nose skim up his neck until his lips brushed over his chin and his lips found the submissive's for a heated kiss. When he broke the kiss, his lips still not far from Cristian's, he asked, "If I keep doing what? This?" His hips rolled up into Cristian's in a slow rhythm a few times. "And by all means... steal this hat any time."

"You like me in the hat, hm?" He pulled back just enough to slip off the shades, annoyed with how they impaired kissing ever so slightly from his angle. Tossing them gently on the couch beside Leo, Cristian turned his attention back to the Dominant and leaned in, hips pivoting to meet the other's movements eagerly. "Yes- keep doing that," he all but commanded in a needy tone, head dipping low to kiss Leo's jaw.

"Yes," Leo answered before watching his aviators tossed aside. Feeling Cristian respond to his actions had him pulling him in, greedy to be closer to him. Leo moaned in response to the command, and the kiss along his jaw, tipping his head to allow Cristian better access to his jaw, and anything else he might want. With one hand he reached up to take the hat off his head and toss it aside so that he would slip his fingers into Cristian's hair.

The feeling of Leo’s fingers in his hair was quickly becoming a favorite of Cristian’s, grateful he hadn’t had it cut recently. His hips sank again, pressing eagerly against the outline of Leo’s cock, his own twitching with interest. Caught up in the mix of physical sensations, a soft, needy whimper escaped his lips as he craned his neck to nip at Leo’s ear.

Another moan fell from Leo's lips as Cristian nipped at his ear. This had Leo gripping Cristian's hair and pulling his hair slightly so that his lips could crash into the submissive's. He nipped at Cristian's bottom lip, his eyes lifted to the other's before he said, "I want you in control. Do what you want to me." He didn't know how Cristian would take it, but he wanted to see what the submissive would do. If it made him uncomfortable, he would take charge again, but at the moment he was nearly blind with need.

Cristian moaned into the kiss, seeking out Leo's again hungrily the moment he finished speaking. Take charge?! It intimidated Cristian for only a second before he saw it as a command--- a free pass in his eyes, to take what he wanted from Leo. Almost.. a reward? His tongue darted out, running across the Dominant's lower lips as he shifted his weight back, sitting further down the Dominant's thighs. The kiss broke for only a second-- enough for him to mumble, "Okay," before it resumed at full force. His hips all but begged him to move back, the loss of friction against his cock delightfully frustrating. Once he felt assured enough with his balance from the slightly altered angle, Cristian's hands moved to Leo's waist, fingers slipping between the folds of the fabric of Leo's underwear, freeing his cock within seconds. His legs tensed slightly and one hand moved beside Leo's head, pressing against the couch for balance as the other slowly began to stroke the Dominant's cock, wanting nothing more than to see Leo fall apart.

A shiver ran down Leo's spine when Cristian agreed to his request. Leo nearly protested as Cris shifted away from his hips before he felt what the submissive was doing. Leo's head fell back against the couch with loud moan, his hands dropped to Cristian's thighs, his fingers digging into the muscle there as he let the sensations take over. He turned his head, his lips pressing against Cristian's arm before lifting his head back up so that his eyes met the submissive's.

Cristian took the silence as a green light to continue, rhythmically stroking Leo’s cock as he leaned down to capture his lips in another kiss as well.  He was still a bit sore from earlier, but being with Leo made Cris feel young and eager— and made him want sex far more than he had in some time, especially knowing just how much the other enjoyed it. When the kiss broke he leaned in, hot breath brushing against Leo’s ears as he spoke. “I want you naked... may I strip you, Sir?”

Leo responded immediately to the kiss, one hand lifting to the side of Cristian’s face before the kiss ended. With slight smirk on his face, Leo nodded as he answer, “Yes, you may.” He wondered what Cristian had in mind, what the submissive might want out of him next.

Cristian pulled back, slipping off Leo’s lap and moving to stand once he had confirmation. Leaning down, he hooked his fingers under the waistband of Leo’s underwear. “Up,” he suggested softly, waiting on the other to lift his hips slightly so he could slip the garment off.

His eyes followed Cristian as he got up. Inhaling sharply when the submissive instructed him, Leo lifted his hips to allow Cristian to slide his underwear off.  Leo leaned forward his hands grabbing the submissive’s hips so that he could place kisses along Cristian’s stomach.

It tickled— the feeling of Leo’s lips across his abdomen, though Cristian loved it. If he hadn’t wanted to discard his own clothing as well, he might have considered carrying on and letting Leo continue. “Tease,” he commented, cock twitching with interest from how near Leo was. He pushed the Dominant back, pressing gently on his shoulder before Cristian removed his own underwear, no longer as bashful around the other fully exposed. Instead, he was quickly coming to enjoy the reaction he effect he had on Leo when stripped of everything.

He smirked against Cristian’s skin at the comment before he let the submissive push him back. His eyes fell to watch as the other stripped. He took in the sight of Cristian, naked before him, running his tongue along his lower lip. His hands were itching to grab hold of Cristian and have his own way... if he wasn’t much more interested in what the submissive planned to do instead. He let out a needy groan, leaning forward again to touch him.

Although he hated to do it, Cristian stepped back, and turned to duck back into the bedroom. “One second— stay put,” he requested before starting off, quickly seeking out a bottle of lube in the other room as he did so. He was still stretched (and a bit sore) from earlier, but didn’t want to risk it, squeezing a bit onto two only his fingers with the intention of quickly prepping himself once again. Truthfully, he would have preferred Leo did it, but considering he was suppose to do as he pleased with Leo’s body, he found himself avoiding making any requests that involved the other doing work. Quickly assessing his state, Cristian slipped one finger inside himself and moaned softly, not waiting long before adding another, stretching himself gently as his fingers pressed and prodded. His other hand moved, stroking himself a few times as he willed his body to relax to the touch, wanting to return quickly to Leo in the other room.

Before he could really even touch Cristian, the submissive pulled back, causing Leo to let out a sound of protest. However, he was intrigued by what Cristian had in mind and a smirk crossed his face at the order to stay put. He watched as the other left to go back to the bedroom, and tried to force himself to stay still. He wanted to follow after Cristian, but for now he managed to remain seated. His eyes fell on the hat that had been tossed aside and his hand wrapped around his length with lazy strokes, waiting for Cristian to return.

Cristian reappeared in the doorway a few moments later, cock hard and aching for the other’s touch. Spotting Leo touching himself brought a smile to his lips, as he slowly made his way over to the Dominant and slowly climbed back into his lap. “Glad to see you kept yourself hard for me.” Cristian leaned down, Capturing Leo’s lips in a kiss as one hand gently nudged the Dominant’s away, eager to take its place with his own.

Leo wasted no time in wrapping an arm around Cristian the moment he climbed back into his lap. He smirked at Cristian’s comment. There was something about the confidence which which he spoke that made Leo want the submissive even more. Moving his hand aside at Cristian’s physical request, his moan when the submissive took over was lost in their kiss. His hands moved over the bare skin of Cristian’s back, breaking the kiss for a moment to catch his breath before his lips crashed into the other’s again.

Cristian hungrily gave into the kiss, moaning as he gasped for breaths when given any chance.  “Need you,” he uttered when they finally parted long enough for words, running one hand through Leo’s hair before his hand sought Leo’s, bringing it to his ass. “Can I really use you however I want, Sir?”

Eyes closing as Cristian ran his hand through his hair, there was a hint of a smile hearing the need in the submissive’s voice. God he needed him too. His eyes opened again, looking back at Cristian, a slow smile spreading over his face. “Yes, however you want.” The hand on Cristian’s ass squeezed as he tried to pull the submissive even closer.

His hips rolled forward in response to Leo's hand, moaning as he forced himself back. Cristian slid off the Dominant's lap only for a moment to turn around, slipping back onto his lap with his back to Leo's chest. He reached back, grasping Leo's cock and lining it up with his entrance, rubbing the tip of Leo's cock against his body teasingly. "I want this, Sir."

At this point, Leo's need for Cristian was overwhelming. He let out a sound of protest when the submissive moved off his lap again. When he turned around, lining his cock at his entrance, Leo moved his hand in to help guide himself inside. "Whatever you want." He replied as he pulled Cristian's hips back into him slowly, groaning as his forehead fell against the submissive's shoulder. "Fuck."

Cristian let him sink down on Leo's cock slowly, groaning from the faint burn of the stretch. He was definitely still sore from earlier, but enjoyed the sensation of the Dominant filling him too much to regret it. "Know you said for me to take control," he all but choked out, letting himself bottom out. "But I'd really like it if you took control again, Sir. Fuck me."

Oh God. The way Cristian begged for Leo to fuck him was all he needed to hear to take control again. He didn’t need to be told twice. Leo’s hands gripped at his hips possessively, guiding the other over his length, his hips rolling into meet the submissive’s. His eyes roamed over Cristian’s neck, his shoulders, appreciating the lines before quickly leaning forward to nip at the male’s shoulder as he moaned.

Cristian’s hands almost immediately reached for Leo’s hips when he felt the shift in power and Leo act versus react. They hadn’t fucked in this position before, but it was a favorite of the submissive’s, loving the bodily contact it provided while also leaving him feeling especially vulnerable in a rather satisfying way. “F-fuck,” he cursed, breathing audibly as he relaxed his head back and arched his neck to the side. He also loved the feeling of the other marking up his neck while being fucked, each scrape of teeth triggering responsible, delighted sounds from Cristian’s lips.

Every sound that Cristian made from what Leo was doing drove him to try to get more reactions from him. One of his hands left the submissive’s hips, his hand gliding over Cristian’s stomach and lower down his abdomen. He asked, “Do you want me to touch you, Cris?”  A small smirk on his face before kissing his shoulder.

Cristian thrust back against Leo’s hips eagerly, nodding weakly as he uttered out an affirmative. “Please,” he begged between breaths, voice dipping into another moan as he spoke. “Want you— to feel you— all over.”

Leo’s hand wrapped around Cristian’s cock, his thumb brushing over the head before he began to stroke him along with their own movements. He groaned against the submissive’s back.

"Oh God," Cristian moaned, hips rhythmically thrusting in time with each stroke of Leo's hand. The sensation of being fucked while Leo jerked him off was overwhelming, body pulled taunt like a string, oh so close to snapping. "Don't stop-- please don't."

A small triumphant smirk crossed Leo's face at the sound of Cristian's pleasure. He loved hearing him beg. He felt himself getting closer to release, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment as he lost himself in both the sensation of being inside Cristian, and also pleasing him. Turning his face into Cristian's neck, his lips brushed against the submissive's skin as he spoke, "I want you to come for me."

Cristian's hips stuttered just moments after Leo's request, ass clenching as he felt his orgasm crash over him alarmingly fast. He couldn't remember the last time he'd come so embarrassingly fast, crying out wantonly for Leo as his fingers dug into the Dominant's skin, body pulsing for a moment before he relaxed.

Feeling Cristian's response, he smiled, slowing his hips as the submissive came down from his high. He kissed along Cristian's neck as he relaxed, his arms winding around the male to hold him close to his body. "I didn't think I had quite that strong of an effect on you." He admitted in a low and husky tone, pleased as he placed another kiss on his neck.

A lazy, self-satisfied smile wound it’s way onto Cristian’s face, giving his hips another roll despite his energy crashing slightly. “Apparently you do,” he admitted, glancing down at the mess he’d made across his abdomen, which he had no doubt extended onto Leo’s hand that held him close now. “Would it be easier for you if we rearrange a bit?”

A soft moan passed Leo’s lips when Cristian’s hips moved into him. Giving one last kiss to Cristian’s neck, Leo lifted the submissive and said, “On your knees on the couch.” Before Cristian could position himself, though, Leo pulled the submissive in for a deep kiss and when he pulled back he nodded to the couch.

Cristian gently lifted himself and slid off of Leo’s cock, shivering slightly from the sore, empty sensation. His legs felt weak like jelly as he moved beside the Dominant, mindful to make sure the military hat wasn’t under his frame as he spread his legs, knees on the soft fabric of the couch. His arms moved, resting on the upper back of the couch for support as he turned to face Leo eagerly. “This good, Sir?”

Biting his lip a moment at the sight of Cristian positioned for him, he nodded. “Perfect.” Leo stepped into the submissive, his hands running up Cristian’s back before guiding himself back into the other male. He was as gentle and slow as he could be at first, knowing that his slow patience wouldn’t last long. Once he filled Cristian, Leo’s head fell back with groan before his hips found a rhythm, hands on Cristian’s hips as he began to slowly transition to a harder and faster pace than the one they’d just shared.

Every nerve ending felt like it was on fire from over-stimulation, back arching into the slow thrust as he felt Leo take him once again. Cristian groaned, arms gripping the couch tightly for support not long after as he felt the other pick up his pace. It was almost scary how much he enjoyed sex with the Dominant, reawakening a sex drive he himself hadn’t felt in years. Each time Leo managed to brush against his prostate was dizzying, wondering if he could manage to come a third time or not for the day. He absolutely loved it when Leo was rougher with him though, gasping for air between pleas for more as he felt his body rocked into the couch again and again.

One hand still gripping Cristian’s hip tightly, Leo’s hand ran up along the submissive’s spine before his fingers threaded into Cristian’s hair and without warning he pulled his head back. Leo bent forward his teeth nipping at Cristian’s ear with a low groan before pulling back, although he didn’t release the pull of the younger male’s hair.

Gasping in surprise, Cristian’s back arched to accommodate the sudden tugging of his hair. The action had taken him by surprise, sending an almost painful wave of interest to his still sensitive cock. He hadn’t even discussed his pain kinks with Leo, yet the Dominant seemed to be slowly finding them on his own, the volume of his moans increasing with the newly added tension.

Hearing the change in Cristian’s reaction after he pulled his hair, Leo leaned in, biting at the submissive’s neck. He was careful never to bite hard enough on his neck that it would leave behind a mark that wouldn’t fade in a short while. He had promised not to leave any marks that couldn’t be hidden by his clothing for work. Still, that didn’t stop him from marking Cristian in other places. Pulling the younger male’s head to the side slightly to allow him better access to his neck, Leo ran his tongue along the exposed column of his neck. “Do you like when I pull your hair, Cris?” He asked, his lips brushing against his ear.

Cristian whined pathetically in response to Leo’s question, unable to nod and at a loss for formulating actual sentences. “Y-Ye,” he mumbled out, panting with each thrust. He absolute loved the hair pulling... and the nips at his skin... in addition to the warm and heavy breath on his sensitive ear. Everything about it was electrifying for the submissive, and he wasn’t sure he even knew how to express just how perfect it was to Leo in that moment.

Wrapping his free arm around Cristian, Leo pulled the submissive's back up against his chest while still tugging his hair so that Cristian's head almost rested back against Leo's shoulder. He turned his head in towards the younger male's and one word escaped him in a near growl, "Mine." His hand went back to his hips, while the hand that had been pulling Cristian's hair moved to push the submissive forward again so that he could hold on to the back of the couch again. With both hands now on Cristian's hips, Leo thrust into him hard and fast, lost in the pleasure that the submissive offered him. "Fuck..." he gasped as he continued to move inside him.

Leo's arms, pulling him up as they slowed for a moment had been one thing, but the comment another, leaving Cristian almost forgetting to breath from the pure shock. While he didn't doubt Leonardo was rough with other submissives while hooking up, language like that... no. No, no, no. It simply wasn't something you threw around. That kind of speak was exactly why Cristian got too attached too quickly. Before Cristian would process it any further though he felt his body pushed back down, arms bracing himself as Leo began to fuck him even harder. Holy shit. He could feel his cock, half hard again slapping against his abdomen with each powerful thrust, crying out wordlessly at the other's mercy.

The fact that he’d been so possessive over Cristian in the moment had come almost as a surprise to Leo. Lost in the moment, the feel, the sound, and everything. No giving himself time to think on the word, Leo closed his eyes for a moment, his hips meeting the submissive’s until finally he found himself right on the edge. His breathing was ragged, laced with moans as he reached out once again for Cristian’s hair, tugging a handful as he finally cried out as his orgasm rocked through him. Leo’s movements slowed, as did his breathing. He released his hold on Cristian’s hair before lifting him back up so the submissive’s back was against his chest again. Leo placed kisses along Cristian’s shoulder and neck as he pulled himself out of the other, not wanting to lose all the contact at once. He buried his face against Cristian’s neck for just a moment, “I think it’s safe to say you can borrow my military gear any time,” he teased before adding, “How are you feeling?”

“Is like a baby deer an acceptable answer?” He joked, exhausted and sore, weight leaning back on Leo for support. “My legs feel like jelly,” he added as explanation, whimpering softly at how tender everything felt, ignoring the pain in his lower backside. He was absolutely exhausted, but in a rather enjoyable way, eager to get cleaned up and relax again for a bit. It was getting late in the evening, but he didn’t have work the next day and was hopeful to spend the night.

Leo laughed and kissed Cristian’s shoulder. “Would you like a bath? I can wash you. I don’t think you’ll be able to stand in a shower if your legs feel like jelly.”

“I could if you held me up,” Cristian retorted with a grin, turning to face Leo directly. His arms encircled the Dominant affectionately, not thinking much of it as he did it, with his chin resting on Leo’s shoulder. “A bath works too though— whatever you thinks best.”  Though he didn’t mention it, Cristian wasn’t too big on baths usually. Aside from soaking sore muscles or relaxing with a partner, he preferred a shower, but if Leo was offering to wash him, he supposed the offer could still very rewarding... And he could always get clean again later in a shower, if needed.

Leo's arms slipped around Cristian as the submissive relaxed against him. A pleased smile played at his features, one that Cristian couldn't see at that moment, but that clearly would have shown that Leo enjoyed the affection that he was getting. "Baths aren't my favorite, but I just want to make sure you're comfortable and safe. If you think that you can handle a shower, I think it'd be best. I'll take care of you." His face turned into the curve of Cristian's neck to place a kiss there before pulling back. "Come on."

Cristian nodded, touch lingering a moment before he pulled back. He reached for Leo’s hand almost reflexively as he did so, trying to not think into it too much as he did so. He was still coming down from the entire experience, including their scene earlier in the evening, and the combination had him craving contact, not ready to be separated from the Dominant just yet.

The moment that Cristian's hand reached for Leo's, he gave the submissive a smile as his fingers laced with the other's. He led Cristian toward the bathroom, happy to still have contact with him. Leo turned the water on in the shower as they reached the bathroom, waited for the water to get warm before nodding into the shower. "You first," he instructed before letting go of his hand to let the submissive get into the shower.

Cristian waited silently by Leo’s side as they moved to the bathroom, almost in a daze. His thoughts drifted back to the possessive comment the Dominant has made, and he felt his stomach flip, liking the sound of it the more he thought of it. He wasn’t entirely sure what they were— Leo didn’t date last he checked, but they’d been hanging out an awful lot. He didn’t think the other was going out, either— with how often they chatted at work or outside of it, he was slowly peeling back the layers. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder if Leo was that possessive during sex with just anyone, or perhaps... just him? It was a sweet thought, even if Cristian wasn’t sure he bought it. He stepped gingerly into the shower when instructed to, relieved to find it warm, but not overly so. Quickly drenched by the spray, hs hands immediately reached back out for Leo’s again. Pulling him close,  he murmured “Come ‘ere,” as he sought out a tender kiss.

Leo couldn’t help the soft smile that crossed over his features when he saw Cristian immediately reaching for him once he was in the shower. Without any resistance, Leo let Cristian pull him in, his arms immediately wrapping around the submissive. His lips met Cristian’s and one hand lifted to cup his face as he held him there to prolong the kiss for however long he could. Leo loved the feel of the other male’s lips on his own. When he pulled away, however, he rested his forehead against Cristian’s. He would’ve been content to just stay there holding Cristian, but he could do that later to make up for having to let him go now. Leo moved Cristian out of the water and then reached for the shampoo. He put some on his hands and the slid his hands into Cristian’s hair, massaging his scalp, in no rush. He felt an overwhelming need to take care of Cristian, especially after everything they had done together. He had never gone to this length for a submissive before. Washing one? That had never been his style. Perhaps it was unfeeling, but he would draw a bath for a submissive, or start a shower, but he would let them do everything on their own at that point. With Cristian, he didn’t even want to let him go.

Cristian’s arms held onto Leo’s midsection for support as he relaxed under the water and closed his eyes. He silently enjoyed the feeling of Leo washing his hair with nothing more than a pleased smile on his face, shoulders relaxing and head slightly bowed in the Dominant’s direction. “Feels nice,” he complimented softly when he felt the other finish up, moving to rinse. “Thank you.”

A smile was all Leo responded with when the submissive thanked him. As Cristian rinsed his hair, Leo grabbed the soap, and a loofa, applying soap to it before setting the bottle back. He leaned in to give Cristian a gentle kiss before using his free arm to move him out of the water again. He was gentle as he proceeded to lather Cristian's body. On occasion he would sneak a kiss from the submissive periodically. Leo lowered himself down to one knee, placing a kiss on the other's thigh before finishing off the task. He rose back up and held the loofa out to Cristian, "In case you think I've missed anything?"

Cristian leaned against the shower wall as Leo moved, relying on it to help support his weight as the Dominant focused on washing him off. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d showered with someone, let alone been washed by someone, but it felt.... nice. almost surreal still to think about who he was with and what they were up to. He shook his head slowly, arms finding Leo’s sides again. “Would you like me to get you too, Sir?” He knew he was the one more obviously dirty— and quite exhausted, but hoped if not today then at some point he would get to return the favor.

One arm went around Cristian, holding him close as he shook his head at the question. “No, not tonight. I’ll do it really quick.” He touched a finger just under Cristian’s chin tipping it up so he could place a kiss on the submissive’s lips. Reluctantly, he pulled away so that he could wash himself quickly and when done he handed a towel to Cristian, taking another for himself. As he finished drying off his hair, he glanced at the submissive. “Do you need something to wear? Can’t say that I have sweats, but I have some boxer briefs?”

Cristian’s gaze roamed Leo’s body as the other cleaned up quickly, disappointed, but too tired to let it affect him. The shower was relaxing and he could feel an ache settling in in his lower back, in addition to a few bruises that were slowly appearing around his hips. By the time the Dominant handed him a towel to dry off, all he could think about was bed. “Those work.” He nodded, finishing up toweling himself off as well. Usually he might have wrapped it around his midsection, but the modesty felt funny almost, considering how much Leo had seen of him.

Without a second thought, Leo reached out for Cristian's hand again and led him back to the bedroom. Once there, he let go of the submissive's hand so that he could grab him some underwear. There was a moment where he considered grabbing a pair for himself, but as it was getting late and he would likely be in bed soon, he opted for his natural state instead. "Did you want a shirt?" He asked as he turned around to hand the boxer briefs to Cristian. There was a moment where Leo thought about how to word the next question before deciding to just ask, "Did you want to just stay here tonight? Since it's late?" He didn't add that it was partially because he didn't want to let the submissive go yet. He wanted to have the other male close, to fall asleep next to him, and wake up next to him. It was a selfish wish, but he figured if Cristian wasn't comfortable staying, he would say so.

“I’m okay without one,” Cristian answered, shaking his head. He slowly slid on the underwear and eyed the bed. He usually slept in a shirt, but he also usually slept alone. “Do you have mouthwash or something I could use if I stay?” He asked, turning back to Leo.

Leo watched Cristian carefully for his reaction. Hearing the question had him smiling slightly. "Yeah, I've got mouthwash." Leo answered, nodding toward the bathroom. "You'll find it in the cabinet in the bathroom." He stepped toward the submissive, placing a hand on the curve of his neck, his thumb brushing the length of it. "Does this mean you'll stay?"

While Cristian wanted to brush his teeth, he figured he'd live for the night-- mouthwash would work until he was home in the morning. He turned back to Leo when the Dominant spoke, smiling shyly. "I'd like to, yes-- provided that's alright?"

Shaking his head with a smile, he gave the submissive a kiss and then said, "I asked, didn't I? Of course it's alright." Never mind the fact that he didn't have his subs spend the night. Spending the night implied a level of intimacy that bordered kissing to him, and he'd already long since crossed that line with Cristian.

"Just.. give me a moment, yeah?" He responded, smile widening as he disappeared back into the bathroom to get as ready as he could for bed. When he came back out his hair was brushed and breath at least freshened, making a beeline for Leo.

Leo nodded, watching Cristian disappear into the bathroom, and in the meantime sat himself on the edge of his bed. Running his fingers through his hair, he took a moment to think about what he was doing, surprised with himself and feeling more than a little out of his general comfort zone. He wondered if he'd ever tell Cristian the significance, at least to Leo, of the things he had done with him. Shaking his head, he heard Cristian returning, lifting his head as he ran his fingers through his hair again, taking in the sight of the submissive as he approached, a soft smile appearing on his face as he held a hand out for Cristian. "You can get in bed. You've gotten yourself ready, now it's my turn." It wasn't long before Leo was back in the room and climbing into the bed, laying back. He turned his head over to Cristian before reaching out for him. "Come here," he said softly.

Cristian disappeared under the covered while Leo was in the bathroom, unsure which side he preferred sleeping on, and opting to grab the far side's pillow as a guess, cradling it against his head as he waited for the Dominant to return. "No. You come here," he teased, yawning.

A laugh burst from him before he moved toward the submissive. In most cases, he likely would have pulled Cristian to him anyway, but he was drawn to him instead. One arm went around the other, as he settled himself in close. "Why don't you get some sleep," he suggested gently.

When Leo moved closer, Cristian reciprocated, turning in the other's arms so his back was to Leo's chest. "Way ahead of ya," he commented, sighing softly as he silently enjoyed the feel of Leo's body against his own.

Once Cristian was relaxed against him, Leo tightened his hold on the submissive for a moment, a private smile on his face. His lips brushed against the back of his head, pausing there before he relaxed and exhaled slowly as he closed his eyes. For the first time in years, he thought he might actually make it through a night without waking up to a nightmare, and that thought only had him relaxing even more and falling asleep.

[adietofwaterandfruit]

Timeline

so my goal is 59 kgs (because that’s the weight I was when I first started myfitnesspal in April 2017) by the 9th November (the Taylor Swift concert, which I want photos from without wanting to throw up) I’m currently 73kgs, which means I need to lose 14 kgs in 8 weeks, or 1.75 kgs a week (which also means I’ll real my UGW, 50 kgs, on the 13th of December, which conveniently is my lucky number!!)

Plan: 

Aim for under 500 calories a day, but definitely no more than 800. 

Must go to the gym every day I don’t have work.

If a shift is short, must go to the gym then as well.

Only one “full meal” a day, which will usually be dinner.

Whenever possible, swap out “dinner” for a smoothie bowl, or eggs and an apple - something smaller that can still be classed as a “meal” for the sake of keeping the parents off my back

Weigh self extremely frequently

Dates to be aware of (some are “danger” dates, others are “good” ones):

Monday 17th Sept - end-of-exams lunch out with my sibling

Wednesday 20th Sept - beginning of new no-sugar month

Friday 28th Sept - end of school term for my sibling (usually means more bad food is brought into the house)

Wednesday 10th Oct - Dad’s birthday

Monday 15th Oct - start of school term

Saturday 20th Oct - end of no-sugar month

20th-22nd Oct - Armageddon (event kind of like Comic Con)

Wednesday 31st Oct - Halloween

Thursday 1st November - performing arts awards at sibling’s school

Friday 9th November - Taylor Swift Concert

Sunday 11th November - start of new no-sugar month

I’ve got a couple of auditions for acting schools in amongst these dates, and there might be more callback dates which I’ll find out later, but there we go

Time to get motherfucking skinny