#The Little Duck Pond Cafe

[booksteacupandreviews]

Christmas at The Little Duck Pond Cafe (The Little Duck Pond Cafe #3) by Rosie Green - feel-good and cozy chick-lit

Christmas at The Little Duck Pond Cafe is a feel-good, heartwarming, and cozy chick-lit. Christmas at The Little Duck Pond Cafe SynopsisReviewBook Links Christmas at The Little Duck Pond Cafe (The Little Duck Pond Cafe #3) by Rosie Green Publication Date : September 3, 2018 Read Date : May 3, 2024 Genre : Chick-Lit Pages : 198 Source : Kindle Unlimited ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. Previous…

[hunnysnoops]

˗ˋ𝕎𝕙𝕚𝕥𝕖 𝕋𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕙 𝕋𝕖𝕖𝕟𝕤ˊ˗

Chapter Nine: Take Me Out

Kyle Broflovski x fem reader

So if you’re lonely, you know I’m here waiting for you and if you leave here, you’ll leave me broken. Shattered I lie.

Also available on Ao3 and Wattpad!

Premise: Over the course of days and eventually weeks you grow closer with Kyle as feelings begin to shift.

Warnings: crude language and humour

MASTERLIST

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

June 29

You and Kyle rush through the park, the world around you blurring as your feet pound against the pavement. The sun filters through the canopy of leaves overhead, casting dappled shadows that dance along the path. You feel the wind in your hair and the exhilaration of the run in your chest, your breaths coming fast but steady.

Recently, you had been looking forward to your runs with Kyle. You had always hated doing it with others, either too slow, stopping too often, or talking too much but there was a sweet spot with Kyle that you didn't mind in the slightest. 

There are several children playing soccer to your left, and you can hear their enthusiastic yells as they play. A couple walks their corgi to your right, the dog is so obscenely fat that his stomach almost scrapes the ground though he seems happy. 

You match his stride by the pond, where the water reflects the clear blue sky and the swarms of ducks gliding across its surface. Kyle slows down, and you equal his pace, both of you breathing heavily but smiling wide. "You're getting faster."

You laugh, the sound light and relaxed. "Maybe you're getting slower," you tease back. He rolls his eyes, but there's a twinkle in them that shows he enjoys the banter.

"Can you ever just take a compliment?"

"Uh, nope," You grin turning for the exit of the park. Your lungs burned in the perfect kind of way. 

The energy shifts instantly as you break away from the still park and enter town, the quiet rustle of leaves replaced by the hum of human life. Cars honk, people chat as they pass by, and the air is filled with the scent of food from nearby cafes and food trucks. Hanging in the air is the strong smell of liquor from a smashed bottle of tequila that crunches beneath your sneakers. 

Kyle is still ahead, his pace unwavering as he navigates through the crowd. You follow close behind, weaving through pedestrians and occasionally bumping shoulders. The buildings loom tall around you, their glass facades reflecting the afternoon sun.

As you turn a corner, something catches your eye. You come to an abrupt stop, causing Kyle to glance back, curious. There, plastered on a wall among a collage of posters and flyers, is an advertisement for an upcoming concert. The bold, colourful design grabs your attention, but it's the picture of the band that really makes you pause. The heading reads 'Suburban Wasteland' one of the hidden gems you listened to almost on a regular. They sang to your edgy little middle school self who went through an emo phase and claimed you would be that way forever. 

The lead singer stands front and center, his eyes smouldering and his messy hair perfectly tousled. He's cute, undeniably so, and you find yourself staring at the poster, your heart beating a little faster for reasons other than the run. "Oh my god," You mutter.

Kyle halts to a stop and walks to your side, staring at the poster. His eyebrows knit together as he takes in what he's seeing "What?"

You hadn't heard him, expression softening as you focused in on the tour dates. "Look!" You point at one of the dates, eyes lighting up "They're coming to South Park!" 

"You actually listen to these guys?" He looks at the four men on the poster 

"Yes!" You grab his arm and shake it, swaying his body in doing so. You were almost screaming the pure excitement that was running through you like lightning causing passersby to cast you judgmental glares. You weren't sure you had been so thrilled about something since you started high school. "They're here in July, we should go!" 

"Is he wearing eyeliner?" Kyle narrowed his eyes at the poster. At first glance, they looked like some corny screamo boyband from the early 2000s, brought to life by ripped skinny jeans and deep side parts. 

"He's so hot," You mutter, hands still gripped onto Kyle's arm without even noticing how tightly you were holding him. 

 "That's the kinda guy you're into?" He abruptly swerves his head to look at you. His eyes widen for a brief moment before they narrow in at you, his lips downturned in a slight frown. 

Your hands drip from where they rest on his arms "Yeah, I guess." Your near shaking with elation at the thought of the band you played on loop daily coming to your little bumpkin town. "Do you wanna go with me?"

He rubs the back of his neck "Don't you want to go with Red or something?"

"Red's going to Alaska at the end of July."

"Why is Red going to Alaska in July?"

"Doesn't matter," You answer "They're really cool, I think you'll actually like their songs-

"I'm sure they're fine. But I'm not really into that type of stuff?"

“What do you mean that type of stuff?"

"Like angry thrashers pushing each other around and breaking necks in a mosh pit," He says, sweat still glistening on his brow, only accentuated by the blaring sun overhead. 

"None of my friends like this thing, please?" Your eyes go wide, silently pleading with him.

He bites the inside of his cheek for a second, staring you down, his thoughts bouncing back and forth like a game of ping pong "I don't really like it either."

“I know you don’t really listen to that genre but-

“I’m not going,” He says, firm.

You give up, rolling your eyes. Your shoulders slump a little, disappointment washing over you. Taking one last longing look at the poster before resuming your pace, you resume your run, pushing aside the lingering let down "You're boring," You call back to Kyle "And slow."

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 4

As you sit at the back of the dimly lit restaurant, the clatter of plates and the murmur of the last few lingering customers fade into the background. The cold, metallic touch of cutlery presses against your fingers as you roll knife after fork into napkins, your movements mechanical and practiced. 

You were nearing the end of your shift though there were still bins of cutlery left for you to roll into little place sets before you could go home. This wasn't exactly how you wanted to spend your fourth of July, especially when all your friends were out and about, living it up while you developed blisters on your feet from countless hours jetting around a restaurant.

The fourth of July seemed like a good cash grab to make good tips but you were proved wrong by the amount of rowdy tourists who talked a big game but tipped you very little if anything at all. You had ended the night with less than you came in with, the tips were so poor you had to use your own pocket money to tip out the house, bartender, and kitchen.

There was the same awful 80s playlist reverberating through the speakers. It was the same 60 songs over and over again, you knew them so well you could recite every lyric and the more you heard them, the more you hated them. You were almost tempted to take two steak knives and shove them into your ears.

Some shifts were so bad that you just needed to sit in silence, this was one of them. The fourth of July was one of your favourite holidays and your evil manager had coerced you into missing it. The worst part for you was the fact that you didn't get to see any of the fireworks, you just heard them faintly outside along with the sounds of people actually enjoying their night.

You wore your little black dress in the hopes of racking up more tips but instead, you had another server knock their customer's drinks onto you, drenching you in the smell of red wine and ceasers. There were little bits of the ceaser spice still visible on your dress while you continued rolling cutlery and biting the inside of your cheek to avoid screaming.

Outside, the sky is dark, with only a faint glow from distant fireworks that you can't quite see. You missed them again this year, the bursts of colour and the laughter of friends and family. The fourth of July has come and gone while you served tables, refilled water jugs, and plastered on a tired smile. 

You think of the sparklers you loved as a child, the barbecue smells, and the warmth of being surrounded by your family. Tonight, the warmth comes only from the overhead lights the persistent hum of the kitchen appliances and the cursing coming from the remaining staff. It didn't help this overwhelming feeling that your dad dropped you off on your way to work, meaning you didn't have your car or a ride home.

Checking your phone only made you feel worse. No new messages. The majority of your friends were at Clyde's party while you hummed along to old rock n' roll songs you've grown accustomed to hate. His party was long over, you had seen through Snapchat stories that the cops showed up. It was nearing twelve am, it was almost the fifth and you had wasted your day.

You weren't sure you could hold your tears back for another minute until your co-worker poked her head into the backroom "Your boyfriends here," Brooke says, walking in and grabbing her phone off the table that had cutlery sprawled out over top. 

"I don't have a boyfriend," You say, furrowing your eyebrows.

"I don't care," She says while tapping around on her phone "Someone's here for you."

Quickly, you tie off your last napkin roll and poke your head out of the staff room door to see Kyle awkwardly standing by the host stand. You bite back a smile, diving for your locker and snatching your bag from it. You hurriedly throw your hoodie on over your dress and spritz some body spray in an attempt to mask the smell of liquor soaked into your dress. 

"Wait, you didn't clock out," Brooke looks up from her phone, watching you as you walk out of the staff room.

"You know what really hasn't clocked out?" You ask and continue without waiting for an answer "Racism, bullying, soap brows, maybe you should get on that first."

You walk down the corridor towards the front door, tugging your skirt down and pushing hair away from your face as you approach Kyle. He looks up from his phone and spots you.

"What are you doing here?" you ask, a smile tugging at your lips despite your tiredness.

"Your dad told me he dropped you off today, I'm taking you home."

"Oh," You keep a smile on your face despite the urge to let it drop. 

As the two of you leave the restaurant and step into the dry heat, he shoves his hands into his pockets "How was work?"

"Fucking shitty," You answer, feeling no urge to sugarcoat "Just a bunch of asshole tourists who smell like cavities."

"What does a cavity smell like?"

"Like plaque build-up and sour breath," You answer, wrinkling your nose at the thought alone. "Uh, how was Clydes?"

Kyle shrugs "Fine, I guess, nothing special."

"You didn't drink?"

"Nah," He opens the door to his car, flicking the light on and waiting for you to climb into the passenger seat. "I left early, actually."

"What? Why?" You shut the door as you get in, dropping your bag to the floor of the car "I wanted to go so bad."

"Just felt like I could've been doing something better with my night," As you and Kyle settle into the car, the familiar scent of his aftershave mingles with the cool night air. The engine hums to life, and the car glides out of the parking lot, leaving behind the warm glow and the remnants of another awful shift. 

You worried if he could smell the liquor on you or the steak sauce but he gave no indication, eyes focused on the road as he drove. "Were the fireworks cool at least?"

"Yeah, they were."

The streets are mostly quiet now, a subtle contrast to the earlier hustle and bustle of Fourth of July celebrations and drunk partygoers, roaming the streets decked out in patriotic accessories from the dollar tree. Streetlights cast elongated shadows, flickering as you pass beneath them. The rhythmic click of the turn signal is a comforting sound, a steady beat that matches your slowly calming heartbeat as your eyelids begin to grow heavy.

You notice the little details as you drive: the way the trees sway gently in the wind, their leaves rustling like a whisper; the soft glow of porch lights in the distance, each one a silent witness to the night's festivities, air running through them like whispers. You pass a park where sparklers flicker in the hands of teenagers, their laughter carries through the now-hushing night.

Kyle glances at you, a smile playing on his lips as he sees you taking it all in. He doesn't rush, allowing you to soak up every moment. The radio plays softly, a nostalgic tune that seems to fit the sleepy mood perfectly. You hum along absentmindedly, despite the disappointment you were coming to terms with it all.

"Where are you going?" You ask as Kyle turns onto a narrow, gravel path leading up a small hill. The car bumps along the uneven road, and your eyebrows furrow at the sound of animals rustling mingling with the crunch of gravel under the tires. "Please don't kidnap me, I'm too tired to fist fight but I do have a corkscrew in my bag," You say, waiting a beat and then filling the silence "Fine, you got me, I stole the corkscrew from my manager." That was true. You were so angry and fed up that you went into her purse and stole the corkscrew her husband gave her for her anniversary, it even had her initials carved into it. You figured she drank enough and you were doing her a favour.

"I'm not kidnapping you, Jesus," His eyes are steady on the beaten road "Just wait." He looks at you for a second "And give that corkscrew back."

"I dunno, sounds like something a kidnapper would say," You tap your fingers on the dashboard. “And the really Kyle would never tell me to give something stolen back.”

“Yes, he would.” He pulls up to a small hill overlooking the town, yanking the keys out of the ignition. Wordlessly, Kyle gets out of the car and gestures for you to follow him. You decide against the idea of him kidnapping you and trail him to a grassy spot that overlooks the town.

Kyle looks down at his watch before looking back up at the sky. He stands beside you, close enough that you can feel his warmth. The inky black sky is punctuated by the sudden, brilliant explosions of light. Like a gigantic chrysanthemum, a flash of red blooms, each flower trailing shimmering flames as it dies. Then there's a silvery waterfall that shimmers as if it's trapped in midair. With each fireworks being more spectacular than the last, you watch, transfixed, as the colours change and intensify.

The air smells faintly of smoke and summer, it takes you right back to the last Fourth of July you spent at Bebe's house, watching the show from the roof of her house and downing Dr. Pepper. The fireworks paint the sky with vibrant hues- fiery oranges, deep blues, radiant greens- each of which leaves a brief afterimage against the night sky.

You glance at Kyle, his face illuminated by the bursts of light. His eyes are wide with wonder, and there's a content smile on his lips. The reflection of the fireworks dances in his eyes like a mirror. 

The grand finale begins, and the sky erupts in a riot of colour and sound. Rapid-fire bursts fill the air, overlapping in a dazzling display that takes your breath away. The booms are louder, the lights brighter, and for a few moments, the sky is swallowed whole with chaos and beauty.

As the last firework fades, leaving trails of smoke that slowly dissipate into the night, a peaceful silence settles over the hilltop. The minute passes over and so does the holiday, the last fireworks of the night and you had a front-row seat. The stars, previously outshone, now reclaim their place in the sky, twinkling softly. Kyle turns to face you "Worth it?"

"Could've been better," You tease, sarcasm hanging from your tone. You know for sure this is one memory you will be forever clinging to. 

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 9

Both yours and Kyle's family gathered in your living room for game night, which felt long overdue. The teams were you and Kyle, Weston and Ike, Your mother and Sheila, your father and Gerald. There was hardly even competition between the four groups, you and Kyle were sweeping them. 

"Whose turn is it?" Your mom asks looking around the room. 

"Weston and Ike," You answer, pushing your brother off the couch and taking his spot, pulling your knees to your chest and yanking a throw blanket overtop.

Ike sits on the floor and leans against the armchair his brothers sitting on, watching as Weston digs around into the popcorn bowl filled with prompts. He pulls a slip of paper out and groans when he reads it "Bruh," He draws out "I don't even know this one."

"Just pick another one," Your dad tells him, he's nursing a glass of wine and standing behind the couch like a vulture.

"Dude," Weston crumples up the slip of paper and chooses a new one "I dunno this one either."

"Just try your best," Sheila tells him.

Weston holds his arms out and begins to enthusiastically flail them. "Shake?" Ike asks, face utterly perplexed as your brother lets out another groan and then begins to convulse his body. "Earthquake?" At Ike's second guess, your brother pauses, runs his hands down his face then begins to violently shake again.

"Seizure?" Your dad asks, eyebrows drawing in at the sight of his son "What is this?"

Your brother clenches his fist, taking a deep breath in then he mimes juggling, but his hands flail wildly, and it's hard to tell if he's juggling invisible balls or trying to swat away imaginary flies. His exaggerated movements have everyone squinting and guessing wildly. "Stroke?" Ike asks, mouth slightly agape while he tries to decode your brother's rapid movements. 

Weston shakes his head vigorously and switches tactics. He starts hopping in place, then drops to all fours, pretending to be an animal of some sort, but it's not clear which one. He growls, then stands up and begins doing it deep lunges back and forth, switching legs.

“Furry?" Ike asks "Gym? Exercise?" 

"Bruh, no," He then stands still and makes a grand sweeping gesture with his arms, as if presenting something spectacular.

"Circus?" Ike guesses again to which Weston shakes his head. 

Weston balls his hand up into a fist and cracks it through the air like he's whipping something. Everyone in the room awkwardly glances at one another, waiting for it to end.

"Cat woman? Batman?" Just for a moment, Ike thinks he is close and then Weston shakes his head once again. Weston starts jumping in place and moving his hands in tight circles like he's skipping rope. Your eyes shift to Kyle, both of you too confused to laugh "I give up!" Ike throws his hands up in defeat "You're awful at this."

"It's the Great Gatsby, bruh," Weston exasperated like it was obvious what he was trying to portray. 

"What was great about that?" Your mom asks, only half joking. 

"I'm gonna lie," You say "That was really good." The second the parents look away your brother sticks up his middle finger for the briefest moment before wedging himself between you and your mom on the couch. You stand up walk to the spot in front of the TV and pull out the slip.

You hold up three fingers on each hand, looking at Kyle "Six words?” He asks and you nod. You hold out one finger to symbolize the first word, Kyle's deep in focus as he watches you. You begin to draw out an infinity symbol in the air with your finger. "Infinity? Forever? Always?" His eyebrows draw in deep and you can see the gears turning in his mind "Eternal!"

Holding up a quick thumbs up, you move on to the fifth word, pretending that you're spraying the air with cleaner and wiping it off.

"Clean? Maid? Tidy? Spray? Wash? Scrub?" 

You shake your head, continuing to do the motion. After thirty more seconds of him not getting it, you move on to the sixth word and start pointing at your head, tapping it and eventually patting it with the palm of your hand.

"Brain? Head?" He stares at you trying to piece together the other clues and muttering to himself "Mind?" He asks and you nod enthusiastically. He slaps his knee, shooting to stand up "Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!"

"Yes!" You exclaim, immediately rushing over to give him a high five. "Eat it shrimps!" You shout at both of your brothers "Being illiterate isn't so funny now, is it?"

"I miss when they were screaming at each other," Weston mutters to Ike.

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 13

You and Kyle hurried into the dimly lit theatre, the screen already glowing with the opening credits as you scanned for empty seats. The hushed murmurs of the audience and the faint sound of dialogue filled the air, punctuated by the occasional burst of chatter from those already settled in.

"Over there," Kyle whispered, pointing to a row near the middle of the theatre. You nodded and followed him, trying to tread lightly as you squeezed past knees and feet in the dim light. Each step felt like an intrusion into the quiet atmosphere of the theatre.

As you reached your row, you realized it was already almost full. A couple gave you a disapproving look as you attempted to slide past them, their eyes narrowing in annoyance. Kyle muttered a quick apology, but you could feel the tension in the air as you squeezed into your seats.

Trying to settle in quietly, you fumbled with your jacket and bag, the soft rustling seeming to echo loudly in the stillness. You exchanged a sheepish glance with Kyle, both of you acutely aware of the eyes on you from nearby patrons who were less than pleased with your tardy arrival.

You didn't expect to find yourself so caught up in the movie, it was an incredibly corny action film and kept finding yourself making faces at the cheesy bots which was almost the entire thing.  Kyle kept stifling sniggers whenever you would mock the movie.

"He's right behind me, isn't he?" The lead protagonist turns around to see his enemy behind him. He pulls a large rifle from his trenchcoat and the two enact in an overly acted fight scene.

"Jeez, he's dressed like someone's imaginary friend," You utter under your breath.

"Sh!" You hear from behind you. You turn to see a large man, his greasy hair tied into a ponytail and a stringy beard that made its way down his neck. You mouth a sorry and look back at the screen. 

The movie got worse the longer you watched, they had managed to pull out every single cliche and implement it into a plot with stiff dialogue and flat characters. Your boredom only grew, the only thing entertaining was a little whisper passed between you and Kyle. 

However, every time you leaned over to share a quick remark with Kyle, you felt a sharp "Shh!" from the man seated directly behind you. His voice was low but firm, cutting through the air like a disapproving whisper.

Startled, you glanced back, catching a glimpse of his stern expression and raised finger before turning back to the screen, cheeks tinged with embarrassment. Kyle stifled a chuckle beside you, clearly amused by the unexpected scolding.

During another action scene, Kyle ducks his head into his elbow and sneezes "You know, if you're sick, just stay home," The man from behind you speaks again, his jaw clenched tight in irritation. 

"You know, if you reek of body order, just stay home," You retort. 

"Excuse me?" He says.

"Yeah, excuse you."

"Calm down," Kyle puts one hand on your shoulder to steady you then looks at the man "We're sorry."

"Oh, of course. The boyfriend steps in to play peacemaker," he sneered. "Put a damn muzzle on your girlfriend," The man says to Kyle. He turns his attention back to the movie but you've already turned around, knees on the seat while you hang over the back and glare at the man. 

"Put a muzzle on yourself, that way you might not look like you ate the ham burglar." You whisper-shout. 

"Don't talk to her like that, man," Kyle adds, also turning around to face him. 

The man's face grows red "You better watch-

"Sh!" You say, watching the man look stunned. Silence stretches between the three of you and when the man opens his mouth to speak you do it again "Sh!"

"Okay-

"Shhhh," You draw out putting a finger over your mouth. "How many pubes did you have to steal from motel shower drains until you had enough to glue on your chin?" You point at his scruffy neck-beard, staring him dead in the eyes. 

"Are you done?" The man asks, huffing.

"Yeah, sure," You snap, turning back around, sinking into the chair and trying to focus on the movie despite the grimace-shaped man behind you.

"Stupid bitch," He mumbled. 

Kyle's entire demeanour changed in an instant. He turned around, his face red with anger. "What did you just say?" His body tense, muscles visibly tightened.

"Leave them alone," Another man from the row above says "They're just kids."

"Y'know what man? I'd be pissed off if I looked like that too," You seethe, eyes narrowing at the guy behind you. 

"Whore," He said in a mocking tone, a proud smile on his face as he did so.

Before Kyle could react, you reached forward to grab the drink sitting in his cupholder and hurled it at the man. The liquid splashed all over him, drenching his face and clothes. The theatre erupted in gasps and murmurs as the man sat there, stunned and dripping. Not one person was still paying attention to the movie.

"What the hell?" the man yelled, wiping his face with his sleeve. His shock quickly turned to rage, and he lunged forward, raising his hand to hit you.

Kyle was quick to grab his wrist, holding his arm midair before it could land on you. Other moviegoers scrambled out of their seats, some trying to pull the man away while others called for security. You could see the fear consume the man's face as Kyle held tightly.

Within moments, the usher returned with a security guard, their faces stern and ready to intervene. You hadn't seen them come in when you bent over the back of the chair, one hand pointed at the man accusatorily while you screamed at him. "Yeah, try to hit me, biggie!" 

The security rushed over to you, trying to put space between you and the man. When you refused to cease, he grabbed the back of your shirt to pull you away, his free hand was held out in front of Kyle, he balanced on one foot while his other was in the air in front of the man. 

"Stop," He said, trying not to lose his balance "Out, now, all of you, out!" 

A manager rushes into the scene, a blue button down and a name tag that reads Hailey. The large man lands a solid slap across your face and you retaliate by throwing a right hook. "No, no!" Hailey shouts, frantically trying to keep you all apart while the man grips your hair and pulls it with what little force he can muster, you grab hold of his wispy neck beard, pulling it until hair rips out. "Stop!" 

Tensions only continue to escalate rapidly. After the man tries to wrap his hands around your neck Kyle hits him, this time everyone freezes as the sound of Kyle's fist connecting with the man's cheekbone sounds through the theatre.

The security guard comes up behind you, grabbing you by your waist and pulling you off the chair. He continues to drag you out while you yell "You smell like a yeast infection, wash your damn rolls!" 

Kyle looks at the man and then at you, following you out of the theatre and into the lobby. The manager comes out with the man walking behind her, shamefully, he drips Diet Coke onto the floor. "Stand against the wall," Hailey says and you oblige like you're getting your mug shot taken.

She snaps a picture of each one of your faces "Banned," She says "For life!" 

"For life?" The man asks, his voice rising.

"Yes!" Hailey says, gesturing to the wall behind the concession where there were several pictures of people taped up for everyone to see, above each of their profiles was a piece of printer paper, the words 'banned 4 eva' written in red Sharpie "Or do you want me to call the police?"

"No, I'm cool with being banned," You answer first "Not sure I can speak with Jabba the Hutt though." 

Kyle's eyes never left the man's as he reluctantly stepped back, his chest still heaving with anger. "Let's go," he said, turning to you and grabbing your hand.

As Kyle trudges to the exit and you follow behind, hand in hand, you stick a middle finger up behind you as you push through the doors and into the daylight. "What a fucking asshole," His jaw was tightly clenched, the muscles visibly twitching with the effort to contain his anger.

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 19

Tolkien sets up his phone on a nearby table, adjusting angles and checking lighting, while Kyle starts brainstorming ideas. You and Red find yourselves sitting by the sparkling blue waters of Tolkien's pool, feet dangling in while you watch the pair.

"What about this one?" Kyle asks, playing an audio. 

Tolkien bites his lip for a moment, deep in thought before he shakes his head "Nah, trends over."

You and Red exchange amused glances, she huffs on a blue raspberry ice vape, occasionally giving you a hit. Her hair is tied up into a ponytail, an old Mötley Crüe shirt thrown over her blue bikini. 

"Let's do this one," Kyle huddles next to Tolkien showing him a video on his phone. The audio replays several times before the two of them begin to practice, going through the motions in little segments to remember until they have it down. 

Tolkien takes the lead, attempting to mimic the choreography he just watched, his movements almost too precise. He kicks off with a series of dramatic arm waves and hip sways, trying to sync his steps with the beat of the short song. 

You lean onto Red, burying your head into her collarbone while you laugh. "That's it, boys, you've made it to the big leagues," She calls out between giggles.  

"Can we get less input from the fog machine over there?"  Tolkien turns around before walking back to his phone and restarting the video. You lift yourself off Red to watch Tolkien start from the beginning; he moves almost exactly the way he did before like it was a formula.

Tolkien dances his part and then Kyle comes into the frame and they begin a synchronized dance routine, exaggerated and goofy, their attempts at coordination often ending in laughter and playful nudges.

It was nice being friends with Kyle even though it was difficult for you to admit. You liked being able to hang out in a group with him and not trying to murder each other even though the thought still passed through your head on occasion. Both of you promised that you wouldn't tell a soul about the movie theatre fiasco and would swear up and down that your pictures weren't posted up next to crackheads. 

When Kyle starts doing his bit of the dance you can't hold back your cackling, clutching your stomach while you brace yourself on Red who herself is shaking from laughter. The boys ignore you but you keep laughing to the point you need to stand up and walk over to the side of Tolkien's house to brace yourself against the wall. 

Tolkien finally manages to nail a sequence, and Kyle lets out a triumphant cheer, their joy infectious despite the cringe you and Red felt watching them film TikTok's, they seemed unbothered. "You won't be laughing when I get famous," Tolkien says to you, Kyle's standing next to him watching the video they just finished filming.

"I'm sure it'll be super unfunny then," You say in a mocking tone.

"Yeah, whatever, nice lungs," He says, briefly looking up from his phone.

"Woah, woah, woah," you put a hand out "Where did all of this hostility come from?"

"Where do you think?"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," You get the last of your giggles out, straightening up. "Tolkien, show me how to do one of those dances," you suggested with a playful grin.

"Seriously?" Both Kyle and Tolkien say in unison. 

"Yeah," You walk over, biting your lip to stop yourself from laughing "Show me."

"Uh, okay," Tolkien says, his expression softening "Which one do you want to do?" 

"I dunno," You answer, leaning over his shoulder while he scrolls through his saved folder. 

 He began to break down the steps of a popular dance trend, his movements fluid and precise. His enthusiasm was infectious, and soon you found yourself mimicking his steps, albeit with a hint of hesitation. "Okay, so it's like this," Tolkien explained patiently, demonstrating the footwork and hand gestures slowly. "And then you add a little spin here..."

Kyle leaned casually against the poolside, a faint smile playing on his lips as he watched you. The way you focused intently on learning the steps but couldn't move without laughing- it all captivated his attention. He admired your willingness to throw yourself into the dance, your laughter mingling with Tolkien's as you both enjoyed the moment.

"You look so ridiculous right now," Red said, holding her phone up to film you and Tolkien while you danced 

"It's kinda fun!" You admit, eyes on Tolkien while you mirror his motions. 

"I told you!" Tolkien says, a bright smile on his face. You followed along, stumbling at first but gradually finding your rhythm. Tolkien's encouragement spurred you on, his gentle corrections and cheerful demeanour made the learning process enjoyable.

You were beginning to think you might've been too critical over Kyle's constant filming of TikToks, while you didn't understand how someone could make a career off it you could confess that you were enjoying yourself despite feeling more than stupid. 

"We should film one and I'll post it," He props his phone up on a lawn chair, setting up the timer.

"What?" You ask but the timers already nearing it's end and Tolkien is in his place. The music started, and you launched into the routine. He was by far more comfortable than you but you still tried your best. 

Your arms swung out to the side in unison, followed by a sharp clap above your head. The song itself was sped up and incredibly annoying, you had a feeling it would be stuck in your head in the following days and you would regret playing it on a loop while you did the choreography. You glanced over at Kyle, catching his eye with a smile.

 Just as the music reached a crescendo, Tolkien swept you off your feet, spinning you around in a dramatic flourish. Your laughter echoed across the poolside, an elated sound that filled the air as Tolkien's unexpected move took you by surprise.

The spin was exhilarating, and your laughter bubbled up uncontrollably, your legs kicking playfully in the air as you struggled to regain your balance. Tolkien caught up in the moment and the infectious joy of the scene, couldn't contain his laughter either. As he tried to set you down gently, the combination of laughter and the slick poolside caused both of you to lose footing.

While Tolkien sprawled out on the ground, you tumbled backwards into the deep end of the pool. Red was laughing even harder, the camera still trained on you, she wasn't sure if your cartoonishly dramatic fall was funnier or Tolkien's face plant.

"Are you okay?" Kyle asked, unable to bite back the smile on his face as you resurfaced. You pushed your hair away from your face and wiped chlorine water from your eyes. 

"Yeah," You laugh wading over to the edge of the pool where Kyle was standing. "Help me up," You held your hand out.

"You're gonna pull me in," he says, inching backwards just the slightest. 

 "No, I won't," You said like his accusation was incredulous "I swear," You outstretch your hand even further. 

"I don't trust you."

"Why not?" You smiled, feeling a flutter of warmth in your chest at his attention. "Just be cool," you replied, reaching out to grasp his hand.

At last, he gave in and as his fingers wrapped around yours, a jolt of electricity seemed to pass between you. The warmth of his hand was a stark contrast to the cool water, grounding you in the moment. Kyle's grip was firm and steady as he carefully pulled you up, his strength evident as he helped you find your footing.

The air grew thick with unspoken tension. Water droplets glistened on your skin, catching the last rays of sunlight, and Kyle's gaze softened as he took in the sight of you. The playful banter from earlier seemed to fade, replaced by a deeper, more intense awareness of each other.

As you stepped out of the pool, you stumbled slightly, your wet feet slipping on the smooth surface. Kyle reacted instantly, his arm wrapping around your waist to steady you. The closeness sent a shiver through you, your heart racing as you looked up into his eyes, which were now only inches away.

"Are you good?" Kyle asked, his voice low and filled with a mix of concern and something more, something that made your pulse quicken.

You nodded, unable to find your voice for a moment. The way he held you, his touch gentle, made it hard to focus on anything else. "Yup, fine," you pry yourself away from him. 

Neither of you moved immediately, the moment stretching out as the world around you seemed to blur. Kyle's eyes flickered to your lips for a brief second before meeting your gaze again, his expression hesitant.

The moment was broken by the distant sound of Tolkien and Red's laughter as they rewatched the video, reminding you both of where you were. Kyle takes a step back "I can't believe you actually didn't pull me in."

"Yeah, I would never do something like that," You say, casually walking past Kyle and shoving him into the pool as you do so. 

.˙꩜°˖:*࿔ ☼ ࿔*:˖°꩜˙.

July 25

The sun had long set, leaving the kitchen bathed in the warm, soft glow of overhead lights. Your family and Kyle's had come together for a shared meal, full of far too much wine consumption and brain-rotten jokes made by your little brothers. 

As the adults moved to the living room for more conversation and the younger kids dashed outside to play, you and Kyle volunteered to handle the dishes. You both stepped into the kitchen, where the soft light illuminated the scene of culinary aftermath: plates smeared with the last bits of sauce, glasses smudged with fingerprints and lipstick, and serving dishes still holding crumbs of the evening's feast. Even a disgusting concoction your brother had made, water mixed with white wine, rootbeer, ketchup, and relish. He had dared Ike to drink it and then drank it himself when Ike chickened out.

Kyle rolled up his sleeves with a mock-serious expression. "Good god," He mutters at the sheer amount of dishes. 

"Get to work, ginger." 

The sound of running water and the clinking of dishes filled the space, creating a rhythm as you and Kyle fell into an easy routine. He washed, you dried, and the banter flowed as naturally as the water from the faucet.

"So, how does this thing work again?" Kyle asked, holding up a sponge as if it were a foreign object.

"Just like that," you replied, mimicking his exaggerated movements with the dishtowel. "It's a highly specialized technique, you see."

Kyle chuckled, passing you a clean plate to dry. "Ah, I see. Years of training."

As you dried the dishes, you couldn't help but notice the way his muscles flexed beneath his rolled-up sleeves, his hands moving efficiently through the soapy water. There was something undeniably attractive about the way he approached even a mundane task like washing dishes.

You thought back to those massive sleepovers where all of your friends would pile into one bedroom and talk about everyone and everything. How they gushed about how cute Kyle was and you always went quiet, wrinkling your nose like the name alone was poison. 

"Achoo," Kyle feigned a sneeze, taking water from his hands and flicking it onto you. He kept his eyes down on the sink like he hadn't done anything. You retaliated by whipping the wet dish towel at Kyle a little harder than intended, there was an audible snap when you hit him and your eyes widened. "Jeez, are you trying to take me out?"

"Obviously," You deadpan "That's been the plan for the last seventeen years."

The dishes didn't seem to let up, pan after pan, utensils piling higher than mountains. While your brothers played video games and your parents laughed obnoxiously in the living room, you were still stuck on dishes until your fingers wrinkled to prunes. 

The entire time Kyle kept skittishly glancing at you and then glancing away while you pretended not to notice. He didn't know when was the right time to ask you or if you'd even want to hear him out. 

Kyle leaned casually against the counter, a hint of nervousness in his eyes. He cleared his throat, drawing your attention from the last few utensils you were drying. "Hey, I've got something for you," he said, his voice holding a note of anticipation.

You raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued. "Oh? What is it?" You wiped your hands on a cloth to dry them before settling them on your hips. 

Kyle reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and pulls out an envelope, holding it out towards you. You took it, your fingers brushing against his, sending a small thrill through you. Carefully, you opened the envelope, revealing two concert tickets inside. Your heart skipped a beat as you read 'Suburban Wasteland' printed at the top above the seating and date information "I don't know if you still want to go with me. I was kinda a dick about it so you can give the other ticket to Bebe or something and I won't-

Without thinking, you let out a joyful scream and began jumping up and down, the sheer exhilaration bubbling over. Face lighting up as you looked down at the tickets, re-reading them over and over again. "Oh my fucking god!" 

He wasn't sure he had ever seen you so happy, not even when your soccer team placed first in regionals or when your parents took you on vacation. Despite his own indifference towards the band, seeing you so elated made it all worth it for him."You like it?"

"Yes!" You jumped around in a little circle, hands holding the tickets shaking as you looked back up at him "I thought you didn't want to go?"

"I listened to their stuff and I changed my mind," He said nonchalantly. That was only half true. He felt bad watching you go through the month, trying to find someone who would go with you and being turned down every single time. 

"Eeeek!" You shout again, jaw almost sore from the uncontrollable smile. Kyle thought that in seconds you would be bouncing off the walls. In a very impulsive moment for you, you throw your arms around him in a spontaneous hug. It's the first time you've ever hugged Kyle, and the warmth of your body against yours sends a shiver down his spine. 

His frame is taller and more solid than you expected, and you find yourself nestled against his collarbone, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest against you.

For a split second, neither of you move. His arms hesitate before tentatively wrapping around your back, his hands lightly resting on your waist. You can sense his surprise, his body slightly tensed with uncertainty, yet there's a warmth in the way he holds you. Your own hands, holding the tickets, press against his shoulders, and you feel the firmness of his muscles beneath his shirt. 

"Stop fighting!" Your mom rushes into the kitchen at the sound of your shrieking, panic across her face which quickly turns into confusion as she sees you clinging to Kyle. 

You break away from him, clearing your throat awkwardly as you stare at your mom, trying to still yourself. You quickly gather yourself, smoothing down your clothes and clutching the concert tickets a little tighter. "Can I pay you to pretend that never happened?"

A/N: So excited for the next chapter 😽

[boysbellyrubs]

Hmm okay. Sorry in advance for the mini essay but here goes!

How about a CainexQuinn fic where the two of them are having a cozy weekend or couple days off and have been doing fun and cutesy Fall things like visiting a pumpkin patch/fall carnival, going apple picking, etc. Quinn’s tummy starts to get a little upset early on in the day but he brushes it off and chalks it up to the sweets he’s been overindulging on. He thinks he’s being discreet but there’s no hiding from Caine, especially when Caine has been able to hear the rumbling of Quinn’s tummy for the past hour and a half. Caine subtly comforts Quinn while they’re in public, pretending to be unaware. After they’re all done with outings, they go home to hole up in a blanket fort in bed and have a cozy afternoon watching movies but poor Quinn’s tum has only gotten progressively more upset throughout the beginning of the first movie. Turns out he’s coming down with case of food poisoning or a tummy bug!

Lots of comfort and fluff (but also nsfw grossness if you’re down lmao)

🪼

sorry for making you wait so long anon 😭, I've been studying for exams and shit so I haven't really had the motivation. However, here it is, a little different to what you requested because it has been sitting in my docs for years, but i hope you still enjoy :)).

it's also quite long hehe.

---

Quinn’s stomach was beginning to ache. He knew he shouldn’t have eaten a big brunch on top of all the lollies he had been snacking on. But, who could blame him? It was Halloween season and Caine loved to keep their stash of lollies topped up all the time. 

They were currently walking through the botanical gardens in their city, the day was sunny and there was a cool breeze to combat the humidity. They had set up some Halloween decorations, bats and orange pumpkins filled the paths. Caine was holding his hand the whole time, ranting about anything and everything. Quinn’s stomach gurgled faintly, mixing up the food and sending a spike of pain through his middle. He felt icky. Sweaty and an acidic burn was resting in his throat. 

“Look, Quinn, ducks!” Caine pointed ahead of them at a pair of Paradise Ducks waddling along the path. People were crouched down and snapping photos of them. Caine dragged him along to get closer. “Aw, man I love ducks. I wish I could pat them.” 

Quinn smiled. “Yeah, if only we could keep it as a pet.” Caine sighed while staring at them. He quickly pulled out his phone to take a photo, letting Quinn’s hand go in the process. He crouched to get a good photo and Quinn put his hand on his stomach, resting it on the most sore part. It rumbled as he did so, hopefully Caine hadn’t heard that. 

The other stood up, quickly reviewing his photos and taking Quinn’s hand again. They kept walking, through the arches and under the shades of trees. They made their way to a cafe area, with a pond and even more ducks. Caine gasped and quickly went over. 

“They’re feeding them! Let’s go inside, maybe they have food for them.” Quinn followed his excited boyfriend inside, letting him run ahead. The air conditioned cafe was like walking into a freezer, goosebumps immediately popped up all over Quinn’s arms. He folded them and went to Caine. The other was speaking to one of the workers and was handed two little bags full of sunflower seeds. 

“Here, these are for the ducks.” It was hard to not smile when Caine handed him the bag. He looked so elated to be doing this. Quinn pushed aside his pain for a moment and went to feed the ducks. They were aggressive little things, pecking and biting at Quinn’s palm. He chuckled as one of them hopped up right in front of Caine, eager to get the seeds in his own hand. Quinn tipped some more onto his hand and tossed them straight into the water, the ducks quacking and splashing around for them. As he watched, the splashing of the waves mimicked his belly; violent and nauseating. He hugged his middle subtly, forcing down the acidic belch that wanted to come up his throat. 

“I’m all out. Have you got any left?” Caine’s voice said next to him. He looked over and handed Caine the rest of his bag. “Are you sure?” He asked, already reaching for it. 

“Yeah, go ahead. I’m just going to find a bathroom.” Caine nodded, already engrossed in his duck feeding task. Quinn stood up. His stomach sloshed inside him like a washing machine, making him put his hand dead centre on his belly. Quinn forced a burp, the action doing nothing to help. He made his way to the cafe bathroom, quickly glancing in the mirror at his sweaty reflection before going inside one of the stalls. 

His stomach gurgled again, squeezing and churning. He hugged his stomach, rubbing along the tightest part and forcing up more burps. He cringed as some stomach acid came up, and spit it out into the toilet. God, he felt disgusting. He knew he shouldn’t have eaten so many lollies, it was bound to give him a tummy ache. He groaned at another gurgle, this one lasting a long painful few seconds. Time seemed to slow down the longer he stayed there, he felt like he was about to vomit everything up but also he felt like he was going to collapse. Quinn was genuinely considering whether there had been poison in those lollies. 

He heard the main door open. “Quinn? You in here?” 

Quinn tried to sort himself out in 3 seconds. He opened the door and smiled at his boyfriend. “Hey.” 

“Are you alright? You sort’ve disappeared for ages.” Caine approached him as he went to wash his hands. He put his hand gently on Quinn’s back. 

“Yup, I’m fine.” He knew he wasn’t really putting on a good act but, his tummy hurt, okay. 

Caine nodded, seemingly convinced. “Alright, should we head home then? We can grab some snacks at the supermarket, there’s one like five minutes from here.” 

More snacks, which probably meant more lollies. Quinn didn’t want to put a damper on Caine’s mood so he just agreed and followed him out of the bathroom. As they were leaving, Quinn felt his stomach turn, a queasy rumble echoing out of it. He bit his lip at the feeling, hating how it made his knees shake. Caine’s hand was the one thing connecting him to Earth at this point, so he squeezed it tighter as they followed the path. The other turned to smile at him as he did so. 

He leaned over, kissing Quinn’s cheek. “I had fun today. Let’s go home and watch a movie to relax, yeah?” 

That sounded like just what he needed. “Sounds good.” 

The supermarket was blissfully cold, Quinn was tempted to stay right where the meat was just to stay cool. He followed Caine around like a puppy as he picked up some dinner things and just as he predicted, more lollies. Fruitbursts, Maltesers, Skittles, Sour Snakes; Quinn’s stomach was already feeling the effects of those. They eventually left the shop with their haul and made their way back to the car. 

The trip was awful. He was barely speaking, unable to open his mouth without fearing everything would come back up. Quinn stared out the window as his vision wobbled, his stomach gurgling angrily at him. Caine not saying anything about it was a mystery. They were at a red light and Caine looked over. 

“Did you have fun today?” 

Quinn forced his head around. If anything, he was going to be nice to his boyfriend. “Yeah, it was relaxing to walk around the gardens.” 

“Good, I had fun too.” He put his hand on Quinn’s thigh, rubbing his thumb across Quinn’s jeans. Butterflies overtook Quinn’s upset tummy, floating around like the way Caine’s hair flittered along with the blow of the air conditioner. He stared at the love of his life. 

“I love you.” 

Quinn would never get over the way Caine’s cheeks went rosy as he said those words. Every time without fail. “Love you too.” He leaned over for a quick kiss before the lights turned green. The moment ended and Quinn stared back out the window. Despite his insides destroying him, he was quite content. Of course, this didn’t last very long. When he got out of the car, he felt his stomach drop down to his feet and a thick wave of undigested rubbish sloshed inside him. He put a hand to his middle. 

“Can you grab this bag?” Caine was half way out of the car, thrusting his hand back out with a shopping bag in it. Quinn rushed over and took it, the weight pulling his arms down. 

“Jesus, did you buy bricks without me knowing?” 

Caine pulled his head out of the boot, shutting it with a slam. “You must have the milk. Come on, let’s get inside.” 

The sun made their shadows long as they walked to the front door. Caine fished out his keys with difficulty, but eventually they were both inside with bags lining the bench. Quinn felt his stomach grumble and he went to sit on the couch, a wave of exhaustion washing over him. The couch dipped next to him. 

Caine’s warm hand softly touched Quinn’s nape. “Let’s have an easy night, huh? Something quick for dinner and then we can watch a movie.” 

Quinn just nodded, leaning into his touch and closing his eyes. Everything felt at peace when Caine was around, even when he felt sick. His head had progressively gotten worse on the drive home, he felt foggy and loopy. He had a feeling if he was asked to walk in a perfectly straight line he would fail on the second step. He sank further down, leaning his head on Caine’s shoulder. 

His stomach chose right now to make a fuss. It cramped inside him and he flinched, a noise of discomfort falling from his mouth. He couldn’t resist turning his head inwards to Caine’s neck. 

“Tired?” Quinn nodded. He felt like he’d been hit by a bus. This tired was the kind of tired he got when he came back from skiing, like weights were attached to every single part of his body and they just kept getting heavier. He must have a fever. 

Caine kissed his head. “You stay here. I’ll make us something.” His warmth disappeared and Quinn almost fell. However, he lowered himself to lay on the couch, wrapping his arms around his middle and tucking his knees up. On his side, his belly was gurgling louder than it had all day, desperately trying to digest what was inside. He moaned and hugged tighter. He wanted Caine to notice his distress, needing some much needed comfort after an awful day. Quinn went to stand, his head spinning once he got upright, and made his way to the kitchen. 

Caine had his head in the fridge, tapping his fingers on the door. 

“Babe?” 

Caine’s head emerged, hair flopping over his eyes. “Yeah?” 

Quinn shuffled forward, feeling much like a child who had thrown up in his bed. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and came to rest on Caine’s shoulder. The other wrapped his arms around Quinn, “What is it?” 

“I don’t feel good.” 

Caine chuckled, rubbing Quinn’s back. “I see. Bad, how?” He grabbed Quinn’s shoulders and held him out at arms length. Quinn was barely keeping his eyes open, everything was hitting him at once and all he wanted was to lie down with his boyfriend and rest. 

“Bad everything.” He whined, pushing through Caine’s grip and slotting himself back into his boyfriend’s chest. He heard the rumble of Caine’s laugh and his strong arms wrapping around his body again. This was where Quinn needed to stay forever. 

“Okay, do you need the bathroom?” As those words left Caine’s mouth, he felt his stomach get considerably worse. The churning intensified and the shakiness of his knees increased tenfold. He gripped Caine’s arms. 

“I don’t think I’m gonna make it there.” 

Caine’s eyes narrowed. “What do you-” Quinn cut him off by promptly turning towards the sink and spewing out his undigested stomach contents. He spluttered and grabbed his belly, hating how it contracted and brought up more burning stomach acid. Quinn hiccuped. 

“F-fuck me this hurts.” Caine’s hand rested on his back and the other smoothed back Quinn’s fringe from his face. He coughed again, feeling the lollies from earlier rocket up his throat and splatter into the drain. Quinn cringed at a cramp that made his back curl forward, head almost hitting the tap. His belly gurgled fiercely and he gripped it tight, spitting up more chunks of chocolate and gummy lollies. 

Caine rubbed his back. “Have you been feeling this bad all day?” 

Before Quinn could give him an answer, his stomach decided now was the perfect time to cramp and send him burping up more sick. He moaned, knees buckling and forearms smashing into the corner of the bench. “Ooh, babe.” Caine said, his arms now wrapping around Quinn’s middle to keep him steady. 

Quinn’s forehead scrunched up, god, he felt awful. It felt like his fever was just getting worse the more he kept standing, he was desperate to turn the cold water on and stick his head under it. Caine’s hands ran along his bloated belly, fingertips softly gliding across it and Quinn focused on it. 

“You alright?” Caine said. 

Quinn nodded minutely. “Just trying to focus on not falling over.” He breathed out, calming his racing heart and trying desperately to ignore the constant grumbling of his stomach. 

Soon enough, the world stopped spinning and his nausea lowered. He had just been panting over the sink, saliva dripping rhythmically onto the stainless steel. Quinn groaned, letting his head drop. 

“Finished?” Caine’s hands moved off his middle and came to sit above Quinn’s tailbone. The other nodded, spitting out the final remnants of acid and food. He slowly turned around with his arms resting on the bench. 

“Yep. Can we just relax now?” 

“Of course.” 

After all that, Caine had left Quinn to the couch while he gathered up supplies. Supplies meaning pillows, blankets, and a bucket, just in case. He came back, and set everything up and he ended up making a little fort for the two of them to stay in. It was cute. 

“Master architect right here.” Caine said, hands resting proudly on his hips. 

Quinn nodded. “Changing career paths?” 

“The building world needs someone like me.” He said with a big grin on his face. He grabbed Quinn’s hands and gently pulled him up, kissing his nose. “You're warm. And you smell like fever. No need to fear though, just sit down here and I’ll be back with some meds.” 

Quinn smiled at Caine’s antics, sitting down. Caine came back pretty quickly, settling himself down and presenting the pills from behind his back. “Now, take small sips while taking these.” 

He did, and then the two quickly got snuggled under the blankets and down on the pillows. Quinn smiled. 

“Thank you, baby.” 

Caine seemed pleased with himself. “No worries, I love taking care of you. Speaking of?” He lifted up his hand and made eyes at Quinn’s stomach. Quinn laughed and nodded, moving closer so Caine could rub his stomach. 

“I think I’ve got the stomach flu or something.” 

“Yeah, I figured. I’ll look after you for as long as you need though.” Caine kissed his cheek, keeping his head there for a moment. The two were silent for a few minutes, Quinn quietly enjoying the pampering. An upset gurgle interrupted them. 

“Mmh, it hurts.” He whined. The next few days were going to be awful. 

“Shh, shh, it’s okay. Just relax. Focus on my hand.” Caine’s hand ran up Quinn’s arms and sides. He trickled his touch around Quinn’s shoulders and gently played with his hair. “Feel this?” He poked Quinn’s thigh. 

Quinn nodded with his eyes closed. “Okay. Now this?” Another poke, this time on Quinn’s elbow. “Just focus on my touch, love. Ignore the feelings inside your belly.” His hand lay flat on his chest, up to his neck and gently across his collarbones. He poked his chin now, bringing a smile out of Quinn. 

“There we are. Don’t worry about anything else.” Besides the rustling of fabric, and Caine’s occasional comment the room was peaceful. Quinn was slowly falling asleep and the sickness inside him faded into the background. 

---

[thepenultimateword]

Please, please, please continue Protective, I wanna know how their date goes!

Part One, Part Two

Villain tugged at the strap of their denim jumper. No matter how they tightened it, it always seemed to make a dive off their shoulder at the most inopportune times. Which was why they only really wore it on special occasions, times when appearances prevailed over their need for comfort.

They pressed their knuckles into their forehead. Oh geez, they'd dressed up for this. They probably came off as so desperate. Like they were leaping at Supervillain to want them. Once they really got to know them and all their weird behavior, they'd probably end this whole deal.

"Villain?"

"Huh?" Villain said, shaking themself out of their self-deprecating stupor.

Supervillain stood at the cafe register, chin turned over the wool collar of their denim jacket—as if they’d matched on purpose. “Did you want a waffle? With your lunch? It's probably early for dessert, but they're very good."

"Oh...um...I guess?" They fumbled for their wallet. "How much--"

"I've got it," Supervillain said, waving them to put their money away again. "Regular, banana, blueberry, blackberry, or strawberry?"

"S-strawberry."

"Toppings?"

Villain rapidly scanned the list, a bit of nausea rising in their stomach as they felt several pairs of eyes from the cashier and the line behind them boring into their head.

"Cream and condensed milk drizzle?"

"Excellent choice," Supervillain nodded, somehow making ordering a waffle feel like a major accomplishment. "And the sandwich right?"

"I can--" Villain started, reaching for their wallet again, but Supervillain promptly interrupted.

"This is a date, Villain. Let me spoil you."

Villain's face felt ready to catch fire. They knew what Supervillain had said about liking them and wanting to protect them, but it still struck them as too surreal. This was a real date with special treatment and respect and everything. And Supervillain was really just going to blast it out to the room like that? Without a care?

"Th-thank you."

Supervillain handed them the table number. "Why don't you find us a seat while I get drinks."

Villain nodded dumbly, walking numbly toward the seating area before Supervillain could even ask what they wanted. Maybe if they messed up on one thing Villain wouldn't feel so out of their depth.

They chose a little window booth that looked out on the cafe's beautiful, landscaped garden, complete with koi pond and mini waterfall. They followed the floating lilies with dreamy eyes, how they bobbed and rotated in a lazy circle, sometimes getting so close to the waterfall's flow that it seemed inevitable they'd be forced under, only to sail free just in time.

"They're pretty,"  Supervillain's voice mumbled in their ear.

Villain gave a little leap, bumping against Supervillain's chest and finding themselves bracketed in by Supervillain's long arms, one on the table, the other on the back of Villain's booth seat. Their chin hovered just above their shoulder, matching their gaze level with Villain's.

"Sorry." Supervillain smiled and slid into the opposite booth.

"That's ok!" Villain blurted a little too loudly. "They are...er...pretty."

They ducked their head and fiddled with the end of their nails. Why couldn't they ever just be normal? Why did they have to be an awkward mess every second of the day?

"Could we take a picture together?"

Villain's head shot up.

Supervillain stared across the table with a soft, hopeful smile.

"S-sure."

Supervillain immediately got up and slid into the booth next to them. As they held their phone out in front of them their other arm circled around Villain's shoulders, pulling them close.

Villain went rigid, every brain cell immediately rushed with panic. Where did they put their hands? Where did they put their head? How were couples supposed to pose together? And why did they smell so good? Did Villain smell good? They hadn't showered since last night. Oh gosh, they smelt like Supervillain's shampoo, didn't they? Was that weird? Supervillain told them to use it, but maybe they should have put something on to mask it. And Supervillain was probably used to their own shampoo anyway, if Villain really wanted to be noticed they needed a more unique scent. Wait. Did they want to be noticed? Well, they had agreed to this whole thing, so they supposed they liked Supervillain at least a little. And they did make them very nervous and their face was pretty and--

Click.

Villain blinked at the sound of the camera shutter, and suddenly became aware of the selfie in front of them. Supervillain, grinning and suave, them pale-faced and gripping the table.

"Let's try another, hm?" Supervillain said, so friendly and calm one would hardly know that Villain had just ruined their picture.

"Ok..."

They tipped their head in Villain's direction, taking their hand in their own and guiding it to their arm. "Why don't you hold here?"

Villlain jerked their chin up in surprise, ready to confirm it was really ok, but found their faces inches away from Supervillain's chiseled one. On impulse, they jerked their head back down again.

"That color will help too," Supervillain chuckled. "Don't think too much. Just smile."

Villain hugged tighter to Supervillain's arm for balance and forced a wide grin.

Click.

Before Villain could think too much about what they were doing the shutter went off again and a new picture appeared, much better than the last one. This one actually looked like a photo of a date instead of a hostage situation. Though Villain’s smile still came off a little awkward.

“Cute. I’ll add this to my date post when we're done," Supervillain said, gently unhooking Villain's fingers and moving back to their own booth.

Villain stared at them in flushed awe. They might have even choked out some stupid attempt at flirting like "I’ll add you to my date post" if the food wasn't blessedly placed in front of them in that same moment.

They barely stopped their jaw from dropping at the sight of the thick slices of freshly baked bread, stuffed to the seams with peppers, cheese, and steak, the scent of black pepper and olive oil wafting up on the steam. Next to it sat a great pink waffle the size of the dinner plate it was on, topped with a pile of minced strawberries and cream, drizzles of condensed milk gathering in a pool around the waffle’s circumference.

Supervillain took a picture of both their spreads then aimed the camera at Villain again. “I promise this won’t be all our dates. I just need a lot of pictures to make our relationship clear.”

Villain nodded. “What do I do?"

"Just take a bite."

Villain stared between their waffle and sandwich for a full minute before deciding the waffle would be more prim. They cut off a less drippy piece and opened their mouth wide.

Click.

Their ears went warm.

Click.

Supervillain grinned down at their screen and turned it around for Villain to see.

"Oh no," Villain groaned as they caught sight of their pink ears. "Please don't post that."

"No worries, this one is for social media--" They showed the previous picture, still a little awkward mid-bite, but at least not blushing.  "--and this one is for me. Oh! That is if you'll let me have it."

"I-it's fine." At this rate Villain was going to combust.

"We'll take some pictures at the lighthouse for your account. We don’t want everything to be exactly the same.”

With that Supervillain pocketed their phone, and those intense, cutting eyes were all on Villain. 

“How’s the food?”

Villain took another hurried bite. “It’s good! Thank you! Is yours, er, good?”

Supervillain cut a much more careful bite off their own powdered sugar blueberry waffle and nodded. “Very good. Tell me about yourself.”

Villain fllinched at the sudden personalness. They didn’t do this sort of thing. Friends. Relationships. Because no one really wanted to know them, and Villain already knew they weren’t worth knowing. As futile as it was, they really didn’t want to scare Supervillain off too early. 

“Like what? Like…hobbies?”

“Anything your comfortable sharing.”

“Um, I got into villainy about 6 years ago. I’m estranged from my family because of…reasons. And um, I like sweets. What about you?”

“Been in villainy for 10 years, starting out as a henchman for some other villain. My family life is probably as good as you can get as a supervillain with moral civilian parents. And I also like sweets.”

Villain couldn’t bear their gaze anymore and took a sharp gulp of their drink. Cherry limeade. Curse it all, they were perfect!

“You’re sweet,” Supervillain added with a smirk.

Villain choked, coughing so violently they sent a blushing cherry spray all across Supervillain’s food and face. Red droplets dripped off their jaw and stained their white wool collar.

“I-I…” Villain couldn’t get it out. Cold horror gripped them by the intestines and gave them a savage shake.

Supervillain blinked the soda out of their lashes, squinting open one dark eye at a time. 

“I’m so sorry!” Villain finally blurted. “I’ll…I’ll replace your food! And your jacket! I’ll–”

Supervillain burst out laughing.

Villain blinked. Blinked again. Trying to make sense between their eyes and their brain on what was happening. Supervillain…wasn’t mad?”

“If I knew you were going to react like that, I would’ve let you swallow,” they said, wiping at their eyes with a napkin.

Villain’s heart sank again. They were laughing at them. Another reguritative reaction. Just like the heroes and civilians made fun of. Was this a trick afterall? To make it all worse, their shoulder strap chose that exact moment to slip again.

“Hey. hey, what’s wrong?” Supervillain reached across the table, laying their hand across Villain’s wrist. “It’s fine. It was cute.”

“It’s not funny!” Villain burst before they could filter themselves.

Supervillain sobered a little, fingers closing instead of just resting, their thumb stroking Villain’s racing pulse. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you. You’re right. It’s probably not very funny from your end.

For about the billionth time this afternoon, Villain’s body rushed with heat, but this time it was accompanied with a surge of hot tears that threatened to spill over their lashes. They stared stubbornly at the ceiling, wishing they could just evaporate from existence.

“I just…it was so unexpected. And it was such a lame line on my end, I felt embarrassed. So for you to get so flustered… I suppose it set me at ease.”

“You’re not nervous.”

“Oh, I promise you I am.”

“But you’re…you.”

Supervilllain smiled, this one weaker than the grins from earlier. “I don’t have people who care about me. Not all of me. My reputation may be impressive, but I’m not the sort of person people want to get close to. Maybe that’s why I was drawn to you. I saw a little bit of myself. And I wanted to protect you, like I wish someone would protect me.” They stirred their straw in their drink and slowly raised their eyes. “You’re also really cute.”

Villain pressed their lips together and gave Supervillain’s hand a quick pat. “Y-you too.”

They hastily pulled out of Supervillain’s grip and started on their sandwich, wiping unshed tears on their arm as they chewed,

“I’m sorry about your jacket.”

“It’s just a jacket. And it’s easy to wash.”

Villain forced a laugh. “Apparently, I’m here to dirty all of your clothes.”

“Ah, well then, please feel free to do it again.”

Villain’s body still felt filled with leftover jitters, but surprisingly, they almost felt better now than when they’d arrived. At least Supervillain felt a little more real.

When they finished eating, they started for the pier. Villain half-expected Supervillain to jump them there, but in the end, they ordered a cab.

Villain shielded their eyes as they stepped out onto the sandy pavement and cranked their head toward the tip of the tall, red and white painted lighthouse. They ducked their head as a strolling couple squinted in their direction, but then Supervillain was grabbing their hand, fingers rough and warm, pulling them down the path to the beach.

“That patch of rocks right at the base is my favorite spot.”

Villain scanned the empty beach doubtlfully. “There are really crabs here?”

“They’re most active during the night, but I’ve found I can lure them out in the day with a little food.” Supervillain pulled the wrapped remains of their sandwich from their jacket pocket, and tore out a couple slices of meat. “Here.” They folded the cold ham and chicken into Villain’s palm. “Start sprinkling this among the rocks.”

Villain had little time to respond before Supervillain was tearing their own slices of lunchmeat into bits, and throwing them into the spaces amongst the stones. Villain watched them a moment before carefully balancing atop one of the rocks and plopping a large chunk of ham into the sand. When nothing immediately immerged, they began hopping from rock to rock, tossing meat as they went. 

“There!” Supervillain cried.

“Where?” Villain hopped back toward Supervillain, catching themselves on their shoulder before the could topple from their perch. 

Supervillain pointed to gap in the stones where Villain had left their first ham piece. Sure enough what looked like a little brown-grey rock on legs was mincing up the lunchmeat in its claws.

“It’s so cute!” Villain gasped. 

“There’s more where that came from.”

 Supervillain slowly stepped up onto the rock beside them, and together they carefully hopped and picked their way across the beach, now viewers to the numerous crabs skittering from their hiding places for the free food.

Maybe it was the excitement or the need for balance on the rocks, but somewhere in between Supervillain had found Villain’s hand again. Their hands were as strong and protective as they’d been last night. Usually when Villain was with someone with such an obvious imbalance of strength it made them uneasy, but in this case it felt nice. They didn’t dare loosen or tighten their grip even a fraction in case Supervillain suddenly realized what they were doing and stopped.

“Hey, we should take those pictures,” Supervillain murmured. “Before it starts getting too late.”

Villain nodded, and thankfully, Supervillain didn’t let go, instead helping them pick their way back to open sand. 

“Let’s do one together first.”

“Ok, but you have longer arms so…” 

Villain held their phone out to Supervillain and the taller criminal broke their grip to accept it. Luckily, the handholding was replaced with another circling arm, this time around their waist instead of their shoulders. Villain tried to match their hold but mostly ended up gripping to the hem of their jacket. But at least they didn’t look as tense as in the cafe pictures. 

“Want one of just you?” Supervillain said, pulling back their warmth.

“Um, sure!” Villain scrambled back a step and waited for Supervillain to back up and get into position. As they stared straight ahead and held up a last-minute peace sign, they noiced something several paces down the beach from Supervillain. 

Another person. No. Two other people. Both with drawn phones pointed directly toward them. 

Click.

Villain flinched at the camera sound. 

One of the figures peeked around their phone ande matched gazes, making Villain’s innards coil.

“Hm, let’s do another one, you’re kind of frowning.”

Villain stalked forward and grabbed Supervillain’s arm. “Let’s go.”

“What? Why?”

Villain nodded in the direction of the strangers. “They’re…they’re taking pictures. Or filming. Or something.”

Supervillain glanced back at the pair. “Yeah, they’ve been there for a little while now.”

Villain gaped. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because isn’t it a good thing? Part of the point of going out was to be seen. It will  spread much faster if other people get involved.”.

“But they’re going to make fun of me!”

Supervillain squeezed their clenched knuckles. “Not while I’m around.”

“Not now! Online!”

They felt sick. Not as bad as last night, but definitely not in picture taking health.

“Hey,” Supervillain leaned in closer. “It’s going to be ok. None of what they say matters anyway.”

“It matters to me!”

Oh, man, they were feeling dizzy.

“Villain, you’re pale.” Supervillain began guiding them back up the path toward the street and sat them down on the curb. The back of their hand pressed against their clammy forehead. “Alright, let’s go. But I’d like to see you inside your apartment to make sure you’re alright.”

“C-can you jump us?”

“Doesn’t it make you uncomfortable?”

“I just want to go home.”

Supervillain hesitated but nodded, wrapping Villain in their arms once again and riiip, tearing back the world. It wasn’t so scary this time. Actually, it was sort of nice. No people. No cameras. No world. Just comforting black void as far as the eye could see.

Villain blinked, and they were back on their street, directly in front of their door this time.

They fumbled for their keys and quickly slid inside, opening the door wide for Supervillain to enter. 

“I’m sorry that–”

“Don’t apologize,” Supervillain interrupted as they stepped in and gazed around. “It was perfect. Now let's sit you down.”

Part Four

Master Taglist:

@moss-tombstone @crazytwentythrees s @just-1-lonely-person @the-vagabond-nun @willow-trees-are-beautiful @cocoasprite @insanedreamer7905 @valiantlytransparentwhispers @whovian378 @watercolorfreckles @thebluepolarbear @yulanlavender @kitsunesakii @deflated-bouncingball @lem-hhn @office-plant-in-a-trenchcoat @ghostfacepepper @pigeonwhumps @demonictumble @inkbirdie @vuvulia @bouncyartist @lunatic-moss-studio @breilobrealdi i @freefallingup13 @i-am-a-story-goblin @ryunniez @rainy-knights-of-villany @distractedlydistracted @saspas-corner @echoednonny @perilous-dreamer mer @blood-enthusiast @randomfixation @alexkolaxe @pksnowie @blessupblessup @wolfeyedwitch @thedeepvoidinmyheart @cornflower-cowboy @bestblob @a-chaotic-gremlin @espresso-depresso-system @prompt-fills-and-writing-spills @paleassprince @takingawildbreath @yindo @psychiclibrariesquotestoad @harpycartoons @pickleking8 @urmyhopeeee

[turtle-steverogers]

steve and bucky on lazy sundays, strolling around prospect park. getting coffee and pastries and sitting at the bench near their favorite duck pond. sharing headphones and listening to music as the world moves around them.

coming home and spending the afternoon wrapped around each other. baking muffins for the week and sludging through mindless chores, staying in each other’s orbits. lounging around with books while alpine and their dogs lay at their feet.

steve pulling out a puzzle while bucky does taxes. making easy dinner plans and going to the grocery store, bucky pushing the cart and steve putting things inside. grabbing another coffee on their way home on instinct, because the cafe they pass just smells that good.

steve and bucky enjoying the little things. domestic whims and pleasures, quiet sundays and lazy kisses. it’s perfection.

[maoisarap]

What Selfship/Maoru do at a walk-about park:

I was gonna gif the other three mv's but got an idea for my selfship. Soz.

~ Feed the little animals! Ducks, pigeons, squirrels, etcetera. Respectively, of course.

~ Find a bench to sit on under a tree with some shade and watch the fountain flow in the middle of one of the large ponds. Lakes...? I can't tell the difference.

~ Taking a slow walk along the trail path, pointing stuff out. The two hold hands, with Mao swinging Rumi's hand back and forth slowly and gently. Mao and Rumi both have soft smiles on their faces as they do so. (Mao feeling all soft and melty melty as he looks over, seeing Rumi look around with amazement for the umpteenth time.)

~ If there's a music parade open at one section, they'll go to visit and jig along to it together, appreciating the songs and maybe singing together if they know the said songs.

~ Going to the little cafe to have a sit down and get a nice hot drink together with a slice of cake or pastry, enjoying the nice and soft aroma the cafe emits.

~ If the two are feeling cheeky, they'll play "it" together (usually Rumi who starts it) and run around an empty grassy bit of the park.

~ Heading to the few memorials around each section to pay respects to the deceased, even though Mao and Rumi never knew these people. It's something they don't mind doing still.

[jasminebutintaiwansojiemin]

July 22nd, 2024 星期一 - NCCU tour, Taipei Zoo, Teahouse in the Mountains

This morning I was so extremely tired so I woke up around 8:45 am and got ready to go to a nearby bakery for breakfast. I sped over there and ended up buying a ham and Swiss croissant and a walnut cinnamon bun thingy. They were pretty tasty and fairly cheap. I then met up with my class and we headed out on a (non-party) bus to visit NCCU, our professor’s alma matter hehe. It was definitely a long drive there but I just ate my pastries on the way. I carried my new water bottle with me all day but quite literally never filled it up 😭

Our first stop at the university was the international dorm, where we were greeted by some of the buildings staff. I lived in the international dorm back when I was a freshman so it was interesting to see what theirs looked like. It was a seven floor building that included both single and double rooms. The size of the single room we toured was at least twice that of the ones at UF. The rooms also had a balcony, its own bedding, and a fairly large mini fridge.

Next we toured the common area which was pretty large BUT lacked a real stove or oven. It was also pretty interesting that there were little cards everywhere with the Chinese name and pinyin of random items such as the fridge and fire extinguisher. The NCCU representative told us that the building is 90% international students and 10% Taiwanese students, which is definitely more than the 60% American students to 40% international students at UF. But I guess having less Taiwanese students gives more space for international students to have housing. The representative also mentioned that a lot of the visiting students are finance majors.

After this, we headed to view the different study spaces around the building before hopping in the bus off to our next tour stop. We ended up at the Dah Hsien Seetoo library, which was donated in 2018 by the former MBA students of NCCU professor Dah Hsien Seetoo. The library was very nice and modern inside, although the temperature was abnormally warm. We toured around the different floors and viewed spaces such as the study rooms and the maker space. Something I found interesting about the study rooms (for undergrads) is that instead of having individual spaces in a room, it was different cubicles you could reserve. For example, one room would have spots ABCDEF, and you would reserve seat D to study. For graduate students, however, there were also designated study spaces that they had the key to for whatever period of time. There is also something like that at UF in Library West, though less modern of course. In the maker space, there were multiple types of 3D printers, an engraver, and a heat press. All machines are free to use and long as you bring your own graphic or AI file to send to the machines.

At the end we visited a famous cafe in the bottom floor of the library. Some students got coffee and deserts but I was more interested in watching the ducks that lived in a little house outside by the nearby pond. There weren’t out when we first got there but later they came out and swam around. I went to the shore of the pond a few times to look at them better and they came onto the bank to play in the bushes. After the coffee shop, we headed out to NCCU’s version of University Blvd, a street with a lot of restaurants and boba shops. Some classmates and I decided on a dumpling shop down the street. I got pork and veggie potstickers, Korean style potstickers, and a pork and veggie wonton noddle soup. After lunch, we walked around for a bit and our professor bought us ice cream (<3) since it was so hot. I also ended up buying a passion fruit tea with coconut jelly.

We then headed to the zoo. It was a very very large zoo, it had a tram to take from one side to the other. We first viewed the kolas and pandas as a group. The kolas were so cute and fully. They looked very sleepy which I resonate with HEAVY. At first we couldn’t see much of the pandas, but after the zookeepers brought out their lunch, they were visible. They were so cute and large and fluffy. They almost looked fake haha. I visited the upstairs gift shop of the panda exhibit and bought a fairly good quality canvas tote bag with a drawn map of Taipei on it. Next, we took the tram to the reptile exhibit. There were more turtles and tortoises in this zoo than I think I’ve ever seen in my life. We explored several other exhibits afterwards— including the penguins, giraffes, elephants, sun bears, zebras, mandarin ducks, and Pygmy hippos. Something interesting about this zoo was the insane amount of food options. I feel like zoos in the U.S. barely have food places, and if they do, it’s super overpriced. At the end, we met with the rest of the class at the main gift shop. I folded last minute a bought a cute turtle keychain and a capybara with a turtle backpack (I might like turtles idk).

Next we took some group pictures outside before heading in the bus up a mountain to go to a famous teahouse. We got to experience the tea ceremony with jasmine tea (hehe) and I ordered some soy sauce braised chicken wings and a bowl of rice as a snack. After eating, I walked around outside and watched my classmates search for a large stick to beat up a spider so they could go down a path to cross a bridge to get closer to the nearby waterfall. There were some crazy mosquitos out there but thankfully our professor lent us mosquito spray when we had first got off the bus. I pet a very talkative orange cat while I was walking around outside (the cats in Taiwan so far tend got be so talkative). Eventually we did the drive home, where I showered, and then met with some of my classmates to get Indian food.

Academic Reflection

Taiwan Zoo was originally just the privately owned zoo of a Japanese man in the northern part of Taipei City. After just a year, the then Japanese government of Taiwan bought the land and turned it into a public park called the Maruyama Zoo (Maruyama is now called Yuanshan). After World War 2, the park was taken over by the ROC Taipei City government. One of the most popular animals was Lin Wang, an Asian elephant that worked during the second Sino-Japanese and relocated with the Kuomintang. He was the most popular animal until the zoo received 2 pandas from Mainland China.

In 1973 they made plans to build a modern zoo and after thirteen years, the original zoo in Yuanshan was closed and a new zoo in the southern part of Taipei was opened on New Year’s Day. The location was moved to accommodate more animals and give more space for the both the recreation and research sides to function. The new Taiwan Zoo is now one of the largest zoos in Asia, and focuses on the conservation and research of animals and insects. Something unique about this zoo is the Formosa animal area, where zoo visitors can see native Taiwanese animals such as Eurasian otters, Pangolins, and sika deer.

[anonsally]

Days 12-13 of Australia vacation: Launceston

After a nice and thorough breakfast at our B&B on Day 12, we packed up and set off. On our way out of Scottsdale, we stopped at the pond to see if we could spot the platypus again. We eventually found one! We watched it swimming around and had fun trying to figure out where it would resurface after it dove.

Then we drove toward Launceston. We were going to stop to visit a lavender farm, but it turned out they were charging $20 per person, which was just too overpriced. (I mean, these were Australian dollars, but still.) We did get a view from a distance and it looked pleasingly purple, but we didn't regret not paying to go in.

When we got to Launceston, our accommodations weren't ready yet, so we left the car there and walked to Cataract Gorge, a large park nearby. We bought tickets and rode the chairlift across the gorge, which was fun. We were rather surprised to find a fairly large and moderately tame population of peafowl! We saw a few peacocks displaying their fancy feathers, as well as a few peahens, each with one peachick! There were also a few wallabies. They seemed pretty habituated to people. We took a little walk looking at various views, then had a little lunch in a cafe in the park, and then the others headed back as the house was now ready.

I decided to stay in the park for a bird walk. I went on a less-trafficked trail than where we'd been up to that point. At first, I only saw birds I'd seen before, though I did pass a wallaby that was a bit more nervous about me than the ones I'd seen earlier in the busy part of the park. But then I saw a bird flitting about amid some bushes and tall grass. I couldn't get a look at the whole bird, but I saw enough to be able to positively identify it as a Beautiful Firetail (which is a fabulous name for a fabulous bird!). That was very exciting, as I didn't even know that bird lived around there. And then I also spotted a Golden Whistler! I was very pleased to still be finding new birds so far into the trip, and those two in particular felt like High Quality Birds because they were so colorful and exotic. On the other hand, I also stepped in what I think was probably fresh wallaby poo and had to spend a while trying to scrape it off my shoe.

Eventually I walked back to the house. We went out to dinner and played a game in the evening. The house was by far the nicest of the vacation rentals, though it still had a few issues (I am sensitive to fabrics and didn't like the polyester sheets; also the washing machine was moldy. Front-loader washing machines should never be closed when they aren't running!). In the end none of the places we stayed were perfect, but I think the heritage B&B in Scottsdale was perhaps my favorite, with the cottage at the Piermont Retreat in 2nd place--it's a tough call between those two.

Day 13 was our last day in Tasmania. We got up early and went to Hollybank Forest for a ziplining tour. Well, Wife and I did the ziplining. The in-laws did a forest trail Segway tour instead. Anyway, it was fun and very different from the ziplining we did in Maui. This was in the trees rather than above the canopy, and once our pulleys were attached to the cable, they weren't detached until we finished the whole course. We had a fun time with it and enjoyed the views--and we'd also spotted an echidna on our way to the start of the course! Afterwards, we had a snack there and then drove back to the city.

The others wanted to do a walking tour of Launceston but I wanted more birdwatching, so I got dropped off at the Tamar Island Wetlands. Walked along the boardwalk and spotted an Australasian Swamphen with its giant muddy feet and also a little black cormorant. Two new birds! It was an interesting walk in any case--mostly surrounded by reeds except when going over bridges. I saw loads of ducks I couldn't identify (bad lighting and too far away) and some geese that must have been domestic hybrids, as well as various birds I'd already seen earlier in the trip. There was one part that was more forested--paperbark gums, which are beautiful trees--and there was a bird hide, but I couldn't see any birds from inside it. I think it was the wrong tide.

In the end I had to hurry back to be picked up, because we managed to move our dinner reservation (originally at 8:15pm) to 5pm. The food was excellent--a nice end to our Tasmania vacation. Then we went home and packed to fly back to Sydney in the morning.

[multipleoccupancy]

Theo only smiled that she knew of Marge and George, thinking about whether or not they were cultists in her timeline and how he felt about that. In some ways he was very glad he was resilient against The Horned One if it meant that he kept his beloved city safe from being brought under complete control by a cult. Horrifying thoughts given what he knew of The Network. However, he was blissfully unaware that such a father-daughter outing was not common place for the other Violet.

She seemed to have calmed down a little and even turned a little shy with him, he was not too sure why he was being careful to be gentle and nice now that she wasn't talking badly about his daughter. Maybe it was some guilt for doing so? By the time he joined her by the door though she was back to been relatively cold with him, fair enough.

Still wondering what her errands might have been before agreeing to go along with his, Theo thought his best bet was to not remind her of them and hope he could distract her well enough to keep her out of trouble or being the trouble. He checked her politely at her question on his work, "It's a weekend," he pointed out as closed the apartment door behind them and moved for the elevator. "I keep them as free as I can so I get to spend time with everyone." He realised after he spoke that it sounded as if it was not the same with his counter part. He pushed the button to call the lift but tried not to let the comment linger between them too long. "Yesterday Violet and I spend the day out in the city," he did not clarify that it was at the shooting range or the gym, not wanting to reveal what she was capable of in case she needed to surprise this other Violet. "Next weekend Klaus and I are going to a book cafe and then Rea is taking Lou to the duck pond on Sunday."

𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐎 & 𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐓 @multipleoccupancy

"Oh," she replied, embarrassed by her outburst, "I know them, yes. Marge has an ice cream shop, and George the hot dog stand. They're in my New York, too." Cultists, like her, like most of New York. But she didn't visit them very often, and certainly never with her dad. He was far too busy for that. Sometimes, she would go get ice cream with Heather, or take her siblings there. But not very often.

The praise took her by surprise. Mellowed her out a little bit more. "They worked very well," she confirmed a little shyly. Violet didn't like bragging, she just didn't like being underestimated, either. She left the kitchen, to wait for Theo by the door, and to hide how flustered she felt. Why was he being so nice to her? She wasn't his daughter. She thought he hated cultists.

She raised her eyebrows at the nickname. Rea. Her dad called her mom Andrea, not Rea. Another difference between the two. It was inconsequential, compared to all the very big differences. But she noticed it. It stuck with her. "Alright," she replied, having regained a bit of her countenance -cold, distant.

Violet knew she would have to find a way to get rid of Theo, so she could locate Olaf and sacrifice him to the Horned One. But she could do all that after the ice cream. And the hot dogs. And the roller skating in central park. Did he do these kind of things often? With her counterpart? Violet felt a little pang in her stomach, an emotion she couldn't really pinpoint. She followed Theo out the door and into the corridor. "Don't you have work to do today?" she asked, surprised that he had the time to do all these fun things with her.

[rygoespop]

The King of Street Fighters: Duck Sitter Honda (Chapter 34)

Scene opens at the Pao Pao Cafe in Metro City, as E. Honda defeated Dee Jay in a recent match

Bartender: I don’t believe it! E. Honda has won today’s match!

E. Honda: I’m number one! Yoisho! *stomps*

Unknown to E. Honda, when he performed the Oicho Throw on Dee Jay, a chirp was heard from the broken barrels

E. Honda: Huh? What’s this? *he walks over to the broken barrels*

When E. Honda lifted the broken barrel, he looked surprised

E. Honda: Are those, baby ducks?

The Baby Ducks chirp

Dee Jay: Hey mon, I think these ducks looks familiar

Joe Higashi walks up to them

Joe: I recognize these ducks, they belong to King Duck

E. Honda: King Duck?

Joe: Yes, King Duck! But since he’s not here, I don’t know how his ducks got here in Metro City

E. Honda: Well, what if I look after them?

Joe: I don’t know Honda, looking after a bunch of ducks is kinda of a responsibility

E. Honda: Oh trust me Joe, I had my fair share with ducks, even I got Rubber Ducks as a gift

Joe: Eh.. Fair enough Honda

E. Honda: Alright then *proceeds to leave off*

The Ducks soon follow E. Honda

E. Honda: What’s this?

Joe: They seem to take a liking to you Honda, they think your their babysitter

Ken: How about Duck Sitter?

Joe: *laughs* Good one Ken!

Scene cuts to E. Honda heading back to his Chanko Restaurant, as the ducks followed

E. Honda: Well little ducks, this is my Chanko Restaurant, people eat Chanko as they watch a sumo match

The ducks chirp as they rest on an empty table, as some customers were heading to the table

E. Honda: Whoa! *he collected the ducks in his hands and get them to safety*

The customers took the table

E. Honda: That was close!

The ducks chirp

E. Honda: Now listen little ducks, you can’t be on a table when customers are coming

The ducks didn’t listen as they chirp

E. Honda: Dawh, maybe you ducks need a bath, I know where!

Scene cuts to a Newly Built Sento Bathhouse in Metro City

E. Honda: Welcome to the Metro City Bathhouse!

The ducks chirps as E. Honda walks inside

E. Honda: Here ya go!

The Ducks chirp and got in the bath

E. Honda: Now look at that, it’s like a pond

Zangief: Is that so comrade Honda?

E. Honda: Oh hey Zangief, I wasn’t expecting you to visit

Zangief: Well of course, I got to rest up before tonight, tonight is my match with Marisa!

E. Honda: Good luck with that!

Zangief: Thank you comrade, and also, what’s with the ducks?

E. Honda: They were in the barrels during my fight with Dee Jay at the Pao Pao Cafe

Zangief: Really now? Now how did they get in there?

E. Honda: Joe told me that they belong to King Duck, but they got separate from him

Zangief: Well, ducks don’t belong in baths

E. Honda: Then where?

Zangief: How about the pond at Urban Park?

E. Honda: Well…

Scene cuts to E. Honda arriving at Urban Park as he walked to the pond as the ducks followed

E. Honda: Well, this is where we part ways my little friends, I’ll miss you all

The Ducks chirp and they nestled E. Honda

E. Honda: Goodbye, my feathery friends

The ducks chirp as they got in the pond

E. Honda: That was.. Sweet

Zangief places his hand on E. Honda’s shoulder to comfort him

Zangief: You did the right thing comrade

E. Honda: Your right

Zangief: How about something to compensate this, a battle royale?

E. Honda: Now you’re talking!

Scene cuts to later at The Macho Ring, as Zangief, Marisa, and E. Honda are all at their corners

Announcer; Get ready for a three way wrestling royale!

The crowd cheered!

Zangief: Russian Pro Wrestling is best!

Marisa: No! Pankration is superior!

E. Honda: No! Sumo is Number One!

The 3 wrestlers are come at each other as the camera freeze frames into an artwork

To be continued

[bytheletterbookreviews]

Cosy Nights & Snowball Fights: (Little Duck Pond Café, Book 36) (Little Duck Pond Cafe) by Rosie Green @rararesources @Rosie_Green88

Book Description: As the nights draw in, gingerbread lattes and festive hot chocolates are on the menu, and the Little Duck Pond Café girls are gearing up for the cosiest time of the year. But new recruit Laurel just wishes she could sleep through the whole jolly affair! It might be October, but she’s still haunted by the events of last Christmas. Could a new start in Sunnybrook help to heal her…

[chennaitop10article]

A Parent's Guide to the Best Playgrounds and Parks in Chennai

Chennai, known for its bustling streets and vibrant culture, also offers numerous green spaces where families can relax and children can play. For parents looking to find the best playgrounds and parks in the city, this guide highlights some of the top spots that combine fun, safety, and a touch of nature.

Discover the top 10 indoor kids' play areas in Chennai! Enjoy safe, fun-filled activities with your little ones at these vibrant play zones, perfect for beating the heat and ensuring endless entertainment.

1. Semmozhi Poonga

Location: Cathedral Road, Teynampet

Highlights:

Botanical Garden: Spread over 20 acres, this garden showcases diverse flora, making it an educational trip for children.

Play Areas: Equipped with swings, slides, and seesaws, perfect for young kids.

Walking Paths: Shaded paths suitable for leisurely strolls while kids play.

Pond Area: Home to ducks and other birds, providing an enjoyable sight for children.

Why Parents Love It: Semmozhi Poonga offers a serene environment amidst the city's hustle, making it a great spot for a peaceful family outing.

2. Anna Nagar Tower Park

Location: Anna Nagar

Highlights:

Tallest Tower: An iconic landmark, the 135-feet tall tower provides a panoramic view of the city.

Spacious Playgrounds: Several playgrounds with modern equipment for children of all ages.

Fitness Zones: Outdoor gym equipment available for adults.

Lush Greenery: Extensive lawns and shaded areas perfect for picnics.

Why Parents Love It: The park's extensive space and variety of activities make it ideal for both kids and adults to engage in outdoor fun.

3. Guindy National Park and Children's Park

Location: Guindy

Highlights:

Wildlife Experience: Spot animals like deer, blackbucks, and various birds in their natural habitat.

Children's Park: A dedicated area with safe play equipment and educational exhibits.

Nature Trails: Walking paths that allow families to explore the park's natural beauty.

Mini Zoo: A small zoo area featuring animals like monkeys, peacocks, and crocodiles.

Why Parents Love It: This park combines play with education, offering children a chance to learn about wildlife while enjoying outdoor activities.

4. Elliots Beach and Thalankuppam Pier

Location: Besant Nagar

Highlights:

Beachfront Playground: Swings and slides set up near the beach, allowing kids to play with the sea in the background.

Walking and Cycling Path: A long path for parents and kids to walk, jog, or cycle.

Pier: The Thalankuppam Pier offers stunning views and a unique walking experience.

Eateries: Numerous food stalls and cafes nearby for a quick snack or meal.

Why Parents Love It: The combination of beach, playground, and eateries makes it a perfect spot for a full-day family outing.

5. Vandalur Zoo (Arignar Anna Zoological Park)

Location: Vandalur

Highlights:

Extensive Zoo: Home to a wide variety of animals, including tigers, lions, elephants, and reptiles.

Children's Park: A separate area with playground equipment and picnic spots.

Safari Rides: Jeep and elephant safari rides for a thrilling experience.

Educational Programs: Interactive sessions and exhibits about wildlife conservation.

Why Parents Love It: Vandalur Zoo offers a mix of adventure, education, and fun, ensuring an engaging experience for kids.

6. Nageshwara Rao Park

Location: Mylapore

Highlights:

Green Oasis: A lush park with well-maintained lawns and gardens.

Play Area: Swings, slides, and climbing structures suitable for younger children.

Walking Paths: Shaded walkways for a leisurely stroll.

Cultural Programs: Often hosts music and dance performances, enriching the visit.

Why Parents Love It: The tranquil setting and cultural vibe make it a refreshing retreat for families.

Conclusion

Chennai's parks and playgrounds offer a wide range of activities that cater to the interests and needs of children and parents alike. From expansive green spaces and educational nature parks to beachfront playgrounds and historical parks, there's something for everyone. Whether you're looking for a quiet retreat or a bustling play area, this guide can help you find the perfect spot for your family's next outdoor adventure.

Discover the best indoor kid’s play areas in chennai! Featuring safe, vibrant environments and engaging activities, these top spots ensure endless fun and memorable experiences for children and families alike.

[paulbeal]

🌳 Dalby Forest Walk: From Thornton-le-Dale to the Dalby Forest Visitor Centre

🚶 On Thursday, Angy and I set off on a fantastic walk through Dalby Forest in the North York Moors, starting from the lovely village of Thornton-le-Dale. The weather was perfect, making it an ideal day out.

🌲 We began from the village car park and soon found ourselves strolling past a peaceful duck pond, crossing a little stream, and reaching the village green. The village was full of charm, with its quaint shops, cosy cafes, and beautiful old almshouses.

🏡 We followed a footpath along Thornton Beck, passing the picture-perfect Beck Isle Cottage, which has to be one of the most photographed cottages in the country.

⛪ Our route took us to the historic St Hilda’s Church at Ellerburn. The paths through the countryside and alongside the streams were incredibly peaceful.

🌳 Entering Dalby Forest, we followed a track through lush woodlands, crossed a grassy meadow, and walked by High Dalby House.

☕ We took a break at the Dalby Forest Visitor Centre for a coffee, enjoying the forest atmosphere before continuing on our way.

🏞️ Heading back towards Thornton Dale, our path took us past Ellers Wood. We climbed an uphill path to Outgang Lane, which led us back to the village outskirts.

🌟 Before finishing our walk, we took a moment to admire All Saints Church. The final stretch brought us back to the car park, wrapping up our memorable 10-mile trek through the stunning North York Moors.

🔗 If you’re looking for a relaxing day out, this route is a must! Check out the details on my website below:

https://www.paulbeal.com/dalby-forest-walk

[slowtravelingcat]

The Monster, Chena Hot Springs and Talkeenta, AK

Monday, July 5th, 2021  

CAL - I can tell that the large, bald one must really be loving it here. She has left the hotel room for 2 full days for the 2nd week in a row. As her best friend and confidant, I am supportive as I can tell these extended outings bring her great happiness. 

As for me, this week was an eventful week, indeed. I slew a monster. 

Let me start at the beginning. I was pushing my head underneath the curtains to see out of the window, as I have many times before. Normally if I dip my head low enough I can push the fabric away to get unfettered window access, however, this time, something different happened. When I lifted my head, I expected a view of the outside, but instead, I remained covered in fabric. There was fabric behind my head and in front of my eyes, at the same time!

There was only one conclusion to be drawn. I was being eaten alive by the Curtain Monster.

Once I realized what was happening, I did what any noble cat would do. I chewed my way out.

It took a while to get the first tear in the fabric, but once I broke through I found a renewed sense of energy. Once I was safely out of the Curtain Monster’s evil grips, I continued to chew. I chewed out of anger and then relief. If I’m being honest, I’m not even sure why I chewed those last few pieces. All I know is that Curtain Monster has officially been slain. I can not wait for Michele to see my noble deed.

MICHELE - There is so much to see in Alaska, this summer is starting to feel like the shortest and longest summer of my entire life. With the holiday, my work afforded me a 3 day weekend, meaning that I started my weekend adventure on Saturday morning. 

The first leg was a 7-hour drive from Anchorage to Chena Hot Springs Resort, just outside of Fairbanks. The drive is beautiful and runs through the interior of Alaska, skirting the eastern side of Denali National Park. The drive passes through a series of valleys and mountain passes, each one more grand than the next. After a quick stop in Fairbanks for supplies, I made the final push to Chena. 

The Chena Hot Springs resort is known for winter viewing of the Northern Lights. Despite being “off-season” the property was pretty packed. The entire space is a mix of eclectic outdoor sculptures, handmade crafts, duck ponds, and gardens. About half of the land is dedicated to a hotel and the other half to a campground with a mix of cabins, yurts, and space for tents. The smell of smoke wafted over the campground as a small brush fire burned not too far away. 

After settling into my cabin on the camping side of the property, I took a stroll around the grounds, where I snuck a few pictures of a sled dog kennel and marveled at the strange art distributed around the various gardens. Next, I enjoyed a dip in hot springs, which had only a subtle smell of sulfur. I finished the evening with a glass of red wine on the porch of my cabin. Just when I thought the night could not get any better, a brigade of firefighters trot past my cabin and into their make-shift quarters for the evening. A few of them wave and I lift my glass to toast to their good work. What a life. 

The next morning, I check out of my cabin at the last possible minute and make the 5-hour drive to Talkeetna. This time as I pass Denali National Park, the sky is perfectly clear and I get the greatest view of Mt Denali! Luckily there is no shortage of viewpoints on the highway, and I can pull over to snag a couple of photos. 

Sunday night in Talkeetna is a charming way to end the weekend. The town is tiny and packed with cafes, pubs, and little shops. I wander the streets and end up with a poke bowl and a can of beer at a sidewalk cafe. Around closing time, some locals set off a few fireworks, but the sky remains lit up by the sun, so it really only generates a series of loud noises.

The next morning the drive back to Anchorage is plagued with holiday traffic. I am exhausted by the time I enter our room. I immediately notice that something is off though.

The curtains are torn to shreds. Cal meows proudly as he rubs against my leg. What the heck happened in here? 

[28whitepeonies]

Hii, omg thank you for answering! I will mostly try to walk or use public transport :) right now i have the peoples story museum, the writers museum and just like walking around on my list haha

Hi again friend

I have an ask from another blog who recently visited Edinburgh and has a better tourist perspective, I will post it right after this bc they have some recommendations for you of things they enjoyed too! I won't mention much of the tourist stuff because I suspect you'll already know about it and I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.

Since you've mentioned the writers museum, there's a really great, small radical bookshop in Edinburgh called Lighthouse. They sell books of course but they also do a lot of community and book events, they're one of my favourite places in Edinburgh and if you've got some spare time they are really worth a visit!

10 mins round the corner from the People's Story Museum is a plaque which marks the birthplace of James Connolly, it's a blink and you'll miss it kind of marker but if you are interested in working class history it's defo worth a wander past. This is a bit further out, but if you can manage it it is really worth a visit. The National Mining Museum is just outside Edinburgh, it's about half an hour on the train, probably an hour on the bus.

Edinburgh is on the Firth so I'd recommend a walk down by the water at Newhaven, there's a really cute lighthouse and you can walk along the edge of the water out to the old port, it's a good spot in the evening especially! Theres cold water swimming along Newhaven harbour too. (Portobello beach is another great visit but it’s a bit further out and you’d have to get a bus)

There's a fish and chip shop near Newhaven harbour that I hear is good but there is an even better one a 20 min walk away called Pierino's and it is near the Shore area of Leith which is really cute and has a lot of shops/pubs/restaurants. If you fancy the walk then either of those is a good opportunity to wander down Leith Walk from the city centre which has a lot of cafes/pubs and little shops but there are also lots of buses. There's a section of shops at the bottom of Leith Walk and a pub called Leith Depot, where they recently fought off a student housing development, it's a great pub and they do live music every night.

If you are looking for places to eat, then the very best caffe/greasy spoon in Edinburgh is called Snax, it's up a side street off Princes St/St Andrews Square and it does the best fry up you will find here! There is a great veggie bar/restaurant called Paradise Palms near the city centre if you wanted an evening place and a little cafe in Leith called Faceplant Foods which is also vegan and does the best Caesar salad & toasties you will ever experience. They make their own cheese sauce, it is incredible! Only opens 10-4 Thurs - Sun though. If you wanted a night out, then for a queer space open day/night CC Bloom's is the best around it's central and located in Edinburgh's 'pink triangle'. If you're not queer or wanted some live music then Stramash in the Cowgate is excellent!

Sunday is a good, but busy, day to visit Stockbridge, it's a wealthier part of Edinburgh but it has a fab, small Sunday market. There are fresh food vendors and different stalls selling unusual stuff. Stockbridge is also just lovely for a walk through and five mins from the market is Inverleith park which is great to spend an afternoon in. It's got a really cute duck pond and view of the castle.

Every Wednesday the Grassmarket Community Project has a free film night (donations welcome) but anyone is welcome to attend! The National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery are both really central, and are always worth visiting.

Hopefully that's a bit of a range of stuff that you might not already know about and places I regularly eat/drink at, I've tried to think of things in different parts of the city as well where you can wander around and just enjoy the city! Feel free to drop me a message though if you want more info on anything and defo come back and let me know how you enjoyed your visit (if you want to)!

[thewoolleygeek]

Kind Hearts and Carrot Cake, Little Duck Pond Cafe by Rosie Green

Synopsis Kind Hearts & Carrot Cake, Little Duck Pond Café When you suddenly find yourself loveless and penniless, how on earth do you make it through? An emotional but ultimately uplifting story of one woman’s struggles to get by, and the special someone who brings hope and happiness to light up her world… Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/3GYGH5X Review I love the Little Duck Pond Cafe…