#Wonton soup has hurt me.

[sink-water]

what did wontons ever do to you babes??

HARD TO PICK UP WITH CHOPSTICKS IN MY SOUP. DESPAIR

[steveharringtonat3am]

helloo! I was thinking about Steve being soft about reader. Reader is sick and can't take medicine, like reader has a fear of swallowing pills something like that and Steve is there to help the reader. Thank you very much!! I hope you're having a good day too! 💕

You’ve always hating being sick. You can’t really remember when it started, maybe when you were small and got a fever so high your mom had to run a cold cloth over your forehead so you wouldn’t overheat. Or maybe when you caught that cold and your throat was so scratchy you wanted to just pull it out.

But you weren’t a little kid anymore, so you had to tough it out.

The next day at work was horrible. Your whole body hurt, your throat was aching and dry no matter how much water you drank, and you couldn’t stop sneezing. You told Steve you were busy with work, to avoid the daily lunch break phone call. You knew he would hear your illness in your voice and you couldn’t bear to burden him like that.

Steve was the most caring boyfriend you’d ever had. He was always going out of his way to do things like picking up your favourite snacks, filling up your car with gas, even taking bugs from your apartment outside. He had never seen you sick before and you just know he’ll go overboard.

You barely manage the drive home but the need to curl on the couch and watch movies all night is enough to push you through.

‘Dinner is a problem for later.’ You think to yourself as you toss your coat onto a chair, stumbling to your bedroom to change into one of Steves’ sweaters and a pair of pyjama pants. A chill has suck it’s way into your bones and you quickly burrow onto your couch and wrap a blanket around yourself. You about to turn on a movie when your phone begins to buzz. A glance at the screen, glowing with Steves’ cheesy smile and you wince. He knows your home and he definitely knows something is up since you always call on your drive home since you like the company.

“Hi baby!” You pick up, trying to keep the sore throat out of your voice.

“Hey babe. Haven’t talked to you all day! You want me to come over? I can bring takeout.” You grip your blanket in uncertainty. Your apartment is definitely riddled with germs and getting Steve sick would be worse than him seeing you like this.

“N-no no it’s alright. I’m feeling a bit tired so I’m probably going to bed now.” A weak lie that you know he’ll see right through.

“…It’s six o’clock. Are you feeling alright baby?” He’s so concerned you could cry.

“Yep! Great. Timeforbedokaybyeiloveyou!” You hang up quickly, tossing your phone to the other side of the couch in embarrassment. Hopefully you’ll wake up better tomorrow and you can pretend this never happened.

The knock on the door startles you awake. You blink as your eyes come into focus, crawling out of the warm cocoon you had built to stumble to the door. The light of your oven reads 7:06. You swing the door open and your heart sinks immediately. Steve, still in his work uniform, holds bags of takeout, a soft grin on his face.

“Hi sweetheart.” He greets you with a soft kiss on the cheek before slipping into your apartment. You lock the door, guilt settling in your stomach.

When you join him in the kitchen, he’s unpacking the food. He sets a large container of soup in the microwave and your mouth waters just a bit.

“I could tell you were feeling a bit under the weather so I got you some wonton soup from that place you like. And I picked up some tylenol in case you were achy and some regular cold medicine if you want that. It’s cherry flavoured.” He smiles so sweet at you that you might cry.

“I-I can’t take tylenol.” You know you should thank him, but the bottle of pills is the first thing on your mind.

“Why not?”

“I just…I don’t like swallowing pills. They feel like they get stuck in my throat and they just don’t-don’t go down.” It sounds stupid saying it but you know you should. You had never been able to get down pills, unless they were so tiny you didn’t notice.

“That’s alright babe. How about I split it and you try that?” You inspect the pills as you decide. The groove in the middle means splitting it is safe, and you think you could manage each half.

“Okay…” You watch carefully as he severs the pill with a knife, grabbing you a glass of water to wash it down. He hands it to you and pretends to not watch.

It takes you a second to get over the mental hurdle, placing the piece in your mouth and immediately taking a gulp of water. The pill manages to get lost in the liquid and you swallow with ease. You take the other piece and swallow once more. When it goes down, you show Steve with a smile and he grins proudly.

“Good job babe!” He pours you some soup, grabbing a bowl of fried rice for himself as you both head to the couch to eat. You relax into him as the soup calms your throat.

“Thank you for taking care of me, Steve.” You smile up at him and he mirrors it.

“Of course, sweetheart. Anything for you.”

[699charcoalp]

All alone with you

Fanwork about Lincoln and my MC Remus. A lot of grammar problems(because English is not my first language) and ooc, my fault.

Title source: All Alone With You by Egoist.

"Lincoln." someone said in the room. "I am here," Lincoln asked, "Want something?" "Nothing," Lincoln's beloved said, "I just want to know you are still with me." "Alright." And then, Lincoln saw his singer smile and wave at him. Good, again, that smile. Lincoln walks to him and sits down. If someone had acted like that before today, Lincoln might have felt a little bit strange but……the people who did this act were Lincoln's singer, star, and boyfriend. So Lincoln thought everything about the man in front of him seemed…… normal and cute. Immediately after leaving the hospital, Remus checked into Lincoln's house, where he refused all contact with anyone connected to his past (except Lincoln) and just stayed in his room all day. Other than the above, everything is normal. Remus lived in Lincoln's house like a cheerful ghost, he'd scorch the pots when he was cooking, and he'd beg Lincoln to buy a game because it was on sale on his steam wishlist (even though Remus had the money to buy it). It's just that he doesn't make any music anymore, and it's like the days of being the lead singer of a band never happened. A lot of people will say "That is abnormal", but Lincoln is not. For Lincoln, that's just one …… piece in the person of Remus, as a seeing every turn of a kaleidoscope, which is endearing no matter what it looks like. Remus laughs very violently but rarely smiles now. Contrary to when he used to be in the band, Remus used to smile a lot at that time because it was unobtrusive. Remus dreaded every stare. In one of the few interviews he was in the band, he once said: “It's a good thing I'm nearsighted, otherwise I can't have any way of fooling myself that ‘nobody's looking at me’". Lincoln replays this interview again and again and then feels proud because Remus is not afraid of him. Even at that time the members of the band, including Remus himself, knew that Lincoln was Remus's fan (of the intimidating variety). "Did you ever think of calling the police when I used to see you every time? " When the first day of Remus moved into Lincoln's house, Lincoln joked. Remus turns around and looks at him like he heard some unbelievable thing. "No, never, "Remus told him, "Why do I have to? I mean……I know you put a huge attention on me but……" Remus throws the thing that he holding away. His hands gestured idly in the air, trying to find the exact answer in these mysterious gestures, but he finally gave up. "I don't know," Remus spoke frustrated, "Even though from the first time I met you the people around me have said that you are a bit strange ……I still feel you will never hurt me." "You trust me?" "I just believe my heart." Remus shrugged, “Even though a lot of the time it shouts so loud inside me because it's triggering some switch that shouldn't be triggered, it's fine to listen and see what it has to say once in a while, at least I can feel safe. ” When Remus finished, he and Lincoln stared at each other silently for a moment. "Any question?" After this moment, Remus tilted his head slightly to the left. "No." Lincoln laughed and helped Remus put his baggage.

Lincoln's thoughts returned to this room in the present. He changed the subject as if nothing had happened, "So what are we eating tonight?" "Sichuan fish soup with pickled mustard greens, Dandan noodles, and Chili oil wontons." Remus began to say the food's name without hesitation. "Can we just eat hotpot?" “No way.” Remus vetoed, “Hot pot and this type of dish are both from Sichuan or Chongqing but they are not essentially the same thing, and I have to correct you on this erroneous idea that ‘all spicy Chinese food is related to hot pot’.” “All right.”Lincoln stood up, "Want some drink?" "Jasmine milk tea 80% sweet no ice large and without boba." There were no pauses, and someone used his lung capacity well. "Maybe someday you'll try some new flavors of milk tea?" "Yeah, maybe when this world is destroyed." Remus roll his eyes. "Wanna come with me?" Lincoln pretended to extend the invitation as if nothing had happened. "No. I don't want to." Remus' handsome face scrunched up so fast. Remus has never been out of the house since moving into the Lincoln home, except to see the psychiatrist. The psychiatrist claims it's a "pathological isolation" and reminds Lincoln that he must help Remus out of this "rut," but Lincoln thinks it's okay that Remus doesn't want to leave the house. At least he'll never leave me, Lincoln thought, and I don't think Remus doesn't realize he's self-isolating himself. The man who can write lyrics that can make people crazy emotion can't be so stupid that he doesn't realize what he's doing; he just needs time, even if the length of that time is a lifetime. Lincoln stands up and leaves the room, Remus silently follows Lincoln out of the room before taking up position by the door to the room, he leans his full weight against the door frame and watches with his arms crossed over his chest as Lincoln begins to put on his shoes after picking up his car keys. "Miss me?" "No, my dear fan," Remus lied without changing his face, "I just wanna turn the drawing room's light off." Lincoln shrugged, he knew what Remus looked like when he tried to lie, but he was happy to pretend he was being lied to. He walks to the door, but Remus doesn't move. Until Lincoln opens the door and wants to close it, through the crack in the door, Lincoln sees Remus quietly walk toward the switch to turn the light off, and immediately afterward he hears Remus say aloud, "Take care on the road. " The door closed.

@pressplay-if I was going to post it anonymously but couldn't find it …… Anyway! (leaving Tumblr nervously, leaving my laptop nervously, leaving this internet nervously)

[adrienneleclerc]

Paddington Bear

Paring: Xavier Thorpe x Hispanic!Reader

Summary: When Xavier accidentally breaks Y/N childhood teddy bear

Warning: spelling errors, hidden Disney references

A/N: a few weeks back, there were a lot of requests to different Xavier writings to sorts a fanfic where Xavier breaks Y/N’s teddy bear but then gives her a new teddy bear that smells like Xavier so I decided to do my own version of it, requests are OPEN

Y/N was getting ready for her date with Xavier when she heard a knock on the door. Y/N opened the door and saw Xavier looking all nice.

“You ready for our date?” Xavier asked

“Yeah, just let me get my jacket, you can wait inside, Yoko is out with Divina.” Y/N said as she went to get a jacket from her closet. Xavier sat on Y/N’s bed and noticed a cute teddy bear wearing a blue coat. Xavier decided to carry the bear.

“Who’s this little guy?” Xavier asked, playing with the bear.

“His name is Paddington.” Y/N said, taking the bear from his hands and putting him back on his spot on the bed.

“You named the bear Paddington?” Xavier asked.

“First of all, I’m hurt. Second, you have never read the Paddington bear books when you were younger? You have never seen the Paddington movies that came out years ago?” Y/N asked.

“I feel like I should say yes…but I haven’t.” Xavier said hesitantly.

“We are so watching those movies next weekend. Come on, let’s go eat.” Y/N said, they both walked out of her dorm and got into an Uber to go eat at a Chinese restaurant, the Paper Lantern.

“So why Paddington?” Xavier asked.

“Dude, Paddington bear is literally the spectacled bear from Peru, making him a cute little Latino bear. Besides, his uncle Pastuzo died in an earthquake, his aunt Lucy sent Paddington to London with a little tags that says ‘please look after this bear’ like what happens when kids are sent to a different place for refuge where they have no family. His aunt went to a retirement home for bears in Lima. My parents read me the books when I was younger because my mom was also sent to the states when she was younger with the tag ‘please look after me’ so my mom related to Paddington. My ‘grandma’ bought my mom the Paddington books and the teddy bear you see in my room. My dad came to the states when he was an adult and he had family that also went to the states.” Y/N explained.

“So the bear has sentimental value?” Xavier asked

“A lot of sentimental value, Paddington represents my mom’s hardships. Anyway, he’s a very special bear. Do you want to get wonton soup? I definitely know I do.” Y/N said.

“Yeah, we can get the soup. I want the Moo goo gai pan.” Xavier said.

“Half chicken with lobster fried rice is good.” Y/N said, they ordered their food, had a good time, and went back to Nevermore. “One of these days, Xavier, you will appreciate Paddington as much as I do. Good night.” Y/N said, kissing his cheek.

“Goodnight, sweetheart.” Xavier said kiss her softly before leaving to go to his dorm.

The next day, Y/N was out shopping with Enid, Yoko, Divina, Wednesday, and Enid’s wolf friends. Xavier entered her dorm room, wanting to leave flowers on her bed as little romantics gesture. The bad thing is that Xavier didn’t know there was a bee in the flowers so he grabbed the closest thing on Y/N’s bed. Xavier thought it was a pillow, and began swatting the bee, hitting the ‘pillow’ against every surface he saw the bee until he finally killed it.

“Yes! I got it, ha! Take that, bee!” Xavier said. But only then he realized what he really grabbed. It was Paddington Bear and sadly, he didn’t resemble a bear anymore. The seams were ripped, the bear’s stuffing was everywhere, Paddington Bear was now scraps of fuzzy fluffy fabric. “Oh shit, oh shit, Y/N’s gonna kill me, this can’t be happening, oh my fucking god!” Xavier was now panicking and decided to call Ajax to come into the room. Ajax entered and saw the crime scene.

“Ooh, Y/N’s gonna kill you!” Ajax said, lowkey laughing at Xavier’s expense.

“Oh no, You’re an accessory now, how the fuck am I supposed to fix this?” Xavier asked.

“Dude, it’s a stuffed bear, I’m sure Y/N would be totally fine with a new one.” Ajax said.

“No she won’t! This Paddington is special, it represents the time her mother came to the states as a child, this bear needs to be saved.” Xavier said, grabbing Ajax’s collar to pull him close, signaling that Xavier is being dead serious.

“Okay, chill, how do you explain… ‘bearicide’?” Ajax asked.

“There was a bee on the flowers I bought Y/N, I thigh the I grabbed her pillow but I grabbed the bear. It was totally unintentional bearicide!” Xavier exclaimed. Ajax and Xavier were too busy arguing to notice that Y/N and Yoko walked into the dorm.

“What the hell happened here?” Y/N asked looking at Xavier and Ajax. It was then Y/N noticed the stuffing on the floor and Paddington’s body in Xavier’s hand. “What the hell did you do?!?” Y/N asked the boys angrily so Xavier and Ajax started giving her explanations at the same time. “Stop it! Xavier, tell me what happened.”

“Okay so I bough you flowers, right? They’re right here, here you go, now, there was a bee in the bouquet, I didn’t realized it, I garbed something off your bed, I thought it was a pillow, i couldn’t really tell because I was busy swatting the bee, finally killed it, and then I realized it was Paddington, I’m really sorry, Y/N, I swear I am.” Xavier said, looking at Y/N carefully. Y/N out the flowers down on her nightstand.

“Thank you for the flowers, you two need to get out, I need some time alone, okay.” Y/N said, going to her bed.

“You heard the woman, get out.” Yoko said, practically shoving Ajax and Xavier out the dorm and closed the door.

“She hates me, doesn’t she?” Xavier asked Ajax.

“I Don’t think she hates you, she needs time, I mean after all, you murdered her bear, I’m gonna go hang with Enid now.” Ajax said as he was about to walk away but Xavier grabbed him by his hood.

“Oh no you don’t, you’re helping me fix this.” Xavier said, dragging Ajax to his dorm. Xavier then went to his laptop to look up the bear. “Okay, so the original Paddington Bear is sold on some website in London, costs about 200 euros. That’s like what, a little bit over 200 bucks.”

“It doesn’t ship internationally.” Ajax said.

“Well the other Paddington bears are brown, it looks completely different.” Xavier said. “Ugh, I don’t know what to do, Y/N probably won’t speak to me for days.”

“You Don’t know that.” Ajax said.

But Xavier was right, Y/N did not speak to him. But after school, Xavier had an idea. He went to Y/N’s dorm again and saw the pieces of Paddington on her table. Xavier out them in a bag and went to a place where they restore toys. He went in a talked to the owner, out all the pieces on Paddington on the table and showed him a photo of the bear before he got ruined.

“Is there any chance you can restore this bear?” Xavier asked the owner.

“I Can restore this vintage Paddington bear, the only problem is that it’s very expensive, looks like the poor bear went through the wood chipper.” The owner said,

“Okay fine, name your price.” Xavier said.

“It will be $185 for a complete restoration.” The owner said.

“Done. I’ll pay with card.” Xavier said,

“Thank you son, the bear should be done by tomorrow.” The owner said. Xavier thanked him and left the store. He was walking around Jericho when he saw bear on display. A cute bear with light brown fur, hazel eyes, a paint stained smock, and an artist’s palette holding a paintbrush. Xavier walked in the toy store.

“Excuse me sir, how much is the bear at the window?” Xavier asked the person working the register.

“Cute bear isn’t it? It’s 45 dollars.” The guy said.

“I’ll take the bear.” Xavier said and paid the man. Walking out, he bought another bouquet of flowers, double checking to see there are no bees, no bees in the bouquet, some of Y/N’s favorite candies, and necklace with his initial. He set the basket up all nice, spraying his cologne on the bear, and knocked in Y/N’s door.

“Hi Xavier. To what do I owe the pleasure?” Y/N asked.

“So I know what I did to Paddington was really bad, BUT I took him to get restored so he’ll be good as new. But for the meantime, here are some apology gifts.” Xavier said, showing Y/N the basket. Y/N took the basket, placed it on her bed, and opened it.

“You got me another bear?” Y/N asked, she held the bear to her face and smiled when she noticed his cologne on the bear. “Oh my gosh, Xavier, it looks so cute, he’s literally a mini you.” Y/N said, hugging Xavier.

“Yeah, i saw him in the display window in Jericho and I thought ‘this would be perfect’ and I bought it. You can name him whatever you want, and I hope you’ll sleep with him until I bring Paddington back.” Xavier said.

“I Don’t sleep with Paddington, but i like the sentiment. Thanks for the candies, the necklace is beautiful. I’m sorry I ignored you today…it’s just I literally told you the story to Paddington and then you pulled that shit. But I’m so glad that you’re restoring him, that must’ve cost a fortune.” Y/N said.

“Kinda, almost 200 bucks, but you’re worth it.” Xavier said, kissing Y/N softly. “Want to go to the Paper Lantern again?”

“I’d love to, I’ll just set Benny down.” Y/N said said, setting down her new bear, Benny.

“Is his name Benny because of my babysitter’s a vampire or because of Ben Barnes?” Xavier asked.

“Is it bad if I say Ben Barnes?” Y/N asked.

“Oh, hilarious, let’s go before I remind you why I’m hotter than Ben Barnes, don’t laugh, just humor me.” Xavier said.

“Okay, okay, you’re hotter than Ben Barnes.” Y/N said,

“Thank you for saying that with a straight face, now let’s go,” Xavier said with his hand on his chest

The End

[thessalian]

Thess vs Fibro Fog

I think I may simply have to accept that this is a bad brain day. Not in the “I am having depression and / or anxiety” way; in the “brain fog because fibromyalgia” way.

Went out for some various bits I needed / wanted - mostly chives and prawns for wonton filling for my eventual wonton soup, but also picked up some pain meds while I was out because why not spare myself an extra trip? Even got some frozen fruit for smoothies in the week! Thought I was doing exceptionally well; that my spoon recharge of yesterday had really paid off.

Then I went to start my lamb dopiaza cooking and it all went to hell. A quick summary of all the shit that went wrong:

Went to wash hands and face after chopping of ALL THE ONION, forgot my bathrobe on the bathroom floor (I’d taken it off because I hadn’t wanted water dripping down my sleeves)

Lost track of my measuring spoons at least three times

Going down the ingredient checklist a third time before going to check how much water to add (because I hadn’t remembered to put that on my handy-dandy handwritten ingredient list) and realised I could not remember whether I’d added the garam masala. Thought I probably had, but could not be sure. So I added more anyway because how much could it really hurt at the end of the day?

(At least I remembered about the cardamom pods this time. Probably why I lost track of the garam masala; I was so focused on the thing I forgot last time)

Nearly threw out the remainder of my garlic at least twice because I somehow kept registering it as “just garlic skin; needs binning”

I don’t know what happened to my train of thought here, but somehow “Finished wiping the counter” did not translate to “So put the J-cloth back in the sink” and “Pick up the stuff that needs throwing away” did not translate to “And then put it in the garbage can” so I had an issue when my next thought was, “I should go get my mug from the study and make a cup of coffee” and left the kitchen with a soggy J-cloth in one hand and a container of onion and garlic skins in the other

FINALLY got all that sorted out, thought, “Okay, fine, we’re good; now how long do I need before I start the aloo gobi?” and then realised that for all my forethought about most of the groceries, my “Should I get tomatoes?” did not require a “naaaaaaah” because I need those for the aloo gobi.

My brain is just not working properly today. I mean, I have this occasionally but generally not while I’m trying to Do Things. Apparently it’s really detrimental to Doing Things, this level of brain fog. I hate the brain fog. My brain doesn’t work the way I want it to enough as it is; I don’t need this on top of it.

On the somewhat positive side, at least I remember that a lot of those online food delivery things do groceries now. So I ordered some tomatoes, and also some gluten-free chocolate chip cookies (the big Sainsbury’s were out of them, but apparently the only slightly less big one around Forest Hill has them in stock) and some chocolate, just to make me feel better and to not feel like a total idiot for using a fucking delivery app to order one fucking packet of tomatoes.

I just need to remind myself that if I’m going to play video games later, it should be something extremely forgiving, or something I can hyperfocus on really well. Otherwise the frustration at not being able to Do The Thing is going to kill me.

[phykios]

honesty and promise me, part 10 [co-written with @darkmagyk] [read on ao3]

“If you don’t talk to me, I’m not going to leave you my keys.”

Annabeth looks at Piper from behind the loom, glaring through the threads. “Then you won’t come back to ten bolts of fabric.”

In fairness, it was sort of an empty threat. Piper has all the good stuff: the surger, the embroidery machine, the industrial sewing machines, plus a million sources for fabric that aren’t Annabeth’s stress weaving. Annabeth only has her own shitty sewing machine at home that she’d gotten for Christmas when she was fourteen.

Also, Piper wouldn’t actually lock her out. She needs those fabrics.

“Why don’t you just not go?” Annabeth says. “If you stay, I promise to tell you all the gritty details.” She’s joking, but the second she says it, she’s hit with a strange wave of desperation.

She wants to tell Piper all the gritty details. How she had giggled and smoozed and looked so pretty on Luke’s arm, tattoos and undercut and everything else so carefully concealed. She never wanted to tell Thalia the gritty details. The dirty ones, sure, particularly when the dirty things didn’t involve Thalia’s beloved younger cousin. But she had spent two years, two hard painful years, hiding vast swaths of herself from Thalia.

She thought of the night of the gala, of Thalia telling her family she knew Luke from college. NYU. They’d been actors together.

Annabeth hadn’t been the only one hiding things.

It had stung, in all sorts of ways.

Piper stares, narrowing her eyes. “How dare you tempt me into giving up my creative retreat for gossip.”

Annabeth shrugs. “It’s one or the other.”

The glare at each other, stubborn as all hell.

Piper throws up her hands. “Fine. Just make my fabric and call Leo if you’re having another crisis.”

The truth is, she will tell Piper. Eventually. She knows she will. It will probably be in eight months, when she gets back, when hopefully the shame of her false life and the devastation of losing Percy has lessened, but she will tell her. But eight months is a long time. “I do have other friends, you know.”

“Then call Luke. Or Thalia.”

It takes absolutely everything Annabeth has not to wince at the names.

She would never have told Thalia. Not really. Even things like this, even if it hadn’t involved her. Thalia wasn’t… good at relationship stuff. Not like Piper. And she never knew all of Annabeth’s romantic history--not like Piper did, anyway.

And it wasn’t just romantic relationships.

Annabeth might have been able to share her pain, and share her pain with Thalia, but it had, in many ways, only been a surface level thing. Thalia saw her pain after Annabeth’s mom had rescinded her approval of her life, but she'd taken Annabeth’s silence as the end of the matter, and responded to it by acting out, and arguably drinking too much.

But they never talked about her mother. They never talked about Thalia’s, either, and if there was something Annabeth learned from Hazel’s gala beyond how unfairly handsome Percy was going to look in thirty years, it was that there was a lot going on there.

It is a little hurtful on reflection. Making her feel less close to Thalia, but also less guilty about what she never said. And less willing to accept her reactions.

Her emotions have been all over the place the last few weeks.

Piper notices, because of course Piper notices, but she is an angel, and has known her for a long time, so she doesn’t badger her too much. She also doesn’t mention that Annabeth’s measurements all seem to be off. Not even to say something about beauty at every size or her well publicized efforts for diverse bodies in fashion.

But it was still nice to spend time with her. It felt like the old days, staying up too late making the next thing in fashion, and then passing out together, surrounded by bobbins and bagels, Gossip Girl playing on TV.

It did make Piper’s impending departure that much harder, though.

Two weeks into November, she meets Piper and Leo for dinner, and then sees Piper off to JFK for her eight-month creativity retreat in Oklahoma. “You know, like how you decided you couldn’t have a doorman for creative reasons,” she’d said with a raised eyebrow when Annabeth had questioned the move. Piper likes to treat the last two years of Annabeth’s life like some sort of creative exercise. Her dad had done that too, once, when she bothered to answer his call.

Not that she’s not doing anything other than helping Piper pick stitches, and sewing hemlines Piper is too important to deal with herself. She wishes that earlier estimation had been true.

Since the gala she’s been living on Uber Eats at Piper’s, unless she gets bullied home, in which case it's the same but less varied selection with more meat, so the night out with Piper and Leo the night before Piper’s flight feels like a radical departure from the norm. Even though they just go to dinner.

Which does not stop her from feeling hungover the next morning.

“You had half a glass of wine last night,” Leo points out from the door of her bathroom.

“I remember,” she agrees when it lets up for a moment.

“If you get me sick,” he says, “I’m sending you the doctor's bill.”

“Fair,” she chokes out.

Leo doesn’t hug her goodbye, but he does tell her he hopes she gets better before heading back to Boston.

Annabeth, hugging porcelain, wishes she could go with him.

She was very seriously considering it a few days later. Magnus would take pity on her and Alex was always fun to hang out with. Plus, they’d probably think she was too pathetic to be called on her shit. She only did not make plans to go up to Boston because on Wednesday Luke texted her: Already a shit week, brunch this weekend? And she knew if she ran off to Boston, she wouldn’t leave Magnus and Alex’s guest room until they forced the issue.

But it would be nice to talk to someone in New York City who doesn’t hate her guts, she thought.

So, on Sunday morning, she throws up the wonton soup she’d ordered in for dinner the night before, gurgles some mouthwash, uses the expensive concealer to hide the dark circles, and over does the mascara in hopes that she mostly looks awake.

“You look terrible,” are the first words Luke says to her.

“You have no idea how to talk to women,” she says, slumping down across from him.

“I do,” Luke says, “I just know not to bother with you.” But he frowns at her, taking her in. She’s broken out a Chanel jacket, but she isn’t sure when she last washed these jeans. A real winning combo, her.

“But really,” Luke says, “you look miserable. Is it about what happened on Halloween?”

She shrugs. It isn’t not that. Percy’s words still circle through her head, his sad, defeated face as he bemoaned the, how did he put it? All the rich girls who fucked him to make a point. Made all the worse because she believes them. Probably not the same points as those princesses, but… probably not as different as she would like.

She wonders if Europe is full of very wealthy aristocratic women who are all secretly and shamefully still in love with Percy Jackson. And Frank Zhang.

It makes her feel hollow and nauseous all at once.

But she’s been feeling nauseous for weeks now, so at least it's not a new feeling. If it keeps up, she’s going to have to go to the doctor soon.

She hates going to the doctor. It feels like cheating when she just goes and pays and knows other people can’t. She had once lied to Thalia about getting money for a side gig, and then given her two hundred bucks for a trip to the clinic. Now that Annabeth has spent many hours in his cousin’s apartment, and has heard Nico talk about his yearly income on top of the money his dad gives him, she’s not sure how it came down to her.

“Not really,” Annabeth says, “I mean, I still feel just as terrible, but that’s mostly the problem. I feel sick.”

“It's been three weeks.” Luke looks genuinely concerned. “What’s going on?”

“I’m exhausted and nauseous all the time,” she says, groaning at the thought. She was okay right at this moment, but she knew it could come back at the drop of a hat.

Luke frowned at her. “That’s all?”

“Isn’t that enough?”

“I mean…” He looked at her, his eyes gazing lower, to her body. Luke had never really come on to her in any kind of real way. But she’s not sure he’s ever looked at her with less lust than he does right at that moment.

It is calculating. She’s gained some weight, she knows. But if Luke points it out, she’s going to kick him in the nuts with her steel toed boots. Or maybe make him explain himself and his relationship with Thalia.

“Annabeth,” Luke says, his voice lower, a frown on his face, “please don’t freak out.”

She can feel her heart pick up, just a bit. “That’s a terrible place to start.”

“Have you been feeling… emotionally volatile lately? Having a lot of mood swings?”

She frowns. She’d maybe been crying a little more than normal at sentimental hulu ads, but she always has a soft touch for that kind of thing, and she’s going through some stuff. “I don’t think you should ask a woman that.”

“You are really not going to like my next question, then.” He leans close and says, “Are your… breasts tender?”

“You’re right, I don’t like that question,” Annabeth says, crossing her arms over her chest. Even though they are. “I don’t know why you thought that, and how you knew.”

Luke looks at her with such pity, she feels like she’s suddenly eighteen years old again, and crying on his couch at the end of freshman year about the greatest heartbreak of her life. (It had moved to second place. Lucky it. The boy in that bar had only been theoretical, mostly.)

Luke reaches out, grasping one of her hands, and for a second, Annabeth is sure he is going to tell her that she’s dying.

“Have you considered you might be pregnant?”

She yanks her hand away. “I can’t be pregnant,” she says. “I haven’t had sex in weeks.”

“Have you had your period since then?” Luke asks.

“Not that it's any of your business,” she says, “but I haven’t had one in years.” They do talk about sex sometimes, but periods had long been off the Luke table.

Luke grimaces. “Well, you’ve been sexually active recently…”

“It’s been more than a month!”

“When did you start getting morning sickness?” Luke asks “You were throwing up at Halloween.”

“That wasn’t in the morning,” she snaps, “and I feel fine now.”

“You know morning sickness doesn’t just happen in the morning,” Luke says. “And with the rest of your symptoms, well--”

She shakes her head, glaring at Luke. His judgement would have been better than his patient mansplaining. “You think I don’t use birth control?”

Luke shrugs a little. “I mean… you’re… not great at things like daily medication. That’s what happened last time. And if a condom broke or you didn’t use one…”

Last time. Oh, last time. Last time had been the worst four hours of her life, in between realizing that she hadn’t been remembering her birth control pills every day, that her period was a few days late, and that she’d definitely been having unprotected sex with that boy in Luke’s cohort who was probably too old for her. Last time had been her having a panic attack on Luke’s Cambridge apartment couch while a very reluctant Leo was sent to buy a pregnancy test or twelve, and Piper reassuring her via speaker phone that it would be ok, while Luke rubbed her back and reminded her to breathe.

“I do remember what happened last time,” she says. “That’s why I got an IUD. Which, if you don’t know, from all your girlfriends' pregnancy scares, has the same failure rate as permanent sterilization, less than one percent. So…” So it would be okay. She couldn’t be pregnant. That’s why it had been okay for Percy and Annabeth to start fucking without a condom.

“When was the last time you got a new one?”

“August.” She says, thinking back. She was almost sure. “I remember because it was before the Eta thing--Leo called me to tell me about the ceremony while I was at the gyno.”

“So you were distracted and being a bad patient when they were trying to put it in?”

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck.

But she won’t give Luke, of all people, the satisfaction. “They are professionals. They should know what they’re doing, even if I was on the phone.”

Luke gives her his most disappointed dad face. It is worse than Annabeth’s own father. “You’re the one who always tells me I need to not make people’s jobs harder by being a bad client,” he quietly reminds her.

She fucking hates him.

But despite herself, she pulls out her phone, and begins googling misplaced IUDs and pregnancy.  

They haven’t even ordered yet, but Luke is already standing up, probably based on the look on her face as she manages to fight through the dyslexia and figure out what it says. “Come on,” he says, helping her out of her chair, even though she’s not an invalid. She just might be pregnant.

She pushes that thought away as she follows Luke into a cab and then up to his apartment. He makes her some tea and hands her a banana while he goes to get her a pregnancy test, because Luke’s not quite shameless enough to have one at home. She waits for him in a living room straight out of American Psycho and reads up on IUD pregnancy complications online. Which she probably should not have done.

By the time Luke gets back, she is crying again. He’s gotten her 3 tests, which is very considerate of him, as she’s going to need them.

Walking into the bathroom, she’s shaking hard enough that she needs to brace herself on the wall. He lets her use the nice one off his bedroom, though it's not like she needs the jacuzzi tub.

When she’s done peeing, she sets a timer on her phone and sits on Luke’s bed. He tries to speak to her several times. She doesn’t respond.

It isn’t the longest ten minutes of her life, because the truth is, she knows.

She already knows.

When the alarm goes off, she shrugs off Luke’s arm and silently walks back into the bathroom.

Luke got a digital readout, because what else was he going to do. And so she looks at the little screen and just barely processes the word pregnant.

She doesn’t need to take the other tests. She doesn’t need confirmation or to be convinced.

She reaches down and pressed on her lower abdomen, lifting her shirt. She had noticed a slight change. But she’d also changed a lot of her daily routine lately, had eaten a lot more ice cream. Right now, she can’t see any kind of bump, not really, but she can see a shift. Something flat gone fuller.

Annabeth is pregnant.

Annabeth is pregnant with Percy’s baby.

Percy’s baby.

She bursts into tears all over again.

An eternity later, there is a knock on the door.

“Annabeth,” Luke calls, “can I come in?”

She manages to choke out a yes.

Luke finds her sitting on the edge of the tub. He looked at the test still sitting on the counter.

“Let me make a call,” he says, sitting next to her, resting a hand on her arm. “I know a doctor. He can get you a pill or maybe even see you if you need it. Probably today or tomorrow. We can get this all taken care of and then I’ll buy you ice cream and we can watch Legally Blonde, and you can complain about how it doesn’t accurately reflect the admissions process.”

Normally Annabeth would pre-complain, and point out that given Elle’s GPA, LSAT, and extracurricular activities, she would have been a shoe in for her program, and the movie was dismissive of her prior academic achievement. But she’s too busy parsing what Luke is saying.

He squeezes her hand in support. “It's going to be okay,” he says, sweetly.

“No.” She says. But not because it won’t be okay. “No, I’m not going to have an abortion.”

“It's okay,” Luke promises. “I would never judge you. And no one else would ever have to know. This isn’t something you have to do.”

“I know that,” Annabeth says. “I don’t have to do anything.” She detangles her hand from Luke’s and rests it on her stomach, where her uterus waits under her skin. “I want to do this.”

Luke looks at her hand. “Poseidon Olympianides’ son?” he asks. “That’s the father?”

She nods.

Blowing out a breath through his teeth, he sighs. “Well, you’ll be able to get some good child support out of him at least. That family is loaded.”

“Don’t say that,” she nearly screams, and Luke actually jerks back a little. “He doesn’t have any money. He’s his dad’s bastard kid,” she says, feeling a little bad about revealing his family history, but knowing that the word would spark something in Luke. “I don’t know if I’m even going to tell him.”

It feels like something cheap and shallow, trapping a man with a lie, then a baby.

She’s still crying and tentatively, Luke reaches out and wraps his arms around her, pulls her to him.

“Come on,” he says, pulling her up. “You still need ice cream and a movie.”

Annabeth cries. And she doesn’t fight him, but it feels so strange. Half way through her Caramel Sutra and the Legally Blonde proshot, she realizes what’s different.

For the first time since Percy walked out of her apartment without a good-bye kiss, Annabeth Chase is happy.

She’s pregnant with Percy Jackson’s baby.

She’s going to have Percy Jackson’s baby.

She’s not sure if she’s ever heard anything as wonderful in her entire life.

And if she’s going to be worthy of it, worthy of her baby, then she’s going to have to get her shit together.

[drabbles-mc]

I Like Me Better

Nestor Oceteva x F!Reader

Request from Anon: Hi! If you’re doing requests can I get a short fic based on the song I like me better by Lauv with Nestor🥺

Part 2 can be found Here

Warnings: language, lots of softness and pining

Word Count: 3.5k

A/N: (I know I’ve posted this story like 5 times today alone. So sorry to everyone who has been getting bombarded with it while I figure out my posting/tagging issues. Love y’all and I owe you xo) This story definitely took on a life of its own once I sat down and started writing it. I love me some Soft Nestor and the whole “almost relationship” type of deal. Hope you enjoy!

General Mayans Taglist: @mayans-sauce​ @thesandbeneathmytoes​ @paintballkid711​ @tomhardydallasstarsgirl​ @queenbeered​ @sillygoose6969​ @sesamepancakes​ @yourwonkywriter​ @chibsytelford​ @gemini0410​ @multiyfandomgirl40​ @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead​  @plentyoffandoms @georgiaaintnopeach​ @twistnet​ @garbinge​ @themoonandthewicked​ @bucky-iss-bae​ @encounterthepast​ @everyhowlmarksthedead​ @rosieposie0624​ @mylittlelonelyappreciationtoo​ @mijop​ @xladymacbethx​ @blessedboo​ @holl2712​

You were laughing as you watched snowflakes get stuck in Nestor’s facial hair and braids as he talked to you on the phone. Ever since you moved, the two of you had one weekly scheduled phone call, and one video chat. No matter what either of you were doing, you always made time for those two things. Even if for the rest of the week you didn’t really get to talk to each other, you always had those two things.

When Nestor said he was going to have to talk to you on the go before he called, you didn’t expect it to be quite so literal. You figured maybe he’d be driving, but wherever he was, he was walking, and it was snowing. He didn’t look thrilled about either of those things.

“I’m not made for the fucking snow,” he was trying to sound annoyed but you could see the laughter building up inside him.

“Good thing you didn’t move with me to New York then,” you laughed as you watched him brush snowflakes off of his eyelashes, “You’d never last out here.”

“Why would you voluntarily put up with this every year?”

“It’s pretty when you’re not being a baby about it,” you laughed, “Where did Miguel send you anyway?”

“Into the cold, that’s where,” he kept a serious expression for a moment before laughing.

“Next time you wanna experience the cold, come do it with me! My door is always open.”

“You’re the only person worth braving this shit for, Y/N,” he chuckled.

“Well,” you smiled at him from the warmth and comfort of your couch, “me and Miguel, apparently.” There was a knock at your door and you sighed, “Hold on a sec, I gotta grab that,” you got up and walked over to the door.

When you unlocked and pulled the door open, the phone dropped from your hands as you took in the sight of Nestor standing on your front step. You squealed, throwing your arms around him in a hug that swept you off the ground. He laughed as he held you tight against him.

He gently set you back down, making sure that your feet didn’t land in the snow on your steps, or on top of your discarded phone, “I told you, you’re the only one worth braving this shit for.”

“I can’t believe you’re really here!” without thinking better of it, you reached and cupped his face in your hands, still trying to wrap your head around the fact that he was actually standing right there in front of you. He let out a slight shiver and it snapped you back to the situation at hand. You laughed as you waved him inside, “Shit, come inside. Get out of the cold.”

You grabbed your phone off the ground before you shut and locked the door behind the both of you, mind reeling from the fact that Nestor was at your house. You’d been back home to visit a couple times since you moved away, but he’d never made the trek to New York. You couldn’t blame him—you knew what his life with Galindo was like. You were surprised that he was able to be that far away from the family without it causing some kind of issue.

“What brings you out my way?” you took his coat from him and hung it up, chuckling as the snow fell off of it onto the floor.

“You,” he replied, looking up at you with a smile as he took his shoes off, “I wanted to see you, and not just through a phone screen.”

His words made your entire body feel warm. You motioned for him to follow you into the kitchen, nodding towards the counter for him to sit while you got the both of you a cup of coffee. He needed it more to warm up than anything else. He looked around your house with an approving smile. You’d given him the video tour after you had moved all of your stuff in, but it looked so much better in person. It felt so homey. Your walls were covered with photographs and artwork that you’d brought from home. Nestor smiled to himself when he saw that he’d made it up on the wall in a few pictures, along with the rest of your family and friends back in California.

You set the hug down in front of him, and he chuckled when he saw I ❤ NY printed on the side of it. He cupped his hands around it, letting the warmth seep into his fingers from the ceramic, “Fitting.”

You sipped from your own mug with a smile, “Gotta manifest it, Nes.”

The two of you existed in silence for a minute while he thawed out. You watched him as he looked around your small home. It wasn’t much, especially compared to the homes of all the people in his circles back in California, but it was yours and you loved it. You had never been someone who needed much. You just needed to feel comfortable and safe, and this house did more than just that for you.

You noticed him staring at the photos on the walls and the fridge, and you smiled. A little bit of weight settled over your heart as you watched him study them, knowing that he was looking at the ones of the two of you. It was all bittersweet to look back on. The two of you hadn’t ever dated, but you danced around the outskirts of it for a long time. There were times when the lines felt a little fuzzy, but nothing ever really happened. You were best friends, and you knew that he’d do anything for you, and you for him. But the timing was just never quite right, life was just never quite calm enough to try and make it work.

When you had told him that you had accepted a job offer on the other side of the country, he was trying so hard to be happy for you, but it wasn’t easy. You were a port in the storm for him, and he had no idea what he was going to do without you around. But he was supportive. He helped you pack, scrolled through apartment and housing listings with you, and found the best deal on a plane ticket. He never let you see how much it had hurt him—those were feelings that he processed in private. He’d thought about coming out to visit you every day since you left, but he worried that if he did, he wouldn’t come back home.

Before either of you could spiral too far into the past, you spoke up with a smile, “So, how long are you in town for?” he didn’t have any bags, so you assumed that he couldn’t be in town for long.

“I’m not sure,” he rested a hand on the back of his neck, “Told Mikey I needed to take some time. And this was the first place I thought to come to.”

You couldn’t hide your surprise—work had always been a priority for Nestor. Miguel was at the forefront of his decisions, always. “Really?” you raised your eyebrows, “You…you can take a leave of absence with…what you do?” you couldn’t quite wrap your head around it.

He shrugged, “Apparently,” he chuckled, “He said alright. So, here I am.”

You could feel that it wasn’t what he wanted to talk about, so you let the topic drop, “Well, you know you’re more than welcome to stay for however long you want to. Although your lack of luggage is a little concerning.”

He laughed, “Got lost in the shuffle. Airline said they’ll mail it here.”

You shook your head, unable to contain your laughter, “Damn, that sucks. Welcome to New York.”

You were on the opposite side of the counter from him, leaning forward onto it, propped up by your elbows. The two of you started to catch up about things that slipped from your minds when you called each other. He told you about some of the chaos that he wasn’t allowed to say over an unsecure phoneline. You listened intently, fighting the urge to reach out and entwine your fingers with his. Everything felt so right with him there with you.

“Sorry,” he chuckled as he took another sip of his coffee, “I don’t mean to do all the talking. I’ve just…I’ve missed having you to talk to.”

You nodded, “I know the feeling,” you drummed your fingers on the surface of the counter, “Well, now that you’re here, normally I’d say we should go do touristy things. But something tells me you’ve had your required dose of snow for the day?”

He laughed, “What’ve you got in mind?”

You shook your head, “Nothing that can’t wait until tomorrow. I’m sure you’ve had a long enough day. We can camp out at least until your luggage gets here. Or I can take you shopping, whichever you prefer.”

He smiled at you, “I think I’m alright with staying in.”

“That’s what I figured,” you chuckled, “Well, I was not expecting company. I’m assuming you’ll be alright with ordering in?”

“Sounds perfect.”

“I know this really great Chinese place. Their wonton soup is…perfection.”

The two of you made your way to your living room and sprawled onto the couch. You leaned up against Nestor’s side as you got your phone out to place the order. You picked a few things that you wanted to eat before handing it to him so he could pick stuff as well. While he was looking through the menu, you turned on the television and pulled the blanket off the back of your couch so it covered the both of you.

Nestor handed your phone back to you so you could place the order. He’d hardly noticed how you tucked the both of you in. He smiled as he rested his arm against your side, hand brushing lightly against your stomach.

“Is this…”

“I decided last week that I was going to rewatch all of Law & Order SVU from the very beginning,” you laughed.

He shook his head with a laugh, “Do you have a moral objection to happy shows or…?”

“It’s a good show!” you snuggled into him a little more.

“What has New York done to you?”

You smiled and shook your head, “Given me time to do shit like this.”

“You like it here though?” his eyes were watching the television, but one hand was gently massaging circles into the side of your neck.

“Yea, I do. It’s a nice change of pace—I think it was the right move for me,” you glanced up at him and smiled, unbelievably happy about the fact that he was really laying on your couch in New York with you. Never in a million years did you think that would happen.

Once the food got there the two of you switched up your positions a little bit. The TV was still on but neither of you were paying attention to it. You were each sitting cross-legged facing each other on the couch. You were laughing as you watched him fumble with his chopsticks. You had forks, obviously, but it was a matter of pride whenever you two ate together because he knew that you were extremely good at using them and he didn’t want to be left out.

“Almost two years since we got Chinese together and you didn’t use any of that time to teach yourself how to use chopsticks?”

He chuckled as he struggled with his noodles, “Didn’t make it to the top of my priority list, I apologize.”

“I’ll teach you before you leave. Way better than taking back a cheesy souvenir,” you smiled at him as you picked up a piece of chicken.

As the night wore on, your coffee table became covered in takeout food boxes, and a couple empty bottles of wine that the two of you had managed to drink your way through. You were sprawled across his lap, wine glass lightly hanging from your fingertips as you rambled on about what you had been up to since you moved. Nestor couldn’t take his eyes off of you, soaking up the fact that he was able to be so close to you.

“I’ve missed you,” you veered off your current story completely as you felt the warmth from his hand soak into your leg.

He looked at you, laughing quietly at the sudden admission, “I’ve missed you too.”

“Were you ever mad at me for leaving?”

He shook his head, no hesitation in his answer at all, “Of course not,” he studied your face, the way your skin glowed whenever you drank, the way your eyes got a little glassy when you had more than just one glass of wine, “Doesn’t mean that I don’t miss you, though.”

You hummed in quiet contentment as he reassuringly rubbed his hand up and down your leg, “I think about you all the time.”

His hand stilled for a moment and you were afraid that maybe you were saying too much. Maybe the reason that things worked so well was because everything was in limbo. Before you could worry too much he gave your leg a light squeeze, “I think about you too.”

The two of you fell into a comfortable silence after that, resituating yourself so that your head was resting against his chest. It was hard to focus on much of anything when all you could think about was the way your body was pressed up against his. The steadiness of his breathing felt like the only thing that was still grounding you. Your entire body felt warm from the wine, but deep down you knew it was more than just that.

“If you’re tired,” he spoke up after a few minutes of silence, “you can go to bed. Don’t exhaust yourself on my account,” there was a smile on his face.

You stretched, fighting back a yawn, “Come with me,” you sat upright and looked over at him, “I won’t lie to you, my guest room is empty because I have been putting off buying furniture for it,” you chuckled, “And my bed is way more comfortable than the couch, believe me.”

“Yea,” he nodded, his voice soft as he bit back a laugh, “okay.”

He followed you up the stairs and into your room, looking around the house as he did. It was hard for him to wrap his head around what your life was like now that you were so far away from everything that you had grown up with, everyone you had grown up with. It seemed like you had created such a cozy little life for yourself, and it couldn’t help but to think that you might never have had that if you hadn’t taken the plunge to move across the country.

“Don’t mind the clothes,” you apologized as you flicked on the light to your bedroom, “I promise they’re clean—I just hate folding laundry.”

He laughed, shaking his head, “It’s fine.”

You changed into a baggy long-sleeve shirt and a pair of shorts, immediately crawling underneath your blankets. You nestled back against your pillow and looked over at Nestor, who was unbuttoning his shirt, eyes cast down at the floor.

You were lying on your side, scrolling on your phone when you felt the mattress dip as Nestor climbed into bed beside you. He pulled the blanket up over himself and rolled onto his side so he could look over at you. You looked up from your phone, a smile starting to take over your features as you took in how close he was to you. You set your phone off to the side and rested your cheek against the palm of your hand.

“I still can’t believe you’re here,” you said with a laugh.

“Give it a couple days,” he joked, “Soon you’ll be begging for me to go back home.”

You snuggled closer to him, resting your face against his chest, “I doubt it.”

You woke up the next morning to the feeling of Nestor’s arms wrapped tightly around you, keeping you snug against his chest. Taking a slow, deep bre ath you took in the fact that this was really happening. He shifted slightly, arms squeezing you for a moment before he settled back into his sleep. The selfish part of you never wanted him to go home because you would love to wake up like this every morning. The warmth trapped underneath the blanket made you forget about the fact that there was a considerable amount of snow covering the ground outside.

You let your eyes close again as you focused on the steady beat of his heart. You slowly slid your legs and tangled them up with his. A few moments later you felt his fingers sliding lightly up and down your back. You glanced up at him and smiled when you saw that his eyes were still closed, but there was a peaceful smile on his face. You don’t ever remember seeing him so calm, so relaxed.

“Good morning,” he mumbled as he pressed his hand flat against your back, pushing you against him.

You chuckled as you rested your hands against his chest, “Good morning. You sleep okay?”

“Mhm,” he finally opened his eyes, “like a fucking rock,” he laughed.

You smiled up at him, “Good.”

The two of you laid there, soaking up the quiet peacefulness of the morning. You hadn’t woken up wrapped up in someone’s arms in a very long time, and there was something about the clinginess of Nestor’s grasp that told you he was in the same boat. You smiled to yourself as you felt his fingers lazily massaging between your shoulder blades.

“I’m sorry I didn’t come visit sooner,” he said.

You pulled back away from him so you could get a better look at his face, “You don’t have to be sorry—I know your life doesn’t make it easy. It’s hard to find the time.”

“I should’ve made the time.”

“Nes, don’t—”

He cut you off as he shook his head, “I’m not trying to make excuses. I know that I should’ve come out to see you. I just, I knew that it was going to be hard to convince myself to go back home once I did. I like me so much better when I’m with you,” he gently cupped your face in his hand.

You rested your hand over his, “Well, I like you all the time,” you smiled, “And no matter what, I’ll always be here whenever you need a break to recharge and get away from everything for a little while. But listen,” you waited for him to look at you, “don’t spend all of your time here thinking about the fact that you think you should’ve made it out here sooner. None of that matters. You’re here now, and that’s what matters.”

He rested his forehead against yours, “See? That’s what I mean—how am I supposed to go back home after that?” you could see the hint of a smile on his face.

You laughed, “Just remember how much you hate the snow. Short vacations out this way will be just right for you.”

He chuckled and shook his head, “Yea, maybe.”

You gave his hand a light squeeze, “C’mon, let’s go make breakfast and see if your luggage will come in today or if I get to take you shopping.”

He laughed, rolling his eyes, “Can’t wait for that.”

You flung the blanket off the both of you and hopped out of bed. Walking around to Nestor’s side, you held out your hands and pulled him up, laughing as he exaggeratedly stumbled into you and wrapped you in a hug. Your laughter was muffled against his chest but he reveled in the way it all felt.

While you were measuring out grounds into the coffee maker, you saw Nestor out of the corner of your eye looking through your fridge, trying to see what he could salvage to make breakfast with. You smiled to yourself as you set the pot to brew. You leaned back against the counter and watched him pulling things out from the drawers of your refrigerator.

“Playing chef today?” you asked with a smile.

“Better me than you,” he laughed.

You feigned offence, “Excuse you, I am an amazing cook.”

He smiled as he set everything out on the counter, “You are, but I’m better.”

“But I’m better,” you mocked with a laugh, “Cocky.”

“Doesn’t mean it’s not true.”

“How long did you say you were staying again?” you laughed.

“At least until I learn how to use chopsticks,” he chuckled as he looked through your cabinets for a frying pan, “So it might be a while.”

You couldn’t make yourself take your eyes off him, “Good.”

He heard the softness in your tone and looked over at you from his food prep on the counter. He smiled, tilting his head slightly as if to ask if there was something that you wanted to say. You shook your head with a small smile before walking over and wrapping your arms around his middle, the side of your face resting against his back. You didn’t know how long he was going to be staying, but you knew that regardless you were going to be making the most of it.

[nightingtalehearts]

2Ha Thoughts.

I honestly applaud Chen Feiyu for taking on the role of Mo Ran. It's really hard to act out his character, so I said to myself that I wouldn't have any high expectations for the incoming live drama adaptation. Most people think that Feiyu will act out 3 versions of his character - Mo Ran 0.5, Mo Ran 1.0, and Mo Ran 2.0 - but for me, I like to think that there are 4 different ones.

SPOILERS AHEAD!! BE WARNED!!

First, he'll act out as the infamous Taxian-jun, who is a savage, bloodthirsty, and lustful mound. He is quick to anger and won't hesitate on killing anything that's on his path (except umm..of course, Chu Wanning hehe). This version is the evil form of his emotions, the one that the flower brought out, and twisted himself so hard that he would be horrified by the things he've done if he had any left sanity in him. (2Ha readers would, of course, know this as we experience his thoughts and emotions as he was reincarnated in his second life later on.) Everything this person did was on the image of his supposed lover, Shi Mei. He thought he dearly loved him so held everyone, most especially Chu Wanning, in contempt after Shi Mei passed away.

Second, he'll act out as Mo Weiyu. In this version, he is a disciple of Chu Wanning, the Yunheng Elder, and he is also a cultivator and an acquaintace to others, such as Ye Wangxi and Nangong Si. People see him as a person with filial respect (which WE know will be ironic since he fell in love with his shizun later on, for goodness' sake 😂) and average skills - he doesn't have a spiritual weapon yet, nor does he have good calligraphy or communication abilities. He is a hardheaded person, as we can see from his vehement denial on many things, including his affair with Rong Jiu. At this point, he is slowly "falling out of love" from Shi Mei and he begins his path towards redemption, looking for things and silver linings in every situation.

Third, he'll act out as Mo Ran, which subjectively, is the hardest role yet. Even I can't explain him this well because this version of his character is so complex. It can actually be divided into two parts. The first part: as a child, in his heart, he desperately craves and needs love. Mo Ran was the child that loved his mother, who named her as the first person that he liked the most in the world. He was the child who saw the hope and joy in everything despite all the pain and hurt that the world gave him. He was the kid that was beaten down to the dust, yet when he recived food from a stranger, he held the latter dearly in his heart, grateful for his blessings. He's the teen who entered Sisheng Peak, who immediately picked Chu Wanning because he said that he looks the gentlest and the most easy-going. He's the person who only had the purest love for Chu Wanning, and he's also the person who died just to protect him. (For me, this version of him died when he made Shi Mei take him instead of Chu Wanning. At that point he slowly became Taxian-jun, a puppet molded by Shi Mei.) And let's not deny it: just like how Mo Ran unknowingly loved Chu Wanning here, the latter also unknowingly loved him too. As of that point, they didn't "fall in love" with each other, but they were each other's light - they both gave each other the love they both deserved, so at most, they were each other's precious treasures.

The second part is on his next life. He is now known as the cousin of Xue Meng, the adopted nephew of Madam Wang & Xue Zhengming, the sect brothers of A-Mei and A-Meng, and the unruly disciple of Chu Wanning. At this point, he realizes that he may not have loved Shi Mei that deeply as he thought, but take note that he doesn't think that he is in love with his shizun yet. In the contrary, at this point, he is still adapting to his new circumstances, and he is learning new things as well as patching up misunderstandings. From his past life, his personality drastically changes, as shown from the immense change in spiritual weapons, from Bugui to Jiangui. This goes to show that even if they are the same person, he is a breaker that can lead himself to a different path. (Readers would also be giddy when they find out that Jiangui is similar to Tianwen, which symbolizes the deeply encased love he has. It also symbolizes that Mo Ran is an oblivious idiot periodt.)

Mo Ran is also the version who was conflicted by his own emotions. He is the person who begins to understand and notice some things, the person who finds out that his shizun was protecting not only him, but also everybody all along. It is he who sees Chu Wanning truly, and he notices that despite all the harsh wards and cold persona that the latter has, deep inside, he has a soft heart. It's he who notices everything that went wrong in his previous life, and he's also the person who's confused on his past actions. After Chu Wanning died, through Xue Meng drilling it into his brain, he found out that he was protecting him from the shadows, going as far by carrying him through more than three thousand steps to save him. (catch me crying in the corner I CAN'T WITH CHAPTER 97 HUHUHU) He's the person who regretted deeply.

Finally, the last version he'll act out is Mo-zongshi. This version started after the death of Chu Wanning, and also when he was about to go to the underworld. At that point, he saw all the instances where his shizun showed his love. He saw the wontons scene, in which he tried his best to assure his shizun that he doesn't need to be sorry, because on that specific day, the very reason why he was whipped, was because he stole that flower just for Chu Wanning, him. (btw all the symbolisms in this novel ARE INSANE like the flowers?? it could be for either the one mentioned or the ones Shi Mei planted. let's not mention the food: wontons, bowl of soup, bowl of congee, EVEN THE DAMN HOTPOT) He's the person who put back the pieces of the one he loves, brought him back to life, and waited five years for him.

He's a man in grief. He's a man in love.

While he waited for Chu Wanning to wake up, he now became the person that he very much wanted to be when he was younger: a hero. Now, he was Mo-zongshi, a famous cultivator known for his strength and bravery. He took on fights and got injured, but he never once stopped because he did it all for his shizun, to make him proud. Unconsciously, because of his yearning (CATCH ME CRYING AGAIN the quote?? "To yearn unwittingly breaks the willow branch." nOO), he copies Chu Wanning, down to his handwriting, his style of fighting, his outfit, and the way he looks. The person that's deeply in his heart is shown outside, so much that even Nangong Si mistakenly thought that he was Chu Wanning. Later, after Chu Wanning wakes up and after certain circumstances, he realizes that he was and still is in love with him all along, not Shi Mei.

At this point, Chu Wanning also falls in love with him. He saw the goodness in his heart, the strength and bravery he had, and the kindness he showed towards others. Aside from the bonus brownie points which is Mo Ran's looks (not blaming shizun, our husky is too good-looking!!), they now resolve their misunderstandings and their relationship turns deeper. When Mo-zongshi finally confesses...incoming fluff all around.

But like the Mo Ran version, his ending is way too sad. He deserves to know that it wasn't his fault that he turned out this way. It wasn't his fault that he turned out to be evil and hurt his lover. I know this, you know this, all readers know this, Chu Wanning knows it, but he doesn't, which is the most painful thing ever, because how much does it hurt for you to think that you abused the man you love in your past life? I was quite literally sobbing when he mentioned that Chu Wanning was his "God", his dragon, who had come to save him even if he felt like he didn't deserve it. He died, and he was the person who Chu Wanning mourned over, because it wasn't his fault, it never was.

(...i'm so empty inside...chapter 279...that chapter legit suffocated me due to my tears...)

But at the end, all those versions of him are, at core, the same. They may not show it similarly, but they are all strong on their beliefs, they are all stubborn and determined, they all love deeply and fiercely, immensely passionate and protective over the ones they love, and they are all a good person, if you look deeply into his heart.

Through Taxian-jun's dreams and his protection of his lover's corpse, through Mo Weiyu's determination on his redemption, through Mo Ran's regrets and understanding, and through Mo-zongshi's grief and love, it can be said that this character is one that you couldn't help but love. It's been so long, but his character really stood out to me from the many novels I read. This character is complex, with different versions of himself, but at the end of the day, it's still the person we love: our very own husky A-Ran.

[puddingcatbeans]

on grade school lunchboxes;

a small, square plastic box with a mint green lid - this was the lunch box i used for lunch throughout grade school, all the way into high school.

most days, the little green box would carry a sandwich. two pieces of plain toast, maybe butter, a meat patty of some sort, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, cheese. sometimes an egg, but it would make the sandwich all soggy by the time lunch time rolls around. it would still be the very best sandwich i have ever tasted, because it was made by my ma’s loving hand. 

sometimes, i’d have cold pop tarts or those tiny pizzas. sometimes, i’d have cake. maybe pie. but mostly, it was sandwich, sandwich, sandwich. it was quick and easy and filling. lunch time was for socializing, so a sandwich was fine. 

until one day, a classmate asked me, “how come you always bring a sandwich? don’t you eat rice at home?”

and i looked at her, her blond hair and freckled skin paler than mine, her little pink thermos filled with wonton soup and a neat little serving of fried rice. and i looked back down at my tin-foil wrapped fish sticks and toaster-oven-baked appetizers and i thought, yeah, how come i always have a sandwich?

i went home that day and i asked my ma how come my lunch is always a sandwich. she asked, “did it taste bad?” i said no. she asked, “do you not like sandwiches anymore?” i said no, i like them. she asked, “then what is wrong with a sandwich for lunch?” i said nothing. nothing is wrong, but how come---my classmate, she---isn’t it funny? isn’t it funny that the asian girl has a sandwich for lunch while her white classmates have chinese food for lunch?

the next day, my sandwich didn’t taste very good. i didn’t finish it. but if i brought it back home, my ma would be sad. so i threw it in the trashcan while everyone was putting their lunches away. my stomach hurt all the way home.

over the years, my lunches grew in variety. my dad bought a thermos, see. he’s the head cook in our house now, and he’s been experimenting with online recipes and ah-mah’s recipes. sometimes i twist the thermos open to find japanese curry and rice---my favourite! sometimes it is chicken broth, perfect for cold weather. one time, i had youfan and i worried about the stinkiness of my breath for the rest of the afternoon. but i cleaned out the thermos completely. no one asks about my lunch anymore, because on campus, everyone is too busy to care about your lunchbox.

but sometimes, i miss that little green box. i miss the sandwiches ma used to make, waking up early to fry me an egg before we leave. because even if it is not last night’s leftovers, it still tastes good. it is made with love.

[fweeble]

Episode 3: Across the River and into the Trees

Hello, I’m Fwee, a mature and responsible adult who is absolutely not imitating a Labrador wagging its entire butt with its tail. Of course not. It’s rude of you to assume I am. Honestly. I’m just here, with my drinks and tissues and pillows, watching some Nanner Fish. A normal hoomun.

This is The Episode, if I’ve got my timing right!

A second in and already more beautiful scenery. Thank you, Mappa! The prison looks so much better in the morning. A screenshot from last episode for comparison:

Impressive.

Is anyone familiar with legalese because this sounds like a giant lie. Does anyone know????

Hirata Hiroaki is doing an amazing job. My heart. This is exactly the Max Lobo I heard in my head whenever I read Nanner Fish. Q vQ <3 

Max in a nutshell, guys. Never change, Max. Never change.

You survived ‘Nam, Max, you can survive prison. Or Iraq. Afghanistan? Nope, I was right. It’s Iraq in the anime timeline. You have swole army arms, Max! Swole!

Charlie absolutely not bringing up the fact that, unlike many in the prison (most likely), he’s army trained. 

Eiji: Master of the Oblivious Guilt Tripping. He’s a nine-dan. 

I absolutely believe that Max picked that book just as a token symbol of protest. Because Max is nothing if not a drama queen.

To be fair, Max, you have 15 years on the kid. Just roll with it.

Oh Max, no. Your happy puppy expression hurts me. This is Ash Lynx, Max. His words hurt.

I warned you. Q vQ

That’s Ash, Max. It’ll never grow on you, but you’ll get used to it. Or not. 

I’m sorry. I’m laughing so hard. Elite hoodlum. What’s even better is that every time they say “chinpira” I think of a low level yakuza with a popped collar, horrendously flashy shirts (think tiger button ups), and a blazer. Super imposing that onto Ash is hilarious and the best thing. 

Gorgeous. Gorgeous. *blows kisses at Mappa*

*hysterical laughter*

Live in hope, Max, live in hope. Your dreams are going to be your only salvation.

Ash’s face. *SNERK* 

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaash. Maaaaaaaaaaaaax. Max, breathe.

0 to 9,000. Good job, Ash! I’m laughing at that carrot that overlaps with Ash’s leg: the colors are so close they blend, it loses its third dimension and looks an awful lot like confetti. Let’s pretend everyone is celebrating that Ash kicked this creep in the face.

Charlie owes you several lifetimes’ worth of big times, Max. You just don’t know it yet.

I’m left to believe that these guards are very incompetent. The true crime shows I watch has lead me to believe that guards are supposed to pat down inmates before they’re allowed back into their cells or solitary. That, or I’ve been lied to. 

Or: Ash is very good at squirreling away forks.

It’s probably a little of each column, huh.

PLOOOOOOOOT!!!

OKAY GUYS, A TINY BIT OF BACKGROUND SINCE I DON’T WANT TO SPEND TOO MUCH TIME ON THIS. BE WARNED, SOME POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD: 

So, in the original manga, this was set right after the Vietnam War, during a period in which the US govt was doing some skeevy shit (not that it is absolutely squeaky clean now, but that’s another thing entirely) which included MK Ultra. If y’all want a quick and dirty low-down on MK Ultra, just check out Wiki. Anyways, this is significant because the govt’s drug of choice was LSD, it occurred around the same time period as the ‘Nam War, and their goal was, well...

If you were aware of these things while reading the manga, this was a huge clue as to what “Banana Fish” might actually be. This is one of the huge weaknesses in bringing the show into the present day, I think, since it loses some of this nuance. But that’s just me being nit-picky, I guess. 

BACK TO THE SHOW: You are most definitely correct, Dr. Meredith, without a doubt. 

Still the 5 billion dollar question, Ash. The question everyone wants answered.

*strangled noises* So beautiful. So much awful. Why this juxtaposition.

*screeches* BAD TOUCH DINO, BAD TOUCH DINO, BAD TOOOOUCH.

CSMDKFMWOIFJMDSLKF. LOOKIT THIS TINY BABY CHILD!! SAVE HIIIIIIM! SAVE HIM!!!!

SOMEONE LOP OFF DINO’S GROSS HAND. MCLKSDMFLSDF.

Skiiiiiippppppeeeeeeeeeeeeeer......

MY HEART. THEY DID SUCH A GOOD JOB IMPROVING ON THIS IN THE ANIME. The manga comparison:

I BELIEVE IN YOU, ASH.

BOOOOOOOO. THEY TONED DOWN ASH’S SASS!

THIS IS THE SASSY BOY I KNOW AND LOVE. I REMEMBER YOU, ASH! *blows kisses*

Or this was a decision the translator made for the manga. Either way, infinitely more fond of this interpretation. u vu <3

One: HNNNNNG, GORGEOUS. I LOVE ALL THE DETAIL ON THE STAIRWELL, DO PRISON STAIRWELLS ACTUALLY LOOK THIS LOVELY???

Two: CMKSLDMFLSFD. Fucking hell.

Even the books on their shelves are beautifully rendered. *totally missing the point*

Doc, please never treat a rape survivor like this. 8/

The way Ash asks for a capsule will never fail to make me giggle. He sounds like a spoiled child.

*sighs* I know this is the same background but I seriously love the textures for the room. Mappa really is outdoing themselves.

Resident asshole cook, Sanji, is channeling his captain, Luffy, in a New York prison and about to summarily get his ass stabbed by a pissed off blond child with no time for shenanigans: more at 12.

*wriggles in seat with excitement* *plays the maracas* WHO’S EXCITED.

Hmmmmm, new exposition to match the Iraq timeline, huh? Interesting.

Wait, is this the new reason why they head to LA?

Oooooor not???

Just new exposition for the new Iraq plot line???

Seriously, the art direction!!! *BLOWS SO MANY KISSES AT MAPPA*

Oh, my heart. My soft, squishy, little baby heart.

*clutches chest* Ash... *makes strangled dying manatee noises about all the reasons why Ash has so many trust issues*

ASH, PLEASE...

Just leave me to drown in this salty sea of tears. 

*helpless hysterical giggling* Ash sure is turning on the charm.

Well... to be fair... both are one year away from majority in their homelands, so... maybe, emotionally around the same place?

Ash’s love and loyalty for his boys. *clenches fist* I have feelings and they are strong.

Fuck Arthur with a spiked baseball bat. 8(

Oh, Max... so much of your life is wrapped up in guilt... 8( 8( 8(

Oh my fucking god, the music. *light porn disco music starts*

*cracking up*

SOMEONE SAVE ME I CAN’T BREATHE I AM LAUGHING SO HARD. THE MUSIC, THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT PASSES. ASH CASUALLY STROKING EIJI’S FACE AND HAIR. EIJI JUST GOING ?????? LIKE A DEER CAUGHT IN HEADLIGHTS. AHAHAHAHAHAHA. *wheezes*

EIJI, YOU’VE GOT THE REFLEXES OF A CAT TWO YEARS DEAD AND BURIED.

LITERAL TEARS. AHAHAHAHAHAHA. IBE, CHARLIE --YOUR FACES!!!

YoI babies, please don’t expect anything more than this if the anime sticks to the mango. Y’all won’t get more hanky panky than this.

THE SILENT CONVERSATION! O vO

THE FUCKING WINK AND STAR. I’M DYING. MAPPA PLEASE.

ARREST THEM AND CHARGE THEM FOR MY MURDER.

IT’S NOT WHAT YOU THINK, IBE!

Eh, you may be right on that point.

I love Ibe. I love his face. Heeee.

The #1 thing I took away from Nanner Fish about prisons was that capsules are invaluable and that I should French kiss my besties as a way to pass messages. My messages would probably be screaming for help, but that’s just me. I wouldn’t last in prison.

Look at that reflection on the picture hung on the wall??? Hnnnnnnnnnnng. Mappa, please. You’re doing indecent things to my  heart.

*more strangled noises over Mappa’s gorgeous backgrounds*

Booooooo. Eiji, you’re going out in that?

#1 thing I will miss about original Nanner Fish mango is Eiji looking 80′s fabulous as he goes into Chinatown.

But mostly this:

ICONIC.

WOULDN’T IT BE MELTED BY THE TIME HE GOT BACK, IBE????

HOLY SHIT, MAPPA. YOU’RE TRYING TO KILL ME.

*high pitched noises* Lookit that. That’s gorgeous. Dino’s a leazebag but that’s... hnnnnng.

Wait, are you wearing the same clothing, Arthur?

(He is.)

It’s okay. Your voice is the only lovely thing about you. Keep talking.

Smooth as fine chocolate. u 3u

One: Fuck off, Arthur.

Two: *HYSTERICAL LAUGHTER* THE SOFT PORN DISCO MUSIC IS BACK. Not quite Hawaiian shirt, but A+++ for effort. 

*cries* You’re so pink, Eiji.

LOOKIT HIS PANTS. HIS CUTE BANANA LEAF PANTS. EIJI, PLEASE.

Fuck Arthur. Leave my Shorter alone.

Y’all aren’t gonna tell him to be careful about using Shorter’s name?

I AM SO RELIEVED THEY LEFT NADIA’S CHARACTER DESIGN ALONE. HI NADIAAAA.

CRYING. YOU ARE SO CUTE, MR. CHANG.

SERIOUSLY, THAT ATTENTION TO DETAIL. MUWAH. Also: suspicious person alert. Poor Eiji isn’t trained for counter-surveillance. Q vQ

I’D LIKE SOME FREE WONTON SOUP TOO, MR. CHANG. PLEASE.

Don’t forget Ibe’s sundae, Eiji!!

*blows kisses at Mappa*

*dying manatee noises* Maaaaaaaaaaaax. Q AQ

*blows even more kisses at Mappa* Muwah. Muwah. u 3u <3

All together with me: FUCK OOOOOOOOOOOOFF ARTHUUUUUUUR.

But boy am I in love with your voice. u vu <3

Episode 3 is over and I’m excited for episode 4! More of my boy Shorter~~ Yes, good. I’m excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It’s been a super long day, so I hope y’all have had a better day than me! <3

<<Episode 2                                  Masterlist                                             Episode 4>>

[plantaagomaajor]

my little brother has always been so good to me. when i was terrible in middle and high school he would always distract my parents so that they wouldn't get so mad at me. he accepted punishments in my place. he held me and stayed calm and answered the paramedic's questions as i uselessly sobbed in his arms. he did his school work on the floor beside me when i got hurt and had to stay on the couch for a week. he holds my hand and lets me lay on his bed when i'm bored. when i sit down next to him he changes the video he's watching to something he knows i'll like. he always gets wonton soup with his lunch special because he knows i like it. he uses silly accents and voices when we talk just to make me laugh.

i miss my little brother. we used to play together with his legos and with sticks in the yard. he still sings the little songs i taught him when we were kids. he doesn't remember that i taught him the months and how to spell his name. i'm scared that we'll stop talking to each other once he moves away for good. i'm scared that he'll get hurt. i'm scared that he'll get his heart broken for the millionth time. i'm scared that people will be mean to him and that he will be mean to other people. i'm scared that he's come to resent me and our parents. i'm scared that i was too mean to him when i was young and horrible and that it caused a wound in our relationship that will never heal.

i love him

[sodoyouknowbts]

Yoongi x Reader - Guardian (Seven)

Part of the ‘Souls’ Series.

Summary: Min Yoongi is a cynical guardian angel assigned to look after you.

Pairing: Yoongi x Reader (ft Hoseok)

Genre: Romance, fantasy, soul mates

Author: Pilot

Chapter Seven

Yoongi kicks a stray pebble on the path and it bounces off to the side. He pays you a glance and you’re too busy moving your arm around to notice. Your cast had been cut off today and you had spent the past twenty minutes just bending and flexing and flinging it randomly in front of Yoongi’s face.

You were resuming work the next day. In a weak attempt to send you off well and get you settled back home, he had gruffly suggested taking you for dinner. Not one to miss a free meal you had jumped at the offer, although you did re-consider as you still hadn’t spent that much one on one time with Yoongi and were still a bit bitter about the fact that he hadn't apologised for ignoring your call for help.

You stop in your tracks and quickly turn back around. You point to your left, recognising the name of the noodle place you had seen on Instagram you had wanted to try. Yoongi’s eyes move from your pointed finger, down and across to the front door, where his eyes continue to trail a long line of people standing outside waiting. 

“I’m not waiting.” he states.

You look at him and do your best to negotiate but he’s not having it. 

“I know another place. You shouldn’t always believe the hype.” He says, ushering you to follow him. You pout and agree to go somewhere else. 

You walk alongside Yoongi, stealing glances at him every now and then. You wanted to get to know him more, but you considered if Guardians were really allowed to grow close to their assignments. If you became good friends, would that break the client/customer relationship in this voluntary opt-in Guardian service?

Yoongi holds open the door for you and lets you walk in first. You’re in a small Chinese noodle shop and the smell of chicken stock lures you in further. You see a number of small tables and on them are some piping hot dumplings. The waitress greets you both and shows you to a seat for two.

You scan the menu. Pan fried dumplings, pork mince noodles, soup and wontons... you can’t make your mind up. 

“I’ll order for you, if you can’t choose.” Yoongi says. You look at him from over the menu. He’s leaning casually forward, his elbows on the table and hands clasped over each other. He moves back and brushes his fringe from his eyes. His coat is folded up and hanging over the back of the chair. He’s only wearing a black shirt and black jeans.

He signals to the waitress and orders to bowls of noodles, both different. You raise your brows at him and he quickly adds “So we can share.”

You nod, happy. You were keen to try more than one bowl of noodles and you were pretty hungry. 

“So. Congratulations for having your cast off.” He starts.

“Thanks, although I wouldn't have had a cast if you had -” You begin, you couldn’t help yourself.

“I know. If I had picked up the phone we’d both be in a different situation.” he sighs, sitting back in the seat. He watches as some people get up and leave after having finished their meal. “I hadn’t received any indication that you were in danger prior to it happening. Usually I have an ability to see, some sort of internal distress system goes off from you and I can feel it, but this time I came up with nothing.”

“Distress system?” you enquire.

“Yeah, like an alert system. Guardians are alerted if their assignments are in danger or soon to be in danger. I guess my internal alarm wasn’t functioning.”

You nod. In a weird way, it made sense.

The noodles arrive and Yoongi tries to hide a smile as he observes your face light up. You clap your hands together, excited and begin to split your chopsticks.

You eat quietly and comfortably for a while. Yoongi notices you’ve gotten some sauce on the corner of your mouth. He tsks, pulling out two tissues from the tissue dispenser and he leans over the table, placing it on your mouth. It sticks there and your eyes widen at the sudden action. He scoffs, pulling a somewhat disgusted look as he sits back down.

Yoongi catches himself smiling and tries to make himself busy instead, quickly investing a heap of time and energy into inspecting the small side dish of garlic and chilli sauce sitting on the table. You dab the sauce from your mouth and think nothing more of it.

“Sung Wook, he found you and brought you to the hospital, right?”

You nod. “Yeah, initially I had thought it was you. He’s your arch nemesis right?”

“Arch nemesis?” Yoongi asks, amused. “Did Hoseok tell you that?”

You shrug not wanting to give it away but it was obvious who spilled the details. “I wouldn’t give him that much credit to call him an arch nemesis. We’re not living in an anime world.”

You roll your eyes. Yeah sure, not living in an anime world but you still have magic powers? Sure buddy. It’s basically a world in an anime now.

“Did he say anything to you?” Yoongi prods.

“Hmm? No. He was gone before I woke up and before you got there. He kind of just left me after I was admitted.”

Yoongi changes the subject.

“The car, you should probably not drive for a while.”

“Well that’s the thing.” You start, poking your chopsticks at him as you think. “I’m not a bad driver -” Yoongi scoffs. You narrow your eyes and continue. “But honestly it felt like the car had a mind of its own, I don’t even know why it ran off the road. I mean...” You pause. “I was investigating a story before that and I had noticed someone following me, like the same person. I hadn’t thought much of it at the time. But, it feels a bit weird.”

“What story are you digging up now?”

“Mmm not telling.”

Yoongi sighs. “How can I look out for you if you don't tell me? I’m not 100% sure my alert system is functioning properly.”

You pull a face. “Fine. Some of my sources have said that theres an interesting and underground lobbying party that have been conducting underhanded deals, selling women and stocks for political power.”

Yoongi crosses his arms over his chest, frowning. Sounds interesting he thinks. And dangerous for a klutz like her.

“I can see why you think the car accident is suspicious.” he pauses. “I’ll help you with this.”

You almost choke on your noodles and start to cough. “What?” you say, grabbing some water. “You want to help?”

He glares at you, annoyed.

“Since when - usually you’re too busy making fun of me to actually help me with anything.”

“Whatever. Just finish your noodles.”

//

You’re walking back together to your apartment. You had wanted to walk off the noodles you had eaten so instead of taking the easy route, this was how you found yourself walking side by side with Yoongi, wheeling your suitcase behind you and watching Yoongi effortlessly carry some of your other belongings home.

Hoseok had loaded your suitcase up with snacks before you had left which had meant your suitcase was more full than to begin with. Your wheel catches on a slightly unlevelled brick in the pavement and you tug at it. This causes you to trip and you stumble. Yoongi reaches his hand out and grabs you, pulling you back upright.

“Don’t hurt yourself and don’t get sick.”

You look up at him. He still has his hand on your arm and he’s looking at you with concern. You’re a little thrown by his sudden candor and Yoongi clears his throat, continuing. “It’s bothersome.” He lets go of your arm and you scoff. 

You reach your apartment in no time and he helps you carry your things up to your place. You turn the lights on to your apartment and push the suitcase in, letting it scoot across the floor of your hallway freely. Yoongi watches on, amused as the suitcase zig zags and slowly comes to a halt.

He places the rest of the bags on the dining room table and bids you farewell.

“Have a good sleep. You’ve got work tomorrow.” He says and then he’s gone.

//

“So?” Hoseok asks, turning his head around to look at Yoongi, who has appeared in the kitchen.

“Did you apologise?” he continues.

Yoongi returns a disinterested look at Hoseok and moves over to the couch.

“Yeah I apologised.”

“Good.” Hoseok replies, happily turning his attention back to the tv.

Yoongi and Hoseok sit there for a while, watching the television. Yoongi fiddles with his phone and Hoseok pays him a sidewards glance. Yoongi leaves his phone on the table and goes to the kitchen to get a drink. Hoseok takes the liberty in updating your contact card, adding rainbows and flowers and sparkles and cakes to it.

Yoongi sits back down. 

“There’s a Guardian reunion in three weeks.” Hoseok starts. “I got the invitation today. You’re coming right?”

Yoongi takes a sip of water. “Is it compulsory?”

“Hyung, you need to attend these things. At least once. You missed the past four.”

“There was a reason I skipped on those. I was busy.”

Hoseok sighs. “Come to this one. It’s expected. We’re allowed to bring one of our assignments each, the Custodian’s noted your absence at all the others. You should come.” Hoseok continues. “You should bring Y/N.”

Yoongi shrugs off the suggestion. “Why?”

“Ehhh what do you mean why?” Hoseok says, jabbing Yoongi in the side. 

Yoongi ignores him. 

“What’s wrong with bringing Y/N?” Hoseok pesters. “I’ve already invited her to your birthday party I’m organising next week.”

Yoongi groans in response.

“She’s weird. Clumsy. All of it. She’d probably make a mess of the Guardian reunion. Birthday party is okay but the reunion?”

“Hey give her more credit than that. And so what if she’s weird. You’re pretty weird.”

“She’s not just like normal weird.” Yoongi rebuttals. “She’s really weird.”

Hoseok pulls a face, one that Yoongi knows to read as stop trying to bullshit me, I see through you.

“If you don’t already like her now, you’ll come to like her eventually.” Hoseok teases. Yoongi doesn’t bother denying anything, instead making himself busy by looking around the apartment.

It’s much quieter now, without you here. Especially now that she’s not digging into a packet of chips. He thinks to himself. He spots a few manga books you had missed, tucked underneath the coffee table. He kicks them out with his foot and reaches over for them.

He’s about to transport himself to your apartment when he stops. What if she’s in the shower? He blushes. I’ll call her instead.

Yoongi goes to ring you, his eyes scanning over the updated contact card, courtesy of Hoseok’s earlier antics. He says nothing, instead cocking his brow at Hoseok who is feigning ignorance. 

Yoongi smiles to himself and gives you a ring.

“Hey.”

“Hello?” You say, a little groggy. You were exhausted and the noodles had put you into a huge food coma. You had managed to shower, wash your face and get into your pyjamas but that was about all you had managed to do before you had KO’d on the couch.

“You left a few of your things here. I’ll be over in ten?”

“T-ten?” You blink. “Ten minutes?”

“Yeah...”

You sit up abruptly, somehow managing to knock your leg into the coffee table. You stifle a yell. 

“Okay. See you in ten.” You say, your voice increasing in pitch out of sheer nervousness. 

Shit. You rush over to your bedroom and pull out your BB cream. You frantically plaster it onto your face and bring out the dry shampoo you had bought on special and spray it into your hair. Whatever. You think. This is not because of him. I’m just being efficient. So I don’t have to do this tomorrow for work.

Yoongi is waiting patiently on the street outside your apartment. You open the door and he looks you up and down. You’re wearing pyjamas but your hair was neatly brushed - dare he say it, even a little curled - and he thought he could smell perfume.

“Were you still up?” he asks.

“Yeah, of course.” You say, still a bit sleepy.

He knew you hadn’t been up, you sounded like you had just woken up on the phone and judging from your attire, he could tell you had scrambled out of bed. You weren’t even wearing your coat properly. He smiles to himself just a little. He adored the effort.

Without thinking, Yoongi steps closer to you and wraps the coat around you, adjusting it carefully, pushing your hair back from under the neck of the coat. He clears his throat, realising what he’s done and steps back. 

Yoongi quickly thrusts a bag of your things to you, holding it out, waiting for you to collect it from him. A little thrown by his earlier action, you slowly take the bag from him and peer inside. Your toothpaste, toothbrush, facial wash and two stray manga books. 

You look up at him, he’s shoved his hands into the front pocket of his parka and the street lamp you’re standing under with him seems to give him a radiant glow.

He clears his throat.

“Well. I’ll get going. Call me if you need anything.”

You nod and he waits for you to walk back to your apartment. Once he’s sure you’re back inside, Yoongi turns on his heel and begins to walk home, to clear his mind. This was getting dangerous, especially for him.

To be continued

[24hourchampagnediet-blog1]

Healthy Eating Tips for Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas

New Post has been published on https://bestrawfoodrecipes.com/healthy-eating-tips-for-royal-caribbeans-navigator-of-the-seas/

Healthy Eating Tips for Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas

Let’s get one thing straight: You’re about to go on vacation. A really, really incredible vacation! And if there’s a good time to let loose and indulge, it’s on a really, really incredible vacation. But, if you’re working toward a major weight loss goal or are adhering to a special diet like Keto or Atkins, knowing how to maintain your current eating plan while traveling might bring enough peace of mind to actually relax and enjoy your upcoming adventure.

The newly amped up Navigator of the Seas is packed with dining options that you’ll want to take advantage of during your three- or four-day trip. (This cruise experience is designed specifically for people who are short on time and need or want to pack two week’s worth of fun into a long weekend.)

Note that every dining venue on the ship offers gluten-free and vegetarian options, plus customizations for most dietary needs. If anything is on your mind, just tell your server. But while you wait to vacay, here are my favorite places aboard Navigator of the Seas to eat healthfully:

The Pool Deck: El Loco Fresh

One of the first things you’re going to want to do after you get on board (second only to the safety drill, of course!) is explore the pool deck and its exhilarating water slides. Work up an appetite by trying The Blaster, where five water jets propel you and a friend through more dips and drops than any other waterslide at sea, and the Riptide, the only headfirst mat racer on the ocean (with a see-through curve right off the ship!). Then head to El Loco Fresh (Deck 11), stationed next to the resort pool and splash pad and full of healthy Mexican fare. It’s buffet style, and you start with the protein—chicken, pork, or beef. You may want to skip the sour cream on top, but you won’t miss it with their tangy salsa verde.

One of my favorite things about Royal Caribbean: the crew. Everyone is friendly and ready to delight you during your stay. So I had to ask them about their favorite ways to eat healthy on-board, too. The Navigator’s art gallery director, Yuri R. from Ukraine (you’ll find each crew member’s home country on their name tag), loves El Loco Fresh too. “Tacos from El Loco Fresh are one of my top healthy choices on board Navigator of the Seas,” she says. “On most days, my ideal taco starts with a flour tortilla topped with chicken, or beans if I want to eat vegetarian. For toppings, we have a whole dedicated station that includes several salsas. I keep it simple by adding pico de gallo, cilantro, jalapeños, and a bit of lime juice. The combination of savory, spicy flavors is perfect, and I can easily grab this lunch on the go.”

Don’t miss the fresh oysters at Hooked Seafood.

Royal Caribbean

The Restaurants: Windjammer Marketplace

With 12 special dining venues on the ship, there is no one healthiest place to eat—nor would you want to limit yourself to the same locale night after night. That said, the Windjammer Marketplace (Deck 11) is complimentary and buffet style, offering the most flexibility when filling your plate. It’s also open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Choose from fresh salads, soups, sandwiches, grilled steaks, roast chickens, and seafood. The Main Dining Room (Decks 3 and 4)—while more formal—is also free of charge and offers a wide range of options for all three meals. If you’re a fan of New England style seafood, you’ll love the menu at Hooked Seafood (Deck 4). I couldn’t get enough of their fresh oysters. Antonio S., an engineer cadet from Croatia, joins me in loving the grilled salmon with veggies as an entrée. “My ideal meal is one that’s a good source of protein complemented with healthy sides—simple and light, yet filling,” he says. “Hooked Seafood, our New England-inspired restaurant on Navigator of the Seas, has one of my favorite dishes: the freshly grilled salmon with seasonal vegetables. I’ve always felt that a dish full of colorful food tends to be the healthiest. I enjoy every bite and always leave feeling full and not stuffed.”

The sushi at Izumi (Deck 14) is also some of the best I’ve ever had. Consider working a cheat day into your trip, and on that night, go family style at Jamie’s Italian By Jamie Oliver (Deck 11), followed by drinks at the Polynesian-themed Bamboo Room (Deck 5) off the promenade. Note that you can also eat there, too. Ingrid B., of guest services and from Guatemala, is a regular. “On days when I need to fuel up before work but I’m not feeling too hungry, I go for the ahi tuna poke from The Bamboo Room,” she says. “The dish is smaller than others but it’s protein-packed and full of several of my favorite flavors. It does the trick to hold me over until I can grab a quick snack on my break. Plus, these poke-filled wonton cups make the dish easy to eat and add a nice crunch.”

Grab ‘N Go: Cafe Promenade

A complimentary dining destination, Cafe Promenade (Deck 5) is the perfect place to grab a smoothie, yogurt, or veggie-packed wrap after a workout at the Fitness Center (Deck 12), a treatment at the Vitality At Sea Spa (Deck 12), or on your way out of the ship to explore for the day. Bonus: It’s open 24/7 and is close to all cabin room decks if you’re looking for a late-night snack.

Beautiful CocoCay island.

Royal Caribbean

Perfect Day at Coco Cay: Skipper’s Grill and Chill Grill

First, congratulations on booking yourself one of the most epic days ever. Good luck choosing what to do first—what with 13 waterslides (including the tallest slide in North America!), a 1,600-foot long zip line course, snorkeling, a helium balloon, and more. Around noon or so, mosey on over to Skipper’s Grill (Thrill Water Park) or Chill Grill (Chill Island), where you’ll find table after table of build-your-own-salads, healthy sandwiches and tacos, and fruits and veggies galore. Everything is free, and when you consider how many calories you’ll burn walking around these 125 acres, you should 100 percent pour a round of self-serve beer. Or do a few laps at Oasis Lagoon—the island’s largest freshwater pool—ending up at the swim-up bar for an ice-cold cocktail. There are also three Snack Shacks throughout the island.

Kid-Friendly: Johnny Rockets

Right across from El Loco Fresh (another superb kid-friendly option), is Johnny Rockets (Deck 11). While burgers and fries may not be what first comes to mind when you think “healthy,” consider the stress relieving potential of kids who aren’t whining over their broccoli and are instead happily munching on fries with ketchup! Eat the burger without the bun (or with, it won’t hurt you!) and call it a parenting win.

Stay updated on the latest science-backed health, fitness, and nutrition news by signing up for the Prevention.com newsletter here. For added fun, follow us on Instagram.

Devin Tomb Devin is Prevention.com’s executive editor and has written everything from deeply reported features to well-curated gift guides (if she does say so herself).

Source link Keto Diet Drinks

[osmw1]

Head Over Heels from the Scarf I Lent Her  Chapter 16 — Sitting Together after Shopping

what would you like to read next? suggest titles for me to translate!

“What a great shot, yes, it is! I got a snap of the cutest girl in town!”

“Don’t even think about selling it.” “Oh, fine.”

What did she mean by “fine”? Was she actually planning on selling it? Women are frightening creatures. Anyway, the four of them have sat down at a family restaurant chain famous for their low prices. Of course, it’s not going to be anywhere nearly as good as a proper restaurant, but they can at least be a little rowdier at a place like this. With so many conversations going on at once, it isn’t quiet at all.

The four of them sat down at a table; Satsuki and Akane sat together, across from Tooru and Jun. After waiting for quite a while, they finally managed to sit down and go through the menus. The three of them almost have the menus memorized, but it’s all new to Satsuki. She has read through it numerous times, seemingly as if she enjoys learning about all the different dishes.

Even right now, Akane is stealthily taking photos, causing Satsuki to blush red. It’s definitely an ongoing activity too. Tooru and Jun have long decided on what to order and are simply waiting on the two girls. Tooru’s mother could never make up her mind until the last minute either back when she would take him out for food. Reminiscing those warm, fuzzy memories, he calls out to the girls.

“I’m already good to go. Make up your mind.” “That’s right. I’m hungry! So hungry!”

Jun, with a fork and knife in his hands, begins to pump his fists. What are you, some kind of child? is what Tooru was thinking, but he spared Jun from his thoughts.

“Ōyodo, you know you look like a total child, right?”

Tooru could almost hear the knife ripping through Jun’s heart. Akane seems to only rib on Jun for some reason.

“Just like how we girls take time to pick out clothes, we take time picking food too. Isn’t that right, Satsuki!” “Hmm? Umm, right.”

Flustered by suddenly being dragged into the conversation, Satsuki half-hearted agrees to the question. Akane’s eyes gleamed as she grabs her phone again to capture the moment.

“Cuties like you are picture-perfect no matter the facial expression. So blessed!” “Umm, thank you?”

How should she even react to that? Akane moves around to capture Satsuki at different angles, but perhaps she just remembered what Tooru said, she puts down her phone and looks down at the menu. She quickly decides after a skim through.

“I’ll get the wonton noodle soup.” “How ‘bout you, Satsuki?” “The Korean stew, please.” “We’re all set then.”

Tooru press the button on the table to call the waitstaff over and leans back in his chair. Since they only shopped for Satsuki, the haul today wasn’t too big. But having to carry it all morning was certainly tiring. A shirt or a dress doesn’t weigh much, but it adds up quickly. The bag was underneath the table, dividing Tooru and Jun.

Now waiting for the food to arrive, Tooru idly checks his phone. It’s a few minutes past 1:00 PM. They arrived before 12:00 noon, so that means they had to wait for an hour to get seated. It’s the weekends, so it’s to be expected.

Maybe Akane has taken a liking to her, but she keeps badgering Satsuki with questions. It makes Satsuki uncomfortable, but she’s not avoiding her questions either. Jun fixed his gaze towards Akane, spacing out. He’s probably thinking about something, but Tooru isn’t insensitive enough to outright ask him.

“So, Tooru is a good friend of yours, hmm? Hoho, and you two have just met a month ago? Lucky you, Tooru.”

Catching the tail end of their conversation, Tooru looks over at Akane. He answers her with his elbows are on the table and arms holding up his chin.

“I’ve really gotta thank all three of you for treating me normally, even at school.” “As I’ve said, where there’s a scandal, there’s me. I know there’s more to this thing. My Akane-sense is tingling.” “You’re like some kind of anime character anime, aren’tcha?” “How rude, Jun. I’m a real human being. See? I’ve even got feet.”

As she says that, Jun yelps out in pain. Under the table was Akane’s foot and Jun’s shin. That must’ve hurt bad. Conversely, Satsuki is just blankly sitting there as if unaware of the battle going on underneath the table. Even if she knew of it, it probably wouldn’t be very funny to her either, so Tooru changes the topic.

“I didn’t know you like spicy food, Satsuki.” “Oh, I don’t have that in my notes either. So, what’s the official position?”

Seeing Akane whipping out her notepad rattled Satsuki some more and she puts her hands together.

“Yes, I do. I enjoy kimchi and chili peppers. I like to sprinkle a bit of ground cayenne on my udon to make it just a bit spicy too. “ “I see, I see. Do you like it so spicy that it burns?” “Not that extreme, but I do like spicy foods. Though I like my sweets as well.”

Oh, is that right? thought Tooru, making a mental note of it. She looked so happy eating that pudding cup last time, so he thought she only liked sweets. Satsuki hasn’t put anything spicy in their lunches either. Before their conversation finished, their waitress came by with two of the four items.

“Here you are. A wonton noodle soup and a Korean stew.”

The waitress places the stew in front of Satsuki and then the noodle soup in front of Akane. Then, she places the receipt and its holder on the table, excused herself, and quickly dashed back to the kitchen. The two girls are practically drooling over their food. Though the boys’ orders haven’t arrived yet, Tooru wouldn’t mind if the girls started first.

“Go right ahead. Dig in before it gets cold.” “Aww, no fair! My food isn’t here yet!” “What are you, a kid?” “Et tu, Tooru? I’m a big boy!”

Tooru ignores the crybaby and looks over to the girls, encouraging them to eat. Satsuki and Akane share a look with each other, giggle, and start on their meals. There is a noticeable difference in Satsuki’s reaction today compared with last time at the Italian joint.

“It’s alright.” “Yes, it’s alright.” “Well, it’s a diner chain after all.”

While patting the pouting Jun on his back, Tooru lets out a hearty chuckle. The rest of their orders soon arrive: a steak set of Tooru and a pork cutlet bowl for Jun.

“Anything else I can get for you?” “That’s it. Thanks a lot.” “Alrighty then, enjoy your meal.”

After the waitress blitzed away, the four of them resumed eating. This really does taste just alright. It’s nowhere near comparable to Satsuki’s cooking. It wasn’t long ago that he felt eating out at a diner was a treat, but now he’s used to the good life. The perpetrator sits across from him, enjoying her Korean stew; one hand holding her hair aside, the other spooning bites of food. Tooru stares at Satsuki, thinking how refined her behavior is.

“Umm… is something the matter?”

Satsuki asks Tooru as he sets his cutlery down to protest with both hands.

“O-Oh, no, not at all. You seem like you’re really enjoying it is all.” “Now, now, Tooru, you can say that you’ve been enchanted by her.” “Enchanted? … well, that’s not not the case.”

If he said no outright, surely, that would hurt her feelings. Then, Akane flashes a grin and leans over to hold Satsuki again.

“Hehe, lucky me! I get Satsuki all to myself. I bet you’re jealous, aren’t ya?” “No, I’m not! You know you can snap back at her, right, Satsuki?” “Well, I’m jealous!”

Ignoring whatever Jun shouted, Tooru looks over to Satsuki. She’s a little anxious, but her smile is still bright.

“It’s my second time to be taken out, so I’m happy, though a little flustered.” “Wait, you mean there was a first time?!” “Right, we didn’t tell you about that first time they went to the movies together.” “Two people viewing a romance film?! Isn’t that something known as a date?!”

Akane brings out her notepad and scribbles something down while Tooru scrambles to answer her.

“N-No, it’s not a date! We just went to see a movie! Nothing more!” “R-Right. That was not a date… I think.”

Satsuki follows up on Akane’s attack with a blush, forcing Tooru to jump out of the frying pan and into the fire. Now, Jun comes kicking while Tooru is down.

“That’s a date to the rest of us. I’d be asking her out already, if I were you.” “A-Asking her out?! Friends don’t do that! That’s what we are.”

Ask her out. That’s the same as a confession, isn’t it? Those words made Tooru’s heart race. It’s been three weeks since they’ve met, but he stills sees Satsuki as just a friend. Though, she has already told him that she really likes him, albeit in a seemingly casual way instead of anything weird. Still, every time he hears her say that really gets to him. But the two of them don’t know that Satsuki has said that she really likes Tooru. They probably have good intentions, but that’s exactly what the road to hell is paved with.

“Right? You think of me as a friend, right?”

He meant to indirectly, casually ask her, but somehow that slipped out. For a moment, Satsuki looked very troubled, but she hid her embarrassment by looking downwards. Tooru was worried that he inadvertently hurt her, but she seemed fine. Satsuki looked back up and at the three of them.

“Right. Tooru is my friend.”

Satsuki flatly responding like that was probably the worst thing that happened to Jun and Akane. Tooru, though, oddly laughs out loud.

“See? We’re just friends.” “Damn it all! I was going to use all this intel I’ve gathered to set you two up together!”

Akane resentfully cries out, but Tooru ignores her. Instead, he focuses on his now cold steak.

what would you like to read next? suggest titles for me to translate!

contents: /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /ch007/ /ch008/ /ch009/ /ch010/ /ch011/ /ch012/ ch013/ /ch014/ /ch015/ /ch016/ /next/

(how about a tip for me?)

[meepface]

i’ve had a weird day so far and doing this is purely for distraction purposes just ignore me

1) What images do you have set for your desktop/cell phone wallpapers?

home screen

and my lock screen is my gf

2) Have you ever had a crush on a teacher?

oooohhh yeah. one of my first super gay crushes was on my 7th grade english & composition teacher Ms. Lawrence. i just recently unadded her on facebook bc i thought it was weird that i had her added but i’m a lil sad i did it bc that was a big ol phase of my life and i liked her soooo much ya know. i also had a big crush on this dorky geography/tennis/psychology teacher Mr. Whittlesey. he was so cute and goofy i love that man

3) What was your last text message?

i was offering to drive over to visit a friend and bring her comfort food bc her and her fiance just broke up :(

4) What do you see yourself doing in 10 years?

uhh i don’t really think that far ahead but hopefully i am happy and have a stable job and hopefully i’m with the person who i’m planning on spending forever with and i have a nice lil place. maybe i’ve even finally moved out of texas by then

5) If you could be anywhere else right now, where would you be?

honestly the mountains would be really nice. i really miss em and they make me feel really happy n peaceful and idk if my family and i are going to get to go or not this summer

6) What was your coolest Halloween costume?

idk one year i wrote “life” on a shirt and went around handing people lemons all night which was Extra as hell but it was also sort of iconic

7) What was your favorite 90s show?

friends

8) Who was your last kiss?

my gf

9) Have you ever been stood up?

no i don’t believe so

10) Favorite ice cream flavor?

mint chocolate chip

11) Have you been to Las Vegas?

no but my parents have been WITHOUT my brother and i!! i would love to go at least one time though

12) Your favorite pair of shoes?

i like my vans they’re comfy

13) Honestly, have you ever cheated on your significant other?

no, that is one thing i would never do. esp since it was done to me and even though our relationship hadn’t been that serious, it still sucked 

14) What is your favorite fruit?

watermelon and peaches and apricots

15) Have you talked to anyone on tumblr that you could see yourself dating/having sex with? If possible?

honestly? i maybe could’ve seen myself dating a few people here but only if they were here in person with me lol i'm not interested in online relationships at all so

16) Are you into hookups? Short or long term relationships?

long term relationships i ain’t tryna mess around rn

17) Do you smoke? If so, what?

i don’t but i would like to smoke weed at least once in my life just to experience it ya know

18) What do you do to get over your anger?

sing really loudly to music in my car until i am Tired or just vent on my private sideblog

19) Do you believe in God?

i’m sure there’s something out there but who knows what

20) Does the person you’re in love with know it?

yes

21) Favorite position?

laying the fuck down

22) What’s your horoscope sign?

aries

23) Your fears?

settling for less than i deserve or want just bc being happy requires work that seems scary or difficult or would hurt someone, scorpions, the ocean, walking sticks, horses, never being enough for anyone, not finding stability in my life

24) How many pets do you have? What kind?

i have four dogs named Sophie, Millie, Rusty Bob and Joey

25) What never fails to turn you on?

gettin soft kisses on my stomach n hips

26) Your idea of a perfect first date?

we do some sort of fun activity together, we have a nice dinner and maybe chill in our cars after and talk n maybe kiss a bunch depending on how the date went

27) What is something most people don’t know about you?

i can sing kinda well ?? maybe not anymore it’s been a while since i have but i used to be in musical theatre and they wanted me to be a lead role in the musical but i was too much of a pussy and i didn’t

28) What makes you feel the happiest?

having fun bein surrounded by people i love, also when dogs are so happy to see you that their tails wag their whole butt

29) What store do you shop at most often?

probably forever 21 or h&m bc i’m all about affordable clothing that’s semi-cute

30) How do you feel about oral? Giving and/or receiving?

i’m down for both 

31) Do you believe in karma?

sure

32) Are you single?

nope

33) Do you think flowers or candy are a better way to apologize?

“i’m sorry, i understand that this hurt you and i understand why and i will work on not doing this again in the future” followed by actually working on not doing that again in the future is the better way to apologize, actually

34) Are you a good swimmer?

eh i’m okay

35) Coffee or Tea?

coffee

36) Online shopping or shopping in person?

in person 

37) Would you rather be older or younger than your current age?

i kinda like being 20 i think it’s nice to be right in the middle

38) Cats or Dogs?

dogs

39) Are you a competitive person?

in mario kart maybe but generally no

40) Do you believe in aliens?

yes!!!!!!!!!!!!

41) Do you like dancing?

yes but i’m no good at it

42) What kind of music to you listen to?

i like upbeat alternative music generally

43) What is your favorite cartoon character?

eeyore

44) Where are you from?

texas unfortunately

45) Eat at home or eat out?

idk my dad’s home cooked meals have gotten pretttttty good but if i can’t have whatever he’s making then i wanna eat out

46) How much more social are you when you’re drunk?

i’m definitely more talkative and i laugh out loud a lot more

47) What was the last thing you bought for yourself?

i bought myself a meal last night but today i’m gonna go out and buy myself some shorts and a bikini so i’m hyped for that

48) Why do you think your followers follow you?

probably from when i blogged about youtubers back in the day, also i hosted these selfie party things and shared everyone’s selfies to boost their confidence and so many people followed me bc of those

49) How many hours do you sleep at night?

not enough

50) What worries you most about the future?

not finding stability in what i want to do and not doing what i want and what would make me happy just bc it would be challenging

51) If you had a friend that spoke to you the same way you speak to yourself, how long would you be friends?

i’m learnin a whoooole lot of self love so maybe we’d be friends a lil longer than i would’ve been if you’d asked me this in like, february 

52) Are you happy with yourself?

i mean? i’m happy with where i’ve come. definitely could improve but ya know. baby steps

53) What do you wish you didn’t know?

there’s too many things i wish i didn’t know to be honest

54) What big lesson could people learn from your life?

puttin other people first too much only makes you know and love yourself less

55) If you could live in any home on a television series, what would it be?

the loft from New Girl

56) What’s your favorite Website?

runescape 

57) What’s the habit you’re proudest of breaking?

getting rid of this fb account i had and then also this private twitter account i had that i sorta used to vent and also overshare too much lmao

58) What was your most recent trip of more than 50 miles?

i went to NYC before christmas last year!! my family and i are hoping we’ll be able to go to Washington this year 

59) What’s the best bargain you’ve ever found at a garage sale or thrift store?

probably my mug that says “i’m too sexy to be 60″ that i bought for like $2

60) What do you order when you eat Chinese food?

i reaaaaally like kung pao chicken but sometimes i like to get sweet and sour or sesame chicken and then i’ll get wonton soup and eggrolls and white rice and sometimes edamame ooooo my god

61) If you had to be named after one of the 50 states, which would it be?

idaho just so i could call myself a ho all the time

62) If you had to teach a subject to a class, what would it be?

psychology or cinematography

63) Favorite kind of chips?

lays limón chips

64) Favorite kind of sandwich?

i really like the new york italian sandwich from Thundercloud 

65) Which do you use more often, the dictionary or the thesaurus?

dictionary probably??

66) Have you ever been stung by a bee?

nope but one time i was carrying a balloon and a bee came up and stung my balloon and died and i was like oh

67) What’s your favorite form of exercise?

just goin for a walk is nice

68) Are you afraid of heights?

not heights but falling lmao

69) What’s the most memorable class you’ve ever taken?

probably my film class junior year of high school. i was part of the school’s daily announcement team and we made intros for it based off of popular TV shows and we did this whole project about drinking and driving and my teacher was so great and i had a crush on every single boy in that class

70) What’s your favorite breakfast?

i love breakfast tacos

71) Do you like guacamole?

yes

72) Have you ever been in a physical fight?

i punched a girl in kindergarten but she didn’t hit me back and i pushed a kid over in spy camp in like fourth grade but he didn’t fight me back and i shoved a really stoned guy in a pit at a concert two years ago bc he was being a dick but he was too stoned to fight me back so what i’m saying is i sort of have tried to start a fight but nobody has taken one for the team and kicked my ass yet

73) What/who are you thinking about right now?

i’m thinking about how today sorta sucks but i feel like, too sad to go out and hang out with someone and do something about it so i am just going to stay here. maybe i will eat soon if i can get myself out of bed lol

74) Do you like cuddling?

it’s my faaaaavorite

75) Are you holding onto something you need to let go of?

yeah

76) Have you ever experienced one of your biggest fears?

yeah lol 

77) Favorite city you’ve been to?

hmm i really really liked Hood River, Oregon but probably mostly bc of the people i knew there and everything making it special. i loved Columbus, Ohio for that same reason too. i thought Ohio was gorgeous. i also loved Flagstaff, Arizona just because it was beautiful and quaint and i would love to go back

78) Would you break the law to save a family member?

depends on the family member

79) Talk about an embarrassing moment?

just a few weeks ago i was in my summer class and we had about 10 minutes until we got out and it’s like 1 so i was starving and ready for lunch so i was looking at my food options in the area and next thing i knew Siri screams into my quiet classroom “starting route to Raising Cane’s”, and everybody laughed and my teacher was Annoyed. and then when we finally got out i thought everybody had moved on and then the guy who sat next to me, WHO HAD NEVER SPOKEN TO ME ONCE, goes “have fun at Raising Cane’s!”

80) Are there any causes you strongly believe in?

anything to do with women/POC/LGBTQIA+ rights 

81) What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?

one time i was showin off on my razor scooter while zoomin down a steep hill and i fell off and got scars all over my body and a young girl witnessed it but didn’t say anything or do anything she just left me layin there and crying on the pavement 

82) Favorite day of the week?

thursday is nice

83) Do you consider yourself sexually open minded?

uhh i mean yeah i guess

84) How do you feel about porn?

i feel like it gives you really false expectations about what sex is going to be like when people watch too much of it

85) Which living celebrity would you like to know?

i’d like to be good ol pals with Mamrie Hart still

86) Who was your hottest ex?

my exes were all ugly

87) Do you want/have kids?

i think i would like kids at some point. at least one

88) Has anyone ever told you that they wanted to marry you?

yes

89) Do you get easily distracted?

yes sometimes

90) Ass or titties?

titties

91) What is your favorite word?

serendipity

92) How do you feel about tattoos?

i have three and i love em. go for it pal

93) Do you have any pets?

i have four dogs

94) How tall are you?

5′7

95) How old are you?

20

96) 3 physical features you get complimented on a lot?

my hair, my eyes, my stomach

97) Is there anything you’re really passionate about?

yes i am v passionate about supporting other women!!!! and also about trying to be kind to everyone the most you can be bc i hear so many people spout rude things about people they don’t even know (esp when driving) and it’s like stop and listen to yourself lmao

98) Do you have trust issues?

a little bit but i’m trying to be more open and it hasn’t hurt me yet so

99) Do you believe in love at first sight?

absolutely not. that’s called infatuation

100) What are some words that you live by? Why?

two quotes: “anything that costs your peace is too expensive” and “let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier”.

i think the first one is important because i have a tendency of putting myself through a lot of shit to make other people happy and then i’m really unhappy and it’s just not a good way to live. i am really trying to learn this one. and the second one i think is important because being good to other people is a very important thing and i think you never know when somebody else needs that 

[stonequake]

This is what I do hwen I’m bored

1.Who was the last person you held hands with? this answer would normally be my boyfriend but oddly enough it is a random boy in the pit at billy talent who just held hands with me during a song i cried a little

2. Are you outgoing or shy? pretty shy

3. Who are you looking forward to seeing? my boyfriend tomorrow, my best friend soon

4. Are you easy to get along with? usually

5. If you were drunk would the person you like take care of you? I’m usually the one taking care of people even when I’m drunk

6. What kind of people are you attracted to? weirdos, very emotive people, sincere, thoughtful, artsy, quiet, contemplative people, alternative ppl

7. Do you think you’ll be in a relationship two months from now? yes

8. Who from the opposite gender is on your mind? from the opposite gender? bob ross

9. Does talking about sex make you uncomfortable? not really talking about it

10. Who was the last person you had a deep conversation with? cale

11. What does the most recent text that you sent say? “ *flap* :( “

12. What are your 5 favorite songs right now? damn uh if I had to split-second choose: -  something weird by awful din

fuck shit up by ghost mice

good enough by tiny moving parts

common cold also by tiny moving parts

carjack by greys

13. Do you like it when people play with your hair? oh fuck yes

14. Do you believe in luck and miracles? I don’t believe in it but my brain often makes me act on it

15. What good thing happened this summer? i can’t even remember last month

16. Would you kiss the last person you kissed again? fuck no, unless we’re counting the little one I gave cale, then of course

17. Do you think there is life on other planets? of course

18. Do you still talk to your first crush? I don’t think I ever even talked to my first crush I was like 7

19. Do you like bubble baths? ya

20. Do you like your neighbours? she abuses her dogs

21. What are you bad habits? I have so many, washing my hands is probably one of them, staying up too late

22. Where would you like to travel? everywhere fr

23. Do you have trust issues? I don’t think in that way

24. Favorite part of your daily routine? doin my makeup

25. What part of your body are you most uncomfortable with? I’m pretty comfortable with my body nowadays, probably my nose or teeth

26. What do you do when you wake up? go on my phone, piss, eat cereal

27. Do you wish your skin was lighter or darker? i wish it wasn’t so blotchy

28. Who are you most comfortable around? cale

29. Have any of your ex’s told you they regret breaking up? uh

30. Do you ever want to get married? idk

31. If your hair long enough for a pony tail? yea

32. Which celebrities would you have a threesome with? ummm évelyne brochu and hugh dancy

33. Spell your name with your chin. elkhyxd

34. Do you play sports? What sports? I swim and ski

35. Would you rather live without TV or music? I already live without TV

36. Have you ever liked someone and never told them? who has not

37. What do you say during awkward silences? nothing

38. Describe your dream girl/guy? cool

39. What are your favorite stores to shop in? uh west 49 and like, winners

40. What do you want to do after high school? I’m not in high school and i’m doing nothing basically

41. Do you believe everyone deserves a second chance? generally

42. If your being extremely quiet what does it mean? nothing unusual

43. Do you smile at strangers? yes

44. Trip to outer space or bottom of the ocean? space

45. What makes you get out of bed in the morning? the fact that dad got milk last night so I can have cereal

46. What are you paranoid about? like everything. catching sickness especially

47. Have you ever been high? yea

48. Have you ever been drunk? yea

49. Have you done anything recently that you hope nobody finds out about? not /nobody/

50. What was the colour of the last hoodie you wore? black like my emo ass

51. Ever wished you were someone else? ya

52. One thing you wish you could change about yourself? my functioning, how I dissociate, make my voice stronger thats 3

53. Favourite makeup brand? low end is either nyx or elf, high end is too faced

54. Favourite store? #39

55. Favourite blog? qckdn

56. Favourite colour? grey or maroon

57. Favourite food? man idk, shrimp tacos maybe

58. Last thing you ate? wonton soup

59. First thing you ate this morning? cereal ?!

60. Ever won a competition? For what? can;t remember

61. Been suspended/expelled? For what? no

62. Been arrested? For what?n o

63. Ever been in love? yes

64. Tell us the story of your first kiss? can’t even remember

65. Are you hungry right now? nah

66. Do you like your tumblr friends more than your real friends? I don’t even really have tumblr friends

67. Facebook or Twitter? neither

68. Twitter or Tumblr? tumblr

69. Are you watching tv right now? no

70. Names of your best friends? pat and mat and cat

71. Craving something? What? death lol

72. What colour are your towels? most of them are shades of blue

72. How many pillows do you sleep with? two

73. Do you sleep with stuffed animals? yes

74. How many stuffed animals do you think you have? on my bed, like TEN

75. Favourite animal? I love penguins and bats and foxes and owls

76. What colour is your underwear? I think lilac

77. Chocolate or Vanilla? choc

78. Favourite ice cream flavour? bublegum

79. What colour shirt are you wearing? black :-(

80. What colour pants? grey

81. Favourite tv show? hannibal

82. Favourite movie? mmm idk spiderman

83. Mean Girls or Mean Girls 2? 1

84. Mean Girls or 21 Jump Street? 21 js

85. Favourite character from Mean Girls? uh idk the weird gay one

86. Favourite character from Finding Nemo? that stoner sea turtle

87. First person you talked to today? cale

88. Last person you talked to today? ^

89. Name a person you hate? shae!

90. Name a person you love? cale

91. Is there anyone you want to punch in the face right now? yeah

92. In a fight with someone? no

93. How many sweatpants do you have? 1

94. How many sweaters/hoodies do you have? lots

95. Last movie you watched? tangled lol

96. Favourite actress? anna sophia robb or évelyne brochu

97. Favourite actor? mads mikkelson, hugh dancy tbh.

98. Do you tan a lot? ha! no.

99. Have any pets? :——(

100. How are you feeling? sleepy, paranoid

101. Do you type fast? yea

102. Do you regret anything from your past? of course

103. Can you spell well? yes

104. Do you miss anyone from your past? yes

105. Ever been to a bonfire party? yes

106. Ever broken someone’s heart? yes

107. Have you ever been on a horse? no thanks

108. What should you be doing? sleeping

109. Is something irritating you right now? yes

110. Have you ever liked someone so much it hurt? my boy c-dawg

111. Do you have trust issues? ?

112. Who was the last person you cried in front of? calé

113. What was your childhood nickname? elile, el, zach

114. Have you ever been out of your province/state? yes

115. Do you play the Wii? oh yeah

116. Are you listening to music right now? yeah

117. Do you like chicken noodle soup? yeah

118. Do you like Chinese food? yeah

119. Favourite book? hm, idk

120. Are you afraid of the dark? no

121. Are you mean? oh yeah

122. Is cheating ever okay? no i don’t think

123. Can you keep white shoes clean? i can’t keep any shoes clean :\

124. Do you believe in love at first sight? no

125. Do you believe in true love? not the usual concept of ir

126. Are you currently bored? thats why I’m doing this

127. What makes you happy? my boyfriend, being in the pit, playing piano, hugging dogs, being downtown at night, warm snowy days, sleeping on the bus, looking at the stars, being underwater

128. Would you change your name? i don’t think so

129. What your zodiac sign? virgo

130. Do you like subway? ya

131. Your bestfriend of the opposite sex likes you, what do you do? yo that’s something I’m trying to figure out rn

132. Who’s the last person you had a deep conversation with? cale

133. Favourite lyrics right now? if i haven’t had a good dream in about ten years are my dark days coming or are they here

134. Can you count to one million? why would i

135. Dumbest lie you ever told? I always lie

136. Do you sleep with your doors open or closed? closed

137. How tall are you? 5'2

138. Curly or Straight hair? I like when my hair isn’t straightened

139. Brunette or Blonde? i’m blonde, i like both

140. Summer or Winter? winter

141. Night or Day? night

142. Favourite month? october maybe

143. Are you a vegetarian? no, i don’t eat much meat

144. Dark, milk or white chocolate? white

145. Tea or Coffee? tea

146. Was today a good day? eh

147. Mars or Snickers? mars

148. What’s your favourite quote? i like a lot of quotes

149. Do you believe in ghosts? idk

150. Get the closest book next to you, open it to page 42, what’s the first line

“ the old woman came in” quality bukowski