#asking for rum before 5pm

[cowshampoo]

I texted my aunt spark asking if i could use some of her run for a drink 'cause I'm making some spiced hot cocoa later as a treat and I think the rum will go well with it and it just occurred to me that. It's not even 5pm yet. oops.

[rachiekiszka]

Getting to Know You

Jake Kiszka x Female Reader, 18+

Warnings- Unprotected Sex

Word Count- 2.4k

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You hated the winter. The cold air that stung as the wind whipped against your cheeks. Scraping the ice off your car early in the morning. The way the sun sinks below the horizon before 5pm. It was especially bad after the blur of the holidays had passed. The days drag by one by one as you ponder your decision to live in the state of Michigan over somewhere where it stays warm year round. On this Friday in January you sat alone at the bar. You were waiting for a friend to meet you for a couple drinks, but Sadie was running late as usual. You sighed as you tried to catch the bartender's attention, already on your second drink of the night. But you were distracted by a group of boys entering the bar very loudly, laughing amongst themselves. You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at their conspicuous entrance, though you had to admit they were cute. You watched them claim their place at a pool table in the corner, and one of them came forward to the bar, to order all their drinks you presumed. Your eyes scanned his body as he walked up to the bar. He wasn’t very tall, but taller than you. His hair was long and brushed the tops of his shoulders. He noticed you staring as he walked up next to you to order drinks.

“Shit” you whispered under your breath.

“Hi, can I get 4 beers?” He said, nodding towards the group in the corner. “You can open up a tab for us under my name” he continued, handing the bartender his card.

You felt a blush rise in your cheeks as he turned to face you, a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth.

“I’m Jake”

“Oh uh, y/n” you responded hesitantly.

“Do you usually drink alone on a Friday night?” Jake asked, his tone teasing.

“No actually, I was waiting for my friend but she’s running kinda late.”

Suddenly you weren’t sure wether you wanted Sadie to show up at all. You wanted to keep talking to Jake.

“Well,” Jake began “you’re welcome to come hang out with me and the guys.”

You mulled it over for a moment eventually deciding that in the end you’d make a fool of yourself. You didn’t even know how to play pool and Jake was incredibly attractive, so were his friends.

“I think I’ll just wait for her here if that’s ok” you answered with a small smile.

“Well at least let me buy you a drink” Jake replied, and you couldn’t help but notice how his face fell at your answer. He motioned to the bartender, “anything she wants, put it on my tab”. Then he took the beers, rejoining his group in the back.

The bartender now looked at you expectantly.

“Oh um, I’ll have another rum and Coke please”

Your phone rang, seeing it was Sadie you stepped outside to answer away from the noise of the bar.

“Y/n I am so sorry!” Sadie began through the phone. “Someone called out of work at the last minute and they asked me to stay” She paused waiting for your response.

“It’s ok Sadie. Actually there’s kinda.. this guy I have my eye on”

“I’m on break for 5 more minutes, spill”

“We’ll his name is Jake, and he’s so hot Sadie, I mean like long hair pretty face, exactly my type. He bought me a drink and offered for me to go sit with him and his friends but I said I was waiting for you. I’m worried I’ll embarrass myself.” It was true that you’d been out of the dating game for a while. Your last relationship had ended badly and that was just over a year ago.

“Well I can’t be your excuse anymore, just go talk to him! Get back out there!”

“Ok, ok. I will” you were already blushing at the idea of talking to Jake.

As you walked back into the bar, the bartender handed you the rum and Coke you had asked for. You took a sip turning to face the back where Jake was sitting. He looked up at you holding eye contact as you approached him. The feeling made you squirm.

“Hey y/n, coming to join us after all?”

“Well my schedule just cleared up, so I guess so” you replied with false confidence. 

“Let me introduce you,” Jake began. “These are my brothers, Josh and Sam, and that’s our friend Danny”.

“Twin brother actually!” Josh piped in.

You considered his appearance for a moment. They definitely had different hairstyles which made them look distinct from a distance, but now that you were standing closer you could see that they really did have the same face.

“So y/n, do you play pool?” Asked Sam, giving you a smile.

“Honestly, not really.”

“That’s ok,” said Jake coming up behind you, “We can be a team, you’re up first.”

Jake stood back and watched you struggle for a moment before coming up behind you and placing his hands over yours, his chest flat to your back. You held your breath as you relished in the feeling for a moment. It was like an electric shock went through your body.

“Hold it just like this” Jake  whispered, his lips brushing against your ear. “Aim, pull back, and then let it fly.”

You tried to keep a straight face despite the goosebumps you felt raise on your arm. You did as he said,  but missed the ball completely as the pool cue slipped through your fingers.

Laughing, Jake commented “you’ll get it next time butterfingers.”

And you couldn’t help but laugh back.

You were having fun, genuine fun. You haven’t felt like this in a long time. Not since your ex Brian had broken up with you.

You and Jake were winning the game, more his doing than yours,  but you managed to get one ball in. When you had Jake had given you a big smile and a high five. You wished in that moment that he had kissed you instead.

Jake went up to the bar to get another round and you sat quietly watching Josh, Sam, and Danny argue over which Stephen Stills album was the best.

Your good mood was ruined when you began to look around the bar and made eye contact with the last person you wanted to see, Brian. You barely had time to confirm what you saw before your feet were carrying you towards the door and out of the bar.

You sat down on the curb in the cold. Silent tears rolled down your cheeks. You wanted to call Sadie and tell her everything but you were having trouble forming words. You heard the door to the bar open and shut.

“You didn’t think you could get away that easy did you?” You heard Jake tease as he walked up behind you, taking a seat next to you on the curb. He turned to face you, realizing that you were crying.

“Y/n, hey,” he said, his voice soft. “Are you ok? What happened in there?”

You locked eyes as you thought about how to answer his question.

“I-I um, I ran into my ex. Well not so much ran into I just saw him across the bar. Oh god you probably think I’m an idiot we broke up over a year ago but It didn’t end well and believe me he’s a dick and he just made me feel so- “

You were cut off by the feeling of Jake’s lips on yours. Gentle, and hesitant. You pulled away and you could tell that he was nervous, not knowing how you would respond or if he should have kissed you. You assuage his worries by kissing him again, deepening it this time. His hands found their way up to your cheeks. You felt safe with Jake, comfortable. He pulled away again and looked into your eyes, rubbing his thumbs across your cheek gently.

“Y/n I don’t care what happened with him, you deserve better. I’d like to take you home, if you’ll let me. “

You nodded in agreement, “take me home”.

You followed Jake to his car, feeling giddy with excitement, the same electric feeling flooding through your veins as you had felt earlier that night.

He drove you back to his apartment, one hand on your thigh tracing small circles with his thumb. You had to bite your lip to keep quiet. It had been a while since you last had sex and you were already soaking wet just from the small amount of contact. You pulled into the driveway of his apartment and suddenly got nervous. Jake noticed the shift in your demeanor and looked at you with a soft smile.

“Hey, no pressure. We can just talk if you want. Get to know each other better.”

You smiled back, “No it’s ok, really, I want this.”

Jake led you inside, wasting no time once he got the door closed, pushing you up against the wall of his dark apartment. His hands rested on either side of your head, his knee spreading your legs open. He began kissing your neck, causing you to draw in a sharp breath. His hands toyed with the hem of your shirt asking for permission. You nodded in agreement and helped him to pull it off over your head. Jake paused for a moment, eyes tracing over your bra, before placing hungry kisses along the swell of your breasts. You couldn’t help but moan in response, beginning to unbutton his shirt. Jake helped you, undoing the last few buttons and letting the shirt fall from his shoulders. You stared at his naked torso, taking in his body.

“Jake, you’re so fucking hot”

“So are you y/n” he said with a chuckle. Dragging his fingers up your thigh.

He noticed you watching his fingers intently, and gave you a playful smirk.

“Need something, y/n?”

You nodded your head quickly, wanting his fingers to rise higher up your leg, you were soaking wet and desperate for him to touch you.

“Use your words y/n, I want that pretty mouth of yours to tell me what you need”

“Please Jake, touch me” it came out breathy and even more desperate than you had wanted to sound.

“Good girl.” Jake said, moving his hands up over your heat, pulling your panties aside and running his fingers through your slick. You had never been so glad to be wearing a skirt. He groaned, “already so wet for me, so fucking sexy”.

Jake slipped a finger inside you, causing you to cry out in a mixture of pleasure and relief. He quickly added a second finger, pumping in and out of you at an excruciating pace, catching your G spot expertly each time. You could already feel your orgasm building, legs growing weak. Jake sensed your predicament and stopped, pulling his hand away. You whimpered slightly at the loss of contact.

“Relax y/n, I’m not done with you yet. Come lay on my bed for me good girl, I want you to finish first.”

He led you in his bedroom, pushing you down on his bed. You noticed his growing erection through his pants and could already tell that he was well endowed. You couldn’t wait to feel him inside of you. Jake knelt at the foot of the bed, fully removing your panties, and resuming where he had left off. As his fingers pumped in and out of you, he began to lick and suck on your clit with his mouth. He swirled his tongue expertly with just the right amount of pressure.  You began to feel your orgasm build for the second time that night,  you were practically seeing stars.

“Jake I- I think I…”

“It’s ok baby girl, cum for me, please.”

With jakes words you quickly fell over the edge into an intense orgasm. He removed his fingers, covered in your wetness and brought them up to your mouth. You dutifully licked them clean, maintaining eye contact.

“It’s your turn” you said, finding a newfound confidence post orgasm. “I want to make you feel good too”

You undid jakes belt and pulled down his jeans, and then his boxers, setting his erection free. You wasted no time in taking his length into your mouth, using your hands to aid you. You paid special attention to the tip of his cock, licking around it in a circular motion, causing Jake to throw his head back in pleasure.

“Y/n let me fuck you now, please, I want to finish inside you”

You removed your mouth from his length, leaving back on the pillows and spreading your legs for him. He ran himself up and down your folds for a moment, causing you to shudder as he reached your clit.

“Jake please, please fuck me.” You cried out, needing to feel him inside you as soon as possible.

At your request he slammed into you, causing you to moan in both shock and delight. He was every bit as big as he looked and the way he filled you up was intoxicating. He began to thrust in and out of you at an agonizingly slow rate, causing you to buck your hips up into him. He responded by placing a hand on your hip, holding you down. You knew from the force of his thumb on your hip you would have a bruise in the morning, but you didn’t care.

“Please Jake..” you mumbled “faster”

He sped up for you, taking his thumb and rubbing it over your clit at the same time, eliciting a long string of expletives from your mouth. He only Moaned in response, you could tell your reaction only spurred him on. You could feel yourself close to orgasm again, your emotions running high.

“Jake I’m going to cum again, please I want you to cum with me”

Jake nodded, picking up the pace. You could tell he was close, but you weren’t sure how much you could take. Giving in, you reached your high, finishing with Jake inside you. This caused Jake to reach his high as well, releasing deep inside of you. You watched his face as he came, dripping in sweat, his hair falling softly around his face. He was beautiful.

After a moment Jake pulled out of you. Rolling over he pulled you against him, spooning you.

“Well y/n, that was one hell of a way to get to know you.”

[moral-turpitudes]

Silver Linings: Part 3

Masterlist | Rules | Peaky Prompts 

Trigger Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Swearing.

Word Count: 1,931

Characters: Alfie Solomons x Adopted Daughter!Reader + Michael Gray x Alfie’s Adopted Daughter!Reader

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | *Part 4* | Part 5

As Y/N put the last of her furniture in the living room, she heard the new phone ring. Running over and picking it up with an exhausted hello.

“I know we got off on a bad foot love, but I’m gonna need you to be careful. That blinder Michael, ya know the one I’ve been meeting for the last month? He’s been shot.” Alfie said, nonchalantly.

“No....” She said, tears welling up in her eyes as she sniffled lightly. The feeling of a lump forming in her throat as she tried to swallow the news.

“Are you crying? You don’t know the lad anyways right? He’s in surgery that’s all I know. Got shot by that damn mafia who’s been causing us problems.” He said.

“I do know him....Where is he? Where’s the rest of Mr. Shelby’s men?” She asked, frantically wiping the tears away.

“Fuck. Y/N is he the one? Is he the one you’ve been with? You could’ve been killed!” He said angrily.

“I know dad, please just tell me where he is....I-I know you’re upset and I know the blinders will be too. I should’ve never came out from the back when they stopped by but god damn it I was trying to do my job and trying to live for myself for once. If you had a shred of decency you’d understand that...now where is he?!” She yelled back, her voice echoing through her rather empty apartment.

“At that hospital in London. I’ll take ya.” He said, she could hear the commotion in the background of his shop as he spoke.

“Okay. Please don’t make this worse than it is. You have a way of doing that.” She said harshly, hanging up the phone and grabbing another bottle of rum she’d stolen from work.

She took a long swig and sat in one of the chairs she’d bought, thinking about the man she just started seeing, hoping he’d be alright. The thoughts of all the worst-case scenarios running through her mind as she downed another sip, the large clock on the wall near her reading nearly 5pm. Her nerves were frazzled from all the moving and the waiting. Her eyes flickering from the phone to the clock every 5 minutes. Yet a loud honking noise soon ripped her from her thoughts as she saw it was her father. She knew he’d find her address eventually. Not knowing he’d find it that quick, unless he threatened her poor driver.

Despite their arguing, Alfie still opened the door for her to get in, silently driving them through the busy streets as she gazed out the window. Tears slowly falling down her cheeks as she watched the sky grow darker as they drove on.

“Look, I don’t know what will happen after they meet ya but make sure you have your gun on ya. You have it don’t you?” He asked after a long silence, his words the opposite of comforting.

“Always, dad.” She said, wiping her tears away.

“If they don’t decide to kill us for hiding ya all these years, they’ll probably try to because you were a risk to that Michael fellow. Beautiful girl such as yourself is always a risk.” He said.

“That why I don’t have a mum? You’re too scared of taking risks?” She remarked, not really caring anymore if the blinders knew of her or not.

“Nah, I think you know well enough that I’ve got a mean mug no one would take two glances at. Besides, me last love got killed. But life goes on I suppose.” He said, looking on as his lit cigar slowly burnt away.

“You’ll find someone. Maybe it’ll be a blinder lady.” She said with a smirk, finally feeling like they were back to their normal banter for a moment.

“If I do ever fall for one of them, do me a favor and dig my hole will ya?” He asked, chuckling.

“Sure will.” She said, her smile slowly fading as they neared the hospital.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want it to make you angry...and didn’t want you to fight them.” She said.

“Love, we fight no matter the situation. If there’s ever a day I’m not yelling at Thomas fucking Shelby then assume that’s the day the world is ending.” He said, getting out of the car with his cane in hand.

As they walked in, they heard Esme crying and running out of the morgue, the blood still fresh on her hands as she ran out past them.

Thomas came out with a lit cigarette in his mouth, an angry-yet saddened look to his eyes.

“Alfie...why are you here aye? Just lost John. Now I’m waiting to hear if I lost Michael.” He said, not taking much notice to the younger girl near her large-framed father.

“I came here to check on the lad. Actually, she came here to check on him.” He said, motioning towards her.

Y/N nervously looked at the man, his blue eyes piercing hers as he examined her like a wolf stalking it’s prey.

“Aye well who are you Ms.? Some whore he fucked?” He asked bluntly.

“Well, actually mate...that’s my fucking daughter. Her names Y/N. Now...she’s actually a lovely woman and she wanted to be here for him cuz they’ve been dating for uh how long?” He asked turning to her.

“About a month so far.” She said crossing her arms and staring the rude gang leader down.

“As she said, about a month. They’ve been dating right under both our fucking noses now what do you think of that aye? Young love never ceases to amaze me I tell ya.” He said, a slightly crazed look in his eye as he towered over Thomas.

“How long have you had a daughter Alfie? You weren’t going to tell me aye?” He asked.

“My brain’s not what is used to be since ya shot me in the face, but uh I’d say ‘round 5 years now. Adopted her from that orphanage near Camden Town. What...you don’t think I’m good at hiding stuff? I’ve had her working in the shops and all that for years and ya never fucking knew.” He said, adjusting his tallit which was draped over his shoulders.

“And bruva, I never fucking told you because I knew one day she’d get hurt if she ever knew ya. And here we are.” He said, flicking his cigar on the ground and stomping it out. Thomas clenched his jaw and looked away, his eyes focusing back on the girl.

“How’d you meet Michael? It surely wasn’t when any of us were around.” Thomas asked, gesturing vaguely. Y/N took a deep breath before speaking, trying to think of the best response to the rude gang leader.

“It was when everyone was around. None of you had the sense to see it though. When you first came in I saw him as I snuck through the shop. We exchanged names, ya know, like what normal people do. And now we’re here of all fucking places.” She said, looking down the hall at the operating room.

“Did you know they were after him? Did he act suspicious?” He asked.

“Jesus christ, why am I being interrogated? You do business with my father not me.” She said.

“Anyone who knows my family is of my concern. That now includes you. He’s been seeing you whenever he’s not with us. What has he told you?” He asked.

“Nothing. He hasn’t really talked about anything. I just know he’s with you lot and that’s it. I swear.” She said, giving him an annoyed look. She wanted to run off, not liking the man within a few seconds of meeting him.

“Mr. Shelby?” A nurse asked from the hall, cutting the tension that filled the room.

“Yeah?” He asked, turning around to face the nurse.

“He’s out of surgery, you...and your guests can see him now.” She said, walking back to her desk.

“We’re your guests? It’s a fucking honor mate. Let’s go shall we?” Alfie asked, never ceasing to pull Thomas’ leg.

All three of them walked in, Michael lying there with his chest bandaged along with his arm where another bullet hit. His face pale and tired as he sat up.

“You made it another day Michael....would you like to tell me what exactly happened?” Thomas asked, his cousins eyes slowly resting on his.

“I did as you asked, warned John and Esme...then his mafia men pulled up in hay covered cars. I shoved Esme inside and John got his shotgun ready...” He said, wincing through breaths.

“Then they shot through him with machine guns. The bullets that hit him, hit me, and a few others flew by. That’s all I remember.” He said, not noticing Y/N in the room nor her father in the corner as his grogginess wore off.

“Alright, well I’ll leave you two be. Alfie let’s have a talk shall we?” He said, going outside to the waiting area. Alfie sighed and followed him, closing the door in the process.

“Y/N...?” He said, rubbing his eyes to see more clearly, thinking he was dreaming.

“Hey...” She said, sitting next to him and holding his hand which was cut up from hitting the ground so hard.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be here.” He said, wincing.

“Well, my dad and I kind of got in an argument earlier. He offered to take me to see you. I couldn’t sit in my new place thinking you were gone.” She said.

“Thank you for seeing me. I didn’t think I’d make it. I uh....I wanted to see you once more. Just to tell you things.” He said.

“What did you want to tell me? Now that you’ve made it I think there couldn’t be a better time.” She said smiling.

“I uh....” He started to say before he sucked in a sharp breath.

“I probably shouldn’t talk much right now but I can show you.” He said. A pained smile forming on his face.

“What are talking about-“ She began, feeling his hand caressing her cheek as he pulled her closer to him. Their lips softly connecting in a long kiss. Y/N’s heart beating rapidly as she deepened the kiss, being mindful of his injuries.

As they broke away, Michael smiled weakly as she felt her face heat up.

“I’ve been wanting to tell you that I wanted to go out...officially. If you’d want to. This just sort of got in the way though aye?” He said gesturing to the bandages.

She nodded and wiped a tear from her cheek as she clutched his hand once more.

“Yeah, I uhm...I would like that. Once you’re better though alright?” She said, her eyes serious despite the tears still falling. He reached up and wiped them away, her leaning her cheek into his palm as he did so.

“Speaking of that though, I had to tell my father and Thomas about us. I’m hoping they haven’t killed each other though.” She said, nervously looking towards the door.

“They can deal with that then, that’s not our concern. They can’t ruin everything.” He said, a slight smirk on his face.

“You sure? I mean can you see where we bloody are right now? If my father can cause your family so much stress I can only imagine what that deviled cousin of yours is planning for us.” She said, not knowing the extent the two hard-headed gang leaders would go to protect their families, even if it meant hurting the ones they loved.

[naturallytom]

One Day Later (TA!Tom Holland x reader)

a/n: welp. this was way more nsfw than i planned. oops. big thank u to @sunshinehollandd​ for reading this over!!

warnings: language, drinking/drunkenness (sort of), making out, nsfw but nothing too heavy/graphic, fluff, a teeny bit of angst 

please reblog/leave feedback!!

“Good afternoon class and welcome to Sociological themes in Classic Literature. My name is Professor Jones.” The entire class was zoned out, as most students are the first day of classes.   You were mindlessly tapping your pen against the top of your notebook page, your eyes flickering over the previously highlighted assignment due dates. If you were being totally honest, you didn’t really want to take this class, you were just taking it to fill your English requirement. You figured it’d be easy since you were a sociology major already. “..And before I let you all go today, I wanted to introduce your TA to you guys. His name is Tom, he’ll send out an email with his office hours and how to contact him later.” Professor Jones finished.

As soon as Tom stepped up to the podium, you could tell every girl was gonna be going to his office hours at some point. And could you blame them? No. Not exactly. He was cute. Like really really cute. His short brown hair was gelled up and he had pretty brown eyes that resembled those of a puppy. Rectangular dark brown glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, giving him a look that screamed ‘teaching assistant.’ 

“Hey guys, as Professor Jones said my name’s Tom, I’ll be the TA for this semester. I’ll send you all an email later that will have this information in it so you don’t have to worry about memorizing it right now but my office hours are Monday’s from 12-4pm, Wednesday’s from 3-5pm, and Thursdays from 1-3pm. If those don’t work for you I’m happy to meet up with anyone outside of those times, just send me an email or a text.” He smiled, grabbing his bag and leaving the room, waving on his way out. “Perfect. You’re all free to go. We’ll start discussing Pride and Prejudice next class so make sure you have the first three chapters read.” Professor Jones dismissed. The class filed out of the lecture hall, whispers of how cute TA Tom was filling your ears in both directions. “He’s so damn cute.” One girl giggled to her friend. “I hope he’s single.” Her friend sighed in response. “I’m so gonna text him with random questions just to talk to him either way.” You rolled your eyes. Sure, he was cute. But he was your TA. It would be unprofessional to try anything with him. Besides, he’s got to have a girlfriend, right? You got your answer a few weeks later. Classes were going steady, but midterm week was approaching and you needed to let loose and have some fun before you had to stress about Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth Bennet, and the theories of social class. The frat house was more alive than ever. Multi colored lights decorated the kitchen with music blaring throughout the entire house. Making your way to the kitchen, you grabbed your friend’s hand to ensure you didn’t lose them in the crowd. The last thing you needed was to lose your friend in a sea of drunk college guys. Your friend settled on a beer while you settled on making a rum and coke to start. Next thing you knew, your friend was drunk and dancing with a couple guys, making you chuckle. “Need another drink?” A voice called over the music. You turned, seeing a cute boy standing next to you. He seemed familiar but between the alcohol you already consumed and the madness of the party, you couldn’t put your finger on where you knew him from. “You’re doing shots?” You yelled over the music, seeing him pour tequila into the small glasses. That was not what you thought when he offered to make you a drink. “Wanna join me?” He shrugged, offering you one. Fuck it. You took the small glass, clinking your glass with his lightly before the two of you downed the alcohol, feeling it burn your throat. “Another one?” He offered. Why not? A short amount of time and god knows how many shots later and you were out of it. Sober enough to know what you were doing, but drunk enough to know you’d be hungover tomorrow morning. Your lips were pressed messily up against his, your hands tangled in his soft but short curls. The two of you made your way upstairs, finding an empty bedroom. As soon as you were inside, you were pressed up against the door, his tongue finding its way into your mouth. “Fuck, you’re a good kisser.” You breathed out as the brunette trailed kisses down your neck and along your jaw. “Thanks.” He paused, giving you a goofy smile, a massive but momentary change in his demeanor before he pressed his lips to yours messily again, this time guiding you to the bed and laying you down before climbing on top of you, kissing you again before pulling away and resting his forehead against yours. “Are you gonna do something?” You whined as his hand toyed with the end of your shirt. “Do you want me to?” He asked, straddling your waist and earning a groan from you. “Yes, fuck yes. Please do something.” You sighed as he kissed down your neck, leaving marks in his wake. “Hm I don’t know.” He teased, his breath fanning over your ear. “I need you to be really sure about this.” “Jesus christ, you want me to beg?” You groaned, making him shrug. “First of all, my name’s Tom.” He chuckled, you rolling your eyes. “Second of all, I just wanna make sure you’re really positive you’re okay with what we’re about to do but I’m more than happy to hear you beg.” “Fine.” You rolled your eyes. “Please, please do something, Tom. I need you.” “What do you need?” He teased again. “I don’t, fuck, I don’t know! Go down on me, fuck me, just do something for fucks sake!” You groaned. That was all the answer Tom needed. - When you woke up the next morning, your head was pounding and you were in an unfamiliar bed, but you remembered exactly what had happened. Though you still couldn’t figure out where you knew Tom from, you figured you’d never see him again anyway, giving you mixed feelings. You climbed out of his arms as gently and as softly as possible, putting your clothes back on, before heading out of the frat house to call your friend and head back to your apartment. - It wasn’t until the very next day that you remembered where you knew Tom from. You walked into your sociological themes in classic literature class, prepared for the review session held by the TA and froze almost as soon as you entered the room upon seeing the TA. Oh. Right. Tom is the TA for this class. That’s how you knew him. The marks on your neck still sat there proudly and a light blush rose to Tom’s cheeks when he saw them as you took your seat. You gave him a simple smile as you sat down, pretending to scroll through your phone as the other students filed in. The class was torture. That was the best word to describe it. It was difficult to focus on anything when you now knew that you fucked the goddamn TA. The dorky, innocent-seeming TA. Finally when the class was over, you got up to leave as soon as possible, but stopped when Tom called your name. You sighed and the two of you waited until the rest of the students were gone to break the uncomfortable silence between the two of you. “I did a good job on your neck.” He said smugly, this time it was your turn to feel your cheeks heat up under his gaze. “Yeah. Um, I enjoyed that.” You mumbled, internally face palming yourself at how awkward you sounded. “Oh I could tell from the pretty little noises you let out.” He chuckled, making a smile tug on your lips, though you rolled your eyes. “Did you want to talk about something or did you just want to be a smug son of a bitch?” You asked. “Well, both, but I wasn’t planning on being a smug son of a bitch.” He smiled. “I wanted to see if you wanted to grab coffee.” “Like…like a date? Is that legal?” You wondered, making Tom laugh. “I’m a TA, y/n. We’re just two students, it’s not against the law.” He laughed. “We don’t have to-” “No, no. I want to. That sounds lovely.” You smiled, making Tom smile. “Here,” He handed you his phone. “You can put your number in.” You typed in the numbers, texting yourself so you knew who it was, and added a star emoji next to your name, because why not? Tom chuckled when he saw the emoji. “Do you wanna wait until after the midterm?” He asked. “The midterm is next week, Tom.” You giggled. “We can do this weekend.” - Your coffee date was Saturday morning and Tom asked you on a second date before it was finished. Two dates turned into three and soon enough a month went by and Tom asked to make things between the two of you official. “Yeah, of course I want this with you, Tom.” You whispered, the two of you lying in his bed, your fingers tracing shapes on his bare chest. “Just don’t want anyone knowing for a little bit.” “Perfectly fine with me, love.” He sighed, tugging you closer to his chest. “Perfectly fine with me.” The next time you had class, you got jealous. Tom looked exceptionally good that day and was in class to answer questions about themes relating to 1984. You were jealous because the girls in your class were basically undressing Tom with their eyes. Granted they didn’t know he was your boyfriend, you still felt jealous. Tom knew something was wrong when you stayed behind after the students left. The two of you had a date that night and he knew you’d want to do some homework before he picked you up. “What’s up, baby?” He asked as you walked up to the podium. “I didn’t like the way they were looking at you.” You mumbled into his chest. “Who?” “The girls in class. They were looking at you like you’re their boyfriend, but you’re my boyfriend.” You pouted, making Tom chuckle. “I am all yours, love. Don’t want the other girls in the class. Only you.” He assured you, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “All mine?” You asked, looking up at him from his chest. “All yours.”

_______________________________________________________________________

tagging some mutuals: @sunshinehollandd​ @angelic-holland​ @spideypeach​ @terrifictomholland​

[jj-lynn21]

The Charity- various fandoms & x-reader ch 1

warnings: egotism, light flirtation, Swedish language (but probably only in this chapter), straight & LGBTQ characters, AU actors: I do not think any of these actors act like what I am writing them to be like. Its just a story folks. 

ch 2

ch 3

ch 4

ch 5

You get an intriguing email from Vernon:

Hello YN,

I’m an assistant at your public relations firm. There is a charity event coming up on January 25, we think you should attend. You will help raise money for your favorite charity and get to meet other like-minded individuals in entertainment. The gathering is at Le Jardin de Russie 1430 N Cahuenga Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028. Arrive before 5pm. Dinner will be served at 6:30pm.

Thank you,

Vernon

You only hired a PR firm on the urge of your manager who was suggested by family when you did your first small acting job last year. The job paid more than you expected and lead to other small roles which mostly got cut from feature films. You still got paid for the work, so although it was disappointing it wasn’t devastating. Your family was more upset than you, roles got cut. You decide to attend the event. You might even get some connections to help you get another acting job. It doesn’t hurt to mingle a little.

On the date stated in the email you arrive at Le Jardin de Russie at 4:30pm. After following the signs to parking you walk to the front entrance to climb the stairs wearing an off the rack red cocktail dress with the six-inch Jimmy Choo shoes your manager bought you for these occasions. Two men in tuxes open the doors. Walking in, your breath is just taken away by the space.

Ellen Page says, “What’s up buttercup.”

Trying to keep your cool you smile saying, “Not a thing at all, for now.”

Ellen Page says, “cool, I’m Ellen. I don’t think I have ever seen you at one of these things before.”

You say, “I’m (YN), my first time at one of these, Ellen.”

Chris Evans nudges Tom Hiddleston with a mischievous grin on his face.

Chris Evans says, “What do you think? I know Ellen can be a real bitch, but you think I could fuck the new girl. She might be bi.” He laughs and tosses some peanuts in his mouth from a bowel on the bar counter as he holds a beer with the other hand.

Tom Hiddleston says, “That’s the LAST thing on my mind.”

Chris Evans says, “You’re no fun. Charity functions are only good if you can get a little something out of it for yourself.”

Tom Hiddleston shakes his head annoyed with his immature past co-worker. Robert Downey Jr walk over to them bottled of water in hand.

Robert says, “How are you gentlemen this evening? Not planning to get into any trouble, are you Chris?”

Chuckling Tom says, “You know he has already picked out a victim.”

Chris Evans says, “Hey, she is not a victim when she consents. I do have rules at these functions.”

Robert says, “And from what I’ve seen they are very loose rules.”

Putting on a serious voice Chris Evans says, “But they are rules.”

You can’t believe the people you are seeing here already. You excuse yourself to go get a drink at the bar. You are so nervous as you walk trying not to look nervous. You do eventually have to introduce yourself to these people.

Whispering in Tom Hiddleston’s ear Chris Evans says, “Here comes my Princess. She will fucking eat that shit up.”

Tom Hiddleston rolls his eyes. All of them smile as you get closer.  You ask the bar tender for a rum and coke before saying anything. Maybe it will make you not sound so star struck. Before you even get a sip of the liquid courage Chris Evans introduces himself.

Chris Evans says, “Hey, Princess, I’m Chris. I know there is more than one Chris here tonight,” He points to Chris Pine who somehow you missed standing with Cody Fern on the other side of the room, “I’m the one that will call you Princess.” He winks.

Giggling you say, “I’m (YN) but you can call me Princess if you want to. Are you boys staying out of trouble?”

Taking your hand to kiss it chivalrously Robert says, “They rarely do. I’m Robert.”

Raising his drink Tom Hiddleston, “Pleased to meet you (YN), I’m Tom”

Then Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost walk in the door. Scarlett waves to the guys as Colin smiles towards the group of avenger film alumni.

Putting a hand on your back Robert says, “Excuse us our sister is here.”

Chris Evans says, “Me calling her sister is sick.” He winks at you before all of them rushes over to her, “Hey baby girl.”

You keep your laughter to yourself as they surround her for a group hug. You definitely feel bad for Colin dealing with all her big brothers and whatever Chris Evans considers himself to her.  They come back over to the bar and Chris Evans puts his arm around your shoulders as he introduces you.

Chris Evans says, “This Princess is (YN). Princess This is Colin and Scarlett.”

Colin says, “Oh, another sister for the group, cool.”

Chris Evans says, “You know I don’t consider any women my sister unless she is actually blood.”

Awkwardly Collin says, “Oh, yeah cool.”

The Skarsgårds walk in next speaking Swedish among themselves.

Valter Skarsgård, “Varför var jag tvungen att komma till detta?”

Stellan Skarsgård says, “Om du vill arbeta i staterna som dina bröder måste du bara gå till dessa saker.”

You bite your lip as you see all of them in there beautifully tailored suits. There height in person just blows your mind. And the hotness of the young men is almost overwhelming. You shrug Chris Evan’s arm off your shoulders.

Laughing Tom Hiddleston says, “I think you have competition.”

To Valter, Bill says, “suga upp det smörblomma.”

Gustaf Skarsgård says, “lägg dina stora tjejtrosor på lillebror och njut av detta.”

When Chris Pine sees Alex Skarsgård He smack Cody Ferns chest.

Chris Pine says, “Fuck me.”

Cody fern says, “That is Daddy.”

Alex walks over to Ellen and kisses her sweetly on the lips.  Pine and fern drop their jaws.

Alex says, “Good to see you baby girl.” Which give him a giggle from the last person in the room you would picture as a giggler.

A gentlemen walks out to say, “Dinner will be served if you all come into the dinning room. There is a table for ten and a smaller table set for four. You decide who sits where.”

Tom Holland rushes in all hyper, but pale as hell. He says, “I made it. Who’s ready to party? I brought party supplies.”

Robert shakes his head. Everyone heads into the dining room.

[talistheintrovert]

So my last shift before I move away for uni finishes in a few hours, and I don't actually leave for uni until Monday morning, so you know what that means???

I CAN GET VERY DRUNK!!!

SO AT 10PM MY TIME, WHICH IS ABOUT 5PM EST, I WILL BE DRINKING LOTS OF RUM, LIKE A RESPONSIBLE ADULT!

I WILL BE AT HOME AND ONLINE ALL NIGHT SO...........

DRUNK ASKS ANYONE?

@youleftme-clarke @clarkegriffintitties @clarkgriffon @fen-ha-fuck-you @loveisalwayswise @scottmcgivemeacall @jordanjaspermcgreen @ehmori @jmbelles @mamabearsdontthink @rebelkingandhistraitorprincessxx @mermaidclarke @the-best-damn-mechanic @amesandjake @bellamyshope

[shytiff]

September 2021

1 - MTBS 0 pt. tried out kopsus from jannor coffee with gofood pickup promo (10k). it tasted nutty and yummy even though it seems to use regular milk. but its kinda hot. the ac was not satisfactory. finished up the word for Prof. bought jasuke on the way back. filled out IDI form since i still have energy. 

2 - mtbs again but this time its 3 patients at the same time. vcalled with kris. bought some snacks in hypermart. exercised a bit and played badminton with renata. watched 3 eps of nanno. 

3 - my body aches and it will be wonderful to sleep again but its already 6:40. usila today. the ac in kamar jaga was no longer cold. finally finished moms box of brownies from like 2 weeks ago. read dear benjamin. got to enjoy some silence because i napped before maghrib and the others slept early. 

4 - vaccine in GCD with teh fitri, teh fany and teh rahmi. about 440ish patients. gossiped about cibeber lmao. watched the hitman’s bodyguard. samuel and ryan was hilarious. 

5 - morning walk with renata. saw cilegon’s cfd. cleaned up the room accompanied by howl’s soundtrack. made spaghetti with instant bolognese sauce, egg and cheese. o seven with tri nagita. just saw prof’s email from 2nd sept, shit. tried to get some headspace to do ppt.

6 - bp with nessa (originally kia/ugd). except therere some patients in ugd lol. did excision for clavus (1st timer!) and hecting. fried tempe (1st timer!) using someone’s leftover oil lmaooo

7 - BP with zihan. had spaghetti combined with cheese egg and mom’s chicken for lunch. instant bloating :). drank hot matcha to curb the bloat. planked. ate muesli lol. did not do anything significant today :( started the origin of species. 

8 - vaccine today except it starts at 10:30 since we’re waiting for the mayor. so i hung out on the screening table since the doctor room was hot. vaccine with dr lutfi. watched homcha and nanno. fell asleep

9 - vaccine with bang esa and other staffs in smp 8 cikerai. its apparently the highest point in cikerai. finished at 12-ish pm and we ate buffet lunch lol. made matcha latte again. this time with almost 1 spoon of sugar so it tastes good. i missss matcha. read 1 webinar ppt so i guess thats a little but its something. rip attention span

10 - usila. tried A BIT of duren from bu Tur for dr isip but its enough to make me retch lmao. was given labbaik chicken by bu oo. Some exercise. rly tried to make some progress but my brain just cant seem to muster

11 - kia/ugd. Some ugd patients. Spaghetti for lunch yay. Originally intended to go to cafe but i ended up falling asleep :) tried to get some progress for PPT. Involved a lot of staring into nothing. Slept at like 00:30ish am

12 - morning walk slash jog. The jogging track was finally open. Went to jannor. Ordered kopsus and meatball potato dish with gofood takeaway promo (spent a total of 30k) . The staff kindly asked whether i want to eat there or to actually takeaway lol. The meatball truly tasted like meat. The mashed potato was a bit dry. The weather was grey and cloudy, exactly my favorite. First time cooking kangkung

13 - vaccine today. 20-ish patients. Alone in kamar jaga since nessa went to mass vaccine. Zoom call with Prof. Dyed my hair blue in flow salon (1200K). got free manicure, It took 5 hrs 😅. another firsts in life. both the nail tech and hair tech said my hair was dry lmao. arrived in mess at 9ish pm. ordered nasgor in front of mess

14 - mi rebus for bfast. not too much patients for vaccine so i finished at like 10 am. napped at kamar jaga. got free rice box from dr arief etc yay :)))) got mochacinno at jannor. tried to do sumn useful but cannot. still no ppt progress aaa. watched homcha ep 6 together

15 - vaccine in al hanif. tried chicken-cakwe porridge near the school. the school was an all girls school, with ppl wearing long veils. tried to fit the placement test from cakap (12-1 pm) during the vaccination lol. had to excuse myself to the ssaem during photo sesh. napped so i could see the 17 pm cakap class but i ended up napping until close to 18 :) saw the 19 am class with lukas ssaem

16 - spaghetti for bfast. usila today. this dumbass forgot to wear komin and wore her rubber slip ons. turns out theres some money from al hanif vaccine. which is great bcs there’s literally no paper money in my wallet lmaoo. rested a bit. dr eva called and she gave me a ppt and chapter book job. sheeet theres no progress yet of Prof’s ppt. a wake up call. whatsapped with frends that planned to go to cilegon this weekend, but it ended up being the next weekend. thank god, because dr eva’s ppt deadline is 24th sept. set myself up on a spot in the vanity table so i can work in a chair (i frfr find it difficult to work on my own bed)

17 - some patients in UGD. Slept while waiting for 2 pm. Held off my sleepiness for zoom with dr Eva. 5pm cakap class. Matcha latte. 7pm zoom w dr eva. Fell asleep after that

18 - bp. Turns out teh imey also dyed her hair. cakap class abt bts' spring day lol. Worked on dr eva's ppt

19 - jogged a bit. had kopsus (20K) and fish fillet rice (27K). finished dr eva’s ppt with the given material so far. napped in mess. dr eva also revised the ppt on the same day so there’s 2 slides left (patient clinical profile and conclusion). took some time for me to get the headspace to work on ppt so i started prof’s ppt at like 7-ish. only got 1 slide. stayed awake until 11ish but i basically stopped doing useful stuff at 9 TT TT

20 - vaccine today, finished at 10 am. lounged around. went to bni to check on m-banking, still system error. transferred 3mil from my BNI atm to muamalat. tried nasi goreng roa and cakalang with added chicken shreds (20K). so goood. conversed with nessa zihan. did not open my laptop at all :) stopped by at rodalink bcs nessa wanted to buy a bike. drank matcha latte in an effort to curb sleepiness. worked on Prof’s ppt. fried the frozen kebab (35K) i bought from teh Rahmi. 

21 - vaccine P3K w teh yeni teh rahmi mas oim. 3 patients. Ate some gorengan and talked lol. Did the abstract and ppt for dr eva. Worked on Prof's ppt.

22 - usila w mas oim. Had banana, bolu and protein for bfast. Ordered nasgor roa cakalang from bakuku for lunch. Felt suuuuper sleepy afterwards. Wanted to sleep again in mess but couldnt. Washed my shitton of clothes with washing machine. Heavyyy. Worked more on PPT. Too much denial this week

23 - picked some groceries @ bu rum. Kia/ugd today. Its been a while since i last checked DJJ. Successful first attempt but fail in the 2nd bcs the baby is still floating. Cooked meat and veggies with nessren. Jannor and kopsus again. Worked on ppt til my head hurts. Its a little bit more to gooo.

24 - bp. Made myself bento with nugget and left over veggies. Finished the smol details of the ppt and finally sent it. Watched shangchi @ transmart w chillegone. The film was fun! We cooked soup at mess and tri made perkedel. Watched homcha ep7. Slept

25 - Vaccine but there was no vaccine, so I went to UKK @ villa ternak cikerai with pkm peeps. its like opening a clinic but somewhere in hills area. got treated to bakso and tempe mendoan afterwards. lazed around in my bed, with no info from jkt friends who wanted to visit but suddenly they arrived lmao. went to amaris to catch up with them. thankfully it was not hourly parking. ate at saung bonang near the billiard place with heri joining us. total bill for five was 126 lmao its rly pocket friendly. heri borrowed my motorbike bcs his friend’s place doesnt have car park. thank god we brought the bike

26 - me and racheel went downstairs to get the hotel bfast. packed fruits, tempe and bread upstairs lol. put our stuffs in royal krakatau. took maxim to pulau kecil. turns out pak asep changed his number. it was raining there, so we sat a bit and got mie rebus. had lunch at amirang (my treat). there was only us inside. the food was okay but the meat was rly overpriced for its amount. went back to the hotel. went to indomaret and mess with racheel to get my stuff. my stupid impatient ass dropped atikah’s brand new iphone while pulling the hotel towel from the bathroom rack. im sorryyyyy. racheel and i swam until maghrib. atikah told us abt her boy “friend”. slept early at like 9-10ish with the usual width but longer leg space

27 - and suddenly its time to go to puskesmas. asked nessa to bring my shoes. said goodbye to friends. BP. there were a lot of patients. kanayam for lunch. i bought shades lol bcs i commute against the sun in the morning. cakap club. watched homcha. fell asleep

28 - vaccine. finished at like 10:30. tried to go to bni to install mbanking but the queue was like 20 ppl. did the outline for the red book. liqo with kak kartika. zoom meeting with dr eva. fell asleep again

29 - vaccine in sma 3 cilegon (cikerai) with bang esa and others. finished at like 2-ish pm. got 750K hehehe. mentoring with dr. Arnadi about KKD and HHS. bought rotbak with nessa. showered and cleaned and fell asleeep

30 - cooked tempe with leftover kanayam chili sauce. bp again. saw interesting cases today, such as fixed drug eruption. bought phd from gofood promo. went to jannor and got the usual kopsus with added espresso (since the min amount for gofood pick up promo was 25k). tried to do prof’s script but cannot, so i searched the literatures needed for dr eva’s project

[sea-and-storm]

      [ GHOA MANKHAD :  About the Character / LFRP ]

B A S I C S

Name :  Ghoa Mankhad. Aliases :  Ghoa Kharlu, Ghoa Kha, Tsakhlai (black market alias), other tribal names. Gender :  Female, cisgendered. Age :  Twenty-four winters. Race :  Au Ra - Xaela. Birthplace :  Azim Steppe - Eastern Coastlands. Current Residence :  A bit of everywhere, but mostly Ul’dah and Kugane at current. Relationship Status :  A handful of non-committed, casual involvements. (Even though she’s technically married, but good luck prying that information out of her!) Romantic Orientation :  Demi-romantic, non-monogamous. Sexual Orientation :  Pansexual. Occupation :  Black market alchemist and poisoner. Occasional healer-for-hire. Small-time con artist. But her preferred job? Hanging off the arms of the wealthy and generous. Enemies :  Probably more than a few NPC enemies, but no PC enemies. (Yet!)

A P P E A R A N C E

Hair :  Mid-back length. Starts a dark, inky blue at the crown and gradually fades into a silver-blue at the ends. The style varies depending on her mood, but small white-gray feathers and/or flowers are usually accompanying whatever style she settles on. Skin :  Medium brown with bronze undertones. Smooth, soft, and obviously well cared for. Eyes :  Light silver-white with bright white limbal rings. Height :  Slightly below average for a female Au Ra at four fulm, ten ilm (4′10″). Markings :  None that are especially notable. No tattoos or other body modifications. A few small scars here and there, but none that one could be faulted for overlooking entirely. Physique :  Petite and soft. Distinctly feminine, even if lacking in exaggerated curvature. 

P E R S O N A L I T Y

Overview :  Ghoa is best and most succinctly described as an unrepentant hedonist ever on the prowl for the next luxury to indulge in and the next thrill to get her blood pumping. But naturally, there’s far, far more to her than meets the eye. Positive Traits :  Intelligent, cultured, curious, adventurous, charismatic. Negative Traits :  Self-centered, manipulative, capricious, stubborn, work-avoidant. Quirks :  Her tail often gives away her emotions, whether or not she’s trying to hide them. Always seeking some sort of thrill or excitement which can sometimes get her involved with the wrong sort or in over her head. Will play flirtatious with anything with a pulse so long as she thinks it stands a chance of endearing her to them and that she can get something out of it (and sometimes even if it won’t). Religion / Philosophy :  Follows traditional Xaelan belief in the Dusk Mother Nhaama and Dawn Father Azim. Also shares a clan-specific reverence for both the sea and the storm. However, despite her beliefs and the occasional ritual or platitude she indulges in, she’s become more or less non-practicing since leaving the Steppe.

Likes :  Traveling, the finer things in life, new experiences, new people, anything that gives a thrill, criminal types, the ocean, thunderstorms, birds. Favorite Foods :  Anything expensive and indulgent.  Seafood and sweets, especially. Favorite Drinks :  Anything top shelf or bought for her. Especially rum and red wine. Favorite Colors :  Dark blue, white, black, gold, silver. Dislikes :  Strict traditions/laws, working, dependency, inactivity, working, anyone who tries to hold onto her too tightly, mopey or aggressively antisocial types. Positive Habits / Hobbies :  Traveling, exploring, dancing, shopping, learning new reagents and alchemical techniques, does excellent work (even if she hates work itself). Negative Habits / Hobbies :  Partying, drinking (often), smoking (occasionally), recreational drugs (occasionally), one-night stands, getting involved with the wrong sorts.

R P   H O O K S

FELLOW XAELA :  This is a pretty wide hook that could encompass a lot of things. Fellow Mankhadi and Kharlu would be interesting to set up potential backstory with. Ghoa has also spent varying lengths of time with other tribes before leaving the Steppe, leaving that avenue for backstory connections open, too. Or we could start wholly fresh! Just keep in mind that Ghoa is pretty non-tribal, so there may be some conflict with more tribal sorts (but I’m 100% down for conflict-based interactions!).

BUSINESS CONTACTS :  Need some poisons or potions on the down-low? Fellow merchant looking to strike a trade arrangement? Got literally any other idea for a business hook that I would most certainly love to hear? Let’s make it happen!

MORALLY QUESTIONABLE? NO PROBLEM! :  Ghoa is the queen of keeping questionable company, finding herself often drawn to those of a more criminal element not only due to her work, but because of how thrilling it can be. (Not to mention that it never hurts to have a couple of people in one’s pocket for those extra special jobs that need to be done.) So give me your thieves, thugs, druglords, smugglers, etc.!

NEED ARMCANDY? :  If your character is wealthy, generous with their money, and appreciates having the company of a charming, attractive woman, Ghoa’s your armcandy! She’s a shameless gildigger whose enjoyment of the finer things in life is only eclipsed by her enjoyment of having them bought for her. But at least they’ll get the joy of sharing her company out of the deal, right?

If you’ve got another idea, let’s hear it!  I just tossed this handful of ideas up for brevity’s sake (and because I’m running out of steam writing them). But if you’ve got an idea for an interaction that doesn’t fit any of the above, I definitely wanna hear it!

O O C   I N F O R M A T I O N

Server :  Balmung Timezone :  Central (US). Availability :  Week nights from 5PM - 11PM CST until raid starts back in Patch 4.2. Saturdays 12PM to whenever. Sundays vary depending on how much I’ve got to do around the house, so tentatively.. 5PM - 11PM CST, maybe a little earlier / later.

Post Style :  I naturally tend towards paragraph-style RP when left to my own devices, but ultimately I mirror what I get or what is most appropriate for the situation! Lore Preference :  I prefer to stick to lore as much as possible, but with a little flexibility for the grey areas. (So long as that flexibility doesn’t get too out of hand.) Seeking :  More RP partners in general! I love intricate, plot-heavy RP just as well as casual, lighthearted event-going RP. So I’m looking to make more contacts both to delve into serious plot with, as well as more friends to hit up things like Tavern Nights, Pub Crawls, Festivals, Balls, and other such server events with. (Because they’re even more fun in groups!) I would prefer to RP in-game, but I’m also willing to do Discord scenes as long as they conclude in a timely manner and don’t leave me in an awkward position with in-game RP. Alternatively, I would potentially be open to one-on-one Discord RP that is AU / non-cannon (i.e. exists in its own bubble and doesn’t affect Ghoa’s actual continuity in-game), especially for those of you who play on a server other than Balmung! Will Do :  Mature, sexual, dark, violent, psychological, and/or criminal themes. Coarse and explicit language. Mild to moderate injury/incapacitation without being given prior notice.  Ask First :  Long-term and/or permanent significant injury and disfigurement. Captivity or imprisonment, either long or short term. ERP, as I'm not always up for writing out sexual scenes (especially if there's no plot advancement purpose behind it or if we don't already have an established RP history together).  Won’t Do :  Character death. Any sort of mature RP (sexual, violent, dark, etc.) involving underage characters or players.

C O N T A C T   I N F O R M A T I O N

In-game :  Ghoa Mankhad. Discord :  Jaliqai#1327.

[wanderingzo-blog]

Jordan in Just 3 Days

The Saturday that I left Palestine to finally make my way to Jordan I was functioning off of just a few hours of sleep, but by this time in my traveling I felt confident in my abilities to navigate the chaos. First, a three hour taxi ride from Ramallah to Jericho. Then the overcrowded bus station filled with families and men pushing large carts full of luggage, busier than usual because Israel shuts down the border at 11am on Saturday’s. At the exit checkpoint I first go through security like at the airport, then to the passport check for an exit stamp, then for a receipt for my exit fee ($60), then it all is checked again. A 40 minute bus ride to the Jordanian entry point— when we get off the bus they collect everyone’s passport in a pile and then from behind the desk they yell out names of people to come forward, meanwhile other Jordanian men who clearly know the routine push forward and just ask for their passport. At this point it’s 3pm and my final step is a one hour taxi ride to Amman, in this time I chatted away in Arabic with the driver — feeling welcomed and excited for the adventure.

I ended up sleeping the rest of the day, except to go out to dinner with my host from CouchSurfing. The next day I got to explore.

Day 1: Amman

Another beautiful city with rolling hills, sunshine, and an interesting history.

The city of Amman is so Arab in its combination of ancient/traditional and modern traits. It seems that there is a great pride in the history as a place of old civilizations, a space that is always transforming.

I visited the ruins of the Byzantine Cytadell on the top of the hill — walking through homes and roads that are hundreds of years old, looking out at the modern downtown of Amman.

I ate lots of new, delicious foods and way too much kinafeh — a fried cheese desert with pistachios and honey syrup.

I had hoped to do more exploring, see museums and the night life of this big city but a spontaneous change in plans put me in the backseat of a rental car with two brothers from the Bay Area, on our way to adventure in the Jordanian desert. I love how life just kind of works out.

A 4 hour drive from Amman got us to the village of Wadi Rum right after sunset, so an exploration of the land had to wait until the following morning.

Day 2: Wadi Rum Desert

I spent the whole day riding in the back of a truck as A’udih drove us around the land with no roads, the land he grew up in — running through the sand barefoot, climbing rocks, petting camels, drinking tea, challenging the Bedouin boys to some yoga, and taking in the sunshine in February.

Being on this land was very powerful — it felt so expansive, ancient, full of life but incredibly empty at the same time. Each rock, dune, and shrub has a life that’s thriving and transforming over incomprehensible time, a life moving slower than what I’m used to.

We spent the whole day in the desert, playful and free, in no hurry to get anywhere, happy to chat and meet the locals.

But finally, by 5pm we were off to our next destination, Petra. I met up with my couchsurfing host, smoked some sheesha, listened to the rain, and got some sleep to prepare for the adventure ahead.

Day 3: the Ancient City Of Petra

I was in awe of this place at every step. Unfortunately, I was rushed during my one day in Petra. It was a rainy morning and I arrived at 8am, praying I would have enough time to explore the grounds before my bus at noon. In my rush I found myself being the first person in the crowd, I had about 20 minutes of alone time with these ancient rocks. It was magical.

[travelonlinetips-blog]

New Post has been published on https://travelonlinetips.com/13-of-the-best-spots-to-get-your-seafood-fix-in-the-whitsundays/

13 of the best spots to get your seafood fix in The Whitsundays

When you’re in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef, you can expect some pretty fine seafood platters and seafood restaurants to be on offer on dry land.

Bareboating caterers, cafes with stellar views, and celebrity-studded island restaurants are among the best places to get your seafood fix in The Whitsundays.

Fish D’vine, Airlie Beach

Considered an institution, every visitor to The Whitsundays should dine at least once at Fish D’vine, a lively restaurant and rum bar in Airlie Beach.

In a state renowned for its fresh seafood, Fish D’vine is easily one of the best places to splurge on mud crab. You can order it three ways: wok-tossed in a Thai curry sauce, with a spicy pepper sauce, or served natural and chilled.

Open from 5pm, this laid-back eatery has a tonne of other seafood dishes, too.

The Boathouse FishBar, Port of Airlie Marina

Another restaurant you can’t go past is The Boathouse FishBar, where the menu is swarming with crustaceans and their ocean friends. The trendy menu options include a salmon sashimi poke bowl, a soft-shell crab burger and seafood pie.

There are also themed nights, such as oyster Tuesday, prawn-bucket Thursday and seafood-platter Saturday.

Tides Restaurant and Bar, Airlie Beach

Away from the hubbub of Airlie town centre, Tides Restaurant and Bar is among the best hotel restaurants you’ll find in the region.

Chef Gregory Devine is the mastermind behind it all, and is passionate about sourcing local produce for an Asian-infused modern Australian menu.

Go at night for the “four tastes of the sea” dish that includes a half-shell scallop with Champagne mornay.

Clipper Restaurant Bar and Lounge, Airlie Beach

With views of bobbing sailing boats and a stream of accolades, Clipper Restaurant Bar and Lounge will impress any seafood restaurant connoisseur.

Situated in Coral Sea Resort, you can opt for a casual lunch of king fish ceviche and Pacific oysters, or step it up a notch and enjoy a fine-dining experience in the evening.

If you’re a seafood lover, pick the latter so you can feast on octopus balls with sriracha mayo, king prawns with wasabi avocado mousse and Pacific oysters with a Szechuan pepper crust.

Bommie Restaurant, Hamilton Island Yacht Club, Hamilton Island

One of the region’s most picturesque places to dine is Bommie Restaurant on Hamilton Island, but you don’t only come for the water views.

Celebrate a special holiday with a delicate plate of cold-smoked ocean trout and Hydeaway Bay squid, while enjoying a glass of Champagne or two. Be sure to make a reservation.

Coca Chu, Hamilton Island

Fun, modern and with a sharing-style street-hawker menu, Coca Chu has locals – and regular visitors – talking. Try the salt and pepper cuttlefish or tiger prawn betel leaf to start, before moving onto the Moreton Bay bug curry.

You can enjoy it all while watching dusk descend on Hamilton Island’s popular Catseye Beach.

Mariners, Hamilton Island

Casual but sophisticated, the menu at Mariners has recently been given an overhaul by Hamilton Island Yacht Club Executive Chef Trent Dawson. It now has a strong Japanese influence and dishes that will excite you.

Expect yellow tail with buttermilk, scallops with finger lime, octopus with rice wine, and seafood platters unlike any you’ve seen before.

3 PLACES TO BUY FRESH Seafood

Fishi – The Whitsundays region: Whatever you have a hankering for, Fishi will deliver. This environmentally conscious seafood specialist creates platters of locally caught Easter king and tiger prawns, scallops, crayfish and mud crab, which can be ordered online and delivered to your hotel or picked up on Hamilton Island.

Bird’s Fish Bar – Bowen: If you’re staying in Bowen, Bird’s Fish Bar is a must-visit for a seafood feast. The takeaway shop has a balcony overlooking the marina, so you can dine there, but it’s also a great spot to grab fresh seafood, with local coral trout, Spanish mackerel, and banana and tiger prawns the top picks.

Whitsunday Pacific Seafoods – Cannonvale: Watch the staff shuck oysters at this Cannonvale co-op. Open six days, Whitsunday Pacific Seafoods specialises in local red throat emperor, coral trout, clams and oysters. If you’re not confident in filleting fish, ask the in-store chefs for advice.

3 TOP seafood TAKEAWAYS

Perfect for travellers about to set sail or holidaymakers simply wanting a night in, Whitsunday Provisioning has a range of catering options and seafood platters that can be delivered to mainland or island accommodation, as well as bareboat charter companies.

For classic Aussie fish and chips, head to Whitsunday Seafood Bar in Airlie Beach. Family friendly with grilled, crumbed and battered local fish, plus fresh seafood, platters, burgers and a seafood salad, this is the ultimate takeaway shop.

If you’re holidaying on Hamilton, head down to Popeye’s Takeaway for an easy lunch you can whisk back to Catseye Beach for a picnic. Local’s tip: order the homemade potato scallops.

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[pisceslentil8-blog]

Whisky Rocks At Banchō Bar, Haymarket

There's a collection of Japanese whisky bottles that lines the back upstairs wall of Banchō Bar on Thomas Lane in Sydney's Chinatown. And if you ask the staff and they're not too busy they're happy to tell you about them all. Banchō (pronounced barn-chor) is Japanese for "the leader of a group of delinquents" (and also happens to be the name of a customer's dog).

Here at Banchō Bar, if you're a whisky aficionado you can buy your own bottle or rare whisky and keep it under lock and key in one of their 30 lockers. Or if whisky isn't your favour, there's a Remy Martin Louis XIII Cognac whose Baccarat bottle is a reproduction of a metal flask found at the Battle of Jarnac. And then there's a rare Hibiki 30 year old at $598 per shot or ultra rare Hibiki 35 in a hand made Arita Kutani porcelain decanter - there were only 150 produced in the world. That is $2,500 per shot.

The staff here at Banchō bar are whisky enthusiasts. At sister bar Tokyo Bird in Surry Hills, there are 400 whiskies, mostly Japanese and while Banchō Bar currently has 200 they are aiming to double that of Tokyo Bird and stock 800 whiskies.

The focus here is on Japanese whiskies with some made in Scottish style some to suit the Japanese palates. Some are aged in rum wood that imparts a treacle sweetness. Others are in ex bourbon and sherry barrels.

Many are made in small batches and blended by master distillers that sign a contract that they will not smoke, drink heavily or eat spicy food so as to preserve the palate as every year they must reproduce the whisky using just their noses. One master blender has followed the same diet for 24 years.

Yamazaki 12 year old malt $28

The leather bound drinks list is extensive. Mr NQN tries the Yamazaki 12 year old single malt whisky served with the bar's own hand carved sphere of ice. It takes them 3 days to make the ice from beginning to end and it's important here to ensure that the ice doesn't melt very quickly. However Ryan does notice that the whisky was made first before the cocktails and had too much water in it as a result and should have been poured last.

Dragon's Breath (front right) $19 Passionflower $17 (back right)

My Dragon's Breath is a sweet, fruity cocktail made with dragonfruit infused gin, shochu, raspberry, lemon and basil seeds. It comes from the "Market Store" section which is inspired by trips to the nearby Paddy's Markets and each selection is available for about a month. This is made using the pink fleshed dragonfruit and should have a single cube of ice studded with basil seeds but they hadn't made the ice so it comes with chipped ice and basil seeds. Still it's a very good drink and it's a trade-off as I like the texture from the basil seeds but the chipped ice does melt quickly.

Ivy's drink is a Passionflower selected because she loves Aperol. This is a twist on the Aperol spritz with Aperol, passionfruit, lemon, egg white and soda with a fluffy top. I love the sweet intensity and bitterness of this drink. I'd happily order this one next time. Ryan orders a beer because he deems it too early to drink whisky (5pm).

Crunchy noodles $4, pork crackling $7

Like Tokyo Bird the food selection is small but tasty. We start with crunchy noodles which are deep fried dried spaghetti stands seasoned with a moreish house seasoning that makes you want to keep crunching on these sticks. The pork crackling is crunchy and puffy and comes with a soy vinegar dipping sauce. They're both great salty drinking snacks.

Tonkatsu pork $10 for 2

There's also a selection of two types of baos and French fries as well as some Kushiage or Kushikatsu which are basically morsels crumbed in panko crumbs and deep fried and served on sticks. We try the pork tonkatsu skewers which are juicy and crunchy on the outside. The scallops are also good and come two to a serve and two per stick. It's just enough to get us started for a night out!

Hotate scallops $10 for 2

So tell me Dear Reader, are you a whisky aficionado? Do you have a favourite type of whisky? Do you always order food when you drink?

This meal was independently paid for.

10 Thomas Lane, Haymarket NSW 2000 Monday to Saturday, 4pm till late (2am on Fridays and Saturdays)

Source: http://www.notquitenigella.com/2018/11/30/bancho-bar-chinatown/

[yearsblog]

t’s 11am in a slightly dilapidated rehearsal room on a King’s Cross side street, and I can just about overhear a discussion in which Dominic Boyce, the affable drummer of psychedelic indie-pop troupe Peace, is considering returning a recently purchased pair of vegan sandals. “In hindsight, maybe I should keep them and commit to it,” he says at one point. “Maybe they’d be good for Glastonbury. Give the people what they want.”

Today, Boyce is joined by a speedily assembled who’s who – quite literally in some cases – of indie, rehearsing for Wednesday night’s NME awards, where they will perform the Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter, and Buffalo Springfield’s For What It’s Worth. Rallied by the NME, the group will be joined on the night by Charli XCX, who right now is somewhere over the Atlantic, but today consists of Boyce and Sam and Harry Koisser from Peace, Olly Alexander from Years & Years, Pixie Geldof, Isaac Holman from Slaves, Izzy Baxter from Black Honey, Austin Williams and Cavan McCarthy from Swim Deep, and Joe Falconer from Circa Waves.

While you may not be overly familiar with each act’s entire back catalogue, everyone in the room today is very committed to raising money for refugees, and that’s a positive and wonderful thing. The plan is that anyone watching the performance online – or reading an article about its rehearsal – can text REFU to 70700 to donate £5 to the British charity Help Refugees. It’s the sort of thing that routinely prompts a kneejerk sneer, but it’s a simple and effective move and knees can’t sneer anyway because of biology. The morning moves slowly with dramatic highlights including a broken keyboard stand, a leaking battery, Harry Koisser being unable to see the colour red, and an absence of maracas. At one point, Baxter is handed a red, gold and green guitar strap. “I’m too white to wear that,” she observes, although it’s fair to say this is one room in London where it’s impossible to be too white for anything.

After a run-through of the songs and lunch in the pizza place across the road, we’re joined by the NME editor, Mike Williams, who has turned up to check on progress. I ask him whether this whole supergroup business might be better with a few more famous people.

“That’s a bit of a mean question,” he says. “We haven’t even approached the Dave Grohls and Lady Gagas of this world – we wanted it to be in the spirit of what Bands 4 Refugees were already doing. It wouldn’t have been right for NME to storm in and swap them out for big American artists.”

Asked to clarify the message that he’s hoping to send out by drawing awareness to the refugee crisis during the NME awards, Williams adds: “Politicians and people with influential voices are being irresponsible with their words and changing the views of otherwise decent people. There’s a negative and demonised view of vulnerable people not that different from us who have been badly affected by wars and terror attacks. We want to show a bit of the reality.”

It’s cheering – but also a bit of a rum old do – that in the current climate, the first major creative statement from the global music community has come in the form of the new Katy Perry single, Chained to the Rhythm, a song about echo chambers and numbness that she has described as “purposeful pop”. But isn’t it also frustrating that the best song choices for Wednesday night’s show are both more than 50 years old?

“A song like Gimme Shelter is incredibly powerful and the message will resonate with everyone in the room on the night and watching on Facebook Live,” Williams says. “That said, bands have told me in the past they don’t want to speak out because the internet is so unforgiving, but it feels like people have got to get over that now.”

Alexander chooses his words either far more carefully or far less carefully, depending on how you look at it. “The message I’d give Theresa May is that she should resign and take her entire cabinet with her,” he says. “Someone else should have a chance now. There’s lots of talk of Clive Lewis of late, isn’t there? Is he good? I don’t know. Maybe he’s just young and a bit hot.”

Alexander initially felt wary about becoming involved in Bands 4 Refugees. “A little bit of me always worries about the perceived vanity of ‘I’m supporting a cause’, but worrying what people think actually is a vanity problem,” he says. Currently midway through writing Years & Years’ second album, he acknowledges the pressure to write about world events. “It feels like that choice is more important now than it was a couple of years ago,” he says. “You could write a song about love, and people would go: ‘We’re living in a dumpster fire apocalypse and this is what you’ve chosen to write about?’”

A recent writing session helped put things in perspective. “I felt like I didn’t want to write about politics simply because I felt like I should, but then last week I wrote a song with the Pet Shop Boys. It’s inspired by a fairground in Margate called Dreamland, but while I was writing it, Neil Tennant said to me: ‘This makes sense right now with Trump closing the borders,’ and the song became something that touched on what’s going on in the world. I’d write lyrics and he’d say: ‘No, it needs to be more direct.’ He’d take a simple line and interject a subversive political statement. That’s the challenge as a pop writer, to do both at once.”

Baxter is more plain: “It’s important not to be like fucking Bono going: ‘You should do this.’ As an artist, you don’t have to answer all the questions, but you can still pose them.”

Most of today’s lineup has been assembled by Koisser, and while he’s keen not to take credit for dragging the other artists here (“All I’ll say is that I’ve probably been the most annoying person”), he hopes he can help start a bigger conversation among artists. “I’d like someone who’s a lot more important than us to see it and be inspired to do something gigantic on a level we can’t,” he says. Of course, if – meanness alert! – today’s supergroup did indeed want some more famous people, it might have made sense to ask for guidance from someone with experience in that field. Someone with a penchant for calling up superstars and getting them in a room in order to knock out a charity banger.

I mean, I wonder out loud, does anyone here today have any such contacts? It’s hard to know where to start, really. Isn’t it, Pixie Geldof?

“One or two names come to mind,” she smiles, a little wearily. “Yes, something like that may have happened before. And, yes, I see where you’re going with that. I don’t know what his plans are, but, yeah, I mean ... Band Aid is a Christmas song. Although I do like listening to the Tammy Wynette Christmas album throughout the year.” She’s clearly warming to the idea. “OK!” she eventually says. “I’ll have a word. Maybe. Oh, I don’t know.”

Back in the rehearsal room, Holman is handing out lollipops and, with each new vocalist added to the song, Gimme Shelter is sounding more and more unstable, like a pop Buckaroo. But by 5pm, it’s sounding pretty good. At one point, the band stops to debate whether the audience will clap along during the breakdown in For What It’s Worth. “Ignore the tables,” is one suggestion. “They’ll be too busy with their free dinners.” Someone else offers: “It all depends on how drunk they are.”

The group are limited to performing a faithful rendition of at least one of their chosen songs, a decision explained when I put it to Koisser that a tropical house version of Gimme Shelter might have made more impact in 2017. He says they needed the Rolling Stones’ approval to perform the song, “and there’s a thing that says you’re not allowed to change the genre or style. It has to be the same arrangement, structure, genre – and you can’t change the lyrics. Even if we wanted to do a tropical house version – and trust me, that went through my mind – we wouldn’t be able to.”

In the past, Mick Jagger has described Gimme Shelter as “a kind of end-of-the-world song, really. It’s apocalypse.” I pull Boyce to one side and ask: is the world about to end? He thinks for a while.

“I hope not,” he says eventually. “But it feels like the start of the end of something.”

The end of what?

“Humanity?”

He’s starting to look a bit troubled. “I mean I’m hoping it’s not,” he clarifies. “But something’s about to snap. It would be good to give it all another go, wouldn’t it? Start afresh.”

He’s sounding quite chipper about the prospect of life as we know it coming to an end. In fairness, the prospect of global apocalypse isn’t exactly unappealing these days. It would be great if that could wait until after the NME awards, though.

[roselukes]

Second Chances Chapter 4

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3

The club was completely packed when they showed up. “There’s so many people here.” Mackenzie sighed as she looked around for Sarah.

“Yeah, it’s the biggest club in Manhattan.” Bryana smiled and pulled Mackenzie to the bar stools. “Is your friend here yet?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know where my phone is to text her. I’ll find her eventually.” She shrugged and looked at the bartender. “Can I get a rum and coke please?”

“I’ll have a strawberry mojito,” Bryana added. The bartender nodded and began making the drinks. “Oh, we don’t have to pay. Ashton says drinks are on him for us tonight.”

“No, I should pay for my own.” Mackenzie reasoned, looking at Bryana.

“The boys have enough money to buy you a couple drinks, Mackenzie. It’s fine.” Bryana giggled and looked up as Sarah found them.

“Mackenzie!” She yelled, running to Mackenzie and hugging her tightly. “I was so worried about you. I had no idea what happened to you that night and you weren’t answering your phone. Tell me what happened!” Mackenzie gave the basic story to her, refraining from mentioning the cuts they had given her. Bryana was skilled when doing her makeup to cover them up so they weren’t visible unless you were super close to them.

“I’m okay though, they didn’t hurt me too badly.” Mackenzie smiled and hugged Sarah tightly. “What do you want to drink?”

“I’ll just stick with water for now. I want to stay sober tonight, I have a big exam tomorrow.” Sarah sighed and leaned against the bar with Bryana and Mackenzie.

“You’ll do great. You always do.” Mackenzie giggled. “Sarah, this is Bryana. She’s Luke’s best friend's ex. Bry, this is Sarah, my old roommate from school.”

“You’re Sarah? I’ve heard so much about you.” Bryana smiled and took a sip of her drink, giving her a side hug. “Come on, let’s dance.” She smiled and set her drink down, grabbing Mackenzie and Sarah’s hands. She leads them out to the dance floor and swayed her hips to the beat of the song blaring throughout the club.“Oh, my God.” Bryana gasped after a half an hour of dancing. Her eyes widened and she covered her mouth, Mackenzie turned and saw Calum, Ashton and Michael followed by Luke and John entered the club from the side, blood splattered on their clothes and skin.

“Luke!” Mackenzie yelled forgetting everything, running through the packed club over to him. “What the hell happened to you?” She widened her eyes and reached up to cup his cheeks, turning him to look at her.

“I’m fine, Mackenzie. Don’t worry about me.” Luke sighed, and pushed her hands down. “It’s nothing. Don’t cause a scene,” he muttered. As he pulled her into his office, so she could make a scene with no one seeing it.

“Luke, you’re all covered in blood.” Mackenzie reasoned, looking up at him. “You expect me not to be concerned?”

“It’s not my blood. I’m okay, just go outside with the girls and get some air, take a deep breath. We’ll talk to you once I’ve changed and gotten cleaned up, okay?” Luke held her hand gently and pressed his lips to her forehead. He let go of her and watched as she walked out of his office.

“Come on, Mackenzie. Let’s go get some air.” Sarah grabbed her hand  as she walked out of his office and pulled her out of the club and into the alley. Mackenzie shivered as her skin was exposed to the chilly New York air.

“I can’t believe he thinks nothing of it. He’s fucking covered in blood and he’s acting like it happens every day.” Mackenzie blew out an exasperated breath leaning against the wall.

“That’s because it does.” Goosebumps formed on Mackenzie’s skin as she heard the familiar deep raspy voice. She never wanted to hear that voice again. “Luke isn’t the strongest when it comes to fighting, you know.” Mackenzie turned to face Romeo and swallowed hard when she noticed his beaten up stature, leaning on the other side of the alleyway. “Hello, my dear Sarah, so nice to see you again,” Romeo smirked at Sarah.

“Hi.” Sarah sighed uncomfortably, hoping Mackenzie wouldn’t piece it together.

“Wait. how.. How do you know...?” Mackenzie gasped, looking at Sarah, who had tears starting to well up in her eyes, seeing the guilty look on her best friend's face. “You…” She gasped.

“How else do you think I learned everything about you? I had to have someone on the inside, and who better to do that than my own flesh and blood?” Romeo chuckled darkly and stepped toward Mackenzie. She backed away until her back hit the metal fence. Behind him, she could see more men stepping into the alley. One grabbed Sarah from her spot on the wall, “Your work is done,” he said, loud enough for Mackenzie to hear. Mackenzie squeezed her eyes shut quickly when she saw him place a cloth over Sarah’s mouth. She whimpered as she heard a thud. Her mind imagined Sarah’s body hitting the body, being dragged away. “Don’t worry,” Romeo whispered, “I won’t do anything to my only niece.”

“Luke’s inside, he’d know if you touched me,” Mackenzie warned bravely, her heart rate quickening.

“I’m not here to hurt you Mackenzie,” she opened her eyes slightly. “I’m only here to return this.” He held up Mackenzie’s phone and smirked as he held it out to her. “I thought you might want it back. Maybe, keep it as a memory of our time together.” He said, grabbing her hand and pressing a kiss to her knuckles before dropping her phone and starting to walk out of the alley. Mackenzie grabbed her phone.

“I hope the next time I see you you’re in a body bag.” Mackenzie spat, running back inside. She looked around for Bryana and jogged to her when she found her. “I need to talk to Luke. Now.” Mackenzie’s breathing was ragged and irregular, tears were streaming down her face. She could feel her heart trying to beat through her chest.

“He’s in his office.” Bryana pointed to the office and Mackenzie walked to the door. She knocked and waited for a response.

“Luke? It’s Mackenzie. We need to talk.” She sobbed, looking down at her feet. She was about to turn and walk away when the door opened. Luke stood there in his bloody shirt, half unbuttoned, sipping on some scotch he had poured himself after she had left.

“Come in.” He sighed and held the door for Mackenzie as she walked in. He closed the door again and locked it, leaning against the door. “What do we need to talk about?” Figuring there was nothing wrong. She had always been dramatic. The crying normally was an act, he thought, just a way for her to win that round of the argument. She had done it when they were still together and he was sick and tired of it

“Romeo was outside. He cornered me and gave me this. And he took Sarah.” She sobbed She handed her phone to Luke.

“Did he touch you?” Luke asked, throwing her phone onto his desk, placing his scotch down, grabbing her waist and pulling her into his chest. “I need to know if he hurt you.”

“No, Luke. He didn’t touch me.” She sighed, tears pricking her eyes. “Did you know that Sarah was his niece?” She looked up at Luke. He looked down guiltily and avoided her gaze. “Oh, my God. You knew, and you didn’t tell me?”

“She was your best friend, Mackenzie. I didn’t think she would help him get to you. The last time I spoke to her was when she mentioned to everyone that she didn’t talk to any of her family,” Luke finally let his gaze drift to hers. Even when her eyes were glossy, they were still brighter than he remembered them to be. He ran his finger over her cheek softly. “I didn’t know how to tell you without having you think I was trying to turn you on her”.

“You always hated her. Is that why? Because she knew who you were?” Mackenzie demanded, crossing her arms. Luke nodded slowly and sighed. “We are not leaving this room until you tell me everything. You have to tell me the real reason you left me, who is after me, and why they want me.”

“Mackenzie, I can’t tell you all of that. It’s too dangerous for you.” Luke reasoned, pulling her closer. “Everything I’ve done, I’ve done because I love you.”

“That’s fucking bullshit, Luke! If you loved me, you wouldn’t have left me to get kidnapped by some ugly old men!” Mackenzie yelled, pulling away from Luke. “Why did you leave me?”

“I left you because I know what the gang can do to a person! Look at what it did to Bryana! She lost almost everything when she got involved. I didn’t need that happening to you.” He snapped.

“Fine” she snapped back, wiping her tears away. He tried to grab her arm but she had already stormed out of his office, making her way outside to the street, where taxis were waiting. She called one and jumped in, giving the address of Luke’s house where her stuff was. She pulled out the cash Bryana handed her, just in case she needed to get home or call a taxi, and paid the driver her fare, before turning and staring at the big house she had so many memories in. The first time he brought her to the house. The first night she stayed over. The first time they had sex. The first “I love you”. All the memories got worse and worse as she made her way inside up to the bedroom. All her stuff had been put into, his bedroom. She was beyond upset now. She picked up the framed photo of her and Sarah. She pulled the picture out and ripped it in half, throwing away Sarah’s half. She laid on Luke’s bed and buried her face in the pillows. They smelled like him and it hurt after everything they had been through, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop taking in the scent she missed so much.

***

Luke didn’t come home that night. He stayed at the club to give Mackenzie some space to think. He decided he’d come home around 5pm, after he was sure she’d have time to cool down. Maybe she could be reasonable to talk too now. He stopped at the Apple store on his way home, getting Mackenzie a new phone, to make sure no one would track her old phone back to her. He would have to dispose of the old phone or plant it somewhere as soon as he could. He had everything set up for her including a new number and a nice background image of himself shirtless. It was a joke they had when they were together. She had taken it of him when they were still together. She had sent it to him multiple times, just to tease him. He set the picture just to lighten up her mood, he knew that she would be in a tough position for the next little while. When he got home, the entire house smelled of garlic and meat. “What’s going on in here?” He asked, loosening his tie as he walked into the dining room.

“Mackenzie made spaghetti, and holy shit, it’s so good!” Calum said with his mouth full. “It’s the best spaghetti I’ve ever had.”

“It’s not that good. I’m not that good of a cook.” Mackenzie smiled softly, blushing lightly, turning back to the stove, moving some pots around.

“Around here you are incredible. We don’t have home cooked meals unless it’s kraft dinner ” Calum grinned.

“Mackenzie, can we talk for a second? Please?” Luke sighed, rubbing his neck before shoving his hands in his pockets. Sleeping in his desk chair was never good for his posture and it always left him feeling sore. He needed a couch in there. Mackenzie nodded and walked to the foyer to meet Luke.

“What is it?” She asked, looking up at him, placing her hands on her hips. Luke handed her the phone.

“This is yours now. I got everything set up for you already, you just have to reconnect the rest of your stuff. My number and the boys’ numbers are on speed dial in case you find yourself in an emergency. I’ve got your phone linked to the computer in the club so I can track you if I need to, but I won’t do it unless it’s really necessary. We have a plan to keep you safe” Luke explained.

“I wouldn’t need this if you hadn’t left me.” She mumbled, rolling her eyes and stuffing the phone in her pocket. “I can’t believe you left me because of such bullshit reasons.” she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m assuming that you aren’t going to tell me this new plan of yours”

“Loving and wanting to protect you is not bullshit.” Luke seethed, looking down at her. “I love you with every fucking part of me and I will never stop loving you. If I lost you because I couldn’t protect you, I don’t know what I’d do with myself. So, don’t tell me it’s bullshit, and you don’t need to know, because right now it doesn’t involve you.”

“Of course you aren’t. You know what the worst part about this is?” Mackenzie sighed, looking up at him again. He shook his head and his expression softened. “The worst part is that I still love you, too.” Luke’s breath hitched in his throat. He leaned down and lightly placed his lips over Mackenzie’s.

“Just please give me another chance to protect you. Give me a chance to earn your trust again.” Luke whispered against her lips, grabbing her waist..

“I-i..” She sighed pulling away, holding Luke’s hand. “I can’t. Not yet.” Tears pricked Luke’s eyes and he pulled his hand from hers. “Luke, it’s just not that easy. We have to work up to that.”

“All I want is to have you in my arms again. I just want you to be mine so I have a real reason to protect you. I just want to be there for you”  Luke pleaded, looking down at Mackenzie. “and maybe occasionally get a kiss or two.” he asked hopefully. She slightly smiled at his hope and gently cupped his face before pulling her hands away.

“Luke, I can’t risk the heartbreak again. I just can’t.” She sighed and turned around, walking back to the dining room.

“Just give her time, mate. She’ll come back to you, I know she will.” Ashton squeezed Luke’s shoulder as he passed by him. “She just needs to get there herself and realize what you did was for her.”

“Everything I do, I do for her.” Luke whispered, watching Mackenzie interact with his friends from afar. “I’ll never love anyone as much as I love her.”

“She knows that. She’s glowing, mate. She loves you just as much, she’s just not ready to show it again because of what happened. She just needs time.” Ashton smiled and walked into the dining room. Luke smiled softly and walked in. He didn’t want to wait for Mackenzie to be ready, but he knew he had to. He knew that if he wanted her back, he was going to have to wait for her. All he wanted was her, and he would do anything for her.

***

Mackenzie walked up the stairs, following Luke to the room. She walked in and froze as she saw all of her things placed out just as they had been a year and a half ago, before Luke left her. “Luke, what the hell is this?”

“I just figured we could go back to the way things used to be. Before all of this happened.” Luke sighed and looked down.

“It’s not that easy, Luke! I can’t just jump back into our same routine!” Mackenzie pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’m not sleeping in here with you.”

“Mac,” he tried. She shook her head.

“I need space Luke. You moved my stuff into the house without even telling me. You can’t just move my stuff into your room and expect me to be completely fine with it.

“Alright, fine. I’ll move your things to the guest room.” Luke sighed and called the boys up to help. They picked up her things and brought them to the guest room. They placed them around the room, making it her own.

“Thank you, boys.” Mackenzie sighed and sat on the bed. “I’ll see you guys in the morning.” She yawned.

“Goodnight, Kenzie.” Ashton smiled and pressed a kiss to her forehead. They boys walked out, leaving Luke and Mackenzie alone.

“Goodnight, Luke.” Mackenzie laid on the bed with her back to Luke. He sighed and walked out of the room and to his own. Mackenzie pulled the covers over her body and turned off the lamp. She closed her eyes and it wasn’t long before she was off in dreamland.

***

His hands were on her body, pinning her down. Romeo was gripping her wrists tightly, a smirk on his face. “I hope you’re ready to watch your Lukey die.”

“No, don’t hurt him!” Mackenzie cried, trying to push Romeo off of her. She looked up as Al walked in, dragging a bloody and beat up Luke behind him. “Luke!” She cried, kicking her legs at Romeo. He tied her hands and pulled her into the chair so she could see Luke clearly.

“Mac..” Luke whimpered softly, looking at her sadly. Romeo aimed his gun at Luke’s head and Mackenzie screamed.

“No!” Tears were falling down her cheeks. Romeo pulled the trigger and Mackenzie screamed as she watched Luke’s body fell to the floor.

Luke’s eyes shot open as he heard the cries and whimpers coming from the guest room. He got up quickly and ran to Mackenzie’s room. He sighed as he saw her sleeping form. She was tossing and turning, tears soaking her pillow. He carefully lifted her blankets and laid himself next to her. He wrapped his arms around her protectively and held her close to his body. “You’re okay, Mac.” He whispered. Her whimpers and cries stopped as Luke rubbed her back.

“Luke?” Mackenzie whispered, opening her eyes slowly. “Luke!” She wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him in super close, soaking his bare chest with tears.

“I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere.” Luke pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“They had you.. You were killed, Lu. Right in front of me.” Mackenzie’s eyes welled up with tears again. “I can’t lose you like that.”

“You will never lose me, Mac.” Luke wiped her eyes. “I may get hurt sometimes, but getting hurt is what made me the strongest leader this gang has ever seen.” He said, running his fingers up and down her back, calming her down.

“Are you still running the underground boxing ring?” Mackenzie asked after a while, looking up at him.

“Yeah, we’re making the most money any ring leaders have ever made.” Luke smiled softly. “You should really come see a fight sometime. Chris is our top boxer.”

“You know I don’t like watching the fights.”

“I know, but you were the one who told me about the underground ring.” Luke smiled. “How did you find out about it, anyways? You never did tell me.”

“Oh.. Sarah told me about ring in New York. She said her uncle had been involved with it..” Mackenzie looked up at Luke, fear in her eyes. “Oh, my God. Romeo. Was he involved with it?”

“When we took over the ring, we kicked Romeo out of business.” Luke sighed. “That’s when we became rivals, and I guess he knew that hurting you was the only way to bring me down.”

“Luke, you have to forget about me. We’re not going to work. We tried it before and it ended badly, how are we supposed to make it work again?” Mackenzie sighed.

“We just have to try.” Luke whispered, pressing his lips to hers.

“I’m scared, Lu..” Mackenzie whispered against his lips. “I’m scared to give you everything again. What if we end up the same way?”

“Mac, baby, it’ll work out. Just go back to sleep.” He kissed her head and held her close as she fell back asleep slowly.

Send feedback to me and @dearlybelovedluke!

[ramblingrockerblog]

‘The Lightbulb Effect’

‘Lightbulb Effect' You know the one? when you get an idea or come to a realization and suddenly everything in your life makes sense? I still remember my 'Lightbulb' moment, I was 24 and was having one of my... lets call them 'Rough Weeks'. Since leaving high school (now over 10 years ago wow!) I never knew what I wanted to do, some kids grow up wanting to be Doctors, others join the forces or maybe others flitter around for years between jobs, or in my case college courses, lets go back a bit shall we...

When I was 17 I took a carpentry and joinery course, I did really well, all my work was completed I passed the first year and was on course to complete the whole qualification... what did I do? I quit 3 months from the end... foolish? perhaps although as I sit here thinking about it I cant say I regret my decision. Deep down I knew it wasn't what I wanted to do. After leaving Id always hoped Id find that 'one thing' in my life that I could pour my everything into, unfortunately that search was always blighted by a lack of self confidence, anxiety and a few bouts of depression.

Where do these issues stem from? By all means my life has not been a bad one, I've always had a roof over my head a warm bed to sleep in and food in my belly (and for this I'm very grateful). Without using it as an excuse I also come from a broken home and have had more than a few issues with my father. I dealt with it, I made the decision to see my local counsellor and after a years worth of sessions I walked out that door a stronger person and closed the book on those issues.

Between the ages of 18-24 I used to worry alot. Anxiety has always been a big part of me, people used to say that my middle name was 'Worry'. This was escalated by the witnessing of my then housemate, and best friend in a horrific car accident. At 18, and sustaining the injuries he did he is very lucky to be here now. I call him ‘the machine’ because he's a tough bastard and an inspiration and I'm so proud of everything he's achieved since the accident. Its in those moments and the years that follow that you reflect and you realise who and what is most important.

Those years of my life were not all negative. There was lots of positives, I passed my driving test (got myself a little motor), my first niece arrived, and there where many weekend nights spent at my local rock and metal club 'The Waterfront'. The floor was sticky, the ceilings would drip with perspiration and the toilets were proper grim but that place (as weird as it sounds) was home! It was my kind of music and my kind of people. From nights spent there with the gang I have nothing but fond memories, and with beers priced at £1.50 you really couldn't go wrong... well you could, because if you didn't drink your can (that's right... a can) quick enough you'd have warm beer!

So Id get up everyday I went to work and at one point rented my own apartment... you could say I had the lot, the car, the pad and money in the bank but I couldn't shake the strong desire to better myself to become a more confident outgoing person but what was it that I really wanted to do...cue lightbulb moment...

It was January 2014 it was cold and everything I hate about winter! (I'm a 28 degrees plus and blazing sunshine boy) as I mentioned before I was having one of my' Rough Weeks' a friend had given me his copy of 'Early Years The Best Of Led Zeppelin' and in anticipation of his 'What did you think'? enquiry I knew it was time to dive in. I had those useless electric heaters in my apartment... you know the ones... night storage heating, where the heat would be released gradually throughout the day? great idea! except I think mine were from the 50′s so all heat would be lost buy at least 5pm! Not ideal in the dark of winter.

So I would use this little halogen heater, that I would bring up close when I was sitting on my desktop (yep I still had a desktop in 2014) this particular night I was drinking my poison... rum on the rocks. Led Zeppelin was blasting from the speakers, now this best of Zeppelin had some classic bangers 'Whole Lotta Love' 'Communication Breakdown' 'Rock And Roll' and 'Black Dog' and then began track 8... 'Since I've Been Loving You'.

I cant really describe that moment, from the opening chords of Jimmy Pages guitar, John Bonham's drums and then of course Robert Plants wailing vocals... as cliché as it sounds there in those 7 minutes 23 seconds I was lost... I just listened... something about that piece of music got me, spoke to me and still does today (its on now as I write this) and that's when it hit me ... what couldn't I live without? what did I immerse myself in everyday? where did I go when I wanted to escape? ... cue lightbulb... MUSIC....

There with my rum, halogen heater and wearing the worlds most unflattering woolly hoodie and Adidas tracksuit bottoms (which I think were passed down from my brother, I must have stopped growing when I was 17) it all made sense... MUSIC...

Id attended numerous gigs and festivals prior to the lightbulb moment, I have some special memories from Download Festival 2009 and 2010. I met the top hat himself 'Slash', from Guns and Roses back in 2012. Slash, Myles and The Conspirators at Brixton Academy 'Apocalyptic Love Tour'. He was a true hero, me and my brother had queued in line for about an hour backstage after the show, when he came out he stood there and signed something and chatted to every single fan that had queued. My guitar plate that I had removed the prior evening 'just in case' and he signed is one of my most prized possessions. For those interested he asked 'If Id enjoyed the show?' I think my response was meant to be something resembling a sentence but I'm sure I only managed a series of noises and squeaks.

Even though this was a significant lead up to the lightbulb moment even now I look back and think why did it then take me another 2 years to decide to go for the music thing? Ever since I was a kid Id always found peace and an escape in music, I used to buy cassettes when I was a kid. Growing up with two older brothers meant I was exposed to so much music as a youngster. Id lived through the era of Britpop and grown up with both older brothers taking opposite ends of the spectrum (one was a Oasis fan the other was Blur). ‘Dave Pierces Dance Anthems’ on Radio One on a Sunday Night must also get a mention It didn't get any better than that!

2011 onwards Id always (even though I wouldn't call them that at the time) been writing lyrics, in my counselling sessions I was encouraged to find an outlet for my frustration and anger I was tied of it being drink so I started channelling my emotions and feelings on paper, this wasn't of course my only inspiration for my lyrics the usual... love lost... lust etc. I could still tell you where I was when I wrote my first ever lyrics, what the weather was like etc... funny that I'm a very sentimental person and something like that I never want to forget.

I must also mention that without my good friend... lets call him 'D' I don't think I would have taken those lyrics any further he saw something in them. I remember I let him read 'the book' one day and he really wanted me to consider creating melodies, and turning them into songs along with him. So we tried it and we did really well for what you would call 'bedroom musicians' those where some good times in my apartment sitting there sometimes till 3AM drinking ale, coming up with melodies and me constantly looping lyrics trying to fit to his guitar parts... I'm forever grateful to D and his encouragement and belief In me... more about D and our little project later.

So most of 2011 2012 and 2013 I wrote nearly everyday, I've gotten a memory stick, books and scraps of paper etc. all containing my lyrics. Still I never took that step forward I always believed I wasn't good enough ... remember issues! But then the lightbulb moment happened and it all made sense ... music is what I had a passion for! writing is what I believed I was good at and what I enjoyed doing. From there I knew what I wanted to do or at least be able to say I was involved in.

K.    

[bibijanca]

MY TIME IN CUBA 🇨🇺

Where do I start.. Cuba, the biggest Island in the Caribbean Sea and a really interesting, unique and overwhelming country, with really nice and kind-hearted people. As I told you in my previous post I’ve been to Cuba in 2013 for the first time, but only for 3 weeks and with my parents and my little brother. This time I came alone and for 2 months (05.12.16 - 02.02.17), I lived in my aunts and her moms house and also traveled through the country. I have an own room in the house, and it really feels like “being home” when I’m there. Living in a cuban household makes you see things from another perspective, cause being in a country as a tourist will never make you experience how it is to really live there. In one word, Cuba is different. Different to every country I’ve been to before. Everything was a new experience for me and just completely different (not in a bad way).

WHAT DID I DO IN CUBA?

I did so many things, here are my “Highlights” and the most important things I did/saw:

HAVANA So my family lives in Havana, therefore I spent a lot of time in the beautiful Cuban capital. We live a bit outside of the city, so I always took the bus to go to the center. I always had something to do in Havana, either meeting friends or my aunt after work, buying stuff or just chilling at the Malecón and listening to music. I spent time in the center too, but mostly in “Vedado”, another part of Havana. Vedado is where you find most of the restaurants, markets, bars and Clubs, so it’s where the “night live” takes place. Me and my aunt loooove dancing! So we went out a lot, mostly to dance salsa (Oh by the way, I took a salsa class in Havana, just to learn the basics. When I come back to Cuba I’m gonna take salsa classes regularly!). We also went to a lot of concerts in the city, or we just spent evenings at home watching Cuban TV ( My favorite TV show: “Bailando en Cuba”). I felt very comfortable “at home”, and I loved spending time with my aunt and my grandma!

‼️If you’re planning to travel to Cuba and want to know what to do in the capital, here comes a list with my favorite spots in Havana:

🍸At night: For good Bars & Clubs go to “Vedado” (part of Havana) - “La Gruta”: Salsa Club, go there on a Wednesday - “La Red”: nice Club, good to dance, different types of music (Reaggeton, Charts, Salsa,..) - “Kingbar”: small bar, good to dance but a little bit more expensive - Good Concert: El Diablo Tun Tun (best show on Thursdays from 5pm - 9pm) - Cheap drinks (in Vedado, Street 23): “Polinesio”, happy hour from 4pm - 8pm

- “Café Cantante”: a Club, good to dance salsa

☀️During the day: - La Habana Vieja (Old Town) - Centre de La Habana: Capitolio, Prado - Malecón: to chill or walk, also good to hang out at night (one of my favorite places in the city to watch the sunset) - Playas del Este: Playa Santa Maria, nice beach close to Havana. You can take a colectivo or a bus - Restaurant: Casa Tacos (in Vedado), also really cheap Cocktails

ARTEMISA I spent a week (December 24th - January 2nd) in the province “Artemisa”, where my aunts family (Grandma, aunts, cousins,..) lives. It was nice living in such a big family, and everyone was so so nice (4 generations live there together). Usually they don’t celebrate Christmas in Cuba, but we had a big family dinner on the rooftop on the 25th, cause the whole family came together on that day. We also spent New Years Eve in Artemisa, same as Christmas: the whole family came together, we had so much fun and an amazing dinner with typical Cuban food.

VIÑALES It’s beautiful, but this time I only made a day trip to Viñales, we went there with the whole family by “bus”. A great day (plus yummy food, very important haha)!

90st BIRTHDAY PARTY My aunts grandma turned 90 in January, so she had a big party in Havana with 150 people. Cubans are the best to party with, even on a 90st bday Party, trust me! There’s almost no one who isn’t laughing, dancing and drinking rum. It was a fun day and evening and I’m happy that I’m part of this family, even though we’re not related (my grandpas wife isn’t my real grandma).

SANTIAGO DE CUBA I spent 5 days in this interesting city in the very south of the island. It was my first time there and I really liked it. I went there with my Grandma and her friend from Panama, we took a bus and it took us 18 hours to get there (from Havana)! We also visited my grandmas friend and his family who were so nice and caring.

WHAT DID I LEARN IN CUBA?

I learned so many things for life! Where do I even start.. When my aunt asked me to buy milk or eggs in my first days in Havana, I automatically said “okay sure, where can I get it?”. A question she couldn’t answer, cause you never know where to get what and when. It was a new challenge for me, even though I have to say that I’m a really adaptable to new or different things and I don’t need much to be happy! It’s just that I always lived in Germany and therefore I’m really used to the western world.

But that’s why I love traveling: Things like this make me realize that I’m really used to certain things, and that I also take a lot of things for granted. Like the ability to buy things in general, always being able to have a warm shower (always having water and the food you want) and the most important thing: being able to travel.

Living in Cuba made me realize how lucky I am to have a German passport, and I felt bad because I have to confess that I always took it for granted. I can just book a flight to anywhere if I have the money, I can be on another continent tomorrow if I wanted to. That’s something I appreciate so much more now that I talked to a lot of Cubans who have never been to another country, cause they’re not able to leave the country that easily.

Anyway, things like this made (and still make) me think a lot. I’m so much happier now that I really appreciate everything more, even though I always appreciated the things I have. But still, we’re so used to having everything in the 1st world and we complain SO much! Being used to everything we have, we forget that we are actually so so lucky. It’s hard to imagine how life would be without all these things. And even if you can imagine, you need to live like this, otherwise you would never really understand.

WHAT DID I LIKE THE MOST?

I loooove Cuba! The happiness and passion of the people, the food, the vibe, the music and of course the dancing. Not only did I get the skin color from my cuban grandfather, but also the love for music and dance. I love dancing, so I felt like I’m in paradise, cause everyone’s just dancing everywhere, it’s amazing! I enjoyed talking to Cubans, it’s so interesting how they feel and what they think about their situation and their lives. I love how they are always trying to make the best out of everything and trying to be happy. That’s what we need to do: being happy and stop complaining!

I learned and did so much more, but that’s it for now 🖖🏾

[kn1ghthawk]

Innocent/guilty

I was tagged by no one but I saw it on @tarberrymentats​

I’ll tag @actualsunflower

Asked someone to marry you? - Guilty (Nora)

Kissed one of your friends? - Guilty (Johnny)

Danced on a table in a bar or tavern? - Innocent

Ever told a lie? - Guilty (The worst was: “stay here, you’ll be fine”)

Had feelings for someone whom you can’t have? - Guilty (Cait looks too much like Nora to him, so he never deepened the romance.)  

Ever kissed someone of the opposite sex? - Guilty (Johnny)

Ever kissed someone of the same sex? - Guilty (More than a few)

Kissed a picture? - Innocent

Slept in until 5pm? - Guilty (Pulled a 12 hour shift in the motorpool and blacked out for another 12)

Fallen asleep at work or school? - Guilty (In technical school, he was already a chapter ahead of the lectures so he nodded off in class)

Held a snake? - Innocent

Been suspended from school? - Guilty (He built a pipe-gun in shop class to see if he could)

Stolen something? - Guilty (In the army, they would raid opposition supplies)

Done something you regret? - Guilty (Let the pack roam free in order to get nuka-world up and running, he thought he could control the raiders as overboss)

Caught a snowflake on your tongue? - Innocent

Laughed until liquid came out of your nose? - Guilty (nuka cola quantum BURNS!)

Kissed in the rain? - Guilty (Often, rain gets him wiggly)

Sat on a roof top? - Guilty (When he had to reroof a house after a tree fell)

Kissed someone you shouldn’t? - Guilty (Johnny was someone he ‘shouldn’t’ have been with in the time before the war)

Sang in the shower? - Guilty (often, he keeps a radio in the bathroom bolted to the wall)

Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? - Innocent

Shaved your head? - Guilty (First boot, then again when he had a whole oil pan dumped on his head, then most recently when he got to diamond city and did it to prepare himself for this new land.)

Slept naked? - Guilty (Often, if he can secure the sleep site.)

Made a boyfriend/girlfriend cry? - Guilty (He found out what Johnny’s dad was doing to him and called the police. When the social services came to take Johnny away, they broke down sobbing.)

Donated blood? - Guilty (In the service and once a month as a civic duty since coming back)

Eaten alligator meat? - Guilty (I’m counting the Nuka World gatorclaws)

Eaten cheesecake? - Guilty (Before the frost and I’m counting perfectly preserved pies as cheesecake with a sauce drizzle)

Still loved someone you shouldn’t? - Guilty (Nora is dead and gone, but he can’t shake her ghost)

Have/had a tattoo? - Guilty (He has his Name, Rank, Serial number on his upper right arm and his Battalion, Regiment, Company on his upper left.)

Liked someone, but will never tell who? - Guilty (Cait, even after he cured her, he couldn’t see her and not see Nora)

Been too honest? - Guilty (During the silver shroud moments, he spoke to harshly to have Sinjin turn their guns on him.)

Ruined a surprise? - Innocent

Eaten so much that you can’t walk after? - Innocent

Dressed in a man’s clothes? - Guilty (Fairly obvious)

Dressed in a woman’s clothes? - Innocent

Joined a pageant? - Innocent

Still have communication with your ex? - Innocent

Been told that you’re beautiful by someone who meant it? - Guilty (Johnny was the first person to ever call him beautiful.)

Cheated on someone? - Innocent

Gotten totally drunk and missed an exam? - Guilty (It was his college final, He went from an A- to a C+ in that class)

A total stranger treated you by paying your fare? - Guilty (His first ride home from service still in his class A’s, the taxi waved the cost for bringing a solider home)

Got so angry that you cried? - Innocent 

Tried to stay away from someone for their own good? - Guilty (Cait)

Thought about suicide? - Guilty (Everyone does, even as a disruptive thought.)

Thought about murder? - Guilty (He is very calculation when having to assault places and people.)

Actually murdered someone? - Guilty (Both in the service and after the vault)

Thought about mass murder? - Guilty (In defeating the institute, he laid out dozens of landmines as far as he could in every branch he could reach)

Actually committed a mass murder? - Guilty (When the assault began, he used a remote detonator on the mines to kill hundreds of innocent scientists)

Rode in a stranger’s vehicle? - Guilty (taxi ride home)

Stalked someone? - Guilty (Part of stealthy combat training and as the silver shroud.)

Had a girlfriend? - Guilty (a few before Nora, and now Curie)

Had a boyfriend? - Guilty (Johnny)

Gotten totally drunk during a holiday? - Guilty (Too many rum and cokes on his first fourth of july when he came home, they helped settle his nerves during the fireworks)