#before that i genuinely thought it was just a fun day for treats and scavenger hunts (i was about 5 at the time)

[girlboss-enthusiast]

When my parents first got together, they visited my dad's parents on Easter Sunday (not on purpose, it just happened to be Easter). My grandmother, whose entire social circle was Jewish, leaned across the table and said to my Catholic-raised mother, "Jenny, I have got to ask, what is with the rabbits and eggs? Rabbits don't even lay eggs. Chickens would make more sense. And what does that have to do with Jesus?"

My mom explained the pagan origins of those classic Easter symbols. My grandmother listened, and when my mom finished, she sat back, threw her hands in the air, and said in a tone of great disgust, "Christians! They steal everything!"

[cloverfics]

sweethearts ; bakugou katsuki

warnings shy!reader, shy!katsuki, mutual pining, and not edited

genre fluff, f2ls

word count 2.5k

inspiration n/a

synopsis in which you and the rest of the bakusquad are apart of the candygram committee and you take the opportunity to make a move on one stubborn katsuki

"This is so stupid." Katsuki sighed, feet hiked up onto his desk. It was around the umpteenth time that he had mentioned how useless or well— stupid this whole thing is.

You frowned, tying another ribbon around a baggie. "Aw, c'mon, Kat. It's the day of love, be more cheerful." You said, tossing him a chocolate.

He scoffed. "No. And stop calling me Kat." The following demand was mumbled as Katsuki turned his attention to opening the candy.

"Sure thing, Kat." You whipped around, imagining the irritated expression he was channeling because of your antics.

"C'mon Mina! How many do I have!" Denki whined, trying his best to juke the clipboard of names from Mina's hands. Something he's been doing all morning.

From the left of you, Kirishima let out a breath of laughter. "Dude, just wait and see." He assured Denki.

"Exactly. The surprise is the most fun part about this thing." Mina added on while she gently shoved Denki away from her.

"Not if dunceface doesn't get any." Katsuki sneered, sending Denki into a further sulk.

You sucked you teeth, preparing to reprimand Katsuki but Sero interjected first. "I wonder if you're getting anything today, Bakugou."

Almost on cue, the smug smirk on Katsuki's face simmers down into a scowl. He scoffed, "I could care less if I got one of those pathetic bags today! I can buy my own damn candy!" As he was getting chewed out, Sero could only chuckle.

Sending a sneaky glance towards you. You sighed, tuning out Katsuki's continous speech about how candygrams were pointless and how he didn't even want any.

In the corner of your eye you could see a sympathic smile on Kirishima's lips. He nudged your arm, "Nonetheless, you should still give it to him," He whispered into your ear.

Tossing another baggie into the box next to Jirou, you nodded.

"It'll make his day, I promise."

ฺ｡*:･

"Woah... seventeen for Yaomomo," Jirou blinked a couple times as your class erupted in a wave of teasing while Momo shuffled her way up to the front.

"Just take the whole damn box." Denki bitterly jutted it out her. He doubled over suddenly when Mina took said box and hit him in the stomach.

"Sorry, he's being very negative today." She handed Yaomomo her designated number of bags, making Denki help her to her desk.

You giggled softly. Your class was the last one for today, thankfully. Somehow, you had already grown sick to the smell of chalky sweets, even if your name hasn't been called yet.

"Twelve for Todoroki," Shoto came up to the front as dazed as ever while Denki muttered a very distasteful shocker under his breath.

Katsuki scoffed from his spot next you, leaning his back against the classroom chalk board. "Can't I go back to my desk?" He groaned.

Sero sucked his teeth, forming a conversation while Jirou's monotonous call continued. "Seeing as you didn't lift a finger all day I think you should be able to."

He prepared a smug smirk for Katsuki's explosive comeback but before he could speak through his gritted teeth, Aizawa had already shushed them.

"Two for Denki," A giggle that she covered up immediately with her hand fell from Jirou's lips and the classroom followed suit with a fit of snickers.

You could've sworn you say Denki's eye twitch before being handed two baggies by a grinning Mina. "Hey! That's two more than last year, right buddy?" Kirishima smacked Denki on the back in attempt to comfort.

"I don't think he wants words from someone who got seven more than him, Kiri." You whispered, noticing the way Denki borderline shook under Kirishima's hand.

"Four for ___." Your laughing fit with Kirishima was interrupted by your own name being called and Mina handing you your treats.

"Tch. What four imbeciles went out of their way to buy one of those for you?" Katsuki mused before you could speak yourself.

"You smell that," you sniffed around, Katsuki's eyes narrowed at you. "I smell pure jealousy." Your bags were waved in Katsuki's face for a moment before he was swatting your hands away.

"And last but certainly not least, one for Katsuki." Your heart skipped a beat. Not just at the mention of his name like it usually did but because you knew that one bag was purchased by you for him.

You were eager to look over and see the confused look on Katsuki's face you knew he was wearing but your heart was already beating in your ears so loud that you were in a stand still.

The thoughts you've had that always followed since you even got the idea to give him one started to roam freely.

Would he be grossed out? Would he be curious? What if he already suspects you because you're being obvious? And what if, miraculously, Kirishima's right and it makes his day?

But instead of laying any of those raging questions to rest, Katsuki accepts his bag from Mina silently. No snarky comment, no anger, just a soft tint of pink layering his cheeks as he looked at the packaging he had seen a hundred times already.

"Alright, thanks for finally wrapping that up, Jirou. Don't get those candy wrappers on my floor, I'm taking a nap." Mister Aizawa waved you all off like he always did and found home in that yellow sleeping bag.

While your committee cleaned up the boxes, the classroom fluttered with chatter. The spectrum of conversation being who they think would get them one and who they think bought something for the other person.

The cleanup was quick, so you all headed to the front where all the seats were open and gathered.

"Two. I only got two." Denki finally awoke from his daze to the realization.

You laughed, taking one from your bunch and leaning over to Denki. "I can share one of mine. Not really a fan of sweethearts."

But Denki still proved to be bitter, slapping your bag away. "I don't need your pity candy, ___."

You snorted. "Okay, suit yourself."

"So, it turns out Kat actually got one. You owe me twenty bucks Jirou." Sero made grabby hands at the girl who scoffed and immediately went into her bag.

You expected the usual antics to come from Katsuki who sat in his usual desk, one ahead of you. But again, there was no yelling, or anger, just a scoff and a glare.

"You idiots bet on me?" He asked.

"Hey, I thought it was easy money since I know exactly who would've got you one. Thankfully, they pulled through." Sero collected his cash with glee while you broke out into a cold sweat. Your eyes darted to Sero, a threatening message within them that you're sure he understood.

"Who?" Katsuki tried to make it seem like he didn't really care with the tone he used. But he was genuinely curious, you could tell. Which made you sweat more.

Katsuki sucked his teeth. "It was probably you, so you could get the money." The breath of relief you took was like no other, you visibly relaxed.

Sero chuckled. "No sir, I spent no money on candygrams. So, keep on guessing."

Fortunately, the bell rang, signaling that class and school as a whole was over. Your class flooded out, all walking to your dorm together in the usual group. Kirishima found his way to you in the crowd, bumping your hip.

"See, I told you." He pointed to a couple feet away where Katsuki walked ahead, bag still in hand as he stared down at it.

You felt your face start to heat up, nudging him with your elbow. "Maybe he's weirded out."

Kirishima scoffed. "If you told him it was from you, I assure you then you'll know it made his day."

A sigh had your body slumping. "I don't know, Kiri. I've managed to keep a good friendship with Kat. It's risky enough that I bought him one but confessing is another thing."

Even though you've managed to get through Katsuki's tough exterior ( kind of ), you still couldn't read him that well. How were you supposed to know when the right time to tell him was? Or if a right time even existed.

"Do it, trust me." Kirishima placed a hand on your shoulder, you gulped and darted your attention again to Katsuki's back.

ฺ｡*:･

You spent the rest of the day wallowing in your room with your inner conflict. Even ignoring the invites from your friends to spend the day watching d—list romance movies to sulk. It wasn't until later on in the evening that you came out of your room.

The dorms were less lively, almost everyone going away to their rooms to do whatever. You were convinced you were the only one in the main area until you saw Katsuki in the kitchen, unfortunately.

Your feet were ready to take you back upstairs to hide from him. But he must've heard the creaking that happened under your feet and caught you. His maroon eyes piercing right through you.

Damn it.

"Hey, Kat." You greeted awkwardly, hesitantly shuffling into the kitchen.

He nodded at you in acknowledgement, continuing to watch whatever he had in the microwave go round. The kitchen fell silent while the cogs in your head worked together to find yourself an excuse as to why you were even in here.

You shuffled through cabinets, pretending you were looking for something in particular.

"Hey," Katsuki beckoned your attention. His eyes were still trained on the microwave but obviously he was listening and waiting for your response. You hummed in answer, halting your pretend scavenging and leaning on the counter next to the fridge.

"You have any clue who bought me that baggie thing?" As he continued, his head turned to you. Your eyes enlarged at the sudden question that was accompanied by Katsuki staring you down. You felt like you were under an intense spotlight and there was no way out other than to a) lie or b) spill the beans.

Your brain was telling you to just get it over with and do the former, admit it to him confidently like Kiri had been urging you to do. Face the consequences as they came and stop hiding. So, you inhaled deeply and exhaled.

"I— uh— well, I— uh..." If you had the willpower to face palm you would, but apparently none of the signals your brain was sending were making it through to your body. Because your mouth kept opening and closing, no confession or accountability flowing out like you had hoped.

The only you could do was heat up and start sweating. The spotlight was getting hotter and more blinding.

The urge to face plant into the island ahead of you increased when Katsuki narrowed his eyes at you. The intimidating look sending chills up your spine.

You coughed. Putting an end to your stuttering and stammering. Your eyes fell to the tiles of the kitchen, hoping they'd loosen up one by one and swallow you whole.

"If there's something you want to tell me, idiot, spit it out," The microwave went off but now Katsuki could care less. He was edging towards you, arms crossed and curious to why it seemed like you were being interrogated for murder when he asked what he thought was a simple question.

Just do it.

The phrase chanted repeatedly in your head. And with the last of your dignity, you finally fulfilled your brain's request.

"I did it. I'm the one who bought the candygram..., Kat." You started off strong, but moving onto the second sentence your voice began to mellow.

You wanted to look anywhere except Katsuki but the shocked look on his face, accompanied by the tint of red covering his cheeks kept you drawn in. This time around he was staring down at the tiles, probably wishing the same thing that you were just seconds ago.

"If you did it as a joke, id—" Katsuki was about to threaten you, ready to build his walls back up but your adrenaline from fessing up was obviously still surging through you.

"No! It wasn't to prank you or anything, I did it because I like you, Kat. A lot." You paused, inhaling.

"A—and I've been meaning to tell you but I didn't know how you'd react because you're not really open. But then Kirishima told me it was a good idea, so I—" Your real self snapped back to reality in the middle of your confession, and it was apparent as you began to ramble and scratch the nape of your neck.

"Alright, enough. You sound like damn Deku." Katsuki, thankfully, put an end to your tangent that you silently agreed did sound like Izuku.

You laughed awkwardly, hoping it'd ease the tension not only in the air but in you. It felt nice to get that weight off your shoulders but oh boy did you have a lot to face. Like for example, how did Katsuki feel? Did he even reciprocate feelings? What would your friendship look like after this?

You had to know. You were dying to know. "So?" You mumbled, now fiddling with your fingers.

Katsuki's hand was at his nape like yours was moments ago. He huffed, obviously looking for the words. "You know, if you're going to confess to someone you should be more up front about it." Katsuki took short steps towards you.

You just hoped he couldn't hear your heart banging against your ribcage, because that's basically all you could focus on.

"I know." You answered.

"Tch. And I guess in saying that I should be taking my own advice." He grumbled, moving his gaze to the tile again. Your body basically perked up at the sound of that.

"Katsuki, did you send me a candygram?" Your assumption aloud make Katsuki scoff, his face heating up more and his gaze wandering even further. Now that the tables seemed to be turned, you suppressed your laughter. You had been psyching yourself out this whole time but Katsuki was basically in the same boat as you.

"So, what do we do now, Kat?" You asked, you crossed your arms. A hopeful thought that since he reciprocated your feelings a relationship would come of it.

Katsuki scoffed, dropping his arm into having them crossed again. "What did I tell you about that stupid nickname, dumbass?"

You laughed at his scowl. Thankful that even after the sudden confession between you to didn't actually tint your dynamic like you theorized it would.

Katsuki huffed, not seeking to bicker with you anymore. "Are you free this Saturday?"

"Uh, yea—"

"Alright, then. Be ready by three." That's what you were left with as Katsuki turned on his heel and left the kitchen with whatever he had in the microwave.

Your mind was still registering what had just happened, but all you could do was thank your luck and Kirishima.

[dogbearinggifts]

“Dad Sent Me to the Moon” vs. “Because Dad Made Me”

How Luther and Vanya Talk About Trauma, Part One

In this fandom, I’ve heard a lot about Luther and Vanya. 

Most of the things I’ve heard about Luther are negative. He constantly whines about his time on the Moon. He won’t shut up about how he had it worse than everyone else. He invalidates his siblings’ trauma. Meanwhile, Vanya is spoken of as if she’s his polar opposite: a kind, timid woman who genuinely did have it worse than everyone else but suffers nobly in silence while quietly ensuring her siblings are okay. I wanted to see if these perceptions were accurate, so I decided to take an empirical approach. During my sixth rewatch, I noted every time Luther mentions the Moon or Vanya mentions her exclusion, as well as how each of them responds to hearing of someone else’s trauma.

I want to stress that I am not out to throw one character under the bus. I’m not out to prove that Vanya is the actual worst and that Luther is the literal best, or that Vanya is amazing and Luther is awful. I’ve just heard a lot about both characters from within the fandom and I want to see how strongly the show itself supports the fandom’s perceptions. I won’t be examining every quote they have, and I won’t be looking at every scene they’re in. A deep study of both characters would certainly be fun, but for now, I’m only interested in how they address their own trauma and how they respond to the trauma of others. 

Note: I’ve chosen not to include Vanya’s book as a mention of her trauma. While her book does indeed bring it up and examine it in detail, I wasn’t sure how to quantify it for my own purposes. Do I count it as a single mention, because she only wrote it down once, and thus risk underestimating its impact? Do I count each sale as a separate mention, guesstimate the number based on how many copies sold it takes to reach bestseller status, and therefore grossly inflate her numbers? Because the book is impossible to quantify with any sort of accuracy, I’ve chosen to leave it aside. Rather, I will keep my trauma counts limited to what Luther and Vanya say to friends or family members. This also means I won’t include her voice-over while we see her writing her book, or the moments where she reads excerpts aloud. 

I’ve also chosen to write down the exact quote each time Luther or Vanya mentions their respective trauma or respond to someone else’s trauma. I’ll share my analysis, but I also want to give you all the chance to see each quote for yourselves and make your own judgments. You’re welcome to disagree with my conclusions and take or leave them as you see fit.  However, because these analyses will become lengthy in places, I plan to do only a few episodes at a time.

Episode 1: We Only See Each Other at Weddings and Funerals

No explicit mentions of trauma from either Luther or Vanya. It’s established that Luther lived on the Moon for a while and that Vanya was raised to believe she had no powers and excluded from the family dynamic as a result, but neither one addresses what they went through. 

Episode 2: Run Boy Run

Following the episode opener—a flashback to the day Five time-traveled and accidentally got stuck in the apocalypse—we hear Five share the harrowing details of his time there. Eating cockroaches, subsisting on scavenged food, learning the hard way that Twinkies do in fact expire—it’s pretty awful stuff. After Vanya takes it in stunned silence, we have this exchange: 

Five: You think I’m crazy.  Vanya: No, it’s just…it’s a lot to take in.  Five: Exactly what don’t you understand?  Vanya: Why didn’t you just time-travel back?  Five: Gee, wish I’d thought of that. Time-travel is a crapshoot. I went into the ice and never acorn-ed. You think I didn’t try everything to get back to my family?  Vanya: If you grew old there, you know, in the apocalypse, then how come you still look like a kid?  Five: I told you already. I must have got the equations wrong.  Vanya: I mean, Dad always used to say that time-travel could mess up your mind. Maybe that’s what’s happening? 

This is our first onscreen mention of trauma, and Vanya invalidates it. However, there are some factors to consider: 

Five’s story is pretty bizarre. “Yeah, after I ran away from home and time-traveled, I got stuck in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, lived there for 40 years or so, ate cockroaches and bad Twinkies, and then I jumped right back here but because math failed me almost as much as Dad failed at parenting I still look just like I did the day I left. You got any booze?” 

There is no evidence to corroborate his story. He looks exactly the way he did when he left, and he has no way to prove he visited the future at all. The most logical conclusion here is that he spent a year at most figuring out how to return and wound up jumping ahead to 17 years after his disappearance.

As we see in the flashback, Five has always been arrogant and headstrong, growing angry when corrected. His anger and impatience toward Vanya’s insinuations that he’s lost his mind are not a reliable indication that he’s telling the truth; if anything, Vanya is well within reason to assume she’s edging too close to a truth he’s not ready to face. 

Reginald Hargreeves was a terrible parent. But he was also a very smart man who knew more about his children’s powers than they themselves did. When he said that time-travel could mess up one’s mind, Vanya had every reason to assume he knew what he was talking about. 

Reginald often used “YOU CHILDREN MUST ONE DAY SAVE THE WORLD FROM AN IGNOMINIOUS END” to scare his kids into doing the dishes. Not only has Vanya probably had enough of that talk to make her decide the world is going to die a natural death billions of years after hers, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable for her to assume Five’s time-travel-addled mind latched onto those doomsday threats and twisted them into something truly strange. 

So, yes, Vanya does invalidate Five’s trauma, suggesting it’s all in his head. But when your choices of explanation are “my brother time-traveled before he was ready and it messed up his mind” or “my brother time-traveled to an apocalypse that’s going to happen in 8 days, lived there for 40 years without ever trying to get back, and now looks like a 13-year-old kid because he got the math wrong,” the former is easier to believe than the latter. 

Additionally, we see she genuinely cares for Five. His sudden reappearance, his talk of an impending apocalypse, his story that to her has holes large enough to drive a Volkswagen through—all of that has got to be terrifying. It’s clear she’s not invalidating his trauma out of any sense of malice, but rather concern. If he’s a victim of time-travel messing up his mind, she wants him to get the help he needs (as evidenced by her recommending a therapist later). Her invalidation of his trauma isn’t right, but it’s also a human response that comes from a place of genuine concern and good intentions. 

It’s also worth noting that, the very next day, she returns to the Academy to apologize for how she responded to his story. She does recommend a therapist, but only when Five says “Maybe you were right, maybe it was all in my head.”

A few scenes later, we get Vanya’s first mention of her trauma. 

Allison: No offense, Vanya, if I wanted advice, it wouldn’t be from you.  Vanya: What’s that supposed to mean?  Allison: You don’t have a child. You’ve never even been in a relationship.  Vanya: That’s not true.  Allison: So you know what it’s like to love someone like this? Like, when you’re apart from her, you can’t breathe? Like you would die—and I mean, actually die, to know she’s okay and happy? I mean, you separate yourself from everything and everyone, you always have.  Vanya: Because Dad made me.  Allison: Did Dad make you write that book about us, too? Pause You’re an adult now, Vanya. You don’t get to blame your problems on anyone but yourself. 

The first thing to note about this exchange is that, although it’s Vanya’s first mention of her own trauma, it’s Allison who brings it up first. The second is that when she brings up her trauma, it’s as an explanation for her behavior: I separate myself from everything and everyone because Dad made me. 

Vanya is definitely sympathetic here. I’m not going to argue she isn’t. She tries to be nice to her sister, catches her when she’s distressed, and gets reamed out for the attempt. That’s a shitty thing for Allison to do, which she later acknowledges. 

However, there’s also their history to consider: Allison is a movie star. As I’m sure we all know by now, image is everything to the rich and famous. I don’t mean that as a jab at their vanity (although vanity is certainly involved, more often than not) but as a fact: They are the product, and their image is part of the advertising. Everything they do in public (and much of what they do in private) is pounced on by the paparazzi and spun into the next big story. And this isn’t always fair to them; a single misspoken word can set off rumors that come back to bite them in the ass. 

And Vanya wrote a tell-all book about how Allison treated her as a child. 

As we see from the intro sequence in Episode 1, it seems Vanya’s autobiography hasn’t kept Allison off the red carpet. But it would have certainly hurt her public image. While it’s true we don’t know everything Vanya put in her autobiography, we do know Vanya harbors a lot of bitterness and resentment toward her family. We know she sees her siblings as near-strangers who had an easier time of it than she did at best, superpowered copycats of their father at worst. From the reactions we see later on—Diego taping Vanya’s author photo to a punching bag, Ben saying “I can’t believe she said that!” as Klaus shushes him—it’s safe to assume she did not say kind things about her siblings in that book. 

If the things Vanya said about Allison matched the things Allison later says about herself—that she used her power to get everything she wanted as a kid, that she grew up spoiled because of it—then that would not have done any favors for her public image. And the paparazzi would have gone apeshit for it. Yes, Allison is an incredibly popular actor, but that doesn’t mean the press wouldn’t have turned on her the second they got a juicy morsel about her past. I imagine her having to field many uncomfortable questions from trashy reporters while out for lunch with friends, having an interview about her upcoming film suddenly turn tense when the interviewer said “Now, Allison, your sister—who none of us even knew existed up to this point—wrote about you in her book, and I’m sure I speak for all of us when I say I want to know more about….” There’s even a chance Vanya’s autobiography contributed to Patrick’s continuing antagonism toward her, since reading a book detailing Allison’s childhood power abuse could have convinced him his wife had always been bad, right from the cradle. (Or it could have fostered suspicion toward his wife and led him to keep a closer eye on her and therefore is the reason why he was close to Claire’s bedroom the night he saw Allison Rumor her, but that’s another theory for another time.) 

You might say she deserved it. You might say she’d set herself up to fall and that all Vanya did was push that first domino over. You could even say her house of cards needed to topple, since part of her perfect life involved running roughshod over her own daughter’s free will, and possibly even Rumoring her husband into falling in love with her. Those arguments are absolutely fair, but they’re not my point. My point is, Allison’s harsh words to Vanya in this scene don’t come on her out of the blue. There’s a painful history there—painful for the both of them—and Allison harbors a lot of unresolved anger toward her sister for what she wrote in her book. And I don’t think that anger is unfounded, just as I don’t think Vanya’s resentment toward Allison is unwarranted. What Allison does in this scene is shitty, but Vanya has already done something shitty to her, in retaliation for shit she went through as a kid, and on and on the chain of pain goes. Vanya is far from guiltless in their relationship, but that does not make Allison’s lashing out at her okay. 

And this is getting pretty long, so I’ll cut things short here. I’m going to list the count for trauma mentions/reactions below—and since I’ve seen this show multiple times over, I know it’s going to change; so don’t take the fact Vanya’s count is higher than Luther’s as an indictment of her. It’s just where we are at the end of Episode 2. 

Own Trauma: Vanya 1, Luther 0 Trauma of Others:  Vanya 1, Luther 0

Enjoying this series? Read on to Part Two. 

[hes-writer]

The Hate You Give

Hi hun! If you’re not too busy, could u write one where they’re are dating and she’s a latina? Like she feels insecure about her brown skin, slightly bigger chest and ass, her thick dominican accent bc the girls who were linked with him before were all white and blonde and like she tries to break up with him bc of all the hate and differences. Thanks honeyy!!💖💖 @champagnehaarry

disclaimer; I'm not latinx and I've done research as to not offend or stereotype this character to the best of my ability.

Summary: Y/N is latina and receives hate messages

Warnings: angst, fluff

——

Y/N was different. She knew that, well, she had an idea ever since she hit puberty way back when. Her chest had grown bigger than the rest of the girls and her bottom would get her catcalls when she walked down the street. She could handle it, she prided herself in being strong. She didn't mind her accent, not one bit. Sure, it was thick and her pronunciation on certain words had others asking for her to repeat what she just said maybe once or twice, but she tried to understand where they were coming from; ‘everyone has their differences,’ she thought. Her skin never really bothered her–in fact, she hadn't spared much thought about its pigment until now.

When she met Harry, all her insecurities washed away as if she was just a regular girl meeting the love of her life. The way she looked didn't matter to her because she could see in his eyes that he loved her—nobody could tell her any differently.

——-

Y/N was strong. So strong that even when the media caught the first sight of Harry and her hanging out together on their third date, she blew off the fact that one of the cameramen shouted at them, "Harry! Who's this beautiful brown lady with you?" One might say that it was a compliment, at least he called her beautiful, but she couldn't shake off the measures that person took to describe her. Couldn't have he just called her 'lady'? Y/N decides that she's making a bigger deal out of it than it actually meant.

The second time something remarkable happened—it was when Harry stopped their romantic walk to take pictures with his fans. Y/N didn't mind, she loved that Harry was so dedicated to the people that support him that he would basically give all that he can to them. He didn't have to, but he did and that made Y/N fall harder for him. One of the girls asked Y/N to take a picture, handed her their phone and posed with Harry. Y/N was surprised at the straightforward action and she knew that she could not mess this up. Not when the girl has probably been dreaming of this moment her entire life, Y/N will not be responsible for a blurry, half-assed picture. Instead, she asks the girl,

"Do you have any requests on how to take it? Portrait or landscape? Nothing below the waist or..?"

Harry admired her for being so caring, he only smiles at her for asking, being so patient that he feels giddy on the inside and he cannot wait to ask her to be his. The fan, however, furrows her brows and her face morphs into one of confusion.

"Can you repeat what you said?" Y/N repeats her statement but was only met with the same expression-–maybe with a hint of annoyance.

"I'm sorry, can you just take the picture? I don't want to be rude but your accent is so...thick, are you even from here,"

"Obviously not," the girl's friend answers for Y/N. The most obvious answer, if any. The girl beside Harry nudges her friend, eyes shifting from her and then hardening towards Harry as if warning her that she was being a bit rude.

Regardless, the friend eyes Y/N up and down with a glimmer in her eye that spoke hatred.

Y/N takes the picture anyway.

——-

As Harry and Y/N reach the door to her apartment, she couldn't help but think of the past events. It wasn't only that, it was a built up of temperament where she had been treated indifferently by people around Harry. Some fans commented under her selfie on Instagram ranging from "at least you have boobs and ass girl" to "how much fake tan does she use" —none, by the way, she was all natural. And Y/N can't help but feel a tad insecure.

Then came the news articles with the headlines, "Harry Styles Spotted With A Spicy Latina" or "Harry Snags A Girl From Down Under" which confuses her not only because they're an invasion of privacy but she wonders how her whole humanity can be diminished into such an objective headline—she had a name. Granted, she wasn't really worth knowing but regardless, it was better to be called by her name rather than a hotshot eye-catching headline.

She taps the link to one of the articles, scrolling through the lengthy piece of work, eyes squinting at the introduction where it states that Y/N was certainly a deviation away from Harry's usual hookups. Harry had taken it upon himself to make them some hot chocolate while she got changed in comfier clothes as a conclusion to their date night. She was supposed to choose the movie. Her eyes squint at the words "10 Proofs that Y/N Y/LN is a no match for Harry"

The first one on the list was Taylor Swift. Of course, how could Y/N forget about her. Skinny, blonde and pale skin, a stark contrast to her curvy figure, wavy hair and darker toned pigment. She feels a lurch in her stomach from the hit of realization.

Then came Camille Rowe—a model with similar attributes as Taylor. Completely the opposite of Y/N and she feels herself getting more sick at the knowledge being pounded into her. She didn't care about Harry's past because she only cared for who he is in the present. Seeing the women he went for before her puts a stake right through her self-esteem knowing that she would always be compared with one of them as long as she and Harry were together. Her confidence staggering each time she reads a negative comment about how her skin color made Harry stand out whereas it made her blend in the background-a sarcastic joke that wasn't very funny. Her breath hitching every time the topic of her accent came up; how fans who've met her in person make fun of her not having an understandable accent as if it was her fault that her pronunciation was too broad beyond their compare. And each time she sees a comparison of her and Harry with him and his exes, she shakes her head because she knows that literally nothing good ever comes out of that.

She knows she's strong. But why did this hurt her so much? The personal attacks being hurled at her made her feel so inferior to others and even to Harry! It was like the media was never gonna get used to the fact that she's a person of colour—continuously writing papers about their 'interracial' relationship as if it was such a huge deal when really, it was not even their business to pry or scavenge for.

"Hey love, have you chosen a movi– hey, hey what's wrong?" Harry walks through the doors of her bedroom, feet kicking the door slightly open while his hands carried two steaming mugs of foaming hot chocolate. Upon seeing her tears and slouched stance, he sets the cups down on the bedside table before sitting with her at the foot of the bed.

Y/N stares at him as he does so before wiping her eyes with the heel of her hands. "Nothing, it's nothing just.."

"You can tell me anything, you know that. Now tell me what's wrong, lovie" He wraps an arm around her figure as an action of comfort, but Y/N only sees it as a burden in her chest.

"I think we should break up, H" She looks at her sock-clad feet. Not being able to look at him in the eyes, it's her weakness.

"What? Y/N, did I do something?" Harry tilts her chin up towards his face, eyes frantically searching her red ones for a justifiable reason for her decision.

"I'm not good enough for you," Harry gasps at her confession, genuinely surprised that his girlfriend could even fathom to say those words, let alone think of them.

He denies every claim about her theory but his voice was muted by her mind repeatedly playing the things she had read a few minutes ago. Memories of her being demeaned echoing through her head.

"You're the best person I've ever been with. It doesn't matter what other people sa—"

"Yes it does, Harry! It definitely matters when I'm being constantly picked on and compared to your ex-girlfriends. Every day I read something about how I must've 'tricked' you into being with me because of how I look," Y/N cuts Harry's rant off, not caring if it hurts him because she was so so hurt. The pain had embedded itself in her, working its way up to her roots; who she was and where she came from.

"I'm not just another girl that Harry Styles dated. I'm the brown girl, the one who has the 'biggest ass' out of all of them and especially the darkest because you... you've only dated people like Taylor before and I can't live my life being put down because of how I look,"

Harry stares at her with emotion. Of course, the media was gonna pinpoint what his 'type' was. He didn't know it was hurting his love.

"Y/N, they're all bull. Whoever's writing this shit, they're only in it for the money," he begins, forcing her body to face him completely. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever met. They're my exes for a reason and even if I did date them, I'm with you now because I love you for who you are,"

"But it's true, isn't it? They're all so small and I'm big. They're half the size of me for god's sakes!"

"It's not true. And you know why? You're mesmerizing in your own way. I love the way your body curves, the way you look doesn't matter to me as much because you're a beautiful, genuine person inside and out," He nods along to his words. "But your body is amazing, Y/N. And you should learn to love your skin because it shows you who you are."

Y/N bored at Harry's eyes, seeing nothing but genuine kindness behind it. Her mouth gapes open having not heard such compliments from anyone as authentic as the words Harry was speaking to her.

"Harry..."

"No, Y/N. I won't sit here and listen to you put yourself down. You deserve to know how unbelievably gorgeous you are. The tabloids, the hate—they're not true and people like them need some education before they go off dragging other people who don't look like them down."

"You're right, H. I'm sorry,"

"You have absolutely nothing to be sorry about,"

She wipes tears from her eyes, this time they're from happiness.

——

@ynm1505

[staytheb]

Favorite

Pairing: TXT’s Soobin x OC [Nayoung] Genre: college!au, slice of life, slight fluff, slight angst Word Count: 4,613 Summary: Nayoung and Soobin are just mutual friends although Soobin claims Nayoung is his one and only favorite person. Still, she doesn’t take him seriously and is tired of his bullshit.

Warning: curse words. that’s it, i think. lol

hi again! this is the second pairing based on the original story, Exclusive, which is a standalone from Elusive. still not sure of the members, but it was fun imagining Soobin within this writing and so hope y’all enjoy it and if not, then it’s all good. other than that, hoping to write more and if not, then some day. but yeah, happy reading and kthxbai, Admin Lia~

Nayoung was sound asleep before her phone went off disturbing it. At first she didn't hear it, but eventually after the third time it went off, she woke up and stared at her phone in confusion.

"Didn't I put it on alarm mode only?"

She checked and she didn't.

"Wow."

Nayoung looked over to see if her roommate, Chaeyeon, was still asleep, but she was gone.

"Does she have an early class today? I thought it was cancelled."

Just then her mobile device went off again and she answered it after seeing it was one of her male friends, Beomgyu.

"Hello?"

"I'm on my way."

"Wait, what?"

"Just kidding, but do you have a bra that you no longer use and are willing to give it up. No questions asked?"

The person on the other side asked, causing Nayoung to raise a brow.

"Excuse me?"

"I want your bra, Nayoung. Give it to me. I'll be on my way if you get it ready."

Beomgyu demanded seriously as Nayoung rolled her eyes.

"Shut up, Beomgyu. I'm not getting anything ready. The last time I gave you one you gave me back another girl's bra."

"I said I was sorry."

"It wasn't even the same size or color."

"I said I would buy you a replacement."

"Which I'm still waiting for, my dude."

"I'm working on it, but I really need it."

There was a pause before another familiar voice spoke.

"Can you make it two, Nayoung?"

"Ugh, Taehyun. I thought you were better than this."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Both males asked a second later as Nayoung groaned.

"I'm going back to bed. Talk to me after I wake up."

"Fine. We'll see you in class." The duo responded and Nayoung hung up with a loud sigh.

"So annoying."

Not a moment later did her hand phone ring again that she gruffly answered the caller believing it to be either Beomgyu or Taehyun again.

"What?"

"Sheesh. Who peed in your cereal this morning?"

Another male answered.

"That's nasty, Kai." Nayoung replied as she sat up in bed knowing she wasn't going to be able to fall back asleep and should've silenced her phone after Beomgyu had called her.

"What do you want so early in the morning?"

"Why are you so grouchy, huh?"

"Beomgyu and Taehyun called me earlier to help them with that Scavenger Hunt for Beta Heta Mu."

"That doesn't mean you can take it out on me, Nayoung."

"True, but you also call me when you want to bother me, too, especially if you're partaking in on this hunt as well."

"Rude, but true. Anyways, I'm not participating in the scavenger hunt, but I was gonna invite you out for breakfast though. And since you want to sleep then I'll leave you alone to enjoy that."

"Breakfast where?"

"Oh, now she wants to play nice."

Nayoung rolled her eyes hearing the sarcasm in her friend's voice.

"Shut up, Kai. You still owe me from last time, the other time before that, and that time before that, too."

Kai groaned.

"You're still keeping tabs on that? That was like weeks ago."

"Yeah, because you supposedly forgot your wallet or had no money those times and guess who had to pay."

"I did forget it and I was low on funds. So what?"

Kai hurriedly changed the topic.

"Anyways, this is my treat to you this time. Whatever you want."

Nayoung grew suspicious.

"What's the catch?"

"There's no catch."

"There's always a catch when you want to treat me."

Kai scoffed, but went back to the main point of why he called.

"So yes or no to breakfast?"

"Yes. Text me and I'll meet you."

"Already did and I'm on my way."

"Brat."

Kai laughed as he hung up and Nayoung went to get ready for the day.

"I knew it was a set up."

Nayoung commented when her eyes met with a schoolmate, Soobin, instead of Kai's.

Soobin chuckled as he glanced at her.

"What's a set up? I thought we were all meeting for breakfast?"

"Kai didn't mention a third party."

Soobin shrugged with a smile.

"He mentioned you to me."

"I bet."

Nayoung rolled her eyes before giving Soobin a once over.

"Anyways, then where is the one that invited us?"

"Dunno."

"You guys are the best of friends."

"Doesn't mean I keep tabs on him or whatever."

"Mmhmm. Right."

Nayoung leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest shooting Soobin a knowing look. He imitated her posture, but he had on an amused expression instead. The two stared at one another for a good few seconds before Soobin broke the silence.

"Don't give me that look, Nayoung."

"What look, Soobin?"

"The one you're giving to me now."

"What about it?"

"I thought I was your favorite person?"

"Hardly."

Nayoung continued to stare at him as Soobin chuckled nervously.

"Stop looking like you wanna kill me, Nayoung."

"Oh, it's not you I wanna kill, today. It's your friend."

Soobin casually leaned forward.

"He's your friend, too, but don't kill him yet. I still need him to pass this semester and you can kill me after I graduate."

"Fine."

Nayoung relaxed her posture.

"Anyways, why are you here? Don't you have a class right now?"

"Kai invited me and I can't say no. Besides, I mainly came for the bread."

Soobin grinned as Nayoung scoffed.

"You can buy bread anywhere, Soobin, and you can always say no to the invite."

"But I love the ones here and why would I say no when I get to see the lovely face of my favorite person, too."

He grinned as she made a disgusted face with Soobin chuckling afterwards.

"Anyways, so I was wondering if-"

Nayoung interrupted him.

"No."

"But you don't know what I was gonna ask."

"After what happened last time, Soobin, I don't wanna be involved again."

She narrowed her eyes when Soobin opened his mouth to explain and she didn't want to hear it.

"Save it. I'm not gonna let you use me again to which I didn't even agree those last times. You put me on the spot each time and it's not cool."

"I get it. I'm sorry." Soobin apologized with a genuine expression.

"It was selfish of me to use you as my pretend girlfriend, but you happened to be conveniently there at my time of need all those times."

Nayoung scoffed with a roll of her eyes

"So were others that would have loved to play pretend, Choi Soobin."

"I trusted you the most."

"We're only mutuals and not even friends if I was to be honest. Yewon, Yuna, and Eunbi were there, too. You could've used them over me."

"You were closer." Soobin reasoned.

Nayoung rolled her eyes, giving up on trying to pull the truth out of him while standing up and collecting her things.

"Whatever. I'm gonna order and take it to go before class."

"Oh, c'mon, Nayoung. My company's not that bad."

"Not really you, per se, Soobin, but those involved around you I'm not close with."

"Wow."

Nayoung shrugged with a smile before walking away. Soobin let out a defeated sigh.

"Guys, I just sat down. Can you give me a minute?"

Nayoung informed Taehyun and Beomgyu as the pair each took a seat beside her.

"No." The duo answered as Nayoung groaned.

"What do you want?"

"You already know what I want."

Beomgyu answered with a smug look.

"If you give me what I want, then I'll leave you alone."

"Dude, you can practically ask any other girl to do what you're asking me to do. So go do it."

"It's not the same. They're expecting a date or something afterwards. You don't think that of me."

"I wonder why, but that's not my problem."

"Aren't we brother and sister due to our fraternity and sorority being associated with one another?"

Taehyun asked as Nayoung eyed him.

"Other Nu Tau Zeta members exist. Hell, you could've asked Eunbi, Yerin, or Sojung to help you guys out instead of me."

"Well, they already helped with some of the tasks and wouldn't help anymore." Taehyun informed as Nayoung rolled her eyes.

"Y'all need more female friends. Shouldn't be that hard since y'all have quite a bunch of fangirls."

"Like I mentioned earlier in case you forgot-"

Nayoung interrupted Beomgyu.

"I didn't forget."

He continued like he didn't get interrupted.

"They don't want to be just friends, Nayoung. They want to be something more."

"Not my problem. I helped y'all last time, but received nothing."

She glared at Beomgyu.

"And you better have bought me a new bra already. Like for real."

"I got you, Nayoung. Don't worry."

Beomgyu set a white rectangular box onto the table.

"Here you go and you're welcome."

Nayoung inspected the present, but frowned upon seeing the incorrect size. She shut the box and passed it back to her friend.

"What's wrong? You don't like the color?"

Beomgyu asked worriedly as she shot him a look.

"The color's fine, but it's the wrong size, Beomgyu, again."

"How can that be? I double checked."

"It's the same size as the one that you tried to give me that wasn't even mine. You're hopeless."

"Haha, I knew it." Taehyun laughed while pointing a finger at his friend.

"I told you that wasn't her size."

"Shut up." He blankly stared at the box.

"What should I do with it?"

"Give it to one of your fangirls and you can complete the tasks faster."

Nayoung mused as Beomgyu elbowed her with a sheepish look.

"Stop."

Nayoung attended her next class as she settled herself towards the back of the classroom. She brought out her materials to review for the practice test on Monday. If she did super well on the test, then the professor would allow for the practice test to help bump up their grades to replace a previous test that they scored poorly on. Too focused on the reading material she didn't notice Kai joining her with him placing a dual boba cup near her. It wasn't until she felt a poke to her side and slowly turned to look at a smiling Kai.

"I'm not talking to you." She stated while returning back to reading again as Kai rolled his eyes.

"Don't be so dramatic. My peace offering is your favorite drink."

He pushed the drink closer to her and she automatically took a hold of it to drink both flavors before putting it down again.

"I'm still not gonna forgive you for your stupid antic with Soobin this morning."

Before he could defend himself, Nayoung shot him a look.

"Don't try to say you couldn't come because I saw you run off just as I went to the counter to order."

"Oh? You did."

Kai sheepishly laughed as Nayoung eyed him.

"Alright, my bad. Sorry."

"It's whatever. Thanks for the drink."

The duo were later joined by Soobin and another friend, Gyeongtae, to whom Nayoung greeted the latter happily.

"Gyeongtae! Hi."

Nayoung stood and hugged the male as he returned the gesture before taking the seat on her other side.

"Hi, Nayoung. How are you today?"

"I'm good. You?"

Nayoung ignored Soobin's open arms and sat back down. Soobin pouted at her behavior towards him while he sat on the other side of Kai.

"Maybe next time." Kai commented as Soobin nodded.

He glanced at Nayoung talking to Gyeongtae about the upcoming test. His attention turned to the teacher who entered at that moment. During class, Nayoung received a text message from her sorority's president, Jinah, and needed to see her as soon as possible. She debated if she should leave now or wait, but remembered she had friends in the class. She patted Gyeongtae and Kai on the shoulders while asking them to message her later if she missed something as she gathered up her things. She messaged Jinah that she would be on her way over soon.

"Bye, Nayoung."

Soobin held out a hand for a high-five to which Nayoung high-fived him unconsciously after passing by him causing Soobin to grin at her in satisfaction. Nayoung rolled her eyes at him, but quickly left the classroom and made her way towards the Nu Tau Zeta house.

"Hello, Nayoung." Jinah greeted her with a smile as she motioned for her to sit.

"Please have a seat."

Jinhee, the vice-president, cast her a sympathetic smile.

"We apologize in advance if you're missing anything academic-related."

"It's all good. Luckily I have friends in the class."

Nayoung replied as Miso, the secretary nodded.

"That's good. Anyways, it's only to discuss attendance for the social gatherings this school term."

"Ah, okay."

"Anyways, Nayoung," The treasure, Jiyeon, began talking, "You've done well in attending all the events that Nu Tau Zeta has hosted thus far and have been invited to as well. And for that, we're awarding you this set for doing an outstanding job."

Jinah stood, walked around the table, and placed a rose-colored small box in front of Nayoung.

"Congratulations, Lee Nayoung. Please let me know if there's any correction needed."

Jinah congratulated her before returning back to her seat. Nayoung opened the small box and her face lit up upon seeing the new bracelet and necklace insignia set of Nu Tau Zeta's symbols for this year along with her name.

"Thank you!"

Nayoung beamed as she closed the gift and put it into her bag.

"I can't wait to wear it at our next social gathering or special event outside of campus."

The group talked a bit more before the council dismissed Nayoung. She went to the library to study some more before returning to her room and saw that Chaeyeon was fast asleep. Nayoung went to shower before retiring for the night as well.

Soobin congratulated his friend and fellow fraternity brother, Yeonjun, for winning the Beta Heta Mu's Scavenger Hunt before he was swept away by the others to talk about his results. Soobin then looked over at Beomgyu and Taehyun curiously.

"How well do the two of you know Lee Nayoung?"

He only asked as these two scored in the top twenty for the scavenger hunt.

"Good enough that she lends me her bra when I ask." Beomgyu replied nonchalantly although there was a mischievous glint in his eyes as Soobin's eyes widened in shock.

"What?"

"Easy. Calm down." Taehyun said with a laugh knowing what his friend was thinking.

"She and Beomgyu aren't like that."

"Yeah, they're just friends." Kai clarified with a chuckle.

"No one's gonna take away your favorite person, also known as, your so-called girlfriend from you."

"Nayoung isn't my girlfriend." Soobin denied.

"Yeah, right." Beomgyu disagreed.

"But she is your favorite person though."

Soobin was about to deny it, but Kai interjected before he could.

"You're always using her as your pretend girlfriend to get those other girls off your back."

"No, I don't. She's just conveniently there whenever it happens and it works."

"Right."

The other three didn't believe him. Taehyun sighed while casting Soobin a sympathetic look.

"I gotta say something."

Kai and Beomgyu shot him warning glances, but Taehyun ignored them.

"Look, Soobin, about Nayoung..."

Nayoung was fast asleep while her roommate was now awake due to Yeonjun calling her to meet up near one in the morning. Just as she was on her way out she heard a tap at their bedroom window and went to investigate. Chaeyeon pulled back the curtains, opened the window, and peered down below to see Soobin standing underneath.

"You're not Nayoung." Soobin stated as Chaeyeon rolled her eyes with a smirk.

"Obviously. What do you want?"

"Nayoung, of course."

"Obviously, but why?"

"To talk."

"You couldn't do it later?"

"No."

"Do it later."

"You're going out to meet Yeonjun right now so I can talk to Nayoung right now, too."

"Touche."

Chaeyeon sighed.

"I swear, the guys here are so bothersome."

Chaeyeon looked over at her sleeping roommate before focusing her attention on Soobin.

"Were you the one that called her just now?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I just do. Give me a minute."

Chaeyeon half-turned away, but faced Soobin again while speaking with a firm tone.

"No bullshit."

"No bullshit. I swear."

Soobin held up his hands in a surrendering mode.

"I promise."

"Don't make promises so easily, Soobin. Nayoung seriously hates those because they always get broken in the end. Just speaking from past experiences." Chaeyeon advised him as Soobin nodded.

"Okay, Chaeyeon, thanks."

"Welcome."

Chaeyeon left and was replaced by Nayoung a moment later. Nayoung sleepily stared down at Soobin.

"What do you want at one in the morning?"

"I just wanna talk."

"We are talking."

"I mean could we talk with less distance between us and me not looking up at you?"

"No."

"I mean I could wake them up by talking louder and letting them know that you got a fat ass crush on me." 

Soobin smirked as Nayoung became more alert and narrowed her eyes at him.

"I don't have a fat ass crush on you."

"Bet."

"I ain't doing that with you, Soobin."

"C'mon, Nayoung, just admit that you actually like me and we can get this all done and over with."

"No. Go back to Beta Heat Mu and leave me alone to go to sleep."

"But Taehyun said you liked me."

"Damn. I can't tell that boy anything." Nayoung muttered, but Soobin heard her and smirked even more.

"So it's true?"

"It's nothing, Soobin. Talk to me when the sun's out."

"But you've out-shined the sun so it's already out, Nayoung." Soobin said with a smug look as Nayoung shook her head at his lame attempt, but still found it kinda endearing and a smile appeared upon her face which he noticed.

"See, you don't completely hate me like you think you do, Nayoung."

Nayoung rolled her eyes as a sigh escaped.

"I never hated you, Soobin. I just hated all the stupid shit that surrounded you."

"So that means you like me, right?" Soobin asked unsure.

Nayoung shrugged with an aloof expression with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Have a good night, Soobin."

"No, Nayoung, wait." Soobin pleaded in a panic to grab her attention and basically blurted out his confession.

"I like you."

"Excuse me?"

Nayoung stared down at Soobin suspiciously.

"What did you say?"

"I like you, Lee Nayoung." Soobin confessed with confidence.

"Now can we talk better?"

"Stay there. I'm on my way." Nayoung ordered him as Soobin rolled his eyes.

"Does she think I'm gonna run off or something when I was the one that wanted to talk with her?"

A mischievous smirk slowly appeared on his face as he ran off to hide from Nayoung. When she finally made her way out of the sorority house and around it to talk with Soobin, he was no longer standing where she last saw him.

"Och, where did he go?"

Nayoung huffed just as she felt arms wrapped themselves around her from behind with Soobin's voice whispering playfully against her ear.

"Aww, baby, did you miss me already?"

"Gosh you're so annoying." Nayoung responded.

Soobin took it as a good sign that she didn't try to get out of his grasp.

"That's what you always say, Nayoung, but we've done this so many times."

"It's only because you're super clingy, Choi Soobin"

"Only for you."

Nayoung internally cringed and sighed.

"Don't you ever get tired?"

"Only if I'm running around in that mind of yours every day."

"If you don't answer me with an actual straight answer, Choi Soobin, then I'm gonna slap you."

Soobin chuckled as his grip tightened a little more around Nayoung in a cozy back-hug while placing his chin onto her shoulder.

"You've threatened me many times, Lee Nayoung, but I don't ever recall you having ever delivered any of them."

"Well, we can find out right now because I want to be the first one to report your death and all of your fangirls can mourn over you."

"That's harsh isn't it? Especially for you, considering you'll be crying the hardest over my passing and didn't even get a chance to confess your love for me when you had the chance to."

"My dude, you're so friggin' annoying." 

Nayoung spoke in an exasperated tone as she tried to shrug him off of her, but it was hardly useful as he had a firm grip upon her while laughing at her attempt.

"Only the best for my favorite person."

Upon hearing that Nayoung stopped squirming and stood still suddenly alerting Soobin of her change in behavior.

"Like can you stop?" Nayoung said in a flat tone.

He removed his arms from around her and turned her around to face him instead.

"What do you mean?"

"This. All of this. Everything, Soobin."

She motioned with her hands between him and her.

"Can you stop playing with me? Just annoy some other girl willing to deal with your bullshit because I'm honestly done with it."

Soobin stared at her blankly as he tried to process her words which made Nayoung continue on with her pent-up frustrations towards him.

"You're a cool person and all, Soobin, but don't get me wrong. It's just that you have nothing but drama surrounding you that I don't wanna fuck with it no more." Nayoung admitted.

"From your constant flirting to your dumb fangirls. Then there's me being your fake girlfriend when one of them gets it into their head that they can be more with you because of your actions when I shouldn't even be involved at all. That's not my problem to handle. It's yours."

Nayoung ran a hand through her hair in frustration.

"Honestly, it's hard for me to see you as a genuine person to even be friends with or even something more beyond that when I constantly see only that side of you majority of the time and it just turns me off."

She sighed while looking at him with tiredness in her eyes.

"I'm sorry to blow up in front of you, but I'm just so tired of your games and bullshit excuses, Choi Soobin."

Soobin was still processing the sudden change in the atmosphere between him and Nayoung from earlier, prompting her to end their talk with a heavy heart as she didn't want to continue with this.

"Anyways, have a good night, Soobin. When or if ever you do get your shit together, maybe we can start over."

Nayoung had walked past Soobin and his hand shot out to firmly grip her forearm, preventing her from leaving and bringing her back around to face him again. She was about to protest when she suddenly felt Soobin's lips on hers. Unconsciously, she tried to pull away, but he placed a hand at the back of her neck instinctively to prevent her from doing so. Soobin deepened the kiss to convey his feelings to Nayoung as she returned his kiss. He broke the kiss a moment later allowing the both of them to catch their breaths. She avoided all eye-contact as she shifted her gaze downwards to regain all of her senses as she was totally caught off guard by the sudden kiss. Soobin placed his forefinger and thumb against her chin to lift her head so that they could lock eyes while staring at her tenderly.

"I really do like you, Lee Nayoung. I'm sorry for putting you through those situations selfishly and making you feel that way disregarding your own feelings, too." He confessed along with an apology.

"I didn't mean for them to get out of hand, but one thing led to another and repeated and I just assumed it'll all fall into place on its own accord. I'm really sorry."

"Saying sorry doesn't fix everything, Soobin."

"I know, but I'm willing to make it up to you as best as I can."

"Did Chaeyeon tell you that I hate promises?"

"Yes."

"That girl."

"And I'm glad she did, because I'm done bullshitting you, Nayoung."

He looked at her expectantly.

"By chance is it too late to start over?"

"It's never too late to start over, Soobin."

"Good. Because I need to stake my claim before it's too late."

Nayoung shot him a weird look.

"Too late for what?"

"To make you my one and only favorite person."

"What about your fangirls?"

"What about them?"

"You better control them and not let them come at me because you decided to like me and wanted to pursue a relationship."

"Don't worry. I'll make sure to be the one that gets them off your back for good."

"You better or I'll end this relationship so fast and move on in a blink of an eye."

"Don't you even think of doing that, Lee Nayoung." Soobin warned as he circled his arms around her body and pulled her against him with a cheeky smile a moment later.

"How about an impromptu late night slash early morning date?"

"Nah, I'm good. I need to sleep, anyway." Nayoung declined with a laugh as she wrapped her arms around his waist a moment later.

"We can have a proper date after I'm done with my classes later today."

"But that means you won't be done until after four."

"Okay, stalker, chill. We got lots of time to hang out."

"One, I'm not a stalker. Two, I'm your boyfriend so it's validated that I would know your schedule."

"Okay, boy, slow your roll."

Nayoung chuckled with a shake of her head.

"One, I never agreed to becoming your girlfriend, and two, we just admitted our feelings for one another not too long ago."

Soobin laughed while wiggling his eyebrows.

"I'm pretty sure we can skip to the point where we're a couple already."

He grinned happily.

"Besides, we had practices of becoming boyfriend and girlfriend in the past. It's validated that we're official now."

"That's according to you."

Nayoung rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway as she began to lead them to the front of Nu Tau Zeta's front door.

"Now go back to Beta Heta Mu and get some sleep. Then maybe we can have breakfast in several hours if I feel like it."

"Whether you feel like it or not, maybe I'll bring breakfast to you in bed."

He nudged her playfully.

"If you can get through the front door, Soobin."

"Oh, I have no worries about not being able to get through the doors, Nayoung."

"I'm sure you don't, but please don't. I'll meet you at Crown instead."

"How about I meet you outside your sorority house and we can go to Crown together."

"Sure, Soobin, that's fine with me. Good night."

Nayoung bid him a farewell with a small wave once they were standing at the entrace of Nu Tau Zeta and had just opened the door until Soobin softly tugged her back by the end of her shirt. She cast him a confused expression.

"What?"

"My good night's kiss."

Nayoung caught the mischievous glint in his eyes as he pointed at his cheek and decided to play along with him.

"Okay."

"Really?"

"Mmhmm."

Soobin smiled widely as he awaited Nayoung to kiss him. Just as she leaned in to give Soobin a kiss on the cheek, she quickly pecked his lips instead and rush inside the house with a laugh before closing the door a second later. He was shocked at first, but it wore off once he heard the click of the door shutting. He grinned before turning around to return to his fraternity anticipating the morning hours to officially spend it with Nayoung.

[iwriteficsnottragediesladies]

Search and Seizure Pt 4

Request: un-surpassable: Need. more. search. and. seizure . Ahahahhhh Request: kyky9103: Can you do more anxiety attack and seizure posts

Lots of people were asking for another part. Ask and you shall receive! There are two-ish scavenger hunt items. See if you can find them!

Pre-read Epilepsy Disclaimer

The video of your seizure in the grocery store ended up everywhere. Gossip sites, entertainment sites, youtube, facebook, instagram, twitter… It was awful. You cried. and cried. For days. Brendon and the boys were right at your side through it all.

You were just so terribly embarrassed and felt violated. Everyone in the world has seen you at your most vulnerable without your consent.

Some people were really nice. A lot of the fans and TV hosts were genuinely sympathetic and concerned. They all wished you well.

But some people were not nice at all. They made fun of you and left the most disheartening and offensive comments.

Honestly had no idea she could break dance like that.

That awkward moment when you realize your girlfriend is possessed...

Ew all that stuff coming out of her mouth. Looks like Brendon’s got himself a spitter, not a swallower!

Can she die from one of these so we can have Brendon back?

Brendon wanted to make all your hurting stop, but he couldn’t. He was absolutely furious with the way people were talking about you, especially people who claimed to be his fans. After finding you in a puddle one night, horrible comments from a fan website in your hand, he took to twitter.

It disgusts me the shit “fans” will say about the people I love most. If you’re one of them, just know I think you’re shit. Get fucked.

Perhaps the worst part was people concocting theories about your “rock star lifestyle” and how you must have overdosed on drugs. People were writing entire pieces about your struggle with addiction–addictions that didn’t even exist. “Crack whore” was the nickname for you, and it flew around the internet.

Finally, you want to put it all to rest. You are going to address it. Own it. You write up a message in your notes and post a screenshot of it on instagram.

To all of you who have been wishing me well: thank you SO much! I loved all the sweet messages you have been sending Brendon and I. I’m doing just fine now. To everyone who has tried to put me down, make fun of me, and talk shit about me: you need to take a serious look at yourself and your behavior. Have some compassion. I have epilepsy, which is a seizure disorder. Although it’s well controlled, I still have seizures from time to time. I never really liked to talk about it because I didn’t want people to treat me differently. But now, things have changed for me and that’s why I think I owe it to myself and all of my fellow epilepsy-warriors to speak up. I have epilepsy, but epilepsy does not have me.

Sending lots of love out to all of you, Y/n

You were too nervous to read the comments, so you had Brendon do it. He started reading all them aloud and it was incredible.

They talked about how happy they were that you were okay, that you were so strong, that you are perfect just the way you are, that they don’t see you any differently… The best was how many people felt comfortable sharing their own struggles with epilepsy, a lot of them crediting you for giving them the courage to do so.

You made the absolute best of the situation you were put in. You finally felt free.

In another exciting turn of events, you and Brendon got engaged last month. You both knew you wanted to spend the rest of your lives together since the moment you met, so it was all coming true. You couldn’t be happier.

It was back to touring and you were backstage at a show. You knew you were tired and you were looking forward to calling it a night. You decided you might go back to the bus early, before the show ends. You were enjoying the thought of getting comfortable in your pjs–

Uh oh.

It hit you hard and very suddenly, interrupting your train of thought entirely: your arm was gone and your stomach flipped.

No, fuck, not during a show.

You stood for a moment, wishing it away with all your might. The heat around you became oppressive. Everything was only intensifying. You looked out onto the stage, seeing Brendon singing and running around as usual with his special performance glow. You smiled for a moment.

You come up with a plan: you’ll just grab Zack and go further backstage, out of view. You won’t interrupt the show and you can just tell Brendon after. You’re sure he’ll be furious that you didn’t tell him sooner, but you weren’t about to ruin the concert for everyone.

You dropped out of your thoughts as your body was screaming to get your attention, realizing how badly you were feeling. You spot Zack and start to make a beeline over to him. Your purposeful steps suddenly became weaker but you were determined to make it. You’re a little less coordinated as you reach him, stepping closer to him than you really meant to. His expression drops as he looks to you.

“Zeyh–” you slur as you attempt to reach out to him.

“Oh, okay,” He is instantly grabbing underneath your forearms, firmly supporting you. It’s fairly dark and hard to hear each other over the music, but you don’t really need to say much of anything. Zack didn’t need any more information to figure everything out. He has developed a sixth sense kind of thing about it now, actually. 

“Don’t feel–” you try.

“You don’t feel good?” he finished the statement for you. You nod and your lip trembles. “I know honey,” Zack comforted you, “It’s okay.”

You fall into his chest a bit and he adjusts his grip.

“I gotcha Y/n,” he reassures you quickly, speaking gently into your ear, “let’s lay down.” You’re so petite compared to him, he easily begins to move you to the floor.

The crew members nearby start to gather around the situation.

Brendon happened to be jogging his way towards your end of the stage. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices the unusual events unfolding offstage. He did a double take and saw you clinging to Zack as he was helping you to the ground.

He felt his stomach drop to the floor.

“Oh fuck,” he said under his breath, frozen for a moment. The next thing he knew, he was sprinting off stage to you as fast as his legs could carry him. He pushed a couple of stage hands out of the way and slid on his knees, arriving next to you. He shrugged off his jacket and Zack put it under your head.

You suddenly feel a hand on your shoulder and find Brendon above you, pulling his earpiece out.

“It’s okay baby,” he panted, “I’m right here.”

His voice was the last thing you heard. You started to seize and Brendon looked over at Zack, who had his phone out with the timer starting. Zack nods at him silently, and Brendon returns it, so grateful that Zack takes such good care of you.

Meanwhile, the band was left hanging. The crowd was also puzzled, disappointed by the sudden end of the song.

When the boys realized Brendon had ran, each of them kind of dropped off, confused. They looked after where he had gone and saw you on the floor, Brendon and Zack at your side. They were heartbroken and exchanged looks, wondering what to do. After a second, Dallon decided to speak up.

“Alright guys, sorry,” He said into his mic, “We’re gonna give Brendon some time to, uh, help out his beautiful fiancé here, having a little trouble.” He kept it nonchalant, not exactly sure of what to say anyway.

The entire audience could guess what was happening and they all awed, feeling terrible for you. No doubt that every single person in the arena had seen the video of you in the grocery store.

“Oh no, she must be having a seizure!” “Poor thing!” “Oh Brendon is so sweet!”

The boys kind of just talked with the audience, joking around, playing a riff from time to time to stall. They wanted it to be quiet for you.

Brendon was brushing your hair from your face when you start to bleed a little. He and Zack both notice you’ve moved onto your back, not completely on your side anymore.

“Yeah, let’s–” Brendon directed Zack, not really needing to use words because he was thinking the same exact thing. Zack rolls you further onto your side while Brendon helps you along. The rest of the blood was able to drain out.

“There we go,” He sighed, wiping it away. He stroked your cheek gently. “it’s okay baby. You’re okay.”

Some of the stagehands started asking questions. Brendon was completely focused on you, so Zack took over answering, informing them of the situation. Brendon continued whispering to you and you started to come down.

“Shhh, good job baby,” He said quietly, wiping your mouth one last time. “Zack?” He called his attention.

Zack looked at him and then glanced down at his phone. “1:41,” He replied. “Alright, all you guys have to back off please.” Zack commanded the crew around you, waving them away. He didn’t want you to be any more scared than you already would be, waking up in a strange place.

“Wasn’t too bad,” Brendon consulted with Zack.

“Nope,” he agreed, “Normal length.”

“God,” Brendon sighed, “Did she seem different to you? I didn’t see this one coming at all.”

“No, she’s been fine all day,” Zack shrugged, “Maybe she forgot her medication.”

They give you another minute and you start to come to. They moved away.

You open your eyes and it’s dark. Why can’t you see? You moved your eyes up and realize you’d been looking at the black floor you are laying on. You see a hand right next to your face and stare at it intently. Suddenly you realize it’s your own hand, and try to move it. It took you a second but finally you were able to slide it a little. It still felt so foreign as it sat front of you.

You are drawn away from your hand as your disorientation tugged at you. Fear sat deep in your stomach. You know you’re laying on the ground, but where and why? You slide your hand against the floor again, wanting to put in a position that you could push yourself up from, but it was no use. You were far too week.

A wall of fuzzy sound hit your ears. You looked beyond your hand and saw boots. Black boots. Those do not belong to you. Oh my god, it’s a person, right in front of you.

“Y/n, you’re okay,” Brendon begins to speak quietly.

You start to panic and your fight or flight reflex kicked in. You rustle on the floor and try to get away from the figure in front of you, but the most you can manage to do is withdraw.

“It’s okay, baby,” Brendon continues, “You had a seizure but you’re okay now. it’s just me and Zack.”

You don’t really seem to be responding to him like you normally would by now. He’s not sure if you aren’t showing it, or if you truly can’t hear him.

Truth is, you haven’t heard a single thing. The figure comes closer to you and you try to hit it away, punching and whimpering.

“Baby, it’s alright,” Brendon called to you, blocking your weak hands as you tried to throw them through the air, “Shhh, it’s okay.”

Sound becomes clear to you and all you can hear is yourself. You hold your breath as you continue to struggle, wondering if you could hear something that would help you figure what was going on.

“Y/n, it’s okay,” Brendon tried again.

You hear it. That voice. Brendon. You still yourself.

“It’s Brendon, Y/n,” Brendon tells you, “You’re okay.”

You looked at him, taking in his features and trying to put it all together.

“Bren?” You questioned quietly. He lit up a bit and nodded.

“It’s me, baby,” He reassured you, “You’re safe.”

You respond by relaxing your hands back down to the floor.

“You had a little seizure, so I know you’re confused,” He explained sweetly, “but you’re alright. It’s me, and your BFF Zack is right there behind you, alright?” he said with a little smirk. A smile pulled at the corner of your lips.

You start to push yourself onto your elbow and ponder your surroundings. Zack and Brendon both hover their hands over you in case you start to fall.

“We’re at the venue in Ohio for a show,” He said.

You glance around and realize there’s stage crew around you. You looked at him and saw that he was soaked with sweat and in his stage outfit. Beyond him, you saw the boys onstage and one of their voices speaking casually on a microphone. Your eyes grew wide.

“OH MY GOD!” You exclaimed, “YOU’RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A SHOW!” You were quickly pushing yourself up to sitting and fumble to properly put your weight into your hands. You don’t have the balance or the strength and fall over backward.

Apparently Zack would rather die than let you hit the ground, because suddenly he is holding you upright and rests your back against himself. You forgot he was back there, even though Brendon had just told you that. You’re not really sure the physics of how it all happened, but you are sure that Zack is a ninja. What a great BFF.

Oh wow, even your inner monologue is seizure drunk.

“Easy, Y/n,” Brendon holds your shoulder, “It’s okay.”

“Oh my god,” You shook your head, “Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” You start to cry.

“No, no, no, Shhh,” Brendon immediately soothes, heartbroken to see you brought to tears like this. He takes your cheek in his hand, “It’s okay,” he tried with a sad chuckle, “Y/n. It’s fine.”

“I’m sorry,” you repeated through your tears. Zack was rubbing your upper arm and Brendon was wiping each tear as they fell.

“Y/n,” he said, tilting your head up to look you in the eye. “Baby, it’s okay. I needed a break anyway, alright?” He chuckled again, “It’s hot out there!”

You mustered up a small smile for him. At his comment, you notice he’s not wearing his gold jacket. You look down and see it wadded up on the floor.

“Oh no I got blood on it,” you said sadly with a pouted lip, observing a puddle that had formed and smudged around. You feel terrible, like you’ve truly ruined everything.

“You know what?” Brendon said in a clear, optimistic voice. You look to him. “Tomorrow we’re gonna wash that thing and make our own fucking oxi-clean commercial, alright?” He joked, grinning widely. He makes you giggle. “It’s just clothes, baby,” He reminds you softly. You nod with a little smile.

You wait for a moment before breaking the silence.

“Go,” you say to him.

“What?” he asks.

“Go!” you repeat, “I’m fine here, go back on stage. You have a show to finish!”

He looked at you from beneath his eyebrows, annoyed.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” He scoffed, “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Why?” You huff, pouting your lip in an exaggerated fashion. Oh boy, here’s the seizure drunk coming through.

“Because my fiancé just had a seizure!” Brendon responded, “I’m not finishing the show!”

“Seize seizin’ is a habit” You sing like David Banner’s ‘Stuntin is a habit’ with your best gangster style.

“Oh my god,” he covers his eyes in embarrassment.

“I’m fine now Bren, there’s nothing left to be done,“ you try, “Your fans deserve this!”

“You are my top priority,” He responded.

“Look, I have my BFF Zacky-poo,” You reached up and sloppily patted Zack’s cheek, “And you can go finish your show.”

“Y/n, I’m not–” He started.

“Brendon Boyd Urie,” You cut him off harshly, “If you do not get back on that stage right now, you are not touching my body for a month.”

The look on Brendon’s face is hilarious. He can’t believe you just said that.

“Yeah, that’s right,” You clicked your tongue. He evened his facial expression.

“You’re just seizure drunk,” He dismissed. You lean forward a little.

“Baby,” You coldly whisper in his ear, “I don’t lie when I’m seizure drunk.”

You lean away. Now he looks even more flustered. Poor Zack probably felt awkward as all fuck, but oh well, this was far too entertaining.

“Hm, better get back out there,” You said lightly with an innocent smile.

Brendon gives you a death stare for a moment and you just hold your smile. He looks to Zack.

“You sure you got her?” Brendon asks him, his voice flat and annoyed.

HA. YOU’VE CRACKED HIM.

“Course, man,” Zack nodded dutifully.

“You’ll bring her back to the bus?” Brendon checks. Zack nods again.

Brendon pauses for a second and sighed, aggravated that you’ve won the battle. You’ve always been a fighter.

“Okay,” he surrenders. He kisses your forehead and pulls away enough to lock eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Bren,” You reply.

He takes off and as soon as he is back on stage, the crowd erupts with noise. Zack is working on getting you up and sitting in a chair for a little while before you actually trek back to the bus. You hear Brendon address the audience.

“We’re all good, guys,” he told them as they cheered, and then waited for them to quiet down a bit.

“Not that I wouldn’t anyway, because I do love you guys, but, uh,” he chuckled under his breath, “my fiancé just threatened to withhold sex from me for a month if I didn’t come back out here.” The crowd roared with laughter and he literally giggled like a little girl,  “So you can thank Y/n for this one!”

You’re welcome. You smile and laugh to yourself. 

You have epilepsy, but epilepsy doesn’t have you. Life has to go on.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the read. Zack is the fucking best and I strongly believe he would turn into such a little softie like this. This series is pretty fun to write. Like/reblog if you’re feelin’ it!

ps. Lol who would actually have the willpower to withhold sex from Brendon?

[purplesurveys]

1061

(made by: tickle-my-pickle)

1. Do you typically say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas”? It was Merry Christmas for the longest time simply because everyone around me greeted that way, but in my workplace I’ve taken to using Happy Holidays in consideration of people who may have different beliefs or don’t even celebrate Christmas.

2. Do you make or serve anything with cranberries around this holiday season? No, not an Asian thing. Cranberries aren’t a Filipino/Asian thing in general. Our usual Christmas fare includes ham, queso de bola, lechon, usually some kind of noodles or pasta like baked macaroni, pancit, or Filipino-style spaghetti, leche flan, and bibingka.

3. Do you collect pine cones, or have you in the past as a child? What have you made out of them/what did you do with them? I don’t think we have those here, so no.

4. Have you/your family ever roasted chestnuts as a holiday treat before? No, not a tradition here as well. I’ve never seen nuts served in any Christmas parties or dinners I’ve been to.

5. Are red and green the colors that you typically associate with Christmas the most, or is there another color that you have in mind? What is it? Yeah, generally it’s those two. I also see gold and white as Christmas colors and they’re usually able to make Christmas decorations look a tad bit sophisticated, but obviously red and green are the ones that stand out the most.

6. What’s the worst Christmas gift that you’ve ever gotten before, and what made it the worst? I’ve never gotten a present that I honestly disliked, and I don’t know if I have that in me. I’m always appreciative of gifts since being given one automatically means I was thought of, and to me that’s enough.

7. Do you give your spare change to the mall Santas? We don’t have mall Santas here; but I’m not so sure that’s a responsible thing to do overall now that we’re living in Covid-infested times. But yeah, I’ve definitely been more generous with tips when it comes to restaurant workers, delivery drivers, baristas, etc. that I’ve come across during the holidays this year.

8. Do you get to open up any presents on Christmas Eve? Yes, that’s usually the tradition in most families. I heard people in the US usually open their gifts on Christmas morning, but that’s pretty rare here. What we do is have a big Christmas Eve dinner that we call noche buena, and most families will go to an evening mass then wait until midnight to start opening gifts. I didn’t have a lot of pricey stuff on my wishlist this year, so my parents got me lots of inexpensive things instead.

9. Do you believe in the saying that “good things come in small packages”? It holds some truth to it, I suppose. I didn’t need a new laptop or a new car; and I was especially grateful to just have been alive and genuinely happy with myself last Christmas. 

10. Do your family members wrap your gifts, or were they just sitting there under the tree? How about when your parents were kids? I’ve never heard of a family that leaves gifts under the tree for everyone to see hahahaha, but that’s an interesting situation. My family has always wrapped our presents for each other.

11. Do you know anyone who has a birthday on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? Have you ever gotten a gift that was meant for both your birthday as well as Christmas, either because it was expensive or because the two holidays are close together? One of my aunts celebrates her birthday on December 23rd. This year I only got her a Christmas gift, but I believe my mom gave her two gifts for each occasion.

12. Are you someone who needs to work on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, or are you able to have those days off to spend time with your loved ones? We have had an office shutdown from December 19th and we go back to work on January 4th, so on that front I’m pretty fortunate when it comes to my employer. We do keep our lines open just in case any client needs anything urgent, but all of them have been gracious enough to keep their distance save for one pain in the asshole of a client. To be fair, they’ve been a pain in the asshole the day they recuited us to be their PR handlers, so we already knew to expect still busting our ass for them despite our constant heads-ups about our shutdown.

13. Have you ever gone on any sort of Christmas-themed scavenger hunt before? How about played Christmas-themed bingo? No, I don’t believe we ever did that. I’d love to throw a scavenger hunt for my future kids, though.

14. Is Christmas your favorite holiday? If so, why? If not - then which holiday is your favorite instead? I’m neutral about Christmas. My favorite is Halloween, though it’s not really strictly a holiday per se. I simply enjoy all the horror movie references that come up, the Halloween-themed treats at places like Krispy Kreme, the Halloween costumes people come up with, etc.

15. When was the last time you sat down and made an actual Christmas gift? How often do people ask you what you want for Christmas and you’re unable to think of anything concrete until after the holidays have passed? One of my gifts for Gab is an embroidery piece I made, but I have yet to give it. I don’t plan on seeing her soon though because I’ve been happier these days, and I don’t want to risk that happiness by being reminded of her. 

As for my wishlist, I typically don’t have difficulty thinking of things. When I’m asked, I just say simple stuff like socks or sticky notes or certain candies I’ve been craving so that it would never be too much of a blow on people’s wallets.

16. Do you watch “Kickoff to Christmas” or “Countdown to Christmas” movie specials on the FreeForm channel? When do you start counting down the days until Christmas? I have no clue what any of these are.

17. Does it ever deeply concern you to know that Santa knows when you’re sleeping, and he knows when you’re awake? When I think hard about it it does begin to sound unsettling. But eh, it’s a fun Christmas song anyway.

18. What would you do if your grandma got run over by a reindeer? Check up on my grandma and make sure she didn’t get any injuries? Idk. I suppose the reindeer just got spooked so I wouldn’t put the blame entirely on them.

19. What’s the most unusual thing that you’ve ever wanted for Christmas? (like two front teeth or a hippopotamus, perhaps) I don’t think I ever requested for anything bizarre. I’ve bled practicality the moment I was born, loooool

20. Do you donate toys to your local toy drive, or offer food for Christmas meals during this time? We don’t have any toys at home anymore so we’re not in the place to do that. I’ve always wanted to share food with people who continue to be on duty on Christmas Eve and Christmas like security guards and sweepers, and I plan on doing so when I can finally afford to.

[sasukes-purple-butt-bow]

10 Clever Ideas That Will Make Camping Easier And More Fun! Lake Isabella

Have kids cook. With a little creativity, you can keep kids busy while outdoor camping by preparing meals that require your children to construct or cook his and her own fare believe tinfoil supper packets, hot pet roasting, banana boats or camping cones. Discover enjoyable in nature. A traditional activity for kids no matter where you are is to assemble a list of things kids can find in and around the campground and send them on a scavenger hunt, even in the middle of no place.

Shine the light on nighttime camping games. For older campers, you can monitor night games like flashlight tag or hide-and-seek. Bring along limitless entertainment. Games like tic-tac-toe in the dirt or laminated nature-themed bingo cards can be reused over and over once again and will not restrict fun. Fire up friendly competition.

Double up crafts and video games. When your campers have painted palm-sized rocks, kids can use the art pieces to play tic-tac-toe in the dirt or by utilizing sticks on the picnic table to develop the grid. Tune into nature. Utilizing creativity and the resources around the camp, kids can create sounds and instruments from leaves, pebbles, grass and more to balance a nature symphony.

19 Tips For Camping With Kids - Parents Los Angeles

Shine the light on nighttime camping games. For older campers, you can monitor night games like flashlight tag or hide-and-seek. Bring along limitless entertainment. Games like tic-tac-toe in the dirt or laminated nature-themed bingo cards can be reused over and over once again and will not restrict fun. Fire up friendly competition.

Double up crafts and video games. When your campers have painted palm-sized rocks, kids can use the art pieces to play tic-tac-toe in the dirt or by utilizing sticks on the picnic table to develop the grid. Tune into nature. Utilizing creativity and the resources around the camp, kids can create sounds and instruments from leaves, pebbles, grass and more to balance a nature symphony.

19 Tips For Camping With Kids - Parents Los Angeles

Letting them assist prepare the food is a terrific method to provide them those feelings (Renting a Trailer). We will often take turns and each child can assist with a various meal. This prevents there from being too many people getting in the method and enables that particular kid feel crucial since they are the only ones who get to help.

There are numerous camping scavenger hunts you can find online, which are easy to print out and bring with you or you can create your own. These camping scavanger hunts often consist of the kids being required to discover specific products around the camp such as a certain sized leaf, a stick in a specific shape, a pest, etc.

21 Fun Camping Activities To Do At Night With Your Family - My ... in Bakersfield

Our kids truly enjoy doing this right before it gets dark just as the light is starting to fade (Renting a Trailer). This provides them a chance to utilize their outdoor camping flashlights, which is always enjoyable for them. We generally provide the kids a rate once they complete the hunt such as candy or some sort of treat.

Fort building is something that our kids frequently think about on their own. They always wish to develop a fort or clubhouse that ends up being the main center for a lot of the games and activities they come up with on their own. If they for some factor haven't thought about developing a fort throughout our outdoor camping trip all we have to do is discuss building one and immediately the next few hours of their time will be devoted to constructing the best for they can.

If our kids end up getting tired at some time during the day and end up asking what they can do, I'll ask to collect firewood for the fire that night. I think the idea of building a fire and tossing firewood on it is something exciting for them and so they will often happily head out and start gathering as much wood as the can.

Indoor Camping Party - The Gardening Cook Sequoias

They take pleasure in going out and finding the large rocks required to construct our own firepit. Furthermore, being accountable for constructing a correct firepit helps them feel essential and required around the camp. In addition to collecting rocks, our kids understand the value of clearing the ground around the fire pit.

It's an excellent obligation for them as well as a terrific mentor opportunity to speak to them about fire safety. Counting squirrels and birds is a camping activity/game that typically lasts our entire camping trip. Often we hear numerous squirrels and birds making sounds right around the camp and our kids have a good time running around looking for them.

Like developing a fort this is actually one of the outdoor camping activities for kids that our kids end up frequently doing by themselves. With the creativity of a child, a stick can become practically anything from a sword, a doll/person, a weapon, all the way to a full-sized horse.

10 Must-have Camping Safety Tips For Kids Eg:- Where The ... in Lake Isabella

Carving wood is a fantastic activity however is finest matched for kids who are a little older and genuinely comprehend the dangers and obligations that feature utilizing a camping knife. With that being said, woodcarving as an activity that can inhabit lots of hours of kid's time. With some creativity and patience, a piece of wood can become nearly anything you desire it to be.

This is just an extremely little list of some of the great outdoor camping activities for kids. The possibilities are endless and eventually a few of the best idea generators are the kids themselves. Let their creativities run wild and be complimentary to attempt something brand-new. Creating brand-new video games and activities are some of the finest memories I have from my youth.

Leave the screens behind and pitch a camping tent at your closest camping site for a nature-filled, home-away-from-home your kids won't forget. Stay with these do's and do n'ts when camping with young kids for the first time. Cars and truck camping, in which you drive up to your camping area, is the way to go.

8 Things Not To Do When Camping With Kids ... in Kernville

Best to book six to nine months beforehand - Rent a Trailer. ReserveAmerica.com is the biggest supplier of camping area bookings in North America. Attempt sleeping in a tent in the yard first, suggests Vicki Wright, Woman Scouts of the USA Outdoor Initiative Lead. Keep in mind as you believe of things you'll need on a full-blown journey.

[wannabeagrunklefan]

Fic: Fire and Freedom

Pairing: Stancest Rating: PG-13 for language and some implied sexy times, I guess ^^; Author’s Notes: Circus AU! This was written for the Stancest Discord server’s  scavenger hunt. I just wanted to say a quick shout out to my very talented teammates for making this event so fun and for being so kind! You’re all brilliant and I was so inspired by your lovely writing and art! :D And a hearty thank you to my beta team @yehvaru and @reinstotheworld, who made this legible! I know you’re both really busy, so it really touched me that you made time to look over my story and give me some feedback and encouragement. You two are the absolute best and I adore you both to the moon and back! :D <3

The link to this fic on AO3 can be found here.

                “Little shit!”

                Carla sighed heavily, eyes rolled up to the ceiling as if seeking divine patience. “Stanley, don’t start-”

                “‘He’s cheating! He’s behind a curtain! ANYONE could have got him out! You think that’s a good trick?’” Her companion continued on with his tirade in a squeaky, off-key parody of what she assumed was meant to be a child, if the child in question sounded like a leaky bike tire.

                 A leaky bike tire with a serious chain smoking problem.

                “Seriously, kid?” He continued arguing with his imaginary, tiny antagonist, weaving haphazardly through the throng of performers backstage preparing for their acts to start. Carla heaved a frustrated breath as she attempted to keep up, neatly dodging some acrobats and coming dangerously close to Ms. Petunia’s prized, trained poodle, Rex, earning her a vicious glare from the older woman. “Anyone could have gotten me outta handcuffs and a locked tank of water in the middle of a giant, empty stage?? The entire point is that I escape on my own!”

                “To be fair, the tank’s not really sealed as tightly as it looks, though,” Carla couldn’t help but point out, trying to take the wind out of his sails before he made it clear across the Atlantic Ocean fueled on spite alone.

                It seemed to work slightly, as far as distractions went, as Stanley’s steps did slow somewhat. “I know that, and you know that, but that’s not the point,” he growled, punctuating the end of his sentence with a few vicious stabs in the air with a pointer finger. “My job is to create an illusion that inspires ‘wonder’ and ‘the inner child’, and that real child is being a real asshole!”

                “Yeah, I see what you mean,” Carla replied dryly. “What child wouldn’t experience a sense of wonder watching a happy-go-lucky guy like you answer their innocent question with a ‘Bite me, kid!’?”

                Her companion narrowed his eyes in a mockingly fierce glare and put indignant hands on his hips as his body relaxed into a more playful posture. Bull-headed as Stan was, at least he could concede the point when he was being ridiculous. In his own, silent way, of course. “Yanno what? You can bite me too, Carla.”

                “Been there, done that, sugar,” she replied, patting him lightly on the shoulder as he grinned. She wrinkled her nose for effect as she added, “never again.”

                He burst into laughter, resting a hand over his heart. “You break my heart, McCorkle! Just like you did that night when you left me fer some clown!”

                She immediately shoved him in frustration, forcing more laughter out of him. “NO! It wasn’t funny the first fifty-thousand times you made that joke, and it isn’t funny now! Ugh, I can’t deal with you when you’re like this. Where’s your brother? Why isn’t he suffering you like the rest of us? FORD!” She yelled at a nearby camper, their original destination (Stanley’s destination was always Stanford), and relished the violent tremor that ran through it as she had no doubt startled Ford out of a deep focus.

                One chair scrape and several heavy, booted steps later, and the door to the RV swung open, revealing Ford’s perplexed face and emitting a faint scent of chemicals. He quirked a brow in Carla’s direction. “You bellowed?”

                She frowned at his word choice and crossed her arms defiantly, pointedly ignoring the sniggering coming from the manchild behind her. “You’re a fire tamer, right?”

                His brows scrunched together in a mild frown as he thought the question over. “I suppose you could call it that. But I prefer to say I work with fire-”

                “Deal with this,” she interrupted, grabbing a handful of Stan’s sleeve and dragging him over to his brother. “There was a rowdy kid and now he’s all riled up, and if you don’t take him now I’ll throw a knife at him and I can’t guarantee I’ll miss.”

                Stanford rolled his eyes as he stepped back to allow Stanley entry. “I’ll deal with it, but I can’t promise it’ll stay dealt with,” he countered, leaping back as Stanley laid a comically exaggerated and loud kiss to his cheek. “AGH! Stanley, what the hell?” he yelped, rubbing a hand up and down his cheek, face flushed and lips twisted into a grimace when his hand passed over saliva.

                “Thanks, bro,” Stanley said as he made his way cheerfully into their shared space. “I feel so loved!”

                Ford turned back to Carla, his expression deadpan. “Run, while you still can.”

                She laughed and punched him playfully on the shoulder. “Thanks. I owe you one.”

                “Oh, and Carla?” Stanley popped up over Ford’s shoulder, and that’s when Carla realized she had to leave now.

                “Gotta go, Stan! Talk to you later, ok?” she called over her shoulder as she swiftly turned around and began making her escape.

                “Oh! Ok. Could you just thank Thistle for me when you see ‘im?”

                …Damn him and damn her curiosity straight to hell. She turned around with what she hoped was an effective warning look. “Thank him for what?”

               Stan quickly held up his hands in a placating gesture. “Whoa! Hey! No need fer that! I just genuinely wanted to thank him for helpin’ me put away all my props ‘n stuff yesterday.”

               Carla could feel her shoulders returning to their more relaxed positions. That was actually… “…Thanks, Stan. I’ll tell him you said that.”

               He smiled. “No problem, Carla. I just wanted to make sure he knew I appreciated his kind jester.”

               There’s no way of knowing for sure, but it was generally accepted by everyone at the circus that day that the ensuing, aggrieved shriek could be heard the next city over.

               “We’re going to need hearing aids soon if you keep winding her up like that.”

               Stanley grinned mischievously from his place against the wall as he watched his twin fiddle around with his latest fuel-concoction. “That was a good one, wasn’t it? Even better than I hoped for!”

               Ford shook his head in exasperation as he continued with his work. “I honestly don’t know what you hope to achieve by bothering that poor girl. Didn’t she suffer enough as your girlfriend?”

              Stan barked out a laugh and pushed off the wall, coming over to Ford to wrap a hand around one shoulder as he leaned over the other to observe his twin’s progress. “Yanno, I’d clock you a good one fer that remark if it wasn’t dripping with jealousy.” He glanced to the side to look for Ford’s reaction and – there! A quick spasm of fingers around the beaker he was holding, a slight quiver of a pipette in a suddenly unsteady hand and a jaunty bounce of an Adam’s apple were all Stan’s to cherish; small pieces of evidence of his twin’s affection that he could collect like an emotional magpie, decorating his life with pieces of love and hoarding the warmth they brought him.

              “Who’s jealous?” Ford asked, in the most chalant-nonchalant sort of way. Stanley hoped he wasn’t sincerely trying to sound unaffected, because that would mean his brother was the worst liar in history and bullshit was basically their trade, so…not a good combination. “I just meant that perhaps you should…ease up a little. No person should be screaming that much, that regularly.”

               “No?” Stan asked casually, plucking the beaker and pipette out of Ford’s hands and setting them down safely out of harm’s way, as Ford avidly stared at the side of his head. “You couldn’t see any advantages to screaming loudly on a regular basis?” He continued his line of questioning, pulling out the chair Ford is sitting in and sitting down in the newly created space of his twin’s lap. He looped his arms around Ford’s neck, grinning in triumph as he felt strong hands grip his hips, some stray fingers slipping under his shirt and coming to a stop to lightly caress the skin underneath. He licked his lips as he gazed into brilliant, warm brown eyes, so much more vibrant and arresting than his own. “No fringe benefits, at all?”

               He watched Ford’s eyes shift from side to side - searching for something, it looked like. The inner workings of Ford’s mind often eluded him. Whatever it was, he must’ve found it, because the firm, stiff line of his mouth softened and melted into a charmingly lazy grin and the feather-light caresses began to move downward with intent. “Well, Carla was certainly right about one thing. You are riled up, aren’t you?”

               Stan grinned devilishly, bringing one hand up to run through Ford’s curly locks, pausing every so often to deliver light, teasing scratches to his scalp. “You bet. She seemed to think that you should deal with me.” Here he grabbed a mass of hair, pulling Ford’s head back. Ford went willingly, offering his throat in its entirety to his brother. “What do you think about that?”

               “I’m not sure,” Ford admitted, looking up at the ceiling. “I’ve never really done well trying to force fire to bend to my will, as I’m sure you remember.” Stan responded with a non-committal hum and a light caress to a pale, pink patch of skin on his brother’s throat. “As I mentioned earlier, my best work seems to come when I treat the fire with respect. Like a partner.” He flicked his eyes down in an attempt to meet Stan’s despite the awkward angle.

               Stan considered him briefly, laid out and submissive beneath him, before throwing aside the façade and finally giving into temptation, bending forward to kiss, lick and suck at every inch of skin he could reach. His twin came alive immediately, hands coming up and grasping at Stan’s shoulders for purchase as he gasped and moaned his pleasure, completely losing himself in the moment.

               It was times like these, here in this narrow world where he and Ford were the only things in existence, that Stanley felt like everything slotted into place. Where he could slowly, carefully free his brother from all the invisible trappings of the world outside and celebrate his freedom, celebrate Ford. It was always his most thrilling escape, and when he succeeded it brought him more pride and joy than hundreds of locked tank performances could ever touch.

               Every soft gasp was like the rattle of a loosening chain, every moan the click of a lock springing open under his hands. Every desperate plea was like the awed gasps of an enthralled crowd and every call of his name the thunderous applause of a phantom audience. With Ford he reached new heights and it was with Ford that he achieved some of his greatest accomplishments.

               When they were together, he received some of Ford’s magic too. Every light caress trailed fire along his nerve-endings, and every kiss seared into him like a brand. Ford’s intense gaze lit a fire in his gut and his fierce embrace was scalding enough to melt away the outside fears and anxieties that plagued him while leaving his heart and soul feeling blissfully warm.

              Together they were two fires that burned brightly, twining and melting into one another to become an intimidating force of nature. Together, they broke locks and rent chains asunder, lifting each other to previously unattainable heights where they could soar in their freedom.

              Together, the future was bright.

              Together, they made the impossible possible.

[lovvedaggers]

The Dynamic between Kylo & Rey and where it can go: A parallel analysis with the Shatter Me trilogy

This meta is a collaboration between my friend @sillylovesongs17 and me. We decided to do this after I told her to read the books because I didn’t want to scream alone about this series. We think this is a wonderful example of what a relationship between Kylo and Rey should look like in the next movies and we hope you have fun reading this meta.

WARNING: There will be spoilers about Shatter Me and Star Wars.

Shatter Me is a book series written by Tahereh Mafi. Followed by Unravel Me and Ignite Me, Shatter Me tells the story of Juliette Ferrars, a girl that can kill with a single touch. After being locked up for 264 days, she gains a cellmate, a boy she thought she would never see again as the Reestablishment (the new government in power) has plans for her, Juliette must make a choice: be a weapon or be a warrior.

In this meta we will discuss the possibilities for Kylo and Rey’s relationship and where they might end up at the end of the sequel trilogy comparing them to the very similar relationship of Juliette and Warner in the Shatter Me trilogy.

We are aware that these stories are not the same but both dynamics are similar, sharing a lot of common traits so we’ll only analyze these characters and their dynamic only.

In the surface, Rey and Juliette share little in common. Rey starts of as a very capable scavenger, she can hold her own against enemies because she had a lot of time to learn how to defend herself in Jakku. In contrast, Juliette starts as a fragile girl, she’s locked in a cell for quite some time because of her lethal abilities and is on the verge of losing her mind.

But they do share similarities. Both girls were born with powerful gifts: Rey is force sensitive and Juliette has a lethal touch. She was abandoned by her parents because of her abilities and if the leaks about Ep. VIII are correct Rey’s parents did the same to her making both wish for belonging.

Rey and Juliette are destined for great things and one more thing they share is their uncommon relationship with the antagonist.

Kylo Ren and Warner share very similar traits, both in personality and their actions. Aaron Warner is the leader of Sector 45, viewed as a cruel sociopath by his soldiers and enemies he hides behind this mask not allowing anyone to see the real him until he meets Juliette.

With Kylo we have the same pattern, his descent into darkness is only stopped when he meets Rey. He senses that she’s special and their connection only grows after their first interaction.

Both Kylo and Warner are trying to please their leaders who abused them mentally and, in Warner’s case, also physically. In Star Wars, the Leader is Snoke, someone that according to the book “Aftermath: Empire’s End” has been watching and manipulating Kylo since before he was even born.

In Shatter Me, the Leader is Anderson, Warner’s father who treats him like shit. He taught Warner to be merciless and cruel hoping that would destroy the gentle nature of his son.

Warner and Kylo are both murderers, they don’t deny it but find no pleasure in harming someone. They are passionate and intense characters with a great sense of style and beautiful hair (sorry).

The point is, Shatter Me is a trilogy, divided exactly like the Star Wars movies. So, we will show how their dynamics are similar and with luck Mafi’s books will illuminate us, the reylos.

                 Shatter Me and The Force Awakens: 

                            Presenting the Characters

The book starts with Juliette in prison after years of passing through countless reformatories and mental institutions, her last home is now a solitary cell where she’s been locked for 264 days without no one to talk to but herself.

The only thing that keeps her from losing her mind entirely is the bird she dreams about it:

“Instead, I ignore the desperation sticking my fingers together and watch for the bird I’ve only seen in my dreams.”

(…)

“I’ve dreamt about the same bird flying through the same sky for exactly 10 years. White with streaks of gold like a crown atop its head.

It’s the only dream I have that gives me peace.” – Shatter Me. Chapter 6. Pg. 21.

Everything changes when a boy joins her. Adam is someone from her past but he appears to no longer remember her. They talk sometimes but never touch until she discovers that Adam works for the Reestablishment and he was only there to evaluate her.

She’s brought to the headquarters of Sector 45 and is immediately interrogated by Warner. His looks and youth weren’t what she was expecting it:

“I’m immediately struck by his youth. He can’t be much older than me.

It’s obvious he’s in charge of something, though I have no idea what. His skin is flawless, unblemished, his jawline sharp and strong. His eyes are

the palest shade of emerald I’ve ever seen.

He’s beautiful.” – Shatter Me. Chapter 8. Pg. 25.

This is a great parallel with Rey and Kylo’s first meeting. When Kylo removes his mask, Rey is expecting a disfigured almost robotic person and his looks caught her off guard:

“She just stared at him in silence. In itself the narrow face that looked back at her was not remarkable. It was almost sensitive. If not for the intensity of his gaze, Ren could have passed for someone she might have met on the dusty streets of Niima Outpost. But there was—that gaze. That, and what lay simmering behind it.” - TFA Novelization, Chapter 14.

“That happens when you’re being hunted by a creature in a mask.

Kylo Ren stops, considers her… then reaches up, unlatches

and REMOVES HIS MASK. Rey reacts, stunned. It takes a moment

before she regains her own mask of defiance.” – TFA Script.

The majority of the book is Warner trying to unlock Juliette’s power while she falls in love for Adam who has feelings for her. She discovers that he can, somehow, touch her and they start a relationship without Warner knowing about it. He tries to test her powers and pushes her to her limits using not so good ways to do it but it works with Juliette discovering her super force.

On TFA we see Kylo trying to get inside Rey’s mind. This works like a test, and she discovers she is Force Sensitive. Then Kylo Ren and Rey also create a bond (a deep connection, a link…). For Warner and Juliette this came with him touching her without being killed.

Juliette escapes with Adam leaving Warner in all his anger and confusion. Adam is Juliette’s love interest throughout the first book and since Rey doesn’t have a love interest in TFA there isn’t much to compare. Finn, who is Rey’s companion in the movie is more like Kenji Kishimoto, Julliette’s best friend.

While Kylo’s feelings for Rey aren’t explicitly stated, Warner’s feelings towards Juliette are very clear throughout the first book and even Adam notices that he treats her differently but all she feels for him is hatred and disgust:

“I hate you.”

“So much passion.” He laughs again. He looks so calm, so genuinely amused. He stares at me with eyes softer than I ever expected them to be.

I turn away.” - Shatter Me. Chapter 14.

Juliette and Rey are girls that never had someone who cared for them so the thought of losing Adam and Finn is horrible to them. Warner and Kylo both commit an act of violence against them making their hatred only to solidify. The word “Monster” is used by them to describe Kylo and Warner:

“You’re a monster.” My voice is too even, my body filled with a sudden rage. “Why don’t you just kill me?” - Shatter Me, Chapter 9.

“Ren held his lightsaber, poised to strike. “I could kill you right now. But there is another way.” Breathing hard, Rey looked up in disgust at the man looming above her. “You’re a monster.” – TFA Novelization.

Even with their feelings made clear both men still want these powerful women by their side:

“You and I, Juliette—together? We could be unstoppable.”

I will not look at him though I feel his gaze touching every inch of my body. “No, thank you.”

We’re in the elevator. The world is whooshing past us and the walls of glass make us a spectacle to every person on every floor. There are no secrets in this building.

He touches my elbow and I pull away. “You might reconsider,” he says softly. - Shatter Me. Chapter 13.

“No. You need a teacher.” He was beseeching and insistent all at once. “I can show you the ways of the Force.” – TFA Novelization.

At the end, they both fight. Who wins? Yes, the girls. Rey uses the Force and kicks Kylo’s ass. Juliette uses the attraction that Warner feels for her and shoots him. Then both women runaway with their friends and find their resistance. The men are hurt, but still alive.

                     Unravel Me and The Last Jedi: 

                          Finding Common Ground

Since The Last Jedi isn’t out yet we will analyze the events of Unravel Me and compare to what may happen in TLJ based in what we know so far.

After scaping from Warner, Juliette and Adam are brought to the resistance by Kenji, their friend. There she meets Castle, a mentor for her, that wants her to train and learn more about her abilities but it’s hard for her. She can’t concentrate in her training and everything seems out of place. As her relationship with Adam starts to crumble, her dreams come back and she doesn’t understand:

“The dreams are back.

They’d left me for a while, shortly after I’d been freshly imprisoned on base with Warner. I thought I’d lost the bird, the white bird, the bird with streaks of gold like a crown atop its head.

(…) It was my one piece of hope in the bitter darkness of the asylum, just until I met its twin tattooed on Adam’s chest.

(..) I thought it was a signal, a message telling me I was finally safe. That I’d flown away and finally found peace, sanctuary.

I didn’t expect to see the bird again.

(…)

I’ve had the same dream every night for the past week, and all 7 mornings I’ve woken up shaking, shuddering into the earthy, icy air, struggling to steady the bleating in my chest.

Struggling to understand what this means.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 4. Pg. 28.

The belonging she thought she had found with Adam and Castle’s resistance isn’t real, she still feels incomplete like something is missing.

The same can be said that this might happen with Rey. After her forceback, Maz tells her that the belonging she seeks it’s not behind, in the past, but ahead in her future. Rey thinks it’s about Luke and becoming a Jedi but she might find out that the belonging she wants rests with another person.

Rian Johnson compared TLJ to Letter Never Sent regarding how the story shifts in the middle surprising the audience. We know that Rey and Kylo don’t have the basic hero/villain dynamic and this could be one of the surprising elements. Showcasing their bond and the connection they feel to each other but for this to happen they need to spend time together.

In Unravel Me, Juliette’s feelings about Warner starts to change when she sees him commit an act of kindness:

“And I wish I’d never seen it.

Because something inside of my heart is ripping apart and it feels like fear, it tastes like panic and anxiety and desperation and I don’t know how to understand the image in front of me. I don’t want to see Warner like this. I don’t want to think of him as anything other than a monster.” – Unravel me. Chapter 20. Pg. 101.

Her doubts about him only increases when she meets him again, this time with his father Anderson, the Leader of the Reestablishment:

“And I see the difference in him now. I see what’s changed.

He’s making no effort to hide his emotions from me.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 35. Pg. 154.

Anderson knows about his son’s feelings towards Juliette and plans to kill her in front of him to teach him a lesson:

“The mistake”, he says, almost announcing it now, “that he always makes, time and time again – allowing his emotions to get in the way of his duty – it’s pathetic”, he says, spitting in Warner’s direction. “Which is why as much as I’d like to let you live, my dear, I’m afraid you’re too much of a distraction in his life. I cannot allow him to protect a person who has attempted to kill him” – Unravel Me. Chapter 35. Pg. 157.

Just as we suspected that this was what Snoke wanted to do with Rey, to kill her in front of Kylo because he felt compassion for her:

“Kylo Ren. It appears that a reminder is in order. So, I will show you the dark side. Bring the girl to me.” – TFA Novelization.

Juliette wins over Anderson and Warner is taken as hostage by their resistance. Once there, Castle states that Juliette must interrogate Warner because he’ll only talk to her.

They spent time together and the connection she feels with Warner is stronger than everything she has ever felt:

“Because there’s something about him – there’s always been something about him that’s intrigued me and I don’t understand it. I wish I could ignore it but I can’t.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 50. Pg. 203.

“But I know that I don’t hate you anymore. I’ve tried,” I say, “I’ve tried so hard. Because you’ve done so many terrible, terrible things. To innocent people. To me. But I know too much about you now. I’ve seen too much. You’re too human.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 50. Pg. 207.

They start a strange relationship, Warner thinks he knows her, knows what she feels and she is confused about Warner, not wanting to believe that he can be more than a monster. She likes to spend time with him and she hates herself for that.

She’s the only person to who Warner is kind. He sees her as his equal and explains why he wanted her by his side:

“He looks at me. Really, really looks at me.

“You’re going to go on to do incredible things,” he says. I’ve always known that. I think I just wanted to be a part of it.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 52. Pg. 218.

When Warner discovers that he has abilities, Castle offers him a place there, in their resistance but Warner refuses. That’s not who he is, he can’t change for a matter of days and forget everything he’s done. He knows nothing is that easy because he can sense other people’s feelings, he can feel the hate they have for him and that’s why he can’t stay:

“Feel what?” I whisper.

“What people think of me.”

“What…?”

“Their feelings – their energy – it’s – I don’t know what it is,” he says, frustrated, stumbling backward, shaking his head. “I’ve always been able to tell. I know how everyone hates me. I know how little my father cares for me. I know the agony of my mother’s heart. I know that you’re not like everyone else.” His voice catches. “I know you’re telling the truth when you say you don’t hate me. That you want to and you can’t. Because there’s no ill will in your heart, not toward me, and if there was I would know.” – Unravel Me. Chapter 54. Pg. 227.

Their feelings for one another are so strong that they almost have sex. Warner wants Juliette to go with him, they fight and he escapes alone.

Now back to TLJ, we know that Kylo and Rey will spend some time together on Ahch-To. According to some leaks, Kylo will go after Rey maybe finding her by their “mysterious connection”. He will be stuck on the island with Rey and Luke. Their relationship will evolve (without the “almost have sex” thing, of course), and they will get out of Ahch-To, so who knows?

We only know for certain that Kylo and Rey need to spend time together, their understanding of one another in TLJ is crucial to their future.

Another thing that we will have to wait and see is the answer about Rey’s family. Mafi’s trilogy could give us a way. Juliette was abandoned by her family and we don’t meet them. She is no one, her parents aren’t important to the story only Juliette and the discovery of her abilities are.  It’s a good contrast to Warner’s background, he is like royalty, son of the Reestablishment’s Supreme Leader.

A broken young man that meets a strange powerful girl with who he shares a connection. Sounds like something we know?

At the end of book two, everything goes to shit. Their resistance seems to be over and Juliette and Warner seems to be the only survivors making their mission to destroy Anderson.

Based on leaks, it seems that Luke and Rey get off the island and go their separate ways. Luke goes after Snoke while Rey goes after Kylo. If their connection is truly explained and deepened in this movie maybe Rey asks his help to defeat Snoke (we can only hope).

         Ignite Me and Episode IX: A forged Alliance?

This segment is basically our hopes and dreams for Rey and Kylo’s relationship since we have no clue to what will happen in Episode IX.

Ignite me sums up everything that me and Lu want for reylo. Obviously, we don’t know anything about the last movie but we want to show you what happens in the last book of the Shatter Me trilogy. Oh, and dream a little.

Juliette is now a strong woman who wants to make things better for the people. She decides to kill Anderson and stop the Reestablishment. Warner doesn’t change so much, he still cold, quiet, with a beautiful hair and only cares about Juliette, the love of his life.

Juliette and Warner spend the whole book together. He’s now the only one she can trust and their bond only grows as the trust is built between them. Warner believes in her and see her as an equal something that Juliette never had before:

“I like the way I feel about myself when I’m with him,” I say quietly. “Warner thinks I’m strong and smart and capable and he actually values my opinion. He makes me feel like his equal – like I can accomplish just as much as he can, and more. And if I do something incredible, he’s not even surprised. He expects it. He doesn’t treat me like I’m some fragile little girl who needs to be protected all the time.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 25. Pg. 105.

In return, Juliette sees the real Warner, someone he tried to hide for so long that he almost lost sight of himself:

“You allow the world to think you’re a heartless murderer,” I tell him. “And you’re not.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 4.

He tells everything to Juliette about his sick mother, why he freed her in the beginning, about the men he killed and everything he did for her. The girl now understands that he is a soldier and not a monster. Juliette finally understands him completely and she accepts who he is, the good and the bad parts of him:

“I’m not trying to fix you; I don’t think you need to be fixed. I’m not trying to turn you into someone else. I only want you to be who you really are. Because I think I know the real you. I think I’ve seen him.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 29. Pg. 120.

If Kylo and Rey spent so much time together as did Warner and Juliette this would be the kind of development that we could see happening between them. They aren’t black and white characters, both Rey and Kylo have darkness in them and the acceptance of each other’s darkness (and light) is crucial to bring balance to them and The Force.

Juliette finally understands what her dreams meant and (shocker) this is the belonging she looked for:

“Warner. A white bird with streaks of gold like a crown atop its head. A fair-skinned boy with gold hair, the leader of Sector 45. It was always him. All along.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 31. Pg. 124.

Juliette only acknowledges that her feelings for him are indeed romantic in the last chapters of the book. That is something that we would like if it happened to Rey and Kylo at the end of the movie.

“What – ‘’ Warner is blinking fast. His voice is fragile, uneven. “What are you saying?”

“I love you,” I whisper. “I love you exactly as you are.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 55. Pg. 200.

Also in this book, Warner loses his mother and Juliette is the only one there to comfort him. The only thing we know about Episode IX is that Leia is not there but this will certainly affect Kylo’s storyline.

“I’ve never, ever seen him look like a child before. Never, not once, not in all the time I’ve known him. But right now, he looks just like a little boy. Scared. Vulnerable. All alone.

(…)

“His eyes are red-rimmed and a startling, striking shade of green, shining with barely restrained emotion. His face is the picture of so much pain.

I almost can’t breathe.” – Ignite Me. Chapter 50. Pg. 189.

Now our favorite part is obviously Juliette and Warner working together. They make an alliance and built their own resistance gathering the survivors of the last battle along with Juliette’s friends to fight against the Reestablishment.

I mean, don’t we all want to see Kylo and Rey kicking Snoke’s ass (or Hux, sorry I’m not sorry at all), using the force bond and being amazing together?

This was basically it. We wanted to show how the writer wrote this very similar dynamic respecting the characters and their development making them a couple you want to root for. We expect reylo to be subtler than a YA book since their audience is PG but if TLJ follows just a bit of this same path we don’t need to be worried about Episode IX at all.

[noorhelm-drabbles]

Road trip

Imagine Noora and William going away on road trips, just to get away once in awhile. Not really having a destination, the two just leave (but not before leaving a note for Eskild and Linn) traveling the world together in their car. Despite it being cold (but remember Noora likes the cold) Noora loves to let the breeze of the day or night flow through her blonde long (or short) hair. William has a huge genuine smile upon his face as he admires her feeling the wind through his tinted sun glasses. They have a ridiculous soundtrack playing, that they both felt was suitable for a cross country road trip. William glances bewteen the road and Noora as she sings to him, he chuckles when she plays with his hair singing at the top of her lungs trying to get attention from him. When night falls Noora insists that William pulls the car over so they could do some star gazing upon the car hood. William complies bringing a blanket (and some cocoa) as they cuddle, both amazed by the bright shinning stars. Noora has suspicions that William has changed some routes on their map (could you blame him though that he just wants to spend more time alone with the love of his life) but she doesn’t mind, it makes it all the more exciting and fun to find out what the world has in store for them. Most of the time William treats them to interesting restaurants, sometimes it’s amazing and sometimes it’s bland but at least they could say they tried most of the food the world has to offer. Along the open road Noora makes up games for the two of them to play for example one of them being souvenir hunting, (scavenger hunting, karoke, card games, etc) which ever one of them finds the most unique souvenir wins. When they stop to admire beautiful artifacts William somehow never gets a picture of the subject alone but with a blonde, blue eyed girl being really interested in said artifacts. She is annoyed when she finds most of the pirctures not even including the amazing artifacts but her. William shrugs playing dumb with a guilty smile uplifting his soft tender lips “I don’t know how that blonde mysterious beauty got in the pictures, my hand must’ve slipped”. Noora rolling her eyes, responding with a “Your hand sure did slip a lot, William. I only have four good pictures without the blonde beauty in them” she let out a breath before laughing. William is still iffy if she’s mad at him or not but when she plants a huge kiss upon his lips he knows. Noora usually is the one to make William attend local events when they find a flyer in a small town. Sometimes the events consists of carnivals, firework shows, dancing parties, etc. They loved to know where they’re going but when they get lost that’s the most exciting. Being lost consists of more adventures and memories for the two. When they past by old western bars both go and make friends with the bikers that hangout there for directions. The bikers are surprisingly nice and offer them new locations to visit. They can’t take up the offer so their road trip extends for awhile longer. When they stop for gas, William smiles to himself when Noora purposely gets the snacks, coffee, drinks that she knows he hates (but actually likes) just to annoy him. Noora giggles when William dances to the songs of her choice, sometimes joining him, sometimes filming him just for the fun of it. William laughs himself when he finds out most of Noora’s guilty music pleasures like Justin Bieber (even though he kinda knew). When things get a tad more steamy the two go for the back seat, (William still remembers the time they both suggested it at Sana’s party so why not) cozy hotel rooms, or just sneaking off anywhere that they won’t be caught. The drive back to Oslo is even more interesting and exciting as when they first left. Taking a different route the way back. William loves it when Noora shoots him her beautiful smile and holds his hand. Voicing his thoughts he tells her “Listen, Noora Amalie Sætre you’re a smart girl. You have to understand that everytime you kiss me, hold my hand, lock eyes with me, or just give me that amazing smile of yours I only fall in love with you more and more.” Noora replies to him with a meaningful kiss whilst remembering the first time he’s ever made her speechless. After that despite them already being extremely affectionate they become even more so. When they arrive back in Oslo they’re all greeted by their friends with warm hugs and a welcome home party. Both pestered with questions about their trip, William confidently shows them pictures, half of them groan when they see most are of Noora, the other half swoon at how cute they are together. After everyone returns home Noora and William spend the remainder of the day in their bed at the Kollektivet. Both being so content and happy to be with each other even if they spent about three weeks alone together they couldn’t get enough of one another.

Bonus- If during the road trip William proposes to Noora stating stuff about their journey to finding each other. More than Words is playing in the background as he gets down on one knee. Their in the middle of a grassfield ontop of a cliff with a beautiful view. Noora tears up in happiness as he pulls out the ring. She couldn’t believe they were finally gonna be together forever (like she had thought).

[anamorales]

Friday Faves

Hi friends! Happy weekend to ya. What’s going on this weekend? We’re looking forward to swimming with the fam, a birthday party, and catching a couple of fitness classes. We’re getting things ready for school and just enjoying chillin’ in the AC… far away from the insane heat. I’d love to hear what you’re up to!

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I find some of my favorite finds, wears, reads, and treats from the week. Please share any faves you’re loving in the comments section if you’d like to join in the fun.

Life/random:

–The euphy!! I ordered this little beauty during the Amazon Prime sale and for real. It’s changed my cleaning life. I’m a huge fan of our Dyson cordless, which I use for spot-cleaning daily, but I hate dragging out our *regular* vacuum. This magical creation quietly zooms around the house capturing every speckle of dust, crumbs, and dog hair. REJOICE. I thought our floors were clean – we’d had professional cleaners a few days prior and I’d used the Dyson a few times – and then I ran this thing, and the ENTIRE CANISTER was full of dog hair. (Thanks, Caro.) Every time I open the canister, I feel like such a weirdo because I get genuinely happy to see everything it picks up. It’s the little things, right?

Poor Bella doesn’t like the euphy quite as much as I do. 

– Playing tourist. I’ve had to get creative with activities for the girls because it’s so hot outside, so we’ve been playing tourist and visiting local attractions.

It was our first time checking out the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. It was SO COOL, and the girls loved it! They have various exhibits of contemporary and antique miniatures. There are ornate dollhouses with fully decorated rooms, an entire Christmas village, and a mystical fairy/troll.dragon area. They also have a scavenger hunt for the kiddos; you try to find their miniature fairy, Caitlin, who is hiding in five different areas of the museum. We found three of the fairies, and spent quite a bit of time checking out the exhibits. 

– We also checked out the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium at the U of A, which I haven’t visited since I was in elementary school. We were there for over 3 hours! The girls kept wanting to go around and around, and after tons of learning/exploring, we watched the laser light show in the planetarium theater. P fell asleep after about 20 minutes, but Liv was especially into the stories of Greek mythology and learning about constellations. She’s said she wants to be an astronaut when she grows up since she was like 3, so needless to say, we’ll be going back.

(P’s dress is 100% on backwards because she dresses herself now.)

Fashion:

– These Spanx leggings arrived from the Nordstrom sale and they’re a dream come true. Warning that they look very small out of the package – as most Spanx products do.. I find myself wondering how the heck I’m going to sausage myself into them – but they slide on and feel like nothing. They’re insanely flattering and soooo comfortable. I’ll definitely be wearing them a ton once the weather chills out.

Speaking of the Nordstrom sale, they’ve restocked quite a bit of my faves and still aren’t sold out of some others.

Here’s what’s left of the good stuff:

More colors and sizes in my fave leggings ever

A perfect V-neck tee

Lots of sizes in this hooded long cardigan

Lovin’ the mesh detail on these cropped leggings

This dress would look so cute with booties

These plaid pajamas look amazing

Lots of colors and sizes in my fave bra ever. I got two more

Super cute neutral flat bootie 

Perfect time to stock up on Hanky Panky

Amazing deal on this wallet

Love this delicate bracelet as a gift idea

Eats + fitness:

– Bahama Bucks. I mentioned this before, but if you’re in Tucson, you HAVE to go. They have so many flavors and you can add ice cream and sprinkles. I decided to venture outside of my usual birthday or wedding cake shaved ice and went with the fiesta flavors: cucumber, mango, and melón with chili salt. I want another one riiiiight now.

– Sheet pan dinners for the win. I haven’t felt much cooking gusto lately, but still managed to cook all week this week (minus Panera last night) with super simple dinners. For this one, I boiled the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then added them to a sheet pan with salmon, and asparagus.

Everything was seasoned with avocado oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then I added the Trader Joe’s vegan pesto on top of the salmon and baked everything for 15 minutes. Dinner: done. Clean-up was a breeze.

– 32 smoothie ingredients from Trader Joe’s

– If you’re looking for a leg workout, check out this one! It’s similar to the one I did the other day

Read/watch/listen:

– The Mamma Mia soundtrack. We’ve been listening to it all week, and Super Trouper is an instant mood booster. 

– If you missed this week’s podcast episode, check it out here! My blog BFF Julie gave it such a great shout out in her post (+ lots of podcast suggestions).

– The Babysitter’s Club is coming back! Who was your favorite character? I was 100% team Claudia.

– This Motherhood Around the World series is fascinating

– Kind of obsessed with this random IG account

Happy Friday, friends!

xo

Gina 

The post Friday Faves appeared first on The Fitnessista.

Friday Faves published first on https://immigrationways.tumblr.com/

[marketerarena-blog]

Friday Faves

Hi friends! Happy weekend to ya. What’s going on this weekend? We’re looking forward to swimming with the fam, a birthday party, and catching a couple of fitness classes. We’re getting things ready for school and just enjoying chillin’ in the AC… far away from the insane heat. I’d love to hear what you’re up to!

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I find some of my favorite finds, wears, reads, and treats from the week. Please share any faves you’re loving in the comments section if you’d like to join in the fun.

Life/random:

–The euphy!! I ordered this little beauty during the Amazon Prime sale and for real. It’s changed my cleaning life. I’m a huge fan of our Dyson cordless, which I use for spot-cleaning daily, but I hate dragging out our *regular* vacuum. This magical creation quietly zooms around the house capturing every speckle of dust, crumbs, and dog hair. REJOICE. I thought our floors were clean – we’d had professional cleaners a few days prior and I’d used the Dyson a few times – and then I ran this thing, and the ENTIRE CANISTER was full of dog hair. (Thanks, Caro.) Every time I open the canister, I feel like such a weirdo because I get genuinely happy to see everything it picks up. It’s the little things, right?

Poor Bella doesn’t like the euphy quite as much as I do. 

– Playing tourist. I’ve had to get creative with activities for the girls because it’s so hot outside, so we’ve been playing tourist and visiting local attractions.

It was our first time checking out the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. It was SO COOL, and the girls loved it! They have various exhibits of contemporary and antique miniatures. There are ornate dollhouses with fully decorated rooms, an entire Christmas village, and a mystical fairy/troll.dragon area. They also have a scavenger hunt for the kiddos; you try to find their miniature fairy, Caitlin, who is hiding in five different areas of the museum. We found three of the fairies, and spent quite a bit of time checking out the exhibits. 

– We also checked out the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium at the U of A, which I haven’t visited since I was in elementary school. We were there for over 3 hours! The girls kept wanting to go around and around, and after tons of learning/exploring, we watched the laser light show in the planetarium theater. P fell asleep after about 20 minutes, but Liv was especially into the stories of Greek mythology and learning about constellations. She’s said she wants to be an astronaut when she grows up since she was like 3, so needless to say, we’ll be going back.

(P’s dress is 100% on backwards because she dresses herself now.)

Fashion:

– These Spanx leggings arrived from the Nordstrom sale and they’re a dream come true. Warning that they look very small out of the package – as most Spanx products do.. I find myself wondering how the heck I’m going to sausage myself into them – but they slide on and feel like nothing. They’re insanely flattering and soooo comfortable. I’ll definitely be wearing them a ton once the weather chills out.

Speaking of the Nordstrom sale, they’ve restocked quite a bit of my faves and still aren’t sold out of some others.

Here’s what’s left of the good stuff:

More colors and sizes in my fave leggings ever

A perfect V-neck tee

Lots of sizes in this hooded long cardigan

Lovin’ the mesh detail on these cropped leggings

This dress would look so cute with booties

These plaid pajamas look amazing

Lots of colors and sizes in my fave bra ever. I got two more

Super cute neutral flat bootie 

Perfect time to stock up on Hanky Panky

Amazing deal on this wallet

Love this delicate bracelet as a gift idea

Eats + fitness:

– Bahama Bucks. I mentioned this before, but if you’re in Tucson, you HAVE to go. They have so many flavors and you can add ice cream and sprinkles. I decided to venture outside of my usual birthday or wedding cake shaved ice and went with the fiesta flavors: cucumber, mango, and melón with chili salt. I want another one riiiiight now.

– Sheet pan dinners for the win. I haven’t felt much cooking gusto lately, but still managed to cook all week this week (minus Panera last night) with super simple dinners. For this one, I boiled the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then added them to a sheet pan with salmon, and asparagus.

Everything was seasoned with avocado oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then I added the Trader Joe’s vegan pesto on top of the salmon and baked everything for 15 minutes. Dinner: done. Clean-up was a breeze.

– 32 smoothie ingredients from Trader Joe’s

– If you’re looking for a leg workout, check out this one! It’s similar to the one I did the other day

Read/watch/listen:

– The Mamma Mia soundtrack. We’ve been listening to it all week, and Super Trouper is an instant mood booster. 

– If you missed this week’s podcast episode, check it out here! My blog BFF Julie gave it such a great shout out in her post (+ lots of podcast suggestions).

– The Babysitter’s Club is coming back! Who was your favorite character? I was 100% team Claudia.

– This Motherhood Around the World series is fascinating

– Kind of obsessed with this random IG account

Happy Friday, friends!

xo

Gina 

The post Friday Faves appeared first on The Fitnessista.

https://askfitness.today/friday-faves-3/

[hotfitnesstopics]

Hi friends! Happy weekend to ya. What’s going on this weekend? We’re looking forward to swimming with the fam, a birthday party, and catching a couple of fitness classes. We’re getting things ready for school and just enjoying chillin’ in the AC… far away from the insane heat. I’d love to hear what you’re up to! It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I find some of my favorite finds, wears, reads, and treats from the week. Please share any faves you’re loving in the comments section if you’d like to join in the fun. Life/random: –The euphy!! I ordered this little beauty during the Amazon Prime sale and for real. It’s changed my cleaning life. I’m a huge fan of our Dyson cordless, which I use for spot-cleaning daily, but I hate dragging out our *regular* vacuum. This magical creation quietly zooms around the house capturing every speckle of dust, crumbs, and dog hair. REJOICE. I thought our floors were clean – we’d had professional cleaners a few days prior and I’d used the Dyson a few times – and then I ran this thing, and the ENTIRE CANISTER was full of dog hair. (Thanks, Caro.) Every time I open the canister, I feel like such a weirdo because I get genuinely happy to see everything it picks up. It’s the little things, right? Poor Bella doesn’t like the euphy quite as much as I do.  – Playing tourist. I’ve had to get creative with activities for the girls because it’s so hot outside, so we’ve been playing tourist and visiting local attractions. It was our first time checking out the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. It was SO COOL, and the girls loved it! They have various exhibits of contemporary and antique miniatures. There are ornate dollhouses with fully decorated rooms, an entire Christmas village, and a mystical fairy/troll.dragon area. They also have a scavenger hunt for the kiddos; you try to find their miniature fairy, Caitlin, who is hiding in five different areas of the museum. We found three of the fairies, and spent quite a bit of time checking out the exhibits.  – We also checked out the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium at the U of A, which I haven’t visited since I was in elementary school. We were there for over 3 hours! The girls kept wanting to go around and around, and after tons of learning/exploring, we watched the laser light show in the planetarium theater. P fell asleep after about 20 minutes, but Liv was especially into the stories of Greek mythology and learning about constellations. She’s said she wants to be an astronaut when she grows up since she was like 3, so needless to say, we’ll be going back. (P’s dress is 100% on backwards because she dresses herself now.) Fashion: – These Spanx leggings arrived from the Nordstrom sale and they’re a dream come true. Warning that they look very small out of the package – as most Spanx products do.. I find myself wondering how the heck I’m going to sausage myself into them – but they slide on and feel like nothing. They’re insanely flattering and soooo comfortable. I’ll definitely be wearing them a ton once the weather chills out. Speaking of the Nordstrom sale, they’ve restocked quite a bit of my faves and still aren’t sold out of some others. Here’s what’s left of the good stuff: More colors and sizes in my fave leggings ever A perfect V-neck tee Lots of sizes in this hooded long cardigan Lovin’ the mesh detail on these cropped leggings This dress would look so cute with booties These plaid pajamas look amazing Lots of colors and sizes in my fave bra ever. I got two more Super cute neutral flat bootie  Perfect time to stock up on Hanky Panky Amazing deal on this wallet Love this delicate bracelet as a gift idea Eats + fitness: – Bahama Bucks. I mentioned this before, but if you’re in Tucson, you HAVE to go. They have so many flavors and you can add ice cream and sprinkles. I decided to venture outside of my usual birthday or wedding cake shaved ice and went with the fiesta flavors: cucumber, mango, and melón with chili salt. I want another one riiiiight now. – Sheet pan dinners for the win. I haven’t felt much cooking gusto lately, but still managed to cook all week this week (minus Panera last night) with super simple dinners. For this one, I boiled the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then added them to a sheet pan with salmon, and asparagus. Everything was seasoned with avocado oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then I added the Trader Joe’s vegan pesto on top of the salmon and baked everything for 15 minutes. Dinner: done. Clean-up was a breeze. – 32 smoothie ingredients from Trader Joe’s – If you’re looking for a leg workout, check out this one! It’s similar to the one I did the other day Read/watch/listen: – The Mamma Mia soundtrack. We’ve been listening to it all week, and Super Trouper is an instant mood booster.  – If you missed this week’s podcast episode, check it out here! My blog BFF Julie gave it such a great shout out in her post (+ lots of podcast suggestions). – The Babysitter’s Club is coming back! Who was your favorite character? I was 100% team Claudia. – This Motherhood Around the World series is fascinating – Kind of obsessed with this random IG account Happy Friday, friends! xo Gina  The post Friday Faves appeared first on The Fitnessista. from The Fitnessista https://ift.tt/2LSRYWB via IFTTT

http://www.fitnessclub.cf/2018/07/friday-faves_27.html

[neytinintransit]

seoul talk (ed. 1)

Or more like seoul searching, but I guess some good soul talk is a solid first step. To me, Seoul was a city of relationships. And when I say that, I’m not restricting the term to romance (although it definitely makes up a large pice of the pie). There was not a single day where Eric and I hadn’t found ourselves surrounded by both new and familiar faces. Part of the reason for our newfound popularity stood in the fact that most of the people I knew in Asia just happened to be in Seoul. But what made the experience special was that everyone would always bring one or two of their own friends to tag along, and naturally, that helped our humble little two-man team evolve into a squad (underwater squaw wus good). Everyday, we formed new relationships and strengthened existing ones. 

Being in Seoul really helped me appreciate all of the friends I found myself lucky enough to be surrounded by. After traveling for a while, the concept of homesickness doesn’t feel as foreign as it should, and you begin to long for some sort of anchor that can root you in stability. I think most people have this problem, but I never felt that in Seoul. I think that I can always find myself missing some parts of the warmth and friendship that I found there.

Staying true to the theme of this post, Eric and I immediately made our way over to meet with Michelle minutes after we got to our Airbnb. Originally, we had planned to get some Korean fried chicken with her in Hongdae, but this little devil kept escalating things. Eric and I were experiencing some serious alcohol trauma (hangovers) from the previous night and had no intention whatsoever of ingesting anymore of that toxic waste. In fact, we literally made a pact before meeting up with Michelle that we were going to take it easy tonight, but it was Michelle’s last night in Seoul and I guess she wanted to rally before the big send-off. We ordered one or two bottles of soju, and after we finished the modest amount of alcohol and the not-so-modest amount of chicken, she convinced us to go to a bar and grab one or two drinks. Something I learned while abroad: never trust those friends that take you to the bar for “one or two” drinks.

We ended up at this bar called Thursday Party, which was the typical go-to pregame spot for most internationals. To be fair, we had some pretty good conversation and catch up. We also dipped our feet in that stranger danger zone and had a couple memorable interactions with some people around us (i.e. some drunk girl who was alone and kept asking for alcohol, beer pong with some Canadians, Michelle’s unwanted wing-manning). From there, everything became a blur. I love poisoning myself, destroying my liver, and making embarrassingly bad decisions.

To be honest, I don’t even remember going to McDonalds. I only know we went because I’ve got hard-photo evidence of this happening. Despite the memory loss and continuation of my never-ending hangover, being around Michelle was especially refreshing, and I think that was one of the best ways I could’ve started my stay at Seoul. It was nice remembering what it felt like to appreciate another human being as much as they appreciated you. It’s been a while since I’ve genuinely had that in my life, and I think it’s an important part of finding a sense of belonging. On an slightly unrelated, light-hearted side-note, Michelle also got us started off on our seven-day bender.

Beyond my conscious knowledge, we woke up with plans to grab bing-su with Michelle. Bing-su is basically Korean shaved snow, and that good-good looked a bit like this:

When we got to the joint, I was greeted by my arch-nemesis Stephanie, Michelle’s younger sister. According to Michelle, her sister goes on auto-hate mode for any “new guy” in her life. I don’t think there’s a single time where I haven’t seen her glaring at me. It’s okay though, because deep down, I feel like Steph actually enjoys my company even though she’s take jabs at me every little chance she gets. Because in between each insult, we manage to sneak in a nice little conversation about something going on in our lives. Well, regardless of whether or not she likes me, I think she’s cool and that’s all that matters. Plus we’re facebook friends, so it’s official

After bidding our frowns and farewells to Michelle as her bus drove off into the distance, we made our way over to Gyeongbokgung, the royal palace of South Korea. Stephanie must’ve really wanted company, because she decided to stick around us for the rest of the day. The humidity was brutal, and so were my sweat glands. For the duration of our bus ride, Steph wouldn’t stop pining about how I was basically a fountain and needed some portable fans so I wouldn’t drip everywhere. I don’t blame her.

We actually made plans to meet up with John Suh that day. Apparently, he was on some short vacation from his military vacation and had some time to spare before going back to base, so he joined us on our little expedition. Back when he was at Princeton, we never really spoke much. Even though we went to Beijing together freshman summer, I could only count a handful of memories with him. After spending so much time with him this summer, I could safely say that that’s probably one of my biggest regrets. We actually get along really well, and it’s really nice to have a friend who likes the same style of dance as you (~Cali urban vibes~). On the east coast, there weren’t that many people who were into the styles of dance that I was, so it was a bit isolating in that respect.

John’s the sharp-looking military boy to the right. Oh yeah, about my outfit. There are several vendors around the area that rent out Hanboks (traditional Korean Garb) for about thirty bucks USD. Somehow, Eric talked me into the whole immersive experience, so we hiked over the closest store and got all suited up. Somehow, Eric talked me into doing a lot of crazy things, but thankfully this was one was one of the better decisions that we made. 

Above, we have the King and the Prince. I let Eric take over with the king outfit this time since he’s the one that’s actually Korean- plus it gave me plenty of leeway for those daddy jokes that made the man plenty uncomfortable. Half the time, I couldn’t stop laughing in disbelief at the fact that we actually went out of our way to put these clothes on. As silly as I felt, I’m glad we did it. We had a taste of what it felt like to be old school Korean gangstas, and people treated us like mini celebrities. There were at least three or four occasions where strangers came up to us asking for a photo. The best part was when they came up to me speaking Korean and I had to give them that blank, shameless stare, exposing myself as a poser. About an hour and two ankle blisters later, John’s vacation time was up and Eric and I had to go return our new superhero outfits. We went scavenging for food after our failed attempt to enter the museum of modern art (since it was closed). After a short meal, we dropped Stephanie off at her bus stop and Eric and I headed home to rest and wash up. Waking up hungover and walking all day long in hot, stuffy clothing was a sure-fire way of feeding the burnout.

Oh, I almost forgot. Friday, June 30 was a very special day, because it was Michelle Jeong’s birthday! By the way, this is a different Michelle than the one mentioned above, so to alleviate the confusion, I’ll refer to her as Meesh. Meesh and I were friends way back in high school (fun fact: we actually went to Sadies together). We shared the same nightmarish internship one summer in high school, and hadn’t spoke much until we reunited in London during our junior year of study abroad. She was the closest friend I had while I was in London, and I can’t imagine what the semester would’ve been like without her support. I really wouldn’t want to, growing closer to her in London was easily the best thing that happened to me during those few months. It’s funny to look back into your past and discover all these disjoint narratives that somehow found themselves mingling and me(e)shing together. Meesh’s family moved back to Seoul after both siblings graduated college, so I haven’t seen her back on the west coast in a while.

After Eric and I washed all the humid grime off our bodies and put on some fancy clothes, we headed over to this bar in Itaewon for Meesh’s birthday party. Itaewon is the most international neighborhood of Seoul. If you’re an expat and you can’t speak Korean, Itaewon’s probably the place you’d be living. It’s also a pretty fun place to go out. When we got there, I was surprised to run into John Shin, my best friend’s boyfriend. Unfortunately he was just waiting for us to come so he could say hi, but he had to leave soon after. At the bar, I met a number of Meesh’s close friends from Cornell. Meesh would always tell me so many stories about her friends back at school, so it was really interesting to finally meet them all in person. I was also shocked at how many of them were in Korea at that time. 

A good number of drinks and a happy birthday song later, we walked across the street to this place called Club Made. Originally, Meesh really didn’t want to go clubbing, but her friends sort of coerced her into it. That night as an oddball, because I was the one who had to take care of Eric. After he puked on my arm (which is totally OK because I put him through much more stress throughout the trip), I decided it was about time to head home. We left the club at around 3AM, and after we realized that it was impossible to call a cab at that hour, we decided to go back and stay in the club until 5AM when the subway opened up again.

And so we did it. Eric and I stumbled back into Club Made, stole a handle of Absolut from an abandoned table, met some new friends (who go to NYU and USC!!!), and continued partying until the sunrise. After the club closed, we headed back to the Airbnb. Or at least I thought we were, but my trip back home was a little more complicated. I was half awake when Eric woke me up, but in that situation we definitely round down. Apparently after I stood up, Eric assumed that I followed him out of the train and onto the platform. But I didn’t. In my half-awake, drunken stupor, I sat back down in my seat and fell asleep for a good five to six stops away. I woke up in a panic and realized Eric had texted me the address and key code to get back into the apartment earlier that day. Unfortunately, my battery was at around 2% and I knew that if I wasn’t able to memorize that information before my phone died, I’d probably die along with it. 

Luckily, four years of cramming BS in college did me well, and I was able to get the information down right before it powered off. Cab drivers in Korea don’t really speak English, so I was lucky that I found one that was able to understand whatever the hell I was telling him. After I charged my phone and reunited with a very relieved Eric, I found this gem in my messages: 

I laughed, but he was pissed. 

After a long nap, Eric took me to this little slice of paradise called Hangang Park. In retrospect, strolling along the river was probably one of happiest, most peaceful memories of the entire Asia trip. We purchased some kimbap on the way there and scoped out the area for a nice, shady spot to relax. Summers are especially humid, so naturally the bulk of the crowd congregated underneath a massive bridge that overlooked the river. People had tents and blankets sprawled out along the lawn, and there were a group of people singing and performing for the crowd. They had some of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard in my life. Part of me wishes I went up to them and asked them if they wanted the photo, because they seemed so genuinely happy in that moment. Eric and I sat there for a while, enjoying the music and food while observing a few people perform these crazy tricks on bicycles. 

I also managed to snap a photo that I thought captured a “nice guy” moment for Eric. Basically, there are a number of old Korean women scattered throughout the park that are paid(?) to pass out fliers and sell snacks. They probably don’t have much money and need to work these jobs to make it to the next week, because conditions are grueling. It’s unbelievably humid out, and most people just brush them aside or ignore them. I guess Eric felt bad, because he got up out of nowhere and bought some food that we didn’t even eat. I promise this was one of those actually-candid photos. It’d be kind of fucked up if it wasn’t. 

After we soaked up enough of the peace and zen around us, we decided to go on a little stroll along the river. I don’t know if this sounds pretentious, but the large public pool-fountain construct reminded me a lot of Plaça de Catalunya in Barcelona. The surroundings were just so full of life- splashes, youthful laughter, tiny plodded footsteps could be heard from all directions. I know this is probably a misguided judgement, but I found it difficult to imagine an unhappy childhood growing up somewhere with this in the backyard. I think there’ve been less than a handful of memories where I felt that genuinely content and at awe with the world I live in, and this was one of them.

Unfortunately, our time at Hangang park came to an end. We met up with Eric’s uncle on his dad’s side of the family and a few of his other relatives for ayce (all you can eat) shabu shabu. After meeting his dad’s side and hearing about his mom’s side, I could really see both parts of their personalities in him. It was really interesting to piece the different puzzle pieces together- I wonder what people think about me when they meet my parents. Anyway, we had a long, hearty dinner and I enjoyed spending time with them. Eric seemed really happy to be able to see them, since he grew up with most of them and they moved to Korea about half a year ago.

By the time dinner finished, it was pretty far into the evening. Guess what that means. That’s right. More alcohol. We hurried home to put on a pair of pants, since that’s what we considered “nicer” clothing, and made our way out to our first night in Gangnam. We made plans to meet up with Sally Hahn, one of my friends from Princeton. Meesh was supposed to join in, but she bailed toward the end because she didn’t want to go out two nights in a row. What a party pooper. Well, she’s actually pretty fun to party with, but I’m just bitter because her company would’ve been greatly appreciated.

Having Sally around was still great, though. If I’m ever back in Seoul while she’s there, I’m definitely going to hit her up because she took good care of Eric and me. First, we went to this Korean bar-restaurant thing. I forgot the name for it, but typical Korean bars are food joints that sell alcohol. The alcohol’s relatively cheap, but the gig is that you need to purchase some food in order to purchase the alcohol. That’s where the bars make the money, but I guess it all evens out in the end. Plus that food was mad dank (Erthan Slohng lingo). We went out to this club called Octagon, which is one of the highest rated clubs in the world. It was pretty expensive- I think that night hurt my wallet the most. I guess you get what you pay for, though, because we had a ton of fun. Some guy wearing an Anonymous mask started a cypher, and you best believe I found myself at home there. Actually, who am I kidding. The only time I’m brave enough to freestyle is when I’m well-enough inebriated to the point where there’s no way my freestyle looks any good. Some tragic happenings occurred that night as well, but for the sake of everyone’s reputation, I’ll leave that a mystery for you to never figure out. 

Keeping up with the pattern, we woke up with our lovely splitting headaches and aching bodies. Eric had plans to meet up with his mother’s side, but I had promised Meesh we would spend some more time together before I left for the next destination. And thus, Eric and I temporarily parted ways for the first time (while sober, and with a clear sense of direction). 

Lovely, lovely Meesh brought me to this beautiful man-made river called Cheonggyecheon. Apparently, it used to be a massive sewage dump that polluted the streets with a rotting stench. Sort of like the smell you’d catch a whiff of walking by my college dorm. One of the Presidents realized how much public spaces affected the livelihood of its inhabitants (duh), and spent tons of money reforming it into what it is today. Sometimes, I wish cities in America would make better use of their public spaces. Even in NYC, everything has a bit of a rustic, rundown vibe to it (unless we’re talking big corporate buildings).

Meesh and I actuallly ran into a little Muay Thai tournament that was taking place near Cheonggyecheon. It brought back plenty of memories (and trauma), since Meesh was there when I started taking on Muay Thai seriously and competing in London. I made the mistake of purchasing some spicy pad thai, and found myself sweating a good amount more than I should have a few minutes into our walk. After melting a trail of sadness for a good fifteen minutes, we found a restaurant that served pigs feet. It sounds weird, but I grew up on that stuff and I can promise you that it’s something you definitely don’t want to knock until you try. We ate our fill as we caught each other up on our lives. It’s crazy how much can change in such a short time period. It’s only been a few weeks since, but I bet if I met up with Meesh for another dope, scrumptious pig’s feet feast, I’d have just as many new things to tell her.

Eric was planning on meeting us later in the day, so Meesh took me around some nice spots to kill time. I can’t remember the name of the place (mainly because so much of my brain-space was hellbent on remembering the names of locations near my Airbnb so that if I got lost again, I wouldn’t be scared of getting lost and dying), but there were all these cute little shops and boutiques littered across these stone-brick streets. If Meesh and I were dating, that would have been one of the most ideal date locations, and that’s me talking by LA standards. I thought my hometown was a place that shipped out romantics, but I guess there’s a reason why every other person’s holding hands with someone on the streets. There was this one shopping complex (The one pictured above. Look at Meesh btw, isn’t she adorable.) with shops spiraling up to the top. At the top was this little “love lock” things where couples could go and attach locks with their names written on them to a fence. Y’know, one of those things. It’s actually pictured in my profile photo for the blog if you still don’t know what I’m talking about. And if you’re still confused, go peep my travel album on Facebook (shameless plug).

After Eric arrived, we got some shaved ice and went shopping for souvenirs. Well, more like we walked into a shop that happened to sell souvenirs- we were really there for the AC, because all three of us were literally melting through our pores. I was feeling especially tired toward the end of our time with Meesh, so I mainly stood in the background and let Eric and Meesh interact with each other. I felt so exhausted from the consecutive disasters that happened the two nights before that I couldn’t muster the energy to maintain conversation with these people, even though they were both people very near and dear to my heart.

As usual, we said our goodbyes to Meesh and moved onto our next destination. I thought it would be a crime to call myself a dancer, come to Seoul, and not take dance class. So to prevent myself from committing any crimes against humanity, I dragged Eric to his first dance class at 1Million with me. We went to a random dance class, hoping we would learn some dope choreography, but instead we took Jay Kim’s class (sorry for the hate, but I just couldn’t dig it). I still had a ton of fun dancing, though. Becoming a part of the dance community was one of the most dynamic changes to my senior year at Princeton, but I can easily say that dancing has made me a much happier person at the core. We met some guy (sorry I can’t remember your name!) from Vegas who was also traveling Asia post-grad, and grabbed dinner with him after class. 

When we were released from Jay Kim’s cornyography (get it? corny choreography = cornyography) dance-den, we were lucky and fortunate enough to enter a long, seemingly perpetual spree of torrential downpour. What made the situation even better was that the only person who had an umbrella was Eric. After waiting a good fifteen minutes, we gave up on the world and admitted defeat to the crazies that were doing the rain dance in some basement to ruin our lives. The station was about a ten-minute walk away, but somehow with all the rain, it turned out to be a fifteen-minute sprint away. Even though we all were soaked head to toe, even though I nearly slipped and cracked my head open a few times, even though that day is probably the reason why my shoes smell like shit today, I don’t think I would have chosen to not run in the rain that night even if I had a massive, protective hamster ball that would’ve protected me from any moisture from above. I don’t know if you’ve ever done it, but going out into a blanket of thundering rain with no protection is probably one of the most exhilarating corners of life. Running through it is even better. I guess I still don’t really know what it means to be alive after 22 years in this body, but I felt so incredibly alive that night. 

That long day was unfortunately the preface to a long night. Eric and I had mountains of laundry because we did a great job of overpacking, and we had to do laundry before leaving for Taipei the next day. And so as all bro-y Californian dudes do while they wait for laundry, Eric and I drank a bottle of makgeolli (Korean rice wine) and put on face masks.

The stuff of nightmares, am I right. You’ll also notice that there’s clothes hanging from the curtains in the background. That’s what made that night long. Almost everything that could have possibly gone wrong (and right) happened during our stay in Seoul, and the night before we took off, the owner came up to us with a bag of heavy, soggy, washed clothing and told us that the storm broke the drier. Under pressure, we jerry-rigged a little hang-dry system out of everything we could possibly hang clothes off of and prayed that everything would be dry in the morning. I can’t really remember if the clothes were ok in the morning, but I do remember going to Taipei. Things always sort themselves out somehow. Or you die. But usually you don’t die.

Throughout the entirety of our stay in Seoul, we had flurry of hello’s and goodbye’s to both old and new faces. I’ve always felt that part of growing up is about learning how to develop your relationships with people around you. And now, I think I’m finally beginning to understand the exact weight of those words. Developing these relationships isn’t just a one-track process of fortification. It’s a dynamic process in which we create relationships anew, build them into friendships, and loosen some old ties to make room for the new. Sometimes, the old ties tighten up again, but sometimes they don’t. And that’s totally OK. 

I think that I’ve always understood the last part, subconsciously. But to truly grasp it and accept it is something I need to learn, and something that I am still learning. It’s scary to know that something that was once so special might not be at some point in the future. But it’s also exciting to know that something that might have been a small encounter- be it someone you met at dance, someone you said hi to on a bus, or someone who was your Airbnb host- could develop into an invaluable, lifelong friendship. Of course, it is just as much a possibility that the loosening will never happen- that those relationships and friendships will last your entire life. But consciously knowing that they might not, and accepting that they will not if the situation were to arise– that’s the hard part. I guess this is a long, drawn out of learning that life moves on, and that’s I’ll eventually find some way to be content irregardless of whatever direction it may move in. 

Sorry for the long post, but I guess it just means that I was really living throughout this entire experience, collecting stories here and there to add to my little trove of memories. I always know I have an overall positive experience when I have plenty of stories to tell, even if those experiences are negative ones. Because it’s our narratives and the way we tell them which give our lives life. A few years ago during the summer, JD and I saw a quote scribbled on the back of Vesper Bar in Amsterdam that read: “Summer is the time when you drink triple, see double, and act single.” I’m glad the 22 year-old me was able to learn and apply something I learned in my college years.

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Taipei bound here we come wooowooo aww yea put that street food in my belly unf.

[anamorales]

Friday Faves

Hi friends! Happy weekend to ya. What’s going on this weekend? We’re looking forward to swimming with the fam, a birthday party, and catching a couple of fitness classes. We’re getting things ready for school and just enjoying chillin’ in the AC… far away from the insane heat. I’d love to hear what you’re up to!

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I find some of my favorite finds, wears, reads, and treats from the week. Please share any faves you’re loving in the comments section if you’d like to join in the fun.

Life/random:

–The euphy!! I ordered this little beauty during the Amazon Prime sale and for real. It’s changed my cleaning life. I’m a huge fan of our Dyson cordless, which I use for spot-cleaning daily, but I hate dragging out our *regular* vacuum. This magical creation quietly zooms around the house capturing every speckle of dust, crumbs, and dog hair. REJOICE. I thought our floors were clean – we’d had professional cleaners a few days prior and I’d used the Dyson a few times – and then I ran this thing, and the ENTIRE CANISTER was full of dog hair. (Thanks, Caro.) Every time I open the canister, I feel like such a weirdo because I get genuinely happy to see everything it picks up. It’s the little things, right?

Poor Bella doesn’t like the euphy quite as much as I do. 

– Playing tourist. I’ve had to get creative with activities for the girls because it’s so hot outside, so we’ve been playing tourist and visiting local attractions.

It was our first time checking out the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. It was SO COOL, and the girls loved it! They have various exhibits of contemporary and antique miniatures. There are ornate dollhouses with fully decorated rooms, an entire Christmas village, and a mystical fairy/troll.dragon area. They also have a scavenger hunt for the kiddos; you try to find their miniature fairy, Caitlin, who is hiding in five different areas of the museum. We found three of the fairies, and spent quite a bit of time checking out the exhibits. 

– We also checked out the Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium at the U of A, which I haven’t visited since I was in elementary school. We were there for over 3 hours! The girls kept wanting to go around and around, and after tons of learning/exploring, we watched the laser light show in the planetarium theater. P fell asleep after about 20 minutes, but Liv was especially into the stories of Greek mythology and learning about constellations. She’s said she wants to be an astronaut when she grows up since she was like 3, so needless to say, we’ll be going back.

(P’s dress is 100% on backwards because she dresses herself now.)

Fashion:

– These Spanx leggings arrived from the Nordstrom sale and they’re a dream come true. Warning that they look very small out of the package – as most Spanx products do.. I find myself wondering how the heck I’m going to sausage myself into them – but they slide on and feel like nothing. They’re insanely flattering and soooo comfortable. I’ll definitely be wearing them a ton once the weather chills out.

Speaking of the Nordstrom sale, they’ve restocked quite a bit of my faves and still aren’t sold out of some others.

Here’s what’s left of the good stuff:

More colors and sizes in my fave leggings ever

A perfect V-neck tee

Lots of sizes in this hooded long cardigan

Lovin’ the mesh detail on these cropped leggings

This dress would look so cute with booties

These plaid pajamas look amazing

Lots of colors and sizes in my fave bra ever. I got two more

Super cute neutral flat bootie 

Perfect time to stock up on Hanky Panky

Amazing deal on this wallet

Love this delicate bracelet as a gift idea

Eats + fitness:

– Bahama Bucks. I mentioned this before, but if you’re in Tucson, you HAVE to go. They have so many flavors and you can add ice cream and sprinkles. I decided to venture outside of my usual birthday or wedding cake shaved ice and went with the fiesta flavors: cucumber, mango, and melón with chili salt. I want another one riiiiight now.

– Sheet pan dinners for the win. I haven’t felt much cooking gusto lately, but still managed to cook all week this week (minus Panera last night) with super simple dinners. For this one, I boiled the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then added them to a sheet pan with salmon, and asparagus.

Everything was seasoned with avocado oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then I added the Trader Joe’s vegan pesto on top of the salmon and baked everything for 15 minutes. Dinner: done. Clean-up was a breeze.

– 32 smoothie ingredients from Trader Joe’s

– If you’re looking for a leg workout, check out this one! It’s similar to the one I did the other day

Read/watch/listen:

– The Mamma Mia soundtrack. We’ve been listening to it all week, and Super Trouper is an instant mood booster. 

– If you missed this week’s podcast episode, check it out here! My blog BFF Julie gave it such a great shout out in her post (+ lots of podcast suggestions).

– The Babysitter’s Club is coming back! Who was your favorite character? I was 100% team Claudia.

– This Motherhood Around the World series is fascinating

– Kind of obsessed with this random IG account

Happy Friday, friends!

xo

Gina 

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