#breakfast-catering-for-an-office-meeting

[canapesusa]

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[wosohours]

not close enough - alexia putellas x reader

word count: 1854

“Alexia, I told you that I wouldn’t be able to hang out today because I needed to focus on my work,” you say in a serious tone toward the blonde standing in your doorway.

“I know that mi amor but I missed you so much. I feel like we haven’t been spending much time together because of our schedules,” Alexia gives you a cute pout as she raises two bags, “but look I brought you food and snacks and these pretty flowers you like.”

Biting back a smile you stand to the side signaling that she can come in. You knew that if you did not let her in now she would find her own way in, whether that be crawling through your window, again, or calling your mother who would convince you to let her in.

“Thank you. I appreciate it, baby,” you tell her as she speeds past you towards your kitchen.

“I just want to take care of my girl, bebé. I don’t like it when you work too much and stress yourself out,” she states while grabbing your waist to pull you into a tight hug.

“I only work so much so that I have more free time to spend with you, and also money to spoil you. You deserve to be catered to as well.”

Alexia can’t help but smile at your words as she kisses your neck. “While I really appreciate that amor, you know that just being in your company is more than enough for me.”

“I’m glad that you feel that way but I still have to work, these bills aren’t gonna pay themselves,” you tell her as you tickle the sides of her stomach, making her giggle and release you from her tight grip.

“Move in with me and I’ll pay your bills,” Alexia states. “We’ll talk about that later, but I’m not letting you pay my bills,” you roll your eyes as you open one of the food boxes she brought which was filled with some of your favorite pastries.

“We’ll see,” she shrugs, coming up behind you to take a bite of one of the pastries already in your hand.

____________________

“Thank you for breakfast, but I really need to get back to work. I have two more meetings today and then I’m all yours,” you tell your girlfriend as you pick up her plate to bring to the sink.

“I don’t want to leave you here alone,” she says, grabbing the dishes from your hand so she can wash them. “I’ll be fine, but if you really want to stay you can watch TV in my room or the living room,” you tell not really paying attention to her as you grab your computer and headphones.

“I’ll be in my office if you need anything just text me, okay?” you tell her while blowing her a kiss from the door of your office. As you are closing the door you catch her pretending to grab the kiss from the air and place it on her heart.

____________________

Though your relationship is not even a year old Alexia can’t help but be absolutely obsessed with you. She always wants to be around you, always thinking of you, and everything she sees and does can all be traced back to you.

This feeling was so new and different to Alexia that it scared her so much that she called her mother panicking. Of course, Eli calmed her down and gave her reassurance that this was a good feeling but told her if it bothered her that much then she should talk to you about it and take it slow.

A couple of days later when Alexia sat you down and told you how she felt she was relieved to know that you felt the same way and that you were more than happy to continue the relationship at whatever pace she needed.

It turned out that Alexia did not need to go as slow as she thought. Soon after your talk she was bringing you over to meet her mother and sister and hinting at you moving in with her, but you kind of talked her out of the latter, at least for now.

You two have been nothing but in love and happy and that is all Alexia could ask for.

____________________

After about an hour of laying around your living room and tidying up things here and there, Alexia gets bored and decides to go into your room. She flops on your bed on what she has claimed ‘her side’ and lays there in silence, basking in the atmosphere of your space.

The smell of your perfume she loves so much lingers in the air making her take deep breaths. As she turns over to your side she can smell the scent of the new shampoo you are trying out in your pillow making her smile.

She looks at your nightstand to see a framed picture of you two. The same one she has at home on her nightstand. As she reaches over to grab it she notices that you have one of her captain’s armbands. Alexia laughs at the thought of you stealing it from her bag. She holds it up to take a selfie and sends it to you.

To: Mi Reina 💕

“You are a little thief.”

*sent attachment*

Alexia gets up from the bed and into your walk-in closet. She can’t help but smile at the two different spots you have cleared out, one being a drawer for her clothes, and the other being her jerseys that you have bought or ones that she has given you.

From: Mi Reina 💕

“technically I didn’t steal it. i remember being told ‘take it off of me.’🙃”

After reading your message Alexia closed her eyes and let her head fall back with a deep sigh as she remembered that intense intimate night after the Champions League Final game.

Shaking her head out of thought she sends a reply back.

To: Mi Reina 💕

“Get back to work.”

From: Mi Reina 💕

“😭sorry baby. i was just getting the facts straight.”

Alexia rolls her eyes and smiles, putting her phone in her pocket before going back to look around your closet.

She reaches up to take your favorite hoodie off the hanger and brings it up to her nose, inhaling more of your perfume. Even though she is at your house, in your room, and you are on the other side of the wall she still can’t help but feel you aren’t close enough, so she strips off her FC Barcelona Nike jacket and tugs your hoodie over her head.

Ale lays down in your bed once again, this time on your side, and when she realizes that you aren’t going to be done with work any time soon she decides to just take a nap.

____________________

After both of your meetings, you get up from your desk to stretch and check on Alexia. You walk past the kitchen and living room when you notice she isn’t there and go straight towards your room.

When you open the door you see Alexia sleeping peacefully on her stomach with her face shoved into your pillow.

“Hey baby,” you whisper quietly, as you gently rub her back coaxing her out of her nap. Her eyes flutter open and she gives you a sleepy smile. “Are you done with work?” she whispers.

“No, I am done with my meeting though and I’m taking a break. Do you want to make some lunch?” you ask her.

Alexia nods her head as she sits up and stretches, letting out a small yawn.

“I see you stole my hoodie, who’s the thief now?” you tease, making her let out a little laugh.

You grab her hand and pull her out of the room towards the kitchen where you pull out ingredients to make sandwiches.

Alexia sits at the kitchen bar where she watches you with a loving gaze. When you are done making the sandwiches you pass Alexia her plate and a water bottle.

“Are you done with work?” she asks before taking a bite. “No, I still have emails to answer but I can probably get through those quickly,” you answer.

“Can you answer them on the couch and I sit with you?” she asks.

“I could, but you might be a little distracting,” you smirk at her as you take another bite.

“I am not distracting,” she pouts, crossing her arms which makes you laugh. “You can be sometimes, but it’s not always a bad thing. I like that you always want to be around me.”

“I just love you very much. Since we met, I have always wanted to be around you,” she tells you in an almost shy tone.

You walk around the bar to turn her chair so that you can stand in between her legs. Putting your hands on her cheeks you tell her, “You’re such a lover girl. I love you so much.” She leans in and pecks your lips multiple times.

“Go sit on the couch I am going to go grab my computer and I’ll meet you there,” you tell her pulling away.

____________________

“Alexia I cannot sit in your lap and do my work,” you tell her trying to pull away.

“And why not?” she asks.

“Because I said so,” you finally get free from her and sit on the other edge of the couch where you stretch your legs out and set your computer on your lap.

“Put a match on the TV or your ‘Love is Blind’ show,” you tease her knowing that she doesn't want to admit to liking that sort of show.

“I do not like ‘Love is Blind’ Don’t tell anyone that,’ she demands like she has been caught doing something wrong.

You can’t help but let out a loud laugh at the panicked expression on her face. “Oh really? I’ve caught you watching it multiple times, and did you forget we share a Netflix account? I can see everything that you watch.”

She lets out a puff of air and you can hear her mumble a ‘whatever.’

“You literally like to tell me all the red flags you see in these people. It’s okay baby, you know I’m not one to judge,” you say, raising your hands in a ‘surrender’ position.

Lifting your computer off your lap you motion for her to come lay between her legs. Alexia immediately replaces her pout with a big smile as she moves to lay her head on your stomach. “Is this close enough for you baby?” you ask her.

“It’s okay for now, I wish I could be in your skin,” she replies.

“Um. Okay,” you whisper to yourself a little stunned.

Still needing to work you place your computer on her back like a little table.

“Let me know if it gets too hot on your back,” you tell her as you kiss her head.

Alexia nods her head as she grabs the remote to turn on the TV…to ‘Love is Blind.’

[sage-lights]

met you at the right time (this is what it feels like)

word count: 2287 Their friends at Smosh were starting to take note of the way Amanda and Angela acted with one another, and it was confusing the heck out of them. Or Amanda and Angela are very happy as a "secret third thing."

Chanse didn’t know when it started, or if this was any different than how Amanda and Angela had always been. But he first took notice of it during an otherwise unremarkable lunch at the Smosh office.

As much as he loved working at Smosh, he had to admit the filming schedule was often brutal. Their call times were usually between eight and nine in the morning. But after a shoot went overtime earlier in the week, Selina had asked the cast to come in at seven today to compensate and ensure they filmed all the videos they had planned for this shooting block. This morning, he rushed through his usual routine, skipping breakfast with barely enough time to make it out the door.

All of this to say, Chanse was starving. It was all he could think about during the last “Try Not to Laugh.”

After what seemed like an eternity, it was finally time for their lunch break. The office had ordered deli sandwiches for everyone, and while Chanse was usually not one to turn down free food, there was a container of last night's leftovers in the fridge calling his name.

While waiting for his lunch to reheat in the microwave, he twirled around the kitchen a bit and checked what flavors of Celsius and La Croix were still stocked. He soon grew bored and leaned against the island counter, people-watching instead. From his position, Chanse had the perfect view to observe all his coworkers milling around the main meeting area.

Near the end of the long tables where the catering was set up, Chanse spotted Angela and Erin engaged in an animated discussion. Judging by Angela's comically shocked expression, he assumed it was about the insane Tinder message Erin had shown him that same morning. He chuckled—straight men are a whole other breed of crazy.

Erin and Angela arrived at a table near the mural at the back of the room where Amanda, Kiana, and Selina were already eating. As expected, Angela sat right next to Amanda—they might as well carry a “Reserved” sign with them everywhere to perpetually save the seat next to them.

The microwave behind him dinged, and Chanse grabbed his lunch before joining them.

“Hey, y’all!” Before Chanse even sat down, Erin swept him into the conversation.

“Oh, my God, Chanse! Remember the Tinder date I was telling you about?” He nodded, “I’ve got updates.”

“Already? Damn, it’s only been a couple of hours!”

“I told you, he’s. Insane.”

Angela scooted her chair back and stood, “Let me get a drink before you continue. Got a feeling you’re not even halfway through the story.”

“Yeah, you go do that,” Erin halfheartedly shooed Angela away, “Because I want you guys to be sat for this story!”

She returned to their table holding a drink in each hand and passed Amanda a grapefruit La Croix before cracking open her own berry-flavored Celsius. Amanda muttered a soft “thank you,” and Angela responded by gently patting Amanda’s leg. Throughout the whole exchange, they didn’t look at each other, didn’t acknowledge the strange act of domesticity. Like this was just considered the norm for them.

Chanse looked around, but no one else seemed fazed. He shook his head, wondering if anyone else had even noticed it.

Angela glanced over, and he caught her gaze, giving her a skeptical look. She stared at him, confused, before turning back to Erin.

He didn’t know what to think anymore.

This was something to file away for later. Angela was definitely getting questioned about it on the ride home.

—

Arasha knew she should be paying attention to the notes their director was reading. Especially since the live show was coming up so soon and the sitcom format they were trying to pull off had some very technically complex elements to it.

She tried for a while, her eyes flicking between her friends and the director. But she couldn’t focus on the director’s words when there was a much more interesting scene playing out in front of her.

She’d been squished between Amanda and Angela enough times to know they were naturally touchy people. Angela would randomly lean on her shoulder for brief moments, Amanda would place a hand on her leg while laughing, and Arasha often found herself playfully hitting her friends’ arms to emphasize certain parts of her stories.

However, Arasha sensed a difference between their general touchiness and whatever was happening with Amanda and Angela now. The intentionality of their movements set it apart; she knew they were both fully aware of their actions. She just wasn’t sure if they realized how differently others interpreted them.

Arasha tried again to focus on the director’s notes, but her eyes still drifted to the couch in front of her. The conversation about character choices and blocking faded into the background.

Amanda leaned against the armrest with Angela settled remarkably close to her. As their coworkers asked questions and pitched ideas back and forth, Arasha watched the two of them whisper amongst themselves. She remembered the way Angela and Amanda had shared a look during last week’s rehearsal, the silent communication that seemed almost intimate.

Now, watching them whisper and laugh together, Arasha felt her suspicions solidify. It was very reminiscent of how they were acting during Under the Mistletoe. Now that she thought about it more, she definitely should’ve clocked this behavior much earlier.

Maybe live shows just brought out something within them. Then again, Angela and Amanda have always been close, both figuratively and literally. But this time around, they didn’t have the guise of alcohol to hide their physical affection behind.

Angela reached over to the other side of the couch and grabbed the white chunky knit blanket, draping it over her and Amanda’s legs. She swung her feet onto the couch and tucked them underneath the blanket before leaning back into Amanda’s side. The taller woman sat up to wrap her left arm around Angela’s shoulders and pull her in impossibly close.

Here they are, the middle of the workday, cozied up with one another as if they were in the comfort of their own apartments.

They must know this isn’t how platonic friends act with one another, right?

—

Courtney didn’t make a habit of prying into other people's lives. They knew just how much all her friends and coworkers valued their privacy and it would be hypocritical for her to speculate considering how long their relationship with Shayne was kept private from their online audience.

But she couldn’t help the curiosity swirling in her mind as Amanda talked about a fan edit she watched recently.

They were sitting on the Smosh Mouth set, microphones in front of them on the wooden table, and cameras capturing every moment. Courtney watched Amanda as she described the edit, reenacting parts of it for them.

What was interesting, however, was that Amanda made a blatant request for more. And knowing their audience, Courtney was sure that Amanda would soon to be flooded with dozens of edits across Instagram and TikTok.

Sure, Courtney would concede that they had watched their fair share of edits—she remembered sitting in the old Defy office years ago reacting to them with Olivia. She might have also indirectly encouraged edits of herself and Shayne in an old SmoshCast episode. And plus, she would be remiss if she ignored the fact that they just made a comment about how all the girls on the cast look at each other with pure adoration and love.

But still, never had Courtney ever asked for edits of herself to be made. It got her thinking, to say the least.

As the podcast recording wrapped up, Courtney’s mind lingered on Amanda’s request. Casually, she brought it up again.

“So, about that edit you mentioned…” Courtney began, her tone light but inquisitive. Amanda’s eyes lit up, and she pulled out her phone  to it to show them.

Courtney knew you couldn’t trust everything you saw on the Internet. People could manipulate photos and videos to fit their narratives. But as she watched the edit of her close friends, she started to believe it too.

Observing Amanda rewatch the edit, Courtney saw a familiar look—soft eyes and a small smile. It was the exact expression Shayne had given them countless times.

Hm, there was definitely something more there.

—

The entire cast and crew were gathered at a karaoke bar now, drinking and singing their hearts out. Even after weeks of rehearsals and an hour and a half long live show, it seems that with this group, the urge to perform just never went away.

Courtney spotted her friends tucked away in a booth, and by the looks of it, Chanse and Arasha are arguing intensely over something. They slid in next to Arasha, lightly bumping her with their hip so she’d scoot over.

“Who’s winning?” they joked, taking a sip of their cocktail.

“Look at Amanda and Ang over there,” pointed Arasha, “They’re so in love and they don’t even know it.”

Chanse looked shocked, “You just said that you don’t think they’re going to get together!”

“Emphasize on the ‘they don’t even know it,’ Chanse!”

Courtney chimed in, “Give them some credit guys! I bet you they’re not as clueless as you think they are.”

“$10 says it’ll take them a months to realize they’ve got feelings for each other,” Chanse insisted.

Courtney scoffed, “five months, tops.”

“You guys forget,” Arasha cut in, “they’re both idiots. It’ll take them at least until end of the year, if not longer.”

“You’re insane!” exclaimed Courtney.

“What? Already doubting your prediction?” Arasha said with a cheeky grin.

“Nope.”

Chanse smirked, clearly scheming already. And the girls know that a scheming Chanse was a dangerous Chanse.

Courtney looked pointedly at him, “No interfering! If we’re doing this, we’re playing fair.”

“Fine,” huffed Chanse, “If we’re playing the long game, then I think we should up the stakes.”

Arasha laughed, “$20 good enough for you?”

“I’m thinking more like $25 from each loser.”

“Jeez, Chanse. We’re not made of money here!”

“It’s go big, or go home, Arash.”

If there’s one thing you need to know about the cast, it’s that they’ve all got a serious competitive streak. There’s no way any of them were backing down from a challenge.

“Okay, I’m in.”

Chanse looked over at Courtney, “You too?”

“Fuck it,” Courtney sticks their hand into the center and her two friends join, sealing the deal.

Courtney hoped that Amanda and Angela would figure out their feelings soon, for their own sake. Though selfishly, winning $50 from the whole ordeal wouldn’t be a bad bonus.

—

Shayne laughed when Courtney informed him of the bet they had going with Chanse and Arasha, and told his wife that that Arasha would likely end up winning the prize money.

He had gotten much closer to both Angela and Amanda over the past couple of years working together, and was immensely grateful that Smosh Mouth had given him the capacity to work with Amanda in a way he hadn’t had the chance to before.

Despite his extroverted on-screen persona, Shayne was much quieter in reality. He preferred to be a spectator rather than a participant. So, not to toot his own horn or anything, but Shayne thought he knew them pretty well by now.

Amanda was an open-book, though she wasn’t often vulnerable. She told crazy stories from her life before Smosh, grand tales of the otherworldly adventures she’d been on, and gives great advice when you ask her for some perspective.

But she often didn’t talk about her feelings. Amanda mentioned it off-handedly in Smosh Mouth episodes and conversations outside of work that she doesn’t like to let her personal life affect her ability to do her job properly. Shayne admired her in that manner, no one could ever claim Amanda was anything less than a true professional.

Angela was the complete opposite. Shayne related to her in the ways they were both private people, preferring to discuss their work or whatever TV show they had watched recently. He didn’t find small talk to be shallow, at least in this scenario where he’s not trying to seem cool to a stranger. Both of them just didn’t think to talk about themselves often.

What separated Angela from Shayne was her innate vulnerability. It was difficult to not wear your heart on your sleeve when you were as earnest a person as Angela was. Their coworkers liked to tease her occasionally for it—you couldn’t tell her anything without getting a shocked Pikachu face in return.

However, together, they balanced each other out nicely. When they were around one another, Shayne noticed how Amanda’s walls would slowly start to crumble away, and Angela got excited to recount the mundane details of her day.

Honestly, they seemed perfectly content just the way they are now. Something a little more than best friends, but a little less than lovers. And hey, if it works for them, who was he to tell their friends to act differently?

—

(Angela was scrolling through TikTok before bed with Spork happily curled up on her chest, petting him softly to lull him to sleep. Hopefully, this time, he won’t sneeze in my face after I’ve already exfoliated and moisturized, she thought to herself.

A video of a random girl lip syncing to a song she vaguely recognized popped up. The text above her read “yk your friendship is elite if people think you’re dating.”

Without missing a beat, Angela sent it to Amanda.

angela: literally us

amanda: HAHAHAHAH SO REAL

Angela smiled like an idiot to herself. God, she loves Amanda. So much.)

[leiawritesstories]

Small Steps

Rowaelin Month 2024, Day 27: Single Parents @rowaelinscourt

Word count: 2.7k

Warnings: mild innuendo, Maeve, reference to parental loss

enjoy!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“…and this week, as we all know, is Parents’ Week, so the kids will be bringing their parents to school most of the days. There’s a family breakfast on Tuesday and the barbecue on Friday evening, so please remember to remind your classes of these events. That’s all.” Maeve, the principal, finished her long, drawn-out speech, and Aelin covertly tucked away her phone and stood up with the rest of the teachers. It was her third year teaching the second grade at Orynth Academy, a private grade school that catered mainly to families with working parents. The school made an effort to have a wide range of after-school programs so that the kids could stay later, allowing the parents to get through all of their 9-5 hours before they had to come pick up their kids. 

It was a little bit elitist, especially given Maeve’s attitude towards the students who were there on scholarship, but Aelin genuinely loved her job. She’d graduated university with a master’s degree in education, and the best parts of her day were the big smiles on her students’ faces when they were able to grasp a new concept. 

Sleek silver thermos of coffee in hand, Aelin walked down the hall with the other second grade teacher, Elide Lochan, the two of them exchanging lesson plans for the day and snickering quietly about Maeve’s long speech. She did that far too often—dragged what could have been a fifteen-minute Monday morning staff meeting into an hour-long affair, which forced the teachers to come into work earlier than usual. 

“I’m convinced she’s secretly a witch,” Elide murmured. “No human woman is that pale all year.” 

“Maybe she’s a vampire,” Aelin offered. “That would explain why she never has lights on in her office or comes by the classrooms during the day when there’s sunlight.” 

Elide giggled. “No wonder all the kids are scared of her.” 

They came to Aelin’s classroom, and Elide waved as she continued down the hall to her classroom. Aelin flicked on the lights as she walked in, illuminating the space that she had carefully planned and decorated for her students. The desks sat in orderly rows—as specified in the damn school handbook—but each desk had a hand-lettered name card. Soft white twinkle lights draped around the whiteboard and along the row of windows on the left side of the classroom. The colorful alphabet posters that circled half the classroom were also handmade; Aelin had spent hours carefully outlining each letter in both print and cursive. A multicolored rug spanned the front of the classroom, where the students gathered for storytime every day, and the plastic bins with paper, craft supplies, and pencils were also brightly colored, giving a cheerful atmosphere to what would otherwise have been a sterile environment. 

Aelin’s desk was neatly organized with wire racks that held her graded and not-yet-graded assignments, lesson plans, and instruction sheets. Clear plastic organizers held her pens and pencils, and her computer had a neat row of sticky notes at the bottom of the monitor that held reminders and a couple of passwords for instructional sites she frequently used. She set her coffee down and opened up her laptop, pulling up the first few things she would need for the day. 

Knocking against her open door pulled her attention over that way. Maeve stood in the doorway, checking in on the staff as she often did before the students began to arrive. “Ms. Galathynius?” 

“Yes, ma’am?” Another thing that needled Aelin about this place—Maeve insisted that the staff refer to her as ma’am. 

“Do you need anything for the day?” 

“I don’t believe so, but I will let you know if anything comes up, ma’am.” 

“Very good.” Maeve left, headed for the next classroom down. 

Aelin rolled her eyes as she stood and went to the whiteboard. She lettered the day’s date neatly in the upper left of the board, turned on the projector, and brought the Morning Question up so it was clearly visible. She had her students fill out a Morning Question every day on a worksheet that she gave them each week, so that they had something to do that worked as both another form of roll call and a way to practice their writing. 

The first bell rang, and it was only a few minutes before students began to enter the classroom, many of them with their parents in tow. Aelin took a long pull of coffee and went over to the door, where she smiled and greeted each student and was introduced to a long string of parents, many of whom were absorbed in their email or phone calls as they began their workday. 

“Good morning, Emerson,” she said warmly to one of the boys.

He grinned widely at her. “I lost my tooth, Ms. G! See?” Indeed, there was a gap between his front teeth that hadn’t been there on Friday. 

“Congratulations!” She gave him a fist bump. “Did you get a dollar from the tooth faerie?” 

Wide-eyed, Emerson turned to his mom, tugging at her hand. “Mama! Did you hear? Auntie—I mean, Miss G says the tooth faerie gives money!” 

Emerson’s mom Lysandra, who was Aelin’s dear friend and practically her sister-in-law, fought back a burst of laughter as she glared teasingly at Aelin. “Is that true?” 

“Happened when I was growing up.” Aelin shrugged. “But maybe the economy has gone down since then, who knows?” 

“I can’t say what I want to say since you’re at work, but you know what I’m thinking.” Lysandra winked at Aelin. “Have a good day, my boy! I love you.” 

“Love you too, Mama!” Emerson went to go put away his backpack, and Aelin smirked at Lys as she headed down the hall. 

Another small hand grasped hers. “Hi, Miss G!” 

Aelin turned and found a pair of huge, emerald green eyes staring up at her in near adoration. She smiled and squeezed the girl’s hand. “Good morning, Charlotte. Did you bring your dad?” 

The second week of school, Charlotte had come to Aelin in tears during morning recess, crying over the unkind words of some older students. It was then that Aelin learned that Charlotte’s dad was a widower, having lost his wife when their daughter was only a few months old. With her heart bleeding for the girl, Aelin had shared that her mom was in the afterlife too, and she had quickly become Charlotte Whitethorn’s favorite teacher. 

Charlotte nodded slowly. “Daddy’s in the hallway. He said he didn’t want to feel ak-sard around the other parents.” 

“Did you mean awkward?” Aelin asked, gently correcting the girl’s pronunciation. 

“Uh-huh.” Charlotte went back into the hallway, and she came into the classroom hand in hand with her father, looking for all the world like she was forcefully tugging him along with her. “Daddy, this is Miss G! She’s the bestest teacher!” 

“We just say best,” Aelin reminded her, the teacher part of her brain in full force. She turned her smile onto Rowan Whitethorn, whom she’d met once during back-to-school night and immediately decided to try and charm. “Thank you for being here. It means a lot to your daughter.” 

Rowan scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, flicking a glance around the room at the parents who were following their kids to their desks. “To be honest, Ms. Galathynius, I almost didn’t get out of the car.” He looked fondly at his daughter as she ran across the classroom to say hi to her friends. 

“Well, good on you for doing this. Small steps, right?” 

He huffed a breathy laugh, a half-smile tilting his unfairly full, definitely kissable lips. “Right. Speaking of that…how are your small steps, Ms. G?” His eyes twinkled at her teacher title. 

She put on the pretense of shaking his hand so she could poke him in the ribs. “We didn’t tell the next-door neighbor to mind her own flipping business when she started rambling about the ‘aesthetic of the community,’ when she knows that I work full-time and don’t have the means to keep my tiny scrap of a front yard immaculately pruned, and I consider that a win.” 

Rowan chuckled. “Well done, Ms. Galathynius.” Good girl, said the look in his eyes. 

Gods burn me, thought Aelin as she read the unspoken words. “Well, it was lovely of you to bring your daughter to school, Mr. Whitethorn. I’ll remind you of the same thing that I will tell the students: we have parent-student breakfast tomorrow morning from seven to nine, and we have the family barbecue on Friday evening.” She winked. “You should come.” 

A blush flared bright on his cheekbones, a splatter of crimson atop his tan. “I’ll try to make room in my schedule.” 

“Wonderful!” She waved as he left, and she put her smile on again as she turned to the next set of parents. “Good morning!” 

~

At the end of the day, Aelin locked her classroom and let her hair down as she went out to her car, sighing in relief at the warm sunshine on her skin. She drove back to her house and put down her school bag, then climbed right back into her car and headed into town again. The drive was familiar and easy, and she cut through the neighborhood streets to avoid the congestion on the main roads. Soon enough, she was pulling into the small parking lot at Wee Ones Daycare, which offered care for infants and children from six months to three years old. The staff there was absolutely wonderful, if overly enthusiastic about concepts that they were currently learning about, and Aelin felt completely and utterly safe trusting them. 

She slung the car seat over her arm, walked in the doors, and greeted the receptionist, a friendly young woman named Evangeline whose shy smile masked a heart the size of the universe. It was only a short walk to the baby room, and Aelin knocked softly on the doorframe as she entered. “Hi, Kaltain.” 

The lady who was in charge of the infants aged six to eight months smiled. “Hi, Aelin.” 

A younger girl, one of the part-time college students who worked at the daycare, noticed Aelin and went to the other side of the room. She came over with a sleepy baby girl in her arms, and Aelin beamed wide as she picked up her tiny daughter, who made a soft, contented sound in her sleep as she settled into her mama’s arms. 

“Hi, Lana lovey.” She passed her thumb over the baby girl’s little button nose, feeling her heart settle as she snuggled her daughter. Every morning when she dropped Lana off at daycare, she felt a piece of herself missing, and it clicked back into place the instant she had her girl in her arms again. “How did she do with naps today?” 

Kaltain checked the log where she tracked each baby’s nap times. “She did great! She slept for an hour after she had her morning bottle, and she fell asleep about forty-five minutes ago.” Lana was seven months old and was only waking up one to two times at night, huge progress from her newborn phase, when she was up every two hours without fail. 

“That’s awesome!” Aelin kissed Lana’s forehead. “You’re doing so good, lovey. Are you sitting up too?” 

“She is,” Kaltain said cheerfully. “We practice sitting up with the pillows every day.” 

The assistant peered over Kaltain’s shoulder. “Have we talked about sleep training yet? That’s something that you should definitely be doing, since it’s been shown to improve babies’ sleep quality and patterns, which allows the parents to get sleep too—” 

“Thank you for your input.” Aelin put on her teacher voice, speaking politely but firmly. “At this time, I do not plan to sleep train my daughter, as that is not in the best interest of our family. Lana sleeps perfectly well, and her wake windows work for both of us since I can breastfeed, pump, or both.” 

The assistant flushed, recognizing that she’d spoken too quickly. “But the studies do show data in favor of sleep training for infants,” she mumbled. 

“Oh, I completely believe that,” Aelin reassured her. “I’m only saying that sleep training is not the right situation for every infant, particularly for situations like mine.” She got Lana settled into her car seat, still sleeping, and headed for the door. “See you tomorrow!” 

She secured Lana’s car seat, checked the mirrors to make sure she could see her daughter, and drove away, weaving back through the neighborhoods. It was only a short while before she was back home, and she brought her baby girl inside as Lana was waking up. In the house, she scooped the baby girl into her arms and peppered kisses on her sleepy, rosy cheeks, making her squeal. 

Lana started to squirm within a few minutes, so Aelin got her changed into a fresh diaper and outfit, settled down in her comfortable recliner, and helped her latch. She rocked gently back and forth as Lana fed, using her pump on the other side. Fed and happy, Lana burped easily, only spitting up a little bit, and made happy sounds as Aelin stole a few more moments of cuddles. Eventually, though, her stomach growled like a feral cat and she had to get up and head for the kitchen. She buckled her baby carrier around her waist and got Lana happily situated. Screw what the mommy blogs said about “spoiling the babies,” she would wear her baby as much as she wanted. 

“Mama’s hungry too, little lovey,” she cooed, chuckling as Lana waved her little arms and gurgled. “That’s right, my girl, you eat good food, and I have to eat good food too.” She popped a glass container of leftover pasta into the microwave and took a carton of strawberries out of the fridge. The berries were delicious, and when the microwave beeped a few minutes later, she had steaming hot pasta as well. “Ooh, that’s yummy!” 

Lana reached for the spoon, and Aelin chuckled and let her daughter wrap her little fist around the handle of the spoon. She waved it around, managing to splash tomato sauce in her wispy brown hair, and Aelin could only laugh at the sight. “What on earth are we going to do when you start eating solids, hmm? You’re going to need a bath every other hour, lovey.” 

The doorbell rang. 

Aelin’s brows shot up, and she glanced at her phone. Oh, gods. She’d forgotten that Rowan was coming over that night. This…thing between them was still new, and they had agreed to take it slowly, so she hadn’t yet been over to his house. That would mean telling Charlotte that her teacher was dating her dad, and she didn’t want to burden the girl with that knowledge. 

It also meant that Rowan didn’t know Lana. 

With a deep, steadying breath, Aelin went to the front door and opened it wide, her jaw dropping slightly at the beautiful bouquet of flowers that Rowan was holding. The burst of bright pink, yellow, orange, and crimson gerbera daisies popped against his plain, pale gray shirt. 

And his jaw hung loose at the sight of the baby she cradled in her arms. 

“Hi, Rowan.” Aelin broke the thick silence. “Come on in.” 

He came slowly into her house, still staring at Lana. “H-hi, Aelin,” he whispered. “I, um…”

She exhaled deeply. “Rowan, I want you to meet my daughter, Alanna. Lana. She’s seven months old, and she is my whole entire life.” 

“Hi, Miss Lana,” Rowan murmured, hesitantly reaching out towards Aelin’s baby daughter. Lana gurgled happily and wrapped her tiny fingers around his pointer finger, her grip surprisingly strong. A smile bloomed across his face. “You’re such a strong little miss,” he praised, grinning at her. “Just like your mama, hmm?” 

“Rowan,” Aelin whispered, her throat going thick. 

He flashed her a crooked, endearing grin. “Strongest woman I know, raising a baby while having a full-time job.” 

She swallowed heavily. “It’s just me and Lana.” Smiling at her daughter, she brushed over the soft brown waves atop her little head. “You…Rowan, you’re probably the only person besides my family who knows my daughter.” 

“Thank you for letting me meet her,” he murmured, utterly charmed by Lana’s wide turquoise eyes and infectious happiness. “You know why it’s only me and Charlotte, Ae, and very few people know about that.” 

“Yeah,” she breathed. “It’s not easy, Ro. Being her only parent.” 

“Hey.” He slid the container of pasta closer to Aelin. “Maybe we can help each other out, every once in a while.” 

The simple ease of his suggestion warmed her to her core. “I’d like that.”

~~~

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[the-iceni-bitch]

Through Every Forest

Chapter IV: Don’t Break

Relationship: Alpha!Curtis Everett x Omega!fem reader

Words: 5.3k

Summary: Curtis might have found a new way for you to make him money.

Warnings: DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT! explicit language, explicit sexual content (flogging with a belt, fisting, f receiving oral sex, almost non-con penetration, exhibitionism), Omegaverse, dark to soft!dark Alpha Curtis, protectiveness, possessiveness, violence, mentions of minor medical procedures, character death, Alpha fight, SMUT!! 18+ ONLY!!

A/N: It’s here!! Only took me forever but they’re back and maybe feeling things?

You whined when you opened your eyes as the sun filtered through the window in your room, sweating and shivering now that the fever from your heat had broken. Curtis woke too when he felt you rouse, his chest rumbling pleasantly under your cheek when you curled closer to him and pulled the blankets tighter around the both of you.

He had barely left your rooms since he brought you back from your last hunt, bathing with you and sleeping with you and letting you press your naked body close to his while he made you come over and over with his fingers. His men were unhappy with the situation, growing restless and grumbling every time they brought him some problem and he made them come into the room so you didn’t have to leave his lap while he fixed whatever issue there was. But he didn’t care, admonishing them that you were their money maker, and if he had to spoil you some so be it.

“Time to wake up.” He chuckled when you just growled at him, scenting your hair and kissing your temple while you tried to burrow further under the blankets. “C’mon girl, I have a fucking meeting I have to go to.”

“You mean you’re going to see one of those sluts.” You looked pissed when you let him crawl out from under you. The only times he had left you at all during your heat were when he had to get his knot taken care of. It didn’t matter how many times you offered to let him use your hands or your mouth, he just muttered some stupid shit about how selling you when you smelled like prime Alpha cum would be a disaster and went off to shove his cock inside some weak little bitch. He did enjoy when he came back from getting his dick wet, though, when you would scent him obsessively and snarl like a little hellcat while you hissed about him wasting his time with slits who weren’t even worth bonding.

“No, I have a fucking meeting.” Curtis gripped your chin and grunted when you just rolled your eyes, popping you once on the cheek in admonishment before pulling you out of bed and making you sit at the table to eat your breakfast. “Don’t be a fucking bitch about me lining up new assholes for you to try to rip apart.”

You just huffed, taking a grudging bite of your oatmeal and glaring at him sullenly. His grin got even wider when the door opened and you hissed at Bryce coming into your rooms, giving you a kiss on the top of your head when kept grumbling and snarling at the Alpha.

“They’re here.” Bryce was frowning at you and at Curtis, unable to fathom why the boss was so fond of you and seemed to be catering to your every whim. “You should probably get dressed.”

“Yeah, alright.” Curtis rolled his eyes when you let out another huff, not missing the way your eyes followed him as he pulled on clothes until he looked presentable. “You be good. Eat all your food and stretch then maybe after our walk I’ll pet you while you sit in my lap, would you like that?”

“Hmph.” He chuckled when you nodded grudgingly, patting your head before drawing up to his full height and following Bryce out the door. “If you come back smelling like one of those sniveling whores, I’m gonna throw a fit.”

Curtis gave a warning growl when the man looked like he was going to harp on the same issues he always did when it came to you, nodding when Bryce just shrugged and handed him the file he was holding.

The whale was waiting in Curtis’s office for them, shaking Curtis’s hand harder than necessary and giving him a look like he was sizing him up for a fight. He was used to it, unfamiliar Gamma Alpha’s always got like this the first time they were around Curtis. It was stupid, really, like he couldn’t just rip their spines out without even breaking a sweat.

“So, Clyde.” What a fucking stupid name. “You want to do a group hunt?”

“We do. We’re um… well.” Jesus, stammering? You were going to eat this asshole alive. “We’re looking for an Omega that can handle multiple bonds.”

“And why is that something you’re interested in?” Curtis was bored of this guy, of course one of Bryce’s frat boy buddies was an absolute tool. “Most Alpha’s don’t like parading around an Omega that’s visibly taken the damage of multiple bondings.”

“Oh, it won’t be going out in public.” The idiot was starting to look relaxed as he prattled on. “It’ll be the executive team’s stress relief, but we very much enjoy being able to feel it through the bond when another one of us is using it. We’ve got the perfect, progressive Omega and Beta partners at home, and it gets tiring. We need something that can take all of our stress and pent up frustration on. We had one before, but it broke pretty easily.”

The dumbass seemed to not recognize the look of restrained fury that was on Curtis’s face. They wanted to tie you up in a basement and use you like a fucking sex toy. They would abuse you every day and laugh about feeling your torment through the bond while they went out for drinks after work. He had called you an ‘it’ the entire time, like you were just a set of holes to be used up until you were a broken shell of yourself.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can provide what you’re looking for.” It was taking everything in Curtis’s power not to reach across the desk and strangle Clyde. “We provide mates to be taken during a hunt, or we offer stress relieving retreats for our Omegas to be used. We don’t just sell them off.”

“Oh, we want to hunt it first, for sure.” He was still smiling, and Curtis hated it. “And I know it’s out of the ordinary, but we’re willing to offer an exceptional payment to see this through.”

“I don’t think you understand me.” Curtis cracked his neck to try to relieve some of the tension that was building up in his system. “The answer is no.”

“Just, look at our offer.” This moron was clearly used to getting whatever he wanted, sliding a piece of paper across the desk to Curtis with that same smarmy look on his face. “Here.”

“I’m not…” Curtis clenched his jaw when he got a look at the number. It was more than he would typically pull in over a quarter, much less one hunt. He would have to be the world’s biggest idiot to turn this down.

The inner turmoil was making him frustrated. More than anything, he wanted to throw this douche through the window. But saying no to the money was stupid, so stupid. And it’s not like they would actually get you, they would just get the chance to try. You would tear them all apart, group hunt or no, you were savage. So he should take the money, right?

“Fine.” Curtis said it through gritted teeth, not taking Clyde’s hand when he offered it and just grunting at him instead. “We’ll set up a time for you to view her before Friday.”

“Fantastic.” He really hoped you killed this guy. “Oh, we have some requests about the viewing…”

Curtis was fuming by the time he stormed back to your chambers, practically slamming the door off its hinges when he opened it while you gave him a curious look. He didn’t give you the chance to ask any questions before he was drawing you into his arms and scenting your hair, his low growl letting you know that whatever was going on, he didn’t want to talk about it.

“Promise me you’ll do your best to kill those fuckers on Friday, filly.”

It was two days later when he brought you to the viewing area on your leash. He had been in an especially sour mood ever since his meeting, growling each time you tried to ask him what was wrong and taking his frustration out on your body instead. Curtis looked especially irritated now, tugging on your leash even though you weren’t lagging and glaring when you came to stand in front of him.

“You’re my tough girl, right?” Curtis cupped your jaw almost gently as he scowled at you. “My strong girl.”

“Yes.” The look you gave him was full of concern, your hands twitching as you fought the urge to run your hands over his chest and comfort him.

“They want to see how tough you are, filly.” Curtis’s hand slid down to run along your collar, his face ducking close to yours as he nodded towards what looked like a stake in the ground. “They want to know how much you can take.”

You just swallowed as you gazed at him, letting him drag you towards the stake as you glanced around at all the cameras. There was a chain hanging from the top, and Curtis fastened some cuffs to your wrists then to the chain so your shoulders were screaming from being stretched above your head. He gave you a look that was almost pained, but that couldn’t be right. Curtis gripped your chin and lifted your head so he could turn your face and show you to each of the individual cameras. Then he gave you one more look, waiting for you to nod before he backhanded you across the face as hard as he could.

Blood was filling your mouth when he did it again, and you spat it out on the ground before giving him a look of defiance. The corners of his lips twitched when you snarled at him, a low growl vibrating his chest when he gripped the front of your shift and shredded it. He took a moment to make sure the cameras could see your body, cupping your breasts and tugging on your nipples before forcing you to turn around and lean against the stake.

It was impossible to see what he was doing with the position you were in. All you could tell was that he was moving behind you and grabbing something. Then the belt landed against your thighs. You didn’t scream, you would never let anyone see you that weak, but you drew in a harsh breath as hot pain bloomed across your skin.

He wasn’t hitting you hard enough to draw blood, but you knew you were going to have bruises. You were biting your lip so hard you could feel blood running down your chin as you struggled not to cry out. It was impossible to tell how long he was beating you for, at some point all you could focus on was the deep, stinging pain that was spreading all over your thighs and ass and back. But you knew it had been a while, you were drenched with sweat by the time Curtis turned you around, and so was he.

Curtis’s expression was full of pride when he saw your face, the lack of tears making his heart swell even as he brought the belt down across your stomach and breasts. You only barely flinched each time the belt cracked against your skin, your eyes fixed on Curtis’s and his on yours. He looked feral, a savage light behind his eyes while he licked his lips and growled at the welts he was raising on your skin.

“How wet are you, filly?” Curtis dropped the belt and stepped close, gripping your hair painfully and yanking your head back as he towered over you. “Hmm? I can fucking smell you.”

“Fuck you.” You spat blood all over his shirt and smiled at him, gasping when he shoved his hand between your legs and smacked your messy pussy. “Does it make you hard to beat up defenseless Omegas?”

“You know it does, filly.” He had to fight the urge to kiss your forehead when he shoved two fingers inside you, chuckling when you immediately started fluttering around him. “And it makes you wet to get beat up, so shut the fuck up and take it.”

Your retort was cut off when he wrapped his other hand around your throat and squeezed, his fingers working you open viciously while his thumb pressed against your throbbing carotid. He started stroking that spot inside you like it was his job, sliding a third finger inside you when your juices started to leak down his wrist. The cameras were almost completely forgotten, it was just the two of you as he stretched open your hole obscenely and tried not to rest his forehead against yours.

When he shoved the fourth finger inside you you almost choked on your tongue, your toes curling in the dirt while your eyes rolled back in your head. He was being so rough. It used to make you feel sick that you enjoyed this sort of thing so much, but now you just embraced it, embraced him and the things he made you feel. The fourth finger stretched you to the point of pain, but it was pain you enjoyed. You didn’t even care anymore about the fact that you should hate him and everything he did to you. All you cared about was being good for him.

“That’s a good bitch.” Curtis huffed into your hair before stepping back as he dragged you up the stake by your neck, pushing his entire hand inside your abused pussy and grunting when you whined with pleasure. “You take all of this shit, your fucking love it. Show all your fans what a filthy little slut you are.”

Your entire body was shaking as he pumped his fist in and out of you, your toes barely scraping against the ground as he pinned you to the wood by your throat. This shouldn’t feel good, it shouldn’t make your cunt drool all over anything or make your eyes roll in your head. But it did. Curtis groaned when he shoved his hand so far inside you your lower tummy started to bulge, screwing his eyes closed when your body arched and you let out a thin wail. It didn’t take long at all before he started to feel your cunt clenching around his fist, your legs kicking wildly when he yanked his hand out of you so your release squirted out of you like a flood.

“Holy shit.” Curtis undid the cuffs and caught you when you almost collapsed, sneaking a kiss to your temple before lifting you into his arms and carrying you back inside the compound. “That’s my good girl. You did great, filly.”

Nurses and other med staff were waiting when he got you back to your rooms, but he sent them away, gently setting you in the tub and starting to wash the welts and bruises he’d left all over you as gently as he could.

“I know, you’re okay.” He kissed your head again when you whimpered and winced as he patted the cloth over a particularly savage mark on your breast, resting his forehead against yours as he continued washing you. “This is why you’re going to beat the shit out of the fuckers that made me do this to you. I’m so proud of you, sweet girl.”

It was the first time he had called you something other than filly, and it made your heart flutter against your ribs.

You were mostly recovered by the time the hunt came, only some fading bruises left on your skin that you were able to ignore. Curtis had decided he was going to stay in the lodge as he didn’t want to deal with those bastards any more than strictly necessary, but he had told you he knew you were going to rip them apart and called you his good girl before you left. The truck was empty except for you while Carter drove you to the drop off point, your breathing deep and even as your adrenaline started to spike.

This was your first group hunt, but you weren’t worried. From what Curtis had told you the Alphas that would be hunting you were a bunch of frat boy spoiled assholes, nothing that should prove challenging for you in the least. When the truck stopped you didn’t even bother waiting for Carter to help you down, hopping out of the bed and landing on your toes in the soft dirt before you started running into the woods after giving him just a brief nod. Your blood was already up, your senses heightened as you anticipated turning the tables on the pricks who thought they deserved you.

It was almost an hour before you caught the first whiff of them. They weren’t traveling in a pack, but they were close together, it seemed like they were moving in a straight line towards where you were hiding. When the first one got close enough you ran, keeping as quiet as you could even though you wanted to laugh wildly at how stupid their strategy was. You gained enough ground on him that you had time to scrabble up a tree, perching in one of the lower branches and waiting for your hunter to appear.

He didn’t take long, crashing through the brush like an idiot and making more noise than should have been possible as he sniffed the air and growled softly. As soon as he looked up you fell on him, snarling and hissing while you scratched his face and did your best to gouge his eyes while he shouted in pain. They all really were idiots, this one was barely a challenge before you brought him down to the forest floor and grabbed a rock to bash his skull in.

Then you heard the gunshot.

A second after you heard it you felt it, pain ripping through your thigh and making you scream when the force of the shot pushed you off your hunter and made you sprawl across the ground. They weren’t supposed to have guns, that was one of Curtis’s biggest rules. The whole point of the hunt was that it was a fair chance to bond a mate under ancient conditions.

Not that it mattered right now. The gun was there and all you could do was hope to outrun them. You groaned when you struggled to get to your feet, immediately collapsing again and shrieking when another bullet grazed your side and then your shoulder. Then they were all in the clearing, laughing and licking their lips hungrily when they surrounded you.

“Just look at it, so pretty even when it’s all bloodied up.” One of them laughed and dropped the rifle he was holding, tutting at you with mocking disappointment when you snarled and tried to throw dirt in his eyes. “None of that, we’re here to have a good time.”

They all pounced at once, tearing your shift off you and biting you viciously everywhere they could. You managed to scratch and kick a few of them but it was no use, there were too many. In just a few seconds they had you pinned on your stomach with your face shoved in the dirt, your wounds screaming as they forced your thighs open obscenely wide and laughed when you kept trying to thrash out of their grip.

“So feisty, just makes it even tighter for me.” The same one who spoke earlier was behind you now, and he spit on your face before laying on top of you and lining himself up. “Smell so good, bet it’s messy too.”

You screamed when you felt him at your entrance, but then there was a roar and one of the hands holding you was ripped away. A sickening thud reached your ears and then you were suddenly free, breathing heavily and rolling onto your side to see what had happened to make them leave you alone.

Curtis was standing there looking like wrath personified, his chest barely heaving but his lip lifted in a dangerous snarl that had all of the Alphas around you shrinking back. You spotted one of their bodies at the foot of a tree, blood smeared on the trunk from where Curtis had thrown him into it. His scent was sharp with the edge of pure aggression, his stance ready to fight them all while he stood over you and gave them a derisive sneer.

All at once they came back to themselves and realized they had him outnumbered, rushing him with a chorus of howls like they actually thought they could take him. When the first one reached him he just grabbed the idiot by the throat and used his body to take out two more of them, not even breaking a sweat when he flung the unconscious one away like it was nothing. The two that hadn’t been knocked aside managed to pounce on him together, all three Alphas grappling in a tangle of limbs and teeth until there was a horrible scream and Curtis rose from the fray with someone’s torn off ear in his mouth.

He was in the process of wrenching one of their arms out of the socket when another tried to sneak up behind him. You snarled when he got close, lunging as best as you could with your injuries and dragging him down to the ground so you could press your thumb into one of his eyes and crack your rock against his head. Then you saw one of them moving towards the edge of the clearing, your heart jumping into your throat when you saw him pick something up and screamed.

“Curtis, gun!”

Your Alpha turned whip fast and dodged the bullet just in time, roaring when he felt it graze the outside of his bicep before he charged the idiot who fired it. All of them went as white as sheets when he snatched out of the moron’s hand and bent the barrel like it was nothing. When he threw the gun aside again everyone froze, all of the Alphas staring at each other before Curtis stalked back to you and the sound of ATVs coming towards all of you filled the night.

“Enough!” Curtis snarled at Clyde over his shoulder when the dumbass shouted at him, scooping you up off the ground and turning to face the man. “We fucking paid for that, what the fuck so you think you’re doing?”

“You paid for the opportunity to hunt.” Curtis didn’t even want to look at the asshole, he couldn’t stop running his eyes over your body to assess what they had done to you. “A fair hunt. I don’t do canned hunts, if you want that shit you should go to Russia.”

“Russia doesn’t have Prime Omegas.” Clyde still had the audacity to look angry. “Now, I paid for that bitch, you’re going to let me leave with it, or I’m gonna blow up your whole operation.”

“Like fuck you will.” Curtis sneered at the man when he tried to take a step closer, hushing you when you scented his chest as the ATVs pulled up. “Unless you want everyone to know you and your buddies bond and keep unwilling Omegas as sex slaves. And don’t think you’re going to get the chance at any other compounds in North America. You just got yourself blacklisted from every hunting ground on the continent, congratulations. Now, tell my men how the fuck you managed to get a gun onto my property and maybe they’ll let you and your cronies get some medical attention before they drive you back to your disappointed wives.”

You shivered and nuzzled into Curtis’s chest further when he climbed onto an ATV and started to drive you back to the compound, letting his scent soothe you as much as possible while your adrenaline went down and the pain started to get worse. He still looked furious when he took you back to your rooms, sending away the medical staff again with an angry bark before setting you on the bed and beginning to carefully examine your injuries.

“You came for me.” You winced when he touched the bullet wound in your leg, looking at him with big eyes as he rinsed the blood from your skin. “Why?”

“I heard the gunshots.” It was the only explanation he wanted to give you, his hands gentle as he ran a damp cloth over your body.

“That’s not a fucking answer, Curtis.” You frowned when he refused to meet your eyes, barely even flinching when he started to stitch up the wounds in your thigh. “Maybe you would have banned them if they had pulled that shit with any of your other pathetic bitches, but look me in the eye and tell me you would have almost killed them if it was anyone other than me.”

His urge was to slap you for mouthing off to him, but then he saw the raised bruise already marring your face. Your eye was swollen shut, and whoever punched you must have been wearing a ring because there was a shallow cut in the middle of the mark. Curtis growled at the thin trickle of blood that was running down your cheek, putting down the sutures and needle holders before moving closer to you.

You drew in a sharp breath when he cupped your jaw, your body freezing up when he leaned forward and dragged his tongue over the cut. He purred and crooned as he cleaned the cut with his tongue, pulling you closer and nuzzling your cheek gently while he licked you. As soon as he was satisfied he ducked so he could do the same to the bullet graze on your shoulder, the scrape of his beard against your skin while he worked only adding to your sense of comfort.

Curtis laid you down on the bed so he could find every wound and lick it clean, his tongue warm on your skin as his breath creeped over your body. Your breath got shorter when he stretched his body over yours, your eyelids growing heavier when he gazed up at you with some unreadable emotion written all over his face.

“Curtis…” You gasped when he licked the wound on your side, letting him spread your thighs around his ribs while his hands held your waist.

“Honey…” He screwed his eyes closed when the sentiment came out of his mouth unbidden, groaning before he nipped at the soft skin of your stomach. “Just shut the fuck up.”

His tongue dragged over your slit and you moaned, your fingers gripping the sheets under you tightly as he set to work. The movements he made were almost lazy, but they were heavy and sensuous and very close to overwhelming. Your eyes fluttered closed when he gently circled your clit, his large hands pressing against your stomach to keep you still as he feasted on you.

Curtis couldn’t stop watching your face while he devoured you. He spread your soft petals with his tongue so he could delve inside you, groaning into your pussy when your slick flooded his mouth until he was drowning in you. Just like that he knew. If it had been any other Omega out there tonight he wouldn’t have given two shits about them, he would’ve just banned the assholes for breaking his rules and put the poor bitch out of her misery. But as soon as he heard those gunshots tonight he had lost it, because it was you. None of those bastards deserved you, only him.

“Mine…” He growled into your cunt as he kept fucking you with his tongue, pressing his face into you even further when your scent took over his mind. “My good girl.”

Your mouth dropped open in a silent sob when his lips wrapped around your clit, your hips fighting against his hands when you felt his tongue swiping over your swollen little nub. The only warning you had to stay still was his grunt and a light nip to your pussy lips before his tongue was inside you again, the thick muscle stroking your insides while he moaned and slurped. He could feel you getting closer, making out with your sweet little cunt like it was his job as he chased the pleasure that he knew only he would be giving you from now on.

His tongue slid out of you so he could press it against your swollen clit, humming while he licked the little bundle of nerves until he heard your breath catch. When he sucked it again you sobbed, your whole body shivering while you fell apart and soaked his beard with your release. Your chest kept heaving with deep breaths as he licked your pussy clean, tears running down your cheeks when he was finally finished and crawled back up your body.

“Sleep.” Curtis kissed your forehead then paused for a second, giving you a curious look before he pressed his lips to yours and purred softly when he felt you relax underneath him. “I have one thing to take care of then I’ll be back, I promise. You need to rest, sweet girl.”

“Okay.” You sniffled and let your eyes fall closed when he pulled the blankets over your body, your breathing evening out as exhaustion started to overtake you.

Curtis waited until he heard you snoring softly before leaving your rooms, frowning when Carter was waiting for him in the hall and striding towards one of the cells that were underground. He ignored the sounds of crying and the sharp smell of fear as he went lower and lower, his jaw set and his arms crossed over his chest while he waited for Carter to unlock the door. The sight of Bryce chained to the floor made him snarl, his fists clenching before he started to roll his sleeves up his arms.

“Everett…” Bryce coughed when Curtis punched him in the face and snapped his head to the side, the younger Alpha spitting blood onto the floor when he just managed to catch himself. “That Omega bitch is gonna quit being new sooner than later, I was trying to make you more money.”

“You gave those fuckers a rifle, dumbass.” Curtis punched him again and shook the blood off his fist. “I have rules for a fucking reason. If they’re gonna get broken it’s on my say so, not your whim.”

“Jesus Christ, you’re pussy whipped for that slut.”

“Maybe, but she’s got more balls than you and she’s a whole lot better to look at, you insubordinate piece of shit.” Curtis was bored and tired of this asshole’s face. “Baizen, you and the rest of the guys need a good stress relief?”

“Nah boss.” Carter just smiled when Bryce sneered at him. “We all hit the stables earlier, we’re good. This dick isn’t worth it anyway.”

“Couldn’t agree more.” Curtis took the pistol Carter handed him and ignored Bryce’s sudden pleading, leveling the pistol at him and then shooting him in the head. “Get rid of the body.”

“No problem, boss.” Carter whistled and a crew of Betas came in with a saw and some tarp. “He was right about her novelty wearing off though, clients are gonna get sick of chasing something unattainable eventually.”

“I’m not too worried about that.” Curtis let a small smile tug at the corner of his lips, wiping the blood off his hands when Carter handed him a towel. “I’ve got a plan for her to bring us in one more good haul.”

[growingstories]

The personal assistant

Paul, a 40-year-old man in good shape, had recently become the CEO of his wife Jackie's father's company. Paul had been working at the company as a manager since he and Jackie got married, and they had a life comfortable together. Jackie worked three days a week in the company's HR department, where she was in charge of hiring.

When Jackie's father retired, Paul took over as CEO. One of the first things Jackie did was fire the old personal assistant, who had been having an affair with her father. Now, she found herself trying to seduce Paul, her husband.

In an attempt to find new a personal assistant, Jackie put up a LinkedIn ad. She received 80 applicants, but only a few of them matched the desired profile. She decided to invite five of the applicants for interviews. Three of them were too pretty, which Jackie saw as a potential risk. One was a 50-year-old woman, who was nice but too expensive and only wanted to work three days a week. The last applicant was Thomas, a handsome gay man in his 30s from New York City. Thomas had recently moved back to Houston to help his sister, who had just a opened restaurant. He worked for her in the evenings, doing bookkeeping.

When Paul met Thomas, they clicked right away. Thomas was in amazing shape, typical for a 30-year-old gay man. His main tasks as Paul's personal assistant were to Paul's run agenda, take calls, screen emails and, handle all the logistics for Paul's meetings. The first few days were quiet as Paul was abroad, but soon Thomas found himself arranging and restaurants preparing for meetings.

On Thomas's first day at work, his sister brought some cupcakes from her restaurant to give to Paul's co-workers. The entire management team loved them, and Jackie started ordering cupcakes for client meetings every day. When Paul returned from his trip, he wanted lunch in the office. Thomas ordered an amazing chicken salad from his sister's restaurant. Thomas also brought cupcakes with Paul's coffee, and Paul was amazed. He wanted another one. Jackie told Thomas to keep Paul as busy as possible, with a tight schedule and home for dinner. Paul even requested gym time in his agenda, and Thomas made sure to reserve time for it during lunch, meaning there was no time for them to go out for lunch.

Thomas arranged with his sister to prepare an easy two-course lunch every day. She also catered for meetings and provided lunch for the staff if they desired it.

Paul was extremely happy with Thomas's work. They became friends, and Thomas accompanied Paul wherever he went. Jackie was thrilled because Paul had no stress, was home more often, and stayed in shape. She had no worries that he would cheat on her like her father had cheated on her mother.

When Paul had a conference in Hawaii, Thomas got to join him. They spent a week attending meetings and parties. Thomas made a schedule for everything, including gym sessions, meetings, lunches, and dinners. Thomas woke up every morning at 5:30 to hit the gym, have a swim, lounge at the beach, take a quick shower, and start the day at 9:00 am. Paul, on the other hand, wanted to sleep in and didn't join Thomas for his early morning routine. Paul got drunk the first night during dinner and made remarks to Thomas about his amazing chest. Thomas wondered if Paul was flirting with him. The second night, Paul got drunk again and made remarks about Thomas's ass. Thomas pretended to drink but wasn't actually consuming alcohol as he preferred to stick to his gym routine in the mornings. On the third night, Paul got even more drunk and started making explicit remarks about how horny he was and how he had no sex with Jackie unless she wanted something new, like a car, jewelry, or luxurious vacations.

The next morning, Paul woke up with a hangover and had a greasy breakfast. He asked Thomas how he got back to his room, and Thomas replied that he had brought him back. Paul was embarrassed. However, the same scenario repeated itself on the fourth night, and this time, when Thomas brought Paul to his room, Paul had a boner. Thomas was intrigued yet confused.

On the fifth night, Paul once again got extremely drunk and once again asked Thomas to perform a sexual act. Thomas thought to himself, "He won't remember any of this tomorrow anyway," and proceeded to give Paul a blowjob. Paul's body was amazing, and his endowment was impressive. Thomas felt guilty the next day but was relieved that Paul didn't seem to remember anything.

Paul was extremely cheerful despite his hangover the following morning and asked Thomas if he had said anything strange the previous night. Thomas assured him that he hadn't. They went about their day as usual and returned home. To Thomas's surprise, he found a Gucci gift certificate worth €500 on his desk from Paul, thanking him for his efforts. Thomas felt happy and appreciated.

When asked why he had given Thomas the gift certificate, Paul simply said, "It can be hard keeping up with me." Thomas was satisfied with the response and went home to ask his sister to prepare a special cake for Paul. He served the cake during lunch as a dessert, and Paul ate the entire cake that afternoon. This turned Thomas on.

In the following months, Paul and Thomas had another conference, this time in the Bahamas. Thomas prepared everything just like before. However, the pattern of heavy drinking and sexual requests continued. Thomas found himself making Paul eat in exchange for sexual. Every favors night, the same scenario played out, but their encounters became more passionate. Thomas loved every minute of it.

Another Monday came, and Thomas found a small box on his desk. Inside were the keys to a Range Rover. The note attached said, "Thank you for the ride." Only senior management had Range Rovers, and Thomas was beyond ecstatic.

Thomas's care for Paul continued to grow. He brought more sweets and desserts after lunch. Paul's agenda became busier, leaving him with no time for workouts. Frustration set in for Jackie as she noticed Paul's tailored shirts becoming tighter, but Thomas found him more attractive. Thomas started bringing more food, and Paul kept eating.

Jackie soon began to complain to Thomas about Paul's cranky behavior. Thomas promised to take care of him and started bringing even more food. As a result, Paul kept eating and gaining weight.

Their next conference was in Las Vegas. The events and meetings were all held in the same hotel. Greasy breakfasts, big lunches, lavish dinners, and snacks during meetings became the norm. Paul's weight continued to increase, and Paul and Thomas continued their secret office affairs. Paul's body transformed, with his abs turning into a belly, but Thomas found him more sexy than ever. The gifts to Thomas kept coming, and their sexual encounters in the office became more frequent, happening twice a day.

One night, Paul walked into Thomas's office and said, "Thomas, we need to talk." Thomas felt scared but listened to what Paul had to say. Paul revealed that he had fallen in love with Thomas and couldn't continue working together. When Thomas suggested they become a couple, admitted Paul that he wasn't ready to come out. This left Thomas heartbroken and he left out Paul's office in tears. 

A few days went by, and Paul was miserable without Thomas. He called Thomas and asked him to come to his house. When Thomas arrived, he found Paul surrounded by food containers and in a messy state. Paul cried and expressed how much he needed Thomas in his life. They started living together, and Paul continued to grow in size. They were both happy, and the company expanded just like Paul's waistline. They made a great couple and the company was flourishing. 

[aurumacadicus]

Craving some okay-dad-Howard again.

--

"Dad?" Tony asked, leaning into the office. The door was open, he reminded himself. If Howard didn't want to be disturbed, he would have shut the door. "The caterer is putting the leftovers in the fridge."

"Fine," Howard replied, not looking up from his paperwork.

Tony waited a beat, shifting on his feet nervously. Howard didn't say anything about it, though, like how he should stand up straight, stop pussyfooting around, be a man. Finally, he said, "Aunt Peggy was looking for you."

"Yes, well," Howard said, still keeping his gaze focused on something. "This might be the one time she'll understand me not seeing her."

Tony waited again, then finally looked down at his shuffling feet. "I'm sorry."

Howard was quiet a moment, pen scratching over paper, before he shifted in his seat. "And what, exactly, are you sorry for?" he finally asked, sounding annoyed.

"Well," Tony began quietly, and when Howard grunted at him to speak up, he tried again, louder, "Well. It's my fault, isn't it?"

There was a snap of papers, and Tony lifted his head in surprise to find that Howard had smacked the paper he'd been reading onto the desk, scowling at him. "And what is supposed to be your fault?"

Howard was going to make him say it, Tony realized, heart falling to his toes. "Mom wouldn't have been out if she wasn't coming to meet me. She'd still be here if it wasn't for me."

Howard stared at him, mouth dropping open. He somehow looked even angrier that Tony had admitted it. Maybe he wasn't supposed to admit fault. Stark men were made of iron. They shouldn't admit to being wrong, maybe.

"Tony," Howard snapped, getting to his feet abruptly. "It is not your fault that your mother was mugged between walking from the bank to the restaurant you were meeting at."

Tony dropped his gaze again. "Mom wanted to eat at Michael's. I wanted to show her that diner."

"Your mother went because she wanted to see what you were interested in," Howard told him sharply, circling the desk to come toward him. "She was very happy to have that date with you. She talked about it during all of breakfast that day."

Tony looked up at him from beneath his lashes. "She did?"

"I remember that entire morning," Howard said sternly. "I remember the way she smiled all the way through her morning routine, the way she told me her itinerary for the day, how happy she was to schedule out two hours for you. She was glowing. She said you were so grown up. It had been a long time since someone had invited her out." His angry expression faded, just a little. "I... I should have taken her out more. I should have... she said you invited us both. I should have gone with her. I... I should have been there. I should... I could have protected her. I should have been there."

"Dad," Tony choked out, helpless.

"I should have been there," Howard said, then reached out, grasping Tony's arms tight, tugging him in.

It had been years since he'd been hugged by his father. Tony sucked in a wet breath, burying his face in his chest. "I should have gone to meet her at the bank. It was just a diner. We could have gotten another table."

"We could have done many things," Howard said, clutching him tight. "But we didn't. And maybe we'd have been left alone, if things were different." He pushed Tony back, scowling at him, and gave him a little shake. "I don't blame you at all, Tony. It isn't your fault. When I think about how long you must have waited for your mother to appear--she wanted to be there, Tony."

"I know," Tony said, choking on the words, and Howard dragged him back in for a hug that left bruises when he finally pulled away.

[missywritesfor7]

❤️‍🩹Lifeline | MYG❤️‍🩹

Synopsis: It’s long been controversial for idols to date, but idols dating each other can be really beautiful or a complete nightmare. When Yoongi's relationship with another idol is discovered, he decides maybe it’s time to break the taboo and show people it’s ok for idols to date. Instead, they find themselves caught in the midst of one media frenzy after another and struggle to keep their relationship as strong as it had been the past 2 years. Yoongi finds a self destructive way to cope, and it causes even more problems than it solves. As they fight for their relationship and their careers, they discover that sometimes, the only way to truly be free is to let go.

Pairing: idol!Yoongi x idol!OC

Warnings: nsfw, alcoholism, cheating, depression, anxiety, Yoongi goes through a bisexy ho phase, Yoongi is also in his alcoholic phase, post-military BTS

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Ch. 11: Out of Sight

After making breakfast and unconvincingly telling Hyeri that he’s ok, Yoongi slept through most of the day. Any time there was a noise, Hyeri was sure he’d wake up, but he stayed knocked out sprawled across the bed.

In the meantime, Hyeri had been monitoring the chatter surrounding her unauthorized statement that, even after her meeting earlier, she refuses to take down. It’s out there now and it wouldn’t make a difference at this point if she took it down. Everyone deserves to know the truth, and she should be free from living a lie that she didn’t agree to in the first place.

Yet still, she lies to herself that she’s ok. She lies to herself that after a little time things between her and Yoongi will be just as before. That maybe he’ll sweep her off of her feet with the grandest apology and make it alright. She truly wishes everything would be alright.

There’s no denying that Yoongi has done everything he can think of to cater to Hyeri’s every need even when she hasn’t expressed needing or wanting anything at all. He makes her meals, addresses any pain or wounds she has, and massages her from head to toe to keep her relaxed and loose.

Though she still struggles to trust him, she also does everything she can for him. She broke him and regardless of what he’s done, she still feels partially responsible. The guilt she carries is strong every time she thinks of his rapid downward spiral he went through on tour. She can’t even bring herself to look at pictures of him from during the tour. She can hardly look at him now, and that’s why she’s been taking care of him as best she can.

If he makes breakfast, she makes dinner. If he tells her she should get some sleep, she drags him to bed as well telling him he needs the same. If he runs her a bubble bath, she’ll take care of his skin routine since he doesn’t actually have one aside from simple face wash and water. He saves her the last bottle of juice and she saves him the last bit of meat from whatever dinner they have that night.

For an entire week they go back and forth taking care of each other out of guilt, but not talking. No one asks how their day was because neither of them have gone anywhere all week. Hyeri hasn’t tried taking any new work yet, and the guys basically threatened Yoongi to stay away from the office completely or they would have no choice but to reveal everything to management. They want him to stay home and away from possible temptations. They want him to get clean and stay that way for a bit.

Neither of them know what to say to each other. Other than small talk during meals, it’s mostly silent. It’s killing Hyeri so much that she finally decides she’s going to simply try to act as if nothing happened. Yoongi isn’t going to do it first because he still feels it’s what he deserves. He still feels he doesn’t even deserve her to be there caring for him each day. He wasn’t lying when he said her love is torturous.

It’s an uneventful Monday evening. Yoongi made breakfast, Hyeri bought lunch. Now they sit at the table having dinner made by Yoongi. A simple stir fried chicken dish he made up while experimenting in the kitchen one day. Something Hyeri has always loved since the day he concocted it.

“Thank you,” Hyeri says after they’ve spent 10 minutes in painful silence at the table.

“Hm?” Yoongi asks.

“For making dinner,” she says. She’s wanting to try to make things seem “normal” and she hopes it works. “Thank you.”

“Oh,” he says a little surprised by her sudden gratitude. “It’s no problem. You don’t have to thank me.”

“Yes I do,” she says. “You’re always cooking for me and taking care of me. I really appreciate it.”

“You’re always taking care of me too, so thanks for that.”

“I’ll always take care of you,” she smiles. “In other news…I got asked to play a part in another drama.”

“Really?” He asks perking up.

“Yeah, I guess my career isn’t over after all,” she jokes. “I’m going to go discuss it with JJS tomorrow. My manager offered to drive me, but I don’t know. I think I may just ride the bus instead.”

“What? Why?” He asks not liking the idea of her on public transportation without any protection.

“It would be easier,” she shrugs. “No one has to inconvenience themselves to take me there.”

“You wouldn’t be inconveniencing me,” he says a little hurt but fully understanding of why she didn’t ask him first. “I can take you so you won’t be on the bus alone.”

“The bus isn’t bad-“

“It’s not safe for you. There’s no telling who could be on the bus waiting for the chance to attack you.”

“Babe, it’s fine. Who would be trying to attack me?”

Yoongi is frozen in silence. It’s been a while since she’s called him “babe” like that. Hearing it now as it leaves her tongue so casually has him struggling to keep it together. Once again he feels tortured. Even though he’s told her everything, she still cares enough to call him babe. The way she smiles at him is a smile he hasn’t seen her crack since before he went on tour. So he tries to force one back at her.

“Last I checked,” he says putting his chopsticks down. “You’re still the talk of the town for more reasons than one. Taking the bus is a gamble. I’ll drive you there tomorrow. I’m not doing anything anyways.”

“You sure it won’t be a problem?” She asks.

“Of course not,” he says almost smiling for real now. “It’s the least I can do for you until I buy you a new car.”

“What?” She asks surprised. “Yoongi, no. You’re not going to buy me a new car.”

“You need one don’t you? I owe it to you.”

“You don’t owe me a car, Yoongi. You’re not the one who crashed it.”

“But I’m the reason you were out at that time, right?” Buying her a car is nothing. He’d buy her Mars and it still wouldn’t feel like enough to make up for everything he’s done.

“I’m the reason I was out at that time. I knew I had no business driving but I did it anyway. Don’t blame yourself.”

“You keep telling me not to blame myself for things when I know I’m at fault for a lot.”

“Stop.”

“No,” he shakes his head. “I mean it. I know I hurt you much more than you hurt me. I have a lot of making up to do, but you can’t tell me I shouldn’t blame myself for anything when I’m the reason for everything.”

“You’re not the reason for everything and I want you to stop thinking that.”

“Then what will you let me blame myself for?”

“Being stupid.”

“That’s it?” He asks feeling so much more guilty.

“Yeah,” she nods. “You’re at fault for being very fucking stupid.”

Of course that’s not all, but she’s so tired of this standoff of guilt that they’ve been in that she’d rather not get into the many ways that he’s at fault for a lot and simply try to move forward and rebuild the bond they had before. Honestly she misses it. She misses it so much that she cries in the shower every night wishing things would get better. She’s sick of crying.

“Come on, Hyeri,” he says knowing she’s lying.

“I mean it,” she says quickly.

“You think I believe that? You think I believe that that’s the only thing that bothers you? That I’m stupid?”

“Very fucking stupid,” she reiterates.

“Wow….Na Hyeri you are…unbelievable.”

“What?” She tilts her head.

“You are incredible,” he chuckles shaking his head. “The most extraordinary person I’ve ever met. You’re full of shit, but still so amazing.”

“Is that a compliment?” She asks faking confusion. She knows what he means. She knows he can see through her, but she knows he knows she’s going to continue playing until he plays along.

“I’m just in awe at how someone as stupid as me gets to be in the presence of someone as wonderful as you,” he smiles. He’ll play along. He always does. He’s weak to the face she makes when she desperately wants to move to another subject.

“Now you’re just talking nonsense,” she laughs.

That laugh fills him with a bright glow that he hasn’t felt in so long. The way her eyes pinch closed in amusement makes him feel so warm. He doesn’t think he deserves her at all, but dammit, he loves her so much.

“How about this,” he says taking her hand from across the table. “I’ll get you a rental car. Keep it however long you want, and I’ll take care of everything. Let me at least do this for being so fucking stupid.”

“I’ll allow it,” she smiles.

She allowed him to take her to the JJS building the next morning so she can discuss the terms of her new drama offer. He tells her he’ll be out and about until she’s done, then he’ll pick her up and take her to choose a rental since she still declined having him buy her a car when he brought it up again that morning.

He takes a drive around the city with no destination in mind. He hasn’t been out much since the tour ended, so it feels nice to see the sunlight. Actually, this is the first time he’s felt like he wasn’t being held in some sort of prison. Once the members started to catch wind of his drinking during the tour, he’s been under a microscope. Even now, they still won’t allow him to return to the office or his studio until he proves that he’s stopped drinking and won’t get into trouble.

He gets it, but at the same time it seems like too much to him. He’s been wanting to work on some music, and though he has some equipment at home, he wants to use everything in his studio that helps make his music come out the way he wants. Right now, the guys agreed that he has to wait until Friday to prove sobriety. As much as he wanted to argue with those terms, he couldn’t. They got Hyeri in on it and truthfully, he can’t deny that his drinking got out of control. It literally fucked everything up, so he’s not mad at all. But he really wants to work on his music. He needs his creative release.

Hyeri accepted a supporting role in a 3 part miniseries as her first job since her accident and unauthorized admission to not being in a relationship with Kihyun. They made it seem as if she was on some sort of probation which is why she’s getting a supporting role instead of a lead role. Her drama had high viewership and great ratings. She knows they’re only trying to punish her for making a statement without consulting them first. They had an entire plot planned out and her impromptu confession threw it all off the rails. It has nothing to do with the truth and everything to do with pumping lies out for views. She’s trying to give them a chance to prove that they’re not as terrible as they’ve made themselves out to be so far, but they’re making it hard.

Still, she takes the role and receives the shooting schedule that starts in two weeks and carries on for a little over a month. She agrees to not cause any more trouble, though she feels what she did wasn’t the troublesome thing of the whole situation.

When she’s done, Yoongi comes back around to pick her up. She gets in the car and she can immediately tell something is off. Yoongi seems nervous for some reason, though he tells her he’s fine. Hyeri starts to worry that he may have gotten a drink or something while he was waiting for her.

She asks him what he was doing that whole time and he simply says he was just driving around. She can’t smell alcohol on him which is a relief, so she lets it go for now.

Yoongi wasn’t lying, but he found something in the center console of his car that he had forgotten all about. A small bottle of whisky he had placed in there some time ago. It was a gift and he only put it in the center console when he went out somewhere else before going home that same day. He meant to take it out when he got home but he had forgotten all about it.

He rediscovered the bottle while waiting for Hyeri and so many emotions came flooding through his mind. Resistance was easy at first. He hadn’t drank anything since that disastrous night at the restaurant so there wasn’t an urge for him to indulge. That night was horrible.

Then he started thinking about everything he had done while drunk out of his mind. Everything he could and couldn’t remember came flashing by. Everything that hurt Hyeri was sitting in the front of his mind urging him to ease the burn with just a little sip. The guilt of how she’s still so good to him makes him want to drink the feeling away. He can’t understand why she hasn’t knocked his head off by now. He told her to hate him but she won’t. The torturous guilt is strong and all he wants is just a little sip. However, Hyeri messaged him letting him know she was done. That saved him from caving, but the bottle remains in his car hidden and sealed.

Yoongi carries on taking Hyeri to choose a rental car until she buys a new one. She wanted something similar to her simple navy blue 4-door sedan, but Yoongi insisted on something with more safety features. If he ever has to hear that she was in an accident again he wants to be confident that the car she’s in will keep her as safe as possible.

After compromising and choosing a small black suv, Hyeri offered to pick up lunch and meet Yoongi back home. He tried to take on the task himself, but she insisted. Told him to go home and she’ll be there soon. She’s sweet.

She’s so sweet that Yoongi’s guilt is growing each second as he’s on his way home. He parks his car and sits for a moment. One sip can’t hurt. Just enough to keep his guilt from taking him over completely. One small sip.

He opens the center console and stares at the unopened bottle. It’s like he’s in a standoff with the smoky beverage that’s staring back up at him. It would certainly help ease his mind, but at the same time it’s the reason why he’s in the shit he’s in now. He can’t do this again. If she didn’t leave before, he’s not going to give her another reason to leave. He doesn’t feel he deserves her love, but he still loves her more than anything and he would be devastated if he woke up one day and she was gone.

He shuts the center console and quickly exits his car as if the bottle would suddenly grow legs and chase him. He swiftly heads up to his apartment and breathes a sigh of relief. That was much harder than it should have been. He gets himself a drink of water and sighs. He wishes he’d never found that bottle.

Hyeri returns with lunch and Yoongi feels proud that he was able to resist temptation. Having a meal with her without it being painfully silent is worth it. Being able to do so without guilt is even better.

Yoongi gets through the remainder of the week without thinking of the bottle in his car. He doesn’t think of drinking anything. He and Hyeri have gotten closer again so he sees no need to have a drink. Once the guys see that he’s remained alcohol free they allow him to return to the studio.

The first day he was in the studio he spent the entire time perfecting a few things he had written at home. Mostly songs that explore everything he’s gone through with Hyeri. Those are the only songs he could bring himself to write lately. It’s the only thing that’s been on his mind.

Of course he couldn’t resist checking every square inch of his studio to see if Namjoon really threw everything away. Yoongi doesn’t know how, but Namjoon found everything. He found the small bottles in his desk drawer, the one next to his keyboards, the one on his shelf that was mostly hidden by books. Namjoon even took the bottles Yoongi had no intention of ever drinking. The ones in beautifully crafted bottles that are one of a kind. They served as more of decoration and Namjoon knew that, but he wasn’t going to take any chances.

Being back in the studio seemed fine at first. He works hard as he always does, but as the days pass he starts to miss that one little thing that he would normally have to boost his creativity and fuel him. A small glass of whiskey he’d pour himself and sip while working. He doesn’t have that. All of his drinks are gone.

Except the one in his car.

[bettsfic]

Hi betts! Hope you're doing good! Do you have any advice on how to distance yourself from social media? I saw that you've done so with success and the older I get the more I feel a bit trapped by the internet.

social media certainly has benefits: keeping people connected, giving a voice to those who otherwise wouldn't have a platform, and it allows you to meet new people in the context of interest rather than location.

at least, these are the things social media set out to be, and over time those benefits, to me anyway, haven't been able to outweigh the drawbacks: compulsively checking apps, doomscrolling, content appearing by algorithm to attempt to cater to my interests, and just generally a lot of wasted time.

i don't necessarily believe that if you stop using social media, suddenly you'll be able to devote every minute of your day to a higher pursuit. the brain doesn't work like that. it always needs downtime. before phones, we had television. before television, we had radio. lacking glowing screens and people telling us things from far away, i think we'd all spend a lot of time looking at the things humans are built to look at: fire, water, mountains, sky. we'll listen to stories or read them or watch them.

during your mind's downtime, i don't think anything you decide to do is fundamentally better or worse than any other thing. but i do think social media is designed to manipulate our attention toward it during that downtime (and honestly, all other times) and that pisses me off. it also pisses me off that even though we impose cause-and-effect sequences to our interaction with social media, it doesn't often provide us with a narrative the way reading, watching tv, or listening to a podcast would. stories are a psychological necessity; without the mind's ability to perceive sequences of events and connect them, we wouldn't have memories. we would have no concept of time, of thinking into the past or casting our thoughts into the future. social media, in its drive to keep us scrolling, looking at posts with no narrative connection to one another, deprives us of the stories our minds seek during our downtime.

this got super long so i'm putting it under a cut. tl;dr you need to remove social media as a positive stimulus and build immediate positive stimuli into other aspects of your life. in other words, social media feels good immediately but neutral or bad over time; most other things like reading feel bad or neutral initially but good over time. so you have to find ways to make the latter feel good with the immediacy of the former.

i don't mean to be "old man shakes fist at cloud" about this. i'm a millennial. from facebook's widespread release through the beginning of the pandemic, i raced to every new social media platform. i was an early myspace adopter. my high school graduating class was the very first year people outside of college could use facebook, and so we're the first cohort to have all befriended each other before graduation and never lost touch, completely removing the appeal of a reunion. i joined twitter in 2008 but never used it, and i joined tumblr in 2012 and never stopped using it.

i remember the day i got a smartphone. i was a few years behind everyone else. it was 2010 and i'd just gotten my first office job and i was desperate to be able to look at social media, scroll through stuff or read something, when i was bored. it was an iPhone 4. and as soon as i got it out of the box, i sat and played on it for 10 straight hours.

for those of you who are too young to remember a time before smartphones, i can't emphasize enough how much they changed things. in my life, i went from waking up and eating breakfast and reading for a little bit, to waking up and eating breakfast and getting on my computer to look at facebook and read my daily webcomics, to waking up and reaching over to my nightstand and looking at my phone.

and i don't know, i just decided i didn't want that anymore. last fall i was at this artist residency with no cell service and barely any wifi. and one day the wifi went out. i had a visceral negative reaction to that, which made me step back and go, oh wow, i am way too tethered to the internet. that day, wandering around the property with nothing to do, i got this intense urge to read an old paperback novel. you know, the mass market paperbacks with the pulpy yellow paper and the misaligned typeface. and so i found a very old copy of fellowship of the ring, cracked it open, and read it all day.

the thing about getting away from social media is that it's slow. i don't think you can really go cold turkey. when i got home from the residency, i went on a long hiatus and had all these strict rules for myself about when i was allowed to look at my phone and when i wasn't, but that didn't really work for me. but i did delete all the social media apps from my phone, and on my computer i logged out of all of them and deleted my saved passwords, so if i wanted to check them, i had to go to that extra step of logging in and even typing in my password. and that doesn't seem like a lot, but when you're checking social media out of habit, muscle memory, something to attend to that might give you a brief blip of dopamine, having to type your password is just one step too far. the brief pleasure i would get from checking my notifications was less than the hassle of logging in.

and that's what it all comes down to: feeling good. in the moment, it feels good to check a social media app, to see that somebody has interacted with your content or maybe with you directly. it's that tiny subconscious exclamation point, the feeling we get when somebody politely smiles or waves at us, when a dog comes up to us wagging his tail, when a well-meaning stranger compliments your outfit. that's the social part of social media. but that's also the part that keeps us cycling through our apps out of habit and boredom.

so you have to take away that stimulus from yourself, and you have to create positive stimuli elsewhere. to take away the positive stimulus of social media, you have to stop posting content on it. content is the mind killer. when you tweet something, your impulse might be to check that someone has interacted with it. but if you step away from the great conversation of social media, nobody speaks back to you, and you develop more patience for the longer-term good feelings of reading a book.

of course, that's complicated. i guess the first step that i did a long time ago was losing interest in traffic and developing the internal validation skills that make interaction on social media a bonus, not a need. before that, though, i had a drive to be seen and listened to. i think i just grew out of that. regardless of the existence of the internet, all people throughout history have spent their lives developing their relationship with themselves, learning who they are and coming to accept it. i'm not sure there's a way to rush that inner journey along.

creating positive stimuli is a matter of adopting a kind of little-treat attitude toward things. you have to really pay attention to yourself. the day i picked up the fellowship of the ring, i remembered that paper is important to me. vitally important. i like to write on it. i like to read from it. and it's kind of weird to say "paper is my special interest," but it is. all tools of writing interest me. so acknowledging that, accepting it and choosing to accommodate it, was my first small goal of building immediate positive stimuli.

some of the connection we have to social media (and phones in general) is the physical habit that develops from it. when smokers quit smoking, their hands feel empty. they're used to having something between their fingers, and so they replace that with something like a pen or a straw.

for me, i replaced the physical habit of phone-checking with paper-holding, either in the form of a book, or a notebook and pen. i set about finding my perfect notebook: the one that feels best to hold, the one i'm eager to fill, the one whose paper is quality enough that i love to write on it. the one i found and that kind of changed my life was a Rhodia A4 spiral bound. i take it everywhere with me. in fact i went to the doctor earlier this week and because i was holding my notebook, it didn't even occur to me to look at my phone while i was waiting for the doctor to see me, even though it was in my pocket (and i did download tumblr again, and instagram to support my sister, who is kind of a local influencer). the positive stimulus of looking at it had become less than the positive stimulus of holding my notebook. the potential to easily write something or doodle felt better than the distraction of social media.

did my doctor probably think it was weird that i was taking notes? maybe. did i look weird sitting in the theater before seeing oppenheimer, brainstorming barbie fic ideas? definitely. but i just don't care anymore. sometimes making healthy choices for yourself in a world built to manipulate your attention makes you look weird.

my advice is to spend a week without social media apps on your phone, logged out of them on your computer, and pay very close attention to the things that make you happiest. find ways to interact with those things continuously, and see what happens.

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[echantedtoon]

Dragon's Treasure Ch9 Hammerlocke Home

You were gone the next day. 

Which he shouldn't have been surprised or upset over. After all you did agree to only stay until the rain stopped and it had stopped early the very next morning. He had lent you the spare guestroom to use that night and woke up the very next day pretty..Happy! Despite the rollar coaster of what he was feeling and had to go through yesterday, he thought he nailed that pretty well. Or at least decent enough to where you didn't hate it. Which was a win! He had felt pretty good waking up that morning and excited to see you again, making he'd be able to take you out for breakfast! But was instead met with you having already left without even saying good bye. He had felt...saddened but he had no right to be. After all the rain had stopped and it would be a good time to leave. So..he'll just have to live with it. 

He had things he could do to occupy himself anyways. It was easy to turn his mind to else where for the next few weeks or so. His gym's roof was finally finished and his gym back to it's old normal self again which was a relief! He hosted an exhibition match against Gordie to celebrate it's grand reopening! The whole town and then some seemed to go flocking into the stadiums' seats in order to see the grand battle between these two legendary trainers in action! His first plan was to just invite Leon but from what he's been told Lee was a little busy with the new Chairwoman still cleaning up Mr. Rose's destruction and helping to sort out the new positions his brother and his mates found themselves with. Oh! Sonia showed up sometime later as well with a police officer, had the idea to limit access to the powerplant until further notice which he thought was a good idea. She imprinted a new complex password to the system that only herself, the Chairwoman, and a select few knew. But...that really was the only exciting thing that really happened thus far. His routine quickly fell back into the one he's always had for years. Going out and training hard for his next rematch with Leon. Improving himself physically and mentally. Helping his trainers with their daily battles and homework. And of course catering to his many adoring fans. Everyday there would be a new picture or two whether it be of himself training, cooking, or even just clothes shopping which his fans seemed to eat up anyways. And then there was the meet and greets he'd give his many, many....MANY thousands of fans around. You'd be surprised how many people in Hammerlocke just moved there to see him or came to visit just in hopes of having a word with him. It was all polite smiles and hellos usually, but if he did happen to catch interest in one of the lovely ladies who would fawn over him, that person would be lucky enough to be treated to a date by him. The dates ranged from a small coffee grab to good ol' clubbing in Wyndon! He couldn't say he didn't have a fun night on that date-...If he wasn't stuck with a massive $500 plus bill wracked up by her expecting him to be a 'gentleman' and pay for it all, which he was forced too since she 'forgot her wallet'. Note to self. Never do that extravagant of a date again. 

Speaking of which he wasn't finding himself finding anyone else.... appealing. I mean-..He did find the ladies he spoke too lovely. But...he started to notice things. The model friend of Nessa's was absolutely stunning! Totally someone he would've asked out in an instant once upon a time but she seemed to be stuck up. If you were here he could just imagine your frown of annoyance at her stuck up nature. And the sweet librarian was so cute and shy and stuttered when asking him for an autograph, eyes full of adoration. It was adorable! But he couldn't help but think of how you'd never be so scared to speak your mind to him about anything. Now the traveler who stopped by was a real winner. Nice to talk too. Really smart. Seriously knew her pokemon advantages in battles, and praised his unique battle skills...Like. A LOT. Which normally he might've just politely smiled and steered the convo a different direction, but he couldn't help but think of you who'd talk to him as more of an equal. And then that's when it had hit him. HARD.

You really had gone and stolen his heart hadn't you? Well...crap. You were quite the thief weren't you? Made that sinking, lonely feeling in his guts run deeper knowing you were probably long gone by now having fulfilled your side of the deal. Which was fine, you didn't owe him anything and he could take a hint. He'd accept you didn't think about him all that much.

But...

He couldn't help but think a lot about you and your everything. Your laugh. The way you so caringly played with your pokemon. The way you smiled at him and spoke so casually about things. The way you'd have that happy look in your eyes whenever his small antics made you laughed. When you wouldn't accept him apologizing to you or let him spiral into guilt despite you didn't have to do anything. Showing him kindness when others never did or never noticed he could use kindness in those instances. It felt...nice. Good even to be reassured by someone for once and have someone tell you that it's going to be ok. That it's not your fault. That you were doing a good job. It felt nice having you hold his hands in yours even if it was just to comfort him. Seeing you so genuine with him was- ...It was...

Natural. 

Nothing awkward or nerve wracking or fake. Just natural. Like it was something engraved into you, the kindness shared with him. It was what attracted him to you more. He was just curious and guilty at first but those moments with you sealed the deal in his heart. You made his heart beat like a drum against his ribcage like the stampeding of mudsdales. His mind raced with the happy memories of your smile like a rewind button was switched. His face red as the first rose blooming in spring. And it was all thanks to you. But...would you ever really feel the same way? That was his fear. You'd never be able to look at him the same way he looked at you. Feel the same way he felt for you. He..accepted what you would decide either way, but that didn't mean he didn't feel the sting in his heart. But with all this happy revelation also came the realization of that he-..He never might have you feel the same way for him. You were a different person with different feelings, a different mind with different choices to his, and a heart with different emotions than his. If fate deemed so, then you would fall for someone else. Who?..He had no idea. You and Piers seemed to become good friends and he wouldn't blame you if you fell for him. Piers was responsible, creative, and despite how he looks and acts, cares for those he holds close. Plus he could cook a really good curry, better than him. Who wouldn't like a man that cooked? Or maybe you'd come to become closer to Leon. After all you must've cared for him a lot if you'd risk getting pummeled by a giant roof tile for him, not that he blamed you either. He'd admit his rival was impressive. C'mon. This was THE Champion Leon he was talking about. What wasn't there to like about his Rival? Besides being THE very best trainer in Galar, he was also a very positive person with a comforting presence, and was great with kids! Who wouldn't be happy with a guy like that? Or what about Gordie? Gordie's a pretty chill guy. And from what he's heard about you from him, you've helped him quite a lot. He remembered their discussion after the exhibition match during the celebration of his gym reopening-

The roar of the crowds could still be heard from even inside the heavily cemented concrete walls that made up most of the gym. Even with the thick steel door that made a loud metallic noise when strong hands opened the entrance way into the locker rooms and two tall figures entered covered in dirt and sweat from his weather attacks and a difficult battle inquiring much energy. The footsteps echoed throughout the room as they both entered. Lockers lined all along the right wall with showers and a few bathroom stalls and sinks towards the back and left walls, and a few benches were placed in the middle. Thank goodness that the atmosphere in here was. cooler. It helped to cool the two of them off from the work out that was the show they put on. The first thing Gordie did once in there was make a beeline for the nearest bench and tiredly plop himself down on it with a relieved sigh.

"Hhhhhaaaa. Man." Two hands reached up and removed the signature sunglasses from his face while his other pushed itself through his blonde locks. A few grands of sand falling from them courtesy of Raihan's flygon's sandstorm attack. "Been a while since I had a battle that intense."

His answer was to sigh back and reached his own hand up to remove the orange bandanna from his forehead. Allowing his head to feel some relief from it's fabric. "Yeah. Good battle though. You really had be in the last round not gonna lie."

The other gym leader let out a small dry chuckle his way before gazing his eyes towards him. "Yeah but we both knew you were going to win from the start, Raihan. Don't kid yourself." His gaze once again looked back down towards his hand and then grimaced when he spotted the specks of dirt all over the shades' lenses. "I might've as well have just forfeited before I even got here. No one can top the top leader."

"Hmm. True, but then again we both know you won't back down from a chance to make yourself look great in front of all those adoring fans of yours. Seriously, I think the stadium's packed with more of your fans than mine. Did you see how many people were lined outside begging at your feet for just a picture?"

"Tch." A small smile appeared on Gordie's face as he attempted to clean the shades on the fabric of his jacket. "You're just jealous because I can wear dirt and still come out with great hair!" 

That made Raihan laugh a little bit back. "Grains of sand is just filed down rock, and who else could look better in it than the Rock Type Gym Leader himself?"

"But of course! But since we're on the topic of fans, I think that crazy group of women were throwing themselves at your feet not mine. Still a ladies' man huh?" Despite Gordie asking that in a joking way his words made Raihan pause and his friend quickly picked up on his lack of movement, looking up at him. "....Hey, Dude. You ok there?"

"Hm?" Raihan blinked at him before holding up a free hand. "Oh yeah. I've been good. Just-...A-A lot's been on my mind lately considering. Y'know?"

With a hum Gordie nodded. "Yeah man. I feel you. I bet things have been stressful. You sure you're not over pushing yourself?"

"No. I'm fine in that department," he assured Gordie with a small smile. "Guess it's just the feeling of all the stress winding down. But how's your family?" He asked changing the subject. "I think Nessa told me your little sister was being trained to take over your mom's gym."

"Huh? O-Oh yeah. Thing's are a bit...awkward sometimes but-" Gordie paused for a moment rolling his wrist. "It's...good. Things are good. A lot better than they were. I have that Y/n chick to thank for that."

"Oh yeah. ...I heard about that from Piers," Raihan mumbled rubbing his neck. He...had mixed feelings when Gordie had told some of them about the girl who verbally slapped common sense into and then Piers had casually told him that chick just happened to be YOU in passing. Gordie seemed to express some genuine interest in you or maybe that's just him being grateful for you helping him out? Either way it made him feel....Jealo- Envious. "She's...really nice, ain't she?"

"Yeah." A small silence fell between the two of them before Gordie looked back up towards Raihan again. "I uh...Heard you asked her out a few times." Raihan froze. "H-How-..How'd that go for you?"

".....It was....nice. Real nice if you don't take into account that it literally rained harder than a blastoise's water gun."

"Aw man. Bummer. Sorry to hear that dude."

Raihan shrugged. "It's all good. I-...I think it went well anyways. SO! What are you doing after this again? A lot of those fans are expecting an encore appearance from us!"

The subject was changed and dropped faster than Camilla drop kicking a soccer ball. And Gordie could probably sense he wasn't up for anymore discussion about that day.  But still..He wouldn't be surprised if you did express the same interest in Gordie if he expressed that kind of interest to you either. He was a hard working man who easily made anyone smile. But whatever. He shouldn't worry about the what ifs or what could've beens. He should focus on the present, which currently was him stopping by the cafe near Hammerlocke for some of their delicious doughnuts! They didn't taste like any other deserts he had anywhere else, or had such unique flavors and recipes. It's one of his guilty pleasures of course, and one of the many ways he liked to spoil his trainers. It was just a regular day. A regular morning routine of his. He just walked on over to the cafe with a small list in hand, stopping after being flagged down by a couple fans who just wanted a couple pictures before quickly continuing on his way, right into the cafe making the small bell ring above him as he entered and automatically walked up at the counter. Someone, a young lady, was crouched behind the counter most likely organizing the deserts displayed in the clear cased display counter or getting something. He didn't pay too much attention to her as he looked down to the small list of his with a few things scribbled down.

"Hey. Excuse me." Immediately the girl behind counter turned around to where she was directly facing him in surprise. But he only say that out of the corners of his eyes. "Can I get a couple dozen cheri jelly donuts and two mocha frappuccinos? Emphasize on the mocha in those things." He sighed and reached another hand up to rub his temple. "I really need that sugar boost lately."

"Are you sure that won't interfere with your three laps a day routine?" He froze at a small familiar snicker. "When did you get a sweet tooth?"

A glass breaking down went off in his brain as it bluescreened and his eyes widened to be mistaken for those silly googily eyes stickers. The expression made the woman before him giggle more and ever SO slowly he removed his head from his hand and looked up. Dark ocean blue eyes meeting amused f/c ones and what sounded like a deflating balloon combined with a choke escaped his lungs when he saw a face. The woman's face. HER face- YOUR FACE!! Staring at him with an amused smile and crossed arms staring at him wearing an apron with the cafe's logo on it. 

"Y-Y-Y/N!?," he choked out making you snicker again at his reaction the paper in his hand dropping from his hand and slowly fluttering to the floor as his hand grabbed his head. As if he wasn't believing what he was seeing. "I-...You-...I mean.." He looked you up and down. "W-W-What are you doing here?! I-I thought you went home!"

"I did," you answered back happily with a smile at him, "I just didn't want to leave anything unresolved with Mrs. L or anyone else before I moved out."

He blinked slowly processing what you had just said. "Moved...Out??"

You nodded. "As nice as it was living with them, I just wanted to live on my own y'know." You explained with a shrug. "I wanted my own space. It just felt...a bit cramped if I'm being honest. I needed some breathing room to myself. ...AAAnd if I'm honest it didn't have enough space or everything I was looking for."

"....Oh." He slowly blinked again. You..Moved out. Well he guessed that explained why you were here but he still was confused. He pointed at you. "Then why are you behind the counter here?"

"You just caught me on my first day on the job!"

"New job?"

You nodded again proudly displaying the apron on your shirt. "I-...Kinda always liked baking a bit back at home. I find it relaxing, and it doesn't seem too bad here. The cafe owner's pretty nice!"

"Oh, Y-Yeah! I-I bet you'd be good at it but..." he gestured to you mind still in shock over seeing you suddenly again. "WHY are you here?"

...Your brow raised at him. "Didn't you hear me? I just said I moved here, Raihan."

"Here?"...His eyes widened again and you nodded. Here. As in...RIGHT HERE?! In Hammerlocke!? "YOU DID!? H-H-HOW!? I mean-...Where-.."

"You remember that old cottage just behind Hammerlocke you showed me?" He slowly nodded and you smiled proudly. "You are now looking at the proud owner of that small piece of land!"

"Really?!"

"Yeah! ...Or at least once I pay it off. I'm on a paid plan sorta thing with the realter so I have to work in order to pay for it. But hopefully I can get it all paid off by next year! The place is too good to pass up!"

"That close!? You-..." His heartbeat picked up and a smile perched itself upon his face. "Wow. S-So..We're gonna be neighbors!"

You nodded again despite yourself. It has been a while since you've seen. After all you had to go all the way back to Postwick after just leaving for that date and having to explain to them after a few days rest from traveling that you were moving out and not to worry because you had a place in mind where you would be saying. Which wasn't a hard choice to make. You've been thinking about moving out for a while now for multiple reasons but couldn't find anyplace, that was until Raihan accidentally dropped the place right into your lap. It was PERFECT!! Everything you could want in a property! Luckily everyone was very understanding and you left shortly after saying good bye. Imagine the surprise on the realtor's face when you walked right into the office and asked to buy THAT property no one else wanted. He seemed pretty enthusiastic to be getting it finally sold away though, however there was the problem with payment so it was decided you'd pay a lump sum a month to him until you'd be able to pay it off which should be sometime next year if you were lucky! The only thing that was really missing was getting a job. You considered briefly asking Raihan for help but decided against it considering the guy must've already had a lot on his plate and didn't need this added to it. So instead you went job hunting. Turned out the cafe here was in need of another waitress on staff and were glad to hire you. You were expecting Raihan to show up sometime but hadn't expected him to show up literally on your first day on the job, but you couldn't say it wasn't a pleasant sight. Especially with his cute reaction-

You paused blinking for a moment. Did-...Did you just think of Raihan as cute-

"Hey! This is great!" His genuine smile and happy tone made you look back at him. "Guess this means I'll be able to see a lot more of you around!..Uh." He coughed and cleared his throat face going a little pink despite his still happy smile. " *ahem* Y'know. A f-familiar friendly face and all that's really nice. Someone I can talk too."

"Um." Your face also turned a little pink at the thought of him wanting to see you more. "Yeah! It's gonna be nice to h-have someone as a friend here. D-Do you still wanna order that stuff?"

"Hm? Oh. Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna need those actually....Speaking of food. Y-Y'know." You blinked as he nervously put his hands behind his head and looked off too the side. "Technically because o-of the rain I never actually really g-got to take you OUT-out to dinner. So by default I-I still owe you that. ...I d-don't suppose you'd wanna cash in on that promise? O-Only to talk and catch up with each other of course! H-Haha nothing ro-ro-rom-m-manti-"

"I get off at five thirty," you interrupted him making him pause wide eyed and jaw slightly opened especially when you gave a bashful look of your own to the side. "I'm looking f-forward to our second date."

"......Se-Second d-d-date?" You nodded with a small smile as his stomach dropped more. Second date...As in-...Another date!? WITH HIM!? TODAY!? AT FIVE THIRTY!? "SECOND DATE!?" His loud tone made you jump and blink at him as he looked on in a panic hands grabbing his head now. "I-I-...T-T-That's so soon! I-I haven't planned or talked to the triplets or checked the weather! CRAP!! I haven't gotten to clear my schedule either!" He held his hands to you as he slowly backed up. "D-D-Don't worry! I got everything under control- AH!!" You held up your hands as he tripped over a chair, not looking where he was going, but luckily didn't trip over giving you a nervous thumbs up! "Don't worry! All part of my plan! I-I-I'll see you later tonight! I promise!"

"W-Wait! Aren't you forgetting your order!?"

Your question fell on deaf ears as the excited and panicked gym leader half ran half tripped over himself out the front door. Leaving only the chiming of the bell answering for him.

[chromalogue]

In which I am a brazen fool

Last week was kind of strenuous.  I knew it was going to be. 

Monday was a normal day.

Tuesday evening I was supposed to attend a guest lecture put on by a research centre I'd like to join. 

Wednesday started with an early lecture by a friend, put on by another research centre I'd like to join, on a topic I'm interested in.  Then I had to hop on a bus to the downtown campus for a meeting with an administrative person looking for input from international researchers.  Then dinner with the same colleague from that morning's lecture, plus another colleague who I hadn't met yet but who also has similar research interests. 

Thursday was an evening reception for international postdocs. 

Friday was my 6 AM wakeup and then six solid hours of German class, followed by shopping and laundry. 

And then, because last week was special, wretchedly early on Saturday morning was another four hours of German class to make up for the holiday on Good Friday.

So I already knew I was setting myself up for exhaustion and not getting much done.  My compromise with my sleep disorder, for which my partner and family roundly mock me, is maintaining a fairly strict bedtime between 2:30 and 3:30, which requires something like military discipline for me, because I have to be really exhausted to be anything like tired at that time.  The only way I can manage it is to have near-complete control over my schedule and nothing else at all going on.  But it means I get to work around noon at the earliest, eat a wholesome breakfast in the cafeteria, and am in my office from around 12:30-11 or so.  So, evening events mean sharply curtailed days, and morning ones mean less sleep.  Of course.

And the compromise I've made with my pathologically thorough style of note-taking is that I dictate my notes.  This I started in earnest because the electronic lock on my apartment door used to stick and I gave myself a repetitive strain injury always turning the knob, and spent three months in a tensor bandage.  I continued with it even after typing stopped hurting, because I usually take about thirty pages of notes per hundred pages I read, and dictating that goes a lot faster than typing, even though Microsoft speech-to-text is hilariously terrible and requires hours of correcting afterwards.  So like, one of the things I had to do during these very short workdays was dictate a lot of notes in a very little bit of time.  

Well, the Tuesday lecture ended in a trip to a restaurant, where I enjoyed excellent Italian food and hours of good conversation with people from the research centre.  On Wednesday, the meeting with the administration was catered, with little bites of things in jars with spoons.  I had exactly one hour of rapid-fire dictation before joining my colleagues at the restaurant, where we spent many pleasant hours and I ate my own weight in calamari.  

Thursday was more rapid-fire dictation.  By this time I was exhausted, and my throat was raw, and no wonder.  When I arrived at the reception, a very excellent person asked me how I was doing, and I said that I was astonishingly grumpy for someone with no real problems.  She said she hoped I'd feel better as the evening wore on.  And then there was my supervisor, and beverages, and I took my mask off and drank apple juice out of a wine glass, and ate and drank and stayed to the end, which I didn't think I was going to be able to manage.  And my mood improved, even though I was still tired enough that word-finding was a problem.  

We heard some speeches, although the admin person I'd met the day before was supposed to give the keynote, and she was out sick now.  At one point I wondered if I should put my mask back on, but I'd been eating and drinking in room with all these people for hours anyway, and I didn't want to make them feel uncomfortable.  

On Friday I woke up with my throat even worse, and tried to take a covid test, but the one I'd bought had no liquid in the tube.  (Later, I couldn't remember the German for "liquid"; I told the people at the store that the juice was missing.)  So I put on an FFP2 mask, which here seems to be the equivalent of an N95, and went to my six hours of class.  I tried to minimize the time I spent unmasked.  When the window was open, I took advantage of the time to lift my mask a bit and shove in veggie salami and a bit of cheese.  

I was feeling next-level tired, and my skin was starting to crawl in the way that a fever does.  I picked up the (wrong, it turns out) cleaning disk I'd ordered for the Tassimo I found on the side of the road at the beginning of the month, got a couple more covid tests, and did some grocery shopping.  I bought fruit.  Like, lots and lots of fruit.  Ridiculous amounts.  Blueberries, strawberries, grapefruit, passionfruit, grapes, cherries.  It looked so good.  

The only thing that kept me from melting into a puddle of goo when I got the groceries home was the knowledge that if I didn't get my clothes into the building's washing machine as soon as possible, the person in #5 would put her clothes in.  Also probably the dehydration.  Laundry takes four hours, and ye gods, I did NOT want to prolong that today. 

So I took a covid test--negative--and then grabbed my laundry.  I shoved it all in, waited two hours, and went down to put it in the dryer, telling myself, only two more hours until I can put on jammies and curl up.  Only the dryer was somehow full of #5's laundry, and had an hour and thirty-eight minutes left on the timer.  (And I didn't think the timer went higher than 1:05, which in real time is about 2 hours.)  And I thought about waiting whatever vast span of time 1:38 actually represented to be able to even put my laundry in the dryer, not to mention the two hours beyond that.  And I took my wet clothes, shuffled to the elevator, and went upstairs.  I hung them, quite certain that they would be dry before I was in clothes-wearing condition again.

Then I made myself some nachos, and crashed until about 5:30 in the morning.  E-mailed my supervisor that I wouldn't be able to meet.  Had my class.  Slept some more.  Watched Eurovision.  (AWESOME with a fever; 10/10 would recommend.  Finland was still robbed.)

Sunday I spent sneezing.  Watched a film over Zoom.  

Monday I woke up and the fever was gone.  I felt like I had a bad head cold, but my energy was at about 80%.  Back in the Before Times, this would have meant going to work, but it would be bad form now, so I decided I would go to the office after hours and pick up some things to work on.  

I took a covid test.  It was positive.  

So.  Then I had to e-mail all the people I was with last week, and warn them.  And then I waited until evening, when no one would be in the office.  I'd planned to take the bus if I tested negative, but as it was, I just picked the most secluded path to work, with the fewest stairs, and walked.  I was masked the whole time I was indoors, and anytime I saw anyone on the street outdoors.  I touched as little as I could in the common areas of the building, slathering my hands in sanitizer and opening doors with my elbows.  Got my stuff.  Got home.  Felt better for the walk, frankly. 

Normally I stay masked indoors in public (albeit in a surgical mask, the ones they call IIR here), and only unmask to eat and drink, but with all the catered meetings and dinners last week, that still amounted to something like eleven hours I spent unmasked in the presence of others.  Last week I was feeling sheepish about staying masked as long as I did in front of them; this week I get to e-mail them all and tell them that I've exposed them to a potentially deadly disease through my carelessness.  So far, I haven't heard of anyone getting sick, thank goodness, but I'm still not done.

[jugsjules]

Gotta add, bc I’ve seen multiple versions of this post on my dash but no mention of this—not every work shift is 9-5 standard business hours.

When I was kid my dad worked third shift. He got home from work and stayed up to drop me and my brother off at the bus stop and then he went to sleep. But if one of us was home sick, he had to sacrifice his sleep to stay up and watch us (if he was lucky, it’d just be a joint napfest). The. every weekend he threw is sleep schedule out the window bc otherwise he’d just never see his kids during the day.

By middle school he had a new job as a college locksmith/custodian with hours from 3am to noon. Imagine waking up at 1am for work: you forgot to pack food and can’t cook breakfast bc you’ll wake up the whole house, so you instead settle for stopping for coffee on the way to work. It’s at a bakery that isn’t technically open but its a local business who are cool and more than willing to make a few bucks with anyone with as early hours as a baker. You then do physical labor for several hours before breakfast even opens and you can finally eat. When you finally get home, no one is there bc the kids are at school still, ur wife is at work, so you can do errands but by the time ur ready to pass out, they’re just getting home. So again its either lose sleep or never see your family.

My brother now works second shift factory. If he wants to get errands done during normal business hours he has to wake up early to do it before work. And depending on the appointment, there’s a chance it runs late and makes him late for work, something all the factories in town are huge hardasses about.

I used to work catering—there were no set hours. I might work 6am to noon, or 3pm to 10pm or 6am to 1am the next day. There was no having a “normal” sleep schedule in that job bc there was no regular schedule.

While there are some places that cater to the graveyard shift crowd, they’re all 24/7 stores or diners or late-night bars. But all the laborers who work “odd” hours also deserve easy access to the bank, the doctor’s office, the library, the post office, student-teacher meetings, and they NEED extra support for the way their sleep is gonna be damaged no matter what in an effort to still be present for their families.

Expanding what we think of as “business hours” not only provides more jobs for folks who are better suited to later shifts but also creates a better life for the people already working those hours.

Ok wait let her speak

[yourprivatechef]

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[arhostel]

Comfortable and Safe Girls PG in Greater Noida for a Home-Like Stay

Finding the right place to stay can be challenging, especially for young girls looking for a safe and comfortable environment away from home. If you are searching for a girls PG in Greater Noida, we understand that your top priorities are security, cleanliness, and a homely atmosphere. Our PG offers all this and much more to ensure that every girl feels at home.

Our girls PG in Greater Noida is located in a prime, peaceful, and secure area, making it the perfect place for students and working professionals. With easy access to nearby colleges, offices, and shopping centers, you won’t have to worry about long commutes. Public transport is readily available, and the neighborhood is safe, with 24/7 security to ensure your peace of mind.

When it comes to amenities, we leave no stone unturned. Each room in our girls PG in Greater Noida is designed with comfort in mind. You’ll find spacious, well-furnished rooms with beds, study tables, and wardrobes. We understand how important it is to have a good study environment, so our rooms are designed to be quiet and peaceful, providing the perfect space for studying or relaxing after a long day.

In addition to comfortable living spaces, we offer high-speed Wi-Fi to keep you connected, whether you’re studying, working, or keeping in touch with family and friends. Our PG also provides regular housekeeping, so you don’t have to worry about cleaning or maintaining your room. The shared spaces, such as the kitchen and lounge, are regularly cleaned and well-maintained.

Good food is another priority at our girls PG in Greater Noida. We provide healthy, home-cooked meals three times a day, prepared in a clean, hygienic kitchen. Whether you’re in the mood for a hearty breakfast or a light dinner, our menu is designed to cater to different tastes while ensuring that you always have nutritious options.

Safety is a key concern for us. Our girls PG in Greater Noida is equipped with CCTV surveillance, secure entry systems, and on-site staff available 24/7 to assist in case of any emergency. We also have a strict visitor policy to ensure that all residents feel secure and protected.

We understand that moving away from home can be daunting, especially for young girls. That’s why we work hard to create a friendly, supportive community where everyone feels welcome. The other residents are respectful and friendly, ensuring a positive environment where you can make friends and feel at ease.

Choosing the right girls PG in Greater Noida is an important decision, and we are here to make that process as smooth and stress-free as possible. Whether you are a student or a working professional, our PG is designed to meet all your needs while ensuring that you feel safe, comfortable, and cared for at all times.

If you’re looking for a place that offers all the comforts of home while providing the safety and support you need, look no further. Contact us today to book a room or to schedule a visit to our girls PG in Greater Noida. We would be happy to welcome you to our community!

[rashmi-bhat98]

Choosing the Best Food Service Providers for Your Business: A Complete Guide

Introduction

In today’s fast-paced business environment, choosing the right business catering services is essential for boosting both employee productivity and well-being. Whether you run a small office or a large corporate organization, selecting the best office food suppliers can significantly impact your overall success. From business lunch delivery services to healthy meals for businesses and even office snack delivery, finding a provider that meets your company’s unique needs requires thoughtful consideration. A well-chosen food service partner can ensure your team stays energized and focused, contributing to a more efficient workplace

In this detailed guide, we will take you through the key factors to consider when selecting business meal catering providers for your company. We will also highlight some of the leading commercial food service providers in the industry and address common questions to help you make an informed choice. With the right office food services in place, your team will enjoy nutritious employee meal plans, leading to greater satisfaction, enhanced morale, and improved workplace productivity.

What Are Food Service Providers for Businesses?  Food service providers focus on delivering tailored workplace food solutions to meet the specific needs of businesses. Their offerings range from business lunch catering to event-based services, ensuring that companies have access to flexible options. These providers can manage corporate canteen services, supply pre-packaged meals, and even handle business meal delivery directly to office locations. From breakfast to full-course dinners, their services are designed to accommodate the diverse requirements of any business

Types of Food Service Providers

 Corporate Catering  These companies specialize in delivering meals for corporate events or providing daily meals for office staff through office catering solutions.  Vending Services  Providers offering office snack delivery and drink options to business premises ensure convenient access to refreshments throughout the workday. These corporate meal providers supply vending solutions that keep employees energized and satisfied, contributing to a more productive office environment.  On-Demand Delivery  Business meal delivery services are designed specifically for companies, offering fast and reliable meal options to ensure employees receive their meals on time, enhancing convenience and productivity in the workplace.  Cafeteria Management  Companies that provide corporate cafeteria services oversee on-site cafeterias, offering comprehensive solutions that include menu planning, staffing, and food preparation to meet the dining needs of employees effectively.

 Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Food Service Provider

Quality of Food  The most important consideration is the quality of food offered by business food vendors. It is vital to ensure that corporate dining services provide nutritious and flavorful meals that cater to the preferences of your employees. To evaluate quality, consider visiting potential corporate catering companies for a tasting session or requesting sample menus. This hands-on approach will help you determine if their offerings align with your workplace needs

Variety of Menu  Businesses typically have a diverse workforce, and employees may require various dietary options, such as vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and halal. Quality corporate meal program providers ensure their menus are diverse enough to meet all these preferences. When selecting corporate event catering, it’s important to choose a provider that can accommodate a wide range of dietary needs to ensure everyone is well-served.

Flexibility in Service  The perfect commercial meal supplier should offer the flexibility to manage last-minute changes or adjust to varying meal schedules. Whether your business requires daily meals, business lunch catering, or even weekend services, commercial food service providers must be able to adapt to your company's specific needs and demands for seamless service.

Budget Considerations  While providing quality food is essential, staying within budget is just as important. When discussing terms with a premier food service provider, make sure their pricing matches your company’s financial goals. It's crucial that business catering services offer value without sacrificing the quality of meals to meet both your budget and employee satisfaction.

Sustainability and Environmental Impact  Sustainability is gaining significance for businesses today. Selecting office food suppliers that prioritize sustainable sourcing, eco-friendly packaging, and minimizing food waste can boost your company’s reputation. When considering business lunch delivery services or business food vendors, focusing on their commitment to sustainability can further align your organization with environmentally responsible practices.

Health and Safety Standards  Health and safety are paramount when choosing business meal catering providers. It's essential that they adhere to local food safety regulations and maintain strict hygiene standards. This includes regular sanitation of food preparation areas and proper storage and transportation of meals. Whether you're offering healthy meals for businesses or managing an employee cafeteria, ensuring these practices are followed is crucial for the well-being of your staff.

Customer Service  A reliable provider of office food services delivers exceptional customer service. From promptly addressing inquiries to efficiently managing any issues, they should maintain a professional demeanor throughout the partnership. Whether you're utilizing corporate cafeteria services or corporate dining services, excellent communication and service are key to ensuring a smooth and successful collaboration.

Experience and Reputation  Evaluate the provider’s experience and standing in the industry by researching their background. Check testimonials, reviews, and case studies from previous clients to assess their reliability and performance in delivering quality workplace food solutions. This is especially important when considering corporate meal program providers or a premier food service provider, as their reputation for consistency and excellence is key to meeting your business’s food service needs.

Top Food Service Providers for Businesses

Compass Group  Compass Group is one of the world's leading corporate catering companies, offering an extensive range of services, including business meal catering and corporate dining solutions. With a strong emphasis on sustainable sourcing and innovative approaches, they are a preferred choice for businesses of all sizes looking for top-tier catering services.

Sodexo  Sodexo is widely recognized for delivering tailored food services across multiple industries, including healthcare, education, and corporate sectors. Their commitment to providing healthy meals for businesses and offering flexible business lunch catering solutions, combined with a focus on nutrition and sustainability, makes them a top choice for companies seeking customized catering services.

Aramark  Aramark is a leader in providing top-tier food services, with a strong emphasis on wellness and nutrition. They offer comprehensive office catering solutions, including employee cafeteria management and corporate cafeteria services, delivering a wide range of options to meet the needs of businesses and their employees.

Cater2.me  For businesses seeking local, artisanal food options, Cater2.me connects companies with nearby vendors and food trucks, providing exceptional business meal delivery and personalized corporate dining services for a unique dining experience.

FAQs

What is the role of a food service provider?  A food service provider specializes in managing the preparation, delivery, and serving of meals for businesses. As leading corporate meal providers, they cater to corporate events and daily meals, offering exceptional corporate cafeteria services to ensure employees have consistent access to high-quality food.

How do I choose the right food service provider for my business?  When evaluating corporate catering companies, consider essential factors such as food quality, menu variety, service flexibility, budget, sustainability, and health standards. Additionally, look for providers that offer tailored employee meal plans and have a proven track record within your industry to ensure you make the best choice for your organization.

Can food service providers accommodate special dietary needs?  Indeed, many commercial food service providers offer tailored menus that accommodate various dietary preferences, including vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and more, ensuring that all guests have suitable options to enjoy..

What is the average cost of food service for a business?  The cost of employee meal plans can vary based on factors such as the number of employees, frequency of service, and the type of food offered. It’s advisable to request quotes from multiple providers to compare pricing effectively, including options for office snack delivery.

How often should I review my food service provider's performance?  Conducting regular reviews, ideally every six months or annually, is recommended to ensure that your corporate canteen service providers continue to meet your business's needs regarding quality, service, and cost. This practice is also crucial for evaluating business lunch delivery services to ensure they align with your expectations.

Conclusion  Selecting the right food service providers for business is crucial for enhancing employee satisfaction and productivity. By evaluating factors such as food quality, menu variety, flexibility, and sustainability, you can identify a provider that aligns with your specific needs. Whether you’re looking for healthy meals for businesses, business meal delivery, or office catering solutions, it’s essential to ensure that the services offered meet your expectations. Regularly reviewing your provider's performance is also vital to guarantee they continue to excel in delivering outstanding service. With the ideal partner, your organization will benefit from delicious and nutritious meals that keep employees motivated and energized, supported by excellent business lunch catering and corporate cafeteria services.

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