#but I found a book I got last year on machine knitting for 5$

[viciousewe]

ITS HAPPENING

(Pay no mind to the corpses of previous attempts on the lower right.)

[confessions-official]

I just realized that the adhd stereotype of a million projects going on and none of them getting finished is definitely true for me. I decided to clean my room last night (which didn't end up happening) and found 30 yards of tulle fabric from when I started making a petticoat, 15 broken monster high dolls from when I used to repaint them, my knitting needles, my crochet hooks, a tangle of yarn that was going to be a scarf, the computer I got for my birthday to start learning Unity and haven't touched in 6 months, my watercolors and old paintings, my acrylics for the unfinished mural I made on the basement wall, my embroidery hoop, my scrap book, my journal that I stopped writing in 5 years ago, the water bubbler I bought for the hermit crabs I never bought, and my currently broken sewing machine.

.

[pbandjesse]

My whole body and legs are aching so bad. I know I don't walk as much as I used to but man. It's ridiculous how much all the walking today took me out.

It was a very good day though!! It was full and fun and just so good. I slept alright. And woke up in a good mood. James made the bed and watered the plants while I got dressed and very soon we were leaving for work together.

It was fun being back at the museum for real. Like yes I've been around but I haven't given a tour in months. And today was good. I only gave a partial tour but it was still a lot of fun.

We stopped and picked up breakfast and I didn't check and was very disappointed when I went to eat my sandwich later and it was just meat in an English muffin. Like I ate the muffin stuff but I was bummed.

But everything else was good. I would give my partial tour, to a very nice woman who just started working at the Walters. And she was great. Lots of questions and while I wasn't able to give a perfect answer every time, but she was fun to talk too.

It wasn't a busy day and no one else would ask for a tour. I would wander around and take to people. And turn on machines. I also just went around and found all the light bulbs that needed to be changed and found some issues (like two buckets of water just sitting in the blacksmith area, probably used for quenching but Bob isn't going to be here for 8 weeks so this just seemed like a bad idea) and that felt productive.

I was also proud of myself for finished my book today! The one I was reading the other week and it had like a very sad but hopeful ending. Like yes people die, things change, but the world keeps going and there is still good in it. And that was nice. I for sure would have made some changes about certain things but overall I really liked it. I am looking forward to starting the next book on my list though. Something less romantic.

I would give James a little break and they went to get us lunch since my sandwich didn't work out. I chatted with Jessica about the upcoming school year. I'm excited to be back.

We did have one guest today who James did not want to connect with people they kept referring to Baltimore as a 'dead city ' and that upset that. But a couple came in and James was able to have a whole conversation in Spanish with them and that brightened them up.

We finished up the day and headed out. Jessica and Beth were leaving just as we were and they hoped we would have fun at the state fair. And while I was a little worried about being hot, I was really excited to go.

We drove home and cleaned up. I found our metro cards for the train and finally activated my new credit card. That I've had for 6 months. I have tap now! Neat!

And then we were off. We got confused and missed the first train. But the other came really quick. And we rode it until the last stop at the fairgrounds.

We got there just as it opened at 5. I had been worried about coming on Thursday but for real this was the best time to go?? No lines!! At all! We could walk around and see everything and no one was crowding around. It was awesome. Like yes I was a little to hot but I had the best time.

Highlights: I got to pet piglets! The mommy pig was also sweet and let me pet her snoot. We got to see some piggy races. We ate good food. James got a corn dog and fried tomatoes, I got a grilled cheese that had local made ingredients. We shared a root bear. I loved seeing the flowers and the hand made items. And I spoke to a woman who was sitting there tatting and she said they are going to add loom knitting into the fair next year and I could submit my temperature blanket. And she also encouraged me to keep practicing tatting. I may submit a whole bunch of stuff, or spend next year making stuff for the next year's fair just to have a goal. I also noticed there were teddy bears but they all had the same tight together eye look and I was like. Why do they all look like this? Maybe I'll enter a bear as well. I'm excited by this new prospect.

I really loved getting to go in the parakeet cage and having all the birds flying around me. And James found a whole display about the negro baseball leagues in Baltimore. While they were reading that I went and looked at the balloon display and talk the the Catholics because they were giving away prayer cards. So I told them about my dad and asked for something that would help bring my parents comfort in a hard time. And she suggested the untier of knots, which is Mary and I always liked Mary even if I don't have the like MOM connection some people seem too. And really dad can use any help he can get at this point.

We would wander around and laugh at stuff and see animals and it was great. But I was starting to lose steam because my feet hurt real bad and I had been in the sun to long. So James took me home.

We got the train almost right away. The walk home from the stop was tough but we made it without me falling apart. And I would take a shower and that helped me a lot. I didn't feel as much like I was going to fall down. James rubbed my legs and got the knit out of my calf. And I hope putting my legs up help them feel better for tomorrow.

I had a leftover piece of pizza and James got down some of our Halloween decorations. And now I have a pumpkin build a bear. And I am very much ready to go to sleep.

Tomorrow I have jury duty. I'm excited. I hope it's an interesting day. And I hope you all have a good night. Take care of yourself. Sleep good!!

[mmvalentine]

Home is Where You Are pt 5 | Feysand

Girl next door AU. CW: Tamlin DV times under the cut. It gets better though, there's HEAPS of fluff that follows I promise!! Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 6

Rhys and Feyre stayed up talking for a little bit, Rhys poured her a glass of brandy and tried not to say too much as she recounted the night's events.

They had gotten into a fight. Tamlin had gotten angry. He was always angry, these days. Tamlin threw a desk, and knocked Feyre to the ground. An accident, just an accident.

"And... him controlling your food intake?" "Not an accident," Feyre admitted. "It started out as meal plans, when he was my personal trainer. And then we were dieting together, because he had done all this research. Then it was just me. I don't know where I lost control of it, I just stopped having opinions one day." She laughed, bitterly. "Not like me at all." "It's hard to form coherent thoughts when you're starving all the time," Rhys said.

Bottom line, Feyre had done it. Gave him back the ring and everything. There was a part of Rhys that was relieved but he also felt awful for having let it get this far. For not stepping in earlier.

"I should have said something," he told her. "You did," Feyre said. "I didn't listen." She pulled her feet up under her.

"It's just, I never had anyone look after me, you know? Not since I was thirteen. So, when Tamlin came along, and he dictated my exercise schedule and cooked my meals, it was nice. For once I wasn't the one running after everyone else. I guess I became afraid to leave.

"Until he threw a table and I remembered telling you that Tamlin wasn't your father. I was sort of right. Tamlin didn't even have to be drunk to start throwing furniture. I shouldn't have stayed so long."

Rhys slid a little closer to her and made sure she was looking into his eyes. "It is not your fault that this happened," he said. "This is no one's fault but Tamlin's."

In the weeks that followed, Feyre bounced back at a rate that had Rhys marveling at the strength of her. She was quiet the first couple of days, and mostly stayed in her room. But Rhys would come invite her to taste what he was cooking, or watch what was on Netflix, or give an opinion on the magazine piece he was working on. The bruise on her cheek faded, she gained weight back little by little, and then one day Rhys came home to find her humming in the kitchen while she made spaghetti and he wanted to pick her up in his arms and spin her around the room.

Instead, he settled for sitting on a bar stool and letting her bring a spoonful of sauce to his lips, while wearing the biggest, goofiest grin he had ever had. "Good?" Feyre asked. "Amazing," Rhys said, and when she beamed at him it knocked the breath out of him. "Excellent. Give me like, ten minutes and then come eat." Rhys raised his eyebrows. "You're cooking me dinner?" he asked. "I am. Now go take a shower and put on your comfy pants, because I made so much garlic bread."

Rhys didn't move. Feyre put the ladle back in the pot, wiped her hands on a tea towel, then realised he was staring at her. "What?" she asked. Her blue-gray eyes went wide, and a wisp of hair fell into her face. She had her curls piled on top her her head, beautiful and shiny again now that she was eating, and she was wearing a knitted, over-sized sweated that was rolled up at the sleeves and somehow looked incredible on her.

"Feyre Archeron you are a wonder," Rhys said. Feyre grinned. "Why thank you, Rhysie darling." She flicked the tea towel at him. "Now get, my garlic bread is burning." Ten minutes later, Rhys sat at a small, round table in sweat pants and a black sweater. It was the table from his balcony, but since it was raining out, Feyre had dragged it inside and draped a table cloth over it. She fussed around him, setting everything on the table and slapping his hands when he tried to help. Finally, she sat down opposite him, and the table was so small their knees knocked together.

"And just what is the occasion here?" Rhys asked. Feyre's cheeks were rosy from standing over the stove, and then rushing around the table. She smiled at him, and then took a deep breath.

"I just wanted to say, thank you. For giving me a place no one could find me. For seeing me. For reminding me that carbs exist!" She grinned. "For-" "Don't," Rhys cut her off. "Don't thank me for doing the bare minimum for you. After everything you've been though, you amaze me every day with how strong you are." "Well," Feyre said, "if you can survive after your dad..." Her face changed then. Her mouth got sad, but her eyes were bright. "I can survive after Tamlin." She raised her wine glass.

"Fuck those abusive shit heads," she said. Rhys picked up his glass. "Fuck yeah."

Then Feyre smiled again, and Rhys had no idea how he was going to get through dinner if she kept doing that.

"Okay eat up!" she said, and he laughed into his wine as he watched her twirl and then devour an enormous mouthful of spaghetti. A fucking wonder indeed.

Over the next six months they settled into an easy routine. Feyre was at the studio three days a week, and also started a kick boxing class with another woman she had met in her therapy group. Rhys started to wish his days away so he could get home and watch Feyre bounce around the apartment. He had never particularly enjoyed being there, but these days he couldn't wait to get home.

They cooked together on the weekends, and watched TV on the couch on week nights. At first, Rhys had been very careful about being in her personal space, since he remembered hating to be touched for years after his father had died. But Feyre seemed so comfortable around him. She would grab his arm when she thought of something funny to tell him, or smack him when he teased her, or lean against him when she started to doze in front of the television. After she started her class, she would practice her kick-boxing moves on him, and once accidentally hurt him more than she had meant to. It had been utterly, completely worth it.

They never outright discussed how long she would stay. Early on, Feyre had mentioned apartment hunting. But Rhys had just shrugged. "It's rent controlled here," he said. "And I'm paying for that room whether you're in it or not. Stay as long as you like."

So little pieces of Feyre started to appear all around the house. Her toiletries in the kitchen cabinet, stray hair ties on the bench top, her favourite biscuits in the cupboard. Once, he had come home and she had a row of underwear hanging up over the balcony. He had almost had a conniption at the thought of her in lace.

It was a thought he buried, hard. The last thing he wanted was to have told Feyre that she could come and be safe here, and then make a move less than a year after her broken engagement. If she wanted a quiet life here with him, that would absolutely be enough.

Although, some days were harder than others. The thoughts could be shoved aside, but he had no control over the way his body reacted to her. To her barefoot in the morning and rubbing sleep from her eyes. To her stretching in the living room before a run. God, one time the washing machine broke and she had nothing to wear, so she borrowed one of his shirts to wear to bed. It was almost cruel.

One day, Rhys had worked late and by the time he was home, Feyre had fallen asleep in front of the TV. He turned the screen off, then squatted down and gazed at her resting face. Her perfect, rose petal lips were slightly parted, she had a frown, and was muttering under her breath.

"Feyre," he whispered. "Feyre we've got to get you to bed." "Rhys," she murmured. He thought she was waking up. "Yes honey, it's just me." Then she moaned his name. "Rhys, don't stop." What? "Mm, right there, don't stop."

Rhys stood up so fast he nearly tripped over the coffee table. The sound of his heel kicking the wood had Feyre startling awake.

"Rhys?" she asked. He had to double check her eyes were actually open this time. When he was sure, he sat down carefully on the table.

"Hello," he said. "I'm sorry to wake you." "It's okay," Feyre frowned. "We were just... I was dreaming." Rhys chuckled. "I know. You fell asleep on the couch. Do you want to go to bed?" Feyre's eyes popped open wide. "What?!" Then she relaxed. "Oh. Right. Yes, I should, ah..." she looked at him then, and blushed. Very deeply. "I should go to bed."

And with that, she wandered off, leaving Rhys completely dazed and not just a little turned on.

Two days later, Rhys woke up on a Saturday and had trudged out to make some coffee. Feyre was already up, sitting at the counter reading a book. He turned on the machine, yawned, and stretched while waiting for it to do its thing. He hadn't worn a shirt to bed, and the morning chill sent shivers along his bare skin.

Then he glanced over, and found Feyre staring at him. Glassy eyed, parted lips, naked staring. And not at his face, either. A feline grin stretched itself over Rhys' lips.

"Good book, Feyre darling?" She jumped sightly. "Ah, yes," she said. "Very... very good." She slid off her stool. "I'd better get ready, kick boxing, you know." "Sure," Rhys said, still grinning. She slipped away, without making eye contact. Rhys poured his coffee.

Five minutes later, Feyre emerged wearing the tiniest pair of exercise shorts he had ever seen. He almost spat his drink.

"Well," she said brightly. "I'm headed off. Might go by the shops later, do you need anything?"

Now it was Rhys' turn to struggle. He shook his head. "Have fun," he managed. Feyre flashed him a dazzling smile. "Thanks!" she said, and bounced out the door.

Oh. Oh he was in trouble.

****

That's right folks, you have made it through the angst and I am now burying you in fluff. Nothing brings me greater joy except smut.

I apologise for the length and for squishing 6 months into this one chapter. It was originally two separate chapters, but I felt like I was undercutting you in the fluff department and I didn't want to break my promise. I kept the original pacing on my ao3.

As always please let me know what you think!!

TAGLIST: @ghostlyrose2 @highladysith @stardelia @feysand-babies @tillyrubes10 @ratabrasileira @live-the-fangirl-life @maybekindasortaace @annejulianneh111 @asteria-of-mars@booksmusicandgoodvibes @burritowithfeels

[suckmysupernatural]

Sunshine - Chapter 5

Series Masterlist

Word Count: 1810

Pairing: Sam x OC Sunny

Series Summary: The Winchesters meet a cheerful hunter named Sunny, who quickly captures Sam’s attention. Little do any of them know what lies in store when Sunny gets invited to join the brothers. Who can say how Sam, Dean, and Sunny will be some training days, a handful of hunts, romantic dates, a kidnapping, and one vengeful demon later.

Chapter Summary: Sunny and the Winchesters find a case.

Warnings: language

-------------------------------------

“Hey, Sunny. We found a case. You want to come?” Sam offered as he walked into the library. Sunny had been immersed in a book of zombie lore but hearing the word ‘case’ caught her attention. 

“Yes! Yeah, yes yes!” Sunny answered excitedly. Sam laughed, nodding.

“Okay, we leave in 10. Pack for a few days,” Sam said. He left to go to the kitchen, leaving Sunny to hustle to her room. She grabbed her empty duffel bag from under the bed, shoving some clothes into the bag. She made sure to put a mix of hunting clothes and a couple of nicer outfits in case they went undercover. Sunny walked up to her nightstand, looking fondly at the photos that sat there. 

“I’ll see you guys later,” she smiled, kissing two of her fingers before touching each photo. This was a ritual that Sunny had set in place soon after her family had died. While she knew that her family was gone for good, she couldn’t help but talk to them sometimes. There were times when she would just talk to her sister about the hot guy at the bar or telling her dad a joke. It brought Sunny comfort. 

Reaching the Impala, she saw Dean on the driver’s side, waiting for her and Sam. Sunny looked around for Sam, but he must still be packing. Laughing to herself, she hopped into the passenger seat for the first time. Dean looked over and laughed.

“Sammy won’t be happy about this,” Dean pointed out. 

“Well, now he gets the pleasure of staring at me the whole trip,” Sunny winked. It was then that Sam walked into the garage. He approached the passenger side and stopped, surprised to see his seat taken. Sunny rolled the window down, looking up at him. “Hello, can I help you?” 

“Wow,” Sam said in mock offense, “how dare you.” Sunny giggled as Sam made his way into the backseat. Dean turned to face his brother, one arm resting on the back of the bench seat. 

“Www-chhhhh,” Dean mimicked the motion of a whip. Sunny gave Dean a small shove, trying to hide a laugh. Sam simply rolled his eyes at his brother’s teasing. He was used to it. Dean turned to face forward, reversing the car out of the garage. Sunny bent down to pick up the Impala’s cassette collection. She looked through the titles, smiling when she found one that had been shoved to the bottom. She slid it into the player and turned up the volume.

It didn’t take long for the familiar upbeat electric guitar to flow through the car’s speakers. Dean was already speeding down the road but the music broke his focus. He whipped his head to look at Sunny as the lyrics started.

What I want, you've got 

But it might be hard to handle

Like the flame that burns the -

Before the first verse could even finish, Dean pressed the eject button. He kept eye contact with Sunny as he rolled down the window, grabbed the cassette, and chucked it out of the car. 

“Dean -” Sunny started to complain but was quickly interrupted.

“NO HALL & OATES IN BABY,” Dean yelled. He reached into the box of tapes, pulling one out at random. Soon the tunes of AC/DC filled the car. Sam and Sunny sat in shock at first before bursting into laughter. Dean quickly joined them, chuckling as he continued onto the highway. 

“Okay, so what is the case boys?” Sunny asked, her eyes shifting between the brothers. 

“Blair, Nebraska. We already have six bodies waiting for us in the city’s morgue. They have all been brutally murdered, some were stabbed while others had their neck snapped.” Sam explained.

“Couldn’t this just be a serial killer?” Sunny asked. 

“At first, it looked that way. But for a couple of the victims, their families have described a rotten egg smell in the home. One had even been visited by an electrician that morning after complaining that the lights in her home had been flickering even after replacing the light bulbs,” Sam gave a knowing look at Sunny.

“So we’ve got ourselves a demon,” Sunny said.

“Yep, one with an anger management problem it seems.” 

------------------

The drive to Blair, Nebraska was relatively short. Within four hours they had arrived at the city’s only motel. It was small, with only about a dozen rooms. The three checked in, only getting one room. Sam and Sunny had discussed it and decided to share a bed on hunting trips. They weren’t sharing one back at the bunker, but Sam felt better knowing that Sunny was in the same room when there was a dangerous monster roaming about. He knew that she was an incredible hunter, maybe even better than him, but didn’t want to take the risk. That was fine by Sunny as she liked knowing that Sam was safe as well. 

Going into the room, they all quickly changed into their FBI gear. They were all wearing suits by the time they had climbed back into the Impala. Sunny wasn’t a big fan of her gray pantsuit, wishing she could wear something brighter instead; she knew that neutral colors were best if she wanted to be taken seriously. 

-----------------------------------

“Please tell me that you guys got some info on this demon,” Dean groaned as he flopped onto the motel bed. They had decided early on to split up, each covering two of the victim’s families. Each hunter got barely any information that could lead to the motive behind these murders. None of them had any major successes within the last ten years, so a demon deal was quickly eliminated from the list. 

“So I have a pediatric surgeon who recently gave a pro bono surgery to a child with cancer and a high school football coach with a nicotine addiction and a tendency to sleep with cheerleaders,” Sunny told the boys. 

“The older woman, Marge, volunteered at her church and had a book club. I also met the very distraught mother of the dead teenager. He was constantly in trouble and his browsing history was filled with porn,” Sam stated. Dean raised his eyebrows in approval at the mention of the teen’s pornography habits.

“I got the woman that ran the non-profit and knit caps for newborn babies and a man who had a bad gambling debt. Like 100,000 dollars worth of debt,” Dean said dully. There wasn’t much to go on and the boys thought that they had hit a roadblock. That was until Sunny spoke up.

“Wait guys, I think I found a pattern. We have three women who were giving and kind, amazing people. Then we have three guys that are on the bad side of things,” Sunny said. The boys’ faces lit up in understanding. 

“So, sinners and saints?” Sam asked, looking at the other two. 

“It’s weird but we’ve seen weirder,” Dean pointed out. Sam nodded in agreement.

“So tomorrow, we just research what? Awesome women and shitty men?” Sam asked.

“Sounds hard to narrow down,” Sunny laughed. Both of the brothers looked at her as if they were deeply offended. It didn’t last long, with both guys agreeing. The three of them got ready for bed, deciding to call it a night. They had been working all day and tomorrow would likely be the same.

Dean fell asleep quickly, his snores filling the motel room. The sound was like a white noise machine was playing so Sunny and Sam weren’t bothered by it. It wasn’t long until they were also in deep sleep, their cuddling keeping them warm throughout the night.

------------------------------

“Rise and Shine, lovers!” Dean yelled out from the foot of the bed that Sam and Sunny were sharing. They both groaned at the older brother, Sam throwing a pillow at him. “Hey, Woah. Is that any way to treat the man who got you coffee?”

Sam shot out of bed, quickly grabbing the cup from Dean’s hand. The brothers both shared a slight caffeine addiction, using coffee to get through the day. Sunny, on the other hand, often preferred tea. Dean had remembered that fact and handed her a cup of Earl Grey.

“Thanks, Dean,” Sunny inhaled the enticing aroma. Dean sat down on his bed, looking at the other two hunters.

“So, how do we find the next victims?” Dean asked. It was a question that none of them truly knew the answer to. 

“Um… maybe we can just ask around town? See what the gossip is?” Sunny offered. She wished that there was something more concrete, but this was all they had at the moment. 

“Yeah, I guess. I’ll check out the police station, see if they have any repeat offenders,” Dean said. 

“Okay, Sunny and I will look for some do-gooders,” Sam shrugged. Dean nodded, going to the bathroom to get ready. It didn’t take long, putting on the fed suit once again because he was going to the police station. Sunny and Sam, on the other hand, got to dress casually. Sunny was glad to leave behind the pantsuit, trading it in for a light blue, knee-length sundress with buttons down the front and pockets. 

“Wow, you are beautiful,” Sam said at the sight of her. She could feel a blush crawling up her cheeks as she gave him a large grin.

“Why, thank you,” Sunny gave a small curtsy. Sam laughed, offering his hand for her to take. The two, now hand-in-hand, left the motel room to walk towards the town’s center. The city was small so they would be fine without a car. In fact, Sunny found it rather enjoyable. The sun was shining down on them, the slight breeze keeping them from overheating. 

It was difficult to focus on the case at hand as both were distracted by one another. Sam couldn’t think of a time that he was this happy. Looking down at her, he couldn’t believe his luck. Her eyes were closed, letting the sun wash over her face and trusting Sam to guide her. He was in awe of Sunny, how she takes something as small as the sun on her face and lets it fill her with joy. Her eyes fluttered open to meet Sam’s.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing, I was just thinking about how I am the luckiest man alive,” Sam said matter-of-factly. Sunny let out a giggle that made his heart skip a beat.

“Okay, Mr. Luck. We gotta focus up, finish this case and I’ll show you just how lucky you are,” Sunny winked and gave his hand a squeeze. Sam’s eyebrows raised, his tongue darting out to lick his lips. 

“Let’s get to work then,” Sam said with determination as he increased his pace. Sunny laughed as she attempted to catch up with him and his long legs.

Chapter 6 ->

[doc-pickles]

it’s nothing funny just to talk (p. 1)

What happens when you text that random number graffitied on a bathroom stall in your favorite bar? Jo Wilson is about to find out. - In which Bar Princess and Doctor Evil Spawn meet via text.

More Jolex on your timeline because y’all seemed to love what I posted before! Also I’ve posted this whole piece on AO3 as well so it might look familiar.  

this idea came to me in a fever dream and i am not sorry that y'all have to deal with it. 99% of this fic will be in "texting" format, so be prepared for that. 

Jo is regular Alex is italics

Saturday 11:04 PM

heeeeey is thiss doctor evil?

I gotta say ur phone sex namee needs sum weerk

u soud like a comic book village 

fuck

village

VILLAIN

Who the hell is this? And how did you get my number? 

i’m just a girl at thee bar!!!! 

Joe’s Bar?

noooooo

i’m at enerlad city bar

You didn’t answer my question. 

u asked a quesitoon?

whata was it?

i’m goos at takifjg tests 

How’d you get my number?

it qas in the bathrooom!!!

it said “for a good tiem txt dr evil spawne” 

so I did

I am ready to havee fun

You’re drunk, obviously, and I’m going to have to kill Cristina for putting my number up. 

ooooooh is thatt ur girleifnd?

hirlefiend 

girlfriend**

Wow you’re really gone. And hell no, she’s my roommate. One of them. 

ooooh how many do u hav

roomees not girlfriends 

Three. Two girls and a dude. 

intereeesting...

well it’s tome for fireball shoots

steph is yeeling at me 4 txting too much

goodbey doctor eviel apawn!!

Oh lord. Tell Steph you need water. Or an IV. 

I’ve got her. she’s throwing up on her shoes. thanks doctor. - steph

  Sunday 10:11 AM

You know you’re pretty funny, Bar Girl. 

jesus christ what fucking time is it?! 

10 AM

I’m assuming you have a massive hangover. 

hold on I can’t hear you over the sound of me vomiting

TMI as the kids say these days. 

what’re you a grandpa or something?? 

No I just don’t know how to use text lingo. Except WTF. I know that one very well. 

quick question

who the fuck are you?

Dr. Evil Spawn. You found my name graffitied in the bathroom of Emerald City Bar. 

holy shit

I thought I dreamed that... WHAT THE FUCK

Nope. I’m real. 

holy shit i’m so sorry

my texts were so annoying

Who hurt you? I mean you were shitfaced, I’m assuming someone broke your heart into tiny pieces. 

the opposite actually, I was at a bachelorette party

not mine, i’m so single it hurts

Ahhh that makes sense. So you got shitfaced in solidarity? 

exactly you get it

you seem like you’d be the DD at a bachelorette party

Well seeing as I’m a dude I don’t do Bachelorette parties. 

Well I did go to one, but that’s a different story.  

hmmm you seem like a very interesting man doctor evil spawn 

going to bachelorette parties, living with women who aren’t your girlfriend 

OMG ARE YOU DATING THE GUY YOU LIVE WITH?!

George? No absolutely not. And before you ask, my other girl roommate is gay. 

so you’re single?

i’m only asking so when you murder me the police have as much information as possible

Haha very funny. I would be a terrible murderer. 

you didn’t answer my question

Fine. Yes I’m single. 

i’ll note that in the “serial killer file” i’m building 

gotta go, I have to do work :/

Have fun, don’t die. 

  Sunday 8:38 PM

Arizona is trying to set me up on a blind date. 

who’s arizona?

My gay roommate. She wants me to meet this “bubbly blonde” she knows from her pilates class. 

ahhhh. why don’t you go?

Bubbly blonde is not my type. Sounds like she’ll spend the whole date talking about how much she loves dogs or her knitting hobby. 

Plus she does pilates, that tells me more than enough. 

you’re making some good points. I don’t pity you. 

You better not. How was work?

the longest day of my life

it was just paperwork, I don’t actually work on the weekends

What do you do?

hmmmm that’s exactly what a serial killer would say

i’m an elementary school teacher

Oh so you sing and dance and paint pictures all day?

what school did you go to?

were working on multiplication tables and basic photosynthesis tomorrow

Wow that sounds like a lot.

it’s may, ive got three weeks of school left so I have to cram all the crap we didn’t cover into these last few weeks 

Ahhh that sounds more accurate.

and what do you do? 

besides text strangers that you don’t know

I’m a pediatrician. 

oh so you make kids cry and wipe snotty noses all day? two can play at that game

Well we both have to deal with snotty noses sooo...

I GET IT!! Doctor Evil Spawn!! 

why evil spawn though? 

I wasn’t this nice when I started med school. My personality is an acquired taste. 

ha! that’s a funny joke. 

so if you’re a fancy schmancy doctor why do you live with three other people?

I’m only a resident, not making the big bucks yet. Everyone else is a doctor too. 

are they all pediatricians?

No. Arizona is too but Cristina is a cardiologist and George is a trauma specialist. 

interesting!! I too live with my coworkers. it’s not fun. 

the table is always covered in craft supplies. 

Well I can never read the grocery list on the fridge. Stupid doctors script...

oh that’s a classic. you’re pretty funny Dr. Evil Spawn

Thanks Bar Girl. 

I gotta go. monday tomorrow and you know how fourth graders can be. night!! 

Night . 

  Monday 9:47 AM

there’s not enough coffee in the world for monday mornings. 

  Monday 10:52 AM 

Sorry I was yelling at the interns. We have a decent coffee cart here. Keeps me alive. Are you texting in class?

no it was recess

now they’re at spanish class

i’m not totally irresponsible 

Oh good to know the future of America is in good hands. Teacher Princess is “not totally irresponsible”

teacher princess?

Well, Cinderella lost her shoe, you puked on yours. Same thing. 

wooooooooow

that was so uncalled for...

I thought it was funny. Gotta go set a broken arm. 

broken arm vs. adverbs... can we switch? have fun lol

  Monday 3:26 PM

I don’t even think I know what an adverb is. 

how did you become a doctor??

Don’t need to know adverbs to fix a couple broken bones and snuffy noses. 

oh darn I should’ve gone to school for seven more years then

Haha. How were the adverbs?

better than expected, grading papers while I wait for my roomies to be done

we carpool, saving the environment and shit

Okay Eco Warrior.

you text like a 60 year old man

you’re not a 60 year old man are you?

No I’m a 28 year old man though

28 a doctor and you’re single? your personality must be worse than you described 

I’m a busy man, I don’t have time to settle down. And I have no desire to. 

yet you have time to text a complete stranger? 

hmmmm interesting...

Ouch, that one hurt Princess. 

steph is making me socialize with the other teachers

if I don’t respond, they killed me or dragged me to an essential oil party

Hahahaha

  Monday 5:18 PM

Did you get roped into a pyramid scheme?

nooo but therew as wine

I should sotp drunk texting you so often 

It makes your presence that much more entertaining. And bearable. 

woah woah dude

i’m a gem 

I can tell. Elementary school teacher with a heart of gold. 

awwww your too sweet tome

It’s a Monday. Who the hell gets drunk on a Monday?

teachers

we deserve it

You’re a teacher and you’re single and still going to Bachelorette parties. You’re what, 23? 

i’m 25 and i’m doing greta thanks you very nuch 

cnat believe that i’m supplying my perosnal info to a serial killer

What makes you so sure that I’m a mass murderer? 

ur weird nickname and ur intimate knowledge of the himan body

Mmm yes well a good amount of women do find themselves screaming around me often. Or under me. On top of me...

omg are you sending me dirty jokes

you’re crazy 

What can I say. 

Gotta go, I’m on call tonight. Get to bed safe, Bar Princess. 

mmmkay thanks Doc

  Wednesday 11:29 AM

What do you think is worse: School lunch or hospital food?

hospital food, no doubt

thursday is mac and cheese day here... I could bathe in that stuff

We have Spaghetti Wednesday but that’s the only good thing here. 

mmm how depressing

the teachers do a pot luck once a month and that’s always good

the art teacher next door to me makes the BEST blueberry muffins. 

Lucky. All I get here is vending machine cookies. Anything interesting happening in the elementary world? 

a first grader got lice last week so naturally we all have it now

I had to chop off six inches of my hair

Holy crap. Lice can be vicious, be thankful you didn’t have to shave your head. 

it feels like I did, my hair hasn’t been above my shoulders since the backstreet boys were still touring

Wow. I’m glad to know you’re well cultured. 

of course I am

gotta go, kids are back from music class

Don’t be too hard on them, they deserve a break every once in awhile. 

  Thursday 3:06 PM

Incoming Voice Call

“Jenna you forgot your lunch pail. Have a good day!”

“Hello?”

“Hi Mrs. Peters. I didn’t grade Henry’s test yet, I’ll have it tomorrow. Thanks bye!”

“Helloooo?”

“Steph I gotta grab my things, I’ll be there in a seco- oh shit. Hello?”

“Bar Princess?”

“Doctor Evil Spawn? I must’ve butt dialed you, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay I... I don’t mind the interruption. Are you leaving work?”

“Just about, we’re wrapping up the solar system and I have to bring home the diorama.”

“I was never good at the models, I prefer working with the real thing.”

“Oh ho, a man that works with his hands. I can appreciate that.”

“You know now we’re officially talking and we still don’t know each other’s names.”

“Well around here I’m Miss Wilson, but you can call me Jo.”

“Jo. Hmm I like chicks with dudes names. I’m Dr. Karev but you can call me Alex.”

“Well nice to kinda meet you Alex. I’ll talk to you soon, I gotta get out of here.”

“Talk to you later.”  

  Thursday 4:34 PM

I wouldn’t mind if you were my teacher.

how did I know you’d send me something along those lines

I’m predictable. I’m still calling you Bar Princess. 

as you wish doctor evil spawn

I get to assist on a surgery today. Tonsillectomy. 

like removing tonsils? that’s awesome

for you, not for the kid

Oh she’ll be fine, she gets ice cream and jello for a week.  

okay yeah I might be jealous of her now

id love to be off work for a week and have you waiting on me hand and foot

the ice cream is a nice bonus

You think that’s my job?

well you said you aren’t making the big bucks yet so.... yeah 

Keep dreaming. I’ll talk to you later, gotta scrub in. 

have fun!!!!

[hideandseaking]

Last time (and the time before that) when my players played dnd:

Part 1:

They left their old lady slug teammate to die in the gullet of a goldfish

The teammate left to die tried to go through the digestive system, failed, and then slipped out of the corner of the fish’s mouth

When she swam back to shore, she only found half the team there as the other half went to collect their reward

Her and the human teammate argue before the one who didn’t get eaten stormed off

The youngerslug who remained with the eaten one cartwheeled back to the ship with her... slug team....

The ones who left to get the reward couldn’t collect it because the prince is 12 and needs his mom’s permission

So they raided his fridge and ate fried chicken and carrots until the one who had the argument showed up

They discuss what they’re going to do next, and collect the money from the empress

They summon the ship to autopilot to where they are, which makes the ship take off right when the two slugs arrived at the location where the ship is

When they all meetup again, they barely say goodbye to the prince and then take off to go back to headquarters

The slug who got eaten gets an apology from the one who argued with her

After deciding that this was horribly exhausting, both of them go to their respective rooms

The remaining slug teammate sits in the kitchen and the giant robot rabbit stands next to her and just stares at her awkwardly

The lizard remembers that someone has to fly the ship so he takes the pilots seat

He ignores the emails from his supervisor

And realizes they need gas

Instead of landing at any planet they passed which could’ve had gas, or relanding and just getting gas on the planet they were on, he decides to take them to an asteroid gas station

But there’s a flea market there so no harm no foul

But the landing was super rough so everyone emerges to see what’s going on

The lizard takes off his hat and ties his bandana around his head to disguise himself from the burger bandits who caused him to lose his last team

Him and the younger slug leave the ship to get gas but the younger slug immediately bolts to the flea market tables

The old lady slug goes outside to rub her hands on the dirty handles of the gas station pumps

The rabbit robot realizes that the lizard is alone and runs out to guard him

The young slug decides to buy MLP comic books from a flea market stand

But doesn’t have a phone to pay (an apple pay society...............)

She runs to the ship to beg the only one on the team to pay for her comics... the human....

The human is answering emails from their supervisor to come back when the slug puppy dog eyes her into buying the comics for her

As they’re leaving the ship, they see the old slug screaming and running onto the ship, which causes the human to turn around and investigate what’s going on with that

Which leaves the young slug embarassed when she again has nothing to pay for the comic books

The old slug tells the human that her brother who killed her granddaughter is here and he has to die for what he did

She grabs her cane and the human is on board because “i understand wanting vengance on a family member”

They march out while the young slug is puppy dog eyeing the lizard for a favor and leads him to the comic books

He realizes he doesn’t have a way to pay, because he lost his phone when he lost his last team, and goes to find the human

Which leads the young slug to be embarassed for a third time in 4 minutes

The human and the old slug start harassing the table vendor where the slug last saw her brother, including trying to grapple him and failing

They look at the parking lot for his ship, which is described as looking like “a little asshole” and obviously find nothing that looks like that....

They realize they’re getting no where and go into the convenience store to harass the clerk

Who is a light-being named Chad

Who doesn’t know anything about the brother

The lizard comes back to the rabbit to see that the gas is almost $300....

And hops onto the rabbit to go find the human

They launch into the air, which drops the lizard onto the asphalt and the rabbit bangs into the metal overhang on the pumps

They realize they should just walk to the convenience store

While the young slug is shaking in embarassment, trying to get the vendor to just give her the comic books, the brother in question of the older slug appears and pays for the comics for her

She follows him to his car and asks him why he did that and he said to just be kind

She asks if he knows the older slug and he says he might if she knows the last name, but she had forgotten it

He tells her that if it is her sister then to call him, and they realize it is his sister so he gives the young slug a gift to give to his sister

And then he takes off

The group realizes they need to pay for gas and while walking back to the ship they see the young slug looking up at the sky as a ship hyperjumps away

After some hestation, she gives the older slug the gift, which is memorabilia from a legendary death-racer that the older slug admires

The older slug is extremely confused because her brother is an asshole

“What kind of game is he playing...”

The others ask what happened and she explains that her brother killed sweet baby jane, her granddaughter, years ago and she has been trying to bring justice since

They all decide they’re going to go kill him but need guns, which they don’t have

The human states “i know a guy” and they skip, hop, march, slither, and fucking walk onto the ship

Part 2:

They get on the ship and the human stops the cheering for murder by asking the older slug to explain in more detail about what happened so they can really help her

The older slug says, “About 5 years ago, my granddaughter, Sweet Baby Jane, the only person who taught me to care about anyone in the world, died.

“My brother, Blagart, is a raging alcoholic. And in the peak of his alcoholism, he got severely drunk one night. Sweet Baby Jane was sleeping on a chair, and Blagart came in, drunk and raging. He approached the chair...

“And sat on Sweet Baby Jane. Killing her.”

Cue the human trying not to laugh, the young slug bursting out laughing, and the lizard howling. The rabbit is a robot and he takes everything seriously.

The older slug realizes that they think this tragedy is a joke and says “You all can rot, I’m going to knit.”

They compose themselves and decide that they should talk to their supervisor to see if they can get help on avenging Sweet Baby Jane

The human tries to research and only finds a song called Sweet Baby Jane

They hyperjump the ship back to headquarters, which causes the lizard to fly back

The robot tries to catch him but overestimates his strength and bats him like a tennis ball

They land the ship and wander to their supervisor’s room

And she isn’t there

They realize it’s lunch time

The young slug goes into their supervisor’s chair and spins in it until she gets super dizzy and almost pukes

The lizard and the robot try to hack the supervisor’s password but they end up locking her out of her own computer

Somehow they get to talking about how their supervisor eats her lunch alone in the bathroom

The lizard recruits the human to take him to the vending machine because she has the money

The robot feels embarassed of locking the computer and stands in the corner

The old slug leaves the office and follows the human and the lizard and the young slug goes in the opposite directions

The human, lizard, and old slug find a small break room with vending machines and buy cookies and gummy bears

They tell the old slug that they’ll just call her, and the old slug decides to just try to find the cafeteria

The young slug runs into their supervisor who is carrying her lunch back to her office

They walk back to the office and the supervisor asks the rabbit what he’s doing standing in the corner

He admits that he was trying to hack the computer, and when the supervisor says that he can’t do that they start to argue before she decides to agree to disagree with him

She asks what happened with the last mission and the young slug and robot try to explain

The lizard and the human come

And they proceed to beg, whine, and harass the supervisor to let them go hunt blagart, to which she keeps saying “no” to them

The lizard hops onto her desk and rolls around throwing a tantrum

The young slug steals his gummy bears while he’s doing that

The robot almost starts throwing a tantrum too to follow the lizard’s lead but the supervisor stops it

The human tries to plead and the supervisor cuts her off and says no

The lizard realizes they’re getting nowhere with her and whispers to the human “you know someone, right?”

Suddenly, the older slug, transformed into a marylin monroe drawn from memory appears

She found the cafeteria and tried to find the supervisor by asking some workers but they barely know her, to which she tried to transform into marylin monroe but failed and gave up and decided to come back

She settles down into a chair and transforms her hand into a martini glass to sip from as she tells her whole story to the supervisor from being eaten by a goldfish to seeing her brother

She decides that she isn’t going to pursue her brother and wants to take the next mission

The supervisor dismisses them on that and tells them that they should probably eat before their next mission

They all go to the cafeteria and the lizard is asking the human about the contact

The human states that she said that as a last resort and doesn’t want to use it unless she absolutely has to

The lizard decides that he’s going to get a weapon somehow, and goes into the circuit board on the rabbit’s head

He tries and fails to make the rabbit a weapon, and instead gives him a more full spectrum of emotions

To which he gets angry and launches the lizard across the cafeteria

Luckily not many people are left in there because lunch is almost over

The group decides to get lunch, the human fish and chips, the lizard pink alien goop, the young slug gets yellow alien goop, the old slug is okay with just sliding around the dirty floor, and the rabbit takes all the carrots he can grab and immediately eats all of them before paying while the lunch lady tries to stop him

The total ended up being $63...............

They eat lunch and try to decide what they’ll do next

The human makes a racist statement about their supervisor having green skin, and anyone remaining in the lunch room decides to leave

The rabbit and the lizard decide to play an aggressive version of tag while the rest are eating

At first the young slug wanted to play until she saw the rabbit push the lizard so hard that he launched across the room, and then she sat down

The old slug stops them from playing tag and they all rally to the ship

They open their mission document and see that the people they’re helping next are aliens the only three mouths on their face, wings attached to their arms, and dull spikes protruding from under their skin

The human gets disgusted by them, thus really labeling her as a racist

They hyperjump to the planet, everyone buckled in this time so no one got flung around, and they arrive at a planet double the size of jupiter

They type in the coordinates and land outside of a city

They realize it’s extremely humid here and most of them actually really like that weather

While walking to the location of where they’ll be meeting the client, the lizard and the rabbit play ispy

They arrive at the front door of the house

And we ended there

[tinymountainz]

2019 Year in Review

(It’s already 2020 but oh well I just got home. Thank you for tagging me @amirathaliasgf, I hope you have a magical 2020 filled with lots of knitting, cats and good books!)

Top 5 Films (I barely have time to sleep so keeping up with all new movies is kinda impossible. So these are the ones I watched for the first time in 2019)

Bohemian Rhapsody (I’m actually not sure if I watched this one in 2018 or 2019?)

The Age of Adaline

To The Bone

Aladdin (BECAUSE DISNEY)

Joshua: Teenager vs. Superpower (this is actually a documentary but oh well)

Top 5 shows 

Avalater: The Last Airbender

Queer Eye

Her Private Life

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Fruits Basket

Top 5 Songs (This was soooooooo hard! This is a mix between songs that were released in 2019 and songs I discovered in 2019)

Dead Boys - Sam Fender

I Think I’m OKAY - Machine Gun Kelly, YUNGBLUD, Travis Barker

Sad Forever - Lauv

Blood In The Cut - K.Flay

Older - Sasha Sloan

Top 5 books

Homo Deus - Yuval Noah Harari

 Book Thief - Markus Zusak

The Tattooist of Auschwitz - Heather Morris

the sun and all her flowers - Rupi Kaur

Lullabies - Lang Leav

Top 5 positive or happy things that happened this year

I cut off all my long thick hair and it was seriously the best hair decision I ever made, because my hair was always kinda one of my biggest insecurities, but since I cut it I feel way more confident about myself and my appearance (even if I did it kinda impulsively oops). My hair is now kinda boyish; the sides are a bit shaved and the longer part on top can reach my nose if I don’t style it

After I cut my hair I went a little wild and now I got ear piercings and a tattoo oops sorry mom

I became president of a small student-run karate association (it’s called Kinran). Kinran is very special to me because I made the majority of my university friends there, so it’s more like a family, and being in the organization, I can give back some of the love I found there :) I also got my green belt in karate now :D

I traveld to Paris and Poland this year! I partly organized the Paris trip with this committee I was in from this other association I’m in and it was loads of fun! I went to Poland last summer and visited Warsaw and Krakow (and also Auschwitz-Birkenau, which made quite an impact on me). Both cities were stunning (especially Krakow)

I had a lot of fun with my friends and family! There were lots of nights with shitty own made student food and cheap alcohol, in rooms filled with laughter and music. There were movie nights with parents and loooooooots of concerts with my older brother.. There was moving in  an apartment with 2 friends and having Shrek marathons. I started 2019 with champagne spilled all over the floor in my parents’ living room (my friend was TOTALLY sure it would not happen), and the year ended with sleeping on the floor in my friend’s apartment (technically it was 2020 already but fuck it let me be dramatic THOSE WERE FUN NIGHTS OKAY). I’ll be a very lucky person if 2020 has more moments like this

I tag @kawaiikageshini @chubbyfluffybunny @petite-little-short-tiny-girl @theasiannoodles

I sincerely hope everyone has an amazing year and that 2020 brings you lots wonderful things!

[rohobi]

Pulse | Epilogue (m)

Kim Taehyung | Medical AU |  Smut | Angst | Trauma | Medical Jargon | Medical Inaccuracies | Mature Content | Multi-fandom Medical Team | Blood | Violence | Love | Romance | Family | Beginnings | Fire | Mentions of BTS Staff 

TOTAL STORY COUNT —84,779 Words ↳ CHAPTER INDEX 

It's the 18th of August, 2018. The 230th day of the year with 135 days until 2019. It's been two years since the collapse of Forest Lakes Hospital brought Taehyung back into your life. You look back at your reunion with Taehyung now in humor, it was truly meant to happen. Fate, she was a beautiful beast.

It's been 1 year since you've practiced medicine in an ER and it's been 8 months since Taehyung moved into your home to be closer with Sunny.

You were happy.

You were in love.

And Sunny loved her dad very much.

Additionally, it's been a month since Jimin became a nurse practitioner, opening a clinic in the valley, where you occasionally practice to maintain your practicing registration. Yoongi proposed to the brunette on the opening day of the clinic. In a loud romantic gesture, Yoongi had yelled at anyone on the streets who would listen that he could not see a life without Park Jimin in it.

That Jimin was his forever.

Jimin, being the hopeless romantic, had been swept off his feet by a giant diamond ring and a gesture he'd longed for since they started dating. They were happy, grossly happy.

Seokjin and Namjoon were happy, both now working at Seoul Hearts Hospital. You and Taehyung were actually invited on a double date to watch Crazy Rich Asians with them next week but Taehyung has an occupational habit of falling asleep on you in cinemas and he's cute, but not that cute (his head is heavy).

Jungkook moved out after Taehyung kept bullying him. He lives with a girl he's been seeing who, unfortunately, has no medical literacy so dining table conversations get awkward but she's lovely and she's learning. He's had ongoing problems with the arm he broke in Forest Lakes, requiring physiotherapy. Jungkook's been taking it hard because it means, his dreams of becoming a world-famous surgeon are over but he'll be okay. He's got us to help him get through hardship.

Irene had signed up for medical school and was now attending one of your classes. She and Hoseok were close. Being a student, Irene is often seen getting a saline drip in Hoseok's office after joining in the festivities of college life again, much to his chagrin when he picks her drunk self up off the ground.

Mina, Taehyung's ex-wife, is pregnant again! She still works in pediatrics and has actually gotten quite close with your family. She's been banned from coming over after you found her poking holes in Taehyung's condoms.

Apparently, pregnancy makes her crazy.

Sana and Taehyung continue to be close working colleagues, she's a huge drinker these days. Her and Jimin have become best friends and have established a knitting club at the hospital and clinic. Jimin thinks it's funny when people actually turn up to knit. You don't find it funny when they stumble back to your house drunk.

Sunny is in primary school. She's become one of the popular students being as loud as her father. Taehyung has encouraged her to learn saxophone much to EVERYONE's desire for a good night sleep. She's decided that she's going to be a veterinarian when she's older. She thinks medicine for animals will be easier because people are too silly. You can't help but agree.

To be specific with your life, it's been okay. You've taken the year off to continue your education and to lecture at the medical school connected to Seoul Hearts. You work 5 days a week, an 8-5pm job, something that allows you to drop your child off at school and pick her up from after-school care.

It was Saturday today, unfortunately, half of your students had an early morning Saturday exam and your juniors had an afternoon lecture. It was a rare occurrence in your schedule to be working 6 days a week but today, it had to be done.

More meaningfully, it was the end of the semester before half your students went on break before starting their second-year rotations at the hospital. It's your exam and practice hints, and self-care class today, something you had been planning with Taehyung.

"Well," you close the book full of your notes as the sound echoes throughout the silent lecture theatre. "It's come to that time again.

"I'm not going to be mean and make you all stay till 6 to listen to my boring anecdotes when I know happy hour starts in an hour at bad grannies and all of you had to come in on a Saturday. So, I have decided instead, that I will finish this class by telling you a story about my trauma," you announce, stepping away from the podium. "I know all of you have been to my trauma class and heard about the effect of the Forest Lakes bombing on the medical and nursing team."

"I know most of you know what happened between Dr. Jungkook and I that day. I know some of you have worked with Dr. Taehyung in the orthopedic unit next door or Dr. Hoseok in psychiatry or have felt the wrath of Dr. Yoongi in ED. I know some of you were there and I know a student in this room played a cardinal role in saving my life."

Irene sinks behind her computer in the back as all the students look around the room.

"Why am I saying this to you all? Because they were all there with me and they were apart of something so huge, that it still affects me to this very second."

You all watch over their expressions as some close their computer screens. "I know you've heard stories and accounts of what happened just as much as I know most of you wish that you had been there but my story, something I haven't told any other cohort will describe why I'm glad none of you were."

The room goes deafeningly silent.

"But more importantly and more relevantly, no matter what you see out there in the field when you start your rotations in the next couple of weeks, you are not invincible. You'll come to realize that doctors aren't safe from traumatic stress disorders and you will see and experience some very traumatic things."

"To begin," you click the remote to the screen behind you. "It was 7 pm at night, and we had a multi-trauma MVA (motor vehicle accident) come through ER. I was given trauma bay with an unresponsive John Kim. He was barely breathing and it became increasingly clear that I would not be able to provide adequate medical help given my own personal circumstances with this kind of case. You see, prior to the evacuation of Forest Lakes, I had been with a patient with a similar accident, sustaining similar injuries."

The students all begin talking loudly amongst themselves at this revelation.

"Now, this is my last medical story I have for you this semester," you say, clicking on the screen that lists the details of the patient. "So, listen well."

[Flashback: Seoul Hearts Hospital 2017, March 11]

"Can you hear me, John? Wiggle your fingers if you can hear me?"

No response.

You rub his sternum.

Still no response.

"He's not responding," Your hands drop to your side. Your fingers tremble. You step back; your sneakers squeak against the floor. Blood soaks into the fabric. He's lost too much of it. You should probably get the nursing team to run 2 units of blood but he isn't stable yet.

"Breathing looks shit, resps are low 2-5."

He needs to be intubated. Intubate him. Now. Do it.

"My nurse in crime had him on oxygen and while I had spent 5 minutes trying to decide whether I should intubate John. He was a category 1 case for immediate surgical intervention and the anesthetist I was initially working with was required to assess the patient and anticipate the possibility of a difficult airway."

"Unfortunately, he had left the trauma room to attend to an incoming triple-A case (abdominal aortic aneurysm) and this never ended up happening. So, I had little confidence and little help," looking around the room, you all watch their eager eyes follow you. "A surgeon in John Kim's situation, which was me at that point, should be familiar with performing tracheostomies, that is standard hospital protocol. You know, cutting open the throat and chucking in a tube down their airway. It's a classic in the ER and I've done it a million times. It was standard protocol."

You click the screen, showing a picture of an intubated man.

"The nurse I was working with urged me to do an emergency surgical airway but, working with PTSD, I was experiencing flashbacks and felt tunneled in. When that happens, you lose the ability to think about the wider picture, this was the first time it had happened to me during an emergency. In this scenario, it didn't hit me until he had been moved to ICU that it was real. That it actually happened. That John Kim was a real person."

"Y/N, you need to breathe," Jimin yells, tying a tourniquet around the patient's thigh. "This is the end of your 20-hour shift, should I grab another doctor?"

"No, it's fine." You watch the patient's chest rise and fall to shallow depths. You watch the crease beneath his eyebrows even out. You watch the veins in his neck begin to gorge. Then the numbers on the machine beside him begin to fall into a place that would usually make you run into immediate action, but all you hear is white noise.

Static white noise.

Jimin rushes around you. The edges of your vision grow hazy. The lights around you are too bright. The sound of your heartbeat rings loudly in your ears. The rancid smell of blood should be something you're used to by now, but strangely tonight, the sight and smell make you want to vomit.

Makes you want to cry.

You can feel the blood being violently pumped around your body; it whistles in your veins, it runs in your arteries. You feel like you're hovering out of your skin, you're the shell of a doctor, and a scared former self-remains. You don't feel present, as though you were standing somewhere else, in a place far away. The more you feel it, the more numb you grow to feel.

Your patients going to die.

You're going to die.

"It was clear at this point that what happened when Forest Lakes came down and everything else with it, significantly affected my mental health. I didn't know it too until then either," you pace the room, watching all their faces. "You don't know anything until someone tells you or something happens, and unfortunately for me, something did happen and someone did get hurt."

A student raises his hand from the back, you nod your head at him. "Did he die?"

The student sitting beside him shakes her head. "Why would you ask that so early into her story?"

He shrugs.

Jimin shouts desperately beside you, trying to pull you out of the panic attack you think you might be experiencing but you feel so helplessly lost all of a sudden, as though you were left in a dark room with no doors.

With no windows.

With no light.

That it's hopeless.

"He's not responding, Doctor we need to do something," he shouts. "He's not breathing!"

"DOCTOR Y/N!"

"Y/N."

"Did I kill John Kim?" You stop talking, smiling up at the students as they sit on the edges of their seats. "Is that why I am no longer practicing medicine? Are you all wondering that?"

They shake their heads, talking amongst themselves.

You know they are.

"The short version is that no, I did not kill him thankfully but I was very damn close to killing him. You will never be alone when you practice. You have nurses who protect their patients from harm and as much as I hate to say it, from you too."

"John Kim died in ICU. He passed on comfortably with his family around him. I'm a good doctor. I don't need people to tell me I am. I know I am but when I think of that day, I know I wasn't. I wasn't looking after myself and I was ignoring my mental health. We are not made of a different kind of substance, we are just as sensitive to trauma as anyone else."

"You can do this," Jimin says, shaking you after making you do deep breaths with him. The static noise begins to disappear, removing the veil atop of your oblivion, revealing a completely lit room. A patient in front of you needing help. A nurse staring at you with a beautiful mix of concern and fear in his eyes.

"Y/N, we need you!" Jimin shouts again. "We need you, come back!" You take a deep breath then you take another one.

"I don't know..." you whisper, shaking your head. Jimin watches you and then he smiles, "He needs you, you're okay."

Your eyes sweep across the situation again as though it had become a completely different situation. "Jimin, we need more fluids and more blood. Get Sana to contact the family, we need an extensive family history and more information about what happened. "

"You aren't practicing after this patient Y/N.," he says, frowning at you. "I have to advocate for my patients and because I love you. You stop after this. I can't let you practice."

You smile back at Jimin because as much as you hate hearing that, you know in your heart that he's right. "You're right Jimin. Absolutely right."

Clicking the end of your pupil torch on, you turn back to the patient. You shine the light into his dark brown eyes, watching the reflex in one eye before the other. "Christ. Abnormal pupillary reflex, possible cerebral trauma," putting your hand into his, you shout at the patient. "If you can hear me, squeeze my hand."

No response again but you knew there wouldn't be.

"Trauma affects you in different ways. It doesn't have to be during or straight after something scary, it can be latent, affecting you later like it did to me. I want each and every person in this room to know and understand that people react differently to things, I know that's obvious, but to emphasize with those who you care for, those who you sit next to and those whom you company."

The room is silent as the echo of your voice fades into the lecture hall.

"I want to talk to you all about something that will help. It's in no way replacing the fabulous work of a counselor or a therapist, but it's something you should all take on board. Let's talk about self-care out in the field that may prevent things from escalating to what my story told off."

You like lecturing, it gives you the opportunity to inspire and influence the future doctors of the world through your experience. Talking as you gaze at each and every student, you smile -feeling grateful. Teaching has also given you the opportunity to think about your own future and where you want to go. Maybe you needed to do more study? Perhaps, become the dean of the medical school at the university? Or, open your own hospital? Who knows.

But you're hopeful and happy, and that's all that matters.

"Lastly folks, looking after yourself is how you'll look after others. Please take your own pulse before you take other peoples. Thank you for attending my class today and I hope to see you all before you start practice."

"Alright, I'm done," You sigh, chucking the clicker onto the adjacent table as you step out from behind the podium. "Have a good break, you guys!"

You grip your briefcase, waiting for the last few students to drag themselves out of the lecture theatre. Stretching your neck, you rub the pad of your fingers against the tight muscles, feeling some relief momentarily albeit the reminder of the horrendous amount of marking you had to complete before leaving.

It was a different kind of exhaustion working in education. It certainly wasn't like emergency medicine and the visceral fatigue you felt after a shift, although you missed the excitement of life and death, you had to admit that it was actually kind of nice working with students who would someday fall in love with it too.

"Y/N," Irene waved, reaching you in three quick strides. You smile at the girl; she's changed so much in the last year too. Her once lavender colored hair, now raven black, contrasting beautifully with her pale skin. Her lips trembled into a tender smile as she approached you.

"I hope you aren't still blaming yourself for that day, John was a complex case," she sighs, as the two of you start leaving the lecture hall together. "But I'm glad you're able to talk about it, I was beginning to think we lost you to it."

When Irene had left her nursing career, you had handed in your resignation. It just felt right to take a break from healing others to heal yourself. "There are some cases that stick with you forever but you know this already Irene."

She nods. "I do."

"Have you worked part-time since you started med school?" you asked, it would be an awful shame if she had completely stopped nursing. You were confident that it would've given her an advantage over the other students.

"Other than working casual when they're short staffed, I've been taking a break, I'm actually seeing Hoseok and it's going well," she stammers, her cheeks dusting with a soft pink as though she had not meant to tell you that. You walk towards the elevators, a smirk growing on your face. "Oh seeing as in ...not dating, ...I mean, he's helping me with the nightmares."

"Oh, I'm sure he is-" you pinch her bicep playfully "-you crazy kids!"

"We're talking and it's nice, I meant, he's helping me deal with the nightmares."

"I saw you guys laughing at that new Italian restaurant when Taehyung tried to propose to me for the third time. You were holding hands and staring at each other, no need to hide it." you chuckle, enjoying how she was becoming. "I'm glad he's in love. I was beginning to think it wouldn't be possible for Hoseok."

"Oh, you saw us? Well, I guess I can't keep it from you. He's good to me although at one point people are going to start accusing me of nepotism. He's so obvious with his special treatment."

You laughed at that. Hoseok would never go out of his way to encourage nepotism, especially in his own line of work. In fact, you were certain Hoseok would ensure any benefit and achievement Irene got was because of her own hard work. "I am not going to comment on that. Love is love."

Irene stays paused outside of the elevator when the doors open. "Happiness is happiness."

Your heels click against the floor as you head in. Turning to face her, you hold up your hand to wave. "It was nice talking to you Irene. Give Hoseok a cuddle for me, tell him it's been a couple days since I last saw his ugly face."

"You guys work together, calm down," she smiles. "Hey, I'm glad you're healing and do whatever the hell you want, you deserve it. Say "Hi" to Taehyung and Sunny and Jimin for me, I miss them."

"They miss you too Irene. Please come to our BBQ next Friday, Sunny keeps talking about wanting to be you and it's driving me nuts."

"But nepotism Y/N."

"What's more important to you?"

"Fine, see you then."

The elevator doors close.

Leaving your office early that Friday afternoon, Taehyung calls you as you throw your briefcase into the back of your car. Tapping the hands-free option, you start the engine as his voice fills the car.

"Babe, where are you?"

You grip the steering wheel, indicating off the road with a click of a button before pulling out. "Hi hunny, lovely to hear your voice too. Yes, my day was great, what about yours?"

His baritone voice fills the car. "My parents have Sunny for the night, where are you?"

"That sounds suggestive, the couch too uncomfortable for you?" Stuck at the traffic lights, you mirr in suspicion. "I'm 5 minutes away, why? You got something planned for dinner?"

"I do actually. Can you meet me at Nimas at 5?"

"You better not be proposing to me because I'm sorry babe, it's going to be a no again," You sigh. You aren't entirely sure why Taehyung is so determined to persuade you that marrying him would be the next best decision since he moved in. He's a hopeless romantic and you have to admit, the proposals get more exciting everytime you say no but you know someday, you're going to have to say yes. "Why are we having an early dinner?"

"I've proposed to you 9 times now, do you think I'd propose again beca-

"-yes, yes I do. I definitely think you'll propose again," you interrupt, pressing the gas pedal down when the light turns green. "In fact, I'm looking forward to seeing what ring you'll poison me within the garlic bread. Can I say as a suggestion that putting jewelry in food is a bad idea, and not to do it."

"Hey now, the yogurt incident was horribly organized by the staff at that restaurant. You're lucky I know CPR."

Taking a deep breath, you shiver at the memory. Taehyung had taken you to one of the best middle eastern restaurants in the city. It had started with an argument on the way and it had ended with an argument as you yelled at him for trying to kill you. "We do CPR every time we're in the community, can I not be a doctor when we're out? And I know you were embarrassed that day, you didn't need to kiss me so hard in front of everyone to cover-

"-CPR. IT WAS CPR. I WAS SAVING YOUR LIFE."

Rolling your eyes, you snort. "So dinner tonight and you're only giving me an hour to get changed?"

"Jimin's at home, so you girls can talk. Be ready or not, up to you. The house is clean and Rosie is at Jungkook's new place for the night too. So, it's just us."

Frowning, you indicate onto the highway. Rosie. That damn loveable dog. "Still can't believe you bought Sunny a golden retriever, what's wrong with you? We're doctors, we don't have time to give her the attention she needs. And I can't believe you manipulated Jungkook into moving out, I miss him."

"Jungkook has an insanely large crush on you and it makes me uncomfortable watching him lust over a woman who lusts over me. Also, don't hate Rosie please, she is cute. Plus, you come home at 5 pm every day, you have time in the evening and I have time in the morning."

"He has a girlfriend and I'm a slob," he snickers at your comment. "But ...I lust over you? Since when? I don't, do I?

You can see the smile take over his face as though he were in front of you having this conversation. "Oh baby, you can't help it when I'm just this irresistible."

"I'm hanging up now-

"-I love you," he interrupts. "I'll see you at the restaurant! Don't be late."

"I'll be what I want."

You hang up on him.

He calls you back a second later.

You pick up. "What do you want now?"

"Y/N, I love you and do you?"

"Fine. I might love you too."

Taehyung hisses into the shell of his phone. "Might? Please, you love the heck out of me. I have the marks on my body to prove it!

"Then why do I need to say it if you know?"

"Anything could happen and I don't want it to happen without me telling you that I love you. I know you'll regret it too if something happens to me too."

"Nothing's going to happen. I'm hanging up now."

"Y/N."

"Fine. I love you Kim Taehyung, you crazy dog loving fool. I'll see you soon. Don't put the ring in the food."

"I think I'll just put it on the table then. Bye, babe."

"Really? Oh lord, bye Taehyung."

Jimin adjusts his tie as Yoongi puts his pants back on. They'd just finished visiting a million wedding venues before settling into the first LGBT friendly wedding apparel store. Yoongi had paid the owners to close it so their session with the stylist could be more intimate.

When the stylist had left them alone upon a request that Jimin's suit be of a softer fabric because he had sensitive skin, Yoongi had swept him off his feet, kissing the hell out of the boy.

His mouth had tasted like the white chocolate cake they had tried earlier.

"Yoongi," he whispers, reaching out to grab the lapels of his suit jacket, pulling him closer. "Do you think Y/N is going to marry Taehyung?"

"Baby, why are we talking about this now?" Yoongi leans forward, placing soft kisses down Jimin's neck. He whispers into Jimin's ear. "Because fuck no, not now anyway. Maybe a month ago yes, but now? No way."

Jimin frowns suspiciously as he leans into him. "What do you know?"

Yoongi runs a hand down Jimin's chest, resting it over his stomach. He leaves his palm there before winking at the boy.

Jimin screams, pulling away from Yoongi. "She's pregnant again?"

Jimin screams again.

Then he jumps like a child in a bouncy castle.

"I'm going to be an uncle!"

He claps as he screams.

"Please stop," Yoongi laughs. "She's not pregnant. She's just fat. Oh my god, you screamed so loud."

Jimin falls back on his feet, crashing back to Earth. "You were kidding?"

Yoongi nods, reaching out to him again.

"You fucker," Slapping him away, Jimin shouts at the poor blonde. "YOU CAN'T CALL ANY WOMAN FAT YOU PIG, AND HOW DARE YOU."

"Just mind your own business then, worry about us and our wedding instead. Leave them to their dysfunctional happiness."

"Figures, why did I think you'd know more than me?" Jimin sinks. "By the way, I am not moving out of that goddamn house anytime soon. I'm attached and Sunny is like my daughter-

"-yes I know, we'll be living there," Yoongi sighs. "It will be so ...cozy..." he cringes at the thought.

"I just need to get my clinic back on its feet and we'll be saving money before we build our own house, okay?"

Yoongi nods. "Okay. Speaking of home, shall we head back to mine?"

Looking around the room, Jimin spots the stylist hanging up their suits. "Let's go, I trust you've already paid for the suits?"

Rolling his eyes, Yoongi flashes his credit card in front of Jimin's eyes.

"Aren't you lucky I'm rich."

"Get that thing out of my face," Jimin chuckles. "One of us has to be, do you think nurses get paid well? No, we don't. So, you'll be paying for lots of things, like ...our drive thru starbucks we're going to get on the way home?"

Yoongi shakes his head. "You're disgusting."

"Awh but babe."  

Taehyung has proposed marriage to you 9 times now and you've said no every single time.

Your relationship with him isn't like how it used to be. You're comfortable. He's comfortable. It feels right. But there's still that little piece of history that makes Taehyung feel like he has a lot to make up for and alot to promise, like marriage.

Marrying him in a hurry isn't something that you're interested in doing, especially when you're finally able to think about yourself for the first time in a long time now that Sunny has two parents.

"So, what do you think?" Taehyung smiles, pushing the little box across the table as you finish your mouth full of food. You were sitting across from each other in a small yellow Mexican restaurant. You were by the wall, table separated by a black divider for privacy and Taehyung was wearing a linen white shirt and suit pants. His hair was luscious, his soft brown locks falling just above his eyebrows, a small mullet forming at the back.

And he was smiling at you, brown eyes twinkling a million shades full of hope. It was his pre-proposal face, one you were becoming addicted to seeing.

He looked good.

But he always looked good.

You gape at the box next to the flickering candle. The ring is small, just how you like them. "What do I think of the ring? I think it's beautiful."

"Is it a yes?"

Staring around the divider, you see a hesitant group of musicians staring at you and Taehyung. "Yes to the ring, no to both the mariachi and marriage."

He blinks at you. "Why?"

"I don't wanna marry you."

"Why not?"

Shrugging, you pour yourself some water from the silver tequila bottle as Taehyung turns to signal to the mariachi band against coming over. "Obviously because I'm waiting for someone better to come around." you joke.

"I am someone better and I have come around. Is this because I bought Rosie? But she's our other baby? I know you love her!"

"This has nothing to do with the dog," you whisper, realizing just how loud you two were becoming.

Taehyung stands up, dragging his chair beside yours as he sits back down. He holds your hand tenderly, as he looks at everything but your face. "Is it me? You don't want to be with me like that?"

"No, don't be silly," you whisper, heart, softening at the expression of sadness on his face. "Taehyung, it's not like that."

He looks up at you, eyebrows furrowed. "Then tell me, so I can stop this."

"It's not you hunny," You rub your thumb over his knuckles. "But is there a reason why you want to marry me?"

Taehyung drops his head to avoid looking at you.

"Tell me." You whisper, trying to look at his face.

He turns his face away.

"Tae, tell me."

He turns away again.

"Taehyung," Holding a side of his face, you lean forward and kiss his lips, catching him off guard. He sighs, leaning into your affection before you pull away, "Tell me."

He shakes his head.

You kiss his cheek. "Tell me," You kiss his other cheek. "Tell me."

"Tell-" you kiss his lips. "Me."

"Fine," he smiles, admitting defeat. "I'm afraid you'll leave me and if I don't tie you down with marriage, you'll run after a younger looking hussy. You're mine. I just want it written down on paper."

"That's stupid."

"I know it's stupid. I'm stupid."

"You aren't stupid at all."

"I'm just stupid around you."

"Is that a crime?"

He smirks, winking at you. "A crime of passion?"

"You have my heart Kim Taehyung, always have and always will," A small smile stretches across your face as you lean in and softly kiss his lips. He melts into your affection, wrapping his arms around you. Its moments like these, where you're able to surrender the past you've had with him in order to feel the hope of a bright future that makes you feel peaceful with your life.

Kim Taehyung was yours.

As you were his.

Pulling back, he stares at you in thought. "Why don't you want to marry me though?"

"It's not that I don't, it's that I don't want to marry you right now. Can we get married in like 5 years instead of now?"

He smiles widely, grabbing the ring from the box and putting it on your finger. "It's fine! We don't have to get married right away. We can be engaged for years-

Interrupting Taehyung, a waiter sporting a worried expression with trembling hands opens the divider. The restaurants light invades your intimate area, casting light across Taehyung's calm face. "Hi sorry to interrupt, but when you made the reservation you told me you were a doctor," she stares at Taehyung. "And we need one right now, a man in our private eating area has just collapsed."

You both deflate. "I knew this was going to happen."

Taehyung stands up, pushing the chair out of the way. "We're never really off duty are we?"

Shaking your head, you smile at the man. "We're doctors, not soldiers. If we can help, we help."

The waiter runs you both towards the private area after you rip the green defib bag off the restaurants first aid wall. Pulling open the doors, a man is unconscious on the ground while a much younger woman smacks his chest.

"What's going on?" Taehyung says, immediately swooping into action.

Turning to the waiter, you urge her to call an ambulance when Taehyung shouts out that he isn't breathing. Taehyung immediately begins CPR. Grabbing the defibrillator, you rip open the man's shirt, placing the pads on his upper and lower chest. The machine picks up a rhythm compatible with the defib as you both stand back. The wailing woman beside you grabs onto Taehyung's arm, pushing her face into his chest.

Taehyung looks at you, discomfort written across his face.

You wink back.

When the shocks are administered, you fall to the ground. Taehyung pushes the girl away, shouting at the waiter to update the paramedic on the cardiac arrest at present.

Taehyung sits opposite you. You smile at him as you do chest compressions with a shiny new diamond on your finger. "She looks good on your finger? So, earlier, you said you wanted to marry me, was that a yes?"

"Really? Right now?" you pant.

"Why not?" he shrugs, watching you deliver two breaths. "She looks good on your finger while you do chest compressions."

Taehyung gets his hands ready on the man's chest as you both watch his chest expand with your breaths. You fall back as he takes over.

"Ambulance is on the way!" the waiter shouts as you hear the nearing sirens.

"Marry me Y/N," he pants, his bangs beginning to drip with sweat after 2 minutes of chest compressions. "I promise with everything that I won't stop you from growing into the person you want to become. I support everything you do, know that."

He stops compressions, delivering two breaths.

"Taehyung, I'll marry you if you save him," you snap, just wanting this to be over and to go home. Taehyung lifts his gaze to yours. His lips upturn as he excitingly gets back onto the man's chest, compressing with a newfound motivation.

"Where's the ambulance?" he shouts. "He got any allergies, on any medication?" he shouts louder at the poor sobbing girl. "YO' YOU GOT ANY ADRENALINE HERE? I NEED TO SAVE HIM SO I CAN MARRY THE LOVE OF MY LIFE"

You know it's an inappropriate time to laugh but you giggle. Taehyung is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. After some time, you both reassess the patient's condition. Taehyung shouts with more excitement. "He's breathing again. HE'S BREATHING."

You fall back onto your heels, fingers pressing against his jugular and you look at Taehyung over the patient on the floor.

"And we have a pulse too!"

"You know what that means?" He smiles up at you as the paramedics arrive just on time. "Don't take off that damn ring, I'm marrying your ass."

"Yes, I'll marry you Kim Taehyung. Goodness gracious, you crazy man!"

When the paramedics arrive and take over, Taehyung sweeps you off the ground and kisses the living daylights out of your blushing sweaty face. His hands rest around your waist, pulling you back and out of the room, past the ambulance, into your car and all the way home.

Time, something you could see yourself giving yourself too if he was with you. Of course, you wanted to marry him but marriage is and will never be your end-all.

He knows that.

And he loves you regardless.

Though the house is empty with the last hints of Jimin's earlier visit before retreating back to work, Taehyung slams you up against the front door, his lips not capable of leaving yours as he grabs your thighs, hoisting you up. Wrapping your legs around his waist, you rustle your keys from his pocket, shoving them into the door and pushing it open.

You pull the keys out before he kicks it closed behind you.

Wrapping your arms around his neck, he carries you to the lounge.

The house is silent and dark as the trickles of rain are illuminated by the bright moonlight baring down through the sheer curtains. Although in due time, muffled hums and broken moans will fill the silent space as his silhouette hovers above you gripping your waist, laying you flat against the living room carpet.

In the darkness, he kisses you, swallowing all of your throaty moans. All pretenses fall, Taehyung is a hungry dominating man and you were his next meal. He kisses, he licks, he touches you. It's like electricity, the way he makes you feel so inexplicably alive.

Every kiss he plants tastes like wine and you were getting drunk of the euphoria as he sheds your clothes, as your hearts race as your naked bodies move together like the finest of silk.

His musky scent surrounds you as he holds you tightly against him. His hands fall to your hips, moonlight splays against his back muscles as your toes curl when he gyrates against your hips, pushing his cock inside you. He bites his lips, squeezing his eyes closed as he holds himself back from fucking you hard when you moan at the pressure of feeling so damn full.

But Taehyung was going to take his time with you tonight.

He had all night to do so.  

And when the early rays of sunrise lick your bare skin as you lay curled up into the couch throw on the floor in front of the fireplace he had started up last night, Taehyung holds you close as you sleep.

Jimin would be getting home soon, they needed to move. He kisses your forehead as you pretend to be asleep, before picking you up and carrying you back to bed. They can deal with the lack of protection later because all Taehyung can think about is the overwhelming peace he feels within his softly beating heart.

Untucking the covers, he places you underneath the blankets. "I love you Y/N.," he says as you nuzzle into his chest when he joins you. "You silly billy."

"Hey." he pokes your cheek.

He pokes you again. "Y/N."

"Aren't you going to say it back?"

You open one of your eyes. "How the hell did you know I was awake?"

He stares at you unimpressed. "Pretending to be dead sleep so I can carry you to bed? Pulling a Sunny move? It was almost a good job until you smiled when I picked you up."

"You're so strong though, who wouldn't love being carried to bed by you," Kissing his chest, you curl yourself into him. "I love you too. Let's sleep, okay? I want to sleep. You sleep."

"Fine. Let's sleep. Gotta get our energy up anyway with all the sex I plan on having with you this weekend while Sunny is gone."

"Gross. It takes two to tango, you know."

"I know, but who can resist me?"

"Go to sleep you rat. Goodnight."  

He chuckles softly. "Goodnight Y/N. Thank you for everything."

AND SHES DONE. THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT. 

[anakahaia]

rules: answer 21 questions then tag 21 people you want to get to know better

tagged by @sketchyflannelpile

1. Nickname: Ana, mostly, but also Jelly (an impromptu name given to me by a friend).

2. Zodiac: Aries

3. Height: 5′4″ probably. Haven’t actually measured my height in a while.

4. Last movie I watched: Jaws 2, I think.

5. Last thing I googled: Hibiscus. Couldn’t remember how they looked for a drawing I was doing.

6. Favorite musician: Josh Groban mainly, but I’m also into a band called The Score right now.

7. Song stuck in my head: The Soundmaker by Rodrigo y Gabriela

8. Other blogs: Just the one.

10. Blogs following: 19

11. Amount of sleep: Generally around 7 hours.

12. Lucky number: 3 and 21. I found that I like third books, third movies, and whatnot so yeah. And 21 for a reason I don’t remember.

13. What I’m wearing: Colorful socks, jeans, yellow shirt, and a grey cable knit cardigan

14. Dream job: Oh boy. Does dragon rider count? Well if not, more realistic ones are illustrator, editor, and FBI agent or detective (thanks Fringe and X Files). Oh and can’t forget writer/novelist.

15. Dream trip: I’d love to go to the British Isles. Specifically London or like the Costwolds. Just chilling and relaxing and exploring. I also have a soft spot for a campground by a lake with river/stream front spots. I’ve been to one and they’re very relaxing.

16. Favorite food: Pasta. I love it. Especially like fettucine alfredo.

17. Play any instruments: I have both a piano and an (acoustic?) guitar. Can I play either of them? Nope.

18. Languages: English and some Italian. Took three years of it in high school and loved it, but couldn’t take the fourth so it kind of ended there.

19. Favorite songs: I’ll list the ones I can think of right now. Believe by The Score, Machine by Josh Groban, & Forgotten City by Lindsey Stirling. There’s more but that’s all I’ve got for now. 

20. Random fact: I must daydream when listening to music. If I don’t, the music just becomes background noise. It doesn’t have to be anything complex, either. Creating a simple music video or even someone dancing to it in my head sometimes is enough.

21. Describe yourself as aesthetic things: sweater paws, macro photography, inked lineart over a messy sketch, silver ink, frosted glass, sunspots on the ground during a cloudy day, big stuffed animals, highlighters, & dust lit by sunlight.

Not going to do any tagging, but feel free to do it if you want! 

[stanleyandmaud-blog]

B U I L D I N G  A  B R A N D Hi Darlings! ★ Scrolling down you’ll see I’m no blogger...(when was my last post?!) I almost cringe calling this a blog as it’s an insult to those who do it for a living but I think as my business develops it’s important for you to get to know me and what goes on behind the scenes! So perhaps think of this space as my diary instead. As you can see I haven’t done a post for a longgggg time but after receiving my new promo cards in the most this morning I was filled with all kinds of fuzzy feelings and felt the need to share them. Grab a brew...I might be a while...I’m feeling all the emotions ha!.

 So where do I start? I never really intended to have a full blown business...I kind of fell into having one. I was on maternity leave with our second child, Jack, and I wanted something to keep me busy (he slept A LOT...don’t judge me I was just lucky!). I’ve pretty much tried most ‘at home’ crafts everything from knitting, sewing, drawing and I was crap, crap, crap at them all...I have a dusty sewing machine and textile books to prove it! I was on good old Google looking for new things to try and I saw some stamped cutlery that I fell in love with...it was just some old spoons turned into herb markers but I LOVED them. I wanted to make some for our herb garden (another project...another story HA!) so that was it, I set to it. I told my husband (known as B for future reference) my plans and I saw his eyes roll as he probably thought here she goes again. I spent the dregs of my maternity leave on stamping supplies and it went from there. I watched countless tutorials online and started stamping everything I could get my hands on. I made friends and family keyrings, spoons, present tags and bookmarks. In December 2014 a member of our family was poorly and pretty down in the dumps and I wanted to make her something that she’d know was especially for her and that she’d truly treasure it and so I started making aluminium bangles. Come Christmas pretty much everyone had one and I was encouraged to start selling them. I knew from the off what I wanted to call my new found hobby and it was to be ‘Stanley and Maud’ named after my children’s keepsake teddies. I set up social media after Christmas and opened my Etsy shop in February. I can promise you now I never ever expected the kind of love I got for my makes.

Stanley and Maud will be 3 years old in January and when I look back at everything I am so grateful and dare I say it proud. When I first started I was clueless at branding...I made a logo on an app and pretty much cuffed my photography. When I look back on it now I cringe a bit (okay a lot) but it’s part of how I started and the best things are unexpected. I’m not saying my brand is 100% how I want it but I’m getting there. The last couple of years have been amazing...I’ve had my designs in the glossy pages of Tatler, Elle and Glamour, collaborated with fabulous brands like Taylor’d Bundles, Stackers and Lobella Loves and I really hope for more exciting opportunities.  The absolute highlight of my year was the photoshoot I had with Georgia who runs Georgia Rachael Photography. If I could call any human superwoman it would be this talented lady...I hit her with email after email and all the Pinterest boards and it’s like she could see in into my vision because it was all so easy and stress free. The absolutely gorgeous Leanna http://www.leannastibbonmakeup.co.uk was our make up artist and she is just a darling. Make up is not my thing so I gave Leanna full reign on the model’s looks and my goodness she didn’t disappoint, each look was flawless. I had three absolutely gorgeous models and they were so good at taking direction...it’s like they all just knew what I wanted. Alicia from https://www.facebook.com/innovations.hairbeauty/ was incredible at styling the girls hair...I honestly don’t know how I could have done it without these lovely talented ladies. I cannot tell you how much I love all the shots taken that day but this one brings a smile to my face every time.

Right back to my reason behind this post (told you I was a waffler) when I opened my delivery of my new postcards I looked at them and thought...’Man I did that’...I’ve made that jewellery that’s been on those magazine pages, I’ve made that photoshoot happen (albeit with help obviously!!!) and I have kept going when at times I’ve been so overwhelmed all I’ve wanted is to go back to my old 9-5 job. I think there’s something about seeing it all come together in one image that just gives me that ‘tight chest’ feeling. I’m not where I want to be with my business but I am getting there...building a brand isn’t just about making everything look pretty it’s about making sure it all works. I'm not sure everyone will like how open I am on my social media accounts but in my opinion I am Stanley and Maud and so it’s important for my customers to know me, trust me and see me as an actual person. I’m a mum of two, I’m a wife of one and I too get irritated by dried weetabix in breakfast bowls, laundry left all over the place and school runs in the rain.

I hope you’ve managed to get to the end of this post...jeees I don’t blog for a year and I do about ten in one!!! HA! Well the short and tall of it is I felt so proud looking at my new cards this morning and in all honesty I couldn’t have done any of it without the amazing support I’ve had from my loyal followers and customers.

From the bottom of my heart...thanks without end.

Charlotte. X

[minijenn]

Universe Falls Chapter 28

Oh god. You guys this chapter broke me. I’m having ALL the feels right now. But all that aside, I’m so damn proud of how it turned out? Like I could feel the emotions so clearly as I wrote it, so I really hope you call can feel it too. But anyway, here we go! Strap in for the emotional roller coaster ride!

Previous: http://minijenn.tumblr.com/post/156357991481/universe-falls-chapter-27

Chapter 28: Straight to Video

1 20-1-16-5, 1 3-8-5-19-20, 1 6-12-1-7, 1 19-23-15-18-4, 1 19-8-9-18-20, 1 7-5-13, 1-14-4 13-5-13-15-18-9-5-19 19-20-15-18-5-4, 1-12-12 9-14-19-9-4-5 20-8-5 12-9-15-14'19 13-1-14-5 23-8-5-18-5 18-15-19-5 9-14-20-5-14-4-5-4 20-8-5-25 18-5-13-1-9-14

Steven put a thoughtful hand to his chin as he looked over the various treats the Mystery Shack’s vending machine had to offer. He had silently pondering over his choice of a snack for quite some time now, long enough for Wendy to offer him a brief encouragement in making his integral decision.

“You got this, Steven,” the cashier smirked as she casually leaned against the counter.

“Thanks, Wendy,” Steven said, his attention still devoted to the machine. “It’s just so hard to choose though! I mean, I could get a bag of chips, which would be tasty, but I always get chips. Shouldn’t I be living life to the fullest and trying new things?”

“Dude, if that’s how you wanna roll, I totally recommend the new spicy pretzels in row seven,” Soos cut in. “They’re easily the most dangerous thing in there, trust me.”

“Hm… good point…” Steven mused thoughtfully.

“If you still can’t make up your mind, why don’t you ask your buddy over there?” Wendy asked, nodding over to Lion as he walked over to the ice cream freezer. Curious, the young Gem went over to the freezer as well to see why his pink companion was pressing his face against it, only to groan in disgust upon realizing what all the fuss was about.

“Ugh, Lion Lickers?” Steven frowned disapprovingly. “Lion, those are gross. No offense.” The pink beast did take some offense to this of course, as he let out a disgruntled huff and walked to the other side of the gift shop.

“You guys better hurry it up,” Wendy advised with her usual relaxed grin. “We have to close up for the night soon.”

“Yeah, you don’t want Mr. Pines chasing you out with the hose again like last time, dude,” Soos added with a concerned frown.

“Well, I wouldn’t mind, but Lion here’s not a huge fan of water,” Steven chuckled, grinning to his fluffy companion. “Right?” The pink beast let out a sullen growl as he turned away from the young Gem, sticking his nose up in the air as he sat down firmly. “Looks like somebody’s being a little grumpy-grump today,” Steven remarked, his hands on his hips as he raised an eyebrow.

“That’s cats for you,” Wendy commented with a shrug. “They’re pretty temperamental little guys. Though in your case, Steven, I’d say Lion’s more of a temperamental big guy.”

“Ha! I get it!” Soos laughed along with Steven over this quip. “Cause he’s a lion!”

“AHHHH!” a sudden, quite loud scream from the living room broke through the conversation, slightly startling the group in the gift shop. Their worry quickly faded however as Mabel ran in, holding a large box above her head as a huge, excited grin lit up her face. Dipper followed not too far behind her, nowhere near as enthralled as she was, but still generally amused with his sister’s usual antics.

“Yo, dude, what’s up?” Soos asked Mabel curiously as she set the box on the floor. “You’re more excited than you were that time you found that baby squirrel in the attic.”

Mabel was hardly listening as she began to tear the package open, letting out another elated squeal as she did so. “Eee! It’s here! It’s here! It’s here!”

“What’s here?” Steven asked, confused.

“The summer care package our mom sent us,” Dipper explained since Mabel was far too distracted to. “She actually sent it out weeks ago, but apparently it got lost in the mail or something like that-”

“But now its finally here!” Mabel cheered. “Whoa, Dipper! Look at all the cool stuff Mom sent us!” she exclaimed as he began digging through the box’s contents while Dipper and Steven curiously watched on. “Heh, looks like somebody left his jacket back at home! Guess Mom didn’t want you catching a cold,” Mabel teased as she held up a blue jacket.

“It’s summertime, Mabel,” Dipper deadpanned grabbing his jacket from her. “I just thought I wouldn’t need it. Still… I am kinda glad she sent this. It can get sort of cold up here… sometimes.”

“What else did she send you guys?” Steven asked Mabel, quite intrigued, seeing as how he had never really received a package like this before himself.  

Mabel gasped with delight as she pulled a few more items out of the box. “My favorite knitting needles! And new yarn for sweaters! Aw, Mom knows me too well!”

“Whoa, is that a new mystery novel?!” Dipper exclaimed, taking a thick book out of the box. “Oh man, I’ve been dying to read this one! I-” He stopped short, however, upon noticing the amused smirk Wendy was sending his way. At the risk of embarrassing himself in front of his crush, he proceeded to try and play it off like it was no big deal, despite his excitement. “Uh, I mean… It’s cool. I’ll read it in my spare time or whatever. Who knows?”

“Dork!” Mabel coughed jokingly, eliciting an annoyed glare from her brother and a small laugh from Steven.

“Oh, who’s this cute little guy?” the young Gem asked as he noticed a photograph of a cat inside the box.

“Aw, it’s Muffin!” Mabel grinned warmly, holding the picture of her beloved feline up. “I miss him so much! You know, we named him Muffin because those are his favorite things to eat!”

“Even though Mom and Dad have told you time and time again not to let him eat them,” Dipper cut in dryly.

“Aw, he’s so adorable!” Steven smiled as he looked over the picture. “Do you guys think he’d get along with Waddles and Lion if he was here?”

“Considering the fact that the only person Muffin actually tolerates is Mabel, I doubt it,” Dipper said, shaking his head.

“Oh, come on,” Mabel rolled her eyes. “Muffin, Waddles, and Lion would be best friends for sure! Isn’t that right, Lion?” Once again, the pink beast was rather stoic as he only briefly glanced over his shoulder before settling down to a nap. “I’ll take that as a yes!”

“Looks like there’s one more thing in there for you dudes,” Soos pointed out, nodding to the almost empty box.

“Oh yeah,” Dipper said, pulling the round metal tin out. He paused as he looked it over, but soon frowned with concern upon reading the small note taped to the lid. “Oh no…”

“What is it?” Mabel asked, snatching the tin from him and opening it. She let out another overjoyed gasp as she did so, especially upon seeing that the tin was filled with cookies of countless different shapes and decorations. “YES! Mom’s famous cookies!”

“Hold it, Mabel!” Dipper interrupted as Mabel already began happily scarfing the sweets down. “Mom put a note on here telling me not to let you eat all of those cookies at once, so you better not-”

“Huh?” Mabel asked, her mouth full and the tin already close to empty.

“…Never mind.”

“It sure was nice of your mom to send you guys all of this stuff!” Steven smiled warmly.

“Eh, actually, it’s sort of embarrassing,” Dipper shrugged with a frown. “I mean, yeah its thoughtful and everything, but it’s also our mom’s way of saying she doesn’t think we can handle ourselves here without her.”

“Ha! If only she knew about all of the crazy Gem monsters and weird paranormal things we’ve been up against and survived!” Mabel exclaimed with a daring grin. “Speaking of which, that reminds me. I’ve been meaning to write about all of that stuff in that letter I plan on sending her!”

“Oh, come on, you guys,” Wendy remarked, smirking. “It’s not embarrassing; it’s totally sweet. If my mom was still around, I’d kill to get a get an awesome box of junk like that from her.”

“Wait, Wendy your mom is… gone?” Dipper asked, instantly regretting asking the question for how completely tactless it was.

The cashier nodded, letting out a long sigh as she glanced away. “Yeah. She went out to the store one day when it was raining a few years back and she got in a really back wreck and… well… she just… didn’t come back…” A brief bout of melancholy silence passed in light of this, but Wendy was quick to bridge it with a small smile to lighten the mood. “B-but its ok. I mean, yeah it was kinda rough without her at first, but you learn to get over it and move on, you know?”

“Don’t you still miss her sometimes though?” Mabel asked with a sympathetic frown.

“Yeah, sometimes…” Wendy acknowledged, though she once again bounced by quickly from it. “But like I said, it’s cool. After all, it’s not like I’m the first person to lose their mom.”

“I know what you mean by that…” Steven interjected, glancing to the floor morosely. “I never really got to meet my mom at all since she gave up her physical form to have me and everything…”

Another period of rather pensive silence filled the room as no one was really sure what to say to fully comfort either Wendy or Steven in light of the discussion of their deceased mothers. After all, the twins couldn’t really relate and Soos still had a maternal presence in his life in the form of his grandmother. But as soon enough the emotionally heavy mood was soon lifted, and as usual, Mabel was the one to lift it.

“Hey, uh, you guys want the last two cookies in here?” she asked Steven and Wendy with a smile, holding the cookie tin up. “They’re the best cookies you’ll ever eat, I promise!”

“Heh, I’m willing to put that promise to the test,” Wendy chuckled, gladly taking one of the cookies. “Thanks, dude.”

“Yeah, thanks, Mabel!” Steven grinned, his usual pep returning. “Hey, check it out! It’s a cookie shaped like a star!” he laughed, placing the cookie over the star on his shirt. “I guess you could say this cookie is… out of this world?”

The others all laughed over this corny pun, their former levity now returned in full. Lion let out a small yawn as he padded over to the empty box and attempted to lie down inside of it, completely disregarding the conversation as it continued.

“Whoa, Mabel, you weren’t kidding,” Wendy said as she ate her cookie. “This thing is amazing! Your mom can really bake!”

“Glad you like it! I’ll let her know you enjoyed it in my letter,” Mabel beamed brightly.

“Aw, dude, I wish I could have tried one,” Soos said with a frown.

“Same here,” Dipper remarked, giving Mabel a caustic glance. She simply shrugged innocently in response though, hardly guilty at all about eating most of the other treats.

“You know,” Steven said, his mouth still full as he munched on his cookie. “I kinda can’t help but wonder what kind of cookies my mom would have made me. Maybe they would have been actual space cookies!”

“Oh my gosh, I bet your mom’s space cookies would have been amazing, Steven!” Mabel agreed heartily.

“Wait, how would space cookies even work?” Dipper asked, confused. “Would they be made out of star dust, or meteor bits or-?”

“Whatever they would have been made of, they probably would have been great…” Steven said with a wistful sigh, looking down at the remainder of his cookie. “I just wish… I knew a little bit more about my mom… Just to know what she was like for myself.”

Before anyone could really respond to this, Steven was briefly startled by Lion headbutting his arm, keeping his forehead placed against the young Gem without any signs of moving it. Charmed by this, Steven gasped, as did Mabel, who was more than happy to discreetly snap a photo of it for her scrapbook.

“That’s a keeper!” she quipped brightly.

“Blink if this means you love me,” Steven whispered to his pink companion, who did no such thing but rather just stared up at the young Gem blankly. Steven was quick to change this however, as he briefly blew in Lion’s face, causing the pink beast to finally blink in response. “He loves me!”

Of course, everyone got a good laugh out of this, though it was short lived as Stan entered the room, as stoic as usual. “Hey, hey, hey!” he exclaimed, breaking up the fun. “What are you all doing lazing around in here?! It’s quitting time! And the sooner you all amscray, the sooner I can settle down and watch my show.”

“You mean that old soap opera about that duchess?” Dipper asked with a laugh.

“N-no!” Stan exclaimed defensively. “And even if I did watch a show like The Duchess Approves, I would only do it for the deeply relatable characters and the gripping real-world commentary.” A beat of uncomfortable silence passed as everyone looked to the conman in slight confusion before he let out a frustrated sigh. “You know what? I’m just gonna go now. Soos! Wendy! Close up shop!”

“You got it, boss!” Soos exclaimed with a loyal salute.

“Yeah, sure, whatever,” Wendy shrugged, taking her nametag off and grabbing her jacket as she prepared to go.

“And as for you, kid,” Stan scowled at Steven. “Hit the road! And take that frilly furball with you.”

“Aw, ok, Mr. Pines,” Steven begrudgingly agreed, hating to go even though he knew it was getting late. “See you guys, tomorrow!” he exclaimed to the twins, heading for the door as Lion padded behind him, carrying the empty care package box in his maw.

“Bye!” Dipper and Mabel both called out after Steven as he left, though the latter did stop short a bit as he realized something.

“Wait… did Lion just steal our box?” Dipper asked with a frown.

“Aw, he can have it!” Mabel quipped warmly, smiling as she looked over her picture of Muffin. “After all, as a cat, he’s a distant relative to my sweet little Muffin! And as a responsible cat owner, it’s my sworn duty to look out for other cats aside from my own!”

“You… do know Lion’s a lion, right Mabel?”

“Yeah. And your point is…?” Mabel smirked, ignoring her brother as he rolled his eyes in exasperation with her usual odd train of logic.

“And… all done!” Steven exclaimed as he finished taking the cushions off his couch and arranging them into a bed on the floor for Lion. “I made sure to make it extra cushy, just the way you like it!” The young Gem grinned in satisfaction over his work, but Lion hardly noticed it as he glanced up at the loft instead. “Wha—hey!” Steven protested as the pink beast leaped up onto the loft, jumping onto the young Gem’s bed and nestling himself into the plush covers.

“Hey, get out of there, Lion!” the young Gem chastised as he ran up to the loft. “Lion, this is the Steven bed, not the Lion bed.” Of course, the pink beast refused to so much as budge, prompting Steven to relent and start pushing him off the bed with as much force as he could muster. “Come… on! Whoa!” the young Gem fell abruptly to the floor as Lion suddenly got up, taking the comforter that was still covering him with him. “Hey, that’s mine to!” Steven exclaimed, ripping the blanket away only to discover one of his stuffed animals in Lion’s mouth. “And Sir Bearrington,” he glowered, holding his hand out expectantly. The pink beast handed it over, letting out an aggravated huff as he padded back downstairs in apparent disappointment.

“You know, Lion, I usually love it when you act all cute like this, but it’s kinda late and I’m really tired,” the young Gem sighed in exasperation as he lay down and covered up. “But we can play tomorrow if you want!” Steven let out a tired yawn as he got comfortable, though he didn’t forget to address his pink companion down below one last time. “Anyway, night, Lion!”

Lion let out a simple snore in response, a sign that he was already fast asleep, which was where Steven was quickly headed as well. “Love you…” the young Gem mumbled as his eyes began to grow heavy. “…in the morning…” No sooner had Steven muttered this than he drifted off to sleep as easily as he did every other night.

However, when the young Gem opened his eyes again, he found that he wasn’t in the comfort of the room he had fallen asleep in. Instead, a bright, pastel pink sky met his sigh high above, a fitting coloration to go along with the apparently pink tall grass all around him.

“Whoa…” Steven thought, quite bewildered by his strange new surroundings. “What is this place?” Still confused, the young Gem opened his mouth to take in a breath of air, only to come to the startling realization that air was something this unknown place somehow lacked. “I can’t breathe!” Steven gasped internally, suddenly frantic as he tried to move his arms and legs only to realize they were stuck under something that felt quite heavy.

Just as the young Gem was running out of air and his alarm turned to outright panic, a familiar voice broke through the otherwise breezy silence. “Steven…?” the voice was quite soft at first, but it grew louder and more frightened as the world grew dark in Steven’s vision. “Steven?!”

“Steven!” Pearl cried, aghast at the sight before her. Most of the young Gem’s upper body was pinned under Lion’s fluffy body, his legs kicking in a frenzied attempt to get free. “Steven! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!” The white Gem ran to the bed, unsure of what to really do to solve the matter, especially as Steven’s muffled shouts grew louder. “H-hang on! I got you!” Pearl exclaimed, pushing against the pink beast, who stoically refused to so much as even budge. “Ugh, Lion! Let him go!”

Pearl went for a different method upon seeing how irresolute Lion was being, by pulling on Steven’s legs to free him. By now, the pink beast was thoroughly annoyed, which was why he finally relented and stood, releasing Steven and allowing him to take in a large, much needed breath of air at last.

“Oh thank goodness!” Pearl sighed in relief, hugging Steven tightly and cutting off his air once again.

“P-Pearl!” the young Gem exclaimed, his voice tight and breathless. “I can’t-”

“Oh! Sorry!” the white Gem blushed, releasing him and letting him breathe easy once more.

“What… happened?” Steven asked, still panting to regain lost air.

“Steven, are you alright?” Pearl asked with apt concern. “Why was Lion sleeping on top of you?!”

“I don’t know…” Steven frowned, looking to the pink beast sitting nearby. “He’s being a little clingy today. But that’s ‘cause I’m his favorite!” As soon as the young Gem said this, Lion suddenly grabbed him with his paw and shoved his face into his mane. “See?” Steven asked, his voice muffled briefly before he pushed himself away from Lion. “Wait… why are you here, Pearl?”

The white Gem’s former worry quickly turned to sudden nervousness upon hearing this question. “M-me? Nothing!” Steven didn’t really seem to buy this however, as he instead continued to stare at her questioningly. “I was just... uh, well, you know how I always say… um, I just, uh…” Pearl was clearly flustered by this point, as could be told from the sweat beading on her forehead, but she did finally relent and let out the admittedly strange truth. “I like to watch you sleep sometimes. And by sometimes I mean… often.”

Awkward silence filled the room for a moment as Steven wasn’t entirely sure of what to make of this revelation. Still, as troubled as he was by it, he made his stance on the matter clear when he spoke up again. “Okie-dokie, its time for everyone to leave Steven alone. I’m a growing boy and I need my rest.”

Disregarding both Pearl and Lion, Steven marched back to bed and fell onto it with a relaxed sigh. Still, before he could even try to sleep, he noticed Lion still sitting at his bedside, looking down at him intently. “Lion, that means you too,” the young Gem remarked, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them to find both Lion and Pearl still hovering over him. Frustrated, Steven grabbed his pillow and jumped to his feet, swiping at the overprotective pair in an attempt to chase them off. “Rah! Rah!” he shouted, shooing Lion and Pearl (who crawled away on all fours) away at last. “Ugh…” Steven sighed, exasperated as he flopped back onto the bed.

Seeing as how he was already tired, the young Gem hoped that sleep would come easy to him once again. Of course he had only had his eyes closed for a moment or two before he felt a sudden weight on his chest. “Wha-” When Steven opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Lion, sitting on the best beside him, his large paw resting squarely on top of his chest. “Lion!” the young Gem grumbled, shoving the pink beast’s paw off of him, only for Lion to set it right back down. Steven simply let out a long sigh, looking up to his stubborn pink companion tiredly. “This… this is gonna be a long night, isn’t it?”

“Ready…? Race!”

“Woo!” Mabel cheered, slamming the button on her controller down as the video game kart race began. Dipper was just a split second behind in accelerating, which was more than enough for her to tease him over. “Uh oh, bro-bro, looks like you better wake those reflexes of yours up! Or else you might not win this time around!”

“Mabel, I’ve won the past three races now; my streak isn’t about to end this time,” Dipper grinned triumphantly. “Still, speaking of waking up…” he trailed off with a frown upon noticing the kart that Steven was controlling continually driving straight into the wall.

Confused, the twins paused the game and stole a glance back at the young Gem, who was sitting on his stomach on the bed behind them, snoozing softly, his controller having slipped out of his grasp. “Uh, Steven?” Dipper asked, somewhat concerned, though Steven was still fast asleep.

“Hey, Steven! Wake up!” Mabel exclaimed much more boisterously, giving the young Gem a playful poke on the cheek. This was enough to startle Steven awake, though he was still quite a bit groggy at first.

“Huh?” Steven mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he slowly sat up. “Dipper? Mabel? When did you guys get here?”

“Um, we’ve been here for almost an hour now,” Dipper said with a frown.

“Yeah, and you were a lot more awake when we got here,” Mabel chuckled lightly.

“Oh, right,” the young Gem nodded, fighting to keep his eyes open as he let out a long yawn. “Sorry. I’m just a little…” Steven trailed off as he nodded off again, only to be awaken again by another poke from Mabel. “Tired. I didn’t really sleep that well last night.”

“Why not?” Dipper asked curiously.

“Well,” Steven yawned once more. “It’s all because a certain lion of mine couldn’t stop trying to sleep on top of me last night.” The young Gem sent a sour glare back at Lion, who was curled up for a nap on the other half of the bed.

“Aw! He probably just wanted to cuddle!” Mabel quipped with a charmed smile. “I know what that’s like! Waddles always wants to sleep on top of me all the time too! It’s so precious!”

“Yeah, it was really cute. The only problem is that Lion’s a lot bigger than Waddles is…” Steven frowned. “Between him and Pearl watching me while I was trying to sleep, I barely got any rest last night!”

“Wait, why was Pearl watching you while you slept?” Dipper asked, somewhat disturbed by that fact.

“I… have no idea,” Steven admitted with an equally unsettled frown. “But anyway, I’m so tired I could…” Once again, the young Gem trailed off as his head lolled and he fell into a doze yet again. Dipper was more than prepared to wake him up once more, only for Mabel to beat him to it.

“Oh! Oh! Oh!” she exclaimed loudly, grabbing Steven by the shoulder and shaking him wide awake. “Steven! I have an awesome idea! If you wanna get some extra sleep, you should totally stay at the Mystery Shack tonight! That way Lion can’t get in and sleep on your face and we can have the most epic slumber party ever!”

“Whoa, Mabel, that’s actually a really good idea,” Dipper agreed with a small smile. “Though it probably won’t be too much of a ‘party’ if Steven’s that tired.” He nodded to the young Gem, whose head was resting against his lap as he snored softly.

“Wha-?” Steven perked up a bit upon hearing his name, trying as hard as he could to remain awake. “No way. I’ll totally stay awake long enough for us to… what are we gonna do again?”

“We’re gonna have the slumber party of the ages!” Mabel exclaimed excitedly. “And it’ll be great! We’ll have snacks, do crafts, watch movies, have a pillow fight-”

“And most of all, sleep,” Dipper asserted, reminding Mabel of the very reason why they were planning on doing this. “Right, Steven?”

All Steven could really offer was an exhausted thumbs-up as he flopped onto the bed, far too tired to keep his eyes open for even another second.

Just as they had planned earlier, Steven headed back down to the shack along with the twins later that evening for their impromptu slumber party. The young Gem had made sure to make it very clear to Lion that he was not invited before they left the temple, though the pink beast seemed to take it well enough as he simply settled down on Steven’s bed in his absence. But even so, the kids all settled into the attic relatively early, with the intent of having at least a little fun before going to bed.

“Ok, Steven, this is one of the most important choices we’ll ever make,” Mabel said, her tone quite stern. “Should we make our friendship bracelets with beads or charms?”

“Oh, definitely charms!” Steven exclaimed with a wide smile. “That way they’ll be even more special!”

“Agreed!” Mabel nodded, smiling as well as she prepared to get to work on the craft. “By the way, you don’t mind passing those mini-cupcakes over here, do you?”

“Nope, not at all!” the young Gem complied, handing her the tray of tiny cupcakes they had made earlier. “But only after I have another one,” he laughed, taking one for himself and scarfing it down in one bite.

“Uh, don’t you guys think that maybe you shouldn’t be eating so much sugar right before bed?” Dipper asked as he glanced up from reading his mystery novel.

“What? No way!” Mabel scoffed. “Cupcakes are the number one pre-bedtime snack. All the experts agree!”

“And by experts you mean… you, right?” Dipper asked, raising a caustic eyebrow.

“Yep!” Mabel grinned widely.

“Then there’s pretty much no use trying to argue with that logic then,” Dipper concluded, rolling his eyes.

While Steven and Mabel continued to work on their friendship bracelets, Stan happened to come by to offer the twins his usual nighttime greeting. “Night, kids,” he remarked casually, poking his head into the room briefly.

“Night, Grunkle Stan,” Dipper and Mabel called back in unison.

“Good night, Mr. Pines!” Steven exclaimed brightly, causing the conman to stop in his tracks as he turned and started to leave.

“Hold it,” Stan said as he opened the door wider to take the scene in the attic in. While Dipper was simply sitting in bed reading as usual, Steven and Mabel had their craft supplies and snacks strewn across the floor, to the point that they were covering a great deal of space, including the young Gem’s sleeping bag and overnight bag. Which, of course, was something that caught the conman immediately off guard. “Alright, since when is there one more of you runts than usual?”

“Steven’s staying here tonight, Grunkle Stan!” Mabel exclaimed cheerfully. “We’re having a slumber party!”

“Oh yeah? Says who?” Stan put his hands on his hips. “Because none of you munchkins ever ran this little ‘slumber party’ plan by me first.”

“Oh, please let me stay for just one night, Mr. Pines!” Steven pleaded with sincerity. “I didn’t get any sleep last night because Lion kept sleeping on me and I’m so tired and I need to keep up a healthy sleep schedule or else I won’t-”

“Yeesh, kid, slow it down a second,” the conman interrupted. “What did you say? Your pink pest keeps trying to use you as a pillow or something like that?”

“Uh huh,” the young Gem nodded. “Which is why I need to get a night away. Please? I promise, you won’t even notice I’m here!”

“In case you haven’t noticed, kid, the Mystery Shack isn’t a hotel,” Stan deadpanned. “Though I guess it could be for one night, if you were willing to pay room and bored.”

“I don’t have any money,” Steven pointed out with a frown.

“Well then, I guess you better head on home and get used to that big cat of yours laying on your face!” Stan exclaimed as he started to usher Steven out. “Who knows, maybe it’ll build character or something sappy like that. Now don’t let the door hit you on the way out, kid!”

“Aw…” Steven and Mabel mourned in unison, both of them equally upset about their dashed slumber party plans. Fortunately though, Dipper interjected with an appeal that would hopefully work.

“Grunkle Stan, you’re seriously not about to force Steven to walk all the way up to the temple this late at night, are you?” he asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

“What? It’s not that far of a walk. Besides, a little tussle with a wolf or two never hurt anyone,” Stan shrugged, unconcerned. He did pause, however, upon noticing the rather disapproving looks both of the twins were giving him. His resolve crumbled even more upon looking down at Steven, who was returning his gaze with the most convincing pout he could muster. Which, unfortunately for Stan, no one was able to resist. “Ugh, fine!” he finally relented, pushing Steven back into the room. “You can stay, but just for one night! And just for the record, I’m adding this onto your dad’s tab.”

“My dad owes you money, Mr. Pines?” Steven asked curiously.

“He does now,” Stan scowled as he prepared to leave. “Don’t be up all night you three! And keep the noise down.! That goes double for you, Mabel.”

Without any further ado, the conman slammed the door shut, grumbling to himself as he headed downstairs all the while. Steven and Mabel could scarcely contain their shared squeals of delight as they jumped up and down together, overjoyed that their slumber party was saved.

“I said keep it down!” Stan shouted from downstairs, prompting the pair to cut the volume of their celebration a bit.

“Oh, this is so great!” Mabel exclaimed happily. “What should we do next? Play Tangler? Give Waddles a makeover? Make a blanket fort?”

“Go to bed?” Dipper suggested, knowing that once again, Steven and Mabel were missing the point of this slumber party.

“Oh, but it’s so early, Dipper!” Steven said brightly. “It’d be a waste to go to bed now. There’s still so much to do and so many tasty treats we can eat!”

“Uh yeah, about that? You might wanna lay off the sweets this late, Steven,” Dipper advised. “They can give you some pretty out-there dreams. Just ask Mabel.”

“Oh yeah, I have crazy dreams all the time from eating candy before bed!” Mabel exclaimed with a laugh. “One time, I had this dream where I was on a roller coaster, but I was riding a whale down the track and my hair was made out of rainbows! It was so cool!”

“Whoa, I wanna have a dream that cool!” Steven gasped, amazed. “Hand me those cupcakes again, Mabel! They’re gonna help me have the craziest, most awesome dream ever!”

“Yeah!” Mabel cheered, giving him the snacks. “We’re keeping this party going all night!”

“Oh boy…” Dipper sighed, knowing that this night would be a long one for him if no one else.

“Hey, you know what? I feel wide awake now!” Steven exclaimed excitedly. “I must have been so tired earlier that I just overcame it and now my body thinks its daytime again! I’ve conquered sleep itself!”

“All hail Steven the Sleep Conqueror!” Mabel declared with a laugh. “Nighttime and snooze buttons tremble in his presence!”

“You guys, that’s not-” Dipper tried to interject out of exasperation, but he was promptly ignored.

“I couldn’t possibly go to sleep now!” Steven proclaimed brazenly.

“Same here!” Mabel agreed, just as excited. “Let’s stay up all night! Maybe even longer than that!”

“No,” Dipper attempted to protest, but once again, he was outnumbered.

“Yeah!” Steven cheered. “All night! All night!” Mabel soon joined in on this zany chant, while Dipper merely sighed in defeat and continued reading, trying his best to block them out. “All night! All night!”

As it turned out “all night” only ended up being about an hour before all three of the kids ended up clocking out. Of course, Steven was the first to go as his earlier exhaustion returned and hit him hard, to the point that he practically K.O.ed on the floor. Thankfully, his sleeping bag was right underneath him with it happened to cushion the fall and provide him with something soft to lie on. The twins weren’t very long after him in falling asleep, as Mabel’s energy was quickly spent after her and Steven’s short-lived dance party, though she did manage to tiredly climb into bed first. While Dipper was the last to go to bed, he did so in a much more gradual, natural way, seeing as how he hadn’t exactly joined Steven and Mabel in their brief, yet wild escapades. But even so, soon enough the attic was filled with nothing more than the moonlight pouring in through the window and the sound of soft, peaceful snoozing.

The bright sun was warm and crisp as it shined down upon the petite island where Steven sat across from Dogcopter, pondering over what his next move would be as the two engaged in a decisive game of checkers. After a moment or two, the young Gem proudly put his piece down in a move that he knew would win for sure. He was quickly proven wrong however, as Dogcopter set his chess piece piece down on top Steven’s checker piece.

“I win,” Dogcopter concluded, his voice smooth and coming out without the need for him to move his mouth at all.

“Oh what?” Steven asked, looking over the checkerboard with a laugh. “That was a good move.”

“Thanks.”

“Dogcopter, how do you do it?” the young Gem asked, shaking his head in amazement.

“How do I do what?” Dogcopter asked as calmly as ever.

“I mean, what’s your secret? How’d you get so talented?”

“Don’t focus so much on talent, Steven,” Dogcopter advised wisely. “Making art is all about communication. Look to what inspires you and then reshape it into something you love even more.” He paused for a moment to eat his chess piece whole. “Don’t worry about trying to be broad or appeal to everyone. Just be true to yourself, and people will appreciate your honesty.”

“Whoa…” Steven said, taking this somewhat random knowledge to heart. “Thanks for the advice.”

“Of course. Oh and take a deep breath,” Dogcopter said as he suddenly flew away at an alarming speed.

“What?” Before Steven could even comprehend what was happening, the island-scape was in suddenly crumbled apart, though he still had a brief moment to go off of Dogcopter’s advice and suck in a large breath as everything faded to black.

When the young Gem opened his eyes again, he once again found himself surrounded by the very same pink grass he had been in during his dreams the previous night. “Here again?” Steven thought curiously. Knowing that he wouldn’t have any air here, he continued to hold what breath he did have as he popped up a bit higher in the grass, allowing him to see that the grassy expanse stretched on for what seemed like forever. “I don’t know what this place is but it feels… familiar…” the young Gem continued to internally muse. “Why can’t I breathe? Wait a minute… Lion!”

As Steven began to struggle underneath Lion’s weight outside of his dream, he easily managed to wake Dipper and Mabel up, even though they had somehow both slept through the pink beast barging into the attic in the first place. “Ugh… what’s going on?” Mabel asked drowsily as she sat up in bed, her hair a mess as she resisted the urge to flop back onto her pillow.

“I don’t know…” Dipper mumbled just as tiredly, only for his eyes to go wide upon seeing the odd sight in the middle of the room. “Wait, Lion?!”

“Ugh!” Steven shouted, finally pushing Lion off of him. “Lion! My face is not your bed!”

“Steven, how in the world did Lion get into the shack?” Dipper asked, rather alarmed as both him and Mabel got out of bed. “I thought you told him to stay back up at the temple!”

“Aw, looks like somebody was all lonely after not being invited to our slumber party,” Mabel said with a charmed smile as she reached out to pet Lion, only to have her advance be rejected with a sullen growl. “Whoa! Well excuse me, Mr. Night Owl.”

“Lion, that’s so not like you!” Steven scolded. “You love it when Mabel pets you! What’s going on with you lately?”

Lion had no chance to respond in any way as the already opened attic door burst open even moreso as Stan charged into the room, baseball bat in hand as he prepared to attack any apparent assailants. “Kids, somebody’s broken into the shack!” he shouted, glancing around the room with a fierce glare. “The front door was wide open! I don’t know how they managed to get past me, but when I catch that lousy, no-account beginner, whoever they are, I’m gonna-” The conman cut himself off upon seeing the pink beast sitting next to Steven, getting his answer. “Oh. Well I guess this is my fault then. I should have figured this would happen if I let you stay here, kid.”

“Oh, I’m really, really, sorry, Mr. Pines!” Steven apologized earnestly. “I don’t know how Lion managed to get in here, but I can promise you he’s going home right now.” The young Gem sent annoyed glare to his companion, who simply returned it with a much softer, almost apologetic glance.

“You’re darn right he is,” Stan remarked with a frustrated scowl. “It’s bad enough I have to babysit you for one night, kid. I’m not running an animal shelter here with that thing too! Now come on, pinky. Beat it.” Of course, Lion simply turned his nose up at the conman’s harsh manner, aggravating him even further. “Oh yeah? That’s how you wanna be? Well two can play at this game.” Putting his bat down, Stan marched over to Lion, reaching out to grab the pink beast by the ear and drag him out himself. However, he only narrowly missed having his hand scratched as Lion suddenly lashed his paw out at him with a fierce warning growl.

“Lion!” Steven gasped, appalled by the pink beast’s suddenly violent behavior.

“O-on second thought,” Stan backed away from Lion a bit, especially as the pink beast continued to growl at him. “He can stay. Heck, I-I’ll even make him breakfast in the morning, yeah! Just as long as he keeps those claws of his far away from me.”

The kids all exchanged a disappointed glance as the conman quickly retreated, not even bothering to exchange another glance with the perturbed pink beast as he left. “Well, we can always count on Stan to be helpful in a pinch,” Dipper remarked sarcastically.

“I just don’t get it…” Steven frowned to Lion, who remained close by his side. “What’s wrong with you, Lion? You’re acting so weird. Weirder than usual, I mean.”

The pink beast simply responded by letting out a loud groan as he rolled onto his back, giving the young Gem a pleading look as he exposed his soft stomach. “Oh my gosh,” Mabel whispered, completely charmed by this. “How can he be so cute?!”

“Wait… you just wanted a belly rub?” the young Gem asked, confused.

“Oh come on,” Dipper shook his head. “He couldn’t have come all the way down here just so you could give him a belly rub. Could he?”

Lion let out another small roar in reply, giving Steven more than enough of a proper answer. “You never let me touch your belly!” he exclaimed, delighted as he rushed to rub the pink beast’s stomach. Mabel hurried over to join him, but before she could get close enough, Lion suddenly grabbed Steven with his front paws and pulled him close in something of a hug. Startled, the young Gem struggled to free himself from Lion’s surprisingly strong hold. “Ah! It’s a trap!” he cried, briefly lifting himself off of the pink beast’s chest. “An adorable trap!”

“Steven!” both twins gasped worriedly, both of them hurrying to Lion to try and save the young Gem. However, as they got close, the pink beast sent them a loud growl, as if he was telling them to both back off, which they hesitantly did.

“What do we do? What do we do?!” Mabel asked fretfully. “We can’t let Lion smoother Steven with hugs! No matter how sweet it is!”

“Well we can’t let ourselves get mauled by an actual lion, Mabel!” Dipper protested, not wanting to be on the receiving end of Lion’s wrath yet again.

“Guys!” Steven exclaimed as he struggled to lift his head to catch a breath. “It’s ok! I-I’m… fine!”

“Really? Because it honestly doesn’t look like it, what with Lion trying to suffocate you and everything!” Dipper exclaimed in disbelief.

“N-no! I’m-” Steven cut himself off with annoyed huff, blowing some of Lion’s fur out of his face. “Ok, Lion, you got me. Will you finally let me go now?” Despite his pleas, the pink beast remained resolute, refusing to let the young Gem go for anything. “Come on! Ugh!” As Steven tried to pull himself free from Lion’s grip once more, the pastel beast retaliated by pushing him down once again, this time digging his claws into the young Gem’s back to ensure that he’d say put this time. “Ow!” Steven cried, finally provoked enough to pull himself away from Lion entirely.

“Whoa, Steven, are you ok?!” Mabel asked with concern, running over to check on him.

“Ugh, yeah I’m fine,” Steven sighed, rubbing his back in annoyance. “But Lion’s not!” He sent a very disapproving glare to his pink companion, who merely returned it with a questioning look, as though he had done nothing wrong. “That’s it, Lion! You’re on time out!” Firm in his resolve, Steven marched over to Lion and began pushing him out of the attic as much as he could. “You’re going outside to think about what you’ve done!”

“Uh, Steven? I really don’t think that’s working,” Dipper said with a doubtful frown as Lion remained as still as a statue, despite Steven’s best attempts to move him.

“No, I-I just gotta—whoa!” the young Gem suddenly stumbled backwards as Lion turned around on him, though fortunately, the pink beast didn’t try to shove his face into his mane this time. Steven took a cautious step back from his pink companion, who gave him what seemed to be a genuinely sad look, his ears flopped down and his eyes doleful and pleading. The young Gem could hardly deny how adorable Lion looked like this, especially as he blinked slowly and sweetly, filling both Steven and Mabel with absolute delight.

“He loves me!” Steven whispered with an enchanted gasp.

“And I love him!” Mabel quipped, just as enthralled. “He’s just so precious!”

“You guys can’t be serious, right?” Dipper asked with a scoff as Steven and Mabel rushed over to Lion. “Steven, you do remember how he nearly smothered you just a minute ago, don’t you?”

“Aw, I know. But I just can’t stay mad at that face!” Steven exclaimed warmly, throwing his arms around Lion in a wide hug. “You’re a wonderful human being, Lion! Except you’re not. ‘Cause you’re a lion.”

As Steven pressed his face into Lion’s mane, a soft pink light suddenly started to emit from it, startling both the twins quite a bit when they noticed it.

“Whoa…” Mabel gasped, amazed.

“What the…?” Dipper frowned in absolute bewilderment.

Yet despite their confusion, no one was more confused than Steven himself as he opened his eyes to find himself amidst the tall pink grass yet again, even though he was sure he was awake. Startled and bewildered, Steven pushed himself out of Lion’s mane as he took in a sharp gasp, only to find himself back in the attic once again and the twins staring at him with wide eyes.

“Steven, that was so cool,” Mabel whispered, awestruck.

“What was that?” Dipper asked, completely confounded.

“I don’t-” Steven cut himself off as he looked to Lion once again, noticing that the place where his hand rested on the pink beast’s mane was still glowing brightly. After exchanging a tentative glance with the twins, the young Gem sucked in a deep breath and plunged his head inside Lion’s mane once more, arriving in the wide pink field of his dreams yet again. “I’m inside Lion’s mane?!” Steven thought, alarmed at this revelation. Then again, it did make sense in a way that he had dreamed of this place every time Lion had slept on him over the past few nights. Still, the idea that an entire world seemed to exist within the pink beast’s mane was both incredible and unbelievable.

As Steven pulled himself out of Lion’s mane again, neither Dipper nor Mabel had any time to ask him any questions about it as he took in another deep breath and went in again, over and over again just out of his own curiosity and entertainment. While Steven laughed over how fun it was, Lion let out an unamused growl while both of the twins were clearly in suspense over what exactly the young Gem was seeing.

“Sorry,” Steven chuckled, giving Lion an apologetic grin. “I couldn’t resist.”

“So what’s in there?” Mabel asked, overwhelmed with curiosity. “More of Lion’s super-soft fur?”

“No, actually,” Steven shook his head, turning away from Lion briefly. “I don’t really know how to explain it but, like… there’s a huge field full of pink grass in there! Almost like it’s a whole other world, one that doesn’t really have any air in it, but it’s still so awesome!”

“What?” Dipper asked, puzzled. “Steven, that’s imp—Ok, you know what, maybe it’s not impossible given everything we’ve seen this summer, but still. How could an entire world fit inside Lion’s mane?”

“Who cares?” Mabel asked excitedly, running up to the pink beast. “I wanna see it!” Taking in a deep breath just as Steven had, Mabel shoved her face squarely into Lion’s mane, only for it to remain as solid and fluffy as ever. “Aw, what gives, Lion?” she frowned, pulling away from him a bit. “You’re not gonna let me in to see your pink grass dimension?”

“Maybe only I’m allowed in there…” Steven purposed thoughtfully, placing his hand against Lion’s mane and watching it light up again.

“Well then go in there and check it out!” Mabel urged. “And tell us everything about it! Considering how amazing Lion is, there’s bound to be some great stuff in there!”

“Uh, that might not be such a good idea, Steven,” Dipper cautioned much more rationally. “Who knows how big it really is in there? What if you get lost or run out of air or something?”

“Aw, Lion won’t let that happen,” Steven reassured the pink beast, who continued to stare down at him as stoically as ever. “After all, he did all this just so I could see that place. There’s gotta be something in there I’m meant to see, right?”

“Oh! What if there’s another, smaller version of Lion inside Lion’s mane?!” Mabel theorized zealously. “And another Lion inside that Lion’s mane! You know, like those cute little dolls that go inside each other.”

Dipper rolled his eyes upon hearing this rather outlandish idea, but Steven was intrigued by it nonetheless. “Well, I guess there’s only one way to find out,” the young Gem said with resolve. “I’m going in.” Without any further hesitation, Steven jumped right into the still-glowing opening in Lion’s mane, which closed the moment he disappeared into it entirely.

“Good luck, Steven!” Mabel called out after him. “Oh, and if you really do get lost in there, I call dibs on your Crying Breakfast Friends special edition box set!”

“Mabel!” Dipper scolded succinctly over his sister’s tactlessness.

Still, Steven didn’t really hear either of them as he emerged inside the pink grass yet again, holding onto the breath he had taken as he looked around curiously. “Am I… supposed to do something in here?” the young Gem thought to himself, still uncertain of why Lion was so insistent on showing him this mysterious place. He paused, however, as he caught sight of something rising over the grass afar in the distance, something that looked like the vague silhouette of a tree amidst the pale pink sky.

“Wha…?” Curious, Steven started making his way towards the tree, easily pushing his way through the tall grass as he got ever closer to the hill it was perched atop. It was quite tall and beautiful, with long branches adorned with pink leaves, in keeping with the color scheme. A variety of different items seemed to congregated around the tree, but unfortunately, Steven wasn’t able to get a good look at any of it before he finally ran out of air, prompting him to dive back into the grass with the hopes of getting more.

The twins both gasped in surprise as the young Gem’s head popped out of Lion’s main, though they did wait a moment for him to catch his breath before bombarding him with questions.

“So, what’s it like in there?” Mabel asked with a huge smile, completely intrigued. “Did you find anything cool or magical or anything that looked like a tiny Lion?”

“Or was it just a huge empty expanse of nothingness?” Dipper asked, still skeptical of the entire concept.

“No, there’s something in there!” Steven exclaimed. “It was a tree!”

“A tree?” both twins asked with confused frowns.

“Yeah, and there was all sorts of stuff lying all around it.”

“What kind of ‘stuff’?” Dipper asked, seeing as how that was a very vague description.

Steven paused for a moment, unsure of how to describe any of what he had only seen in the brief glance he had caught of it. “Hold on a second,” he said before heading back into Lion’s mane with a deep inhale.

As the young Gem poked his head through the grass again, he found himself at the foot of the tree’s hill, conveniently enough. Pushing through the last of the grass, Steven steadily scaled the hill, stopping as he stood before it and looked over the fascinating collection before him.

Standing at the far side of the tree’s base was a torn and tattered pink flag, adorned with an elegant rose design as it waved in the invisible wind of the area. Resting over one of the branches above it was a bubbled gemstone, much like the ones in the temple, rectangular in shape is it descended down into something of an upside down pyramid. Steven was also quite surprised to see the large pink sword that him, the twins, and Connie had pulled out of Lion’s mane the other week, digging into the ground near the tree. Then again, he figured it would make sense for its usual home to be here, all things considered. On another branch hung what the young Gem recognized to be one of his father’s shirts from his touring days, a large black tee with the “Mr. Universe logo” branded upon it. A large chest was also resting near the tree, a photograph of Rose and Greg resting against it, the very same one the former rock star had in his storage shed. Still curious, Steven glanced just a little ways past the chest to see a long glass tube sitting behind it with a label that read “Crystal Gems” in elegant cursive. Something else was written underneath that, but the young Gem couldn’t exactly make it out given how the tube was partially rolled over.

However, what caught Steven’s eye the most out of all of these various items was, oddly enough, a VHS tape sitting right at his feet. Intrigued, he picked it up and looked over the label on its side, which was simply marked: “For Steven.”

“For me?” Steven wondered, frowning down at the tape. “Who would put this here? And how does this huge place fit inside of Lion’s mane anyw-” The young Gem’s musings were abruptly cut off as he realized he was all too quickly running out of air again. His already palpable panic grew as he realized the hill he was on was solid; the only way out was, of course, through the grass.

Grasping onto the tape tightly, Steven began bounding down the hill, feeling his lungs tighten with each footfall. It really didn’t help matters, however, when his foot caught on a rock, which sent him pummeling to the ground hard and resulted in him rolling down the hill and into the grass uncontrollably.

While Steven was exploring whatever Lion’s mane had to offer, the twins remained standing by, anxiously waiting as seconds started to turn into minutes. “Uh… do you think he’s ok in there?” Dipper asked his sister with ever growing concern.

“I’m sure he is,” Mabel shrugged blithely. “It’s he, Lion?” She grinned to the pink beast, who simply shoved her away from him with a simple push of his paw. Of course, Mabel was hardly offended by this as she instead let out an amused laugh amidst falling to the ground. “Aw, love pats!”

“Mabel, that wasn’t-” Dipper was suddenly interrupted as Steven fell cleanly out of Lion’s mane, letting out a sharp gasp as he fell on his back.

“Steven!” the twins exclaimed, shocked as they hurried over to him.

“Are you ok?” Dipper asked, offering a hand to help Steven up.

“Um… yeah, I think so,” the young Gem replied, still a bit breathless as he stood.

“What’s that?” Mabel asked nodded to the tape in Steven’s hands. “Oh! Is it a movie?”

“I… don’t really know what this is,” Steven frowned down at the tape. “I just sorta found it in there, and it says its for me, and I just… took it.”

“But why would there be a video tape inside of Lion’s-” Dipper abruptly cut himself off in the middle of his question, letting out a tired sigh before restarting. “You know what? I feel like that’s definitely not the right question to ask about all this.”

“You’re right! The right question to ask is: can we see what’s on it?” Mabel asked Steven with a eager grin.

Steven shrugged as he glanced over to Lion, who had finally settled down for a nap, his mission apparently accomplished, whatever it was. “I don’t see why not.”

Seeing as how it was already early morning anyway, the kids hurried downstairs to as quietly as they could, as not to frustrate Stan anymore than they already had that night alone. Lion padded along after them, but took to cuddling in the corner of the den with Waddles as the kids all got comfy around the TV in preparation for their viewing.

“Hey, dorks,” Wendy greeted with a tired yawn as she stepped into the room, having just arrived for her early morning shift. “You guys are up early. What, did you have a crazy slumber party and stay up all night?”

“Uh, yeah, actually,” Dipper admitted with a shrug.

“Steven found a video tape inside of Lion’s mane, so now we’re gonna watch it!” Mabel explained in her usual excitable way.

“A tape, huh?” Wendy chuckled, taking a seat on the arm of the chair. “Mind if I join you guys then? Anything’s better than having to open up the gift shop this early.”

“Sure, Wendy. Let’s just start it up here and…” Steven smiled as he put the tape into the VHS player. No one really said anything else as the young Gem pushed play and returned to his seat, mostly as everyone looked to the static-filled screen out of curiosity, until a clear image finally appeared.

The first scene of the mysterious tape was a familiar one; namely, it was a wide shot of the woods near the temple, the bright sun shining through the trees as birdsong echoed in the background. Static suddenly filled the screen once again as the image cut to another one, this time of the bright blue skies above, clouds lazily floating through them.

The kids were all admittedly initially unimpressed by this seemingly random collection of nature shots. However, their shared interest was instantly peaked the moment the Gem temple appeared on screen. The camera tilted down to where the house usually would have been, only to reveal that it was gone and the warp pad and temple door could now be clearly seen instead.

Once again, the tape cut back to the woods, only this time, it panned over to a much younger version of Greg, his hair still full and long as he attempted to climb a nearby tree, to little avail. Somewhere off screen, a soft, feminine voice let out a gentle chuckle, amused by the former rock star’s antics. “What are you doing?”

Steven took in a sharp gasp upon hearing this voice, not immediately recognizing it, though his eyes wide as he put the pieces together. Inside Lion’s mane, the tape had been sitting right next to a photo of his parents. And if Greg himself was in the tape, then that meant that the only one who could be filming it was... his mother.

Rose Quartz.

Dipper, Mabel, and Wendy all looked to the young Gem with soft smiles as they apparently all reached the same realization. Still, no one spoke as the tape continued. The next shot was of Greg, lying in the middle of the clearing they were shooting in, fast asleep as a squirrel sat upon his stomach.

Rose let out another warm laugh at this, her voice melodious and inviting as she whispered to the camera. “Greg made a friend.” The peaceful moment was soon shattered, however, as the squirrel suddenly chattered loudly, startling Greg wide awake.

“Wha-?!” the former rock star exclaimed, startled as he quickly sat up and scared the squirrel off. Rose laughed again, catching Greg’s attention and causing him to blush in slight embarrassment over his unnecessary panic.

The next shot was of Greg himself, standing against the forest as he looked into the camera somewhat awkwardly. “Go on…” Rose urged gently.

“Sorry, I’m getting stage fright here,” Greg admitted, glancing away.

“Tell us about yourself,” the pink Gem encouraged once more.

“Well… let’s see here,” the former rock star began thoughtfully. “My name is… Greg. No, no no!” he suddenly panicked. “This is all wrong!”

Once again, the tape cut, this time to a bird nesting high in a tree. “Ok, go!” Greg exclaimed off-screen, prompting Rose to tilt the camera down to him. The former rock star grinned daringly, his guitar perched and ready to play as he wore a pair of dark sunglasses. “They call me…” Greg trailed off, strumming his guitar broadly. “Mr. Universe! Get ready, baby! You’re gonna have the coolest dad this side of the cosmos!” Greg smirked as he plucked at his guitar once more, singing along to his light riff. “Press the button, Rose!”

“Oh, right!” Rose exclaimed, hitting a button that caused a colorful stream to wash over the screen. “Was that the right one?”

“Uh… maybe?” Greg shrugged.

“Now, what does this one do?” Rose wondered, hitting another button that caused a star to iris out to black before cutting once more.

When the screen cleared again, Greg was sitting in the middle of the clearing, his back turned to the camera as he strummed his guitar peacefully, a contented smile on his face. After a moment of this gentle, calming melody, Rose began to speak. “Isn’t it remarkable, Steven? This world is full of so many possibilities. Each living things has an entirely unique experience. The sights they see, the sounds they hear, the lives they live… are so complicated… a-and so simple…”

Tears were already forming in the young Gem’s eyes as he listened to his mother’s beautiful message to him, hanging onto every love-filled word she spoke. His already touched smile grew even wider as she continued. “And there’s no place on this planet where that’s more clear to see than right here, in Gravity Falls,” Rose went on, panning the camera around to the trees. She gradually turned the camera in a full circle as she spoke, the shot landing on the Mystery Shack down below for a moment or two. “There are things here that I’ve never seen anywhere else, things that still amaze me every time I encounter them. So many strange, yet wonderful creatures and people… I can’t wait for you to join them. This place is so special to me, Steven. And I hope that it will become just as special to you too someday…”

Rose paused as she turned the camera away from the shack and towards herself instead. Her luxurious curls spilled over her shoulders as gently as ever as she looked into the camera, her expression sincere yet hopeful. “Steven,” she said, her voice filled with both affection and intention. “We can’t both exist. I’m going to become half of you. And I need you to know that every moment you love being yourself, that’s me, loving you and loving being you. Because you’re going to be something extraordinary.” Rose pulled the camera a bit closer to her, a warm, loving smile crossing her features. “You’re going to be a human being.”

“Hey, Rose!” Greg called from off-screen, diverting the pink Gem’s attention for a moment. Still, she looked to the camera one last time, giving one final message to her then-unborn son.

“Take care of them, Steven.”

The shot changed one last time as Rose set the camera down, revealing the Gem on her very-pregnant stomach. Her curls twisted casually as she walked over to Greg, who placed a gentle hand on her stomach as well. The battery meter in the corner of the screen began to blink red as the couple leaned in for a kiss.

And just like that, it was over.

Static crackled on the screen for another moment or two before it cut to black and the tape popped out of the player. Needless to say that no one’s eyes were dry in the aftermath of watching such a touching, inspiring message. Still, Stan had no idea of this as he barged into the room as gruffly as he usually did.

“Alright, kids, enough loungin’ around in here,” the conman remarked stoically. “It’s time to open-” Stan cut himself off as the group around the TV all looked to him, the tears in their eyes still quite clear. Surprised and unsure of what to say in light of this, the conman backed out of the room slowly, allowing the twins to get up and pass by him first. “What the heck did you kids watch?” he asked, confounded.

Neither Dipper nor Mabel offered their uncle any real response, however as they dried their respective tears and exchanged a soft smile. Neither of them were really sure what to say after what they had just watched themselves, but that was fine. After all, not much else was needed after something like that. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking, bro-bro?” Mabel asked after a moment of tentative silence.

“That we should call Mom and thank her for the care package?” Dipper guessed, still smiling.

“Yep,” Mabel nodded happily.

“Oh, definitely,” Dipper readily agreed. “I feel like we’d be crazy not to after… well, you know.” The twins shared another warm grin as they headed for the phone, still leaving the conman quite in the dark about everything.  

“Wait, kids? Is someone gonna fill me in on what’s going on?” Stan asked, somewhat disgruntled. “Kids!”

Steven hugged his mother’s tape close to his chest as he pulled it out of the VHS player. His eyes were still wet with happy tears as he looked to his name on the side of it, no doubt written there by Rose herself. The young Gem had always wanted to meet his mother for himself somehow, even if he knew it was impossible. And while this wasn’t exactly the same as speaking to her face to face, it was certainly the next best thing.

“Steven, wait up,” Wendy stopped the young Gem before he could leave the room. She was just finishing wiping away her own tears as she smiled down at him, her usually casual manner shaken somewhat. “Um… well, uh… You know, if y-you ever need to talk to someone about the whole… ‘no mom’ thing… you can always talk to me. I know how that feels, after all.”

“Thanks, Wendy,” Steven said with a warm smile. “And… I’m sorry again about your mom. I bet she was really nice, like my mom was.”

“She was…” Wendy said with a wistful sigh. “But like I said, its ok, dude. We actually have a bunch of tapes of her at home just like your mom’s. Ok, well, maybe not just like hers’ but still. We have something to remember her by.”

“Yeah…” Steven grinned, looking down to the tape in his hands contentedly. “Something to remember her by…”

“Anyway, I better get to work before Stan has an aneurism,” the cashier joked, her usual playful ways returning. “See you later, Steven.”

“Bye!” Steven called after Wendy as she headed into the gift shop. Knowing he had to get ready for the day himself, the young Gem started to head for the door, Lion trailing not too far behind him. Steven was startled a bit as Lion bumped his head against his back, catching his attention gently. “Thanks, Lion,” he said with complete sincerity, embracing the pink beast. After all, if not for his efforts, then Steven might have never found this tape at all and might have never gotten to know his mother, even in this very simple way. A happy sigh escaped young Gem as he looked down to the tape one last time, his mother’s loving words of wisdom still echoing inside his mind.

“Take care of them, Steven…”

The young Gem leaned his head against Lion’s chest as he closed his eyes, clinging onto the image of his mother’s kind, smiling face. It was an image that would only ever exist for him in photos and tapes, but perhaps that was really all he needed. For now. “Don’t worry,” Steven promised in a gentle, blissful whisper, one that he knew the half of him that was Rose would certainly hear. “I will.”

Next: 

[juju-journeys]

Ju Ju

 The people’s names in brackets are my friends you gave me suggestions for my trips.

DECIDING WHAT TO TAKE

This depends on how many days you are away and what type of trip you are taking -  a bus trip, a cruise, hotels or staying with friends.

Does the Hotel have laundry facilities or if you are staying for a while - is there a Laundry Mat nearby.

Most Hotels have an iron. If there is not an iron in the room, ring the Front Desk

Always check what is included with the amenities on their website.

Take a peg less clothesline with the hooks and not the suction caps ( Aussie Disposal about $7) and some pegs. I bought some at Daiso’s (Japanese store) which was just $2.80 and have hooks. These are good as some coat hangers in your Hotel rooms cannot be removed.

Take a wash bag for delicates as if you are sharing a load then you can separate yours easily. Most laundry mats in USA have vending machines to change your notes into coins and buy soap powder. Most washes cost about $2 and they use quarters and takes about 35 minutes to wash. Then the dryers cost about the same for about 45 minutes. Don’t make the temperature too hot.

 WHAT TO PACK

Golden rule – make a list what you want to take, then lay it out and then cut it by a third.  There is always one or more piece that you will not wear.

For a summer holiday

One pair jeans

2 pair of ¾ pants,

2 shorts,

1 pair of good black pants. If black is not your colour then the colour that will match your evening tops

5 nice tops for day time that mix and match with your shorts and pants

4 nice tops for evening

1 cardigan for night and/or jacket,

1 rolled up rain jacket

1 long sleeved top.

Shoes  - Pair of thongs if you can walk all day in them. I cannot.

Runners or sneakers for walking

Good walking sandals or skechers

Nice pair of sandals or ballet shoes to wear at night

5-7 Bras as they can be easily washed

Underpants – well I take all my old ones and throw them out after wearing. ( Mary told me this one.) My last trip I took 14 pairs and must admit I did wash a few pairs and then started throwing them out in the waste basket.  Good way to have more room in your suit case for all the items you will buy on your trip.

Socks- this is up to you.

 PACKING

To pack, I  roll all my tops together. Shoes I put in plastic bags. Toilet bag at the bottom of the suitcase and at the end, so when the suit case stands up,  it is on the bottom. I bought the packing cells from Kathmandu and placed my bras in one, undies in another and socks in the third.  These are great as on one side of the cell  is mesh and when you put them in your suitcase and squash then down all the air comes out.  You can also buy these at Daiso (everything is $2.80 shop). These are located in Box Hill and 2 in Melbourne CBD.

Toiletries

When I have booked my trip then I start buying items for the Toiletry bag especially when they are on special. If you are going on a small trip then  and are getting low in what you are using now  - shampoo etc and if you think there is enough left for the days you are away then put that away in your toilet bag. Same with toothpaste, deodorant, moisturiser, eye makeup remover, conditioner, cleanser, sun tan cream etc. The packet of cleanser wipes are also good to take. Once your trip is finished you can just throw them all away and you have more space and less weight in your suitcase.

Always keep the small sample bottles after use as they are very handy to take small amounts of your conditioner etc away with you.

Put all liquids in Zip lock bags as for sure something will leak. I take a few extra as some always will break and they are also good for carrying food in on day trips.

Put in small nail scissors, nail file and I use the nail polish remover pads  (and do not take a bottle ) or otherwise buy the remover when you  get there. I buy a 6 pack of the flat Kleenex tissues as they fit very easily in your hand bag which does not take up too much room.

MAKEUP BAG

Same goes for the makeup. If you are getting low with your foundation, eye shadow  or eyeliner etc. put them in your make up bag. I buy an inexpensive mascara or take the small travel size. Less is better. Or in US buy up as Revlon, Estee Lauder etc are very cheap.

SHOPPING IN USA

Clothes and cosmetics are so much cheaper in USA.  When the Department stores have the Free gift sometimes you only need to spend $30 so then only buy one item and get a free gift. So go back the next day and buy the next item and so on.  End of season sales are just brilliant with extra 25% to 50% off. I love Labour Day sales which starts around 2nd Monday of September.  Revlon nail polish is about US$5 plus tax, same with Maybelline, Covergirl, Prestige.

Sizing I usually go down one size only for USA and go up one size for UK and Europe. Some say go down 2 sizes for US.

List of Department stores in USA.

Bloomingdales   and Neiman & Marcus very expensive and have High end brands

Nordstrom – up market and similar to David Jones

Macy’s – they have sales all the time and sometimes as good as or better than the Outlet malls. Visit the information desk show your passport and you 10% off voucher for 30 days. Read the fine print as discount not on perfume or makeup.

Dillard’s  and Belk’s -  similar as Myers.

Wal-Mart  - huge variety cheap cosmetics, plus they have food and alcohol.

Sears – cheap like K Mart

Target - huge variety of cheap cosmetics, plus they have food and alcohol

 VARIETY STORES

Wahlgrens – sells souvenirs and a variety of food etc Phone cards, cheap cosmetics

ABC Stores -  sells souvenirs and a variety of food etc, Phone cards, cheap cosmetics

Duane Reade – pharmacy sells food, cosmetics etc.

Discount Stores – Look online if any of these are near where you are staying

Nordstrom Rack  ( discontinued lines)  - lot of racks

Burlington Coats ( not just coats but discontinued lines) - lot of racks

Ross dress for less. My favourite store, just ask Lisa.  You must go through a lot of racks but it’s worth it. The racks are in sizes and in categories, tops, dresses, knits etc. My suit l bought last year in Denver was $70. So I bought 2. I believe Irene found one great store in Oregon and Hawaii.

Marshalls, TJ Maxx and Kohls - all very similar to Ross’s

Century 21 in New York and it was  Leanne who showed me the way to shopping bliss. My first Calvin Klein suit I bought for $100, plus it has bags, cosmetics,  so many different brands but you need to get there first thing in the morning as it gets so busy and close very late.

FACTORY OUTLETS IN USA

http://www.premiumoutlets.com/centers/

http://www.tangeroutlet.com/

 LAS VEGAS

Best place to shop especially Labour Day sales is Vegas. 2 Factory Outlets – North and South. Join up online and you can get coupons. The South is near the airport and North is past Fremont Street. North has more high end shops. Just take the Express bus to both Outlets. Look up the website and plan your day. Shops open at 10 am and close quite late either 9 or 10pm. I usually plan my day and have a list of shops I want to visit.

The South Outlet is all under one roof and has great bargains. I shop here first as both have different discounts. The South had Tommy Hilfiger Polo shirts for $25 then the North had the same items for $35. Ralph Lauren in the North I got a cotton cable knit for $20. So I always go to both especially if you love shopping. The South has Elizabeth Arden and the North has Estee Lauder and Lancome.  Ann Taylor is a great store for ladies. I got my sister a t-shirt for under $5 in the summer sales and good quality. Skechers sales are great, buy one get second for half price. Levi jeans you can get around $40.

There is also the Fashion Show Mall very similar to Chadstone with lots of eating places it is just past Treasure Island and also the Miracle Mile Shops which part of Planet Hollywood complex.  It has H & M, ABC shop, Wahlgrens and lots of places to eat as well. There are 2 Ross Dress for Less in Vegas. One is near the M & M shop and the other down past Wynne’s Casino.

HALF PRICE TIX IN VEGAS- Check the website for locations and shows.

There are many places along the strip you can get tickets for shows that night for half the price. They open around 10am and you can get reasonable priced tickets for Shows that night or the next plus food vouchers and tours.  It might cost you $2 and get a voucher that gets you a Buffet for less than $20, just an example. If you come back the next day you get the VIP treatment and line up in the express line.

HOTELS in Vegas

Most Hotels are Casinos and you do not have Tea/Coffee facilities in your room. Some have Mini bars or occasionally you get a Refridgerator but  you can request one. Sharon bought me an Infuser, it is a big element that you put in a cup of water and it boils.  Some Hotels include breakfast in your deal so that is great. If not, then take your own bag of tea bags or coffee from home or from the previous Hotel you stayed at, buy the infuser, take a cup bought from a $2 shop together with your plastic bowl and then buy some cereal and milk from Wahlgrens/ABC/Whalers  or whatever store is closest and you are set for breakfast.  Always take every packet of Tea/coffee in every Hotel and save it for the rest of your trip. If you run out just ring the Front Desk and ask for more when the cleaner comes around.

Sharon always told me to leave a dollar on the pillow case for the cleaner each day and they leave extra tea/coffee for you.

FOOD

The size of the meals are so big and quite cheap but remember to calculate  your tip which is roughly 15-20%  of  the bill before the tax. The wages are very low for a waitress. They get only around $6 to $8 an hour plus the tips. We asked one girl and her tips also cover the person who clears away the dirty dishes, the cook and the barman. Some places have a suggested tip percentage on the bill so they will list 10 %, 15% and 20% so you can choose. If you pay by card you can add the tip on. I usually leave my tip in cash. If you are at a bar then it is $1 per drink.  Sharon told me to keep my dollar bills so I can leave the tips separately. Sharon is my guru for tipping and much more.

If you eat in the restaurants that are part of your Hotel in Vegas, and nearby Hotels you can use your room key and will put your food bill onto your Hotel bill so when you check out you can pay by either credit card or cash.

Good places to eat.

PF Changs – Asian food but modern

Roys  in Hawaii in Lewers Street – has the best Lava cake for dessert. There are a few around the US

Californian Pizza   Kitchen – not just Pizza,  I love the Cobb salad. Yum.

New York Cheesecake Factory – not just cheesecake

Wolf Gang Puck

Hard Rock cafe

Buffets are in every Hotel in Vegas.

[cars4starters]

Two self-published books with largely motor sporting settings have hit the local market lately, with Brett Murray’s You Can’t Make That Shit Up garnering lots of media attention.

It helps that ex-sports journo Murray – aka Crusher – is prominent in Australian motor racing, runs a successful Speedcafe website and last year pulled off a fairy tale Indy 500 entry with Matty Brabham.  

Crush has had what we might term a rich and colourful life, and the pages of his self-penned tome are loaded with lurid tales.

Hard-partying Murray is a rough nut who knows everyone in the game around the globe.  

Some might call him a name dropper, except that people like Dario Franchitti, Leigh Diffey, Mark Webber, Michael Andretti, Paul Morris, Geoff Brabham, Alan Jones, et al, are his mates. Really.

The cover photo of his book is a forlorn mug shot generously provided by Marion County, Indiana, police. It’s for real too.

Crusher ended up on charge after he was pinged just over the limit while riding a jet ski on the eve of the 2015 edition of the greatest motor race in the world — if not the universe.

I paid $50 of my own money for a copy of the book, which says a lot about its appeal.

The other book is Along For The Ride, sub-titled Fast Cars and Rock Stars, by Dave Clement.   

It’s a memoir of a 10 quid pom who, though no household name in motor sport, was a handy race driver who made it on to the grid of the Bathurst 500/1000 and found himself in the crazy lives of INXS — then the biggest band in the world.

A great story in itself is how Clement, a businessman on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, got to know the fledging Farriss Brothers – later to turn into INXS.

In 1979, the racing driver and car dealer was contacted by a member of keen though under-funded local band, asking if they might use Clement’s racing workshop in Brookvale as a place to rehearse.

Agreeing to a deal where he would be paid $5 a week to cover electricity, a space was cleared for the youngsters.

Brothers Andrew, Tim and Jon Farriss, Kirk Pengilly, Garry Beers and Michael Hutchence – honed their songwriting and musicianship in the workshop — while music fan Clements listened and looked on.

Most of the rest is history. Dave was their friend for life. They never paid their accumulating power bill but instead, to square the ledger, Clement got them to play for nothing at a party — a kind of contra.

Later, when the band had its first records released, INXS agreed to sponsor some of Clement’s race efforts, including several entries at Bathurst.

They also formed the INXS/Kick Race Team competing in the Australian Production Car Championship.

The book charts a lot of INXS’s rise to glory along the well-trodden sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll journey — but Clement certainly got a different perspective of someone within the inner sanctum . . . 

“They were relentless with their heavy workload, touring schedules and the effort they put in to achieve their dreams,” Clement observed.

“I believe that having three brothers, and the other three members all as friends since their school days, was a part of the foundation for their success. It was a tight-knit ‘family affair’ from the start.”

The band genuinely liked fast cars and Clement organised expression sessions for the guys in various quick machines at Amaroo Park Raceway.  

Clement noted that, considering their inexperience, Michael and Jon were quite competitive, especially in wet conditions.

Revealing a gratitude to those who helped from a humble start, the band often invited Clement to accompany them on all-expenses-paid tours here and internationally.

Hutchence’s shock death in a Double Bay hotel suite in 1997 rocked Clement, who has his own thoughts on what brought the superstar to his sad end.

A bunch of happy snaps accompany the words in Along For The Ride.

“It’s a story I’ve wanted to tell for 20 years or more, about this group of school kids who worked hard and ended up conquering the world.”

It’s a surprisingly easy and charming read, especially for those who can relate to both motor sport and rock music.

Priced at a recommended $33 the book can be ordered at www.alongfortheride.com.au

CHECKOUT: Lake Perkolilli book up for prestigious UK award

CHECKOUT: Age no barrier to this 70 something adventurer

Auto Draft #cars #cars4start #INXS #Retro #Review Two self-published books with largely motor sporting settings have hit the local market lately, with Brett Murray’s You Can’t Make That Shit Up garnering lots of media attention.

[queenell50-stuff]

Welcome to week 6 of the 52-week MFRW blog challenge.  Each week will be a new topic. Isn’t that fun? 

This week’s prompt:  My hobbies.

I have more hobbies than I have time for, but I’ll share just a few in order of time actually spent doing them.

Bullet Journaling – OK, technically this may or may not be considered a hobby. It’s a productivity tool but it’s also an outlet for artistic expression. I haven’t shared any of my pages for a while because they tend to look alike. For the most part,  my daily entries consist of my to do list, maybe a quote or scripture, and a few personal notes. There are days when I have a lot more on my mind and my journaling can be long winded.

First bujo cover – This is the 33 cent comp book. Notice the tabs, these are necessary for me.

From my humble beginnings last year, a 33 cent clearance  5 x 8 composition notebook, to the current one – a  dotted Leuchterm that was received as a gift, my bullet journal keeps me on track, allows a little artistic expression and allows a place to enter my thoughts.

A few pages are fancy schmancy, artsy fartsy but most are repetitive dailies. You can make your journal however you want. This is mine and I do what I want with it. I can color the page entirely black if I feel like it. I don’t see what that would accomplish, but I could if I wanted to.

Below is a quick gallery of a few pages. The cover is red, not sure why it looks pink in this photo.

#gallery-0-19 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-19 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-19 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-19 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

New cover

I liked how this one turned out.

Got the chance to doodle while I was waiting on hold.

I really liked this one aspect of a weekly spread, why haven’t I incorporated this???

A bit ofself motivation, trying to lift myself up out of a mirey place.

A typical layout, just a bit of this and that.

I got a new stamp that I played around with. I found a few stamps that I have been using regularly, one for a block to date my pages, a little car to indicate errand days, a book to designate online learning, etc.

2. Crochet – I have a multitude of projects from quick cup cozies to lengthy projects like afghans. I am currently working on 2 projects – a manghan – basically an afghan in charcoal grey for my husband ‘that is larger than a regular afghan so that it will cover his feet and still be able to tuck in  under his chin, in a basic design that doesn’t have big holes that  his toes can go through and not in some god-awful color that looks like someone couldn’t decide’ was his request, and a market bag which I am freestyling. I have to admit, I’ve ripped this one out a few times already. It’s currently about a third finished.

  #gallery-0-20 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-20 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-20 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-20 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

A shrug for a gift.

The front of the shrug.

Flower detail.

Cowl scarf.

A variety of scarves, traditional arm knit infinity scarves, and crochet infinity scarves.

Cup cozies

3. Furniture refinishing/repurposing. I haven’t been as diligent in taking photos of my  before and after projects, but I do have a few. We find odd pieces at auction or yard sales. I can’t ay that I look for any specific style, it’s more a matter of what grabs my attention. 

This metal framed vanity chair was literally on the side of the road. Most people would look at that and say good riddance. No, not me. I look at that and see the bones of something more. So after a little bit of work,  and a lot of elbow grease to polish the metal, I transformed it into this:

I’m not a fan of orange, but the fabric popped and it sold for $40.00. Not bad for a scavenge, using up a bit of leftover padding, and a half yard of fabric.

Here are a few of my finds:

#gallery-0-21 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-21 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-21 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-21 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

Old fan blades and a Table leg + whimsical glow in the dark dragon fly.

Old dresser drawers = display shelves.

dusty can barrel chairs cleaned up – decided that I liked them too much to sell!

This old mirror was in a ‘lot’ of stuff for $5.00!

4. Crafts – all of the crafts that don’t easily fit within crocheting, refinishing, or journaling.  This includes sewing which I will do again when I can replace my sewing machine that died after twenty some odd years. As part of my ofice space that I am going to carve out in our basement, a craft area is going to be part of that plan.

I’ve been scouring Pinterest on the best way to handle storage in this area.  I need an area for items that will go into a resale shop, and an area for hand crafted items also. I have to admit, before I can get the clean, tidy work area that I desire I will have to purge my stash and start over. It’s difficult to create a clean area when you are overrun with stuff.

5. Gardening –  I didn’t do much last year, and I really missed it. I love having fresh produce from the garden. I love planting the seedlings and watching it grow. I can’t deny I love the fresh produce that I know is organic as well. This month is the planning stage of gardening. I’m plotting out on graph paper to plan what seeds and starts I will need for my garden area. Yes, I’m a geek.

Managing time for all of these things however, that’s another story.

I wonder if there are hobbies that don’t cost money. It seems everything I do ends up costing money in some way. At least the refinishing/repurposing is getting a return! Do you have any hobbies?

Don’t forget this is a blog hop. Anyone can join at any point in the MFRW 52 week challenge…  Click here. Make sure you check out some of the other authors.

Write on my friends, write on!

Ellie

  1.

Quotidiandose

2.

Hobbies I have (or wish I had)

3.

Garden Tour–Sara Walter Ellwood

4.

Robin Michaela – Hobby? When Do I Have Time?

5.

My Hobbies Aren’t What They Used to Be

6.

Adriana Kraft

7.

Hobbies & Things That Are Kinda Hobbies—Not Really

8.

Oh, yea, I remember hobbies. . .

9.

What’s a Hobby?

10.

I Should Be Reading

11.

Exploring the World by Linda McLaughlin

12.

Hobby or Body Snatching?

13.

Hobbies: When Do I find Time?

14.

My Precious

15.

Baker, Yogi, Car Girl, Spy

16.

Obsessions! #MFRWAuthor

17.

Heather Boyd: Hobby Habits and hangups

18.

Things I Do When I’m Not Writing

19.

Shari Elder (Hobbies? I wish)

20.

Picture Perfect Art by Henderson

21.

In My Spare Time

22.

Thats not trash~Thats Crafts

Crafty Author #MFRWauthor

Welcome to week 6 of the 52-week MFRW blog challenge.  Each week will be a new topic.

Crafty Author #MFRWauthor Welcome to week 6 of the 52-week MFRW blog challenge.  Each week will be a new topic.

[authorelliemack]

Welcome to week 6 of the 52-week MFRW blog challenge.  Each week will be a new topic. Isn’t that fun? 

This week’s prompt:  My hobbies.

I have more hobbies than I have time for, but I’ll share just a few in order of time actually spent doing them.

Bullet Journaling – OK, technically this may or may not be considered a hobby. It’s a productivity tool but it’s also an outlet for artistic expression. I haven’t shared any of my pages for a while because they tend to look alike. For the most part,  my daily entries consist of my to do list, maybe a quote or scripture, and a few personal notes. There are days when I have a lot more on my mind and my journaling can be long winded.

First bujo cover – This is the 33 cent comp book. Notice the tabs, these are necessary for me.

From my humble beginnings last year, a 33 cent clearance  5 x 8 composition notebook, to the current one – a  dotted Leuchterm that was received as a gift, my bullet journal keeps me on track, allows a little artistic expression and allows a place to enter my thoughts.

A few pages are fancy schmancy, artsy fartsy but most are repetitive dailies. You can make your journal however you want. This is mine and I do what I want with it. I can color the page entirely black if I feel like it. I don’t see what that would accomplish, but I could if I wanted to.

Below is a quick gallery of a few pages. The cover is red, not sure why it looks pink in this photo.

#gallery-0-19 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-19 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 33%; } #gallery-0-19 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-19 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

New cover

I liked how this one turned out.

Got the chance to doodle while I was waiting on hold.

I really liked this one aspect of a weekly spread, why haven’t I incorporated this???

A bit ofself motivation, trying to lift myself up out of a mirey place.

A typical layout, just a bit of this and that.

I got a new stamp that I played around with. I found a few stamps that I have been using regularly, one for a block to date my pages, a little car to indicate errand days, a book to designate online learning, etc.

2. Crochet – I have a multitude of projects from quick cup cozies to lengthy projects like afghans. I am currently working on 2 projects – a manghan – basically an afghan in charcoal grey for my husband ‘that is larger than a regular afghan so that it will cover his feet and still be able to tuck in  under his chin, in a basic design that doesn’t have big holes that  his toes can go through and not in some god-awful color that looks like someone couldn’t decide’ was his request, and a market bag which I am freestyling. I have to admit, I’ve ripped this one out a few times already. It’s currently about a third finished.

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A shrug for a gift.

The front of the shrug.

Flower detail.

Cowl scarf.

A variety of scarves, traditional arm knit infinity scarves, and crochet infinity scarves.

Cup cozies

3. Furniture refinishing/repurposing. I haven’t been as diligent in taking photos of my  before and after projects, but I do have a few. We find odd pieces at auction or yard sales. I can’t ay that I look for any specific style, it’s more a matter of what grabs my attention. 

This metal framed vanity chair was literally on the side of the road. Most people would look at that and say good riddance. No, not me. I look at that and see the bones of something more. So after a little bit of work,  and a lot of elbow grease to polish the metal, I transformed it into this:

I’m not a fan of orange, but the fabric popped and it sold for $40.00. Not bad for a scavenge, using up a bit of leftover padding, and a half yard of fabric.

Here are a few of my finds:

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Old fan blades and a Table leg + whimsical glow in the dark dragon fly.

Old dresser drawers = display shelves.

dusty can barrel chairs cleaned up – decided that I liked them too much to sell!

This old mirror was in a ‘lot’ of stuff for $5.00!

4. Crafts – all of the crafts that don’t easily fit within crocheting, refinishing, or journaling.  This includes sewing which I will do again when I can replace my sewing machine that died after twenty some odd years. As part of my ofice space that I am going to carve out in our basement, a craft area is going to be part of that plan.

I’ve been scouring Pinterest on the best way to handle storage in this area.  I need an area for items that will go into a resale shop, and an area for hand crafted items also. I have to admit, before I can get the clean, tidy work area that I desire I will have to purge my stash and start over. It’s difficult to create a clean area when you are overrun with stuff.

5. Gardening –  I didn’t do much last year, and I really missed it. I love having fresh produce from the garden. I love planting the seedlings and watching it grow. I can’t deny I love the fresh produce that I know is organic as well. This month is the planning stage of gardening. I’m plotting out on graph paper to plan what seeds and starts I will need for my garden area. Yes, I’m a geek.

Managing time for all of these things however, that’s another story.

I wonder if there are hobbies that don’t cost money. It seems everything I do ends up costing money in some way. At least the refinishing/repurposing is getting a return! Do you have any hobbies?

Don’t forget this is a blog hop. Anyone can join at any point in the MFRW 52 week challenge…  Click here. Make sure you check out some of the other authors.

Write on my friends, write on!

Ellie

  1.

Quotidiandose

2.

Hobbies I have (or wish I had)

3.

Garden Tour–Sara Walter Ellwood

4.

Robin Michaela – Hobby? When Do I Have Time?

5.

My Hobbies Aren’t What They Used to Be

6.

Adriana Kraft

7.

Hobbies & Things That Are Kinda Hobbies—Not Really

8.

Oh, yea, I remember hobbies. . .

9.

What’s a Hobby?

10.

I Should Be Reading

11.

Exploring the World by Linda McLaughlin

12.

Hobby or Body Snatching?

13.

Hobbies: When Do I find Time?

14.

My Precious

15.

Baker, Yogi, Car Girl, Spy

16.

Obsessions! #MFRWAuthor

17.

Heather Boyd: Hobby Habits and hangups

18.

Things I Do When I’m Not Writing

19.

Shari Elder (Hobbies? I wish)

20.

Picture Perfect Art by Henderson

21.

In My Spare Time

22.

Thats not trash~Thats Crafts

Crafty Author #MFRWauthor Welcome to week 6 of the 52-week MFRW blog challenge.  Each week will be a new topic.