#but it’s still spinning and there’s still bills to pay and court cases to fight and school and work

[trevination]

the curtis brothers in a way

[cncofantasias]

Justice - With Christopher Velez

Chapter 1: Everything

Hey guys! I really hope you enjoy this imagine because I’m hoping to turn it into a series. Let me know what you think, it’s a lot different from what you’re used to reading because I don’t involve their singing careers in this but it’s more of a mystery. I got the idea from watching a ton of Law & Order: SVU but it’s not based off one specific episode. If I turn it into a series I do plan on including all of the cast members into the story one way or another. Anyways hope you enjoy it!

Summary: You’ve dated your boyfriend Christopher Velez for 2 years and even now that you guys have been together for so long, there was still so much stuff Christopher refused to tell you. That is until Christopher gets arrested for the murder of a man named Zabdiel de Jesus. As the trial against Christopher goes on you learn things about him that you never thought he was capable of. Y/n is fighting between the Christopher who was her loving and adoring boyfriend and the man who’s committed so many awful crimes.

Chapter 2

“Christopher Velez you are under arrest for the murder of Zabdiel de Jesus. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law—“

My head was spinning and for a second I thought I was dreaming but it wasn’t until I heard him yelling my name that I snapped out of it. “Y/n! Y/n! Llame mi abogado! Call him him and tell him to meet me at the precinct bebe!”

I quickly nodded barely able wrap my head around what was happening as I followed behind the police who were escorting mi bebe, Christopher, out of our house. As soon as they put him in the backseat of the cop car I took out my phone with shaky hands and began dialing our lawyer, Joel Pimentel. The only reason I knew who he was because one night a couple months ago Christopher gave me his number. He said in case something ever happened to him I needed to know who to call. I didn’t understand at the time what he was referring to, but I guess I do now. 

As I sat in the lobby of the precinct waiting for our lawyer to show up, my mind was racing. I didn’t know if I could believe Christopher as a murderer. He was always the sweetest boyfriend to me: he showered me in affection, always kept his promises to me, and never once had I been scared he’d be violent towards me. I wanted to believe he was innocent, but deep down it made sense... Since we first started dating he always was sketchy about telling me personal information about him.

2 years ago

“So tell me Mr. Velez what do you do for a living that you can afford to take me out to a restaurant so expensive they charge you for the water?” I teasingly emphasized his name as I studied him, enamored with who I saw when I looked at him. 

“No te preocupes por eso mi amor. Todo lo que necesitas saber es que hago negocio.” He reached over the table and held onto my hand as he sent a wink my way.

I stared at him for a bit furrowing my eyebrows trying to get any indication of what he was really meant with his response. He held a stone face as he looked into my eyes and I slowly nodded my head and went back to eating.

“Miss. Y/L/N,” “hello, Miss. Y/L/N.”

I snapped out of my thoughts to see our lawyer in front of me. “Perdóname, I was just thinking.”

“It’s okay Miss. Y/L/N, I understand how difficult this situation must be on you. Why don’t you wait here while I go talk to the investigating officers and get as much information as I can about the situation?”

I nodded my head at him unable to find the correct words to say to him at the moment. He gave me quick nod as I watched him disappear. I knew that I was very little of a help, but Christopher had prepared me that way. He never gave me too much information about him and at the moment I was conflicted; I couldn’t believe the man I choose to lay in bed with, could be a murderer and who knows what else.

Half an hour had passed as I waited for Mr. Pimentel to get back with the information he promised. A part of me didn’t want him to come back, if he never came back and he never told me the horrible details then maybe it wouldn’t be real. But of course that wasn’t reality, no matter what we were still stuck in this situation.

“Okay Miss. Y/L/N, Christopher is being charged on first degree murder as well as multiple counts of arson, burglary. It looks as thought they’ve been investigating Christopher for some time now for distribution of narcotics-“

“Wait, wait, wait distribution of narcotics? I don’t understand. Christopher doesn’t do drugs and I’ve never in the 2 years we’ve been together found any illegal drugs in his possession.”

Mr. Pimentel looked at me shocked for a second, his face conflicted as he began deciding if he should be the one to break the news to you.

“Miss. Y/L/N, I cannot divulge too much information about the case but I want you to know that Mr. Velez isn’t who you think he is. This case runs so deep that even the Federal Bureau of Narcotics is involved and they’ve done much investigating until they presumed that your boyfriend is the leader of the largest gang in New York.”

My heart dropped, my brain buzzed. I didn’t know what was going on and all I could do was stare at him. “Did he ever tell you anything to lead you to believe that he held that position?”

I shook my head a no in response, “I- I- need some air.” I escaped out from his stare as fast as I could and walked out of the front door feeling the crisp hair hit me. I stood on the sidewalk hunched over with my hands on my knees. Everything was a lie, he was a lie. The life we had begun to build together wasn’t real and now I didn’t know if the man that I shared 5 years of memories worth, was real or fake.

1 year ago

We were parked on a cliff overlooking the ocean. There was no car in sight for miles and a soft rhythm was playing on the radio adding to our romantic evening together. The sun was beginning to go down as the salty fresh air filled my nostrils. I was admiring the view with my hand interlocked with Christopher’s.

“Eres tan bella.”

A light blush filled my checks as I teared my eyes away from the scenery to look into his.

“Nomás dices eso porque me miras con ojos de corazón.”

“No, eres tan bella y/n que cuando salgo contigo los otros muchachos están celosos que ya tienes alguien. And I don’t know how I got so lucky.”

I felt my heart clench a little at his beautiful words. I stared into his eyes and just staring into them made me believe him. He wasn’t afraid to let his eyes show the amount of passion he held for me.

“Do you see a future for us Christopher?”

“Of course I do, I see us moving somewhere far away from here one day. Living in our own house, in one of those neighborhoods where it’s so safe nobody is scared to leave there doors unlocked and the kids ride their bikes around.”

“Do you want kids mi amor?”

“I want as many kids as you’ll give me cariño and I want them to look exactly like you with your beautiful hair, tu sonrisa, tus ojos bonitos. And by that time you’ll have graduated with your degree and have your career. Tal vez puedo ser un stay at home dad while you work like an independent boss woman and bring in the money,” he gave me a wink and I playfully hit his chest laughing.

“You wouldn’t be a machista that I’m the woman of the house and bringing in the money?”

“Claro que no. You’ve worked so hard studying all the time it’s only fair that I let you live your dream career.”

My heart melted hearing him say that, because he understood my struggle to be where I was. With Christopher I never had to worry if I didn’t have enough money to pay for my rent or my school tuition or anything else really because he always took care of it. I didn’t even have to embarrass myself by asking him for the money to pay the bill that I couldn’t afford. He’d already know because of how open I was with him and he’d just do it because he wanted to help me. I knew that no matter what your future held: whether it was me working and he wasn’t or both of us working. I knew that I’d always be okay with him and that I could always depend on him because it was never about whose money it was and he wasn’t so traditional that he felt the need to overpower me just because he was a man.

I grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him in crashing my lips onto his. Our lips moved together perfectly without too much effort and his hands gripped onto my waist. In that one kiss.. it was everything.

I pulled away from him and leaned my forehead on his as we both sat breathing for air. “Quiero todo eso y más contigo mi amor.”

“Yo también bebecita.”

I was still outside the precinct hunched over fighting for a breath I’d been holding and before I knew it... I was crying.

[tabloidtoc]

National Enquirer, October 12

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Queen Elizabeth’s 73-year sham marriage to Prince Philip collapses

Page 2: Kanye West is in top-secret talks to launch his own TV network and is crowing it will be bigger than the Kardashians -- he wants it to reflect his lofty vision of what the world should be and to provide a spiritual awakening for the masses but he doesn’t realize there aren’t a lot of people who want to spend hours a day listening to him rant about how the world would be a better place if he was in charge -- meanwhile Kim Kardashian is at the end of her rope again 

Page 3: Furious Angelina Jolie is tearing into Brad Pitt’s new girlfriend Nicole Poturalski blasting her as a scheming psycho and as a borderline stalker who is dating Brad just to get famous and it’s going to end in disaster for the whole family not just him so she’s already told Brad to keep Nicole away from their kids and she’s looking to make this part of their ongoing legal case 

Page 4: Newly single Kelly Clarkson has enlisted fellow country star Maren Morris to help her find a new man -- Maren advised Kelly to use her talk show to connect with men she admires but Kelly may have taken her advice a little too literally when she had her crush Keanu Reeves on the show and was drooling all over him though she knows it’s probably wishful thinking 

Page 5: Ellen DeGeneres kicked off her new season by publicly apologizing for allegations of misconduct on her talk show but body language experts blasted her remarks as tone deaf and missing the mark totally 

Page 6: Jimmy Fallon’s wife Nancy Juvonen is furious over the time he spends nurturing his bond with close pal Kathie Lee Gifford -- Jimmy loves to reminisce about the old days at NBC with the former Today yakker especially during today’s challenging times and he worships her and he’s the only late-night host who treats Kathie Lee like an A-lister but Nancy can’t stand Kathie Lee’s constant self-obsessed talk and considers her a squeaky third wheel 

Page 7: Cher keeps trying to turn back time with plastic surgery but the results have been disastrous and although she insists her most recent work is a facelift her kisser is frozen and packed with Botox and fillers and lip injections -- she also appears to have had a nose job and a face and neck lift to achieve a smooth jawline and neck and the results have left Cher barely able to move her face and even made it difficult for her to speak let alone sing, disgraced chef Paula Deen had emergency eye surgery this summer in a desperate bid to save her sight -- Paula had been suffering from declining vision for months and was shocked when doctors told her the cornea was dying and going under the knife was necessary to save her sight 

Page 10: Hot Shots -- Tiger Woods took a brief break during practice, Leighton Meester caught some waves in Malibu, Kristen Taekman in a New York Jets bikini, Dolph Lundgren doffed his mask after leaving a lunch date in Beverly Hills, Dominic Cooper took his electric bike for a spin in London 

Page 11: Cash-strapped Tori Spelling and husband Dean McDermott are back in couples therapy and on the verge of filing for bankruptcy -- they’re in counseling for the same old stuff which is their constant fighting and spending money and work that isn’t happening -- the parents of five were hit with tax liens totaling nearly $1 million and were also sued by American Express over an unpaid credit card bill of almost $90,000 which Tori asked her mother Candy Spelling who is worth about $600 million to pay but Candy refused and after Candy revealed her plans to leave her fortune to animal charities Tori and Dean may file for bankruptcy because they both love to spend, Bravo bigwigs are hoping hotel heiress Kathy Hilton will fill the vacancy left by Denise Richards and Teddi Mellencamp on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and producers are trying to keep ratings high by getting veteran Kyle Richards to recruit sister and former castmate Kim Richards and half sister Kathy -- Kathy is said to be high on producers’ wish list because of her wit and humor and is also considered old-school Beverly Hills and show brass want her to bring a certain glamour and sophistication to the show 

Page 12: Straight Shuter -- Demi Lovato at a NYC screening party (picture), when the ball drops on New Year’s Eve in Times Square Anderson Cooper won’t be there because he would rather be at home with his baby boy, The Bachelor has cut all ties with Colton Underwood after his ex Cassie Randolph got a temporary restraining order against him, Teresa Giudice plans to move to NYC after listing her New Jersey mansion but she still wants to keep her job on The Real Housewives of New Jersey and to get around that Teresa hopes to pretend she’s moved into her brother Joe Gorga’s home in Jersey 

Page 13: John Legend revealed couples therapy helps strengthen his marriage to Chrissy Teigen and said they keep their romance going strong by communicating and being considerate and listening, Jackie Stallone was more than just Sylvester Stallone’s mom -- she was also one of the world top astrologers and psychics who predicted the fall of the Berlin Wall and Kanye West’s presidential run 

Page 14: Crime -- convicted Melrose Place killer Amy Locane is in lockup again for a fatal 2010 drunk-driving smashup that took one life and nearly took another after a New Jersey Superior Court Judge said she got off too easy by serving two years behind bars and sentenced Amy to eight more years in state prison 

Page 15: The gruesome house of horrors where Drew Carey’s ex-fiancee Amie Harwick brutally met her untimely end is on the market for $1.5 million and her family can’t wait to get rid of it, Shannen Doherty is in pretty good spirits amid her ongoing battle with stage 4 breast cancer according to her former Beverly Hills 90210 co-star Jason Priestley

Page 16: Cover Story -- After decades of turning a blind eye to her husband’s cheating Queen Elizabeth’s 72-year marriage has shockingly collapsed and Prince Philip is now banished to a remote cottage far away from the monarch -- despite royal courtiers painting a rosy picture of the couple quarantining together at Windsor Castle since March the truth is their marriage has been a sham for decades and they’ve been living separate lives for over 50 years and all this forced togetherness was simply too much for them -- Philip has been cheating on Elizabeth since before they were married and has several love children; he has rumored to have had flings with actress Helene Cordet and Daphne du Maurier and Pat Kirkwood and Jane Russell and Merle Oberon and Zsa Zsa Gabor and Princess Alexandria and Sacha Duchess of Abercorn and most recently Lady Penny Romsey -- there will be no divorce and they will just quietly continue their separate lives to the end of their days but the queen never wants to see Philip again 

Page 18: Larry King’s estranged wife Shawn Southwick is demanding $33,000 a month in spousal support because she claims she gave up her music and TV career to marry the frail talk show host and then raise their sons Chance and Cannon, Hollywood Hookups -- Halle Berry and Van Hunt dating, 90 Day Fiance stars Ashley Martson and Jay Smith split for good, Justin Duggar dating Claire Spivey 

Page 19: Tom Cruise is set to shoot the first major movie in outer space and he’s headed to the International Space Station in October 2021 with director Doug Liman -- the two and possibly one additional actor will hitch a ride aboard Elon Musk’s SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule to film the unnamed project, the IV needle allegedly used to administer the fatal dose of propofol to Michael Jackson on June 25 of 2009 is up for auction by the estate of the late singer’s father Joe and the chilling item used by Michael’s physician Dr. Conrad Murray is reportedly still stained with Michael’s blood -- it was submitted to the auction by Michael’s cousin Marsha Stewart who says she took it from Michael’s bedroom days after he died, Sharon Stone has pressed her lips on a long list of Hollywood hunks but picked Robert De Niro as far and away the best kisser but rated her other leading men as kind of like meh 

Page 20: Stars Playing Stars -- how they did it -- Muhammad Ali and Will Smith, Frida Kahlo and Salma Hayek, Ray Charles and Jamie Foxx 

Page 21: Marilyn Monroe and Michelle Williams, Queen Elizabeth and Helen Mirren, Billie Holiday and Diana Ross, Bob Dylan and Cate Blanchett 

Page 22: An adopted son of Mia Farrow and Woody Allen has charged it was his mother not his father who was the monster in the family -- Moses Farrow says Woody did not molest adopted daughter Dylan Farrow in 1992 and that he can no longer stay silent as Woody continues to be condemned for a crime he did not commit 

Page 26: Less than nine months after Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna died in a helicopter crash a vicious feud has ripped the family apart -- the row erupted between his widow Vanessa Bryant and her mother Sofia Laine after Sofia went on TV to publicly accuse her daughter of tossing her out of the family home -- Vanessa feels she’s already given her mom so much and then she heard through the grapevine that Sofia complained she should have more -- it does seem cold that Vanessa would take such action against her mother but she’s ready to take on anyone using her husband and child’s deaths as a selfish cash grab and that includes Sofia 

Page 27: Danny Masterson’s rape trial is looming and the Church of Scientology is doing everything in its power to back the scandal-scarred actor -- the church’s leaders have assigned their top lawyers to aid Danny who is a prominent member of the religion and the lawyers are scouring every law on the books to get the case thrown out or get him acquitted -- the church has previously been accused of trying to get the other side’s defenses dismissed or judges thrown off cases and using all manner of tactics to delay due process 

Page 28: American Life -- Bighearted ex-billionaire Chuck Feeney has spent 38 years giving away nearly all of his vast fortune and the generous do-gooder said he wouldn’t have had it any other way 

Page 29: Famed stoner Willie Nelson can’t stop sampling his own marijuana products and now friends fear the 87-year-old music legend is smoking himself to death -- Willie’s a believer in the powers of cannabis and promotes it passionately but years of smoking has done a number on his lungs and he can barely breathe at times, Julia Duffy has been keeping close a tragic heartache for more than a year -- her only son Danny Lacy committed suicide at age 29 after years of suffering from mental health issues 

Page 34: Comic Kathy Griffin has seen her popularity plummet in recent years and it’s played a role in her plans to sell her sprawling Bel Air estate -- Kathy has burned a lot of bridges and concerts and TV appearances have dried up because of her many industry conflicts so she’s trying to unload her massive manor with wine cellar and movie theater and eight bedrooms for $16 million -- she didn’t want to sell it but the cost and size have become too much for her to handle 

Page 36: Health Watch 

Page 38: CIA bigwigs once hired a psychic to determine if there was life on Mars -- the misguided mission was said to be part of Project Stargate which was launched in 1978 and somehow cost an astronomical $20 million after the CIA hired a man who claimed he could see the surface of the planet in his mind -- the unnamed man claimed he could see huge pyramids and an obelisk structure and road networks on the Red Planet as well as living creatures, John Lennon’s killer Mark David Chapman shocked the parole board when he admitted he deserved the death penalty even as he begged for his freedom at his last hearing -- his murderous motive was seeking self-glory -- the board denied his parole saying they found his statement infamy brings you glory disturbing 

Page 42: Red Carpet -- London Fashion Week 

Page 45: Spot the Differences -- Luke Bryan and his dog Choc 

Page 47: Odd List -- doctors remove granny’s football-sized tumor 

[newstfionline]

Headlines: Monday, September 28, 2020

The Forgotten Front Porch Is Making a Comeback (WSJ) Thanks to the pandemic, the front porch is enjoying a new golden age. Like their near cousins, stoops, steps, even fire escapes, porches offer a semipublic setting where we can meet friends and neighbors face-to-face—even if those faces are masked. In the words of Claude Stephens, founder of a tongue-in-cheek group called Professional Porch Sitters Union Local 1339, a porch is “the only place where you can feel like you are outside and inside at the same time; out with all of the neighbors and alone reading a book.” In Europe there are town squares and sidewalk cafes for fostering casual encounters, but there is something distinctly American about the front porch. Starting in the 19th century, every respectable house in the U.S. was built with a confident front porch. In an era when the backyard was devoted to drudgery—vegetable gardens, trash pits, outhouses, perhaps a chicken or goat—the porch offered an oasis of calm. “The front porch was an escape from the heat of the wood-burning kitchen stove,” explains historian Donald Empson, the author of “The Street Where You Live,” an architectural guide to St. Paul, Minn. “On the porch, in the cool of the evening, the family could gather to discuss the day’s events and exchange the latest news with neighbors strolling by.” Porches offered neighbors a place to exchange gossip, to spin sagas and sing songs, to flirt and court and air political views. The front porch at the turn of the century was Starbucks, flash mob, church social and Facebook rolled into one.

Already facing its worst crisis since 9/11, airline industry set to cut more than 35,000 jobs this week (Washington Post) Some 16,300 United employees—and more than 35,000 across the airline industry—set to be out of a job come Thursday. It’s another devastating blow for an industry facing a crisis analysts say is already far worse than it experienced after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and one that has already seen employment in air transportation decline by 100,000 jobs according to one measure. The employees facing furlough will be victims of the ongoing devastation the pandemic has inflicted on airlines, which have seen demand for travel drop precipitously since March, but also of a Congress that says it wants to protect their jobs with billions of dollars in aid and yet has been unable to reach agreement on a bill to do so. Lawmakers say they didn’t intend to create a precipice when they gave airlines an initial $25 billion in aid on the condition that they not lay off workers until October. Like many Americans, they expected the virus to be under control by now. Instead, it continues to spread and air travel is stuck at about 700,000 passengers a day, a third of its normal rate.

Mexico issues arrest warrants on sixth anniversary of disappearance of 43 college students (Reuters) Mexican authorities have issued dozens of arrest warrants for police and soldiers whom they believe may have participated in the 2014 disappearance of 43 Mexican college students, head of the investigation said on Saturday. The announcement came during a news conference at the National Palace in Mexico City on the sixth anniversary of the students’ kidnapping. During the event, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Mexico’s Undersecretary of Human Rights Alejandro Encinas held fabrics embroidered by relatives of the victims, many of whom attended the ceremony holding large pictures of the disappeared students. Saturday marks the first time in the case Mexican authorities have announced arrest warrants for military personnel. The students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College disappeared on September 26, 2014, in the state of Guerrero. The remains of only two of the students have been positively identified so far. The unsolved kidnapping of the young men who were training to be teachers convulsed the country, sparking massive protests in 2014 and garnering international condemnation as one of the darkest examples of the government’s longstanding difficulty preventing violence or convicting those responsible.

Europe remains committed to in-person classes as school outbreaks remain rare (Washington Post) How much does in-person schooling contribute to the spread of the pandemic? The answer, experts are saying in Europe after several weeks back in classrooms, is that it’s rare for children to spread the disease within the walls of a school, but not unheard of. Not every country can point to a school where the coronavirus seems to have spread. And even where there are such schools, including in Belgium, Norway and Germany, such outbreaks typically remain countable on a single hand—affecting a fraction of a percentage point of the millions of students and teachers in session across the continent. So despite rising coronavirus cases, and although universities have emerged as sites of concern, European countries remain wholeheartedly committed to in-person learning for primary and secondary schools. According to Steven van Gucht, the head of viral diseases at Sciensano, Belgium’s national public health institute, “The school environment, in our perception, is still quite a controlled environment. We think it’s better to have schools open than to send kids home, have them meet on the street and give them more opportunities to spread the virus.”

Swiss voters reject limiting jobs for EU citizens (AP) Voters in Switzerland cast ballots Sunday on a nationalist party’s proposal to limit the number of European Union citizens allowed to live and work in their country. Swiss public broadcaster SRF reported after polls closed at noon that projections based on partial counts indicated most voters had rejected the measure, which was championed by the populist Swiss People’s Party. It had proposed giving preferential access to jobs, social protection and benefits to people from Switzerland over those from the 27-nation bloc that surrounds it. If passed, the proposal would have further strained the rich Alpine’s country’s deep and lucrative ties to the EU, of which it isn’t a member. It could also lead to reciprocal disadvantages for millions of Swiss citizens if they want to live or work in the EU. Roughly 1.4 million EU citizens live in the country of about 8.2 million, while around 500,000 Swiss live in EU countries.

How Amazon Conquered Italy in the Pandemic (NYT) Ludovica Tomaciello had never shopped on Amazon before being trapped at her parents’ house in March during Italy’s coronavirus lockdown. Bored one afternoon scrolling TikTok, she spotted hair scrunchies that she then tracked down and ordered on Amazon. When the package arrived, she was hooked. She soon signed up for Amazon Prime and turned to the site to buy a tapestry and neon lights to decorate her bedroom; halter tops, jeans and magenta Air Jordan sneakers; and a remote to wirelessly take selfies for Instagram. When stores reopened in May, Amazon remained her preferred way to shop because of the convenience, selection and prices, she said. Amazon has been one of the biggest winners in the pandemic as people in its most established markets—the United States, Germany and Britain—have flocked to it to buy everything from toilet paper to board games. What has been less noticed is that people in countries that had traditionally resisted the e-commerce giant are now also falling into its grasp after retail stores shut down for months because of the coronavirus. The shift has been particularly pronounced in Italy, which was one of the first countries hard hit by the virus. Italians have traditionally preferred to shop in stores and pay cash. But after the government imposed Europe’s first nationwide virus lockdown, Italians began buying items online in record numbers. Even now, as Italy has done better than most places to turn the tide on the virus and people return to stores, the behavioral shift toward e-commerce has not halted.

Scores arrested in protest against Belarus’ president (AP) Hundreds of women calling for the authoritarian president to step down protested in Belarus’ capital on Saturday, continuing the large demonstrations that have rocked the country since early August. Police blocked off the center of Minsk and arrested more than 80 demonstrators, according to the Viasna human rights organization. Protests, by far the largest and most persistent in Belarus since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, began Aug. 9 after an election that officials said gave President Alexander Lukashenko a sixth term in office. Opponents and some poll workers say the results, in which Lukashenko was tallied with 80% support, were manipulated. Despite wide-scale detentions of demonstrators and the arrest of many prominent opposition figures, the protests haven’t shown signs of abating.

Fighting erupts between Armenia, Azerbaijan in disputed area (AP) Fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan broke out Sunday around the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Armenian Defense Ministry said two Azerbaijani helicopters were shot down. Ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan also said Armenian forces hit three Azerbaijani tanks. There was no immediate word on casualties. Nagorno-Karabakh is an ethnic Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan that has been out of Azerbaijan’s control since the end of a war in 1994. Both sides have heavy military presence along a demilitarized zone separating the region from the rest of Azerbaijan. International efforts to settle the conflict have stalled and fighting sporadically breaks out. In July, one of the most severe outbreaks of fighting in years left 16 people from both sides dead.

China Gives Unproven Covid-19 Vaccines to Thousands, With Risks Unknown (NYT) First, workers at state-owned companies got dosed. Then government officials and vaccine company staff. Up next: teachers, supermarket employees and people traveling to risky areas abroad. The world still lacks a proven coronavirus vaccine, but that has not stopped Chinese officials from trying to inoculate tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people outside the traditional testing process. Officials are laying out plans to give shots to even more people, citing emergency use, amounting to a big wager that the vaccines will eventually prove to be safe and effective. China’s rush has bewildered global experts. No other country has injected people with unproven vaccines outside the usual drug trial process to such a huge scale. The unproven vaccines could have harmful side effects. Ineffective vaccines could lead to a false sense of security and encourage behavior that could lead to even more infections.

Melbourne eases lockdown, schools, work resume (AP) Australia’s second-largest city, Melbourne, has further eased lockdown restrictions imposed after a surge in coronavirus cases, allowing most children to return to school from next month and sending more than 125,000 people back to work. Melbourne and surrounding parts of rural Victoria state were placed under strict “Level 4” lockdowns on Aug. 2, shuttering schools and non-essential businesses, imposing a nighttime curfew and prohibiting public gatherings.

U.S. tells Iraq it’s planning to pull out of Baghdad embassy (Washington Post) The United States has told the Iraqi government and its diplomatic partners that it’s planning a full withdrawal from its sprawling embassy in Baghdad unless Iraq reins in attacks on personnel linked to the American presence there, U.S. and other Western officials said Sunday. The process of shutting it down is expected to take 90 days, a window that would give the Trump administration the opportunity to reassess the decision, said a diplomat familiar with the situation. President Trump’s decision to order the killing of senior Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani outside Baghdad airport in January sparked a firestorm in Iraq. Iraqi lawmakers urged the expulsion of U.S. troops. Iran-backed militia groups ramped up a campaign of rocket and small-scale bomb attacks on the U.S. Embassy and Iraqi military bases that host U.S.-led coalition troops. Seventeen years after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, the Baghdad embassy remains one of America’s largest diplomatic outposts in the world. It was unclear Sunday whether the decision to pull out might still be reversed if Kadhimi’s government is able to better protect Western diplomatic and military personnel.

Israelis mark Yom Kippur under ‘painful’ virus lockdown (AP) The solemn Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, which annually sees Israeli life grind to a halt, begins on Sunday in a nation already under a sweeping coronavirus lockdown. Every year, businesses shut down, roads empty out and even radio and TV stations go silent as the faithful fast for 25 hours and hold intensive prayers of atonement on the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. The more secular-minded can be seen riding bikes or even picnicking on deserted highways. The holiday begins at sundown on Sunday. But this year all non-essential businesses have already been forced to close, and Israelis have been ordered to stay within 1,000 meters (yards) of their homes throughout the High Holidays, which began last week with the Jewish New Year and continue to mid-October. It’s the second nationwide lockdown since the pandemic began, an attempt to contain one of the most severe outbreaks in the world. Israel, with a population of just 9 million, is reporting more than 7,000 new cases a day, raising fears its hospitals could be overwhelmed.

[buckybabybaby]

Mr Hollywood (Chapter 16)

Summary: Bucky Barnes, an underpaid teaching assistant in a small English village, dreams of a movie career back in his home country of America. He finally gets the break he's always wanted, and if it wasn't for you, his best friend, he wouldn't have been able to take it.

But is that fact enough to save your friendship when it's tested by the pressures of Hollywood?

Pairing: Bucky Barnes/Reader (Gender Neutral)

Word count: 1253

Chapter summary: first date with Bucky! 

A/n: I think the next chapter, which should be up next weekend, will be the last! And then an epilogue and it'll be over...

If you've stuck with it, thank you so much!!

(If the picture is all blurry, opening it in a new tab in browser helps!)

Warnings: little bit of bad language, little bit of a douchy ex manager being mean

Previous: Chapter 15

Mr Hollywood Masterlist | Main Masterlist

*****

The rest of the family are out when you get back to the house, meaning you can use the master bathroom uninterrupted to get changed for your date. It still hasn't sunk in that that's what it'll be. An actual, real, not-in-the-friendly-sense-of-the-word, date. A proper date, with Bucky. You can hear him in his en suite getting ready, humming quietly to himself, and you can't wipe the grin off your face.

Spinning in front of the mirror to check your appearance, you sigh, deciding that this is as good as it's going to get. The familiar insecurities about not being enough creep back in but you are quick to shut them up. Bucky likes you for you, loves you for you, and despite all the beautiful people he must have met and worked with in his new life, you're still the one he wants.

He's standing at the bottom of the stairs waiting when you've finished getting ready. Tapping away on his phone, he doesn’t notice you until you're halfway down, and the way he smiles up at you when he does is worth all the heartbreak and hurt of the past year.

“You look nice.”

“Just nice?” You tease.

“Gorgeous.” He sounds so sincere and you flush as he meets you at the bottom step, leaning in for a quick kiss.

“Thank you. So do you.”

He offers you his arm. “Well? Shall we?”

*****

The low lighting and soft music of the restaurant Bucky's chosen is a contrast from any place you've visited together before, a sign of how your relationship has shifted. This is all you've ever dreamed of and more, and you ignore your nerves to let yourself enjoy the date.

At first you two talk about anything that crosses your mind, from travel plans to school gossip and the new baby niece or nephew he'll soon have, until you mention wanting to build a bigger run for the chickens.

Bucky frowns. “Wait a minute. Where are they while you're here?”

“Peggy said she'd check on them, fill up their water and clean their nest box. It takes less time now there's only three.”

“Oh, Y/N. I'm so sorry about Dot. I should have said that before, Dayton did tell me.”

“I'm sorry too. I know she was your favourite.”

“Yeah, she was.” He smiles sadly. “I've missed them almost as much as I've missed you.”

“I'm sure they've missed you too.”

You grab your phone to show him the newest pictures you have off them, and the evening continues perfectly until his posture goes rigid on spotting something behind you, the look on his face causing you to tense up too.

“Don't look now, but my old manager is at the bar.”

Wide eyed, you reach out for Bucky's trembling hands. “Do you want to leave?”

“Yes. Please. Sorry to spoil everything.”

“Hey, no, nothings spoiled. We can go somewhere else for dessert.”

Ignoring standard etiquette and not bothering to flag down a waiter for the cheque, you make your way to the entrance podium as Bucky grabs your jacket from the cloakroom. When a server eventually manages to get a break and take your card, you refuse to let Bucky pay, not even for half the bill.

“You can get the ice cream.”

“Deal.”

Even all the way over the other side of the room you can hear Bucky's manager arguing with the bartender, not happy with the refusal of service on the grounds that he's plainly had more than enough to drink already. Any hope of you slipping out quietly is lost when, growing bored of fighting with the bar staff, he moves away to try his luck in the next restaurant and recognises Bucky by the door.

He staggers over to you both. “Barnes? Barnes! It is you! You fucking-”

He pauses when his gaze falls to you.

“And this must be the slut you were willing to risk your career for.” He looks you up and down with a sneer. “Don't see what all the fuss was about.”

Bucky sighs tiredly. “Get the fuck out of here, David.”

Going to leave again, Bucky is stopped in his tracks as a glass is thrown in his direction, shattering around his feet. You jump at the noise, gasping quietly as Bucky moves you so he's blocking you from view. Breathing heavily in fright, your hand twists into the back of his shirt, clinging on for dear life as you try to work out how to prevent any more violence.

Bucky clearly has the same wish as you. “Go home, David. You need to sleep this off. Haven't you got a court date in a couple of days? You'll want to be in better shape for then.”

David is swaying dangerously at this point, fists clenched. You are reassured minutely by the member of staff you can see in the background on the phone to what you hope are the emergency services.

“We're leaving. I suggest you do the same.”

“No! You and that brother of yours ruined everything! You can't just take that away from me and not-”

David tips too far forward finally, and as he's picking himself of the floor you force Bucky out of the restaurant and into the street. Stepping out of the way of a policewoman, you watch through the window as his old manager is pinned to the wall and handcuffed unceremoniously.

“If he was on bail, this isn't going to help his case,” You say, watching Bucky carefully.

“Good.”

He lets go of your hand and paces quickly along a side alley, running his hands through his hair. You follow hesitantly, not wanting to intrude on his personal space but also not wanting to leave him alone when he's so obviously distressed.

“Bucky?” You ask, worried. “What's wrong?”

He doesn't meet your eye. “Seeing him again brought it all back. Made me think, what if I hurt you again? Some other dick in Hollywood gets in my head and I push you away? I couldn't put you through that twice.”

You can't lie and say you haven't had the same thought. It's hard to trust again when you've been so badly hurt, but after everything that's happened in the last month or two, you're sure history won't repeat it's self in that respect.

“We'll get through anything, just as long as you're honest with me.”

“I will be, promise.”

“Thank you. But you needn't worry, I don't think Dayton would let you do that again.”

He nods shakily. “Day scared the hell out of me, not least just turning up in the middle of LA when I thought he was back at his home. And then to top if off he wasn't very nice to me.”

“I'll bet.”

“He was so angry I didn't answer his calls. Sam said I was an idiot too.”

“Can't say I disagree.”

“But he still helped me anyway. I wouldn't be here without him.” He collapses onto a fire escape hanging off the nearest building. “I wouldn't have got a second chance with you without him.”

“Remind me to thank him later then.” You rise up on to your tiptoes, leaning through the bars off the staircase to press a kiss to his cheek. “Do you still want ice cream?”

“I think I need something stronger.”

“Chocolate fudge cake it is then.”

He tips his head back in laughter at that and you think yeah, together the two of you will be just fine.

*****

Chapter 17

[it-is-bugs]

TDBM Fic: The Pleasure of Your Company ~ 6

The boys turn first...

6. Buck Night:

Later, Matthew would blame what transpired on the alcohol.  Or rather, the lack of alcohol being consumed by Lucien Blake for once.  

"I won't drink tonight," Lucien had announced just as Cec had began to pour out.  All the men had looked at each other with shock, and Cec slowly put the stopper back in the decantenter.  

"Very good, sir," he said formally.  

"Cec, sit down.  You're a guest too," Lucien told him.  To the small group that made up an impromptu buck night, he explained, "I want to have a clear head tomorrow.  Can't let Jean down."

"Don't want to mess up the vows?" Danny suggested.

Lucien gave a half-smile.  "That too."

Cec cleared his throat.  "Right."  He sat, rather stiff, in one of the chairs, but his gaze kept darting around the room.  There were only male club members in the smoking room, but these were some of the stuffiest citizens of Ballarat.  There were lots of rustling newspapers and clearing of throats, but no one spoke up.  

Danny wondered how to get the party going.  This wasn't like any buck night that he'd attended before, but that was just like the doctor.  No late night in the back room of a pub, full of fag smoke and the clink of beer glasses with girlie magazines being passed around. Instead, they sat at this posh club, where they'd have to sleep tonight so the girls could have the Blake house. Cec was perched on a chair, Lawson was drinking steadily but saying nothing, Bill was looking at the animal prints on the walls with bored half-interest, and Lucien turned his water glass, still a small smile on his lips, lost in thought.  Danny decided that he should try small talk...  

"You'll be leaving on your wedding trip Monday?" he asked.

Lucien started.  "Yes," he replied, "The wedding tomorrow, then a good lie in on Sunday..."  That smile became a smirk--

"Not going to church?" Matthew asked and instantly saw it was the wrong thing to say.  He blinked blearily, noting Cec's outraged expression, Bill's eye roll and Danny's shock.  Lucien looked like a puppy whose paw had been trod upon.

"I'll be staying the two nights in the station's backroom," he said grimly, "it'll be an adventure."

"You can come home," insisted Lucien.

"I think not."  Matthew drained his glass and Cec popped up to refill it.  He gave a pained smile. "Let you two enjoy some privacy."

Lucien was back to that dreamy expression.  

Bill drained his beer.  "Well, I'll be pushing off--"  He'd had too much of this dull scene.  After some half-hearted goodbyes and see you tomorrow, everyone sat back down and the conversation slowed even more.  

Cec retrieved the cigar box from being the bar and asked, "Smoke, gentlemen?"  

With nothing else to do, they all accepted cigars and lit up.

After inhaling a few puffs, Matthew felt a bit ill, and washed the nausea down by draining his glass.  That's when he said it.  

Gasping out smoke, he said, "Funny how things turn out.  If Jean had said yes, we wouldn't be 'ere tonight."   He blinked slowly.

Lucien became alert, as he always did at Jean's name. "What?"

"When I asked her out."

Cec and Danny froze.

Tipping his head, Lucien fixed Matthew with that intense look that Matthew dimly recalled from interrogations of the toughest suspects.  

Put the glass down, mate, Matthew chided himself. He raised his hands.  "It was nothing.  She was--is a fine figure of a woman.  Christopher had been dead a few years, it seemed enough time had passed..."

"I'm sure," Lucien said shortly, his eyes flaring like hot blue flames.

Matthew knew this was going tits up but he was too drunk to find his way out of it.  Perhaps if he explained further-- "She turned me down flat; no worries. I figured the whole thing with arresting her son--" He grumbled, "Even if it was Doug Ashby who banged the hammer down.  I would have let the boy off with a warning and a few weeks on a work farm.  But Doug said his dad had been nothing but trouble and it looked like Jack was headed down the same path..."  He ran out of steam.  

"So it was all her choice?"

"To say thanks but no thanks?"  Matthew shrugged with effort; his arms felt very heavy.  "Yep."

The room seemed dim, and Lucien's voice far away, and  yet somehow thundered: "It's a wonder that you would want to live with us, seeing how painful it must be."

Matthew shook his head to clear it.  "Eh?"  

"Or did you think it would be easier to pick up the pieces when I inevitably cock it up?" the thumping voice accused him.   

Matthew tried to focus, but it was impossible with Lucien looming over him, blocking out the light.  When he looked around, Danny and Cec had disappeared.  He was quite alone, his spine pressed against the back of his chair.  He rallied.  

"Listen, mate," he said with sudden clarity, "you've got to get past this idea that Jean's going to toss you over first chance she gets, or she will.  No woman wants a man with no confidence about himself."  

Lucien stood up straight, and tugged down his waistcoat.  Then without a word, he turned on his heel and left.  

When Matthew felt that he could stand without his head spinning too much, he made his way to the bar and requested a cup of strong black coffee.  Ignoring the burning, he downed it in a few gulps.  Then he sought out Lucien.

He found him out on the balcony, ignoring the cool, damp breeze.  Lucien sat in a wrought iron chair, his feet propped on a table, smoking a cigarette and stroking his beard slowly with his thumb as he looked out across the city lights.  

Now that he'd found his friend, Matthew didn't know what to say, so he wavered on his feet and waited to be acknowledged.  

"I should have asked Alice to be my best ma--woman," Lucien said, but there was no animosity in his tone, so Matthew just chuckled.

"Jean's had to put up enough with your public spectacles.  That might just have pushed her over the edge."

Lucien laughed too and waved to another chair.  Grateful, Matthew lowered himself into it, sticking his bum leg out straight.  

"Should have invited her tonight, though.  She wouldn't have let us squabble in this squalid manner," Lucien pointed out.  

"True.  She'd have no patience for us."  Matthew brooded. "Probably why she's not married.  She's got little tolerance for the male ego."

"You've noticed," Lucien said, quirking a smile.  

"Yes, that's why..."  Matthew let that thought die on his lips.

But Lucien was still stone-cold sober.  "Why?"

"Nothin'," Matthew grumbled.

Lucien inhaled his cigarette then exhaled a long stream of smoke.  "Alice is a fine person.  I wouldn't like to see her hurt."

Matthew's temper flared and his head throbbed.  "Bloody hell, Lucien!  You've got some nerve to suggest I'd hurt a woman. I think things through, not like someone I know," he muttered bitterly.

"Oh, that's what you're doing, is it?  Thinking things through?"  Lucien held out his cigarette case to Matthew.

He needed to change the topic.  "I thought Jean doesn't like you to smoke?" He waved off the cigarettes.

"It's my buck night. Need to be a naughty lad--"  Peeking out from under his lashes, Lucien had that expression just like when he did something that would land them in the headmaster's office.  

"Bullshit. She's got you under her thumb, good and proper," Matthew sneered.  

Lucien didn't seem put out by that indictment.  He shrugged, giving another of those soft smiles.   "Just be careful you don't think your way right out of a chance."

Matthew lolled his head back, feeling ill again.  When was the last time he'd drank this much?  "After three years of doing everything possibly wrong, you're suddenly the expert on courting women?  Alright then.  Still the smartest man in the room."  This time, he didn't care if he offended Lucien.

"I thought we'd straightened all that out."

"I don’t mind you being smarter than me," Matthew said with a limp-wristed wave. "Or solving the crimes. Just bloody tired of you patronising me."

"I don’t patronise you!" protested Lucien.

"You’re doing it right now!  Trying to tell me how to get a bird!"

"Alice isn't some bird from down at your local!"

"Exactly.  And she'd be crazy to even--"  Matthew couldn't finish the sentence.  

Lucien clasped his shoulder and Matthew had to fight back.  "So you can solve more crimes drunk than a station full of sober coppers.  Has it occured to you that you need to be drunk to solve them?  What are you going to do about that now?"  He met Lucien's fear-filled gaze.  "Now that Jean will be your wife, not someone you can dismiss with two weeks' pay?"

"She was never--"

"She was.  She knew it, and somewhere in there--"  He tapped Lucien's skull.  "You knew."

Lucien sat back down. "I never would have," he whispered.

Matthew was suddenly very tired.  "But you could have."

"I never would have," Lucien repeated, now strong.

"Oh really.  Why not?"

"Because I always loved her.  Even when I didn't know it, I did."

"Then I guess it's good that you're marrying her."

Lucien suddenly grinned.  "I am, aren't I?"  He looked at his watch.  "In...oh goodness me.  We should get to bed."  

Matthew struggled to his feet.  "Damn right.  Gotta get our beauty sleep."  He was still drunk.  

Lucien took his arm, supporting him.  "Can't have Jean turning right around and walking back down the aisle when she gets a look at me."

"You're doing it again, mate."

"Yes, yes..."

After the men passed through the doorway, Cec stepped out of the shadows.  He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray that Lucien had used, then picked it up, and pushed the chairs back under the table.  After one more look around the balcony, he followed them in.  Young Mr Parker had removed himself to the closest pub with rooms for the night, the lads were sharing a room upstairs, and Cec would go home to his flat.  The party was over.  

~ end

[dipulb3]

How Republicans in key states are preparing to run out the clock on the election

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/how-republicans-in-key-states-are-preparing-to-run-out-the-clock-on-the-election/

How Republicans in key states are preparing to run out the clock on the election

Trump’s comments about the transition were only the latest instance where he’s actively sought to sow doubt into the legitimacy of the election. But beyond Trump’s rhetoric, his campaign and Republicans at the state and local level are moving to make it more difficult for voters to cast a ballot, more difficult for states to count votes and more likely that tallies will be challenged in the courts — with a particular focus on mail-in voting, which is being dramatically scaled up this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“I spent 38 years as a Republican lawyer going into precincts looking for evidence of fraud. There are, to be sure, isolated cases, but nothing like the widespread fraud that would somehow invalidate an election or cause anyone to doubt the peaceful transfer of power,” Ben Ginsberg, who helped litigate the 2000 election on George W. Bush’s behalf, told Appradab’s John King on Thursday. “So what’s different about this is a president of the United States going right at one of the pillars of the democracy without the evidence that you have got to have to make that case.”

Trump has been falsely saying for months now that the influx of mail-in ballots as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic are ripe for fraud. He suggested last week that the results of the election may never be accurately determined. And he suggested that the Supreme Court would determine the outcome of the election — after his nominee is potentially seated.

The President went a step even further Wednesday when asked if he would accept a peaceful transition of power, saying, “Well, we’re going to have to see what happens.”

Republicans on Capitol Hill dismissed the notion that a peaceful transition won’t occur, but several embraced the idea that the courts would have to decide the election — an implicit suggestion that a dispute will arise questioning the results. Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham, who is facing his own reelection fight while shepherding Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, said he would accept the election results from “the court’s decision.”

“We will accept the court’s decision, Republican and Democrat, I promise you as a Republican if the Supreme Court rules in favor of Joe Biden, I will accept that result,” Graham said in a “Fox and Friends” interview. “No matter who challenges the results to have election, eventually the Supreme Court is likely to hear that challenge and when they rule, that is — that is the end of it.”

Republicans have pointed to Hillary Clinton’s August comments that Biden should not concede under any circumstances if the election is close. But Biden has said he will accept the results once all the votes are counted. “Sure, the full results. Count every vote,” he told Appradab’s Anderson Cooper at an outdoor town hall.

Both parties are fighting lawsuits across the country related to voting access, and the Trump and Biden campaigns are furiously preparing contingency plans for a post-election legal fight.

Republicans say the legal positions they are taking to stop efforts to expand mail-in voting are intended to safeguard existing election laws from being changed so close to Election Day. Democrats argue that access to voting needs to be expanded due to the pandemic, and they say they’re pushing back against efforts to suppress the vote.

Questioning and investigating the vote

But in several states, Republicans are taking steps that could make it more likely the election results are disputed, both through lawsuits and efforts that could slow down the absentee vote count or question its legitimacy. One state party official in Pennsylvania suggested the state legislature could determine who won the election, rather than the state’s popular vote, if the voting results took too long to be tabulated.

There are lawsuits across the country dealing with voting access issues, covering everything from mail-in ballots to dropboxes to how voters can fix absentee ballots that are missing information. Those cases are a prelude to potential legal challenges after Election Day.

In North Carolina, two Republican members of the State Board of Elections abruptly resigned Wednesday over a settlement reached with the Democratic state attorney general to allow voters to fix absentee ballots with missing information — suggesting the agreement would undermine the state’s absentee ballots. So far, more than 1 million voters in North Carolina have requested ballots to vote by mail.

The Republican state party called the settlement a “blatant abuse” following the resignations, and the Trump campaign lauded the resignations, saying the Democratic lawsuit that sparked the settlement was part of efforts “to rig this election.”

North Carolina Lt. Gov. Daniel Forest, a Republican, sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr on Thursday asking DOJ to investigate the agreement between the board and the attorney general.

It’s not the only case Republicans have turned to federal law enforcement and Barr, who has made his own false claims about fraud and mail-in ballots.

In Florida, the attorney general is requesting an FBI investigation into billionaire Michael Bloomberg’s efforts to reinstate the voting rights of felons by paying their fees.

And in Pennsylvania, the Justice Department announced Thursday it is investigating issues with a small number of mail-in ballots. US Attorney David Freed said the inquiry found that nine “military ballots were discarded” and, in an unusual disclosure, said that “all nine ballots were cast for presidential candidate Donald Trump.”

But several hours later, the press release was taken down and then re-posted to correct that, in fact, only seven of the nine ballots had been cast for Trump. The other two were unknown.

A delayed, disputed count

Several states are currently mired in legislative fights over allowing elections officials to begin counting absentee ballots before Election Day. In Michigan, the Republican-controlled legislature still hasn’t allowed local officials to process absentee ballots before Election Day. The State Senate passed a bill that gives officials one extra day, but the legislation is stalled in the State House.

And the Iowa secretary of state, Republican Paul Pate, is seeking emergency authority to have additional time to process ballots. The state’s Legislative Council is meeting on Friday to consider the request, according to the Quad-City Times.

The problem of counting mail-in ballots is both a procedural and political one.

Tallying absentee ballots is a more time-consuming process, as each state has different rules for validating the ballots, from ensuring signatures match to having a witness sign the ballot. Both campaigns are preparing to have officials at sites monitoring the count, which could further slow the process.

It’s a political problem because polls show far more Democrats than Republicans are planning to vote-by-mail. One of Democrats’ nightmare scenarios is that the Election Night results show Trump ahead, and when his lead evaporates as mail-in votes are counted, he claims it’s a rigged election.

Trump has been laying the groundwork to make this argument already. “Because of the new and unprecedented massive amount of unsolicited ballots which will be sent to ‘voters’, or wherever, this year, the Nov 3rd Election result may NEVER BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED, which is what some want,” Trump tweeted earlier this month.

Trump has urged his supporters on Twitter to be poll watchers, which experts warn could lead to intimidation or even conflict on Election Day. Conservative groups and local Republicans are boosting the effort by seeking to sign up their members, too. In Pennsylvania, Facebook ads paid for by local Republican chapters send supporters to a Trump campaign website where they can sign up to be a poll watcher.

Republicans are also looking to mobilize their base after the election. A GOP source said that post-election litigation disputed could be reinforced by plans to organize Trump-friendly demonstrations outside the courthouses where the lawsuits will unfold. The apparatus for doing so was already fired up this summer in Nevada, where the Trump campaign sued over state legislation sending mail-in ballots to all registered voters.

The potential for a delayed and contested vote count goes beyond just the public perception of a legitimate election — it has prompted some to consider state legislatures appointing electors to the Electoral College, instead of a state going with the winner of the popular vote, in the event of a disputed vote.

Pennsylvania GOP party chairman Lawrence Tabas told The Atlantic he’s mentioned the prospect to the Trump campaign. “If the process, though, is flawed, and has significant flaws, our public may lose faith and confidence” in the election’s integrity, Tabas said.

The Pennsylvania state GOP said in a statement to Appradab that The Atlantic article used the interview “to spin an out of context, pre-emptive farce that projects conspiracy.”

But a spokesman for Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff said that the issue was being discussed due to the prospect of a delayed result.

“These questions are entirely hypothetical. The only reason we are engaging in this discussion at all is because the Pennsylvania Supreme Court last week issued a decision that injected chaos into Pennsylvania elections by ensuring we will not have election results on election night and casting serious questions about the integrity of the election process we will undertake in just a few weeks,” spokesman Jason Gottesman said in a statement.

Limiting dropboxes and ballot postage

In other states, Republicans pursued lawsuits and other efforts that, if successful, would make it more difficult for people to vote.

In Ohio, a Republican-controlled state budget board rejected a request from the secretary of state to reshuffle existing funds to pre-pay for return postage for all absentee ballots. Frank Larose, the secretary of state, is a Republican, and members of his own party rejected his postage proposal.

The Trump campaign unsuccessfully sued in Pennsylvania to prevent counties from installing additional ballot dropboxes, which can be used to return absentee ballots. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court rejected their argument and instead cleared the way for local officials to add more boxes.

In Nevada, the Trump campaign sued to block a new state law that established universal vote-by-mail for the 2020 general election. Their lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge. The decision to switch to a nearly all-mail election was made by the Democratic-run legislature and the Democratic governor.

And in Florida, conservatives judges on a federal appeals court ruled that Florida can ban ex-felons from voting if they haven’t paid court fees or fines that were part of their sentence. The court upheld a law passed by the GOP-controlled legislature, which said voting rights can’t be restored until fines are paid.

Democrats, too, have filed suits across the country. Their lawsuits include efforts that make it easier to “cure” absentee ballots that are missing information, such as in North Carolina, and to extend mail-in voting deadlines to count ballots that are postmarked on Election Day, even if elections officials receive them afterward.

Those efforts could also become the source of legal disputes after Election Day, with Republicans accusing Democrats of trying to flout election laws, particularly if a key state’s margin between Trump and Biden is razor thin and the campaigns are scrutinizing every ballot like the “hanging chads” of the 2000 Florida recount.

In that dispute, the Supreme Court ruled in Bush’s favor to stop the recount and then-Vice President Al Gore conceded the election. Trump predicted this year’s presidential contest will also wind up in the Supreme Court — though he gave no indication he would make the same concession as Gore if he lost.

“This scam that the Democrats are pulling — it’s a scam — this scam will be before the United States Supreme Court,” Trump said. “And I think having a 4-4 situation is not a good situation, if you get that.”

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to correct the day the Justice Department announced an inquiry into a small number of mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania.

Appradab’s Kristen Holmes, Pamela Brown, Sarah Westwood, Dianne Gallagher, Kelly Mena, and Pamela Kirkland contributed to this report.

[blizzardfluffykpop]

Donghyun X Reader

Summary:Sometimes, love isn’t always on time. It takes a little longer before it happens.

One-shot

Please don’t read if you’re innocent, this is smut and mature content, please read other works if you like my fanfiction but, don’t read the smut. Just this is for mature readers and/or over 18 readers.

Prompt: 17. Snow day? You know that means another day for you and me. Single Dad Au (I’ve seen this one so often it just makes me so happy) My best friend is a single parent, his girl friend at the time when she had the kids. Decided that she didn’t want them, walked out on him soon after. He was so crushed, he loved his kids with the epitome of mollycoddling . He was so protective of the two twins. The boys are so adorable, the minute I heard–being as I had to find out from his ex–that she had left him for dead to care for these kids. I immediately pitched in, so worried for him. He was worried that he might end up snapping their necks by holding them wrong. I was a babysitter when we were younger, so I knew how to care for little babies. I taught him everything I knew, I pitched in money as well. As much as I could, without having my bills and landlord coming after me. The first time, he feed them real chewable food when they were one and a half. He was so nervous, and I got it on a Polaroid so his kids when they got older could look at the baby book that I was throughly working on every day for him–I bought it for him as a gift–who would expected that I’d have to fill it out. He ended up just asking me to live with him so we could take care of them together more efficiently Who am I to say no to not having to pay one more bill. It was more money I could pitch in to raise his twin baby boys. The hardest part was when they came home from their first day of Kindergarten we both took of the day. I’ll be honest I did shed a few tears, but this one over here was a mess. Like a mom that lost his kid to the war, I mean he’s not wrong Kindergarten is war. Well for me the one who started food fights and ended up tripping over this poor excuse I have for a best friend. We came quick friends after that. Back to the point, when they came home his son, ‘Dae-young’ asked the more talkative of the two, “Is (Y/n) our omma?” We looked at each other for a good minute not expecting him to have said that. As his brother ‘Jae-young’ came up to me and sat on my lap like always. And I could just see the gears practically grind in his head. And he answers with a question, “Why would you ask?” “Because last week our teacher was talking about us telling about our parents. And this week we’d have to tell about our appa and omma.” Jae-young answers swiftly. I look over scanning Donghyun to help him answer. And I decide, “If you really need to talk about someone use me as your omma, okay?” They both nod their pretty little heads. I look over at Donghyun and he gives me a sweet sincere smile. If we weren’t busy with this race against time to make sure these kids end up okay. I would date him, I have felt this spark for him since we were younger. The reason I noticed it was when we wend over to a party when we were 6th graders and acted like we were all cool since we had friends in 7th grade that were throwing a party. We ended up playing truth or dare and he was dared to kiss me. Both of our first kisses gone just like that. I wouldn’t have changed it. Yes, the way I coped with my feelings was date other guys and as did he with other girls. And yes, sloppy seconds exist and I’ll be a liar if I didn’t go out with a chick he went out with, as he went out with a guy I went out with as well. I would have loved or given anything for us to have ended up together. But he thought this girl who had these two twins was the one. And wanted to marry her and everything, I was on my way of moving on. Well, not all the way, he is still my best friend we were going to have our movie talks. Since his girlfriend and I, didn’t actually despise each other like it usually happens if the guy has a girl best friend. No, actually we got along quite well with each other. When she had left him she told me, she told me that she’d be heading away as well. And she wishes me well and him. She just can’t see herself ever raising kids that it hurt so much that she had to have them, she didn’t want to go through that again and she was heading to Britain, to attain a new path. When she left, I was still in a state of shock, that would be the last time I’d ever see her or hug her. And I went to Donghyun’s house to see him in despair but fervently trying to change Dae-young’s diapers without crying. That was the day I went out an bought him the baby book to remind him to always be happy for these little ones, it will mean a lot to them when they get older. I finally snap back into reality when I feel little hands on my shirt tugging at it, I look down to see Dae-young trying to get my attention, and he says, “Will you read us a bedtime story, (Y/n)?” I nod and pick up this little bundle of joy as Donghyun does to Jae-young and he spins him around. And I shake him around and kiss Dae-young’s head knowing he doesn’t like to be spun around like that. Rather in fact, he quite despises it he’d rather be cuddled with, I get that. We put them in their room, I tuck in Dae-young as Donghyun tuck in Jae-young. I sit in the chair as Donghyun sits on the floor. Acting as a kid ready to sleep, my luck he falls asleep and I’ll have to carry him to his room. I start telling the three of them about a heroic prince who the ladies swooned for, how he was fearless, bold, and not afraid of anything. Well except for his love the princess, he was afraid of her the most beautiful, kindest, and if you don’t shut your mouth Donghyun you’ll never get to know her last quality. Which is cunning she wasn’t afraid to battle and rather she was quite good at it, she would strike you like you were a monster. And that’s what he was afraid of. So the day he worked up the courage to finally tell her, she major shocker rejected him. He was devastated, his buddy Romeo decided to go after her and actually won her over. They battled but he gave up and moved on to another, a little more worried about the impending future. He asked her after three months of courting her, and unlike the princess before that wasn’t really worth his time that much. The sweeter, yet daring, and funny princess said, yes. When she did he couldn’t believe it and it was long before they had a marriage, they got married five weeks later, and were busy figuring out how to rule the land under fair rule where no citizen was above one another, they were all equal and had the same rights. It was then, I realized they all were snoring I was so deviled in the story I barely noticed, I didn’t even get to finish I was going to tell a battle of a dragon but these boys feel asleep. I kiss Jae-Young’s forehead then Dae-young’s for the second time tonight. My luck he did actually fall asleep, when I moved over to him. I picked him up with a huff and a scowl. He ends up doing this every time. I open the door and quietly close it behind the two of us. I take him to his room and set him on the bed and he reached and I pulled his stuffy that he wouldn’t admit to anyone but me, he still sleeps with it and needs it. I give it to him and I kiss his forehead after tucking him into the blankets. He curls up into a ball and starts sleeping. Man child, oh well. Least he isn’t that bad for one. I get to my room and start editing a story I tirelessly right. Even though I’m a professional writer doesn’t mean I have a schedule just when ever I feel creativity. I start throwing the story together my dead line for this story is really soon. And it seems like I have a pretty good plot so, I’ll just throw in a sprinkle of comedy a dash of conflict and a barrel full of monkeys. Cute thing is, everyone thinks I’m joking about that barrel full of monkeys, no that is the main story. Haven’t you ever wondered what happens a barrel full of monkeys, much more of a young adult read, then a child or an adult read. I finish chapter three in under an hour typing away, three chapters done. 27 to go tomorrow, I’m so not ready. Yes, I was talking about the deadline being tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. sharp. Woot woot, my hands are going to turn black and wish I wasn’t a writer. And yes, I luckily don’t have work tomorrow, that job at the cafe is about as good as this writing gig, not getting me anywhere least I found a place that will publish me. I fall asleep as comfortable as baby, even though I had that inner thought of how am I going to write that many chapters in so little time. Just like I always have and will done. Finish it with three minutes and seven seconds to spare. Submit and everyone gets off your case for another five months. Giving an idea or a pitch as they like to call it and throwing it at you and you figuring out what to write about. I wake up to see Donghyun in my face grinning and said, “I made you breakfast! I know you procrastinated and have a long a day a head of you, I got the kids under control today, leave it to me!” “Thank you so much, Donghyunnie! I’ll promise after I finish up the book we can have our all-nighter like we usually do.” “Really!?” “Yes, really! Now, go take your kids to school you rascal!” He laughs and places the tray of food on me, I eat the toast up rather quickly and start working on the book. I eat the bacon on the plate as I tediously finish up chapter seven, seems like plot a went out the door and plot j decided to take over all of the other plots and run this thing like a circus. Funny, right? Barrel full of monkeys a circus, okay my humor sucks. Give me credit here, I’m working on a young adult book. I hear the door open and close from downstairs, he’s home later than usual. I’m not going to question it like I usually would except for days like today, where I’m a little shit that procrastinates like no other and is typing a mile a minute. And oh my god Gerald did you really have to mess up your beautiful gorgeous face by slipping in the mud you ask, yes yes I did. It was necessary to the plot, actually no it wasn’t it was just filler as fuck. I hear someone knock on the door and I tell them to come in, not calmly at all I’m ranting throughout the whole book on monkeys and things that wouldn’t make since in a normal story but it does since it’s a barrel full of monkeys. I see Donghyun and he sits down in front of my feet and lays right there. No questions asked just lays there. And I roll my eyes as I finish up chapter nine. I start typing faster I want to finish this and an idea just came out of nowhere, and it’s looks really good so far. It’s 4:00 p.m. the time he has to go and bring home the kids, has he moved all day. No, did he want to move, no. They had a longer day at the kindergarden because they were doing an assembly today I remember being told that from a mother that was talking frantically to another mother. So instead of a half day, it’s a full day. By the time they got back I was on the last chapter. And instead of being really close to the deadline I actually had it done. When my computer crashes, let me just praise jesus for a minute when I realized I typed that on a google doc and everything was saved instantly. I got back on and I found it was still all there, I submitted it to the boss my publisher. I went downstairs and giddily made cookies for everyone. Knowing the affliction everyone has for my peanut butter cookies. (Sorry if your allergic but they are the bom.com)

About a week later the school system calls my phone I was added in case of emergencies. And they told me, “Your son, Dae-young got into a fight and your husband isn’t answering would you mind coming down here.” I didn’t want to break to them that I actually wasn’t the mother of the two or I wasn’t married to Donghyun actually that was a secret fantasy of mine that I couldn’t bare to bring alive to anyone. So when the accidently called me that I didn’t mind, quite the opposite I actually was fond of it. Till the actually weight of the situation laid on me. Dae-young the quiet yet brave, shy and sweet. Got into a fight I would believe it if it was Jae-young he and I tussle all the time. We rough house together like no tomorrow. But, Dae-dae. Are we talking about the same person? I don’t believe we are. I throw on my sweater and walk to the school, Donghyun didn’t live that far away. And when I get in Dae runs over and hugs me, I pick him up. And I ask the principal did he start the fight. And she says, “No, but he still is suspended, misconduct like this is appreciated, Mrs. Kim” “Actually for your information he was standing up for himself, this isn’t misconduct. If he was trying to make sure he didn’t the shit beaten out of him. Let me guess your prize student here was bullying Dae-dae. And he stood up for himself instead of taking it like he should. And you’re pissy about that?!” “MRS. KIM!” “At-at. I’m not someone you can yell at, I’m not a kid. Actually, if you remember correctly I’m older than you. I’m your unnie, and aren’t dongsaeng supposed to respect their elders.” “Mrs. Kim! You know I have fair right to speak about this issue!” “Oh is she mad because she used to bully me and then when I knocked her out into next week, on accident I assure you. Now when my kid gets into a schrmidge you’re upset because it’s exactly like your case. That bullies never win.” “You know that isn’t the point I’m making–” “He’ll take the suspension, good day, Mrs. Becaubachi.” (I came up with that at 10:25 I’m keeping it, oh well). And without another word I turn my heel slam the glass door and I’m out. I kiss Dae’s head and he starts pouring down crying and I get into the car and I start telling him, since he didn’t start the fight I don’t blame him. I never thought I’d see you’d get into a fight.“ And he tells me that he was so scared. And that he gave the kid a good black eye. So I decided to get ice cream to not honor that he beat the shit out of a kid, no never. Well, maybe. No to honor that he stood up for himself when he was getting pushed around and I’m so proud of him. We were sitting eating ice cream and he asks, “She was calling you Mrs. Kim. I thought your last name was, (L/n). Did you marry?” “No she was being an insolent fool.” “Appa has the same name is that what she was confusing it for?” “Yeah I would guess.” “Would you ever date, Appa?” “If you can keep a secret.” He nods his head and in that instant I forgot he is only six and will tell the instant it’s brought up. “I would love to, only if he liked me.” “What if, Appa did?” “Then I’d happily date your Appa.” “Would it be okay for me to call Omma?” “Full of questions as ever. You can, I don’t really care. My friends used to call me 'Appa’ all the time when we were younger, cause I’m the appa-like friend. They used to call your dad, 'Omma’ because he acts much more like a Eomma than an Appa. And it’s better if your Appa doesn’t know you go suspended. He wouldn’t like that very much.” “Really? That’s so cool. Were you the Appa/Omma team? And why would he care?” “Yes, we were the parent team. Because he doesn’t want the idea of his babies getting hurt in his mind. And he’d blow a gasket. Can you fake sick for me, the next two days. Does Jae know why you left?” “No. He was at recess.” “Don’t tell him, he’ll tell dad. As much as I love the kid he’s sort of a blabber mouth.” “I promise, Omma.” I grin, for the first time ever I was truly called Omma by someone I considered to be my own kid. I kiss his forehead and we sit on tailgate of my truck and I lean back and we start pointing out shapes of clouds.

It was about two months later, at conferences that Donghyun forced me to go because he didn’t want to be alone. And I told him I feel like I’m the one being scolded rather than our kids. When, they started talking about how they can’t believe how innocent little, Dae-young fought with a kid. That’s when Donghyun’s head nearly spun 180 degrees. I’ve gotten into pretty messy fights with him. But once his kids were put asleep. We went downstairs, like usual just to play video games. When I got down the stairs he closed the door and starts bitching about how I didn’t tell him about Dae-young being suspended 3 days. “Well, maybe I would have told you if I knew you wouldn’t act like this. You’d take it out on Dae-young. I could care less if you yell at me about it, but if you say one thing to Dae-young about it. I’ll have you on the floor with a broken nose faster than you can say, 'pudding’. And if I knew you would have accepted that he got suspended for self-defense I would have told you sooner. But I knew the minute it was brought up you’d act like this.” “Well how do you want me to act!? Act like it’s fine? That my son didn’t give another kid two black eyes over what?!?” “I’ll have you know, he was getting beat up, the kid acted on his own and he stood up for himself. Like I taught him, if someone throws a punch at you. You hit them twice as hard.” “What the fuck are you teaching my kids?!!! I thought we were on the same side, (Y/n)!” “What do you mean what am I teach your kids, I’m teaching them life lessons that you obviously won’t bestow upon them. I thought that too! You think you’re the only one this is affecting? If Dae-young were to hear you right now, you know he’d be crying because he knows he messed up. And it won’t make his appa proud. That’s why I didn’t tell you. Because he really is afraid of fucking up, and you’ll leave. He knows what his mother did, so he doesn’t want you to do the same. He wants you to be proud of him. And if that meant me lying to you, my best friend. I would do anything to make sure that he wasn’t terrified of this.” “(Y/n)!!! You don’t get a word I’m saying do you?!? You don’t get that my son, MY SON, shouldn’t be getting involved in fights at all!” “Oh really? Look what your doing right now, I wonder where he would get the idea of fighting from, you. So you want YOUR SON that YOU OBVIOUSLY ONLY RAISED! To come home with a bloody nose, a broken arm, and a broken wrist because he didn’t stand up for himself?!” “That’s not what I’m saying” “Sure as hell sounds like it. And if you don’t remember, I ended up in a fight like he did. And I was the one with a bloody nose, a broken arm, and a broken wrist. The next time she fought with me I broke her jaw. Because I was tired of it, I’m glad YOUR SON stood up for himself instead of being like his father a damn coward. It seems like your proving to be. I thought I helped raised YOUR SON, it seems not. Good luck raising him and his twin by yourself, Donghyun. If you can’t be proud of your son, that he stood up for himself, then you can’t be my best friend, my love of my life.” I say without meaning to. I take my jacket, my purse, wallet, phone, a pair of shoes and sprint out of the place. I can’t believe this.

It was four days later when I heard a call I was living at my parents, I can’t believe after all these years I’d end up back here. I answer the phone not even caring who it was, “Hi, Omma this is Dae-Dae. I stole Appa’s phone quickly. I was wondering why you’re not here anymore, Jae-Jae and I miss your stories. Please come back home we miss you so much.” “Aw, Dae-Dae I miss you, tell Jae-Jae I miss him too. But until your Appa apologizes to me, and you. I’m not coming back, he doesn’t deserve me. You two do, but he doesn’t.” “Omma… Does that mean…. Does that mean your leaving forever?” “I sure hope not. I want to come back I really do. But I think your Appa wouldn’t be so kindly to my residency if I came back. So I’ll see you hopefully soon, continue to stand up for yourself, and be that brave little Dae I know. Okay, tell that to Jae too, okay?” “O-Okay… I’ll miss you every day.” “I’ll miss you too.” When I hear the line go dead I just go into the mountains of tissues and blankets and curl up and cry. I don’t want to be without the three. But it seems Donghyun doesn’t want me there anyways.

It’s a month later after those four days. When I go downstairs to eat dinner with my folks, I mean don’t get me wrong but this is just so hard being back here. After all this time of being away, living my life. Not to extent I want it to be, but I was fine with it. There’s a knock on the door then a ring of the bell. My Appa starts singing, “Somebody’s knocking on the door, somebody’s ringing the bell. Do me a favor and let 'em in.” I laugh and go open the door. I see the face I’ve been avoiding for a month, four days, ten hours, thirteen minutes, and eleven seconds. It’s Donghyun, with a tear-stricken face. He looks at me and says, “(Y/n)–” “Nope. I can’t do this.” I run off to my room delve into my sheets of comfort and go into a cocoon. I could have done that completely different. But when you miss someone to point of aching you can’t face them it hurts too much. I hear a soft knock on my door and it’s my Omma and she says, “Will you talk to, Donghyun. I know how much you are mad at him right now. But listen to him for a minute. And if it displeases you, I can send him out the door.” I growl through my pillow. I get up, and I slowly open the door and my Omma pulls me into a hug kisses my forehead and encouragingly moves me to the living room. I see a bouquet of (f/f), I shake my head. That won’t win me over if he thinks that. He looks down and then looks me dead in the eye as I sit as far as away as I can on the couch. And he says, “I know sorry isn’t enough. So–” “Let me stop you right there. You’re right apology isn’t enough. And as much respect as I have for my parents I hope the excuse these being as I’m an adult. It better be a damn good apology or you can walk out that fucking door, and don’t let the door hit you where mother nature split you, Donghyun.” I say with so much venom I could be a poisonous snake. “(Y/n), I wasn’t at all right for what I said to you. You helped raise my kids as much as I did. And sometimes more than I could ever. And for me to yell at you like you were an insolent child, that deserved to be scolded. Was wrong, I know. I’m so thankful for you to teach the twins self-defense. And when I found out that my kid was afraid this situation happening. And they both had separation anxiety to the nth degree. And at first I was so mad that I didn’t care about it, I didn’t realize how much I hurt you or them. That I was being a rotten father, that I was being a rotten person in general. And when I start thinking so hard about how much I missed you, how much I didn’t want to fight with you. That I realized how much I ruined my chances of ever asking you out to be my girlfriend.” “You got that right, you ruined that by a long shot.” “I figured, I’m not asking for you to move back in for me, even though it is a bonus. It’s just the twins miss you so much. And they will refuse to talk to me if I don’t bring you back, the made a blood pact and everything on a paper. Written by both of them. So please, will you please come back.” “So you don’t have to deal with a quiet life-style. Oh how miserable that would be. No offense appa and omma. But how do you think I felt the minute I walked out that door and moved back into my parent’s house. How awful I felt that I wasn’t up to your standards. That it was basically like living in a void with out two cheerful little ones to brighten up my day. I think you deserve to go back home by yourself just because of that.” “Please, I’m begging you, (Y/n)….” “You know if you would have given me an apology a lot sooner, I would have maybe accepted it, but I think you missed your time slot. Got to wait to punch in again, it won’t be for a while. So if you don’t mind me, I’ll be in my room.” I get up from the couch, and to make my point when I got up and into my room, I slam my door as loudly as possible. I wonder if I was too hard on him, as I slide down the door crying. I wonder how many calories you could lose from this, because it seems I’m a professional at this.

I go to sleep after a while and wake up go downstairs to have breakfast with my parents before Appa goes to work. I get downstairs to see Donghyun sitting at the dinner table, and I look at him with the hardest of glares abruptly set my food on the table with my coffee. Eat breakfast and drink the coffee, wish my appa a good at work and go back up to my room without hearing, “Go run after her, if you really do care for her, then do it.” There’s no point of locking the door, I know my parents to well. They would give him a key if they really needed too. Would it be acceptable to jump out this second story window? Maybe? I would be fine with it. I hear the door softly click open I scowl at the presence. And he sits next to me and I move away as far as I can away from him and he opens his mouth and tells me, “I know how much you hate me right now, but can you think of the twins, for one second?” “Would you think for a second that wasn’t the thing that was torturing me in the back of my mind. Not knowing, how it was happening, knowing how much separation anxiety Dae-Dae has, and I had to leave him? You know how much that tore me to absolute pieces? No you don’t.” “Actually I do. It tore me up to pieces because you weren’t there. I had no one to ask how to deal with this situation. How to help Dae-Dae cope with you gone, when I couldn’t even cope with you being gone. How much it hurt me that the love of my life left me, because of me.” “Wh-what?” I ask as my tears start flowing, he’s seen me cry many a time before. But this is a different case, it was because of him I still was trying to understand it. He gets down on his knees and says, “I would never beg for forgiveness from anyone else, but you. (Y/n), please if not for me, then for OUR kids, for little Jae-Jae and Dae-Dae. They miss you so much as do I, please come back home. I don’t think the three of us can be alone. I realized just how hard it is with out you there. How wrong of me it was when I got mad at you for teaching OUR kids something useful, and if you please, please just accept this apology. I’ll do anything. Except for leave without you, I need you in my life. More than you would ever realize, the kids need you so much as well. They miss you every day as much as I have, and guilt tripped me for the past month and now five days in the twelve hour and 50 seconds. I love you, so much. And this hurts so much to be without you for this long, it hurt the minute you left as bad as it does right now. It feels as though a piece of me is missing. Please, please-” “Stop right there. I accept your apology. You-You love me? Wait–Hold the line…. (LOVE ISN’T ALWAYS ON TIME– I’ll stop I get it, I’ll stop).” “Actually I was planning before you left asking you to marry me, figuring we could just skip the part where we were dating. Because we know each other so well… That we had friend dates that meant more to me than you would ever believe, I imagined each time even when I was with my ex. I realized how much I wanted you. How wrong I was for wanting you and picturing it was you every time we laid in bed together. How much I realized I was mistake, when she ended up with my kids. I lost all sight that you were even my ideal. I forgot you existed, and I saw her for the very first time. I cared for her so much. When she left me, I was so devastated because I finally moved on and she didn’t want me in the end. And then my inner self thought of you, and I was wallowing in my tears so sad without you. And when you came over, I wasn’t only crying that I’d have to care for them myself. I was crying because I thought I lost you. And this time I really lost you. When we started going on our best friend dates again I realized how much I truly loved you. How much they meant to me, I imaged myself each time before we ended the date I’d confess or move across from you and lean in and just kiss you. But no, I never did. And I wanted to so bad. And when you said you I was the love of you life it cut deeper, because I realized I wasn’t the only one that was at a loss here, when you left. I’m sorry, this is probably a lot.” “Wait… You were going to ask me to marry you?” I say in utter disbelief, this is the same guy right? “And you pictured me each time? Except for when she was carrying the twins? You wanted to kiss or confess each time to your feelings each time we had the best friend dates as much as I did? Wait you must be kidding me. And you’re right you weren’t the only one suffering from leaving. It hurt me so much not be able to call you up and ask what do I do, when I have a fight with you. How do I even approach the situation. I may be a writer but I could have never written our life out like this.” “Yeah… I know we just finally made up. But I can’t live a single day without you ever again. You’re my Earth, you’re my son, you’re my stars, you’re my Moon, I love everything about you. It might have taken me long to do this, not even what we proclaim liquid courage could help me gain enough courage to ask you this. So from the bottom depths of my deepest sorrows to the highest hope above my head. Would you do me the honors of being my one and only. My jagiya, my wife, my best friend, my pearl that is completely polished, to my oyster bed, still looking for a pearl to hold. Would you be that pearl?” He had shift the first start of that proclamation of love to his one knee. With a ring that was gorgeous in his hand held out to me. a pearl about the size of of a rock, just smoothed out with diamonds surrounding the ring, the ring silver. And I can’t believe just said that to me and I tell him, “Get up, come over here and kiss me will you.” He looks at me with a grin, he gets up, and slips the ring onto my finger. Wow, that’s actually heavy… Jeez. He kisses me affectionally his hands on my cheeks holding me there, as I encircle my arms around his waist. “I love you” I tell him once our first real kiss takes place. And he gives the biggest grin and he says, “Would you please come back home with me?” “I would never not” He grins and picks me up, and my parents were busy filming this, I had yet to realize that in the heat of the moment. They tell us to get out of here you crazy kids. And live happily and invite them to the wedding. If that is one of the first things they play on our dvd, it’s baby pictures. (I think you all are wondering when that prompt will come in, well get ready).

Its was 3 months after that we were happily married, the twins were high fiving that we finally got together. And then Jae-Jae started asking when he’d get a little sibling or three. He really want little siblings like no other kid in the world. I laughed as well as Donghyun. Dae-Dae was the ring barer, and Jae-Jae was the best man.

We had our first Christmas together, for the first time when the kids entered 1st grade. We were in amidst of arguing during that period of not being together. And if I had to say how much fun that was, it really freaking was.

If I’m being all honest, Donghyun and I still haven’t had sex. Not that I’m complaining we never get time with these two all the time, and we hardly getting a day off. Except for when snow storms hit. And it’s broadcasted that’ll happen the 2nd the day our kids are supposed to go to school. Jae-Jae and Dae-Dae already planned how they were going to spend it. They were gonna have us take them to the hill and they’d meet up with there friends. And its not like its a bad snow storm it’s just going to be enough to leave four feet of snow. Thank god I’m friends with the people in the neighborhood, Si-yeon is the watcher of all of our children. She never had any herself even though she wanted some. So when parents want a day off she takes care of them and has everyone’s number memorized, that moves her. And planned to make this snow day eventful for the kids. The kind sweet heart. Dae-Dae asks me to make sure he stayed awake through the new year. And I did so Jae-Jae fell asleep before 8 O'clock even hit. Dae-Dae stayed up through it surprisingly him and Jae-Jae usually have the same sleep clock. And he cheered like the little kid he is. And so did we, to join in on the fun. We kissed when the clock rang in the new year. And Dae-Dae cheered. He like I was, wasn’t the kid to be grossed out when someone kissed. Although, Jae-Jae is, oh he really truly is. He starts yelling about how icky it is. Dae-Dae falls asleep soon after, and I pick him up and Donghyun picks Jae-Jae up and we tuck them into there bed laying a kiss on there head and switching to do the same to the other. Donghyun picks me up and kisses my neck. “What’s a better way to celebrate the new year than with you?” “Um… With food and drinks?” He laughs at that and shakes his head. And it looks like a light bulb broke itself over his head and gave him an idea and he says, “I have an idea~” “What~” I ask as I close the door silently not to wake them. “You know how the twins are deep sleepers and we’ve tested this theory before right?” “Yeah, where are you going with this?” “I was think you and me, for a way to celebrate the coming of the new year, we could cum as well.” “You really had to make that joke?” “Yes, but you up to it?” “I don’t know Big Ben isn’t. He hasn’t rang in a while” He looks at me with a shake of his head, a thin lipped smile and says, “I guess I had that coming to me.” "Funny how you say that” He shakes his head again and I laugh. He picks me up by my thighs and pushes me against the window that was in our bedroom that we had made our way into. And he grinds into me, letting out a few muffled groans into my sweater. I let out a soft moan. I feel him pull at my leggings and I feel him rip them open. I gasp at the sensation, not expecting him to do that. And he rubs his rough fabric over my lacy underwear that I was wearing because I was to lazy to do the laundry this week. So I was on my last pairs of my panties, and oh my god do they have to be so thin. And that feels so good against my clit. That course feeling of jeans and I feel him move his hand yet again and he unzips and unbuttons his jeans, lets them fall to his ankles and kicks them off. He whispers in my ear, “I hate for this to be a quickie, but if I wait any longer without me buried inside of you…” “I understand and if you wait any longer I’m going to slap you.” He grins at me and I feel him rip my panties, he better be buying me new leggings and panties for that. As i gasp at the sensation of how cold the room was against my wet entrance as he slips two fingers into my entrance and he says, “Jagiya you’re already this wet for me?” “Yeah, you caused it you better fix it.” He smirks at me and take his fingers out of me and licks them off. And he slips into me and I let out a deep as does he into each other’s shoulders. He pulls my sweater off my one shoulder his face was buried in with his free hand, and starts kissing along my shoulder. And nibbles on a spot and starts sucking on the spot. I buck my hips against his, wanting and craving for him to move inside of me. He complies as he gives me a hickey and starts pounding me against the window. He moves us from the window and throws us on the bed and starts pounding into me like a mad man, and I’m letting out moans louder than I should, so I to muffle them, kiss him deeply, my legs wrapping around him tightly encouraging him to go deeper into me. And he goes all the way to the hilt, and I moan out loudly against his lips, that luckily muffled it. The twins are pretty deep sleepers but not to the point of where they don’t wake up at all. He breaks the kiss for a second to allow us to catch our breaths when he picks up his pace and starts slamming into my hips harder, if I don’t have bruises on my poor hips, I will be surprised. I feel my end coming, and before I can even reach my clit to get me off quicker he already moved his hand thumb to start rubbing over it. And I feel him twitch inside of me, I guess he was meeting his end as well. And I my walls clench around his cock and he kisses me and we both moan into the kiss, cuming at the same time. Surprisingly he rides out our high as my thighs spasm around him. He slowly pulls out and pulls me into him and kisses my forehead. And then he reminds me, “Snow day? You know that means another day for you and me.” I grin and say, “Definitely, but let’s rest for now, alright?” He nods and we fall asleep from our intercourse, and I couldn’t be happier. ((I was really content on how this ended, I hope you guys throughly enjoyed this as much as I did) I think this may have been longer than Chanyeol’s).