#but then my mum brought me mcdonalds

[thiamblogger]

i just want to know if anybody else on tumblr is taking health and social in college because i am, and today we had to fix our feedback except (this isn't me bragging.. i promise.) i didn't have any, and i am literally never in lesson - i always waffle, but like maybe it's cause of all the extra explanations and definitions??

[theloveoffootball10]

sᴛɪᴄᴋᴡɪᴛᴜ : ғ ɪ ғ ᴛ ᴇ ᴇ ɴ

m a s t e r l i s t

ғ ɪ ғ ᴛ ᴇ ᴇ ɴ

"I think I'm dying" waking up in Lando's arms I don't even want to open my eyes. I can feel the wine hangover already and I haven't even moved.

"I thought I'd seen you drunk before but that was next level" feeling Lando wrap his arms around me I think I could stay here forever "your karaoke was something else. Seeing you up on that kitchen island with your mum I know where you get it from"

"I'm my mother's daughter there's no denying that" half opening my eyes I squint to look at Lando "why do you look fit when you're hungover. I don't even need to look to know I look homeless"

"You don't look homeless, you're beautiful Lucía"

"Don't lie to me Norris" I say with a laugh "did you notice Liv and Max spent most of last night together?"

"Yeah I noticed. I don't think it's for us to get involved though. He hasn't mentioned Becca and she'd normally come to a race weekend with him if they were together. I think if Liv knows, there's nothing we can do to stop them" I sigh knowing Lando is right but the last thing I want is for Liv to get hurt. "More importantly I can't wait to spend tomorrow with you"

"I'm excited to see what you have planned" I can't lie since Lando asked me out I've looked forward to tomorrow, even more so when he said he wants me to himself all day.

"You'll find out tomorrow. I can't give you any hints or it'll give everything away" letting out a groan I realise Lando is going to make me go into this date completely clueless "don't worry I'm not taking you fishing"

"I wish I didn't tell you about that now. That day was absolute hell for me and I'd like to forget it" I say with a laugh knowing Lando could take me to McDonald's and it would be better than that date.

"I'm going to remind you of it all of the time so you realise how good dates with me are"

"There won't be a second date if you keep bringing that up" curling up against Lando I fully snuggle up to him "I need to go back to sleep I'm broken"

Waking up a few hours later I feel slightly more human. The hangover hasn't gone but it's at a point now where I can deal with it. Deciding I need to find food I pull on Lando's t-shirt from last night and clean underwear. I have no intentions of getting ready today.

"Come on I'm going to feed us" I say to Lando realising the villa sounds quiet. Making our way to the kitchen I grab a pot noodle and packet of super noodles from the cupboard. "Take your pick, chicken and mushroom pot noodle or chicken super noodles?"

"Are you serious right now babe? I'm a high performing athlete I don't eat that kind of thing" raising my eyebrows I give Lando a knowing look "super noodles please"

"That's what I thought" I say with a laugh as I busy myself making the instant noodles "do you want bread?"

"Bread? With noodles? Lucía are you okay?" Seeing the disgusted look on Lando's face I burst out laughing and grab the bread from the cupboard.

"You, posh boy have never lived. Nothing beats a pot noodle or super noodle sandwich when you're hungover. Me and mum might live in Cheshire now but I'm still the same girl who lived on a Manchester council estate who brings noodles on holiday with her"

"You brought them with you?"

"I certainly did, have you seen the price of a pot noodle in the states? No chicken and mushroom pot noodle is worth 5 dollars" 

"You never fail to surprise me. When did you move to Cheshire?" Lando asks grabbing us both a can of full fat coke from the fridge.

"When I was about 17. The option was always there for us to live wherever we wanted to but my mum wanted to stay around the people she grew up with and what she knew. She didn't want to move somewhere just for the sake of it because she had the money there to do it to end up surrounded by strangers and snobs. I went to the same school as her and everything. That was how me and Liv grew up together" I explain to Lando as I put the super noodles and buttered bread in front of him.

"I can imagine you two, little kids terrorising the streets of Manchester from the minute you could walk"

"Yeah it went something like that" sitting in a comfortable silence with Lando as we eat, I can only imagine how this would feel if it was a daily occurrence.

"Okay I'll give it to you, a super noodle sandwich is good. Not my usual breakfast but edible"

"I can take edible I suppose. So seen as we're the only ones alive what do you say to a quick shower and chilling by the pool for the day?"

"Are you asking me to shower with you Lucía Alonso?" Lando asks with a smirk on his face and I can't deny him what he wants.

"I suppose I am Lando Norris" grabbing Lando's hand I pull him back to my bedroom with me.

I spend the full day with Lando, we don't see much of anyone else because of their hangovers but it leaves me feeling like it's just the two of us on this holiday. I feel like I'm getting to know him more and more but on a more personal level, not just as two people who had a one night stand that escalated. After a few hours we drag out a goodbye as Lando leaves, explaining that he needs to make sure everything is ready and perfect for tomorrow. I still have no idea what he has planned but the excitement feels like Christmas Eve as a kid.

Waking up the next day I have all of the girls in my room helping me get ready. The only hint I have is a text from Lando telling me I don't have to get dressed up and causal will do. I couldn't even try to guess where he's taking me.

"Look at our little Lucía all dressed up ready to go on her last ever first date" Kelly says as she does my hair, it pays to have a hairdresser on hand.

"That might be a bit premature Kel"

"Bullshit. We've all seen the way he looks at you. He's head over heels in love with you. I'd put money on him marrying you ain't that right Donna"

"Absolutely. Men don't look at women the Lando looks at you. I don't think I've ever had a man look at me the way he does you in my whole 42 years" Donna adds and I wonder if their years of experience is making them see things in a different way.

"The best thing you can do Lucía is give him a chance. Don't shut down like you normally do" Liv adds handing me a bikini "wear this you might need it"

"Do you know where I'm going!?" I ask turning to look at Liv.

"I have an idea. Max mentioned something and it got me thinking. If I'm wrong I'll hold my hands up but please wear this then you can put a dress or whatever you want to wear on top of it" deciding I have no choice to believe Liv I walk into the the bathroom to change. My hair is down and I've left it naturally straight and my make up isn't too glam tying it all together with the bikini. I throw a coverup into my bag and find a dress I can wear over the bikini.

"You look perfect kid" my mum says handing me a pair of white flat sandals to complete my outfit "he's a lucky boy. Come on he's here and your dad is probably giving him grief if he's realised"

Picking my phone up I throw it in my bag with everything I think I'll need for this date. All of a sudden the nerves hit and I don't know why. I've spent so much time with Lando lately I have no reason to be nervous but this makes things feel a bit more serious than it was. I never thought meeting him in a car park at Silverstone would lead to me going on a date in Miami with him.

"Lucía you look beautiful" Lando whispers kissing my cheek and I feel the blush rising on my cheeks. This man does things to me no man has ever done "are you ready to go?"

"Thank you. You look good Lando" looking Lando up and down I realise he's in black shorts and polo top, with white trainers and a backwards cap over his curls, he's not dressed up and I realise my outfit compliments his perfectly "lets go, don't wait up everyone" I say as I leave the villa with Lando knowing I'm not in a hurry to return.

"Have you got any idea where I'm taking you?" Lando asks as he begins driving the same McLaren I was driving for him just a couple of days ago.

"I have no idea. I don't think I've known anyone keep a secret so well. Should I be worried Norris?"

"You have nothing to worry about at all. You're going to have the best date you've ever been taken on it'll blow everyone else out of the water" the smirk on Lando's face tells me he's thinking he's completely nailed this date.

"I hope you're not all talk or I'll be highly disappointed"

"I don't think you're going to be disappointed Lucía" Lando says as he bring the car to a stop. I've been so focused on him I didn't even realise we're at a marina.

"Are we going on a boat?" I ask in complete shock that Lando has planned this.

"We are. I thought what better way to get complete privacy from prying eyes of fans and paparazzi than being on a boat in the ocean" as we get out of the car my heart swells with happiness.

"You've put so much thought into this haven't you?" Taking Lando's hand in mine I follow him as he leads me to a super yacht. "This is already one of the best days of my life. This isn't just a boat Lando its a fricking super yacht"

"You deserve it Lucía. If I'm taking you out I want to do it properly. I'm not going into this half hearted"

"I can tell. I appreciate this so much. Okay it's more extravagant than what I'm used to but for me it's about the effort and thought you've put into this. Thank you" wrapping my arms around Lando's neck I close the gap between us pressing my lips against his.

"You're worth it" we spend the next few minutes being introduced to our captain and steward who will be looking after us while we're on the yacht and I'm honestly too stunned to speak when I hear of everything available on the yacht.

"Lando I genuinely can't believe you have planned this. I thought we'd go for tea together later and chill by a pool. You've just upped my standards when it comes to dates"

"As long as I'm only competing with myself I don't mind. Are you hungry? We can have lunch in the sun then when we're further out to sea we can have jet ski races" I don't know how long we're on this yacht for but I want to make the most of every second. From the jet skis and water slides to the hot tub and the amazing food I want to experience it all.

"You can tell you're a racing driver. The first thought of anything is to race the jet skis but you're on Norris" taking a cocktail from the tray our steward left us I clink my glass against Lando's "cheers to us having a good date"

"Cheers to us" Lando says as his jaw drops watching me take off my dress revealing the bikini I have underneath "fuck Lucía you're so fricking beautiful"

"Photos last longer you know Norris" I say biting my lip as Lando can't take his eyes off me and to my surprise he does actually take a photo.

"Do you mind if I post a photo on my instagram? I know we haven't spoken about anything being public but I don't want people to send you hate"

"Lando after Tomorrowland so many people have been guessing about us then after the paddock the other days there's been so many rumours as to if there is an us. Post the photo I don't mind, I have thick skin. You just have to let me pick the filter" I say with a laugh resting my head on Lando's shoulder watching as he posts a story to his instagram.

"You just said if there is an us. As far as I'm concerned there's an us. I know it's happened quickly but for me there's no one but you. All of that cliche stuff people say I didn't believe it but now I've met you, I see that stuff happening with you" I listen to everything Lando says willing myself not to cry, he's incredible "when I've had a bad day or a bad race you know how to make it better. After Silverstone, after Hungary you were there and you knew what to say. After Miami you were the first person I wanted to celebrate with"

"Lando you're amazing. I want to be there for all of these moments. I want to be there for you. When you hurt it hurts me. When I see you smiling it instantly makes me feel better. I don't know why it happened the way it did but you came into my life completely unexpected and it's been one of the best things to happen to me" despite this being our first official date I don't feel like I need to spend time getting to know the basics about him. We've talked so much about everything in our lives, now I'm here this just feels like a perfect opportunity for us to have alone time.

"Did we just have a heart to heart and kind of become official?" Lando asks a smirk plastered across his face.

"I don't know did we?"

"Lucía it might already feel like it but will you make this official and be my girlfriend?" Lando asks with a slight shyness about him.

"I'd love to be your girlfriend Lando" leaning over I kiss Lando gently. We're still the same people and we haven't changed but yet it feels like everything has changed.

f1gossip

Liked by user9 and 10384 others

f1gossip Lando Norris shares a photo of rumoured girlfriend Lucía Alonso to his instagram story as the pair enjoy a Miami break following his first formula one win.

View all 173 comments

user62 these two getting together wasn't on my bingo card for 2024!

↪️ user17 I know right! It must be serious if he's posting her

user92 I wonder what her dad thinks of this.

↪️ user73 they're both adults what's her dad going to do about it?

user35 she's such a gold digger she's probably only with Lando for his money and lifestyle

↪️ user26 are you serious? She's Alonso's daughter her trust fund is probably worth more than what Lando is.

[mrhaitch]

Hello Mr.Haitch!!

I hope you and your family are doing well ^^

So my questions for you are—

1) Would you consider yourself a picky eater?

2) Thoughts on the debate around pineapples on pizza. Do you like/dislike Hawaiian pizza? Also mint chocolate ice-cream yay or nay?

3) If you could eat only one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

4) Can you give me a lesser known food related fun fact?

5) Do you like Indian food? (Also I’ll add a little rant)— As an Indian, it peeves me a bit, whenever people reduce Indian food to only Naan, Tandoori chicken, Biryani, and Butter chicken.

India has such a vast variety of food. With each state having its own cuisine. The food which the western world is more familiar with, hails from different states. Like butter chicken is from Delhi, tandoori is from Punjab and Biryani (originally from Iran, brought to India by the Mughals) is typically from Hyderabad.

Also, India has a vast variety of vegetarian food. As far as I know, India is the only country with a vegetarian menu for McDonald’s

Okay. My rant here is done!

I hope you have a great rest of the day!

And thank you in advance for answering my silly questions ^^

1. Nope, I'm a fairly opportunistic eater when not at home. Otherwise I've got a fairly loose regimen that I follow.

2. I'm fairly neutral - I'll eat it if it's there but I won't seek it out. Mint chocolate has never been to my taste but I wouldn't deprive someone else of it.

3. This changes often, but probably salted pistachios.

4. Button mushrooms are incredibly toxic, but only at high concentrations. Unless you eat your bodyweight in mushrooms you're absolutely fine.

5. I'm hesitant to answer, in light of your comments, but not because I disagree. It's a colonial hangover where cuisines from other cultures are imported, bastardised, and then the bastardised version becomes the standard. I love what we call Indian food in the UK: lamb Rogan Josh with saag aloo is my standard. We also cook it a little, particularly keema muttar. I still use the same Madhur Jeffrey recipe my mum used, but even that's likely to have been altered for western palates.

[sl33pycr0w]

So there's a pride festival that's happening in a weeks time (still not sure why it happens in August but I'm not complaining) here in the UK and it's been making me think about my last few experiences with pride

Last year, I had a panic attack, I went with my mum, her wife, and a few of her friends, and they decided they wanted to sit right next to the stage where some drag queen was preforming, I told my mum I was overwhelmed and she didn't care. She was too busy drinking and chatting and having fun. I remember shaking, putting my headphones in, and trying to read the manga i had brought with me. Later on, i tried coming out to my mum, I bought a non-binary flag pin and tried to tell her, but she ignored me and started talking with an old coworker of hers. At the end of it, I was tired, and my mum decided she wasn't done with partying and called her friend to pick me up (an old man I was 100% not comfortable around, especially not in a car alone with him)(he did buy me a McDonald's tho so it wasn't all that bad)

I can barely remember the year before, although I know it was better, a few younger kids (10 and 8 I think?) came with us and, looking back on it, I became more or less their babysitter, I was annoyed sure but ignoring how the younger was really spoilt and bratty, I could deal. I don't remember how I got back home that year.

It's weird to think back on because now I can see the obvious signs of neglect and abuse I was going through. I'm 15 now and I haven't seen my mum since Christmas, haven't talked to her since the 19th of July and that was because of I accidentally sent her a message meant for my friend, the last conversation I had with her (over text) was on my birthday (29th may)

This year, I'm going to pride with one of my friends, and I *hopefully* shouldn't see her their because she broke her leg (L karmas a bitch abuser <3) then again she's stubborn and her 'severe mobility issues' (that prevented her from interacting/supporting her own children AND SEEING HER ONLY GRANDCHILD) haven't stopped her previously but prides big, I'm sure I can avoid her

[munsonsduchess]

Had a mini breakdown today.

I booked an appointment to get my hair done at 11am this morning. It was only supposed to take an hour. I didn’t get finished until 1:45pm.

I was getting highlights done which should have only taken an hour. Why did it take almost three? Well let me tell you.

I got there and I had to wait another ten mins or so for someone to actually start my hair. After they put the lightener and the foils on I’m left to my own devices.

There were two hairdressers on. Technically a third but she had her small daughter with her, said small daughter was running all around the salon and everyone was watching her. Another client was getting her nails done and had brought her small son. You can see where this is going. That woman also left after her appointment to get food in a nearby cafe and just left her small son in the salon.

Now while I’m sitting there in this chair my mum is in the car outside waiting on me. It’s cold. It’s wet. We had plans to spend the whole day together bc I also had my birth control injection appointment this afternoon. So mum texts me and says “are you almost done?” which then makes me feel worse bc she’s been waiting an hour already and I should be ready but I’m apparently nowhere near to being done. So I tell her to go on home and i’ll find my own way.

So then I’m sitting in a chair in a public hairdressers trying not to cry. I finally get out and I have to wait for my brother to come and get me and I call my mum to tell her I’m all finished and just waiting on my brother. Again in a public place trying not to cry.

I get home and I tell her what happens and just burst into tears and fully have my mini breakdown bc we made plans and they got all fucked up and I felt terrible about her waiting in the car alone in the cold.

My mum then cancels her plans for this evening (she was meeting a friend) and she and I went to my appointment and then spent some time together after.

Then this evening I found a weird spot/lump on the underside of my boob so that’s super fun.

Honourable mentions for the breakdown go to: having someone come and check on me multiple times only to lift a little bit of foil and look at my hair and just walk off again.

The two girls who came in around 1:00 who immediately sat down to eat McDonald’s at the nail stations and talk shit with the other two girls doing hair and again ignoring me.

So yeah. Today was just not my day

[i-am-not-crying-you-are]

Ok does this apply to sour as well?

Because whenever I bite into a raw strawberry it just tastes of sour. Like they're supposed to taste sweet as far as I know, but it just tastes like I'm missing a dimension of what it's supposed to taste like.

Ever since I was a kid, ever since the teachers at my primary school brought out some strawberries for a snack, they've tasted sour, no one took me seriously when I said it, and I was really mad about that.

Also note this only applied to raw strawberries. Strawberry jam and anything with cooked strawberries is fine. Then again, strawberries also often have sugar added to them when being cooked for stuff, so that's not the most conclusive.

I was only reminded of this because my dad got some strawberries and they still taste of sour. I mentioned it to my mum and she said it depended on how ripe they were, but at all stages of ripe they still taste sour.

Are my senses probably warped because the first strawberry thing I had might've been a McDonald's milkshake? Or do I have some latent allergy that might build up as I grow older? That's all I'd really like to know if that's alright.

PSA: tomatoes are not spicy. Tomatoes and tomato products should not be spicy. Pizza sauce isn’t inherently spicy. Tomato-based pasta sauce is not spicy. Ketchup is NOT spicy.

If tomatoes are spicy, you have an allergy to tomatoes.

This announcement brought to you by my almost 29-year-old husband learning for the first time in his 2.8 decades of putting food products into his mouth that spaghetti and saucy pizza aren’t spicy foods

[mydyspraxiablog]

Having dyspraxia can be hard with me without Natwest card and Stafford Town all shop put gluten-free food from £40 to £60 only got £40 so walk out leave gluten-free food food behide in the shop so use Coelic risking Gluten because cheep it make past wind lot and feel bloated even risk fish and chips because don't want cook this week I Brought Airflyer do chips have chips butter. Mum nice nought food it time talk about freesample I love received freesample like have free garden seed, free pray book ( Mum worry this God pray book might going another church as not loyal to Church but church own falt) I love freesample of sweet, bookmarks, and freesample of chocolate even enter competitions with Tui and Jet2 holidays competitions but never see win I even enter Coelic UK competitions but never win sometimes when free sample for nephew and nieces like Mcdonald book only 1 come and start fighting so try 8 Mcdonald books and 5 books but haven't arrived yet. I got sponsor child in Ethiopia and give more paper gift e.g bookmarks but still thinking want to write having dyspraxia my writing mess have promble with compassionuk app at movements can't sign in compassionuk and post from Ethiopia to UK take three mouth. I feel bad sponsor as not write back have received letter from Ethiopia so see want sponsor another child but don't know who chose. In meantime talk to mum going play postcode lotto instead lotto at never win big money only £10 I never win on ish lotto too. So make point to mum going make Christmas tree out toilet roll and other things last year I Christmas things at lower Dyton farm ( care) did beautiful Christmas things and miss that crouse this year even if did pick up cold but because wait for bus from 230pm_ 4pm at bus stop it alway rain didn't have money going in Stafford coffee shop so have wait at bus stop.

[kierancampire]

Some positive changes

Mum and Paul took 2 bags of frozen food for their freezer, so I have those 2 bags. They also gave me these incredibly bright light things and 2 phone banks, so hopefully they should last all of a Sunday, so I have light and a way to charge my phone later tonight/tomorrow. I also got a ton of things downloaded onto my phone, so I can watch things without destroying my data. I think Paul can take me to McDonald's or something later, so it will save me paying delivery fees and service charge, so that's food for tonight

Asda do a hot food counter, it is limited and you gotta be quick, so I may go there tomorrow and hope I can get stuff, that'll be lunch and dinner, dinner will be cold but it's better than no dinner. I'm gonna take back a flask of hot water today, so least I can have an evening cup of tea, shame it won't last till the morning

This hurts me as I hate waste, but I am having to get rid of a ton of things from my freezer and some fridge items. I think tomorrow I'm just gonna use the excuse to clean, I can't hoover but I'll do what I can, might as well clean the fridge and freezer since it'll be empty and powered off. Able to cook lunch today at mums with food I brought over, so saved some money there

Honestly I woulda been truly fucked without mum and Paul, all my food would be gone, no way to charge my phone, no light, nothing, they have helped ease this process a lot. Still can't bathe, I'm missing gym days, hard to track/control my diet. Hopefully Axis can sort this as early as possible on Monday, they've said it is put through as an urgent repair for then, just hoping I don't gotta wait a few more days for parts or whatever. It still fucking sucks royally, but it isn't looking as bad as it was last night, being able to bathe finally will be heaven, I thought of using the gym showers but I just am not at that level yet

[archenemyintellegence]

(21/1/2023)

Today is a very interesting day.

When I offered Loki his daily dose of chocolate, I found out I got the one with special packaging again. I did a google search last time this happened and I found out there's someone claiming that there may be one special package in each box. But I doubt that it's that common. Despite I was not a regular Melty Kiss consumer before I started offering Loki chocolate, I ate it for years and I have never seen one with special packaging in my whole life before this. I thought it's Loki giving me confirmation that he appreciate me buying him new boxes of chocolate, but later I realized it's deeper than that.

I often eat the chocolate after lunch but as I was in a hurry today, I forgot to eat it and take a photo to record this special chocolate. But there's no mistake. Everything is planned. Because then my sister told me something that really makes the day special.

Last week, when I did my prayer to Loki, I heard my late grandma speaking to me. She told me to take care of my sister, and also told me to remind them to pay special attention to potential car accident. It's not uncommon for me to hear things from spirits, but as it's happening too often, I often doubt the voices or thinking that it's all in my head. However, as I was praying to Loki that time, I paid special attention to the voices and believed that the message is legit. So I told my sister to be careful with car accident. But they seemed to not care about it so I was upset about it for some days.

After today's dinner, my sister brought up the topic again. They told me that they actually cared about my reminder, and they got so terrified that they avoided going out for days. After a few days, they went out with their girlfriend at night and the thing happened. When they were absolutely distracted due to the pain from a wound, a black van came out of no where and crossed the road with full speed while the green pedestrian sign is up. Fortunately, their girlfriend stopped them at the very last second or my sister probably gone lol.

After listening to their experience, I just remembered that at the day before yesterday, I heard Loki and my grandma told I no longer need to worry about my sister. But I had no idea of what happened to my sister until now? My sister heard this and told me that I should really consider starting a spiritual career instead of planning to work at the McDonald's lmao.

Also today I realized that I may actually be very good at manifesting. Yesterday my friend was talking about crystals with me and brought up ideas that I never heard of before, like telling me that crystal can be trained? However, we both have little ideas about crystals so we were not sure what's going on. Then, when I was walking to my grandpa's home to have dinner with him, I came across a second-hand book store today and guess what. I FOUND A THICK BOOK TALKING ABOUT ALL RANDOM TOPIC ABOUT CRYSTALS, INCLUDING HOW TO CHANNEL ENERGY INTO CRYSTAL AND TRAIN THEM? I told my friend about it and she told me that I must've attracted the book to my life. Now all I need is some actual money to buy some crystals lmao.

Besides the book, MY MUM BOUGHT ME A SNAKE NECKLACE? I was searching for a snake necklace recently because I wanted to buy some accessories with Loki vibe. But the necklaces I found in random boutiques were not my type so I just forgot about it. And now my mum just gifted me the perfect snake necklace. (Also she has a snake phobia so it's very surprising that she will buy me a snake necklace?) I will take a photo of the necklace in the future lol.

My power is just insane. Things just work. I really need to value my power more and clear the shitty thoughts out of my head, so I won't manifest some weird things into my life, since I am so fucking powerful now. Also I probably have to work on more spiritual stuff and learn more about it as I seems very talented in it? Thinking about this excites me and motivates me to improve myself. The glorious evolution shall continue and no one can stop me 😃👍🏻💯💯🦾🦾💙💙

Also here is a pic of the special chocolate! The special heart pattern is on the very right side of the package this time. And I swear I will improve the presentation of the print in the future. I plan to print him in a photo shop but the minimum order is like 10 photos so I have to gather more drawings to print. So he will stay like that for a while lol 🥴

[drivenbycheese]

An Open Letter to McDonald’s Canada

Note from 2022 Rachel: Of course, they didn't.

--

My relationship with McDonald’s goes back 30 years.

When I was a small child, I had birthday parties in the playroom. I remember being four years old, and having a party in the McDonald’s Caboose.

When I was 6 and 7, my family went to McDonald’s for pizza.When I was 13 and 14, I went to McDonald’s after school, for ice cream with my friends.

Every school sports day, every field trip, every trip away. Any time I wanted to be a Big Girl and go to get food without my mum. Any time I want to be a Regular Girl, and go to get food without asking to speak to the kitchen, to read an ingredients list. Any time I wanted to feel normal. Any time I wanted to eat without fear.

And on and on, into my adult life, my relationship with McDonald’s continued.

I looked forward to the Holiday Menu with glee. I tried every special “limited release” sandwich. When I wanted a treat, I went for a cheeseburger. When travelling abroad, I sought out McDonald’s, knowing I could eat there without the hurdle of navigating a language barrier. With surprise and delight, I devoured the danishes and croissants, thrilled I had a place where I could buy pastries. At our wedding, my husband and I had McDonald’s burgers and nuggets brought in as a late night snack.

I would have happily continued this relationship with McDonald’s Canada for the rest of my life.

Today, with a press release that came as a real and genuine shock, McDonald’s Canada announced that they are no longer nut safe. Not only are they serving a new McFlurry flavour made with Skor, they will no longer make an effort to avoid cross contamination with nuts in their kitchen. The peanuts they used to offer with Sundaes were previously sealed in little plastic packets, ensuring that they did not contaminate the kitchen. Now, for the first time, they will have unpackaged nuts. McDonald’s has issued a blanket warning that any of their items may come in contact with allergens — nuts, peanuts or tree nuts — at any time.

This is not a case of there being some items at McDonald’s that I can no longer eat. This means I will never be able to go to McDonald’s again.

With this announcement, they are not “taking care” of the needs of customers with allergies; they are banning us.

This is devastating to me. McDonald’s was more than a fast food option, it was a safe place for me to eat. In my day to day, there are so few nut free options; every restaurant, every meal out, is a struggle. Few people understand what it is like to worry about accidental death every time you sit down to a meal with your friends, but it is a real worry for an anaphylactic. At McDonald’s, I never had to worry.

I have “gotten over” this sort of loss before. Countless treats from my childhood now plaster themselves with allergen warnings. Other places I used to visit, like Dairy Queen, I have not been welcome in for years. But this loss is more keenly felt than the others. Because previously, when some other treat was taken away, I knew I could still go to McDonalds for my ice-cream, for my cheeseburgers, for fries on a late night walk home. Now that certainty is gone.

Yes, I will get over this too. There are other fast food options, and I will make do. Not without making one last plea, however. A final plea for McDonald’s to reconsider what this means not only to me, but to children all over Canada who are living with anaphylaxis. Who struggled at school lunches and bake sales, but who got to go to McDonald’s after soccer games, and high school plays, and with their parents as a Sunday treat. Children for whom McDonald’s was the only option, the only place they were allowed to go. Who went to McDonald’s to feel normal.

If you take away our ability to eat at your restaurants, you rob us of something so rare and precious to us anaphylactics — a safe food space. All for the sake of a McFlurry flavour. Another option for those who already have so many.

Please, reconsider.

[grace122]

Grace!! I have returned!!

I know I haven't sent any asks in a while but thats only because the past three weeks have been spent getting me out of my parents house and into my husband's house. That brought up something spicy in my head and I'm in love with the idea and NEED to know your opinion on it too.

Imagine moving into a new house with Karl (le gasp! Me not simping for Sapnap?! Unheard-of!!) And to properly break it in, you two have sex in every room? I'm talking about bent over the bathroom counters, you splayed out on the kitchen counter while he eats you out, a different position in every bedroom, and to top it all off, cuddles in the living room while he fingers you as y'all watch a movie. Of course there would have to be breaks in-between, Karl's probably got great stamina but he's not a god. After all the fun is had comes the tedious part, unpacking all those boxes and organizing the house to look like a home. As a reward for getting it all done, I'd say a McDonald's date would be in order!!

Make sure you stay hydrated today!! It's hot af outside and my dumbass decided to wear my new Ranboo jacket over to my mum's house in 90° weather solely for the reason that it came in today and putting anything in my pants pockets make them fall down.

Wif 💜,

-🐏 Anon

ahhh i love this idea!!! karl would 100% do that and he’d even be like “let’s go to the shower?” like boy we haven’t even unpacked our towels or body wash yet🤣

[lanaforeversworld]

I hate my mum so much she knows that I have a problem with binging and that I’m trying to lose weight but when I told her I don’t want to go to McDonald’s she brought back a family size lol of m&ms all for me, and she knows I can’t control myself with food.

I was 36 hours into a 48 hour fast and she fucked it up

I ate over 2000 calories today I fucking hate myself

[kireimarkeu]

To You; l.dh

+another repost! did not make any changes to this work :) p.s this is one of my fav fics i have written :)

summary; bored in quarantine, your boyfriend decides to film himself telling you how much he loves you.

3k words

this was like… ½ edited LMFAO so there might,,, be mistakes…??? this was so tiring to make omfg, enjoy!! lol 

also i mixed the name donghyuck and haechan bc i couldn’t choose one lmfao ok!!! bye gn enjoy!! :)))))))

warnings: there’s a word f*t in it

+Day 1 3:34PM

Haechan adjusted the camera, making sure he could be seen. Once he was sure the camera was reflecting him properly, he leaned back against his gaming chair. 

“Um,” your boyfriend started, looking everywhere but the camera. “This is awkward,” he says, looking back at the camera.

“I started this, since we won’t be able to see each other for a month- because of quarantine,” he explains, “I honestly have no idea what I’m doing right now,” he laughs. 

After a few minutes of pure silence, your boyfriend opened his mouth to continue speaking, “I just feel like— I never really show much love to you?” 

There were times where your boyfriend would purposely avoid saying ‘I love you’ or avoid holding your hands whenever the both of you were outside. Honestly, you didn’t really mind, knowing Donghyuck was never the type to show affection. 

“It’s hard,” he says truthfully, “The boys knows how much I love you, and it sucks that I don’t know how to show you— or tell you, that I love you.”

Haechan bit his lips nervously, “and, I think this video is- or will prove that I love you?”

He wasn’t sure if he was even making sense at this point. 

Your boyfriend groaned, throwing his head back, covering his face with his hands. After a while, he looked back at the camera, “you know what, babe? Just watch the whole thing, okay?”

+Day 4 11:47PM

“Hi,” he smiles, letting out a huff, “this is kinda late, I spent the whole night playing games,” he says guiltily, playing with his fingers, looking away from the camera.

He knows that you didn’t like it when he would stay up until ungodly hours just to play games with his friends. You hated how he would put his health aside just to play games. 

He brings his hands up to brush his wet hair. 

“Uh,” he sighs out loud, pouting. “I feel bad for staying up late last night, so I’m going to spend the whole night with you today,” he laughs. 

Another moment of silence pass. 

“I don’t know what to say,” he whines. 

He sat there in silence, staring at the ground, figuring out on what to say. Should he tell you about his day?

“Well, I woke up at 5PM today,” he tells you, “I ate dinner with my family— mom cooked chicken today!” he says happily, “Then, I went to call you for a bit because I missed you a little too much,” he pouts. 

He scratched his head, “then I showered and now this-“ he says, pointing to the camera. 

“Um, it has been 4 days and I miss you too much,” he says truthfully, “facetiming isn’t working, I think I’m going crazy,” he laughs. 

+Day 5 7:38PM

He was talking halfway, talking about how much he admires you when his phone started ringing. 

“Oh?” he turns around to grab his phone from his bed. A smile formed on his face when he saw you facetiming him. 

He turned to the camera to show his screen, “Baby, you’re calling me,” he giggles before quickly answering to your facetime. 

“Channie~” you whine cutely when your boyfriend answered your facetime, “what are you doing, hyuckie?”

Usually, your boyfriend would complain whenever you would speak in a cute voice, but he secretly likes it. He secretly likes being babied. 

He looks at the camera that was recording the both of you. 

“Nothing,” he lies, “why did you call me, loser?”

You huff, raising your arms so he could see you laying on the bed. “I’m bored, hyuckie~ entertain me~”

He leans back on his chair, “wanna play games with me?”

Your face beam at his words, “Okay! I’ll get my X-Box ready now.”

Your boyfriend was the one who bought for you the X-Box. Well, it was an old version, but you loved it, nonetheless. It wasn’t like you played daily— you only played with boyfriend. 

“I’ll call you in 5, baby,” he tells you, already walking over to turn on the tv. 

“Kay, bye-bye, love you, Hyuckie,” you say in a baby voice, bringing your phone closer to press your lips on the camera. 

Donghyuck scrunched his nose in disgust, “yeah, yeah,” he says before ending the call. 

He quickly grab the camera that was still recording, he moved the camera closer to press a kiss, “I love you too, y/n.”

+Day 7 3:01PM

“Do you remember when you gave me the teddy bear— Oh my gosh, I feel like a youtuber,” he cackles. He shook his head, focusing back to what he was saying. 

“So, do you remember when you gave me the teddy bear?” he asks, “wait,” he says, standing up to grab the tiny teddy bear that was sitting on his bed. 

You had bought him the bear during your 200th day with him. Donghyuck didn’t really give the reaction you wanted. 

“Do you not like it?” you had asked him, disappointment laced in your voice. You didn’t dare look at him, upset with yourself that you had bought something that he didn’t like. 

“No, no!” he quickly replied, wrapping an arm around your shoulder to pull you into his chest, the other holding the tiny bear. “I love it,” he says. 

You knew it was a lie. He didn’t seem to like it. 

“I love it,” he says, “I know I didn’t show like I did at that time, but I need it with me every time I go to bed.” 

He scratches his head, regretting his actions that has had happened months ago. 

“No one has ever bought me a bear before,” he explains, “and when you bought it for me, it just felt— I felt, I felt happy? I felt fulfilled? Do you know what I mean?” 

“I really wanted to tell you that I loved your present, especially when you had bought me another present a few days later,”

‘it was to make up for the previous present’ was your reason. 

It broke his heart when you said that while handing him a couple bracelet. He wanted to tell you how much he loved your gift, but it was so hard for him. 

“I hated myself for not being able to tell you the truth, it’s hard—and it still is,” he sighs, “I hope by doing this, I can assure you that I love you..?” 

+Day 10 9:34PM

He was in the middle of filming himself when his mother comes in. 

“Donghyuck-ah, what are you doing? Do you want some fruits?” his mother asks, looking at his son, not noticing the camera perched on the dressing table. 

Instead of answering his mother’s question, he grabs the camera to film his mother. 

“Eomma, say hello to y/n,” Donghyuck says. 

His mother raised her eyebrows in surprised, “hello my dear y/n~ how are you?”

Your boyfriend giggle from behind the camera, “tell her how much you miss her,”

“I think I miss you more than Donghyuck does,” she jokes. “What is this for, Donghyuck-ah?”

Haechan placed the camera back on the dressing table, turning to look at his mum.

“I’m making a video for y/n until quarantine is over,” he explains as his mother walks in, wrapping her arm around her son’s shoulder. 

His mother’s heart warmed at his son’s words. 

“You’re growing up way too fast, our Donghyuck~” she cooed, pulling your boyfriend’s cheeks as he whined in pain. 

You would also pinch his cheeks almost every time the both of you are together. Whenever you had Donghyuck’s cheeks between your fingers, he would whine, pulling away from your grip.

“Eomma! I want strawberries!” he shouts after his mother left his room. 

He turns his attention back to the camera, “Anyways—”

+Day 17 2:35AM

“I really like your eyes,” Haechan confesses dreamily, “your eyes are the colour of shit,” he jokes, “but they’re so shiny, baby,”

The first time he realizes he’s in love with your glimmering eyes was when he brought you out on a date to star gaze. You were staring at the sky, a smile plastered on your face, amazed at how beautiful the sky was. 

When you noticed your boyfriend staring at you, you turned to face him. Your eyes captured his heart. How could someone have such bright eyes?

“Oh! And when you smile, you make my heart beat like crazy!” he chuckles. 

The first thing that caught Hyuck’s eyes when he had a crush on you was your bright smile. He believes that was the main reason that he fell for you. How you would always have a beaming smile plastered on your face everywhere you go. 

He thinks it’s adorable. 

The small dimples that was on the side of your lips whenever you smile. 

And your adorable little laugh he adores so much. 

Or the little birthmark you had on the corner of your mouth. 

After talking about you for a while, he let out a satisfied sigh, “I’m so whip for you, you know?”

After 17 days of making videos for you, it started becoming easier for him to show his love for you. 

“Everything you do makes me go crazy, do you realise that?” he asks you, “do you realize that everything you do makes me happy? No, you don’t have to do anything, your presence makes me melt.”

He laughs at how he was flirting, “you’re probably laughing too,”

His laughter died down, letting out a tired sigh, “well, it’s late and I’m going to go to bed before you nag at me some more,”

He let out a yawn, “goodnight y/n, I love you so much, you don’t know how happy you make me,”

+Day 20 2:56PM

This time, it was different. 

He was filming himself at McDonalds drive-thru. 

“Guess who’s this for?” he asks the camera, his gaze on the road. “Yes, you.”

He turns to look at the camera for a second before paying attention on the road, “you didn’t ask me to get you anything but I wanted to get something for you,” he explains. 

He was lying, this was just an excuse to see you, even for a second. Even if it’s 6 feet apart. Even if there was a glass between the both of you. 

“I think you know the reason why I’m buying this for you,” he says, referring to the food. “To make you fat! You’re right, y/n,” he jokes. 

That was also a lie. You tend to eat less whenever you’re stressed. 

After he found out that you had a project, he knew how stress you would be, and decided to get food, making sure you eat healthily. 

Your boyfriend would never fail to remind you how much he loves your body. No matter shape or size. He has always made sure you feel loved with who you are. 

“I think you know the real reason why I’m coming over,” he adds. When he reaches a red light, he turns to look at the camera with a pout, “I can’t help it, I miss you too much, y/n,” he says in a baby voice. 

He grimaces at his actions, shaking his head disapprovingly, “I am never doing that ever again.”

A few minutes later, he reached your house. He had texted you to that he was waiting for you outside. 

It took you a while to come out, but when you did, you had one of his hoodies over your body. 

He loves it when you wear his clothes, it makes him feel all giddy. 

‘One day, I’m going to wear all of your clothes’ he would say whenever you steal his clothes. 

You walked over to his car, “what the hell are you doing here, dummy,” you ask him, maintaining the distance. 

He grabbed the bag of food from the passenger’s seat and passed it to you from the window of his car. 

“Brought you food, you unappreciative bitch,” he tells you while you walk up to grab the food from him. 

You open the bag to see your favourite food, “my favourite food, too?!” you squeal, “Haechan best boyfie~”

He rolls his eyes, “yeah, yeah, go and finish your project,”

You nodded, the smile not leaving your face. 

“I’ll facetime you later?” he asks. 

“At 11,” you confirmed. 

He nods, signalling for you to go back in. You blow a kiss to your boyfriend before turning around to go back in. 

He quickly fishes out his camera, filming you walking back in your house. 

“Look at my baby all happy because I brought her food,” he says, “enjoy your food, pretty,”

+Day23 6:07PM

“Day 23,” he breathes out. “I didn’t expect it to go by so fast,” he blurts out. 

He puffs his cheeks out, “I don’t want to stop making videos for you, but you would just make fun of me for being soft,”

He had started growing content on making videos for you every day. 

“But at the same time, I can finally see you after a month, babe!” he says happily. “I can finally hold you in my arms, we can kiss until the world ends, we can also do it,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows. 

Well, he can’t lie he did miss doing it with you. 

He sighs, “anyway, when we can finally get together, we can watch movies, then come back to my place and we can cuddle!”

He missed that. 

Personally, Donghyuck preferred going over to your place but you preferred going to his place because he had games and a huge bed, and it was just comfortable. 

“Ahh,” he groan, “I miss you like crazy! I think I have to end this video early because I wanna facetime you right now,”

He grabs his phone on the table to call you. 

“Okay, bye babe, I love you, I’m going to talk to you now!”

+Day 25 4:03AM

“Hi,” donghyuck greet the camera. 

Anyone could realise he wasn’t in the best mood. 

It took Donghyuck a while to start talking, “we had a fight earlier today,” he says, his voice lace with disappointment and… hurt?

You had texted him just an hour ago, ranting about your homework. When Donghyuck replied to you a minute later, you got angry at him because he was staying up again at ungodly hours. 

He didn’t understand why you were so angry because you were awake at the same timing as he is. 

“I’m going to give you space, because it’s what you need right now,” he says. “I hope you know I still love you no matter what,”

He bit his lip hesitantly, “I know you don’t like it when I stay up with the boys, but I don’t like you staying up to finish your work either, baby”

He closes his eyes shut for a moment, taking a deep breath. “I hope you don’t get too stressed over school, eat healthily, and make sure you rest from time to time, babygirl,”

He lets out another sigh before reaching for the camera, “I love you,”

+Day 28 7:36PM

 Haechan purses his lips, staring at the camera, “today is a bad day,” he starts. 

Today he had woke up a little earlier than normal after talking it out with you a few days ago. He decided to get up early and help his mom with cooking, which only resulted him in getting scolded by his mother for making a mess. 

After that, he decided to play games with his friends, however despite playing for 5 hours straight, he didn’t get a single win. 

Now, he has tried to contact you, but you have not replied to him. Probably busy with school. 

He let out a huff, “take a break y/n,” he whines, “focus on me too~”

Letting out a pout he shakes his head, “kidding babe, get those A’s!”

“Well, now I don’t really have anything to do so I’m going to facetime you again, bye babe!”

+Day 30 10:18AM

“Hyuckie!” you call out, running to your boyfriend. When you reached him, you threw your arms around your boyfriend’s neck, making him stumble back a few steps as he grabs on your waist. 

You hid your face in his neck, breathing in his scent. He smells so good.

“You’re not going to let go of me until I say so,” you mumble, tightening your grip around his neck.

He chuckles at you, “I won’t let go of you until you say so,” 

Donghyuck was satisfied with having his arms wrapped around your waist, his face covered in your hair. 

After a few moments of the both of you just holding each other, you finally pull away from your boyfriend. 

“Y/n,” he says, making you hum.

“Wait,” you stop him, making him stare at you with wide eyes as he froze on the spot. 

“Can you kiss me first?” you ask. His eyes soften at your request. Your fingers trace his bottom lips, “I miss your pretty lips.”

He smiles at your words and nodded. Pulling you closer by your waist, he pressed his lips against yours. Your hands rest on his chest while you both share a needy kiss. 

After a few minutes, you pull away, breathless with crimson red cheeks.

Haechan raised his eyebrows as he resumed, “I made something for you,”

You gasped, “what is it?”

He fishes out a CD player. The CD held videos of him explaining how much he loves and appreciates you throughout the whole month. 

He passes you the gift. 

“Watch this at home?” he tells you. 

You grab the CD from his grip, “okay? What is this all about?”

“Just promise me you’ll watch it at home?” he asks again, staring down at you. 

“I will! I will!” 

After making videos of himself for 29 days straight, Donghyuck have concluded that he was so utterly in love with you. He was so in love with you that he didn’t know how to express how much he adores you.

[suguruverse]

Hi!!! Did I just read all of your HCs in an hour? Maybe 🙈

Don’t worry I fully plan to reblog every single one later today to show my full support and love for your hard work ❤️

I really loved your best friend series, and was wondering if you could do a HC based off the “Best Friends with Oikawa and Iwaizumi” where BFF!Iwaizumi confesses to having a crush on the reader, but it doesn’t mess up the trio’s dynamic? :) thanks so much for sharing your talents with us 😩❤️

— FALLING IN LOVE WITH IWAIZUMI feat. oikawa

includes - iwaizumi hajime and oikawa tooru

a/n - thank you so much for the support bby!! i appreciate you so so so much <33 lemme kiss you hehe hope you liked this one 😚

published date - 26/04/21

- my man had the most idiotic idea to ask oikawa how to ask you out

- bc oikawa obviously knew about his crush on you the entire time

- oikawa literally brought him a guitar and a suit and told iwa to serenade you while mattsun and makki throw around rose petals like idiots

- but it turns out that iwa is actually a terrible singer so that idea went to shit (but i feel like he knows how to play a lot of instruments tho)

- oikawa just got sick of his friends inability to woo a girl and so iwa just got you ur fav flowers and a love letter

- so the plan was just to give you the stuff and then happily ever after

- well no

- this whole process took like a month because oikawa kept insisting that he watch from behind the scenes except he just ruined the vibe and iwaizumi couldn't confess when his best friend was staring into his soul

- so iwaizumi failed to confess at least 3 times

- so you did it for him

- it was pretty basic, you just got sick of him trying to ask you out but him only saying something stupid like "nice face" and walking away

- so you just grabbed his arm and was like "lets cut the crap hajime, just go out with me"

- he probably fainted lmao

- the first date couldn't even be counted as a date because oikawa's nosey ass won't leave you guys alone

- if iwaizumi tries to kiss you, oikawa gets between you guys so iwaizumi ends up kissing oikawa's cheek

- he doesn't give two shits if you and iwaizumi get annoyed at him, he insists that he won't let you become corrupted by the monster that is iwaizumi

- even though he "helped" with the confession

- if you hug iwaizumi for 5 minutes, he's standing behind you guys like "me next"

- but poor baby just doesn't wanna be left behind and forgotten

- as if yall can forget his loud ass

- you and iwaizumi only get like 3-4 dates alone each month as a compromise because oikawa insisted on 1 date alone and he settled for 3-4

- one time oikawa tried to hug you and you swore you heard your boyfriend growl

- it was weird but he never really stops oikawa from hugging you bc that mf is so affectionate to the both of you and that ain't gonna stop just because you and iwaizumi are dating

- makki and mattsun call you oikawa's mum and dad

- it's because he always more childish when he's around you guys

- like it's cute but still the mf is 18

- YOU AND IWAIZUMI COULD BE MAKING OUT AND HE WILL JUST BE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COUCH LIKE “y’all want cheeseburgers, makki is at mcdonalds”

- pls read the room bestie

- even if you guys go somewhere hidden to run away from oikawa, he will find you in 3 minutes

- nah bc you just tryna get some dick and oikawa is standing 5 meters away like “whyre you guys making out without me :(“

- moral of the story, find oikawa a girlfriend before iwaizumi actually starts crying

[dameronology]

love in the time of PTA meetings {marcus moreno} - 1/5

summary: despite what pinterest shows, being in a parent in the twenty first century is hard; especially a single parent. your kid takes up your entire life and the idea of finding a fairy tale is laughable - that is until you finally attend a p.t.a meeting and cross paths with a certain marcus moreno.  {series masterlist}

warnings: i do not have children. i don’t know children work. this written entirely what i have seen them do in the sims 4. also, swearing. 

- jazz

Leaving work early was never a good look.

Leaving work early because your child had managed to set fire to a trash can was...well, it was something else entirely.

After rushing out of a very important meeting and parking your car in a did-you-park-it-or-crash-it manner, you were sprinting across the play ground and towards the front entrance. Having given up half way through, you’d kicked your stupidly high heels off and held them in one hand, trying to organise your slightly disheveled hair as you entered the building. Most parents might have been nervous to collect their kid after a call from the principle, but this was a regular Tuesday for you. Jack was a good kid, perhaps just a little...misguided. In your books, it was impressive that a five year old had managed to discover pyrotechnics, though you sensed the school might have been a little less lenient about it. 

‘Hey!’ You greeted the principle with a smile as you breezed through the doors. 

Jack was in a chair by the front desk, a gleeful look on his face when he saw you. As far as he knew or cared, he got to go home early and watch Paw Patrol for the rest of the day. 

‘Afternoon.’ He replied. ‘You’re lucky it was only a phone call.’

‘I know, I know.’ You grumbled. ‘I’m sorry. He’s...adventurous-’

‘ - he singed off his class mate’s eyebrows!’ The principle cut you off. ‘Given Monday’s biting incident, I see it fit that Jack take the rest of the week off.’

‘Right.’ You sighed. ‘Thank you. And sorry again.’

‘I’ll email you a list of...behavioural specialists.’ He muttered.

‘There’s nothing wrong with my kid. He’s just...curious.’ You insisted. ‘C’mon, buddy. Let’s go home.’

Jack sprung up from the chair, taking your hand in his and skipping out the door beside you. Parenting had been hard enough when you’d been married, and even harder now that his dad was out of the picture. It meant that everything fell on your shoulders; school runs, packed lunches, earning money, staying sane. You barely found the time to sleep, let alone go to soccer matches or take him to extra curricular activities. It meant that the stay-at-home mums - the ones who drove minivans and had specified walking shoes and shared memes about parenting on Facebook - muttered about you. 

I heard Jack’s mum couldn’t make it to the parent-teacher association meeting because there was a divorce hearing. 

Look at the kid’s lunch! Oh the saturated fat, the horror!

What do you MEAN your five year old isn’t vegan?!

Frankly, you wanted to whack them over the head with their own damn vision boards. So what if your kid was a little rough around the edges? He’d discovered fire today! If it had been in the stone ages, that would have been impressive. The kind of thing that would have earned him a McDonald’s, had the fast food chain been around at the dawn of time. With the way things were going, paired with the fact you knew your fridge was empty, it looked like you were heading for a Happy Meal anyway. 

‘So do I get all week off?’ Jack peered up at you, tugging on your arm.

‘Yup, all week.’ You sighed. ‘But it’s not a reward, okay? It’s...’

You stopped in your tracks when you saw Marcus Moreno’s car pull up in the lot. Naturally, it was expensive and electric and perfectly between the white lines. He gave your less-than-stellar parking a frown as he breezed by - not that you noticed. Frankly, you were too busy admiring him. You saw his face more on the news than you did in person, but he was beautiful. Talk, dark, handsome and mysterious, but also...friendly and approachable. He’d held the door open for you once two years ago and that had been it for you. There had been whispers about the fact he was a widow, though you’d tried not to pay attention to them. It wasn’t anyone’s damn business. You knew he was a good dad; you’d had the chance to meet Missy when Jack had got his head stuck between the playground fence and she’d helped pull him out. She was sweet and well-behaved and clearly well brought up. Could you say the same for your own kid? Eh, parenting was all trial and error. 

‘It’s what?’ Your son’s voice dragged you back to reality. ‘Am in trouble?’

‘What?!’ You jumped at the question. ‘No, I just...’

‘Because Principle Eikner said I’d done something bad.’

A small sigh escaped your mouth; placing his backpack on the ground, you knelt down to his height, gently placing your hands on his shoulder. ‘You haven’t done anything wrong, little man. We're just gonna take a few days out to talk about the rules and what it means to do the right thing, okay?’

‘Dad always said not to listen to the rules.’

‘Your dad said a lot of things.’ You reminded him. You stood back up, offering your hand to him. ‘Let’s go home.’

After a few minutes of bartering and the promise of a McDonald’s, you finally made your way back to the car, now with Jack attached to your back. If giving him a piggy back ride meant getting home quicker, it was a price you were willing to pay, especially since the other mums were starting to arrive to pick up their kids. The parking lot was slowly filling up with minivans - compared to your decade-old Honda Civic. It had seen better days, and one too many run ins with other cars and parking lot bollards. Still, it got the job done. 

‘Oh, I’m so glad to see you!’ You froze in your tracks again. This time, it wasn’t because of Marcus Moreno’s otherworldly presence, but rather due to the sound of the resident soccer mum. 

‘Carol.’ You turned around to face her (slowly, given the five year old on your back) with a forced smile on your face. ‘Hi.’

‘I take it you’re here for the parent-teacher’s association meeting?’ She gave you a phoney grin, handing you a leaflet. ‘I know you couldn’t make the last one, because of your...d-i-v-o-r-c-e hearings.’ 

‘I can spell!’ Jack chirped from behind you.

‘It’s okay, buddy.’ You reached up to ruffle his hair, smile not faltering. ‘But yeah, you’re right. And what about it?’

‘Nothing.’ Carol quickly shook her head. ‘So you are coming to this one? It starts in ten minutes.’

Truth be told, you’d no idea there was even a meeting tonight. You usually ignored the damn things until the news letter came out, and then you could read it from the comfort of your sofa with a glass of wine. There was nothing you stopping going tonight, aside from your intense hatred for them. 

‘I wanna get home and watch South Park!’ Jack chirped from behind you.

‘I don’t - I mean...I don’t let my five year old watch South Park.’ You said. ‘He walked in on me watching it one time and...point is, yes, I’m here for the meeting!’

‘No, you’re not-’

‘- Jack, just sssh!’ 

Carol blinked in surprise, but her phoney smile returned a moment later. ‘Excellent! I’ll see you inside.’

You inwardly groaned. Why had you just done that? You fucking despised sitting in a stuffy gym for the better part of an hour, listening to the perfect mums bang on about healthy eating and limiting their kids’ internet time. You already questioned your parenting skills as it was - the meetings only made it worst. You didn’t assimilate into that crowd; they were all married, with big houses out in the ‘burbs and bank accounts that could cover their kids ever-expanding interests and activities. Meanwhile, you were living on one wage and your two-bedroom apartment had a balcony, not a back garden. If Jack wanted to go on a field trip, you usually had to save up for months. You didn’t know if you envied the other mums’ lives, but you certainly weren’t jealous of how they viewed working mums and single parents. 

‘That lady is mean.’ Jack murmured from your shoulders.

‘Yeah buddy, I know.’ You nodded. ‘Guess we’re going back to school.’

--

Lugging the kid and his bag back up the school yard and towards the building was exhausting - at least it was your work out for the week done. By the time you’d reached the gym and placed Jack back on the ground, your shoulders were aching and you were disappointed to see that the refreshments didn’t have any alcohol. Was it too late to sneak out? The fire exit was right there and-

‘- shame this thing doesn’t have any wine, huh?’ A man was stood next to you, arms folded across his chest as he stared at the luke-warm jug of coffee on the table ahead. 

Tall, dark hair, stubble and with a faint hint of expensive aftershave you pretended not to notice? Hello, Marcus Moreno. Goodbye, ability to form coherent sentences.

You blinked in surprise. ‘Yeah. I could do with a glass. Or ten.’

‘So you hate these things too, huh?’ He smiled. 

‘With a passion.’ You returned the gesture. ‘I’m only here because Carol and her Karen Committee kept muttering about me not being at the last one.’

‘Yeah, same here. I was attending an emergency meeting about nuclear arms in Vienna, but I guess this is more important.’

‘I was...’ in court, signing documents to end my marriage, ‘otherwise occupied too.’

Marcus nodded in understanding. ‘Kids alone are a full time job, huh? ‘Specially when you’re the only one who’s running around after them.’

He knew about your situation and in return, figured that you knew about his. He’d heard the whispers about the divorce and presumed that the loss of his wife had been subject to similar gossip. The environment amongst the parents was shockingly similar to high school and things got around pretty quickly. You both hated it, especially given the nature of both your circumstances; death and separation was not something other people should have been talking about. Especially when you all you wanted to do was mind your own business and raise your damn (chaotic) kid.

‘Yeah, tell me about it.’ You replied. ‘My kid is like...a baby crackhead, as well. He’s been sent home twice this week and it’s only Wednesday.’

‘Oh, Jack’s your kid?’

You let out a groan, holding your face in your hands. ‘Yeah. Famously so, apparently.’

‘No, it’s not a bad thing!’ Marcus chuckled, pulling your hands away. ‘He played a brilliant baby Jesus in the Nativity last year.’

‘Aside from when he bit one of the three wise men, yeah.’ You could feel your cheeks heating up. ‘Missy actually helped him once. She seems really...not at all like my child. Which is good.’

‘She told me about the fence incident.’ He nodded. ‘May I ask why he was shoving his head out of the school gates?’

‘He saw an interesting looking slug.’ You replied.

Your conversation was interrupted by Carol, who had now climbed up on stage. She tapped the microphone and cleared her throat, gesturing to everyone to sit down so that the meeting could start. You wanted to curse her. Whatever giddy conversation you were having with Marcus was a thousand times more interesting than the PTA. At least you could revel in the fact he didn’t want to be here either.

‘Shall we?’ Marcus gestured to two empty seats a few rows back.

‘I mean, it’s an aisle seat, which is good for a quick escape if Jack decides to be Jack,’ you nodded in agreement. ‘Hey kid, c’mon!’

Turning away from the other kids, Jack sprinted towards you, hurling himself into your lap as he sat down. You let out an oof! and a groan. He wasn’t as light as he used to be a toddler. He stayed still for a moment, tiny hands clasping yours, before he realised who you were sat next to. The kids’ impression of Marcus was not quite the same as yours - he’d only seen him on TV, with the likes of all the heroes. You couldn’t remember their names (but in your defence, they were kind of ridiculous). 

‘Are you a superhero?’ He reached up, poking Marcus in the cheek. 

‘Jack!’ You hissed. ‘You can’t-’

‘- yeah, buddy.’ Marcus ruffled his hair. ‘But it’s my day off today, so I’m doing all this boring stuff instead.’

‘Can you fly? Do you know Miracle Guy? Have you fought aliens? Do you have a super suit? Do you know Iron Man? Wait! Can I be a superhero?!’

‘No, yes, yes, no, no and maybe when you’re older.’ He counted the questions off on his fingers. ‘But for now we have to keep quiet for the meeting. That would make you a superhero.’

--

You wanted to marry Marcus Moreno.

Seriously, you wanted to marry him.

His little comment had kept Jack quiet the entire meeting. And it was a long fucking meeting indeed. The last time he’d shut up for that long was...probably before he learnt to talk. You loved he was full of curiosity and questions, but he didn’t always understand that there was a time and a place. At least now you knew what would shut him up. 

‘How does Miracle Guy fly? Is Batman real? Are you rich? Do you know Wonder Woman? How does her lasso of truth work?’

‘Jack.’ You groaned. 

You were walking out of the school now and down towards the car park. Missy was in tow, tapping away on her phone, whilst Jack trotted alongside you and Marcus. He’d been spewing questions at the poor man pretty much since the meeting had ended - and yet, he seemed happy to answer them. Excited, even. It was clear that he loved his job.

‘You gotta give Mr Moreno a break, little man.’ You said.

‘Hey, just Marcus is fine.�� He replied. 

‘Hey Just Marcus, I’m dad.’ Missy chimed from beside you, not even looking up from her phone. It was...impressive, actually.

‘I already regret buying her that.’ Marcus murmured. 

The two of you eventually reached your cars. The Civic was still terribly parked across two spaces - you were a good driver, you’d just been in a rush. The dents and scrapes all over the doors and bumper implied other wise but hey, we move. You had a thousand and one other things to save up before a new car. Putting down the deposit on a house - one you could actually own, maybe a little further out from the city - was your number one concern. Paying off your divorce attorney came after that. 

‘It was nice to meet you properly.’ You pulled your keys out your back, tugging four empty packets of crisps and three bags of gummy worms with it. 

‘I’m not done asking questions-’

‘- you gotta let Marcus go, JJ.’ You peered down at Jack. ‘Sorry. He’s a little obsessed with the Heroics, but I guess you’ve worked that one out.’

‘Can I visit your base?’ He continued, ignoring you. 

Marcus knelt down to his height, a grin on his face. ‘I’ve got a free window tomorrow afternoon. You wanna come by? Your mum tells me you’re off school for the rest of the week.’ 

‘Really?’ You blinked in surprise. ‘I mean, I’m sure he would love that but I’m at work and he’s gotta go to my mum’s.’

Your mother also doubled up as your baby-sitter. In an ideal world, you would have been able to afford a professional, but this was very much the opposite of an ideal world. It was the real world, and you were constantly juggling a thousand things at once. Never in a million years would you have changed it but there were days when you wanted to cry. When it was 9PM and Jack suddenly chimed in that he had a science project due the next day, or when he refused to eat his dinner because his chicken nuggets weren’t shaped like dinosaurs and fed them to the dog. 

Marcus looked, on the surface at least, like he had his shit together. He worked in a public facing job and he always looked put together. His car wasn’t covered in bumps and bruises and the inside probably wasn’t covered in yoghurt like yours. He seemed as though he got more than five hours sleep a night and his child was well-behaved. 

‘I’m sure we can work something out.’ He said. ‘If you give me your number, I’ll give you a call.’

‘Uh, yeah! Of course.’ He’d asked for your number. No big deal. 

You switched phones - naturally, his was much more high-tech than yours - and entered in your respective numbers. The whole thing made you admire Marcus even more; he didn’t have to have your tyrannical son over to his office, yet he offered to. He’d clearly seen how excited he’d gotten and it seemed like he’d found it endearing. 

‘Are you okay?’ Marcus asked quietly, suddenly putting his hand on your shoulder. ‘You suddenly zoned out.’

‘Yeah, sorry.’ You rubbed your eyes. ‘I got about three hours sleep last night. I would blame it on the terrible twos but I guess it’s the...fucking awful fives?’

He quickly turned his attention to Jack, opening the car door for him. ‘You wanna hop in? I’m just gonna talk to your mom about you visiting, yeah?’

'There’s Cheetos in the centre console!’ You called after him.

Once Marcus had shut the door, he turned around to face you. There was silence for a minute, and he just kind of...stared at you. You couldn’t read his expression or quite figure it out, but he had an eyebrow quirked and a look of...concern? Sympathy?

‘I recognise that look. It’s the help! I’m suddenly a single parent to a five year old and it feels like the world is eating me alive look.’ He said. ‘It’s the exact same one I had six years ago. Missy was about Jack’s age when...when it became just me and her.’

You softly smiled. ‘It’s not been easy.’

‘You’re doing a good job, okay?’ He gave your shoulder a light squeeze. ‘And if you ever need him off your hands for a few hours, I’ll gladly give him a tour of our headquarters.’

‘Thank you. So much, for both of those things.’ Your eyes fell to the ground. ‘It’s a refreshing change from Carol and her Pinterest boards and half-assed invitations to potlucks.’

‘God, I can’t stand all that.’ Marcus chuckled. 

‘I gotta get back now because I can see that Jack is about smush Cheetos over my break pedals but I’ll...’ you trailed off, forcing yourself to look at him and smile. ‘I’ll call you.’

‘I look forward to it.’ 

[mystrothedefender]

My mum came over and she brought me a mcdonalds 🥺🥺💕💕