#but then reach my destination at 10:30am

[the-froschamethyst4]

Save a horse, ride a cowboy

𖤐Pairing: Cowboy! Ghost x F! Reader

𖤐Pronouns: She/Her

𖤐Warnings: smut, P in V, fantasy, a bit of jealousy, drinking, smoking, flirting, enemies to lovers, ass grabbing, eating out, pussy slapping, mentions of violence and blood language, cocky Ghost

Y/n with Ghost in the same guild but they end up getting partnered up together for the same mission

Y/n has be dressed in a tight tiny skimpy outfit that drives Ghost mad and pisses him off when he sees other guys drool all over her

He ends up taking his anger and jealousy out on her

—————

——————

10:30AM

Ghost had pushed opened the double doors to the guild where he works and get money.

“HEY PRICE! Any new jobs?” Ghost asked as he hoped to the bar and sat on the bar stool.

“Go look at the board. Soap’s put up some new jobs, Y/n’s checking out one,” when Ghost heard Y/n’s name he slammed his glass on the counter and saw her examining one of the papers.

“Like hell she is,” he got off the stool and strolled all the way to Y/n, snatching the papers from her hands.

“HEY!” Y/n turned and saw how Ghost held the papers above her head.

“What job is this. I might take it instead,” Ghost said as he started to look at it, his eyes widened when looking at the job.

The job: Wanted Dead or Alive: Jacob Killan $1,400,000

“$1,400,000!” Ghost yells.

“GIVE IT BACK GHOST!! I GOT IT FIRST!”

“Yeah right. You’re not getting this anymore,” he rolls the papers up and stuck them in his back pocket.

“Yeah we’ll newsflash Bone head, it’s a two person job that’s why the money is high you split it, I was going to ask König to come with me.”

“König?” He whispers and looked back down at Y/n who had her arms crossed over her chest.

“Yeah, because he actually wants to help me and not make fun of me,” she states.

“What?! I don’t make fun of you.”

“Yes, you do. You do it every time I get a job, you get mad that I got it before you, and then you make fun of me because you think I won’t be able to do it but guess I always get my money.” She said as she snatched the papers.

Ghost tried to grab them but he missed.

“Since…you saw the amount of money, do you want to join me on this mission?” Y/n asked.

“Sure, I guess,” he mumbled.

They walked to the desk to take the mission. Soap smiled and gave them the information where this Jacob guy was.

“He’s been at some bar for the past 3 weeks and the owner finally saw him and asked for help, so…Y/n you will have to be a dancer and Ghost you’re gonna be a patron for the bar,” Soap said.

Soap pulled out a tight tiny skimpy outfit. Ghost’s jaw dropped seeing it and Y/n held it against her body.

“Will this even fit?”

“It should, that is what his dancers wear.”

“Oh…shit…okay…” she said as she took the outfit and Ghost load up on ammo and made sure he had everything.

“Come on,” she said as they left the guild.

Soap chuckled as they left.

“Who would have known that those two will go on a mission together,” Price said coming around the bar.

“Yeah, from how much they hate each other figure Y/n would have fold and let him have it,” Soap chuckled again.

——————

“We take Betty,” Betty is Ghost’s horse.

“You can. I’ll walk,” she says as she made sure her dagger stayed put in her thigh.

“God you are so fucking stubborn, get on the goddamn horse.”

“No, dick, I’ll walk, I’ll meet you there,” she said as she walked away from him. He grabbed her wrist.

“Up.on.the.horse,” he says.

“Fine,” she gave in and got on the horses back. Ghost sat in front of her and instructed her to put her arms around his waist bit of course like usual, she refused to do so.

“Fine, suit yourself,” as he said that he clicked his tongue and flicked the reins which made Betty take off running which made Y/n wrap her arms around his waist.

She felt him chuckle as she looked over her shoulder and saw the beautiful city they lived become much smaller the farther they got.

She then looked forward knowing they have some time before they reach their destination.

———————

Betty came to to holt and Ghost got off her back and ‘helped’ Y/n, but she swatted his hand away from her waist.

“I don’t need your help, Ghost,” she said as she got off Betty.

“Whatever,” he put his hands up.

They stopped in the middle of some forest so they could take a little break and so Betty could get some water and food.

Y/n walked to the little river they stopped by and splashed water in her face. As she let the water fall on her, Ghost watched her and looked at her body.

Her thin white shirt soon was somewhat wet and she turned and he immediately looked away.

“Stop looking at me,” she said as she walked up to him and pushed his black cowboy hat down and cover his eyes.

“Can’t help it,” she could the smirk on his face. He pushed the hat back up on his head and surely enough she saw that stupid smirk.

“You’re such a pervert,” she mumbles.

“Am not,” he said as he got on Betty’s back and Y/n did too.

Ghost could feel her wet shirt pressed against his back and smirked at the fact he could also feel her harden nipples.

——————

They soon arrived at the town and Betty trotted around, they soon found the bar and Y/n got off first this time and opened the doors and Ghost tied Betty to a post.

Y/n went into the back where the girls were getting ready.

“Who the hell are you?” One of the girls asked and the others looked at Y/n.

“Umm~ I’m Y/n, I’m from North Guild, we got an ‘Wanted’ poster about some guy here and your boss wanted anyone to come and I was given this,” she showed off the outfit that matched the other girls.

“Oh, yes, thank you for coming,” the girl said. The whole rooms demeanor changed. It went from cold and serious to calm, bright and relief.

“I’m Candace, I’m the head girl here. Come with me,” she pushed open the curtains and pointed out Jacob at the bar.

“That’s him,” she said.

“He’s been here for so long and made us uncomfortable and has even threatened us too,” another girl said.

“Okay, my partner and I will take care of it.” Y/n said as she ducked back into the room.

“Who is your partner?” A girl on the bench asked.

“He’ll walk in soon,” she said as she removed her shirt and pants, leaving her in a matching pair of black panties and bra.

“He?” As one of the girls asked. They heard the bell above the door ring and the girls went to see who ‘he’ was.

They saw Ghost walk in, he fixed his hat, he adjusted his belt and sat a few seats away from Jacob.

“That’s him?” One asked.

“Yes,” Y/n said as she looked amazing in her outfit, she really looked like she belonged in this bar.

“WELCOME ALL TO HUDSONS BAR!” The announcer yelled catching the males attention to a stage. A bright light landed on him.

“Oh we have to get ready,” Candace said.

She pushes Y/n to the stage.

“H-hey wait,” Y/n said, she stood in the middle, since she was ‘new’ she would get the spotlight, she’ll get the most looks and the most men wanting her.

“It’s just for a little bit.”

“How long is a little bit?”

As she said that the curtains opened and the light landed on Y/n, who wasn’t even in the position as the rest of the girls. Candace gently pushed her to stand in their pose and to have her follow their lead.

Y/n felt uncomfortable being in the center, her face was red and she knew Ghost was probably enjoying her embarrassment.

But Ghost, he was more looking around on who he has to kill first for looking at her. He looked at the stage seeing her red face.

The girls soon made their way off stage as Y/n stayed on the stage. She felt even more embarrassed being alone up there.

She swayed her body like the others till she could hear the music slowly dying down which meant it was almost over. Soon she heard it stop, she brought her leg up and her arms up to look sexy bit really again she felt embarrassed. This is mainly why she does these missions alone.

The men clapped their hearts out and Ghost even clapped to make Y/n feel embarrassed.

She was ready to leave the stage but Candace stopped her.

“You’ll have to entertain them some more.”

“WHAT!? WHAT DO I EVEN DO!?” She yells.

“You’ll figure something out,” she smiles as the girls were now passing drinks and food around being waitresses.

“Fuck,” she mumbles as the music started again and she started just do random movies that she knows while also trying to look sexy and cute all at once.

“Mmmm~ this is so embarrassing,” she whispers to herself as she looked at Ghost to do something but Ghost just smiles at her embarrassment.

She got an idea to go talk to him. She seated her hips as she got off the stage, she passed the other men that drooled over her skimpy outfit. She placed her finger one of the guys chins making him ‘bark’ and coo out to her.

The others whistled to get her attention. But she moved to Ghost and placed her hands on his knees. She moved her body from side to side and leaned forward to his ear.

“Fucking do something,” she whispered. “I want to get this done and over with,” she said as she swayed away from him.

He just chuckles at her and moved to a free seat next to Jacob to talk to him.

“Which one would you pick?” Jacob immediately asked Ghost.

“Girl?”

“Yeah…” he looks at Ghost.

“I chose the hard working one.”

“Which is?”

“The one on stage,” Ghost taking a sip from his bourbon.

“Haha! I like you, I’d go with her and the head one,” he pints from Y/n to Candace.

“To do what actually?” Ghost asks.

“To fuck, to kill,” he says before gulping down his whiskey.

Ghost’s eyes widened at what he said.

"I'm gonna go smoke. You wanna come?" Jacob asked, grabbing a cigar from his pocket and Ghost nodded as he followed Jacob outside the bar. Ghost looked at Y/n who saw them leave and he titled his hat to her. Letting her know everything is under control.

The music stopped and Y/n went to the back room to catch her breath.

"Y/n, do you smoke?" Candace asked.

"No, not really," she says as Candace gave her a blanket.

"Well, you wanna take a break?"

"Yes, please," she said and followed her around back where, she saw Ghost and Jacob talking.

Candace leaned against the brick wall and lit her cigarette.

"So, how's the first day going?" She chuckles.

"Embarrassing."

"Well, I mean, you'll get over it in a couple days," she chuckles before blowing the smoke out.

"Hey ladies," Jacob said, walking to them both. Ghost looked at Y/n who seemed embarrassed that he was even looking at her.

"Oh hi," Candace said trying to not make it seem awkward.

"Are you two doing anything afterwards?"

"I have a husband to get home to," Candace said. Jacob looked at Y/n next.

"I umm~ I have a-"

"You're free," Jacob cut her off. Ghost looked at Jacob then at Y/n. Candace scoffed and grabbed Y/n's arm.

"We need to go back inside anyways," she said as they walked back inside.

--------

Ghost and Jacob were back inside the bar and Y/n was back dancing on stage. Ghost watched the guys look at Y/n and drool over her and even tried to give her money, but she greatly declined.

Ghost cracked his knuckles and neck. Y/n smiled as she felt comfortable now.

"I want to fuck her," Jacob said as Ghost felt fire run through his veins when he said that.

"Yeah, well...you'll probably never get to," Ghost said.

"The fuck does that mean?" Jacob asked, looking at Ghost.

"I mean, you'll never get to touch her or fuck her...want to know why?"

"Shoot why?" Jacob asked as Ghost could see his knuckles turn white.

"Because that's my job," he smirks, and Ghost could see Jacob ready to swing at him, but Ghost smacked his glass in his hand on Jacob's head.

Jacob fell to the ground and Ghost got on him, holding his wrist and digging in his belt to grab his ties to tie up Jacob, but Jacob managed to push Ghost off.

Y/n doesn't know if she should jump in or not. But everyone around her now started a bar fight. Glass flew and everyone was fighting, Candace pulled Y/n to the back, but she pushed past people and joined Ghost in on taking down Jacob.

She pinned his wrist and Ghost tied his hands.

"You know I would be into this if I wasn't going to be taken to jail," Jacob teased. He teasingly pushed his hips up and Y/n groaned from being uncomfortable.

"HEY!" Ghost then punched Jacobs in the face making him shut up. "Don't fucking do that to her," Ghost yells. Y/n got off him and Ghost picks him up.

"Ghost, Y/n," they both turned seeing the bar owner. He has money in his hands and gave it to Y/n. "Split it and I'll give you a horse to take him back the North Guild."

"Thank you, for the night he'll spend the night in jail, and we'll leave tomorrow morning."

-------

Ghost tossed Jacob into jail, and he turned to Y/n who was covering herself up, but Ghost stopped her.

"Why are you covering up?"

"I'm embarrassed and the job is done," she says. Ghost grabs her wrist and looks her up and down. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because you don't understand how sexy, beautiful and gorgeous you look in this outfit. I wanted to kill every single guy in that bar that looked at you like you were the last meal on the table. It pissed me off. And from how this bastard talked about you also pissed me off."

Ghost cups Y/n's face and gently and slowly moved close to her face, Y/n's face felt hot, and she felt Ghost's lips land on hers. She slightly moaned into the kiss.

"G-Ghost," she manages to say between kisses. He started to kiss her jaw line, neck and soon back to her lips. "N-Not here," she says. Ghost forgot they're kind of in public.

"Right come on," he picks her up and takes her to a motel. He kicks the door open and lays her on the bed.

"WAIT!" She speaks. Ghost just looked at her. He saw her hot and bothered face, she had her legs up trying to cover her almost exposed chest.

He moved her legs and started to strip her from her skimpy outfit. She slightly moaned feeling his soft hands touch her. She leans forward and grabs his black hat off his head. She put it on and smirked at him.

"Do I look like a cowgirl?" She teased.

"I can barely take you serious in a cowboy hat and your underwear," he chuckles.

"Is that a bad thing?" She said, resting her wrists on her knees looking sexy once again.

"No...not at all," he leans down and kisses her lips again, she felt him smirk into the kiss. "You know about the hat rule?" He asks.

"Hat rule?" She asked, placing her arms around his neck.

"When a girl puts a cowboy's hat on her head, it means she's going home with him..." he smirks.

"Well...I'm already here," she says. He smirks and now pulls her panties off her lower half, he leaned forward and started to kiss her again, he slowly and swiftly moved his hand up her back and started to remove her bra with one hand.

He moved his hand down to her area and gave her a small smack against her pussy. She yelped into the kiss and Ghost smirked, he chuckled at her jerky movement and hearing her moan against his lips.

He moved from her lips and moved his hat from her head and pushed her back on the bed, she held the hat against her chest as he started to move down to her clit.

He licked her up and down earning a soft moan from her, she hid her face, but she projected her moans for him. He smirked and licked between her wet folds. He flicked his tongue against her bud and sucked on her. She let out a breathy moan never feeling this good before.

"You taste so sweet," he teased. He then sat up and started to remove his clothes. Y/n moaned from not feeling him anymore.

"Awww you needy little thing," he smacks her pussy again earning a cute and soft moan.

He places his dick against her lower stomach, he moved the hat placing it back on his head. His mask was still on his face, but he removed his sunglasses off his face.

She looked down at his body and looked at his well-defined body, He was so muscular, it made her blush when she looked at his body.

"You like something you see, love?"

She just nodded. He grabbed her chin. "Words, love, use your words."

"Yes...I love everything that I am looking at," she said.

"Good because this is all yours," he touched his chest down to his dick and smacked his dick against her lower half earning a moan.

"God, you are so fucking hot," he mumbles and leans down and kissed her lips and slowly pushed himself inside of her lower half.

He began to thrust into her slowly, she moaned into the kiss and his hands just roamed all over her body, he grabbed her thighs and moved her legs to his shoulders and moved faster.

"AHH! AHH! G-Ghost w-wait," she stuttered.

"D-Do you want me to go slow?"

"F-For now p-please," she begged, and she could tell he was smirking under that mask.

"Only for you, love," he rested his forehead on hers and started to go slow again. "Just tell me t-to go fast," he kisses her temple.

Y/n's arms wrapped around his neck and her legs wrapped around his waist and his hands held Y/n against his hot body.

"F-Faster," she moans. He smirks and moves faster, she felt so good.

He swiftly flipped Y/n on her stomach, her face in the pillows and her ass up. Y/n's hands gripped the bed sheets for dear life.

Ghost's hands moved from her thighs to her ass, he grabbed them and squeezed her cheeks. His hands just rested on her ass the whole time.

"Holy f-fuck," he moans. Y/n felt a knot in her stomach, she wanted to cum on him.

Y/n squeezed her eyes shut and felt herself cum on him, he smirks and kept moving fast till he cums inside of her.

"P-Please cum i-inside of me, G-Ghost," she begs, and he did with one more thrust Ghost ends up coming inside of her pussy. She lets out a soft moan and Ghost smacks her ass and chuckles.

Ghost pulls out and bends down and licks the cum leaking from her lower half.

---------

Ghost sits on the bed and has a cigarette lit between his lips. His mask was lifted up passed his nose and has been looking down at the money and was splitting it up between him and Y/n as she was in the shower cleaning herself off.

He soon was done, and Y/n was out of the shower. She was in a towel and sat on the bed in front of Ghost.

"Did you split it evenly?"

"Yep," he said. He put his cig out and cups Y/n's face as she counted her money.

"Ghost?"

"God...I fucking love you...I've always had, I get on your nerves just so you can look at me and give me your attention, I love it, I love you, I want to be with you..." Ghost confesses to her.

"Ghost why do you...why are you a dick to me though?" She asks as he kisses her cheek.

"Because I want your attention," he kisses her jaw line.

"You've always had my attention you didn't need to be so extra to get it," she giggles at him.

"But sometimes I have to, just to get you to look at me or else König steals your attention away from me."

"So, that's why."

"What?"

"You're jealous of König and mines relationship," Y/n laughs. "Ghost, König and I are best friends, we're not together or anything and won't be together any time soon," she giggles and grabs his hands to wrap them around her waist. "To be honest...I thought you hated me so I would act mean, but you didn't hate me...you loved me." She teases him.

"I do love you...and I always will even if you don't..."

"Well, I do love you," she said as kissed his lips.

---------

Y/n and Ghost were now heading back home to the North. Jacob was laying across a donkey that Betty was pulling.

"Look, Ghost as ass riding an ass," Y/n laughs and so did Ghost. Jacob could say anything Ghost put a bandana in his mouth, and his hands still tied behind him.

They saw the North city up ahead and soon made it into town, they headed to the jail placing Jacob inside the cell and they went back to the Guild to report what they did to Soap.

Ghost helped Y/n off Betty and they walked into the Guild.

"SOAP WE GOT SOME NEWS!!" Ghost yells.

"Oh please, do tell," Soap laughs.

[melancholy-of-nadia]

Thursday Night (m) | jjk

title: Thursday Night (Boba & Ride) pairing: jungkook x f. reader rating/genre: m ; smut ; SEVEN alt. AU, college / university au, friends to lovers summary: Just another day of Jeon Jungkook waking you up in the middle of the night to get boba tea with him across town at your favorite late-night spot, Pekoe. Turns out, this is not just another nightly outing to get boba, but also a chance for the two of you to finally get out of this sexually-charged friend-zone and fuck in his Mercedes Benz G-Wagon. warnings:  car sex, vaginal fingering, edging, multiple orgasms, breast play, nipple licking, unprotected sex (well, reader is on the pill), RIDING, slight choking, creampie, body worship, Jungkook is wearing SWEATS, implied that jk vapes, awkward positions in the car bc they are HORNY and don’t care note: okay, so i originally wrote the first part of the wholesome boba date a year ago after Left & Right came out (and made it kinda based on my late night boba runs with friends in college pre-pandemic). But I never finished it, until Seven came out a few days ago and SUDDENLY I WENT BACK TO THIS AND DID A 180 AND SLAMMED SOME SMUT ON IT. VERY SPICY. Thank you for the whore thoughts, Jungkook. Thank you @daegudrama for editing and fixing the messy smut. Stream Seven!! and FEEDBACK & Comments are much appreciated !!

total word count: 4.5k drop date: july 17th, 2023, 10:30am PST CROSS POSTED ON AO3 (honeyjamjoon is my user on there) - -

Dozing off slowly as your mind wanders through the stages of sleep to reach REM, you’re suddenly interrupted by a distant ringing sound in the distance.

It sounds like… your phone? You recognize the familiar “Shooky Shooky” theme song of your favorite cartoon cookie and his 7 pals you set as a ringtone weeks ago.

Waking up with eyes still heavy from sleep, you reach your hand out to grab your phone from your bedside dresser. You squint at the bright screen seeing who the random caller is that is getting in the way of your slumber before you wake up later for another dreaded day of uni classes..

Jeon Jungkook. 

Of course it was him, you think. He’s the friend you made at the beginning of the semester in your Japanese class, where he found out that both of you took the class to be able to watch anime without subtitles. Just a pair of total weebs.

Then you kept running into him at university club events, specifically the Korean Student Association Curry & Karaoke night where both of you fangirled (fanboyed?) over IU and spent an entire night singing her discography while taking soju shots together. At this point, you knew he was just destined to be your bestie for life.

However, Jungkook has a terrible sleep schedule where he sometimes stays up until crackhead hours to do random things like late night drives (yes, he is paying the ridiculous parking permit fee to have his car on campus). He had previously invited you to get some In-N-Out with him and his upperclassmen friend Namjoon which resulted in a late night drive where you ended up on top of a mountain about 40 minutes away from campus at 1am.

While the view of the city down below was nice, you couldn’t stop freaking out about how to get back to your uni with the terrible data reception showing no map directions. Namjoon did his best to help you remain calm from a pending panic attack while Jungkook giggled, but reassured you that everything would be fine and he would figure it out. And he did. Never had you been so glad to be back on campus with some leftover animal style fries in hand.

Not many drives with Jungkook were that adventurous, but they were all late at night. Which you didn’t like due to the fact that you liked to sleep early and wake up early for your morning classes. Very contrasting dynamics being best friends with a night owl.

You answer the phone in a raspy, sleepy voice, “Hey Jungkook, what’s up.”

 “Hey— were you asleep? Sorry, I was going to ask if you wanted to hang out and get some boba, but—”

“NO!” You answer immediately. “I was taking a power nap, I AM UP! I WILL GO GET BOBA WITH YOU!”

Your voice is suddenly loud with excitement through Jungkook’s phone speaker. You’re glad you live in a single room in your 4 bedroom dorm apartment where loud sounds aren’t as easily heard by your roommates.

 “REALLY? OKAY! Let’s meet in front of my dorm building. I’ll see you in a bit.”

Boba will really get you to do anything, especially when it might be the spot Jungkook loves to take you to that is across town. It closes at 1:30am and also has a club-like aesthetic where a lot of people go to hang out at night. There are gaming consoles and a pool table, but the drinks are sadly non-alcoholic. Still good though.

 Wearing a black hoodie and your old black volleyball shorts, you head out to the front of the building next door where you find Jungkook sitting on a bench under a streetlight’s glow. He is wearing a black t-shirt and jacket, contrasting his white pants. 

 He looks good, you think as you walk up to him. He’s texting someone before he looks up at you.

 “So are we getting boba or should I head back to sleep?” You giggle pointing to the parking lot to signal him to get up from the bench.

 “Oh, we’re getting boba for sure and you won’t be sleeping anytime soon.” He speaks starting to head towards his black Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon in the parking lot while you follow behind him. Suspicious phrasing, but you brush it off. You have a dirty mind after all.

 “So, we’re going where exactly?” "Pekoe! My favorite boba spot in town," Jungkook replies with a mischievous grin. "I've been craving their Taro Taro. It's like drinking a purple cloud!" He exclaims excitedly. 

 You laugh at his description, knowing he has a knack for making even the simplest things sound exciting. As you hop into the passenger seat of his car, you fasten your seatbelt.  "And what about you? What's your drink choice tonight?"

 He glances at you, his eyes sparkling with amusement. 

 "Well tonight, I'm getting my fav from there! Pretty in Pink! Jasmine milk tea with strawberry sounds like the perfect combination of sweet and floral."

He nods in approval. It was just another testament to how well you knew each other's preferences. The car roars to life as Jungkook starts the engine, the soft purr resonating through the vehicle. I love being the passenger princess when Jungkook is driving.

As the two of you drive through the city streets, the night envelopes you in a sense of tranquility. The familiar sights pass by, but tonight they seem different. There is an undercurrent of excitement, a subtle shift in the air that mirrors the budding emotions in your heart.

Jungkook, always one to fill the silence, begins cracking jokes and making silly comments, aiming to make you laugh. And laugh you do, your genuine giggles filling the car with warmth and joy. You can’t help but be drawn to his infectious laughter and the way he effortlessly brings a smile to your face.

As you approach Pekoe, the neon sign glows in the night, welcoming you to its cozy embrace. The two of you step out of the car, the scent of freshly brewed tea swirling around you. Inside, the ambiance is lively, with people chatting, sipping their drinks, and enjoying each other's company.

You join the line, eagerly waiting for your turn to order. As you reach the counter, the friendly barista takes your requests, preparing the Taro Taro and Pretty in Pink with skillful hands. The drinks are handed to you in their signature, vibrantly lit cups, and you can't help but admire the aesthetic.

With your boba in hand, you find a cozy corner in the café, settling into plush seats. The first sip of your Pretty in Pink sends a burst of flavors dancing on your tongue, the sweet strawberry complementing the fragrant jasmine tea perfectly. Jungkook's eyes widen in delight as he takes his first sip of the Taro Taro, a satisfied smile gracing his lips.

As you sit there, enjoying your drinks and engaging in light-hearted banter, you can't ignore the subtle change in your feelings as of late. The laughter, the shared moments, and the genuine connection you have formed with Jungkook begin tugging at your heartstrings. The thought of him being more than just a best friend dances at the edges of your mind, like a gentle melody waiting to be fully embraced.

But for now, you cherish the present moment, savoring the boba and the company of the person who has become such an important part of your life. The night is young, and as you exchange playful glances with Jungkook, you can't help but wonder what other adventures await the two of you in the days and nights to come.

Leaving Pekoe behind, your boba-induced bliss carries you as Jungkook suggests going to one of your favorite lookout points—a hidden spot where you can see the entire city spread out below. The mere thought of it ignites a sense of anticipation within you, and you nod eagerly in agreement.

Driving through the winding roads, the city lights twinkling like a sea of stars, the atmosphere inside the car begins to shift. A subtle, sensually charged energy envelopes the space, like an unspoken understanding between two souls on the precipice of something new.

As you arrive at the lookout point, Jungkook parks the car, and you both stay inside, cocooning yourselves in the comfortable silence that only close friends can share. The dimly lit interior creates an intimate ambiance, casting soft shadows across Jungkook's face, and highlighting his features in a way that makes your heart skip a beat.

 Leaning back against the seat, you gaze out at the breathtaking view before you. The cityscape stretched out like a living breathing entity, its pulsating energy matching the intensity of the emotions brewing inside you.

 The silence between you feels charged with unspoken desires, the air thick with anticipation. You steal glances at Jungkook, his eyes fixed on the mesmerizing city lights. The soft glow plays on his features, highlighting the curve of his lips and the gentle slope of his jawline. In moments like these, you can't help but admire the kindness that resides within him.

 Lost in your thoughts, you feel a gentle brush of Jungkook's hand against yours, sending a jolt of electricity through your veins. The touch was innocent, yet it carries an unspoken invitation, daring you to explore the uncharted territories of your friendship.

You turn to him, your eyes meeting in a silent conversation that spoke volumes. The unspoken question hangs heavy in the air, begging to be acknowledged. With a hesitant yet determined smile, you reach out, intertwining your fingers with his, intertwining your destinies in that single act.

The connection between you deepens as time seems to stand still. His touch sends a rush of warmth coursing through your body, awakening a dormant desire that had been slowly bubbling beneath the surface. The intensity of the moment was undeniable, drawing you closer, your hearts beating in sync.

Neither of you speaks a word, for words seem inadequate to capture the raw emotions coursing through your veins. Instead, you find solace in the silence, in the electric current that flows between you, igniting a flame that burns brighter with every passing second.

As time passes, your relationship with Jungkook was left to simmer and reduce to being only friends. Holding his flirty gazes or even his hands has become part of the fun. A challenge of sorts.

Despite that, there will still come a point where you will finally lose your footing and can no longer stand your ground. You just can’t just be friends with Jungkook, and neither can he.

“I really want to kiss you right now,” He says, refastening his gaze on you.

“You should,” you say, without blinking. This is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Crossing the line you’ve been afraid to cross with him.

The lump in your throat twitches, but he reaches over from the driver seat and caresses your jaw with his hand anyways. Determining again to hold his stare, you stroke his cheek with your thumb. But his eyes close on their own as his lips move unhurriedly towards yours, they’re as soft as his approach.

At this moment, it may have seemed like you were hesitating, uncertain in this newfound situation, but in fact, it was quite the opposite. Since you two can’t stay here forever – returning to campus is rather inevitable – the lightness in his tread is completely deliberate. You both want, no, need to savor every millisecond.

You feel the heave of his exhale when he kisses you with a little more intensity. Cupping his face in both of your hands, you feel your pulse drop aggressively into your pelvis and fall further in towards him. Your hands snake back behind his head and grasp his hair to pull his face closer to yours. Your lips only part briefly to make room for your tongues to slip back and forth.

Jungkook grasps a handful of your hair and cranes your neck back while simultaneously pulling your body in closer. Jungkook's lips trailed a path of featherlight kisses along your neck, his touch sending shivers cascading down your spine, igniting a symphony of tingling sensations that left them craving for more. He pulls away quickly, greedily drinking in the stale cold air like he has forgotten to breathe that whole time. His eyes follow the trail of his fingers as he thumbs the bare skin of your outer thigh.

“I always like seeing you dress casually, in your cute shorts and oversized hoodies.”

You follow his gaze and smile. “It’s what I feel most comfortable with. But I don’t let many people see me like this because I look so bummy.”

Jungkook looks up once again to meet your eyes and mirrors your smile back to you. “But you still look so beautiful.”

In unison, both your lips draw back together. Without breaking your chain of kisses, you climb over to the driver’s seat to straddle him. Your restricted position prevents you from feeling his likely erection hiding underneath his sweatpants to press against you. But you are actually too preoccupied with devouring him through the kisses to worry about that yet.

His hands move down the length of your torso past your waist, over your shorts, onto your thighs. He slips one hand under your oversized hoodie, cupping your ass and giving it a gentle squeeze. Your hips swivel and thrust towards him, causing the top of your head to rub against the ceiling of his G-Wagon.

“At this rate, I am definitely going to look like a hot mess when we go back,” You say, feeling around for stray hairs that may have been charged with static electricity.

“Here.” Jungkook invites you to lie across the passenger’s side of the vehicle. “This might be better for you then.”

You recline slowly lifting your hips to rest your butt on the center console before lying your head on the passenger door’s armrest. Your knees fall apart to reveal your short skin-tight shorts to him. He leans over you moving between your legs and running the back of his hand up your inner thigh. Still lost in the darkness of your eyes, he rests his head on your knee and squeezes the fleshiness of your thigh. As Jungkook's fingers gently squeezed, another heat surges through your body, accompanied by a swarm of delicate butterflies fluttering in your stomach. The innocent yet electrifying touch sparked a wave of anticipation and desire, leaving you yearning for more. You also realize that even the simplest gestures from Jungkook have the power to awaken a new deep and undeniable lust within you. 

 You sit up to meet his face and kiss him again. You can taste the taro black tea boba and a slight smoky strawberry-watermelon nicotine on his tongue. Lips locked, you pull him down with you and wrap your arms around his neck. The position is awkward but stubbornly tolerated, all the same, both of you unwilling to pull apart. Both of you are like a couple of desperate teenagers fighting through the objective discomfort to exhaust every last second before curfew.

 Finally, Jungkook leans back in his seat again. You stay where you were, hoodie hiked up past your belly button and legs spread out. He uses his hands to gently pull down your shorts, like pulling away the curtain to reveal the main stage.

 Then he stops, planting that poignant gaze of his on you. A street lamp painting a streak across your torso to expose his mental photograph.

 “You really are absolutely gorgeous tonight, Bunny,” he says, which has you awestruck at this moment. 

 Bunny is the nickname he gave you a while back because you are a massive Sailor Moon fan. You both make fun of the cringey 90s dub of the show where Usagi is nicknamed Bunny. He likes to call you that when you have space buns.

 “Thank you,” You say with genuine gratitude, your knees swaying with an imaginary breeze caused by giddiness. You love how he speaks endearingly to you.

 With the back of his fingers, Jungkook gently caresses your inner thigh from knee to groin. The tingling trail he leaves in his wake triggers a shiver from the backs of your knees. He flips his hand over to fuse the warmth from his palm with the heat radiating from your vulva. Your clit is begging for attention and your your pussy clenches around the air desperate for something to fill it. Jungkook grins. You like to imagine that it’s because he too realizes all that potential he holds in the palm of his hand.

 He runs one finger along the hem of your underwear. When his hand turns around to go back the way he came, he gently slides his fingertip to the underside of the hemline rubbing the back of his finger against the skin. You lean your head back and shut your eyes, letting out a long sigh of relief.

 "I have waited so long for you to touch me like this," You whisper.

 Though yours are closed, you imagine that he never takes his intense eyes off you. He moves your panties to one side. He spreads his fingers down again over your vulva. You hear his lips smack gently as he licks his thumb. He brings his hand back down to you, gently pressing the pad of his thumb against your swollen clit. Remaining there for a moment, he faintly increases the pressure and finally begins to rub gentle circles around it.

 You feel yourself squirm in the seat, simultaneously moving closer to him and trying to pull away. Jungkook’s arm stretches out to the back to grab his Squishmallow pillow in the back seat to use as a cushion underneath you for comfort. He claims he has these pillows here since he takes naps in between classes in his car.

 Your lower back arches and your hips pressed into the cushion beneath you. But as quickly as you had been overcome with nervous tension, your body relaxed into this space, back into the seat.

 The circles turn to an up-and-down motion as you grow squirmy under the delicate burden of his touch. With two fingers on his other hand, Jungkook teases at your opening. When he finally enters, you inhale sharply in approval. His fingers are just barely inside, but it is all you need. He massages you gently from within. He slots his thumb partially inside to coat his thumb in your wetness and leads it to make persistent strokes over your clit. 

You feel yourself contract and squeeze around his fingers. He moves them in a little further, intensifying his come-hither curl deeper inside.

 A chill rises behind your ears and at the nape of your neck, heating up as it trickles down your spine toward your tailbone. One knee presses into the back of the seat as the other reaches for the dash. Tension swells in the fronts of your thighs as your heels try to dig into the seat cushion beneath him. Your hips rise, begging Jungkook to continue.

 Your breaths are craving, yet distended, and all your focus shifts inward, concentrating on the movement of his fingers, inside and out. Forgetting everything else. Really feeling it at the point of contact. Your eyes are still closed when you drink in a long inhalation, and release it with equal intention, feeling the intensity of your pleasure growing with every subsequent breath.

 “We…” Exhilaration forces the words back down your throat. Try again. “We should drive back…”

Strong thumb still resting on your clit, his other hand rises to hush you with your own wetness. “Not yet, love.” Love?! You couldn’t question the new nickname bubbling out from his lips because your mind was consumed in total stimulation. You’d talk about this sometime after, you thought.

 His burgeoning arousal was becoming more apparent in that confined space. You can hear his breath grow huskier as he resumes his rhythmic stimulation of your clit. You can smell the rising excitement dripping all over the cadence of his fingers.

 Your mouth falls open to usher forth a silent scream. Your pussy clenches around his fingers and your pulse throbs into the pad of his thumb. Your head presses back into the armrest and you worry momentarily that you might push right through the door, but your worries are wiped clean before you can finish that thought. Vision turning all white and shaky.

 Jungkook slowly slides his fingers out as your body goes limp. He leans back to watch you bask in the fallout of your body quake. Your head falls limply to one side while your body struggles to recalibrate – slowed breathing, relaxed pulse, fallen temperature, faded bliss.

 “Just truly stunning…” he repeats.

 You are caught somewhere between pleasure-induced paralysis and a voracious desire to continue and make hungry love to this man. You reach up, grab him by the collar of his shirt and pull him down towards you, forcing him to meet you at eye level.

 “Thank you,” You whisper softly into his ear. You kiss his neck, feeling the echoes of his hammering heart press into your lips.

 He breaks the kiss and rests his head on your shoulder. He shyly hides his face, hesitant to bring up his next request, “I want you to ride me. Think you could last through another orgasm?”

 You giggle at how needy he is being. “Honestly, yes.” 

 Jungkook tries to refrain himself from squealing and gets up from his position. He sits to adjust his seat back and partially slides off his sweats and boxer briefs.

 His dick is a blush shade, long and hard. “Wow…” You mindlessly speak your amusement leading him to giggle in response.

  You get up from laying on the passenger seat and climb over the center console to sit on his lap. Your lips meet in a passionate kiss yet again, while you pull his shirt off. You slide your hands slowly down his chest and abs, your small cold fingers send a shiver through his body. You lightly touch his tattooed arm, tracing each intricate design. 

 Jungkook lifts your hoodie in response to your actions and giggles upon seeing the sight underneath it. “Hehe, you’re not wearing anything under. So scandalous, Bunny,” Before you can refute his teasing, Jungkook buries his face in your breasts. 

 His soft lips slowly kiss up your cleavage to your neck. Jungkook gently sucks the sensitive spot on your neck, causing you to moan. You thread your fingers through his long black hair and tug. Jungkook winces submissively at your actions.

 “I thought you said you wanted me to ride you?” You taunt, teasing him by rubbing your wet folds along his hard dick.

Jungkook groans and grabs your hips, lifting you above him. He tugs the thin fabric of your panties to the side again before lining up his cock to your entrance and lowering you slowly onto his cock. You moan, tilting your head back in pleasure and enjoying the sensation of him filling you up.

 “Shit. You’re so tight.” Jungkook stills inside you, letting you adjust to his dick inside you.

 You experimentally lift yourself up, using his shoulders as leverage, then sink back down. Jungkook inhales sharply, biting his bottom lip as he watches you fuck yourself on his cock.  He keeps his left hand on your waist, strong fingers keeping you steady. He pushes the hoodie above your chest and massages your left breast. His tongue circles your right nipple, the sensation causing you to clench around his dick.

 “Fuck, feels so good.” he moans softly. He’s so cute, your fucked out brain thinks.

 You grab Jungkook’s hand from your left breast and slide it up to your neck, giving it a light squeeze to indicate what you want from him. He shakes his head and you halt your movement.

“No, Bunny, not today. Today, I’m going to make you scream so loud that you’re going to come back every day for more.” He feels your pussy involuntarily tighten around his cock, sucking him further into your tight walls. “You’d like it if someone caught us like this, wouldn’t you? Let them see how I ruin you,” Jungkook snickers as he teases you.

“You’re so-” You can’t even finish your sentence as Jungkook thrust deep inside of you. This causes you to lose your balance and rest your head on Jungkook’s shoulder, giving him full control over your body. He bounces you on his thick cock until you can feel your high approaching.

“I’m gonna cum, Jungkook.” You announce after a series of muffled moans, your voice barely coming out as a whisper. He tightens his grip on your ass and slides one hand down to rub your clit for added stimulation to the impending time bomb of pleasure.

 “Let go, love.” As his movements quicken, soon, he feels your pussy clenching tightly around his dick. 

“Jungkook!” You scream as you come. You kiss his neck while coming down from your high. Feeling spent, you collapse on Jungkook’s body, relishing the feeling of his muscular body moving against yours.

 Jungkook knows he can’t hold out much longer when he feels your pussy pulsate around his dick. “You can cum inside me, I’m on the pill.” You whisper in his ear shyly, feeling his erratic movements inside you. 

 He digs his fingers into your hips thrusting deeper and more erratically before he comes inside you. He thrusts a few more times to ride out his orgasm before he leans back in his seat in exhaustion.

 You both lay there in his car while you catch your breaths and pepper tiny kisses on each other’s bodies. Afterward, Jungkook lifts you up and removes his cock from inside you. You shiver from the emptiness and feel his come slowly drip out from inside you. You quickly slide up your panties into place, pull up your shorts and then readjust your hoodie before collapsing onto the passenger seat.

You watch Jungkook quickly pull up his boxer briefs and sweats. You both look at each other in your fucked out states, all messy and laugh. 

“I THINK we should go home now. It’s like almost 3am,” You laugh nervously looking at the time on your phone. 

“We should!” He chuckles. “So Bunny…tomorrow…boba, same time?”

“Just come over to my dorm tomorrow. The roomies are out, so we can watch Chainsaw Man and do this again. My wallet can’t deal with more boba runs, and then bonking and losing sleep when I have a 9am class.”

 “I’ll be the one treating you to boba from now on,” He smirks at you curiously. God, you really found someone amazing in your life.

As the night sky embraces the city with its velvet darkness, Jungkook drives back to campus. The cool breeze whispers through the open windows, sending shivers down their spines as you two reveled in the afterglow.

Your fingers intertwine on the center console, a tangible connection that symbolizes the bond you share. The radio softly plays Keshi, providing a soothing soundtrack to the journey. You two glance at each other, smiles dancing on your lips, eyes filled with a mixture of contentment and desire to keep doing this again. Maybe boba and riding every day from now on.

[seedsofwinter]

I have 5 boxes of Good Omens zines and merch in my house and I should NOT by the end of the summer. Did you miss these the first time around? Come talk to me!

🎶 “Don't cha wish your bookshelf was hawt like mine? Don't cha?” 🎶

Over 2 years, with a group of friends and fellow fans, I worked on 6 Good Omens print zines (plus another 7 or 8 digital only?) I wrote and was the editor for ones with stories; I did marketing for all of them. I know these books too well, their rising emotions, their jokes, the sexy bits...

Now, I’m the one who has all the physical overstock. Which accumulates..... Oh, does it accumulate haha

I’ve spent the past few days preparing to let you know what is in these boxes.

So!

Fellow Good Omens fans, drop me a line. I have all the books in the 2nd picture and they could be yours instead. I also have various merch which will need homes. Some more pics of those and books below!

This @oursidezines​ Pride 2022 book could be yours! I have most of the pride flag postcards too. Out of and low on a few.

This @WingZine could be yours! I have all postcards to join it as well. And a spare few bookmarks and stickers.

This @ineffableeraszine​ vol 3: Bookshop 1800s could be yours! I have the postcards that go with it; and a tidy number of bookmarks, the Aziraphale sticker, and the Crowley sticker. Plus the lanyard with PVC card.

This @IneffableEras vol 2: Soho 1967 could be yours!

I have the postcards that go with it, a handful of the “You Go Too Fast For Me” Crowley and Aziraphale charm, and a few pages of stickers. Plus the lanyard with PVC card.

Here's what the lanyards and PVC cards look like, so you can know! For other merch, come talk to me. 1800s' card is half an inch slimmer than 1941 and 1967.

All have an about 16 inch lanyard with "Ineffable Eras” printed in an Era-unique font. All with lobster clasp style hook.

I have a hold on all my remaining @IneffableEras vol 1: Blitz 1941 (if someone decides not to get it, or after held copies reach their destination). These were from my personal stash, so there were not many.

If you’d like to roll the dice I can take your name, but it's a long shot. Those who have a hold on a copy know it’s their last chance to get one.

I HAVE postcards, a few stickers, the Aziraphale charm and the Crowley charm, and the above lanyard.

THE EASIEST WAY TO REACH ME is twitter: https://twitter.com/OlivierHennis.

But you can message me here. I’m doing this all myself, so just give me a little time. I haven’t slept in almost 24 hours bc I hyperfixated on taking stock and doing the pictures. XD So I’m gonna go do that. [11:30am EST, May 10, 2023.]

I’ll make updates on this post if/when zines or merch are fully gone!

Thanks! And HAPPY GOOD OMENS 33RD ANNIVERSARY!

[definitelynotnia]

long ass post under the cut T-T i needed to tell somebody about my day i have no one else to tell so...yeah

be me

barely finish two hours of sleep from 5:30am to 7:30 am

wake up to the sound of feral screaming and shouting as is customary in a desi household at peak school timing

brother has lost id card which he needs in order to go to inter school cricket competition which is today- housewide search for id card resulting in failure

mother screaming and shouting at brother for being useless and brother frantically running around...being useless...

decide to give up and get out of bed because ear drums have burst already, and staying in bed after brother leaves means mothers wrath on me for "sleeping all day"

call up bus driver to plead with him to wait for brother before leaving, call up cricket team coach to plead with him to let brother compete without id card, convince both

inform mother and watch brother leave, 1 second after which mother remembers she forgot to give him yet another document, run behind brother in bed clothes with said document

catch up with brother only to see him making the most wet puppy sobby face bcz bus driver ditched, take a long fucking sigh because eldest daughter i-must-fix-everything syndrome will be the death of me

go back up to grab cash, hurriedly inform mother of situation and run with brother and his heavier-than-me cricket kit to catch auto

reach school on time dressed like a homeless person with oversized dads tshirt, flannel jacket thingy three times my size and the pinkest pants to exist- only thing holding back a complete breakdown is one (1) clutcher making me look borderline decent with a sorrowful fashion sense and greasy ass hair

take auto halfway back home only to realise autowala won't go further than certain point so walk 15 minutes till nearest auto stand in aforementioned homeless clothing, take another auto and call mother to inform of proceedings

cut call only to realise autowala has crossed destination and taken you further than necessary bcz both places have similar names and they misunderstood, walk back again for 10 minutes completely dehydrated and ready to collapse

get call from mother informing you to buy things for house, walk BACK AGAIN to store, buy some things, walk to another store, buy more things, reach home walking

come home to find that mother asked for things because brother left physics project of making electromagnet (which we got done from an actual electrician after much failed attempts by me and mother) with the switch on overnight resulting in battery to be drained out

realise electrician superglued every.thing. and SOLDERED the ends of the wire to the battery, cut apart whole project and sit and remake the whole thing

brother comes home later, tell him how to work the electromagnet and tell him to label it with his name, watch brother paste one singular piece of paper onto project (his only contribution) and then proclaim that HE had made the project so nicely uwu

ok to be fair he did come to me later when he overheard my mom talking to my dad on call about what all happened today and he came and gave me a hug and said thank you and....yeah, worth it.

[germoblin]

To add to this, i had a nonstop flight at 11pm on Thursday the 18th, and I would have reached my destination four hours later. It is now 4am on Saturday the 20th, and I JUST reached the place I’m staying. I woke up early on Thursday to make sure I had everything packed. I boarded the Thursday flight just fine, and we sat in the plane, that had not even moved from the gate, for an hour. We were then disembarked around 12:30am. We thought it was bad, but we had no idea how bad it was about to get. People try to rebook- the system is down. We’re told we will get an update around 2am, so i stick around because at this point it’s already 1:30. No update comes. We are told that all flights, across the entire country, every single one of them, are grounded until further notice. All hell breaks loose. Every person in the airport is hounding the attendants, who were supposed to have clocked out at midnight, until they all finally get the memo that there is literally nothing that can be done, there is NO SYSTEM. I managed to get rebooked automatically before the system crashed hard, and at this point it’s 2:40am, and the night shift is leaving- the day shift doesn’t switch in until 3. I learn that my flight is not until 9am that same day- i say what the hell, I’m probably not going to get a better flight than that. As I’m waiting, flights in every gate around me are being canceled and delayed and moved to different gates. I manage to board my flight, but i had to check one of my bags. I was upgraded to first class on this flight (free of charge) and i ended up sitting in economy- pissed me off, because i could’ve tried for an earlier flight if i had known that I’d be waiting longer for nothing. The flight is a very uncomfortable hour or so long, we land, and i disembark around 11am. My next flight doesn’t leave until 3:45pm, so i have time to kill. I mostly spend that time being miserable, and running from gate to gate as my flight repeatedly switched between the same two gates. I FINALLY get aboard around 4:10, and we land around 8:20pm. Great. Love it. Time difference kicks in, it’s 11:20pm now. We sit on the tarmac for an hour, not moving. Midnight. We still haven’t moved. 1am, we make it to the gate. This is the Atlanta airport- there are no employees available to connect the walkway to let us out of the plane. At one of the most heavily frequented airports in the US. We are stuck on the plane until 2, after which we are finally free. Baggage claim is of course a mess, i run around for an hour trying to find my bag- only to find out, oopsie! It still has not left the airport it was checked at. More than twelve hours ago. The bag which, they assured me, would be free to check and would be arriving WITH ME at my final destination.

if anyone would like to know more about this wretched experience feel free to ask i have so much more to say

idk if people on tumblr know about this but a cybersecurity software called crowdstrike just did what is probably the single biggest fuck up in any sector in the past 10 years. it's monumentally bad. literally the most horror-inducing nightmare scenario for a tech company.

some info, crowdstrike is essentially an antivirus software for enterprises. which means normal laypeople cant really get it, they're for businesses and organisations and important stuff.

so, on a friday evening (it of course wasnt friday everywhere but it was friday evening in oceania which is where it first started causing damage due to europe and na being asleep), crowdstrike pushed out an update to their windows users that caused a bug.

before i get into what the bug is, know that friday evening is the worst possible time to do this because people are going home. the weekend is starting. offices dont have people in them. this is just one of many perfectly placed failures in the rube goldburg machine of crowdstrike. there's a reason friday is called 'dont push to live friday' or more to the point 'dont fuck it up friday'

so, at 3pm at friday, an update comes rolling into crowdstrike users which is automatically implemented. this update immediately causes the computer to blue screen of death. very very bad. but it's not simply a 'you need to restart' crash, because the computer then gets stuck into a boot loop.

this is the worst possible thing because, in a boot loop state, a computer is never really able to get to a point where it can do anything. like download a fix. so there is nothing crowdstrike can do to remedy this death update anymore. it is now left to the end users.

it was pretty quickly identified what the problem was. you had to boot it in safe mode, and a very small file needed to be deleted. or you could just rename crowdstrike to something else so windows never attempts to use it.

it's a fairly easy fix in the grand scheme of things, but the issue is that it is effecting enterprises. which can have a looooot of computers. in many different locations. so an IT person would need to manually fix hundreds of computers, sometimes in whole other cities and perhaps even other countries if theyre big enough.

another fuck up crowdstrike did was they did not stagger the update, so they could catch any mistakes before they wrecked havoc. (and also how how HOW do you not catch this before deploying it. this isn't a code oopsie this is a complete failure of quality ensurance that probably permeates the whole company to not realise their update was an instant kill). they rolled it out to everyone of their clients in the world at the same time.

and this seems pretty hilarious on the surface. i was havin a good chuckle as eftpos went down in the store i was working at, chaos was definitely ensuring lmao. im in aus, and banking was literally down nationwide.

but then you start hearing about the entire country's planes being grounded because the airport's computers are bricked. and hospitals having no computers anymore. emergency call centres crashing. and you realised that, wow. crowdstrike just killed people probably. this is literally the worst thing possible for a company like this to do.

crowdstrike was kinda on the come up too, they were starting to become a big name in the tech world as a new face. but that has definitely vanished now. to fuck up at this many places, is almost extremely impressive. its hard to even think of a comparable fuckup.

a friday evening simultaneous rollout boot loop is a phrase that haunts IT people in their darkest hours. it's the monster that drags people down into the swamp. it's the big bag in the horror movie. it's the end of the road. and for crowdstrike, that reaper of souls just knocked on their doorstep.

[katriinamary]

Colca Canyon / Day 28 - 30 of Solo Traveling

15 - 17 November

Day 1 - San Miguel Mirador > Sangalle.

Average sleep, woken by dogs barking and a donkey that sounded inside the hotel...(It was) Had a breakfast, not the best provided one. Walk begins 2km out of town, up a hill. I get transport there. Arrive and the ranger is there - unfortunately, I have to pay the fees!

Great view across the canyon, it's massive. Path starts off easy, gently downhill, and I can see Sangalle - where I'm staying the night down below to the left. So many switchbacks down the hill. Took 1.5 hours to do the 7km descent - 1000m.

Quick break at the bridge next to the river, then head along towards San Juan de Cuccho. There was a slip that almost completely blocked the path, just made it past. There is not one way to get to my destination, and I pick the more direct path, not through Malata, which was probably a mistake. Loads of undulation. 2km to go, and I'm looking down to Sangalle, bottom of the hill. Steep downhill, down 300m.

Very tired, long day, and it was really hot - just under 15km for the day. Most people in Sangalle have just walked the 5km downhill from town, so a nap is needed, before dinner and bed.

Day 2 - Sangalle > Llahuar

Up around 6:30am, breakfast and then head off. I have to head back up the hill - 300m climb...before heading left towards Llahuar. Tiring climb as the sun is up, and there is not much shade. Get to the top in just under an hour, feeling good.

Climb for a bit, then off to the left taking a path towards Llahuar. Make some wrong decisions with splits in the paths, and end up stuck in a cactus patch, tried to get back to the path, but had to double back after 10 minutes or so. Then I'm heading uphill, last section is really steep, taking me up onto the road.

Rounding a corner, I see the climb for tomorrow, and it looks hectic. Down the road, through a couple of small towns and then across the river to Llahuar. Relax, enjoy the hot springs by the river, dinner and bed.

Day 3 - Llahuar > Cabanaconde

Slept in a bit, breakfast just after 6:45am. Had to pack before breakfast, as there was a steep hill from my hut, up to the restaurant, and exit. Climbing up out of Llahuar, suns there, it's hot. 100m elevation climb just over the river, then on the road down to another bridge. Looking up at the path is daunting.

Start of the uphill on the road, it's nice and a bit flatter. Then the switchbacks begin. I'd estimated around 50, so counting down as I'm climbing. As I reach the viewpoint around halfway up, first of many people pass, heading down the hill. Rounding the corner and finish the switchbacks, I feel really good - counted 60 switchbacks.

Following the path around the edge of the valley, there's another hill, and more switchbacks...20-30. Make my way slowly, but the sun quickly drains my energy. The hill never seems to end, keeps climbing, until I'm close to town. So glad when I make it to town. I book a bus to Arequipa, and a connection to Cusco later the same night.

Pick up luggages and decide to ask a random hotel for a shower, they say yes. And order a pizza - takeaway. Feel good getting on the bus, clean, and with a pizza - Hawaiian with apricot.

Slow bus to Arequipa, then on the bus to Cusco.

[yihrae]

I went to Universal Studios the other day. Celeste had acquired tickets via a HP family day event and had invited three of us (Ting, Zheng Long and I) to tag along. We met at around 11am at the 3rd floor of Vivocity, just outside the monorail. Zheng Long arrived the earliest at around 10:45am, while I arrived second at around 11:20am. Ting and Celeste both arrived at around 11:30am… I shared a cup of Playmade with Zheng Long (original milk tea with pink cactus pearls). He commented that Playmade had “fallen off” to which I agreed. I do remember it being much better in the past for some strange reason.

We were a funny group. Among the four of us, Ting and Celeste were more... timid. They were not very willing to take some of the more extreme roller coasters. Zheng Long would get motion sickness, meaning there was a chance he would throw up after the roller coaster. That left only me... Essentially we were not the optimal group to be at USS.

After a singular stop on the monorail we alighted. Large, bold red words informing us of our destination sat atop a larger rock. This sight was familiar yet still retained a sense of novelty due to the period that had passed from my last visit. We walked only for a maximum of five minutes before reaching the entrance. We equipped our HP family day bands and entered!

I frankly don't remember Universal's Studios too well. When we entered I could faintly piece together a few attractions to my left and to my right, but I suspect large parts of the park had undergone renovation. Our first stop was to queue up for the mummy ride. However after we entered the queue, we realised the wait would be a ninety minute one. We then made a tactical decision to eat lunch first and then queue during lunch hour to increase our chances of encountering a short queue. We scouted out the pizza place but we decided it was too small, so we headed to the western place instead. It was $17 for the burger and some fries. Frankly, this was not as overpriced as I thought it would be. I mean it’s bad for sure, but it wasn't horrid. We each had a $10 meal voucher and a $5 meal voucher, totalling to $15. We later realised that only the $10 vouchers can be stacked. We paid $40 using the vouchers and the remainder with my cash.

The burgers were honestly not bad! They came almost instantly (within 30 seconds or so) which was slightly alarming but I chose not to think too much of it! We talked about a range of topics while enjoying our food. Later, we went back to the mummy ride. Our plan had worked! The queue was drastically shorter so we ended up only waiting for around 20 minutes before taking the ride.

The ride itself wasn’t too bad. I’m not sure why but my recollection of the backwards sections was slightly more intense. I suppose Singapore is too small to have anything too insane. It was a pretty solid ride! Afterwards, we headed to Enchanted Airways, which was almost instant. Take this with a grain of salt, but I honestly think the Enchanted Airways (yes the kiddy ride) was more intense than the mummy one… I’m not sure why. The rides were just lacking in intensity and duration in general! But perhaps I’m a psycho - I want to ride until I have a headache and my neck is sore…

We then took the Puss in Boots ride afterwards and some other dinosaur ride. For the approximate hour+ that we had to spend waiting for both rides, they were sourly disappointing. It wasn’t too big of an issue though, for we spent those hours talking away about all matters! Ting had to leave early so after the dinosaur ride she headed back.

We were down to Celeste, Zheng Long and I. I told them to send Ting off first and I would queue for Cylon in the meantime. I really, really wanted to sit on Cylon and I was worried it would start raining and I would lose my chance. Celeste complained that the previous ride was lacking in thrill, to which I capitalised on and once again pitched my “let's take Cylon together idea”. She said she’ll think about it. Anyway, I went into the Cylon queue and queued first. I waited a long time for Celeste. I eventually exited and looked around. I asked her if she was coming and she was like "Oh I thought I said ..." that I did not recall... it was a bit of shame because essentially I had waited in the queue for nothing and had wasted a single Cylon ride because I could have just gone myself. I went back into the queue alone while Zheng Long and Celeste waited outside.

The queue had lengthened by then. They didn’t allow us to bring our mobile phones in so it was literally just me and my thoughts. I observed others - lots of couples and rather young friend groups. I got so bored at some point I started counting the duration in between the movements of the queue. It was approximately 140 seconds. Assuming my counting was accurate (which it definitely wasn’t). Probably closer to 160 seconds then. When I had finally reached, I asked the people in front of me if they minded swapping. I desperately wanted to sit in front. However, they just gave me this confused look. I switched to Chinese and figured that would resolve the issue, but the confused look persisted. Eventually, I gave up on trying to steal their front seats and settled for the third row. Since I was sitting alone I was seated with a stranger. I made small conversation and realised he actually also wanted to sit at the front…

The ride was good!! I wished it was a bit longer and that we had spun a couple more times but I was somewhat satisfied. Upon exiting we headed over to Enchanted Airways and took it one last time before sending Celeste off. It was just Zheng Long and I now. We had to get to school by 7pm for Sports Camp stuff. I figured there was still time to take Cylon ONE MORE TIME. I distinctly remember Zheng Long asking me “Alex if I throw up will you take care of me?" to which I excitedly said “yes!!”. We quickly found a locker and headed up. The queue was only 20 minutes, so I figured we would make it. We waited two whole turns just to secure the front seats. It was worth it. Really. It WAS. My favourite part was honestly when we plunged into the mist and came out, then plunged in again!! The mist is cooling and adds to the ride's exhilarating factor.

Zheng Long told me he didn't feel like throwing up but said he was a bit dizzy. He kindly requested for me to retrieve our bags while he sat down to rest. It was all a flurry from there. We were on a time crunch so we rushed to school!! We ended up getting slightly lost and missed the monorail so we walked all the way back to Vivocity. My feet hurt from all the speed walking when we took the train.

Overall a super fun day! I’m really grateful to Celeste for providing the tickets and that I was invited. Someday maybe we’ll come back and do this again :)

[marcherarrant]

"On this day, March 1st 2021, Marcher Arrant sets off for his biggest walk yet...a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail."Here we go!!! This is so surreal,  I can't believe this is happening! I'm excited and nervous! This is so much more than a walk. Every walk I do is. It is my way of life, my art, my therapy,  my source of meaning, ect. But this walk in particular is something even more. This walk is the crossing over of a threshold. It is a self created rite of passage, a new beginning. As a Walker my I embrace a philosophy of becoming, of constant movement, of no beginning or ending, constant flux. That being said, there are moments of being, moments when flowers bloom. I'm in love with shows and movies in which you see people become their destiny. It's perhaps a banal example but the first show that comes to mind is Better Call Saul. I watched that with such joy seeing him become the sleazy lawyer he was meant to become. I was destined to become this person I have always dreamt myself to be, Marcher Arrant. This walk is where I become him fully.  I made a real life flag as a symbol of that. I was born a Walker. I began walking more than those around me when I was in 6th or 7th grade. And my love for it has continually grown through the years and there have been countless thresholds I've crossed that have been pivotal in marking me for my destiny. It was around middle school or early high school that I walked from my house to downtown Columbus,  a 4 hour walk. I later walked there and back. Years later I walked the tracks from Boulder, Colorado to Denver, a twelve hour walk. I ended up doing that walk a lot. Eventually I walked to Denver and back, walking for more than 24 hours without stopping. Then I started doing aimless 24 hour walks all the time. I moved to Paris. From there I did my first long distance walk, a month-long  trip from Paris to Rocessvelles, Spain. That opened up a whole new door. I then walked the entire length of every street in Paris. And on and on and on... so many walks. In Paris,  maybe 10 years ago now, thanks to my homie Curve (@thecurvazoid, forever grateful) I began toying with graff, came up with my character and name. I later moved to Spain and did many more walks.  For most of my life my walking was something personal that I did not share with anyone. I thought it romantic, beautiful and pure that my art was just for me.  But then I had a health scare and it was then I got the urge to share what I do online. I felt I had something unique to offer the world and I did not want to die without sharing it.  I am glad I did because doing so gave my life so much more meaning.  I then got into making art and books and fell in love with that.  2 years ago I decided that before I did another big walk that I would catch my art up to my life and make books and art from all my previous walks so that when I did the next walk I could focus for the first time on making art and a book while I was doing the walk instead of going back and doing it after the fact. I finished all the art and books for my past walks. This is the first walk where everything comes together for the first time, the walk, the art, the book, the graffiti. Also over the last two years I decided to set up for myself work so that I will always have a job no matter where in the world I am so that I can walk with no pause. I began an online English teaching business. It was a long road to be able to get enough students so that I could make a living from it.  I have finally gotten to the point where I am fully booked. I begin my dream life now, a sustainable life where through art and teaching English I can walk forever and take care of myself.  My dream is to spend my life walking the world, alternating from long distance walks to living in new cities and fully exploring those, walking every street and painting and making art.  This is a dream come true, my idiosyncratic idea of the perfect life, a life I will never tire of, one that suits who I am in the most perfect way.  I am in love with the writer Nietzsche who philosophy was about making your life a work of art, living in a way that ties together all the aspects of you into a beautiful whole. The work I have done over the past few years with the walking, the graffiti, the English teaching, the art and books, the travel and how they have all tied together at this moment, with this walk, I have accomplished this goal of making my life a work of art and tying all the aspects of my life into a harmony. No matter what happens in my life now, I can die happy having accomplished this. For me, it is a sort of intangible form of art, my greatest accomplishment.  It is so hard to figure out who you are and what you want when there is no precursor to it. I am so fucking proud of myself for believing in my strange vision despite the fact that until very recently it never gave me a cent, never did anything to advance my life or do anything for me besides the meaning it gave to me. It is so hard to keep doing something that seems to everyone around you, to society, to be utterly useless. You have to be brave and trust your vision. 

The hardest part of any walk for me is getting to the starting point.  I grew up pretty poor.  When you grow up poor, at least for me, everything seems so out of reach.  You have this unconscious feeling that you would never be able to do so many things.  This is great because when you do those things your mind is just blown and you  are so amazed and in disbelief and you don’t take it for granted in the slightest.  I never in a million years thought I would be able to live in another country.  I thought that was something rich people do which is totally untrue but that is just the kind of mentality you have when you grow up poor.  When I moved to Europe it was surreal. Every single day, for the ten years I lived there, I was in total awe that I was there. I did not have a single boring day. Every single day I could not believe I lived there and that did not lessen a single minute bit the entire time I lived there.  It is the same way I feel about doing long distance walks. I was so amazed by the idea of the Appalachian Trail when I was a kid. But I thought only rich people could do it.  The fact that I am setting out to do it today is absolutely surreal. I am in total disbelief that I am doing it. I keep getting scared that somehow something is going to happen so that I can’t do it. I don’t take it for granted in the slightest that I get to do it.  It literally feels like a miracle to me. And there are so many to thank for it.  First I want to thank my mom and step dad who let me live at their house rent free while I worked on starting my online English teaching business and making barely any money.  I never could have started my business without them and saved the money I have.  I thank my grandma, my dad and step mom, my sisters, my brother and all my family who have helped me so much. Thank you so so so much to the people who have bought art, books, stickers from me over the past couple years, people who have given me donations, people who bought shirts, pins ect. I never could have done this walk without that support and I am eternally grateful and forever in your debt. I take none of that for granted. Thank you for all the kind words, messages and comments, you have no idea how much that has helped me to keep on. You have no idea. No fucking idea. I could kiss every last one of you. These past two years have been two of the hardest years of my life. For the past year I worked 7 days a week, waking up at 4:30am. For various reasons I went through some horrendous depression, so many suicidal thoughts. So many times I wanted to take the money I saved for this walk and check myself into a mental hospital. All the positive words from people really helped me to keep on. Thank you so much.  Thank you to my crew, the Abe Lincoln Brigade, Impeach, Hank, and Alamo. I’m so grateful and honored to be in a crew with such legends, people who I’ve always idolized. Thanks again to Curve (@thecurvazoid) for giving me one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever been given, the gift of getting me creating art.  And thank you to Art Primo (@artprimo ) for sponsoring this walk with art supplies. Not only does this help financially but the fact that such a legendary company believes in what I do enough to give me supplies is such an honor and so fucking encouraging. 

There are two new things that I am doing with this walk. One, is that I will be making art with the guidebook pages as I do the walk. I have already made art with maps from my walks, but I did it after I did the walk. This is the first time I will be making art as I am actually doing the walk. I am so in love with this idea. And I love that when I send the art it will be from whatever town I am in along the walk. I think that makes the envelope itself kinda a piece of art. Selling art along the way will also make it so I spend the money for my trip at a slower rate and hopefully not end totally broke like I usually do. The second new thing I will be doing is making it so people can follow my walk online. I have a gps device that also tracks me and sends that information to a website. I think that’s kinda fun and cool. It also makes it so if you want to meet up and you see I’m near you you can reach out. A lot of people have offered me a place to stay or just meet up and I am so disorganized that It makes it hard to remember all the people and where they live. Hopefully this helps to make meeting up possible. You can follow my walk at share.garmin.com/marcherarrant. Again, thank you all for everything!

[wefoundloveunderthelight]

Void of Extinction by GleefullyCaptainSwan Chapter 1/9

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Chapter 1: There is Nothing to Fear

Storybrooke Maine, 2052. The world is slowly dying from a plague, only known as J2, that is spreading across the realms, a disease that has no cure. A faction known as “The Rebellion” have moved underground to search for a cure while avoiding detection from “The Hive”, a dangerous group run by an unidentified man of darkness searching for power. The only thing standing in the way of either group taking power is Mayor Regina Mills, who spends her time protecting the residents of Storybrooke from criminals who might bring the plague to her small town. The most dangerous occupants, those deemed most likely to bring the plague to town, are given a new opportunity, a chance for a new life, without being a danger to society, courtesy of the Gold Collective.

The pain was tortuously blinding as he tried to open his eyes. It was a feeling of waking from an all-night bender he couldn’t even remember attending. Peering through slits, his room came into view, blue neon lit behind the monitor on his wall. “Status Report.” He spoke, a gritty tone leaving his throat.

“Good morning James, it’s 7:53 am, pollution level 63%, you have no appointments today.” The pleasant robotic voice carried throughout the room. Something felt wrong, like a small itch at the back of his brain, a light tick that was calling out to him, telling him to pay attention.

He stood from his bed, the silk sheets falling to the ground behind him as he wandered through the apartment. “Open blinds.” He spoke and the metal slats hummed as they opened fully, revealing the land in front of him, dark smoke clouds on the horizon behind the mountains. Storybrooke, the only home he had ever known. He sighed; he was going to be late. He was halfway to the bathroom before he stopped in his tracks.

What the bloody hell was he about to be late for?

“What time do I have to be at work?” he said loudly.

“You are expected at 8:30am. Shall I prepare transport?”

He groaned, “Sure, but where is my destination?”

“Granny’s Diner, Main Street, Storybrooke.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, a headache taking form at the back of his neck. “Granny’s.” He mumbled. Short memories, like a picture show, formed in his head, an older woman barking orders at him as he cooked burgers in the back of the small diner. He was a cook. He wasn’t sure why that felt odd to him, like something was out of place. He didn’t have time to contemplate the decisions he made in his life. He was going to be late for work.

The quick shower didn’t erase the feelings, images he didn’t recognize were imprinted in his subconscious every time he closed his eyes. A woman with hair, a light pale yellow, eyes green as grass staring at him. He couldn’t place the image, some celebrity perhaps he had seen in a movie. He shut off the water, running the towel through his hair as he tried to rub the sleep from his brain.

He dressed and left his apartment, sliding the locks shut with a slam, cranking the large metal door handle to the right to ensure it was locked. He glanced down the darkened hallway at the few people meandering about, the lot of which always appeared to be lurking, watching for unsuspecting individuals who left their belongings unprotected.

“You’re late.” The woman growled as soon as he entered the back of the diner.

“I’m sorry, Granny. In my defense, I forgot I had…” He thought about his sentence. What did he forget exactly? That he had a job, that he was a cook, why he had even woken up at the time he did, dreaming about a woman he had never met, “to work this early.” He finished.

“I’ve had to tell you the same thing since you started working here, it would do you some good to have your AIM set a damn alarm before you go to bed.”

Killian had alerted his AIM or Artificial Intelligence Monitorto set a 7am alarm, yet it failed to alert him to his shift for the last few weeks. He would need to have it repaired if this continued.

“Yes Ma’am, apologizes.”

“Just get to work, we got people waiting.”

James pushed through his shift, flipping burgers, cracking eggs, and sending out plates of food he had no memory of knowing how to cook. He wondered to himself how he ended up with this life, when had he decided that this was the best job he could find? Each time he tried to imagine another career, something that he might actually enjoy doing, the migraine would hit him out of nowhere, crippling him until the inhibitor was injected into his arm and his breathing returned to normal.

Whatever plagued him, this medical condition that brought him to his knees had always been with him from what he could remember. He assumed that it had begun when he was a child, it was second nature for him to know to inject himself once the pain hit. Yet he couldn’t remember when it began.

He climbed the stairs to his apartment at the end of the day, entering his room and locking it down behind him. “Set alarm for 7am.” He said once he sat his keys on the counter.

“Alarm set. 7am.”

He went about the mundane task of preparing his dinner, watching the Holo TV, news that the plague had spread to the outer banks was on every station. Mayor Mills calmed the crowd during her press conference and on each holo announcement that played every 15 mins.

“People of Storybrooke, I give you my assurance that the plague will not breach our walls. We have taken every measure possible to protect our citizens. We continue to fight back the resistance uprising, and our law enforcement continues to arrest any faction that supports it. There is nothing to fear.”

Mayor Regina Mills stood in the center of the screen, flanked by her officers on either side. She was fierce, strong, and protected the town of Storybrooke with honor.

“Turn off Holo TV.” He announced, setting his dishes in the machine for cleaning.

He crawled into bed, pulling the covers over his hips. “What time is the alarm set for?” He asked, ensuring that everything was still working.

“Alarm is set for 7am, James. Sleep well.”

~*~

Emma woke to the sound of crying. She jumped up from her spot and reached for her son, pulling him against her chest. “Hush now Henry, mommy’s got you.” Pressing her child to her breast she felt the tug against her nipple as her son quieted. She smiled down at the infant in her arms, her heart aching as she watched him so still against her, as if nothing in the world mattered but his own nourishment.

Emma wished her view of the world were as innocent. But she knew better.

She looked around the dark shack she had been hiding in for the last few weeks. She could hear the water on the other end of the door, just on the outskirts of the town line. It would be dangerous if anyone were to find her. She had given up everything to get away from Neal Cassidy. Her safety, comfort, even her future was all gone the instant she escaped the tower that had been her home for the last five years.

Emma knew it was dangerous being outside the protective walls of Storybrooke, those who had been exiled lived on the outskirts, many would not escape the plague once they lost the protections provided behind the walls. Emma knew it all too well, five years ago when the plague first appeared, she had taken ill, she was expected to die quickly, painfully. But after a month, the symptoms subsided, and Emma survived.

Doctors could not explain why she survived, only that she had been very lucky.

And then she met Neal. She thought she had finally found someone to share her life with. She was taken in by his father, Gold, a man obsessed with finding the cure to the plague.

His company, The Gold Collective had invested in experimenting on anyone who had come down with the plague, valiantly searching for a cure, the perfect gene sample that would save humanity, but his efforts had been fruitless as most of his subjects died before he had completed his experiments.

Emma found him to be odd, even a bit intimidating at times. His obsession with the plague caused her to keep her own situation quiet. She had a feeling if he had known that she had somehow lived through the plague that his interest in her might become more than just the father of the man she lived with.

Gold took care of her, as Neal’s girlfriend, he ensured that she had everything she could ever want. And Neal provided her money, food, and a roof over her head. Something she didn’t have before she had met him, back when she was homeless, trying to find her place in Storybrooke. Neal took her in and loved her.

But all of that changed a little over a year ago. Emma wasn’t snooping, she hadn’t meant to be in the office after hours, but Neal had not returned home that evening, and Emma had been worried. So, she left the penthouse suite of Gold Laboratories and headed to Neal’s office. Before she even reached his wing, she heard arguing.

The conversation between Gold and his son was chilling. She knew she needed help. She didn’t want to cause alarm or alert either of the men to the knowledge she had overheard them, had realized who the Gold Collective really was, so instead she waited out her time. A week passed before she found her mark, a police detective whom she had followed for days. He lived a quiet life, devoted to his job, going between his apartment downtown and his job at the station, never deviating from his day. He always arrived at work at 10:02am for a 10:30 shift. He had lunch with his partner at 12:45, he picked up Chinese food at 9:00pm before returning to his apartment. She had watched him assisting his elderly neighbor up the stairs and she knew this was the man she needed to trust.

Officer Killian Jones didn’t know what to make of her when she showed up at his door at midnight one night. Begging to talk to him, asking for discretion as she tried to determine if he trusted her. When he learned of the knowledge she had, he panicked. He sent her home that evening, telling her to wait a week before she reached out to him again.

It took a month, Emma would arrive at his apartment, they would talk about their plans, share intel on what they had each learned, and suddenly, knowing he was the one person she could trust, feeling like for the first time in her life, someone understood and truly cared about her, she fell for the man.

He tried to deny her, not wanting to take advantage of her trust. But they were in love. There was no denying it. The affair was something that neither one of them had the power to stop. Emma would spend her evenings with Killian, staring at the stars talking about what the future held for them once they were able to figure out a way to stop everything that was happening around them.

But she always returned to Neal, she had no choice but to keep up the ruse in order to protect the secret she had. Too many powerful people were involved for her to alert anyone else. Killian didn’t even trust his partner David enough to share the information.

Suddenly Neal became protective of her, asking her where she was going anytime she left the apartment, so Emma had to distance herself from Killian. It had been a month since they had been in contact when Emma received devastating news. She and Neal were having a baby. It broke her heart. When she finally told Killian, he urged her to escape before the child was born. Once Neal had a child, he would never let her leave.

Emma knew he was right, unfortunately by the time she planned her escape, the child was born a prematurely. She was trapped. Killian became concerned for her safety now that a child was involved, and Emma was forced to share her secret with her childhood friend, Will Scarlett. He sprang into action, becoming the go between for Emma and Killian to set their plan in motion for Emma and Henry to escape.

That night, she met Will on the roof, and they made their daring escape, 65 flights of stairs down the back of the building. They waited for hours at the drop off point, but Killian never showed. Emma was devastated, she felt trapped. Will went in search of him, he wasn’t at his apartment, the station, or any of his usual locations. Killian was gone without a trace.

She knew that something bad had happened to him. He would never abandon her. She trusted him. The only solution she could come up with was that Gold or Neal had found out about their plan.

Killian was in danger, unless something bad had already happened to him. She was desperate to find him. Without Killian Jones, the entire town was in danger.

“Are you decent?” Will’s voice rang out from the other side of the door. She pulled her shirt over her breast, setting her sleeping son beside her.

She stood up and looked through the crack in the door. Will was standing nervously on the edge of the water. She clicked the locks, lifting the wooden latch until the door slid open. Will stepped quickly into the shack.

“You ok?”

“Did you find anything?” She asked anxiously.

“Maybe.”

Emma stared at him with pleading eyes. “What do you mean maybe?”

“Look, don’t freak out, ok?”

“You’re scaring me.” She responded nervously.

“I drove by the station again, nothing. David is there but Killian wasn’t around. I didn’t want to go in, because I figure they might start asking questions, but there was this girl sitting outside and I asked who I could talk to about a case of Killian’s, and I used me ole charm and she told me that he never came back to work a few days ago, and that they opened a missing persons case on him.”

“Oh God, Will.”

“I said don’t freak out.”

“This is terrible. They killed him, didn’t they?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, I haven’t told you everything yet.” He pleaded as she paced the room. “Anyway, I went by his apartment, and it was empty. The neighbor says they haven’t seen him for days.” She started to speak, and he pressed his hand to her mouth. “Emmie, I need you to be quiet, I know that’s hard for you.”

She groaned against his finger and mumbled. “Fine.”

“I got hungry as I usually do about this time and got a craving for a big greasy burger.”

“Seriously, you wanted me to be quiet so you could talk about food? I’m losing my patience, Scarlet.”

“The burger was excellent by the way, but that’s not the point.” He paused. “I went back to my car, and there was a man out back tossing out some trash.”

“Would you get to the damn point!” She yelled.

“It was Killian.”

“What?”

“The guy out back. Spitting image of him.”

“Did you talk to him, ask him what the hell is going on?”

“I talked to him, but he acted like he’d never seen me in his life. Swears his name is James Rogers. Emmie, it was the damnedest thing I’ve ever seen. But I tried, I even called him Killian Jones and he stared straight through me…” He dropped his head. “And then he thought about it, I could see the wheels turning in his head, and then he started wincing, and that’s when I saw it.”

“Saw what?” Emma asked impatiently, dreading the fact that she could already feel it in her gut, she knew what he was going to tell her, every sensor in her brain was going off that she already knew the truth.

“An inhibitor. The man injected himself with one of Gold’s inhibitors.”

Emma felt the tears forming, she knew it was the truth. It made sense, he would never have abandoned her or Henry. The only explanation was that Gold or Neal had found out what she was planning to do and got to Killian first. “They erased him.” She said sadly, feeling every last bit of hope she had draining from her being.

“Emmie, he’s one of the void. There’s no way back from that.”

“Don’t say that, we don’t know that. It’s all experimental, it’s not even legal. Gold’s been doing it for years on test subjects. Killian can fight it; I know he can. He’s too strong.”

“Emmie, he had no idea, absolutely no idea of who I was.”

“It doesn’t matter, Will. We must keep trying. Maybe the inhibitor just suppresses his memories. We have to get him not to use it.”

“For all we know, not using it could cause his brain to explode. It’s dangerous.”

“I won’t give up on him Will. I can’t lose him.”

He pulled her into his arms, rubbing her back in slow circles as she cried. “It’s gonna be ok, we’ll figure it out.”

“What are we going to do, Will? Without Killian, I’ll never get into the station to upload the information.”

“We’ll find a way. That’s what we do right?”

She smiled weakly. She wouldn’t give up on him, he risked so much to try and protect her and another man’s child. He had given her hope when she had none. She would never stop trying to get him back. Even if it killed her, she would save Killian Jones and take down the Gold empire.

[urbanpen]

What is public transit?

Before we start to understand the importance of public transit system, we need to understand how it is defined.

“A Public transit system consists of a regularly scheduled, controlled vehicular trips, open to all paying passengers, with the capacity to carry multiple passengers, whose trips may have different origins, destinations and purposes.” As defined by Transit consultant, Mr Jarrett Walker in his book ‘Human Transit’.

 Now let us understand each element that completes this definition

1)    Regularly scheduled vehicular trips

It is important to have a regular schedule for a Public transit, firstly because the people who are going to use theses transits, should be able to predict the timings, routes etc without collaborating with each other, every individual or a grp as a unit, should be able to depend on the transit’s schedule of both timings and routes and plan their trips.

 2)    Open to all paying passengers

By being open to all paying passengers, a public transit should be accessible to all who can afford the bare minimum ticket price belonging to any economical, racial, or any other social denominations, it needs to treat everyone with equality.

 3)    Multiple passengers

A public transit’s existence is to do this, to carry a large number of people from one point to another rather from different points to different points and this is the most important and basic measure of its efficiency A good transit system.

 Now talking about the importance of public transit system, lets imagine for a while that there is no P.T.S. (public transit system), so what are the options people have walking, cycling, rented cars, carpooling, etc. We all know that walking and cycling have their own limits in terms of distance that can be covered. Talking about rented cars,we all know about OLAs and UBERs , we might have travelled through these at least once, yes they are comfortable , they can take you anywhere, but how affordable are they? And to who all? I remember a trip of approx. 20 km costed nearly Rs 180 by cab, otherwise it would have cost me only Rs 20 by bus. This how cheap travel becomes in a P.T.S. A 20km trip for Rs 20 very much affordable for all.

 Now that we have looked at all other alternatives, it shows that only P.T is the one that surpasses the drawbacks of all these alternatives.

P.T is the only system that is truly efficient, economical and environmentally friendly, we will see in this blog how this happens.

If a city has to have a better network of P.T and other vehicular alternatives it should function like the arteries and capillaries, where the P.T is like arteries carry the main blood flow in our bodies & the alternative transit methods would resemble capillaries. This means a P.T.S will connect all the important points and one can use other alternatives from there.

A P.T.S transit also saves a lot of space .If a P.T .S is effectively designed ,that it passes through a city’s dense parts and well connected through other alternatives it can:

1)    Promote & support pedestrian lifestyle and mode of travel.

2)    Reduce our need of having our personal vehicles & in long run, traffic imagine how different our roads would look if all these cars were reduced.

3)    Reduced traffic will further reduce the pollution & the chaos, road widths can be reduced & sidewalks and spaces can be opened up.

4)    Less parking spaces are required, these spaces can be used for more things like public spaces, recreation spaces etc, in some places the scale of these recoverable land is such that it can be used for commercial as well housing projects as well.

5)    Traffic’s real problem can be truly resolved with an efficiently designed P.T also it resolves pollution, noise & spaces problems.

All this shows us how important a P.T.S is which in our case can be BRT, metro etc. But there are a lot of cities wherein these systems are already installed & yet the overall transportation is not efficient, what might be the reason? What can be done to improve an existing P.T.S & what should be kept in mind before designing one for a city.

Reasons that a P.T.S might be a failure excluding other political and environmental reasons are:

1)    It does not move through densely populated area

2)    It does not connect the city’s mainly visited areas, maybe tourist spots, government offices, schools, hospitals etc, places that require such connectivity.

3)    It does not form an effective interaction with the alternative transit methods, that is the capillary types that we discussed before.

4)    It Is not accessible to all.

5)    The trips are not frequent, reducing the efficiency.

I remember an incident from my college days, when I use to take a morning bus of 6:40am, I had to catch this bus or I’d be late, I’ll explain, the trip would take nearly 45 mins considering all stops and traffic. So by this if I catch the 6:40am bus I’ll reach college bus stop at 7: 25am nearly, and my college started at 7:30am. Anyways never liked being an early bird, so this much was enough for me.

But the day I would miss that bus because maybe being late but mostly because it was overcrowded and many times it wouldn’t even stop. I had to wait for 30 minutes straight for the next bus, I know you won’t believe me, but yes busses in Pune can make you wait even longer than that. So now Its 7:10 bus and the trip take 45 mins, can you understand the pressure I had here. I would reach college bus stop at 7:55am approximately this is when I still have the second bus having mercy on me and stopping on the bus stop. Sometimes the drivers won’t even stop the bus as it was so crowded that people couldn’t even breath, I have been there.

No, when I realised that I can go backwards a few stops to the depot, maybe it won’t be that crowded and I might not miss the bus. So, one day at 6:00 I was at the main bus depot, but to my surprise there was a humungous crowd was waiting for the same bus, the crowd was so huge that we would require three buses to accommodate them. So, at 6:00am already the bus was so full, and so many people had to give up on that bus and be late to work/school and this is a situation of early morning hours, of course there were alternative buses but again same issues with them.

What I am trying to say is, this is what happens when the P.T (here BRT) does not have enough number of busses and also, they are not frequent.

Had the time between the consecutive busses reduced down to 2-5 minutes, how quickly the crowd would have been accommodated, also I would have been on time even after missing 1-2 busses. Also, I would be pleasant to get a seat, or at least stand in a breathable space.

I am sure we all have had good & bad experiences of our city’s P.T.S, and then how people look at it will help it to be more functional & efficient.

Now what needs to be done to have an effective & efficient P.T.S. Of course, the physical network of routes & schedules etc are nearly the same for a bus system or a metro, it is a result of how your city is laid out, how it has grown & how it feel. But there are a few things that have to be followed about P.T no matter the city, the layout and the urban environment etc. Following them will make the P.T more efficient:

1)    It should satisfy the high level of demand found in high density cities and; parts of cities.

2)    It should be well incorporated with transit systems(alternatives) and all of them should be designed to do so.

3)    It should be frequent

4)    It should be accessible to all.

5)    It should give its consumers flexibility in terms of choosing wherever they want to go in minimum time.

Many urban designers, transit consultants and people have realised these things, but to get these things work, we need political will, I feel.

This article was to help you understand how important it is to have an efficient P.T.S and how can we achieve it. A lot of text is inspired from the book ‘Human Transit’ by Mr Jarret Walker, blogs by Ballad power systems. And my personal experiences.

[danscape]

Annapurna Circuit - Day 5 - Chame to Upper Pisang - 24/10/2018

TOOTHBRUSH SHARING | APPLE PIE | WILD WEST | OBAMA | SHITHEAD | STARS

9 Miles

5 Hours Walking + 1 Hour for Brunch

Starting Elevation 2700m

Finish Elevation 3250m

Average Temperature 23C (Low 18C - High 27C)

Average Heartrate 118bpm (Max 162bpm - 8% of day spent in Zone 3 or higher)

Day 5 on the Annapurna Circuit we said a final goodbye to the lush green valleys and entered the subdued rust coloured dryness of the high plains.

We setoff from sleepy Chame just before 7:30am. Our earliest start so far as we had the morning routine refined. We also wanted to try and arrive as early as possible in Pisang as we expected accommodation to be more in demand from here on out. Emerging from the narrow streets between guesthouses, we crossed the river and were surrounded by cloudless blue skies and snow-capped peaks.

The first part of the morning was a steady climb on a dusty dry track that weaved through the river valley. The vegetation was now much sparser, the thin needles of evergreen trees the only providers of shade along the paths. As the sun rose of the mountains, trees began to sparkle in the light and the temperature of the air rose just as the path became steeper. By this stage, we were hunkered below the vertical cliffs on this side of the river. Each corner revealed a new set of switchbacks stacked up another few meters above us.

The hard work and heat of the ascent were soon forgotten as with each step Annapurna II came further into view. It quickly became a distraction for me and my camera, rising to a sharp pinnacle 4000m above us. For a brief moment, a single cloud formed above a pinnacle on the ridge, crowning the beauty of the mountain. I was stopping often now waiting for the cloud to dance into new positions, hoping that it would align with the mountain to create a new photo opportunity.

Having put more meters of dusty inclines behind us, we reached a busy resting point at Agro Manang Farmhouse. It seemed there was a whole wave of trekkers here that we hadn’t encountered so far on the trail. Gathered outside the modern alpine styled cafe and lodge we rested on the wall to take on water and a snack. At this point, a trekker motioned to Ryan to ask if he could borrow what we thought meant toothpaste. Upon Ryan rummaging in his bag to share the toothpaste it became clear the stranger also wanted to use Ryan’s toothbrush, a request which was politely declined.

I don’t have strong memories from the next part of the trail, a lot of this morning’s steps were made on similar ground and my mind was mostly absorbed by the higher mountains rather than our immediate surroundings. We were making good progress and would reach our destination in the early afternoon so had no need to stop for lunch on the way. We did, however, get tempted to a stop at Dhukure Pokhari. The colourful teahouses advertising their rooftop seating where we could stare some more at the snow-capped peaks while enjoying tea and apple pie.

Leaving Dhukure Pokhari behind the short walk towards Upper Pisang was one of the most memorable sections of the whole trail. Almost as soon as we emerged from the village it seemed as though we had transported immediately to a different environment. It may be a somewhat lazy comparison but it felt like a wild west movie scene. The view opened up to a wide flat dusty plain, dotted with pine trees and tracks in all directions. A group of motorcyclists were concealed behind trees and howling into the open space, adding to the atmosphere. There was a sense of shock at being out in the open, having spent the last three days tucked into narrow valleys and concealed by trees. Now ahead of us was a wide view enticing us through the short grass.

This new world was fascinating to me. Behind us, a giant smooth slab of rock towered above us. From here it seemed so smooth that if you placed a stone at its summit and let go it would tumble down thousands of metered uninterrupted by any outcrops or loose rocks. No doubt the result of some tremendous collisions in the earth’s crust It was unlike any other geology I saw on the trek. The grasses and trees around us were new kinds of orange and yellow, with the white rocks of the pathways clearly marked through the undergrowth. The glacial blue of the river now seemed to come alive when surrounded by these subdued beige surroundings and we stopped at the water’s edge to take photographs.

Before reaching Upper Pisang the final piece of the wild west jigsaw was provided. A lone shack between the trees, and white horse slowly wandering through the landscape. There’s a kind of mental rush I experience when I feel like there are special photos to be made. It happened only a few times on the trek where I was able to leave behind thoughts of the walk itself and focused only on photography. This was definitely one of those moments. I was energised by the experience and happily bounded up the final part of the pathway into Upper Pisang and to our guesthouse for the evening.

Checking into a cramped 3-bed room at The Hill View Guesthouse we were soon tucking into lunch with a view of Annapurna II still at our backs. As the afternoon rolled by, more travellers checked in as the temperature began to fall with the fading of the sun. Before dinner, we decided to take the short walk downhill to Lower Pisang and enjoy tea with some fellow trekkers. The sun fades in a hurry when surrounded by giants and soon the last light was creating patches of warmth on the landscape as we crossed into Lower Pisang.

The climb back up the hill provided some bonus exercise at altitude before we showered and relaxed for the evening. We were joined by some familiar faces from the trail and also got to know some new ones. An American father who was trekking the circuit as a birthday present with his son was on the table next to us and were soon sharing their motivations for the journey. A lifelong dream being fulfilled by the father later in life, which made me feel lucky to be making this experience now and not having to wait and wonder if I’d manage to get here. The son had worked in the White House as part of the communications team for President Obama. The conversation skirted briefly around politics with a sudden jolt back to the real world far away. I was mostly pleased to have achieved a definite six degrees of separation to Obama, while sat around the stove here high in the Himalayas.

The evening passed by quickly as we tried to remember and argue over the rules to the card game ‘Shithead’. It was soon time to retire to the cold of the night, but before sleeping I decided to take a few photos of the stars now shining over Annapurna II. A little reminder than these giant mountains are still somewhat insignificant against a sky full of stars and unknown worlds.

[jessiewre]

Day 13

Fri 17th Jan 2020

We were up at 4:30am - oh joy of joys - and ready to go at 5am, so we headed down to the reception.

There was NO sign of a boda boda or even a member of staff.

Ahh bloody hell, we could not be arsed with this...

Phil went up to the dining area and luckily found a security dude to ask for help, and so this guy went off to find the boss.

He came back after 10 mins to say

‘I couldn't find him’

WICKED MATE THANKS.

Then he went off again.

After 5 minutes a SINGLE motorcycle arrived and Bugs the boss appeared.

ONE BIKE though.

Surely we could not fit on one bike.

What am I saying, this is UGANDA. They could fit the whole cast of Cats on one bike.

So Bugs handed us our pre-made breakfast takeaway and we BOTH had to get on ONE Boda with ALL OUR BAGS. It was a like a circus act.

The light on the boda was beyond terrible and so the ride in the dark took 50 mins all the while we were both silently clinging on, wishing the journey would just be over with. We went super super slow at one point and the guy was trying to sort of ski along the dusty road - good times - then some random dude pulled alongside us and was like 

‘You need help?’

But he had a DODGY vibe, I don’t know why, just didn’t seem genuine - then when we said ‘No thank!’ our driver stayed COMPLETELY silent which made us even more uncomfortable, like he was scared of him?? Though we can’t be sure if the early morning weird situation was just getting to our heads and making us paranoid.  

Then we got into town FINALLY and recognized the petrol station as we passed it from when we’d arrived the other day and breathed a sigh of relief that we were nearly ready to get off the bike...

But then we got to a super dark part of town where the weird guy who had followed us was suddenly there, and we realised the only bus of the day to go directly to Kabale had already GONE.

Feeling uncomfortable, I thought quickly and immediately said to our driver ‘Please take us to the petrol station actually, we go now to petrol station YEAH’

And we sped off and went to the glorious haven of a Total petrol garage.

The staff there were really nice and there was also a gloriously clean non-smelly toilet WITH LOO ROLL. Pure luxury.

We sat at the station and talked to them there, trying to work out the best plan and one guy went and got us chairs. Was so nice. We even got an early morning call from Hillary to see if we had got the bus ok (we’d asked him the night before about travel advice) and he tried to help us with advice too.

Then a boda went off and found us a bus and bought it back to us to pick us up and all in all we only waited about half an hour before we went East to a random place called Rukingara. Didn’t need to go there but it would hopefully offer us up more options for onward travel.

On that journey Phil slept the WHOLE way while we went through so many villages & in each one you could see people queuing up with their big water containers at the village water tap, children and adults of all ages trying to get some water. In one village it clearly wasn’t working as there was a huge pile up of containers and people trying to fix it. Imagine having to do that.

We passed some young children trying to wrangle like 10 goats on leads, then a man sat behind me started to touch my HAIR (it wasn’t, like, terrible as he was super friendly and maybe had just never seen muzungu hair in real life before, and wanted to see what it felt like, and ok why am I making excuses for this) and also the driver stopped at one point and got out for a wee and so did Phil and the vehicle started to ROLL DOWN THE ROAD so I grabbed the wheel and started to try and steer it while he ran along and jumped in to push the brakes. He casually looked at me smiling and was like ‘Ah, hand brake don’t work!’.

The rest of the vans customeers were loving it though, they saw my cat-like reactions and thought it was impressive I think. Ok maybe they just thought it was funny that the muzungu with the weird hair slightly potentially panicked.

At Rukingara we found another crummy bus going directly to Kabale which was great, Wow we thought we were doing amazing, it was only 9:30am. 

The bus from Rukungari to Kabale should have been about 2 hours.

3 hours maximum.

So yeah the journey took 4.5 hours and it was soooooo annoying, Phil was ready for a meltdown. It took 30 mins to leave the actual bus station despite telling us we would leave in 5 minutes (not that we ever believe it when they say that, but still), then they kept stopping constantly, sometimes for aaaaggees, lots of shouting, it would empty of people and then fill up wiith like 50 people, at one point we were nearly the only ones on the bus so they drove around shouting KABALE! to try and get more customers and honestly it was just so boring. It’s the constant stopping and waiting without any idea of what is going on. 
The real problem was that we were not just letting it be what it is, these buses are always like this and we just need to let them do their thing. But the early morning stress had put us in a far from tolerant mood so it was definitely harder to be mindful in that moment. Plus Phil had a bit of the journey with his legs bent up towards him and I think they went numb for a short while so...we’ll allow the near meltdown on this occasion.

We FINALLY reached Kabale not a moment too soon and had arranged to meet Hillary as he was in town. It was only 1:30pm at this point but felt like 5pm.

We got off the bus and GUESS WHO WAS THERE STRAIGHT AWAY.

Yes of course, the annoying taxi guy (still do not know his name, deliberately forget it every time I hear it).

Like ok this was getting freaky now, why was he EVERYWHERE WE WENT.

We ushered him and everyone else away and went to Skyline restaurant to meet Hillary.

After 5 minutes, the taxi guy appeared wandering down the street looking around and spots me and walks over all like ‘Hi where are you going, how was Ishasha’.

For frigs sake like GO AWAY MATE.

So I said ‘We will call you if we need you OK thank you bye’.

Lunch buffet vegetarian style was beans, chips, rice, potatoes and veg, some of which were sour as fook, so basically I just ate carbs. Hillary arrived and we treated him to lunch on us with a coke and he seemed pleased. We wanted to thank him for all his help. The extremely camp waiter asked me to organise him a job in England which I politely explained might not really be possible but I told him to give me a call if he managed to sort it and get to England. Good luck to the guy.

Turned out we’d missed the nice bus direct to the Rwanda border by 15 minutes so we headed to the only other option we knew about - Bizmarken Buses.

We waited at this mosquito infested bus office for over 1 hour, then a total downpour of rain arrived and we felt grateful to be inside, but then after much pressing from Phil, the bus guy revealed the bus was STILL 1.5 hours away - so we decided to call it a day and find a hotel. It was a relief to make that decision, was nearly 4pm by this point and we didn’t want to arrived in a new place super late and in the dark and blah blah.

We got a boda boda to Hillary’s recommendation of Kwanzi hotel but they only had a dorm room and there were no mosquito nets or WiFi and obviously it wasn’t private and even though we were knackered and massively couldn’t be bothered to move, we just thought Naaaaahhhhh.

But we managed to get ourselves another couple of boda boda and went to Kings Hotel Kabale which was pretty tired looking, but actually fine. No WiFi, but an amazing shower weirdly - the best so far, what a surprise - and some beautiful hanger art where they had hung 1 hanger onto another hanger which was then hung onto another hanger, on a towel peg. Wow. Really. Wow.

We walked round to the bus station to try and find a new solution for our destination-Rwanda conundrum and met another bloke called Hillary (lets call him Hillary 2) who told us he could organise a shared car for us at 8am the next morning. It’s easy to be suspicious of everyone but we decided we liked him and thought frig it, better than the other morning option we’’d heard about - standing on the roadside at 6am hoping a big bus would pass, flagging it down and hoping it had seats. No thanks.

We got a boda up to a place called Miami restaurant and Phil’s first words were ‘This looks dung’, so we walked to Cafe Barista and saw muzungus sat outside - a very cliche sign that the food is going to be ok, or at least stomachable.

The first thing I spotted on the menu was Irish Balls - NO LIE. But we ended up ordering a pasta dish, a veg biryani and then Mexican Irish potato dish plus guacamole. I don’t know what we were thinking, but basically we had a carb party and it was fantastic.

Walked it off by going by foot to our lovely glorious hotel and watched dubbed Indian soap operas before heading to bed hoping that Hillary number 2 was not a con artist and would come good in the morning.

[thehikingnerd]

Day 103.

 At about 6:30am I woke up to the sound of a truck leaving the ranch property.  We were sleeping just outside their barbwire fence in our tents in what could be described as a ditch, and they easily could have and probably did see us camped there under the trees and behind a thin vail of brush.  I can’t be sure if they saw us or not, but they didn’t stop and try to say anything or run us off.  Either way, we soon packed up, had some breakfast and were on our way, continuing on our long road walk.  Since the original 1800 mile marker of the PCT was unreachable and in the middle of a fire closure, at the same latitude (best I could tell on the map/gps app) I drew my own mile 1800 marker in the gravel at the side of the road.  We continued on and eventually began to run short on water yet again, this road walking was more of a pain in the ass for getting water than I ever would have imagined.  I guess I figured there would be more gas stations and convenience stores along the way, but there was a real lack of these most of the time. We were both about out when we came to another parking lot day use area near highway 62.  Out of desperation I asked a nearby construction worker for some water and he thankfully gave us some. As we drank the water, we rested under the shade of the shelter they had there near the entrance with all of the maps and information.  Then two forestry/fire service trucks pulled in and after talking with them a bit they gave us like 10 bottles of water and a bunch of cold Powerades. Pretty awesome trail/road magic that hit the spot and helped us out.  We now had rested and had everything we needed to keep heading toward Crater Lake.  We eventually get to the sign for Crater Lake National Park and keep going for about 10 miles before we reach Mazama.  All along the way we see workers dealing with brush and trees; efforts to mitigate the fire damage and prevent it from spreading in this area I assumed.  They were cutting most of the smaller trees in the area and stacking them in piles by the roadside.  We stopped to talk to one fire worker about everything that was going on with the fires and to see if he had any info that would be important for us to know. He Showed us a big map of all the fires in the area and even gave a us a couple of more Gatorades before we headed further up the road.  We hadn’t walked very far before Dixie perk and milestone passed by us in an SUV.  They had hitched from the other end of the fire closure into Crater Lake and were heading to the campground there.  They turned around on the road and we didn’t even know it was them until they came back with hands sticking out the window as they approached handing us out some good beers, Reese’s Cups, Snickers, and peaches.  These were all welcomed road/trail magic, but the peaches in particular were amazing.  We chatted a bit, they offered us a ride (but of course Butt’rs and I had to walk to connect our footsteps, so we declined) and then they drove on to the campground.  We continued to eat and drink as we walked, and soon, another fire-worker stopped and gave us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches... this brought our total today up to 5 times we received trail/road magic!! Although road walking has its clear drawbacks, it definitely has its perks as well lol. We still had about 4.5 miles and planned to see Dixie and the rest in about an hour and a half at the campground/restaurant.  As the sun lowered, it lit up the smoke-filled air in a warm orangish yellow glow that was pretty amazing to see. And the scenery itself was starting to change as we could see deep ravines from the road and hear a river down at the bottom. It was so tiring there by the end, but I finally made it to our destination only to see no sign of Dixie at the restaurant.  I came back around the outside of the restaurant and saw that Butt'rs had made it in just a few minutes behind me. We checked out the store there and walked into the campground area to look for them all, and to find the PCT campsite.  But the place was huge, and we were already beat and kind of wanted to just be done walking for the day. So we went back to pay to sleep in the campground and asked them where the PCT site was since we couldn’t’ find it on our own, it was seriously one of the largest campgrounds I’d ever seen. We finally found it and dropped off our bags and went to the restaurant to eat dinner as at this point we still had no sign of the others and were honestly a bit annoyed and puzzled that they were nowhere to be found and had not left us any word of where they were or what had happened to them.  With no cell service and no battery on Chinese Valentine’s Day, I waited there at the restaurant for my battery to charge enough to just get into the green range and then went to the by then already closed general store so that I could connect to the wifi network at the picnic area out front.  I had no choice but to pay online to use their wifi, so I bought an hour of wifi connection and then finally was able to message Angie and Facetime for the holiday J. After a good conversation and getting to catch up and see one another, I went back to a restroom and left my battery pack to charge overnight.  I finally went to bed at around 11pm after having to set up in the dark.

[beyondlimitsonfoot]

Originally hiked:  6/2/2019

This past weekend I went on a solo hike in our backyard mountains to Eagle Rock.  Haven’t been hiking The last time I went hiking was Baden-Powell about a month ago which I haven’t written a blog yet, but I did put together a youtube vlog of the hike.  Check it out if you have a second.  There are several ways to visit Eagle Rock in the Santa Monica Mountains.  If you are looking to do a close by hike if you live in the area, this is a good training hike.  The easier route is actually from Trippet Ranch ($10 parking or park outside the park for a longer hike).

What’s in this Guide?

Hike Stats – Mileage, elevation gain, map of hike, weather

Directions – quick write-up on how to get to the trailhead

What to Pack – some gear, map and food recommendations

Blabbering – best part of the write up, my pictures and thoughts of the hike

1. Hike Stats

Location Mileage Elevation Gain Type Santa Monica Mountains 7.24 mi 1556 feet Out-and-back

map of hike

weather

Topanga – Weather Forecast

I ended up taking a rain jacket because the forecast stated that there was a chance of light rain.  I didn’t end up using it at all, but better to be safe then sorry.

2. Directions

To get to the trailhead –

From I-10 W, continue onto CA-1 N (Pacific Coast Highway), turn right onto Sunset Blvd. about 4.4 miles from I-10 W.  Drive 0.4 miles and turn left onto Palisades Dr.  Continue on Palisades Dr. for 2.5 miles until you hit Vereda De La Montura, turn left.  The trailhead is on the right, there is a sign that notates “Santa Ynez Canyon Trail”.  There is parking on the street, but not overnight – make sure you read the signs before you go.

3. What to Pack?

Since I did a day hike and it was very local, I packed minimally.  Here are some of the items that I took on this hike:

Backpack: Osprey Hydration Pack

Hiking Poles: REI Co-op Carbon Trekking Poles

Hydration Reservoir: Osprey Hydraulics Reservoir 2.5 L

First Aid Kit: Adventure Medical Kits Ultralight

Headlamp: Black Diamond Storm Headlamp

Hiking Shoes: KEEN Targhee II Mid Waterproof Hiking Boot

Satellite Messenger: Garmin inReach Exporer+

GPS Watch: Garmin Fenix 5X Plus+

Rain Jacket

Toilet paper/ziplock

Knife

Food

To-Go Wrap: Recipe

Mozarella cheese stick

Starkist Salmon Creations Lemon Pepper & Mayonnaise

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Check out a little more gear I have currently on my What’s in My Backpack Page& some Backpacking Gear Ideas.

4. My Blabbering

Before I get into blabbering a little more about this hike, why don’t you take a look at the YouTube video I put together for this hike.

I had been sick all week and was itching to get outdoors and decided that it was going to be for a hike not too far away from home.  I’ve done part of this trail before and thought it would be cool if there would be water in the creek and wanted to check it out.

The start of a local hike

I was the second car parked for the trailhead, which is awesome and that’s why I got there just after 6:30am.  As I finished off my coffee from Starbucks, I turned on the Garmin inReach because there was no service in the area.  Once I got it working, I sent a message to a couple people that I was beginning my hike.  When I send the message it sends the location I sent it from as well; one of the reasons having a satellite communicator is something I recommend anyone who goes outdoors and is out of cell phone range.

When you begin the trail there is a little pavement that later disappears into a single track dirt trail.  The first portion of the trail is all flat and goes alongside the creek.  I had to cross the creek several times, but to my knowledge there hasn’t been so much water that you would get wet.

I passed a sign that says “Waterfall” about 0.6 miles.  The trail eventually ascends up the side of the canyon and out into the open around 1.5 miles.

For the first 2.8 miles of the hike I did not see one soul.  And the thing about being the first person on the trail especially at this time of year is that you will hit a ton of spider webs.  For this reason, my hiking poles became my best friend on this hike.

At about 2 miles you will hit the Eagle Rock Canyon Fire Rd.  Not quite a trail, but still a great place to get a 360 degree view of the surrounding area.  This portion of the trail seems to be flat at first, but to reach Eagle Rock there is still about 700 feet elevation gain, however it’s very gradual.  At this point, I saw way too many people for my liking on a hike, but what can I expect when I’m in Los Angeles area.

I stood on Eagle Rock at a good time because I was the only one who ended up going to it.  There were several other people around with just different destinations.  The rock itself is made of sandstone, if you climb onto it, you can get quite a view of the area.

A little background

The original name of Eagle Rock was “Elephant Rock”, mainly because the way it looks to the human eye is like an elephant head when standing on the north side.

I bet if it was a clearer day I would have had some ocean views.  I quickly ate a little of my To-Go Wrap before I headed back down before even more crowds would show up.

On my way down

On my way out once I got back onto Santa Ynez Canyon Trail, I had a good mile or so that I didn’t see anyone on the trail.  I hadn’t hiked this long in a while, so my legs were definitely getting tired once I hit the 6 mile mark.  I finally ran into a couple families along the way just near the trailhead.  There was a group of teenagers who were hiking in and the last of them had a stick he was holding and asked me if I wanted to switch.  At first I didn’t get it, but it was a joke to switch my poles with his stick.  I said “good one”.  Thought it was a funny little story to share with you all.

All in all great hike to go on if you’re just trying to get a quick morning hike or afternoon hike in.

Happy Adventures,

Annette, Adventurer – Beyond Limits on Foot

Related links

Before I go on a hike I always check some other peoples write-ups.  Here are some others you may want to check out to read further:

Hikespeak – Eagle Rock from Trippet Ranch in Topanga State Park

Hiking Project – Eagle Rock Loop

SoCalHiker – Eagle Rock in Topanga State Park

Modern Hiker – Eagle Rock and Temescal Peak

Well I hope you loved reading along.  If you want to check out more on the hike, don’t forget to check my YouTube channel here: Beyond Limits on Foot YouTube Channel.

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Eagle Rock via Santa Ynez Canyon Trail - Santa Monica Mountains Originally hiked:  6/2/2019 This past weekend I went on a solo hike in our backyard mountains to Eagle Rock. 

[secndlife]

sun&moon | 4.

pairing: jackson x reader x jinyoung

genre: soulmate!au, college!au, fluff, angst, eventual smut? everything basically

summary: she has always trusted fate. she was destined to someone and she was determined to find it. she found herself wrapped in hands that feel warm like the sun, but that belonged to someone else. she keeps on looking, only to find out that her fate had been watching over her, just like the moon.

word count: 4.1k

warnings: none i guess? just some angst,,,,

playlist

masterlist

You found yourself once again waking up in the comfort of Jackson’s presence. His arm was wrapped loosely around your waist, keeping you close enough to make sure you were still there. You opened your eyes slowly, adjusting to the light, and sighed softly at the feeling of his chest against your back. You reached your arm to grab your phone on Jackson’s nightstand - 10:30am. You tried closing your eyes, but you knew you weren’t going to be able to sleep anymore so you just decided to get up. You slowly removed Jackson’s arm from you, being careful not to wake him up, resting his hand against the mattress softly and sat up on the edge of the bed, stretching your body. You were actually feeling pretty good for a morning after.

You looked back at Jackson’s peaceful features, hair slightly messy and chest rising and falling as if nothing could ever bother him. Your eyes then landed on his hand, sprawled across the bed, wrist facing down, a thin diamond chain resting against his tanned skin. Your heart suddenly started beating faster - he probably had the initial tattooed by now. Was it on that wrist or on the one that was trapped between his bed and pillow? Could he feel it, being etched against his skin? Or was it painless? Was it your initial? Was it someone else’s? That mere thought alone made you wanna throw up. What the fuck? You didn’t even have feelings for Jackson, did you? It shouldn’t matter who’s initial was on his wrist. Right? You wanted to look so bad, so so bad - it would affect you too, maybe in more than one way.

You touched his hand lightly, fingers soft along his skin. No, you wouldn’t do that, you wouldn’t invade Jackson’s privacy like that. You shook your head and got off the bed, Jackson’s still peacefully sleeping, painfully unaware of everything that was going on through your head right now. You grabbed one of his sweatpants and dressed, getting your hair in a ponytail before grabbing your phone and going downstairs for some coffee.

You closed the door behind yourself quietly and made your way to the kitchen. Once you were at the bottom of the stairs, you found Jaebum on his phone, flopped down the couch, the TV on as white noise. When he heard the footsteps, he looked at you with a calm smile.

“Morning,” you said, walking towards the couch and taking the seat beside him.

“Sleep well?” Jaebum had now a smirk on his face.

“Shut up,” you bumped his shoulder lightly, your cheeks getting warm. “Is anyone else up?”

“Hm,” he hummed. “Jinyoung’s in the kitchen making coffee to cure his hangover, Mark and Jisoo left early to go get breakfast at this new place and Youngjae went out for a run.”

“How the fuck is this house this clean after last night?” you said, looking around. When you were leaving for bed last night it seemed like a tornado had hit the place and now it looked as clean as ever.

“Jackson hired a cleaning staff - it was our condition for him to throw a party that big. They got here around 7 and I had to get up to let them in,” Jaebum said, making it seem as if that was the most normal thing in the world.

You raised an eyebrow, “And he just accepted it?”

Jaebum just stared at you like you’ve said an absurd, “C’mon Y/N, you know him.” He almost snorted, rolling his eyes at the memory of Jackson’s fit.

“Guess he made a big drama about it then.” You slightly laughed.

“Of course he did, he just didn’t have a choice. And he has the money so,” Jaebum said, shrugging, his eyes still on his phone.

You laughed softly, “Yeah, he does.” Jackson was one of those rich kids that wear their money on their teeth and you never really notice because of how humble they are.

“Is he up yet?” Jaebum asked, plopping his feet against the coffee table in front of him.

You shook your head, “Nope, peacefully sleeping.” Your voice couldn’t help but waver in a soft smile at the image etched into your brain of the peaceful boy against the white pillows.

Jaebum scratched the back of his head, “Did you… perhaps... see anything?”

You lowered your head, knowing what he was talking about. You could bet everybody was currently talking about Jackson’s soulmate tattoo. It was hard not to. This was a once in a lifetime moment and, like it or not, it could change a lot of people’s lives.  “No,” a heavy sigh escaped your lips. “I mean, I kinda wanted to, but… it’s not my tattoo to see.” You threw your hair out of your face, trying to convince yourself of that.

“Have you two talked about it?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean.” Jaebum was no Jinyoung, but he also knew you very well from being longtime friends even though you two weren’t the closest. He gave you a knowing look, raising his eyebrows, looking at his own wrist.

You sighed, shaking your head. “Not really, he just said he wouldn’t mind if my initial showed up on his wrist and I said the same…” You now wondered if you truly felt that, but the butterflies in your stomach were pretty convincing. “But now I don’t really know what’s gonna happen,” you said, voice filled with uncertainty and a bit of worry.

Jaebum looked at you, “Guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” you trailed off. “Anyway, I’ll go check up on Jinyoungie,” you said, getting up and smiling at Jaebum. “He’s been awfully quiet.” Jaebum had this weird and borderline concerned look on his face, watching you get up from the couch. “What?”

“Nothing. Go get your coffee.” Jaebum got up from the couch too, “I have to take care of some stuff, tell the boys I’ll be back later.”

You nodded at Jaebum. You didn’t believe him for a second, but you knew him - you knew he wasn’t going to say anything so you just went to the kitchen. He would open up to someone eventually, probably Jinyoung. When you got there, you saw Jinyoung sitting on a bench, elbows resting against the kitchen counter, hands holding his face and closed eyes. His skin was pale, his hair twisted as if he had been woken up by a robbery. Well, he looked like a mess.

“Hi, Jinyoungie,” you said softly, leaning against the counter next to him.

He opened his eyes immediately, looking startled, “Fuck. You scared me.”

You smiled softly at your friend, moving and taking the seat across him, not caring about laughing at his scared face. “Sorry. How you feeling?”

“Like shit,” he took a sip of his coffee, the twist of the corner of his mouth showing you it probably wasn’t helping much with his hangover. “You shouldn’t have let me drink that much.”

“I tried, even though you told me more than once not to stop you,” you said, pouring yourself some coffee. You then noticed a plate with a bunch of toasts, some bacon, and eggs, “Did you cook this? Can I eat some?”

Jinyoung side eyed you, “We both know you’re gonna eat it regardless of what I say.” He shrugged.

You scoffed. “Stop, I’m not like that”, you said while grabbing a toast and putting some butter on it. You licked your fingers with the remains of crumbs on it.

“Yeah, I can tell.” Even with a hangover, Jinyoung was as snarkiest as ever. He closed his eyes again and rested his head on the counter, “My head hurts so much.”

You finally took a bite of your toast, the salty taste making you hum in delight, “I guess it’s not a good time to talk about it then.”

“Talk about what?” His voice was muffled by his arms - they seemed to be keeping his head safe from whatever noise or light that could hurt him.

“About what made you drink that much last night,” you said, voice soft. You didn’t want to pressure him, but you knew he was going through something and the thought of him going through anything alone made you uncomfortable.

“I already told you, I was stressed over finals and graduation, that’s all.” His voice sounded almost rehearsed as if he had been telling that so much it sounded like a robot was talking back to you.

“Look at me, Jinyoungie,” you demanded. He wasn’t actually good at hiding things from you, especially when you were making eye contact.

Jinyoung raised his head with an unamused look, “Why can’t you just believe me?” You focused on his irises, blown up and his eyes red from sleep. He had dark circles around them but they still looked as bright as normal.

“Because I know you enough to know you’re lying,” you said, staring at him, lips shaped in a thin line. You were tired of feeling like he was pushing you away. He was your best friend, and you trusted him with your life and feeling as if he couldn’t do the same was breaking you.

His eyes were locked on yours now, a tiny sigh escaping his lips, “It’s nothing, Y/N, I mean it.” You could see the worry and the pain behind his eyes, you could see that he was struggling. Why couldn’t he let you help him?

You now had a pout on your face, “Why won’t you talk to me about it? I know something else has been bothering you.”

“I just -” Jinyoung’s words died down on his throat and now he looked like he had seen a ghost, eyes trapped behind you.

You turned around, confused as to what he was seeing, and then you saw Jackson standing in the kitchen doorway.

You took a deep breath. “H-hi Jacks,” voice barely a whisper. Your heart was racing now, you could feel it pulsing against your rib cage, pressing against your lungs.

Jackson’s eyes were locked in yours, a small smile on his face, “Hi Y/N. Morning Jinyoungie.” He didn’t even dare to look at the boy, his eyes too entangled in you.

Jinyoung didn’t say anything, he just nodded at his friend. His throat felt dry and the words wouldn’t climb through there even if he wanted them to.

“So…” Jackson said, still staring at you. A small smile on the corner of his lips as if you told him the cutest joke.

“So?” you said, scared to even breathe too deep.

“Why did you do it?”

You frowned, confused, “Do what?”

“Wrote your initial on my wrist,” Jackson said like it was the most obvious answer. “I know what I said, but this is a new type of humor to you.”

Your eyes went wide and the room was suddenly too small, too tight for you to be in there. Was this really happening? You heard Jinyoung choking behind you.

“And you even used a permanent marker because I tried so hard to wash it out and I couldn’t,” he continued. “Now it’s all red and irritated.”

“Holy shit,” Jinyoung whispered behind you. His head suddenly felt even heavier and his heart was clenching. He could feel the breath being sucked out of his lungs and he couldn’t swallow any, his chest feeling tighter.

Jackson’s gaze was firm and intense. You couldn’t breathe, you felt your face getting warmer and warmer - your cheeks were probably burning red.

You swallowed, “I didn’t do anything, Jackson.”

Jinyoung felt small, insignificant in the middle of all this. He just wanted to leave this fucking room. Why does he feel like he’s about to be sick? It has to be the hangover. His mind is running in circles and he can’t gather enough strength to leave,

“I felt something in my hand earlier, it was you writing it down wasn’t?” Jackson looked so certain that that’s what had happened and that made you even more confused.

“Why would I even do that?” You sounded like you had just run a marathon, chest heavily breathing.

Jackson then walked towards you, stopping mere inches away, wrist held up and that’s when you saw it for the first time. It was your initial - it was small, but you could clearly see it, ink strong and imprinted on his skin. Out of instinct, you raised your hand to touch it, but something stopped you. You couldn’t move your arm and your hand started shaking.

Jinyoung saw it too and he felt like he just had to leave. The scene in front of him looked to intimate, he felt like an intruder, like he belongs anywhere but there at that moment. His stomach suddenly made a noise.

“I’m gonna throw up,” he said, quickly getting up from the chair and running to the kitchen sink. That caused you and Jackson to finally break the eye contact and look at the boy leaning against the sink, throwing up with an ugly gross sound.  

You quickly looked back at Jackson before going to Jinyoung on the sink. You patted your friend’s back while he coughed, “I’m seriously never letting you drink this much again.”

All that came out from Jinyoung’s lips was a painful hum, his hands on the sides of the sink, mouth bitter and stomach growling. His head was fully spinning, he’d never had a hangover this bad. I mean, that’s what that was, right? A terrible massive hangover. He was never going to drown his feelings in alcohol again. But what was he even feeling, though? It was stress, right? It had to be.

“Are you done?” you asked softly, hands still on his back for support, rubbing softly. Jackson was suddenly next to the two of you, a glass of water and paper towels in hand.

Jinyoung slowly raised his body and Jackson offered him the paper towels. He gave his friend a tiny smile and took the material, cleaning the sides of his mouth. His fingertips were blue and he felt as if he could faint.

“Water?” Jackson asked, raising his right hand, tattoo exposed for everyone to see. You stared at it, heart clenched and not quite sure where your feelings were at the moment. It was so weird to see your initial etched on his golden like skin. Sure, you told Jackson you wouldn’t mind and you truly didn’t - he was nice, very good looking and you two had great chemistry, but you just couldn’t risk everything by being with someone and it not being you in the end. You felt like you were moving towards the sun and you couldn’t bring yourself to stop getting closer, but eventually, it’d burn, right? It would, so you’d have to distance yourself for safety reasons. But what if it didn’t burn? What if you were just as hot? What if, a few months from now, his initial showed up at your wrist? But there was no certainty, at least not now. This was so confusing, you felt lost.

“Yeah, thanks,” Jinyoung said, bringing you back to what was happening. He took the glass from Jackson’s hand and slowly drank the liquid. You finally looked away from Jackson’s wrist to look at your best friend with a soft expression.

“Feeling any better?” you asked him.

No. Jinyoung was for sure not feeling any better. In fact, after seeing Jackson’s wrist up close, he felt even worse. God, what was happening? He breathed in slowly, “Yeah, I just need to sit down for a while,” and then moved to sit back down on the bench he was sitting before.

You and Jackson were still close to the sink, the tension so palpable in the room you could probably cut it with a knife.

“So…” Jackson trailed off once again.

“I didn’t do it, I mean it,” you said, biting the insides of your cheek and head facing the floor, that suddenly seemed really interesting.

Jinyoung convinced himself he was feeling good enough to get up so he could finally fucking leave. He started to get up and spoke up, “I’ll leave you two alone, you seem to have a lot to talk about.”

“No,” you said, a bit too loud. Both boys stared at you, who was still looking down. You couldn’t see their faces, but you were pretty sure they were confused. You were too - you didn’t know what made you want to stop Jinyoung from leaving. “I-I mean… you just threw up, just stay there for a while, you’re weak.”

Jinyoung was confused - yeah, he had just thrown up, but he wasn’t weak. At least the thought so. He really didn’t want to be there for the conversation that was about to happen, but how could he go after you asked him to stay? The answer’s simple: he can’t, he won’t. He sat back down, defeated, and rested his head on his arms as if he could somehow cover himself up.

Jackson swallowed hard. Why couldn’t you have this conversation with just him? It didn’t make any sense. To be honest, in his head nothing made sense. He swore you wrote your initial on his skin as a joke, but now that he touched it again, with soft fingers, it felt very much real. His heart was all over the place, but somehow the thought of you being his soulmate calmed him down.

Silence suddenly took over the room - no one really knew what to say. You then felt a warm hand over yours, squeezing your fingers tightly. You didn’t need to look who it was - it was Jackson, the feeling of his touch being way too familiar at this point. And you knew it was his tattoo hand, making everything warmer.

“Go on a date with me,” he said, voice soft.

You finally looked at him again. When you stared at his eyes looked like happiness with a tint of hope, “W-what?”

“Yeah. I mean, we’ve been hooking up for months and we’ve never been on a real date. Let’s give this a shot, Y/N.”

You took a deep breath, Jackson’s intense gaze locked on yours, making every single piece of your body feel warm. “I don’t know, Jacks… How do I know that this,” you raised your hands together, reached for his wrist with the other one and traced the letter with the tip of your index finger - Jackson felt a shiver run through him, “is me?”

After thinking for a few seconds, he said, “You don’t, at least not for a while.” Jackson shrugged and gave you a beautiful smile, “You have to trust.”

You couldn’t help but smile softly at his words. Jinyoung then, head still low, let out a scoff.

“Help me out here, Jinyoungie,” Jackson said, pleading for his friend’s help. You raised your eyebrow and looked at your friend, that was still in the same position, head hidden between his arms.

Jinyoung wanted to kill you for asking him to stay for that conversation that felt way too much for his head - and maybe for his heart - when he was experiencing the worst hangover of his 22 years of living. He just wanted to leave. Maybe if he pretended he didn’t hear Jackson he wouldn’t have to say anything.

Jackson held your hand even tighter, an electric feeling running through your body, “Look, I’m not asking you to marry me or anything, I’m asking you on one date. Let me show you that I wanna make this work.”

You sighed heavily, “I don’t know, Jacks. I’m really…”

“You’re scared, I know. You might think I don’t, but I know you. And I know what happened before with your ex, but I’d never hurt you like that.”

Yeah, right, Jinyoung thought. He wished his ears had a button to turn them off so he wouldn’t have to listen to this conversation. Somehow listening to one of his closest friends trying to convince his best friend that the initial on his wrist really belonged to her made him want to dig a hole on the ground and stay there for the rest of his life. His head was messy, confused, and he couldn’t really figure out what was happening up there - none of this shitty morning made sense. Jinyoung wished, more than any other day, that he didn’t have any feelings. He was rational, he liked simple and direct things. Feelings? They were way too abstract, way too hard to figure out. Why did they even exist anyway? You’d say they did so we wouldn’t be like robots. But why couldn’t we? It’d be easier. Jinyoung irrationally let out a growl.

“It wouldn’t be up to you hurting me if we’re not soulmates,” you said with a small smile.

Jackson took a step closer, “Live up for once, Y/N. Let go. Let go with me.”

You stared at his eyes, they were dark, deep, inviting like a clear night sky - and something inside you made you wanna drown in whatever he had to offer. With your free hand, you caressed his cheek, “One date.”

Jackson opened the prettiest smile you’ve ever seen. Jinyoung felt like throwing up again.

“That’s all I’m asking,” Jackson said, smile still lingering in his lips. “I won’t lie though, I can’t promise you that this,” he pointed at your intertwined hands with his head, “is you for sure.”

“I know.”

He gave you a kiss on the cheek. “But I can promise I’ll take care of you,” he then let go of your hand and started to distance himself. “I’ll pick you up tonight at 8, dress fancy,” Jackson said, winking at you. “I have some things to do so I’m gonna take a shower.”

You nodded at him, “Ok, see you later.”

Jinyoung raised his head, being thankful that that fucking moment was finally over - but he was wrong, oh so wrong. Fuck.

Jackson came close to you once again, hands on each side of your face, “Thank you.” His lips were closer now, barely brushing against yours.

You closed your eyes, voice barely a whisper. “Yeah,” you leaned in, pressing your lips against his softly.

After a few seconds, he pulled away, smiling. “I’ll see you later, beautiful. And take care, Jinyoungie. I’ve never seen you this hangover,” he laughed.

Jinyoung raised his eyebrow at Jackson and lowered his head once again. Can’t this day just be over already? Can’t he just sleep ‘til he’s old? He was tired, exhausted even, in too many ways to count.

You nodded at Jackson, who walked away, leaving you and Jinyoung alone. You sat across him again, getting the toast you’ve once left behind, the other hand reaching for the top of your best friend’s hair.

“Jinyoungie…” you trailed off.

“What?” he murmured.

“Should I really do this?”

Jinyoung sighed, “Why shouldn’t you?”

“What if we’re not soulmates? I-I don’t want to put you through something like that again…” You sounded vulnerable, scared.

Jinyoung felt his heart drop. Among everything that could go wrong, your concern was giving him the trouble of helping you with another heartbreak. He raised his head and gave you a small smile, “You shouldn’t worry about me. I can handle you crying on my shoulder once again.” He could, or at least he thought he could. “Besides, you should try it… I mean, he really has your initial.” The moment those words left his lips, he felt his heart clench. What the fuck? What was even happening?

“I know. I’m just… afraid.”

“You can let go, Y/N. I’ll catch you if it ends badly,” he said, hand on top of yours and the most sincere smile in his face. He really would - he’d catch you in a heartbeat, how many times you needed him too. He’d pick up the pieces and put them back together, no matter what.

You squeezed his hand. “You better,” you said, smiling at him. “What’s the worst that can happen, right?”

“Right,” Jinyoung said. What was it? Jackson being your soulmate? Jackson not being your soulmate and you going through another Yoongi situation? Fuck. Jinyoung was confused. He shook his head as if the action would instantly remove those thoughts from his brain. “Ok, I’m gonna go take a nap. I really need it,” Jinyoung said, getting up.

“Yeah, I gotta go too. Did you see my bag?”

“At the living room.”

You gave Jinyoung a loud kiss on the cheek, “I love you, ok? Please, get some rest.”

He smiled at you, “I will”.

“Ok, talk to you later, Jinyoungie.” You grabbed your bag at the living room and left, taking one heart away with you.

a/n: first of all, i’m truly sorry about how long it took me to update. my life’s been crazy with graduating and working full time and i was just so tired that i didn’t feel insipired to write. somehow, for these past few days, i got this boom and finished this chapter off. thank you so much for being patient and for reading, this truly means a lot. a special thanks to all of my friends who helped me with this, but especially to @yoongitalks - thank you so much for improving my writing and for inspiring me, i love you a lot. i feel like the story’s shaping up now, so buckle up, we still have a long way to go! feedback’s always appreciated so my askbox is always open! again, thank you, from the bottom of my heart! and i hope it was worth the wait!

[arrianna21]

~Freedom Aligned~

Life as a Runner is not as easy as everyone thinks. While mostly consisting of being a courier that run on the rooftops to deliver packages and messages, it was important to always keep moving. When your hard ass mentor tells you to practice at the crack of dawn, he makes sure you put in the effort.

Game: Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst

Word Count: 4,742

You run.

Vaulting over the glass wall, you run past the fancy black couches accompanied by white tables.

Stopping at the outdoor patio, you admire the city skyline, the large bodies of water and trees unavailable to the rest of the citizens. It was beautiful. Unlike the quiet breath of life, neon billboards and neverending power of technology could not compare to the sight in front of you.

Tranquil environments, like the one before you, was something ordinary Employs did not experience; it was something you’d only seen once, maybe twice in your life. It had been some time since you made the choice to leave behind the life you once knew, only to give it all up to become an outcast.

You didn’t regret it. Not because you hated your life, no not that, rather it was because you didn’t want to be molded into whatever civilian society wanted you to be. Not after witnessing a Runner hide in your home while the police looked for them.  The blond’s nonchalant and almost cocky attitude was something you would never forget. While you had threatened to call the authorities, he called your bluff instantly, and patiently waited until said authorities called off the search. That had been five years ago and it was only until you became a Runner yourself that you would run into the same Runner again.

“Are you there yet?” an impatient voice asks in your earpiece.

“Almost.” You automatically respond, breaking out of your reverie as you continue making your way to your destination.

“Hurry up, it’s going to be morning soon.”

“It is morning, 4:30AM to be exact.” Thankfully the weather isn’t too chilly despite you being on the rooftops.

Yoongi, one of the best Runners, and also your mentor, wanted you to practice one of the dashes in Ocean View, a more affluent area in the city. Dashes were time trial exercises for Runners. They had to get to a certain point within a set time, but where that point was no one was told how to get there. It forces them to look for alternate routes when on missions.

While you had only seen Yoongi run a handful of times, the first one being your chance encounter, you knew enough to know that he was good and had definitely earned his high Runner status.

Running up the next wall, you stop in the shallow pond, having reached your destination. “Okay, I’m here.” You report.  

“About time. I sent the location to your map I want you to get there as fast as you can. Start whenever you’re ready.”

Checking the map, you pinpoint the little red arrow that wasn’t far from your starting point. Just jump across a couple of buildings and you’ll be there in no time.

You take off running, the clock starting automatically as you jump down onto the little walkway and barrel roll, ducking under the first vent. On the other end, there’s another vent you have to duck under and then you springboard off the glass railings.

Landing on the next building, you run through an extravagant waterfall, glowing lights changing colors as you pass by. You follow the hidden Runner symbols scattered along the path, inconspicuous red arrows guiding you. Running past more couches decorated with luxurious purple pillows, you hop over the glass barriers and run down a set of stairs, climbing up a wall and turning to springboard off of a potted plant. You run up another wall to get to the next floor, sprinting in between two glass gardens before grabbing on to a zip line. Sliding between the gap separating the section of buildings, you let go and climb some shorter walls until you turn the corner, finishing in another gorgeous glass garden.

“Done,” you pant.

“2 minutes and 10 seconds. You followed the arrows, didn’t you?”

“Well, yeah. I can’t take a shortcut on the other side of the building because there nothing there besides windows. It’s not like I’m going for 3 stars or the fastest time.” To be honest, you never really cared about being the fastest Runner, you just wanted to do some delivery and covert jobs because you enjoyed it. The Scrip that came with it was also nice too, as having some money helped keep you fed.

“Change of plans, your goal is to get 3 stars. To do that your time has to be 55 seconds exactly.” Yoongi tells you.

“55 seconds! How the hell am I supposed to do that?”

“Get creative,” is all he says.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” You mutter to yourself, but he still catches it. “Trust me, brat, I most certainly am not.”

And he very well meant it.

                                   ~*~

“Again,” Yoongi tells you.

“I got it down to 1 minute and 3 seconds! Isn’t that close enough?” you complain, slumping against the window of the white garden. Your body feels extremely hot from the workout and the cool glass feels wonderful on your skin. You didn’t know how many times you’ve run back and forth between the buildings.

“Close, isn’t going to cut it. Now get your ass back to the start and go again.”

“Considering the fact that I found the quickest, and possibly the only way to get here, I count that as a win.” You retort.

“After how many attempts?” he dryly asks. “It’s not my fault it took you so long to figure out that you should go through the building instead.”

“Do you not remember the last time I tried to take a shortcut through a house?”

You had been doing another dash similar to this one and you tried to save some time by going through someone’s apartment. Needless to say, you had accidentally destroyed their kitchen by landing on the dining room, which resulted in expensive dishes being broken.

“That was pathetic,” he snorts. “You should be lucky no one was home.”

“At least I didn’t take a break and lie in some poor girl’s bed,” you huff.

“You were fine. I’m sure you probably washed those precious sheets after I left anyway.” He counters. “At least I hope you did because they sure as hell didn’t smell pretty.”

“Oh, shut up!” you yell as you make your way back up to the start.

A few more tries later and you were finally under a minute, clocking in at 56 seconds. It was an improvement to say the least, but that was the fastest you could get, fluctuating between 56 and 58 seconds. Unless you stumbled or didn’t land a jump properly. You were very certain some parts of your body were bruised.

“Keep going.”

“Ugh, Yoongi.” You whine.

“Suga,” he interjects. Everyone had to call him Suga when talking online because the more notorious Runners had to remain anonymous in their identity, just in case.

“Suga, I can’t get any faster. I’m taking all the shortcuts and even perfected the landings. It’s not possible.”

There’s silence on the other end. “Fine. Then you’re not going on the mission.”

“What?”

“If you can’t get 3 stars on a simple dash, then you’re not cut out for a mission.”

You say nothing before you sigh harshly, breath turning into a low growl as you run back to the start.

“Asshole,” you grumble.

“Brat,” he fires back.

Using your MAG rope to grapple the side of the building, pulling you up so you can go back to the start. At this point, you wouldn’t be surprised if you could do the run blindfolded. Almost blindfolded, you correct to yourself when you climb up the enclosed garden and step around the open gap in the ceiling, remembering how you missed seeing it that last time.

“You know I have to do the mission for Agust,” you say to him, running up the wall.

“Yeah, I know. Why do you work for that prick again?”

Agust was the underground crime boss of Glass. There was speculation that he was Dogen’s successor to help keep the business alive, but no one knows for sure. From what you could gather from the few times you’ve been in contact with him, was that he has no allegiance to anyone. Granted, he seemed to be a little more lenient/sympathetic to the rebels, but again, it’s only an assumption. Everything about the man could only be guesses and rumors because no one has ever seen him, not even the people who exclusively work for him.

“Isn’t it obvious? He pays good Scrip and money is money. Plus, I think I’m one of the only Runners he trusts, considering the others rarely do missions for him. At least someone has faith in me.” The last sentence being muttered under your breath.

“I do have faith in you,” he argues, “I just push you because I know you’re capable of doing better. Besides, if you need Scrip-”

“No!” automatically shooting down his offer. “I’m not desperate and I don’t want to take money that you earned. I’ll get to 55 seconds one way or another so don’t worry about it.”

Once you get back to the start you immediately begin running the way you came. This time you adjust your route along the way. While you enter the building and jump down, when you get to the glass gardens you instead hop over the railing before it rather than vaulting up to the roof. You land better as a result, rushing to get to the zip line and spring boarding past the tree before scaling another wall. Running around the corner to get to the end, you immediately check your time in anticipation.

55.27 seconds.

“Yes, I got it!” you cheer, though your happiness is short lived by a crackle in your ear.

“Not quite. You barely missed the 3-star mark so do it again.”

“Oh no, you don’t You said 55 seconds and I would be done! Do you not see the two fives next to each other?” you point madly at the numbers even though you know he can’t see them.

“I told you that to get 3-stars, you needed to get 55 seconds exactly. And even then that’s cutting it close by a few milliseconds.” Yoongi informs you.

“You’re mean.”

“I’ve been called worse.”

Half a dozen attempts later and you were still stuck. Even going through the same motions wouldn’t reward you with a victorious finish. It wouldn’t be long before people and guards start moving out and about, going on with their day or surveying the area for Runners.

At one point, you even waited 5 minutes before starting the stopwatch and stood around for 55 seconds. Your scheme doesn’t last long, being foiled 15 seconds later.

“If you were remotely smart, you would go off camera and pretend that you’re not trying to cheat.” Yoongi drawls.

You curse your stupidity, forgetting that Runners could hack into the cameras across the rooftops. It was even more embarrassing because there just so happened to be one pointed directly at you, your mentor watching through the lens.

While you walk back to the beginning, you make sure to flip your middle finger as well before disappearing out of the screen.

“Yeah, fuck you too, brat.”

As you return to the start, you remember the pathway and wonder how else you can improve your time. Going through the motions, you slide under the same two pipes you’ve seen plenty of times, but you change things up by staying to the left and jumping over the small glass barriers at the waterfall instead of going through the open middle. It results in getting your clothes wet, but you don’t care as long as you could save time.

You run past the same couches, cutting across the patio with big umbrellas and running through the same building. Leaping over the guardrail, you roll when you hit the ground and sprint past more fancy black couches. Vaulting over another barrier, you slide down the zip line and go in between familiar white trees before running up the last wall.

Your shoes slide on the slick floor, dislodging the leaves as they flutter around you as you run to the center of the garden. Panting, you check the time with mild trepidation.

54.57, a 0.70 difference.

“I did it. I actually did it, Suga!” you laugh breathlessly.

“Good,” is his praise. “Now I never want to hear some stupid bullshit about you not being able to do anything.”

“Got it. Wow, holy shit that was insane, but so exhilarating.” You let your body drop onto one of the sofas, pure relief overcoming you as exhaustion creeps in.

While lying down on the thick cushions, you watch the white leaves, colored pink by the purple lights, flutter through the gentle air until they touch the ground. The gentle wind breeze glides around the now tranquil and quiet space. No one was nearby, no voices at all, and you feel at peace.

If things were different, you might have envied the families who lived in these extravagant homes. Even though Runners have the ability to run and hide through the wealthy and modern houses, the owners didn’t care. Almost as if they enjoyed showcasing their fortune and wanted people to know it.

“Suga, do you ever wonder what it’s like to live on this side of town?” you abruptly ask, turning your gaze to the rotating camera scanning the area.

As much as you enjoyed the view, you would still rather live your life as a Runner, wanting to keep your freedom no matter what. Despite the money and fancy parties along with the high social status, you had no interest for it. These hiCastes were under heavy surveillance just like everyone else, if not more, being kept under a watchful eye by each other, enemies, and KrugerSec alike.

“Not really. Too pretentious if you ask me. Why, you thinking of moving to the rich part of town?” he scoffs and you snort in return.

“Hell no. I was just asking.”

“I’m sure it’s nice and all, but no thanks.”

“I don’t blame you. Living like a normal Employ while your every move is being watched and tracked? I’ll pass.”

You continue to bask in the early morning, relishing it while you can until the door leading to the rooftop garden slams open, the loud noise startling the birds in the trees and causing them to fly away. A group of men walk out and you climb over the back of the couch, hiding behind the furniture.

“What the hell?” you say when you see the group of guards surround a disheveled man in a suit.

“What is it? Why’re you hiding behind the couch?” The door is right under the camera so the Runner can’t get a good view.

“A bunch of KrugerSec are messing with someone, a hiCaste I think.”

“Can you get out of there without being seen?”

You take a quick peek around the side before quickly reeling back upon seeing the figure shrouded in black.

“No, I can’t. There’s a Sentinel.”

Sentinels were the highest trained guards in KrugerSec and they were extremely difficult to fight. Not only were they strong, they were also fast, easily able to dispatch a person or Runner in the blink of an eye.

“Shit! Stay out of sight. Wait till they leave and then get the hell out of there.”

“Why would they be messing with a hiCaste? It doesn’t make any sense.”

“I don’t know, but it’s not our problem.”

“Please, just give me more time. I can get all the information, but it’s not easy.” The man tells them, fear evident in his voice. It was shocking because you’ve never heard a hiCaste beg. Then again their lives were hardly ever in danger.

“We don’t want to hear any more excuses! You’ve already the Conglomerate once and it’s rare that they give second chances.” One of the guards tells him and you hear a grunt as the man is shoved.

Leaning around the arm rest you count the guards. One Sentinel, one Enforcer, and two Guardians. Minus the Sentinel, you could take them out easy.

The man rights himself and stands up straighter, an act of faux bravery, as he glares at the guard. “You can’t do this. I’ve given almost all the documents, pulled all the strings I can, and used over half of my resources. I may work for the Conglomerate, but I still have power.” His words are meant to be threatening, but his voice undermines them by wavering.

“Unless the Conglomerate think you’ve gone deviant. Then your services would no longer be needed.” The Enforcer pats his gun lightly, a menacing reminder not to rebel. “Come with us peacefully and we’ll sort this out shortly.”

“They’re gonna take him away.” You whisper frantically at the realization.

“Don’t even think about.” Your mentor’s words cut off any thoughts of stepping in, or at least they try.

“You can’t do this, this is illegal!”

“An innocent man is about to be taken away, I can’t just sit and watch.” you whisper to Yoongi.

“I don’t care who it is. A Sentinel is there, Y/N, they’re not going to play nice and they near impossible to fight.”

You knew that, of course you knew that, but it felt wrong to not at least try to help.

When the hiCaste refuses to comply, one of the Guardians nods to the looming Sentinel who approaches the man, grabbing ahold of him as he proceeds to drag him towards the door.

The man begins screaming and fighting back in return, flailing madly as he yells. “Help me! I’ve done nothing wrong!”

“Suga, I have to do something.”

“Y/N, I’m serious. Stay out of this.” He growls darkly, a strong warning you were meant to listen to.

“I’m sorry but I can’t,” is all you say.

As much as the hiCaste looked down on you and the Runners, they were still civilians just like everyone else. So you do what you have to do.

You vault over the couch, wall-running on the side of the greenhouse and kick the first Guardian, knocking him out as he runs into the other wall.

“You are in breach of policy, submit now!” a guard yells though you ignore him, responding by simply attacking him.

Pointing his gun at you, you disarm the Enforcer before he gets a chance to shoot you, kicking him in the head.

Only two guards are remaining, but before you can take out the lesser challenging one, the Sentinel strikes first. He hits hard, the force sending you to the ground and you scramble to your feet before he can retaliate. Shots ring out as the other guard picks up the gun and begins firing at you. You run around the glass enclosure to try and put distance between you and them. Running up the wall, you do a 180-turn and kick hard at the Sentinel. He stumbles briefly, but it’s not enough to bring him down.

Going back around, the Guardian starts shooting at you and you jump, getting ready to kick until the Sentinel yanks you back. You roll backwards and dodge the incoming punch, nearly running into the hiCaste who ducks out of the way while you turn to run up the wall but the strong guard is one step ahead as he grabs you by the shirt and pulls you down. Legs flailing, you try to get out of his grip while the other guard prepares to shoot you.

Surprisingly, he is stopped by the hiCaste who tackles him and they begin fighting for the gun, pulling it back and forth between them. Bullets fly out through the struggle spraying around you and the Sentinel though the guard doesn’t seem to mind at all. The Sentinel eventually throws you to the ground, kicking you harshly and you cough, struggling to crawl away. More bullets ring out and they hit the camera above the door, destroying it in the process.

You can hear Yoongi cursing in your ear as he loses visual of you and the fight, but you can’t do much to reassure him when you are backed up against the wall of the garden. The Sentinel swings at you and you barely move out of way, his gloved fist punching into the glass and causing it to shatter. Maneuvering around behind him, you repeat your previous actions and run up the wall so you can spin around and kick him. This time you actually manage to break his helmet, the plastic cracking, revealing a green eye and a nose through the hole.

Running around the space to gain momentum, he chases after you and after doing a loop you spin around to wall run while you hit him with all the force you can muster. The punch is enough to knock him unconscious and the guard falls over. You do as well, panting as sweat pours across your body while you slide to the ground. Through the adrenaline, you barely hear Yoongi shouting your name in your ear.

“Y/N! You need to get out of there, now! The Wire is going crazy with chatter and there are reports of a hostile conflict in Ocean View. What the hell did you do?” Yoongi screams.

“It’s okay, the Sentinel is down.” You pant tiredly, rising to your feet unsteadily as you prepare to leave before reinforcements come.

“Thank you.”

You look at the sound and see the man drop the Enforcer’s gun, looking even more disheveled though he seems relieved.

“If you hadn’t stepped in, they would have interrogated me for information and then killed me afterwards.” He explains, confirming your worst fears and yet his words also solidify your interference. “Let me repay you.” The man says, stepping towards you.

“It’s no problem really.” You tell him, but he doesn’t stop until he abruptly shakes your hand. There’s something in his hand as he passes it to you and you see it’s a piece of paper.

“Here’s some money as compensation.” He tells you before walking away and going out through the door, leaving you confused in the broken garden.

“Kid, they’re sending another Sentinel. You need to get the hell out of there!” Yoongi’s desperate voice yells.

His voice disrupts your train of thought and turn to see more guards gathering on the rooftops. You don’t need any more incentive as you stuff the paper in your pocket.

Already exhausted from the fight, you run through the open apartments you had been previously admiring, dodging around more tables and luxury sofas. When you get to the wide gap between Ocean View and Eden Village, you know they won’t be able to catch up as you swing across with your MAG rope. You can hear the blades of a helicopter as the VTOL approaches. Sliding down the incline inside the museum, shoes skidding down the orange interior until you crash through the window at the bottom.

While you run across Eden Village, you hear the crackling static of radios and see a group of guards patrolling the area.

“It’s that Runner!” One yells when he spots you and then immediately begin coming towards you.

“Don’t try to fight them, kid, just get home.” Yoongi tells you upon seeing the group on the cameras.

You shove past them when they approach, not slowing down at all while you splash through the various waterfalls on top of the building. The VTOL’s spotlight shines down on you, the bright light reflecting in the windows, a contrast to the still early morning sky. Taking a shortcut through Crystal Valley, a small area clustered with buildings, where you proceed to lose the guards and the helicopter by moving inside the bright blue buildings until they can’t find you.

When everything quiets down, you eventually emerge outside and make your way through Shimmering Heights as you run towards the lair. Running past the blaring billboards and loud televisions, you are reminded of the stark contrast of Ocean View. While this area shared the same colors of purple and blue as the hiCaste city, its environment was loaded with technology galore instead of having trees and infinite waterfalls. You knew you were close to home when all you saw were white buildings and nothing more.

Going underneath the transit tunnels, you run along the metal grates, and swing across the giant gaps where trains raced by. Spring boarding up some boxes before going through a doorway, up a flight of stairs and you were safely in the Lair. Safe in the sense that KrugerSec couldn’t get to you.

When you turn the corner, you find Yoongi already there waiting, pacing back and forth across the large room until he sees you.

“What the hell were you thinking?” His low voice only makes his dark expression even more terrifying as he stalks towards you.

“I was thinking of helping someone who was in trouble.” You reply, getting upset at his accusatory question.

“And for what? A damn hiCaste?” he scoffs.

“They were going to take him away and then kill him after they got what they wanted.”

The blond breathes harshly in frustration. “Y/N, they had a fucking Sentinel. KrugerSec doesn’t just send one out for no reason.” He pauses, raking a hand through his hair, messing up the bandana around his forehead, as he continues to glare at you. “Why did you do it, huh? Was it to prove a point?”

“No! Yoongi, you know it’s nothing like that.” You say, walking towards the open window, leaning against the wall so the breeze can cool you down.

“What about money? Figured you do this good deed and the guy would pay you some big money as a reward?”

“What?” you look up and find Yoongi’s narrowed eyed staring at the note the man gave you before he left. “I didn’t do it for anything, I did it because it was the right thing to do. That’s it.”

He shakes his head before crumpling the note and tosses it on the desk. “No, that’s not it. You went up against a Sentinel even though you’ve had no training. You’ve only fought the Shock Protectors once.” Crossing his arms, he regards with disappointment and you feel irritated at the helpless feeling it gives you.

“Why are being like this? Yeah, I’ve never dealt with one before, but I took care of him. And even if I hadn’t I know how to get away.”

“That’s not the point.”

“Then what is? Enlighten me.”

“The point is, you acted irrationally.”

“How, by not listening to you?” you smart off and the glare he sends has you wishing you could take back the question. Any more prodding and his face would be the same color as the red bandana on his head.

“No,” he replies, upper lip curling into a sneer, “by not fucking planning. You immediately started a fight without thinking and it almost got yourself killed.”

“Well, I’m sorry! Next time I’ll be sure and take 5 minutes to think of a plan when I’m in a dangerous situation.”

His eyes close as his fingers dig into them and he sighs heavily. “This isn’t a game, Y/N, you need to start thinking about the rest of the Runners instead of going around playing hero.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do. And I would never put the other Runners at risk. If I got captured, then it was because it was my fault and I’ll do better next time.”

Yoongi stills, his fingers stop rubbing his eyebrows before he directs his gaze to you. “You’re an idiot if you think everyone gets a second chance.” The air seems to chill as he stalks out of the room, his blond hair is the last thing you see before he disappears around the corner.

Sighing in exhaustion, you wish the release of air would help relax the tightness in your chest, but it doesn’t. Walking to the desk to retrieve your crumpled note, you see another piece of paper next nearby.

Congratulations and good luck, Brat

-SUGA

A/N: So…this is longer than expected. Can you tell this is the idea, the story that started it all? When I was playing this game for the first time, I could not get Yoongi out of my mind. For some reason I could just imagine him in this world and I couldn’t get out of my head. Then I started thinking about other members in other games and lo and behold, VideoGame!BTS was born! I really hoped you liked it and please leave me feedback, it really helps and I love hearing your thoughts! Thank you so much for reading!