#common ¿¿¿celebrity??? crush L for me i fear

[innocentsapphicblog]

need her in ways that are unbecoming of myself

[mostly-marvel-musings]

Truth serum

Square Filled: Truth serum

Thor Bingo Masterlist

Pairing: Thor Odinson x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, humor

Word count: 1180

Written for @thorbingo​

Thor Odinson Taglist – @raspberrymama​  @bitchycherryblossomlove​ @jennie22feona​ @innerpaperexpertcloud​ @thorfanficwriter​

Everything Taglist – @godofplumsandthunder​  @ladyacrasia​ @agustdowney​ @swaggysposts​ @littlegasps​ @little-baby-vixen​  @another-stark-sub​ @supraveng​ @kahlanmars​ @marvelgirl7​ @disappointmentofthefam​  @pandaxnienke​ @tom-hlover​  @just-the-hiddles​

If you wish to be tagged in any of these lists, send me an ask or DM!

…

“Forget it Loki. This isn’t to use for your one of your pranks, it’s for future missions.” Bruce warned albeit a little cautiously. The God of Mischief still gave him the creeps, nobody could tell when he was being playful or serious, and Bruce definitely wasn’t willing to take chances.

“Look Bruce, this will prove beneficial for the team, at least your silly bets against the two of them will stop for good. Be thankful I’m asking permission, I can very easily just steal it from your lab without a fly noticing.” Loki’s voice low and threatening.

It had taken months for him to act civil around others, eventually friendly with the team but every now and then he used felt forced to use his old tricks to get his way. The people in question here were (Y/N) and his brother. For several weeks now, there had been palpable sexual tension between the two, however neither of them were brave enough to confront the other and Loki along with the team had grown impatient.

“Think about it Bruce, you can record the scene with one of your telephone things and use it against them. Everybody wants leverage against someone.”

“You’re a psychopath! I won’t let you treat my friends like lab rats. However…” Bruce trailed off, he hated that Loki had got to him so quickly, as much as his principles advised him against it, a part of him wanted the whole ordeal to be over.

“Fine. Take the vial, remember not to overdo it though, or you’ll cause permanent damage to their nervous systems.”

“My brother could use some of that damage.” He rolled his eyes before striding over to collect the vial containing truth serum and heading out of the lab.

…

Your phone buzzed non-stop as you hurried to go down to the common area, you knew it was either Nat or Clint – they had been pestering you to join them for a night out for weeks, finally you had agreed on tonight.

Of course their real intentions were getting you to confess your undying love for a certain Asgardian God. An initial crush that had soon turned into something more during the course of time. He’d always been so charming and chivalrous, but at the same time humble, kind and someone who wasn’t afraid to be vulnerable. That’s what drew you to him initially. The fact that Thor was incredibly good-looking, not to mention ripped was an added bonus.

Even though your interactions were limited to team meetings and occasional Stark parties, you always found yourself wanting to spend more time with the God, alone. You wanted to gather up the courage to confess your feelings, even though you were 99% sure he would turn you down.

As you reached the hall, you saw your teammates lounging around the room, chatting animatedly with one another sipping on drinks, even Thor who was busy talking to Loki, more like listening patiently as his brother spoke near the bar.

The ding of the elevator brought his attention to you as yours was completely focused on him. You had read about butterflies in stomach and cheeks turning warm upon seeing a crush in books, only experienced it now. Unwillingly, you broke the eye contact first and walked over to the sofas to find Natasha.

“Look who finally decided to show up!” Clint greeted you with a hug as you accepted the pint glass from him before sitting down.

“What are we celebrating today?” you asked, taking a rather large gulp of the fizzy liquid.

“Tony’s expensive booze?” Nat chimed in.

As the liquid reached your belly, you felt warm and fuzzy immediately which was quite unlikely, given that you weren’t drinking on an empty stomach and weren’t a lightweight either. You felt light headed but kind of happy as well, thoughts foggy but crystal clear at the same time. The combination making you sink further into the cushions after kicking your shoes off and exhaling audibly, closing your eyes for a second.

“Lady (Y/N), you look so stunning even when you’re asleep.” Thor’s booming, slightly slurred voice made you open your eyes and straighten up slowly to look around the now empty room.

Where the hell was everybody? How long were you out? Why was Thor looking at you like that?

“Why thank you Thor. Coming from you it means the world to me!” you gave him a dazed smile, head lolling back to rest on the couch as he did the same after sitting next to you.

“You know Natasha and Barton wanted me to profess my undying love for you for weeks now. I’ve been too terrified to do so. Speaking of, where is everybody?” you mumbled with a frown, seeing the lights dimmed in the room as soft music reached your ears.

“Can I be honest, I’m petrified of Lady Romanoff.” Thor admitted quietly, looking around as if the assassin was lurking in the corners, which of course she was.

“On one hand I’m weirdly proud that I’ve made a literal God fearful, but on the other, why is this turning into a formal first date?” Nat elbowed Clint from the shadows where they stood watching the two of you interact.

“Don’t ask me, it was Loki’s genius idea.”

“If it wasn’t for me, they wouldn’t have gotten this far. You should be thanking me!”

Even in the dark, they didn’t miss Loki scoffing and rolling his eyes as he watched his grand intervention unfold. Suddenly Thor’s loud voice brought their attention back to the two of you.

“What did you say?”

“I find you very attractive and fascinating, Lady (Y/L/N). Would you be interested in going out for a meal with me?” Thor kneeled in front of you, slightly wobbly on his feet, as he extended his hand.

“I would be honored Mr God of Thunder.” You announced, equally dramatic as you placed your hand in his that made him punch his fist in the air victoriously. He sat back down, this time much closer to you and wrapped his arm around your shoulder as you sighed contently.

“Great. They’re going on a date in the 50s. I’m sure alcohol would’ve been a more exciting option but no one wanted to listen to me.” Nat whispered, annoyed at the lack of action.

“You mortals have no patience.” Loki shook his head before flicking his wrist as a red box appeared on the glass table that stood in front of the sofa.

On cue, you picked up the box, the flashy color grabbing your attention immediately, and opened it. Out flew a light colored powder that lingered near the two of you, before vanishing. It made you sneeze a couple of times before a shiver ran down your spine and light sweat broke on your forehead.

“Please tell me it’s not what I think it is.” Clint whispered, alarmed as you began fanning yourself.

Loki merely smirked and vanished from sight.

[isolatedwriter]

Prompts for your otp (scene and a twist)

I got bored one day and decided to just come up with a random prompt selection because I know I have been struggling with prompts lately, so here it is

Prompt selector (you can either use your the first letter of your first and last name or the names of the people in your otp) (or just pick two or more, I don’t care)

The scene:

A - Relationship reveal

B - Reunion of established relationship after a long time apart

C - Friends to lovers, confession of feelings

D - Coming home after a bad day

E - Having a snowball fight

F - Long car trip

G - Person B gets jealous of the S.O. Person A has been describing, not realizing A is talking about B

H - Anniversary celebration

I - Meet the parents (or friends)

J - Jealousy at a party

K - The blind date but they are already friends who have been pinning for each other and their friends are tired of it

L - Stargazing

M - Insecurity about relationship

N - Protecting the other from physical harm

O - Person A hates camping, Person B seeks to change that

P - Drunk confessions

Q - Friends on a kiss cam

R - Game night

S - Exs caught in a stuck elevator

T - Snowed in with crush (huddling for warmth)

U - Sharing an umbrella

V - walking up next to the person they love

W - Kissing in the rain

X - Person A getting Person B to try a new food

Y - Seeing a friend differently for the first time

Z - Person A and Person B are rivals, but B has a problem only A can help with

The twist:

A - Person A has something they’ve been meaning to give Person B

B - Person B has something they have been meaning to tell person A, and now is the time it finally comes out

C - They are making up after a fight

D - Person A admits to Person B that they were their first kiss, or that they have never kissed anyone (depending what makes sense in context)

E - One of them has a secret that they think could change their relationship

F - Person A overhears Person B saying that they regret doing a recent action to Person A, which Person A did not expect them to regret.

G - One of them was recently in an accident and has amnesia, they are in post-recovery now but don’t remember everything (How long ago was the incident? What do they remember? Will they ever remember? Did they have a prior relationship? Up to you)

H - Blood has a part to play

I - Put your music library on shuffle. The third song to come up is what you are basing this on

J - It is told from the perspective of Person C who has a crush on either person B or person A

K - Someone walks in during a key moment (possibly a friend, ex, parent, current partner if you want to make it really spicy)

L - They are living together and in the middle of a multiple day long domestic dispute about the dishes

M - They find out they are soulmates

N - One of them is secretly terrified of something happening (and it is not a super common fear), and they refuse to admit it to the other person

O - The last thing they said to each other before this starts was “don’t talk to me until you’ve figured yourself out”

P - One of them made a promise, and this is them making good on that promise

Q - I don’t know where, I don’t know how, but there is time travel

R - One of them had a really weird dream last night about the other person

S - One of them is injured (the severity is up to you)

T - It ends in them making out, not much of a twist

U - Meeting themselves from an alternate universe

V - Getting caught wearing each other’s clothes

W - At least one of them is famous

X - Someone has a new tattoo that is very meaningful

Y - Number 12 on the iTunes chart is your inspiration (haha have fun)

Z - Character asks themselves, how do I find the other person doing this attractive?

[lisinfleur]

Þunglyndi

The Request:

Author’s Notes | I don’t know why, but it came a little lighter and fluffier than I was expecting. I hope you like this as well and I’m sorry for taking so long to post this one, babe!

Universe | Vikings

Pairing | Hvitserk x Reader x Ivar

Info | Viking Age AU, requested by @notyouraveragegirl17 for 5CW7 | Þunglyndi means “Depression” in Icelandic

Words | 1549

⁑ Warnings: Some ANGST, mentions of deep depression and internal darkness, past abuse. Caution is recommended: the following content may be triggering.

The popular wisdom uses to say that "one man's nightmare may be another man's dream". Sometimes, men can dream together. Sometimes, their nightmares can be the same as well. And it was like this for Ivar and Hvitserk. Their dreams were the same, all towards Y/N. Both of them loved her with such deepness that they agreed in putting their pride aside and share the position by her side with each other, marrying Y/N in a polygamist relationship that was the light of her life.

Maybe the only spot of light her whole life had for her. Maybe the only light that was able to cut its way inside Y/N's life through the thick darkness that was always all around her mind and heart.  

Their dreams were the same and so were their nightmares, all around that intense sadness that none of them was able to fully destroy into her heart. Maybe this sadness was also a part of their decision to share her side - Both of them knew none of them would be able to face this dark and strong enemy all alone. Together, they could maybe be able to save her from herself as they saved her from that bastard she called a father.

For a long time, neither Ivar or Hvitserk were able to understand why was she so scared of men that she could jump beside Hvitserk just by Ubbe's sudden approaching or squeal beside Ivar if Sigurd was coming without a warning. Neither of them was able to understand why any middle tone up in their voices would make her shrink and accept almost anything that she was ordered to do as if she was always afraid of something they could never determine.

Until they knew her family.

Until they found out the terrible way her father had raised her; the horrible punishments she was exposed through her whole childhood; the way she was less than a slave for him.

What person wouldn't have her self-confidence destroyed by a man like him? Her skin was marked by his abuses but more than this, her mind was deeply forged to obey his screams or see itself crushed under his fist and it was enough for the brothers to decide it was time to put an end to it.

They sat to talk and settled a plan. And together, they went to her house and forced her father to accept in goodwill her marriage to them and their rule to never - ever! - put himself close to her once again. In exchange, they gifted him lands in the northernmost, far away from Kattegat's hall, where she would never need to see him again - even thou their will was to kill him in the worst way they could think.

None of them wanted to scare her even more, so they ensured everything would be perfect for her to understand that whole thing as her father's decision and forced him into a chariot that took him away once and for all from her life.

Yet, it wasn't enough.

Y/N was slowly getting better, they had to admit. But whenever Ivar was angry or yelling for something, she would almost disappear into herself in fear - the reason why even Sigurd had to agree that Ivar was controlling himself pretty more not to show his anger or keep himself calmer than he was usually.

Drunken Hvitserk? She would run from him like a Christian woman from a bunch of Vikings! - and that was why he was stopping drinking so much nowadays.

All his brothers had to admit they were doing the best they could and Y/N became something like a glue that stuck the two of them together: Ivar and Hvitserk would always find a way to calm her down or rescue her from her own mind. Whether in Ivar's lap, talking about his stories so she could forget hers; or walking around with Hvitserk to see the nature around and beautiful places instead of the dark rooms of her mind; one way or another, they were always trying to find a way to make her feel better.

So, in days like that, it wasn't unusual to see both of them smiling at each other with happy expressions and accomplice glares. Y/N was happy that day and both of them knew it was their fault she was still able to smile.

This time it was a full table she made by her own hands: loaves of bread, meat, vegetables, and mead. Cereals and everything they liked the most.

It wasn't any special day, they knew it! Both of them were always remembering themselves of the special dates of their marriage to keep Y/N always aware of how important she was in their lives, but this time, they were sure, it wasn't any kind of special day. Yet, she was preparing that whole beautiful table, with places even for their brothers they were sure she would ask them to invite for that meal she was preparing with so much dedication.

"Smukke?" Hvitserk asked first, before entering the kitchen along with his brother-husband.

They would love to be able to embrace her from behind and surprise her with neck kisses, but both of them knew it would be too scary for her. So, it was enough to have her smiling back at them with that sweet nickname they had in common to call her.

"Why are we deserving such a delicious and big dinner, may I ask?" Ivar asked, smiling back at her as she was slowly cleaning her hands from the rests of the paste she was using to decorate Hvitserk's favorite pie she just placed in the oven.

"It's a surprise," she said, smiling at them, touching Ivar's nose with her warm fingers and gently caressing Hvitserk's cheek with the other hand. "I have something to tell you both, but I want it to be a surprise. Could you please call Ubbe and Sigurd to have dinner with us?" she asked, confirming their suspicions. "I know Björn won't be around for a while because of his raid, but I wanted to have the family altogether tonight."

The brothers exchanged a satisfied smile and Hvitserk bounced in his heels - a clear sign of his happiness with her progress.

"I'll bring them," he said, smiling.

"I'll help you with the table so, my love," Ivar offered himself and she smiled, kissing Hvitserk's cheek and letting him go before bringing the plates for Ivar to place properly at the table.

With everything ready, she took the pie out of the oven, placing it gently at the table to get cold as the brothers would be eating and the sound of Ubbe's laugh along with Hvitserk's and Sigurd's voice woke them up for the door where they were arriving - always making some noise to avoid scaring Y/N up.

She smiled and so did Ivar. Her happiness, for minimum it was, would always make them happy.

Everyone took its places at the table and she gently served them all, sitting beside Ivar - at the headboard - and Hvitserk - closer to the middle of the table where he could serve himself with more.

"So," Hvitserk said, smiling as they all looked at her. "We're all curious about what is bringing this sweet smile to your face today, smukke."

She became slightly brushed before looking from Ivar to Hvitserk, smiling.

"I wanted to say thank you for all the efforts the two of you have been putting on making me feel better," she started, causing Ivar and Hvitserk to smile that accomplice way at each other.

Smiles that became large eyes and surprised expressions when the second part of her speech came, taking them unprepared for the news she was hiding from them all.

"And I also wanted to tell the family will grow bigger soon..."

Sigurd's smile became larger and Ubbe raised his horn with a salutation. But Hvitserk and Ivar looked at her with surprise and tenderness in their eyes. A slight line of tears in Ivar's blues as Hvitserk's hand gently landed in Y/N's belly trying to feel something in the almost invisible bump she had there.

"You're... With our child? Our first child?" Ivar asked, and Y/N touched his face, gently caressing his cheek with a smile, nodding as the smile in his face became bigger.

"We gonna be fathers, my brother!" Hvitserk celebrated.

"The gods have blessed us once again!" Ivar said, touching Y/N's forehead with his, gently kissing her lips before Hvitserk could do the same, kissing her mouth sweetly.

The two of them touched their foreheads on each other, holding their hands. That complicity between them both so strong and visible, smoothing the smile in their brothers' faces on the other side of their faces.

In their eyes, the victory of one more step towards Y/N's happiness and the dreams they were to build together with her. In their hearts, the gratitude for each other's help and efforts to conquer that step and the many others to come.

Hvitserk and Ivar would never stop fighting to have their precious Y/N out of that darkness. And now, they would have one more spot of light to enlighten her path by their side.

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[rafestyles]

“oh, it was live?” | david dobrik

Requested? Yes: You are honestly the best writer I’ve come across! Please consider possibly writing an imagine about David dobrik that is friends to lovers where he takes you to a movie premiere but all the reporters assume ur his gf and it’s awkward but then later he admits to you he wishes you did come as his date

A/N: whoa look who’s back from the dead !! lmao. i never write for any of the requests i get anymore but i read this one and the idea wouldn’t leave my head. so everyone welcome back, me, dobrikstyles. (also, THANK U SO MUCH FOR THE SWEET COMPLIMENT)

——-

being best friends with david dobrik is not at all what it is hyped up to be among his fans.

yes, you get invited to parties.

& yes, you’ve been able to meet so many cool celebs.

but, the man (child) is actually a psychopath. (you and the rest of the vlog squad are still trying to convince shane dawson to do a series on proving that, but that’s not the point right now.)

in all honestly, he really was great. just sometimes he looked at you with his (sweet) puppy dog eyes and begged you to do something for him.

thankfully, today he was only trying to convince you to come to a movie premiere with him, not trying to convince you to shoot one of the boys with a paint ball gun (for the twentieth time).

“y/n.. please. no one else will go with me & jack says i can’t make any excuse to get out of this one” he groans, throwing his body back against the love sac to look at you upside down, a small pout forming on his lips.

“oh fuck off. good to know i’m your last option” you scoff, crossing your arms across your chest, as you sit on the couch.

he quickly sits up, shaking his head. “no, no- fuck. that’s not what i mean, y/n.”

you shake your head back at him, rolling your eyes teasingly, “mhm.”

“y/n. please come with me. i’ll buy you - fuck, i don’t know,” he pauses as he bites his lip in thought, “i don’t fucking know. whatever you want. just please come with me.”

you raise a single eyebrow at him, “hmm... anything?” you smirk.

he nods hesitantly, a look of fear on his face.

“okay. buy me a tesla.” you state.

he opens his mouth in shock, “y/n- c’mon. what - fuck. is that - god, y/n. is that really what you want? fuck, i gotta call ian. he’s not gonna be happy, he just helped me buy that fucking ferrari.”

you watch him panic and look for his phone, muttering to himself. you throw your head back in laughter after a few minutes, “fuck, david, no, i’m seriously kidding. i don’t want a fucking tesla, of course i’ll go with you. don’t you realize you don’t have to bribe me with money or gifts anymore? we’re friends, dave.”

he stops his frantic searching for his phone and glares up at you, “fuck you, y/n y/l/n.”

“ah, ah, ah,” you sing, shaking your finger at him, “i wouldn’t be talking to me like that after i just willingly decided to go to a movie premiere with you, mister david dobrik.”

he reluctantly shuts his mouth, holding back any other remarks he was planning on making at you. you smirk, “good. now, what do i need to wear?”

——

a couple of days later finds you at david’s house again, this time getting ready in natalie’s room for the movie premiere.

“and why can’t you go with him?” you sigh, putting the last finishing touches of makeup on your face.

you watch natalie roll her eyes in the mirror, “because, y/n. i’m getting over having the flu. i have explained this to you four times already.”

you sigh again, turning around and facing your friend on the bed, “i know, nat. it’s just - is it weird that i’m nervous?”

you nervously mess with some of your dress as you continue talking, “like - i know i’ve done this before, but the rest of you guys have been there, or at least someone else has gone. but this time it’s just him and i, and you know -“ you pause, groaning slightly.

“i know you have a huge, giant, massive crush on the literal psychopath in the next room?” she teases quietly.

you groan even louder, “shut the fuck up. if you weren’t sick, i would beat the shit out of you right now.” you joke, pushing at her leg.

“i’d like to see you try, y/n. but listen, friend to friend, you’re gonna be fine. like i’ve told you thousands of times - yet you still refuse to believe - he likes you too. i’m sure he’s just as nervous, if not more nervous than you right now. so seriously, you’re gonna be fine.”

you roll your eyes, “stop fucking saying that. he doesn’t like me. i would know.”

she rolls her eyes right back at you, mumbling under her breath, “yeah, you would think you would know.”

——

you step into david’s tesla, sitting in the passenger seat, “thank god we’re not taking the ferrari, i couldn’t deal with my hair messing up right before we go in front of hundreds of photographers.” you joke, buckling up.

you finally turn around and make eye contact with david, who quickly turns his head down, a soft blush high on his cheek bones.

“you, um - you look good, y/n. really good.” he mumbles, starting the car.

“fuck off, david.” you joke, trying not to make it too evident in your voice that you’re actually freaking the fuck out inside.

“i guess you do too.” you say, almost too quietly.

he giggles softly, “fuck off, y/n.”

——

your nerves had finally started to wear off in the car with david, you actually almost forgot you were about to step out into a media frenzy, until you actually did, and the nerves hit you all over again.

you turned to david, panic evident in your eyes.

he rests his hand on the small of your back, leaning forward to whisper in your ear (it was very loud, okay.) “hey, you’re good. they’ll just take pictures and i have to do like one interview. it will be fine.”

you take a deep breath, making eye contact with him and nodding your head, “we’re good. it’s fine. i’m fine. why are we even still standing here? let’s go dobrik.” you ramble, grabbing his wrist and dragging him up to the (red) carpet.

he laughs (yes the cute vlog one), and follows after you.

his interview is with someone from ET (Entertainment Weekly). you stand off to the side, holding his camera and watching some celebrities walk past you, and glancing at david every now and then.

you weren’t paying much attention to the interview until you heard your name.

“so, david. i see you brought y/n here with you tonight, although she’s only in a few of your vlogs.” she says in a suggestive tone.

you continue to look the other way to not make it obvious you were listening in.

“well, i mean, everyone else was busy, so she was my last option.” he jokes, laughing at himself.

you try your very hardest not to roll your eyes at the boy and make a snarky comment back.

“no, no. i’m kidding. she’s great.” he says, not actually answering her question.

“oh c’mon, david. give us all the details! is she your new GF,” (who actually says the letters like that instead of the whole word anyways?), “she’s pretty cute and i know some fans have been speculating!! what’s the tea?!” she fishes.

you glance at david for a split second, noticing his hesitancy, “i mean - no. she’s not my girlfriend,” he pauses, “yeah - no. we’re not dating.”

your stomach burns with a million different types of emotions, and you can’t pinpoint what any of them actually are.

“that was a strange way to answer that, david dobrik,” the interviewer jokes.

he shrugs, glancing over at you to make sure you’re not listening, his famous grin over taking his face once again as he leans in to whisper to the interviewer, “how about you ask me that question again the next time i see you?” he suggests, causing your brain to short-circuit and your heart to start racing.

shit. you really had to pretend you didn’t hear him now. what the fuck does that even mean anyways?

you were too lost in your own thoughts to even realize that the man of all your inner turmoil was standing in front of you.

“earth to y/n. you good?” he waves his hand in front of your face, pouting when you slap it away.

“yes i’m good. how did that interview go anyways?” you ask, nonchalantly.

he shrugs, a fond smile on his face, “good. you ready to head in?” he nods his head towards the entrance.

you nod, “lead the way, dobrik.”

——

after the premiere, you were sitting in david’s passenger seat again, heading home.

you finally fished your phone out of your dress pocket, unlocking it to (what felt like) a million and one notifications.

“what the fuck?” you mumble to yourself, thumbing through them.

“everything okay?” david asks from the drivers seat, glancing over towards you.

you begin reading all of the notifications, only to find one common thing among them: The Clip of David Talking About You in the Interview ™️. (which you had efficiently blocked from your memory, thank you very much).

you hadn’t realized david peeking over your shoulder until you heard him speak, “fuck. it was live?” he groans, and as you turn to look at him, you notice the blush rising on his cheeks.

“david dobrik. what the fuck is this?”

he bites his lip, parking the car, (which made you realize you had actually arrived at his house already).

“i may or may not have made the interviewer believe that i may or may not have a crush on you?” he says in a high-pitched tone. “and she may or may not have asked me if you were my girlfriend and i may or may not have suggested that she asked me the next time she saw me?”

you stared blankly at the boy you (somehow) had a giant crush on, “and why, david dobrik? would you ever do something like that?”

“because i may or may not have a giant, massive crush on you, and i may or may not have been planning on asking you on a date soon?” he tilts his head to the side, squeezing his eyes shut a little, a hopeful smile beginning to form on his face.

you don’t say anything for a minute, allowing the tension to get heavier. after finally deciding to break the tension, you say, “well, which one is it?”

he looks at you with a confused expression on his face.

“which one is it, dobrik? may or may not?”

a smile begins overtaking his face once again, as he glances down before looking up at you again, ���may,” he whispers quietly. “i mean - i was - am. i am planning on asking you on a date soon, and by soon i mean, right now.”

you blush softly, grinning at him and nodding at him in encouragement to continue speaking.

“y/n y/l/n, will you please do me, david dobrik, the honor of going on a date with me?”

your grin (somehow) gets wider, and you nod at him once again, “fucking finally.” you cheer.

——

a couple of months later, finds you and david in (almost) the same scenario again, except this time, when the interviewer from ET asks if you and david are dating, you get to squeeze his hand, and nod along with him as he says,

“yes, after fuc - oops. after forever, yes, we finally are.”

[caps-lockdown]

Poll Winner...Hotel Horrors!

Hotel Horrors

Hey everyone so so sorry that this took forever and a day to get out. The short version is I quit my new job because it was leading me down a dark path of anxiety and depression so I’ve been struggling with all of that nonsense and quite frankly lost the motivation to write anything at all. I want everyone to know that your mental health matters and no job (no matter the money or benefits) is worth putting that at risk.

Anyway, here’s the winner of my 200 follower poll! I do plan on writing the other choices eventually, but again I’ve been struggling HARD with writer’s block.

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Fem!Reader

Words: 5,586

Warnings: Mentions of booze, a few swear words. A crude joke. Pretty much all fluff with some panicked!Steve and switching of names.

Summary: Steve Rogers lost something extremely important at your hotel during an undercover mission. What will you do when you find out your celebrity crush was staying under your roof?!

It’s in Y/N Y/L/N format, and I own no characters save for the reader and her coworkers/family. No beta, so mistakes are mine, ALL MINE I tell you!

ENJOY!

“Y/N my happy little orange blossom!”

You looked up from your mug, hot tea sloshing in your mouth until you could force it down. It was eight-thirty am on a brisk Monday in New York City, the hustle and bustle of morning traffic mixed with the grogginess of another too short weekend over. The hotel lobby had been quiet a whole half hour before your uncle had made his presence known. The Wilson hotel, named after your grandfather’s first dog had been in your family for just shy of sixty years, your father and uncle taking over when your grandfather decided to retire five years ago. It was a quaint but lovely little building, boasting just fifty six rooms and four luxury suites. Your grandfather had bought the building on a splurge, wanting to create his own income and become his own boss, much to the encouragement of your grandmother. It was an instant success, the small homely atmosphere mixed with the most affordable prices in the city kept you busy as a receptionist.

Things had slowed down just a touch now that the new year was here and the holidays were gone, people not traveling as much to make up for the money they had spent on presents for whatever they were celebrating. You were usually never caught dead at work on Mondays, never one to really enjoy the swarms of grumpy travelers in the early hours. Sundays and Mondays, until this week unfortunately, were your prized days off. That all changed the minute Mandy the other receptionist who usually worked days where you worked nights decided to bring her third hell spawn into the world a week early. A New Year’s baby. How lovely. Now because of the aptly named “Kia”, you were forced to pull double duty until her replacement started next week. So much for your Christmas wish of working less. You took it in stride though, after all Mandy was your soon to be cousin, your cousin Brent popping the question Christmas morning surrounded by all of your family. The very same family who was quick to point out that you were now the last of six children to be engaged. Or the last of six to have children. Or the last of six to be in a remotely serious relationship. And no, your crush on Captain America most certainly did not count. The only one who hadn’t spoken a word against you was Uncle Todd. He had always been your favorite, and you his. He never married, nor had kids of his own, so he was always quick to jump down your family’s throats. After all, he owned sixty percent of the Wilson and he turned out just fine thank you very much.

His only downfall was that he was simply too happy in the mornings.

His deep chuckle brought you back to the present, an annoyed expression passing over you as he lovingly patted you on the top of your head. He’d been doing it since you were a child. You had hated it since you were a child too. “Oh come now Y/N, surely you aren’t that hung over from the New Year’s celebration? It was a week ago after all. Put some spring in your step!”

“First of all, it’s too early for you. Now I know why I don’t work mornings.” You muttered the last bit into your oversized mug before draining the rest of your English breakfast tea. “Secondly,” you cleared your throat, picking up your electric kettle that sat at your desk and started on brewing your second cup, “You know damn well I don’t get hangovers Uncle. Fortunately I have your alcohol tolerance instead of my hopeless father’s.” The tea bag fell into your now full mug with an uninterested plop. “And thirdly, I’m only here because Mandy is out and Rachel doesn’t start for another week. Last I checked you don’t pay me enough to care about “peppiness” this early on a Monday.”

The shaking of his head normally would have you fearing for a spiel about being more carefree and positive, but the grin he was sporting brought a small one to your features. “We’ll make a morning person out of you yet Y/N. Carson here yet?”

“Nope, I’d wager dad’s stuck in traffic,” you pulled a face before adding “Again”.

“I swear that man will be late to his own funeral. I expect we’ll get a phone call any moment now, be sure to rip him a new one for me eh? Oh my new year’s resolution is to leave the house earlier so I can be on time my left foot.” You giggled, stirring honey into your beverage as he continued to rant and rave all the way to his office, the loud creak of his large chair announcing his defeat on the subject of your father’s constantly late arrivals.

As if on cue the main lobby’s terribly outdated phone rang loudly, a surprised yelp leaving your lips as you set the cup down and picked up the receiver.

“Good morning and thank you for calling the Wilson,” Your customer service voice was a common shock to your family and friends, the usual snark and sarcasm replaced with a sweet and patient tone. You quickly added, “Dad if this is you calling to say you’re running late, it’s been like this for five years. You don’t need to give us a heads up. We know you’ll show up, but you should know uncle Todd prefers it be before the next turn of the century.”

“Well Mandy your uncle seems like a reasonable man although I can assure you I’m extremely punctual.” The voice was certainly not your father’s, and for second you were extremely embarrassed and looking for quick way to end it. It wasn’t normal to get phone calls this early. But before you could do anything rash the person on the other line let out a short laugh. “I needed that laugh today, thank you. It’s been a stressful morning.”

“I’m sorry about that! I’m afraid Mandy is out, my name is Y/N.”Your face burned with the intensity of the sun as you quickly moved on, “How can I help you today mister….”

“Rogers. I’m sorry I assumed you were Mandy.”

“It’s alright mister Rogers.”

“Great.” He continued, taking a breath “Mandy alright?”

“Yep the baby just came early and she went into labor during our charity event last week.”

“How beautiful. I recall her saying something about contractions now that you mention it. Listen Y/N I was wondering if you could help me out on something urgent?”

“Sure mister Rogers, anything for my favorite neighbor.” You blurted out and then inwardly cringed at your own terrible joke, but again it was met by the stranger’s rough laughter. It almost sounded familiar. Like maybe you had heard it in person. Or on the television.

“Cute. I’m sure he…I mean I’ve never heard that one before.” The man recovered and you raised an eyebrow although he couldn’t see it. “So the long story short is that a friend and I checked in last week for your New Year’s charity Gala. It was stunning, had a wonderful time.”

“We had Pepper Potts as a consultant for the event, she’s incredible with event planning. Tony Stark donated some of the art work we auctioned off that night if you recall. Many were saddened to hear he wasn’t able to attend, but miss Potts looked lovely and did a great job.”

“That she did, and I’m sure he was there…in spirit I suppose.” The man got out hastily before recomposing himself. “Anyway I’m afraid my colleague and I were so partied out when we checked out the next day I realized I forgot a very important flash drive somewhere in my suite.”

“Not a problem mister Rogers, our suites are extremely private and we haven’t had any guests in them since last week so I have no problem calling housekeeping and seeing if they found anything. Just a thumb drive you said?”

“Yes a small black thumb drive. I’m super boring and predictable. And please, call me Tony.”

“Alright mister-“You stopped yourself, “Tony. What suite were you in? And we can check your friend’s suite too if you want to give me his name.”

“Oh of course suite number two. He was staying under the name Steve Stark.”

You held in a laugh. It was normal for high-caliber people and celebrities to check in under false names, sometimes even using the names of other celebrities. Kim Kardashian-West checked in as Princess Jasmine once somewhere.

“And you’re Tony Rogers. Funny, I’m sure Mandy didn’t catch that one. She isn’t the brightest crayon in the box I’m afraid.”

“I can agree with you there. “ The man laughed again, and you realized you were finding yourself in a good mood talking to this man. Why was that?

“Well I’ll do some digging and see what I can find. Is this a good number to reach you at Tony?”

“Yes this number is the right one to snag me at.”

“Perfect, I’ll get housekeeping on it right away as no one has been in there since your stay. I’ll call you in a couple days with our results. Hopefully we find it for you. Have a great day!”

“You too Y/N, talk to you soon.”

You hung up the phone and promptly dropped your head on the desk. Where did you know that  voice from?

~~Earlier at the Tower~~

“For the last time Steve I haven’t seen your thumb drive!” Sam waved Steve away from blocking the game on the television in the common area. “Now you make a better mountain sized door instead of a window.” Steve huffed angrily out of the room.

“Haven’t seen it Cap, might I suggest checking your shoes?” Tony got out in between bites of his cereal, Bucky laughing with him at the Captain’s deadpanned expression. “What? Worth a shot.”

He stomped out of that room too.

Even Nat had jumped on the skeptical side, narrowing her eyes as he dug through his luggage again for the seventh time in the past two days, “Are you sure you didn’t pack it?”

This was it. This was how Steve Rogers was going to lose his mind. The sleep deprived and stress-ridden super solider pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to take deep breaths. It proved fruitless and he smashed his phone into the wall a day later at the suggestion from Tony to just call the Wilson. The same hotel Tony and him had stayed at the previous week for an undercover mission.

The team had accepted the circumstances, Strange and Nat running communications while Tony and Steve underwent massive amounts of makeup to change their appearance. Tony of course went the craziest. Bald cap, clean shaved face and a suit that made him look even more buff than he already was. Nat kept calling him “Daddy Warbucks”. Steve however had kept it simple. Changed his hair color, grew his beard out a little longer, contacts, and wore a slightly ill fitting suit.

Truth be told he didn’t understand why they needed to be there at first. “Catching art thieves” wasn’t something that usually required action from The Avengers. NYPD were more than capable most of the time, so it came as a shock when one of the owners of the Wilson reached out to them via email. The message didn’t say too much, other than a time, date, and small description of the group of men needing apprehended. Todd and his partner didn’t want these men getting to the very expensive masterpieces they were auctioning off for charity, and just wanted some extra security. Apparently the thieves had been snatching works of art for nearly a decade and hadn’t been caught. Tony loved a challenge and accepted. Todd suggested setting a trap and sending a couple of them undercover so as to not draw unwanted attention. As an added bonus Tony donated some of the art to be auctioned off at the Gala held in his hotel on New Year’s Eve. He even offered to put them up in two of their nicer suites for no charge.  

Tony was in the minute he mentioned undercover. He even took to making some secret compartments in their attire, you know just in case.

“You too Y/N, talk to you soon.”

Speaking of the billionaire, he was now putting his phone back in his pocket, a smug expression on his face.

“Y/N the receptionist said she’d look into it and call back in a couple days. Now will you calm down?”

“I can’t calm down Tony, that thumb drive had all the evidence to put the art thieves away.”

“Wet Bandits” Tony corrected, Steve rolling his eyes. “The trial isn’t for another week and worrying is only going to force you into an earlier grave. So cool it.”

The blonde man ran a hand through his hair. He truly hated it when his friend was right. Though he’d never tell him of course, his ego was big enough as is. He let out a sigh, “Fine.”

“Great. Now make a list of places you were in the hotel during the Gala, we can go retrace your steps if they don’t find anything. I think your ancient brain is finally catching up to you Cap.”

Steve slammed the door to his room with that remark, seething with embarrassment and anger. It’s not like he had meant to lose it. He’d never lost intel like this before. Actually now that he thought about it he couldn’t think of a time he had ever lost something this important. Falling into his desk chair with an ungraceful thud, he began writing the places he had been during New Year’s Eve.

~~Flashback, Night of the Gala~~

“We’ll get right back to the Auction after the ball drops!” A jolly looking man, who the team learned to be Todd interrupted the evening, encouraging everyone to mingle and enjoy themselves. Tony didn’t need to be told a second time, making his way to the open bar while Strange noted his obvious distaste in their ear pieces.

People nearly trampled Steve as he got up from his seat, emptying out of the large conference room and into the beautifully decorated grand ballroom just outside. He couldn’t say he blamed anyone, being squished like sardines for the last two hours was starting to even get on his nerves. And he lived in a compound of superheroes with no real sense of boundaries. He was enjoying his solitude, no one recognizing him for the first time in years. It felt liberating, only having a select few know his true identity. He almost didn’t miss it.

He felt a slight shove into his shoulder, turning his body to glance down at the elegant figure draped in simple green velvet, your wide eyes burning into his in embarrassment.

“I’m…I’m such a klutz my apologies!” You stuttered out, giving him the smallest hint of a shy smile.

“No harm no foul. Tony.” He stuck out a hand, giving himself points for not messing up his alias.

You placed your small hand in his and immediately Steve was struck by how soft your hand felt.  But before you could give your name your heads swiveled at the shouting coming from the far side of the room. He noted how your eyes shown slight disappointment as you broke from the greeting.

“Forgive me. My relatives and booze never makes for a good outcome.” With a defeated sigh you turned on your heel, clicking away towards Todd, muttering to yourself. “Way to go Y/L/N, always running into gorgeous people and then running away.”

Ok, he missed it a little. You were the sort of someone he would have liked to ask to dance. If under different circumstances of course. Maybe. But silver lining, at least he had been able to catch your last name. He watched you run off with a dreamy look on his face.  

“Heads up lover boy, we got company.” Nat jolted Steve from his thoughts, four men entering the large room and nonchalantly casing the place. How these men had gotten away with stealing art for close to a decade was beyond him. Hiding within plain sight he moved to a vantage point high up on a stairwell.

“Tony you got them?”

“You mean Steve. I’m Steve, you’re Tony. Geesh that dime wasn’t in your orbit for more than two minutes and you’re this scrambled?” Tony teased, Steve groaning into his ear piece and earning a smirk in response. “Yea I got them, shall I go ahead and set the plan in motion?” He caught Steve’s nod and reaffirmed it with his own, making his way towards the group. “Then the game is afoot!”

Steve made a mental note to ask Thor for some meade after all of this was over.

The rest of the night went easy enough. The “Wet Bandits” fell for the trap, they were caught red handed and arrested on the spot. Steve managed to swipe a USB drive from the ring leader of the group before the police carted off the criminals, the crowd clapping and cheering for them. They looked like normal, non-super people, just doing the right thing at the right time. It gave the team a sense of pride, knowing even without their suits or names they still got the job done.

“Where should I put this?” He fiddled with the small storage device. Nat had mentioned it would most likely have very incriminating evidence on it. She also put extra emphasis on keeping it safe.

“I don’t know, somewhere close to your soul?”

“That makes no sense Tony.”Steve muttered from the punch bowl, watching his partner walk towards him, empty glass in tow. Typical.

Tony joined him while everyone began to count down the minutes til the new year, gloating about how he couldn’t wait to kiss Pepper.

“That’s rich considering you look like mister clean right now. Think of the headlines.” Strange muttered into the comms and Tony laughed, forgetting temporarily what he looked like in his present state. “Hey there’s that girl you were making eyes at Rogers.”

The contacts he wore were starting to itch from dryness, and Steve found himself exceptionally happy that the night would soon be ending. He couldn’t help but gravitate toward you, your smile and light laughter ringing over the small group of people around you.

“Hello again.” Steve tried to think of what Tony would do in this situation, and then decided the cocky approach probably wouldn’t go over well. Your eyes twinkled in the glow of the gentle lighting, the room dimming as it got closer to a new year.

“Hi again.” Sixty seconds to go.

“I didn’t get to tell you earlier but you look stunning.” You were happy your blush was hidden in the near darkness of the room. The people were getting louder in their chanting of the time, Steve swallowing hard as your smile grew wider with the passing second. As so did his confidence.

“Thank you, that suit is an…interesting color.” Steve remembered his current attire and internally grimaced. What a claude you must think him, showing up in an ill fitting suit, beard barely groomed, his slightly red eyes. Of course he gets the gumption to make small talk and introduce himself and what happens? He looks like a homeless vacuum salesman.

“Ten…Nine…Eight…” He watched as you looked around the room, loudly calling out the numbers, unaware of how smitten he must have been looking at you. You seemed so genuine in your happiness, your smile beaming and lighting up the whole room.

“Five….Four..” He had no idea what was making him inch closer to you, but he couldn’t stop himself. It was like he needed to be near that sort of energy. He hadn’t met anyone that put him so much at ease so quickly before. Why was that?

“HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!” The crowd erupted in cheers and shouts, guests pulling on party popper strings and Todd and Carson popping bottles of champagne open with sabers. He laughed at you while you shook your head at your obvious relatives. Of course it had to be sabers. Perhaps it was the atmosphere. Maybe it was the loud music. He blamed a large portion of it on the alcohol, although it did nothing for him. Whatever it was spread throughout his entire nervous system and pushed him to place a small kiss on your blush tapped cheek.

“Happy New Year.” He managed to get out, taken aback by his own actions. You didn’t seem to mind, only beamed a smile that seemingly blinded him. Which wasn’t difficult to accomplish thanks to the stupid contacts.

“Yappy Hew Near.” Your alarmed expression at your jumbled words caused Steve to let out a deep laugh, you joining in shortly after. The night concluded with the art being bought back by Tony, not truly wanting to see them go in the first place. He could already hear the argument he and Pepper would be having later. If the look she gave him was any indication, he fully expected Stark to be in sofa city for the better part of the new year. He headed back to his suite with a bounce in his step, happy with the overall outcome.

Steve’s happiness was gone the minute they got back to the Tower and he noticed the flash drive was nowhere in sight.

~~Present~~

Which lead him to this moment of staring at Sam while he went over his paper. There weren’t that many places on it which made for a short list. The lobby, ballroom, conference room, and of course his suite were the only places he went after swiping the drive. Sam took note of all of the sighs leaving the tall man’s lips as he perused the list, growing slightly annoyed.

“Steve, man you gotta get laid. Or go fishing. Somethin’. Anything that will make you less mopey.” His friend grinned, it sinking into a frown when Steve gave him murderous side eye.

“Sam I appreciate you inserting yourself into my personal life again but I still haven’t found that drive. It means everything to the trial and without it –“

”The Wet Bandits won’t be convicted and you will have failed this city…yadda yadda…” Bucky finished, putting his hands on his hips as he stood alongside Sam. “Seriously pal, we know. But worrying about it ain’t gonna make it appear out of thin air. Stop making it worse.”

“Easy for you to say Buck,” Steve scoffed. “You weren’t the one that lost it.”

“Well Cap, I guarantee it will be in the last place you left it!” Tony said, smiling cheerfully at him while he snatched the list from Sam, nodding once he had finished going over it. “We’ll find it, stop getting your old man undies in a bunch and go do something productive.”

Steve went running for three hours, the entire time thinking of ways to get away with murder.

~~~Meanwhile at the Wilson~~~

“I’m telling you Uncle I have torn these rooms apart and I haven’t found anything!!!”

You were laying on the floor of the suite Tony Rogers, or whatever his real name was had stayed in the week prior, your uncle staring down at you from the doorway that lead out into the hall.

“I can see that.” You uncle stated matter of fact, astonished at the sight. “Orange blossom it’s been two days and you haven’t found anything, I think you should give the nice man a call.”

“Ughmnpf” Was your response, your voice muffled from your face in the carpet. Housecleaning hadn’t found anything when they had cleaned both rooms, and you had spent the better part of forty eight hours digging through everything. Todd had rounded up a crew to search the rooms the Gala had been at just in case, and had turned up nothing. Well they did find your uncle’s most prized bottle opener that was shaped like a large great white shark he had gotten from the Caribbean three years ago, but that wasn’t doing anyone any favors. “He’s gonna be so upset Todd. I don’t know if I can to talk to him again.” You complained weakly, rolling onto your back to stare at the ceiling.

“Nonsense, if I remember him well enough I know he’d be very impressed with how you managed to tear these rooms apart looking for something he lost in the first place. Give yourself more credit.”

You dragged yourself off the plush floor and made your way to the phone located in the room, taking out a small slip of paper out from the pocket of your dark gray slacks and punching it into the phone. It rang four times before you were sent to voicemail.

“Hey you’ve reached the personal voicemail of Tony Stark, obviously I’m too wrapped up right now to take your call, so leave a message and I’ll call back when I feel like it.”

You stared into the phone in shock, the loud tone making you jump and sputter into the receiver.

“Ssss…sorry to call this number, I was told I could reach Tony Rogers here. This is Y/N from the Wilson, if you’re free to stop by at three this afternoon I’d greatly appreciate it. Thh..thank you.” You hung up the phone. Now you were certain you had been played. What was this mystery man playing at? First he gives you an obviously fake name and then gives you the phone number of THE Tony Stark?

“What’s wrong Y/N? You look like you just discovered spit in your cheerios. Which might I add hasn’t happened in years.”

“Um, who stayed in this suite Uncle? Tell me the truth.” You narrowed your eyes, attempting to look menacing in your bright mustard sweater and messy bun.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you, but it sounds like you’ll meet him soon enough. Which lucky for me, I’ll be here to record it.” Your face paled as your heart started to race.

Who the hell was coming to the hotel?!

~~~Three p.m~~~

“I don’t know about this Tony,” Steve muttered into his new phone, trudging up the slightly slick steps of the hotel. It was snowing, wet globs falling from the sky and sticking to the warm pavement creating a walking hazard for most people. He wasn’t most people though. “You called her. You should be here.”

“And you lost the drive, so you have retrieve it. Now get that stick out of your ass and maybe after ask her out afterwards. ” Steve rolled his eyes, the sass evident in the brunette’s tone. Everyone had gotten fed up with him over the last few days, although he was certain that was a massive understatement. “Let me know how it goes, I’ve got a meeting so I’ll talk to you afterwards.” Steve ended the call with a firm click, taking extra care at putting his phone into his pocket upon entering the lobby. Would hate to have to purchase a second phone within a week.

He was delighted to see you behind the counter, recognizing you from the gala. Granted your eyes were as big as dinner plates and you were choking on whatever was in your mug but you still managed to look lovely. He had it bad and he didn’t have the faintest idea why or how. But he did know that your smile had plagued his nights and swept through his days the entire time he had been looking for this drive. He would definitely be asking you out today.

“Hello I’m looking for Y/N?” Steve said politely, knowing good and well he was staring at her. He noticed Todd off to the side, clearly recording the whole ordeal on his phone. He had mentioned at the Gala that Y/N had harbored an intense school girl crush on the captain most of her life, and had been slightly looking forward to meeting him. Granted this was technically the third time they had met, but she didn’t know that yet.

“She’s right here!” Todd said brightly, your brain attempting to pick itself off the floor and reinsert itself back into your skull. You shook your head out of your shock and smiled, trying hard to calm your nerves. You could probably beat a hummingbird with how fast your heart was racing.

“He’s right I’m Y/N. You must be mister Rogers.” You mentally smacked yourself. Of course he was. His small grin at your expense made the humiliation twenty times worse.

“That I am. Any luck finding my drive?” He was trying to be direct. Right. He had no business here otherwise. You lowered your head, both out of disappointment and guilt.

“I’m afraid not. I personally searched both suites myself for hours and couldn’t find a single black flash drive. I’m so sorry but I was hoping maybe if you revisited the room that it would jog your memory?”

“Good luck with that,” Todd chimed in, your gaze ripping from Steve’s blue eyes to look at your uncle sharply, “It looks like a bomb went off up there.”

“I think it’s a decent idea, sure.” Steve admonished, finding himself at wits end over the matter.

You nodded and lead the way to the elevators, your uncle electing to stay behind much to your behest. Perhaps you would have a heart attack on the way up and that would be the end of it. No, that was being too optimistic. You took the space closest to the far wall, keeping your distance and blush ridden skin as far away from the super solider as possible.

“Ya know this isn’t the first time we’ve met.” Steve said simply, giving you a heartbreaking smile. “You quite literally bumped into me during the gala. And I was with you during the countdown later on that night.”

“I surely would have remembered running into you mister Rogers.” You retorted back just as simply, attempting to study the buttons on the elevator in great detail.

“Not if I was undercover. I had a long beard, terribly fitting suit. Black hair. I’m afraid the contacts made my eyes a little red from the dryness. You were looking absolutely breathtaking, wearing a beautiful green velvet dress. I’ll admit I was pulled to you from the very first moment I laid eyes on you. What were your exact words at midnight?” Your breath caught in your throat when you met his eyes, the recognition hitting you like a freight truck.

“Yappy Hew Near.” You both said it in union, your face going from tinted pink to full on tomato red when you realized Captain America had kissed you on the cheek that night.

“I am SUCH an idiot I am so sorry!” You stammered out, hoping for the first time in your life that the elevator would NOT break down with you stuck in it with Steve Rogers.

“Hey doll it’s alright, really. I wouldn’t have done what I did if I didn’t want to. Your smile is something else.” That caused you to blush harder, if that was possible. “Now let’s go see about that suite huh?”

You really hated how cool he was about the whole thing.

Deciding it would be in your best interest to get this over with as soon as possible you practically tore  down the suite door, the inside looking like a tornado went through it. After a band of criminals ransacked it. You tensed up when you heard Steve let out a slow and low whistle.

“You’ve uh…you’ve been busy.” He tried, not easing your nerves and surveying the area. “I believe you when you say you didn’t find anything.”

A nervous chuckle escaped you, “Can you walk me through what happened when you got back here? It might help talking through it.” Steve nodded at you although he wasn’t looking in your direction, his tall stature breezing around the large room with ease.

“I went to the bathroom after taking off my jacket,” He looked in the closet. Nothing. “I took out the awful contacts and shaved.” You giggled as he mimed running a razor over his face in the bathroom. He placed the invisible facial tool down on the counter and walked back out, looking slightly behind you at the nightstand. “I placed my watch there and went to take off my sh…”

The sentence died in his throat, you becoming slightly concerned as he proceeded to stand ramrod still. “Steve? Did you remember something?”

He took off his right shoe, staring into it with a slack jaw.

“You’ve got to be shitting me.”

“Steve? You’re making me nervous, talking into your shoe and all.” You had begun to back away when a slightly hysterical laugh escaped the man’s throat, the timber wavering as he ripped the insole out of the piece of footwear. You were starting to rethink being alone in a hotel room with him.

It was only when he took out the small thumb drive from a hidden compartment in his sole that you began laughing too. But yours was partially due to extreme anger.

“It…was in…your…shoe….the WHOLE time…?” You managed to get out, heaving breaths and attempting to catch them while the good Captain continued to lean onto the nightstand for support, his own breath ragged.

“Tony….made a joke…about putting it…close to…my soul.” He stood up straight, slowly regaining composure which you were not finding helpful. “I must have been so tired that I thought putting it in there was a good idea.”

“Well clearly it was a good place, you couldn’t even find it. But who uses a shoe? Honestly.”

Steve had the good sense to look embarrassed, running a hand through his hair and offering an apologetic smile. “I am so embarrassed. You tore this hotel apart looking for this and I had it the whole time. The team will never let me live it down once they find out.”

“Who says they have to know?” Came your reply, already heading to the suite door and pulling it open with a bit of effort. “I won’t tell anyone. It’ll be our secret.”

“What’s the catch doll?” He held the door for you and you gave a mumbled thanks.

“Drinks. Right now.” You said confidently, looking into his eyes, his real blue eyes with ease.

“Can’t I’m afraid.” Steve grinned at your sad expression. “We have dinner plans first.”

“Pizza?”

“You read my mind Y/N.”

You couldn’t stop yourself, beaming another mega-watt smile.

“Maybe we’re SOLE-mates mister Rogers. Shall we?”

You both laughed the entire way to the restaurant down the street.

The end.

Tags: @kaytizzle @pies-wands-and-more @cuffski @giggleberts 

[writer59january13]

I got friggin heebie jeebies

Cuz buzzards circle o'er me eyeing these lovely bones prithee id est Roy L. T. Canard, Si

hence impossible mission

to be lovey dove vee.

Vague remembrances of dream which recurred with frequency

transfixed by Sir Real majesty shows me and the misssus evicted.

Hum habitually hiccuping

in tandem feeling woozy virtualy celebrating monarchism

with British Royal Family, and about eager and ready

to take a snoozy

so please pardon this poet exhibiting being a lil oozy,

nevertheless yours truly

birthed the following verse

a reasonable rhyme and doozy considering yours truly tipsy and boozy. Now this raggedy man whilst deep in sleep this past night

what felt like galactic body fell upon ma slumbering heap affecting immediate fear

lest worst nightmare

viz management boot us

into emotional inferno

felt steel tipped kickstarter,

would crush with might

but lo… heavy weighted body

just zee spouse

plunked herself into zzz land

immediately within unconsciousness deep

that's the husband unable

to recaptcha pleasant dreams

well nigh past midnight. Unable to shake away drunken stupor nor defeat insomnia

reliving sinister tête-à-tête

so...rather than emit shrieks

like some angry bird

idea arose to resume completing poem

expressing discombobulated state,

whereby sixty shades

of grey matter feels

similar to thick whey curds

palliative sans restorative power

per rest hopefully clear muddled pate

plagued with grogginess

and marauding herds

of mailer daemons worse

than unsuitable mate

or a world wide web filled with nerds,

thus lethargy purged

via catharsis forming swords

follow rhyming pattern

to convey drowsy tipsy mood, a synonym for my words.

Noah respite despite eliminating kinks

courtesy arched back from cat nap

as ginned tonic, nor lion here

feline groovy getting high temporarily

spells relief and serve as balm

with pillowed temptress ever near

beckons softly inviting calm before this human

goes awry and berserk on manic tear

being revisited from haunts inside head of this wordsmith

caught by men in white coats

coming to take me away Ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-ha,

to the funny farm straitjacketing this maniac wrought with weariness

dark ringed circles around eyes showing Adonis long since didst veer

Judas Priest or if you prefer heavens to murgatroyd

can't stomach bulge spills o'er tattered underwear,

whose tushy by the way

once upon a time

about the size of average palm pilot,

yet taut for witnessing three score plus three mortal year.

This ole goat intoxicated, plus forcibly locked within

fas paux blinding darkness, the pitch black common

all purpose room in disarray after Skyping English fete

at fictional Knock Less Apartments aye daily encounter, one bewitchingly

hair raising dreaded locked

rooted tension doth amplify

fiendishly horrible, jeeringly loopy,

nippy nap noopy,

pugnaciously ravenous, talon

viciously wizened, xenophobic yeti, zapping

zeroing zillion zippers,

zoned alley bye

barred doors fate helplessly jury-rigged sealed with plaintive cry;

no escape known to this man caught

in a deadly voodoo clutch,

thus doomed to die

ugly cannibalistic, frightful,

heathen rumors myopic eyes espy

alarmed at feeling trapped

akin to a wingless fly

tapping reserves of scapegoat

coping techniques ingenuity,

which earned me moniker "fall guy,"

where accursed cruel fate destined exit

from getting husked, issued

jagged lance like mandibles "hi there unknown weekly reader,” I

pray for super leftist write hand man/woman to extricate

(via whipping up literary poetic fabrication),

then joining me to sing jai

(let victory prevail against killer odds)

perhaps summoning division

of British shiver rights phalanx,

hood reply with Hackneyed "oh kai"

springing surprise rescue, sans swooping inside

mine hermetically faux invisible prison,

where this troubadour doth reside, yet realistic to accept my demise without putting up

a good fight well nigh

against inevitable mortality

(out maws of death)

gleefully depriving grim reaper

death his domain and

eventual unavoidable claim, but if such kind unaccustomed soul

can cushion the blow of penury...

vis a vis philanthropic treatment

manifested as deliverance

courtesy anonymous altruistic benefactor

plucking one bard

off downward slippery

precipice of homelessness,

ye will be rewarded with apple pie ala mode enjoying a Quai, yet moment with

Holden Caulfield doppelganger

made famous qua Catcher in the Rye.

[writeawayharry]

The Nanny (Daddy Harry)

“Seriously, Y/N, I think you’d be stupid not to give this job a chance.”

Phone tucked between your shoulder and ear, you rolled your eyes as you continued chopping carrots for your dinner.

“I don’t know, Melissa. Child care? It’s so far from anything I’ve ever done before.”

“That’s why I think this will be perfect for you,” your cousin said earnestly. “Maybe it’s what you need; a little change of scenery. Take the company downsizing as a sign.”

You bit your lip. “I guess,” you said unenthusiastically.

“Y/N, I can hear it in your voice, you’re not convinced. But you’ve always been looking for an adventure. You’ve been stuck in a rut lately and you know it.”

You didn’t even bother to argue—she was right. You heard her shuffling in the background.

“My dad’s friend works with the man who needs the nanny. He’s a single dad with a young girl. How bad could it be?”

You leaned against the countertop, abandoning your cooking for a moment. This really was an opportunity.

“Fine. Send me the details.”

…

You emailed the address Melissa texted you and got an almost-immediate reply. He was interested in interviewing you, and wanted you to come in. You spent the next half hour Google mapping the interview location. It was a music studio? How odd. Maybe he worked there and wanted to interview you during his work time.

You arrived at the interview a few minutes early. Taking a deep breath, you smoothed your white t-shirt and straightened out your denim skirt. You walked through the large double doors of the studio and were met with a dark-skinned woman behind the desk.

“May I help you today?” she asked sweetly.

“I’m here for an interview with Scott Ryan. About the nanny position.”

“Ah. Right this way, Ms. He’s right here.”

With a kind smile, she gestured for you to enter a room that had the door propped slightly open.

“Mr. Ryan, this young lady is here for an interview.”

“Wonderful, thank you Andrea.”

Mr. Ryan shifted in his seat and cleared his throat. “Please, take a seat right here. I promise we won’t be too long.”

You sat down and clumsily adjusted yourself. The nerves were starting to show.

“So, Y/N, what makes you want to be a nanny? I read the resume you sent. It doesn’t look like you have a lot of experience.” He looked at you beneath his glasses.

You gave a small shrug. “I don’t, but do I need it, exactly? I mean, wouldn’t I just be taking care of one child? Darcy, you said her name was? Someone can have all the experience in the world, but if they don’t connect with that one kid, it won’t matter. I, too, read what you sent me. Darcy seems shy, inhibited. I was like that, in fact, I still am. I think I can connect with her.”

Scott looked at you with a pleased smile. “Okay, that’s that. I only have one more question for you.”

He noticed your look of shock.

“Like I said, I keep these interviews short.”

You nodded.

“Y/N, who is your celebrity crush?”

Your eyes widened. “Pardon me?”

“Who is your celebrity crush?” he repeated.

You thought for a moment.

“Oh goodness, I have no idea. I haven’t had one of those since the ninth grade. I guess the only crush I have now is on my boyfriend,” you answered sheepishly.

Scott nodded enthusiastically, like he was on to something.

“Okay, I lied. I have one last question. Do you know who Darcy’s father is?”

“Um, yes. You?” you answered nervously. Was this a joke?

Scott Ryan stood up and headed for his door quickly. “Come with me please, Y/N. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

Slightly confused, you kept up with Scott’s fast pace as he led you down a long hallway. He winked at you before he opened a door. Your eyes took in a recording studio. You had never been in one, but you knew immediately what is was.

There were several people in the room, all men, but your attention was drawn to one in particular. He was leaning back in a swivel chair, feet perched on a stool in front of him. His black jeans were tight and his white button up shirt was comfortably loose. His curly brown hair curled beautifully over his ears. You recognized the man.

“Harry,” Scott began.

Holy shit. It was Harry Styles.

“Mmm?” he said, looking up, appearing stressed.

“I think I found you your nanny,” Scott smiled.

That was when Harry noticed your presence in the room. His eyes widened as he took you in. From your practically makeup free face, ponytail, and white sneakers, you felt his eyes roam. Heat flared in the pit of your stomach.

“Yeah?” Harry asked rhetorically. “What’s your name?” he directed at you.

You felt your face flush. “Y/N Y/L/N,” you answered nervously.

Harry nodded and looked back at Scott. “She’s really young,” he said disapprovingly.

Scott sighed. “She answered all your questions flawlessly. Come on Harry, we’re trying to get you back on tour, Darcy needs someone.”

Harry leaned further back in his chair and folded his arms behind his head. “I know that! Y/N, Scott will send you my details. Please be at my place tomorrow at 4. Consider yourself hired.”

…

You were texting your boyfriend Andrew as you took the elevator up to Harry’s floor. He lived in the penthouse of a luxury condominium downtown. Andrew knew how nervous you were, and was trying to calm your nerves. Things had been sort of rocky between the two of you lately, so you were glad he was being supportive.

You knocked on the door of 174, Harry’s apartment and waited for an answer. Within seconds, Harry opened it.

Holy Toledo.

You didn’t follow the tabloids or gossip sites, but you knew enough that Harry Styles was in his mid-thirties now. And unlike most men, he only seemed to be getting better with age. His shoulders were broader, his eyes were kinder, and his face was always covered in a shadow of facial hair.

He was wearing an outfit similar to the one you saw yesterday, and you pretty much just stared at him.

“Y/N, come in,” he said cheerily.

Already, you could tell he was in a much better mood than he was in yesterday. Clearly, there was work stress.

“Hi, Mr. Styles,” you said shyly.

“Oh, call me Harry. Or boss,” he winked.

Jesus.

“Daddy, is this her?” a little girl said quietly.

“Yes, Darcy, this is Y/N. She’s really nice,” Harry told his daughter.

“Hi, Darcy,” you said, stepping inside.

She was situated by the corner, safely away from the door.

“I’m so excited to be spending some time with you,” you said, leaning down to her eye level.

Despite her shyness, she met your gaze steadily.

“I brought you something.” You reached into your bag and pulled out a stuffed animal. “It’s a teddy bear. His name is Mr. Patches. I had one just like him when I was your age.”

Darcy appraised the teddy and reached out for him. As soon as he was in her arms, she pulled it in for a hug. “Thank you, Y/N. I love Mr. Patches. I’d like to show you my bedroom now, if you’d like to follow me.”

Darcy turned on her heels and you followed her, giving Harry a quick glance. His lips were slightly parted in awe.

…

Three hours later, Harry gently knocked on the door and called the two of you for dinner. You were wearing a boa and princess crown, having a tea party with Darcy. He failed to hide his smirk.

Dinner was a quiet affair. Darcy continued to talk like an adult and Harry made small talk with her. You mainly just observed.

Shortly after dinner, Harry tucked Darcy in to bed. When you were playing with Darcy earlier, he must have brought your suitcase to your new bedroom. One of the perks of this job: you were going to live with them.

“Your stuff is in your room,” Harry explained needlessly as he closed the door to Darcy’s room.

“Yeah, thanks,” you said quietly.

“Look, Y/N,” Harry continued. “I didn’t mean to be so rude yesterday. Finding a nanny has been literal hell. Honestly…”

“I understand,” you smiled.

More people were probably more interested in Harry than Darcy.

“Well then goodnight, Y/N.”

“Goodnight, Harry.”

…

It had been three weeks, and things were going very well. You and Darcy had taken a liking to each other and your friendship was growing. Harry didn’t tend to be home very often, but he was a loving and attentive father when he was. He was also incredibly hot.

So far, all of your dinners had been ordered in. Tonight, you wanted to cook and treat Harry and Darcy to a roast chicken.

But his oven was so damn fancy. You used as much common sense as you had to figure out how it worked. You didn’t want to ask Harry in fear of not looking competent.

You were flipping through a magazine on the kitchen counter when you began to smell something burn. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed Harry enter the room.

“Something smells…” he began.

Just as he was speaking, you opened the oven and a flame angrily escaped.

“Careful!” Harry roared.

Within seconds, one hand was wrapped around your waist as he pulled you away from the oven. Then he slammed the oven shut.

His body was pressing yours against the island and your heavy breaths were rising and falling rapidly. Lips parted, Harry was staring heavily into your eyes. Everywhere his hands were was tingly.

“Daddy, is the chicken almost done?” Darcy asked, holding Mr. Patches.

“Um…actually,” Harry said, still looking at you, “we’re going to order pizza.”

…

“Would you like a glass?” Harry asked as he poured himself a second glass of red wine.

Darcy had just been put to sleep and the apartment had a dark, cozy, calm. Despite being the pent house and immaculate, it was relatively small. Harry had said he wanted a place that no matter where he was inside of it, he would still feel close to Darcy.

“Yes, please,” you answered. You weren’t much of a drinker but after the dinner disaster, you needed one.

Harry’s eyes were twinkling as he poured it and already seemed tipsy.

“Thanks,” you mumbled, taking a sip.

“You know, Y/N, Darcy really loves having you here. She’s never taken a liking to someone before. And the same goes for me.”

You hid your blush as you took another sip. “Well, I like being here.”

Harry smiled and turn on the TV. There were some reruns of the Most Extreme Elimination Challenge on, and you and Harry were laughing so hard tears were forming in your eyes. Sometime during the show, the two of you had scooted closer to each other. Suddenly, you were practically on his lap.

It was now past midnight, and you were feeling giddy and light.

You were saying something and Harry was turned toward you, listening. Then you noticed his eyes travel to the corner of your mouth.

“What?” you asked.

His thumb pressed onto your lip. “You have a drop of wine there,” he said, eyelids heavy.

Then he leaned in and pressed his lips softly into yours.

And then they were gone.

“I am so sorry,” Harry exclaimed, backing away from you immediately. “That never should have happened. It was so inappropriate and I didn’t mean to do it!”

Well that stung. Kissing you was a mistake.

“It’s fine,” you said curtly, leaving him alone.

…

The next night Andrew was over. Darcy was going to her aunt’s house and Harry had to be at the studio late. So it was just you.

The two of you weren’t doing much talking. Andrew just wanted to make out, evidently. His hands kept groping your body despite your protests. His tongue was halfway down your throat when Harry entered.

“Excuse me?” He said, voice sounding seriously ticked off.

“Harry…” you began.

“You can leave right now, young man,” Harry said.

Immediately Andrew got up and left.

Your eyes narrowed at Harry. “You didn’t have to embarrass my boyfriend like that.”

Harry walked to the kitchen. “This isn’t part of the arrangement, Y/N. You keep that boy and his wandering hands out of here!”

“Oh, only you are allowed you to kiss me?”

He froze.

“I told you, that was a mistake.”

“Yeah, I got that. Loud and clear. Maybe this entire thing was.” You felt like crying.

“Y/N…” Harry began tenderly.

“Goodnight Mr. Styles.”

…

Harry found you on the couch the next night, sad and alone. The cushions dipped as he sat beside you.

“Y/N, I’ve been as ass, and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so hard about you and Andrew. Just seeing him…I just got, jealous.”

You shook your head sadly. “You don’t have to worry about Andrew anymore. We broke up this afternoon.”

“Really?” Harry asked.

You nodded.

“Good.”

Before you could form a coherent thought, Harry’s hands grabbed your face and he pressed his lips into yours for the second time.

Thanks so much for reading! x

[sciencespies]

The 10 Best Wellness Trends Of The 2010’s

https://sciencespies.com/news/the-10-best-wellness-trends-of-the-2010s/

The 10 Best Wellness Trends Of The 2010’s

With the sun having set on the 2010s, what are the top wellness trends to take into the New Year … [+] 2020? (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty

Every chocolate eclair has a golden lining. While the 2010’s have had its share of bogus and bad wellness trends, it’s also had its good ones. On the last day of the past decade, I covered for Forbes the Top 10 worst wellness trends of the twenty-teens. Let’s use the New Year to cover the really good ones. Now without further doggie-doo, here are the Top 10 best:

10. Athleisure, activewear, and eco-friendly apparel

“Athleisure” or “activewear” clothes are more comfortable but also stylish garbs that you can wear during athletic activities as well as others such work, going to school, attending parties, and getting arrested at protests. It’s basically melding sportswear with everyday wear, making it easier to meld physical activity with everything else. Why not? After all, many classic office-wear clothing items make about as much sense as the lyrics of the song Ice, Ice Baby. For example, neckties have little practical purpose, except to dab the tears in your eyes from your dreams being slowly crushed by your boss.

Then there are eco-friendly clothes, those that are less likely to pollute the environment. For example, they may be made out of natural fibers rather than petroleum-based clothing, which can be a source of microplastics, making oceans look like a bedazzler gone overboard, so to speak, as I’ve covered before for Forbes.

More clothing lines emerged that merged athletic activities with other activities. (Photo: Getty … [+] Images)

Getty

9. More flexible work hours and more attention to family leave policies

While I was in medical school, an anesthesiologist once told me, “the best thing about anesthesiology is that you get into work at 6 am and then.” Everything sort of went hazy after he said that, because, to borrow a quote from the movie Jerry McGuire, he definitely didn’t have me at 6 am. Even if he had continued by saying,”they provided gold bars and sushi,” that workday start-time basically ruled out anesthesiology as a career option for me.

Fortunately, the 2010s saw increasing recognition that not everyone operates best at the same hours. On one end of the spectrum are night owls, who prefer later-to-rise-and-later-to-bed hours. At the other end are people whose sole purpose is to make night owls miserable: the early morning people, the larks. Then, there is a whole continuum of people in between. Over the past decade, more and more workplaces began offering more flex hours, allowing employees to better tailor their “on times” to their own personal working styles.

Another trend was paying more attention to having more reasonable family leave policies. Note that the words are “paying more attention to” and not actually changing them. While some organizations have responded by offering longer family leave, not all are allowing mothers and fathers much time with, you know, those living, breathing, peeing, and pooping things that have appeared in their houses and apartments. As John Oliver pointed out in this 2015 episode of Last Week Tonight, the U.S. still lags most of the world (except for perhaps Papa New Guinea) in this area:

8. Doing something about the sitting problem

Is sitting literally the new smoking, as some began claiming that it is? Not exactly, unless you are doing something really weird with your bottom. What this saying is supposed to highlight are the dangers of sitting around too much, which can lead to an increased risk of obesity and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The 2010s saw various trends aimed at decreasing your sitting time, such as standing desks, conducting meetings while standing, desk cycles, computer screen reminders to periodically get off of your butt, and the movie “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” to get you moving more or out of your seat. Not all of these will necessarily sit well with time though. Standing too long has its perils too, such as back and foot issues, and people asking you to stop blocking their view in the movie theater. And if you’ve got a standing desk, you’ve got to be real careful when propping your feet on the desk.

Standing desks became a thing in many workplaces. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty

7. More plant-based diets

Eating more plants and less meat can be better for not only your health but also the environment. Fruits and vegetables are naturally lower in saturated fat and sodium and can be higher in sodium and many types of nutrients and antioxidants. Plus, meat production can add lots of carbon and other types of pollution to the environment, and it’s not just from cows farting. The past decade did see an increase in plant-awareness and plant-based options. Heck, there is even meat-free haggis now, which is a bit like Game of Thrones without the killing and the sex. Keep in mind, though, plant-based doesn’t automatically mean healthy. Some plant-based dishes can have plenty of bad stuff added such as saturated fat, salt, sugar, and artificial ingredients. Also, if you are vegan, don’t go acting like the Todd Ingram vegan character in the movie Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Being vegan won’t automatically make you better than others, as this tweet references:

6. Waking up to sleep problems

What you do in bed matters, a lot. No, not that the stuff that takes on average 5.4 minutes to do with a range of 0.55 minutes to 44.1 minutes, based on a study of men in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Spain, Turkey, and the United States published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine. Instead, I’m referring to what you usually do in bed, which is sleep or, at least try to sleep. Getting less than seven hours of sleep a night is linked to increased risk of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, frequent mental distress, and death. And if you are dead, you can’t do that other stuff in bed, at least you really shouldn’t. A study published in the February 19, 2016, issue of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report found that more than a third of Americans regularly fall below this seven hour threshold. While many of these sleep problems have not yet been adequately solved, at least there seems to be more awareness for now.

The increasing use of smartphones and other devices may be affecting sleep. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty

5. Meditation and mindfulness

And Zen there’s this trend. It isn’t a completely new trend. In fact, various meditation and mindfulness practices have been common for hundreds of years in many parts of Asia. What’s new is these practices are becoming more mainstream in the U.S. For example, my previous article in Forbes covered how the NBA has incorporated such practices into its Rookie Transition Program. Being more in touch with your mind, your feelings, and your environment can’t be a bad thing. Maybe mindfulness can help counteract another trend that’s happening on social media: mindlessness.

Here is a video from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) on the origins and traditions of meditation:

4. Personalized health, nutrition, etc.

Surprise, surprise. Everyone is not the same. You all don’t have the same bodies, the same minds, and the same circumstances. You all don’t like to dab. For too many years, too many people, whether its medical researchers, people trying to sell stuff like diets and medications, or people making policies and guidelines, have overlooked the individual and tried to lump people together into gigantic buckets. The 2010s saw increased realization that this just doesn’t work, that you actually have to, gasp, get to know someone before making many judgments and giving advice.

3. Talking more about mental health

If you have a bleeding arm, would you ever try to hide it or fear that someone will say, “ha, ha, that’s the bleeding arm guy, look at how bleeding his arm is.” Similarly, hiding mental health issues for fear of stigma and social and career implications makes little sense. You can’t address an issue if you don’t know about it. The 2010s had a number of athletes, movie and television stars, and other celebrities be more frank about their mental health challenges. For example, in this Today show segment, celebrities Carson Daly, Kristen Bell, Ryan Reynolds, Kevin Love and Michael Phelps discuss their anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges:

2. Efforts to increase sports participation and make it more inclusive.

Physical inactivity has become a major worldwide problem that’s gotten worse in the 2010s. Sport participation, especially among kids, dropped in the 2000s and much of the 2010’s with sports becoming too expensive, too competitive, and too inaccessible to play for many and a range of more sedentary activities like social media and putting Tide Pods in your mouth competing for attention.

But there is hope. The past decade witnessed increasing diversity among professional and other high profile athletes. Events like the 2019 Women’s World Cup provided a greater showcase for women’s sports:

Kosovare Asllani of Sweden (R) battles for the ball with Samantha Mewis of United States (L) during … [+] the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup France group F match between Sweden and USA at on June 20, 2019 in Le Havre, France. (Photo by Marcio Machado/Getty Images)

Getty Images

The tail end of Ichiro Suzuki’s major league baseball career, the spectacular beginning of Jeremy Lin’s NBA career, and Chloe Kim’s gold-medal-winning 2018 Winter Olympic debut got more people used to seeing those of Asian descent as top athletes.

Jeremy Lin #17 of the New York Knicks in action against Jason Maxiell #54 of the Detroit Pistons on … [+] March 24, 2012 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Knicks defeated the Pistons 101-79. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Getty Images

The 2010s also saw more Black athletes dominate in roles, such as being an NFL quarterback, that not too long ago seemed reserved for White athletes. Moreover, initiatives like Project Play 2020, which I have described previously for Forbes, launched to increase youth participation in sports.

1.Finding ways to decrease sugar and salt consumption.

Oh sugar, who would have thought that drinking sugar water would be a bad thing? In the 2010s, there was finally a whole lot more attention paid to the dangers of adding sugar to everything. This included trying to find ways to curb the consumption of sugary drinks, such as warning labels and soda taxes, and helping people better understand how much sugar is being added to food. One example is when First Lady-at-the-time Michelle Obama worked with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to add a new category to the Nutrition Facts label: “Added Sugars.” The actual implementation of this change has been delayed under President Donald Trump’s administration.

On August 22, 2017, KIND Healthy Snacks dumped over 45,000 pounds of sugar in Times Square to … [+] represent how much added sugar American children consume each day. (Photo by Vanessa Carvalho/Brazil Photo Press/LatinContent via Getty Images)

LatinContent via Getty Images

This list certainly ain’t everything that was good about wellness the 2010s. Also, some wellness trends in the decade were a bit mixed. For example, wearables really became a thing. The good thing about these tech devices is that you can wear them on your body to monitor what you do. The bad thing is that you can wear them on your body to monitor what you do. Questions remain about the usefulness of the information being collected and the impact of others knowing this information.

Alas, 2020 is no longer just name of a television show or a perfect reading on an eye exam. It is now when we are. How many of these best wellness trends will continue and expand? You may want to sleep on it.

#News

[sarahlwlee]

31 Stories in 31 Days: Music

What is this? As part of celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May), I am writing a story a day about my experiences as a Chinese Malaysian immigrant in America. My friends and family have provided numerous one-word prompts to help me create these stories. Today’s word prompt was contributed by Tieng Yee L. and the word is “Music”. Thank you Tieng for your contribution and thank you everyone who stopped by to read my story today.

When I was a kid I didn’t like piano lessons. I was 5-years-old when I was enrolled in piano lessons. My piano lesson took place at a pastor’s house right behind the kindergarten I attended. The kindergarten was also a Lutheran church. While attending kindergarten, my mother was also a teacher at the kindergarten and heard the pastor’s daughter was giving piano lessons. She enrolled me as soon as she could and told me that whatever musical gifts I had, I needed to serve God in church when time came. I did not understand what my mom meant at the time and nodded in agreement so that I could get started with lessons. Finally, I could be just like my sister playing the piano.

One of the big things you learn at the beginning is learning how to read music notes and how to count. Neither of which I was very good at. My piano teacher tried every way possible to teach me music theory including using analogies of a large circular man eating four apples equals a semibreve and using imagery that looked like the notes themselves. It was a lot of fun coloring the apples however when it came to practical application to playing the piano I didn’t do so well. More often than not, I was always very shy when it came to playing the piano and became scared of the piano teacher because she got angry when I wouldn’t curve my fingers on the keys. She would us a thin wooden dowel to press on to the tips of my fingers to illustrate those were the only parts that should be touching the keys and not my whole finger.

Apparently this didn’t sink in with me, so she brought out Chinese medicine balls (or Baoding balls) to put in my palms, flip my hands over and told don’t drop the balls while I played the piano. I got so scared that I held on tightly to the balls and played ever so slowly with my fingers curved. She sternly asked me to keep up with the tempo and to stop dragging my fingers. I stopped playing and started to cry. She took the balls from my hands and walked out of the room to return with tissue paper to wipe my tears. I think it was awkward for her that I was crying and she kept saying, “Don’t cry… you just need to follow instructions, Sarah.” We took a break and worked on more music theory coloring before my lesson ended.

When kindergarten ended, I thought my piano lesson days were over. I dreaded the teacher and was not enjoying the process of learning at all. Around Standard 3 (or 3rd Grade equivalent), my mom decided to enroll me in a music school called PianoTec to pick up where I left off when I was in kindergarten. This time the teacher I had was amazing. She was so patient and made learning the piano a lot of fun. Unfortunately,  after six months she moved on to a different job and left the music school. I was assigned a new teacher and she was a lot stricter. She trained me really hard on playing scales, especially the Suzuki method, and it started to get monotonous and boring. I wasn’t playing anymore fun songs and the pieces were not even songs that I had ever heard before. At that point I had completed Grade 3 level for piano andI decided to tell my mom I didn’t want to take piano lessons anymore. My mom honored my wishes and I was relieved that I didn’t have to go back to PianoTec ever again.

Something changed when I was 12. My mom brought me to a piano concert at someone’s house that had two grand pianos. At the time my aunt had a fundraiser for her nonprofit and she had invited a few professional piano performers to play a special concert for attendees to hear an exclusive performance. It was the most amazing performance I had every watched up close and the emotions they emoted made me think I could do this too. I told my mom I wanted to take piano lessons again when I turn 13 and this time I’ll stick with it. Once again she reminded, whatever musical gifts I had I needed to use it to serve God. I went back to PianoTec with a different teacher and made it through Grade 6 in terms of exams. After that I told the teacher I needed to take a break when I was turned 15 because we were having a major Form 3 exam at school called PMR (Penilaian Menengah Rendah or Lower Secondary Assessment). It’s the exam that determines what stream specialization you get assigned to based on your grades when you move on to Form 4 and 5 (the equivalent to high school).

My social life changed when I was 15. Not only were we preparing for a major exam, boys and girls were getting eager to get to know each other more than just classmates. I wasn’t interested in anyone at school, mainly because there was no guy who matched my comprehension in English. Even the one guy who I had a crush on couldn’t communicate with me in English and I couldn’t communicate with him in Cantonese, so we talked in Malay. I learned quickly that he and I had nothing in common and soon the crush faded. During a school holiday break, I signed up for a School Christian Fellowship Leaders camp as part of my training to help our at the Christian Fellowship in school. At this camp, I learned to overcome my fear of public speaking and I met the most interesting guy in the world who was three years older than I was. His name is Jon. He was so worldly, cool and good looking. When camp ended, the campers traded numbers and emails with their bunk mates and new friends. Unfortunately, I didn’t get Jon’s email or phone number nor did give mine to him.

A few weeks later after the camp had ended, I was back in school and we were working hard on exam drills in preparation for PMR. I was once again getting bored by the monotony and repetition that I studying became less interesting. One day I received a call from Jon while I was having dinner with my family. It was the strangest thing because I didn’t give him my number. Later I found out he had asked one of my bunk mates for my number and one could only assume he must be interested in me. Since it was dinner time, I asked him for his email and phone number so that I could contact him later. He said I’ll just email you my information. I hung up with glee and eagerly awaited his email. We ended up talking more on ICQ, an online messenger service, into the wee hours of the morning. I learned he was an avid musician, primarily violin and is hoping to venture into bass guitar. I started to take violin lessons with my mom’s permission to surprise Jon. Our camp friends planned a small get together just to catch up and we both decided to talk more in person during the get together. This in person conversation didn’t quite take place as I was so shy to have a conversation with him in front of people.

Jon had an interesting obsession at the time with yoyo and this traveling yoyo performers called ProYo. They were an American team traveling all over the world teaching kids how do tricks with a yoyo. I attended my first ProYo event with Jon and bought my first butterfly ProFire yoyo. It was a lot of fun but probably what made it exciting for me was an opportunity to spend time with Jon only and no one else. The day we were traveling to the ProYo event, it was pouring rain and I remember my white jeans was getting soaked. I was picking my pant legs up with my hands because it started to get heavy while walking and I remember Jon turning to me saying, “I’m sorry you have to hold your pants like that, seems I should be holding your hand instead.” My heart started to race and my crush had turned into deep infatuation for Jon.

After my PMR exam, I attended another School Christian Fellowship camp with the newly elected Christian Fellowship executive committee at my school. I was selected to be secretary and was excited to be part of something important in school. After camp, I didn’t know a few of my newfound friends from Malacca were mutual friends with Jon. So when a Christian rally was taking place at the stadium near my house, I learned a few of my friends from camp were planning on attending and need a place to stay. My mom approved  of two of my camp friends, a boy and a girl, and also Jon to spend the night at our house. The boys slept in the other room and the girl slept in my room. The first night when we were all together, we laughed and talked late into the night. All of us finally went to bed because the next morning, my Christian Fellowship president was going to walk us to a great spot to watch the sunrise.

Jon and I couldn’t sleep. We both went downstairs to the main family room and we kept all the lights off so that we didn’t wake anyone else up. The moonlight was our only source of light and the sound of my mother’s favorite small bubbling fountain in the corner filled the air. We continued to talk and flirt, before I knew it we were kissing deeply. That was my first kiss with a boy and it was awkward and great. I don’t know how that’s possible to have both reactions, but I think it was because I wanted it to be great because it was my first kiss. The very next day, we were so sleepy because we barely slept and we had to go walk to the site where my Christian Fellowship president insisted on showing our guests the perfect sunrise. When we got back to the house, I barely ate breakfast and decided to take a quick nap that morning and so did Jon on my bedroom floor.

When we woke up, my mother stopped by the room and started chatting with Jon as well as the other two campers. I so happened had my violin in my room and my mother requested of Jon to play “The Swan” by Saint Saens. He happily obliged and had this song memorized already. I was so impressed and inspired to keep practicing my violin because he had played on it. I wanted to show him that I could match him and that I would be good for him as a girlfriend. We were somewhat officially together upon my insistence. Over the weeks and months later, he eventually broke up with me on ICQ because I wasn’t his type and he didn’t want to be tied down. I was terribly heart broken and could not get over him. For years I kept longing for him and no other guy could measure up. During that time of longing, I just worked hard on my violin performance and just making music with any band or orchestra or even at church because I wanted to prove that I could be his match on that level. For a long time I tried to win him back, even when we were on friendlier terms.

Looking back on this experience, the only good thing that came out of it was the experience of a lifetime in pursuing good music or rather a good sound from an instrument. A lot of my affections for him was poured into music and my musical instruments, especially the violin. I know now that what we had at the time wasn’t realistic nor meant to be. We were on different paths even though I tried so hard to make sure my path would lead to him or at least bring me closer to him. When I was reading through old emails and transcripts of conversations with Jon, there were so many signs where he had expressed not having the deep infatuation that I did of him. I just refused to acknowledge at the time and was truly blinded by an infatuation built on false hope.

First love’s are hard to forget and you will always carry them with you where ever you go. They don’t occupy rent in your heart, mind and soul like it use to, but you know it’s there like a long lost memory. I am glad that the last love is the one to last forever. In this case, my husband. Finding Chauncey, who is now my husband of 12 years this coming August, is like a one in a million. With him, I have learned to understand what deep love and friendship should be and how it helps you grow as a person. I couldn’t have asked for anyone better to spend the rest of my life with. Even though we don’t share similar musical taste, we deeply admire each other for our accomplishments and cheer each other on in the pursuit of our goals in life. My only hope at the end of this journey is the ability to love Chauncey as much and be worthy of his love and affection for me.