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capitalism-is-a-psychopathy · 16 days ago

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Billionaires destroy more than they create

In a land often championed for its economic opportunity and equality, the American Dream promises that anyone who works hard can rise to prosperity. But for many in today’s middle and lower economic classes, that dream is fading, shadowed by a reality that feels increasingly rigged. At the heart of this issue lies a stark and glaring imbalance: billionaires, a minuscule fraction of the population, wield a staggering concentration of wealth and influence. This is not just an issue of economics but one that touches the foundations of democracy and fairness.

Imagine the economy as a massive machine, built to churn wealth throughout society. In an ideal world, this wealth would cycle effectively, where each part contributes and benefits in turn. But as billionaires amass wealth at unprecedented levels, this machine has come to function more like a funnel, siphoning resources from the broader society and concentrating them at the very top. This dynamic, driven by complex financial structures and tax strategies, isn’t merely an accumulation of personal fortunes but a systematic extraction from the economic potential of others. The capital that could have flowed through wages, education, and public infrastructure is often diverted into private bank accounts and shell companies, rarely benefiting the people who drive and build the economy day by day.

As wealth accumulates at the top, so too does political influence. Billionaires, with vast financial resources, can fund political campaigns, lobbyists, and entire networks of think tanks dedicated to shaping policy. Through these channels, they push for tax policies, regulations, and trade agreements that benefit the ultra-wealthy at the expense of middle- and lower-income families. Politicians, indebted to these donors, increasingly look to billionaire interests rather than to constituents’ needs. This creates a disturbing feedback loop: billionaires influence politics to further policies that reinforce their own wealth and power, leaving the broader populace with dwindling opportunities to influence their own government.

This concentrated power extends far beyond campaign finance and lobbying. With ownership over significant segments of media networks, billionaires control the narratives that millions consume daily. Through these media outlets, they shape public opinion, diverting attention from policies that would challenge wealth accumulation and pushing narratives that frame the ultra-wealthy as essential “job creators” or “innovators” rather than acknowledging their role in widening economic divides. Issues that might threaten their economic stranglehold are often buried, while others, that create division and distract, are amplified.

For the middle and lower classes, this confluence of wealth, media, and political power has a real impact. Stagnant wages, diminishing job security, and rising costs of living aren’t natural outcomes of a complex economy—they’re symptoms of a system shaped to benefit those at the top. Policies that could lift working-class Americans, like raising the minimum wage, universal healthcare, or better labor protections, are often stifled in legislative deadlock, thanks in part to the political influence of the ultra-wealthy who stand to lose from them.

So, as this cycle continues, the gap between billionaires and everyone else widens. The billions accumulated at the top no longer signify mere success but a barrier to mobility for everyone else. The middle and lower classes find themselves carrying the economic burdens, often working harder for less. Meanwhile, billionaires remain insulated, living in a different economic reality, one far removed from the struggles of the average American. This isn’t just an economic imbalance but a distortion of democracy itself, as the machinery of power and influence is pulled further from the reach of ordinary citizens and held more tightly by those whose interests rarely align with theirs.

Without addressing this imbalance, the promise of opportunity, the cornerstone of the American Dream, becomes less attainable with each passing year, not just for the lower and middle classes but for the nation’s future as a whole.

Addressing their manipulation

Billionaires and their advocates often employ a familiar set of narratives to justify their wealth and the structures that enable it. These arguments, framed in terms of the free market, capitalism, or fear of socialism, are not only misleading but often serve to distract from the deeper systemic issues at play. Below is a breakdown of these claims and the counterarguments that expose their flaws:

1. “It’s Just the Free Market at Work”

The myth of the “free market” implies that billionaires achieve their wealth purely through talent, innovation, and competition in a market where everyone has equal opportunity. But in reality, the U.S. economy is far from a genuinely “free” market.

Counterpoints:

• Government Subsidies and Tax Breaks: Many billionaires’ businesses rely heavily on taxpayer-funded subsidies, special tax breaks, and other forms of government assistance. Large corporations frequently lobby for policies that grant them tax advantages, including offshore loopholes and capital gains tax breaks. This creates an environment where they aren’t competing on equal ground but rather with significant state support, distorting the market in their favor.

• Anti-Competitive Practices: Many large corporations, especially in tech and finance, engage in monopolistic behavior, buying out competitors or using aggressive tactics to drive them out of the market. This concentration of power stifles competition, contradicting the notion of a “free” market where anyone can succeed if they work hard.

• Inherited Wealth and Privilege: A significant portion of billionaire wealth is inherited rather than self-made. Generational wealth compounds, giving the ultra-wealthy an enormous head start over those without similar family resources. This challenges the idea that wealth accumulation is simply the product of individual merit or a fair market.

2. “This Is What Capitalism Is Supposed to Look Like”

The argument here suggests that capitalism is an inherently competitive system, where the most successful rise to the top, benefiting everyone through innovation and job creation. This narrative hinges on the idea of “trickle-down economics,” where the wealth of the richest eventually spreads throughout society.

Counterpoints:

• Trickle-Down Economics Doesn’t Work: Decades of evidence show that wealth rarely “trickles down” to the rest of society in any meaningful way. Income inequality has only widened, with wages stagnating for most workers while billionaire wealth has soared. Billionaires tend to reinvest wealth in ways that concentrate their holdings, like in stocks, rather than in ways that benefit the broader economy.

• Wealth Extraction, Not Wealth Creation: Many billionaires achieve and maintain their fortunes through rent-seeking behavior—extracting wealth from existing resources rather than creating new value. Hedge funds, private equity, and real estate empires often profit by cutting costs (like labor) rather than by innovating or producing new goods and services. This dynamic benefits investors but hurts workers and consumers.

• Capitalism Can Take Other Forms: The capitalism practiced in the U.S. today, sometimes called “neoliberal capitalism,” focuses on minimal regulation, tax cuts for the wealthy, and privatization. However, other countries demonstrate that capitalism can function with stronger social safety nets, wealth redistribution policies, and tighter regulations on corporate power. Nordic countries, for example, balance capitalism with robust welfare systems, ensuring a more equitable distribution of wealth and services.

3. “Without Billionaires, There Would Be No Innovation or Job Creation”

A popular myth is that billionaires are essential “job creators” and “innovators” whose wealth ultimately benefits society by funding new businesses and creating employment. This claim positions billionaires as indispensable to economic growth.

Counterpoints:

• Public Funding Fuels Innovation: Many of the biggest technological advances, including the internet, GPS, and medical breakthroughs, were developed with public funding rather than billionaire investments. Government research grants and subsidies often lay the groundwork for major innovations that billionaires later profit from. In other words, society bears much of the financial risk, while billionaires reap the rewards.

• Small Businesses Create Most Jobs: Small businesses, not billionaires or large corporations, are responsible for most job creation in the United States. Big corporations often eliminate jobs through automation, outsourcing, or consolidation. They may employ a large workforce, but they also tend to exploit workers through low wages, precarious employment, and cost-cutting measures.

• Billionaires Accumulate Wealth Through Wealth, Not Innovation: Many billionaires maintain their wealth not by creating jobs or innovating but by using their existing capital to generate more wealth, often through financial instruments that have little to do with actual economic productivity. Stock buybacks, dividends, and passive investments grow their fortunes without necessarily contributing to broader economic prosperity.

4. “Any Alternative Is Socialism or Communism”

When calls arise for higher taxes on the wealthy, stricter regulations, or broader social programs, the response is often to invoke the fear of “socialism” or “communism.” This argument seeks to paint any attempt at wealth redistribution or regulation as a slippery slope toward total government control.

Counterpoints:

• Social Safety Nets and Regulations Are Not Socialism: Social safety nets, progressive taxation, and regulations do not equate to socialism or communism; they’re features of a balanced capitalist system that seeks to prevent extreme inequality and protect public welfare. Countries like Germany, Canada, and Denmark combine regulated capitalism with strong social programs, resulting in healthier economies and greater well-being for citizens without abandoning capitalism.

• Inequality Threatens Capitalism: Growing inequality and economic instability can undermine the foundations of capitalism. A healthy capitalist economy requires a strong middle class with buying power, which excessive wealth concentration undermines. Reforms like progressive taxation, labor protections, and universal healthcare aren’t a rejection of capitalism but rather a means of stabilizing it.

• Historical Success of Mixed Economies: Many of the most successful and prosperous countries practice a mixed economy, where capitalism coexists with social policies that promote equality. The U.S. itself has employed a mixed economy model in the past, particularly after the New Deal, which implemented social safety nets, labor protections, and financial regulations that led to a period of unprecedented growth and prosperity for the middle class.

5. “They Earned It Fair and Square”

Finally, the idea persists that billionaires deserve their wealth because they “earned” it. This argument suggests that any policy aiming to redistribute wealth is fundamentally unfair, penalizing those who worked hard to succeed.

Counterpoints:

• Systemic Advantages and Wealth Hoarding: As previously mentioned, many billionaires begin with advantages—like family wealth or elite educational opportunities—that aren’t available to most people. Additionally, billionaires often employ complex strategies to avoid taxes, lobby for favorable regulations, and capitalize on government subsidies. These factors mean they haven’t earned wealth solely through hard work or merit.

• Billionaires Didn’t Build Alone: No billionaire operates in isolation; they rely on infrastructure, public education, and the work of thousands or millions of employees. A CEO’s wealth is made possible by a web of collective contributions, yet that wealth is rarely shared equitably. While billionaires might be rewarded for their role, their fortune is far from the result of individual effort alone.

In short, these narratives around billionaires often mask a more uncomfortable truth: today’s system is structured in ways that favor the ultra-wealthy at the expense of the broader population. Economic reform, rather than a threat to capitalism, is a necessary step to ensure a more just, equitable society where wealth accumulation doesn’t depend on privilege, influence, or systemic manipulation.

Making a change

Addressing the economic imbalance and the unchecked power of the ultra-wealthy presents a unique challenge, especially given the intense political polarization in the United States. For the middle and lower classes to push back effectively, they will need to build a coalition that transcends party lines and focuses on shared economic interests rather than divisive rhetoric.

1. Build Awareness Through Shared Issues, Not Ideology

The rhetoric around “free markets” and “socialism” often obscures real issues of economic struggle that affect both conservative and progressive working- and middle-class citizens alike. Instead of framing the issue in ideological terms, framing it in terms of tangible, shared grievances can help bridge the divide:

• Focus on Economic Inequality: Income stagnation, unaffordable healthcare, and housing insecurity are felt across the political spectrum. By shifting the narrative from “class warfare” to “economic fairness,” advocates can sidestep partisan language and emphasize the shared experience of economic struggle.

• Highlight the Impact of Corporate Power on Local Communities: Framing issues around how large corporations hurt small, local businesses can resonate strongly with both sides of the political spectrum. This approach often taps into conservative values around community and self-reliance, while also aligning with progressive critiques of corporate overreach.

2. Organize Around Labor Rights and Worker Protections

Historically, unions have been instrumental in improving working conditions and advocating for fair wages, and labor movements transcend political divisions. Many Americans—left, right, and center—share concerns about the erosion of workers’ rights, stagnant wages, and the declining influence of the average worker.

• Expand Union Participation and Labor Movements: Reinvigorating unions and expanding labor protections could give workers a stronger collective voice. New labor movements that focus on economic rights without overtly partisan language could attract support across the political spectrum, particularly when they champion issues like fair wages, workplace safety, and job security.

• Support Worker Cooperatives and Employee-Owned Businesses: Promoting models like worker cooperatives or employee-owned businesses can offer a compelling alternative to the current structure of corporate ownership without resorting to divisive rhetoric. These models prioritize local control and shared economic benefits, appealing to values of self-sufficiency and fairness.

3. Pressure Politicians on Key Economic Policies

A key to bridging the partisan gap is to focus on policies that benefit the broader populace rather than framing them as part of any ideological agenda. The majority of Americans, regardless of political affiliation, support policies like fair taxation, healthcare reform, and increased access to education when framed in terms of fairness and opportunity.

• Promote Tax Reform as “Fairness,” Not Redistribution: Instead of advocating for “redistribution,” proponents can push for tax policies that ensure everyone pays their fair share. Policies like a wealth tax or higher taxes on capital gains can be framed as holding the ultra-wealthy accountable rather than demonizing them, a stance that resonates with people who value fairness and personal responsibility.

• Advocate for Antitrust Legislation: Pushing for stronger antitrust laws to break up monopolies and prevent anti-competitive practices can appeal to both sides. For conservatives, this aligns with the values of market competition; for progressives, it aligns with corporate accountability and consumer protection.

4. Engage in Alternative Media and Independent Journalism

The ultra-wealthy often own or influence major media outlets, which can shape public opinion in ways that protect their interests. For the middle and lower classes to gain a clearer view of economic issues, alternative media sources and independent journalism that aren’t beholden to billionaire interests are crucial.

• Support Independent News Outlets: A growing number of independent news organizations are dedicated to in-depth economic reporting without catering to corporate interests. Supporting these outlets allows individuals to access a range of perspectives that help reveal the true impact of policies on ordinary people.

• Utilize Social Media Responsibly to Build Cross-Party Awareness: Social media, while often a divisive force, can also be used to spread information about economic injustice. When used responsibly to share facts, case studies, and stories of economic hardship, it can cut through the rhetoric and provide people across the political spectrum with a shared understanding of the issues.

5. Prioritize Voting Reform and Campaign Finance Reform

Money in politics is one of the core reasons why economic policies favor the wealthy. Bipartisan support for reducing corporate influence in politics is possible, especially when the focus is on fairness, transparency, and accountability in government.

• Promote Campaign Finance Reform as an Anti-Corruption Effort: Campaign finance reform, which seeks to limit the influence of wealthy donors and corporations on elections, can appeal to conservatives and liberals alike who are frustrated with the influence of money in politics. Instead of framing it as an anti-capitalist measure, framing it as an anti-corruption measure can attract broader support.

• Support Voting Reforms for a More Representative Democracy: Reforms like ranked-choice voting, ending gerrymandering, and preventing voter suppression can help create a political environment that more accurately represents the will of the people rather than special interests. By creating a more representative democracy, policies that reflect the economic needs of the middle and lower classes have a better chance of being enacted.

6. Create Cross-Partisan Grassroots Coalitions Focused on Economic Issues

Many grassroots organizations are focused on economic justice, but they tend to align themselves with one side of the political spectrum, often losing potential support in the process. Building cross-partisan coalitions that emphasize shared economic challenges rather than ideological differences could foster stronger, more united advocacy for middle- and working-class issues.

• Organize Around Issues, Not Parties: Groups like the Poor People’s Campaign, which focuses on poverty and economic justice, have successfully united people across political lines around issues that transcend party loyalty. This approach allows people to focus on their shared struggles, making the movement harder for politicians to ignore.

• Build Community-Level Alliances: Many economic issues are felt acutely at the local level. By focusing on community-level initiatives that address healthcare, affordable housing, and education, people can create practical, on-the-ground solutions that don’t require alignment with national politics. These local successes can serve as models for broader change.

7. Emphasize Civic Education on Economic Policies

Finally, bridging the gap will require education and awareness. Many people accept billionaire-fueled rhetoric because they lack exposure to alternative perspectives. Civic education efforts that focus on teaching economic principles, tax policy, and the influence of corporate power can empower people to understand the real impacts of current policies on their lives.

• Create Accessible Educational Resources: Podcasts, documentaries, workshops, and community discussions can all serve as tools for demystifying economic issues. When people have a clearer understanding of how things like tax policies and wage laws work, they are better equipped to make informed decisions.

• Promote Financial Literacy and Empower Individuals: Financial literacy programs that help individuals understand budgeting, credit, and investments empower people to navigate the economy more effectively. While this doesn’t directly address systemic issues, it gives individuals a greater understanding of the forces shaping their lives and can be a first step toward broader engagement.

By approaching these issues with a focus on shared struggles, fairness, and practical solutions, the middle and lower classes can work together to build a movement that transcends political divides. This movement can challenge the status quo without becoming mired in divisive ideological battles. The real strength of such an effort lies in its ability to unite ordinary people around a common vision for a fairer, more just economic system—one that serves all citizens, not just the wealthiest few.

#capitalism #reality #billionaires #middle class #trickle down economics #facts #economy #economics #wealth #ultra wealthy

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cozage · 5 months ago

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Hii!! Can you write some headcanon about how they are with their s/o after 20 or 30 years passed? Or in their old age. Ace Law and Zoro please.(Please include Ace. You know what i mean right? 🥺) With a female reader. Thank you ❤️

A/N:Forgive any typos please :) Characters: gn reader x Ace, Law, Zoro Cw: None :) Total word count: 1k

Years Passed

Ace

After Whitebeard passed, Ace was one of the top contenders to lead the pirate crew, but ultimately the Whitebeard Pirates disbanded. It didn’t feel right without Pops. The two of you sailed around with a smaller ship for a few years before retiring to your favorite island.

That being said, you all still take trips to other islands or sail for a while to celebrate special occasions.

While you all don’t go out drinking nearly as much as you used to, you’re still regulars at the local tavern. On Friday nights they like to play music, and you trade stories with the new “kids” who are brave enough to take on the Grand Line.

He still brings you breakfast in bed every Saturday morning, complete with fresh-cut flowers. Breakfast is never the same; he always seems to know just what you're in the mood for.

You all ended up having kids. Ace wanted one hundred, but you cut him off after three.

He still likes to bring home a stray kid he found on the side of the street every now and then, and you never minded having the extra rooms filled for as long as they needed to stay. Some stayed for only a few days, some stayed for years. You loved them all the same.

Just about every night, the two of you make it a priority to sit out and watch the sunset. The moments together are truly what makes life feel worth living

Even after all these years, he sticks up for you and loves you without shame. He’s never afraid to show you off or plant a kiss on your lips when he thinks someone else is eyeing you. He loves to brag about you and all of the light you’ve given him over the years to just about anyone who will listen.

Law

It took Law a long time to find a place worth settling down in. You all finally decided on Zou.

It made sense. He was a wandering spirit, Zou was a wandering civilization. He could still move about while being in one place. Plus, you always had a feeling he would have a harder time parting with Bepo than he ever let on.

He ended up working as a doctor for the minks (no surprise there) and found that his favorite part of the day was when he got to help kids feel better.

Your moment of peace and tranquility, even after all these years, is the morning cup of coffee you all share. You never get tired of that simple moment between the two of you, and you cherish it with your whole heart.

Every Friday, Bepo’s family comes over for dinner. The kids typically put on some silly play or performance or rope you all into games they want to play, and you all will stay awake far longer than you ever care to admit.

You always complain about how exhausted you are on Saturdays, and Law promises “We’ll kick them out earlier next week”, but you never do. You would never want to limit your time with Bepo and his family anyway, the complaining is more to get out of any chores you may have promised to do.

Law loves in the quietest of ways. He prefers to stay in and curl up on the couch, or he’ll bring you a book to read in bed alongside him. But he never goes to sleep without kissing you first.

Zoro

Zoro still groans when you get out of bed. He almost always pulls you back in with a “five more minutes” mumble. You had begun accounting for this delay years ago, but it still makes your heart flutter when he pulls you back in and wraps his arms around you so that you can’t escape.

He runs his own dojo now, that operates solely off of donations (and the load of gold you all have from your pirating days). Kids can come to practice, or they can live and work there too. It’s a very satisfying occupation for both of you.

Funnily enough, Zoro found a strange love for cooking. Well, grilling. He loves to grill. You used to joke about it being a necessary qualification to be a dad, but now he just tries to grill everything. Dinner is almost always covered, but you never know what new thing he’s going to try (and yes, he does have a really corny apron like “#1 Grillmaster” or something).

He likes to stay in most of the time nowadays. If you go out, it’s usually to a small place that is more family-style than bars.

However, he likes to go to a bar with you sometimes and pretend that you all don’t know each other. He’ll spend the whole night flirting with you and finally end the night with “So, you coming home with me or what?”. He ALWAYS has new pickup lines or witty things to say to you.

Zoro prefers to keep you to himself. He guards you fiercely and will defend you to death if someone even considers looking at you wrong. The first thing he teaches at the dojo is that you deserve respect above anyone else, and disrespect to you will mean immediate dismissal from the program. He can’t stand to see anything that might cause you pain.

#one piece #one piece imagine #one piece scenario #one piece x reader #one piece x you #portgas d ace #ace x reader #trafalgar law #trafalgar d water law #trafalgar law x reader #law x reader #roronoa zoro #zoro #zoro x reader #✧˚ace✧˚#✧˚law✧˚#✧˚zoro✧˚

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starkwlkr · 9 months ago

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day in the life of a monaco mama | baby leclerc

inspired by the day in the life of a nyc mom tiktoks :) ruby and théo are aged up a bit here.

Y/n had the bright idea of posting more content to her tiktok account. She had a couple of videos, but that was pretty much it. She would get many comments telling her to post more so she thought of an idea. She had seen those day in my life videos everywhere so she filmed one with Ruby and Mathéo.

“Hi everyone, welcome to a day in my life in Monaco!” The video starts off with Y/n making herself some coffee for her and Charles then cuts to her waking the kids up so they can get ready. Today, Charles is leaving for the Dutch Grand Prix so I got his coffee ready while he helped the kids get ready for the day.”

Y/n filmed Charles giving the kids several kisses and hugs then gave her a kiss and hug before Joris arrived and together they were on their way to the plane. “We try to take the kids to a couple of races, but they recently said they prefer to stay home, hang out with their friends or stay with their grandmère, which doesn’t upset Charles at all.” The voiceover said.

“So after we get ready and eat some breakfast, the kids and I go for a walk to the gardens then we come back to their grandmère’s house and we hang out for a bit.” Y/n filmed the kids waving hello to a couple of people on their walk. Then the video showed Pascale greeting the kids and hugging Y/n.

“When it was time to leave, Mathéo wanted to stay because his grandmère was going to visit some family and he wanted to tag along so him and Pascale left and it turned into a mommy daughter day.” Y/n showed several clips of Ruby running around them posing for the camera.

Then the video cuts to them walking around Monaco. “We stopped for lunch at Ruby’s favorite place called Bella Vita and it’s close to a little playground so if you’re ever in Monaco and with your kids, i would recommend coming here. Ruby loves it.” Y/n filmed Ruby eating a piece of of pizza. The little girl saw the camera then smiled and put up a thumbs up.

“After lunch, we walked around, then Ruby wanted to go to see her papa’s car that’s with the rest of Prince Albert’s collection. Whenever we have time, she always requests to go see it.”

They walked to the museum that held Prince Albert’s collection. Y/n filmed the cars. At one point the video showed Y/n posing in front of Charles’ Ferrari car that won in Spa and Monza. The clip was courtesy of Ruby since she wanted to film her maman at least once.

The video then cut to a couple looking at Charles’ Ferrari that were standing next to Ruby, who was taking a picture with her camera that Charles bought her. The man noticed Ruby and wondered if she knew the history of the car.

“That car won—”

“Monza and Spa. I know, that’s my papa’s car.” She replied to her walked back to her maman.

The woman tried to hold in her laugh, but she couldn’t. The couple watch Ruby wave goodbye to them as her and Y/n walked away to their next destination.

“On our way to the oceanographic museum, we ran into some Ferrari fans that wanted to give Ruby and i some friendship bracelets and coincidentally, Ruby had some on her as well so we traded. Thanks for the bracelets, Amanda and Jade!” The clip showed two girls trading bracelets with Ruby.

“Ruby is going through her ocean phase at the moment. She loves telling Charles and i facts about the ocean at all times and I mean at all times. This girl will sit you down and tell you facts as if her life depended on it.” Y/n filmed Ruby admiring the pretty fish then pointing to her favorite one.

Then the video cut to Ruby trying to pronounce anemone because she was trying to tell her mom a fact about the clown fish. “The anemoney . . anu. . anomoon. . .” She stumbled over her words.

“Anemone.” Y/n clarified, but Ruby still messed up. “That’s okay, you’ll pronounce it right next time.”

“I hope so. I don’t want the clown fish to feel sad because I can’t say it right.” Ruby said sadly.

The video then shows Ruby talking with kids her own age. She, of course, made new friends and even invited them to sleepover at her house. Y/n and the other moms laughed, but did promise a sleepover some other time.

“Finally, we went back home to Pascale’s and had dinner where the kids FaceTimes Charles. Our days aren’t always like this, but I always want to fill our days with something to do.”

The TikTok ended up gaining millions of views, likes, shares and comments. Most of them coming from F1 fans, but she didn’t mind.

COMMENTS

pierresgaszlys I NEED MOREEE

f1elle ruby making friends 🥹

sebsbees imagine trading friendship bracelets with ruby leclerc

cruelsummerstan mathéo choosing to stay with his grandma awww 😭

charlesleclerc miss you!!

danielricciardosupremacy oh to live in monaco and trade bracelets with ruby leclerc 😭🥲

#formula 1 #f1 x reader #formula 1 imagine #f1 imagine #f1 x you #charles leclerc #charles leclerc x reader #baby leclerc series #charles leclerc one shot #charles leclerc imagine

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ak-vintage · 2 months ago

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I'd Like To...

Pairing: Modern DILF Din Djarin x Plus Size F!Reader

Summary: Din has always struggled to prioritize his own happiness, even more so now that he is a single father. When some well-meaning friends create a dating app profile for him without his knowledge, he finds himself on his first date in years with a woman who seems determined to bring some much-needed softness to his life.

Tags/Warnings: 18+ MDNI! Present-day AU, dating app AU, dual POV, no use of Y/N, private security Din, photographer reader, reader is a plus size woman but otherwise minimal descriptions provided, age gap (unspecified but enough to be noticed), Grogu is a human toddler, Cara is the ultimate wingman, good dad Din, touch-starved Din, fluff, SMUT – exhibitionism, semi-public acts, brief oral sex (m! receiving), protected p in v sex, dirty talk, rough but sweet, switch-y vibes for both Din and reader

Word Count: ~18.3K (I have no excuse...)

Written for @hellishjoel's Hot DILF Summer Challenge. I am unforgivably late to this event, and I’m so, so sorry. I hope the truly preposterous length makes up for it – it really got out of hand!

Dividers by @saradika-graphics <3

Read on AO3 | Masterlist

Cara Dune had never been good at subterfuge.

She was loud, decisive, commanding – a “do no harm but take no shit” kind of person who wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty in a risky situation or to stick her neck out for what she believed. Cara didn’t have the constitution for stealth. She didn’t do subtle or – god forbid – sneaky; it simply wasn’t a part of her DNA. All of her colleagues were well aware of this, of course, so why, out of all of the consultants of Fett Security, Inc., she was the person that the group had selected for this particular mission was something she would never understand.

But, as a former soldier, if there was one thing Cara knew how to do, it was follow orders, so when the task fell to her, she took it on the chin and threw herself into it headfirst.

Which was how she found herself awkwardly hunched over at her desk, broad shoulders rounded protectively around her phone as she scrolled through various social media accounts, screenshotting as she went. A suspicious behavior for anyone, but even more so knowing that the images she was grabbing were all of the same man – her best friend and coworker, Din Djarin.

Nearly a decade ago, Din had been one of the first people Boba Fett had recruited to join his private security firm, and ever since, he had been the kind of man who ate, slept, and breathed the job. There was no doubt that Fett Security owed a great deal of its growth and success in the industry to Din’s expertise, but that hadn’t left him with a lot of opportunity for a full life outside of work. Or, perhaps more accurately, Din simply hadn’t made such a thing a priority.

When pressed about it, he would say that it hardly mattered; all of his friends eventually came to work for the firm anyway, Fett collecting them all like trading cards over the years, so he saw them plenty. What more could he need?

Of course, he came to eat his own words about a year ago when he rather unexpectedly became the foster parent – then adoptive parent – of a little boy, a tiny thing with no living relatives in a part of the city that had had a severe shortage of foster families for years. Din himself had grown up in the system, a fact he talked about rarely, but nevertheless, the experience had shaped him in a fundamental way. He had jumped at the opportunity to take in the kid, and overnight, he transformed from a man who buried himself in his work to a man who lived for the whim of a little boy with floppy, sandy-brown curls, wide, dark eyes, and comically large ears.

It was clear to anyone who knew him well – Din had been meant to be a father, and as his closest friend, Cara had found a great deal of joy in watching the new role shape and soften him into a version of himself that felt truer and more authentic to who he was at his core. But all of his friends agreed: when it came to his personal life, having a child had done nothing but exacerbate the problem. He was still working just as many hours as he had before, only now, when he did have time to himself, he rarely left the house without his son in tow. He had stopped joining the team for drinks after gigs, his appearances at company barbecues were fewer and farther between, and who knew how long it had been since the man had been on an actual date?

Din was lonely – Cara could tell. He loved his job, and he adored his son, but it wasn’t enough anymore. There was a hollowness to him, a shadow around his eyes. Something had to give, and so during their last group outing, the team had come together and formulated a plan. A plan which involved Cara harvesting a selection of photos of Din from various corners of the internet, writing up a quick bio, and creating an online dating profile for him.

Without his knowledge.

Cara hardly relished keeping this secret from her friend, but she knew that if she or anyone else had broached the subject with him beforehand, he would have dismissed it out of hand. He would have made up some excuse about doing just fine on his own, that he didn’t need anyone else when he had his son; she could almost hear his low, rasping scoff now. His refusal would be swift and final, and that would be the end of that.

But sometimes, being a good friend meant doing something in the best interest of the other person even when that person would disapprove.

And Cara had found that sometimes it was better to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

Sending a surreptitious glance around the open office space, Cara breathed a quiet sigh of relief at Din’s empty desk. The man didn’t have any of his own social media accounts, finding the whole concept frivolous and a little bizarre, so she was stuck scrolling through her own and those of their friends in an attempt to harvest a few that would be acceptable for a dating profile. It was taking longer than she had anticipated, and she still had to set up his age, gender, and location preferences and write up a brief bio for him before she was due at a job in an hour. The time crunch had her clenching her jaw as she worked.

Tonight at the bar, she planned to recruit some of their friends to help her get Din set up with a selection of matches. And all of them would owe her a beer for her trouble.

Din, the profile read. 45, 5’11”, Private Security Consultant.

Hardworking, outdoorsy, handy. Love vintage cars and motorcycles. Former boxer, teach self-defense classes at the community center on the weekends. Single father to a little boy who is my whole universe. Looking for someone to give me an excuse to get me out of the house, curb my workaholic tendencies, and show me the softer side of life.

“‘The softer side of life?’” Bo smirked around the rim of her beer as she read, Cara’s phone in her hand sticky from being passed around all night. “Cara Dune, you’ve been holding out on us. Who knew you were such a romantic?”

The crew gathered around the end of the bar all laughed as Cara rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her own drink. “What can I say? A bitch contains multitudes,” she replied with a shrug. “But the profile’s good, right? We can start swiping?”

The redhead nodded, neat bob brushing her sharp jaw as she passed the phone back to its owner. “Yeah, I think you’ve got him down.”

“Good call including the bit about the motorcycles,” Axe quipped with a grin. He waggled his dark eyebrows significantly, adding, “Ladies love that stuff. Speaking from experience.”

From her place tucked into his side, arm wrapped around his waist beneath his leather jacket, Koska offered him a tongue-touched smile and butted her head against his chest affectionately. “You’re not wrong.”

Paz returned from the other end of the bar then, shouldering his way through the crowd with six overflowing pints balanced in his massive hands. “What did I miss?” he asked as he passed each of them out to his waiting friends.

Fennec curled her lip in mild disgust as he sloshed a portion of her beer down the side of her glass, soaking her hand. She sat the pint down on the edge of the well-worn bar and drug her fingers demurely across her black jeans as she said, “Nothing, we’re just about to start picking matches.”

“Good.” He downed half of his own pint in a single glug, thick neck working in the low light. “Let’s do this. The guy needs to get laid.”

With a mock-salute of his glass, Axe groaned his agreement. “Maybe if he loosens up a little, he’ll get off my ass about taking over the Organa account. I swear to god, if I have to spend one more fucking charity dinner trailing after those stuffed-shirts, I think my head is going to explode.”

Fennec shot him an icy, closed-lipped smile. “We both know that was my suggestion, not Djarin’s. You’re a good fit for it, Woves. The sooner you learn how to play ball with the politicians, the sooner we can start putting you on more high-profile jobs.”

“Yeah, babe.” Koska’s dark eyes flashed teasingly. “Maybe then you can come join me and Bo on the Skywalker account. Finally start playing with the big boys.”

Bo snorted into her beer, sending a fine spray of the stuff flying as the rest of the group broke into peals of laughter.

“All right, all right, settle down,” Cara urged, passing Bo a napkin. “This has nothing to do with any of us, right? This is about Din. He’s busted his ass for every one of us for years – it’s his turn to catch a break. So let’s stay on task, okay? Now…” With a few taps and a swipe, she brought up the app once more and flipped to the matches tab. “What do we think of her?”

“Dune.”

“Djarin.”

“Please tell me you’re joking.”

The dark-haired, hawk-eyed woman quirked an eyebrow at him, phone in hand, the thing still extended toward him, waiting for him to take it. “I could do that. But then I’d be lying, and we both know that doesn’t fly with you.”

Din Djarin gritted his jaw and turned his back to her, focusing instead on tossing his towel, lifting gloves, and empty water bottle into his gym bag and slinging it over his shoulder. It wasn’t unusual for Cara to join him for his daily pre-shift workout. She was a reliable spotter, and he liked the playlists she piped through the Bluetooth speakers in the company gym, but there had been something off about her that morning – something cagey and distracted where she was normally the picture of focus. After one too many attempts at getting her attention had resulted in a distant “huh?”, he had decided that enough was enough and demanded an explanation.

With only the faintest traces of guilt shadowing her gaze, she had made her confession. A dating app. She had signed him up for a fucking dating app, and apparently, the whole team was in on it. The bunch of traitors.

“You can go ahead and delete it,” he growled, casting a scathing glance over his shoulder as he made for the locker room. “I’m not interested.”

A strong, blunt-nailed hand wrapped around his elbow, pulling his retreat up short. “Oh, come on, lighten up a little,” Cara entreated. “When was the last time you went out with someone, huh?”

He shrugged her grip off of him. “I go out with you and the team all the time.”

Behind him, his closest friend groaned dramatically. “You know that’s not what I meant. But, while we’re at it, you haven’t exactly been doing much of that, either, big guy. In fact, maybe if you did come out with us once in a while, you could meet a nice girl at a bar or a sporting event or a festival like a fucking normal person, and I wouldn’t have to resort to mining photos of you off our friends’ socials and making you a dating profile in secret.”

“That isn’t fair,” Din snapped, whirling around to face her. “I can’t just be out until all hours of the night anymore. I have my kid to think about. I thought you understood that.”

“Of course, I understand that! No one expects you to be there every time. Not even most of the time! But Din…” Cara let out a sigh, and he watched as that contentious spark fizzled out of her dark eyes, fading into something softer and more earnest. “You are an amazing father. Anyone who has ever seen you with that little boy knows that. But that isn’t all you are. Just like work isn’t all you are. How long have we known each other?”

He ground his teeth and ran his hand through his sweat-damp hair, pushing it back from his face. “About eight years.”

“Eight years,” she echoed, nodding. “I know you, Din Djarin, and I can tell. You’re burning out.”

Something squeezed in his chest at the raw honestly of his friend’s words, and he found himself having to look away. She was right, of course, as she often was. He had always struggled with giving too much of himself – first as a boxer in the ring, then as one of the founding members of Fett Security, then as one of its most senior consultants, and now as a father. As a younger man, he had thrived on it; the busier he was, the harder he worked, the more he proved himself, the better he felt.

But now, knocking on the doors of middle age, he found that the breakneck pace of his life was starting to fray him at the edges. He felt worn through in places and dangerously thin in others, and although he would never admit to anyone, his bed had never felt colder. The small handful of meaningless, one-night flings he had permitted himself over the last few years had left him feeling ill-used and unsatisfied, and when he took his son out to a new restaurant or to the zoo or to the beach, he couldn’t help but feel the distinct absence of another person.

There ought to have been another person holding his kid’s other little hand in the park, patiently walking the unsteady toddler between them. There ought to have been another person feeding the boy ice cream afterward, singing him songs, telling him stories, settling him down for a nap.

There ought to have been another person in his bed – holding him close, playing with his hair, whispering his name in the dark as soft lips traced down his neck…

Fuck. Din Djarin was lonely.

“Listen, I’ll tell you what,” Cara said eventually, pulling him out of his musings. “We’ll get the app set up on your phone, you can log in to your profile, and you can just…take a look at the matches we already got for you. You don’t have to go through any on your own, just the ones we’ve already found. And if you hate them all, we’ll delete your profile and be done with it. But if any of them look even remotely interesting, I really think you should try to connect with them. There has to be more to your life than work and your kid. There has to be, or you’re going to run yourself into the ground. I’m not going to let that happen on my watch.”

Her words hung in the air for a moment, blunt and painfully sincere, and then Din was squeezing the pressure points on the sides of his nose and releasing a reluctant sigh.

“Fine,” he groaned. “I’ll take a look at them over lunch. Happy?”

She grinned victoriously and cuffed him on the shoulder, the gesture warm and fraternal. “Ecstatic. Now hit the showers, Djarin, you stink.”

Cara was at his desk at noon on the dot, barely waiting for him to finish sending off an email to a potential client before she was closing his laptop, dragging him bodily out of his chair, and escorting him out of the building and across the street to their favorite sandwich shop. A few minutes later, equipped with a pair of overstuffed Reubens and a couple bags of chips, the two were settled into a back corner booth with Din’s phone between them.

“Okay, there you go,” she proclaimed, sliding the thing across the table to him with a triumphant grin. “App’s installed, and you’re all logged in.”

The man wiped a napkin across his face and fought the urge to sigh. “Let’s get this over with.” Thumbing through the interface, he fumbled for a bit before finally landing on the tab that contained his list of users with bright pink heart icons next to their profile pictures.

“Now these are people that already matched with me?” he asked, suddenly feeling a bit out of his depth.

“Yep! Me and the crew did some swiping for you the other night.”

Din simply blinked at her. “Swiping?”

Cara’s mouth twisted into a thin line, as though she were attempting to swallow a smirk and failing miserably, and he felt the distinct desire to melt into the plastic cushion of the booth and disappear. “It’s how you indicate whether you’re interested in matching with someone. Swipe right for yes, swipe left for no.”

“So these are the people you…swiped right on?”

“Not quite,” she clarified with a shake of her head. “These are the people we swiped right on who also swiped right on you.”

Din’s brows nearly met his hairline at that. “They wanted to match with me, too?”

“Yeah, dumbass, they did.”

“Hey. Watch it,” he growled, jabbing a finger in her direction as he felt his hackles raise. “You know I don’t know anything about this shit. Cut me a little bit of slack, okay?”

Cara sighed, and her expression shifted from needling to softly exasperated. “Yeah, no kidding, I’m aware. I didn’t call you a dumbass because you don’t know anything about online dating. I called you a dumbass because you act like you’re surprised that people want to match with you.”

Oh.

Cocking his head at her, he replied, “Why wouldn’t that surprise me?”

“Umm…” All of the softness in her face disappeared, and instead she glared at him like he had just grown a second head. “Have you seen yourself? I don’t even like men, and I recognize a DILF when I see one.”

“A DILF?”

Cara smirked lasciviously. “Yeah, a dad I’d like to – ”

“I know what a DILF is, Cara, fucking hell, can you keep your voice down?” Din instinctually ducked his head, his gaze darting around the sandwich shop as he prayed to whatever deity might be listening that no one had heard them.

The woman let out a bark of laughter, dark hair swinging and eyes crinkling with mirth. “Yeah, yeah, don’t get your panties in a twist, old man. No one’s paying any attention to us back here.” Gesturing at the phone in his hand, she added, “Now quit stalling and start scrolling. I think we ended up with ten or so matches before we called it a night? And we were really picky about it, too. There’s gotta be at least one lucky lady in there that tickles your fancy.”

“Hmm.” He hummed dubiously to himself as he opened the first profile in the list, a blonde woman a couple of years his junior with her head tilted back, face in the sun as she posed on some tropical beach. Pretty. Nice smile. Looked friendly. “Suppose I just didn’t think so many women would be interested in dating a single father.”

“Like I said,” Cara shrugged with a wink. “Ladies love a DILF.”

Nearly an hour later, and Din couldn’t help but feel a bit…underwhelmed with the selection of matches his friends had chosen for him. Not that any of them were bad choices, per se. They were lovely women, all of them, with their sunny smiles and their glossy, perfectly-posed photographs and their quippy bios. They were from a variety of backgrounds with a variety of interests, though all struck him as approachable, intelligent, witty. He couldn’t find a red flag in the bunch, which he supposed was a credit both to them and to his friends for sifting through the masses so thoughtfully.

No, it wasn’t the women. It was him, he was sure. What else could explain the…nothingness he felt when he looked at them? The utter lack of interest? Perhaps he had missed his opportunity for such things, he thought to himself. Perhaps he had waited too long, been too content with his own company for too many years.

He could feel Cara’s eyes on him across the table as he came to the last few matches, could sense her impatience at his silence, at his steady, unenthusiastic scrolling. Their plates sat picked over and abandoned between them, chip bags empty and crumpled, sodas drained dry. They were due back in the office any minute, the lunch hour quickly expiring around them, and as reluctant as Din had been to agree to this entire endeavor, he somehow still felt a twinge of guilt at leaving Cara to report back to the rest of the group empty-handed.

But at least he had held up his end of the bargain. No one could say that he didn’t give the idea a chance. It simply wasn’t meant to be.

Of course, that was until he reached the second-to-last match on the list.

Absently, Din tapped on your picture, opening your profile, and almost immediately, he felt himself straighten in his seat.

You were…stunning.

Wide, bright eyes. A warm, mischievous smile that teased him through the camera’s lens, as though you had a secret you were taunting him with, daring him to ask, to figure it out. Your photos were unique – mostly candids, the focus soft, enhanced with a touch of grain and flawlessly lit. And you had a lot of them, more than any other profile he had viewed. As he swiped through them, he came upon one of you in an easy, flowing blouse, hair windswept around your face, a DSLR camera with a colorful, well-worn strap slung around your neck.

He quickly scanned your profile header, taking in your name, your age, your distance from his location. Photographer, the profession field indicated.

And…shit. You were young. More than a decade his junior, on the very edge of what he would consider an acceptable age difference in typical circumstances. The gap wasn’t enough for it to be an immediate disqualifier, but it certainly was enough that if the two of you were to walk down the street together hand-in-hand, others might take a second glance.

He should un-match with you. It would be the right thing, the responsible thing to do.

And yet…

Din swiped through a handful of your other photos. Fuck, but you were sweet. Full, soft curves with wide, plush hips, heavy breasts, thick thighs. Little glimpses of soft skin peeking through comfortable clothing, airy cottons and silky satins and well-loved denims that his palms itched to touch. He wanted to feel the texture of you under his hands, the lush and the give of you beneath his fingertips…

Your last photo was one taken of you at sunrise, your soft body clad in nothing but an oversized T-shirt and a pair of barely-there spandex shorts. Your limbs were stretched and bent into some strange configuration he recognized as a yoga pose, your leg pressed back near your face at an angle that had blood rushing to his cock, his head immediately filled with images of your body contorted in a similar position as he pressed you into his mattress.

New to the city, looking for someone to show me all the best places to get a couple drinks and people watch. Professional photographer living my dream of documenting the most important moments of people’s lives. In my spare time, I like to get out in nature and go hiking, practice yoga, and travel. Excellent home cook, terrible at karaoke. Love dogs, love kids. Let me take your picture so I know it’s real.

Damnit.

You were perfect.

“Okay over there, Djarin?”

Din’s gaze snapped up to meet Cara’s over the table, taking in the quirk of her brow, the suspicious twist of her mouth, and he felt a flush of heat rush up the back of his neck and settle high on his cheekbones. He had been staring. Really staring, and with his mouth open, he realized, mortified. He slammed his jaw shut, his teeth clicking unpleasantly in his skull, and he shifted in his seat.

“Uh,” he muttered dumbly. This throat was so dry, his voice crackled around the syllable as though he hadn’t spoken all day. He cleared it quickly and nodded once. “Yeah. Fine. Uh – ” Flipping the phone around to face his companion, he slid it back across the laminate tabletop. “Her,” he said, tapping the screen with the tip of his finger. “I’ll go out with her.”

Had he not already been blushing, the cat-like grin of victory that Cara sent him certainly would have done it.

“Gonna have to message her first, big guy. Think you can figure out how to do that, or you want me to show you?”

Din’s flush darkened as he yanked the phone back toward himself, feeling a muscle in his jaw tick. “I can manage,” he snarked, and she scoffed a laugh.

However, as it turned out, as he opened the messages tab from your profile, he discovered that you had already taken the initiative and messaged him.

hey din – such a cool name! looks like we have a few things in common. i’d love to get to know you if you’re interested! 😊

Short. Sweet. Polite. Direct.

He swallowed thickly, feeling something suspiciously like butterflies take up residence in his gut. Scrubbing his hand over the back of his neck, he looked back up at Cara sheepishly.

“Actually…yeah, maybe I could use some help.”

You were sitting cross-legged in your oversized office chair, headphones on and iced coffee leaving a ring of condensation on the surface of your desk, when you saw the dating app notification pop up on your phone screen.

1 New Message, it read.

You glanced back and forth between your phone and your computer screen for a moment, debating. You had promised yourself you would be heads-down today, having started to accumulate more of an editing backlog than you typically preferred. The shoot you were working on this afternoon – an engagement session taken in the gardens outside the local art gallery – was due to the clients by the end of the week, and if you wanted to meet that deadline, you couldn’t afford to get distracted.

And yet you couldn’t help but wonder whether the message was a response – finally – from the man you had matched with a couple days ago. The one with the unusual name, the dark curls and even darker eyes, the strong nose and the sharp jaw and the soft, gentle smile. Broad shoulders, big, masculine hands, and a handful of pictures featuring a little boy, no more than two or three years old, his face either turned away from the camera or covered with a little green frog emoji for privacy.

Din the security consultant. Din the vintage car enthusiast. Din the self-defense instructor.

Din the DILF.

You had fired off a message to him as soon as you had gotten confirmation that he had liked you back, and he had been taking up space in your mind ever since. You had always preferred your men a little older, a little more experienced, and the fact that he was a dad, and a proud one at that, had gotten your motor running immediately. He looked like the kind of guy who knew the best bar in town to get an old fashioned and how to grill a good steak. He looked like the kind of guy who would open your car door for you, who would drive one-handed while the other rested calmly, possessively on your thigh. He looked like his palms were calloused and like his skin smelled good even fresh from the gym.

He looked like he had a big –

Fucking hell. It had been a long time since a man had given you this kind of brainrot without ever even meeting him. It was embarrassing and very much not consistent with your independent woman-about-town image you wore like a suit of armor. But you had never been the type of person to deny yourself. If you saw something you wanted, you went for it – full speed ahead. And Din…you definitely wanted Din.

If there was even a slight chance it was him…

Before you could overthink it any further, you saved your progress on your current edit, dropped your headphones around the back of your neck, and scooped up your phone. Tapping the notification, you brought up your messages tab and found one unread message staring back you.

It was from him.

Hi there. It’s nice to meet you. You seem like an interesting person. I would like to get to know you, too. Where is your favorite place you have traveled?

You drew your lower lip between your teeth, smothering a grin as though others might spot it and tease you despite being alone in your apartment. Something about the way he wrote – the dry punctuation, the complete, grammatically-correct sentences, the lack of emojis – all of it screamed someone who didn’t spend much time communicating electronically, let alone online dating. It was a refreshing change from the men you typically met on the apps, the whole thing endearing rather than off-putting and doing nothing to discourage your impression of his “dad” persona.

Poking out your tongue a little in concentration, you tapped out a quick response before you could lose your nerve.

ooo good question! hard to pick a favorite, but if i have to choose, i’d say thailand. i went there with some friends after we graduated college and we got to volunteer at an elephant sanctuary for a few days. coolest experience of my life hands down! what about you? are you a traveler?

His response came much faster than you expected, certainly faster than his response to your initial message.

I used to be. When I was first getting started, I used to travel a lot for work. I have been all over. I am more settled these days. It’s difficult to travel with a toddler on my own.

You nodded to yourself. That made sense. His boy looked young, and he was a self-described single father. You wondered what the story was there, but that was a level of personal that you didn’t need to dive into just yet. For now, your focus was on making sure this conversation didn’t fizzle out.

Frowning slightly, you realized he hadn’t really included anything in that message to prompt much of a response. However, before you could begin to fish around for something to send in reply, another message appeared.

Your profile says you’re a photographer. Your pictures are very unique. I don’t know much about photography, but I can tell that you have an eye for it. What made you interested in that field?

With a huff of a laugh and a mortifyingly strong flush, you closed out of Lightroom and abandoned your headphones on their stand. You weren’t getting any more work done for a while – you could already tell.

The two of you messaged back and forth several more times that day, then again in fits and spurts over the next three days.

You shared how you got your start in photography and the way your best clients were the ones who embraced your photojournalistic style. You didn’t care for shots that were staged or overly posed, you told him. You liked capturing people’s authentic feelings in the moment, and he quipped that he had never been comfortable posing for photos anyway, so you should get along just fine.

You talked about how both of you desperately wanted a dog but neither of you were in a place where getting one would be a responsible choice. You compared your favorite local hiking trails and determined that although he had lived in the area for far longer than you, you had significantly more experience trekking through the nearby national park. You learned a lot about the ’81 Honda Goldwing that he had lovingly restored, how he used to ride it to and from work every day but that now it sat under a protective tarp in the back of his garage most of the time. It wasn’t exactly a toddler-friendly form of transportation, he explained.

In a moment of vulnerability, you confessed that you had moved to the city as a result of a breakup, in an attempt to get a change of scenery far from the place where you had made a home with another man. He confessed that he had never really made time for relationships in the past, but that his son had made him realize that there was plenty of room in his life for love. He finally felt ready to try, and you finally felt ready to try again.

You told him you thought he was stupidly handsome, that you had no idea how he was single if he didn’t want to be. He told you that he had thought the same about you.

Except I would call you beautiful. Not handsome. I guess unless that’s what you prefer?

no lmao, you wrote back. beautiful is fine. beautiful is perfect.

On day four of…whatever this newfound acquaintance was, you spent the full day shooting a wedding – from getting ready to first looks to family photos to the ceremony to the reception. You swore you could feel your phone burning a hole in your pocket the entire time, but you managed to stay professional and present throughout the length of your contracted hours. By the time you stumbled into your apartment, you were so exhausted, you couldn’t have been more eager to pour yourself some wine and melt into the couch with some trashy reality television. You were changed into your pajamas and a glass and a half deep by the time you allowed yourself to check your phone.

Buried beneath all of the other notifications you had gotten throughout the day, there was a single pop-up from your dating app.

1 New Message, it read. Received four hours ago.

Skipping past all of the other demands on your attention, you opened that notification first.

Hi sweetheart. I know you were photographing that wedding today, so don’t let me interrupt you. We can talk tomorrow, but if you could please message me when you’re done for the night? It would make me feel better to know that you made it home safe.

Hi sweetheart, he had said.

Sweetheart.

A rush of heat passed over you at his words, and you swallowed thickly, wine burning its way down your throat at the thought of Din at home thinking about you, worrying about you. Had this been any other man, you might have found the message a bit overbearing, especially this early on, but rather than feeling controlled or stifled, instead you felt only warmth and safety. You felt…cared for. Protected. Important.

The sensation had you shifting in your seat, gulping down the remainder of your glass in a single go as you felt the apex of your thighs pulse with interest.

Din was so fucking hot, and he had no idea.

Setting your now-empty wine glass on the coffee table, you typed out a rapid reply and hit send.

heyy! made it home okay, thanks for checking in!

Fatigue pulling at your eyelids, arousal burning low in your belly, quickly-consumed wine flushing your limbs with a soft weightlessness, your thumbs seemed to move of their own accord as they tapped out a second message.

din idk how much longer i can keep this up without meeting you. i wanna see your handsome face in person. can i take u out sometime soon? please say yes.

You hit send before you could second-guess yourself, then immediately tossed your phone to the other end of the couch as though it had burned you. It disappeared into the stack of throw pillows there, and you breathed a sigh of relief. You couldn’t look at it, couldn’t stand to wait for his reply knowing that it was after midnight, knowing that he likely had been asleep for hours and wouldn’t see your messages until morning. Taking a deep, calming breath to steady your nerves, you forced yourself to refocus on the television. One episode, you promised yourself, and then you would get some sleep.

Less than 10 minutes later, you felt the faint vibration of your phone travel through the couch cushions to where you sat, and your show was abandoned without question.

You tossed several of your unnecessarily large throw pillow collection onto the floor in your hasty search, and though you knew you would be annoyed at having to tidy them in the morning, in that moment, you could hardly bring yourself to care.

1 New Message, your phone screen read as you recovered it from the pile. With something akin to nausea roiling in your stomach, you opened the notification and resisted the urge to physically cross your fingers.

Glad to hear you made it home safely.

…

That was all. “Glad to hear you made it home safely.”

Your stomach sank like lead in your abdomen, all of the soft, fuzzy warmth of the wine and your arousal evaporating from your body like sweat on a hot day. Only exhaustion was left in its place – exhaustion and the surprisingly poignant hurt of rejection sitting heavy on your limbs. You had come on too strong, it seemed, stated your desires and intentions too boldly and directly. You ought to have held back more, ought to have waited longer before asking or maybe couched the question in a joke or a suggestion of something more casual first. Or maybe you shouldn’t have asked at all and instead waited for him to ask you out. You supposed men probably preferred that – to be the one to initiate, the one to take charge. Fuck, you were always so impatient, so goddamn eager –

In your sweating palm, your phone buzzed once more, interrupting your string of self-curses.

Nerves roiling beneath your skin, you risked a glance down at it.

1 New Message

You had no control over your body as you opened it, watching the action from inside your own mind as though walking through a dream.

As for your other message, of course my answer is yes. I want to meet you, too, sweetheart. But be warned. Even though you did the asking, I WILL argue with you if you attempt to pay for the whole date yourself. It’s against my personal creed to let a lady pay my way without contributing.

All of the breath left your lungs as you took in his words, reading them over and over again until you could recite them from memory.

He wanted to meet you. He wanted to go out with you.

A high, breathy laugh bubbled over from your chest, spilling through your lips into your quiet apartment like the glistening champagne tower at the wedding this evening. You laughed as you typed, as you hit send. You laughed as you turned off your TV and as you completed your evening skincare routine. You laughed as you crawled into bed, as you burrowed under the covers, delirious and giddy.

i think i can allow it just this once. wouldn’t wanna violate your creed.

It took a handful of messages to determine the best place to meet. Din had offered to pick you up, wanting to treat you right, to be a gentleman, but he did not hold it against you when you turned him down. He understood that meeting a stranger from the internet, particularly as a woman, came with a particular set of risks, and he had no desire to make you uncomfortable in the slightest. He was happy to simply meet you there instead if that would make you feel safer.

Eventually, you settled on a moderately popular restaurant not far from your neighborhood. Din had never been there before, but over the last several days, he had discovered that the two of you shared a love of spicy food, and you had promised that the “modern Mexican fusion” menu did not disappoint.

they also have the cutest patio so we can sit outside if the weather’s nice 😊 , you had said, and he had been sold.

Under the assumption that Din would have a difficult time finding a sitter on a weekday evening, you agreed to wait until Friday to meet. However, the moment he had attempted to discretely broach the subject with Cara while on a jobsite, he immediately had three additional volunteers in Bo, Koska, and Axe, all of whom assured him that they hadn’t been eavesdropping and insisted that he had just been “really fucking loud” with his question.

So perhaps finding a sitter would not have been as challenging as he presumed.

Regardless, the two of you continued to chat throughout the week leading up to your date, first using the dating app’s messaging platform and then, eventually, via text. Din had grown weary of the limitations of the messaging interface days before, but he had been concerned about coming across as too forward if he were to ask for your number. But he needn’t have worried. You offered it freely late one night when the two of you were deep into a discussion about your favorite music artists, and something about getting to put your name and phone number into his contacts made the whole situation feel startlingly real. It had felt…personal, almost intimate. And it was nice.

If he was being honest with himself, it made him nervous – how much he liked you, how quickly he had begun to think of you as part of his daily routine. A text good morning after his pre-shift workout, when he knew you were just rolling out of bed. Checking his phone over lunch to find a whole stack of little videos you had found on the internet during your morning scroll, watching every single one of them as his coworkers rolled their eyes and laughed at how quickly he had fallen into line for you. Countless late-night conversations after he had tucked his son into bed, his tired body sprawled out on the couch or propped up against his headboard and wishing you were there with him.

He wanted to experience the laugh that went with that stunning smile from your photos. He wanted to hear you talk for hours on end about whatever crossed your mind while he just…listened. And fuck, did he want to touch you. It had been almost two weeks since he had first matched with you, and that need he had felt deep in his gut that first day he had seen your pictures had only gotten more acute over time. He had to know – for certain – whether the skin at the small of your back was as soft and warm as it looked. He had to know whether your plush thighs and generous hips would give beneath his hands.

He wanted you in his arms, in his lap, in his bed. He wanted you in his life, and he had never even met you.

He needed to rein it in, he knew. He didn’t want to come on too strong, and he didn’t want to dive headfirst into something without the proper consideration. It had been over a decade since he had last been in a relationship, and he was a completely different person now than he had been then. Not to mention his son. His boy was his top priority – the most important thing in his world. He would need to be cautious about dating anyone seriously with him in the picture.

But something told him that he had nothing to worry about with you, that you wouldn’t resent his priorities or demand things of him that he couldn’t give. And if things went well, and he liked you as much in person as he did online… If after a while, you earned his trust, his commitment…

You and the kid would get on like a house on fire. He could sense it.

But.

Before you could meet his son, before Din could welcome you fully into is life, he had to meet you.

Din beat you to the restaurant that Friday.

You wouldn’t describe yourself as the type of person who was chronically late (though some of your friends might have had a different opinion on the matter), but in your defense, you had had a new client intake call right at the end of the day that had gone on for longer than you anticipated. Thankfully, you had gotten yourself ready before the call so that by the time the talkative new parents were done describing in great detail their precise vision for their new baby photoshoot, all that was left for you to do was slip on your shoes, grab your purse, and run out the door.

The walk to the restaurant was brief but pleasant, the weather having worked out perfectly for an outdoor meal, and as you approached, you spotted him immediately. Tall and absurdly broad, posted up outside the restaurant’s main entrance with his hands on his hips and one leg popped in a stance that absolutely screamed “dad,” even from a distance. He wore a long-sleeved, charcoal gray henley with the sleeves shoved up to his elbows and a couple buttons undone at the collar, well-fitting, dark-washed jeans, and a pair of black boots with thick soles that you had a feeling he favored when riding his motorcycle. A classic pair of dark sunglasses perched on his prominent nose, and in spite of the warm weather, he had a black leather jacket grasped in one fist, hanging down by his side by its collar.

In the golden hour sun against the worn brick of the restaurant’s exterior, he looked like something out of a movie. Or maybe a men’s cologne ad – something clean but rugged, so masculine you could die. Taking a deep breath against a sudden wave of nerves, you made a mental note to bring your camera the next time the two of you went out. If he was going to look this fucking delicious every time you saw one another, it would be a crime not to document it.

You were in the middle of crossing the street when he spotted you, and you watched with heat rising in your cheeks as he visibly paused and swept you from head to toe with his gaze. His adam’s apple bobbed, and then he was straightening himself and eating up the sidewalk in a handful of long strides to meet you when you arrived.

“Din?” you found yourself asking as you came to stand before him, as if you didn’t know, as if you wouldn’t recognize that striking face, those powerful shoulders anywhere in the world.

He offered you a gentle half-smile, ducking his chin in a single nod, and you took notice of his free hand balling up into a fist at his side, like he was physically holding himself back from reaching for you. After a beat, he replied, “It’s…good to see you, sweetheart. Happy you got here safe.”

His voice. Low and rasping, worn and manly, strangely reminding you of metal scraping against leather. It was painfully attractive, and you felt your cheeks darken further even as a grin spread across your lips.

You had been right. The man was a certified DILF, and he couldn’t have been any more your type if you had designed him in a lab yourself.

“Same to you,” you said, your voice sounding a bit breathless even to your own ears. “Should we go get a table?”

Din made an affirmative noise and gestured for you to precede him down the sidewalk. “I put our names in when I got here. The table should be ready any minute.”

A small thrill went through you at the realization that he must have gotten here at least 45 minutes ago if your table was nearly ready. This place notoriously didn’t take reservations, and there was always a wait, especially for the patio. Which reminded you…

Before you could think better of it, you asked, “Oh, did you request the patio by chance? Sitting out under the lights is the – ”

“ – best part, I remember,” he interjected, his tiny smile quirking up in one corner. “Yes, I requested the patio. They should text me when the table’s ready.” No sooner had the words left his mouth and he startled unexpectedly, glancing over his shoulder as though to look at his own back pocket. He reached behind himself and pulled out his phone, the sleek, black thing dwarfed in his broad palm, and you caught a glimpse of his background picture as he unlocked it.

A little boy with floppy, too-long, sandy-brown hair, huge dark eyes, and big ears, grinning up at the camera with a toothy smile. He was adorable.

“Ah. Speaking of. It’s ready,” he said, showing you the automated text. “After you.”

He gestured again for you to walk ahead of him, and you drew your lower lip between your teeth as you acquiesced. Not a moment later and you felt the soft, warm press of his palm against the small of your back, the steady, unobtrusive pressure gently guiding you toward the entrance to the restaurant. The sensation had something low and hot simmering in your abdomen, the way the heat of it sank through the fabric of your dress into your skin, the way your body listened to his touch instinctually. It was protective in a way that felt comforting rather than overbearing, and it occurred to you that such a thing would be easy to grow accustomed to.

You had always needed to be the one to look out for yourself. How freeing would it be to be able to trust another person to carry that for you, even if it was only every once in a while?

Your restaurant recommendation proved to be a good one; the food was rich and delicious, the atmosphere was lively, and Din indulged in a couple of their house cervezas throughout the evening, which he found pleasantly light and refreshing. As the sun set behind the city skyline, casting long shadows across the flagstone patio, colorful strings of lights crisscrossing the seating area flared to life. The effect was charming, particularly the way the lights cast a warm glow over your face, arcs of gold and red and green streaking across your hair and illuminating your eyes. You were so pretty – even more than he had expected, even more than in your photos. He wasn’t sure he had ever felt “enchanted” by a person before, but he would say that was close to describing how he felt sitting across the table from you.

To his great relief, Din found that the time passed just as quickly while talking to you in person as it did over the phone. You were sweet, funny, and quite talkative, so even when he found himself dipping into introverted lulls or long silences, you were there to pull him back out of himself. You seemed to have an endless fount of things to chat about, which was perfectly fine with him, as it meant he didn’t have to wrack his brain for things to say, and he got to listen to your voice.

You also seemed to find him funny, snorting cutely into your glass every time he said something even faintly amusing, and he would be lying if he said that didn’t have his ego swelling a bit. He liked the idea of being able to make you laugh. And when your eyes flashed at him over the rim of your margarita, when you drug the tip of your slick, pink tongue across the line of salt there, when you offered him a slow, knowing smile with just the barest flash of sharp little teeth…it wasn’t only his ego that threatened to swell.

That was one thing he had not accounted for, he found, one facet of your personality that he had only barely glimpsed over text that was now staring him in the face as the two of you wrapped up your meal. You were powerfully, blatantly flirtatious in a way that felt completely foreign to Din after more than a decade of singlehood. Your lowered lashes, your intentional eye contact, your sweet compliments. Your little touches across the table, burning the backs of his hands and the insides of his forearms with the warmth of your skin. And that wasn’t even mentioning the surreptitious peeks at your ample cleavage your dress kept allowing as you leaned and shifted in your chair. That one, perhaps, wasn’t intentional, but it was still making it difficult for him to avoid embarrassing himself in the middle of this restaurant.

When it became clear that the two of you could no longer draw out your meal, the debate over the check began. Thankfully, you did not propose to pay for both your meal and his, seemingly taking his warning to heart. However, you did suggest that you pay for your own meal and drinks, and something about that still rankled. Eventually, after much back and forth, you compromised and agreed that Din would pay for the meals while you would cover the drinks. The waitress had looked at you a bit oddly when you made the request, but she hadn’t protested, and a handful of minutes later, the two of you had paid and were making your way back out onto the sidewalk outside.

Din wasn’t ready for the night to end. Spending time with you was the most fun he had had with anyone that wasn’t a coworker in…well. Too long. You were sweet and funny and full of life, and every moment he spent in your presence, he could feel warmth and vitality being breathed back into his lungs. He wasn’t ready to let that go just yet.

Thankfully, neither, it seemed, were you. Slipping one of your manicured hands into his, you said, “You know, there’s a park a couple blocks from here with a really nice walking path. You want to go check it out?”

He glanced down at your joined hands, dragging the pad of his thumb across the ridge of your knuckles almost absently as he reveled in the feeling. You were so fucking soft, just like he knew you would be, and the sensation of your skin under his almost distracted him from his response. After a beat, he nodded, and you hit him with a thousand-watt smile that Din couldn’t help but return.

You kept up a steady stream of conversation as you made your way to the park hand-in-hand. Din had proven just as easy to talk to in person as he had online, and although the evening had confirmed your suspicions that he was much more introverted than you, he was by no means reticent. He had matched you beat for beat all night, and even in the moments where he seemed to need a bit of prompting, you chalked it up to him simply being out of the game for a while and didn’t hold it against him.

More than anything, though, your impression of him as you made your way down the block was one of an old-fashioned gentleman. There was an earnestness, a seriousness about him that you had never really seen in a guy your age, and it made you feel like you were the only person in the world to him. It was a heady feeling, to be the center of such focused attention. You wondered if he knew that if he wasn’t careful, that attention was going to give you ideas. Ideas you weren’t certain someone with his sensibilities would be interested in on a first date.

Just when you thought you might need to pull him to the side of the walkway and give him a little taste of what you had in mind, his phone rang, and he dropped your hand to fish it from his back pocket.

You couldn’t stop yourself from taking a glance at the screen as he examined it. CARA DUNE, the caller ID read, and the photo that lit up the background was of a striking woman with raven black hair, sharp eyes, and smug smile.

Oh. You felt something in your chest deflate a little. Another woman.

Din pulled up short, looking at you with dark, apologetic eyes shadowed by the streetlamps. “I’m sorry, I have to take this,” he said, and you found yourself nodding your agreement even as your stomach sank further. And to think, you had been convinced that this man was nothing but a bundle of green flags held together by a gap-necked henley and a pair of slutty black combat boots…

Turning away from you slightly, putting one of his broad shoulders between you and the view of his phone, he swiped up to answer the call.

“Dune? Everything okay?” he asked, a flavor of urgency to his tone that had you frowning.

Wait – Dune? He was calling her by her last name?

You couldn’t hear what the voice on the other side of the line said in reply, but you watched as Din’s shoulders dropped from up around his ears, and he brought his free hand up to squeeze the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s fine, put him on.” A pause then, and he sighed deeply. “No, I don’t mind, really, you just scared the shit out of me. A call from you at this time of night? I thought something was wrong.” Another pause, and you could hear what you would swear were several voices talking over each other ringing from the phone’s speakers even as they were pressed against his ear. “Okay, yeah, that’s fine. Put him on.”

Din pulled the phone away from his face then and tapped the “video call” button on the glowing gray call interface. Half a breath later, the screen flared to life, blinding you a bit in the darkness, and the image of a little boy with unruly hair and dark, sleepy eyes blinked at him from the phone.

“Daddy!” the boy cried, a toothy grin splitting his chubby little cheeks as he seized the phone from whoever was holding it on his end. He was too close to the camera, the angle giving Din a spectacular view directly up the toddler’s nose, and you smothered a giggle as you watched the boy make faces at himself in the viewfinder.

“Hey, kiddo,” Din said softly, and oh, but you could hear the smile in his voice, could feel the fondness radiating off of him in waves even though you couldn’t see his face. Every sinking feeling that had taken over your body disappeared at the sound as you realized what exactly you were witnessing. The other woman was his babysitter.

“Are you being good for Aunt Cara? Hm?” he asked, and you could just melt at the gentleness in his low, rasping voice.

“Good!” the little boy replied, nodding vigorously in a way that bounced his floppy curls across his forehead.

Another face appeared on the screen, the same woman from the caller ID photo, and you watched as she scooped the squirmy kid up into her arms with an exaggerated, theatrical groan. “Tell him,” she prompted playfully. “Say we played with your airplanes and your cars.”

The little boy grinned toothily. “Yeah, cars!”

“And we wrestled with Uncle Axe and Aunt Koska,” Cara prompted, to which the kid giggled.

“I winned!”

Cara nodded with a fond smile. “That’s right, you won.”

From somewhere off-camera, another voice – this one male – called out in protest. “Debatable! I still say the ref was biased!”

The boy laughed again, the sound high-pitched and full of joy, and even the woman holding him seemed to be fighting back a chuckle as she plowed on. “And then Aunt Bo made dinner, and this little dude ate alllll his vegetables!”

“You did?” Din replied, genuine surprise coloring his words. “That’s great! I’m so proud of you!”

“Daddy! When you come home?”

From your angle slightly behind him, you could see your date’s shoulders fall slightly at the question, so sweetly and innocently asked in that little baby voice. On the other end of the line, Cara offered him what you would call an apologetic smile and shook her head. “Someone doesn’t want to go to bed without Dad.”

“Kiddo, Dad’s not going to be home until after your bedtime,” Din sighed. His words were slow and patient on the surface, but you swore you could hear a note of guilt underlying them, and it made your heart ache in your chest. “Remember, we talked about that before I left tonight? Aunt Cara is going to do bedtime tonight, and then when I get home, I promise I will come give you kiss, okay?”

The boy was clearly disappointed by this response, his eyebrows pulling up in the center and his wide, dark eyes shining pitifully through the screen, and he let out a wordless little whine that you were sure would have had you caving in an instant had it been directed at you. However, Din held strong. Voice low and gentle, he offered, “How about this – let’s say goodnight to each other right now instead. Is that okay? Just for tonight?”

He seemed to weigh that response for a moment, uncertain, but after a beat of silence, the kid tucked himself snugly under Cara’s chin and sighed. “Okaaaay.”

“Okay. I love you so much, kiddo. Get good sleep, have good dreams, and I’ll be there in the morning when you wake up.” Din’s words, so soft and intimate, sounded almost rehearsed to your ears, and you realized that this man was completing a long-standing bedtime ritual with his son via video chat in the middle of a darkened sidewalk on a Friday night. The thought had your heart swelling behind your ribs, the core of you warming and softening with a rush of fondness that you were helpless against.

Fuck. Din wasn’t just a DILF. He was also just a really good dad.

On the other side of the connection, Din’s little boy yawned widely and snuggled his curly head deeper into his babysitter’s chest. “Love you, Daddy,” he murmured sweetly, and you knew that if it were possible to die of cuteness, you would have done so that those words.

“I love you, too,” Din replied softly. “Good night, buddy.”

“Night night.”

Cara shifted the phone away from the kid’s sleepy face then, refocusing herself in the frame. “Okay, that should do it. I’m gonna go tuck this guy in while he’s still feeling cooperative.”

He was quick to nod his agreement, clearly not wishing to make this task any more difficult on his friend than he needed to. “Yeah, go. I’ll text you when I’m on my way back.”

“Hey.” She sounded rather serious then, making intense eye contact with Din through the phone screen. “Take your time, ‘kay? I got this.”

“Have fun, Djarin!” another woman’s voice chimed from a distance, off-camera and seemingly getting further and further away as Cara carried Din’s son to bed.

There was a chorus of good-natured laughter, then the man’s voice from earlier returned. “Don’t do anything we wouldn’t do, eh?”

This, of course, was met with an uproar on the other side of the connection, none of which could be seen. All you could really make out was a stern woman’s voice, one you hadn’t heard before, groan, “Axe, I swear to god – ”

You laughed softly at that, hiding your smiling lips behind one of your hands and Din quickly started to fumble with his phone. “Oookay, that’s enough of that,” he muttered, and with a swipe of his thick thumb, he ended the call.

Slipping his phone into his back pocket once again, he finally turned back around to face you, guilt and embarrassment tightening the corners of his eyes. Even in the dark, you swore you could make out a flush high on his golden tanned cheekbones as he said, “I’m…sorry about that. My kid, he’s got some separation anxiety issues. He’s not used to me being out of the house at bedtime. Tried to talk to him about it before, but he’s not even three yet, and – ”

“Din,” you interjected, closing the narrow distance between the two of you and resting your palm on his arm. “You don’t have to explain. Or apologize. You’re a dad. Your kid comes first.” With a slow, sly smile, you slipped your hand into the crook of his arm, holding tight to it as you proceeded down the sidewalk once more. “Besides, that was an interesting look at your family dynamic. Or were those your friends? The one called Axe sounds like a character.”

He huffed a laugh at that. “Friends. Well, also my coworkers, but they were friends first. I’m an only child, so they’re the only aunts and uncles my kid has ever known.”

“How many of them are watching him tonight?”

“Four,” he replied with a grimace. “I had originally only asked Cara, but the others overhead and…wanted to support me, I guess. I think I mentioned, I don’t exactly do this often. I haven’t been on a date in…well. Let’s just say it’s been a long time.”

You smiled to yourself, feeling your cheeks heat at the idea that this man who didn’t date had decided that he wanted his first date in however long to be with you. You would be lying if you said that wasn’t going to go to your head a little. Leaning your forehead against his bicep so he couldn’t meet your eyes, you asked, “And how are you finding it?”

With a low, rasping chuckle, Din brought his free hand up to cover yours, wrapping his long fingers around the back of your hand where it cupped his elbow. “I’m thinking…if it means I get to spend time with you, I should do it more often.”

Not even an hour later, Din found himself in the back of a cab, arm around your shoulders, fingers linked together, your beautiful face flushed and grinning wildly as you traced the very tip of your nose along his jugular. Your voice breathless and on the verge of laughter, you gave the driver what must have been the address of your apartment, but he couldn’t have repeated the words you said if you had paid him. He was far too distracted, too overwhelmed with where the night was heading to pay attention to such details. You were so soft against him, plastered up against his side. Your mussed hair on his cheek, your breasts against his chest, your round hip snug against his, and fuck, your lips – plump and swollen and glistening with his kisses, the ones he had stolen under the lamp light during your stroll through the park. He couldn’t believe he had done that. He couldn’t believe you had asked him to.

When the two of you had planned this evening, he had had a firm talk with himself – he would keep the physical contact to a minimum, he would not allow his eyes to wander inappropriately, he would be a perfect gentleman, he would treat you like a lady. First of all, because it was the bare minimum of what you deserved, and second of all, because tonight would be your first ever in-person meeting, and he wanted to be very clear that this meant more to him than just some casual hookup. Din had had plenty of those over the years to know that what he felt for you ran so much deeper than that, and he was loathe to give you the wrong idea about his intentions with you.

The moment he saw you walking across the street toward him – backlit by the golden hour sun, hair dancing in the breeze, all your perfect, curvaceous softness swaying with your perky stride – all of that chivalry had nearly been abandoned by the side of the road. And he had been fighting tooth and nail all evening to keep hold of the reins of his desire for you.

But the two of you had meandered through that park for a while. You had stopped along the shore of a little pond to admire the water, and you had looked up at him with these wide, soft eyes, your long lashes casting intricate shadows across your cheeks, and god, it had nearly killed him to keep his hands balled up in the pockets of his jacket.

And then you had taken the smallest step forward, eating up what little distance still remained between you.

And then you had whispered, in a voice so low he could barely hear you, “Will you kiss me, Din? Please?”

How could he have refused you?

Now your breath was on his neck, your lips softly brushing his skin, and he was slithering his arm down from around your shoulders and instead pressing his palm to your thigh. His fingers dug into the softness there of their own accord, tucking the tips inward and brushing his thumb across the cap of your knee firmly, possessively. He felt you exhale against his collarbone at the sensation, the softest, faintest sound of need reaching his ears, and then he was ducking his chin, finding your mouth again, pressing his lips to yours with an urgency that ought to have felt out of place with the poor cab driver sitting right there but somehow didn’t.

Your kiss tasted like lime from your margarita, like salt from the rim. Your fingers threading through his hair felt like heaven. Your body under his hands melted like putty, warm and pliant and so fucking soft that it had blood rushing to his cock, the swell of it pressing uncomfortably against the zipper of his jeans.

And it wasn’t enough. You needed more. He needed more.

Breaking the kiss with a soft gasp, Din pressed his forehead against yours, brushed the tip of his nose against yours. “Easy, sweetheart,” he murmured, his voice low and gravely in the hot, moist air between you. “We’ve got to slow down, or I’m going to embarrass myself.”

You shifted beneath his grip on your thigh, hips squirming in your seat, thighs pressing together, and when he met your heavy-lidded gaze, he was struck with how dark your eyes looked just now, how wide your pupils had blown. Shaking your head, you whispered, “Don’t care.”

He bit back a curse at the way his cock throbbed at your words, at the soft, panting tone of your voice. “Not going to fuck you in the back of a cab, baby.”

Giggling breathlessly, you tucked your face into the side of his neck to hide your blush. “You can’t talk to me like that and not expect me to be all over you, Din Djarin,” you huffed, the tip of your tongue darting out to taste the little patch of skin just beneath his earlobe. “S’not fair.”

“Not fair?” With gritted teeth, pure electricity running through his veins, he returned the favor and buried his nose in the soft, fragrant skin of neck. The scent of you there was intoxicating – warmth and musk with a touch of floral, a touch of sweetness. He wanted to sink his teeth into you, might have had you been alone. “Fine. You want not fair? I’ll give you not fair.”

Shooting a furtive glance at the driver, who mercifully seemed committed to keeping his eyes on the road, Din delicately slipped his leather jacket from where it had been tucked around your shoulders and instead draped it over your lap.

You pulled away from him slightly at that, meeting his gaze with bright, burning interest in your eyes as you realized what he was about to do.

“If we’re doing this,” he whispered, “you have to keep your eyes forward and your mouth shut. Can you do that for me, sweetheart?”

Din watched as you swallowed hard, your swollen lips parting with lust. You nodded wordlessly, and your thigh muscles tightened under his hand, now hidden by the drape of his jacket.

“Okay then. Not a sound.” He cocked his head toward the front of the cab. “Now face forward, behave yourself, and I’ll take care of you.”

He felt the sharp exhale of your breath against his face, and then you were obeying – shifting your hips square to the front of the car, turning to face the windshield, and balling your fists up at your sides. Din shifted, too, turning to face forward and tapping into every ounce of discipline his profession had ever instilled in him to school his expression into something carefully blank and neutral. Beneath his jacket, however, was a different story.

He started with a soothing caress of his palm from the cap of your knee to the top of your thigh, using the heat and the weight of his hand to ease your tense muscles. After a couple of passes, he could feel that softness return, and unprompted, your knees eased apart – not quite spread, not yet, just parted slightly as you relaxed into his touch. The realization sent a surge of satisfaction through him, and he could not stop himself from slipping his fingers down, down, down to the very edge of your knee and slowly starting to gather the fabric of your dress in his grip.

Din heard your breath catch for a moment as you realized what he was doing, and then it sped up, and your knees dropped even further apart. Before he could wrap his head around what he was about to do in the back of a cab car, he had hiked the skirt of your dress up far enough to slip his hand underneath.

Now it was his turn to not be able to breathe. Fuck, your thighs were soft – smooth like silk, supple and pillowy and forgiving as his calloused fingers traced slowly across your skin, seeking your warmth. He could feel a muscle in his jaw jump as his fingers drew higher, as you subtly adjusted yourself in your seat so you could open your legs even wider, permit him even closer to where you both knew you needed him. Every instinct in him begged him to go faster, to give you more, to whip the stifling cover of his jacket off your lap so he could take in the sight of his fingers reaching the smooth, cotton gusset of your panties with his own eyes. Instead, he pulled his face into a scowl of concentration and kept his pace measured.

By the time the side of his pinky bumped into the apex of your thighs, Din felt ready to combust with urgency. He could feel the heat of you there through the fabric, could feel the slickness seeping through it to dampen his skin, could feel the tension in your hips as you tried desperately not to arch into his touch. You were being so good for him, staying silent, never looking his way, just sitting there, the picture of innocence as you let him touch you. It had something hot and nearly feral rising in his chest, the fact that he could give you such impossible instructions in such an impossible scenario and you would drive yourself mad in an attempt to obey them.

It made him wonder what else you would do, if he asked, and just the question had his cock pulsing in his jeans. Unable to hold himself back any longer, Din tucked his fingers under the seam of your panties and slipped them softly, gently through your folds.

A groan bubbled up in his chest, and he allowed his eyes to fall shut for a moment as he collected himself. You were absolutely dripping for him – hot and wet and slippery, trim little curls sticky with it, underwear soaked against the back of his hand. It coated his fingers, and it took every ounce of restraint in his arsenal to stop himself from pulling his hand from under the jacket and popping his fingers directly into his mouth. But no, he told himself. There would be time for that later. Now, you were practically vibrating in your seat trying to keep yourself together, and he needed to watch you fall apart before the cab arrived at your apartment.

Din allowed himself to gently pet you for another moment, reveling in the feel of your soft wetness, and then he was seeking your clit, finding it swollen and puffy and begging for attention near the top of your folds. With the first delicate caress, you lost the battle with your own vocal chords and let out a quiet, breathless whimper, and a rush of pride raced through him at the thought that he had finally overwhelmed you to the point where you couldn’t keep silent anymore. Still, he couldn’t stop himself from leaning over into your space and murmuring into your ear, “I said keep quiet, sweetheart. Or I stop right now. Understood?”

You let out a shaky exhale, and Din felt more than saw you nod your agreement.

“Good girl,” he growled, and he swore he felt your clit pulse under his fingertips at his words. Interesting. That was something he was going to need to explore more later.

For now, he offered you a few more gentle caresses, a few soft, tight circles around your clit as acknowledgment of your suffering, and then he dipped down to your entrance and slowly, sweetly slipped his middle finger into your throbbing pussy.

God, you felt incredible – hot and wet and so fucking tight that he could feel his cock leaking in his jeans at the idea that he might have the opportunity to be inside you with more than just his fingers. Your velvet walls fluttered around him in desperate little waves as he gently thrust inside you, in and out, in and out, pressing deeper on each pass, seeking that elusive spot inside that he knew would make you see stars. After a handful of strokes, he added a second finger, and your hips stuttered at the stretch, hitching against his touch in a way that felt both needy and overwhelmed. You were so tight, and his fingers were so thick; it was no wonder it was a shock.

Din turned and dropped a tender, comforting kiss to the crown of your head. Fuck, you were so good, just sitting there in the back of the cab, letting him touch you, letting him finger you, letting him make you feel good. The ease with which you gave it all up to him was driving him insane. How long had it been since he had been with someone like you, someone who seemed to know innately what he needed, who fit with him so perfectly it was as though some divine being had had a hand in your introduction? Had it ever been this good? Had he ever needed someone as badly as he needed you?

Grinding the heel of his hand into your clit, Din sped up his thrusts. In and out, in and out, pressing, stretching, seeking. Your knees fell farther apart seemingly of their own accord, as your eyes had taken on a faraway look to them, staring unseeingly out the front windshield as you took what he gave you. In your lap, his leather jacket began to slip, and one end of it fell suspiciously down between your spread legs. Although his hand and the apex of your thighs were still hidden, if the driver were to take a look in his rearview mirror, he would clearly be able to tell what was happening in his back seat.

The same idea seemed to occur to you then, because in that moment, you broke his second rule – you glanced over at him with a fucked-out look of urgency on your face, and Din could swear he felt you starting to tighten. Fuck, this was turning you on. The near-exposure, the precarious position the two of you were in, it was making you drip around his fingers, making you clench around his thrusts.

You were a wild thing; Din had known it from the moment he laid eyes on you. Now here was the proof. You were going to come on his fingers in the back of a cab car, and then you were going to invite him up to your apartment and let him fuck you senseless –

“Here we are,” the driver said, his voice slow and unaffected, almost bored as he pulled the cab off to the side of the street and turned on his blinkers.

No matter how nonchalant his words, the sound of them sent a bolt of terror through the both of you, and in a flurry of limbs and fabric, each of you scrambled to put yourselves back together as the car came to a stop. Din yanked his fingers from your body, the quick withdrawal pulling a little hiccupping whine from your throat, but he paid it no heed as he tugged your skirt back down where it belonged around your knees. You gathered up his jacket and draped it over your arm, running your fingers through your mussed hair. By the time the car rolled to a complete stop, each of you were looking mostly put together, save Din’s raging hard-on tenting his jeans and your flush-cheeked, glassy-eyed stare.

Although he had already paid for the fare, as the two of you slid out of the back of the car, Din pulled a wad of cash from his wallet and discretely slipped it into the driver’s hand.

“Thanks for the ride,” he murmured hoarsely, and before the man could reply, he threaded his fingers through yours and followed your lead to the door of your apartment building.

You would be lying if you said you hadn’t been hoping that this would be where the night would end – Din’s broad, calloused hand in yours, your dress askew and your thighs damp, the two of you moving with urgency down the hall outside your apartment, breathless laughter on your tongue. You had never been strictly opposed to sex on the first date, if the chemistry was there and you felt comfortable and safe with the person, and he had checked all of your boxes and then some from the moment you spotted him outside the restaurant that night. You had decided then and there; if the date went well, and he seemed to be on the same page, you would be taking him home with you that night.

You had worried that your advances might be a bit much for Din, but clearly, those fears had been unfounded. He seemed a bit overwhelmed, a bit in disbelief, but that hadn’t stopped him from jumping at every chance you had given him – holding your hand as you walked, kissing you down by the pond…

Giving you one of the hottest experiences of your life by stealthily fucking you with his fingers in the back of the cab while you struggled to stay perfectly silent and still…

Your pussy clenched at the memory of his thick fingers inside you, the perfect stretch of them, the way they had both soothed your ache for him while also somehow making it worse, knowing how much better it would be if it were his cock filling you up like that. Fuck. You needed this man, and you needed him now.

Thankfully, Din seemed to have no interest in stopping. When you finally reached your door, he wasted no time in crowding up behind you as you fumbled for your keys, hands slipping around your waist as he dropped hot, open-mouthed kisses to the side of your neck. Your eyelids drooped at the sensation, your hands halting in mid-air, keys dangling from your grip, and you felt more than heard him chuckle against your skin.

“Don’t get distracted, sweetheart. Open the door,” he murmured, breath hot on the shell of your ear, making you shiver. What a little shit.

After another second of fiddling with your keys, you finally were able to work open your door, and the two of you nearly fell inside. He slammed it shut behind you as you tossed your keys onto the nearby countertop, and then he was on you – one hand gripping the swell of your hip, one hand slipping along the side of your face to cup your jaw, fingers tangling in your hair at the base of your skull as he cradled you. You could smell yourself on him, the scent of your arousal clinging to the hand that now held your face, and god, you could swear your insides turned molten at the idea. His mouth was covering yours before you could comment on it, and then every lucid thought evaporated from your mind.

For a man who claimed to have been out of the dating pool for a while, Din certainly knew how to kiss – he was passionate, meticulous, and completely relentless in the way he took you apart. His lips were soft, his tongue precise, and the single-minded focus with which he stroked your jaw, coaxed you open, and devoured you was enough to make you blush.

Almost absently, you realized his other hand had swept around the crest of your hip and taken a palmful of your ass, and you whimpered into the kiss, your hips hitching toward him of their own accord. His hands were fucking huge, warm through the fabric of your dress, callouses on his palms catching on the fabric. You needed them all over you – on your skin, in your hair, between your legs –

Pulling his lips away from yours with a gasp, he groaned, “If this is too much – if this isn’t what you want – ”

You shook your head, digging your fingers into his dark brown curls, pulling his neck down to your mouth so you could suck on the skin there. “I want it, Din. I want it,” you reassured him.

You felt a shudder pass through him, and then both of his hands were on your ass, dragging you closer, pressing the full length of your torso along his. “Know it’s early, know we just met, don’t have to do anything you don’t want – ”

“Din!” Yanking his hair sharply until he hissed, you watched as he finally seemed to focus on you, eyes darkening as he took in your flushed face, your swollen lips, your glossy, heavy-lidded eyes. “I want to fuck you,” you proclaimed bluntly. His mouth dropped open, just slightly, pouty lower lip trembling as he stared at you. “Do you want to fuck me?”

The man blinked a few times, seemingly taken aback, but he didn’t allow the question to hang in the air for too long. With a heavy, audible swallow, Din replied, “Yeah, baby, I want to fuck you.”

A bright, electric thrill of victory surged through you, and you couldn’t have smothered the grin that split your face if you tried.

“Okay, then fuck me. And don’t hold back.”

You winked at him playfully, and a dangerous smirk that had your pussy fluttering pulled at the corner of his lips. No sooner had you registered the expression and he was toeing off his boots, leaving them abandoned in front of your door, and driving you backward into the apartment. A breathless yelp followed by a laugh escaped you as you allowed him to push you into your living room, shedding your own shoes as you went, and then you were kissing again, and just like before, all of your surroundings melted away.

A rush of cool air met your thighs as balled fists pulled up the hem of your dress, gathering the fabric in worn palms as more and more of your body was revealed, and you let it go gladly. Lifting your arms above your head, you allowed him to pull the whole thing off over your head, and through the wild, fluffed-up strands of hair dangling in your eyes, you watched as he took you in – your blushing cheeks, your heavy, heaving breasts cupped in a black cotton bra, your soft, rounded belly, your thick thighs and wide hips, the narrow strip your black cotton thong completely soaked through and clinging to your pussy lips. You had no name for the expression on his face, but if you had to relate it to something, you would say it was close to awe.

Din was in awe of you, completely and utterly gone for you, and the surge of power that sent through your veins was like a drug.

“Take off your shirt,” you murmured, lip between your teeth, and as he rushed to obey, you dropped to your knees in front of him.

“Fuck, sweetheart, you don’t – ” he groaned, but your hands were already working his belt buckle open, already thumbing at the button of his jeans.

“But I want to.” Looking up at him through your lashes with wide, soft eyes, you held his gaze as you slipped his zipper down, as you felt the hardness poorly concealed behind it swell and surge against your palm. “So let me.”

He gave no further protests, simply watched as you tucked your thumbs into the waistband of both his jeans and his charcoal gray boxer briefs and shoved, pulling them both down around his knees in one, smooth tug. One more push and they were pooled around his ankles, and then Din was stumbling out of them, holding onto the back of a nearby armchair for support as he kicked them aside.

He was naked now, staring down at you with dark, heated eyes, broad, muscled chest rising and falling with every labored breath, and fuck, if he wasn’t the most beautiful man you had ever seen. Thick and strong with long, powerful limbs and a soft stomach, a fine dusting of dark brown hair from his bellybutton down, and miles and miles of golden tanned skin decorated with a heavily curated collection of black and gray tattoos that you hadn’t been able to see earlier. They looked like beautiful work, and you were eager to examine them later, but for now, something else was begging for your attention, and you couldn’t ignore it any longer even if you wanted to.

Inches from your face, long and thick and curved, flushed and leaking precum, his cock was just as beautiful as the rest of him, and you needed it in your mouth. Now.

Holding yourself steady with one hand on his narrow hip, one hand around the base of him, you leaned forward and dragged your tongue along the underside before taking the tip of him in your mouth and suckling gently. Slick musk coated your tongue, and you moaned at the taste, immediately surging forward and taking more. Above you, Din let out a colorful string of curses and dropped a hand to the back of your head, cupping the bowl of your skull in his palm as you worked yourself over him. He never put any pressure there, never thrust himself deeper than you were choosing to take him, but you could feel his restraint in the tension in his hips, in the grip of his fingers in your hair.

He was trying so hard to be a gentleman for you. You kind of wished he would give it up already.

Pulling back, letting his cock fall from your mouth, you took up your strokes with your hand and said, “S’okay, baby. You can take what you need from me. M’not gonna break.”

Din groaned, low and gravelly in his chest, and then he was using his grip on your head to coax you up and back onto your feet. “Need to fuck you, sweetheart – I can’t wait any more.”

Your cunt bottomed out at that, the swooping sensation deep inside you almost leaving you dizzy, and although you had been looking forward to sucking him off, you found yourself nodding your agreement anyway. “Where do you want me?” you asked, and the question had him tugging you forward into a hard kiss.

“On the couch,” he growled. “Just need to feel you around me.”

Pulling him deeper into the living room, you shed your bra as you went, tossing it who-knows-where in your eagerness. You could feel his eyes on you – on them – as your breasts swayed with your movement, and perhaps such direct attention ought to have made you self-conscious, but instead in made you bold. The moment the backs of your knees collided with the couch, you stripped your thong from your body while holding his gaze, and the pure, molten want in his stare had you feeling like the sexiest woman he had ever seen.

“Lie back,” he rasped, and you were quick to obey, laying down with your head at one end and your legs stretched out along the length of the couch. Snagging one of your many throw pillows, Din tapped the side of your hip twice, adding, “Lift your hips for me, pretty girl.”

You did, and he slid that pillow underneath your ass. Then he was clambering up onto the couch with you, all long limbs and big hands and sweat-damp curls, kneeling between your legs, urging one of them up to drape over the back of the couch, nudging the other down to drip limply onto the floor. You went where he guided you, happy to arrange yourself however he pleased as long as it meant you got to feel that gorgeous cock inside you.

But he started with his fingers first, coaxing and petting and caressing your dripping folds in much the same way that he had in the back of the cab, only this time, you were free to arch your hips into his touch and let out soft, breathy moans with every delicate stroke.

Din seemed to realize this at the same time you did, as he began to nod slowly, encouragingly as he slipped two fingers into your quivering, grasping pussy. “That’s it, let me hear you now. You don’t have to be quiet anymore, sweetheart. Let me hear you feel good.”

And fuck, but it did feel good – his fingers stretching you, filling you, pressing steadily against that soft, elusive spot inside you with every thrust, making you want to thrust against him, to drive him deeper, to take even more of him.

“God, baby, you’re so fucking wet. Is that good? Is that what you need?” he groaned, and you nodded furiously, too overcome to speak, just knowing you needed him to keep going…needed him to give you more.

Again, it was like Din realized what you wanted at the same time you did. Gently slipping his fingers from you, he used the thick coating of your wetness on them to stroke his cock as he shuffled forward on his knees. Pressing down on the blunt, swollen tip with his thumb, he dragged his length through your folds collecting your slick, starting at your entrance and sliding smoothly up to your clit. You let out a low, startled moan at the feeling, and you couldn’t help but grind against him, letting the tip of his cock press and circle against your puffy, throbbing clit. Shit, when was the last time you had hooked up with someone and been this outrageously turned on? You felt like you were on the ragged edge of your orgasm already, and he had barely touched you.

However, just as Din began to trail the head of his cock back down to your entrance, a shock of reality broke through your dazed, lust-fogged mind, and you found yourself pressing your hand against his stomach, stopping him from thrusting in.

“Condom,” you panted, sex-addled and breathless. “We need a condom.”

His dark brown eyes widened with a sudden wave of awareness, and you felt him pull back immediately. “Shit. You’re right, I’m sorry,” he stammered. “I wasn’t thinking.”

You let out a winded laugh and shook your head. “Me, neither. Did you bring one? I have some if you need.”

Din nodded, hopping up from the couch and crossing back over to where the two of you had abandoned his jeans. Digging his wallet out of the pocket, he slid a conspicuous foil packet from inside then dropped the wallet back onto the pile of denim. A moment later, he was settled back between your legs, perched up on his knees with his hands on your thighs and the condom tucked securely between two of his fingers.

“You ready, sweetheart?” he asked, and you nodded urgently.

“So ready. Beyond ready.”

Your eagerness seemed to be all he needed to get back into the moment. With a few quick strokes of his cock, he ripped the condom wrapper open with his teeth and slid it on. You watched with hooded eyes, lower lip trapped between your teeth, and you couldn’t stop yourself from reaching out to stroke him yourself as the latex stretched over his skin. Din groaned at your touch, and then he shooed your hands away and lined himself up with your entrance.

“Eyes on me, pretty girl. Want to see your face while you take me,” he groaned, and with one long, smooth thrust, he filled your cunt with his throbbing length.

“Ah! Fuck, Din!”

It took everything in you not to let your eyes fall shut as he thrust inside you. The stretch was incredible – just the slightest burn, but even with his size, it wasn’t too much after how he well had prepared you, how long he had teased you in the cab, how turned on you were. It was enough to feel truly full – stuffed to the brim, the weight of him absolutely gorgeous as he bore down on all your most sensitive spots. Above you, your date was gritting his teeth, a muscle in his jaw twitching as his nostrils flared, as he dug his fingers into your thighs with a grip so hard it would likely bruise. He seemed to be fighting very hard to keep himself together, and you immediately felt the sinister urge to clench around him just to watch him struggle. Instead, you chose to take mercy on him and simply roll your hips against his, driving him deeper.

“No – shit, baby, you can’t – ” he stammered, hands tightening on your legs even harder, hips surging forward in the smallest of thrusts completely out of his control. “I am…hanging on by a thread here, and if you – ”

“If I what?” you taunted, the power you had over him flowing through you like an aphrodisiac, making you bold, making you reckless. “If I do this?” You rolled your hips against his again, smooth and lazy, and you could actually feel his cock throb and twitch inside you.

Deep in his chest, Din released what could only be described as an animalistic growl, and in an instant, he had one hand tucked behind the back of your knee – the one up on the back of the couch – and the other gripping the couch cushion beside your head. Arching his broad, muscular body over yours, bringing his face down to your level, he pressed your knee back toward your head and thrust so deep into you, you couldn’t help but whine at the feeling.

“Naughty girl,” he rasped.

You nodded with a smile. “You like that about me.”

He huffed a laugh into the hot, humid space between you, shaking his head at you exasperatedly. “You’re right, I do. But right now – ” He pulled back his hips until just the very tip of his cock remained inside you, brows drawn low in concentration. “ – right now, I really just need to fuck you. Can I, sweetheart? Can I just fuck you?” He thrust back in, all the way to the hilt, and you could swear your cunt was literally dripping at the intoxicating feeling. Your body was writhing beneath him, completely out of your control, and you swore that if he didn’t just fucking rail you in the next three seconds, your head might explode.

“I swear to god, Din, if you ask me one more time – ”

His mouth sealed over yours before you could finish your sentence, and then he was finally – finally – fucking you.

With swift, firm thrusts, he drilled you into the couch cushions, all hesitance and restraint fully evaporated. The angle was perfect, the extra height and the little tilt added by the throw pillow exactly what you needed to have his cock dragging against your G-spot on every thrust, and that combined with the way his pubic bone ground against your clit had you moaning and whimpering and digging your manicured nails into his shoulders in your ecstasy. Din was like a force of nature, the way he fucked – gripping your thigh, driving your leg back toward your head, holding your eye contact, watching with deep, unflappable intensity as you trembled and shook beneath him. Every once in a while, he would drop his gaze to trace over your soft, folded stomach or to watch the hypnotic bounce of your tits, but mostly, he kept his eyes on yours, and rather than making you self-conscious, it simply drove the heat between you higher, made it more powerful.

“Thought about this,” he confessed, a whine creeping into the edge of his low voice as his thrusts sped up. “All those fucking pictures of you – doing yoga – all bent and twisted and – flexible.”

A smirk made its way onto your face, and you ran your fingers through his hair, brushing his limp curls out of his eyes. “Yeah? You like a bendy girl, Din Djarin? How’s it live up to the fantasy?”

He groaned, leaning even further forward to press his sweaty forehead into yours, driving your leg even further back toward your face. Tucking your knee up onto his shoulder, the angle of his cock inside you deepened. “Even better,” he admitted. “You’re perfect – so perfect.”

“P-Perfect?” God, that soft, spongy tip was hammering your G-spot now; you could barely comprehend any of the words he said to you, let alone string together any of your own.

“Perfect body,” he elaborated, gritting his teeth, groaning loudly. “Sweet, soft, perfect p-pussy. Perfect – hnng fuck – perfect girl.”

“Din!” you gasped. That low pool of heat in your abdomen was starting to tighten, starting to pulse. You could feel it rising inside you, threatening to take you over. It felt…massive, life-altering in a way you hadn’t known orgasms could be, but fuck, if this one wasn’t promising to do it.

“Shit, baby, can feel you,” Din groaned. “You gonna come for me? Gonna come all over my cock? Hm?”

“Y-Yes, I’m gonna – you’re gonna make me – ” You hiccupped a sob, raking your fingernails down his arms in a move that had him hissing and his hips stuttering as he thrust. “Fuck, I’m so close!”

“What do you need? What’s gonna get you there?”

“My clit – can I – ?”

He cursed, dropping a wet, sucking, open-mouthed kiss to the inside of your thigh. “Yeah, baby, touch yourself. Make yourself come. Need to feel it.”

Wiggling one of your hands into the tight space between your bodies, the tip of your middle finger found your throbbing clit and immediately began to play. You wouldn’t need much more – just something a little more direct, a little more concentrated, a little more –

“Yes! Fuck, Din, right there!”

And then you were gone – that tight, wet heat inside you bursting, dripping down his cock and flinging you into the stars on the edge of the event horizon. The walls of your cunt pulsed around him as you rode out your high, and Din was quick to follow you into his own abyss, unable to hold back anymore the moment he had felt you start to fall apart. With one final, deep surge of his hips, you felt his cock pulse and twitch inside you, and for a brief, wild moment, you regretted the use of the condom. You would have liked to have felt the warmth of him spilling inside you.

In the aftermath, Din was tender, as you had had no doubt he would be. After the two of you had taken a moment to catch your breath, he reached a hand down to hold onto the base of the condom as he pulled out. A low, husky groan escaped him as he withdrew, and you felt a sympathetic throb deep inside you at the sound. Even now, everything he did was unthinkably hot.

A moment later, he had removed and tied off the condom and retreated to your kitchen to toss it, returning with a warm rag he had clearly dampened in your sink. He was gentle and methodical as he cleaned you, wiping between and around your swollen pussy lips with steady hands before he moved on to cleaning himself.

He would need to go now, you realized. He had likely already stayed out later than he had planned, already imposed upon the generosity of his friends long enough. His little boy was waiting for him, and as much as you wished he could stay, you knew it would be unreasonable to ask him to.

So without prompting, you pulled yourself up to sitting, and when he came back from tossing the rag back into the kitchen, you rose to your feet.

You had to admit, you felt a bit exposed, a bit awkward, but even now, as Din looked at you, you could see all of the same warmth and affection you had seen in his eyes before the sex, and that eased your nerves a bit. The first real nerves you had felt since the start of the night, you realized.

“Sweetheart,” he whispered. “I’m sorry, but I have to – ”

“I know,” you interrupted, giving him a smile you weren’t certain would reach your eyes. “I understand. It’s late. You have to be getting back.”

“I do,” he agreed. Crossing to stand just in front of you, he reached out a hand and traced the backs of his fingers down your arm, leaving goosebumps in his wake. “Thank you for tonight. I had a great time with you. And not just…this.” He gestured awkwardly at the surrounding room, at his own nakedness that matched yours, at the trail of clothes between the couch and the apartment door. You giggled in spite of yourself, and he joined in, the whole mood lightening considerably as the two of you found your way back to laughing with one another.

“I had a great time with you, too,” you said, draping your arms around his neck. “I’d like to do it again sometime, if you’re interested.”

Din smiled, soft and genuine, and pressed a kiss to your hairline. “I’m definitely interested. And, ah, maybe next time I’ll call in a few favors. See if I can arrange an overnight sitter.”

You snorted, tucking your face into his neck as joy began to bubble beneath the surface of your skin, making you feel light and filling you with an impish energy in spite of the hour. “Hey, if you can swing it, I’m definitely not going to say no. I’d like to actually, I don’t know, make it to the bed next time? Maybe?”

He playfully squeezed your sides in response, and you let out a squeal. “Can you blame me?” he quipped. “Driving me insane all night.”

Offering him a tongue-touched smile, you pulled away and started collecting his clothing from around the room. “Again. You like that about me, baby,” you teased. With a wink, you dropped the bundle of clothes into his waiting arms. “Now get your cute ass back in these jeans. And go kiss your son good-night.”

A handful of minutes later, Din was fully dressed and hovering by the door to your apartment, the scent of you still lingering on his skin, his heart lighter and freer than he had felt in years. You had gone and gotten yourself a robe to cover up with while he dressed, and now you stood, hip leaning against your kitchen cabinets, arms crossed over your ample chest, watching him attempt to delay the inevitable of having to say good-bye.

He didn’t want to leave you – he hoped you knew.

He didn’t want to sleep away from his son, but he also didn’t want to leave you. An impossible conundrum, and one that didn’t bear examination seeing as this was only your first time meeting in person. It was far too early for the direction his mind was heading; he headed it off before it could travel any further down the road.

Instead, he gathered you into his arms one final time for the night, cradled your face in his hands, and planted a soft, gentle kiss on your swollen lips. “Good night, sweetheart. Can I text you in the morning?”

“You can text me anytime,” you replied with a smile. “You could even, um…call me. If you wanted. When you have some free time.”

Din drew back for a moment, eyebrows raised. “Yeah, if that’s okay with you. I’d like to call you.”

Your smile widened, and he could swear he felt a piece of his heart leave his body and lodge itself in you at the sight. “Great. Then I’ll look forward to hearing your voice again tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow,” he echoed, and with one final kiss, Din slipped out the door.

#hotdilfsummerchallenge #din djarin #din djarin x you #din djarin x f!reader #din djarin x reader #the mandalorian #the mandalorian fanfiction #pedro pascal #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal character fanfiction #ppcu #ppcu fanfiction

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city-of-ladies · 7 months ago

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"Women could be found working on construction sites, if only occasionally, including in specialized roles such as carpenters and masons. The research is found in the article, “Appropriate to Her Sex?” Women’s Participation on the Construction Site in Medieval and Early Modern Europe,” by Shelley E. Roff.

She surveyed a wide variety of records from throughout Western Europe, including tax records, inventories of wages paid on construction sites, and municipal accounts, and discovered numerous instances of women working alongside men on construction sites as far back at the 13th century. Most of these women were employed as day laborers, carrying out tasks such as moving water and building supplies around the sites, digging ditches and serving as assistants to bricklayers and stonemasons. For example, in the Spanish city of Seville during the 14th century, women were hired to dig trenches for the foundation of a new city wall, while at the nearby city of Toledo, one or two women were hired each day for the construction of the city’s cathedral, where they gathered lime and worked on the roof. Meanwhile in the French city of Toulouse, almost half the laborers working on the Perigord college site were women. Ross also finds several examples from England and Germany.

Roff notes that previous historians have seen many examples of women working on construction sites in their research, but they had believed that these were just abnormal exceptions caused by economic crises, or because the male population had been killed off through war or disease. But her new study suggests that women construction workers were more than just odd occurences. She explains that “the expansion of urban centers starting in the thirteenth century set off a trend of increasing female employment for day laborers and in the crafts, which only began to contract on occasion for women working in the crafts in the sixteenth century with ensuing economic crises.”

She also notes that in almost all accounts surveyed, the women were paid at a lower rate than the men, which would make the “a cost-effective solution” for site supervisors looking for ways to reduce expenses. The women who took these jobs would have come from society’s poor – those women who could not maintain their households and families just from their husbands’ (if they had one) income.

Roff also finds records showing women taking part in specialized building trades. In London in 1383, Katherine Lightfoot is recorded as the supplier of 2,000 painted tiles for bath in the King’s palace. Meanwhile, tax records from Paris during the years 1296 and 1313 reveal the existence of two female masons, a tiler and a plasterer. These women were not poorer individuals, rather they were the wives of male craftsman, and in some cases their widows. The 15th-century French writer Christine de Pizan noted in her book The Treasury of the City of Ladies that craftswomen, “should learn all the shop details so that she can properly supervise the workers when her husband is away or not paying attention.”

Women workers could be found on the medieval construction site, Medievalists.net

#history #women in history #women's history #working women #historyedit #middle ages #medieval women #medieval history #european history #french history #spanish history #historical #historyblr

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extra-joker-mush · 4 months ago

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this is a list of palestinian fundraisers as well as a brief description i wrote of each person's situation

!! DISCLAIMER !! I am not qualified to vet campaigns, I only compile them. I will include the account that has verified each campaign in its respective description, and if they are not vetted, I will add a disclaimer. Always donate at your own discretion.

@/motaz345: Mohamed Jadalhaq from Sweden is organizing this campaign on behalf of his brother Motaz in order to raise enough funds to evacuate him and his family from Gaza. Motaz is himself a nurse by trade, while his wife Fedaa is a pediatrician. They have three children together, Mohammed (9), Omar (7), and Nima (4). Motaz and Fedaa both volunteer at a local hospital, however they make no stable income because both their home and place of work were destroyed by bombings. Because they are constantly forced to relocate, they can have no stable source of income or basic necessities such as food and clean water. This family’s gofundme aims to raise 250,000 krona (~$25,000 USD), which will cover basic necessities for the family of five and hopefully evacuation fees as well. This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/burningnightgiver: Sahar, Mother separated from her children, who are currently trapped in Gaza. Her daughter Walaa suffers from type 1 diabetes and does not have access to insulin due to the genocide. Sahar’s gofundme has raised $13,000 of the $50,000 she requires to evacuate her children and be reunited with them in Egypt. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/yousefjehad0: Youssef (19) currently sheltering in a tent at a displacement camp in Deir al-Balah. Responsible for his family’s livelihood as well as paying for his father’s medical treatment. His younger brother is suffering from hepatitis due to poor living conditions caused by the genocide and requires medicine. Youssef is malnourished because all the income he makes goes towards his family’s medical expenses, and he has been stripped of his education after having his school bombed by the Israeli army. His gofundme has only raised $9,000 of the $15,000 he needs. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost, @aces-and-angels, and @el-shab-hussein.

@/mohammadyaser1980: Mohammad, father of five children who have lost their home and education due to the genocide in Gaza. His mother has also passed away due to poor living conditions and lack of access to medical care. His gofundme has raised $25,000 of the $35,000 he needs to help support his family. This campaign is being orchestrated by Mohammad’s nephew, Roba Ayyad.

@/ahmed4palestine: Ahmed (22), formerly a biomechanics major at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, before it was destroyed by the Israeli army. He was stripped of his education a year before he was supposed to graduate and his father Amjad lost his shop, effectively his family’s source of income. His gofundme has raised $20,000 of the $30,000 he requires to support his family of seven (Lamar, his youngest sister, hopes to one day be a doctor), who are currently sheltering in Deir al Balah after having been displaced. The $20,000 will cover evacuation tickets ($5,000 per adult & $2,500 per child), bus transportation from the border to Cairo, and an Egyptian Visa. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/alhabil: Mohammad (30), husband and father of three–Ahmed (8), Osama (6), and Mira (4). He supports his parents and pays for their medical expenses; his father Marwan Al-Habil (65) suffers from diabetes and hypertension, and his mother (55) is in extremely poor health (diabetes, high blood pressure, a herniated disc, and osteoporosis) due to lack of treatment. Mohammad’s family was displaced to Rafah and then later Nuseirat, which is still not safe. His gofundme has raised $33,000 of his $50,000 goal, and has been vetted by @90-ghost and @el-shab-hussein.

@/hayanahed: Haya and her family of eight, who have been displaced after having their home bombed by the Israeli army. Both Haya and her sister Amal suffer from severe medication allergies and fear that with growing disease in displacement camps they will not have access to adequate medical care. Her father’s business of 28 years was completely destroyed in a bombing last year, reducing their family’s income to nothing. Before their workplaces and home were entirely destroyed, Haya and her siblings consisted of three talented programmers and one graphic designer. Haya’s youngest sister studied at the College of Architecture and is an aspiring architect. Haya’s siblings are also separated from her brother, who is currently living in Belgium. Her gofundme has raised $92,000 of $100,000, which will cover her entire family’s fees to enter Egypt (5k per person, 35k for their seven family members), passport fees ( €135 per person, €945 for seven family members), and minimum living costs (€1,700 per month, €10,200 total). This fundraiser has been vetted by operation olive branch and project watermelon.

@/momenalostaz: Momen (24) requires support for his family of ten living in Gaza. His father is battling heart disease and cannot cover medical expenses, while the children in his family are subjected to malnourishment and disease. You can read more about his family on his gofundme page, which has raised $25,000 of the $70,000 that his family requires to cover the evacuation fees as well as basic necessities living in Cairo. This fundraiser has been vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @nabulsi.

@/karamrafeek: Karam (23) aspiring software engineer before his university was destroyed. Taking care of his sick mother, Karam’s gofundme has raised $13,000, which will cover evacuation fees ($5,000 per person, $10,000 total), the cost of his mother’s treatment ($3,000), the cost of completing his education ($3,000) and cost of living in Egypt ($4,000). This campaign has been vetted by @nabulsi, @rainbowywitch, and @gazagfmboost (as well as by Project Watermelon).

@/asmaayyad: Asmaa (25) and her family of eight who have been forced to evacuate their home. Their kitten, Timur, passed away due to the harsh conditions caused by the genocide. Asmaa’s brothers can no longer provide their family with income and her family has been deprived of basic necessities. Asmaa’s gofundme has only raised $24,000 of the $45,000 she needs, which will cover evacuation fees for her family ($5,000 per adult and $2,500 per child). This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost and @aces-and-angels.

@/adham-89: Yousef’s nieces Kareem and Carmen are in need of evacuation from Gaza. Their mother was killed after their house was bombed, and their uncle Yousef is orchestrating the campaign to evacuate the twins from America. The twins, as well as Yousef’s parents and sisters, are sheltering in tents in southern Gaza. Their gofundme has raised $12,000 of the $50,000 they need, which will cover evacuation fees for all six family members. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/mahmoud1995: Mahmoud, his fiancé Sujood, his brother, his sister in law and his nephew Yasser are sheltering in tents in southern Gaza after having their home bombed in November. Their gofundme has raised $17,000 of their $50,000 goal, which will cover evacuation fees so the five of them may cross the border into Egypt. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/shimaashaban22: Abdel (26) and his wife Shaima (22) as well as their daughter Juri (2) have been displaced from their bombed home in northern Gaza to a refugee camp in Deir Al-Balah, where they live in a small tent. This family’s gofundme has raised $14,000 of their $25,000 goal. This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/m0hammed1: Mohammed (23), formerly studying for a Master's in Business Administration, is responsible for his family of five; his mother Raja (51), father Hussein (58) and younger sisters Iman (18) and Noor (13). His father was injured by the bombings that struck their home, and Iman has contracted hepatitis due to unsanitary living conditions caused by the genocide. The family is displaced and sheltering in Deir al-Balah, where they suffer from disease and lack of access to food, water, and basic shelter. Their gofundme has raised $10,000 of the $25,000 they need, and has been vetted by @90-ghost and @ibtisams.

@/mohammed-atallah: Muhammad (17) was shot by an Israeli soldier with an explosive bullet on 2/25/24 whilst carrying aid from the Nabulsi roundabout in southwest Gaza. He was shot on his left hand and requires a bone graft, which he cannot get in Gaza. His father also requires constant medical supervision which is insufficient in their current situation. Muhammad’s gofundme has raised $20,000 of the $82,000 goal, which will cover the cost of his bone graft as well as rebuilding the house of Muhammad, his parents (Sobhi and Alaa) his siblings (Iman, Amani, Alaa, Suja, Rahaf, Retaj, and Ahmed) as well as his niece and nephew (Malak and Amir). This campaign is being orchestrated by Haruka Aoki on behalf of Muhammad and has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/emanzaqoutt: Eman, biotechnologist, wife of Mahmoud Zaqout (39) and mother of two children, Rakan (12) and Seba (10). Before the Israeli army attacked her workplace, Eman conducted scientific research and worked as a biotech specialist at Al-Shifa Hospital and Turkish Palestinian Friendship Hospital serving cancer patients. After having her home destroyed by the Israeli army, Eman’s family was forced to move south and is currently sheltering in a displacement camp with inhumane living conditions. Her gofundme has raised $33,000 of her $80,000 goal and has been vetted by @90-ghost.

Salem (26): Unfortunately I can’t find his tumblr account, but I still have his gofundme link. Salem is a husband to Hadeel (25) and a father of two children, Laila (5) and Bakr (five months), who you can see pictures of on his gofundme page. After having their home destroyed, Salem and his family have been displaced and forced to move over ten times in search of safety, suffering under inhumane and severely unsanitary conditions that threaten the lives of himself, his wife and young children, one of whom is an infant. His daughter Laila has been stripped of her education and they suffer from extreme hunger, dehydration and stress. His fundraiser has raised $7,000 of their $38,000 goal, which will cover the cost of travel for Salem and his wife (around $14,000 total), as well as for his two children (around $5,000 total) and cost of living after evacuation (around $500 per month).

@/mahmoudswierh2: (gofundme of the AlBalawi family) Formerly a talented graphic designer, Mahmoud is supporting his five siblings, as well as five nieces and nephews. Both of his parents are suffering from chronic health issues (detailed in his gfm description) and do not have access to the appropriate medication and care. The family’s home in Nuseirat was destroyed in a bombing and they were displaced. Moving to Egypt for their safety is their only choice, despite how painful it is to abandon their home. Mahmoud has raised $38,000 of his $50,000 goal, which will cover evacuation funds for the family (5k-8k per person).

@/ashraf-family2: Ashraf (30) and his wife (Widad Isaa) and son (Bakr), originally from Al-Shuja’iya, where Ashraf owned a chicken farm to support his family. The Israeli army destroyed the family’s home and source of income. Their son Bakr in particular is subjected to harsh and inhumane conditions such as malnutrition and dehydration, in a constant state of stress. Ashraf’s gofundme has raised $25,000 of their $30,000 goal, and has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/waseem4gaza: Waseem (34), his wife Amal (37) and their son Qais (3) have been forced by the Israeli army (who also martyred many of their family members) to evacuate their home in Gaza, and they are seeking to evacuate to Egypt. This family’s gofundme has raised $3,000 and is aiming for $15,000, which will cover evacuation fees. This campaign has been vetted by @mohammedalanqer.

@/asmaamajed2: Asmaa (19) computer engineering student has lost her home, and means of income due to her father’s shop also being destroyed by the bombing. Her university was destroyed by the Israeli army as well, so she can’t continue her education. Asmaa’s gofundme has only raised $9,000 of the $50,000 she needs to evacuate her family and continue her education. This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/farahh2003: Farah (20) and her family have been displaced and are currently sheltering in tents in Al-Zawaida. Her grandfather, uncle, and cousins were killed in the bombing that destroyed her home, and her grandmother was gravely injured. Formerly a computer engineering student, Farah’s education has been halted by her university’s destruction by the Israeli army. She and her family are living in inhumane conditions, without access to clean water or appropriate food. Farah’s gofundme has raised $2,000 of the $50,000 she needs to evacuate her family. This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost, @el-shab-hussein, and @northgazaupdates.

@/abdullahgaza: Abdullah (21) and five other siblings of the Alhabil family (as well as their parents) have been displaced after having their home destroyed by the Israeli army. Formerly a graphic designer, Abdullah can no longer work as his laptop was destroyed in the bombing. Sheltering in tents with many relatives, the family suffers from poor living conditions, and Abdullah’s father desperately needs to be evacuated as he requires urgent catheterization surgery due to chronic heart disease and hypertension. Abdullah’s gofundme has raised $82,000 of his $120,000 goal, which will go towards evacuating his family into Egypt. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #81 on the Operation Olive Branch master list.

@/ghaziyounes1967: Ghazi and his family have been evacuated to Egypt, but unfortunately his aunt Alan (70) is still stranded in northern Gaza. Ghazi’s gofundme has only raised $4,000 of his $50,000 goal, which will go towards supporting his aunt’s life while trapped in Gaza and hopefully her eventual evacuation. This campaign ahs been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/mazenmanal: This campaign is being organized by Feras Al-Mansi on behalf of his family (aunt and cousins) in Gaza, who are suffering under inhumane living conditions. The children, who are suffering the effects of serious illness, lack access to appropriate treatment, and the family needs to be evacuated. Feras’ gofundme has raised only $3,000, which amounts to just over 3% of his goal. This money will go towards not only evacuating all of his extended family members from Gaza, but also covering the medical expenses for the children, who are in poor health. It will ensure their nutritional needs are met, that they have regular medical visits and that they are psychologically supported. This campaign has been vetted by @apollos-olives, however, Feras’ account is continually getting banned for no discernible reason which is hurting the campaigns credibility and thereby slowing the rate of donations, so it’s important to emphasize and boost this campaign in particular.

@/saveyouseffamily: Youssef’s son Majd suffers from severe respiratory issues that require treatment which he cannot receive in Gaza and needs to be evacuated. Youssef, his wife and child have been forced to flee their home and are currently sheltering in a displacement camp in Rafah. Youssef’s gofundme has raised $8,000 of his $20,000 goal, which will go towards evacuating the family, covering basic cost of living and providing Majd with the necessary medical care. This campaign is #406 on the butterfly effect project spreadsheet and has also been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/rehamoyasir: Reham (23) is a Gazan nurse who was aiming for her bachelor’s, however, her university being destroyed by the Israeli army has halted her education. Her family has also been displaced and is living under inhumane conditions. Reham’s gofundme has raised $3,000 of her $40,000 goal, which will go towards the cost of evacuation for her family of eight ($5,000 per person). This fundraiser has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/anqar: Abdelrahman (22) is pursuing a future in multimedia tech to support his mother. His father passed away due to COVID-19 when he was 18. Abdelrahman’s home, school, and job were destroyed by the bombings and he has been separated from his family, who have been forced to move south for their safety. This gofundme has raised $17,000 of their $20,000 goal, which will go towards relocating his family to a safe place and resuming Abdelrahman’s education. This campaign has been vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @90-ghost.

@/ahmeadhilles: Ahmed and his family are currently sheltering in tents in an UNRWA school after having their home destroyed by the bombings. The conditions that they live under are inhumane and unsanitary. His father and son suffer from chronic health issues and lack access to appropriate care in Gaza. Ahmed’s gofundme has raised only $13,000 of his $80,000 goal, which will cover evacuation fees for his family of twenty ($5,000 per adult, $2,500 per child). This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/karemandohan1999: Kariman (25) teacher and wife of Ayman (30) business administration graduate employed as a fisherman due to conditions in Gaza. Their son, Hamoud, is one and a half years old. The family lives in Khan Yunis, where both their places of work have been damaged by bombings. After having been displaced several times, the family is currently sheltering in a tent where conditions are uncomfortable and inhumane. Hamoud is often sick because of the unsanitary environment and contaminated food/water. The family’s gofundme has only raised $7,000 of their $50,000 goal, and has been vetted by @90-ghost. They write; “It can be difficult to express the full picture of our suffering - words are inadequate.”

@/mo-shamia: Mohammed, senior studying medicine in Gaza prior to his evacuation. His family of nine still remains in Gaza where their home has been destroyed and they are victim to the harsh climate and unsuitable conditions. Thankfully, due to donations Mohammed’s father was able to pay off his debts and provide food for their relatives (see photos on gfm), but Mohammed’s gofundme still needs to raise $8,000. This will go towards the cost of basic necessities (food and medication), for their relatives in Egypt (Mohammed, his cousins, brother in law and their kids), and Mohammed’s education (tuition costs around $3,000 for Palestinian expatriate students). This campaign has been vetted by @nabulsi and @el-shab-hussein and is listed as #7 on the Vetted Gaza Evacuation Fundraiser List, organized by the users mentioned.

@/hazemsuhail: Hazem and his family (all of whom you can read about on his gofundme) of eight had their house destroyed by the Israeli army on the ninth of October, 2023. Hazem’s father passed away as a result of harsh conditions under the genocide. His brother, Samer, suffers from bipolar disorder that is exacerbated by the stressful conditions of genocide and his lack of medication. His feet were also injured in the initial bombing of their home. The children have had their safety, education, and joy stripped away. The market belonging to the family, their primary source of income, was also destroyed. Hazem’s gofundme has raised almost $5,000; his goal of $50,000 will cover the cost of evacuating and reestablishing the family in Egypt, where their life may resume in peace. This campaign has been verified as per the lists of @dlxxv-vetted-donations and @a-shade-of-blue. Hazem writes, “[your donation exemplifies] a shared belief in the sanctity of life and the right to a safe and peaceful existence”.

@/waledps: Waled (34) engineer and father of three (Adam, Hala, Nay) is looking to evacuate his family. He was born in Gaza and the conditions under genocide have become insufferable, hence he is raising funds to evacuate his children to somewhere safe for them. You can donate to Waled either on buymeacoffee or paypal. His campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost.

@/majedgaza1: Majed and his family were forced to flee to Egypt, physically and emotionally scarred from what they witnessed happen to their home. The genocide has halted their eldest’s employment and youngest’s education. The family is now raising funds to cover basic necessities and rent in Egypt, which has increased dramatically, making it difficult to find stable housing. The children also need support to continue their education, and their tuition is also very expensive. The family’s gofundme has raised only $2,000 of their $70,000 goal (DISCLAIMER: as of present this campaign is not vetted and Majed is having difficulty getting verified due to his being an expatriate. Although I have probable cause to believe this campaign is legit, I'm not qualified to vet fundraisers. Donate at your own discretion.)

@/ayayassir: Aya (19) tech major in Gaza before her education was halted by the Israeli army destroying her university. Her laptop and means of income were also destroyed in the carnage. Her father (55) provides most of their basic necessities, but he is sick and requires care that is inaccessible to him. Aya’s campaign has only raised a startling $500 of her $100,000 goal, which will cover evacuation fees and help rebuild her family’s life (Aya, her father, brothers, and eight other individuals). You can donate to her gofundme to support this endeavor, which has been verified by @90-ghost, @el-shab-hussein, and @importantt-reblogs.

@/amalashuor: Amal (26) formerly a university student studying French language before her school was destroyed by the Israeli occupation, wife and mother of Maryam (15 months). The family was forced to vacate their home in October and move south. Although they took temporary refuge in a friend’s home, they had been sheltering in a tent in Rafah since new years. Thanks to donations, they were able to move to Khan Yunis, however they were bombed there as well and forced to flee once again, sheltering in the east of Deir al-Balah. Prices have increased dramatically for transportation and basic necessities, detracting from the fund that will cover the family’s evacuation. For this reason, they’ve been forced to increase their fundraiser’s goal. Every time they are forced to relocate, it takes a percentage of their evacuation fund. Amal’s gofundme still needs to raise $18,000 to pay for necessities and eventually to cross the border. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #175 on the donation spreadsheet.

@/yaminfamily: Ahmed (35) husband of Dina and father of four (Zeina, Eileen, Yamen, and Ronza), the youngest of whom was born just four months ago amidst a genocide. Their home was destroyed by the bombings and they were forced to flee south, where they found no respite in either Nuseirat nor Deir al-Balah. Dina is pregnant and does not have access to appropriate care or monitoring, and the children have become ill frequently due to unsanitary and harsh conditions without the necessary treatments. The conditions living in tents are inhumane, and the family no longer has a source of income due to Ahmed’s place of work as an accountant being destroyed by the bombings. The family’s gofundme still needs to raise $4,000 more, which will go towards evacuation fees ($5000 per adult and $2500 per child), so Ahmed and Dina’s children can receive the education, treatment, and safety that they deserve. This campaign has been vetted by @sar-soor, @palipunk, and @fairuzfan.

@/malak-3: Muhammad is Malak’s little brother, whom Malak is organizing this campaign for. He is still in Gaza, though his family was killed by the Israeli occupation. His foot was injured in the bombings, and his eyesight suffers. He was scheduled for ocular surgery in Egypt, however he doesn’t have the funds to cross the border and his eyesight is deteriorating. This gofundme has raised less than $100 at the time of posting. DISCLAIMER: this campaign has not been vetted by any reputable source. Malak contacted me and I am posting this in good faith, but I am not qualified to vet fundraisers. Donate at your own discretion.

@/help--gaza4: Anas (18) university student living with his brother, younger sister, and parents. They have lost their home in the Shuja'iya area and source of income to the bombings. They have been forced to relocate many times, first to the Zawaydeh area and then to Deir al-Balah. They spent two months sheltering in Rafah, where conditions were the most dire and endured extreme hunger. The family has been once again forcibly relocated to Deir al-Balah. This gofundme still needs to raise $5,000, and has been vetted by @nabulsi.

@/mayadayyad81: Fadi (18) and his family from Al-Shujaiya have had their home destroyed by the Israeli army. They have moved south and are sheltering in a tent where they are not only vulnerable to bombings, but their living conditions are inhumane and unsanitary. As a highschooler, Fadi and his brothers have also been denied their education in the midst of this genocide and are seeking to take temporary refuge in Egypt where they may continue to pursue their dreams. Their father, an English teacher, is also no longer able to teach due to his institution being bombed (see pictures on Fadi’s page) and the family has lost their source of income. You can see pictures of the children in the family’s gofundme description. This campaign still needs to raise $12,000 to reach their $50,000 goal, which will go towards their evacuation fees ($5000 per person over 16 and $2500 per person under 16) and covering basic necessities. This campaign has been vetted by @nabulsi.

@/bshaeromars-blog: Intisar and her seven children were forced to flee their home in October, which was destroyed by bombings. They first fled to central Gaza, but were then forced into Rafah as the assaults pressed southward. They are currently sheltering in a tent in extreme conditions without enough food. Intisar’s eldest daughter, Bshaer, had her husband martyred in December. Bshaer’s daughter Ayla was born just months ago, robbed of the opportunity to ever know her father, who was killed while trying to provide for his family. Ayla’s situation is particularly precarious, as newborns have delicate immune systems and Ayla doesn’t have access to the proper vaccinations, while conditions where the family shelters are unsanitary. This family’s gofundme still needs to raise $24,000 to reach their goal. This campaign has been vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @nabulsi.

@/mohmad77: Mohamed (minor) and his little brother Ahmed (see pictures on his page) have lost their home and had many of their relatives martyred by the Israeli occupation. Their gofundme is very new and has received less than $100 in donations. DISCLAIMER: this campaign is currently unvetted. Mohamed has sent me his documentation and I have probable cause to believe this campaign is legitimate, but as I’ve said before I am not qualified to vet fundraisers. I’m adding his campaign in good faith, donate at your own discretion.

@/ghada-zaki: Ghada (23) won first place in the International Green Skills Competition from the EU Training Foundation, and is one of the first technicians in photovoltaic solar energy systems in Gaza. She is one of the most influential women in Palestine, but she has had her home and the privilege of graduation stolen from her by the Israeli occupation. Her dreams of starting a business in renewable energy have been put off by all the carnage that Israel has brought to her home. Ghada is the sole provider for a family of twelve, but the genocide has destroyed her job, meaning her family has no income. Her father (62) is still suffering from the effects of a car accident that occurred over a year ago and needs medical treatment that he can’t get in Gaza. Moreover, Ghada herself has hearing damage from her proximity to the bombings and requires invasive treatment that she simply can’t get in her circumstance. Her gofundme still needs to raise $17,000 to meet their goal, which will go towards basic necessities and hopefully cover evacuation fees for Ghada and her family. You can read about Ghada’s influence and accomplishments here and here. This campaign has been vetted by Bilal.

@/ahmadallouh32: Ahmad (34), father of two; Orhan (5) and Helena (4). Ahmad and his wife are both lawyers, however, they are unable to work due to the genocide; their home has been destroyed by the bombings that also killed Ahmad's brother, forcing them to relocate. They are sheltering in a tent and they struggle to support the children, as well as Ahmad’s father in law, who needs insulin urgently. This family’s gofundme is being organized by Ahmed’s sister in law, Kawthar, who is currently located in Spain. All funds generated from this fundraiser will go towards the family’s evacuation fees after the Rafah crossing is opened, so they may be safe again. They have currently raised less than $2,000 of their $50,000 goal. This campaign has been vetted by @el-shab-hussein.

@/anasfamilys: Anas (17) suffering from type one diabetes and hypertension for many years, her health issues exacerbated by conditions in Gaza under Israeli bombardment. Her newborn niece is jaundiced and is suffering from malnutrition and unsanitary conditions for an infant. They have been sheltering in an UNRWA school since their farm was destroyed, however, it’s not a safe place to take refuge in the long term. Anas’ brother, grandparents, and all their children have been martyred by the IDF. Her brother (14), an aspiring photographer, was murdered by Israeli snipers just months ago while looking for food. Anas currently lives with her father, mother, five-year-old brother, eight-year-old sister, and two married sisters. This family’s gofundme has raised around 4% of their goal (€50.000), which will cover life saving necessities and hopefully help to rebuild their lives. DISCLAIMER: this campaign has been vetted by palilberation on tiktok and is listed as #25, however, I haven’t heard confirmation of the reliability of this project. Donate at your own discretion.

@/supportmyfamily: Ahmed, dental technician, husband and father of three. The family has been displaced many times from their home in Tel-Alhawa; first to a school in al-Magazi, then to Rafah and then to Deir al-Balah. The family is sheltering in tents without access to basic necessities, electricity, and sanitation. The intense heat has caused them to develop health issues and they struggle with hepatitis B as well, given the unsanitary conditions. Ahmed’s campaign is to support four separate families including his own, those of Moatasem’s family, Mohamed, and Ahmed’s elderly parents and their eight children. Ahmed’s parents both suffer from cardiac issues and require treatment, as well as his newphew Qusay who suffers from severe and prolonged health issues that affect his ability to speak. He requires speech therapy and psychological treatment that he does not have access to in Gaza. You can see documentation of the family on Ahmed’s gofundme, which has raised less than $100 thus far. This campaign has been vetted by @moayesh.

@/hind3en: Hind, mother to Zeina (4) and Ahmed (2) has fled to Egypt with her children but tragically still needs to evacuate her husband, who is still trapped in Gaza. Both Hind and her husband worked at Al-Shifa hospital, where she was a physical therapist and worked in the ICU during the fall of last year to help victims of the bombings. Her husband, Dr. Islam, is a trained plastic surgeon and also operated on many victims. They were forced to flee the hospital on November 10th to the south of Wadi Gaza. It took hours to arrive at an UNRWA school in Khan Yunis, however, they were forced by the Israeli army to relocate again after just one month. They sheltered in tents in Rafah for four months. They dealt with hepatitis A due to unsanitary conditions and lacked access to basic necessities such as clean water, food, and electricity. Hind and the kids were eventually forced to spend all their savings to cross the border from Rafah into Egypt after hearing of the Israeli’s plans to move southward. The emigration cost them $10,000 collectively, however, Hind’s husband Islam refused to leave out of obligation to serve the injured still in Gaza. The children are left to reconcile with the loss of their newly built home and cruel separation from their father. The family’s gofundme has raised less than $500 and has been verified by @rhq2744, who also knows Dr. Islam personally.

@/waledps: Waled (34) an engineer and father of three (Adam, Hla, Nay). He is looking to evacuate himself and his children from the inhumane conditions in Gaza, in his hometown. His wife is also expecting, and they are struggling to cover her financial needs with the delivery date approaching. You can donate to Waled on his buymeacoffee or paypal; this campaign is vetted by @90-ghost.

@/aymanbsil: Osama, Gazan web developer, has had his home and workplace destroyed by the Israeli armed assaults that have occurred over the past year. This has destroyed his source of income and thereby his ability to provide for his family. It has also prevented him from pursuing his masters and martyred many people in his family and larger community. Osama has been sheltering in a tent in Rafah for several months alongside his family, where conditions are harsh and unsustainable. Osama’s gofundme has thus far raised $2,000 of his $15,000 goal, which will go towards rebuilding his office, his continued education, and supporting his family throughout this hardship. This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost and is listed on this spreadsheet of vetted Gazan fundraisers.

@/safaabed8: Safaa (25) wife and mother of two (Ibtisam and Ibrahim). Originally from al-Karama, Safaa’s home was destroyed and the family was forced to relocate to Nuseirat, where they sheltered in a tent for a time. They took temporary refuge in Rafah, but were inevitably displaced once again. Since they have lost power, they have converted electric ovens into wood ovens just to heat bread. Their lungs are damaged from the excessive smoke, and they are forced to burn their hands just to be able to eat. The destruction of their home, assuring that they may never return to where it once stood, incurs a feeling of indescribable loss. It represents the loss of a peaceful life, before tragedy overtook the lives of millions of Palestinians, more than just a physical place. Safaa’s gofundme still needs to raise $60,000 to cover their evacuation fees as well as rent and other expenses after the family’s relocation, so the children may grow up in a place of safety and peace. This campaign has been vetted by @90-ghost and @nabulsi.

@/shamiamja: Jamal and his wife (62) have been separated across the Egyptian border since Mufida went for eye surgery. Jamal suffers from diabetes as well as a blood clot triggered by injuries he suffered due to the genocide (provided photo evidence as well as documentation of this on his blog). The couples’ son Mohammed is organizing the gofundme aiming to raise $50,000 in order to evacuate his father (staying in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis after being displaced for the seventh time) and reunite him with his wife in Egypt. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost and is listed as #82 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/mohmmed88: Mohammed (29) and Roaa (23), parents of Nawal (“Nana”, 3) have been displaced and have taken residence in tents on the coast. Roaa was in her last semester of university before the occupation halted her education last year. Roaa’s sister and her children were killed in the violent bombings. The family is seeking to raise ~26,000 USD via their gofundme to cover their evacuation fees as well as basic necessities. Their campaign is being organized remotely. At the time of posting they are unvetted, though the photos on their blog and campaign page come up clean, and they have been very open and communicative about their difficulties obtaining verification status. Donate at your own discretion.

@/alaakhateeb2024: Alaa and her family of four have been displaced for several months. Both her and her husband lost their jobs due to the occupation (she was formerly an engineer), and have since had no steady source of income. Their youngest daughter is two years old (see photos on their gofundme). They are struggling to support the needs of their children and are seeking to raise ~73,000 USD in order to provide for them. Disclaimer: Alaa’s blog claims that they are vetted, but I’m not sure by what spreadsheet or vetter. Donate at your own discretion.

@/hebamatarsblog: Heba is a mother of three whose husband is working abroad in Kuwait. Her youngest son Amir is suffering from a skin condition that has been worsened by the unclean water and lack of access to medicine under the Israeli occupation. Heba aims to raise $30,000 in order to cover basic expenses for her childrens’ wellbeing as well as to eventually reunite the family with their father. Her gofundme is being organized remotely by Ashika Jaffar in Quebec, who is transferring the funds to Heba via Paypal. At the time of posting this campaign is not yet verified, however there is an excess of seemingly legitimate photo evidence on her blog and in her campaign description. Donate at your own discretion.

@/besan-18: Bisan (22) is raising money alongside her brother to fund the evacuation of her entire family (several siblings, two nieces and a nephew). Bisan was studying to become a nurse before the occupation deprived her of her education. Both of her nieces as well as her father are deprived of the medical care that they require. Her entire family is suffering from malnutrition, as the price of food in Gaza has skyrocketed immensely, and Bisan cannot afford to finance her entire family’s needs. She was also recently hospitalized for malnutrition, which has put further strain on the family’s financial situation. Her gofundme has raised just over half of the $8,000 she aims to reach to support her family. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost on Bisan’s old account.

@/mohamednaser1995: Mohammed (28) has been displaced more than ten times and has seen his entire family murdered by the Israeli army. He is suffering under the harsh conditions imposed by the occupation and is no longer able to pursue his career goals after graduating university. His gofundme has raised less than $500 of the $10,000 he means to raise, half of which will go towards his basic necessities for survival, the other half covering his evacuation fee. This campaign is being organized by Darius from California on behalf of Mohammed, who will be transferring the money raised by SWIFT. Darius is also managing several other Palestinian fundraisers. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost.

@/yousef1234567: Etaf (34) is a wife to Youssef Esleem (38) and mother of five, who have been displaced for over 200 days. The family fled to Deir al-Balah after their home was destroyed, though they still are living under constant threat. Youssef’s business and car were destroyed by the bombings, leaving the family stranded without a source of income. The parents’ sons Moataz and Moatasem have been deprived of their cherished education. The youngest children, Maria (7), Adam (4) and Amira (3) have been deprived of the former joys of their childhood. Etaf’s gofundme has raised less than 4% of the $100,000 she intends to raise, which will go towards rent, basic needs, educational support for the children, medical care, and her husband’s work. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #88 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/haithem-2: Iman and her family have been displaced seven times over the last eleven months and had her home destroyed by the Israeli occupation. They are currently taking shelter in a tent. Her mother and father’s evacuation in particular are urgent because of their deteriorating health issues (hypertension and anemia), which have gone untreated under the harsh conditions of genocide. Iman’s brother Mahmoud was martyred by Israel in 2014, and his child Haitham (12) has been raised by Iman since. Her gofundme aims to raise ~19,000 USD, which will cover the costs of basic necessities as well as the evacuation fees for herself, Haitham, and her parents. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost.

@/drdarine: Darine (20) provides for her family of seven and volunteers to help kids in UNRWA schools who need medical care (see pictures on her gofundme). She was a third year medical student at al-Azhar university in Gaza before the occupation prevented her from completing her education. She still needs to raise $25,000 to provide for herself and her family. This campaign is being organized by Enase Zagoot remotely, who will use the funds to help her cousin Darine. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #15 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/ahmedomar3: Ahmed al-Habil is a father of four; Omar (10), Khadija (9), Ali (6) and Zain (3). He also takes care of his elderly father (72) and mother (70) who suffer from osteoporosis and diabetes/hypertension/spinal issues, respectively. Ahmed was a fisherman before his boat was destroyed by the bombings, depriving the family of income. They have been displaced over five times, having fled from Gaza to Nuseirat, Khan Younis, an UNRWA school, Rafah and now are sheltering in a tent in Deir al-Balah. Ahmed’s gofundme still needs to raise ~$50,000 to fund his family’s survival and to assist in rebuilding their lives. This campaign has been vetted by association (@aya2mohammed is his brother, who was vetted by @el-shab-husssein and @nabulsi. See photo evidence on his blog).

@/abooooods-blog: Heba (21) is a mother of three (Lulu, Celine, and Ismail). She was studying health administration and was unable to graduate and be certified due to the occupation. Her daughter Celine suffers from chronic thalassemia, and requires treatment that she cannot receive under the family’s conditions. Ismail is in first grade and has been deprived of both his childhood and education due to the occupation. Heba’s gofundme is still aiming to raise ~$40,000 in order to support her family. This campaign has been vetted by association (@safaabed8). Donate at your own discretion.

@/hamza-gaza: Hamza is aiming to raise $100,000 via his gofundme to support his family of seven (see pictures on his blog), including his elderly father and young sister (Leen) both of whom are in fragile health and lack appropriate care. Their car and five story home were both destroyed in the bombings. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #91 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/osamafamily: Gazan web dev Osama is aiming to raise ~16,000 USD to rebuild his life and pursue his masters, despite being displaced and having his passionate work be impeded by harsh conditions, to which internet access is imperative. Donations to his gofundme will also go towards supporting his brother. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost and is listed as #146 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/mahmodsy1: Mahmoud (21) is currently displaced in Deir al-Balah after his home in Khan Yunis was destroyed by the bombings. Prior to last year, he was pursuing a degree in Information Technology at Gaza university, before the genocide impeded his education by taking from him both his school and computer. Mahmoud is aiming to raise $25,000 via his gofundme, which will go towards not only his continued education but supporting his sick father and brother, and eventually, rebuilding their home in Khan Yunis. This campaign is being organized by Renee Hassert; it has been vetted by @90_ghost, and is listed as #63 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

I don’t have his Tumblr because I received this ask anonymously. Mohammed (23) is a Gazan student of Information Technology aiming to rebuild his family’s home in Khan Yunis after it was destroyed by IDF bombings. The $25,000 he aims to raise with his gofundme will contribute to both this effort and hold over his family’s basic needs in the meantime. This campaign is being organized by Darius Rudominer from California on behalf of Mohammed, who will be transferring the money raised by SWIFT. Darius is also managing several other Palestinian fundraisers. This campaign has also been vetted by @90_ghost, the global mutual aid collective, and is listed as #225 on the fundraiser sheet vetted by @el-shab-hussein and @nabulsi.

@/hashimsamar: Hashem (32) and his wife Samar (27) are part of a large family of eight (see details on their gofundme description) the parents of a beautiful son, Omar. The family was displaced from their home in the north in October of last year. Hashem’s brothers’ supermarket was the family’s primary source of income, before it was destroyed by the bombings. His father has unfortunately passed away after the family was displaced to Rafah in an inhumane fashion due to lack of access to appropriate care. Hashem and Samar are currently sheltering in a tent after having been forced by the IDF to relocate several times, and mourn the loss of their home. Samar gave birth to Omar, their first child, in February of this year. Omar was born premature, and his health issues combined with the poor living conditions has caused him to suffer and be hospitalized for pneumonia. The poor quality of available diapers has also caused him a skin rash. Hashem’s gofundme aims to raise ~50,000 USD to support and evacuate himself, Samar, and Omar. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost, and is on the Gaza Evacuation Funds List (organized by @el-sheb-hussein and @nabulsi).

@/abedallhferwanagaza: Ola, mother of three (Yamen, Qusai, Mira) has been separated from her husband in Egypt for over a year. The family has been displaced from their home in northern Gaza and eight times since. Mira (ten months), was born during the genocide, and has yet to meet her father. She has lived her entire short life under the stress of airstrikes, her beautiful room and clothes destroyed in the rubble of her home. Yaman (7) and Qusai (5) have been deprived of their education, which they so adored, as well as the comfort of their father. The entire family was hospitalized for liver dysfunction as a result of malnutrition and impure water. Ola aims to raise ~40,000 USD via her gofundme, which will go towards her childrens’ needs (food, diapers, milk) and cover the evacuation fees for the four of them so they may be reunited with Ola’s husband and their father. As far as I’m aware, this campaign remains unvetted. See photo evidence on the gofundme description and blog, which seem legitimate. Always donate at your own discretion.

@/rabahmonis: Rabah from Khan Yunis is aiming to raise $41,300 via his gofundme for his family of eight. His father, Monis, is a cancer patient (see documentation on their blog) and is unable to provide for the family. His mother is also sick with Polio and requires treatment. The money raised will take care of Rabah’s parents, and eventually cover evacuation fees for the entire family. This campaign is being organized by Darius Rudominer from California on behalf of Rabah, who will be transferring the money raised by SWIFT. Darius is also managing several other Palestinian fundraisers. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost.

@/help-mona: Mohammed (30) is a father to Mona (5) and is aiming to raise ~200,000 USD via his gofundme to support his large family, including Mona, who is suffering from sebaceous cysts on her eyes. Mohammed’s sister is also suffering from hepatitis, and it becomes increasingly expensive to afford clean water in Gaza, making the daily cost of living nearly insurmountable. The donations will cover the entire family’s evacuation fees, as well as their basic living expenses until they can secure jobs in Egypt. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost.

@/familygazaamal: Amal, her mother Shaima, and siblings (Magdy and Abdel) have been separated from their father in Egypt and displaced more than six times since last year. Abdel is the youngest (8) and has been deprived of his primary education by the genocide. Amal’s nephew (see pictures in gofundme description) is newborn and requires treatment in Egypt for his nerve damage. This campaign is being organized by Brooke Cole on behalf of Amal and her family. It aims to raise $30,000 to evacuate Amal’s entire family. This campaign has been vetted by association (see confirmatory messages on their blog) and belongs to @asmaamajed2’s brother.

@/ahmadmoneer: Ahmad (33) husband to Heba (27) and father of four, Qusai (12), Jouri (7), Mohammed (4), and Adam (9 months). The family has been displaced and were forced to flee south, and are now homeless. Ahmad is a survivor of the Baptist Hospital massacre last year, and is suffering from the psychological ramifications of the horror he witnessed. His gofundme aims to raise $30,000, which will go towards basic necessities and medical care for the couple and their children. This campaign has been vetted by @90_ghost.

@/enas225: Inas, wife and mother of five. Her husband was injured severely and requires lung surgery urgently. Her son Musab aims to pursue engineering, but has been prevented from seeking education above a high school level due to the genocide. Her young daughter Rimas was hospitalized due to malnutrition, and having lost her father to the genocide, Inas has become the sole provider for her family. Inas aims to raise ~27,000 USD to provide for her husband and children. This campaign has been vetted and is listed as #124 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/free-gaza2: Doaa attended Palestine Technical College in Deir al-Balah for fashion design (see pictures of her projects on her blog/gofundme). Her workshop and business were destroyed last year, forcing her to leave Gaza with her autistic son and the help of a friend, leaving her husband behind. She is now attempting to rebuild her business in Egypt to support her family, and is raising $12,000 to assist in this effort. This campaign is being organized by Allison Prater, and has been verified by @90_ghost.

@/nabila6: Nabila (64), grandmother and mother of seven. She suffers from diabetes and hypertension, and is suffering due to lack of medical care (read her message in English and Arabic on her gofundme) She aims to raise $10,000 to pay for her medical visits, insulin, transport, and Egyptian border crossing. This campaign is being organized by Eben Taylor on behalf of Nabila’s daughter, and has been verified by @90_ghost.

@/mhammedmosa37: Muhammed (26) husband and father, aims to raise $20,000 to provide for his wife and newborn (see photos in gofundme description). The couple was displaced just months before their first child was born, brought into the world under the terror of genocide. The cost of basic necessities for a newborn (diapers, formula) has increased significantly and become unsustainable for the family. This campaign is being organized by Alicia Parker; Muhammed has been vetted by @90_ghost on his other account (@mhammedmosa).

@/ameertaims: Mohammed and Rana are the parents of Ameer (3) and Taim (2) (see pictures in the gofundme description). The family’s home was bombed on December first of last year, destroying their house and injuring the four of them. They are living under poor conditions and sheltering in a tent; the children have been stripped of their education and community, and are at constant risk for contracting diseases due to the family’s unsanitary living conditions and risk of malnutrition. They aim to raise ~19,000 USD, which will cover the cost of their evacuation fees as well as $5,000 for their basic needs prior and upon entry to Egypt. The campaign is being organized by Shahd Kafafi, who will transfer the funds to Mohammed via Western Union. This campaign has been verified and is listed as #59 on the GazaVetters spreadsheet.

@/safaakhatib: Safaa is a photographer, and her husband Muhammed is a photojournalist who survived a severe head injury while documenting the genocide in Gaza. They have two children, Wateen (7) and Naya (4). They suffered from gastroenteritis and have lost their access to healthcare and education. The couple aims to raise ~38,000 USD via their gofundme, which will go towards the family’s basic needs (food, clothing, hygiene products), educational materials for the children, and equipment for Safaa to continue her work. This campaign is being organized by Pegah Ferydoni, and is listed as #135 on the Vetted Gaza Evacuation Fundraiser List (organized by @/el-sheb-hussein and @/nabulsi).

@/rashamansour: Rasha (29) Gazan physiotherapist, and her brother (a programmer) are struggling to provide for their elderly parents after having lost their jobs due to the genocide. Their parents, Sanaa (65) and Mansour (75) are at especially high risk for contracting disease. Both Rasha’s brother Feras (23) and journalist sister Mead (26) have been impeded from working due to having their equipment destroyed by the bombings. Having the infrastructure in their area destroyed, the family has lost access to basic necessities such as electricity and clean water. Rasha’s gofundme aims to raise $40,000, which will cover their evacuation fees, food and other necessities once they arrive in Egypt, and the installation of solar energy to aid them in producing their own food and clean water in the meantime. This campaign has been vetted by @/90-ghost.

@/rewaa08: Rewaa, mother of four, the youngest of whom was born less than a year ago after the family was displaced. Her four year old has also suffered gastrointestinal issues due to lack of access to appropriate healthcare. Her older children (see photos in gofundme description) have also been inhibited from pursuing the sports they love, such as football and swimming. The family’s dog is also sick, and they are sometimes forced to go without food to take care of her. Rewaa aims to raise $50,000 to provide for her children; her campaign has been vetted by @/gaza-evacuation-funds.

#free palestine #save gaza #don't stop talking about palestine #🇵🇸#all eyes on palestine #🍉#end the occupation #end the genocide #fundraiser #donate #gofundme

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