#good thing i checked in time to mix it again for the dough consistency to remain good!!

[rosecoloredknight]

Happy Birthday :)

!!!!! I almost responded with your name, but I double checked your blog to be safe haha — you know how I feel about you and how much I've cherished your friendship so I super duper appreciate this and you!!

I wholeheartedly thank you :]

[the-fluff-piece]

And here's the request from @pastel9girlbunny000die which was commented on the announcement post:

"I don't know if this is still going, I really don't know how to make a request other than through comments? But can I get 7,🥰, sanji, (y/n) is doing the proposal"

This is for the now closed Follower milestone event

Also check out my masterlists for stories and headcanons

Here's

Engagement cake

You've been with this sweet cutie for a while now and now he almost married someone else.

He looked too hot in his wedding suit, so you decide to take matters into your own hands and make him your husband.

Cute, dramatic superfluff, y/n tries to bake a cake for him, than proposes

Sanji, your boyfriend, had the audacity to even consider marrying another and you've given him a hard time.

You either loved him to pieces or threw tantrums because he really, really disappointed you, but he was also still the perfect gentleman of your dreams. It was a mixed bag of emotions. He had to sleep in his hammock with the other boys again because you couldn't make up your mind if you wanted to kiss or kill him.

He's been nothing but a poor little cutie, tip toeing around you, always armored with a treat to appease you.

Another point that made you mad was: that Pudding girl was perfect for him. She was cute and busty and really proficient at baking and cooking as well. You could already see them open up a little bistro together and kissing in the kitchen.

This was the turning point of your relationship - he needed to decide whether he was yours or not. You already bought an engagement Ring with a sapphire - blue like his eyes - and decided to bake the cake of cakes for him. To show him you were just as good as she was.

The famous North Blue sweet had 16 thin layers, between each would be a fine layer of filling. It was topped with a crown of meringues. Hard to bake, but if you could pull it off, he would know that you were just as good as that girl, even though you're not directly a baker.

You got the ring and you got the recipe - you just had to wait for the kitchen to be free so you could actually bake it without him knowing.

The first time was an absolute disaster. It was a crumbling, far to liquid mess of butter and biscuit, the meringue was coals.

You fed it to Luffy to destroy the evidence and tried again. And again. And again. That thing was hard to make. At this pace, you would be done when Luffy was pirate King and Sanji's children with Pudding were going to school. You opted for easier and easier options - until you arrived at bland lemon cake. A uniform dough in rectangular shape with lemons.

Eventually, you produced an acceptable version. It had a gummi-like consistency and it looked like it exploded, but it was the best you could hope to manage. Your respect for Pudding had grown, but not enough to.givr Sanji up. You were at the end of your strength. It had to do.

You invited Sanji to deck for tea and told him not to bring anything - you would take care of it.

He showed up with an unreadable expression, a serene smile was on his face and he was a full gentleman - just not the man you knew. No kiss, no kneeling, just silent observation.

He greeted you with a serious "my lady" and sat down, looking over the less than perfect cake and probably horrible tea you poured. It threw you completely off guard.

"So uhm, I, well I baked you a cake. And made tea. I hope you like it" you tried to keep in control of the situation, cutting the cake and handing him a piece.

He politely said "thank you" and began to eat. You forgot to take one yourself, his strange behavior made your mind race. Was he disappointed? Did he want to break up after you were moping for weeks?

The fork went in between his perfect lips and he chewed slowly. Still not letting on what he thought. Your heart pounded and your stomach turned. He swallowed. Another bite. Chewing, swallow. He looked at his plate as you stared in his face, or rather: at his mouth. Waiting for a smile, or a word...but nothing.

Your gaze wandered up to study his eyes. He briefly looked up - his eyes looked wet. Another bite.

As you watched that sorry excuse of a cake vanish in his mouth, a tear ran past the corner of his mouth. He was...crying? It was the last thing you expected. You expected a gentle let down, but no scene.

"You OK, honey?" You asked.

He nodded while chewing.

"I am" He answered and laid down the fork.

"That is the best cake I have ever tasted" He calmly said as his lip began to tremble.

"I uhm, thank you" You answered as you tried not to cry yourself.

You swept the tears off his cheek and he caught your hand to give it a gentle kiss before pressing his cheek against your palm with such need, you just had to get up and sit down on his lap to hug him to your chest.

"Do you forgive me?" He asked, choking. Now you were really worried. He was near your breasts and didn't get a nosebleed. He was either seriously distressed or sick.

"Of course I do" you answered, stroking his soft hair with your fingers.

"I wasn't sure if I messed up too bad." He said with a relieved smile.

He touched your cheek. His hand trailed down your collarbone and stopped at the small pool of tears he had caused.

"I'm so sorry I ruined your clothes with my tears" He cried. "I don't deserve-" You put a finger on his mouth. There he was again. Dramatic Sanji was back - now you were the one to be relieved.

"Close your eyes now" you told him as you fished the engagement ring out of your pocket. You took his hand and slipped it onto his ring finger.

His eyes shot open to look at the blue rock at his finger, his mouth opened and closed as unsaid words seemed to bubble out of him.

"I just thought I snatch you away to keep you for myself. Will you be my husband?" You whispered into his ear, enjoying the tickle of his hair on your face.

His head turned to you as he was clearly overwhelmed by everything that was happening, tears flowing from his eyes in a thick stream now. Without warning, he clutched you to him and screamed the loudest

"YES"

The new world has ever heard and soon you were smothered by kisses and promises of eternal love and romance.

Eventually, he seemed exhausted and just cuddled up to you - at which point you looked up and into the shocked eyes of the entire crew. You began patting Sanji's back to alert him to the company.

He looked up at you with puffy eyes "huh?" He asked, sniffing.

You turned his head towards your crewmates and instead of embarrassment of being witnessed during this intimate moment, he grinned broadly, showing his hand with the ring proudly.

Nami gasped and asked for the price, while Robin cheered and Brook broke into song. Franky ran away with an "ew" as Zoro looked flustered and Usopp tried to calm Luffy and Chopper, who were afraid Sanji would leave with you.

When everyone had said their congratulations and marveled at his ring, Sanji announced a big feast and carried you into the kitchen so you could "help" him, which meant you sat at the counter and watched him do what he loved while he periodically stared at the ring at his finger and smiled. You got to taste everything he made first to reassure him that it was great.

The party lasted until late at night, there was lots of food and drink for the entire crew and Sanji couldn't stop talking about the wedding buffet he already planned in his head. When everything was eaten up and cleaned, you could finally fall into bed together for the first time in weeks.

As he cuddled up to you and mumbled more plans for your future, you just had to ask: "the cake was terrible, wasn't it?"

"No, it was great" He answered.

You smacked him "liar!"

He chuckled.

"No, it's the truth! It was the best cake in the world, because you made it for me!" He kissed your forehead. "Just for me"

I hope you people liked this one!

The best ingredient is always love (also butter and sugar)

[robbybirdy]

73. Baking therapy on a budget Ft. Genshin Characters: Yae-Miko- White Chocolate Orange Cake

Hello, Every birdy. I have to explain myself with this recipe. I had one goal when creating this cake: I wanted to use up a bunch of oranges and some White Chocolate Rice Crispie M&M’s. So I decided to make this cake. I am not expecting anyone to make this cake. It did not work, however, I still want to share it with you. Because even I make mistakes when baking. 

I could have picked any character for this recipe. However, after giving it some thought the character that would have the biggest laugh would have to be Yae-miko. Surely because she has eaten Raiden Shoguns/Ei’s food and laughed at her for it. So I thought she would be perfect for this. Because Raden Shogun/Ei is canonical one of the worst cooks in Genshin. 

Yae-miko is a publisher of light novels in Inazuma and she is the overseer of the Grand Narukumi Shrine. She is also a fox who is Ei’s servant and long-time friend. There are going to be more random Inazuma characters that have nothing to do with their favorite foods. Just because I can’t readily make these Japanese-inspired foods. 

Unless you like eating orange play dough you really aren’t going to want to make this recipe. But if by some chance you want to, feel free to check out the recipe in the description down below. 

For this recipe, you are going to preheat your oven to 350F. And Grease the bottoms and the sides of two round cake pans. 

Now you are going to want to get your ingredients together:

All-purpose flour

Sugar

butter/margarine

Fresh orange juice

Baking powder

Salt 

Vanilla extract 

3 large eggs

Even now, just looking at the ingredients and the recipe, I understand what happened. I added orange juice where I should have added milk. And it changes the whole consistency of my cake. If I were to try this again, I probably would have added in the milk first and then add in the orange juice. It would still be orange-flavored, but the texture would be cakey, not playdough-like. 

Now you are going to add all of your ingredients to a medium-sized bowl and beat for 30 seconds. Making sure to scrape down the bowl constantly. 

Once you have down that you are going to beat on high speed for 3 minutes, again making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl. I added in some orange food coloring because I wanted it to look really orange. 

If you are baking this cake in 2 - 9 inch cake pans you will want to bake them for 25-30 minutes. Or when a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center. 

Cool on a wire rack in the pan for 10 minutes in the pan. And then take them out of the pan, and cool them for 30 minutes. 

Make sure that it is completely cool, and place it in the fridge or freezer for about 1 hour. 

Now onto the… cavity inducing icing. 

White Chocolate Rice Crispies M&M’s

Butter/margarine

Shortening (for some reason)

We got the M&M’s from my local food pantry, where I volunteer at every week. If they have an abundance of things they tell me that I can bring whatever it is home. 

So I choose to make an icing/ frosting of sorts. I first ground up the M&M’s, and then in a bowl that had softened margarine in it, I fluffed up the margarine. Which means I mixed it with an electric mixer for about 2-3 minutes. And I didn’t remember that the M&M’s would harden. So I grabbed some shortening and added it to the margarine. Before making it fluffy. 

Next, I slowly added in the crushed M&M mixture. The icing/frosting tasted good at this point. 

Now I put everything together. I realized that my cake was really REALLY dense. But I just went with it. 

I iced my cake and was really proud of how it looked. Because honestly, it was one of the prettiest cakes I have made. 

When I went to serve it, I knew that it didn’t really go well. I ask from the dining room how it is. Thinking that something was off because there was no answer for a few minutes. And then I hear my dad say “It’s good edible playdough.” And everyone, including myself, started laughing. 

I love how honest my audience is. I don’t think I would be such a good baker if they were like “Yeah, Robyn this cake was amazing! Your such a good baker.” No, I need honesty. There are times when I think something doesn’t work, but everyone else likes the product. So it helps me grow as a baker. 

After looking back at this recipe and looking at the picture that I took before I tasted the end result, I keep hearing my mom’s words “We don’t care what it looks like, we just care about how it tastes.” 

And with the cake, I feel that I cared more about the look of the cake, rather than the cake itself. Also if I had added the milk to the recipe, it would have been at least a little bit more edible. 

I wanted to share this recipe because I wanted to show you all that not every recipe is going to be a 10. There are going to be recipes that are 1s and 2s but at least you are going to learn from them and know what to do next time. 

I hope that you liked this recipe. I hope you had a good laugh.  Feel free to check it out for yourself. See you in the next post. Thank you.

Pinterest: Here

Recipe: PLEASE DO NOT REPLICATE THIS RECIPE! IT IS NOT GOOD. BETTY CROCKER CAKE IS GOOD, BUT NOT THE ADD-INS THAT I ADDED.

Starlight Yellow Cake by Betty Crocker 

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups all purpose flour

1 ½ cups sugar

½ cup butter/margarine

1 ¼ cups of Orange juice (should be milk here)

3 ½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 large eggs

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. 

Grease bottom and sides of rectangular pan- 9X13 inches, 2 round pans- 9 inch or 3 round pans - 8 inch, with shortening and lightly flour. 

Beat all ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping the bowl constantly. 

Beat on high speed for 3 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally, and pour into pan(s).

Bake rectangle 35-40 minutes, 9-inch rounds 25-30 minutes, 8-inch rounds 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or until cake springs bake when touched lightly in center. 

Cool rectangle in pan on wire rack; cool rounds 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire rack. 

Cool completely about 1 hour. 

For the frosting: Make a regular frosting! Do not attempt the frosting in the recipe. Trust me, your teeth would be thankful to you.

[qhantari]

DIY Project

Process Journal 2

Ever since I started this project, I’ve been more introspective about everything. It’s not going super well -– as in, I’m almost at the second week and my sourdough isn’t doing what I need it to do. But I also want to say that I’m not stressed or nervous about it. I have wasted a lot of time and energy worrying about things that I can’t change, and I want to try to be more in control of my emotions for the time being. I saw a video on TikTok of a heart beating at a normal pace and it was so violent -- imagining how fast my heart beats all day from anxiety and anger makes me worried for my own health. So I’m rolling with what the sourdough wants to do and I will change the goals of my project accordingly. After all, I’m trying to humanize the sourdough in some of my writing. It’s very human. You mix two simple ingredients together and add time and something forms. It’s like conception. As it forms, it needs things to grow. You need to feed it. You need to pay attention to the smell to know what it potentially needs. It’s honestly like taking care of a living creature. I also speak nicely to it -– I know that probably doesn’t do much but I know that plants are known to grow faster and stronger with words of encouragement. They are alive too, so maybe this would apply to my dough baby?

As things are progressing, my goals for the project are evolving. I did expect my sourdough to be ready by now so that I could start making some recipes. But since that isn’t going as planned, I’m focusing right now on just collecting enough good discard to make some crackers. Worst case scenario, the only thing I will be able to make will be crackers. But it’s okay, I’m learning so much just from trying and failing to get the starter right that the outcome is phasing more and more into the background. I’m just in the moment right now, enjoying the day to day of feeding my starter and checking on it. The idea of a zine to complete the project is starting to fade away from my mind because I don't think I'll have enough time for that. So right now, I'm just focusing on making the dishes as my end goal.

Since I last updated about the sour dough, it rose finally but after that it stopped doing much again. I looked around online at different websites, forums, and Facebook groups until I found more tips. Some say that if you do half rye and half whole grain it can boost the starter. So, I’ve been doing just that and there has been some progress overall but still slow. I’ve also noticed that the gross smell has mostly faded, leaving a new smell behind that isn’t so abhorrent. Recently, it smells sort of like nail polish remover. That means it’s hungry.

On October 16th and 17th, the sour dough was finally starting to rise consistently every day. It's almost doubling over night. That means it's almost ready to bake with. See, I knew there was no need to worry.

On October 20th, I made the first food item with the sour dough with my mom. We decided to make sour dough discard pancakes for breakfast. And they were delicious! 10/10, and successful first try. Next, we plan to make crackers from the discard and then bread later on. If we have more time, maybe more. Tasting the product of all my work was very satisfying and I can't wait to make more!

[janicho88]

Falling For You -Part 4

December

Pairing-Eventual Dean x Female!Reader

Word count- 6071

Warning- Slight angst, jealousy, one or two swear words,  fluff.  Slow burn.

A/N- I had an idea for a one shot, and giving a backstory to Dean and the Reader meeting took on a life of its own. This story is AU  Thank you to @waywardbeanie and @whatareyousearchingfordean​  for helping me keep these 2 characters in line and letting me bounce ideas off of you.

Summary- After being burned before you had sworn off finding love for now. Coming home from work one night there is a strange man pounding on your door.  Neither of you knew what this meeting would lead to. 

Series Masterlist

Your parents Christmas party was two weeks away, but you had a lot of baking to do, and none of it was started.  Why did you procrastinate?  Oh yeah, not much freezer room here when they are finished, and you had been hanging out with Dean.  Coming home from work on Monday, you got a quick workout in before planning to spend the evening in the kitchen. 

 Recipes out, and ingredients spread on the counter you started working on your first cookie.  Tonight you decided, was peanut butter night, which meant making the dough for peanut butter blossoms first, it would sit overnight and cook tomorrow while you were mixing other dough.  Santa’s peanut butter cookie bars, and the last item of the night no bakes.

While working on the cookie bars there was a knock on your door which had you pausing to answer it. Hands a little sticky you answered the door as best you could. 

“Hey Dean.”

“Hi Y/N, um, you got a little something here, and a here.”  He pointed to one side of your face and then your forehead.  Wiping it off with your hands you made a bigger mess.  

“Moved out almost a week and you forgot where Sam lives already?”  You teased him letting him into your apartment.  

“No, I came over to see if you would like to grab some food with me.  I think you might be a little busy though.”

“Yeah, I’m working on deserts for the Christmas party at my parents in two weeks.  Your invitation should be coming any day, I hope you, your brother and Jess can come.  I know Cas and Meg will be there too.  I was in the middle of baking, but you are welcome to hang out if you want.”

“I got it today actually, I’ll be there.  Have you eaten?”

“No, I haven’t thought about it yet.”

“Alright, so let's order a pizza, and I’ll help with quantity control in the kitchen.”

“I won’t have much for you to control tonight, but pizza sounds good.”

While the bar was cooking you got everything ready for the no bakes, deciding to start them after the pizza arrived.  Eating at the counter next to Dean, he told you about the shop he was working in.  He really liked Bobby, said he was an old grump on the outside but a teddy bear underneath.  Bobby’s wife Ellen  helped with the book keeping some days, she also owned a bar a little outside of town.  He invited you to go with him, Sam and Jess to check it out sometime. Benny and he got along well, he also ran the kitchen at the bar in the evenings.

Santa’s peanut butter bars came out as you were waiting for your no-bake ingredients to boil.  Dean went to cut a piece after you had set it down.

“You know that’s going to be extremely hot right?”

“It will cool in a minute, everything is better right out of the oven.”  Shaking your head you went back to stirring your pot. “Oh that was good,” came from Dean a few minutes later.  “When did you start baking?”

“My mom used to do it all, I’d help with what I could when I was little.  Dumping in the ingredients she already measured, or stirring the batter after she mixed it.  When you’re a kid you think you are so much help.  Then we started doing it together as I got older, I learned from her.  Over time I’ve found some of my own recipes to make, or put my spin on others.  The last couple of years I’ve taken on most of the party baking, but there are one or two things we will make together for it.”

“You’ve got a real talent for it.”

“Thank you, but you don’t have to humor me.”  

Dean wasn’t sure what to say to that, just looking at the back of your head while you were stirring. “It can be a great stress relief too when I’m frustrated with someone or something. It also forces me to find time for the gym.”  You continued on not noticing his pause. 

You had made a double batch of no-bakes and when they were ready, had talked Dean into helping you spoon them out.  As the pot they were in cooled down Dean stuck a finger in the still soft cookie batter before putting it in his mouth.

“Dean, what are you doing?” Trying to keep a stern face as you looked at him. 

“Oh, I’m sorry did you want a taste?”  He dipped another finger and spread it over your lips before tapping your nose.  Neither of you moving, eyes locked on one another before Dean’s ringing phone broke you apart.  He went into the living room to take the call, while you wiped off your face and tried to figure out what that was between you.  Nothing, right?  You guys were just friends, neither of you wanted more, you were seeing things that weren’t there.

“That was Bobby, I have to go.  There is a late delivery coming into the shop he was expecting in the morning and he isn’t there to let them in.  You um, doing anything this week, or weekend?” He seemed a little more hesitant when he asked that.

“You’re looking at it.  Maybe some cleaning and decorating I’m a little behind on it.”

“You need any help?”

“I don’t know about help, but I’ll always take the company if you want.”

“Okay, I’ll see you sometime this week.  Night Y/N.”

“Night Dean,” locking up after him you let your thoughts drift to the green eyed man causing you so much confusion.  Two months ago you both wanted to avoid relationships, you still didn’t think you were ready to get back out there.  You really didn’t want to misread anything from him and scare him away either.    

It was Friday night before you saw Dean again, a knock coming just after 5:30.  This time he appeared at your door with beer, and burgers. 

“Hi, you didn’t have to bring food.”

“Did you eat?”

“No, not yet.”

“Did you have anything here to eat?”

“I probably could have figured out something.” 

“Yeah, the burgers were needed. This way more time to work on whatever tonight's project is.”

“Thank you, I appreciate it.  Tonight's goal is frosting the sugar cookies I baked yesterday, making the frosting topping for the Cranberry Bliss bar, and the cake for the petit fours.”

“I’m not sure which question to ask first.  I’m going to go with what the hell is a petty four?”

Not able to hide a smile and small chuckle you looked at him as you handed him a plate for his burger and fries.  “Petit four, ever seen those small cake looking things that are like an inch or smaller, decorated fancy?”

“Maybe?  I pay more attention to the pie.  Speaking of, are you making any of those?”

“Not exactly, I have cherry pie cookie cups. Petit fours are a type of cake with layers of frosting and I also do a fruit filling in mine too.”

“Sounds complicated, but back to where are these cookie pies?  I think I need to check them for you.”

“Sorry, I was out of freezer room here, they already went to my parent’s freezer.  And yes, they are complicated.  I’ll make the cake today, then it has to cool and slightly freeze,  the filling, frosting and glaze will get made this weekend and then put all together.”

“I don’t have that kinda patience. Next question, what are you going to do with all this?”

“It’s a big party, we go through a lot then.  It will go back in the freezer after, and the week leading up to Christmas we’ll get it back out and make up trays to give away to friends, business we deal with, and have some left over for Christmas.”

“What does one have to do to get on this list, sweetheart?”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure one will find its way to your door. 

“What all is on your party list?”

“The things from Monday, and tonight, buckeyes, cherry cheesecake bar, two different truffles, fudge, cranberry cookies, candies, white chocolate ginger cookies, and choc cherry brownie bites, polar bear faces and some candies.”

“Next week is helping mom clean, with any last minute decorations she hasn’t done, then food Thursday and Friday night. Saturday is the party, Sunday I might not get out of bed.”

Dean laughed at that, “I never said I was joking Winchester.”

“Alright, alright so what are we doing first?”

“You really want to help me?  You are welcome to turn on the television and just hang out.”

“Nope, I’m here to bake sweetheart.”

You offered to let him pick something on tv, but he declined so you turned on Hallmark Christmas movies to help you both get in the Christmas spirit.  Dean helped you put together the cake for the petit fours, so that could get cooking first.  Frosting sugar cookies was next, you had done a few cut outs, but you preferred plain old circles.  It saved time and could be decorated any way.  The frosting colors were always tied in to that year's decoration colors.  This year was blue, white and silver, unfortunately you hadn’t found a silver paste coloring yet.  You were going to make three different shades of blues and a simple white. The powdered sugar needed to be shifted still to help keep the frosting smoother. You gave that job to Dean while you got the rest of the ingredients ready.

“Oops,”  you heard from behind you.  Turning around Dean had put too much powdered sugar in at once then apparently leaned over to see what he was doing. Now he was wearing some on his face and shirt. 

“Here,”  handing him a wet rag you helped him clean up a little. 

“Wouldn’t it be easier to use store bought?”

“Yes, but this recipe tastes better, has a better consistency for decorating with it, and dries so I can stack them without ruining the design.”

“Whatever you say Betty Crocker.”

The two of you both grabbed some cookies and started to decorate, at one point you looked up and had to look away so Dean wouldn't see your smile.  The man really likes his sprinkles apparently.  

“Wow!”  You looked up quickly to see what caused that reaction from Dean.

“What?”

“Your frosting on those, that’s like store bought good.”

Feeling the blush heat up your face you smiled at him, “Thanks, I’ve had a lot of practice over the years.  Watched a lot of decorating tips too.”

It was a lot of fun decorating the cookies with Dean, you goofed off a little and tried to “help” each other with the cookie the other was working on at that time.  That ended with some, let’s say interesting looking cookies thrown in with the others. 

“Hey Dean,” You got his attention while you headed to the sink with the last of the remaining frosting.  “I think you got a little something right here,” as you tapped him on the nose with a blue spoon quickly getting out of his reach. 

While you were standing at the sink he came up behind you and wiped his frosted nose on the shoulder of your dark green shirt.  “Dean!”  Neither of you could hold in your laughter.

The last task of the night was the frosting to the Cranberry bars.  Dean had snuck a few bits of everything tonight, but you didn’t care.  He had earned it.  This had been the most fun baking you had had in a long time.  

Neither of you had to work tomorrow and retired to the couch to watch a movie when you were all cleaned up.  The temperature had dropped this week and despite the heat being on still a little chilly in the apartment.  There was  a blanket behind Dean he grabbed before sitting next to you and tossing it over you both.  You didn’t realize as the movie went on you leaned a little closer in to Dean until he put his arm around your shoulders anchoring you close.

Dean was telling you about his week and how he met the owner’s step daughter, Jo, this week.  She had been in everyday to take care of the paper work for Ellen since she had problems at the bar to take care of.  According to Dean she was a bit of a talker, and kept coming to the back of the shop where he was working.

Oh you fool, you thought, she’s trying to flirt with you, not just talk.  “Was she just there this week?”

“Not sure, I heard her tell Bobby she would be happy to take it over if they wanted her too.”

Of course she would,  she wants to see you, went through your head, but all you said “Oh,”  You're not looking to date, you have no right to be jealous of her flirting with Dean or hanging out with him at work.  Not that he would be interested; he only wants friends right now too, but you found yourself worrying about Dean falling for her.  

Dean looked around your apartment as he was walking out, “Not much time for decorating yet?”

“I’m going to work on that tomorrow.  What about you?  How is your house coming?”

“I only had a few decorations I put up, I won’t be up here anyways.” 

“No?  Your parents aren’t coming back up?”

“No, we are heading to them.  Jess’ parents are going on a cruise that leaves the 26th so Sam and her are heading to see them before Christmas and will meet us in Kansas. I took the week of Christmas off, I’ll drive there either the 20th or 21st and come back here the 27th.   Are your parents staying in town for Christmas?

“Yep, we have it at their house every year, and my aunt should be good to travel by then.”

“That’s good, see you tomorrow.” 

“What?”  He just winked at you and shut the door.  Did you have plans you were forgetting?

Late Saturday morning while you were fighting with branches there was a knock at your door.  A bright eyed Winchester was waiting to be let in, his coffee in hand.

“I didn’t have plans today, and thought I’d give you some help.  Plus I wanted to see how the petty things went together.”  He looked at the corner where you had been working, “What is that mess?”

“That’s my tree, thank you very much, and it’s petit four.”

“You know real is the way to go.”

“Says the man with no tree.  Maybe it is, except when you live alone, and would have to water it and check it everyday and you have an allergy to the branches making you break out in red itchy spots.”

“Okay, you win.”

Dean helped you get the tree together and put the ornaments up.  When you finished with that you got the petit fours out to finish. Dean watched you adding layers to the bottom half of the cake, then put the top half on doing the same, helping when he could.

“Getting the glaze on is the hardest part, mine never look as good as ones you can get in a store.”

“I think they look awesome, if I tried these mine wouldn’t be half as good.”

You had ingredients in your cupboard for pasta so you started that inviting Dean to stay for dinner.  The night ended much like the last with the two of you side by side watching a movie on the couch.

The next week was pretty busy for you helping at your parents, it went fairly quickly though.  Usually during the week you will talk to Dean a few times and text almost everyday, even if it’s just sending the other a funny picture.  This week you hadn’t heard from him at all.  Guess he was too busy at work with Jo. 

The party had been going on for an hour and you still hadn’t seen Dean yet.  Sam, Jess, Cas and Meg had all arrived half an hour ago.  

It was thirty minutes later when Dean finally arrived. Finding his brother and friend first he said hello to them before looking for you.  Finally spotting you talking to a group of people, he hung out behind you for a few minutes before a woman looked up at him and said hello.  This had you turning around.

“Hello Dean, so glad you could finally make it.”  Was it chilly in here or just your voice.

“Oh, you’re Dean!”  Exclaimed the woman who first spotted him.

“Yeah, that’s me,”  he gave her a small smile.

The woman looked to you before going back to Dean, “It’s nice to finally meet you, it seems like my daughter has forgotten her manners. I'll introduce myself, I’m Alicia. It's nice to meet you. Y/N said you had helped her with the baking last week.  I have to say you two make a great team, thank you for helping her.”  She glanced over at you looking at the floor, “I need to go check the food, I’m sure I’ll see you around, Dean.”

“Sorry I’m late, I got called back into work.”

“The shop closes at one on Saturday’s, it’s 8:30 now. Did you walk home and then here?”

“No, Jo was trying to finish up paperwork for November that had to be sent in today.  She called me in to explain some of the notes, and expenses.  Bobby and Ellen were out of town today so she couldn’t ask them.  It took awhile and she wanted to grab dinner, I told her I had a party to be at, but she kept pushing and I went with her for one drink.”

“It’s fine Dean, nothing said you had to be here when it started, or stay the whole time.  Have fun, your brother and Cas are around here somewhere.  I need to go check the dessert table.”  

Turning and quickly walking away, Dean was too caught off guard by your distance to follow right away.  You had never given him the cold shoulder like that, he didn’t like it.  By the time he caught up to you again, someone else had pulled you into conversation.  Waiting a few minutes for you to finish, finally deciding to go find Sam and the rest of that group when you didn’t.  He was fairly certain you were upset with him, and that didn’t sit well at all.

He passed by the food set up in the dining room, and kept going.  As much as he was starving when he got here, he seemed to have lost his appetite now.  Meg and Jess were gone when he rejoined the guys.  He pretended to listen to their conversation, but he wasn’t really there.  Why were you so mad, was it because he was late, or did something else happen?  Why did you care when he showed up, there were numerous other people here.  His original plan was to come early and see if you needed help, but going over paperwork with Jo took much longer than expected.  She couldn’t seem to concentrate on her work.   

Excusing yourself from the family friend who cornered you , you made your way to your old room.  Needing a few minutes of alone time to calm yourself down.  You were jealous, but no way would you admit that to anyone else.  Your door opened minutes after you shut it, looking up Jess and Meg walked in sitting across from you on the bed.  

“Partied out already, or hiding from someone?”  Meg gave you a knowing look waiting for your answer.  “You do know Dean is downstairs right?”

“Neither, I just needed a minute, too many people down there for me.  Yeah, I know he finally showed up, not that I care”

“Liar,”  spoke up Jess.

“The two of us are completely sure you being up here has nothing to do with a green eyed bowlegged mechanic you have been looking for all night.”

“Nope, not at all. Why should I care if he spent the evening helping the boss’ daughter do paperwork, or that he took her out for dinner.”  Staring at your friends you didn’t say anything else. 

“Yep you're just fine,”  when you didn’t say anything else Meg continued, “know we are here whenever you want to talk about whatever is going on in your head.”

You all rejoined the party.  This was always one of your favorite nights as much as you were looking forward to having Dean here tonight, you weren’t up to seeing him right now.  You had caught up with your friends on and off the rest of the night.  Mostly when Dean had stepped away.  You were ready for the night to be over.

Sunday morning Dean stood outside your apartment door knocking without any answer.  The door behind him opened but he didn’t realize it until hearing a voice he knew well.

“You know I live in 43 right?”

“Yes, bitch, I do.  Y/N lives in 44.  She was off last night and I wanted to talk to her.  Picked up breakfast on the way over so she wouldn’t have to make anything.  But if she doesn’t open the door I can’t give it to her.”

“Jerk, It’s still a bit early, did you text her?”

“Yeah, but she didn’t respond.”

“You’re welcome to wait for her in here if you want to try again in a bit.”  After knocking again, he followed Sam inside.

Rolling over in bed, you reached over petting the dog laying next to you.  You missed having a dog around, but your apartment wasn’t pet friendly.  Grabbing a sweatshirt you made your way downstairs to see what your parents were up to.  You had decided to spend last night in your old room so you would be here to help with any more clean up this morning.  It was a good hour later when it finally dawned on you that you hadn’t checked your phone this morning.  Picking it you realized the battery died, and you didn’t bring a charger.  You were the only one without an iPhone so their chargers wouldn’t work on yours.  That will have to wait till I get home later.

Getting off the elevator later that afternoon you ran into Sam.  “Hey, Dean was looking for you earlier, but you never answered your door.  He waited for awhile, but had to get going.”

“I stayed at my parent’s last night, and didn’t take a charger for my phone.  Thank you guys for coming last night.”

“It was fun, thanks for inviting us.  When your phone has a charge, text Dean back, he has texted me a few times since he left asking if I’ve seen you.”

“Alright, talk to you later Sam.”

When your phone finally had some life you sent Dean a text apologizing for missing him when you weren’t home.

“Can I come over?” Dean texted back.

You had to debate with yourself whether you wanted him to or not.  He had done a lot to help you last week, and been a much needed friend.  Did he really deserve the cold shoulder because you were jealous?  You texted back ‘If you want.’

Fifteen minutes later there was a knock on the door, putting on a smile you let Dean in.  Maybe you could pretend your behavior last night didn’t happen. 

“Hi Dean.”

“Hey Y/N, thanks for letting me come over.”

“Not a problem, how was your day?”

“Alright, a little worried my friend is mad at me, and I really want to fix that. I’m sorry I was so late.  I was actually going to come early and see if you needed help, I’m sorry work got in the way.  I tried to bring you breakfast this morning so you wouldn’t have to get out of bed and mess with anything this morning.”

Guess he wasn’t going to go along with your plan to pretend it didn’t happen. “I’m sorry Dean, I shouldn’t have gotten that upset.  You didn’t have to be there right at 7, I was excited to have you there last night and it shouldn’t have mattered when you came. I should have enjoyed having you there when you arrived.  I ruined it for both of us, I’m sorry. Sorry, I missed breakfast with you this morning.”

“It’s okay, I just really don’t want to lose my friend.  If you really wanted to make it up to me, go shopping with me tomorrow night?  I need some help with Jess and Mom, please?” He gave you the best puppy dog eyes he could muster. 

“Sure, I still have a bit to do also.”  Dean had been the best thing to happen to you in awhile, you didn’t want to lose him either.  Hopefully a night at the mall could help things go back to the way they were. “Pick me up after work?”

“I’d be happy to.”

“Have you eaten dinner yet? I have leftovers from the party if you want to stay for dinner?”

“Seriously? Yes, I  didn’t end up getting anything last night.”

Both of you worked in the morning, so instead of starting a movie after dinner you just turned a tv show on.  Tonight you two didn’t sit as close as you previously did, honestly you missed it. You made small talk, he asked how things were at your parents’ house.  You told him everything cleaned up fairly quick, staying there made you miss having your dog around. 

Snow was lightly falling on the way to the mall, you were hoping for a white Christmas. Dean asked about your day, not much happened for you at work.  He was telling you about a classic car that just came in he was working on.  He really enjoyed his job, his green eyes shining as he talked about the different parts that needed restoring.

Arriving at the mall it became clear Dean really didn’t have any ideas on what to get either woman, so you offered various suggestions in the stores you were in.  Finally getting Jess done, Dean picked up a scarf you knew she wanted, and some fun picture frames to go on her collage wall.  His mom was proving trickier.  

“Any hobbies?” you asked, leaving the 6th different store. 

Dean thought for a moment, “She does like horror movies.”

“Yeah, I’m coming to realize you are all obsessed with monsters.  How about not for Christmas. Any place she mentioned she would want to go?”

He thought for a few minutes “Actually I heard her talking to Jess about a new place that opened up in town.”  When Dean finished telling you about you pulled out your phone to see if you could google it.  Finding what you needed you explained your idea to Dean and what you could get up here and what he would need to get once he was back in Kansas. 

With that  accomplished you two wandered around a few more stores looking for items to fill the rest of your lists.

Thursday was the next time you saw Dean, running into him in the apartments’ parking lot.  He was on his way to meet Sam for something.  Making small talk in the elevator, without thinking you asked something you didn’t really want to know.

“How’s Jo been?”

Dean gave you a funny look, “I don’t really know,  she hasn't been in the shop the last couple days.”

“Oh, I thought you might talk to her outside of work.”  What are you doing Y/N, do you really want to know this.  

“No. I don’t really have a reason to need to talk to the boss’s daughter outside of work.”

“Okay.  I have something in my apartment for you, I meant to drop off.  If you have time stop over before you leave.”

“Is it pie?”

“Sorry, not this time.”

When you got inside your apartment you went to check and see what ingredients you had in your cupboard. Finding pecans and a pack of crescent rolls you decided to whip up something quick.  A little over an hour later you heard a knock at your door.  Inviting Dean in you walked back over to the kitchen where the timer was going off.

“Something smells amazing.”

“I didn’t have any fruit to make a regular pie filling, but I did have some pecans I never used for the party, I made you a pecan pie bar, I hope it’s okay.”  You could almost see Dean’s mouth start to water.  “I’ll get you a fork and plate.”

“I don’t need a plate, the pan is fine.”

While Dean was eating you grabbed the item you picked up for him from the spare room.

“I know you don’t have a tree because you won’t be here for Christmas, but I thought you needed something.  Even if it’s not real.”  You had picked him up a little prelit tree and decorated it to have in his house.  

“It’s great, thanks Y/N.  You didn’t have to do that though.”  Dean gave you a hug as you set it down next to the pan of bars. 

“I know, I wanted to.  You can set it on that skinny table you have and set the presents underneath it after you wrap them.”

“Oh, that’s right I have to wrap them.  Hey sweetheart, do you think you might come over one night and help me with…”

“Seriously Winchester?  How would you ever make it without me, do you even have paper?” Laughing you agreed to come over Saturday and wrap what he had.  

“Of course I do.”

Knowing you were just hanging around the house and wrapping presents you put on yoga pants and a baggy sweatshirt to head to Dean’s knowing he would be hanging out in sweats by now too.  Sure enough he answered the door in a grey henley and black sweats.  The fireplace was on in the living room and with the presents and wrapping paper on the coffee table.  Dean ordered pizza and found Die Hard on tv.  He was sitting on the couch watching you work, when you looked up at him.

“Are you planning on helping me at all or just watching?”

“Which answer won’t get me in trouble?” The bitch face you sent his way might rival Sam’s.  “I was kidding, I was just watching how you do it.  Very nice wrapping by the way.”  The roll of wrapping paper flying at him barely missed his arm. 

Two presents into Dean wrapping, you knew why he wanted help.  When the pizza arrived you set him free. Finishing the last gift you leaned back against the couch rolling your shoulders to loosen them up after being hunched over.  Dean was sitting up on the couch behind you and  leaned down to rub your stiff shoulders. 

“Thanks for that.”

“Least I could do for you wrapping those.”  Before you left for the night you put the gifts under his tree best you could.

You spent the next week trying to catch up with your own Christmas shopping, get the cards in the mail, and trying to find time to just enjoy the Holidays.  Friday night you, Charlie, Meg and Jess donned your best ugly sweaters and leggings, spending the evening at your place vegging out and watching movies.  

You woke up early Saturday morning to head to Dean’s house before he left. Knocking on his door he was surprised to see you.

“I just wanted to stop over before you left.  I brought you some of the desserts to take to your parents house.”  You had given Dean a plate of them the weekend before when you came over to wrap.  “I expect those to make it to Kansas so you better put them in the trunk.”

“I don’t know sweetheart, I might need a snack for the road.  Eleven hours is a long trip.”

“I figured you would, there is a bag of the cherry pie cookies in there for you.”

“You are too good to me.”  Giving you a kiss on the cheek he walked past you to put them in his car while you followed him over. 

“Do you need help doing anything before you go?”

“I’m all set, car is loaded, just have to refill the coffee in my travel mug, wash the pot and lock up the house.  

Waiting while Dean finished with his coffee you walked out to the car with him.  “Have a safe trip, and Merry Christmas.  See you when you get back.”

“Thank you sweetheart.  Thanks for your help and the cookies. Have a Merry Christmas yourself.”  With a hug you walked to your own car watching the Impala drive away. 

You were definitely going to miss him this week. A little after one that afternoon you received a text from Dean saying he was in Springfield, Illinois and halfway there, he would text you when he arrived at his parents. Around seven, that text arrived along with a picture of a house you were guessing belonged to John and Mary. The two of you talked a few times over the week, he called later than usual Tuesday night, and seemed to be really down.  

On Christmas Eve you went to Mass with your family before heading to your parents house for dinner with your grandparents, some of your parents siblings, and cousins.  Games followed and a few hours later the house cleared out.  You spent the night there since you would be having Christmas morning there with your dad’s family.  Dean had texted you a few times throughout the day, Sam arrived today so you hoped he could help his brother with whatever was going on. 

Christmas morning you sent Dean a text before helping your mom with breakfast.  Your dad’s family spent the morning at the house before heading elsewhere for the afternoon.  Your mom’s family started coming over around 2, they stayed for dinner and games.  You loved your family but were glad to have an empty house spending time with your parents when everyone was gone.

That evening you went back to your apartment.  Sitting on the couch looking at your Christmas tree you saw a big gift bag Jess had dropped off before leaving town.  She told you you couldn’t open it till Christmas, that was now right?  Grabbing it you brought it back to the couch with you. 

First you pulled out a big oddly wrapped lump, unwrapping it you found a Chocolate Lab plush.  He reminded you of your dog you had growing up. The next item was a t-shirt that had you cracking up.  In the bottom of the bag was a card.

Y/N, 

I think this goes to show what we both already knew, I can’t wrap worth a damn.  This guy reminded me of the pictures I have seen in your apartment.  He might not be able to follow you around, or bark at strangers, but hopefully he can keep you company.  I got a laugh out of the shirt and I hope you do too.    

Merry Christmas Sweetheart,

Dean

  Dean called you later that evening.

“Hi, Merry Christmas Dean.”

“Merry Christmas to you Y/N.  How was your day?”

“It was good.  Scooby and I are relaxing back home now.”

“Good, um who’s Scooby?”

“This really cute chocolate lab plush that my good friend got me.  Thank you Dean, he’s great.”

“Not a problem Sweetheart. Glad you like him, Scooby?”

“That was my dog's name growing up, I was a big Scooby Doo fan.  Still am”

He started laughing, “So was I.  Yeah, I wouldn’t rush to change the channel if it was on now either.”

 The two of you talked more about your days.   He was ready to leave, but Sam and Jess were riding back with him, and he didn’t want to pull them away yet.  Something happened while he was home, he didn’t sound like himself.  If you had to guess it was why he called you Tuesday night.  You wondered if you would find out what that was.

Part 5

Thank you for reading!

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Bittersweet: Chapter Twelve

Summary: With the New Year comes new changes: Azriel and Elain are now together, Nesta and Cassian have a moment, and someone new enters the mix. Notes: This was the longest I've gone without posting new content, but I'm back in the groove. I'm officially making Sundays my upload day, so look out for that! There will be a new chapter every week. I already have the next couple chapters written, and it will be a lot more consistent now. Read it here on AO3! Warnings: very brief mentions of PTSD and sexual assault Bittersweet Masterlist

January

It was the third week of the desolate, grey month of January. The snow arrived quickly and ruthlessly. The city of Boulder was coated in a thick layer of knee-deep snow, its surface glittering under the sun enough to blind a passerby. Nesta embraced the winter, but there was nothing more she hated than a frozen ground paired with a sunny sky. Going outside bundled in multiple layers only to return home a sweaty mess. It was a suffocating feeling, to be wearing a heavy coat under sunshine.

No, Nesta preferred the unforgiving version of the coldest season. She knew how to dress; she knew what to expect when she stepped outside. It was predictable. Easy.

With the New Year came new changes. To start, Elain and Azriel were now dating, which came as a surprise to no one. When Elain sidled up next to Nesta in the kitchen on New Year’s Day and bashfully told her that she and Azriel were officially together, Nesta just levelled her a look as if to say, No shit, Sherlock.

As much as she despised the fact that their lives were becoming inextricably connected with Feyre's little group, however, Nesta was happy for her sister. Azriel treated Elain like she walked on water. of course, in Nesta's mind, no one would ever be good enough for her sister. Azriel was just managing to wiggle his way over Nesta's impossibly high standards for Elain, the bastard.

He had been spending time at their apartment quite a bit. At first, he and Nesta didn’t speak much. They would both stare at their phones in silence when Elain went to the bathroom or checked on whatever was in the oven at the time.

It wasn’t until the day that Nesta returned home from work to see Azriel playing with Minx in the living room did they 'bond.' When Nesta made her way into the apartment, Azriel explained to her that Elain was switching over the laundry in the complex’s basement. She merely nodded, her piercing stare falling to Azriel's ankles where Minx was rubbing against. She could hear his purrs from where she stood. The fucking traitor.

Nesta watched them play before they began to talk about animals, which turned into shitting on Cassian (Azriel was most certainly joking, but Nesta’s jabs were 100% genuine), which then turned into complaining about the frequency of their little family dinners. Turns out Azriel isn't exactly a social butterfly but Nesta figured that out pretty quickly. When Elain returned with laundry basket in hand, she found Nesta showing off the tricks she’d taught Minx to Azriel, the latter of whom was quite impressed. And that’s how Nesta realized that she and Azriel had more in common than she would've guessed. They both preferred to be in the background, not drawing too much attention to themselves. To Nesta's delight, she also realized Azriel had just as sharp a tongue as she did. The only difference was he knew how to control himself. Although Nesta would never admit it, she could learn a thing or two from Azriel.

But all this was heavily dampened by the fact that Cassian kept worming his way into her life. She supposed it was normal to run into your neighbors, but she had a sneaking suspicion the man somehow memorized her entire schedule. Wherever she turned, he seemed to be there. The elevator was like their rendezvous spot. Nesta was tempted to take the staircase just to avoid him, but her stubborn ass refused to change a thing for him. Even if it was just two flights of stairs.

Cassian had caught her several times in the past weeks. She thought back to a few run-ins that she hadn’t managed to stop thinking about.  

“It’s full,” Nesta said dryly, not bothering to look up from her phone. She knew who it was. Who else would go out of their way to enjoy her warm and welcoming presence?

Nesta was just getting back from a short shift she'd picked up at Rita’s. The elevator doors had been closing when Cassian’s foot shot out to stop them.

Cassian looked around at the empty elevator, his eyes finally landing on Nesta. “I think I can squeeze in.”

Nesta looked up from her phone to glare at him. He was wearing a maroon crew neck and medium wash jeans that were rolled up at the ankles. She spied a golden chain around his neck that just slightly peaked out of the sweater. She wondered if it was a cross. Was he religious?

Nesta caught herself before she could think more about it. She didn’t care; she had no interest in getting to know this man. And she knew the feeling was mutual.

She just cleared her throat and looked down at her phone once again, determined to ignore his presence.

Unfortunately, Cassian was just as determined to make his presence known.

Eyes glued to her screen, Nesta did her best to stay as still as possible as she felt Cassian walk into the elevator. She was standing at the back corner, practically a part of the wall herself. Instead of stopping where there was plenty of room, however, he kept walking until he was right next to her. He leaned back against the wall, and Nesta caught a whiff of his cologne. It was warm and fresh and purely male.

She clenched her fist. He smelled good.

She hated that he smelled good.

"Calculating something?" he asked quietly. Nesta detected the amusement in his voice and restrained herself from putting him in a chokehold.

But she followed his gaze that was looking at her phone screen. Brows furrowed, she too looked at the screen.

Fuck.

Nesta hadn't even realized she'd been staring at the calculator app this entire time. When Cassian had gotten into the elevator, she'd opened a random app, a last-ditch attempt at looking busy so he wouldn’t bother her. That plan had clearly failed.

And with her shit luck, she opened the fucking calculator app.

"Yep," she cleared her throat again, scrambling for something to say. "Just figuring out how much it would cost to hire a bodyguard. You see, I have this stalker -"

"Is he handsome?" Cassian feigned ignorance, his lips twitching upward.

Nesta gritted her teeth at his interruption. "No, he's actually - "

"Charming, rugged, good-looking?" Cassian ran his eyes up and down her body and whistled in astonishment. "Wow, you must really like this guy."

She was going to punch him in the gods-damn throat. “You’re an asshole.”

He just stood there smiling at himself, eyes sparkling with mischief. His dark hair was loose, falling at his shoulders. It looked as though he’d been running his hands through it all day. Nesta’s fingers twitched.

She could acknowledge that Cassian was a good-looking man. She wasn't blind, though she would never admit that to him. His head was big enough as is. That being said, there was no appeal beyond his thick hair and fit body. It was a shame, really. Not to mention that Nesta was unable to look at a man with anything other than cynicism after everything that happened with Tomas.

Nesta stopped herself. She didn't need to think about that right now.

Coming back to reality, Nesta realized she'd been blatantly staring at Cassian this entire time, and it hadn't gone unnoticed. He chuckled deeply and angled his body so he was fully facing her. “See something you like, sweetheart?”

Nesta crossed her arms and snorted. Classy.

“Unfortunately for you, my appetite for arrogant meatheads dissipated during college.”

“Oh?” Cassian repeated with a smirk that Nesta wanted to slap right off. “And pray tell, what’s on your menu now?”

“Just the sweet satisfaction of destroying a man’s masculinity.”

Cassian stared at her for a moment before throwing his head back with laughter. Nesta rolled her eyes just as the elevator dinged. She took the opportunity and quickly raced for the doors.

He was still laughing when the doors closed.

Nesta inwardly groaned at the memory. She’d acted like a dolt, but at least she’d gotten the last word in.

The next time they bumped into each other, however, things weren’t quite as playful.  

Nesta couldn’t sleep. She’d been tossing and turning for hours, Minx shooting her glares every time she moved. But sleep refused to come.

With a frustrated groan, she rolled to the side of the bed and checked her phone that was charging on her nightstand.

3:38am.

Fucking ridiculous.

Nesta couldn’t remember the last time she’d gotten a good night’s sleep. She’d been having nightmares nearly every night for the past few weeks, only managing to get about four hours of sleep at most. It was enough that she could function during the day and go to work without passing out. Nevertheless, it was exhausting.

She did her best to untangle herself from the comforter and get up without waking Minx. He was sleeping at the foot of the bed, his entire body stretched out like dough. As she got up, she gave him some love. He didn’t even budge; he was a heavy sleeper.

Nesta couldn’t help but feel jealous.

Rubbing her face, she padded out to the kitchen slowly and poured herself a glass of water. She drank it slowly as she leaned against the counter.

After fifteen of staring into space, Nesta made her way to the fridge and opened it, the soft light glowing on her face.

She stared into the fridge for another ten minutes.

With a resigned sigh, Nesta slowly padded back to her room and closed the door behind her. She lazily pulled her long hair into a messy updo. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed her laundry bin. It was overflowing.

She checked the time again. 4:17am.

Fuck it, she thought to herself as she bent down to pick up the laundry basket.

Nesta heaved it into her arms, grabbed the detergent, and made her way down to the complex’s basement where the laundry room was. She was wearing a grey sweater that completely swallowed her body and baggy sweatpants. Her slippers were cat themed. She couldn't care less.

After dumping her dirty clothes into the washing machine and starting it, Nesta sat on top of the empty machine to the left of it. She crossed her legs in her lap and put her hands in her face.

Gods, when was this going to end?

She would almost prefer a nightmare over this. It was the silence that was insufferable. With nightmares, she woke up, stayed awake for a couple hours, and finally fell asleep once her body calmed. But this? She didn’t trust herself to be alone with her thoughts for the entire night. It was never a good thing.

She was just sick of it. The exhaustion, the darkness, the loneliness. Her father’s death still gnawed at her every day. She hadn’t summoned the bravery to read those damn journals. She wasn’t ready. She didn’t know if she’d ever be.

And then Tomas. That horrible memory still surfaced several times a day. She couldn’t shake it; she never felt safe, even when she was in her bedroom. She hated it. Hated the lack of control, the loss of strength. She felt powerless. And without that, what did she even have?

The sound of footsteps disrupted her from her thoughts. Her head shot up as a body filled the doorway to the laundry room. It was Cassian.

He, too, looked like he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. He looked comfortable in his Nine Inch Nails t-shirt and dark joggers. In his hand was a dryer sheet.

He stared at her. She stared back.

Neither of them said anything as he walked over to the washing machine to the right of the one her clothes were in. Nesta watched with half-lidded eyes as Cassian switched over his load of laundry to the dryer, swiping his card to pay for the cycle.

Once his clothes were tumbling around in the dryer, he straightened and faced her where she sat.

Nesta couldn't put her finger on it, but he seemed different. Not because it was the middle of the night and he was tired. No, there was something else. She just didn't know what.

“Can’t sleep?” he broke the silence, voice rough with exhaustion.

Nesta pursed her lips and nodded, looking away. She expelled a shaky breath. “You?”

Cassian seemed slightly taken aback by her question, but he hid it well. He took a few steps closer. There were still a couple feet between them, but now he was standing in front of her with his hands in his pockets.

“Me neither," he murmured, his hazel eyes capturing her grey ones. "Sometimes I don't even bother trying anymore."

They both got quiet. Nesta didn’t know what to say; his vulnerability scared her.

It was strange. To have a conversation with Cassian without banter, without insults being thrown back and forth. Nesta didn’t know what to think of it.

"I could be deported any day," he admitted, so quietly that Nesta almost didn't hear. Then he added, his voice breaking slightly, "I don't want to go."

Nesta watched him as he looked to the dirty tiles of the laundry room floor. Her lips parted slightly and before she realized what she was doing, she was talking.

"I have nightmares every night. Today was the first time in two months I haven't had one. A strange part of me would rather have horrible dreams instead of this silence... and that scares me."

Cassian was staring at her now, his eyes flaring. He looked like he wanted to move closer, but he remained where he stood. He simply nodded at the piece of herself she'd just shared with him.

I see you, is what he seemed to wordlessly say to her.

A strange feeling of deja vu washed over Nesta as they looked at each other. She couldn't place it, but this - talking with Cassian - felt familiar, like it had happened -

The washing machine next to Nesta dinged, signaling that her clothes had finished. She pulled her gaze from Cassian's and hopped off to switch her clothes over.

Cassian merely watched. Then, they both waited in a comfortable silence until their laundry finished drying. Cassian's finished first, but he waited until Nesta's did to walk her back up. They didn't share a word, but something intangible transpired between them.

And even though Nesta still wasn't able to fall asleep, the silence felt a bit less scary the rest of the night.

---------------------------

“Are you excited for the semester to start next week?”

Nesta froze from where she stood washing the dishes when Elain posed the question.

Next week? That couldn’t be right. Nesta counted off the days in her head.

To her horror, Elain was correct.

It was nearing the end of January. She knew she’d had to return to Pryth U after winter break, but Nesta thought she’d have longer. Longer to get over what had happened, to figure out how exactly to avoid him on campus. She thought by now… she thought she wouldn’t be scared anymore.

She was wrong.

“Nesta?”

Nesta peeled her eyes away from the soapy knife that she was clutching tightly in her hand to find Elain peering over at her with a concerned look.

“Yeah,” Nesta forced out, despite every fiber of her body screaming otherwise. “Can’t wait.”

She continued throughout the morning as normal as she could be, even though she was shaking. When noon hit, Nesta called out to Elain who was lounging in the living room waiting for Azriel to come over.

"I'm think I’m going to go to the gym." She willed her voice not to shake.

"Okay, have fun!" Elain exclaimed from the other room.

Nesta had purchased a gym membership to Illyria last week, a pathetic effort at getting out of the apartment more often. She hadn't gone once yet. And either way, her only real plan was to use the hot tub. She couldn't remember the last time she exercised, and she had no intention of changing that.

After getting dressed and grabbing her bag, Nesta headed out.

The drive was quick; the gym was only a couple miles away. Once Nesta parked, she made her way inside the complex.

She forced a tight smile as she approached the woman who was working the front desk, scanning her membership card and continuing forward. Her mind was racing, and she prayed that there wouldn't be many people there. It was a Tuesday afternoon. She doubted it.

Nesta was weaving her way past the space dedicated to boxing to get to the locker rooms when she heard a familiar voice ahead of her.

She instinctively turned her head to see who it was, only to find Cassian standing next to a punching bag, his face breaking out into a grin as he talked to a very beautiful woman.

She was small, several inches shorter than Nesta. Her copper chestnut hair was pulled back into an elegant ponytail, and her hands were on her hips as she attentively listened to Cassian speak. She seemed captivated by whatever he was saying, probably some bullshit meant to charm her.

Nesta didn't think twice as she discreetly did a 180 and started walking the opposite way, desperate to avoid him especially after the night in the laundry room. That'd been the last time she'd seen him, and she didn't want to talk about it. Not with him or anyone else. Even though she'd opened up to him, that didn't mean they were friendly. In fact, it was the complete opposite. She was determined to keep him at arm's length now. Nesta had cursed herself the morning after those events had transpired. She was so stupid to tell him what she did. It was just because she had been severely sleep-deprived, and she had felt bad for him. It wouldn't happen again.

So, she slowly slinked away, praying to the Gods that he didn't notice her.

Her plan was going smoothly until she heard her name.

"Nesta?"

Her shoulders stiffened. Fuck.

She brought herself to a painstaking stop and turned around to see Cassian jogging over to her.

"Hey," he greeted as he approached. He seemed cautious, like he didn't want to scare her off. "I didn't realize you went to Illyria."

"I don't," Nesta replied quickly. He waited for her to say more, but she just blinked up at him.

"Well," he drawled, looking back at the woman he had been talking with. "I'm just about to start a training session." Ah, he works here. She wondered what he did in his free time. "Do you want to join? The first session is free."

Nesta looked to where the woman was methodically wrapping her hands in what looked like Ace bandages. She was more stunning than Nesta originally thought. She wouldn't be at all surprised if Cassian hooked up with his trainees. Especially if they looked like that.

"No, I'm - "

But Cassian wasn't having it. "Gwyn!" he called out, gesturing her to come to where they stood.

"What the hell are you doing?" Nesta hissed, her heart rate spiking as she watched the woman, Gwyn, make her way toward them.

Cassian ignored her, continuing to smile. The bastard.

As Gwyn made her way over, Nesta did her best to put on a friendly face. She was pretty sure she was just grimacing.

"Hi! I'm Gwyn," she introduced herself with a bubbly voice. She looked Nesta up and down. "You must be Nesta. I've heard a lot about you."

Nesta threw Cassian a sideway glare. He'd been talking about her? No doubt complaining about her horrible attitude.

Cassian winked at the look she gave him before turning to Gwyn. "Gwyn, why don't you tell Nesta a little bit about what we do while I go get some equipment from the back? Then we can get started."

Nesta opened her mouth to object, but Cassian was gone before she could even blink. Groaning inwardly, she reluctantly faced Gwyn who was smiling softly at her.

"Well, I assume you know that Cassian is a trainer," she started with an awkward laugh.

Nesta stared at her.

Gwyn continued to smile despite Nesta's coldness. "He actually created this program, Wings of Resilience, a couple years ago. He offers discounted training lessons for people who deal with PTSD. It's helped a lot of people. Cassian mainly teaches kickboxing, but in the past he's taken in some older veterans who aren't really able to do high cardio activities, so he guides them through yoga practices.  Everyone here adores him," Gwyn giggles and leans in. "Especially the older ladies who come in every week for their exercise class."

She kept talking, but Nesta was no longer listening. The room suddenly felt tiny, the air stifling. What Gwyn told her triggered her fight or flight instincts. She didn’t know why, she just knew she couldn’t breathe, and if she didn’t leave now, she was going to have a full-blown panic attack in the middle of a room full of people.

“Are you okay?”

Nesta’s eyes shot up from her shaking hands to see Gwyn take a cautious step forward, her eyes wide with something that resembled concern. Nesta nearly let out a hysterical laugh. Gwyn and Cassian - they were such good people. How did they even pretend to give a shit about someone like Nesta?

"I-I need to go,” Nesta blurted, eyes scanning the room for the nearest exit.

"I know it's a lot to consider," Gwyn said quietly. She looked down at her feet. "But it's really helped me."

No, no, no.

Nesta didn't even realize she had started running until her lungs were burning from the exertion of energy. She ran and didn’t stop. She caught a flash of someone – Cassian’s – face as she sprinted past the lobby and outside, but she didn't look back. She couldn't.

The cold air was harsh against her lungs. She welcomed the burning sensation, gasping for more oxygen. Before Nesta could comprehend what was happening, she was spilling her guts on the sidewalk until she was dry heaving.

Passersby looked at her with disgust as they walked past, but Nesta couldn’t bring herself to care.

When there was nothing more to come out, Nesta wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and straightened herself. Every muscle in her body screamed. How she was able to stand, she had no idea. Nesta beelined to her car, locked the door, and speeded out of the parking lot before anyone could run after her.

------------------------------

That night, Nesta received a text from an unknown number.

Nesta, I asked Cassian for your phone number. I hope I didn’t overstep your boundaries. I just wanted to let you know that there will be a spot here if you want it. Please think about it. Gwyn

Her first instinct was to delete the text, cancel her membership to Illyria, and never face Gwyn - or Cassian for that matter - again. There was no way she was going to show her face in that gym again.

But despite everything, Nesta found herself saving Gwyn’s number into her contacts before she fell asleep.

------------------------------

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[nomazee]

Thinking Things Up And Not Thinking It Through

iwaizumi hajime x reader, oikawa tooru & reader friendship 

word count: 2300+

content: oblivious & ooc iwaizumi, pining reader, light swearing, (title is a reference to listerine by dayglow)

(i was thinking ab the first iwazumi/oikawa fic i posted (and the first fic i posted....EVER) and almost cried thinking about it cause its SO BAD and i felt like i needed to atone for my sins so here it is!! 

i wrote this in one day, pretty quickly, and it’s unedited & might not make sense in some parts. regardless, i hope it’s concise enough and that you all enjoy it !!

thank you for the continued support on my work. it really makes me happy to see that people enjoy the things i write. i hope i continue to make you guys happy with my stuff!!

also, as always, here’s a reminder that my requests are open!! feel free to send one in after reading my rules :)

happy reading!!)

☾.:°∗★.:☆:.★∗°:.☽

You and Oikawa were friends. Oikawa and Iwaizumi were friends. You and Iwaizumi, however, were not friends. 

It’s not like you two were sworn enemies. You got along quite well, actually. But you just… weren’t close enough to consider yourselves friends. 

It was really a shame. You were sure you were practically in love with the guy. 

Oikawa knew about this--him and his annoying, prying self figured it out after digging it out of you during a sleepover. He laughed hysterically when he found out and developed the habit of throwing teasing remarks your way whenever Iwaizumi was in both of your presences. 

“How do you manage to like someone who barely talks to you?!” He screeched into your ear that night through bouts of laughter. 

You huffed and slapped his shoulder with as much strength as you could gather in your embarrassed state. “Shut up! Half your fangirls have never had a proper conversation with you yet they’re still in love with you.” 

“Yeah, but that’s me. You’re talking about Iwaizu--”

“Can you shut up?!” 

It was just your luck that Iwaizumi seemed to shut down any advances you made towards him. Not really “shut down,” though--if he outright told you he wasn’t interested then you wouldn’t force that on him. It was more like he was completely oblivious to any moves you made to approach him. It was funny. And disappointing. And hysterical, to Oikawa. 

You knew how well Iwaizumi interacted with his teammates, and from your rare moments of sentiment with Oikawa you learned that Iwaizumi was no stranger to adjusting to the needs of his teammates and friends. 

Good to know that you were in neither of those categories. 

You put yourself out there for him more than you normally would, greeting him every morning, starting conversations, even going as far to invite him to outings in an attempt to just get to know the guy, for fuck’s sake. 

“There’s this really nice diner a few blocks down from my house. It’s family-owned and the food there’s really good. Do you maybe want to go there someday?” 

Iwaizumi blinked, looking up from his lunch tray. Oikawa had left one point to “go to the bathroom” (you’d told him of your plan to ask the ace out, and he was supportive enough to give you a window of time to do that without you friend’s presence making you nervous), leaving both of you alone as you grasped at loose threads to try and start a conversation. 

“With Oikawa?” 

“...with me.” 

“....and Oikawa?” 

Oh. Cool. So he just wasn’t comfortable with you in the slightest. Good to know. 

“Yeah. Sure.” 

You had to sit through the humiliation of explaining to Oikawa that it absolutely did not go as planned. He treated you to dango after laughing hysterically. 

You didn’t want to stoop as low as asking Oikawa to interrogate Iwaizumi about his opinion on before, but you were really starting to consider it. 

You figured maybe a gift would be easier than that. This revelation led to you sobbing in your kitchen while on facetime with Tooru as you tried to figure out why the dough for your melonpan had the consistency of thick oatmeal and glopped along your kitchen counter whenever you tried to pick it up. (Yet again, the brunette setter went out of his way to buy another small gift of condolence the next morning after being absolutely no help to you the night before.)

You eventually managed to turn out a few decent looking (and decent tasting) buns, packaging them neatly in paper bags to give to Iwaizumi the next morning. 

Iwaizumi blinked at you, then at the bag you forced into his hands without a word. “...what is this?” 

“Melonpan.” 

“...oh. Thank… you?” 

He didn’t even look into the bag. Didn’t say anything else after that. You stood in your place, expectant for some other response but knowing that, realistically, you wouldn’t be getting one. 

“I hope you like it.” And with that, you spun on your heel, stumbled, and walked away with an awkward awareness of how you were stepping. 

During lunch, Oikawa and you sat separate from his friend, making up some excuse that you two had to review something from class and sneaking away to discuss your next step. Tooru was enthusiastic about this whole thing. You were not. 

“He ate the melonpan, you know,” your friend remarked, taking a sip of canned juice before continuing. “I caught him before I went to class. He seemed to like it.” 

“Oh. Good to know it didn’t taste like shit.” 

“Hopefully it doesn’t give him food poisoning.” 

“Will you--!” Oikawa burst into peals of laughter, body bending at the waist in a show of just how amusing this was to him. You huffed. 

“This is, like, the dumbest thing ever. I’ve done so many things--”

“Like, two things--” 

“--to try and drop a hint, any hint, and he just acts like an oblivious dumbass and ignores everything I throw his way. It’s stupid! He doesn’t even talk to me! How does he put up with you all the time yet when it comes to me he can’t even look me in the eyes?!” 

Oikawa’s laughter quelled as he listened to you ramble momentarily. When you fell silent, he looked up at you and gasped at the sight of your eyes brimming with tears. 

“Hey, [Y/N]--” 

“No! It’s fine! I’m sorry, I’m just dumb and emotional and I’m not actually that upset,” that was doubtful, “but maybe I’m just… not a fun person? Not as fun as I thought I was. Not fun enough for a guy like Iwaizumi to be around.” 

Tooru was silent. He was no stranger to your comedy-induced mood swings but this seemed to be serious. This whole Iwaizumi thing was making you doubt your ability to make friends and it made the brunette’s heart hurt to see you in this state. 

“Hey,” he approached, tone uncharacteristically gentle, “you got me to be your friend. And that’s saying a lot. People like me, sure, but I don’t like a lot of people as much as I like you.” 

Your breaths slowed down. Oikawa snapped back into character. 

“As a friend, obviously. I don’t think I could handle the emotional experience of having to date you.” 

“Asshole!” 

“Love you!” 

You both laughed in the comfortable quiet before Oikawa spoke up again. 

“I don't think it’s that he doesn’t like you. Maybe he’s scared of you.” You furrowed your eyebrows incredulously. 

“How can I be scary to anyone?” 

“Well… scared in the sense that, he’s never really had girls approach him.” 

That was a shocker. Iwaizumi was a looker--a fact no one could deny. And while, yeah, maybe he’s tough-guy disposition made him a little unapproachable, you were still surprised that it wasn’t at least a little common for girls to approach him. 

“Has he ever, like… said anything about me?” 

Oikawa thought for a bit, chewing on a piece of milk bread he’d torn off. “No, not really. When I mention stuff about you, he listens but doesn’t really comment. He gets kind of quiet, really.” 

You hummed. Maybe Oikawa was right about that scared-of-girls thing. You were prepared to go through another set of trials to get this boy to warm up to you at least a little bit. 

A week later, Tooru got sick. You lectured him over the phone about how irresponsible he was with his health before simmering into a soft demeanor and promising to make him soup when you got home. (“Aww, so sweet of you, [Y/N]! It almost feels like I’m your boyfriend, not Iwaizumi.” You screamed at him for that one and threatened to take soup privileges away.) 

At the end of the day (which dragged on longer than usual due to your friend’s lack of presence), you stood under the awning, watching the downpour from beyond the protection the roof gave you. You never picked up the habit of checking the weather forecast, which proved to be your downfall many times. This being one of them. 

You sighed. You couldn’t wait out the rain. It looked like it would probably go on for a while, and you needed to get home to make food for Tooru and finish your homework. Sighing again, you prepared yourself (emotionally more than physically) to run through the rain like a madman. 

Footsteps sounded from behind you. Instinctively, you looked for the source, surprised to see Iwaizumi blinking owlishly at your lone form. 

You looked at his hand. He was holding an umbrella. 

You repressed a smile. Maybe today was actually your lucky day--you’d ask Iwaizumi to walk you home, letting you stay dry while also getting closer to the boy, for once. 

“Hey.” You greeted him. He gave a small smile and nodded back, walking up to be level with you. 

You both stood in silence for a bit, watching cars pass through wet asphalt and kick up puddles. 

You turned to him, mouth parting open to ask if he wanted to walk home together--

“Have a good day, [L/N].” With that, he walked out from under the awning and made his way home. 

Your mouth remained agape, looking at his retreating form with a mix of emotions--frustration, embarrassment, confusion. 

Minutes passed. With a sigh, you realized you didn’t have much of a choice. You took your blazer off, holding it above your head, and ran into the street. 

You got home. Made soup and suppressed shivers from the remaining cold of rain sticking to your skin. Walked to Tooru’s house (with an umbrella this time), relayed what happened to him, and tolerated his hoarse giggles once again. 

Tooru got better quite quickly, and you were lucky enough to not get sick despite sprinting through the rain and spending your evening in the presence of a sick person. 

You felt a sense of deja vu during lunch when Oikawa stood up and excused himself to the bathroom, sending a wink in your direction that made you flush in embarrassment and panic. You certainly hadn’t discussed any future plans with him. Why was he leaving you alone like this?!

Iwaizumi folded hands on top of the lunch table, playing with his fingers absentmindedly as a way to occupy himself. His lunch had been finished a while ago, leaving him with only his hands to fiddle with as he pointedly avoided your gaze and the prospect of interacting with you. You frowned a bit at the action. 

“So…” You were surprised to hear him speak first, but perked up immediately to listen to him. “You and Oikawa…?” 

He didn’t elaborate any further. You stayed quiet, brows knitting together in confusion. Iwaizumi sighed. 

“You guys are a thing.” You choked at how forward he was with his statement, coughing a few times to clear up the invisible ball in your throat. “It’s… that’s cool. You guys are cute. You go together well, and stuff.” 

Oh my God. Oh my…? What?! He could not be this oblivious. He could not be this blind-- You were speechless at the words that were coming out of his mouth. 

“What the fuck.” You hadn’t even noticed the words coming out of your mouth until you saw Iwaizumi’s eyes widen at you. “I-- Sorry-- Tooru and I… are not dating…?” 

It was Iwaizumi’s turn to be confused, apparently. “What? But you guys are so close, and… you’re always around each other, and stuff. And he talks about you sometimes. So I figured, y’know--” 

“Absolutely not.” Your words were choked out between dry laughs, eyes darting left and right as you tried to gain a sense of reality again. “I would never in my life date that boy. Never. No. And don’t you think if he had a girlfriend, he’d tell you? Right off the bat? He’s no stranger to inflating his ego by bragging. How the hell did you even draw that conclusion?!” 

“Well, it’s not my fault! You two are always hanging off each other, who wouldn’t assume there was something going on between you two?!” 

“Who would?!” 

“Me, apparently! Which was stupid, ‘cause for the last six months I’ve been trying to avoid you because I thought you were off-limits and I didn’t want to get my ass beat by Oikawa--” 

“Off-limits?” 

“Well, yeah! Like, for dating.” The both of you quieted down, the silence of your table a great contrast to the petty scuffle you’d just been having. Neither of you dared to look at each other. Neither of you dared to speak. 

Oikawa came back after a few minutes, noticing the tension in the air and becoming too nervous to say anything. When he asked you about it as you left the cafeteria, you muttered harshly under your breath, “Just so you know, I would never in my life date you. Ever.” 

He only laughed, concern still evident in his features but simmering down the slightest bit after realizing you were well enough to joke around. 

Before you could enter through the doorway of your classroom with Tooru, a hand grabbed your forearm harshly, shoving you off balance at the unexpected force. 

You turned around to view your captor, freezing at the sight of Iwaizumi Hajime, in all his glory, panting as if he’d just chased after you. (Which he probably did, let’s be honest.) 

“Um,” his seemingly confident demeanor collapsed in your presence and his eyes left yours to find interest in the floor. “Friday. Let’s go to that diner, the one near your house that you wanted to go to. At noon, if that’s okay with you.” 

You paused. He remembered the diner. A smile slowly found its way onto your face and you laughed a little bit. Iwaizumi’s eyes flicked back up at yours, trying to get a read on your reaction before you could properly give a response. 

“Yeah. That sounds good. And no Oikawa.” 

“God, no Oikawa.”

[sadviper]

Turnip Cake Recipe

For @staidwaters and @elciaisshrinking

For a good visual reference, this Woks of Life recipe has the same process and most of the same ingredients. The major difference from my loosey-goosey method of measuring to what is described in the Woks of Life link will probably be that the WoL version will end up dry as heck.

https://thewoksoflife.com/turnip-cake-lo-bak-go/

This isn’t hard to make at all, but depending on the prep options you decide to go with, it can take 2+ hours for the longest prep time, plus 45 min steaming per pan, to maybe 1.5 hrs prep if you use a food processor for the turnip.

There’s also a lot of forgiveness for accidents in measuring. It’s very much adjustable to taste, or as a friend says, “season until your ancestors say it’s ready”, lol.

Ingredients

-      2-4 lap cheung, steam or microwave for 15 sec to make easier to dice (Kam Yen Jan Chinese Style Sausage brand is my favorite ) Depending on the store, I’ve seen it range from $7-9 a package.

-      A bunch of soaked and diced dried shiitake mushrooms (rinse before soaking if you want to reuse the water) - will take a couple hours to turn soft

-     A bunch of soaked and diced dried baby shrimp (rinse before soaking if you want to reuse the water) It will take an hour or two to soak, but don’t worry if it’s still kind of hard after that. Also after soaking but before dicing, use a butter knife to scrape out the black poop vein running along the back spine of the shrimp

-      Lots of scallion (3-4 stalks), chopped

-      A few slices of ginger, diced

-      Several cloves of garlic, diced

-      Soaked dried scallops, shredded (rinse before soaking if you want to reuse the water. Also optional because they’re seriously expensive. Depending on size and quality, easily starts at $35+/lb, but it tastes really good.)

-      ½ tsp white pepper

-      ¾ tbsp salt

-      ½ tsp sugar

-      little bit of Chicken powder (optional, esp if you use chicken broth later)

-      Sesame seeds for garnish

-      1 lb bag of rice flour (use 3/4ths of the bag) - make sure it’s regular rice flour, NOT glutinous rice flour

-      1/3 cup corn starch

-      Chicken broth, water, or reuse the soaking water from the mushrooms/scallops/shrimp

-      Lots of daikon turnip (2 large ones, or 2 medium ones + small one, or one enormous one…this recipe will make roughly 2 medium to 1 large + 1 medium cake pan’s worth) When I make this, I have to use the biggest mixing bowl size to hold it.

o   For smoother texture, grate or use a food processor to shred it all

o   For piece-y mouthfeel that mom likes, julienne it (do only if you have arm fortitude and a lot of time)

Steps

1)   Prep all ingredients (remember to soak dry ingredients for 1-2 hours! The chopping will take 1.5-2 hrs after that, lol)

2)   Stir fry the sausage first. It will leak out a lot of oil. Scoop out the sausage once it’s been singed, and stir-fry the mushroom, scallops, and shrimp in that oil with a little bit of scallion until hot. Put aside. You can cook the ingredients all together at same time or separately in succession.

3)   Add a little bit of oil into the wok/large pot again, and stir fry the garlic and ginger. Add the daikon and stir.

4)   Add chicken broth/water to the pot until it reaches halfway up the level of turnip. Don’t overfill with water; the turnip will sink and ooze liquid as it cooks.

5)   Put the cover on and stir occasionally until soft. (About 15 minutes for me, I have an electric stove and I always cook at level 4 to avoid boiling things over. But don’t sweat it if you over/undercook; you’re going to steam again anyway)

6)   While the turnip cooks, in a separate bowl, mix the rice flour, corn starch, salt, sugar, white pepper, and chicken powder together. Slowly add water or soaking water into the mixture a bit at a time, stirring every time, until the consistency becomes wet and drippy without lumps. (think pancake batter consistency, NOT wet dough consistency which is too dry)

7)   When turnip is ready, turn off the stove but leave the pot on the burner. Add ½ of the rice mixture to the pot and stir thoroughly. Then add the rest and stir thoroughly. Also add half of the mixture of sausage/shrimp/mushroom/scallops and half the scallion. Make sure not to leave the pot too long on the heat, and to stir all the way to the bottom; the rice mixture is a congealing agent. If the mix is too watery, turn the heat back on and stir until it thickens. It should have a wet dough consistency.

8)   Grease cake pans of whatever size will fit in your steamer, scoop the mixture into the pans, and smooth it down. Top with the remaining half of sausage/mushroom/shrimp/scallop and press down a little if you don’t want the pieces to roll away when you cut it later. Save the scallion for garnish later (unless you don’t mind it turning goopy dark green)

9)   I use a large wide-bottom pot with a wire rack to rest the cake pan. Fill bottom with water until just under the wire rack, cover and boil. When the water is steaming, put the cake pan in and steam for 45 minutes. Check occasionally to make sure the water hasn’t dried out.

10)  Once done steaming, top with remaining scallion and sesame seeds.

11)  If eaten fresh, depending on how much liquid you put in, it might fall apart easily, as my recipe is much looser/soft/less cake-y than what you might find in a dim sum restaurant (they will also be missing most of the sausage/scallop/shrimp/mushrooms because those ingredients are expensive). It will solidify when refrigerated and eaten later. When eating after refrigeration, you can slice and pan fry it to get that nice seared surface texture, but microwaving or re-steaming is fine too if you want to be healthier. If you didn’t add a lot of salt/salted chicken broth, you can serve with oyster sauce for flavor. Otherwise, I like to eat it as is. :3

[lovemalecforever]

Chapter 15

Let's have some Madnus

*Morning- the time when Alec and Catarina left for New York*

"Alec, we should leave now. It's time." Catarina said knowing that the soon they'll get this done, the better.

Alec nodded in response as Catarina opened the portal for them. Alec gave Magnus a quick goodbye kiss before stepping through the portal, then vanished into it.

As soon as the swirling vortex closed a depressed look crept over Magnus' face, Alec wasn't even gone for a second, and he was missing his husband already. It's the first time after that incident that Alec left Idris, that too for days. He didn't know how he'll manage to go through these three dreadful long nights without his husband. The days were fine, his work will keep him occupied, but nights...

A tugging at his jacket broke him out of his thoughts. "Maagnus? What happened? You look sad. Are we not going to party?" Madzie asked innocently.

Magnus bent down and took her in his arms. 'How can I be an idiot! How can I forget about my favorite warlock staying with me.' he cursed in his mind.

"Oh, sweet pea, yes, obviously we're going to party. It's just that I'm missing Alec, nothing more."

"I miss him too." She said with a sad tone.

"Okay, come on now, what do you want to do?" He asked her to light up both of their moods.

"Party! Party party party," she kept screaming.

"Stop it, sweet pea, I got that. We'll party in the evening, it's only afternoon. What else you want to do apart from partying, young lady?"

"Teach me new magic, potions, I want to learn how to brew potions, mom doesn't let me. And, and cooking I want to learn cooking, no baking, choco chip cookies, yes, teach me how to bake cookies. I want cookies. Teach me, teach me, teach me. Pleeeease." She said excitedly, showing him her best puppy eyes.

"Oh, hush, you bundle of energy. One at a time. Let's teach you some new magic first." He put her on the floor then took her to his study room, or his workroom to be specific, where he keeps all the stuff.

Madzie might be a kid, but she was really powerful at her age. And a quick learner too. Magnus always suspected that she's going to be the most powerful one in the upcoming generation of warlocks. He taught her some new things and made her practice more what she already knew. Taught her some new spells and little Chthonian.

If he'll be honest with himself, he did teach her things Cat would never approve of, she was still a child, but a powerful warlock in Magnus' opinion, so he wasn't able to help himself. But he was sure that if his best friend would find out she'll ban him from meeting Madzie for a month or worse put a body swap spell on him or maybe a gender change spell, he shivered from the thought of it, Catarina Loss could become unpredictable when she's angry. He didn't want to think about the consequences right now.

"Magnus, Magnus, look! I did it. Yay, I did it."

Magnus looked at the miniature silver projection of a man or a prince charming as Madzie called it, riding a horse visiting the small town, having a women's crystal heel poking out of his leather bag clinging at him. He stopped in front of a house, dismounted himself from the horse, and started walking towards the door.

"Good job, sweet pea, now focus on the story, the next scene of the story, use your mind, and focus on your magic, let your mind guard your magic. Focus on the events and details, concentrate." He softly whispered.

After a few efforts, Madzie was able to project the whole story with every detail, and now she was exhausted.

"Yay! I did it. Magnus, I'm tired and hungry, cookies, let's bake cookies now."

"No, not cookies, they are snacks, not lunch. We'll eat lunch now then you'll rest because you're exhausted then we'll bake cookies. Understood?"

"But-"

"No, but, young lady, lunch now." He said sternly looking at her.

"Okay, but can I do the summoning? Pleeeease?" She looked at him innocently with her best puppy eyes.

"Do you even have energy left in you for the summoning, Madzie?" He asked her with concern.

"Yes, I do. Please let me do it, please Magnus." She pleaded.

Magnus sighed, he can never win any arguments with her, he was never able to resist his favorite warlock.

"Okay, fine, sweet pea. Let's head to the dining area first."

They both walked towards the dining area and sat opposite each other.

"Okay, sweet pea, now what do you want to eat? Think about it and concentrate."

"Okay." She said sweetly and closed her eyes, then waved her tiny fingers in the airs.

After a few seconds, two plates full of spaghetti with meatballs, two strawberry ice creams, and a glass of orange juice appeared on the table. Magnus sighed but smiled at her, then put the ice creams in the fridge for later. After eating their lunch including the deserts, he noticed her tiny eyelids getting heavy.

"Maagnus, let's play something, come to my room."

"Isn't someone tired, young lady?"

"No, I'm not *yawn* tired." She said softly.

Magnus laughed at her innocence. "Okay, sweet pea, let's head to your room."

He knew she was exhausted, but she wasn't ready to rest at all. It took him a hell of a time to win over the arguments with her, some convincing, but she eventually fell asleep, and he went back to continue his work.

___________________________

*After few hours*

"Maaagnus, where are you?" Madzie yelled while running towards the living room after checking Magnus' bedroom and finding that he wasn't there.

"In the study, sweet pea!" Came his reply.

Madzie ran towards the study and peeked her head inside from the slightly ajar door.

"Maagnus?"

Magnus stopped whatever he was doing and looked at her peeking face then sighed.

"Now what can I do for you, your highness?" He said playfully.

Madzie giggled then ran towards him, he caught her by arms and swung her in circles then held her in arms. They both were laughing by the end.

"Cookies, I want cookies, teach me how to bake them, after that we'll paaaaarty."

"Okay, okay, my lady. Go to the kitchen and wait for me, I'll be there in five minutes. And no use of magic."

"Okay." He put her down on the floor and kissed her cheeks then she ran out of his office.

After five minutes when he reached the kitchen, he saw the slab filled with a flour packet, baking soda jar, salt jar, melted butter, brown sugar, and white sugar packets, a vanilla extract box, some eggs, a packet of choco chips and the measuring tools. He looked around and found Madzie sitting on the floor waiting for him. He sighed and shook his head.

"I think I said no magic, Madzie!"

"Oopsie!" She said innocently trying to hide her giggles.

"Someone's really impatient. Now come here." He conjured a chair for her, so she can be at a proper height.

"First, we are going to measure everything. Listen carefully, two cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted, 1 cup of brown sugar,

1/2 cup of white sugar, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract. We need 1 egg, 1 egg yolk, and 2 cups of chocolate chips." While she was on it, he put the oven to preheat at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then explained to her what he did, and helped her with the eggs.

"Good, now in one bowl we put the measured flour, baking soda, salt, and mix them well." He said and guided her wherever needed. He noticed that her tongue was slightly out and there was a slight frown on her forehead because of the concentration and a light smile formed on his lips.

"Now?" She asked excitedly.

"Now, we're going to take a large bowl, then put the melted butter in it, and beat it to a certain amount of consistency." He showed her how to do it. "Now, we'll add the brown sugar and white sugar in it and mix it well. After that, we're going to add the vanilla extract and mix it again." He guided her throughout, the smile never leaving his face.

"Yay! It's looking good. Now what, Magnus?"

"Now we'll add eggs in it and mix it again."

"Done!" She exclaimed.

"Now add all the flour mixture and chocolate chips in it and mix them all together. The dough should be soft."

"Done, is it good?"

He poked his finger over the dough to test the texture, it was smooth and soft. "Perfect!" He smiled at her.

"Yay! What's next, Magnus?" She said while clapping her hands.

"Now," he bent down, and from the lower cabinet he took out a large sheet and a huge plate. "This is called a cookie sheet, and this one is the baking tray." He kept the tray on the table and spread the sheet evenly on the tray with the help of Madzie.

"Now, we'll take a spoon and scoop up ball-sized pieces of dough, and then carefully place them on the cookie sheet, at an equal distance." He handed her a spoon and watched her doing her stuff.

"Done!"

"Now, after five minutes we're going to put this in the oven for 10-15 minutes."

"Okay!"

They put the tray in the oven and waited for the buzzer to went off. In the meantime, Madzie told him all the stories and gossip she got to know from her classes held in New York.

That was something Magnus liked, not the gossip, but the new system of classes held for warlock children, more like a school, led by powerful warlocks to help them control and teach the right way to use their magic, which was starting to spread all across the globe. It wasn't just a school consisting of classes but also an orphanage for those poor warlock kids whom those terrified mundanes thinking they bore a monster, left them to rot in the streets. He was really grateful for the warlocks who led this orphanage/school and partially proud because this was the idea of his husband, and he did everything he could to make sure it happens. His chain of thoughts suddenly broke by a loud buzzing sound.

"Is it ready?" Madzie asked excitedly.

"Yes, sweet pea." He shut the oven, wore the baking gloves, took out the tray, and kept it on the slab.

"Yay, cookies! Cookies!" She went forward to take one when Magnus slapped away her hand gently.

"It's too hot right now, sweet pea, you'll burn your mouth. Let it cool down a little."

"Okay." She said in a fake upset voice.

When Magnus went to keep the gloves away, she waved her fingers over the tray and cooled it down a little in an instant.

"Madzie!" Magnus exclaimed when he saw what she did. "I said no magic, miss. You're way too impatient, huh!" He went towards her and started tickling her all over. Soon the whole kitchen was filled with her laughter.

"Ma... hehe... Mag... hehehe... Maaagnus... stop!"

"Fine, young lady!" He said when he himself was exhausted.

He then picked up a few cookies from the tray, took her towards the living room, sat on the couch with Madzie on his lap, and gave a few cookies to her. He took a large bite of his own cookie savoring its delicious taste, it was baked perfectly.

"It's yummy! I'll try making it at home!" She said with a mouthful of her own.

"You can, but with your mom, you won't step in the kitchen alone. Understood?"

"Okay." She said sweetly. "Maagnus? Can we party now?"

Magnus sighed. "Yes, sweet pea, we can."

"Yaaaay! Party! Party!" She started jumping in her place, making him uncomfortable.

"Calm down, you bundle of energy! What do want to have at this party?"

"Can I summon the party decorations?" She asked innocently with her puppy eyes.

"Okay, sweet pea." He said defeated.

Within a minute the whole loft was decorated with pink and white balloons, the floor was filled with light blue balloons, the table in front of them was covered with different kinds of chips, popcorn, and soft drinks, and some party music was playing on high volume.

"Oh my, sweet pea." He clicked his fingers and lowered the volume of the music. But what caught him off guard was the sudden pouring down of rainbow-colored glitters in the whole apartment. He looked at Madzie in disbelief.

"Yay! Yay! Glitter rain!" She started bouncing on the couch with laughter.

"Madzie!" Magnus exclaimed. "You know Alec will punish me if he'll find out about this, right?"

"But you love glitter, Magnus!" She said trying to hide her giggles but failing miserably.

"You did this on purpose, didn't you, you naughty girl." He caught her and started tickling her all over again. Suddenly his doorbell rang making both of them stop with what they were doing.

'Weird! There shouldn't be any client at this time.' he thought then clicked his fingers and vanished all the glitter from the apartment and from both of their bodies. As much as he loved glitter this was actually too much.

He went to open the door and found a woman standing there, with long black hairs wearing a deep blue colored formal dress. What caught his eyes were her pointed ears, dog ears to be specific. A warlock mark.

"Yes?" He asked firmly.

"You must be Magnus Lightwood Bane, I'm Aurelia Rose, Madzie's teacher. Catarina told me she's staying here."

"Yeah, she is, come in!" He said while shaking hands with her. "Sweet pea, it's your... Madzie! Again!" By the time they reached the living room, she started a glitter rain again.

"Miss Rose!" She said excitedly and ran towards her, putting Magnus in trouble completely forgotten.

"Hey, bumblebee!" She bent down and hugged her tightly. "Looks like you both were having a party!"

"Yeah, she was excited about a party since morning. What brings you here, Aurelia?" Magnus asked, confused, and curious.

"Our New York school is hosting a world tour for all the children including the orphan warlocks so that they can explore the world, meet more warlocks around the world, and interact with them. Learn new things as much as they can. I came to pick her up. If that's what you want, bumblebee!"

"Yay! A trip! A trip! Magnus, I'm going on a trip!"

Magnus smiled fondly at her excitement then looked at Aurelia. "When she has to leave?"

"In an hour if possible. All the kids will be at the school in an hour, we've created a permanent portal room at the school so that they can travel easily."

"Oh, okay, there are a few of her stuff is here, but the rest is at Catarina's. I'll talk to her." A wave of disappointment crept over Magnus, but he hid it with a smile.

After talking to Catarina and preparing Madzie for the trip, who was head over heels for the trip the whole time, he waved her goodbye then came back to his apartment.

As soon as he stepped out the portal into his apartment, a wave of sadness and disappointment washed down on him. He looked around the room which was still decorated with balloons, he suddenly felt really empty. He clicked his fingers and cleaned the whole apartment, then sat on the couch, a feeling of loneliness crept over him. The house felt too empty and suffocating to him. He wanted to leave the house as soon as possible. He got up and created a portal and stepped into it.

When he stepped out of the portal, he found himself standing outside a bar in Germany. After taking a deep breath stepped in and ordered a Dry Martini, eager to clear his head filled with disappointment and loneliness. He kept ordering a refill of his drink, completely oblivious to a pair of eyes watching his every move.

[tirednotflirting]

but we were something, don't you think so?

vaguely based on ‘the one’ by taylor swift and also my walk home on an afternoon in july last year

also i asked helen if my writing lashton card gets revoked if i write something sad. will report back on what she decides.

(i apologize now for the tense issues in this i am still Learning how to not do that but i think it’s pretty obvious what takes place in the present and what does not)

oh and here is the ao3 link !

It’s a blazing hot early afternoon in July when Luke sees Ashton for the first time in over a year. 

(It’s been 13 months and 12 days since he last saw Ashton. It was on a cooler day in early May and he had been wearing the blue sweater. The one that made the green in his eyes stand out more than normal. But Luke likes to pretend he doesn’t keep track of that so consistently.)

It had been a good morning. Luke opened at the office that day so he had the privilege of making the first pot of coffee, getting to experience the rich smell filling the space while he responded to emails and voicemails. He had a brief chat with his favorite mail delivery person about their plans for the weekend and the renovations happening in the bathroom down the hall. His boss assigned him a list of names to call to discuss their fall registration complications. The time passed quickly with the phone chatter and two cups of coffee out of his favorite mug.

His replacement for the afternoon shift showed up on time for once and he shouted his goodbyes out as he left the office. He was eager to get back to the apartment he shared with Calum so they could head to the store and grab drinks and snacks for the concert in the park they had decided to attend that night. Last time they had gone to the event just the three of them, he had let Michael and Calum do the drink run and they ended up deciding that Jello shots were to be the drink of choice and all of the families attending gave them disappointed looks the whole night.

Luke walks through campus, his t shirt sticking to him a bit in the heat, and catches up on the texts he had missed from his mom and brothers. He takes a moment to appreciate the serenity of his university campus when it’s all empty in the summer, the only other people around being the occasional professor or a local family taking a walk with sunhats and a stroller. 

He’s just gotten a text from Calum asking when he’ll be back at their apartment and Luke is responding with an estimated time of arrival, factoring in the time it should take for him to grab an iced coffee on the way, when he looks up once he reaches the street corner. He’s only meaning to check for cars and to see how many seconds are left before he can cross when he sees him. 

Luke didn’t expect the way his heart would drop straight into his stomach when he saw Ashton again. Didn’t expect the way the message on his phone (one important to respond to unless he wants to get plastered off of vodka and Jello in public again) would be completely dismissed when he saw the black curls of the man who had made him feel like everything. The way his fingers felt like they were on fire. 

He also never expected Ashton to lock eyes with him the first time they saw each other again. 

But oddly enough, he is.

Two things flood into Luke’s mind then. The first is that Ashton doesn’t look bad. He’s got his hands shoved into black jeans that aren’t at all appropriate for the current weather. His hair is longer than he had kept it in quite some time, tied back into a tiny bun that rests just above the tattoo at his neck that he had gotten junior year (Luke still remembers his hand being sore for a couple of days because of how tightly Ashton had gripped it while the gun buzzed along his tanned skin). And his calm gaze holds Luke’s in a way that he had only just recently stopped craving four times a day at least.

The second thing that comes to mind is a day from two years earlier, probably almost exactly two years (if it wouldn’t nearly physically pain him to see their happy, drunken smiles from that day, Luke would have thought later to look through his camera roll to check if he was right). 

*

Ashton had only officially asked Luke to be his boyfriend about a month prior, just after finals ended. It was the summer after Luke’s freshman year, the summer he started working his campus office job that allowed him a reason to stay in the city with his friends and his boyfriend. One of Calum’s older sister’s friends needed to rent out her room for the summer and Luke’s advisor had offered him the job. It was a perfect storm. 

After work one day in June, Luke headed back toward the student apartments to Ashton’s building, his smile lazy but bright as he headed into a weekend and his boyfriend’s home. It was still very new, his relationship with Ashton, but it felt very big, very important. If he wasn’t so high on his love for the curly haired philosophy major and the feeling of being in the city in the summer, he might have taken the time to think a bit more critically about what it meant to dive in so deep with someone so fast. But then he felt a breeze in the air and the sun shining on his face, and he figured that was something to worry about on another day. Things were really good.

He punches the door code at the front of the building and climbs the stairs two at a time up two floors. When he turns out of the stairwell, he grasps the handle to the first door on the right, left unlocked since he was expected that afternoon. 

“Honey, I’m home?” he calls out as he pulls at the laces on his Converse so he can leave them at the shoe rack before continuing into the cozy space. The coziness of the place felt a little odd for June, a candle that smelled like Christmas burning somewhere based on the mix of the smell of sugar cookies and pine that meets Luke’s nose as he hangs his backpack on his designated hook. But that was Ashton, always curating his spaces to feel what he wanted. During one of the first few times they had hung out the previous January, Ashton had insisted on popsicles. It was one of the things Luke felt himself already loving about him.

Luke frowns at the lack of response to his greeting and makes his way down the hall to the kitchen, his sock-covered feet sliding a bit on the wood floor. He turns into the kitchen and finds that the cookie smell had been due not to a candle but real life cookies that were cooling on a rack on the counter behind a headphone-clad Ashton. Luke laughs quietly to himself, wondering what the occasion was as he continues through the space and checks to make sure there’s nothing hot or sharp in his boyfriend’s hands before wrapping his arms around his waist. He lets his hands clasp together at his stomach and huffs out a giggle when he feels him jump with surprise.

Ashton uses his free hand not holding a spatula to pull his headphones off his head, hanging them from one of the cabinet handles. He leaves the utensil in the bowl and turns in Luke’s arms to face him, his arms wrapping around the blonde’s neck. “Hey you,” he beams, his arms tightening some to pull Luke closer to brush their lips together in greeting. Luke notes to himself that he must have been sampling his cookie dough from the sugar against his own lips now. “Didn’t hear you come in.”

“Seems like you were busy,” Luke smiles, moving one of his hands from Ashton’s back to gesture to the kitchen. 

Ashton lights up, his dimples deepening as he smiles. “Oh, yeah! Wanted snacks for the show tonight.”

A confused look drops to Luke’s face. “Didn’t remember that we bought tickets for something tonight? Where is it at?”

“We don’t have tickets for anything. There’s this free concert series at the park that I thought would make a wonderful Friday night date night and I am determined to continue wooing you. So I bought pink wine and I’m making cookies.”

Luke releases his arms from his waist then, moving to the side to dip his finger into the cookie dough to taste it. “Consider me wooed. That sounds lovely.”

He’s ushered out of the space to sit at the counter then so Ashton can continue working. He’s given a glass of lemonade and tells Ashton all about his day, about the students who came into the office for help with registration things and the dogs that he saw on his walk to campus. Luke gets Ashton to talk some about what they’re going to and it’s apparently Ashton’s favorite part of the summer. He goes into a story about a sweet dog and baby he got to meet when sharing a beer with some dad at one of the shows the previous summer.

“It’s funny because last summer it was my favorite thing to do with just me,” Ashton starts as he packs the cookies into plastic bags to put in a tote with the wine that he’s already poured into plastic bottles (glass wasn’t allowed at the park). “But I got the email about the set for tonight and I don’t know, I think it could be nice if this becomes our thing in the summer, you know?”

He turns up to look for a response from Luke and is met with the likely hilariously bright blush that Luke feels creeping up to paint across his cheeks and nose. He giggles to himself and raises his brows at the blonde as he packs some strawberries and cherries away to take with them as well. “I’ll take that as a good response to the idea then?”

Luke bites at his lip as he smiles. “That sounds incredible.”

They take the bus to the park. The sky is just dipping into golden hour as they dance their way to where the other attendees have their blankets set up for the evening. Luke makes Ashton stop his skipping for just a moment, claiming he needs him to stand still and smile for a lock screen picture, please. They find a good spot next to a group of women who brought their dogs and boxed wine and immediately start telling them how cute of a couple they are. Luke blushes fiercely as Ashton kisses his cheek, resulting in a chorus of squeals from their neighbors. They introduce themselves and the dogs and it’s really all something out of a film, Luke thinks.

They chat about work and summer courses some more and exchange stories from their younger years they have yet to share while sipping wine from plastic cups. Ashton lets Luke feed him cookies and they listen to the women tell stories from their many years of coming to the shows there. Luke sits between Ashton’s legs as they listen, gentle and thankful smiles on their faces, and Ashton reaches for one Luke’s hands, weaving their fingers together and resting them against Luke’s lap. 

The sun sets further and the music starts. They thank their new friends for the stories and smile respectfully, blushes on both of their faces hidden in the twilight when the women request invitations to their wedding. Ashton is stunned silent (a rare occurrence, really) so Luke makes sure to tell them he’ll add them to the guest list. 

It’s during the main set that Luke realizes he wants to live in this night for the rest of his life maybe. His back is against the chest of the first boy he’s ever loved, his body rising and falling just slightly with Ashton’s breathing and singing and laughter. The hazel eyed boy has one arm wrapped securely around Luke’s waist while the other lifts the water bottle of rose to his lips every so often. Luke finds that he feels so safe in that moment, like because of this night, nothing in the world could ever hurt him because he feels so high up in the air. He feels Ashton tilt his head some to place his lips against Luke’s neck, and he just never wants this to end.

Eventually it does though, of course. They fold up their blanket, smiles on their faces after the band closed with a cover of one of their favorite songs. Goodbyes and promises to meet up at the next show are made as their new friends wander off. Luke jokes that he’ll have to tell his mom about how easily the pair of them are able to make company with women like her friends. On the bus back to the apartment complex, Ashton sleepily leans against Luke and the blonde cards his fingers through his hair, smiling at the bright, fruity scent of Ashton’s cologne he keeps catching a whiff of. 

They stumble into the apartment, slightly tipsy off the wine and each other, only pausing to brush their teeth and change into something more comfortable to sleep in before falling into Ashton’s bed. They face each other and Luke kisses at Ashton’s laughter lines as their legs tangle together. 

“God,” Ashton bites his lip against a smile as he lifts a hand to cup Luke’s cheek, his thumb stroking across his cheekbone. “I have no idea what good I did to deserve you.”

“Glad we’re on the same page,” Luke sighs as he leans into the warm hand on his cheek. “I think I might love you. Is that okay?”

Before responding, Ashton lifts his chin slightly to press his lips to Luke’s forehead. They breathe in unison for a moment before he moves to look Luke in the eye. “Only if it’s okay that I might love you.”

Sleep finds them quickly after their (almost, maybe) confessions.

*

The memory fades out like a fog when Ashton’s eyes pull away from Luke’s when the signal changes for Ashton to cross the street taking him in the opposite direction. Luke finds himself unable to tell if he wants the black-haired boy to turn back to face him or not. He’s not sure which action would break his heart apart more. As he watches him walk into the crosswalk, he feels another memory, this one quite the opposite feeling to the first, start to creep into the edges of his brain but he finds himself able to push that one down (thankfully).

He takes a deep breath as he watches Ashton continue down the street, not once looking back to see if Luke is still looking at him. And when his own walk sign lights up, it takes Luke just a moment to get his feet to start moving again as one single thought fills his mind so many times it feels like it’s blocking his vision.

If one thing happened different, would everything be different today?

He crosses the street then and continues down in that direction, deciding to take just a slightly longer route so his feet don’t have to take any of the same path as his ex-lover. He sighs then but as he feels a somewhat nostalgic summer breeze cool his face, Luke pulls his phone out to text the group message to ask if they want to help him make sugar cookies to take along with them to the park.

(That night, for just a moment, he swears he sees Ashton again a few picnic blankets away, his head tucked into the neck of another boy with curly hair. But then the boy sits up to laugh at something the other has said and Luke realizes it isn’t his past love. But the odd sense of hopefulness he had felt for the couple when he thought it was Ashton tells him that maybe one day he’ll really feel okay.)

*

[doctorwhoformybestie]

Anon asked,

hello, could you write something with eleven where he takes the reader to an amusement park or something of the like on another planet and they spend the day there? maybe aliens show up, I don’t know, up to you! thanks love :)

So here's my best shot! I hope you enjoy it!

11th Doctor x reader

Visiting Childhood Places

The Doctor takes y/n to his favorite place in the whole wide galaxy.

Word Count 2,018

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

"Doctor, where are we going today?" You asked as you leaned your back against the railing. 

"Oh I thought, we could go somewhere fun today!" He looked over to you smiling from the control panel. 

Usually when the Doctor says, "fun" he means, "go to another planet and get accidently caught by aliens and sent to jail". So when you gave him a skeptical look he was not surprised to see it coming from you. Many times you were told places would be fun. Meeting Christopher Columbus was supposed to be fun and it was, until the doctor found out that Chris was just a clone who was part of some ancient alien race trying to take over the new colonie. Then that led to more danger and big spaceships. But in the end everyone was okay and ended up alive, and all of history was put back into place. 

The Doctor just smiled at you, "trust me this one won't be as bad as the times before." 

"I'll be the judge of that" you replied with a sly grin and a wink. 

He laughed it off and started pulling levers and twisting knobs. The Tardis started making its iconic wooshing sound. You held onto the railing and was laughing as the Doctor jumped from here to there to get the spaceship to travel to wherever you were going. 

As the Tardis settled down, the Doctor was ecstatic. He ran over to you with a happy smile, grabbed your hands and twirled you around. 

You were astounded by his giddiness over one place. The last time he was this happy was when he learned to rollerskate. You had the biggest smile on your face as he twirled you around in a few more circles. 

"Are you ready?" He asked as he stopped spinning you and took one of your hands. 

You nodded your head and his eyes lit up. You followed the Doctor to the door of the Tardis. 

"Now, when I say fun, this is what I mean. I haven't been here in hundreds of years!" 

He swung open the door and stepped out with you right behind him. 

"Welcome to the biggest amusement park on the planet Aerelia. Where all aliens can come together and have some fun!" 

You looked at the place amazed. The whole place was like a human amusement park but 10 times bigger. There were rollercoasters, some with tracks some without. Food vendors everywhere, selling treats from all sorts of different planets around the galaxies. Aliens of all sorts were walking up and down the long walkways. Some of the aliens you could recognize were the ood, slitheen, adipose, and vinvocci, but there were a lot more that you did not know. Balloons and what looked to be cotton candy were being sold by some aliens walking around the park as well.

"Doctor this place! It's just incredible!" You exclaimed.

His eyes darted from one thing to the next like a child in a candy store. He started walking and you went along with him as both of your hands were glued to each other. 

It was like walking in a wonderland filled with all sorts of delights and games, rides that you've never seen before that look quite scary. 

"I was never fond of those ones" the Doctor would say as he pointed up to the huge roller coasters that floated above and around you. Some flipping people upside down while others just flashed before you like a speed of light.

"Are you telling me you're actually scared of something Doctor?" 

"Well, not really. Just found other things around here to fill my time with." He smiled at you with eyes that were filled with kindness.

"Okay then Doctor. Show me what a normal day would be like here if you were a kid?" 

His smile got much wider and he seemed to accept the challenge.

"One must first partake in the eating of a fried zigtobno." 

"A what?" 

"A fried zigtobno. It's quite delicious really! Somewhat of a funnel cake as they would call it on Earth." 

You gave him a confused look as he led you down the aisle of food vendors, surrounding you on both sides. Many of the places had small lines, but the one the Doctor was leading you to had no line at all. 

It was a small yellow shack that had a sign above it that said 

~FRESH FRIED ZIGTOBNO~

The alien inside was a small creature with 4 tentacles running down its face. It looked like a small ood but with a shrimp like head with a human body. It had what seemed to be a thick layer of flour all over his apron, and when he moved the flour seemed to move with him like a ghost. 

"Ahh Herbert my good pal! How's it been?" The Doctor flew his hand onto the counter and Herbet flew his hand on top of the Doctors. They did a very interesting hand shake that consisted of fistbumps, finger snaps, a pinky promise and at the end the Doctor made a bird call while the Shrimp man (or whatever he was) just put his hand up to his eyes and covered them.

After the complex ritual, Herbet and the Doctor started laughing. 

"Good to see ya old pal! What can I get for you and your lovely misses today?"

You slightly blushed at the choice of words this Shrimp man had said. 

"Just one fresh fried zigtobno please!" 

Herbert smiled and whipped around to fix up a zigtobno. Although you couldn't see what exactly he was making it sure did smell good. 

"How long have you known Herbert?" You asked out of curiosity.

"Oh just around 400 years or so. Great pal. He saved me from a trash can falling on me once. That's the day I fell in love with his food stand. Never wanted any other food than fresh fried zigtobno." He stood there with his eyes closed smelling the sweet smell that was coming from the little shed. 

"One order for you Doctor." 

The Doctor was reaching inside his pocket but before he could pull out anything Herbert just said, "Don't worry about it. This one's on me." 

The Doctor smiled and patted Herbert on the arm. "Thanks friend. I owe you one!" He smiled and grabbed the zigtobno and walked over to a bench, sitting where you could look off at all the rides in the area. 

The zigtobno was not what you were expecting. It had a cinnamon roll type texture but it was in one big heaping like an elephant ear. The powder that was on top of it consisted of pastel colors that luminated in the sunshine. 

"Here you have the first bite." The Doctor said as he held the paper plate the food was on. 

You tore off a piece and it was slightly gooey on the inside. Not sure if it was completely baked or it was supposed to be like that you took a bite anyways. 

Your eyes light up like a million stars, as you tasted the pastry. The dough tasted as though a fresh warm baguette, with the powder as cool strawberries all mixed with a slight chocolate flavor hinting on the tip of your tounge. 

"This is the best food I've ever had. Like better than Aunt Cindy's raspberry tart she makes for Christmas." 

The Doctor laughed as you quickly reached for another piece and ate it quickly. He joined in as well and ate the simple pastry made by the Shrimp man Herbert.

Once you were both done eating, the Doctor continued to show you around a few more of his favorite places. Some of which were the center drama, where mini plays were put on throughout the day. The one you ended up watching was like a Romeo and Juliet spin-off. Instead of them both dying they just left Earth with some aliens and started a whole new colony. The Doctor thought it was fantastic while you on the other hand thought it could have been a little less cliche. But come on, it's Romeo and Juliet we're talking about. 

He also showed you some of his favorite rides like the flying dragons, which you could control going up and down. And let's be honest the Doctor did most of the controls himself.  Another ride was more like a simulation of whether you could get out in 10 minutes or not. And again he did most of the work for that one as well.

But as the day went on the night started to fall and it was getting quite late. You were getting slightly tired from all the fun you've been having, but the Doctor had one more thing purposefully planned put. (Apparently it's been planned for quite some time. But you know time travel and how that all works, and let's be honest he probably wandered off to run to the Tardis and do this because he just thought of it like 2 seconds ago)

The sky was almost fully dark and the stars were shining brightly. The Doctor led you to one last ride, a ferris wheel. 

He checked his watch and started mumbling under his breath. "Right. Now just wait a few more ticks and then we should be good to go." 

You kept giving him sideways glances as you walked up to the large ferris wheel. 

"Did you know that this was built only 200 years ago, and it still runs to this day!" You could tell he was getting nervous. Spilling out random facts about random things was what he did when he got nervous. Yet you had no idea why he was so scared over one ride on the ferris wheel. Didn't he want to go on it? Was he that afraid of heights?

With a slight "hmm" the Doctor seemed to settle down a bit and slowly started to relax more. 

When you reached the line the doctor handed the ticket taker 2 very old fashioned tickets. The ticket taker smiled and then winked at me as we entered the cart. 

When the Doctor walked in he turned around to see what my reaction would be. 

The cart was filled with fuzzy blankets, a tub of popcorn, and a giant zigtobno placed on the seats across from us. The Doctor smiled as he saw my eyes light up with joy. 

"Did you do all of this?" 

"Oh possibly. Maybe it was the past me, or the future me, hard to tell sometimes." He smiled and sat down on the right side of the cart. You joined him and then the wheel started turning up. 

When the wheel was at the very tippy top it stopped. You could see the whole sky from up there. Galaxies and stars could be seen from up here. 

Soon shooting stars started to light the sky. 

"Doctor this is amazing!" 

He smiled as the stars were passing the both you from up above. 

"Tonight marks the 500th year anniversary of the legend of Mika and Woo. The ones the play were about."

Ahh yes the cringy Romeo and Juliet play that you watched earlier that day. 

The Doctor slowly placed his arm around your shoulder as he continued talking. 

"Legend has it that once that Mika and Woo landed on an abandoned planet they started their own colony. Representing peace for all alien races. That's what this place represents, peace for all to come together as one."

"That's just beautiful Doctor" 

"I know isn't it?" He turned his head every so slightly to get a glimpse of your amazed face. 

You slowly put your head down on his shoulder, the Doctor tensed up a bit not knowing what to do. But as minutes went on he started to relax. 

About 10 mins later you were out asleep, from such a long day you had the Doctor did not blame you. 

He gently placed a soft kiss on top of your head and then continued to fall asleep himself. 

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

A/N thanks so much for reading I hope you enjoyed it! If you have any requests please feel free to pop a question!

[efrmellifer]

FFxivWrite ‘20, Fourteen

Prompt: Part, post-Shadowbringers (spoiler-free), 1,610 words

Remaining silent save for the rusting of branches as she plucked at them, Etien listened to the sounds of Upper La Noscea as she gathered rolanberries.

Now, granted, she was going to be experimenting. But she had always been working off her memory of her mother’s recipe for these pastries, and now it had been quite a while since she’d made them last.

The last time would have been… oh, she’d still been living with the Fortemps family. So that was a few years back now. Though, she’d been making these with her mother since she was little, so she doubted she’d forgotten the recipe. At least, in broad strokes. She might forget minor details.

But her mother had on and off, too. And they had always turned out okay.

For what it was worth, Aymeric had never complained about the last batch she’d made and given him anonymously (unless Lucia had told on her. Gods, she hoped not). But whether he’d known Etien had been responsible for them or not, he was too polite to make comments like that unbidden.

She bit her lip, dropping another berry into her basket.

She probably wasn’t going to need many more than this, considering the berries would be halved, then quartered, and made into something nearing a preserve before they were put into the dough and baked up. Not to mention, half of them were going to be chocolate anyway.

She looked at the berries in her basket, counting them and trying to imagine their volume when they’d been chopped up and boiled down.

Aye, that’d be enough. She rose to her feet, groaning at finally getting off her knees, and headed into Bronze Lake to travel back to Ishgard by Aetheryte.

As Etien pulled out the dough from where she’d put it away to chill, she wondered absently how she hadn’t been caught yet. She supposed it made sense, when she’d stayed up late (or rather, Aymeric had gone to bed early) to start the dough, mixing the ingredients and kneading it out again before she’d put it away the night before, but still. How had no one seen it?

Oh, well. It was probably better that way, since if no one had seen, they couldn’t have altered it.

She turned the bowl out onto the floured surface again, parting the dough carefully, fingers digging into the pillow-y softness. She’d crinkled her nose at working the butter in last night, but now she had to admit it did smell nice. She dropped half the dough back into the bowl for safekeeping, and began rolling out what remained, slicing it up.

Then she turned to the stove, lifting up the pot of rolanberries and running a spoon through them to check their consistency. Not that it mattered; if it had turned to jam, she would just add more to each of the rolls.

She dipped her finger into the still-hot fruit mixture, checking if it was sweet enough while she still had the chance to add sweetener. She’d started with honey, but now she was debating the merits of adding birch syrup.

She shrugged, putting the pot down. That could go on top later.

She started spooning out thick dollops of the berry preserves, spreading them across the pale expanses of dough, the motion becoming rhythmic as she started humming, her mind wandering.

She couldn’t really remember what she had been thinking about by the time the first set of pastries, packed to leaking with rolanberry, were rolled up and sitting on the pan, but she regained her focus as she covered them and put them aside to start rising while she worked on the chocolate ones.

These were the ones her mother had specialized in, preparing them for special occasions and rising early to be sure the job was done by the time the rest of the family woke.

To eat these was like tasting home, enjoying a bite of the past for Etien. She had hoped to pass along that comfort in some small way when she’d made them last time, though seeing as she had refused to admit she had been the anonymous giver, she’d never gotten to explain herself.

Well, this was her second chance, wasn’t it?

She watched the dough stretch as she cut and pulled it into eight equal parts. She tipped her head, brow knitting, at the fact that this half of the dough was producing smaller pieces, but couldn’t do anything now but shake her head. She just hoped these got extra-puffy when they rose.

She laid the chocolate down in the center of these, unlike streaking the preserves toward the edge like she had before. These were always a little thicker and more like a bread in Etien’s memory, so that was what she attempted now, as always.

She letter-folded the pastry dough, sealing up the chocolate within and nodding decisively. These, she would let rise seam-up, so she could tell the difference when they had finished baking. She covered these as well, and put them next to their berried siblings to all rise together, and dusted the flour off her hands before it could get all over her clothing.

She snapped her fingers with a curse under her breath just before she slid the trays into the oven. She’d forgotten a step. But she still had a chance to get it done.

“Eggs, eggs,” she mumbled to herself, praying there was one left in the pantry. She cracked it into a bowl, stirring it rapidly and brushing it over the tops of the pastries.

Only a third of a bell until they were done now.

She had the feeling her mother had used some trick to make everything settle in the dough faster, since Etien had never seen her starting them the day (or two full nights, if she’d wanted to wait that long) before. And now she’d never find out what that secret was.

She sighed a little, leafing through Aymeric’s favorite cookbook again. Things like that made her miss her mother. It was one thing when she was busy with the Scions, swept up in action and adventure and the go-go-go of it all. And when she was occupied with the family she’d found (and made for herself) in Ishgard, she didn’t usually think about it. She was who she was now, what she’d been formed into.

But when she was by herself like this, struggling to remember the steps she’d watched her mother make over and over, then she felt unmoored, adrift on a Shroud breeze that became a Coerthan wind. She had been a daughter once in more than title.

She brought a hand up to her mouth and nose, in case she started crying. She already felt the pressure on her eyes. She could denounce her father all she wanted, but she missed her mother. She missed M’ertle and M’ynstrel, too, but she’d found a facsimile in Alisaie and Alphinaud, so that sting was reduced.

But Etien didn’t really have her mum, any mother figure, anymore. Feo Ul had been maternal, maybe—she thought of the tiny Pixie hand on her cheek, the soft ‘are they hurting you?’—but it wasn’t quite the same, was it? Anyone who could have been a mother figure was really more like an older sister.

The scent of butter pastry filled the air, and the timer (a nail driven into a candle falling to the table) sounded.

Etien wiped at her eyes, despite their dryness, and headed back to the oven, pulling the trays out.

Golden-toned and puffed perfectly. Just the way her mother had made them. At least she still had that.

When Aymeric came in, Etien was trying her damnedest to get something together for dinner. Luckily, it wasn’t too hard to whip together a pasta dish, but she still felt bad as she divided it up onto plates.

“Sorry it’s late,” she murmured as she set it down on the table.

“That’s all right,” he replied simply. “I needed the time to catch my breath. I got a little extra work done. I hope you didn’t rush too much.”

“Not too much,” she answered, sitting down opposite him. “I guess you could say I lost track of time. I was baking, a little personal project.”

“Do I get to test the fruits of your labor?”

She laughed. “You will. But not until after you’ve had your fill of that.”

Their plates emptied, it had come time to retire to their usual lounging. So Etien grabbed the basket of pastries, bringing them with her as she sat down on the loveseat, pulling the blanket over her lap.

Aymeric came in with the tea, and as soon as he’d set the cups down, immediately lifted one of the top-seamed baked goods.

He smelled it, explaining, “the scent of freshly-baked breads is just intoxicating. I wish I had been here to enjoy the aroma as they baked.”

Etien smiled, moving her legs so he could sit down.

He did, wrapping an arm around her so she could lean against him fully and taking a bite of the pastry.

“Oh. I’ve had one of these before. After…” he squinted, and his voice lowered. “After the Vault.”

Etien nodded slowly.

“I never did find out who sent them.” He looked over to see her expression, nearing embarrassed. “Oh, dearest, were you too shy?”

She covered a laugh that sounded more like a sob. “Do you like it?”

“I do! I liked them then, too.”

She relaxed, merrily sipping her tea and taking the bite Aymeric offered her.

Damn, she forgot the birch syrup.

[alittleyellowdinosaur]

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

So i made this here post about how satisfying making my own bread is, and, by my 300 followers, 6 notes on a good day, 0 on personal post standards, it went viral. So i thought I’d give you guys the recipe. It’s a mashup of this recipe, my own shit, and an idea from another recipe that i can’t find again to give them credit. Since i only took proportions from the first one i’m calling this my own recipe. I’m also going to go a bit into bread baking tips and tricks just in case this is your first time making bread and you want to get started on that cottagecore life. Now go bake some fine ass cinnamon rolls folks! ( @good-vibes-by-noel this here’s for you!)

Photo sucks but i couldnt get a better one because they didn’t last the night. Whoops! This is what they’ll look like though!

Time: like 2 hours, give or take, but you can do other shit during most of that.

Makes: 12, frankly giant, cinnamon rolls. good luck eating more than 2 at a time, seriously.

Ingredients: 

The Rolls:

1 cup warm milk (microwave in a mug for a minute and you are good. Any milk is fine, but i used fat free)

1 tablespoon dry instant yeast (about one and a quarter packets, but one should be fine, you just might need to extend rising times if it’s not working well)

2 tablespoons granulated sugar 

1 teaspoon salt 

1/2 cup (1 stick) and 3 tablespoons of melted butter (*** VERY IMPORTANT - melt the 3tbs and the 1/2 cup SEPARATELY or you’ll throw everything off.)

1 large egg

3 cups all-purpose flour (bread flour works too

1 cup brown sugar 

2 tablespoons cinnamon (yes the big ones) 

The Icing:

1 cup of icing (powdered) sugar (Starting point - I’ll explain later))

1 Tablespoon of milk  (Starting point)

1 teaspoon of vanilla

Directions:

 I added lots of bread fun facts to help you guys with other bread making endeavors, so it got long and is now under the cut!

Activate the yeast. Warm the milk up for a minute in the microwave, and mix that, the white sugar, and the yeast together. leave to rest for 5-10 minutes. you want it to look like the photo on the bottom, but if it isn’t as good, don’t freak out because you’ll be fine. Mine never look that good tbh, there’s a reason i was so proud. Bread Fun Fact: Less of a fun fact then just some advice, but buy the bulk jars of instant yeast. They keep forever in the fridge (always store yeast in the fridge btw) and are so much cheaper than buying packets. if you intend to make bread a lot, it’s the best way to save money. Plus, most recipes give tablespoon/teaspoon amounts, not packet amounts.

Once it looks all nice and foamy, add in the flour. On top of the flour, add the salt, egg, and 3 tablespoons of butter. You need to keep these as separate from the yeast as you can until you begin mixing - especially the salt, which will outright kill it. Always keep the salt and yeast separate guys!! Bread Fun Fact: Because you are adding eggs, butter, and milk instead of water, this type of bread is called an enriched bread. These breads are softer, fluffier, usually sweeter, and more complicated as they can take longer to rise. Yay! Doughs without these things are called Lean breads and include ciabatta, focaccia, and baguettes i think.

Mix and knead the dough. If you have a stand mixer, use the dough hook (the one that looks like Captain Hook got robbed), and mix it together until the dough forms on medium, then crank it for like 5 minutes on medium-high. If you are making this at 7 in the morning like i was and can’t wake people up, mix it by hand until combined, then knead for 10 ish minutes to build up the gluten strands on a clean table dusted with a bit of flour. The best method I’ve found is to stretch it out with the heel of your hand, roll it up, then rotate and repeat. Over and over and over.... Bread Fun Fact: You can tell you’ve done enough kneading by using the Window Pane Test. If you can stretch the dough far enough that you can see light through it without it breaking, then you’ve got enough gluten. That or go until it doesn’t look like it’s got cellulite anymore and is nice and smooth. The other test is if it bounces back when you poke it a bit. Also, when helping with kneading, for enriched breads use flour, for lean breads use oil!

Now comes the waiting. Grease the bowl you mixed in with some butter, and plop the ball of dough in. Cover with tight plastic to prevent air getting in (and creating a crusty skin that will inhibit rising), and a clean towel, and leave in a patch of sun or a warm place for 1 hour to rise. 

Before you go play video games/do work/fuck around, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon and melt the 1/2 cup of butter. Now go have fun.

When you get back, you should have a big bowl of risen dough. Now punch the sucker. Yes, you heard me, punch it. It’s called knocking it back and is absolutely essential in dough making. Now, pat the dough out into a 12 inch by 18 inch rectangle, approximately. Don’t use a rolling pin because it’ll mess the air up. Put about a quarter of the melted butter over the top, and then however much of the brown sugar - cinnamon mix you feel like (i put enough so that, when patted down a bit, it covered the whole thing evenly.) 

Roll the rectangle up along the longer edge. It helps to tack down one side by smearing it a bit onto the table. it just makes it easier to get a tight roll and helps the seam idk. Cut off the edges to get a clean roll, then cut 12 rolls, about an inch each or so. Bread Fun Fact: If you use a sharp knife, you are going to smush your rolls. The better way is to get tooth floss, though i highly advise not a mint one. Push it under the roll where you want the cut, cross over the two ends in your hands, and pull until you’ve sliced off the roll. makes it much neater and not smushy. 

Pour the rest of the cinnamon sugar mixture and butter into the bottom of a 13in by 9in pan, be it glass, metal, whatever you have is fine. Mix it together and make sure the sludge of deliciousness covers the whole bottom. Plop each off the rolls in there, in a 3 by 4 set up, cover with plastic and the towel, leave in sun, and go fuck off for a half hour or so. Honestly i never leave it that long because mine always get massive, so for me it’s always more like 15-20 minutes. Really just wait till they balloon up and fill the pan a bunch, but don’t worry if it’s not perfect because they’ll grow again in the oven. 

At some point while they are rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees (Fahrenheit). When you deem them risen enough and the oven is fully heated (YOU REALLY DO WANT TO PREHEAT IT THIS TIME GUYS TRUST ME ON THIS. if you dont you’ll probably burn your bread before it’s cooked), and bake for about 20-30 minutes. i know that’s a big iffy point, but pretty much just keep checking after around 20 minutes until they are colored brown on top and smell like heaven. (i’m going to be really honest with you, I’ve never baked them at 350 degrees, only at 325 like the recipe for the dough said, but that recipe is a liar because it took me a solid 30 minutes or more when it said that it should take 14. The op was eating undercooked bread guys. So do 350, but i can’t honestly tell you the right timing because i’ve only turned it up halfway through before) Bread Fun Fact: Because enriched breads, like this recipe, have more sugar than lean breads do, they can sometimes catch in the oven - or color too quickly and burn, when the inside still needs to cook. if this happens, you can always give them a little tin foil hat wherever it’s catching to prevent more coloring while not hindering cooking!

While it’s baking, mix together the icing. The amounts i gave are a starting point, because the icing is something you feel with your heart. add more sugar or more milk until you think you have enough for all 12 rolls and its the consistency you want. I made mine fairly thick so it wouldnt sink in and make the dough soggy, but i also made a shit ton because my family loves the icing. So go with the flow. 

When the cinnamon rolls are done, put the icing on and serve warm! Congrats, you’ve made cinnamon rolls entirely homemade, and you’ve now learned some basic bread making facts!! yay!!!

[takingcourage]

Bring to a Simmer

Pairing: Jaime x MC

Word Count: 2,200

Summary: Arden attempts to make the inaugural batch of ‘Dad and Arden’s Stroganoff,’ but with Jaime around, staying focused is more easily said than done. 

Note: This is just a silly little oneshot inspired by some optional dialogue from the “remembering mom” diamond scene in Chapter 13. I thought it could be a fun premise for a story, especially with a side of Jaime Lewis there to spice things up. Gosh, I’m going to miss this book. 

This also fulfills a request I received for kiss prompt #8 (the playful kiss on the tip of the nose). 

“I’ve got the onion sliced, pumpkin.”

Up to her elbows in flour, Arden looked over her shoulder toward to check her father’s progress at the breakfast table. “Great! I’ll bring the mushrooms over in just a minute.”

Turning her attention back to the recipe card in front of her, she mashed at the sticky dough again. It never looks this way on Bake Off, she considered, worrying her inner cheek against her teeth. But then again, they’re usually making pastry, not pasta. The thought made her feel slightly better, but she still had very little faith that the pasty substance before her was going to end up resembling anything close to her mother’s stroganoff noodles.

She pried one hand away from the clumpy mass, grimacing at the feeling of her very messy fingers sticking to the paper of the flour bag. How had her mom always managed to make cooking look so easy? Even a simple four-ingredient pasta dough was enough to tempt Arden toward a delivery service.

It’s not about the finished product, she reminded herself. This is about remembering mom and making new memories.

Picking at the excess lumps of dough from between her fingers, she wondered how she’d keep her father involved in the process once all of the ingredients had been chopped. His leg had been particularly bad today, which meant that he couldn’t spend much time on his feet without his trusty cane by his side. Unfortunately, canes and cooking didn’t mix particularly well.

“Can you see Jaime working out there?”

She smiled at his inquiry, lifting her eyes momentarily to catch a glimpse of the man at their fence line. “Yep, he’s hard at it. You’ll be really happy with how it looks, dad. I promise.”

“Your mother would have put me in the dog house if she’d seen how bad I let it get. I just…” His voice grew wistful as the sentence trailed, and Arden had to take a deep breath to steady herself.

“It just didn’t seem as important without her around. I think she’d forgive you.” 

The front yard had been a point of contention ever since her mother had fallen ill. Melinda Gale had always taken great pride in her plants, the perfect picket fence, her trailing ivy – all things that Harry only tended to on her behalf. In recent years, the yard had been gradually falling into a state of disrepair. 

Thank goodness for Jaime and his powers of persuasion. He’d been gently nudging for several months, and after coming home from the hospital, her father was finally ready to accept the offer. Arden was just glad that the matter had been resolved without too much nagging on her part.  

That’s not all I’m grateful for, she mused, sneaking another glance out the window. 

She’d known Jaime was attractive for years, but if possible, he’d grown even more gorgeous to her in the past week. Maybe it was because she’d been out of work and had had more time to appreciate him. Maybe it was because she’d seen every inch of him on the night after the gubernatorial debate and knew exactly what was hiding underneath those work clothes. Or maybe it was because she loved him. That word still made her pulse skip every time she thought it. 

Beyond being very nice to look at and prompting irregular heartbeats, he was also incredibly skilled at repairing fences. In a single afternoon, he’d managed to replace the missing and broken pickets, paint the entirety, and purchase new balusters for the front porch. His abilities seemed to go on without end. 

Arden’s own talents felt questionable at the moment, though her hands were becoming less laden with dough the more she rolled and patted the clump into submission. She gave it a final smack, drawing her hand away slowly to determine whether the consistency was ready for rolling.

Although she’d never assisted her mother in the process of making dough, she did have an idea, more or less, of what the final result should look like. The mass on the counter wasn’t an exact replica, but she didn’t think that her attempt was too far off.

At the table, her dad inhaled a sharp breath, but it was several long moments before his words came. “I’m glad you talked me into this, honey. I think your mom would probably get a kick out of watching our struggles in the kitchen.”

“So do I.” Smiling faintly at the thought, she sidestepped to the sink and began the chore of cleaning her hands.

“And she’d be even happier to see how well you and Jaime are getting along these days." 

Arden yanked the kitchen towel a little harder than intended, causing the cabinet door it hung from to squeal in protest. 

Her father clearly needed something else to keep him occupied.

Carrying in the colander of button mushrooms, she set them before the man without a word. As she traded him for the plate of onion slices, she caught the mischievous grin slanting its way up his face. 

"I’m not as blind as you think I am, Arden.”

“I know.”

“And he’s been looking at you like he wants to haul you off and marry you." 

She knew that too. 

Thankfully, her back was turned by in time to hide the blush spreading over her cheeks. "We’re still figuring things out,” she answered evasively. Pulling the largest pot from the oven drawer, she set about filling it in the sink.

“I know I promised not to tell you how to live your life anymore, but he’s the only man I know who’s good enough for my Arden.” She ought to just kiss him sometime. She’s been half in love with him since they were kids. 

Arden pretended not to hear his thought or his comment over the running water. Her father might claim to have seen things, but he’d missed an awful lot of kisses that had passed between them in the last couple of weeks. Beyond that, he didn’t have the faintest idea that she’d spent the night next door after the insanity of the debate. As she waited for the pot to fill, she snuck another look through the glass.

Jaime was removing his shirt.

Her skin flushed again at the sight of his toned, tanned body. Her hands ached to glide along those perfect abs – to wrap her arms around his neck so she was pressed flush against the heat of his chest. Sleeping with him had been incredible. Waking up in his arms, nothing short of divine. 

They hadn’t discussed their plans for after dinner, but maybe she could talk him into another sleepover…

With a start, she realized that the water was spilling over the side of the pot. She drained the excess quickly, vaguely aware of the sporadic sound of chopping coming from the breakfast table.

Her father didn’t say anything, but there was a distinct twinkle in his eye when she returned to the table with the beef. 

_____

 Thirty minutes later, she’d managed to produce something that vaguely resembled stroganoff. Arden counted it as something of a marvel that she hadn’t given up the whole cooking endeavor in favor of just standing and staring out the window. She knew he wasn’t doing it deliberately, but Jaime had been putting on quite a show.

Wielding a paintbrush, standing back to consider his work, wiping his brow – everything he did set her blood on fire. As the evening had worn on, the pan before her received less and less of her attention. The sight through the window had proven too tempting for her to resist. 

His work on the fence complete, Jaime had switched to trimming the bushes in front of the house. As he skirted around the plant, she caught his eye. Arden sucked a breath at his wink.

"I’ll be right back,” she promised her father, hardly taking the time to make sure that he was still cutting romaine hearts for their salad.

Jaime’s eyes were on her as soon as she passed through the door, the shears falling to his side. “The view from the kitchen wasn’t enough, I see. Did you decide it was time to get up close and personal?” 

She rolled her eyes. When she looked up at him again, she was taken aback by the glisten of sweat all over him. With his chest mere inches from her face, she could discern each perfectly sculpted ab, and her fingers twitched with longing at her side. Arden wondered idly how much it would scandalize the neighbors if she started making out with him in her father’s front yard.

Still not prepared for this view?

She reddened at his thought as their eyes met, his sweaty hair obscuring vision from one side. “I’m still getting used to...” she gestured vaguely at his stomach, much to Jaime’s amusement. “But I actually came out to give you a dinner update. It all just needs to simmer for about twenty more minutes and then we’ll be ready to eat.” 

“I’m looking forward to it. I should reach a pretty good stopping place shortly, so I’ll have time for a quick shower before we eat.”

Arden’s mouth grew very dry at the appealing mental images his suggestion graced her with. Distracted, her gaze wavered from his face for a moment – not long enough to satisfy her desire, but certainly long enough to attract his notice.

"You keep looking at my chest, Arden. Is everything okay?” Not that I mind. I’ve only been hoping for this for years.   

Knowing she’d been caught, Arden dropped all pretense and stared openly. She sighed and lifted her face to his. “I’m just thinking again how much I’d like to kiss you right now.”

Jaime bristled with pleasure. “You wouldn’t get any complaints from me if you did, but I am pretty sweaty at the moment. We should probably wait until after dinner.”

Someday, she’d have to tell him that she didn’t mind him being sweaty. In fact, she’d found sweaty kisses with Jaime to be extremely enjoyable just a few nights before. With that memory in mind, she was inspired. “Can I just have one for now?” 

He ran a hand through his hair, uncovering both eyes. The deep brown pools were gleaming with equal parts humor and desire. “I thought you’d never ask.” 

Arden tilted her chin, lips poised and eager for contact. Jaime’s mouth was warm and soft as it descended on hers, the salt of his sweat making her relish the experience even more. Body responding of its own volition, she had to pinch herself to keep from throwing both arms around his neck. Even after he’d pulled away, it took a moment for her to regain full control of her senses.

Just as her head cleared Jaime caught her by surprise, leaning down a second time to brush his lips gently across the tip of her nose. 

She wrinkled the bridge instinctively. “What was that for?”

“I couldn’t help it,” he explained. “You’re just so damn kissable, Arden.” 

“So are you. Please tell me there will be time for more kisses later?”

“I was hoping you’d suggest that.” He stretched out his free hand, skimming the pads of his fingers along her forearm. 

“The mind-blowing, earth-shaking kisses that are full of ten years of pent-up desire?”

He chuckled at her description. “You know those are my favorites. And I don’t have any plans for the rest of the night.” 

“Mmmhmmm.” His little half smile was doing funny things to her stomach. It wasn’t long before she’d lost all track of what he’d been saying. 

Should I put my shirt back on? 

His thought managed to get her attention, and she recoiled. “Don’t even joke about that. I’m enjoying the view way too much.” 

“You can enjoy it as much as you want after dinner.” 

“That feels like too long to wait.” She took another step toward him, forgetting both sweat and propriety in her need to touch him. 

“Arden,” he cautioned, though she knew from the yearning on his face that he wasn’t going to tell her no. 

Was that the door?

His thought corresponded with a click from the porch, followed by the beat of her father’s cane.

Their heads swung toward the doorway where Harry Gale stood, watching them both with an arched brow. Maybe she doesn’t need my encouragement after all... After taking a moment to collect himself, he announced, “Your pan boiled over. I got it off the burner, but I’m not sure what to do next.” 

Arden stared at him dumbly. “I was just….I, um.” She swallowed hard and forced her thoughts away from the man beside her. “I’ll come figure it out.” 

Her father retreated back to the house, leaving her alone with Jaime once more. 

“Go do what you need to do with dinner. I’ll finish up here and be in in a few minutes,” he told her, trailing a finger along her inner palm. Before she could pull away, he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. 

“See you then,” she promised, breaking the link between them. As she hurried up the porch stairs, she decided that an addition to her mother’s recipe was in order: 

Step 1 - If Jaime is outside, close curtains on the kitchen window. 

[singing-and-humming]

The loving is easy when i’m with you

Domestic fic written for @cloudfiveclub writing challenge (sorry for the delay)

Title from Kwaye – Sweetest Life

You just woke up but you are already sitting at your kitchen table waiting for the coffee machine to finish dripping while scrolling through your Instagram feed when your phone buzzes signaling a new text. You smile when you see that it was from Richard. He always remembers to send you a text or a pic in the morning but instead of the usual greeting, the message you’ve received was :“Help! How do I deal with this hair situation!”. 

Definitely not what you expected.

Obviously, you can’t wait to finally do something about his hair. He got an haircut a few weeks ago which got rid of the really damaged ends but he insists on continuing to bleach it. Maybe, he finally understood that he needs to take care of it consistently.

You answer him that you’ll be there at 1 p.m. as was agreed, because you have an appointment. You finish your breakfast before getting ready for the day. You were invited by Erick’s family for a gathering in the late afternoon. You make sure to pack more of your hair products in addiction to those already in your overnight bag before heading out.

--

When you finally arrive at his place, you find Richard in the kitchen, cleaning the remnants of lunch. He greets you with an a hug and a long soft kiss.

“Hey you. I missed you so much.

- I missed you too. Are you almost finished, we’re going to need some time to work on the mess on your head before we head out

- What are you talking about? What mess on my head?

- “I thought you wanted me to help you?

- Yes! With Aaliyah’s hair!! ¡Si, con el pelo de Aaliyah!

- Babe…I will help you with Aaliyah but we’re definitely working on your dry hair! Now, where is my princess?

- She’s playing in her room…”

You leave him to find Aaliyah in her room where the little girl is drawing at her desk.

“Good morning Aaliyah!” you say as you enter the room.

As soon as she hears you voice, she runs to you and you squat down to give her a hug. You ask her how she is doing. You sit on her bed with her and she starts telling you all the exciting things that happened to her since you last saw each other. You make sure to asks her some questions, even though you already knew some of it from you phone calls to Richard or his brothers.

“Daddy told me you were coming to do my hair. He tried but he was bad!” You look up and see that her curls are tied up in a loose ponytail as if he just gave up, which is certainly what happened.

“I can see that sweetie but we’re going to get you all cute for tonight. For now, I’m going to help your Dad with his and then I’ll come get you, alright?”

You let her get back to her drawing and go join the Dominican. You grab the bag full of supplies, drag him to the living room and make him sit on the floor in front of the couch.

“Babe, I don’t think this is necessary. I just wanted some help with Aaliyah so she has a cute hairstyle for tonight.

- Yes, it is necessary. I KNOW I’m not the only that told you the same thing, so we’re going to try to deal with it. Really, I don’t understand how you can just go around like this.

- Com’on! It isn’t that bad. You know I don’t have time and even if I did, I wouldn’t know what to do.

You grab you oil mix and lather his hair with hit, finger detangling the stringy strands of blond hair and putting them in four braids.

“All right, this need to sit a little while. Go get Aaliyah”, you instruct him.

When they come back, you make the little girl sit on a chair. You wet her hair with a spray bottle and apply some leave in conditioner to help detangle her hair.

"- I’m just going to show you how to do a simple hair style today. I’ll do one side and you’ll do the other, ok?"

You part her hair in the middle and section a big piece on the front to do a braid. You gather the rest of the hair, put a bit of hair gel all around and brush it to smooth everything before securing the hair in a bun. It is quite simple but you go slowly so that Richard can see what you’re doing and replicate it. As it turns out, he can follow instructions pretty well when he wants to. The braid wasn’t very symmetric to yours so you make him do it again but the final result was really cute.

You then tell Richard to go shampoo his hair to remove the oil bath and to call you when it’s done.

You go into the kitchen with Aaliyah to start on the desserts you’ll bring to the Colon’s in the afternoon. You make her stand on her chair next to you and show her how to knead the dough. She has the same intense look as Richard when he’s concentrating on a task but to be fair, she always looks like a mini version of him. You hide a smile when she frowns at the dough sticking too her small hands.

You join the blond when you hear him call your name. You apply a good amount of the deep conditioner you brought. When he sees you approach with the plastic wrap, he opens his mouth to protest but with a sharp glance he understands that he will NOT win this argument. You explain to him that he has to keep the product on for at least one hour which earns you a low groan.

“You know, it’s usually a good time to do some exercises because it will to warm your scalp.

- Too bad we can’t do my favorite cardio exercise", he replies playfully, wiggling his eyebrows.

He goes to put some music and that’s how Aaliyah finds you two dancing around in the bedroom. Of course, she joins you to show off her best moves.

“Daddy we should put face mask like Mama does when she does her hair! She suggests.

- Why not. Y/N, do you have some? He asks you.

- Hum yeah, I didn’t think you’ll want to try. It took long enough for you to take care of your hair!

- Hey! I’m trying now.”

You bring out several for him to choose from but you go to the kitchen to whip out one with yogurt for Aaliyah because you’re not sure yours will be appropriate for her skin. When you all get your mask on you resume your dance party and take some videos.

Later, when everything is rinsed off, you all go to the living room to watch Mulan. You get Richard to sit in front of you again so you can apply some proper products, making sure to show him in what order and quantities before quickly styling it with some twists. He gets a bit overwhelmed and because you know he likes having you taking care of him, you know that he doesn’t make any effort to remember any of it.

“That’s a lot!

- It’s to make you pretty too Daddy!

- But I’ll never be as pretty as you and Y/N!

She pretends to thinks for a second and answer “That’s true!” which launches you both into a hysterical laugh.

--

At some point during the movie, Richard gets up to answer a phone call and he comes back to Aaliyah asleep against your arm. Richard sit down carefully on the coffee table in front of you.

“Do you want me to take her, mi amor?

- Don’t worry, she’s perfect just where she is”

You look down softly at the little bundle next to you. For a long time, you were scared of how Aaliyah was going to react to you. You didn’t know if she was going to accept your presence in her father’s life. You knew how family, and especially her, was important to Richard, and that any uncomfortableness from Aaliyah might have been a deal breaker. You are still trying not to overstep but you are confident that is going to be okay. You know that’ll do anything not to lose this feeling of belonging.

Richard’s life was hectic and being in a serious relationship came with a lot of complications, but you know that it is worth it, that HE is worth it.

“I’m so glad that you get along so well. Some people pretend to be okay with their partner having a child but it’s different to actually care about them.

- How could I not care for her? She’s such a good kid. You know that I love her right, I’m not pretending for you sake or anything.

- Yeah, I know. He passes his hands on his newly styled hair.

- You know it was so bad. It does feel softer than before. How about we do that every Sunday when I’m home?

-  Sounds good. I’ll have to buy more products to keep here because I’m not about to carry everything back and forth.

- You can just let what you have here.

- I do need it during the week as well, Babe

- I know, what I’m saying is they might as well stay here and so should you."

You reflexively straighten to look at his expression better before remembering that Aaliyah is still resting against you. You check on her to see that she hasn’t woken up.

"- What are you saying? You ask slowly

- I’m saying or more asking if you want to move in. No, it’s probably better to find a new place near your job because you’ll still be alone in it sometimes and we can’t stay in yours because we need a room for Aaliyah. And…"

You let him continue to ramble for a while before finally wondering “I don’t think we can skip tonight to start looking for our new house?”

The blinding smile and the obvious love in his eyes that get in return makes you realize that have already found your home anyway.

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day One Hundred Thirty-Nine: Cinnamon ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Uchiha Mikoto ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

“So, uh...what’s your favorite thing to make?”

Back in Home Ec once again, Sasuke’s bored out of his mind. The day before was a mini school festival, and given all the rush and preparing leading up to it, their teacher has decided it appropriate to give the class a day off from all of their sewing, baking, and other activities they used to make some money for more supplies for class.

And given that all of the underclassmen girls still seem terrified of him for...whatever reason, Sasuke falls back to the usual company of his fellow senior, Hinata.

She’s taking the time to casually knit something she was unable to finish before the craft sale. Pale blue wool dances over her needles, done almost subconsciously. “Um...can you be more specific?”

“I guess out of all the things we do here.”

She considers that with a hum. “...well, I really like knitting,” is her first answer, given with a laugh given her current project. “It’s...soothing in how repetitive it is. I can just sit and get a little lost in it. Um…” Nibbling her lip in thought, she looks around as though trying to pick out things from their surroundings. “I like to bake, too...almost anything, r-really. But my favorite are cinnamon rolls.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Mhm! They’re just so…!” Hinata beams to herself, cheeks going a light shade of pink at a happy memory. “When they’re warm, and the icing is still gooey, and the middle is all fluffy...it’s the best…!”

In spite of himself, Sasuke grins as she describes it. There’s something really...endearing about how into it she is. Clearly it makes her as happy as she looks. “Y’know, I’m not big on sweets...but I might have to try some sometime.”

“Oh, I could make you some! But...it’s quite the process...and you have to eat them warm. They’re so much better.”

“What about it takes so long?”

“Well, you have to put the dough together and knead it, and since it has yeast in it, it has to r-rise. That takes a while. Then you roll it out, and put the filling in...roll it up...and cut the rolls. Then it has to rise again -”

“Whoa, really?”

“Mhm! And then you finally bake it!” Hinata can’t help a soft giggle. “So all in all, in takes a few hours, start to finish. You have to be d-dedicated to it! So...it’s obviously a little, um...too long to do in class. And since exams are coming up, I...won’t have time to stay after school. I need to study.”

“Yeah, me too…” In spite of himself, Sasuke finds he’s rather disappointed. He has an idea, but...he’s not sure if it’s...appropriate. Sure, he talks to her every day in this class, but...he’s not sure if he constitutes as a friend. Trying to appear nonchalant, he offers, “Maybe on a weekend sometime?”

Looking up, Hinata blinks. “Well...the school is closed then...unless there’s an event on. But...I doubt the classroom would be open…”

...she didn't take the hint. Drat. “Uh…” How to say this without sounding too forward... “My mom’s got a pretty nice kitchen. I could...get the ingredients sometime, and we could...make them there…?”

...another blink. “...oh!” Embarrassed at not realizing what he meant, she laughs, going a bit pink. “I...s-sure! She wouldn’t mind…?”

“Nah. I bet she’d be psyched, actually.” His older brother cooks like a maniac whenever he’s home, but...well, besides a few things he’s tried since starting this silly class, Sasuke’s still not an avid cook or baker.

...and he can just imagine his mother’s face at him bringing a girl home. He’s never brought a girl over. Ever.

It’ll be amusing.

“I’ll tell her you’re giving me lessons. She’s been pretty jazzed about me taking this class. Bet she’ll be happy to see me in the kitchen.”

“Oh, good! And...I guess that would technically be true. Um...sure! Just let me know when you...want to try it?”

“Sure. Uh...got a list of what I’d need?”

“Yeah, I’ll dig out my favorite recipe when I get home. Um…” Still blushed, she asks, “Do you want me to...text it to you?”

“Good idea. Here…” They exchange numbers, Hinata promising to send him the list and a rundown of the recipe as the bell rings.

“I’ll let you know when I’m free.”

“Okay! Bye.”

Huh...he’s actually really excited about this…

A weekend passes without any word - Itachi makes a surprise visit home, so Sasuke deems it a bit more critical than baking. But when Friday arrives without any signs of anything else popping up, he decides to ask if she’s free.

“Yeah, I can make it! You’ve got everything we need?”

“Yup.” He’s only double checked like five times.

“Okay - any, um...particular time I should be there?”

“I tend to kinda sleep in...maybe early afternoon just to be safe?”

“You sleep that late?” she teases.

Sasuke can’t help a pout. “No. I just mean so no one feels rushed.”

Giggling into the cuff of her sweater, Hinata shakes her head. “I know, I know. That sounds good! I’ll text you when I’m on my way.”

“Got it.”

Saturday morning, Sasuke’s in a tizzy. He volunteered to do dishes the night before after dinner, making sure the kitchen is spotless. Not that Mikoto runs a messy house. He just...wants to make a good impression. Whatever’s left from breakfast he fervently tidies up.

His mother notices, perking a brow. “What’s going on?”

“I’ve got a cooking lesson.”

That catches her attention. “Oh?”

“Yeah. Friend from Home Ec’s gonna teach me how to make cinnamon rolls.”

Mikoto perks up another hair. “Is that so...? Who’s the friend?”

“Her name’s Hinata.”

At the word ‘her’, his mother’s eyes go round, her mouth in a small matching ‘o’. After a blink, she calmly replies. “...I see. Well...I was going to work on my flowerbeds, but...if you need any help, let me know!”

“Will do.”

Once she’s out of sight, he breaks into quiet snickers.

Priceless.

His phone buzzes at about twelve-thirty, and she estimates a twenty minute bike ride. Setting up for her arrival, he’s just putting the finishing touches to his lineup of ingredients when the doorbell rings.

“Hey.”

“Hi! Um...w-where should I put my bike?”

“We can put it in the garage.” They might live in a nice enough neighborhood, but...well, better safe than sorry. Once her ride is tucked away, Sasuke leads the way in. “So, ready to see me fail miserably at baking?”

“Oh, you won’t! I’ll do most of the work, anyway. You can watch if you don’t want to do any steps.”

“I gotta give at least some of it a try.”

Hinata starts walking him through the steps (after complimenting his prep work), showing him how to activate the yeast. “See the foam?”

“Whoa, cool.”

Next they mix the rest of the dough, adding the yeast mixture and beating it until it goes smooth.

“Okay, now we need to knead it.”

Sprinkling flour on a marble slab Mikoto often uses in her baking, Hinata shows Sasuke her technique before letting him try. It takes a few turns, but eventually he gets the hang of it, Hinata occasionally dusting more flour when necessary and checking the consistency.

“That seems good! Now, it has to rise.”

“For how long?”

“An hour.”

Covering the bowl they set it in, they leave it in the warm kitchen before...turning to each other

“Um…” Hinata smiles sheepishly. “Anything you want to...do?”

“...we could, uh...watch a movie or something.”

“S-sure!”

He lets her pick, not knowing most of what his parents have bought and hoarded over the years. He could load up Netflix, but...he’s feeling lazy. Hinata, too, seems a bit unsure and picks one at random. Some newer James Bond movie he’s never seen before. They both settle on the couch and just...sit and watch, a timer set on Sasuke’s phone.

And of course it goes off during a tense fight scene, making them both jump. “Oh!”

Migrating back to the kitchen, they remove the cover and find the dough’s grown!

“Dang!”

“It’s supposed to do that!”

Mixing cinnamon and sugar, Hinata watches as Sasuke carefully rolls out the dough into a long rectangle, then brushes it with butter.

“Very good!”

They both sprinkle the mixture, and each help roll the whole thing up.

“...I think we might need two pans,” Hinata laughs. Carefully, she cuts the long roll into pieces, laying them in a thin layer of syrup along the bottom of the pans.

Then it’s back to rising.

Retreating to their movie, the pair watch in a far more comfortable silence than before. Neither notice as Mikoto wanders in for a drink of water, peeking at the two over the couch with a sly smile (and doing the same to their rising rolls).

Movie ending a bit before the timer, they find the dough big enough anyway. Once the oven heats, in go both pans, and then it’s time to wait one last time. Hinata sits on a stool, Sasuke leaned atop the counter opposite her.

“You were right - your mom does have an awesome kitchen,” Hinata admits sheepishly.

“Yeah...I need to use it more. Guess it’s a good thing I’m taking this class. Learning how, bit by bit.”

“Mhm!”

After a small pause, Sasuke decides to admit, “And I got to make a friend out of it, too.”

Jolting a hair, Hinata goes pink as the timer goes off. “I’ll...I-I’ll get them out!”

They look...amazing.

But they’re not quite finished yet. Hinata whips up the icing, and dribbles it over the buns while they’re still hot. “...okay. Time for the final step.”

“...which is?”

“Eating them!”

Sasuke fetches plates and forks, and Hinata dishes them up. She’s right: they look gooey and fluffy.

“Well...here goes.” Tearing off a hunk, Sasuke gives it one last glance before popping it in his mouth.

She watches, seemingly not aware of her intense expression.

To torture her, Sasuke chews slowly, exaggerating a thoughtful look. He will admit...these are pretty damn good. And he doesn’t ordinarily like sweet foods.

“...well?!”

He just gives a thumbs up, still chewing, almost choking as she gives a little cheer.

...that was cute.

They continue eating, sparing another roll as Mikoto joins them. Her own test goes just as well. “You must share your recipe with me!” she insists to Hinata, who sheepishly nods.

Together the pair clean up, doing the dishes and wiping down the counters. Sasuke refuses to let her leave without taking one of the pans.

“Trust me dear, we don’t need them all here!” Mikoto laughs.

“But then I’ll eat them all…” Hinata mumbles, going pink as her companions laugh.

With that...they reach an impasse.

“I’ll, um...I-I’ll bring the pan to school on Monday!”

“Yeah, sure. No rush.”

“I...I had a lot of fun.”

“Yeah...me too.”

...silence.

Nibbling her lip, Hinata carefully stores the pan into her bag, which she slings on her back before retrieving her bike. “I...guess I’ll see you then.”

“Yeah. See ya.”

Looking a little torn, Hinata hesitates before taking off. A hand waves back over her shoulder.

He waves back.

And...can’t help but feel a little lonely.

...maybe he’ll go have another roll.

     More Home Ec AU! Ahhh I really like this one, it's so fluffy and pure xD      Hinata finally gets to make her cinnamon rolls. And Sasuke gets to help! And inch a little closer to realizing that Hinata is TOTALLY girlfriend material.      I think Mikoto approves x3      Buuut on that note, I'ma call it a night~ Thanks for reading!