#home grown tomato yummy

[sarohy]

How can I make him more miserable I mean get him to therapy and let him meet his family of course haha oh me oh my

[dreamylittlesugarcube]

Valentine’s Day with Kyungsoo

Genre: EXO AU

Characters: Kyungsoo x Female Reader

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1,000

Summary: A sweet short story about Valentine’s Day with Kyungsoo using adjectives that seem to fit him and that correspond to the letters in his name.

A/N: This kind of just happened, as I am very in my Valentine’s Day feels at the moment, so I hope you enjoy it. 

**Disclaimers: This is just me using my imagination based on what I’ve seen of DKS via media, so not real just for funsies. Credit for GIFS and pics should go to the original owners ( thanks Amino Apps and Martha Stewart!)

~*~

K

From the start you were attracted to Kyungsoo’s KIND personality. He was always helping the staff complete tasks, worrying out whether they’d eaten. You respected that he cared so much about others. And of course, this extended to you. As an “acts of service” man, Kyungsoo spoiled you with small things that brightened your day–flowers after a routine trip to the grocery store, filling your car up with gas, and home-made lunch made with love. You felt giddy knowing Valentine’s Day was coming up soon and wondered what your sweet Soo would prepare. 

Y

You sighed in sheer bliss as you bit into your second YUMMY éclair of the evening. Kyungsoo smiled at your adorable reaction and as always, appreciated your enthusiasm for his creations. Kyungsoo didn’t claim to be a baker, in fact, he preferred the savory side of cooking. But you loved baking and he loved spending time in the kitchen with you. These days your apartment was practically a boulangerie, with both of you having to fend off hungry members left and right. Valentine’s Day was just around the corner and Kyungsoo was more than ready to whip up a slew of delicious treats.

(A/N: Kyungsoo creates yummy things and is, himself, also very yummy 😉)

U

Growing up as a theater kid, you loved nothing better than a good musical. Why act out lines when you could sing them? With any live concert, musical, movie, or show, the most important thing was the voice. Honeyed vocal runs and the soulful sounds beat out dancing and stage presence anyday in your book. Not long after you’d started dating, Kyungsoo obliged a request to sing at a Christmas party. It was there that you were introduced to his UNIQUE singing voice, so different from any other that you’d heard before. Was he really a Disney prince in disguise? Sources said possibly. He could sing for you any time, any day, anywhere. 

N

Gentle rays of sun bathed the rooftop deck in a warm glow. Kyungsoo hummed softly as he collected his treasures–cilantro, tomatoes, parsley, peppers, green beans–all home-grown from his little, urban garden. Working with his hands in the dirt brought Kyungsoo a measure of peace from his hectic work schedule. Kyungsoo was a NATURAL at nature–green-thumbed and incredibly enthusiastic. You…were not, but he somehow found that endearing. He pictured you sitting in the lounge chair nearby “supervising” as you munched on snap peas. It felt natural to have you here in his little veggie kingdom. Taking the fruits of his labor, he whistled happily down the stairs, off to prepare something special for his someone special. 

G

“So tell me again, why is Kyungsoo picking you up from my place?” your friend, Suzy, wondered aloud. “I mean–you guys live together, so…” she trailed off after giving you that look. You shrugged, unsure of how to explain to this self-proclaimed non-romantic. “He just thought it would be more exciting…”. And it was. Truthfully, it felt like your first date all over again–good gosh, you were even getting nervous. A knock sounded at the door, spurring you to smooth your dress and check your hair one last time. The door opened to reveal a GALLANT suitor looking resplendent (read: ) in a dapper, black three-piece suit. Kyungsoo extended his hand, gently taking your hand and placing it on his arm. He led you to a sleek, black town car, and soon you were speeding down the highway. 

S

It had been difficult, but Kyungsoo had managed to keep his Valentine’s Day plans a complete surprise. He was a SECRETIVE man by nature, his job demanded it, and it was easy to hide details about his personal life from those who weren’t important. You were important and it almost physically hurt to keep something from you. Though he’d almost slipped once or twice he was confident you had no idea what was about to happen. Sliding a blindfold out of his pocket he motioned for you to turn so that he could secure it into place. 

O

Even though your world was dark, you weren’t afraid at all. Kyungsoo kept a warm hand on your back as he guided you up a set of stairs. A door squeaked and you were hit with a  rush of cool, night air. The soft, lilting tones of Ed Sheeran drifted through the night and you could swear you smelled Italian. Kyungsoo whispered in your ear, making you blush. He told you he loved you and was so very happy to spend another year with you. In the beginning, Kyungsoo hadn’t been so OPEN with his feelings. These days words of love spilled from his lips like wine, though you continued to treasure each one.

 With a flourish, he removed the blindfold, revealing the most perfect setting you could imagine. Twinkling fairy lights lit up the familiar rooftop garden, a table set with gleaming silverware and fresh, white linens sat front and center. Pressing a kiss to your hand, Kyungsoo led you towards the table. 

O

Kyungsoo couldn’t take his eyes off you. He observed as you savored the freshly baked bread rolls and twirled chicken fettuccine (your favorite) around your dainty fork, and inhaled a piece of divine dark chocolate cake. He knew you were wowed–the venue, the decorations, the food–you’d more than told him so. Yet, he was still unsettled, as he palmed the box hidden in his pocket. He was taking a big step–the step, in fact. He was OPTIMISTIC about his future with you, more than ready to truly have you as his own. After years of waiting, he’d finally have the love and warmth he so desperately craved. With shaking hands, he bent down on one knee…

❤

You said yes. Of course you said yes. How could you ever say no to the love of your life? The newly added weight to your left hand was a constant reminder of the most perfect Valentine’s Day. You weren’t sure how you were going to top this year’s Valentine’s Day celebration, but you figured you were up for the challenge. After all, there would be many more to come. 

~*~

Thank you for spending Valentine’s Day with Kyungsoo. I really enjoyed writing this one. Just fun imaginings and whatnot! Please re-blog if you enjoyed this too so that others can find it more easily. Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all!

XOXO, 

Emmy

[funkforbreakfast]

“Let me cook for you”

Cooking is a huge importance to me — food was an activity that brought together my family during the holidays, custody exchanges, and sunday nights. My parents expressed their love to us via homemade dinners and produce grown from our backyard, but I still paid close attention to their techniques so as to pick them up myself. In college, I opted out of a meal plan as soon as possible — slicing and sauteing brought me more joy than an easy meal ever could (with the added bonus that my acid reflux disappeared as soon as I stopped eating from Dewick). But whenever I want to catch up with friends, they suggest a dining hall or Tufts cafe.

“Let me cook for you”

I struggle to choose easy meals to prepare, but I’d rather spend the two hours cooking with a loved one and then eating for twenty minutes. We are making something together, a collaborative effort that reassures our compatibility. Sometimes this is soup or pizza — but most recently, it was butter chickpeas, for 100 people.

The Tufts Mountain Club has been my central community in college. It encouraged me to be more mindful of my health when I was at my worst, but also expanded my definitions on how to enjoy the outdoors (I am now a self proclaimed Everglades lover). It might be a 900 person club, but there are pockets within it that hold the most genuine people I’ve met during my time here. And most of my strongest friendships have only started at the Loj in New Hampshire.

Last weekend, I was in Woodstock, New Hampshire for the return of one of TMC’s favorite traditions — Lojstock. This music festival amongst the mountain welcomes 100 band and audience members for a day of river swimming, barbeque eating, and good tunes. As someone who took on more of the planning process than I would have liked, I naturally opted for the free way to attend Lojstock — joining the cooking team. This crew was assembled of my favorite TMC people to hang with in a warm kitchen — people who let the stress make them a little goofy. Usually, the kitchen crew cooks common cabin staples like overcooked pasta with jarred tomato sauce or crusty chili. But, as a food connoisseur, I vetoed both meals and settled for a much more interesting option: butter chickpeas. I was nervous at the outcome, but people returned for seconds and thirds and even brought home leftovers in tupperware! My favorite thing about this meal is that 1) it tasted significantly better than any other loj meal, 2) was easier on my stomach than chili or gluten, 3) it was relatively high in veggies (which is hard to come by at the Loj). 

Lojstock ‘23 Butter Chickpeas

Contributors: Jeannine Pecoraro ‘25, Lily Pearl Langos ‘24, Danny Rodriguez ‘24, Carmen Smoak ‘25, Gwen Brown ‘24

This dish was a HUGE hit at Lojstock ‘23 and sooo many people asked for the recipe afterwards. It is about as easy as making chili; however, it is a much more interesting and yummy dish. Requires knowledge of spices/general butter sauce taste.

Inspired by https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020739-indian-butter-chickpeas  

Prep: 30 minutes Cook time: 1 hour Yields: ~100 servings

Allergens/restrictions

Dairy, alium

Not vegan unless you swap butter for vegetable oil

Ingredients

20 red onions

16 cans of chickpeas

Eyeballed amount of garlic powder (be generous)

Eyeballed amount of ginger

Eyeballed amount of ground cumin

Eyeballed amount of paprika

Sprinkle of cinnamon

4 sticks of butter

8 cans of crushed tomatoes

15 cans of coconut milk

Eyeballed amount of curry powder

Instructions

Mince or blend the onions

Empty chickpeas into a strainer and rinse with water. Move it a large bowl and combine with the spices (have your friend with the best spice knowledge complete this step, you do NOT want to underseason this dish)

Melt butter in the largest pot over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook til browned at edges (approximately 30 minutes), stir often.

Add in crushed tomatoes and stir.

Add in coconut milk and stir.

Add in the chickpeas and stir. Let the mixture stew and bubble until chickpeas soften but stir occasionally to prevent burning.

Add curry powder and salt to taste (DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP, THIS IS WHAT BRINGS THE RECIPE TOGETHER!!)

Serve with rice and enjoy!!

[honeycombhank]

Big boy Burpee

[freezeperception]

[danpuff-ao3]

Hey hey hey.

I should be walking a dog. I should be sleeping. But instead I'm here to talk about FRUIT. So plums and cantaloupe. What else? What's the absolute best? Do you have a nono fruit? What's the last fruit you ate?

Also. I have stupid questions. Which way do you hang the toilet paper? You know what I mean. Are you more like a cat, a dog, or a fish? There's suddenly 1 bazillion dollar on your account, and you get a message that says, "HIDE." Where do you go? What are the last three things you liked on YouTube? You dream with Snape. What's he doing? (pg answers only 😏) do you hate your boss? Do you like your neighbour? Who was the last person you hugged? Do you have fairylights in your house? tell me three cool things about where you live that aren't really that cool, but you still love them.

❤️❤️😚

Lizzy!!!! So glad to hear from you, even if you should be doing a hundred other things! 😂

Yes FRUITS!!!! Plums and cantaloupe and CHERRIES. And fuji apples!!!! And green grapes! And pineapple. And bananas. And peaches! Blackberries!!!! Seeds getting stuck in my teeth is annoying, but they're so dang good, I don't even care. Blueberries! Strawberries! Big fat juicy strawberries. And watermelon! In fact, I love fruit so much, I don't tend to care for fruit being jazzed up. No chocolate covered strawberries, no caramel apples...just fresh, yummy FRUIT in all of it's fruity glory!!

Don't even get me started on what I can BAKE with fruits!

My no-no fruit is, as it's always been, TOMATOES. Let me tell you, I was offended the day I learned they were a fruit. 😂 But I'm getting at the point where I can eat bits of them in sandwiches if the sandwiches have a lot of other fillings, so I call that progress! I also used to not be a fan of honeydew melon, but that one's finally grown on me! It is, in fact, one of the last fruits I ate! My partner and I had McAllister's tonight and I got a fruit cup as a side: blueberries, grapes, cantaloupe, honeydew melon, and pineapple. Yum yum yum! I always save the best for last, though, so technically the very last fruit I ate was pineapple!

(Wow, I can really talk about fruits, can't I? 😂)

(Don't get me started on fruit smut, either.)

As for TOILET paper. I'm so glad you asked. It gets draped over, not hanging under. I accept no other answers. I do not agree to disagree. If I see a roll hanging under, I will fix it.

I am like a weird cat-dog hybrid. Like, please don't touch me unprovoked, but I need lovings when I want them. I need my space and my me-time. I love head scritches. As in: I can be laying on the touch, playing on my phone, and the minute my partner's fingers creep onto my head, I'm done for! Phone is dropped. I'm purring and stretching up for more. It's pathetic. But I'm also very chipper and easy to please. And I race to the door when my partner comes home. 😂

Omg the "HIDE" question!!!! THAT is a tough one. I don't react well in emergencies. My Panic Brain shuts right tf down. 😂 Realistically I'd jump in my car and drive aimlessly and call my partner and make him calm me down and tell me what to do. My anxiety hates this question hahahaha. Just: "EDWARD, IS THIS MONEY EVEN SAFE? WHERE DO I GO? WHAT DO I DO? ARE YOU SURE? ARE YOU'RE SURE YOU'RE SURE? HELLLLLPPPPPP MEEEEEEEEE." 🤣 I'm a mess, I know, it's okay.

The last three things I liked on YouTube?! This is getting PERSONAL! Probably various true crime videos! I binge tons of Danielle Kirsty and Eleanor Neale so probably some videos of theirs! In the haze of true crime videos I inhale.

I have complicated feelings about my Boss! When Boss Man is nice, we're good. When Boss Man is in a bad mood, I hide. My neighbor, I actually don't know! I am a very shy lady and our neighbors are not very friendly folk so we rarely interact! The last person I hugged was my partner! We are very touchy-feely so chances are, he's the last person I hugged most of the time haha! On the off chance I hug someone else, I generally fix it pretty quickly. He's a great hugger.

Dreams about Snape???? And you expect it to be PG???? Ma'am, the way that man is holding his quill is not PG. The way he talks is not PG. The way he walks is not PG. What do you expect me to do?? Oh yeah, sit and ogle him, as one should.

I do have fairy lights! I have more I need to put up at some point, but for now I have a string of star-shaped lights draped over my Harry Potter bookshelf! I'm waiting to get our space more organized before hanging the rest I have!

Three cool things about where I live!!! Let us see:

City: all the bayou puns! "Come bayou some crawfish!" It's so Louisiana, it's not even funny. Except it is funny, because I love a good (or even a bad) pun.

Neighborhood: pink myrtle trees! They're so pretty, and the petals get EVERYWHERE. Just tiny pink petals all over the street, all over our staircases, sometimes our cars.

Home: where we live is the PERFECT location! It's like we're in the city and really close to everything we need: grocery store, pharmacy, doctor's offices, etc. But it's all tucked out of the way and no one knows our apartments are there unless you know where to look. So we get all the privacy of being hidden and all the perks of being so close to stuff!

Btw, it's game on for questions. 😎 I'll hit your inbox sometime tomorrow! 😘

💛 Danni

[clatterbane]

Tonight's Delight: More fast food delivery, Swedish Edition! This time Mr. C's suggestion, from Max Burgers. I had been curious to try their stuff, especially since it does have a reputation as better than average. Finally doing that.

Once again, I wasn't sure what to get, but settled on a basic DeliVery Cheezy Burger meal (on gluten free bun), with Cheese Fries and a small Choklad Dreamshake. 🍟🍔🥤

I had been tempted to just go for one of their kids' meals, but nah may as well reach higher and order like a grown-ass adult this evening. 😋 (Even though he got hungry and wanted to order before I was ready for much else, with my funky schedule and limited capacity.)

Worst case? I'd have some part of a burger and fries for later, or just more fodder for biogas and fertilizer in the food waste bag if any leftovers reheat badly enough. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (Possibly minus some meat salvaged for the cats, and/or my own consumption.) Still really don't like wasting food, but it bothers me less if it's not headed straight for a landfill.

Anyway, group ordering through Wolt looked like an attractive option again. With an estimate of like 25 minutes once we got that submitted. Their estimates have been accurate enough so far--especially once the drivers have hit the road--that I did decide to live dangerously and dose insulin to cover half the shake after it was showing the driver underway with an ETA of about 15 minutes. Because I knew I would be wanting to attack that ASAP!

The rest of that waiting in the freezer, to possibly polish off with a spoon later. 😁 Not opening it up for a not very useful photo op. It looked like a slightly grainy fast food shake which was starting to melt? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ No trouble slurping some up with the straw, though it was still nicely slushy.

I did notice a nutty taste, and was curious. Aha! What is Dreamshake? Turns out it is coconut milk based, which did work extremely well flavorwise with the chocolate I ordered. Max evidently switched over to vegan-by-default for their basic shakes several years back. May also help explain the slightly grainy texture, though tbf I have gotten enough "regular" dairy-containing ones over the years that the noticeable ice crystals didn't really stand out that much. Not enough in this one to really bother me.

No need to grab any backup juice or anything, as it turned out. I actually ended up popping the shake in the freezer for about 5 minutes after the food got here, to give the insulin a little more time to start working. (Another thing that the CGM makes so much easier, BTW: you can watch in close to realtime for when it does start kicking in! For less of a blood sugar spike afterward, with any luck.)

That yummy yummy sugar bomb plus a little more Novorapid duly deployed, and we can move on to the rest of this show!

Didn't remember that this was supposed to be a double cheeseburger, but no complaints!

The burger is specially adapted for home delivery - now DeliVery Cheezy is here

Basically, those menu options leave off any of their standard toppings like lettuce or tomato that won't hold up well. (Good! Saves me some trouble.) I also didn't notice that this category evidently does NOT include the mayonnaise, but hey. Guess I'll take off the bottom of the bun and do my best to scrape the stuff off before nuking any portion of the thing. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Otherwise, there seems to be onion slices and some ketchup on there.

Rounding this show off with the smaller size of cheesy fries, plus a little cup of "Korean BBQ" from their sauce options on the side. Because why not. Mr. C opted for some Buffalo sauce to share, and I think some of the "Green & garlic" for himself? One of the creamy mayo-based choices.

Neither one of those items was at all bad, btw! I am not so sure about the standard inclusion of their Max Original Sauce on the cheese-saucy fries, since it is sort of like a less gross version of Big Mac sauce. 😒 Which put me off from ever developing a taste for Big Macs as a kid. But, the jalapeño and onion did help balance out the unwanted sweetness there.

Questionable sauce or no, I wolfed fries down hastily enough to get a chunk of still pretty textured potato crossways--so that it halfway blocked up my gullet before I even got to the burger! 🙄

Thankfully, that was only partway, and I had decided to take a cautious approach and only dose enough insulin to cover whatever food I was about to eat. Taking a little breather with a nice hot throat-relaxing cup of tea does seem to have dislodged that troublesome tater, as I was hoping.

Still waiting a while to start tackling my double cheeseburger, though! Was planning to push ahead. But I did bolt down a decent bit of fries in spite of going in still feeling halfway full from starting into a late lunch by the time he suggested ordering the burgers. So, I'm now feeling like I'd really better let the stuff I already ate settle for a little while before attempting to devour anything else!

Pretty satisfying so far, at least. And not sorry he did suggest Max!

[meerschweinchen-archive]

everytime I eat a tomato I think about the when you say you don't like tomatoes they will offer you a tomato they will say it's home grown sun raised it's sweet they say try it and everytime it's the same horrid experience post and I thank the benevolent powers that be to grand me the tomato yummy gene

[chronicallyapain]

Day 26: 7/12

Breakdown:

Breakfast: 460

1 Epic Peanut Butter bar - 210

1 Shopright Sugared Jelly Donut - 250

Lunch: 405

1.5 Servings Spicy Chicken and Rice - 405

Dinner: 570

1 Shop Rite Hamburger Bun - 120

1 Tbsp Hunt’s Ketchup - 20

1 Beans & Beets Veggie Burger - 120

1 Tbsp Kens Honey Mustard - 65

1 Homemade Salad - 75

Fried Zucchini Rounds - 170

Snacks: 256

Homemade Smoothie - 156

1 Tbsp Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup - 100

Beverages: 

156 oz water 

2 cups black coffee

Exercise: 10,384 Steps // 4.28 Miles Walked // 1 Floor Climbed // 126 Active Min.

I swam (swum // swimmed) for the first time this summer today! My neighbors are kind enough to let my mom and I use there pool when they are at work, and today was basically the first day I actually felt up to going to the pool. I did a few laps of the pool in my fluttery little kicking style, and then just floated in place (that works my legs and core I guess, or so my mom told me but I don’t know). I also spent a good 20 minutes back at my own house laying on the beach chair in the sun and tanning myself ( and by that I mean getting sunburn). 

Later, after dinner, I went out and did my usual 3 mile walk around the neighborhood. It was nice, I didn’t run into any rain, sprinklers, or giant dogs so I was happy with it. Downside of the work on my legs is I now have a cramp that is basically squashing my entire foot in on itself. Hazards of I suppose. That’s okay. 

Remember yesterday’s post about having some of my garden harvest in dinner tonight? Well my mom (bless her shes the only one in the family that can really cook) made fried zucchini rounds and a salad with some of our produce in it! I use the Gluten Free Panko Breadcrumbs and they are the best thing ever if you want/need fried stuff thats breaded and GF. And the salad has our home-grown radishes, cucumbers, and tomatoes in it!. 

Yummy right???

Also here is something new I’m starting as of this week: Selfie Sunday! I was feelin cute today so I (and my snapchat filter) will now grace your presense every sunday from now on. 

Hello. It’s me. 

Anyways, I always want to know, how did you better yourself by accomplishing something today? Or how will you better yourself by accomplishing something tomorrow?

 Let me know, I’m here to cheer for you!

F~G~S

[nalu4emily]

The Unexpected Reward - Chapter 4

Summary: Natsu and Lucy go on a job together, but what they bring home is something neither anticipated. Forced to make a life changing decision, they have to adapt quickly, but that's never easy, especially given the circumstances. As they work together on their toughest adventure yet, they find themselves drawn to one another, in ways they never realised. Nalu/cute/fluff/multi-chapter. 

Lucy groggily opened her eyes at the unwelcome sunlight shining through the window and onto her grimacing face. She had woken abruptly, feeling an emptiness on the mattress beside her. Actively seeking out the warmth that accompanied the dragon slayer, she turned over to cuddle closer and noticed he was no longer there. About to call out his name, she stopped in her tracks as soon as she caught sight of him. Natsu was perched on her couch, pink hair wild as ever, smiling and talking to the little baby in his arms. She could hear little Haru coo every time Natsu would smile or say something silly. It was so cute to watch them, he had done this every morning since they’d brought him back with them, it had become part of her day to wake up early and get a front row seat to Natsu bonding with his son.

Haru had been with them nearly a week now, and it was scary how quickly they'd had to adapt. He was such a sweetie, even when he was upset. Natsu had been so attentive and protective of the little one, he never took his eyes off of him, especially when they were out or at the guild. It was reassuring to have someone around like that who seemed so natural at this.

Lucy still struggled with the tremendous amount of uncertainty she had when it came to her parenting abilities, she would question every decision she made for the boy. And yet, Natsu never seemed to doubt himself. She knew that when she agreed to take him in that she would be taking joint responsibility with Natsu, but she couldn't shake the feeling that maybe she wasn't very natural at this. Those original doubts were still there too, she really didn't know what she was doing. There were no amount of parenting books or advise from her parent friends that she could use to educate herself in being a good mother. She was kinda jealous, in a way, of Natsu's innate ability to just be a dad, no questions asked. But, hell, did it suit him!

Lucy loved watching him be so fatherly, it was so sweet and made him all the more attractive. She had always found him good-looking though, any one with eyes could see that he was handsome. He had this alluring ripped body which she would discreetly ogle, loving the way he flexed his muscles when he moved. His crazy, pink hair seemed to have a mind of it's own and yet it perfectly framed his face. His skin was darker than hers, it was more tanned which complimented his beautiful green eyes, the same green eyes she would so often get lost in. They told her every emotion he was feeling even when he couldn't express it. He was like an open book, but only to those closest to him. Every smirk and stupid grin told a different story, adding another chapter to the endless mystery that was Natsu Dragneel.

She sighed in contentment, as she continued to watch the fire breather play with the little fella, thinking back to the other night when she had bathed Haru for the first time. She remembered the way Natsu had looked at her, was he about to kiss her? Damn that cat for ruining the moment! She thought about how she'd felt as he slowly moved his face towards her, they were so close, a few more seconds and maybe-

"I know you're not sleeping." She heard his gruff voice say from across the room, snapping her out of her haze. Busted! He hadn't even looked in her direction, how the hell did he know? She quickly bolted upright, pretending to have just woken up, doing a fake, over the top yawn and began rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Stop being a pervert and come join us!" He blurted, glancing over to her briefly to gauge her dumbstruck expression before returning his attention to Haru. Smiling to himself, "Your mama's being weird again!" He whispered to the baby, snickering when he responded by flailing his arms, "See Luce, even Haru agrees." He looked over to her and laughed when he saw her puffed out cheeks.

She scowled at the dragon slayer before heading over to give Haru a kiss on the head to say good morning. Glancing up at Natsu, still pretending to be annoyed, she flicked his forehead playfully, gaining a pretend gasp from him, before entering her bathroom to get showered and ready for the day. Natsu couldn't help but laugh out loud, she was so easy to wind up, it was one of his favourite things to do.

When Lucy walked out of the bathroom, Natsu looked up, about to tell her something when his words got trapped in his mouth, she looked stunning. He watched as her heavenly blonde hair cascaded down her back, he liked it when she let it down, it had grown so long. Her smooth, milky skin looked almost edible and the way her clothes seemed to hug her curves, made him drool. There wasn't any particular difference in the way she looked, yet, he was mesmerised. He couldn't look away, in his eyes she was just so beautiful.

"Natsu and I cooked you some breakfast Lucy, it's super yummy!" The little Exceed exclaimed with a mouth full of food. Knocking Natsu right out of his trance, he quickly looked away, attempting to hide his pink cheeks. Oblivious to his inner turmoil, she walked over and sat down, helping herself to some of the food on the table.

"Porlyusica said she wanted to do a full check up on Haru today at the guild hall." She said out loud, directing her gaze towards the dragon slayer who had just finished stuffing his face.

"I'll be there! There's just a few things I need to do before hand. But it shouldn't take too long." Natsu said cheerily, "Actually, I better get going. Are you going to be alright for a bit Luce, I'll be as quick as I can?" He asked, saying a quick goodbye to Haru and placing him in his crib, before making his way over to the window.

She nodded, unable to speak from all the food in her mouth. He grinned at her as he jumped out of the window and started running down the street. Lucy did wonder where he was going everyday, it had become quite a regular thing for him to just up and leave the past week, never telling her where he was off to. She had to admit she was curious, but he always returned and she had Happy to help her until he got back.

Once she had finished cleaning the awful mess that'd been left in her kitchen, Lucy, Happy and Haru made their way to the Guild hall. It was such a warm, sunny day as she walked along the canal, Lucy contemplated taking Haru for a walk in the park later. Her mind habitually drifted back to Natsu, focusing mostly on his absence. Should she have asked him where he was going? She did want to know where he kept running off to, but at the same time, she knew that he would tell her eventually. She sighed, as much as she loved Haru, being alone with him made her feel a little uncomfortable. And yes, she had Happy there to help, he was great with the baby, but Natsu seemed to just have this way of calming him when he cried, a way that Lucy hadn't mastered yet.

She couldn't help but panic when he started to wail, anxiety would course through her when he refused his milk. She felt a sense of helplessness, what was she doing wrong? Was there something wrong with him that she was missing? She didn't know, but each time he would cry for apparently no reason, Natsu had been there to soothe him. The more she thought about it, the more her good mood was fading. She couldn't help it, she wanted to be a good mother to Haru, he deserved it, but at the moment it felt like she was failing him. Natsu had tried to be encouraging when she told him about her worries, he was so supportive, but there was always this crushing doubt in the back of her mind that just wouldn't go away.

Before she knew it she was standing outside the Fairy Tail guild hall. She opened the door and walked in, greeting her friends as she sat down at the bar with Haru. Happy had flown off to go see Carla, that cat was hopeless. She chuckled to herself before starting a conversation with the girls that were so eager to hold the baby.

"Juvia wishes to have a baby. But her darling Gray won't give her one." The water mage said solemnly, looking a little defeated. Lucy kind of felt sorry for her, having a baby was a big thing as she had quickly found out, not that she regretted it but maybe Gray had the right idea for now, it wasn’t something to take lightly.

"I'm sure you'll have a family one day Juvia, you just have to be patient." Lucy said, trying to console her friend, "Gray will come around to the idea, I'm sure."

"Haru is so cute! I think you and Natsu should have more sweet babies, Haru will need siblings eventually." Mira said, gushing over the baby, whilst imagining more Natsu and Lucy babies.

"Siblings? Mira! Natsu and I aren't together in that way, how could we give him siblings?" Lucy turned the colour of a tomato, what was Mira trying to suggest? Surely they all knew that their situation was a little different to other parents.

"You say that, yet you chose to adopt a child together, you practically live with one another, you're inseparable and don't make out you don't see him that way, I've seen you staring at his fire dragon!" Cana blurted, whilst swigging from her barrel of beer, "There's just so much sexual tension between you two, it's suffocating!" She finished, wagging her eyebrows up and down, enjoying every second of teasing the young blonde. Lucy’s eyes were like saucers as she glared at Cana, wanting to give the brunette a piece of her mind when someone else decided to chip in.

"Open your eyes Lucy, you wouldn't have taken in a child with someone like Elfman or Laxus, right?" Lisanna asked, raising her eyebrow at the celestial mage.

"W-Well… I…er-" Lucy felt so flustered, she didn't know what to say, was this pick on Lucy day?

The worst part of it all was that they had a point. She wouldn't have done it with any one else, and yes, she did only have eyes for Natsu, how could she not? It wasn't a recent development, it was something that she had buried for a very long time. Taking in Haru had only made her attraction for the dragon slayer worse, so much worse in fact. But there was one problem with all of this, one detail they were failing to point out and that was, Natsu. She had told them time and time again, he simply had no interest in romance, if he did then surely he would have done something about it by now? She took a deep breath, trying to calm her rattling nerves.

"Guys, Natsu doesn't see me like that, he's just not interested." She said feeling sad about the whole situation, couldn't they see how much it affected her to know that? To truly like someone that didn’t like you back was heartbreaking. She thought back to the almost kiss the other day, that was the only time Natsu had ever looked like he was about to do something, but they had been interrupted so now she would never know.

"Lucy, I've known Natsu since we were children, believe me, he shows plenty of interest in you, he's totally smitten." Mira looked over at the blonde, from the little baby she’d been staring at, "He would never have taken in this sweet little baby if you hadn't agreed to it. Have you not noticed that you guys are all he talks about? He's so proud of his little family, and you're the one that gave him that." Mira smiled sweetly once she'd finished her speech, hoping that her words had been taken in.

Lucy sighed in defeat and smiled at the she-demon, she hoped that what Mira was saying was true, but she assumed only time would tell. If anything was going to progress between them, they'd created the perfect situation for it. They shared responsibility for the sweet baby boy currently cuddled in Lucy's arms, and that excited her for the future, a future that might involve her and Natsu being more than just best friends.

"What Mira's trying to say Lucy, is just do it already. Bend over and let him ram it home!" Cana bursts out laughing at Lucy's horrified face, sticking her tongue out and thrusting her hips suggestively.

Much to Lucy’s chagrin, every one in the entire guild had heard what Cana had just said, she was glad Natsu wasn't present. That was until she felt his strong arms wrap around her shoulders, his breath fanning against her ear, sending spine tingling shivers through her body. Quickly spinning around to look at him, bringing Haru up to her chest from her lap. He looked so casual, surely he'd heard what Cana had just shouted out if he had been that close?

"H-Hi Natsu, I didn't hear you come in." She stuttered, trying to push down the heat rising in her face.

"I didn't want to disturb your conversation, it sounded… interesting!" He smirked at her, he had only heard what Cana had said and that was enough to know what they were talking about.

He watched as the very flushed Lucy before him started to sweat as she took in his words, he could hear the other girls sniggering in the background. But as he was about to tease her further, little Haru woke with a start and began to cry loudly.

His smirk instantly dropped into a worried frown. He leaned in to get a closer look at Haru's little puffy face, wanting to find the cause of his distress. It was so heart wrenching when he cried, especially when he couldn't be soothed by milk or cuddles. Lucy tried for several minutes to calm the little boy down, but to no avail. She looked to Natsu, worry written across her face, who quickly took him into his arms and held him close. Warming his hands and stroking his back softly, he sat down at a bench and gently rocked back and forth. The wails slowly turned into whimpers as Natsu began to talk to him.

"That's it, good boy! There's no need for all of those tears." Natsu smiled lovingly at the little one in his arms as he continued to comfort him. Lucy couldn't help but watch, she loved to see Natsu like this. And apparently so did all the other girls, but for very different reasons.

"You seem to have a handle on this daddy business Natsu, maybe you two should have more babies." Lisanna giggled from behind the bar with Mira.

Lucy just wanted the ground to swallow her whole, why couldn't they just leave it? They just had to mention it in front of him. Natsu smiled but didn't respond, too preoccupied with Haru. He had heard the white haired mage, loud and clear. However, he wanted to save Lucy from any more embarrassment, especially with regards to their relationship.

"Luce, when do we have to go see that old woman?" He asked, still rubbing little Haru's back as he looked up to a now fully composed Lucy, smiling at her.

"Now actually, I think she's down in the infirmary, we should get going." She said as she stood up and gathered herself.

Natsu joined her, and gave her a reassuring grin, he could see she looked a little nervous but that was natural. He laced his hand with hers and made their way down stairs. They knocked on the door and entered, happy to see Porlyusica with the addition of Wendy, Erza, Gray and of course Happy. Lucy smiled at them, they'd remembered her telling them about the check up today.

"You all remembered! Thank you, this means a lot to us." Lucy chirped graciously.

"Of course we remembered Lucy, we wanted to be here to lend our support for you both." Erza said, as she greeted little Haru.

"Yeah, I think the girls just wanted an excuse to be around the baby, I didn't get a choice in the matter." Gray rolled his eyes, trying to act as if Haru’s cuteness wasn't getting to him.

"Well, now that we have that settled, take a seat and I'll begin. Give me the child." Porlyusica barked, not remotely amused by all the people surrounding her.

She took the baby from Natsu's arms and laid him down on the table. Lucy felt her worries grow with each passing moment, her heart was beating so rapidly she was sure the two dragon slayers could hear it. The others kept offering reassuring nods and smiles as she looked at them, even Happy had come over to snuggle into her lap, but she just couldn't shake her uneasiness.

It was a check up to see how he was doing after being caught in that fire, but why was it affecting her so much? Natsu could see her growing fear the longer the old crow kept them waiting. Natsu pulled Lucy closer to him and wrapped his arm around her back, with his hand resting on her hip, caressing it softly, while the other hand rested on top of hers, lacing their fingers together.

The baby had woken up at this point and had started to whimper, obviously not recognising the woman in front of him. His whimpers turned into cries as he urgently tried to get his parents attention. Lucy instantly tried to get up and go to him, but Porlyusica told her not to intervene and to sit back down. Natsu held her closer, he wasn’t entirely pleased himself with not being able to comfort the little one, especially as his cries became louder and more desperate.

"Don't worry Lucy, he'll be back in your arms in no time." Wendy said to try and reassure the blonde, who's face had started to sweat. Lucy didn't reply, too taken by the noise coming from her little frantic baby. She gripped Natsu's hand tighter, this is exactly what she had worried about, this and bad news, but Porlyusica hadn't said a word yet. Why was it taking so long?

"Luce, try and breathe." Natsu whispered against her ear, noticing that she was holding her breath, if she kept doing that she was going to pass out.

Little Haru had cried so much, that his entire body had gone completely red, his wails sounded pained and all Lucy wanted to do was pick him up and cuddle him. To show him that he hadn't been left alone, that mama and daddy were right here waiting for him.

Her mind drifted back to the day that they had found him, had he cried like this then? Was he just as scared? With no one there to help him, he must have screamed until he could scream no more. It was horrifying to think of such a helpless and vulnerable little newborn baby being stuck in that mess with no one to save him.

She couldn't take it any longer, her thoughts had become erratic and the dread she felt was unbearable. She needed to reassure her baby, he needed her, he was crying so hysterically. Without warning she stood up, pulling herself away from an equally troubled Natsu and walked over to where Porlyusica was standing and grabbed the little one from the table and held him close, rubbing his back whilst she spoke to him softly, letting him know that everything was alright until he gradually calmed down. Porlyusica stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, before piping up.

"Stop being so ridiculous! I wasn't hurting him, you've interfered unnecessarily and now I'll have to do it all over again!" Porlyusica huffed in annoyance, she couldn't understand what the problem was.

"Ridiculous? How dare you! Do you have any idea how hard it was to sit there and listen to him cry like that?" Lucy was seething, how was she being ridiculous? "He's just a baby! An innocent baby who was scared and as his parent- No, as his mother I needed to comfort him!" Her voice was raised, teeming with anger.

Surely any decent parent would want to comfort their child, regardless of the situation. She looked over her shoulder, Natsu had stood up and started to make his way over to her, probably to try and console her. But the other's were just staring at her, dumbstruck. Why were they looking at her like that? She hadn't done anything wrong, all she'd wanted was to comfort Haru so that he stopped crying and then they could have continued.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" She spat at them, not caring how they’d react, she couldn't be bothered with this.

"Luce?" Was all Natsu could say as he stood behind her and tried to reach out for her hand, stopping in his tracks from the death glare she'd given him. Before he could stop her, she bolted towards the door, Haru held safely against her and stormed out of it, walking up the stairs and out of the guild hall, ignoring anyone who tried to talk to her. She needed air, that room had been suffocating and she just couldn't shake the horrible guilt she'd felt as she’d listened to the helpless cries of the little boy in her arms.

She walked to the park and sat herself under a large tree, when she had thought about going to the park today, this wasn't what she had in mind, but she wanted to be left alone right now. She was still so angry, what had gotten into her? She never usually reacted in this way, but she just couldn't help it. Watching that woman prod and pull at her little Haru and not being able to comfort him as he cried had sent her over the edge.

She looked at the unhappy baby, who was still red and blotchy from crying, she knew what would cheer him up and took out a bottle of milk from her baby bag and fed it to him. She loved watching him feed, it was one of her favourite things. It felt like they were bonding as he looked up at her, with milk dribbling down his chin as she adoringly smiled back at him.

She didn't want little Haru seeing her so angry, and she definitely didn’t want to further upset him. Just watching him had managed to calm her down, how could she stay angry when she had the cutest little baby in her arms. Once he had finished with his milk, she brought him up to lay on her chest to gently burp him, humming a quiet tune. She relaxed instantly, taking in his newborn baby scent as he fell asleep so peacefully.

It had been a little while by the time Natsu had found her under the tree. He had wanted to run after her straight away but had been stopped by the others, wanting to give Lucy some space. She hadn't noticed him yet, he wanted to gauge her mood first before he approached, not wanting to be on the receiving end of Lucy's wrath, especially when it sometimes rivalled Erza's.

He stood back and watched her for a little while, she was singing some sort of lullaby to Haru, the sight of her leant up against the tree with the baby laid against her, as she gently rubbed his back to soothe him, melted his heart. It stirred feelings within him he couldn’t place with words, what a truly breathtaking scene it was.

She was always so worried about whether she was doing the right thing, that she couldn't see just what a good mother she undeniably was. She had spoken to him over her fears of not being good enough, not being 'maternal' as she put it. But he just couldn't understand how she didn't see it, she cared so much for their little boy. She always made sure he had everything he needed, so why was she so quick to put herself down?

It baffled him that she doubted herself so much, that she felt she wasn't good enough, when it was so clear to him that, together, they were little Haru's entire world. He'd decided that enough was enough, she was going to listen to him. If she was so ready to run herself down, then he would spend every minute of the day building her back up, if that's what it took.

He slowly approached, until he was standing in front of her, looking down at her almost intimidatingly so. Sensing his presence, she sighed, and looked up to him. What was she supposed to say? She felt so stupid for the way she'd reacted and the fact that she’d stormed off with Haru, without saying a word, how was she going to explain that to him? Natsu crouched down in front of her, staring deep into her eyes, she looked so lost, this was going to take some work.

"How you holding up, Luce?" He spoke softly, it sounded silly, but he didn't want to startle her and he definitely didn't want her running off again.

"I-I don't know. I can't explain what happened back there, I don’t know what came over me?" She answered, trying to think of the best way to tell him how she was feeling.

He remained silent, waiting for her to speak. He knew how her brain worked, he'd known her long enough by now to let her work through everything before she spoke.

"I'm sorry Natsu, I shouldn't have reacted that way towards you or stormed off like that, god knows what the other's think." She stopped, unable to meet his gaze, feeling utterly ashamed of herself, but she needed to carry on, to get everything off of her chest, "But I just couldn't control it, I felt so useless as he cried and my mind kept drifting back to when we found him and how terrified he must have been. He has lost so much already, and he's barely begun to live. I just wanted him to know that we were there waiting for him, that he didn't need to be scared. I let my emotions get the better of me and then I ran off with him in my arms without saying anything to you.” Her voice wavering as she found the courage to finally look at the dragon slayer in front of her, feeling completely overwhelmed by all of her conflicting feelings.

Natsu didn’t respond straight away, sensing she wasn’t quite finished. He reached out for her hand and held it, encouraging her to go on. He had a feeling that there was something more to this, something hidden that she was reluctant to tell him. He waited patiently, watching her contemplate the best way to say it.

“Why am I so bad at this, Natsu? Do you think it’s because I didn’t actually carry and give birth to him? I didn’t have those extra nine months to bond with him like other mother’s do. Surely that would have an effect?" A few tears started to spill down her cheeks, she laid Haru down in her lap to free up her arms so she could quickly wipe the tears away.

And there it was, he knew there was something eating away at her, making her doubt herself when there was just no need for it. He had to put a stop to this once and for all, to make her see that these worries were a waste of energy.

"Lucy, I need you to listen to me and listen closely." He said, voice stern and his face serious. He leaned in closer to her and made himself comfortable, eyes still locked onto hers, "The way you reacted back there, was totally normal, so there's nothing to be sorry about. Don't most parents want to comfort their children when they're upset? But you need to stop doubting yourself so much. You are Haru’s mother, so it doesn’t matter who carried him or brought him into the world. You're so good with him, you give so much of yourself and you still can't see it. I wish you could see yourself the way I see you, then you'd never put yourself down again. We're a team Luce, and now we're a family, and I want you to know just how important you are, not just to Haru, but to me as well. You always have been since the very beginning."

Lucy couldn't hold back her tears, how is it Natsu always knew the right things to say? She knew deep down he was right though, she needed to stop doubting herself. She would never be able to enjoy the time she has with Haru being so young with that kind of attitude, he wasn't going to be a baby forever. Natsu moved to sit next to her against the tree, he pulled her into his warm chest and wrapped his arm around her waist. She laid her head into the crook of his neck, savouring his warmth as they both glanced down at their baby.

Little Haru had woken up when Lucy had moved him a few minutes ago and now he was staring wide eyed at the two mages above him. Lucy moved her hand to slowly stroke his cheek, she couldn't stay upset for long, not with that sweet face to look at. She sighed in contentment this time, they really were a little family, her own little family that she loved dearly.

"Thank you Natsu, thank you for everything." She looked up at him, desperate to convey all her unspoken emotions.

He meant so much to her, he really had given her everything and even in times where she felt hopeless, he was always there, to offer a helping hand. He glanced at her still teary face, taken aback slightly, he wasn't expecting her to say that. And he definitely wasn't expecting her to climb atop of his lap, baby laid gently on the blanket next to them and pull him into a bone crushing hug. He couldn't complain really, the most gorgeous girl he'd ever known, had just straddled his hips and his face was currently nestled between her breasts. She smelled so good, and her skin was so soft, he could stay like this forever. He moved his hands to rest on her hips, fingers touching her exposed skin.

She pulled back to look into his eyes, she was so full of these feelings with no way to express them. She wanted to hold him, to touch him, to show him just how grateful she was to have him in her life, but not just as her best friend, as someone who meant so much more than that. She reached her hand up and gently moved a strand of hair away from his face, there was anticipation present in his eyes as he stared at her, waiting to see what she would do.

His hands had gone slightly under her top, touching more of her soft skin, stroking his thumb lightly over her hips. She let out a soft whimper at the feel of his warm hands, there was a hunger in her eyes that Natsu had never seen before. If they weren't out in public with a baby to look after he may have just taken her there and then. But he had to proceed with caution, if he got too excited, it was going to become very apparent between his legs, right where Lucy was sitting.

Lucy had moved ever so slowly, closer to his face wanting to taste his lips, and explore his mouth with her own. She figured that if he didn't want this then he surely would have pushed her away by now, but he hadn't. If anything he looked at her wantonly and that gave her butterflies, Happy wasn't around this time to interrupt them, which meant they could finally-

"Well, Miss Heartfilia, fancy seeing you here." She heard an old woman's voice coming from beside them. Why were people so insistent on interrupting them, couldn't they just wait? Lucy turned, about to tell the person to go away, when she recognised who it was.

"Oh, er, hello. This isn't what it looks like." Lucy felt her entire body flush as she quickly retreated off of Natsu and back against the tree. Natsu grabbed the cooing baby from the blanket and held him close, looking at the dumpy woman glowering at them. Out of all the people to catch them in such a compromising position it had to be Lucy's landlady.

"Don’t play coy with me, it's exactly what it looks like. I must say, you're looking well for a woman that's only just had a baby. Although, I don't ever remember seeing you pregnant, but then that baby's so tiny it must have just slipped out." She looked to Natsu, not taking any notice of Lucy's mortified expression, and glared at him, "I take it you're the father, I always knew you two would end up together. Teenager's these days, you just can't keep it in your pants and now look at you both." Natsu was utterly speechless, completely gobsmacked by the woman's rudeness. This was the first time anyone had assumed the child was biologically theirs, though he knew it would happen eventually. He just wasn’t ready to hear it so nastily, especially towards Lucy, from this old bat.

"Er, I think you've got it all wro-" Lucy started before she was interrupted by Natsu.

"Yes, Lucy and I have a child together which makes me the baby's father, I'm not entirely sure what you’re trying to get at here or what your problem is, Lady?" Natsu blurts, not really thinking about what he was saying but letting it come out anyway, he didn't understand what their situation had to do with her and why she was being so damn rude about it. He could feel his magic burning under his skin, he wanted nothing more than to torch this woman’s ass.

"Well, it would have been nice to be told that you were having a baby and had moved in together in the apartment you rent from me. I'm sorry Miss Heartfilia, but my apartment is for single people only. Now that you have a baby you'll no longer be able to stay there. You have two days to pack your things and leave, so I can find a new tenant." She said sternly, not taking any prisoners.

"Two days? What the hell, you're kicking me out?! Is this about rent money because it's not even due yet!" Lucy felt her little bubble of happiness burst as she realised she was about to become homeless in a matter of two days. What was she going to do? Her landlady didn't say another word as she trotted off out of sight.

Lucy just wanted to this day to be over, why was everything going so wrong? She leaned back against the tree and put her hand over her face. Wanting nothing more than to scream as loud as she could to get rid of all her pent up frustration.

"Why me! What kind of a person kicks out a mother and her baby?!" She shouts out loud. She was infuriated, what an absolute bitch!

Natsu hadn't said anything, he couldn't believe that old woman had done this to Lucy but he wasn't going to let it get Lucy down. He leapt to his feet with the biggest grin on his face, holding little Haru close, he looked down to Lucy and held out his hand.

"Come on, Luce. I gotta show you something!" He waited for her to take his hand but instead she just stared at him, deadpanned.

"Huh? Did you not just hear what that woman said? I've got two days to find somewhere new to live, and you're smiling!" She yelled, perplexed by his happy demeanour.

Her mind was frantic, what was she going to do? Where were all her and Haru's belonging’s going to go? Lucy felt as if the ground beneath her had crumbled and Natsu was still standing there, being so irritatingly calm about the situation, how could he be happy at a time like this?

"I'm smiling because you're gonna love it, I can't wait to see your face! Let's go Lucy!" He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her up to her feet and before she could say another word, he sprinted off, Lucy and Haru in-tow, towards his surprise.

[honeycombhank]

10/12/2022

Lunch today was SO GOOD, you guys!

Why had I not eaten the basil on the tomatoes before today! Why!? The homegrown black Krim tomatoes and sweet basil along with the store bought marinated mozzarella cheese was an explosion of taste in my mouth that I can not get over!

I’ve also been making fresh lemon water almost everyday now and it’s super refreshing and good for my metabolism.

I started doing the lemon water because I really enjoy black tea but the caffeine at dinner time was keeping me up so now I’m drinking more lemon water as a replacement.

Anyway! Hope you enjoy seeing my lunch today!

[coridallasmultipass]

When you saute chard or spinach, do you keep the stems? ((I lov the cwomch.)) 🎃🍑🍜🍎 Just some yummy meals over the past couple days. I'm eating the squash one right now, and holy shit?? Delicata squash litchrally tastes like sweet potato, it's so good. I love eating bowl foods like this. ((Also, the chard is home-grown! It's growing so humongous, but it's also 'ugly' with imperfections and bug-eaten. Still, it looks nice cooked after I pull the dry parts off!)) I saved the delicata seeds and gonna try to grow some - hopefully it's not too late to plant them, but our garden has a ton of empty spots! 🥗 I also love putting tons of fruit on my salads, which I guess is something many people don't like???? I do miss tomatoes tho, since I can't have acidic food rn. 🍅🍅🍅🍅

[bajocooking-blog]

Vegan paella with roasted wild mushrooms in balsamic oil and home grown chilli 🍚🍄🌶 . . . . #paella #tomatoes #vegetarian #vegan #chilli #paellalover #roasted #healthy #healthyrecipes #dinner #lightdinner #healthy #healthyfood #bajocooking #fitness #bájovaří #fitnesslifestyle #mushrooms #homemade #homemadefood #homemadeisbest #homemadewithlove #food #foodie #foodpic #foodgram #foodporn #foodblogger #yummy #yummylicious (at Prague) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4RmxsLghXR/?igshid=1e2k2ia90g24c

[abbypdg]

Chapter 1: Let’s keep it secret.

A/N: Thank you sm for the love I received in the prologue, I was shaking tbh uwu Thank you @ss-tyytyy​ for being with me and @borusarastuff​ for trusting me. 

sasuke02T7: *Picture* A bowl of miso soup with tomato. No description. Three tags: k_hatake03T7, sakura01T7, ramenaruto04T7. 204 likes.

…

inoqueen10: no surprise.

uchiha_shisui: tell my girl i love her uwu

miki382: Tomato?

chojilovesfood: where is that? looks yummy

~

Sasuke walked down the stairs of the building to go to his next class; he was wearing his earphones, so he couldn’t hear the cry Karin sent him while she tried to reach him. When she did, she punched him on the back, getting an annoyed growl at her.

“I’ve been screaming your name for five minutes, you dumbass!” She scolded him as he took his earphones off.

“What do you want?”

“Have you checked the group chat in the last two hours?” He raised his eyebrow at her question. She shook her head and continued. “Anyways, Ino and Sakura are fighting and neither of them wants to listen to any of us. I don’t think they’ll make-up for tonight’s party.”

“Why?” Sasuke didn’t like when they fought, for they were so dramatic and always made a huge deal about everything. Did they really have to fight on Juugo’s birthday?

“Ino brought him up.” The red-haired girl simply said.

“I’ll talk to Sakura.” He told her and started walking. He didn’t want to go to Professor Sarutobi’s lecture anyways. He looked for her name in his contacts, frowning when he remembered that she had changed her own name on his phone.

Dark boi: ‘Hey, where are you?’

Pinky baby: ‘car.’

He jogged to the parking lot, not minding the incessant buzzing of his phone in his pants—it was probably Naruto or the group chat. When he found the black 1969 Boss Mustang, and the crying girl inside of it, he walked toward the spot, glad he had found it before he had a heatstroke. Most people would say that she was a dumb girl with a really nice car; however, she was the smartest med student, and that car was her baby. She knew everything about that machine, and she made sure that everyone knew to not mess up with them.

Sasuke jumped into the car, cursing mentally when Leona Lewis started to sound loudly.

“I keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love…” the pinkette was singing as well, and if she weren’t crying, she would’ve sounded amazing.

Sasuke knew better than to interrupt her, so he just took off his backpack and tossed it to the backseat. She kept singing and tapping her fingers against the steering wheel, tears kept coming out of her eyes and her cheeks were as red as her dress; he was glad she had the A/C on. If the weather outside was awful, he wouldn’t like to imagine the heat when they were surrounded by those leather seats.

“I’m staying at your place tonight,” she said while she turned the volume down. “I won’t attend a party knowing that she’s going to be there.”

“Not even for Juugo?” He asked.

She bit her lip, hesitant at his question. “I don’t know, she was really mean.”

“You brought up the Genma thing last time,” he reminded her softly, his arms open for her to rest on his chest. She did so, grabbing a tissue and cleaning her nose.

The pink-haired girl had been on a relationship with one of the guys in the football team back in high school, and it had been a complete disaster. She was left heartbroken and empty, yet renovated and wiser.

“I know, I apologized. She didn’t have to do it too.”

“You’re both the same, it was obvious she was going to do it.” Sasuke patted her back and rested his head on hers.

Sasuke and Sakura were best friends, and they knew each other better than anyone. If someone had to tell the other that they were wrong or made a mistake, it had to be one another. They’d been friends since elementary school, since they lived in the same neighborhood. Sasuke’s mother, Mikoto, always invited Sakura and her mom to have lunch or play dates for the kids; the pinkette had grown to love Itachi as an older brother as well, along with Shisui—even though since she turned 17, he liked to flirt and tease her a lot. Naruto joined them in middle school, and the three of them had been inseparable ever since. They used to go and train karate at Kakashi’s, who was friends with Shisui and Itachi—that’s how Team 7 was created. As they grew up, Karin, Ino, Suigetsu, Shikamaru and the rest joined them as a group, but they kept hanging out as the little family they were.

“Do you think I should talk to her first?” She wondered while she inhaled the masculine scent of his body; it made her feel like home.

“I think you should calm down for a minute.” He replied.

The stayed there for a while, Sasuke made sure they were listening to songs she loved; he closed his eyes and kept rubbing her back just the way she liked it.

Not so much time later, a tap on the window knocked them out of their little bubble of peace. Sakura sat back on her seat and brushed off the mascara around her eyes. Ino was there with swollen eyes and bruised lips—probably from biting them. The pinkette looked at her and opened the car door.

“Can we talk?” Asked the blonde with harsh voice. Sakura nodded in response and got out of the car.

They started talking, and Sasuke looked at them while they did so. He wondered if he looked like that with Naruto, for they always had arguments too. He wandered for a moment, until the girls embraced themselves in a tight hug while they laughed soundly. He smirked and texted Karin that the problem was solved, and they were definitely attending.

When he looked back at them again, Sakura slapped Ino’s arm and blushed profusely; the blond laughed and threw a glance at him, then a wink and a smirk. He frowned, confused. The girls said their goodbyes and Sakura got into the car again.

“We’ll go to grab some lunch.” She stated and started the engine.

He didn’t complain.

~

sakura01T7: *Picture* The girl sitting on a table inside a restaurant, she was resting her chin on her hand and looked at the window to her side. Description: “I always have the best time with you K.” One tag: k_hatake03T7. 240 likes.

…

ramenaruto04T7: thanks for the invite sakura>:(

yoshikawa_diary229: wasn’t she dating sasuke?:0

ten_ten_1010: He’s a really good photographer!

sakura01T7: @ten_ten_1010 i know right?<3

reduzumaki: crush my face with your thighs

~

Naruto snorted when he heard Shikamaru and the squad’s bet.

“What makes you think I’ll say yes to that?” The Uzumaki asked, an eyebrow raised and arms crossed.

“Because if you win, we’ll pay one month of ramen at Ichiraku’s.” Shikamaru answered with a smirk.

Naruto swallowed hard. What could possibly go wrong anyways? He just had to make their best friends kiss and he would win the bet. Naruto was really aware of their feelings for each other—everyone, actually. The only ones who didn’t were themselves. He still hesitated, he didn’t want to mess things up between them, for he knew how stubborn they were.

“You have a month, and don’t worry, we’ll know if something happens.” Sai added with a mischievous look.

“I really think this is dumb, they’ve been in love since they were in diapers,” Karin snorted. “How do you expect this idiot to bring them together in such a short time?”

“You don’t know what he’s capable of.” Suigetsu laughed.

“They just need a little push.” Neji nodded. “I’m in.”

“Guys, I’m not sure,” Naruto sighed. “They’re my best friends…”

“I’ll help you.”

Ino’s voice came from behind him and she took a seat next to him; she was grinning and locked her left arm with Naruto’s right.

“Why?” Juugo asked her. She tried to not pay attention to how cute he looked with a birthday hat.

“I want my best friend to be with the man she loves,” she replied, sure of herself. “Also, I happen to love him as my little bro as well, so I think they should be together. Just like Neji said, they need a little push.”

No one could deny that she was right. Not even Naruto. He sighed one last time and bit his lip; he was still having a battle with himself about the pros and cons.

“Two months.” Choji’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Deal.”

~

sasuke02T7: *2 pictures* A pink-haired girl leaning by the bridge, a blond guy pointing at the cherry blossom trees on the other side of the lake. Two pairs of Timberland boots in front of each other, one pair smaller. No description. Two tags: ramenaruto04T7, sakura01T7. 357 likes.

…

anakrlns: beautiful

hyuuganej1: let’s all wear matching outfits but don’t tell naruto

sharkboiii69: @hyuuganej1 seconded

uchiha_shisui: sakura pls dump him and date me

ramenaruto04T7: @hyuuganej1 @sharkboiii69 >:(

FF.net | AO3

[leantimes]

Cooking Lesson: Seasonings Are Your Friend

When it comes to 'seasoning,' the very first thing you need to think of is salt.  You need to put salt on everything.  

You also probably need to use more than you would imagine.  Contrary to what you might think, salt (when used properly) doesn't make food taste salty.  It just makes the food taste more....delicious.  It amps up the dial for every flavor that crosses your tastebuds.  It's a complex chemical reaction that takes place in your mouth and exists, evolutionarily, to ensure you eat enough sodium (which is necessary for multiple bodily functions).

That said, you've probably heard about how sodium isn't so good for you.  It's true that, in high quantities, it can cause hypertension and plenty of other problems.  Here's a secret: The sodium that's hurting you isn't what you're putting on the food you're cooking.  It's the hidden sodium in processed foods.  If you cut those out and focus on cooking food from whole ingredients, you don't need to worry about salt.

HERBS AND SPICES BY CUISINE

Once you've mastered the salt thing, it's time to tackle herbs & spices.  You can get a long way with an empty pantry but a full spice rack.  Below are some of the more common cuisines along with the herbs and spices they use, as well as some of the other common ingredients that go into these recipes.  If you're starting with a bare spice rack, you can pick the cuisine you cook the most of and focus on buying just those spices.  You can also skim through to see which spices show up again and again, and buy those first.

A few notes:

Herbs are the green leaves and stems of plants, and many of them can be grown at home.  Spices are usually seeds, berries or bark, and they're mostly grown in exotic or far-away places.  

Herbs can be used fresh or dried.  If you're using dried herbs, add them to the dish early on so they can infuse the dish with flavor while it's cooking. If you're using fresh herbs, add them toward the end so they don't get slimy and wilted.  

Herbs and spices both lose potency over time.  Try not to store them too close to the oven -- the heat will cause them to lose flavor quickly. Replace them frequently.  

Save money on herbs by buying them in bulk.  You can usually buy plastic bags of herbs and spices on the Mexican aisle of a supermarket for a fraction of the price of the name-brand containers.  

Start small with any new seasonings you try.  You can always add more later, but you can't really take it back if you put in too much.  Start with a quarter-teaspoon of any new spice or herb and work up from there as necessary.  

In addition to their yummy flavor, herbs and spices have various health benefits associated with them as well! They've been a key part of, er, herbal medicine since the dawn of time.  

Mexican Cuisine

Examples:

Chili, fajitas, enchiladas

Herbs & Spices:

Garlic, cilantro, oregano, cumin, chili powder, paprika, black pepper (these last four I refer to as "chili spices" in recipes I write for myself).  

Other Common Ingredients:

Peppers, tomatoes, beans, rice

Asian Cuisine:

Examples:

Stir-fries, fried rice

Herbs & Spices:

Garlic, ginger, black pepper, soy sauce, five-spice powder, Sriracha

Other Common Ingredients:

Vegetables, tofu, rice, noodles

Italian Cuisine:

Examples:

Pasta dishes

Herbs & Spices:

Garlic, oregano, parsley, thyme

Other Common Ingredients:

Pasta, tomatoes, polenta

French (and gourmet American) Cuisine:

Examples:

Roast chicken, meatloaf

Herbs & Spices:

Rosemary, thyme, marjoram, sage

Other Common Ingredients:

Onion, carrot and celery (aka mire poix, or the start of any good soup), wine

Mediterannean Cuisine:

Examples:

Roast lamb, gyro meat

Herbs & Spices:

Basil, parsley, marjoram, oregano

Other Common Ingredients:

Olives, chickpeas, feta cheese

There are lots of other combinations to learn -- like those in Indian, Middle Eastern or North African cuisine -- but you might not cook those recipes as much as a beginning cook.  Pay attention to seasonings in recipes you find and you'll start to realize which ingredients are responsible for what flavors.  

The valuable thing about this brief list is that it helps you determine what a dish will taste like (if reading from a recipe) or what type of flavor profile to give something (if experimenting in the kitchen).  For example, if you start with tomato sauce and add oregano, parsley and thyme, the results will probably be a pasta sauce.  If you took that same tomato sauce and added cumin and paprika, you'd be well on your way to making chili.  By knowing -- even vaguely -- what you're starting with, you know more or less where you'll end up.

[higglety]

I hate avocado, love olives of all kinds. mango when ripe and sweet is absolutely amazing but has high disappointment potential if it's not, hummus is yummy, tomatoes are fine and when home grown in season are amazing, and cannolis are good, but you've gotta get them fresh from a place that does good filling; lots of places make their filling kinda gritty.

FOOD DISCOURSE: reblog with ur opinions on guacamole, olives, mango, hummus, tomatoes, and cannolis