#how stress impacts oral health

[happyteethcare]

Stress and Oral Health: What You Need to Know to Protect Your Smile

In today’s fast-paced world, stress has become a common part of life, affecting not just our mental well-being but also our physical health, including our oral health. Research has shown that stress can contribute to a range of dental problems, from teeth grinding to gum disease, making it crucial to understand how managing stress is essential for maintaining a healthy smile (Peruzzo et al.,…

[elicathebunny]

HEALTH SHOULD ALWAYS COME FIRST! PRIORITISING HEALTH BEFORE EVERYTHING ELSE TO LOOK GOOD + FEEL GOOD.

People always leave out the basics when it comes to trying to improve their looks. Prioritising health is so important before going in and tempering with your body. Your base is what you work with and you can definitely level up with what you've got naturally.

DIET

Your diet also depends on what your goals are. Someone who wants to build muscle will obviously eat differently from someone who just eats relatively healthy. So identify what your goals are and work your meals around that.

Here are some videos to give you a better insight: HOW I LOSE FAT AND KEEP IT OFF MEANS, WORKOUTS + EVERYTHING ELSE PROTEIN EXPLAINED, STRENGTH, MUSCLES, FAT LOSS & ENDURANCE HOW METABOLISM WORKS

Diet not only makes you feel better from the inside, but it also reflects on your outside. Your skin is a huge display of how you eat.

When you consume junk food, it can show up on your skin as breakouts or dullness. Your skin is one massive organ which soaks up everything put onto it and reflects everything you put inside your body. Fix the problem from the inside before getting confused about why your skincare routine isn't working.

FITNESS

Again, your fitness will differentiate from your goals. So work out your goals and make a plan around that. There are so many forms of fitness, some more intense than others and with different results. Working out in general is good for you, our bodies are meant to move. So even if you don't have a goal, staying active is always recommended.

HOW TO CREATE THE PERFECT WORKOUT PLAN

THE BEST WAY TO GAIN MUSCLE, SCIENCE EXPLAINED SIMPLY

Low-intensity workouts:

Yoga: Focuses on flexibility, strength, and relaxation through various poses and breathing techniques.

Pilates: A low-impact exercise method that strengthens muscles, improves flexibility, and enhances posture.

Walking: Simple yet effective, walking is a great way to improve cardiovascular health and boost mood without high impact.

Swimming: Provides a full-body workout with minimal stress on joints, making it ideal for people with joint issues or injuries.

High-intensity workouts:

HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training): Alternates between short bursts of intense exercise and brief recovery periods to maximize calorie burn and improve cardiovascular fitness.

CrossFit: Combines elements of weightlifting, interval training, gymnastics, and other exercises to build strength, endurance, and overall fitness.

Sprinting: Short, explosive bursts of running at maximum effort, often performed in intervals for cardiovascular conditioning and leg muscle strength.

Circuit Training: Involves moving through a series of exercises targeting different muscle groups with minimal rest in between, combining strength training and cardiovascular exercise.

These are just a few examples, but there are plenty of other workout styles out there to explore depending on your preferences and fitness goals. Walking every day is just a simple way to stay toned.

SLEEP

Sleeping is important for rest and recovery after workouts and energy-consuming activities. Sleep is needed for the brain to function, mood regulation and performance + productivity. Lack of sleep deprives you of all of these things, so getting your beauty sleep is absolutely needed.

School-age children (6-13 years): 9-11 hours per day.

Teenagers (14-17 years): 8-10 hours per day.

Young adults (18-25 years): 7-9 hours per day.

Adults (26-64 years): 7-9 hours per day.

HYGIENE

Upkeeping good hygiene is always needed anyway. Making sure you are clean (smelling good is a plus). Make sure you always wash your hands and take daily showers to remove any dirt on your body (clean those feet and your back well, don't forget them!). Taking care of your oral health must not be forgotten. Oil pulling and brushing your tongue for a healthy mouth. Make sure your hair is also getting the attention to keep it as healthy as you possibly can make it (this also depends on diet). Doing the extra things like spending time on your nails (making sure there isn't that stuff underneath them), making them pretty.

BODY CARE ROUTINE | FOR SMOOTH & GLOWING SKIN, TREATING KERATOSIS PILARIS, SHOWER ROUTINE

ENVIRONMENT

Having a stress-free environment is obviously the best to thrive in. But clearly not even being lucky enough to live like that constantly. So make sure you have that space to be on your own and have some alone time to really recharge. Keeping your space clean for a clear mind. Surround yourself with like-minded people and really set boundaries for those who prey on your mental clarity (energy vampires). Spending time in nature is one of the best ways to detach, rest time should not equal spending time on your devices. Let go and truly let yourself decompress. Mental health will improve how you carry yourself.

EMBODY YOUR POTENTIAL.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive (Daily updates!)

An older (published in January 2024) but interesting and comprehensive look at long Covid's effect on Latino families and communities in the US.

By Lygia Navarro and Johanna Bejarano

Editor’s note: This story first appeared on palabra, the digital news site by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. It is part of a series produced in partnership between palabra and Northwest Public Broadcasting (NWPB) with the collaboration of reporters Lygia Navarro and Johanna Bejarano. *Some people interviewed for this article requested anonymity to discuss private health issues.

Victoria* is already exhausted, and her story hasn’t even begun. It’s late January 2021 in rural Sunnyside, Washington. The town of 16,000 people is a sleepy handful of blocks flecked with pickup trocas, churches on nearly every corner, and the twangs of Clint Black and Vicente Fernández. Geometric emerald chunks of farmland encircle the town.

Thirty-nine-year-old Victoria drags herself back and forth to her parents’ bedroom in a uniform of baggy burgundy sweatpants, scarf, knit hat and mask. Always a mask. As the eldest sibling, her unspoken job is to protect the family. But COVID-19 hits before they can get vaccinated.

When Victoria’s mamá got sick and quickly infected her papá, Victoria quarantined them. She shut them in their room, only cracking the door briefly to slide food in before retreating in a fog of Lysol.

Working in the health field, Victoria knows if they make it through the first 14 days without hospitalization, they will likely survive. Yet, caregiving drains her: Keeping track of fevers. Checking oxygen saturation. Making sure they’re drinking Pedialyte to stay hydrated. Worrying whether they will live or die.

Five days in, COVID comes for Victoria. Hard. Later, when she repeatedly scrutinizes these events, Victoria will wonder if it was the stress that caused it all — and changed her life forever.

At the pandemic’s onset, Victoria’s family’s work dynamics fit the standard in Sunnyside, where 86% of residents are Latino. “Keeping the members of your household safe — it was hard for a lot of families,” Victoria says. Living in multigenerational homes, many adult children, who’d grown up in the United States with access to education, had professional jobs, and switched to working from home. Their immigrant elders, who’d often only been able to finish fourth grade, braved the world to toil in fields, produce packing plants, supermarkets, or delivery trucks. As Leydy Rangel of the UFW Foundation puts it: “You can’t harvest food through Zoom.”

More than three decades ago, when 6-year-old Victoria’s family migrated from rural northern Mexico to this fertile slip of land cradling the zigzagging Yakima River, their futures promised only prosperity and opportunity.

According to oral histories of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation — who white colonizers forced out of the Yakima Valley in 1855 — the valley’s fecund lands have fed humans since time immemorial. Soon after the Yakamas’ removal to a nearby reservation, settler agriculture exploded.

By World War II, employers were frantic to hire contracted bracero laborers from Mexico — themselves descendants of Indigenous ancestors — to harvest the valley’s bounty of asparagus, pears, cherries and other cornucopia. This was how Victoria’s family arrived here: her abuelo and his brother had traveled back and forth to Washington as braceros decades before.

Victoria’s path took similar twists, in a 21st century, first-gen way. She moved all over the country for her education and jobs, then returned before the pandemic, bringing a newfound appreciation for the taste of apples freshly plucked from a tree that morning, and for the ambrosial scent of mint and grapes permeating the valley before harvest.

Today, agriculture is the largest industry fueling the Yakima Valley, the country’s twelfth-largest agriculture production area. Here, 77% of the nation’s hops (an essential ingredient in beer) and 70% of the nation’s apples are grown. Latinos, who constitute more than half of Yakima County’s population, power the agricultural industry.

While the area’s agricultural enterprises paid out $1.1 billion in wages in 2020, 59% of the low-wage agriculture jobs are held by undocumented folks and contracted foreign seasonal laborers doing work many Americans spurn. Latinos here live on median incomes that are less than half of white residents’, with 16% of Latinos living in poverty. Also in 2020: as they watched co-workers fall ill and die, Latino farmworkers repeatedly went on strike protesting employers’ refusals to provide paid sick leave, hazard pay and basic COVID protections like social distancing, gloves and masks.

“Every aspect of health care is lacking in the valley,” Yakima Herald-Republic health reporter Santiago Ochoa tells me.

In interview after interview, Yakima Valley residents and health care workers sketch in the details of a dire landscape:

The state’s busiest emergency room. Abrupt shutdowns of hospital facilities. Impoverished people without transportation or internet access for telehealth. Eight-month waits for primary care appointments. Nearly one in five Latinos uninsured. More than half of residents receive Medicaid. Resident physicians cycling in and out, never getting to know their patients. Not enough specialists, resulting in day-long trips for specialized care in bigger cities. With its Latino essential workforce risking their lives to feed their families — and the country — by summer 2020, COVID blazed through Yakima County, which quickly became Washington’s most scorching of hot spots. Not only did Yakima County tally the highest per-capita case rate of all West Coast counties (with Latinos making up 67% versus, 26% for white people), it also saw more cases than the entire state of Oregon. Ask Latinos here about 2020, and they shiver and avert their gazes, the trauma and death still too near.

Their positive tests marked just the beginning of terrifying new journeys as COVID slammed Victoria and many other Yakima Valley Latinos. Mix in scanty rural health care, systemic racism and a complicated emerging illness, and what do you get? Chaos: a population hardest hit by long COVID, but massively untreated, underdiagnosed, and undercounted by the government and medicine itself.

It won’t go away The cough was the first clue something wasn’t right. When Victoria had COVID, she’d coughed a bit. But then, three months later, she started and couldn’t stop.

The Yakima Valley is so starved for physicians that it took five months to see a primary care doctor, who attributed Victoria’s incessant cough to allergies. Victoria tried every antihistamine and decongestant available; some brought relief for three, maybe four weeks, and then returned spasms of the dry, gasping bark. A few minutes apart, all day long. The worst was waking up coughing, at least hourly.

Victoria had chest x-rays. An ear, nose and throat specialist offered surgery on her nose’s deviated septum. As months passed, the black hair framing Victoria’s heart-shaped face started aging rapidly, until it was grayer than her mother’s.

Over a year after the cough began, an allergist prescribed allergy drops, and Victoria made a chilling discovery. Once the drops stopped the cough for a month, then two, Victoria realized that the extreme fatigue she’d thought was sleep deprivation from coughing all night persisted.

“The exhaustion comes from within your soul, it overpowers you,” she says. “It’s intolerable.”

And her mind was foggy. When interrupted at work every 10 minutes by a coughing jag, Victoria hadn’t realized COVID had substantially altered her brain. “There are things in my brain that I should have access to, like words, definitions, memories,” she says. “I know that they’re there but I can’t access them. It’s like a filing cabinet, but I can’t open it.”

Before long, the cough resurfaced. Sometime in 2021, reading COVID news for work, Victoria learned of long COVID: new or lingering health issues persisting at least three months after COVID infection.

How to get help if you think you might have long COVID Talk to your doctor, and if your doctor doesn’t listen to your concerns, bring a loved one to advocate for you at your next appointment. Bring this article (or other materials on long COVID) to show your doctor. Ask your doctor about seeing specialists for long COVID symptoms, such as a cardiologist (for dysautonomia symptoms like dizziness, heart palpitations and shortness of breath), a gastroenterologist (for digestive problems), or a neurologist (for chronic nerve pain). Ask to be referred to a long COVID clinic (if there is one in your area). Now four years into the pandemic, there is still no treatment or cure for long COVID. COVID long-haulers (as they call themselves) have reported over 200 varied symptoms, with fatigue, dizziness, heart palpitations, post-exertion exhaustion, gastrointestinal issues, and brain dysfunction among the most common.

Long COVID is far from a mysterious illness, as it’s often called by the medical establishment and some media. There are precedents: for at least a century, historical documentation has shown that, while most recover, some people remain sick after viral or other illnesses. Yet funds for research have been severely limited, and sufferers ignored. Myalgic Encephalomyelitis – sometimes called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or ME/CFS — is a prime example. Like ME/CFS, long COVID afflicts many more women (and people assigned female at birth) than men, with women comprising as many as 80% of COVID long-haulers. Most long-haulers are in their 30s, 40s and 50s — the busiest years for women with children, who often put their own needs last.

What should have been instantly clear, given how disproportionately Black and Brown communities were hit by COVID, was that long COVID would wallop Americans of color. Yet, the U.S. government waited until June 2022 to begin tracking long COVID. Even now, with 18 months of data showing Latinos are the population most impacted by long COVID, palabra is among the very few media outlets to report this fact. Are the nation and the medical community willfully ignoring Latino long-haulers — after sending them into clouds of coronavirus to keep society’s privileged safe?

Fighting for a diagnosis When Victoria mentioned long COVID, her doctor didn’t exactly ignore her: she listened, said “OK,” but never engaged on the topic. Same with Victoria’s allergist and the ear, nose and throat specialist. All they could do, the doctors said, was treat her symptoms.

“I’m highly educated and I know that you have to be your own advocate. But I kept asking, kept going on that line of thought, and they had nothing to say to me. Absolutely nothing,” she laments.

Victoria understood science on long COVID was limited, but still expected more. “All of the treatments we tried, it was as if COVID hadn’t existed. They should at least say that we need to investigate more, not continue acting like it wasn’t a factor. That was what was most frustrating.”

Just as Victoria fought to have her illness validated by doctors, 30 miles away in the northern Yakima Valley town of Moxee, 52-year-old María* waged a parallel battle. Both felt utterly alone.

When the pandemic began, María became the protector of her husband and children, all asthmatics. When she fell ill New Year’s Day 2021, she locked herself in her room, emerging weeks later to find her life unrecognizable.

Recounting her struggles, María reads deliberately from notes, holding back tears, then pushes her reading glasses atop her head. (María moved here from northern Mexico as an adult, and feels most comfortable in Spanish.) Her dyed brown hair, gold necklace and lightly made-up face project convivial warmth, but something intangible behind her expression belies a depth of grief María refuses to let escape. When I tell her I also have long COVID, and fell ill the exact same month, she breathes out some of her anxiety.

María’s long COVID includes chronic, full-body pain; memory lapses so severe she sometimes can’t remember if she’s eaten breakfast; such low energy that she’s constantly like a battery out of juice; unending shortness of breath; joint inflammation; and blood flow issues that leave her hands a deep purple. (The only time María ventured to the hospital, for her purple hands, she says staff attempted to clean them, thinking it was paint.) Like Victoria, María used to enjoy exercise and hiking in the valley’s foothills, but can do neither anymore.

María has no insurance, and receives care at the Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic, created in 1978 out of the farmworkers’ movement. The clinic’s multiple locations are the valley’s main providers of care irrespective of patients’ ability to pay.

Whereas Victoria’s doctors expressed indifference to the idea of COVID causing her health complaints, María’s doctors not only discounted this connection, but made serious errors of misdiagnosis.

“Every week I went to see my doctor. She got so stressed out (at not knowing what was wrong with me) that she stressed me out,” María says. “My doctor told me, ‘You know what? I think you have multiple sclerosis.’” María saw specialists, and afterwards, even without confirmation, María says her doctor still insisted she had MS. “I told her, ‘No. No, I don’t have multiple sclerosis. It’s COVID. This happened after COVID.’ I was really, really, really, really, really, really insistent on telling them that all of this was after COVID.”

Latinos uncovering the connections between their ill health and COVID is rare, partially due to the plummet in COVID coverage on Spanish-language news, says Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez, a long-hauler and head of the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio long COVID clinic. There has been no national public education on long COVID, in any language.

“It’s hard for people to understand what the real impact of long COVID is now and in the future,” says Lilián Bravo, Yakima Health District director of public health partnerships and the face of COVID updates on Yakima Valley television early in the pandemic. “We’re looking at a huge deficit in terms of people’s quality of life and ‘productivity.’”

Eventually, María’s doctor sent her to another specialist, who said that if she didn’t improve within a month, he’d operate on her hip. María’s never had hip problems. “He said, ‘Well, I don’t know what you’re going to do,’” and then put her on a strong steroid medication that made her vomit horribly, María says. She hasn’t tallied what she’s spent on medical bills, but after paying $1,548 for a single test, it must be many thousands of dollars.

Meanwhile, María’s family and friends kept insisting her maladies were psychological. “I never accepted that. I told them: ‘It’s not in my head. It’s in my body.’” It wasn’t until more than a year after becoming ill that María finally saw a rheumatologist who diagnosed her with long COVID and other immune dysfunctions. “I told her, ‘Yes, I knew that my body wasn’t working. I knew that something was wrong.’ I felt like I could relax. Finally someone is telling me that it’s not all in my head.” Once María was diagnosed, her extended family switched to asking how she was feeling and sympathizing with her.

Victoria, on the other hand, has never received a long COVID diagnosis. At Victoria’s request, her doctor referred her to the state’s only long COVID clinic, at the University of Washington in Seattle, but Victoria’s insurance, Kaiser Permanente, refused to pre-approve the visit — and the clinic wouldn’t accept cash from her. At present, the clinic isn’t even accepting patients from the Yakima Valley or any other part of Washington — they are only accepting patients in King County, which includes Seattle.

Victoria’s family hasn’t accepted her health struggles either. “I’d say, ‘I know that you think I’m crazy,’” Victoria says, chuckling, as she often does to lighten her discomfort. “My mom would fight with me: ‘You forgot to do this! Why are you so spacey?’ ‘Mami, it’s not that I forgot. In reality, I completely lost track of it.’” If Victoria is fatigued, her family asks how that’s possible after a full night’s sleep. “I’ve found that I have to defend myself. When I try to explain to people, they hear it as excuses from a lazy person — especially being Latinos.”

Karla Monterroso, a 42-year-old California Latina long-hauler since March 2020 who spent her first year bedbound, says, “(With long COVID), we have to rest in a way that, in our culture, is very difficult to achieve. We really judge exhaustion.” In fact, pushing physically or mentally for work can make long-haulers much sicker. Karla says Latino ethics of hard work like those of Victoria’s parents “aren’t the principles that are going to serve us with this illness.”

Long COVID diagnoses in Latinos are still too rare, due to untrained family medicine physicians and medical stereotypes, says Verduzco-Gutierrez. (Doctors might see blood sugar changes, for example, and assume that’s just because of Latinos’ high rates of diabetes, rather than long COVID.) She says “misinformation on long COVID” is rampant, with physicians claiming long COVID is a fad, or misdiagnosing the bone-deep exhaustion as depression. When Verduzco-Gutierrez’s own doctor invited her to speak to their practice, the assembled physicians weren’t aware of basic research, including that the drugs Paxlovid and Metformin can help prevent long COVID if taken at infection. In Washington, physicians must complete training on suicide, which takes 1,200 to 1,300 lives in the state yearly, but there’s no state-wide training on long COVID, which currently affects at least 498,290 Washingtonians.

Cultural skepticism about medicine — and entrenched stigmas about illness and disability — mean Sunnyside conversations about aftereffects don’t mention COVID itself. Victoria’s relatives push traditional herbal remedios, assuming that anyone still sick isn’t doing enough to recover. “(People suffering) feel like they’re complaining too much if they try to talk about it,” Victoria says. Meanwhile, her parents and others in her community avoid doctors out of stubbornness and mistrust, she says, “until they’re bleeding, when they’re super in pain…, when it’s gotten to the worst that they can handle.”

“People in this community use their bodies for work,” Victoria says. “If you’re Latino, you’re a hard worker. Period,” says Bravo. “What’s the opposite of that, if you’re not a hard worker? What are you? People don’t want to say, ‘I came to this country to work and all of a sudden I can’t anymore.’”

Victoria sees this with her parents, who’ve worked since the age of 10. Both have health issues inhibiting their lives since having COVID — her dad can’t take his daily hour-long walks anymore because of heart palpitations and shortness of breath, and her mom began getting headaches and saw her arthritis worsen dramatically — yet neither will admit they have long COVID. Nor will their friends and family. “If they noticed the patterns of what they themselves are saying and what their friends of the same age are suffering after COVID,” Victoria says of her community, “they’d hear that almost everyone is suffering some type of long COVID.”

Long COVID’s deep impact on Latinos The “back to normal” ethos is most obvious in the absence of long COVID messaging while as many as 41 million adults now have — or have recovered from — long COVID nationwide. “The way that we’re talking about the pandemic is delegitimizing some of (long COVID’s) real impacts,” says Bravo of the Yakima Health District.

Even with limited demographic data, statistics show a nationwide reality similar to Victoria’s Sunnyside. Through a recurring survey, the Census Bureau estimates that 36% of Latinos nationally have had long COVID — likely a vast underestimate, given that the survey takes 20 minutes to complete online (Latinos have lower rates of broadband internet), and reaches only a sliver of the U.S. population. Experts like Verduzo-Gutierrez believe that true rates of long COVID in Latinos are higher than any reported statistic. California long-hauler Karla Monterroso agrees: “We are underdiagnosed by a severe amount. I do not believe the numbers.”

This fall, a UC Berkeley study reported that 62% of a group of infected California farmworkers developed long COVID. Weeks later, a survey from the University of Washington’s Latino Center for Health found that, of a sample group of 1,546 Washington Latinos, 41% of those infected became long-haulers. The Washington results may also be an undercount: many long-haulers wouldn’t have the energy or brain clarity to complete the 12-page survey, which was mailed to patients who’d seen their doctor within the prior six months. Meanwhile, many long-haulers stop seeing doctors after tiring of the effort and cost with no answers.

“Our community has not bounced back,” says Angie Hinojos, executive director of Centro Cultural Mexicano, which has distributed $29 million in rent assistance in Washington and hasn’t seen need wane. “That is going to affect our earning potential for generations.” The United Farm Workers’ philanthropic sister organization, the UFW Foundation, says union organizers hear about long COVID, and how it’s keeping people out of work, frequently.

Cultural and linguistic disconnects abound between doctors and Latinos on long COVID symptoms, some of which, like brain fog and fatigue, are nebulous. If doctors lack patient rapport — or don’t speak their language — they’ll miss what patients aren’t sharing about how long COVID changed their lives, work and relationships. That’s if Latinos actually go to the doctor.

“If you’re working in the orchards and your muscles are always sore, it’s just part of the day-to-day reality,” says Jesús Hernández, chief executive officer of Family Health Centers in north-central Washington. “If you’re constantly being exposed to dust and even chemicals in the work environment, it’s easy to just say, ‘Well, that’s just because of this or that,’ and not necessarily be readily willing to consider that this is something as unique as long COVID.”

Even Victoria says if not for the cough, she wouldn’t have sought medical advice for her fatigue. “There are a lot of people out there that are really tired, in a lot of pain and have no idea why. None,” says Karla, who was a nonprofit CEO when she became sick. “I have heard in the last three-and-a-half years the most racist and fatphobic things I have ever heard in my life. Like, ‘Oh, sometimes you got to lay off the beans and rice.’ I have a college education. I’m an executive. I am in the top 10% of wage earners in my community. If this is my experience, what is happening to the rest of my people?”

Conspiracy theories and misinformation As Yakima Valley’s Latino vaccination rates continue dropping, I hear all the COVID conspiracy theories: the vaccine has a chip that’ll track you; the vaccine makes you and your children infertile; COVID tests are rigged to all be positive; that hospitals get paid more for COVID patients. Victoria laughs at the most absurd one she’s heard. Her mom’s explanation for her health problems nearly three years after COVID: the vaccine.

Across the Latino United States, social media algorithms and WhatsApp threads promoting COVID disinformation proliferate. Last summer, Latino Center for Health co-director Dr. Leo Morales did a long COVID community presentation just south of Yakima Valley. The audience’s first question: Are vaccines safe? “This is where we’re still at,” Morales says. “That’ll be a big stumbling block for people…in terms of getting to talking about long COVID.”

One morning in early November, Morales and his team gather in Toppenish at Heritage University, where 69% of students are Latino, to present their survey data. Neither presenters nor attendees wear masks, an essential tool for preventing COVID transmission and long COVID. “The only conversation that I’m having about COVID is in this room,” says María Sigüenza, executive director of the Washington State Commission on Hispanic Affairs.

Yakima Valley health institutions are also ignoring long COVID. Of the two main hospital systems, Astria Health declines interview requests and MultiCare reports that of 325,491 patients seen between January and November 2023, 112 — or 0.03% — were diagnosed with long COVID. The Yakima Valley Farmworkers Clinic, where María’s doctor works, refuses to let me speak to anyone about long COVID, despite providing patient information for the Latino Center for Health’s survey. Their doctors simply aren’t seeing long COVID, the clinic claims. Same with the other main community provider, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, whose media officer responds to my interview requests with: “It’s not going to happen.”

“I think they’re not asking, they’re not looking,” Verduzco-Gutierrez says. “Do the doctors just…look at your diabetes or your blood pressure, but not ask you, ‘Did your diabetes get worse when you had COVID? Did your blood pressure get worse? Did you not have blood pressure problems before? And now do you get dizzy? Do you get headaches? Do you have pains?’” She believes that many, if not most, Latinos with long COVID aren’t getting care, whom she calls “the ones that we’re missing.”

An uncertain future The outlook for Latinos with long COVID is grim. Cultural stigma and ableism cause now-disabled long-haulers to feel shame. (Ableism is societal prejudice and discrimination against disabled people.) Disability benefits are nearly impossible to get. Long-haulers are losing their homes, jobs and insurance. Latinos’ overrepresentation in sectors that don’t offer sick pay and are heavily physical — cleaning, service, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, homecare and healthcare among them — may automatically put them at higher long COVID risk, given ample anecdotal evidence that pushing through a COVID infection instead of resting can lead to long COVID. Latino care providers will become ill in greater numbers, imperiling the healthcare industry.

But Latinos may not be clear on these factors, says long-hauler Karla Monterroso. “My tío had said…'We must be defective because we get sick more than the white people.’ And I’m like ‘No, tío. We are exposed to the illness more. There’s nothing defective about our bodies.’ I’m afraid for us. It’s just going to be disability after disability after disability. We have to start in our small communities building caring infrastructure so that we can help each other. I am clear: No one is coming to save us. We’ve got to save us.”

Disability justice advocates worry about systems unable to cope with inevitable disabling waves of COVID in the future. “(Latinos) aren’t taking it as serious as they should,” says Mayra Colazo, executive director of Central Washington Disability Resources. “They’re not protecting each other. They’re not protecting themselves.” Karla sees the psychology behind this denial: “I have thought a lot about how much it takes to put yourself in danger every single day. (You have) to say ‘Oh, it’s fine. People are exaggerating,’ or you get that you’re in existential hell all of the time.”

Reinfection brings additional risk of long COVID, research shows, and Verduzco-Gutierrez says, “We still don’t know the impact of what is going to happen with all these reinfections. Is it going to cause more autoimmune disease? Is it going to be causing more dementia? Is it going to be causing more cancer?” She believes that every medical chart should include a COVID history, to guide doctors to look for the right clues.

“If we were to be lucky enough to capture everybody who has long COVID, we would overwhelm our (health) system and not be able to do anything for them,” Victoria says. “What’s the motivation for the medical field, for practitioners to find all those people?” For now, Victoria sees none. “And until that changes, I don’t think we will (properly count Latino long-haulers),” she adds.

Flashes of hope do exist. In September 2023, the federal government granted $5 million each to multiple long COVID clinics, including three with Latino-specific projects. In New York City, Mt. Sinai Hospital will soon open a new long COVID clinic near largely-Latino East Harlem, embedded in a primary care clinic with staff from the community to reach Latino long-haulers. Verduzco-Gutierrez’s San Antonio clinic will teach primary care providers across largely rural, Latino South Texas to conduct 15-minute low-tech long COVID examinations (the protocol for which is still being devised), and will deploy community tools to educate Latinos on long COVID.

Meanwhile, at the University of Washington long COVID clinic, staff are preparing a patient handbook, which will be adapted for Latinos and then translated into Spanish. They will also train primary care physicians to be local long COVID experts, and will return to treating patients from the whole state rather than just the county containing Seattle. After palabra’s inquiry, the UFW Foundation now has plans to survey United Farm Workers members to gauge long COVID pervasiveness, so the Foundation can lobby legislators and other decision makers to improve Latino long-hauler care.

Back at the Yakima Valley survey presentation, attendees brainstorm new care models: Adding long COVID screening to pediatric checkups, given that long COVID most impacts child-bearing-age women, so moms can bring information to their families and community. Using accessible language for long COVID messaging, or, as Heritage University nursing faculty member Genevieve Aguilar puts it: “How would I talk to my tía, how would I talk to my abuelita? If they can understand me, we’re good to go. If they can’t, olvídate. We have to reframe.”

More than anything, personal narratives will be the key to open people’s minds about long COVID — although that path may be challenging. In Los Angeles, Karla has dealt with a lack of full family and community support, in part, she believes, because her body represents COVID. “I am living, breathing proof of a pandemic no one wants to admit is still happening, and that there is no cure for what I have. That is a really scary possibility.”

While Karla does identify as disabled, Victoria and María don’t. Victoria has learned to live and move within her physical limits. At work, she sometimes feels inhibited by her cognitive issues. “I tell my boss all the time, ‘Oh man, you guys hired such a smart person. But what you got was after COVID, so it’s not the same.’” At times, she worries about the trajectory of her career, about how her work’s intense problem-solving wears out her brain. Will she be able to pursue larger challenges in work in the future? Or will long COVID ultimately make her fail?

Victoria tells me she “remains hopeful that there is a solution.” In a surprising twist, her cough completely disappeared eight months ago — when she became pregnant. (Other long-haulers have seen their symptoms improve with pregnancy, as well, likely due to immune system changes allowing a pregnant person’s body to not reject their baby’s growing cells). Victoria is optimistic that her other symptoms might disappear after she gives birth. And that, maybe someday, her parents will admit they have long COVID, too.

[fandom-gt]

COMMISSION TYPE: Full Page + 2 Add-ons

PRICE: 95

FANDOM: MCU

CHARACTERS: Peter Parker, Pepper Potts

REQUESTED SUMMARY: ”Set in a version of the MCU where shrunken people are viewed as objects, a version of Peter Parker who just began his freshman year college of shrinks and is bought by Pepper Potts. Unaware that the tiny she bought is actually her husband's protégé or even sentient, she treats him like a mint and pops him into her mouth. After sucking on and licking him thoroughly, she spits him out and puts him away for her to use again later.”

WARNINGS: Unaware-ish, Soft Vore

——

Pepper Potts has a problem. That problem is called ‘Tony Stark’, but that’s actually not the problem she’s addressing today, exactly. Her secondary problem as a result of Problem Number One is actually something easier to comprehend and more universally known: stress. Not many people know this, but in her early twenties, Pepper used to smoke. Of course, after deep research about all the health concerns and the way it actually negatively impacts stress response, she quit the habit - but it was still a long time before she discovered a replacement habit equally soothing but with virtually no known side effects.

Tiny Mints. She’d been skeptical, at first, of both their efficacy and their use, but as time wore on and advertising became more prominent, Pepper found herself worn down to the potential appeal of them. Little oral fixation fixers, with no carcinogens, no nasty chemicals, nothing unnatural. Something she could pop in her mouth and play with, something that released a soothing dopamine fix throughout her day to help her cope with her stress.

Eventually, she was sold. She went to a little bodega near Stark tower, smiled politely at the cashier, and made her purchase. Really, nobody could blame her for not knowing better.

-

Peter Parker is used to being a nuisance to really rich, really weird people. Generally, the more rich and more weird they are, the more they tend to want to do bad things to non-rich people. Being the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man tends to make you a lot of enemies, and a lot of those enemies happen to be scientists messing around with really weird technology.

All of this to say, maybe part of him should have been more prepared for the disconcerting flash of blinding light that assaulted his senses — more prepared, at least, than the split-second premonition of something really bad about to happen, at a time far too late do actually do anything about it. One minute he’s in an alleyway outside of a research and tech institution, the next he’s flat on his back, groaning his way back into consciousness.

It’s dark. That’s the first thing he realizes, because he has to double-check he actually opened his eyes. Not a single speck of light filters through. The second thing he realizes is that someone stole his suit, and they’ve left him completely naked on a metal slab that isn’t… actually as cold as it should be. That should probably be some kind of ominous sign, but he won’t connect those dots for another few seconds.

He’s held firmly in place not by any kind of fastenings, but by metal walls that seem perfectly contorted to frame his body in a kind of person-shape, so resoundingly strong that even his enhanced durability and strength don’t seem to do absolutely anything against them no matter how hard he shoves. And he does shove, and writhe, and squirm, for several minutes — until his ears prick beneath a sudden new sensation.

Deep, deep rumbling. A distant, droning cadence almost too low for him to fully comprehend, but there’s a rhythmic lilt and pattern that lets his clever mind identify it as some kind of speech. Bassy, booming, but definitely speech. The more he strains, the more he can almost understand what it’s saying.

He never really gets the chance. Very abruptly, gravity shifts. He’s held in place by the metal walls, but he can feel the wooshing of g-force like he’s swinging from a web. Thrust from side to side, then down a little, and then a very, very swift climb. The walls around him creek and groan, and then light pierces the very edge of his vision, yawning wider, blinding, the fast-forward dawning of the rising sun that he squints and blinks his way through.

It isn’t the sun. It’s the too-white artificial ceiling light of a business-grade bulb, and it’s blotted out rather suddenly by- by…

He’s never felt his stomach sink so low, so fast. Never felt the kind of swooping, instinctive fear as he feels right then, staring up at what is undeniably a person’s face, except that it’s dozens of feet tall, bigger than a house, bigger than that Ant Guy was that one time at that airport in Germany. A second after his brain allows him to register that, he has a second epiphany — he knows that face. He’s seen her before.

Relief floods in hot on the heels of his terror. This is Pepper, this is Mr. Stark’s assistant, and if it’s her looking down at him, it means he’s probably safe. It means that she found him somehow, and she’s going to take him to Mr. Stark. If anybody can fix whatever happened to him, it’s Tony. That’s why Peter’s not immediately all that concerned when perfectly manicured fingernails the size of city busses swoop in, encroaching on his personal space, seizing him from his person-shaped indent in his specialty mint tin.

Yes, okay, maybe it would have been better for her to just talk to him in his safe little container instead of squeezing him with her giant fingers, lifting him a mile over the ground, and raising him up before her face, but he can’t exactly blame her. This is fine. It’s probably fine.

Except, what’s not fine is the closer he gets to her face, the more he realizes there isn’t a scrap of recognition in it. There’s something distant, absent, and uninterested in the features he can see from this low angle, and she’s bringing him awfully close for this conversation.

And then she parts her lips. And she steers him not toward her ears, but toward the wide, dark opening between the perfectly painted lipstick, toward the straight white teeth behind them, toward the delicate strings of saliva that hang down from the roof of her mouth. That’s when he starts to struggle against her fingers, that’s when he nearly pisses himself, because despite the unbelievable, unparalleled denial that this could possibly be happening, it is. Pepper is guiding him unstoppably ever-forward toward her open mouth, and she’s going to put him inside it.

“No- wait- please, please, Mrs. Stark, please don’t eat me, please don’t eat me, it’s Peter, it’s Peter-!!” His voice rises, gaining pitch and volume until he’s screaming as loud as his strained lungs will allow. It does no good. He’s simply too small, and the only thing Pepper hears is the faintest, nearly-inaudible squeaking. Her perfect, petite fingers drop him. He falls two or three feet, and he lands face-first on the soft, hot, wet surface of her tongue. He grips onto it, scrambling up and around, doing his very best to bolt toward the light — but the light is disappearing.

It’s only thanks to his powers that he manages to hold his footing on her rising tongue, that he manages to ascended the steep hill at a run, trying his best to aim for the narrowing gap as Pepper’s teeth close and then, behind them, her lips seal. He has one crushing moment of defeat finding himself trapped in the dark, and then the chaos begins.

The flesh tongue underneath him slams him up to the roof of her mouth. His back hits the unrelenting flesh hard, and then the tongue underneath him begins to writhe, a never-ending assault, a muscular tidal wave of seeking, searching, soft taste buds that curiously explore his entire body. Tasting him. She’s tasting him.

After a few seconds of plush, almost-gentle exploration, her tongue slides back until the harder, firmer tip of it is pushing against his face, his mouth, his chest, in between his legs. No longer tasting, now playing. Enjoying the feel and the shape of him, rolling over his body, alternately smothering him and drowning him in saliva. Peter’s strong, but his forceful pushing at the unrelenting muscle only buys him meager pockets of breathing room. What’s worse, she seems to enjoy it, the stimulation of his movement, because her tongue begins to pointedly prod at the places that get the most reaction out of him — his face, his crotch.

Eventually, after excruciating minutes of this, she seems to get bored. Her tongue lowers, and he drops with it. It shifts, throwing him a few feet back — and through the dim light, from this angle, he can just make out the back of her throat. The pit, the empty bottomless drop, and he knows with an ache in his chest that she might actually swallow him. There’d be almost nothing he could do about it, if she took a drink of water he’d probably barely be able to survive the flood, and he’d be swept down that gullet into her enormous stomach. She could eat him.

But she doesn’t. Instead, her tongue shifts suddenly to the side, bucking him like a bronco. He’s thrown against her closed molars, ground against unrelenting enamel, each tooth easily three times his size. Without parting her lips, her molars separate, and Peter finds himself thrust between them on his back again. And then they press down, almost gently, until he’s perfectly caught between them.

It occurs to him then, what would be even worse than being swallowed whole — being chewed. But Pepper doesn’t do that, either. She just holds him there, absently increasing and reducing the pressure, playing with the resistance he brings her back teeth. Ten minutes later, her teeth part and her tongue glides over again, sweeping him absently underneath her tongue, pulling his entire body in and down until he’s tucked beneath it in a pool of her saliva. She holds him there safely while she swallows, and the forceful suction of it sweeps away all the sticky spit that had been pooling around him, soaking him.

Apparently, she doesn’t mean to swallow him. Apparently, she’d wanted to secure him absently in that space to clear her mouth, so she could then dig him back out with the tip of her tongue, slam him back against the roof of her mouth again, and begin to suck. It’s a constant, vacuous force, pulling at him, pulling everything from him, stealing his energy and his sweat and his everything, but always with the resistance of her tongue pinning him in place to fight against it.

Peter spends nearly two hours in her mouth like this, his landscape constantly changing, her tongue always nudging and playing with him — until finally, her lips part again. Light floods into his cavern, her tongue flattens out, and he lay exhausted on the flat surface of it while her pretty french manicure encroaches to capture his tiny body again.

He can’t even bring himself to protest when she lowers him absently back into his little metal container without even looking, and closes the lid.

She’ll suck on him again later. He made for a perfect fix.

[churchofthesluttyknee]

A Series of Firsts: Chapter 6 - Glimpses of You. Pt 2

Author(s): A collaboration amongst smutty parishioners of The Church of the Slutty Knee

Pairing(s): Pedro x Oscar

Rating: E18+ MDNI

Word Count: pending

Series Warnings: explicit sexual content, including, but not limited to BDSM, choking, anal, oral, masturbation (self/mutual), toys, public sex

Chapter Summary: Pedro and Oscar face the challenge of being separated due to work commitments after Pedro's project extends much longer than expected, straining their relationship as this marks the first significant period they've spent apart since they began dating.

Notes: Chapter begins June 22, 2019, ends around November 2, 2019.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Act V: Surprise

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the four weeks since Pedro had expressed his difficulties in coping with their extended separation, Oscar had been sure to find extra time throughout the week to give Pedro any extra emotional support he needed, while also allowing him to release his stress in a healthier way. While he didn’t completely lift the restrictions they’d established, Oscar did loosen them considerably. These adjustments seemed to have a positive impact on Pedro’s overall mood and mental health. He was having a hard time adjusting too, but knowing he could be a rock for Pedro made it a little more bearable. The rewrites, and resultant reshoots, unfortunately, had not stopped. In fact, as they were about to learn, they had gotten far worse.

On the morning of September 19, Oscar lies in bed, awake, but not ready to start the day just yet. Morning sun streams in from glass doors leading onto a small garden patio. When a text notification sounds just after 9:30, Oscar is delighted to see it’s from Pedro, informing Oscar that he has a few hours before filming resumes and to call when he wakes up. His slippers shuffle quietly on hardwood as Oscar makes his way to the kitchen, where he pops a coffee pod into a single cup brewer and a bagel into the toaster, before moving back down the hall to the bathroom. When he returns, he takes his coffee and bagel to the patio. Propping his feet on the wrought iron table, Oscar takes a bite of breakfast as he listens to the weird ring of his international call. Pedro picks up halfway through the second ring.

“Hey, sexy!” Pedro says jovially as soon as he sees Oscar’s face.

“Hey to you too, gorgeous. How are you?”

“Good, now that I’m talking to you. I didn’t wake you up with my text, did I?”

“No, mi amor, I was already awake. Just enjoying the morning before I have to head uptown. How are things on set today?”

“Surprisingly not too bad. I’ve not gotten any new pages all day. There’s a real chance we could finish this thing on time and I could be back in New York by the 29th.”

Oscar can picture Pedro coming through the gates with his bags. Can see his eyes alight when Pedro spots him from across the terminal. A huge grin spreads across his face at the thought of finally being able to see his Pedrito again. To touch him, to smell him, to taste him again, after being apart for so long.

“I can’t wait until you’re home again, mi Pedrito! I fucking miss having you close to me. So I can touch you, and kiss you, whenever I want to.”

“Me too, mi luna! This distance is killing me. I just want to—, uh, hold on a second. Someone just walked in.” Placing his hand over the microphone, Pedro speaks to the newcomer. Oscar can’t hear the conversation very well, but he does hear Pedro’s response with resounding clarity. “God damn it!! Are you fucking kidding me, Trevor? Please tell me this is a fucking joke!” Oscar can hear Trevor mumbling in response while quickly retreating, then a door slamming as he leaves the room.

“What’s happening? What’s wrong, baby? Talk to me,” Oscar says gently when Pedro returns to the phone. Breathing heavily, Pedro lets out a heavy sigh before answering.

“These god damned rewrites and reshoots have completely fucked the schedule, and now we’re not gonna wrap until fucking October 15th!! I swear to god, Oscar, if that asshole Kyle comes in here—“

Oscar cuts him off before he can say something he may regret. “Pedro, baby, calm down. It’ll be ok, we’ll make—“

“No, Oscar, it fucking won’t be ok!! Oh my god, I’m freaking out over here. Why can’t I just wake up from this nightmare?” Pedro says, his breathing becoming impossibly fast. Oscar can hear it in Pedro’s voice that he is spiraling.

“Pedro, Pedro, breathe baby, breathe. The 6th is just a day. Being together, or not, won’t change its significance. We can celebrate the entire rest of October if you want. We both knew not being able to be together to share something was bound to happen sooner or later.”

“Ugh, you’re right. I’m sorry for snapping at you, mi corazon. This whole thing has been a gigantic clusterfuck, but I had no right to respond the way I did. I overreacted and now I feel like the world’s biggest asshole. This whole project has been a shit show of epic proportions, and my nerves are absolutely shot. It’s just been one thing after another. But I shouldn’t have gone off on Trevor like that, kid’s just the messenger. I have to go apologize, babe. Call you back in a few minutes?”

“Of course. Take care of what you need to. I’ll be here for a few more hours,” Oscar assures him.

Forty-five minutes pass before Oscar’s phone rings. When Oscar accepts the FaceTime request he’s met with a screen full of brilliant blue sky, patches of fluffy white clouds and a tuft of unmistakable brown hair. Oscar grins and tries to stifle a giggle. Before he speaks he grabs a quick screenshot because this image is too perfect not to save.

“Hey, babe. You there?”

“Oh, hey,” Pedro replies, as if shocked Oscar is on the line. Picking up the phone, Pedro looks at Oscar’s face and smiles his adorable little half smile. “Sorry, guess I spaced out for a second.”

“Did you get things straightened out with Trevor?”

“Yeah. Poor kid’s terrified of me now though. He flinched when I approached him, Oscar. Fernando is the only other person who’s ever flinched when they saw me…  for good reason, mind, but it’s weird having this kid be afraid of me. Frankly, I hope Fernando flinches at me for the rest of his life, especially if I’m holding a fork… but I don’t want this kid to be afraid of me.”

“I’m sure he’ll come around. I know you’re a cuddly tiger, but you can be quite intimidating,” Oscar replies flirtatiously.

“Soy tu tierno tigre, y tu eres mi feroz gatito (I'm your tender tiger, and you're my fierce kitten),” Pedro replies playfully. “After I cooled down and spoke to Trevor I went to see Kyle. Without going into details that are none of his fucking business I told Kyle I won’t be on set on the 6th. Since Trevor had already talked to him and told him I was seething mad, Kyle didn’t even put up any resistance. I have to be on set on the 5th and 7th though. So, while I can’t whisk away to come see you, I can at least have the day to celebrate with you,” Pedro says with a heavy sigh.

“I’ll clear my calendar and we can spend all day talking on the phone. Maybe we can even FaceTime a meal together,” Oscar says happily.

He can already feel the cogs churning in his mind though, a quiet plan quickly formulating. As soon as he’s off the phone he contacts his agent to make travel arrangements. Before the day is over he has a one way, non-stop ticket out of JFK. He grins like an idiot when he sees his 13-digit ticket number is made up of their birthdays and anniversary, albeit in absolutely no clear order. Only someone looking for the connection would see it.

Although they talk and text as often as their schedules allow, Oscar gives no hints of his plans to Pedro. After researching the area for a few days, Oscar begins to create a loose schedule that includes dinner reservations for the 6th, and a private boat rental for the weekend. He’s already reached out to Franklin, who was thrilled to be part of making this trip possible, and gladly provided Oscar with Pedro’s hotel information and added Oscar as a guest to avoid any issues with hotel management and security. The plan was for Oscar to slip into Pedro’s room while he was on set and surprise him when he returned. Oscar already had it worked out in his mind how it would go and was excited to finally see his Pedrito again.

His plane leaves JFK the evening of October 4, arriving just before 9 AM in Malta the following morning. Pedro isn’t scheduled to be on set until 10 AM, so Oscar stops at an airport coffee shop for a quick breakfast before heading to the hotel. Forty minutes later Oscar has checked into the hotel and is putting his things away. Knowing Pedro won’t call for a few more hours, he sets an alarm for 1:30 and crawls onto the king bed. Burying his face deep in Pedro’s pillow Oscar inhales his lover's scent and is asleep almost instantly.

When his alarm goes off three hours later it takes him several moments to remember where he is. Looking at his watch, he calculates that he has about 7-8 hours to get everything set up. He calls down to the front desk and is transferred to Luca, the concierge. Oscar proceeds to order large bouquets of daisies, in white, lilac and pink, as well as lilac roses, a bottle of local vintage wine and a tiny stuffed tiger. From guest services he orders two plush robes, two sets of slippers and an extra set of towels. With the exception of the flowers and wine, everything is delivered within an hour. Luca tells Oscar it took quite a few calls to find the tiny tiger, and that he got two because he wasn’t sure the one was small enough. When they’re delivered Oscar assures him they’re both perfect.

At 3 PM, on the dot, Oscar’s phone rings. Brimming with excitement and anticipation, it’s all Oscar can do to not ruin his surprise. Since their schedules have been relatively consistent these past few weeks Oscar has a fairly solid outline for Pedro’s day. They’ll talk until about 5 while Pedro eats lunch, then he’ll stay on set until 7 or 8. After that he’ll return to the hotel to wind down a little, then go out for dinner. When Pedro asks Oscar what he’s been up to, Oscar doesn’t lie to Pedro, but he also doesn’t share more information than absolutely necessary. When their call ends just before 5, Oscar checks his to-do list. Now that he knows Pedro will wrap at 7:30 he orders the flowers be brought up at 6 and the wine at 7:45. For the next three and a half hours Oscar works to prepare the room. The bed, and surrounding floor, are adorned with a delicate tapestry of fragrant flower petals imbuing the room with their sweet essence. After the wine arrives, and Oscar eyes the room to make sure he’s not overlooked anything, he disappears into the bathroom. When he comes out, he’s wearing one of the plush white robes, a pair of slippers and a huge grin, but nothing else.

With bated breath Oscar waits, glancing at his phone every few minutes to gauge how much longer he has before Pedro arrives. At twelve past eight a key card beeps and the door handle engages. The way the room is set up Pedro won’t be able to see him until he’s passed through a kitchen area and short hallway. Oscar can hear Pedro putting his bag in the coat closet and suddenly his stomach is filled with millions of chaotic butterflies. It’s all he can do to keep from crying out Pedro’s name. When Pedro finally rounds the corner he’s looking at his phone. Oscar frowns slightly. This isn’t going quite as he’d expected.

Eyes still down, Pedro inhales deeply, pinpointing the fragrance of a mixture of flowers, but also an undercurrent of something warm, familiar and comforting, that he can’t quite place. One thing he does know is that none of these smells were here when he left this morning. The underlying smell, the one that somehow reminds him of home, is driving crazy because he knows what it is, but his brain just won’t make the connection. Shifting his gaze straight ahead the first thing he notices is a small table topped with a bottle of wine, two wine glasses and two distorted shapes he can’t quite make out. In his peripheral vision he sees the floor is littered with multiple shades and types of flower petals. Eyes traveling left across the room he sees more petals on the bed. As he continues to scan the room his eyes finally fall upon Oscar, who is grinning so hard his face hurts. His head tilting slightly right, Pedro blinks slowly and continues to stare, but doesn’t seem to comprehend what’s now in front of him.

“Pedro?” Oscar asks, a hint of concern and confusion in his tone. “Babe?” Oscar’s eyebrows knit together, his lips pursed, as he stands and walks over to Pedro, who is still staring blankly at him.

As Oscar closes the gap between them, Pedro’s nose, eyes and brain slowly start to communicate with one another. He now recognizes the comforting scent as Oscar’s cologne. Now that they’re standing so close to one another his synapses are finally firing. Pedro blinks rapidly as he comes out of his fugue state and finally sees Oscar for the first time.

“Oscar?” Pedro asks in bewilderment, for surely this three month nightmare has taken a twisted turn, driving him to painfully real hallucinations.

“Hey,” Oscar says softly, the look of concern melting away to reveal a relieved smile. His fingers tenderly brush over Pedro’s cheek as he stares into Pedro’s rich chocolate eyes.

Before either of them can comprehend what’s happening, Pedro’s lips crash into Oscar’s with enough force to make him take a step backwards. Pedro’s hands cup Oscar’s face as he kisses him with a feral hunger neither have ever felt before. To be wanted was one thing, but to be craved like this was exhilarating. As soon as their bodies collided Oscar felt a surge of adrenaline coursing through him like wildfire. Within mere moments he is achingly hard. His fingers weave deep into Pedro’s hair as a moan passes between their lips. Pedro’s hands release their hold on Oscar’s face, only to become lost in the forest of his hair. Grunting loudly against his lips, Pedro’s grip on Oscar’s hair tightens as he walks them to the edge of the bed. When Oscar’s knees bump into the mattress he loses his balance and falls onto the blanket of petals. He scrambles backwards as Pedro’s arms frame him and he climbs onto the bed. Each time their lips break apart Pedro surges forward seeking refuge in them, like a parched man drawn to water. 

Oscar continues to clamber backwards until he hits the bank of pillows at the head of the bed. Pedro advances forward again, arms still framing Oscar’s torso, legs now straddling his thighs. Leaning back, he drinks in the sight of his paramour with eyes darkened by an insatiable hunger. Their frantic movements have caused Oscar’s robe to open, revealing his naked chest and stomach, his skin the color of toasted honey. Leering at Oscar, eyes moving slowly downward, Pedro sees the robe has opened more than he realized when his gaze falls upon the dark patch of pubic hair at the nexus of Oscar’s shaft. A low, guttural growl escapes Pedro as he licks his lips hungrily. A wicked half grin plays at Oscar’s kiss-swollen lips as he realizes just how beastial this man is behaving and he wonders briefly if he’s about to be kissed, ravaged or devoured. He finds he’s happy with any of these fates. 

His scrutinizing stare intensifies as his eyes trace back up Oscar's torso, taking in every detail. When Oscar opens his mouth to speak, Pedro shakes his head almost imperceptibly, before kissing him hard. When the kiss breaks, he takes Oscar’s lower lip between his teeth, biting as gently as his ravenous nature allows. Pedro grazes his teeth over Oscar’s chin, grips his face, and lasciviously drags his tongue along Oscar’s jaw. His tongue craves to savor every inch of Oscar's body, while his hands yearn to caress it with perverse pleasure. Starved to the brink of madness, he’s unable to focus on any one area for longer than a few seconds before moving from one delicious spot to the next. Sliding the robe over Oscar’s shoulders, Pedro nips and kisses his neck, shoulders and clavicles, his mouth paying tribute to the exquisite beauty before him. Moving backwards until he’s on all fours, Pedro swirls the tip of his tongue around each of Oscar’s nipples before licking and kissing a trail to his navel.

Now resting just above Oscar’s knees, Pedro runs his fingers down Oscar’s chest until they reach the belt of his robe, the last vestige of Oscar’s feigned modesty. With great care, Pedro begins to undo the knot that has become taut during their rowdiness. Oscar places his hands over Pedro’s as his lover’s fingers work deftly to undo the belt. Once it’s undone, they languidly draw his robe back, revealing Pedro’s prize. Releasing Pedro’s hand, Oscar grips his cock and begins to work it slowly. When he looks into Pedro’s eyes he realizes Pedro is mesmerized by the sight before him, head bobbing gently in time with Oscar’s movements. Oscar moans loudly for his consort as he brushes the head of his cock with his finger. Pedro gulps loudly, slavering like a carnivore about to devour his prey. Pedro’s grin widens as he loosens himself from Oscar’s grip and begins to slide backwards along Oscar’s thighs, fingers dragging his velvet skin, until he’s straddling Oscar’s knees. Oscar immediately understands the intent behind his movement, draping his legs over Pedro’s shoulders once Pedro is nestled between his thighs. Pedro lays soft kisses along the delicate surfaces as Oscar continues to lazily work his cock, his lover’s stare never leaving his pumping fist.

Propping himself up on his left elbow, Pedro wraps his right arm around Oscar’s leg before kissing a path to his knee, and back to his inner thigh. When he’s back to start he runs his finger over Oscar’s hand, silently urging Oscar to remove it so he can take over. Oscar shivers when he feels Pedro’s tongue on the base of his erection, moaning loudly as it glides up his length. Pedro swirls his tongue over the glistening slit before taking the tip into his mouth as he takes over stroking Oscar’s cock.  Before long Oscar is panting and writhing, bucking his hips until his cock hits the back of Pedro’s throat, causing Pedro to gag. Undeterred, Pedro continues to take Oscar as deep as he can while his wrist continues its rhythmic motion. When he feels Oscar’s cock twitch against his tongue, he reluctantly pulls back and bites Oscar’s right inner thigh hard enough to leave a mark and elicit a gasp of surprise. Sitting upright, Pedro quickly removes his shirt, tossing it to the floor. Undoing his button and zipper, he pulls his pants and boxers down far enough to free his own hard cock.

Now it’s Oscar’s turn to lick his lips with ravenous hunger. He slides back as far as the mountain of pillows behind him will allow so he can sit up straight. Oscar runs his fingertip in delicate circles around Pedro’s head before running his thumb along the sensitive underside of his length. As he begins to stroke Pedro’s cock he leans in and kisses him tenderly. A far departure from the lustful cravings he’s adrift in, Oscar wants to savor their reunion just a little before he lets Pedro devour him completely. Oscar works his hand as slowly as he can, worried that if he goes any faster Pedro may not be able to fight his body’s need for release. He doesn’t want three months of pent-up sexual frustration to end in disappointment. Pedro’s head lolls as his eyes roll back, a low, deep moan filling the quiet room. Oscar takes this opportunity to kiss and lick his exposed neck, relishing the taste he’s been longing for since July. Just when Oscar thinks Pedro’s appetite may have quelled, Pedro grips his hips tightly and pulls him flush before pressing his hand lightly against Oscar’s chest. His eyes half-lidded yet ablaze with unbridled lust, Pedro spits into his palm, stroking himself a few times before lining himself up at Oscar’s entrance. He gently presses his spit slicked head against Oscar’s entrance a few times before he slowly penetrates. 

Moving at an achingly slow pace, Pedro buries himself to the hilt, then stops. His breath catches in his throat as the sheer heat and tightness of Oscar around his cock are almost too much to bear. Pedro presses close to Oscar, his breath warm and weighty against Oscar’s throat, seeking solace in his proximity as he attempts to steady his nerves. Oscar anchors his fingers into Pedro’s hair, pulling gently, but with authority, until Pedro is looking into his eyes. Even though he’s already claimed dominance, there’s a look of questioning in Pedro’s eyes. Has his intense hunger for Oscar’s touch made him go too far? Oscar leans in, bringing Pedro's face close to his own, their foreheads touching. Gently brushing his lips against Pedro's, he softly murmurs "yes". Just a single word, one syllable, is enough to calm Pedro’s nerves. He begins to move his hips in slow, tight circles, mustering all of his willpower to not cum immediately.  Oscar bites Pedro’s chin playfully, drags his tongue across Pedro’s lips and kisses him deeply with a soft tenderness that matches the sudden mood shift. Oscar rolls his hips against Pedro’s, gradually increasing the arc of the circle, but maintaining the same slow pace. Their passionate moans reverberate throughout the room as their tempos slowly increase. 

Oscar peppers tender kisses along Pedro’s shoulder, his fingertips tracing the line of his spine while Pedro kneads his fingers into the back of Oscar’s neck, his lips grazing along Oscar’s jaw. Pedro buries his face into the crook of Oscar’s neck as his hand finds Oscar’s cock, pressed between their stomachs, and begins to stroke him slowly once more. As their tempo escalates, verging on madness, Oscar caresses Pedro’s face, pulling him close. Both struggling to catch their breath, their lips meet softly as they breathe heavily into each other's mouths. They can each feel the buildup of pressure deep in their centers, that marvelous tingling sensation, as their muscles begin tightening. Their orgasms erupt at almost the same time, washing over them with such intensity they collapse into one another. Oscar’s release runs slowly down their chests, stomachs and Pedro’s hand, quite the exquisite mess. Oscar still pulses around Pedro’s cock with the aftershocks of his release. They sit in tranquil silence, gently tracing each other's features and weaving invisible poetry across their bodies, all the while exchanging tender whispers of affirmation. Pedro licks Oscar’s cum off his palm, sharing the sinful taste of him with an ardent kiss. Only for a moment, Oscar pulls back, sucking each of Pedro’s fingers clean, never breaking their eye contact as he revels in the shared taste of himself and the salt of Pedro’s skin. Once again their lips meet, tongues tangling in their carnal desire.

Pedro kicks off his pants and boxers, adding them to the crumpled shirt and robe on the floor. They lie on the bed in silence, gazing at each other’s faces for several minutes before either of them speaks. 

“When did you get here,” Pedro asks, his lips pressed against Oscar’s neck, just below his ear. He smiles when Oscar shivers.

“Around 9 this morning. Had to hang out at the airport for about 40 minutes to make sure you didn’t see me.” Oscar kisses the tip of Pedro’s nose before sliding off the bed. When Pedro reaches out for him, he grins and drags his fingertips along the underside of Pedro’s arm. “I’m just going to get us some wine.”

“How did you get in here,” Pedro asks with amusement. “Did you use your charm on the front desk clerk? He’s pretty sexy.”

“I had to blow so many people to get in here,” Oscar chuckles, handing Pedro both glasses as he climbs back into bed, propping himself up on the mound of pillows. Once he’s settled, he takes his glass back and places both tiny stuffed tigers between them. “Starting with Raul at the front desk. You’re right, he is pretty sexy, but no one holds a candle to you, mi tigre,” he says sweetly, picking up the smallest of the two stuffed tigers and walking it across Pedro’s thigh and up his side.

“What are these,” Pedro asks, picking up the larger of the two tiny tigers and examining it closely.

“Un tigre para mi tigre (a tiger for my tiger), well, two tigers. I asked Luca, the concierge, to find me a tiny tiger while I got the room ready, and he got both because he wasn’t sure the one was small enough,” Oscar says, his smile radiating. 

“You must have given those guys really good head to be on a first name basis,” Pedro laughs, trying not to spill his wine.

“I’ve not had any complaints so far,” Oscar retorts playfully, a mischievous smile on his lips.

“Well, you certainly won’t get any from me,” Pedro says in a sincere, yet amused, tone. 

Pedro winks at him, and Oscar is worried, for the briefest of moments, that his heart may actually explode with the love he feels for this man. He inhales deeply, taking in the mingling smells of Pedro, flowers, wine and sex. It’s an intoxicating aroma, one he hopes he’ll smell for the rest of this life, and in any and all lives thereafter. A tender smile brightens Oscar’s features as he finally exhales, etching this moment into his heart. He knows he’s been staring, but there’s nothing to be done about it.

“What,” Pedro asks, becoming slightly self conscious, “do I have something on my face?”

“Only that gorgeous smile and magnificent mustache,” Oscar responds as he checks the time. “We’d better grab a quick shower and get dressed if we’re gonna make our dinner reservations on time.”

Within moments of getting into the shower they’ve forgotten all about dinner. Three long months of desire and longing and they just can’t keep their hands off each other. They make love again in the shower and by time they finally get out their reservation window has passed, so they order room service and feed each other in bed. Bellies and libidos temporarily sated they cuddle and fall asleep in each other’s arms on a bed of flower petals.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Act VI: A Long, Long Time

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Pedro wakes up the next morning he’s alone, lying naked atop the comforter. The room feels cold and empty. Did he imagine last night? It felt so real, so solid. Had separation anxiety finally driven him to the point of actual insanity?

When he rubs the sleep out of his eyes, he feels something on his cheek. Pulling it away, he stares at it briefly. A lilac-colored daisy petal, one of his favorite flowers in his all-time favorite color. 

“Fuck. If this isn’t real, it’s the cruelest god damned dream ever,” he mutters to himself.

From the corner of his eye, he sees movement on the terrace. Oscar is sitting on a chaise drinking coffee and watching ships pass by. Pedro grins as he watches Oscar’s hair blowing in the gentle breeze off the Mediterranean Sea. Pedro steps into the bathroom and grabs the second plush white robe from a hook behind the door, splashing cold water on his face before joining Oscar outside.

As the sliding glass door opens Oscar looks over his shoulder and grins the grin of lovesick fools. Pedro can’t help but smile as the last 365 days flash before his eyes. How has it been a whole year already?

“Hola, mi carino. How did you sleep?”

“I’ve not slept this good since I left LA,” Pedro responds with a sigh. His voice suddenly vulnerable, he continues, “I still can’t believe you’re here. I’m terrified I’ll wake up and this will all be a dream.” His grin quickly turns into a grimace.

Oscar wonders whether Pedro can sense his heartache as he gazes into those wide, uncertain brown eyes, questioning the reality of the moment. Without uttering a word, he wraps Pedro in a tight, reassuring embrace, unsure of how to convince him that this is not just a dream. The euphoria of their previous night has evaporated, leaving behind a lingering sense of doubt and disbelief.

"I'm here, my love, always here for you. I'll be by your side until we're ready to go home," Oscar assures him, kissing him gently on his cheek. Pedro's tears begin to flow softly, as he nestles his face into Oscar's neck, inhaling his comforting scent. All Oscar can do is caress his back and run his fingers through his hair, offering silent solace. They hold each other tightly for several minutes, rocking gently.

As Pedro’s tears subside, he takes a small step back. “I’m sorry, Oscar. I didn’t mean to—,” 

"Hush now, my love. There’s no need for apologies. I know how hard this has been for you. I only wish I could've been here sooner," Oscar whispers, his touch gentle as he caresses Pedro's cheek. Their lips meet in a tender kiss, filled with longing yet soft and romantic. “Do you feel like getting some breakfast?”

Within fifteen minutes they’re downstairs in the hotel restaurant browsing the menu. Their feet caress each other under the table as they savor their food. Beaming with delight, they relish the thrill of being together again after such a long time apart.

When they’ve had more than their fill at breakfast they take a stroll through the city streets, admiring the beauty of their surroundings as Pedro points out some of his favorite places. They wander through small, local artisan shops, buying the occasional piece of artwork or furniture. Most of these purchases are prepared for shipment to either Los Angeles or Brooklyn. Visiting small fruit stands they sample several pieces of exotic fruit, requesting some to be delivered to the hotel. They also purchase small trinkets to exchange since their actual gifts are in Brooklyn. Oscar regrets not bringing their gifts with him, but he didn’t want to risk them being lost by the airline.

Around 1:30 pm they stop for lunch at a cozy little cafe before walking down to the beach. Afterwards they walk, hand in hand, along the water’s edge in silence, holding their shoes as the warm water splashes against their bare feet. When they come upon a secluded stretch of beach they sit on the white sand and watch the waves crash against the shore. Pedro leans his head on Oscar’s shoulder, with one hand resting on Oscar’s right thigh. Oscar, in turn, places his hand atop Pedro’s, his fingers tracing delicate lines across its surface. They sit on the shore for several hours, talking about everything and nothing. After a while Pedro curls up beside Oscar, lying his head in Oscar’s lap. Oscar runs his fingers through Pedro’s hair, and before long Oscar can hear Pedro’s light snore. They stay like this until Pedro’s growling stomach wakes him up. Walking back into town, they dine at the restaurant they missed their reservation for the previous night. By the time they return to the hotel the sun is starting to set. They sit on the terrace and watch it slip below the horizon while they sip wine.

“This view is stunning. Do you get to enjoy it often?”

“At least once a day I try to sit out here and watch the boats pass. There are fewer at night, but sometimes they’ll be lit with string lights. Those are my favorite.”

When Oscar’s glass is empty, he stands, taking Pedro’s empty glass with him as he goes inside to refresh their drinks. Upon his return, he sets their glasses on a small table before moving behind Pedro, where he begins to massage his shoulders. He can feel so much tension stored there. His thumbs work deep into the tissue, slowly loosening the muscles. His right hand glides, palm extended, tracing down Pedro’s chest, over his abdomen, before gently lifting the hem of Pedro’s shirt. Pedro leans forward just enough to allow Oscar to pull his shirt off, before tossing it on top of the now vacant lounger. As he reclines, Oscar tenderly kisses Pedro's warm skin, planting a trail of kisses from the nape of his neck to just beneath his earlobe. Pedro moans softly as Oscar nibbles, his left hand running over Pedro’s chest. Gently squeezing Oscar's hand and giving a slight tug, he silently encourages Oscar to come around. Oscar's fingers lightly brush against Pedro's shoulder as he moves around to the front of Pedro's chaise lounge and settles himself astride Pedro's thighs. Hands on Pedro’s sides, Oscar leans in, kissing his lover deeply. Pedro's hands rest high on Oscar's back, gliding downward with deliberate slowness. Upon reaching the hem of Oscar's shirt, he firmly grasps it with both hands, leisurely slipping it over Oscar's head and casually tossing it on top of his own. Hands resting on Oscar’s hips, Pedro licks his lips as he takes in the sight before him, a view he’s missed for what feels like an eternity. As his gaze travels over Oscar's physique, Oscar leans in close, his lips nearly brushing against Pedro's, his warm breath heavy against Pedro's moist lips.

“Touch me,” Oscar commands quietly.

“Where?” Pedro asks, suddenly nervous and unsure of himself. Having spent so many months apart has made it feel like it’s his first time all over again.

“Wherever you want to, Pedrito. You’re in charge. I’m yours to do with as you please.”

Grasping Pedro’s hands, he guides them up his stomach, pressing them firmly to his own chest. Oscar craves Pedro’s touch in every way imaginable, utterly consumed by his tactile desire. Even though they couldn’t keep their hands off each other the night before, it still feels like he’s not felt the heat of Pedro’s hungry touch for a lifetime. Leaning in, Pedro brushes his lips gently against Oscar’s, savoring the moment, while his hands move up and down Oscar’s chest. His fingers move across Oscar’s skin as if he were reading an enthralling story written in braille. A soft moan escapes Oscar’s lips as Pedro lightly drags his nails over his lover's nipples and ribs. When his fingers reach the top of Oscar’s shorts, they hook into the waist, pulling the band taught, until he can see the dark grove of Oscar’s pubic hair. The band sounds a satisfying snap as he releases it, causing Oscar to inhale sharply. Oscar bites his lower lip as Pedro’s fingers brush over the outline of his awakening cock. Fingers glide delicately over Oscar's thighs, tracing a path to his knees. When he reaches the hem of Oscar’s shorts, his hands discreetly slip beneath the fabric, his thumbs exerting gentle pressure as his hands move up Oscar’s inner thighs, eliciting a satisfying groan for his efforts. He continues to run his hands up and down Oscar’s thighs in this manner, each upward journey bringing him closer to his prize, but deliberately never quite reaching it.

“God I’ve missed this so much, your touch, your scent, your taste,” Pedro whispers as he leans in, his forehead resting against Oscar’s. Their noses nestle together seamlessly as Pedro tenderly presses his lips to Oscar’s in a series of innocent kisses.

“Me too, Pedrito,” Oscar says softly, his fingers gently caressing Pedro’s back. “The night you left was hard. I was sitting alone in the LA house completely immersed in you, yet you were getting further and further away from me. I sat on the balcony for hours just staring out into the city, willing myself to stop thinking of you not being with me.” Oscar nuzzles Pedro, still so desperate for his touch. Oscar sighs. “I’d intended to head to New York anyways, but after that first night, I knew I couldn’t stay in LA. It would have driven me mad.”

“When we talked about it before I left it seemed like it would be so easy. Daily phone calls and texts, video calls when we could manage. But it was just like this never-ending series of things that prevented us from doing any of that,” Pedro replies softly.

“When I went to bed that first night, the bed seemed so big and empty. I could smell you on the sheets, could almost feel your touch, but it was always just out of reach. I’d try running my fingers over my chest, pretending it was you, I even tried jerking off, but it just wasn’t the same.” Oscar leans back, wanting to stare into those rich cocoa eyes, wanting to lose himself in them. “I decided two things that night. First, that I was going to go back to New York the next day, and second, that until we could be together again, I wasn’t going to touch myself.” His hands move slowly up Pedro’s torso, nails dragging feather soft, as they descend. “Regardless of whether we communicated via phone, video chat, or in person, I felt it wouldn't be right to deny you pleasure if I indulged in mine. So, I only allowed myself pleasure when you could share in the experience as well. It’s why I was so quick to loosen the rules. Had I known it was causing you so much distress I’d have lifted them entirely before you even left.”

“Really?” Pedro asks, his fingers still raking up and down Oscar’s thighs, still not quite reaching the apex.

Oscar shrugs as his fingers begin to fuss with the buttons of Pedro’s shorts. He grins as he unfastens each button. He’d not seen a button fly since the 90’s.

“What?” Pedro laughs.

“You’re making me work for it tonight,” Oscar chuckles.

“I don’t want you to think I’m too easy,” Pedro replies with a mischievous wink.

“I would never think that, darling,” Oscar says in a sultry tone as he pulls the fabric away, exposing the base of his lover's shaft. God how he loves it when Pedro goes commando.

Licking, then biting his lower lip, Oscar lightly runs his index finger up and down this small section of newly exposed skin. Grasping the sides of Pedro’s shorts Oscar tugs gently, prompting Pedro to lift his hips. Oscar shimmies the shorts down just enough to expose most of Pedro’s cock. Their eyes lock as he runs his index and middle fingers smoothly up and down the sides of Pedro’s exposed length. Pedro breathes slowly, deeply, gripping the edges of the chaise, hoping it will help anchor his concentration. Oscar continues this for several minutes, until Pedro is gasping, writhing under his touch.

“Do you like that, baby?”

Pedro nods as a shiver runs through him. Grasping Pedro’s shorts, Oscar slides them down until he’s just past Pedro’s knees. Pedro lifts his legs, allowing the shorts to be removed and discarded on the growing pile of clothes. Taking Pedro’s left foot in hand, he kisses from Pedro’s inner calf to his inner thigh, draping Pedro’s legs over his shoulders as he leans in closer. Oscar alternates between kissing, licking and biting both of Pedro’s inner thighs, eliciting a series of satisfying moans. He licks away pearls of precum that have started to drip down Pedro’s hard cock, before taking the tip into his mouth. When Pedro’s hips lift off the chaise, Oscar places his left hand, fingers splayed, over Pedro’s lower abdomen, gently pushing him back down. He takes Pedro deeper at an achingly slow, but exquisitely delicious, pace, until his chin rests on Pedro’s balls.

“Siete infiernos… Daddy…” Gasping for the breaths that were stolen, he curls his fingers around Oscar’s dark locks, tugging with urgency. “I need you inside me, mi amor. Fuck me until the only name I know is yours. Please…” Pedro begs with a desperate cry.

Gently resting Pedro’s legs back on the chaise, Oscar straddles his legs once more. He crawls forward on all fours, licking a slow, lascivious line up Pedro’s stomach, stopping only when his tongue glides across Pedro’s lips. Pedro grazes his teeth over Oscar’s chin before running his tongue across it. When Oscar leans back Pedro whimpers, until they make eye contact. Holding his gaze, Oscar slowly tilts his head down. Pedro’s eyes follow, as if hypnotized, being guided to the waist of Oscar’s shorts. Pedro leans in, nipping and sucking Oscar’s nipples. Fingers hooking into the elastic band once more, Pedro unhurriedly slides Oscar’s shorts down to his knees, where Oscar quickly maneuvers to discard them. He tosses them haphazardly onto the pile of their clothes, where they rest precariously on the edge of the lounger.

Eyes locked, Pedro spits into his palm, working his hand up and down Oscar’s cock. Oscar positions himself between Pedro’s drawn up legs, licking his index and middle fingers, before sticking them in Pedro’s mouth. Once they’re thoroughly wet, he runs them over Pedro’s tight hole as he lines himself up. He enters slowly, pleased at Pedro’s sharp intake of air. Even a year later it still feels like their first night together, warm and familiar, yet tight and unexplored. But he knows that last thought is incorrect, because he’s explored his lover more times than he can count, each time as exhilarating as the first. Oscar moves slowly at first, reading Pedro’s cues, before increasing his tempo. With each thrust Pedro lifts his hips, taking Oscar as deep as possible while simultaneously clenching his muscles. Oscar groans loudly at the tightening sensation. He alternates between quick, shallow thrusts and slow, deep penetration. With each slow thrust Pedro grips Oscar’s hips, pulling him deeper still, sometimes holding him in place for several seconds, ankles crossed behind Oscar’s back, savoring being completely filled.

Supporting himself on his left arm, Oscar leans in close. Pedro’s panting breaths are like fire against his lips as they crash into Pedro’s in a ravenous kiss. His right hand encircles Pedro’s cock, stroking him between their stomachs. It’s almost too much for either of them to bear after so many months of limited contact. Oscar bites Pedro’s shoulder just hard enough to elicit a passionate cry.

“There it is, mi tigre. I want the people across the sound to hear how much you’re enjoying yourself. I want them to be able to hear those feral sounds you’re making for me. I want them to know you belong to me!”

Under the starlit sky Pedro's voice quivers as he confesses to Oscar, "You own every part of me. My every breath, my every heartbeat. My soul."

"And I am entirely yours, in every conceivable manner, in every possible universe,” Oscar whispers against Pedro’s kiss swollen lips.

Their tongues delicately brush against each other's as they exhale heavily into one another's mouths, their lips tantalizingly close but never quite touching. He can see the telltale signs that Pedro is precariously close to the edge. Oscar presses Pedro’s cock against his own stomach as he ruts harder, the friction of Pedro’s cock grinding against his abdomen a sinful pleasure. The sounds this elicits from Pedro are absolutely obscene and Oscar isn’t sure if either of them can last much longer.

“Say my name when you cum for me,” Oscar whispers into Pedro’s ear.

Even though it wasn’t a command, those three words never fail to drown him in the sea of pleasure. Pedro cries Oscar’s name to the stars that pepper the night sky as his cock spasms with his release. Pedro’s glistening cum drips in thick rivulets down Oscar’s chest and hand, pooling where their bodies meet.

“Cum for me, Daddy, I want to feel you explode inside of me!”

Pedro’s wishes ever his command, Oscar thrusts deeply into his lover, the sound of his hips hitting Pedro’s thighs like gunshots in the still of the night. Oscar vocalizes loudly as Pedro’s muscles pulse around his throbbing cock, his cum erupting with enough force to temporarily expel the air from his lungs. Panting heavily, Oscar licks the spend that’s ran down his palm and forearm.  Still embedded, relishing the heat and involuntary muscle contractions, his hips work slowly back and forth. Oscar runs his hands over his chest, glazing Pedro’s release across his torso. Leaning forward, Oscar cups Pedro’s face with both hands, gently pulling him forward. Pedro props himself up with his left hand, right arm wrapping around Oscar’s neck, fingers lost in soft curls. Oscar kisses him greedily before licking Pedro’s face clean. Now it’s Oscar’s turn to lean back as Pedro licks his essence off Oscar’s chest, savoring the taste of them.

Oscar feels himself slowly sliding out as Pedro reclines once more, back flush against the lounger. Pressing Pedro’s legs against his stomach, Oscar lays prone between them and watches his cum trickle out of Pedro’s stretched hole before lapping it up with his tongue. Once every last drop has been claimed, Oscar props himself up enough to allow Pedro to stretch his legs out, before crawling up far enough to lay his head on Pedro’s still quivering stomach. Pedro’s fingers twirl around Oscar’s damp curls as they work to steady their breathing as they lie in the moonlight, spent and sated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Act VII: Adrift In A Sea of Bliss

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The following weeks pass in a flurry of utter madness. One extra week quickly becomes three. Each one filled with ten to twelve hour workdays, five days a week, until production finally manages to wrap the shoot on Tuesday, October 29. True to his word, Oscar remains by Pedro’s side throughout the concluding weeks of production, never missing a day on set. When they walk off set for the final time Pedro is in one of his joyfully chaotic moods. Oscar hasn’t seen him this happy since the party at Jason’s house in July.

“Now that you’re finally free, what do you want to do?”

Pedro looks at his phone and sees it’s late, too late to really go anywhere or do anything outside of bar hopping, and he’s not in the mood for that. Pursing his lips, he ponders for several moments before it comes to him.

“There’s a beautiful place just outside of town called Hastings Gardens. The views are magnificent from every side.”

They stop at the hotel concierge desk where Luca has left a picnic basket full of local fruits, wine, small glasses and a blanket. As Pedro runs their stuff to the room Oscar asks Luca to reschedule the private boat charter one last time. Minutes later a private car drops them off just outside of the garden entrance. They walk around the park, taking time to appreciate the beauty of nature in an area encased by stone. After a brief walk around the rim of the park they settle at a spot overlooking the glittering beauty of Manoel Island. Lights sparkle on the rippling waters surrounding the small land mass. They unfurl their blanket on the garden’s sloping concrete border, watching passing ships as they savor fresh fruit.

“I’m so glad this is finally over. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.” Pedro pauses, his brow creasing, “I was starting to resent even coming here. This whole experience almost ruined this country for me.” Taking Oscar’s hand, Pedro looks deep into his eyes. “And thank you for coming. I’d have probably spiraled way worse than I did had you not come.”

Oscar turns their coupled hands over, pressing his lips tenderly to the back of Pedro’s.

“Sabes que haría cualquier cosa por ti, mi corazón. (You know I would do anything for you, my heart.) I’m sorry this turned out to be such a bad experience for you, but I’m grateful it hasn’t diminished your appreciation for the location.”

Pedro leans into Oscar, resting his head on his shoulder. They sit, fingers entwined, gazing at the city below. As Pedro nuzzles Oscar’s neck his eyes cast upward. He gasps softly. He’d been so focused on the beauty below he almost didn’t notice the beauty above them. The Milky Way glows in brilliant hues of purple, blue and pink. In the stillness of the night, under the Milky Way, they lay holding hands until the park closes at 10 PM.

***

When they return to the hotel they undress and lie naked in bed, legs entangled. They lay in silence for several minutes, lost in one another’s gaze. Pedro softly glides his fingertips up and down the curve of Oscar’s side, while Oscar delicately traces the contours of Pedro’s face. With each pass, Pedro’s fingers travel further south, until finally reaching his hip, where fanned fingers move slowly over Oscar’s pelvis. Running his middle finger up and down Oscar’s sleeping length, Pedro smiles impishly when he feels his lovers cock twitch.

“You are insatiable, mi tigre. Just one of the millions of things adore about you.”

Oscar slides forward until they’re almost nose to nose. Seizing Pedro’s chin, he trails his tongue across the side of Pedro’s face before gently nudging his nose. Pedro tilts his head, exposing the thick column of his neck, where Oscar nips and sucks until a bluish-purple blush darkens the skin. When Pedro’s lips part in a low moan, Oscar takes the plump lower lip between his teeth before kissing him ravenously. Before he realizes what’s happening, Oscar is flat on his back, Pedro straddling his thighs. A low, primal growl escapes him when Pedro starts grinding against his pelvis. When he attempts to sit up, Pedro pins him to the bed with his left hand. 

Arching forward, pressing both hands to Oscar’s stomach, Pedro licks his lips as he continues to move his hips with precision. Eyes alight with mischief, he takes Oscar’s hands, guiding them up his thighs. Oscar’s nails bite into muscle, his skin burning from the heat of Pedro's cock pressing against him as Pedro grinds harder still. Oscar’s cock throbs with need, the friction almost too much to bear. Oscar groans loudly as he reaches for Pedro’s hips, gripping them tightly. He bucks involuntarily as his lover continues to ride him, Pedro’s nails dragging across the velvety soft skin just below Oscar’s navel.

Oscar moans softly, biting his lower lip.  Turning his head to the side, he whispers “You feel so good against me.”

"I know you want me, Oscar," Pedro pants as he continues to grind against him. "You want my cock, don't you?"

Retrieving the lube from the small bedside table, Pedro reaches down between them, grabbing hold of Oscar's throbbing member. He applies the sticky liquid liberally onto Oscar’s cock, feeling it grow harder beneath his touch, stroking it slowly, until he’s fully erect. He rubs Oscar’s head over his entrance before slowing lowering himself onto it. Pedro moans softly in his lover's ear as he takes him deeper. Hips moving in slow, wide circles, he guides Oscar’s hand to his own erect member, encouraging Oscar to touch and explore him as he continues to ride him.

"I want you to stroke my cock while I ride you," he says as he leans forward, pressing his hips against Oscar's. "I want to feel your hands all over me while you’re inside me,” he whispers against Oscar’s lips in a low, sultry tone, before leaning back to give Oscar full access to his body. "Make me cum for you.”

"Anything for you," Oscar gasps, wrapping his fingers around Pedro's hard length, stroking him firmly but gently. He can feel the heat radiating off Pedro's skin as the heady scent of sex fills the air around them.

Pedro’s head lolls back as he moans with pleasure, his love bite glowing in the dim light of the bedside lamp. His hips roll in quick, concentric circles, as he continues to fuck himself on Oscar’s cock, giving his ass a thorough pounding. Having this control over Oscar is exhilarating and he finds he’s not felt such a marvelous ache since the first time Oscar edged him. This ache is almost insufferable, yet oddly euphoric. He feels as though he’s chasing a high he just can’t quite grasp. He loves being at Oscar's mercy, completely under his control, he always has. And yet, even as he enjoys every moment of it, Pedro knows that right now he needs more than just this if he’s going to finally reach that high he’s chasing so desperately. He needs to feel Oscar clenching around his throbbing cock, which has already started leaking with evidence of his pleasure. 

"Oscar," he manages between gasping breaths. Leaning over Oscar, his damp curls framing his face, Pedro nibbles Oscar’s earlobe before growling quietly in his ear, “I want to fuck you until the only coherent sound you can make is my name.”

They maneuver around on the bed until they’re sitting on their knees face to face. Oscar runs his thumb over Pedro’s crown before bringing it to his lips. His eyes dark with desire he licks his thumb slowly, savoring the taste, before reaching for the lube. Pedro guides Oscar’s hand as they spread the gel over Pedro’s cock. With a devilish smirk Pedro makes a twirling motion with his finger. Oscar bites his lower lip, kisses Pedro quickly and slowly turns around. Pedro places Oscar’s hands on the headboard and nudges Oscar’s leg with his knee. In silent obedience Oscar spreads his legs and leans forward. He gasps at the sudden cold as Pedro applies the lube, running his finger around the edge before slowly inserting a finger, then two, to help loosen him up.

Placing the container back on the nightstand, Pedro bites Oscar’s shoulder as he aligns himself. Feeling Pedro’s tip at his eager entrance, Oscar pushes himself backwards, achingly slow, until he’s accepted Pedro’s full length. Oscar groans as Pedro starts to move, slowly at first, but quickly gaining momentum. Left hand gripping his hip, Pedro snakes his right hand around Oscar’s waist, fingers fanning out over his stomach. Pedro's fingers glide down his lover's cock with tantalizing slowness, his thumb hooking over the base of it as he circles around the underside of his balls. He strokes him in this tight arc for several seconds before moving his hand to fully grip Oscar's shaft. As he continues to stroke him, Pedro ruts himself deeper and harder.

Pedro leans forward and whispers into Oscar's ear, "You like it when I touch you like this? When I stroke you and fuck you? Do you want to cum, mi gatito? ¿Le vas a pedir a tu tigre que te de el placer que deseas (Are you going to ask your tiger to give you the pleasure you want)?”

Oscar moans softly in response, nodding eagerly as he tightly clutches the headboard. Pressing his ass back against Pedro’s hips, Oscar looks over his shoulder at Pedro. Baring his gritted teeth, he continues to push back, impaling himself again and again as hard as he can.

“I want to feel your hand gripping my throat while you fuck me. Choke me until I see stars. Make me beg for it like the dirty little slut that I am.”

Their grunts and groans fill the room as they go harder. Soon the headboard is banging violently against the wall with an erratic rhythm. Pedro briefly releases Oscar’s cock, weaving his fingers deep into Oscar’s hair, pulling it tightly before pushing his face against the wall. Oscar moans loudly as stars dance across his backs of his eyelids.

“Pedro, you’re so fucking amazing. It feels so god damned good when you touch me, when you fuck me. I want to cum for you, mi tigre. Please, baby, let me cum for you. I need it, baby, I need it so bad. I want to paint these walls with my cum for you, Pedro… please.”

Pedro's fingers still grip Oscar's throat and stroke his cock as he leans in to lick a bead of sweat from between Oscar's shoulder blades. The sensation sends a shiver down Oscar’s spine and Pedro can feel himself growing even harder at the thought of having complete control over his lover.

"You taste so good," he murmurs softly, his lips trailing down Oscar's back. “I wanna let you cum, baby, I do. But first, you’re gonna have to tell me how badly you need it,” Pedro purrs against Oscar’s sweat slicked skin.

“I’m gonna go mad if I can’t cum for you, mi tigre. The feel of you, everywhere, all at once, it’s almost too much to bear.” His voice just above a whisper, Oscar begs softly, “please, baby, please let me cum for you.”

“Hmm, I love hearing you be submissive. It’s no wonder it turns you on so much to hear me beg. Cum for me, gatito,” Pedro whispers into his ear, his hand pressing Oscar’s cock flat to his stomach.

Oscar’s body vibrates like a tuning fork as his orgasm runs through him, expelling his release all over his chest and stomach. As the waves of euphoria continue to crash, Oscar’s muscles contract tightly around Pedro’s cock, the spasms driving Pedro to near dizziness. Releasing his grip from both Oscar’s throat and cock, Pedro firmly grips Oscar’s hip with one hand and places his other flat against the wall next to Oscar’s. Pedro rests his head on Oscar’s shoulder as he nips at the tender skin of the crook of his neck.

“God, you’re so tight, baby... fuck, mi gatito, you’re squeezing me so tightly with that perfect ass of yours. You’re gonna make me cum.”

“Yes,” Oscar pants as another wave of pleasure ripples through him and he involuntary clenches down on Pedro’s cock again.

“Just like that, fuck! I’m gonna fill you up with my cum and watch it seep out of that tight hole of yours, soaking my cock, mi puta!” Pedro exclaims as his orgasm starts to build, radiating from his center, pulsing through his body like electricity. His balls tighten as his seed fills Oscar, hot and thick, his fingers pressing deep into Oscar’s hip.

Oscar winces and lets out a soft hiss as Pedro's nails dig into his skin, relishing the sensation of delicious pain. He reaches back, gripping Pedro’s side as another shockwave travels up his spine. Pedro's palm meets Oscar's hand, their fingers intertwining as he guides them to Oscar's chin. With a gentle touch, he turns Oscar's head to the side, placing a tender kiss on his lips. Fingers still interlaced, Pedro peppers a trail of soft kisses down Oscar’s neck and across his shoulder. He kisses Oscar’s palm as he backs up, leaving Oscar feeling empty. Helping Oscar off the bed, Pedro kisses him deeply and leads him to the shower.

***

When they finally awake the following morning Pedro stretches lazily and yawns. A glance at the bedside table reveals it’s almost noon. After a leisurely lunch they take a car to the local marina, where a lone ship sits in the last slip at the end of the dock. Nauti Buoy is written across the stern. When Oscar points out that this is the boat he's rented for them, Pedro is surprised by how luxurious it looks. He’s been on plenty of boats in his lifetime, but none quite like this. As they climb aboard, he feels a sense of anticipation building inside him.

As the ship leaves the marina Oscar gives Pedro a tour of the upper decks. When Pedro heads towards the stairs leading to the lower desks, Oscar stops him, assuring him they’ll explore the lower decks after dinner. They ride north, admiring the crystal waters and ancient landscapes. Pedro loves being out on the water like this, surrounded by nothing but open space and endless possibility. Two and a half hours later they pass by Blue Lagoon, a secluded island beach. The medium sized yacht drifts past a packed ferry dock, before dropping anchor in a truly secluded cove. They alternate between swimming in the warm waters of the Mediterranean and lying on the white sand beach until the sun begins to dip below the horizon.

When they return to the boat Pedro is surprised to learn the vessel actually has four crew members instead of just two, including a chef. They dine on the very top deck, overlooking the water as the sky darkens. After dinner it’s finally time to explore the lower decks. The first of the two has sleeping quarters and a kitchen. While there is plenty of room to comfortably accommodate everyone presently onboard, Oscar explains that the crew will be staying ashore while they’re anchored in the cove. After they’ve toured each room on this deck they make their way deeper into the vessel.

Oscar opens a door at the end of the hall and flips a switch. As their eyes adjust to the light Pedro takes in the sight before him and blushes. This room is unlike anything he has ever seen. The walls are lined with various devices designed to assert, or relinquish, control. While Pedro is no stranger to many of the devices hanging neatly from hooks on the wall, he’s not had personal experience with any of them. A swing, suspended from the ceiling, hangs in the far corner of the room. He knows that, before the weekend is over, he’ll become very familiar with many of the devices here.

As they walk through the room, Oscar points out various instruments, explaining their function and operation. Pedro is especially intrigued by a pulley system in the middle of the room, which connects to points on both the ceiling and the floor. Oscar can’t help but smile as he watches Pedro examine the room. This room was clearly designed for exploration, to allow one to let go of their inhibitions and experience new sensations in complete safety. Pedro feels a shiver run down his spine as he takes it all in, excited by the possibilities this room has to offer.

“Tell me more about this…” Pedro says, his fingers trailing over a padded leather wrist restraint, which is part of the pulley system that caught his eye when they first walked in.

“Hmm, this is one of my favorites,” Oscar says, his eyes twinkling with mischief.

Oscar can see that Pedro is nervous, but excited. Taking his hand, Oscar kisses him softly as he unbuckles the first wrist restraint. To Pedro’s surprise, Oscar hands him the cuff and extends his arm. Nodding his head, Oscar grins as Pedro hesitantly fastens the strap around his wrist.

When the first strap is secured Oscar gestures to the second one.

“What if someone comes down here?” Pedro asks nervously.

“They’ve already left for the mainland, darling. It’s just you and me.”  He stares into Pedro’s eyes, sensing his trepidation. "I trust you," he says simply, giving Pedro a meaningful look that tells him everything he needs to know.

Pedro feels a bolt of excitement run through him at these three simple words. He has never been given this level of control in their game play before, and it's both exhilarating and nerve-wracking all at once. But he knows that he can handle it, for Oscar's sake, if not his own. After the second strap is secure, Oscar motions to a metal rod on the floor. Pedro drops to his knees and examines the straps at either end. Although he doesn’t know the name of this device, he has a fairly good idea of what it does. Slowly but surely the restraints are fastened around Oscar's body, and Pedro feels more powerful with each buckle that clicks into place. When Oscar’s wrists and ankles are finally bound, and the nylon ropes pulled taut, Pedro feels a sense of satisfaction unlike anything else in the world. He takes a step back to admire his work, gazing at Oscar with an intensity that makes it clear just how much he wants him.

"Are you comfortable? Nothing’s too tight?" Pedro asks softly, running his fingers over the soft padding that extends slightly past the leather on Oscar's wrist.

"It’s perfect and I'm more than comfortable," Oscar replies with a grin. "I’m incredibly fucking turned on."

“I can see that,” Pedro says looking down at the bulge in Oscar’s swim shorts. Seeing Oscar like this, his arms above his head, and his legs spread, is making his cock twitch. “Seeing you like this, helpless, is so fucking sexy.”

Pedro steps closer, gripping Oscar’s chin, kissing him gently on the lips, the corner of his mouth, his jaw. His lips trail down Oscar’s neck as he slowly unbuttons his lover's shirt. Fingers slipping inside, he brushes his thumbs over Oscar’s nipples before dragging his fingers down Oscar’s exposed stomach.  Left hand gripping his hip, Pedro’s right rubs over the straining fabric of Oscar’s shorts, pressing the heel of his palm firmly against Oscar’s already hardening cock with each upward movement. Oscar moans each time Pedro applies pressure to his throbbing member, pushing his hips into every upward pass.

Pedro drops to his knees, kissing the fabric separating Oscar’s cock from his lips. Gripping the waist of Oscar’s shorts, Pedro slowly inches them down until his lovers' cock springs free. Oscar gasps loudly when Pedro’s nose rubs the underside of his length, the tip of his tongue drawing a line from base to tip. Pedro flicks his tongue over Oscar’s head before wrapping his lips around his thick cock. He stares up at Oscar, a wicked glint sparkling in his eyes as he watches Oscar watch him. Relaxing his jaw, Pedro takes him as deeply as he can, holding him there until he feels his lungs burn. Leaning back, he strokes his lover's shaft lazily before letting his cock slide down his throat again, keeping him there until his lungs ignite once more. Over and over again, he takes his lovers full length, while maintaining unwavering eye contact. Oscar realizes Pedro is catching on quickly as he tries to buck his hips forward, craving the heat of Pedro’s mouth.

“Fuck,” Oscar pants as he thrusts his hips forward again. “Please, baby. I want to feel you sweet lips around my cock again. You take me so well.”

He’s desperate for it and isn’t ashamed to show it. But with every thrust Pedro counters, leaning back just enough that Oscar can’t quite reach. He groans in frustration, feeling his pulse pounding against his temples. Pedro rises to his feet, turning his back to Oscar as he takes inventory of the tools at his disposal. His eyes are drawn to a suede flogger with a black and red braided handle. As he collects this from a hook on the wall Pedro spies a black satin eye mask, which he hooks onto his thumb. Oscar bites his lower lip when he sees what Pedro has found.

Pedro kisses the tip of Oscar’s nose as he slips the mask over Oscar’s eyes. As Oscar adjusts to losing a second of his five senses, his hearing becomes more attuned to his surroundings. He can hear waves gently breaking against the hull of the boat and the faint sound of rusting leather as Pedro allows the straps of the new toy to brush lightly against his bare chest. The soft suede feels amazing against his skin as Pedro guides it down his stomach and across his tender, aching member. As leather brushes over his swollen head he gasps.

“Do you like that, baby?” Pedro asks in a silky voice, enjoying his playthings involuntarily reactions to his teasing.

“It feels so good, mi tigre,” Oscar’s pants, “but nothing makes me feel quite as good as you do.” Licking his lips, Oscar continues, his tone playfully condescending. “Do you know how to use it?”

Pedro quickly takes the bait, drawing his arm back and slapping the flogger across Oscar’s chest and stomach. His strike is harder than he’d intended, but Pedro is pleasantly surprised when Oscar encourages him to put more strength behind it. With a slight hesitation, Pedro draws back again, hitting his lover harder. A satisfying snap fills the air as leather meets flesh and Pedro is rewarded for his efforts with a loud groan. Oscar licks his lips again, almost salivating, as he tells Pedro to do it again, commanding Pedro to hit him harder and lower.

“Are you sure,” Pedro asks, his tone slightly uncertain. When Oscar nods enthusiastically Pedro obeys.

The sounds of leather against leather and flesh, coupled with the feral sounds building deep in Oscar’s throat, are enough to make Pedro hard.

“Fuck, mi tigre, just like that!” Oscar exclaims, gripping the nylon ropes tightly.

Pedro smiles sinfully as he continues to flog his lover, elated by the sounds of ecstasy and the way Oscar’s body writhes with pleasure. But as much fun as as he’s having with these new toys, Pedro realizes he wants the chance to be where Oscar is now.

Kissing Oscar with a savage hunger, Pedro whispers against his lips, “Can I play now, Daddy?”

Oscar nods his head as his tongue caresses Pedro’s. Dropping to his knees, Pedro makes quick work of the ankle restraints. He drags his tongue slowly up Oscar’s length, catching pearls of pre-cum on the tip as he stands. He presses his body against Oscar as he undoes the wrist restraints, his erection pressing into Oscar’s stomach. As soon as Oscar’s hands are free, they find Pedro’s face, pulling him into a deep, passionate kiss. Although Oscar wants to see his pet bound in the same manner he was just released from, Oscar has his sights set on a different piece of furniture. Oscar quickly shrugs off his clothes, letting them fall to the floor as he pulls Pedro’s shirt over his head. Oscar teasingly tugs at the waist of Pedro's swim trunks, gently loosening the drawstring and slowly pulling them down, appreciating the view of Pedro's cock as they fall to the floor.

Taking Pedro’s hand, Oscar leads him to the swing. Pedro’s eyes go wide as he takes in all of the straps hanging from multiple anchor points on the ceiling, wondering how in the world this device is supposed to support him. Oscar explains each piece of the swing as he helps him get safely seated. He knows that he’ll have Pedro bound by his wrists and ankles soon enough, but feels the swing is a safer introduction to this new type of play. The device has a fully adjustable back support, but Pedro can’t help but feel like he’s climbing into a hammock. He chuckles nervously as he adjusts himself in the swing, trying to get centered. Taking in Pedro’s angelic innocence as he wiggles his hips in the swing makes Oscar grin so hard his cheeks hurt. How can he be so turned on by this man, yet find him so incredibly endearing at the same time?

“I’ve got you, baby. I won’t let you fall,” Oscar assures him, unable to suppress his own laughter.

Helping Pedro lie down in the swing, Oscar kisses Pedro’s calves as he secures his feet into the stirrups. Once everything has been securely fastened and Pedro confirms he’s comfortable, Oscar steps between Pedro’s spread legs, stopping when his pelvis is flush with Pedro’s ass. His cock settles perfectly between Pedro’s cheeks as Oscar begins to rock his hips back and forth. As he explains the pulley system to Pedro, Oscar runs the palm of his hand up and down the length of Pedro’s erection, his fingers spreading to accommodate Pedro’s girth on each downstroke. It doesn’t take long at all for Pedro to start rolling his hips against Oscar’s cock as it glides over his eager entrance.

Pedro adjusts the straps of the swing so he's sitting upright, with his knees pulled to his chest. He bites his lip in anticipation as he watches Oscar stroke his cock, spreading lube around until he glistens in the warm overhead light. A soft whimper escapes him as Oscar starts to apply lube to the ring of muscle nestled between the rounded cheeks of his ass. Oscar’s thick fingers hint at what’s to come, ensuring he's ready for the press of Oscar’s cock. He gently penetrates his lover, allowing Pedro time to relax around him. Gripping Pedro’s hips, Oscar moves slowly, teasing him with the tip of his cock and groaning at how tight his pet is.

“Do you want it, mi tigre? Do you want me to fill you up, to stretch that tight little hole of yours?” Pedro nods eagerly, licking his lips hungrily. “Let me hear how badly you want my cock inside you, baby,” Oscar says as he continues to rock against Pedro’s ass, tortuously teasing his bound tiger.

Pedro attempts to move in a way that would make Oscar go deeper, but realizes he is at Oscar’s mercy. He can control the back support of the swing, but Oscar controls the entire lower half of his body. Pedro moans, partly from pleasure, partly from frustration, as Oscar pushes the tip of his cock just deep enough to open him up, then pulls out, over and over again.

“God, you feel so fucking amazing, mi tigre. So tight and warm,” Oscar purrs as he begins to stroke Pedro’s cock with languid pleasure. “Do you like being teased, baby?”

“Yes, Daddy.”

“Tell me, pet, what’s your favorite kind of teasing? “

“I love it when you bring me to the edge, Daddy,” Pedro’s breath hitches as Oscar increases his tempo on Pedro’s cock, hips still rocking, still refusing his lover full penetration.

“Do you enjoy being my plaything?”

“Yes, Daddy,” Pedro pants.

Pushing his aching member slightly deeper, just enough to elicit beautiful whimpers of longing, Oscar continues to edge Pedro for several more minutes. After what feels like a blissfully infinite lifetime Pedro can finally withstand this torture no longer.

Drawing in a deep breath, Pedro growls “FUCK ME!!” His knuckles turn white as he grips the straps tightly.  His entire body trembles with need.

The inexplicably commanding tone in his voice makes Oscar’s cock jump with arousal. Releasing his hold on Pedro’s cock, Oscar grips his hips tightly, fingers biting into his skin. Unable to deny his lover any longer, Oscar drives his hips forward hard, the resounding slap of flesh against flesh filling the room.

“Fuck, yes! Give it to me, Daddy!”

Oscar continues to drive into him, hard and fast. He grunts through gritted teeth each time his hips smash against Pedro’s reddening cheeks. The speed and intensity of his movements fill Pedro with a heady euphoria. Still tightly gripping the left strap, Pedro sticks his middle fingers into his mouth, sucking them fervently. He moans around them as Oscar continues to ram his cock deep into his hole, so deep he would swear Oscar is rearranging his organs.

“Te sientes tan jodidamente bien dentro de mí. ¡Sigue adelante, nunca te detengas!” (You feel so fucking good inside me. Keep going, never stop!)

Pedro pants, trying to catch his breath as he grabs his cock and begins to stroke himself. The sounds spilling from his mouth are feral, resonating from deep in his throat. He’s too lost in his pleasure to be able to speak coherently. It’s all he can do to breathe, and even that is a difficult task. Seeing Pedro in such a delirious state drives Oscar’s libido into overdrive as he continues to fuck his lover with abandon.

“Fuck me like you hate me,” Pedro demands, stroking his shaft faster, pre-cum slicking his fingers, pearls dripping onto his stomach.

Oscar pauses for a moment, balls deep, like he’s considering this command. Pedro’s hand is a blur as he continues to aggressively stroke his cock. Oscar cups Pedro’s face in his left hand, leans in, and kisses him softly. His fingers trace a delicate path through Pedro’s hair, lingering at the soft nape of his neck as his hand gently settles at the back of his head, fingers still lost in his thick curls. His lips brushing Pedro’s ear, Oscar whispers, “I love you so much, mi amor,” and quickly kisses his cheek.

A split-second later Oscar’s fingers grip the hair on the back of Pedro’s head tightly, pulling hard, until Pedro’s eyes meet his own. Momentarily caught off guard, Pedro’s hand stops mid-stroke. His eyebrow arched, a challenging expression on his face, Pedro nods, almost imperceptibly. Oscar pulls back slightly, his fingers still threaded through Pedro’s hair, then slams his hips forward with enough force to cause the swing to lurch backwards. He grunts as he continues to thrust his hips forward, his back arching with forward momentum. His speed increases with each push of his pelvis. Beads of sweat glisten on his chest and trickle down his stomach, his breathing becoming more labored.

“I’m gonna fuck that attitude right out of you, mi puta,” Oscar growls. Releasing his grip on Pedro’s hair, Oscar wraps his hands around Pedro’s thighs for leverage.

“Oh god, fuck. Yes, yes!” Pedro exclaims as he resumes masturbating. His head lulls back as Oscar continues to drive into him with no remorse.

“Make me cum, Daddy!” Pedro cries out as Oscar stretches and fills him.

“You’ll cum when I say you can cum, my little slut,” Oscar barks in response.

With a quick flick of his wrist, Oscar adjusts the position of the swing seat. His next powerful thrust hits home and Pedro cries his name in ecstasy as Oscar hits his sweet spot. He thrusts his hips forward again, Pedro’s pelvis now in the perfect position for his cock to hit that spot repeatedly. Pedro is utterly lost in pleasure. The sounds coming from him now are absolute music to Oscar’s ears and he can tell by the way his pet is writhing and moaning that he’ll cum soon, even if he’s not granted permission.

Oscar kisses and nips Pedro’s inner thighs, biding him to have a little more patience. Pedro slows his hand to a lazy stroke, his unfocused gaze shifting between the slickness on his stomach and Oscar’s sweat beaded face.

“Are you Daddy’s little slut? My dirty little cumslut?”

“Yes, Daddy!”

“Then show me, mi puta,” Oscar replies, driving into Pedro as he nips his calves.

When Oscar thrusts again it’s like he’s hit a detonator. Head lulling back and eyes closed, Pedro moans loudly as his cum spills over his chest, droplets landing on his exposed neck. Oscar bites his lower lip as his lover spasms around him, slowing down to enjoy the sensation. Waves of pleasure wash over Pedro as he tries to catch his breath. He can feel Oscar’s cock jump inside him and knows Oscar is so close to his own release.  Clinching his muscles, Pedro growls when he hears Oscar groan loudly.

“Damn, baby, just a little tighter. I’m so fucking close, mi tigre!”

Pedro clenches as hard as his tired muscles will allow and Oscar finally falls into his own orgasm, filling his lover with his spend. Still nestled in his warmth, Oscar works the straps on the swing, freeing Pedro’s legs and feet, which Pedro wraps tightly around his waist. Freeing himself from the upper portion of the swing, Pedro wraps his arms around Oscar, kissing his face and neck. Nibbling Pedro’s shoulder, Oscar walks them out of the playroom, hitting the light switch on the way out.

When they’re in the boat’s master bedroom just a few steps down the hall, Oscar lays Pedro on the bed. His eyes closed, Pedro sprawls across the bed, stretching lazily as Oscar grabs 2 bottles of water from the mini fridge in the corner of the room. Setting both on a small side table, he steps into the bathroom. Pedro hears the running water but is too tired to pay it any mind. Moments later Oscar emerges holding a washcloth. Oscar sets the cloth on the small bedside table and settles in beside Pedro. Pedro snuggles up to Oscar, who pets his mewling tiger.

“You’re such an obedient boy. You were fucking amazing in there,” Oscar says, kissing the tip of Pedro’s nose and peppering Pedro’s lips with soft kisses.

Oscar runs the warm cloth over Pedro’s sweat dampened face, along his neck and over his chest and stomach, gently washing him clean.

“You look tired, love. Here,” Oscar says, passing him a bottle. “I love you so much, mi tigre. I don’t know how I lived before you.”

“I love you too, mi gatito. Sometimes, when I’m lying in your arms, I can’t imagine the world before you.”

"Happy anniversary, darling," Oscar whispers softly, as he brushes his lips against Pedro's with an innocent tenderness, yet beneath lies a subtle current of desire, a longing that speaks volumes in its restraint. They fall asleep, limbs entwined, to the soft sounds of the ocean.

Over the course of the next three days, they spend several hours in the playroom, trying out new toys and furniture. Oscar takes mental notes of what devices Pedro does, and does not, respond to. He also makes sure to keep the toys in the playroom, so Pedro has a safe space if he gets overwhelmed.  And he does get overwhelmed a few times, ending one particularly intense session by saying ‘nova.’ That night, their final night in the cove, they make love on the upper deck, under the stars.

[imjuanita]

Six Wellness Methods For Pregnant Women

Pregnancy is actually a transformative as well as fantastic time for pregnant mamas, but it additionally possesses the accountability of dealing with both themselves as well as their building little ones. Correct health and health while pregnant are actually essential for a hassle-free and also safe adventure towards becoming a mother. In this short article, our experts will discover six important health recommendations that expectant females should observe to guarantee a healthy and delighted maternity.

Balanced and also Nourishing Diet

Keeping a nutritious and balanced diet regimen is important during pregnancy. The building little one relies upon the mama's consumption for nutrients, minerals, as well as vitamins necessary for growth and progression. Concentrate on consuming a variety of fruits, vegetables, healthy proteins, whole grains, and dairy products. Avoid coming from refined as well as unhealthy foods that offer little bit of to no dietary value. You will get additional information on pregnancy by visiting how soon after unprotected can i test for pregnancy site.

Hydration is Secret

Remaining moisturized is actually usually forgotten however is important while pregnant. Pregnant girls need additional water to assist the boosted blood stream volume, amniotic fluid, as well as total bodily functions. Dehydration may result in complications, thus make it a routine to consume alcohol loads of water throughout the day.

Regular Workout

Keeping a normal physical exercise regimen while pregnant can deliver several advantages. It assists to enhance flow, manage body weight gain, as well as improves state of mind and power amounts. It is actually necessary to speak to along with a health care expert before beginning any exercise course and also decide for low-impact activities suited for pregnancy.

Antenatal Vitamins

Prenatal vitamins are actually especially created to fulfill the dietary necessities of expectant women. They normally contain folic acid, iron, calcium, and also other crucial nutrients. These supplements complete any kind of nutritional gaps and also support the healthy progression of the child.

Correct Sleep as well as Rest

Sleep is critical for pregnant women as their body systems are striving to support the expanding baby. Getting good enough rest helps in decreasing tiredness, keeping hormonal agent balance, and also promoting general welfare. It is highly recommended to reconsider the left edge as it improves blood flow to the placenta.

Manage Stress and anxiety

Maternity may be a stressful time, but extreme stress is not appropriate for the health of the little one or even the mama. Locate methods to handle worry, including performing mindfulness approaches, deep breathing physical exercises, or antenatal yoga exercise. Border on your own with a support system that can easily assist minimize tension as well as anxiety.

Avoid Harmful Substances

It is necessary for pregnant females to avoid unsafe drugs that can negatively impact the baby's growth. This features alcohol, tobacco, and also illegal drugs. Even certain medicines should simply be actually taken under the guidance of a healthcare provider to guarantee they are safe during pregnancy.

Regular Antenatal Examinations

Normal prenatal inspections along with medical care professionals are actually necessary to keep track of the progression of the maternity as well as address any potential problems. These exams permit early detection of any type of problems and make certain timely interventions if needed.

Oral Wellness

Pregnant girls frequently experience modifications in their dental health and wellness as a result of hormonal switches. Good dental cleanliness process, such as frequent brushing, flossing, and dental inspections, are actually crucial while pregnant. Poor oral wellness has actually been actually connected to preterm birth and poor childbirth weight.

Get ready for the Birth

As the due day methods, it is actually essential to get ready for the birth method. Go to giving birth learning training class, generate a birth planning, and also review your choices with your doctor. Being informed as well as prepped can easily help in reducing anxiousness regarding the labor.

Outcome

Maternity is a considerable and also lovely trip for females, and also dealing with their wellness is actually of utmost relevance during the course of this moment. By complying with these six health and wellness tips, expecting mothers may ensure a well-balanced and enjoyable pregnancy for themselves and their little ones.

[alixgates03]

Phonics and How English Works

October 23, 2023

Introduction (Mesmer, 2019)

In order to make use of phonics, children first need to have a deep and clear understanding of how the system of writing works. There are two foundational concepts that children must understand before they can begin to grasp letter-sound relationships: the alphabet and the concept of words in print & writing letters (Mesmer, 2019, p. XV).

I have learned this in the field as my teacher does Fundations with our 2nd grade class, but it was cool reading that the modalities that Fundations utilizes for teaching phonics are proven to be useful ways to get children engaged during phonics lessons: writing on mini white boards, magnetic letters, scissors & paper for cutting out sounds, etc.

Chapter 1 (Mesmer, 2019)

The idea of teaching phonics seems complicated, but every sound and letter has a rule and the rules are learned, writing is a very easy task for students to accomplish, but it just takes time to get to that point.

I took phonetics this summer as a pre-requisite speech and language pathology course through Mass General Health Institute, so most of the information in this chapter was not new to me. One thing I found interesting is the link between phonetics and phonics. While I read this chapter I found myself learning a lot more of the rules of why letters are where they are in words when we spell them out, which is phonics. On the other hand, while I learned all about blends, r-controlled vowels, consonant clusters, and diphthongs this summer, my instruction was more focused on HOW we make each sound with our tongue and oral cavity, the sounds that each one makes and on learning the IPA phoneme symbol for each one, and being able to transcribe English words into phonemes based on my knowledge of which vowels are used in stressed syllables or unstressed syllables, etc. Due to this knowledge, I feel like it will definitely be hard to grasp the idea of teaching phonics while I am doing field experience because I think about all of those concepts in a different way than how they are being taught in phonics instruction in the classroom.

Reflection:

For this readerly exploration I decided to learn something about the author of Letter Lessons and First Words and note how what I learned impacts my motivation for reading. The author of the book is Heidi Anna Mesmer, she is a tenured head professor of literacy at Virginia Tech and has studied beginning reading materials, text difficulty, and struggling readers since 1999. In addition to this book, she has written 3 other books and 4 journal articles on early reading. I was able to find her LinkedIn fairly easily after searching her name, and found out she has been working at Virginia tech as a professor in the literacy department for 21 years; 16 years as an assistant professor and 5 years so far as the head professor. This is the first time that I can recall researching the writer of a book or article I am reading before reading it, and I’m so glad I did! Had I not researched her I would not have felt inclined to read her book, but now knowing her level of expertise I am excited to read all of the  knowledge she has to share with elementary school teachers in regard to phonics and early reading. 

Multimedia:

I included a photo of her and all of her publications!

[sahyadrihospitals]

Understanding Low AMH and Your Fertility Journey

First and foremost, we understand that the journey to parenthood can be filled with uncertainty and concerns, especially when faced with challenges like low AMH levels. 

In this answer, we will help you understand the implications of low AMH on your fertility and explore the available treatment options.

What is AMH and Why Does it Matter?

Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) is a protein produced by the ovarian follicles, which are the small sacs containing immature eggs in a woman's ovaries. 

AMH levels in the blood can provide an indication of a woman's ovarian reserve, or the number of eggs remaining in her ovaries. A low AMH level suggests a diminished ovarian reserve, which can impact fertility.

How Low AMH Affects Your Chances of Pregnancy

It's important to note that low AMH levels do not necessarily mean you cannot get pregnant. A diminished ovarian reserve may reduce the chances of conception, but it doesn't entirely rule out the possibility. 

Factors such as age, overall health, and the quality of the remaining eggs all play a role in determining your fertility potential.

Treatment Options for Low AMH

There are several treatment options available for women with low AMH levels, each with varying success rates:

Natural conception: Some women with low AMH levels may still be able to conceive naturally. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, monitoring ovulation, and timing intercourse around your fertile window can increase your chances of getting pregnant.

Oral medications: Fertility drugs, such as clomiphene citrate or letrozole, can be prescribed to stimulate ovulation and improve your chances of conception.

Intrauterine insemination (IUI): This procedure involves placing sperm directly into the uterus during ovulation, increasing the chances of fertilization.

In-vitro fertilization (IVF): IVF is a more advanced fertility treatment, where eggs are retrieved from the ovaries, fertilized in a laboratory, and then transferred back into the uterus.

The success rates of these treatments can vary depending on factors such as age, overall health, and the severity of the diminished ovarian reserve.

Tips for Improving Your Chances of Pregnancy with Low AMH

Here are some helpful tips for women with low AMH levels:

Maintain a healthy lifestyle, including a balanced diet, regular exercise, and stress management techniques.

Consider taking supplements, such as Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), which have been shown to improve egg quality in some studies.

Consult with a fertility specialist to discuss your options and develop a tailored treatment plan.

Remember, every fertility journey is unique, and the path to parenthood may look different for each individual. 

Sahyadri is a Multi-speciality hospital and the best ivf center in pune. We are committed to helping you achieve your dream of starting or expanding your family.

[healthyliving4you]

Sexual Health: What to Know About STIs and Safe Sex

Sexual health is a crucial aspect of overall health and well-being, but it can be difficult to talk about or know how to protect yourself. Preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and practicing safe sex are important aspects of sexual health.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are about 20 million new STI infections in the United States each year, with almost half of these occurring in people aged 15-24. The most common STIs in the U.S. are chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis.

Preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and practicing safe sex are important aspects of sexual health

The best way to prevent STIs is by practicing safe sex, which means using a condom every time you have sex, whether vaginal, anal, or oral. Condoms are the only method of contraception that can protect against both STIs and pregnancy.

It's important to get tested regularly for STIs, especially if you have a new partner or are sexually active with multiple partners. Many STIs have no symptoms, so you may not know that you have an infection. Regular testing can help you catch an infection early and get treatment if needed.

Practicing safe sex can also help prevent unintended pregnancy. There are several methods of contraception available, including condoms, birth control pills, patches, and intrauterine devices (IUDs). Talk to your healthcare provider about which method is right for you.

Open and honest communication with your partner(s) about sexual health is also essential. This includes discussing STI testing and contraception use, as well as any concerns or questions you may have. Everyone has the right to make their own decisions about their sexual health and safety.

Understanding and respecting your own boundaries and those of your partner(s) is another important aspect of sexual health. Consensual and respectful sexual experiences that prioritize pleasure and safety for all involved are crucial.

If you do experience an STI, seek treatment right away. Many STIs are curable with antibiotics, but some can have long-term health consequences if left untreated. It's also important to notify any sexual partners you have had since your last negative test so that they can get tested and treated as well.

Prioritizing sexual health can have a positive impact on mental and emotional well-being. Good sexual health can lead to increased confidence, better communication skills, and stronger relationships.

Remember that sexual health is a lifelong journey and may change over time. You may have different needs and preferences at different stages of your life, and it's important to stay informed and continue to prioritize your sexual health as you age.

Addressing and treating any sexual dysfunction or discomfort you may be experiencing is important for sexual health. This can include issues such as pain during sex, difficulty achieving or maintaining an erection, or difficulty reaching orgasm. Talk to your healthcare provider if you are experiencing any sexual dysfunction or discomfort.

Self-care and self-exploration are also important in your sexual health journey. This can include taking time to learn about your own body and sexual preferences, experimenting with different forms of pleasure, and exploring your own boundaries and desires.

In addition to practicing safe sex and getting regular STI testing, there are other steps you can take to prioritize your sexual health. These include maintaining a healthy lifestyle, such as getting enough sleep, exercising regularly, and eating a balanced diet. Managing stress and seeking support for mental health concerns can also have a positive impact on sexual health.

It's also important to be aware of the risks of sexual violence and to seek support if you have experienced sexual assault or abuse. Organizations such as the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) provide resources and support for survivors of sexual violence.

Ultimately, taking care of your sexual health is an ongoing process that involves being informed, communicative, and proactive. By prioritizing your sexual health, you can lead a fulfilling and satisfying life, both physically and emotionally.

Conclusion 

Sexual health is an essential aspect of overall health and well-being that requires open and honest communication, safe sex practices, regular testing, and self-care. It is crucial to understand the risks of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis, and to take steps to prevent them, including using condoms and getting tested regularly.

Practicing safe sex can also prevent unintended pregnancy, and choosing the right method of contraception is important. Additionally, understanding and respecting your own boundaries and those of your partner(s), seeking treatment for any sexual dysfunction or discomfort, and prioritizing a healthy lifestyle can all have a positive impact on sexual health. Survivors of sexual violence should seek support from organizations such as the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). By prioritizing sexual health and taking proactive steps to care for oneself, individuals can lead fulfilling and satisfying lives both physically and emotionally.

[dentem1]

How A Visit To A Cosmetic Dentist Can Boost Your Confidence And Brighten Your Life

A confident smile can truly transform your life, affecting both how you view yourself and how others perceive you. For those in Chhatarpur, consulting a cosmetic dentist offers a valuable opportunity to improve not only the look of your smile but also your self-assurance and well-being. Whether you want to correct discoloration, address misaligned teeth, or simply enhance your smile’s appearance, here’s how visiting a cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can make a significant, positive impact on your life.

1. A Confidence Boost from a Smile Makeover

One of the primary benefits of cosmetic dentistry is the self-confidence it inspires. If you’ve felt self-conscious about chipped, uneven, or stained teeth, a cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can help by offering treatments like whitening, veneers, and bonding. The results often bring about a renewed sense of confidence, making it easier to approach social and professional situations with a positive attitude.

Studies show that people who feel good about their smiles tend to be more at ease in social settings. A cosmetic dentist can address issues that may have affected your self-esteem, helping you to feel more open and confident in your daily interactions.

2. Supporting Better Oral Health

Cosmetic dentistry in Chhatarpur isn’t only about aesthetics; many treatments also support healthier teeth and gums. For example, straightening misaligned teeth can make brushing and flossing easier, lowering your risk of cavities and gum disease. Repairing cracks or chips with crowns or bonding protects teeth from future damage, promoting long-term dental health.

Treatments such as crowns, bridges, and implants not only improve appearance but also help preserve your dental structure, so you can enjoy a healthy smile well into the future.

3. Creating Lasting First Impressions

Your smile is one of the first things others notice, and a healthy, beautiful smile can leave a memorable impression. A cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can help you achieve a smile that radiates confidence, enhancing how others perceive you in both personal and professional settings.

Research indicates that a bright smile can improve perceptions of approachability and trustworthiness. By enhancing your smile, you’re investing in how you’re perceived by others, which can lead to new opportunities and positive connections.

4. Boosting Emotional Wellness Through Smiling

Smiling has been shown to boost mood and reduce stress. When you feel good about your smile, you’ll likely smile more often, naturally releasing endorphins that uplift your mood. Treatments like whitening and alignment correction offered by a cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can encourage you to smile freely, promoting a positive outlook on life.

Scientific research suggests that smiling signals the brain to release “feel-good” hormones, leading to improved emotional wellness. In this way, cosmetic dentistry goes beyond appearance, contributing to better mental health and positivity.

5. Addressing Functional Concerns

Cosmetic dentistry addresses both aesthetic and functional issues. For example, an uneven bite may make chewing difficult or lead to discomfort over time. A cosmetic dentist can offer solutions like Invisalign to align your teeth properly, improving both your smile’s look and function.

Correcting functional problems can also prevent future dental issues, such as enamel wear and jaw pain, allowing you to enjoy a healthy smile that feels as good as it looks.

6. Enjoying Long-Lasting Benefits

Cosmetic dental treatments can deliver lasting improvements, especially with proper care. Procedures like implants, veneers, and whitening can enhance your smile for years, making it a worthwhile investment in both appearance and self-confidence.

7. Personalized Smile Solutions

A cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur will work closely with you to create a customized treatment plan that fits your specific needs and goals. Whether you’re looking for subtle adjustments or a complete smile transformation, a personalized approach ensures that your results are both natural and uniquely suited to you.

This individualized treatment plan means each detail of your smile is carefully crafted, resulting in an outcome that reflects your unique personality.

Conclusion

Visiting a cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can offer far more than just a better-looking smile. It can transform your confidence, enhance your interactions, and improve your emotional wellness. By investing in cosmetic dentistry, you’re investing in a brighter, more confident future—one where you can embrace each day with a radiant smile and an optimistic outlook. Explore the possibilities and see how a cosmetic dentist in Chhatarpur can help you unlock the full potential of your smile.

[novobacwilting]

Harnessing Bacillus subtilis: The Key to Sustainable Agriculture and Biotech Advancements

Harnessing Bacillus subtilis: The Key to Sustainable Agriculture and Biotech Advancements

Introduction Bacillus subtilis, a versatile and resilient soil bacterium, has garnered widespread attention for its role in promoting plant health, increasing agricultural yields, and driving innovations across multiple industries. Known for its ability to colonize plant roots and produce beneficial metabolites, B. subtilis is increasingly integrated into sustainable agriculture practices, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals. Its multifunctional nature makes it indispensable in addressing global challenges, including food security, soil health, and antibiotic resistance.

In this blog, we will explore the powerful impact of Bacillus subtilis on sustainable agriculture, its applications in biotech industries, and how it continues to evolve as an essential tool for addressing pressing environmental and industrial challenges.

Why Bacillus subtilis Matters in Agriculture

Agriculture is in urgent need of sustainable solutions to cope with the growing demand for food while minimizing environmental harm. Bacillus subtilis addresses these challenges with remarkable versatility:

1. Biofertilizer and Biostimulant

Bacillus subtilis promotes root development by producing phytohormones like auxins and cytokinins. These hormones stimulate root elongation and branching, leading to improved nutrient uptake.

It enhances the availability of essential nutrients such as phosphorus and iron through its natural ability to solubilize soil minerals, further supporting plant growth.

2. Biocontrol Agent

As a natural enemy of plant pathogens, B. subtilis produces antimicrobial compounds like iturin, fengycin, and surfactin. These metabolites inhibit the growth of harmful fungi such as Fusarium, Rhizoctonia, and Sclerotinia.

It offers an eco-friendly alternative to chemical pesticides, reducing environmental pollution and fostering sustainable farming practices.

3. Enhancing Drought Tolerance

Bacillus subtilis helps plants tolerate drought stress by boosting their ability to retain water. It triggers the production of stress-responsive proteins and strengthens the root system, improving water-use efficiency under challenging conditions.

This resilience is particularly important in arid regions and climates affected by unpredictable weather patterns.

Applications in Biotechnology

Beyond its contributions to agriculture, Bacillus subtilis has become a workhorse in various biotechnology fields. Its ability to produce enzymes, probiotics, and pharmaceuticals offers significant value across industries.

1. Probiotic Use

As a spore-forming bacterium, B. subtilis can withstand extreme environmental conditions, making it ideal for incorporation into dietary supplements and animal feed. It improves gut health by supporting the balance of beneficial intestinal bacteria and enhancing digestion.

Probiotics based on B. subtilis have been shown to promote immunity in humans and animals, reducing the need for antibiotics.

2. Vaccine Development

Bacillus subtilis serves as a promising platform for the development of oral vaccines against infectious diseases, such as cholera and influenza. The bacterium’s spores act as a delivery system, protecting the vaccine until it reaches the gut, where it can stimulate an immune response.

This approach offers a low-cost, stable alternative to traditional injectable vaccines, particularly in remote areas with limited cold-chain infrastructure.

3. Enzyme Production for Industrial Use

B. subtilis is a key player in enzyme production, supplying critical enzymes like proteases, amylases, and lipases for industries including food, detergents, and textiles.

These enzymes are integral to producing high-quality laundry detergents, as they break down protein stains and grease. In food processing, amylase plays a crucial role in brewing and baking by breaking down starch into fermentable sugars.

Environmental Impact and Sustainability

The use of Bacillus subtilis aligns with sustainable development goals by promoting eco-friendly agricultural practices and reducing the reliance on synthetic chemicals. As farmers and industries move toward greener solutions, B. subtilis provides a natural alternative that preserves biodiversity and enhances soil health.

In addition, ongoing research is expanding its applications in waste management by exploring how B. subtilis can degrade organic waste and convert it into valuable biofertilizers. Its ability to sequester carbon in soil further contributes to mitigating the effects of climate change.

Future Prospects

The versatility and adaptability of Bacillus subtilis position it as a critical player in addressing future challenges across multiple sectors. Its growing use in agriculture, biotechnology, and environmental sustainability reflects a shift toward bio-based solutions that promote long-term health for people, plants, and the planet. Researchers are now exploring new ways to genetically enhance B. subtilis, improving its efficiency and expanding its applications into unexplored areas, such as bioremediation and plastic degradation.

As global challenges evolve, Bacillus subtilis will remain a cornerstone of innovation, supporting sustainable agriculture while driving advances in biotechnology. Its contributions to plant growth, disease control, and industrial applications demonstrate its potential to become one of the most impactful microorganisms in the coming decades.

Conclusion

Bacillus subtilis serves as a bridge between sustainable agriculture and modern biotechnology, offering practical solutions to complex problems. Whether by enhancing crop productivity, replacing chemical inputs, or contributing to biotech innovations like probiotics and vaccines, B. subtilis is a model of versatility. As the demand for environmentally conscious solutions continues to rise, the role of Bacillus subtilis will only grow, cementing its status as a key component of future eco-friendly innovations.

[mihikavasant]

HPV Bumps on Tongue - Surya Dental Care

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is commonly linked to skin growths, but many are unaware that it can also affect the tongue and oral cavity. While oral HPV infections often resolve on their own, persistent infections may lead to the development of bumps on the tongue, particularly at the back of the tongue, tonsils, or roof of the mouth.

This blog explores HPV bumps on the tongue, how HPV spreads to the tongue, the causes behind the bumps, and their potential impact on overall health.

How Does HPV Spread to the Tongue?

HPV primarily spreads through skin-to-skin contact and mucosal surfaces, most commonly through sexual activity. Below are the primary ways in which HPV can spread to your tongue:

Oral sex with someone infected with genital HPV can transmit the virus to the mouth, leading to HPV in mouth and causes HPV bumps on the tongue or other areas of the oral cavity. 

HPV can also spread indirectly through items that come into contact with infected areas.

What Causes HPV Bumps on the Back of the Tongue?

HPV bumps are small, wart-like growths caused by certain strains of the virus. These bumps can appear white, flesh-colored, or red and are usually painless, though they may sometimes cause discomfort, especially when located at the back of the tongue.

Factors contributing to the development of HPV bumps include:

A weakened immune system 

Stress 

Prolonged exposure to the virus

Types of HPV That Cause Bumps on the Tongue

HPV includes over 100 strains, but only a few are known to cause oral bumps, especially on the tongue. Different strains affect various body parts, and some are more likely to cause oral symptoms. Below are the main types of HPV that can lead to bumps on the tongue:

HPV-6 and HPV-11 (Oral Papillomas) 

HPV-13 and HPV-32 (Focal Epithelial Hyperplasia or Heck's Disease) 

HPV-16 and HPV-18 (High-Risk HPV) 

HPV-1 and HPV-2 (Commonly Cause Skin Warts)

HPV-6 and HPV-11

These low-risk HPV strains are the most common causes of benign oral warts, also known as oral papillomas. HPV-6 and HPV-11 cause small, soft, painless bumps in the mouth, including the tongue. These bumps may appear as single growths or in clusters, often resembling cauliflower, and typically do not lead to cancer.

HPV-13 and HPV-32

These strains are linked to Heck’s disease, also called focal epithelial hyperplasia (FEH), which causes small, soft bumps on the mucosal surfaces of the mouth, including the tongue. While rare, these growths usually clear up on their own and are generally not harmful.

HPV-16 and HPV-18

High-risk strains like HPV-16 and HPV-18 can also infect the mouth, leading to bumps on the tongue. These strains are more commonly associated with cancers, such as cervical and throat cancers. Although less common, bumps from these strains should be monitored carefully as they can sometimes lead to malignancies if left untreated.

HPV-1 and HPV-2

HPV-1 and HPV-2 are typically associated with skin warts, but they can occasionally cause oral warts, especially in individuals who may transfer the virus from their hands to the mouth through nail-biting or other habits.

How Long Will HPV Bumps on the Tongue Take to Go Away?

HPV infections in the mouth often resolve on their own as the immune system fights off the virus. Oral HPV bumps may disappear within a few months, although some may persist longer, especially in individuals with weakened immune systems. For those with a strong immune system, the infection and symptoms, including tongue bumps, may resolve within 1-2 years.

In cases where bumps persist, treatments like cryotherapy (freezing the growths), laser therapy, or minor surgery can be used to remove them. Immune-boosting treatments may also help speed up the recovery process.

Can HPV Bumps Spread to Other Parts of the Body?

While HPV tends to remain localized in the mouth, it can spread through direct contact, especially if the infected area is touched and then transferred to other parts of the body. This is known as self-inoculation. However, it is unlikely for HPV bumps on the tongue to spread to distant areas such as the genital region on their own.

Since HPV is contagious, those with oral HPV should take precautions to avoid spreading it to others, especially through intimate contact or shared items. Practicing good hygiene, such as avoiding touching the bumps and washing hands regularly, can help prevent transmission.

How to Prevent HPV from Spreading to the Mouth

While HPV is common, you can take several measures to reduce your risk of developing HPV-related bumps on the tongue or elsewhere in the body:

HPV Vaccination: The HPV vaccine is effective in preventing infections from high-risk strains, including those affecting the oral cavity. Getting vaccinated significantly reduces the risk of developing HPV-related growths.

Safe Practices: Avoiding direct contact with infected areas, practicing safe sex, and limiting the number of sexual partners can reduce the chances of contracting or spreading HPV. Using protection during oral sex can also help reduce transmission.

Avoid Sharing Utensils or Personal Items: Since HPV can spread through contact with contaminated surfaces, it's advisable to avoid sharing items like toothbrushes, towels, or eating utensils.

Routine Dental Checkups: Regular dental visits can help detect abnormal growths early. Dentists can monitor for unusual tissue changes and refer patients to specialists if needed.

Maintain Good Oral Hygiene: Proper oral care helps create a healthier environment in the mouth, making it less susceptible to infections.

Takeaway

HPV bumps on the tongue are often harmless and may clear up on their own. However, it's important to take preventive steps like vaccination and practicing good hygiene to reduce the risk of oral HPV infections. If the bumps persist, grow, or cause discomfort, it's advisable to consult a dentist for an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment.

[ivdripuk]

Unlock Your Best Self: A Guide to IV Drip Therapy in the UK

Introduction

In a fast-paced world, where stress, fatigue, and wellness concerns impact our daily lives, more people are turning to IV drip therapy as a quick, effective solution to boost health and energy. From enhancing skin glow to supporting immune health, IV drip therapy delivers essential vitamins and minerals directly into your bloodstream. This guide covers everything you need to know about IV drip therapy UK — from its benefits to costs, and the types of therapies that can suit your lifestyle.

What is IV Drip Therapy?

IV drip therapy is a method of delivering essential nutrients, like vitamins and minerals, directly into the bloodstream. Unlike oral supplements, which must go through the digestive system, IV drips provide 100% bioavailability, meaning your body absorbs all the nutrients. This process helps:

Rehydrate the body quickly

Boost energy levels instantly

Support immune health

Promote skin brightness and overall wellness

Why Choose IV Drip Therapy?

Whether you’re dealing with fatigue, looking to improve skin health, or wanting an immunity boost, IV therapy can offer fast and effective results. Here are some unique benefits:

Immediate results: IV therapy works fast, helping you feel rejuvenated and energized within minutes.

Customizable: IV drips can be tailored to meet individual health needs, including beauty, energy, detoxification, and immune support.

Convenient and safe: With options for both clinic-based and mobile services, getting an IV drip is accessible and performed by professionals.

Types of IV Drip Therapy

Energy and Immune Boost Drip This type of drip is perfect for those feeling run down or needing a quick energy surge. It’s loaded with B vitamins, antioxidants, and vitamin C to keep your body energized and resilient.

Skin Brightening and Anti-Aging Drip For a radiant glow, the Skin Brightening IV drip combines essential nutrients like glutathione, vitamin C, and biotin to enhance skin health, giving you that refreshed, youthful look.

Hormone Balance and Mood Support Drip Stress, mood swings, and fatigue are often due to hormonal imbalances. The Hormone Balance IV drips provide a blend of minerals and amino acids to help balance mood and manage stress.

Hydration and Recovery Drip Ideal for those recovering from illness, sports activities, or a busy week, this drip replenishes fluids, restores electrolytes, and supports faster recovery.

Cost of IV Drip Therapy in London

In London, cost of IV drip therapy in London can range between £100 to £300 per session, depending on the type and ingredients used. While the initial investment might seem high, many people find it worthwhile for the health benefits. Here’s a quick overview:

Standard Drips (for energy, immunity): around £100-£150

Premium Beauty Drips (skin and anti-aging): around £200

Specialized Drips (hormone balance, recovery): around £250-£300

Who Should Consider IV Drip Therapy?

Busy Professionals needing quick rehydration and mental focus.

Athletes looking to recover faster and improve stamina.

Anyone dealing with fatigue, poor immunity, or skin concerns.

Travelers needing to recover from jet lag.

How to Get Started with IV Drip Therapy in the UK

Consultation: Start with a consultation to discuss your health needs.

Choosing a Therapy: Select a therapy based on your goals — energy boost, skin glow, recovery, or immunity.

Administering the Drip: The procedure is usually quick, lasting 30–45 minutes, and is performed by a trained professional.

Vitamin D Injection Dose: A Key to Vitality

Vitamin D is crucial for maintaining healthy bones and supporting the immune system. Many people are deficient in vitamin D, especially during the winter months. An vitamin D injection dose can help restore healthy levels, boosting overall vitality and improving mood.

Supports bone and immune health

Improves mood and energy levels

Helps prevent vitamin D deficiency

Final Thoughts

IV drip therapy in the UK offers a powerful way to support wellness in a convenient, fast-acting manner. Whether you’re looking to glow up your skin, improve your mood, or simply boost immunity, there’s an IV drip tailored to your needs.

[fergusspades]

Exceptional Dental Care in Jonesboro, AR: Fergus Spades Dental Care

Emergencies can strike at any time, especially when it comes to dental health. A sudden toothache, a broken tooth, or any unexpected oral issue requires immediate care, which is where emergency dental services play a critical role. In Jonesboro, AR, Fergus Spades Dental Care stands out as a reliable choice for those needing urgent dental attention. This article explores the importance of having a trusted emergency dentist, the services offered by Fergus Spades Dental Care, and how they address the immediate needs of patients in Jonesboro and surrounding areas.

Why Choose an Emergency Dentist?

Dental emergencies aren’t limited to typical office hours. Pain or trauma to the mouth can significantly impact daily life, making it essential to have access to a qualified dentist ready to address these issues promptly. An emergency dentist is trained to handle a range of issues quickly and effectively, from acute infections to sudden injuries. Fergus Spades Dental Care offers such emergency services, ensuring that patients in Jonesboro have immediate access to quality dental care when they need it most.

Fergus Spades Dental Care: A Brief Overview

Fergus Spades Dental Care, founded in 2001, is a well-established dental practice in Jonesboro, AR. Known for their commitment to patient satisfaction, they have been providing comprehensive dental services to patients of all ages. As a locally owned and operated practice, they are deeply connected to the community and strive to deliver exceptional dental care, particularly during emergencies when patients are most vulnerable. Whether it’s a child with a sudden toothache or an adult suffering from a chipped tooth, the team at Fergus Spades is equipped to provide relief and restore oral health.

Key Emergency Dental Services Offered

Fergus Spades Dental Care offers a range of emergency dental services tailored to meet the needs of patients in distress. Here’s a look at some of the most common services provided:

Immediate Pain Relief for ToothachesSevere tooth pain is one of the most common dental emergencies. This can be due to decay, infection, or injury. Fergus Spades Dental Care has a team of experts who can quickly diagnose the cause of pain and provide treatments to relieve discomfort.

Treatment for Broken or Chipped TeethAccidents can happen anytime, causing teeth to chip or break. If left untreated, these injuries can lead to further complications. Fergus Spades Dental Care offers solutions to repair or restore damaged teeth, ensuring that patients don’t have to suffer unnecessary pain or risk further damage.

Emergency ExtractionsIn some cases, a damaged or infected tooth may need to be removed immediately. Fergus Spades Dental Care has the expertise to perform emergency extractions with minimal discomfort to the patient. This is often the best solution to prevent the spread of infection or alleviate extreme pain.

Abscess and Infection ManagementA dental abscess is a serious condition that can lead to severe complications if not addressed promptly. The experienced team at Fergus Spades Dental Care can handle infections and abscesses, providing treatments to prevent the spread of infection and reduce pain.

Restoration for Lost Fillings or CrownsLosing a filling or crown can be both painful and inconvenient. Fergus Spades Dental Care offers emergency restorations, quickly addressing any gaps or exposed nerves to prevent further damage and relieve discomfort.

Dental Trauma CareTrauma to the mouth, whether due to sports or other accidents, requires immediate attention to avoid long-term complications. Fergus Spades Dental Care is prepared to provide comprehensive trauma care, assessing the damage and taking steps to restore oral health.

Why Fergus Spades Dental Care is Ideal for Emergencies

Experienced and Compassionate Team

Dental emergencies often bring high levels of stress and discomfort. The professionals at Fergus Spades Dental Care are not only skilled but also compassionate, understanding the anxiety that comes with dental issues. Their approach to emergency care focuses on both technical excellence and patient comfort, helping to make the experience as painless as possible.

State-of-the-Art Technology

Fergus Spades Dental Care is equipped with advanced dental technology to handle emergencies with precision. From digital imaging for accurate diagnosis to the latest equipment for effective treatment, their facilities ensure that patients receive high-quality care.

Flexible Scheduling and Accessibility

Understanding the nature of dental emergencies, Fergus Spades Dental Care offers flexibility in scheduling to accommodate urgent cases. They prioritize emergency appointments, ensuring that patients receive prompt attention. The clinic’s location at 727 East Parker Road in Jonesboro, AR, makes it accessible to residents of Jonesboro and nearby communities, further ensuring quick response times in emergencies.

Comprehensive Care Beyond Emergencies

While emergency care is a crucial aspect of Fergus Spades Dental Care’s services, they also offer a full spectrum of dental treatments, from preventive cleanings to cosmetic dentistry and restorative procedures. This means patients can rely on them not only for immediate relief but also for long-term dental health solutions.

Tips for Managing Dental Emergencies Before Visiting the Dentist

In some cases, immediate relief steps can help manage the pain or prevent further damage before reaching the dentist. Here are some tips recommended by Fergus Spades Dental Care for handling dental emergencies:

Toothache: Rinse the mouth with warm water and apply a cold compress to the cheek if there is swelling.

Broken Tooth: Rinse the mouth gently with warm water and keep any broken pieces to show the dentist.

Lost Filling or Crown: Apply a piece of sugar-free gum to temporarily cover the gap if a crown or filling is lost.

Knocked-Out Tooth: If possible, place the tooth back in its socket and hold it in place with a clean cloth or gauze. If that’s not possible, store the tooth in milk and get to the dentist immediately.

Contact Fergus Spades Dental Care

If you’re in Jonesboro, AR, and in need of emergency dental care, don’t hesitate to reach out to Fergus Spades Dental Care. With their combination of advanced technology, compassionate care, and commitment to patient health, they are a trusted choice for dental emergencies. You can reach them at (870) 910-0000 or visit their office at 727 East Parker Road, Jonesboro, AR.

Dental emergencies are unpredictable and can be both painful and inconvenient. Having a trusted emergency dentist like Fergus Spades Dental Care in Jonesboro, AR, can make all the difference. Their comprehensive emergency services, skilled team, and state-of-the-art technology ensure that patients receive the care they need when they need it most. Whether you’re dealing with a sudden toothache, a broken tooth, or any other dental emergency, Fergus Spades Dental Care is prepared to provide the immediate relief and quality care you deserve.