#i just spent that money 7 years ago so its basically free to me now. might as well use it if i like it | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

trutimeline · 4 years ago

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idislikecispeople, The Most Infamous Dyscourse Blogger: Part 1.0, Rumors

idislikecispeople, also known as many names throughout her time on Tumblr (such as Adele, Kat, Mami, Samantha and Sayaka), was a former Tumblr blogger who became infamous for coining the term "tucute", among many other controversial things she has posted on her blogs. This was supposed to be one, very long masterpost about her, but Tumblr's post editor is a bitch and won't let me do that.

In this post, I'll be debunking or confirming rumors commonly spread about idislikecispeople. The rest of my posts about her will each be dedicated to a specific controversial belief she held or situations she got into. For simplicity's sake, I'll be referring to idislikecispeople as Kat for the rest of this post and future ones.

Rumors

Kat Coined the Terms "Truscum" and "Tucute"

Verdict: Partially True

Kat coined the term tucute, but she did not coin the terms truscum or transmedicalist.

Here's a screenshot of Kat's original definition of a tucute:

Transcript:

What is Tucute?

What does tucute mean?

Tucute is basically just the opposite of truscum, it’s a term and community for trans, nonbinary, and/or non-cis individuals created to separate anti-truscum from truscum and to serve as a safe place from truscum and from cis people, where they believe that being trans requires dysphoria, we do not,where they think that being trans is a medical condition, we do not,and where they deny numerous gender identities on the basis that it “discredits the trans community” we do not.

What are the prerequisites to be a part of the tucute community?

You have to be trans, nonbinary, and/or non-cis in general

You have to accept all pronouns and gender identities

You haveto believe that dysphoria is not necessary to be trans

You have to dislike truscum

You cannot side with truscum or believe in their ideology

You cannot misgender anyone no matter how mad they make you

You cannot be an ableist whatsoever

Did you invent the tucute community? Why?

I indeed did coin the tucute term and community and anyone who says otherwise are creeps who are trying to steal it from me and redefine it for their own nefarious doings. I started this community so anti-truscum could separate themselves from truscum and cis people who are a part of the truscum community, it serves as a safe space from both truscum and cis people.

I’m cis, can I be tucute if I believe in your movement and want to help?

No, you can’t be tucute if you’re cis, you can only be a tucute ally, and you need to be sure to never speak for or over a trans person.

I see a lot of tucuties being just as harmful as truscum, what will you do about it?

There isn’t much I can do to them other than ask them to stop aligning with the tucute community, and of course, that doesn’t mean they will. Also be noted that truscum and cis people will pretend to be tucute just to tarnish the name of the tucute community, so tread lightly, you might be talking to a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Spread the word, use the tag #tucute and join the army today!

[A digital drawing of Sayaka Miki from Puella Magi Madoka Magica in her magical girl form, with a banner underneath her reading "Tucute 4 U!"]

(source) (source)

Kat Was a Cisgender Woman Who Lied About Being a Transgender Woman

Verdict: False

This rumor primarily comes from a post on Kat's oldest known Tumblr blog, chromaghost, where she claims that she wasn't MTF and only tagged a selfie as such because she thought that transgender people were "cool".

Transcript:

Anonymous asked: are you a mtf? i seen it tagged on one of your photos.

No lol. I wanted to post it to the tag because transgender people are cool :3

(source) (source) (source)

However, Kat addressed this post and made it clear she very much was a transgender woman multiple times on her later blogs. This claim can also be confirmed with nude photos Kat posted online, which I don't feel comfortable spreading, so you'll just have to trust me on that one. I also don't feel comfortable directly encouraging you to go and dig up those nudes, as most of her nude photos were either taken when she was a minor, spread without her consent and/or were uploaded because people pressured her into posting nudes to "prove" she was a transgender woman.

Transcript:

Anonymous asked: you bound with ace bandage in one of your selfies. i don't know what to think about you anymore. according to some people you're a 27 year old cis woman scamming us, but you say you're a 22 year old trans woman. i want to trust you but i don't know if i can. i'm sorry.

Rest assured I’m not 27 years old lol. What you’re referring to is a less than graceful ~art piece~ we did (”Playing a Boy” or something) on deviantART when we were 16/17 (?) and really ill-informed. I ask you to not take that as how I stand currently – as I have learned so much more since, and I have a penis and I was designated male at birth because of it (feel free to purchase a passcode to our nsfw blog to see for yourself). At the time we were developing breast tissue but still had to appear as a ‘boy.’ Don’t bind with Ace bandages, kids, it can damage your rib cage, something we didn’t know at the time.

(source) (source)

Transcript:

[A picture of two prescriptions, estradiol and spironolactone, both prescribed to Adele Sheffield.]

grandtran still gonna think I photoshopped it or what

(source)

Transcript:

Anonymous asked: In other words, you aren't gonna cough up the pics because you know you can't fake that shit because you're actually cis. Cool. BTW why do you keep changing your story about the blog, and if the blog was run by you when you were in denial about being trans because of self hate, why were the pics tagged mtf and you were constantly saying trans people were cool?

Yeah I’m not gonna do something for y’all and get nothing in return except more doubt from you, you see how one sided that kind of request is? Also its technically considered sexual harassment, just because its on the internet, you’re a coward (whats your username btw?), and you think I’m cis and you want me to prove time and time again to you that I’m dmab doesn’t justify sexually soliciting someone when they’re not comfortable in being solicited – for free no less.

At first I genuinely had no memory of that blog, it was only active for all of 2 months and for some reason I moved onto a new email and new tumblr, and I haven’t the foggiest why. As for the whole “me claiming to not be ~mtf~” I don’t have any memories from that time, I can only assume it was a lot of dysphoria fueled self-hatred and wanting to be seen/pass as a cis girl lesbian.

If you’re really gonna solicit nudes from a trans woman (a second time) as they do sex work to try and stay on their feet without offering anything in return just so your transmisogynistic ass can get off to trying to tell me my dick is fake isn’t classy at all. I perish the thought of what you’re parents would think of this behavior from you. But yeah, feel free to send some money to my paypal so I can get the gender markers on my records changed because that’s gonna cost a lot apparently, and I’ll definitely send you the dick pics you want. :)

(source) (source) (source)

Transcript:

[A picture of a a hospital bracelet on Kat's wrist. The patient's name is Adele Sheffield and her sex is labeled as "M".]

(source)

Kat Lied About Having Diabetes To Get Money From Tumblr Users

Verdict: False

This doesn't need much commentary from me, just view the screenshots below.

Transcript:

To the people who keep harping on me buying a $15 video game for my mental health 7 MONTHS ago “with my donation money,” well, here you go, some proof, links and screenshots provided

So for everyone spreading misinformation about me spending $15 on a video game for my mental health, here’s a full list of reasons why there is no way, shape, or form I spent my paypal money on it:

Yes, I spent $15 of my own money after selling one of my possessions, not denying it:

[A screenshot of a Tumblr post by Kat where she shows off a copy of Fall Out: New Vegas, marked with a price of $14.99. The date of the post is marked as July 21, 2014 at 06:28.39 PM.]

Be sure to look at the date, July 21st, 2014 6:28 PM. Now lets look at my first donation post asking for help:

[A screenshot of a Tumblr post by Kat where she asks for donations to be able to afford insulin because she has no insurance. The date of the post is marked as July 20, 2014 at 08:14.00 PM.]

Hmm, one day before the purchase of said game, July 20th 2014 at 8:14 PM. Now, I’ve never heard of a video game store — much less a non-chain video game store accepting payment for video games in the form of virtual Amazon gift cards, have you? Oh, but you’re gonna say, “well you bought the game with your paypal donations anyway!” Well, here’s exhibit C:

[Another screenshot of a separate post made by Kat where she is also asking for donations to be able to afford insulin. The date of the post is marked as July 23, 2014 at 12:27.46 PM.]

Again, looking at the date of this posting which is the original donations post, you can see it was posted on July 23rd, 2014 at 12:27 PM, a full 2 days after I had bought the game. Now, if there’s no way for me to use Amazon gift cards for a real life video game store, then how can I go back in time a minimum of 2 full days to give past me $15 to buy said game, hm? This isn’t even accounting for the fact that I didn’t even have my own bank account associated with it until over a week later, and it surely doesn’t account for the fact that it takes up to 5 days to transfer from paypal to your bank account. All the dates are linked to the original unedited posts so you can see for yourself, and for added measure my first deposit was on August 14th, 2014:

[A screenshot of a deposit made by Kat. The date is marked as 08/14/14.]

Oh but yeah, anti-sjs, truscum, and the like took damniwishidthoughtofabettername’s postthey used to gaslight us with misinformation and you all bought it. Tell me how I could misuse donations that I could not use outside of Amazon and money I didn’t even start receiving until a full two days later, let alone the fact that there’s no way I could have transferred said money and used it two days prior as of the date of the paypal donations post.

I hope some of y’all could reblog this and get the word out, I’m sick and tired of people buying into that misinformation that person did solely to gaslight me as a means to try and disrupt my donations drive.

(source) (source) (source) (source) (source) (source) (source)

Transcript:

[A selfie of Kat holding up a vial of Novolin to the camera.]

Hey anon, I don’t feel comfy giving you my receipts (because doxxing is a thing) but here you go, a selfie with my most recent insulin purchase. 👽

(source) (source) (source) (source) (source) (source) (source)

Transcript:

Anonymous asked: Getting desperate for money again I see. How is your fake diabetes lately. I bet your blood sugar is like 800 this time and you're still able to be alive somehow.

You got me, I’m ~totally faking~

[A selfie of Kat. In the background several items used by diabetics are seen such as insulin syringes, glucose tablets, a blood sugar tester and test strips.]

[A picture that gives us a closer look at the background of the previous selfie.]

[A selfie of Kat holding up two vials, one of Lantus and the other of Humalog.]

Gee, must be one dedicated faker, right? To have hundreds of dollars of insulin equipment and insulin itself. Hmmm… Insulin syringes, glucose tablets, a blood sugar tester and test strips.. oh and insulin, hmmmm….

Oh and because you didn’t learn from last time you don’t die instantly when your blood sugar goes over 600 lol, something anyone who studies endocrinology can tell you, and I would know, being a diabetic, having to be hospitalized numerous times for ketoacidosis where the blood sugar has been too high for too long. Things you clearly do not know and you’re just jumping on the disableist bandwagon. I have an idea of who you are anyway, just doing this for future reference.

(source)

#idislikecispeople #dyscourse #transmed #truscum #tucute

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editorialsonlife · 3 years ago

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Well

Welp, feeling like doing an update because there's been a lot going on to be honest. its one of those weird dichotomies where every day feels like an eternity and there's so much going on and then you look back and you're like oh, ok its just my brain making it difficult and making things take forever but anyway.

LOCKDOOOOOOOWWWWWWNNNNNNN

Lockdown life was good, apart from being thrust into it so suddenly dave left a banana on his desk. Wasn't great to come back to after 5 weeks out of the office - mummified mouldy banana!! Classic. We luckily got our first jab before lockdown started so that was good, and we were reasonably well stocked up on food and were generally a lot healthier this lockdown that last. honestly, there's a level of chill and serenity in lockdown that i just love. the ability to set my own schedule and only work the hours I actually work to get the job done? Amazing. getting 8.5 hours of sleep each night without having to wake to an alarm blaring? AMAZING. getting to go for walks every afternoon? SO FLIPPING GOOD. I love it so much, I really really do. I need this to be my life permanently.

WORK

Work is just ongoing and draining and honestly, coming back to the office was so fucking stressful and it was only one day. Being at home is just the fucking bomb. Pending home decisions, I wanna go contracting I think, but also ideally two part time contracts to have more flexibility? I dunno. You'd think a big 4 would provide variety but it really doesn't and honestly, with Richie leaving, wellington is just a sinking ship. Sean's off on parental leave, Kirstyn is down to four days a week, ben will be gone if he doesn't get promoted (and I don't think he will be tbh). Jack is just muddling along, Nigel wants to swap to consulting as well, Matt's going to be a shit leader in terms of bringing in work so it's just not going to work. and in our wider group it's going to get even more messy with heaps of the analysts leaving and a couple of senior hires too. so I think it's probably time to jump ship in general, pending the home stuff below. Also, coming back after a break again, I'm like, I don't actually like a lot of you? All the people I enjoy here are in other teams and groups, and I'll be sad to leave you all, but like, not enough to stay anyway lol.

Pending the home below, two options are to just going and get a job with a $30k payrise to make up for the maternity leave benefits I'm gunna leave behind when I leave this role - 18 weeks full pay, $100 a week for the first year back and a full year of maternity leave. It's basically 30k post tax which is a bit nuts to walk away from to be honest.

Otherwise the other option is to go contracting. Less security overall but holy shit so much money. If I went in as a project coordinator at the lowest rate to build up a bit of a portfolio I'd need to work 40 weeks of 40 hr weeks and Id basically match my current salary plus the lost family leave benefits and still qualify for govt maternity leave payments. Realistically I could go in as a project manager for $140 an hour ($60 more an hour than the above math) and absolutely smash it at that level as well so ya know, there's a bunch of other info. I like the idea of the flexibility of it and only having 6 months even if its a shitshow and beign able to walk away at the end of it. I really don't want to get a govt job and this is a v govt town which is fine but also, if I can avoid it that would be great. I just know I'm not gunna thrive in that environment.

Need to talk to Dave to get him across the line on the security issue part of that though. I've mostly come a long way in terms of my financial management (thanks YNAB) so I think he'd be ok with it mostly.

So there's a lot to toss up there because......

HOME

We got the reno plans done during lockdown, finally. which was super good. but holy fkn jesus $$$$$$ ++++++++++. The guy is coming around for the final quote on Thursday. We indicatively said $100k total because we're doing kitchen laundry bathroom and toilet. so only the most expensive rooms and when I was talking to him last week he said 'that might cover it' and they're seeing cost escalations of 7-10% a week which is just insane. we're not doing anything structural apart from putting in a cavity slider in the bathroom, and the quote they'll give us won't include flooring since they won't do it.

Meanwhile, the prefab homes I were looking at for our site were $425k fully done. Like, I'm not going to spend $130K on doing up my 1940s ex state house ya know? That's not good cost benefit ratio.

So depending on what that comes out at on thursday we'll be able to make some plans.

We also want to start trying for kids next year and need these renos done first - I am not having kids and no dishwasher lol.

Also we need bank financing so good to be in a permanent stable job for that application. the good thing is we have so much equity we know we can borrow whatever we need, I just don't want to spend that much money on it because it's fkn ridiculous. and if I'm going on maternity leave we need to be able to cover it all on dave's salary and whatever benefits I have as well so there;s a lot of financial planning and spreadsheeting going on at the moment lol. it's fab.

either way. we've got plenty of options up our sleeve. we've got friends who's brother owns a building company so we can talk to them, we've got the garage so we can get things prefabricated even if they're not installed til next year, Dave can get shit at cost through his work for whiteware, there;s plenty of things to like cost control we can do, we just need to know where we're starting from basically. thats the challenging part. but we'll figure it out, its just taking longer than I want it to basically.

We also planted up the vege garden for the spring/summer which was lovely, super jazzed about that. we've finally got the garden to a reasonably low maintenance level where everything is mostly under control and it's such a relief, honestly.

PERSONAL

Man what a shift to lockdown last year honestly. I think the last 8 weeks in particular has just been like, a massive reality check of how absolutely shit the last year was and how fucking glad I am to be rid of it. I spent a week absolutely spiralling 2 weeks ago now and honestly, I don't know how I lived in the state for more than a year. I actually don't know how I did it. and I could not be more glad that I'm finally on the other side of it, for the most part. There's still a bunch of other stuff to work through (hahahahahaha when is there not like damn) but fucking hell its nice to just not be anxious and nauseous and wound up constantly. life is actually accessible. miracle.

My workmate had his bebe - I went round and got newborn cuddles and was like, oh, is this what it is to be clucky? this is odd. so there's that as well. I think we'll probably start trying next year pending renos and jobs etc. If the renos can be done in jan I'll prob just stick it at the job to get the benefits but I dunno. it's a tough call to make really. we shall see. This all assumes we get knocked up without any issues which is questionable these days. I really want to feel healthier before getting pregnant as well, and part of that is losing weight. however, given discussing that is what triggered the spiral we're working on that one slowly.

Also, lets have a moment for counselling, because fkn bless anne and all her hard work honestly. I actually ended up emailing her being like, I;m losing my shit on the monday and then talked to her on thursday. And its so funny because it's such a counselling thing but I didn't realise until afterwards what she'd done but she was like you're clearly not doing well and then the night before dave got a fkn miserable migraine and he was up for like, 2 hrs powerchucking except he didn't make it to the bathroom in time so guess who was cleaning up vomit at 130am trying not to chuck herself but I digress. anyway, not doing well, couldn't even explain why, didn't even have words and super tired and she's like, what lynaire up to this week how's she going with izzy and chat about that and then be like how are you feeling about your body and then 5 more mins of chat about the cat and the chickens and then like bam hard question and then hows it going with x and y and z and its like, it wasn't til I was on my walk afterwards when I FINALLY started feeling marginally better I was like damn woman work your magic for figuring it out for me and helping me reregulate. all over the phone as well since we were still in lockdown. GREAT WORK FRIEND.

and then last week was like totally fucked theoretical discussion about religion and the role it's played in my life and fate vs free will and all this nutty shit but genuinely just a great discussion. She's the best and I love her. thank good for good counsellors. thank god I can afford to pay for it honestly.

Dave and I are just chugging along, god bless that man. I love him. its amazing. I miss having friends close by but understand why they had to move (boooooo f u house prices). Family is pretty chill, still not really talking to dave's parents which is nightmarish but we'll deal with that when we need to. gunna have to go and visit them at some point coz dave misses them and I feel for him, I really do. It's the whole boundaries renegotiation I went through with my family last year post wedding blow up and its just not a fun place to be. oh well. can't fix it for him but also I'm not putting up with that level of BS from either of our families once we have children. not gunna happen.

Either way, life is busy and full and fun and I'm enjoying it. Daylight savings starts this weekend too, its october next week WTF and I'm just waiting for 4pm to find out what's gunna happen to our girls trip. Clearly we cancelled our sept trip to christchurch and akaroa and hanmer springs so my covid travel curse continues. fkn ridic. Still dunno what we're gunna do with $2500 of flight credits coz if we get knocked up theres def no international trips happening any time soon.

thus concludes the almost 2000 word write up of life. hope you've enjoyed it. I'll throw up some pics in a separate post if people care about reno plans. such a good time!

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earlysunsetsoverambrose · 5 years ago

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Operation Sweet Surprise (1/3)

Lester Sinclair x f!Reader (Romantic or Platonic)

Warnings: roadkill and animal skulls

Description: It’s Bo and Vincent’s Birthday and you’re determined to make it special. You can’t do it alone, however. So you enlist the help of the youngest Sinclair.

The alarm on your bedside table went off at precisely 7 AM. Your eyes shot open and you couldn’t contain the smile that immediately took over your whole face. You were quick to shut off the alarm, glancing at the calendar to confirm you were correct. Today was the day. September 18th. More than likely, neither twin remembered the date so that made it all the easier for you to get away with your master plan. You’d been planning your little scheme for weeks now and it was all about to pay off. Operation Sweet Surprise was in full swing.

Yesterday, you were meticulous in your preparations, making extra sure you had your game plan mapped out completely. You had taken stock of what ingredients the Sinclairs already had. They didn’t have a lot, but they had some of the basics: flour, white sugar, butter, and eggs. The flour and sugar had been sitting there mostly untouched for years and were a little expired, but they would have to do. You couldn’t afford to buy everything new and you had to prioritize. Luckily, you’d had a little money from doing jobs Bo gave you around town. They were only small tasks here and there and he’d only give you a few dollars out of what they’d gotten from visitors, but it was enough for your purposes. You found an old cookbook with fairly simple recipes for both desserts that didn’t call for anything too fancy. Everything you needed was well within your ability to procure.

After that, all you had left to do was appeal to the youngest Sinclair to ask for a huge favor and hope he’d indulge you. Luckily, he had. That’s why he was your favorite by far.

You made your way to Lester’s cabin on foot. It wasn’t too far outside of town, but it was still a bit of a long walk. Obviously, you couldn’t ask Bo or Vincent to take you or you’d spoil the surprise and that was non-negotiable. Thankfully, the sun was on its way down, so it wasn’t miserably hot outside, making for a rather peaceful mini-hike.

Once Lester’s cabin came into your line of sight, you eagerly jogged up to the front door. You knocked, announcing yourself so he wouldn’t be alarmed as to who was knocking on his door right before nightfall. The door swung open to reveal Lester, toothy grin and all.

“Y/N! What can I do ya for? What’re ya doin’ out and ‘bout so late? ‘Specially all the way out here?”

“I came to see you! I have a huge favor I need to ask and you’re the only one who can help me!” You said, buttering him up so he’d say yes.

“Alright then, lay it on me.” he said, matching your enthusiasm.

“I’m planning on baking a birthday cake and pie for your brothers and I need you to take me into town so I can get the rest of the ingredients.” You said hopefully “I just need a ride, that’s it! I swear! And maybe, if you could let me borrow your kitchen that’d be incredible too! If it’s not too much trouble! I promise to clean up everything when I’m done!”

“Wow! That’s awful nice of ya!” Lester said supportively. His grin faltered for a moment, though, “Ya sure ya want it to be me that takes ya?”

“Pretty please, Lester! I’ll do anything! You’re my only hope!” you said dramatically as you clasped your hands together with the best pout you could muster through your giggles, begging him to help you.

“Well, I don’t suppose I can leave a damsel in distress. Sure, I’ll give ya a ride!” he said happily, “When did ya need to go?”

“Tomorrow morning! I’ll meet you where the road’s washed out at seven-thirty sharp.”

“Square deal, I’ll be there.” He said reaching out his hand to seal the deal. You dodged the hand and practically rammed your body into his, squeezing him in a tight embrace.

“Thank you, Lester! I’d be lost without you!” you said as you released him, smile beaming.

“N-no, problem. Anything for you…a-and Bo and Vinny, of course. They’re my brothers after all.” Lester stuttered out, still red from your hug.

“Thanks again! Okay! I’ll get out of your hair! I’ll bring all the pots and pans and other ingredients with me tomorrow! You’re the best, Lester!” you said as you began to jog back towards Ambrose.

“Hey, wait! It’s gettin’ dark out! I’ll give ya a ride back, if ya like!” Lester called out as he closed the door behind him, following you.

“You don’t have to do that. I couldn’t abuse your kindness any further.” You said only half-joking, “It’s okay, it’s not that far a walk.”

“Guess it’s not out of my way then.” Lester said matter-of-factly as he opened the passenger side door of his truck. You glanced between the long walk ahead and back to Lester’s hopeful expression.

“Well, if you’re going to twist my arm about it…” you said playfully as you walked up to Lester’s truck. He helped you up and closed the door behind you. You two got lost in conversation as you drove into the night toward Ambrose. By the time you arrived back, the ride didn’t seem nearly long enough.

You hopped out of bed and were quick to change into an outfit you wouldn’t mind getting dirty. Baking had a propensity to get messy so you were prepared to let the flour fall as it may. You pulled out a duffle bag you’d take from the storage house a few days ago and slung it over your shoulder. Last night, after the twins finally went to sleep, you loaded the bag up with everything you would need to make their birthday treats.

It was incredibly important everything go perfectly. It was a very special day whether the Sinclair Twins cared about it or not. It was their birthday and you were determined to make them feel special, damn it. All of the Sinclair brothers had spent far too many years being ignored and undervalued. Continuing that tradition simply wouldn’t do.

Over the last few weeks, you’d managed to weasel the information you wanted out of them, little by little. They told you that birthdays weren’t ever a huge ordeal for them. At most, their parents would buy them a cake and that would be it. The cake was always a vanilla cake with white frosting, which also happened to be Vincent’s favorite. Something you were sure Bo was bitter about. You tried multiple times to subtly badger Bo into telling you what he would have wanted if he had gotten a choice, but he always said he didn’t like sweets and shut you down. With a little more time, you noticed the one food Bo would consistently linger on - whether in an old coupon clipping or in reruns on TV - was apple pie. You noticed that each time, without fail, when Bo’s eyes would land on a picture of old-fashioned apple pie, he’d stare just a bit longer before moving on. Sometimes you even caught the smallest sigh escape his lips as he moved on after a glimpse of the dessert. That was all you needed. Once you had your answers, everything came together.

You quietly poked your head out of your room. Both Bo and Vincent’s doors were wide open, signifying both of them were up and about. You made your way down the stairs, listening for any signs of life in the house. It was silent so far, though that only meant Bo wasn’t there. Vincent could be lurking right behind you and you’d be none the wiser, the stealthy bastard. You paused at the bottom of the stairs to scan for movement. Nothing. You made a beeline for the front door and made your way down the porch and along the gravel road. Vincent was most likely working in the House of Wax. Bo was probably in the gas station. You just hoped he was too preoccupied to notice you. If he saw you trying to sneak by with a giant duffle bag, he might get the wrong idea. Thankfully, when you neared the gas station, you could hear his music blaring, meaning he was working in the back or downstairs. A shiver ran down your spine and you tried not to think about what he was getting up to. You picked up the pace toward the edge of town.

All the tension in your shoulders and the back of your mind disappeared when you laid eyes on Lester’s truck, waiting just like he promised. He was leaning up against the front, vigorously rubbing at something in his hand with an old, ratty cloth. You couldn’t help but find the scene endearing, his tongue poking out in careful concentration. You whistled to get his attention and his head shot up at your sound. His classic, goofy grin overtook his features. Whether he meant it or not, Lester wore his heart on his sleeve, and you treasured that.

You smiled back as you could practically see an imaginary tail wagging behind him at your arrival, his big brown eyes sparkling with anticipation. Always so keen to be around you, Lester never made you feel like a burden. He was the first to make you feel like Ambrose was your home, invested himself in talking to you and sharing with you. He welcomed you with open arms and proved himself to be quite reliable. It was always a welcome relief to be around someone who so honestly wanted to be around you. Not that you didn’t enjoy Bo or Vincent’s company, but they could be rather closed off and many times you were left not knowing how to feel or how they felt about you. That was never a question with Lester. You rather liked that about him.

“Thanks again for helping me out, Lester!” You said as you carefully made your way across the water. Lester wrapped up his cloth and tossed it to the driver seat before reaching out a hand to help you across the rest of the way over. As you made it to the other side, you dropped the bag at your feet, letting out a sigh of relief.

“Wasn’t any trouble,” Lester said, “Let me get that for ya.” He leaned down and hefted your bag over his shoulder and carried it toward the truck. He placed it on the floor of the passenger side before turning back to face you, “I tried to clean the truck up as best as I could, but uh, it’s still a bit rough. Sorry ‘bout that.”

“Don’t be sorry, you’re giving me a free ride. I’ve got no room to complain. Besides, I love your truck. It’s got style.” You said encouragingly. You noticed Lester rub the back of his neck as he looked down and smiled to himself. He did that every time he got a compliment. His truck might have been unconventional and certainly fragrant to say the least, but like he said; with time, even you got used to the smell. Now, it was just another part of him that you accepted like anything else. You two hopped in the truck and took off down the road toward town.

“Oh! Get a look at this!” Lester suddenly piped up as he scooped up his cloth from beside him “I found it by the road this mornin’! It was a raccoon ‘fore it started rottin’.” He held out a gory animal skull for you to admire.

“H-how about that?” you said looking the skull over. This wasn’t really in your area of expertise, but Lester seemed excited about it, so of course you listened closely.

“Yeah, pretty neat, right? Chased away some buzzards peckin’ at it ‘fore they messed it up. I have ‘bout five different skulls at home - kinda like this one - but this one’s nice and put together, ya see?” He was ecstatically pointing out the features of the skull as he went on, “The others I got are in bits and pieces. So, I reckon I can clean it up nice and set it on the dash next to…uh…sorry. I’m ramblin’ again. Ya don’t wanna hear this…” he trailed off as the joy in his voice turned apologetic.

“Hey, don’t apologize. I like to hear about the things you like.” You said energetically, trying to hype him up again, “If it matters to you, it matters to me. And I think it’ll look great on your dash. You’ll have to show me the rest of your collection sometime!”

“Really?” Lester asked lighting up again.

“Course I would! Why not?” you asked.

“No one ever wanted to hear ‘bout this sort of stuff, is all.” He said forcing his gaze to the road, “Usually just tell me to hush up.”

“They said that to you?”

“Yeah…I get it, though. Bothers some folks.” Lester said as he tried to shake off the shame in his voice, “I used to collect little bones and rocks when I was a kid. I’d clean ‘em up and show ‘em to everyone. I showed ‘em to my folks. And that foster family I had. And kids at school – some teachers too - but uh…I guess it ain’t too interestin’. They were too busy is all. And I don’t ever wanna bother no one.”

“Well, I think it’s cool.” You said resolutely. You were absolutely fuming inside. You knew Lester was neglected by his parents, but the fact that no one after them ever tried to engage with his interests was upsetting. Your heart broke thinking about little Lester trying so hard to make friends only to be ignored; not just by other kids, but by adults and educators who should have been on his side. He was just a kid trying to share what he loved and they told him to shut up. Well, you weren’t going to do that, “I definitely couldn’t have told you what animal that used to be. I wouldn’t know that from an opossum or a fox. How can you tell the difference?”

“They key is in the ridges on top. This one’s nice and smooth, see? It’s definitely a raccoon!” Lester explained excitedly. He was delighted as you continued asking more questions about the trinkets in his car and where he’d picked them up. Lester told story after story; and the childlike joy all over his face was reason enough for you to keep asking for more all the way up until you realized you had made it to the grocery store.

#lester sinclair #lester sinclair x reader #house of wax 2005 #bo sinclair #vincent sinclair #my writing #fluff #slasher x reader #slasher imagine #operation sweet surprise #bo sinclair x reader #vincent sinclair x reader #female reader

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nickcifonie · 3 years ago

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In 2021, Anyone Can Make $ Playing Video Games!

I grew up playing games like Risk, Monopoly, a little Chess... and still remember buying my first computer somewhere around 1986 solely to play a computer game on. It was an Apple IIc, and that first game was some type of Pirate Adventure. I wish I remembered the name. It wasn’t all that good, but still, I was hooked!

Since that first adventure, I’ve spent thousands of hours as well as dollars playing just about every type of digital game that has followed! PC games, Atari, Wii, mobile games... you name it, I play it! I’d always generalize the cost (to myself at least) thinking “some guys play golf 3 days a week at $100 a round... I play computer games”.

That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it! However, the story has changed...

“Pay to Play” has become “Play to Earn”!

If you would be to search terms like “crypto games”, “blockchain games”, “make money playing video games”, and others, you’d find some really incredible statements. Today, quotes like the ones below are becoming more and more common!

“I made $400 last week playing a computer game” “I just sold my RPG character for $200 profit”

“I was offered $1k for a skin for my laser rifle of doom” (I made up the “laser rifle of doom” part)

“I bred my pet thingamajig yesterday and sold the baby!” (it’s digital, for those of you wincing)

In 2021, thanks to the blockchain, there’s a growing community of gamers who are making real dollars daily, mining, fighting, shooting, jumping... all while playing the same type of mobile and PC games that you had to PAY to play just a short while ago...

...but let’s start at the beginning.

You paid $172,000 for a what!?

Yes... all the way back in 2018 a CryptoKitty named “Dragon” was sold for an incredible $172,000. (300 ETH) Don’t be too surprised, it’s justified! It’s an adorable digital image, or “NFT” of a cat, after all.

It’s a lot of money, but for NFTs and blockchain gaming, flipping a Kitty today may as well be considered the stone ages. It’s still a record, but while you can still get started collecting these digital felines for as low as a couple of dollars, big-dollar trades still happen daily.

On the flip side of mortgaging your home to buy a digital picture of a CryptoKitty, Bored Ape, or CryptoPunk, you may feel better if you begin your adventure into making crypto (it’s real money, dear!) by playing a video game where you can “make money” instead of spending it.

I’m not saying owning a CryptoKitty or any of a plethora of “Avatar NFTs” we see popping up on various exchanges isn’t one way to do it... I’m saying to me at least, as a life-long gamer I’d much prefer playing a mobile, console, or PC game to collecting pictures in a digital wallet.

So what the heck is an NFT?

I could go into a long explanation... but since this article is about gaming and not cryptocurrency, I’ll tell you an NFT is a “non-fungible token”, and leave you google it if you really want to dig in deep. I do want to share more, so I’ll ‘splain it as simple as I can for you Lucy!

A CryptoKitty, as stated above, is a type of image called an NFT. (the collection is called “CryptoKitties) It’s a digital picture of a cartoon cat. There are thousands of different ones that have different shapes, colors, expressions and traits. (kind of like a real cat, but eats less)

The difference, is only one of each design is actually a legitimate “CryptoKitty”. (or a legitimate whatever type of image it happens to be) To be clearer... each NFT is a “one of a kind”, so if you’re thinking “but can’t I just make a copy?”, nope you can’t.

I mean... you “can” make a copy of it if you really dig the design and want it on your desktop, but it would only be a copy of that particular NFT, not the real McCoy! Ok... so what makes one real, and the rest fakes? The blockchain.

Now, I’m going to be true to my word and keep my promise of not making this an article about crypto or the blockchain, so just know this: the difference between an image that is an actual NFT, and a copy of one, is there is an underlying digital code that designates the real thing.

So real in fact, that artists are creating or importing their paintings and creations to the web as NFTs, numbering them as they would a lithograph, and selling their entire collections. So if you are an art fan, check with your favorite creators... you may be surprised to find all of their “works of art” on an online marketplace!

NFTs are viewed on certain marketplace websites and digital wallets where the copies cannot be displayed, so that is how we know one is real, and the others are not! Having said that, sure, there’s more to it, but just know that there’s a 100% secure way of knowing an image is a real NFT.

In addition, there can be more than one NFT with the same identical image. However, each has a unique underlying code, so even if they look exactly the same, they are not! Look at it like the playing cards or comic books of old... there may be 1,000 created (or “minted” as it’s called in NFT land) but they will each be numbered 1 to 1,000.

And guess which is more valuable.....? I knew you’d get it!

And these NFT’s make money how?

You’re getting warmer! There are a lot of different types of games coming out these days where you can make money playing. There are RPG’s, MOBA’s, Shooters, games in first person and in third, dungeon crawls... you name it!

If you’re thinking “how did I not know this!”, I was the same until recently! I have been gaming almost daily since I stepped into Ultima Online back in 1997, and I can’t even begin to tally how many hours and/or dollars I’ve invested into gaming.

Now, our hobby pays!

After 30-something years, my wife still thinks I’m bonkers... but I got a totally different look from her a few days ago when I told her I sold my game character for well over $200. Legit. I sold two more yesterday, and another this afternoon.

Some of these only cost me $10 or $15, some much more. Some are free. I sold another NFT character last week for $1,950, and it was sold on the game’s website, not on the black market.

So not only can an NFT be a picture of an Ape, Vegetable, Duck, or Stripper on a pole (we’ll leave it at that) but it can be a character in a game, a weapon, a mount, armor, or more.

One game is giving away free pet turtles with each character. For the uneducated on “pets” in computer games, it’s not the kind you keep in a bowl in your bedroom. It’s a companion that fights with you in an online game and may shoot fire from its eyes, heal you, or similar.

Soon after being handed out for free, they’re now selling for around $60 each.

So an NFT can be an image, a video, music, a meme... or even a shirt or shoes! But we’ll leave the NFT clothing explanation to another article. ;)

Remember that rare skin you paid out the nose for a year ago in Apex? Or the L33T character you built up in Fortnite or Warcraft? If you’re no longer playing that game, it’s money under the bridge. And you don’t own the bridge!

In this new breed of blockchain games, you could have LEGALLY sold that character, skin, weapon, land, house, mount, or whatever it was when you tired of the game. For a profit. Maybe for a LARGE profit.

Yes, in the past we were able to find ways to get around the system and dump our pixels from time to time. We’d sell the account on the black market, or cut a deal with someone like a drug dealer on a Chicago Street corner. Then we’d over who went first...

“You give me the account and weapon first!” “No you give me the money first”. Sometimes the deals even went through. Others well... let’s just say half of the parties walked away happy.

I made good money when after 4 years of daily playing I sold my Ultima Online account for somewhere around $2,000, but I needed to find a trustworthy “go-between” to broker the deal. Even then, I was sweating it!

With today’s crypto games, not only do the games provide the platform to buy, sell, or trade your character and items, but it’s encouraged, and done with good old U.S dollars! I’ve made $ playing 4 or 5 different games already this week, as well as flipping (buying low and selling higher) NFT characters!

How else can I make money playing games?

The way you earn varies from game to game, but each week seems to reveal another new strategy, platform, or idea. Many are new strategies, and while some have “triple A” 3D animation and graphics, others are simpler and use basic one-dimensional graphics for the gameplay.

Some of these games are actually tied to a token on the blockchain. The game developer creates their own token, not too unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, and it can be bought or sold on the open market as well as used in the game as currency.

Could you imagine if back in League of Legends, Guild Wars or Final Fantasy, when you were ready to move to a new game, you could sell or easily convert your gold to cash? Some of today’s blockchain games encourage it!

Not only can you now buy and sell characters and weapons, the gold in the game can be traded, bought, sold, or saved like real currency, stocks, crypto, or collectables. Never have I been as excited about PC and mobile gaming as I am today!

As an example, I am doing some work for a new game that will launch soon called Pepper Attack. Pepper Attack has its own token or coin... called MYTE. It can be used in the game as currency, but also be traded like Bitcoin. A lot of today’s blockchain games offer this same benefit.

Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to mine I go!

Just by owning an NFT from the game, you can login on a daily basis and click “mine” earning real-value tokens passively. Your Pepper goes to work like one of the 7 Dwarves mining MYTE, and later on you can convert it to other tokens or cold, hard cash.

There's more to do in this particular game as well. Like any good RPG or MMORPG, each pepper has a unique combination or skills like attack, defense, evade, hit points, and more. As an example of the possibilities, if you have a high attack score, other characters will be able to pay you in MYTE to “train” them, raising their score as well.

In addition, these NFTs have unique physical traits, some are common and some are very rare. This game in particular have toons that look more like anime-ish elves with weapons and a stem... I have to admit the artwork is really spicey! (see what I did there?) Other games are of course totally different.

Some people will simply collect these NFTs/characters as an investment, like playing cards or comics. Others will use them in the game, and still others will do both. Either way, they can be held, or sold for a profit!

Unlike the games of the past, when you’re ready to move on you don’t walk away and lose all the $ you have spent for characters, skins, weapons, potions, and other items. When you’re done, you’ll be able to sell your character and items... possibly for a profit... maybe a lot of profit... and move on.

These are not your father’s computer games!

As we move ahead in the genre, we are seeing AAA studios coming out with big-dollar productions, like Blankos, Mist, Illuvium, Ember Sword and others. Some of these games actually let you buy the land you build on!

Did you have your own house in Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, or Archeage? What if you could have used It as a shop and been paid in dollars for your wares, rented it to another player, or sold it for cold hard cash at a huge profit down the road?

In many of today’s games, not only is it common, but extremely hard to come by, and quite expensive. Not only are people paying thousands of dollars for a plot in some of the games that have land, but they’re paying it many months before the game is even released.

They do it, because in many cases they know that they can easily 2X, 10X, or even 50X their investment a short piece down the road. Seriously? Seriously... and the early bird catches the worm!

Other games with lesser budgets are more graphic-based, but have super earnings potential as well, and are just as fun to play. These include Splinterlands, (a card game like Magic!) Crypto Blades, Axie Infinity and more.

Regardless of if the new blockchain game of your choice is a RPG, MOBA, a card game or racing game... the fact that you can put some coin into your pocket playing adds a whole new element. It’s heckafun making money playing a game!

The early nerd catches the worm!

In many cases, if you can catch a game before it releases, the land, characters, weapons, and other items... in most cases all NFTs... can be grabbed at a tiny fraction of the future value.

Of course, always check out the game details and team first, and be confident it’s a good place to put your money. Not all games are made the same.

If you’re lucky enough to find out about and partake in an early sale, for example, like grabbing a character NFT or two in ��Pepper Attack” before the late September launch date, you may be in for a real treat!

There are plenty of new titles coming down the pipe that look to be fun, have great communities, and offer earning opportunities. A web search will find services and websites that will keep you on your toes and alert you of upcoming blockchain game releases, marketplace opening, and more.

As we look forward, the future of gaming on the blockchain is really, really exciting! Not only are the games getting better and more fun, but they’re getting better at making the economics work more smoothly as well.

The games are not without challenges, as they need to be made to sustain themselves economically over the long haul. In addition, they need to have higher levels of security (thanks blockchain!) and of course, work without becoming “pay to win”. Thankfully, the new breed of developers have risen to the challenge!

The next time you look for a new game to add to your phone or desktop, or just want a change of pace, look to a game that pays to play! Your wallet might thank you.

Another perk, is your husband or wife will appreciate it as well! Instead of hearing “are you going to play that stupid game all night again?”, you may start to hear things like “I’ll put the kids to bed tonight sweetheart, so you can get online and play”.

One can only hope...

Author - Nick Cifonie

Nick is a lifelong gamer, who cut his teeth at the local Chicago arcade playing Tetris as a teen. Better known as Znick or Deacon Z, Nick became a Game Master in Ultima Online in 1997, ran a large multi-game guild for 15 years, and now spends his time in the “play to earn” arena. Professionally, Nick is a writer and 4-decade marketer working with the Pepper Attack team, as well as others. Nick is also a Catholic Deacon.

#nftart #nft marketplace #nftdrop #nftgallery #nftnews #nftcrypto #cryptoart #nftcommunity #nftartist #crypto #blockchain #nonfungibletokens #nft games #nft

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elaphaemourra · 4 years ago

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30 Questions Tag Game

Got tagged by @outcastcommander :DDDDD Thank!!!!!

Rules: Answer 30 questions and tag 5 blogs you are contractually obligated to know better. HI I’M ACTUALLY REALLY SHY SO I’M NOT DOING THAT LOL I’m just gonna say, if u wanna do Intro and see this, go for it, and also bonus if u r Friend, absolutely feel free and also say i tagged u bc Yes Friendship.

Name/nickname: Elaphae, Ela is most common (and great!! i love it fjdklajs), some people on the swtor art server called me ‘inquis’ a couple times ljfdklas.

Gender: Nonbinary :DDD

Star sign: Virgo-Libra cusp :3

Height: 5’4 WOOP i am Short

Birthday: September 21

Time: 12:48 pm >:3

Favorite bands: Green Day, Volbeat, The Longest Johns, Alestorm… a lot more. I’m a nerd lol.

Favorite solo artists: uh h hhhhh o-O there are Many. Aurelio Voltaire is pretty solid lol. Good for the heart. Also, I can’t listen to too much of his stuff bc it gives me a Crisis, but Bo Burnham. Shit’s a Bop.

Song stuck in my head: The theme for the uruk-hai from lotr lol

Last movie: Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Last show: fjdklasj i don’t watch tv lol, i can’t make my brain sit still for it. Gotta be Interactive.

When did I create this blog: uh, shit, when WAS that?? WOW 2014. 3 more years and I’ll have spent a decade on tumblr. Which is WILD.

What do I post: things that make me happy ;v; mostly star wars and dragon age, and Assorted Random Shit i think jfdlkfjd. I don’t actually know what my blog makeup is but it Sure Is Something.

Last thing googled: ‘the song from lord of the rings when saruman shows off the uruk-hai’ lmfaoooo, i couldn’t remember the name of it so i went looking.

Other blogs: HOO BUDDY okiedoke: @haospart (art blog), @swtorcompanionsgoofin (swtor blog), @lyriumdisaster (dragon age blog, which i’ll get back to once i’m done on the swtor end of this bioware pingpong table of interests, and then i’ll be hopping BACK to swtor bc it IS a pingpong table), i have studyblr that I Never Fuckin Use and have only posted on in the past 2 years to go ‘what the fuck why do u people keep following me’ bc I LITERALLY HAVE NOT TOUCHED IT IN LIKE 2 YEARS why does it keep gaining followers, and then a few like, ‘no don’t look me i’m Embarassed’ repositories jfdklsjaf.

Do I get asks: Very rarely, but yes!! Lmfao usually when i go ‘GIVE ASK PLS I LOVE ASK’ and people are reminded that i am, in fact, a very friendly marshmallow who does not mind interaction and also Definitely Craves people asking questions about my stuff fjdla.

Why I chose my url: This is kind of a convoluted thing, but like, the easy version is that it’s the name of my trooper on the leviathan server (now called Aea out of the game bc they were supposed to be my self-insert but then they escaped into the woods and developed a storyline for themself). The LONG thing is that I have an oc named Regia Elaphae, who I modeled after pnigophobia, the fear of choking or being smothered, and I made her snake-themed. Rex is the latin word for king--for king snakes--which i swapped to regina and then took out the n bc ‘Regina’ didn’t fit her, and Elaphe is the genus for rat snakes, but i found two ways of spelling it so i spelled it Elaphae, and when I got into swtor I decided to use Elaphae in reference to myself. I replaced my old url with this one after i started playing that trooper of the same name, bc my old one was :I . I was into hetalia in middle school, and homestuck, and when I got on tumblr that followed me into my url. I’m not into hetalia anymore, or anime at all, and homestuck fell off my radar into the ‘i’ll go “hey i know that” if i see it, but i’m not in the fandom anymore’ pile. For the longest time my blog description was ‘it’s been 5 years and i still haven’t changed my url’, but it was time for change fjdklasfaj. It’s better this way.

Following: 953 (it was over 1300 but i did some clearing out of my follow list a month or so ago lol, mostly of people who haven’t been online in 6 years)

Followers: 616

Average hours of sleep: 7 and a half hours, if i want to be Functional

Lucky number: 19 :D I love 19, it’s always been my lucky number, always will be.

Instruments: I don’t play much, but I can sing and also I can play beladi on the doumbek.

What am I wearing: Fox onesie lol. I wear basically nothing else at this point in my life.

Dream job: i mean, ideally i could just Not and vibe fjdkla. But i mean like, i guess something working with my hands. I’m in college to get a degree in french, and my next step after that is to go to trade school, to get smth that’ll make me money so i can keep doing Nerd Junk and also learning bc i like, actually really like school lol.

Dream trip: I want to go back to Rennes. I miss it. It was awesome, and, hilariously, I miss being able to get a burger that isn’t Drowning in its own grease. America doesn’t know how to do healthy burger that tastes good. Europe knows what’s up tho. I also miss being able to like, have just a pitcher of room temperature water next to a cute little glass and have it not be weird. The cups are too big in america, i drink so much less water bc it’s just too daunting. I’m dehydrated constantly. Also i miss the METRO. I loved the metro, loved nyooming along in the trains, wandering around the central part of the city, it was cool.

Favorite food: Eel!! Eel’s tasty as fuck. I love it.

Nationality: American

Favorite song: o-o uhhhhhhhhhhh, i have no idea lol. I listen to so much random shit. lol according to my spotify 2020 rewind it’s Starlight Brigade, from TWRP and Dan Avidan.

Last book read: i have got ZERO clue what the last book i read was. I mean, technically it was a textbook for my myth, magic, and folk religion class, but like, blegh. Nah. Not fun. I think before that I started reading Metro 2033??? I have a copy in french, and am flipping between that and trying to fckn get through au revoir là-haut.

Top three fictional universes I’d like to live in:

1. swtorrrrrrr, i wanna be a space wizard [slap slap slap on the metaphorical counter] give me space magic

2. Pellinor, y’all it’s medieval and magic and COOL and i’m a big nerd for that. (these books are so good ;v;) Also they got wine that makes cramps and headaches go away and magic baths, so like, fuck yes give me that sweet sweet painkiller juice. It’s magic babey.

3. Thedas, bc dragon age, and like, when things Aren’t all fucked sideways to hell, there are just like, People. Going about their days. It’s great. Also MORE MAGIC Science is all fucked up in my vicinity, so like, how much can i fuck up the magic o3o

tl;dr on that fictional universes thing, i really want to be a wizard apparently fjdklasj.

#ela babbles #ela does a tag game #thank u for the tag outcast!!!!!!#you're a peach :DDD #get to know you tag games #30 questions tag game

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allie1804-fan · 4 years ago

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New Beginnings (Chapter 11)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

New Beginnings Baby Drabble

New Beginnings Baby Drabble No2

Warnings:mentions of babyloss

For the remaining weeks of the pregnancy Emily and Keanu made a pact to check in every day on how they were each feeling. Their short-hand was to say whether they were at O (Optimistic) or SS (Scared Shitless) or maybe somewhere in between. A day wasn’t to go by when they didn’t check in on their status.

Emily continued to work until her 36th week after which it became too much to sit in a writers’ room all day long. She needed rest for her brain and body. Keanu was still training but he’d cut down a little so he had more free time to spend with Emily as well as run her to appointments and oversee the decorating work to transform one of the guestrooms to a nursery.

The day after the session with the counsellor he’d hired a van and collected the crib and other equipment from his mother’s house determined to stop thinking of everything he did as a potential jinx.

Midwife appointments were weekly from week 34 – that was a little more than the norm but they both needed that reassurance as the baby’s movements got less with time – quite a normal pattern but not easy to deal with in their situation.

At the childbirth classes, Keanu was visibly more relaxed as well which helped Emily feel she could join in with conversations rather then hover on the edges to protect him. At one session the leader asked the parents to share their fears. Emily could sense Keanu visibly tensing and she caught his eye, subtly shaking her head and he nodded his agreement knowing exactly what she meant. Their main fear was the same and they had no desire to freak the hell out of everyone else there. They could just agree with someone else’s comments.

As they worked round the room, the leader asked Claire and Aiden, a couple Emily had liked from the beginning but not really talked to much, how they were feeling.

“well I really don’t want to bring everyone down”, Aiden said “but our biggest fear is that our baby dies, because our first was stillborn”

There was a sharp intake of breath from some and a sigh of relief from Keanu and Emily!

When it came to them, Keanu was able to say “We’re on the same page as Claire and Aiden and I think they’re really brave to share it in a room like this. I lost my daughter to stillbirth 21 years ago and we had an ectopic pregnancy last year, so yeah, that’s our biggest fear too. Rationally I’m confident it won’t happen but that doesn’t entirely stop the fear”

He looked at Emily who was kind of thunder-stuck to hear him share so openly with a group of strangers. He was so private normally but she knew speaking its name was a big part of helping him conquer the fear. She squeezed his hand and whispered ‘I’m so proud of you’ in his ear.

When the session was over, everyone stood chatting and Keanu went over to Claire and Aiden

“Listen, we were planning on grabbing a bite to eat after, do you fancy joining us? I know a place where they do really good noodles”

Aiden burst out laughing.

“’Really good noodles’ like in the Matrix?” he asked making air quotes.

Keanu chuckled, only then realising what he’d just said.

“Oh yeah sure - you remember that line?”

“Man every time I have noodles I think of it - am I too much of a Matrix nerd to have dinner with you two?”

“Nah, no man, it’s cool - and thanks”

Emily caught Claire’s eye and rolled her eyes skywards, smiling broadly at Aiden geeking out with Neo!

They headed over to the Jinya Ramen bar and had a good time getting to know each other a little better. Keanu repeated how brave he thought Aiden had been to speak up.

“I mean I was sitting there thinking “death man, death is my fear but that’s gonna fuckin freak them all out so I’ll just say some generic crap and then you were like ‘bam’

Aiden laughed.

“the things is, it really is my only worry and I thought, you know what, shit happens and people are scared of it so let’s just cut the crap and stop pretending!”

“Fair enough” Keanu agreed

“But you were brave too, being who you are, to just open up like that”

Keanu took a gulp of his beer

“Yes I don’t quite know what got into me, that was err, most unprecedented!”

They all burst out laughing then, recognising the Bill and Ted quote.

“Yes way” Aiden said clinking his beer to Keanu’s who grinned back thinking to himself “I like this guy”. Emily looked on, secretly thinking ‘bromance!’

By week 37, they were basically at the clock watching stage. Everything was ready and Emily spent most of her time reading, watching TV or sleeping. If Keanu was home when she took a nap, he’d join her and spend the time stroking the bump or leaning his head against it talking softly to the little one who’d usually make his or her presence known with a little shove of one if its limbs. Sometimes they’d kiss and pleasure each other though Emily was struggling to move easily so everything was tender and low key rather than intense. Neither of them really minded, their focus was all on meeting their child in just a few weeks.

Chloe had organised a Baby Shower, the hospital bag was packed and ready, the nursery was waiting stocked with nappies and neutral coloured baby-grows and a sort of birth plan was ready but they both knew they would have to go with the flow on that one.

“control what you can, like a playlist and speaker, your snacks, what t shirt you’ re going to wear and have an idea of your other intentions like pain relief and so on but just go with the flow on the day” was Chloe’s wise advice.

Through weeks 38 and 39, Emily had lots of false alarms when the Braxton Hicks contractions felt like they were the real thing beginning but still nothing materialised. They were well into week 40 when things actually got started.

It was mid morning on a Wednesday and while Keanu had confirmed that the contractions were in fact regular and he’d let the hospital know, they wouldn’t have to go in until 1 minute long contractions had been coming every 5 minutes for at least an 1 hour. For now it was every 10 minutes but varying in length and intensity. Emily chose the living room to either lie down or pace or sit on a birthing ball or hang onto Keanu’s broad shoulders to help breathe through the pain. At its worst, it felt like a really bad period pain or indigestion for now so mostly she could cope on her own and that’s kind of how she preferred it. She felt a bit like an animal, wanting to go into a quiet corner and have her baby out of sight of everyone!

By lunchtime, the pains were definitely getting more intense but still only coming every 8 minutes. Keanu made them a sandwich then at around 2 she got her maternity swimming costume on and spent an hour floating in the pool. The sensation was soothing - they were hoping it would still be possible to use a birthing pool at the birthing centre but it wasn’t guaranteed. It would depend on her condition and if they were all in use by other mothers. Even Keanu’s money couldn’t guarantee a pool unless they had done it at home and neither of them had been of a mind to do that - they wanted every medical expert right on hand.

As evening was falling, the contractions actually seemed a little milder and were still only at 8 minute intervals so they ordered pizza take out. Later on Emily had a bath and to her annoyance, things were still no further on come bedtime so they settled in for the night wondering if she would sleep at all.

4am Thursday morning

Emily woke with a start as a strong contraction tightened her stomach and made her groan with pain. Keanu sat up straight away – he’d been sleeping but only very lightly at her side all night and so was quickly fully awake.

“was that a big one?”

Emily nodded but didn’t speak since she was managing the pain by slowly breathing through it, kneeling up slightly and grabbing onto the headboard of the bed.

She relaxed when it was over thinking there’d be a few minutes wait for the next one but it seemed to hit very quickly and she shot Keanu a nervous look.

Breathlessly she asked Keanu to get his phone to check the gap.

“Fuck that was just 4 minutes he said, wide eyed as the next one came “ we gotta go”

Fortunately, she hadn’t got into nightwear, so they just needed to slip on some shoes, grab the bag, get in the car and go. Keanu was still a little freaked out that they had missed the 5 minute gap point but he knew in his rational mind that 4 minutes was what most advice said and they’d simply gone with 5 minutes to be super cautious! And it was still early and pre rush hour so there wouldn’t be any traffic.

As they set off and Emily gripped onto the door handle as another contraction hit, she joked

“just don’t drive like John Wick or Jack Traven OK!”

“No mam” he grinned glad of her lightening the mood just a little.

The empty streets and soft grey light across the city helped to calm them both down and within half an hour they were pulling into the birthing centre car-park.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

New Beginnings Baby Drabble

New Beginnings Baby Drabble No2

#keanu #keanu reeves fanfic #keanu reeves fanfiction #having a baby

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aragornswife · 4 years ago

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AYYY RANDOM NUMBERS BUDDY, I GOTCHU!! 😂😂💖 How about 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 12, 16, 18, 19, 22, 24, 25, 27, 29, 38, 46, 52, and 61?

YASSS, THANK YOUU💖😂 YOU’RE THE BEST!

I wrote this last night when you sent the numbers but I needed to figure out how to put a keep reading thing because this is long af. Anyway, I had fun doing this.

If anyone is bored enough to read this, I apologize for my grammar.

1- Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you?

No, never, haha. It haven't even crossed my mind until now. However, I have to admit that I like to think that the world goes around me but I know well that it doesn't so I'm not a shitty person.

3- The person you would never want to meet?

Mmm, that's a hard one. I honestly don't know. I have been thinking for a while but I can’t come up with an answers (sad noises)

4- What's your favorite word?

I was going to say two bad words, but there is another question for that so I'll answer with another word. I had a hard time deciding my favorite because my favorite words are bad words, but I’ve decided that my favorite world is random. Why? Idk.

7- What shirt are you wearing?

Aaaa, well... right now i'm only wearing underwear soo

8- What do you label yourself as?

I don't know!! My label would be as long as Daenerys' title. Maybe I'd labdl myself as lazy af person, but responsable. I'm also a VERY ambitious person

12- Favorite age you have been so far?

FIFTEEN, I STARTED THAT AGE SOO FUCKING WELL. I WENT TO DISNEY AND I SPENT MY BIRTHDAY IN MAGIC KINGDOM WITH MY FAMILY😭 And well, that year was so dope because I finally had an amazing group of friends. I moved to another city when I was 12 and it was really hard for me to adapt. The worst age I have been so far is definetely 12.

16- The last song you listened too?

Press by Cardi B. Best song ever.

18- Who would you really like to punch in the face?

The real question is who wouldn't I like to punch in the face?? Literally, any man I have ever crossed path with. Man are so annoying. There is a particular guy I met on a trip to Scotland a few years ago who started to annoy me because I said abortion should be legal in our country. It's a long story, but basically he started to be annoying af so I would like to punch him in the face. At least I got the chance to slap one of his friends who grabbed me from the back. I'm not the type of person who does this type of stuff at all but he invaded my personal space trying to start a beef. He got mad because I was ignoring them. Honestly, I never imagine I would react like that but well.

At least one of the girls punch him in the face because he was also being annoying af.

In summary, man suck.

19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do?

Mmm, idk. I would like to say my boyfriend but I don't have one *sad noises*

Maybe one of my best friends, idk. I KNOW, my bestfriend. I would make her hug me the whole day. She hates it so we never do that😔

Or maybe my sister... She takes amazing photos but she doesn't want to take photos of me. sHE CHARGED ME 3 DOLLARS ONE TIME. So I would make her my slave for a day while we are on holiday in a cute place. She would have to take photos of me the whole day.

22- Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it?

No, I don't have ANY talent😭 I'm such a basic girl.

24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal.

Soo, I love the basic ham and cheese sandwich, but If I only can pick one type for the rest of my life, I would go with this one: a mix of tuna, carrot and creme cheese with avocado, mushrooms and tomatoe.

WAIT, WHOLE A SECOND, ANY SANDWICH INGREDIENT?? My dumbass really slept over salmon. Let me change my stupid decision. I would pick creme cheese, salmon, avocado, spinach because I don't like arugula and mushrooms. I hope the salmon is free because otherwise I would never eat a sandwich again😔

25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it?

Let me do the math, that's a lot of money in my country, haha. Although I'm tempted to buy something, I sadly know that those $100 will double up its value within the next months.

Now I have 13000 pesos? Well, in a few months I'll probably have 15000 pesos or more [please, god, no]. So taking this into account, I would rather keep them for the future.

EDIT: I WROTE THIS LAST NIGHT WHEN THE DOLLAR WAS AT 130 PESOS AND GUESS WHAT, THE DOLLAR WENT UP TO 145 PESOS TODAY, FUCK. I hate my country, I’m moving to Europe or New Zealand, byee.

27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be?

Mmm, I don't like alcoholic beverage. This girl only drinks water and frappucinos without coffe because everything else sucks. But I'm a boss bitch so I would ask the most expensive drink ever [I did my research and it seems like the most expensive one is Macallan 64 years, so it would be that one] and I would sell them. I would be rich rich. Think smart, think like me😂

Like Cardi B once said “I make money moves”

29. What is your favorite expletive?

Bad word, right?? I've never heard of this world before so I had to do a little research.

In english, it's fuck. You can add it to everything, i love that.

Fuck >>>>> any bad word ever.

In Spanish, boludo. Aaaa, that word is amazing!! It doesn't have a translation but it's kinda like stupid.

This is google explanation because Idk how to explain it:

"This is probably the most used argentinian word. At first it was just a noun, to say to somone that he was really stupid, but now, you can use it to call your pal in a friendly way. It is used for a lot of things, and it has become a verbe: BOLUDEAR"

In my case, I use boludo when it's stupid but in a fun way, I call my friends that and more. If I want to say that because someone is an asshole in a bad way, I use pelotudo.

38. What is the color of your socks?

White

46. Are you reliable?

YESSS

52. How long could you go without talking?

My record is nothing. I love talking. I talk A LOOT so I can't do that. It's impossible for me. However, I believe that if it was for a challenge with an important cash price, I wouldn't talk for the whole week. I mean, money moves the world. My point is that I can do it but I don't like so I don't even try.

61. Do you often read your horoscope?

No. I'm an aquarius and I have never related to the things they say about that sign so I don't really "believe" in them.

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forestwater87 · 5 years ago

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201X in Review: A journey of cringe and regrets

Realizing 2020 is really close and wanted to look back at the second (full) decade I’ve actually been alive for. I feel like either a huge amount of stuff has happened, or basically nothing’s happened, but there’s no middle ground.

2010:

Cringy 2010 photo: High school prom (in middle, dark green dress and...a face)

Junior in high school.

Had my first-ever Real Boyfriend(TM). (Pictured in above cringy photo.)

Had just ended an extremely toxic 12-year relationship and was still figuring out how to have friends.

Chemistry fucking SUUUUUCKED and I don’t miss it.

Had a super intense love for Megamind. I saw it minimum of 4 times in theaters and had a major crush on that blue lil nerd. (Began a personal grudge against both Tangled and Despicable Me for taking away its deserved spotlight, a resentment I have not yet gotten past 10 years later.)

Most regrettable 2010 memory: Getting way too intense about a new boyfriend and lowkey abandoning my friends. Not cool.

Most awesome 2010 memory: I have friends from back then I still love and keep in touch with (despite my abandoning them for a bit there). That’s pretty dang awesome.

2011:

Cringy 2011 photo: High school graduation with one of the most beautiful women in existence. (We’re still friends, and she’s still gorgeous.)

Graduated high school! (Gym fucking SUUUUUCKED and I don’t miss it.)

Fell in love with the college that was supposed to be a “safety school” and didn’t apply anywhere else, which means I can brag about having been accepted into 100% of the colleges I applied to.

Started at Ithaca College -- don’t say “it’s gorges,” it gets so old so fast -- and had a miserable first semester and an incredible second.

Started getting . . . uncomfortably involved in religious groups. (I mean, I’d been doing that since I was a kid, but it got kicked up to 11 in college.)

Most regrettable 2011 memory: Dressed as a “g***y” for Halloween. Fucking yikes.

Most awesome 2011 memory: Figuring out what I want to be when I grow up.

2012:

Cringy 2012 photo: Modeling first successfully completed knitting project. With bamboo needles because Ithaca is a hippie paradise.

Learned how to knit, entirely out of boredom in long lectures.

Technically started my tumblr experience, though it was only for a few months while I worked through some Shit by being in love with Loki from the Avengers (and THiddleston in general). Stayed on here just long enough to discover Achievement Hunter and Rooster Teeth, and never went back.

Broke up with first-ever Real Boyfriend(TM) and handled it so well I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety disorder.

Got very deep in a religious group at IC, which was . . . not very healthy and could perhaps not inaccurately be described as “cultlike.” (I owe a major apology to everyone who knew me back then; I was very much a major bitch.)

Despite the previous two bullet points, this was the best year of my life up until that point. I lived next door to my two best friends in college, loved my major, and pretty much was confident that I had everything figured out.

Most regrettable 2012 memory: Writing a fan letter to Tom Hiddleston, which included a photo of me and my phone number. I was convinced my charm and wit would totally make him fall in love with me.

Most awesome 2012 memory: Pretty sure this is the year my love affair with RiffTrax began, too. I had a posse and we’d go see live shows together.

2013-2014:

Cringy 2013 photo: A blanket that I made and sent to Jennamarlbes for her dogs, because it was too small for people. Pretty sure it showed up in a video at one point.

Cringy 2014 photo: My awesome college roommates and I dressed up to give out candy to people’s dorms on Halloween. Reverse trick-or-treating: very fun, always recommended.

HA. So much for having anything figured out.

I don’t actually remember much of this period in my life, because I was navel-deep in a major religious crisis that would continue until . . . a couple months ago, basically? There was a lot of freaking out and trying to reconcile culty fundamentalism with the freewheeling pinko that lived deep inside and was trying to break free.

Lots of therapy, though. And med adjustments. Eventually figured out something that worked. Free campus counseling was the bomb though.

I do remember living in an apartment and cooking for myself for the first time, and also playing a lot of tabletop games with my roommates. (Also drinking. Lots of drinking.)

Oh shit, was this when I started that Drunk Librarian blog? I was trying really hard to be The Nostalgia Critic for books (ew), but I remember having a lot of fun with that. That was when my lifelong vendetta against John Green began.

Most regrettable 2013-2014 memory: Did I mention that the blanket I sent to Jenna included a letter? Did I mention that letter included some bible verses I thought she would appreciate????

Most awesome 2013-14 memory: Started a knitting club. It was just like 4 people hanging out and not knitting.

2015:

Cringy 2015 photo: Me being emaciated, makeup-smeared, and proudly showing off a collarbone piercing. That piercing has since rejected, but was in fact cute af.

Graduated college! Summa cum laude, bitches. (And an unfinished minor because I didn’t feel like taking the one (1) class I needed to graduate.)

Started library school and moved back home with parents. That was . . . an adjustment.

Changed library school “majors” halfway through my first year, after a lot of soul searching and panic attacks.

Had a short but catastrophic relationship with a man 9 years older than me (who was my pastor. Awkward). Religious crisis continued.

Got really skinny and hot because I was too miserable to eat. Dyed my hair red for the first time and looked basically like Ariel.

Discovered Party Hard and got really good at killing people.

Remembered how much I fucking love my parents’ dog:

Most regrettable 2015 memory: Being that person who “thought I could change him.”

Most awesome 2015 memory: Did you see how cute that dog is? His name is Oscar, after Oscar the Grouch.

2016:

Cringy 2016 photo: I had this huge thing for 1950s dresses for a while, complete with petticoats.

Grad school continued.

Religious crisis continued.

Therapy happens to deal with Things, is quickly dropped due to money and lack of shrink-chemistry.

Discovered a dumb little web cartoon with a teensy fanbase and no love for my favorite ship. Began work on a fanfic to correct this.

Finished a long-form fanfic for the first time in my entire life.

Virtually abandoned every other fandom to hyperfixate on this for the rest of my life.

Got super political, then super depressed. Quit Facebook because I realized I hate everyone I’m FB friends with.

Discovered Stardew Valley and never got anything done ever again.

Found Tumblr again (needed it to keep in touch with my first-ever beta reader, @raenbowsofficial) and turned into fandom and politics trash.

Most regrettable 2016 memory: Man, was I cocky about that Hillary Clinton winning the election. Oops.

Most awesome 2016 memory: I mean, CAMP CAMP. Obviously.

2017:

Cringy 2017 photo: My first day of work as a very bisexual-in-denial librarian.

Finished grad school and became a certified librarian (in NYS anyway)!

Got a job at a local college, including my own office!

Shaved half my head!

Moved into my own apartment and adopted a cat, fulfilling a goal over 7 years in the making!

Became friends with two of the most important people I’ve ever met. Visited one of them on a semi-impromptu 9-hour drive to Virginia and met IRL for the first time. First ever all-night solo trip, one of the best days of my life.

This might’ve been the year I got the VFD eye tattooed on my ankle, though I can’t swear to that.

Was part of my first long-form tabletop RPG with friends from college (and friends-of-friends). Was very emotional and also quite gay.

Rediscovered Megamind thanks to excellent fanfiction. That shit is still great.

Currently the best year I’ve ever had.

Most regrettable 2017 memory: I should’ve attended my graduation from library school instead of deciding it didn’t matter. It mattered a lot.

Most awesome 2017 memory: Seeing the-artist-formerly-known-as-ciphernetics in person.

2018:

Cringy 2018 photo: Um, apparently we don’t get one, because there’s an image limit to these posts. Lame.

Was laid off and took 6 months to find another full-time job. Spent most of that time depression-napping.

Said full-time job lasted 4 months before I ran like my shoes were on fire, because it was morally . . . suspicious and left me borderline suicidal.

Got very fat because I was too miserable to stop eating.

Had to cut my hair so I would look “professional.” Looked like my ex-boyfriend. My mom said I “looked like a Trump supporter.” To-date the meanest thing anyone’s ever said to me.

Moved back in with my parents due to not-having-job-ness (got to bring the cat, though).

Lost parents’ health insurance and had to pay for my own. Discovered health insurance is ridiculously expensive.

Became super left-leaning thanks to the power of Tumblr and Youtube (and possibly that super expensive health insurance thing).

Writing came to a virtual standstill, though I managed to organize and actually finish participating in all of Gwenvid Week (for the first time).

Two weeks after quitting the job from hell and three weeks after moving back in with the parents, I was offered my old position back. Accepted. Was once again a college librarian.

Most regrettable 2018 memory: Knowing I didn’t want the nightmare job and accepting it anyway. Might’ve been the only choice, but it caused a lot of unhappiness.

Most awesome 2018 memory: The day I was laid off, I hopped on a plane and went to fucking Disney World. Because why not?

2019:

Started work again. Finally (mostly) stopped having panic attacks about being fired/laid off out of the middle of nowhere around 8 months into new job.

Fewer paper cuts than expected.

Accidentally became associated with dinosaurs at work, despite not having any sort of special affinity for dinosaurs.

Did develop a deep and abiding affinity for octopus. Also elephants.

Took cat to doctor. Cat didn’t enjoy doctor. Cat is now 8 lbs. and 14 oz. She is big girl.

Rediscovered the joy of reading again. Newly discovered that mysteries actually can be pretty awesome, and read barely anything else all year. (Personal recommendations: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton and Waisted by Randy Susan Meyers.)

So. Many. Youtube. Video. Essays.

Discovered Stardew Valley mods and eventually broke 3k hours of playtime.

Napped frequently. Panicked less frequently. It’s a step in the right direction.

Most regrettable 2019 memory: This post sure is long and over-share-y, isn’t it? Didn’t even include a cut so you could more easily scroll past my face. Inconsiderate, is what that is.

Most awesome 2019 memory: This one is pretty good. Right now.

2020:

???

Profit.

#all right the 2010s were weird #random forest ramblings about my life i guess #here you go

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dippedanddripped · 4 years ago

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Watching Aminé’s “Caroline” music video can evoke vivid high school memories of the days when a freshly minted driver’s license conferred upon its holder the freedom to meet up with friends and do anything — or nothing. The video, like the song, is bubbly and carefree; it documents Aminé and his friends riding around town in a Honda Sedan stocked to the gills with bananas, lounging around in the grass, and watching each other play video games. In that 2016 summer of #BlackBoyJoy in hip-hop (when Chance the Rapper, Lil Yachty, D.R.A.M., Anderson .Paak, Rae Sremmurd, MadeinTYO, and Desiigner also flourished), “Caroline” went quadruple-platinum and helped make Aminé the first rapper ever from Portland, Oregon to become a national star.

The video for “Shimmy,” the lead single from Aminé’s forthcoming album Limbo, is a collage of Portland-specific flexes, a tribute to how far he’s come. He cheeses for the cameras while flanked by a phalanx of lawyers and dances midfield at Providence Park. He stands, perhaps symbolically, on the roof of Mike’s Drive-In (the burger joint where “Caroline” was shot) and trades the Honda for a speedboat zooming up the Willamette River.

Just as importantly, “Shimmy” is a subtle homage to the heavily gentrified areas of northeast Portland, where Aminé — born Adam Daniel to Ethiopian and Eritrean immigrants — grew up. In the video, he meets up with other members of the Portland rap scene plus Yosief Berhe and Jonathan Ressom, his two friends who co-star in all of his videos, to bike en masse down NE Alberta Street. He stops by Kee’s, a popular soul food truck, and heads to Woodlawn Park, his old stomping grounds located a few blocks from his childhood home.

“Woodlawn is the neighborhood that I grew up in,” he tells Highsnobiety over Zoom. “It used to be very much a part of the Black community. It’s kind of turned into a hipster park now, but it’s definitely the first place I got jumped. The first place I had my first fight in. Woodlawn represents a lot of good memories for me and my friends. Like our innocent adolescence.”

Rapid gentrification continues to gut Portland’s Black community, which accounts for less than six percent of the city’s total population. Aminé alluded to the transformation of Woodlawn on his 2017 song “Turf”: “Flipping through my past like I used to flip the phone / They kicking out the Blacks and all the houses getting clones.”

“The gentrification is insane,” he says. “I used to have only Black neighbors. And now my parents only live next to white people. The only reason my parents are still on that block is because, you know, I pay for everything. But it’s not the same for a lot of Black people in Portland.”

His friends Yosief and Jonathan echo this sentiment during a phone interview: “You’re getting chains of dispensaries on the same corners where police would try to nail people for weed,” Jonathan says. “I can go in there, and it’s gonna be a girl in a skirt giving me a dub. Meanwhile, no lie, like six, seven years ago, homies getting locked up doing the same shit on that same corner.”

“People in Portland sometimes have the right intentions,” Yosief adds. “But it really irks my nerves when I go down Mississippi or Albina or through historically Black neighborhoods, and it’s 85 percent white. All the houses have Black Lives Matter signs on the lawn but displaced a bunch of Black families to be there. It’s unfortunate.”

Limbo arrives four years into Aminé’s tenure as a major-label rapper, at a point where he’s established himself, but is still unsure of where to go or how to proceed with his career. “The title came from where I’m at in my life,” he explains. “There are two meanings behind it. I feel like I grew up thinking that once I achieved one level, the next level would be easier to achieve. But as I’ve grown, I’ve come to realize that with every level that I achieve, every level gets harder, just like the game of limbo. It just doesn’t seem to change for me, and it’s honestly made me feel like I’m completely in limbo. I thought the older I get, the wiser I’d get. But I’m figuring it out.”

Bittersweet nostalgia for high school and college years has been a recurring theme in Aminé’s music. In this sense, Limbo picks up where his 2017 debut album Good For You left off. Co-executive produced by Aminé and “Caroline” producer Pasque, it features one song that is entirely dedicated to Woodlawn Park, another to Aminé’s mother. Other songs, including his recent release “RiRi,” wistfully revisit past romances that sputtered. That era, which saw the first, fitful yawns of Aminé’s music career, is fertile terrain for storytelling. “I miss being naïve. I miss hoping, not knowing what your future was looking like,” he told Pigeons & Planes earlier this year. “Just being in your room in college, broke as hell.”

Aminé’s rap career began in the booth of Benson High’s radio broadcasting program, where he and his friends once rapped over Flockaveli beats. “Then we actually realized that Adam was pretty good,” Yosief tells us. He spent summers in New York, working youth camps in the Bronx and holding down internships at Complex and Def Jam — staying with his aunt in Harlem, eating plain leftover rice out of her fridge when food money inevitably got low. After high school, he started putting out mixtapes into a localized scene that Pasque describes as “stuck in the golden age.” Casual co-signs from Damian Lillard (who came to a show) and Kaytranada (who sent free beats) were good omens that also helped him stand out. All the while, he matriculated at Portland State University and lived at home with his parents. PSU is where he met Pasque, and where they made “Caroline.”

“We found out about this classroom inside of the music building that was always left unlocked,” Pasque says. “We had a schedule. I would go to work, and then after I clocked out, I would go immediately to school and work on music all night, basically. And it was like that for about five or six months. And then, eventually, it got to the point where we had a good amount of music, and our manager, Justin, was like, ‘You guys gotta put something out.’ We decided to put out ‘Caroline.’ And after that, it was no looking back.”

“I remember him putting out these little mixtapes, trying to get stuff retweeted, putting freaking fliers on corners, and [getting help from] all our friends in Portland,” Yosief says. “The slow grind. I remember Adam was trending [on Twitter] just in Portland, and it was like a big-ass deal. I remember him having like 1,000, 2,000 views on SoundCloud, to him going like, ‘Hey, this song got two million plays on Spotify, we’re about to make a music video for it.’ All of us still broke.”

Weeks after “Caroline” came out and started racking up gaudy streaming numbers, Vevo offered to fly Aminé out to New York to record a video performance of the single. He was in his senior year, and the video shoot conflicted with a finance final, but he decided to go anyways.

“I literally was told that if I failed this final, I would fail the class. So, I was like, ‘I don’t give a fuck.’ I just didn’t care,” he says. “I hated college. I knew it wasn’t for me, but I still kept doing it because I have strict African parents that I lived with. There was no other alternative for me to live under [their roof] without going to school.”

Aminé’s affable, low-key charm and new deal with Republic Records facilitated his smooth entry into the mainstream. The summer after “Caroline” blew up, Malia Obama requested to meet him after his set at Lollapalooza, and Young Thug called him a “young legend” backstage at a European music festival. “I didn’t even know if [Thug] knew who I was,” he says. He relocated to Los Angeles, where he has lived a charmed life, ensconced in a network of the city’s coolest, smartest, and most famous young artists. Late last year, Issa Rae — who co-starred in his 2017 “Spice Girl” video — asked him to guest star in Insecure as a dumb guy named Darnell. “I moved to LA just because, like, half of the features I get are just because me and the homies are in the studio,” Aminé explains. “Like, I can text Vince [Staples] and he’ll pull up to the studio. Money can’t buy timing. That’s pretty much the only reason I’m here.”

Still, to a great extent, Aminé strives for anonymity rather than celebrity. “When people want to go to, like, 1 OAK, or the club, I’d rather just go to a small bar with a couple of my good friends and chill,” he says. He adds that “normal things” have helped him stay sane during quarantine — like meeting friends in the park with food, or his morning ritual of smoking a joint and walking his 11-month-old goldendoodle Oliver.

This aversion to the limelight extends to his relationship with Portland, where he is something of a modern cultural icon. He doesn’t go out to restaurants with his parents anymore, for the sake of their privacy. He expresses his hope that he could signal boost Portland’s Black businesses and the city’s overall profile in the music industry, rather than don the cape of Captain Portland: “I’m just such an indoor person, and I don’t love that kind of pressure on me. Like, I was never really prepared for this type of career.”

Aminé intends to eventually build a massive compound in Portland, with a studio and acres of land. It’s likely to happen one day — just don’t hold him to it. Public expectations can be dangerous. “The main thing to take away from [this album] is, I’m still just a guy figuring it out,” he says. “I don’t have the answers. And I don’t want fans to look at me for every answer. I’m just a guy, literally. I’m just in limbo.”

Limbo is out August 7 via Republic. Pre-order the record here.

#limbo #Aminé #pdx hiphop artist #portland oregon #hiphop blog #music blog

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inevitably-johnlocked · 5 years ago

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Sad News Re: The Watchalong

It’s ON HIATUS Until November. But Don’t Worry, I’ll Be Back!

Alright guys, I’ve been meaning to pre-write this post because I knew the day was coming soon, I just didn’t expect THIS SOON. This post is mostly about the Watchalong, but also about where I’ve been for the past month.

So here’s the Situation:

So I can’t go into über-details because of the nature of it, but a month ago I took on a new temporary position within a different branch of my employer to help the other branch out since they lost their graphic designer at a critical time and they were in a panic. This new position was going to gradually merge into a “long hours” and then, for everyone at both branches, a 24-7 operation, where we all have to work every day, holidays and weekends included, for long hours until November.

Well, on Tuesday, we were pulled into a meeting and were told that we were basically on-call now every day (since we’re the main branch), including me who has the important job of making them look good. All by myself, LOL. All the embargoes were lifted over the weekend so now they’re allowed to order custom designs and rush orders.

Because of this, I have done late nights every night this week, which in turn means I haven’t had time AT ALL to figure out how Kast (Rabbit’s replacement) works, since it’s an app-based streaming (instead of browser which they don’t have implemented yet) and as of RIGHT NOW, I just don’t have time to help my lovelies figure out Kast, because I literally get home now at 8:30PM, file my blog, and go to bed to get up for work again at 6:00AM (as I write this, it’s midnight on Thursday night, because I just got home at 9, had dinner, did a couple quick changes on my freelance work and THEN spent 2 hours filing my blogs).

This really bloody upsets me because August is my birthday month (*COUGH AUGUST 27 COUGH*) and I REALLY wanted to celebrate it with you guys SO MUCH before I knew that I was going to be completely unavailable on the weekends.

See, if Rabbit would have lasted ONE MORE MONTH in its previous state, I would have been able to at least squeeze in one or two more movies. But right now, learning a new program to ensure its safe for my lovelies, and writing down those instructions in my posts, I don’t have time for, ON TOP OF the freelance work I HAVE to get done before September.

So I am OFFICIALLY calling hiatus on the Saturday Night Watchalong until the first week of November due to work.

This isn’t something I wanted to do, but unfortunately, I CAN’T guarantee availability now on Saturdays when my boss basically said “you’re on call 24-7 until end of October”. This isn’t to say that I won’t try to squeeze a random one in here or there because I REALLY REALLY love my watchalongs because it’s the only social time I have all week, but that will be on the presumption that people already know how to use Kast. I’m HOPING that by November they’ll have their web version available like Rabbit’s was and we can go back to that, LOL, but I will, between now and November, test out Kast and see what I can do with it :)

Also between now and November, people seemed interested in me having a discord server for GO and Sherlock; I may also, in my limited free time, do that as well and set one up, and hope that they’ll also eventually allow Macs to host discord streams, LOL. Let me know if you guys still want that discord server... then I can at least still have that. I just worry because I’m barely on the other servers I’m a part of now, and I know that a “feature” of the discord is guaranteed chatting with Steph, LOL, when, you know, I’m garbage and am barely on it. I’ll see. It’s a lot of work to run a discord and I would need mods and content controllers. I’m not THAT awesome, LOL.

Anyway, so the TL:DR of this is I Work too Much and Have no life, and I’m sadly having to disappear for awhile while my job’s future hangs in the balance. Oh yeah, I didn’t mention that little nugget: I may lose my ACTUAL job after October, so that’s awesome. You guys might have me a shit tonne after October LOL. I knew this was coming 2 years ago, so it’s my fault for being lazy, LOL.

So, the anticipated return date for the Watchalong is Nov. 2. November 9 if I have to clean my office on the Saturday, LOL.

Anyway, Lovelies, I’m still here, and I’ll still be running this blog as best as I can (I’ve stayed up until midnight every night this week to ensure you guys constantly have new content on both my GO and Johnlock blogs because I love you guys so much), but I also don’t want to burn myself out. If these two months are anything like the last time I did this, I’m going to be doing 14 hour days, and I’m... yeah. I need sleep.

Love you all <3 I don’t want y’all to think I’m abandoning you, it’s just unfortunately my real life where I make money takes precedence. <3 Running this and my other blog to the extent that I do are full time jobs in of themselves, but I’m only one Stephie. <3

#my watchalong #about me #my blog #saturday night watchalong #hiatus

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traincat · 5 years ago

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ik youve talked about civil war before, but i wanted to ask you specifically about mj and aunt may urging peter to unmask. do you think that was in character? it felt a little out of, for me, but maybe it was just too rushed. im not sure. i trust your judgement!

If I’m being honest, I think it’s difficult to discuss a lot of characterization in Civil War as in character or not in character because it is an event that does just use its characters like dolls, moving them around the plot for the desired story instead of looking at the characters and carefully considering who would be best for doing what within the trappings of the plot. (There’s also the fact that I believe Civil War’s Peter unmasking scene was written already knowing the Brand New Day reset button was coming, which meant that people were just like WE CAN DO WHATEVER WE WANT because the consequences were going to go out the window very shortly.) One of the facts is Civil War doesn’t take place that long after Marvel Knights Spider-Man #1-12, a story all about how dangerous it is for May and Mary Jane if Peter’s identity is known to his villains, so the whole premise is on shaky ground from the start, because Peter just had an example of how this goes on a much smaller scale.

For May and Mary Jane, I can kind of rationalize things. I agree no matter what that it’s pretty rushed, but I’m not sure taking more time to build it up would’ve necessarily helped – sometimes rushing through event build up instead of taking more time saves you on additional iffy characterization. But with May, I think it’s important that she only very recently learned Peter is Spider-Man and she’s still coming to terms with things and no matter how hard Peter is trying to be honest with her, he’s spent half his life trying to shield her from the reality of his being Spider-Man, and that’s not an easy habit to drop completely, so there might be aspects of that reality she hadn’t fully considered. (Although, again, she had just been kidnapped and buried alive not that long ago by Norman Osborn, so you know, this isn’t an argument that holds a ton of water.) Mary Jane, on the other hand, is probably the character who thinks the most about the dangers involved in Peter’s being Spider-Man. I think with both of them though the argument could be made that they’re living with the Avengers at the time, with superheroes who have public identities and a lot of resources and money, and that they’ve sort of all bought into the illusion that if Peter is allied with the Avengers and unmasks the Avengers have the resources – and the reputation – to mitigate the worst of the dangers. And to be fair, they might have, if Civil War had gone very differently. It’s a pretty tempting idea to dangle over all three of their heads, especially after the years and years of secret keeping and covering and withholding information, the idea that Peter could just be open about the entirety of his life and the ways that would free up Mary Jane and May, too. I think ultimately Mary Jane especially should’ve known better than to believe the fantasy could work, but I think it’s also understandable what a tempting fantasy and how all three characters could want that.

(Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #7)

There’s also the fact that Peter had just basically died on Mary Jane and May, which could account for everyone maybe not making the best decisions in the world, emotionally – an “if Peter wants to unmask we should just be glad he’s alive and go along with him” kind of deal. They both trust Peter’s instincts a lot, too, which, unfortunately at the time, Peter wasn’t doing the same:

I have this marked down as “Civil War” which is not helpful because I’m pretty sure it’s from one of the ASM prelude issues. (I don’t reread Civil War very much.) Anyway, that feeling, Peter, would be telling you not to take off your mask on national television.

Like I think it’s an interesting exploration to pick apart everyone’s actions at this point and try to make them work in the bigger picture of Spider-Man canon, but it’s also frustrating because it’s very much “this is happening now” and all the characters just act in accordance with that.

(If you like my content please consider supporting me on ko-fi!)

#*replies #traincat talks comics #Anonymous #i'm considering actually dusting off the patreon i made once to better manage comics commentary but not quite there yet

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emzierose · 5 years ago

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New Beginnings

Right off the bat; I don't really care whether or not people read this. This is honestly more for me than it is for some random person casually scrolling through here ALTHOUGH if any of you really feel like you need to contribute feel free to comment or to DM me - my ears are always open. I also feel like I'm going to be moving from one point to another and then going back - it's going to be a mess. Please forgive me <3

Now I wanted to start this mainly because I feel more comfortable writing digitally than I do in an actual diary - it's so much easier to write on the go. Plus I can choose whether I want to publish the chapter or to keep it unpublished.

I want to share some life stories from myself, my experiences through 2019 as one of my most hated years yet because so much shit happened. It all started to spiral downwards when I started uni, for some strange reason it just hit me hard compared to other people. It was just such a large leap into adulthood that I feel like I wasn't ready for and there were many, many, MANY days that I genuinely just wanted to quit and give up. There were issues with people around me, the relationships I have/had with friends and boyfriend(ex) and a big issue with my mental health.

I haven't told anyone about these problems - it has been a secret carried on my shoulders for the entire year - I was "diagnosed" with anxiety and (maybe?)depression by a school counsellor although I became afraid and never attended any of the meetings they wanted me to attend. Then the year just had to end with my grandfather passing away on the 23rd of December. And quite honestly that was truly a breaking point; to this day I feel like I haven't truly realised what happened and that he is seriously gone. I was never extremely close to him and nor was he my blood-related grandfather but I guess I was just still really shocked by his sudden passing.

Now I know people on this site in real life and if any of you happen to read this - please do not worry. I don't want this information to go on past this site - I want it to stay between me, this digital platform and whoever is reading. (aka don't tell my family if you know me).

Regarding my relationships, 2019 started off with me getting my first boyfriend, but I was dramatically blinded by the excitement of just being classified as "in a relationship" as days went on, I could feel the excitement dropping. Eventually, we decided to break up (on valentines day through the phone lmao) but even though we decided to stay in touch, he just disappeared. Unfriended me on everything, I think maybe he blocked me at one point (although not anymore) and has basically just become a stranger. Looking back, we would have never lasted anyways; he was a family man and I liked my alone time, he was a little immature (not that it's bad!) but I am quite mature and don't like being silly constantly, then there was the fact that he moved quite quickly into using the 'love' word which I felt uncomfortable with - both because he was moving so quickly and because I was slowly losing all feelings towards him.

There was also the fact that I guess I lost a lot of friends. Now I'm not that person who puts the blame on the other- I was partly at fault for our falling out. I guess our friend group just got... busy? We were all attending different universities, different timetables, I was literally always working and our group chat just died. It got to the point where I just felt awkward messaging them as they all had their new friends and stories while I was still that loser loner who had no friends in uni and barely even left the house other than to work. I was in bed almost all the time I wasn't working or learning. I just feel like I'm not really the kind of person to become their friends as they've all changed so much, and I don't really want to bother them? As of now, I really only have one friend - my best friend. I really love her, and I feel shitty knowing that last year I barely hung out with her as I was just so... sad??? I have hung out with her more times since January 1st than I did the whole of 2019. That makes me angry at myself.

I also feel disappointed in myself for a lot of things. I stopped writing - my most favourite thing in the world. I was so immersed in my small problems and self-pity that I just lost the motivation to write and that also make me so angry knowing that its something that I love and have always loved. One of my goals for 2020 is to get back into writing fanfiction and to have at least 1 book completed - it isn't much to other people but for me, that will be an achievement.

I'm also disappointed in my motivation for my health. Towards the beginning of the year, I was getting into shape - losing all the extra weight and eating healthier but I got a personal trainer and everything flipped. He was just... draining I guess the word would be. Very demanding, pushy and I guess manipulative. He made me sign a 6 month locked in a contract with him, paying $50 a week, sometimes $100 when he pushed me into doing 2 sessions a week instead of one. Now I know what you're thinking "why didn't you just say no?!" but if you knew me, you'd know I'm just too shy and quiet to do that. The contract also never stated that there was an additional $4 fee per transaction along with not being able to cancel sessions without 24-hour notice even if I was sick. As the year went on I stopped going to the gym in my own time because I was just terrified of him being in the gym and in case he pushed me into doing a sessions 'since I was there' and me having to pay him more. I kept telling him that I didn't want to do extra sessions as I was trying to save up money for a trip I'm going on next year and yet he'd always push me to do more. I guess I just got sick of it. There were other issues with him, but many of which would be too long to list in this. In the end, about 4 weeks ago I put my foot down, told him I needed a break after my grandfathers passing (to which he told me "not to let things get in the way") and I haven't contacted him since even though he's tried to contact me. I'm still scared to go to the gym though, and I want to get healthier but I don't want to run into him? ya get me?

The last thing I really want to share is with the school. I've always loved learning but I feel like I moved way too quickly from high school and into university. I had several breakdowns last year regretting my decision of joining the course I'm doing - although I was doing quite well I just wasn't enjoying the content. I felt forced into doing it and I had a serious episode when I thought I failed a unit where I spent a solid 6 hours crying and looking up ways to earn extra credit, to redo the exam and to even switch to easier courses. Luckily the next day marks were finalised and I ended up passing although that event really opened up my eyes to my mental health regarding further education. I'm still not sure if I'm doing something I love, although I've enrolled into my second year so I guess I'll just have to see. For 2020 I aim to pay more attention, actually complete my school work and to do my very best in actually understanding and learning the information.

Overall 2019 wasn't a great year, but I'm hoping 2020 will be better. So far I've already had some great times with my best friend, I've finally done something for myself (went and FINALLY dyed my hair purple which I've been wanting to do for literally 7 years) and I've already started planning out my days with a journal so I'm not an uncoordinated shit.

#sad #depressed #writing #guidance #advice #personal #experience #boyfriend #love #school #university #anxiety #friends #hair #training #mental health #2019 #2020 #death

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shyguycity · 5 years ago

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Goty 2019

Hey. It’s game of the year 2019 baby. By now you know the kinda justice we seek on these streets, so no long-winded introductions, except to remind you that these aren’t reviews, and honorable mentions have been moved down to the bottom this year because we're evolving.

12. Super Kirby Clash (Switch) - A free to play online Kirby spinoff centered around combat that features microtransactions sounds like an awful idea on paper, and yet it’s somehow my most played multiplayer game of 2019. I won’t try and present the game as anything more than what it is, which is basically a very (very very very!) simplified, arcade-y Monster Hunter game with a very (very very very very!) cute aesthetic. But as a recent convert to Monster Hunter and a longtime Kirby lobbyist, it turns out that that’s all I need to play a game for nearly 100 hours. The four classes all have varied abilities, gameplay and roles to play, and there’s nothing more satisfying than freezing time as the mage in the middle of an enemy’s jumping animation. I found the microtransactions to be completely fair, as I spent around 10 dollars total on the game and never found myself hurting for apples (the game’s main currency and the only one you can buy with real money) to upgrade my equipment. This isn’t a game I would be able to recommend to everyone, but if it’s your type of thing then it’s going to be very much your type of thing.

*Image credit: 505 games

11. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (Switch/PS4/Xbox One/PC) - Despite horrible first impressions from my backer copy of the Switch version, Bloodstained really ended up delivering the true Castlevania: Symphony of the Night successor it promised to be, and I had a fantastic time with it (after trading in my Switch version and begrudgingly purchasing a PS4 copy). While I love almost all of the Castlevania games in their own ways, even the best entries post-SotN didn’t end up feeling much like SotN. Bloodstained, meanwhile, wears its inspiration on its sleeve. Or rather on its wolf hood and gas mask combo.

Obscure, bizarre, and goofy secrets are around every single corner of the castle. I mean, like, really esoteric ones that I can’t imagine having found without a guide. From the myriad of hidden (and very challenging!) boss fights, to trophies popping for playing a piano while having a fair familiar out to entire sprite based areas, the surprises never stop being thrown at the player. It adds so much goofball flavor to the game that’s missing from just about any other entry in the genre, and it does the brunt work in giving this game its identity.

Not only are the secrets plentiful and good, but the combat is also excellent; much like a couple entries in the latter Castlevania games, just about every single enemy in Bloodstained has a chance of dropping you a shard upon defeat, and each one gives your character Miriam a new ability. Some of these are simple passive buffs, while others completely change your combat options. From ghostly portrait guardians to giant dentist drills coming out of your hand to summoning disembodied dragon’s heads, the shard system is never not entertaining, and leaves the player so much room for experimentation and realizing their ideal build it’s actually a wonder they were able to bug test this thing at all. And truly, the main issues holding Bloodstained back from true greatness are its technical issues. Which is a shame, and seemingly an issue on all platforms. But if you can handle a hard crash here or there, you’re in for a treat.

10. Fire Emblem: Three Houses (Switch) - I never thought I would care at all for any Fire Emblem game. Certainly, I saw the appeal of them prior to Three Houses, but they just never seemed like something I would want to devote a lot of time to. But putting the game in a school setting and recontextualizing your soldiers as students really made a huge difference for me, and I bonded with the characters in the game in a way I normally reserve for my Pokemon teams. And unlike Pokemon, I can marry my students, which is beautiful and horrifying.

There are definitely issues with Three Houses. A silent protagonist has no right starring in a game like this, especially with all the emotional story beats the game is trying to pull off. The writing in general was also all over the place, ranging from odd decisions with both the characters as well as the overarching story (some of this is remedied by replaying the game multiple times and going down different routes, but I put 60 hours into the game and couldn’t even finish two paths, so that’s a bit unrealistic). Lastly, the monastery that serves as your school needs just a tad more variety in activities to do in between the battles, as what started out as my favorite part of the game became a chore for the last dozen or so hours.

All of that said, I am anxiously waiting for the sequel, as the foundation that’s been put down here could lead to something truly special. As it stands, this is the best secret Harry Potter game ever made, and that alone is going to have a lot of appeal to a lot of people.

*Image credit: Gamespot

9. Resident Evil 2 (PS4/Xbox One/PC) - Truly, I have never been more stressed out when playing a game than the first time I had to start dealing with Mr. X. Yes, on each subsequent playthrough (of which I did many!) and even encounter he became less of a threat and more of an annoyance, but much like a good horror movie, that first time will remain embedded in my brain as one of my most memorable gaming moments.

And that kinda sums up Resident Evil 2 as a whole for me. An amazing, unforgettable start in the police station, followed by a somewhat middling second act in the sewers, and ending on kind of a weirdly short whimper in a very tonally different setting than the rest of the game. And that’s without getting into how disappointingly similar the “B” playthroughs of either character were to their “A” counterparts. It was all still great, mind you, and the gameplay and scares remained excellent throughout. But man was that first act in the police station something truly special, and I’m hopeful that the eventual remake of 3 keeps more of that tone throughout.

8. Pokemon Sword/Pokemon Shield (Switch) - Cutting hundreds of Pokemon was pretty close to the bottom of my list of concerns going into the latest Pokemon. The series hasn’t really grabbed me in a major way since Black and White on the DS almost 9(!) years ago, and I had largely accepted the idea that I was finally growing out of the franchise. While this 8th generation of Pokemon titles is far, far from perfect, and in fact doubles down on a lot of the aspects I don’t like about modern Pokemon games, Sword has become my favorite entry in the series in a very long time.

This is down to two things: my favorite batch of new Pokes the series has ever had (Galarian Farfetch’d, my prince............) and the introduction of multiplayer coop content with raids. The former is subjective I suppose (but seriously, Galarian Farfetch’d), and the appeal of the raids is going to be dictated by how into repetitive content you are and if you have people to raid with. I’m fortunate enough to love repetitive tasks in video games, especially repetitive tasks that amount to fighting and capturing giant monsters for rewards, and to have a partner to enjoy those repetitive tasks with. We lost entire weekends to hunting down new raid opportunities in Sword, and this feels like the first major step the series has taken in nearly a decade to try and reengage me in a meaningful way.

And don’t get me wrong: Pokemon has a long way to go to bring me entirely back into the fold. The dungeons are nonexistent, the routes are largely completely straightforward affairs, the post game content is so light that “barebones” feels like a generous descriptor, and the performance issues in the wild area (the game’s more open, free roaming space) are inexcusably awful when played online. I hope by the time the 9th generation games roll around that we’ll get a bigger advancement than what’s been seen here, but to me, this feels like an all around better made product than any of the 3DS entries, with or without Galarian Farfetch’d.

7. Risk of Rain 2 (Switch/PS4/Xbox One/PC) - The original Risk of Rain is a personal all-time favorite, so seeing the developers successfully make the jump from 2D to 3D while still maintaining everything I love about the first game is a truly remarkable feat. Both games sport essentially MMO-lite combat with abilities dictated by cooldowns and items that you get from chests and bosses, with rogue-like progression and permadeath. That’s a lot of jargon even for me talking about video games, so essentially: keep shooting things and powering up by grabbing items and defeating bosses, and when you’re dead you’re dead (bar a specific item), rinse and repeat.

It’s deceptively simple while being endlessly replayable. The true fun comes in when playing with other people, as every character plays completely differently, and figuring out builds for each person on the fly is extremely fun and rewarding. This also means that if you start getting bored of one character, simply play a different one on your next run. Add in an extremely moody sci-fi aesthetic (including one of my favorite soundtracks of the year) and that’s Risk of Rain.

The main issue with Risk of Rain 2 at this point is that it’s simply unfinished, and won’t even have an actual ending state until spring of 2020. This doesn’t hamper my enjoyment of the game much, hence it being on this list, but I imagine a lot of people would be bothered by it. The developers have done a great job of updating the game at a decent pace so far though, and every major patch has come with a new character, among a ton of other things. And if I’ve already gotten this much enjoyment out of an early access title, it’s exciting to think about a feature complete version down the line. And hopefully that feature complete version of Risk of Rain 2 includes the Chef character from the first game *ahem*.

6. Astral Chain (Switch) - In a year full of some real dang weird yet shockingly great games, Astral Chain stands tall as probably the weirdest surprise of them all. You’re a future cop fighting invisible ghost demons from an alternate dimension with your own invisible ghost demon chained to you through some high tech handcuffs. That’s just the first half hour of the game, and it ratchets up the anime nonsense many magnitudes over in the course of its 20ish hour runtime. And it’s great and stupid.

It’s not just the plot that’s over the top, though. Coming from developer Platinum Games, renowned for their nonstop super sweaty action portfolio, Astral Chain spends just as much time tasking the player with exploring its world, characters, and lore as it does asking you to punch enemies the size of skyscrapers (or bigger). It’s a formula that works shockingly well, as I found myself enjoying the downtime segments just as much, if not more, than the action portions of the game. And the action that is there doesn’t really play like your typical Devil May Cry or Bayonetta, either; the player character, while critical to pulling off combos and the like, is not your primary damage dealer, with that role being fulfilled by your five “legions” (the aforementioned ghost demon buddies), all of which have different strengths, weaknesses and abilities. The gameplay ends up feeling kind of like a realtime Pokemon game by way of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, and no sentence I’ve ever written has been as cool as that one.

I do think Astral Chain falls a bit short in the combat department, at least compared to other games in the genre. It’s a bit too simplified, despite how crazy looking and overwhelming the actions you and your legions end up doing can be, and I think that the obligatory Platinum-style grading system in this is very poor - it doesn’t seem to grade overall performance so much as it just wants you to constantly be switching your legions in the midst of battle. Which is a great lesson to teach your players, but I would also like if anything else about my combat performance seemed to have significant weight on my grade. Having said all that, it’s a flaw that I found much easier to overlook in the midst of battle when I sent my wolf legion ahead of me, biting and tearing its way through a cluster of enemies, while I hung back inside of my punching legion, finally able to fulfill my years-long Star Platinum “ora ora ora” fantasies.

5. Anodyne 2: Return to Dust (PC) - There’s a lot going on in Anodyne 2, and I fear trying to describe it in words, not only because of all the jargon I’d inevitably have to use, but also because I’m not sure I can do the game justice. To that end, here’s a brief trailer of the game to get you started:

youtube

If you find that trailer at all intriguing, Anodyne 2 is definitely for you. And if you’re still skeptical, know that the game has far more to offer than just its (beautiful) low-poly aesthetic. While visually it’s obviously most evoking Playstation 1 era games such as Mega Man Legends, in terms of the tone of its writing it strikes a pretty peculiar balance between Earthbound and Nier: Automata (names I do not invoke lightly!). The visuals aren’t just an aesthetic choice, either - throughout the game you find yourself in 2D overhead areas, solving puzzles inside of the minds of other characters, and these varying layers of abstraction serve to further the game’s message and atmosphere. And it’s all of these things combined that pushed Anodyne 2 over the edge of “memorable” and into the realm of “haunting” for me.

It’s a game that wants to be played and experienced by everyone; you can tell how much love was put into every single corner of the world, every line of dialogue, and each and every single goofy joke. Steven Universe (another seeming inspiration of the developers) is the only other piece of media that has reminded me of just how lost and alone I’ve felt at various stages of life, while choosing not to dwell on that and instead using it as a launching pad to remind me of just how far I’ve come. As the game itself says, Anodyne 2 is a game about life, and I’ve rarely come across one that felt so full of it.

4. Judgment (PS4) - With the release of Yakuza 0 a couple of years ago, the Yakuza games went from a series I was vaguely aware of in my periphery to maybe my all-time favorite video game comfort food. They’re silly, melodramatic, sad, and beautiful, tonally swinging back and forth like a large imposing guard wildly trying to hit Kiryu with a couch section. Most importantly, they manage to feel heartfelt and personal in an age where high budget games seldom feel anything of the sort. I was initially hesitant, then, to play a spinoff that threw aside its entire cast of established characters for a crew that dabbles in detective and lawyer work; I didn’t think there was much of a chance that this new band of very handsome crimeboys with hearts of gold would be able to compare to Kiryu, Majima and the like. How glad I was to be wrong, as Judgment is now maybe my favorite of the Yakuza games I’ve played.

By pulling further out (but not completely away) from the culture of organized crime as the central driving factor of the story, you no longer need to memorize a dozen different yakuza organizations and all of their subsidiaries and patriarchs within, nor do you have to try and remember which side is feuding with who. And that isn’t to say that the story doesn’t have just as many twists and turns; it does, and despite the larger scale of the stakes, ends up feeling more focused and personal. I also found it easy to bond with the two main characters, Yagami and Kaito, as not only do their personalities play off of each other very well, but they simply share more screentime together than I’ve ever seen Kiryu get a chance to do with anyone. Truly, the story ended up being one of my favorites in the entire medium, and I fell in love with the characters to the point where I got misty eyed during the credits.

With regards to gameplay, it’s a Yakuza game. Which means a lot of running around Kamurocho, talking and shopping and playing minigames and brawling. Since the player character in this entry is a detective, there are various mechanics and events related to the profession, such as investigating crime scenes and tailing suspects, but they’re by far the weakest part of the game, and you shouldn’t come to this game looking for incredible detective gameplay. Instead, come to the game for literally everything else it offers, because it’s a fantastic experience all around, and a great jumping on point for anyone unfamiliar with Yakuza.

*Image credit: Steam user Symbol

3. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (PS4/Xbox One/PC) - Frankly, I did not much care for Sekiro for the majority of my first play through. Specifically, I dreaded its boss fights. To go from the sheer joy of being able to dispatch a courtyard full of enemies in any way I pleased in the game’s relatively free form stealth sections, to being killed in a matter of two or three hits to every single boss and miniboss was frustrating; how could I not groan when I started that duel with Genichiro at the top of the castle, knowing full well that I was going to be stuck there for a few (or more) frustrating hours? It wasn’t until the fight against the protagonist’s father figure, Owl, hours later at the same location as the aforementioned Genichiro fight, that something clicked. It only took around 30 hours, but suddenly, instead of approaching the situation like a Dark Souls or Bloodborne boss, I was not only being defensive, but I was being aggressively defensive, parrying nearly every single blow. Suddenly it was me standing in place, baiting out my opponent’s attacks only to throw the force of his own momentum back at him. Suddenly combat made sense in this damn game. And suddenly I was dead again in a quick three hits after inhaling some magic gas that prevented me from being able to heal. But that was ok! Because suddenly this game was amazing, and suddenly I had completed it four times and adored every second of it (except for that fucken four form final boss with no checkpoints).

I still stand by my (and a lot of other’s) original complaint that the disparity between the freedom offered in the rest of the game compared to the unflinchingly rigid roadmap you have to follow in fighting the bosses is jarring game design, and it’s very fun to imagine a version of Sekiro that lets you approach bosses any which way you like. On the other hand, no other game that I’ve ever played, not even Sekiro’s predecessor and my favorite game of this console generation, Bloodborne, has come anywhere close to making me feel this cool when fighting bosses. And that’s a mighty impressive accomplishment on any game’s part, speaking from the perspective of an overweight, sweaty, hairy, very uncool man.

But really, fuck that final boss though.

2. Dragon Quest Builders 2 (Switch/PS4/PC) - When we were around 10-years-old, one of my best friends, Patrick, used to host fairly regular Lego-building sleepovers, where everyone built whatever they wanted, and our creations were then showcased to the rest of the group. Being that the group consisted entirely of pre-pubescent boys, this meant building various robots or cars, all of variable quality/ability to stand upright. During one of these nights, in lieu of the usual deathbot piloted by the ghost minifig, I instead constructed a little bunker for the ghost - a place where, after a long day of being forced (by me) to pilot his mech suit and commit unspeakable acts, he could hang up his ghost hat and be forced (by me) to ponder the morality of his actions. It was just a tiny little room with the necessities: bed, table, bookshelves and pizza, but when presenting it to my friends I proudly declared that the bunker was also located at the bottom of the ocean, a factor that couldn’t be visually represented due to the harsh limits of time, Lego pieces and my ability. I was pretty proud of my cool-down chamber, but if memory serves correctly, it was Patrick’s no doubt boorish creation that was the apple of everyone’s eye. And who am I to try and convince a room full of my peers that actually, a secluded room where you could read in peace for all eternity was much cooler than a punching gorilla bot?

This is all to say that I have never been a creative type, especially when it comes to building. I had previously played Minecraft and the first Dragon Quest Builders, and while I enjoyed them, there wasn’t quite enough there to make me want to engage with them on a level beyond just playing them like any other game - I don’t think I ever built anything in DQB1 that wasn’t required for the sake of progression in the main story, and the less said about my Minecraft efforts the better. Builders 2 expertly sidesteps this issue by wrapping its building mechanics around an engaging and hearfelt story (I got teary-eyed multiple times!), great characters (especially the main character’s mysterious best friend/partner in crime, Malroth) and a lovely localization. It also encourages more freeform building than the previous game by tying the progression of the story to the progression of your main, customizable island. You don’t ever really have to go off into the weeds on your own in regards to building, but the game gives you so many opportunities to fill in the blanks on premade templates that you eventually just become comfortable in doing so. It’s hard to stop myself from gushing about the game, to the point where as I type this I’m questioning why it’s “only” number 2 on this list.

And thanks to DQB2, for the first time in 20 years I revisited my first creative endeavor: the underwater solitude bunker, this time no longer held back by the technology of the day, instead fully realized in digital form. Built as far down as the game would allow my character to dig, hidden beneath the still waters of a reservoir inside of a pyramid, it is truly a testament to mankind’s ingenuity. And it is wicked. Naturally I had my artist (and DQB2 fanatic) girlfriend visit my game’s world so she bask in my true brilliance. I gleefully guided her down to the catacombs and down the intimidatingly long chain that dangled into the deceptively still depths. After a brief swim into the murky unknown, we arrived at our hidden destination at the bottom of the earth, where she was greeted by the sight of my submerged masterpiece. A wry smile snaked itself around my lips, as I knew, was absolutely certain, that within seconds, once she had made it through the de-pressurization chamber at the entrance to my paradise, I would be hearing the words of someone simultaneously shocked, awed, and hopefully only a bit jealous. Instead, I was met with a few seconds of silence followed by a patronizing “Well, I’d have never thought to build something like this.”

So, I guess that’s why Builders 2 couldn’t quite reach the number one spot: true art is never appreciated in its time.

1. Hypnospace Outlaw (PC) - No piece of commercial art has ever felt like it was made for me in the way that Hypnospace Outlaw does. I grew up on the internet during the time period this game’s alternate reality take on the 90s internet is drawing its inspiration from; I have talked at length, to anyone who will listen, about how this early incarnation of the internet felt more like a physical space than it does now, and how much I miss the days of stumbling on to weird Geocities sites, meeting people in AOL chatrooms, and the early days of pirating. I met my first girlfriend through the internet, as well as my current one. The vast majority of the friends I’ve made in my life would not have happened without the internet, and not just because of distance; the internet allowed the younger me to be the person I was too insecure to be in person, and to develop my own voice. I owe who I am to the people I met in freeware fanmade Dragonball Z games and IRC chat rooms, and I think that’s kind of fucked up and magical, and it’s all kind of a miracle that I’m not even more of a mess of a person than I am today. And the developers of this game have clearly had those experiences, too.

I’m not going to sit here and tell you that Hypnospace Outlaw is for everyone, because it’s absolutely not. It’s essentially a detective game, but you’re solving cases by investigating user made internet pages circa 1997, and the “cases” you’re working on are largely things like bullying and copyright infringement. In other words, you’re mostly just reading gaudy websites and figuring out more about the back end and exploits of the Hypnospace experience. It is incredibly specific and niche and, as someone that sorely misses staying up until 3 AM downloading Winamp skins, I can’t stop thinking about this game, even months later.

I wrote a longer piece on the game on this very blog, and instead of rehashing anymore of it here, I’ll just direct you that way. Though if I may, I’d like to give one last endorsement for the game for any hypothetical person reading this that’s on the fence about trying it - if you’re the kind of person that somehow finds yourself reading this game of the year list, and have made it this far down the page without getting bored, I promise you that you’ll find something to love about Hypnospace Outlaw.

Honorable mentions (for games that were either not originally released in 2019 or I still wanted to briefly touch on):

Dragon Quest 11 S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition (Switch) - Somewhere in between listing the original release of Dragon Quest 11 as my 7th favorite game of 2018 and now, it went from being “a really great JRPG” to “one of the best games I’ve ever played”, and in all honesty should have probably been at the top of last year’s list. A beautiful, unmatched experience all around.

Overcooked! 2 (Switch/PS4/Xbox One/PC) - The Overcooked games are possibly the best coop games I’ve ever played by merit of them actually requiring communication between players. Framing the game’s mechanics around cooking food, a universally understood act, is brilliant.

Baba is You (Switch/PC) - This is the most clever puzzle game I’ve ever played. Hell, it’s probably the most clever game I’ve ever played period. What prevented me from truly falling in love with it was that every single puzzle after the first couple of worlds became the hardest thing I’ve ever tried to do in my life. And while that did make solving those puzzles equally satisfying, the thought of dedicating multiple hours each to stumbling through dozens and dozens more of single screen puzzles was a bit more than I was able to handle. Still, for any puzzle fans, there are some genuinely jaw-dropping moments in this that shouldn’t be missed.

Kirby’s Dreamland 3 (Switch/SNES) - The things I didn’t like about DL3 as a single player game are exactly what makes it a great coop Kirby game, which was a way to play this game that I never had the pleasure of experiencing until this year when it was re-released on the SNES Switch app. It’s skyrocketed up my list of favorite Kirby games, as well as become my favorite SNES coop game. Also, Gooey.

Kind Words (lo fi chill beats to write to) (PC) - I don’t quite qualify this as a game, as it’s more of a message in a bottle app with a very warm and charming aesthetic. But if you’ve ever wanted to anonymously reach out to strangers and tell them things are going to be all right while listening to some calming music, this is the thing for you.

Luigi’s Mansion 3 (Switch) - I have a deep, deep fondness for all three of the Luigi’s Mansion games (the GameCube and the original game were my first launch day purchases!), and 3 is by far the best game in the series. Every single moment of it was some high degree of charming and/or cute, and it’s a game I would feel confident in recommending to just about everybody. However, while I truly loved my time with the game and will no doubt replay it years down the road, there was nothing inside of it that really left any kind of deep impression on me. It’s a summer blockbuster in a kid-friendly spooky form, and that’s great for what it is.

Super Mario Maker 2 (Switch) - Mario Maker 2, sequel to what I would consider to possibly be the best game Nintendo’s ever made, is by far and away my most disappointing game of the year. It’s still an amazing toolkit, and I’ve been very satisfied with the levels I ended up making. That said, the gaming landscape has changed a lot in the 5 years between the original and the sequel, and with Nintendo’s nigh complete silence regarding updates coming to the game, I can’t consider it to be anything but a massive disappointment. And maybe that will change! But as of this posting, there’s been almost nothing to keep me coming back to the game a mere few months into its life, and that’s a huge problem. All of that said, it’s still a fantastic game and value, especially if (like most) you didn’t get a chance to play the original due to the console it was stuck on.

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manicpixiedreamjew · 6 years ago

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ok i rewrote and revised my letter! let me know what you think

2/9/19

Rabbi Randy,

As our Into class comes to an end, a lot has been on my mind. My spirituality, my values; how my perception of the world has changed as I solidify my Jewish identity, especially as a young woman. I spent a few hours poring over journal entries dating back all the way to 2016 this Shabbat, and a consistent theme stood out in all of them: an overwhelming, genuine urge to live an authentic Jewish life. I read, thrown back into the innocent curiosity, the puppy love, the childlike fascination with Jews and Judaism that began with a book. The Chosen, the very first Jewish book I read, and I’m sure I’ve told you this story before; I’ll spare the details.

Anyway, those first inklings of interest, say, early 2016, were academic. I was a vehement atheist born to a family of atheists. Then again, who has a nuanced understanding of religion and people-hood at sixteen? My atheism was an obstinate, cynical world view triggered by traumatic experiences with Christianity. When I picked up The Chosen, though...I was slapped right across the face. Judaism was the first thing that challenged my philosophies; it forced me into an entirely foreign universe I never thought I’d know, need or understand. It taught me empathy foremost, in those early days...studying Judaism exhorted me to bear the burden of others, to feed the hungry (a MAZON seminar comes to mind), comfort the weary. Looking at my journal, an entry dated 3/3/17 elaborates on the effects of antisemitism in America, and next to that a newspaper cut out of a Magen David. It wasn’t quite personal then, but it was something I wouldn’t have looked twice at a few years earlier. It disturbed me deeply.

Then, mid-late 2017. The journal entries shifted, as you’d expect; I’d been exhaustively involved in reading and researching by then. I see a lovingly inscribed entry detailing, religiously, my first Kabbalat Shabbat at CRC. 7/1/17. The smells, the melodies, my friends, the birthday celebration of two elderly men who loved baseball. “A deep, riveting admiration for something ancient and pulsing with life.” That puppy-love stage was in full effect, my love of Judaism and its personal implications blossomed over the springtime, although its fragrance wasn’t entirely sweet: I was forced to confront my identity and ask myself that looming question. Do I want to become a Jew?

That question threw me for a loop. It was an emotionally intense time. I confided to my closest friend that, although it may sound absurd, converting to Judaism was something I was interested in. I remember crying myself to sleep some nights because the decision was so massive, so heavy, so entirely suffocating for someone with no background in religion, no sense of community or family. Eventually, though, my fate did not seem so dire, and I came to my senses: I loved Judaism. I loved it, I love it. One of the first things that stood out to me and comforted me was the Jewish emphasis on family, something I never experienced. I clung to it: how someone’s always there for you; how you’re adopted into world-wide support network called the Tribe. How no matter where you travel, anywhere in the world, someone will enthusiastically invite you over for Shabbat lunch. How, because you are Jewish, you will never suffer alone.

That, then, began my serious resolve to be Jewish, do Jewish and live Jewish.

Ever since I met with you on 11/21/17 (I have an entry for that, too!), my life has been a foray into Jewishness. You told me to start observing Shabbat and Yom Tov, and I did so with vigor: I bought a chanukiah, acquired the shiniest candlesticks I could, and read every book the local library had regarding proper observances. I look back on my first few holidays and laugh now, playfully admonishing myself for my mistakes and mishaps. But that’s the fun, right? If I learned anything from this week’s Parsha (Terumah), it’s that the means are more much important than the end, the intention more meaningful than the actualization. Late 2017 to early 2018 was all that: learning, doing, experiencing, interacting, existing with a fat dose of humility. Organizing a basic Jewish vocabulary, and through Shabbat services and working with the community, pinning down what it means to live a Jewish life.

Enter 2018! This was, perhaps, the most frustrated and chaotic year on my Journey to Jewish. To start, it was my last semester of high-school. Everything, and I mean Everything, was dependent on my graduation—most saliently my own happiness and sanity. My synagogue attendance was dwindling, my ambition and motivation was all but absent. I’ve always suffered from depression and severe anxiety, but its clutch tightened horribly those first few months. I managed to attend a Kol Nidre service in early September—and, it remains one of my most beautiful and cherished memories to date. December, I know, was the hardest. Between my Catholic father making crusade jokes and my Jesus-obsessed mother spewing casual antisemitism, between unending loads of coursework and no free time, I felt my spirit literally withering. This never weakened my resolve to live Jewishly, but some days I just couldn’t bring myself to enact the values I knew I held in my heart. Some days Judaism felt like a beloved friend, and others Judaism felt like a stranger. Nevertheless I continued to live as Jewish a life I could, but even kindling the Chanukah candles felt joyless. I was like Tevye standing in the middle of the woods, anguished, as his horse refused to budge. Through all of it, though—the sadness, numbness, friction—I was never, ever, once deterred. That’s how life is sometimes. But to be a Jew, as our own Reb Tevye zealously insisted, you must have hope.

And I did. This is when Judaism became real to me, when I realized it was a part of my life and etched into my very being. If I could live Jewishly, study, be a part of my community and find solace while also dealing with these hardships, this was clearly meant to be. I’ve been using “us” and “we” pronouns for a few months now, referring to myself as Jewish even though I’ve yet to immerse in a mikveh. When our class visited the Holocaust museum, the loss and heartache I felt was profoundly intimate...a personal loss, the loss of family I never had the opportunity to know and love. I had never experienced anything like that before, and it continues to haunt me. I’ve been the target of hateful and ignorant remarks. People have glowered at my Magen David; they’ve called me names and insulted me. “Christ killer, money hoarder, dirty Jew.”

But, and I’m a bit weepy remembering this, living Jewishly (and loudly at that) is a blessing. Maybe two summers ago I catered to an older family for their son’s graduation party. An uncle approached me, blinked at my Magen David and muttered “bless you.” I was visibly shaken; I wasn’t sure what to make of it. Later in the evening the grandmother touched my shoulder and asked, “are you Jewish?” I told her I was a conversion student. She embraced me, dug out dreidels from her kitchen drawer, and told me that she was separated from her Judaism during childhood. That it was too dangerous for her to practice, that she wanted to go back to synagogue now that she was safe. I encouraged her daughter to finally have her bar mitzvah. My heart was full. Another memory I’m fond of: wishing a stranger chag Pesach sameach and Shabbat Shalom on the street. He was wearing a kippah. The smile on that man’s face was unforgettable.

Those moments, to me, were godly. Actions are a conduit of holiness; I’ve learned that over the years. To act with intent and sanctify the mundane is second nature to us. A bracha, a kind word, charity, song...everything is a vessel for godliness.

Fast forward a bit: 2019. As I grew into my adult identity, so did I into my Jewish identity. I had my 18th birthday, graduated, passed my driving test. I began to wrap my hair on Shabbat, meditate on the Sh’ma swathed in a tallit, give tzedakah. Often times I sat in the little CRC classroom and pondered on the application of my learning: how it translated into my everyday life, how it reconciled with my values as a progressive woman in today’s society...but mostly, I think, I thought about how at home I felt. I walk into CRC and immediately feel at peace; a part of a family, the member of a loving household. I walk into the sanctuary and about a dozen people are ready to greet me with big, heartfelt smiles. It melts me every single time.

Alright, I’ll quit boring you with all this schmaltz.

I’m not sure that there was one definite moment when I knew, for sure, that being Jewish was the right choice for me. In fact, to assume all that soul searching could fit into one tiny, fleeting, ephemeral moment is ridiculous...as you know from the absurd length of this letter, which is only a minute fraction of my story. Seriously, I could go on, and on, and on; but I digress. Sitting at our Sukkot celebration and dancing with all the other people, looking up through the sukkah and marveling at the hanging plants and leaves. Baking challah on Friday morning and realizing that somewhere, other Jewish women are doing the exact same thing. Feeling warm summer wind on my face, seeing fireflies flicker through the bushes and knowing that HaShem is there. Touching my siddur to the Torah for the first time and bristling, feeling as though something breathed new life into me. Group Aliyah, a guiding hand on my shoulder as we chant the brachot in clumsy unison…

Each moment (and many more, and yet more to come) reaffirmed the fact that Judaism is my home. Ruth said it more succinctly and eloquently than I ever could: Your people shall be my people, and your God shall be my God.

Randy, I never thought I’d be doing this. Ever. Looking back at the learning and growing I’ve done, reading those journals and reminiscing on my journey, I can firmly say, if you agree, I’m ready to enter this Covenant officially.

Thank you for everything, as always,

Zoë

#oops its 5 pages #save

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emospritelet · 6 years ago

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Chapter 8 is up, in which past!Weaver and Lacey get married

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6] [Part 7]

AO3 link

Three years and eight months earlier

Thursday was cold and bright, the ever-present rain banished and replaced by a startlingly clear blue sky, frost riming the iron railings by Weaver’s apartment. Roni had offered to let Lacey stay with her the night before the wedding, and she had shrugged and accepted, although she added that she didn’t believe in superstition, and she didn’t suppose that seeing each other before they did the deed would make any difference in the long run. Weaver himself had spent the evening alone, having picked up the key to the Nolans’ cabin and gotten Lacey’s agreement to go there. Merida and Fa had gotten them presents, which sat unopened on the kitchen counter, awaiting their return from their brief honeymoon. He had packed food for the three days they planned to stay, picking up a bottle of champagne in the store before remembering that Lacey was pregnant, and pushing it back onto the shelf.

He hadn’t quite had time to get used to the fact that there was a baby on the way, and he thought perhaps that his subconscious was trying to pretend there wasn’t. Not that he wasn’t happy at the idea, but he had seen too much of the darker side of humanity not to be worried about what any child of his might grow up to experience. He told himself that he’d have to do the best he could to protect them, and pushed the worries from his mind, concentrating on the first step of his new life.

In the end he had taken Lacey’s suggestion regarding his wedding outfit, and was wearing jeans, although they were new and black and fitted him well. He wore them with a blue shirt and dark jacket, his heavy boots polished to a shine and his rings cleaned. Pushing each one onto its finger in turn, he eyed the space on his left hand, where a new piece of jewellery would soon sit. He had taken Lacey to choose the wedding rings the day before, matching bands in white gold with Celtic knotwork running around them. She had refused his offer of an engagement ring, saying bluntly that it was stupid to spend money on something just to conform to other people’s expectations, but she seemed to like the wedding ring. So there was that.

He checked his reflection in the mirror, running a hand over his freshly-shaven chin and sighing to himself. Not exactly the stuff of bloody dreams, but he’d have to do. A knock on the bedroom door made him look around, and it creaked open to reveal Merida’s red curls.

“You ready?” she asked. “We should probably get going.”

The ceremony was being held in the waterfront garden of a hotel owned by a friend of Roni’s. The hotel itself was undergoing renovation, and what would have been a pleasant silence was punctuated by the banging of hammers and the whistling of workmen as they replaced the main staircase inside. Weaver thought the garden was pretty, a well-kept lawn bisected by a path leading to a wrought-iron pergola, thick with climbing plants. The plants were white with frost, and he was privately concerned that he and Lacey might freeze to death before they could say their vows, but he kept his mouth shut. It was only fifteen minutes, after all.

He waited with Fa and Merida, shifting from foot to foot in the cold air, and glanced around as Lacey came out with Roni at her side. She had bought a new dress with the money he had given her, a simple, pretty thing in pale blue with a full skirt, a white faux fur shawl keeping the cold from her shoulders and a posy of white roses in her hands. Her legs were in white stockings, her shoes the same pale blue as the dress, with a strap at the ankle. His eyes widened at the sight of her, hair teased into curls and tied up, a few snaking loose to curl around her smooth cheeks and the nape of her neck, her lips deep pink. She ran her eyes over him as she got nearer, and one side of her mouth drew up.

“You look good, Detective,” she said.

“You look beautiful,” he said honestly, and her smile grew.

“Okay lovebirds, let’s get you idiots married,” said Merida loudly.

It was over so quickly it almost made his head spin. He stumbled a little over the vows, but he meant every word, and Lacey shot him a brief smile before she said her own, although she stuttered over the ‘love’ part. The ring was cold and unfamiliar on his finger, and he unconsciously rubbed at it with his thumb as Roni spoke the closing words and told him to kiss his bride. Lacey’s lips were soft and cool, and he touched his forehead to hers in a brief gesture of affection as he heard the clicking sounds of Fa and Merida taking pictures. And then it was done. He was a married man.

They went back to Roni’s for drinks, but he stuck with coffee while the others downed whisky. Lacey had hot chocolate, a swirl of cream with a sprinkling of cinnamon on top, and when she had almost finished, Weaver went to find Roni, handing her a sheaf of bills.

“Drinks are on me until that runs out,” he said. “I think we’ll get away.”

“Well, I hope you have a good time,” she said, as she took the money. “I’m sure you will. I think you two will be okay.”

“Yeah,” he said, glancing across to where Lacey was staring into her empty cup. “I hope so. I’ll try to make her happy.”

“I can draw you a useful diagram, if it would help,” she said, tucking the cash into her pocket and winking at him, and he sent her a look.

“Thank you, but I think I can remember the basics.”

“Well, I guess that’s a start,” she observed. “Don’t forget to be happy yourself, while you’re at it.”

He grinned, glancing towards the bar, where Merida was talking animatedly to Fa with extravagant hand gestures.

“Do me a favour,” he said, jerking his head at them. “Try to get one of those two to ask the other out, they’re driving me up the bloody wall.”

“Since I’m playing Cupid today I’ll give it my best shot, but I warn you that of all the useless lesbians I’ve met, these two are by far the worst,” she said dryly. “Now go bang your new wife.”

Weaver gave her a flat look, walking over to where Lacey was staring into space. She glanced across at him.

“Are you wanting to head off?” she asked.

“We can stay longer, if you like.”

She shook her head.

“I’m good. How long’s the drive?”

“An hour or so, depending on the traffic,” he said.

“No point in hanging around, then.”

She pushed to her feet, grasping his hand and calling goodbye to the others before tugging him towards the doorway. Whoops from Merida followed them out, which made Lacey grin a little, but once outside she shivered in the cold air, and he quickly shrugged off his jacket, putting it around her shoulders.

“Car’s just around the corner,” he said, and she tucked her arm through his as they walked swiftly.

It was a relief to get out of the bitter wind, and there was silence for awhile as Weaver drove out of the city. Lacey fiddled with the radio, eventually finding some music she liked, and settled back as the car turned onto a quieter road, tall pines flanking the edges and faint remnants of snow still visible in amongst the trees. Lacey shifted in her seat, glancing across at him.

“So,” she said. “That was pretty painless, right?”

“Were you expecting ordeal by fire, or something?” he remarked, and she chuckled.

“I just meant it was - quick,” she said. “No fuss, no expense, and we’re no less married than the people paying forty thousand bucks so their guests can have personalised party favours, or whatever.”

He grinned at that.

“I don’t think we’re personalised party favour kind of people.”

“Got that right.”

There was silence for a moment, and she looked out of the window, late afternoon sunlight sending flickering rays through the dark trunks of trees.

“You’ve been to this place before, right?” she said.

“Many times,” he confirmed. “If Nolan and I had free time in the summer, we’d come up here, bring some meat to barbecue and drink beer by the lake. Snow always brought whatever she’d been baking that week, and we’d get a little drunk and listen to music and talk about all sorts of crap. It’s a nice little place. Few other cabins nearby, but enough space that you feel as though you’re on your own.”

“I’m guessing it’s probably deserted at this time of year anyway.”

“Probably,” he acknowledged, and glanced across at her. “You don’t mind, do you? I could have driven us down to California, or something.”

“I don’t mind,” she said, after a pause. “A week ago I was bunked down on a packing crate, so it’s really no big deal. I wasn’t expecting a honeymoon. I wasn’t expecting a wedding, let’s face it.”

“What were you expecting?” he asked curiously, glancing across at her, and she shrugged, mouth pursing a little.

“Don’t know,” she admitted. “I - I didn’t really think things through. I just knew I had to come back.”

“Well, I’m glad you did,” he said, and turned the wheel into a long, winding bend as the car made its way up a hill. “It’s not too much further.”

He wanted to ask her about their time apart, why she had left in the middle of the night and not contacted him until four months later. He wanted to ask about the night their child was conceived, whether she had regretted what they had done. Whether she had hated him for it. He couldn’t find the words, though, and it didn’t seem the time, so he kept silent, his eyes on the road, and before too long he was turning off onto a narrow track covered in pine needles. The track wound downhill amongst dark stands of pine trees, and turned out onto a flat, wide area where log cabins nestled in amongst the trees, the lake beyond catching the last rays of the sun in flickers of orange.

Weaver pulled up outside the Nolans’ place, turning off the engine. Lacey had been correct; the other cabins seemed deserted, and she was out of the car before he, nose raised to sniff the pine-scented air. He took the overnight bag from the trunk, handing over hers and picking up a cardboard box of food before nudging the trunk shut. Lacey took the key from him, the heels of her shoes sinking into the mulch as she headed for the steps to the porch. It had started to snow, large flakes drifting slowly to the ground around them, and she shivered as she looked around.

“Bloody freezing,” she said, and unlocked the door.

“Give me a few minutes and I can light a fire,” he said.

The cabin was cold, but at least they were out of the bitter wind. He set the box of food on a small table, then went to the hearth, looking around for kindling.

Lacey left him to it, carrying the box of food he had brought into the small kitchen area. It had a fridge (empty), hotplate and microwave, and cupboards filled with canned goods, dried rice and pasta, and boxes of cereal. There were plates and cups, glasses and cutlery, and she spent a couple of minutes poking around before putting anything perishable into the fridge and heading out of the lounge area into a small, dark corridor. Flicking on the lights, she found four doors, the first leading outside to the back porch. Closing it with a shiver, she tried the next, which revealed a bathroom, complete with tub and shower. Next to it was a bedroom with a wood-burning stove and a king bed covered in a pale blue woollen throw embroidered at the edges with tiny silk flowers. She dropped her bag onto it, peeking at the room next door and finding another, smaller bedroom.

From the sound of it, Weaver was still making the fire, so she tugged his jacket around herself and tried the back door again. The porch was sheltered, two benches set each side of a small table with a view out over the lake,and she stood there for awhile, letting the cold air sink into her and watching her breath huff out in clouds of white as she scanned the quiet landscape. She imagined that in the summer it must be nice to sit there and watch the sunset through the trees as the heat of the day faded and the chirps of birds were replaced by the buzz and whine of insects and the croaking of frogs. Now the woods were cold and silent, the snow soft as feathers against her cheeks as it fell, ice forming in pale fronds at the edges of the lake, where patches of old snow still clung.

“You’ll catch your death out here.”

Weaver’s voice behind her made her jump, and his hands steadied her, warm on her waist.

“It’s kind of pretty,” she said. “In a desolate sort of way. Like it’s all sleeping. It’s colder up here than in the city, huh?”

“Winter was longer than usual this year,” he remarked. “And it clings on in the mountains. I could make you hot cocoa, if you like.”

“You got a shot of bourbon to go in that?”

She sent him a smile over her shoulder, to show she was joking, and he grinned.

“No can do,” he said. “But I don’t mind joining you in sobriety for the next five months, if it would help.”

“Misery loves company?” she teased.

“Marriage is a partnership.”

“I’ll remind you of that when it’s four a.m. and the baby’s crying.”

“Feel free.”

She felt a rush of affection for him, and turned in his arms to twine hers around his neck, his jacket falling from her shoulders. He was still smiling, and his head wobbled a little, as though he was extremely satisfied with something. His body was very warm, and she inched closer, until she was pressed up against him.

“So,” she said. “Married. On honeymoon. Can mean only one thing.”

She grinned wickedly, and his smile grew, his eyes glinting.

“I did say you didn’t have to share a bed with me if you didn’t want to.”

Lacey gave him a flat look.

“You think I bought new underwear for no reason?” she asked. “If I can’t have a drink to celebrate getting hitched, I’m at least expecting an orgasm or two.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

“Good.”

“You have to tell me if you don’t like something, though,” he added. "In fact, tell me if you do like something, too."

“Oh, I will.” She raised her chin. “You can kiss me if you like.”

Weaver’s smile broadened, and he bent his head, his mouth finding hers. It was harder than the kiss he had given her to seal their vows, and she was snatched back to the night they had last shared, to the night when he had laid her down and kissed her like it was his last night on earth. To the night when he had made her see stars. It made her breath catch as he drew back, and she licked her lips, catching the faint taste of him.

“Take me to bed,” she whispered.

If he remembered that she had said the same thing to him four months ago, he didn’t react beyond a faint smile and a nod. He took a step back, holding the door open to let her inside, and closed and locked it behind them. Lacey made her way through to the bedroom, noting that he had lit a fire in the wood-burning stove, flames crackling around the split logs in there. He had turned on the two bedside lamps that sat on the matching nightstands, and a warm glow was filling the room as the heat from the fire began to build. She went to rummage in her bag, taking out a hairbrush and crossing to the little dresser, where she proceeded to take the pins from her hair where Roni had teased her curls into a loose bun.

Weaver closed the door behind him with a faint click, waiting as she brushed out her hair until it shone, reddish highlights gleaming in the lamplight After a moment of standing there, unsure of what to do, he bent to unlace his boots, tugging them off with his socks and setting them next to the door. The wooden floor was cold beneath his bare toes, but the room was starting to warm, and Lacey let the faux fur shawl slip from her shoulders, draping it over the back of the single chair that sat before the dresser. He watched his wife in the mirror as she removed her earrings, and she turned her head a little, sweeping her hair to one side as she glanced over her shoulder at him. My wife. She’s my wife. How the fuck did that happen?

“Unzip me?”

Weaver stepped closer, reaching up to touch her, fingertips brushing the nape of her neck and making her shiver. He drew the zipper down, the sound seeming loud in the silence of the room, and she met his eyes in the mirror as he pushed the dress from her shoulders, gently drawing the cap sleeves down her arms. He pushed the dress over her hips until it pooled on the floor at her feet as she stepped out of it, and let out a tiny growl as her body was revealed to him, pale curves hugged by powder-blue lace, the darker peaks of her nipples showing through. Her legs were perfection, stockings topped with white lace clinging to them, and he watched as she flicked open the buckles to her heeled shoes and kicked them off before straightening up, the light gleaming on her pale skin.

Lacey sucked in a breath as he cupped her gently, and he bent his head to kiss her shoulder, one warm hand sliding down to where her belly curved outwards a little. She could feel the slight roughness on his chin where fresh stubble was starting to grow, a contrast to the softness of his lips. Cold air kissed her skin, raising goosebumps on her arms, and she rubbed her head against his, closing her eyes as she felt his hands slide back up to her shoulders, teasing the thin straps of her bra.

“Take it off,” she said softly.

He kissed her again, hands dropping to the catch at the back, and she waited patiently as he fumbled with it.

“Fucking thing,” he muttered, and Lacey grinned.

“You want me to do it?”

“No, it’s fine, I — bloody hell, woman, does this thing have a combination lock?”

Lacey rolled her eyes, reaching behind to unhook the bra and let it fall, and Weaver grunted.

“Well, I guess you’re used to it.”

“Practice makes perfect,” she said with a grin, turning to face him, and her grin widened as he ran his eyes over her. “Come on, Detective, warm me up, would you?”

He reached up to cup her face, fingers sliding into her hair, and Lacey moaned as their mouths met, his lips warm and soft. She went to work on the buttons of his shirt, plucking them open and sliding her hands inside over his naked chest. He was smooth and firm, just as she remembered, and she tugged him a little closer, Weaver groaning into her mouth as the kiss deepened. He let his hands drop, shrugging out of the shirt and letting it fall, and broke the kiss, his breath coming hard and his chest heaving as he pressed his brow to hers. His hands ran down her back and over her buttocks, tugging her against him so that his belt buckle dug into her belly, and he pulled his mouth from hers to kiss down her neck, sending a shudder of pleasure through her.

He bent to scoop her up in his arms, tossing her onto the bed, and Lacey pushed up on her elbows, watching as he unbuckled his belt and flicked open the buttons of his jeans. He let them fall, and she licked her lips, running her eyes over the lean lines of his arms and chest and the slight softness of his belly, watching the silver chain around his neck glinting in the light. His nipples were hard, dark peaks, and she wanted to run her tongue over them, to taste his skin and breathe him in as he pushed inside her. He crawled onto the bed, and his eyes were dark and deep, searching out hers as he reached for her, his fingers sliding over one cheek and into her hair.

Lacey moaned into his mouth as he laid her down and kissed her hard, his tongue pushing in between her lips, stabbing and stroking, his hands caressing her face, the chain he wore cold against the base of her throat. She let her fingers slide up his back, stroking over hot skin, need for him burning through her, and he shifted his body to the side, one hand sliding down to cup her breast. She groaned and arched upwards, pushing against his palm, and he kissed down her throat, tongue stroking over her skin as his mouth sought her nipple. Lacey gasped as he sucked at her, letting her head roll back against the pillows, and she opened her legs a little, eager for his touch.

Weaver swirled his tongue over her nipple, tasting a faint hint of roses on her skin from the lotion she used. She was breathing hard, her chest heaving, and he kissed lower, lips brushing over the slight curve of her belly where his child was growing. He pressed tender kisses to her, shivering as he felt her fingers stroke through his hair, and slid his hands up her hips to grasp the thin waistband of her lace thong. Lacey lifted her hips a little, allowing him to draw it down, and he let out a low growl as she was revealed to him, the soft cleft between her legs glistening with fluid.

He slipped the thong down her legs and off at her feet, pushing his boxers down over his hips and tossing them aside before kneeling between her legs and sliding his hands up her inner thighs. The lace of her stocking-tops scraped against his palms, and he pushed her thighs apart, bending to run his tongue along the crease at the top of her thigh. Lacey let out a gasp, fingers tightening in his hair, and he nuzzled her with his nose, breathing in the scent of her arousal. His tongue flickered out to catch a taste of her, stroking up between her legs, and she let out a cry, arching her back.

He let out a low groan of pleasure at the taste of her, salt and musk on his lips, and swept his tongue over her flesh, sliding in between her soft folds, the tip just brushing the hard pearl of her clit. Lacey moaned, nails scraping his scalp, and he let his tongue swirl in circles, stroking against her, feeling her move beneath him as he found his rhythm. His hand slid up her inner thigh, one finger slipping through wet flesh to tease her, pushing inside her, and Lacey bent one knee, sliding her foot across his shoulders, letting his mouth reach more of her. He groaned and buried his face in her, finger pushing deep into her soft, wet heat as his tongue swirled and stroked, and he could hear her panting, could feel her tensing beneath him. He licked her, the flat of his tongue scraping her over and over, and Lacey jerked against him with a cry as she came, hot fluid bathing his tongue as he drew out the finger and sucked her pleasure from it. He pushed his tongue inside her, groaning as he licked up every drop, and Lacey stroked his hair with shaking hands, gasping for breath.

Encouraged by her response, he smiled against her skin, pressing kisses to her, lips trailing across to her hip before making his way back up her body. He was almost painfully hard, his balls full and aching, and the urge to get inside her was overwhelming. She was watching him through heavy-lidded eyes, perfect breasts rising and falling with her breath, and his mouth fastened over her nipple as she moaned in pleasure. He sucked at her, tongue circling as his lips tugged at her skin, and he let the nipple slip from his mouth, glistening with saliva as he kissed his way upwards to nip at her earlobe.

Lacey closed her eyes, skin still tingling from her climax, enjoying the feel of his touch and the scent of him drifting into her nose. Their first time had been half-drunk and frenzied, messy and desperate and wonderful, and she was looking forward to taking some time with him, to exploring and reconnecting and learning with him. Weaver shifted, moving to the side of her and sliding one hand down over her belly to slip into the slippery heat between her legs. Lacey moaned, head pushing back against the pillows as he slipped a finger inside her. He pushed in another, sinking up to the knuckles, thumb flickering over her clit, and she let out a cry, pushing against him.

“That’s good!” she whispered. “Oh God, give me more! Make it harder!”

He pushed another finger into her, stretching her, sliding deep, and she moaned at the feel of it, remembering how it felt to have him inside her. The fingers began to thrust in and out, his thumb circling her clit, and she could feel the throb of her pulse as her arousal grew, sensations rising up within her. His tongue teased her ear, his breath hot, sending shivers through her as he pushed and thrust.

“You feel fucking incredible, Lacey!” he whispered. “Let me feel you come! I want it running down my fingers!”

She moaned, pushing against his hand, and he quickened his pace a little, fingers sliding in and out of her, his thumb sending jolts of sensation through her with every pass over her clit. She matched his pace, hips bucking as she rode his hand, her moans increasing in pitch as she felt a wave of pleasure rise up, and she broke with a loud cry, bliss washing over her. He buried his face in her neck with a low groan, lips sucking at her skin as his movements slowed, and then pushed up on one elbow, gently drawing out his fingers with a wet, sucking sound.

Lacey tried to catch her breath as she watched him slip the fingers into his mouth and suck her juices from them, his eyes meeting hers. She licked her lips, glancing down to where he was pressed against her hip in a rigid line, and reached up to touch his face, fingers raking through his hair.

“I want you,” she whispered.

He sent her a brief smile, and shifted position again, one knee lifting over hers until he was lying between her legs. She let her hands run over him, fingers catching in the chain around his neck and trailing over his chest, and his jaw tightened as she brushed his nipples. Weaver kissed along her jaw, mouth finding hers as one hand cradled her head. His skin was damp and sticky with her fluids, his stubble scraping her chin as his lips pushed hers apart, and she let her tongue stroke his, feeling him hard against her thigh. Her heart was thumping, and she shifted her hips a little, trying to capture the head of his cock. He took his weight on one arm and reached between them, hand sliding down between her legs to grasp himself, and she let out a sound of approval as he pushed up against her.

Weaver was lost in the feel of her, the heat of her skin and the sheen of sweat forming between them, the firm roundness of her breasts pressing against his chest. He was pushing against the soft, wet heat between her legs, and Lacey let out a tiny sound of pleasure as he eased inside her, the sensation making him grit his teeth. He let out a long, low groan as he sank into her, flesh like silk against him, and she lifted a knee, letting him push deeper.

“Fuck!” he gasped, and she let out a throaty giggle, eyes sparkling as they met his.

He slipped a hand behind her knee, tugging it higher, thrusting into her as deep as he could go, his balls rubbing against her as he pushed inside, and Lacey wrapped her legs around him, tilting her head until her mouth caught his. A low, bass hum rumbled out of him at the taste of her, and he moved his hips in a slow circle, rubbing against her, sliding in and out. Lacey pulled her mouth free, head rolling back as she moaned.

“Fuck, that’s good!” she breathed. “Harder! Fuck me harder!”

He almost lost his mind, and bit down hard on the inside of his cheeks to try to keep it together. Lacey was arching upwards, thighs gripping him tight and the lace of her stockings scratching pleasantly, and he ran his hands up her arms, grasping her wrists and pushing them into the pillows as he thrust into her. She moaned, writhing, and he ran his tongue up the length of her throat to taste the salt of her sweat. Her moans were growing louder, and he could feel himself nearing his peak, pleasure stealing through him and making his skin tingle. He bit down into her neck, swiping his tongue over the bite and kissing up to her ear.

“Fuck, you feel amazing!” he whispered. “Gotta come, Lacey! Gotta come inside you!”

Lacey could feel him deep within her, thick and rigid, rubbing against her as he thrust, and she held her breath, moving her hips against him, increasing the friction, willing him to come. She was close, she knew it, and she pushed up against him, squeezing him tight as his body trembled on the edge, the muscles of his arms and chest taut and straining. She felt him come, a loud groan bursting from him as his cock pulsed and heat seemed to flood into her, and she cried out as she followed him, pumping her hips, pulling every drop from him. His hands were tight on her wrists, his thrusts fast and shallow, and she let a wave of pleasure drench her, electricity coursing over her skin. He finally slowed and stopped, letting out a deep, shuddering gasp, and released her wrists, letting his head drop.

For a moment there was silence except for their panting, ragged breathing. The room seemed very warm, the heat between them making Lacey feel lazy and contented, and she smiled, reaching up to stroke her fingers through his damp hair as they tried to catch their breath.

“Well,” she murmured. “Married life’s okay so far, I guess.”

He raised his head at that, a lazy grin pulling his mouth up at one corner, and pushed himself up on his elbows a little more so that he could look down at her. She could still feel him inside her, but he was shrinking, and she unwound her legs from around his back, letting him slip from her. He was staring at her with a softness in his expression, a deep affection that inexplicably made her want to push him away, to run and not look back. She licked dry lips, heart thumping, and told herself to calm the fuck down.

Weaver couldn’t remember ever feeling as contented as he did right then. Their bodies were hot and sticky, slippery with sweat and their own fluids. Lacey’s dark curls were spread out on the pillow, her cheeks flushed and her lips swollen from their kisses, and he thought she was the beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life. His entire body was still humming from his orgasm, his limbs heavy and loose, and he reached up to stroke a stray curl from her cheek, leaning in to press his brow to hers. Affection burst up out of him, and he nuzzled her nose with his own.

“Oh, Lacey!” he whispered. “I’m glad you came back. I missed you.”

Lacey seemed to freeze momentarily, and then she pushed at him, turning her head away from his, her mouth twisting.

“Don’t - make it weird,” she muttered.

Blinking in confusion, he rolled to the side and let her slip from the bed, watching as she snatched up his shirt and tugged it on before ducking out of the bedroom. The bathroom door closed with a click of the lock, and he sat there for a moment, trying to work out what he’d done to make her bolt and coming up with very little that made any sense. Shaking his head, he got up, snatching up his boxers and pulling them on, along with his jeans. He really wanted a drink, but he’d promised to lay off the booze with her, and so he figured he’d make that hot cocoa after all. Perhaps it would stop him over-analysing everything.

She was still in the bathroom when he went out, the relative chill of the corridor making him shiver. The lounge was warmer, the fire having settled down into a pleasant blaze, and he put another couple of logs on it to keep it going, poking them into place and making sparks jump and dance. He could hear water running in the bathroom, and after a moment Lacey came through, rubbing lotion into her hands and not quite meeting his eyes.

“You okay?” he asked carefully, and she nodded, shifting from foot to foot.

She seemed to be having some sort of internal conversation with herself, and he waited for her to say what was on her mind. A piece of wood snapped in the fire, and Lacey finally turned on her toes to face him.

“Okay, here’s the thing,” she said. “I - uh - I have a request. It’s - it’s a little thing, but I think I need to tell you about it, okay?”

“Go on,” he said, and she took a deep breath.

“I know you care about me,” she said. “I know this wasn’t what you planned, what you wanted, but I know you care about me. I care about you too, I do. We were friends before anything else. We’re still friends, and - and we’ll be more than that, I know it.”

He gave her a tiny smile.

“Yeah, I do care about you,” he agreed. “And no, maybe this wasn’t what either of us planned when we first met, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make it work, okay? I want to make it work. For both of us. For the baby.”

Lacey smiled a little, and there was a tenderness in her eyes he was not used to seeing. She took a step closer.

“You’re a good man,” she said softly. “And I’m happy to be married to you, Rafe, I am. I’m gonna try to be a good wife, and a good mother, and I want to make you happy, too. I want to make you coffee in the mornings and share your bed and fall asleep beside you after a night of awesome sex, I swear it.”

He sensed that she hadn’t finished, that there was something else she wanted to say. Something she was steeling herself for. He was racking his brains to think what it might be, and she took a deep breath, raising her chin.

“Just - please,” she said. “Please. Don’t ever tell me you love me.”

He could feel his mouth fall open. Whatever he had been expecting her to say, that wasn’t it.

“Okay,” he said, bewildered. “Uh - why not?”

“Does it matter?” she asked. “It’s just words, right?”

He opened and closed his mouth, but didn’t respond, and she nodded.

“Good,” she said, and stepped forward, stretching up on her toes to kiss him before dropping back on her heels with a grin on her face. “You wanna have sex again?”

He stared at her, and shook his head numbly.

“I - uh - think I’ll make that cocoa.”

“Okay, cool.” She ran her hands over his chest, still smiling. “Come back to bed when it’s ready, I’m not done with you yet.”

She winked at him, and took a step back, turning to head for the bedroom, hips swaying as she walked. He watched her go, his heart thumping hard in his chest, and realised that he barely understood a single thing about her.

#fic: things left unsaid #woven lace fic #rumbelle fic #my fic #woven lace #rumbelle #woven lace smut #rather large estate

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