#ikea online store

[nei-ning]

I tried to clean away Christmas stuffs since, well, I haven't been in shape of cleaning at all in months. Now that I finally felt I could do something, I managed perhaps an hour before getting exhausted and incredibly pissed.

Main reason is there's too much stuff! Seriously. Bedroom is a storage room, only one side of the bed being able to sleep on. There's boxes and boxes and bags of stuff. Some going to second hand shop, luckily.

Another reason is the LACK of storage. In whole house there's some cabins in kitchen, 2 narrow cabins (tall) in small hallway, "open" cabin for jackets and hats and shoes (this is full of stuff too) and then in bedroom 5 cabins' row, all tall but narrow. They ALL are so damn full of stuff too!

I know I'm part of the fault since I love Christmas stuff, buying something little each year. Another issue is mom. She is a hoarder more or less. She brings in stuff (most of the times she won't even use those items anyway), never throwing anything away. Sis also has start to leave her stuffs here but her situation I get since her apartment isn't even half of this big as our place. Her stuff is small ones too which can be stored in bags and boxes.

So, I am now, in all seriousness, thinking of buying good sized chest of drawers. We, at least, could put bed sheets, duvet covers and pillow cases, perhaps towels too, in it. Would free some room from those narrow cabins in bedroom

We also, AGAIN, should go through the cabins and just COLDLY throw things away. We've been living here since 2008 and mom still has curtains (PILES of them) which have NEVER seen the light of day...

Sorry about the rant. I'm just honestly so pissed, frustrated, tired, exhausted and hungry.

[soapybutt17]

Lost In Ikea

Summary: John was a patient man, but he had his limits. That includes having to navigate his way around a maze you called IKEA and the impossibility of having to put the bloody bed together—his patience was even shorter after being interupted twice and a broken bed as an aftermath. Character: John Price x F!Wife!Reader. OC Daughter (Katherine Price) Word Count: 1,066 Chapter Warnings: General Chaos. John gets cockblocked twice. Unedited. Lol. Author's Note: for @glitterypirateduck;s O'Captain! Challenge Scenarios:

4. Lost In IKEA 55. Someone gets walked in on (doesn't have to be sexual) 89. Shopping for a new bed.

Masterlist | Series Masterlist || Request are Open || Join My Taglist

The frown has marred John’s face the moment he had placed the car on park and he was greeted by the annoying blue and yellow signage. It still confused him to no end why you insist on buying a bed in IKEA when he could make one himself.

“Are you excited to go to IKEA?” The gentle baby talk lingered besides him as he turned towards you whose attention was solely on your six month old daughter on the car seat.

It was another special occasion for the three of you aside from buying a new bed for them, you had also decided that it was time to invest on some more furniture and decoration for the baby’s bed.

John grumbled under his breath as he reluctantly got out of the car, following his wife as you handed him the sling carrier to carry your daughter. Without another word, he placed his daughter onto the carried on his chest and was greeted with the lovely grumble of his pride and joy.

“You’re the only thing keeping me sane now, Love.” He whispered gently kissing on top of her head before following his wife through the towering blue and yellow entrance.

The sprawling maze of Scandinavian furniture loomed before him like a daunting labyrinth, and he could help but feel a surge of irritation bubbling within him. Why can his wife just allow him to make the bloody bed or more specifically fix the one they had broken last night instead?

“Can’t we just order online like normal people?” John muttered to himself, his voice barely audible over the chatter of shoppers around. He honestly hated being surrounded by people and having to act hyper vigilant because of it.

You turned to him in amusement, but a sympathetic glance lingered, you know all too well his disdain for crowded stores and aimless browsing. But you also know him enough to know he hated online shopping just as much.

“Come on, John. We’re just here for the bed and some decorations for Katherine’s bed.” You tried your best to reassure him.

But as you three continued to venture deeper into the seemingly endless aisles, John’s frustration only intensified. Every turned seemed to lead to yet another showroom, each meticulously staged to showcase the latest in minimalist design. He couldn’t help but scoff at the idea of spending hours wandering through fake living rooms and bedrooms.

"This is ridiculous," John grumbled, scanning the maze of shelves for any sign of escape. "How can anyone enjoy this?"

You chuckled rubbing his bearded cheek before kissing him on the cheeks, knowing there was only one way to placate him and his stormy mood.

“How about this,” You began pulling him towards one of the less populated showrooms. “How about once we’re finished with shopping for the bed and decorations, we can bring Katherine to your parents’ house for a few days so we could handle fixing the bed and redesigning Katherine’s room?” You wiggled your brows knowingly.

John was slowly cracking at the proposition.

“Three days. One day for creating that bloody bed and two days of whatever I want.” He proposed.

“How about a week and we fly your parents and Katherine to Disneyland?” You offered.

“Deal.” John shook your hands sealing the deal and your fate for the weak.

Even with the deal in place, John could not hide his annoyance. Meandering through the store, his annoyance grew with each passing moment especially when you three had found yourself walking in circles for a couple of times. The endless stream of shoppers, the blaring announcements over the intercom, and the overwhelming array of choices left him feeling claustrophobic and irritable.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity and the growing irritable baby on his chest, they had reached the checkout line with their items at hand. John let out a sigh of relief, eager to finally escape the chaos of the store.

“We are never setting foot in an IKEA again.” John muttered to you as soon as you three had exited.

“I hope you keep your word and keep the bed sturdy.” You pointed out knowingly.

John rolled his eyes, not wanting to remember the reason behind the broken bed in the first place.

~

Last Night

“Get out!”

John was close to a coronary at this point. It was the third time tonight that someone had interrupted him with his wife and he was ready to shoot anyone else that would try barging into his bedroom without bloody knocking.

“I told you to lock the bedroom door.” You giggled finding the whole thing amusing. Even with you barely clothed at this point just as much as him, you were barely affected by the fact that Gaz had seen the two of you almost having sex.

John had wished he had never brought the three to his home, he had wished no one knew about their relationship, and he had wished that his wife was not so hospitable as you were right now even after the incident that had now become a common occurrence when everyone was off base.

If only he could turn back time.

“If I had known that those Muppets didn’t know how to knock I would have.” He muttered, the mood now dampened with annoyance of being interrupted.

“Just lock the door and fuck me already.” You giggled, nudging him with your foot and he somehow sprang back to life at that.

Wasting no time, he got up and locked the door before jumping right back into devouring you. You were a giggling mess as he began to strip you of what remained of your clothes.

Even before John could begin, the sound of Soap’s laughter and the crying that came soon after from their daughter had finally sealed the deal that the moment was ruined permanently for the night.

“Bloody fucking hell.” John couldn’t help himself from cursing as you burst into fits of laughter as you stood up and slid on your night robe and opened the door to tend to your crying daughter and attempt to scold Soap from keeping it down.

Slumping his full body into the bed in frustration, the last thing John would have ever expected to happen was for the bed to give out under him further sealing his fate for the night.

“God fucking damn it.”

[urlittlevenicebitchh]

𝟏𝟓𝟎 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠

go for a walk

take a nap

go to a pet store

play just dance

look at grosspo

find a new aesthetic

design your dream wardrobe

read

make a list of movies/tv shows/books you want to watch/read

color

write a short story

make a vision board

journal

make spotify playlists

write a letter to your future self

go to the gym

draw your dream body

have a photoshoot

explore somewhere new

join discord/insta/tumblr groups

writeaprisoner.com

learn a language on duolingo

make a new social media account

find new makeup + hairstyles to practice

watch a childhood movie

declutter your phone

online quizes

at-home spa day

make a time capsule

play roblox or minecraft

make a photo wall

start a manifestation journal

test old pens and markers

rearrange furniture in your room

unsubscribe from emails

make a birthday/holiday wishlist

upcycle old clothes

make a bucket list

clean your car or room

declutter bags

find a new podcast to listen to

update your resume

apply to jobs

paint or draw

practice gratitude

yoga

start a bullet journal

create a 5 year plan

start a free course

discover new music

work on your insta feed

sell clothes online

start a blog

organize a drawer

clean your makeup brushes

learn a new skill

start a youtube channel or podcast

call a family member

build a puzzle

plan your week

paint your nails

learn a new dance

laundry

write a letter to a friend

find a pen pal

write 3 short-term goals

work on current goals

plan your next vacation

explore your neighborhood

do a face mask

organize your closet

find new blogs to follow

do a hair mask

do mirror work

take a shower or bath

pinterest crafts

watch youtube

tan

dust your room

tye dye clothes

facetime friends

make a comfy fort

invite a friend over

go to the mall

amusement park

homework!!

binge a movie/tv series

make slime

scrapbook

sidewalk chalk

have a tea party

make friendship bracelets

thrift

plant a flower

go through old magazines + make collages

hand massage

make your own face scrub

create a skincare routine

research something you've been meaning to learn more about

make popsicles

create a budget

drink water!!!

meal plan

sign up for volunteer work

watch a random documentary

follow new tags on tumblr/insta

hug your pet

organize stationary

watch a ted talk

clean mirrors in your house

reply to old texts

write your own list of things to do

make lists

visit a museum

go to the beach

sign up for a workout class

meditate

tidy your desk

make a warm drink

practice hand lettering

vaccum

5 minute doodles

follow a disney animation lesson (youtube)

watch animal videos

online crossword puzzles

origami

find live shows in your area

play board games

go for a drive

go through junk drawer

pick flowers

start a nature journal

do therapy worksheets from pinterest

make weekend plans

research your family tree

create your own game

make a fruit salad

print coloring worksheets

poetry

ride a bike

play a childhood game (mine's animal jam :) )

search for your spirit animal

paint rocks

random act of kindness

make a busy box

plan a yard sale

start/join a book club (can be virtual :) )

shop ikea online

make room decor

closet fashion show

[kyufessions]

target run

synopsis: shopping with chenle can be exhausting, especially for your first apartment together

genre: fluff + angst with a happy ending

word count: 1.2k

pairings: non-idol, boyfriend! chenle x g.n. reader

a/n: falling down the chenle rabbit hole lately. sigh.

general taglist: @jwnghyuns • @eaudenana • @soobin-chois

One hour in and you were already growing a bit irritated with your boyfriend. Although you loved shopping, shopping with chenle was nearly impossible at times. When it came to where to shop, chenle liked more expensive stores while you like stores like target, ikea, places where everyone automatically thinks of when shopping for clothes or even furniture. Chenle prefers the luxury stores that are long out of the way; normally you would agree to go out of curiosity since you didn't grow up around that type of lifestyle, but today you insisted on taking him to target. And you were already regretting it. Sure, shopping for your first apartment together wasn't going to be easy but oh my gosh you didn't expect so much back and forth.

“How about this desk? I think it’d be great for the at-home office.” you suggested, eyeing a wooden desk with bottom drawers on each side that could fit a bunch of files from both of your jobs. Squatting down, you point out the bottom drawers and how wide the surface seems to be. “I think it could fit under the windowsill perfectly, too. And there seems to be a lot of space-”

“No, not enough space.” he says, not even giving it a glance. His eyes stayed glued to his phone as he scrolled doing whatever he was doing, eyes focused on his screen. “How about this one? It has drawer space on the top and is a two tiered one- each of us can have our own tier on the desk.”

Standing up with a sigh, you peak over his shoulder and look at the expensive desk. It was cherry wood and even though it was really nice, it was also really expensive- almost one thousand for it. “It's nice but-”

“Then let's buy it instead of this thing.” he starts pointing to the desk you were just referencing. “Or any of these,” his fingers starting pointing to each of the desks that target had to offer.

You just rolled your eyes and looked at the other desks, making a mental note of your favorite ones before moving onto the next aisle.

Hour two and Chenle was following behind you, continuing to scroll on his phone and finding bookshelves online he preferred and were more expensive. It's not that chenle liked buying expensive things just because he could, he just thought more expensive = better quality; he's stuck by that all his life.

“Babe, what about this one?” chenle asks, turning his phone to face you.

You turned to look at him with hope, thinking he had found a shelf he actually liked in this store. When you were met with his phone inches from your face, you just groaned and started walking away as you spoke, “you’re unbelieve, chenle.”

He grabs the shopping cart filled with nothing but hangers and bed liners, following behind you. “It's not that serious.”

Turning on your heel, you stop the cart with your hand and lean forward with annoyance steaming off of you. “You’re right, its not. But I just asked for one thing: to pick some furniture out at target. That's all I wanted. And you can’t even agree with me on one thing for our first apartment. It might not seem important right now, but how you are reacting now could be a potential prediction of the future when it comes to other situations-”

“Woah woah, y/n.” chenle interrupted, quickly being interrupted himself.

“And stop interrupting me, I hate that. Just,” pausing, you took a quick harsh breath in. “Just let me be by myself for a bit.”

Hour three and you sat at the starbucks by yourself, reading a book you bought in the entertainment section just to pass the time. Normally you don't tend to get upset by such things, but with your last semester creeping up, your job overworking you before the semester starts, and this move-in with your long time boyfriend it’s all starting to pile on top of each other and mix together. You had asked chenle for one thing: to pick out some furniture from target. Not all, of course. But some stuff for the second bedroom in your apartment you were going to turn into an at home office for you both to use when needed. Chenle was hesitant at first but after explaining it would only be for that one room, he agreed.

In your relationship with him, everything was always equal- everything was quite lovely. Not in the past three years have you ever had a huge argument like this, especially in public. Communication has always been you and chenle’s strongest suit, so arguments were minimal and worked out right away.

When the forty minute mark almost hit, chenle got in line at the starbucks and ordered himself a refresher and bought you your favorite flavored cake pop. once he retrieved both, he sat down across from you as he slid the cake pop in your direction. Startled, you looked up cautiously and saw your boyfriend with a shy grin- unsure of how to start the conversation. For a few seconds you just stare at one another, not a word being said or any specific facial expressions being shared.

“I’m sorry.” was all you heard from him as you took the cake pop out of the bag. looking up, you motioned for him to continue as you took a bite from the ear of the so-called ‘bee’. he cleared his throat, pushing back his hair out of nervousness. “I just like giving you what you didn’t have growing up; I want to give you everything I'm able to.”

Nodding, you quickly swallow a small piece of your cake pop before responding. “I appreciate the chenle, but i still feel bad when you pay for things. And now that I have a somewhat decent paying job, I want to pay you back for everything you've done for me these past three years.” gradually reaching for his hand, you begin rubbing small circles into the back of it. Neither of you were one for any extent of PDA, but in this moment it just felt right to do. “I appreciate you looking out for me, baby. But next time can you explain that to me instead of being an asshole? I was about to fight you in the home goods aisle of target of all places. I, unfortunately, do not want to be known as the couple who fought in the middle of the target.”

Chenle chuckles, his heart warming smile causing your heart to skip a beat. Three years and you never got sick of seeing it- you hope to see that smile for the rest of your life. “What couple do you want to be known as?” He follows you to the garbage and grabs your book, putting it in the top part of the shopping cart he had with him.

Playfully thinking as you throw your garbage away and start walking towards the forbidden home goods section, you turn to him with a small grin. “The annoying, crazy couple with three cats and two dogs.”

He nods, following behind you with the cart and that same smile. “I'd like that.”

[coke-zero888]

Things to do instead of eating

-deep clean your room

-go on a walk

-do a short workout

-take a nap

-drink water/coffee/green tea

-text your friends

-read a book

-cuddle with your pet

-DIY like making slime/crochet/sewing/drawing/ make clothes

-write a short story

-look at tumblr

-do your skincare or hair care

-watch a TV show

-don't go into the kitchen whatever you do

-go online shopping or in store

-watch mukbangs or 10.000kcal challenge's

-make a pinterest board

-zone out and stare into space

-get a job/second job

-plan an realistic vacation or dream vacation

-go to IKEA (top entertainment)

-make an edit of your celeb crush

-make playlist with music for different occasions

-question your sexuality

-rethink your existence

-smoke a cigarette

-ponder

-brush your teeth

-wash you face/shower or bathe

-do you nails

-video/board games

-do homework

-make handwriting prettier

- online shopping (look at clothing you think you will look good in when you loose weight )

-make a book with everyone who you think is hot (celebrity crushes)

-pierce your ears

- wash your sheets

Lmk if you guys want more 💗⭐️

[hoedamn-eron]

baby, please - part 14

You and Santiago go furniture shopping for his apartment. You don't expect to be invited to a Halloween party.

Warnings: Mentions of being sick, so emetophobia warning. Unrequited feelings (👀👀). Some swearing. Teasing between Frankie and Santi, standard bro's. Lightly proofread so definitely some mistakes in here. Word count: 3,616 F!Reader, no use of Y/N.

I'm BAAAAAACK. Sorry it took so long to get this out. Ideally I wanted it out for before Halloween but here we are, nearly at Christmas. My bad!

Also this feels just...a little stale to me. I tried re-writing it and going in a different direction but it just wouldn't fall into place the way I wanted it to. But I think that might be a me problem, and I will probably look at it differently once I'm back into the swing of things.

And I know we've already done a shopping trip with Santiago but I need it for the plot, okay?

Part 13 ● Series Masterlist ● Part 15

He came again with the truck. 

Now was the day to really ask about the car, right? You were twenty-four weeks pregnant; he needed a car. There was no room for two babies in this truck. Oh, but you don’t want to ask him, it was rude, it was up to him if he got a car or not. And honestly, the truck was probably the best thing for today, since he’s planning on buying an entire nursery, twice. 

No, he needed a car. You’ll gently ask him today. 

Santi had finally cleared out his spare room, and he and Frankie had deep cleaned it and gave it a new coat of paint, and it was now ready to be filled with furniture. He had told you that you weren’t allowed to go in the room until the babies were born as there was a small gender thing in there and he didn’t want to spoil it for you. 

“I’ve already looked online with Frankie and his wife, and I have an idea on what I want to get,” Santi said to you as you set off from your apartment. 

“You could have ordered it online,” you say. “It’ll be easier for you.” 

Santi shook his head. “Nah, I like to see the stuff before I buy it. Also, I need your input.” 

You nod and hold back your joke about him being an ‘old man’. You weren’t sure why he needed your input, but you weren’t complaining about spending a day with Santi. Your cheeks warm as you think back on the last few weeks. You hadn’t brought up the fact that you were probably (definitely), stupidly in love with him, and you weren’t going to. You were embarrassed enough that you were practically getting off every night to the thought of him. 

Damn your hormones. 

“How’s your morning sickness?” Santi asked as he focused on the road. 

“Oh, uh…nearly gone, actually,” you say. “It’s just once or twice a day now, or if I drink orange juice. Not sure why they’ve decided now to hate orange juice.” 

He nods at you before smiling. “Good. I’m glad. I know it was getting you down.” 

You bite your lip to stop yourself smiling like a love-struck teenager. “Yeah, it was.” 

You doze against the window of his truck until you arrive to Ikea. As you pull into the busy parking lot, you couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and nervousness about the day ahead. It was more than just a furniture shopping trip; it was a glimpse into the future of your babies’ life with Santi, and the thought of that made your heart race. 

Santi parked up as close as he could to the entrance and helped you out of the truck (you will mention the car today). You wobble a little as your centre of gravity was starting to work against you, but you steady yourself by holding onto Santi’s arm for a second before letting go, your cheeks burning. You don’t look at him as you both walk into the Ikea, and you grab a cart before Santi takes it off you. 

“I have to push a double stroller soon, Santi,” you say, grinning at the look on his face. “I’m able to push a cart.” 

With that, you make your way into the large store before he could say anything, Santi soon following you. 

A feeling of togetherness washes over you as you pause every now and then and talk to him about your new house, how it’s big enough for you to fill with furniture. The excitement in your eyes was contagious as Santi navigated you both through the maze of furniture displays, joining in with how the kids would be able to play in the back yard with all the space you’ll have. Your heart swells at the image. 

You’d been imagining two boys, with your eyes and Santiago’s hair. Tanned skin and your nose, and you could see him taking them to baseball games in those jerseys he bought when you both went shopping. 

But sometimes you saw two girls, taking after their father in everything. Down to the curly hair and dark eyes and dressed in those Metallica shirts he was still fawning over. He’d probably get them all matching caps. 

“I could get them a swing set,” you say. “I loved the swing set at my grandma’s house.” 

“Yeah, corazón, I think they would like that.” 

“And a pool, maybe. Not a big one, but a decent sized one.” 

“You can do all’a that now with your house,” Santi says as you both go deeper in the Ikea. Eventually, he does take the cart from you, and you let him with no complaints. 

The first stop should have been the nursery section, but you stop in the toy section. You know, you know, you have bought enough toys for your kids, and Gabrielle has donated enough to you too. But you ‘don’t have this bear,’ or ‘that dinosaur,’ and you throw them in the cart. You grin at Santi as he shakes his head at you, smiling fondly. After a few more additions to the cart (where Santi had to physically pull you away), you finally make it to the nursery section. 

As you walked through carefully arranged cribs, changing tables, and adorable baby bedding sets, Santi's enthusiasm was evident. It was obvious he had done his research, and you watched him with probably heart eyes as he discussed the pros and cons of different options with you, valuing your opinion on every detail whenever he asked you. 

"I was thinking something like this crib," he said, pointing to a sleek, white crib with some wooden accents and a drawer underneath. "What do you think? Is it too minimalist?" 

You shrug, bending to look at the label, checking out the dimensions. “It looks good. But yeah, it looks a little plain. Does it match the nursery at your place?” 

“It does,” he says. He looked around. “But everything does, really. Everything’s so…white.” 

You let out a giggle as you look around too. “There is a lot of white. I suppose it’s gender neutral.” 

“Suppose I could get some sheets to bring in some colour,” Santi mumbled. He looks at you with a grin. “It is a nice crib.” 

“And it turns into a toddler bed for when the time comes,” you say, nodding at the product information. 

“It has a matching chest of drawers,” said Santi, taking a few steps away from you and to the rest of the furniture. “And changing unit.” 

“Ooh,” you say, following him quickly and taking a look. “Oh, I like the chest of drawers.” 

“Yeah? Should I get them then?” Santi asked you. 

“It’s up to you, Santi, these will be in your apartment, not mine. If you like them and you think they’ll go well in the room, then you should get them.” 

You back and forth with him over other pieces of furniture, like whether he should get a rug (“I think it’ll bring the room together nicely.”), or a chair in their room for feeds (“It would make it easier but I’ll probably end up on the couch anyway.”), and after a while, the room started taking shape in your mind as Santiago put more things in the cart. From what you could gather, the room had a nice sage green somewhere, and Santi had chosen a blend of soft pastels and natural wood tones; you had the sneaky suspicion it may be jungle themed, based off of some of the rugs he was looking at. 

You almost laughed. You could take Santiago out of the jungle, but you couldn’t take the jungle out of Santiago. 

As you strolled through Ikea, you couldn't help but sneak occasional glances at Santi, admiring his dedication to making the space – his space – absolutely perfect for your babies. The way he was talking about the future with them with so such excitement and care warmed your heart, and you couldn't ignore the feelings growing inside of you. You were in love with this man. 

Foolishly and despairingly in love. 

“Want some lunch after this?” Santiago asked you an hour later, as you strolled through the warehouse, picking up the flat packed boxes of furniture that he’d chosen. 

You nodded. “Yeah, I could eat.” 

“What’re you craving?” Santi asked, grunting as he pushed another flatpack box onto the cart. 

“Nothing in particular,” you say, shrugging nonchalantly as your eyes roamed over him. “I’ll have whatever you want to have.” 

“Italian? I could go for a pizza.” 

You nod, trying not to obviously stare and get distracted by the way the muscles in his arms move as he loads up the cart. “Sure.” 

“We can stop by my place first, get this stuff to my apartment.” 

You give him a look, raising your eyebrows pointedly at him. His knees. “Santi…” 

He was already shaking his head. “I’ve already asked Frankie to stop by, he’s gonna help out.” 

Your breath hitched at the thought of meeting Frankie. You don’t know why you suddenly felt so nervous, you were going to have to meet him sooner or later; you were pretty sure Santi was going to ask if he could make Frankie Godfather of the babies (of course you’d say yes, why wouldn’t you?). 

“You don’t need to be nervous,” Santi said, chuckling, shaking his head lightly. 

“I’m not nervous,” you immediately say, lying through your teeth. And it’s obvious too. 

“Your face says otherwise,” Santi replies, grunting as he places the last flatpack on the cart. You internally curse yourself; you should have gotten a second one. “He doesn’t bite. He’s soft.” 

“Nothing wrong with being soft,” you quip back, but Santi doesn’t reply. He just pulls the cart out of your reach, and you make your way to the check out. 

After paying (you wince at the price – you offer to pay half, but Santi downright refuses) you make your way back to his truck, where an employee (practically a kid, he looked no older than nineteen, but he was built like a tank) had offered to help load. You, again, attempted not to stare at Santi as you tried not to feel so useless, but every time you reached for a box, even just a small one, Santi quickly shot you down. 

“You’re carrying twins, you will hurt yourself.” 

“I’m pregnant, not elderly!” 

Your protesting falls on deaf ears, and Santi profusely thanks the employee for the help and hands the kid a tip. Santi helps you climb into the truck before making his way back to the driver’s side, and sends a quick text to Frankie, you assume telling him that you were on the way back to Santiago’s place. 

“Want to get Carmelo’s?” Santi asked as he pulled out of the parking space. 

You pull a face. “Their pizzas are greasy.” 

Santi laughed as he looked in his mirrors and drove out of the lot. “That’s what makes them great.” 

“Yeah, ‘great’ at giving you heart disease.” 

“Okay, how about Solorzano's?” 

You go quiet and think about it, before nodding. You’d ordered in with them before, and their garlic knots were to die for. Your mouth practically started watering at the thought of them. Maybe you don’t need a pizza, maybe you could just order appetisers, like the macaroni and cheese wedges, the mozzarella sticks, oh, maybe their chicken wings. 

Yep, Solorzano's was good. 

“Yeah, that’s fine, let’s do that,” you say. 

You arrive back at Santi’s after telling him all about the food you were going to get, him laughing and telling you that you were hardcore ‘playing into the pregnant lady trope’. You pretended to take offence, telling him fact that you were just appreciating good food, that he suggested, whether you were pregnant or not. 

“All right, fair,” he’d said, amused. 

You try not to fawn at his laugh, but you couldn’t help it. You sighed, hopefully thinking Santi took it that you were happy that he agreed with you over your food choices. 

You soon pull up to his apartment and park in his designated spot, only for a dark blue car to pull up minutes after you arrived. Your eyes widen a little as you see the infamous Francisco Morales climb out of his car and approach you both from his place parked behind Santi. He was shorter than he looked in the video, but still taller than Santi. His dark, tousled hair was hidden behind a cap, and it gave him a rugged charm, and there's something about the lines on his face that makes him look like he's seen it all but is still totally approachable. You catch a glimpse of some scars on his tanned arms, on show as the sleeves of his dark shirt were pushed up to his elbows, and it only added to the sense that this guy has some serious stories to share. 

“Hey, Pope!” 

“How’s it going, Fish?” Santi asked, giving Frankie a smile as they hug, patting each other on the back in a way that you would expect brothers to do. The nicknames confused you; Santi had never referred to himself as ‘Pope’, nor Frankie as ‘Fish’. “Could have tidied yourself up a bit.” Santi jokes, motioning to Frankie’s cap and old battered jacket. 

“I’m doing you a favour, hermano, watch your mouth. Sarah asked me to drop this off for you too,” Frankie said, holding up a paper bag before looking at you and pointing at you with a good-natured expression on his face. “You are not to look in that bag, because it is a surprise.” 

Your eyes widened for a fraction before you nodded. “Okay, yeah...noted.” 

“Are you going to introduce us, teo, or did the news of twins and the financial recovery make you forget basic manners and social introductions?” 

Santi gave Frankie the bird before introducing you both. 

“It’s nice to meet you,” you say, shaking his hand as he offered it to you. 

“It’s nice to put a face to the name,” Frankie says, letting go of your hand and taking a look at the bed of the truck, full of the furniture Santi had bought. He nodded towards it as he looked at Santi. “What did you get?” 

“Everything, it seems,” you joke. 

Frankie gave you a grin before turning back to Santi. “When are you gonna get a car, feo? Can’t fit car seats in this thing.” 

You almost laughed in relief. Now you didn’t have to ask and feel like you were intruding. 

“I’m working on it, tu idiota,” Santi replied, opening the bed of the truck. “Now help me with these boxes, you can’t expect me and my knees to do all the hard work. Don’t even think about it.” 

You hold your hands up in surrender at Santi’s firm gaze, landing on you as you had reached for a box. 

Santi hands you his keys and you go up to his apartment to unlock the door, Santi and Frankie following you up moments later, carrying boxes up with them, huffing and puffing together. You grin as you hear Santi grumble that they ‘felt heavier than they did at Ikea’, and you make your way down to get some of the lighter things. You grab the rug that Santi chose, along with the soft toys you’d picked out. 

You eye the paper bag Frankie bought, that was sat in the bed of the truck, the curiosity to take a peek inside itching at your fingertips. You look around quickly before looking at the bag before you finally shake your head. Frankie said it was a surprise, something Santi might have organised, so you shouldn’t. You should leave it alone. 

“You better not look in that.” 

You smirk before looking at Santi, who was giving you an amused look. “I was thinking about it. But I won’t.” 

Santi rolled his eyes in amusement as he and Frankie both grab another box. You grab one last toy before you follow them up the stairs and into Santi’s living room, placing the stuff on the couch. You go back to the truck, taking the last of the small things before sitting back and watching the two men bring back the last of the flatpack boxes. Soon, Santi’s living room was representing the Ikea warehouse with how many boxes were littered around everywhere. You spotted the paper bag sitting on the small dining room table by the open plan kitchen. 

Again, you choose to let it go. 

You step outside, closing and locking the apartment. You see Santi and Frankie chatting by the truck, the bed now closed, and you make your way over. You hear Santi thanking Frankie for the help with the furniture. 

“Don’t thank me yet, you still need help putting that shit together,” Frankie replied. “You’ll probably need all the guys for that.” 

Santi snorted. “Would love to see Benny try to put together a crib...or two.” 

“Well, he put Sofía’s together,” Frankie said. 

Santi went quiet at that, and the two stared at each other. You weren’t sure what was happening, but it was as though they were having a private conversation with each other, without having to say anything. You go quiet, letting them have their telepathic conversation, until you cleared your throat, breaking the awkward silence. “Would you like to join us for lunch, Frankie?” 

After a few more moments, Frankie turns from Santi and gives you a small smile. “I would love to, but it’s Sofía’s birthday next month, and Sarah’s got me running around trying to get the stuff for it and she has me planning this Halloween party in a couple of days.” 

“The guys say they’re still going for Halloween?” Santi asked, crossing his arms over his chest. It was as if his and Frankie’s interaction hadn’t happened. You put a pin in it for now. 

“Benny said he’s still coming, Ironhead’s still unsure, since Claire’s putting a bit of pressure on him to make some solid decisions on the wedding.” Frankie chuckled before looking at you. “You should come,” he suddenly said to you. “I know it’s a bit last minute and it’s mostly for kids, but it should be fun.” 

Your brain stops for a moment, not realising Frankie was suddenly talking to you. You blink at him for a moment before shaking your head. “Oh! Uh, yeah, I’ll definitely think about it. I was gonna go with my friend and her kids trick or treating – “ 

Frankie cuts you off with a wave of his hand. “Bring them along, seriously. Sarah loves meeting new people, she’s been talking my ear off about when Pope was finally going to introduce you to everyone.” 

“Frankie,” Santi muttered firmly, a light blush coming to his cheeks, causing you to giggle. 

You nod at Frankie. “Didn’t realise I was such an interesting topic.” 

“Are you kidding? You managed to get Santiago Garcia to slow down and think about his future for once,” Frankie said, ignoring Santi’s very obvious glare. 

You grin. “I’ll talk to my friend, see if she wants to join.” 

“Great. You’re coming though, right hermano?” 

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Santi replied. “Can’t disappoint Sofía.” 

You feel your chest warm and your heart swell with the way he looks as he talks about his niece, how he was so enamoured with her. You wonder how he would talk about your kids and how he would act with them. You find your eyes quickly swell with years, and you look away from the two men quickly, wiping at them. 

Damn hormones. 

“Great, just let me know plans, yeah?” Frankie said, nodding at you both. “No pressure, though, if you can’t make it.” 

You nod. “No worries, I'll let you know. Or I’ll get Santi to tell you, anyway.” 

“Again, it was nice to finally meet you,” Frankie said, shaking your hand again. “I’ll text you later, hermano.” 

“See ya, Fish,” Santi replied, giving Frankie a quick hug before the two of you watch him leave. You both wave as he drives away. 

“So,” you say after a few moments, handing Santi’s keys back over to him. “What’s with the nicknames?” 

“Our call signs,” Santi said, taking the keys. “Just stuck afterwards.” 

“Oh, right. Why is yours Pope?”

Santi was silent for a moment before he pulled a face, shaking his head. “It doesn’t matter, I think it was something stupid Benny said.” 

You don’t believe him, but you won’t push. He was always a little closed off about his days in the army. “Okay. So, ready for lunch?” 

“Sure...yeah,” he answers, before opening the truck door for you. He hesitates again for a moment as you turn to climb in, before he blurts out, “You don’t have to come to the party.” 

You look at Santi, seeing his unsure face looking at you. “Why?” 

“Don’t want you to feel obligated,” he says. 

You study him for a moment, noticing his stance. He seemed a little out of sorts, nervous almost. You give him a reassuring look. “I want to go. It’ll be fun.” Then you give him a teasing smirk. “And besides, I’d miss out on hearing all the embarrassing stories about you from your friends! No way am I missing this.” 

You see his shoulders relax a little at your words before he rolls his eyes. “Funny. Get in the truck.” 

“You know, if you got a car, I wouldn’t struggle so much getting in and out of this thing.” 

“I fucking knew the truck bothered you.”

• tu idiota - you asshole • feo - ugly

Tagged - @khonsulockley, @bluenredndeath, @superficialfeelings, @othersideoftheparadise, @beezusvreeland

[777moneymakersstuff]

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ ERLING HAALAND imagine ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

˚ ͙۪۪̥◌ ┊e.haaland x f! reader

☄︎⋆ ༘ dates with erling . . .

⇢ ˗ˏˋ ONLINE DATES ࿐ྂ

• you & erling are in a long-distance relationship, so these kinds of dates are really common. it’s also is they way your relationship started, so it means a lot of the two to you.

• maybe the others find this kind of date pretty boring because how you’re supposed to spend a quality time together through the facetime, where you can’t even see each other in real life. but you two find it always exciting. every time the dates looks different, sometime you are just talking for a few hours without doing anything else, and sometime you just treat this video call like a non-existing youtube channel.

• sometimes it’s quite difficult to manage time or space to organise this kind of date. first of all, you two are super busy with different stuff, you are a student who needs to study a lot, and he is, as we all know a football player, who needs to train almost every day. and second of all, you live in a dorm with loud roommates, so very often you weren’t alone in the room, which was annoying when it came to the "date".

• but either way, this kind of date is one of your favourite.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ IKEA DATES ࿐ྂ

• let’s be honest, who doesn’t like ikea? you two are definitely in love with this place, especially when it comes to spontaneous dates or when you don’t have any ideas where to go. you chose this furniture shop.

• but it isn’t just a boring furniture store, it’s a whole mood. first you two would spend time pretending that this fake room is really your house, then like always, you would toke some weird but funny photos there. and the last but definitely not the least direction of your ikea tour is their famous bar. when you are two in england, you have your usuals, but more fun is when you have the chance to visit ikea in a different country, because then you can taste different food.

• it may sound simple, but it’s always a great experience, mostly because you can be together.

⇢ ˗ˏˋ HOME DATES ࿐ྂ

• dates at home are definitely your favourite. you have so many reasons why it’s your fav, but the biggest plus is the privacy. you always accepted that erling was popular, but that didn’t mean that you liked being on the spotlight; actually, you hated it. you liked that you were a private person and anonymous to the media. you didn’t want to change that. so that’s why you appreciate every second alone with erling.

• on these dates you do everything, starting with eating your comfort food while watching some funny stuff on the internet. it’s therapeutic for both of you to just relax with each other do things you like.

• when you have much energy to spend, you like to do some random stuff, like dancing to your favourite playlist or doing a little karaoke. It’s all about the experience and having a good time together.

❛ ━━･❪ the end ❫ ･━━ ❜

hope you liked it!! i think it’s cute ¿headcanons? yeah, let me know how you liked it!!

[yuga2000]

I want a blåhaj so bad, but I don't want to order it online because I want the experience of picking out my own blåhaj in store, but there's no IKEAs around me

[mr-ribbit]

this is probably the best place to ask: yall does ikea usually have blahaj just in stock at the store or should I try to order online if I don't wanna drive to a slightly out of the way ikea and not find one?

[stele3]

GUYS you have no idea how much I want this goat. If anyone out there in the continental US is going to Ikea sometime soon, can you please get two of these for me?? It's already sold out at my local store and it's not available online. I will Venmo you money and pay for shipping just please get me this goat.

[all-hallows-street]

Guess whose financial mistake arrived early...

I will give more in depth looks later (I have to work to afford such questionable purchases), but a quick individual review of what I got:

Neil Demon Plushy

Not a plush toys collector at all; my closest reference is the IKEA shark. He is heavier than he looks, very sturdy (?) if that makes sense. Doesn't seem like he will deform any time soon. The details are adorable and I don't see any glaring defects.

All Saints Street Hoodie

Surprisingly large for me. I was worried they only had one size made for the Chinese market. I'm 1.7m (5 foot 7) tall for reference and this is still a bit too big for me. Will likely get too small for anyone over 6 feet tall. The quality is good! Very soft. Velvet interior. I don't know much about shirt stamping, but since it's not in the fabric I'm guessing the stamp might start to crack after multiple washes.

All Saints Street Vol. 1-3 Collection

Now this is something I can talk about more. The sleeve was unfortunately damaged in shipping and the books have very minor damage in the spine and vol 2 has a minor case of dog ears. The quality of the paper is great! It is color paper, not glossy one you see in comic book issues, but it's thicker than the black and white you see in manga. Would still make sure to have a dehumidifier if your storing place is not dry. I've already experienced book wrapping and it's painful.

Each volume contains around 80 chapters with one extra chapter not on bilibili. They also contain a message from Lingzi and WSJ's editor, plus all character bios even for ones we never got one (Enrique, Eduardo ans Anthony). And if a Weibo post is correct some might have been updated from the ones online (Axel grew 1 cm in the book bio).

Of course later I'll look over everything to see if there are any significan changes to make a note of. Also it came with this lol.

I have the Alice in Wonderland art somewhere, I'll post it later as well.

All Saints Street Anniversary Playing Cards

The playing card decks from the 6th and the 7th anniversary. As you can see I haven't opened the 7th, but I got the 6th a while ago on AliExpress so I expect them to be similar.

This is something else I can review more in depth, coming from a family that loves playing poker. The quality of the prints is beautiful, however I keep them in the box all the time because the quality of the cards itself is not good!

The cards feel like store bought cardboard; good playing cards are made out of cardboard, but this deck doesn't have the same treatment. They are so fragile, even by just handling them to get the face cards I've already made slight damage to the edges. I wouldn't play any game with them, much less shuffle them. I don't even want to imagine how much they will bend. Also the Crystal card came with damage (the small white spot on the edge) from the store. Pain.

Anyways. I'll frame the face cards because they are so pretty and I want to keep them in the best condition... I don't know what I will do with the rest of the 36 cards. Maybe practice magic tricks? Lol. Before all this I've been working on how to scan all the face cards and post them, but it's been more difficult than expected. If you have ever tried to digitize prints you will know. Once I have them, I'll post them alongside high quality scans.

When it comes to my review of PandaBuy... On one hand it was an excellent service and experience. On the other... I don't even want to reveal how much the shipping was. I wouldn't recommend anyone else do it unless you are stupid with your money (like me), even then

I would advice to do your own research. PandaBuy and all agents to buy from China are definitely better when you buy in bulk. My package was 'only' 2kg. Many people buy over 10kg to make it worth it. I'm already committed so if new volumes come out I will buy them, and maybe also get counterfeit Gucci shoes or something since that's what most people use this agents for...

That's all for now. Feel free to reply or send any questions you have.

[smute]

i always get the craziest ads on pinterest so ive decided to collect a few of my favorites.

i basickly only use it to look at architecture and design stuff these days so some of it makes cents based on my interests i guess? like a 7000€ oven for example. or a grill for the same price. or how about some premium front panels fitted to your ikea kitchen that cost more than the entire rest of your belongings combined?

like sure. yeah. algo sees me algo knows me. but it's so fascinating! like i always wonder why these guys even advertise online. and if whatever algorithm pinterest has really doesn't know that i'm just a broke student looking for inspiration for their sims builds. i mean by far the most common thing i see is designer furniture that's so exclusive you cant find prices for it anywhere. why would they advertise on pinterest AT ALL? dont you have a flagship pop-up store in st moritz or something? it's weird to think that there are people on pinterest in that sort of income bracket – the same pinterest where i collect my budget meal ideas and diy hacks 🤨

it gets weirder though. 1100€ whiteboard (324€ without the stand (serious architect's office vibes here)). 200€ doormat. (A DOORMAT!) and that last one is a 185€ brass light switch... 🫡

christmassy penhaligon's ads and 50€ underpance seem downright reasonable in comparison. except the pance guys also sell 15€ laundry the turgid in 240 ml bottles. that's 8 freedom ounces btw

[obey-me-disaster]

Can the obey me brothers survive SCP-3008 (the infinite ikea, but can they even let alone survive a normal ikea /j)

These bitches definitely can't survive in a normal Ikea /j

They have a pretty good chance of surviving SCP-3008. No one is dying this time.

For those of you who want to read more about the SCP here is a link

More important question. Does Devildom has its own version of Ikea?? How would it even be called?? Devilikea? Demonkea?

The demon brothers vs SCP-3008

A/N:For those of you who don't know what SCP-3008 is. It's basically an infinite Ikea that is extremely hard to get out of. There are also monsters under the name of SCP 3008-2 which are basically humanoid monsters, which are either too short/tall with no face and long limbs that get agressive during the night.

Lucifer

He just wanted to go buy furniture to replace the one destroyed by his brothers but the store doesn't seem to end.

It doesn't take much for him to realize something is deeply wrong with the store and he tries to go find an exit.

He tries to go talk with some worker only to come face to face with SCP 3008-2. Even if the monster tries to attack him, it will be killed rather quickly.

Really, the only hard thing to do is finding the exit. The monsters tend to leave him alone as they are too scared to approach him.

I wouldn't be surprised if he started asking 'nicely' where the exit is. All in all it takes him 2 days to get out. Also before reaching the exit he also took all the furniture that he came for in the first place.

A/N: Reading all of this makes me realize that it might not be so weird if this happens in Devildom...for all we know maybe that's how stores function in there...

Mammon

He had a big idea for a new scheme but he needed to buy some thing for it to work and long story short he ended up in the infinite Ikea.

It took him a good while to notice that anything was wrong really. Even during the night, when the SCPs 3008-2 were moving he didn't think something was wrong. When the creatures would start talking to him he would run thinking they were some dept collectors.

He does finally realize what is actually happening and gets the brilliant to just take home with him as much stuff as he can then sell it on the internet. The store has infinite supplies so it's not like it will be missing some pieces of furniture.

It does take him about a week or two to get out just because he went too far into the infinite Ikea. If he had his crow familiars with him he would have been out in 3 days top.

He didn't leave with as much stuff to sell as he liked but he refuses to go back. He barges into MC's room to demand that they sleep together for a while...not because he has nightmares of that place or anything.

Leviathan

He needed a new shelf for his manga collection and it just so happened that he couldn't find it online anymore so he had to go out and buy it himself.

He was focused on finding the perfect shelf that he didn't realize that night fell and SCP 3008-2 came out and it took him a great while to figure out something was wrong.

He was avoinding them the way people avoid Solomon's cooking. The weird bodies proportions? He just thought that's what normies look like. The faces with features on them? Please, he was trying to avoid having to talk with people so badly that he didn't even look at their faces.

The only reason he figured out things was because he couldn't log into his games for his daily login. That's when panic started to set in. He spent a few hours just having a crisis and crying.

After he actually got motivated to get home he used all his experience as an admiral and the one from video games. When he stayed and thought about it, the whole situation reminded him of the 'The one time I got stuck into a supermarket full of monsters' anime.

He doesn't want to even think of all the time it took him to get out...all the lost login bonuses, all the animes he had to caught up on. His social battery was empty too. Once he got home he didn't leave his room for a month.

Satan

He needed even more shelves for his books and maybe some stuff for cats...Lucifer doesn't need to find out about the second reason tho.

He honestly noticed that something was wrong with the place pretty fast but he couldn't exactly figured out at first.

It wasn't until night came that things started to make sense and he realized what his predicament was.

He went full on detective/researcher mode. He wanted to know what those creatures were they are SCPs Satan..

He somehow stumbles across other people that have been trapped there for a while and starts questioning them about the place.

It takes 5 days to come and he brings some of the other people too with him.

With how smart he is you would think he wouldn't ask MC 'Is this how all shops in the human world are?' but he does! When MC tells him no he is both dissapointed and relieved.

Asmodeus

Went in to buy new mirrors cause the ones he has are no longer good enough for his tastes clearly not because Mammon and Levi broke them

He got distracted by all the mirrors and the possible cute furniture he could use for his room. You can never have too many fluffy pillows and soft blankets!

The only reason he notices anything is amiss is when all the lights go out. Even when SCPs 3008-2 come out to get him, he thinks those are just some of his fans that came to see him.

His charm even works on the creatures so he is really in no danger. He even makes them carry his stuff and show him the exit.

He gets out of there the fastest and even gets more stuff than he came for!

Beelzebub

Came to replace some of the furnite he ate back at the House of Lamentetion

SCP-3008 besides being an infinite Ikea also has infinite food so it takes Beel quite a while to notice that anything is wrong. Even when SCP 3008-2 tries to attack him he just eats them.

He would have been way more concerned if any of his brothers were with him but since he is alone he just chills around there. He eats until he had his fill and then goes on to take what he needs.

He accidentally stumbles across some people that have been stuck in there for a while and decides to help them get out.

Seeing Beel easily beating and eating SCP 3008-2 makes them question if they choose the right person to follow

It takes him around a week to get out but he would have been so much faster if he decided not to help anyone.

Belphegor

Goes there to buy himself new pillows, blankets, bed mattress and so on.

He tries to test which one is better and ends up falling asleep.

SCP 3008-2 kind of ignores him since it thinks he is not alive. Since he is pretty aware of what is happening around him even when sleeping he put two and two together and figured out more or less what was happening.

During the day he would wander around, trying to find anything interesting that Beelzebub or MC might like and during the night he is 'testing' the bed mattress and pillows.

All in all it takes him 6 days to come out and he got everything he needed and more. He also made sure to take some of that infinite food for Beel

[bloodblanks]

solace [masky / hoodie x reader] — chapter iii.

You attend the first day of university and make a new friend. At the same time, strange occurences keep happening, eerily reminiscent of the events leading up to Tim and Brian’s disappearance.

author's note: this fanfiction will contain explicit content, including rape/non-con, kidnapping, stockholm syndrome, and similar themes.

please read at your own discretion.

<- previous chapter

It took a while, but you eventually convinced your parents that you were okay. They originally wanted you to return home and stay there for a bit to ensure everything was fine, but since school was starting soon, they agreed to let you stay. You weren’t too sure of what happened and why, but more likely than not, it was just a one-time thing. It wasn’t like you had a history of fainting; you must’ve just had a bad day. Everything would be fine, or at least you hoped so. Perhaps that sounded irresponsible, but what’s life without a bit of risk?

Alright, that sounded stupid.

When you had eventually come to, it was in a hospital. Your parents, being the concerned parents that they are, had picked you up and drove you to a nearby hospital. The staff there had looked at you, ran a few tests, and concluded that everything was fine; you must have overexerted yourself somehow. In any case, if things got worse, you were to return and get a more thorough check, but for now, you were allowed to leave. And since the doctors had cleared you and deemed you fit to go, you were able to convince your parents to let you stay and continue moving in.

Since your online IKEA shopping endeavours were fruitless, your parents drove you to a nearby, in-person IKEA after an hour-long conversation discussing whether you were okay. You had spent the rest of the evening rolling around on their beds, checking out new bed frames until you were eventually half-satisfied, which was better than your previous not satisfied at all.

Your parents had set up the new bed for you, despite your insistence to help. You were forbidden from doing too much work since you were ‘freshly recovered.’ Instead, you spent your time setting up your PC on the new desk you had purchased. You would need a better chair; you hadn’t decided on one when you went to the store today. Until then, your current setup will have to do. Your parents were still working on the bed, so you unpacked the boxes, equipping your new washroom with all your toiletries. You hadn’t filled the closet up yet; you got bored halfway through hanging up your clothes and instead settled for just moving your box of memorabilia into the closet, deciding you had done enough work for today. Maybe it was good that you didn’t also work on the bed. Building IKEA furniture wasn’t really your favourite activity, anyway.

When everyone was done, your new apartment was furnished, although not completely. You had one of the dining chairs at your PC instead of a proper gaming chair, and the apartment was missing pleasing decorations, but it was good enough for you to sleep and live here.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay by yourself?” your mom asked, pulling you into a hug.

“Yeah, don’t worry. I’ll text if I need anything. Pinky promise.” you reassured her.

“Alright then. Take care of yourself, and make sure to call us.” your dad said, giving you a pat on the back.

You sent them off and returned to your room, instantly throwing yourself down on the new mattress you bought. You were exhausted. Hitting your head turned out to be a surprisingly tiring, and everything that followed suit didn’t help either. You touched your hand to your head, feeling a sore bump in the area where it had collided with the stairs. Wincing, you took your hand away.

How did that happen? What was that static? You really had never experienced anything like it before. It was entirely out of nowhere, completely unexpected. Now that you were thinking about it, you hoped it wasn’t a sign or symptom of an underlying issue. Reaching for your phone, you decided to text your friends about these bizarre events. Likely, they wouldn’t know any more about it than you did, but it’d be nice to talk to them about it regardless.

It wasn’t long until you went to sleep that day. When you joined the call, your friends were playing video games, but you decided to sit this one out. They understood; you were talking to them about the situation while they played, and they, too, fussed over your injury, worrying about you. You didn’t want them to worry, but it did feel good knowing that they cared.

Drowsiness sank in relatively fast. You hung up the call and let your consciousness go for the second time that day.

—

Waking up at this time was nothing but brutal. Your parents were right. The sleep schedule turned out to be a slight problem, one you hadn’t realized until the fateful first day of school. Thankfully, today wouldn’t be a long day. You would get dressed, grab something quick to eat, take a bus to your campus, listen to some welcome speeches, and then you could go home and sleep. It couldn’t be too bad. You could leave the making friends part for another day.

You heard your phone buzz, the digital screen lighting up.

ark is she awake yet xd

Y/N yes actually.

ark OKK LETSGOOO Y/N!! first day of school today good luck try not to die :kittypog: :kittypog: :kittypog:

lilypop yeah i m sure it will be good we re cheering for you

Zohlem Fr Good luck :) Try to make some friends

Y/N yessir i’m going now

ark :kittyshock: omgg hfhfhfhf

Their words of encouragement filled you with determination, and you felt the excitement bubble up in you, resembling the flapping of butterfly wings. You hadn’t looked forward to something in quite a while. Stretching your limbs out, you got out of bed, quickly splashing your face with water, doing your skincare and brushing your hair as you got ready. You looked through your wardrobe, searching for your best outfit—first impressions are essential, right—and got dressed for school. You had your earbuds in during your walk to class, playing your favourite music to hype yourself up. When you arrived at your campus, you were surprised at the size difference between the university buildings, in contrast to the much smaller grounds of your high school. You had always known that university campuses were far more grand, but words didn’t fully encapsulate the immensity of the size, nor the sense of pride you felt at knowing that this was the building you’d be attending school in.

Finding the room you were supposed to be in was surprisingly tricky. You were searching for something similar to an auditorium, but the way the rooms were labelled was oddly confusing. You were just about to panic, thinking everyone must’ve arrived before you when a tap on your shoulder told you otherwise.

You turned around to find a girl about your age shyly looking at you.

“I’m sorry to bother, but I’m wondering if you happen to know where room 01.08 is?” she asked. The first thing you noticed about her was that her hair was extremely long. She had dark brown hair with silver highlights that fell down to her waist in waves. Her bangs were neatly trimmed, thick and sitting just over her eyebrows. Her eyes were a shade of green so bright that you couldn’t help but wonder whether or not they were contact lenses, and she had an abundance of freckles scattered across her face.

“I’m actually looking for it as well.” you told her. “We can go together if you want?” She quickly nodded at you, giving you a pleasant smile.

“Thank you, that’d be really nice!” she exclaimed.

Maybe this could be the start of a friendship, you thought. Hopefully, it was. She seemed nice, and her smile was incredibly endearing. At the very least, you appreciated not being alone in your search for the auditorium room.

“My name is Ewa,” she introduced herself. “What about you?” She looked at you, wide eyes blinking. She was adorable. Very well could potentially be a good friend.

“I’m Y/N,” you responded. “I study [major], what about you?” you asked, trying to keep up the conversation. It’d been so long since you had properly spoken to someone in person, with all your friends being from the internet and whatnot. You were really hoping that your social skills hadn’t decayed too terribly.

“I study psychology!” she chirped. “To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to study. But I always liked it in high school and I thought it could be fun.”

The two of you continued your conversation until you eventually found the correct room. You both took your seats, watching other students gradually fill the empty spaces. Thankfully, you hadn’t been the only ones late. It seemed that others had trouble getting here as well.

You found yourself zoning out for most of the presentation, not really interested in what the presenter said. It was just an introduction to the school, and something about your classes and schedules, not particularly fascinating to you. When it was over, you turned to Ewa, asking, “Were you listening?” eliciting a small giggle from her.

“A little bit. Are you hungry?”

And maybe, you had made a friend. So far, the day was going well, and a burst of determination grew in your chest. Perhaps this was the new start you’d been talking about, the one you hadn’t had any faith in. Even though you didn’t previously mean it—you had thought it was bullshit—you found yourself growing fond of the idea. This really could be something good for you. And so, you didn’t hesitate in taking up her offer.

“What do you want to eat?” you asked her.

“Do you like pizza?” she glanced at you, waiting for your approval.

“Yeah, I do. But you’ll have to pick the place, I haven’t really been around the city yet.” you told her the truth. You held your breath, wondering if she’d ask more about your move, pry for the reasoning behind it, but she didn’t, and you were glad for that. It wasn’t so much that you felt shy or embarrassed around this girl, but more so that you figured it’d be best to keep the conversation subject light until you got to know her better.

It turned out that Ewa had good taste in food or at least pizza. The place the two of you walked to was nice and cozy, the pizza itself being tasty and not expensive in price. You were much hungrier than expected, and you wolfed down your food. Ewa watched as you devoured your pizza, smiling all the while.

“I assume you like the pizza?” she questioned.

“It’s great. You have good taste.” you complimented, and you couldn’t have missed the twinkle in her eyes when you said that. She really was cute.

“I’m glad you think so.” she replied, and her giggle had to be contagious.

—

Y/N GUYS I MADE A FRIEND

ark !!! :kittypog: who whowhooo tell us everything all the detailsssss

lilypop yeah tell us about them actually is it a her or a him

Y/N her name is ewa. she’s really sweet and pretty.

Zohlem Is she single?

ark u r down horrendous. :kittysus:

lilypop yeah zohlem you are down bad

Zohlem Y/N has a point The way you type is obnoxious

lilypop oh sorry we can t all be NERDS like you

Zohlem Im not a nerd youre just annoying

lilypop and you re down bad stfu

Y/N HAHA? nah but she took me to get pizza it was tasty

ark :kittyhug: so happy 4 u wats her socials lemme stalk :kittyevil:

Y/N i don’t have it yet. i only got her number.

ark ask 4 it ask ask ask ASKKKKKK

Y/N okay wait

You quickly texted Ewa—she had given you her number earlier—asking her for her social media accounts. Maybe you could invite her to the group chat with your online friends once the two of you were closer. You had thought then that perhaps you should call your parents and update them on how your first day of university went. They’d surely be happy to hear about it.

You tapped at your screen, clicking your way to your mom’s phone contact. Your dad was likely still at work, so you’d call her first—she’d tell everything to your dad when he got home, anyway.

You had just pressed the call button when you could’ve sworn you heard static from the speaker. The sharp hissing noise jabbed at your skull, feeling like a taser had just been stabbed inside your brain. It didn’t matter that it was inexplicable because there was no other explanation for why your ears started ringing, your head throbbing in tune as you immediately rushed to cancel the call.

Your headache didn’t instantly vanish, though. You were left sitting in your chair, hands clutching your head for several minutes until you willed yourself to get up and move into your bed.

What the fuck? That was so weird. You wondered then if it could possibly have anything to do with your blackout from the other day, and as you pondered about it, something came to mind that instantly sent chills down your spine. You felt the ends of your hair raise, your skin prickling into goosebumps at the mere thought of it, and you shuddered. It was just now that you suddenly remembered. Remembered what Tim and Brian were experiencing not long before their disappearance.

The two had been complaining of headaches, listing details such as static and blackouts. You also remembered that the doctors had shrugged it off as nothing too serious, nothing complicated, even though it was severely impacting the two. They had been constantly restless and not feeling well, and you could tell it bothered them just by the way they talked about it. At the time, you had felt like it had some correlation to the disappearance, even though there was no proof of it. But your gut feeling told you so, and you wouldn’t think you could ever be wrong about them. Maybe if it was anything else, but not when it comes to them. Not then, not now, not ever.

You felt your heart drop into your stomach, falling so deep into the pit beneath that it felt like your gut had swallowed it. It was an eerie coincidence, and you felt your heart pick up pace in response to your anxiety.

You were shaking when you picked your phone back up. Your mom had called you back, and you figured you should pick up. You were fully expecting the horrific sounds of static and the throbbing pain in your skull to return when you picked up the call. You flinched when your mom’s voice came through the speaker, then let out a sigh of relief as you realized that it wasn’t some form of static.

And then you couldn’t dwell on your thoughts for much longer, because your mom had started speaking.

“Hi Y/N, how are you? How was your first day of school? Did you meet any new people?” You were right. She was absolutely ecstatic that you had called.

“I’m good. My first day was good. I did meet new people, actually. I made a friend.” Your mother was thrilled to hear that. You were sure she had been holding her breath, praying that you’d meet people and finally start socializing in real life again. For so long, she had been worried—ever since the incident, you hadn’t shown any signs of wanting to move on, meet new people, or make new friends. In the beginning, it was normal and not any cause for concern. Of course, you’d need a period of time to grieve, go through the stages of mourning, and accept the situation. But that period of time stretched out into weeks, then months, and then two years had passed. At that point, she was rightfully worried that something was wrong with her child, that your stage of mourning would last permanently. That’s why hearing of your newest update would be much reassurance to her, and you were both glad for that.

“I’m so happy to hear that! Tell me more about them,” she responded, and you could hear the excitement in her voice.

“Her name is Ewa,” you started. “She’s a psychology student, and I met her while trying to find the right room. She’s really nice, we went to get pizza after.”

“That’s great, Y/N. I’m really glad you’re making friends. Have you been feeling okay since you fainted?” she changed the subject; your fainting must’ve been constantly on her mind since it happened. You froze. You weren’t sure if you should tell her about the headache, the static, and the fact that Tim and Brian had similar symptoms before their disappearance. Maybe if you told her, she could help you, but more likely than not, she would just want to take you home. Even more likely was that she’d relentlessly worry over you, and you didn’t want that. Plus, there was probably no correlation between this and what Tim and Brian were experiencing then. It had to just be a coincidence, something along the lines of stress-induced migraines. The only thing you would do would be making yourself sound stupid and unhealthily obsessed over the past. Which wasn’t entirely untrue, but it would be counterintuitive for her to know so. She had finally just got hope that you’d be finally moving on, and you weren’t about to crush it right away, or hopefully ever. You wanted this to be the end of your grief, as well.

“Oh, yeah. I’ve been feeling okay, thanks for asking.” you lied, quickly thinking of a way to leave the situation, “I’ll be going now, I’ll call you some other time, okay?”

You exchanged goodbyes with your mother before hanging up the phone, allowing a loud to escape your lips. You felt the pulsating in your head begin anew, but this time, it wasn’t accompanied by any static. Ah, yes, a certified stress headache.

You groaned, burying your face in your pillow, screaming into it. The scream was nicely muffled, saving you from potential noise complaints. The only positive thing about this scenario was that your neighbours wouldn’t hate you instantly upon arrival.

Your phone buzzed. You winced at the brightness of the screen as you glanced at it. You saw that Ewa had texted back, giving you the usernames of her social media accounts. Unlocking your phone, you opened each application, typing her handle in and adding her on all her accounts.

Ewa has accepted your friend request.

ewa hi

You felt a glimmer of optimism. Maybe tomorrow would be better. 

next chapter ->

[nolanscheeks]

I don’t understand why Jamie didn’t have a bed frame for a month. You can literally go into a store/order online and get it the next day. Like did he ship his one from Anaheim? I guarantee buddy has your basic ikea frame and could’ve just bought a new one in Philly

[expatesque]

Perhaps too broad a question but I’ve moved into a new place and I don’t know where to begin with decorating. The actual features of the space are uninspiring, there’s some dark brown leather sofas I’m unsure of how to style etc, where do I start!

Hm. Okay so if you have no obvious architectural features to work with, then I would start with making some. I'm assuming this is a rental, so that means you'll have to use furniture. This got long so under the cut...

My absolute favorite thing to do with a meh space is make a wall of bookcases - Ikea Billy's in a variety of widths + an interesting combination of shelves (mix up the heights and mix glass and wood) can look amazing. Don't forget the lighting - buy the super thin wire down lights (from ikea or Amazon or elsewhere) and stick them in the top of each bookcase (you can slip the wire between the back and the frame), add lamps and spotlights actually in the bookcase (you'll have to cut holes in the back of the bookcases to get the plug through but an exacto knife will sort you out, just do your cutting before you attach the back). Put all the lights into one multi plug and put that into a smart plug and voila, you've got an amazing feature that you can pack up and take with you. Below is my old bookshelf wall, ignore the mess on the table.

Other ideas: get some statement furniture, like a coffee table or vintage sideboard or something and make that the feature. Set up the room so that piece is where your attention is drawn. You can also do a gallery wall - there's a million tutorials online but that's a really easy way to fill space and upgrade a bland area. If you have good windows, make them more of a statement with curtains - you can get reasonably priced ones from ikea and Etsy. Make sure to put the rod close to the ceiling and ideally get curtains long enough to touch the floor, it's an instant way to make your ceilings look higher. Do NOT cover the windows with the curtains, they should hang to the side to make the window appear larger.

But my overall, biggest piece of advice: to avoid the sad, made.com showroom effect, you've got to mix vintage and modern. Get out to auction houses, antique stores, car boot sales, Etsy, eBay, Facebook marketplace, etc and get hunting. This is by far the easiest and most versatile way to solve your problem - when your furniture has personality, it can do a lot of heavy lifting for bland features. Find a piece you love and let that inspire the space for you. For me, it was my French 1930s coffee table with the swan legs (an Etsy find). That set the tone for the whole room (1930s! Feminine! Frivolous!).

Good luck, this is going to be fun! (Below, a photo of the coffee table for posterity).