#it has bluetooth... luxury 2 me

[skeilig]

Good news everyone, I got a subaru forester 😁

[ereardon]

A Place Like This [Chapter 2][Rhett Abbott x OC]

Summary: Rhett Abbott has never met a girl like you. You’re a corporate city girl in Wabang on borrowed company time — he thinks there’s no way you would waste it on him. So when you fall for the local bull rider, you’re both a little surprised. What will it take to get Rhett to realize he can give you everything you’re looking for? And will Rhett be able to reconcile the fact that your job is literally to dismantle Wabang and break apart the only place his family has ever known?

Pairing: Rhett Abbott x OC [Julia Han]

WC: 2.9K

Warning: Cursing, implied smut, some violence

Series masterlist here

“Julia, Dan wants to see you in conference room B.” 

You tossed your head back with a groan, slipping your heels on beneath your desk and standing up, smoothing down the buttons of your blouse and grabbing your laptop before clicking down the hall, past the row of partners’ offices. The good offices, the ones with windows and built-in bars and a couch to collapse on when you got too piss drunk to possibly take the train home at midnight after a client meeting. 

Sliding open the glass door, you cleared your throat. 

“Dan? Charles said you asked for me.” 

“Julia!” Dan turned his megawatt smile on you. “Take a seat.” 

His enthusiasm terrified you. Dan got excited about exactly three things. When the White Sox won, the day his wife signed their divorce settlement and he managed to scrape by without a hefty monthly alimony payment, and acquisitions. 

Dan loved the kinds of deals that could blow up in your face. The kind that sucked you dry and left you for the wolves. They were his kryptonite. 

“How’s it going?” you asked, taking a seat in a black leather rolling chair, crossing one leg over another. 

He lowered himself into the chair next to yours at the head of the table and slid a thin folder over. “Ever been to Wyoming?” 

You shook your head. “Never been one for horses. Or cowboys for that matter.” 

Dan chuckled. “You might change your mind after spending a few weeks there.” 

You sighed and flipped open the folder. “Alright, you have my interest. What is it?”

His eyes sparkled and they told you everything you needed to know about this assignment. 

It was going to be bad. People were going to lose their jobs. Maybe they’d even be forced to leave town. You would be a social pariah in a matter of days. 

And you were going to make the firm tens of millions of dollars. 

***

The town was simple. That was an understatement. 

The guy at the airport had apologized profusely when the only rental car left was a slim Honda sedan instead of the luxury model you had made the reservation for. 

You had sighed, climbing into the black car, and driving the hour and a half to Wabang. Halfway through, your Spotify bluetooth cut out and you swore, rapping your fingernails against the leather steering wheel. 

It was a beautiful drive. You had to give Dan some credit. He could have sent anyone, but he chose you. Wyoming was not part of your normal remit for the firm. You were strictly the midwest agent: Chicago, Minneapolis, Milwaukee.

But you were vying for vice president and he knew it. This was your shot to prove your worth in an office of all white middle aged men. They hadn’t wanted to hire the young female associate. You didn’t fit their mold. You hadn’t gone to Northwestern or UMichigan and been a Tri Delt. You didn’t enjoy the steakhouse, cigars after work and strip club aesthetic that the other partners languished in. 

What’s more, you were a woman. A half-Asian woman, no less. Some saw you as a diversity hire. Others said it was the firm finally entering into the twenty-first century. Either way, you had climbed your way up from the bottom. Dan saw it. The other partners did, too. 

Some might say the Wyoming deal was to get you out of the office. But you knew what it was. A lifeline. A fast track to partner.  

It was your shot. 

***

Your corporate housing was a small apartment above the town’s bakery. It smelled like fresh baked bread in the morning and the entire front room was drenched in natural light by early afternoon. You hated that it was lovely, in the most ordinary way. 

Wabang was such a different type of assignment that you hadn’t done the correct research before jumping on the flight. It was a jeans and boots kind of town. You stuck out in your Jimmy Choos, St. Johns suits, Chanel flap bag. You stuck out for a lot of reasons. 

It was apparent from the moment that you got to town there were a handful of bachelors that had placed you on their radar. Perhaps it was the fact that you were fresh meat. Or that you were one of only a handful of unmarried twenty-something women in a town where the average marriage age was undoubtedly early twenties. 

Either way, when a suave-looking blond in a blue button down approached you outside of the local market, his eyes skimming over your dress before landing on your face, white teeth bared in a shockingly luminescent smile, you felt a strange ick wash over you. 

“Hello there,” he said, leaning against the brick of the building. “I’m Luke Tillerson.” 

You nodded. “Julia Han.” 

He smirked. “Where you from, gorgeous? Not from around here, obviously. Would have remembered a thing like you.” 

The urge to gag was clear and present, but you choked it down. “Listen, sweetheart, we don’t have to do this. The answer is no and I think we both know it.” 

An angry red blush crept over Luke’s chest, up his neck, and you saw his eyes bulge slightly. For a moment, you were almost worried that he might reach out and grab you. There was an air about him that gave you reservation. An instability. 

“I don’t mean to be rude,” you followed up quickly, shifting your purse from one side to another, hiking it up on your shoulder. “I’m just in town for a few weeks, tops. I try not to make it a habit of starting things that I can’t follow through with.” 

His fists, which had been balled up against his sides, slowly unwound themselves and you watched him take a deep breath. “Alright, darlin’, guess I gotta accept that.” 

You smiled. “Nice to meet you, Luke.” 

As you turned to walk away, his fingers circled your wrist, tugging you back. A sweat started to break out at your hairline as you turned around, his grip tight and unrelenting. “You change your mind, darlin’, and I’ll be here,” he whispered gruffly, standing so close you could smell his astringent aftershave. “Tillerson ranch. Come by anytime.” 

Luke dropped your wrist and you shook it out at your side. You were used to men like him. Men who took because they thought it was owed to them. Men who had never heard the word no before in their lives. 

They were dangerous. Almost as dangerous as you. 

***

Rhett fiddled with his keys, leaning up against the side of the truck, eyes scanning the main street of Wabang for your signature heels. 

The comment you had made as you walked out of the door at the bar the night before terrified him. You terrified him, in a way. In the best way possible. 

He needed to know what you meant. Even though a part of him wanted to get away, leave Wabang in the dust, Rhett knew that he would always be inextricably tied to this place. This land. His family was Wabang. 

Finally, he spotted you leaving a door near the bakery, dark sunglasses covering most of your face. You had traded in the black heels for a pair of nude ones, and the black dress for a pale blue one that offset your olive skin and dark hair. 

He stepped out onto the sidewalk in your direct path and watched as you lifted the sunglasses to the top of your head and smiled, heading his way. 

“Rhett,” you said softly and just the sound of your voice sent a jolt of electricity down his spine. “How are you?” 

He nodded. “Good,” he whispered gruffly. You took in his hat, worn jeans and boots. It was the morning, still early, and you wondered what exactly he did when he wasn’t riding bulls. “I, uh, I was hoping we could talk again.”

You smiled. “Yeah, sure.” 

“Now?” he said, lips curled up in a soft smile. “Diner’s right over there.” He pointed one long finger to a building down the road. 

“I actually have a meeting with the Mayor in ten minutes,” you replied. “But I’m free for dinner?” 

Rhett felt his chest constrict. He didn’t want to jump the gun and assume it was a date. But the way you were looking at him — sparkling eyes, lips pushed together in a perfect pout. He hoped you meant it as a date. “Yeah, OK,” he nodded. “I’ll pick you up at seven?” 

“Alright. I’m staying right down there. Apartment over the bakery.” 

Rhett nodded and smiled again. “I’ll be there.” 

You slid your sunglasses on and pressed one hand to his muscular bicep, squeezing it gently. “Looking forward to it.” 

***

Rhett waited nervously on the sidewalk outside of your apartment. He was early. Royal had asked him to stay late rebuilding a fence but he had brushed his father off, not letting on that he was taking the newcomer out to dinner. 

Your arrival in town had whipped up a flurry of rumors, but it appeared that only Rhett knew your true reasoning for appearing in Wabang. The Mayor was notably silent about the fact that a corporation wanted to take over the town. He had failed, and a man like him hated to go down without a fight. 

At seven on the dot, he stepped forward and pressed the metal buzzer for the upstairs apartment. Your voice rang through, muffled by the decades old technology. “Coming!”

You swung the door open, almost knocking Rhett off of his feet. He was standing too close to the door, not expecting you to swing it open so violently. 

“Shit!” he whispered as the metal nearly skimmed him and you immediately reached out, pressing your hands to his face. 

“Oh my God, I’m sorry!” you said quickly, brushing your fingers across his cheeks and then down his arms, eyes doing a quick assessment. “Are you OK? Did it hit you?” 

He smiled and shook his head, a small section of hair falling into his face. He had a quiet way of observing his surroundings and Rhett simply stretched out his fingers, catching your own as your hands slid down his arms, checking for cuts or scrapes. “I’m fine, darlin’,” he murmured. 

Rhett gripped one of your hands tightly, leading you out onto the sidewalk into the passenger seat of his truck. He pulled open the door, helping you up, and you smiled, climbing in. 

“So where are we going?” you asked once he was settled into the driver’s seat, reversing out of the spot, one hand on the headrest of your seat. You couldn’t help but watch the muscles rippling beneath his clean shirt. 

“Restaurant one town over,” he said in his gravelly voice. “‘Bout a ten minute drive.” 

“Why one town over?” 

Rhett shot you a look, eyebrows raised. “Cause we have some stuff to talk about and I have a feeling you’ll be a little more forthcoming outside of city limits.” 

You chuckled and leaned back against the seat. “So you don’t want to be seen with the town pariah?” 

“Trust me, a man wants to be seen with a girl like you on his arm.” 

***

You ordered a gin and lime over ice, which made Rhett raise his eyebrows. He had you pegged as a red wine girl, or maybe a whiskey sour on a particular night. Not straight gin. 

“So, what’s it like being a bull rider?” you asked. 

“It’s not important or special, really. Just the one thing I felt like I could do around here.” 

“Well it’s interesting to me,” you replied, taking a sip of your drink before leaning forward, sliding your arm around the top of the curved booth backrest, fingers dancing lightly on Rhett’s shoulder. 

He blushed. “I’m sure a city girl like you needs a lot more to be impressed,” he said. “Bet I can’t compete with the kinds of guys you’re used to.” 

You shook your head. “Those guys are all the same. They’re boring, in the absolutely worst ways.” You skimmed a nail across his shoulder toward the slight curl of hair at the nape of his neck. “So you’re wrong. It doesn’t take more to impress me.” 

Rhett could barely focus. His brain was short circuiting as you brushed your fingers across his shoulders and neck. He was acutely aware that you had your legs crossed under the large booth table, one foot wedged tightly beneath his calf. 

He wanted to reach out and touch you, feel your warmth under his fingertips, but he stopped himself as the waitress set down your food. 

“Tell me why you’re really here.” His voice was low and husky. “The deal, the town.” 

You shook your head again. “I said too much last night. It’s business, Rhett. Nothing personal.” 

“You can’t drop a bomb like that and walk away.” 

There was something in his voice that you couldn’t place. You had read him the moment he came up to you in the bar. He was stuck. But perhaps you had overestimated how much he wanted to leave Wabang. 

He was going to take this much more personally than you had hoped. 

“Rhett,” you whispered, placing your fork down on the plate and sliding one hand onto his thigh. He froze, blue eyes hooked on yours. “Honey, trust me when I say I don’t like doing this. But I was sent here to do a job. And I have to see it through.” 

“But who is the buyer?” he asked. “What does this mean for the town? For my ranch.” 

“Your ranch? I thought you said you were a bull rider?” 

“My family has a ranch,” he said softly and the realization began to sink in. He was tied to the town in a way you hadn’t imagined. “Abbott ranch, out on Route Eight. Over next to the Tillersons.” 

“Tillerson,” you repeated. “Like Luke Tillerson?” 

Rhett tensed. “Yeah. You know him?” 

“He kind of cornered me the other day. Tried to ask me out and I said no and he didn’t take it too well.” 

“What do you mean, didn’t take it too well?” 

“Rhett, it’s nothing.” 

“Julia, it’s not nothing,” he said, his eyes trained on yours. “What did he do?” His voice was low, venomous. There was something there. It wasn’t just jealousy. It was years of competition and anger boiled down into a volatile slurry. You could almost feel it radiating off of him. 

“He asked me out and I said no, that I don’t date while I’m on assignment. And then when I went to walk away he grabbed my wrist, hard, pulling me back. That was it.” You rubbed your fingers softly on his thigh. “Rhett, please, it was nothing. Let’s move on.” 

He slammed one fist onto the table, rattling the plates, and you gasped. The other tables around you shot dirty looks, but Rhett looked at the ground, biting his bottom lip. 

“Rhett,” you said and the anger in your voice made him look up. “No. We’re not going to do this. Either you let this go or I’m walking away.” 

“Shit,” he muttered, wiping his hands on his napkin. “Julia, I’m sorry.” His fingers curled over yours where they sat on his thigh. “I’m sorry,” he repeated. 

You nodded. “It’s alright.”

As you turned back to your dinner, sliding your hand from his leg, Rhett’s mind jumped in circles. What did you mean you didn’t date people on assignment? What was this dinner if that was the case?

When the waitress dropped off the check, you reached for it and Rhett shot you a look. 

“No,” he said forcefully and you hated that it made you wet between your thighs. “Don’t even think about it, sweetheart.” 

You smiled. “Alright, whatever you say, Rhett.” You didn’t want to point out that you made mid-six figures and he was a bull rider. You got the sense it would be deeply offensive to him if you tried to pay. 

Outside, you took a deep breath. The air was so fresh compared to Chicago. Rhett towered over you, even in your heels, one hand pressed against the building wall as he leaned to the side. 

“Did you have a nice time?” you whispered. 

Rhett nodded, a small smile curving his perfect pink lips. “I did, yeah. Did you?” 

He didn’t understand what you were after. What you wanted from him. What you wanted in general. He didn’t understand anything about you. In fact, you terrified him to his core. He had never known a woman like you and that terrified him because all he wanted was to pull you in, press his lips to yours, spend the next fifty years learning every inch of your body with his mouth and hands and mind. 

So when you leaned forward and skimmed your hand through his hair near his ear, pulling his neck down, locking your lips against his, his heart threatened to explode from his body. 

“Yeah,” you whispered, lips still grazing his. “I had a great time.” 

Tag list: @double-j @momc95 @sadpetalsstuff @seresinhangmanjake @shanimallina87 @starrynightskyz @writercole @endofdays56 @coffeeandcuriosities @xoxabs88xox

[hotdogjones44]

1-21-22

Oh man these last 2 weeks have taken me out back and beat me senseless.

Grandma has only weeks left to live, the cancer is spreading so fast. I've been very absent minded lately, so sorry for the delays. I've caused a blockage with myself and it's made it difficult to work with my spirits. But I decided at work one day that I needed a break from my audio books. (I sneak in a Bluetooth earbud under my beanie and listen to books all day) I started listening to the podcast created by the woman I get my spirits from. She is so motivational and helpful. Everything she says just gets my brain to thinking and moving. I am enrolled in her circle membership, so I have courses I can take and learn from which are just mind blowing. The podcast is jam packed with extremely helpful information as well. It's on Spotify and YouTube, if you want to give it a listen it's "Witchful Ways" all I ask is that if you go seeking her out, please be respectful. She is such a kind soul and she is so patient and helpful. I have so much respect for her.

I was hesitant to share the info publicly on here out of fear of those girls from work finding her and causing problems. But I don't want this awesome information and an amazing conjurer to go unrecognized. She has helped me with a lot of my spirit work and I know some people on here would love to take a peek and learn some stuff too.

I have a total of 4 spirits from her now, and 1 in the works. 2 demons, 1 unicorn, and 1 luxury life spirit. My vampire is in the works. And let me share my tale from these last 2 weeks and how they have helped me through it.

My car was acting weird. Never a good sign. My car is the only way my boyfriend and I have to get to and from work. I drive 40 minutes out of each day to get him and take him home. I scheduled an appointment to get my car looked at, and both back tires had broken belts. My bank account was drained from some poor money management on my part, and bills that had stacked up on me. I was sick to my stomach. I had to cancel so many appointments just to not go negative in my bank account.

I had to make it 2 weeks with broken tires.

My mom was going through something, I don't know what. But she made me feel like the biggest piece of shit on the planet. I even considered ending my life one night. My boyfriend had lost his temper with me. Something he never does. I was just ready to check out. Everything that could go bad did. I cried all night worried about how I was going to make it to work, my mom made it clear that I was on my own. She said mean things to me, she favored my brother over me, I felt outcast and alone. I sat inside for lunch at work and the mean girl was sitting directly behind me. I heard her friend say "don't you just wanna reach back and smack the shit out of her" I was done.

I listened to those podcasts and told myself I can manifest things to get better. I did every step. I did it my way. I took charge. I asked my spirits to help me survive this last week until payday. I told the universe that I would survive this, and that's the way its gonna be.

Things got better.

My blockage I had up went away. My spirits visited me in my sleep. A gorgeous unicorn that I just loved to death came through to me. The next day I got paid. The woman listed a unicorn for adoption in the Facebook group and I instantly got him.

I got my car to the shop just in time. It was on its last leg (those tires were done for)

They came out and told me my battery was completely dead and they had to jump it to get it started and I needed to take it to Walmart and hope it's still under warranty (an unexpected problem) all the way there my car flickered and the heat went off and on, she did her best and got me there. They checked my battery and it was a bad one. Luckily this happened on pay day and my battery was still under warranty so they replaced it for free. My spirits had my back on this one. It held out for me just long enough to survive the week. I had no idea it was bad, because we had just replaced it.

Everything worked out.

My boyfriend even surprised me and booked us a hotel for tomorrow night to get away and have some time together away from everyone else. And to think, I would have missed it had those podcasts not gave me the lift I needed.

[thotsforvillainrights]

~Pivitol~

Summary: Today is a very special day unlike the others because today Kai has taken some initiative to introduce you to his father figure, Pops! Along the way, you end up learning even more about Kai’s past as well. 

Chapter: 9

Warnings: None

“Somebody is looking more eager these days, eh?” Yuko teased you and brought you back to reality before you drifted too far away from it. “Huh, wha?! Haha, nah! I’m just waiting on the time to finally pass so I can clock out. Got some important stuff to do.” Yuko smirked as you fumbled with some paper on your desk. “More like some ONE important to do.” She playfully elbowed your side and you cringed. “Ugh, what do you want huh? You want me to admit you’re right or...?” Yuko laughed at your semi-annoyed expression as she continued to type away at her keyboard. “Y/N it’s okay. I know you’ve been meeting up with the guy like every week. Lately we can all tell how happy you are to clock out. Even the boss thinks it’s cute. He calls it ‘young love syndrome’!” You rolled your eyes and smiled softly to yourself. It’s true after all; lately you’ve been so eager to see Kai that you get happy every time the clock indicated the end of your shift. Wednesdays were no different either! This was especially true with the show you two have been following looping around to it’s season finale. Your mind began to drift off again as you wondered what you two could possibly do once the show ended for the season. Would Kai still have fun with you when there were no strings attached? You shook your head at the fleeting worry and smiled when the clock hit 5 p.m. “Yes! Catch you later!” You rushed past Yuko, clocked out, and headed to the nearest train station to try and beat Kai to your apartment. Meanwhile the young head of the Hassaikai was preparing to make today rather special on his account. In other words, today was like a right of passage for you into his life. Date after date and he wasn’t fully confident on calling you his girlfriend/boyfriend/partner, but now would be the final test to this. Yes today was the day he would finally introduce you to his father figure...

“Pops!” Kai called out to the man as he trailed the halls of the house (aka the upper base of the Hassaikai). “Hmm?” Pops peeked his head innocently from around the corner, holding back a smile. Kai sighed and approached him, watching as the old man fully rounded the corner to face him with a now large smile. “Listen, please don’t make a single act of trouble upon me today okay? This is very important to me and I don’t need you embarrassing me alright?” Pops rolled his eyes and continued to walk past Chisaki as he headed to the kitchen. “Oh please my boy, I’m not a child so you don’t need to speak to me like one. Besides, I’m eager to meet dear y/n, so you needn’t worry about me scaring her/him/them away okay?” Pops reassured Kai while he began to brew some fresh tea and bake something delicious to have when you arrive. Kai sighed in relief before heading out to his car and leaving to pick you up. When he finally arrived at your apartment, you had just finished putting comfy clothes on when you heard a familiar 3 knocks at your door indicating his presence. A flooding warmth and happiness burst in your chest as you took long strides to quickly get to the door and open it. He was smiling under that black medical mask. You could tell by now after being with him for a while. His eyes always seemed to sparkle when he smiled. “Good evening y/n, I trust work went well?” He asked you...he wanted to hug you so badly and you felt the same, but kept your distance to respect his germaphobia. “Oh yeah! It was boring but I’m glad to see you. Anyway, come in and I’ll get the episode started.” You were about turn around when suddenly Kai cleared his throat and chuckled a bit. “No Angel, I actually have somewhere to take you this evening if that’s alright. We can always catch the replay of the missed episode later on if you want. Come with me?” 

“Angel?”

...shit... “Oh, did I say that? I apologize, I just...I was t-th-thinking...I...”

You chuckled and rolled your eyes. “It’s okay Kai. You let me call you by your real name rather than your nickname so I think it’s only fair you call me by what you want to. Anyway, where are you taking me?” You asked sweetly, trying to ignore the butterflies welling up in your tummy. He cleared his throat and adjusted his mask to hide the light blush creeping up. “I have someone I want you to meet.” You nodded, grabbed your phone, and headed to his car. “Oohhh this is nice!” You raved once inside of the luxury vehicle. “Thank you. Take a little time to look around if you wish. It also has Bluetooth capabilities so you can use the radio.” He offered as he started to drive. You had no patience to fiddle with the screen so you opted out for the Aux cord method. You opened the glove-box in search of a cord and out fell a tiny foil package. You gasped when you flipped it over and read the words ‘Condom’ out-loud. Kai almost slammed on the breaks. “Kai? Is this what you had planned for me all along? I had no idea you were such a naughty man.” You teased him and watched in amusement as his face lit up cherry red. “No, I swear it! It’s just...Damn that old man! That must be why he was smiling before I left earlier. Damn it, he snuck another one into my car again, UGH POPS!!!” 

“Wait, Pops? Like the man you told me about 2 weeks ago when we were watching TV? You’re dad kinda? Kai is that who you wanted me to meet today? Oh no! I’m not ready! I wore these comfy clothes because I thought you were gonna finally introduce me to your friends that were with you the first day we met. I had no idea you were bringing me to meet your dad! Oh God, I’m a mess too!” You started to panic when suddenly Kai reached over and laid a gentle hand on your leg...he was touching you...”Y/N, it’s okay. I promise you need not worry about Pops opinion of you because he already loves you. I’m the one that should be worried. That old man is on a constant mission to kill me from embarrassment, so please don’t encourage him. Also, get rid of that wretched thing.” You laughed at his words and placed the condom in the mini trash bag that hung on the back of your seat. In no time at all you had arrived upon the base. All of your worries dashed away when you saw how happy the elder was to meet you. He pulled you tightly into a hug and spoke loudly in excitement. “There you are! The only person that could seem to steer my boy in the right direction! Welcome my dear, make yourself at home! I’ll return shortly with some snacks and drinks.” And then Pops shuffled quickly and happily into the kitchen, leaving you and Kai standing in the living room alone. You began to check out the photos scattered about the walls and Kai sighed. “and so it begins...” He spoke under his breath as you started to giggle at a photo of him as a child standing next to Pops. “Oh my God Kai, you look so grumpy compared to him. What was wrong? Did you miss nap time, cutie?” You teased him and he groaned. Suddenly you heard Pops voice from behind you. “Ah I see you’ve found one of his childhood pictures. I have so many more if you wish to see them!” You immediately turned around and smiled widely at the elder. 

“Yes...YES PLEASE.” Pops nodded and gently placed the tray down, leaving the cookies and tea between you and a blushing Kai. Then he rushed off to his room so he could dig out some of Kai’s ‘baby’ photos. “Damn it. This is what I was talking about.” Kai grumbled as he took a seat next to you on the couch and mentally prepared himself for the embarrassment to come. Pops returned with a dusty album and took a seat on the other side of you, leaving you in the middle of the couch. You and Pops proceeded to look at baby/child/teen Kai for at least an hour or so. “This one right here is one of the earliest pictures of Chisaki I have. It was donated to me by the orphanage that I adopted him from.” You nodded in awe at the chubby cheeked baby with the large golden eyes on the page. “Pops, had you always wanted a child? Is that why you adopted Kai?” Pops smiled and ruffled your hair (if not applicable towards reader, than he just rubbed your head instead). “No my dear. I had a daughter in my younger days before my wife and I divorced. Shortly after, my ex wife passed away from illness. My daughter cut ties with me, but I always wonder where she might be nowadays. I actually did not mean to adopt Chisaki on purpose. I came across the boy on a hot summer day when he was walking alongside the road, probably on his way back from a store or something. He was a little dirty, and seemed to be so troubled. I still remember the feeble voice he used when I asked him his name. He had no where to go, so I took the boy into my arms and under my wing. Of course I hadn’t known he’s cause so much trouble in his teen years.” Pops playfully glared at Kai, making the young head sigh in annoyance. “Was he a trouble maker?” You pressed on, smiling at the way Kai groaned on the other end of the couch.

“Was he a trouble maker? HA! More than I would’ve ever expected. The boy was constantly in fist fights back to back. Not to mention the way he always seemed to think dealing drugs behind my back would bring our organization from the shadows.” You peeked at Kai and noticed his uncomfortable shift. “Y/N my dear, had you not come along who knows what the boy might’ve ended up doing. I know he’s told you about his work here by now, yes?” Pops asked you and you nodded. About a week ago Kai came clean about his affiliations during a date between you two. You still remember how scared he looked and how worried he was that you might leave him behind. “I like him so much, so none of this stuff bothers me. I’m glad to have played a hand at the change in his personality. I really mean that.” You turned to smile sweetly at him and his eyes widened for a bit before getting brave and reaching out to touch your cheek...the second time today he touched you...”Oh well I think I’ll leave you two kids alone for now.” Pops winked and left in a heartbeat. “I love him Kai. He is now my designated father as well.” You joked and Kai laughed lightly. “Anyway, gonna show me your room kind sir?” 

»—————————–———————————————————–✄

TIp Jar: https://cash.app/$YuTakeyama

[florenceandthemachine]

that original lifeline

chapter 2/4 - “you don’t have to be a ghost” - 2.4k

in which Buck doesn’t know how to leave Eddie alone, and Eddie doesn’t know if he wants him to.

read on AO3

“So, how do I know I’m not hallucinating?”

Half a week after being blown up in his own fire truck, nearing the end of his mandated ‘vacation’, and Eddie had just wrapped up one of the better weekends of his entire life. Yes, he was aware of the irony, but any weekend where he got to spend the entire weekend with Chris was a plus in his book. Legos, video games, breakfast food for all three meals, it was literally the kind of weekend that he had absolutely dreamed of when he became a father.

Or, at least, when he resumed being a father after running away to Afghanistan, but that was a whole other can of works that he was bottling up processing in a completely healthy way.

After, though.

After, Eddie had made it all of one day with Chris being in school before he had completely lost his mind. Something about being cooped up in home, speaking to a being that only he could see, without even a hint of human interaction, just didn’t sit right with him.

(Of course, that might have been because the most interaction he had with his team was the occasional text from Hen, but he could work through that hurt later.)

“You really think you’re hallucinating?” Buck’s smile was infectious, more teasing than Eddie would have initially liked, but it was becoming harder and harder to think of Buck as a nuisance instead of a guest. Even now, perched outside of some little pretentious health shop in the heart of LA, Eddie felt more at home with Buck than he had with a stranger before in his life.

Well... Buck wasn’t exactly a stranger, Eddie had to remind himself. After all, they had known one another for most of Eddie’s life.

“Alright, I’ll tell you what. This morning, while Chris was getting, he put two Spider-Man comics into his backpack.”

“That doesn’t prove anything. The kid loves Spider-Man.”

“And an Aquaman comic.”

“Okay, no. No son of mine would betray Marvel for DC.”

Buck smirked, shrugging his shoulders. “I don’t know, man. If I’m right, then not only are you stuck with a very much not hallucination, but your son is a traitor.”

Eddie laughed, readjusting the earbud in his ear, nails drumming a pattern out on the back of his phone. He had realized, quickly, that when they were out in public, all he had needed was an earbud in one ear and his phone out—that was all he needed to make the change from ‘crazy person talking to an invisible man’ to ‘another asshole in Los Angeles on his Bluetooth’.

He could deal with that—it was always better to be the asshole than to be the crazy person, even though Los Angeles was filled with both. Buck, to his credit, was being incredibly patient with Eddie’s quirks, seemingly realizing that most of them came from Buck’s presence in the first place; not to mention his inability to leave Eddie, for lack of a better term, the fuck alone.

(Seriously. Eddie had come out of the shower that morning to find Buck sitting on the bathroom counter. The noise he made was decidedly not manly.)

“Look, I’m not saying that I don’t believe you—“

“Okay, sure, lie to the angel, I’m sure that’s going to work out well for you.”

“—anyway, it’s just... why me? Out of everyone on this planet, why am I one of the lucky few that wound up with a... with a Buck?” Eddie finished, easily trampling over Buck’s objections, smiling as Buck knocked their ankles together beneath the table.

“Wish I could tell you, Eds.” Buck started, shrugging. “You’re my third or fourth human, all I know is that I get the assignment, I come, I go. I’m like a stray cat.”

Eddie actually snorted, swallowing another mouthful of lukewarm, carrot and spinach and mango concoction. “You’re a stray cat that I can only see, that literally lifted a fire truck off of the lower half of my body.”

Buck, at least, had the decency to look chagrined. “I’m... a very strong stray cat?”

Eddie would not give in and bang his head against the stupid little juice bar table. He would not.

“I’m serious, Eddie. The only information I get is that you’re my charge, and I’m your angel,” no, Eddie certainly did not enjoy the way he felt, feeling like he was someone’s anything, “and after that fire truck incident, I’m not sure if the universe is testing you, or if it’s testing me, but either way, you shouldn’t be bearing the brunt of all this.”

Eddie frowned, tapping their ankles together once again, shaking his head. “Buck, if I remember correctly, you’ve been the one saving me, so run that up the flagpole.”

Smiling again, Buck nodded, pushing a hand through his hair. “Well, I’ll just tell Athena that, I’m sure she’ll love it.”

“Athena?”

“Oh yeah! She’s kind of like, my boss, you’d love her! She’s the reason I’m still hanging around here, she thinks something big is coming.” Buck said, lighting up, even as Eddie choked on his sludge.

“Your boss.”

“Yeah!”

“Heaven... has a hierarchy.”

“Oh, god no.” Buck said with a laugh, shifting in his seat, leaning closer in toward Eddie—like anyone else would hear him. “You know, I’ve never told a mortal this before. Hell, I’ve never even appeared to a mortal before.” he started, and Eddie found himself leaning in closer, mirroring Buck’s motions easily.

“Where I’m from, it’s not all fluffy clouds and harps and halos and shit like everyone thinks. Athena is like your captain—she gives us our assignments, she helps the guardians grow, she keeps us out of trouble. Us guardians, we’re… well, we’re souls that had our time on earth cut short. So, we spend our time with others, we get to see the world, we get to... well, we get to help the people who really deserve help.” Buck says with a grin, and Eddie feels his cheeks heating up as Buck’s leg rests against his, a dull, warm weight, pressed through the fabric of his jeans.

“Something big, huh? I just don’t get it, Buck. I’ve been around people that are in more dangerous situations than I am, every day. What makes me so special that I get the extraterrestrial guardian?”

Buck laughed, the sound catching Eddie off guard so badly that he didn’t even have time to hide his smile. “Well, ignoring the fact that you just called me an alien…”

“Okay, fair.”

“Eddie, you’re the first human that's ever been able to see me, ever. You may not think it’s a lot, but… well, I think you’re pretty special.”

And, well. Eddie couldn’t give a response to that if he wanted to, cheeks an embarrassing shade of pink. Thankfully, Buck seemed to take the cue to move on, knocking their ankles together easily as he stood up from his chair.

“Now, come on. Chris is off of school in about twenty minutes, what say you go surprise him?”

-

After being with the 118 for almost a year, taking a week off of work was straight up weird. Somehow, though, going back to work was actually weirder.

It was easy enough for Eddie to sink back into his regular habits—teasing Chim, buddying up to Hen, causing Bobby a few more grey hairs, but now it felt like everything had been moved a half an inch to the left. He teased Bosko, and he was looking over her shoulder to see if Buck got the joke. Kind asked about Chris, and he shared a fond look with Buck before he beamed at him and went on about his latest accomplishments. He spent some time in the gym, and he couldn’t help the pleased look on his face when he caught Buck staring at him.

The siren rang. Eddie geared up. They pulled out. Buck, inexplicably, rode shotgun, watching Eddie and watching anything but, and Eddie felt happy, happier than he could remember being in a long, long time.

Six hours and four calls into his first shift back with the 118, and he felt alive again.

(The last call they had received was the ever-classic cat in a tree. Eddie had drawn the short stick and got hoisted up to retrieve the tabby, and Buck had sat on the rung right below him, making kissy noises at the cat and cooing at Eddie. Eddie could still feel his cheeks burning.)

He felt alive—even if he could feel Hen staring at him once in a while, painfully perceptive as always.

“So, Eddie, you have a good week off?”

Eddie sighed, knowing full well that Hen wasn’t just asking about his week off, but he knew well enough to play along. “I did, Hen, thanks. Got to spend some time with Chris, got to spend some time around the house, got to get some sun, not that any of that is why you’re asking.”

“What? I have a vested interest in your wellbeing, Edmundo Diaz, that’s what friends are for.” She said, raising a brow as he flopped down on the couch. “So that’s all? Just you and Chris hanging out? No one else?”

Eddie actually felt his heart seize in his chest, and a quick look over to Buck showed the same level of panic on his face that Eddie was feeling in the very core of his being. “Hen, what are you getting at?”

“I’m just saying…” Hen started, sitting with him on the couch, crossing her legs. “I know that look, Eddie. You haven’t looked like that since your first date with what’s her name, Ana? Chris’ teacher?”

Eddie groaned, hiding his head in his hands. “Don’t remind me.”

“Just an observation. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you met someone with all that luxurious time off.” Hen said, nudging their shoulders together, and Eddie’s head snapped back up to full attention, face bright red as he looked to Hen, and then back to Buck, who was suspiciously silent.

And hell, Eddie was a good liar, he really was, but Hen looked so sincerely happy for him, and Buck wasn’t exactly waving his arms so Eddie decided to test the waters. “I… didn’t meet anyone. Not in the way that you think, anyway. We, um. We just kind of connected at one of those shitty juice bars.”

“Oooh, okay, what’s her name?” Hen was immediately hooked—equal parts nosy and honestly excited friend, Eddie knew, which was why it was so easy to talk to her about things like this.

Eddie swallowed, fiddling with the hem of his teeshirt. “His name is Buck. We spent some time talking, and we just… we really clicked. He’s smart, and he’s kind of protective, and he told me he loves kids, so…”

If Hen was shocked, she didn’t show it, more than her brows raising an inch or so while she nodded her head. “Alright, Buck at the shitty juice bar. Did he give you his number?”

“No, actually, I gave him mine.”

Hen may have been nosy, but the way her face lit up was pure excited best friend, and Eddie let himself smile back at her as she punched his shoulder. “That is what I’m talking about! Damn, Eddie, look at you, taking the first steps. I’m proud of you!”

Eddie groaned as Hen pulled him into a hug, but he took the moment to look at Buck again—still suspiciously silent, but the corners of his mouth were definitely upturned, and Eddie couldn’t help the relief that washed over his body.

The last thing he wanted was his big fucking mouth ruining whatever tentative relationship he and Buck had built over the past few weeks.

-

“You gave me your number, huh?”

Eddie wasn’t sure what he was more thankful for—the fact that he got to have an active (dare he say fun) first day back at work, or the fact that it wound down with little incident after back to back to back calls. Well, no, right now he was thankful that he was stopped at a stop light when Buck said that so he wasn’t tempted to veer into oncoming traffic out of sheer embarrassment. “Well, it seemed like an easier, less psychotic answer than telling her that you literally lifted a firetruck off of me.”

Buck laughed and Eddie felt himself warming at the sound, turning the wheel as he took off, another comfortable silence falling between them.

“Eddie, you know I won’t be hanging around forever, right? My job is to protect you, and once the universe decides to cut you a break, I’ll… I’ll have to move on.”

Eddie felt his smile fall into something softer as Buck looked out the window, humming thoughtfully, shrugging his shoulder as he pulled into the driveway. “Yeah, I’m aware. But while you are here… no reason we can’t be friendly outside a shitty juice bar, right?”

Tracking Buck’s movement as they slid out of the car, Eddie leaned back against the drivers door of his truck, once again tickled by the thought of Buck riding shotgun with him.

“Well, I… like being friendly with you too, Ed—“

“Dad!”

Eddie immediately snapped his head to the door, grinning as Chris came down the patio stairs, instantly stooping down to pull his kid into his arms, swinging Chris around in an easy hug before setting him back down on his feet. Chris started to ramble on about his day as Eddie pulled his things out from the back seat, pulling duffle bags over his shoulders and papers beneath his arms. He shared an easy smile with Buck as he straightened up, looking back down to Chris as he started to trail off.

“Dad, are you gonna introduce me to your friend?”

Eddie turned on his heel, trying to see if anyone else had come up to the front door while he was standing there, but no, it was just he and Chris, and…

…and Buck, who was now taking Chris’ hand, with a shocked smile on his face.

His son was shaking hands with his guardian angel. His guardian angel, who no one—other than Eddie—was supposed to see.

“I’m Chris. Do you work with my dad?”

What the fuck.

[giantpredatorymollusk]

i generally like to see myself as tough and rugged and living with as little luxury as possible but suddenly i’m having a crisis where i feel the Desire for a laptop that starts up quickly and doesn’t weigh 500 pounds and reasonably fast mobile data all month and a wireless bluetooth noise cancelling headset that doesn’t suck. (not that these desires will necessarily be Fulfilled but i have them.) But i still know i’m me and sane bc i do not have any desire at all to own:

1. “fancy” car (why would you ever buy a car that’s less than 10 years old)

2. large house/apartment/living space

3. proper formal clothing (like a tuxedo or whatever)

4. expensive camera lenses for my camera (old manual focus ones with adapters are more fun honestly)

5. anything i don’t feel like i’m actively using (my mom has a Bonus tv in the family room that she doesn’t actually Use and like. why)

[dimeforhispocket]

As if it’s Our Last (Part 2/2)

Nafla x fem!reader

Rating: Mature

Genre: some angst but a ton of fluff

Word count: 12k

Summary: or maybe you have a lifetime of opportunities

Notes: situationship, implied sexual content, you can also read on my AO3

You hold up a sign when you wait for him to come out into the arrivals hall at the airport. When he comes out and sees it, he bursts into laughter as he approaches you with his arms out for a hug.

“Where did you get a picture like that?” He asks as you hug him back gently.

“I commissioned an artist to make it. Here you are, sir.” You hand him the cardstock picture of a baby husky popping out of a Coca Cola can and take hold of his small rolling suitcase. “Let’s go.”

“Thank you.” He chuckles, following right beside you towards the airport parking lot where your car is.

Conversation flows freely between you two as you put his belongings in the trunk and have him join you in the passenger’s seat. “Here, I got you a prepaid SIM card that you can use while you’re here.” You fish out the card from you bag.

“Say what. Oh wow, thank you.” He takes it gratefully and gets to work on switching out the SIM cards in his phone while you back out of your spot and drive towards the exit. You confirm with him the name of the hotel before you make your turn onto the right lane and start towards your destination.

“Wow, you really came prepared with everything. Thank you.” He says as he leans back in his seat, looking out of the windows to take in the sights of the city passing by.

“Of course! If I’m gonna be your guide, then I sure as hell am gonna be the best.” You scoff, “I got a lot of stuff for you to see, but we can take it as slow as you like. You must be tired after your flight.”

“A little bit, but I’m all good now that I’ve seen you.” He smiles.

“Smooth talker.” You chuff before you both laugh and update each other on the recent happenings in your lives as you drive to the hotel. And although your eyes are on the road the majority of the time, you can’t help a few quick glances over at him.

He’s as cute as the last time you saw him. His hair is a lot more faded out now after having gone through a couple new styles and looks since the last time you saw him, and his skin is a little fairer after the winter, but overall you don’t notice any stark differences. He’s still as awe striking as he was to you before. It’s still unbelievable that you went to personally pick up Nafla at the airport.

You hope that he’s impressed with or at least enjoying the small effort you put into your look today. It’s nothing fancy, since you didn’t want to stand out too much, but you did doll up your hair and face a little differently. And maybe this is a new shirt, but that’s it. You still have a casual-day-out look about you.

Once you arrive at the hotel, you accept the offer for the valet service even though you don’t usually. It’s just a little more hassle than it’s worth to park on your own and find your way back up to the lobby when you’re taking a celebrity around. You join him at the front desk and Nafla takes care of most of the check-in process, so you just drag his suitcase along when you receives his key card.

“Oh wow, it’s nice.” You whistle when he opens up the door to his room on the 20th floor. It’s a little more spacious than the average room, and has a luxurious bathroom area. The view isn’t too shabby either.

You take your time scoping the place while Nafla gets his stuff together. He offers you a drink but you decline and just take a seat on the loveseat by the window. “So you’re here for like, three days, right?”

“Yeah, flying out around noon after the third night, so I gotta get to the airport in the morning.” He replies, putting all his essentials in his small over-the-shoulder fanny pack — hype beast brand, of course. “But until then, let’s go and make the most of it.”

He’s standing all packed, ready to go out on the town. He didn’t bother changing, but he did put a cap on, which you think always looks cute on him. “You sure you don’t need to rest a bit or anything?” You offer as a last chance.

“Nah, fuck sleep. Let’s go.” He nods towards the door, and you follow his lead. You were hoping he’d say that.

*

After getting a light lunch at a nearby chain restaurant that you happen to love, you take him towards the city center for the biggest tourist attractions first. You act as his photographer and take the coolest pictures of him, and even pose in a few silly photos yourself. It’s weird to think that Nafla is taking pictures with you to keep in his phone instead of the other way around. Though you do do the same.

Once the late afternoon settles in, however, you bring him to your favorite place for a long walk — the bay park. “It starts around where the bridge is, but stretches out across the rest of the city, so it’s a popular place for a lot of people to just jog or ride their bikes. Kind of like the Han River, in a way.” You explain.

“Wow, it’s incredible.” He takes a breath when he sees the view and takes in the cool afternoon breeze. “How is this not more famous in tourist sites and books?”

“Leave it alone, we locals gotta have a spot to ourselves.” You wave him off but lead him towards the walking path right by the water. “You okay with walking for a bit?”

“For sure.” He agrees.

The conversation begins to slow between you as Nafla continues looking out into the bay and the view of the city while you just reminisce in the fact that you’re taking a sunset stroll with your celebrity K-hip hop crush. But after a couple minutes of relaxed silence, you decide to take it a step further.

“Wanna listen to some music with me?” You pull out your Bluetooth earphones.

“Yeah, sure.” He smiles, taking one of the wireless earphones from you and sticking it in his ear. You try to stay calm about it as you pull out your phone to look through your playlists.

“I’m about to bare my soul to you.” You confess, picking your go-to playlist for a long walk. “But feel free to ask me to skip.”

“Sounds good.”

“And we can switch to yours on the way back.” You offer, chuckling giddily at the idea of being able to listen to what Nafla has in his own music library.

You start with a familiar, upbeat Korean song and leave it on shuffle for the time being, letting your pace match the beat as you continue along the bay path. And honestly, this makes the whole experience a lot more pleasant — as music usually does. Nafla nods and bounces along beside you as you continue walking and you share glances and smiles with each other every so often.

But it’s only a couple minutes into the walk when a new song pops up and you can feel your arms twitching, itching to do a wave or some sort of dance move. In truth, a lot of the time that you come here to walk, you come in search of inspiration for a new set of choreography to a new song you want to do for a class. Or sometimes, you just want to take a moment to stand off to the side of the park and dance to the music in your earphones without a care as to who’s watching in the area.

It’s hard to hold off on those impulses with Nafla here, but you don’t want to get too crazy when it’s only his first day here. As well as his first time seeing you again after several months. But you suppose you can’t hide it even if you try, because Nafla suddenly asks, “You look like you really want to dance right now.”

You turn as see that he has what must be an amused, but can pass as a forgiving smile on his face. So you relent and sigh, “Yes… I really love this song.”

“Okay, show me what you’re feeling.” He encourages you.

“You sure? You’re not gonna get embarrassed and run off?” You laugh.

“I didn’t say that.”

You hit his arm lightly with a little pout, and he quickly follows up to say that he was kidding, and that it is completely okay if you want to dance. “Well, thanks.” You say, “Hope you don’t regret it.”

You let this song pass and end before you start bouncing along more visibly to the next one. Thank goodness he asked, because you don’t know if you would’ve been able to hold back for this one. You’re already lip syncing along to the words and sweeping your arms out in front of you to dramatize the song, and Nafla is happily laughing at you.

But when you pull up a few steps ahead to start spinning and adding some footwork, that’s when he pulls out the camera. You protest at first, but he keeps finding a way to record you anyway when you start dancing again, so you just come to terms with the reality that Nafla will have some embarrassing videos of you in his possession.

At some point, you actually pull him aside to one of the balcony areas of the path and ask him to help play the song while recording you with your phone. “I’ll use it as a point of reference when I’m putting the choreo together later.”

Admittedly, you feel less silly when you have Nafla there with you recording and looking like he’s supporting you than when you’re out here on your own. He seems to find you entertaining too, so at least you manage to keep the mood light. “You’re a riot.” He chuckles when you announce that it’s time to turn around and head back to the car.

“Let’s listen to your music now. I don’t want to be the only one jamming out here.” You suggest.

So Nafla connects his phone to your earphones this time and pulls up a playlist of his own. As expected, it’s a bunch of hip hop songs, though they don’t really seem to have a uniform theme about them. You recognize at least half of the ones that play, but a lot of them, you haven’t heard before. It’s interesting to get to know his music taste. To know that this is what Nafla listens to on the regular, that this is what helped inspire him to pursue the career he has now.

Despite not knowing some songs, you still bounce along to some of them, and even ask him to send you the names of one or two that you’d like to listen to on your own in the future. But most of the walk continues without too much conversation between you on the way back, just the nice breeze and the great view.

Until you’re caught by surprise when Nafla slips his hand into yours. You had been staring out into the bay as usual when you felt his soft, but firm hand take a gentle hold of yours. Of course you snap your head around to look at him, then down at your hands, then at him again with that adorable innocent look on his face. When he offers you nothing but a small smile, you crumble and just smile back before turning back to face the water.

Mostly to hide the actual gigantic smile piercing across your cheeks because Nafla!!!! Is holding!! Your!!! Hand!!!!!! Like you’re a couple or something!!! It’s so freaking cute, you want to scream, but you’re somehow afraid that it might actually travel across the oceans back to South Korea where his main fan base will find you.

You take a quick peek around to see if any of the other bystanders are staring at you, or if anyone might recognize Nafla (which they haven’t so far, luckily for you), but you just let it be and allow yourself the euphoria of holding your favorite rapper’s hand while you daydream about him as your boyfriend.

There’s a buzz in your heart for the rest of the evening when you take him out for dinner at one of your favorite local restaurants and then to a nice bar that you’ve been to once before. You both talk casually and amiably and give off no more displays that may hint that you two are more than friends, and the entire evening remains pleasant even so.

By the time you bring him back to his hotel, it’s almost midnight. You’re about to drop him off at the front and drive home, but he stops you, “Come spend the night.”

“What?”

“Come on, I don’t want you to go yet.” He rubs his hand persuasively on top of yours that’s on the gear shift, “Stay the night with me.”

“I- I have a class tomorrow morning.” You point out, though really, all you want is to stay with Nafla for the whole night, “I was just gonna come back and meet you for lunch or something.”

“You can still make it.” His hand is rubbing on your forearm now, and moving up to rest on your shoulder. He moves in close to your ear to whisper, “I’ll try not to keep you up too late.”

You close your eyes and try to disguise your shudder with an exasperated sigh before putting the car back in drive, “Fine.”

When you’re back in Nafla’s room after leaving your car in the hotel garage, he requests to shower first, so you agree and use the time while he’s in there to try and settle your nerves.

By texting your group chat with your closest friends, ‘I’M STAYING WITH HIM TONIGHT LASDJFOAIEW’  

You type out as many details as you can in the conversation with all the excited replies that pop up until Nafla appears back in the room, freshly cleaned in some simple pajamas. “You can shower now if you want.”

“Okay,” you say, sending a last update and promise of more details later before putting your phone on do not disturb mode.

“Here, you can wear this for tonight.” He offers you a t-shirt, which you gratefully accept before heading into the bathroom.

You stare at yourself in the mirror as you silently freak out and mouth to yourself all kinds of things while you’re hidden away from Nafla. You cannot believe you’re going to spend the night in his hotel room, wearing his shirt, doing… who knows what with him. As you wash off in the luxurious, marble-tiled shower, your mind wanders back to the glorious, pleasure-hazed memories of how you spent your last night with him. You don’t want to hold any expectations based on what happened before, but your body is thrumming in anticipation for what could happen next.

When you reappear into the bedroom with absolutely nothing on except his shirt — you washed your underwear in the shower and you’re letting it dry so you can wear it tomorrow morning — you come to find that Nafla is tucked in to the waist in the duvet on the bed, watching a movie on the TV. He turns to you with a smile and pats the other side of the bed, beckoning you to join him.

You settle yourself into the bed carefully, making sure the hem of the shirt still covers the top of your thighs even when you slide onto the mattress. “Endgame?” You try to identify the movie he’s watching.

“Infinity War.”

And so begins a whole discussion of the Marvel series, which expands into other movie genres and topics until Nafla interrupts to bring your attention to the scene playing. And soon, you’re both too drawn into the plot of the film to talk anymore.

At one point, however, he does take a moment to murmur to you, “C’mere,” to press you close to his side and put his arm around your shoulders. Your heart flips at the proximity and intimacy of the position, with the both of you rested against the pillows, every inch of your sides touching from torso to leg, and your head that could easily lay on his shoulder. It’s a wonder if he can’t feel your heart beating in your chest.

Eventually, you do get a little tired of holding your head up to watch the movie when there’s a perfectly viable headrest available to you that would allow you to continue watching just fine, so you give in and tuck your head into the crook of Nafla’s neck for the remainder of the movie. He’s incredibly warm, and buff, from what you can tell. Maybe even more so than the last time you were with him.

The movie continues on, and you sink into the absolute perfection of this moment. You’re cuddled up against Nicholas Choi, wearing his shirt in his room, after he flew into your city and asked you to stay the night with him. You don’t want to dare to ask, but could there really be anything better than this?

You suppose there can, when Nafla turns his attention over to you and finds tears coming down your face as the end credits begin rolling. “Aw, are you okay?”

“Yeah.” You croak, sniffling as you wipe at the tears, “It’s just… his voice at the end. It’s heartbreaking.”

“Yeah, it is.” Nafla swipes his thumb across your cheek at a tear you might’ve missed, and looks at your face so intensely that you start to wonder if you did something wrong.

But as he stares longer, and starts stroking some of your hair back from your face, you begin to pick up on the shift in the mood. You wait for him to make the first move though, just staring back at him with a vulnerable look in your eyes until he leans in to kiss you.

Wow, it’s amazing. As amazing as it was the first time. And the second, and third, and all the times after that. He adjusts you to have you lie down more flatly on your back so he can plant a hand on the other side of your head to kiss you more deeply. Your idle hands slide up his chest and come up to cup his face. It feels a little more intimate that he may be going for, but you can’t help it. You just feel so warm and soft and close to him right now, you need to hold him.

Needless to say, you didn’t need the shirt after all throughout the rest of the evening. And Nafla didn’t manage to keep his word about trying not to keep you up too late.

*

“You were so incredible.”

“Thanks, I do my best.”

Nafla is waiting for you to pack up your stuff in the gym dance studio after your morning hip hop class. He decided to join in since it was a drop in class anyway, and you were nervous, but happy to have him. The class was small, as it usually is on Saturday mornings, but luckily they all had plenty of energy. And Nafla was able to follow along just fine about ten minutes into it.

“I’m impressed you’re still capable of teaching a class. Thought I might’ve worn you out this morning.” He teases.

“Shut up, it wasn’t all that.” You roll your eyes.

After a long, tender, late-night romp that lasted until about 3AM, you both managed to fall asleep for a couple of hours before Nafla woke you with his wood poking your back. And well, since he was a light sleeper, he easily woke up when you simply groaned and stretched against his hold on your waist. But even with morning breath and the exhaustion of a day out and night in, he still kissed you and initiated a round of lazy morning sex.

Which was absolutely euphoric, so you claiming that it ‘wasn’t all that’ is just a bit, fat lie. And Nafla knows that, but he lets you have it as you lead the way back to your car so you two can go grab some lunch.

“So what’s on the itinerary for the rest of today?” He asks as he digs in.

“Well, actually I have some work to do on my laptop for a bit, so I was hoping we could chill at a cafe for a bit this afternoon?” You give him an innocent, but pleading look.

“Sure, we can do that.” He agrees.

“Great! Thank you, it’s just that I really want to get it out of the way so that I won’t be thinking about it for the rest of the weekend.” You explain, “But I’ll take you to my absolute favorite cafe in the city. It might not be that impressive compared to the ones in Korea, but I really love it.”

Nafla seems to find it not too shabby either when you bring him in and order your drinks. You sent him off to find a table while you paid, since you’ve been paying for a lot of the meals during your outings. “It’s the least I can do,” you keep telling him that a few meals and drinks are nothing compared to how priceless the experiences you’ve had with him have been.

He chose a booth near the back, where it’s quieter and slightly more isolated from the rest of the cafe patrons. He took the seat that’s facing the rest of the cafe, so you sit in the booth chair across from him and set up your laptop, “They’ll bring the drinks here.”

“Cool.” He says, pulling out his phone and tapping around on it. You’ve just started in on your work emails when the drinks arrive, and you leave Nafla to take his photos and send his texts and everything else while you work your way through your tasks.

About half an hour in, and half a drink consumed, Nafla silently moves out of his side of the booth to join you on yours. “Can I sit here?” He asks.

“You already are.” You snort, letting him lean against your side and wrap his arms around your waist as you continue to read through and make notes on the documents you’re going through. Nafla just rests his chin on your shoulder and watches as you continue to work, and you suddenly feel tingly and warm at the intimacy.

Practically speaking, if you wanted to fully focus on your task to get it done faster, you’d ask Nafla to let go and give you some space, because his touch and scent are sending your thoughts all over the place. But you like it so much, so you leave it alone and settle for taking twice as long to read and reread through some sections of the documents.

Nafla goes back and forth between playfully rubbing patterns in your body and looking through his phone, but he stays close to you no matter the task. At some point, he actually starts kissing at your jaw and neck, claiming that he isn’t looking for attention when you question him. But by the time you somehow manage to get through your list of tasks, Nafla has given you two fresh new hickeys.

“Oh my gosh, I cannot believe you,” You smack his thigh when you pull up your laptop webcam to inspect the red spots on your collarbone and the side of your neck.

“Hey, they’re not any worse than the ones you gave me.” He points out, pulling down the collar of his hoodie to reveal the several purple bruises you had left there last night. You had refrained from the love bites that first night back in Seoul, but somewhere in the conversation, he said that it was okay to leave whatever marks you wanted here. Guess he doesn’t see any harm in it since he’s in a country where he isn’t as easily recognized.

“At least yours can be hidden easily,” you retort, rubbing at what will likely be a very visible mark on the side of your neck tomorrow. You turn to him with narrowed eyes, “Maybe I shouldn’t have been so nice.”

“Oh yeah? Gonna get your revenge?” He chuckles, like he’s challenging you.

Instead of answering, you pull him closer by the front of his hoodie and kiss right in the center of his throat, where his adam’s apple is. You can feel him swallow against your lips, even though he’s chuckling casually above you. Slowly, you continue your trail of kisses, higher and higher until you reach the edge of his jaw right underneath his ear.

You wait a beat and breathe against his skin, to which he responds by gripping you tighter in his hold. His anticipation makes your heart jump in excitement and giddiness, so you put your lips right there on his jaw. And you kiss on him a few times before parting your lips to lock around that small patch of skin, sucking and occasionally licking until you know there’ll be a dark purple bruise forming in a few hours.

When you let go, and kiss back down his neck, you hear and feel him shiver against you, and your ego just blows up a few sizes. Dragging your nose up from his adam’s apple to his chin, you lean back to get a good look at his face. And you are absolutely gone seeing that breathless, needy look in his eyes.

You smile in something of a victory, and he shuts you up by pushing his lips back into yours and pulling you closer by the waist until you’re almost on his lap. God, is it possible to get high or drunk off of another person’s scent like this? Does he realize what he’s doing to you? You’ve melted into his hands and against that soft, talented mouth of his. If he can kiss and touch like this, it’s no wonder his music feels so authentic when you hear it.

When Nafla moans into your mouth, however, that’s when you have to bring things to a pause, “Mm, Nick. Nick, wait.” You pant, stopping his hands from coming any higher up your torso, “No more, not here.”

He heaves a dramatic sigh, but willingly agrees. He leaves a peck on your nose before moving back to his own side of the booth. You check yourself in the webcam once more and adjust your somewhat disheveled appearance before shutting down your computer and putting all your materials away. “I have a fun place in mind next.” You announce.

*

Nafla’s eyes turn everywhere as he takes in all of the flashing lights of all the arcade games, and the adult fun house area in the center of the facility. There’s an area for rocking climbing and a tightrope course and even a trampoline and ball pit. Basically everything fit for the inner child that still lives within the adult body. “This is so cool.”

“Yeah, and look at this.” You lead him by the hand over to the Dance Dance Revolution area, where there are a handful of people gathered to watch the college kids who frequent the arcade play the game.

Nafla watches as they select a hit pop song and follow all the dance steps with the most stylish flair to their movements. It looks like they’re actually performing the choreographed dance rather than playing a virtual game. The only thing that gives it away is the fact that their eyes remain glued to the screen in front of them, watching the arrows carefully as they rapidly climb to signal the next move.

“That’s fucking crazy! They must practice a lot.” He comments, awestruck by the dancers.

“Yeah, they’re here every time I stop by this area. They might actually be part of a dance club at school or have their own crew.” You explain.

“Whoa…” he trails off as he continues to watch. And after several more songs, Nafla turns back to you, “Do you ever play?”

“Me?” You laugh, “Yeah, I used to. Sometimes. I’m nowhere near this level though.”

“I dare you to do it.” He challenges.

“Oh, you dare me?” You challenge back, “Then I dare you to join me.”

So that’s how you end up on another DDR machine in the arcade, dancing against Nafla to different hip hop and K-pop songs you found in the catalogue. He’s not that great, but he does make it to C-class scores. Not that you’re much better than him at B-class. You got all the moves, but your rhythm was more awkward than you remember. It’s been a while since you’ve danced to a game.

Not that it matters, because you and Nafla are just laughing for the rest of the afternoon as you bulldoze through the games in the arcade, winning tickets and getting prizes. You even get a slot to jump around in the trampoline and ball pit area with him.

He looks like he’s having the time of his life, and you’re so glad that you’re able to see that smile on his face. You feel honored to be able to bring him to such a place to give him that kind of happiness. And by the time you’ve both had dinner and drinks, you decide to just spend the rest of the night in.

“You sure you don’t want to visit the local club? Because I don’t know if you’ll be able to get up for your flight on Monday if you go tomorrow.” You ask as you pull out your pajamas from your bag. You had made a stop back at your house this morning before your gym class to change and get some spare clothes since Nafla insisted on having you stay with him for his remaining nights here.

“It’s cool. Besides, why would I need to go to the club when I would just dance with you anyway?” He comes up from behind you and wraps you in a hug before giving you a tender kiss.

“Oh? So even with all the pretty girls in a different country, you’d still pick me?” You say it teasingly, but you kind of want to take it back once you say it. It sounds more presumptuous than you meant for it to come out.

Nafla is silent for a moment, which makes it even harder on your nerves and pounding heart, because the last thing you want is to make things awkward by having The Talk. You’re not sure if either of you are ready to put a label on what you have right now, and you’re not sure you’d like the answer that comes out of the discussion either.

But he takes it easy on you and answers you in that throaty, moody voice, “Of course.”

And that’s all you need for tonight.

*

Nafla’s last day in town is filled with tour bus rides, short hikes, shopping, bar hopping, and all kinds of food. And like the previous night, he chooses to stay in for his last night with you. You crack open some beers in his room, sing and dance around the room with water bottle mics, you hand-feed him some snacks while you’re both naked in bed watching a movie, take a bath together, give each other massages, and have endless bouts of sex.

It’s almost as if neither of you want the night to end, so you just do as much as you can to avoid going to sleep. But morning does eventually come, and Nafla has to shower and pack up his belongings.

While you lie there as he packs, you can’t get out of your own head, wondering if you should talk to him about… what you two are. Are you even anything? You would like to think so. The guy flew all the way out to your city to see you, didn’t announce his travel plans to anyone publicly, and he’s been acting like your boyfriend since he touched down here.

At the same time, all of that could just be because this is more of a getaway to him. He can’t have the comfort of anonymity in Korea, he can’t hold hands on a peaceful walk in public or make out with someone in a cafe or go around without worrying about being bombarded by fans. So maybe this was his chance to escape all of that and have a temporary girlfriend.

Maybe that’s what he likes about you. The fact that you’re temporary, and that you don’t bring it up. From the beginning, you’ve always been ready to say goodbye. From the first night at the club, to the second night at the party, and even now, you haven’t brought up anything about seeing him again after this. Maybe he likes the fact that you have no strings attached, and that you make things so easy for him. All the fun without any of the commitment.

Which you can understand, coming from his position as a famous rapper. It’s hard for him to enjoy moments like this now that he’s shot up to fame. Can you blame him for wanting a taste of it in the midst of all his success?

No, but you still have yourself to think about. You don’t know if you can go on wondering what you’ll have between you for the next months to come. Is there even anything possible for the two of you? There’s potential, for sure, but the practicality of it all makes it hard.

And first and foremost, does he even want anything more with you? For all you know, this could just be a fun fling for him and he may never contact you again after this. If you suddenly ask the ‘what are we?’ question, you might end up feeling humiliated for even thinking that you had some sort of chance to be with someone in his realm of fame. So should you even bring it up at all? Or should you just let it sit in your mind until after he leaves and deal with whatever will come later?

Would that be the easier option? To just opt out of the awkward conversation and keep the good memories of his visit in the case that he ends up not speaking to you ever again? You would end up as a hot fling legacy in his past, but you’d be a good memory, you assume. And it would be consistent with what you’ve expected from him since you first met; no expectations and no complications. If he wants to keep reaching out, then he can.

But then what if he does keep reaching out? What if this keeps happening? Are you just going to be his holiday fling forever? Does that make you seem easy? Or less of a person? That’s the last thing you want, as much as you like Nafla and want to continue getting to know him. But if this isn’t ever going to build into something feasible, then wouldn’t you just be reserving too much of your time waiting for him to get back to you?

You would love to see him again, but if you ask this question, it could very much end up jeopardizing the relationship you have in the future. Is it worth it? Is any of this going to be worth it?

“What are you thinking about?” Your heart jolts, but you manage to at least keep the shock within your body when Nafla pulls up behind you with a light hug.

Now’s your chance.

“Just… can’t believe the weekend passed by so quickly.”

“Yeah, I know right. It’s crazy.” Nafla agrees with a soft, tender voice.

Chicken, you cringe at your inner cowardice. Because you know it’s true. You’re too scared to risk it, especially when it’s just such a rare opportunity to still be in contact with Nafla when you could’ve easily been left as a one-night stand. Yet, you feel kind of relieved that you’ve decided to hold your tongue for the moment.

The atmosphere between you is still light and sweet as you go with Nafla to check out and drive him to the airport. He summarizes some of his favorite parts of the trip, several of which allude to your reactions when he pleasured you in the evenings. You act offended, but you laugh along and quip back with your own observations of his quirks.

You can’t believe you know these things about him. To think, you’ve gotten to know Nafla at a deeper level than the average person. Clearly, you’re still leagues away from being someone within his circle, but you’re still in awe of how lucky you’ve been to be able to spend this much time with your favorite rapper.

Flight check-in is smooth, and you’re especially relieved that there haven’t been any big incidents up until this point. It’s a wonder that not a single person has come up to him or done a double take to try and get a better look at him to confirm that he is indeed Nafla. Though to his credit, he’s wearing a hat and a mask at the airport right now, so that helps a little bit.

He still has over an hour to get to his gate, so you’re wondering how you should address this farewell. You’re still talking casually as you approach the area for TSA checks, which is where you’ll have to part. So when you actually do make a stop there, you turn to face him and say, “It’s been such a pleasure having you here. I’m so honored that I was able to spend time with you and act as your guide. That you decided to come here for a vacation in the first place.”

“The pleasure’s all mine. I had the best time, thanks to you.” He smiles at you, opening his arms for a hug, “I almost wish it wouldn’t have to end.”

“You’re telling me.” You laugh over his shoulder as you hug him tight, wanting to relish every last minute that you get to feel Nafla’s body against yours.

Then he tackles you with a surprise whisper, “I don’t want to say goodbye just yet.”

You pull away with a sympathetic pout in your lip, “I can keep you company for a little bit longer before you have to leave.”

He takes your hand, and you can see his smile in his eyes even behind the mask, “Good. I was hoping you’d say that.”

*

On your way back to the car after finally sending him off, you pull up your phone to message the group chat.

‘I literally just had goodbye sex in an airport bathroom’

The replies come immediately.

‘WHEN DID U BECOME SUCH A CLICHE’

‘Aaahhh!!!!!!’

‘YOU DID WHAT’

‘GET IT GIRL’

*

He ends up posting a photo set on Instagram of his trip. The only hint that he was with you (or any person at all) is his caption at the end of the post, where he gives photo credit to a wolf emoji. Which is what you’re guessing is the closest thing he could find to a husky, so you like the photo and ignore all the comments about when he was in the country, or the upset from fans that missed him because they know the spots in the photos that he visited, and the handful of questions about a dog taking the photos for him.

Nafla had texted you for a bit after landing back in Seoul, but eventually things picked up again and he got busy. You’re okay with the distance because you just spent several days with him and only him, and you have plenty of memories to daydream and reminisce about when you’re bored. The goodbye you two shared was rather dramatic since he had fucked you in a handicap stall in the men’s room before taking his flight, but it was seamless. You felt like you got closure and capped it off perfectly without any more expectations for the future.

So you’re doing a lot better than you were worried about now that he’s back in Korea. Work still keeps you busy, and your friends let you gush about him every time you meet up. And in the aftermath, you’ve actually gotten addicted to quite a number of songs that you felt really narrated your shotgun romance with Nafla, and developed some new choreography to them to illustrate the experience.

In fact, you even have another fling with someone you meet at the club on a night out with your friends. It wasn’t your best one, obviously, not after you went through such a whirlwind of great sex with Nick, but it was still liberating in a way. You were starting to move on with your life without him constantly on your mind.

So leave it to him to abruptly stop that good flow with a surprise video call several minutes before your morning alarm is about to go off.

At first, you’re confused and wondering if you’re dreaming or misreading the name on your phone, because Nafla has never video called you before. In fact, he hasn’t even voice called you before, so this is really coming out of nowhere, especially after several weeks of no contact since he left your city. But who knows? It could be an emergency, so you decide to pick up.

“Hello?” You groan through your morning voice and try to pry your eyes open wider than a squint. The sunrise is harsher than usual from through the window.

“Hey, uh…” He hesitates. But wow, you did not realize that just hearing his voice again would do this to you in the morning. “Did I wake you?”

“What do you think?” You answer cheekily, rolling around and sighing as you look for the strength to lift your phone up to see his face and let him see yours.

“Oh, sorry. What time is it over there?”

You look up at the time at the top of your phone screen and relay the information, “Just before 6:30. You jerk.” You add in a playful murmur.

He laughs and apologizes again, and that’s when you hear chuckles and chatter in the background. “Who are you with right now?”

“Just some of the guys, I think you might remember them.” He maneuvers the camera around to reveal Bloo, Loopy, and Owen beside him. They all wave and shout hello to you, to which you chuckle and say hi back.

“So, like…” Nafla starts, looking somewhat nervous, “We were just talking a bit, and the topic of my vacation last time when I visited you came up. So yeah, I just wanted to see your face again.” He finishes awkwardly, “And show it to these guys.”

“Hello~” Some of them wave again.

“So you decided to call me before seven in the morning, and expose my crusty ass face to all your friends?” You say, rolling over to your stomach and propping yourself up on your elbows before holding up your phone properly again.

“No, that’s the thing! I was actually telling them how you’re still really pretty without makeup on or anything.” He defends.

“Yeah, we were talking about how Meg and some other girls we work with all look so different without their makeup on. And then Nick here was all like, ‘nah she’s way prettier when she doesn’t have it on, blah blah blah’ and we were like ‘prove it’ so he just called you.” Bloo goes on to explain. You can’t tell if he’s already had a couple drinks today or if that’s just how he normally talks, but he’s got a happy slur about him.

But you do pick up on the detail that Nick was talking about you and calling you pretty, which makes your heart leap far too high for the morning.

“What is this, a college frat dare?” You scoff, tossing your hair out of the way and checking your face in the video camera for any dried up fluids in the corner of your eyes or nose.

“Oh my god, it feels like it. These guys wouldn’t stop bothering me about it, so that’s why I just called you. Sorry again, for waking you to deal with this bullshit.” Nafla says.

“He was right though, you’re still very pretty with a bare face.” Loopy decides to interject, and Bloo comes in with a few agreeable comments.

“Thanks, I guess.” You roll your eyes but offer a sleepy smile anyway. That’s when your phone alarm goes off, so you switch it off and sigh as you slowly slide out of your bed.

“You gotta get ready?” Nafla asks.

“Yeah,” you sigh, “A regular work day.”

“Oh okay, well maybe I’ll talk to you later?” He offers, though he sounds slightly disappointed. And that small shift in the tone of his voice is what snatches at your heart and makes you ache not to say goodbye.

“No, it’s okay. It’s been a while, so I can talk for a bit.” You say as you set your phone on the bathroom counter, “If you actually want to talk, that is.”

“Yeah, yeah! For sure.” He says, “We got a little time too, and I was wondering how you’ve been doing anyway.”

You don’t have the energy to warn them that you’re taking a leak, so when they hear the flush and there’s laughter in the background, you can understand the humor, you suppose. “Wait, did you just go to the bathroom while on the call with him?” Bloo asks, laughing.

“Yeah! A girl’s gotta pee.” You argue, washing your hands and grabbing for your toothbrush. “You go first though, since I gotta brush. What’s been going on with you?”

You talk throughout your entire morning routine, and most of the other guys eventually leave Nafla alone to chat with you. Though they occasionally do pass by again and ask a question or make a comment about something. As you talk with him over your breakfast and putting on your makeup, you get kind of caught up in the excitement and comfort of talking to him again.

It’s only when you’re about to start your car to go to work that you decide to hang up. You keep the goodbye casual, but once the line’s cut, you take a deep breath to squeal and bounce in your seat until you’ve calmed down. “Nafla just video called me… He just called me… Ah!!”

When you’ve finally calmed down enough to start your car and make your way out of the parking garage onto the road, you’re already thinking about how you’re going to slam your keyboard in the group chat. And then, right at a stoplight, a new message appears on your phone, making you almost lose it when you glance over.

‘I missed the sound of your skin against cotton’

The other drivers beside you barely wait when the light turns green, eager to drive away from the crazy person screaming inside of her car.

*

Over the next few months, it’s the same old story. You guys pick up on conversation over text for a week or two before eventually letting it die out, only to pick back up again several weeks later. Sometimes, the talks get deep, sometimes they remain lighthearted and noncommittal. There’s even another video call or two sometimes. But you have completely returned to square one.

Of course you still go about your life as you normally do, working, dancing, hanging out with friends, occasionally going out, though you’re more reluctant to have flings now because you doubt they’ll ever live up to your experience with Nick. But you spend a lot of your time thinking about him, wondering if you’re holding out for him when you don’t need to be, annoying your friends with questions about him.

They all have their own takes on the situation, some motivated by self-growth, some motivated by clout, some motivated by adventure, but in the end, you can’t get him out of your head and you don’t know if you want to. Your memories of your time with him still feel so fresh and your body still craves for a man to treat you as well as he did.

It’s not like you haven’t tried going on a date or two in the meantime, but it’s just so hard to hold up to that standard that you now have. No one makes you feel as euphoric or special as Nick did when he came to visit you. Honestly, who could ever begin to compare? The dude flew to another country to come see you. What could some regular dude possibly do to impress you on a first date anymore?

You’ve been in the same section of this maze in your head for too long, which is why you decide to take your upcoming vacation on your own. Maybe what you need is some alone time, away from all the familiar friends and restaurants and advice and places that remind you of when you brought Nafla there. You’re going to take your two week vacation and go backpacking somewhere new, somewhere fresh. Somewhere that will give you a whole new state of mind.

“That’s pretty noble of you, to just take an adventure to yourself and commit to it.” Your friend comments when you explain your plans to the group.

“Who knows? Maybe you’ll meet someone while you’re traveling around.” Another suggests. “A new man or new friend or whoever they may be.”

“I sure hope so. Do you think that if I talk to random strangers at a bar about Nick that they’ll all give me different advice?” You wonder.

“I don’t think traveling with the intention to get advice for your love life is the best way to approach your trip.” Another friend deadpans, “But that would be interesting to see the differences in opinion.”

“Also, you have to remember, if you do this, it has to be about you.” Another friend reminds you, “If he happens to hit you up during the trip or he asks about it, don’t let him pull anything crazy.”

You snort, “And by crazy, you mean?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I mean.” She retorts, “He flew out to see you once. Who’s to say he won’t do it again? He’s just going to mess with your head, I’m telling you.”

“That’s not going to happen, I won’t let it.” You assure your friends, who all give you skeptical looks or just look away while sipping their drinks. “I’m serious! This is going to be my vacation, and I’m not going to let it get ahead of me this time. I mean it.”

Your friends exchange looks with each other before turning to you, “If you say so.”

*

All goes as planned. You land in Budapest to kick off your trip, then make your way up to Bratislava, Vienna, and then Prague. It’s tougher than you thought it would be traveling alone without a guide or being fluent in all the different languages of the places you visit, but you make do. And you make an adventure of it.

You spend your days hiking mountains, walking through old neighborhoods, visiting cathedrals and museums, eating at bistros and drinking at bars, talking to all kinds of people, evening booking a tour or lesson every so often. It’s all a bit overwhelming just traveling to a new place every two or three days and getting reaccustomed to each new city, but it’s refreshing. And it keeps your mind occupied.

For the first week.

‘Hey are you on vacation right now?’

You get the text while you’re in Poznan, enjoying your third St Martin’s croissant that day at a nice cafe near your hostel. First, your heart stops, because you can already hear your friends’ voices in the back of your head telling you not to do it. And they get louder as you unlock your phone and open the messaging app, but before you realize it, your reply is sent.

‘Yeah! On a small Europe tour this time’  

‘Nice. I saw your pics on IG. Looks cool’ His response appears immediately.

But this is fine, you continue to text him for a few minutes and update each other as usual. Nothing out of the ordinary.

‘Where are you gonna be in a few days?’ He asks.

‘Depends. I’ll be in a couple other cities in Poland for a bit, but I’m gonna fly to a city in Latvia for the last leg of my trip’

Your heart beats as you wait for the next message, and it bursts when you see it actually appear.

‘Can I come join you?’

*

You should not be doing this.

You should not have gotten caught up in the excitement of his request and eagerly planned out the details for his arrival. You should not have cancelled your reservation at a guesthouse and agreed to stay with him in a hotel. You should not have put so much effort into your appearance when you’ve just been bumming it for most of this trip and prioritizing comfort and ease. And you most certainly should not be getting frisky with him on this taxi ride to the hotel.

“Nick— Nick, wait. Mmph—“ You pull away as he kisses you.

“I missed hearing you say my name like that.” He chuckles, kissing your cheek and rubbing at your thigh before moving back to his own space in the backseat.

“Oh my god, chill.” You laugh back, “I missed you too, though.”

When he just smiles and holds your hand in response, your cheeks can’t take it and you just direct your gaze out the window instead. You’re so warm and your heart is pounding like crazy in your chest. You wonder if he can feel your pulse in your wrist right now.

After leading him to the room you booked — since you had arrived in Riga first — he sets his stuff down and pins you to the edge of the bed, and just kisses you. He kisses you for a while, slowly, tenderly, like he’s making up for lost time. And he does that several times, only taking small breaks to breathe and look into your eyes before coming right back in.

And he keeps it rather chaste — with his hands at least. They remain on your hips, occasionally rubbing at them and your butt, but he doesn’t move them anywhere too rated. His lips however, they’re taking you on a ride that you didn’t even know you had been waiting in line for. You feel like you’re in a movie, reuniting with your true love after years apart due to war or something. He actually kisses you just that passionately.

At some point, you realize you’ve been laid down on the bed and Nafla rests on top of you, like he’s unable to remove his lips from yours. You’re beginning to realize that you never enjoyed kissing any guy as much as you’ve enjoyed kissing him. You could probably do this for hours, and you’re fairly sure he would let you. How are you supposed to not fall even deeper for him like this?

“Nick…” You sigh, eyes totally glazed over when he next pulls away from you.

“Ugh, you oughta know you shouldn’t be calling my name like that.” He groans into your neck, finally starting to rub himself against you.

You hum in pure delight, absolutely high off of this affection and pleasure and company. It’s like you’re finally being properly touched again. “Maybe… Maybe we should hold off for now.” You shiver, voice still shaky from excitement.

“Sure, that’s probably a good idea.” He groans in his low, sexy voice before lifting himself off of you to stand again.

You two take a few minutes to get your minds and bodies settled before pulling your belongings together in the room and discussing where to go for lunch. Since neither of you are feeling particularly peckish yet, you decide to go buy some food to bring with you on a picnic near the lake.

Nafla looks up good foods to try out while you navigate where the central market is. And as you’re shopping, it feels like a domestic getaway with your dream man more and more. He jumps and rides on the shopping cart like a kid, debates with you on what drinks to buy, feeds you samples, and attacks you with surprise back hugs. All you’re waiting for is for some old person nearby to ask how long you’ve been married for.

About an hour or so later, you both get off the bus and trek through the forest of Beberbeku Lake until you find an area with some wooden benches and tables. You sit beside each other on the same bench after you set up all the food and drinks, and Nafla tries feeding you again, which you turn away this time in favor of eating what you actually want to eat.

“You need to put some veggies in your body, even if you’re on vacation.” You insist.

“I barely saw any vegetables in the market; clearly the diet here is built on protein.” He argues back. “And pickles.”

To emphasize his point, he tries to stick one of the pickles from the jar the grocer recommended in your face. “Stop it, I don’t want your pickle.” You reject him with the tone of the child.

“Really? I thought you liked my pickle.” He takes the opening for the lewd joke. “Or was all the screaming last time from all the veggies you ate?”

“You shut the fuck up!” You scoff, smacking him in the arm, “Don’t turn a cute picnic into something dirty.”

“Oh please, you’d like it.” He chuffs, smiling as he takes the pickle back.

“That’s beside the point.”

“Is it?” He challenges.

“Anyway!” You interrupt the flow of this conversation before anyone nearby starts to listen in, “How’d you get permission for a getaway so soon anyway? Don’t you have shows to do?”

“Yeah, but everyone needs a break every so often, despite how we all rap about no days off.” He slides his arm around your waist to keep you close to him while he eats with his other hand, “So I convinced the team to let me have these couple of days between shows to enjoy myself.”

“That’s sustainable.” You comment, pulling out a piece of rye bread and smearing it with an herby butter you found in the market. “Have you ever thought about coming here on your own? Or for a show?”

It’s still hard to believe that you’re able to converse so casually with Nafla of MKIT RAIN like you’re old friends, or an old couple. But he just makes it so easy for you by accepting all of your energy and rallying it back to you. You suppose that’s what makes it so hard to turn away from him.

You absolutely love this connection you have with Nick, and you can tell that he enjoys being with you too, when he is with you. And despite what your friends warned you about and what you also know may emerge from this, you still want to enjoy the time that you get with him — simply because he took the time to come see you. He wouldn’t be here if he didn’t want to be.

The intention and sincerity behind it all is a completely different story, but for now, you allow yourself this indulgence. Traveling really becomes so much better when you’re with a companion — especially one that you get to make out with.

So for the next few days, you explore Riga with Nick beside you, taking pictures, walking through cathedrals and churches, interacting with people at bars, hiking through forests and mountains, everything you had been doing before with a new facet to your vacation. Nick always provides fun conversation, or a comfy shoulder to rest on, and he treats you to a lot of the things the city has to offer this time.

It’s the time of your life, honestly. You dance along with street performers, you attend a music event together, you eat and drink all kinds of new and strange things, and of course, you have a lot of sex. It’s physically impossible for you and Nick not to get down and dirty when the day comes to an end in your hotel room. If you’re honest, you think that that might actually be the highlight of any day.

Which also makes you wonder again — is that what he’s here for? Sex and a good time? A private getaway? And can you blame him for that when you’re still here lapping up the attention and affection he gives you? You don’t know how you should approach this anymore because when it comes down to it, you don’t even know what you want from him.

Commitment? That’s probably going to be the hardest no you’ll ever get smacked with. He’s young and in his prime, and having a committed significant other would bring about all kinds of complications.

His intention? If he tells you that he doesn’t want anything serious from you, would you still be willing to provide that occasional fling for him? Can your heart continue to handle all the mind games and unanswered anticipation?

A clean cut? Say worse comes to worst, you end up never speaking to him ever again. It’s the absolute last thing you want, especially after you feel like you’ve gotten close to him, but maybe you should follow your friends’ and family’s advice to just enjoy what you had with him, but put it behind you. Maybe it’s just not meant to be.

But… you can’t help but hold out that small hope that, maybe — just maybe — he would want something more. Maybe he did put all this effort into keeping in contact with you and flying out to see you because he genuinely likes you. And maybe one day, if he does decide to settle down, he would choose you.

Because if you lay it all out, and if it were all up to you, you would choose him. You would choose to keep what you have. You would. Even with the distance, even if he’s fucking other chicks on the side, even if you don’t talk for weeks on end. If he would be willing to keep you in his heart, you would wait for him.

You would. You really like him. You like him as Nicholas Choi now, not just Nafla of MKIT RAIN. He’s more than just a famous rapper to you now; the two of you have history. He’s more familiar with your body now than the majority of the men you’ve been with before. And you like how sweet he is, how he’s humble, and focused, and goal-oriented, and how he treats you well even with all the success that he’s had up until now.

Now that you’ve come to this realization, you sigh knowing what you have to do. You can’t put this off like you did last time. You’ve known since then that he’s someone special and that you won’t be able to easily get him off your mind if you keep playing head games with yourself like this.

So on the last night of your trip, the night before Nick has to leave in the morning, you stop him when he tries to pull you on his lap on the bed. If you had more patience, you would just fuck him for one more night and tell him in the morning, but it’s been eating at you all day and you can’t run from your own thoughts anymore. “Nick, wait.”

“Is something wrong?” He looks around your face, searching for signs of distress.

“It’s not so much wrong, as it is…” You pull away from him and sit cross-legged on the bed in front of him, “Confusing.”

He blinks at you, looking like he knows what’s coming, like maybe he’s been waiting for this moment to come. So he adjusts his own sitting position to face you, “What is?”

You take a deep breath and run your hand through your hair, giving yourself a moment, “Look, Nick. These past few days have been incredible. And last time when you came to visit me, incredible. I really enjoyed spending all this time with you and having fun with you like this.”

“Yeah, me too.” He agrees.

“Right.” You nod, “But… I don’t know if I can keep doing this anymore. At least, not without knowing what you’re actually thinking.”

Nick nods like he understands, looking away for a moment before returning his eyes to you, “Okay, what do you want to know?”

“I think you can guess.” You say, rubbing at your knee nervously, “I like you. A lot. A whole fucking lot. And… I like how I feel when I’m with you, and all the effort you put into coming to see me again. But I don’t know if I can just keep acting like I’m your girlfriend a couple days of the year when I’m just stuck in my feelings for the rest of the year, wondering if you like me back.”

He continues to nod slowly as you talk, his eyes and body language starting to become more closed off. That doesn’t look good for you.

But he takes the responsibility upon himself to give you an answer, at least, “I do like you. I really do. Every moment that I’ve had with you, it’s been real. That much is true, I swear to you.”

You nod, understanding. And then bracing yourself for what’s to come next. “I’m sorry if I’ve been… stressing you out. I guess I got so caught up in how much fun I was having that I didn’t think about how you may have been feeling. I genuinely like you, and I like what we have, but the last thing I want is to put you through pain because of me. So…”

You can feel your body tensing to brace for impact. Here goes nothing.

“If you’ve had enough that pain, then I totally understand. But I’m going to be honest and tell you I’m not ready for anything serious.”

You nod again, suddenly feeling a prickle of heat behind your eyes that you hadn’t been expecting. But you listen as he continues, “You are so amazing, and maybe if things were different, I’d be with you in a heartbeat.”

“You say that to all the girls you fuck around the world?” You chuckle in an attempt to lighten up the atmosphere, and distract from the tears forming in your eyes.

“You’re the only one I’ve flown across the world to see, I swear.” He smiles. Well, that does make you feel a little better. Flattered, at the very least. “Actually, you’re the only person I’ve met for a one night thing that I’ve kept talking to. I never had any idea that we’d be where we are now.”

It’s too late, the tears have already formed. One falls down your face when you blink, but you still smile, happy about what you’re hearing. “Guess this whole thing would’ve turned out differently if you actually had a condom that first night.” You laugh with a sniffle, wiping at your face.

“Yeah,” Nick chuckles, bringing a hand up to swipe a few tears off your face with his own thumb. “But I don’t regret any of it. I’m glad I met you, and that we’ve done all this. I’ll probably write a song about you one day.”

You break out in a laugh at that one, but tears still fall from your eyes, ironically enough. “Thanks, I guess. I mean…” you try to find the right words to say while your heart and mind are so scrambled up, “I’ll still like you, and I’m fine with that. But I just needed to know so that my heart isn’t… holding out for you when you know that it’s not gonna become anything.”

“Yeah… I’m sorry.” He puts his hand on top of yours and wipes at more of your tears with his other hand.

“I’ll be fine. Eventually.” You take a deep breath. “But, if I ever see you again, I don’t think I can do this again.”

“Nah, I get that.” He nods.

“If you want, I can still be your friend though,” you offer, “If you ever need anything from me, just ask. Although I doubt you’ll need anything from me.” You chuckle.

“That’d be cool.”

“But… Just don’t contact me for a bit. I think I need some time to clear my head.” You request.

“Of course.” He agrees, then opens his arms for a hug, which you accept. And you take your sweet time in his arms, remembering his scent, his touch, his skin. It may very well be your last time.

When you pull away, you sigh as you look at him, “Do you still wanna have a romp? I’d be down to give you that much.”

“No, we don’t have to.” He smiles, “I don’t want all this to be too much for you.”

“It’s okay, I want to.” You insist, slowly rubbing a hand along his leg, “I wouldn’t give up the chance to fuck Nick Choi one last time.”

He laughs, and that smile makes your heart light up. You’re going to miss it like crazy, you can already feel it. But for now…

“Okay, then. Come here.” He lifts you into his lap, gently rubbing at your back until you come down to kiss him. He’s extra soft and sweet this time, and it just squeezes at your heart even more.

“Ugh, that mouth of yours is dangerous.” You grunt when you pull away.

“Oh yeah?” He chuckles.

“Yeah.” You retort with a little attitude, but still playfully, “You kiss a girl like you love her, how do you expect her not to fall for you?”

He only offers you a curious hum before kissing you again and rolling you over to lie on top of you, “Do you want me to stop?”

“Not at all.”

And he doesn’t. He doesn’t stop all night long.

[aliciameade]

Baby - Ch. 8

Title: Baby Author: aliciameade Rating: *** M *** Pairing: Stephanie Smothers/Emily Nelson Summary:  That tearful kiss shared between Stephanie and Emily wasn't their first—and it certainly wasn't their last.

(Chapter 1)

Also on AO3

“Hi, Moms! Stephanie here.” Stephanie smiles into one of the cameras set up in her kitchen. “My best friend, Emily, and I are taking a girls’ trip to sunny southern California this week. I grew up on the east coast and have never been west of the big Mississippi, so let me know in the comments what I absolutely must do, see, or take on my trip!”

She switches to Camera 2. “It’s with that in mind that today we’re going to make our own travel toiletry bags! All you need is a yard of fun fabric and a few buttons. You can also use Velcro strips or ribbon, or if you’re feeling really fancy, a zipper. Ready? Okay!”

~ ~

~ ~

Her subscribers—she thinks of them as a family, really—were helpful in their suggestions. She folds and packs an extra cardigan to protect her from the chill that might roll in late in the evening off the water. Briefly, she considers “forgetting” any outer layers at all; the prospect of doing something obscenely romantic with Emily like strolling on the beach and getting chilly and being offered whatever expensive jacket Emily will surely be wearing is more than tempting.

But she sets the sweater on top of the négligée she’s found the perfect occasion for, and what she thinks might be too many pairs of panties but she also is pretty sure she’s going to need them.

Two-and-a-half days alone with Emily in another city with no looming husband and no dear, darling children to be cognizant of?

Yeah, she’s going to need them.

She didn’t ask Emily what she meant by “it” when she’d texted her last night saying, “Pack it.”

She has to bite her lip when she sees a loop of black leather of the harness peeking out from where it’s buried at the bottom of her suitcase.

Her toiletry kit, the one she perfected to use as her example on this week’s vlog, is the last thing to be tossed into her bag. Her heart races as she zips it. She’s minutes from loading Miles and her luggage into her Subaru to drop him—and her car—at Emily’s house.

With one final check that she has everything she thinks she might need in her purse and anything Miles might want while he has his two-night sleepover with Nicky, she shepherds him out of the house, locks up, and leaves.

~ ~

~ ~

She realizes, as she steps into the hired car waiting outside Emily’s home, she has no real idea how they’re getting anywhere. Emily had said they’re taking Dennis Nylon’s private jet, but beyond that, she’s uninformed. She doesn’t know where they’re staying, if they’ll have a rental or a driver in Los Angeles, or even what Emily’s work commitments are while they’re there.

She’s never traveled without an itinerary and there’s something oddly exciting about it.

She slides over to the far side of the back seat and watches Emily take a seat next to her, graceful and dapper as always in what Stephanie surmises is a version of professional travel-casual. Her navy blue suit is tailored but it’s only a two-piece. Simple blue slacks and blazer and a white blouse that’s not even buttoned up all the way, with brown loafers. Even her casual style makes Stephanie feel underdressed when she’d put extra effort into her outfit today. She knew private travel was a luxury and she wanted to fit the part. Her dress is designer, though a full four seasons ago, something from Kate Spade’s 2017 spring collection. She knows Emily probably knows it’s outdated, but she doesn’t comment on it.

“You look nice,” is actually what she says once the driver closes the door and they’re alone in the car for a few seconds before he’s behind the wheel.

“Thank you,” Stephanie replies, feeling a bit like a blushing schoolgirl. Emily can be so hot and cold with her communication and affection, and it manages to catch Stephanie off-guard every time.

Emily’s quiet after that, focused on her phone—texting or emailing, Stephanie supposes—leaving Stephanie to her thoughts. She wants to make conversation, but she’s not sure what’s okay to do or say with someone else in the car. The driver might be someone Emily uses frequently. It might not be okay if he overhears their conversation, even if it remains mundane and platonic about work or kids. She wants to ask what the plan is or even where they’re going.

She knows they’re heading east out of town. It’s growing increasingly industrial and she’s almost uneasy until they’re parking behind a massive warehouse.

She realizes, as she steps out the car, that it’s not a warehouse but a hangar because there’s helicopter parked and waiting in the middle of the wide open pad of asphalt.

“What is happening?” she says with a laugh as she watches Emily round the back of the car until she’s by her side. It’s only a touch of a hand to her back, but it makes Stephanie shiver.

“The plane is in Teterboro.”

Stephanie starts walking, half a step behind Emily because she was too surprised to move quickly. “So we’re taking a private helicopter to a private plane?”

Emily glances at her. The small smile she’s wearing is almost a smirk and it makes Stephanie feel a little childish in her excitement.

“I’ve never been in a helicopter, either,” she says as she follows Emily into the open bay door of the sleek black and white aircraft.

“The jet is nicer.”

Stephanie leaves an empty seat between them, unsure if it would be suspicious if they sat side by side when there was plenty of room in the six-seat cabin for the two of them.

Her decision is affirmed when they’re joined by a stranger, a man in a suit with a briefcase yelling into the Bluetooth earpiece he’s wearing about the manufacturing industry in China. He sits across from Stephanie and though his words aren’t directed at her, they feel like it as he stares through her in his heated conversation.

She turns to look at Emily in horror that they’re going to have to listen to this the entire trip to the airport to find that she’s already being watched. The tiny smirk is a full-on smile now and it makes Stephanie forget about the man as she returns it.

Whatever complaint Stephanie was about to lodge dies on her lips because Emily’s smiling at her in the back of a helicopter. It’s clear the man doesn’t know Emily; he’s talking factories and steel and he’d barely acknowledged their presence when he arrived. So, she decides to see what happens if she slides over to sit in the middle seat right next to Emily instead of leaving it empty.

The only thing that happens is a slight raising of eyebrows as Emily uncrosses her legs so her foot isn’t encroaching on Stephanie’s leg room.

Stephanie buckles her seat belt and when she sits back, she angles herself enough for her elbow to rest against Emily’s. She feels it lift in acknowledgment but the motion isn’t meant to push her away. A playful bump and a shared glance.

“How long is this flight?”

“Ten minutes.”

“That’s it?!”

Emily nods and turns to look out the window as Stephanie feels a roller coaster-like effect on her stomach and she realizes they’re airborne.

It’s too loud to carry on a conversation, not without putting on the comms headsets anyway, so Stephanie remains quiet in her excitement.

~ ~

~ ~

“I feel like Ilsa in Casablanca,” Stephanie finally lets herself say as she and Emily walk across the tarmac from a helicopter to a private plane, its door open and waiting.

Emily glances down at her. “Rick is putting Ilsa on a plane to send her away at the end of Casablanca.”

“I know, but it’s still so romantic and glamorous, walking across the runway ready to get on a waiting plane with someone you—” She catches herself. “With someone.”

Emily doesn’t respond; she steps aside when they get to the steps of the jet, engines already humming. “After you.”

Stephanie’s seen interiors of private planes before—on celebrities’ Instagrams, in movies and the like—but nothing could have prepared her for the reality of stepping into an airplane cabin covered in nothing but white leather and polished wood with gleaming gold (well, probably brass or similar) accents. It was a very, very far cry from the Economy Class on American Airlines that she was accustomed to.

“This is…” She senses Emily waiting behind her and turns around to find her right where she knew she’d be. “Emily, I don’t even know what to say.”

Emily smiles and gestures toward the back of the plane. “Lady’s choice.”

Stephanie yearns to pop up onto her toes and kiss her but the cabin door is still open, crew are milling about doing their final checks and loading their bags, and the cockpit door is also open with the pilots readily visible. They’re not alone, and this is Dennis’s plane and crew. Instead, she claps through a barely contained squeal and spins back around, nearly skipping through the aisle until she decides on the only row that has a pair of seats instead of singles.

She knows Emily might choose to sit alone, but she’s certainly not going to be the reason for it. She sees Emily watching her over the top of the seats and sees her making her way closer until she’s stopped at Stephanie’s row. She glances toward the front of the plane, then nods at the empty chair next to Stephanie.

“Is this seat taken?”

The whole situation already has Stephanie overdosing on endorphins, but Emily teasing? Being humorous? The compliment in the car. The elbow nudge on the helicopter. Stepping aside to allow Stephanie to board first. That pick-up line a second ago. She fights to get her joy under control lest it is off-putting and motions for Emily to sit.

“By all means.”

Emily joins her as she tosses her coat onto the seat across the aisle and though she’s still busy at work on her phone, she seems much less closed off than she had in the car.

“I really don’t know how to thank you for this,” she says as she watches Emily’s slender, strong fingers manipulate her iPhone in a way that shouldn’t make Stephanie jealous.

Emily looks up from her phone, turns toward Stephanie, and leans in and kisses her. It’s soft and brief, but it makes Stephanie tingle all the same. “I think you’ll find a way.” She punctuates the suggestive sentence with one more kiss and then she’s back at her phone and Stephanie realizes they’re already taxiing toward the runway.

She hadn’t even heard the cabin door close or felt the plane start to roll, caught up in her thoughts as she’d been.

And if they’re moving, that means there’s no one on the ground to see them through the windows, and the cockpit door is sealed, which means…

She sets her purse on the floor, not even realizing she was still holding it, turns in her seat and reaches for Emily. She catches her with a hand to the back of her neck to pull her back in. She wants a better kiss, a bigger kiss, one that will leave them both breathless and she smiles into it when Emily doesn’t pull away from her.

She feels Emily’s fingers slide into her hair followed by the heavy clunk of what she knows is Emily’s phone hitting the floor. It makes her stomach flip, but that might be from the plane taking flight, though Stephanie’s pretty sure it’s Emily and not the plane.

Stephanie has half a mind to unbuckle her seat belt and crawl into Emily’s lap but they’re barely off the ground. She doesn’t want to seem too eager or desperate despite not having been together since the morning after Emily spent an unexpected night at her house. She keeps herself in check, hands not straying into PG-13 territory. It’s enough—more than enough, really—to make her happy. Heck, even Emily looking at her with any level of affection, platonic or otherwise, makes her happy.

When she feels Emily’s hand on her waist pulling her closer, but not escalating things more either, she sighs and settles into her seat and against Emily.

There’s something just as arousing (maybe even more so) about hot and heavy making out than jumping right to sex. Perhaps it’s about a mutual agreement that it’s enough, at least for now, to simply be close and kiss. She knows more will come later. She doesn’t know when, but she knows it will only be a matter of hours. They’ll be in Los Angeles by the evening and she knows exactly what she wants for dinner.

~ ~

~ ~

Emily’s phone interrupts their kissing and Stephanie can’t help but smile when Emily groans in annoyance as she pulls away to reach down to retrieve it from the floor and answer it with a very gruff, “What the hell is it now, Dennis?”

She smiles again when Emily lets her continue however she likes while she bosses around her boss, and how Stephanie likes to continue is to make sure she’s familiar with the way every inch of Emily’s neck tastes today.

As happy as she repeatedly tells herself she is to not need more right now, the need is beginning to grow. She lets her hand rest on Emily’s knee and enjoys the way she tilts her head at different angles to encourage Stephanie to continue or move to a new spot.

When it sounds like the phone call is wrapping up and Stephanie is making plans to drag Emily over to the couch to finally get some relief, she hears through the phone what sound like multiple voices speaking at once and she feels Emily sigh.

“This doesn’t warrant a call with the board—”

She seems to get cut off which Stephanie knows is a rarity. She sits back in surprise and watches Emily pinch the bridge of her nose in annoyance.

The subsequent exchange clues Stephanie in to the fact that Emily’s ended up on a conference call with the Nylon Board of Directors. It’s fascinating to watch Emily...not falter per se, but for her place to be checked. Apparently, an entire board couldn’t be fucked in the face. Even Emily wasn’t that powerful.

But speaking of fucking…

Stephanie maintains her air of innocence best she can while her lips continue caressing Emily’s neck. She lets herself run out of skin, kissing to her collar before she nudges it aside to move lower until she’s undoing the next button on Emily’s shirt to expose her collar bones to Stephanie’s lips.

Emily’s reaction isn’t strong, but Stephanie does see her fingers flex where they rest on her lap.

She doesn’t think Emily will actually let her do it. She’s sure she’ll be stopped when she keeps unbuttoning until her shirt is open. She’s sure Emily will politely nudge her away when she leans over to trail her lips over the swells of her breasts. She’s sure Emily will sit back to prevent Stephanie’s wandering hand from undoing her bra under her shirt to push it up and away so she can tease the hardened tips to further attention and not lean forward to make it easier for Stephanie.

That’s the first time she hears Emily react, a kind of a swallowed gasp that she covers with a cough. Stephanie glances up at her and she sees her put her phone on mute before she asks, “Are you going to stop and let me focus on this call?”

“No,” Stephanie says with a smile before returning to her task, one hand on Emily’s breast to guide it back to her mouth while the other moves to Emily’s pants to start working on the pair of buttons there. She struggles for a moment, one-handed, but when they give way she’s filled with a rush of arousal and adrenaline. She glances down to watch herself pull at one side of Emily’s pants to try to split the zipper but it doesn’t part as easily as she expects it to, the expensive material too pliant. She’s about to sit up so she can use both hands when she sees Emily’s hand move from where it sits in her lap to hold the other side.

When Stephanie pulls again, the zipper parts easily and she can see the scalloped edge of light pink satin.

She nicks the firm flesh in her mouth with her teeth and hears a shaky sigh above her. It serves only to encourage her further and she doesn’t hesitate to slip her hand into Emily’s pants. She does sit up for that; she wants to see Emily’s face. She’s as light as she can be, barely grazing over the soft satin beneath her fingertips and she sees the way her eyelashes flutter at Stephanie’s touch.

She’s about to ask if Emily still has the phone on mute when she speaks sharply into the receiver, something about getting a photographer from the New York Post to be conveniently placed at an event to ensure tabloid-esque coverage of another designer’s misstep. Stephanie’s still not sure what the emergency requiring this mid-flight phone call with so many people could be, but she’s sort of grateful for it. It’s giving her a new playground, something different than kids upstairs or a husband on his way home. She waits until Emily’s finished speaking before she leans in to kiss her. It’s a quiet kiss, slow and soft and Stephanie’s able to tease Emily’s tongue without any resistance.

She slides the back of her fingernail down the satin as far as she can reach, then twists her wrist to drag it back up. She feels the soft rise of flesh through the satin and smiles to herself at the sound of Emily’s quick inhale and tilt of her hips.

Her touch is moving down again when Emily turns her head away so she can speak once more; she still sounds confident and in business mode and Stephanie finds it incredibly sexy. She waits until Emily seems to be finished speaking, then guides her with her free hand right back into another kiss as she presses the tiniest bit more firmly. Emily’s hips tilt again and Stephanie knows she’s asking for more.

There’s a lot about this relationship—for lack of a better moniker—Stephanie enjoys, but none more so than the confirmation (or, at this point, the reminder) that Emily enjoys it, too, is aroused by her, is more than happy to sit back on an airplane during a business call and allow Stephanie to touch her.

She’s as light with her tongue as she is her touch and pride rushes through her when she feels Emily shiver. She can’t help herself and slips her fingertips under the satin, eager to feel the effect she’s had so far. She finds slickness and has to stop herself from making some type of cheeky comment. Instead, she catches Emily’s tongue between her lips and sucks on it.

She feels fingers twist into her hair for Emily’s response and Stephanie hums at the tightness of her grip.

Emily pulls away to speak again and this time, Stephanie doesn’t wait idly for her to finish. She leans down to take Emily’s nipple into her mouth again, having to pull against the hold Emily has on her hair but she’s allowed to move without much of a fight. She finds a pattern with her fingers, a slow, gentle circle and above her, she hears Emily hiss a quiet, “Yes,” as her back arches and hips lift.

It’s an unknown how long the phone call may last; it could be over in a minute or an hour. She could touch Emily like this, slowly and lazily to drive her mad with need. Or, she considers when she feels Emily’s legs part further and her hips start moving to match her speed, perhaps the tiniest bit more quickly than Stephanie’s pace, she could see just how professional and in-control Emily is when she really needs to be.

She presses a bit more firmly, pads of her fingers rolling back and forth. She must be hitting a nerve just-so because Emily’s knee keeps bouncing as though in reflex. She smiles against Emily’s breast, amused by it, but she adjusts to make it stop. Instead, she speeds up, pausing now and then to dip her fingers lower and into Emily to feel her and draw more wetness up with her fingers.

It reminds her of their first night together, watching a sexy movie while Emily tried to be defiant as Stephanie teased and massaged her clit until she finally begged for it.

The memory makes her teeth nick Emily’s nipple again and her hips jerk in response. She glances up and though it’s difficult at the angle, she can tell Emily’s eyes are closed and her cheeks are tinted pink.

Her own impatience gets the best of her. She can feel how much Emily wants her and Emily is the only thing in the world Stephanie wants right now. She slides off her seat to the floor and temporarily abandons Emily’s clit, licking her fingers quickly before reaching for the waistband of Emily’s pants to pull them down.

They slide easily, Emily lifting to help, and she doesn’t bother trying to get them over both of Emily’s shoes. One’s enough so she can move between her knees, hands on Emily’s thighs to part them. She can feel Emily’s hand in her hair, combing and pulling, and she doesn’t even look up at her before she does it.

There’s something empowering about that, not looking up for permission she knows she has. It’s erotic in a way she’s still getting used to, to lean in, pull the strip of satin to the side, and taste Emily.

She hears Emily stutter and lose her place in whatever it is she’s saying to the Board and it fills Stephanie with pride. She takes Emily’s swollen clit between her lips before she’s found her place in her sentence and she feels a sharp tug on her hair. It almost feels like a warning or a request to stop but the very next second she’s being pulled in closer.

She hears Emily grind out a frustrated, “Never mind,” instead of ever finishing her thought and Stephanie wonders if she’s ever had to do that before.

Feeling victorious, she glances up to find Emily’s eyes no longer closed; now they’re locked on her so she tightens her lips and pulls back, taking Emily’s flesh with her until it slips from her mouth. “That sounds really important,” she says quietly. “Don’t let me distract you.”

She can tell Emily’s about to respond until she remembers her phone isn’t muted. Instead, Emily pulls her back in and Stephanie’s more than happy to oblige.

They’ve made love many ways during their short affair. Stephanie has loved them all but Emily parting her legs and asking for Stephanie’s mouth—sometimes verbally, sometimes in other ways—is arguably her favorite.

(Okay, it might be tied with being invited to sit on Emily’s face.)

She’s generous with her tongue this time, first taking care of the arousal that’s starting to drip before lapping slowly at Emily’s clit.

She feels Emily’s leg, the one free of pants, lift to rest over her shoulder so Stephanie adjusts, wrapping an arm around her leg and pressing closer. A second later, she hears a quiet hum and feels a vibration and for a moment she’s shocked and excited that Emily has somehow produced a sex toy but when she looks up in curiosity she sees that it’s the seat and not a toy that’s humming as Emily presses a button to make it recline.

“Fuck,” she whispers between strokes of her tongue; it’s even hotter than an unexpected vibrator because Emily’s making herself as comfortable as she can to let Stephanie do as she pleases while Emily suffers through her business call.

She takes a particularly strong swipe and hears Emily’s breath catch. There’s a delay where Stephanie knows there wouldn’t otherwise be between that sound and the moan that finally comes. “Jesus fuck, baby,” follows and Stephanie assumes the phone’s back on mute. Or, at least, she hopes it is for the sake of Emily’s reputation...though the concept that it might not be is titillating, Emily getting too caught up in how Stephanie makes her feel to forget her professionalism and letting a conference room full of executives hear her moaning.

She lets herself believe that to be the case and doubles her efforts as though she’s daring Emily to keep quiet. She’s had to be the one to bite her lip and cover her mouth more than enough times and it’s fun to be on the other end of things for a change.

When she hears Emily’s breath catch, she presses inside, first with her tongue, just because, then with her fingers, firm and sure as they slide easily. She curves them and watches Emily’s hips lift off the seat for a second before they’re pushing closer.

“Then find another venue, Dennis, what the fuck do you want me to do about it?” Emily’s voice is clipped and Stephanie can tell she’s more than impatient to end the call.

It’s the least Stephanie can do to be entertaining Emily, she thinks with a shrug to herself as she fucks Emily slowly, fingers moving in long strokes. She’s rougher and quicker with her tongue; she’s always loved the way Emily reacts when she gets the angle right, that spot that’s always ‘a little to the left’ that makes her toes curl.

She knows she finds it without guidance this time when the heel of Emily’s shoe scratches at her back. It’s digging into her and trying to reel her in closer and she really can’t get any closer so instead, she presses more firmly into that spot with her tongue.

“Fuck, that’s—that’s not my fucking job. That’s why we have Elena. Why isn’t Elena on this call if this is about an event? She’s your events person. Not me. Fuck!”

Stephanie doesn’t know which, if any, of the curses are directed toward her but it doesn’t matter. Emily’s not pulling on her hair anymore. She’s just holding Stephanie there, hips starting to buck out of rhythm.

Stephanie wonders what she should do. Emily’s close; so close Stephanie can taste it. Literally, she thinks with a smile. Should she stop, or back off to let Emily unwind before it’s too late? Or should she keep going and see if Emily will allow her to take her all the way to orgasm and back during her phone call?

“Fuck, don’t stop, baby,” Emily says with a groan to answer Stephanie’s debate.

She hums in response and glances up to see Emily’s eyes locked on her, dark and intense. She looks like she’s being fucked on a private jet, disheveled and half-naked in a white leather seat and Stephanie can’t help herself. She takes her free hand back from where it’s been holding on to Emily to keep her close. She doesn’t need to do that now; Emily will do that on her own. And she reaches under her dress, between her thighs, under her panties to touch herself.

She moans at the much-needed relief and she can see it on Emily’s face that she knows what Stephanie’s doing.

But she doesn’t do anything to stop her.

Instead, she says, “God, I can hear how wet you are.”

The words make Stephanie shiver and all she can do is hum and close her eyes because every ounce of her energy is devoted to other things.

“Hey, hey guys,” Emily barks and it makes Stephanie flinch at the unexpected change in tone. “You need to figure this shit out on your own. I’m going to stay on the call so I know what stupid decisions I’ll have to fix for you tomorrow, but consider me gone.”

She hears the sound of a dozen voices yelling at once as Emily turns on her speakerphone for the call and Stephanie’s genuinely impressed that Emily’s doing exactly what she said she would. She looks up again in time to see her toss her phone into Stephanie’s empty seat, look down at her, and say, “Fuck, you look so good, baby.”

Stephanie winks and feels even sexier in doing so than she had seconds earlier despite everything.

Emily’s louder now, like the nights she spent at Stephanie’s house with Miles at his grandparents’ house. Uninhibited. Uncaring that they could be caught because there’s no one to catch them, no one to interrupt them. They’re thirty-five thousand feet in the air and alone, save for two pilots behind a locked door with much more important things to pay attention to. It makes Stephanie moan, too, no longer concerned with whether or not Emily’s call is muted. Emily’s hand, the one not resting on Stephanie’s head, is on her breast and Stephanie watches the way she plays with her own nipple, memorizing the patterns of touching, twisting, and tugging so she can repeat them later.

It’s with a gasp and a whimper that Emily comes, tense and unmoving for an eternal second until she snaps and her hips buck in a way that makes it almost impossible for Stephanie to keep her tongue on her with any sort of precision, but it doesn’t really matter now.

She groans her appreciation for it; she loves when Emily comes for her like it’s some kind of twisted gift, one that Emily chooses to give her. It’s everything she can do to stop her own orgasm. She yanks her hand away from herself to hold Emily’s thigh to keep from suffocating between them (not that she’d mind…) and feels the tiniest quiver of ecstasy make her clench and her own hips rock forward for friction that isn’t there.

Her reason to wait will be worth it, she reminds herself, as she waits until the body above her is finished twisting in release. Once Emily’s calm again, her fingers starting to comb through Stephanie’s hair, she gets off the floor, makes quick work of slipping her panties off, and moves to straddle Emily’s lap. She takes her hand, the one that’s been in her hair for however long she was on her knees, and guides it between her legs.

Emily’s slow to react and she takes immense pride in that, that she’s still trying to recover. It’s not as though Stephanie needs a massive effort on her part for this anyway. She guides Emily’s fingers into her, sees the way she looks up at her, still dazed but there’s a hint of familiar smirk returning that disappears as soon as Stephanie leans down to kiss her.

She’s moving as soon as their lips touch, rocking and holding Emily’s hand in place firmly against her so she can grind against it as she claims Emily’s mouth with her tongue. She loves when they’re like this, raw and sensual and a bit dirty and she loves when Emily lets her take what she wants when she lets her be in control. She’s pretty sure by now that Emily wants Stephanie to be in control sometimes, that Emily likes when Stephanie does things like tie her up or pin her down. She’s sure Emily likes it as much as Stephanie likes being told to get on her hands and knees to be taken from behind.

It’s a good set-up they’ve got going, she thinks. The give and take, their little games of dominance and submission that haven’t started to challenge Stephanie’s personal boundaries yet, but she thinks they might sometime soon. Maybe while alone together on this trip. She’s kind of in the mood to be tested.

The possibilities and scenarios that assault her imagination are so distracting that it doesn’t even register with her that she’s close until she’s already coming, moaning against Emily’s mouth, lips touching but not really kissing as she feels Emily’s tongue darting in and out, still teasing even as Stephanie starts to come back to herself.

She doesn’t hear the angry, arguing voices on the phone anymore so the call must have ended or maybe Emily hung up, but she’s grateful all she can hear is their heavy breathing and the loud hum of the jet engines carrying them farther and farther away from Emily’s husband.

The thought makes her lips curl into a smile and she kisses Emily again now that she’s of sound mind once more and she lets her hips resume rocking. Not hard, or fast, but enough to be able to feel Emily still inside her. It’s enough to get Emily participating again and Stephanie shivers as Emily’s fingers curl and press into her.

“Was that your way of thanking me?” Emily says with a lazy smile when Stephanie has to pull back to moan.

It takes her a few seconds to rebuild the events of the past couple of hours, their conversations and references, until it clicks. “It’s a start,” she says as suggestively as she can. She knows the impact is probably lessened a bit by the way her eyes keep trying to close and how hard she knows she’s tightening herself around Emily’s fingers, but she doesn’t care much. They can have their verbal tête-à-tête another time when Emily’s not knuckle-deep inside her and when she’s not making Stephanie help her to lift her dress over her head and off so she can pull Stephanie down at a new angle that puts her breast in Emily’s mouth.

It forces Stephanie to shift higher up Emily’s body, but it’s easy with how far back the seat reclines, almost 180º.

What it also allows her, she discovers by accident when she’s balancing herself to work her way up on her knees, is that now she can reach behind herself and find Emily again, even wetter than she’d left her.

It’s not the best angle, and she has to choose between sitting up and touching Emily or bending forward to have her nipples kissed and licked. Her own need wins out for a while, until her nipples are too sensitive to withstand more attention. Then she sits back, sits up nice and straight because even if it’s narcissistic, she knows she looks good in this position and reaches back and into panties she long ago should have stripped from Emily to find her clit, warm and swollen with need as she rides Emily’s fingers.

She feels Emily’s hips lift beneath her and it reminds her of what it was like to have Emily sitting astride her this way and despite the numerous positions they’ve tried with Emily’s strap-on, something as basic as this has yet to happen. She’s allowed Emily to be the one in control if Emily was wearing it which has put Stephanie (very willingly) onto her back, or her hands and knees, or the washing machine.

If it wasn’t packed away in her suitcase stored somewhere on the plane, she’d stop and retrieve it and take care of that oversight right here and now.

But, that will have to wait for another time, maybe tonight at their hotel. The thought makes her hips move more quickly, rolling again and again against the fingers that are inside her. They’re both moving, now, and Emily’s lifting her hips like she’s fucking her with them, and she’s really not, Stephanie’s seated too high, across her stomach, for it to have any effect but it’s probably less about trying to fuck Stephanie and more about the way Stephanie’s fingers are framing and squeezing Emily’s clit as it slides between them with every thrust.

Emily’s free hand finds Stephanie’s left breast and she’s not really doing anything more than holding on, but Stephanie doesn’t mind. She can do all the work for now; she knows Emily will more than return the favor(s).

“Fuck,” she whines, feeling the pleasure starting to coil inside her again. She can’t believe she’s doing this, she never can believe it when it happens, but now it’s even more unbelievable because opening her eyes for a second to look down at Emily, she can see the window next to them and nothing but blue sky and clouds and she’s literally flying.

Emily’s saying something, she can’t tell what though. Her ears are ringing from how hard her heart is beating but she’s nodding as she says it before her eyes slam shut and her head tilts back and her back arches off the seat and Stephanie comes with her.

She almost falls backward because she can’t bend forward without surrendering her ability to touch Emily but an arm around her waist catches her. There’s so much adrenaline and arousal flowing through her veins she wonders how she’s ever supposed to stop this. She wonders how they ever manage to stop, to act like platonic friends around each other, ever. It’s amazing to her that they can ever do anything but do everything they can to make each other feel this way.

A hand glides up her sweat-soaked back and she’s forced to slide backward until she can’t reach Emily anymore, and she’s brought down. Emily wants to kiss her and who is she to deny Emily that? Or anything, for that matter.

She hears herself moan into it, and she’d be embarrassed by how turned on she still is if Emily didn’t chuckle through their kiss knowingly. She’s still stroking Stephanie slowly but she can tell Emily’s working toward reclaiming her hand.

“How long until we land?” she asks before moving to kiss Emily’s neck, lapping at her skin and relishing the taste. She’d broken a sweat, too.

Emily laughs again and it sounds magical to Stephanie. “Save some for tonight, baby.”

“I’m never going to get tired of this,” she admits as she sinks her teeth into Emily’s neck, not hard enough to leave a mark or even inflict much pain; just enough to make Emily gasp because she knows Emily likes when she uses her teeth.

And she does gasp. But it’s followed by a hand on the side of her face, guiding Stephanie away until she’s looking down at Emily, a thumb stroking Stephanie’s cheek. “Hey, we’re good, right?”

Stephanie’s confused by the question. Of course, they’re good. They’ve been “good” since Day One. Did she say too much? Was that too revealing? Too open or honest? After Emily telling her she could get used to lazy Saturday mornings at home with Stephanie, she thought something like feeling insatiable around Emily would be less than problematic.

“Yeah,” she says with a smile that she hopes doesn’t betray her worry. “We’re good.”

“Good,” Emily replies and guides her down into another kiss, this one so soft and gentle it makes Stephanie’s toes curl in a different kind of way. “Let’s get dressed,” she says when they part. “I bet you brought a crossword puzzle book or something, didn’t you?” she adds with a smile.

Stephanie thinks about the book of vacation-themed Mad Libs in her purse; she’d bought it yesterday thinking it could be fun to see how much it would take to get Emily worked up over a story being so ludicrous, but now she feels like she might get teased about it with the way Emily’s asking her.

“Um…”

“I knew it,” Emily says with a grin before starting to sit up with the help of the electronic buzz of her seat, making sure to not topple Stephanie off her lap in doing so. “You’re so fucking cute. Let’s do it together. Let me up so I can use the bathroom?”

Stephanie blinks at her and she imagines she must look a bit owlish; she had expected Emily to mock her but instead, she’s happy and ready to play a game with her. “Sure,” she says happily as she backs off Emily’s lap and onto very unsteady legs. It’s not made any easier by the plane hitting a small patch of turbulence as she does so and she wobbles, Emily catching her with hands to her waist.

Then, as though she couldn’t help herself, Emily’s leaning in and taking Stephanie’s nipple into her mouth again, nothing rough or harsh, just soft warmth and gentle pressure and a tongue swirling around it. It makes Stephanie squeak and brace herself on Emily’s shoulders and she watches her finish before she leans to the right to give the other the exact same treatment.

She feels dazed by the time Emily sits back and not exactly turned on in the way she has been; she’s not desperate for an orgasm or writhing in need, but she feels heady and a bit drunk or maybe high and she wonders if maybe she is. Maybe Emily, especially this Emily who’s gentle and caring and giving, is her drug of choice.

If so, she knows she’s already addicted.

~ ~

~ ~

Chapter 9

[theblackandgold-series]

The Prince and The Boy (5.1)

Chapter 5.1: The Way

A College AU

Texas Southern University (Houston,Tx)

Ship: Chiron Harris  x Erik Stevens

Warning(s): fluff, slight angst…. (;

A(s)/N: It’s late as fuck and poorly edited but here it is! The first part of chapter five. This one took some hair pulling to get out, but it’s finally here! We’re taking a breath of relief, but you may not be...

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 

“If you don’t calm yo ass down, sir.”

Bryson is tired of watching Chi run around like a chicken with its head cut off. He’d been running around for the past hour, nervous energy falling behind him as he went. This was the most nervous he’d ever been. “Nigga, you making me nervous.. Chill out bro.”

“I can’t! First dates mean something, right? What if I fuck something up?”

“You’ll be fine, you’re overthinking this shit.” Bryson looks up at Chiron who is almost frantically looking through the shirts in his closet.

“Just go with the green one.”

Chi takes the shirt in question out of the closet and holds it to his chest, “This one?”

“Yeah. I heard it was gon be cooler today so long sleeves is a better option.” Bryson points while eating some Cheez Its. Chi nods as he puts the green shirt on the bed along with pants he has laid out.

Chi claps his hands once rubbing them together, “Alright, now help me pick out shoes.”

Bryson throws his hands up in exasperation, “C’mon. Nigga. Seriously?”

Chi gives him a look that has Bryson blowing out an agitated breath. He gets up to help his friend search for the perfect pair of shoes.

“Go with the white ones,” He says as he picks up a shoe box, “you haven’t even worn these. They still in the box.” Bryson gives the box to Chi and turns around to leave, he stops at the door. “You need me for anything else nigga?”

“Yeah, actually—”

“Don’t care,” Bryson waves Chiron off as he walks out of the room not looking back.

Chi rolls his eyes at his best friend and goes to shower and freshen up.

Once Chiron is done with his shower, he takes a deep breath. Stepping out and drying himself off he grabs the lotion and moisturizing his body. In his room he looks at the outfit one more time before putting it on.

He goes into the living room to find Bryson. Stepping in front of the tv he holds his arms out at either side of his body.

“So….how do I look?”

Bryson has a pensive look on his face and motions for Chi to give a turn with a twirl of his index finger. Chi spins around slowly as Bryson inspects his outfit, nodding in approval. “Calm down Chiron. You look good, you’re going to be fine when you see him,” Bryson sits back down on the couch and signals for Chi to move from in front of the tv. “What time did he say he was coming to pick you up?”

“He said 12.”

Bryson wipes his hands and checks his phone, “It’s 11:30. He should be here soon, you got everything?” Chi checks his pockets for his keys, his phone, and wallet.

“Yeah I got everything.”

“Then sit down and chill out nigga.” Bryson offers him the box of Cheez Its from Chi’s snack cabinet.

“You always eating my snacks like you live here.” Chi pushes the box away from him.

“Look, you asked me to come over and help yo hyperactive ass, so I’m here.”

Chiron sits down on the couch with Bryson trying to stay calm as he waits for Erik. He mentally goes through everything he needs and his eyes widen. He did forget something. He gets up and makes his way to his bedroom, attempting to calm his nerves in the process.

Getting to his room, he immediately searches his dresser for the forgotten items.  He can’t believe he’d almost forgotten the two things he never leaves the house without. He lets out a breath that he didn’t know he was holding as he put his chain and watch on. In an attempt to release his nerves he runs his hands down his face and takes a slow breath.

“Yo! Chi!” Bryson snaps him out of his brief feeling of relief.

“What?” He answers, making his way down the hall and into the living room freezing like an antelope in headlights when he sees Erik standing in his entryway on his phone.

Erik looks up and smiles at Chi, putting his phone in his pocket.

“I texted you.” Chi digs his phone out of his pocket to look at it and sure enough he’d gotten a text five minutes ago letting him know that Erik is on his way.

“Oh,” Chi whispers softly. “My bad,” he says with an apologetic smile and a shrug.

There goes that smile. Erik thinks.

“Nah, you’re good.” Erik replies with a smile as his eyes scan Chi’s frame.

Damn, he looks good.

Erik nods liking what he sees as Chi stands there awkwardly. Both gazing at each other in timid excitement. It feels like hours before Bryson speaks, his voice cutting through the silence and tension.

Bryson side eyes them as he asks, “Y’all niggas leavin’ soon, or…?”

The two men snap out of their haze. Chiron gives his best friend an annoyed look that says “Nigga, if you don’t shut the hell up”.

“Y’all just gon stand there? Don’t you two have mummies to go see and shit?” Bryson asks, wondering why the two men are still standing in the living room.

“Y-yeah, come on let’s get out of here, I already got our tickets.” Erik steps to the side to allow Chi to lead the way out of his apartment. He follows close behind as they quickly walk to the car, attempting to leave the embarrassment of being caught behind them.  

Erik walks around to the passenger side of his blacked out Acura Nsx, and opens the door for a surprised Chi. He waits until Chi is seated, shooting him a grin, before going around to the driver’s side.

Chiron looks at the luxury car in confusion, wondering how a college student is able to afford something this expensive. He pushes his curiosity down not wanting to assume or ask too many questions. He figures if Erik wants him to know he’ll tell him in his own time.

Erik turns his music up, connecting his phone to the bluetooth and chooses a playlist before pulling out of the parking lot. Cartoons and Cereal by Kendrick Lamar and Gunplay fills the air and Erik smiles, putting the car in reverse to leave Chi’s apartment.

Chi nods his head to the beat, rapping the lyrics under his breath. Erik notices and smirks. “You fuck wit Kendrick?”

Chi shrugs and gives him a small smile, “Yeah, he aite.”

Erik snaps his head to Chi a look of disbelief on his face. “Aite?! Kendrick is the goat nigga the fuck you mean?” Erik turns the music down as Gunplay’s verse comes on.

Chi slightly smiles at Erik’s excitement. “He cool, I guess.”

“Cool you guess.” Erik mocks Chiron under his breath with a shake of his head. He couldn’t believe it. “Okay, if Kendrick is ‘cool you guess’ then who you got on repeat these days?”

Chi ponders for a second, looking up towards the roof of the car. “Mostly niggas from the south. Lil Wayne..Outkast...Gucci….Three 6 Mafia.” Erik nods in approval, impressed with his taste in music.

“Word? You rock wit Outkast?”

“Yeah, they cool.”

“Alright I see you. Let me find out little Chiron know something about rap.”

“Man chill out, you don’t know what I know.” Chiron chuckles.

“Shit, I’m tryna find out if you let me.”

The two men share a heated look and Chiron holds his hand out for the aux cord. Erik smiles as he hands it to Chiron.

He connects his phone, going to his music library and choosing one of his personal favorite Outkast songs, Da Art of Story Tellin’ Pt. 2.

“Now THIS shit? Fire!” Chiron says with a bright grin on his face. Erik looks at Chi while he’s in his own world. His eyes crinkle at the sight of Chi letting loose for the first time around him.

Erik reaches over to turn the music down just a little bit which causes Chi to look over at him. “What made you like southern rap so much?”

“I’m from Atlanta, this is gospel at home.”

“Word?” Chi nods and turns the music up again. The two go back and forth exchanging anecdotes about their favorite songs and comparing their music tastes. The fifteen minute ride to the museum flies by as they enjoy each other’s company, getting lost in conversation.

Erik turns the car into the parking lot of the Houston Museum of Natural Science, a place Chi had earlier admitted he hadn’t yet been to.

They park then show their proof of tickets and as soon as they walk in Erik makes a beeline to King Tutankhamen, Chi following closely behind.

Chi is amused as he follows Erik past the other exhibits and asks, “Yo, what’s your fascination with this stuff?”

Erik’s eyes light up, his dimples deepening. “Ancient Egypt is one of the most advanced civilizations to this day. Their methods were way ahead of their time.”

They come to a pair of solid gold sandals with individual toe shaped tips all gilded as well. Chi looks at them pensively with a scrunched up nose.

“The fuck are these for? Niggas was wearing grills on they feet back in the day?”

Erik throws his head back in laughter his own gold slugs on his bottom incisors catching the light, the vein in his neck making itself known. Chiron tracks his movements, taking notes. He momentarily forgets what he’d said to make him laugh like that and wonders how he could get him to do it again.

“Nah, they’re toe guards. They were put on the fingers too. It was a way to protect those parts of the body after mummification. The Egyptians believed that after death you would find your body again before actually crossing over so they developed a preservation process to keep it recognizable to your spirit.”

Erik’s voice fades into the background and Chi bites his bottom lip. His eyes focus on the way Erik’s lips form around certain words. He briefly wonders how said lips would feel against his own. His mind drifts to the wishful moment and he misses it when Erik stops talking.

Erik smiles slyly when he notices the faraway look on Chi’s face. He waves his hand and laughs when Chi blinks out of his trance. “You good?”

Chi looks at Erik and for a brief moment time stops. Unspoken words fall between them as they gaze at each other.

The moment leaves as quickly as it comes. Chi clears his throat and looks to the side. “Yeah. I-I’m good. What’s next?”

They walk side by side looking at the different displays. Both of them paying more attention to each other than the exhibits. They stand close together at each stop, arms brushing against one another, sending chills down their spines. They reach the end and Erik turns to Chi.

“You down to go eat? Or I can take you home...” his voice trails off as he looks at Chi in question.

“Yea I could eat.” Chi answers.

“You sure? We could look around some more…”

“Nah I’m good. I was mostly paying attention to you anyways.”

Chi stops himself short, not believing he let that leave his mouth. It wasn’t a lie though and it’s too late to take it back now.

Erik smirks and gives Chi a heated look.  “Good to know.”

Walking out of the diner Erik and Chi feel light on their feet. The conversation at lunch flowed easy, both men letting their guards down and slightly opening up for the first time.

On their way back to the car they continue their conversation about school. Erik talks  about his love of computers, math, and science, but mentions his actual desire to do something involving international affairs.  

Chi reveals his goal of becoming a substance abuse therapist and his want to help people struggling with addictions. He also wanted to find a way to offer support to the families of those fighting addiction.

“What made you choose that field to go into?” Erik turns to Chi and he shrugs.

“I’ve seen how that shit can affect people and others around them in my home city. I want to help people in that position have a second chance to live without an addiction.”

Chiron half answers the question his body tenses at the memories, not wanting to go into detail of his childhood. He knew first hand how damaging addiction can be.

Erik stops walking and turns toward Chi.

“You okay?” He asks, trying to figure out what made Chi freeze up.

“Nah I’m fine.”

Erik doesn’t believe him but decides not to push the issue. He turns to start walking again, gently grabbing Chi’s hand, linking them with his.

Chi looks down at their joined hands his shoulders immediately tensing up not sure how to process what was happening.

Erik can feel Chi tense up.

In an effort to ease the tension Erik brings up Chi’s hand and kisses the back of it gently. Chi watches as Erik brings up his hand and kisses the back of it gently as they continue the walk to the car.

~

The following Monday, Chi finds himself walking through the building that houses his psychology classes. As he’s about to put his earbuds in, he overhears a feminine voice speaking loud as hell.

Kayla had been posted up outside of Chi’s classroom for 10 minutes before finally spotting him walking out. She sets her plan in motion as soon as he’s within earshot, raising her voice and fast forwarding to the part of the story she wants him to hear.

“Yeah, girl, that nigga Erik is a dog.”

Chi perks up at Erik’s name and slows down to a stop, pretending to read a flyer nearby.

“That nigga is one of the biggest hoes on campus, you can’t trust these football niggas. Walkin around here like they’re Gods gift to earth,” Chi raises his eyebrow in confusion. She can’t be talkin about my Erik. Can she?

“Y’all were cute, too. That nigga don’t deserve you, sis.” Her line sister eggs Kayla on.

“He’s never interested in a relationship, that nigga always wants to fuck and my dumbass fell for it for a minute.” Kayla adjusts her pink and green line jacket as she rolls her eyes.

Kayla gives one last look to make sure Chiron was listening before she leads her friends away.

Chi is left there dumbfounded. How could he have been so wrong about Erik? Sure, he was confident bordering on cocky, but he never pegged him as the player type.

Chi shook his head and turned to walk out of the building. Is he using me for just a quick fuck, is that all he sees me as?

The whole walk back to his apartment, Chi couldn’t get his mind off of what Kayla had said. He didn’t want to believe her, but a guy like Erik actually wanting him, seemed too good to be true.

Once he gets home he puts his phone on silent and spends the rest of his day wallowing around his apartment. He goes over every moment he’d spent with Erik, reassessing his tone and body language. Was it just lust? Chi wasn’t sure but he needed some time to find out.

Slinging his track bag over his shoulder he makes his way towards the door. Taking his phone out of his pocket he sees a text from Erik.  He pauses in the doorway and stares at the name before sliding the phone back in his pocket and leaving.

Tags: @wakandas-vibranium @bartierbakarimobisson@randomwordprompts@storibambino@theultimateblacknerdwithglasses @stressedgyal  @great-neckpectations @wakandan-flowerz@blackgirloneshots @panthergoddessbast @maya-leche@texasbama @killmongerdispussy @yaachtynoboat711 @hearteyes-for-killmonger@erikaintdead @blackmissmarvel @blackpantherislife @awkwardlyabstract @blowmymbackout @forbeautyandlife @babygirlofwakanda @theunsweetenedtruth @icedcawfee @killmongersgurl @babybluepeaches @eriknutinthispoosy @vikkidc @killmoncoochie @nicknameiskittie @onyour-right @hidden-treasures21 @afro-royalty @hazzasunrise

[deeeelightfuldee]

Has anyone told you recently that they miss you? When did you last see them? yes. we sadly never met face to face but have spent a lot of time talking, skyping, calling, snapping, etc.

During the last week, have you declined an invitation to go anywhere? lol yes. I collapsed on wednesday so i had to cancel some plans.

When was the last time you spilled a drink, or some other liquid?   wednesday they had spilled some of my diet coke on the cup and it went alllll over my shirt.

Can you recall the last time you apologised to someone? What was it for? i apologize a lot for very small, inconsequential things. especially to K. it’s a bad habit, but I say that in a desperate attempt to not upset or offend him. its kinda sad to think about tbh. he doesnt like that I do that but i guess its cus I try not to push him further. idk.

Is there another name that rhymes with your name, or sounds similar to it?   banana which would be a weird name but there was an apple so hey. 

The last person you hung out with - do they have any tattoos?   no

Have you ever worked with anyone named Lucas? What was that person like?   nope not that I know of

What is the battery percentage on the device you’re currently using?   53%. once it goes, it’s gone lol

Do you have a close friend whose name begins with C? How long have you known this person?   chip (since I was born). charlie (5 years). 

Have you ever had a ring slip off your finger while you were wearing it?   yessssss. but I was in the car. 

When you eat something spicy, does it make your nose run?   no, at least not that I know of. 

What was the last song you heard for the first time, and really liked?   uhhhhhhh, good question

Do you have/listen to any CDs in your car?   yes. all the time. I dont have a fancy car that allows for bluetooth

What was the last thing you bought for yourself, as a treat or luxury?   uhhhh yikes i dont know? its been a really freakin long time. im so broke saving for these loan payments.

How old did you turn in 2006?   uhhh 13-14 i think

How many white T-shirts do you own?   3

The last time you used public transport, where were you going?   chicago

Have you read any books by Neil Gaiman?   im not sure, im not feeling up to checking the google lolol

What was the last accessory you wore in your hair?   theres a scrunchie in it right now. it’s in a big ole pony tail on my head.

Do you remember the last time you used public WiFi? Where were you located? probs airport 

How many times does the letter R occur in your full name?   1x

How many pairs of headphones/earbuds do you own?   i think 2?

When was the last time you listened to the radio? Which station? I go thru all the stations everytime i drive

Have you ever owned any pet birds? What kinds/colours?   yeah. two lil ones when i was super young, but my dog ate them yikes. then we had a beautiful big parrot. bright red and then a rainbow colored set of feathers at the butt. so pretty

Do any of your closest friends live within walking distance of your house?   alix used to. K SHOULD BE. but isnt. so no

Do you like toasted sandwiches? When was the last time you had one? i would legit do very bad things to get me a panini i could eat.

Has your town/city had any thunderstorms recently?   it rained all day today which was so sweet but no thunder or lightning to my knowledge.

What were you doing when 4PM last came around? I was sitting outside 

Do you pay much attention to your YouTube recommendations? If so, what was the last video that caught your attention?   on rare occasion

Have you seen or talked to any of your neighbours lately?   I waved to jason and said hi last week

In approximately how many hours do you plan to go to sleep? idk like 1

[richccrockett]

These bikers believe in defying norms and speeding down roads less travelled- The New Indian Express

By: AdvWisdom Title: These bikers believe in defying norms and speeding down roads less travelled- The New Indian Express Sourced From: advwisdom.com/a/these-bikers-believe-in-defying-norms-and-speeding-down-roads-less-travelled-the-new-indian-express-2/ Published Date: Sun, 01 Aug 2021 05:22:05 +0000

It’s a ritual that has barely been broken—except when the pandemic struck—for the last three years. Every Sunday, at the crack of dawn, Sushant Sharma wakes up with an adrenaline rush. He walks past his parking garage, filled with half-a-dozen luxury and sports cars, into a corner where two of his riding beauties await him. He gently preens them, turns on the ignition of one and takes off for his weekend sojourn. The trail left behind by the throttle is a wake-up call for some of his neighbours who may start the day cursing either the Harley-Davidson Street Glide or his BMW GS Adventure.

“There’s a certain calm that comes with a full throttle. It can only be experienced and not explained,” says Sharma, a 40-year-old entrepreneur from Jalandhar. There are days when Sharma picks up his Harley and scoots off to places across Punjab, followed by his driver in an SUV carrying his food, safety kit, water and other essentials.

You can take the man away from the bike, but not the bike away from the man. Ravi Manikoth, Gurgaon-based entrepreneur and a Royal Enfield loyalist, spent the last two months browsing books that transported him to the world of motorcycles. “As I was recovering from Covid-19, I read books about biking. Some of the titles I picked up include How To Ride Off-Road Motorcycles, Maximum Control and the must-read Motorcycle Roadcraft. These books kept me closer to my passion,” Manikoth says.

As the pandemic subdues and lockdown restrictions ease away, the bikers are back on the roads. On the second Sunday of July, 40 superbikers from Pune set out on a ride to Kaas Plateau in Satara district. “We are part of ‘Pune Brotherhood Riders’, a year-old group (@pune_brotherhood_riders on Instagram), and were waiting for the lockdown to lift so that we, owners of 800-1200 cc superbikes, could ride away to the mountains,” says Chaitanya Rathi, an emcee by profession. From BMW GS, Triumph, Hayabusa, Honda Gold Wing, to Ninja… the motorcycles were lined up. “For a rider, sitting on the bike is like meditation.” It was a breakfast ride which started at 6 am and they were back in Pune by 1.30 pm covering about 275 km. “If anyone stops for any reason, the entire group stops to help.

Everyone is connected with Bluetooth systems. So we immediately know if there is a problem somewhere. Our rides happen every Sunday. One Sunday is a long ride and another Sunday in the city ending with coffee,” he adds.

Just like Rathi, Bobby Singh Sehgal, founder of the Gurgaon-based Riders of the Storm Motorcycle Club (ROTS MC), has chalked out plans for the next ride. The club—also a registered company—sells its own merchandise, conducts skill and safety training workshops and works for various charitable causes.

When Aesha Upadhyay Vyas rode a Royal Enfield Bullet to the wedding altar in 2016, the bride made many young women take up motorcycle lessons. The then 26-year-old Ahmedabad resident became the toast of the town for riding a bike wearing a heavily embellished lehenga and sporting aviators. “There was both criticism and praise,” confesses Vyas who now lives in Canada.

There is a new breed of leisure bikers who are redefining the goals of biking. Some travel around the country in their superbikes with a car in tow carrying their essentials, while some are riding up to the altar. Some feel “empowered” on a bike, while for some it’s about “staying alive”. Even the pandemic hasn’t subdued their enthusiasm.

Over the years, hobby bikers have grown in numbers. When the former Chief Justice of India Sharad Bobde posed on a Harley-Davidson, the news went viral on social media. Spiritual guru Sadhguru flaunts his love for bikes openly. In the world of leisure biking, age or gender is no bar. Passion for biking has blurred all boundaries.

At Full Throttle Not many can understand why Sharma is “obsessed” with his bikes. A third-generation entrepreneur with a fleet of luxury cars at his disposal, it was difficult to let his family understand the need to ride bikes. “Finally I could convince them and started biking three years ago,” says Sharma. A few months back he rode across Punjab, covering 600 km in a day, the driver trailing him in his Ford Endeavour with everything that he needs. 

Sharma isn’t alone to travel this way. The advantages are manifold from safety to not having to worry about running out of fuel. While company-organised group expeditions always have a follow-up vehicle, solo drivers having a backup is slowly picking up.

Delhi resident Rajeshwar Gill is a case in point. “I am a hobby rider and on long solo trips, I would want someone to be around,” he says. Gill is chalking out an itinerary for a 1,000-km trip this year and would have a mini-van follow him with his medications, safety kit, clothes, food and so on. The 69-year-old Supreme Court advocate is a cancer survivor and a heart patient. “These ailments have not shattered my spirit or passion for biking. I would rather be a cautious driver than not drive at all,” he says. Gill has 18 cars, including a vintage Rolls-Royce, Mini Cooper, Mercedes, to name a few. And yet, weekends are reserved for his Harley-Davidson 1800cc. “It gives me a reason to be alive,” he says. That there’s a certain snob value attached to owning bikes running up to lakhs of rupees is unsaid. “But it’s positive arrogance. It’s like riding a thoroughbred horse,” says Gill. 

If anyone were to ask Jai Kishore what it is about his Ducati Scrambler that makes him speed off to rough terrains, he will say, “It’s therapeutic.” The 39-year-old digital marketing professional from Bengaluru, rode a motorcycle as a means of commuting. But sometime over the course of the ride of two decades, he took to mid-highway trails and dirt biking. “The passion started with riding my first Bullet from Bengaluru to Mysuru where my mother lives,” he says. It was during these monthly rituals that Kishore encountered unknown trails and followed them and realised how biking can be pleasurable. Clubs are also a way to network and make life-long friendships, believes Kishore, who was a member of Rolling Thunder Motor Club, one of the oldest and largest Royal Enfield biking communities.

Business of Bikes That even during a year ravaged by pandemic and lockdown, motorcycles did business that outdid expectations is noteworthy. BMW Motorad showed one of the best sales in India last year. According to Vikram Pawah, president, BMW Group India, even though the luxury motorcycle market is at a nascent stage, the growing aspiration has led to growth. “A motorcycle is more than just a means of transportation. This is why we don’t talk only about model series but about riding experience worlds. And no matter how different these experience worlds are, they all share our message of ‘Make Life a Ride’,” he says. The company sold 2,563 units in 2020, a sales growth of 6.65 percent year-on-year, a significant number for the German automobile major that started its operations in India in 2017.

Then there is the ubiquitous Royal Enfield, which almost every biker would have owned or aspires to drive at some point. “Our motorcycles cater to experienced riders as well as enthusiasts,” says Lalit Malik, Chief Commercial Officer, Royal Enfield. In December 2020, their sales saw an increase of 37 percent compared to the same month in 2019. In the October-December 2020 period, the company added 129 studio stores increasing retail touch points to 1,889 stores across India. “There is strong resonance and affiliation among consumers for Royal Enfield in the premium motorcycle segment as we have a 96 percent market share in the mid-sized (250-750cc) motorcycle segment in India,” he adds.

Motorcycling has, indeed, come a long way in India. It all began a decade ago, when international bikes forayed into the country. This was also the time when home-grown companies reinvented themselves. There’s a Bullet Baba temple in Pali in Rajasthan where people offer prayers after the purchase of a new bike. The belief goes that they may meet with an accident if they don’t perform the rituals. A few decades ago, Jawa and Yezdi dominated Indian roads.

In 2018, Mahindra and Mahindra revived the classic Jawa brand by launching three versions. The same year, Indian Motorcycles, the oldest American luxury bike brand, launched in India. Companies like Triumph now align India launches with global launches of their new models signifying how the Indian market has grown. There are several factors that have accelerated the growth of biking as a hobby. One among them is increased disposable income among the youth. “Also, the demand is largely driven by urbanisation of towns and villages,” says Malik of Royal Enfield.

Knots on Wheels While most of her peers would have fussed over their bridal outfits during their wedding, Vyas was worried about how she would fit her bike inside a lift to take it up to the fourth floor venue. “But my father and brother helped,” says Vyas who as a teenager used to ride her father’s bike whenever he was away from home. “I used to wipe off the tyre marks leading up to our house so that no one would know.” It was the culmination of a long-cherished dream for her.

Like destination weddings, making an entry on motorcycles instead of a car or the traditional ghodi (mare) is catching up. The stereotypes of yore are being rewritten. For Shachi Sharma, it was the desire to have an “unusual wedding” that prompted her and her groom Rikhil Bahadur to opt for a destination wedding in Ladakh where the couple and their friends rode Bullets to the venue. “I compromised on my wedding attire as riding a bike was more important,” says Sharma, a Mumbai-based filmmaker. Post wedding, the couple embarked on a honeymoon on their Bullet.

Chennai resident Muthukumar’s idea of a honeymoon was a Bullet ride from Delhi to Leh with his wife. “Bullet has always been my first love. So when I got married, I had to embark on my first journey with my partner on it,” he says. They travelled with 60 kg of baggage. “It was tough. People thought I was foolish, but as a newly-wed couple backpacking wasn’t something we wanted to do,” says the 28-year-old graphics designer. The ride wasn’t without its challenges and often the uphill climb was a struggle. In his words, the travel got the couple closer to each other and the love for long rides has been passed on to his wife.

Breaking Bread Manikoth has owned every model of Royal Enfield ever launched in India. When he rode from Bengaluru to Bhutan in 1987, he was perhaps one of the first few Indians to undertake a cross-country journey. It was a time when highways were half-broken, countryside barren and resources scant. “I survived on one meal a day, gatecrashed in military camps, and at times slept under the sky,” says the 57-year-old. His journeys are a tale of undying passion for his bikes. He recalls how once while in college, he took 10 team members for a football match on his Bullet because they couldn’t afford to hire taxis. “The traffic cop stopped us, asked all of us to get down, but surprisingly, didn’t fine us. He wanted us to show him how 11 people managed to sit on a bike, let alone drive it.”  

Four decades on, his risk appetite may have mellowed but not the adventurous streak. “Now I own an Interceptor 650cc and Triumph. Both serve a different purpose and my rides depend on my state of mind,” says Manikoth. He clocks in at least 2,000 km on long trips, at least thrice a year. “The sound of the engine, the wind blowing on my face, the vibration on my pulse, as one sails through the roads keep me alive,” he says.

Leisure bikers maintain that rides on long roads break monotony, allow exploring unknown vistas and bring a sense of calm. Sukhdeep Singh, 55, explains how the ethos of his group helps riders form a strong brotherhood. “It’s important that anyone becoming a member of ROTS MC should identify with our values and maintain discipline on road,” says the Delhi resident, who alternates between Indian Chieftain and a Honda superbike.  For him, a motorcycle symbolises his childhood, a vehicle that stayed with him through life’s ups and downs. 

Beyond Barriers Adventure biking is often deemed an activity that depends on physical strength. But Vinod Rawat never let his prosthetic leg come in the way of his riding goals. Not just that, he is also the founder of an adventure biking club for specially-abled riders. “It wasn’t easy to ride with a prosthetic leg. But what was more challenging than biking was changing mindsets. Expedition groups were uncomfortable to allow me to ride with them. So I started my own adventure group, where people like me can travel together,” he says.

In 2005, Rawat participated in the adventure reality show MTV Roadies Season 2 and was one of the last few finalists to be voted out. A drive to Ladakh is now an annual pilgrimage for him. “My ultimate dream is to bike to London,” says the 45-year-old who works with the Jaipur Foot department in KEM Hospital, Mumbai. During the 2010 Ladakh flash floods, Rawat and his group had raised `18 lakh to rebuild the ravaged houses.

Biking enthusiasts would tell you how no injury or illness is big enough to take away the wind beneath  their wheels. Dr Neharika Yadav is a case in point. A dentist with a no-nonsense approach to work, her idea of a break is early morning rides. “It’s an expensive hobby. But the adrenaline rush and the solace is worth the cost,” she says. Yadav is currently the only professional female racer ever to compete in the 1000cc category at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida. In a country with just a handful of professional female bikers, she rides a Ducati V4 1100cc, and is no stranger to competitions where she is often the only female rider in a group of 50-60 men. She has learnt the hard way to work on her challenges. Not many would know that the woman biker zooming past them on a busy junction has just 50 percent mobility in her right hand post a road accident. 

Biking gave a new meaning to Jai Bharathi’s life, a 39-year-old architect from Hyderabad. In 2019, Bharathi quit her job to start MoWo (Moving Women) Social Initiatives, an enterprise that offers two and three-wheeler driving training to underprivileged women. “Riding a motorcycle made me feel empowered. I realised if women from lower income groups learnt how to drive they could find gainful employment,” she says. Having recovered from the virus, Bharathi is now eager to get back to biking. Bharathi also heads the Hyderabad chapter of Bikerni, an all-women biking group founded in 2011.

What started as a group with 14 members in Pune, is now 2,000-member strong, aged between 19 and 53 years. “Bikerni has become the place for so many women facing personal and professional troubles to unburden themselves. When we ride, we are free and happy. There’s a support system,” says Bharathi. One of her notable trips, which was undertaken along with three other women riders, has become part of the book Road to Mekong. They covered 17,000 km in 56 days travelling from Hyderabad to Vietnam in 2018. The group worked to provide relief in the flood-ravaged areas of Kashmir in 2014. In 2018, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation approached the club to take rides to create voter awareness in the city.

Pace of Leisure In the last few years, the number of luxury and premium motorcycles launched in the country has doubled to that of the mass market models. Any model over 200cc makes into the premium category and India currently has 11 premium bike makers compared to six mass segment makers. As the popularity of leisure biking picks up pace, businesses catering to it have grown.

The Throttle Shrottle Cafe, a popular 24×7 bikers cafe started in Gurgaon in 2014, is one such example. Besides being a cafe, the place offers a DIY workshop with tools to fix bikes and several motorcycle companies run promotional campaigns at the cafe. They now have branches in Kolkata, Thailand and Manesar (Haryana).

For some adrenaline junkies, biking has led to new vocations. Redesigning premium motorcycles has accelerated. They are modified to meet specific needs—both for utility and beauty. Catering to such requests is Mumbai-based Adil Dumasia, who modifies bikes from scratch. “Once I have worked on a bike, most often, except for the engine everything else is changed,” says the 45-year-old who has redesigned 76 bikes till date. His versions, in many cases, have more in common with posters on people’s walls than in garages. “Initially, I worked with Royal Enfield. Then in 2016, I customised a Harley-Davidson for myself and it won an award. It opened up doors of various bike models to be redesigned,” says Dumasia, an ex-merchant navy mariner. He is the first ever Indian motorcycle designer to compete at AMD Intermot World Championship in Germany in 2018, a prestigious event. He was ranked 25th, no mean feat for a newbie who showcased his creation along with 106 experienced designers from across the globe.

Leisure biking has also led to a spurt in the lifestyle and accessories market. At BMW Motorad, the latest range features Ride, Style, Vintage and Pro-Race Suit collections. The accessories include a comprehensive range of original parts and equipment. “With the segment of leisure motorcycle riding in India on the rise, we noticed that the market for accessible and credible apparel and riding gear was underserved. So we have been rapidly investing in developing products for varied riding needs, different terrains, and weather conditions,” says Malik. 

Meanwhile, who would know the value of cool merchandise than members of ROTS MC. “Our fluorescent riding jacket has a visibility of 300 metres and is like a uniform for us. Our bikes may be different, people riding it may belong to different professions and ranks but the riding gear and discipline for members on road have to be without any divisions,” Sehgal says. That’s some vroom for thought.

Additional reporting by Manju Latha Kalanidhi

“I compromised on my wedding attire as riding a bike was more important than a heavy bridal outfit.” Shachi Sharma Filmmaker, Mumbai Their desire to have an “unusual wedding” prompted her and her groom Rikhil Bahadur to opt for a destination wedding in Ladakh where the couple and their friends rode Bullets to the venue.  

“There’s a certain calm that comes with a full throttle. It can only be experienced and not explained.” SUSHANT sharma, Entrepreneur, Jalandhar Mean machines: Harley-Davidson Street Glide, BMW GSA

“It’s an expensive hobby. But the adrenaline rush and the solace it brings with it is worth the cost.”  Dr Neharika Yadav Dentist, Gurgaon The only professional female racer ever to compete in the 1000cc category at  the Buddh International Circuit, Noida Mean machine: Ducati V4 1100cc

“We are part of ‘Pune Brotherhood Riders’, a year-old group (@pune_brotherhood_riders on Instagram), and were waiting for the lockdown to lift so that we, owners of superbikes (800-1200 cc), could ride away to the mountains.” Chaitanya Rathi Emcee, Pune On July 11, 40 group members set out on a ride from Pune to Kaas Plateau in Satara  district and back, covering about 275 km Mean machines: BMW GS, Triumph, Hayabusa, Honda Gold Wing, Ninja

“The last two months, I was dreaming of my next trip. I am planning to ride through the Eastern Coast, starting from Delhi, and return through the Western Coast.” Sukhdeep Singh Delhi Mean machines: Indian Chieftain, Honda superbike 

“The passion started with riding my first Bullet from Bengaluru to Mysuru where my mother lives.” Jai Kishore Digital Marketing Professional, Bengaluru Mean machine: Ducati Scrambler

“There were both criticism and praise for my daredevilry of sorts.” Aesha Upadhyay Vyas now lives in Canada In 2016, the then 26-year-old Ahmedabad resident rode a Bullet, wearing a heavily embellished lehenga and sporting aviators, to the wedding altar

“It wasn’t easy to ride with a prosthetic leg. Expedition groups were uncomfortable to allow me to ride with them. So I started my own group, where people like me with a passion for biking, can travel together.” Vinod Rawat Jaipur Foot Department, KEM Hospital, Mumbai In 2005, he participated in MTV Roadies Season 2 and was one of the last few finalists to be voted out. A drive to Ladakh is now an annual pilgrimage for him.

“Bullet is my first love. When I got married, I had to embark on my first journey with my partner on it.” Muthukumar Graphic Designer, Chennai His idea of honeymoon was a Bullet ride from Delhi to Leh with his wife. They travelled with 60 kg of baggage.

“Riding a motorcycle made me feel empowered. I realised if women from lower income groups learnt how to ride they can find gainful employment.” Jai Bharathi Architect & Head, Hyderabad chapter of Bikerni, an all-women biking group In 2019, she started MoWo Social Initiatives that offers two- and three-wheeler driving training to underprivileged women 

“For most of our customers a motorcycle is much more than just a means of transportation. This is why we don’t talk only about model series but about riding experience worlds.”Vikram Pawah President,  BMW Group India

“There is strong resonance and affiliation among consumers for Royal Enfield in the premium motorcycle segment as we have a 96 percent market share in the mid-sized (250-750cc) segment in India.” Lalit Malik  Chief Commercial Officer, Royal Enfield

  y

News.... browse around here

check out here

Read More

[autokompany]

Top Car Diagnostic Tool you should be aware

Car can face a breakdown anytime, anywhere. It is vital to be prepared with right car diagnostic service tool to keep your car going. With the best car diagnostic tool at you space, not only will you be able to quickly find out the problem, but you’ll also be able to determine if the problem needs a mechanic intervention or a little fix you can handle yourself. This also goes for your luxury car which may end up breaking due to certain reasons. So the best is to look for luxury car service near me and check if they hold all the diagnostic tools with them.

Most scan tools plug directly into your dash and send out the notification when there are issues with your vehicle. You will also the get the summary of the problem in easy and understandable terms and consequences of driving with it and instructions on what to do to ensure the continued safety of you and your vehicle.

Car diagnostic service hold all the vital tools required to keep the premium car in good condition without much of the breakdown.

This article presents you with the list of top car diagnostic tools you need to be aware about-

·         Foxwell NT301 Professional Enhanced OBDII Diagnostic Code Reader-

The company has been producing OBDII code readers for many years and one of the top products by them is the NT301 Professional Enhanced OBDII Diagnostic Code Reader. The reader is designed to help car owners to understand the heart of the vehicle by quickly reading DTC engine codes. It gives out the definitions for the error codes so the car owner can accurately determine the cause of the problem. This diagnostic tool comes with “ideal early warning system” helping car owners to know dangers before they occur, with red, yellow, and green LED lights. The scanner also has live vehicle sensor data in graph and text format to check if there is any issue.

·         Innova Color Screen With Bluetooth 3160g Code Reader/Scan Tool:

The Innova Color Screen with Bluetooth 3160g Code Reader/Scan Tool helps in handling troubleshooting. This scanner includes features helping to diagnose car's light, trucks and minivan. The tool allows user to read vehicle codes in different languages and comes with features like, patented emissions monitors status icons, color-coded smog test, etc.

There is a free-trial accessing repair solution which comes in app based format assisting users in diagnosing and repairing the car accurately. This tool is an advanced version of the 3130 and 3140, offering anti-lock braking system and airbag functionality which is available in most of the premium cars.

·         LAUNCH X431 PROS Mini Automotive Diagnostic Tool

When you connect with professional car diagnostic services, you will find that most of these services use LAUNCH X431 PROS Mini Automotive Diagnostic Tool. The tool comes with BDScar diagnostic connector, protective sleeve, PRO pad computer, and OBD2 connectors. The tool comes with the internet connection to easily integrate with more services and applications and maintain a database. The tool comes has the fastest scanner and wider vehicle coverage than counterparts offering quick live data and graphing. The tool also has touch screen interface loaded with full-color HD display to easily access all its testing parts.

·         BlueDriver Bluetooth Pro OBDII Scan Tool

Integrated with Smartphone, the tool lets you to scan and understand your vehicle. One of the best part of this tool is it saves money and trouble codes. To use this tool, you need download the free app, plug the sensor into your OBD 2 port and pair it with your device via Bluetooth. This is the popular car diagnostic tool used by many premium car owners. The best part of the tool is it is designed to check stored error codes against the database of around 5 million verified fixes so you don’t have to waste time on extra research or spend too much on frivolous repairs.

·         ANCEL AD310 Classic Enhanced Universal Diagnostic Scan Tool

Luxury car services use this diagnostic tool and is comes with some amazing design. It is a basic code reader helping to determine the actual cause of “Check Engine” light, monitor readiness test. It views freeze frame data and many other things. If your premium car is OBD II compliant, this tool will read it and help you know the actual problem your vehicle is facing. Many luxury car services use this tool for diagnostic purpose.

·         Actron CP9690 Chrome Scan Tools

This car diagnostic tool comes with essential connectors and adapters’ car owners will need to carry out efficient fixes on your vehicle. It has the ability to diagnose OBD1 cars makes it an attractive option mechanics are who are beginners. The tool has the ability to read manufacturer’s specific DTC (Diagnostic Trouble Codes) provided by your car’s manufacturer helping to troubleshoot issues in your vehicle. Furthermore, the Actron CP9690 will display ABS, Airbag, DTC, helping you to prioritize your diagnostics.

·         Autel AutoLink AL519 Diagnostic Tool Scanner

One of the leading automotive diagnostics, Autel AutoLink AL519 Diagnostic Tool is the combination of the next generation wireless technology having with radically superior processing capabilities. The tool also comes with Bluetooth 2.1 added with enhanced data rate, helping to increase your diagnostic range. The tool also comes with OneTouch instant manufacturer updates, to make entering of vehicle information easy.

·         Buying the best Diagnostic Tool

If you are considering buying the car diagnostic tool, it is vital to consider features and your premium car vehicle needs. You need to make sure that the tool is compatible with your premium car. Most manufacturers offer free updates for their tools, so you don't have to pay as some manufacturers still demand. Always go for a reliable brand. This way you will face quality problems.

[sharengayonline]

Mi Redmi Note 7 ( 32 GB Storage, 3 GB RAM ) Online at Best Price On Flipkart.com

Sharengay Trang Tin Tức Độc Đáo VIDEO Mi Redmi Note 7 ( 32 GB Storage, 3 GB RAM ) Online at Best Price On Flipkart.com

Description

Bạn đang xem: Mi Redmi Note 7 ( 32 GB Storage, 3 GB RAM ) Online at Best Price On Flipkart.com

Experience power and performance in your palm with the Redmi Note 7. Every picture that you click comes out beautiful, thanks to its (12 MP + 2 MP) dual-rear camera and the 13 MP front camera. While 16-cm (6.3) FHD+ Dot Notch Display revolutionises your viewing experience, features such as AI Scene Detection, Face Unlock and IR Remote Control make your user experience as convenient as possible.

Read More

Product Description

Hold the Redmi Note 7 in your hand and get ready to revel in an efficient and luxurious smartphone experience. A powerful 2.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 AIE octa-core processor, a (12 MP + 2 MP) dual-rear camera, a massive 16-cm (6.3) FHD+ Dot Notch Display and features such as AI Scene Detection, Face Unlock, and IR Remote Control come together to provide you with a transcendental smartphone experience.

Powerful Performance

The Redmi Note 7 features a 2.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 AIE octa-core processor and 3 GB of RAM which pave the way for seamless gaming or multitasking. It also comes with 32 GB of storage capacity which allows for easy storing of your media files.

Picture-perfect Moments

Its (12 MP + 2 MP) dual-rear camera setup lets you capture every moment perfectly. With its high-quality sensors, along with AI-based algorithms, you can take stunning Bokeh shots. It also comes with Electronic Image Stabilisation feature which makes your videos look more steady and blur-free.

Stunning Night Photography

By automatically capturing multiple images and combining them into a single, high-quality photo, the Redmi Note 7’s camera captures stunning shots even in low-light conditions.

AI Scene Detection

This feature recognizes scenes over several categories on the rear and front cameras, and makes your pictures look more vibrant and real.

13 MP AI Front Camera

Make every selfie you click Instagram-worthy with the Redmi Note 7’s 13 MP front camera. It also comes with AI Beautify 4.0 and the AI Portrait mode which lets you take stunning bokeh selfies effortlessly.

FHD+ Dot Notch Display

Enjoy watching videos and playing games on the Redmi Note 7’s 16-cm (6.3) FHD+ Dot Notch Display which comes with an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. Its FHD+ 2340 x 1080 resolution provides crisp and sharp visuals, enriching your overall viewing experience.

Long-lasting Battery

Its massive 4000 mAh high-capacity battery makes the entertainment last longer and lets you balance work and play without running out of power.

Type-C with Qualcomm Quick Charge 4

It features Type-C port and supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 4 which makes your phone charge faster than ever.

Elegant Glass Back

The Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and the reflective glass back add a touch of luxury and elegance.

Durable Build

The Corning Gorilla Glass 5 raises the level of protection against drops, making it highly durable.

Splash-proof Technology

Don’t worry about getting a few splashes, as the Redmi Note 7’s high level of durability makes it resistant to liquid damage.

AI Face Unlock

You just need to look at your phone to unlock it. This feature automatically recognizes your face and unlocks itself, immediately after you turn on the screen.

IR Remote Control

With this feature, you can use the Redmi Note 7 as a universal remote controller for TVs, set-top boxes, ACs and more.

Specifications

General

In The Box

Handset, SIM Ejector Tool, Soft Case, Manual, Adapter, Cable

Model Number

MZB7263IN

Model Name

Redmi Note 7

Color

Onyx Black

Browse Type

Smartphones

SIM Type

Dual Sim

Hybrid Sim Slot

Yes

Touchscreen

Yes

OTG Compatible

Yes

Quick Charging

Yes

Sound Enhancements

Speaker – Single (Bottom Opening), Microphones – 2 (For Noise Cancellation), Smart PA

SAR Value

India SAR 1g limit: 1.6W/Kg, Head SAR: 0.962W/Kg (0mm Separation), Body SAR Value: 0.838W/Kg (15mm Separation)

Display Features

Xem thêm: 29 mẹo vặt để các bạn vừa tránh trong mùa đông lại còn tiết kiệm nữa

Display Size

16.0 cm (6.3 inch)

Resolution

2340 x 1080 pixels

Resolution Type

Full HD+

GPU

Adreno 512

Display Type

IPS (In-cell), RD

Other Display Features

Contrast Ratio – 1500:1, NTSC Ratio – 81.41%, 2.5D Glass (In-front), Corning Gorilla Glass 5 (Front and Back), Dot Notch Display

Os & Processor Features

Operating System

Android Pie 9.0

Processor Type

Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 AIE

Processor Core

Octa Core

Primary Clock Speed

2.2 GHz

Secondary Clock Speed

1.8 GHz

Operating Frequency

GSM – B2, B3, B5, B8, WCDMA – B1, B2, B5, B8, LTE TDD – B40, B41, LTE FDD – B1, B3, B5, B8, CA – 1C (Only DLCA), 3C, 40C, 41C

Memory & Storage Features

Internal Storage

32 GB

RAM

3 GB

Expandable Storage

256 GB

Supported Memory Card Type

microSD

Memory Card Slot Type

Hybrid Slot

Camera Features

Primary Camera Available

Yes

Primary Camera

12MP + 2MP

Primary Camera Features

12MP – f2.2, 1.25micrometer, 2MP – f2.2, 1.75micrometer, Primary 5P Lens, Secondary 3P Lens, AI Dual Camera, PDAF

Secondary Camera Available

Yes

Secondary Camera

13MP Front Camera

Secondary Camera Features

Aperture – F2.0, Pixel Size – 1.12micrometer, AI Front Camera

Flash

Rear Flash

Dual Camera Lens

Primary Camera

Connectivity Features

Network Type

3G, 4G VOLTE, 2G

Supported Networks

GSM, WCDMA, 4G VoLTE, 4G LTE

Internet Connectivity

4G, 3G, Wi-Fi

Bluetooth Support

Yes

Bluetooth Version

v5.0

Wi-Fi

Yes

Wi-Fi Version

802.11 a/b/g/n/ac

USB Connectivity

Yes

Audio Jack

3.5mm

Map Support

Google Maps

GPS Support

Yes

Other Details

SIM Size

Nano SIM + Nano SIM

User Interface

MIUI 10

Graphics PPI

409 PPI

Sensors

Rear Fingerprint Scanner, Ambient Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor, E-compass, Accelerometer, Gyroscope

Other Features

Processor – 4 x Gold 2.2 GHz + 4 x Silver 1.8 GHz, eMMC v5.1, Body – 2.5D Glass Back, USB Type-C, IR Blaster, Charger – 5V/2A, Super Low Light Mode, Splash Proof Protected by P2i, Quick Charge 4.0, Dual VoLTE

GPS Type

A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou

Dimensions

Width

75.21 mm

Height

159.21 mm

Depth

8.1 mm

Weight

186 g

Warranty

Warranty Summary

Brand Warranty of 1 Year Available for Mobile and 6 Months for Accessories

5★

4★

3★

2★

1★

88,304

28,301

8,043

2,433

5,304

5

Terrific

Writing after 7 days of use. Thanks flipkart for faster delivery 🚚 Black colour is not that shines than other but look official. Device build is nice although front and back are gorilla glass protected and side bezels are plastic but not feels like plastic. Preinstalled camera app is garbage, Camera is excellent only if you use gcam port of pixel 3 xl, working perfectly for me. Display is bright and vibrant but in sunlight reflection is very high. Performance is very good because of good pro…

READ MORE

Avishkar Bankar

Certified Buyer, Bid

Mar, 2019

5

Mind-blowing purchase

1) Display is nice. Full HD+ screen is very bright and Colors are accurate and crisp. 2) glass back feels premium. 3) notch is very tiny, it looks nice but as of now while writing this review miui has no option to hide the notch yet. I know many people would like to disable the notch. In future through software update may be Xiaomi would fix this. 4) sound quality is okay. not great and not bad. 5) software : Android pie out of the box with miui 10. 6) security patch level is of 5-1-2019 o…

READ MORE

Parbati Chakraborty

Certified Buyer, Balurghat

Mar, 2019

5

Awesome

Best In Range Product!

Splash Proof, Shock Proof as it comes with Gorrilla Glass 5 Protection, Awesome Looks, Preety Good Camera, I had Gifted 3 GB + 32 GB Model to my mother as a thanks giving gesture on womes day, she is happier than ever, its having good quality screen, also this notch display looks very cool & glass back design in this price gives very premium feel,

Great In hand feel, Type-C Port with fast charging, It has everything We Need!

A Complete package in very low prices a…

READ MORE

Okkk Ok

Certified Buyer, Meerut

Mar, 2019

4

Very Good

Good mobile for this price. Pubg is running smoothly at HD it doesn’t support HDR. Build quality is average in Camara depth of fild effects not great its total value for money. Battery life is good.

READ MORE

Jenish John

Certified Buyer, Chennai

Mar, 2019

4

Worth the money

After using 1 week things look positive and the best part is you can use Google Camera for better image processing. Battery life is awesome and the build quality is best in the budget. don’t wait just grab it. Yes sometimes it get heated up while extensive gaming. overall it’s the best phone. Redmi Note 7 >>>>>Realme 3

READ MORE

RAVISHANKAR Yadav

Certified Buyer, Mumbai

Mar, 2019

4

Delightful

***pros*** Price: best price with this configuration

Design: premium looks

Battery: awesome backup + supports super fast charging (checked with Motorola fast charger)

Ui: Easy and convenient UI

Camera: This phone is enough for camera lovers, No need of pro version which has a fake 48mp selfie camera: portrait shorts are super good and sharp images.

***cons*** I don’t see any cons except the sound output of the phone which I didn’t like as it was more of bass and less of stereo.. But the…

READ MORE

shravan kumar

Certified Buyer, Hyderabad

Mar, 2019

5

Just wow!

Awesome phone by xiaomi.At this price point the specs are like god damn!!!!🔥

1.cam : it’s more than average.the colours are bit more punchy n a decent sharpness.

2. display : display is terrific. In this price range it’s awesome. the viewing angles are good & the visibility under direct sunlight is really good.The sharp n contrasted display highlights the pictures.

3. performance : The Snapdragon 660 takes all the heavy processing into ease.PuBg is like buttersmooth. Multitasking handles …

READ MORE

Akshay Ps

Certified Buyer, Alappuzha

Xem thêm: Cuộc Sống Mưu Sinh – Tập 13 | Phim Tình Cảm Đài Loan Mới Hay Nhất

Mar, 2019

4

Good choice

Got it on the first day, fortunately I got it ordered. The biggest update on this phone is the usb type C port. First of all the phone looks quite premium with minimal bezels and sleek design. It’s little bit slippery also. Phone boots quite fast. Though I am not a fan of MIUI but still it gets the job done. Camera takes very nice pictures, though I didnt like the portrait mode much. Didn’t test the battery, but as per specs it should easily last a day and half on moderate usage. The display …

READ MORE

Salman Jan

Certified Buyer, Srinagar

Mar, 2019

4

Wonderful

this phone takes some really cool pics in the daylight. it works fast and gives a good battery life. at this price range this would be best 1.

READ MORE

UMAIR

Certified Buyer, Pune

Mar, 2019

5

Terrific

Phone camera is good for a normal user. The dynamic range of the phone is good. PUBG Mobile can be played at high FPS and it supports HD graphics in PUBG Mobile. Overall best device in this price range.

READ MORE

Deboshree Basu

Certified Buyer, Kolkata

Mar, 2019

+

All 14275 reviews

Questions and Answers

Q:Does it have face unlock?

A:Yes, it has AI face unlock. Redmi Note 7 has a fingerprint sensor on the back, too.

SuperComNet

Flipkart Seller

Q:What version of Android does it have?

A:Redmi Note 7 runs MIUI 10 based on Android 9.0.

SuperComNet

Flipkart Seller

Q:slow motion are available in this phone

A:Yes here is slow motion mode

Kuntal Bhattacharya

Certified Buyer

Q:Does it have a notificafion light

A:Yes both note 7 and note 7 pro has a notification light

Saurabh Saraswat

Certified Buyer

Read other answers

Q:Can I use two apps on the same screen?

A:Yes, using the split screen option, you can use two apps at once.

SuperComNet

Flipkart Seller

Q:witch is best phone redmi note 7 or realme 3

A:Redmi note 7 is a good deal comparing to Realme 3 cos’ it has lots of cool features in Redmi Note7 like Fhd display, USB type-C, fast charging support, G.G. 5 protection, and a good after sale support

Read other answers

Q:does it have an IR sensor…..

A:yes

Ravikant Kumar

Certified Buyer

Q:Can I use my wired headphones with the Redmi Note 7?

A:Yes, Redmi Note 7 comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack so you can use your earphones/headphones with the phone.

SuperComNet

Flipkart Seller

Safe and Secure Payments.

Easy returns.

100% Authentic products.

Nguồn: https://sharengay.online Danh mục: Đời Sống

Mi Redmi Note 7 ( 32 GB Storage, 3 GB RAM ) Online at Best Price On Flipkart.com

from Sharengay Trang Tin Tức Độc Đáo VIDEO https://bit.ly/3hMniY2 via IFTTT

[rameshwatchco]

Fossil Watch Store Near Me

FTW4026 - Fossil

Gender: Men Strap Material: Leather Brand: Fossil Warranty: 2 Years Case Size: 44 MM Watch Type: Smart Watch Strap Color: Brown

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Powered with Wear OS by Google Use the Google WearOS app on your phone with Android™ 6.0+ (excluding Go edition), iOS 10.0+ Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ Wear 3100 8GB Storage, 1GB RAM 1.28″ AMOLED / 416 x 416 / 328ppi Touchscreen, Rotating Home Button, 2 Additional Push Buttons (configurable), Voice Microphone, Loudspeaker, Vibration Bluetooth 4.2 LE, GPS, NFC, WiFi Accelerometer, Altimeter, Ambient Light, Compass, Gyroscope, Off-body IR, PPG Heart Rate 24 Hr + multi-day Extended Mode **Varies based on usage and after updates install**. USB cable with magnetic charger snaps to rings on watch case back and spins 360 degrees for ease of use. 50 minutes to reach 80%.

Ramesh Watch is a multi-brand chain of casual, dress, formal and luxury watches in and around Hyderabad offering more than 3000 designs of different brands. Ramesh Watch has Watch Station International Store with 8 service centres across Hyderabad. People can choose from a wide variety of international watch brands; Armani,CK, Guess, Fossil, DKNY, Diesel, Tommy Hilfiger, Kenneth,Cole, Swatch, Casio, Titan, Rado, Tissot, Fastrack and many more.

For Offers Visit us Online : https://rameshwatch.com/