#me when she takes money out of my bank account and refuses to tell me what for hahahahahahaha had to call her 11 times because she stopped

[seeyouinthespring]

kinda wish i would never have to talk to my mom again but we're roommates rn so that can't even happen

[broadwaycutie16]

Hey, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what is this whole Karma of Lies thing about? I often have some of your posts showing up on my dashboard about how people are not listening to you clarifying things about your story, but I avoided looking into the whole situation myself because I don't want to expose myself to so much (Adrien) salt which I know is at the initial root of all this (or at least, thats how it came across to me)

Would you explain for me what this situation is about? I'm always intrigued by this whole thing whenever I see another post from you, because of how wild reading about it all out for context is, but now curiosity finally got the best of me x3

So basically, KoL starts as your basic salt plot. Marinette’s being bullied by Lila, her friends are extorting her and accusing her of being unfair to Lila, Adrien’s just like “everything’s fine, Marinette” and telling her to just take all the crap from everyone.

Then Hawkmoth’s identity gets out, and Lila decides to cut her losses and get the hell out of there, but not without getting something out of the deal. She gets Adrien to send her money to her, and because Adrien is so trusting, he puts in the info for his family’s emergency bank account right where she can see it, not even thinking that Lila would try to screw him over. Spoiler alert: She does. She drains Adrien’s whole account of fifty million, leaving him without a cent in this catastrophic time in his life, and skips town by telling her mom a sob story. She also tricks the class into giving up their most expensive possessions, and then sells them to other people after she leaves.

So now Lila’s committed a grand felony, and she’s clear to continue her reign of terror anywhere she wants, with her newfound wealth goving her limitless potential on destroying lives. And you know what Marinette does to stop her?

NOTHING.

Marinette refuses to lift a finger to get Lila arrested. The narrative would have you believe that it’s because she’s setting boundaries and taking care of her mental health for a change, but it’s easy to figure out the REAL reason. She gives all these excuses over why she’s unable to do anything about it, using lots of loopholes, completely ignoring the fact that she’s supposed to be a superhero and thus has a moral obligation to stop Lila, if nothing else just to save all the innocent people she’ll destroy in the future.

Meanwhile, Adrien becomes penniless, his father goes on the run, and his aunt refuses to personally take him in because she’s more concerned about the scandal than about her orphaned nephew, basically resigning him to live in Marinette’s old apartment with hardly anything to call his own while Marinette moves into his old room at the mansion after getting a job with Audrey Bourgeois, who has now taken control of Gabriel’s company. And all through this, Marinette and the narrative are basically saying, “you didn’t help me when I needed you to stick for me, so now I’m not gonna help you when you need it”, basically ignoring the fact that what’s happening to Adrien is a hundred times worse than what happened to her.

Even worse, Marinette trashes all her friends’ reputations on live TV, calling them out for mistreating her without stating the reason why they mistreated her, so the public doesn’t know the full story. And Adrien, desperate to get his life back, makes a stupid and arrogant mistake and tries to take down Mayura by himself, but is easily fooled by her to give her opportunity to steak his ring. The villains are defeated, but now everyone in Paris thinks Adrien gave Nathalie the ring on purpose, and accuse him of being a willing accomplice to his father, effectively crushing any little particles of hope he had left for his future.

But what truly makes this fic a dumpster fire of a story, is how the author directs the whole narrative to try and make you believe that everything that happened to Adrien was 100% justfied, that not supporting Marinette and letting some girl bully her and turn her friends against her, a problem that was temporary at worst and that basically was nothing more than some schoolgirl drama, means that he, a fourteen year old boy from an abusive household, deserves to be virtually homeless, bankrupt, disowned by his entire family, and falsely accused if terrorism, and doomed to living the rest of his life out on the streets, without even the slightest conception that maybe it was a little too much.

Oh, and the only punishment Lila gets is some vague warning from Marinette about her future, and apparently, that’s supposed to be enough to stop the girl who knowingly teamed up with a terrorist and was willing to doom the city just to get back at one person for one embarrassing incident in front of one person.

Basically, The Karma of Lies is the worst salt fic of all the salt fics, punishing Adrien for childish stupidity with permanent life damage beyond anything written in salts before, and trying to send the message that it’s okay for Marinette to let it all happen just to get back at him for not being a better friend.

Trust me, do not read it. It is a garbage fire. I regret reading it every day. It’s really messed with my head. Even now, I’d wholly welcome an infinite number of sequel fics punishing Marinette and her “friends” (read: evil minions) for what they did, because if the story says that Adrien deserves his fate for doing nothing, they deserve even worse. This fic is the epitome of everything wrong with the Miraculous Ladybug fandom.

[symwinter]

I wrote more of my rewrite. It takes place after the ending of Le Bueller/The Bubbler when Adrien comes to school with the scarf on. Enjoy? I guess. I don’t know.

Nathalie Sancœur didn’t know much about fashion. She couldn’t tell you the difference between fabrics or what stitches would gather wrong, but if there was one thing she did know after befriending Gabriel Agreste in her first year business course (one he had apparently skipped over until his final year), it was that making clothes, no matter how small took time and materials. And as Nathalie removed the sticky note tag from a gift Adrien’s designer friend, she knew she would pay her back.

“I can’t accept this.”

She just didn’t expect it to be so difficult.

“Mlle. Dupain-Cheng, we’re both aware that you know that your present was attributed to M. Agreste and as the one who made that choice I cannot in good conscience not pay you for your work.”

“It’s really not necessary Mlle. Sancœur,” the girl replied, rocking on her heels. “It made Adrien happy to get a gift from his father, that’s good enough for me.” Nathalie fought against the urge to crumple the cheque she was holding.

“I disagree,” Nathalie placed the cheque on the counter and slid it forward. “Work deserves compensation.”

“Marinette, is something wrong?” An older voice called from behind the wall. Thank god, Nathalie thought. An adult. A few seconds later and a woman rounded the counter, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng’s mother no doubt.

“Oh not at-“ “Mme. Cheng if I’m not mistaken?” Nathalie interrupted.

“Yes that’s me, Mlle..?”

“Nathalie Sancœur, I work for Gabriel,” Nathalie handed her business card to Sabine. “We commissioned your daughter for a project, I’m here to deliver the payment, though she’s refusing to take it.”

“It’s too much! I can’t accept that amount,” Marinette protested.

“I guarantee it’s industry standard, especially with such short notice.” Nathalie interjected. “She has a real talent, your daughter.”

Sabine picked up the cheque, her eyes widening slightly. “It is certainly a lot,” Nathalie bit back a retort and smoothed down internal ruffled feathers.

“While the cheque has been made out to your daughter it can be put into another account if I accompany you to the bank, for emergencies, retirement, or college.”

“That is true,” Sabine replied.

“Maman…” Marinette’s protest fell on deaf ears. Cue Nathalie’s time to leave.

“The business card has my number, feel free to call it when you’ve decided where the money is going but the cheque will need to be cashed irregardless,” Nathalie turned on her heel and called out as she left, “have a lovely rest of your day.”

And if anyone saw Nathalie in the parking lot connected to Agreste manor with her head pressed against the car horn later that evening, well, they knew better than to say anything.

[evans23]

RICKMAS 2024 - DAY 14 - DECEPTIVE KINDNESS [C1]

Pairing : Elliott Marston x OC

Summary : She tried to escape her arranged marriage, but she found herself trapped with Elliott. Can she trust him ?

Tag(s)/Warning(s) : Arranged marriage. Some rude words. Racism. Racism towards aborigines. Tell me if I forgot anything.

A/N : I didn't proofread because I'm so, so, so behind and my brain is just like "Woman ! I'm tired !"

Also read on AO3 - Wattpad

When you were told you were getting married to Armand de Mont-Alban, you ran away. You never would have believed your father would offer your hand to another without asking you. You had always been his little princess, the one he let everything go. But apparently, not this time. You had some tantrum, threatened to throw yourself into the sea, but your father wouldn't listen. On the contrary, he had threatened to lock you in your room until the wedding day if you continued to make him go gray.

So, without hesitation, and with the discreet but kind help of your mother, you had fled Sidney. Your mother had given you the money she had saved up for years to help you join your uncle, his brother, in the Outback.

You had taken your business with you, the bare necessities, and you had joined the stagecoach that would take you to Adelaide. From there, another stagecoach would take you to Alice Springs. And finally, your cousin's husband would help you reach your uncle's house in the north.

At least, that was the plan, because once you arrived in Alice Springs, you learned that your cousin and her husband had left town for Katherine almost a month ago. The letter announcing it must have gotten lost, but whatever the case, you found yourself spending more than you had planned to be able to sleep. You had hesitated to leave again. The town needed waitresses and although you were not used to manual labor, anything was good to escape. Except that your father would come to get you there, you were sure of it and here, no one would protect you.

So, after talking to a merchant and giving him the rest of your money, you had managed to find yourself in a cart full of pigs to reach the town where your uncle lived. But honestly, pigs were worth much more than your fiancé.

Armand was a cold man. He came from a rich family, richer than yours, who had made their fortune in sheep's wool, then later in breeding prestigious horses. His father was a governor and his mother came from a long line of French aristocrats. If his mother was mannered, she was also very pleasant although she often lacked judgment about her son and even more so on the question of the aborigines.

His father was a rather pleasant man, always with a joke and everything seemed to interest him. But Armand... Armand had inherited a hot-tempered character, amplified by the fact that as a child, his mother had never refused him anything. And when he couldn't get obedience with a snap of his fingers, he used his hands.

After days and days of a hellish journey, you had finally arrived at your uncle's. The initial surprise he had when he saw you, all disheveled, your beautiful clothes rumpled and smelling of manure, evaporated to give way to a dull anger when you explained to him the reasons for your presence.

"Uncle, maybe you could have the marriage annulled. You are influential," you begged him, tears in your eyes.

Your uncle was probably one of the richest men in northern Australia. First thanks to his work, later thanks to the inheritance from his parents. Your poor mother had not been able to have anything of this inheritance and all the estates, jewels and bank account that was in the United Kingdom had returned to your uncle. A good sport, he had shared them with your mother and you too at the same time. But today, for the first time, you saw in this wealth a power that could help you get out of this arranged marriage that you did not want.

"I'm going to go to Sydney, see your father and this Mont-Alban. The father might be able to be convinced to abandon this union."

"Am I going to have to stay here alone ?" you asked him without even trying to hide your apprehension.

"No. I have a partner who is also a good friend. I'll explain the situation to him and I'm sure he'll let you stay with him while I'm gone. He's a cattle rancher who has influence here in the region. You'll be safe with him. But, [Y/N], please avoid being too quick-witted with him and above all, don't tell him your opinions on the aborigines. He's..."

"I get it," you grumbled, rolling your eyes.

"He's really smart, but his opinion on the aboriginal issue..."

"Is biased because despite his great intelligence, he's a bit of an idiot ?" you answered seriously.

"Yes, well, avoid the question with him, please."

You agreed without adding anything, already knowing that you were going to hate him. But it wasn't like you had a better solution, so you couldn't be ungrateful.

Your uncle had had no trouble getting Elliott to agree to you being under his protection. A nice, well-filled envelope and the promise that he would be given priority for the sale of his cattle had been enough. Elliott was his friend, but he was aa skilled negotiator and your uncle respected that.

"This is my niece," he said as he helped you off the cart."

"This is my niece, [Y/N]," your uncle introduced you.

"Mr. Marston, I'm delighted," you said politely.

Elliott snickered and you did your best not to make a scathing remark at him. In his eyes, you were indeed a well-bred little rich girl who had never known a single minute of work. And he was right. But he was wrong when he thought you must be a little prig used to ordering and getting things done.

"No sir here, sir, that was my father. I'm Elliott," he finally said before taking the suitcase that your uncle had just taken off the cart. "I'll show you to your room."

Elliott's imposing stature, mixed with his dark eyes and that mustache that gave him the air of a man of high society, impressed you right away. He made you nervous, but there was no way he would realize it.

You walked through the house which was beautiful, clearly demonstrating the man's wealth, even if it was far from the opulence of your own home. However, you did not mark the servant. Or rather the slave. An aboriginal. You clenched your fists, but true to your promise, you said nothing.

"Here is your room. It is the coolest in the house, even if it will be stifling most of the time. If you need a bath, Kunkurra is here for that."

He put your suitcase on the floor and left without another word. You settled in comfortably, thanking Kunkurra who seemed surprised but said nothing. Deep down, you hoped that this cohabitation would go well. After all, your uncle trusted this Elliott.

You couldn't be more wrong. You couldn't stand him. Elliott. He got on your nerves. He was arrogant, full of himself and racist. He didn't share any of your values ​​and when he twirled his gun between his fingers like an Appalachian cowboy, you imagined him shooting himself in the foot and it amused you immensely.

You tried to eat before he finished his work so as not to have to share his table and you avoided being in the same room as him as much as possible. In truth, you spent most of your time reading and sometimes helping Kunkurra. 

The slave had been surprised the first time you helped him with the dishes, but he hadn't said anything. You weren't like the other people on the estate. He liked you.

That night, however, you couldn't avoid Elliott who had caught you talking to his horse. He had been touched by this gentleness that wasn't apparent but seemed to be your true nature. He had then asked you if you would have dinner with him and you hadn't dared to say no.

All evening, he had asked you questions that were more than just polite. They were too specific. It was a little too much about your family's money too.

"Being a well-born girl, life must have been easier," he remarked as he cut his steak.

"It probably was. Until now," you replied without looking up from your own plate.

"You always got what you wanted, right ? It must be a change for you to play servant alongside Kunkurra. Washing plates is probably not something you did often at your parents' house."

You blushed slightly at his last sentence. You didn't know he had noticed you helping his slave.

"Indeed, I have rarely washed dishes in my life. But I have never desired an arranged marriage."

"With a rich man. Enough to have even more servants and to ensure you never break a nail."

"At least our servants are paid !" you spat, suddenly raising your head.

Elliott, for the first time since you arrived, saw something other than melancholy in your eyes. There was a fire under there, a bright fire that was ready to burn all of Australia.

"You men are all the same," you finally said, "to believe that obedience is better than happiness."

"I never said that," Elliott replied more quietly than he expected, "and don't be so quick to judge all men based on the ones you've known so far. This fiancé may not be so terrible after all."

"The first time he met me, he called me a 'mare to tame' but also that he would be happy to do it. Judge for yourself, Elliott."

After that, a heavy silence ensued and when you had finished your plate, it was without shame that you helped Kunkurra clean up the kitchen.

After that evening, you no longer avoided Elliott. You stood up to him, answered him back in kind and you weren't afraid to challenge him. And he liked it. No one had ever dared to speak to him the way you did, much less a woman, but you, you weren't afraid to speak your mind. You were different from the cocky little Lady he had imagined. In fact, you were even interesting. Sometimes.

Knock, knock, knock.

...

Knock, knock, knock.

...

Knock, knock, knock.

The door flew open, revealing a shirtless Elliott and for a moment, you couldn't take your eyes off his muscular torso. A scar on his stomach slightly intrigued you, but when his baritone voice started growling at you, you quickly came to your senses.

"FOR GOD'S SAKE, WOMAN, IT'S..." he turned to glance at the clock on his dresser, "it's one in the morning!"

"There's something out there," you said quietly.

A noise had woken you up and trembling but determined you had gone to knock on Elliott's bedroom door.

"Maybe one of the men needed to pee," he replied, suppressing a yawn.

"It wasn't a man peeing," you replied a little frustrated that he didn't take you seriously.

"We're in Australia, my dear. We're surrounded by wild animals. They exist here, far from your nice houses in the city," he said without hiding his exasperation.

"What if it wasn't an animal?" you insisted, not reassured.

He sighed dramatically, rolling his eyes before finally returning to his room in a theatrical gesture to come out a second later with his gun.

"You never do anything without it?" you asked following him.

"My dear, if it's a thief, you'll be glad I took my gun."

He crossed the living room with you on his heels. Your hand was almost touching his bare back, you were so afraid of being left alone. When he opened the front door, he made a gesture to you to keep quiet. You nodded while continuing to follow him on tiptoe.

Arriving on the porch of the house, he fired once in the air, making you jump. It was then that an animal on which the moon made its light dance, making its red fur shine a little more, ran away at full speed.

"A dingo," Elliott said, taking your arm to lead you into the house. "And now that we're awake, how about some tea?"

Without waiting for your answer, he set to work. You refrained from telling him that you were surprised that he was able to do something domestic without his slave. Instead, you thanked him in a low whisper.

"Thanks for not laughing."

"Oh, believe me, that was hard," he replied with a small smirk.

You each sat down in an armchair, but Elliott didn't miss your gaze that often lingered on his bookshelf.

"You can borrow some if you want."

"Thanks," you replied a little surprised, "I like books. They don't lie."

Elliott stood up with the grace of a feline and pulled out a large volume that hadn't been read in a long time to hand it to him.

"This one is full of lies. A story of adventure in the wild west."

"If this story allows you to escape for a moment and forget about reality, then it's not a lie," you replied as you took the book.

Elliott looked at you, really looked at you for the first time. And for the first time, he began to doubt what he had set out to do.

"Mr. [Y/S],

Your brother-in-law has asked me to watch over your daughter while he attempts to cancel this marriage you have arranged for her.

You and I, I am sure, are pragmatic men. I understand the importance of this union to your family.

I will protect your daughter as I promised, until you come to collect her to offer her to her fiancé.

As a man of the world, I am sure you understand that a service, especially one as great as watching over your most precious possession, cannot go unrewarded.

I would very much like to expand my business with Sidney and the surrounding towns and I am certain that you and I, Mr. [Y/S] could help each other.

In the meantime, please accept the assurance of my highest regards.

Kind Regards,

Elliott Marston."

"Do you remember London ?" Elliott asked you as you helped him feed the horses.

"No. I was four when we left, my whole life is in Australia," you answered with a hint of nostalgia.

You and Elliott were talking more and more. In fact, you would almost dare to call him a friend. He was witty and he listened to your opinion. You often argued about the Aboriginal cause, but one night he surprised you by questioning your fierce need to defend them without prejudice or mockery.

"Why does your father force you to marry this man if you are his little pet as you say ?"

"For the sake of propriety. We are always a bit English, no matter where we are, aren't we?"

Elliott shrugged his shoulders

"My father was Irish. But my parents died when I was very young..."

That's when he explained to you. Everything. And you understood why he harboured such hatred towards the Aborigines. You didn't excuse him for what he did to them in return, but you thought that maybe all was not lost for this man. He could be fixed. He could learn. He could become better.

"My father always kept the values ​​of the United Kingdom. He was strict when I was a child, but always fair and loving. My mother, she... well, I guess she always behaved like a good wife," you explained, stroking Elliott's stallion.

"Everything you refuse to be, right ?" he questioned without contempt.

"We are capable of being more than an obedient wife, Elliott. We can learn, we can do the same things as men. We are no less intelligent than you, and my friend Cassandra would be as capable as some of your men here. But there are very few men who are willing to see our values ​​beyond tradition."

Elliott said nothing because he knew he thought like your father. Yet he found himself noticing your subtlety, your intelligence, but also your resilience and the way you had of hiding your vulnerability under a facade of calm and restraint.

And he was starting to blame himself. He thought about that letter he had written just after you arrived with the intention of posting it as soon as he went to town to buy food. But he was no longer so sure he wanted to do it.

If only. If only he had hidden it better. If only you hadn't been snooping around after your bath while he was making you dinner, proud to introduce you to one of his specialties. If only he had burned that letter as soon as he understood what that tightness in his chest meant when he saw you.

Then, maybe you would have never known that his kindness had been, at least at first, just a deceptive kindness.

[djnusagi]

I had a really intense day today. I woke up this morning to a text and a Facebook message from my mom asking if I was awake and able to talk, both had been sent late the night before. I was the first one up because i had work today so I went to the gym as always.

when I got home I asked my mom what she needed to ask me and it was about the money I had been taking out of my old bank account (which she has full access to) and putting in my new one. I had to tell her I was moving money into a new bank account because I wanted one independent from her.

this upset her a lot. she started interrogating me and apparently she noticed I’d been moving my belongings out of my room all week. I just went and said how I was moving. I tried explaining how miserable I constantly am, how I live my whole life around them as a facade and it’s miserable and exhausting. she refused to engage with any of it and just went on and on about my obligation to my family and how she loves me in a way no other human can possibly love me. but she cannot love somebody she doesn’t know, and she rejected my true self at every turn. at every step of my transition.

she went to work. I was told we’d be “having a talk about this tonight” with my father. I began manically packing what remained of my belongings. at the very end I had to get Oliver in his crate and bring him out. I ran into her in the driveway. she asked what was going on and I just told her I was leaving. she told me to calm down and come inside and that I wasn’t allowed to leave but I locked my car doors and drove off.

I had to close out my bank account. I waited 4 hours in the parking lot to check into a hotel but I’m in the hotel now. I had to block my whole family’s phone numbers. my grandma tried to call me. I blocked her. today has been so intense. it’s been so horrifically intense. but Mayzie’s plane lands Friday morning. then we can leave for Portland.

[seraphsfire]

Life situation & kitty update! Help me stay in Seattle instead of being forced to go to wyoming

Hello! I was able to make rent this month, but so far I cannot make rent for next month.

Ko-fi has been holding donations since paypal has been flagging them as "income" so that no longer works.

If you would like to help me out using paypal, the link is HERE. I will look into other venmo and cashapp. you can also reach out for a commission! If you donated via paypal and would like me to draw you a little something in thanks, please let me know!

I also put together an AMAZON WISH LIST , most is things for the kitties or food and some non-essentials / self care things for the hell of it that are things i haven't been able to buy myself for a while. Other than rent, kitty supplies and food are what I spend most $ on.

More on what I'm facing and what my kitties need:

about the kitties:

My sweet kitty Jade, needs a steroidal shot for her dermatitis. She should have gotten another one on the 25th, but I had no money to take her to the vet and she started ripping her fur out and made big, golf-ball sized spots completely bald on her armpit and chest :'( We put her on benadryl, moisturized her, and gave her a little jacket thing to help but I can tell she's really uncomfortable and really needs a vet visit to get that. it's $80 just to visit my vet and i'm sure the shot could be anywhere from 10-40 dollars, I really don't know. She's not in danger of pulling huge chunks of fur out thanks to the little jacket but she's really not happy and it makes me so sad.

About my situation (kind of long, sorry):

My Parents (mostly my mom; it's very hard to get responses from my dad) gave me rent money for September, but then made it clear that she will no longer help me financially under any circumstance if I want to "choose" to live in Seattle, then I'm essentially on my own. She doesn't want to give me money because she doesn't want ours to be a "transactional-based relationship" (after spending my entire childhood having them pressure me to move out on my own)

My dad is convinced that since Seattle is a city, it is very unsafe (and too full of Democrats) and that we would be safer living in their small town of Pavilion, Wyoming--which is literally just like, a few very spaced out neighborhoods. The nearest actual town is a 30 minute drive, and it's not very big either, and I don't drive. I would be snowed in *with them* for 4+ MONTHS every year, and every summer unable to leave the house for weeks because of the heat.

My dad has told my sister and I that if we choose to live right next to them, where they could have complete control over our lives, they would even buy us a house--but because we're not doing that, they refuse to support us in the life we've chosen for ourselves. They do not see the cruelty in this and think we are being nonsensical staying somewhere like Seattle which is "dangerous" and they do not like that it is full of non-republicans. I came out as queer in 2016, something which they have never spoken about since. I would likely be the only (out) queer person for MILES, and I don't feel like being the guinea pig for whether the anti-gay people there are the kind who ignore you or the kind who will hatecrime/kill you (:

Since I'd be at zero in my bank account in wyoming, they would have complete control over what I eat (not fun since I have a messed up digestion), clothes I buy, where I go, and how I behave just like they did when I was a child, or they'll start taking things away hoping that "tough love" will work. (it just made me mentally ill lol)

If I start a job in a week and a half I might be okay, but if I can't start until after that I won't have enough for October rent. I have one interview coming up but the future is still very up in the air.

[bonfire-at-the-crossroads]

Worst birthday ever.

I’ve had 69 of them, so I should know.

Storm Eowyn wrecked the entire country of ireland - and she is not prepared to return it to any kind of usefulness.

I will recount the number of things which have gone horribly wrong in the last week - so there will be a record remaining when my rotting corpse is discovered sometime next July.

We knew the storm was coming. Bought wood, kindling, coal, topped up the old oil lamps, bought groceries - and drove down to deliver the framed prints to the MEE’s early afternoon. All of this was my idea and my insistence. Brian tried to purchase something online a couple days earlier, it was declined, a fraud warning was issued - and they shut down his bank card. It was instantaneous and irrevocable. Forty bucks worth of long distance phone call later - he was told they would send him a new card “it will arrive in three days”

It won’t. I’m guessing it will NEVER arrive, which leaves Brian with no money whatsoever.

The MEE’s owe me $ for the last month of work, so I figured I’d go get some cash. We arrived, everyone was in tears. Poor old Beau the dog had been run over an hour earlier. Awful stuff, and we spoke together for quite awhile.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Turns out that the MEE’s auctions are now a separate entity from Bryan and Katie - who have gone on to form their own antiques business. This is a wallop. Who pays me? Why are there awkward silences, and what smells like bad blood among the family members? I am really uncomfortable.

Holly transferred the money into the bank account. We drove home.

The storm hit at 4:00 AM. I’d insisted on parking the car along the gable end of the house for fear of falling trees. An enormous branch is now lying along the electric wires in front of the house. It rests on the high-tension cable AND the regular power lines - so nobody in their right mind is going to remove it. We must wait for the lads in Hi-Viz with the repair truck to deal with this.

The entire country lost power. Roofs are gone, entire forests are resting across power lines and roadways - and it will take months and months to get stuff cleaned up. If ever.

We have no electricity.

To be completely clear about this? No power.?

No refrigerator so everything is quietly rotting.

No heat. There is snow on the ground.

No internet

No phone service - the cell towers are down.

No way to charge the phones - unless you sit in the car and plug the little Jack into the cigarette lighter….as I am doing now.

No light

No tv

No running water - the pumping station pumps have burned out and “we are looking to source others. Sorry for the inconvenience “ (we are now flushing the toilet with buckets of water pulled from the pond. )

This will continue for at least another week - probably more.

———————————-

Gee. That sounds awful.

It gets better.

The car won’t start.

It just blinks. Bri got it going after screwing around with the shift about ten times. But refuses to take it to a mechanic “it’s fine. They won’t know what’s wrong anyway. ITS FINE.”

————————

Pat arrived late yesterday and gave us the loan of a generator! He potchkied a plug-strip onto it (the plug which comes into the generator is a peculiar configuration called a site-plug, and there’s no way to plug in any sort of household outlet.)

Brian has been obsessing over not being able to watch his football games. He actually planned to “go to a pub in Ballyshannon, and set up to watch the games there. First game starts at 6:00, last game ends at 1:00 AM.”

I had to tell him that this was SO FUCKED UP I can’t even believe he would think such a thing. “You plan on leaving me alone in the cold and the dark with no phone or way to find help - while you sit in a bar for seven hours, having a few beers - then driving home in the wee hours?”

This is the state of my husband. The mind reels….

Last night? He was so happy with the generator that he could watch football. He set up in his chair - tv on, internet plugged in. He added a lamp. He added a little space heater. But this was not quite enough for him. He added a SECOND heater.

And blew the generator.

I spent the next three hours pulling apart five different electric plug strips - and wiring them into the site plug. To no avail.

——————-

Have spent the afternoon galloping across the border to buy new strips.

Also more lamp oil. Matches. Cat food.. milk. And water. All of which are my idea, because apparently he is a child who cannot look at ANYTHING and extrapolate what is needed going forward.

I suspect all men are this hopeless? I wouldn’t know. I’ve spent 35 years with this one, so this is a limited sampling.

The generator is running. The WiFi is up for now. He just asked me what my plans are for the rest of the day - this is Brian-speak for “I’m leaving now to pursue my own desires.” I told him I had a choice. I could sit in the cold and dark in the studio. Or I could sit in the cold and the dark in the house. “What do YOU want to do?” I ask.

“I’m going to take a shower” sez he. I am confused. There is no heat, ipso facto - no hot water.

“Ah” I figure it out. He’s going to go to the gym. He didn’t get to go yesterday - so “take a shower” is Bri-speak for leaving me here and going to work out.

Worst

Birthday

Ever.

[asryakino]

FULL STORY OF THE SAGA OF THE EXPLOSIVE PHONE AND THE ELECTRONICS STORE THAT TRIED TO GET ME TO COMMIT DOMESTIC TERRORISM! -

This is going to take a hot minute to type, so be patient

on June 18th 2024 I was out running errands, and picked up dinner, in doing so I overdrew the credit union account, I THOUGHT I had zeroed it out, but it had actually overdrawn.

I didn't find out until after the bank had closed, and since the 19th was Juneteenth (a federal holiday in the states) the CU was closed.

I THOUGHT I could sign the account up through Zelle and/or cashapp and just transfer money directly into the account, but Zelle continually failed, and cash app let me enroll it, but not transfer the money to the account.

Continually they said the issue was with the DEBIT CARD, not the account and told me to call the bank. I couldn't.

On the 20th, I woke up early enough to call the bank, and began the arduous process of verifying over the phone with my dad just so I could talk to them, and Zelle, and try to figure out why the everloving hell the zelle system said there was something wrong with the card and not letting me even sign up so I could transfer money into the account.

I spent four hours on this. Calling one, calling the other, being on hold. and NO ONE could fix the problem.

I repeated myself so many times I was tired of hearing myself. I got one person who said it was the carrier, so I had to call t-mobile, except it wasn't tmobile it was mint, and tmobile transferred me to aura and not mint, and finally to mint who said 'oh that feature is already unlocked on the account you need to call the banking institution or zelle.

On the final call to zelle, the new tech was refusing to accept the verification. and starts going through her little trapper keeper script of why she was refusing to accept the verification when we had all the answers all the info and had ACTIVELY BEEN VERIFYING FOR FOUR HOURS until this point when she says, off handedly during her script read (she was literally just reading the fucking bullet points, I could HEAR the pauses as she shifted line down) "Your account must have more than a dollar in it to enroll"

I spin, looking at the phone only to realize that the phone my dad is holding has expanded, and popped the back of itself off. And immediately begin internally panicking but externally I'm just being frustrated because THAT was the problem for the past four hours, not me entering info wrong, not the information being incorrect with the bank, not the debit card being mislinked, not a system error THE ACCOUNT WAS ALREADY OVER DRAWN AND IT TOOK FOUR HOURS AND WIGHT TECHS TO TELL ME THIS CONDITION?!

I tell dad to immediately hang up the phone and give it to me, I'm ready to rip my hair out and he thinks I'm going to throw the phone and kind of clings to it. I say, firmer. "Give me that timebomb NOW" and he goes 'what is the pro- what the fuck is that?"

I saiod "That is a spicy pillow and you need to give itt to me -now-. I'm taking it to best buy it should still be under warranty." "Yeah, yeah.." and he handed me the phone "When did that happen?" "When you took the phone out of the case to talk to zelle a second ago. It's blowing out, and It doesn't need to be here." "Yeah you go handle... this..."

I explain the zelle issue why it wouldn't enroll, and go get dressed, grab the spicy ravioli and run out the door with the idea that I'll go to the credit union two cities over, fix the overdraft and then take care of the phone return. While driving it's still expanding so I reprioritize and decide to return the phone first.

In my mind, this is a simple thing. I know the phone is under warranty, it has become a safety issue, their standard practice of "keep this and send it off" is not a viable option so it will HAVE to be a refund/in store exchange.

I know this because I've had to do this once before in the past. I know how their policies work, I know the standard returns but more importantly I know the severity of a bloated li-ion battery and how fucking important it is to get it into a safe disposal unit to be picked up by hazardous waste techs with a fireproof vehicle

I go in, at this point I am forwardly professional, I am not panicked, excitable or anything I have my mask of professionalism on and I'm all fucking business. I go to customer service and say 'I need to make a return but before that, do you have a fire blanket or fire suppressant for this fire hazard" and I gently set the phone on the counter. My only thought is to safely contain this ACTIVELY EXPANDING lithium battery.

She looks down, eye go wide and goes "I don't know let me check" and runs to the back, I hear from the back "We have a bucket of sand" and I retort "That will do, this needs to be contained immediately please"

They come get it, and take the potential fire hazard to be buried in the sand bucket. NOW we may commence the return process. I immediately put on the customer service interaction mask, and give them the information for the account, I joke that my receipt for the purchase had bleached out in the car (It had, I keep it in the sunglasses holder and it had legitimated denatured) and we agree that is why they have everything digital.

The CS says it's a rapid exchange in store for this, I said yay, that's actually really nice, because 'express' is not great. She agrees, and sends me to the mobile department, I say take all the time they need, I'll pick a new phone and confirm it's what my dad wants, and I know the paperwork is going to take a hot minute.

I confirm dad doesn't care as long as it's functional, so I pick out the same type, but updated model of phone (Moto G Stylus 2023 model to replace the 2021 model that is buried in sand in the back)

I talk to mobile, connecting with the associate over customer horror stories and the like while the new phone that he, customer service, geek squad techs, and two other associates and a manager have seen, agreed this is going to be an instore exchange because of the circumstances.

We begin setting up the phone and I realize the sim card is still in the bomb. I roll back over in my wheelchair to ask if it's safe to get the sim card. And they say they have to check the IMEI anyway and I bawk. We've already confirmed it's probably not safe to turn the phone on right now, and they say it's okay, it's on the sim tray. I didn't know that, good information. And I ask, cautiously, if it'd be okay to turn it on BRIEFLY so I can get only the login email on it to know which email my dad used for logging into google so I can get his contacts and account synched

the tech says "I don't recommend it" I asked if it would be okay to do so knowingly against advice to turn it on, get the info, turn it off and rebury the thing?

By now, it's been confirmed the battery is no longer expanding, and it's not actively leaking, smoking or heating up. We all agree it's a compromised cell within the battery but it hasn't been breeched, so it's safe-ISH to handle, briefly, but it shouldn't be agitated too much just in case.

I suggest removing the back fully so there's no pressure points. I'm ignored.

I get the info, turn off the fire bomb and hand it back, where it's taken back to what I assume is the sand bucket.

after a little while, the replacement phone is ready for login, I begin setting up the phone for my dad and logging in his information so it'll be set up and ready to go. They begin the return paperwork for the other phone.

At this point it's been about 45 minutes. It's been a smooth process where everyone was on the same side of 'we do not want to agitate the bomb, and Asrya should be leaving with a functional phone and NOT a fire hazard."

when they try to do the return, the SKU (sales identification number) comes up as dead meaning that the store chain doesn't carry that model any more, and the system won't accept the item as a return for cash, credit, or refund. It just -won't- . Initially, I tell them I've had to do this only twice before (I didn't mention it was spread out over like twelve years that I've been using this specific protection plan with Best Buy) and that they may have to store manager override it.

I've had to utilize this process before with laptops I had to exchange due to manufacture defects... so I actually do know how the policy works, the former general manager of the store had explained it to me YEARS ago.

So I tell them that it happens, and to take their time, I know it's a pain in the ass and I'm sorry I'm taking up so much resources, but it's really okay and as long as the end result is good, I don't mind waiting.

At this point it's 1 in the afternoon.

I've been at the best buy for an hour.

The manager comes up after a while, telling me that it's physically impossible. And I'm going to have to use the 'express return' system, it's the only solution that their system is allowing them to process.

I start getting frustrated, which means I start crying because I am fighting the urge to begin yelling. I've now been here for over an hour, I was in the middle of handling the situation and I NEED the phone in order to process the banking issue this all started with so my dad doesn't get charged overdraft fees.

I explain I can't wait a week for a new phone and what am I supposed to do with the bloated phone?

they explain this process, and get snippy telling me "It's 2-3 days not a week" I tell them it's 2-3 BUSINESS days "well... yeah" "This is THURSDAY, at the earliest it'll process Friday then ship out on Monday, if I'm LUCKY it'll arrive on TUESDAY at the earliest, and maybe not until Thursday of next week! During that whole time my dad's account will have overdraft fees being applied to it for each day! We can't afford that! On top of that you want me to pay a 70$ deposit just to do this! We do not have that money right now"

I was told I could apply for and use the best buy credit card.

I asked for a phone number to call, that there HAD to be an alternative solution, I said I didn't want to take the fire hazard home with me.

By now they had REMOVED THE PHONE FROM THE BUCKET and were walking around with it after me, trying to get me to take the fucking compromised battery.

I tell them to put that thing back in the sand bucket. And they give me 'corporate's number' a 1877 number. I ask if that's the number to call to talk to a supervisor or manager because this is an exception to the policy if ever there was one. If anyone would have the directions for overriding this dead sku problem, it should be the store manager's area or district manager

I am told there is no area or district manager.

I am FLOORED, I realize I've not been around this system for a couple of years but that information just... baffles me. I ask who THEY call when they have a situation come up that can't be handled in store.

They tell me they call the 1877 number.

I am BAFFLED by this, but I call the 1877 number, the call id comes up as 'best buy express kiosk" and I groan because I recognize this as the trunk line call center. I brace for and prepare to handle this for an hour. I am still trying to be as professional as possible.

I have now been here for going on two hours.

I roll out into the entry way, they CHASE ME with the fucking firebomb of a phone and ask if I'm leaving. I look back at them holding this fucking bloated phone and say no I'm just trying to get out of everyone's way so I can call the number and would they PLEASE put that thing back again and leave it in the safe bucket!

I spend the better part of hour three struggling to get through these customer service techs, explaining the situation and begging for them to transfer me to a manager or supervisor. I'm being denied this at every turn until I get to "returns" and am told to ask THEM for a manager by a tech who seemed to understand the situation and why I was calling.

I'm transferred, the tech listens, agrees that I should NOT be handed a firebomb to go home with, and should not be expected to ship a bloated li-ion battery in the mail and that it should be an in store return with store credit. I ask her to please explain this to the manager and go to remove my headset and put her on speaker so the manager can hear it from corporate

the call disconnected

I break

I begin crying, as quietly as I can, and the manager goes 'well' and I explain the call disconnected... I have to get back to that point.. and roll back into the entry way to begin the process again.

I'm crying, I just need this to work.

I've been here for nearly three hours.

The new tech that answers refuses to confirm the account and begins insisting I give my personal number and email to him. Refusing to accept the account information.

He puts me on hold. I call the corporate number again, merge the calls, and he has me on a mute hold. I get another tech that sound like the same guy, who also eventually puts me on hold, and then disconnects the call.

I'm sobbing and breaking down at this point, I'm having a panic attack, and struggling to maintain any type of composure at this point. I tell them I'm going out to my car so I'm not causing a scene in their store and is the manager positive there is no other option. I need to be leaving with a working phone, or at least I do NOT need to be leaving with a fucking FIRE HAZARD that they are expecting me to ship in the mail it is ILLEGAL to ship compromised batteries in the mail.

this fucking manager looks me dead in the face and says I can purchase a new phone to use, and just bring it back after the 'express return' is finished, or I can just do the express return, but there is NO WAY at all physically for her to do the return, in any shape, form or fashion, that I will have to take the fire hazard phone with me and ship it to their facility when the new phone comes in the mail in five days or so

I say I do not feel comfortable holding onto a FIRE HAZARD for a week, much less being without the ability to do the banking and is best buy going to cover the overdraft fees I'll be incurring and what am I supposed to do with a fucking bloated phone that could explode?!

Her solution? "You can go to walmart and buy a bucket and sand and put it in there if you don't feel safe with it, I hear that sand is good for batteries like this"

I snap... I just.. break down and begin crying because at this point I've been here for three hours, I know what she's suggesting is absolutely wrong, she's lied to me about not having an area/district manager, and she's standing over me like some fucking goon while telling me to take a BOMB home and then send it in the federal post in a week!

I break down, I take the stupid fucking bomb, they make me factory reset the phone I had been working on previously, I take the sim card, and I ask again if there is ANYONE I can call to talk to that will help. Who do THEY call when there's a situation because there HAS to be SOMEONE. They insist that nope, there's ONLY the 1877 number to the call centre.

I'm bawling, I'm broken, and crying I'm having heart issues, my head is screaming, my face feels burnt, and I roll out to the car and put the chair away. While unpacking the chair I realize I had actually put a pack of switch thumbsticks in the cart because I had been hoping to buy them with the leftover store credit I'd have when they all thought it was going to be a store credit exchange.

With my legs SCREAMING in pain, and barely able to walk, I limp back in on my crutches, unintelligibly sobbing and return the nearly-pilfered item, then go back to the truck. St this point I've set the phone on my driver's seat, I begin working on possibly loading the chair back on the truck when there's a loud, gunshot-like POP noise

and for a brief, horrifying moment, I think the battery has just exploded in my truck. Only to realize the heat had actually boiled a bottle of soda, and THAT was what had just exploded.

I'm determined, angry, frustrated, pissed, and petty... I don't want this fucking bomb in my possession, I know for a goddamn fact I am not supposed to have this bomb in my possession, I know that if it goes off and causes damages that best buy will be liable for it, and frankly, while the payout might be nice the inconvenience of having to deal with the damage, replacement, insurance, lawyers, and court costs and investigation are too much for me to handle. I don't want to go through it I JUST want a phone that works, the bank situation to be fixed and to NOT HAVE A FUCKING BOMB IN MY POSSISSION

I begin calling the useless as fuck call centre again, and for the next three and a half hours (totaling seven now) I continually try to explain, repeat, get transferred, sobbing, crying and getting hung up on by asshole techs. and I'm losing more and more composure as it goes on.

I FINALLY get a tech who says 'it should be store credit' I said I need the instructions on how to do that because the manager is claiming to not know how to do it. and I beg her to talk to the manager. Success. I go back in side, clinging to this tiny spider thread of hope that they'll fix it.

the manager takes my phone, asks if she can step tot he side, I say yes, and she comes back and they're both just repeating that the only solution is for me to send this bomb in the mail

I tell them it's ILLEGAL to send it, it's literally a federal crime. It CANNOT be policy to do this. None of them will budge. None will do the override, they're INSISTING I have to wait for a phone to come in, and then send a BOMB in the mail. I tell them this is probably why we've had mail trucks catch fire if they're telling people to do this it's ILLEGAL

The fucking manager says 'it's not actively leaking, it's not smoking or how it SHOULD be legal to send it in the mail' I ask for the salary person she mentioned. I go tot the mobile guy I'd been talking to six hours ago. I ask HIM to get me the salary person. This woman comes over and stands over me, arms crossed, with them angrily standing in front of me, arms crossed, like they're trying to intimidate me out of the store for trying to run a scam.

they continue to tell me there's no other option that they wouldn't spend six hours to tell me know they'd help if they could that I'm going to have to use the mail system.

I ask the salary manager who they call. She says corporate. I say that is horseshit. She gets offended and I clarify. That if their new policies is to call the call center number they gave me that is a horse shit policy and THEY are in danger of running into DANGEROUS situations like this without a way of getting out or around it. Who do I call to complain about that policy then?

"You can complain but it won't do anything to change the answer"

"Who do I call?!"

They give me no answer.

I leave

after seven hours of fighting with them. I leave, in possession of a fire hazard, my head pounding, feeling sick, having now gone through MULTIPLE break downs, melt downs, and panic attacks over the past seven hours of being on site trying to get them to do the right things.

I go home and explain to my parents what happened, I unload the tiny amount of groceries I'd picked up (twenty bucks of emergency cash) and realize how much bullshit it is what had happened. So I begin calling the local investigative news stations to see if they want to look into this.

One of the news stations is VERY interested in the fact this store told me to buy a bucket of sand to put a dangerous fire/explosive into. They're interested that the store can't be called with inbound calls, that there's apparently no area or district manager to call, that the store sent me home with an explosive and told me to send it in the mail.

I send the store to the news station. I call other stations, they're not as interested. That's fine. I'm advised to call the attorney general of commerce and leave them the story. I do.

June 21 2024 - I still need to correct the banking situation so I determine to drive to the bank, make a physical deposit with some change I have on hand to bring the account high enough to accept the cash app deposit I tried to withdraw two days before. And while I am in the area of the credit union, I'll go to a different best buy, explain what happened, and see if they give me the same answer.

The bank was thankfully open two hours later than I though, giving me plenty of time. They accepted the deposit, and I was on my way, I get to the other Best Buy.

The battery has expanded again by this point. But still no leaks, smoke, or active heat but I don't trust it, and moving it is a bad idea. I take it inside, I explain what happened and this store is absolutely horrified of my story.

I show them receipts of what happened. I explain their responses, their 'solutions' and their suggestions. This store's crew is just locked in abject horror that this happened. I explain why the other store wouldn't do the store credit and they say 'let me call my manager' and I tell them about how the other store told me there was NO area or district manager.

They look confused "Well he's kind of a roaming district manager, but... yeah... we have... I have a lot to tell Abby."

I breathe a sigh of relief. I was right, there's an area manager, and a roaming district manager... I wasn't crazy I did remember correctly how their policies worked... I tell them about the 'we call corporate' situation and how I was on the phone for 7 hours thereabouts, being hung up on.. they all continue to look horrified... at this point they hit the same dead sku issue, and I lament a possible repeat. They said they were NOT going to let me have that bomb back, we were NOT going to be sending it through the mail (one even said 'Isn't that considered like.. terrorism?!" and I agreed I was pretty sure it was. ) they said I was leaving with a phone they just had to get 'Abby' to tell them how to bypass this... and she did. In like.. five minutes.

"Is store credit okay? It'll probably have to be store credit" "YES! That's perfect, it means I can just get the phone and a new plan..." They help me find a phone they have (Moto G 5g 2024 model) and even with a new plan, I had 33% of store credit left over!

They tell me that phone is NOT leaving the sand bucket, and there's a brief funny moment of one associate holding up the sim tray (they'd used it to confirm the IMEI and confirm it was the phone under warranty) and the tech laughing and holding this tiny piece of plastic "This is probably the least problematic part of the phone"

I agree... the situation was handled, and I tell them I DID report them to the AG, and the news stations, and one of the associates goes "I'm REALLY surprised that store did that... that's the main hub store of the district, and he's on vacation right now but Roy, the district manager... that's his HOME store... I don't know what they were thinking" and I go "Roy.... Roy.... Mister Roy? Kinda tall, brown/black hair? Used to be the General manager of that store? THAT Mister Roy is the district manager?" "Yeah! He was the general manager there for a while." "Yeah about three0four years ago, I've met him! He's the one who told me about the way the protection plans work"

They all agreed he was not going to be happy, and any new friends that store makes from my reports were justified, they were glad I raised hell about the battery because it would have been a disaster if it'd gone off, and "didn't they know how dangerous these batteries are" and "why the hell did they send you home with that?" and me agreeing it was insane and wrong and just... feeling better to know I wasn't crazy in the way I knew the world was SUPPOSED to work.

So in the end - the banking situation was handled, I was able to get a new working phone for my dad, that did indeed transfer all information, contacts, images and everything over (for as evil as it's become, google synching system and account connections are INCREDIBLE for this exact situation) and I had enough money left over to get the switch thumbsticks I'd wanted to get from the other store... I still have some money left over. and they were cheaper than my local store.

the news station hasn't gotten back to me yet, but they may not until Monday at the earliest, but the situation is done at least, (largely) and the end was a good one.

and that concludes the epic saga of "Asrya and the exploding battery - and the store manager that wanted her to commit an act of domestic terrorism"

[chelsea-katz]

HAPPIESTPLACEHQ TASK 8 - ALTERNATE UNIVERSE

  ... You wanna know what the papers won't tell ya?

Well, what can I say? When a good-lookin' dame like that walks into your office, asking for your help, who am I to refuse? Not like the official investigation was goin' anywhere, poor thing. It seemed nobody cared about a missing child, not when it was a kid from the streets. Me, I've always prided myself in caring about everyone, and makin' sure such injustices get their spot in the light. The kid who disappeared was a friend of hers, she told me. A lounge singer, she was. The kid was a paper boy, so I had seen him here and there a couple times... And he ended up bein' in the wrong place, at the wrong time. There might be somethin' he heard that he shouldn't have. Somethin' about the mayor being implicated on some big deal with his mysterious benefactors. The three Bs, I call 'em. The top dog at the local casino, where people went to empty their pockets and their bank accounts; the head honcho of our most frequented waterin' hole, where my singer friend charmed the crowds; and the enigmatic heavy hitter businessman, our mayor's largest contributor, who had his sticky fingers all over town. The usual suspects, see. Now, I'm no big-shot PI, but I am a reporter, and I take my job very seriously, as you know. So I went snoopin' around, as I do. And whad'ya know, there's a whole lotta secrets going 'round here! What a surprise, right? And my hunch, of course, was right on the dot. What I wasn't quite expectin' was how protective these folks would be of their secrets. But when there's money and power involved... I don't mind the occasional tiff 'n scuffle, of course, I'm used to it. For whatever reason, people don't like me stickin' my nose all in their business. But I do take issue when people's lives are on the line. With an ongoing string of strange random murders, that I knew I could link to these three Bs's associates in the underworld... I was deathly worried about my singer friend and the kid! So just imagine my surprise when it turned out the singer had been blackmailed into helpin' these crooks catch me, paint me as a drunk and a phony, and as if that wasn't enough, destroy all my investigation... That, I can only take that personally.

[anything-viva]

sorry i just need to rant about this bc i've fucking had it. here's the big lies she's told me off the top of my head, kinda tmi but idc.

like she said she got pneumonia when she was nine and her parents refused to take her to the hospital, nearly killing her. funny thing, whenever i complained abt my cramps she'd bring up how hers used to put her in the hospital. (way to center the conversation on yourself, btw!) she wouldn't be old enough to drive when she first started getting them, so who took her to the hospital? i went to school with her, i live five minutes away from her, never saw ambulances that often! curious!

that's also part of the reason why i didn't get my shit checked out for so long! "oh, it's not as bad as rachel's so it's no big deal. i should just shut up and bear it." i can hardly stand up for ten minutes without pain now. THANKS! I CAME TO MY BEST FRIEND FOR ADVICE AND YOU LIED TO ME <3

btw her periods aren't even that bad. she gave me the thinnest fucking pad that would hardly last me three hours on a bad day like that. SHE CLAIMED IT WOULD LAST TWELVE! FUCKING LMAO! she didn't belive me when i laughed and told her it wouldn't last. if your parents refused to take you to the hospital when you nearly died, why would they take you if your periods are that light? like if your outer signs are so minimal, they wouldn't take you!!

said her dad took the lock off her door and creeped on her. HER DOOR HAS A LOCK, THERE IS NO DAMAGE ON THE DOOR!!! also the way she described it sounded exactly like an anime trope. shes a MASSIVE weeb, so i think she got it from some shitty anime she saw.

she said she's saving up to move out of her abusive household yet she splurges money like crazy. her room is full of anime figurines and unused wiccan shit. i really don't think she's actually a wiccan, she would've used those candles but they showed NO signs of use! as soon as we get together she starts talking abt buying lingerie and stuff from spencer's. aren't you saving up???

she says she can hear demons when her ears start ringing- babe, you have tinnitus.

and the constant constant "how do you think i feel?" she says i can tell her anything, but whenever i complain it's almost always "hOw Do YoU tHiNk I fEel" unless im on the verge of a fucking breakdown

said to my face "i haven't gotten fast food in months!" I WAS IN THE CAR WITH HER WHEN SHE GOT THEM? LIKE LMFAO? i wouldn't really care how she eats, but the audacity to lie to my face about something I SAW?!

she lies about getting commissions CONSTANTLY. made some fucking ridiculous lie up abt getting a comm from some rich lady who owns property at the tip of florida, supposedly over 100 manatees live there! No the fuck they don't!!!!!!! do you think i'm stupid?!

most recent example happened tonight. she hung up some of her paintings today at the gallery and claimed afterwards she got two offers on them? no the fuck she didn't, they were some of her worst paintings. i was there most of the time, i likely would've heard it!

i think that last bit is bc i got more attention than her. we were seated at the same booth. i talked a LOT to the people who were interested in my art because i can hold a conversation!

that's why she started making up shit abt commissions and getting jumped. OH MY FUCKIGN GOD

SHES BEEN DOING THIS AS LONG AS IVE KNOWN HER AND I ONLY JUST REALIZED

EDIT I FORGOT ABT THAT ONE TIME THIS SUMMER SHE SAID HER DAD TOOK A THIUSAND DOLLARS FROM HER BANK ACCOUNT. GOOD GOD I FORGOT ABT THAT. MY MOM AND BROTHER WERE THERE.

[anotherdayforchaosfay]

I'm Disabled.

Before applying for the federal program SSDI, we married. This was to prevent losing the life-saving insurance I needed. At that point, I was still on my parents' insurance, but would soon age out of being able to use it.

After we married, I applied for SSDI, which takes about two years. Everyone is denied by default, so I was prepared with an SSDI lawyer (they only take the case if they know they can win, and their payment is a very small portion of your backpay; my lawyer was paid just 15% of my backpay)backpack. When the rejection letter arrived, I immediately went to her for help.

I inquired about the state program SSI. She told me I didn't qualify because I'm married. I applied anyway, because I ad nothing to lose. Here's what the person at the SSI office told me I would have to do before I could apply:

I need to divorce my husband.

I need to live alone. We could not be living together because this would be seen as us basically being married.

I need to have less than $2k to my name at all times.

I cannot work.

I cannot live with my parents because their income would count against me.

I cannot own expensive things that could be sold for money.

If I was approved, I would have to continue following these rules with a few additions.

I cannot receive gifts of money.

I must have a bank account, and they would monitor it to make sure I never went even a single cent over $2000.

I cannot have a savings account.

I cannot have a safety deposit box.

I would have to continue living alone.

They can stop by my home at anytime to inspect how I'm living. They could talk to my neighbors to see if I had anyone who visited and helped me as more than just a friend. This means I could not have my former husband turned boyfriend stay overnight, and he cannot be perceived as taking care of me.

I cannot have anyone help me financially. This means no one else can pay my bills. If I cannot afford those bills on my own, I would have to apply for programs that would. Most of those have long waiting lists, like section 8 housing (we had applied for section 8 housing in 2008, and three years ago I received an email telling me we qualified. They had only the information we gave them in 2008, and have since moved across the country).

My SSDI, if approved, would count against me financially.

The most money I would receive from SSI, if I did everything they demanded and was approved, was $618/month.

This is enforced poverty. It's also the onky way may of those Disabled would be able to receive the medical care that keeps them alive, like Medicaid. My seizure medication used to cost nearly $2k/month. My neurologist gave me free samples of it every month and helped me apply for free medication through the manufacturer's financial aid program (you should too if you can't afford your medication). I was receiving medical care through the hospital's financial aid program when I married and lost my parents' insurance coverage.

I refused to do as SSI demanded. My SSDI lawyer was, in fact, relieved when I told her I'm married. Why? Because marrying afterwards would have caused serious and life-threatening complications. She encourages everyone who applies for SSDI to marry if it's possible a ble for them to do so. Because of her, I was approved for other programs, things I didn't even know existed, but for two years, it was Hell-on-Earth. I couldn't work because it would count against me. At that time, rent was $650, but my husband was making federal minimum wage, worked full time, and his employer kept changing his schedule, which made it impossible to apply for a second job.

I know many who are on SSI and need it in order to remain alive. One of my friends nearly fell out if the program because a nosy neighbor saw her and her boyfriend cuddling in her couch watching a movie. They assumed he was secretly living with her. Said neighbor was frequently seen just outside my friend's windows, watching her. When she met my lawyer after getting the automatic SSDI rejection, she married, got into the programs I had been in, and filed a restraining order against her neighbor because my lawyer absolutely insisted on it. The bitch violated the terms three times and was put in prison for six months. She's now on SSDI, married, and much happier.

Marriage equality does not exist until the Disabled can marry without losing everything.

[fireflies-owl-city]

Dead Inside Part 3: Haunted by Memories

An Epic the Musical: The Final Man to Die AU fanfic

After eight years of running, a single miscalculation on Mel’s part forces her to reconnect with her past. As terrified as she is, she knows that unfortunately, there’s no workaround this time. Scared to have to jump into this alone, she begs her new friend to come with her back to Canada, but as to be expected, he stubbornly refuses. However, Mel is just as stubborn as Odysseus, even more so in such a desperate state, and she’s gonna do whatever she can to convince her new friend to come with her and provide the support she needs.

TW: mentions of SH and suicide. Also a lot of swearing

The Final Man to Die AU is owned by @bigidiotenergytm!

“I need to make a call...”

Standing up, Mel scrolled through her contacts, then clicked on one name

Lottie Torres

Lifting her phone to her ear, she waited for her cousin to pick up, but instead of hearing her cousin’s voice, Mel heard something she wished she didn’t have to hear.

“We’re sorry, but the person you are trying to reach does not have access to international talk or text, so your call did not go through. Please try again once you are in the same as your contact.”

Fuck.

“Mel, are you okay?” Odysseus asked again, leaning forward to get a better look at her.

“Yeah, everything is fine, it’s just…” Mel paused, “The person I need to call doesn’t have an international phone plan so I can’t reach her, and the only other person I can think of to help is someone I never wanted to talk to again.”

“What happened?” Odysseus asked, standing up to face her.

“Ohhh, this is really embarrassing…” Mel groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose, “I… wasn’t planning on staying here very long, at least not as long as I have, and I’m… kinda out of money. All I’ve got left is this month’s rent in a small bank account I opened when I got here, and that just got withdrawn.”

“Wait, I thought you had to get a job to be able to stay here.” Odysseus responded.

“I mean yeah,” Mel clarified, “but I can either work or go to school to be able to get a visa and I decided to go the school route this time… I’m taking classes online at a school I managed to get a scholarship for and my stupid ass miscalculated what kind of money I’d need to stay here. Like I said, I wasn’t expecting to stay here so long, but I should’ve at least transferred enough money to this account to get me through an extra year.”

“Why the hell wouldn’t you tell me this?!” Odysseus snapped

“Because it isn’t really relevant,” Mel replied, “you’re just a close friend, and you’ve been fussing over me not drinking enough water and not eating very often, so I knew you’d freak if I told you I was running out of money. Besides, my cousin and I have a joint account back in Canada and I can just ask her to transfer money from that account to my current account. I’d love to do it here, but the bank’ll just assume it’s fraud or identity theft or whatever.”

“But you can’t reach your cousin, “Odysseus emphasized, “how are you supposed to tell her that you need money?”

“I… have a friend.” Mel started, her voice strained, “well, had a friend, Jordan. He’s got an international phone plan so I’ll be able to reach him and he’s got my cousins number.”

“But…?”

“But he’s obsessed with the idea of me reconnecting with my family!” Mel revealed, “He’s actually got a good relationship with his family, and since I try not to tell anyone just how terrible my family- especially my parents- he thinks that our messed up relationship is just a result of typical teenage angst and rebellion and that now that I’ve grown up we can reconnect and fix our relationship! I’ve told him time and time again that my parents did really traumatizing shit to me throughout my life and that there’s a reason I ran off, but I swear, I feel like I’ve gotta tell him the whole story for him to finally back off, no matter if it messes him up or not!”

“Well, it seems like this guy’s your best bet at getting what you need.” Odysseus stated, looking at Mel with slight pity, “besides, maybe he’s mellowed out in the past few years and he’ll finally listen to you.”

Sighing, Mel nodded.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re probably right.” She admitted, looking down at her phone in dread, “At least I hope you are.”

Taking a deep, shaky breath, Mel scrolled through her contacts and clicked a name she wished she would never have to see again.

Jordan Belle

As it rang, Mel tensed up, putting the phone up to her ear and half praying to whoever was up there that he wouldn’t pick up.

“Hello? Mel? Is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me…” Mel confirmed through gritted teeth, “I kinda need your help.”

“Of course!” Jordan chirped, “Anything for my best friend!”

“First of all, we’re not best friends anymore. Honestly, I’m not even sure I view you as a friend-friend anymore,” Mel corrected, “anyway… do you still have Charlotte’s number in your phone?”

“Charlotte? It’s been a while since you called her by that name,” Jordan remarked, “and of course! Whaddya need her for?”

“I need her to go to the bank, access our joint account, and transfer some the money to me. The bank will have hers and my names on file, and she’ll be able to access the account. Tell her I’m currently in Greece, she will know what to do.”

“Or…” Jordan started, “you could come here and do the transaction yourself! I’ll pay for the flight and everything! It’ll be fun to have you around!”

“Not fucking happening.” Mel replied, plain and simple.

“C’mon Melody! It’d be way easier if you just withdraw the money yourself, go back to Greece, and put the money into your bank account there! None of this ‘trying to transfer stuff internationally’ junk!”

“By that logic, Lottie could just do the withdrawal herself and fly out here!” Mel snapped, “And do. Not. Call. Me. That.” She demanded through gritted teeth.

“Cmon, pleeeeeeease?” Jordan begged, “Y’know, Jackie’s gonna be here, I’m sure she’d love to see you again~”

“Don’t you dare use her as emotional blackmail!” Mel shouted, “unlike you, she actually respects my wishes to stay the hell away from Canada!”

“Look, we all miss you and this could be a great opportunity to reconnect with everyone, especially your family.” Jordan urged, “just lemme know when you want me to book the tickets for and I’ll get everything situated. Kay byeeeee!”

And with that, he hung up.

“God DAMNIT!” Mel screamed, throwing her phone into the ground so hard that it ended up getting lodged in the sand. “That selfish prick!”

Odysseus looked at Mel in shock, seeing the way she was clearly in distress. She was breathing heavily, her teeth were gritted, and her tearful eyes were a bright shade of red, just like his.

“What the hell happened?”

“My idiot friend decided that I should just go back to Canada and do all the transaction-y shit myself!” Mel shouted, waving her hands and grinning in a way that was borderline creepy, “I ask him to do one thing, contact one person, and he pulls this!”

“Well, I mean, this could be good for you.” Odysseus suggested.

“How?” Mel demanded, “how could not being listened to be a good thing for me?”

“Mel, I told you, you need to stop running from your past. Whatever horrible shit happened to you is just gonna haunt you until you get some kind of closure.” Odysseus urged, lifting his hand to place it on Mel’s shoulder. However, Mel just batted it away and glared.

“Yeah, well if I need to stop running from my past then you need to take a break from constantly facing yours, Ody.” Mel retorted, her teeth and jaw clenched, “it’s messing with your head.”

“If anyone is a mess in the head, it’s you.” Odysseus growled, “you barely eat, you barely sleep, you barely drink water, and no, coffee and granola bars do not count.”

“Yeah, of course I barely sleep ‘cause I get night terrors!” Mel revealed, a look of betrayal on her face, “and you act like you’re so high and mighty, but you’re worse than me! You don’t eat unless I bring snacks, you don’t drink water unless I bring water for the both of us, and judging by how miserable and deadpan you look, I highly doubt you’re getting more than an hour of sleep a night.”

The two of them glared at each other, then Mel let out a frustrated sigh.

“If I’m going to go to Canada, I need you to come with me.” Mel muttered, crossing her arms and making intense eye contact.

“You and I both know I can’t do that.” Odysseus grumbled.

“Ody, please,” Mel pleaded, “I know you don’t want to leave Ithaca but neither do I.” Biting her lip to hold back her tears, Mel added, “I need you.”

“Mel, I’m sorry,” Odysseus replied, looking at Mel with pity, “my answer is no.”

Over the next several days, Odysseus saw Mel’s mood shift. Her usually tied-back hair was now constantly down and in her face, her hood was always up, she started wearing thicker and darker clothes, and her eyes were still that same vibrant red they were when she called her so-called friend.

She looked just like him.

Their meetups were very different as well. Mel still came and brought snacks and water, but she refused to eat or drink anything , and she barely spoke, just stared off into space with her knees clutched to her chest. Odysseus sometimes even saw tears in Mel’s eyes, but she never cried, just bit her lip and squinted her eyes.

Then, it happened.

One day, Odysseus waited on the beach for Mel, deciding to try and apologize for his refusal to follow her and try to reach some kind of agreement. He wanted to help her, but he couldn’t just abandon his home! He was here to protect Ithaca, just like he had done for millennia, and he wasn’t going to throw that all away for one traumatized girl, regardless of whether they were friends or not. However, as hours passed, Mel never showed up. At first Odysseus assumed she was just sick or finally taking his advice and sleeping in, but then, he remembered something Mel had admitted to him that made his blood run cold.

“I don’t plan on being alive for too much longer, but I’ve still been looking for a place to settle down that’s far, far away from my birthplace.”

Standing up, Odysseus bolted in the direction of Mel’s apartment. Adrenaline coursed through his veins as overwhelming panic set in, and he prayed that his assumption was wrong. Mel had said that she wanted to settle down before dying, and she had said to his face that she had decided to settle down in Ithaca. She didn’t look sick or injured, outside of her clearly fucked up mental state, so the only other way he could think of that she could possibly die was suicide. He couldn’t let that happen, he couldn’t lose her too! He had already lost so much in the time that he was alive, he was not losing the one friend he had made in centuries.

Reaching Mel’s apartment, he pounded on the door frantically while screaming her name. Then, Mel opened the door, earning a sigh of relief from Odysseus.

“Hey Ody…” Mel mumbled, looking at him with tired eyes. She was wrapped in a thick blanket, her eyes sunken in and paired with circles dark enough to look like she was cosplaying a raccoon. Her skin was pale, she was slouching forward, and overall, she just looked tired. However, Odysseus didn’t care. He was just glad his friend was alive.

Odysseus wrapped Mel in a tight hug, breathing heavily from a mix of being out of breath and holding back tears. “Please, never do that again,” he begged, “You scared the shit outta me, Mel.”

Mel was confused, so once Odysseus finally let go of her, she stepped aside and gestured for him to enter her apartment.

“What were you so worried about?” Mel asked, shutting the door.

“I thought you were going to kill yourself!” Odysseus exclaimed, “you were saying that you weren’t gonna be alive for much longer once you settled down and now that you’ve decided that you’re going to settle down here, I thought you were done for!”

“Oh, hell no!” Mel exclaimed, “Yeah, I’m gonna kill myself eventually, but that’s not gonna be for a while! I hate being alive, but I hate the idea of my parents outliving me and showing up to my funeral even more.”

Odysseus sighed. “I guess that’s one thing we have in common…”

“What, that you hate being alive?”

Odysseus nodded.

“Look, I’m sorry for being such a bitch,” Mel confessed, “I just… I am terrified, Ody. You’re right, I am running from my past, and it’s probably not healthy, but I’m doing it because I’m trying to survive.”

“No, you have nothing to apologize for,” Odysseus admitted, his tone firm, “I’ve been a hypocrite. I’ve been trying to force you to do something outside of your comfort zone but then lashing out when you do the same.” Sighing, he asked, “What’s the plan if you go to Canada?”

Mel shifted uncomfortably, fidgeting with her hands. “Well, obviously, going there and getting out as soon as possible, but while I’m there… I have to access my bank account that I have with my cousin, withdraw a bunch of money- I don’t even know how much- go to some currency exchange place to trade it in for Euros, and then get on the next flight back to Greece. Why?”

Odysseus bit his lip and clenched his fists, squeezing his eyes shut as he mentally prepared himself to speak.

“I’m coming with you.”

“What?!” Mel screeched, stepping back in shock, “But I thought you said-”

“Yeah, I said that I wasn’t going to leave Ithaca. I know,” Odysseus confirmed, “I haven’t left in years, and I don’t exactly like the idea of leaving, but you mean a lot to me, so if you’re going to leave your comfort zone and face your past, the least I could do is step out of my own comfort zone and take a break from facing mine.”

“But what about protecting Ithaca?”

“Ithaca can protect itself, at least until we return.”

Tears welled in Mel’s eyes, and soon, she found herself collapsed in Odysseus’s arms, sobbing. “Thank you… thank you so much… I can’t do this without you…”

“Go call your friend, tell him we’re coming.” Odysseus ordered, offering a small grin.

Mel gave Odysseus a teary-eyed smile and nodded, walking over to her dresser to grab her phone. Dialing Jordan’s number, she lifted the phone up to her ear, waiting for her friend to pick up.

“Mel, hey! You ready to come visit?” Jordan asked.

Glancing back at Odysseus, Mel nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be there. I’ll be bringing a friend too.”

“Wonderful!”

Taglist: @bigidiotenergytm

[forestryfae]

my bitch mom who decided i needed a legal guardian (her, specifically) at 16 because iw as too mentally ill to take care of myself so she put me in an apartment all alone when i should have been in a mental health institution of some kind didnt teach me shit about finances and economics and money beyond how to pay my rent and bills and check my taxes myself despite that literally being her job refused to tell me how much money i actually had in my accounts just spent it all on whatever bullshit they needed to do renovation projects on my house despite only doing one project a year in late summer if they felt like it berated me because i wasnt at home doing anything to help them with the renovations after having told me to stay at inpatient and not come home because they were doing renovations

and upon learning that i was getting a new legal guardian she pulled ALL support from under my feet, refused to do any more renovations or finish anything theyd started, stating that she wasnt gonna help with anything unless she was my legal guardian because it was "way too hard to have to go to both of us to ask for money for renovations"

and didnt help at all with the sale of the house btw

is now saying "can you ask your dad to be kausjonist" kausjonist being that if i cant pay the bank money for the loan i got they can take money from her. which she agreed upon when i was allowed to buy the house while i was depressed and dissassociated

"can you ask your dad to be kausjonist" no i can not im not talking to that leech and even if i did hes too much of an irresponsible asshole to ever do that.

"we also need to sit down and look at the sale and loan, its a lot that youre paying a third of the salesprice" first of all she was there during the meeting between the bank, me and my legal guardian, and her. she was explained that the realtor did a lot of work for free. i also had people clear out my house, photos taken, listings, showings, the realtor did a fuckton of work and so did my legal guardian, and most of it was for free. i might be paying a lot but im not paying more than i should. im actually paying less than the work is worth.

secondly, she has no right and quite an offensive amount of audacity to even show up in my texts demanding this. not even asking, just demanding. she hasnt called, hasnt asked, hasnt been at all interested while i had my new guardian and she straight up said she didnt want to help me with the house anymore if shes not my legal guardian and said she wont be kausjonist unless i have a legal guardian, which is a bold fucking statement to make right to my face thanks, she has no right and i dont have to do ANYTHING she says

so now im just sitting here fucking enraged yet somehow numb to it, lowkey wanted to cry for a bit, shes financially fucking me over again and demanding control over a part of my life she cant be trusted to oversee at all based on her previous actions

like im gonna have to call my legal guardian and inform him of this shit cus he needs to know it too and he needs to know she doesnt have a right to anything that isnt relevant to her, but in the meantime i need to brush my teeth and take my meds and eat soemthing so i dont crash out while folding some laundry to calm down enough to be a person around other humans and not just a ball of rage

[nsfwmiamiart]

Incoming Text for @penelopecruzoficial and @salmahayek : This message can save lives. Zoe & Rosario are treacherous because these two women are suffering from jealousy. Trust me, you don't want to take any chances with a jealous woman. Their bank accounts are empty, so guess what they'll do next? They will try to ruin the whole party because they are poor and we are rich now. You are friends with her, but that friendship is out the door when you don't help her economically. They expect us to fill their bank accounts with money, and if we refuse, they will plot against us. It's time to cut off the head of the snake before they burn the house down. It is your duty to warn @MarcAnthony and tell him to make sure they don't get into the inner circle of Christina Santini (@santinihoudini). We must protect our princess at all costs. Never forget that Christina is like your daughter now, and it is your duty to make sure she is safe and to clean up her circle from treacherous people like Zoe & Rosario. I write a lot of jokes and skits to make my audience laugh, but you've read my comedy skits—the truth is in there. You know what they are capable of doing to us. They are on the phone with all sorts of Hollywood criminals, and it's time to cut your losses. Don't be mean to her; be kind. I'm not encouraging you to break their hearts—no, on the contrary. I'm just saying that they should never get access to Christina Santini because she is the source of the wealth. Christina is the daughter of Salma, Penelope, and Marc Anthony. You are responsible for her safety. When she is safe, your money is safe. Do you understand?

[devious-dickhead]

My four big joys for 2024

- having a job to save money for next year

- having my licence to gain independence

- having a boyfriend and making him a part of my life

- graduating

So far nonenof these are going well. I lost my job and haven't found another one yet, my bank accounts slowly running dry and I can't find another one because i don't have a licence. I still don't have my PS even though I'm nearly 18, i have to rely on other people to get me around and I'm constantly at theercy of the driver. My mother hates my boyfriend, i can't talk about him without her making me feel miserable, and I'm constantly made to feel guilty for picking him over my family. And they all refuse to acknowledge that we've been gothwr nearly a year and it's not a middle school relationship, I'm planning to spend my life with him and intertwine our lives . And yet that's never going to happen is it, because how can you intertwine your lives when you're not allowed to even say their name.

All that i have left is graduation, and quite frankly I'm not setting my hopes high, i just want to get it over and done with, i want the dissapointmwnt of my ATAR and uni applications over and the embarrassment of the graduation fanfare been and gone. I want this year over and yet I'm still so scared for it to end. Because all of these issues will still exist next year, but I'll just have more time to dwell on them, and all of them are my issues, but they're so out of my controll.

I need to get my driving hours up, but i need somebody to take me driving, and nobody wants to. I need a job, but I need somebody to employ me, and nobody wants to. I need my mum to reconsider him, but she dosent want to, and nobody's can make her.

I need to graduate, but I'm scared to take that step, and everybody's telling me to trust it.

3/4 of my big joys are making me miserable, no doubt in 4 months time it will be 4/4.

[lucasdonovan]

"Don't worry, the last thing I need is to bring your wrath onto myself." Lucas grinned teasingly. He could never imagine Carrie angry, she didn't seem to have that bone in her body, but he didn't want to upset her nevertheless. He cared for her, and he cared for the little boy attached to him by his side, and the last thing he wanted was to disappoint either one of them. However, he did like teasing Carrie, because it was easy and it was fun, and she seemed to like to do that too. Seeing her blush made him grin, and while he probably should have paused and questioned it, Lucas was simply far too distracted. "I don't know, it's nice to be reminded that sometimes." He joked along. "So if I ever forget to tell you that you look good or that outfit suits you well, you get my blessing to kick me in the shin."

"I've missed you too! And you never know when I might go away again, and I'd hate to miss out on the chance of getting to hang out with you again." It was just like Lucas, to wake up one morning, pack up a bag and go on another journey. It was difficult to remain in one spot, and while he stuck to his roots, refusing to even buy a house that would symbolize the wealth he was earning from all of this, nothing else really mattered. He could buy a cheap car tomorrow and decide to drive across South America just because it sounded like fun. "Why? Don't tell me you're already feeling too old for the hard liquors?" Lucas couldn't help but tease Carrie a little bit. He was always quick to do that, and he equally expected her to tease him back. So when she attempted to discipline Hindley in the nicest way possible, it still brought a smile to his face, and it took everything in Lucas not to burst into laughter. "I can't help it! Both of you are so adorable, how am I supposed to be so serious about it? Maybe he was trying to be gentle, I'm just too weak to be able to handle it properly." He couldn't help but smile once more, taking Hindley's hand to distract the boy long enough for him to focus on something else - especially on the food Carrie had brought him. "He'll know that I can make his mom laugh? I don't know, I think that just gives me extra points in his eyes, and I'll take the little dude's approval any day."

The topic was quick to shift onto a serious one, and Lucas allowed Carrie to express herself, and explain what she really wanted. It was heartwarming, really, to hear her plan, and he could see why she would want something like that. If he was in her place, he'd probably wish for the exact same thing. "You know I can help, right?" He knew the immediate answer would most likely be a 'no', but Lucas genuinely wanted to help Carrie. She had helped him so much when they were growing up, she'd done so much, and he always wanted to repay her for that. "I've got the money, and more often than not, I don't know what to do with it. So rather than having it go down the value while it's in my bank account, I could use it for something good."

“Thank goodness yes, he still buys into them. For now, so you better watch your mouth.” Carrie teased, no malice in it because, well how could there be? Lucas could probably scream expletives in Caroline’s face and she’d probably just apologise asking what she could do to make him feel okay again. The girl was far more interested in making sure he was smiling than she was. Although at the mention of the compliment being repeated she blushed a dark red up her neck and cheeks. “I…well yes, I do. I’ve always thought you’re handsome you know that.” Mumbling at the end she tucked some hair behind her ear, turning to start clearing up a empty glass that had held her water from a while back, needing something to do so she didn’t have to look directly at him. His attention shifted, he was looking at Hindley again, but the thought had lingered a lot longer with Carrie clearly. 

“Okay great, that’s awesome. I’m glad we get to spend some more time together! I’ve missed you.” The blonde admitted, not that it was a secret, had she not just turned into a human beetroot in front of him she might find it easier to say it now. “Just so you know I’m not going to be on the vodka though, maybe a nice glass of wine, or two.” Hard liquor was something she’d tried to avoid a little more since that night with Gavin since it was clearly something she had no ability to hold. Having another set of hands for bath time, the bedtime routine, well that would be an added bonus for the young mother, plus Hindley would absolutely love the older man being around for longer. “Hey, hey little man, come on.” Hurrying forward she gently moved his hand away from Lucas’ mouth, but firmly, giving him a look. “We don’t do that do we? We use gentle touches.” Unable to stop herself laughing at the overdramatic reaction Lucas went with even if it was sarcastic and she was meant to be being serious to discipline her son. “Stop it, you’re going to make me laugh, he’ll know…” Glancing at Lucas before having to look away so she could suppress yet another peal of giggles. 

The topic of where she was going to live wasn’t funny though, not to Carrie, or Lucas it seemed. The anxiety she got when she thought of moving him back into the apartments was monumental but she also didn’t want to overstay their welcome at Gavin’s. “I can’t afford that.” She admitted, swallowing with a little shame, averting her eyes. “Having a kid is really not cheap, people are right about that, so I need to save a bit more before I’m able to buy anywhere. Especially with a yard. It sounds stupid but I was planning on saving until I could buy the house I used to live in with mom but…well it was always a long shot anyway.”