#oh I also organized my shelf in the kitchen which was very fulfilling

[boomerang109]

i have genuinely been very productive today and that’s a very big deal for me!

i have not, however, packed or cleaned out the fridge or finished the dishes. and i leave for the airport in 13 hours. i need to do those things

[letsbenditlikebennett]

Trust and Understanding || Ariana & Orion

TIMING: Saturday (10/31) Afternoon PARTIES: @3starsquinn & @letsbenditlikebennett SUMMARY: After Rio saves the day during the full moon, Ariana brings over entirely too much food as a thank you and explains what happened CONTENT: Mentions of domestic abuse

The morning after the first night of the full moon had left Ariana with a new sense of determination that had been rapidly fading as she resigned herself to her fate. With her promise fulfilled, she’d quickly discovered she was able to talk about everything which meant she was one step closer to making sure Lydia never hurt anyone again. A big part of why she was able to get out of the Common without killing anyone was Rio. She’d been seriously impressed with the way he stepped up and even delivered one hell of a punch. Her face was still throbbing despite the fact Athena had insisted she kept ice on it for far longer than was comfortable, but that didn’t take away from the fact he put his full force into that punch and saved Kaden. In light of this, she’d brought some homemade mac and cheese and some cheesecake that Athena had helped her make. She owed him a thank you and some sort of explanation though she knew he wouldn’t like their solution. She’d pulled into the driveway and carefully stacked Tupperware containers up. She gave the door a light kick as a knock and waited for Rio to answer.

It had been a long month. Orion felt like he was constantly tired. From too many near death experiences and too many actual deaths. But the worst by far had probably been the recent full moon. Ariana’s transformation had been too close of a call. They had come far too close to losing a life that night. Whether it was the innocent bystander, Rio or Kaden or even Ariana herself. None of their lives were expendable to Rio, but trying to figure out how to keep everyone safe had been near impossible without Kaden and a couple complete strokes of luck. Not to mention he hadn’t seen Ariana or talked to her since the incident. At least until he heard a car pulling into the driveway and leaned back in his desk chair to peer out of the window and spot Ariana walking towards the door. His heart raced immediately, and Rio jumped from his chair to pull a hoodie over top of his short sleeve shirt and jog down the steps, flinging the door open seconds after he heard the single knock against his door. Seeing her in person made his fingers flex on reflex and he was reminded that his knuckles were still sore from splitting them open while punching her. “Hey!” He tried, maybe a bit overenthusiastically, “You’re okay.” 

Ariana nodded as Rio spoke and the words seemed to resonate in her. She was okay. She was alive and ready to fight another day. Despite the dread, the full moon had been meant with this month, it still freed her in its way. There was no need to keep Lydia’s secrets anymore and this meant she stood a chance at making sure she never did this to anyone else ever again. It also meant she could give Rio the explanation he deserved. Though she had wanted nothing more than for him to leave her and Kaden be that night, he stayed. He stayed and he proved himself far tougher and smarter in the face of danger than she could have hoped. He was so good and was so concerned with making sure both she and Kaden lived to see another day. He was such a dear friend and if there wasn’t a whole stack of plastic containers in her arms, she’d want to hug him right then and there. “Thanks to you,” she said with a soft smile as she walked in the door, “You were kind of amazing, you know that?” She set a variety of contains down on the counter-- one with venison stew, one with turkey chili, and one with cheesecake that Athena had made. “So this is for you, there’s plenty to share with Winston and Ricky, too if you’d like. I figured-- You really came through for me and Kaden last night. I wanted to do something nice for you. Athena helped.” She leaned against the counter and with a small smirk added, “You can throw one hell of a punch. It was awesome.” There was a small swell of pride in her at seeing Rio come into his own more and more. 

Never one to accept compliments easily, Orion shrugged at Ariana’s compliments and began scratching at his neck nervously. “Nah. I mean, I was just lucky that I ended up there. Kaden’s the one that actually got you into the woods.” Rio had spent so long wanting a night like that to happen that now that it had, Rio didn’t exactly know how to process it. All he had wanted was to keep people safe. Trying to help organize the containers of food that Ariana had brought with her, Rio suddenly felt a tightening in his chest. He didn’t want to cry. That definitely hadn’t been on his to-do list today. “Wow. Thank you. And uh- thank my sister for me too, okay? Does she know about… whatever happened?” What would Athena think about Rio’s actions from the full moon? Would she be impressed at what he had done, or embarrassed? Up until Athena met Ariana, Rio knew exactly how Athena would have handled the situation. If Rio had suggested anything else, she would have berated him before finishing the job herself. Now… well now nothing seemed to make sense anymore. Of course, Ariana would remember the punch. “Oh my god,” Rio sighed, hiding his face in the palms of his hands and immediately blushing, “I can’t believe that I actually punched you. I’m so sorry!”

“It wasn’t just luck,” Ariana insisted, “I’m not sure where the smoke came from, but you were prepared and had an idea that worked. Give yourself some credit.” That preparation and quick thinking had been exactly what saved Kaden’s life. She would admit, it wasn’t something she quite thought Rio capable of before which was part of what made her so proud. She knew he hated what he was and there was something about seeing him come more into his own with what being a hunter could mean for him gave her hope in the midst of everything else. While Rio organized the food, she placed the cheesecake in the fridge and mused, “You could always thank her yourself. I know she’d love to hear from you.” She stood back up and took her place back leaning on the counter. She nodded, “She does. She knows everything. Even if she worries about you, I think she’s glad you were able to help without-- Well, you know.” There was no denying she was grateful for the same thing. That she lived to fight another day. That she got to come home to waffles in the morning and find that renewed sense of purpose that had been taken from her when the promise was first made. Rio had helped her gain some of that back. “Oh my god, don’t be sorry. One, it was awesome. Two, it’s not your fault I was promise bound to be out there in the first place.” 

“Smoke bomb.” Orion shrugged, answering the question that Ariana had not officially asked, “I read about them in one of my books. It’s like sensory overload for werewolves, effects sight, smell and hearing all at once.” The logic made sense, though Rio hadn’t been sure that he couldn’t actually get the thing to work in practice. The full moon had been a forced test run. One that had very luckily played out in the three’s favor. “But yeah, I mean… sure. I’ll try to cut myself some slack.” From the corner of his eye, he saw Ariana slide the cheesecake onto a shelf in the fridge. Athena had always enjoyed baking. One of the many hobbies that Athena had been encouraged to do, along with sports. It had always been a sullen reminder that she had been able to get away with whatever she wanted. She was the golden child after all. She could spend her time baking and playing soccer because it never affected her training. On the other hand, anything Rio tried to do in his spare time had been deemed a distraction. Not that any of that mattered anymore. “Yeah, I know I need to talk to her. I just don’t know what to say yet.” Rio had no intentions of getting too caught up in his family’s history. “I still can’t believe I actually just… punched you. Why was that the first idea that came into my head?” Clearly, he had been friends with people like Blanche, Ariana and Adam for far too long. Despite the guilt, he found himself laughing with Ariana until the mention of a promise binding made the mood more somber. “From that Fae you told me about? Why would they promise bind you to be at the commons?”

“Smoke bomb, that makes sense. It definitely worked. Had a very big wolfy what the fuck moment,” Ariana responded with a proud smile on her face. This was a far cry from the Rio who only a month or so ago spoke of how he hated himself because of what he was. He was growing and defining what being a hunter meant for him. It gave her hope that the world she wanted maybe wasn’t that far-fetched. Celeste wasn’t just some anomaly. Things could be better and it started with them. “That was very clever. I’m glad you’ve been reading up on that stuff. This is totally cheesy, but I’m proud of you. Learning to keep people safe while doing no harm, you’re making what you were born with your own.” The world was no doubt a better place with both of them in it and she had an amused grin on her face as she spoke that softened at the mention of needing time. “I get that. I do. Sometimes you just have to rip the bandaid off, though. Avoiding things doesn’t make them any easier. Either way, you’re both coming to the Friendsgiving I’m throwing.” It was her first holiday season without Celeste and the thought of spending it alone bummed her out entirely too much. Still, laughter rang through the kitchen as she gave Rio a nudge, “Because I turned Kaden into a werewolf chew toy. Punching me was an effective way to get me off of him. It saved his life and well-- It saved me, too. I don’t think I’d-- Kaden’s important to me. I’d be pretty fucking wrecked if I killed him.” For the moment, it was best no to delve into the details of Lydia too much. At least when it came to giving away her identity. She could tell him some of what happened though. She sighed, “Yeah, same fae. She’s kind of terrible. Really terrible actually. Like keeps humans to feed from in her basement and tortures them kind of terrible. I tried rescuing one of them, he was my friend. It didn’t--” Her gaze went down to her feet. There was still a small twinge of shame and guilt that came with speaking of how she failed Sammy. 

Admittedly, maybe Orion was a tiny bit proud of himself. That pride was overpowered by the feeling of embarrassment he felt from receiving any compliments from Ariana or Kaden. “Oh god. Stop making me blush, you can’t just tell me that you’re proud of me.” He wanted to hide his face behind something. He decided to just focus intently on reading the label of anything he could find in the kitchen. Was Ariana right? Was this how Rio was reclaiming his hunter heritage? The thought sounded idealistic. He had simply been able to help out this time. Even the weakest links get lucky every now again. Isn’t that what Rio had always been? The epitome of a hunter that was the weakest link? “Point taken.” Rio agreed with Ariana’s words about his sister. He just hadn’t quite decided what relationship he wanted to have with his sister, if he wanted one at all. He had no idea how Kaden and Ariana had ended up so close considering both of their opinions about the species of the other. Ariana wasn’t particularly anti-hunter. Athena, Rio and Celeste had been proof enough of that. But that didn’t mean she blindly trusted them. “Is that the friend of yours that… uh… y’know. You told me a few weeks ago that one of your friends died.” The thought bit at Rio’s chest and a pit formed in his stomach. Why would the Fae do something like that? “Why would they bind you to do that? What do they gain from it?”

Ariana simply shook her head. One of these days Rio was going to have to start believing her when she spoke positively of him. Maybe not today, but it wouldn’t stop her from continuing to try anyway. “I’m your friend. When you do an awesome thing that shows some personal growth, I’m going to be proud of you and I’m going to say it. I’d say take it or leave it, but you’re kind of stuck with me.” She stuck her tongue out playfully and began pulling out some pans to reheat some of the food. She’d used the kitchen here enough times to know exactly where everything was. It was funny how her whole life, she longed to be in one place and be able to call it home. Now that she’d found it, there were so many places here she got to call home. Before Rio had even moved in, Ricky and Winston had stressed she was always welcome here and she found it easy to be comfortable. It seemed since moving here, Rio did as well and it really showed in the way he carried himself, even if he still wasn’t the best at taking compliments. She put some chilli on the stovetop and decided she could drop the subject of Athena for now. There was only so long they could go without talking. Especially considering she’d always want them both there for important moments. She stirred it around in the pot and let out a sigh. Rio seemed so confused as to why Lydia would do something like that. There was no simple answer to that. “Yeah, it’s the same friend. His name was Sammy, but I always called him Ace. He-- I tried to save him from her. She didn’t like that, so I had to be punished, I guess. She doesn’t see humans as people, Rio. Which is totally fucked. I just don’t know how to come to terms with that. That she’ll keep hurting people. Collecting them in her basement and profiting off their work all while slowly killing them. I don’t think I can just let it go.” And she wouldn’t. Somehow, she didn’t think Rio wanted to be part of the solution to that. 

“Yeah. I’ve noticed. I can’t escape the compliments around you, clearly.” Orion faked a sigh, but the smile gave his joke away. There was a level of comfort that Rio felt around Ariana that he had troubles building with others. It was a short list, made up of her, Rio’s roommates and then others that were close to him like Blanche and even Connor. Talking to her just felt easy. Even as Ariana expertly navigated the kitchen, proving that she had probably cooked in here more than Rio had, it just felt natural as the two talked. He was glad to know that the full moon hadn’t changed anything of that. If someone had died that night, this conversation might have been much different. “I’m really sorry to hear that.” Rio couldn’t imagine that loss. Ariana how dangerous the Fae was and still tried to help her friend. Rio just wished she had been able to. “That’s… awful.” Rio hugged his arms around himself tightly and stared at the floor as he processed, “She wanted you to hurt somebody. Or get hurt in the process.” The process made Rio shutter, but so did the idea of purposefully hunting her down. “What do you even do about-” Rio cut himself off. It was a stupid question and he had known it. He swallowed hard and tried not to think too deeply about what was being implied. “She sounds dangerous. And strong. Stopping her doesn’t sound easy.”

“Nope,” Ariana retorted with a satisfied grin. There was something about being here that brought her a sense of ease, even in the midst of everything. Where Lydia left her feeling hopeless and like maybe her idea of trying to create some sort of middle ground could never happen, Rio gave her hope. He was so good. Purely and wholly, even more so than she was. It made her feel inclined to protect him, but as he was showing, maybe he didn’t need that. After all, he had been the one to show up and save the day. She owed him honesty though she knew he wouldn’t like what had to be done. There was no changing Lydia. No making her realize the error of her ways because she didn’t even see her hostages as people. “It is,” she said softly. There wasn’t any other way to put it and she occupied herself with watching the chilli as it began to simmer. No, she had to look at him. “She did. She wanted me to hurt people because she knew it would hurt me. Maybe she maybe even wanted me to see things her way or end up dead, I don’t really know. All I know is she’s cruel and dangerous and has no intention of being better.” Her features were a bit graver now as she answered him, “I don’t think you’re going to like the answer. I don’t like the answer, but Rio-- I tried. I tried to do this in a better way, I just.” She looked down at her hands in shame. She’d been so sure, but every so often, that doubt would creep in again. That doubt had to be squashed down or she’d risk getting Athena or Kaden killed. “It’s her or the people she hurts. As much as I hate it, I think maybe sometimes there isn’t a better way. The top priority will be getting the people she has locked up out safely which… We still need to come up with a plan.” She looked to him to gauge his reaction even though she wasn’t sure she’d like it. 

Orion didn’t even know how he was supposed to feel. He had spent most of his life absolutely sure that murder was unnecessary. That it was an evil as unforgivable as it was completely avoidable. There was always another option. Rio had seen it with his parents so many times growing up. Innocent people that didn’t deserve to die. The further that Rio got away from his parents, the closer he thought he would get to being a part of that reality he had wished so desperately for. It made it all the more ironic that his stance on it had slowly begun to shift and change the more time he spent away from his childhood home. Now, against everything in Rio’s mind screaming at him that there had to be another option, all he could bring himself to do was shake his head at Ariana and try to dismiss the worry that he knew she felt saying these things to him. “I get it.” He didn’t like the words anymore than she seemed to. For as much as this woman sounded like the same brand of evil that Rio had assigned to his parents, he still wished there were another alternative. But Rio knew these types were never served any real justice. He had seen it before. “I don’t like the answer. But I get it. If she keeps people locked up… well we’re going to have to get her away from them somehow.”

Neither of them liked this very much. Ariana knew she and Rio both wanted there to be a better way to handle these things. A kinder way. As it stood, for Lydia there simply wasn’t. There was no jail that could hold her for long. No way to force her to stop from doing what she was doing. There was no way in hell that she would promise to stop keeping humans as hostages. At the end of the day, it came down to Lydia or the people she held hostage. The answer seemed pretty clear when she looked at it like that. At least Rio could see where she was coming from and didn’t think she was bad. It seemed like they were both learning some things weren’t that black and white. “I’m not happy about the situation, but I’m glad you understand. If there was a better way, I’d be here for it.” If he had any brilliant ideas that would work, she’d love to hear them. As it stood, Lydia being out of the picture entirely was the only way to save her hostages. She absentmindedly turned the stove off and began putting chilli in some of the bowls with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese on top. A small task that took her away from some of the darker thoughts that threatened to spill into her head. She slid his bowl over to him and grabbed a seat at the table. “Yeah, I don’t like it either, but at the same time, I just can’t let those people keep being tortured. Not when I know and have the means to do something about it. We’re going to come up with a plan. Athena and Kaden are both helping because I’m clearly way out of here. In the meantime, if you have anything on fae promises in that library of yours, it would probably help with getting people out alive.” 

Not having all the right answers frustrated Orion. As much as he wanted to be the go to guy that had all the information in the world neatly organized and readily available to save the day. Once upon a time he thought he could be that for people with enough time devoted to the Scribrary. Yet, the longer he spent on these books the more complicated things seemed to get. He wished he had something else to give Ariana that could absolve them of the horrible things they had to do. He wished he could tell he had some grand idea to stop the Fae from hurting others peacefully. But knowledge only helped so much. Some people were just monsters, as much as Rio wanted to deny it. “Hmmm” Rio pondered as he began fixed his own bowl and joined Ariana at the table, “Fae aren’t my specialty. But I know that breaking a fae promise comes with extreme consequences. The more serious the promise, the more dangerous it is to break. Unless the fae absolves you from that promise.” Definitely not the words she probably wanted to hear, but as much as RIo would wrack his brain, no miracle deus ex machina plan would take shape. “I can look more. Maybe for now we can just take a break and try to enjoy the fact that we’re both alive and well enough to eat this chili.”

Even though Ariana was sure what had to be done, it didn’t make her feel any better about it. Getting rid of Lydia wouldn’t magically bring Sammy back somehow, but it was bigger than that. In a way, this was still for him, but it was also for everyone else Lydia hurt. For all the people she was still hurting now. It gave her the resolve she needed and she simply said, “Yeah, I guess we’ll have to figure that part out.” There was not a chance Lydia would release any of them from a promise. The chance to take a break and focus on just about anything else was welcome. She had owed Rio an explanation, but now that she was no longer under the restraints of Lydia’s promise, she could relax a little. “You’re right,” she said with a small smile creeping back on her face, “A break and chilli go well together. Maybe we could play a few games or something before I have to head out to the woods.” As she quickly discovered in their home months ago, there was nothing to take your mind off White Crest being White Crest like fun games with good friends.

[ehstarwar]

and nothing brings me all things (reylo drabble)

Rey could watch more TikToks or play more Animal Crossing or try another disastrous Pinterest recipe or re-read her favorite Galaxy Battles fan fic. Puzzles were a good way to kill a few hours. She had at least three episodes to catch up on with Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

And while all of these were valid options, the most appealing was the one Rey did most often: bother Ben.

-

Rey and Ben are stuck in quarantine and Rey's solution to boredom is being clingy af. (Ben absolutely does not mind.)

-

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 4.2K

Read on AO3

Notes: hello all! here is another quarantine induced drabble that i did to fill the void of not being able to go to Galaxy's Edge whenever i please. enjoy 

( ˊᵕˋ )♡

(also, get chu a soft!freak like Ben)

-

It’s not that Rey has nothing to do. There is plenty to do. She could do laundry or re-organize the pantry or change out the air filters or clean out her closet. She could also watch more TikToks or play more Animal Crossing or try another disastrous Pinterest recipe or re-read her favorite Galaxy Battles fan fic.

It’s just that she’s done it all. For the past three weeks. Ad nauseam.

As she sits a one of the bar stools, looking over the staunchly white kitchen, (because Ben had insisted that a gourmet kitchen should be all white), she thinks of the activities that would take up the most time. 

Puzzles were a good way to kill a few hours. She had at least three episodes to catch up on with Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Leia did get her the basket of french skin care products that she should would have to use google translate to figure out what each one was for. Animal Crossing was a good distraction for the first two weeks of quarantine, but even scamming poor, old Tom Nook out of bells didn’t have the same appeal three weeks in.

And while all of these were valid options, the most appealing was the one Rey did most often: bother Ben.

Her beautiful, stoic, fuckable redwood of a boyfriend who was lucky enough to actually work from home. One of the benefits of being a lawyer was that the majority of paperwork and emails and meeting’s Ben dealt with regularly could all be easily made available at home. The office that Rey had insisted on for him was finally being put to good use months after they finally moved into their renovated apartment. 

What had been a place to put Bens’ libraries’ worth of books and various awards and achievements was finally getting some good use out of it. Which is more than Rey could say for herself. Han made the difficult decision to close the auto shop the same day Leia sent everyone at the publishing company to work from home (including Ben) and Rey tried not to be bitter about it. 

It was for her safety, and everyone else, and she understood why it was being done. Han had even begrudgingly admitted that fear of Ben chopping his head off would have probably meant that Rey wouldn’t have been working even if the shop had remained open. 

It was the most common story these days, and Rey was grateful that Ben was still working all while being home and safe.

But fuck all if she wasn’t bored. 

Rey decided that two hours in between annoying Ben was enough time for him not to be mad that she was back to do it again. (But Ben never got mad at Rey for long.) She stepped quietly down the hall, knocking slightly on the door while opening it to Bens’ study.

Ben had is attention on his computer, typing away, not needing to even look at Rey to guess why she was here.

“Bored already, my love?” He asked. Rey entered the room all the way, but still stood by the door in case she needed to make a speedy getaway.

“Just wanted to see what you were doing in here.”

“The same thing I was doing the last three times you asked me that.” Only then does Ben spare a glance at his girlfriend, raising his eyebrow while a slight smirk adorned his lips.

“All is well in the legal world of publishing? No damn plagiarist trying to pass off as Shakespeare these days?” She asks, fiddling with some items on his desk as she steps further into the room. 

“I haven’t come across any lately. But I’ll keep my eye out.” She hums her response before turning towards the gigantic book case that covers the entire of one wall.

“May I borrow a book?” She asks, running her hands along the spines of the shelf closest to her reach.

“Of course, my love.”

She grazes titles, avoiding the large volumes of legal names that she’s not sure she could pronounce if asked, heading to the smaller but more worn shelf of fiction titles that are more her speed. 

It’s nice, Rey realizes after a minute. Sharing the same space with him, neither of them intruding or unwelcome. She likes hearing the tapping of keys behind her, knowing that Ben is absorbed in whatever project he’s focused on now. She has half a mind to not even pick a book, just look at the rows of titles so that she may stretch out this oddly calm time together with Ben. Not that its in short supply these days, but its always nice in a different context. 

She plucks out the copy of Pride & Prejudice, a read she’s made many times but loves nonetheless, before making her way out the door and into their living room. 

“Babe,” Ben calls out for her and she stops just before closing the door, and turns back to him. He is fully looking at her now, eyes big and lips pouting. When realization of what he wants washes over her, she feels less silly for wanting to annoy Ben. 

Rey walks over to him, pressing a sweet but firm kiss on his impossibly plush lips, fulfilling his silent request. When the kiss ends, Rey goes back to walk out and Ben turns back to the monitor without any fuss. 

Maybe Ben needed some attention just as much as Rey did. 

-

Rey tossed and turned in her bed, finding no comfortable position. It’d been like this for the past hour, but Rey was too stubborn to give up on her nap. She moved and crouched until the evident failure of her mid-afternoon power nap became so frustrating, she screamed into her pillow. 

Four weeks of quarantine and the boredom was enough to make Rey go nuts. She wasn’t someone who needed to leave her house often; she wanted to spend more time in the new apartment after they moved in, she just didn’t expect to spend this much time here.

Rey sighs as she opens her eyes, taking in her surroundings. Its the perfect mix of elements for Peak Afternoon Nap; freshly washed sheets, thunderstorms outside, BiBi balled up at the foot of the bed. All this, and yet, no magic nap.

Well, there was one element missing…

But said element was dutifully working after taking a long weekend to help cure Reys’ boredom. Going to him now and asking to lay down with her just so she could take a nap seemed kind of silly (even though Ben would do it).

They had formed something of a routine the past few days. Rey would wander into his office to find a book to read for the afternoon, spend some time asking inane questions that really didn’t deserve attention, then kiss Ben before heading out to read the first chapter of chosen book before abandoning it for something else. 

It was a nice, sweet ritual that Rey looked forward to everyday, but that had already occurred on this day. The upside down cover of This Side of Paradise sat on her bedside table, next to her Nintendo switch. She thought fondly of this morning, Ben waking her slowly to remind her that she should get up before noon so she had enough time to buy turnips. Ben tells Rey he loves her in so many ways that sometimes Rey gets so overwhelmed with love that she physically aches. 

She thinks that might be what she’s feeling right now, and she desperately wants to march into his office and tell him how much she loves him to try and find some semblance of balance, but she shouldn’t.

She shouldn’t march, at least.

She’ll quietly come in and give him another sweet kiss that is better than any piece of chocolate she’s ever had and tell him how much she loves him then allow him to get on with his work. It’s a good plan. Fool-proof. She can totally do it.

Except when she slowly walks in to his office to watch him type away, she thinks that a simple kiss and ‘I love you’ won’t do justice. So, as unobtrusive as humanly possible, Rey slides into his lap, facing him, legs around the side of his chair, and face resting in the crook of his neck.

Ben doesn’t say anything. In fact, he doesn’t even move. Just allows Rey to adjust herself around him like a koala bear to a tree. When she finally situates herself in a comfortable position, completely flush together, Ben speaks.

“Rey?”

She hums against his skin.

“Are you alright, my love?”

The deep rumble of his chest when he speaks is probably her second favorite sensation in the world. The first being when he makes her come so hard that she blacks out. 

“I decided that I love you very much and this seemed like the most effective way to tell you.” She’s glad that Ben can’t see her face right now; he’d see the blush undoubtably spread across her cheeks.

“Ah,” He says. She thinks for a minute that Ben might indulge her before carefully peeling herself off fo him, citing work to be done as reasons for ending their entanglement. It would be perfectly valid and totally understandable and Rey wouldn’t be upset with him because she’s an adult who doesn’t need constant coddling.

But, oh, how she loves that he doesn't. 

She feels Ben scoot the chair closer to the desk, then hears the tapping of the computer begin again. Ben continues on working, either not caring or not minding that Rey is in his lap. She waits for a few minutes, still thinking he might kick her off him, but when that never comes, she allows herself to relax further.

Her arms go to encircle his stomach as she burrows herself further into him. Bens’ only way of response is a pressed kiss to her temple as he continues to type away.

-

Rey isn’t sure what lulls her to sleep, either the white noise of rain or her endless boredom, but she does know that she wakes up to Bens’ hands rubbing circles against her back and his mouth humming her name into her skin.

“Rey..” He mumbles, between kisses on her neck. She really comes to then, realizing her mouth is open and a small wet spot of drool had formed on his shoulder. Her eyes blink open as she leans back to look at him. 

Ben trails his kisses up her jaw, to the side of her mouth, not minding the dried drool there. 

“What time is it?” She asked, voice groggy from sleep.

“5:30,” He responds, causing Rey to go rigid.

“5:30? I slept for two hours?” She gasps, pulling back to look at Ben. He shrugs, and pushes some hair behind her ear. “Why didn’t you wake me? You legs must be killing you by now!”

She goes to get off him, but Ben keeps her tight against him and leans down to continue kissing her face.

“I liked having you with me. It was… comforting.”

Rey ‘humphs’ indignantly. 

“I feel bad now. I slept literally on top of you while you worked. I am the definition of a slug.”

Ben chuckles against her skin. “We are doing our civic duty by staying inside. I get rewarded with having you in my lap for the majority of the time. I think its a pretty sweet deal.”

Rey grumbles something like ‘too sweet’  while leaning into his kisses. 

“Plus,” he adds, “I’m going to wear you out tonight, so I figured you could use a little nap today.”

-

It becomes their thing. She doesn’t always stay in his lap for such a long time, even though Ben wouldn’t mind, but she spends at least some time there everyday. 

Ben never chides her away or make it difficult for her, just opens his arms whenever Rey comes into his office. She brings activities sometimes, mostly her switch or a book, things that won’t distract Ben from his work any more than she already is. If she falls asleep, Ben doesn’t wake her until his day is done and he logs off. Sometimes she pretends to be asleep just so she can feel Ben wake her up with sweet kisses.

It becomes such a comfort to her, that she’s honestly a little bummed out when Han gives them a call to say he might re-open the shop soon. She tries to sound enthusiastic about it, but can’t help but think about how she won’t get to spend half the day curled up in Bens’ lap. 

When Rey’s face doesn’t light up at the prospect of going back to work, Ben knows somethings wrong. He doesn’t bring it up until they’re both in bed, curled together and freshly exfoliated by his mothers salicylic acid peel that she’d given Rey.

“I’m happy to be going back to work, really, it’s just…” Rey struggles to find the words that won’t make her seem like a petulant child.

“You’ll miss our afternoon cuddle session?” He finishes for her. She thinks Bens’ superpower is being able to talk about the most trivial of things without being condescending. She loves him even more for it. 

“It’s just so nice! Spending that time together, physically together. Its so intimate and special to me. It’ll be hard to see that end.” She burrows closer to him, and Ben just wraps her in his embrace. 

“I could always come down to the shop for lunch? It’s really not that far away, and-”

“Benjamin Chewbacca Solo, you will not spend half you lunch time commuting just so you can cuddle with me for a few minutes. While the gesture is incredibly sweet, it would just make me feel like shit for making you do it.”

She can feel his frown even if she can’t see it. 

“It’s not like I don’t enjoy it, too. This may be shocking, but I like having you in my lap. You’re like a… weighted blanket, or comfort vests.” Rey snorts against his chest, muffling her laughter.

“That’s a very nice way of putting it, darling.”  She imagines what they must look like, draped together in a shapeless blob.

Ben grumbles now. “Maybe not all the time… but I’d still do it.”

-

“Ben?” She asks, the first she’s spoken in well over an hour.

“Hm?”

“Are you watching porn?”

“What?”

“Are you watching porn right now?”

“No?”

“Well then what are you doing?”

“Organizing my email? Babe, are you okay?”

Rey stifles a laugh against his neck.

“You’re getting hard from organizing you emails?” Ben doesn’t miss the teasing lilt in her voice.

Ben gives a gruff ‘no’, but Rey continues to laugh anyway. 

“Well, you’re defiantly getting hard.” She experimentally rocks her hips to his, feeling the ever-growing length of him. 

“I happen to have a very squirmy girlfriend in my lap who like to tease too much.”

“Hmmm, I think it’s the organizing that’s doing it.”

The tapping on his keyboard gets a little stronger as he ignores her jibe, so Rey just continually rubs against him, feeling him twitch though his sweatpants. She kisses the underside of his jaw, working her way up to behind his ear, a spot that he’d previously described as his achilles heel.

“Rey,” Ben says, voice warning her. She ignores him and continues her assault. The clicking has ceased all together, and Rey feels him breath heavier. She trails her hand down his torso before dipping into the band of his pants and pulling him out. The whole foregoing underwear during quarantine is truly one of the greatest gifts she could receive. 

He is hot and hard in her hand, twitching as she begins working her hand around his length. Rey swirls the beaded precome over his head, and Bens’ hands grab as her ass, hard. She feels so powerful like this, feeling his body constrict in pleasure beneath her, know that she’s the cause.

Well, her and organizing his email.

“Do you like this, baby? Like when I’m in your lap and I do this?” She nips his earlobe.

“Unnnnf… yes, baby,” he huffs. She works him faster now, feeling his hips start to jerk on the on volition. She rocks against him, still, not to get herself off, but just to make Ben go a little out of his mind. His palms kneed her butt, stretching her yoga pants to the maximum limit. 

“You gonna come like this for me? You gonna come in your lap and make me sit in it, wishing it was in me instead of on me?”

Ben is past the point of coherent words, just grunts frantic nods as his orgasm approaches. She speeds up, using one hand to jerk him while the other plays with his balls. Rey mouths at his neck, sucking and biting him, wanting to leave little, purple marks wherever her mouth can reach. 

Ben comes with a strangled grunt, spilling hotly between them. Most of his come drips down her hand as she works him, still, but she feels a hot splash across her chin. She pays it no mind, just continues to pepper kisses along his skin. 

Bens’ head is thrown back as he comes down from his high, and he slowly lifts it back up as his breathing returns to normal. Rey pulls back from against him. Bringing her hand up to lick the come coating it. His gaze becomes dark when he sees what she’s doing.

“Wear a skirt, next time.” His voice is low and a little breathless, sending a chill though Reys’ spine. 

“Or… nothing at all.” 

Rey smiles at him as she continues to suck her fingers.

-

Their routine changes once again, but Rey can’t find the heart to complain. Not when she’s being so thoroughly seen to by Ben. 

Sometimes its a slow, building thing, that they draw out until either one of them breaks from desire. Sometimes its fast and rough, and Rey always feels a little dirty after it. Ben occasionally is content to let Rey bounce on his dick, taking her pleasure from him in any way he can give it to her. Other times, Ben fucks her against the desk, keyboard digging into her back as he pounds into her, relentless and untamed. 

She asks him after one session, come oozing out of her and back onto his lap, if his work suffers from it at all.

“My productivity has increased by 27% since I’ve started working from home.”

Rey fucks him twice the next day to congratulate him.

-

The first day she’s back at work isn’t as bad as she thought.  

It’s really, really nice to see Han and Chewie, even if they must maintain a six foot distance. When she expresses her deference to this and tries to hug Han, he hold up a drill at her, effectively stopping her.

“Kid, if you get sick under my watch, my son will defiantly set my car on fire, with me in it! He told me so, in a very strongly worded text that any god-fearing adult would be wise to abide by.”

Rey rolls her eyes, but she knows her boyfriend. She chooses not to risk Han’s life.

-

Once the novelty of being back out in the world wears off, Rey can’t help but feel a little miffed. Ben is still working from home, and trying desperately to make that a full time thing, because he is literally mauled by Rey when she comes home. 

As soon as she steps through their threshold, Rey is on Ben like they haven’t seen each other in days. Never-mind the fact that they have sex every night. And every morning. And usually get each other off after breakfast. 

Even just a few weeks of getting hot office sex has spoiled Rey for life; she’s honestly not sure if she’ll survive not being in quarantine. And to think she once thought she was bored.

“My offer still stands, you know,” He tells her one evening. He’s staring the pasta while she is attached to his backside like a leech. “I can come to the shop during lunch if you miss me that bad.”

She groans against his shirt. “That’s so silly of me though! I should be able to go a few hours without seeing you! There are so many memes about couples who want to slit each others throats after spending so much time together, and I can barely work a full shift without needing to jump you as soon as I see you!”

 Ben just stirs the pasta and rubs her harms around his midsection. 

“I can tell my dad to let you work from home.” She laughs against him.

“I don’t know if you recall, but I physically can’t work from home. It’s how we got into this predicament to begin with.” Ben hums in acknowledgement, and Rey just knows he’s thinking of alternatives.

“You could just FaceTime people who need to fix their cars and explain what they need to do. Probably safer that way, too,” he offers. 

“Its got merit,” Rey starts, “But I usually need to get into the car to figure out what’s wrong. Plus, I don’t think it would actually be a good idea for us both to work from home.”

“Why not?” Ben spins around, looking down at her with a pout that she can never resist. 

“If we both work from home, we would never step outside this apartment again. Or wear clothes! We’d become wild people, who rut nonstop and have to be chained apart just so others could speak to us.”

“I don’t see any real downside to that.” Rey slaps his chest playfully and he laughs down at her, pressing a sweet kiss to the top of her forehead. “Fine, fine!” He concedes. “Just promise me one thing.”

Rey tilts her head up, waiting for Ben to continue.

“You’ll at least work from home when we have kids.” 

She narrows her eyes at him.

“Just while I’m pregnant.”

“And at least three months after.”

“Deal.”

-

-

“Did you get that file that I sent over around two?” Ben asks.

“The one about Ackbar’s book?” Leia questions.

“Yeah.”

“Yes, I’ve already forwarded it onto Holdo.”

“Okay, good, just checking. Thats all I had for today. I’ll wrap up the memo tomorrow and send it over before lunch.”

“Sounds good, Ben. But aren’t you forgetting something?” Leia’s tone implies that he is, in fact, forgetting something mildly important but nothing work related comes to mind. It isn’t until  chubby little fingers grab at his sleeve that Ben realizes what his mother is asking for.

“Oh, sorry,” Ben puts the phone on speaker before lowering it to his chest. “Isobel, can you say hi to grandma?” 

His daughter makes a babbling noise of glee that makes his mother coo. 

“Awww, hi sweetie! G-ma will be over on Sunday for dinner! Can wait to see you, pumpkin!” She baby talks through the phone. Ben smiles down at his daughter, nestled firmly in his lap. Her chunky hands reach for his phone, no doubt to chew on it, so he quickly grabs one of her teething mitts instead. Her little mouth works on the plastic, drool spilling out the corners of her mouth, and bright hazel eyes look back up at him. 

Ben will probably never recover from the way he feels when his daughter looks up at him and smiles. He’s okay with that.

Ben and Leia finish with their goodbyes and Ben heads to the kitchen, Isobel in tow, and starts to make dinner. More than a few people scoff when they find out it is Rey who does the dirty work in the household and Ben is the dutiful husband; cooking, cleaning, watching Isobel all day. Ben adjusted so well to working from home that he never went back to an office full time, which worked out perfectly when he and Rey found out they had a little one on the way.

It wasn’t the most usual of set ups, but it was theirs, and Ben loved it. 

Rey swept in the kitchen once she got home, adorning both his and Isobels’ face with kisses, before plucking her daughter out of the carrier Ben is hardly ever without, and resting her on her hip. 

“How was work today?” Rey asked, between blowing raspberries on Isobels freckled cheeks. 

“Usual. Mom says hi. We have dinner at my parents on Sunday, this week, not ours.” Rey hums in acknowledgement. “How was the shop?”

“Same, really. Bunch of teenagers blowing out every part on their car because they don’t know how to drive. I honestly can’t wait until someone invents teleportation; too many dummies don’t know how to drive.” Rey makes an exaggerated frowning face, causing Isobel to laugh as her little fingers to to feel mama’s face. 

“Why don’t you just invent it. Teleportation, I mean. That way you could retire early,” Ben gives her a smirk as he looks at Rey over his shoulder. 

“Hmmm… would be less greasy,” Rey pretends to ponder. “What do you think, Bel-bel? Should Mama just finish the most technological advancement in human history so she can retire early?” Isobel babbled happily in her mothers arms, making them both laugh. 

“Sounds like yes to me,” Ben shrugs, making Rey laugh harder. 

Ben looked at the sight, his wife and daughter happy and laughing, and thinks he may have found paradise.

-

come say hi on twitter!

[artificialqueens]

Mother, My New Girlfriend is a Ghost, Again Chapter 1 (Katlaska) - Jem

 In which Alaska is a ghost, Katya is a real human woman, and it’s only a minor inconvenience…. right?

 An: thanks to the anon who requested this. I hope it’s a little bit like what you’d hoped for?? The rest of the prompt will be fulfilled in later chapters. I’ve never written Katlaska before but all this new content of them hanging out has me converted.

Chapter 1

Don’t move into apartment 519, that’s what the sweet old lady taking a smoke break outside had told her when she arrived at the complex.

But since when did Katya listen to elderly figures giving her advice? She’d left Russia to move to America despite her mother’s warnings, after all.

“People are mean in America.” Her mother had said. “All the food is processed. You don’t want to get fat, do you, lapochka?”

Maybe she was the naive white, blonde, female protagonist in a horror movie, but the apartment seemed perfectly fine–in need of a fresh coat of paint perhaps, but totally fine. And so what if the last tenant had died? Katya wasn’t scared of death, in fact she embraced it; bring on the reaper, life was boring! Ok, maybe that was taking it a bit far, but she didn’t believe in ghosts.

So she signed the lease without a question and moved in with her single suitcase and barely enough cash to make the first month’s rent. She was living the American Dream, right? Her mother would be proud (not). It was better than crashing on her friend’s couch like she had been for the last 6 months.

The first week passed with no problems, other than the fact that Katya was incompetent at cooking and burnt her spaghetti sauce after falling asleep with the stove still on. That hardly counted though, because she didn’t even set off the fire alarm. She began to think that maybe the sweet old lady hadn’t actually been that sweet and just wanted to scare her away so she could have one less neighbour. Katya was a bit offended that anyone would assume she was a bad neighbour. She was quiet as a mouse most of the time, and she didn’t know enough people in America to have a raging house party (she was also getting way too old to party, but never mind that). Fuck her, anyways. Katya should have told the old woman that the cigarette she was smoking was going to wreck her old broken lungs. That would have been a bit hypocritical though, as Katya was sure her own lungs were black as tar even at the ripe age of 27.

The second week was different. And maybe staying inside with the curtains drawn closed and in complete silence was enough to drive anyone crazy, but there was something weird going on in her apartment. It started with things falling. That was hardly a big deal though, Katya hadn’t put much effort in her unpacking, so when bottles started falling off the bathroom shelf, she assumed she’d just placed them a little too precariously. It started to happen every night though, no matter how organized she tried to be when she put them back. Then her plastic containers in the kitchen cupboards began to tumble right after, and that was impossible because cupboards had doors! Nice, wooden doors that couldn’t possibly be pushed open by the weightless plastic of a piece of Tupperware.

As if all that wasn’t enough, there was the screaming. At first Katya was sure she must just have crazy upstairs neighbours who were into some really kinky shit, but upon investigation the sound was definitely coming from her closet.

It wasn’t like, a bloodcurdling, horrifying scream like you’d expect in the movies, but more of a woeful one. Maybe she was reading into it too much, but she had a lot of time to analyze scream patterns when she never left the house. She never saw anything though, no matter how hard she tried. She always heard the containers falling off shelves and rushed over only to see them toppling to the floor. It was the same with the scream, she would open the closet door only to have the sound stop.

Then, one night about a week and a half into ‘The Haunting (2017)’ as Katya came to call it, the screaming just wouldn’t stop. Katya had been riddled with anxiety since it had all started, and she hadn’t slept in at least a couple days. That night she just couldn’t take it, the usual voices in her head mixed with the horrible screeching and there was just nowhere quiet in the entire apartment.

“Please!” She yelled out into the darkness. “Please stop!” She was so tired. She didn’t know what to do anymore. Her yelling only seems to make whatever was making the noise more angry, and it increased the pitch of its scream. The sound hit Katya right in the gut; it seemed so sad.

She picked up her phone to call one of her friends, typing in the number with shaky fingers. She prayed that she’d pick up, even though it was the wee hours of morning by now. God, the screaming had never gone on this long.

“Trixie?” She tried to speak loudly so as to be heard over the screaming.

“Kat?” Her friend answered, sounding groggy. Of course she was tired, it was almost 4:00 am. “What’s wrong? Are you ok?”

“There’s something in my apartment.” Katya told her.

“What? Like a robber?” Katya could hear from her voice that she was quickly jolted fully awake. “Call the fucking police!”

“No, not a robber.” Fuck, she didn’t even know what it was. “There’s this screaming, and it just won’t stop. It happens every night.”

“Are you sure it’s in your apartment?”

“Yes, of course I’m sure.” Ok, maybe she wasn’t that sure. “Trix, I don’t believe in ghosts, but I swear to God there’s something haunting my apartment.”

“Katya…” Trixie sounded doubtful, maybe even pitying, now.

“I’m not joking, I swear.”

“Have you been taking your meds?”

“Of course I have! Why the fuck would you ask me that?”

“You’re just,” Trixie paused. “Listen Katya, I think you should go to sleep.”

“I can’t sleep with this,” she held the phone out hoping to catch the screaming. “Going on.”

“I can’t hear anything.”

“Well, it’s there, it’s probably just too far away.” As if the screaming was listening to her, it stopped suddenly.

What the fuck?

“Katya?” Trixie sounded really worried. “Katya, what’s going on?”

“It stopped.” Katya was very confused. “Trixie, I’m gonna have to call you back.”

“Wait-

Katya hung up the phone, going to investigate. Maybe she was sleep deprived and practically insane by now, but she needed to figure out what was going on. She stomped her way to her bedroom, grabbing the handle of her closet door and throwing it open with a huff.

This time it wasn’t empty.

Inside the closet there was a young woman with ratty blonde hair and smeared makeup. She looked like she’d been crying, probably the culprit of the horrendous screaming.

“What the fuck?” Katya couldn’t stop herself from cursing, loudly.

“Oh thank god!” The girl’s expression shifted from grief to one of relief. She looked very shaken up still. “I was stuck, fuck, that hasn’t happened in a long time.”

What did she mean, she was stuck? It was just a closet, not some kind of coded safe room… Katya stood dumbfounded for a few seconds before finding her voice. “What are you doing in my apartment?”

“Well, it’s technically mine. Or it was, at least. I don’t really know how the lease goes when you’re dead but still hanging around.”

“Holy shit.” Thoughts were swirling around Katya’s head, and she barely registered what the woman was saying. “What the fuck is going on?” She was asking herself more than anyone else. She was going fucking insane, wasn’t she?

The woman walked out of the small room, obviously trying to catch her breath still. She was wearing a tight leather mini skirt, heels that were hardly sensible for indoors (or outdoors for that matter, why did anyone need 6inch hooker heels?) and an ill-fitting baggy grey sweater. Katya didn’t really know what it all meant, and she continued to process it all in her head. When she’d told Trixie she thought her apartment was haunted, she meant there was some kind of vengeful spirit who wanted to play tricks on her, not a real human woman hiding in her closet.

“Hi, my name’s Alaska, what’s yours?” The woman asked, drawling at the end of her sentence and pulling Katya out of her head.

“Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova.” Katya blurted out. As if her name wasn’t hard to say already, she practically fumbled over it with her tongue.

“Ok.” Alaska deadpanned. She obviously hadn’t gotten it.

“But you can just call me Katya.” Phew, she managed to save herself. Why was she worried about making a good impression on the woman secretly living in her apartment anyway?

“Russian?”

“Yes.” Katya answered without thinking. “I feel like I should be the one asking you questions, not the other way around.”

“Ask away.” Alaska sat down on Katya’s bed, and Katya wondered for a moment if she should stop her but at this point she’d already been an idiot enough to not kick her out, what was one last offence? Besides, she did want answers.

She opened her mouth to speak. Shit. Why did her mind have to go blank right this second?

“Um.” She began. “Why were you in my closet? and why were you screaming?”

“I’ve been goddamn awful tonight, haven’t I? I’ve been shifting.”

“Shifting?”

“Well, I don’t know if that’s the real word for it but I’ve been kind of coming in and out of physical reality, and I got stuck in the closet and I couldn’t get out no matter how I tried. It’s like my body was physically here but I couldn’t touch or affect anything. It’s never in-between like that anymore since the early days, I’m usually here, or I’m not.”

“Ok.” Katya couldn’t say she really understood, but she supposed being trapped in the closet (no pun intended) was pretty scary. It was a really cramped space, not really the walk-in closet that had been advertised when she was first looking at the place. “And all the other nights of screaming you were stuck too?”

“Oh no.” Alaska admitted easily, leaning back a little too comfortably on the bed. “The other times I was trying to scare you.”

“You bitch.” Katya said seriously, before breaking into a fit of laughter at Alaska’s shocked expression. Why was she laughing? It’s not like she cared if she hurt this, ghostbeingwoman’s feelings. The woman smiled in response.

“I’m guessing it worked a little bit?”

“A little? I thought I was going fucking crazy!” Maybe laughter was the best medicine? She could feel all the pent up tension leaving her body as she chuckled. “Ok, wait. So you’re a ghost?” Alaska nodded. “So you’re the last tenant who died and you can shift in and out of the physical world but you thought it would be fun to stick around here and scare this old Russian woman?”

“You’re hardly an old woman.” Alaska joked. “I’ve never tried to leave, to be honest. And I don’t have much control over the shifting, but I’ve been more and more physical lately and I really don’t know what would happen if I went out into society.”

“Do you think you’re tethered to this apartment? Like it’s your place of death right?” Katya didn’t know where all these smart thoughts were coming from. She was handling this news pretty well. Maybe she was a little crazy still?

“Maybe? Like I said, I’ve never tried.”

Katya opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by knocking at her door.

“Katya?” Trixie’s voice seeped into the apartment, and she sounded really worried.

“Shit.” Katya deadpanned. “You need to hide.” She directed Alaska back to the closet.

The woman gave her a look. “Are you serious?”

“Yes! She can’t find out you’re here, and I’m sorry you have to go back in there but please be quiet.”

Alaska reluctantly slipped back into the cramped space. Katya quickly but gently shut the door, and made her way back into the living room.

“I’m coming!” She yelled to Trixie as she began to undo the locks on the front door. When she opened it to reveal her friend, Trixie looked incredibly exhausted and concerned. It had been a little while since their phone call but Katya could tell she’d been tossing and turning since then and had probably rushed over because she was worried. Katya knew she herself must look a mess too, she hadn’t slept at all and oh right, there was a ghost/woman/being living in her apartment.

“Katya?” Trixie asked. “Can I come in?” She was wearing a nightgown and a pair of sneakers. For any normal human that might have been a sure indication that she’d been asleep but Trixie practically wore sleepwear as clothing every day.

“Yeah.” Katya let her in and Trixie grabbed her by the shoulders to look her over.

“How are you feeling?” She asked Katya cautiously. 

“I’m exhausted.” She answered, and it was the truth.

“Do you remember calling me earlier?”

“Yes.”

“And do you remember why?”

“I’m so sorry Trix, I’m so stupid.” Katya began to babble. It was the only way she knew to cover up the truth. “I must have been sleep deprived and the usual noises around the apartment must have really gotten to me.”

“So you don’t still think there’s a ghost in your apartment?”

“No.” Katya lied through her teeth.

“God, Kat. You really scared me.”

“I’m sorry.”

Trixie pulled her into a tight hug, and Katya felt bad for lying to her, but she knew her friend wouldn’t believe the truth. Hell, Katya hardly believed the truth.

“Are you gonna be ok?” Trixie asked gently, but Katya could tell there was a lot riding on her answer.

“Yeah, I think so. I think I’m just gonna try to catch up on some sleep and I’ll be much better. Thank you for checking up on me though, it means a lot.”

It must have worked, Trixie looked relieved. She gave Katya a kiss on the cheek before deciding to leave her alone to get some sleep.

“Please call me if you need anything.” She said as Katya gently closed the door. Once she was gone, she hustled back to her bedroom to get Alaska out of the closet.

“I’m so sorry.” She apologized as Alaska stepped out once again.

“It’s fine, girl.”

She tried to resume their conversation from where they’d been interrupted.

“So, you want me to move out.” Katya assumed. She wasn’t (quite) stupid, she could take a hint. All the screaming and dropping things would have probably been enough to passive-aggressively convince a normal human being to leave this apartment.

“Oh.” Alaska said like she hadn’t been expecting those words. “I guess, if you want. I was trying to scare you away, but….” She trailed off, her eyes meeting Katya’s.

“Here I am?”  She filled in.

“Yes, here you are.”

If Katya was being honest, she didn’t really want to have to pack up and move all of her things. Hell, she couldn’t go back to sleeping on Trixie’s couch either. It was lumpy, and she felt like a toddler in need of a babysitter when she was there. If Katya was being sane, and wasn’t sleep deprived, she would have been out of there days ago but she was far from sane, and she was past exhausted. Anyways, she may not know anything about Alaska, but how rude would it be to kick her out of her own apartment to the real world, where she wouldn’t be safe? And that was assuming she even could physically leave the building.

Katya looked her over properly. She really didn’t seem like a threat. Her face looked gentle, her eyes were brown and doe-like, not someone who seemed like she was going to murder Katya in her sleep. Could ghosts kill mortals? Katya’s didn’t think it was likely, with her limited knowledge of the supernatural from literally the last ten minutes. There was a large list of sentences that the voices in her head were urging her to speak. Her mother’s voice told Katya that she should tell the girl she was coming home to Russia and she could keep the place, Tatianna’s told her to tell the ghost to get the hell out, but all she could really say (because she was a total idiot) was: “I’m assuming you’re not gonna pitch in for rent?”

Alaska just laughed. “Are you saying we should be roommates then?”

“Why not?”

Fuck, she was probably going to regret this.

[additionallysad]

Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed http://ift.tt/2n5wF8H

Last summer we bought a shed to alleviate some of our garage storage woes/messes (more on that here). It was love at first sight, but alas – it remained empty for months as I sat paralyzed, unable to pinpoint the “perfect” way to organize it. I didn’t want to let my baby down by not letting her live up to her full potential. Listeners of our podcast have heard me mention it time and time again (me saying the word “shed” might as well be a drinking game at this point). But once I let go of the idea of getting it perfect and just steered myself towards solving my storage problems one-by-one, we were finally able to help our empty shed fulfill its destiny become the storage workhorse I always knew it could be.

The reason I was having trouble getting started was because I couldn’t figure out how many functions I wanted to cram in there. Is it mostly workspace and tool storage? Do I put garden and outdoor tools in there too? And if so, how much space is all of that stuff gonna take up? I didn’t want to move so much in there that we couldn’t comfortably work, and I was getting nowhere trying to floor plan it. Ultimately I told myself: prioritize the functions you want it to serve & the problems you want it to solve – then just work down the list until it’s full enough. Whatever didn’t make it could just stay in the garage. Sounds simple, and it was. And it was actionable, so I was finally doing something.

Solution #1: Workbench & Pegboard

If nothing else, I wanted to add a work table. We had one in our last workshop, but for the last 3.5 years here we’ve just been working on the garage floor (#glamorous). Also, by shifting most of our woodworking to the shed, we’d no longer deal with having sawdust coating every last surface in the garage every time we cut something in there (the bikes, the kids’ scooters, the car, etc). So the very first thing I did was buy this workbench from Home Depot.

The price was right ($77!) and it is easily movable/collapsible, in case I want to arrange things differently down the line. That was another key to unlock my indecision: creating flexibility. It makes you worry a lot less if you know you can change or undo something down the line. But so far: no regrets. It’s been great and we like where we set it up: centered on the longest wall, right across from the doors. Consider it a focal point of sorts.

You can also see I bought some clear 12-gallon storage bins that fit nicely underneath it (like these), and discovered some pegboard panels leftover from our second book that would fit perfectly behind the bench once they were cut down and hung (see below). Booyah, free storage. My garage hoarding does pay off sometimes!

I loved having tools on pegboards in my old workshop. Call it cliché, but they really are a visually appealing and (more importantly) very functional way to store this kind of stuff. Plus, it’s a huuuuge improvement over where we’d been grabbing many of our tools lately: random drawers here and there, not to mention several “who-knows-what’s-in-the-bottom-of-that” bins that were never unpacked since we moved to this house back in 2013. We just sort of stirred them with our arms to find stuff. Like nail and screw soup.

By reusing my old pegboard hooks and clips (as well as referencing some of the old pics) I was able to get most of our small-to-medium sized tools organized there. I even used some of the space above the pegboards to stash sanding blocks, tubs of wood filler, and other un-hangables.

Most of what’s out here is stuff that we will primarily use in the shed (and we still have some duplicate screwdrivers and such in our kitchen for quick access). We also made a small picture-hanging box (sort of like a small tackle box that we filled with nails, ook hooks, screws, and anchors) which makes more sense to keep inside than out in the shed.

The clear storage bins underneath are sorted by project – tiling supplies in one, lawn irrigation stuff another, and painting stuff in a third. The fourth is still empty (room to grow!). And, although the clear bins aren’t as aesthetically pleasing as solid colored ones might be, I like that we can quickly see what’s inside without having to rely on labels (which I’ve found I rarely keep updated). Function over form in here, fo sho.

Solution #2: Scrap Wood Storage

One of the main contributors to our garage looking disgusting (besides the thin layer of sawdust on everything) was all the scrap wood strewn around. I refuse to show you a wide shot of our former garage grossness, but here are a couple of corners to give you a taste. There were plenty of contributors to the chaos, but the scrap wood was getting to the point where it was too hard to access or sift through, so I was rarely checking it thoroughly before starting a new project. It had officially become more refuse than resource.

So with my workspace set – I turned my attention to making sensible scrap wood storage in the shed. I started by hauling all of it OUT of the garage and INTO the shed (I also set a general rule for myself – once anything came into the shed, it didn’t get to go back to the garage). You can see here that I had amassed quite the diverse collection.

I turned to Pinterest for ideas for scrap wood storage or organizers, but most of what I saw was either very elaborate (it spins! it folds out! it makes coffee! – okay, maybe not that last one) or alarmingly tidy. Am I the only one with wood that doesn’t nicely match? So I decided to just improvise a bit. After all, my main goal was to put it all in one place, in a way that I could sort through it all without everything falling on me or my pocket sized wife (we might never find her). Oh, and I also wanted to use as much scrap wood as possible to actually build it. I had to grab a few new 2×4″s for enough stability, but I really resisted the urge to buy more lumber to corral my existing lumber.

Here’s where I ended up, and then I’ll show you how I got there. I realize all the wood-on-wood tones don’t make this super easy to decipher, but in person it’s gloriously simple.

To create the flat storage area at the base, I cut some 2 x 4″s into two matching boxes. My sizes were determined by the space where I was putting it (the corner beyond the side window), but you can adjust the lengths based on your needs.

I used my pocket hole jig to attach the pieces and form the two flat rectangles, and then broke out my nailer to secure some thin plywood scraps over the top to create the bottom platform.

Using more 2 x 4″s, I cut and screwed several short “posts” along the side and back edges of the bottom platform (again using pocket holes). The front stayed open so I could slide my pieces in that way.

Then I secured the other platform on top of the posts by screwing directly through it into each post.

Next I nailed a thicker 1/2″ piece of scrap plywood on top. The heftier top shelf not only added support to the structure, it also would better withstand the weight of all of the wood that would be resting on it eventually.

Then I cut 8 three-foot pieces of 2 x 4″ and used pocket holes to secure them to the base. I steadied each post and gave the whole structure more stability by nailing a frame around the top and bottom perimeter, leaving the top front open so I could easily lean pieces inside each open cubby. But the bottom front piece is important to keep the leaned wood from slipping out, so don’t leave that out.

You can also see from this angle that I added extra back & side pieces to the far right compartment (which would store the smallest pieces of wood) to keep things from falling through the sides. I also left a gap on the right side of the organizer where I could slide in large flat pieces against the wall.

Here’s that after again. It’s a bit fuller than I wish it was, but now that I can find pieces more easily than before (it’s all in one spot! it’s organized by length!) I’ve already found myself making fewer runs to the store and relying more on leftover scraps.

The only thing I might still add is a small basket or bucket mounted to the wall so I can toss in small leftover blocks of wood. I find those handy to have around for things like propping up an item that we’re painting or spray painting so it doesn’t get stuck to the tarp or cardboard underneath. Also, I clearly have a problem not throwing any wood away. The first step is admitting you have a problem.

Solution #3: Heavy Duty Shelving

Not only did I want to get some of our bigger tools (table saw, tile saw, wet vac, etc) out of the way in the garage – we also wanted to move those into the shed because that’s where many of them will actually get used! So next up on the to-do list was some heavy duty shelving. You know, something that would stand up to the weight of bigger tools (more than your typical plastic or wire garage shelf). Here’s where I ended up.

This is just on the left side of the same window that is to the left of the scrap wood holder, so this whole side of the shed is now maximized with storage. I was able to build the entire thing out of leftover plywood and new 2 x 4″ boards. I started by cutting 4 pairs of matching 2 x 4″s, measured to fill the wall between the corner and the window.

Using a level and a tape measure, I used long screws (into studs!) to hang one board from each pair against the wall. Your shelves are ultimately going to rest on top of these boards. You can see the spacing I chose below, but it’s really up to you – I would just warn against not leaving yourself enough TALL shelf space (the two lower shelves are so helpful for larger items).

Next – and this is going to sound weird – you loosely attach the other half of the each pair directly over the boards already in the wall, making sure to line everything up perfectly.

I used two screws per board, and you don’t have to drive your screws all the way in, just enough to hold everything together for the next few minutes. The attaching thing is just temporary.

Next, you’re going to add vertical 2 x 4″ supports that rest on the floor and are cut to go no higher than your top board. I started with three, but as you saw in the final photo – I ended up removing the middle post. You’ll want to screw these posts tightly into the outer horizontal pieces (make sure your screws aren’t so crazy long that they go into the back pieces too). And again, use your level to keep them straight.

Now you can remove those “temporary” screws and the whole front portion of your shelving system will pull away from the wall in one glorious piece. Sorry I don’t have a photo of this but it was like MAGIC. You’re basically cloning the back frame exactly so that when you pull it off the front frame, the horizontal shelf supports will be perfectly lined up. So then you just have to add some side pieces that will create the depth you need for the shelves and it all gets attached again.

When you’re done with that part – it should look a little something like this.

Next, I added some leftover 1/2″ plywood pieces to the top with nails. That’s when I realized it was feeling EXTREMELY steady and I could remove that middle post (which would ultimately make it easier to slide large objects onto the shelves).

I’ll admit I didn’t really “plan” what was going to fit on there when I built it, but it turned out to be great for lots of our boxed tools, random painting supplies, various saws, etc. This thing is so dang sturdy you could invite a few dozen kids to climb all over it. Or fill it with tons of heavy tools, which is what I did. Sorry, kids.

Ana White, who gave us the idea for this project, actually has a great video that shows this process in action (and on a much bigger scale!) in case you were wondering how to implement it for a space like a garage.

Solution #4: Small Part Organization

With most of my large and medium sized tools out of the garage and into the shed, I turned my attention to the tiny stuff: screws, nails, etc. The mason jars I had used on a shelf in my last workshop had been much less efficient in the drawers where they lived in this house’s garage. We couldn’t see what was in anything from above, so we were constantly lifting up jar after jar to find the right anchors or screws.

I brought all of the drawers into the shed so I could see my stash all in one place. Not knowing exactly how I’d divvy everything up, I bought three styles of small part organizers from the store (slide-out, tip-out, portable). They were each less than $20 (they’re just plastic) and offered slightly different size and configuration options (spoiler alert: I ended up returning the one laying on the floor because I just didn’t need it).

There’s not really any magic to how I sorted things, so I’ll spare you that part. I just kept screws near screws, nails near nails, etc. I didn’t label anything because, again, I’ve found that I don’t keep up with labels (or as I once heard someone say: “I’m a Millennial, I don’t like labels.“). The real magic here was taking the time to mount these on the wall.

They come with keyhole cut-outs on the back that make them ready-to-hang, so I found an otherwise pretty useless skinny section of the wall and hung them on top of one another. I’ll warn you that the plastic covers on the bottom one are a little janky. You can see I already chipped off the top corner of one, but it doesn’t really affect my day-to-day use of them.

I also like the small gray compartments because they can be removed all the way, so we can take the appropriate container of screws over to our workspace if need be.

What’s Next?

I wouldn’t call the shed “done” yet because the entire other wall across from my shelving & scrap storage is still basically empty – well, except for our miter saw, the stand for our wet saw, and some sawhorses. But I’m actually planning to keep it pretty empty for a little while. It’s not because our garage is suddenly perfect (it’s still far from presentable thanks to the future beach house furniture that’s slowly taking up residence there). No, it’s just that I’m finding it’s nice to have flexible work space in the shed, rather than cramming every corner with storage.

I probably will add a few other areas/functions sooner or later since there’s room, but I’m not in a rush. This has already solved a lot of our top priority problems in the garage (no more sawdust covering everything!), so the shed is definitely earning its keep. Especially considering I’ve basically only had to buy a workbench, some plastic containers, and a few 2 x 4″ boards to make it functional.

And the moral of the story? Doing something is better than doing nothing, even if it means you have to let go of making everything picture perfect and just focus on making it function – especially when it comes to hardworking spaces like a shed, garage, or even a mudroom. You don’t have to solve everything all at once, but even just by starting with something that’s flexible and not too expensive will help you find your momentum. In other words: carpe shed diem!

**This post contains affiliates**

The post Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed appeared first on Young House Love.

[vincentbnaughton]

Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed

Last summer we bought a shed to alleviate some of our garage storage woes/messes (more on that here). It was love at first sight, but alas – it remained empty for months as I sat paralyzed, unable to pinpoint the “perfect” way to organize it. I didn’t want to let my baby down by not letting her live up to her full potential. Listeners of our podcast have heard me mention it time and time again (me saying the word “shed” might as well be a drinking game at this point). But once I let go of the idea of getting it perfect and just steered myself towards solving my storage problems one-by-one, we were finally able to help our empty shed fulfill its destiny become the storage workhorse I always knew it could be.

The reason I was having trouble getting started was because I couldn’t figure out how many functions I wanted to cram in there. Is it mostly workspace and tool storage? Do I put garden and outdoor tools in there too? And if so, how much space is all of that stuff gonna take up? I didn’t want to move so much in there that we couldn’t comfortably work, and I was getting nowhere trying to floor plan it. Ultimately I told myself: prioritize the functions you want it to serve & the problems you want it to solve – then just work down the list until it’s full enough. Whatever didn’t make it could just stay in the garage. Sounds simple, and it was. And it was actionable, so I was finally doing something.

Solution #1: Workbench & Pegboard

If nothing else, I wanted to add a work table. We had one in our last workshop, but for the last 3.5 years here we’ve just been working on the garage floor (#glamorous). Also, by shifting most of our woodworking to the shed, we’d no longer deal with having sawdust coating every last surface in the garage every time we cut something in there (the bikes, the kids’ scooters, the car, etc). So the very first thing I did was buy this workbench from Home Depot.

The price was right ($77!) and it is easily movable/collapsible, in case I want to arrange things differently down the line. That was another key to unlock my indecision: creating flexibility. It makes you worry a lot less if you know you can change or undo something down the line. But so far: no regrets. It’s been great and we like where we set it up: centered on the longest wall, right across from the doors. Consider it a focal point of sorts.

You can also see I bought some clear 12-gallon storage bins that fit nicely underneath it (like these), and discovered some pegboard panels leftover from our second book that would fit perfectly behind the bench once they were cut down and hung (see below). Booyah, free storage. My garage hoarding does pay off sometimes!

I loved having tools on pegboards in my old workshop. Call it cliché, but they really are a visually appealing and (more importantly) very functional way to store this kind of stuff. Plus, it’s a huuuuge improvement over where we’d been grabbing many of our tools lately: random drawers here and there, not to mention several “who-knows-what’s-in-the-bottom-of-that” bins that were never unpacked since we moved to this house back in 2013. We just sort of stirred them with our arms to find stuff. Like nail and screw soup.

By reusing my old pegboard hooks and clips (as well as referencing some of the old pics) I was able to get most of our small-to-medium sized tools organized there. I even used some of the space above the pegboards to stash sanding blocks, tubs of wood filler, and other un-hangables.

Most of what’s out here is stuff that we will primarily use in the shed (and we still have some duplicate screwdrivers and such in our kitchen for quick access). We also made a small picture-hanging box (sort of like a small tackle box that we filled with nails, ook hooks, screws, and anchors) which makes more sense to keep inside than out in the shed.

The clear storage bins underneath are sorted by project – tiling supplies in one, lawn irrigation stuff another, and painting stuff in a third. The fourth is still empty (room to grow!). And, although the clear bins aren’t as aesthetically pleasing as solid colored ones might be, I like that we can quickly see what’s inside without having to rely on labels (which I’ve found I rarely keep updated). Function over form in here, fo sho.

Solution #2: Scrap Wood Storage

One of the main contributors to our garage looking disgusting (besides the thin layer of sawdust on everything) was all the scrap wood strewn around. I refuse to show you a wide shot of our former garage grossness, but here are a couple of corners to give you a taste. There were plenty of contributors to the chaos, but the scrap wood was getting to the point where it was too hard to access or sift through, so I was rarely checking it thoroughly before starting a new project. It had officially become more refuse than resource.

So with my workspace set – I turned my attention to making sensible scrap wood storage in the shed. I started by hauling all of it OUT of the garage and INTO the shed (I also set a general rule for myself – once anything came into the shed, it didn’t get to go back to the garage). You can see here that I had amassed quite the diverse collection.

I turned to Pinterest for ideas for scrap wood storage or organizers, but most of what I saw was either very elaborate (it spins! it folds out! it makes coffee! – okay, maybe not that last one) or alarmingly tidy. Am I the only one with wood that doesn’t nicely match? So I decided to just improvise a bit. After all, my main goal was to put it all in one place, in a way that I could sort through it all without everything falling on me or my pocket sized wife (we might never find her). Oh, and I also wanted to use as much scrap wood as possible to actually build it. I had to grab a few new 2×4″s for enough stability, but I really resisted the urge to buy more lumber to corral my existing lumber.

Here’s where I ended up, and then I’ll show you how I got there. I realize all the wood-on-wood tones don’t make this super easy to decipher, but in person it’s gloriously simple.

To create the flat storage area at the base, I cut some 2 x 4″s into two matching boxes. My sizes were determined by the space where I was putting it (the corner beyond the side window), but you can adjust the lengths based on your needs.

I used my pocket hole jig to attach the pieces and form the two flat rectangles, and then broke out my nailer to secure some thin plywood scraps over the top to create the bottom platform.

Using more 2 x 4″s, I cut and screwed several short “posts” along the side and back edges of the bottom platform (again using pocket holes). The front stayed open so I could slide my pieces in that way.

Then I secured the other platform on top of the posts by screwing directly through it into each post.

Next I nailed a thicker 1/2″ piece of scrap plywood on top. The heftier top shelf not only added support to the structure, it also would better withstand the weight of all of the wood that would be resting on it eventually.

Then I cut 8 three-foot pieces of 2 x 4″ and used pocket holes to secure them to the base. I steadied each post and gave the whole structure more stability by nailing a frame around the top and bottom perimeter, leaving the top front open so I could easily lean pieces inside each open cubby. But the bottom front piece is important to keep the leaned wood from slipping out, so don’t leave that out.

You can also see from this angle that I added extra back & side pieces to the far right compartment (which would store the smallest pieces of wood) to keep things from falling through the sides. I also left a gap on the right side of the organizer where I could slide in large flat pieces against the wall.

Here’s that after again. It’s a bit fuller than I wish it was, but now that I can find pieces more easily than before (it’s all in one spot! it’s organized by length!) I’ve already found myself making fewer runs to the store and relying more on leftover scraps.

The only thing I might still add is a small basket or bucket mounted to the wall so I can toss in small leftover blocks of wood. I find those handy to have around for things like propping up an item that we’re painting or spray painting so it doesn’t get stuck to the tarp or cardboard underneath. Also, I clearly have a problem not throwing any wood away. The first step is admitting you have a problem.

Solution #3: Heavy Duty Shelving

Not only did I want to get some of our bigger tools (table saw, tile saw, wet vac, etc) out of the way in the garage – we also wanted to move those into the shed because that’s where many of them will actually get used! So next up on the to-do list was some heavy duty shelving. You know, something that would stand up to the weight of bigger tools (more than your typical plastic or wire garage shelf). Here’s where I ended up.

This is just on the left side of the same window that is to the left of the scrap wood holder, so this whole side of the shed is now maximized with storage. I was able to build the entire thing out of leftover plywood and new 2 x 4″ boards. I started by cutting 4 pairs of matching 2 x 4″s, measured to fill the wall between the corner and the window.

Using a level and a tape measure, I used long screws (into studs!) to hang one board from each pair against the wall. Your shelves are ultimately going to rest on top of these boards. You can see the spacing I chose below, but it’s really up to you – I would just warn against not leaving yourself enough TALL shelf space (the two lower shelves are so helpful for larger items).

Next – and this is going to sound weird – you loosely attach the other half of the each pair directly over the boards already in the wall, making sure to line everything up perfectly.

I used two screws per board, and you don’t have to drive your screws all the way in, just enough to hold everything together for the next few minutes. The attaching thing is just temporary.

Next, you’re going to add vertical 2 x 4″ supports that rest on the floor and are cut to go no higher than your top board. I started with three, but as you saw in the final photo – I ended up removing the middle post. You’ll want to screw these posts tightly into the outer horizontal pieces (make sure your screws aren’t so crazy long that they go into the back pieces too). And again, use your level to keep them straight.

Now you can remove those “temporary” screws and the whole front portion of your shelving system will pull away from the wall in one glorious piece. Sorry I don’t have a photo of this but it was like MAGIC. You’re basically cloning the back frame exactly so that when you pull it off the front frame, the horizontal shelf supports will be perfectly lined up. So then you just have to add some side pieces that will create the depth you need for the shelves and it all gets attached again.

When you’re done with that part – it should look a little something like this.

Next, I added some leftover 1/2″ plywood pieces to the top with nails. That’s when I realized it was feeling EXTREMELY steady and I could remove that middle post (which would ultimately make it easier to slide large objects onto the shelves).

I’ll admit I didn’t really “plan” what was going to fit on there when I built it, but it turned out to be great for lots of our boxed tools, random painting supplies, various saws, etc. This thing is so dang sturdy you could invite a few dozen kids to climb all over it. Or fill it with tons of heavy tools, which is what I did. Sorry, kids.

Ana White, who gave us the idea for this project, actually has a great video that shows this process in action (and on a much bigger scale!) in case you were wondering how to implement it for a space like a garage.

Solution #4: Small Part Organization

With most of my large and medium sized tools out of the garage and into the shed, I turned my attention to the tiny stuff: screws, nails, etc. The mason jars I had used on a shelf in my last workshop had been much less efficient in the drawers where they lived in this house’s garage. We couldn’t see what was in anything from above, so we were constantly lifting up jar after jar to find the right anchors or screws.

I brought all of the drawers into the shed so I could see my stash all in one place. Not knowing exactly how I’d divvy everything up, I bought three styles of small part organizers from the store (slide-out, tip-out, portable). They were each less than $20 (they’re just plastic) and offered slightly different size and configuration options (spoiler alert: I ended up returning the one laying on the floor because I just didn’t need it).

There’s not really any magic to how I sorted things, so I’ll spare you that part. I just kept screws near screws, nails near nails, etc. I didn’t label anything because, again, I’ve found that I don’t keep up with labels (or as I once heard someone say: “I’m a Millennial, I don’t like labels.“). The real magic here was taking the time to mount these on the wall.

They come with keyhole cut-outs on the back that make them ready-to-hang, so I found an otherwise pretty useless skinny section of the wall and hung them on top of one another. I’ll warn you that the plastic covers on the bottom one are a little janky. You can see I already chipped off the top corner of one, but it doesn’t really affect my day-to-day use of them.

I also like the small gray compartments because they can be removed all the way, so we can take the appropriate container of screws over to our workspace if need be.

What’s Next?

I wouldn’t call the shed “done” yet because the entire other wall across from my shelving & scrap storage is still basically empty – well, except for our miter saw, the stand for our wet saw, and some sawhorses. But I’m actually planning to keep it pretty empty for a little while. It’s not because our garage is suddenly perfect (it’s still far from presentable thanks to the future beach house furniture that’s slowly taking up residence there). No, it’s just that I’m finding it’s nice to have flexible work space in the shed, rather than cramming every corner with storage.

I probably will add a few other areas/functions sooner or later since there’s room, but I’m not in a rush. This has already solved a lot of our top priority problems in the garage (no more sawdust covering everything!), so the shed is definitely earning its keep. Especially considering I’ve basically only had to buy a workbench, some plastic containers, and a few 2 x 4″ boards to make it functional.

And the moral of the story? Doing something is better than doing nothing, even if it means you have to let go of making everything picture perfect and just focus on making it function – especially when it comes to hardworking spaces like a shed, garage, or even a mudroom. You don’t have to solve everything all at once, but even just by starting with something that’s flexible and not too expensive will help you find your momentum. In other words: carpe shed diem!

**This post contains affiliates**

The post Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed appeared first on Young House Love.

[vincentbnaughton]

Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed

Last summer we bought a shed to alleviate some of our garage storage woes/messes (more on that here). It was love at first sight, but alas – it remained empty for months as I sat paralyzed, unable to pinpoint the “perfect” way to organize it. I didn’t want to let my baby down by not letting her live up to her full potential. Listeners of our podcast have heard me mention it time and time again (me saying the word “shed” might as well be a drinking game at this point). But once I let go of the idea of getting it perfect and just steered myself towards solving my storage problems one-by-one, we were finally able to help our empty shed fulfill its destiny become the storage workhorse I always knew it could be.

The reason I was having trouble getting started was because I couldn’t figure out how many functions I wanted to cram in there. Is it mostly workspace and tool storage? Do I put garden and outdoor tools in there too? And if so, how much space is all of that stuff gonna take up? I didn’t want to move so much in there that we couldn’t comfortably work, and I was getting nowhere trying to floor plan it. Ultimately I told myself: prioritize the functions you want it to serve & the problems you want it to solve – then just work down the list until it’s full enough. Whatever didn’t make it could just stay in the garage. Sounds simple, and it was. And it was actionable, so I was finally doing something.

Solution #1: Workbench & Pegboard

If nothing else, I wanted to add a work table. We had one in our last workshop, but for the last 3.5 years here we’ve just been working on the garage floor (#glamorous). Also, by shifting most of our woodworking to the shed, we’d no longer deal with having sawdust coating every last surface in the garage every time we cut something in there (the bikes, the kids’ scooters, the car, etc). So the very first thing I did was buy this workbench from Home Depot.

The price was right ($77!) and it is easily movable/collapsible, in case I want to arrange things differently down the line. That was another key to unlock my indecision: creating flexibility. It makes you worry a lot less if you know you can change or undo something down the line. But so far: no regrets. It’s been great and we like where we set it up: centered on the longest wall, right across from the doors. Consider it a focal point of sorts.

You can also see I bought some clear 12-gallon storage bins that fit nicely underneath it (like these), and discovered some pegboard panels leftover from our second book that would fit perfectly behind the bench once they were cut down and hung (see below). Booyah, free storage. My garage hoarding does pay off sometimes!

I loved having tools on pegboards in my old workshop. Call it cliché, but they really are a visually appealing and (more importantly) very functional way to store this kind of stuff. Plus, it’s a huuuuge improvement over where we’d been grabbing many of our tools lately: random drawers here and there, not to mention several “who-knows-what’s-in-the-bottom-of-that” bins that were never unpacked since we moved to this house back in 2013. We just sort of stirred them with our arms to find stuff. Like nail and screw soup.

By reusing my old pegboard hooks and clips (as well as referencing some of the old pics) I was able to get most of our small-to-medium sized tools organized there. I even used some of the space above the pegboards to stash sanding blocks, tubs of wood filler, and other un-hangables.

Most of what’s out here is stuff that we will primarily use in the shed (and we still have some duplicate screwdrivers and such in our kitchen for quick access). We also made a small picture-hanging box (sort of like a small tackle box that we filled with nails, ook hooks, screws, and anchors) which makes more sense to keep inside than out in the shed.

The clear storage bins underneath are sorted by project – tiling supplies in one, lawn irrigation stuff another, and painting stuff in a third. The fourth is still empty (room to grow!). And, although the clear bins aren’t as aesthetically pleasing as solid colored ones might be, I like that we can quickly see what’s inside without having to rely on labels (which I’ve found I rarely keep updated). Function over form in here, fo sho.

Solution #2: Scrap Wood Storage

One of the main contributors to our garage looking disgusting (besides the thin layer of sawdust on everything) was all the scrap wood strewn around. I refuse to show you a wide shot of our former garage grossness, but here are a couple of corners to give you a taste. There were plenty of contributors to the chaos, but the scrap wood was getting to the point where it was too hard to access or sift through, so I was rarely checking it thoroughly before starting a new project. It had officially become more refuse than resource.

So with my workspace set – I turned my attention to making sensible scrap wood storage in the shed. I started by hauling all of it OUT of the garage and INTO the shed (I also set a general rule for myself – once anything came into the shed, it didn’t get to go back to the garage). You can see here that I had amassed quite the diverse collection.

I turned to Pinterest for ideas for scrap wood storage or organizers, but most of what I saw was either very elaborate (it spins! it folds out! it makes coffee! – okay, maybe not that last one) or alarmingly tidy. Am I the only one with wood that doesn’t nicely match? So I decided to just improvise a bit. After all, my main goal was to put it all in one place, in a way that I could sort through it all without everything falling on me or my pocket sized wife (we might never find her). Oh, and I also wanted to use as much scrap wood as possible to actually build it. I had to grab a few new 2×4″s for enough stability, but I really resisted the urge to buy more lumber to corral my existing lumber.

Here’s where I ended up, and then I’ll show you how I got there. I realize all the wood-on-wood tones don’t make this super easy to decipher, but in person it’s gloriously simple.

To create the flat storage area at the base, I cut some 2 x 4″s into two matching boxes. My sizes were determined by the space where I was putting it (the corner beyond the side window), but you can adjust the lengths based on your needs.

I used my pocket hole jig to attach the pieces and form the two flat rectangles, and then broke out my nailer to secure some thin plywood scraps over the top to create the bottom platform.

Using more 2 x 4″s, I cut and screwed several short “posts” along the side and back edges of the bottom platform (again using pocket holes). The front stayed open so I could slide my pieces in that way.

Then I secured the other platform on top of the posts by screwing directly through it into each post.

Next I nailed a thicker 1/2″ piece of scrap plywood on top. The heftier top shelf not only added support to the structure, it also would better withstand the weight of all of the wood that would be resting on it eventually.

Then I cut 8 three-foot pieces of 2 x 4″ and used pocket holes to secure them to the base. I steadied each post and gave the whole structure more stability by nailing a frame around the top and bottom perimeter, leaving the top front open so I could easily lean pieces inside each open cubby. But the bottom front piece is important to keep the leaned wood from slipping out, so don’t leave that out.

You can also see from this angle that I added extra back & side pieces to the far right compartment (which would store the smallest pieces of wood) to keep things from falling through the sides. I also left a gap on the right side of the organizer where I could slide in large flat pieces against the wall.

Here’s that after again. It’s a bit fuller than I wish it was, but now that I can find pieces more easily than before (it’s all in one spot! it’s organized by length!) I’ve already found myself making fewer runs to the store and relying more on leftover scraps.

The only thing I might still add is a small basket or bucket mounted to the wall so I can toss in small leftover blocks of wood. I find those handy to have around for things like propping up an item that we’re painting or spray painting so it doesn’t get stuck to the tarp or cardboard underneath. Also, I clearly have a problem not throwing any wood away. The first step is admitting you have a problem.

Solution #3: Heavy Duty Shelving

Not only did I want to get some of our bigger tools (table saw, tile saw, wet vac, etc) out of the way in the garage – we also wanted to move those into the shed because that’s where many of them will actually get used! So next up on the to-do list was some heavy duty shelving. You know, something that would stand up to the weight of bigger tools (more than your typical plastic or wire garage shelf). Here’s where I ended up.

This is just on the left side of the same window that is to the left of the scrap wood holder, so this whole side of the shed is now maximized with storage. I was able to build the entire thing out of leftover plywood and new 2 x 4″ boards. I started by cutting 4 pairs of matching 2 x 4″s, measured to fill the wall between the corner and the window.

Using a level and a tape measure, I used long screws (into studs!) to hang one board from each pair against the wall. Your shelves are ultimately going to rest on top of these boards. You can see the spacing I chose below, but it’s really up to you – I would just warn against not leaving yourself enough TALL shelf space (the two lower shelves are so helpful for larger items).

Next – and this is going to sound weird – you loosely attach the other half of the each pair directly over the boards already in the wall, making sure to line everything up perfectly.

I used two screws per board, and you don’t have to drive your screws all the way in, just enough to hold everything together for the next few minutes. The attaching thing is just temporary.

Next, you’re going to add vertical 2 x 4″ supports that rest on the floor and are cut to go no higher than your top board. I started with three, but as you saw in the final photo – I ended up removing the middle post. You’ll want to screw these posts tightly into the outer horizontal pieces (make sure your screws aren’t so crazy long that they go into the back pieces too). And again, use your level to keep them straight.

Now you can remove those “temporary” screws and the whole front portion of your shelving system will pull away from the wall in one glorious piece. Sorry I don’t have a photo of this but it was like MAGIC. You’re basically cloning the back frame exactly so that when you pull it off the front frame, the horizontal shelf supports will be perfectly lined up. So then you just have to add some side pieces that will create the depth you need for the shelves and it all gets attached again.

When you’re done with that part – it should look a little something like this.

Next, I added some leftover 1/2″ plywood pieces to the top with nails. That’s when I realized it was feeling EXTREMELY steady and I could remove that middle post (which would ultimately make it easier to slide large objects onto the shelves).

I’ll admit I didn’t really “plan” what was going to fit on there when I built it, but it turned out to be great for lots of our boxed tools, random painting supplies, various saws, etc. This thing is so dang sturdy you could invite a few dozen kids to climb all over it. Or fill it with tons of heavy tools, which is what I did. Sorry, kids.

Ana White, who gave us the idea for this project, actually has a great video that shows this process in action (and on a much bigger scale!) in case you were wondering how to implement it for a space like a garage.

Solution #4: Small Part Organization

With most of my large and medium sized tools out of the garage and into the shed, I turned my attention to the tiny stuff: screws, nails, etc. The mason jars I had used on a shelf in my last workshop had been much less efficient in the drawers where they lived in this house’s garage. We couldn’t see what was in anything from above, so we were constantly lifting up jar after jar to find the right anchors or screws.

I brought all of the drawers into the shed so I could see my stash all in one place. Not knowing exactly how I’d divvy everything up, I bought three styles of small part organizers from the store (slide-out, tip-out, portable). They were each less than $20 (they’re just plastic) and offered slightly different size and configuration options (spoiler alert: I ended up returning the one laying on the floor because I just didn’t need it).

There’s not really any magic to how I sorted things, so I’ll spare you that part. I just kept screws near screws, nails near nails, etc. I didn’t label anything because, again, I’ve found that I don’t keep up with labels (or as I once heard someone say: “I’m a Millennial, I don’t like labels.“). The real magic here was taking the time to mount these on the wall.

They come with keyhole cut-outs on the back that make them ready-to-hang, so I found an otherwise pretty useless skinny section of the wall and hung them on top of one another. I’ll warn you that the plastic covers on the bottom one are a little janky. You can see I already chipped off the top corner of one, but it doesn’t really affect my day-to-day use of them.

I also like the small gray compartments because they can be removed all the way, so we can take the appropriate container of screws over to our workspace if need be.

What’s Next?

I wouldn’t call the shed “done” yet because the entire other wall across from my shelving & scrap storage is still basically empty – well, except for our miter saw, the stand for our wet saw, and some sawhorses. But I’m actually planning to keep it pretty empty for a little while. It’s not because our garage is suddenly perfect (it’s still far from presentable thanks to the future beach house furniture that’s slowly taking up residence there). No, it’s just that I’m finding it’s nice to have flexible work space in the shed, rather than cramming every corner with storage.

I probably will add a few other areas/functions sooner or later since there’s room, but I’m not in a rush. This has already solved a lot of our top priority problems in the garage (no more sawdust covering everything!), so the shed is definitely earning its keep. Especially considering I’ve basically only had to buy a workbench, some plastic containers, and a few 2 x 4″ boards to make it functional.

And the moral of the story? Doing something is better than doing nothing, even if it means you have to let go of making everything picture perfect and just focus on making it function – especially when it comes to hardworking spaces like a shed, garage, or even a mudroom. You don’t have to solve everything all at once, but even just by starting with something that’s flexible and not too expensive will help you find your momentum. In other words: carpe shed diem!

**This post contains affiliates**

The post Four Ways We Added Storage & Function To My Beloved Shed appeared first on Young House Love.