#oh jesus christ i just realised i didnt worry at all about people seeing them all day today. thats insane. :)

[alexanderpearce]

guys it was chill

[whumpasaurus101]

19th April, Plant Day!

I cannot tell you how tempted I was to write abt fungi but I didn’t want @brutal-nemesis to kill me :) so I can safely say that there is no fungi do not worry :D

Cw: plant whump / ‘stabbing’ sort of / deep cuts / caretaking after / fluff / angst / my gaey boys not having a good time tbh / Alicia being a bitch as usual /

Asher wasn’t happy. He was in Alicia’s house and Jack was right at her feet, kneeling. She raked her hands through his hair. Aaher looked at her in disgust from where he knelt, far away from them both. Why did Rodger have to leave him with this bitch? He would have prefered anyone, anyone over her. Jesus, he’d rather stick a fork in his own fucking eye than be here.

“Anyways,” Alicia sighed, “I want to go to the garden centre to revamp this house and whatnot and the two of you can come if you behave, Asher, I’m looking straight at you. Think of all the fun you could have if you don't throw a fucking tantrum, huh? I’ll even let you two go off for a bit if you're good. But keep in mind, I throw knives like a fucking champ so if one of you decides to try and run, you’ll get a knife in your fucking neck, understood?”

The garden centre was huge, Asher’s eyes lit up as he saw the building. And then there were people, normal people, not sick psychos! Couples, families, you name it! A sudden yank ripped Asher from his thoughts as Alicia pulled back on his top. He stumbled back and Alicia spoke in his ear, “Listen up big boy, you make one single sound to any other people and I will fucking kill you, got it?” Asher quickly nodded, scared to speak.

She forced a smile, “Good, now, let’s not waste any time!” The three walked into the centre, Asher standing in between the pair as he was least trusted. Alicia had her handbag rested against her forearm as she strode in.

There were plants everywhere. Some crawled up the wall, some hung from the ceiling and some were neatly potted and shelved. Asher, completely lost in his thoughts, didn't realise how fast he was walking until Alicia yanked him back, “What the fuck did I just tell you?!” Asher lowered his head, “Sorry.”

Both Jack and Asher followed Alicia obediently as she strolled around the store. Eventually, she had had enough. “Alright, alright! You're starting to piss me off! Just- just- ugh, just go -and stick together. But I swear that if either one of you tries something funny, I will slit both of your throats. Asher looked to Jack who smiled at him. He followed him to the outside area as they held hands in front of them so Alicia couldn't see.

Jack pulled Asher into a corner that was hidden by trees and kissed him gently, wrapping his arms around his waist. Asher chuckled, “Nothing funny, huh?” Jack smiled, “Fine, we can just stop you know, look at these… trees?” Asher chortled, snorting slightly at the end. He traced his hand against Jack’s cheek and jaw, rubbing it slightly, feeling the short stubble.

He brought Jack’s face closer and pecked him on the nose. Jack brought Asher’s hips closer, they kissed again as Jack raked his hands through Asher’s hazelnut hair. “What. the. Fuck?” They both pulled away with a jolt.

Alicia stood there, gobsmacked, “I-you.” She couldn’t form any other words than, “What the fuck.” Asher couldn’t breathe, “Pl-please don’t tell Rodger!! Please!!” That’s when Alicia smiled and chuckled, looking at Jack, “So you’re into Asher, huh? You like the ‘bad boys’?” Jack gulped, blinking fast, “Alicia, please! I-”

Alicia slapped him hard across the face, “I asked you a fucking question!” Jack whimpered. Asher looked in shock, finding himself frozen in shock. “Yes! Okay! I love him, I mean, what is there not to love about him? He’s perfect! He’s brave and he’s handsome. He’s there for me when I need him and he makes me happy every fucking day!”

Asher felt his cheeks flush a deep red. Alicia looked at him blankly, “How sweet. But you know this is simply just not allowed.” The two boys gulped. “Alicia plea-”

“Shut up!!” Asher flinched as she took a step towards him, caressing her sharp nails scraping against his cheek, “Now, now Asher, you know he’s way out of your league!” She cackled, “I mean, what’s the fucking age gap?” Asher clenched his jaw. Her thumb’s nail slightly pressing into his cheek as he let out a yelp.

“Alicia,” Jack raised his voice. Alicia turned to him, nails still digging into Asher’s skin. “Please, he didn’t-”

“You know what?” Alicia sneered, “I don’t think you understand. You are mine and Asher is Rodger’s. You are not permitted to even touch him.” Her grip tightened as blood now ran from Asher’s cut.

“I know, I know, Alicia, please, don’t do this, it was all my fault! I started this! He still doesn’t understand the rules!” Alicia sighed, yanking her hand away, making the cut bigger. “No, he doesn’t, but he will.”

Asher had no clue what she meant until an hour later when he was tied to a chair in Alicia’s kitchen. Alicia circled him, shopping bag in hand. “Have you ever heard of a honey locust?” Asher just glared at her in response, dried blood stuck to his cheek form earlier. “No?” She hummed, taking out what looked like branches of a tree. “Hmmm, well, I was going to give these to Rodger to use them on you, but I guess I can just get more and use these bad boys now!!”

Jack pulled at his cuffs which kept his hands right at the fridge’s handle, “Alicia I-“

“SHUT UP!!!!” Both boys flinched at how loud Alicia was. “Stop sticking up for your bitch all the time! You are mine and he is Rodger’s. And the bast way for you to understand things is to hurt people that you love.”

And with that, she got a thorn and quickly moved it down Asher’s collarbone, leaving a dark red line which blood fell from. Asher let out a howl of pain. His restraints left him unable to double over and protect himself.

Alicia snickered, “Oof, that’s a deep one. Oops?” She did the same thing on the exact another side. This continued until deep gashes covered his abdomen.

When she got bored, she picked up the thorns one by one, piling them into her hand. She dropped the branch and grinned at Jack. She approached a trembling Asher and traced one of the sharp thorns all across and down Asher’s arm, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin.

Without warning, she quickly stabbed a thorn straight into his arm. He yelled, he couldn’t take all of this pain. “P-please, no more! I- AGH!” He was interrupted when she poked another one right under the previous thorn. He felt his vision starting to blur.

Alicia, noticing he was starting to blackout, decided it was enough, for now. “Oh what now? No ‘smart comments’? You see, after a while, I do start to miss them. Its quite satisfying to be honest! You know, Rodger being unable to control his mutt while Jack just sits right at my side like a good bitch.”

Asher saw Jack flinch through his blurred vision. Jack had never heard Alicia call him that. It was always Rodger who did, never Alicia. Did she prefer Asher? No, no, she couldn’t! She loved Jack… right? He looked to the two, Alicia was running a hand through Asher’s hair with a smile as the other’s head lolled to the side as he slowly drifted out of it.

---

Jack was allowed to clean Asher’s wounds. He had a tweezers and was trying to pluck the thorns out from Asher’s delicate skin. Asher let out painful moans as he rocked back and forward. Jack blinked away his tears, “Ash- Asher please, I need you to stay still.” Asher did but once the tweezers were back on the last thorn, he flinched. Jack rolled his eyes, “ASHER! I NEED YOU TO FUCKING-” He froze the minute Asher’ tear-stained face and puffy eyes turned to him. He looked as if he was about to absolutely ball crying.

“Asher, oh my god, Asher, I am so sorry!” Asher blinked and the tears followed. They streamed down his cheeks as his chest rose and fell fast. He whimpered and bit his lip to stop himself from sobbing. “Asher, please I- I didn’t mean to! I’m so sorry!!”

Asher sniffed and blinked rapidly, “ ‘s alright, y-you didnt m-mean to.” Jack’s heart felt heavy but he had to keep cleaning the wounds before Alicia would come in and make some snarky comments. “This is going to sting- wait, I might have some pain killer I can give you, mkay?”

Asher nodded weakly. “Alright, give me a second.” He got up out of the empty bath they sat in and walked to the bathroom cabinet. He scanned through the shelves and his eyes landed on one of the orange containers.

He opened it up and poured two pills into his palm. He then got a glass and filled it with water, knowing the water from the bathroom probably wasn’t the best but it was better to get rid of all of the pain Asher was in already.

He handed Asher the pills and glass. Asher looked at him, waiting for a nod of approval before putting the pills in his mouth and washing them down with the water. “Th-thank you” His voice was hoarse. Jack wiped tears of his own and sat back behind Asher.

Asher’s flinches were less violent. Jack smiled, knowing that his love was in less pain. No- no, not his. Rodger’s. The heaviness settled in his heart once more. Surely there was some way of keeping Asher. Keeping? What the hell was wrong with him?! Maybe he didn’t deserve Asher. Maybe it was for the best.

He looked down as he felt Asher’s back press against him. He was asleep. His adorable face looked so peaceful. His eyes were closed and he wasn’t in pain. His angry face was relaxed and the usual crease in his eyebrows was gone.

Jack gently traced his cheek with his finger. His scar had been reopened and looked painful. After a few moments of peace, Alicia burst through the door, “Jesus fucking Christ, you cant keep your hands off him, can you? After what he went through because of you!” Jack’s head snapped up to her, “Alicia, please, let him sleep, he never sleeps! Please, I’ll do anything!” Alicia fake smiled at him for a moment before shoving her arms under Asher’s arms and dragging him out of the bathtub. Asher let out a yell of shock as he was brought out of his sweet peaceful dreams back to this phscho bitch.

“Alicia, leave him, alone, please!” Alicia just giggled in excitement, “No way, this is a fun thing to play with. You two think you're so in love. But none of you knows what love is!” Asher hung his head in shame and embarrassment. Jack noticed, he knew that Asher had absolutely no memories of his childhood, he didn't know what love was. Jack felt terrible.

Alicia looked between the pair with a shit-eating grin, “Well, you guys must be tired! Asher, you can sleep on the floor in the kitchen. Jack, you're sleeping in with me!” Jack knew better than to refuse. Asher was dragged out of the room and Jack was left sitting in the bathtub, waiting for Alicia to come and show him who he really belonged to.

—-

Taglist:

@as-a-matter-of-whump @yesthisiswhump @appy-polly-loggies @jordanstrophe @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi @likeit-or-whumpit @milk-carton-offical

[legxllyblxndc]

bonfire night ( @foreverwednesday )

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Annabelle wasn't used to her and Gabe not being on totally great terms but she was still a little annoyed at him and how he had talked to her. And that he had told Link and, in tern, Emilie, about the guy she was seeing. They had made up but it still wasn't the same, she didn't think. "How is the boys new place?" She hadn't visited yet. She had been a little caught up in spending time with the boyfriend when she could. What Gabe had said to her was definitely going round and round in her brain but she didn't know what to do about it. She enjoyed being around Patrick - even if he wasn't who she should be with. She thought that being someones mistress was the least that she deserved.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link chuckled as he looked over at Gabe. They were running late, something that was pretty often now that they lived together. He was loving being out of his parents house. He felt a sense of freedom that he hadn't felt before. "Gabe, I swear to god you better hurry up otherwise we're gonna be seriously late and Emilie will have our heads!" He laughed. Even though they had decided to not be together right now, he was excited to see her. He didn't think that, that would go away. He had taken a little bit of something while he was waiting for Gabe so he felt really good.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Theo smiled as he saw Edie. He had been waiting outside her out and he was glad that she was finally there. It was colder than he had thought that it would have been and he was regretting coming out in just his jumper and not a coat. "Hey - you look really nice." He nodded his head and took her hand. Theo was becoming a little more confident when it came to Edie now and he liked that a lot. "You ready to get going? Are we meeting everyone there?" He asked.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence had been in two minds as to if to go to the bonfire night celebrations or not. She knew that Tommy and his friends would be there and she hadn't seen him since just after the wedding. She didn't think that she really wanted to see him. Things had been pretty final with them the last time that they had spoke and Florence knew that it was needed. They were never going to be what the other wanted them to be. She had told him that she loved him and he said that he could never love her back. Florence didn't know if her heart would ever recover. She sighed as her friend shoved a shot in her hand but she drank it anyway.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: It was a rare night that she and James were both free and while things weren't completely okay with them - Marissa thought that she owed it to him to have a chance to make things up. She didn't really know if she would ever be able to forgive him for what had happened but she really, really wanted to. She looked around them as they got to the bonfire. "I'm so hungry." Marissa laughed. "Can we get hotdogs?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah couldn't stop himself from being excited to see Joshua. It had only been a couple days since they had last seen one another but he never got tired of it. He wasn't sure where the two of them were - he didn't think that Josh would be ready to admit his feelings for him fully but Elijah thought that he could deal with that. He wanted to deal with that. He smiled as he spotted Maddie and quickly walked over to her. "Hey - you look lovely. I love your coat."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy really enjoyed spending time with Miles. She found him a lot of fun and she thought that the two of them being exclusive was pretty much exactly where she wanted to be right now. She didn't want to have to commit to something, fully. She was glad that James didnt' seem to mind that. "Fuck me - did it get colder as we walked here?" She asked him. Cassidy didn't live far and she had said that she would meet her friends there. She smiled as she spotted Josh, "I'll be back in a sec." She chuckled to him, as she realised that he had spotted someone that he knew too. "Hey!" She beamed as she wrapped her arms around her friend.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Dev had heard about the bonfire and he was never one to miss out on an event - especially one where it seemed like he could have a lot of fun. He had gone on his own. He found it more fun like that, at least that way he didn't have to worry about someone else. But he smiled as he spotted Miles, "Mate!" He called over to the other. "I didn't know that you were going to be here."

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Emilie felt like pretty much everything had changed so much in the month since the wedding; she'd learned a lot about her friends, including just who Annabelle's new boyfriend was and she'd had to make her peace with that, as well as the fact that she and Link had decided to be together. On top of that, she'd also broken things off with Ezra - so she hadn't had a lot of time to be going to events, this was the first one in a while. "It's fine - I mean, it's nice. But Gabe lives there, so it's already messy." She rolled her eyes. She was glad the boys had somewhere to be, though.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Gabe was having the time of his life living with Link - even though he'd loved being at home, living alone was a new kind of freedom and he was really enjoying getting the opportunity to do pretty much whatever he wanted. "It'll be fine, we're not gonna be that late!" He laughed as his friend spoke, shaking his head. He hadn't even got dressed yet, he was still sitting on the couch in his underwear - although he knew it wouldn't take him too long to get dressed, so he wasn't worried. "God, it's so cold - it's gonna be freezing standing outside all night." He was excited to go to the bonfire, but he didn't really want to see Annabelle. They had made up, but he still wasn't happy with her.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: With Annabelle getting ready at Emilie's, Edie had quite liked just getting the house to herself for a couple of hours - she had declined the invitation to get ready with her friends, seeing as Theo had already offered to come and pick her up. It had meant she didn't have to hide what she was doing, so she'd already had a little drink and taken something - so she definitely felt ready for the night ahead. She hadn't even realised that it was a few minutes past the time Theo had said he'd be outside, so she rushed to the door, smiling as she saw him. "Hi - thank you, it's freezing. Didn't you bring a coat?" She smiled, grabbing her own off the hook before she closed the door behind herself. She thought he looked pretty adorable in a jumper, though. "Yes, yeah - Emilie and Anna got ready at Em's and the boys are walking from their house." She smiled. She was excited to see her friends, but more excited to spend time with Theo. She squeezed his hand gently as they started walking.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Tommy didn't even go to one of the uni's that had organised the event, but he wasn't one to miss out on a party and he always enjoyed the events the girls brought them along to - and even though he'd been putting on a bit of an act since he and Florence had officially ended things, he still felt like he needed something to cheer him up a bit. He would never let onto that fact, but he missed her; he thought he was going to miss her for quite a long time. He'd agreed to meet everybody there, coming from a bit of a late rehearsal. He put a message in his, Gabe and Link's groupchat saying that he was setting off.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: James hadn't had a weekend evening free in quite a while; he was usually at a late rehearsal and if he wasn't, he couldn't get a babysitter for Katie - but things had worked out well tonight and he was really looking forward to the opportunity to give Marissa the best night he could. He was spending every minute at the moment trying to make up for what he'd done. "We can do whatever you want." He smiled, nodding his head. "Hot dogs are one of the best parts of a bonfire night party - but I like the baked potatoes too." He smiled, raising an eyebrow as he looked around. He was only twenty three, but he still felt a lot older than a lot of people there.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Maddie absolutely loved bonfire night, it was one of her favourite times of the year - so she was more than excited to spend it with her friends. She had just been pouring herself a drink when she saw Elijah heading over to her. "Hey!" She beamed, wrapping her free arm around him in a quick hug. "Oh thank you, it's so nice and cosy - I can't believe how cold it is, I hope the bonfire warms us all up soon." She laughed, shaking her head. "I'm so excited for the fireworks, are you?" She always relished any opportunity to spend time around Elijah, she thought they got along so well.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Although he wouldn't let himself admit it, Joshua was always excited to see Elijah - even just the times where they could grab five minutes of conversation sometimes made his day and he refused to focus on what that meant. "Jesus Christ, I can't believe how cold it is. Who had the bright idea for an outdoor party?" He shook his head as he looked to Finley. They had walked there together and even though he was in a jumper and a coat, he was cold. He laughed as he heard Cassidy, hugging her tightly. "Hey! Are you alright?" He smiled.

AM EH AM SD BC GCH WAL MS AG: Miles loved getting to spend time with Cassidy and her friends and he could never turn down a party, so he was pretty excited for tonight - especially with there being a bonfire and fireworks. "I think it's literally getting colder by the second, I'm really regretting thinking I was cool not wearing a scarf and gloves." He laughed, raising an eyebrow. He definitely hadn't expected it to be this cold, but he wasn't going to let it ruin his night. A smile spread across his face as he recognised Dev and he gave him a little wave as he spotted him coming over. "Alright!" He laughed, starting to walk over himself. "I didn't know you were going to be here! I came with my friend Cassidy, I dunno where she went but I'll introduce you when she comes back. What are you doing here?!"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Annabelle hated being at odds with Gabe. He had been her best friend for such a long time and she couldn't remember the last time that they hadn't spoke every single day. She wished that she could say something which would fix things but she thought that he was pretty pissed off at her. She knew that she had said a lot of bad things to Gabe and she felt awful for it now. She really, really wanted them to be on good terms again. Annabelle laughed as she nodded, "That's what he does best, right? Wouldn't be Gabes place without it." Like Emilie, she was really glad that they had somewhere and each other.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link had thought that it had been a long time coming for him and Gabe to move out - he just wished that Tommy had joined them. He thought the three of them living together would've been a ball! He shook his head slightly as he listened to his friend but sat down in the chair next to him. "You know what'll make it warmer? If you actually get dressed." Link laughed though. He didn't really mind if they were a little bit late. He was hoping that things would feel a little more like normal, sooner rather than later.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Theo would do anything to be able to spend more time with Edie. He hoped that it wouldn't be long before the two of them were back together again - properly. He loved her so much and he hoped that she loved him too. He thought that she did. They spoke every single day and he spent so much time at the house. She had even come over to have dinner with his parents a few times. Theo laughed as Edie spoke to him and he shook his head, "I didn't realise that it was this cold!" He laughed as he shook his head slightly. He was regretting it but he thought that he would ignore that now that he was next to her. "Alright, great." He nodded with a smile before he started towards where the bonfire was.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Alright, alright!" Florence laughed as she shook her head slightly, "Alright, we need to get going!" She smiled at her friends. She was glad to be spending a little more time with them. Florence was terrible when she and Tommy were together. She got completely wrapped up in him. She wondered if she would ever get over Tommy. It hurt. She laughed as she grabbed her coat. Her friends were a good distraction but she knew that it would be harder when she got to the bonfire.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa really wanted to forgive James - that was why she was here. She thought that she would never forgive herself if she didn't at least give him a chance. "Well you can grab a baked potato. But i'm having a hot dog." Marissa laughed as she nodded her head. She looked around them as they made their way to the queues for the vans, "I think Joshua is going to be here tonight - we should say hi to him later." Marissa had always been pretty close to her cousins - especially Josh. "The girls will be alright, right?" She asked him. They had just used the same babysitter - it made the most sense.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah smiled as he wrapped an arm around Maddie quickly. "Oh me neither. I thought it was meant to be the start of winter." He laughed as he shook his head. "Isn't that the main reason we're all here?" He beamed. He always loved watching fireworks. Elijah was so glad that he and Maddie got on as well as they did - he wondered if it would continue when she found out about whatever was going on with him and joshua. He really, really hoped so. Elijah just knew that it wasn't his place to tell her. When Josh was ready, he would. He hoped that it wouldn't be long, though.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Like with most parties recently, Finley had been in two minds about if he was going to go to the party or not. He had no idea what would be easier for him - but he wasn't going to say no to Joshua when he had asked him to go with him. Finley laughed as he listened to his friend and he shrugged his shoulders, "i mean - that's kinda what bonfire night is, isn't it?" He smiled as he looked at him. He was excited to see Maddie though - he was always excited to see Maddie. Finley was coming closer to the realisation that the feelings he had for her were more than just friendship but he refused to acknowledge it.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy loved bonfire night. It was a lot of fun and she got to spend time with her friends - what more could she want? Cassidy smiled as Joshua spoke to her and she nodded her head, "Yeah, I'm great, thank you! How're you?" She asked with a raise of an eyebrow. She was having such a good time and she was glad that Miles was there with her.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Miles was one of Devs closest friends in London so he was definitely glad to see that the other was there too. Dev chuckled as he listened to Miles, "She's the one you talk about all the time, right?" He nudged him. Dev wasn't sure what was happening with the two of them but he liked seeing the smile on his friends face by any means. "I just heard about the party so thought i'd head on over." He laughed as he shrugged his shoulders.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Emilie didn't think the feud between Annabelle and Gabe would last much longer; she was pretty sure they would miss each other too much and get over everything just for the sake of being close again. "You're not wrong, but it's a fucking pain." She laughed, rolling her eyes. "I basically just spent all the time I was there picking up after him." She was really happy that Link was out of his parents house, though - that he had somewhere he could actually feel was home.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe had always known Tommy wasn't going to end up moving in with them, but that didn't mean he wasn't sad about it - he thought the three of them should at least live together for a while, for the stories... But he understood why Tommy didn't want to. "You might have a point there." He laughed, nodding his head as he got up. He felt so relaxed and at home in the apartment already. He walked into his room, leaving the door open as he pulled on jeans and a jumper, walking back into the living room to put his shoes on. "You think the girls are already there?" He really missed Annabelle and he hated that he felt awkward to even message her and ask.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Edie thought that by this point, she and Theo were pretty much together - she would never dream of seeing anybody else, not that she would want to and she hoped he felt the same. She just didn't want to bring it up and risk ruining everything. She still loved him so much, she'd never doubted that for a second. "You'll warm up when we get near the fire." She smiled, shaking her head. She was glad they didn't live too far away. "It's probably still warmer out here than inside." She chuckled - the heating was off again, so hers and Annabelle's house was absolutely freezing.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Even though she'd only just started, Charlotte was already loving university - or at least, the partying side of it. She hadn't been paying much attention in her classes, but she was sure she would be fine - she always was. She was supposed to be meeting Emilie and the others here, but she'd ended up coming early with some girls she'd met earlier in the day. She was excited to see what happened; she was a party girl through and through and she always made sure she was having the most fun, no matter what.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "You think I can't manage both?" James laughed, raising an eyebrow. It wasn't just that he was making the effort for Marissa to forgive him, he genuinely wanted them to have a good night... It wasn't often they got to spend all of this time together, even before everything happened. "Of course! He goes to one of these unis, right?" He nodded his head. He always liked to support the unis events, that's why they were there - he'd almost forgotten that Marissa's cousin went here. "Of course." He nodded as she asked about the girls. His sister had agreed to look after the girls and he knew they'd be absolutely fine.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Maddie laughed, nodding her head. "Me too! At least we came prepared." She smiled. She didn't really mind it being cold when it meant she could wrap up nice and warm, winter was her favourite season. "It's definitely the main reason I'm here! I have some sparklers, too - it's not a proper bonfire night without them. Although I should probably hand them out before people have too much to drink." She laughed. She was really glad that Elijah had confided in her, to tell her that he was gay - and she was still curious about who the boy was, but she wasn't going to press him on it.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh was always going to include Finley in everything, even if he didn't think he would want to go - he never wanted his friend to feel left out because of the decisions he had to make. "I suppose so, I would much prefer to watch the bonfire from inside, though. Preferably somewhere with heating." He laughed, shrugging his shoulder. He was never good when he was cold. He smiled as Cassidy spoke, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Yeah, I'm good - just bloody freezing. Where's Miles?"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Miles rolled his eyes as Dev spoke, but he was laughing. "I've mentioned her occasionally, you're just a drama queen." He grinned, nudging his friend back. He was really happy with the point he and Cassidy were at and as long as she was too, Miles thought they would be just fine. He didn't need any kind of proper commitment just yet, they knew what they were. "Of course you did." He chuckled. Dev was one of his closest friends and he loved how easily he came about things; he thought the reason they got on was because they were both so chilled out. "I think it's gonna be good, these two unis have events together all the time. It's always a laugh." He smiled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Annabelle was already at the point that Emilie thought the two of them would get too. She missed Gabe. And while she wished that he hadn't told their friends about the guy she was seeing - she missed him too much to stay mad at him. She hoped that he felt the same way about her and all of the terrible things she had said about him. "Well if you're just going to pick up after him then he'll just keep doing it, won't he?" Annabelle laughed. She never minded the mess. She thought that if that was how Gabe felt comfortable, then she would go along with it.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Although there was definitely an adjustment period to moving in to a place on his own, to living with Gabe, he was starting to get there. Link had gone from a place where he had people doing everything for him. Cooking, cleaning, shopping for him - to having to do all of that for himself. He didn't find it hard to do all of that for himself - it was definitely just an adjustment. "I'm full of smart ideas." Link laughed as he shook his head. He sighed as Gabe asked about the girls. He wished that he and Annabelle would sort out whatever was happening. "Yeah, probably. Or definitely almost there anyway."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Theo had never and would never sleep with anyone else. He was still completely head over heels in love with her. He just didn't know how to bring up the conversation of the two of them being exclusive. "You guys still don't have heating?" He asked her. Theo wished that he could do more to help Edie and Annabelle. He hated the thought that the two girls just had to make do. "You can stay at my house tonight, if you want?" He didn't like the idea of her having to go back to a freezing cold house - especially if Annabelle wasn't there.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence was well aware that Charlotte would be at the party. Her parents had told her as much. It almost made her not go. Although she and Charlotte hadn't really spoke, she didn't want to like the other just on principle. She didn't like the idea of being forced to be friends with someone just because her parents wanted her to be. But she was having a good night with her actual friends - at least so far. She hadn't seen Tommy yet.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "I think you probably can and that's quite frightening." Marissa laughed. She was really trying to make things as normal as possible. Although she didn't think he would - Marissa was afraid of James making her look like a fool. She was scared that she would forgive him and then he would go and do it all over again and she would look like a complete idiot. She really didn't want that. She didn't know if her pride was bigger than her love for him, though. "Yeah, he goes to Uni off." She smiled. Family had always been huge to Marissa, so she was looking forward to seeing Josh. "Okay - good." She nodded.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah nodded his head with a laugh. "Yeah, exactly. i don't think some of these guys know what dressing warm is.." He wasn't judging anyone, he just didn't understand how they were able to be out in the cold for as long as they were, wearing what they were wearing. It was completely mad to him. "Oh you do? That is the best party of a bonfire night!" He laughed as he nodded his head. Elijah had no idea how Maddie would react if she knew that it was Josh and as much as he wanted to tell her - he knew that, that wasn't his thing to tell.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Finley knew that Josh was just doing whatever he could to make him feel more comfortable and he really did appreciate that. He had worried about how they were going to be once he got out but it felt good to know that they were okay. That nothing had even changed between the two of them. "Yeah, well you're shit out of luck." He laughed as he shook his head slightly.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy was in her safe place whenever Josh was nearby - and she liked that Miles understood that. She didn't think that she would ever be able to be with someone who was jealous of the relationship she had with her best friend. He was practically another brother to her at this point. "He saw one of his friends. He's around." She laughed as she shrugged her shoulder.s

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Dev shrugged, though there was a smirk on his face, "Whatever you say, mate. I think I've heard her name more times than I've actually heard us play but that's neither here nor there." He laughed. He liked that his friend seemed to be in a good place with his relationship though. He thought that that was really good for Milo. "I always find the best spots, right?" He smirked. Dev liked a party. He rarely spent a night in and he liked it that way. He nodded as he listened to the other. "Guess time will tell, right?"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Well, I'm not there all the time - I'm hoping to set a good example." Emilie laughed, rolling her eyes. Even though she seemed so cold to the people who didn't know her, she would always go the extra mile to look after her friends - even though they were more than capable of looking after themselves. She was just glad that she and Annabelle had been fine the day after their fight, because she valued her best friend a lot. "Who's Tommy coming with tonight? I hope it's not that fucking annoying girl from before." He had been through a series of girls since he and Florence had broken up and each one had annoyed her more than the last.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe still wasn't the best at being a fully functioning adult - he got by well enough, but his life was pretty similar to that of a university student; lots of microwave meals, noodles from a packet and he hadn't the first clue how to make an actual meal that wasn't pasta. He did his share of the cleaning, although he was fairly messy. "How did I never know before?" He chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "We probably should get going, then. And Tommy will be angry if he gets there before us." He laughed. He was really excited to see everybody, he just hoped it would all be better than it had been at the wedding.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Not yet, but the landlord says he's on it." Edie sighed, rolling her eyes - they had what was possibly the worst student landlord in the world and he'd been saying he was going to sort things out since they'd moved in. It wasn't like they could afford anywhere else though, not really. She smiled as he asked her to stay at his, nodding her head. "Yeah, that would be really nice - if Annabelle isn't at home, I don't want to leave her on her own if she is." She was just assuming that Annabelle would be going back to her boyfriends after the party and she always felt so happy and comfortable at Theo's house.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "It's not even that much food!" James laughed, shaking his head. With the amount of physical movement he did at work, he had a big appetite and he could usually pack away a fair amount at any time. He never wanted her to look like an idiot - in fact, he was doing everything possible now to try and make sure she didn't. "What does he study again?" He asked with genuine curiosity, a little smile on his face. He thought Marissa's family were all so kind and he was looking forward to seeing Josh.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I think you might be right - everybody looks really nice, but I think they might have frostbite by the end of the night." Maddie chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "I think so too! Sometimes I just think we have the same brain." She laughed, shaking her head - of course, she didn't know the true extent of their similarity. "My dad always used to get them when I was a kid and we would write our names. I thought it was so cool. Still do." She smiled. "Who did you come with? Do you want to come and find the others with me?" She asked. She thought Elijah deserved better friends and she knew how much hers liked him.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh laughed as Finley spoke, nodding his head. "Yeah, looks like I am." He chuckled. He had been so worried about his friend and he still was, but he seemed to be opening up more and he thought that had to be a good thing. He smiled as he heard Cassidy; he thought she and Miles were a really good match, he liked him. "Sorry, I'm just starting to prefer his company to yours these days." He teased, nudging her gently. He knew Cassidy would know that he was joking.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Now you're bringing the band into this? A risky decision mate, we'll end up having a scrap." Miles laughed, shaking his head. He knew his friend was joking and even if he wasn't, he wouldn't care - he would love Cassidy to meet his friends, he knew how well she'd get on with them all. "That you do! Have you met any friends yet, or do you want me to introduce you to everyone?" He thought that if he fit in well with the others, Dev probably would too.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "He'll live in squalor till you go round again. It will be a never ending circle." Annabelle laughed then. She didn't think that Gabes mess was that big of an issue. She thought it could be pretty fun, if she was honest. She loved that Emilie wanted to look after them all though - and she hoped that Emilie would be able to have her kids. She really, really thought that Emilie would be the most amazing mother, better than any of them. "God - I didn't think he could find girls more annoying than Florence but he's only gone and done it." Annabelle rolled her eyes.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link wasn't exactly the best cook but he was trying. He was just glad that Emilie brought the two of them food over all the time. He didn't think that they would have survived without it. Link didn't take much pride in how their flat looked, if he was completely honest. He thought that both he and Gabe had other things to do. "Because you don't pay attention enough." He laughed. "That's true. Has he said who he's bringing yet?" Link wished that he could do something to get through to Tommy when it came to Florence. He couldn't understand why his friend was happy to live in misery when he had a girl that loved him right there.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Didn't he say that last month?" Theo was over exaggerating but he thought that it was disgusting. He didn't understand how people could be so willing to let people suffer, like Edie and Annabelles landlord seemed to be. It was going to be the middle of winter soon, they needed heating. He really wanted to suggest both girls move into his family home but he didn't think that his mum and dad would really appreciate that. They would say yes though, he knew that. "Yeah, yeah. Of course." He nodded. Theo liked that she felt comfortable at his place though.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "It is quite a lot of food for a normal human." Marissa nodded her head. Though she knew that he was always going to have a big appetite with his job. Marissa had always struggled with her eating habits. She would either eat too much, or she would eat nothing at all. She had never had a good balance. "Journalism." Marissa smiled. She had a bad relationship with her father and a strained one with her brother - Josh was the best kind of relationship she had with her family.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy felt so comfortable with her friends around her. She had been a little unsure about going to the first uni party. SHe didn't know anyone there but her friends. She didn't go to either of the universities. She was just glad that she got to spend time with Josh and the other two. "Oh yeah, course you are." She rolled her eyes. "Tell you what, keep talking like that and you'll see neither of us." She laughed though, it was clear that she was just playing with him.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Isn't that what all of the best rockstars do though?" Dev asked with a raise of an eyebrow and a laugh. He loved playing in the band. It was a lot of fun. And he got to spend time with people that he really, really enjoying being around. He couldn't wait to meet the girl that he had been talking about though. "I'm game for introductions." He smiled. "Lead the way, my friend!"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "You're probably right. I've already been there five nights this week to drop off food for them. I didn't even stay for most of them, I'm just scared they'll starve to death if I don't." Emilie laughed, rolling her eyes. She just didn't like the idea of them being hungry or ordering takeout every single night, she'd much rather cook for them. She really wanted to be a mother; she was young, but she already knew it was one of the things she wanted most - but she wasn't going to admit that to anybody, not when she knew it might not even happen for her. "I know, it's like he challenged himself and fucking won. The last one was the most unbearable, the one with the red hair. If she's here, I might have to push her into the bonfire." She laughed, raising an eyebrow.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe absolutely loved getting their dinner delivered by Emilie most nights; it meant he didn't have to cook and it was always good food, so he had absolutely no complaints. "That is also a very fair point, I do need to start paying more attention." He laughed, grabbing his keys and heading out of the door. He didn't think they were too far away, so they wouldn't be long. "You know, I don't even know if he's going to bring anybody - the girls were so mad at the last girl, I don't know if he'd risk it again." He chuckled at the memory, shaking his head. "I hope he doesn't." He enjoyed himself most when it was just the six of them - and Theo, who he pretty much saw as a part of the group now.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "He's said that since we moved in." Edie laughed, shaking her head. It was getting close to them deciding where they were going to live next now and Edie wondered, if she and Theo were back together by then, if they would live together. She thought she would love living with Theo. She would never leave Annabelle without somewhere to live, though. "Wow, look how big the fire is - I can barely see." She laughed as they neared the event, squinting slightly at how big and bright the fire was. She shielded her eyes slightly. "Did you used to come to stuff like this when you were a kid?" She smiled.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "It's definitely not, you're just tiny." James smiled, leaning over to kiss the top of Marissa's head. He was well aware that they still weren't okay, but just being here with her meant a lot to him and he was going to make that known. "Of course. I bet he's good at that." He laughed. The few times he'd met Josh, he'd come across as pretty smart - and quite opinionated. He wondered if Marissa had told her cousin what he'd done and he found himself hoping not.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Charlotte was well aware that her mother wanted her to find and befriend Florence tonight - she'd only mentioned about a thousand times that they were going to the same university, that a friendship would be great for anybody involved, but Charlotte hated the idea of a forced friendship. She thought it sounded so awkward. She walked over to get herself another drink, laughing to herself quietly as she saw that Florence was the other person at the table. She considered not saying anything, but she knew that would be rude. "Hi - Florence, right?" She smiled, raising an eyebrow.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Tommy had arrived at the party and was instantly annoyed that Link and Gabe weren't there; he'd sent them about ten messages demanding that they arrive soon, but they hadn't responded. He'd had to appease himself with talking to some girls that had approached him, but they were pretty boring and he wasn't paying much attention at all to what they were saying. He couldn't help but notice Florence over by the drinks, watching her for a second before he turned back to the girls. He really, really missed her.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh laughed, shrugging his shoulders. "I guess I'll start being nicer then - I don't want to miss out on spending time with my new best friend." He chuckled, raising an eyebrow. He liked that Cassidy pretty much just came along to all of their university events now; they had always been a group and that group was four of them - it wouldn't be the same if Cassidy wasn't there. He could definitely see Miles becoming an extension of that, too.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "You're right, man - it would be great for our image, but maybe we need to wait until we're a bit more well-known first." Miles laughed, shrugging his shoulders. He loved being in a band - the boys were pretty much his best friends by this point and he knew how dedicated they all were. "Okay, perfect! Over this way, then." He smiled and started to lead the way, tapping Cassidy on the shoulder as he reached the group. "Hey! I just wanted to introduce you to Dev, he's in my band."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Of course you have. You should give them some cooking lessons, so you don't have to go over as often." Annabelle shrugged, "Although then Gabe might burn down the apartment block so who knows." She laughed as she shook her head. She was really looking forward to seeing her friends now - especially Gabe. She just wanted them to be okay now. Nothing else mattered. Annabelle nodded, "That's literally it. It's fucking ridiculous. Why does he even need to bother?" She raised an eyebrow. "He only really wants to be with Florence. It's annoying that he's being so stubborn about it." Annabelle thought that if Tommy was going to settle with anyone, it would be with Florence. She hated that he hadn't and that it didn't seem like he ever would.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link smiled as Gabe spoke to him and he nodded his head. He shrugged though, as Gabe said that he didn't think Tommy would bring someone, "Yeah, but Florence is almost definitely going to be at this one. He's not going to turn up alone, is he?" He asked with a raise of an eyebrow. He didn't think that Tommy would ever risk not having a date while Florence did. He had no idea really, though. "I really hope not though. He's better when he's not." He chuckled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "It's ridiculous. You guys can't live there next year, Edie." Theo sighed. He knew that he couldn't tell her what to do but he wanted to make sure that she was okay - and he didn't think she and Annabelle would be if they stayed in the apartment they currently lived in. He would ask her to live with him, for the two of them to find a place, if he knew what Annabelle would do. He didn't think she would have anywhere else to go. "It's mad, isn't it? I can feel the heat from here!" He laughed as he shook his head. "Do you know where the others are?" He asked her. "Oh, yeah. Well - It was mine and Barneys thing when he was old enough to take me on our own."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "And you're ... not? Is that what you're saying? Because I think differently." Marissa laughed. She wasn't sure how she felt about the physical contact right now. Every time he kissed her like that, she thought about he and Aubrey together. She was really, really trying to stop though. She let it happen now - she thought that, that was a step in the right direction. "Yeah, he is. I've read a few things he's written. He's good." She smiled as she nodded her head. "What do you think the girls will wanna do when they're older?" She asked him.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence was just trying to do anything to keep herself away from Tommy - which is why she distracted herself with the alcohol table. She thought that, that would be the best thing for her to do. Florence noticed Charlotte too - but she wasn't going to say something. She loved her parents but she absolutely hated the idea of a forced friendship. She didn't understand why her parents were so hell bent on it. Florence raised an eyebrow, though, as she heard Charlottes voice and she nodded. "Yeah, that's me. Charlotte, right? Char?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "We just have to hope that they're not going to be out here that long, don't we? Because I do not want to see the frostbite." Elijah laughed as he shook his head. He was really glad that he and Maddie were friends. He thought that she was just like him. He nodded his head, "You have no idea." He gave an almost nervous laugh then though. He really hoped that Maddie would still like him if she found out that he was having -- something, with Joshua. "Writing your name is the best bit about them." He nodded his head. "Oh yeah - just a few of my friends. I'm not sure where they are. So yes, I'll come and find the others with you!"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "I think you just offended both me and Finley, honestly." Cassidy laughed as she shook her head. She had been friends with Joshua for as long as she could remember, Maddie since she had started school and Finn not long after that. They were a four. They always would be. And she loved how much they accepted and brought in Miles too. She had no idea if they were going to be something serious - but she hoped so. "Oh- so you're who he abandoned me for." She laughed, "Hi! This is Josh and this is Finn." She smiled, indicating both boys as she said their names."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Maybe we should. We'll table this conversation for later down the line then, right?" Dev asked with a raise of an eyebrow and a laugh. Although Dec really hoped that he and the rest of the band would make it somewhere - he was happy just playing with them. He liked that the others were also as passionate about it as he was, though. "Nice to meet you guys." He smiled. "What's she doing with you though, Miles? She's far too good for you." He laughed, clearly teasing.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "But then how would I make an excuse to go over and keep an eye on them, make sure they're not living like they're homeless?" Emilie laughed, raising an eyebrow. She quite liked that the boys needed her, she liked having the excuse to be around them - especially Link. "But you're right, he would absolutely set fire to something and then I'd feel responsible." She laughed. "He does not only want to be with Florence, do you even hear what you're saying? If he wanted to be with her, he would be. He prefers his life like this." She did think Tommy had feelings for Florence, but she didn't think he wanted to be with her - because he wouldn't be doing all of this, if that was really true.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe shrugged his shoulders; like Link, he thought it was pretty unlikely that Tommy was going to turn up on his own, but he could hope - their friend was always a lot more fun when he was on his own and not trying to make an impression on some girl. "Yeah, me too." He nodded his head. "He didn't mention anything when I spoke to him before. Maybe he's really not gonna bring anyone." He shrugged.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I know. There's not really anything else we can do, though. It'll be fine." Edie smiled, shrugging her shoulders. She didn't like thinking about how bad the house was, because it reminded her that they were pretty much stuck there - the rent was already a lot compared to what little money they had. She and Annabelle were constantly getting ill because of how cold and damp it was. "You should be glad, you won't freeze now!" She laughed, squeezing his hand gently. "Anna and Emilie are already here, but I'm not sure where." She shook her head. She smiled slightly as Theo talked about his brother, she always liked hearing about him. "That's really sweet, I can just imagine how cute the two of you looked."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I'm not as small as you are." James laughed, shrugging his shoulders. He had no idea how Marissa felt about the physical contact, but he was starting to gather that things weren't going to be the same for a long while - and he totally understood that. He knew he was just going to have to try. "Oh really? You'll have to show me some, I'd be really interested." He smiled. He definitely wanted to support her cousin. "I don't think there'll be any prizes for guessing what Katie wants to do, will there?" He chuckled. Katie had been dancing since she could walk, it was her biggest love. "I could see Frankie following in your footsteps."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Charlotte hated the idea of any awkwardness, especially when it came to her parents forcing her to be somebody's friend - and she'd already heard a lot about Florence from Emilie, but it felt weird to ignore her. "Either works, just not Charlie." She laughed, shrugging her shoulders - she didn't think she could think of a name that suited her less. "We're future best friends, according to our parents." She laughed sarcastically.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "We'll have to go around and make sure everybody is keeping warm." Maddie laughed, shaking her head. She wasn't planning on drinking tonight, but she was sure people would be keeping warm in their beer jackets. She was being completely serious when she said she didn't have feelings for Josh anymore - if she knew he was the boy Elijah liked, she would be so happy for both of them. "Perfect! I'm not sure where they are, actually. How cool are all of these food vans?" She smiled as she started to walk, looking for her friends. "I definitely want to get a hot chocolate later, it smells so good."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh laughed, nodding his head. "No offence meant - I'm just trying to be honest." He grinned, before he shook his head at his friends. "You guys know you're my best friends - and Mads, wherever she is." He had a feeling she was with Elijah and he really hoped they came over soon, because he really wanted to see him. He smiled as Miles introduced his friend, holding out a hand to him. "Josh." He smiled, nodding his head. "Do you know where Maddie is, actually?" He asked Finley, raising an eyebrow. He was getting to a point where he missed Elijah when he wasn't around him, but he wasn't about to ask where he was.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Miles laughed as Cassidy spoke, shaking his head. "Momentarily - I just wanted to make sure he was going to behave once I introduced you." He laughed. "Shut up, you." He grinned as Dev spoke, rolling his eyes. "He's trying to start a fight with me, he thinks it'll up our street cred as a band." He chuckled, looking between them.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Ah, of course that was what it was. I should've known that." Annabelle laughed. She loved Emilie so much. She loved how complex her best friend was. She put up the cold front but Annabelle didn't think that she had ever met someone so caring. She knew that when it came down to it, Emilie would always put the five of them before herself and she loved that. "And Link would be out of a lot of money." She laughed as she shook her head. She couldn't believe sometimes, that Link had bought that place for him and Gabe. Annabelle shook her head, "I think that's it though - I think he wants her, he just doesn't want to want her. Does that make sense?" She laughed. If she really thought about it, she thought she was the same about Gabe. She didn't think she was good enough so she was trying to just ignore it.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link didn't know what they could do to get Tommy to just calm down for a little bit. He wished that his friend could just spend time with them and not worry about girl or the rest of it. Though he wouldn't admit it to him, Link thought that Tommy was really hurting. Link shook his head, "if he's not bringing someone - he'll end up with someone so it's the same difference, isn't it?" He sighed. They weren't far off now and he was getting really excited to see the girls.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "You guys are gonna get ill though, that's what I'm worried about." Theo muttered with a shake of his head. He wished that there was more that they could do. She and Annabelle were constantly ill. He didn't know how someone could be happy to let people suffer like that. It was mad to him. "You guys should just live with me or something next year." He shrugged. It was the first time he brought it up but he thought that it made sense. "Which is definitely nicer isn't it?" He laughed as he shook his head. "Alright - well we should find then." He smiled and squeezed her hand, "Don't let go, okay?" Theo tried not to get sad when thinking about his bother but he missed him so much. "Yeah - it was fun."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "That is true." Marissa laughed, as she nodded her head. She wished that she could make it easier for him. She wished that she could forgive him easier than she did but she didn't know how. Her brain was working about a million miles per hour, tugging her in a million different directions. She didn't know how to slow it all down a little bit. "Yeah, I will. I'll get him to send me some over." Marissa smiled. That was one thing she loved about James, he really did seem interested in her family. "Oh, no. Of course not." She laughed as she shook her head. She couldn't wait to see Katie shine on stage one day. "Oh, you think so?" She smiled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence wanted to be able to make her own opinion up about Charlotte - or anyone - she never liked being told what she should do. She thought that a part of that had been why she was so interested in Tommy, in the beginning. And she had definitely noticed him tonight. She hated that he didn't seem to care, that he was already moving on to about a million different girls. "Not Charlie. Got it. I can't see you as a Charlie." She laughed as she shook her head slightly. Florence nodded as Charlotte spoke, "You seem about as convinced on that as I am?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "That's what we're here for, right? Designated mum and dad?" Elijah raised an eyebrow. He felt so comfortable around Maddie. Usually, when he was the only one not drinking, his friends would take the mick out of him. It never seemed to be the case when he was around Maddie and her friends. She rarely drank as well and he liked that. "I'm sure we'll hear Cassidy soon." He laughed. "But yeah - they're really cool. And they smell amazing." He loved going to places like this. The atmosphere was electric. "Oh you can't say no to hot chocolate at a place like this, can you?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Finley smiled as Dev was introduced to them and he nodded his head. He always felt a little on edge around new people. He still wasn't completely 100% around Miles. He didn't know how to be with them. He worried that they would be able to see straight through him. He shrugged his shoulders as Josh spoke to him, "I think she might be with Elijah but I'm not sure." He smiled. He wondered why Josh asked him where Maddie was. He hoped he didn't see how he felt about her. He thought he would freak out a little bit.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy shrugged her shoulders, "So we're supposed to just know that now? Because two minutes ago you were talking about how much you love Miles more than us." She smirked though, she was clearly playing with her. Cassidy rolled her eyes as Miles spoke and then laughed as she heard Dev, "Oh, he can stay." She laughed as she nodded her head. She wrapped her arm around Miles' waist. "You'd look hot with a black eye, though."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Dev smiled and shook Joshs' hand as he reached out to him. "Nice to meet you. All three of you." He smiled. He liked meeting new people. He thought that they were all pretty much just an adventure waiting to happen. "I'm not trying to start a fight with you. But it would bring up our street cred." He laughed as he looked at the others, "Have you heard this guy sing?!" He asked the other two, figuring that Cassidy had already.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Emilie laughed, shrugging her shoulders. She wasn't going to deny it when it was the truth, Annabelle knew her better than that - she would always look out for her friends and she knew they would do the same for her. "Fucking hell, I know. I still can't believe he just straight up bought the place." She shook her head. She didn't know if she thought it was the right decision, but she wasn't going to say anything on it - which was rare for her. She rolled her eyes as Annabelle spoke about Tommy. "I think you're romanticizing it. I love him, but when it comes down to it - he's just a typical man. He likes her, but he wants to keep his options open more than he wants to be with her. It's why they suck." She shrugged her shoulders. She really thought that Tommy was pretty obvious to read.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe wished that Tommy would let his guard down a little bit more with them - although he confided in the group, especially he and Link, about a lot of things, he never quite managed to let go of his pride and Gabe thought that was sad. There wasn't really anything he wouldn't tell his friends, because he trusted them so much. "You're right, it's the same difference. I just can't be bothered with anymore Florence drama." He laughed. He thought as soon as Tommy left the girl alone, that drama would be out of their lives. He hoped, anyway. "Oh, look! The fire!" He beamed as they got close enough to see the orange light, speeding up the pace a little bit.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Edie didn't even know how to argue what Theo was saying, because he was totally right - she and Annabelle were always getting colds and coughs, it was a horrible place to live. She raised an eyebrow as he spoke about them living together. "You, me and Annabelle?" She smiled. She loved the idea of living with Theo, but she didn't think Annabelle would like that. She thought it was definitely something she would discuss with her friend, though. "I won't let go." She promised him with a smile, squeezing his hand back. Edie hated knowing how much Theo was still hurting over his brother and not being able to make it better, but she loved hearing about the stories he had. "I bet. Did the bonfire seem even bigger, when you were a kid?" She smiled.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: James was never going to ask Marissa to forgive him more quickly, it had never even entered his mind - he knew he was massively lucky that she had decided to forgive him at all. "Yeah, that'd be great! We need better journalists." He laughed, shaking his head. He smiled as she spoke about Katie - he was endlessly proud of his daughter. "Yeah, absolutely. She looks up to you so much, Riss. It really wouldn't surprise me."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I'll take that as a compliment. Charlie is not a pretty name. Reminds me of the dad from Twilight." Charlotte laughed, shaking her head as she poured some wine into a plastic cup. "I just don't like being told who I should be friends with. No offense, of course." Her mum had always liked to tell her what to do and Charlotte had always been pretty good at ignoring her, so she didn't see any reason to decide to stop that now. She found it funny that Florence seemed to think the same, though.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Absolutely! I love that." Maddie smiled, nodding her head. Her friends had never made her feel bad for not drinking and she knew they didn't even think anything of it now, but she was still happy that she seemed to have found a kindred spirit in Elijah. "I think you'll be right about that." She smiled as he spoke about Cassidy. "Oh, I know - everything smells so good, I can't figure out what I want most." She laughed. "Of course not! I want the full works, as much as they'll give me." She smiled. She'd always had a sweet tooth and she was absolutely going to give into it tonight.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh could tell that Finley felt a little bit uncomfortable around new people, which was why it seemed like a pretty big deal to invite Miles into the group - which was probably why it hadn't properly been done yet. He didn't blame his friend, though; he'd been through so much, it seemed natural to have a small circle of people you trusted. "Yeah, I thought so..." He nodded as his friend spoke about Elijah. He really wanted to see him, he just didn't ever want to be obvious about it. "It's weird, not having them - her, around. They're probably coming to find us." He nodded his head. He wondered if Elijah thought about him, as much as he spoke about Elijah.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Miles smiled as Cassidy's arm went around his waist, resting his own around her shoulders - he felt really happy with where they were at and he liked this casual intimacy. "I would look hot with a black eye. And it would bring up our street cred. You're both right. I'm seeing more pros to this fight than cons, honestly." He laughed, shaking his head. He had known the two would get on instantly. "I haven't sang in front of her yet, actually - she's a musical theatre student, she'd put me to shame." He laughed, shaking his head.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Annabelle laughed as she nodded her head, "Fucking mad, isn't it?" She asked her friend. She didn't think that she would be like Gabe and move in with someone who had literally bought a place. She thought that she would be relying too much on the other person for her to feel comfortable with. She shrugged as Emilie continued to talk about Tommy. "I guess we'll see, right? Where is he anyway?" Annabelle and Tommy had been spending more time together recently. Edie was always with Theo, Emilie and Link were always together and she and Gabe weren't on great terms - which left each other. She had been enjoying it much more than she thought she would've.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link thought exactly the same as Gabe. He thought that it would do his friend some good if he could just properly confide in them. There wasn't anything that Link wouldn't tell his friends so he couldn't quite understand why Tommy felt like he couldn't trust them 100%. He shrugged as Gabe mentioned Florence, "Yeah, I don't think that's over." He muttered. He didn't think Tommy would leave Florence alone as long as she kept letting him back in - and he thought that she wouldn't stop letting it happen. "Now he picks up the pace! You're like a moth."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Theo shrugged as Edie questioned him, suddenly thinking it was probably a crazy idea. "I mean why not? You guys need somewhere decent and I could do with getting out of my parents house so it's a win, win, right?" He loved being around his parents all the time but he didn't think that it really did him any good. He thought that he needed to step out on his own for a little while. Theo smiled as she said that she wouldn't let go and nodded at her question, "Oh yeah, it seemed huge"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Part of Marissa really, really wanted to get things but the other part of her worried that if she rushed this, then they wouldn't be in a good position. She wanted them to be happy. And she thought that they were maybe getting there. "Well, he's almost ready for the world so hopefully it'll be better soon." She laughed as she nodded her head. Marissa smiled widely as they spoke about Frankie, "She'd be so good at it - if she did."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence laughed as she listened to Charlotte and nodded her head "That's very fair." She shrugged at the girls next sentence though, "No, me neither. So none taken." She sighed before she shook her head slightly, "Though I don't particularly like being told to do anything by my parents so.." She shrugged her shoulders slightly before she sorted herself out another drink, "Did you want one?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah smiled. He really did feel like he had a friend for life in Maddie. She was a kindred spirit and it honestly felt like he had been waiting for a friend like her for forever. He felt so grateful to have that now. "It seems the most obvious thing." He laughed as he nodded his head. Elijah hadn't eaten before he came so he definitely thought that it wouldnt' be long before he got something to eat himself. "You've got to have a hot dog at a bonfire though, no?" He asked with a raise of an eyebrow.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: From what Finley had seen, he liked Miles. He just wasn't sure how to be around him. Mostly because he didn't know how much Miles knew about him and he didn't want to do something which would lead to awkward conversations. Finley wasn't sure how to be himself just yet - he was still trying to find it - but it was even harder with new people around. "Probably. i'll text her."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy couldn't remember this time she felt so comfortable with a guy. It had taken her a long time to properly be ready to open to something and she was glad that it was with Miles. Cassidy laughed as she listened to him and nodded her head "Honestly, I just think it need to be done." She shrugged her shoulders, clearly kidding with him. She rolled her eyes as he said that she would put him to shame, "I highly doubt that. I can't wait to see you guys."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Name a time and place and I'm there, mate." Dev chuckled. He was having a lot of fun tonight and the night had barely even gotten started .Dev raised an eyebrow as Miles explain that Cassidy was into musical theatre and nodded his head, "Yeah, she probably would then." He laughed. "I'm gonna get a drink, what do you want?" He asked the two of them.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Really fucking mad." Emilie agreed, nodding her head. She didn't think she would ever be able to live somewhere that totally belonged to the other person; she would always want an equal share, she wouldn't want somebody to have that control over her. "Yeah, we'll see." She laughed, raising an eyebrow. "I have no idea - look for wherever the biggest group of girls is and he'll probably be around them." She rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling. She knew Annabelle and Tommy had been spending more time together recently, but she didn't really think anything of it.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe shrugged his shoulders, sighing softly. "Maybe not. I guess we'll just have to find out." He nodded. He didn't think Tommy's life would ever be free of drama, he loved it too much. Even though Florence had broken things off for now, he didn't think it would last very long - it never did. He laughed loudly as he heard his friend, shaking his head. "That's rude! I'll start running if you're not careful, then you'll be left behind." He chuckled. He was so tall that it would only take a few big strides to be far ahead.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Edie absolutely didn't think it was a crazy idea; at least, not for the two of them - she just didn't think Annabelle and Theo would really enjoy living together and she didn't want them to have to do it for her. "Do you really want to leave your parents house?" She asked curiously. She thought he seemed so happy and secure there. She would love to live with him, but she didn't want to feel like he was just suggesting it because he felt bad for her and Annabelle. Especially because she thought living on your own was a pretty big deal. "I bet - it still seems huge now." She laughed, shaking her head.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: James smiled, raising an eyebrow. "Everything felt like it was a lot easier when you were in uni, didn't it? I remember thinking it was going to last forever." He chuckled. He thought that was how Marissa's cousin and his friends must feel right now, like it was never going to end. He'd really enjoyed being that age. "She would. She's so caring, she'd be great." He smiled. He thought of Frankie like his own and he thought she would be excellent at what Marissa did.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Charlotte laughed, nodding her head. "It's good we're on the same page. Although I think our mums might have a combined aneurysm." She laughed, rolling her eyes. "I'm with you there - even though mine seem to really enjoy telling me what to do, so it's a pretty lose/lose situation." She giggled. She shook her head at Florence's question, holding up the cup she'd just poured. "I've got one, thanks. I had no idea what they'd actually have here, so I just brought my own. Everytime I've been offered a drink by a boy at uni party so far, it's been beer that is way too warm to consume and still feel safe." She laughed.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Are you going to judge me if I say I don't actually like hot dogs?" Maddie laughed, raising an eyebrow. She wasn't vegetarian, but she didn't really enjoy a lot of meat - she could be a little bit of a picky eater sometimes, she liked to know what she was eating. "I wish I did, because people always seem to enjoy them so much - and they fit right into the fairground vibe here." She smiled, nodding her head. "Do you want to get a drink before we go over? I think I'm going to get a lemonade or something, I'm really thirsty." She smiled, nodding over to one of the vans.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "You don't have to, I was just wondering." Joshua smiled slightly, shrugging his shoulders. He knew that sooner or later, if he actually wanted anything to come of he and Elijah, he would have to tell his friends - but he just didn't want to think about it. He didn't want them to see him differently, he didn't want their opinions of him to change. And he knew that Elijah and Maddie were friends, he didn't want to cause any problems there. "This is pretty cool, right? The party?" He smiled admiringly as he looked around them. He liked that drinking wasn't a necessity here, that not everybody was doing it - he hoped it made it easier for Finley.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I'll organise it properly, the way all cool fights are done. There might have to be some singing and dancing - like West Side Story." Miles laughed as he looked over at his friend, shaking his head. "She absolutely would. You absolutely would." He smiled, looking to Cassidy. "I mean, I still haven't heard you sing, so - it's got to be an even game." He chuckled. "Just a beer for me please, mate."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "It's also so Gabe too, don't you think?" Annabelle laughed, "To only move out when he has someone else to look after." She smiled. She missed Gabe more than she could ever really say. She loved him so much. He was her best friend. She wished that the two of them could fix whatever was going on. Annabelle nodded. "Okay - that's fair." She laughed as she shook her head slightly. She knew that Tommy was never going to stop but she thought that, that was one of the reasons why they loved him. He was unapologetically himself.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link nodded his head, "Yeah, we will." He loved knowing that, whatever happened, the other five were always going to have his back. They were his family and he knew that they were going to be friends for the rest of their lives. He thought that, that was probably the most commitment that Tommy could manage. And he liked that they were that for him. "I'm just speaking the truth. We both know it."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Theo thought that the fact that Edie hadn't just laughed the idea away, was a good sign. He really, really wanted the two of them to have that. He thought that he would be more than happy to move out of his parents house, was if he was going to move in with Edie. He nodded, "Yeah, I think so. It has to happen sometime, right?" Theo asked. And maybe he hadn't thought things through properly but he thought that it would all be okay. He wasn't saying it just because he felt bad, even if it was a little part of it. "That's because you're tiny, Edes."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa nodded her head as James spoke. It was the second year of university when she lost the baby - but she didn't see the point in mentioning that, in bringing the whole thing down. "Yeah, it does feel like it would last for forever. It was fun though, right?" She raised an eyebrow with a smile. Most of Marissas teenage years were tainted with bad memories. She was just trying to enjoy her twenties instead. "She's a good kid, right?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence nodded her head, "At least we both know where we stand right? Wouldn't it be tragic if one of us genuinely couldn't wait and thought they'd met like their platonic soulmate." She rolled her eyes before she laughed. Though she wouldn't admit it just yet, Florence was actually really enjoying her conversation with Charlotte. "That's what mums do best, right?" She raised an eyebrow. Her mum had an opinion on literally every aspect of her life. Florence laughed as she listened to Charlotte and nodded her head, "That's very fair actually. I don't see how they think that's gonna impress us."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "I would never judge you." Elijah smiled. He was someone who always tried to make sure that people felt comfortable around him - that included not judging people. "Though it is a little weird." He chuckled. Hot dogs were basically tied up with all of his bonfire night memories. He knew that he would have to get one by the end of the night. "They're okay. A little plastic-y but I think it's the nostalgia of it, you know?" He raised an eyebrow. "Oh sure." Elijah nodded his head with a smile. "I didn't even think about getting a drink. Yes. Perfect."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "I just sent her a text." Finley chuckled as he nodded slightly. He was looking forward to seeing her, that was for sure. He had no idea what he was thinking with all of this - with whatever he was feeling for Maddie. He would never do something which was going to ruin things. Joshua was his best friend. He was one of the few people that Finely felt like he could be himself around. He was his anchor. He couldn't do something to mess with that. Finley nodded his head as he looked around "yeah, it's good, yknow?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy laughed as she listened to Miles. She was almost relieved at how well she and Dev got along. She hoped that it would be the same with his other friends too. "Maybe then i'll finally be able to hear you sing." She smiled. Cassidy shrugged her shoulders then though. She definitely wanted Miles to be at the final showcase that year, she was just a little nervous about him seeing her. She didn't want to disappoint him. "You'll hear soon enough, I'm sure." she laughed as she shook her head slightly. "Gin and lemonade please!"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Oh shit but then you know you're gonna win if it includes singing." Dev laughed as he shook his head ever so slightly. He nodded his head as he listened to what the two of them wanted. He nudged his friend, giving an approving nod before he moved over the queues for their drinks.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "He's always going to need somebody to look after him." Emilie laughed. She loved Gabe, but she didn't think she could ever be with anybody like him - he was so co-dependent, she sometimes wondered how he'd survive on his own. She looked around the space for Tommy, unable to help laughing as she saw she'd been right. "Told you." She smirked, nodding over to him and the group of girls. "He could not look any less interested in whatever they're saying if he tried." She laughed.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe had no idea what it must be like for Link, or for Edie or Annabelle, for their little group to be the only family they had - because he had such a prominent family life and he hated that they didn't, but it just made him determined to make it as good as possible for the others. "Can you see the girls anywhere?" He asked, scrunching his nose up slightly as he started to look around. He didn't think they'd be hard to spot, but the place was pretty busy. He still had no idea how it would be with he and Annabelle, but he was almost a little bit nervous and he didn't like that at all.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I guess it does. Maybe I'll speak to Annabelle." Edie smiled, nodding her head. She thought that meant really good things for them, if Theo was thinking about things like moving in together - it meant they were on the same page and she felt really happy about that. "I'm not that small!" She laughed, shaking her head. "There are definitely people smaller." Because Theo was also pretty small, she never felt that tiny and she liked that. She liked the way they looked together. "I can see Gabe, he's over there!" She laughed as she saw her friend bounding about, pointing across the space to him.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "A lot of fun." James smiled. So much had happened in between university and now, that it felt like it had been so much longer than a couple of years since they had graduated. "She's the best kid, Riss. You've done an amazing job." He smiled. He thought she was such a natural mother and Frankie was one of the sweetest kids he'd ever met. He loved how well she and Katie got along, he thought it was amazing.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Charlotte giggled as Florence spoke; she was already different to how Emilie had described and she was glad she'd actually spoken to her. "Tragic isn't even the word. That would be so embarrassing." She laughed, shaking her head. "Apparently they do. Mine's an absolute nightmare, you'd think I didn't already have friends the amount she's pushed this. I didn't even want to come to university in the first place." She laughed, rolling her eyes playfully. "Neither do I - and it always tastes like crap, too. I am not a hard person to impress, it really doesn't take much - these boys are low on their game." She chuckled, shrugging her shoulders.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I know you wouldn't." Maddie smiled - that was one of her favourite things about Elijah, she always knew where she stood with him and she knew he would never judge her. She knew a lot of people thought she was boring, but she never felt that with Elijah. "Plastic-y? That doesn't sound like something you should enjoy." She laughed. "I do like toffee apples though, we should get some of those!" She heard her phone buzz and looked down at it, smiling as she saw a text from Finn. "And then we should find the others, I think they're missing us." She chuckled. She was so glad that Finley had decided to come tonight, she really loved spending time with him.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "If the first time you heard me sing was in our big dance battle, I think - actually, I think I'd love that. What a cool debut." Miles laughed loudly. He loved the fact that Cassidy and Dev got on well; now they both liked each others friends and he thought that was important. "I hope so, I've been dying to hear it since literally the first night we met." He chuckled. He couldn't wait to hear Cassidy's voice. "Thanks mate!" He smiled as Dev moved over to get their drinks.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh smiled as Finley said he'd sent a text - he sometimes wondered about how close the two of them were, he had even when he and Maddie were together, but he was sure his friend would tell him if there was anything more than friendship there. He didn't know how he'd feel if there was, though and he thought his friend would probably know that. It wasn't that there were still feelings there, it would just be strange for him - their relationship had still meant a lot. "It is. I like it when they do events that aren't just in clubs, there are less idiots." He laughed, shrugging his shoulders.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "That's true. His wife is gonna have her work cut out for her." Annabelle laughed as she shook her head. She couldn't wait to see who her friends ended up with. She loved Gabe and she thought that she might always wonder what would happen if the two of them didn't try something - but she was just trying to ignore that. She was trying to pretend like she wasn't all too aware of how she felt for him. She didn't think it was possible to be in love with someone if you didn't admit it but she thought that it could become that - if she let herself. "Oi! Tommy!" Annabelle shouted over to him, waving. "Fucking hell - you'd have thought he was in his element."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link didn't know if it was entirely healthy for him to be like he was with his friends but he didn't think that he had any other choice .They were everything to him and he loved them so much. Link shook his head as he looked around. "There's like a million people here." He muttered with a sigh. "Oh - There's Theo and Edie though!" He smiled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Let me know if you do." Theo nodded. He was already excited about the idea of moving in with Edie. He loved her so much and he didn't see a reason why they shouldn't. He wondered if they needed to have a proper conversation about the two of them before that though. "You are a little bit." He laughed. He loved spending time with Edie. She made him feel whole, like he didn't have the hole there that his brother had left. "Oh yeah, hey!" He waved over to them with a smile.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa hoped their kids had a better time off it than she had. She wanted to make sure that the two of them always had things good in their life - even though both of them had, had a difficult start to their lives. Marissa wondered if Frankie would struggle with how she lived in the beginning. She hoped that she would be able to do enough to fix all of that. "Thank you." Marissa smiled. "You have too. With Katie."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "I don't think I would ever live that down." Florence laughed as she shook her head. She was having a lot of fun with Charlotte but her mother was never going to know about it. "Does she try setting you up though? Because that is the most embarrassing thing ever. Mine hates my taste." Florence laughed. She thought that her mum might have a point with her taste in men but it wasn't like she was going to change. "You didn't? Why did you?" She asked with a raise of an eyebrow. "I can not say the same thing." She laughed.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah smiled as Maddie did. He liked that she knew him as well as he knew himself - and he thought that it was the same the other way around. He thought that he knew what she was thinking all of the time and he really liked that. "I know it doesn't but I absolutely do." He laughed. He was having such a lovely time already. "Oh yeah! They're perfect for bonfire night." He smiled at her. "That's sweet, okay." He could feel the butterflies in his stomach, just thinking about being able to see Joshua.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Of course you would love that. I wanna see you properly, though. I wanna see you in a bar with my friends and you guys are up on stage!" Cassidy laughed. She wanted Miles to hear her properly too. She didn't want it to be some little thing - not when they both wanted this to be their careers. Cassidy smiled before she nodded slightly, "I really hope that I don't let you down.."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Finley really didn't want to muddy the waters. He didn't think that he had properly dealt with what had happened with his wife and daughter. He didn't think it would be healthy to think about something else. He just could never get Maddie off of his brain. He thought that she was the most wonderful person there was. "That's true." He chuckled as he nodded his head. "We'll have to hope for more of these."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "That's for fucking sure. What kind of person do you think everybody is going to end up with?" Emilie asked with a laugh. She often thought about this, where they were all going to end up... But her friends worried her sometimes and she knew she would do whatever it took to make sure they were all, always okay. Even though she knew she would never say it, even to Annabelle - there wasn't really anybody else she could see herself ending up with, other than Link. "I know, he looks like he wants to set himself on fire." She laughed as she saw Tommy, waving him over with a grin.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Tommy looked up slightly as he heard Annabelle's voice, laughing as he saw the girls faces. He and Annabelle had been spending a lot more time together recently, because everybody else was so wrapped up in each other and he'd genuinely been enjoying it - he sometimes forgot how much fun he and Annabelle had together. He quickly excused himself from the conversation he was having and headed over to the girls, rolling his eyes. "You've got a voice like a fucking foghorn." He laughed, obviously playing with her. "Thanks for saving me, though."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe's parents were always willing to take in anybody that didn't have a family of their own and he thought a lot of that had rubbed in on him too; his friends really were a second family to him now and he wouldn't have it any other way. "I know, I can't believe it's this busy!" He laughed. Sometimes Gabe regretted not going to university, but he had no idea what he would even study and he didn't think it was totally for him. "Oh yeah! Hey! Edie!" He called over, waving over-exaggeratedly at the pair as he saw them. He thought they looked so cute together and he really liked being around them, he thought they were just so calm as people.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I will. We haven't really spoken about where we're going to live next, so I guess it's time for that conversation anyway." Edie smiled, squeezing Theo's hand - she loved living with Annabelle, but she knew it couldn't last forever. She was already smiling at the very idea of living in a house with Theo, of coming home to him every single day. She loved him so much. "I'm a little bit little?" She laughed, shaking her head. She didn't think there was a person on earth that was kinder than Theo was. "Hi!" She laughed as she heard Gabe, waving back at he and Link and starting to walk over.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: James often thought about how both of their girls hadn't had the best start in life and it just made him way more determined to make the rest of their lives as good as he possibly could; he would give them any opportunity he could, any head starts necessary. He had started saving for Katie as soon as she was born. "Thank you. I think so too." He chuckled, nodding his head.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "If it was me, I just wouldn't admit to it. As soon as you said something, I'd just pretend I felt the same to save face." Charlotte admitted with a giggle, shrugging her shoulders slightly. "Oh god, the set ups. It wouldn't be as bad if my mum had any taste at all, but she always picks the most boring boys ever. The future bankers and accountants of the world." She pretended to gag, shaking her head. "My mum wants me to. She didn't think I was taking life seriously enough - I mean, I can't say she was wrong, but - we're young, you know? What's there to be so serious about?" She raised an eyebrow. She laughed as the other spoke, nodding her head. "You give off that vibe. It's probably the best way to be, though. I should learn some things from you."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Maddie was a massively friendly person, she was kind towards everybody - but she had quite a small circle of actual close friends and Elijah was absolutely a part of that now. "Well, that's all that matters then! If you enjoy your plastic hot dogs, then I enjoy you enjoying them." She laughed, nudging her friend gently. "Right?! I used to have braces, so I could never have them when I was younger - so whenever I see them now, I want to eat as many as I can." She chuckled. She quickly sent Finley a text back saying they were on their way and headed over to the drinks truck, ordering them both a drink and handing Elijah's over to him. "Here you go!"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "You will! You've been busy everytime we've played so far, I don't think the gods want it to happen yet." Miles laughed. He was definitely excited for Cassidy to see the band; it was something he was so passionate about, something he put so much time into and he knew he would really value her opinions. It was why he was so excited to see her too, he knew how much it all meant to her. "You could never. I know it's going to be incredible." He smiled, squeezing the arm that was around her shoulders slightly.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh wanted Finley to be happy, he wanted him to have good things - but he had always been just a little bit selfish and he had never even considered how he would feel if anything were to happen between he and Maddie, even though the two of them had always been close. "I'll see if there's a feedback box anywhere." He laughed, raising an eyebrow. "They're taking their time, aren't they?" He knew he sounded a bit impatient, but he was just so ready to even just see Elijah now. He'd missed him.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Oooh, okay." Annabelle laughed and thought for a second. "You'd need someone chill, you know? Someone who doesn't kick up too much of a fuss and goes along with your crazy." She nudged her friend with a laugh. "Gabe will 100% end up with someone hilarious. Could you see him without someone like that? Edie is with Theo - right?" she smiled. She thought the two of them were so sweet. Annabelle turned her attention to Tommy then and shrugged her shoulders, "You cannot complain and tell me that I saved you at the same time. Pick a lane."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link genuinely thought that Gabe was the nicest person around. He loved his friend like a brother and he thought that he was one of the most selfless people. He wished that he could be more like his friend. He didn't think that he was anywhere near that. Link still had no idea what he was going to do with his life. He had no idea what he was passionate about so university was never one for him. "Hey!" He smiled at the two of them. "How're you guys doing?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Okay, alright. Yeah, that sounds good." Theo smiled as he nodded his head. He hoped that it actually happened. Theo had never really thought about moving out very much. He knew he would be allowed to stay at home for as long as he wanted but he thought that he needed to move out. He needed to get some time on his own, he thought. He needed to grow up a bit. "Yeah, that's what I said." He laughed as he nodded his head. "Hi." Theo smiled as he looked up at the other two.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa really liked how she and James were with the kids. They took things incredibly seriously and Marissa thought that if Frankie hadn't gotten so attached to James, she might have not given him a chance for forgiveness. If this had happened when they were teens, Marissa didn't think she would have ever been strong enough to forgive someone for something like this. But Frankie adored James. And Marissa had to think about her daughter. "Okay - no more kid talk." She laughed as she shook her head slightly.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Oh you are a much nicer person than I am. I'd have 100% just tried to get out of there as soon as possible." Florence shook her head slightly. She was pretty sure that Charlotte was friends with Emilie and she wondered what the other had told her about her. "Literally the most boring people in the world! At least pick someone with a personality for god sake." Florence rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face. "And why does she think that Uni is gonna do that for you? Literally the place where people are renowned for getting drunk 24/7." Florence raised an eyebrow, "I think I'll take that as a compliment? But you should."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah was kind of like Maddie - though he thought that he might be a little too forgiving. He knew that his friends probably shouldn't be his friends anymore. They were rude and a little harsh but he wanting to forgive them. They were people that he cared deeply for, despite their faults. "Thank you. I enjoy you enjoying your toffee apples." Elijah laughed. He thought Maddie was actually a true friend, one that he knew would have his back at all times. "Ah okay, that makes a lot of sense then." Elijah smiled as he nodded his head. "Thank you.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "The gods are definitely not in our favour with this but we will make it happen." Cassidy nodded her head. She thought that it would be a lot of fun to see someone she cared about up on stage, doing something he loved. She wondered if that was what her friends thought when they went to see her in a musical. She hoped so. "We'll see, right?" Cassidy laughed.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Finley smiled slightly as he saw Maddies text back. He was looking forward to seeing her, that was for sure. If he knew exactly how his friend would feel about his feelings towards Maddie, Finley knew that he would do whatever it took to nip it in the bud. Finn didn't have many people looking out for him, his friends were it. "Yeah, i'm sure there's one somewhere." He said sarcastically. "Maddie said they're on their way.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Emilie laughed as she listened to Annabelle, raising an eyebrow as her friend described her perfect partner. "I am not crazy. But yeah, I wouldn't deal with anybody who was as dramatic as I am." She laughed, rolling her eyes. "He needs someone funny, that's for sure. And somebody that doesn't mind having to actually keep him alive." She shook her head. "The kind of men that you love, you're going to end up with somebody like fucking Tommy if you're not careful." She nudged her friend, finishing speaking just as Tommy came over. She laughed as he spoke, rolling her eyes.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I definitely fucking can. You saving me doesn't change how loud your voice is." Tommy laughed, shrugging his shoulders. "Where the fuck is everybody? I thought we were all supposed to meet here?" He raised an eyebrow. He assumed Gabe had held Link up, because that was usually what happened. He wanted to spend time with his friends, though; he'd decided not to bring a date tonight, because he actually wanted to see them all and now they weren't even here.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Gabe didn't think they were old enough to need to know what they were wanting to do yet, he thought that it was still totally fine for he and Link to be a little in the dark about what they were going to do with their lives. He wasn't going to let it stress him out. He beamed as they finally reached Edie and Theo. "Hey! We were just looking for the girls but we have no idea where they are, do you?" He smiled, raising an eyebrow. He really liked seeing that the two of them had come together, he thought they were pretty perfect for each other.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Edie smiled, nodding her head. She really thought that this could be something good, if they wanted it to be - there were a lot of boundaries to overcome, mostly money wise, but she was sure they could do it. "Hi!" She smiled as she looked up at the boys. "We're good, I can't believe how many people are here. How about you? Gabe hold you up?" She laughed as she looked at Link, raising an eyebrow.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: James loved being a dad - he hadn't expected to become one quite so early, but he had done what he could and he was pretty proud of how well he and Katie had coped with everything they'd been handed. He laughed as Marissa said they couldn't speak about the kids anymore, nodding his head. "Okay, what would you like to talk about instead?"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I think it just makes me a liar, at least you'd be honest and just leave." Charlotte grinned, raising an eyebrow. She was surprised at how different Florence seemed to the things she'd heard and she was actually really enjoying talking to her. "I know, but my mum seems to think the less personality, the less trouble they can cause. Which absolutely makes them ten times more boring." She laughed, shrugging her shoulders. "Who knows? I mean, being here isn't the worst thing in the world - but I don't really know what she's hoping to get out of it." She was smart enough, but she wasn't the hardest worker - she just wanted to be having fun right now and she thought at nineteen, that was okay. "I'll try!" She laughed.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Maddie had only ever met Elijah's friends a couple of times, but she hadn't really liked them when she had - she thought he deserved better, she thought he deserved friends that appreciated how good of a person he was. She would never say so, though - she knew he cared about them a lot. "Oh, I will! I won't eat them here though, I'll take them home - they're too messy to eat in front of people." She laughed, shrugging her shoulders. "No problem! Let's go, I think they're over there by the fire." She smiled, taking a sip of her drink as she headed over to where she thought the boys were.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Of course we will. We have a gig in another couple of months, I'll get the dates and times properly and then we can make sure we get you there." Miles smiled, raising an eyebrow. The band were doing well with bookings at the minute and he was really happy about it; they had gone through a bit of a dry spell when they'd first gotten together, so it made him happy to be doing well now. "I guess we will! But I already know it's going to great." He smiled.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Me too. If not, I'll send a few emails." Josh laughed, raising an eyebrow. He and Elijah had been spending more and more time together recently, although they never actually talked about what they were, they talked lots about other things - they were really getting to know each other and Josh knew that he was falling deeper and deeper, but he didn't really want to stop it anymore. "Okay, good."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Annabelle shrugged her shoulders, "You say dramatic, I say crazy. It's the same difference." She laughed. She was clearly just teasing, though. Annabelle thought that Emilie was one of the most impressive people and she didn't think that, that opinion was ever going to change. She wished people saw more of her than she did. Annabelle raised an eyebrow as Emilie said she would be with someone like Tommy. she didn't think that, that was necessarily a bad thing. "Fine. I won't use it to save you next time if you're complaining." She rolled her eyes before she shrugged her shoulders, "I think they're on their way." She quickly texted Edie, to tell her where they were."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link wasn't sure he was ever going to figure out what it was that he was supposed to do. He had never really been good at anything and he wasn't passionate about anything, particularly. He thought that was a recipe for disaster. And he wondered if anyone else his age, of his wealth, felt the same. He had never had to want for anything so why would he think he actually had to do something?

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: *continued* He chuckled as he listened to Edie. "course he did. He wasn't even dressed till about ten minutes ago."

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Although he definitely felt like the group were warming to him, it definitely still felt like he was an outsider. Theo shook his head at Gabes question. "No, we haven't seen them tonight. Sorry." He chewed on his lip. Theo really liked Gabe. He thought that he was so friendly and open and while he considered all six of them a friend now, Gabe had been the first one of the group to properly welcome him.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa had always thought that she would be a young mum and after the miscarriage, it seemed like a forgone conclusion. She wanted a baby. She though that meeting Frankie a few months later had been fate. She shrugged her shoulders at James' question. "I have no idea." Marissa laughed as she shook her head. "Honestly I never thought I would be one of those mums." She chuckled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Oh is that so? I'll watch out for that, then." Florence was having a much better time with Charlotte than she thought she would have. If her mum just had a similar taste in the boys she set her up with, as the friends, she thought they'd be golden. "Oh absolutely." Florence laughed. "We're barely adults. We want a little bit of trouble, no?" She raised an eyebrow. it was like her mum had forgotten how she was at her age. And Florence had heard stories from her dad. "Least you get her off of your back for a bit." She shrugged her shoulders.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah was someone that once he was involved with them, he was all in. And that was definitely the case with his friends. he had been a part of the same friendship group since the start of Secondary School. The idea of cutting them off now just because sometimes they weren't exactly the nicest people - that was too scary for him to think about. "Are you serious? Live your life, Maddie! You want a toffee apple, you have that toffee apple!" Elijah nodded before he followed after Maddie.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "You'll have to book me in. I'll put it in the calendar." Cassidy laughed with a nod of her head. SHe thought that it was amazing that James and his band were getting bookings a lot. "Do you want to be famous?" She asked him. "I mean - with the band and stuff - do you want to make the big time or are you just happy playing?" She didn't think that she had ever actually asked him that before. She wasnt' sure what she hoped would be the answer .

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Yeah, you'll be fine." Finley muttered with a nod of his head. He had no idea about Josh and Elijah but if he did - it would make him sad to think that Josh didn't think he could tell him about it. Joshua was his best friend. All he would ever want for the other was happiness and if that was what this gave him, he'd be completely there for the other. "Oh - I see Maddie!" Finn called, pointing her out for his buddy.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "If I'm crazy, you belong in a fucking asylum." Emilie laughed, rolling her eyes - it was obvious she was joking along with her friend. She didn't think there was much they could say to each other that would ever be unforgivable - even the things they'd said at the wedding had just been automatically forgiven, because they knew each other well enough to know that when they got into that place, they said things they didn't even mean. She raised an eyebrow as Tommy spoke and got out her phone, texting Link to ask where they were. Even though they weren't together, she still wanted to be around him.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Edie laughed as she listened to Link, nodding her head. "I knew it. But hey - you made good time to say he didn't have clothes on in the last half an hour." She chuckled. She loved that the boys were living together now, she thought it made perfect sense. She thought she and Link were two sides of the same coin; their families were so similar and so they both knew how it felt, to feel like you didn't have anybody. She was glad they had both found their real family and that he was getting to be away from his parents and live with somebody as wholesome as Gabe now. She looked down at her phone as it buzzed. "That's Annabelle, they've found Tommy."

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "Ah, that's okay - there are so many people here, I guess it would be kind of weird if you'd managed to spot two not very tall girls so quickly." Gabe laughed, shrugging his shoulders. If he was honest, he was a little bit relieved - he missed Annabelle, but he didn't want things to be awkward tonight and he thought they might be. It wasn't like they could avoid each other forever, though. "Looks like we've found them." He laughed as he heard Edie.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: James smiled as Marissa spoke. "I think I could've told you that you were going to be one of those mums, Riss." He chuckled softly. It was obvious he didn't think it was a bad thing; he loved how much Marissa cared for both girls, how much she loved them and did for them. It was one of his favourite things about her.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Charlotte had never gotten along with somebody her mum had liked so much this well before, ever. She was very pleasantly surprised and she hoped Florence thought the same, even though they hadn't originally wanted to speak to each other. "Absolutely! I'm nineteen, that's just - I still feel like I have loads of trouble making years before I need to settle down and start being sensible." She giggled, shrugging her shoulders. "That's a definite pro - and this isn't the worst place to be. The parties are amazing." She smiled.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Maddie laughed, shaking her head. "You don't understand! It's the messiest thing ever, you wouldn't want to be associated with me. I'll enjoy them way more at home, where there's nobody to judge. The smell will get me by for now, I promise you." She chuckled. She had a sip of her drink as they walked towards the group, smiling widely as she saw them standing together. "We finally found you!" She laughed, giving the boys a little wave as she and Elijah reached them.

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: "I absolutely will." Miles smiled. He'd already put the dates for Cassidy's end of year concert in his phone, there was no way in hell he was going to miss that. He considered her question for a few seconds; he found it very interesting. "Not particularly. In fact, not at all really. If there was a way we could get around the world and play music without anybody actually knowing who we were, I would do it." He chuckled. Fame had no draws to Miles whatsoever, it was all about the music for him. "Do you want to be famous?"

EH GS TM EC MH JA MS JR: Josh looked up as Finley said he had seen Maddie, knowing that Elijah would be with her too. Even at the thought, his stomach started fluttering and as he looked over and saw him, he couldn't keep the little smile from his face. He liked him so much, he had given up on denying it now - at least to himself. "Hi!" He smiled as they came over, nodding his head to their cups. "What have you got to drink?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "Only if you'll be my cell mate or whatever it is." Annabelle smiled at her friend. She thought that her best friend would be right there with her if they were to ever have something like that happen - and she loved it. She thought that it was fun to have someone like Emilie around her. She would always be there by Emilies side, no matter what. "Is our company not good enough for you?" Annabelle asked, raising an eyebrow at Tommy before she laughed. She loved being with her friends. They were everything to her, if she was completely honest.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Link laughed as he nodded his head, "But he has such long legs he could've made the walk in about two steps, you know?" Link felt really lucky that he had Gabe. He was always the person that put a smile on his face, even if he was in the worst mood. Gabe always cheered him up. "Oh, awesome." He smiled as he looked down at the phone and saw that it was Emilie. He texted her back to tell her where they were before he turned his attention to Edie. "What's going on with you two now anyway?" He asked, mostly just to be nosey.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: "And I'm also a not very tall boy so there's like a 2% chance that I'm gonna be able to see them, you know?" Theo asked with a raise of an eyebrow and a laugh. He really did think that Gabe was one of the kindest people. He was so happy that the group had welcomed him back in as much as they had done - especially Gabe. He was so, so grateful. "Oh yeah?" He asked as he looked at Edie.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Marissa smiled as James spoke to her and she raised an eyebrow, "Oh? Why? i mean - How so?" She asked him. She had always known what she had wanted for her life - the main thing being that she wanted to be a mother. She wanted to be a good mother. She was glad to hear that, that was something that James thought of her as well.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Florence wondered if she hadn't gotten along with the people her mum wanted her too because she wanted her too or because they were as dull as she thought that they were. She was definitely pleasantly surprised with Charlotte, though. Florence laughed as she nodded her head, "Absolutely you do! I'm sure there's plenty of trouble you could cause." Florence nodded. SHe wondered if she would actually settle down right now, if Tommy said he wanted too. She was pretty sure that she would, even at twenty-two. "Aren't they just?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Elijah laughed before he shrugged his shoulders, "I'm pretty sure that you could do nothing that would make me not want to be around you, you know?" He raised an eyebrow with a smile. "But alright - if you're happy with that." She was almost nervous as they walked towards Josh. He was really, really looking forward to see him. And he smiled as he heard the others voice, the butterflies instantly getting ten times worse. "Oh - Hot chocolate of course." He smiled.

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Cassidy really liked that she and Miles were planning things for the future. She thought that, that was a really good sign. She didn't know when she would ever feel comfortable enough to actually enter a proper relationship with him - one where they called one another boyfriend and girlfriend but she didn't think that it would take that long. "That's good though. It's a healthy way to look at it, you know?" She raised an eyebrow. Cassidy couldn't help but laugh at Joshs' question. "If I wanted to be famous do you really thinkg I would have picked musical theatre?"

AG LC TC FM EL CG FM DS MH: Finley instantly felt more comfortable with Maddie there. She had always been his safe space, that was why he didn't want her to go and see him in prison. He didn't think he deserved that familiarity when he was inside. "You did!" Finley laughed as he nodded his head slightly. He was really glad that she was there. "Have you got your toffee apple yet?" Finn asked with a raise of an eyebrow. He thought that he knew her pretty well, after all.

[thepoeticwit]

2018 Re-Solutions

Discussing new year resolutions with Stephanie Yap at IACT Christian Fellowship

  On 14 January 2019, we had our ex-President now CF Advisor Stephanie Yap speak to us on new year resolutions, reflecting on the past year and anticipating what is to come for the new year. Last year in 2018, our theme for the year is on Gifts, with a vision to witness the fruit of the Spirit bear within everyone in CF and in every individual that comes to the house of the Lord; a mission to gather Christians to be the salt and light for God and His people through our worship, fellowship and discipleship. (1 Corinthians 12: 1-11; Ephesians 4: 1-16)    Stephanie shared with us some of her resolutions, two of which were getting disciplined (waking up on time, sleeping on time, reading the Word more, being early) and getting focused (figuring out her niche, intentionally talk to people, work hard). 

  Our lives are pretty much like the Netflix show ‘Bandersnatch’ in which every choice we make has a consequence that shapes reality (though some choices won’t really matter or make that big a difference). 2019-- as with every new year-- is either a chance to start over or will be the same as every other year with no significant change. Stephanie then made a point, saying “2019 is a chance to start over, but it will be the same as every other year if it is anchored in the wrong person”       We discussed our choices: do we anchor ourselves in Christ, or do we anchor ourselves in our self? As we discussed, we figured that it would be better to anchor ourselves in Christ rather in ourselves because we can only do so much on our own by our own strength whereas in Christ, we can do so much more by His abundant grace. Since we as human beings are limited and fall short of many things, we would end up relapsing back into defaults and would have everything just the same. So when the next year comes, we’d be wondering “will 2020 be a chance to start over, or just the same as every other year?”

  In John 15:5, Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me, and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing.” Similarly, in Psalms 16:2 it says, “I say to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’” How important it is, then, should we be a part of Christ, to be anchored in Him so that we can bear fruit. There are reasons why we as Christians remain in Christ, and that is mainly because He abides with us. This is in contrast with what the world usually tells us, how we should be confident in our own selves and our own strength. 

Because He Cares For You

  So why be anchored in Christ? The first reason is because He cares for you. In Matthew 6:30-31, it is said, “...if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown in the fire tomorrow, He will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? So don’t worry about these things, saying ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will wear?’ These thoughts dominate the hearts of unbelievers, but your Heavenly Father already knows all your needs”. Coming to this point, Stephanie challenged us to ask ourselves what we have in common with unbelievers. It is this: worries. We, as human beings, tend to worry a lot. What is supposed to make us different as salt and light of the earth is that we trust in the Lord our God who provides for us, who knows our purpose, and who is our everything. 

  There was this one sentence in the verse that caught hold of Stephanie, which was: “Why do you have so little faith?” A lot of times we depend on experience when we are least aware of it. But take a look at King David. Should you observe his character, you would recognise that he had a gift in leadership. As a leader, you would tend to think-- based on experience-- that you would go with the formula that works best simply because you have been through it before. But what did David do? He went to God and consulted with Him each time before going out to battle. That in itself is astounding. Like, would you even consider going to God before starting on college assignments (not counting the very last minute ones or that which is past due, of course)? It would seem that a difficulty in this area of ours would imply that we do not have the practice of building our faith. So we should, by all means, go to God before any task be it in our assignments, our services to Him, or even in our interactions with our friends. All this, because he cares for us.

Because Everything Of This World Will Eventually Fade

 We should be anchored in Christ because everything of this world will eventually fade. The world actually preaches that you should be great and that you should leave a mark on this world. It is actually not bad and it doesn’t really fall far from the Bible which tells us to do excellently and be a good example. However, the Bible also makes a stark contrast by saying, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” (Matthew 6:19-21) This verse calls to mind a particular word of interest: disappointment. We easily get disappointed at a lot of things be it team mates, our grades, and generally get very disappointed in life (or with life). 

  We would think thoughts like, “Oh, I’m supposed to be in a Christian family, thus everything is supposed to be nice and orderly” or “This is supposed to be a church, everyone is supposed to be nice to each other” or “This is supposed to be CF, people shouldn’t be gossiping”. Truth be told, these are things on earth. Your system, the CF, our gatherings, and even the place that we gather in are all temporary. Don’t take this the wrong way: it’s not like we shouldn’t put our heart in it or give our all for these things. However, at the end of the day, you can do all things but your heart is not meant to be here. Setting your heart on earthly things would give cause to see everything crumble down, because that is just the nature of life here on earth-- temporary and fading away. 

   In Psalm 144:4, it says “Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow”. Stephanie shared how she felt God spoke to her by this verse; it was like He is telling us that we tend to put our hope in human beings as well-- people who are gone, even. We should indeed look up to the legacy that Christians before us have left behind, reading up on them and their works, and being encouraged by them. Yet, everything has a potential to become an idol. When even the best of the saints become our idols, in the end, we realise that they can disappoint us too. Anchor yourself in Christ because He is the only person who does not and will not disappoint you! “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

Because He Is The Giver Of Dreams

    We should anchor ourselves in Christ because He is the giver of dreams therefore only He can see it to completion. For some of us (especially those of us who are IACT students) we would have immense amounts of opportunities before us and thus we have big dreams. Conversely, we can be on the opposite end seeing no opportunities at all and wonder, “what’s the point?” Stephanie shared how she was at this state, but felt God saying to her, “Dream bigger.” Then she replied, “But doesn’t that contradict Your lesson to me all these years not to put my identity in my dreams? Because Lord, You know the way You made me, that I will go all the way in full force and then I will be disappointed.” Then the Lord said to her, “You already have your answer right there: who do you put your trust in? The dream coming to pass, or Me coming through for you?”  

   If you have no idea where to start on your devotions, go look up the stories of Abraham, Joseph (in Genesis), King David, etc. These are some of the people who are people of faith who put their trust in God and see their dreams come true. Could you ever imagine that, in today’s time, God suddenly says to you “you will become a nation” meaning that you will be a race of your own? That was what it was like when God told Abraham the exact same thing, and imagine how Abraham would have felt as a human being who did not really know God’s will at large at the time. Yet, still he trusted in the Lord. David was given the call to be king of Israel when he was just a very young teenager and didn’t become king until he was around 30 years old.   

   Like David, some of us may have had prophetic words/words of knowledge spoken over us, over the years even, in church or other about what our futures may be like. Don’t let those dreams die yet. We should be like Mary, Jesus’ mother, and keep these things in our heart. Mary didn’t see how Jesus was the Saviour of nations although she had bore witness to Jesus’ life, ministry, sacrifice, resurrection, and the ministry of the church after these things in her own lifetime (not to say that she didn’t, she probably did). Yet, on the grander scheme of things, she wouldn’t be able to see past her own timeline to see Christ’s work on earth after her own time. It is the same with us. God works in our life not just for our timeline but for a bigger timeline. He wants to work in your timeline for sure, but trust that you are a part of something that is much bigger. So when you walk in God’s will, you are actually part of something much bigger than yourself. 

2019 Resolutions: How do we be anchored in Christ?

  So that’s that. We are anchored in Christ for those three reasons: because He cares for us, because everything in this world will eventually fade, and because He alone is the giver of dreams and thus the only one who can bring those dreams to completion. Now comes the next question: How do we become more anchored in Christ? We anchor ourselves in Christ by trusting God and not the dreams or works; identifying with Him, not the world; knowing Him above ourselves; and having fellowship often with one another.

Trust God, not the works or the dreams.

  In Psalm 37:5 it says, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do it.” The thing about this verse is how it says that He will do it. Not you, but He. We may place a lot of emphasis on how we are doing, on what our hands can do, and when we fail, we condemn ourselves. Of course we need to do well and strive for excellence what more even now as students because how well we are doing in whatever that is entrusted to us is an indicator of our walk with Christ. People will be looking at us, watching us. So it is indeed important to do well in what we are doing as a testimony. But keep in mind that all of this is only possible because God enables it to be. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labour in vain; unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” (Psalms 127:1) So while we work hard, we need to commit our way to the Lord lest it be in vain. 

Identify with Him, not with the world.

  We live in a world, in such a time as this where there are a lot of “isms” (feminism, veganism, minimalism, atheism, capitalism, communism, etc.). In a world with a variety of worldviews and philosophies, our sole truth and guiding principle as Christians is the Word of God. In Romans 12:2 it says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-- His good, pleasing and perfect will.” The first imperative in this verse is a “don’t”: Don’t be conformed to the world’s patterns. But then it is also followed by an imperative to “do”: Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. The way to not conform to the pattern of this world is to actively transform your mind by reading the Word of God. 

  Not only do we renew our minds when we read the Word of God, but we will be able to test and approve what God’s will is. Let’s take a look at the word “Test”. We look into the Word of God to seek affirmation (to test ourselves) on whether or not what we are doing is right, whether we are moving in the right direction as a CF, whether we are on the right track even as future leaders, or just as Christians. Now let’s take a look at the word “Approve”. What do we approve of in today’s day and age? It can be simple things like “I approve of this colour” or “I like your dressing today, I approve it” or “I agree with you”. Come to think about it, we can’t approve or agree with something if we don’t love it. It’s the same with God and His good, pleasing, and perfect will. We must come to love God and His word so much that we will approve of these things so much that we would even want to transform ourselves in the renewing of our minds! 

Know God, above yourself.

  The first line of Psalm 46:10 says “Be still and know that I am God...”. There is this saying that some would say: “I wanna find myself this year”. But what does that really mean? What does it really mean to find oneself? Because really, to find oneself would entail searching inward which would be disappointing enough should the person not have Christ. In and of ourselves, we lack, and all that we have are only superficial things. Thus, in the end, all that we have within ourselves is emptiness. Even the best of things on earth do not compare to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:8) We should be seeking God instead.

  What would it then mean to be still and know that He is God? Probably because that is all we ever need to know and the starting point in which we come to know (more of) who God is. To know that God is good takes experience of God’s goodness in one’s life. To know that God is provider also takes experience of His providence in one’s life (and so it goes with other attributes of God, like Him being Healer, or Father). Knowing that He is God is the start, because when we acknowledge that He is God, we acknowledge that He is in control (and we worship a God who is in control. If He is not in control, then He’d rather not be God at all!) Too often we get ourselves caught up in the illusion that we are in control of our own lives when in reality, we do not have everything in our control at all. So we ought to get ourselves out of that illusion and see for ourselves that He is God, and we are not. 

Fellowship often.

  Fellowship often with one another. We, as Christians are members of Christ’s body. So we ought to commune together with one another as we do with God. Stephanie left us with a word from Ephesians 3:14-21 that says, “I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” 

  How we are able to know this deep, wide, long and wide love of Christ that surpasses knowledge is to fellowship with Christ, that is also to fellowship with those who are members in His body. “Let us not neglect our meeting together, as some have made a habit, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25) Not only this, but there are more places in Scripture in regards to us being the body of Christ. (Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12–27; Ephesians 3:6 and 5:23; Colossians 1:18 and Colossians 1:24.) Also consider how in our loving one another we make manifest our love for God and His love in us as well. (John 13:34-35; 1 John  4:19-21). 

Recap.

  With each new year, as well as every new moment, it is always an opportunity for new beginnings. However, should we lose our focus and anchor ourselves in the wrong person, it could end up just the same as usual with no difference. We should anchor ourselves in Christ because He cares for us, because everything in this world will eventually fade but He remains the same, and because He is the giver of dreams therefore only He can bring them to completion all for His glory. 

  We become anchored in Christ when we trust in God and not in the works and dreams, when we identify with Him and not with the world, when we are still and know that He is God who is in control, and when we fellowship with one another in the love of Christ making manifest even greater the immensities of his everlasting steadfast love. 

  Should we anchor ourselves in Christ, we will be able to grow and bear much fruit, for apart from Him we truly cannot do a single thing.

(Scriptures cited and referenced from various versions of the Holy Bible)

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Baron omatsuri and the secret island traumatizes me yet again, hooray!

Ok wow that was a nostalgia blast! Finally goddamn have a physical copy of this thing to own. Its never been dubbed and the only way to get it was this weird manga UK licensed reprint of a bunch of (i think) hong kong english subtitles. The style of the subtitles looks like that, at least. Its all weird and grainy and very very old fashioned early days of subtitling style, which contrasts completely with the modern dvd menus and box and stuff. And its also a weird combination disc of four different movies, it seems they just bought out a licensing package deal or something? And just baked it onto the disc without checking or editing anything. Its not really a funny sort of bad subtitles though, its just awkward phrasings of thibgs that are hard to understand or random typos or whatever, no legendarily hilarious stuff. I kinda dislike it more when subtitles are like this, when theyre like...actually written by a guy who speaks fluent english but he just never watched the actual movie so theres a bunch of rookie mistakes. Also has a strange case of what you usually only see on fansubs- the obsession with leaving everything in japanese to Sound Cool. Nah we cant call them the Tea Party Pirates we have to say the japanese word for that. Nah we cant have this man say mustache when he's doing the mustache pose and talking about his crew of entirely mustache men who all do this mustache pose NO it has to be Chobehige because its somehow deep and edgy to not understand the word for mustache. Like i feel if i was watching this sub first i would have no idea what was happening! At least its not as bad as that older sub i saw where they insisted on translating friends as "crew", even when it was llike..a singular. This one man is my crew and here are all my other crews! Like i feel like that subber probably originally did that dumb old fandom thing of INSISTING that you had to say Nakama in japanese and Capitalized and it was a Very Important japanese word for specifically pirate friends that was Impossible To Translate. And then they just did a ctrl + F replace on the whole thing and made an incomprehensible mess. Also for some reason sanji just yells DOCTOR out of nowhere (chopper wasnt even in the scene) and baron omatsuri's one syllable "oh" is translated as some long string of what seems to be baseball jargon..?

But ANYWAY the movie is still fuckin awesome and i actually noticed EVEN MORE dark shit and subtle storytelling that i missed when i was a kid! The whole 'small child zombie stares blankly at the place where a sword stabbed through his chest and cant understand why he got back up' scene is EVEN MORE emotionally destructuve than i thought! Cos the subtlety of the voiceacting seems to make the poor kid sound so tired and resigned to it? He's desperately asking and his father figure feeds him the same old lies he's done a million times about how he's totally still alive and everything is fine. Like wow i missed that inplication that this has happened before! And then he kinda sounds like he's actually aware that Baron is lying and he's just pretending to believe him to make him feel better. And then he starts turning back into a corpse and he doesnt panic like muchigoro or not realize whats happening like the grandpas do. He just looks straight at his hand falling apart and tries to lie to Baron to make him feel better. *long shot of him from behind before you see whats happened* "I'm just feeling dizzy again. I've got used to it." *him staring blankly at his body falling apart, not even capable of feeling sad about it anymore* "Don't worry...i've got used to it." *thud*

Like FUCKING HELL this film is the best damn existential horror thing ever and why the FUCK did they market it as a fun happy kids film? it probably would have been way more successful if the twist wasnt kept all twisty, honestly.

And also WOW YEAH theres a lot of stuff thats the subtlest goddamn storytelling in the universe and youd never notice unless you watched this film a million times like i did! Like during the intro when everythibg still seems all fun and cute and normal, the advert for the Totally Innocent Not A Trap Super Secret Island Resort is being read over some random shots of waves and stuff. But then right near the end you see those same shots again and it becomes clear that it was literally the view from Baron's eyes as he was falling from the ship and drowning, desperately trying to keep his head above water and strain his eyes to see if anyone else had survived. All the moments that just looked like camera cuts were actually when his head fell beneath the waves. Thats fuckin amaizng you straight up showed the ending in the beginning and we didnt notice????

Oh and also right before THE FUCKIN TERRIFYING MUCHIGORO DEATH SCENE you see him casually mention being 'sleepy' a few scenes earlier. It just passes by without notice and you think that he's just drunk until he suddenly starts going from comedic slurring to fucking asphixiating and the SKIN ON HIS FINGERS PEELING OFF. Oh hey! Another thing i didnt notice before! FUCKING THAT. A fun game for you on your rewatch! Looking out to find the secret finger horror! Ha ha ha...ha...

Also MAN OH WOW all the subtle signs of Baron getting more desparate throughout the movie and how it seems the time limit for the zombies was almost up and he had to kill these specific pirates right now because he couldnt spare even a few more hours. In retrospect it makes sense how he was slipping up and leaving evidence for the heroes to figure him out. And its just so subtly offputting and strange how he goes from making a big fun performance about the festival early on and then starts subtky rushing through the formalities faster. Like you dont eveb conciously notice the tone is changing until suddenly BAM the full change happens and you realise you missed all those signs! And aaaa its so fuckin sad how you see him come running when muchigoro drops dead and he's like fuckin GET OUT OF THE WAY DAMMIT and kneels down next to the body and theb he just..turns emotionless again and goes ITS TIME FOR THE NEXT CHALLENGE. It is time. Its now. Shut the fuck up and do it, i dont have time to deal with this shit, just die so i can bring my friend back. (Tho of course you dont know thats why at the time) And then whats most jarring about the whole scene to me is how he's like "okay fuck it theres no more fun theres no more attractions, if youre not gonna play along then the final game is just i shoot your damn head off" WHILE YKNOW STILL STANDING OVER THE CORPSE OF HIS FRIEND AND STARING DAGGERS INTO THEM LIKE ITS THEIR FAULT FOR DARING TO CLING ONTO LIFE and then a fuckin half finished hapoy fun carnival game sign pops up in the backgroubd and everyone walks past it. Why was that somehow both hilarious and terrifying????? Just fuckin 'whoops we had this thing ready to go but alright its murder time i guess' and everyone IS SUDDENLY PACKING HEAT AND RIDDLING OUR HEROES WITH BULLETS???

And also even more subtly Baron just?? Stays with muchigoro?? Like notice how the entirety of the endgame takes place around where the dude dropped dead. And how when mustache pirate guy saves luffy you see Baron just walking in circles around the same area angrily shooting arrows at nothing in complete desperation even though the dude is gone and itd make more sense to run after him. No he stays standing right there and actually looks really damn relieved when luffy comes back, he's like 'holy shit you really were stupid enough to walk right into my trap jesus christ im so glad but also youre a dumbass'. And he fights entirely using arrows at this point so you might not even notice that he barely walks more than just circling a two meter radius of fuckin DEAD BEST FRIEND CORPSE. Which btw blends intonthe shadows for this entire scene and they only draw attention it again after Baron wibs and muchigoro comes back to life. And UGH MY HEART you see him smile genuinely for the firstvtime and he's like 'im so glad youre okay' and muchigoro is like 'haha im more than okay i can do somersaults!' and generally being a FUCKING TREASURE and this poor fuckin horrible evil man is hugging his buddy and gently leading him away from the battlefield so he doesnt norice he was just fuckin murdering some dudes to ressurect him. God the scariest damn thing about this film is how the zombies dont know theyre zombies and honestky they probably wouldnt even agree with their boss's plan to kill people to keep them alive. They justvthink they live a perfectly normal happy life on hapoy festival island, and he wants them to stay that way and never feel pain again :(

Aaaaand then yeah the infamous scene of revealing this horrifying intestines flower is growing out of the flesh on his back and all the corpses its digesting are pushed against the undulating flesh of its throat like a snake devouring its prey. And its cutesy fake flower face grows infinate eyes as it just keeps laughing and laughing. And then it gets graphically blown apart and the poor goddamn parasite host tries to shove the bloody instestines back into its body, knowing that without this horrifying monster chewing on his goddamn veins all his friends will go back to being dead.

THE END

THE FUCKING END

God it ends so abruptly seriously

I still cry my eyes out every time at the ending monologue of Baron dying and meeting all the souls of his dead friends and theyre crying telling him he shouldnt be here, they wish he'd been able to find another reason to live without him...

And then THE END

JAUNTY MUSIC OVER THE CREDITS

THE FUCKIN END I GUESS

What a great but very oddly executed movie. Seriously i feel it could have worked better if it was given space to breathe and more deeply explore the dark themes rather than the weirdness of trying to fool the audience into thinking it was cheerful and innocent. Like all of this shit happens in the last 30 minutes of the movie! They spend 60 minutes on the fun carnival games! What a strange sense of priorities!!

I WOULD DEVOUR A MILLION HOURS MORE OF DEEP SAD ZOMBIE CONTENT

I am like the Lily of fanfics

Oh yeah btw the horrifying deadly elder god spine parasite thing is named Lily and it looks pretty much exactly like flowey from undertale. This film kinda spoiled me for that game LOL ive never trusted a single talking flower ever since!