#prepare yourselves for art of questionable quality for the coming days

[psykoe100]

30 Day Ekurei Challenge - Day 9: Yoshioka (Security Guard) First Meeting

rip reigen lol

Bonus:

[jvnghxope]

love sewn | three (m)

part three;

◦ pairing: Jungkook | reader

◦ genre: boy next door au; fluff, smut, a little angsty at the end

◦ word count: 7.4k+

◦ warnings: sexual themes, penetrative sex, swear words, alcohol consumption

◦ abstract: You’ve never cared about the thin-as-paper walls of your beloved apartment until Jeon Jungkook moved next door. You could hear everything –from his late-night parties on Saturday, to the quality time he spent with his girlfriend in the intimacy of his bedroom. One day, everything ceases. Days turn into weeks, weeks turn into months and you find yourself knocking his door before you can think it twice.

⇥ prologue | part one | part two | part three | final

“So, we are going to steal clothes and you guys are going to lose your job...” Namjoon comments behind your back. 

You exchange slightly panicked glances with Taehyung. 

"We’re not going to steal anything. We’re just going to borrow,” he quickly interjects before the panic gets the worst of you. You need to admit that you are a little nervous about this, too. 

"Still, I think this is a bad idea," Hoseok laughs nervously. 

“Hobi, everything is going to be okay." You take your friend’s hand in an attempt to ease his nerves. He doesn’t like to lie. He is really bad at that and he avoids doing anything illegal as much as possible. 

“Don’t worry. We have a key. It’s not like we are trespassing.”  

Hobi nods, a little calmer now and followed you inside the building. 

The gala is next Saturday and you still don’t know which dress you’ll use. Jungkook texted you about the gala theme just a couple of hours ago –you finally decided to reply to his question earlier that day (yeah, it took you a whole week to answer)– and is 'Family'. You have no idea what that means or how you are supposed to wear in a gala with that theme, but Jungkook kindly replied to your panicked text with ‘Dress formal. Like the type of dresses you designed last time. :)’ 

Your heart jumped at the emoji, but it’s not like you are going to admit that in front of your friends. 

That’s why you are now in front of the building of your office. Besides Taehyung, you are pretty sure only Joon owns a dress shirt. Luckily for you and your besties, the firm keeps every piece of cloth designed in a big ass warehouse inside the building. You remember seeing a collection of beautiful dresses and formal suits the last time you were honored to be inside.  

Once inside, your group of friends split in the seek for the perfect outfit. 

“There’s no way I’ll use that,” you hear Namjoon says from afar. 

“What do you mean?” you don’t need to see Taehyung’s face to see that he’s pulling the ‘Are you serious?’ Face. “It’s a beautiful color!” 

Listening to your friends arguing, even when is over a simple thing like what color of suit to use, always makes you chuckle. Sometimes is like they are 15 instead of in their mid-twenties.  

“Oh my god! This dress is gorgeous!” Anna exclaims next to you. The dress she is holding is gorgeous. Emerald green, long sleeves, lace-made, Greek-style shirt a little over the knees. It is the perfect dress for your cute friend. “I’ll try this one,” she chimes excitedly. 

“Perhaps it was not a good idea to bring you here. I’ll need to tear that dress from you if I ever want to return it.” 

“Yep,” she quickly agrees before running to the nearest dress room.  

You can't help but smile as you keep searching for a dress. But any convince you enough. It is either the design or the color. That pink is too bright; that blue looks so sad; that orange color is not that cute… You are about to give up. Maybe the perfect dress for you is not around here. 

But then, you arrive at a hidden space that is not properly illuminated. This time, the clothes are not scattered in counters, hanging from hooks or ordered by color. Instead, they are carefully guarded inside boxes. The wall is full of them. 

You know for sure the firm doesn’t throw away the clothes from past seasons. They keep the best designs made every collection. There is a high possibility that some of these designs were used by top models in previous Fashion Weeks.  

You open a few of them, finding cardigans, skirts from all shapes, types, and colors. Each piece is carefully saved. You gasp the moment you open another box.  The most beautiful dress is inside of it. It is a beautiful tone of crimson and made of silk. It is soft to touch. You carefully take the dress out of the box and with fear you look for the tag to see if the dress is of your size. It must be your lucky day because it is. 

“Oh, there you are! I want to use black heels with the dress but Tae told me I should use a pair of silver stilettos. Or even gold ones. What do you think-” She stops talking the moment she notices the dress between your arms and how you are holding it, like is a treasure. “That dress is beautiful! You should wear that one.”

You look at her with wide eyes, “But we’re not supposed to take anything from these boxes…”

“We’re not supposed to take anything from the warehouse. Why don’t you try it on?” 

Well, she has a point. 

Minutes later, you are staring at your reflection in the mirror. 

You look… different. The dress is hugging all your curves in the right way and the color enhances your skin tone. The skirt is pooling around your ankles. You love long dresses. It makes your legs look longer and they are pretty elegant. 

Ok. You will just take the dress for one night, like Cinderella, and return it right away. 

You turn around and see Anna taking some snaps of herself in excitement. Your male friends are in the corner. Taehyung and Namjoon still arguing about which color of jacket Namjoon should use with his tailored slacks. Seokjin is rubbing his temples like he’s tired of that shit and Hoseok, oblivious to the situation folding behind him, is admiring himself in the mirror. He looks handsome in that jacket. Floral print designs are very difficult to pull out but Hoseok is one of the lucky ones. 

It was not a good idea to come here, you quickly realize. Because as you watch the anticipation slowly starting to build inside your friend’s –and your own– chest, you know there's no way you'll be willing to return the clothes, putting your job at risk. But seeing the way your friends are smiling, it'll be worth it. 

The rest of the week passes painfully slow. 

You haven’t seen Jungkook in two weeks and you are starting to get anxious. The last time you saw him he asked you on a date and you feel like it is a turning point in your relationship. 

Since you met, you've been friends. But he asking you out means that he is ready to take the next step. The question is, are you? 

Despite the growing feelings you may have about him, you are still not sure if you are ready to be in a relationship. And right now you don't have the energy to stress more about it. So you decide to follow Anna’s advice and let things flow. 

In the next few days, you focus on work and upcoming projects. 

The firm you work for has a new project and asked you to design a dress for a spring collection. Piece of cake. Or that’s what you thought at first. 

On Monday, you managed to draw some decent sketches. On Tuesday, you figured the design was not that good and decided to start over. On Wednesday, you locked up inside your office to get the job done, without good results. On Tuesday, you stayed at your apartment and did some home-office because your creative juices flow better in your studio. Finally, on Friday, it was decided you were having some... creative issues. 

Saturday arrived finally and the gala is the only thing you can think about. Seokjin makes waffles for breakfast, making the day twice as special –Seokjin only makes waffles in special occasions–.  

Today, it is twice as hard to stay focused on your work. The nerves and excitement make it difficult. You haven't talked that much with Jungkook this past week. He’s been busy with all the preparation for his gala. Your phone chimes with a new text and you are surprised it is of him. 

[2:05 pm] Jungkook

The limo will pick you up at 6 pm. Can't wait to see you.

The smile that spreads across your face is unintentional and you feel your cheeks go warm. You are just as excited to see him. Wow, and a limo. That’s so nice of him. You check the hour. Fuck, it is 3 pm! 

You have exactly 3 hours to get ready. You text Namjoon before entering the bathroom. 

You know the basics when it comes to makeup. But considering this is an important event (and a date), you ask Anna’s help. She was an Ace on that stuff. By 3:30 pm, she already had done her hair in curls and perfectly applied makeup when you were still a mess of wet hair and swollen, bare face.

With his help and an hour and a half later,  you find yourselves already tucked inside your dresses and snapping shots in the enormous mirror of the bathroom. You have time to spare while you wait for the boys to arrive. Seokjin even joins you after a while, looking all handsome with his black tuxedo and taking some photos with you and Anna. 

As Jungkook told you, the limo is waiting for you at 6 pm sharp. Dressed as you do, you feel like you are a movie star going to a Movie Premier. Someone steps out of the car and a part of you hopes it is Jungkook, but when a smile of a stranger graces your face, you can breathe properly again. This man is going to kill you someday. 

“Miss ___? I’m here to take you and your friends to mister Min and mister Jeon’s annual gala. Please, get inside,” he opens the door and motions the inside of the vehicle. Excited chuckles come from behind you as your friends urge you to get inside.

"Man, this is so cool," Hoseok comments while Namjoon pours each one of you a glass of champagne you guys found inside the mini-fridge. This whole thing feels like a dream. Dressed as superstars, riding a limo, drinking champagne. 

As time goes by, you notice the limo heading towards a part of the town known as the Art District. It used to be where all the industries held their big factories. Now, the enormous buildings transformed into luxurious art galleries, beautiful museums, bright dance studios, and lush condos. This part of the town supports anyone and everyone who decides to pursue art for a living. Thus, the firm you and Taehyung work for has its headquarters here. 

Several minutes after, you have in front of you the most glamorous building. It looks like a skyscraper, tall and magnificent. In daylight, the windows reflect the sunlight and it looks like the tower is made of glass. The locals know it as the Glass Tower. Now, the windows reflect the orange-ish of the sunset. 

This is the first time you enter the building, so you are not sure where to go. The driver parks the vehicle near the main entrance and opens the door for you. 

“Mr. Min and Mr. Jeon are waiting for you inside. Ask for them in the Lobby. They’ll direct you from there.” 

“Thank you,” you say with a smile.

The Lobby is just as impressive as the outside of the building. The white marble-like floor, the plants embellishing the corners, the mesmerizing paintings and photographies and the furniture make the room look artsy yet elegant. 

“Hey, we’re here for the gala…” Seokjin comments to the beautiful red-haired receptionist once you and your friends get near the enormous mahogany desk. Then, something weird happens. The receptionist's eyes illuminate like she just saw a star as her glance lay on yours and your friend’s frame. Like she recognizes you from somewhere. 

“Yes!” she chimes with an unexpectedly high-pitched voice. “Everyone is waiting for you. Please, go to the 15th floor.” 

With a nod, you do as instructed, not without hearing the receptionist over the phone: “The special guests just arrived!” 

Special guests? 

You don’t have time to dwell in what you just heard, because the next second the elevator doors open with a loud ‘ding’. The 15th floor displays a small lobby –a perfect combination of glass, ivory, and silver. Another beautiful lady is waiting for you in front of a pair of glass doors. 

“Welcome,” she says with a smile. “Please, follow me.” 

You exchange nervous glances with your friends and follow her lead. The moment she opens the gates is like you are in another world. The room before your eyes is enormous and it is already full of people. Just as you enter, two waitresses approach your group with a silver tray and glass cups with a golden, bubbly liquid. More Champagne. 

A man approaches your group once you take the cups. It is not the man you are hoping for but just as welcomed. 

“You are here!” Min Yoongi pulls you into a hug. You’ve been texting with him after your little –and too awkward– encounter at the café a couple of weeks ago. He’s pretty nice once you get to know him. 

“Yoongi! This is amazing!” you exclaim and he smiles, pleased. 

“Thank you.” He just noticed the way your eyes wander around the room looking for him. “I don’t think I have the pleasure.” He gestures your friends and you’re thankful for the distraction. 

The introductory part doesn’t last very long and Yoongi leads the group to a part he claims to be the beginning of the exhibition, each piece arranged to tell a story. One that ends with his and Jungkook’s exhibition. As you made your way through the mass of people, it is not the first time you feel someone else’s eyes glued to your back. 

“Am I the only one who feels everyone is staring at us?” you hear Namjoon asks. 

“I know, right?” 

The early discomfort soon soothes away as time goes by and the cups get purred with more champagne. Yoongi, self-proclaimed as your official guide, stays with you and explains the story behind each photography embellishing the gallery walls. It is supposed to be explained by its author, see, but with a large number of people filling the room, everyone’s busy and Yoongi, as the great host he is, is glad to help. It’s not like it is a bother to him. He is so passionate about the matter. A rosy excitement tinting his cheeks, a gummy smile displayed as he happily explains each one of the exhibitions.  

It is a pleasant surprise to notice that not only photographies are embellishing the walls of the gallery but paintings and sculptures too.  

Yoongi explains to the group the reason why they decided to arrange their gallery as they did: with fake walls placed to form a somewhat labyrinth, each fabricated room gives every exhibition solitude and protagonism. They wanted to enhance the singularities of each of their artists –even when they belong to the same gallery and built their exhibition under the same theme, they wanted to share the beauty in their differences and unique style. 

Each exhibition is just as beautiful and mesmerizing as the last one. The vivacious colors are still dancing behind your eyelids as your cup of champagne keeps getting re-filled with excited waitresses. You find yourself having a really good time in the company of your friends and Yoongi (who is slowly becoming your friend too). It warms your heart to see them just as excited as they were in the beginning and asking questions to Yoongi about the exhibitions. You even forget that Jungkook is, still, nowhere to be seen and the bubbling champagne hides the disappointment that sets in the pit of your stomach. 

It seems you are reaching the end of the exhibition because a not-naturally shy Yoongi turns around on his heels to face you. “Don’t be so harsh on him, okay?” It is the only sentence he says before he leads you to the last prefabricated room –you don’t have time to register the meaning behind his words before you follow suit. The room is slightly bigger than the previous ones and by the sheepish smile Yoongi sends your way, you realize it’s because it holds not one but two exhibitions: his and Jungkook’s. 

His photos are mesmerizing and you don’t have to be an expert on the matter to know he is talented. 

The pictures are arranged to tell a story and it impresses you how much emotion they can portray: You can feel the sorrow, the disappointment, the pain of a young man you were abandoned by his family because he wanted to pursue his dreams. 

You can sense the relief and genuine brotherhood love he might had felt when he met the younger. He finally had someone who supported him no matter what. 

You see a young man who claims to be a loner and cold-hearted but on the inside, he craves the love of a significant other as anyone else and ended being heartbroken when he realized she was in love with his best friend. 

Yoongi has suffered. But he's is strong. That's why you admire him. 

You reach out to take his hand, "Yoongi, this is amazing." You clutch his hand tightly. 

"Thank you," he flashes the brightest of smiles, showing his gums. 

Then, you turn around to see Jungkook's exhibition… and now you realize why everyone was staring at you. 

The whole wall is full of photos of you and your friends. It is like the last couple of months had been recorded. You remember how Jungkook used to bring his camera everywhere and you didn't quite understand why. 

Now you do. 

Looking at the pictures you remember all the adventures you all have had together. Like that day when Anna made all of you go to an improvised picnic because the boys started a heated fight over a video game and she was tired of that shit. Then, the picnic ended in a random football game and Jungkook took the photo the moment Taehyung threw the ball and it landed directly in Namjoon’s face. It was a great day indeed. 

Or that one time when all your favorite male models got the same stomach flu (weird) and you asked –or more like begged– your male friends to be your models for one day. Taehyung and Jungkook agreed right away but for Namjoon, Hoseok, and Seokjin it took you more to convince them. Using ‘don’t know how to stroll in a runaway’ as an excuse, it took two hours and an express class from one of your girls to finally convince them to help you. At the end of the night, despite their worries, they made it perfectly and Jungkook took some snaps to behold the memory. He now could tell how he was a model for one night and had photos to prove it. 

It seems that the photos that embellish the walls of his exhibition are the memories he holds closest to his heart and you can’t help the smile that tugs your lips. 

Your eyes kept wandering around Jungkook’s exhibition with a fond smile, only to find your heart rate rise dangerously high when your eyes landed in a particular photo: just you and none else.

And there are a bunch of them. 

The sound of your friends happily chatting behind you and other people admiring the exhibitions suddenly become background noise. 

Staring at you in the photos is like a third-party experience. It is like you are not seeing yourself but another beautiful woman. And you are doing the simplest of things. Like that one time when it was your turn to feel a little down when one your beloved designs got postponed for the next season and Jungkook took you to a nearby convenience store and he made a super silly joke that almost had you spilling your spicy noodles because you laughed so hard. He took the photo right there. 

Sometimes, you pull all-nighters at Jungkook's when the sanctuary at your apartment didn't help your creative juices to flow. He was more than willing to offer his company and it helped you a little. He took the photo when your brows were furrowed and your tongue peaked in concentration because that skirt wasn't cooperating at all. 

Or that one time when you took him to the concert of his favorite artist and instead of taking pictures of him as promised, he took some of you. 

There are a lot more where you are just laughing, smiling or just doing nothing. There were times when he asked you to take photos of you but you never thought they will end here when you agreed. 

What all of this mean? you muse to yourself. 

"I'm so happy you could make it," a familiar voice chimes behind you. 

Jungkook. 

You turn around to face him and what you see leaves you breathless. He is wearing a black suit. One that you designed. You remember giving it to him as a gift after he helped you with the runway. He is also wearing a black dress shirt that would make Taehyung feel proud. The color makes the perfect contrast with his golden skin. His hair is styled in a way his forehead is exposed. 

He looks amazing and breathtakingly handsome. The mere sight of him has your stomach doing flip flops and butterflies flying. 

“Hi,” you finally salute him with a shy smile. 

“Hi.” 

He reaches you and pulls you into a hug, one that makes the breath hitch in your throat. He surrounds your body with both arms and your face ends in the crook of his neck. The scent of his cologne makes your head spin. He smells amazing. 

“Did you like it?” he asks once he pulls away, too soon for your liking. “The exhibition.” 

He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. 

“I-” 

“Jungkook, dear.” 

A beautiful woman on her late forties gives a loud kiss on both of Jungkook’s cheeks. 

"Oh, Miss Smith! I'm glad you could make it!” 

A warm smile spreads across his features. The woman –Miss Smith– waves her hand. "That's nonsense. I wouldn't have missed it." 

Then, she notices you. 

"Who's your companion?" 

Jungkook tugs you by the hand and, to your surprise, intertwines his fingers with yours oh so naturally that makes your heart jump. 

"This is ___. My-"

"Your beautiful muse!" She muses, her eyes illuminating as she recognizes you from the photos. "Nice to meet you, dear. You two make a great couple." 

You open your mouth to tell her that no, you and Jungkook are not a couple, that you are just friends but your mouth goes suddenly dry when Jungkook replies: 

"Thank you." 

He offers her a tiny smile. 

Wait. 

Your mind takes a few moments to digest what just happened before you. Your cheeks go warm and you raise your free hand to your chest to make sure your heart is working properly. 

"Well, I need to look for my husband but I will call you later. I want to buy one of the sculptures of this artist of yours, Vante. Nice to meet you, ___." 

And she disappears through the crowd.  

Jungkook turns to you and smiles so brightly. 

"Do you want to dance?" 

Ten minutes later, Jungkook led you to another side of the gallery, where all the people who finished seeing the exhibition is gathered, with upbeat music and their cups are being re-filled with champagne just as they are emptied. Now, it looks more like a high-society club. 

Then, you notice two things. 

One, your friends are nowhere to be found. You lost them the moment Jungkook appeared. Two, Jungkook is still holding your hand. 

Your poor heart beats nervously inside your chest as you follow Jungkook through the mass of people to the dance floor. Just when you arrive, the music suddenly changes to a slow love song. Your eyes scan the other guests in panic. More than one couple is already dancing and you spot a very shy Seokjin dancing with a very shy Anna in the corner. 

Your gaze shifts to Jungkook again, who is looking at you with a charming smile. 

"Can I have this dance?" He offers one of his hands. 

You gulp and accept his offer. He tugs you close, placing both hands on your waist. His cologne fills your nostrils again and you don't have other choice but place your arms on his shoulders. You just hope he doesn't notice how hard you are blushing. 

"It was a really good exhibition, Kook," you say after a while. "I'm proud of you." 

"So that means you are not mad?" 

"Mad? No. Surprised? Flattered? Yes." 

He laughs, relieved. Butterflies erupt in your belly one more time at the way he scrunches his nose. 

“I was so worried these last few weeks. I thought you would get mad at me… or something.” 

“Why?” 

“You helped me to stand on my feet again. It made me part of your family. Opened the doors of our home. I thought you’d think this would be an invasion of privacy.” 

You snort. 

“Kook, look at them,” you point to your friends in the corner. All of them are laughing, having fun. “Do they look mad?” Jungkook shakes his head. "You are part of us now. That means we will support you in everything you do." 

You offer him a warm smile. 

"Maybe you should give us a heads up next time. We spent the first half-hour feeling out of place because everyone was staring at us." 

He chuckles at that. 

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry. It was quite an experience."

You continue to dance. Then, he moves his hands. He is no longer resting his hands on your waist. Now, he intertwines his fingers behind your lower back making you move even closer to him. 

You are so close that you notice the freckle under his lower lip. The curve of his cheeks. The sharpness of his jaw. The way the galaxies are reflected in his doe-eyes… 

"You look so beautiful today," he comments after a while, making you feel self-conscious under his intense gaze. Then, he leans in and whispers against your ear, "Red is my favorite color." 

Your breath hitches in your throat when you realize how close his face is. His breath tickles the smooth skin of your lips. You nibble your bottom lip nervously and you watch how his attention shifts from your eyes to your lips. As if in slow motion, he moves forward –shutting the remaining distance between you two. When he is mere inches away, you close your eyes and hold your breath. A content sigh escapes your lips when his mouth brushes gently against yours and… -

“Mr. Jeon?” 

To your misfortune, he pulls away immediately. Without thinking, you rest your forehead on his shoulder as you try to calm your heart. It is a pleasant surprise to find his arms are still clutched around your frame even when you stopped dancing a long time ago. It seems he feels so comfortable to have you between his arms to care. 

“Yes?” 

Jungkook's voice sounds so stern you feel sorry for his poor assistant. 

“S-sorry to interrupt you, sir,” she starts and you don’t need to look at her to know she is doing her best to not run for dear life. Talking by experience, you know Jungkook can be pretty scary. “The curator of the Modern Art Museum is looking for you.” 

He lets out a sigh. 

“Ok, I am on my way.” 

Then, he brushes his nose against your cheek to draw your attention. When you meet his eyes, his gaze is as soft as you remember. 

“I’ll be back soon, okay?” 

He gives you a chaste kiss to the cheek and disappears behind his assistant before you can think of a reply. 

You join your group of friends 5 minutes later and grab another glass of champagne in an attempt to ignore the smirks and pointed looks of your friends. 

What on earth was that? 

Your cheeks burn again when you remember how soft Jungkook’s lips felt when they brushed against yours… What would have happened if you were not interrupted? Would the kiss have led to something more? 

You shake your head. 

You can't dwell on these thoughts right now. Not when your mind is full of hormones. Certainly, seeing Jungkook in a tuxedo hit you hard. Just the mere thought of it is enough to make you feel week on the knees. It is not the first time you see him like that, though. But the sentiment was different back when he helped you in the runway. What changed? Your feelings. Besides, with the amount of champagne you've drunk in the night –especially in the last 5 minutes–, your mind is a mess right now.  

“Are you okay?” 

The voice of your friend brings you back to reality. 

“Yeah… I’m just so confused…” 

“Hey,” Anna gives you a comfortable squeeze, “I dón think this is the right moment and the right time to think about that. Let’s have fun tonight. Okay?” 

Before you could reply, she is dragging you to the corner of the dance floor where Hoseok and Taehyung are having an improvised dance battle. 

One of the things you love the most about your friends is that they are capable of making you forget about anything when you were all together. Soon, all about Jungkook and the feelings vanish. At least for a while. You don't see Jungkook and Yoongi for the rest of the night. 

Time passes quickly. Before you know it it's midnight and your group is one of the few ones that are still at the gallery. 

"Wow, rich people are no fun."

"Yeah. It is just midnight…" 

Then, Tae suggested moving to the party to a club. 

"Dressed like this, we could enter a high-class club and they couldn't look at us weird." 

Hoseok and Seokjin accept right away. Anna is a little reluctant but Seokjin manages to convince her. Namjoon reclines. Something about finishing an article that is due to Monday. 

"What about you, ___?" 

"I don't know, I-"

"Hey, ___," Yoongi appears out of nowhere. 

"Hey, what's up?" 

"Jungkook forgot this in the office," he hands you his cell phone. "Can you give it to him when you see him?" 

"Where is he?" 

"I don't know. He left 10 minutes ago." Then, he notices your confused expression, "Don't worry. He had a problem with a client. Nothing serious but you him. He has quite a mood. He probably went to cool off. I guess his idea was contacting you later but he can't with his cellphone." 

Now, Yoongi turns to your friends. 

"If you need transportation, the limo that brought you guys here is waiting for you outside." 

"Thank you, Yongs. Everything was beautiful," you say with a smile. 

"Thank you. I'll call you later, okay? I still need to wrap up everything." 

In the end, you decide to return home. It was a long day full of emotions of all sorts and your heels are killing you. You plan to return Jungkook his phone in the morning. You are not sure where he is right now. 

The guys drop at your building and then they take the limo to the nearest club. The elevator dings when you arrive at your floor. You lazily walk toward your door and then stop. That's strange. Jungkook's door is wide open and the lights are on. This neighborhood is pretty secure  but how can you know it is not a thief? You probably should call the police but something keeps you going.

You knock the door.

"Hello? Jungkook, are you there?" 

"Yeah! I'm in the living room!" 

You sigh in relief. No thieves. 

"You forgot your phone at the gallery,” you comment as you walk towards his living room. “Yoongi gave it- Is that my photo?" 

The first thing you see when you enter the room is Jungkook holding one of the photos he exhibited and you are the only one in the frame. 

“Hmm… Yeah?” 

You are beyond shocked to notice the faint blush covering his cheeks. 

“Why is it here?” You stare at him wide-eyed. 

"One of my clients wanted to buy it, but I just couldn't sell it,” he shrugs like it is obvious. 

"Why? They couldn’t pay you what you asked?" 

He frowns, “No, that’s not it.” His gaze returns to the photo. "I don't know. This is my favorite photo of you and it was like I couldn't bear the thought of someone else having it." 

At this point your heart has gone crazy inside your chest, beating so fast that you can no longer hear it. 

"What do you mean?" 

He raises an eyebrow, confused. 

"Jungkook, why you chose me as your muse?" 

There, you asked him the question you wanted to since the beginning of the exhibition. 

"Because I admire you," he replies without hesitation. "You are passionate, beautiful and you fight for what you want. You've helped me a lot. How could I not choose you?" 

Your heart jumps. He thinks you are beautiful. He takes a step closer to you. 

“Ilikeyou,” he blurts out. 

“W-what?” 

Jungkook groans, dragging a hand down his face. 

"I like you,” he repeats slower after taking a deep breath. You’ve never imagined seeing him like this. You are used to his self-confident, kind of dork too, demeanor. “And I'm tired of pretending I don't.”

“Why were you pretending?” 

“To be honest, I was scared,” he confesses. “I was scared of how I was feeling; it felt so familiar yet so different. Scared of you not feeling the same way. Scared of the feelings not being real, like they were just an infatuation because you were there for me when no one else was. I wanted to make sure before I talked to you about this.” 

He is now close enough to take your hands in his. 

“So, you are not scared anymore?" You whisper. 

"No, I'm terrified. But in a good way. Now I'm sure my feelings are real and I want to give it a try. You know, go on a date." 

"Aren't we were on a date tonight?" 

He grins, "But I didn't spend much time with you."

He almost pouts and the view makes you giggle.

"But I had a great time, though."

"You did?"

"Yeah."

"Does that mean you want a second date?"

“Do I need to say ‘I like you’ for you to understand what I feel or-” 

Your words are interrupted when Jungkook presses a soft kiss to your lips. 

You blink, suddenly speechless.

“No,” he grins at your expression. “I’m sorry. I wanted to do that since we were, uh, interrupted at the gala.”

Jungkook’s thoughts waver when you still don’t say a thing. “Did I cross a line? I won’t do that-”

“Please, do that again,” you cut him off finding your voice again.

He doesn’t need to be told twice, but he takes his time now. He cups your face with both hands and caresses the skin of your cheeks with his thumbs. You hold your breath as Jungkook’s face moves forward and close your eyes when his lips brush gently against yours. The kiss starts at a slow pace. He tastes good; champagne, mint and something more. It is addictive. For a while, you both stay like that. Content with being in each other's arms. You start to feel lightheaded. 

There's no place you'd rather be. 

Suddenly, Jungkook pushes you to the nearest wall and presses his body against yours. He uses his fingers to tilt your face and deepen the kiss. His body accommodates naturally between your legs. His hands slowly start to unbutton your coat, exposing your dress to him once again. Jungkook slides it down your shoulders and the coat hits the floor. He lets out a soft sigh. 

“You are so pretty.” 

His hands find purchase on your waist as his lips attack yours one more time. He kisses you with so much fervor that you need to hold his shoulders for dear life. 

In all these years, you forgot how good this felt. Having this type of… intimacy with someone. He holds you so dearly it makes your head spin. He whispers sweet nothings against your lips between kisses that make your heart flutter. 

Without thinking it twice, you help him to take off his suit jacket and untuck his dress shirt to slide both hands under it. You rake your nails all along his back and Jungkook's whole body shudders at the sensation. He seems affected to the point he pulls away to look at you. When your eyes open, you see Jungkook is staring at you with slightly blown pupils. 

"You don't know how much you affect me, do you?" 

You can feel his erection pressed against your belly. "I think I have an idea," you reply with a grin.

"Yeah?" 

He doesn't give you the chance to reply, because Jungkook is carrying you bridal style and taking you to his room. You've been in this bedroom so many times but your eyes wander nonetheless. Comparing to the first time you entered here, the room is quite neat. 

“So, it turns out you are pretty organized.” 

Jungkook’s arms slide around your middle from behind. He gives you a soft kiss to your neck. “Well, you met me in one of my worsts times.”

You turn around to face him. Lips crushing together, he hungrily seeks the heat of your mouth. With a sigh, you throw both arms around his neck. His palms fall to your waist. The dress you are wearing is soft to touch. He lets out a whine when you tug gently the hair in the nape of his neck. You look at him surprised. 

“You are sensitive.” 

You repeat the motion. 

He groans, “___, you need to stop doing that.” 

“Why?” You kiss his jaw. 

“I may not have mercy when I find one of your weaknesses.” 

Your lips curl, “I’m counting on that.”

Jungkook kisses you again, harder. His hands undo the laces of your dress. 

“Turn around for me, baby.” 

You exhale at the pet name but do as you are told. 

“Are you kidding? These are like tons of buttons!”

“Careful, Kook,” The buttons are one of the things you loved the most about the dress. “If you break it, you pay it.” 

He mumbles something under his breath but with skilled fingers, he patiently undoes every one of them. He even takes the moment to kiss every inch of skin is exposed making it so hard to wait. It only takes him a couple of minutes to finish. Then, you return him the favor and help him rid of his clothes.

At some point, you lay down in the mattress, Jungkook hovering above you. There’s a lot of kissing as if you’ll never have enough of the other. Jungkook preps your body using his fingers at a slow, agonizing pace that makes your head spin. He enjoys every beautiful sound that comes out of your mouth. He keeps his promise and he has no mercy when he curls his fingers inside of you to rub your soft spot every time until you are gasping for air. 

Soon, you are a moaning mess underneath him. Jungkook murmurs words of encouragement as he leaves a trail of open-mouthed kisses all along your neck. Then, he takes his time to play with your chest, giving each one of your breasts the same amount of attention and care. Your release comes so strong, like a tidal wave. You see nothing but starts for a couple of seconds. It takes another couple of seconds before you can breathe somewhat properly again. A soft moan escapes your mouth when he licks his fingers. 

Jungkook massages your thighs, “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, just wow.” 

He smiles, cheeks flushing. You tug him for another kiss, opening his mouth with yours. He gasps at your passion and you take the opportunity to slide your tongue inside the crevice of his mouth. He melts against your touch. You both make out lazily for a while, both legs wrapped around his waist. Your hazy mind barely registered when he moved forward to grab a condom from the nightstand, but he is already rolling the latex down his length. 

“Are you ready, beautiful?” Jungkook is staring at you so dearly.

You nod. Holding your gaze, he eases himself slowly inside of you. 

You receive him with open arms, hugging his body close to yours. You sigh at the feeling of fullness. He groans at the feeling of your walls clenching around him. 

“At this point, I’m not going to last long,” he pants. 

He starts at a slow pace. Gentle strokes that hit your soft spot every time. The thrusts might be slow, but he is pumping into you with so much force that you feel every inch of him. At some point, he kisses you again. Slow, languid. Lovingly. There's no rush in his movements. You hug him hard, trying to keep his body as close as possible. 

He changes the angle adjusting one of your legs a little higher. His thrusts hit deeper now. Your body starts to tremble and he slides a hand between your bodies to rub your clit, circling it with ease. And then you are coming, your whole body shuddering underneath him. Jungkook only manages a couple of more thrusts before he is following you over the edge. 

He collapses on top of you, groaning into the crook of your neck. You both stay like that for a couple of minutes, until your heartbeat calms down and you are breathing normally again. Then, Jungkook stands up to discard the condom and look for something to clean up the mess you just made. When he is content, he lays next to you and tugs you closer, sliding one arm around your waist and adjusting your head to rest on his chest. He even murmurs something but you are already dozing to sleep… 

When you wake up the next morning, the sun is already up. You stretch your sore limbs and yawn. Your stomach grumbles. You haven’t eaten in more than 12 hours. You open your eyes and… 

Wait. 

Why are you in Jungkook’s room? 

The memories of last night slowly come to your head. 

Oh my god.   

You slept with Jungkook and the realization has you blushing furiously and burying your face between your hands. Then, you notice the spot next to you in the bed is empty. You look around the room slightly in panic when you hear the sound of the shower. 

You take a deep breath. Right now is not the time to panic. Last night he made pretty clear he wanted to date you to figure if things could work between you, so there’s no point to worry about anything. You can talk about what happened yesterday over breakfast. 

But first, what time is it?

You don't know anything about your friends since they went to the club last night. Even when you want to stay with Jungkook, it's probably a good idea to check if your friends are okay. But you are hungry and knowing Jungkook, he is too. You should prepare something and have breakfast together before leaving. With your mind made up, you look for something to wear and walk out of the room. 

You locate your purse on the floor of the living room. With a sigh, you pick it up and dig inside to grab your phone to see the hour. 11:46 am. It is not that late. It is when you see an unread message that you notice that it is not your phone you are holding. It is Jungkook's. Yesterday, you didn’t have the opportunity to give it back to him… and the message is from Zoe… 

With the anxiety striking every fiber of your being, unconsciously you unlock his phone (he doesn’t have a password of any kind) and you wish you haven’t done that. 

[2:37 pm] Zoe 

Good luck at the gala tonight. :) 

[2:40 pm] Zoe 

I miss you.

[3:06 pm] Jungkook 

Thank you.

I miss you too. 

[6:32 pm] Zoe 

Can we meet sometime? 

I need to talk to you. 

[6:55 pm] Jungkook 

I would love that.

To be continued. :)

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Preparing for Emergencies

by J.H. Jowett

"Before governors and kings shall ye be brought for My sake, for a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, be not anxious how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father that speaketh in you." - Matthew 10:18-20

"Ye shall be brought before governors and kings." This was said to fishermen who had lived a quiet, unobtrusive life on and by the Galilean lake. It does not require much imagination to enter into the panic occasioned by the Master's words. It is no easy experience for obscure people to appear in the presence of the great and mighty. They do the wrong thing, say the wrong thing, and the things they meant to day or do are forgotten. Both in the presence of the august and when they leave it, they feel abashed and ashamed. It was by no means an easy prospect which the Master held out before them. "Ye shall be brought before governors and kings."

Here, then, are the disciples contemplating a remote emergency. The emergency will come. It is inevitable. The line of their life, at present commonplace and even, will rise into a great crisis. As sure as the morrow comes the emergency will come with it! What shall they do? The question suggests our present meditation. How shall we prepare for emergencies?

Our life now may be a level, regular road. But tomorrow the character of the road will be changed, and we shall be confronted by some great and unusual task. What shall we do? It may not be ours to stand as culprits before powers of an imperial or ecclesiastical kind. But there are other kings beside those who sit on thrones. Tomorrow I may not stand before a king who wears a crown, but I may come into the presence of sickness. I may approach the sudden shadow of calamity. I may come within the chill and loneliness of bereavement or meet King Death himself. What shall we do? How shall we prepare for them?

When the disciples heard the words, many of them began to prepare the words which they would address to the king. "No," said the Master, "do not prepare a speech, be not anxious what you shall say. Don't prepare a speech, prepare yourselves!" That is the way to meet all emergencies, with the invincibility of a prepared life.

Be not anxious. Most of us are familiar with calm people to whom we instinctively turn in times of stress and danger. Among the poor and the working classes, where neighborliness is more alive than among the well-to-do, it is beautiful how some one neighbor is renowned for this quality of calmness. What do we mean by this calmness? We mean the person is self-possessed, has everything in hand, has his faculties about him like well-ordered troops, and he says to one "Go," and he goes, and to another "Come," and he comes, and to all his servants "Do this," and they do it. If we are to meet the crises of life, this calmness of spirit must be cultivated. It is infinitely better than a prepared speech or a ready-made plan, for these may fail us when the crises arrive. The stillness is our friend in the dark and stormy day.

But if we are to obtain the strength of stillness we must practice the art of living in the present. "Be not anxious for tomorrow." "Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof." We must not needlessly go out to anticipate the crisis. We must not meet our trouble half-way. Half-met troubles always appear monstrous. Anticipation makes trifles loom gigantic. I saw a painting some time ago which represented a rising storm. Seen at some little distance it appeared as though dark, black, threatening. Battalions of clouds were speedily covering the entire sky and blotting out all the patches of light and hope. But when I went a little nearer, I found that the artist had subtly fashioned his clouds out of angel faces, and all these black battalions wore the winsome aspect of genial friends. I have had that experience more than once away from the realm of picture and fiction, in the hard ways of practical life. The clouds I feared and worried about, and concerning which I wasted so much precious strength, lost their frown and revealed themselves as my friends. Other clouds never arrived. Let us live in the immediate moment. The best preparation for the morrow is quiet attention today. "I ask Thee for a present mind, intent on pleasing Thee."

If I am to be a capable expert, living in the present, I must engage in the practice of trusting God in every passing moment of my life. What is my task today? Let me trust in God. Let me turn this present moment into happy confidence, and hold communion with my God. Let my trust be deliberate until by conscious, volitional trust I come to have instinctive confidence in my God. Let me fill the present with faith, and "the changes that will surely come I shall not fear to see."

And why shall I not fear them? "Be not anxious how or what ye shall speak: for it is not ye that speak, but the spirit of your Father that speaks in you." Lay hold of the last two words of this great promise, "in you." That is the secret of everything. Every act of trust increases your capacity to trust God. Every time you trust Him you have more room for Him. He dwells within you in ever-richer fullness. That is a glorious assurance, and one that is filled with infinite comfort. Let me repeat it again. Little acts of trust make greater room for God. Along a level road one can get ready for the hill. In the green pastures and by the still waters one can prepare for the valley of the shadow. In small things one can prepare for emergencies. For when I reach the hill, the shadow, the emergency, I shall be God-possessed. He will dwell in me. And where He dwells He controls. He will energize and vitalize my entire life.

Here, then, is the little sequence I have been endeavoring to unfold. Put your trust in the Lord, and you will live well in the immediate present. Live well in the immediate present, and you will have the spirit of calmness which is the secret of strength. The emergency will not frighten you. You will approach it with that quietness essential for triumph.

[flyaway-33]

Yesterday-- Part 2

Story summary: Pre-Smile Era. You and Roger are best friends with benefits after having met at a dorm meeting the first night at university. The two of you navigate the newfound freedom of life away from home and learn more about each other and yourselves than you ever expected. 

Part 1 here

[Sorry for the shit quality but this is what I picture Roger as for this story, but feel free to picture him however you want!]

Part 2 Summary: Roger and reader have a mischievous weekend adventure so that Roger can show reader his talent. 5k words.

Warnings: 18+, heavy petting smut, language, fluff, slight humiliation.

Disclaimer: This is only a work of fiction. Song lyrics— I Got You by James Brown

A/N: This chapter was so much fun to write! I hope you all like it. Just a comment can really make my day. 

The morning you and Roger had spent together had turned into afternoon before you’d finally come back to your own room to get showered and changed for the day, and you left Roger to his own devices for the time being. You knew whoever was ready for the day first would be knocking on the other’s door in no time. Your roommate Amy was starting to get tired of his many visits both at night and during the day, just as his roommate Dale was already sick of you to the point where he’d started making himself sparse. His parents lived in London after all and Roger had told you the only reason he had a dorm room was because his parents were trying to kick their little bird out of the nest. Tensions were growing high between roommates as the end of the semester drew near and neither of you cared what either of them thought thought, as Amy had a different boy over every week and Dale was messy as could be and it drove Roger crazy.

Meeting Roger you’d never guess that he was such a clean freak. He was all boy through and through, and the first impression a person would get from him was that he was rough and tumble and probably the stereotypical, messy college boy with a room that looked like ground zero for World War three. He wouldn’t strike anyone as particular in any way about his space when in reality he was the cleanest person you’d ever met. You discovered early on that he couldn’t stand being dirty. He took two or three showers every day depending on how he felt, and whenever Dale left a mess in their room you thought Roger would go off the deep end. 

The end-of-semester tensions only pushed you and Roger closer as the idea of him going home to Cornwall and you to Surrey frightened you both. You wanted to get away from the university environment but you couldn’t imagine being away from him for a whole month. Neither of you were prepared, and you were cherishing the three weeks you had left until then.

You were out of the shower, clad in a camisole and pajama pants as you brushed through your wet hair. The familiar, rhythmic knocking pattern sounded on the door and you quickly let him in. You didn’t know what the plan was for this fine, lazy Sunday afternoon but you really didn’t care as long as it was spent with your best friend.

“Hello, love. Long time no see.” He sighed in his light, airy voice, leaning over to kiss your cheek before plopping down on your messy bed. You never made it and you knew it drove him nuts. He was in pajamas as well and burrowed under your light pink duvet making you giggle at the way he looked peeking out of it, his hair in his face and his big blue eyes peering up at you in innocence. 

“Tired already? We just got up!” You set your hairbrush down on the dresser and climbed on top of him, purposefully covering as much of him as you could and putting all your weight on him.

“Get off!” He laugh-wined, shoving at you halfheartedly. “I can’t breath!”

“Maybe it’s all those cigarettes, Rog.” You laughed, starting to tickle him.

“No fair! Quit it!” He shoved you a little harder and you rolled to the side, allowing for him to take charge, and he returned fire two-fold. You doubled over from laughter and he fell back onto the bed beside you, the two of you out of breath.

“You’ll be the death of me, Taylor.” You panted.

“Not if you get me first,” he scoffed. 

“What do you want to do anyway?”

“I dunno.” He said flippantly. “I’m comfy right here, to be honest.” He snuggled back into the duvet with a content sigh. 

“I have a question.” You stated out of the blue, propping yourself up on your elbows. This was a question you knew would catch him off guard and you were a little afraid to ask, but you needed to know. “We’ve been friends with benefits for a while…”

“Yeah? And?” His curious eyes met yours and you fell back, hiding your face behind your hands. 

“Ahh I can’t ask it.”

“Oh come off it we tell each other everything. What could possibly be so bad you can’t ask me?”

You sighed, collecting yourself. “Fine. I want to know, Rog… what’s your body count? I mean we probably should’ve talked about this before we started this arrangement…”

“Oh.” His face was confused and concerned, and you worried you’d overstepped. 

“You don’t have to answer—“

“No, love. I’ll answer. Including you? Two.”

“Two?” That was an unexpected answer. You hadn’t put your finger on just how many you expected because he acted like such a ladies man sometimes, but that answer did surprise you.

“What, do you think I’m some kind of man-whore?” He looked genuinely offended at your surprised reaction, and he went to get off the bed. 

“Wait, Rog, I don’t—“ you grabbed his arm, making him sit back down. “Its just, you’re so confident and act so comfortable with girls. I figured it would be higher, you know? That’s not really a bad thing.”

“Well if you must know, I was with my girlfriend for the past four years until we parted ways for university.” He spat, looking away and crossing his arms over his chest, clearly hurt.

“I’m sorry, Roger, I didn’t mean to react that way. Um, our agreement isn’t just rebound sex, is it?”

“What?” His eyes snapped back to yours, “No, of course not. I loved her but it was time. I’m not hung up on her. What I have with you is different.” 

“You loved her?”

“Yes. She was my first love. But we were growing apart. She had her plans and I had mine. That’s just how it went.” There was a sad shadow that clouded his eyes momentarily, but he quickly shook it off. “What about you? What’s your count?”

“Um.” You’d forgotten that asking him would also require you to give up the same information. “Including you, one.”

“One?” You could see the cogs turning in his head as he processed. “You were a virgin?” He asked, his voice hitching with a hint of panic. 

You nodded. 

“What? Why didn’t you tell me?!” He sat up on his knees and his hands came up to grip his hair. 

“What’s the big deal, Rog?”

“You were a virgin!” His hands dropped from his hair and one of them fell to his neck, slipping under the collar of his t-shirt to scratch nervously at his shoulder. “God, I’m so sorry, Y/N, had I known—“

“Hey, quit it. What would you have possibly done differently had you known?” You placed your hands on his tense shoulders and pulled him back down to sit beside you once more. 

“I— I don’t know, I would’ve gone slower, been more attentive, asked you how you felt.” His big blue eyes were glassy and filled with worry. It was sweet to see how concerned he was. 

“In that case I’m glad you didn’t know. You would’ve ruined it.” You chuckled, reaching up and smoothing his hair affectionately. “Really, it was fine how it was.”

“Fine? Did it hurt? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No, Rog. It was more than fine, it was lovely. I told you that then, and I was being honest. It was really quite lovely and it has been every time since.” 

He visibly relaxed at your words but still eyed you with caution. “These kinds of things… we need to talk about them more. I feel blind sided.”

“I’m sorry, I honestly didn’t realize it was such a big deal to you.” 

“Well I just feel like I should’ve known. And you should’ve known my body count before, too. We need to communicate better if we’re going to keep doing this.” 

It shook you to see how hurt he seemed from this whole conversation. “You’re right. We’ll work on communicating better.” You studied his expression as he looked down at his lap, his hand still massaging his shoulder under his shirt. “Come on, Rog. Relax, darling. I have an idea.” You reached up and took his hand from his shirt and held both of his in yours. His eyes met yours once more with a spark of curiosity. “I want you to play your drums for me.”

His eyes lit up momentarily, but it quickly faded as he thought it through. “I would love that, but they’re too loud to play here.”

“Oh come on! I bet Dale isn’t even back yet!”

“No, not that. I mean they are loud, Y/N. Like the whole building would be able to hear them. Not a lot of people realize just how loud they are until they’ve heard them up close.”

“I want to hear them.”

“You might but the whole building won’t.” He scoffed and crossed his arms again. “Trust me I would love to have the opportunity to play. Pencils on a desk just aren’t the same.” 

During your study sessions he would often get distracted and drum on his desk and notebook with two pencils. It never bothered you because his rhythm was impeccable, but there was only so much pitch he could get from a battered notebook and an old table. You wanted so badly to hear the real thing, and began to mull over ideas in your head. Suddenly you remembered a key detail. 

“Oh! There’s a set in the art building! The music room is there, I pass it every day, Rog, you could use those!” 

“Is it open on Sundays?” He asked, doubt clouding his narrowed eyes as he studied you. 

You smirked, a feeling of mischief exciting you. “No, but I know of a certain ground floor window that’s aways open. The lock is broken.”

“You’re amazing.” He stated, jumping off the bed and bolting toward the door. “I’m going to change, meet me at my room.” And with that he was gone. 

You laughed to yourself as you got up to change. You slipped on a navy blue sweatshirt that happened to be Roger’s and replaced your pajama pants with light wash bell bottom jeans. At the door you paused to slip on your white converse, and then headed down to Roger’s room on the first floor. You let yourself into his unlocked room to find him pulling on his jeans. 

His smile of excitement made your heart swell. He was like a little boy getting ready to open presents on Christmas morning, and you watched him fondly as he pulled on his favorite Marlboro Red jacket and black converse. He once again bolted for the door, beckoning for you to follow. He held the door for you and you grabbed his monochrome polaroid camera off his dresser on your way out. 

“What’s that for?” He asked, following you out the door and locking it behind him. 

“I have a project I need to do and this might just be the perfect opportunity to start it.” You smiled to yourself as you slipped the camera strap over your neck, thinking of the prompt your professor had given you. 

“What’s the project on?” Roger asked, falling into step beside you as you exited the dorm building and started up the sidewalk. 

“Oh my professor just told us to use any one medium and create a collage— yes photographs are a medium.” You left out the fact that the collage was supposed to be on your favorite things, and you planned for him to be the sole subject. 

“I knew that.” He grumbled, looking away. “Sounds like fun.”

“Oh it is. Creative things like this are my favorites.”

“I thought you were a painter?”

“Well I am but I’m going to be an art teacher, so I need to broaden my horizons. I have to know about different kinds of art to teach them.”

“That’s cool.” A smile came to play at his lips as he looked ahead, and you couldn’t help but smile as well. 

You continued on your way to the art building which loomed over you up ahead, and you chuckled to yourself when you reached the intersection where you and Roger would normally part ways when heading to class. You lead him up to the building and took his hand in yours as you walked around the back of it, searching for the window you knew would let you in. 

As you felt his hand in yours you noticed how soft they had become since he hadn’t been drumming, and it made you feel sad, knowing that he hadn’t had the opportunity to do what he loved in months. You’d never seen him really drum before and your heart beat quickened as you thought about the fact that you were about to hear him play for the first time. 

“Here it is!” You exclaimed, pointing up to a window that was ever so slightly cracked. It was just over your height and you frowned, realizing that this mission could be a challenge after all. 

“How the bloody hell are we going to get in?” Roger responded, gazing up at the window with despair dripping from his voice. 

“Hey, it’s alright. We’ll figure it out.”

He didn’t look convinced but rather sat down on the ground with a huff as you paced trying to think.

“I know! You could lift me in—“

“But how does that help me get in?”

“Then I can find a step stool or something to stick out the window for you.” You crossed your arms over your chest and surveyed his expression. 

“Well, I guess it’ll have to do.” He admitted with a shrug, getting to his feet once more. “Alright, hop up.” He knelt on one knee and held his hands out for your foot, which you placed in them lightly. With a groan he hoisted you up and you grabbed onto the windowsill for dear life. You struggled momentarily as you tried to push the window open further, and you could feel Roger beginning to shake under your weight. Finally you had it open wide enough to fit and kicked off his hands to push yourself through. 

You landed on the art table below the window in the dark classroom and could hear Roger cursing outside. “A little warning would’ve been nice!” 

Getting to your feet, you brushed off the dust your sweatshirt had gathered from the windowsill and you returned to peer out at Roger. He was sprawled out on his back looking like something the cat dragged in and you realized you had kicked him over when you’d launched yourself through the window. A laugh escaped your lips before you could stop it.

“It’s not funny!” He yelled from the ground, finally pushing himself to his feet. 

You rolled your eyes and disappeared from the window again in search of something he could use as a step. There was a closet full of random supplies in the back of the classroom, and you knew if there was anything in the room that wouldn’t be missed it would be in there. When you opened the closet you wanted to shout with relief, as right there in the middle of the clutter sat a wooden milk crate. You wasted no time grabbing it and bringing it back to the window. As the window was in the back of the building you figured you could easily leave it there for future use. It was perfect.

Roger smiled when he saw what you brought for him and reached up to take it from you. It was a little short but gave him the boost he needed to get in the window enough for you to grab onto him and pull. The both of you landed once more in a heap on the table you’d been standing on, laughing your asses off. 

“Alright, alright,” you laughed, sliding out from under Roger and gaining your footing on the floor, “lets go find those drums before we break something.”

He followed you quickly and you could see the excitement returning to his face. The childlike joy he felt at the idea of getting to do what he loved warmed your heart and you loved that you were the one to find a way to make him so happy. 

At last you reached the room and you opened the heavy wooden door to reveal the enormous, cavernous band room. It had soundproofing panels all around and lockers along one wall that held instruments for the music majors to borrow. There was a small conducting podium at the front of the room before several rows of chairs, set up for an orchestra. To the far end of the room sat a mini stage with a drum kit upstage, ready and waiting with Roger’s name all over it. 

The kit was the first thing Roger saw, and before you could say a word he was jogging over to it. You watched him plop down on the stool and give the bass drum a light tap with its pedal. He looked around for drum sticks and snatched them when he spotted them laying on one of the floor toms. Immediately he began some kind of ritual with the drums, focus taking over his face, turning it stony as he doubled over and listened to the sounds each drum made as he tapped them. You didn’t dare disturb him, as you’d never seen such concentration take him before, and you perched yourself on a nearby amplifier to observe. The polaroid camera bumped your chest as you adjusted yourself and you immediately picked it up, a smile growing on your face as you brought it up to your eye. You watched him through the viewfinder, waiting for the perfect moment, then, snap, you had him. The film slid from the front and you placed it beside you to develop. This was going to be fun.

“Whatcha doing, Roggie?” You asked as you watched him pause to readjust himself on the stool.

“Oh, I’m tuning them.” He stated, looking up. “Would you like a play-by-play?” A smirk played at his lips as he raised an eyebrow. 

You brought the camera back up to your eye and wasted no time. Snap. “Yes please.”

“Well they’re ready. What would you like to hear? I might be a bit rusty.” He twirled one of the drumsticks in his fingers, already humming and bobbing his head to whatever song was playing in his mind.

“Whatever you’re thinking of.”

“Right on.” 

You were caught off guard by the loud “Wow!” he shouted to start off the song but as he continued and you recognized what he was playing you felt like melting. It was ‘I Got You’ by James Brown and he sounded absolutely amazing. Though the recording of the song had other instruments, they weren’t missed one bit with the fulfilling combination of Roger’s talents. But Roger was right, the drums were loud and the sound of them consumed all the space in the room and covered you like a heavy blanket. You were mesmerized by the way he moved as he hit each drum with perfect timing and sung along with a voice that was worthy of fame. You’d never noticed or appreciated just how physical the art of drumming was, but watching his movements you had no idea how he did it, not to mention how his voice was perfect, completely unaffected by the activity.

“I feel good, so good

I got-a you!”

He pointed a drumstick at you on that line and you just wanted to soak up the moment as his eyes bore into yours. Sitting there, dazed on the amp, you took him in, feeling the bass drum and basking in the feelings his voice and the song stirred inside you. It was perfect, and you nearly forgot to capture the moment on camera. You hurriedly put your eye back to the viewfinder and snapped the stutter button again before placing the little square soon-to-be photo face down beside you. As you listened, you prepared for the chorus this time and snapped a picture on the word “you” as he pointed to you once more, this time with a wink. You knew you’d got it and hurried to put the picture down to develop, praying it would come out right.

Tears pricked at your eyes as he drew the song to a close, as you didn’t want it to end, it was just such a wonderful experience. 

He was breathing heavy as he hit the final note and set his drumsticks down to catch his breath. “Wow I really am out of shape.” He panted, his eyes meeting yours with a playful raise of his eyebrows. 

“Roger, that was beautiful.” You stated. It wasn’t the right word for such an up-tempo song but you were at a loss for words, completely dumbfounded to discover just how talented your best friend was. 

“Well, thanks.” He said hesitantly. “Would you like to hear something else?”

You nodded fervently, wracking your brain for any one request, but you didn’t care what he played, you just wanted to hear him. He sat still for a moment, letting you think and still trying to catch his breath. His eyes were downcast as he studied the skin of the snare drum, and you admired him from your perch on the amp. You couldn’t help but slowly slide off of it onto your feet and slowly approach him. He didn’t hear you and he jumped slightly when your hand landed on his shoulder. His deep blue eyes met yours once more and his lips parted slightly in curiosity, waiting for you to say something, but instead you just lowered yourself to straddle his lap, and wrapped you arms over his shoulders, your hands connecting at the back of his neck. Gazing into his eyes you reflected on how amazing he was to you, and how seeing him put his heart and soul into drumming had been such a turn on. His hands moved up to the small of your back to steady you on his lap and a small smile touched his lips as he studied your expression.

“You’re amazing,” you whispered, resting your forehead against his. 

His smile turned into a smirk as he took in your praise, and his hands moved to grip your hips. “I’m pretty great with my hands if I do say so myself,” he joked as he trailed his fingers down your thigh, reaching the bend of your knee and hitching your leg up, causing you to move further up on his lap. 

“Show me,” you breathed, pulling off the obnoxious sweatshirt that was keeping you from him and tossing it aside and feeling his stare burning through your camisole with no bra beneath it. 

He rans his hands up and down your thighs teasingly before moving one hand behind your neck to support it as he pressed his mouth to it. His other hand worked on the button of your tight, low rise jeans, fumbling momentarily but successfully undoing it. He slipped his fingers under the thin elastic waistband of your panties and he very lightly traced your slit as his mouth sucked gently on the soft, sensitive skin of your collarbone, evoking a soft moan from your lips, and sure to leave a mark. You could tell he was going to make you beg for it. Well, two could play at that game. 

You ground your hips lightly against his hand, causing friction on his lap as you inched even further up on him, your bellies touching from your closeness. You could feel your work paying off as his jeans began to strain, and you made quick work of undoing the button and plunging your hand into his boxers. Gently, you brushed the tips of your fingers ever so lightly along his member, and he groaned under your touch. 

At your advances he allowed his fingers to explore your warm folds, and he traced you with painful slowness. You ground into his fingers, but he pulled them away as you tried to get more friction. 

“Ah ah ah,” he scolded as he brought his fingers up to your lips. “You’re going to be patient,” he teased, licking you off his fingers before returning them to their previous position on either side of your clit, now slick and warm with his saliva. 

You groaned at your limitation and tried your hardest to stay still as he began to move his fingers once more, and as you began to stroke him with your hand. “No, sir,” you scolded when you felt his hips buck beneath you. “If I have to be patient then so do you.” You trailed kisses up his neck and nibbled on his ear playfully, and he gave in, moving his fingers to exactly where you wanted them. “Atta boy,” you breathed in his ear.

“Lets make this quick,” he grunted, and you nodded in agreement, quickening your pace with him as he did the same to you. He allowed you to move against him again and you took full advantage, taking special care to reward him as well. You quickly came undone on his fingers and he followed suit seconds later, his head falling onto your shoulder as you rode out the wave of ecstasy together. 

Both of you took slow, deep breaths together calm yourselves as you gently removed your hand from his boxers and wiped it messily on your camisole. He gently removed his fingers from your panties as he fought back a giddy smile. You scooted back on his lap a few inches to give him some space and something on his jeans caught your eye. 

“Oh my God,” you gasped, covering your uncontrollable smile with both hands. “We did not think this through.” He had a very obvious, dark wet spot on the front of his light wash jeans caused from your activities. 

He swore loudly as his eyes caught the offending sight. “Shit! How am I going to get out of here? I can’t go out like this.”

“Hey hey hey, its okay love. Everyone cums in their pants every now and then,” you couldn’t help but snicker as you looked up at him, mischief in your eyes at your sarcastic comment. “Haha, you came in your pants!”

“That’s not how it went and you know it!” He shouted as his cheeks reddened, his eyes wide like a deer in headlights. 

“Roger came in his pants, Roger came in his pants!” You chanted in a sing-song voice as you slid off his lap and twirled around.

“Come off it.”

“Oh come on, Rog, just admit I was too much for you,” you let your jeans slip lower on your hips for him as you danced over to pick up your sweatshirt, bending over to tease him. 

“Oh really?” He raised an eyebrow, his expression calming. “I seem to recall you quite literally melting in my hands.”

“Well, my proof ain’t all over the front of my pants now is it?!” You laughed, spinning around to pick the camera up off where you’d left it on the amp and turned it on him before he could react. The resulting photo you knew would develop with his eyes wide and his mouth open in protest— a beautiful sight. “Don’t worry, Love, that one’s just for me.”

“Seriously though. My jacket won’t cover it, I don’t know what to do. I’m not leaving like this.” Roger stood up and played with the hem of his t-shirt as if he could stretch it far enough to stay covered. 

“Well, how about you play me another song and I’ll think about it. Okay, drummer boy?” 

He shot you a glare and sat back on the drum stool, grabbing and twirling a drumstick between his fingers. The rhythm he began to bang out of the drums captivated you immediately, and this time you walked around him to get pictures, snapping a painfully attractive one from the back that displayed his messy hair splayed around his head perfectly. Whatever song he was playing either didn’t have words or he wasn’t in the mood to sing. He ignored you as you paced around the drum kit, taking pictures, and he continued to play song after song, sometimes singing along, sometimes just moving his mouth to the count of the beat. You quickly realized that he had retreated into his own little world and seemingly had forgotten about you. He didn’t notice when you stooped back down to pick up the abandoned sweatshirt off the floor and held it up to you to see if it might be long enough to solve Roger’s problem. It would be, so you folded it and set in on the amp, glad to have found a solution to his way too obvious predicament. You sat down on the floor and began sorting through your polaroids, admiring Roger in his natural habitat. These were gold and you were hesitant to ruin them by putting them in a collage, but you knew you had to or you’d fail the assignment, having no other ideas. 

Your only solution was to take more but you only had three photos left in the camera and had to photograph wisely. Observing him was an experience like no other. He was putting all his heart and soul into the rhythms he beat out, and your heart would leap every time he would throw his head back in passion. He was beautiful, you’d never seen such a perfect human before and it was all enhanced by the ray of setting sunlight that filtered through the high windows, framing his hair like a halo. You waited, watching him through the viewfinder and found the perfect angle sitting on the floor beside him, though being so close made the sounds reverberate through your head and started to make it hurt you didn’t care: you had the best seat in the house.

[thesoundplug]

The Q&A Interview With Palmtree Paradise.

Durban has become more and more familiar with the group 'Palm Tree Paradise' as well as the rest of the country. Though for those who don't know - who's 'Palm Tree Paradise' as well as it's members ? Palm Tree Paradise is a Durban based group, consisting of 6 memebers all born and raised in Durban. With various ages and backgrounds, the members are Captain Hook, June Blackheart, Papa Axsion, Pdogg Amazing, Row Shotgun & Sydrow. What's the meaning behind the name of the group and was it the first name that came up or there were previous ones before the one that you guys are using now ?  When we were trying to find a name for the group, we came to an agreement that the name should be one which simultaneously describes themselves as well as their beautiful home city Durban. We then narrowed it down on an A4 page with about 50 different names. And two stoodout, those two names were: #Palmtrees (due to their presence on the Durban coastline and the group's preferred choice of hairstyle) & #Paradise (well, because  Durban is Paradise). It was almost impossible to choose between the two and that's when Row came with the idea of fusing them together. The rest is history. You guys gained a lot more popularity late in 2016 with your biggest song 'UNBELIEVABLE', which happens to be a summer time anthem. How did the song come together ? In the first recording session together Row Shotgun played us a beat which he held close to his heart. He must've understood it's immense potential because he told us that we shouldn't lace any vocals until we were 150% sure that they did the beat justice. For about 3 days we played around with ideas which could work for the track (while recording 5 of the tracks on #TropicalReign) but none of them met Row’s high standards. We then decided to change our approach and focus on things which made them feel as good as the beat did. This is where the various elements in the hook came about. Once they had come to an agreement P-dogg Amazing played around with some melodies and laced the hook which we know and love today. The message we wanted to communicate was that we should embrace the beautiful and unbelievable things in life, cause these are the things we all like! The video for 'UNBELIEVABLE' shot at North Beach, Durban by Sky Star Films, has enjoyed a fair share of success airing on TV. Why did you guys pick that particular concept for the video ? The mantra that we chose from the moment we started the group was to expose the world to our beautiful corner of Mzansi through our musical concepts & videos. We came to the early realisation that nobody was really taking advantage of the beautiful natural scenery Durban is blessed with. So when it came to shooting the video, using the beach front area and our world famous marine promenade was a no brainer. The video director, Aewon Wolf as well as Skystar Films shared our vision so with those key ingredients coupled with the creativity and hard work of the shooting team and the contributions from all the clothing brands, our management, the video girls as well as our family & friends the video practically shot itself. At the end of the video, you guys show affiliation to the Wolf Pack, what's your relationship with Aewon and the Wolf Pack ? At the time we were promoting the single and Aewon Wolf went out of his way to show his belief in us and our song. He let us know that if we needed any help we shouldn't hesitate to call him up.  At the time we had no idea how we would be able to raise the budget for the quality of video that the song needed. So we called up Aewon for some advice and just like that he offered to shoot the video for us. Aewon is an incredibly gifted D.O.P. (Director Of Photography) and the Wolfpack X credit was his stamp on the video. We are not members of the WolfPack though. On the same breath of affiliations, I saw that BACEgang along with Aewon made a cameo appearance on your latest video for 'AbaRight'. Should we expect any collaborations between the two groups ? Definitely! We consider these artists our brothers. Durban music is on the rise …Watch this space! I understand that the group consists of about 6 members. So with that being said, who's responsible for what ? Captain Hook - His role is self-explanatory. He's a living breathing Hook God. He's the guy who hosts the gents at his crib for our recording sessions and after parties. Row - He's the man behind the sound. The self-proclaimed Super Producer. He's in charge of quality control and no wack verses make it past his keen ear. Sydrow - He's one of the most gifted lyricists in the group. His mere presence raises the standard of rap in the crew and he's a marvel on stage. June Blackheart - Is the youngest and most naturally inquisitive member of the group. He's got an unmatched hunger for musical knowledge which helps rid everyone else of complacency and as a result keeps our music sounding fresh. Pdogg Amazing - Is the oldest in the group and his role in studio is to dish out catchy melodies and harmonies. He's very eloquent and for that reason has been appointed as the spokesperson for PalmTree Paradise. Papa Axsion - He's the 5th dimension to our 4D sound. He's behind most of the conceptualisation in our music and prides himself in his Afrocentric sound and his ability to add a soulful texture to the PTP (Palmtree Paradise) sound. Axsion also handles most of our social media pages. You guys have been doing shows and events more in the city and around the country, how does being given a platform to showcase your craft feel as well as how does it feel to actually have your art pay off ? It feels like that first ballot in '94. It feels like Apollo 13. It feels like Penny Haines in '96. It feels like Sepp Blatter opening that famous envelope. It feels like 22 December 2012... Basically, it's a feeling of validation... liberation... euphoria... it's the most addictive drug on Earth...You can't get enough of it. Your debut project 'Tropical Reign EP' was released early this year, which has 'UNBELIEVABLE' and 'AbaRight' on it. Also some notable features such as Reason and WTF. Do you guys feel like you managed to convey yourselves in the best way possible to say, "this is Palm Tree Paradise and this is what we're about". YES, without a shadow of a doubt. Not a single negative review thus far and people are discovering new favourites and new quotables day by the day on the project. From a quality perspective Finesse Beats S.A. (The guys behind the mixing and mastering) made sure our sound was clean and could compete with the best. And we are preparing to take it much further with our next body of work (Eden) which is 50% complete. What would you guys say sets your sound apart from the rest ?  Our ability to create a radio friendly sound which stimulates the heart, mind and spirit. We create a local sound which can compete internationally. Our music brings people together. Who are your musical influences and where do you guys grab inspiration ? Realistically speaking, it’s hard to name anyone because of the diversity of the music that we all listen to. But there is some common ground and that includes artists like Ty Dolla $ign, Post Malone, Black Hippy, Acoustically and many, many more. Our biggest inspiration is our daily lives in the city of Durban. The vibes in this city are second to none and they serve as a foundation for all the musical journeys we embark on. Describe your sound in one word PARADISE !! How will 2017 be in positive contrast to 2016 for Palmtree Paradise ? 2016 was about growth and #Unbelievable. 2017 will be about establishing ourselves as consistent hitmakers, we will continue to release good music and more music videos. 2017 is the year that we break into the mainstream and shake things up a bit in the game, they mustn’t get too comfortable. PalmTree Paradise is on the way! It's so impossible to ignore what's going in South Africa with artists and their record labels. What's your take on this and as independent artists do you feel like remaining independent is the best decision in order to maintain things like creative freedom ? Being self-funded and independent can be likened to working in a mine, you have 5km of dirt, rocks and rubble to dig through before you get to the gold. At the same time record labels give you the advantage of a lift down to the gold but you can’t really touch it even though it is rightfully yours. For us being independent allows us flexibility and creative control of our music and with the ever changing state of the music industry, staying independent is the best thing one can ask for. However, it's not easy at all! It’s a lot of hardwork, empty stomachs and sleepless nights. It’s slow to deliver rewards, but with patience and perseverance, one can survive and excel. If an artist from the city or anywhere else in the country wants to cook up something with you guys, how do they get a hold of you ? We are accessible and are always keen on working with new artists, as long as the vibes match, the music is good and they can survive in Paradise. They can reach out to us on social media or email us at ptpdurban@gmail.com Questions & interview was compiled and edited by Jordan Soul. Follow the blog on Twitter: @theSound_Plug on Facebook: theSound Plug

[maksylmyheart]

Three years after winning Olympic gold in Sochi, Meryl Davis and Charlie White ruled out returning to competition for the PyeongChang Olympics. Their storybook career, however, continues.

The skaters, born nine months apart at the same Michigan hospital, have enjoyed a charmed 20-year partnership. They grew up a few miles from each other. Their heights and personalities were a good fit. They shared the same fierce work ethic.

Now, they're both ready to close a chapter, not due to injury or age but because they love where they are, personally and professionally. And as usual, they're in perfect step.

"I think we felt for a while this was the right decision to make, but there was always this pull in the backs of our minds, knowing there were new things we could potentially bring to competitive ice," Davis said.

"The biggest (factor) was if we didn't feel we were 100 percent prepared to give everything we had, which is what we did leading up to 2014," White said. "We know that's the only way we would be satisfied with our approach to anything, but specifically in skating, we have a baseline we are used to. If we don't feel we could get back to that level mentally, it's not the right thing to do."

The following are excerpts from a conversation held with the skaters at Rockefeller Plaza on Wednesday, Feb. 23.

Icenetwork: Are you simply enjoying yourselves too much to return?

Charlie White: The main thing in ice dance is you can't make any mistakes. If you want to get the highest score you can, if you want to have a chance to win, you have to commit yourself to understanding that you have to do whatever it takes to not make any mistakes. The mental focus -- day in, day out -- to commit to that is tremendous.

Meryl Davis: Something so defining for our success on the ice was always making the right decision. Whether it was our training, our mental preparation, our philosophy, our outlook, maintaining the schedule that's right for an elite athlete -- we always made a decision that would ultimately lead to the success we had. Being open and available to explore new adventures without an agenda is a feeling we didn't have before. We're relishing the opportunity to feel that for the first time in our lives.

Icenetwork: You've watched this season's competitions. The bar is high. Do you think you're still capable of competing with the best?

White: One hundred percent. If anything, I feel we've improved. Our skating has improved, but even more so our maturity, our ability to relate to one another and to the audience. All of our show skating and all of the other great things we've been able to do off the ice, we've continued to grow as people, and that's a quality I think would be recognized in competition. So it's definitely not a question of if we can do it, and I think that's a nice thing to be able say.

Icenetwork: Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada were your training partners and biggest rivals. They're making a spectacular return after two seasons away. Is watching them bittersweet?

White: Emotions are at play, for sure. There's a moment of reflection that is sort of forced upon you when someone you've traveled the same road with for so long makes a life-altering decision the way they did last year. There were some real divergent moments and some flashpoints that caused our journeys to go down separate paths. We're able to respect their decision and what they continue to bring to the sport while maintaining the confidence and comfort of taking our own path.

Davis: We've been competing against them since we were 12 or 13, so seeing them return made me take a step back and think how I feel about it. You can see they are 100 percent dedicated and loving where they are in life, and the beauty of it is Charlie and I are too, on the other side of things.

Icenetwork: Charlie, you're doing quite a bit of ice dance commentary, and while you offer mostly positive feedback, you also give some constructive criticism.

White: When I first started, I thought, "I'm going to call it as it is. If it's not as good as it should be, I'm going to say it." But the second you start evaluating, you see the passion in the skaters' faces and movements. I love to highlight that aspect. Maybe a team isn't technically as strong, but I look at the commitment, the heartfelt emotion and even the struggle that comes with trying things a little out of range -- that's OK. [My commentary] is something skaters can listen to and enjoy without feelings being hurt.

At the same time, if I'm only positive, the audience may be like, "Why is there any discrepancy in scores?" With Tessa and Scott, for example, when you see their free dance, you can compare it to their short dance: where are the strengths, what are they bringing out in the free as compared to the short. There are ways to stay positive and also critique.

Icenetwork: Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France have had so much success winning the last two world titles that some observers think other teams are beginning to imitate them.

White: I think that kind of just happens, right? For so long the approach to programs was dominated by the Marina [Zoueva] and Igor [Shpilband] style, not so much the tempo or speed or type of music but the connecting steps, the way the technical elements played with the program. With Tanith [Belbin] and Ben [Agosto], and then Tessa and Scott and us, even though we have different styles, there was a core similarity there. [The French] were a breath of fresh air, and I know I appreciated it when they came in with a different style completely, a different way (of) connecting steps. [The imitation] will self-correct as people realize where their strength is. I'm looking forward to that as they find their way to find programs for the Olympic season.

Davis: I think the Marina and Igor style, the effort that went into the difficulty of movement and the choreography was more visible, which makes for a more dramatic and maybe dynamic style of skating. The French, especially the first year they came out, I felt as though the course of their four-minute, 10-second free dance was --

White: A cloud passing along the sky.

Icenetwork: The Canadians and French finished one-two at the Grand Prix Final and head into the 2017 World Championships as favorites. How would you handicap them?

White: From a technical standpoint, Tessa and Scott's foundation of skating is the highest of all the teams. Their ability to go in and out of movements, where you can't see the end of one movement and beginning of the next, is unparalleled. So much of that comes from experience and confidence and base talent.

The French are similar, but it hasn't matured in the same way because it hasn't been formed in the crucible of maybe the most difficult competition. [Papadakis and Cizeron] are dancers who happen to come together on the ice, and Tessa and Scott are more traditional ice dancers.

Icenetwork: The U.S. Stars on Ice tour opens in Ft. Myers, Florida, on April 13. You do so much performing -- you just got back from Art of Ice in Switzerland -- how do you keep things fresh?

Davis: I had sort of an epiphany this year. We've been doing shows now for three years relatively nonstop, and we love it; we feel like we've been growing on the ice in every way, really. I've been looking around at what makes a successful skater in that atmosphere. In our (most recent) tour in Japan, we performed with some legends, including Katia Gordeeva skating with David Pelletier, and Yuka Sato was there. I try to watch them and take a look at their approach and figure out what it is that makes them so special on the ice.

Also, getting a chance to have a couple of conversations with Scott Hamilton, I feel I have a newfound appreciation for the impact, the beauty you can bring to people's lives with shows like Stars on Ice. That was a lot of the decision not to return to competition. For us, it's exciting to push the envelope and be the best we can be for people who come to watch.

Icenetwork: I imagine not returning to competition fits in well with your personal lives.

White: Life with Tanith is great. I'm incredibly lucky. That feeling hasn't died down at all. We're coming up on two years in April being married, and we're together almost eight years. To be able to be an active participant in family gatherings, having even more energy to devote to my relationship with Tanith, has been really special. The forecast is also great.

Davis: I bought a house in Birmingham (Michigan), where I live with Fedor [Andreev] (former Canadian bronze medalist and Zoueva's son). It's great. We are both on the road a lot. He works for Boston Consulting Group, a top-tier consulting group, with large corporations, so depending what case he is on, his job description changes.

Icenetwork: Lots of things are happening in your old training center, Arctic Edge in Canton.

Davis: We skate there when we are home; we're on the road 80, 85 percent of the time. When we get there, it's fun to see the Shibutanis, Patrick [Chan], sometimes Nathan [Chen], and Haven [Denney] and Brandon [Frazier]. Now Gracie [Gold] is there, too. It's exciting to go and watch and be inspired by the dedication you can feel from these young athletes.

White: Mostly, we practice on our own. We did just finish a program with Marina, and every now and then she'll be, "Hey, that doesn't look good," which we appreciate. It's a great energy at that place.

Icenetwork: Do you still have your parking spot?

Davis: Oh, yeah. Sometimes we go and people are parked there randomly, because they don't expect us. We'll go inside and say, "Hey, you're in our spot!"

[gethealthy18-blog]

30 Late-Night Date Ideas

New Post has been published on http://healingawerness.com/getting-healthy/getting-healthy-women/30-late-night-date-ideas/

30 Late-Night Date Ideas

Harini Natarajan Hyderabd040-395603080 August 30, 2019

Life has become too busy. Nowadays, people don’t even have time for love. Some couples only get time for each other late into the evening or at night. This is especially true for couples who live in a big city and work long hours. The worst part is that many entertainment centers and restaurants begin to close up just as you both get time to go on a date.

It would feel great to cozy up to your bae at a late-night date after a super long day, wouldn’t it? However, since you can’t just have regular evening dates like most people, you can spice up your time together with unique date ideas. This will make your relationship more interesting and romantic. Confused about what to do so late in the night? Don’t worry, we have done all the hard work for you. Here is a list of some super cute late-night date ideas that you and your partner will love. Happy dating!

 30 Late-Night Date Ideas

1. Plan A Karaoke Night

This is one of the best late-night date ideas. There are plenty of late-night karaoke bars out there. Visit one and unleash the singer in you. If you would rather stay at home, you can play games like RockBand or SingStar.

2. Play A Game

You can play indoor games and challenge each other. Try solving a Rubik’s cube, or play ludo or chess. You can also conduct silly competitions at home. For instance, if you both are fitness enthusiasts, you can compete against each other to see who does more push-ups. Come up with more such ideas, write them all down, and put them in a bowl. On date nights, pick a chit and have fun.

3. Go For A Stroll In The Moonlight

Shutterstock

Make use of the romantic moon! When you can see the moon through a plethora of clouds, grab your boo’s hand and go for a walk. You can stroll in the park or on quaint streets, talking and laughing. If you live near the ocean, you can go for a walk down the beach when the moon is shining bright.

4. Go To A 24-hour Diner

Instead of going for a typical dinner and movie date, you can go to a 24-hour diner where you can gorge on tasty food as well as have heart to heart conversations with one another. This is one of the best ways to spend quality time with your partner, especially if you both are foodies.

5. Enjoy The Lake Side

This is a romantic late-night date idea. Similar to walking on the beach in the moonlight, no one can miss visiting the lake at night. You can just sit on the grassy banks, watch the twinkling stars in the sky, and have a late-night picnic with your bae. Since it can be cold, take a blanket along with you and cuddle with your partner under it.

6. Go On A Social Lounge Date

There are many social lounges where you can meet new people. You can also visit nightclubs to enjoy live music and relax. This is definitely one of the most exciting late-night date ideas.

7. Go To The Bowling Alley Or A Pool Hall

Many pool halls and bowling alleys, especially those in clubs, are open till the early hours of the morning. Make use of them and enjoy yourselves. However, most pool halls and bowling places are crowded during the weekends, so do your research and select the one that is less crowded.

8. Watch The Sunrise Together

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What is more romantic than experiencing the first ray of light of the day together? Get up super early and watch a wonderful sunrise with your partner. You can visit one of the sunrise spots in your city or stay at home and watch it from your balcony or rooftop. Cuddle up with your partner with a warm cuppa of coffee and soft blankets.

9. Have A Late-Night Outdoor Picnic

A late-night outdoor picnic sounds so exciting! You can even do it in your garden (if you are concerned about safety or plain lazy) or at the beach. Prepare a simple but romantic meal, like homemade sandwiches, cheese, and wine.

10. Go On A Drinking Date

By a drinking date, we don’t mean the usual date where you go out for a couple of drinks with your boo-boo and have lovey-dovey conversations over cocktails. Borrring! Try something new and creative like cocktail making, wine tasting, bartending, whiskey tasting, or beer brewing. These activities would be amazing to try on a late-night date.

11. Visit Late-Night Markets

Visit the late-night markets in your city. You will be surprised to see how many people are up selling things in the late hours of the night. From food to vintage goodies, you can buy almost anything. Share the goodies with your bae and have a great time.

12. Go On A Late-Night Tour

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Many travel agencies offer late-night tours. They are both informative and fun. You can also go on ghost tours, provided that you both are not petrified of ghosts. Another option would be a film or a cultural tour. There are many art galleries and exhibitions that are open till late at night. You can visit one with your partner and discuss your favorite artists. You can also go to a library and look for books together.

13. Organize Your Own Drive-In

This can be a great experience. If you have a laptop or portable DVD player, just take it outdoors. Stream a movie that you both have been wanting to see for a long time. Cuddle up with your bae and enjoy the movie together.

14. Watch A Live Show Together

There are many late-night live shows that are put up exclusively for couples. You can go to one of these and have an amazing time together. In addition to theater plays, you can also go for late night reruns of cult movies that are screened in select theaters. Another amazing idea is a magic show if you both are in awe of mystical things.

15. Go To A Zoo Or An Aquarium

There are aquariums and zoos that are open till late at night. They also host special activities for the patrons who visit late at night themed around nocturnal animals. You can play with the cute animals over there and learn something new about them. A perfect date idea for all animal-loving couples!

16. Massage Time

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Who doesn’t like a good, long massage? It doesn’t have to be professional, you know? It is about spending some quality time together and finding out what your bae enjoys physically. Once you are done, let him work his magic on you. The best part? You are most probably going to get a happy ending! * wink wink *

17. Play A Dare Or Dare Game

Play your own version of the truth or dare game when you are together. Dare him to scream your name at the restaurant or propose to an old lady at the store. Have a lot of fun while doing this.

18. Netflix And Chill

Buy a load of ice cream, beer, and whatever snacks you want and do a TV show marathon. Order food and get cozy while you binge-watch your favorite shows and movies.

19. Cook A Dish Together

Make this experience more memorable by even shopping for the groceries together. It’s okay if you don’t know how to cook. It’s okay if it burns! It’s not about the food, it’s about spending time together and having some innocent fun. If it gets messed up, you guys can always order something to eat. Treat yourself for the hard work you both did. Besides, “doing it” on the kitchen counter is truly something else!

20. Go For A Photo Booth Session

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This idea can be so much fun. You can make a list of all the photo booths in your area and spend the evening running from one to the next! Not only is this super fun, but you will also make memories that will last a lifetime.

21. Go For A Night Swim

Don’t have a pool at your place? You can always break into a local pool or a lake and get a little bit of adrenaline rush. The fear of getting caught, knowing that you are doing something you shouldn’t be doing, will strengthen the bond between you two. This will make you both partners in crime quite literally.

22. Strip Poker

Or a “strip” version of just about any game – strip ludo, strip chess, strip snakes and ladders…you get the drift. Strip poker is a popular game many couples love to play. And whatever happens, you will always end up being the winner, if you know what we mean.

23. Go Camping

A little romance by the campfire can reignite the passion in your heart that can last a lifetime. Far away from the modern world, without tethered to your phone – this is where you both can truly connect. This is the perfect opportunity to have time for just the two of you and to get away from the things that are stressing you out. Set up a tent together, cook some camp-friendly food, and just enjoy the alone time without all the distractions.

24. Visit A Carnival

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Yes, this is a movie cliché, but that does not mean it is any less fun or magical. Go on the roller coaster and get each other stuffed animals. Stuff yourselves with sugar cotton, candies, and corn dogs. Pretend like you both are teenagers all over again! Enjoy the night and make wonderful memories.

25. Road Trip

Is there any better therapy than hitting the road with your overnight bags with your favorite music playing in the background? And when you do this with the person that means everything to you, it takes the experience to a whole new level. Feel the breeze on your face and take lots of beautiful pictures. It is pure magic, truly.

26. Make Romantic Plans

Cook him a fancy dinner, get some expensive wine (or a cheap one – no one cares), put on a sexy dress, light some candles, and play sensual music. Don’t feel silly or weird about it. You should be able to be yourself in front of your partner and be able to do whatever you want without being judged by him. If that means getting in a bath of milk and rose petals, so be it!

27. Make DIY Projects Together

Go online and search for DIY projects that you both can do together. Pick one and spend the evening getting creative. If it is a bigger project, you know what you will be doing on your next date night!

28. Play The Questions Game

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This is a sweet and sneaky way to find out a little more about each other. Look up questions you can ask your partner and ask him to do the same. Get some wine and spend some time getting to know each other. This idea will help you establish trust and deepen the connection between you two.

29. Go On A Hot Air Balloon Ride

This is an amazing one that no one can resist! Riding way up high and watching the twinkling lights of the city. It will be verrryyy romantic – and exciting!

30.Take A Bath Together

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This one is pretty self-explanatory. Set up some candles, drop in some fragrant bath bombs, get the wine out, and get ready for a night of sensual love.

If you are looking for cute late-night date ideas, it can’t get better than this. You can always customize it according to what you both love to do. Use these date ideas to create the most amazing late-night date memories that you both will cherish for the rest of your life. With a little creativity and some planning, you can wow your partner and fire up the romance in your relationship.

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Source: https://www.stylecraze.com/articles/late-night-date-ideas/

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FULL transcript, below!

“Well, thank you very much. It’s an honor to be here and, I must tell you, that Melania and I are really thrilled. We really looked forward to this. … I didn’t know what to expect, but it’s really quality people … quality people. So, thank you very much.

It’s been really another calm week at the White House. We finally have it running like a fine-tuned machine. It’s fine-tuned. It’s a beautiful piece of work. … But before I get started, I wanted to apologize for arriving a little bit late. You know, we were late tonight because Jared could not get through security. … Ivanka, you’ve got to do something, … Jared—but I will tell you, he’s a good guy. He has—he has suffered. He is a great guy he really is.

I know the Gridiron is really an old tradition in Washington, been around a long time, and one that’s important to many of you in the media. So, I was very excited to receive this invitation and come here and ruin your evening in person. … My staff was concerned heading into this dinner that I couldn’t do self-deprecating humor. They were worried about it. They said, ‘Can you do this?’ And I told them not to worry. Nobody does self-deprecating humor better than I do. …  In fact, Orrin Hatch, Orrin said that ‘Donald Trump is the best at self-deprecating in the history of America, better than Washington and better than Lincoln.’ … Thank you, Orrin.

They told me my remarks tonight should be something like a late night routine. … Late night—are they the worst, by the way? We’re finally going to get one that’s going to come to our side. They will get very big ratings if they do that. … With all the television talent here, I think … you’d have figured that out. But I have to tell you, in preparation, I did what any good late night comic would do these days. I called Chuck Schumer and I asked him for some talking points.  Can you believe this? I also spoke to some of the funniest people around the White House starting with my number two, Mike Pence. … Love you Mike. … Some of you may think that Mike is not a comedian, but he is one of the best straight men you’re ever going to meet. … He is straight! …

I saw him the other day. We’re in line shaking hands with men and women. A woman came over to shake his hand and he said, ‘I’m sorry. I can’t do that. My wife is not here.’ I never saw anything like it. He’s … years ahead of his time. … Mike is doing a fantastic job as our vice president. He really is. He’s doing a fantastic job. Could not have asked for better. I really am very proud to call him, ‘The Apprentice.’

But lately what bothers me, I have to tell you, he’s showing a particularly keen interest in the news these days. He starts out each morning asking everybody, ‘Has he been impeached yet?’ …. You can’t be impeached when theres no crime! … Mike, put that down! … I thought that was going to get a much better … I said to Melania, ‘Do you think I should use that one? I don’t know.’ And then she said, Use it. It’s good.’ … So much for humor. You never know about humor do you. …

Steve Mnuchin … we saw him and his beautiful wife on stage. … When she asked whether or not she could sign the money also, I said, ‘Steve, you’ve got a lot to handle.’ I said, ‘You can’t do that Steve!’

America has a proud history of Treasury secretaries who sponsor the arts. Alexander Hamilton gave us so much. Andrew Mellon famously gave us the National Gallery—tremendous gift. Steve has given us the blockbuster movie ‘Lego Batman.’ … See, now that one I didn’t think was funny at all.

But Attorney General Sessions is here with us tonight. … I offered him a ride over and he recused himself. … But that’s OK. We also have some of the leading lights of the media here including some folks from the failing New York Times. That sucker is failing! … I know we have our differences, but I also know that you have a very special place … in my heart. … The other day they had five stories on the front page of the New York Times and every one of them was totally different and each one of them was bad.

After all, you the New York Times are an icon. I’m a New York icon, you’re a New York icon, and the only difference is, I still own my buildings.

I especially have a place in my heart for Arthur Sulzberger. … Our stories are almost mirror images. I inherited a million dollars from my father—had a great father—gave me a million dollars and I turned it into billions. True story. Arthur inherited billions of dollars and he turned his into millions. Hello Arthur.

And it’s been a very tough year. Jeff Zucker’s here. … CNN, it lost a tremendous amount of credibility this year, but they also lost one of their true stars, the guy who got you the most scoops, inside info … your really very best reporter. There was nobody like him—Steve Bannon. That guy leaked more than the Titanic …

As I’m sure you’ve seen, we’re now riding very high in the polls, which is hard to believe considering I never get good press. But I just hit 50 in the Rasmussen poll.

A lot of people said I wouldn’t be able to do so with … losing my so-called chief strategist. … I just lost my strategist. … Just lost my strategist. It’s pretty bad, but somehow, we’re still doing great even without Omarosa. … By the way, I always knew, someday, you’re going to fire her. Is that the worst? By the way, Omarosa, you’re the worst! …

So many people have been leaving the White House. It’s actually been really exciting and invigorating. … I like turnover. I like chaos. It really is good.

Now the question everyone keeps asking is, ‘Who’s going to be the next to leave? Steve Miller or Melania?’ … That is terrible honey, but you love me, right? … I wont tell you what she said. … She said, ‘Behave.’ … Is that terrible?

By the way, she has been an incredible first lady. … Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, and all of them. There’s so many women in that audience. The women with signs, ‘We love our first lady.’ True, all of them, hundreds and hundreds of them during speeches, ‘We love high heels. We love everything.’ … These signs, they have pictures of shoes. … Remember when she was badly treated about wearing high heels when actually she had the sneakers in her bag? But they love our first lady.

I can tell you, despite what you’ve reported, we’ve had a lot of success this year. We really have … tremendous. Our tax plan has been a tremendous victory. … That is really turning out to be popular. Melania is even getting some major benefits from it. She can finally claim me as an adult dependent. …

And the White House is actually a warm, loving, and wonderful place. I’ve heard it’s cold. It’s not cold. It’s warm. It’s loving, you meet great people, wonderful people like yourselves. And I just don’t understand why everyone on the internet and in the media keeps screaming, ‘Hashtag Free Melania.’ Free Melania. … Like a number one hashtag. Free Melania. She’s actually having a great time.

Yes, are you? Oh, good, she’s having a great time. You’re doing a good job. You know, you can’t do a great job unless you enjoy it. It’s true. You people know that as great reporters. You love what you do, and if you didn’t love what you do, you wouldn’t do it well. …

Before we go any further, I want to just discuss the big financial story of the week. Ever since we announced our new tariffs, which actually is very popular with people because they’re tired of getting ripped off, many dying American industries have come to the White House asking for protection. They want help. They need protection. Unfortunately, I’m sorry, I fear it may be too late for the print media. That was pretty good though wasn’t it? … That’s another bomb that I thought was going to be great.

It might be hard for you to believe, but I do enjoy gatherings like these. They give me a chance to socialize with members of the opposition party. … Also great to see some Democrats here. … The opposition party, I’ve seen a few of them applauding tonight including Sen. Joe Manchin, who’s here.

And don’t worry, Joe. … He’s a good man. There aren’t any cameras this time Joe. And I won’t tell Chuck and Nancy what you’re doing. Because boy was he applauding me the other night. Right? At the State of the Union he was up there applauding. I don’t know who the hell he was catering to.

I thought my State of the Union address was actually extraordinary. One of the best ever given. in fact Luis Gutierrez was so overcome with emotion at how good this particular speech was that he had to leave the chamber. He left and wept.

I probably could have found a way to get the Democrats to stand and clap. … They didn’t. They were like frozen. I said black unemployment is at the lowest point in history. No emotion. They sat other than Manchin. He stood up. Thank you, Joe. He’s still paying the price for that. I said Hispanic unemployment is at the lowest level in history, record. There was no emotion. But I decided I wasn’t going to change anything. I wasn’t going to get them to stand. I didn’t know how. … I was not going to include a salute to Fidel Castro. They would have stood up. They would have cheered. …

And I know Mayor Mitch Landrieu feels right at home in Washington coming from Louisiana. I love Louisiana. … Not too bad right? Not bad Mitch! … It’s a beautiful swamp. I like that swamp. … That’s a much more legitimate swamp. But I have to say Mitch, that while you’re here in Washington, only one request. … They already hit him on the statues. I was going to say, ‘Don’t touch our statues.’ But they’ve already hit you three times on the statues. … But Mitch you did a good job tonight and honestly I love the way you finished. … I really did. I thought it was very appropriate. … Thank you.

And I never knew Tom Cotton was such a great comedian. We were laughing, the whole place. That was good tom. A rising star. How old are you now Tom? He’s 40. Wow, I better watch my back. You know … he’s a friend of mine, but in politics, you just don’t have these guys. … You were great tonight. I appreciate it. … Thank you Tom Cotton. And he is a rising star in our nation, not our party, in our nation. He’s got a great future—smart and a great guy.

I was hoping we’d also see Adam Schiff—wonderful guy. … Leaking Adam! … He’ll be in the middle of a meeting—what is he? In some committee, congressional committee, Mike what is it? Intelligence? Judiciary? What the hell committee? That’s the only thing, he doesn’t know what committee he’s on because he’s on the phone so much. He doesn’t have any time. ‘Hey, let’s call these guys.’ … Is that legal? Are you allowed to go to .. and just every half hour … ‘I got to go break the news.’ … Adam Schiff … He was going to come tonightand then he heard that this was not a televised event so he stayed home. He stayed home.

But Adam is constantly on television pushing the idea that somehow I would undermine democracy. … Undermine? I love democracy. But he thinks I’m going to undermine democracy. So, I have to tell him I have great respect for the various branches of government, the executive, the legislative, the judicial—very important—and last, Fox News. I have a lot of respect for Fox News. … Thank god for Fox News.

I often think that the Democrats would be better off if they learned a thing or two from us. They could learn from us. For instance, you might have noticed that some of the best lines from my campaign followed a certain pattern. ‘Drain the swamp!’ Remember that? … When I saw that I hated it. … Somebody brought that one down for me, I said, ‘This is so hokey.’ Drain the swamp. … This massive crowd, 25,000 people, and I said, .. Drain the Swamp!’ And they went crazy. I said, ‘Whoah.’ Then, I said It in the next speech, ‘Drain the swamp!’ And now, I love it. Drain the swamp!

But we had, ‘Drain The Swamp,’ we had, ‘Lock Her Up, we had, ‘Build The Wall.’ Build the wall! Nancy Pelosi has been trying to come up with a line that’s equal. And her line that she announced last week is, ‘Mow The Grass!’ It doesn’t work. ..

Mow the frickin’ grass. … That’s going to stop MS-13. … Mow that frickin’ grass! … Man, she’s crazy, but she’s a fine woman. She is. I actually like Nancy Pelosi. Can you believe that? Her and Maxine Waters. How about that one? Maxine Waters, ‘He must be impeached!’ That’s all she knows how to say, ‘He must be impeached!’ Impeached! … But he’s done nothing wrong. Doesn’t matter, they say. What has he done wrong? ‘I don’t know! You got to be impeached!’ … And then I say … I get in trouble for this, ‘She has to immediately, take an IQ test.’ And people go crazy. They went crazy/ But Maxine and Nancy and these people, there’s a lot of hatred. There’s so much hatred we have to stop Mike. We have to stop the hatred.

And it’s true … Nancy’s worth tens of millions of dollars and she’s a populist. … You know, she really considers herself that. And I really try to tell her that you can’t be a true populist unless you’re worth at least ten billion dollars … people like you better.

I don’t know how the hell they like me, but boy I love those people. I love them. I really do. … I understand that, in recognition of our massive tax cuts, Nancy suggested that—Oh, I’m not going to say this. The dessert should be crumb cake. Give me a break. You know, the word crumb is not working out well for Nancy.

On the way in tonight, someone asked me what I think about the Dreamers. I love the Dreamers. I do love the Dreamers. … I’ll be honest. … I really believe the Republicans want to solve this problem—DACA—more than the Democrats and certainly faster. So, we’re all working together and I hope that something’s going to happen. I really do. I  hope that something’s going to happen. …

We’re talking about the Dreamers and, quite honestly, Democrats can fantasize all they want about winning in 2020. Those are the Dreamers. … I’m a Dreamer also. …

There’s talk about Joe Biden, Sleepy Joe, getting into the race. You know what he said, ‘I want to take him behind the barn.’ … Just trust me, I would kick his ass. … Boy, would he be easy. Oh, would he be easy. … But Joe—give me a break. The guy who keeps making outrageous statements thinks he has a shot at being president? Guy makes outrageous statements. … He’s going to be president? He doesn’t have a shot.

And Oprah. Oh … here’s my next one. Oprah, I don’t think she’s ever been hit verbally yet. Right? She’s led a charmed life. She’s done a great job. … She used to love me …. I was on one of her last shows, ‘The Trump Family.’ We’re going to have to replay that for her. We’re going to have to. … She says she’ll run only if she gets the go ahead from the Almighty. All right Oprah, go ahead and run. …  

And then we have Elizabeth Warren. … I watched her making a speech for Hillary. I said, ‘I think she’s losing all of the male vote for Hillary Clinton.’ It was brutal. It was mean and angry. Elizabeth Warren, who had a rough day last week trying to prove her heritage, She had a rough day. And she had a good suggestion though about easing world tensions. The world is quite tense. Some of this stuff should have happened over the last twenty years, but it didn’t. … But she said that Rex Tillerson and I should sit down with the leaders of Iran and North Korea and smoke a peace pipe. … I didn’t like that Pocahontas.

I won’t rule out direct talks with Kim Jong Un. I just won’t. As far as the risk of dealing with a madman is concerned, that’s his problem, not mine. … He must be a fine man. Do you think he’s a fine man? … Although, we did save the Olympics. President Moon gave us a lot of credit, said, ‘It was—it was President Trump that made the Olympics successful because there were a lot of people that wanted to go into that stadium with the potential of a problem—a big problem—and he gave us all a lot of credit. He said, 'Without President Trump and his strong attitude they would have never called up and said, 'Hey, we’d love to be in the Olympics together.’

And that’s true. … Whether people want to hear it or not, they had a very successful Olympics. That was heading for disaster. They weren’t selling tickets. … It was heading for disaster and now we’re talking. And they, by the way, called up a couple of days ago and said, 'We would like to talk.’ And I said, 'So would we, but you have to de-nuke, you have to de-nuke.’

So, let’s see what happens. Let’s see what happens. You know when the media said … and when I said, 'My button is bigger than yours and mine works.’

Everyone gave me a hard time, what a terrible thing. They didn’t say what he said. He said, 'I have a button on my desk and I am prepared to use it.’ Nobody ever said that. So, my statement was in response, but maybe positive things are happening. I hope that’s true and I say that in all seriousness. I hope that’s true … But we will be meeting and we’ll see if anything positive happens. It’s been a long time. …. It’s a problem that should have been fixed a long time ago … very far down the road. …

i know there’s been a lot of talk about Twitter and social media this year. But it really can be an important form of modern day communication. If I didn’t have Twitter how would Gen. Kelly and Gen, McMaster know what it is that they’re supposed to say that day. They wouldn’t know. They’d have no idea.

There’s been a lot of criticism of John Kelly in the press, which i think is very very unfair. He’s doing an amazing job. He even told me he would let Ivanka visit the Oval Office when she gets home from representing us in the Olympics and she did so. Ivanka did you enjoy your visit? I hope so. That was very nice and by the way Ivanka did an incredible job representing our country at the Olympics. She did.

Many people have asked me how my time as a reality TV star prepared me for the presidency, the truth is there’s very little overlap between the two. Very little. In one job, I had to manage a cutthroat cast of characters desperate for TV time, totally unprepared for their … jobs, and each week afraid of having their asses fired. In the other job, I was the host of a smash television hit. … Television’s so easy compared to this. …

I know we all came here tonight to have fun and tell jokes, but I also think we need to discuss the issues. Issues are very important. … For example, we’ve got a new plan to tackle global warming, one of my favorite subjects. We’re going to reduce the carbon footprint when we travel by shrinking the press pool so that we only have room for Sean Hannity, Lou Dobbs, and Judge Judy. …

I better wrap it up. I have to be up early tomorrow morning—six o'clock—to be listening to Fox and Friends. … But I do want to say this is one of the best times I can ever remember having with the media. This might be the most fun I’ve had since watching your faces on election night. … I apologize. Years, years, years taken  off your life. Oh, John King, with that beautiful red map. His hand was shaking toward the end. … I love the way he uses that map. He’s good at it. … And then it was Michigan. Remember they wouldn’t call Pennsylvania? There was one percent of the … vote to go in Pennsylvania. It was like 11 o’clock. One percent of the vote to go, they wouldn’t call it. And if i lost even one of the votes, I won by a lot. They wouldn’t call it. So instead, they called Wisconsin. And then, John King, remember, ‘The Winner of the great state of Michigan.’ He’s going Michigan. He’s like, ‘Hey Trump won Michigan, this can’t be happening.’ And that hand was up. …

Look, whether you like me or not, you have to say that was good. That was exciting. … Lot of tears were in this room. You’re not supposed to cry. Mike are they supposed to be crying? If somebody wins or somebody … they’re supposed to be a little impartial. Let’s be a little bit more impartial. …

But you know, I’ll tell you what, I do have a lot of respect for a lot of the people in this room. Even people that have been very strong opponents, I’ve developed a lot of respect. Fairness is important to me, but you know, you’ve got your point of view. And a lot of you cover things very squarely and there are few professions that i respect more. And I’d like to thank the Gridiron Club and Foundation—foundation does an incredible job—for this wonderful evening. I want to thank all of the amazing speakers and, really, performers. Some very good performers … they really are. …

I want to thank the press for all you do to support and sustain our democracy. I mean that. I mean that. Some incredible people in the press … brilliant, powerful, smart, and fair people in the press. And I want to thank you. My greatest wish is that we can all work together to make America safe, and just, and free for all Americans. We have a great country and we all, together, will make it even better. Thank you all very much. This is a great honor thank you.”

The Saturday March 3rd, 2018 dinner was NOT televised.

On the animation, those were the ACTUAL punchlines delivered by the President.

[cellerityweb]

Building a Lean Team: Part II

A functioning team is the essential foundation of success. Guido Schmidt from Digamore tells us in the second part, how to improve the work process and goes deeper into the topic SCUM.

Check out the first part of Building a Lean Team:

Building a Lean Team: Part I

Improving the work process

We set up the whole work process, team culture requirements and game vision structure in the best and most reasonable way we could. But of course, no plan survives reality unchanged. That’s why we also put a lot of emphasis on observing and improving our work process. It wasn’t enough to just set up and use SCRUM, we wanted the team to

Visualization of the three pillars of a lean team: work climate, ownership and work processes.

eventually own and shape the process on its own. For that we intentionally reserved two whole days per 2-week sprint. One day for planning and one day for reviews and retrospectives. Maybe it seemed like a huge waste of time initially, which was also the first feedback we got from the team. Why not use this time to pull off additional work? A good question that deserves a good answer.

First off, we know that implementing a new work process always requires a lot of time and effort. Everyone wants change but nobody wants to change. So we said that we intentionally invest this time into making this process work and that we are aware that it means we have less time to do actual work – and that’s ok.

Second, we need this time to prepare our plan for the next sprint. We invest one whole day to make sure we can work for the remaining two weeks without having to re-adjust constantly. The main idea was to create two weeks of quiet, during which people can get stuff done without being constantly interrupted.

Third, we invest another day to reflect on how the last two weeks worked out. It is a timeframe that is short enough for people to not forget the problems they had. And by allowing ourselves the time to sit back one day and reflect, we can make improvements to the way we work.

Clearly defining all areas of responsibility for everyone helps the team immensely in growing trust.

In a retrospective, people can bring forward topics they want to improve. The members of the team are the best people to ask this since they are the ones doing the actual work and having the actual problems. Of course, we also highlight things which went well. If you have to discuss uncomfortable issues, it is especially important to also be aware of the good things that happened within the last two weeks in order to avoid communicating an impression that things are worse than they really are. The most important part of the retrospective, however, are the real issues. The stuff that really annoys the team. Things that demotivate – things that cost an extraordinary amount of time, frustrating behavior of managers, unfair blaming of people and other uncomfortable circumstances.

However, by putting such a great emphasis on a positive and constructive team culture, we were always able to keep difficult discussions at an objective level. We were able to talk about things which annoyed us very calmly and we eventually resolved these problems by fostering understanding on all involved parties. Every team will have their share of issues, problems and personal annoyances. This is normal and every team will face these issues. The difference between a good and a bad team is how they deal with them.

At the end of each retrospective we put together a set of actions that we were going to try out to improve things. In the following retrospective, we then re-evaluated these actions to see whether they did improve anything. If they did, we kept them. If not, we dropped them and tried something else.

How did it work out?

Brace yourselves – winter is coming! And with it a lot of discussions about a lot of very very basic things. When we started working with SCRUM (note: an agile software development framework for managing product development) it was new to all of us. None of us had worked with SCRUM before, so we hired an external consulting company to help us implement it in our process correctly. These guys also helped us with understanding the meaning behind certain agile concepts, why they made sense and what it was that people benefited from. Some of the things we spent hours and hours talking about them:

1. What are the team’s benefits from using SCRUM at all? – Isn’t it a huge waste of time? 2. Why are we using »story points« and not just a time estimation just as »normal« people do? – And if we are using story points, what the hell is this »complexity«? 3. What’s the exact granularity of our stories per feature? – Is it ok to just say »League User Interface« (like one story per feature)? – Should we make a story for each screen of the League Interface (four to five user stories)? – Or should we create a story for each interface element with all their behaviors and states (more like 30+ user stories)? 4. Aside from this, we also had fights and troubles concerning coding architecture, art-style or which features were still within the vision and which weren’t. We had a huge scope on our plate and from time to time underestimated the effort it took to get certain features implemented, which led to fights about what features to push back and what should be achieved in certain milestones.

Basically, we went through all the insanity of game development you can expect in every company and project. Every team will face these problems. Accepting that teams will have these issues and knowing how to handle them is key. There is no perfect project out there, where everything runs smoothly from start to finish. Projects are messy. And projects change during development, as does the market and its requirements.

People leave, new people join, but the world continues to turn. In today’s fast paced society, it’s even almost impossible to take reliable predictions two or three years into the future. Who can say what revolution is waiting around the corner, which will make your key USP totally worthless half way into your current project. And if it happens, do you continue with your original plan or would it be better to adjust? And if the answer is yes, how would you do that exactly?

Game development is full of tough questions and hard calls, which is also why the retrospective is the most important meeting in our whole development process in order to be able to adapt to the »unknown unknowns«. Thanks to our mature discussion culture and ability to talk about uncomfortable topics, we were able to greatly improve the efficiency of our work process.

When we started with planning meetings at the start of a sprint, they tended to last seven hours or longer. Those were extremely exhausting days, full of uncertainties, questions and unclear requirements of what we wanted to achieve over the next two weeks, but we stuck to it. During every retrospective, we not only identified the three worst problems, but also found ways to improve these long and exhausting meetings. We had to go a long way, but in doing so our meetings became very reliable and humane. It now rarely takes us more than 1.5 hours to complete our plan for the next 14 days. So yes, it is possible to improve the efficiency of your work process by up to 80 percent and more!

What are the team’s benefits from using SCRUM at all?

Especially in the beginning of the production process, people were wondering why we would use SCRUM at all. How does the team benefit from it and why would we »waste« two (!) days every bi-weekly sprint sitting around and talking? The very first step to get everyone on board was to acknowledge that it does take time to get a new work process implemented and that the management is willing to invest this time. It meant that we accepted that implementing new features would take longer in the first couple of months!

An early draft of »Football Empire«’s »start a match screen«.

Just accepting and acknowledging this fact took a huge amount of pressure off us, since we made clear that we did not expect the team to implement a new and unknown process and push for a super-fast implementation of new things at the same time. When people are trying to adapt to new processes, it takes time to get everything in place properly. In addition, we spoke about the process and what we expected from it – for ourselves and for the team.

1. By using SCRUM, we ultimately expected a more accurate time estimation – Measuring how many story points the team would be able to complete every two weeks would eventually allow a reliable forecast of how much work the team could pull off in reality, including all the disruptions, discussions, ambiguities and hidden efforts.

2. A more reliable project plan – A more reliable plan meant better-quality planning. It was a lot easier to push estimated features back and forth and tell whether a feature would fit into the next milestone or not. Of course, we wanted to push as much stuff as possible into each new build, but when the numbers said that it was going to be a problem, we could adjust early enough to rather focus on the most important features.

3. Transparency – We always made all efforts, plans and estimations publicly. We showed the current state to our team and discussed our plans and whether the team felt it was realistic or not. In several cases, we also changed the contents of certain milestones to what the team felt was more useful or easier to implement.

Players can individualize their club grounds with way more than 20 different buildings.

4. Less overtime – More accurate planning will lead to more reasonable milestones which again will prevent nasty surprises. And avoiding those will prevent people from having to do overtime to get forgotten things into the next milestone.

Why are we using story points?

Estimating story points means to not just estimate »how long something takes to implement« but to determine the rough complexity of a given task. Of course, in the end, we want to re-interpret story points back to a time estimation – that’s the whole point of it. Doing it via story points will in fact improve the quality of the time estimation. Let’s say two programmers are to estimate how long a specific task will take them to implement. Programmer Lenny says he can do it in one day, while Carl argues he would probably need around five days to do the same. In this case a time estimation with regard to the whole team is very inaccurate. Both guys, however, can agree on a rough complexity rating for the task.

It’s just that Lenny can do the same thing a lot faster than Carl. Nevertheless, Lenny can’t do everything alone and Carl has other areas of expertise. What we want is an accurate estimation of what the whole team and not only individual members can achieve. When both guys agree on the complexity of a story, they can eventually agree on a reasonable amount of story points for the task at hand. Our definition of complexity includes the following aspects:

1. Amount of expected iterations – This aspect applies for tasks that encompass a lot of quick iterations, e.g. on how a specific window should scroll. Should it snap at certain key elements? And with how much inertia should it scroll? In this case, it makes sense to just implement something, try it out, adjust it, try it out again, etc … Tasks like this are more complex than tasks with clear and easy requirements.

2. Scope of the task – The sheer scope of a task contributes to its complexity. If a task requires to touch all 200 items in the game manually, it is more complex than if it requires to just touch the last 10.

3. Communication effort – If a task can be completed without having to bother the other departments, it is less complex than if it is a task where coders, designers and artists have to synchronize in order to finalize it.

4. Testing effort – If a task uses randomization, it is more complex than if it doesn’t. That applies to all tasks that need several test-runs before their implementation can be finished.

5. Amount of different technologies used – Every technology used contributes to complexity. If a task is to just create an icon, it is less complex than the task of creating a user interface which not only uses icons, but also sounds and that has to function on an Android and an iOS device.

6.Dependencies – The more dependencies, the higher a task’s complexity. If a task only touches the frontend alone, it is less complex than if the backend has to provide specific data before the frontend can show it.

With all of these aspects elaborated, the team eventually settled on a magnitude of how many storypoints each task was worth. That allowed us to greatly improve the quality of our planning forecasts.

What’s the granularity of our user stories?

We were experimenting with various granularities. We wrote stories which were very big in the beginning and almost encompassed whole features. This method brought several disadvantages with it since we could not always complete a whole feature in one sprint, which meant that these stories could also not be completed.

Working places at Digamore are positioned in a way that makes it easy for people to turn around and talk to each other.

After that we went into the opposite direction and created stories which were extremely small and detailed, even going so far as to have a story for each interface element. Which, on one side, was a good indicator for what had been achieved. On the other side, it created a lot of dependencies between stories, which made the whole point somewhat useless. Plus, the overhead on the management team exploded and it was very difficult to keep up with the team. In this scenario, people were implementing things faster than we could design and document them.

Eventually we settled in the middle. Stories were basically written »screen by screen«, while the interface elements were described on the according wiki page.

Summary

So, in the end and in my opinion, there are three main points you should adhere to when creating a good team and – as a direct result – a good product:

1. Ensure a good work climate. – Make it a topic. – Emphasize it. – A good work climate and team culture is the basis of everything that comes after. Get it right from the beginning because otherwise there is no point in trying to build anything on top as nothing will work out properly.

2. Create a framework of clear responsibilities which your team can eventually outgrow. – Provide a safe environment for people where everyone can voice their concerns and where it’s clear who has which responsibilities and who has to make the call. – Be rigid at the beginning. – Be flexible when the team is ready for it.

3. Improve the process (the »retrospective« within the SCRUM process). – Ensure that the management is behind this approach. There’s no point in trying to improve things when the management is not willing to invest time into doing so. – Regularly reflect about how everyone did and what the most pressing issues are. – Don’t try to fix everything at once. Take the three worst issues and fix those, then take the next three issues and so forth. – Ensure that the time-frame between taking action and reviewing it is short enough. Otherwise people will forget what they have agreed upon.

About the Author:

Guido Schmidt is Project Lead at Digamore Entertainment GmbH

Guido is an industry veteran with more than 15 years of experience. He worked on the »Anno« and »The Settlers« franchise (e.g. »Anno 1404« and »The Settlers Online«) and is now responsible for the upcoming Football Empire.

@LinkedIn

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[pamphletstoinspire]

THE HOLY GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST, ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW from the Latin Vulgate Bible

Chapter 25 - Part 2:

9. The wise answered, saying: Lest there be not enough for us and for you, go you rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

Ver. 9. Go ye rather to them that sell. The wise virgins do not there advise the foolish to go and buy, but upbraid them for the poor store of good works they have laid up. They had before only sought the praises of men in their good actions, and therefore are answered by the wise: "go now to those to whom you have given all your actions; go and see what their praises will avail, what peace of conscience they can give you: and, if they have praised you, and made you esteemed in the eyes of men, see if they can do the same before God." (St. Augustine)

10. Now while they went to buy, the bridegroom came: and they who were ready, went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut.

Ver. 10. And the door was shut. After the final day of judgment, there will be no room for prayers and good works. (St. Jerome) --- For, after having received those within its walls, who have put on in some degree the nature of the angels, the gate to the city of bliss is closed for ever. (St. Augustine)

11. But at last came also the other virgins, saying: Lord, Lord, open to us.

Ver. 11. No explanation given.

12. But he answering, said: Amen, I say to you, I know you not.

Ver. 12. No explanation given.

13. Watch ye, therefore, because ye know not the day nor the hour.

Ver. 13. Watch ye. St. Augustine asks, how can we be always watching, it being necessary for each one to give himself sufficient time to sleep and rest from his many labours? He answers the question in these words: We may always keep watching to our hearts by faith, hope, charity, and all other good works. But when we awake, like the five wise virgins, we must arise and trim our lamps, by supplying them with the oil of good works. Then they will not go out, nor will the soothing oil of a good conscience be wanting to us. Then will the bridegroom come and introduce us to his house, where we shall never need sleep or rest; nor will our lamps ever be in danger of going out. Whilst we are in this life, we labour; and our lamps, blown about by the winds of innumerable temptations, are always in danger of being extinguished; but soon their flame shall become more brilliant, and the temptations we have suffered here shall not diminish, but increase its lustre. (St. Augustine, serm. xxiv.)

14. For even as a man going into a far country, called his servants, and delivered to them his goods;

Ver. 14. But that the apostles and all men might learn how they ought to watch, and to prepare for the last day, he subjoins another instructive parable of the ten talents. It has a great affinity with that mentioned in St. Luke, xix. 11. But this last was spoken at a different time, place, and occasion. It differs also in some points. --- For even as a man, &c. This passage is to be understood of our divine Redeemer, who ascended to heaven encompassed by his human nature. The proper abode for the flesh is the earth; when, therefore, it is placed in the kingdom of God, it may be said to be gone into a far country. (St. Gregory) --- But when we speak of his divine nature, we cannot say that he is gone into a far country, but only when we speak of his humanity. (Origen)

15. And to one he gave five talents, and to another two, and to another one, to every one according to his proper ability: and immediately he took his journey.

Ver. 15. In the parable of the talents, the master is God, talents, graces, &c. (Witham) --- From this, it appears, we can do no good of ourselves, but only by means of God's grace, though he requires our co-operation; since the servants could only make use of the talents given them to gain others. (A talent is £187 10s.) It is also worthy of remark, that both he who received five and he who received only two talents, received an equal reward of entering into the joy of our Lord; which shews, that only an account will be taken according to what we have received, and that however mean and despicable our abilities may be, we still have an equal facility with the most learned of entering heaven. (Jansenius) --- The servant to whom this treasure was delivered, is allegorically explained of the faithful adorers of God, in the Jewish law, who departing from it, became followers of Christ, and therefore deserving of a double recompense. ... The servant to whom the two talents were delivered, is understood of the Gentiles, who were justified in the faith and confession of the Father and the Son, and confessed our Lord Jesus Christ, God and man, composed of body and soul; and as the people of the Jews doubled the five talents they received, so the Gentiles, by the duplication of their two talents, merited a double recompense also. ... But the servant who received only one talent, and hid it in the ground, represented such of the Jews as persisted in the observation of the old law, and thus kept their talent buried in the ground, for fear the Gentiles should be converted. (St. Hilary)

16. And he that had received the five talents, went his way, and traded with the same, and gained other five.

Ver. 16. No explanation given.

17. And in like manner he that had received the two, gained other two.

Ver. 17. No explanation given.

18. But he that had received the one, going his way, digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money.

Ver. 18. He that had received the one. The man who hid this one talent, represents all those who, having received any good quality, whether mental or corporal, employ it only on earthly things. (St. Gregory) --- Origen is also of the same sentiment: if you see any one, says he, who has received from God the gift of teaching and instructing others to salvation, yet will not exercise himself in this function, he buries his talent in the ground, like this unworthy servant, and must expect to receive the like reward.

19. But after a long time, the lord of those servants came, and reckoned with them.

Ver. 19. After a long time. This represents the time that is to intervene between our Saviour's ascension and his last coming. For, as he is the Master, who went into a far country, i.e. to heaven, after he had inculcated the relative duties of each man in his respective state of life; so shall he come at the last day, and reckon with all men, commending those who have employed their talents well, and punishing such as have made a bad use of them. (St. Jerome)

20. And he that had received the five talents, coming, brought other five talents, saying: Lord, thou deliveredst to me five talents; behold I have gained other five over and above.

Ver. 20. I have gained other five. Free-will, aided by the grace of God, doth evidently merit as we see here.

21. His lord said to him: Well done, thou good and faithful servant: because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Ver. 21. No explanation given.

22. And he also that had received the two talents came and said: Lord, thou deliveredst two talents to me: behold I have gained other two.

Ver. 22. No explanation given.

23. His lord said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant: because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Ver. 23. No explanation given.

24. But he that had received the one talent, came, and said: Lord, I know that thou art a hard man; thou reapest where thou hast not sown, and gatherest where thou hast not strewed:

Ver. 24. I know that thou art a hard man. This is an insignificant part, that is, an ornament of the parable only; as also when it is said: I should have received mine with usury. ver. 27. (Witham) --- This seems to have been an adage levelled at avaricious men, who are never pleased but with what increases their hoards. Under this symbol is also depicted the excuse of many, who accuse God of being the cause of their idleness, both here and in the judgment to come; as that God is too severe and unbending, whose service is extremely hard, and who adopts, rejects, and reprobates whom he pleases; who deals out heavier burdens than the weak nature of man is made to support; who denies the grace of obedience, and thus wishes to reap where he has not sown. (Jansenius)

25. And being afraid, I went and hid thy talent in the earth: behold here thou hast that which is thine.

Ver. 25. No explanation given.

26. And his lord answering, said to him: Wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sow not, and gather where I have not strewed.

Ver. 26. Thou evil and slothful servant, for thus calumniating thy master; if I wish to reap where I have not sown, how ought you to fear my just indignation, if were I have sown I find nothing by your neglect to reap. Thus our Lord retorts the accusation upon the servant, as in Luke xix. 22. Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant.

27. Thou oughtest, therefore, to have committed my money to the bankers, and at my coming, I should have received my own with usury.

Ver. 27. No explanation given.

28. Take ye away, therefore, the talent from him, and give it to him that hath ten talents.

Ver. 28. No explanation given.

[seofmbfcsusa5-blog]

Martial Arts and The Bible

Martial Arts and The Bible As a Christian and a martial arts student, I have often wrestled with the idea of self-defense. Does God expect me to defend my family and myself when physically attacked or am I to "turn the other cheek" and endure it in the name of Jesus? As I considered the many comments I encountered on this topic, I became even more confused. Some advocates for "religion" have gone as far as to say that anyone who practices any form of martial arts is without a doubt bound for hell. It wasn't until I committed myself to a more thorough study of the scriptures that I discovered the truth for myself. The Bible gives more than a few examples of the practice of self-defense and the idea of martial arts. I would like to share some of what I have learned in this study of the Bible - Old Testament and New. The Bible is, in fact, the very word of God (II Timothy 3:16-17).

The Bible refers to another situation in which self-defense may be used during a robbery, in Exodus 22:2-3. If a man is being robbed, he is entitled to protect his property, his family and himself. If the attempted robbery takes place at night and the actions of self-defense result in the death of the robber, the defender is not guilty. If the attempted robbery takes place in the daytime and the robber is killed, the defender is guilty of sin. The difference may be that in the daytime, the defender should have more control of his actions and should be able to subdue the robber without killing him. Self-defense is warranted but control must be applied. At night, in the dark, maximum force would be acceptable since it is more difficult to assess the threat that the robber poses. It would be more difficult to tell if the attacker had a weapon, or to assess his physical strength. God expects us to constantly make decisions about the situations we are in. In regard to martial arts and self-defense, it seems that God is concerned with our intentions. Guilt and innocence, to him, are a matter of the heart. God expects us to be directed by the heart of the scriptures in the Bible. We must be directed in our actions by scriptures such as Deuteronomy 5:17, which says, "You shall not murder" as well as I Corinthians 13:7 which says, "[Love] always protects". As the Bible states in II Timothy 3:16-17, all Bible scripture is relevant and useful. During one of my martial arts classes, one of my fellow students asked our sensei, "What attack should I make now?" He had just finished practicing a series of intense self-defense tactics on his partner, rendering him harmless. Sensei replied, "Run". No final "kill-move"? No, it is time to make another decision about the threat the attacker poses. If the attacker has been successfully rendered harmless then you shouldn't stick around to inflict more damage or further risk your own safety. The Bible gives us specific guidelines for martial arts but God also communicates his heart about how he wants us to treat one another. He wants us to treat one another with love - even in conflict. Weapons I have also wrestled with the question of whether or not it was right for weapons to be used as a means of defense. Should I own a fighting knife, a sword or a gun? Isaiah 2:4 says, "...They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore." If this scripture were taken out of context with the rest of the Bible, to use a weapon would be a sin. But this scripture has to be balanced with others. In the context, this scripture is describing the contrast between the nations of that time and the type of nation Jesus would establish in the future. The nation that Jesus would establish would have no military and there would be no physical walls to defend. It would be a spiritual nation, not a physical one. The New Testament clearly confirms the right to bear arms. Romans 13:4 says, "For [the governing authority] is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer." Even Jesus directs his disciples to acquire weapons as the time of his crucifixion approached. Luke 22:36 says, "He said to them, 'But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.'" And in Luke 22:38, "The disciples said, 'See Lord, here are two swords.' 'That is enough,' he replied." Peter soon after uses the sword to protect Jesus and Jesus rebukes him for it. This was not to say that it is wrong to use a weapon to protect someone. Peter had earlier been rebuked by Jesus for trying to keep him from fulfilling his mission of dying for the sins of the world (see Matthew 16:21-28). Jesus was re-stating that Peter was not to protect Jesus from going to his death. This was not the correct time to use the sword. Jesus had his disciples arm themselves because Jesus was not going to be with them, physically, any longer. They would need to protect themselves and each other and Jesus gave them the right to bear arms in order to do so. Martial Arts Is Not Religion It is important to note that martial arts is not religion in that it is not an institute of service and worship of God. It is only a tool to accomplish a necessary training. There will be flaws in all martial arts training and even things taught that are contradictory to the Bible. This will happen even when the martial arts style or system is advocating biblical-based training. Romans 3:4 says, "...Let God be true and every man a liar." My son was recently taught by an instructor during class to avoid talking about politics and religion in order to avoid conflict. Though I appreciate the effort made to train the kids to keep the peace, the concept is biblically flawed. I spent the next week teaching Bible scriptures to my son such as Acts 4, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey [man] rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard." It is each person's responsibility as a Christian to know what the Bible teaches. Even in Acts 17:10-11, when the apostle Paul taught the people of Berea, the Bereans were honored by God for having a noble character because, "they received the message with great eagerness and examined the scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Each of us has the same responsibility to examine the scriptures to see if what we are being taught is true, whether it be a teaching from our martial arts instructor, school teacher, neighbor, or religious leader.

Conclusion

Martial arts training has its place. It can help people learn to deal with the inevitable conflicts in life. There is no escaping battle in life. God wants people to be prepared to handle these battles, whether it is to turn the other cheek to an insult, find a peaceful resolution, or physically defend themselves or others. Martial arts and self-defense are not sinful or inherently wrong, but without the guidance of God and the Bible, martial arts could be misapplied. Without proper biblical training we are left to our own sinful nature, which tends toward retaliation, haste, fear, hatred, pacifism, and intolerance. Martial arts is a biblical concept, but even more attention should be given to biblical training. The Bible should be used in conjunction with martial arts training. In conclusion, I Timothy 4:7-8, which says, "Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come." Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. Author's Bio: Tom Katch, Christian and martial artist. CEO of Kataaro - Quality martial arts uniforms, custom embroidery, and screen printing at http://www.kataaro.com.