#so big blended family. the love of his life. and some time to hangout and make fun of bradley like you wouldn't believe

[nixie-deangel]

🤠 + 👀 please!

🤠 music producer Bradley x rancher Jake

They had to be. It was the only explanation he could come up with that made sense. But fuck, Bradley thought as he shuffled awkwardly over towards him, what a way to go.

👀 B&B, Celebrity Bradley, handyman Jake

Chuckling, Javy gave a little shrug as they climbed into the cab of the truck. “Mostly by accident really. Went into the city with mama and Sandy for, fuck, something. I think it was shopping for our prom outfits and got scouted by someone by complete accident.”

Make Nixie Write!

[alokastrology1]

How to tell whether a Taurus man likes you?

Men are difficult to understand since they have a variety of ways to express their love for you. A Taurus man is stubborn, dedicated, and emotional. When they start dating, their partnership lasts the remainder of their lives. So, what are the obvious signs that a Taurus man is completely infatuated with you? It is difficult to understand a Taurus man. You may not realize that a Taurus male is enamored with you. Learn about how you know if a Taurus man likes you? Get an online astrology consultation by the world-renowned Astrologer Mr. Alok Khandelwal.

Taurus men may continue to struggle with controlling their emotions, and they may even take extreme measures like dismissing you. He might not feel this way, though. You need to be patient as you try to figure out where you stand with him as well as whether he likes you.

Even if he doesn’t communicate it to you openly, some signs will let you know if he likes you or not. To learn the secrets of a Taurus guy, look at the signs in the blog. This article’s signs can reveal his true feelings for you:

1. He gives you his time

He won’t always show his affection for you with grand gestures. Yet, he will modify his schedule to meet your demands to spend time with you.

If you notice, a Taurus guy will make plans for spending time with you, blend your life with his own, and take every opportunity to do so. When a Taurus guy falls in love, he longs to be around that person all the time. He goes out of his way to find people who make him feel this new kind of love and who give him confidence boosts.

2. He pays thoughtful compliments

A Taurus man will try to earn your favour by delivering you heartfelt praises. He will work even harder to have a lasting effect with his unique style. He will make an effort to gain your favour by displaying his enthusiasm for you. The Taurus man will express unreserved admiration for his lover when they fall in love. His remarks are always sincere, courteous, and rarely flashy. He will give you so many flattering remarks that you will start to adore yourself.

These people are known for being top achievers, and they will only enchant you in the most sophisticated manner. Venus, a graceful planet that governs his sign, will attract his attention to your new attire or hairstyle. Also, he will express his admiration for certain aspects of your character.

3. He counts you among his close ones.

The more he spends time with you, the more he loves you. They have a close-knit group of relatives who are too special to them. We’ve discussed how patient Tauruses are with love and other elements, and we’ll continue to do so. When disclosing information about their personal life to you, Taurus men are prone to make a bold move. Hence, heed his invitation to have a relaxing weekend with the fam!

The tiny, close-knit family and friends group that the Taurus guy can be completely himself with is where he feels most at home. Hence, if he allows you to join this group, understand that it is a big step for him.

A Taurus man wants you to be a part of the social scene if he is thinking about you. The Taurus man hangs out with a select few people. He introduces you because he wants you to fit in with his surroundings. He wants you to like his friends.

Do not misunderstand him when he says that meeting his friends is important to him. Have a chat with his friends to learn more about them. If you feel at ease around his friends, a Taurus lover will be more laid back.

Read Also:- Is Astrology related to Mathematics?

4. He knows your schedule better than you do.

Male Tauruses are known for their meticulous approach to courtship. They learn your routine so they can help you or show their emotional love.

If you discover that the Taurus man in your life frequently surprises you by showing up at your favoured hangouts, he may have a deeper affinity for you.

5. He can appear uneasy.

Love from the Taurus man for you: How do you comprehend? A Taurus man can be a wonderful partner. He won’t, however, be a rake in money. He can’t take a proactive stance. But he can come across as timid. If you’re on a date, don’t expect him to start talking.

In some cases, he may even appear agitated. His worry is expressed in that. After getting to know him, he will start opening up and want to spend virtually all day with you.

6. He acts more possessive than usual

If you want a possessive partner, Taurus men are the best astrological sign. Taurus needs to understand that he is the only person you are thinking about. (And speaking of eyes, his expression will be clear from the way he looks at you.) As a result, he is prone to moderate jealousy. So don’t be surprised if he tells other men that you’re engaged. During talking, someone may put an assertive arm over your shoulder.

Conclusion

You now possess it! Taurus men show affection in these ways. People can express their love in a variety of other ways. Tauruses’ love language may include small gestures. You are lucky and pretty blessed if you are dating a Taurus man. But if you were unsure about your upcoming dates with a Taurus, we believe that this blog has clarified matters for you.

Read Also – How the Day of Your Birth Affects Your Personality?

[letsseewherethisis-going]

Heaven In Hiding - Sebastian Stan

Summary: the reader is having a pretty private, passionate relationship with Sebastian. But just how long can their relationship stay private, when they are in the public eye?

After studying acting at college in New York, and making small appearances in tv shows, you were finally starting to get roles in what most people would consider “big” movies. You always knew you wanted to be an actress, and you worked hard for it. However, your life had taken a different turn while you were filming your third movie, as your then-costar was none other than Sebastian Stan. You two got along very well from the moment you met him and as you were getting to know him more, it was evident that you two had a lot in common. As time went on, you got closer to each other and even though you were immediately attracted to him, you did your best to put those feelings aside and stay professional. Your conversations with him were almost never ending and you found yourself being drawn to him - and Sebastian felt the same way. Your energies blended nicely, your talks were constructive when it came to work and when the topic was more private, it felt natural and never uncomfortable. Once the filming of the movie ended, part of you thought Seb and you would drift away from each other as it usually happens in the show business, but you called each other a few times a week before actually deciding to hang out again. You stayed in L.A. and Seb thought about asking you to hangout when he came back from a small trip to Romania. You ended up being kind of inseparable at that point, and it was when you went on a vacation together that Sebastian made the first move... the rest is history.

10 months after the filming was done, you had a press tour to do in the US and in Europe, mostly. You were being interviewed separately but you still had a couple of interviews together. Up to that point though, you were able to keep your romance private and people genuinely thought you two had good chemistry and were good friends in real life - which was the narrative that you were trying to portray. Nobody but your close friends and family knew about you two. You ended up telling your family about it, and Seb did the same.

Sebastian was torn; he liked his privacy, but at the same time he didn’t want to spend his life in hiding. That being said, he cared a lot about his freedom and living his life the way he wanted to. Meanwhile, you wanted people to take you seriously and you wanted to be known for your work, not for what was going on in your private life. Plus, you felt that it was better to keep things private at first, and start being more public slowly. Seb eventually gave in, and you both agreed that you would stay low at least until the press tour was over.

You were pretty nervous about being interviewed with him, but the banter that you shared made you feel comfortable and at home no matter where you were. You had to attend a few premieres as well, and of course Sebastian sometimes couldn’t help but flirt with you on the red carpet. Most fans thought he was only being playful in a friendly way, and again - they loved your chemistry.

In the behind the scenes, you took some pictures together before almost every premiere. Sebastian kept complimenting you, and in those moments he was silently regretting that you two weren’t public yet. It was getting more and more difficult for him to bite his tongue. He wanted to show you off, hold your hand in public, kiss you - be a normal couple in the public eye.

The press tour had just ended and as they hadn’t seen Sebastian in a few months, his family wanted to see him while he was in New York for a couple of weeks. After a few conversations and some heavy negotiations, they decided to spend an evening at a nice restaurant together; Sebastian, his parents, godmother, godfather and cousins would be there. He invited you as a date, so that you could meet the rest of his family - as you had met his parents a few months back. You decided to wear a nice dress for the occasion that stopped just above the knees with some high heels and a long coat, as New York gets quite cold during the fall. The evening went on really well. You felt at ease with his family already. They shared a few anecdotes from Seb’s childhood (which made you him both laugh and feel like crawling under the table). When his arm wasn’t resting on the back of your chair, his hand was on your thigh, his thumb caressing your bare skin absentmindedly.

After dinner and having a few drinks, Sebastian’s family started leaving. You walked out of the restaurant and hugged goodbye the remaining family members and then opened the Uber app on your phone. As you were busy trying to find one in your area, Sebastian pulled you close to him, hugging you. His cold hands went underneath your coat and rested in the small of your back. “I can do it if you want me to,” you hear his voice next to your ear as he kisses your temple tenderly. “I got it babe, it’s just searching for a car right now,” you looked up at him and his blue eyes went from your eyes to your lips, and then back up to your eyes again. “I did tell you that you look absolutely stunning tonight, right?” you smiled and nodded. “And I did tell you that I love you tonight, right?” you shook your head no “nope, do not recall that part,” “well that’s a shame. I love you,” It wasn’t the first time he said it to you at all, but with his loving blue eyes looking at you and how soft his voice sounded, you felt your heart flutter. There was no getting over how charming he always was. He pulled you closer and you answered “I love you too,” as Sebastian was leaning in. The next thing you knew, his lips were on yours and his tongue was moving in sync against yours. His right hand went in your neck while the other one was in the small of your back. You didn’t know how long that kiss lasted - it felt like years and seconds at the same time - but what brought you back to reality was your phone vibrating in your hand. You pulled away from the kiss quickly and checked your phone. “The driver is pretty close I think,” Sebastian didn’t seem to listen much as he was too busy kissing your neck. “Slow down cow-boy,” you tease and pulled away, putting your index finger on Seb’s chin. He looked at you with amused eyes and a smile just like the one you liked to see on his lips. You sighed “Stop being so damn charming, Stan. It’s not fair,” he let out a chuckle and you felt your heart flutter some more as you kissed him again. After a moment, your phone vibrated between your fingers, bringing you back to reality. Sebastian licked his lips while looking at you lovingly, before kissing your cheek. All he could think about was kissing you again and again. The drive home never seemed as long as it did that night.

[theicequeenwrites]

Day 4: Relationships with the Gaang

Because I liked both of these prompts but didn't have enough time to make two pieces, I combined both of today's prompts from @atlaocweek This is lengthy, so most of this is under the cut!! read sister, sister on ao3

-taio meets the gaang at a confernece in ba sing se after being invited by sokka and zuko when they meet at an obscure bar

keep reading for their dynamics!

Katara

-taio and katara actually get along right away, despite what everyone thought would happen

-they're both down to earth but competitive and ruthless when necessary

-when he first moved to the palace, katara gave him some hints on surviving in court and gave him a messenger hawk so they could always talk to each other

-the first time he and azula were in charge of her kids though, she threatened him so hard he blushed for an hour afterward

-when azula and taio revealed they were in a relationship, she gave him the shovel talk

Aang

-aang and taio often team up with sokka to pull the best pranks of the rest of the gaang

-taio converts to being vegan because he falls in love with all the air nomad foods aang makes for him, he can't get enough of it

-he tries to teach aang how to write earth kingdom characters for an official meeting and aang ends up writing a very offensive message

-so taio ends up being the avatar's official earth kingdom translator as well as a teacher to their heiresses of the fire nation (and uncle to the kids of the avatar, which just baffles his mind)

Toph

-toph and taio understand each other on a deep level, they both had lives forced on them because of the war but in very different ways

-toph was the first to realize he had feelings for azula, because of her ability to sense heartbeats, and named herself as his best friend from that point out

-taio's the only person who knows who the father of toph's children are and she helps him formulate the perfect first date for azula

-he takes her back to the farm, and his mom immediately adopts her, making her all her favorite earth kingdom foods but with much more love than she's used to

Suki

-taio and suki didn't see much of each other in his early years in the palace because she was always at kyoshi island or training new recruits, but when they finally do actually spend time together, they get along in a quiet way

-some times they get drunk on traditional earth kingdom liquor, the type no one else can stand, and don't say a word, they're just there for each other

-slowly, after years and years of companionship, they start confessing small things, which turns into big things

-they don't go out of their way to hangout with each other, and aren't the first letter they send when something big happens, but they're still just as close

Sokka

-sokka and taio are brothers-in-law of sorts, they're married to zuko and azula respectively, and see a lot of each other. they have a dep respect for each other; taio can only imagine how hard it is to be a political figure and sokka can't imagine spending everyday surrounded by varying amounts of children

-but also they understand what its like to be married to a child of ozai, and everything that comes with it -the nightmares and guilt and bad habits

-they like to do random things together (like inventing cameras), cause absolute havoc, and spoil the the kids, they're the only members of the fire family ever to have limits placed on their spending because they get so excessive

-they also make a lot of public appearances together as "the husbands" and spend a lot of time fine tuning their politiking together and trying not to crack up when people are watching

Zuko

-zuko actually loves taio, he thinks he's the best guy he's ever met (besides sokka, obviously), he admires his openness and confidence, two things zuko still struggles with. and he loves how well he gets along with senna and izumi + all the other kids

-he thinks he's the perfect match for azula too. even after her 'redemption' and growth she's still wild and competitive and brash, and taio can match her or ground ehr when necessary

-zuko and taio share an interest in tea, and are often accosted by iroh and new blends that are a toss up in flavor

-as much as taio and sokka bond over being the trophy husbands, taio and zuko bond over being the sane husband and often watch their spouses go on wild adventures or do crazy stunts (like invent the first flame thrower)

+Azula

-taio wasn't looking to fall in love when he went to the palace, it was just a job. but then the 'unofficial royal nanny' as azula calls herself was always with senna and izumi who he was supposed to be teaching all about the earth kingdom. and suprisingly fast, they became good freinds, they just worked together

-during times when all the gaang's kids were in the palace they wrangled them together and then snuck away to the roof or the gardens to unwind together

-sometimes, azula would just fall asleep in his rooms and it slowly became a pattern. purely ~platonic~ cuddling. and the first time she had a nightmare when they were together, he had no clue what to do so he took her on a run, and ever since then when they can't sleep or have nigthmares they go run or hike

-and on her bad days, he knows how to take care of her, knows to just exist besides her, and not press for any more than that

-together, they cause absolute chaos on the palace, take in a plethora of young children and people who work in the palace that need parent figures

-taio never expected to engage with the gaang when he took the job in the palace, but he spends the rest of his life loving and being loved by them

[vios-rockland-corner]

Life in Rockland 1

[Author’s note:  “Life in Rockland” is a creative writing project utilizing a specific OC in place of the MC for the “Rumors of Rockland” series.  I do not own any part of the Rockland universe, only my OC.  Fair warning, creative writing is not my forte.  This is a means of practice and a fun way to enjoy the content further].

Sasha Holmes is new to Rockland and just had quite an interesting day.

 Setting: After game events

Play: Rumors of Rockland- Article 1

[Spoilers below for RoR Article 1]

Sasha’s Choices:

[“Like the guy from Resident Evil?”]

[“Ah ha, what exactly do you have to do to look like you’re from around here?”]

[“Are you serious?”]

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“I can’t believe you’re still not unpacked yet.  Hasn’t it been almost a week since you moved?”

The voice came from Sasha’s laptop.  She was busy multi-tasking while video-chatting with her best friend Pierce.  Well she could see his face IF she turned over from rummaging through boxes and laying out things on the floor.  Some might consider this rude, but Pierce just found it a little hilarious.

“Look it’s a lot of stuff okay?  Besides, I was busy this week going back and forth with work preparations and trying to get the layout of the place,” Sasha said with a huff, looking over her shoulder at the computer.

“Sounds like too much work. You should’ve just stayed home. What’s wrong with waiting a few more years before moving out?”

“Nothing.  Nothing’s wrong with it.  I just...”

“Wanted to break your best friend’s heart?” Pierce gives a very exaggerated pout.  Sasha turns around and smiles coyly.  She crawls over to the computer and lays in front of it, resting her chin on folded arms.

“No.  Even though you kind of deserve it sometimes.”

“I COULD always go easy on you in pool you now?  I don’t mind toning it down.  You’re not gonna beat me otherwise.”

“First off, I don’t want a pity play from you.  Second, you know damn well how close I got last game.”

“Yeah, only to hit the eight-ball into the complete opposite pocket you called. Gotta say, it was almost impressive how you hilariously made a masterful bounce into the wrong fucking pocket,” he grins, holding back his laughter.

“Well I mean that counts as skill doesn’t it?”

“Yeah like scoring a basketball shot for the other team.”

“Whatever, jerk.”

“But back on topic…”

“Okay yeah, look.  I love my hometown, my parents, and even your obnoxious butt.  But I just…didn’t want to get rooted.  I didn’t want to be living with my parents the whole time.  I didn’t want to know ONLY my home.”

“You worry too much.  The rest of the world’s not going to get up and leave if you take too long to hit the road Sasha.”

“I know that, but I wanted…a challenge.”

“A challenge?  You?  I thought you liked everything neat and controlled.  You want to throw things out of wack now?”

“Nothing elaborate.  Just a life challenge.  Take care of my own expenses and start from the ground up.  Meet people on my own and establish a career.”

“I feel like you’re letting your childhood slip away here.”

“Pierce, we’re not kids.”

“YOU sure as hell aren’t.  You always took freakin part-time jobs during college, and full-time jobs in the summer. I had to DRAG you out to the pub and parties for your own sanity.”

“Well moving and covering the cost of living is EXPENSIVE, Pierce.”

“Jesus, how much did you have saved up?”

“Enough so that I could get a place living by myself,” Sasha smiled proudly.

“Not that I don’t think that’s an impressive achievement girl, but I think I would have felt a little better if you had a roommate.  You’re out there by yourself I mean.”

“Look I worked hard for this, so I want my privacy.  I also didn’t really feel comfortable with finding a roommate way out here.”

“You didn’t pick your roommate in college either though.”

“Yeah, but that was our local college Pierce.  I had friends and family right nearby, so if things got weird I had help.  I’m a few hours away from all that now.”

“A ‘few hours’ you say.  It’s like, you’ve gone too short a distance to even warrant a move, and yet just far enough to making it a hassle with visits.”

“I disagree.  I think it’s the perfect distance.  I wanted to be able to visit home, but I didn’t want the temptation to go running home every chance I could get.  Not impossible to go home though.  The point here Pierce is for me to be ‘independent,’” she huffed.

“Whatever.” Pierce rolled his eyes.

“Say what you will, the deed is done.”

“So uh…Rockland.  Why?”

Sasha shrugged.  “No particular reason.  Just seemed like the best choice.  I looked at job advertisements for surrounding areas by distance, looked at their reviews and job pay and what kind of areas they were located at.  The job in Rockland was just better pay from my current job, and the place is small but still attracts tourists.  Means I don’t have to worry about being overwhelmed, but at the same time it SHOULD have just enough amenities and attractions to keep me entertained.”

“Oh?  Entertain yourself huh?  Last I checked that was my job.  Isn’t your idea of fun sitting at a café and going through files?” He smirked.

“Very funny.  Did you forget all the movies we’d watch together too?  I don’t need a buddy for that, and I’ll find other hobbies here. Maybe I’ll start running again.”

“Well good.  Not like you’re gonna get any excitement from your current job.  I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want to push yourself to do something a little more interesting.”

“Thaaat’s what the hobbies are for Pierce.  The job is just for stability.”

“Could have added a little more drama to your life if you’d just decided to follow your namesake.”

“Pierce, literally no one in my family has ever been a detective.  DESPITE our last name.  It’s just a random name picked by a random author for a character that became randomly popular.  It is not a go ahead to pursue a career in criminal justice.”

“Seriously, why has NO ONE in your family ever tried to be a detective?”

“Because it requires you to see a lot of messed up shit?  I think I’ll pass.  I mean…if it makes you feel better, I had a great uncle who was a PI.”

“Really?? What was that like!?” Pierce looked a little excited.

“Honestly?  From the stories I heard, he just got a lot of crazies paying him.  People paranoid about being stalked or just using him as a way to harass others.  Wasn’t exactly fun work.”

“Bummer,” he said in a dejected tone.  “Well, I guess if you’re in a place like Rockland, probably wouldn’t get much action anyway.”

“What makes you say that?  Haven’t you been here before?”

“Just SOUNDS plain to me.  LITERALLY makes me think of rocks.  Yeah I’ve been there.  But that was like, when I was a kid?  Just visiting.  Was never for long.  Uncle was there.”

“Right.  Younger you was probably also too busy running around and sticking his hands in the dirt to actually pay attention to what was around you.”

“Yeeeeep that sounds like me,” he smirked.

“Well, I don’t know if the place has changed since you were little or you literally just have zero awareness of what’s around you, but I wouldn’t EXACTLY call this place boring.  Not after today.”

“Oh?” Pierce leaned in, curious.  “I’m so sorry, what WAS your day like dear Sasha?”

“Well, I was…looking for a place for a regular hangout.  I found this one bar in the Town Central.  At least it felt a lot more welcoming than some of the clubs around here.  Most of the people in general seem friendly here…but they can tell I’m new.  Like…ALL of them can tell.  It’s a little nerve-racking.”

“Look if you didn’t want to want to stick out like a sore thumb, you should have moved to a city.  I told you that.  Much easier to blend in there.”

Sasha shook her head.  “No, I didn’t want to get overwhelmed like that.  The best city choices were too big.  Then I’d really feel lonely.  It’s not bad here, I just…have to be sure I make a good first impression is all.  I don’t…think they hate new people?”

“You JUST said they were friendly, didn’t you?”

“Yeah but…see the bartender…” Sasha shook her head again, “No, no you know what?  I think I was just getting jittery since it’s a new place.  Forget it.”

Pierce tilts his head. “What about the bartender?”

“He…OH!  His name,” she quickly recovered and laughed.  “His name is Whesker!”

“Like Resident Evil Whesker?” Pierce chuckled.

“EXACTLY LIKE RESIDENT EVIL WHESKER!  Dude even knew what that was!”

“SHIT FOR REAL?!  That’s actually pretty sick.  Points for the bartender.  What’d you order from him?”

“Nothing, actually.  Him and the other bartender had to do something out back.  Didn’t actually get to drink anything the whole time I was there.”

“Boo.  Points deducted.”

Sasha chuckled, “Well I mean they were busy.  I wasn’t really mad.  Kind of got distracted with this one guy having…a mental breakdown?”

“Woah.  Like, what do you mean?”

“I mean he was…really off kilter.  Not gonna lie, dude was kind of terrifying.  He kept cussing up a storm and saying he was gonna slit someone’s throat. He did SOMETHING awful.  Could not figure out for the life me what EXACTLY he did. He had a friend with him and I was certain this dude was going to punch him in the face or toss him across the room. He didn’t though.  He just…kinda…slumped down into a weeping mess. It was weird.  He said something about drinking.  I think the dude was an alcoholic.  It was kind of scary to watch.  At first I was kind of quivering from the raw temper he had.  Then…I felt a little empty.”  Sasha went a little quiet.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Pierce said in a reassuring tone.  “Dude was probably just drunk.  Lots of people probably get a little emotional when they’re drunk.  Met a ton of guys who say a lot of shit they don’t really mean when they’re wasted.  Did he go near you?”  Pierce looked a little concerned.

“Oh no, no I didn’t get caught up in any of that.  His friend I guess took him to some place to cool off.  The alcoholic kept saying something about disappointing someone for…whatever he did.”

“That’s good.  If you were to guess what he did though, what would you say?”

Sasha shrugged.  “Maybe he got in a fight?  Broke someone’s nose?  Or maybe he’s got a gambling problem?”

“Yeah.  Could be those.  He could also literally have just spent all his paycheck on booze, and now he’s gotta figure out what to do for rent.  I’ve seen that a few times.  Whatever the case, just…keep your distance Sasha.  Dude was probably just being overly emotional, but I suggest you stay away from wildcards like that you know?”

“Oh yeah don’t worry.  I don’t do so great anyway with very…loud people.”

Pierce laughed. “Yeah I know.  Just saying that if it’s a small place, you MIGHT spot him again.”

“I’ll be careful.  Should be easy to tell if he’s been drinking again anyway.”

“Sounds like his friend can keep him under control.  Don’t worry, I’m sure the next person you come across won’t be as scary Sasha.”

“Well…by all accounts…I suppose you’re not wrong, even though I feel like you should be,” Sasha laughed nervously.

Pierce cocked an eyebrow.  “The heck is that supposed to mean?”

“I..ummm…I never thought I would say this in my entire life…”

“And that would be?”

“….I met a drug dealer.”

Pierce blinked. “YOU.  Met a DRUG DEALER?  You are shitting me right now.”

“No, no this is a thing that happened.  Right after the alcoholic left.”

“What, you parked close to the back alley and he came out to hassle you?”

“No this was in the bar.”

“Oh, oh so you’re telling me that a drug dealer just walked right the fuck up to you and said ‘Hey wanna buy some drugs?’” Pierce was grinning and trying to hold back his laughter.

“…Yes.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“YES!  I’m not joking! This happened!  And the dude collects snow globes and friendship bracelets too!” Sasha blurted out, exasperated.

Pierce burst out laughing, “NO FUCKING WAY!  No, I’m not believing that shit for a second.  Sasha you must have misinterpreted something there or this dude was just fucking with you.”

“THERE’S NO WAY TO MISINTERPRET THE LINE WORD-FOR-WORD, ‘You want to buy drugs, kid?’”

“Sasha no drug dealer is going to deal that stuff in public.  Cops eat at those places too.”

“Yeah, about that…apparently the cops here are either inept or can be ‘persuaded.’  I don’t know. Tyler’s plan was apparently to give them a blow if he got caught.”

“Okay one, who’s Tyler?  And two, which blow you talking about?”

“Tyler is the drug dealer and…both?”

Pierce stares for a full 10 seconds, stunned.  He then burst out laughing again, falling over on his side this time.

“OH MY GOD!  OH MY FUCKING GOD! Sweet innocent Sasha left home for no less than a week and you’re already hooked up with the world’s nicest drug dealer.  Oh man.  Sasha I take back what I said about Rockland.  Sounds like a riot.”  He had a large Cheshire grin on his face, but was holding his sides from laughing so hard.

Sasha rolled her eyes and said in a deadpan tone, “Well I’m glad through this long conversation, the thing that finally seems to get you to approve of my move is my association with a drug dealer.  Of all things.  Your reaction also makes me understand Dylan’s pain even more now.”

Pierce sighed, “Oh man, that just, that just made my day.  Thank you….wait who the hell is Dylan?”

“You’re welcome, and Dylan is Tyler’s friend.  He was mostly horrified about how open Tyler was.  Probably one of the more sane people in the bar that night. He dragged Tyler away at the end.”

“Aww, so you didn’t get any drugs?”

“No?  No number, no drugs.”

“Why would you NOT get drugs?!”

“What th-YOU KNOW ME!  That’s not me.  Plus my parents would have a heart attack if I tried anything.”

“But Sasha!  It’s not enough to just not buy a product from a vendor whose actions you don’t approve of.  You gotta purchase from their competition whose conduct you prefer!”

“…Okay I get what you’re saying.  Like if I want to support humanely raised animals, buy the food in the store that’s only from farms with humane raising tactics.  But, Pierce…you’re talking about DRUG DEALERS here. That’s ALL illegal.”

“Same difference.  I’d rather pay the friendly snow globe collecting drug dealer in the bar than the creepy freak in the dark alley.  It’s how you make the world a better place Sasha!  Illegal or not, not like they’re going away.”

“You are…just…I think I understand Dylan’s feelings even more now.”

“Let me come visit sometime.  You can take me to see Tyler.”

“Oh hell no!  If I have any say in this, I’m gonna try my hardest that you two never meet.  I will NEVER hear the end of it otherwise.”

“Boo.  Fine, be that way.  …Hey can I tell your parents about Tyler?”

“NO.  You’ll make THEM start to question my choice in coming here.”

“Okay okay.” Pierce settled down.  “So in summary, you walked into a bar where the bartenders dipped out, an alcoholic was in hysterics and the drug dealer was trying to get you in his books….Eh, you know when I say it out loud it doesn’t sound like the craziest bar ever. May even be pretty normal compared to some standards,” he grinned.

Sasha chuckled, “Yeah, I think I’ll pay the place another visit sometime. It was…interesting.”

“You could use a little spice in your mundane life girl.  Sounds like this place could be a gem.  Let me know who else pops up there next time, kay?” he winked.

“I will.  Have a good night Pierce.”

“Say hi to Tyler for me!”

“GOOD NIGHT Pierce.”

Sasha clicked “End Call.”

Sasha sighed.  She felt emotionally exhausted.

Her eyebrows furrowed.  “Did I forget something?  I think that was all the news.  There was something though…” Sasha thought to herself.  Something was nagging at her.

“The…bartender?  What am I…oh no I mentioned his name!  Pretty sure that was it,” she chuckled.

Sasha looked at the boxes and just shook her head.  She’ll finish it later.  Right now, bed sounded like the best idea after all that excitement.

[dylannicknight]

Page 47. Happy Three Positive Years!

October 7, 2015. I was diagnosed. It was my mom's birthday. Amazing how time swiftly flies. It's been three difficult but amazing and awesome years.

It didn't really started that easy. Just like everyopne else, I had my struggles too. When I was diagnosed I had endured the side effects of my meds, disclosed my status to some close friends. Some, accepted me, some did not. I was called names like malandi, makati, mahilig, mapusok, maharot. I have been judged from here and there and I think I just got used to it anyway. I didn't really know how they come up with those words just by knowing that I am a PLHIV. I was even lectured of having a long term relationship. I mean, What the heck? The relationships I had has always been years. So why lecture me about long term relationships?

Ever since I was diagnosed my work changed too. I left my previous job. I was already a webinar trainer there but decided to leave to start a new life. I was jobless for 6 months. I moved to a different company where I believe I excelled and just got my fifth promotion. I think my virus brings me luck. lol! Although, someone in my workplace spread the word about my status which made me sad, but I had to move forward. You cant really please everyone and tell everyone not to do what they do. I was able to get over it and it doesn't even bother me anymore that some of my officemates might know my status.

In those years, I also looked for my own support. I looked for people like me and tried to ask them how they coped up with the situation. I tried to blend myself in their group and community and I was actually amazed that most of them are actually just like normal people. I have been a regular reader of Iam H. Positive and has been a fan of Billy Santo. I learned the language, where we called ourselves pusit or short for positive. we called the meds a lot of names and made fun of our conditions. We used to put it in our expressions such as "juice colored! lakas makaubos ng CD4!" hahaha! I really find that funny. We sometimes made fun of the OI's some has gotten in the past but not really in an insulting way. I made a lot of friends. We laughed and cried and hangout and dined together as blood brothers.

I also had some friends who lost the battle. A family friend of ours who was diagnosed late. He died with a lot of complications and my uncle was there with him and paid most of the expenses. even after he died, his family kept in touch with us and always invited us fo weekend and holiday stays on their resort. One is my good friend Jose. We dated once. He shared his life story with me. He was form the province and was sent by his parents here in manila to live on his own. he didn't live life that good at first but he was able to get on his own feet. He never got the chance to get back in their province and its really sad that he had to go back there with just his remains. When he got diagnosed, I was really sad. I wanted to see him. He kept asking me to see him and catch up and I really wanted to but my partner that time and mom wouldn't let me. I wanted to encourage him, support him and make him feel that he is not alone in his battle. I wanted to tell him that I am also a PLHIV and look at me now. I'm all okay. I asked for all the help that I can to help him out but eventually... he died. It has always been my regret. Then another friend died, and another, and a partner of a friend and a partner of a coworker. This actually led me to do my advocacy. To at least do something to stop people from dying.

Since i was diagnosed, I had two relationships. The first one I had was a Serodiscordant Relationship. Meaning, he is not a PLHIV. The relationship went on for 2 years and 3 months. At first, everything was okay. We decided to focus on our jobs and set the relationship aside. It wasn't an easy relationship. I've always been cautious and probabyly had the self stigma as I always fear that I might share the virus to him. We did set the relationship aside until it felt like there is no relationship anymore. But we're good. I don't wanna go into details anymore.

Then my present one. My happy pill. We just had our first month. I am 3 years older than him but whenever I'm with him, I feel like a kid with my daddeh! haha! I love you hub. I like how he encourage me to do better and be the best. Whenever I'm with him, I feel like there's a whole big world out there that I haven't seen. I feel so naive. Being with him just makes me feel safe. It's like I can do everything and no one will ever ever hurt me. I like the way he would look at me and give that smirk. I like the way he hugs me like there's no tomorrow and that he will never ever let me go. I like the way he hold my hands and brings me all these surprises. This is my first seroconcordant relationship.

In the family, My cousins have always been supportive of all the things I do. I disclosed my status with 3 of my closest cousins and they all accepted me. Although my mom knew my condition, she's always paranoid that something might happen to me, that I might get sick or not eating well or not sleeping well or just stressing myself out. She would always remind me that I am her only son and I will forever be her baby. Whenever I am at home, she would cook for me, buy all my favorite fruits like kiwi, honeydew and persimon. prepare all my favorite dishes then we would bake together and shop together and I would tell her all my PLHIV adventures. She just couldn't stop herself from worrying and I guess that's just what moms do. I love you ma. But I am a grown up now and I have to live my life. Dad however doesn't have any clue about my status. Or maybe he does. lol. As always, dad is a good adviser. a good listener. The thing is... His HIV 101 is so outdated. Maybe one of these days I can finally tell him.

I learned to make my circle very small and close and yet get to enjoy life justy like any normal person. I dedicated portion of my time in the advocacy and a part of that is this blog to tell everyone that there is definitely life even after HIV. :)

[anon-luv]

When I was Your Man[YoongiXReaderXTaehyung]

When I Was Your Man [YoongiXReader, TaehyungXReader]

One Shot

Angst/Romance

Summary: You never know what you have till you loose it. The happiness, love, and memories a thing of the past. Now as he sees you happy with someone else he is filled with questions of what could have been. 

WordCount : 2,300+

Author’s Note: .... Okay, so in all honesty I don’t know why I did this to myself. I suffered so much while writing it......I ...... I am sorry....but I think it is okay. My ambulance partner kept blasting this song out and then I had an idea.....so this is what I did in my lunch hour. Hope you guys like it! I will edit a bit more later on :D

Based on this Song: When I was Your Man- Bruno Mars

Same bed but it feels just a little bit bigger now

Our song on the radio but it don't sound the same

 The morning was dark and gloomy, just like his life had been these past couple of months. Mistakes had triggered a daily routine filled of loneliness. Even when people crowded his path everything seemed empty. The cold bed he came to everynight a reminder of the warmth and presence it once held. What could have been was no longer a question repeating itself in his head, it now was what he could’ve done to make you stay.

Now at days the silence that filled the room, made him want to scream just so he could hear his own echo. The radio was never turned off anymore, constant music played in order to keep him sane. Everytime the song you would sing to him before you fell asleep played, he would blast it, hoping that at some moment you would burst in singing it off tune, just like you always did, just to make him smile.

He missed you so much.

 When our friends talk about you, all it does is just tear me down

'Cause my heart breaks a little when I hear your name

 The day you left the guys came over. They did not question where you were, but he could see their curious eyes traveling around the home you had once shared for any clues that you would be coming back to him. You had taken all your stuff. The ghost of your presence still lingered though, in all the bruises and scrapes around the apartment. The hole in the wall that you had made while attempting yoga, now the most beautiful memory engraved in his place.

 “Yoongi, where is (Y/N)??” Taehyung asked curiously. Taehyung had been closest to you out of all his friends. There was obvious worry in his face, which only made Yoongi’s heart crumble even more. If he had shown that much emotion when you said it was over, would you have stayed??

When Taehyung noticed the grim look in his mate’s face he didn’t even think about it twice he walked out. The rest of the boys, tried avoiding the subject, but they were obviously in shock.

Taehyung never returned that night.

 It all just sounds like oooooh…

Mmm, too young, too dumb to realize

 He had blamed it on youth. He had blamed it on immaturity. He had blamed it on selfishness. He had blamed it on being naive.

He was at fault, and all he could do was cry everytime you rejected his call, and curse himself as you ignored his text, leaving him in read.

He was the only one to blame.

He wanted to say sorry. He wanted to say he loved you. He wanted to see your smile, and hear your laugh one more time.

 That I should've bought you flowers

And held your hand

Should've gave you all my hours

When I had the chance

 He had forgotten your birthday this year. The nights in the studio blended in with the days. The clock no longer served a purpose when it came to his work. The inspiration seemed to flow out of him like a river, causing him to become a hermit in his creative mind. The phone in silent as you called over and over again, trying to remind him of the reservation you had talked to him about earlier that morning. The reservations you had made yourself.

You waited for hours on end, giving up after closing time, making  your way back to your shared apartment alone.

Taehyung had been waiting for you outside your apartment a chocolate chip cupcake in hand with a daisy. You allowed him inside that night as you watched Family Guy reruns on the couch as the both of you laughed at every stupid joke. You missed Yoongi, but at least you weren’t alone.

When Yoongi got home the next morning you were laying down in the couch, still in your dress with a blanket covering you, and a lone daisy in your hand.

 Take you to every party

'Cause all you wanted to do was dance

Now my baby's dancing

But she's dancing with another man

 Yoongi remembered the night he met you, he had seen you from across the dance floor in a club dancing to Thriller in a cold Halloween night. Your feet stumbling against eachother. Your lack of dancing skills so obviously present, but your smile never faltered as you shimmied your way to him and introduced yourself.

After you guys started dating you continuously made an effort to drag Yoongi back to where you first had met, claiming you needed to bust a move and let loose. He would reject your offers playfully saying that you were a danger to those around you when you attempted that moon walk of yours. Towards the end of the relationship Yoongi only flat ass said “No”

 My pride, my ego, my needs, and my selfish ways

Caused a good strong woman like you to walk out my life

 Yoongi had always chosen the location of your dates. He had never realized how out of character you acted when he took you to watch action movies, or play mini golf. Your smile was ever present. He now realized that  you were just happy to be with him.

 As he saw your retreating back walk out the door, he was frozen in place. He didn’t know what to do or what to say. It had been a little argument about what to have for dinner, and it had escalated after that. To be quite honest he didn’t even remember why the discussion had turned into full blown yelling competition.

Now that Yoongi looked back, he remembered  your sad eyes staring at him as he got ready for work, and as you muttered a soft “I love you too” right before the door clicked.

Yoongi knew you had loved him with every bone in your body, he loved you too, but unlike you he didn’t appreciate the opportunity live had given him of being loved and to love in return.

He had lost you forever.

 Now I never, never get to clean up the mess I made, ohh…

And it haunts me every time I close my eyes

 Sleeping alone was a guilty pleasure of his when you were home, and it wasn’t because he despised your presence, but it was because you had a tendency of taking away the covers and occupying the whole bed as you spread out like a starfish leaving him in a little corner and cold.

He missed it though. He missed how your hand always slapped his face early in the morning, serving him as an alarm. He missed your soft snores that lulled him to sleep. He missed your kiss attacks late at night when you woke up for a snack in the middle of the night and didn't want to be alone.

 It all just sounds like oooooh…

Mmm, too young, too dumb to realize

That I should've bought you flowers

And held your hand

Should've gave you all my hours

When I had the chance

Take you to every party

'Cause all you wanted to do was dance

Now my baby's dancing

But she's dancing with another man

 The first time he saw you with Taehyung, was 3 weeks after your break up. Taehyung was holding up a strawberry cone, as you tried to reach for it. The whining of your voice catching his attention right away. Taehyung surrendered it to you after he made you chase him around the park. You looked happy, you looked at ease. Something he had not witnessed in a while.

 2 weeks after he had been a witness to your playful afternoon with his friend, the truth came in like a wrecking ball destroying every bit of hope that he had left that you would come back to him. That you would come back home.

 Taehyung had asked you out, and you had said yes, as long as Yoongi was fine with it.

Taehyung had texted him late that night, and he could tell right away something was off when he asked if they could meet. Taehyung had been absent more often than not to their usual hangout sessions with the gang. At first he didn’t seem to suspect his sudden lack of attendance, but as the weeks rolled by it was more prominent.

 He knew where Taehyung was, when he saw him wearing a friendship bracelet. You loved doing those colorful things, and always managed to attach one to Yoongi’s wrist whenever he was sleeping. That was before though, Taehyung was now the receiver of those sneaky gifts.

 Yoongi let that go…..but now when the time had come for him to let go of his hope, as he heard the way Taehyung’s voice changed when he said your name.

Taehyung had already fallen for you…..had you already fallen for him??

 Although it hurts

I'll be the first to say that I was wrong

 One drunk night Yoongi called you…..

His voice slurred as he professed his endless love for you.

You didn’t hang up. You listened to his pleads for forgiveness as you cried. Your hearat shattering at the sorrow that poured out with every word.

 Oh, I know I'm probably much too late

To try and apologize for my mistakes

 “It’s too late Yoongi” you said as you heard him go silent on the other line….the only sound that could be heard were his shallow breaths and quiet sobs.

“But if you must know….I will always love you”

That night you hang up first, for the first time since you have met him.

 But I just want you to know

 I hope he buys you flowers

 3 years later, and a garden full of roses, your dress white as it flowed with the wind.

You had told Yoongi several times, how you wanted a wedding by the beach, so you could run towards the waves after the “I do”

This was not what he had in mind for your big day.

The wedding was small, and there was no ocean nearby. The green decorations and red roses giving it more of a classy vibe, than a relaxed homey one that you had always wished for.

The music started and his heart stopped once again. Yoongi’s eyes were glued onto your small figure in a white dress. You looked like an angel, with a rose crown around your head. Your smile was breathtaking. Tears formed threatening to spill. You stared straight ahead, while you cautiously walked forward. The heels you were wearing way too tall for you, as your kept casting your eyes down every once in awhile to make sure gravity wouldn’t invite itself to the ceremony.

You could already see the smile decorating his face. He had noticed the trouble you were having as you were making his way to him. You were going to get teased later on, and you knew it. You knew him, and he knew you. You loved him, and he loved you too.

You grimaced at him as you almost tripped. He threw a subtle thumbs up encouraging you to continue.

Once upon a time, you were going to walk up aisle barefoot.

But it didn’t matter anymore.

He now had your back, and you had his.

You searched the crowd, looking for the warmth of the familiar stare that you knew was in the ocean of people surrounding you.

Once upon a time, you were going to invite only the gang and  your parents.

Once upon a time…...

I hope he holds your hand

Give you all his hours

When he has the chance

 He gripped your hand as he looked deep into your eyes while he said his vows. A twinkle of happiness in his eyes, you knew every word was a promise he was going to keep.

He had never broken a promise.

You read your vows as your eyes spilled uninvited tears. He wiped some away with his free hand, only causing more to spill down.

He was sweet, and he would never hurt you.

The kiss was sweet, and then his personality made an appearance as he dipped you and the kiss grew more passionate.

The crowd laughed happily and applauded as he carried you down the aisle, as you kicked your feet shouting for him to put you down before you mooned everyone.

 Take you to every party

'Cause I remember how much you loved to dance

 The venue was too big, and Yoongi felt out of place as he walked through the crowds to get to the nearest mini bar.

“Yoongi? In that much need of alcohol huh” he heard you teasing.

Before he could answer back, he noticed Taehyung making his way to you, looking as excited as a puppy.

“Yoongi!!” he said as he came in for a hug.

“Congrats bro” Yoongi said as he patted his back “Congrats to the both of you”

Yoongi’s eyes were directly fixated on yours now, and a small sense of longing ached in your body. A small one though, and as Taehyung took you away to the dance floor and spinned you around, the ache faded once again.

Taehyung cradled your face in his hands, “I love you (y/N)”

You smiled at the man who had stood beside you through it all “I love you too Taehyung”

Yoongi walked back to his date as he gave you one last glance, he had been a chapter in your book, and Taehyung was your happy ending.

 Do all the things I should have done

When I was your man

Do all the things I should have done

When I was your man

[m0onbean]

Dreamin’ Chapter 3

category: fluff, angst

pairing: choi youngjae (got7) X reader

summary: a cold hearted youngjae needs some love in his life

note: i’m stretching chapters out looooong and finally getting back up on my feet to start writing!!!

“(Y/N).”

You jolted awake from your slumber and your eyelids slowly lifted up. After your vision focused for a couple seconds, a low ceiling appeared in front of your face and you soon realized that you had fallen asleep in a car. A nice car, must you add.

“(Y/N), wake up.” the same voice repeated your name in an impatient manner. When your eyes flickered over to the location of the sound, you were met with a Youngjae who was holding open the car door nearest to your head from outside. One hand was shoved in his navy suit’s pocket and the other was leaning against the widened door which was leaking in cool air and the smell of musty rain. His hair was lazily tossed to one side and his suit was wrinkled up.

Slowly, you sat up straight and rubbed your eyes sleepily. Youngjae watched you and sighed to himself. “You can leave now.”

When you looked out the door behind his figure you saw that he had parked in front of a street sign that read “Olive St.” However, he was parked in front of another house which you did not recognize.

“That’s not my house.”

“We’re at your street though.”

“But that’s not my house.” you repeated.

Youngjae groaned and ruffled his hair in exasperation, “Look, I don’t give a flying fuck. I’m dropping you off at your street, so go walk home from here.”

“But this street is really long and I don’t even recognize this house! How am I supposed to get home if I don’t know where I am?” you protested in disbelief.

“Google Maps,” Youngjae simply replied.

“I don’t have a phone.”

“God, you’re such a nuisance. Don’t you think you’re asking for a little too much?” Youngjae asked in a condescending tone. “Just be grateful I didn’t kick you out of the car while we were still in the middle of nowhere.”

Before you could retaliate, Youngjae gripped you by your wrist and dragged you out of your seat and straight outside onto the sidewalk blanketed with scattered puddles. You stumbled back clumsily as your shoes dug into the mini flood which damped your sneakers.

By the time you balanced yourself and was about to vocally express your hatred towards Youngjae, you were cut off by the sound of the driver seat slamming shut and an engine revving off into the foggy night with a trail of thick smoke pushing behind it.

At the lack of Youngjae’s presence, you were now struck with the realization that you were lost in the dark streets with rain sprinkling you for what seemed like the hundredth time today. The houses to your left and right didn’t look familiar at all and to add a cherry on top, you were freezing. Your arms instinctively wrapped around your body as you trudged along the sidewalk, not knowing where to go.

As you ventured around, you actually found enjoyment in strolling in the biting air with nobody else accompanying you. It gave you time to think, which was something you did quite often. You thought about how you have a job now and how you can finally support yourself after years of struggling to maintain even a duty as a simple convenience store worker.

A smile crept on your lips when you started to imagine how you could sabotage Youngjae’s room as his family’s new servant. Maybe you could place a lizard on his probably million dollar worthed pillow, or offer him pink packaged Starbursts that were actually yellow. You shuddered at the latter. That was maybe a little too cruel.

A screeching meow abruptly interrupted your evil thoughts. It startled you, causing you let out a small yelp. When you gazed down to your feet, you were met with piercing green orbs staring into your face. The cat stopped meowing but was now rubbing itself against your legs while  purring sweetly. It had darkly shaded fur which you couldn’t identify the color of since it blended in with the sky.

“Good cat,” you praised but didn’t dare to touch it. “Now please get off me?”

As if to taunt you, the cat only continued to used your legs to scratch its back. You were about to lift your foot to shoo it away until its big furry bottom landed on both your shoes, anchoring you down with its heavy weight.

“What- fuck -why are you so heavy??” you groaned but decided to not kick the cat off your feet out of manners for nature. Maybe it had a long day and needs a rest just like how you did.

So you kneeled down cautiously and reached your hand out to stroke the cat’s furry body. It purred in response which boosted your confidence.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry about that!” a voice called out from behind you which made you swivel your head around to the sound. A man was frantically approaching you in a rush, the rain attacking him on all sides. He was wearing gray sweatpants that sagged a little and a thin white shirt that hugged his body nicely. Two tiny moles were placed over his eyelid which immediately struck you with shock.

“J-Jaebum?” you sputtered while staring at him in utter disbelief. At first he stopped in his tracks, clearly surprised that a random girl in his yard had recognized him. But when his eyes adapted to the darkness, his expression mirrored yours.

“(Y/N)?”

“Jaebum, what are you doing here?!” you asked while quirking your eyebrow. “You told me you lived downtown.”

“I was just staying over for a party...” he mumbled while avoiding eye contact. Jaebum was one of your fellow classmates in highschool that you shared a couple of classes with. He was quiet and composed all of the time which highkey scared you. If somebody bumped into him in the hallways he would just shrug. It seemed like nothing irritated him.

It was until you were put in a group project with him did you realize the man was a freak. A wild freak that loves cats to be specific. Aside from being a chill person to be around, he had a good sense of humor. You were fond of his snarky comments and sarcastic language. Overtime, he became a good friend of yours.

“And you brought your cat to a party?” you narrowed your eyes at the furry loaf whose body was on the brink of sleeping on your now ruined sneakers.

“Who doesn’t love cats?” he asked in a duh tone while reaching his arms out to swipe the cat away from your feet. The minute its plump body lifted its weight off of you, you felt the blood circulation in your feet sighing in relief.

“Dude, what do you feed your cat? It literally looks like a balloon.” you distastefully remarked while massaging your feet.

“She.” Jaebum instantly corrected. “And I feed Snowflake very well mind you.”

You snorted and crossed your arms, “Snowflake? Your cat is literally the opposite of a snowflake. She’s not lightweight or white colored at all.”

“Jeez, why are you so sassy tonight?” He accused while stroking Snowflake’s soft head tenderly. Snowflake was cuddled up into his arms, her head resting on his bicep.

“Long story short, rich douchebag dropped me off here and now I don’t know how to get home.” you sighed and reached your hand over to pet Snowflake as well to relieve some stress.

“You sound stressed. Wanna party with us?”

The moment he mentioned the party, you suddenly noticed the muffled music blasting from the house of the yard you were standing in. Lights were flashing from the exposed window into the sky and you heard deep voices chanting “CHUG CHUG CHUG.”

You scrunched your nose up distastefully, “I’ll pass.”

“C’mon, I can tell you had a rough day. Learn how to relax!” Jaebum insisted with eagerness prominent in his voice. “It’s been a long time since we’ve hung out since summer started.”

“That’s true, but I prefer catching up in a different location... not in your house filled with sweaty guys who haven’t been laid in a month. Besides, I thought parties aren’t your thing?”

“See that’s what I thought, but if you go to a party with the right people, you’ll become drunk on social energy. You don’t even need a single shot to have a good time, I promise.” Jaebum effectively convinced with a puppy-like grin. Was Jaebum, a cat nerd, actually finding parties to be relaxing and enjoyable?

“I just want to go home,” you sighed while rubbing your forehead. “Can you let me borrow your phone for directions? We can hangout next time.”

Jaebum’s face fell at your rejection, “Awww (Y/N)... I can tell you’re frustrated. I promise if you join the party you’ll have a great time. And if you don’t I’ll uh... I’ll buy you clothes or whatever you like.”

You scoffed, “I’m amazed at your persistence. Look I-“

“I’ll take you to an expensive restaurant.”

Your eye twitched. “An... expensive restaurant?”

“Yes! Of your choice of course! ANY restaurant!” Jaebum emphasized “any” in his sentence.

You took a glimpse of the the house which was now shooting rainbow beams out of its windows. “Let’s just get over with this.”

To your surprise, Jaebum was correct. You had a good time, no, you had an AMAZING one. You had suspiciously expected the party to be flooded with drunk and reckless people but there were unexpectedly a large amount of sober ones instead. And the social energy had rubbed off on you just as he had said. Before you knew it, you had met at least ten new people, laughed so hard your ribs ached, watched a horror movie with the whole house crowded in the living room, vented about your day with your new friends listening intently, and sprinted around the neighborhood in the pouring rain while splashing every puddle in sight.

By the time the party had been called over, you were feeling energized as ever. You wanted so badly for it to never end, but unfortunately all good things come to a halt at some point.

Now that most of the guests had bid you farewell and drove off in Ubers back home, only you and Jaebum were left in the now seemingly vacant house. “Woo!” you cheered and flopped onto his couch that was probably littered with potato chips. “I had the time of my life!”

Jaebum chuckled from the kitchen and returned with a glass of water in his hand. He offered it to you which you gratefully accepted and chugged the whole thing down your throat. “I’m telling you, I host the best parties here. No alcohol allowed, and everything turns better.”

You hummed in agreement. “I’ll forgive you for lying about living here since the party was super lit.”

He tensed up, “Oh. Right. Sorry about that. I told you I lived downtown because I didn’t want any of my classmates visiting.”

“And why’s that?” you inquired while giving Snowflake who was nestled in your chest a belly rub.

“If you hadn’t noticed, everybody in our school are jerks who leech off of other people. Had I leaked my address, a thousand of people would have showed up at my door, asking to stay over since their parents kicked them out,” he sourly stated while shaking his head. It was true. Everybody who went to your school were all assholes who were selfish and clearly only cared about popularity.

“Yeah. There’s a handful of jerks living here...” A picture of Youngjae flashed in your mind. All of the anger pent up in you was released like water being freed from a faucet during the party. Now, all was left was a bitter taste swirling on your tongue. “Ugh, I really hate that rich brat.”

Jaebum’s head perked up, “Oh, the guy you’ve been ranting about throughout the whole party?”

You hated to admit it, but you HAD been talking about him all this time. How dare he leave you off on some random street without even an umbrella to shield yourself?

“I have an idea.” Jaebum interrupted your thoughts. “How about we get revenge?”

A small mischievous spark tickled your brain. Revenge sounded delicious. You feigned aloofness by continuing to stroke Snowflake’s belly softly. “I’m listening...” you hummed.

Jaebum proceeded with an evil smile on his lips. “Well I was thinking... you wouldn’t want to go overboard and get yourself fired, correct?” he continued after you nodded your head in agreement, “Instead you should try to irritate him in the smallest ways so he can’t accuse you of such tiny shenanigans easily. For example... you could annoy him by talking to him and asking him a lot of questions, ‘accidentally’ mix up his laundry, you know...”

A small, malicious smirk crept on your face as you considered all of the things you could do to irk Youngjae in the smallest ways. Let’s call this Operation Annoy Youngjae.

Chapter 2

[geniusorinsanity]

i would like to her ur nursey family feels pls!! (i have plenty of my own & made a post but i need All the nursey content)

ahaha YOU JUST OPENED THE FLOODGATES BUDDY

Okay, so,Nursey’s birth parents:

Amal Hassan Nurse      

born in Morocco, but spent the first ten years of herlife moving all around northern Africa and the Middle East because her fatherworked as a security consultant and would spend a few years in various placesdesigning systems for different companies

speaks both dialects of Arabic fluently, but willalways prefer Moroccan, because it sounds like home to her

moved to the States when she was thirteen and her dadgot a permanent job working for a security firm in Manhattan. Grew up in theprivate school system and never left

has a BA from NYU and a JD/PhD from Columbia. Is asenior partner in an NYC firm specializing in foreign and comparative law.smarter than all of us.

Elijah Nurse

grew up in Washington, DC. As a child, was 100%convinced that his father was a spy, because he traveled all the time and nevertold him what he did.

his mother is Haitian and from a very strict family inPort au Prince. Was not a fan of Nonsense and this had a pretty significantimpact on how Elijah related to other kids

Raised speaking English and French, but never spokeFrench outside the house because he associated it with his mother scolding himor his siblings

Got his BA in economics from Georgetown and then wentto do his MBA at Columbia, which is where he met Amal

This marriage was Not a Good Idea

Very tried and true case of people who are physicallycompatible but VERY NOT COMPATIBLE IN MOST OTHER WAYS

Amal is emotive and a little scatterbrained, Elijah isstrict about routine and doesn’t communicate feelings well

Not a Good Combination

They got married anyway to piss off their parents

Don’t do that, kids.

They got divorced two years after Derek was born. Itwas not friendly. 

They agreed on split custody of the kids, Derek and hisolder sister Farah (more on Farah, Love of My Life, later). 

About two years after the divorce, Amal reconnects witha friend from college, Gabriela Torres.

“Reconnects” = They literally crash into each other inthe subway #thatNYClife

promptly has the following thought process:

“Was she always this hot?”

“Was I always this gay?”

“This explains SO MUCH.”

they get married a year later.

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT NURSEY’S STEP MAMA GABRIELA

first generation Chilean American. Both her parentswere artists who moved to go to school in California.

she’s a ~San Francisco child~ in that she is: veryqueer, unfazed by a lot of strange things happening around her, and fucking hates the cold.

her parents are a strange blend of Liberal Artist andOverprotective Catholic, in that they want her to follow her dreams but willalso guilt the fuck out her if she misses mass and/or isn’t home for Christmas.

It’s not a total surprise to them that she decides tomove to New York for college but they still guilt the fuck out of her for it.

Everyone cries, but they get over it.

goes NYU all the way through her degrees: BA in ArtHistory, PhD in Fine Arts. 

Her dream is to be a full-time painter, but she isRealistic and knows that shit is not how it works.

Gets scooped up by the curator of the gallery where she’sdoing one of her internships.

Works her way up to co-director of the gallery because#womensupportingwomen, and has her own studio on the side

Elijah also remarries, about two years after thedivorce, to a pediatrician living out in Westchester. They have two more kidsin pretty quick succession, and both Nursey and Farah try to ignore how muchmore their dad seems to be around for those kids when they’re little than heever was for them.

It doesn’t really work.

They’ve got some baggage about this.

SPEAKING OF MY BABY GIRL FARAH NURSE.

Farah is four years and five grades ahead of Nursey.

She was an Angel Baby but a Demon Toddler--Nursey beingborn flipped her back into being a reasonable child because all of a suddenthere was this Small Person Thing who was kind of interesting but also madenoise and Huh, Okay.

fiercely fiercelyfiecrely protective of her baby brother. They’ve never been in the sameschool, but she is intensely aware that he’s a soft, sensitive kid, and shewill claw someone’s eyes out if they mess with him.

really, really intomedia and how it influences people, particularly the way queer people, peopleof color, and QPOC are influenced to see themselves and develop theirself-worth based on media depictions. Starts getting into critical analysis ofart and news and movies and TV in like, eighth grade. 

Gabriela is SO PROUD.

has gone back and forth on wearing hijab a few timesthroughout her life. Talks to her mom about it a lot. Amal tells her consistently that it’s always her decision,that she can change her mind whenever she wants, and that as long as shechooses to wear it (or not) for reasons she feels okay about, she supports her.

The only time she ever feels guilty is when she thinksabout wearing it at Andover just as a fuckyou to the guys who talk about how Muslim women are Always Oppressed. Shedecides not to wear it.

follows her moms to NYU, where she meets her boyfriendRami, who’s an Arab Jew. They move in together their senior year. She is super nervous about meeting his parentsfor the first time at their house in Brooklyn. They take one look at her, tellher she’s too skinny, and attempt to adopt her.

She’s 5’11” and has never been told she’s too skinny byanyone in her life.

She wants to adopt them.

Rami’s parents have brunch with her moms every month and gossipabout when they’re going to get married.

I’m getting off-track but I love her.  

The shared custody thing goes okay for awhile--the kidsdon’t really like going out to Westchester for half the week because it makestheir commute to school so long, butit’s part of the job. Eventually, Amal gets sole custody--Elijah isn’t doingthe emotional work of parenting, and the kids aren’t happy when they’re withhim.

I also have sad headcanons about shit that went down ifyou read my fic but that’s not crucial to this family HC necessarily.

for awhile, Nursey and Farah stay in touch with Elijahfairly frequently, but he’s not big on Feelings, and they’re not big on beinggaslighted about the fact that he’s really emotionally distant and his momyells at them a lot, so as they get older they really only talk to him on theirbirthdays, Father’s Day, his birthday, and major holidays.

Amal really tries to get them to keep in touch moreoften, because she’s really close with her dad and she wants her kids to have arelationship with theirs, but like...she’s not gonna force it.

Also, like...no one fucks with her babies.

So now: the Nurse-Torres Household:

one high-powered lawyer, one artist/gallery director,one super-analytical and overprotective child, and one sensitive,clumsy-as-fuck baby hockey player.

My. Loves.

there are a Lot of Languages in this House

Amal teaches the kids Moroccan Arabic literally as soonas the divorce is finalized--Elijah didn’t want her to teach them while theywere married because he didn’t like them having a language with her he didn’tknow, but NOPE.

Nursey soaks it up like a sponge. Farah’s seven so shehas a little more trouble, but like fuck is she going to let her baby brotherbe better than her at something so 

Gabriela laments thefact that her step-children speak fluent Spanish but their accents are afucking mess because the nannies they learned from were from Guatemala, thenSpain, then Argentina

Other languages spoken, scattered across multiplepeople, in varying degrees of fluency: French, Portuguese, Mandarin, Italian,Latin, Haryanvi, Hebrew.

family dinners are mandatory--anyone who’s home musteat together, sitting down, at the table, without electronics.

Nursey refuses to come to dinner for a week after Farahleaves for Andover because it won’t be The Same

there’s a Lot of physical affection: hugs, cuddles,forehead kisses, hair-playing, etc. Lots of wrestling between Farah and Nursey.Nursey usually loses.

Nursey always loses.

:(

once both kids are at college, there are regularlyscheduled Family Google Hangouts

Also mandatory

Basically family dinner

Nursey does it in the Haus once and everyone freaks outat how hot everyone in his family is

he’s Aware, thanks dudes

This is four full pages long in a google doc and I needto stop but basically: Nursey has a really complicated and strainedrelationship with his dad, and he misses his half-sisters sometimes, but he’s so so so loved by his moms and hissister and he’s so supported and he loves them so much and i have about amillion feels and i could go on forever please stop me.

also it’s not a family member but their next doorneighbor has a pit bull named Lupe who loves Nursey and every time he comeshome he takes it for a walk in central park and he wants a dog so much and he’s counting the minutesuntil he can get one

thank you for your time.

i’m crying now.

[theconservativebrief]

Every week, we pick a new episode of the week. It could be good. It could be bad. It will always be interesting. You can read the archives here. The episode of the week for November 25 through December 1 is “Battle of the Sexes,” the fifth episode of the third season of Netflix’s F Is for Family.

Netflix’s F Is for Family is a weird little hybrid of a show. It’s sometimes very funny, and it’s sometimes very sad, which isn’t that unusual for a comedy — even an animated comedy — in 2018. But what makes F Is for Family notable is how both its sadness and its humor stem from exactly the same spot.

It would be tempting, if you only watched a single half-hour episode of F Is for Family, to conclude that it’s a series lamenting the rise of “political correctness.” Set in the ‘70s, it centers on a loud-mouthed white guy named Frank who’s at least vaguely threatened by women demanding something more like equality, and by the growing sense that the social order he stands atop is slowly eroding right beneath him.

What’s more, Loudmouthed white guys threatened by change aren’t unusual TV protagonists, either for comedies set in the ‘70s or for animated sitcoms. But F Is for Family’s spin on the type is defined as much by his sputtering frustration and total lack of confidence in himself and his abilities as it is by his anger. When Frank (voiced by series co-creator Bill Burr) shouts at his kids, F Is for Family doesn’t want you to laugh at how times have changed as much as it wants you to feel how limited he can be by his narrow range of emotional expression.

Yet the series isn’t afraid of occasionally dropping the hammer, of leaving viewers wondering where some darkly emotional turn came from. And so goes the end of “Battle of the Sexes,” the third season’s fifth episode.

Frank is covered in dead goose, and that’s all you need to know. Netflix

Coming at the exact midway point of a 10-episode season, “Battle of the Sexes” sends the season’s two big plots crashing into each other.

In the first plot, Frank has essentially been trying to woo new neighbor Chet (Vince Vaughn) to be his new best friend. Chet’s an Air Force pilot who married Nguyen Nguyen (Eileen Fogarty), a woman he met in Vietnam. Frank, who never met a cocky dude he couldn’t immediately try to emulate, begins spending more and more time with Chet, who offers to build a new room for the baby Frank and his wife have on the way.

But throughout Chet’s time on F Is for Family, the show drops more and more hints that he’s not the “great guy” Frank keeps insisting he is, especially when Chet suggests that both men cheat on their wives. (Frank refuses.) What’s more, the sheer number of times that both Chet and Frank say Chet is a “great guy” should lead most astute viewers to conclude that Frank knows, on some level, that the guy’s a fraud and Chet is compensating for something in hanging out with him.

Meanwhile, in the second plot, Frank’s wife Sue (Laura Dern) is reeling from the theft of her salad-tossing invention, which has made $1 million for another woman in town. She throws herself into trying to find a “second once-in-a-lifetime idea,” even as she’s balancing a pregnancy and trying to preserve a marriage she found herself more and more ambivalent about in season two. (It’s not uncommon for animated family comedies to suggest that their central husbands and wives are unequally yoked; only on F Is for Family do you suspect that such a marriage might really dissolve someday.)

Her second big idea arrives in the form of a weird kitchen multi-tool that contains a fork, spoon, knife, pizza cutter, and spatula, among other things. She and her friend Viv sink a fair amount of money into developing prototypes, but nobody else likes the idea, and Sue watches her grand ambitions slowly circle the drain, knowing that a baby will arrive soon and suck up plenty of her time and attention.

There are other storylines circling these two central ones — mostly featuring Frank and Sue’s three kids — but the center of the season stems, as is always the case when the show is at its best, from the ways Frank and Sue are limited by their histories, their frustrations, and their emotional limitations.

Frank, in particular, is a pitch-perfect sketch of a certain kind of male neediness. He at once longs to be as seemingly cool as Chet, while also feeling a bit thrown by how little another neighbor, the ultra-confident neighbor Vic (Sam Rockwell, doing a Sam Rockwell impression), seems to care about typical social niceties. (Season two revealed that much of Vic’s confidence is thanks to cocaine, which feels about right.)

But Frank is also unable to see beyond his own nose. He understands that Sue feels an immense frustration at the way her life has turned out, but he’s largely unwilling to dwell on how he’s played a big role in that frustration. Similarly, his relationship with one of his best friends, black co-worker Rosie (Kevin Michael Richardson), is defined by how often Rosie has to point out that Frank can’t understand Rosie’s frustrations, because Frank is white.

Season three of F Is for Family does soften Frank just a touch. He’s really trying in his marriage to Sue, whom he does love deeply, and he’s horrified when Chet suggests cheating on their wives. And when Rosie gets passed over for a promotion at work, Frank is upset for reasons beyond how much more work it’s going to make for Frank (though, to be fair, he’s mostly upset about the amount of work it will mean for him). But if Frank is softening, the world around him isn’t, necessarily.

Sue learns something horrible about Chet and Nguyen Nguyen’s marriage. Netflix

The center of “Battle of the Sexes” is an impromptu neighborhood hangout at Frank and Sue’s house. Frank and Chet have been planning to work on the baby’s room, which leads to the other guys in the neighborhood dropping by. Sue, meanwhile, gathers her friends to offer feedback on her new invention. The kids hang out in the other room, too, watching the titular “Battle of the Sexes,” a jai alai spin on the 1973 tennis match of the same name.

Eventually, the three parties blend together in the largest group scene F Is for Family has ever done, according to series co-creator and showrunner Michael Price, as all of the characters gather around the television to watch a woman and man face off on the sacred courts of jai alai. As everyone watches the match play out, they crack jokes, both to diffuse the tensions that have built up throughout the night and to underscore the existing social order. A final bet from Sue ensures that if the woman jai alai player wins, the men in the room will do their respective household’s chores over the next week.

But the bet is masking a darker turn. Later, as Sue walks over to Chet and Nguyen Nguyen’s house to return a casserole dish, she hears Chet threatening Nguyen for the jokes she made at his expense earlier, then telling her she’s not allowed to leave the house the next day. Sue listens, then turns away — not returning the dish — presumably to go home and tell Frank.

This is a standard F Is for Family move. The show will frequently deploy a standard trope of the animated family sitcom subgenre — like a dad who shouts loud and abusive things for “comedy” reasons — then look at how harmful those tropes can be in other contexts. Frank’s bluster is funny because he’s ultimately not going to do anything about it. He’s just loud and angry, and he takes his family for granted, but he loves them too much to do anything except shout. Chet is very different (as, we learn later in the season, was Frank’s own father).

This willingness to dig into the darker subtext at play in its universe is what makes F Is for Family worth watching. The show has an immense amount of empathy for every character that lives in its little neighborhood, but it also understands how the limitations that keep them all in place manifest in traumas that travel down family trees.

And yet they don’t have to. Frank might bluster, but he’s not his father, and we can see the ways that his own sons won’t be like Frank when they grow up. And F Is for Family doesn’t pretend its “politically incorrect” elements depict the world as it really is, or something facile like that; rather, it focuses on the ways that Frank and guys like him created a whole system designed to flatter themselves into believing they are — or at least were — the kings of the world.

In season three, especially, F Is for Family is about a nation in transition, where Irish and Italian families are increasingly secure in their positions of power and privilege relative to other racial minorities and ethnicities, but where they still have recent memories of being cast out of the American mainstream (to the degree that a side character on a show that Frank’s kids watch is a very broad Irish stereotype). And yet the characters increasingly try to make things better, here and there, around the edges of their lives, if never quite at the center.

Okay, yeah, that makes the show sound more like a dark drama than an animated sitcom. And at times, that description fits F Is for Family — a funny show, but one that will never sacrifice a character moment, heartfelt or depressive or otherwise, in the name of a joke. It’s a long, boozy story, told by a very funny comedian, late at night, right before the bar closes. And you start out laughing, but then you’re just smiling, and then finally you’re realizing this guy has seen some shit. And then the story’s over, and the lights come on, and everybody goes home, through quiet streets.

F Is for Family is streaming on Netflix.

Original Source -> Netflix’s F Is for Family examines the dark core of the angry sitcom dad

via The Conservative Brief

[jenguerrero]

We put 29 miles on our hiking boots over Thanksgiving week down in Big Bend National Park in west Texas. Just what the doctor ordered. Whenever we go on a road trip, I pack our family favorite, Salami and Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich with Garlicky Mayo. Holy yum, batman! All it needs is some strawberries and grapes to go with it. And if you’re a hiker, stick around after the recipe, and I’ll tell you all about Big Bend.

  Salami and Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich with Garlicky Mayo

1 loaf crusty Italian or French bread – I prefer the wide ones to contain all those delicious fillings Preheat your broiler on high. Slice in half lengthwise, place on a baking sheet, and broil for 2 minutes. Remove the top half of the bread from the baking sheet. 4 oz Provolone, sliced (about ½ the pack) Layer on the bottom half of the bread, and broil for 2 minutes more.

6 oz hard salami, sliced thin 8 oz roasted red peppers, drained really well (about ½ the jar) 1 big fragrant tomato, sliced, and salted. The salt’s important. Don’t skip that part. It makes tomatoes more tomato-y. Fresh basil, washed and dried Layer in order.

Garlicky mayo

(This makes an obscene amount. Make ½ this if you don’t like saucy sandwiches)

3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (fresh is better, but bottled will do in a pinch) 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley ½ t salt 2 turns fresh ground pepper, or a big pinch if you’re using bottled ½ cup mayo (I love Hellman’s regular or olive oil mayo) Combine everything and slather on the top bun. Cut the sandwich into 4. If this is going on a road trip, wrap each sandwich in saran wrap, then foil. Then put the 4 of them in a gallon ziplock.

Okay, now about hiking in Big Bend National Park… We rented an Airbnb in the ghost town of Terlingua, TX. It’s about 15 minutes from the park’s entrance. Two bedrooms and a bathroom. No kitchen, so it feels a little like glamping with super comfy beds. But, oh, that view! And there were four adirondack chairs and a firepit to enjoy it all. There’s no light pollution, so some of the best night sky viewing you can find. Kitchen smitchen. I bought a food saver, FoodSaver Premium 2-In-1 Automatic Bag-Making Vacuum Sealing System, Silver FSFSSL5860-DTC, (there are cheaper models, but I waited for a good deal on Amazon on the mac daddy of food savers) for my sous vide, but really love it for making breakfast and dinner kits to toss in the cooler. And I brought along an electric skillet, Presto 06857 16-inch Electric Foldaway Skillet, Black. I swear that the view makes everything taste better.

FOOD… Breakfast burritos for three breakfasts. Those just needed a bottle of Cholula. For 24 burritos: 2 large russet potatoes, cubed to 1/8” and fried in 1/4 cup olive oil, stirring frequently, til softened, and getting a little color, about 6 minutes. Then add 5 minced, seeded jalapeños for another 3. Salt and pepper. Remove to a plate. Scramble about 12 eggs with a little salt and pepper. Remove to a plate. This time I added 1/2 jar of roasted red peppers, because I had it left over from making sandwiches. Sometimes I do chorizo or bacon.

Hike#1… Day1. West side-Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive side. Santa Elena Canyon. It’s only about 2 miles with some stairs and switchbacks early on, and the rest of it’s pretty flat. Beautiful canyon views. Kids and big kids love to play with the echo at the end.

Weird info my kid would like to point out. The visitor’s center over there has really clean bathrooms that smell like cinnamon. This is the only visitor’s center without a water bottle filler. They sell cool hand-painted walking sticks, and they’re only like $18. Nice.

Hike#2… Day 1. West side-Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive side. Lower Burro Mesa Pour-Off. About 2 miles and mostly flat. Cool rock layers.

Food. My taco salad kits. Meat and beans (1 pound lean beef browned and then 1 can drained, rinsed black beans, and 1 packet or 1/4 cup taco seasoning added), Pico De Gallo (two tomatoes, seeded and chopped, 1 chopped sweet bell pepper, 1/2 red onion, chopped, 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced, the leaves of 1 bunch cilantro, chopped, and juice of 1/2 lime), guacamole (2 haas avocados, half chopped, half smashed with salt pepper, and the juice of half a lemon)1 bag Mexican cheese, and one bag shredded lettuce. I only had to reheat the meat and beans in the skillet. Oh, and bring a bottle of Cholula.

Hike#3… Day 2. West side-Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive side. Mule Ears Spring. About 4 miles and relatively flat with some mild hills. Pretty panoramas, but no big payout. We thought this ended at the ears. It doesn’t. It ends at a little water feature. Really little. lol.

Wildlife quest… Day 2. East side near Panther Junction. Dugout Wells. This is a known javelina hangout. We didn’t get to see one on this trip. We saw coyotes, foxes, and deer, but no javelinas. There are two short hikes (more like strolls) here. One goes through the center looking for javelinas. The second wanders through big patches of paddle cactuses, where you’re sure to spot great big jackrabbits.

Sunset on the west side – Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. West side. Ahhhhhhh.

Food and entertainment. Garlic butter Pringle Burgers. Don’t judge me. I’ve been teased for potato chips in my camping burgers forever, then I got Bobby Flay’s book and see his signature burger is the crunch burger. Totally vindicated. For 2 pounds 85% lean ground beef, I mix in 2 Tablespoons of butter and one crushed, minced garlic clove. Right before I cook them, I salt and pepper both sides. You need one canister of sour cream and onion Pringles, 4 brioche buns, and one jar of pickles. We followed up the burgers with a game of Catan. Oh, look at those sad little faces. Yeah, I won!

Food. Sunny side up eggs with Foxpoint seasoning (shallot blend) from Penzey’s, and about 1/2 pound of bacon lardons that I crisped up before we left the house.

Hike#4. Day 3. Central-Chisos Mountain area. The Window Hike. This is my second favorite hike in the park. It’s about 6 miles, and the last half mile is like a stairmaster. Beautiful views. You’re surrounded by a ring of mountains, and hike down to a framed view of the rest of the park.

The visitor’s center here has a water bottle filler, a mediocre restaurant, and a really nice gift shop attached to the restaurant. You can get goodies like jalapeno peanut butter, hand painted ceramics, Christmas ornaments, and cutesy socks.

Factoid spot. Day 3. Fossil Center about 8 miles north of Panther Junction in the middle of the park. Cool little museum building, and an overlook to re-enact Simba’s big moment. Rafiki jumped out of view.

Panther Junction visitor’s center has a water bottle filler, a great selection of books, and a cool little cactus identification path.

Food. Hot dogs on King’s Hawaiian buns with extra sharp cheddar, Wolf chili with no beans, diced raw onions, and Fritos for crunch. Yeah. Followed with a marshmallow chaser because we already had the sticks out.

My husband loves to tell the kids that everything builds character. Everything. Dishes and Christmas carols… My husband said, “Washing the dishes in the shower builds character.” My youngest responded, “Yeah, character got all over the toilet.”

  Hike#5. Day 4. West side-Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. The Chimneys hike. About 5 miles and flat. At the end, there’s Native American rock art to see, and a big rock to climb. Lovely strawberry and green colored cactuses dot the path.

Food. Chicken caesar salad. Cut 2 pounds of chicken into 1/4” slices. Add 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 crushed, minced cloves of garlic. You need 1 lite Caesar salad kit (2 would be better. 1 pint cherry tomatoes would have been nice, too.)

Hike#6. Day 5. East side. Daniels Ranch Hot Springs trail. This was a happy accident. We wanted to do the Lost Mine trail up in the Chisos Mountains, but the parking lot was full, so we headed to the east side. It’s about 6 miles round tip, with a good climb at the beginning, and some hills interspersed along the way. Great views of the river and Mexico. We saw a donkey and a cow with a bell across the river, playing on the beach, and it was entirely too charming. The hot springs at the end are 105 degrees F, so we gave it a miss, but you can park right there if that sounds awesome to you. This was our favorite hike.

The visitor’s center has a water bottle filler, and a camp supply store.

Some other fun things to do in the park that we’ve really enjoyed on past trips: * Balance Rock hike. It’s about 2 miles long, and flat til the climb at the viewpoint. It has tons of brightly colored lizards to see in the summer. * Marcos Paredes, an ex park ranger for 20 years, owns a company called Rio Aviation. He gives rides to groups of 1-4 in his little Cessna plane, Brownie, over Big Bend, with killer views of the park and Mexico. He’s super informative. * Charlie Angell of Angell Expeditions does rafting and kayaking trips on the Rio Grande, and other waters in both the state and national parks. * Sotol Vista – gorgeous scenic overview on the Ross Maxwell.

Food and fun. The ghost town of Terlingua. Fun place. There’s a huge shop where you can buy all sorts of gifts and souvenirs. The restaurant there, the Starlight Theater, has delicious food and margaritas, live entertainment frequently, and the taxidermied Clay Henry. Who’s Clay Henry? Well, he’s a goat. A beer-drinking goat. The beer-drinking goat mayor of the neighboring town of Lajitas. Not even kidding. He had a good life until he and his son were interested in the same lady goat, and his son killed him. No, really. They sell Clay Henry shirts and hats in the store.

Alpine and Marfa. Day 6. We spent the day enjoying the galleries and food trucks, and the Big Bend Brewery in Alpine. It’s a great little college town. Then we headed to Marfa to see the Marfa Lights. Believe. Alright, I don’t expect to see aliens, but the gravity of having an actual parks and recreation structure out there sure adds to the fun!

Some other fun things we’ve really enjoyed on past trips in that area: the museum at Sul Ross is fantastic! * We saw Monty Python’s Holy Grail performed in the amphitheater at Sul Ross * Marfa Prada is a fun highway art installation that’s great for photo ops * The Chinati Foundation in Marfa is a fun outdoor art installation piece that we loved contemplating and playing in * McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains has a killer night sky program and a cool daytime museum.

#bigbendnps

#terlingua

#alpinetx

#marfa

Road trip! Salami and Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich with Garlicky Mayo. Hiking in Big Bend National Park. We put 29 miles on our hiking boots over Thanksgiving week down in Big Bend National Park in west Texas.

[lovemesomesurveys]

Have you ever had a controlling boyfriend/girlfriend? No.

Have you ever written a love letter to someone as a joke? Uh, no. That wouldn’t be very nice.

How many true heart breaks have you had in your lifetime? Two romantic ones, three from those I love who have passed away: my grandparents and my dog, Brandie. </3

Who last grabbed your ass? Joseph a long time ago.

Do you get a ‘Good Morning’ text from someone every day? Nope.

Do you have any gay family members? Yes, my older brother and one of my cousins.

Where did you get the shirt you are wearing? From JCP.

Do you feel like everything is falling apart around you? I have felt that way for awhile now.

Was your first kiss romantic? No. It was awkward and weird, as most first kisses commonly are.

Do you know anybody whose last name is a color? Yeah.

Do you ever feel like life is going by too fast? Yes. Sometimes in the moment the days all seem to drag and blend together, but then I realize things like we’re now in April, almost May. And how I’m going to be twenty-eight soon. How it’s been two years next month since I’ve graduated. Things like that make me think, holy crap where has the time gone?? I’m getting old and have wasted so much time.

Who was the last person to sleep over at your house? My aunt and cousin.

Is there someone that always intimidates you? No one in particular, no.

Have you ever liked anyone that was in a relationship with someone else? I mean, I’ve had little crushes on people in school who got into a relationship with someone. It wasn’t anything serious, though. I wasn’t trying to pursue anything.

Would you ever get a boob job? No.

Did your last relationship end because of you or the other person? Him.

Do you ever ignore texts from some people? I am guilty of that, yes. I don’t feel like responding at that time or feel like talking. Sometimes I don’t know what to say, and other times the text doesn’t seem to need a response.

Have you ever tried to break up anyone because YOU liked the guy/girl? Nooo.

When is the last time you felt left out? I feel that way a lot. Like in life in general and more specifically with some people sometimes.

When was the last time you flirted with someone? It’s been awhile. *shrug*

Yellowcard vs Straylight Run, pick: Yellowcard.

What would you think if you found out your ex was gay? One of my friends thought that. I don’t think so, but if he is, then he is.

Would you ever take someone back if you found out they cheated on you? I don’t know. I can’t say for sure either way. I wouldn’t know unless I was in the situation, which I hope I don’t find myself in.

What does your last text message say? "Ok.”

What color is your hair right now? Ha, well my roots have overgrown a lot so the top of my hair is my natural hair color, but the red is still there as well. If I put a hat on all you see is the red and it looks fine. lol. I’ll finally be getting it done next month.

Do people ever compliment your eyes? It has happened, but no it’s not something I complimented on very often.

Have you ever lied to your boyfriend/girlfriend? Yes.

Do people ever tell you that you’re funny? I have been told that.

Would you be upset if you caught your boyfriend looking at porn? Nah. As long as they’re not more interested in that than in me. If they’re still attracted to and intimate with me at the end of the day, then that’s what matters.

How many people has your best friend had sex with? --

What’s the last song you listened to? I don’t remember at the moment, but I have “Don’t Let Me Down” by The Chainsmokers stuck in my head.

Who’s the last person that hung up on you? *shrug*

Are you a bitch? No. I can be moody and snippy at times with people, but I don’t think I’m a bitch.

Four days from now, will you have sex? No.

Do you look intimidating? I don’t know? I don’t see why anyone would be intimidated by me.

What does your second to last text say? I’m not checking.

What makes you laugh? A lot of things make me laugh.

What were you most looking forward to today? Nothing.

How is your hair? Up In a bun.

What are your initials? S. That’s all ya get.

What’s your biggest fear? Failure. Losing loved ones. <<< Same. Also death, things never getting any better or things getting worse, being alone forever...

Look outside how’s the weather? It’s windy and rainy.

Did you ever think someone didn’t like you, but come to find out they really did? Hmm. Possibly.

When was the last time you had a conversation with an ex? Last July.

Are you worried about anything right now? Always.

How do you think tomorrow will be? It will be like any other day.

Do you wish you could take one thing back? Yeah. A few things.

Is there a guy who knows everything or almost everything about you? Yeah, the guys who read my survey answers. ha.

If you could pack your bags right now and were given a plane ticket, where do you go? Oooh. Sweden!

Have you ever given anyone more than three chances? Yes. I give a lot of chances.

How far away are you from the person you have feelings for? I’m not sure where Alex is at the moment.

Your last ex calls wanting to hangout, what do you say? Uhhh. It wouldn’t be a good time. I haven’t hung out with anyone in quite awhile.

Where were you at 2 this morning? In my bed, going to sleep.

Have you ever kissed anyone who’s name started with a K? No.

Have you accidentally sent a text to the wrong person? Yes. Thankfully, it wasn’t anything embarrassing.

Last time you were TOTALLY happy? When I was a kid.

Could you go the rest of your life without drinking alcohol? I’ve gone four years so far. I haven’t had any desire to drink thus far, but maybe one day I’ll have something again.

Have you ever done your makeup in class? No. I was always too self-conscious to do that.

Is there anything currently hurting on your body? Yes.

How old were you when you stopped sleeping with a night light? I still do, it’s my TV.

Ever kissed someone with green eyes? No.

Are you a jealous person? More often I’m envious, but I can be a jealous person at times, too.

When you are home alone, do you still close the door when you shower? I don’t shower when I’m home alone.

Are you mad at anyone right now? No.

Do you like your music loud or at a reasonable level? It depends. Not usually too loud, but some songs ya just gotta turn the volume up to really enjoy and appreciate the song.

Is there anyone you wish you could be spending time with right now? Yes.

Have you held hands with anyone in the past 30 hours? No.

Do you have a friend named Ashley? Nope.

How often do you sleep in? Often.

Do you stay up later than ten o’clock on a week night? Ha, yes. I stay up until at least 2, lately 4, everyday.

Who’s the last person you told a secret to? Ya’ll.

Have you met someone in the last year who turned out to be amazing? No.

Do you think someone is thinking about you right now? Nope.

Do you miss anyone? Yes, a few someones.

Would you rather have big or small dogs? Medium. Like labs.

Will you cry tonight? I hope not.

Do you have respect for people even if you don’t like them? I can still be civil and respectful, yes.

What’s one fruit you love in drinks? Strawberries.

What was the most people you ever tripped in front of? I don’t know.

Have you ever tried wine? Yes.

Can heartbreak happen all at once, or over a long period of time? Either one.

In your life, do you plan on visiting other countries? I would absolutely love to.

Do you believe everyone deserves a second chance? No, but I give ‘em out anyway.

Is there an ex you want to make up with? I do wish Joseph and I could be friend. He was a fun guy with a good sense of humor. He’s also really creative and talented. He likes to make short films and such, and I’d like to see that. I was always his biggest supporter.

Do you take compliments well? I try to just smile and say thank you, even though I don’t agree. No one likes when people are like, “omg what no I’m so ugly” or something. It just makes it awkward for the other person. I do slip up of course and I’ll be like, “Ugh no I look horrible today what are you talking about?” You just have to accept the compliment and move along.

Does cuddling freak you out? No.

How much time do you take to get ready in the morning? It depends. Not very long, usually. I hardly ever bother with makeup anymore. With my hair I just throw it up in a bun or put a hat on. So, all that leaves is brushing my teeth and getting dressed. I put so little effort into my appearance now. :/ I’m more concerned about having enough time for my cup of coffee if I have somewhere to be. That’s important, you know. If I feel like it, I’ll put on eyeliner and mascara. I just don’t feel like it makes much of a difference. I’m still ugly, ha.

Do you love where you live? I don’t like the city at all. I do like the state.

What do you label yourself as? I don’t.

Will your next kiss be drunk or sober? Sober, I imagine.

Are you a mean person? No.

Do you wear high heels everyday? I never wear high heels.

Do you fall asleep texting every night? Nope.

Are you an aunt or an uncle? No.

Were you texting someone right before you fell asleep last night? No.

Did you have any unread text messages when you woke up today? How many? Yes. I asked my mom to text me to let me know she made it to work okay (she had to be there at 5AM, and she was a little worried because she was opening and would be there by herself for awhile until the next person’s shift started). It can be sketchy in that area, and I just worry about my mom. I feel like the parent sometimes because I’ll be like, “text me if you have to stay later” when she has the closing shift or something (her store closes at 11, and sometimes she’ll have to be there until midnight). lol. I’m a big worry-wart, but my mom is my everything.

Are you happy? No.

Are you an alcoholic? No. I’m a coffeeholic.

Can you go a day without thinking about the person that’s on your mind now? No.

Could you go the rest of your life without a cigarette? Yeah. I have so far, and I have no desire whatsoever to start.

Does anyone know every little detail about you? Not every detail, but you guys could learn a lot from these surveys.

Does it bother you when someone lies to you? I guess it depends. If it’s not something that can be hurtful to me if I don’t know or about something important then it can be okay, I guess... like the truth hurts sometimes, man. If there’s no benefit for me to know about something, you can lie by omission. Is that bad? Probably. I don’t know. But if you lie about something that is important, hurtful, or can be hurtful if I found out the truth then yeah, that’s definitely not okay. Like don’t say you care about me or have feelings for me if you don’t.

What’s one thing you really want right now? To not have these issues.

Who all do you have texts from in your phone? My parents, my younger brother, my nana, Ty, Arynthya, Amanda, a couple of my cousins, two of my aunts...

Who do you trust most as of now? My family.

Who was the last person you took a picture with? My brother and the school mascot at a college informational fair thingy last weekend for incoming freshmen this fall. My lil bro will be attending university this fall, which is just crazy. I can’t believe how fast he has grown up. He’s such a smart, responsible, outgoing, good kid. I’m very proud of him. He’s ambitious and driven and knows what he wants. I have no doubt he’ll do well and make something of himself. He’s the total opposite of me. 

He’s also going to my Alma Mater, so that’s pretty awesome.

Do you have a younger sister? No.

Did anything “cute” happen today? No.

Are you wearing shoes right now? No.

Have you ever just laid outside and looked at the stars? No.

Do feet gross you out? Yesss.

Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos? I’ve wanted to get a tattoo for years, but I’m just a big ol’ scardy cat.

Do you smile everyday? Yeah. Whether it’s real or not.

Could you date someone shorter than you? No. I say that because I’m in a wheelchair and it would be preferable that whoever I date is taller than me. Most people are anyway. It’s just that I need someone who can reach things for me, carry me if need be, lift my chair...all that stuff.

Where do you wish you were right now? On vacation.

Have a crazy side? “You say I’m crazy, I got your crazy.”

Ever kissed someone you weren’t dating at the time? Yes. Joseph and I did that for three years.

Ever kissed someone you’d met less than an hour before? No.