#so instead!!!!! this is just 12 of my favorite pieces from 2024

[bobomcfoe-art]

Art summary for 2024 :)

[dawnoftime22]

"my love, darling, sweetheart."

| W.M ( -> N.R )

Undeserving of a love like yours, Chapter 1

Chapter Warnings: None (series warnings in series masterlist)

Summary: A peaceful day spent with Wanda.

Series Summary: When you're stuck in a complete hole of confusion and hurt with the one you thought you loved most, a certain redhead finds her way into your life.

Word Count: 2.1k

Category: Fluff, for now.

A/N: well here it is finally :] this is an old story of mine I never published that I decided to remake, finish up, and post gradually, that miiight also eventually break your heart...but I hope you all enjoy <3

| Started on 29/12/2023, 11:19 PM |

| Finished on 05/01/2024, 9:28 AM |

Masterlist | Series Masterlist | N.R Masterlist

Chapter 2 ->

“Let the sun kiss your skin softly.”

|——————————— ᗢ ———————————|

It was a sunny day. The sun kept shining in your eyes, and you had to shield yourself with your hands.

You held your hands out to the sky, as if touching it, but only the wind visits your hand. That is practically the sky, after all. Air. Wind. Moisture. You curl your fingers into a fist, firmly clenching it to perhaps capture the cool breeze, only to feel the warmth of your hand's skin against each other, making the cold fade away.

You end up letting your arm drop down to your side, and sigh. There was nothing better, truly, than soaking in a moment of calmness like this. Upon hearing footsteps though, you await what comes for you.

A familiar brunette appears in your view above, eradicating the sunshine and the bright blue sky. She looked down on you softly, your body laying restfully against the grass that moved along with the wind, but is flat underneath your back.

"I got us cakes," she says, sitting down beside you and putting the container down on the ground. You carefully prop yourself up with your elbows until you're sat up properly.

It was your favorite kind. Your lips turn up into a smile, and you grab the small fork while your legs settled into a criss-crossed position. Your hands reached to open the container, the corners clicking open.

The brunette watched you with amusement as you didn't hesitate to grab it. The bakery you loved was right near the park you're at, so it was the perfect time to go when it caught her eye. The man behind the counter had happily greeted her, knowing she's the partner to one of the patrons. The patron, is of course, you. But it was starting to become her new favorite bakery, too.

Wanda had also gotten a bag of warm freshly baked cookies, so she opted to unravel the top of the paper bag and take one, her cake sitting unopened next to yours.

You hum when the smell of the lovely cookies traveled to your nose, making you turn your head to her instead of your slice of cake. She was taking a bite of the cookie, the piece melting in her mouth.

Your hand leaves the fork in the cake container and goes to grab one for yourself, little crumpling noises making sound from the bag as it moved due to your hand.

While the both of you ate your delicacies, you soon space out far off in the distance of the park. Somewhere near there, someone sat at a bench with birds surrounding them and some seeds in their hand.

Beside the scene was another of a little golden retriever happily playing around with another dog, chasing each other around, and sometimes the two of them would stop, the husky looking dog teasing the other one by moving its paws forward, but not running again.

You soon stop focusing on those and turning your attention back to Wanda, but once you look at her, an irresistible smile grows on your face and you have to turn to your cake instead.

"What?" She asks, a breath of a laugh coming through the word. Wanda wondered why you would turn away so quickly. She knew she could make you blush easily, but she hasn't even said or done anything.

"Nothing, you just have some crumbs near your mouth." You shook your head, taking a spoonful of your cake to put in your mouth and look at her once more.

"Oh." Her hand goes up to wipe it off her face, but she went to the wrong side. Her eyes focused on you, visibly struggling to find it because she knows it's not gone due to simply your smile growing.

"No, the other side." You say, helping her. She gets it and looks at you expectantly. You nod, and put a thumbs up, making her reflect your smile.

"You got it." You finish off the last of your cake, and pop the lid back on. Soon your attention drifts off to the sky and the gold shining through the clouds. Wanda follows, and sees the sun behind you, making you glow like an angel.

"We should go to the lake. We can take some beautiful pictures there." She said, tiltng her head slightly, and you see her brunette hair starting to soak in the sunlight. Your eyes brightened at the sentence though, and a soft gasp comes from you.

"Yes! We should." Her lips rise up into a smile once more, and she grabs the bag of cookies before going to stand up. You follow along with your empty container and hers that still had a cake.

You turn to walk with her towards the nearby lake. Since the sunset was only just starting, you had more than enough time to arrive there. A cool breeze goes by, visiting your skins and your hairs. The water that started to come into your view properly, too, was moving with the wind.

The trees shaped the lake beautifully and openly. Not many people were around, especially because nighttime is soon coming around. But it made it all the more better.

Wanda took out her phone from her pocket and started taking some pictures. You stood by, but placed down the containers at a nearby bench and kneeled down to grab a couple small rocks to keep in the palm of your hand.

A thought to take some pictures, too, crossed your mind, but with the present reason of having forgotten to bring your camera, you decided against it.

You stood up and held only one rock in the other hand, throwing it on the water. It jumped lightly against it and splashed, until it dropped to below the water. Wanda turns her phone to you and you look at her.

"Nooo, don't take pictures of me! Look at the lake!" You point your finger towards it before throwing another rock. She moved her phone along the movement, and you assumed she was not just taking pictures, but videos. That rock went farther than the previous one.

"But you're more beautiful than the lake or the sunset!" She says, and you shake your head with a tinge of blush on your face. Once she was done, she walked closer to you with a smile and put her hand out.

You gave her the rest of the rocks in your hand except for one and she threw them. It only jumped twice and you try your hardest not to laugh or smile too wide.

"Okay, that was only my warmup." She says, looking at you with a warning before preparing for another throw. You only hum in response, knowing that it was an obvious excuse.

Wanda throws another, and it does skip farther, before it splashed entirely and disappeared into the water. The clouds had melted into the skies by now, and the last rock you had, you put into one of your pockets.

"I think that one jumped more than yours." You grabbed the cakes and turned away from the lake, now starting to walk to, perhaps, the car. The brunette was behind you anyways though, the place seemed to get darker, with the sun sinking down in the horizon.

"Nope, it did not." You say softly, glancing at her before focusing on the path towards the car once more. She raised her eyebrows at you. To be honest, the two of you got the same amount of jumps in the water with the rocks.

"Sure it did." She adds, wanting to be right. You were getting closer to the car, and she brought out her keys from her pocket, unlocking the car.

"Nope." You repeat, a playful smile on your face when she managed took a look at it at from her driver side just through the windows. She shakes her head with a smile of her own.

You pull the door handle and it opens. You sit in the passenger's side and close the door, your next move being to click the seatbelt on. Wanda had already done the same, and she's starting the engine.

The car powers up and the screens light on. She makes sure to adjust the ac temperature before moving from off the parking spot and into the main road slowly and carefully.

As the truck tires hit the road, the quiet humming of the car is added with the sound of concrete and small pebbles hitting the tires. You look out the window and watch the other cars pass by. There's people on the side of the street.

A florist, holding a boquet of flowers ready to go in a vase. Or perhaps a bought gift, as they're heading for their bicycle. The warm sunlight shone down on the florist, making out a pretty scene. Oh, dear, moments like these filled your heart with life.

Wanda looks at you softly for a second, seeing you spaced out the window. Her hand goes up to turn on the radio, finding a channel that holds good music. She focuses back on the road once she's gotten it.

The songs were calm. Perhaps even encapturing the entire feeling of today. Trees passed by. Streetlights passed by. The lights are on already, and the moon's showing up. Birds are retreating back to their houses, just as you are currently doing.

You look over to your other side, where Wanda sat, her fingers drumming, and her head nodding along the rhythm of the music. She was...so, so pretty. The car comes to a gentle stop, but you hadn't arrived just yet, only at a red light.

"I can see you staring," she says quietly with her eyes focused on the road. Her foot pushed on the pedal once more when the light turned green, and she went to make a turn.

"It's hard not to," you respond, saying only the truth. She glanced at you again, the corners of her lips raising. Buildings went by in her own window.

That is, until she goes into the driveway of your shared house. The car stops and Wanda slides her seatbelt off along with you. She turns the engine off, and the music turns into a quiet silence.

You grab the cookies and cake then open the door, getting out. She locked the car by the time the both of you had closed the doors, and she had grabbed all the items inside.

With the keys in her hands already retrieved from her pockets, she walks to the front door and inserts the key, unlocking it. You were waiting behind her on the porch, and she enters first with you at her back.

The lights in the house were flicked on by Wanda and she goes back to the front to close the door, considering your hands were full. You got your shoes off and went to place the small desserts in your hand onto the kitchen island.

When you looked behind you, the brunette was choosing a vinyl from her shelf to play, her face concentrated. She chooses one right as you went to sit on the couch, her hand carefully grabbing the disc out its sleeve to gently put on the turntable.

She plays the record and slowly drops the needle down on the vinyl, it eventually playing out a soft, mellow tune, one perfect for dancing.

When you see her walking towards you, you expected nothing more or less than an offer. You smile once she holds her hand out for you, a way to ask you to dance. You hesitate, but you gently take her hand, your body getting pulled up with your heart's answer.

She puts her hands around your waist and starts swaying gently to the music, while you settled with your head on her shoulder, your mind wandering with the thoughts of everything.

Outside, sounds of rainfall starts pattering down. The windows filled with drops of it all, but with the curtains closed you couldn't. Although the noise made it clear that it wasn't the record player, or anything else.

You looked up at Wanda, and you can see her gazing back down at you, her eyes meeting yours softly. A small smile goes on her face, the two of you ever so lost in the love you held.

She whispers softly, "I love you," and your heart did leaps in your chest. You've been together for a while, but she's never said such a sentence until this very moment. It came as a surprise.

"I love you, too." You lean back slightly to look at her more, and you can physically see the happiness that fills her face.

end of chapter 1. <3

Series Masterlist Chapter 2 ->

A/N: I am terribly sorry to say that there won't be this much happiness in the later chapters :')

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taglist <3 - join here! :]

@may-z3 @ludasgf @lovelyy-moonlight @red1culous @justanotherteenpoet @fxckmiup @dmenby3100 @natashasilverfox @wandsmxmff @simp-erformarvelwomen

[forever-will-last]

HEY!! what're your fav cadina fanfics? and do you have any suggestions for new fanfic writers 😭

omg okay so i saw this morning while i was at work and knew this had to wait until i got home to get my FULL attention and then i had to stay at work late so here we go!!! this is LONG so i put it all under the cut!

cadina fic recs (first, some ones from my friends, and then many others i heavily recommend, in no particular order):

Get in, Loser! We're going... to fall in love? - SUPER cute slow burn made by the incredible amazing talented stunning 16Sydd16. Genuinely one of my favorite Cadina fics of all time.

ANYTHING by the Cadina Captain herself, Chisamaya. Maya's been holding down the Cadina fort for YEARS and has 13 INCREDIBLE Cadina fics on her AO3. She's also on Tumblr @chisamayas and posts super cute fanart of Mean Girls and Cadina all the time! My personal favorite fic of hers is Collared (very smutty pet play fic) and I will live and die a Collared stan.

can i come and sweep you off your feet? - super adorable (and angsty at some points, especially for poor regina) fame AU by my very talented friend ninesixtheenths / @girlkisser-wieners on Tumblr! i absolutely also recommend her rugby fic, which is rejanis but is 10/10.

(mean girls) series by anonymous - this is from another friend of mine who posts these anonymously instead of tying them to her account. there are SO MANY good ones in here (12 at time of writing this) including a soulmates au, a superhero au, and some GREAT character studies of both regina and cady. there are a few rejanis fics in this series too but they're all phenomenal.

okay onto fics that aren't from my friends but i heavily recommend, in no particular order:

Mirror Me Back - okay i know i said no particular order but this one's a lie. if you haven't read MMB yet, stop what you're doing and read it right now. it's very smut heavy, however, this is genuinely the fic that got me into writing for this fandom and it is one of the best fics i've ever read across any fandom. every day i perform rituals for an update /j

On Predators and Pack Dynamics - omegaverse fic that is genuinely incredible. obviously very smut heavy but i love the characterization of them here and i also often pray for updates on this one.

if i could tell her (how she's everything to me) - role reversal & arts high school AU from 2020 where cady is the popular one and regina is a little socially awkward. very cute, very sweet, very fun.

Pretty Girls - mean girls 2024 rewrite where cady and regina were anonymous pen pals before cady moved to evanston. really loved this one!! one of the first i read in the tag.

To You, I Can Admit That I'm Just Too Soft for All of It - grad school au that i absolutely LOVE. the chapters are unordered snippets but they are so cute and fun. the author also does some social media stuff with it, i believe on tumblr, so it's a cute little tie in!!

you would find her in a polaroid picture - SUPER good college au!! genuinely recommend anything this author writes tbh i adore their stuff!!

i choose you and me, religiously - once again recommending anything this author writes as well. SO talented. this one is a slow burn idiots in love au and it's just. chef's kiss. muah. i love it.

to answer the other part of your question, about the writing advice, my genuine main piece of advice is to just keep writing. even if it's stuff you don't intend to publish, or a half-baked idea. write drabbles for yourself and just let the words get on the page. i used to publish in a different fandom circa 2017-2019 and hadn't published in YEARS until i started writing a thousand pictures (well, really, don't look for me, but ya know, this all REALLY took off with a thousand pictures). despite the fact that i haven't published in a very long time i never really stopped writing. my google drive is full of folders of assorted drabbles of self indulgent bullshit. snippets from other fandoms, self insert scenarios, some original ideas that with a lot more cooking, could potentially be novel worthy one day. (i am a LONG ways off from that though lol)

my point is, publishing fic can be daunting. even writing coherent or long enough fic to make a cohesive story can be daunting at first. it's better to write for yourself and get the practice of writing even just singular or small series of scenes if you aren't ready for a full fic yet. writing should be fun! make sure you're having fun doing it and trying not to stress the details too much!

if you have any other questions about writing please feel free to ask!! i love talking about my process and stuff and am always willing to share gjsnkgng

[ink-flavored]

1, 4, 7, 8, 15 for the end of the year writeblr ask :3c

thank you! 💛

1. what was your writing-highlight this year? what made it special and how will you reflect on it next year?

I did my Anthology Blast for the first time this year! That was pretty significant, I was excited for it most of the year, and then I did it!!! I did extra, even, which feels very cool

I want to do another one next year! I'm not sure if I'll wait until November again, maybe I'll do one during the summer instead. I've been thinking about doing more than one blast next year, if I have enough prompts to do that. Not sure yet! I'm excited for the rest of this year's prompts to go up over the next few months too :3

4. what is your favorite line you wrote this year?

HoOOhOhOhOH boy..... It's gonna have to be from my Anthology Blast I think, it's most of what I wrote this year for sure.

This one's from the upcoming "Shedding Bad Habits", a story from Tales from Athendrolyn:

She was doomed to have crap scales for her entire life, and she’d probably wither into a husk before being allowed to go out in public again.

Teenage snake angst is unlike any other. You can read it on Ko-Fi on Dec. 21st!

7. what are three songs you put on your WIP-playlist this year?

Depends on the playlist. I have so many playlists.

I think the three most significant songs for P&J this year were Creatures in Heaven by Glass Animals, By Design by Jacob Banks, and Good Enough by Lø Spirit.

8. what are three things you're looking forward to next year?

Thing One: next year, I'll definitely be hitting 100 weeks of Magnet Monday. Which is crazy awesome! I've been thinking about compiling the first 100 weeks and maybe some of my other magnet poems and publishing them as a collection. I'm not sure... how I'm doing that? But it's something I'll be thinking seriously about next year

Thing Two: I want to work more on P&J next year, whether that means fleshing out the outline for real, or just writing random scenes until it starts to make sense, I'm not sure yet. But I miss my guys, I want everyone to look at them again

Thing Three: Space Cruise WIP will be getting outlined/written out of order too. I can't stop thinking about them either. I've never had a big sci-fi project with this much momentum behind it, and I really want to tackle it before I get sidelined by fantasy WIPs again.

15. time for shameless self-promotion! answer with a piece of writing you want others to see/read! (if you have nothing posted/published this year, any other year is fine too ^^)

Everybody Must Go Read My Anthology Blast. Go Get Blasted.

[send me an "end of year" ask]

[just-finished-watching]

Challengers

Finished Watching: 6/12/2024

Genre: Drama, Romance, Sports

Rating: 🌟/5 (1/5)

Expectations: I was so excited for this movie, but I was sorely disappointed. 30 minutes into the film, I realized I made a terrible mistake and was forced to stay because I'm a broke college student and wasn't willing to "waste" the $11 movie ticket. My friends and I spent the rest of the film in an empty theater (I'm guessing because everyone else had already watched it) cracking jokes and cringing.

Absolutely Not a Favorite

Summary: Tashi was a former prodigy tennis player turned coach for her husband, Art. She transformed him into a famous Grand Slam champion. Lately, he's been on a losing streak, so to fix that, Tashi signs him up for a "Challenger" event, where he finds himself facing his former best friend and Tashi's ex-boyfriend.

Thoughts (*SPOILERS*):

Wow wow wow, I actually disliked this movie so much. It was not the actors' fault, I think they just did their best with the script they were given. The vibes were there, but that's all this was. A vibes movie. At some point, I was completely lost, not because it was hard to understand, but because it was hard to care. The characters were hard to like, the plot was mostly fluff, and the romance was almost icky.

I usually have a favorite character in many of the things I watch, but I couldn't even force myself to like any of the characters. Tashi was my favorite in the beginning, but as the light faded from her eyes, I stopped caring. I did feel bad for her, but as she dragged it out, I got bored and was just waiting for something. Art was just a passive piece of shit, watching life go by. He had his good points (being a loving father will always make me a little bit soft), but he was too afraid to make a move on Tashi first so he turned to turning her and Patrick against each other. And Patrick is just a piece of shit, expecting the world to pause for him as he figured himself out. He didn't want what he was offered at first and still expected it? He's lucky Tashi didn't start knocking his fucking lights out.

I could not tell you what the hell happened in that movie. It was a tennis match, then a flashback, then another tennis match, but this time with a pov camera angle. There were some petty fights and reluctant break ups and everything felt so hesitant rather than being a fun bold film like I thought it would be.

Romance sucked. No, seriously, the two love interests seemed better suited for each other (which is how I thought the film would go), but instead they both went for Tashi who seemed to not be into either of them. Art is passive, waiting for Patrick to make first moves, and Patrick was too forceful, not waiting for anyones permission before taking complete control and getting mad when he didn't get his way. It also felt like they were hinting towards this with the way the two kissed each other? I honestly just sat there thinking, 'is this why they kept this in theaters until June?'

Overall, I don't think I would ever watch this movie again, or even recommend it to anybody unless their looking for something with a "rich person with rich person problems" vibes.

[harocat]

ao3 wrapped 2024 [writers edition]

How many words have you written this year? 55,308 published. God knows how many in WIPs.

How many works did you publish this year? 12 (+3 if you include that a couple of those are oneshot collections)

What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)? Maybe Little Black Rain Cloud for Oh No! Here Comes Trouble. A new fandom that was a bit outside my comfort zone, and I'm content with the results. Also Piece of the Dream for Till the End of the Moon and Don't Stop Me Now ('cause I'm having a good time) for Yuri on Ice. They were both for the Gotcha for Gaza events, and it was just really nice to be able to participate in something like that. Is that cheating for an answer? Oh well lol.

For the TTEOTM one, I like that I was able to work with a canon where the last part of it was overall unsatisfactory to me and instead of just going 'eh canon divergence' (which I've done multiple times before), try to use what exists create something I'm pleased with. I also like that I was able to give Sang Jiu a relevant role in it, because it annoyed me that Ming Ye was important in the last arc, but it was like she didn't even exist. For the second, it's just something I've thought about for a long time so it was nice to get a story about it written.

What work of yours has the most hits?: Every Story (is a love story) with 2,986 hits. Love Game in Eastern Fantasy fandom needed that reunion extension, and I ended up the first one to write it.

What work of yours got more feedback than you expected? See above. It hit at the exact right time. I wrote it the night after the finale aired, and I was the first fic posted in the fandom. I did expect people would be happy to read it, but I did not expect the link to get passed around that much. I do hope some of those people come back and check out other LGIEF fics I plan on writing/have written though. 😉

Favorite title you used Don't Stop Me Now ('cause I'm having a good time) for Yuri on Ice because it sounds so FUN (also Queen lyrics). It captures Yuuri as a skater to me so well. I also love Wonderful and Ordinary Moments for LGIEF, because it describes the exact vibe I want for post-canon Miaoqi (it's lyrics from Esther's Surge btw) and Piece of the Dream for Till the End of the Moon because it came to me before I even started writing. I love how it has multiple meanings (the literal dream arc, LSS's dream of bringing TTJ back, etc., the dragon scale, the world overturning jade, Zimi herself, Qingyu's dream, etc).

If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most? I used the following artists- Alan Menken and Matt Sullivan, Florence and the Machine, Squad Five 0, Queen, The Indigo Girls, Elton John and Tim Rice (Aida), Esther Yu, and uh... Winnie the Pooh technically (so, the Sherman Brothers). I didn't use anyone more than once.

Pairing you wrote the most for this year? Dongfang Qingcang/Xiao Lanhua ♥

Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? Canglan again, and it may very well be the same this year.

What work was the quickest to write? I feel like this is kind of hard to answer, because obviously it depends on length. There's a few I wrote in one night, so it would be those.

What work took you the longest to write? Like of course it's Desert Moon (Light the Way) for Love Between Fairy and Devil because it's by far the longest.

How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year? Nine that I am certain I want to finish. One continuing, eight new.

What’s your longest work of the year? Desert Moon (Light the Way) for LBFAD. It's 27k posted, many more in WIP.

What’s your shortest work of the year? This short MDZS Wangxian fic. It's 206 words.

What WIP are you taking into next year with you? Of posted fics?Desert Moon (Light the Way)

What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag? Romance. Literally everything I've written is tagged this.

Your favorite character to write this year? I looove writing DFQC and XLH. DFQC is especially delightful to write. He's such a weird little cutie pie. Ziqi is fun too because I am such a mush for writing characters who are brusque with insecure, soft centers. I loved writing the ONHCT trio as well. They are so funny.

The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year? To a degree, Victor Nikiforov. Obviously I've written him plenty of times before, but it has been a few years and I was just really worried about getting his voice right again. I felt okay with Yuuri, but very insecure about Victor at first. Also Ye Qingyu because I don't feel he has a very distinct voice so I was just kind of like 'uhhhhh'. I love him though.

What’s one pairing you want to explore next year? Dongfang Qincang/Xiao Lanhua and Ling Miaomiao/Ziqi.

Which work of yours have you reread the most? Uhhh not sure. Probably just the fluffier oneshots because they don't take long and can be a good mood pick me up.

How many kudos in total did you get this year? 1,130

Which work has the most comments? Desert Moon (Light the Way). It is a chapter fic though, and I've replied to comments. For oneshots that I have not yet replied to comments, by far and away Every Story (is a love story) for LGIEF.

Did you do any collaborative works this year? Desert Moon (Light the Way) is collaborative for @lbfad-minibang, with amazing art by @sir-raina-art

Did you write any gifts this year? Yes, so many for exchanges, gifts, and gotcha for Gaza events: Don't Stop me Now ('cause I'm having a good time) a (Yuri on Ice fic for @yuri-on-ice-action), Piece of the Dream (Till the End of the Moon for @cdrama-action), Shades of Pink and Red (Love Between Fairy and Devil for @honeysbunchesofoats), Cherry Lips (Till the End of the Moon for @hystericblue), I wish I could hate You (MDZS for @prolestari), Wait a minute, are you jealous? (TGCF for @abarero), Like a Kitten Kiss (Magia Record for @abarero), Love in Between (Samurai Flamenco for Yuletide), and Little Black Rain Cloud (Oh No! Here Comes Trouble for Yuletide).

Did you receive any gifts this year? LITERALLY SO MANY. laws of physics lose their way (for Oh No! Here Comes Trouble), 花好月圆 | Blooming Flowers and a Full Moon (for Love Between Fairy and Devil), i'm a fox and you're a burrow (for Mysterious Lotus Casebook), double trouble (for Love Between Fairy and Devil), drag you to the shore (for Mysterious Lotus Casebook), Renewal in Self-Destruction (for Till the End of the Moon), XLHxDFQC f/f 🔥🔥 (for Love Between Fairy and Devil- NSFW text), Paws for Thought (for MDZS), to finally begin (My Journey to You), Exceptions (Slayers). This does not touch on all the amazing fanart.

What’s your most common category? M/F lol

What do you listen to while writing? Depends on the fic! I have a playlist of figure skating music, which tends to be classical, movie scores, etc. that I use a lot. I also listen to a lot of very atmospheric music like Florence and the Machine, Loreena Mckennitt, etc.

Favorite work you wrote this year? I think Desert Moon (Light the Way) for LBFAD just because it's a chapter fic that means a lot to me. And it WILL be finished. So much more of it is already written.

Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?  

Probably this passage from when Dongfang Qingcang and Xiao Lanhua first see Silent Moon Palace again in Desert Moon:

They drove east, past the singing sands and through the craggy peaks that separated the rest of the desert from what used to be the capital of Cangyan Sea. They drove east, through what must have once been woods where widows wept and through a valley where, if you looked up, you could see what remained of what must have been the last version of Love Lock Bridge. They drove east, through ruins of the city they’d once known and loved, and then, on the horizon, there it was. It reigned high above the rest of the land; the towers and spires, the majestic spiral steps, the sheer scale of it. Untouched.  Xiao Lanhua stopped the motorcycle and took off her helmet and goggles, and Dongfang Qingcang did the same. She bowed her head. This moment felt almost like mourning. Mourning a friend, the world she’d known and come to love in her time with Dongfang Qingcang so long ago. The Cangyan Sea that had become her home; the days they spent in the market buying whatsoever the other desired; the mornings in the courtyards of Silent Moon Palace, watering her flowers. Sometimes Daqiang would lift her up onto his shoulders so she could trim the low hanging branches of the magnolia trees. There were so many ghosts visible. How many more lay beneath the sand?  She glanced over to him, out of the corner of her eyes. His head was bowed as well, and his hands were clasped around the strap of the helmet and goggles.  Xiao Lanhua lifted her head toward him. She gently placed her fingers under his chin and pushed it up, turning his face toward hers.  Anything they could say, they said in silence. Neither of them wept. This moment was not for them, but the memories that they’d never be able to relive—fleeting, ephemeral, and so long ago. Being an immortal meant comprehending the passage of time on a completely different scale than anyone else in the three realms, so how was it that against the passing of the eras, even they were powerless?  Silent Moon Palace gleamed in the distance, beautiful as ever but strange in this landscape, like a spirit that still haunted this land, an elder god ruling over a forgotten realm.  Xiao Lanhua felt his hand slip into hers, and he pulled her toward him in an embrace. Dongfang Qingcang buried his nose in her hair, taking in the feel of it and the smell of it. It may have been trite to say, being that she was the Xishan goddess, but she always smelled of life, of flowers, of a green spring day when everything has just started to bloom. Even now, over four shichen into a drive across the hot desert, he could still smell that on her. He grounded himself with it. This was real. This was not a memory, not a dream. This was not a ruin or a legend or a ghost.  Xiao Lanhua was here; she was rubbing his back, and he could feel her breath against the hollow of his neck, and she was not going anywhere.  “Let’s go, Xiao Lanhua,” he near whispered. “Our home awaits us.” 

This is also the scene that Raina drew!

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?  That I was able to write SO MANY different fandoms (literally nine fandoms wtf). I've always been a very one fandom at a time girlie.

Some of these questions I'd already answered, so I just copy pasted those answers. lol.

[noratilney]

For the Fanfic Writer Wrapped 2024!! ^_^ #1, 2, 6, 8, 12, 23, 26, 27, 39, 40 annddd 41! Enjoy.

(I'm giving you a lot, because this one's more a celebratory game than generic asks lol)

Thank you so much, Day! 💙

1. What fic did you work on the most this year?

I'm not entirely sure; I unfortunately did not spend as much time as I'd like dedicated to fic writing; but I think it's probably either the Vaella au, my Glee ficlet, or my untitled Tortall fic.

2. Did you have any fic writing goals? Did you meet them?

I didn't set any resolution-type goals this year. The only thing I wanted to try and get done was one fic update before Christmas which I have not yet done although I guess there's still time. Realistically, I would still be happy if I managed one before the end of the year.

6. Do you have a favourite fic you wrote?

Like a favorite fic ever? Uhh, I think this one, Lies and Precious Things. It comes in at a little under 600 words and I think it packs a lot of emotion into that while not drowning in exposition. Idk, I just like it.

8. Favourite line of dialogue this year?

From the Glee ficlet:

“I’m Puck.” Noah says. “It’s on account of my last name.” And from then on he is Puck everywhere to everyone but Mom and Sadie and the Garcia Sandovals and the occasional stickler teacher.

Moreso for the way I found to explain how Puck ended up being called that instead of his first name than the literal dialogue itself.

12. Did you receive any advice that resonated to you this year?

It wasn't given to me specifically but it's a piece of advice the author Maggie Stiefvater shared that had been given to her about managing how much you can do on a given day.

23. Were there any ideas you wanted to work on this year but you didn’t?

Absolutely yeah! So many. I get ideas in excess of both my time and ability to sit down and work on them. Particularly, I would say I would have liked to have gotten to work on some of my Bonnie Bennett-centric fic ideas. There's always next year.

26. Do you have a goal for next year? If so, what is it?

I think I want to try tracking how many words I'm writing! I'm hoping to either surprise myself with how much I'm writing or motivate myself to write more.

27. What are your hopes and/or desires for yourself and for other fic writers in the next year?

Other than well wishes for other fic writers, hoping you feel really inspired and have tons of time to write, I don't really feel like it's my place to dictate what other people do with their time? I mean yes there are totally fics by others I would love to see continue but 🤷🏻‍♀️.

I hope I'm really productive next year! Basic, I know.

39. What fics or authors would you recommend for others to discover and read in the next year?

Oh, that's a great question. I have scattered fic recommendations across this blog and my main and this year, I've begun attempting to do not every Friday but consistently a #fic back friday fic recommendation. I think I would like to try for next year to manage at least one fic recommendation a month (not necessarily an older fic), which I think is quite doable and would finish the year out with 12.

Of course it depends on what one looks for in a fic and what fandoms but I love pretty much everything devilinthedetails and deweydecibelsystem have written across various fandoms; nasimwrites is great for thoughtful and worldbuilding Narnia work, especially centered around Aravis/Calormen; I love rain-sleet-snow's Tortall twelfth night au series; peterbeale also writes across a number of fandoms, I especially like their Teen Wolf and TVDU works; and PanBoleyn is great for ASoIaF and The Magicians.

40. What advice would you have for people who might want to try writing or sharing their writing next year?

For writing&sharing fic for the first time, I think you have to be really passionate about both the fandom and the fic you're writing. I've never been good at outlining myself but that's probably useful.

I think you also need to be ready to not get any reception to your fic. I know that sucks to hear and I do think there's an audience for every fic out there but that doesn't mean it'll happen right away.

Don't forget to proofread/spellcheck and tell people you wrote a fic! Include a link!

41. Any regrets?

Hmmm, this is not unique to this year or fic writing but I do have a bad habit of coming across a resource or advice or something of that sort, saying to myself oh that sounds like a good advice, and then essentially filing it away and not doing anything with it.

I'm not sure if there's writing advice out there that works for me but since I'm not writing as much as I would like, I feel it'd be worthwhile to try some out.

[ursafootprints]

11, 12 & 19 for the 2024 asks! <3

11. What fic was the most difficult to write?

[emerges battered and bloodied from my most recent editing session on Perpetual Motion]

what was the question

(But yeah definitely PM sldkjfsl. I went in without as much of a defined plan as I normally do with fics of this length, which was intentional! I was in a bit of a writing rut and was giving myself permission to just wing it instead of having more of the structure/framing devices already mapped out that would give shape to the general vibes I wanted to portray! I wanted to focus on Just Writing!

But said neglected structure/framing devices for sticking the landing did not appear via inspiration over the course of Just Writing the way I hoped they would, so now it's a fight to carve what was just a big pile of vibes in my head into a cohesive and streamlined shape. I'm working on it! It's coming together! But it's a FIGHT.)

12. What fic was the easiest to write?

The second part of my Tokyo Babylon fusion, if you can make it here, was super easy and something I put together in basically one sitting-- it's a single 1.4k scene and basically just atmosphere-- but I technically wrote that in 2023 and it just didn't get posted until this year!

So for something I actually completed this year, hhhhh probably my xenokink fic First Contact, if I exclude outside the program for being a pile of disconnected askblog snippets instead of coherent narrative? It took me like a year to start after I talked about it with @king-of-kaoss but my main struggles with it once I got started were mostly figuring out what I wanted Peter's monster design to be and then describing that-- it's a pretty simple fic otherwise, so it came together okay in the end compared to the more complex alternatives of double-blind/Perpetual Motion.

(The most fun part of the "design" process was scrolling Bad Dragon and deciding what visual features I wanted to incorporate into Peter's monsterdick. A+ do recommend writing xenokink just for this purpose it was very fun.)

19. Share your favorite piece of dialogue

"I love you," Peter said, and it was still its own shock to hear when he hadn't said it in so long. Tony felt numb, relieved, overjoyed, heartbroken, and he didn't know what he felt at all when Peter pressed a kiss to his slack mouth. "I love you, Dad, I promise. I'm going to fix it, okay? I'm going to fix everything." He cupped Tony's cheek, urgent and earnest and still so beautiful as he gazed into Tony's eyes and insisted, soft, "I'm going to save you."

I love a lot of the conversations in double-blind, and Tony and Peter's argument when Peter smashes up the house is a close runner-up to this one! But I am particularly fond of this one for, other than being quite sweet/tragic on the face of it, also being a reference to one of my favorite scenes from my favorite anime, Revolutionary Girl Utena. (Wherein the main character also saves a loved one from an influence that is clouding their mind/usual state of morals!)

Thank you for playing! 💖💖💖

[sybaritick]

Writer asks! 😁 10, 12, 18? 👉👈

(for the weird questions for writers ask game!) thank you for sending 'em! 10. Has a piece of writing ever “haunted” you? Has your own writing haunted you? What does that mean to you?

There def pieces of writing that "haunt" me in the sense that they have stayed with me for being so darkly emotionally affecting: the lyrics of the climax of Joanna Newsom's Only Skin have been meaningful in my heart for over a decade at this point. same with Invictus, it's a cliche but I encountered it at a rough part of my life so it meant a lot to me. More recently it has been Salvage that keeps coming to mind: I feel grateful for it, for being so bluntly honest about a feeling that is so difficult to talk about.

My own writing? The one that I keep coming back to is HANDLED just because I think I did a good job explaining the "vibe" in a way that feels salient to me, though I'm not sure it's effective communication to anyone else!

12. If a genie offered you three writing wishes, what would they be? Btw if you wish for more wishes the genie turns all your current WIPs into Lorem Ipsum, I don’t make the rules

hm, what counts as a writing wish. did you know someone once asked me a "three wishes" type question on my old tumblr like 6 years ago and i said i'd wish to be omnipotent

i wish that 1) i eventually finish my long-form original, PRMH, to my satisfaction and edit it into something nice that my friends can read, and 2) i write a bunch more lyrics in 2024, i like writing lyrics, and 3) i get better at writing more and weirder kinks in my erotica (both fandom and original) :D

18. Choose a passage from your writing. Tell me about the backstory of this moment. How you came up with it, how it changed from start to end. Spicy addition: Questioner provides the passage.

Let's steal something from the dinner from Tephra Year ch1 since that's fresh in my mind!

"This is all delicious," he commented after a second helping. "I almost want to ask if the chef is of Waterdhavian background, because from what you've said, you're a Baldurian to the core." Enver shook his head, amused. "My tastes are varied, but I'll admit your suspicions are correct. I only wanted to ensure they'd get a bit of practice. I wouldn't want you to get homesick.” He gave Gale a soft, modest smile. “You should let me know of your favorites." "You're too kind," Gale said, before realizing what a tremendously comedic thing it was to say without further context. "I'm happy to hear it. If you aren't being kept in greater luxury than you were accustomed to in your seaside tower, I've failed as a host." It was after Gale had finished his third glass of wine and his second story about Tara that a servant brought out a dessert— a beautiful tart, heavy with ripe, glistening slices of pear. Gortash took a generous piece for himself, and Gale felt permitted to follow suit. 

so the general vibe here is, of course, that Gortash is trying to get on Gale's good side very hard and make this little business arrangement feel friendly and enjoyable so that Gale lets his guard down a bit and is more cooperative instead of feeling like he's being forced (he's not gonna be as effective if he's thinking about "I am doing a horrible thing for a horrible man" the whole time!)

interesting notes: There used to be a line in here that literally said that Gale hardly noticed he was only talking about himself, which I was on the fence about including-- wonderful beta reader (@slipintosomethingsoft hi) encouraged me that it wasn't necessary and I could keep the show-don't-tell approach and add a couple more details like having Gortash smile after his comment about homesickness to make it all the more obvious he's being weird right now. also I love describing food (and i have a little bit of a thing about gale eating for the 0 of my followers who aren't aware). I wanted to have Gale cautiously surprised by the aggressively-pandering menu-- yet enjoying it all anyway! supposed to be a sort of echo of his general vibe of "i know i should be watching out, but i'll watch out, and in the meantime i can enjoy myself, right? might as well". gale, essentially, sees what's happening and thinks he's more than clever enough to manage to snap up the bait without setting off the trap. :3

[marshmallowgoop]

2023 Writing Review

[2017] [2018] [2019] [2021] [2022]

2023 feels like it went by so quickly that it's a little hard to find much to say about my experience with writing this year.

The fact that my free time was more devoted to video editing than to writing probably also has a lot to do with that. (2023 AMV review to come!)

Much of my writing even wound up being about video editing. One of my longest essays this year—and one of the most rewarding, insightful conversations I've ever been a part of on Tumblr—detailed the struggles of an AMV editor (or just any artist at all). I really gotta give a shout out to standardquip's thoughtful responses. Seriously, give it a look!

I usually try to highlight a post or piece of writing from each month with these reviews, but that'd seem awfully lopsided for 2023, where the majority of my essays and fics were posted in late winter. So, here's a handful of favorites instead!

HeiShinRan Love Triangle?

Shinichi and Heiji’s Parents

The Boy’s Return of a Favor - Chapter 1 (Detective Conan fic)

take the bullet (Detective Conan fic)

Thoughts on Mamoru Hosoda's Belle

Mixing an Old Anime Dub with HD Footage

Short AMVs Aren’t Inherently Effortless

Unethical to Like an Anime Dub That Makes Dialogue Changes?

Or most of them because this year wasn't a heavy writing year.

The end of 2023 admittedly makes me feel a bit sad; there was so much more writing that I wanted to finish before it came to a close. But I'm so grateful for the support and kind comments that the writing I did post received across all 12 months. Thank you, and Happy New Year! On to 2024!

[chairsarefornerds]

I have been filling my brain with too many pieces of media that deserve a longer amount of time in my head, I'm trying to catch up on Horror movies I feel I need to watch and there's so many that I feel like need more time in my head, and I will attempt to put my thought on the all the movies I've watched in the past few weeks here so I can think through it:

Scream Series - if y'all wann hear my thoughts lmk because this series I could go in depth on, the rankings go

Scream - 9/10

Scream 2 - 4/10

Scream 3 - 3/10

Scream 4 - 7/10

Scream 5 - 8/10

Scream 6 - 9/10

Crimson Peak - Spent this entire movie convinced they were cannibals and I've never been more disappointed to not see someone get eaten. Honestly solid twist but I predicted it in like 12 minutes and my roommate GASLIT ME. - 6/10

Fantastic Mr. Fox - Amazing, classic, made me cry 8/10

Us - Possibly the most frightening movie I've seen, literally one bad scene, and it's just because it slightly over explains, in a way that leads to some unanswerable questions interpreted as plotholes, however I think that piece is more symbolic and stylistic and this movie is one of my favorite horror movies ever, and also one of the most frightening things I've seen, period. - 9.9

Nope - GORGEOUS MOVIE, if you work or do entertainment at all I believe this movie should be required viewing for people in our profession, it is such a gorgeous commentary and has amazingly compelling characters and also one of the most horrific scenes to enter a horror movie. - 10/10

Nightmare on Elm Street - For a classic, I felt underwhelmed, I think it's hurt by the fact that I am familiar with Freddy as a character, and also knew most of the effects, personally it wasn't particularly suspenseful but possibly slasher films don't particularly speak to me? - 5/10

Nightmare on Elm Street 2 - SO GAY, the movie has easily the most frightening scene in this entire series, and has a wonderful meta-commentary of a queer boy discovering himself. This is without a doubt my favorite movie in the series, very dark and creepy with phenomenal effects, Wes Craven I bless you. - 8.5/10

NIghtmare on Elm Street 3 - Peak Freddy as a character, goofy, mean, amazing and such creative effects and kills, including most of the classics you think of when you think of Nightmare on Elm Street (The String Puppet, It's Prime TIme Bitch, and the insane overdose kill with those finger syringes) - 6/10

Nightmare on Elm Street 4 - SO BORING MAN also some weirdly creepy moments from Freddy, really boring but sadly not the worst, I didn't like it - 3/10

Nightmare on Elm Street 5 - Fucking - what happened in this movie? OH SHIT YEAH this is probably the stupidest conceit and the worst final act and such boring kills I just didn't like it, one of my least favorite movies I've seen honestly. Also... SUPER FREDDY SUCKSSSS - 2/10

Nightmare on Elm Street 6 - Confession time, such a fun fucking movie and I don't get the hate it is so fun, so funny, has a couple of the best scenes (and one of the worst but shhh) I absolutely adored how fun and camp this movie was, it also had literally the only moment I felt frightened since the second movie and it was just so fun, great effects and stupid fun slasher movie. - 8/10

IT (2019) - Always loved this movie, I can talk about it forever - 9/10

Salem's Lot (2024) - Reddit can fuck itself this is a wonderful vampire story and has some horrifying shots, as well as a fun story and characters. Terrifying visuals such a great movie. Now, I will say I haven't read the Stephen King book yet and from what I understand if you've read the book and want a faithful adaptation you should watch Midnight Mass instead, however it is separately a really great vampire movie, incredibly stylistic. - 8/10

Lisa Frankenstein - WOnderful commitment to its aesthetic as well as a really clever set-up and payoff, there's somthing beautiful in the way she is putting herself together with the pieces she cuts off of the people who make her feel incomplete, amazing movie will be watching it repeatedly - 8.7/10

The Barbie Movie - 9/10 you know, it made me cry, loved it of course should have watched it earlier.

Saltburn- Y'all understand a movie can be about a psychosexual relationship AND be a critique on class right? Like, this was my first time watching it and I think if you take away the class commentary you remove a large piece of the film and I'm worried some of the opinions I saw on this movie were written by people who believe a movie is incapable of holding two thoughts at once and I'd just like to talk because I fear we watched different movies if you go "it's actually not really about class" - 9/10

Ready or Not - Amazing horror movie, with a badass main character who goes through some BRUTAL moments, honestly if not Abigail then this is the epitome of Radio Silence. Hilarious ensemble cast and genuine surprises and shocks and pain throughout, a true delight. - 8.5/10

Rumble Fish - Stylistic movie, wonderful commentary with a great cast, I have yet to watch The Outsiders but this movie is the reason that I will. - 8/10

The Muppet Movie - Beautiful, Rainbow Connection always makes me cry, fun movie, should hav put it between som fucked movies and not on its own. - 8/10

Midsommar- Gorgeous, cult movie, amazing fake-out that reminds me of Get Out, where you think the "evil thing" is this one thing but it's actually this almost more fucked up but sybolically better thing instead, with fucking stunning effects and cinematography. - 9/10

Bodies Bodies Bodies - So funny, such a fun movie and great twist, I adore it! Amazing characters, including genuinely great queer rep, and great suspense! Wonderful cast and a hilarious movie- 9/10

I Saw the TV Glow - HOLY FUCKING- Y'ALL I CAN'T!!! I don't think i've been in aspot where, after sleeping on a movie I'm not able to analyze it, this movie is still staring into my soul. THIS. IS PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR. This movie opened me up and layed me there, holy shit y'all if you haven't seen it GO WATCH IT RIGHT NOW. - 13/10

Oscar - Amzing'ly wonderful cute movie which needs nothing, if you like Clue you'll like this, if you like movies that are thinly veiled farce's you'll love this, wonderful character acting, 10/10

Yes I know they're not all horror, I needed to watch things in between so my mental health didn't fucking self-destruct. Any recommendations y'all think I should watch?

[dawnoftime22]

"...and it just did."

| W.M ( -> N.R)

Undeserving of a Love Like Yours, Chapter 5

Chapter Warnings: A very emotionally packed chapter, relationship problems, cheating, arguing, anxiety, overthinking, andd...just be prepared.

Summary: The truth unfolds itself easily on a special day.

Series Summary: When you're stuck in a complete hole of confusion and hurt with the one you thought you loved most, a certain redhead finds her way into your life.

Word Count: 8.7k (...oops)

Category: Angst.

A/N: this chapter has been eeeeverywhere with me. I wrote it in the car, at work, in my bedroom, and even at a hotel room. but, I hope you all enjoy<3 it's a whole lot, so it was quite difficult to finish, but february's over and I have more free time again!

also theres a playlist for this series out now :] in case you need something to listen to while reading. be careful while scrolling the songs to avoid just bits of teensy spoilers<3

Series Playlist

| Started on 10/01/2024, 12:16 PM |

| Finished on 05/03/2024, 3:45 PM |

Masterlist | Series Masterlist | N.R Masterlist

<- Chapter 4 Chapter 6 ->

"What is there to say?"

|——————————— ᗢ ———————————|

You drag your feet across the wooden floorboards, making your way towards the kitchen. Here it is again, the same routine. But yet this time, you see a sticky note left on the marble counter, illuminated by a dim overhead lighting.

You furrow your eyebrows, but go over to read it anyway, the bright color a big difference to the white counter. 'might not be home until tomorrow,' was written on the piece of paper. Your heart didn't drop as much anymore. Your shoulders only droop a little, as if just a teensy bit more weight had been added.

A quiet breath leaves your mouth. Your hand picks up the sticky note and scraps it up within your palms, throwing it off to a nearby trashcan in the kitchen. Who else needed to read it anyway? It was only for you. Only for you.

You shook your head of the remaining thoughts you had of her, but she couldn't quite leave your mind at least once. Always there. Always lingering. As if you had been cursed. But in honest truth, the only curse you had upon you was the spell of love.

Today was a special day. Key word on the was. Some type of hope swirling in your heart maybe had you looking forward to this day, but all of it had just gone down along with the piece of paper in the trash. Your eyes also flicker to it once more, seeing the many other colored paper sitting scrunched up with the one from just now. At least she had the decency to still leave notes.

But, today was, of course...your birthday. And out of all the people, your favorite person was certainly not present. Maybe she had forgotten, you thought. Maybe she just didn't care enough this year...no, how could she?

You snap yourself out, having stared off at the sunlight shining in through the windows. You go to the fridge to see what was still in there. A bitten sandwich from last night, and some leftover chickens, but your lip forms a line and you close it, your hand dropping off to your pocket to retrieve your phone.

It was currently 9:45 AM, the digits frozen still on the same numbers until the full sixty seconds passes by. Your mind was in a haze, but your stomach was empty and it urged you to find some food. Were you just going to go out by yourself? Your body seemed to stop you from even going to the living room. Take-out was an option, but instead you simply laid your phone down on the counter, it making a small noise, the textures clashing.

You put your head in your hands, covering up your face and sliding your fingers across your skin, your palm cupping your own cheeks as a way to get a grip of yourself.

Your phone came up with a notification of your calendar, getting out with a reminder of your birthday. What great timing. You clear it off your screen and unlock your phone, roaming the apps.

Just as you were about to push yourself off the counter and grab the last of the food in the fridge, your screen changes without you touching anything. The contact name came up with...Carol?

Your face relaxes a bit and your thumb hesitantly goes to pick it up rather than tap on the red button, the ringing going away. The phone goes along with your hand when you put it against your ear.

"Hey Carol." You say casually, trying your best not to sound too questionable, as it wasn't usual that she'd call you. You hear some distinct voices whispering in the background of her side, one sounding like a young kid.

"Hey, just wanted to call and um...check in on you?" Her voice ended up sounding questionable instead, and your face goes into a confused reaction, although a smile growing on your lips. You let out a small chuckle, your eyes roaming the space of the room as you thought of your words.

"'Check in on me?' Come on, you rarely do that." Your hand goes to grab a nearby notebook that's been left on the counter, saved for recipes. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to say happy birthday to you. Maria reminded me and she and Monica got me to...call you." You assume she had a small pause in her sentence because she was looking over at the other two people in the room with her, which was who you had heard earlier.

"That's nice of her. And thank you." The pages of the book was soft against your hands, your fingers tracing and fiddling with some as you smiled softly at the thought of Maria scolding Carol for having forgotten.

"Well that, or, I would probably not have any pancakes for myself right about now." She says, her mouth nearly sounding like it was full. You'd guessed it was.

"Even though you were threatened to wish me, thank you." You add on, laughing gently as you did. There was a page you landed on in the notebook with a cookie recipe. One, specifically where you and Wanda had made together, having shared a wonderful memory that day.

You could feel your heart beat within your chest, the pace going quicker as your eyes looked over the words written on the paper that was accompanied with smiley faces and hearts here and there.

The smile on your face had definitely faltered. You take in a deep breath, letting it out once you let yourself close the book. Carol's voice snaps you back to reality, having remembered you were talking with her.

"I'm kidding, I would've called you up either way. Really though, how are you?" Your teeth sank down on your bottom lip, probably enough to puncture the skin or leave a small mark, but you let it go once you talked.

"I'm...fine. Other than sitting in my house alone not knowing what to do than sulk in bed or contemplating my life choices." With that answer, the blonde definitely knew something wasn't entirely right. She stays quiet for a while, perhaps thinking.

"Do you wanna go out and hang at the bar? We can do some karaoke if you want that as a birthday present." She offers, and the attempt makes you smile weakly. She never really knew what to do for your birthday, not being the type to do birthdays more than just a simple wish to them. But for you, she'd offer to hang out, which is what you love to do most of the time.

"Sorry, but I don't really feel like partying or anything right about now. Well, tempting, but, I just wanna relax." You say quietly, sliding the recipe book back to its original place.

"Okay, then..." Carol trails off as her mind tries to come up with some more ideas. You were about to think she was going to just hang up sooner or later, but then you hear her voice continue with a more interesting take.

"There's the mall." You raise your eyebrows. She couldn't see you with you being over the phone, but she just knew you were probably surprised. And you were.

"And what would we do there?" You ask, your mind unable to conjure up the slightest of an imagination of going to the mall with her in a casual situation.

"Well, we could grab some ice cream, buy some things, go to the arcade, go...I don't know." She suggests, just nearly giving up. She wasn't good at this type of stuff really, she's simply basing it off of the times she and Monica hangs out together. You could at least picture the straight line her mouth forms when she finished her sentence, and you had to resist a laugh.

"Ice cream does sound really good." Your mind opened a little with the simple thought of ice cream. Even though the comfort of your bed and the couch seemed nicer, it's not a lot of times she ends up inviting you to hang out like this anyway.

"The mall it is." The blonde says, and you can hear some clatter over the phone. She had finished her pancakes, you supposed.

"Am I driving or...?" You trail off, fiddling around with your fingers and sliding them against the marble counter, the coldness a difference to the sunlight coming from the window.

"I'll pick you up." You then hear the sound of keys, and you couldn't back out anymore. She was driving to your house to grab you, and it'd be impolite to cancel.

"Okay." You say under a breath, feeling heavier with every second that goes by. The guilt and anxiety was eating you up, but the date on the calendar just next to the recipe book had your mind getting out of the thoughts.

"I'll be there in 10. Please don't be glued to your bed when I arrive," She said, to which you let out a quiet chuckle. You couldn't really tell if it was in a stern way or a soft way, but it definitely pushed you a little more to get up and change your clothes.

"I won't. See you here." You say gently and the end tone sounds out, making you pull your phone away from your ear.

With that decided, you push yourself off the counter, slowly going off to the bedroom. The closet opens easily, revealing the same clothes you see every day. You shuffle through some of the hanged shirts, looking at what to wear.

Soon enough, you pull one out. It easily slides off, brushing against the many other shirts within the closet. Your eyes don't linger on the other ones that weren't yours, and you close the door after grabbing everything else.

Later on, you get finished up with changing your clothes, and now you were only waiting for Carol to arrive. There was something that prickled within your heart, like a roses stem with thorns, a worry that maybe she changed her mind and she actually didn't want to hang out with you. Maybe she was only doing it out of sympathy? But that can't be true. What about all the times she's driven you back home when you got a little too many drinks?

...You take a deep breath and turn away from the wall you were staring off into like it was the abyss. Instead your hands checked that you had everything on you, like your phone, keys, and your watch.

Then, the sound of a car pulling up at the front of the house made you look up, your eyes carefully watching the windows. You see a Nissan outside, and it was obvious it was Carol arriving.

Quickly, you got off the couch while your phone made sound, definitely a text message from her that she's arrived. You open the front door, going outside. Her blonde hair could be seen clearly through the car windows, confirming the person in your head.

You make your way to the car, opening the front passenger door. "Hey," you say gently, going in and and closing the door along with you.

"Hey." your greetings were simple, a usual thing to happen. Carol glanced at you while you buckled in, giving you a small smile before starting to slowly position the car back to the roads.

The car had some old soft rock playing, filling up the quietness. It also had you already moving just a little to the beats, staring out the window as she drove you both to the mall. She's always had good playlists. Sometimes you'd even have an urge to ask her to give you some of her cds.

"So, what are you aiming to steal my money for today?" She jokes after a song, her eyes focused on the roads. You let out a small chuckle, looking over to her.

"I'm not letting you spend your money on me for something that isn't a drink." You shake your head, fiddling around with your fingers in your lap. The blonde notices it when her eyes flicker over to you for a second before returning to the roads.

"It's your birthday, Y/N. You have to have a little fun. Let loose," she says, and you raise an eyebrow, turning your head to her. The last two words were new, at least when it comes out of her mouth.

"Maria's words, not mine." she quickly stated, making a smile grow on your face. You stop fiddling with your fingers and instead intertwine them with each other, your gaze going back to the window.

"Come on, any ideas?" The car stops at a red light, and she looks over to you. You stayed quiet in thought, although nothing much came up. She sees only the side of your head until you made your decision.

"We'll do yours," you say, having unable to think of anything. Your mind was clouded over. Honestly, a part of your body just wanted to lie in bed hopelessly the whole day, but something else pulled you.

"Then it's settled," she nods, the steering wheel turning with her hand as she made a right. You think over her words on the phone call earlier, 'Ice cream, buy some things, arcade', and you start to get just a bit more excited.

"Ice cream first?" You ask, looking to her with hope. She furrows her eyebrows and makes a face to you, and your lip forms a tight line, like a child asking for something and getting scared of the answer.

"Of course ice cream goes first." The car goes forwards once more, the light having turned green. You cheer quietly, and she gently shakes her head at your antics. At least she got you to release the emotional tension you had in your body. Even if just a little.

The rest of the car ride consisted of singing and dancing, the conversations being light. The weight on your shoulders got lifted up just a little bit more. When you were about to arrive and she was going to park, 'Please Mr. Postman' started playing and your face brightened at the intro.

She raised her eyebrows at your quick happiness at the simple song, but smiled and laughed at how fast you got into singing it. Really, it's always been a main song for whenever you hanged out, but it's been so long since she saw you sing it, she got surprised. Soon enough though, she sang with you, the two of you moving in your seats to the words.

When the song ends, she turns off the engine and both of you get out the car. The parking lot wasn't all that filled up, so it was a chance there weren't many people in the mall.

She puts on her cap and walks to the entrance with you behind her, the noise of crows and other birds made sound, echoing from somewhere afar as you made your way to the sliding doors.

The cold air of the mall quickly greeted you like a slap of reality in the face, like waking yourself up with a cold shower after laying in bed for too, too long. A way to make you feel more alive.

The ice cream shop wasn't far, and with how little amount of people were here, the two of you got to go to the counter right when you arrive to order your preferred flavour.

Your eyes watch the ice cream get put on the cone, and you do a little dance when your hand got ahold of it, while Carol was giving her money to the cashier of the total cost.

The cashier smiles at the two of you and says their 'thank you', making you smile back before turning around, Carol easily catching up with you from your slow walking.

The two of you walk and enjoy your ice cream, the coldness definitely making you more free feeling. There were clothing stores, shoe stores, little snack shops, and every other thing you could ever imagine. You passed by each one though, but you did point out some cool looking things here and there to Carol.

Soon enough, you come upon a pet shop and your eyes widen, your lips matching with a smile. You walk towards it, wanting to look at all the animals. Carol had to walk faster so she didn't lose you.

There were parrots, cats, dogs, hamsters, fishes, bunnies, and even some lizards. Your mouth was agape as you stared at some of them, but you walk over to the cats.

"Aw, look!" You point at an orange cat, who's sitting patiently with it's tail smoothly flicking back and forth as it watched people pass by.

Carol was looking at the dogs until you called, making her go over to you to see what you were melted at. As if you hadn't already from the other little animals.

"This one is so cute." You lean forward and capture the attention of the cat, making it stand up and walk closer to you.

Carol's head tilted slightly and her eyes squinted as she inspected the info of the cat. The name, the breed, the date and place of birth... "...Goose. Huh."

"I want to take it home." You blurt out as you let the cat follow your hand around, and its head moves here and there instead of its body. It was a playful cat, a paw going up here and there to reach out to you.

"You should get it if you love it that much." Carol says, with her usual deadpan voice that you honestly find amusing. Although, for this, your face turns deadpanned instead and you stare at her, making her raise your eyebrows at you. It was nearly a staredown.

"Danvers, I cannot take care of a cat...let alone myself." You gesture to the cat, and it looked at you questionably. Your shoulders slump a little at the last words of your sentence, and Carol frowns a little.

"I'm sure it'll be able to help you cope or something." Really, she was thinking in her head of surprising it to you as a birthday present for later tonight when she sends you home.

"Why don't you get it? I think Monica would go crazy." You glance back at her, and she purses her lips, staring at the cat. It was the most vibrant color of all the other cats.

"And Maria would go crazier." She said, turning to you for a second but then going back to the entrance of the shop instead, perhaps making her escape from you flipping the table to her.

"You can convince her." You say, the volume of your voice going up a little considering she's farther away. You take a quick glance back at the cat, hesitating to leave, but going away to catch up to the blonde.

"No, now, we are going to the arcade." You laugh when you hear her stern voice, although something in you knew she had a thought about getting it.

You looked around as you walked, seeing the arcade not far away now, the place lit up by machines and screens. But something caught your eye and made you look twice.

Were you dreaming? Well...having a nightmare? You felt like so. Your body definitely didn't react in a good way. Honestly, your heart felt like you were about to have a heart attack with how fast it was beating.

Carol's hat made shade for her face from the sun coming through the mall's glass roof as she walked. She stops along with you when she noticed, confusion filling her face at the sudden stop.

When she follows your eyes to where you were looking though, immediately her eyes widen and her face was in complete shock just as yours were.

A brunette, green eyes...green jacket...

It couldn't have been.

You look closer on the face, and it was. And her hand was not swinging by itself as she walked.

It wasn't with your hand either, because you were plenty of feet away from her.

It was with someone else. Something in the back of your mind felt like they were familiar, although you couldn't even dare focus on that.

Your whole day-- well, your whole world fell apart right then and there. Just like that.

You can feel your heart beating up to your ears, and it felt like time stopped. And not in the good way. Oh, you wish. You wish it was the time you saw her green eyes staring back at you and the whole world only felt like it held the two of you. But not anymore.

Maybe it was the numbing adrenaline rush of the shock coming through, but you take in a deep breath, ripping your gaze away. You couldn't bare to look at the sight anymore.

You clench your jaw, your hand gripping itself in a fist. Your eyes pooled with tears and Carol looked at you, her own misery at finding out the truth obvious on her face, although she was mostly worried about you.

"You know what? Maybe we can...do this another day." You say, trying your best to not let your voice shake entirely, but it did falter.

"You don't wanna--" She was about to suggest trying to distract yourself with the arcade, but at the same time, nothing could make you feel better after seeing such a thing.

"Just take me home." Your mouth moved quickly and you spoke quietly, your eyes flicking back to the spot where she was walking, but she was out of sights already.

You turn around and walk fast, not wanting to linger anymore. Carol walks with you. There was nothing said as you made your way out and to the car. The lovely sounds of the birds chirping now fell on deaf ears as your legs kept you moving.

The car door opens easily with the pull of your hand, and you get in, but you were careful to not slam the door. Carol gets in after you, and turns on the engine.

Her eyes go over to you. You already had your seatbelt on and had settled in your seat, staring out the window. She was about to say something, but she held her tongue, not wanting to make matters worse.

And what would anyone have to say in this anyway? Your lover left you, replaced you with someone else, and broke your heart. 'It will get better'? The only path to take was to go through the pain and that was it. Until you somehow get back up again.

The music starts up once more, and it didn't make you happy as much anymore. You couldn't even focus on it if you tried. You were trying to blink away the tears and ignore the way your throat was swelling up on the inside.

Carol drives you back home safely, keeping her eyes on you here and there. The ride was quiet other than the music, but it was obvious the tension was high.

There were questions unsaid, many going around in your head, but you didn't wanna trouble her with all of them, and she probably wouldn't know what to answer them with anyway.

Soon enough, you arrive back to your house, and you gently unbuckle your seatbelt. At the corner of your eyes, your tears were starting to seep out, just a little.

Carol makes sure she says something before she regrets just being silent, "Hey," she said quietly, and you look at her, your eyes shining with unshed tears. It was the softest you've heard her voice yet.

"I'm always here, if you need me," she says. She knows it won't be much, but it needed to get out of her head. You nod, and sniffle, trying your best to not cry just yet.

You don't say anything back. If you did, you would've broken right there. Instead, you pull on the car handle and open the door, getting out.

Carol watches you as you leave, and she makes sure you get into your house safely before getting out the driveway.

You close the front door of the house, locking it, and freezing in your tracks, taking in a sharp breath before letting it out as a sigh. You nearly hoped it didn't happen, that you would only do that and just wake up from sleeping right now.

But then you let out a sob and lean back on the closed door. You hide your face in your hands, closing your eyes as you started crying, and your chest wracks with broken sobs.

How could she do such a thing? Did she not love you? Were you simply not enough? Too much? You couldn't stop yourself with the questions roaming your head, overthinking everything as you go. The kindest soul with the warmest heart, now broken into a tiny million pieces just because someone couldn't talk about their feelings. Yet you seem to always find a way to blame yourself for every situation.

Sure, maybe even if she did talk to you, your heart would still break, but would it have felt like this? Would it have felt like your lungs were going to collapse from your cries?

You sniffle, and try your best to steady your breathing, but you couldn't, so you just let it do whatever it wants. You wipe your eyes with your sleeve, but the tears keep flowing, so it barely did much.

Fatiguely, with a heavy body, you made your way to the kitchen. You wanted to go to the bedroom, but it was so far, and everything in there would only make your head spin even more. The couch was a choice, but your eyes linger on that recipe book you had looked through this morning.

Your hand twitches to grab it, but you bite your tongue and instead grip the counter, letting yourself slide down on the kitchen floor. You clutch your legs and curl up. The grip your hands held with the fabric of your jeans were enough to probably rip them.

You still had hiccups leaving your mouth, tears leaving your eyes, and you were definitely about to sob once more. The kitchen tiles blurred from your vision getting clouded with tears.

Your hands clumsily reaches in your pocket to grab your phone, and you somehow made it to your homescreen.

The phone was set down on the floor, your hands shaking as your tears rolled down to your chin and dropped down to stain your shirt.

You look up, trying to gather yourself up, but of course you couldn't. Your body needed to let the emotions out, especially after such a situation.

For a few more long minutes, you sat helplessly on the kitchen floor, your breaths going with their own minds instead of your own. You take a few deep breaths, your legs splayed out in front of you before you sniffle and take one last deep breath.

You sat up a little more properly with the little energy you have, and slide your phone just a bit closer to yourself, your fingers gliding across the screen as you opened your calls app, and hovered your finger over the contact name.

You tap on it, trying your best to recollect yourself before she picks up. Your teeth bites down on your bottom lip, every tone of the calling sound making your heart beat faster.

It ends, and her voice comes through.

"Hello?" There's the soft voice. The gentle, soothing voice that lured you into falling in love.

"Wanda." Your voice nearly faltered, but it kept a little of it's stern tone. Your hand slid down to the kitchen floor, the texture keeping your emotions steady, at least enough for a couple minutes.

"Hey, what's up? Did you see my note?" She asks. She's been lying to your face all this time and you didn't even know it. How blind were you?

"Do you know what day it is today?" You ask, ignoring her own question. You sounded so calm in your own anger you honestly nearly even scared yourself.

"No...what?" She was confused, and you could imagine the innocent act of a face she made.

"It's my birthday." You put simply.

"Oh..." that was all that sounded on the phone, and you knew the call didn't get cut off. She just didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry I didn't stay Y/N, I...forgot." She says slowly, and it was obvious she was trying to tread her tracks carefully.

"I can come back tonight, I promise." You almost didn't want her to, but you needed to talk it out. You didn't say anything else, not wanting to talk about everything else over the phone.

"Goodbye, Wanda." You whisper, your voice breaking at the end. You were sure she noticed it, but you'd want her to anyway.

You ended the call, tapping on the red button. That wasn't the end of it yet, of course, but for now, your hand only rests on the floor, your body falling limp against the cabinet.

She calls, but you don't hear it. The phone rings, on, and on.

You clench your jaw, tears filling up in your eyes once more. Your hand weakly silences your phone, and for the next couple more minutes, you lay crying, until your throat was dry and your muscles ached from sitting on the floor.

|——————————— ᗢ ———————————|

The sun had gone down by now, and the moon came out of hiding.

You were no longer on the kitchen floor, but you were on the couch, curled up like a cat. You haven't done anything but cry ever since you got home. Only right now, your tears had dried, staining your cheeks

You hear the front door unlock, and you feel it coming, the moment you've been dreading.

The brunette appears from behind the door, closing it as she went in the house. Her eyes roamed the place, and eventually, it lands on you.

She lets out a sigh of relief when she realized you were still here. You let out a heavy sigh as you sat up properly.

She heard it. Even with the distance, the quietness of the room captured it. Her heart beated harder in her chest.

"Y/N, please, I'm sorry." She pleads as she makes her way to the couch, having carelessly kicked her shoes off, leaving one tilted on its side. You haven't even said anything yet, and you almost feel sorry yourself.

"Hey,"-- You were sitting right beside the armrest, so, she leans over and gently puts her hand on your cheek. --"I love you. I'm sorry."

You gently push away her hand, turning to look at her with your jaw clenching. She can see the anger in your eyes and it had her giving you a little space.

"Do you?" You say, your head moving slightly, and she notices the way the corner of your eyes seemed a little red. You weren't even looking at her. That was only the second part of the situation.

"Yes!" She says her eyebrows furrowed. She raises her hands in exaggeration before moving one up to her hair, sliding it back as she let out a breath. "...Why is that difficult to understand?"

"Well, maybe because you didn't even say anything when I said it to you just a few days ago!" Her mouth opens, and you assumed she was about to argue that she was drunk during that time, but she lets out a scoff, and that's even worse.

"You're pissed off about that too?" She seemed mad, and you nearly regret even blurting out the sentence.

You close your eyes with your hands, just wanting this to end even though it's just started and just barely scratched surface of what you need to talk about...or argue. You hoped it was the first one.

"Of course I am, Wanda! Where have you been?" You try your best to keep calm, but your voice was laced with anger. Hers though, was higher volume than yours.

"At work!" She walks around to the front of the couch, and you slide your hand down your face. Her face looked so believable, but you knew it wasn't the truth. You saw it with your own eyes.

"Bullshit." You whispered, looking at her with tired eyes. She gets confused and sits down on the couch, her eyes focused on you. You shift your position.

"What? I'm not ly--..." Her voice was a little high of a volume, and she doesn't finish her sentence when she hears you take in a shaky breath.

"...I...saw you." You said quietly, and Wanda, having been caught up in trying to make you believe her had to go quiet in thought of what exactly you mean.

She swallows down a lump in her throat, her eyes catching yours.

"Saw me?" She asked, her voice reducing down to almost the same volume as yours.

"You...were with someone else." You were shaking and your breath was trembling. You willed everything in your body not to sob while trying to get the rest of the sentences out. Her eyes widened at your words, and that was it.

"And I know it's not another person, because I saw your face." You point your finger to her, gently pushing on her chest with it to enunciate your words. Gently. You were never the type to lash out or be rough even when you were angry.

She goes quiet. Both pairs of your eyes were welling up with tears, that much was obvious. Any other words she's had before had died in her throat.

You see a tear rolling down her cheek from the side, and you held your hands back from wiping it off.

She looks at you, guilt swimming in her eyes, and she takes a shaky breath in before letting it go.

"...There's really..." She looks away from you, unable to even stare back at you. Your heart felt heavier than you knew it could.

"...nothing I could say or do to make you feel better." She said tearfully, her lips going down as she thought of her next words. She swallows her collected saliva again. That hit you like a million little glass pieces piercing through every part of your living, loving soul.

There really was not much she could reason with other than the fact that it had been true. She's fallen out of love with you, but even she didn't want to admit it.

"I've been with someone else. I...wanted to tell you. I just didn't know how." She admitted with her shoulders going up at her last words. There it was. The truth coming straight out of her mouth. Your lips nearly trembled, but your teeth sank down on it.

"How...long?" You ask, and you almost didn't want to know, but for the sake of closure, you urged on. She stays quiet, her own hands gripping the couch.

"How long, Wanda?" You pressed. Was it a month ago? It couldn't have been longer than that.

"Only after eight months of us moving here." It was before you even had your break. You made the math quickly in your head. You moved in a little more than a year ago, so it's been...six months?

You had been in this devouring hole for six months, and you hadn't even realized it. And she didn't tell you or break up with you. Instead she requested a break. No wonder your hope had died to sparks and to nothingness.

"What?" You whispered under your quivering breath, your head tilting in disbelief as your eyes spilled out in silent tears.

"Wanda." You say her name softly. She looked down in her lap as you let out another breath that nearly sounded like a sob. She sniffles, and you know the both of your hearts are breaking.

"Why?" You ask, although it was more of a thought from your head that spewed out unintentionally rather than a logical question. She couldn't answer. She didn't have an answer herself. It just happened. That's how it always is.

"...I thought you loved me." Your voice was small, as if speaking any louder would make the entire universe disappear in fear, just like your love had.

"I did! Or, I do!! I don't know!!!" She blurts out, not being able to decide which one. Her body had deflated at the high chance of losing you tonight.

"So you fell out of love with me completely?" Your eyes watch her carefully, and just for a vivid moment, she hesitantly, just barely nods.

"And you didn't think to just...break it off." You whisper, although it was more of a sentence to yourself. But she heard it anyway. It was obvious what you were pointing towards in your sentence. She sighs. She knows she's taken a step she couldn't take back.

Really, how can someone bring theirselves to having a full conversation about falling out of love? It's a difficult thing to do. Sure, you'd be heartbroken either way, or somehow you would have been able to work it out, but you supposed something else in you just wished you hadn't suffered all those months hoping for absolutely...nothing.

The two of you sit in the silence of what you'd think is death, not knowing what exactly to do with it all. The love you once had was gone. Or at least...hers.

Something spins around in your head. It's been spinning for ages since she had called to take a break, and you had hoped you never had to say it, but what else was there? You could start over, but this love had already started over before. Or had tried to. Technically it was both. This was the end of the road.

"...It's over." You whisper out into the room, and Wanda finally glanced up at you, her face full of heartbreak. Even though she probably saw it coming. You've seen that look before, and your stomach was about to collapse at even a second of it. You kept the eye contact though, needing to fully close this.

In a way, you searched her eyes, for some reason, still searching for anything that once was. But there wasn't anything but hopeless desperation.

"No...no please, I need you." She says, taking breaths in between as she cried. You hated seeing her like this. But you hated going in circles just as much.

"If you really did, then you wouldn't have done such a thing." She had nothing else to say to that. It had been your breaking point. You averted your gaze and stood up, hesitating for a moment, but eventually going off to the bedroom as she sat there in the consequences of her actions.

You walk into the room and close the door, locking it right after. You gently lean your head against the door, while silent tears freely move down your skin. The supply of water in your body was definitely infinite for today. A part of you wanted to laugh at the mere thought, and just to cope, but you were too tired to even do so.

You take in a breath, looking up to the ceiling as you felt your throat swell up, but you try your best to be quiet. You'd hate for her to hear you sob in the other room. She might be doing the same thing herself. You squeeze your eyes shut for a short time, wishing for it all to just stop.

And technically it's about to.

Gently, you push off the bedroom door and your legs take you to the front of your closet. The next move was obvious.

Your hands clenched theirselves as your eyes stare at the closet doors. You take a look around the room, taking in the space with your eyes lingering on some parts. The book Wanda hasn't finished reading. She stopped reading it ever since she started to disappear. You should have seen the signs.

The little teddy bear she got, the daisies you got her in the corner of the room, the DVDs she has in the TV stand, the music collection you have next to it.

You rip your gaze away and let your hands open the closet doors. A travel bag and a luggage bag was just under the hanged clothes, sitting within a compartment.

With trembling hands, you slide both out, putting them on the bed and unzipping them. It was the same bags you used to move into the house.

You grab some of the clothes you once shuffled through just earlier this morning, making sure to remember which ones are Wanda's, and not yours.

They were placed into the bags, and you stared at the folded shirts. They looked wrong. You throw your head back with a sigh, frustrated. The bed dips when you sat on it, the bags moving along just a little with it.

What are you thinking? The promise to stay, to fight through it all, it had all fallen apart. The one person you didn't leave after just a few months, and yet here you are. Packing. You let your body fall down completely on the mattress, legs dangling while you stared at the ceiling.

How many times have you stared up there? You don't even want to know. Before you lost all motivation and your emotions ran slow, you slowly prop yourself up to your arms and got back up. If you stopped now, you won't be gone in the morning.

Toothbrush, toothpaste, everything else you need and all the essentials. The last of it gets stored in the empty parts, and with the quiet sound of the zipper zipping, it was done.

With a relieved sigh that you could now simply lay on the pillows, your arms splayed out, your body giving up the last of its energy. You definitely couldn't get up anymore to do anything else.

This was the last night you were sleeping in this bed.

The crickets couldn't be any more louder with filling up the silence. You hated it. It felt too short, but all at the same time, it feels like it's gone on for too long.

Your vision faded into black as your mind stayed loud, up until it crept into your dreams. She slept on the couch that night.

In the morning, you woke up heavy and go through everything as if you didn't even sleep. Not even a cold shower helped you. Honestly, it might have just helped numbing the pain in your chest instead. You gather your items, gripping your bags tightly.

What if you just drop them and simply isolate yourself in the room? No. You shook your head, walking over to the door.

Your hand remains on the cold door knob for a short while, and you almost stay long enough to have it warmed up from your skin. It gets twisted though, and you open it.

If not for the sleeping figure on the couch, it would have been an empty room. You walk out to the front door with your eyes lingering on her.

Maybe her love was too good for you anyway. You just couldn't give her enough. Or too much. It didn't even make sense anymore. There was no in between your heart and mind could agree on. Even you didn't know what you were thinking.

Just as you click open the lock and went to open the front door, she slowly awakes. The shuffling makes you turn to look at her. You catch the realization and sadness in her eyes when you locked sights. Damn the loud clicks and creaking sounds of the doors.

"Where are you going?" She asks, but it was more of a question, than her wanting to stop you.

"Somewhere that isn't here." You say quietly, like a secret thats not meant to be said. She stares off into a space in the room, lost in thought.

"I really am sorry." You hold your breath a little longer, waiting for her to say something else. But she didn't.

There wasn't anything possible to heal the broken love you held. Maybe if she gave in, but her hands had been touched by someone else and her lips...perhaps had met another's.

"I love you." You whispered impulsively, although quiet and quick, it made sound to reach her ears nonetheless.

But yet, she was silent.

You stare at her for a second more, and few seconds too long to say you're determined in leaving. She wasn't looking at you.

You take a step to turn, and the door slides open with the pull of your hand.

You take another, then when you're outside and the door closes gently, the quietness of it all consumed you.

You check your belongings, you had your bags, your watch, your phone. You have everything except for her.

You check your last pocket, and in it were the keys to the house. You slide it off and it clinks, a familiar sound that you hated made your heart skip a beat every time you heard it.

You leave it off somewhere at the front of the house, and you hope you don't remember where you put it.

It all blurred together as you went to your car, turned on the engine and drove off. Of course you had a plan in mind. You've thought about it a hundred times, but you never thought you'd go with it.

The car arrives to a stop, near the place of your favorite cafe. But you aren't going out. You just needed to drive away from the house.

"Fuck." You cursed under your breath and slammed your fist on the steering wheel, and somehow your hand had slid down to the horn, making you bump into it and the car beeped loudly. You jumped, and looked around alertedly, but no one was there. The sidewalks were empty.

You relievedly let out the breath you were holding once you made sure you were in the clear. Thankfully, it wasn't lunchtime or the weekend.

"God," the word comes out under your breath as you shook your head. The thoughts in your head were harsh, and your shoulders slumped at it.

"How could I have ever possibly thought I was actually the one?" You whisper to yourself, staring at the logo of the car, still somehow shiny, just sitting there in between the controls even from how much you've driven the car.

You grip the steering wheel, but then you notice your arms being covered in a certain cloth. One all too familiar, one you chose in instinct in the morning. You look down on the sweatshirt you're wearing, and it was obvious. It was Wanda's.

You clench your jaw and your hands move to peel it off yourself, the sweatshirt turning into a jumbled up piece of clothing that was inside-out. You didn't even want to look at it, so you threw it to the backseats. You'll deal with it later.

Soon, you went to grab your phone, your hand shaking as you turned on your phone, trying your best to find a certain contact. You hold the device tighter, trying to stop the shaking. But you couldn't.

When you found it, you were hesitant to tap on it, your mind loud of everything bad that could happen. But it was Kate. You take in a shaky breath and tapped on the call button, exhaling your breath as you put your phone to your ear.

"Hello?" Her voice comes out gently. The kinder tone almost makes you let out a breath of relief. Your shoulders relax only a little though.

"Kate?" You ask in a whisper, fiddling a little with your steering wheel and tracing the round shape, the texture brushing the skin of your fingers.

"Hey, what's up?" It was still gentle, but there was a hint of concern in it. She can already tell something was wrong even though you barely said anything.

"Um...I..." Your breath was shaky, and she could hear it. On the other side of the phone, Kate was frowning, but she stayed quiet as she gave you time to get your words out.

You were nibbling your bottom lip as you thought about how to talk about your situation, and in the midst of the moment-- "...Wanda and I broke up," you spew out the words, your mouth not even caring to follow your mind anymore.

"What? What happened?" She was certainly shocked, and you look out the window, trying to distract yourself while at the same time speaking to Kate.

"She was with someone else," you say. The florist you once saw a few months ago came out of his store, greeting a customer outside. It was like you were watching a scene you were once in, in another person's view.

"Oh, shit." She swore out unintentionally, the surprise taking over her mouth. "Sorry," she apologized quickly, and you can imagine her blinking to get ahold of herself. It almost made you let out a soft chuckle.

"...I'm sorry, Y/N. God, I could never imagine Wanda would have done that." Kate said quietly. She adored your relationship together, that much was true, but she also saw the parts of Wanda that you wish weren't true. Yet this, this was an unexpected turn.

"...And since I left the house, I can't even sulk in bed or anything." You let out a gentle breath of a laugh, but it was more of a nervous one.

"I mean, I should've had a plan but-- we'd just keep seeing each other and it just...hurts." The florist had said goodbye to the customer who bought the flowers. He seemed happy as he rewrote some things on his little chalkboard. That man was definitely living his best life.

"Where are you gonna go?" She asks, and you go silent. You couldn't go to Carol's. You wouldn't. She's living with Maria and Monica and you probably wouldn't have a room to sleep other than in the living room on the couch. You wouldn't want to intrude on her living conditions anyway.

"I don't...really have anywhere to go to, so anywhere, I guess." You sink into your seat, looking down in your lap to stop staring at people. Kate was silent for a moment, and you're guessing she either didn't know what to say, or is thinking about something.

"My place is available to you if you want to come. You're always welcome here," she offers, and your eyes relax while your fingers fiddle with theirselves, thinking it over.

"...If that's okay with you. I mean, I don't want to intrude on anything--" You add on after quickly, but you get cut off by Kate.

"It's fine. Don't worry about it, I've missed having you hanging around. And I promise you, I have two forks and spoons now so we don't have to share one or get a plastic one from Mcdonald's that'll break after a few minutes." She jokes, and that actually made you laugh.

"Okay. Okay, thank you, Kate. I'll be there tomorrow." You sit up more properly, getting ready to drive to the airport. You hadn't visited her in a while, so you already had money ready.

"I will be there to pick you up. Okay? Do not get a cab," she says sternly, and you take in a big breath only to let it out as a small sigh.

"Kate," You say sternly back, wanting to protest and not burden her more. But she hums in disagreement. You know she cared about getting you safe and being the best friend she is, but your head was killing you.

"No. No, Y/N. I am not letting you cry in a cab awkwardly first thing you get out the airport." She argues softly, and you let your shoulders down in defeat. At your silence, she waits.

"I'll let you know when I land." You give in, your voice small.

"Okay, good." You can hear the relief in her voice, and your lip tugs up into the smallest smile

"See you, Kate." You were about to end the call, but she speaks up again.

"Hey."

"Take care of yourself."

"I'll try."

"See you."

The call ends, and you start driving.

end of chapter 5.

Series Masterlist <- Chapter 4 Chapter 6 ->

---------------

taglist <3 - join here! :]

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[adamgant]

10 Healthy Gluten-Free Dessert Recipes

10 Healthy Gluten-Free Dessert Recipes https://ift.tt/7FXGvqA Is your sweet tooth calling? I’ve rounded up 10 healthy gluten-free dessert recipes that will satisfy any craving.  You all know it’s rare to have a day go by that I don’t treat myself to something sweet. I fill up on greens and protein, but I love a healthy dessert. Whether you’re looking for a celebratory recipe or just need something to satisfy your sweet tooth, I’ve rounded up 10 healthy gluten-free dessert recipes that are to die for. From chocolate almond coconut bites to crunchy strawberry truffles and our go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe, there is something for everyone. These recipes are great for anyone, even if you’re not following a gluten-free diet! You’ll notice that all of these recipes contain chocolate… because let’s be real, what’s dessert without chocolate!? Enjoy! 10 Healthy Gluten-Free Desserts 1. Crunchy Almond Butter Chocolate Bars These crunchy almond butter chocolate bars are a quick, healthy, and delicious gluten-free dessert or treat idea. They call for all gluten-free ingredients, only take 10 minutes of active prep, and can be easily tweaked for my vegan friends. 2. Collagen Protein Brownies These gluten-free and dairy-free brownies are packed with protein and healthy fats. They make an awesome healthy dessert, and have a fudgy texture. You’ll love them! 3. Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Cookie Cake Dud someone say gluten-free cake!? This healthy COOKIE CAKE has a bonus dose of protein and healthy fats. It uses rice flour instead of regular or gluten-free all-purpose flour, so it’s much lighter than a flourless chocolate cake! It’s gluten-free, low in sugar, and… it’s a cookie cake. So, you need this. 4. Crunchy Chocolate Strawberry Truffles Everything about these truffles is perfect: they’re crunchy, sweet, and taste extremely decadent – even though they’re pretty low in sugar. 5. Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies with Avocado Oil The avocado oil gave these cookies a light, beautiful texture (they’re perfectly soft and chewy), plus a dose of heart-healthy fats, while the brown sugar ensures they’re plenty sweet. These cookies take about 10 minutes to put together, and are kid-approved. 6. 4-Ingredient Samoas via Eating Bird Food Healthy and simple (but incredible!) 4-Ingredient Samoas that might just taste better than the real deal. Shh… don’t tell the Girl Scouts. Vegan, gluten-free and paleo-friendly. These will soon become your favorite baked good! 7. Salted Almond Chocolate Bark via Kath Eats Talk about an easy recipe! It calls for only a few ingredients and all of them are naturally gluten-free! Simply use the microwave to melt chocolate, sprinkle with your toppings, and you’re good to go. Tip: cut the bark into big and small pieces so you have options when the chocolate craving hits. 8. Dark Chocolate Almond Coconut Bites via Making Thyme For Health All you need is 8 ingredients to make these decadent chocolate bites that taste just like an Almond Joy! 9. Grain-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies via Ambitious Kitchen The best grain free peanut butter cup cookies made with a mix of almond flour and coconut flour and topped with dark chocolate peanut butter cups. These healthy peanut butter cup cookies are naturally sweetened with coconut sugar and pack tons of amazing peanut butter flavor! 10. Chocolate Chip Espresso Banana Bread Muffins via PaleOMG Made with almond butter and coconut flour as the base, these banana bread muffins with espresso powder make for the perfect afternoon pick-me-up, especially paired with fresh fruit. What healthy treat recipe are you loving lately? The post 10 Healthy Gluten-Free Dessert Recipes appeared first on The Fitnessista. via The Fitnessista https://ift.tt/obQYSEg June 20, 2024 at 12:06PM

[breesasofty]

Sunday. June 16th, 2024.

Things I love about life.

(This used to be the day on the week that I'd spent it all with my dad, every sunday we'd buy lots of junk food and watch movies i'd criticize at the whole length to say that i liked it at the end like a sacred tradition):

1. cats

2. windy, open windows in the car

3. going back home late at night from the shopping center feeling like i have bought some piece of cloth that will change my life

4. watching cartoons when high

5. falling asleep watching cartoons, especially when high

6. being in the middle of the woods or some place remote which phone loses signal (the feeling of <i could disappear right here, right now>)

7. lately, talking to my therapist in a more friendly manner (trying to work with him instead of against him [and myself])

8. turning off all notifications at night, isolating in my room and pretending like the rest of the world doesn't exist at nighttime (recharge in solitude)

9. daily interactions with my cats because they understand body language and you don't need to talk to be understood and you don't have to actually hear about it to understand (oh, the wonders of not needing to talk! silence is something i'd never trade)

10. eating my grandma's food because also the wonders of not having to cook!

11. different cities, which carry their very own air, their singular ambiance.

12. my actual friends (which are glad they even made it to this list, whom put up to my avoidant attachment fuckery without judgment. oh, those i don't need to explain myself to, but encourage me to be a good person nonetheless!)

13. watching my cats eat like they've been starving for weeks after i'd just filled their food bowls for the 5th time on that day (the vet said my middle child was weighing like an actual child; poor thing, wouldn't have a chance in the wild).

14. waking up every morning to find my cats having a reunion in front of my bedroom door. i always greet each with a bom dia petting.

15. how hair feels right after a haircut. ugh, so smooth! love to feel it between my fingers.

16. waking up late, no obligations in the day

17. waking up early fully rested

18. advancing technology

19. forgetting who i am (reseting every night)

20. dissociation, my best friend

21. chat gpt, my one true mate

22. family vacations

23. inherited network

24. not having a normal family (in some aspects i love it, in others, i loath and despise it)

25. everything i've had to this day (material, i mean) and will be receiving/achieving in the future

26. my academical prowess

27. my cognitively powerful brain

28. how could i not have mentioned harry potter!???

29. harry potter (taking a doble slot because of it's importance, In Potter We Trust)

30. being high.

31. also dramione, since i'm speaking about the wizarding world

32. fanon draco malfoy, of course. canon draco is the fetus, the child.

33. meeting up with adults because it makes me feel like an adult

34. acting like an adult (although i just like the acting, not the being)

35. people who have a prospect of what they want for the future

36. imaginary worlds, fantasy, lore, adventure

37. adventure sports (lmao though i have practiced it like, 3 times in my whole lifetime)

38. that moment when you think or are actually in love and still don't want to run away, you feel like this time you could actually do it, could actually stay

39. meeting new friends that i feel like should've been in my life for the longest time (those people you actually meet the soul instead of a programmed body)

40. being capable of apologizing (and also when people who have wronged me apologize; not that i'll forgive, anyways)

41. I love to feel the early morning wind, especially when the sun isn't yet too hot when riding a motorcycle.

42. My students, who are quite difficult to deal with, but they're actually super intelligent and funny.

43. When my students give me sweets. My favorite one was the brownie, but the beijinho got pretty close!

44. Once again, not having to cook my own meals, especially lunch, 'cause now I have it at work and it's rather delicious.

45. Affable people who mirror your kindness.

46. Not having kids yet, like many people who grow up with me already have (poor people could barely have time to know themselves, now their life's revolving around another life). Note: I do want kids cause surprise, surprise, I actually don't despise children.

47. When I get home from work (classic, but to shower, smoke weed, eat something delicious and get to bad to sleep is absurdly appealing to me)

48.

(working on this list so I can convince myself life's actually worth living [i'm not a dramatic little shit, just a tad bit {a lot, fuckerly and fucked} existential]).

[piedpiperslists]

JJK: Friends to Lovers AU [#-D]

List of all Jungkook fics under 'Friends to Lovers' AU with titles starting with '#-D':

* s - contains smut sm - social media format

* Last updated: 25/02/2024

D R A B B L E S

[drabble] by 1kook soulmates au Summary: Your soulmate smells like your favorite food and Jungkook is too dumb to make the connection.

[drabble] by cactiijoonie

[drabble] by candlewaxandp0lar0ids fratboy!Jungkook, nerd!reader

[drabble] by def-initely-soul Summary: “Just please be my best friend right now, not the guy I just confessed my love to.”

[drabble] by hobibliophile Summary: “Wait a minute. Are you drunk?!” + “Shut up, okay? I’m getting you out of here. We’re going home.” + “Do you know how hard I’m trying not to kiss you right now?”

[drabble] [AO3] by lamourche Summary: “She’s hiding behind the sofa.”

[drabble] by soraviie idol au

[drabble] by ubemango friends to not lovers Summary: Big poo poo at the bar aka oblivious best friends who are in love.

12:40 PM by beomcoups Summary: You are playing games with Jungkook and you decide to take your friendship to another level.

Accidental Kiss by babeejeon Summary: An accidental brush of lips followed by a pause and going back for another, on purpose.

* Affection by army-author Summary: affection /əˈfɛkʃ(ə)n/ noun. a gentle feeling of fondness or liking

Arabesque by gukyi college au

Be Mine by koostarcandy Summary: A summer of a lifetime, which you hope would be the first of many to come. Alternative? Jungkook hopes you never disappear from his sight.

BFF -> Lovers by gukooky sm

* Butterflies by army-author Summary: We’ve had this tradition as besties to have a sleepover once a year but this year….it feels different…were your pajamas always this cute??…did I always have butterflies???

By the Light of the Moon by minisugakoobies s college au Summary: Just you and Jungkook, and the ocean, under the moon.

Cherries and Vodka by luvjimins Summary: Jungkook's had his fair share of kisses, but god yours is the best he’s ever fucking had.

* Club by taleasnewastime

Distance by kthvluvr college au Summary: As much as you hated the way he only ever seemed to contact you when he wanted something, the sentimental part of you was willingly to keep any piece - no matter how small - of friendship you two had left.

“Do NOT throw that snowball or else!” by breadoffoxy

O N E S H O T S

A Night at the Mall by bunnybubae s wc~8.6k Summary: Your best friend Jungkook works as a security guard at the mall and everything takes an interesting twist when you go to visit him during is shift on a friday night.

Anpanman by honeymoonjin s wc~6.6k / fake dating Summary: Your best friend Jungkook finally convinces you to seek therapy for your failing mental health. The only catch? The one therapist that’s within your price range is an alternative marriage counsellor, Jung Hoseok, and the only way Jungkook managed to get you an appointment was by saying the two of you were married. Will couples counselling actually be useful for your wellbeing, or will something that runs much deeper rise to the surface instead?

* Around by bangtaninink wc~3.6k / high school au

* I Dream While Looking at You by bangtaninink wc~7.3k / high school au

At the End of the Day by starshapedkookie s wc~13.3k / ex-baseball player!Jungkook Summary: You and Jungkook have been best friends for 8 years, going through absolute hell and back together. After senior year of high school, you and Jungkook began a tradition of taking annual vacations together during the summer months. This summer is no different, with you and Jungkook celebrating graduating college just a couple months prior. You're set to move to NYC after the summer, with you and Jungkook soaking in the sun and as many moments as you can together. You'd think nothing could ever tear your friendship apart with him, but when you've sat on the beach for too many days in a row watching him surf, you can't help but wonder - when did your best friend get so hot?

Awkwardly in Love by strawberrynamjoon wc~20k Summary: Even if everything changed, yours and Jeongguk’s friendship would always stay the same - at least you thought so. But jokes on you, cupid had other plans for the two of you, making you reconsider everything you thought you knew about your best friend of twelve years.

Baby Don’t Go (I’m Bad at Being Alone) by whoreternal s wc~25k

Before Sunset by bookyeom wc~2.4k Summary: In which Jimin thinks you and Jungkook should make out… and you know what? Maybe he’s onto something.

Bite Me, Jeon by sailoryooons s wc~19.3k / college au, vampire au Summary: Somehow you convince Jeon Jungkook to look into theories of vampirism for a research paper. What Jungkook doesn’t expect, is for vampirism to become a very real and very personal problem for him.

Blueberries by softyoongiionly s wc~7.9k Summary: It was always him, wasn’t it?

Blush by jhsbrat s wc~9.8k / fake dating Summary: A red thread tugs you through the crowd and towards him.

Calling It Now [AO3] by reliablemitten s wc~14.5k / brothel au Summary: Jungkook has always been there for you, a steady friend and supporter. But when you cross the line, does he really return your feelings or are you just another client?

Can't Be Without You by ahundredtimesover s wc~30.2k / underground fighter!Jungkook Summary: One night you’re gushing over rom-coms and Jungkook’s cooking; a few nights later you’re tending to his beat-up face. But while it’s his stubbornness that’s saved you countless times before, it’s that same quality that constantly puts him in danger. OR your best friend just can’t let go of underground fighting and so, drama ensues.

Can’t Get Over You by kwonjiyong wc~7k / staff!reader, idol au Summary: Jungkook lives to love people, and as he would take a break from the chaotic energy of loving, he falls head over heels for someone yet again. Are they the actual love of his life this time, or is the universe messing with him?

Catch 22 by alluremin s wc~7.2k / FWB, college au Summary: You and your best friend had agreed: college was for a good time only, no serious relationships were necessary. Who knew that a frat boy would be the one to shake up that notion?

Chewie & Choco Boy by hueseok wc~14.5k / college au Summary: All your life, Jeongguk has always been and only been your best friend. No matter the countless misunderstandings and the never ending teasing when it came to the true nature of your relationship, you two remained firm about it—saying that you were really just really good friends and nothing more. Though lately, that doesn’t seem to be right anymore, especially as the both of you begin getting confused yourselves.

Cockblocked by mercurygguk s wc~15.8k / roommates au Summary: In which a pair of best friends are hopelessly in love with one another but they’re both too dumb to realize, even when everyone around them are dropping hints every five minutes. Or alternatively; “You’re an idiot for thinking I wouldn’t love you back.”

Comfort by strwberrytae wc~2.6k Summary: You had a really rough day that made you want to scream and seclude yourself. Fortunately, your best friend invites himself over to help distract you and make you feel better.

Confessing to My Crush *NOT CLICKBAIT* by scriptaed wc~3.8k Summary: When your best friend Jungkook asks you to partake in his next video on YouTube, the shock of the script’s title quickly becomes the least of your worries; because unbeknownst to you, while you’re spending time crestfallen over a confession you could only wish was reality, Jungkook treats the entire video as practice for the real deal.

Crush on You by moonbelt wc~9.4k Summary: Maybe falling in love with your best friend wasn’t the greatest idea you’ve ever had and that’s perfectly fine. The only problem here is that he’s dating someone else. Someone who, by all physical and emotional analyses, is not you.

Daydream by luffles424 s wc~7.8k / college au Summary: You never thought that simply waking up your best friend would lead to something more.

Dissonance by gyukult s wc~19.4k / rockstar!Jungkook, grad student!reader Summary: Something that first seems out of reach becomes a reality for him. Screaming adoring fans, billboards with him and his band plastered on it, and touring across the globe with venues sold out. He has everything… but all he’s missing is you.

Don't Ever Let Me Go by thedefinitionofbts s wc~6k / FWB Summary: You were ten years old when you first met Jeon Jungkook, seventeen when you decided he was your best friend, and twenty one when you agreed to be fuck buddies upon his proposal.

T W O S H O T S / S E R I E S

Bad Boy Good Thing by yoonpobs s fuckboy!Jungkook, FWB Summary: A series of drabbles where you're confused and Jungkook's confusing

Blackout by jjungxkook s college au, roommates au Summary: Utility bills shooting up like this should be an international crime. Luckily, Jungkook has the perfect idea(s) to save up money and make your night sinfully unforgettable.

Boy in Luv by ggukiepie s athlete!Jungkook, college au Summary: Just two idiot best friends in l*ve.

Casual by muniimyg sm college au Summary: While everyone on campus has their eyes on Bangtan’s frat boys, the boys have their eyes set on YN. She’s a mini fashionista, has a small boba addiction, and is completely unaware of just how much these boys love her.

Constant Craving by ephemerlskies Summary: Your best friend decided to confide in his best friend on how to win his girlfriend back after a fight. You tell him exactly what to say to her, however he is unaware that what you were saying was a sincere delivery of your once undeclared love.

Day by Day by hansolmates s single dad!Jungkook Summary: A series of drabbles about two best friends raising a child together.

[arplis]

Arplis - News: My 14 Goals for 2020

Goal #1 – Take Full Advantage of Having My Husband Home 24/7 The HH found me a heart shaped rock. Goal #2 – Take Better Care of Myself.  I got to go on a mini adventure with my friend Heather, the HH finished the kitchen tile, and I made some new pottery pieces. It was a good week! Goal #3 – Get Organized I am a week behind on my painting goals… Whatever. Playing in the garden trumps EVERYTHING. And that’s all I have to say about that. There are two rainy days in the forecast for next week though so I should be able to get some painting done then. The plan: March 1 – 7 Finish Up Hooking Projects for Etsy Update and Finish Tile in Kitchen HA HA HA March 8 – 14 Paint Kitchen Walls, Trim Doors and Office Door {Find new project for HH to get started on} March 15 – 21 Paint Master Bedroom Walls, Trim and Doors March 22 – 28 Make/Hang Window Treatments March 29 – April 4th – Finish up New Etsy listings Goal #4 – Get Proper Window Coverings on All Our Windows.  Well, I still have 6 Roman shades to make for the sun room while I know I need to get those finished before the weather starts to warm up {to block the afternoon sun/heat coming into that room, I also found some great curtains at the Home Depot this week that I think I’ll be using on all the upstairs windows. Goal #5 – Master Bedroom Make Over The rug I ordered for the master bedroom looked so good in the family room that I decided to put it there instead. I also ordered some cheesy mermaid pillows {totally out of character for me} and hey, what do you know, the room is almost done now. Goal #6 – Kitchen Update He chose the Snow White grout! I wanted a light and bright kitchen, and I got one. The HH thinks he did a horrible job. I think he did great {and especially for his first time}. This week I plan on painting the rest of the kitchen white and fixing the shade over the sink and then it will be done and I won’t have to think about it ever again! I think it looks SO MUCH better than before! Mini makeovers are just that. MINI. If this was our forever house we would have bought new cabinets and changed out the flooring. But it’s not our forever home and so for around $1,000 we were able to update the hardware on the cabinets, install new light fixtures, change out the backsplash, add a Roman shade and bought white paint to cover up the yellow walls. Goal #7 – Install Vegetable Garden On it!! Yesterday I pulled up the back patio area to make way for the new garden boxes the HH is going to build me {next week I hope}. The beds will be about 4′ 6″ x 6′ 6″ which I think is a pretty decent size for growing vegetables. I also rounded the corner on the espalier bed and will now be working on digging up a gazillion clumps of Iris {and moving those to along the back fence} to make room for my vertical growing area {slender bean tepees and black eyed Susan vines} as well as what will be the new back patio/bbq/eating area. The giant compost heap at the back of the property is still frozen so I’ll get to that as soon as I can. The plan is to clean up the back of the property {currently littered with a ton of old stumps and rotting wood rounds and weeds} and get that leveled off in the next month so I can plant a row of hosta along the back fence area and some Canadian Hemlock trees along the side of the fence to hid the neighbors backyard. It feels SO GOOD to get my hands in the dirt again. FYI: If you still haven’t ordered your seeds, Botanical Interests is currently offering 30% off online seed orders with code SEEDS30 at checkout. Goal #8 – Explore More of Maine  Looking forward to my next day trip with the HH! I think it will have to be on a cold or rainy day though because I want to save my sunny days for working in the garden. On the radar for exploring Maine this month: Bar Harbor, Maine Lincolnville Center General Store in Lincolnville, Maine Wallace’s Market in Friendship, Maine Alewives Fabric Store in Nobleboro, Maine Harpswell, Maine and Bailey Island Goal #9 – Host Some Sort of Get Together I think it will be a summer BBQ. Goal #10 – Read/Listen to 12 Books This week I listened to The War I Finally One  {having already listened to The War that Saved My Life last year} while working on pottery. I also popped by our local library and picked up a few books to tide me over until they re-open again {they are taking it  on a week by week basis}. This week I’ll be reading: Vertical Gardening Front Yard Gardens The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook Beach House Style Other Books I’ve Picked Up From the Library This Year: Olive Kitteridge Smitten Kitchen Every Day: Triumphant and Unfussy New Favorites Natural Color: Vibrant Plant Dye Projects for Your Home and Wardrobe  The New Bungalow Kitchen  Container Gardening by Stephanie Donaldson  A Piece of the World The War I Finally Won Goal #11 – Learn A New Skill or Craft My neighbor has been learning the art of fused glass {and coming up with some really cool pieces} and I’m hoping to learn how to make stained glass pieces soon. I also went over and checked out their greenhouse and will be starting the tomato seedlings over there in a few weeks. I’m excited! Goal #12 – Visit 12  Museums, Historical Homes or Botanical Gardens {and bakeries too!} January Maine Maritime Museum Maine Mineral and Gem Museum The Island Market  Cafe DiCocoa Hungry Hollow Country Store February Two Fat Cats Bakery Portland Museum of Art Speckled Ax  Atlantic Baking Company Rockland, St. George, Cushing and Port Clyde Maine March Bar Harbor and Desert Island Adventures Day One, Day Two and the Summer Cottage Rental Tour. A Really Awesome Bakery {that I’ll tell you about in a few days} Goal # 13 – Reach 5,000 Etsy Sales by the End of The Year  As of this morning, I have made 3229 sales on Etsy. That’s up from 2804 on January 1st. I didn’t hook a single thing last week but I  did update my Etsy shop with a bunch of new wool bundles {and will add more today + a few patterns}. Goal #14 – Once a Month Menu Planning {for 2} The fridge and freezer are stuffed to the gills and gardening season is fast approaching and we need to get a few freezer meals done before the chaos starts! Finding time though…. Gaaa. It’s a little hard right now. Have YOU made any goals for this year? If so, DO TELL! We all want to hear about them. Have a great Sunday everyone, ~Mavis Mrs. Hillbilly’s Update No update The post Week 11 of 52 appeared first on One Hundred Dollars a Month. This content was original published at One Hundred Dollars a Month and is copyrighted material. If you are reading this on another website it is being published without consent.          Comments I have wondered the same thing. Maybe she will address this for ... by Kathy Wolfe I used King Arthur's. The sandwich rolls were fine, but the ... by Mel Awesome! Do you have a link to the brioche recipe you use? by Christa H. I voted for the dark grout, but I have to say the white on ... by Holly I'll ask about the greenhouse. 🙂 by Mavis Butterfield Plus 5 more... Related Stories Week 12 of 52 Week 10 of 52 Week 9 of 52 #12GoalsForTheNewYear

Arplis - News source http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Arplis-News/~3/5jMMhTUI5mU/my-14-goals-for-2024