#so today instead of running the restaurant for our class

[diah-the-demon]

IM SO FUCKINT TIRED

My nerves are completely shot omg

[coralinnii]

It’s Him or Grim…and It’s Grim 

Ignoring him to take care of Grim feat: Sebek · Azul · Jade · Riddle genre: fluff note: gn!reader, no pronouns are used, relationships up to interpretation, some of the TWST boys basically taking the L or getting catblocked, 

piece of advice, never bring someone like me to an animal cafe for a date cuz I will ignore you. Also, don't question why I keep changing the banners. I just love messing with pictures of our handsome TWST boys <3

Sebek didn’t say it out loud but he was excited over you visiting him during his club activities. He’s proud to show off his skills on his steed and present his knightly appearance to you. 

Unfortunately, he’s not doing too well when he’s constantly getting into screaming contests with an uninvited guest…Grim 

He didn’t know why he was so surprised though. He should have predicted that wherever you intend to go, the cat-shaped menace will surely follow in curiosity and make a ruckus while he’s here. 

“Nyah, I can ride these crazy horses no problem!” 

“I will not allow it. Beginners need to learn the basics before even attempting to-“ 

Before Sebek could finish, Grim already went ahead and climbed on top of a nearby horse. But, your feline companion accidentally pressed his claws too deeply into the poor horse’s skin and spooked the large animal. 

“Grim!” You screamed when you saw your dormmate being pushed off the horse’s back and landing on his head. You ran to his side while Sebek did his best to calm the horse before it started to run amuck and cause more issues. 

Sebek wanted to scold the reckless cat monster for his actions but he bit his tongue and sighed in exasperation instead since it looked like the konk on the head left Grim feeling woozy. 

“I should bring Grim to the infirmary” you worriedly look at your companion as you cradle his body in your arms. “I’ll see you another time, Sebek. I’m so sorry for disturbing your club time” 

Sebek panicked over your departure, telling you that you could just come back after bringing Grim to the infirmary. He planned so many things today for you, to introduce you to his trusted steed, show off his horse riding skills, and maybe even let you ride with him. 

But you had to decline, wanting to stay by Grim’s side until he feels better. You gave an apologetic smile before you took off with Grim in your arms. You missed the look of utter defeat on the lime-haired freshman. You managed to get out of earshot as Sebek started shouting to himself, declaring to learn from his defeat against that cursed cat. His clubmates however did hear him loud and clear, Riddle looking over in confusion and Silver silently rooting for his fellow knight-in-training. 

“I admit my loss in this battle but I will prevail in our next encounter, Grim. I swear on my honor!”

Azul plans ahead in everything, be it his next business venture or a deal to be made…and definitely when meeting you. He wanted the most optimal results from this meeting he planned with you. He made sure he reserved the best spot in his restaurant that showcases him in the best lighting, the food is to your taste and the ambience sets the mood to his satisfaction. He took everything into consideration. But of course, things don't always go the way he wanted to.

Like Grim coming along with you to your engagement with him. 

“I’m sorry, Azul. Grim was bored in the dorms and Ace and Deuce had make-up classes today” you apologized, Grim in your lap as he gobbled the food Azul had picked out for you. “I hope it doesn’t inconvenience you too much” 

“Of course not,” He lied. “I’m more than generous enough to extend hospitality for even surprise visitors” 

“I gotta hand it to ya, Octavanilla guy! Your food is super delish!” Grim offers his compliments. “I can’t get enough of it!” 

Grim really couldn’t. He ordered seconds and thirds (RIP to your wallet) and didn’t stop himself from practically inhaling the food the moment it reached the table. It was a real mood killer for Azul. The silver-haired entrepreneur couldn’t find his opening and soon he’s left to watch you from the sidelines as your focus was solely on the fattened cat who is grumbling in your lap. 

“Nyahhhh…my tummy hurts~” Grim cried as his stomach ached. You let out a sigh as you did your best to soothe the monstrous feline. 

“I’m pretty sure it’s because you just ate your weight in food” you quipped which earned a weak whine from Grim. 

Azul just couldn’t believe his plan went to ruins by simply adding Grim into the equation. Any attempt for your attention is ripped away by Grim’s loud munching or simply you turning away from his gaze to reprimand the messy feline as you cleaned his dirty face. 

He needs a new plan, and a contingency plan should anything like today happen again. He needs back ups to distract him, perhaps Kalim- 

“Azul” your voice snapped him out from his thoughts. “I might need some money after how much Grim ate today. Do you think I could pick up some shifts in the lounge?” 

Oh, Azul could work with that. 

“Oh no, it seems that Grim has left you in quite a predicament. Come, vent your woes to me”

Jade was excited to show his treasured terrarium collection to you. It would be delightful if you were to grow to share his interest caring for these fascinating flora, something only you and he would share in this whole campus. Imagine…Just you and him alone together, standing close to each other as you admire his projects. 

Well, that’s what he imagined…but often fantasies do not match reality as he was not alone with you as he had hoped. 

“These are some funky lookin’ mushrooms ya got here” Grim narrowed his eyes on one of the colorful mushrooms that seems to have just fully matured. “Henchhuman, you think they’re edible?” 

“I personally don’t think so but you should ask Jade” you turned to Jade, the first time in a while he would add if he were the petty type. But of course he wasn’t. 

“I believe so but I have yet to test my theory on that” Jade smiled down at the small creature which sent shivers down his back. “Are you volunteering yourself for a taste test?”

“Nyah, as if!” Grim yelled out as he backed away from the menacing aura Jade was exuding. In his panic, the monster student accidentally ran his paw over a pair of scissors which snagged his fur and pulled from his skin painfully. Grim let out a painful yelp which made you rush over to your dormmate’s side, worriedly looking over your friend. “Grim, what happened?” 

“My beautiful fur! It got cut!” Grim made an inaccurate assumption but to his defense, it did sting really bad and you could see some of his fur on the pair of scissors. So, you proceeded to check over Grim’s paw for any wounds. 

Jade stood in the sidelines as he watched you handle the monster’s paw, gently sweeping the fur to check for any blood, even blowing on it to ease the poor creature’s pain. The eel merman slightly drooped his shoulders, this was his loss. 

Walking over, Jade picked up the offending scissors that caused all this fuss. His heterochromatic eyes inspected the tool as he admitted that it was getting dull and he should replace them soon or something like this may occur again… Oh? 

You heard something fall behind you which made you turn to know the source. You saw the pair of scissors that Jade picked up back on the floor and your ocean-haired senior was holding one of his hands in the other. “Jade?” 

“Oh dear, it seems that I have accidentally nicked myself as well” Jade looked at you with his best pleading eyes, holding his hand towards you. “Could you help me?” 

“…can’t you do it yourself?” 

“Ah, it hurts quite a bit I don’t think I could focus enough to check my wound” Jade sighed as he clutched his poor hand in his own. He looked to you with pleading eyes and despite your suspicions, you accepted to help your senior and carefully took Jade’s “injured” hand into your own. With your eyes focusing on searching for this supposed wound, Jade smiled as he shared a glance with Grim behind you which scared the poor creature. 

“It seems I have quite the challenge on my hands. How interesting” 

Riddle worked up the courage to invite you to spend the day with him alone and when you accepted, he made sure that everything was perfect. Only Trey was aware of your intimate outing since he offered to take up any non-urgent Housewarden work during Riddle’s day with you so no one else was aware that you and Heartslabyul's leader were meeting. 

Everything was going smoothly, albeit a little stiff in the beginning. Riddle was shocked by how nervous he was. The teacup in his hand was shaking in his grip as he sat just across from you from the small table. 

Eventually the atmosphere settled and soon the two of you relaxed and chatted over trivial topics, enjoying each other’s presence over anything. But alas, good things must come to an end, but not in the way Riddle had planned. Instead, your date was interrupted when the two of you heard a loud call of your name from a distance, from a very familiar voice

“Henchhuman, you went ahead and got grub without me?!” Grim accused you, immediately climbing onto your lap without your complaint. This was his natural seat after all. Then, more voices were heard coming close.

“Grim, there you are. Don’t run off like that- Ahh Housewarden!” Like a storm, Ace and Deuce walked into the once private space while running after Grim then froze in place when they noticed their senior, who seemed to be a really bad mood right now. “Sorry, Housewarden. Grim said he smelled something good and went running over” 

Apparently, Grim was getting hungry and since Ace and Deuce were short on money, the cat-like monster went on the hunt for any morsel of food and caught a whiff of the tarts Riddle had prepared. However, mere tidbits of sweets were not enough to satiate this monster’s blackhole of an appetite. 

“Let’s go to the shop, I want fancy tuna tonight!” Grim whined to you, lightly clawing at your shirt. 

Riddle wanted to scold the furry student for being shameless in his demands but you reassured the redheaded senior that this is a common occurrence, considering you were in charge of handling the allowance you receive from Crowley so Grim tends to ask you to buy things for him. 

“We can go see if Sam has any in stock” you smiled at your gluttonous dormmate then looking to Riddle “I’m sorry, Riddle. I had fun today but we should get going before Sam’s shop closes” 

Riddle, stunned in the sudden shift in his plans, could only offer a nod as you let Grim yank you away to walk faster towards the merchant’s store. He wanted to walk you home and perhaps invite you to another engagement with him. But in the end, he was left in your dust with his other Heartslabyul dormmates and very awkward silence. 

Though three students quickly turned to one as Ace and Deuce silently snuck away from the scene. After being in the Queen of Hearts-inspired house for a while, they can when to book it lest they want to be collared by their hot-tempered Housewarden. 

“I was caught off-guard by that surprise…I will take this as a learning experience for the future”    

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Washington State's capital gains tax proves we can have nice things

Today (June 3) at 1:30PM, I’m in Edinburgh for the Cymera Festival on a panel with Nina Allen and Ian McDonald.

Monday (June 5) at 7:15PM, I’m in London at the British Library with my novel Red Team Blues, hosted by Baroness Martha Lane Fox.

Washington State enacted a 7% capital gains tax levied on annual profits in excess of $250,000, and made a fortune, $600m more than projected in the first year, despite a 25% drop in the stock market and blistering interest rate hikes:

https://www.theurbanist.org/2023/06/01/lessons-from-washington-states-new-capital-gains-tax/

Capital gains taxes are levied on “passive income” — money you get for owning stuff. The capital gains rate is much lower than the income tax rate — the rate you pay for doing stuff. This is naked class warfare: it punishes the people who make things and do things, and rewards the people who own the means of production.

The thing is, a factory or a store can still operate if the owner goes missing — but without workers, it shuts down immediately. Everything you depend on — the clothes on your back, the food in your fridge, the car you drive and the coffee you drink — exists because someone did something to produce it. Those producers are punished by our tax system, while the people who derive a “passive income” from their labor are given preferential treatment.

The Washington State tax is levied exclusively on annual gains in excess of a quarter million dollars — meaning this tax affects an infinitesimal minority of Washingtonians, who are vastly better off than the people whose work they profit from. Most working Americans own little or no stock, and the vast majority of those who do own that stock in a retirement fund that is sheltered from these taxes.

(Sidebar here to say that market-based pensions are a scam, a way to force workers to gamble in a rigged casino for the chance to enjoy a dignified retirement; the defined benefits pension, combined with adequate Social Security, is the only way to ensure secure retirement for all of us)

https://pluralistic.net/2020/07/25/derechos-humanos/#are-there-no-poorhouses

Washington’s tax was anticipated to bring in $248m. Instead, it’s projected to bring in $849m in the first year. Those funds will go to public school operations and construction and infrastructure spending:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/was-new-capital-gains-tax-brings-in-849-million-so-far-much-more-than-expected/

That is to say, the money will go to ensuring that Washingtonians are educated and will have the amenities they need to turn that education into productive work.

Washington State is noteworthy for not having any state personal or corporate income tax, making it a haven for low-tax brain-worm victims who would rather have a dead gopher running their states than pay an extra nickel in taxes. But places that don’t have taxes can’t fund services, which leads to grotesque, rapid deterioration.

Washington State plutes moved because they relished living in well-kept, cosmopolitan places with efficient transportation, an educated workforce, good restaurants and culture — none of which they would have to pay for. They forgot Karl Marx’s famous saying: “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

The idea that Washington could make up for the shortfalls that come from taxing its wealthiest residents by levying regressive sales taxes and other measures is mathematically illiterate wishful thinking. When the one percent owns nearly everything, you can tax the shit out of the other 99% and still not make up the shortfall.

Meanwhile: homelessness, crumbling roads, and crisis after crisis. Political deterioration. Cute shopping neighborhoods turn into dollar store hellscapes because no one can afford to shop for nice things because all their income is going to plug the gaps in health, education, transport and other services that the low-tax state can’t afford.

Washington State’s soak-the-rich tax is ironic, given the propensity of California’s plutes to threaten to leave for Washington if California finally passes its own extreme wealth tax.

There’s a reason all these wealthy people want to live in California, Washington, New York and other states where there’s broad public support for taxing the American aristocracy: states with rock-bottom taxes are failed states. All but two of America’s “red states” are dependent on transfers from the federal government to stay in operation. The two exceptions are Texas, whose “free market” grid is one nanometer away from total collapse, and Florida, which is about to slip beneath the rising seas it denies.

Rich people claim they’d be happy to live in low-tax states, and even tout the benefits of a desperate workforce that will turn up to serve drinks at their country clubs even as a pandemic kills them at record rates. But when the chips are down, they don’t want to depend on a private generator to keep the lights on. They don’t want to have to repeatedly replace their luxury cars’ suspension after it’s wrecked by gaping potholes. They don’t want to have to charter a jet to fly their kids out of state to get an abortion.

This is true globally, too. As Thomas Piketty pointed out in Capital in the 21st Century, if the EU and OECD created a wealth tax, the rich could withdraw to Dubai, the Caymans and Rwanda, but they’d eventually get sick of shopping for the same luxury goods in the same malls guarded by the same mercenaries and want to go somewhere, you know, fun:

https://memex.craphound.com/2014/06/24/thomas-pikettys-capital-in-the-21st-century/

We’re told that Americans would never stand for taxing the ultra-rich because they see themselves as “temporarily embarrassed millionaires.” It’s just not true: soak-the-rich policies are wildly popular:

https://balanceourtaxcode.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WA-State-Wealth-Tax-Poll-Results-3.pdf

The Washington tax windfall is fascinating in part because it reveals just how rich the ultra-rich actually are. Warren Buffett says that “when the tide goes out, you learn who’s been swimming naked.” But Washington’s new tax is a tide that reveals who’s been swimming with a gold bar stuck up their ass.

It’s not surprising, then, that Washingtonians are so happy to tax their one percenters. After all, this is the state that gave us modern robber barons like Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos. And then there’s clowns like Steve Ballmer, star of Propublica’s IRS Files, the man whose creative accounting let him claim $700m in paper losses on his basketball team, allowing him to pay a mere 12% tax on $656m in income, while the workers who made his fortune on the court paid 30–40% on their earnings.

https://pluralistic.net/2021/07/08/tuyul-apps/#economic-substance-doctrine Ballmer’s also a master of “tax loss harvesting,” who has created paper losses of over $100m, letting him evade $138m in federal taxes:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/24/tax-loss-harvesting/#mego

These guys aren’t rich because they work harder than the rest of us. They’re rich because they profit from our work — and then, to add insult to injury, pay little or no taxes on those profits.

Washington’s lowest income earners pay six times the rate of tax as the state’s richest people. When the wealthy squeal that these taxes are class warfare, they’re right — it is class war, and they started it.

Catch me on tour with Red Team Blues in Edinburgh, London, and Berlin!

If you’d like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here’s a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/06/03/when-the-tide-goes-out/#passive-income

[Image ID: The Washington State flag; the circular device featuring George Washington has been altered so that it is now the head of a naked man clothed in a barrel with two wide leather shoulder straps.]

[gabessquishytum]

i wasn't sure which of our lovely au concepts this would fit into best but you know, i think this would work nicely in the "dream makes hob appear younger and poses as his sugar daddy" au from a while back. so! imagine! dream's been enjoying keeping hob plugged, but he's very aware that hob's getting used to it. it's hardly a challenge anymore. and dream's already twisting everyone's awareness around hob to make him seem young -- it would hardly be a strain to twist it further.

the first thing that hob notices is that the jeans he put on that morning, while very tight, were perfectly normal jeans. they didn't used to have a gap in the crotch that leaves his hole completely exposed, but they do once he puts them on. dream assures him no one will notice, and hob figures that's the new game for the day. and then he pulls out a chair to sit down for breakfast and there's... not a dildo, exactly. the seat of the chair still looks like one solid piece of wood, it's just that now there's a cock sticking out of it. and hob suddenly feels throughly slick inside.

once hob's managed to sit down, even if he can't manage sitting still, dream explains that he won't be plugging hob for a bit, because instead, this is going to happen every time hob sits down. in class, in a restaurant, on a bench in the park -- no one else will notice a thing, but hob's going to be nicely impaled whenever he's sitting. what people will notice is hob squirming around in a chair like he's riding a cock, so maybe he'd best not be too much of a slut about it, hmm?

(and hey. once the first couple days go well? hob wakes up with a pussy instead of a cock, and he gets both his holes filled when he sits down at the table that morning)

-🐈‍⬛

God I feel like I've been hit by a train today but. BUT. I can't stop thinking about this concept.

Because however long Hob tries to stay still, he inevitably starts writhing and wiggling, hopping up and down in his seat. And inevitably people notice. They even ask him what's up. And he has to try and brush off the questions even as he grinds down on the wooden cock. He's fine, honestly, just feeling a bit antsy! Maybe he had too much coffee this morning! He's sorry for distracting everyone by squirming so much, he'll try to stay still.

And he does try, but the poor slut can't help himself. Soon enough he's wiggling and bouncing in the seat all over again.

The best/worst part is that however much he stimulates his prostate, he can't get himself off properly! People would certainly ask questions if he started jerking himself off right there in public. So however much he moves and pleasures himself on the wooden cock, it's never quite enough to be satisfying.

When he has a pussy, though... it's a different story. He can get himself off over and over until he's shaking and his slick is running down his thighs. It's so overwhelming, it ends up being more of a punishment than a reward. By the end of the day he can barely walk, but on the bus home, guess what? There's a cock poking out of the seat for him to sit on. And the movement of the vehicle is even more tortuous than anything he's experienced all day.

[oiladgivememoney99]

Newscapepro SCP Rewrite, Too Spooky 4 You

“Wow, Johnny, this is such a romantic night!” A woman giggled as she sat in a car with her leather jacket clad boyfriend overlooking a hill; it was like a scene out of a mediocre romance movie from the 60s.

The man nodded as he laid back in the car. “Yeah Stacy, this took a whole five minutes to set up, baby.”

“Yeah, I feel nothing could ruin this night...” She laid on Johnny’s chest, stars in her eyes as- 

“Oh, but you’d be wroooooong!” An old timey voice called out.

“Eek! Who said that?”

“Yeah, baby, you better come out or I’ll beat your ass, baby,”

“You’ll be too busy cowering in fear!” The creature walked up to the car, it looked like a poorly made Gorilla costume wearing a spaceman’s helmet. “Fear me! I am the Ro-Man!”

“Oh that’s... you were scarier when I couldn’t see you,”

“The what? I didn’t pay attention in history class, baby,” Johnny stood up from his car and punched the thing in the chest. “Ow!” He recoiled in pain.

“You... don’t fear me? I will make you scream in terror!” The Ro-Man easily picked up Johnny, Stacy screeched in terror and immediately turned tail to run, her heels clicking against the road as she ran.

“The hell are you doing, baby?” The greasy haired guy kicked around as he was carried by the Monster.

“I will make this world feel true fear!”

—

“Alright guys, we’re handling a Keter today,” Triana announced, most of the team looked at her in a combination of fear, Nikole looked with annoyance instead.

Triana cleared her throat at the spooked reactions. “Remember, Keter means hard to contain, not dangerous; what we’re re-containing today is SCP 2006,”

“That’s the guy that tries to scare people, right?” Hooper asked.

“Yeah, but he’s like… super shit at it like: ‘I’m the scary Ro-Man ooooOOOOoooo!’” Lara waved her hands around as she chuckled.

The rest of the team chuckled too, even Triana who quickly cleared her throat. “Do not mock the SCP on the mission. It may not be great at actually scaring people, but it’s still a powerful shape shifter,”

“True, true,” Hooper stopped himself from chuckling any further. “We heading off to it now?”

“Yup,”

A silence ensued as the MTF entered the elevator, which Scott quickly broke “So uh… we gonna need to be amnesticising these people?” Scott asked as the MTF flew through the air. “Cause like, that’s gonna take awhile,”

“If we need to someone else will do it,” Triana reassured. “Out job is just to convince the Skip to return to his containment,”

Nikole rolled her eyes. “Negotiations… cause we’re great at those,”

“Oh c’mon, at least try to have a positive outlook, Nik,” Cory chastised. “At least it’s not dangerous,”

Nikole sighed and crossed her arms, grumbling to herself as the Helicopter finally landed in the small, currently desolate town. Specifically what seemed to be a market area of the town, with restaurants, shops and other businesses lining the streets; there was also a strange noise coming from further within despite the lack of anyone else in the street.

A dishevelled woman suddenly ran towards the team at full force, nearly managing to bump into Triana.

“Oh my God, oh my God!” Stacy ran flailing towards the MTF as they landed, mascara streaming down her face. “Who are you? Are you here to help us?”

“Yes, ma’am we’re here to help,” Triana put her hand on the woman’s shoulder, which quickly calmed her down. “Did you witness some kind of monster in this town?”

“Y-Yes, it took my Johnny!” She sniffled, and then suddenly stopped crying. “I-It wasn’t really that scary looking at first to be honest,”

“At first?” Hooper quirked an eyebrow, which no one could see cause of the helmet.

“Yeah, but then he started taking scarier and scarier forms-”

Nikole interrupted by clearing her throat. “Couldja just tell us where it is?” This got her a dirty look from Triana, probably not the first of today.

“W-Well he headed into the theatre with my Johnny and…” She started sniffling again. “Oh, I can’t take it, please save my boyfriend from that monster!” Stacy crying developed into even worse screech crying, making Nikole cover her ears and whisper something in Polish.

Triana cleared her throat. “I promise, we will save your boyfriend, and remove that creature from this town,”

“Oh thank you so much!” The woman smiled as the MTF moved.

“Bluejay, where’s the theatre in this town?”

“To your left, should only take like… five minutes tops,” Lara reassured as she smacked her lips.

Cory turned to Nikole. “Y’know, you could’ve been nicer about that…”

The woman shrugged. “It was the quickest way to do it, I coulda gone way worse,”

“I hate to agree with her, but she’s right; we needed to find out where the Skip was as quick as possible,” Triana said.

Cory pouted as Nikole took a swig from her flask. Scott quickly patted Cory on the back.

“Hey man, just try to think about somethin’ else. Nikole ain’t that bad,”

“True…” Cory used one of his two braincells to think about a different topic, “Do you think I have a chance with that girl back there?”

“Ya dirty dog!” Scott chuckled as he slapped Cory on the back.

Hooper chuckled a little too. “She has a boyfriend, Cory,”

“Oh…” Cory looked down for a minute. “Do you think I have a chance with him then?”

Scott and Hooper both chuckled, in fact, Hooper seemed particularly happy about this joke for whatever reason.

“I think he has a girlfriend, dude,”

“Oh yeah, right…”

“Quiet down boys, we’re here,” Triana said as the MTF stood outside of the rather small, desolate movie theatre. The signs for whatever movies were showing hadn’t even put up yet.

“You’re there, the Skip should be on the inside,” Lara said.

“Welp, one of us is gonna have to go in there,” Nikole crossed her arms as literally everyone turned their head to look at Cory.

“What?”

“Nothing…” Triana cleared her throat. “Private go in there,”

“B-By myself?” Cory stuttered.

“What are you too scared?” Lara chuckled a little as Cory began to blush.

“N-NO!” Cory screeched just a little too loudly. “I just uh… it’s not scary enough for me to take it seriously!”

Scott and Nikole chuckled a little.

“I think it’d be a good idea for ya to go in, Cory seems to have a way with Skips,” Hooper said.

Triana nodded “Yeah, move into the theatre, Cory; that’s an order,”

“Fine…” Cory pouted as he tiptoed into the theatre, painfully slowly… in fact so slowly that.

“Now, Cory!” Triana shouted which made Cory instantly bolt inside of the building.

Cory tiptoed sneakily around the incredibly small movie theatre, slowly searching for where this damn SCP was.

“Agh, help me, baby!” Johnny yelled from the first room.

“Muahahahaha, cower in fear!” A very ‘spooky’ voice ordered from the same room. Cory instantly felt all the fear that had built up dissipate as he heard the creature talk.

He casually walked into the theatre to see the Gorilla-esque creature forcing Johnny to watch what looked like the absolute worst horror movie of all time.

“Oh, another person, are you here to scream in fear, or scream in… laughter?” The Skip’s spherical head looked downwards in a combination of shame and depression as Cory slowly approached it.

“Oh, of course not I’m terrified right now-”

“You do not need to pretend, I need to take drastic measure to make even the most cowardly afraid of me,” The creature sighed. “This Ro-Man form is one of my favourites, and yet no one seems to so much as shiver at it!”

“That’s… pretty sad actually,” Cory puffed his cheeks. “Well uh, if you’d go back into containment I could try to cut a deal with my employers; let them let you watch some scarier movies,”

“Y-You mean it?” Despite the lack of a face on the Ro-Man’s form, Cory could tell he was smiling. “Then, I suppose I could come back, I tire of hearing this man’s screams,”

Johnny quickly ran out of the theatre. “Finally, baby,”

“Great! Now, you just need to-”

“Freeze!” Triana ordered as Hooper and Her ran into the room, armed and ready to fire. “SCP 2006, you need to return to your containmen-”

Hooper suddenly started laughing, causing Cory and Triana to turn their heads to look at him with the biggest ‘dude, stop’ look they could muster. “I-I’m sorry, he’s just too stupid lookin’ to take seriously,”

“You dare call the Ro-Man stupid!?”

“Hoop, I’d uh… maybe stop laughing,”

“I’ll show the both of you true fear!”

Cory quickly turned his head as the monster began to transform, growing rapidly in size.

Hooper realised his mistake and bolted out of the theatre, nearly dropping his gun as Triana fainted, falling to the ground with a thump.

“You can look now, kind, camera faced human,”

“Oh, thank God,” Cory huffed. “Sorry about my friends there, they-”

“It’s all good, I will return to containment soon; there’s so many people to scare back there anyway!”

“That’s the spirit, buddy,”

“Ack! What the hell just happened?” Triana shouted as she flew up from the ground.

---

Triana walked out of the theatre, gritting her teeth from embarrassment fueled anger alongside Cory, who had only recently stopped chuckling.

“You seem happy,” Nikole teased the Lieutenant as she sauntered over to the group of two. “How’d the mission go?”

Cory proudly cleared his throat. “I manage to negotiate it back into containment!”

“How?” Triana raised an eyebrow at the Private.

“Well, I’m gonna try to get the higher ups to let him see scarier movies,”

“Cory!” Triana went from embarrassed anger to regular old anger. “Are you insane? If this Skip sees actually scary movies it could be impossible to contain!”

“Give him a break, Tri, he actually figured out a decent solution,” Lara said over the intercom

“Yeah!” Cory cheered.

Triana sighed. “Fine, you did a good job, Private,”

An awkward silence ensued, broken by Scott clearing his throat, smiling and opening his arms widely.

“Well in other news, I heard that Johnny guy talk about breaking up with his girlfriend; seems like you do have a chance with him!” Scott chuckled, Hooper seemed to get just a touch grumpy at this comment before going back to his usual, neutral look.

“Nah, I’m over him,” Cory said.

---

“Ahh… it’s good to be back at the base, I’m tired,” Cory yawned as he sat on a couch next to Hooper in the common area of his barracks.

“Cory, that mission barely took an hour,”

The aforementioned Cory pouted a little. “Well, I can still be tired,”

“Yo yo, you two,” Lara pointed as she walked up to the two MTF, then seemed to zone out for a minute as she thought of what she wanted to say. “Oh uh… would you be up for a… shitty horror movie thingy I wanna set up with our team?”

“Oh, sure! That sounds like fun!” Cory beamed.

“Sounds good to me,”

“Phew… okay that’s everyone, even Nikki,” Lara said. “I’ll go get the popcorn, try not to die of fear, you two,”

“Yeah Cory, I think you’re the only person to ever be scared of SCP-2006,”

“What about Triana?”

“What about me,” Triana gave Cory the biggest death stare as she walked into the common room and sat on a couch to the left. Scott and Nikole sat on a couch to the right soon after as they both chuckled a little at this.

“N-Nothing,”

“What I thought,”

The first movie wasn’t particularly eventful, the team (but mostly Lara) found fun in tearing it apart. Lara would insult the special affects any chance she got in any way she could.

“You ain’t scared?” Hooper asked the camera faced man, shocked.

“Well duh, this stuff looks like it was made in the 60s,”

“It… was made in the 60s,” Hooper threw a kernel of popcorn at Cory’s arm, who retalliated by throwing one at Hooper’s arm; this evolved into both of the grown men throwing popcorn at each other as they chuckled.

At around the 2nd movie, both Triana and Lara fell asleep with the latter leaning against the former’s shoulder. This drew the focus of everyone else in the commons room.

“So, everyone can tell that they’re dating right?” Nikole asked, everyone answered yep or some southern accented yep equivalent.

Nikole chuckled. “Alright, nice, I’ll tell them that so they’ll finally woman up and tell everyone,”

[klbmsw]

This! It is every woman.

“Thank you to the woman who wrote this:

I’m 14 and I’m struggling in Algebra class. When I ask for help, the male teacher says ‘I’m not surprised, girls aren’t that good at Algebra.’

I’m 18 and go to my first fraternity parties with girlfriends. We don’t ever say it out loud but it’s understood that we need to stick together at these parties and not get separated, for our own safety.

I’m 20 and I’m working as a hostess at the Red Lion Inn in San Jose, near the airport. Men in suits come in to eat after their meetings during the day and I see them take off their wedding rings before heading into the bar next to the restaurant. Every girl who works there learns quickly not to bend too far over because of the short skirts of our uniforms.

I’m 22 and it’s my first day on a new job. My male supervisor gets me into a room alone and I think he’s going to tell me about the job but instead he tells me about how much he likes sex and how he needs to have it every day. I get up and walk out of the room and avoid him after that, but I don’t tell anyone because I’m one of the only women there and I don’t know what to do.

I’m 24 and I’m watching Anita Hill on TV, testifying about a man who wants to be on the Supreme Court. I don’t understand everything I’m watching but I understand that she’s a black woman facing down a panel of white men and she is going to lose because, at 24, I do understand who has power and who does not.

I’m any age in my 20s and I’m walking on the street, in a park, in a city, in a suburb, anywhere. Men tell me to smile, to wait a minute, to slow down what’s my hurry, can I ask you a question, can I stand too close to you, can I demand your space, your time, your attention, hey where you going bitch?

I’m 25. I’m buying my first car and the salesman offers a price I know is way too high. I bring my stepdad to the showroom and the same car is now $3000 less. I smile and buy the car but inside, I’m seething.

I’m any age in my 30’s and I think about where I park, where I go, whether I should get in that elevator that only has one man in it and how I should make sure not to make eye contact with men in the streets. All of this is normal to me and I don’t question any of it.

I’m 35. I’m buying my second car and the salesman says we should wait for my husband to get there before talking about the price but would I like to see the makeup mirror? I tell him I’m a lesbian and, if he’s waiting for my husband, he’s going to be waiting a long time. I leave because I’m learning.

I’m 40 and a woman, Hillary Clinton, is taking a serious run at the Democratic presidential nomination. She’s smart, tough and qualified but she endures endless anger, viciousness, and misogyny and she eventually loses in the primary. Male friends tell me it’s probably for the best because there’s just something they don’t like about her, you know?

I’m 49 and a man who said he grabs women by the pussy is elected as the 45th President of the United States. The night of the election, I feel physically ill and my first conscious thought is ‘my God, the Supreme Court.’ The next morning, I overhear two men laughing and congratulating each other about the election and I feel unsafe in my own country.

I’m 51 and another man who stands credibly accused of sexual assault has just been confirmed to serve on the Supreme Court. I see women on television sobbing, screaming, protesting, crying out in their anguish and their fear. I am so angry. I think of every woman I know and I am so angry.

I am any age, every age. I am a woman. I am a daughter. I am discounted. I am underrepresented. I am underestimated. But I am a voter. Today, that has to be enough.”

~ Author Unknown

Infuriating at the least. It's upsetting to read but when we band together standing as one. WOMEN rule.

Vote BLUE because the GOP will continue to put their foot on our necks.

[yourreddancer]

What an important read!!!!!

Just a reminder... I wish I could credit the author, but don't know who she is.  "Found: Copy/Paste/ShareThank you to the woman who wrote this:

  I’m 14 and I’m struggling in Algebra class. When I ask for help, the male teacher says ‘I’m not surprised, girls aren’t that good at Algebra.’

I’m 18 and go to my first fraternity parties with girlfriends. We don’t ever say it out loud but it’s understood that we need to stick together at these parties and not get separated, for our own safety.

I’m 20 and I’m working as a hostess at the Red Lion Inn in San Jose, near the airport. Men in suits come in to eat after their meetings during the day and I see them take off their wedding rings before heading into the bar next to the restaurant. Every girl who works there learns quickly not to bend too far over because of the short skirts of our uniforms.

I’m 22 and it’s my first day on a new job. My male supervisor gets me into a room alone and I think he’s going to tell me about the job but instead he tells me about how much he likes sex and how he needs to have it every day. I get up and walk out of the room and avoid him after that, but I don’t tell anyone because I’m one of the only women there and I don’t know what to do.

I’m 24 and I’m watching Anita Hill on TV, testifying about a man who wants to be on the Supreme Court. I don’t understand everything I’m watching but I understand that she’s a black woman facing down a panel of white men and she is going to lose because, at 24, I do understand who has power and who does not.

I’m any age in my 20s and I’m walking on the street, in a park, in a city, in a suburb, anywhere. Men tell me to smile, to wait a minute, to slow down what’s my hurry, can I ask you a question, can I stand too close to you, can I demand your space, your time, your attention, hey where you going bitch?

I’m 25. I’m buying my first car and the salesman offers a price I know is way too high. I bring my stepdad to the showroom and the same car is now $3000 less. I smile and buy the car but inside, I’m seething.

I’m any age in my 30’s and I think about where I park, where I go, whether I should get in that elevator that only has one man in it and how I should make sure not to make eye contact with men in the streets. All of this is normal to me and I don’t question any of it.

I’m 35. I’m buying my second car and the salesman says we should wait for my husband to get there before talking about the price but would I like to see the makeup mirror? I tell him I’m a lesbian and, if he’s waiting for my husband, he’s going to be waiting a long time. I leave because I’m learning.

I’m 40 and a woman, Hillary Clinton, is taking a serious run at the Democratic presidential nomination. She’s smart, tough and qualified but she endures endless anger, viciousness, and misogyny and she eventually loses in the primary. Male friends tell me it’s probably for the best because there’s just something they don’t like about her, you know?

I’m 49 and a man who said he grabs women by the pussy is elected as the 45th President of the United States. The night of the election, I feel physically ill and my first conscious thought is ‘my God, the Supreme Court.’ The next morning, I overhear two men laughing and congratulating each other about the election and I feel unsafe in my own country.

I’m 51 and another man who stands credibly accused of sexual assault has just been confirmed to serve on the Supreme Court. I see women on television sobbing, screaming, protesting, crying out in their anguish and their fear. I am so angry. I think of every woman I know and I am so angry.I am any age, every age

. I am a woman. I am a daughter. I am discounted. I am underrepresented. I am underestimated. But I am a voter. Today, that has to be enough."

[casspurrjoybell-20]

FOOLS IN LOVE - Chapter 21 - Part 1 BOOK THREE: 'Fools Fall in Love' Trilogy

*Warning - Adult Content*

Samuel Moretti

"Have fun with Benjamin," Noah muttered, as he turned around.

"Noah," I called to him but he already walked out the door.

My hands pulled on my hair before sliding down my face.

I wanted to scream, slump down on this disgusting tiled floor and scream and cry and throw myself a pity party.

My heart throbbed and telling Noah again that we can't be together was another stomp to my heart and I didn't know when it was going to end.

If I knew a hundred percent that I wouldn't go through another heart break with Noah 'put him through another heartbreak' I'd run out this bathroom and chase after him, telling him I loved him too.

With my previous relationships, when they ended it was painful for a bit but when Noah walked away from me 'like he did the first time we broke up and again last year' it was never ending pain.

I didn't think I could survive another break.

Noah was right though, for some messed up reason, I liked the fight, I craved it which was why I couldn't stay away from him.

That was also why I applied to Noah's stupid school.

Why when Kaitlyn walked through that door with Noah, I stayed instead of running like I should have.

When Noah walked out of the bathroom, I wanted to go after him, every bone in my body was screeching at me to go after him but I didn't.

I walked out, catching Noah's eyes and I forced myself to stay put as he left.

More excruciating pain radiated through my chest.

At our booth, Kaitlyn pulled me into a hug.

I sighed, hugging her back.

Kaitlyn opened her mouth to speak when we pulled apart but I cut off whatever she was about to say.

"Don't. I know, okay?" I spoke referring to me knowing how screwed up everything is between Noah and I and there was one very big solution, me taking that leap off the cliff and being with who my heart actually wanted to be with. Noah.

"Fine, I won't say anything about you two but at least put Benjamin out of his misery," and with that she followed Noah out.

I looked over at Kai who gave me innocent 'I told you so' eyes.

"I get that you're not on Team Benjamin but don't even think about hopping on Team Noah. I don't want to hear it," I told him sternly.

Kai raised his hands in surrender.

"I didn't say anything," was his response before he gathered the remaining trash on the table including my half eaten grilled cheese and stood up, throwing everything away.

Kai looked at me.

"But Noah is taller and I've seen your Instagram feed. You said you like taller men."

**********

Noah and I didn't talk during Friday's class, he didn't even look at me.

As soon as class was let out and I watched Noah leave 'my heart feeling weird' I decided to skip my last class and go straight to Benjamin's.

I was thinking a lot after I left the restaurant Thursday and all this morning, Kaitlyn was right.

I needed to end things with Benjamin.

It wasn't fair to him or me to be in that relationship but I was scared, without Benjamin, who did I have to fall onto?

Not only that, Benjamin meant so much to me, couldn't we just stay friends?

But I couldn't have it both ways.

The entire bus ride over to Benjamin's dormitory, my brain was working overtime, going back and forth from 'you need Benjamin in your life' to 'you're being selfish'.

Eventually, at my bus stop, I made up my mind.

I got up, determined to do what was right... but then I went back on the bus out of fear and sat back down and I stayed on that bus until it brought me to the train station.

I bought a ticket and when I took my seat, I took my cell-phone out.

He answered on the third ring.

"Hey, what are you doing today? Could you pick me up from the train station around one-ish?"

So around one-ish in the afternoon, my good friend, Carter Matthews was leaning against the driver side of his car, waiting for me.

[mygainyear2024]

Day 67 The Real Madrid!

Rose told me she’d been awake since 4am 😢

We headed first to Parque de El Retiro, Madrid’s Central Park.  Rose had seen the rose garden on TicTok and asked where it was. That was lucky, as I wanted to go and didn't need to convince her!  I saw so many people exercising I really needed to stop the chatter in my head about not getting up early and running there myself. I am also still coughing, so the other voice in my head was saying it's ok not to exercise today. Last night's cycle class in Spanish, in the dark, unlike any cycle class I've done before, was already more than enough / too much!

Next stop was churros at the popular Chocolatería San Ginés. I can say the churros was excellent, it's not usually my preferred sweet option, but these were not as oily as the ones I've tasted in Australia, and the chocolate was not as rich.

Now for the anticipated extra fun, a paella and sangria workshop.  There was a group of 15 of us, one guy, a pharmacist from Brisbane, the remainder I think were Americans.  Javi, the chef, and Lisa (the French woman now studying in Cornwall in the UK on an Erasmus exchange in Madrid) were our hosts.  We spent a lovely three hours in a very hot kitchen learning how to make a very alcoholic sangria (red wine, vermouth and brandy) with a very small portion of orange juice and soda and how to serve it, ice in the glass first, followed by some of the cut up fruit (oranges, lemons, apples), then the liquid, then smack the glass with a mint vine and gently wiping the leaves around the rim.  The seafood and chicken paella was equally delicious.  No real secret there other than to understand if about eight people order paella in a restaurant it will take at least 30 minutes to come if made fresh (that’s how long it took us to make two).

Javi was saying traditionally paella is for special occasions and can be made anywhere, including the beach!  

We only had time for a quick browse at some shops and a supermarket stop for lunch tomorrow before heading back to the apartment to change and walk to flamenco at 6pm.

Rose and I were so tired we both kept falling asleep during the performance! It was both thrilling, in terms of the dance moves and finger clicking, and irritating, in terms of the singing (which was unpleasant to my ears) at the same time.

The idea of tapas at the mercado got ditched and instead we shared a tuna sandwich and patatas bravas at a fast food joint!

[samuraidad4]

Ocelot Ch. 3: Special Delivery

Special Delivery

It was another beautiful sunny day in Playa De La Codicia as Ocelot was perched on a roof top surveying the street below.  He didn’t have classes this morning, so he thought why not take a quick patrol around Old Town.  He had been on two patrols thus far, both at night and they were disappointingly uneventful.  But, today, as he crossed several roof tops, his danger sense gave him a slight tingle.  And Ocelot thought it best to pay attention to it.  So, here he knelt tilting his head to sense anything out of the ordinary.

Traffic was light and only a few pedestrians walked down the street.  But, just when he was about to move on, Ocelot saw an armored truck pull up in front of Kensington’s Jewelry and Precious Metals. Out of the truck jumped three guards all in ballistic cloth armor, two wielding shot guns and one armed with a side arm and carrying a metal brief case.  

The buzzing in Ocelot’s mind increased and he thought, “Ok, this is interesting.  What do they have in the case, I wonder?”.

No, sooner than when those thoughts had left his mind, in his peripheral vision he caught sight of something greenish moving with lightning speed toward the guards.  Ocelot knew he had to get down to the street as quickly as possible.  But, before he could launch himself off the roof top, the green blur was just already in reach of the guards.  Ocelot thought he saw the blur slow down just enough to see that it was what appeared to be a man dressed in skin tight green suit (looking somewhat like a speed skater) and yellow boggles and had a handle bar mustache.  The man reached out to grab the metal brief case.  But he fumbled it and it went clattering away to the gutter of the street.  Ocelot was already in motion and acrobatically leapt onto an awning from a restaurant below then he bounced over to a tall, ornate lamp post upon which he quickly slid down. 

Meanwhile, the green suited speedster stopped down the street and stared at Ocelot. His eyes seemed to move from Ocelot to the case and then back to Ocelot. Ocelot knew he had no time to waste, and he retrieved magic lasso from his belt pouch which seemed to leap into his hand of it's own accord. He flung the rope out long and fast and a stylized grappling cat claw latched almost perfectly on the case handle. Ocelot gave the rope a hard tug and the case was soon in the hero's hand. The green speedster was already streaking down the street back towards the case. But, instead of going for the case again, he swerved to make a collision course with Ocelot! Ocelot’s danger sense seemed to scream in his head and his super cat reflexes took over. He somersaulted out of the way just in time to see the speedster miss him by mere inches! But, the wind sheer from the speedsters move by did catch Ocelot by surprise and he went tumbling harmlessly a meter or two away.

Ocelot kipped up, and saw that the case had slid back to sit between the guards.  He yelled to the guards, “Grab the case and get back in the truck and lock the door!”.  

The guards heeded Ocelot’s command and the guard with no shot gun grabbed the case and ran for the armored cars open door.  

The green speedster whipped around and said, “Special delivery, Post Haste!” and he threw several letter shaped knives at the running guard.  But only one of the knives struck the guard and it lodged into the guard’s thick kevlar vest.  

Ocelot felt the trickster side of the Ocelot mark rise up in him and he shouted after the speedster, “Wow! You really aren’t very good at this are you!? First, you fumble the case and then you can’t hit them with your own knives when they are slower than molasses to you?!  Post Haste is your name?  It should be No Haste!”

Suddenly, the green speedster stopped and stood still and glared at Ocelot clearly full of rage, and yelled back, “Oh, I see! We have a comedian in our midst!  Ok, wise guy! I was going to go easy on you all.  But, no, you open your trap.  So, this is for you wise ass!  And for the record, the name IS Post Haste!” At that,  he pulled a small box from a satchel he wore and sped towards Ocelot.

This exchange gave the guards the time they needed to get into the van and slam the door shut and lock the door behind them.  

Ocelot thought to himself, “Wow! It worked!  Now, if I can just stay alive!”.  His danger sense went bananas again in his mind and he tumbled out of the speedsters path.  But this time it was too easy and he realized that Post Haste wasn’t trying to collide with him.  He looked down and saw the brown box just a few meet away.  The box had a LED clock that was ticking down to mere seconds!!  No time to think, just to act!  Ocelot dove for the box, and rolled up on his feet holding the package.  Then, with all the strength he could muster he heaved the box straight up into the air.  And just in time, the box sailed above the roof top and exploded in loud burst of noise and fire!! *BOOM!!!!*

Scraps of paper and cinders rained down on street.  Mercifiully, no one was injured.  Ocelots ears were ringing as he got back up to his feet.  He surveyed the scene and Post Haste was no where to be found.  Ocelot figured that the speedster didn’t have the strength to get the armored car open and so gave up on the heist and fled.  But, WOW!  He had survived his first encounter with an actual super powered criminal! 

Soon after, Playa De La Codicia’s finest and EMS arrived on scene.  Ocelot gave them a statement and while they also questioned the guards.  A paramedic walked up to Ocelot and checked him out before giving his fellow EMS techs a thumbs up and left as abruptly as they had arrived.   A police officer told him, “Well, I think we’ve got enough to go on here.  Good job, hero.”

When Ocelot turned around he saw a familiar reporter that he had seen many times on TV.  She was the tall red head star reporter for Playa’s Channel 4 Action News, Rachel Corvin and Ocelot’s secret crush.  She had a microphone in hand and said, “This is Rachel Corvin coming to you live from the scene of the attempted armored car heist.  Onlookers say that that it was Ocelot, the city’s newest guardian, who wen toe to toe with the criminal speedster known as Post Haste and foiled the heist.  Do you have any words for us,  Ocelot?  Uncharacteristically, Ocelot blushed hot behind his mask and stumbled with his words, “I…errr..ummm…just did what anyone else would do…Muh…Miss Corvin”.  Rachel smiled a sly grin and looking back in the camera she said, “There you have it folks!  Humble as he is brave.  Rachel Corvin, Channel 4 Action News.  Ok that’s a rap boys!”  And when she turned, the cat hero was gone.  She mused to herself, “How does he do that?!”

Epilogue:  In a smoky back room, a shadowy figure turned away from the TV set playing the news and slammed his meaty fist down on the table in front of him. In a raspy voice he said, "That's the third time this cat guy has mucked around with our operations! We gotta get rid this guy once and for all! Call out the big guns!". The El Gato lieutenant nodded and said, "Yes sir" and swiftly left the room.

[froggy-squad]

Dad was in the hospital last night. He passed out at work and was sent via ambulance. They had to do CPR on him to get him breathing again. I rushed from work straight to the hospital in Cleveland, lowkey freaking out the entire time. I stayed calm on the outside for S. The head of safety at dad's work is the one who called me, and he reassured me that dad was fine, he was awake when the ambulance left. I just focused on my breathing, and refused to let my thoughts turn negative. My biggest fear was that he might lose this job, because they would have to drug test him again, and I knew he would fail... and he did.

The ER was soooo busy. I met dad's head of safety when I got there. He told me everything they had told him thus far: first, that he was stable; second, that he was still on an EMS stretcher while they waited for an available bed; third, that he was sleeping while they waited. I couldn't see him until he was moved from the EMS gurney to a hospital bed.

I called my mother in law to see if anyone could come get S from the hospital and bring her to her house - her brother came and got her and picked her up some dinner. So at least she was taken care of.

I sat in the waiting room and kinda people-watched. The poor intake nurse, I felt so bad for her. People were being so rude about the wait times, like it was her fault. Then a preteen aged girl was brought it after falling and hitting her head! They ended up choosing to go to a different hospital due to the state of the ER at the time.

Eventually dad's coworker came back in and asked her to check on dad. I was too anxious to bother her to ask. But she told us that they had him in a bed in the hallway and that one person could go back to see him, so of course I didn't hesitate.

When dad saw me, his first response was a pained smile then a "great, Frog, you're here, now I can go home." I made him stay even though he didn't want to. I wanted to find out what was wrong. He did start talking negatively, talking about dying and wanting to "go die at home instead of here with all these strangers."

Long story short: his blood work and vitals came back fine. The chest xray showed pneumonia though, so they prescribed him antibiotics. He was irritable the whole time, just wanted to leave, but he thawed out as the night went on. He slept most of the time while I sat in the chair next to him.

I got him home finally at 12:15ish. Helped him up the hill and in the house. His wife was immediately hateful and didn't even seem to care where he had been for all that time. I left him feeling really guilty.

Me and S made it home and went STRAIGHT to bed. I woke up at like 4:30, and went ahead and put in for a sick day and assigned my classes some work. I knew I wouldn't be able to function at work with that level of sleep and stress.

I slept him pretty late, of course. 11:30. Husband took my car to town for a few hours, so I slept some more until about 4pm. When he came home, I left to pick up dad's meds and bring them to him. While I was there, he wanted a ride to the store then a friend's house and then another friend's house so I obliged. Then I brought him to my house to eat some food and chill out. I took him home soon after.

Husband is in a mood today. He's shut himself up in our room. He's not being mean or hateful or anything - just wants some space. Mom is ALSO in a mood, so I have my pick between hanging out with her in the living room or with Husband in our room - not great options. Mom's snoozing on the couch so I'm taking my chances in here.

I'm freaking out about money. I'm behind on my Capital One AND my Discover card payments. We just... don't make enough. I reached out to Uber Support to try to get my account back and active since it got all messed up after my name change. The Support guy was really nice and made it seem like it'll be all fixed soon. I hope so.

I wouldn't be opposed to getting a second job close by, at one of the family-run restaurants, to work at as-needed. I miss cooking at the Barrel sometimes. If Uber doesn't work out, I might check out some options here.

My house is a mess. That's what happens when mom is here with H. Almost every dish is dirty. Laundry is backed up. I'm trying now to get up the motivation to try to tackle some of this.

I'm gonna go donate plasma tomorrow to help cover rent this week. Mom wants to do the same, of course, so she'll be taking my car. I feel bad saying no to her though, because there are no alternatives for her. It irritates me to lend out my car to her and Husband all the time, driving across several counties, putting soo many miles on my car and wearing it down, but saying no always leads to conflict.

Tomorrow's Agenda:

donate plasma, do laundry, take dad to pick up his truck.

[umichenginabroad]

Week 3: Kilmainham Gaol, Forty Foot, Lily! (& Belfast)

Hi everyone! This post marks the end of week 3 and midway through our course instruction! This week also marked our first real rain(pretty good for 3 weeks in).

Monday afternoon we visited Kilmainham Gaol. Our tour guide was amazing and it was really interesting to learn about and see the history behind the jail. Although very sad and the site of many deaths, learning about the stories was amazing. After visiting the jail, we returned to campus and I ate, did laundry, and went to bed. I set my alarm for 3:00 am and after figuring out how to stream using a VPN, watched the Denver Nuggets win the NBA finals! Go Nuggets! I immediately went to bed after it ended so I could wake up for our 9:00 am physics lecture.

On Tuesday, we only had class until 3:00 pm so after decided to check out the Forty Foot, a popular swimming spot. We took a bus to Blackrock and the dart from there. Although scary at first, it was super fun to jump off the rocks into the freezing cold water. Luckily it was very warm outside. After, we got ice cream at Teddy’s Ice Cream and then poke in Blackrock.

Wednesday, we had a break from class from 11-2 so I decided to do a run around UCD’s campus. Although I got lost many times, it was a really cool way to explore the entire campus and I ran right by field hockey practice. That night, we headed out into town to a club which was having a student night and had so much fun dancing together.

Because our friends had too much to drink Wednesday(who knew Wednesdays were so fun), we all struggled to get up Thursday. We went to class and for lunch treated ourselves to the food trucks that come to campus every Thursday. I had Pad Thai which was amazing. We finished class, and I headed to the Dundrum Town Centre to pick up an air mattress for my upcoming visitors! I finished the night starting my essay and studying for our physics midterm Monday.

Friday, I woke up early to attend a 7:00 am cycling class by UCD sport and fitness. It was free to students and was super challenging yet fun. I then showered and headed to our classes which lasted until 4:00 pm. After class, I did some studying, made myself dinner, and did laundry. My friend Lily who is studying in Paris this summer arrived late Friday night. We decided to head to Temple Bar for a drink and ate a snack at Temple Take Out before heading back to UCD.

Saturday morning, we woke up around 10:00 am and headed to brunch. Luckily the morning rain cleared, so I showed her all around Dublin including Trinity College, St. Patricks Cathedral, and Grafton Street. We grabbed a drink at a cute cafe and headed back to UCD. We got ready and headed back out to eat dinner at Bovinity with all my friends which was amazing. After dinner, we grabbed a drink in Temple Bar and headed to a club. The night was so fun and the bus ride home was packed full of UCD students.

Our program had a planned Day trip to Belfast Saturday. Because Lily was visiting, I decided to skip the trip and spend the day in Dublin with her instead. I have included some pictures of Belfast courtesy of Sammy(Thank you!). Most of their day included visiting historical sites, but I was told they also had some amazing lunch at a local seafood restaurant.

Today, we woke up around 11:00 am because of a late night yesterday. After a slow morning, Lily, Sammy, and I headed to brunch at POG which had amazing pancakes. Lily left from there to catch her flight back to Paris and Sammy and I headed back to UCD via bus. It was so fun having Lily here and I was sad to see her go. Now, I am procrastinating studying for my physics midterm tomorrow and finishing my history essay due tomorrow night. Luckily, we only need a 40% overall to pass our physics class and the midterm is only worth 10% of our grade.

I have a fun week planned ahead and can’t wait to show you more!

Elsa Pater

Industrial and Operations Engineering

BIG 10 STEM and Irish Studies: University College Dublin in Dublin, Ireland

[187days]

Day One Hundred Twenty-Nine

Today was a teacher workshop day, which meant I got to sleep in an extra half hour because those start at 8:00AM rather than 7:30AM. Since we all a long day yesterday with parent-teacher conferences, I appreciated that!

The morning was... difficult. We’re going to be making some big changes next year. The ninth grade house is changing because core classes are going to be taught for half blocks all year instead of semester blocks, lots of departments have new course offerings, the order in which courses are taught is changing in some cases, some courses are adopting new curricula... And I think most of us are on board with the changes- I definitely am- but there’s a lot to do, and very little time to do it, and the powers that be don’t seem to be hearing that. So there’s a lot of stress, and frustration, and I don’t think that’ll go away until everyone- and I mean school board, The Superintendent, our admin team, and our faculty- gets on the same page about what it’s going to take to make these changes happen, and then commits to doing whatever it takes. 

The afternoon was better, though. I mean, it started with free pizza, salad, and cupcakes from one of our generous local restaurants. Really can’t go wrong with that. And, after that, we had time to work with our departments on some of the things that need doing for next year. In the social studies department, most of the changes fall on the folks who teach sophomores and juniors, so Mrs. C and I asked Mrs. Z if we could meet with our ninth grade English counterparts to do some interdisciplinary planning instead. 

This was Mrs. O’s idea. She wanted to do an interdisciplinary mini-unit on poetry since next month is National Poetry Month. I suggested that, rather than doing it during our classes, which was seeming like it’d be a logistical challenge, we could do it during flex time. That would also allow us to include more students/teachers, not just our ninth graders, so that became our plan. We’re each going to offer a poetry-related activity one day a week. Mrs. C is teaming up with Mrs. E, our art teacher, and they’re going to work with students to decorate the building with poems; Mrs. O is going to run a poetry-writing workshop; Mrs. R is going to have a poetry-reading room; and I’m teaming up with Mrs. J, our librarian, to do some lessons on performance poetry and then host a poetry open mic in the library. 

So that was fun to plan, and hopefully a lot of students opt to get involved! 

[vandysgf]

the mysmes characters pretending to be your s/o bc someone made you uncomfortable:

if you think you’ve read this elsewhere, you’re right- I originally tweeted these in a thread but I figured it would be my first post here since I made a new blog for writing! TwT

wanna be tagged? dm me/comment!!

zen

You were pushing through the doors of the theater, immediately making your way to the side of the stage where you usually waited for Zen. Both of you had agreed to meet after his rehearsals, the man promising to take you to his friend's restaurant. Of course, this was to persuade the owner to attend the upcoming party you were hosting, despite your hopes that it would turn into a date. Not that Zen wasn't flirting nonstop anyways, it was just hard to tell if he actually meant it.

Besides, Jaehee would never let that happen.

Just as you sent a text to Zen, a man close by suddenly walked up to you.

“Hey, are you lost?” He smiles, getting closer.

You tense up. “No, I'm here for-”

“Me?” The stranger cuts you off rudely, his tone smug as he raises his eyebrows. He reaches out, as if to touch your hair, when suddenly-

“JAGIYA!” Zen's shout echoes through the theater, your favorite silver-haired actor emerging from a backstage door and running over to you.

The man in front of you jumps back, startled, and looks confusedly between the two of you.

“Zen? I didn't know you had a-” The way he spoke so casually... this must have been one of Zen's co-actors. Explains his cockiness.

“Yeah, I do.” Zen quickly replies, throwing an arm around you like it's nothing at all. “Sorry I kept you waiting babe, but I promise to make up for it on our date.”

Zen guides you along, nodding at the dumbfounded guy before leaving the theater with you. You notice he makes no move to pull away.

“So, great acting back there! Really, you almost had me fooled,” you smile, joking in an effort not to get your hopes up too high.

Zen chuckles, reaching up to scratch behind his ear as he shrugs, smiling sheepishly.

“I wasn't acting at all.”

yoosung

It's Friday, and today you were going to surprise Yoosung at his last class. You knew he was having a rough week and thought you two could spend some time together to make up for that.

Despite repeatedly convincing yourself that you weren't trying to get anything out if it, you ended up picking one of your cutest outfits- the one with a hint of purple to match Yoosung's eyes. Not that you'd ever admit that aloud, of course.

You glance at his schedule, taking note of which room he was in, and opened his school's map- both courtesy of the one and only Seven Zero Seven, Defender of Justice.

“Hehe, Yoosungie owes me big time~” you remember him chuckling through the phone after calling in the favor. You wondered why it was Yoosung who owed him, and not you.

And so, you find yourself waiting outside the blonde boy's last class, the time telling you that he'd be coming out those doors in about 5 minutes.

Now all you had to was wait and-

“Look at you, all dolled up and pretty,” a student says, eyeing you with a smirk.

You curse internally and bite the inside of your cheek, averting your gaze and ignoring him.

“Hey, I was talkin' to you!” The voice is louder this time, trying to get your attention, but it just made you shudder.

By some miracle, Yoosung had already made his way to your side. You're stunned when he suddenly kisses your cheek, slipping a hand into yours as he does.

“Surprise,” you smile, happy to keep your eyes on him instead. There is a bright blush on his face, but neither of you address it.

Afted you leave together, Yoosung reverts to his nervous self.

“Hey, I'm sorry if you didn't want... I just got so irritated, and I didn't stop to think if you-”

You giggle and cut him off by kissing his cheek, effectively silencing the boy.

jaehee

The bell above the door chimes as you walk into the café, the smell of coffee filling your nose.

This café was one that you and Jaehee found on the internet one night, both of you searching for the next place to visit. You were on a quest to find the best coffee shop in her area, and this was the 8th one on your list.

Your phone lights up with Jaehee's text- she would be here soon, just got a bit caught up in rush hour. After your fingers send a quick reply, you search for a good spot and take a seat, setting down your belongings.

There are menus on the table, so you take one and flip through it, eyeing the drinks and pastries. You make sure to remember which ones Jaehee would like and estimate the total of your orders, intending to pay for hers as well.

After all, Jaehee deserved a treat.

Right as you set down the menu, you're met face to face with a stranger, your first thought being-

“That seat is not for you,” you snarl through gritted teeth, immediately pissed off.

“Woah, relax baby, it's not like anyone else was gonna sit here right?” The smile on their face is sickening. It disgusts you to the core.

“If you don't leave, I am literally going to-”

Your threat is cut off by a loud thud, and in the blink of an eye, the person is on the floor and Jaehee is sitting right in front of you, smiling.

“I'm the girlfriend here, not you,” she mutters at the stranger. “Sorry I'm late, honey,” Jaehee reaches over to hold your hands gently, a large contrast to the judo move she pulled earlier.

Said stranger looks at your joined hands from their position on the floor and quickly leaves the establishment, embarrassed.

“It's alright, do you want to order now? My treat!” You smile, anger now completely vanished.

“Oh, you don't have to do that just because I...”

“Am I not allowed to treat my girlfriend?” you wink.

jumin

It was funny to see Jumin fully clad in his business suit right in the middle of Seoul's night market.

But hey, you would be lying if you said your heart wasn't fluttering at the sight of him.

In an effort to learn more about the common people, the CEO-in-line had asked you to spend your Saturdays with him doing things like this.

If you had bothered to ask him why he picked you, he was prepared with all the logical reasons why. You didn't laugh at him or call him a 'pompous jerk' like Zen did. Driver Kim already knew your address and you had the most flexible schedule.

Of course, all of these cleverly thought of reasons would cover up his truth: he merely wanted to spend more time with you.

But you didn't question it, knowing full well that Jumin was practical. You happily agreed anyways.

And this is how you find yourself in front of a stall, in line to order some street food while Jumin was at another. He caught sight of the goldfish-shaped bread and was curious to try it.

After paying, you went & stood by the side to wait for your food. It should've been quick, but this stall was quite popular and had lots of customers.

This is when someone stands next to you, a little too close for comfort.

“You know, you shouldn't be alone like this... maybe you could eat with me?”

You take a deep breath, willing yourself to stay polite. “I'm not alone, I'm actually with my-”

“Boyfriend?” The stranger scoffs, crossing their arms. “Where is he? I don't see him.”

“Do you have to?” You glare back with a smile.

You wonder if that did the trick because they seem to have stopped entirely. It isn't until Jumin's arm snakes around your waist that you realize...

“Your boyfriend is Jumin Han?!”

He ignores this, choosing to look at you and say, “You didn't use your claws on this one, kitten?”

saeyoung

In true 707 fashion, the chatroom has been flooded with his rather amusing texts and emojis, the reason for this being: you were both at this year's Comic-Con together. And the kicker was that you had come in matching cosplays.

Yoosung sent three of his jaw-drop emojis when Seven uploaded the picture on the messenger. This was probably because both of you were in skirts... short ones, at that.

The RFA's cosplay connoisseur was dressed up as the classic Sailor Moon, 100% in his element. You, however, weren't too used to this. Still, you happily came as Sailor Mars- giddy at the chance to be alone with Seven.

The redhead looked so alive and buoyant, practically bouncing of the walls while the two of you explored the convention. He insisted you point out anything you wanted, as he had more than enough money to get merch and art for the both of you- he just got paid from work, AND made sales with his SEVENSTAR drink.

Overall, things were pretty great.

That is, until Seven went to stand in line for a while. He was buying the new Space Wars lightsword, and he didn't want you to endure the waiting that would happen.

So there you were, sitting on a nearby bench and fiddling with your phone, assuring Zen that you were fine and that Seven was ”behaving.”

But a prickling feeling of being watched creeps into your skin, and you look up to search for whoever was responsible for it. To your surprise, they're coming right up to you.

“Let's take a picture together, sexy,” they purr, their close breath so unwelcome and unpleasant.

Just as you open your mouth to speak, a red flash accompanied by sound effects cuts you off. Suddenly, Sailor Moon has jumped in the middle.

Saeyoung hit the creep with his new lightsword.

“Honey, your Defender of Justice is here!” he turns to wink at you. “Now,” he walks towards the person and grabs them by the collar, seething calmly. “Leave my Sailor Mars alone, got it?”

jihyun

REBIRTH.

It was written in big block letters by the door, and under the collection's description was his name-

an exhibit by Jihyun Kim.

After all, this was the entrance to his studio.

V had invited you to see his work. This was the first time he would showcase his newfound painting skills to the public eye.

It was an important moment, and you were never going to miss it for the world.

You push through the doors, taking a deep breath as you step into the gallery. There are a few of his photographs lining the walls, leading to the beginning of the exhibit.

The artist himself was nowhere to be found, but you knew you'd find him soon enough, so you didn't think too much about it.

You stared at painting after painting, taking in every brushstroke and shade of paint on canvas.

So this is what he's been up to the whole time?

The most noticeable thing to your eyes was the fact that there wasn't a single trace of the sun. Or daffodils, for that matter... Rebirth, indeed.

You're fixed on this one piece- it's rather abstract, but the colors make you understand immediately. Pixels of red and pink flowers, blooming and transitioning into a more realistic style.

Yeah. You know exactly what this one's about.

You're so moved by it, the tears waiting to fall from your eyes go unnoticed. Unbeknownst to you, a fellow viewer had been trying to get your attention. They tap your shoulder once, twice, thrice- before you shake out of your trance.

You barely register the way you're pulled away into a familiar chest, Jihyun's protective hand now resting on your hip.

“Do not touch the most precious masterpiece in my studio,” he warns firmly. “You're not allowed to touch my artwork.”

ray

It's another lonely night at Mint Eye- you haven't seen Ray as much anymore since he hasn't been able to visit your room, but you understood.

So you settled for the next best thing: his garden.

When Savior granted you access to Magenta's facilities, you decided the garden was the only place you felt safe enough to explore alone.

Your hands lightly grazed the flowers as you strolled, their sweet scent filling your senses. Each blossom was so beautiful and perfectly cared for, the garden so lovely and alive- making your heart flutter at the thought of Ray's careful hands.

My flower. That's one of the nicknames he called you, though he insisted that you were far lovelier than any of the ones in his garden.

Ah, the memories you made in this place...

Both of you seemed to be reminiscing the same night, because Ray was pacing on the other end of the garden. However, you were unaware of this.

You're pulled back from your thoughts by the sound of a believer cleaning up the construction materials you had run into that first night here.

Still frozen, you watch intently & wait for them to finish. Instead of leaving, the believer turns to you.

“No wonder Mr. Ray hides you away from all of us,” the cloaked figure spoke like a predator, pulling up their hood to get a better look at you.

And Mr. Ray himself snaps his head up at that, instincts taking over as he approaches from behind while huffing. He links your arms, and you look up at him with concern. Ray was shaking.

“Do not speak to my flower!” He yells, then points to other believers whilst jerking his head to the one by you, motioning for them to be taken away.

You blink rapidly & let Ray wordlessly lead you back to your room. He makes sure the door is closed before he speaks- “I'm sorry, I... I promise to protect you better f-from believers like-”

He doesn't get a chance to finish before you hug him tight, murmuring thank yous in his ear.

suit saeran

The flowers on your bedside had started to wither.

You stare longingly at them, missing their sweet scent and the unspoken words behind them.

They didn't have much time left, and you figured it would be better to dry them so they would be preserved, rather than leaving them to wilt.

You would not let them die. You would not forget.

You don't even realize you've moved until your fingers fiddle with a petal. A sigh escapes your lips, hands moving of their own accord as they try to salvage what's left of the bouquet.

The door suddenly bangs, jolting your bones.

“Hello, I- I'm not here to hurt you!” The intruder says, holding their hands up in front of you.

This won't do. You'll be in trouble. “What do you think you're doing here?” You seeth calmly.

“I can help you get out of here, if you want-”

“Leave.”

“Listen, you're a nice girl and-” Whatever he was going to say next, you'd never find out, because-

BAM BAM BAM.

Saeran had come in, throwing the believer so violently against the wall. Several sickening cracks echoed through the room, the body sliding down the wall, unmoving. Were they concussed? You couldn't see them well, but the darkening cloak meant there was blood.

“THIS IS MY TOY!” Saeran's possessive voice booms. He crosses the room in a flash, roughly grabbing you by the chin and pulling you in for a kiss. And another. And another. Like he was intent on draining you of all you had.

When he pulls away, a string of saliva keeps you connected. Saeran turns to spit harshly at the believer and crouches down to meet their eyes.

“No one else gets to play with what's mine,” he snarls, kneeing the victim hard in the stomach. “Congratulations,” a manic laugh escaping your captor's lips. “You just got an express ticket to cleansing.”

unknown

You checked the car multiple times to make sure all the necessities were there, lest your boss get angry with you before you guys could even leave.

It's another night of recruiting for you and Unknown, which means you'll be staking out the whole night in that vehicle- in very close proximity.

With you riding shotgun, he begins to drive out of Magenta. The two of you sit in comfortable silence, but you stay alert and ready for any commands he'd have for you.

A few RFA members log in, so you enter the chatroom for some entertainment. It's your job, but it doesn't mean you don't get to have fun.

You laugh, and Unknown's eyes flash towards you, his brows furrowed, before he looks back to the road. You know what that look means, & he doesn't have to speak for you to explain.

“The RFA are making fools of themselves again.”

He chuckles at that, shaking his head while he parks the car. Unknown turns to face you, back against the door & an elbow perched on his seat.

“Fill me in on their latest activity while we wait, assistant,” he commands, so you obey. He gives you directions on how to interact with them every now and then, which you mentally take note of.

But he goes quiet all of a sudden, head craning forward a bit as his mint eyes glinted through the night. Slowly, he pulls down his mask to reveal a smirk sitting on his lips.

Your chin is between his fingers as he pulls you in close, a husky whisper in your ear- “Just go with it, prince/ss,” before he kisses you rather tenderly on the cheek with eyes wide open, glaring out your window.

“Hm, you actually smell rather sweet tonight.” His remark darkens the blush on your face, and before you have a chance to ask what just happened, he's already out the door.

You're still frozen in place when a loud SMACK makes you snap your head towards the sound- a body writhing in pain and the faint shadow of your boss walking back to the car.

“What? They were ogling what's mine.”

saeran

The sea breeze tickles your nose as you lay under the sun, soaking up its rays and basking in its warmth. And what better thing to complement this heat, than some ice cream?

You happily had a popsicle as you watched the twins from a distance. Saeran had mentioned Saeyoung how he's never been to the beach before, so of course, Saeyoung asked for your help in planning a surprise trip for his twin.

Saeran laughing with his brother in the water might as well have been a fever dream at this point, because really, you never thought you'd see it with your own two eyes.

But you blinked. And you blinked again. And still, you saw them smiling together on the beach.

Your heart soared. It really was a perfect day.

Watching them suddenly makes you feel grateful that the three of you had been lucky enough to see days like this. That you and Saeran were free, that Saeyoung was safe, and that the brothers were together at last.

You laugh with them from a distance, but it doesn't last long, because you whip your head towards the sound of a nearby shutter going off.

It leaves you feeling icky. But you look back at the twins anyways, only to find Saeyoung alone.

“GET HIS ASS!” You hear him say, and suddenly a panting, out of breath Saeran is between you and the person who took photos of you.

“I know you're going to delete those, right?” Saeran smiles, his calm friendliness a very thin veil over the threat he was posing. “I'd hate to impose at a public place like this.”

The creep is now absolutely terrified & complies.

They're still standing by when Saeran turns to check on you, so you smile at him reassuringly. His eyes dart between you and your popsicle.

“Can I have a taste, my love?”

You move to offer some, but instead, he surges in to meet your lips in a slow, passionate kiss.

Both you and the stranger stare dumbfoundedly when he says, “Mm, my favorite flavor.”

rika

The sun is high and bright in the sky today- the perfect weather for a picnic.

This is what Rika said when she called you up today, and who were you to disagree?

With a couple of pastries and drinks tucked in your baskets (courtesy of Jaehee, of course), both of you hopped on your bicycles and rode to the park.

The breeze carried her scent to you, as you were trailing close behind- that along with the sight of her hair blown by the wind was enough to make your heart thump louder in your chest.

She takes you to a spot she found by the lake, the two of you detaching your baskets and moving to set up your little area.

Together, you lay down the blanket and set out the food. You try not to show it, but you felt all kinds of warm every time your hands would brush.

Suddenly being alone with Rika didn't seem like a good idea anymore. She'd probably be able to see right through you, and if she already did, you were lucky enough that she didn't point it out.

You were listening to her talk as you ate, absolutely enraptured with her words as you usually were, reacting when appropriate.

Rika's talking slows and her eyes narrow, focusing at something behind you. Just as you're about to turn and follow her line of sight, she gently turns your chin back to face her before you can get a glimpse of the stranger eyeing you hungrily.

You're about to ask what's up, but she silences you with a smile and holds up a fork to your mouth. Confused, you open your mouth and happily eat the cake she fed you nonetheless.

She smirks and giggles, leaning in. “You got a little something on your-”

Rika wipes the stray icing off with her finger, cleaning it with her mouth. There's a killer glare behind her sweet stare as she kisses the corner of your mouth softly, staying close to you.

“There you go,” She's blushing like you, but all you manage is a dopey smile. “All better, sunshine.”

vanderwood

You placed the vegetables by the fruits in your basket, ticking them off the list.

This was your mission: stock Seven's fridge with actual food while Vanderwood bought more cleaning supplies.

And of course, if the redhead wasn't done with his work by the time you both returned to the bunker, then a certain taser would be put to use today.

It was nice to be alone with Vanderwood for once, albeit doing something as simple as this. If you were gawking too much during the car ride here, well, he didn't have to know.

But the man was an agent. Of course they knew.

You shake your head free of these thoughts and focus on your task. Eggs. You needed eggs.

When you get to the dairy section, you quickly search for a carton of large eggs. But as you're about to grab it, you go still at the sound of an unfamiliar voice behind you.

“How do you like your eggs in the morning, cutie?”

Slowly, you take the tray and place it in your basket, stalling for time as you didn't want to deal with the unwelcome conversation.

However, you had to turn around eventually. When you did, you saw Vanderwood quickly approaching from behind the unknown person.

They tower over the stranger as they pass by with a disapproving grunt. You couldn't quite make out what they muttered, but if you were just a little bit closer, you would've heard the threat of a tasing.

He slings an arm around your neck, dragging you away without a word. As you walk, he squeezes your shoulder gently and turns his head back to press a tender kiss to the top of your head, glaring directly at the creep.

That should've been the end of that, but he keeps his arm around you as you stand in line. And as he carries the bags (with one hand!). And as he places them in the trunk.

On the drive back, he quietly and oh-so nonchalantly reaches for your hand. You bite your lip to keep from smiling too wide and take it.

[starrgaziinggg]

BEGIN AGAIN | hwang hyunjin

CHAPTER SEVEN

Hwang Hyunjin messes with your head, unknowingly, for over a month. Until you can't take it anymore.

*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:

Growing up with Chris Bang as your best friend had it's perks - a permanent bodyguard, a shoulder to cry on... and seven other boys who also became your best friends as you grew up together.

Week in, week out, your routine stayed the same. Study, go to class and patiently wait to attend your regular Friday evening home cooked meal with your friends. You just couldn't wait to graduate and start working, to rid yourself of exams and finally start earning some proper money like the boys.

Desperate to put some light back into your mundane, studious life, Chris forces you to start blind dating. Two miserable dates down and ready to murder the man, someone completely unexpected appears and makes a mess of your orderly life.

And a mess he does make.

|fake dating|friends to lovers|slow burn|non idol au|

chapter seven

You woke up the next morning to a siren going off. You sat up, bashing your head off the top of your headboard and with wide, panicked eyes, wondered why they had brought the Purge to South Korea.

Okay, that was really over dramatic. It was just your phone alarm ringing over and over right beside your ear. You swore, looking at the caller name and answering the call.

"Jisung? It's so fucking early and it's Sunday. What could you possibly want," you answered the phone call by saying. Clearly you were the opposite of a morning person. You hated being woken up by anyone.

"What an excellent way to answer the phone! I'm doing great, Thankyou!" He said in his usual cheery voice. As you listened you heard someone talking in the background sounding stressed.

"Cut the crap, what's going on," you said, wanting him to get to the point. You waited for his response, but instead heard him should to whoever was with him.

"Yah! It will be fine! Sit down and shut up," he said to whoever he was with. "Sorry about that. Lino is freaking out. Basically, Da-Hye is on holiday, so they were already not coming in to work today, so Lino got Jeongin to cover for them. But now Bitna has food poisoning so she can't come in, and

In-Su caught a bug from those stupid feet fish that eat all your dead skin. So, Jeongin Minho and I are the only people available to run the restaurant because all his other useless workers are refusing to cover the shifts."

You rolled your eyes.

"What time do you want me to come in for?" You ask, and you can hear the glee in Jisung's voice.

"Ten am please! Thankyou, love you," he said. Then he directs his words to Minho. "See, I told you our friends would come in clutch. Quit your whining, okay!"

"Okay, okay, I'll be there. Bye, dumbass," you say as you hang up the phone.

You genuinely didn't mind covering shifts when Minho needed you too. After Changbin and Jisung started working for Minho's parents restaurant, you and Jeongin started to work there when you were needed a couple months later. You already ate there a lot anyway, and it was easy work since Minho and his parents were great bosses. There were four of Minho's parents restaurants across South Korea, and one of them was owned and run by Minho - the one closest to where you all lived. This was the one you had all worked at.

It was 9am, so you set an alarm for 9:30 and went back to sleep, getting as much rest as possible before your shift. When your alarm went off, you got up and started to get ready. You were lucky your uniform was still in tact and had been washed since the last time you wore it. All you had to wear was the company's polo shirt and a pair of leggings.

It was only a ten minute walk to the restaurant and you couldn't be bothered paying for an Uber so you just walked. You arrived bang on ten o'clock to Jisung cleaning the restaurant.

"Hey! Thanks for coming in, you saved me. Lino was driving me insane," he said to you, giving you a hug as you walked in.

"It's not a problem. Sorry I was such a bitch on the phone," you apologised.

"Don't worry, we all know what you're like when you get woken up abruptly. I expected nothing less," he laughed, finishing up wiping the tables. The restaurant didn't open until eleven but Minho liked to make sure everyone was ready before opening. At that moment he walked through and gave you a grin.

"Hi," he said, drawing out the last syllable. "Can you come through and taste this for me? Jisung is useless."

You laughed as Jising flipped Minho off and you walked through to the back, where the kitchen was. Minho had two chefs and they usually did the cooking, but he often helped. The restaurant wasn't huge - it only had around twenty tables - so he didn't have heaps of staff.

He had been making some sort of soup, and he took a spoon and held it up to your mouth. You took it in your mouth and tasted what he'd been making. It tasted delicious, as you were excepting.

"It's amazing, Minho! Personally I would add some more spice to it, but that's just my taste," you say to him, giving him a thumbs up.

"That's actually a good idea," he says, deliberating it. "You're annoying when you're right."

You rolled your eyes and jumped up to sit on the countertop. Minho used to scold you for it, but he'd given up after a while. You took a cloth and started cleaning the cutlery that had just come out the dishwasher. A minute later Jeongin arrived through the back door with a grin on his face. His work uniform was far too small for him now and clung to his body.

"Oh my god, Innie! You've been working out more haven't you," Jisung said, walking to the back through the swing door. He started feeling his biceps and Jeongin moved his arm away.

"Hey! Leave me alone," he said, coming over to stand beside you and helping with the cutlery.

"You're all grown up now! I remember in school when you would run to me because of the other kids but now you'd be fighting them all on your own," he continued. Jeongin faked punching the air and you laughed. You remembered how Jeongin was picked on and teased a lot in school. Kids could be really horrible, but it made Jeongin toughen up a lot and he would always tell you and the boys how grateful he was to have you all as friends.

You all got to working, cleaning up the restaurant and sorting out bookings for the day. Since you'd all helped out working there since you were kids, you knew how to do pretty much everything, so it was easy to just get stuck back in after you hadn't worked there for a while.

People started arriving dead on eleven, and you began to serve tables. There were a fair few regulars that you remembered who were excited to have you serving them again. You enjoyed the familiar atmosphere that came with working at the restaurant. Minho wasn't uptight by any means, and you, Jeongin and Jisung were good workers so it just flowed well. Your favourite part about working there was the friendly banter you had with the boys. Take now for instance; you'd been working for a couple hours and Jisung had taken your playlist off of the speaker system and put on his own songs, singing along to them with Jeongin.

"The customers don't want to hear you screech like a cat, Hannie," you said to him as you placed plates down for a table. "Sorry about him, he put too much sugar on his weetabix this morning."

"Oh don't be sorry, it's so fun watching you kids have fun together," one of your regulars laughed.

"You're just jealous because you don't have the voice of an angel," Jisung retorted.

"Yes?" Jeongin said towards Jisung, polishing a glass.

"What?"

"Sorry, I just heard you talking about my voice," Jeongin smiled cheekily. You laughed and Jisung stuck out his tongue. Jeongin actually did have a lovely voice, but he was far too shy to ever use it properly.

"I'm truly embarrassed for you both," you say as you go back into the kitchen. Minho was cleaning up, preparing to close the restaurant for lunch break before opening up again later. He always made you all lunch when you worked all day, and right now he was making noodles for everyone. You grabbed some chopsticks and sneakily took some from the pot.

"Hey! Wait until your break, it's only an hour away," he said, swatting your hand away. "Are they causing a ruckus out there?"

"Would you expect anything less from them?" You asked, your mouth full.

The last hour of your shift before lunch passed by really quickly and it wasn't long until the four of you were sitting at a table and eating lunch yourselves. Jisung sat beside you, with Jeongin across from you and Minho beside him.

"I feel like I've asked this a million times recently, but how was your date last night?" Jeongin asked, looking at you intently. The two other boys turned to look at you. You debated on what to say - you'd almost totally forgotten about your night last night. It almost felt like a fever dream.

"So, funny story about that. Chan decided it would be hilarious to set Hyunjin up as my blind date," you said and the boys eyes widened. "At first I was raging at him but then we just ended up having a nice dinner together. But after that, I met this guy at a bar and we got to talking and I think im going to start seeing him."

The lie just slipped out so easily, you surprised yourself. Minho did that upside down smile thing and nodded his head, whilst Jeongin and Jisung just smiled.

"Interesting," Minho said. "What's his name?"

"I'm not telling you anything about him yet," you said, quickly trying to cover up the fact that there just was no man. "I don't even know if it will work out, so no point in making him a household name for no reason yet."

You were relatively pleased with how you had navigated the conversation, and the boys seemed to drop the topic fairly quickly. They had started talking about something else when you saw you had received a text from Hyunjin.

CEO MR. HWANG

What's your plans for Saturday?

Princess

None atm. Why?

CEO MR. HWANG

Fancy watching that movie w me

You know the one we're

seeing on Sunday

The horror

I want to watch it before

we all go together

Princess

In preparation ?

I mean sure

Kinda smart

Means Seungmin won't make

fun of you again

CEO MR. HWANG

Exactly 🥲

I'll pick u up around 8 : )

You couldn't help but giggle at his texts. Despite his height, he was the biggest baby of the group. He couldn't handle horror or gore at all, and practically died every time he saw it. It was hilarious (and adorable, but you'd never admit that out loud). You'd all made a plan to see the latest horror in the cinema on Sunday, and clearly Hyunjin was shitting himself.

You looked up to see all three boys staring at you.

"What's hilarious and adorable?" Minho asked slyly. Fuck, you'd definitely just said that out loud.

"Nothing you'd be interested in. Anyway, shouldn't we be getting cleaned up for the evening shift?" You said, taking everyone's bowls and making your way to the kitchen. Conversation easily avoided.

The rest of your shift went by fine. Clumsy Yang Jeongin smashed only two glasses, and Jisung almost cut his hand trying to tidy it, but other than that it sailed by rather smoothly. But you honestly could not stop thinking of one thing.

Hwang Hyunjin.

Since he had been brought up in conversation, he had annoyingly occupied your mind. Why was he so eager to take you out? Why did he seem to act different than he ever had before? Did he only see you as a friend still?

You had a million questions running through your mind, but you knew one thing for certain. Every time you thought about that date last night, your heart beat a little faster and you could not stop the smile from forming on your face.

And it was killing you.

You and Hyunjin had been friends for a really long time. You knew so much about him, you'd seen him at his best and at his worst - so why were you starting to feel this way now? Was it just a stupid crush on your attractive friend? Or something more?

"You're daydreaming again, idiot," Jeongin said when you were locking up after your shift had ended. He had offered to give you a lift home, so it was just the two of you left to lock up. When you locked the door, you put the keys in the locked letterbox for Minho to use tomorrow.

"Sorry," you said, following behind him to his car. "I guess I'm just not really with it at the moment. Got too much to think about, and the incessant noise outside my apartment just does not help. I have a mock exam tomorrow, as well, which is what we fall back on if we fail the exam. I've studied so much for it I think I'll do well but if I get a shit sleep tonight I'll flunk it."

"You're more than welcome to stay with me and Seungmin tonight if you want to sleep well before your test," Jeongin said instantly, unlocking his car for the both of you to get in and set off home. "You can sleep in my room and I'll either share with Seungmin or sleep on the couch."

"I can't ask you to do that," you said, shaking your head with a pout. Your friends were far too kind to you.

"You're not asking, I'm offering. Don't say no, or you'll be more annoying than you already are," he said with a laugh. You huffed, but caved in and thanked him. You stopped at your apartment to grab some pajamas and your things for your mock exam tomorrow and, as expected, the workmen were back at it. Jeongin had gone up to your apartment with you and widened his eyes at the noise.

"Damn, I didn't think the noise was this bad," he said, waiting for you to get your belongings together. "I understand why you've been so grouchy recently, this sucks."

You stick your tongue out at him.

"See? Everyone's been like, 'stop whining, it's not that bad,' but it's literal hell. I've tried everything - ear buds, asmr, blaring music, but I literally need silence to have a good night of sleep."

He nodded in understand and you both went back out to his car once you'd got your stuff ready.

"You're lucky you have the bestest friend in the world," he said as you start driving towards his and Seungmin's shared apartment. "What would you do without me, hm?"

You smiled at your friend. Even with all the crap going through your head, Hyunjin filling your thoughts and the lies and the dating, you knew you could always count on Jeongin to keep your spirits light hearted. You were almost polar opposites; he hated physical affection, you loved it. He could be loud and boisterous, often acting like a child who'd eaten too much sugar, and you were shy and reserved, only being extroverted when surrounded by your best friends. He was very emotional and often took things to heart, whereas you had built a wall around your emotions long ago.

Yet, despite your difference, you worked well together as friends. It had always been extremely platonic between you both, though. Jeongin was closer to being your little brother more than anything. You arrived at the apartment a couple minutes later to find Seungmin watching tv on the couch.

"Hi baby bread," he said without looking towards the door, using Jeongin's childhood nickname. Then when he saw you. He smiled. "Oh hey, are you staying here tonight?"

"Yeah, if that's alright with you. Got a mock exam tomorrow and the workmen are in full force tonight."

"Not a problem. Except you will definitely need to sleep in Jeongin's bed, because I spilt tea all over my sheets earlier and I had to strip my bed, so I've only got a blanket and a soggy bed," Seungmin said and you couldn't help but laugh at him. Such a classic Seungmin thing to do.

"Yeah, I've already said she can sleep in my room so I'll just take the couch," Jeongin said. You gave him a pout but he just rolled his eyes at you. It was only around ten pm so you got changed into your pajamas and slippers and joined Seungmin on the couch to watch the show he was watching. Jeongin joined you both after a couple minutes. You snuggled into them both, and they accepted your physical touch without much thought. Those two were the absolute worst when it came to skinship, even with the boys, and it took them the longest to get used to your physical touch. But once you had all matured, they didn't mind it so much and didn't bother fighting you off. Well, most of the time.

You stayed like that for a while, sandwiched between the two boys, until it got late and you went through to Jeongin's room to sleep. You would never tell him, but you actually loved the vibe of his cosy room and his bed was ten times more comfortable than yours, and you ended up sleeping like a log that night.

CHAPTER EIGHT HERE!

[folkloreguk]

French Class [6]

A/N: You guys might want to whack out your love song playlist for this one…I cried writing this BYE I'm posting this from my grave!!

genre: optional bias (m) x reader (f), fwb, f2l?, college!au, fuckboy!bias, nerd!reader, ANGST, smut

words: ~ 3.8 k

✽series masterlist✽

taglist (lmk if u wanna be added!): @lovely-ateez, @runaway-fics, @mainexiii, @awfullytiredbuthealing, @erikyoong, @etherealuv, @staysuki, @justcuz-ican, @yeostars, @hyuckthangs, @teenloves, @mexious18-blog, @sunghoonied, @mailobjaeyoon

couldn’t tag: @chorizoek

You: can I come over? I kind of need u

H/N: you need me huh…you’re lucky I’m home alone

It always starts differently. Some other question, or a subtle message of telling him you’re bored, or a flat-out confession of being horny. The ending is always the same. You, naked in his bed. You just had to get there, and things were easy when you were already on his dorm’s doorstep.

The moment he had opened the door, you had fistfuls of his hair between your fingers and attacked his mouth in a feverish kiss. He made a noise between a laugh and surprise but reacted quickly. His lips parted right away, letting you in, and you tasted mint from the chewing gum he liked so much.

“Let me- at least- close the door,” he mumbled. “Jeez, what’s gotten into you today?”

You stepped aside and mirrored his grin. He was acting surprised, but the way he instantly locked your lips after he had shut the door told you he was enjoying this as much as you were. You ran your hands down his torso and along the side of his thighs. His happy hum only poured oil into the fire, and you saw no reason as to why you should have kept your clothes on any longer. In minutes, in the middle of heated kisses and clumsy chuckles, your clothes were discarded, and you were left in your underwear. You stumbled into his bedroom in a tangle of arms and legs and heads barely pulling apart.

“Will you tell me about the date you had today or are we skipping over that part?” he asked, as he pushed you down by the shoulders onto his bed. You groaned a little, not even knowing where to start.

“Didn’t go well, huh?” he asked. Only a few nights ago you had consoled him after his failed date, now the roles were reversed.

“That’s one way to put it,” you said. He was climbing on top of you now, and the weight of him between your thighs still did the same things to you it had done the first time. There was one of his random playlists playing quietly from the speakers, but you were both too occupied to even consider switching the music off. You weren’t in the mood for a chat, not when he was biting and sucking bruises into your chest, pushing aside your bra just enough. But you knew he wasn’t going to let it go this easily.

“Tell me about it or I won’t take one more piece of clothing off your body,” he threatened. You shot him an are-you-serious-look while he only blinked at you innocently, like he was awaiting your response.

“Fine,” you groaned. “But hurry, now.”

“That’s my girl,” he said, before unclasping your bra and throwing it to the other side of the room. “Go ahead, I expect a story.”

You had rolled your eyes at him, but when he sucked on your nipple all of a sudden, and his tongue flicked over the sensitive bud ever so perfectly, your eyes moved to the back of your head involuntarily. And, before he could complain, you started to retell today’s events.

“Alright. First of all, he acted all gentleman-y. Pulling back my chair at the restaurant, letting me have a look at the menu first, letting me order first, asking me if I was okay with our seats because they were in the sunshine, or whether he should have requested we get a different in the shade table, blah, blah, blah.”

With the lewd noises he was making, kissing your chest and fumbling with your breasts, you almost wondered whether he was paying attention to you at all.

“I’m waiting for the plot twist,” he chuckled. “If he had been this great, you wouldn’t be in my bed right now, would you?” He was now on his way to your lower regions. Your breaths came out shaky when he gripped your hips with familiar fingertips and placed a few kisses there, right above the material of your underwear. Nonetheless, you had to continue your story.

“Oh, it’s coming,” you said. “Because I suspect, the only reason he was acting that way was to compensate. For the fact that he was an hour late.”

He stifled a laugh, and you slapped his head playfully. “It’s not funny! I stood outside that restaurant on a busy street like an idiot for an hour. During exam season!”

“I wonder, if studying is so special to you- ,” he said. He tugged on your underwear, and you barely cared about his words when you were already imagining his mouth on your pussy. “Why aren’t you at home right now, doing just that?”

“Too frustrated,” you groaned, spreading your legs, practically inviting him in. “You don’t get it. That was only the beginning of the date. It gets worse.”

“Oh, damn,” he laughed, and you were going to slap him again. Harder, this time. But his tongue kitten-licked over your clit and you didn’t dare interrupt him further.

“First of all, he turned out to be boring. An economics major. And look, I’m not generalizing, I’ve met some cool economics majors. But when I said I never really understood the whole thing with inflation and deflation, I wasn’t asking for him to explain it to me. I know what it means, I just meant to say money is the root of all evil,” you said, little moans slipping inbetween your sentences. He laughed whilst sipping on your clit. You couldn’t be mad at his laughing anymore. In fact, at the sound of his chuckles, your own lips curled into a smile, too. God, he was so good with his tongue.

“But turns out he loved money. Like it was the sole reason he was doing anything. When he showed me his gold watch I almost yawned,” you continued.

“Dating a rich guy can have its upsides too, though,” he said, but you knew he was joking. He was running the tips of his fingers over your core, and you whimpered at how badly you wanted him to put them inside of you. You loved watching him, loved feeling his hair tickle the side of your thighs and having his free hand laying on top of your hipbone. The familiarity of it all, his little habits, made your heart heavy, so full of emotion, all of a sudden. But you had to snap out of it.

“Not this guy. He kept saying these lowkey sexist things I won’t repeat now. It’ll only make me mad again. He was one of those who thought money would buy him a girlfriend. And I was really trying to see the good in him…only there was none,” you said.

“Alright, I’m starting to understand why you needed some cheering up,” he said. “Good thing you’re at the right place. I know just the thing.”

At this, he slid his digits into you. You hummed and dropped your head into the plush pillow. Slowly, you exhaled, happy you finally got to relax after being so upset. But of course, he had to interrupt. Again.

“Did I say you could stop? Was that the end of the story?” he said. How did he expect you to form a coherent sentence? He fingered you gently, but the slowness of it all only drove you crazier. You felt every tiny sensation, every new bit of you he touched.

“No,” you sulked. “Fuck, it feels so good.”

“Go on, then,” he encouraged you, grinning because he was proud of your reaction he had caused.

“Fuck- okay. He was super shitty to the waiter. I’m talking about criticizing everything. This man had the audacity to complain about the food. I’m not a food critic, but I swear the food was amazing, there was nothing to fault at all,” you said, and then whined when he switched from licking your clit to sucking it between his teeth. You knew he was doing this on purpose. To make speaking harder for you.

“Oh my god, H/N. Wait, let me finish this. Not only was he horrible to the waiter in person, but he also made fun of the waiter’s appearance behind his back. And all along he expected me to find him funny. I used to think he had a sense of humor but not after today. Blech.”

“At least you got a free dinner?” he said, and without awaiting your answer, went back to work. Your head was spinning in pleasure, and you could only laugh sarcastically at his suggestion.

“Yeah. And after that train wreck of a date, he really thought he’d get to stick his tongue down my throat,” you said.

“Did he at least ask permission?” asked the boy between your legs.

“Mhm…but I told him I don’t do that on the first date,” you said. “Safe to say there won’t be another date, though.”

He looked up now, laughing more than before. You grinned, mainly because the sight of him was so cute. He folded his hands on your belly and put his face down onto your skin to giggle. In no way could you be upset or urge him to keep giving you head. In fact, you had forgotten about all of that for a while, as he seemed to enjoy your misfortune a little too wildly. You should have been hungry, eager to have the half-naked boy inside of you. Yet, you laughed at the way his breaths tickled your stomach and when he finally made eye contact, it was a wholly different sort of hunger which overcame you. Instead of the heat he usually made you feel, it was a comfortable warmth that was in your chest. It reminded you of a bonfire or of drinking your favorite hot drink on a cool autumn day.

“I want to watch you come,” he said, casually. “Were you close?”

You were so lost in his trustworthy, dreamy eyes, you almost forgot to reply. Quickly, you nodded and hummed.

“I would have already come, had you not pestered me to tell you all the details of my date,” you said. The way his cheeks beamed when he smiled made you feel as if your insides were turning into mush.

“I’m sorry. I’m your friend, aren’t I allowed to ask how your day went?” he asked.

“Of course you are,” you said. The word ‘friend’ echoed off every wall in your head until you wished you could have deleted it from the dictionary.

“I’ll make sure it feels extra good now,” he said, kissing your stomach. You shivered as you watched his gentle lips move lower, to your hips and the insides of your thighs. The touch felt like butterfly wings on your skin, and the tardiness of it made you impatient. When his tongue came in contact with your clit again, you sucked in a breath of surprise.

He tried to start slowly, but then you gripped his hair tightly, and carefully pushed him further. It was something you did often, a way to tell him you wanted more without having to use words. After all this time, he understood perfectly. Your clit was between his lips and his tongue flicked over the sensitive bundle of nerves with just the right amount of pleasure. It felt incredible, creating a funny sensation in the pit of your stomach. His fingers grazed over your slit until you were whimpering and shifting your hips, trying to make him hurry.

One of his digits slid into you easily, curling against your sweet spot, and it hit you only now how much you had missed him between your legs since he had stopped a few minutes ago. It made you feel as though you were suddenly overwhelmed with all of him, but you were willing to let the heat crash over you if it meant you could be close to him.

“Am I making it up to you now?” he asked as he pulled away merely for a breath. “I’ll turn your day into a good one after all.”

In a different tone his words would have sounded like the exact thing one would have expected to hear from a fuckboy in the bedroom. He could have boasted and bragged endlessly about how great he was with his tongue and fingers – he would have been right – but he didn’t mean it like that. You could tell from the uprightness and the authenticity in his voice that he really was doing his best because he wanted to make you feel better and turn your day around. Because you were special to him. Or so you desperately hoped.

Your legs wrapped around his shoulders as if you were trapping him between your thighs. But he was right there, and he would gladly stay for so much longer, and to say it puzzled you was an understatement. The boy who belonged to everybody, who was known by all of the campus, was treating you like you were royalty, and not the other way around. You moaned, his name inevitably falling from your lips. He added another finger and the slightest stretch made you lose your mind for a split second.

“That guy could have never made you feel this good, could he?” he suddenly asked. Your initial response was a helpless whine. You had been so close, and his talking had interrupted the otherworldly bliss for a moment.

“No, never,” you then whimpered shortly. ‘No’ was such a tiny word. It could barely encapsule what you truly meant to say. Which was that it would have never even gotten that far. That other guys couldn’t even have you at all. They didn’t get their turn to try and beat him. Not as of lately, at least. That you didn’t so much as dare to think about sleeping with other guys. That even before you had gone on the date, you had known it wouldn’t lead to anything. No guy could let you develop an interest on him in the same way the boy between your legs had done it. No other would be able to kidnap your brain like that. H/N was always there. Even when it was only you and your sex toys, you would automatically pretend it was him getting you off. You were so far gone that it was embarrassing how long it had taken you to admit it to yourself. But it was a colossal thing to confess to him, and you would never do that. Rejection would hurt a billion times more than whatever it was you two had now.

Your heart was racing as you closed your eyes. You had been so lost in thought, it was wondrous you hadn’t fallen yet. But you were right on the edge, making your breaths come out like puffs and a string of moans and swears sound from your lips. He too had stopped talking, concentrating on the task at hand, and judging by the way your back arched he was doing one hell of a good job.

“Oh my god- “ you whimpered. “I’m so close, H/N.”

This time he didn’t reply, which was for the best. Only a few seconds passed until you started to quiver and whine beneath him. You were going to outer space behind your eyelids as your high rushed through you. Your fingers curled and tightened in his locks while your legs clenched around his head. He was quick to pull your thighs apart again, still not being finished. For long seconds you swam in pleasure, with nothing on your mind but bursting stars. He was heaven, knowing precisely how far he could take it until you were too sensitive to take any more.

When you were at that point, he finally pulled away and looked up at your crumpled form. There was a lazy smile playing in the corner of your lips and your vision was hazy after having had your eyes closed for a while. He climbed up your body until his chest was against yours so he could really look at you.

“I get all of this without ever having been on a single date with you? I’m so lucky,” he said. You only smiled at him, at a loss for words. What were you to say? The two of you were clearly past the awkward dating stage already.

“I’m lucky you let me come over all the time,” you said. “I would have expected the campus fuckboy to be busier. To not have an empty spot in his bed every night.”

“Ah, shut up,” he said. “I’d rather have you here than a girl I don’t know at all. Look, I’m really tired so I don’t know how this will go…but can I?” He was on his knees, a tent visible in his boxers. With a questioning look, he was tugging them down his legs now.

“Of course,” you said. As you watched him roll on a condom, your ears perked up. Did that song have to come on shuffle just now? The coziest, most romantic love song you adored so much? You knew if you looked him in the eyes you’d be done for. But there wasn’t anywhere else to look when he settled between your legs and held up his weight with his forearms. His eyes were deep enough for you to get lost within a second. Distracting yourself was impossible. The one last thing you could do was to reach between the two of you and guide his length into you.

The song’s chorus came on, you looked at him once again, and suddenly you were all his. You didn’t need to tell him so. He thrust gently, almost carefully, like he had never done it with you. Your heart hammered against your ribcage so vivaciously, you wondered whether it had turned autonomous and was now trying to jump out of your body, onto his skin and through it, so it could nestle next to his own heart.

Neither of you spoke. Yet, there had never been so much chemistry, such a heavy amount of uncommunicated emotions between the two of you. You were ready to hang on his every word, should he decide to speak up. In your head rampaged a billion sentiments you needed him to know, but there was no option to express them adequately. Perhaps there were simply no words in the English language to declare your feelings for him.

Small whimpers and moans left your lips only for him to hear. Sometimes he moved a little quicker, gifting you with the most perfect sounds he could make. And to know you were the cause for it sent you into overdrive. His mouth was right above yours. If you lifted your head slightly, you could have kissed his sweet, sweet lips. But you were so afraid. What would he think? You had never kissed him during sex. Not softly, like you wanted it so terribly.

Even worse, you craved so much more than that. You wanted to pull him in, envelope his mouth in your own, crawl over the edge of his lips and reside in his chest for safety. Because that’s what he was. Comfort. Reassurance. Home. How foolish you had been, pretending this little fling would lead to nothing more. You really had told yourself this would work. No feelings. Just fun. You couldn’t deny having fun with him. He was the best company you had ever known, and he had become your most precious friend quickly. It was as if you had only been waiting for the silly, flirty boy to sit across from you in the library and make weak advances towards you.

The love song tuned out slowly, replaced by something more sensual and sinful. In accordance with the new background noise, he gripped your hips a little meaner and went faster. You barely noticed how his breathing had sped up as he was getting closer to his orgasm. A trance had overcome you, transfixing you on his godlike features and how much it hurt to know you couldn’t call him yours. In your head you were made for each other. They always said to date your best friend, didn’t they? You could try to turn back time, go back to your first meeting place, at the party. See if things would turn out different. But you knew they wouldn’t. As much as your fear tried to suppress it – you would take the same path again, stumbling head-first into his arms and letting him into your life like a crashing wave of laughter and heart-crushing conversations.

Now you reflected in despair, how he had taken your heart in a storm, without having to try too hard. And worst of all, you were okay with it. Your heart was secure with him, you thought. The feelings yearned to be spoken out loud, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it.

“You feel so good,” he said. “Always, so fucking good.”

He snapped his hips against yours, burying his cock deep inside of you and all you could muster was a hum of agreement. This is what you got for keeping him at arms-length from the beginning. Wasn’t it you who had challenged him to be friends and only that? Perhaps you would be okay, so long as no one else called him theirs either. You could go on like this, letting him use you for sexual relief and making him laugh when he needed it. Gladly, you would take the pain of not being allowed to love him with your whole being if it meant you could see him whenever you wanted. Exposing those silly emotions would wreck your friendship and you wouldn’t let it happen.

He grunted and only then, when he lowered his head into the crook of your neck and moaned your name, you realized he was reaching his high. Softly, you cradled his head in your hands, as if it was the last time you could hold him like this. When he put his forehead against yours, he had his eyes closed and his chest was moving steadier than before.

“You’re the best,” he whispered. “Stay the night?”

Should you have gone home, and missed him all night? Would you have regretted saying no while you curled up in bed with no Cheshire-cat-grin-boy to hold? Or were you to remain in his bed, and pray you would survive the torture of not speaking your mind? His skin radiated the most wonderful warmth and you wanted to trace his lips with your eyes until you fell asleep. That’s how quickly it was decided.

“Okay,” you answered.