#that is in addition to the 40 hour work week

[she-is-27-i-checked]

This is a ranty post about a viral post and the concept of old people's care...

I'm not trying to start beef, especially as the original post is making a very valid point but oh my God this thing grates on me...

"...used to have a whole intergenerational team on this and now Grandma is locked in a beige box. Cooking is hard. "

Do you understand how residential care works? Do you understand that it costs 2 x the salary of an experienced, privileged professional every month? Do you understand that NO ONE is putting grandma in a "beige box" because they're not a big fan of her Scrabble tactics?

The "locked in a beige box" grannies would not be fucking HELPING with anything if they were living with family. They would be yet another unbelievably difficult thing for middle aged women, already doing EVERYTHING for EVERYONE to look after.

[interstellarstorms]

I do not. Remember. The last time I took my meds.

[heavyhand61]

I have prepared my dream (and probably unrealistic) time line for a feedee

Starting at the day then move in

First 6 months

All prior commitments will be cancelled (work, schooling, ect)

All social medial accounts that don't revolve around feedisum will be blanked out

There will be a push to sign you up for every available feedist community (more extreme the better

Daily calorie intake will sit around the 4000cal mark

Next 6 months

Contact with anyone not completely in support of your goal of immobility will be broken

You will have regular posts about your gains on any and all available feedist platforms

Any content that does not revolve around obesity and weight gain will be banned

An expected gain of 40-60lbs a year

First year

Trips from the house will be limited

Decreasing step limits will be applied

Most media will be replaced with feedist porn

10000cal minimum per day

1 funnel feeding per day

Increase rate of post of feedist content

Second year

Leaving the house will be disallowed

Trips from bed or couche will be severely limited

15000+ cal minimum per day

3 funnel feeding per day

Clothes will be disallowed

Only consumable content will be extreme feedist porn

Any communication on social media will be limited to extreme feeders and other pro death feedist feedees

Expected 100+ lbs per year gain

Third year

Any movement beyond 3 steps must be done by scooter or wheelchair

Minimum 4h of viewing extreme feedist porn per day

25000cal+ per day

Tube feeding is standard aside from the occasional food "treat"

Must spend 4+ hours a day tube feeding

Forth year

Involuntary immobility, you will be confined to bed regardless of current mobility status

35000+ Cal per day minimum, to be consumed primarily as fats and sugars cut with only a minimum of nutrition supplement

Every hour from wakeup to sleep will involve tube feeding and a constant stream of the most extreme feedist porn

Sleep will be deferred if calorie goal has not been met

Fifth year

24/7 live stream of you're immobile fourm

50000 cal minimum

All windows blocked, all clocks removed, no indicators of date or time

Feeding tube lives in your mouth

Diet is mostly fats

Sixth plus years (don't expect to survive this long)

No contact with outside world, other feedist included

24/7 feedist hypno playing for you

Feeding tube size increased and feed slop made even less healthy and even more fattening

Start of year calorie goal of 100000+ an additional 1000 a week to be added to the minimum every week for the rest of your life

Six years and I plan on taking you from a normal healthy person to the perfect feedee, no thought, no life, just growing, growing GROWING, all that matters is growing all that matters is more all that matters is your life cut short by obesity

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

Roxette - The Look 1989

"The Look" is a song by pop duo Roxette; Sweden's second-best-selling music act after ABBA. It was released in early 1989 as the fourth single from their second studio album, Look Sharp! (1988). The album was an immediate commercial success in their home country, spending seven weeks at number one on the Swedish Albums Chart. "The Look" was written by Per Gessle as an exercise while learning how to operate the Ensoniq ESQ-1 synthesizer he had recently purchased, using a repeated A–G–D bass line as the song's core. The track's sixteenth-note rhythm was inspired by the work of ZZ Top. The original title was "He's Got the Look", with the lyrics using male pronouns. Gessle said this was done because he initially wanted Marie Fredriksson to sing the track. Both he and EMI Sweden had chosen to highlight Fredriksson as Roxette's lead vocalist. However, when recording the demo, Gessle realised the song "didn't fit her style that well, so I had a go and it sounded OK."

The singles from Look Sharp! at the time were only released in Sweden, Germany and France. However, an American exchange student from Minnesota named Dean Cushman returned from Sweden and gave his copy of the album to his local Top 40 radio station, KDWB-FM in Minneapolis. The station's program director Brian Phillips initially ignored Cushman's request to play a song from the album, leaving the CD unplayed in his office for several weeks. Phillips eventually listened to it after learning Cushman had come to the office requesting the return of his CD. Immediately impressed by the album's opening track, "The Look" was played by the station for the first time on US radio less than an hour later, and the response from listeners was overwhelmingly positive; the station immediately began receiving phone calls to replay the track.

KDWB began distributing the track to their sister radio operations, sending 500 copies to other stations throughout the United States. EMI America promptly signed the duo to a recording contract as a result of the airplay. The label had previously rejected Roxette as "unsuitable for the American market". The song had already entered the top fifty of the Billboard Hot 100 before official promotion began, peaking at number one on the chart eight weeks later. This made "The Look" the third number one single by a Swedish act on the Billboard Hot 100, following Blue Swede's "Hooked on a Feeling" (poll #152) in 1974 and ABBA's "Dancing Queen" in 1976.

The track went on to top the charts in 25 countries. It spent three weeks atop the New Zealand Singles Chart, and six weeks at number one in Australia, where it was certified platinum for sales in excess of 70,000 copies. It also topped the charts throughout Scandinavia. The song spent five weeks at number one in West Germany, and an additional five weeks at number two. It was a massive success in Spain and Switzerland, spending eight weeks at number one in both countries. It reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart.

"The Look" received a total of 80,5% yes votes!

[mariacallous]

India’s $13.9 billion aviation industry—projected to cater to over 300 million domestically by 2030—is a ticking time bomb.

This July, in the sweltering heat at the Delhi High Court, additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati announced that new rules on pilot duty and rest periods would not be implemented this year after all. Introduced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in January, the rules were designed specifically to combat pilot fatigue. They were set to take effect in June, but were abruptly retracted. The hearing addressed a writ petition filed by the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP), seeking clarity on when the new norms would be enforced. The DGCA’s response followed its request to airline companies in April for a tentative implementation timeline.

Concerns over pilot fatigue had been mounting in the months leading up to the announcement of the new Flight Duty Period, Flight Time Limitations, and Prescribed Rest Periods by the DGCA. The urgency deepened in November 2023 when a 37-year-old Air India pilot, Captain Himanil Kumar, collapsed at Delhi Airport while training to fly the airline's Boeing 777 fleet, and later died at the hospital. Kumar was the second Indian pilot to die on duty within three months; in August, Captain Manoj Subramanyam, a 40-year-old IndiGo pilot, suffered a fatal cardiac arrest just minutes before his flight from Nagpur.

These back-to-back tragedies raised alarm in the industry. “Another young Indian pilot passed away today due to a suspected cardiac event,” reportedly tweeted Captain Shakti Lumba, a retired IndiGo VP who is now the president of the Professional Pilots Society in India (His tweet was since deleted.) “If this doesn’t convince the DGCA, civil aviation ministry, and airlines to urgently address the stress, fatigue, and anxiety among pilots, nothing will.”

The DGCA, India’s aviation watchdog, regulates the country’s Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL). At 13 hours of flight duty time, India’s FDTL is already demanding, but after the pandemic slowdown, increased route expansion and pilot shortages have forced many to fly beyond the recommended maximum of 60 hours a week, exacerbating crew exhaustion. The DGCA finally responded to the growing crisis by revising FDTL norms in January 2024.

The new guidelines increased weekly rest periods from 36 to 48 hours and introduced quarterly fatigue reports. Its scheduled implementation on June 1, 2024, was pushed back due to pressure from operators. An airline CEO, speaking anonymously to the Economic Times in January, claimed the proposed regulations would require a 20 percent increase in pilot numbers, which would escalate expenses and lead to huge numbers of flight cancellations. Still, the DGCA held firm on the FDTL implementation deadline till early March. By the end of the month, however, it appeared to have yielded to influence from the airline lobby. A notice on the regulator’s website announced the deadline had been deferred, without providing a reason or setting a new date.

The pilot fatigue problem isn’t unique to India. In January, two pilots for Indonesia-based Batik Air fell asleep for 28 minutes mid-flight, causing their plane to veer off course between Sulawesi and Jakarta. In April, unionized Virgin Atlantic pilots in the UK voted 96 percent in favor of pursuing an industrial action in response to rising fatigue. Earlier, the CEO of Wizz Air UK faced a backlash for urging crew members to push through their fatigue to avoid flight cancellations. In May, senior pilots at Virgin Australia raised safety concerns, claiming rostering systems were pushing them "to the limits.”

But in India, the belief that overwork and fatigue are not just acceptable but essential has become entrenched across industries. The aviation crisis is just the tip of the iceberg; it is the tech industry that is leading the charge. Last year, Infosys cofounder Narayana Murthy suggested that Indian youth should work 70 hours a week for the nation's development. Murthy’s advice came up at the Indian Parliament on the first day of its winter session and found support from a list of influential Indian tech leaders, including Bhavish Aggarwal, founder of India’s first AI unicorn, Ola Krutrim; Ayushmaan Kapoor, cofounder of the AI-powered customer platform Xeno; and even veterans like Sajjan Jindal, CEO and MD of JSW Group, and Vinod Khosla of Sun Microsystems. Almost all of them justified the extended work hours, which far exceed the maximum eight to nine hours per day stipulated by the International Labour Organisation and the Indian Labour Code, as necessary for strengthening India’s economy. “We have to make India an economic superpower that we can all be proud of,” Jindal wrote on X. He cited Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, “who works 14-16 hours everyday,”as a model. In July this year, the Karnataka State IT/ITeS Employee Union said the state government had plans to increase working hours in the sector from the current maximum of 10 hours (including overtime) to a staggering 14 hours a day. As the union planned massive campaigns to oppose the move, the labor minister stated that the push for the proposal had come from the companies.

The airline companies think they have a solution to the fatigue crisis: technology. IndiGo, India’s largest airline, announced it would be an “early adopter” of a wrist-worn fatigue-monitoring device it was developing with French defense and aerospace company Thales Group. The device can provide “detailed insights into demographic data, including routes, pairings, crew profiles, and more, going beyond traditional scheduling-focused biomathematical models,” the airline stated in a press release in September. The airline, which operates 2,000 flights daily and employs over 5,000 pilots, said the device would be rolled out after a proof-of-concept trial. No date for the rollout was announced.

Wearable activity trackers are not new to the aviation industry. IndiGo’s device sounds similar to Actiwatch, a now-discontinued line of research-grade actigraphs from Philips, used to monitor sleep patterns, study circadian rhythms, and track physical activity as part of an airline’s fatigue risk-management system. But they partly rely on performance tests and subjective measures, such as self-reporting, which often results in being targeted by the airlines, says Captain C. S. Randhawa, president of the Federation of Indian Pilots. Safety management systems on the whole tend to be neglected by operators and are viewed as an additional expense, says Captain Amit Singh of the NGO Safety Matters Foundation.

In May 2023, Air India launched safety management software called Coruson, as well as BAM (Boeing Alertness Model), a fatigue-mitigation tool integrated into its rostering system, which is used by airlines to create and manage pilot schedules. Coruson, developed by cloud software company Ideagen, centralizes, analyzes, and reports on safety-related data—such as incidents, hazards, and risk assessments. BAM, developed jointly by Boeing and the software company Jeppesen, predicts and manages pilot fatigue by analyzing flight schedules and performance data. These tools were designed to prevent the creation of fatiguing rosters and pairings, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson noted in an internal message to employees. The carrier also introduced two new digital tools for its crew—the Pilot Sector Report app, to help pilots easily submit information on flight performance, incidents, and observations post-flight; and DocuNet, a digital management system that facilitates the storage, retrieval, and sharing of documents (such as flight manuals, training records, and compliance documents).

Despite these measures, the airline was fined by the DGCA in March this year for violating FDTL limits and fatigue management rules. This May, Air India Express cabin staff called in sick en masse to protest against “mismanagement.” This followed a similar protest from the crew, mostly pilots, at Vistara airlines. Both Air India and Vistara are now owned by one of India’s largest conglomerates, the Tata Group, which took over the former from the Indian government in January 2022.

Twenty-five of those who called in sick at Air India Express were terminated. Others were reportedly served an ultimatum. Those sacked were later reinstated by the airline following an intervention by the chief labour commissioner. Nearly a week before, the regional labor commissioner of Delhi had allegedly written to the Tata group chairman pointing to “blatant violations of labour laws” and insisting the legitimate concerns of the cabin crew be looked into. According to CNBC, Vistara employees said the agitation at their end had to do with recent salary updates, which fixed pilot pay at 40 flight hours—down from 70. Protesting first officers claimed that the new salary structure would result in an almost 57 percent pay cut. Under the new terms they would also have to fly up to 76 hours to earn what they were previously earning at 70 hours.

To placate the pilots and get them back to work, management had assured them that salaries for the “extra working hours” would be credited once Vistara was integrated with Air India. At the time, two Air India pilots unions had written to the chairman of the company, saying that such issues were not isolated but systemic. Burnout was the other related issue, with many pilots complaining of inadequate rest and being pushed to their limits.

Captain Singh, a former senior manager at AirAsia, tells WIRED that such effects significantly increase the risk of accidents, but also adversely affect pilot health in the long run. Tail swaps—rushing between different types of aircraft to take off immediately after disembarking from another—have become more prevalent under the 13-hour rules, and can further contribute to exhaustion, as do hasty acclimatization and, most significantly, landing three, four, or more flights consecutively, which Captain Randhawa described as a “severe energy management challenge.”

In the 2024 “Safety Culture Survey” conducted by Singh’s Safety Matters Foundation in July, 81 percent of 530 respondents, primarily medium- to short-haul pilots, stated that bufferless rosters contribute to their fatigue. As many as 84 percent indicated concerns with the speed and direction of shift rotation. “That’s the problem with the new rostering softwares the operators are introducing,” a pilot from a private airline, who requested anonymity, says. “They’re optimizers designed to make pilots work every second of their 13-hour schedule, leaving no breathing room.” The buffer-deficient timetables push pilots to their limits, so any additional pressure—like unpredictable weather—can easily overwhelm them.

Solving this issue with wrist-worn fatigue-measuring devices is contentious. But that isn’t the only problem. A year since they were hyped up, the buzz around fatigue-management tech has all but fizzled out. There have been no updates from IndiGo about the wrist device. Neither IndiGo nor the Thales Group responded to requests to comment.

[genderqueerdykes]

literally the most pathetic thing on this planet is corporations sniveling and crying and acting like they'll go out of business and explode and die if they miss out on .0000000001 cent worth of profit. like it's genuinely fucking pathetic to watch a machine that makes thousands of dollars every second throw themselves on the ground and sob and cry because they missed out on a few cents here and there. oh no, an employee earned some overtime. oh no, the company had to buy a new machine because the old machine broke down and injured and killed employees.

if you've ever worked retail, you'll know the bullshit that comes with being promised overtime. for those that don't know, when you earn overtime in a retail position, your boss will slash hours off of the end of your week so that you don't actually earn overtime. this isn't like, a random occurrence that only happens when you have an asshole manager. this is company procedure. if you earn overtime, your bosses must do everything in their power to try to take it away from you. going as far as to give you entire days off at the end of your week to avoid paying it out. it's a promise they have no legal obligation to carry out. it's just to make the position sound more enticing.

corporations are so pathetic it's insulting. we're expected to pinch all of our pennies and hold on to them for dear life, meanwhile, corporations who make billions of times more than we do act like they have to do the same, going as far as to skimp out on necessary supplies and safety precautions for their employees. a lot of work places don't have necessary PPE. a lot of people do not receive adequate training on dangerous pieces of equipment because the company doesn't want to "waste" the time (money) to train them.

it's just so fucking pathetic to watch a multi billion dollar company act like if they lose out on literal pennies that they'll go out of business instantaneously. it's absolutely pathetic and i hope the suits at the top know that nobody who matters looks up to them. we look down on you as a pathetic, whiny, greedy pieces of shit who cry and moan about losing out on cents while they make billions. it's literally the saddest behavior on planet earth. wake up.

Edit: great addition from the tags for folks who might not know how working retail works. corporations will go as far as they have to in order to slash your hours. like this person said, generally they refuse to let you work full time (40 hours a week) so they do not have to pay for any possible medical benefits as well as destroying any chances you may have had at overtime. i forgot to mention that corporations love to promise medical benefits (health insurance) and then deny you the necessary working hour requirements in order to qualify for it in the first place. thank you to who wrote these:

[ruh--roh-raggy]

Home Sweet Home (William Afton x Wife! Reader) - Pt. 1

Hello hello! So, I'm fully insane about this man rn. I can't help it. The brain rot has taken over my life and here we are lol. I wanted to write something that really focuses on the domestic fluff side of Reader's life with William, of course there will be some smut thrown in there too because I simply can't help myself 😂😂 Reader and William have just bought their first house together. This story follows their week long escapade of unpacking, making their home perfect, and going down memory lane. Lots of super cute stuff, chapters containing smut will be updated with proper warnings. If you enjoy this story and would like to be added to the tag list, please let me know!

WARNINGS: MINORS DO NOT INTERACT, MDNI, 18+ CONTENT AHEAD, smut marked with divider, age gap (reader in 30's William in 40's/50's), some swearing, face sitting, cockwarming, size kink, a singular (1) spank to readers ass, slightly dom! William, praise, Will just wants to give his wife some tender TLC after a long day of lugging boxes around (if I missed any please let me know!

You can find my Masterlist here!

Word Count: 3,538

Part 2

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

“I want to paint the living room green, I think it would look nice with our couch.” William drove down the road, a soft smile on his face as he listened to you ramble on about all of your plans for their new house. Business at the pizzeria had skyrocketed, which meant that he could finally give his pretty little wife the front porch, white picket fence house of her dreams. You should be pulling in about a half hour before the moving truck is scheduled to arrive, allowing the two of you time to empty out his trunk. You stood at his side with a giddy smile on your face, William thumbing through his key ring to find the new shiny gold addition to his collection. He slides the key into the lock, chuckling at your excited squeals as he pushes the door open. He grabs you by the wrist, stopping you from running inside ahead of him.

“Isn’t there some old wives tale about carrying your wife over the threshold of a house?” He mumbles out the vague details he could remember. You nod, wrapping your arms around his neck with a giggle.

“It’s for good luck. Why? Do you want to carry me inside?” You smile coyly up at him.

“Well I’m not going to be the one bringing bad luck into our house.” He proclaims proudly, jabbing a finger into his chest. You let out a shriek as he scoops you up in his strong arms. You press a kiss to his scruffy cheek as you pass through the door. “Well, Mrs. Afton, welcome home.” He smiles down at you.

You spun around the empty living room floor, broom in hand as you did a quick sweep before the furniture got brought in. “Oh, Will, I'm so happy. Our own house.” You beam up at him. Your husband breathes out a chuckle, sweeping you up in his arms as he places a kiss to your forehead. Both of your attention was drawn to the windows as the moving truck rumbled into the driveway.

“Don't lift anything too heavy.” He orders with a firm point of his finger. “I hired movers so you don't have to struggle, if I see you doing too much you're going to be in big trouble later bunny.” You roll your eyes, wrapping your arms around him as you place a kiss to his chest.

“I promise I won't work too hard.” You fidget with the hem of his shirt. “I just want everything to be perfect.” You sigh with a slight shrug of your shoulders.

“I promise it will be, we have the whole week to get everything exactly how you want it.” He smiles, his thumb rubbing languidly across your waist. You excitedly threw open the front door, directing the movers inside before clamoring out to the truck yourself. William trailed after you, keeping a close eye on your excited figure. Your husband loved how passionate you were about everything you did, but you also had a tendency to overwork yourself. He sighs as he sees you struggling with a box, gently taking it from your hands and propping it against his hip. He glances around the trailer. “Here.” He nudges a box with his foot, one he had made a subtle marking on to signify it was one he packed light enough for you to easily carry. “Take that one, we’ll go put these in the bedroom.” He hops down from the back of the truck, taking your box from you and wrapping his hands around your waist to lower you safely to the ground. You practically skipped up the porch steps, scooting past the movers as you raced up to the master bedroom. Your mattress sat in the middle of the room. The white, sheetless bed was a stark contrast to the nearly black hardwood.

“We’ll need to go get a bed frame.” You sigh, setting down the box before collapsing on the mattress. William groans as he lays down by your side.

“I’m sure we’re going to have to get a lot of things.” He chuckles, wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you to him. “We’ll take care of everything, doll, don’t worry.” You spent the rest of the afternoon sliding furniture around downstairs while the movers brought in the rest of the boxes. The sun had already set by the time everything was brought in. You collapsed onto the couch with a tired groan, finally kicking your shoes off as you sank into the worn leather of the cushions. William sits beside you, lifting your feet only to drop them back in his lap. You let out a pleased hum as you feel his strong hands knead into your aching muscles. “Day one is officially over.” The two of you exchange a sleepy high five. A soft smile spreads across your lips as you take a moment to look at your husband. His gold, wire framed aviators sitting low on his nose, his large calloused hands massaging your feet with the utmost care and delicacy. You were William’s entire world.

“Honey,” he perks up at your soft voice, calling out to him, “how about I throw something together for dinner so we can get to bed.”

“I don’t think we have any groceries bunny.” He rebuttals with a chuckle. “Are you up for a drive? We could go pick up some pizza.”

“But it’s so cold.” You pout.

“I’ll go grab you one of my coats, sweet girl.” He cups your cheek, pressing a kiss to the top of your head as he passes by you. You let out a soft hum as you buried your face into the soft fabric of your husband's coat, the comforting smell of his spicy, musky cologne, machine oil, and cigarettes filling your nose. He had an arm wrapped around your shoulder, allowing you to cuddle into his side as he drove up twisting back roads. The radio crackled softly, whatever song was playing was barely audible over the car's loud blower. You rested your hand on his thigh, William glancing down quickly, the sight of your wedding ring glinting in the soft light bringing a smile to his lips. He loved the fact that you were all his, his pretty wife, his little bunny. He loved how sweet and delicate you were. He had been hardened by years of working in his workshop and other strenuous jobs he had throughout his life, he barely registered this evening was brisk let alone cold. But he definitely wouldn't complain about you cuddling into his side for warmth, how your cheeks and the tip of your nose dusted pink from the chilly night air, how your fingers trembled as you tucked them under his thigh. He shuddered softly as you pressed your lips to his neck, the buzzing, yellow light from the pizza shop's sign illuminating the cab as you and your husband exchanged a look filled with need.

“Hurry back.” You shoot him a coy smile as he stumbles from the car.

The smell of warm crust and greasy pepperoni filled the car, the pizza nicely heating your lap. William’s arm draped over your shoulder, you allowed the rumbling car ride to rock you into his side. Your eyelids grow heavy as you try to keep yourself awake, a sleepy smile crawling across your features as you pull into the driveway. You sighed as you looked around at the mess of moving boxes, your dining table tucked away into a corner that would be too much work to get to. “Why don’t you go sit on the couch doll, I’ll be right back.” William’s hand quickly slips into yours, giving it a gentle squeeze as he passes by. You flop back into the cushions, letting the pizza box rest next to you. Even with the short amount of time you’ve spent in the house you could tell how different it was from your old apartment. You and William had moved to the middle of the woods in Hurricane, your nearest neighbor at least ten minutes down the road. There were no sounds of your neighbors talking quietly through the walls, no footsteps of the dog that lived upstairs. The house was completely silent, outside completely pitch black. You jumped as William’s feet started to thud down the stairs. He pushes into the living room with a groan, dragging your mattress behind him. He drops the bed in the middle of the floor with a dull thump, twisting side to side in order to stretch out his back. “I’ll go grab some pillows and blankets.” He smiles at you.

“It’s just like our honeymoon.” You laugh as he pulls you up from the couch. He tilts your chin up with his finger, capturing your lips with his.

“Oh, trust me,” he starts in a sultry tone, “I wish I could spend this entire week in bed with you.” You dropped down onto the mattress, a soft sigh falling from your lips as he massages your shoulders. You smile at him as you watch him disappear upstairs, returning a few minutes later with a box full of your bedding and some pillows. Deciding you weren’t up for the challenge you left the sheets in the box. You piled your comforter and a few throw blankets onto the bed, you crawled in before your husband joined you with the pizza. You two sit side by side, your head falling to rest against his shoulder.

“It’s no Freddy’s.” You grumble at your lackluster pizza. William chuckles in response to your pouting.

“How about we swing by and see Henry tomorrow, I’m sure I can sneak you a piece.” He winks with a lopsided grin.

“That sounds perfect.” The two of you chat quietly as you eat your dinner. Your new house feels too big for just the two of you. You laid on your back, staring at the exposed wood ceiling, you blinked a few times to adjust to the all consuming darkness after William had turned off the light. You felt the blankets shift as he crawled into bed next to you. His silhouette outlined by the soft, pale light of the moon that streamed through the window.

“We should get a dog.” He suddenly whispers, making you giggle. “I don’t want you to get scared all by yourself.” He teases.

“Maybe that’ll get you out of that workshop earlier.” He playfully rolls his eyes as he wraps an arm around your waist.

“You know, there’s nothing stopping you from coming to visit me.” He argues with a slight shrug.

“Except that everytime I do I end up sprawled naked on your workbench.” You smirk at him, your fingers absentmindedly playing with the soft material of his tshirt.

“Occupational hazard.” He responds quickly. You both laugh as you cuddle into his chest. He cards his fingers through your hair, his lingering gaze studying your features. “You’re so beautiful, bunny.” Your eyes flutter shut as his lips brush over yours.

His hand paws at your thigh, dragging your leg over his waist as he crushes you against him. You cup his face, deepening the kiss, his beard tickling your palm as you melt into him. Your legs lock around his waist as he rolls on top of you. His large, calloused hands wrap around your sides, pushing your hoodie up and over your head in one swift motion before his lips connect with yours again. You shivered slightly as the cold night air hit your naked body. He practically purrs at the sight of you, his lips hovering over your neck. Your fingers slid into his hair, a small squeal escaping your lips as he bit down hard on your sensitive skin. You bite your lip, letting out a soft hum as he pushes his hips into you, his already growing bulge noticeable through your thin shorts. “You couldn’t keep your eyes off me today, could you rabbit?” He smirks against your skin. You practically drooled over the sight earlier. William had a box resting on each shoulder, his skin glowing with a thin sheen of sweat. He paused as he caught sight of you leaning in the doorway, arms crossed over your chest as your eyes raked over him. He smirked, knowing that playful glint in your eye. He smiled as he noticed your cheeks reddening from your position laying below him. He hooks his fingers into the band of your shorts, placing featherlike kisses down your stomach as he eases them down your legs. You moan softly as you feel him nip at the skin of the inside of your thighs. Your back arches off the bed as he brushes his thumb over your sensitive clit, a broken moan leaving your lips. With how busy you had both been due to the move it had been a while since the two of you had been intimate. Your skin was already on fire from the small touch alone, William smirked as he watched your reaction closely. Your hands fisted in the blankets as he tossed your legs over his shoulders, his hot breath bouncing off your already soaked core. His arms slip around your hips, holding you firmly in place as he dove into hungrily lap at your folds. You moan out his name, already attempting to squirm away from his assault. He growls, dragging you closer to him. His fingers dig into your thighs with a bruising force, sure to leave marks behind. Your fingers tangle in his hair as his tongue swirls around your clit through your lace panties. He ate you out like a man starved, your soft gasps and quiet moans echoing in the empty room. You whined, tugging on his hair. “What’s the matter bunny?” He pushes your panties out of the way with his fingers, his skin growing slick with your arousal.

“I need you.” You whined, looking down at him with pleading, teary eyes. William gives in immediately with a soft chuckle, never one to deny you what you wanted. He tugs down your panties, placing soft kisses to your legs as he removes your final article of clothing at an agonizingly slow pace. He slides an arm under your back, pulling you on top of him as he collapses into the mattress. Your hands landed on either side of his head as you lost your balance, you blushed as you realized you were sitting on his broad, strong chest. He brushes your hair behind your ear before both of his hands wrap around your thighs.

“Come sit, bunny.” He coos, your face burning at his casual command. William absolutely loved whenever you sat on his face. However, he was well aware he would have to warm you up to the idea whenever he suggested it. You were always worried you were too heavy, you hadn't shaved, or you hadn't showered, and your husband always reassured you that none of those things were going to pose any problems for him. His beard tickled the inside of your thighs as you hovered over his eager mouth. His hands squeezed at your hips, groaning as your soft skin squished between his fingers. You cry out as he pushes you down onto him, his tongue lapping at your clit before he shoves his way in between your folds.

“Oh, fuck! Will!” You moan, your hips moving on their own. You let out a soft sob everytime his nose bumps against your clit. He growls, pressing hard into your hips as you try to wiggle away, his assault on your already sensitive cunt threatening to push you over the edge mere minutes after he starts. “Baby, it's too much.” Your voice shook as you tried to plead with him, years slipping from your damp eyes onto your cheeks as the coil of pleasure in your core wound tighter. William’s eyes were hazy as they met yours, his face smothered in your thighs as he greedily sucked your clit into his mouth. You tug his hair, making you groan against him. “I'm gonna cum.” It was all too much for you to handle, your body losing its rhythm as your climax threatened to rip through you. William let out an affirmative hum below you, knowing you were close by the slowing of your movements. He decides it's time for him to take over, determined to make you cum on his tongue. His fingers dig into the curve of your ass as he gradually increases the pace of your hips. You yelped as one of his hands suddenly connects with your skin, the mixture of pleasure and slight pain causing your soaked cunt to throb. Broken moans and whines rumbled effortlessly from your mouth, the fine tuned roaming of his hands paired with his expert tongue knowing just how you wanted to be touched to fall apart in his hands. William never got tired of making you finish. The way you would fall absolutely silent and still for a moment, mouth hanging open as no sound dared escape, your body taking time to catch up to the immense pleasure you were feeling. Now was no different. William felt his cock twitch at the sight of your eyes rolling back in your head, that brief moment of absolute silence making his ears ring before you screamed his name. He forced your hips to keep moving, never allowing your pace to slow as he felt your thighs shaking against his cheeks. You practically collapsed as he finally pulled his mouth off of you, a firm hand on your lower back keeping you upright as you shakily moved yourself back onto his chest. William reaches up to caress your cheek, wiping away tears that streaked down your skin. Your eyes felt heavy, you struggled to keep them open and on your husband as you came down from your high.

“Do you want to lay down?” He asks in a soft tone. You nod, collapsing into the mattress with a happy sigh. You hear the soft shuffling of William getting undressed before he gets under the blankets with a groan. You could feel the heat radiating off of him as he moved closer, his fingers ghosting over your waist before your pulled back against him. You can't help but giggle slightly as you feel his erection pressed firmly against your back.

“You want some help with that?” You press yourself into him, his breath catching in his throat at the contact as he tries to stifle a growl.

“You can't even keep your eyes open bunny.” He chuckles, you smile as you feel it rumble in his chest. You let out a dismissive sound, giving him a slight shrug. “How about we compromise?” You glance over your shoulder at him, curiously raising an eyebrow. Your eyes slide shut, letting out a soft hum as you feel his rough hands roaming over your skin. His fingers dip in between your thighs, gently coaxing them apart. You gasp as you feel his member prod at your entrance. “I could always fill you up before we go to bed.” He offers with a smirk, your face instantly flushing at the thought of cuddling up with your husband, trying not to squirm too much as he impaled you on his thick cock. You give him a nervous yet excited nod, the sight of you looking at him so sweetly as you chewed on your lip making it hard for him to not flip you over and pound you into the mattress. William assisted you holding your legs open, one massive paw wrapped around your thigh to allow him room to attempt to fit inside of you. You gripped tightly onto the sheets as he slowly began to push inside, the stretch from making it barely past his tip intense due to the lack of prep. “That's it sweetheart, just relax.” He purrs in your ear, pressing his lips to your shoulder. Another roll of his hips makes you whimper, feeling him slip slightly deeper into your fluttering cunt.

“Fuck, ‘s too big, ‘s not going to fit.” Your words slut as you tried to focus enough to speak. His pace was agonizing, you could feel every inch of him and every thick vein sliding over your velvety walls. You let out a shuddering breath as he finally bottoms out in you, the tip of his cock pressed snugly against your cervix. You felt like you would break in half at the smallest wrong move, even your slight shifting as you cuddled up with William had the edges of your vision going fuzzy.

“Such a good bunny, taking all of me so well.” His lips trail over your neck, you feel him smirk as you clench around him, repeatedly kissing and teasing what he knew was a rather sensitive spot of skin.

Your fingers intertwined with his, his strong arms wrapped protectively around as you're held flush to his chest.

“I love you.” You say quietly, feeling sleep trying it's hardest to pull you under. He gives your hand a soft squeeze.

“And I love you, sweet girl.”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Tag List: @yellowbunnydreams @zoey5252 @redflowery @loudchaosking (I think that's everyone, if I missed you or you would like to be added please let me know!)

[alienpossession]

"Now this is what I'm talking about," murmured the alien under its breath using its human puppet's voice

As the field commander of its race's mission on Earth, it's very important for Flicker (its code name) to look representative of its authority. At first, the body Flicker stumbled barely lived up to its high standard as a 4-time new planet expedition lead. But, noting the fact that it has limited time to be exposed directly to Earth's atmospheric condition, Flicker made the decision to lunged directly at the curious human who watched it fell from the night sky and looking quite amused when he first seen Flicker in its "portable" form

The 8 inches insectoid quickly latched itself to the human's temple and from there, it expanded its form and covered the entirety of the human's face in just under a minute. Then, it dissipated quickly as it ensured that the human wrapped by it already paralyzed as more of its extended form entered into the human through the ear, nose and mouth. Soon, as it resides on the brain, it covered the brain in its black, sludge like form before directly spread across the human body. Flicker's expansive capability caused the human's skull to crack as the nerd's lanky form quickly ballooned with muscles, or what seemed from the naked eyes as muscle

Working on the base mass, Flicker managed to expand the nerd's form around 30-40%, shooting up the nerd's weight from 125 lbs to close to 175 lbs and increased its height from 5'6" right at 6' tall. Flicker tapped into its human's vessel memory to proportionately distributed the muscle mass based on the nerd's memory of the stronger human it encountered before. The word "frat", "gym", and "jock" repeatedly flashed alongside the bigger guys this vessel witnessed, so Flicker modeled the nerd's body accordingly. His chest puffed up from rib-cagey and flat-looking into sizable pillowy pecs coupled with visible six-pack abs, while its back popped like the set of swimmers the nerd happily supported just a couple weeks ago or the gymgoers he envied as his body simply gained additional masses out of the blue.

But Flicker was not done, he's big, but simply not big enough just yet. In order to grow even bigger, it required another source of masses, so using the nerd's memory and calculating its chances for a more discreet arrival, it controlled the nerd to walk to the campus gym that's going to close in half an hour

Jeff Wrabel realized that everyone already left the gym so he did some final round of cleanup before heading back to his dorm. As a sophomore student athlete on partial scholarship, working in the gym is his way to be in better favor with the administration and also for him to get additional working out time. It's not like the small-town wrestler would directly be on the mat from the get go during his freshman year and with the incredibly packed roster, he probably would be still on the reserve until his junior year. Minding his own business and wearing the headphone given by his rich girlfriend, his back faced the entrance and he didn't realize that the nerd entered the gym. The noise cancelling feature caused him to be pretty much deaf to the external noises and before he even realized, he's thudded to the floor after the grown nerd lunged at him from the back. The headphone rattled to the ground and as he screamed in pain while trying to check his assailant, he's suddenly paralyzed as the nerd grabbed his head while their legs started to merge.

Jeff left in a catatonic state while the nerd, due to Flicker expansive yet malleable form, started to sank further into Jeff's body. As soon as the two bodies merged, Jeff's body started to expand as Flicker gained additional masses to work on. The wrestler legs solidified into just the right mixture of the tightness achieved from constant running while additionally packed with sizable muscle from twice-a-week leg day. His butt lifted and gained additional curvature as the nerd's lean and mean expanded form merged with Jeff's bubbly ass. The changes spread upwards as their core strengthened followed by upper limbs that simply turned into irresistible sinewy landscape that showcased strength and dedication to improve one's body. Jeff's eyes already rolled to the back of his head while drool escaped his mouth as more and more of Flicker and the nerd merged with his form. Around 10 minutes later, the unholy blend of men and extraterrestrial life form emerged victorious in the middle of the quiet gym flooe. It stood tall at 6'5" and weighed around 220-225 lbs as steam released from his body.

The merged brain now solely filled with the singular consciousness of Flicker while the two human simply existed as memory to be tapped by the alien. Breathing oxygen from the now expansive set of lungs felt very refreshing and normal for Flicker as it grabbed the dropped headphone that belonged to Jeff. He put it on and a rap song started to play right away as he marveled at the sight in the mirror of his shirtless form, the tattered shirts on the ground right next to him due to his expanding form should be picked too and then thrown away while he tried to check whether glasses is still necessary for his vision or not

After skimming through the two human memories, Flicker headed to the locker room to grab the gym bag that once belonged to Jeff. He admired his form one more time as he walked pass a mirror

"Now this is what I'm talking about,"

And he snapped some pictures to document himself. He then focused at the task at hand, he cannot go back to Jeff's dorm, but with around 500 of its field operatives descended like a falling star in the next couple of minutes, all he needed to do is to simply walk out from the gym and let his operatives spot the glow his form radiated to guide his operatives to crash landed on the area it marked. Not like the glow he emitted is visible to the human eyes, only to its kind, and based on Jeff's memory, the male Greek Row seemed like the perfect spot for its operatives to land themselves and started their hunt for their vessel

***

After 2 times rewriting this due to Tumblr weird glitch, I finally write something outside of "Body a Day" prompt for a while. Thanks to the pictures for hitting my head like a wrecking ball of inspiration

[solar-sunnyside-up]

I'm really curious about what you think schooling would look like in a Solarpunk world/future!

Because the current public school system is broken af and the homeschool system isn't much better. I personally have looked into things like Sudbury schools and found good things and also issues. I've always been a proponent of the IDEA of Unschooling (which I understand to be, letting the child learn naturally through the world around them, learn reading through reading to them or teaching math and even basic chemistry through teaching them to cook, etc) but it seems like most parents use it as an excuse to not educate their kids...

I really think kids should learn practical things alongside the Academic stuff (three Rs, science, etc) but no system seems right...

Oooh boy! Have I thought about this one endlessly!

So background info that I have to frame where I'm coming from-

A- the current system is built for school>> factory worker pipeline

B) it also evolved from ppl working at factories and needing to put their kiddos somewhere while they worked their 9-5! Thus Sunday school evolved from something to teach basic literacy to a full time job for children (it's legit nearly 40 hour weeks for CHILDREN) so there's a lot of padded time to ensure they meet that quota

C) it's used of a massive scale it was NOT designed to be used at

Soooo!! Let's imagine a better one!

Personally, based on children's development I think schooling should be broken up into focused chunks and then obvi each kiddo should be able to work at their own pace within these chunks of time.

0-6 Motor and sensory skills- introduced to music/shapes/building, "helping" with community chores (laundry/windows/dishes/sweeping), basics of plants/gardens, learning about transportation and basic navigation.

7-10 Written- literacy (reading/printing/telling time/storytelling/etc), health (emotional+physical), basic cooking + tool usage, basics of history/geography, basics of all sciences, gardening more independently

11-13 social + advanced work -- advanced history/science/literacy/home eco/etc.. start working within the community in a vollunteer capacity, Starting to specialize in interests, focuses in philosophy/analysis/debate,

14-20 community and citizenship --greated focus in Philosophy/debate/analysis in addition to apprenticeships of testing out what they'd like to do with their lives

20+ whatever they wanna do! Personally I think our adulthood should start over from 0 here. Bc after you hit 20 your a baby adult, but like a 35yr old is nearly a teenager as should be treated as such! Finding themselves, building community, getting the swing of all that jazz.

Then the WAY this is taught would be with ppl close to the kiddos, neighbors and parents and community leaders would be in charge of these chunks. Much more like a tutor or professor style where each teacher specializes in both the thing their teaching but also the kiddos their raising.

[theshitpostcalligrapher]

ASKBOX IS OPEN REQUESTS ARE OPEN HERE ARE THE RULES

ground rules:

1) Funny- the request needs to be humorous, memes usually the most popular but dnd in jokes and other shitpostery is welcome. i abide by the MBMBAM NO BUMMERS rule - there are plenty of sad/deep/beautiful calligraphers out there who’d be happy to work with yall, but this isn’t that sort of channel

2) Length - aim for no more than 75 characters a request, my cue cards are only so big so I can only fit so much on each one and still not look like garbage. There is a little leeway but if you send me smth with like 120 characters it aint getting written

3) Amount of Requests - I am trying to be fair but i am one person running almost the ENTIRE thing, logistics, tech, etc, I have twitch mods and a roommate for retrieving things and that's it. In order to be fair, please restrict yourselves to 3 requests per person to let everyone have a shot, if you send in more i will ctrl-f your username and pick my favourites

4) Content - I will not do anything I consider under the umbrella of general assholery - this includes racial slurs, edgelord bullshit, exclusionist jackassery etc. Please be kind to each other. Please let me know if I’ve taken a request that is some incredibly obscure piece of assholery, someone once tried to slip a really obscure antisemetic piece of slang by me once

5) Repeats - I keyword tag EVERY SINGLE piece i’ve ever done on this blog, if you think I might have written smth already but aren’t sure, the /search/[keyword] is your friend, check if i’ve done your request before

the askbox is theshitpostcalligrapher.tumblr.com/ask , not a dm or submission to the blog. I’ll close submissions too so people don’t get the boxes confused. DM me for any actual clarifications, kind words, etc so they don’t get swallowed up by the behemoth of my askbox for months, and if you want to give me live encouragement the twitch link is right there, and is the ideal way to inquire more about any of the day's rules.

If you want to jump the ENTIRE queue and get your card done immediately, there are ways to donate on the twitch stream to get your request done with an ink of your choice. You can still submit 3 free requests in addition to what you pay for.

I’ll be streaming the entire time the askbox is open on twitch @ theshitpostcalligrapher, trying to get as many of these done today as possible live. Once 10PM EST hits, the askbox will close but if you get your request into the askbox by then, it will be done eventually as I always have 4 cards up per day.

Here’s the link to my twitch, we’ll start a little after 3 o’clock.

Here is a direct donation link to my streamlabs, it works like a ko-fi but I’ve got it set to give me alerts on my twitch so I can see and thank you straightaway for supporting my takeout order

I've planned on a few donation goals this time! They help pay for all the hours I put in and the material costs. Every time we hit a goal, I'll refresh it to 0 and math out whatever overlap to add to the new goal

$20 > Time For Tea! I make a sparkly, food safe glittery tea that looks like ink to enjoy with yall on stream

$30 > Jackbox Break! My Discord VC and potentially chat plays a few games

$40 > Takeout O'clock: It is time to order a food, Mia! Polls will probably be involved for food options

$200 (I am fairly sure we won't get this one) > I bought all the requisite items to bleach my hair to prep for a dye. Let's do this shit LIVE ON AIR BAYBEE

Also of Note: I will be moving house sometime in the next week and a half, which means I will be RECYCLING ALL OF THE CARDS I'VE WRITTEN IN THE PAST TWO AND A HALF YEARS (save for the ones folks pay for on stream, those are earmarked to be mailed out anyways) so if you've gotten something written by me from september 2021 to january 2024 or so, please remember that there is an an etsy shop where you can snag any card from the blog for a few dollars. dm the shop if you'd like to buy a bundle of randoms, I WILL give you a sale about it

[angelbaby-fics]

Christmas Lights

Word Count: 1.3k

Summary: Nat takes you and Wanda to look at Christmas Lights while your Daddies work on a surprise

A/N: In addition to requests I've also been working on whipping up some seasonal treats for you guys!! This was an idea I had while driving around my own neighborhood & fantasizing about my dream house with my dream caregivers 💕 Enjoy! 🎄🦌🎅🏻

Your breath fogged up the glass of the window, your chest heaving with anticipation as you scanned the driveway for any signs of Nat’s car. She was coming over tonight to drive you and Wanda all around the neighborhood to see the Christmas lights. This was one of your favorite parts of the season, it delighted your heart to see all the different displays people put up. Some houses were covered in traditional lights and garlands, some had big inflatable characters and even animatronics, and you’d heard a rumor from Peter last week that one house even had fake snow blowing around this year. Usually it was your daddies driving you around, Bucky would put in a CD of 40s Christmas hits and sing along while Steve chauffeured you around town, but when Nat offered to bring you along with her and Wanda, you were just too excited to turn it down. 

Just as Nat’s headlights turned into the driveway, Bucky scooped you up into his arms. “Woah, not so fast kiddo!” He laughed. He’d been watching you the whole time, waiting for the perfect moment to spring into action and swaddle you up in your winter coat. 

“Nooo don’t wanna wear it!!” You cried out, trying to wriggle your way out of his arms, but of course Bucky was much stronger. 

He pulled the coat over your head, muffling your protests in the fabric. Your little head popped out of the hole like a frowny jack-in-the-box, and he kissed your pout. As soon as you were free from his grasp, you sped off towards the front door that Steve had just opened, zooming out into the cold evening and straight to your best friend. You and Wanda hopped up and down with excitement while Steve stepped out to talk to Natasha. “Thanks for doing this Nat.” “Of course! The more the merrier. Hey Buck!” Nat waved at Bucky who returned the wave with a smile as he leaned nonchalantly in the front doorway.

“We should be all finished up in two hours, do you think you can keep them up for that long?” Steve asked, looking over at you and Wanda to make sure you couldn’t overhear his secret plan.

“You know those kids, they can keep each other up for hours. Just text me when you guys are ready.”

Steve smiled at Nat, then headed over to you. 

“Alright sugarplum, we’ll see you back here in a bit!” He said, picking you up to strap you into the backseat of Nat’s car, but you jumped out of the way at the last second.

“Wait daddy!” You shouted, sprinting back up the front steps of your home and into Bucky’s arms. “Bye Baba, I love you.” “I love you too, babydoll.” Bucky kissed you on the head once more and squeezed you tightly before letting you go. You trotted back over to Steve and now let him carry you to the carseat. Just as you had with Bucky, you hugged your daddy tightly before he sat you down into the seat, and he kissed you on the head like Bucky had as he strapped you in. 

“I love you, daddy.” “I love you too, angel. Be good for Auntie Nat, okay?” He asked, and you took your mission to heart. 

You smiled at Steve and Bucky who stood waving at you from the porch as Nat began to drive away, and felt a little pit in your stomach at the realization that they wouldn’t be joining you in your Christmas tradition this year. Just as soon as you’d begun to feel it though, Nat caught your attention from the front seat. “Alright you two, I have a surprise for you, but you have to behave!” She said as she stopped at a red light, using the moment to reach into the back seat and hand you and Wanda each a large candy cane. 

“Thank you mommy!” Wanda giggled, and you both rushed to unwrap your treats. 

“Mmm… thank you Auntie Nat!” You smiled as the sweet peppermint hit your tongue. 

The car wound through neighborhood after neighborhood, driving all over town from end to end. You and Wanda stayed nearly silent in the backseat, save for the occasional exclamation of wonder as your eye devoured the most delectable displays you could imagine. Brilliant lights in every color of the rainbow illuminated the homes, some even had creative projection shows and music blasting from home speakers. At these houses, Nat would turn down the Christmas radio station and roll down the windows so you could hear what the houses were playing. 

You were nearly beside yourself with excitement when you found the house Peter had been telling you about. Big machines hidden behind wooden cutouts of Christmas trees blasted fake glittery snow in swirls around the yard. Nat let you and Wanda out of the car to run around and try to catch it in your mittened hands for a few minutes, and you were actually glad that Bucky had made you wear your coat for once. After you and Wanda wore yourselves out, Nat strapped you back into your respective car seats before continuing the light tour.

You didn’t even know how long you’d been out, but it must have been a while since you’d heard Last Christmas play on the radio at least three times by now. You stifled a yawn, you didn’t want to seem ungrateful, but it was soon going to become evident to everybody that it was past your bedtime if you didn’t get home soon. Luckily, a ding from Nat’s phone echoed over the music, and your energy perked up as you realized you were starting to drive back into familiar territory. You were too small to really understand directions and streets, but the big trees and houses you strolled past with your daddies on your afternoon walks let you know you were almost home. You adjusted in your seat as you turned into what you thought was your driveway, but you realized you couldn’t see your house. At least, you couldn’t recognize it at first. You were blinded by bright glowing golden light. Blinking once, twice, you tried to focus before realizing the light was in fact your house after all. Nat put the car into park and shut off the radio, and you could hear the massive wreath on the front door chime with jingle bells as your daddies stepped out onto the now lavishly decorated porch to greet you. 

See, when Nat had offered to take you out that night, Steve and Bucky realized it was the perfect time to surprise you with some Christmas lights of your own. Usually, Bucky would put up a few garlands around the front door and lights along the roof, but you’d always fantasized about having the most amazing house on the block, and now you had it. Thousands of lights glittered down the pillars of the porch, a bright green wreath hung in every window, ribbons trailed along the rooftops, and a family of animatronic golden reindeer stood grazing in the yard. Every tree on the massive property was covered from trunk to tip with lights and ornaments, and giant figurines of your favorite characters dressed in their holiday best stood to greet you with smiles. Your daddies had turned your home into a winter wonderland. As Nat undid your seatbelt, you couldn’t get out of the car and into your daddies’ arms fast enough.

You were too stunned to speak, though you didn’t need to. Your gratitude was expressed in your bright eyes and ecstatic smile. You didn’t need to say thank you, your breathless laughter was enough as you threw yourself into Steve and Bucky’s warm and waiting arms. It was only mid-December, but you could feel this was already the best Christmas ever. 

[unpredictable-probabilities]

A Dip Into Comfort

Summary:

After a long week at work, Hob finds that Dream has prepared a surprise for him.

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 2,551

Square/Prompt: A2 - Bathroom Sex | @dreamlingbingo

Ship(s): Dream of the Endless | Morpheus/Hob Gadling

Additional Tags: Bathing/Washing, Bathroom Sex, Bath Sex, Bathtub Sex, Bubble Bath, Bathtubs, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Coming Untouched, Comfort, Fluff, Sweet, Sweet/Hot, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Smut, Fluff and Smut, Domestic Fluff, Domestic, Domestic Boyfriends, Pampering

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/56909119

---

Hob all but stumbled out of the bus as soon as the doors opened. It was finally Friday, and he could go spend the night eating pastries on his couch while watching bake-offs, or immediately pass out and sleep for 40 hours. He hadn't decided yet.

The past week had been a series of late nights preparing exams and early mornings of faculty meetings that really should have just been emails. It was that time of the semester again where it felt like the entire university was busy, and at this point Hob was pretty sure he was looking forward to summer vacation even more than his students were.

He made the short walk from the bus stop to his flat, trudging up the front steps and yawning as he unlocked the door.

He was planning on collapsing on the couch, but he stepped into his living room and saw that someone was already in it, carefully arranging a plate of croissants and chocolate éclairs on the coffee table.

“Dream?” Hob was suddenly wide awake. “It's not date night, right? Oh my god, did I forget—”

“Hob.” Dream's voice was soothing and his expression soft as he gracefully stood up and walked towards Hob. “You did not forget anything.” He cupped Hob’s face in his hand and kissed him, a gentle press of their lips. “Welcome home, beloved,” a smile lifted the corners of his mouth.

He helped Hob out of his jacket, hanging it on the coat rack by the wall, then took Hob’s bag from him and placed it on the couch.

Hob followed, still unsure of what was happening but certainly not complaining. “Is there a special occasion somehow? A holiday in The Dreaming?” They had been dating for a few months already, but Hob had never come home to Dream waiting in his flat before.

“No,” Dream replied as he sat back down. “I merely saw your daydreams while you were on the bus. They were quite vivid.”

“So you came here and waited for me?” Hob felt warmth bloom in his chest at that. He took a seat next to Dream and looked at the food on the coffee table. “And where did these come from? Can we eat dreamstuff?”

Dream gave him a smile of fond amusement. “These are not from the Dreaming. I ordered them from your preferred coffee shop, using the phone you gave me.”

Hob’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “I didn’t think you’d know how to do that.”

“I did not. But it was easy enough to reach into certain dreams and learn how. Carl brought the food again, the young man from last week. He handed me a coupon and said that our next order from them would have a 10% discount.”

Hob saw the coupon on the coffee table and looked back at Dream. “Did you see his daydreams while you two were talking?”

Carl was not the most subtle of delivery men. Hob was the one who usually received food orders whenever there was a new dessert he wanted Dream to try, but there was a time last month when he had been washing the dishes when their order arrived, and Dream had opened the door before Hob could say anything. Carl had looked like he nearly swallowed his own tongue, his cheekbones pink as he tried to tell Dream how much the food was. Hob had rushed over and paid before the poor lad fainted on their doorstep.

Dream tilted his head just slightly. “How would you know whether he had daydreams?”

“Love, I don’t need mind-reading powers to notice that he’s always the one delivering our food now ever since he saw you for the first time,” Hob playfully pointed out.

“Regardless, this night is about you.” Dream was looking at him so intently that Hob felt his face warm. “Would you still like to eat first? Or sleep already? I can make you sleep whenever you wish and ensure you only have the sweetest dreams. Or no dreams at all, if you would prefer that.”

Hob reached for the back of Dream’s neck and pulled him in for another kiss, lingering longer this time. “I had no idea you were so sweet,” he teased after pulling away.

“I learned from the best,” Dream said easily, his eyes twinkling, and Hob didn’t bother to hide his grin. “Which one shall it be? A dreamless sleep?”

“Oh, I don’t think I’d ever want to be Dream-less.”

Dream rolled his eyes—a gesture he had learned from Hob—but Hob could see the smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Dream always looked adorable when he was pretending to be exasperated at Hob’s terrible puns, which was why Hob continued to make them.

“And I might like a hot shower first, actually. It’s been cold all day.”

Dream nodded once. “Then let me draw you a bath.” He stood up and took Hob’s hand, gently leading him to the bathroom.  

“A bath?” Hob blinked.

As soon as Dream opened the door, Hob heard the tap running and noticed a pleasant scent in the air.

The bathtub was filling up with soapy water, suds covering the entire surface, along with…

“Are these rose petals?” Hob said in surprise, turning to Dream.

“A lot of humans seem to think that a warm bath with scented oils and flowers is agreeable after a particularly tiring day,” Dream said hesitantly. “Do you object to this?” He began to raise his hand as if preparing to vanish the contents of the tub.

“No, no,” Hob said hurriedly, squeezing Dream's hand. “I was just surprised.” He glanced at the soapy pink water in the tub before turning back to Dream. “Join me?”

Dream furrowed his eyebrows. “I have no need for bathing.”

Hob smiled at him fondly. “I know. But I still wanna spend time with you.”

Dream looked surprised for a moment before his features softened. “Then allow me to help.” He leaned closer and kissed Hob, his hands reaching up to slowly undo the buttons on Hob’s shirt.

Hob swayed into the touch, unbuttoning Dream’s coat in turn. He felt Dream’s tongue sweep on his bottom lip, and in the next heartbeat they were both in the tub, fully soaked to the chest and without a stitch of clothing on either of them.

Once Hob’s senses have settled down from the sudden teleportation, he realised that he was leaning back against Dream. Their bare skins pressed together, Dream’s chest a cool contrast to the warm fragrant water.

The tap had turned off, so Hob heard clearly when Dream leaned forward and spoke in his ear.

“Will you allow me to take care of you, beloved?” His hands were already lathering shampoo in Hob's hair.

“You're spoiling me,” Hob sighed and melted against Dream, his eyes fluttering close at the feeling of Dream’s fingers on his scalp.

“As you deserve to be,” Dream murmured, and pulled away just enough to glide his hands down to the nape of Hob's neck and his shoulder blades, firmly kneading the tension out of the stiff muscles.

Hob let out a groan that he would have been embarrassed of, except Dream had never made him feel embarrassed of anything.

Dream's hands slowly went down Hob’s back, coaxing the soreness out inch by inch until Hob felt like he might fall asleep right there. And he must have for a minute or so, because when he woke up, Dream had the showerhead in his hand, holding it so that the hose didn't get in the way, and was beginning to rinse off Hob's hair, gently tipping his head back so no shampoo got in his eyes.

“Is this a good time to admit that I've fantasized about this in 1689?” Hob asked as Dream’s fingers were carding through his hair.

“It is unnecessary. I was aware of your daydreams then.”

“Oh? A shame you didn't act on it,” Hob said playfully.

“You were in a vulnerable position. I did not wish to take advantage.”

Hob’s eyebrows lifted in surprise and he turned around to face Dream as much as the bathtub would allow. “Wait, really?” 

The showerhead vanished from Dream’s hand and returned to its place on the hook on the wall. 

“You had lived on the streets a long time without a single kind touch. And I…” Dream’s eyes cast downward. “I was different. At the time. Greedy. If you had allowed me to touch your hair in the bath, I would have taken more. More than what you might have allowed had you not been in a desperate situation.” 

Hob felt dumbstruck; he had already been so grateful for the food and lodging that Dream provided for him that night, as well as the handful of coins. And now, knowing that Dream cared about him that much even back then… Hob just stared at him for several moments, unable to say anything.

Dream met his eyes again hesitantly, his shoulders tensing as if he was preparing for Hob to yell at him or kick him out.

“Love,” Hob rubbed Dream’s arm soothingly. “That's… Thank you, for that. I knew you were kind to me then, but I had no idea just how much.”

“It was the least I could have done. After everything that you had been through.”

Hob smiled. “You really are very sweet, you know? Also,” he pointed at Dream's chest accusingly. “Are you telling me we could have shagged over 3 centuries ago and you didn't say anything?”

Dream blinked at him in surprise. “I had just explained—”

“Well what about in 1789? I knew I wasn't imagining the look you gave me. You're saying I wanked myself to sleep that night when I could have had the real thing?” Hob barreled on. He had the right to, after hundreds of years of holding back.

“I was concerned for your safety.” Dream was evidently trying to suppress a smile and only partially succeeding. “Have I not made up for those times with our plentiful hours in bed as of late?” 

“I haven't decided yet. Might need to add in more hours to be sure.” Hob placed his hand flat on Dream's chest, feeling the heart under his palm that beat only for him.

Dream pulled him closer and planted a soft kiss on his neck. “I was under the impression that you wished to sleep already,” he whispered against Hob’s skin.

Hob felt himself flush, heat pooling low in his belly, and he shuffled around to face Dream properly. “There's lots of time to sleep. Later. I've got other things on my mind right now.”

“Oh I am quite aware of the things in your mind right now, Hob Gadling,” Dream rumbled quietly, his lips finding their way to the shell of Hob's ear.

Hob let out a shuddering exhale and turned his head to catch Dream’s lips in his.

Dream pulled Hob forward to sit on his lap, water sloshing out of the tub from the force. Hob grinded down on Dream's growing hardness under him, rubbing his own against Dream’s torso.

Dream moaned against his mouth, only making Hob’s blood run quicker south. “This is really what you want?” Dream asked breathlessly, his pupils blown wide. “You are not too tired for such activities?”

“I'd stay awake for a week if it means we get to do this now,” Hob’s voice sounded hoarse to his own ears. He gripped Dream’s hair and surged forward to kiss him again, his hips twitching forward when he felt Dream’s tongue sliding against his own.

Hob felt firm hands massage the flesh of his arse, and then a slender finger slick with soap teasing his rim. A shudder ran up his spine, and he moved encouragingly against Dream’s finger. His hands held either side of Dream’s face, keeping their mouths pressed together as if he needed it to breathe.

Dream finally took mercy on him and slipped his finger in, twisting him open and adding a second one.

“Fuck,” Hob gasped, leaning his forehead against Dream’s. “Yes. Right there.” He distantly wondered if he could come like this, riding Dream’s fingers while his cock rubbed up and down Dream’s body. But he wanted more, wanted what he knew Dream was more than willing to give.

“And you shall have it.” Dream added a third finger, spreading Hob open and brushing across his prostate.

“Dream,” Hob nearly sobbed, digging his blunt fingernails into Dream’s shoulders. “I'm ready. Please…”

Dream withdrew his fingers, and Hob’s whine at the sudden emptiness turned into a wail as Dream’s cock filled him.

Dream held Hob’s hips in place; his eyes had fluttered shut and shallow breaths were coming out of his parted lips, his cheeks flushed a ruddy red.

Hob’s chest was heaving, his cock impossibly hard, but he thought he could spend an eternity just staring at Dream like this, frozen in a moment's pleasure.

Then Dream started to move and all thoughts fled from Hob’s mind.

“Dream…” Hob’s voice wavered as he felt Dream slowly slide in and out of him.

Dream’s eyes had turned into galaxies. “My name sounds so sweet on your lips.”

 “Ah—!” Hob’s eyes rolled back in his head as Dream filled him even deeper at the next thrust. His thighs were trembling so much that he had no idea if he was still helping raise his own hips.

Hob leaned in and kissed Dream, tasting the sounds of their moans. He would have chased the heat of Dream’s lips and tongue for much longer, but Dream began thrusting at a faster pace and their kisses turned messier until Hob didn't have control over his own mouth anymore; gasps and pleas and curses spilling out as he threw his head back.

Dream was panting now, his eyes squeezed shut as he relentlessly hit Hob’s prostate with each movement of his hips.

“Hob.”

His name sounded positively sinful from Dream’s lips, and it was all it took for Hob to be hurled over the edge, stars exploding behind his eyelids as a scream tore from his throat.

He rode Dream’s cock through his orgasm, gasping softly when Dream came and spilled inside him with a low drawn-out moan.

Hob collapsed against Dream, boneless and half-conscious, only faintly registering that the water was draining and the tub was filling up again with a fresh batch, rinsing them of soap and spend before draining again.

“Shall we move to your bed, my love?” Dream asked breathlessly, his hand rubbing soothing circles over Hob's back.

Hob hummed in agreement and held Dream tightly.

In the next heartbeat, they were on his bed, dry and warm under the blankets.

Hob wrapped an arm around Dream and snuggled in the crook of his neck. “Thank you. For tonight. I love you.” He raised his head slightly and planted a kiss on Dream's jawline under his ear.

“And I love you, Hob Gadling,” Dream said softly, holding him close. “Now rest. There are pastries waiting for us in the morning.”

Another hum that was more a sigh of contentment slipped out of Hob, and he felt himself smile at the certainty that Dream would be waiting for him in the morning.

---

(Dreamling Bingo Masterpost)

(Masterlist)

[borninwinter81]

I've been rediscovering my love for Clive Barker this week due to finally managing to see The Ultimate Cabal Cut of Nightbreed (some kind soul has uploaded it to YouTube) and then re-reading Cabal, the book it was based on.

Cabal is amongst my favourite books ever written (though as a bibliophile that list is extremely long!) and one of my favourite movies. I originally saw it in the early 90s when I was probably far too young, and read the book not long after.

I backed the Occupy Midian campaign in 2012 when the lost footage was being searched for and reintegrated into the movie, and I attended a screening of one of the early edits where I met Nicholas Vince and Simon Bamford (Kinski and Ohnaka in Nightbreed, but better known as two of the Cenobites from Hellraiser). This led to the eventual DVD/Blu-ray release of The Directors Cut (which I got a physical copy of) and then The Ultimate Cabal Cut (which I didn’t, and which I haven't seen until now).

It's an oversimplification to call Barker's work horror, especially in Cabal/Nightbreed - this was the mistake the production company made when originally editing and marketing it.

Clive Barker's vision shows us the beauty of the weird, the macabre, the abnormal, and the supernatural, and the true horror in his work comes from the "normal".

In Cabal/Nightbreed his monsters are not evil, they're simply different - undead, mutants and supernatural beings, a metaphor for anyone who has ever felt othered by society. Midian is a place where they can live safely with no fear or judgement. The evil characters are "naturals", humans who hate and fear the monsters for being different even though they pose no threat, and ultimately try to destroy them.

As a member of the LGBT community it's easy to see where Barker's motivation for this metaphor came from, but it could equally apply to just about anyone who feels like they don't fit in. Certainly as a lonely, bullied, weird child when I first read/saw it, who then grew up into a reasonably weird adult, I'd love for the monsters to come and take me away to Midian.

Anyone seeing this who isn't familiar with the book/movie, I'd urge you to look them up, as well as others by Barker. More of my favourites by him are Imajica, Abarat and of course The Hellbound Heart, filmed as Hellraiser. The Forbidden from short story anthology The Books of Blood was also filmed as Candyman.

Below I've linked The Cabal Cut of Nightbreed. Even if you know and love the original theatrical release I'd still urge you to watch this (quick as you can in case its removed due to copyright!).

In addition to doubling the movie length from 1 hour 40 mins to 3 hours 20 mins, a number of the actors voices have been re-recorded as they were overdubbed in the theatrical version for some reason, notably those of Rachel, and Lylesberg, played by Doug Bradley. It was a crime to remove that man's beautiful voice and wonderful to hear it back where its meant to be.

Also, rather than being a standard horror movie heroine who seems to be there only to scream and be rescued, in this version Lori comes across as much stronger and more well-rounded character.

As it says in the opening text, although much of the footage was of good quality there are some sections where all they had available were degraded VHS tapes, some of which were without audio. This means the editing is also a little clunky in places. However the makers of this version wanted to include everything they possibly could in order to bring it in line with the original shooting script and Clive Barker's epic vision for the piece.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

Do you have $32,000 for covid treatment? Neither did Nannette, and now her whole family is paying the price for her covid hospitalization. This is why we must mask up: You may be able to afford that cost, but you are just as likely to spread covid to dozens who cannot if you refuse to take precautions, especially when ill.

By Noah Zahn

CHEYENNE — When Nannette Hernandez got COVID in 2021, she didn’t realize how long it would take to recover. Although she was released from the hospital after only a few days of care, she is still suffering from the financial burden that has led to the loss of her job and her home.

At 45 years old, Hernandez and her son, 26, moved in with her mother when she lost her home. The three of them now live together in a mobile home south of Cheyenne. The walls and tabletops are decorated with photos of family members, many of the frames containing photos of her three grandchildren.

Papers were strewn across the coffee table in the living room: bills from the hospital, letters to the hospital, research on how to get financial assistance, one letter denying financial assistance.

Although Hernandez says she tries to keep a positive attitude, her smile faded when she said she often feels hopeless as her debt continues to grow and she is considering filing for bankruptcy.

“They garnish my wages every week, and I owe them more now today than what the judgment was for, and that’s all due to the interest,” Hernandez said. “I’m never going to get through this, you know.” Toys are neatly put away in a corner of the room, behind the couch, for when her grandchildren come to visit on her days off work.

Hernandez has a new job and has health insurance. In addition, she contributes a portion of her wages to life insurance. She said she does this so that she at least has something she can pass on to her family.

Before interest, Hernandez’s bill from Cheyenne Regional Medical Center was around $32,000 after three days of care for COVID and related pneumonia and reduced to $22,000 because she was paying uninsured and out-of-pocket. Between garnished wages and paying for insurance, Hernandez says she only sees at most $12 of her $17.30 per hour wage from working at a deli in a truck stop.

Hernandez said she now suffers from depression as a result of the stress caused by her medical debt. It is difficult for her to work full 40-hour weeks at her job.

However, her smile returned as she talked about how she gets to spend time with her grandchildren, aged 2, 4 and 8, on her days off.

“They’re my light. Oh, they’re wonderful,” she said. “… I stay happy. I don’t let it give me misery, that’s one thing. I might carry it, and I might be right here, always talking about it, but very blessed, very happy, though, still, no matter what.”

Available funding The Provider Relief Fund (PRF) was established in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) to reimburse eligible health care providers for increased expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID care.

A companion fund to the PRF is the Uninsured Funds, which made $10 billion available nationally to reimburse providers for treatment, vaccines and vaccine administration costs for care provided to uninsured individuals.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CRMC received $3,145,097 in Uninsured Funds for COVID treatment, accounting for nearly 30% of the Uninsured Funds received by care providers across the state. It is unclear whether these funds were what reduced Hernandez’s bill from $32,000 to $22,000. Her itemized bill notes the reduction as a discount for “self-pay, uninsured.”

Hernandez received her $22,000 bill shortly after she was released from the hospital and was summoned to court when she did not make payments. She did not appear in court, as she said she felt hopeless and afraid and knew she would be unable to pay. As a result, the court ordered the hospital to garnish 25% of her wages and any argument she had that the government should have assisted her financially was nullified.

After her hospitalization, Hernandez was forced to leave her job of 10 years, where she worked as a waitress, and was unable to work for three months while she stayed at home and was on oxygen 24 hours per day, due to COVID complications.

“I would like to see if they could reverse this, it’s not that I didn’t seek assistance. Now I’ll never get out of this, I’m never going to get out of this,” she said. “It started at $32,000. I’ve been paying on that this whole time. I had started working, they started garnishing right away. I owe them more now. What am I paying for? What am I working for?”

Additionally, Hernandez said she applied for and was denied CRMC’s financial assistance program. According to CRMC’s policy summary, CRMC determines whether patients qualify for financial assistance based on their income and household size compared to the Federal Poverty Guidelines from the HHS. In 2021, those guidelines stipulate that the threshold for a one-person household is $12,880 annual income.

“If being an uninsured waitress making $350 a week doesn’t qualify a person for financial assistance under your hospital’s charity policy, I’d like to know what does,” Hernandez wrote in an email to CRMC officials.

Hernandez sent this email to CRMC, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services and Wyoming government officials. In nearly two months, she only got a response from CMS, which informed her it never received an application submitted on her behalf for Wyoming Medicaid and she was not on Medicaid at that time.

Hernandez: “The prices, they’re outrageous”

In this letter, she also claims she was overcharged. On her itemized bill, she was charged $2,124.20 per 100 mg vial of Remdesivir. Gilead Sciences, the drug’s manufacturer, set the price of Remdesivir at $390 per vial for uninsured patients. Hernandez was charged for five vials for a total of $10,621 instead of what would have been $1,950 for five vials directly from the manufacturer.

Hernandez was charged $8.01 for each 20 mg tablet of famotidine, an acid reducer. This medication is commonly available over the counter and a pack of 225 20 mg tablets is available on Amazon for just under $9, equivalent to about $0.04 per tablet. At this rate, CRMC’s price for the medication is 19,825% higher than what can be purchased in store or online.

CRMC charged her the same price for each 100 mg tablet of thiamine mononitrate, more commonly known as a B1 vitamin. These can also be purchased in the pharmacy section of most grocery stores. A pack of 100 tablets can be found for $7, or $0.07 per tablet, more than 114 times less than the hospital’s price.

It is common for hospitals to charge more for medications, even if it can be purchased at a CVS or Walgreens, for charges associated with administering the drug to the patient. This may include factors like the doctor’s prescription, the pharmacy charge to fill the order, the transportation of the drug from the pharmacy to the medication unit, administration of the medication from the registered nurse to the patient and documentation that the correct medication was administered on the patient’s record.

However, Hernandez believes an 11,343% upcharge for a B1 vitamin may be a bit too much.

When she initially went to urgent care and got an X-ray scan, she was told to go to the emergency room immediately, and the providers at the urgent care said it was a matter of life or death. Without financial assistance or price transparency as her bills continued to grow, Hernandez felt disenfranchised and marginalized and is now fearful of the system that is supposed to provide care for her and the community. She said she is now afraid to ever get sick again.

“I feel it’s unjust. I should not be living every day with a heavy burden like this,” Hernandez said. “… I’m sure I’m not the only person this has happened to. I know there has to be so many more.”

Price transparency In 2022, the White House reported that one-in-three adults in the United States — nearly 100 million people — have medical debt. It is now the largest source of debt in collections — more than credit cards, utilities and auto loans combined. Data from the 2020 U.S. Census also found that Black and Hispanic households are more likely to hold medical debt than white households.

The U.S. spent 17.8% of gross domestic product on health care in 2021, nearly twice as much as the average economically developed country. However, the Peterson-KFF life expectancy tracker shows that the average American lifespan is nearly five years lower than those in the comparable country average and was about the same in 2022 as it was in 2004, while most other comparable countries’ life expectancies have increased since then.

Marni Carey is the president of Power to the Patients, a nonprofit organization advocating patients’ rights to upfront price transparency from hospitals.

“I get letters every day from people who are fighting medical debt, burdensome medical debt,” Carey said. “… It’s just a horrible place to be driven to. And if hospitals could tell patients in advance what their financial responsibility is, or if patients could look online and see what the cost of care is, they could choose providers that were affordable to them and competition could enter the marketplace and Tylenols wouldn’t be $80, they would be $5. That’s why we need transparency, so patients can have financial certainty when they go into the medical system.”

A February 2024 report from Patient Rights Advocate, a nonprofit advocating systemwide health care price transparency, found that nearly two-thirds of American hospitals were not compliant with the federal Hospital Price Transparency Rule, which took effect in January 2021, including CRMC. This legislation requires hospitals to make their prices publicly available and easily accessible online to help patients understand the cost of care before they receive it.

According to the report, CRMC is compliant with all transparency rules except for negotiated rates, which Patient Rights Advocate measured by whether the hospital posted the charge that the hospital has negotiated with a third-party payer for an item or service. They found CRMC lists 89% of its negotiated rates as “N/A.”

“I couldn’t go into the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center machine readable files and find out if (Hernandez’s) bill was at all correct, because the hospital doesn’t have that, they don’t comply,” Carey said.

CRMC officials declined to comment on this story, citing patient privacy.

“For privacy reasons, we can’t disclose patient medical treatment or billing details. We recently received a letter from Ms. Hernandez and we will review the medical and billing records and provide a response,” CRMC told the WTE in a statement. “As a general matter, please note that sending a bill to a collections agency and potentially sending an unpaid bill through a court process are last resorts, used only when someone does not respond to offers of financial assistance, billing statements and phone calls.”

At the time of publication, Hernandez said she has yet to receive a response from CRMC and never got any offer of financial assistance. The only correspondence she has received after her release from the hospital has been her bills and a letter stating she did not qualify for the hospital’s charitable care program.

No savings left Hernandez said she believes she would have been in a better situation now if she had more savings before she got COVID more than three years ago. She said she did have savings, but she had to burn through those savings when her father, who lived in California, passed and her grandmother, also in California, passed a month later. Between several trips to California and multiple funeral services, she said she had little savings remaining when she got sick.

“My dad’s burial cost took all my savings, everything, because I just wanted my dad to lay in peace, you know, I wanted to bury my father, and that took all my savings,” she said.

“It’s just like a train of events, such an unfortunate train of events in life that people go through. Everybody goes through it, and that was mine. I said, ‘Man, if I would have had all that money held just a little bit longer, I would not be in this right now.’”

[miss-bushido]

sweet surrender is all that I have to give

Week 2 of @softsteddieseptember using the prompt ‘Dreams of the future’

Rating: T

October 31, 1986

Steve glanced at the clock on the mantel. It was 8:40. He had about twenty more minutes before Eddie got home from his job. Eddie had found work at a record store shortly after they moved into their bungalow, and was actually enjoying going to work. There he was able to talk for hours with other like-minded musicians and metal heads: discussing the intricacies of the guitar work on ‘Master of Puppets’ vs ‘Ride the Lightning’, and got into good natured arguments about the fact that ‘Screaming for Vengeance’ was the superior Judas Priest album, no matter how much the customer argued that it was actually ‘British Steel’.

Eddie was happier than Steve had ever remembered seeing him. Having a job he actually wanted instead of one that he had taken only out of necessity certainly helped. Along with the fact that they were no longer living in Hawkins. Funny how moving away from a place where everyone who was openly hostile to you helped your mental health. Steve owed a debt of gratitude to Chief Hopper for getting them in touch with Dr. Owens. Owens had been able to pull all the strings to allow them to both move from Hawkins to a neighborhood just outside of Indianapolis in early September.

Owens had set them up with a 3 bedroom bungalow: it had a fireplace, a garage, a nice yard for gardening. Best of all, it was theirs: Owens had put both Steve and Eddie’s names on the deed to the house, and had bought it outright for them. No one could ever take it away from them.

Steve was emotional over this, but Eddie more so. Steve had always lived at his parent’s home, but Eddie’s home life had been in an upheaval since his Mom died when he was a kid. The most stable home he’d had was living with Wayne, and that was only consistent after his Dad had abandoned him two years ago. He’d cried in Steve’s arms their first night in the house, worried it would be taken away from them. It had taken at least three weeks for the worry to ease, for Eddie to sleep through the night soundly.

They had set up their home pretty quickly with help from their friends and loved ones. The master bedroom was easy enough, as all it required was Eddie and Steve to combine their own bedrooms. One of the other bedrooms was set up for guests, and the third one was an office slash music room for both of them to use. The Wheelers and the Hendersons had gotten them set up with bed and bathroom linens, lamps for the living room, a dining room set of table and chairs, and two dinnerware sets with flatware, cups, plates, and bowls. Chief Hopper and Joyce Byers had combined their money and gotten them a few things for their kitchen: a kettle, two pans, two pots, and basic cooking utensils. Owens had even given them a large area rug, end and coffee tables, two couches, and two armchairs, both of them new.

All of these things meant that they had zero to no worries about money to furnish their house. They could focus on getting settled in their new neighborhood, getting their new jobs, and settling into their domestic life together. In addition to Eddie’s work at the record shop, Steve was working part time as a substitute teacher for the local middle school. He also was a shift supervisor at the local supermarket. His pay was also decent at both places and the extra bit of cash let them start building up their savings.

Before they’d moved to this house, during the midst of their intense romance that had begun in April of that year, they’d talked about future plans. Steve told Eddie that he wanted a future with him. He’d said that he wanted to get him a ring that he deserved. And after two months of looking, he’d finally found one.

He’d found a ring he wanted to use to ask Eddie to marry him.

They couldn’t get legally married. Both of them knew that, but Steve wanted to do something. Even something like getting a ring for the person he wanted to marry. And wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

The fact that Steve wanted to get married at all spoke to how much growth he’d had as a person. Seeing how toxic his parents’ marriage was as he grew up had initially soured him on it. Being with Nancy had changed his mind a little bit, but it wasn’t until his relationship with Eddie started that Steve saw what he wanted for his future.

And exactly who he wanted it with.

He heard the key turning in the lock and stood up as Eddie came in humming. He looked up at Steve and gave him that grin, the dimples on full display. “Hey, baby,” he said, closing the door and putting his keys away. As he walked,he shrugged out of his leather jacket and held up the plastic bag. “I stopped by the grocery store and got us some chocolate. I have to assume the trick or treaters cleaned us out?”

Steve nodded, brushing his hair back from his face as he closed the distance and gave Eddie a soft kiss on the lips. “They did. The Reese’s got decimated, but they left us with a lot of Butterfingers.”

Eddie kissed him back and laughed. “Just as planned.” He liked all candy, but Butterfingers held a special place in Eddie’s heart.

“You were right,” Steve agreed, running a hand through Eddie’s curls and kissing him once more. “Give me the chocolate. Why don’t you sit down, and I’ll go get us something to snack on.”

“You’re the best,” Eddie said, kissing Steve, with teeth this time before he reached behind and grabbed his ass. “Don’t be too long. I want to watch ‘Fright Night’.”

“Of course,” Steve agreed, giving Eddie his own ass grab before he took the bag of candy into the kitchen. He set the bag down on the counter and sighed shakily.

He was going to do it. And though he had a feeling he knew what the answer would be, asking the question scared him to death.

A few minutes later, Steve came back into the living room holding a tray laden with the bowl of candy, two unopened beers, and a medium sized jack-o-lantern, with the face turned towards him. He had lit the candle inside but his body blocked the light.

This ended up being a good thing, as Eddie had turned off the main lights in the room, leaving the only light in the room coming from the two jack-o-lanterns, and the glow of the TV. “Very spooky, babe,” he commented, setting the tray down on the table, leaning back against the couch.

“I thought so, too,” Eddie said, eyes flicking to the table. “Is that another jack-o-lantern? Why is it turned away?” He started to reach for it when Steve grabbed his hand.

“Don’t turn it around just yet,” Steve said, rubbing his thumb over the back of Eddie’s hand. “I wanted to talk with you about something. Something good, I promise.”

Eddie blinked, but didn’t let go of Steve’s hand. “Okay…” he said, scooting closer on the couch.

Steve was silent, licking his lips to try and gather his thoughts. “This time last year, I couldn’t have imagined I’d be where I am now: in my own house, living with a partner I’m absolutely in love with.” He gave Eddie a shy smile. “Watching my parents as I grew up…it was hard to want to have a relationship with anyone. They had to be really special to me. They had to be someone I could be myself around, I could spend all my time with and not get tired of, as mean as that might sound.”

Eddie smirked. “I mean, yeah, it doesn’t sound that good, but I get what you mean.”

Steve nodded. “So, when you and I started dating, it was like everything clicked into place. We didn’t have the best experiences with one another in high school, and then being thrust together like we were in March? Not the best experience there, either. As I’m sure you know.”

Eddie answered by squeezing Steve’s hand, frowning a little. He kept his eyes on Steve, knowing that there was more to whatever Steve had to say to him.

“I’m not really sure when it was, but I was drawn to you, pretty early on. You’re a hard person to ignore. Getting to know you when we went through all of that. And then spending time with you after…That night you came over in April? I’d been thinking about kissing you for a while. And then…we did, and more, and ever since, I’ve felt as though I’ve been having the best dream of my whole life.” He swallowed, feeling emotion beginning to build, but he wanted to get through this.

“I fell for you so hard and so quickly, but it didn’t scare me. Everything with you has felt good, and right. And…well, I feel as though I’ve found the missing part of myself.” He brought Eddie’s hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of it, not letting go when he set it back down. “You’re who I dream about, the first person I think about when I wake up, and the last person I think about when we fall asleep…and I don’t want to be with anyone else. I want to be with you for the rest of our lives.”

Eddie’s brown eyes were shiny with unshed tears, and Steve could feel them in his own eyes, so he knew he had to make this next part quickly. He let go of Eddie’s hand to reach over to the jack-o-lantern on the table. As he turned it around, showing that there was no face, but the words MARRY ME carved into it, he asked, “Eddie, will you marry me?”

Eddie let out a sob and leaned forward, wrapping his arms around Steve, kissing him hard. “Yes, yes, yes, of course! Of course I’ll marry you!”

Steve was also crying as he returned Eddie’s kisses, pulling him on top of him as he lay on his back on the couch. They were laughing and crying in equal measure, cheeks red with emotion.

“This was so goddamn sweet, Steve,” Eddie said, voice watery as he calmed down.

“Well, thank you,” Steve said, brushing some hair out of Eddie’s face. “I was worried you would think it was corny.”

Eddie giggled. “Some would say it’s a little corny, but I can’t imagine anything better. And on Halloween?! Babe. You’re the best.”

“Oh, I know,” Steve said, smirking a little. “And because I’m the best, I got you this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little grey velvet bag. Eddie took the bag, his lower lip beginning to quiver. “Oh, sweetheart,” Steve said, voice soothing. He re-situated them so that he was sitting up, Eddie straddling him. He opened the bag and pulled out the ring: it was a thick silver band, with a square onyx stone. There were carvings around the stone setting and along the side of the band. As soon as he saw it in the store, he knew it was the right one for Eddie.

“Give me your hand, baby,” Steve said. Eddie put his left hand forward, shaking as Steve slid the ring onto his left ring finger. It was a perfect fit.

“Oh, Steve,” Eddie gasped, putting his right hand over his mouth. “Oh my God I love it so much. I love you so much!”

Steve smiled. “I love you, too, honey.” He was still holding the bag. “You should look in the bag again. There’s something else in there.”

Eddie swallowed, reaching into the bag. His eyebrows went up as he pulled out a similar ring, but with a dark green stone instead of onyx. It was also at least a size bigger, so it could only be for Steve. “Stevie,” Eddie sniffled, a tear sliding down his cheek. He grabbed Steve’s left hand and slid it onto his ring finger.

As soon as Steve’s ring was on, he pulled Eddie in for another kiss, wrapping his arms around his body. “Let’s go upstairs,” he whispered, voice thick with emotion. “I want to make love to you.”

“Yes,” Eddie breathed, kissing him hard. “I want you all night.”

“You’ll have me all night,” Steve promised. “Tonight, and every night after.”

Eddie smiled against Steve’s lips. “I can’t wait.”

[whipcreamtea]

pricing:

lineart style:

bust/portrait: $15

waist-up: $25

full body: $30

painted/lineless style:

bust/portrait: $35

waist-up: $45

full body: $50

b/w pencil drawing:

bust/portrait: $15

waist-up: $20

full body: $30

paintings (watercolor + colored pencil):

portrait/bust: $40

waist-up/full body: $50

simple backgrounds only

additional characters: +50% of base price

more info under the cut~

price of additional character depends on style and size, so please ask!

if there is a specific work of mine you’d like the commission to be in the style of, please send it!! it does not have to be one of the styles listed above. feel free to look through either of my art accounts to see all of my work!

all info can also be found written here

payment will be through paypal only!

contact me here on tumblr or at my email, cloudberrynote@gmail.com

typically it only takes me 1-2 or so days to finish a drawing depending on the complexity & what hours i have at work, but please allow me at least a week to finish, even if i likely won’t need the whole time!

dm me if interested! and please be sure to provide lots of reference images; the more the better!

terms of service:

i must receive full payment before i start the comm, and no refunds, sorry!

i will NOT draw: depictions of incestuous/pedophilic relationships, kink, or pornography (nudity is fine though)

at the moment, i won’t do super complex backgrounds. however i can add simple color backgrounds and decorative elements like stars or flowers if you’d like!

the art you commission from me is for personal use ONLY. you cannot sell the artwork you receive in any way, shape, or form!