#the 6+ hours of driving in stop and go traffic was not so fun but definitely worth it

[butchfriend]

definitely cried a little bit when i saw totality

[applejuicefruit]

can you write about kylian mbappé randomly finding out that you vape cause you were accidentally seen at the background of a insta story? like first he’s insanely mad when he found out but at the end he’s a little ok with it as long as you do a lung check every 6 months

kylian is my mom in this story 🥲

kylian mbappe x reader

Light it up

You were currently out with your best friends, having fun and taking pictures when suddenly you heard your telephone ring. Kylian, your boyfriend was texting you and you had no idea why so you decided to check very quickly.

“Where are you?” he texted you first.

“Are you safe?” he texted you second.

“Come home!” he texted you third.

“Are you in a gang or something?” he texted you again and you got a bit worried, he never acted this strange so something was definitely going on.

“Girls I’m so sorry to leave you like this but something just came up and I have to go home, I think Kylian’s sick…” you said, unsure of what to tell them because you had no idea of what was going on.

“Don’t worry baby, we’ll catch up another day, go and take care of that big boy!” one of your best friend teased you and you thanked them.

The drive back home was slow due to the big traffic in Paris and anxiety was eating you inside, thinking of why Kylian was acting so weird around you.

Once you got home you looked for Kylian, finding him on the couch with his phone in his hands.

“Kyky are you okay? You scared me, I thought you were hurt or something…” you said going towards him but he stopped you and showed you his phone.

“What is this?” he asked, showing you the picture two of your friends took an hour earlier.

“My friends?” you asked him a bit confused. Why was he acting so weird?

“Yes. And who’s behind your friends?” he asked again and once you zoomed in you saw yourself in the picture too, doing absolutely nothing but vaping.

Shit. Kylian didn’t know about it and now you were completely fucked.

“Kylian…” you tried to speak again but he stopped you.

“You smoke? How can you smoke? You know how dangerous it is? What are you? Sixteen trying to live the sex drug and rock and roll life?” he said, the situation quickly escalating as he was making it a huge drama, bigger than what it was.

“Kylian, first of all calm down! I’m not smoking, I was vaping, it’s different…second of all, calm down! You’re acting like it’s the end of the world!” you said a bit irritated.

“Because it could be the end of the world! You could die! Smoking can cause cancer! It’s dangerous…” he said, making a big drama out of nothing.

“Kylian once again, I wasn’t smoking!” you corrected him again but he wouldn’t listen.

“It’s still dangerous! For how long have you been doing it?” he asked again.

“I started four years ago…” you whispered.

“You were only seventeen! Are you crazy? Why? You’ve been doing it for all these years? Next year what? You’re gonna buy a Harley and join a motorcycle gang?” he asked seriously but you couldn’t help but laugh. He was acting like a total drama queen, in Kylian’s style.

“Why are you laughing? I’m serious y/n…I thought you were more mature than this!” he scolded you.

“Kylian, first thing you’re not my mom, stop acting like her, second thing, it’s my life and I can do what I want okay? I don’t need your permission to vape if I want to and I don’t need your permission to drink if I want to okay? So stop acting like a drama queen…” you said getting mad.

He really got upset over this stupid thing?

“I’m not acting like a drama queen! It’s serious! Are you getting checked up?” he asked you again.

“Not really…listen, I’m alive and breathing and I’m okay, you don’t have to worry about it!” you got tired of this conversation.

“Of course I worry about it! I worry about you! I can’t lose you…” he said looking more apologetic.

“What? You won’t lose me Kylian…you really are a big baby you know that?” you teased him and he laughed.

“Promise me you’ll get checked! At least every three months!” he said looking more serious.

“Every three months? Are you crazy?” you laughed at him.

“Every six months or you won’t vape ever again!” he said looking like your mom, really.

“Fine…” you agreed only because you wanted this conversation to end.

“And you won’t vape in this home…nor when we’re out together or with friends, or my family, they would absolutely kill you…” he got worried again, acting like a drama queen again and you got tired of his diva behaviour.

“Fine. I promise. Now can you drop it?” you asked and he nodded.

“Thanks…” you said reaching up for your jacket and purse.

“Where are you going now?” he asked you.

“To vape!” you shouted when you were already outside the door.

“What! Not again!” he screamed at you but you only bursted out laughing at his childish and motherly behaviour.

You were definitely dating a big child.

[umbralundertaker]

gg characters ranked based on how insufferable they would be during a 6 hour drive with you

Goldlewis: IDEAL. He drives the whole way, hes a good driver, he has the whole route planned out including stops, pays for the gas and snacks, he has good taste in music, hes quiet if I want quiet and hes chatty when I want to chat. He would keep his coffin in the trunk but his UMA gets lonely so it chills in the backseat, giving us our snacks (half eaten) or pulling my hair occasionally

Sol: quiet mostly but gets road rage when theres traffic. Insists on driving the entire time. Plays Queen loud as fuck the whole way. Gets grumpy when he has to stop so I can use the bathroom. Still A tier.

Dizzy: We take turns. She offers to drive the whole way but i say no because I dont want to put that on her. She is calming and extremely easy to talk to and makes the time fly by. Will be annoying when she wants to play I Spy or sing a stupid sing along sonc but I'll do it anyway to make her happy.

May: Cant drive but is entertaining enough to make up for it. She buys a whole shelf's worth of chips with Johnnys money. We chat the whole time and shes alright for the most part but when she gets really annoying i turn the radio on and we sing to whatever song that comes on.

Ramlethal: quiet at first but asks a lot of questions about what she sees outside as we drive along. Generally nice and cordial. Also cant drive.

Sin: cant drive but again his silliness makes up for it. At the gas stations he buys as much as May but he makes me pay for it so hes lower on the list.

Potemkin: Would want to drive the whole way but cant drive without breaking the wheel or pedals. Asks how work/school is going and its SUPER awkward at first but he imparts some life lessons and its generally a good time.

Anji: Would switch off with me. Really good driver and makes great time. Pays for my gas and snacks. Gets annoying and flirty the longer the trip goes on to the point where im a little uncomfortable.

Millia: Would drive the whole time. Quiet but nice when she does speak. I feel like she would have shit taste in music though.

Bridget: Usually nice and fun but shes actually quiet here. Has her headphones on and is looking out the window most of the time. Doesnt drive. Roger gets us kicked out of any gas stations we go to.

Faust: Also looking out the window the whole time. Tries to chat at first but quickly runs out of energy. Offers to take turns driving but i decline because of safety concerns. Summons snacks so i dont have to buy them and we feast the whole ride.

Elphelt: Would be pretty annoying at first but she has great taste in music and we talk about metal the whole time. Cant drive but offers to anyway.

Bedman?: I put him in the trunk and he deactivates for 6 hours

Nagoriyuki: Makes small talk and tries to be friendly but nothing lands. Cant drive but silently judges my driving skills anyways. Tries to pay for my gas but doesnt end up doing it because no gas station takes his 600 year old coins.

Chipp: We take turns driving. Only plays anime intros and gets upset if I change it. Will pay for snacks if they have pocky but not for gas. I let him tell me about anime the whole time but im white-knuckling the wheel.

Testament: Will pay for gas and snacks. They can drive (they even have a CDL) but gently ask me to drive because they dont really like to. I do it but I dont let them know how annoyed I am. Prefers no music in the car and asks bizarrely invasive questions the whole time. Generally nice just hard for me to talk to.

Johnny: I made him drive and he does so without question but thats about the only good part

Slayer: Makes me drive and gives me 'critique' the whole time. Doesnt pay for gas, but not out of rudeness, only because he forgets it costs money. Will backhandedly compliment me on how humble I am for driving such a shitty car. If Sharon comes with us he lets her sit in the passenger seat.

Giovanna: Makes me drive and complains the whole time. The WHOLE time.

ABA: Will want to stop every ten minutes to look at stores or attractions or a cow or a cool plant. I try to say no but she grabs the steering wheel out of my hands because she doesnt really understand how cars work yet. Sits in the backseat with Paracelsus on her lap. Accidentally smashes one of my windows when she tries to take him out.

Zato-1: Zato is completely and utterly silent. Eddie is opening and closing the car doors like Five Nights at Freddy's. I get most of the way there before Eddie possesses the driver in car next to me and we crash and die.

Leo: Im having a headache just thinking about this one sorry

Baiken: Cant drive but does anyway. HORRIBLE road rage and is a little tipsy as well. We get there in one piece but I will be arrested later for reckless driving.

I-No: Would leave me and fly away on her broom thing

Happy Chaos: Happy Chaos

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for sleeping during a road trip?

My bf (25M), his brother (28M), and I (24F) took a 12 hour road trip to visit their family for the 4th of July.

A few things to know: neither of us have driver’s licenses, only his brother, so he was doing all of the driving. We made multiple stops where my bf and I were alone at least for a time in a gas station/rest stop/what have you, so if he had concerns he could have brought them to me privately during the trip as well.

I did sleep for a bit at the top of the drive, we left at about 6:30AM and I get very nauseous in stop and go traffic, so I did close my eyes and rest for a bit.

Through the trip, I was sitting in the backseat the whole time, and dozing intermittently. I did join in some conversations, but they were talking about a lot of stuff that I have little/no knowledge in and I didn’t feel like I had a lot to add. I did play some solo video games during the trip too.

With about four hours left in the trip, my bf decided to play with ChatGPT (which he KNOWS my opinion of) (negative) and ask it to basically generate crossover fanfic for them to read and laugh at. I didn’t want to ruin their fun, so I put in my noise cancelling headphones and listened to a few podcasts, pretty much until we got home.

We all unloaded the car and took turns carrying things up, and then my bf and his brother went to go find parking (there’s not a lot in our neighborhood) and get McDonald’s (I had told them both that I didn’t want to get McDonald’s myself for dinner after that long car ride, again, I get nauseous), while I walked somewhere local and got takeout.

We’ve all just gotten back home with our own dinners, and the first thing my partner said to me when he got back was “I can’t believe you slept for 60% of the trip and then didn’t even come with to help park the car.”

I tried to open a conversation about it but he wasn’t receptive to it, so now I’m just hoping it’s because we haven’t eaten much today and are snapping at each other because of it. I’m going to try to talk to him again before we go to bed, and to my therapist as well, but his argument doesn’t make sense to me.

I understand that sleeping in the car during a road trip can be rude to the driver and make them feel more like a chauffeur than a member of the group, but since they were talking/curating the playlist it didn’t feel like me staying awake would add anything to the vibe, and being unconscious is a great way to be not nauseous. The biggest thing I’m confused about is the going to park the car thing, because why would I go with them to park the car when 1) I don’t know how to drive/park 2) I wasn’t going to the same place to get dinner after 3) my bf was there to look for spots/help guide him into the spot?

But idk. He’s usually pretty reasonable so maybe I was TA? Tumblr, AITA?

What are these acronyms?

[bullet-prooflove]

Clean: Trey Cahill x Reader

Tagging: @@mariashane @kj77 @tiredmarshmellowuwu @choppedgalaxynerd @herwordslikebutterflywings @flopiboni @words-and-seeds @aiko24k @@kane-nero-6 @wabi-sabi1090 @kmc1989

Trey used to traffic drugs. His dealer used to give him ten grand to transport a few bricks of coke over the border into Arizona under the guise of delivering one of the classic cars he’d been restoring to a buyer.

It was usually a five hour trip to the stash house. He’d drop off the merchandise, take his cut and then get high in a shitty roadside motel. He’d stay there for days until he was right again to drive the five hours back to Vegas.

He doesn’t do that crap anymore, he hasn’t since Folsom got him into rehab two years ago. That’s when he got serious about restoration, started turning a profit on the garage, building a client base. He may not ask where all of his spare parts come from for the sake of plausible deniability but the heavy stuff, he’s out of it.

If he gets caught it’s not just his life he fucks up, it’s yours too. You’re already getting shit for dating a former criminal, you will never admit it to him but Folsom had filled Trey in after the scuffle with the defence attorney. That stuff, it reflects badly on you, it puts you under scrutiny.

He’s kept his nose clean since then. He’s stopped going to the bars with all the shady shit going on, lost contact with the people who could suck him back into that life, tossed his burner phones. He’s gone completely legit.

He has his head tucked under the bonnet of a 1969 Chevy Corvette when Killian turns up at the garage. There’s a problem with the starter, he’s still trying to figure it out when he hears someone clearing their throat behind him. He knows it’s Killian, even before he glances over his shoulder. He’s been trying to get a hold of him for days now, putting the word out through the people they used to have in common for Trey to get in touch because he needs the cars to move product.

“You’ve been ignoring my calls.” Killian says as Trey straightens up and turns to face him.

He’s leaning against the hood of a Stingray Trey’s been tuning up, his hands are tucked into the pockets of his black leather jacket. He looks more haggard than the last time Trey saw him. Dipping into his own supply, Trey thinks.

“That’s not my life anymore.” Trey tells him as he picks up the rag from his work bench and uses it to clean the grease from his hands. “I thought you would have got the message when I stopped buying drugs from you.”

“Hm.” Killian says as he holds up a baggie of coke between two fingers. “So I assume you don’t want this.”

This is how it starts, he remembers. A freebie, a little fun, before he knows it he’s five grand in the hole, doing ‘jobs’ to pay off his debt.

“Do you think I’m really that weak?” Trey laughs, crossing his arms over his chest trying to ignore the twitch in his fingers. “That I’m going to jump back into bed with you because you offer me a bump.”

“I think if I leave this here.” Killian says setting the baggie down on the workbench alongside Trey. “I’ll be getting a call from you in a couple of hours’ time for a little more.”

“I wouldn’t bet on it.” Trey bites back and Killian gives him that smile, the one that sets Trey’s teeth on edge.

“Once an addict…” Killian says, pushing the baggie towards him.  “…always an addict.”

It’s a few hours later that you turn up at the garage. The lights are still on despite the late hour. Part of you is worried and the other part pissed because Trey was supposed to meet you for dinner tonight at that little Chinese place you both like. You’d sat there for an hour before you realised he wasn’t coming. He hasn’t been picking up his calls or his texts.

When you step inside you find him hunched over the workbench with his head in his hands. Your hand comes to rest on his shoulder and he flinches at the sensation before he turns his head to look at you. His eyes are red rimmed, the vibrant blue shining through the frustrated tears as the muscle in his jaw clenches.

“Trey.�� You say softly and he takes a sharp inhale of breath before he tilts his head towards something on the workbench.

“I need you to get rid of it.” He says, his voice pained as you follow his gaze to the baggie of coke. “If I touch it…”

He trails off because he doesn’t need to say anything else.

Two years sobriety, everything he’s worked for, it’ll be gone and he can’t go back to that place, not when he’s come so far. But the thing is he can’t seem to help himself. His mouth is dry, his fingers itch, he can feel himself giving in and he’s powerless to stop it.

You pick up the baggie and tuck it into your pocket. The relief is visible, Trey exhales for the first time in what seems like hours, the tension seems to flood out of his body as he uses the back of his hand to wipe across his eyes.

“I need to know what happened tonight.” You say quietly. “How this ended up here.”

If it were anyone else including Folsom he’d lie, say one of his customers dropped it because he wouldn’t want them to know about all the bad shit he’s done in the past. But it’s you and he’s always been honest with you and that’s not about to change today.

He tells you everything, from the product he used to move for Killian, to the nights he spent high as kite. You listen quietly, your hand holding his and he’s grateful for that because being here with you, it keeps him anchored, it reminds him that he’s more than just his addiction.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.” He says quietly as he clasps your hand to his cheek. “Really I don’t.”

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Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

[payservewomen]

I’m tempted to say “I’ve hit a new low”😔 but in reality, I’ve been at rock bottom for…a very long time. Years I suppose.

But at least a few years ago, I interacted with women outside of work. But now? I don’t even leave my bedroom on my days off from work.

I sit on my bed, watching humiliation clips; calling ignore phone lines; taking embarrassing photos of myself; edging myself, oftentimes for many hours(almost never less than 4hrs. up to 12hrs)

The one newer development is- I’ll edge for a while, but then the sadness/anxiety makes me go limp….or i’ll be semi hard but my loser penis only grows slightly larger.

It’s like i’m trying to keep in as small as possible, because I know it should be teeny tiny. It CAN grow to 7in but considering how pathetic I am, part of me wishes I had a microdick. Then I could forget these thoughts i have of becoming a normal person again.

Then I could search 24/7 for a superior woman who wants to use and abuse me.

I fantasize about meeting a woman and dating….Getting comfortable with her to the point that I’m able to do the best I’m capable of in making her orgasm…. But then we open up and share kinks etc….and i know as time goes on, there will be many times my dick doesn’t work.

Slowly over time, she realizes just how much of a beta i am, and begins flirting with real, confident men.

By this time, we’re living together; Maybe one month she asks me to cover all the rent, then bills and spends her money on going out….Then a “friend” of hers(maybe with a unisex name that’s usually a woman’s name)is coming into town; she offers our place to stay….Tells me to make dinner etc saying “ali loves lobster tails and filet mignon! I know ur low on money, but it’s ok! I’ll still have enough left until ur next paycheck! Thanks sweetie! Maybe we’ll meet at the airport, then I’ll let you know when we’re on our way, flight gets in i think about 5pm but who knows if it’ll be on time”

I get off work, begin prepping everything….texting her asking if ali’s plane arrived at 5:30….”it did but we’re tryna find the luggage etc. With traffic it’ll take quite a while, plan for a late dinner!”

By 6:30, still nothing, so i text then call to find her phones off.

I figure she’ll probably be walking in any minute….So i check the “find my iphone” tryna be extra sweet and have everything timed perfectly. I see it moved from the airport towards home and begin making dinner….Until i realize another hour has passed. I check it again to see it’s been somewhere between home and the airport for 2 hours now!

Next thing i know, it’s 10, then 11, then 12 midnight!

I’m dozing off and finally see a text “Omg babe i’m sorry! I lost track of time! Ali said getting a hotel room would be easier, and we’ve just been catching up but ugh it got so late and you know how i don’t like to drive at night anyway, so I’m just gonna stay here tonight, see ya tomorrow!”

I just fall asleep, and wake in the AM to see several weird video texts from a number i don’t know….I hear giggling and a man’s voice….almost seeming like someone’s trying to record something and my gf saying “no stop don’t! that’s mean ali!” There’s at least 4-5 clips like that, the last one ending with my girlfriends sexy belly on the screen. I figure ohhh they’re just having fun i guess? But it did give me a bad feeling in my stomach….

Those vids were sent at about 1am. Then at 2am, just a close up of what i’m sure is my gf’s skin, but i can’t tell what part of her body…..but the audio on it was simply my gfs voice sounding like she’s whining or moaning or something? and saying “mmmmm ohhhhk fuck it”

Then 30mins later the clip begins blacked out, but with clear audio…just sounds like licking and slurping….Then a man’s voice “yeah worship it bitch. Now, say it” then the phone moves, showing an arrogant looking man smiling, then it slowly pans down over his entire perfectly fit muscular body….very slowly, stopping on each part of his stunningly perfect body….i mean this guy had an 8pack! Absolutely chiseled in every way. Then it stops to show his abs and v-lines, and then slowly shows his balls…I didn’t know balls could actually be that big!

Then slowly as possible, the camera moves to show the thickest cock i’ve ever seen!

Then the vids stop…but there’s a text at 4am with only an address….my gf knows i wake up for work at 4am…

i call and text her but her phones off ofc. I go to work, and finally around noon, my gf calls saying she’s going shopping with Ali, saying she didn’t bring any of her credit cards asking if i’ve got any money left…i tell her i’m not sure how much, but i’ve got $500 in a sportsbook app from winning the night before…”omg babe that’s perfect! Don’t worry i can move it from there, is it your normal password?” I answer yes, and ask her just to leave at least $100 or so….

And ask if theyre gonna be having dinner tonight…”yeah sweetie we are! I’ll let you know when we’re on the way”

I ask her wtf all those vids were. and who that guy was and she replies “huh? Wait what? You’re telling me you got videos from a random number?! And it had a perfect man’s body with a horse cock?! Lol babe i dunno what websites you’ve been visiting but i’d imagine it’s something to do with that!🤣 What?! u think i’m cheating on you with an old friend or something?! jk! Love u babe”

I hang up the phone and immediately get the same text with the same address, i look up the address to find a really really nice hotel is there. Then another text comes through simply saying “penthouse suite, beta cuck”

Then another text….just a screenshot of a receipt from stub hub for tickets to the nuggets game that night, 5:10pm. 2 tickets, $250 each, wow, better than i’ve ever had for sure.

Then one more text again with the hotels address, saying “ur welcome to stop by whenever, but i suggest you either wait for us to get there or something. not getting up to open the door if we busy fuckin. Can’t wait to see your bitch ass cry🤣”

This one hits me like a ton of bricks and it’s feeling more n more that it’s gotta be exactly what it seems….but no way she’d do this to me!

The great part of our relationship is complete and total honesty and openness! My gf, allison is kinky and loves to be a dirty slut, and we have talked about her fucking others, maybe even a gangbang!

But we’d only done a handful of super kinky things….we’re both submissive so it’s kinda hard to push it and try really crazy n kinky things….we both need that more aggressive attitude!

But i know she loves me deeply. We’ve such an intensely strong emotional connection, more than either of us ever have!

Still no word from my gf and it’s 8pm. At 9pm she finally texts me but it’s the exact same as from the other phone number and it’s just the hotel address and room number…..I call her back, and it rings and rings until going to voicemail. Maybe she didn’t hear it, i call again…it rings 3-4times, less than the last time, then goes to voicemail. I try again and it rings twice then voicemail….Again, same thing. I call yet AGAIN, prob the 6th time and it goes straight to voicemail!

I check the phone locator app and see her phone was at ball arena(nuggets play there)the length of the game….and moved to exactly where the hotel is.

I get dressed, now fearing the worst, but thinking “ok this makes no sense! Either she’s playing some joke on me; something weird like that or some surprise for me?”But i do realize that the most likely thing is…maybe she’s been partying with her friend, she cheated and isn’t sure how to deal with me…..But what’s up with the pics etc? ofc she��s aware of my pervy kinks etc, and she’s prob making it seem like she’s cheating on me, i’m hoping!

I walk to the light rail station, and get on the train….Ugh yeh don’t have the money to get an uber…i checked my bet365 account to see its at zero!

Wtf?! I had some futures bets….ones i could cash out for about $250 total, but they were all just cashed out! i’ve not one bet at all and no money here!

I see that $800 was withdrawn and my bank account was credited $800! But $500 used for the tickets, and $300 spent at some weird fancy store downtown.

Ok that’s it i’ve gotta see what’s up as i’m sitting on the train, mind running wild. Fuck, i gotta get off and walk 20mins, then get a bus!

I get off the train, walking to the bus stop…..Bus finally comes and oh fuck, as i’m tryna buy a bus ticket on the app(for $2.75) It dawns on me “fuck i don’t have enough money in my account” i look at the driver and say “i’m not sure why it’s not working” he looks at it and says “yeah cuz you’re card is being declined, sorry” and closes the doors.

I’m defeated and want to cry. Looking at google, i see it’ll take 2.5 hours to walk there….

It’s now almost 10pm and i consider going back home, but then wtf?! I can’t just sit at home wondering wtf is going on!

So i walk and walk…i watch the clip again and again of the perfect man’s body, fantasizing that the woman i’m in love with is cheating on me in the meanest way possible….Finally, it’s after midnight and I arrive at the hotel….I ask the front desk how to get to the penthouse, and she tells me “the elevator is right over there, but Sir, there isn’t anyone staying there right now”

I thank her and walk away tryna figure out what to do.

I text my gf asking why she texted me that address. she texts back right away with another address! I lose it and call a few times, each time it’s sent to voicemail. I text her back yelling “OK WTF is going on?! What’s your problem? Tell me what’s happening right fucking now!”

She texts back “i’m sorry sweetie, i didn’t mean to upset you! Just having fun with my friend, sorry guess i didn’t realize….I’ll be home tonight, but we’re out, omg babe i’m so drunk! I’ll see you at home, probably late!”

So i begin to walk back home…and remember the light rail isn’t running anymore….Now, I’ve got a 3.5 hour walk!

Finally i arrive home, it rained a little and i’m soaked, socks wet, and miserable and exhausted….

I open the door and hear slurping sounds and my gf giggling. My heart sinks and i already know what’s happening….I yell “wtf are you laughing about?! The fuck is wrong with you, ur being a fucking bitch!”

And i see the same man from the clips emerge from my bedroom, butt naked….he’s holding my favorite shirt, sweat dripping off his immaculate body and he wipes it off, then wipes his asshole with it, now it has skidmarks and throws it at me, saying “wtf did you say bitch?”

I ask who he is and what he’s doing at my place he replies “whatever tf i feel like doing faggot!” I say no it’s my place, and no i’m not gay” i emphasize gay, since i’m not a fan of bigotry and homophobia…”yeh didn’t say your gay, but you ARE a bitch ass faggot! Wtf you gonna do about it, huh? that’s wtf i thought, now, on your knees…obey or i’m gonna beat you up so badly….maybe you’ll get outta the hospital by the time i get out of jail, but it’s your choice” while making his pecs bounce in a very intimidating way. he walks up to me cracking his knuckles saying “ya know, i really DO hope you put up a fight; nobody ever wants to fight me” I look him up and down, knowing he’d kill me quickly….He’s gotta be a foot taller than me….im 5’9 and he’s gotta be at least 6’6!

I ask if i can take my shoes and wet socks off first and he laughs then slaps me in the face, open handed but hard, immediately followed by a left handed slap, i lose my balance and stumble to my knees, then i say “ok ok” on my knees looking up at him.

“Thank me for bullying you. Do it bitch” i thank him, he laughs, spits on me and gives me a wedgie….i make noise indicating it’s hurting, and he proceeds to give me an atomic wedgie…laughs then demands i take my clothes off but keep my wet socks on….

He laughs hysterically at my dick and shouts “baby, how tf were you actually fucking THIS?! omfg, ok come on slut”

And i see my love…she’s crawling on all fours..crawls up to this greek god and begins kissing his feet. She works her way up his legs, as she kisses and licks literally every inch of his perfect body.

Ali then says “ok now, don’t make me tell you again”

She looks me directly in my eyes “Bobby, keep looking in my eyes, ali says we must keep eye contact and he’s in charge here, ok? Please listen to what he says, i don’t want you to get hurt, i really don’t…not physically anyway. I say that because i i i DO want you to get emotionally hurt. I am sorry but when Ali told me he wanted to fuck me, i told him about you. Over months he kept teasing me for fucking such a loser; i love you but you are a loser. He’s been sending me pics of him, and the girls he fucks and omg babe, they cum so hard, and I fondly remembered being fucked by ali. I broke up with him cuz he cheated constantly and i thought that wasn’t ok, Now i realize how superior he is. It’s a small price to pay to be allowed to touch a superior man, im sure you understand. After i admitted how badly i wanted him he began insulting you and making fun of you. He made me take pics and record our sex, and that’s why i haven’t cum in so long, he said i wasn’t allowed with a loser like you. Ali is a sadist, he loves to make women worship him and loves nothing more than breaking beta men like you. That’s not an insult; you’re a beta, he’s an alpha, ya know?

He’s been planning for months to do this….it’s his masterpiece of destroying a loser!”

By this time i’m crying, tears streaming down my face…

“now bobby, we’re recording all of this and you’re now going to thank ali for making your fantasies come true. I know it hurts; the goal is to break you. Ali and i will marry, and you will work for us and live in a tiny room in the basement. U will be used and abused. I know it hurts but this is your new life now. Sure you can run away or something, but then ali will send all the vids and clips to your entire contact list.

But right now you’re going to beg ali to let you eat his sweaty asshole, do it you fucking piece of shit!” By this time ali is rubbing her pussy with his foot and it’s making her horny af….mmm fuck, i fucking hate you loser!” And she spits on me, confusing and hurting me.

I begin to beg to eat his asshole….

And wow, I began this planning on just whining about being so sad and pathetic but then wrote all this…wow i’ve got issues

[queenofglassbeliever]

OTP ask 6 please! 💙

6: "When did they realize that they loved each other?"

Okay! So in my mind, Jake and Sarina meet again after the timeline resets. The circumstances are pretty much the same, but this time they become a couple.

Jacob realizes he loves Sarina after the Ecuador job. The one that rattles Cassandra and prompts her to go on sabbatical ("And the Hidden Sanctuary"). Well, I kinda figured that it was just a really rough case for everybody. After returning home, Jake washes up and settles in for the night. He intends to turn in after such a long day, but he can't stop thinking about Sarina. Next thing he knows, he's driving his Dodge Challenger to her apartment and knocking on her door. When she answers the door, he apologizes for the late hour but he just had to see her. Sarina invites him inside, makes chamomile tea, they settle on her couch, and they talk. Jacob tells her what happened in Ecuador. Afterwards, the conversation steadily changes to lighter topics of conversation. They talk through the rest of the night. It's not until they hear the chiming of Sarina's morning alarm that they realize how late (or early) it really was. They say goodbye, and as Jacob is driving home that morning it dawns on him that he loves Sarina.

Sarina realizes she loves Jacob after their first date. It's a little while until they have their first official date. After "And a Dude Named Jeff" to be exact. Between Jake being a Librarian and Sarina searching for a new job, they haven't had the time but the day finally came. Jacob makes a reservation at a nice restaurant and picks Sarina up at her apartment. That's when the evening starts to go south. Any little inconvenience that could happen, happens. They somehow hit every red-light. Traffic is insane. Jake tries to take a shortcut, but his car breaks down. He'd just had it detailed! And as Jake's taking a look under the hood, a car drives by and splashes him and Sarina with muddy water. It's quickly revealed that the night's bad luck is due to some Imp type creatures causing mischief. With some magical knowledge from Jenkins (who's still immortal btw), Jacob and Sarina find a way to rectify the situation. When it's over, the hour is late, they've missed their reservation, they're tired but mostly hungry. And at this time of night, any nice restaurant will be close. Luckily for them, the car broke down near a Denny's. It wasn't the romantic dinner that Jake had hoped to treat Sarina to, but it was open and it was food. Once they're seated in a booth and have placed their orders, Jacob tries to apologize for everything but Sarina won't hear of it. This has been the most bizarre and fun first date she's ever been on. And as they're having breakfast for dinner, laughing about the night's events, Sarina realizes that she loves Jacob.

Though it's not very long after the met that they realize they love each other, it is a while before they say it.

[pbandjesse]

It was a nice memorial day today.

I slept fine last night. I woke up a few times but when I woke up at 9 I felt pretty good. James came and laid in bed with me. They had already done laundry and gone for a bike ride. They told me the world was beautiful today. We would lay in bed for a bit longer but we would get up and went to get dressed.

I liked my outfit. It's the same new shirt I got on Friday and it is so soft. It's great.

I felt pretty good overall. James made a coffee and I had some soda and we decided to go out for breakfast. So pretty soon after that we were off and into the world.

We decided to go to Broadway Diner. And it was busy! I wasn't shocked, it's a bank holiday. James and me have an ongoing will they won't they about the right side of the restaurant. Which we have never once sat at. Every time we go to James makes a whole thing about how this is going to be the one!!! But nope, we still seated in the left side.

We had a quiet brunch. My stomach continues to hurt when I eat but I still enjoyed the morning with my husband. I would people watch and we looked at things on each other's phones. I had shared the styles of doors I would like for the house. The type of fence too. It was a good morning.

While we were out i decided I would like to stop at the craft store because I wanted to get yarn. And so we did exactly that.

The yarn was not as on sale as I was hoping. But I have an idea about creating a double layered loom knit blanket. Almost like a puff quilt.

We did have a 20% coupon though and I got 6 skeins of yarn for my project. I am very excited and I really hope that it works out the way I am imagining. It is going to be a lot work though! Nice to have something outside of my temperature blanket though.

We would get home and have a few hours to just chill. James would play some video games. I would work on knitting. We had Ruby trying to clean but she kept getting stuck. Poor Ruby. She has her good days and her bad days.

We would leave here around 1. I would do a quick little vacuum of the frog tank because the snails were going crazy. And very soon we were on the road.

It was a nice drive to DC. I worked on knitting and we listened to a podcast. There wasn't much traffic. And we would arrive in Eve's beautiful little neighborhood a little after 2.

She is moving to Trinidad at the end of the summer but she's going to do some other traveling throughout the summer. But the state department is sending the movers to come pack all of her stuff up tomorrow. Crazy! I am very excited for her. Like it's going to be a really amazing experience I am sure!!

When we got to her place her and her roommate had us up on her roof. We were the first guests but more would come. We had burgers and dogs and fruit and an amazing lemon cake. And I was just having a really good time.

I would have some great conversations. Specifically with this girl Charlie. She was so nice! We exchanged numbers and I hope we hang out some time because she was so lovely. Me and James would tell a whole story about when I was a furby influencer. And there was lots of baseball talk. It was fun.

Eventually we would join the table with everyone else. Where I had a really great time talking to one of Eve's friends who is into mushroom foraging. I got to show him my mushroom pictures and he was able to name them all!! He's much braver then me and actually eats them though!

We would be there for 5ish hours. We all tried to download an app to do palm reading. We had amazing lemon cake. We told stories. I got to talk about my arthritis stuff which was nice. It was nice to be able to talk through the whole craziness of last year and the chemo and the weirdness of that. I am finally feeling like I'm back to myself after a year.

We would leave there around 6. And after stopping in her apartment to use the bathroom and say hi to her beautiful cats, there were hugs and then goodbyes!!

It was a nice drive home. But the sky was getting darker and darker. There has been a tornado watch in DC and a severe thunderstorm warning in Baltimore. It felt like we were racing the storm home. But it would start to come down right before we parked.

But it wouldn't get bad for a little while. We were safely and securely in the house when the sky opened for real. Lightening and thunder!!

James would paint their nails. And I would just chill on the couch. Had a little dinner. And we have just been resting and having a nice evening.

But now I would like to go shower and get ready for bed. I have a long day tomorrow. Both camp and then an event. I really hope that it is an easy transition. Fingers crossed.

I hope you all sleep well tonight. I love you all. Good night!!!

[lazeecomet]

How to teach someone to drive

Featuring my younger brother who has anxiety and has already been a passenger in a car crash

I learned to drive in spite of my parents. They got me an online class (no video, just walls of text and clip art with quizzes) and sat in the car, but they didn't really do any teaching. I failed my behind the wheel test on my first go around. I wasn't gonna have my brother go though the same thing so this is how I got him able to pass his test with 0 faults on his first try in about 6 months (and my parents never even knew it was happening)

Make sure this is something they want to do or feel like they should do. It's very hard to learn to drive if you don't think you need to learn to drive. my brother was against driving but ultimately conceded that he needed to learn at some point even though he didn't like the idea of it

Use the right car. Don't use a big truck or something with weird or large blind spots. I hated driving my mom's volt because i sat way too high in it and couldn't see out very well which feed back to point 1

Link it in with a fun outdoor activity. Are you going somewhere? Plan to do driving afterwards. Do not spring this as a surprise. since your already out and about go for a drive.

Plan a route. Look on Google maps for some cul-de-sac or neighborhood where there is only 1 or 2 ways in or out. This will ensure they can't get onto a main road and also cut down on other traffic

Park the car and take photos of the mirrors from the drivers seat. Show them what you have centered in each. Have them adjust the mirrors to match the photo

Drive around the cul-de-sac. The first few drives will only be about 10 minutes long. Show were to stop at a stop sign. show when to yield. get use to accelerating and breaking gently. Do a 3 point turn and go the other way for some variety. reverse the car against the sidewalk for about 30 feet. parallel parking comes later.

Repeat step 6 until they are comfortable.

Plan a longer route. Use Google maps to find a different neighborhood that has more cross streets and route out a 20 min weave though the neighborhood. with android auto/apple carplay/a phone clip, seeing the route to be taken and knowing what turns need to be taken ahead of time will add purpose to the drive. it sucks to drive around aimlessly. always have a destination

Drive the longer route. This should only need to be done once or twice. Point out any new road signs and what the mean and what to check for

Find the driver's handbook for your state and send it to them. It's usually not more then a 10-20 page PDF with lots of pictures and is a very quick read. the next step is dealing with THE PUBLIC so they should know ALL the rules of the road

plan a route along a less populated multi lane road. something that gets up to 35-45 mph with low traffic. you know the type

drive the multi lane road. go over merging and practice changing lanes at speed. point out new road signs and have them keep awareness of surrounding cars. is there someone behind them that wants to pass? move over. is there someone beside you in the blind spot? are they in front with their signal on? let them in.

its time to start extending the driving time. have them drive to the destination/event or drive home from it. stick to back roads. do not use the highway. google maps has a setting to avoid highways. just follow that. parking lots will now be the new practice backing up

when the situation presents itself, practice parallel parking. its not on the test but its just so good to know. if you could pull into a parking space have them try and parallel park instead

register online for the behind the wheel test and have them drive the car to DMV to take the test

and thats it. in ~6 months only driving one day a week for no more then 2 hours, you can get someone comfortable with driving. going from not driving to driving is all about building confidence. the steps need to be small enough not to overwhelm and the stakes low at the start to make messing up inconsequential. and speaking of mistakes, unless the error is unsafe, do not point out an error until after the situation was passed. its overwhelming and stress inducing if you point out the error while its happening as they will try to correct it, usually slamming on the breaks which is less then ideal.

for example, if they go though a pedestrian crossing without checking for pedestrians (even when there are none), point out how they didnt check, the signs that were leading up to it, and make a point to call out the next one so they do check. on the other hand, if they are about to make a unprotected left on green with cross traffic, STOP THEM.

I hope some people find this helpful. driving is stressful at times. learning how to drive does not need to amplify that

[steddieworks]

finally safe for me to fall - chapter 6

hi!! finally uploading a little early for once! hope you enjoy the chapter!

read on ao3

Summary: Steve takes Eddie shopping, and fun family times ensue.

Warnings for this chapter: swearing

Words: 9.7k

When Steve Harrington shops, he shops.

The whole “be ready to shop ‘till you drop thing” turns out to not be a joke, not even a little. They’re up and out of the apartment by nine, and after a nearly half-hour drive through the Saturday morning traffic, they find themselves at what Eddie considers to be a fancy mall. It’s got more high-end stores than Eddie knows the names for, but luckily, Steve doesn’t pressure him to go into a lot of those. They go into the more reasonable ones, the ones that are familiar enough that they don’t make his palms go sweaty with nerves.

All the while, the twins are there, begging to go into their favorite stores like Claire’s and the toy store, and even Gap, which Eddie thinks is atrocious. Steve promises them that they’ll go into their stores as soon as they’re finished shopping for the adults, which at first, Eddie thinks is a little mean, but then, Steve explains, “if we let them go right now, they’ll want to go get lunch and go home right after. Holding this over their head is the only way not to lose them,” he says with a quick wink. And remarkably, his tactic works.

Eddie wishes he could forget that they were there to shop for him, because somehow the knowledge just puts more pressure on him than he thinks a simple shopping trip should probably warrant. As such, he doesn’t end up picking out anything at the first two stores they walk into, and by the third, he thinks Steve is ready to call it off. Instead, he pulls Eddie to the side while the twins are looking through some kids' displays to have a short chat.

“Hey, I know it’s awkward,” he says quietly, his arm resting on Eddie’s bicep. “So, how about I take them for a little bit, you go look on your own, see if you find anything you like. We’ll meet back up in say, half an hour?”

That makes Eddie feel a little anxious, too, because some part of him desperately wants Steve’s approval before picking anything out, but he knows that’s just the stupid horny omega part of his brain, so he tells it to shut the fuck up. He agrees, and drifts slowly through the displays available, picking up a couple of things and eventually putting them back. He just feels too damn nervous to actually commit to anything, and so by the time the half-hour is up, he returns to the front of the store empty-handed.

“You didn’t find anything?” Steve asks, sounding genuinely disappointed.

Eddie shrugs, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking away. “Mm,” he hums, noncommittally.

Steve steps closer, Jasmine holding his hand and Ivy trailing behind. “I saw you carrying something for a few minutes,” he admits, nodding over to a display of t-shirts Eddie had indeed been filtering through. “Mind if I have a look over there and see if I can pick out what you liked?” He says, his voice hopeful.

And damn it, of course Eddie can’t say no to that. He shrugs, but gestures for Steve to lead the way, absentmindedly holding a hand out to Ivy as they follow behind. She latches on instantly, humming some pop song to herself as she skips along. He has to smile at her, she’s so damn cute.

“Hm…” Steve is saying, perusing the band t-shirt selection he’s stopped in front of. Eddie smirks as he watches him studying each design carefully. “You already have that one, right?” he asks, pointing to a Metallica t-shirt that Eddie does, in fact, have.

“Right,” Eddie nods. “Don’t need two of them,” he jokes.

Steve smiles, then reaches out and picks one up. It’s a Led Zeppelin shirt, one that Eddie had been eyeing, but hadn’t picked up. Steve turns to him with a triumphant little grin. “This one?” he asks, excitedly.

Eddie smirks, but shakes his head. “I mean, it’s a good shirt, but it’s not the one I had picked out.”

“Hm…” Steve says, considering. He hands Jasmine the shirt, saying, “hold this for me, honey?”

Jasmine nods, grinning over at Eddie as she takes it.

Steve scrounges around the stacks for a few more minutes, Eddie trailing off with Ivy to look at some plaid shirts that he kind of likes, and when Steve reappears at his side a few minutes later, Jasmine’s stack is three shirts heavier, and his smirk is a gorgeous thing. “Found some,” he declares.

“Did you?” Eddie asks sardonically. “What’ve you got, then, Harrington?”

The name doesn’t make Steve cringe this time. Instead, he grins, and picks up the shirt from the top of the stack, and Eddie smiles when he sees that it is the one he had picked out himself originally. “Iron Maiden,” he starts, grabbing another. “Black Sabbath - and this one is different than the one you already have, and cooler-” he picks up the third unknown, and Eddie looks at it quizzically. “This one is actually for me,” Steve admits as he holds up the Pink Floyd t-shirt. “But if you like it-”

Eddie grins at him. “I think it suits you,” he says. “And I’m not much of a Pink Floyd fan, myself.”

Steve smiles. “I figured,” he says. “Thank you, my beautiful fashion assistant,” he says to Jasmine, taking the shirts from her with a flourish. “I’ll hold them ‘till we check out. What else did you find?” Steve asks, peering around Eddie at the shirts they’re stood in front of.

Before Eddie can say anything, Ivy says, “Eddie likes this red one.”

Eddie sends her a narrowed-eye look. Traitor.

“Ah,” Steve says, reaching for the shirt. “I like it too. How about a red one and a black one, Eds?”

Eddie flushes at the nickname. He feels a little flare of uncertainty, the same kind he gets every time Steve steps over one of the boundaries Eddie has set so carefully in his mind. He doesn’t dislike it, necessarily, but that doesn’t stop him from being incredibly wary of it, too.

“Steve,” he says, quietly. “You don’t have to… I mean, I don’t really-”

“Nonsense,” Steve says flippantly. “I definitely think you could get a lot of use out of two of these, yeah?” He doesn’t wait for an answer, piling them on top of the t-shirts and turning around. “Now what about… Aha! Jeans.”

He leads their little parade over to a table of folded jeans, and Eddie feels a bit odd when Steve looks over him, clearly trying to guesstimate a size. “C’mere, hon, I need your help with this part,” he says.

Eddie sighs, but Ivy ends up dragging him forward, much to Steve’s apparent delight. He mumbles his size to Steve, mostly feigning reluctance, when actually, a small part of him is breathing a sigh of relief. This man actually wants to take care of him. For whatever reason, he wants to do this for Eddie. And Eddie wants to let him.

“Hm… You like a skinny leg, right? Or would a bootcut work alright too?” Steve asks, glancing over their options.

Eddie feels a little overcome, suddenly, with the urge to thank him for all that he’s doing. He reaches out with the hand Ivy dropped a minute ago, and squeezes Steve’s hand, halting his movement over the jeans. “Steve,” he says quietly. Steve glances up, looking surprised and so, so sweet. “Thank you, for this. Really,” Eddie tells him.

Steve just smiles back, as if this is the easiest part of his day. “It’s not a problem, Eddie,” he says lightly. “I enjoy doing this sort of thing. And if I’m pushing too much… feel free to tell me to stop, okay?”

Eddie shakes his head. “You’re not, I just… I dunno. You’re kind of the first person who's ever offered to…”

“Buy you clothes?” Steve says, his voice soft. “Well, it’s honestly not much, but it’s the least I can do, Eddie, really. Now, about the cut…” He moves seamlessly back into that side of the conversation, asking about Eddie’s preference for tightness and length and overall fit of his jeans. He manages to find two pairs that Eddie actually likes, and he adds them to the pile without further consultation. It’s a little presumptuous, maybe, but it takes the stress of the decision off of Eddie, and for that, he’s grateful.

They wrap up at that store with a trip through the socks, and Eddie finds it easy enough to slap a pack of black ones onto the pile. Steve rolls his eyes and makes a joke about the absence of color in Eddie’s life, but Eddie just smiles, thinking back to the “borrowed” sweatshirt that has now made a home under his pillow.

Steve offers to buy him a decent winter coat, but Eddie refuses, stating that his leather jacket has been through far worse than an Indianapolis winter.

“Fine,” Steve responds easily. “I’ve got several, anyway, so when you get cold, you can borrow one of those,” he says with a smug smile as he swipes his credit card.

Eddie wants to protest that, too, but only a little bit. He actually quite enjoys the idea of sharing clothes like that, of borrowing a coat that smells like Steve while he takes the girls to school on a cold morning. He doesn’t say any of that, though. Instead, he makes a joke about Steve’s preppy-professional style meeting Eddie’s grunge look.

“I dunno,” Steve says as they walk out of the store, each of them holding one of the twins’ hands, the shopping bag clutched in Steve’s right. “I think it would probably be kind of a look.” And then he winks at Eddie, as if Eddie wasn’t having enough palpitation issues today.

“Daddy, can we please go to a kid store now?” Ivy begs her father, tugging on his hand impatiently. They’ve sort of swapped since leaving the store, Jasmine now hanging off of Eddie’s arm rather than Steve’s.

Steve sighs, but glances at Eddie with a little grin. “I suppose so. Ed, you think you got everything you needed?”

Eddie nods. “More than enough, honestly,” he says quickly. “Definitely time to spend that money on someone else, I think.”

Steve laughs, but nods, leading the way to the combo Gap, the kids Gap entrance on the left and the regular Gap on the right. “Do you mind going with them, for just a minute? I need to pop over and grab something for myself, if that’s alright,” Steve says, glancing at Eddie as they walk through the doors.

“Of course,” Eddie agrees easily. “You don’t have to ask for my permission,” he says, like it’s obvious.

Steve sort of rolls his eyes, but it’s fond rather than annoyed. “I know I don’t,” he says simply. “Alright, girls, stay with your mo- with Eddie.” Steve clears his throat, doesn’t look at Eddie when Eddie looks at him. “Stay with Eddie, and I’ll be right back, okay?”

The twins nod, not noticing his slip-up. Maybe Eddie imagined it, he thinks passively as he follows the girls over to a rack of dresses. Ivy is far more interested in this rack than Jasmine is, and Eddie nudges her gently in the direction of some other outfits. “You don’t have to look at the same thing as your sister,” he says quietly.

Jasmine looks a little disbelieving, but nods, going over to peruse the folded pants and shirts, laid out conveniently on the same table for easy mix-and-match. Eddie mainly just supervises, letting them each look through whatever they want. He gives suggestions when they ask questions about what they could wear with certain things, and isn’t shy to veto things he thinks are ugly.

By the time Steve has come back, Ivy has found a new cardigan and Jasmine a new pair of pants. “How’s it going over here?” Steve asks with a smile, coming to stand beside Eddie, two more shopping bags on his arm.

Eddie reaches out as the girls are showing him their finds, taking the shopping bags from Steve nimbly. When Steve starts to protest, Eddie waves him off. “We’ll swap them back and forth,” he says, his best idea of a compromise.

Steve just smiles and shakes his head, nodding at Ivy as she explains why she thinks she needs a new dress that she found.

They end up leaving the store with another bag, full of a couple of things the twins acquired. Steve had vetoed the idea of new shoes, citing a number of shoes the girls don’t even wear as his reasoning for why. Eddie, however, had played devil’s advocate, going along with anything sparkly or glittery that the twins managed to find in the store. He’s almost positive Steve is going to lose it by the time they leave, but instead, he just gives Eddie a fond, exasperated little smile, shaking his head as they make their way to Claire’s.

“But Daddy, you said last time that we could maybe do it this time!” Ivy whines as they look through an earring stand, despite the fact that the only one with their ears pierced is Eddie.

“And I’m telling you now that this isn’t that time,” Steve says, his voice firm. “Now, if the two of you don’t drop it, we might just go home, got it?”

The twins look disappointed, but they manage to become silent at that. Eddie understands their disappointment, but he also understands Steve’s weariness to have their ears pierced. Especially at a Claire’s.

“Eddie,” Ivy says, her voice sickly sweet.

Eddie already knows what’s coming when he looks at her. She smiles at him, and he struggles to keep a straight face. “Yeah, sweetheart?”

“If you were Daddy, would you let us get our ears pierced?” She asks. Sneaky, sneaky girl, that one is.

Eddie knows she’s expecting him to take her side. That’s probably why her face falls so dramatically when he says, “actually, no.”

Steve glances over at him, as if he wasn’t obviously eavesdropping, the picture of shock on his face.

“What?” Ivy asks, sounding surprised. “But why not?” She’s pouting, and Eddie is starting to understand how she’s the “problem child.”

“Well, for one, this is a Claire’s,” he says, gesturing around. “It’s safer to get piercings done at a tattoo shop, and typically cheaper, as well.”

“Oh,” Ivy says, like she hadn’t thought of that. And she hadn’t, he knows, because she’s only six.

That’s his next point. “Second of all, you guys are still little, yeah? And it hurts pretty bad, you know. So it’s probably better to wait until you’re older.”

Even Jasmine is paying attention now, her eyes wide. “Is that all?” She asks, tentative.

Eddie shares a glance with Steve, then shrugs, crouching down to look at them face-to-face. “Well, there is a third reason, and it’s the most important one.”

“What is it?” Ivy asks, sounding almost nervous.

Eddie smiles. “Thirdly… your dad said no, kiddos. That’s the most important thing, because Dad makes the choices he thinks are best for you, okay? And that overrides anything else.”

The twins look slightly disappointed, but nod in understanding. Eddie ruffles their hair as he stands again, going to look at earrings for himself, just to see if he finds anything that he likes.

A minute later, a warm hand comes to rest on his lower back. “Thank you,” Steve says quietly. “For how you handled that.”

Eddie shrugs, picking up a pack of earrings that are shaped to look like sharks are biting the earlobe when they’re worn. He smiles at that. “No problem,” he says to Steve. “Just doing my job.”

Steve mumbles something that sounds like “… more than that,” but Eddie doesn’t get the chance to ask him to repeat it. “Do you think I’m doing the right thing? By not letting them get their ears pierced?”

At that, Eddie turns to look at him, surprised. “Well… that’s not really for me to say,” he says carefully.

Steve shakes his head. “I don’t- I want your opinion. Do you think I’m doing the right thing?”

Eddie feels a little flustered, and isn’t sure he wants to answer. “I… why does it matter what I think?” He can’t help but ask, fiddling with the handle of a shopping bag that’s digging into his wrist.

Steve reaches out, takes the bags out of Eddie’s hands. “Because,” he says slowly, “I care about your opinion. Especially when it comes to the kids. What do you think?” His eyes are genuine, and his voice is just distraught enough that Eddie knows he means it.

Shrugging, feeling a bit awkward, Eddie glances around at the twins, who are now looking at necklaces. “I think you’re trying to do the right thing,” he says carefully. “And I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer to it, anyway. I think that you’re trying to let them wait until they’re old enough to make an informed decision, and that sounds reasonable to me.”

“Okay,” Steve nods. “So, what would you do?”

“What?” Eddie asks, surprised at the question.

“What would you do? If you were their mom, would you let them go ahead and have it done?” Steve asks.

Hearing it like that, even the hypothetical of being their mom and what all that would entail, makes Eddie’s heart race. “I… I don’t know,” he says quietly. “I think… I think maybe I’d give them some kind of compromise. Like… like, if you’re still asking for them when you’re eight, then you can get them pierced. That sort of thing. So it’s not just an overnight, snap decision.”

Steve nods slowly, looking thoughtful. “That’s actually… That’s really smart, Eddie.”

Eddie gives him a sheepish grin. “That’s what I’m here for,” he jokes.

“It is, actually,” Steve says confidently as he follows Eddie over to the other earring display. “I trust your opinion on things like this, a lot.”

It takes a lot for Eddie to not laugh incredulously. Instead, he just shakes his head. “I don’t know why you would. I’m new at all this, remember?” He asks quietly.

“Right,” Steve says, tilting his head to look at where the twins are standing a few feet away, perusing the bracelets. “But you’re a natural. No, I’m serious,” he says when Eddie laughs. “So far you’ve been great with them, and have shown nothing but amazing maternal instincts.”

Eddie thinks his cheeks are probably a bit flushed with the compliment. “Well,” he mumbles. “Thanks, I guess.”

Steve smiles at him, then wanders back over to his daughters with nothing more than a little, “you’re welcome.”

And even though the conversation ends there, Eddie thinks about what Steve said for hours.

~~~

When the twins have finally had enough of shopping and eating the less-than-savory mall food-court food, Steve decides it’s time to head home. They make an adorable little entourage, Eddie thinks as they head to the car, each of them with a twin hanging off one hand. Steve unlocks the beemer and gives what Eddie is starting to realize is the standard warning: “wipe your feet off, girls,” before they climb in. It’s not a particularly new car, probably about six or seven years old, if Eddie had to guess, but Steve treats it like it’s his most prized possession, aside from his daughters.

“Alright, what sort of music are we in the mood for, kiddos?” Steve says as he fiddles with the radio a few minutes later. Eddie sits back and watches him, fondness seeping into his chest as Steve changes stations and looks for something he likes. “Any requests?” Steve says quietly, and it takes him glancing his way for Eddie to realize it was directed at him.

“Oh, um,” Eddie starts, awkwardly. “Uh, no. I don’t think you guys would like my music recommendations,” he says, trying to hide a smile.

“You listen to metal, right?” Steve asks, finally settling on a station that is blasting ABBA. Eddie grins, hiding it against his hand as he turns to look out the window as they start the drive. He honestly doesn’t know why Steve doesn’t just connect his phone to the car’s radio, but it’s endearing that he genuinely enjoys radio hits all the same.

“I do,” Eddie says, remembering that Steve had asked him a question. “Or else I’d definitely be a poser, with those shirts you just bought me,” he jokes.

Steve grins. “I think that makes me the poser. If you hadn’t been there, I don’t think the shop lady would’ve believed for a second that I was buying them for myself.”

Eddie laughs at that, because he’s probably right. “Yeah. Hey,” he says softly, reaching out and nudging Steve’s arm gently. “Thank you, again.” He smiles at him, a little embarrassed still, but very, very grateful. “I really appreciate you doing that for me.”

Steve smiles, but barely glances at him. Instead he reaches out and pats Eddie’s hand where it’s fallen on the console between them. “Of course, hon. I don’t mind it at all. I like buying clothes,” he grins. His mouth twitches a little then, and he gives Eddie a fleeting look, something like embarrassment on his face. “I should probably tell you before we get home, but, um… I got you a couple other things, when I went into the Gap earlier.”

Eddie blinks. That’s not what he was expecting him to say. “Oh. You did?” He feels stupid being surprised; obviously he did, or else he wouldn’t have said so.

“I did,” Steve nods. “And if you don’t like something, I can take it back. I just… I dunno, I figured there were a few other things you might need that you didn’t ask for. Is that… is that okay?”

It’s not until then that Eddie realizes Steve’s hand is still resting atop his own. He looks down at their hands as he flips his own over, slotting his fingers into the spaces inbetween Steve’s. “More than okay,” he says, trying not to sound as emotional as he feels all of a sudden. “I… thank you. Really.”

He doesn’t think anyone has ever cared about him like this. And sure, Steve’s probably just doing it because Eddie is an investment, and he wants to make sure he keeps his nanny secured, but if that is the case… he really doesn’t make it feel like that. He makes it feel like he really cares about Eddie, like he enjoys taking care of him this way. And Eddie just… isn’t sure what to do with that. How do you thank someone who does that much for you? Eddie decides right then that he needs to think of a way.

Steve just smiles at him from the driver seat, squeezing his hand in lieu of accepting the gratitude. He glances into the rearview mirror to check on the twins, who have been chattering softly for the whole drive so far, and Eddie’s heart warms up all over again as he turns the music up and prompts them to sing along. It’s not his favorite music, but not his least favorite either, and the sight of Steve singing and dancing along to this annoying pop music with his daughters as they smile and giggle is a sight that he thinks he could really get used to.

And the part where Steve doesn’t let go of his hand for the rest of the drive isn’t bad, either.

~~~

“Pizza sound okay for tonight?”

The words out of Steve’s mouth surprise Eddie just enough that he actually pauses mid-jacket-removal. “What?” he asks, feeling a little… odd. Isn’t that his whole job? Why does Steve have to order take-out?��Oh god, he doesn’t like my cooking, Eddie thinks, already halfway to a full-blown panic. What if-

“Well, it is technically your day off. And I’ve been craving pizza anyway. Is that alright?” Steve watches him, his fingers tapping an off-beat rhythm on the counter.

Eddie nearly sighs with relief. So it’s not his cooking. Thank god. “Oh, sure. But I really don’t mind cooking, if-”

Steve shakes his head before he’s even finished the sentence. “No, really, Eddie, it’s okay. What toppings do you want on your pizza?” He’s already pulling out his phone to order, and Eddie resigns himself to his pizza-flavored fate. Not like it’s really such a hardship, but still.

“I’ll eat anything that doesn’t eat me,” Eddie jokes, before backpedaling. “Well, except mushrooms. Those things kind of gross me out.”

“Good to know,” Steve says with an adorable little grin. “I don’t like them either. How about just a regular pepperoni?”

Eddie nods, going to the refrigerator to grab a drink. “Yeah, that’s fine. Will the twins be alright with that?”

“I can get them a cheese pizza,” Steve says with a wave. “Alright, all done. Should be here in a little less than an hour.”

“Nice,” Eddie says. He feels a little awkward, sipping his coke in the silence of the room. The twins were cleaning up their room, or that’s what they’re supposed to be doing at least, so it’s odd to be left alone with Steve like this, with nothing really to do to distract himself.

“Do you want to see the other things I got you?” Steve asks suddenly, turning and giving Eddie a shy little smile.

Eddie nods, returning the smile easily. “Of course,” he says, following Steve into the lounge, where they’d dropped off the shopping bags earlier.

Steve goes straight for the bags from the Gap, handing them to Eddie and sitting down on the arm of the chair, his eyes bright. “Go ahead,” he gestures. “I wanna know what you think.”

“I’m a little nervous,” Eddie admits with a laugh as he looks into the first bag. It’s a lot of black, luckily, and he has to smile at Steve, impressed that he knows him so well. “Well, you’ve definitely got the color scheme right,” he jokes.

Steve grins. “Oh, you think that now,” he teases. Eddie suddenly fears what he might find in the other bag. “Well, take them out!” Steve says, practically bouncing in his seat.

Eddie laughs at his excitement. “This feels like Christmas,” he says, taking out something soft and fuzzy from the top of the stack.

“Pft, at Christmas the presents will be wrapped,” he says. “And nicer,” he tacks on.

Eddie pretends he doesn’t feel a weird twist in his tummy at that. At the very suggestion that he’ll still be here in December, that he’ll be around to be a part of the Harrington Christmas. God, he hopes he is.

He holds up the sweater, smiling down at it as he looks it over. “Okay, this is so freaking nice. This might literally be the softest thing I’ve ever felt,” Eddie gushes, rubbing a hand over the soft fuzz. “Here, feel!” he says, holding it out to Steve.

Steve has a fond look on his face. “I have,” he laughs, even as he reaches out to feel it again. “I thought it was pretty nice. And I've heard that omegas like soft, fuzzy things. I figured… I dunno, I guess I wanted to give you a few comfort things.” He’s flushing all the way down his neck, and Eddie loves how red he looks.

“Thank you,” Eddie says, dropping his voice into something deliberately gentle.

Steve just nods, pointing to the bag. “There’s a couple more things in there,” he says.

Eddie folds the sweater and sets it to the side before digging into the bag for the next surprise. The next thing he pulls out is another soft item, but this time it’s a hoodie. It’s black, like the sweater, and plain. It’s softer than any hoodie Eddie has probably ever owned, and he glances over at Steve with a smile. “This is super nice,” he says, poking his fingers through one sleeve to feel the soft fleece of the inside.

Steve smiles right back at him. “I know it’s kind of boring-looking, but all the others said “gap” in big, bold letters, and I didn’t figure that was the style you wanted to rep,” he says with a grin.

It makes Eddie laugh; he really can’t picture himself wearing something like that, Steve’s right. “Very true,” he says before folding the hoodie and setting it aside as well. He reaches into the bag for the last thing, which he finds to be a pajama set. The pants are black plaid and fleece, and the shirt is a long-sleeved black t-shirt. He glances up at Steve, quirking an eyebrow in a semblance of a question.

Bringing a hand up to rub at his neck sheepishly, Steve shrugs. “I noticed that you typically don’t change out of your jeans in the evenings, so I figured you’re probably a little low on pajamas.”

Eddie’s touched at just how much Steve really does notice about him, and he’s a little bit too obsessed with the idea that Steve is actually, really paying attention to him. “Thank you,” he says softly, letting a little more of that genuinity seep into his voice.

Steve shrugs, gesturing to the other bag with a smile. “There’s a couple more things,” he says.

Eddie collects the re-folded items and returns them to the first bag before picking up the second one. It’s a bit bulkier, Eddie’s surprised to find, so he’s a little weary about what he’s about to find in it. As soon as he opens it, he immediately lets out a little theatrical groan. “Oh, the color! It’s blinding me!” he wails, bringing a hand to his eyes in the most dramatic, theatre-kid way possible.

Steve giggles, kicking his feet out like a carefree little kid. “I know, the horror,” he jokes.

“At least they’re not neon,” Eddie amends playfully as he reaches into the bag and pulls out the first thing. It’s a dark green t-shirt, something plain and simple, and he finds two more just like it, one a dark navy blue, and one a dark gray. The next thing he finds is a pair of black sweatpants, and when he looks at Steve, the other man shrugs, and Eddie marvels at the little patch of pink on his jaw.

“I figured you needed some lounging clothes,” he says simply. “It can’t be comfortable to just wear jeans all the time.”

Eddie smiles at him. “You’re right, but it’s called fashion, buddy, so you probably wouldn’t understand,” he simpers playfully, tossing a curl over his shoulder.

Steve outright cackles at that. “Right, of course, my apologies,” he grins.

High on the joy of the playful ribbing, Eddie reaches into the bag for the last couple of items. One of them is a black henley shirt, and Eddie decides immediately that it’s probably his favorite of all the new things. The last item in the bag is the most glaringly colorful. It’s a deep, almost blood-red, and upon further inspection, it’s actually a very nice button-down. Eddie’s brows furrow, because honestly, he’s never needed something quite this nice, and doesn’t entirely know what he’d need it for now.

“I figured maybe you needed a nice shirt,” Steve says, his voice quieter. When Eddie looks at him, he’s not returning the gaze, instead his eyes trained on the shirt itself. “When they do the parent-teacher conferences at the twins’ school, or if you and the girls accompany me to a work event, or if you go on a date or something…” The last words come out in a rush, and leave Eddie with a flush almost as vivid as the shirt clutched in his now-clammy hands.

“Er, right,” Eddie says, struggling to keep his voice even. It should be illegal, Eddie thinks, to hear Steve talk about Eddie going on a date when he’s not actually asking him on one. “Thank you,” Eddie forces himself to say again, at the risk of sounding annoyingly redundant. “I… I really can’t even begin to tell you how grateful I am to you for all this.”

Steve shakes his head. “Eddie, really, it’s fine. I… you don’t have to keep thanking me, okay? You’re…” he flushes, briefly squeezing his eyes shut, but then seems to force the words out anyway. “You’re basically a part of my pack now, alright? And I’m more than happy to take care of you, however I can. Okay?”

There’s a slight… shift in his voice, one that Eddie only barely catches on the last few words. His gaze flicks up to meet Steve’s, a little disappointed to see Steve already rising from the chair, the moment of… whatever it was, suddenly shattered. “Right,” Eddie says softly. He wants to say something else, and the more depraved part of his brain wants to say something sort of unhinged, but instead he just collects his bags. “I’m going to put these away,” he says.

Steve nods. “Do you want any help?”

Eddie considers it for a minute, he really does. How sweetly domestic it would be to put clothes away together like that. But then reality kicks in and he shakes his head. “No, I’ve got it.” He needs to stop letting himself get into these fantasies in his head of what life would be like if he and Steve were more than just… well, employer and employee.

The glaring reality of it slaps him in the face as he leaves the living room, and he swallows hard at the realization. Whatever weird, school-girl-esque crush he’s suddenly harboring for Steve needs to stop, and it needs to stop now. It’s completely inappropriate to feel attracted to his employer, especially given the scope of the situation. He decides right then and there that he’s going to try and do better, have harder boundaries, draw lines that can’t be crossed, stop thinking about Steve so much. It’s foolishness, is all it is, and he’s no fool.

Resolved, Eddie settles about completing his task, filling his brain with thoughts that are entirely safe and blessedly free of Steve.

~~~

By the time he gets finished putting away his clothes, the twins have finished cleaning their room, and the pizza is waiting in the kitchen. Steve is humming and nodding along to their animated chatter as he goes about getting each of them a plate, and Eddie has to pause for just a second in the doorway to smile at the scene. But then, Ivy spots him lurking and drags him into their conversation, and he feels a slight flush when Steve glances over at him.

“Eddie, can you tell Daddy that we’ve been so good this week, so that we can get extra dessert?” Ivy asks, batting her eyelashes sweetly.

Eddie hides his grin with a cough, moving around Steve to grab drinks for everyone. “Hm… I don’t know about all that,” he says with a light, teasing voice. “Are you sure you’ve been good?”

Ivy lets out a squawk of protest, and Eddie revels in the weird sound. It’s definitely something he would do himself, and he loves just how weird and perfect these kids are. “I was so good!” she says defensively.

Jasmine gives Eddie an innocent look. “I was even better than Ivy, actually,” she says coyly, giggling when her sister swats at her in protest.

“Ivy, don’t hit-”

“Honey, keep your hands-”

Eddie startles a little, and stops to stare at Steve. They’d spoken over each other, and both of them grin sheepishly at the other. “Er, sorry,” Eddie says with a deep flush. He looks down at the juice he’s pouring, sliding the cups over to the twins and actively pretending that he’s not at all bothered by the look he can feel Steve giving him.

“No, it’s fine,” Steve says, his voice soft. “I don’t mind it at all.”

“Just instinct, now, I guess,” Eddie mumbles as he hands Steve a glass of coke.

In exchange, Steve slides a plate with two slices of pepperoni pizza over. “Good instincts,” he says with a little grin. He turns that smile to his daughters then, and Eddie watches helplessly as he leans against the counter, a mischievous look in his eyes. “You know what I think we should do tonight?” he says in a conspiratorial voice.

“Eat lots of ice cream?” Ivy tries.

Steve snorts. “No,” he says. “I think we should play some board games!”

Eddie almost expects them to be disappointed, as most kids actually enjoy doing things more exciting than board games, but as always, they surprise him.

“Yes!” They say in almost-unison.

“Can we play Monopoly?” Jasmine asks, bouncing in her seat. Eddie doesn’t think he’s ever seen her this excited.

“No, Pictionary!” Ivy says, louder as always. “Daddy, please? We’ve actually got four people now, that’s enough for teams!”

“Er…” Steve says, glancing back at Eddie with an uncertain look. “I dunno if Eddie wants to play, guys.”

The twins make matching sounds of disappointment, and although he didn’t really see himself being any good at a board game, he definitely didn’t want to disappoint anybody. “I’d love to play,” he says with a smile.

“Really?” Jasmine asks, her eyes gleaming.

Eddie shrugs. “Sure, sounds fun.”

The girls cheer and immediately start arguing the logistics about teams and who will play with who, which Eddie just shakes his head at. Beside him, Steve taps the counter to get his attention.

“Hey,” he says quietly.

“Hi.” Eddie smiles.

“You don’t have to play, if you don’t want to. I know this is supposed to be your day off and we just keep dragging you into everything, so-”

“Steve,” Eddie stops him with a gentle hand on his arm. He curses himself for allowing the touch, but he can’t help it. “I want to. I haven’t played board games in forever, so I’ll probably be terrible at it, but I’d love to play them with you guys, okay?”

Steve looks slightly relieved, and his lips twitch up into a small smile. “Okay. I think Pictionary is probably going to win, since Monopoly takes forever.”

Eddie shrugs. “That sounds good to me. I don’t really know how to play, but you guys can teach me.”

“Yeah,” Steve says with a nod. “We will.”

He looks pleased as he turns to eat his pizza and talk to his daughters, who are little balls of excitement as they tell them their masterplan. Eddie will be on a team with Jasmine at first, with Steve on Ivy’s team, and after a few rounds, they’ll swap, with Ivy and Eddie against Jasmine and Steve. Steve immediately slips into gentle trash-talking, and Eddie smiles and giggles into his pizza as he watches the whole exchange.

Normally, a situation like this would make him feel like an outsider. Right now, it just makes him feel… content.

After everyone has finished their pizza, the twins head to the lounge while Steve goes to find the materials for Pictionary. Eddie is instructed to sit with the twins and let them give him the rundown of the game, and within two minutes he realizes that that is definitely the most chaotic option. Both of them are trying to explain different parts of the game, and between the two of them all he learns is that you have to draw pictures. Which, to be fair, he could have probably already deduced that from the name.

“Alright, are you guys ready?” Steve asks as he returns, the game box in one hand and a decent sized whiteboard in the other. When Eddie gives him a curious look, he shrugs. “We like to be a little dramatic with it,” he admits sheepishly.

Eddie grins. “I can tell.” He watches as Steve goes about setting up the whiteboard on an easel that had been shoved in the corner by the entertainment center. Eddie had just assumed that maybe Steve was a hobby painter or something, but when he brings it closer, he can’t see any evidence of paint, so it must only serve this one purpose.

“Alright, girls,” Steve says once he’s finally got everything situated. “Rock, paper, scissors to decide whose team is going first,” he says before going to sit beside Eddie on the sofa. He leans closer while he watches them do a best three-out-of-five, a smile tugging at his lips. “So, whoever goes first will pick one person on their team to go up and pull a card and draw whatever is on it. You’re supposed to only have thirty seconds, but I’m a pushover, so I give them a full minute,” he explains, giving a little sheepish smile. “We do one point per correct guess, and we usually do five rounds for each team before we swap teammates. Technically, there’s a whole board thing as well, but we never do that. We just go down the list of items on one card until we’re done with it.”

Eddie nods. This explanation, no offense to the twins, makes much more sense. “Sounds simple enough,” he says. He’s quite confident in his artistic abilities, but Steve gives him a sly look that has him second-guessing himself.

“Yeah, you think that now,” he teases. “Wait until they get up there with a marker and draw some of the most incomprehensible shit you’ve ever seen in your life.”

And of course, Eddie can’t help but laugh at that. He nods, easily accepting his fate of confusion. Before he can try to come up with anything clever to respond with, the twins announce that Ivy’s team will be going first. Eddie glances at Steve with a smile. “You’re up,” he says, gesturing to the whiteboard with a sardonic little wave.

Steve rolls his eyes but stands. “Alright. You two keep time for us when it’s our go, and we’ll keep track when it’s your turn. You want me to draw first, Ive?” he asks his daughter, grabbing the dry erase marker off the coffee table.

Ivy nods, and goes to sit on the armchair directly across from the whiteboard. Jasmine joins Eddie on the couch, scooting in close beside him, and he smiles, reaching up to ruffle her hair. She grins up at him, and then they’re turning to watch as Steve selects his first card.

“Uh… okay,” he announces. He looks perplexed already, and Eddie tries to stifle his amusement. “So we’re starting with the miscellaneous category,” he starts. He nods to himself, shoves the card in his back pocket, and looks at Ivy. “Okay, it’s a person/place/animal.”

Ivy’s already on the edge of her seat, nodding. “Got it,” she says.

Jasmine grabs the minute-hourglass, waiting until Steve’s marker touches the board before she flips it over.

Steve warned Eddie about the twins drawing some incomprehensible shit… but five seconds in and Eddie’s wondering if he should’ve lumped himself in that category, too. He’s drawing some squiggly lines in the shape of what Eddie thinks might be an animal, but it’s so genuinely chaotic that he’s not actually sure until Steve gives the poor thing eyes.

Ivy is already yelling out guesses frantically. “A horse! Cow! Sheep! Llama!”

“Ah!” Steve shouts, turning and then shaking his head. “Er, no. Close!”

“Alpaca?” She asks, tilting her head as she stares at his drawing in confusion.

Steve shakes his head rather vigorously. “No, no. Go back!”

“Sheep?”

“About thirty seconds left!” Jasmine calls, sounding all-too thrilled.

Steve groans, shaking his head and turning back to the board. “Okay, hang on,” he says. He adds what Eddie is pretty sure is supposed to be a collar, exaggerates the curls around what might be long floppy ears, and-

“Poodle!” Ivy screams, just a few seconds before the sand runs out.

“Yes!” Steve shouts. He erases the board and recaps the marker before going to give her a high-five. “Well done, honey.” He grins smugly as he turns and hands the marker over to Eddie. “So, do you get the gist?” he asks.

Eddie nods and stands. “Yeah, I think so,” he says. He gives Jasmine a smile. “We’ve got this, don’t we, Jazz?”

She nods, sitting up straight and tall as she watches him pull a card. He skims it, then grimaces at the very top word.

“Okay,” he says slowly. He’s not super excited about this one. “So, it’s an object. Um… Do I just…”

Steve nods encouragingly. “Yep, we’ll start the timer whenever you start drawing.”

Eddie takes a deep breath, as if he’s about to be graded on his artistic ability or something, and begins to draw. But, the thing is, he’s never drawn a flute, so he’s almost positive he’s doing a shitty job, making something long and cylindrical with vague little circles on the top of it.

“Um,” Jasmine says from somewhere behind him. She sounds confused. “Is it… a belt?”

Eddie shakes his head. He decides to go for it and draw a person, but it’s weird since he drew the flute first.

“Uh… a popsicle? Corn dog?”

“No!” Eddie laughs. “It’s… Okay, here.” He draws some music notes coming out the end of it, but she just gives him a blank stare. It occurs to him, vaguely, that the kid probably has no idea what a flute even is.

“Time’s up!” Ivy calls gleefully.

“It’s a flute, right?” Steve asks, smiling at Eddie.

Eddie nods, hanging his head in mild embarrassment that Jasmine couldn’t guess it. Maybe his art skills really were lacking. “Yeah,” he admits.

“What’s a flute?” Jasmine asks, crinkling her nose.

Oh. Well, being right the first time definitely makes Eddie feel better.

“It’s an instrument,” he explains, handing Ivy the marker and going to sit beside Jasmine. “You play it like this.” He holds his hands up and mimics the movements of a flutist, making funny little trilling noises with his mouth as he does, which seems to delight her and Ivy both.

“Were you in band in school?” Steve asks, looking like he’s actually interested in the answer.

“Uh,” Eddie laughs awkwardly, bringing a hand up to rub at his neck. “Yeah, for a little bit.” He’s not sure why he’s embarrassed about it, exactly. There’s nothing particularly wrong with being in band, but maybe he’s become a little pretentious in recent years, going from being in band to being in a band. There’s definitely a difference in the level of coolness, he thinks.

“What did you play?” Steve asks as Ivy pulls a new card out of the box.

At least this isn’t entirely embarrassing to admit to. “I was on the drum line.”

Somehow, Steve actually looks… impressed by this. Or at least, his expression is close enough to surprise that Eddie can pretend that’s what it is. “Really? I thought you just played guitar.”

Eddie shrugs. “Well, I’m probably a little rusty on the drums now, and being on drum line is a little different than, like, a full kit, you know?”

Steve gives him a sheepish smile. “I don’t, actually, but both sound pretty cool to me.”

And Eddie can’t help the way he preens at that. Before he can say something else though, Ivy interrupts them. “Guys,” she whines. “It’s my turn to go!”

“Right, go ahead, sweetheart,” Steve says with a smile, focusing all his attention on her. “What’s the category?”

Ivy squints at the word on the card, then tucks it in her pocket. “It’s a person/place/animal,” she announces.

Steve nods, claps his hands together. “Alright, ready when you are.”

Ivy turns to the board and begins drawing, and Eddie thinks he’s probably not the only one who’s a little confused. It looks like an animal of some sort, but-

“Oh! A fish!” Steve blurts, clearly excited.

Ivy shakes her head. “No, no, it’s-”

“You can’t tell him!” Jasmine intervenes.

Eddie tilts his head, studying the drawing more, trying to see it through the lens of an aquatic creature. She goes back to add something else, a fin, and-

“Shark!” Steve shouts, nearly coming out of his seat. “Is it? It’s a shark, right?”

Ivy nods, bouncing excitedly as she recaps the marker. “Yep!”

Steve is grinning when Ivy walks by him, holding her hand out for a high-five. “Alright, way to go, bug!” he says before turning to give Eddie a smug look. “That’s two against none, guys,” he announces.

Eddie snorts. He never would’ve imagined Steve as someone this competitive, but he can’t deny how adorable it is. But, two can play at this game. “Yeah, for now,” he challenges playfully. He nudges Jasmine, giving her an encouraging smile. “Are you ready?” he asks her.

Jasmine nods, but looks a little nervous as she goes to grab a card. She skims it closely, then nods to herself. She tucks the card away before turning to look at Eddie. “It’s an object,” she says before turning resolutely to the whiteboard.

Eddie loves the conviction, but when she starts drawing, he’s immediately lost. “Uh… a hat?”

Jasmine lets out a long suffering sigh, shaking her head. She turns back to the board and adds a few more lines and-

“A hamburger!” Eddie cheers, jumping up just like Steve had done. He gets it now, the sheer thrill of guessing something as inconsequential as a terrible drawing. Jasmine cheers with him, coming over to give him a high-five for guessing it correctly. “Great job, Jazz, that’s the most beautiful hamburger I’ve ever seen,” he praises her with a grin as she goes to sit, sticking her tongue out at her father and sister as she goes.

Steve rolls his eyes good-naturedly, a matching grin on his face. “Well done, but we’re still a point ahead,” he says, puffing his chest.

Eddie shares an unimpressed look with Jasmine. “Well, not for long, Harrington. We’re catching up, so you two better watch out!”

“Oh, we’re so scared,” Steve taunts right back, nudging Ivy playfully.

The twins pitch in on the playful trash talking, and Eddie has to take a moment to marvel at how… how happy he is. He loves this little family already, and feeling included like this… it means the world to him. He doesn’t know how he’ll ever truly be able to convey that to Steve though, so instead, he levels him with a smirk. “Game on, buddy.”

~~~

It’s over an hour later, and they’ve switched teams so that Ivy is now on Eddie’s side and Jasmine is on Steve’s. Steve had announced that they would only be doing five rounds each before bedtime, and as much as Eddie is enjoying the playful competition, it’s definitely late, and the girls are definitely getting tired.

“Alright, Ivy, last go. Come on. We need this point to beat the others,” Eddie coaches, slapping his knees as he talks like that’ll do anything to encourage her. Steve snorts from somewhere to the side, which Eddie pointedly ignores. Sore winner.

She giggles, pulling a card. “Okay, okay,” she says. She scans the word, an excited look taking over her face. “Oh! This is an easy one! It’s an object.”

“Perfect. Pencils up, picasso.”

Ivy grabs the marker and starts drawing while Jasmine flips the sand timer on the table. Eddie watches closely as she draws… a bunch of lines?

“Uh. A barcode?” He asks, trying to sound more confident than he feels.

Ivy shakes her head, draws a line underneath the other lines, and then one on top. She turns to look at him like that’s it, and he’s - he’s a little lost.

“Uh… a prison cell? Like the bars? Jail?” He tries, running through all the possible ways that could be phrased on the card.

“No!” Ivy whines. She points at the board in exasperation. “It’s- hang on.” She returns to the board, erases the middle section, and draws… a face?

“What in the…” Eddie mumbles, even more confused than before. “It just looks like a prison!”

Jasmine is cackling beside him, but Eddie is genuinely distraught. Ivy smacks her hand over her face in a very dramatic, Steve-esque move, and Eddie can’t even lament over how cute that is before Jasmine is calling, “time!”

“Ugh,” Ivy groans, all but throwing the marker down in defeat.

“What was it?” Eddie asks, still staring at her… creation.

“A baby crib!” she announces, like it’s obvious. “With the little bars to keep ‘em in there? And that was the baby!”

And… that makes sense, now that she’s explained it. He gets the vision.

But of course his omega brain has to go and make himself sad.

“Oh,” he says quietly, still staring at the drawing. He feels a longing, then, a longing for a life he won’t get to have. This is close, and this is good, but he wants… he wants-

“Alright, girls, time for bed,” Steve announces, standing from his chair. “Let’s put everything up, and then it’s time to brush teeth and go to sleep.”

They whine, predictably, but do as Steve asks, each of them helping put the cards and things back in the box before handing it to Steve to go put back in the board game cabinet. Steve glances at Eddie as he walks past, a soft, sympathetic smile on his lips.

Eddie looks away.

“C’mon, let’s go brush our teeth,” he tells the girls woodenly.

If they notice something off about him, they don’t say, and just follow him into the bathroom, where they each find their own toothbrush and toothpaste and brush side-by-side, like the sweethearts they are. Eddie hangs out by the door and critiques them, reminding them to brush the backs of their teeth and their tongues before they are finished. Ivy’s rinsing her toothbrush off while Jasmine grabs her hairbrush when Eddie feels a hand on his waist.

“Do you want to go ahead and go to bed? I’ll tuck them in,” Steve offers, and dammit, Eddie wishes he wasn’t so perceptive.

Eddie shakes his head anyway. “No, I can do it,” he says, sending Steve a poor excuse of a smile.

Steve just nods, doesn’t acknowledge the undoubtedly pained look on Eddie’s face. He’s grateful for that, doesn’t know what he would do if Steve did say something else right now. “Alright, let’s go, girls.”

They corral them into their bedroom, each of them tucking in a kid and giving them a goodnight kiss before they swap. This is one of Eddie’s favorite daily routines at the Harrington home, one that he knows he’ll miss when they get older, or when he leaves - whichever happens first.

“Goodnight, girls. I love you,” Steve says before closing the bedroom door. He turns, comes face-to-face with Eddie, and offers him a small, knowing smile. “Let’s go have a drink.”

~~~

Eddie doesn’t argue with him this time. He accepts the small glass of wine that Steve pours for him, and they’re essentially splitting about a cup between the two of them. It’s not enough to do anything, but Eddie recognizes it as an excuse to talk alone, away from any listening ears.

“Are you alright?” Steve asks after a moment or so of silence. He’s standing beside the bar, while Eddie occupies the barstool at the end. They’re within touching distance, but Eddie knows neither one of them will breach it.

Eddie shrugs. “I’m fine.” He doesn’t meet Steve’s eyes, forcing himself to be as neutral as possible, lest he realize he’s lying.

“I could tell the baby crib thing bothered you earlier,” Steve says softly, no trace of judgment in his voice.

“It didn’t,” Eddie lies.

Steve frowns, but like the saint he is, he doesn’t push. “Well, either way. I’m glad you decided to play with us. The girls had the best time.” He leans against the counter so Eddie doesn’t have much of a choice but to look up at his smiling face.

Eddie returns the smile. “I did too. Even if all of you are horrible artists,” he teases lightly.

Steve rolls his eyes and finishes his wine. “We can’t all be multi-talented and creative, Eddie. Some of us are just mere mortals.”

And Eddie can’t help but blush a little at the sweetness of that compliment, even wrapped in sarcasm as it is. “Could never be me,” Eddie teases back. It feels like… well, flirting. That’s exactly what it feels like.

“Maybe you’ll rub off on us,” Steve says. If Eddie didn’t know any better, he’d call the look on his face a smirk, but before he can discern it, Steve is turning away, rinsing out their wine glasses. “We should probably go to bed,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck.

Eddie nods. His head is swimming, and it has nothing to do with the scant amount of alcohol he’s had. “Yeah,” he agrees quietly.

Before he can get up to move, Steve steps closer, and Eddie’s breath catches in his throat. Steve’s hand comes up to cradle the back of Eddie’s head gently, and then he ducks in and -

-and kisses Eddie’s head. It’s just a soft, barely-there press of lips, but it makes Eddie want to swoon. “I’m sorry you got upset earlier,” he murmurs against his hair. He pulls back just a bit, smiling down at Eddie, crinkles surrounding his hazel eyes. “You can talk to me about anything, you know. You’re… you’re part of our family now, okay? So don’t… you don’t have to hide everything that bothers you, not from me.”

And god. Eddie was doing so well bottling up his burgeoning feelings for the other man, and then he had to go and say some shit like this. How the fuck was Eddie supposed to act normal about that?

He tries, anyway. “Thanks,” he whispers, ducking his head bashfully. This isn’t like him, it really isn’t. A crush will do that to a person, he reckons.

Steve ruffles his hair sweetly before pulling away altogether. “Goodnight, Eddie. Sweet dreams.”

Eddie watches him leave the room, a soft, “goodnight,” slipping out after he’s already made it out of the kitchen.

He thunks his head down on the kitchen counter with a sigh.

Fuck.

[classicjalopy]

The Long Way Euround - Day 1: The Upper Murray

Today was the first day of my annual Classic Mercedes road trip - The Long Way Euround.   While the major event that anchors the trip is the Australian National Show and Shine in Euroa, it is more about the trip than the destination.   I've previously covered the plan for the six days of the event. We started our road trip in Bathurst.  Trying to get out of Sydney on the first morning would have wasted hours.  The idea was everyone was to make their own way to Bathurst the night before as an unofficial Day 0.   I was the last to arrive and it was quite foggy and wet getting out of Sydney, which made the drive rather slow. This morning, the weather was much better and our convoy of 10 Classic Mercedes rolled out of Bathurst at 6:30AM.  Our first destination was Young via the Olympic Highway, where we had a rather nice breakfast at a local Bakery.   On the way to Young, we passed through the towns of Blayney and Cowra.   The Terrain was mostly gentle rolling hills.   It has been quite a wet year this year, so the countryside was very green, and there was quite nice varieties of colour as we drove along.  All the cars were running well, and it was cool but not super cold.

From Young, we continued along the Olympic Highway to Cootamundra, where the terrain was similar.   At Cootamundra, we turned off the Olympic Highway and turned south towards Gundagai   The normal way to travel to Gundagai from here would be to head down to the M31 Hume Motorway and then head into Gundagai.   On this trip, we're trying to avoid motorways, so we took a back road through Burra Creek. The road through Burra creek was very narrow and windy, but it was a really good driving road with minimal traffic.   The weather was warming up and I think everyone enjoyed taking their cars on this back road.    From there, we arrived in Gundagai and lined the 10 cars up in front of the old Railway station.

From Gundagai, we headed south towards the outskirts of Tumut.   This road was also very good and had some great changes of elevation and some nice bends.   At Tumut, headed towards Tumbarumba.  This section overlapped with Day 2 of the Concours run from last year.   We filled up at Tumbarumba, and I had used around 55 liters in my 450SLC to cover 390km.  I thought this would be among the worst of the convoy - but I was wrong.   The 500SL managed to use 58l, the 380SEC was similar and the 280S and 280SE 3.5 W108s were closer to 60.   Meanwhile the W124s were the milage superstars with the 300CE only using 35 liters for the same distance. From Tumbarumba, we left the road we used last year and headed west towards Jingellic.  The road here was similar to what we experienced from Gundagai to Tumut and it was an enjoyable drive.    From Jingellic, we crossed into Victoria and drove along the south side of the Murray River.   The Murray River road was a revelation.  We followed it for quite a long time, past Granya, along lake Hume until crossing back into NSW at Bethanga Bridge.

Driving this road was the highlight of the day, and I suspect will end up being one of the highlights of the trip.   The road follows the river, but is elevated, and the views are amazing.   The road is also great to drive on, twisting and turning with the river, some corners tight, some sweeping and huge fun at legal speeds. I got rather enthusiastic with these corners in my 450SLC and managed to break both of my rear exhaust hangers.   Luckily, one of the other guys had some spare hose clamps which have become makeshift metal exhaust hangers.   So far they are working very well.    Along this road we also stopped at a couple of lookouts which had amazing views.

After we crossed the bridge, we had to pick our way through Albury.  We lost a couple of the cars in the convoy, which were funneled onto the M31. The rest of of kept going towards Howlong, before heading back into Victoria for the final push to Cobram where we are staying.   This road was fairly flat and straight.  While it was interesting to see things like the olive groves along the way, there was no comparison to the Murray River Road. We arrived in Cobram about 6:30PM, where we were reunited with two of our lost vehicles, the final one not arriving until about 7:45PM.   We refueled at the end of the day and I had used 15L per 100km, similar to my previous tank.   After checking into our hotel we had nice meal at a local pub. We covered around 675 km today.   Losing three cars was not ideal, but we managed to find them in the end.   The roads were excellent, the cars all ran well and we all enjoyed our day.

Read the full article

[chikucabllp]

Top 6 Services Offered by Tempo Travellers in Delhi

Travelling in groups can be challenging in big, busy cities like Delhi. There are many crowded roads and lots of traffic so getting around comfortably takes planning. Tempo traveller in Delhi has become a way for larger parties to see the sights. These spacious, mini-bus vehicles comfortably fit over 26 passengers. From airport transfers to tours, tempo travellers simplify group transportation needs. Their services handle everything so the whole party can relax. People who go in groups such as families that are on a vacation, business personnel that are on a business trip or wedding guests often hire tempo travellers. Transportation together makes the trip itself a joy and genuinely talented drivers skillfully manage the car.

City Tours

Tempo travellers in Delhi offer complete packages to see the sights. You can take tours to explore old and new Delhi. You can opt for stops which can be changed to match what riders want to see. So groups large or small can book custom tours by opting for a tempo traveller on rent in Delhi. Drivers know the cities well and take comfortable routes. Your tours run all week and can be half or full day. Private groups or solo travellers can see Delhi's history and culture while riding relaxing tempo travellers. There are guides to help visitors understand what they see.

Airport Transfers

Getting to or from the airport can be stressful. Tempo traveller services in Delhi make it easy. Their drivers are always on time to pick up passengers and take them to the airport. Or they are waiting at the airport when your flight lands. You can book ahead of time and tell them if you have big bags or need baby seats. You can change the size of your group with no problem by opting for tempo travellers. Even if last-minute changes happen right before going to the airport, they work to get everyone there. The booking office takes calls 24 hours so riding tempo travellers to and from the airport makes travel smooth.

Outstation Trips

Tempo travellers based in Delhi drive groups to outstations. These are longer trips outside the city. Travellers have lots of room to spread out during the ride.  The experienced drivers safely navigate highways and smaller roads. You can go to popular destinations including Agra, Jaipur, Amritsar and Chandigarh. They offer overnight trips that allow stopping to rest. By booking a tempo traveller, your groups large or small can see more beyond Delhi. You can go for travel services that set up full packages. Handle hotels, sightseeing plans and meals. You can just relax and enjoy the ride in comfortable spacious vehicles by opting tempo traveller rental in Delhi.

Wedding and Event Transport

Tempo traveller in Delhi help make weddings and big events fun. You can travel in decorated vehicles with flower garlands and fabrics that make them stylish. You can book your guest's ride in matching travellers with festive looks. Travellers come in sizes to hold small and large groups so no guest gets left behind. You can go for services that include experienced chauffeurs. Decorated tempo vehicles add spirit celebrating special days and gatherings.

[kosmiklia]

The boyfriend visited last weekend. We're a long-distance relationship (kind of?), so we often visit each other's cities when we have the time.

It's usually uneventful when we visit each other - we mostly just take the time to relax and do things together that we can't do when apart: talk more, have a few drinks, and cook homemade meals.

This weekend, however, turned out to be the most unexpected and (very) eventful visit so far!

The day he arrived, I was taking a nap. I woke up to back rubs! Being the touch-deprived person I am today (I think, in a way, all of us are lol), it's my favorite way to wake up now. We talked for a few hours as I prepped for the weekend. We decided to go out and grab a late lunch over at a restaurant I call "Commune" (but its actual name is Breakfast Community or something like that haha) and shopped for some chicken wings ingredients! Went home, marinated the wings, then took yet ANOTHER nap. We woke up, then started on the wings! 10/10 the wings were SO GOOD; we had garlic parmesan, spicy wings, and salt&pepper wings with ranch!

The next day, we woke up feeling kind of annoyed because of the power outage. It lasted ALL DAY. We then decided to go to the thrift store to look for clothes for our December trip (we're going to the beach and go surfing!). Stopped for coffee on the way back, and waited for the electricity at home to come back. When it did, we IMMEDIATELY showered because it was hot af in and outside of the house. Spent some alone time as well to meditate and relax, because the heat was really getting to me. We bought beers later that evening and got semi-drunk until 3am. We fell asleep crosswise on the bed, not even 10 minutes after laying down. We had to wake up the next day early...

Because we're going to the firing range! Woke up at 8:00AM for the 9:30 friendly-competition shoot my boyfriend was invited to. I was only there to take videos and document! We looked for this one small canteen that served THE BEST mami in the area. I was hungover and hungry, so the wait was worth it. The competition started, and JJ had a really good aim the whole time! We went home, and I edited the videos (turned them into reels) for him to post. He rarely posts content online, so I'm happy I get to make things for him to share. We went home and fell asleep at around 10:00PM because it was such a loooong day of being out in the sun and being sweaty.

Finally, on the last day, we woke up at around 6:30 AM. I was to drive my sister back to campus, and my boyfriend accompanied us. The best part about it is the no traffic! Sped through the highway smoothly, and grabbed a quick breakfast near my sister's dorms. My boyfriend and I went back home, and I dropped him off at the bus station.

It was such a fun weekend! It'll be my turn to visit Manila next, to spend time with him and his family. For now - it's back to reality. Work, make art, and have the bed to myself again (that's a good thing, I missed my bed haha).

[umichenginabroad]

Blog week 10 Transportation in China! 🇨🇳

Currently, I am writing this blog from a bullet train the Xi’an which I’ll be talking about next week! After rotting in my seat for the last 5 hours, I finally thought of a topic: transportation in China, what a fun and riveting topic.

Daily Transportation:

Class is about a 30 minute walk from the international student dorms so most of the time people find other ways to get to class other than walking.

Renting Bikes is popular especially among Michigan students who are only here for 3 months. There are lots of different bike renting services but the most popular one in the area are the blue Alipay bikes or the yellow WeChat bikes. They are really cheap, only 30 yuan for a 1 month subscription or 1.75 yuan per ride.

Mopeds are probably the most popular among locals. Students aren’t allowed to drive on campus so the next best option is a moped. Also traffic can be horrendous especially with crazy pedestrians and delivery drivers so often times mopeds are faster than cars.

On campus buses are also an option but I only know one person who uses it because he doesn’t know how to bike. I’m not too sure on the logistics but most of the time he ends up walking everywhere because the bus route isn’t very extensive and there aren’t that many buses.

DiDi is basically Chinese Uber but so much better and cheaper. Especially during raining season, sometimes we would actually split a DiDi car rather than or bike in the torrential downpour that lasted a solid month. If you split the car with 4 people it would also only be 5 yuan each so it is really affordable.

Transportation in the City

The dorms and the entire school is actually quite far from the downtown area so outings into the city tend to be a whole affair and a multi-hour trip but the public transportation is top-notch so it really isn’t bad.

The most common method to go to the city is to take the subway. Depending on where you want to go in the city the subway ride can be anywhere from 1-2 hours which can be a pain but normally it is just a 1-2 hour yap session. Most of the time the ride would be 6 yuan so really affordable and you can pay with just an Alipay code or by buying a metro card. The Alipay code is something you can activate in any city with a subway but the normal metro card only works in Shanghai. The subways are really clean and really easy to navigate even as someone who can barely read and never wears her glasses. For navigation on campus I recommend Baidu maps or a local map service but for navigation in the city, Apple Maps is probably your best friend. The only problem with the subway is that it does close at 11pm so if you plan on being in the city late at night, you might need another option.

You can also call a DiDi into the city. It is really convenient as you can track your driver to see where he is and you can cancel last minute if you really need to. However late at night, DiDi’s are a bit more expensive so during the day, DiDi’s are generally 70-100 yuan but at night it is normally 100-170 yuan. Regardless, if you split with some friends it really isn’t too expensive.

When you are in the city, you can also use the metro card or Alipay for buses which are pretty convenient in the city but generally I gravitate to using the subway more.

Transportation outside of Shanghai

Transportation outside of Shanghai has a bit of a learning curve but once you have it down, it is really convenient. You can book on WeChat. Make sure you pay attention to the time it takes for each train because if you are traveling far (like to Xi’an) you don’t want to accidentally book a slow train and spend 20 hours on a train. For far trips plane tickets are actually really comparable in price so if you want to profit/time max make sure you look at all the options and also remember bring your ID! Make sure you arrive early! Security is quite fast but the train stops boarding 10 minutes before the ticket says!

Hopefully this was helpful for transportation logistics! Next week I will talk about the trip I’m about to take in Xi’An! See you then :)

Erin Xia

Mechanical Engineering

Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute

[debanish]

Road Trip: 6,000 Km, 7 States, 2 Plates Of Kolhapuri Chicken, And 1 Orange

A short highway drive led to this blog post. Three of us drove down from Delhi to Goa via Udaipur and Mumbai. After getting sunburn for three days in Goa, we drove onwards to a town near Mangaluru to see the beaches.

No one gives a samosa these days, so this post will omit annoyances like scenery, sunset, wanderlust, the mountains-are-calling, and I-love-travel nonsense.

My mother is used to hearing unpleasant, unexpected things from people about me. When word reached her that I have decided to drive down south thousands of kilometres with some people from Delhi, with the possibility that I may drive back home alone for a few thousand kilometres more, she tried to change my mind.

"No, no, no," she said on the phone at night, far away from Imphal. "It's very dangerous. What if you get hurt in an accident, or worse?"

"Accidents happen all the time," I said. "But we will be fine," I told her, not entirely sure about that. Who can predict the future? After a while she agreed she would be cool about it.

Mothers are like that. But they will let you go eventually. They know that you, too, have been collecting years.

We set out for Udaipur from Delhi at 6 am. A lab in Jaipur, a city that falls on our route, agreed to take samples for COVID-19 test. Any cop at state borders could ask for an RT-PCR report even if you are fully vaccinated. Whatever the cop says is final when you are travelling by road, so we decided to be well-prepared. The only chai-paani I like is the one I have myself.

We reached Udaipur at 9 pm. For dinner, we ordered Rajasthani laal maans. This drive across seven states - Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, and Karnataka - opened up infinite possibilities of tasting the best food in each state.

We entered the Gujarat border at 10 am. A police officer stopped us to check documents and asked, "Carrying any daaru?" We said no, of course, and he let us through.

Next came the Godhra bypass, a state highway with a smooth surface and proper markings that made driving quite fun. The state highways in Gujarat are better than some national highways.

Baroda, Surat and hunger followed soon. We drove past dhaba after dhaba with "only veg" and "pure veg" signboards, until we found one with a poster that showed an omelette. This, we blamed the Bengali in the car.

Over 13 hours of driving put us right on the doorstep of Navi Mumbai. Pushing and fighting your way inside a coach in Delhi's busy Rajiv Chowk metro station is way easier than entering Mumbai during evening rush hour traffic.

There are two main routes from Mumbai to Goa. The first is a twisty old highway that passes through ghat roads, and the second is a straight run on the plains via Pune and Kolhapur. Many prefer the second route because why not? The old highway is full of potholes, back pain and feelings about taking a U-turn for home ASAP.

We stopped at Kolhapur bypass for Kolhapuri chicken. See for yourself in the photo below.

The road from Nipani in Karnataka all the way to the Goa border is narrow. But it was on this stretch that we liked stopping for tea and filter coffee.

We reached Goa at night on Day 3 after we drove out from Delhi.

Some days later we prepped for the ride to our next destination - Surathkal, a clean, green, and quiet beach town 20 km from Mangaluru in Karnataka.

Fish thaali in Karwar, on the Karnataka-Goa border, and filter coffee in Udupi really charged up the drive to Surathkal, where we reached in no time and stayed at a friend's house, just a 10-minute walk from a white, sandy beach.

We chilled at Surathkal for two days, visited Mangaluru and enjoyed ghee roast chicken and gadbad ice-cream.

When the time to return home came, a small but not an entirely unexpected problem presented itself like magic. See, I drove down with two friends all the way from Delhi, but they flew back to attend a wedding. A stern message came from home that either I find someone to ride shotgun on the return leg, or I give the car to Agarwal Packers and Movers and fly back. I cannot drive back alone, the serious people at home said.

The only person who came to mind was an old friend from school, who in Class 12 taught me how to drive a motorcycle wrong and wreck it. By now we go back a quarter of a century. I dialled him and presented the plan - he would fly down to Goa, stay for a day, and drive back with me to Delhi with a night's stop each in Mumbai and Udaipur. "You can eat anything you like, stop anywhere you like," I told him. It did the trick. He took a flight to Goa within 24 hours with only a small backpack.

The return leg did not play out any different than how we had come. We traced back the same routes. The Godhra bypass had excellent reflective markings that made driving at night safe. The Rajasthan-Gujarat border near Udaipur had similar safety features. These two stretches helped a lot in improving night driving skills.

That's all people. And about that orange, I forgot where I had kept it for the entire trip. When I finally reached home, it tumbled out from the magazine holder of the front seat.

Fin.

The fine print:

Vehicle: Maruti Suzuki Ignis 1.2 petrol manual, stock tyres upsized by 20 mm to 195/60/R15, Continental UC6

Total toll cost: Rs 5,210 (as per FASTag statement)

Total fuel cost: Rs 28,000 (approximate)

Best roads: Udaipur to Gujarat border, Udaipur-Jaipur highway, Godhra bypass, Mumbai-Pune expressway, Udupi to Surathkal highway

Worst roads: 30 km from Amboli ghat to north Goa border, exit from Navi Mumbai to Thane, Gurgaon-Jaipur highway (road surface is relatively smooth, but it's really bad for night driving due to absence of lane markings on the road; you can get blinded with oncoming headlights and not find directional help since the white lines on the road are missing)

Recommended dhabas and restaurants: Shree Mahalaxmi Seafood Restaurant, Kolhapur bypass; Shetty Lunch Home, Mangaluru; Cafe de Voyage, Margao; Laxmi Family Restaurant and Bar, Morjim.

Thanks to Ira, Jayashree, Munmun, Stella, Rajib, Smitha and Jayant for the company during the road trip and taking these photos.

[leeminkifanblr]

Crash

(A-story short-form & series-form list 2021 - Drama Proposals)

Cha Yeon-ho #Early 30s #Graduate from KAIST #Rational individualist What made him deviate from the well-trodden path of life and take his own treacherous unpaved road? Even though I took all the elite courses that others talked about, I ended up entering an unheard of life course, starting with insurance fraud special investigator and going all the way to TCI. Pay attention to Yeon-ho’s ups and downs at TCI, not knowing the path he has taken and even less knowing his future.

Korea's first crime tracker on bumpy roads, perfect for people with traffic problems that no one paid attention to.

60-minute, 6-episode season

SYNOPSIS

Namgang Police Station's TCI (Traffic Crime Investigation), led by Team Leader Jeong Chae-man and Team Leader Min So-hee, uploaded a comprehensive sweep of a large-scale used car fraud ring within the police station that is not treated as a criminal by the Criminal Investigation Department or the Investigation Department and only makes a fuss about the Traffic Department by saying that it is draining manpower. Although they accomplished the feat of completely busting a large-scale used car fraud ring, the TCI team members feel helpless as they are criticized for catching too many people.

Team leader Min So-hee, who was asked by Cha Yeon-ho to investigate the serial murders of old women, senses the seriousness of the case and begins the investigation. We need to find evidence of the suspect's crime within 48 hours of the emergency arrest detention period. Meanwhile, thanks to the recording of the insurance subscription with the call center employee that Cha Yeon-ho received, it is revealed that Jeong Ho-gyu has another accomplice. Who is Jeong Ho-gyu's accomplice, and why did he only choose his grandmothers to commit the crime?

CHARACTERS

Cha Yeon-ho

#Early 30s #Graduate from KAIST #Rational individualist

What made him deviate from the well-trodden path of life and take his own treacherous dirt road?

Did you make it fall? Even though I took all the elite courses that others talked about, I ended up entering an unheard of life course, starting with insurance fraud special investigator and going all the way to TCI.

Pay attention to Yeonho’s ups and downs at TCI, not knowing the path he has taken and even less knowing his future.

Min Sohee

#Early to mid 30s #TCI Ace #Cool-headed judgment #Heo Dang-mi

Short hair, upright posture, and clear speaking style. However, through a joint investigation with his ex-boyfriend Tae-ju, who goes to Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do and Daesin Jeolla-do,

They face off against the Gwangsu University drug squad led by Tae-ju. She can achieve her dream of becoming the first female police chief by making proper use of her era of independent action.

Is it

Jeong Chae-man

#Late 50s #TCI Gandalf #Let's picture the big picture #Hopeful poet A veteran of the violent crime scene who held the title of top arrestee for three consecutive years

detective. However, after his wife died in a hit and run, he established a new TCD. To my juniors based on the jealous premise of those around me

He became a poet, his childhood dream, after handing over his position and becoming the head of the TCI team at Namgang Police Station.

To achieve this, I often write poetry and even recite it to others.

DISTINCTIVE FEATURES

Reality-based ‘traffic crime investigation drama’

How can a person live with only a sense of justice and malice? In a sense of justice

It is a 'life-related crime' created by the clash of ordinary desires buried in the hidden desire for promotion or the drive to make a living and only see immediate profits.

We aim to bring out the pathos of life and consensus.

A fun, refreshing, refreshing comedy like 'Drive Music'

Stop serious investigative dramas! This drama is heavy, cruel, and serious.

It's different from a crime investigation. Between all things based on vivid characters

An investigative drama that is neither serious, heavy, nor boring begins with loyalty, word play, and light and rhythmic editing.

A story about 'ordinary evildoers on the road'

There are too many signs and hundreds of thousands of deaths that go unnoticed on the edge of people's attention to just be passed off as numbers on a traffic accident statistics bulletin board.

Death is on the road. The evildoers and crimes we may encounter are not far away. In the lane next to you behind the wheel

Beyond the center lane of the intersection, or right at you! It could be.

Enjoy a car thriller as part of an unheard-of investigative team called TCI.

Insurance fraud, retaliatory driving, self-harm blackmail, gangster Reka, living in modern times

Crimes committed through automobiles, which have become essential items for people,

It is becoming more and more intelligent and segmented. Accordingly, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

A new special investigation team, TCI, dedicated to traffic crimes, is being established.

Zero Investigation Team's troubled criminal investigator