#the customer service team said something to me recently about appreciating how much i do for them

[ilkkawhat]

the weirdest part about today is after all my anxiety over that one girl and her leave of absence, i got an email that i got a gift from the company for…god knows what???

[gra-sonas]

Hey! I hate to ask this, you already do so much for us! But would you mind just a tiny recap of Vlamis’ live from last night? You don’t have to go into a ton of detail or anything, I just saw that it was a half hour long. I have a weird anxiety thing that keeps me from watching lives and stories for the most. Still haven’t even been able to work myself up to watching the vlamburn one as much as I’d love to! 🙁

Either way, thank you for everything!

Okay, nonnie. I went and watched the whole thing again and wrote you a detailed account of what’s been said. I’ll link the live again, then you can watch here if you want to. Or not. Up to you. 🤗 Hope this helps. 💕

Brushing his teeth and flossing for 3 minutes while talking.

800 new follower lately “where have you been before?”

“Do you do anything to your hair at night?” He adds Moroccan hair oil in the morning, nothing at night.

“What’s your favorite of the drop?” He hasn’t seen everything from the drop (like the COSMIC tie-dye) bc he’s in Santa Fe. He loves the COSMIC and MALEX embroidered things (“so subtle”) bc they are in Vlamburn’s handwriting, he loves the Manesqueeze shirt bc you can make Alex and Michael kiss by putting your wrists together. He *loves* the candle (there’s one burning on his bedside table), the silky PJs are great, but he can’t decide on just one favorite thing.

“How’s Jesa’s sanity?” She needs like 3 weeks of sleep. He explains, that while we *are* the Vlambase, the Vlambase merch company’s just Jesa and Vlamis. Jesa has a team, but all the day-to-day things, ideas, emails/customer service (Jesa), the newsletter (Vlamis). They hadn’t collaborated with anyone before Tyler, so working with him was a new experience. 

One fan mentions how they wanted to buy stuff but couldn’t. Vlamis says that he’s been there, and when he wanted something in the past he couldn’t afford, he started putting away a Dollar a day. 

“Thought on One Direction?” Vlamis is a Harry Styles guy. “Harry Styles’ swagger is next level!”

“What do you think about Russia? Will Vlambase merch be available here?” Talks a bit about how annoying things are with shipping companies, says they wanted to protect themselves for the holidays, and now that the Christmas rush is over, some shipping options have become available again. 

“Who came up with  MANESQUEEZE” He ponders about it, and settles on Jesa. It was Vlamis’s ides to put tiny Alex and tiny Michael on the sleeves so that they can kiss tho. And Tyler came up with the idea to put a “toupee” on his head (in a previous drop, the NEVER LOOK AWAY design had tiny Alex and tiny Michael on the sleeves, but poor Alex was bald) for the design.

Someone got a MALEX pin and the candle. He knows the pin sold out fast, and he feels bad about that. They want everyone to get everything they want, but it’s difficult to make proper calculations how well an item will sell. The pandemic made things even harder. Like the PJ sets. Normally, they would wait until the sale ends and see how many sets were actually ordered, but during the pandemic, stock listings have been changing dramatically from day to day, so they had to pre-order the PJs and robes to make sure they had a certain number at their disposal. He said that they “overshot” on a couple of things, but ultimately sales have been great, and he appreciates that.

“I’m excited to make the MANESQUEEZE doodles kiss bc I do that with the NEVER LOOK AWAY shirt” Vlamis jumps up and shows his closet that’s full of Vlambase merch items.

“Why am I here, it’s almost 3am” He mentions that he’s been staying up until 4 in the past couple of days, but he has to be on set in 7 or 8 hours. 

“Hello, just wanted to let you know that I got a tattoo for you” Vlamis asks for a photo and to be tagged.

“Kyle the packer [Vlamis’s roomie KA, who works in the warehouse when a new drop is ready for shipping]” Vlamis says they’re working him to death.

“Please save this live” He doesn’t know whether he’ll save it. Thinks the one with Tyler was important, but since it’s just him, he doesn’t think it’s important.

“I followed Jesa, Jesa is the real MVP” Vlamis says that Jesa is “a beast, and best in the game”. Quickly explains who Jesa is, and that she’s his partner in the Vlambase merch company. He mentions that she recently called him with an idea for Valentine’s Day, and he was like “Jesa, we need to relax!” But she loved the idea. She’s a big fan of RNM and the characters (and Tyler). “Jesa’s amazing.”

“What about new Soli art [Soli’s the artist who created the Boys Will Be Boys art for a previous drop]?” Vlamis smiles. “What about new Soli art. I like that idea. 😏“

“Your house [in New Mexico] is so cute.” Vlamis says thank you and shows the ceiling of the house (which he likes best). “Santa Fe is dope!”

“I adore your teeth” *shows his teeth* Says he had to wear braces (some even adjustable)

“I could’ve used my birthday money to buy something but I forgot” 🤨 << Vlamis’s face. “How you you forget, man?”

“Back to Twitter after this live” He mentions that he’d just been on Twitter before the live.

He got retweeted by Mountain Dew and loves it.

“I’m from Australia and hope my merch arrives before winter” Vlamis says he hopes shipping will be fast. 

“Love the Valentines” They’re not actually Valentines, hence they’re “Love Notes”.  Vlamis considers doing them not just around Valentine’s Day. 

“You catch any of the CW shows returning this month?” “Might have to” But he knows what he’ll be catching on the 12th. “Prodigal Son, baby!”

“Where did you get the Game Boys?” Those are his Game Boys. He has a Game Boy Advanced and a Game Boy Color. 

“How do you feel about Forlex?” *scoffs* 😒 “Yeah” 

“So excited for the robe!” Vlamis gets excited. “The robes and the PJs are so comfy!” Talks about how it’s a bit weird, bc they don’t make them themselves.

Several people mention that their closet looks like his closet bc of all the merch and he loves that. 

“How do you feel about Forlex” *gets agitated* “Why are you asking me this? Don’t do that to me, alright?” *softer* “Don’t do that.”

“How are you doing?” He’s doing very well. Very relieved that eh sale went well. This drop was like 3-4 months of work, the night before the sale felt like an entire month, too. Jesa and Vlamis Facetimed for more than 5hrs. They set up the website, and that’s how the glitch with the GIVE ME MALEX OR GIVE ME DEATH shirts and poster happened. They made a mistake and only noticed after the website went live. 

“Do you know when S3 will air?” No, he thought it might’ve been sooner, but apparently not.

“I love your poetry from the last drop so why no poems this time?” He writes poems when he’s inspired, he hasn’t written a poem in a while. He’s currently preparing to direct his first movie in June 2021, and he’s been very focused on that. 

“The Meet & Greet day changed.”  Filming schedule changed bc they had snow, the schedule’s changing constantly. He’ll be set all day tomorrow (well, today, Jan 11) from 8am until 8 or 9pm. Sometimes they might even wake up in the morning and learn that the schedule’s been changed. 

 “You could talk about nothing and we’d still watch.” He doesn’t want to talk about nothing, wonders if anyone has any questions about the sale.

“I’m so excited about the robe. I was going to buy more but I’m broke.” He says we should be responsible.

Someone’s still waiting about their Black Friday stuff, but he says it’s the shipping company, not them. 

“Vlamentines" He *loves* that, thinks it’s a good pun. 

“Gotta support Aurora.” Always. 🥰

“Jealous Guerin in S3?” You’ll see, you’ll see.

“I placed 3 orders, last one last night. Give me Malex or give me death.” He loves it. He also mentions, that they’re working hard on figuring out how to combine orders in the future so people don’t have to pay for shipping several times. They just can’t do that logistically at the moment. 

“Real talk, how often do you check your DMs?” He says, that some people might’ve noticed that he occasionally likes random photos on people’s IG pages. When that happens, it’s a sign that he read someone’s DM. He feels bad when he checks his mentions with a delay, and people’s stories have already vanished after 24hours. He sometimes doesn’t get to checking DMs for a week.

“Will we ever get the original pic of the kiss recreation?” *smiles* *waggles his eyebrows* “Maybe in the morning”

“So happy the Trevor Project was chosen for this merch drop!” He’s very happy, too. According to him, it was a no-brainer. Tyler’s worked with them in the past, so it made even more sense. They wanted to make sure that Tyler felt very strongly about wherever they’d be donating. 

People urge him to go to sleep. “You want me to go to bed?” 

“Why is your merch not available in India?” *deep breath* “It should be, it’s ridiculous. Unbelievable.”

“Your poetry was awesome.” He appreciates the praise and promises to write some more poetry. 

Someone asks whether the movie he’ll be directing in June will be a comedy, but he says it’s the opposite. He’s mentioned in the past that Aurora and him will both act in the movie, but apparently he forgot about that. He doesn’t want to jinx the movie and doesn’t know how much he should reveal just yet. Talks a bit about 5 Years Apart. 

Someone mentions that it’s Jeanine’s birthday on January 14th. 

“Do (or don?) a face mask, Vlamis.” He refuses. Mentions his friend and roommate Spencer Waldner, who makes face masks.

“If there’s leftover merch, will you do another sale?” He says that most things are actually sold out bc they use Blank Clo’s blanks and will only make what’s been ordered.  They might try to restock some pins tho, bc they went so quickly. 

“USPS are a joke” He defends them. “They’re a public service, they’re trying hard, guys.”

“You should do a Vlambase drop with the Real Vlamis [a.k.a. Jeanie]” He’s excited and thinks it’s a good idea and asks if anyone’d be interested. 

Someone congratulates him on directing his first movie. He points out that he’s directed before (Making It, a 3-part web series, it’s on YouTube).

 “Would you ever come to Australia Comic Con?” He’d love to. Mentions that he’s supposed to be in Paris in May for a convention, but he’s not sure whether that’s gonna happen considering how things are currently going with the pandemic. 

Some more talk about 5 Years Apart.

Circles back to doing a merch drop with Jeanine. People like the idea. 

“Please save this live.” After an IG update, things have changed and he doesn’t know how to do it. In the past he had the option to save it [for 24hrs], now he can only upload it to IGTV. 

“$30 shipping to Australia hurts my soul but I did it anyway.” He appreciates that and mentions, that he lived in Australia for 6 months in the past.

“Sing some Bright Eyes” He thinks his singing would hurt people’s ears. 

Jesa Joy pops up in the chat and urges him to go to bed. 

“Jesa is yelling at you.” Vlamis says that Jesa’s a “yeller��, and that she has a tattoo that says “Don’t yell tho”. He admits that Jesa often yells for a good reason. “I need to be yelled at sometimes.”

Someone asks him to accept a request to join his live. He says he’s pretty tired. 

He says hello to someone from Germany (not me btw :P) “What’s up, Germany ✌️” 

More people ask him to sing, but he says he cannot sing. He says it’s not like a joke  or him being modest, he straight up can’t sing and is a horrible singer. 

“Will there be a sequel to 5 Years Apart?” Maybe a sequel called “10 Years Apart” (he’s joking and visibly tired)

“Should I buy anything before the sale ends?” Yes.

Jesa Joy’s from Michigan, and Vlamis’s grandma’s from Middlesborough, Kentucky.

“Is Tyler singing again?” He doesn’t know. “I hope so. Love that kid’s voice” (Tyler’s 3.5 years older than Vlamis :P)

He’s getting sleepy and will read a little bit before bed. Considers drinking some Mountain Dew. 

“Do you take design ideas.” Sure. Sometimes he sees design ideas from people they’ve been working on for months, but he’s gonna “steal” an idea from someone, he’ll tell them. He’ll steal it, though. 

“Are you still reading SAGA?” He read the first one and is half-way through the second. He’s currently reading a book called “My First Movie” by Stephen Lowenstein. “How cliché.” Aurora got it for him.

Purple Skittles are his favorite. Purple everything.

“Your girlfriend’s the best girlfriend.” She is, she really is.

Asks Jesa Joy whether he should go to bed now.Even though it’s late, he’s hungry. Considers eating something. People tell him to go to bed.

He asks “Should I get naked and put on the PJs?” *waggles eyebrows* “I’M KIDDING, YOU’RE SICK. YOU’RE ALL DISGUSTING.” xD

“Don’t eat!” He laughs.

Says goodbye and says that Jesa’s posted a surprise picture. 

“Any advice for aspiring actors?” Tells them to make their own stuff bc no one’s gonna hire them. (He’s being sarcastic). “It’s dark, but it’s what you need to hear.”

“Okay, love you guys. Thank you again! It was our best sale yet. Means a lot to me. Means a lot to Tyler. Us doing so well might mean that Tyler will work with us again. So I really appreciate it. Okay, I love you all.”

Jesa promises to post the pic in 4 minutes. He’s excited. “See, I got her to do it! The picture is kind of ridiculous.”

*pretends to take off his shirt, stops halfway through* “Noooooo, noooooo, noooooo!”

*throws kiss* “Love you guys, good night.”

[jalapeno-princess]

Second Chances

CEO Mark Tuan X Chef Reader

Word Count: 18.5K (Damn this is the longest imagine I’ve ever written I didn’t even realize how long it was)

Genre: Ex’s to Lovers, angst, fluff

Summary: There were no words to describe the love you and Mark had for one another. You were an aspiring chef and after graduating high school and going straight in to culinary school, everything seemed to be falling in to place for you. You were pursuing your dream career with the love of your life by your side. You felt as if life was going perfectly for you. That was until one night, something happens at a dinner party where he finds himself having to choose between you and his family and by choosing his family, he lost you. Years later, after starting up your own restaurant and becoming an extremely successful and renowned chef, your first catering client just so happens to be your ex-boyfriend and his soon to be wife.

A/n: Hey guys! A bitch is back and dying here in this quarantine. I hope you are all doing well. I AM SO FUCKING SHOOK OVER THEIR COME BACK LET ME TELL YOU I AM NOT BEING BIASED BUT THIS IS MY BABY MARK’S COMEBACK UGH DO NOT GET ME STARTED THAT MAN IS OTHERWORLDLY AND WE DON’T DESERVE HIM. Anyways, this imagine is based on the song “Once upon a dream” by Lana Del Rey and I don’t know why but lately, all her songs have been reminding me of Mark (I literally wrote at least 10 Mark imagines based on her songs ugh I can’t get over her last album and how almost every single song makes me think of Mark) I’m #sorrynotsorry this is so long but I hope you all enjoy! This is honestly the reason why I’m failing in my marine science class BUT WHATEVER (BTW, if you’re a JB stan, I suggest you stay away. Don’t say I didn’t warn you)

I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream I know you, that look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam And I know it's true that visions are seldom all they seem But if I know you, I know what you'll do You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream

“Hey boss, there’s a lady on the line. She’s wondering if we can cater to her wedding.” You smiled politely at your sous chef as he popped his head in to your office and silently thanked him before picking up the phone. 

“Thank you for calling Sunrise Restaurant, this is y/n. How may I help you today?” 

A soft and gentle voice quickly answered. “Hello. I’m a big fan of you and your cooking. I’ve been to your restaurant many times and I think your food would be perfect to serve to the guests at my wedding. Do you guys cater?”

You took a second to think about it. You owned a decent sized restaurant, but the amount of chefs you had were enough to cook for your customers. There were three sous chefs, two prep cooks and one line cook. No one has ever asked you to cater for an event before, so you didn’t think you and your team, no matter how talented and hard working they all were, were capable of taking on such a task. However, the thought of it did excite you. If things were to be a success and the guests of her wedding were to appreciate your food the way the lady on the phone seemed to, your restaurant would become even more successful this bringing in so much more customers. Without a second thought, you found yourself agreeing. 

“When is the wedding and approximately how many people are you planning on inviting?” The line went silent for a few seconds before she spoke up again. 

“It’s in August and I’m expecting at least 150 people. Is that okay?” You hummed in agreement while writing it down. Once you were finished with the call, you’d have to alert your team beforehand even if her wedding wasn’t for another five months. 

“Would you mind coming in sometime this week so we could talk about the menu?” Although you couldn’t see her, the way her pitch increased made it known that she probably had a huge grin on her face. 

“Of course! I’ll call you again to set up an appointment with you. You don’t know how much this means to me! Thank you so much! Have a wonderful day.”

As soon as you hung up, you released a long sigh. Sure, you were always up for a challenge, but you should’ve consulted with your fellow chefs before signing them up to something they may not want to be apart of. However, you were very confident in your team, you’ve been working with them for over three years. If anything, you considered them to be family rather than just mere employees. 

After taking a few moments to relax, you made your way towards the kitchen where they were all preparing their sections for dinner service. 

“Hey guys, I need to talk to you.” The smiles that were all on their faces as they chased each other around the kitchen soon were replaced with blank and worried expressions. 

“It’s nothing bad. Well, that’s my opinion. I don’t know how you all will feel about it and I should have talked to you before accepting the offer, but I agreed in catering to a wedding. I’m sorry if you guys don’t want to do that but—“ you let out a soft giggle when you saw all of them releasing breaths of relief. 

Two of your sous chefs Yugyeom and Jinyoung made their way toward you and tightly sandwiched you in between the two of them. Since both guys were quite taller and more broad than your petite frame, you were practically suffocating from their embrace and began playfully punching on their chests. 

“How is it that the tiniest one of us is the one who tells us what to do? You’re so cute y/n. Shit, you scared us. I thought the restaurant was closing or something.” 

You glared at the lanky boy and shoved him towards his section. “Hey! My restaurant is pretty amazing if I do say so myself. There’s no way I’d let this place shut down. I’ve worked too hard to open it up just to let it close.” 

Soon you felt another presence behind you and arms were wrapped around your waist as he placed his chin on your shoulder. “You better watch what you say Yugyeom. She might be tiny, but she’s feisty and at the end of the day, she cuts your checks.” You absentmindedly leaned back in to Jaebum’s chest but quickly came to your senses and remembered who you were currently surrounded by. “We’re perfectly capable of handling a wedding y/n. Don’t you trust us? If we can feed at least 600 people from the time we open to the time we close everyday I’m sure we can handle a wedding. We’ll be fine. You’re an amazing chef and a wonderful restaurant owner. The client chose you for a reason. There’s nothing to worry about.” You smiled softly at the older boy while he playfully pinched your cheek, earning the two of you groans from the others. 

“Stop trying to butter up the head chef Jaebum. Just because the two of you have a little thing for each other—OW. I can’t cook if my arm is in pain. Control your woman Jaebum!” Your eyes widened in shock at BamBam’s sudden revelation and right as you were about to chase after him, Jaebum softly tightened his grip around your waist. 

“Don’t waste your time on him. We have customers to tend to chef. Come on, the sooner we finish, the sooner you and I can go out to dinner.” 

What you and Jaebum has was hard to describe. Out of the six guys, Jaebum was the first one you met three years ago in culinary school. He was always to himself and your classmates labeled him to be mysterious. There was one time the two of you were paired up for an assignment and it was in those few weeks of working alongside each other that you learned of how kind and extremely soft he was. To most people, he was intimidating and he hardly had any friends in your major because of it; but he liked it that way. That was until he made a friend in you and from that day on, the two of you were attached to the hip. 

He was the first person you reached out to when you began planning on opening up a restaurant and he was quick to agree to be one of your chefs. Although you’ve known him for quite some time now, the two of you only recently started developing feelings for each other a little over three months ago but even then, it never escalated in to more than just some flirtatious banter, lingering touches and stolen glances between you two. However, even if you wanted to consider Jaebum to be something more, your heart would never let you. 

As much as you kept trying to tell yourself it was because you didn’t want to lose your friendship with him if things were to go south between the both of you, you knew there was more to it. 

The night went off without a hitch as it did every night and once it was over, Jackson offered to treat everyone out to dinner as a way to celebrate your restaurant’s first catering opportunity. However, you were too tired and couldn’t wait to go to bed. This earned you multiple frowns and boos from the rest of the crew but Jaebum was quick to silence them with a scowl. 

“She’s had a long day. It’s understandable. You guys have fun, I’ll take her home-“ This brought even more boos but also a couple of winks and eyebrow raises from the two youngest chefs. 

“Just say you want to have y/n all to yourself. We all know neither of you are going to get any sleep tonight if you go home together—that’s it! The next time we wash uniforms I’m purposely putting a red sock in your pile you asshole. Good night y/n. Get some rest and we’ll see you again tomorrow.” 

You said your goodbyes to the guys while Jaebum reached for your things and led you to his car. “Congrats again y/n. This’ll be great publicity for the restaurant if things go well with the wedding.” You felt warmth rise to your cheeks as he opened the passenger door for you. Whenever any one of the other chefs would compliment you, you’d simply smile and thank them; but whenever Jaebum said something nice about you, you always found yourself blushing. 

Something about the way he’d look at you as if you were the only girl in the world would send butterflies to your tummy. However, he had yet to take things further between you both and you felt as if he was hesitant for the same reasons you were. But you liked how things were going with you and Jaebum, and your restaurant  was your main focus as of right now. A relationship wasn’t in your plans at the moment, especially because of how your last one ended.

“But what if it all goes to shit Jaebum? What if I mess up? What if the guests don’t like our food? What if we forget something once we get there and what if—“ he brought his finger up to your lips in attempts to prevent you from continuing saying such negative things about yourself. Jaebum thought the world of you and hated that you never saw yourself the way he saw you. 

From the first day he met you in college, he knew you were someone special. He saw how dedicated you were when it came to your craft and perfecting your dishes. He always looked up to you and could only dream of being even half of an amazing chef as you were. When you first called Jaebum to tell him you were opening your own restaurant and asked him to be one of your sous chefs, he wasn’t surprised to hear that you were opening your own restaurant. It was a dream of yours ever since you were a little girl. Jaebum was completely aware of how many extra hours you picked up at your job on top of being a full time student just to save up for a restaurant. Seeing as how you did it in less than a year after graduating was pretty impressive and he knew you had it in you. 

“Will you stop that? Stop thinking so negative about yourself y/n. You’re one of the best chefs in the state. They didn’t write about you in the newspaper for no reason. It’s obvious you have a gift y/n. That lady chose our restaurant out of the hundreds of other restaurants who are known for catering and you wanna know why? Because our food is spectacular. Our recipes, our menu. It’s unique, it’s different. Our staff is entertaining, you’ve decorated the place really nicely and guess what? The owner and head chef is an extraordinary person. You are a marvel y/n. Now stop worrying that pretty little head of yours and go get some rest. We have a long week ahead of us. I’ll see you tomorrow. Sweet dreams.”

The rest of the week went by far too quickly and finally, it was the day the soon to be newlyweds were coming in to meet with you about their wedding day. The bride Erica, whose name you learned when she set up a meeting with you two days after your first call, called you just a few minutes before her scheduled time to let you know she was running late but that her fiancé was almost there and that it was fine if the two of you started without her. 

You were in your office filing some paperwork when Youngjae came in and let you know that Erica’s fiancé was there. When you walked in to the dining area and saw who he was referring to, your heart sank to your chest. It was as if the whole room was spinning and you couldn’t breathe. 

Three years. 

It’s been three years since you last saw him. 

Three years since he let you walk away from his parent’s house in tears. 

It’s been three years since he broke your heart and now here he was, standing in your restaurant, waiting to meet with you to talk about his wedding. A wedding the two of you talked about many times in your almost seven years of dating. You felt like you were about to throw up. Was it too late to say you couldn’t do it? There was no way you’d be able to cater to your ex boyfriend’s wedding. You couldn’t stomach the thought. 

“Y/n, aren’t you coming?” You didn’t even realize you weren’t moving until you felt the older boy tug at your wrist. 

“Youngjae, I—“ If you were coming off as rude and unprofessional, you didn’t care. This was the man you thought you were going to spend the rest of your life with. Your first love, your soulmate, your best friend. How could you possibly cater to a wedding of a man you planned on marrying? There was no way you’d be able to do it without crying during the process. All the memories of your relationship to your last night together came rushing back and you felt tears brimming at your eyelids. Before you could turn around and attempt to walk away, you heard his breath hitch. 

“Y/n.” You released an exasperated sigh before making your way towards him. “Hey. It’s been a while.” As hard as it was seeing him after all these years, you had to put on a strong face and pretend like nothing was wrong. No matter how much you were on the brink of crying. You wouldn’t let yourself cry in front of him. He didn’t deserve you or your tears. 

“Please follow me. We have no time to waste. I have to start preparing for the lunch service.” The sharpness in your tone and the spine chilling glare you sent his way didn’t surprise Mark. He deserved it after what he put you through. What he wasn’t ready for, was seeing you after three years. He didn’t think he would be able to sit in a room alone with you without crying over what no longer was. 

Seeing you again after how things ended between the two of you only brought back images of your puffy red eyes and tear stained cheeks. It was the worst day of his life. 

When the two of you entered your office, you made your way towards your secret cabinet where you stored your alcohol and began preparing yourself a drink. When you heard him snicker, you rolled your eyes and took a shot. 

“Are you allowed to drink on the job?” You poured yourself a glass of red wine before finally taking your seat in front of him. 

“This is my restaurant. I can do whatever I want and I’m going to need a few sips of liquid courage if I’m going to have to deal with you.” He frowned before sitting up right so he could take a better look at you. From the day Mark met you, you always had a very bright and bubbly personality. You were one of the sweetest, kindest and most generous people Mark knew. But hearing you speak to him so harshly made him hate himself for turning you in to such a stone cold person. 

“Look y/n, I can already tell that you hate having me in your presence and I’m sorry this is happening right now. You don’t have to go through with this if you don’t want to. I can talk to Erica and we can find someone else—“ You shook your head in disagreement. 

“I am a chef. My professional life comes before my personal one. I’m fine. If you’re going to have a problem with dealing with me then you can go ahead and tell her you want to look someone else.” He furrowed his brows while biting his lip. It was something he did many times when he was contemplating something. You hated that you still remembered the meaning behind every single movement of his. 

“I’m happy to see that you followed your dreams of completing culinary school and opening your own restaurant. I’m proud of you y/n. And you haven’t changed a bit. Still breathtakingly beautiful, as you always were. Always will be.” You scoffed in disbelief. Was he really saying all of this to you? He was engaged to be married and yet complimented you on your looks. Sure, he made it known how beautiful he thought you were every single day back when the two of you were still together, but this was a completely different story. He also had the nerve to tell you he was proud of you for following your dreams when it was the reason for your breakup in the first place? You couldn’t believe your ears. 

You and Mark started dating in your freshman year of high school. He was a junior you had met in P.E. Him and his group of friends were known throughout your high school. He was the captain of both the baseball and soccer team and he was one of the only students with a car. A Lexus to be exact. Everyone was completely aware that Mark’s family owned one of the biggest technology companies in the country. However, he was very simple and modest. He wasn’t this narcissistic, big headed asshole that everyone assumed he was just because his family was rich. 

One day, your class was running the mile run when you tripped on a rock and sprained your ankle. Mark was quick to run towards you and didn’t hesitate to pick you up bridal style and carried you all the way to the nurse’s office. He stayed with you for the rest of the period and in that half an hour, the two of you talked about anything and everything your hearts desired. From that day on, you became really good friends and it didn’t take long for you to fall for him. He never failed to make you laugh at the cheesiest jokes, he would always bring you snacks and made sure you were eating your meals. He would drop you home from school almost every day and when the two of you exchanged phone numbers, he would find himself texting you all kinds of memes, videos and links to posts he’d find funny. 

Less than a month after your accident, he confessed his feelings for you and you were excited that he reciprocated your feelings. Dating Mark was a dream. You didn’t think he could be even more amazing as a boyfriend than he was a friend, but he proved you wrong. He took you on many dates that he’d plan out thoroughly, wrote you cute little love letters, attempted to help you with your studies even if most of the time you were together was spent making out and would end practice early just to spend as much time with you as he could. Since he was well aware that he was your first boyfriend, he let you control the pace of your relationship. He only did whatever you asked him to do and didn’t want to cross any boundaries in fear of scaring you away. 

Although he’s been in multiple relationships before, you were the first girl he’s ever been in love with and he had a huge feeling you were going to be the last.

When Mark graduated from high school, you were afraid the distance was going to take a toll on your relationship. However, Mark never failed to reassure you that nothing would change between the the two of you. If anything, it brought the two of you closer. He made sure to continue picking you up and dropping you off to school because on some days, that was the only time he got to see you. And he never failed to call you and text you when he missed you. 

Your life revolved around the older boy. He was all your heart knew and wanted to know. You started losing friendships because of how focused you were on your relationship but you didn’t care. Mark was your main priority and he made it obvious in his actions that he felt the same way about you. 

Once you graduated from high school, you went straight in to culinary school and to say you were excited was an understatement. Cooking was a passion of yours from the time you could talk. When your siblings would watch cartoons, you found yourself watching the food network. Instead of joining a sport or some kind of dance class, you joined cooking and baking classes. There was something about the art of cooking that went beyond just throwing some instant noodles in to a pot of boiling water. 

Cooking meant more to you than what it did to most people. You were lucky that you had a boyfriend that was extremely supportive in your dreams and your goals. No matter how many times you told him no, Mark would buy you everything you needed in order to cook. All the supplies you needed in your classes, he bought nothing but the best brands. There were some days you felt shy having to bring your Martha Stewart cooking set to class knowing everyone else had brands that were sold at Walmart. 

Knowing that your boyfriend wanted nothing but the best for you made your heart flutter. Whenever you wanted to try a new recipe, he would always offer to be the taste tester even if you knew it was just his excuse to get a free meal; but he deserved it. Mark made it aware that he was your number one fan. The two of you moved in together not too longer after you graduated because he wouldn’t stop complaining about how much he missed you. 

Even when he was back in high school, he knew he was going to take over his dad’s position at his company when he were to retire. Which is why he never got to attend college and went straight to work at their company. However, you knew deep down that Mark had dreams of his own. 

You’d watch him draw pictures of buildings, you’d see him look at construction sites in awe and you’d catch him watching hgtv in the wee hours of the morning. Mark wanted to be an architect, there was no doubt about it and you knew your boyfriend was capable of becoming an amazing one. Unfortunately, whenever you’d bring the topic up to him, he’d give you a sad smile and just shrug it off; ultimately changing the topic. 

One thing you both loved and hated about him was how obedient he was. He did whatever people told him to do. From an early age, he was groomed to become a CEO, even if he wanted nothing to do with the company. 

On the night of your breakup, you and Mark were invited to his parent’s anniversary party. You’ve met the Tuan’s many times and they were some of the sweetest people you knew. They were also very particular when it came to their reputation and when Mrs.Tuan heard that her oldest son’s girlfriend wanted to become a chef, she wasn’t having any of it. You were all currently seated in their grand dining room area having dinner when curiosity got the best of her. 

“Y/n sweetheart, you’ve been with Mark for seven years now and you’ve been in college for almost three years but I have yet to learn what it is that you’re majoring in. What are you studying dear?” You smiled widely at her but before you could say anything, you felt a pinch on your thigh. You quickly turned towards your boyfriend and frowned at his worried face, not understanding what his expression meant. But once the words “culinary arts” fell from your lips and the whole room went in to uproar, you knew exactly why Mark looked so bothered. 

You felt like everyone was stabbing at your heart with every laugh that was being thrown your way and when you turned to Mark, he was staring at the ground with a blank face. 

“Y/n, dear. You cannot be serious. A chef? Are you crazy? You want to cook for people? Now why in the world would you want to do that? There are so many other occupations out there much more impressive than that. Whose going to be impressed when I tell them that my future daughter in law is a cook? I’m sorry, but that just won’t do.” 

You could feel your throat getting dry and you wanted the ground to swallow you whole in that moment. As much as you liked and respected Mark’s family, you couldn’t go past the fact that they were looking down on you and belittling your dream career. They should accept you and your future career for what it was. 

However, it wasn’t their words that were hurting you. The fact that Mark allowed them to continue attacking you and treating you as if you were some pathetic being who didn’t deserve to be there instead of defending you and your dream is what was slowly tearing you apart. How could he claim to support you in everything you did, love you more than anything or anyone in the world and want nothing but the best for you, yet fail to protect you from his family? His silence spoke volumes, which is why you weren’t surprised when your next few words fell from your mouth. 

“You have nothing to worry about Mrs.Tuan, because I have no plans on marrying your son for that matter. I refuse to marry in to a family who doesn’t accept nor support my dreams and I refuse to change a thing about for anyone but myself. Thank you for having me tonight. I wish you all nothing but the best. Happy anniversary.” You did not waste any time getting out of there and mentally cursed yourself as you remembered Mark drove the both of you to his parent’s house. 

You started briskly walking to the nearest bus stop seeing as how it was getting quite late. Tears began to fall from your cheeks when you came to the realization that Mark wasn’t chasing after you, but you knew his family probably kept him from doing so. 

Throughout your walk, a part of you felt as if you should’ve kept your mouth shut. No matter how much the Tuan family seemed to like you, you should’ve known that they were people who cared about their wealth and social status. But another part of you refused to give up on your dreams in order to impress people who clearly didn’t deserve you at all. 

The fact that Mark didn’t fight for you or for your relationship is what was killing you the most. You loved him with every fiber of your being. You had plans to settle down with him, get married to him, have kids with him; you wanted it all. Now, you wanted nothing to do with him. You were going to head back to your shared apartment in order pack up everything and head back to your parent’s place. When you finally reached the bus stop, you called your mom up and explained the whole situation to her. 

You’ve never heard your mom swear so many times in one sentence before. She was fuming and she had every right to be. As much as she wanted to be angry with Mark, she was much more disappointed. Parents claim to want nothing but the best for you. However, if you feel in your heart that what they want for you, isn’t what you need, it’s up to you to decide whether or not you’re going to take responsibility for your own life, or continue to let them tell you what to do. Mark would always do whatever his parents wanted him to and there was nothing you could do about it. 

Once you hung up the phone with your mom, you took a look at yourself and let out a hysterical laugh. You were a mess. Your eyes were swollen and your cheeks were red and puffy. It just occurred to you that you lost the love of your life. This was it for the two of you and you didn’t know what you were going to do. How were you going to live without the man who was all that you knew? You were so deep in your thoughts that you failed to notice Mark trying to get in touch with you. After a few moments, you saw his Lexus pull up to the bus stop and you turned towards the other direction. 

“Y/n. I am so fucking sorry baby I—“ he got out of the car and made his way towards you but you continued to give him the silent treatment. When he came in to view, you refused to look at him. 

Your mind felt disgusted with the boy kneeling in front of you. Where was the man who held you as you cried because finals were too hard? Where was the man who stayed up till the wee hours of the morning to take care of you when you got the flu? Where was the man who bought you twelve different pints of ice cream once because he knew how much you loved ice cream? Where was the man who cried in to your shoulder when Moana’s grandmother died? Where was the man who told you he loved you more than life itself and promised you the sun, the moon and the stars? It was clearly not the little boy on his knees in front of you. The boy in front of you chose his family, his pride and his reputation over you. Over your seven year relationship. Over your love, your happiness, your life and future together. This was not the man you loved. 

“Don’t. Just go Mark. They’re probably waiting for you. Go.” He shook his head and wrapped his arms tightly around your legs as he placed his chin on your thighs. “Mark, get up. You’re being ridiculous.” 

He began to cry in to your lap and you could feel the tears building up again. One of the things you loved most about Mark was how sensitive he was. He cried over many different things and you knew it was because he had a big heart. Whenever he would cry, you’d find yourself crying too. You hated seeing Mark cry, but he never cried over you. He never had a reason to, until now. He made a mistake, and he was now paying for it. 

“I’m sorry. I should’ve said something. I’m so fucking stupid. But you need to understand that—“ you groaned in disbelief. 

“I need to understand what Mark? That I’m not good enough for you? Or your family? That I’m considered trash to you because I want to become a chef? What’s so good about you huh? You’re taking over a company. Woohoo! Good for you! We all know that’s not what you want. It’s being handed over to you. You don’t have to do shit. I’m sorry I don’t come from a wealthy family like you. Things don’t get handed to me on a silver platter like they do for you Mark. I have to work for the things that I want. You made me feel like shit. Like I’m nothing in front of your family. You made me feel as if you were ashamed of me and my career path when you are the number one person who pushes me to go after my goals and chase after my dreams.” 

His sobs only became louder the longer you explained your thoughts to him, but you didn’t care. He needed to know how pathetic he made you feel. 

“How do you think your parents would react if they knew their son put hundreds of dollars from their company in to buying me cooking equipment? I bet they wouldn’t be too pleased knowing you’d leave work early in order to come support me at my competitions and drive me to wherever I needed to go. Nor would they be too happy knowing you paid off my entire tuition no matter how many times I begged you not to. Love is about sacrifices Mark. You claim to love me and up until tonight I know you did, but you failed to sacrifice your pride for me and I don’t think I can ever forgive you for that. Thank you, for showing me your true colors tonight. I’m glad I found out who you really are and what your main priorities are now rather than later as I waste the rest of my life with you.”

He finally took his face off of your lap and looked up at you. Seeing the broken look on his face made you want to cry again, but you held yourself together. He gripped both of your wrists before roughly connecting your lips together. Your heart was begging you to react to the kiss. You wanted to be understanding, you knew how hard it was for Mark having to choose between his family and you. But if they were really his family, they would love you and support you no matter what the case and they failed to do so. 

You knew this was probably your last few moments with him and as much as you wanted to hate him, the love you had for him would always be stronger. Seven years of your life spent with him was not going to disappear in a matter of seconds. So you were selfish and allowed him to kiss you for the time being. Just a few seconds later, you pulled away and placed one more kiss on his lips.

“Come on, we’ll talk about this more at home—“ You shook your head in disagreement and you could feel him grip on to the hem of your party dress.

“Y/n, please. Please baby. Hear me out. Let me make things right, please. I can’t lose you. You mean everything to me y/n. I love you so fucking much. I can’t live without you. Are you really going to let seven years go to shit because you want to be stubborn?” 

You scowled as you tried to pry him off of you. “DON’T YOU DARE GIVE ME THAT SHIT. YOU DECIDED TO LET SEVEN YEARS GO TO SHIT WHEN YOU FAILED TO DEFEND ME. WHEN YOU FAILED TO PROTECT ME. WHEN YOU LET YOUR FAMILY LAUGH AT ME AND TALK NEGATIVELY ABOUT ME AND MY DREAMS. You should have grown a fucking pair and told your parents just how proud you are of me and how supportive you are of my occupation but no. You let your mom make me feel stupid and inferior because she doesn’t think my occupation is good enough for you. You always have to do what mommy and daddy tell you huh? I’m sorry. I refuse to let anyone tell me how to live my life. I love myself too much for that. I love you Mark, and I’m always going to love you. But I love myself more. So much more. Have a nice life and take care of yourself.” 

With perfect timing, the bus stopped in front of the curb and you grabbed your things while quickly getting on. You faintly heard him calling after you, but you made your way towards the back and plugged in your headphones. It felt like a huge weight was taken off of your shoulders. Once you reached your apartment, you released a sigh of relief when you noticed he wasn’t there and began to pack away all your things. You were going to miss this place. So many memories were made here and you couldn’t help but reminisce.However, tonight’s events would not stop playing in your mind and you decided to push back all memories of Mark to the back of your thoughts. 

You successfully put away all your things before he could come home and stop you and made your way to your car in order to drive to your parents house. You haven’t seen or heard from Mark since that dreadful night and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t miss him or thought about him from time to time. But you knew what you deserved and like he’s told you multiple times before, you deserved nothing but the best and that’s the only thing you were going to accept. 

“Yeah. All my hard work paid off. Let’s get started on this shall we?” You tried your best to look anywhere but at him. There was no doubt Mark was good looking. He was the most handsomest man you’ve ever laid your eyes on and like a fine wine, he only gets better with age. However, you could still see remnants of the teenage boy you fell in love with many years ago. You knew you wouldn’t be able to concentrate if you were to look at him. 

“Let’s start off with allergies. What is Erica allergic to?” When he didn’t respond after a few minutes, you gave up on giving him the cold shoulder and finally looked up at him. You looked at him in curiosity and he shrugged at you. “You don’t know what your fiancée is allergic to? Seriously?” 

Hearing his name and the word fiancée together sent an unsettling feeling to your stomach. You’ve always dreamt of going through this with him. Planning things for your wedding. Talking with a florist, a catering company, a baker, hiring a wedding planner. You would always find yourself planning your future wedding and Mark would always join in. Knowing he wanted to be involved always made your heart melt in to a puddle. That should be you sitting next to him with his ring on your finger, but things just weren’t meant to work out that way. You could only hope Erica was nearby so you could get this whole thing over with. 

“If I’m being honest, I don’t know much about her. So we should just wait for her to come.” You released a frustrated sigh before humming in agreement.

 “So, how is the restaurant doing so far? I like how you decorated the place. It’s really—you. The wallpaper, the booths and tables, the flooring, the fairy lights, the wooden plaques you always loved buying from Tj Maxx. If you don’t mind me asking, why Sunrise? Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice name. But why?” 

You furrowed your brows and took a sip of your wine. You couldn’t believe you were going to tell him the reason, especially because it had to do with him and your relationship. But you were never one to lie. “Remember that one day we were watching the sunset at the beach and I began to cry because I was upset at the thought of how all beautiful things come to an end?” He nodded in remembrance of the memory and motioned for you to continue. 

“When we broke up, I was a wreck. For months. Hell, almost an entire year. I don’t know how I did it, but I graduated from culinary school with a 3.6 g.p.a and worked at multiple restaurants, trying to get as much food service experience as possible. I saved up enough money to open up a restaurant and here I am today. This restaurant had no name for two months because nothing sounded good to me. One of my sous chefs told me it’s always the darkest before the dawn and that with every sunset, there is a sunrise. As corny as it sounds, with the sunset of our relationship, came there sunrise of all my hard work and success. I lost you, but I gained myself. I achieved all my goals and now look, I own a five star restaurant. I’m a boss bitch if I do say so myself.”

This earned you a soft giggle and you didn’t realize how much you missed his laugh until you heard it again. Mark had one of those distinct and very contagious laughs. Although he was almost 27 years old, he had the cutest little high pitch laugh that you were sure could cure cancer. “Y/n, I—“ before he could continue his sentence, there was a knock on the door. 

“Oh my God, I am so sorry. I had a doctor’s appointment at 11 but it ended up being pushed back till 11:30. I also made a quick stop to my favorite bakery which is right next door. Here y/n, this is for you. This is one of their most popular items, a peanut butter and raspberry jelly croissant. I hope you like it.”

You gave her a soft smile before attempting to reach for it but Mark was quick to pull the paper bag away. “Mark—“ he took the pastry and placed it back in to the plastic bag she was holding. 

“Y/n is allergic to peanuts and she hates raspberries. Just save it for yourself and eat it later.” You looked at him in awe. Mark was always such an amazing listener. He always asked you so many questions about yourself and what you were allergic to was one of his first questions even before the two of you started dating. You found yourself warming up at the thought of how attentive he used to be whenever it came to you, but you quickly came back to your senses. He was getting married. Even if seeing him again awakened some feelings you still had for him, you couldn’t let little things like that affect you in any way. 

Hate was a very strong word. You couldn’t say you hated Mark. You could never hate him, no matter how much you wanted to. But you were disappointed in him and you didn’t know which feeling was worst. 

“Wait, how do you know—“

“We were talking about allergies before you came. Can you tell her yours, I have no clue.” 

Seeing the way the two of them were interacting made you confused. For two people who were getting married in a few months, they sure didn’t act like a couple and by the looks of it, Mark seemed irritated with her. She was completely oblivious towards his emotions, but you’ve been with him long enough to know when someone was getting on his nerves. 

How could they be getting married when it felt as if neither of them wanted to be there? It’s as if the woman on the phone and the one sitting in front of you were two completely different people. She didn’t have the excited tone in her voice like she did a few days prior and you couldn’t help but feel her fiancé had something to do with it. 

“Okay, how about we decide on the way the food will be served first? Did you guys want a buffet, or would you rather the dinner be brought to the guests?” Mark leaned back in his chair and shrugged his shoulders. He was making it pretty clear that he didn’t want anything to do with the decision making, nor did he seem to care about the wedding in general. You couldn’t help but get curious about their relationship, not that it was any of your business. You were consulting them about a catering inquiry not having a couples therapy session. And what did it matter to you anyway? Mark was in your past and you planned on keeping him there at all costs. 

While you and Erica continued to go through the menu, it felt as if Mark wasn’t even there. However, you could feel his eyes on you the entire time. Your assumptions were confirmed when you turned to face him as Erica brought up what she was interested in having. 

“Maybe we could do a surf and turf? So maybe some type of meat with lobster or crab—“ You looked at Mark and your breath hitched when you saw that he was already looking at you. 

“Mark’s allergic to shellfish.” Although you looked away before either of them could respond, the smirk that rose on his face made your heart rate increase.

“Oh, really? Well, in that case we could go with salmon or maybe cod?” Mark sat upright and placed his hands on the table as if he was now interested in the conversation. The rest of the meeting ran smoothly, or so you kept trying to tell yourself. As you and Erica continued to make decisions, Mark would throw in unnecessary comments and you couldn’t help but feel as if he was doing it purposely to get under your skin. But you didn’t let it bother you in any way. You weren’t going to allow him to get to you. Not anymore. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did the two of you meet?” Once the question fell from your lips, you were quick to notice the way Mark tensed up and you were extremely curious as to why. Why did that question seem to bother him?

“Oh, well our fathers are company partners and they thought we’d be a good match for each other.” A bitter laugh fell from your lips as you ignored the fact that Erica was there and turned towards Mark.

“Still doing everything daddy tells you huh? Why am I not surprised?” He glared at you but he knew he had no right to fire back. It was the truth. The two of you were so busy in your own little stare down that you failed to notice how confused Erica now was. 

“I’m sorry, am I missing something here? Do you two know each other?” 

You gave her a sad smile and nodded in agreement. “Knew. We went to school together. That’s pretty much it. Well, I think we’re done here for today. If you have any more questions Erica or need to update the menu, feel free to call the restaurant and I’d be happy to help. Have a nice day.” 

She quietly thanked you before making her way out, however, when she noticed Mark wasn’t following after her she tugged on his wrist. “Come on Mark, we have to meet with the florist.” 

You knew there were so many things he probably wanted to say to you, but you didn’t want to hear it. This meeting was nothing but a coincidence. But you couldn’t help but feel like it was the universe trying to tell you something. Out of the hundreds and thousands of people living in your hometown, how could your ex boyfriend and his soon to be wife be your first catering client? There was no way this happened by coincidence. 

After the two of them left your office, you sank to your knees and began to cry. Why did seeing him again after three years upset you so much? Your sobs filled the room and you felt as if you couldn’t breathe. You were so caught up in crying that you failed to notice Jaebum enter the room until you were brought on to his lap. 

“Hey, what’s wrong? Are you okay? Shhh, you’re fine y/n. I’m here. Everything going to be alright.” He continued to console you and gently rocked you back and forth to try and get you to calm down. He ran his fingers through your hair and placed a few soft kisses on your forehead. Not too long after he entered your office, you stopped crying and sighed in to his chest. 

“Have you ever had your heart broken before Jaebum?” The sudden question flustered the older boy and he didn’t know how to respond. 

“Y/n—“ you frowned at his worried expression. 

“That man that just left, he’s my ex boyfriend. Ironic isn’t it? I’m catering to my ex boyfriend’s wedding. This has to be a joke. Someone must’ve set me up, this is bullshit. There’s no way I can cater to his wedding. Is it too late to cancel Jaebum? I know it’s unprofessional, but look at me. I’m a fucking wreck and this was only the first meeting. What more at the actual wedding?” 

Jaebum didn’t know how to respond. It was clear that seeing Mark again was ruining you and the walls you’ve took so long to build up after your relationship ended. He didn’t know what to do or how to help you. He wasn’t aware of the situation and even if you’ve known each other for a while, he had no clue who Mark was. His heart hurt for you. Seeing you so distraught over your ex and this unfortunate situation broke his heart and all he could do was hold you as you cried. Once your sobs began to slow down, you slowly got up from off of his lap and wiped your tears before giggling softly. 

“Sorry, I ruined your uniform and I probably kept you from doing something important—“ he brought his finger up to your cheek and wiped away a few of your tears. 

“Will you stop apologizing? God, how you are still so cute after crying is beyond me. What am I going to do with you y/n? You are the strongest and most hardworking person I know. I’m sure it is a lot to take in, but you’ll be fine. We’ve had people complain about our food, compare us to other restaurants and even walk out without paying for their meals and you’ve handled each and every negative situation with so much class because that’s who you are. If you decide that you don’t want to go along with this, then you don’t have to. But the y/n I know isn’t going to let something like this get in the way of her passion. You don’t have to tell me everything, just know that I’m here for you if you need to talk. Why don’t you just call it a day y/n? I can handle it from here. Maybe go to the spa or something. Take your mind off of what went down today.” 

You shook your head in disagreement before pulling him in for a hug. “I’m a big girl Jae. Although a relaxing day at the spa sounds nice, I’ll be fine. Thank you for consoling me. I should be outside in a few, I just have to finish up with their menu.” He placed one more kiss on your forehead and gave you a sad smile before heading back to the kitchen. 

Jaebum was right, there was no way you could work without making a mistake. Thoughts of Mark were clouding you your mind. An arranged marriage. He was getting married to someone because his family set him up for it. Although you didn’t feel like you had the right to think like that, it was only natural that you did. You watched them interact. You paid attention to the way Mark looked at his fiancée in disgust. It was nothing compared to the way he would look at you. Whenever Mark looked at you, your heart would always combust. He looked at you as if you were one of the seven wonders of the world. Whenever Mark looked at you, you couldn’t help but feel like the most ethereal being he’s ever laid eyes on. 

He looked at Erica like she was scum under his toes. She didn’t seem all too happy with him either, but she was handling it better than he was. Taking Jaebum’s advice, you took off your uniform, grabbed your things and made your way towards the kitchen. As the guys heard you coming in, you noticed how quick they pulled away from the huddle they were formed in and you knew Jaebum had probably warned them about your frazzled state. 

“Hey boss, we’re ready whenever you are.” You smiled softly at Youngjae while playfully running your fingers through his soft, blue locks. 

“I’m not feeling all too well. I’m sorry guys. I’m going to call it a day if that’s okay. Jaebum is in charge, please don’t give him a hard time. If you need anything, feel free to call me. I’ll be back tomorrow. Thank you for all your hard work.” The guys nodded in agreement and said their goodbyes as you made your way towards the door. 

“Please get some rest. And don’t overthink too much. Call me if you need to okay? I’m always here for you.” You grinned up at the handsome man and gently pinched his cheek. 

“Who knew the oh so intimidating and mysterious Im Jaebum would be such a softie for little old me? Thank you again. I’ll see you tomorrow. If I come back tomorrow and the restaurants in flames, I’ll kick your ass.” His laughter filled the room and he jokingly shoved you out the door. 

For the rest of the day, you did whatever you could to take your mind off of the fact that Mark was back in your life. You thought you were over him completely. Or at least, that’s what you kept telling yourself. It was one thing to say you had no feelings for someone when they were no longer in your life. 

But now that you saw him and talked with him, the love you had for him all those years ago came rushing back. He was your first love, there was no way you could pretend that nothing ever happened between the two of you. 

A week after your extremely awkward meeting with Mark and Erica, business only increased, giving you a chance to focus on other things rather than your ex boyfriend who seemed to be clouding up your thoughts. Unfortunately, Mark took your little run in as a sign of fate. He was a realist. Like you had thought right after talking with him, there was no way this was a coincidence. Erica could have picked any catering company to reach out to but she chose your restaurant instead. 

Mark never believed in things like fate, or soulmates. But that was all before he met you. When you came in to his life, you were all his heart craved to know. You were all he longed for and everything he’s ever dreamt of. You weren’t aware of how much he regrets that night at his parents house and if he had the chance, he’d do whatever he could to go back in time to change the turn of events. He was miserable without you. Heartbreak was a foreign word to him. Since the two of you were madly in love with each other and planned to spend the rest of your lives together at one point, he didn’t think he would ever experience the pain that people claimed came with a broken heart. However, right after you got on the bus and walked out of his life, he knew you took a huge part of him with you. He hasn’t been the same since. 

He wanted to chase after you, to beg you to forgive him. He would take any beating or any negative words you threw at him because God knows he deserved it. But instead he let you go. The damage was done and he knew that even if you were to forgive him, you’d never forget what he did. He’s never been with anyone since you left. Mark knew there was no one else for him. You were it and you’d always be. Which is why he made a vow to focus on nothing but work. He took on extra shifts in attempts to get you off of his mind, but it never worked. He couldn’t stop thinking about how those words fell from your lips and slapped him across the face. 

You have nothing to worry about Mrs.Tuan, because I have no plans on marrying your son for that matter. 

Once you said those words to his mom, he knew it was over. He didn’t even have to look at you to know that you were upset and as soon as you left the table, he got up and ran out in to the yard, screaming and punching at anything in sight while kicking down both the mailbox and trash can. Mark didn’t give two shits about his family’s company, he didn’t care about their wealth or social status. He’d give it all up if it meant getting you back in his life again. He still had a hard time understanding why he didn’t just speak up and tell his family the truth. If he wasn’t such a coward, the two of you would still be together and he’d be cheering you on and giving you his endless support like he always did.

Unfortunately, Mark wasn’t like you. He didn’t have the strength or courage to go against his family and chase after his dreams like you did. He cared about what people thought about him. He didn’t want his family to be upset with him. But hearing them talk so negatively about the girl he loved more than any single one of them made him angry beyond belief. You were right. By not defending you, he chose them. Whoever said blood is thicker than water had to be an idiot. You meant more to Mark than anyone sitting at that table that night, but being the pathetic man he was, he couldn’t find it in himself to go against his mother’s wishes. 

He knew they wanted nothing but the best for him, or at least that’s what he thought. It took him years after your break up to come to terms with the fact that the Tuan’s would rather their son be miserable marrying the daughter of a wealthy business man who couldn’t give less of a shit about him other than his money, than to allow him to be with the love of his life who happened to be a chef. If they knew just how successful you and your restaurant had become, they wouldn’t have been so judge-mental towards you. 

As the years went by and Mark made it known that he had no interest in a relationship with anyone other than you, Mr.Tuan took it upon himself to find his son a bride. There was no way Mark could take control of such a big company without an equally successful woman by his side. When his father gave him the news that he was setting him up with the daughter of one of the company’s partners, Mark was floored. How could his father allow him to marry someone he never had met before let alone develop feelings for? 

Erica was a very sweet and soft spoken person and in Mark’s opinion, things could be worse. But he knew he could never look at her in a romantic way. He could never look at anyone the way he looked at you. It was his karma, but being the pushover he was, not being able to speak up against his parents, he found himself agreeing to the arranged marriage. His father kept trying to convince him that maybe somewhere along the line, the more time he spent with Erica, sooner or later he would develop some sort of feelings for her. It’s been almost a year since they started “dating” and the only skin-ship they shared between each other was the handshake that sealed the deal of their engagement. 

The word miserable couldn’t describe even half of what Mark was feeling. From the day you broke up with him up until now, he never stopped thinking about you. How you were doing, how school was treating you, how life would be like for the two of you if he just spoke up and praised you the way you deserved, if you missed him the way he missed you. If you still loved him, the way he couldn’t stop loving you. Seeing you again the other day made his heart both flutter and sink. He was meeting with you in regards to his wedding. Although you weren’t aware of the situation between him and Erica and he was sure you were moved on, a part of him felt guilty. Here he was with his fiancée, asking you to cater to their wedding. 

Not only did he feel uncomfortable being in a room with you, his ex-girlfriend and the woman he was still so madly in love with, but he was hiring you to do something his family practically laughed at you for doing. There was no way he could do that to you, but he had no choice. It took him every bone in his body not to walk behind your desk and pull you in to his embrace. 

There weren’t enough words to describe just how much he missed you. Mark didn’t think it was possible, but you were even more beautiful than when he last saw you. Your hair was longer, your eyes still had that pretty glow that he loved so much, your already petite frame got even smaller and you radiated so much confidence as you spoke. He was an idiot for letting you go and he’d never let himself live it down. 

As he made his way back to the apartment the two of you shared together, he began thinking about what to do to make things right between the two of you. Now that he knew where to find you and that there was a chance he’d get to see you a few more times, he had to do whatever he could to get you to forgive him. It was too late for you to become a couple again and he accepted that. But that didn’t mean the two of you couldn’t be friends and if that was the only way he could have you in his life, then so be it. He’d take whatever he could get. 

You could pretend as if you were unbothered by his presence, but Mark knew you like the back of his hand. Hell, he knew you just a bit more than you knew yourself. If you didn’t care about him, you wouldn’t have spoke up about his allergies, nor would you have brought up the fact that he hates artichokes. You wouldn’t have stolen glances at him the way you were when you thought he wasn’t looking. 

He saw how you smiled to yourself when he took the donut away from you and had to stop himself from blushing at the sight. He was older now and considerably more mature. Although he was still living by his parent’s rules, attempting to make his way back in to your life was a rule he was willing to break. That’s if you’d let him of course. 

When you went in to work one morning, your office was surrounded with dozens of sunflower arrangements and you knew exactly who they were from. Only one person knew how much you loved sunflowers; it was the same person who could not leave your mind. You furrowed your brows in confusion, why was he sending you flowers? Just because you had to work for him did not mean anything. You weren’t planning on reconnecting again. You just wanted the whole wedding to hurry up and be over with so that Mark would be out of your life completely and you could get your sanity back. 

Each bouquet had a card on it with different phrases and quotes you loved and you could feel warmth rising on your cheeks. You felt a tear against your cheek, but you refused to let any more fall. Did Mark think that sending you a bunch of flowers was going to fix what he broke years ago? He was getting married to someone who wasn’t you, so why was he sending you flowers? What did it mean? 

“Hey y/n, the food supplier is here—holy shit. It’s like a garden in here. These are obviously not from Jaebum, he doesn’t have the brains nor the money to think about buying all of this. Do you have a secret admirer? He must be rich. So that’s your type then huh boss? I better let Jaebum down easy—OW! For someone who claims I am your favorite, you always seem to show your affection through abuse. My bruise from the soup ladle you whacked me with is still healing you know!” 

You rolled your eyes before throwing on your apron and motioned the blue haired boy out of the room. “I think you’ve been spending too much time with Jackson and BamBam these days Youngjae. You’ve been exceptionally nosy and I hate that those two losers corrupted my sweet little line cook in to a monster. Don’t worry about the flowers, worry about the vegetables that need chopping. Shoo.” 

He playfully frowned while exiting and closed the door behind him. You couldn’t help but smile at the fact that he remembered what your favorite flowers are. Every Valentine’s Day and birthday you celebrated together, no matter what gift he gave you, he’d always give you a bouquet of sunflowers. There was one bouquet that you had yet to read the letter attached and since curiosity got the best of you, you found yourself reading it. 

“I don’t care what you think, I know it’s fate that brought us together again. You don’t have to forgive me if you don’t want to, but since we’ll be seeing each other every so often, it wouldn’t hurt to be civil. Give me a call when you get the chance.-MT” 

You released a frustrated sigh before plopping down in your chair. This man was going to be the death of you. As your mind began to have an internal argument with your heart, you found yourself reaching for your phone and sent him a quick text, thanking him for the flowers and asking him when he was free. Sure, there was no going back to what used to be; but he had a point. You couldn’t keep acting so cold towards him. The obvious animosity between the two of you which was more so on your part wasn’t going to make things any easier. He was quick to respond, letting you know that he was willing to meet right now if you were free in which you found yourself agreeing to. 

There were red flags going off in your head, but you didn’t care. It’s not like he’d be able to hurt you again, there was no chance of getting back together. Once the wedding was over, he’d be a married man and the two of you would go back to being strangers again. It bothered you that you were upset at the thought of no longer seeing him once this was all done but deep down you knew it was the fifteen year old girl who fell in love with Mark all those years ago that was making the decision for you. 

“Y/n, where did you move the first aid kit? Yugyeom’s dumb ass cut his finger again—wow. Are you giving up cooking to pursue decorating flower arrangements?” You shoved the older boy before removing your apron and reaching for your bag. 

“I have to meet up with someone. Can you let Jaebum know? I should be back in an hour. Thanks Jinyoung.” Before he could open his mouth to say anything, you were making your way out of the restaurant. You began feeling nervous, but at the same time a part of you felt happy to see him again and you hated yourself for feeling that way. 

He asked you to meet him at a coffee shop the two of you would always frequent back when you were together. He chose that place on purpose, you were sure of it. First the sunflowers, now your favorite cafe you haven’t been to since the breakup. He was trying to get you to reminisce on what once was and you weren’t going to allow yourself to fall for it. After pulling up to the shop and parking your car, you made your way in to the coffee shop and it didn’t take long for you to see him sitting in the corner. You walked over towards him and your heart warmed when a smile rose on his face as soon you made eye contact with each other. 

“Hey! I’m not taking you out of work or anything am I?” You shook your head in disagreement and took a seat. You’d be lying to yourself if you said he didn’t look good. He was growing out his hair and you couldn’t help but smile at the thought of him doing it for you. Mark would always complain about how his hair would get in his eyes once it grew a certain length but you made sure he was aware of how much his long hair would turn you on. At one point, his hair went past his neck and that’s when you decided it was time he got a haircut. The memory made you smile to yourself. 

“I ordered your usual if that’s okay. If you’re not in to ice caramel macchiatos with coconut milk anymore I can go change it—“ he stood up but you motioned for him to sit back down. It was so cute how flustered he was acting towards you. Were you really in a relationship with this man for over seven years? He was acting as if it was your first date all over again. 

“That’s fine Mark. It sounds really good actually. I haven’t been here for quite a while. I’m glad to see it hasn’t changed a bit.” The two of you sat in silence for a few moments and you tried to look around the room in attempts to feel less awkward until he spoke up. 

“I’m sorry.” 

You looked up at him in curiosity and decided to stay silent as he continued. “I’m very grateful you agreed to meet up with me. I don’t deserve to be here with you right now and I know you probably don’t want to hear it, but you didn’t let me explain myself at the bus stop—“ 

Why did he feel like this was a good environment to talk about your failed relationship? You were sure he knew you were probably going to cry, so why did he want to talk about such a sensitive topic in the public? “Mark—“ timing always seemed to be on your side. The waitress came over and gave you both your drinks all the while handing you a cranberry scone. You could feel your throat getting dry as your tears began to form. This was all too much for you to handle but you didn’t want to cause a scene, so you quietly thanked the waitress and kept your eyes on the table. 

“Erica and I, I’m sure you’re aware of it. You’ve always been so good at observing people. We’re not an actual couple. My father set me up for an arranged marriage with her in order to strengthen our companies together. I haven’t been in a relationship since our break up and because of this, my father took matters in to his own hands and being the weakling I am, I agreed to go along with it. But I hate it y/n. The meeting we had the other day was the first time I’ve seen her in months and she’s taking this whole arrangement better than I am but I’m sure she’s just as upset if not more with her father. I haven’t been treating her too kindly and it’s not her fault that this is happening, but you and I both know I don’t want to spend my life with anyone other than you. It’s always been you y/n. I meant what I said when I told you we were soulmates.”

You took a sip of your drink, but you didn’t have much of an appetite the more he continued to talk. As much as you didn’t think you could continue listening to him confess his feelings for you, you wanted to hear what he had to say. Which is why you found yourself still sitting in front of him instead of running out like you probably would have if he did something like this right after your break up. 

“I should’ve stood up to my parents, and told them how proud I was of you. How proud I am of you. Look at you. You’re one of the most youngest and extremely successful chefs in the country. You have your own restaurant and achieved everything you said you were going to do. You’re such a wonderful human being y/n and I hate myself for humiliating you and making you feel worthless. I’m so fucking sorry. I’m still so fucking in love with you and it fucking sucks because it’s my fault we’re like this. I don’t know how you feel about me, you could hate my guts for all I know but I deserve it. It’s obvious there’s no way we can be together again and I’m sure you wouldn’t want to get back with me even if there was a chance for us. But I have to go through with this wedding and I think this is my karma. I have to spend the rest of my life being miserable because of the choice I made that night. You have to admit though, meeting up again after all of these years is fate.” He scratched the back of his neck, something he always did when he felt as if he was upsetting you. 

“I’m not going to lie, I found myself searching you up on several occasions to see how you were doing, to see if you accomplished what you put yourself out to do. There were so many times I found myself standing outside of your restaurant, but I didn’t think I deserved to come in. When Erica told me where she was planning on getting the food from, I felt a tad bit excited at the thought of seeing you again. I’ve missed you so much y/n. I can’t even describe how painful it was to lose you. The day I let you walk away was the worst day of my life. If I could go back to that night and did what I should’ve done, I would.” 

You scoffed in disbelief. “But you can’t Mark. The damage is done, so take it for what it is. You didn’t love or care for me enough to think that something like this would happen. You should have known that you would have to choose between me and your family and you chose them. You knew how becoming a chef was my one and only dream; that’s why you supported it. When your mom laughed in my face and tried to make me feel pathetic for wanting to be a chef, it felt like a slap in the face and I didn’t care how much I loved you. I wouldn’t have given up my career to impress your family or to find another job that would make me miserable just to be good enough for you.” You clenched your jaw and could feel your anger building up. You were afraid of saying something you would soon regret if you were to stay a little while longer.

“I tried telling myself that it was hard for you, to choose between your mom and I, but if I were in your shoes, I would’ve chose you. I would’ve done anything for you Mark. I didn’t care about anyone or anything other than my passion for cooking and you. You were all that I thought I could ever need. So that’s why I was devastated when you didn’t seem to have the same mindset that I had. I don’t know what you wanted to come out of our meeting today and I’m sorry if you thought that by apologizing, I would magically end up back in your arms again. It doesn’t work that way Mark. I think it’s best for us to pretend as if we don’t know each other. You’re just another client to me. What we had was indescribably beautiful, but it is no longer. Nor will it ever be again. I’m sorry you’re being forced in to marriage, but you do have a say in it. You just can’t go against your parents wishes. You’re a grown man Mark. Not everything your parents want for you is what’s best for you. It’s okay to choose yourself sometimes. Thank you for the coffee and the scone. Have a nice rest of your day.” 

You ran out of the cafe and quickly got in to your car before you could react to the whole interaction and soon your sobs echoed throughout your car. 

I’m still so fucking in love with you. 

Out of everything he said, those words stuck with you. They were haunting you and you knew you still loved him too. There was no doubt about it. But there was nothing either of you could do about it. He was getting married and with the way he was allowing himself to go through with it, you knew he’d continue doing whatever he could to please his parents. You refused to be with someone who wouldn’t stand their ground when the situation called for it. Instead of returning back to the restaurant, you made your way home. There was no way you could work without breaking down and crying. 

You texted Jaebum and let him know of your plans in which he was quick to offer to head to your place once he was finished. But you didn’t want to burden him with your problems and you wanted to be alone. Mark reached out to you, apologizing for pulling such a stunt and accepting the fact that the two of you weren’t going to be what you used to be. As the months went by, the wedding date only got closer and closer and to your surprise, you and Mark became friends. 

After that day in the coffee shop, he gave you your space and didn’t hear from him unless he had to call you about the wedding. However, there was one night he called you in the wee hours of the morning and you couldn’t help but answer the call. He never used to wake you up with a phone call unless it was urgent and when you heard him crying over the phone, you knew it was serious. Mark was infamous for having panic attacks and he made it known to you that you were the only one who could get him to calm down. 

He knew he was taking advantage of having your number, and he was selfish for wanting to call you. But he knew he wouldn’t be able to stop crying unless he heard your voice and that’s exactly why he dialed your number. You did your best to console him softly and soothingly and after a few moments, his sobs finally stopped. Hearing him so weak and fragile broke your heart and you decided to forget about everything negative for a little while in order to focus on him. 

You loved this man for a huge chunk of your life; you weren’t going to allow him to suffer on his own if there was something you could do about it. After that night, you let him know that he could find solace in you whenever he needed to. It didn’t take long for the two of you to start talking to each other on a daily basis and you finally accepted the fact that you were falling back in love with him. However, as soon as you felt yourself gaining back your feelings for him, you had to remind yourself that he was going to be a married man in less than a month. 

Although he wasn’t romantically involved with Erica, he was hers legally. You and Mark were stuck in your own little world that you failed to notice your surroundings and what was going on around you. The closer you got with Mark, the more distant you became with Jaebum and you knew it had to deal with the fact that he had feelings for you. 

You liked Jaebum, there was no questioning your feelings for him. But the love you had for Mark was strong, too fierce for you to look at anyone else in the way you looked at him. If you and Jaebum were meant to be more than friends, something would’ve happened between the two of you a long time ago.

Jaebum didn’t know that Mark was the one you were constantly sneaking around to meet with, but he knew there was someone who was currently taking up all the space in your mind and possibly your heart. You didn’t realize how serious things were getting between the two of you until Erica asked to schedule a meeting with you. She never really worried about anything considering your catering share of the wedding and if she did, she would normally call you. So you were curious as to why she was wanting to meet in person. When she entered your office, she had a blank expression on her face and you were quick to notice the way her brows were furrowing as if something was on her mind. You were surprised when the question fell from her lips. 

“Please be honest with me. From one woman to another, you and Mark. You weren’t just classmates, were you?” 

You began to chew on your bottom lip and took a deep breath in before responding. “Did he tell you something?” 

She shook her head. “No. That’s why I’m here, asking you. His dad told my dad that he thinks Mark is secretly seeing someone. Apparently Mark’s been in a very good mood lately and I couldn’t help but notice it happened right after our meeting. Please let me know if there’s anything going on between the two of you so that I can cancel this whole thing. I don’t know what your relationship is like, but I don’t want to go along with marrying him if someone else is in the picture.” 

You began nervously picking at your nails and couldn’t look at her in the eyes. Although you knew that her and Mark weren’t actually together, you couldn’t help but feel guilty. But you didn’t understand why. It’s not like you and Mark were seeing each other. The two of you were just friends. However, she did have a right to worry about Mark interacting with another woman, even if you weren’t together romantically. If word got out that he was having an affair, both his and her father’s companies would receive a lot of backlash. So you could see why she wanted to know. 

“Mark and I were in a relationship almost four years ago. But I promise you, there’s nothing going on between us. What he and I had was in the past. We’re friends, but that’s all we’re going to be. However, if you don’t want to go through with the wedding, do it for yourself. Mark told me about the arrangement. You shouldn’t have to get married to someone you don’t want to marry for the sake of your father’s company. You’re still so young, I’m sure there are many men out there—“ 

She frowned. “You don’t understand how this works do you? Our engagement is already out in the public. Hundreds of businessmen invested in to both our companies because of it. We can’t stop the wedding for no reason y/n. Mark and I may not be a couple and we both probably will never have whatever it is the two of you once had. But he and I both were groomed to take over our companies one day and we are both responsible for making decisions that will benefit our businesses. Whether we like it or not. I’m asking you now, for the sake of your business and ours. I didn’t want it to come to this, but I won’t hesitate to take your restaurant down if you do get in the way of our wedding. If you know what’s best for you, leave my fiancée alone. I’ve also decided that we will no longer be needing your services. Thank you for your time.” 

With that, she took her bag and stormed out of the room, leaving you speechless. You sank lower in to your seat and your heart felt as if it was going to jump out of your chest. Erica was a very polite woman, but hearing her threaten your restaurant made your blood boil. You had no intentions of getting in the way of her and Mark’s wedding and if anything, it was him who was instigating everything between the two of you. 

As much as you cared for Mark, if you continued being friends with him, both you and him would suffer the consequences. It wasn’t Erica that you were afraid of. She was all words, you knew she was just trying to scare you. You were however, afraid of what both her father and Mark’s father were capable of doing if they did find out about your friendship with your ex. You teared up at the thought of losing him again; you were getting used to his presence and having him around, now you were going to lose him permanently. However, that’s what was best for the two of you. You typed out multiple texts, letting him know that you could no longer be friends with him, but you found yourself deleting the messages all-together. 

You couldn’t do it, you couldn’t lose him. Then the thought of your restaurant, your employees and all that you’ve been through to get to where you were ran through your mind and that’s why you told Mark that you could not continue your friendship and that you were no longer going to be catering to his wedding. As soon as you sent the text, you sank to your knees and cried for what felt like hours. It seemed as if every time you cried at work, Mark was the reason. 

You heard a soft knock at the door and you were too distraught to ask whoever was knocking to leave you alone. When Jaebum made his way in to the room, it all felt like deja vu. Just a few months ago, he was consoling you over Mark coming back in to your life. Now here he was, rocking you back and forth at the thought of losing Mark. He didn’t say anything and continued to run his fingers through your hair as your tears kept flowing down your cheeks. When Jaebum realized that you were no longer heaving, he motioned for you to look up at him.

“It’s because of that guy Mark again isn’t it?” You shyly nodded in agreement and Jaebum sighed. “Does it have to deal with his engagement, or is it personal?” You began to contemplate telling him exactly what just went down between you and Erica just a few minutes ago. As your main sous chef and best friend, he had the right to know. 

“Erica no longer wants us to cater to their wedding and it’s because she thinks Mark and I are having an affair.” You could cut the tension in the air with a knife. You could feel Jaebum frown against your neck but you didn’t want to act upon it. 

“I know you y/n, you’re not the type of person to do something like that. Or at least that’s what I’d like to think. But is her assumptions true? Are you and Mark back together again?” You were quick to disagree. You didn’t think your friendship with Mark was going to get in the way of their marriage, but if Erica was willing to cut you off from catering to the wedding, then it was probably serious. After taking a few minutes to get yourself together, you explained everything to Jaebum. From the time you and Mark started dating, to the night of his parents anniversary. Then you updated him on how the two of you became friends again and he just sat there as you talked like the amazing listener he was. When he felt like you were done going in to detail about the mess you were in, he spoke up. 

“You don’t still have any feelings for him, do you?” He took your silence as your answer and released a frustrated sigh. He wasn’t upset with the fact that you gained feelings for your ex boyfriend. It was inevitable. No matter what happened between the two of you and no matter how long you’ve been apart from each other, you could never forget your first love. Just like you, Jaebum was afraid of taking things further with you just in case it didn’t work out between the two of you. 

He wanted you in his life whatever way he’d be able to have you, even if it meant just being your best friend. For the three years he’s known you for, there was always a part of you that you hid from the world, including himself. He knew something must’ve happened to you prior to becoming friends with you, but he never wanted to ask about it. Seeing the way you reacted right after your first meeting with Mark answered pretty much all of his questions and he knew that there was a chance you were still in love with Mark. Jaebum was there for you through it all. 

He’s seen you at your lowest points, and he’s been with you through your highest. He was completely aware that you were such a tough person with a good head on your shoulders. However, after seeing you so fragile, so broken over what had just happened made him worry that not even he could fix you.

“Y/n.” You looked up at him with the saddest look on your face and Jaebum swore his heart broke in that very moment. “If it’s meant to be, it will be. Okay? Love will always find a way. You said so yourself, they’re in an arranged marriage and he’s told you multiple times that he’s still in love with you. If he loves you like he claims he does, then he’ll do whatever he has to do to make things right. Even if it means finally standing up to his parents and backing out of the wedding. If he can’t do that, then it’s obvious he doesn’t deserve you. And I’m telling you right now, if he ends up breaking your heart again y/n, I won’t hesitate to kick his ass.” 

You giggled softly in to his chest before placing a chaste kiss there. You honestly don’t know what you’d do without Jaebum. Your life was so much easier with him in it. Once he felt like you were completely calmed down, he stood up and brought you up with him. He snickered at your tear stained face and placed some of your hair behind your ear. 

“Come on, put on your big girl shoes and let’s get cooking. The guys and I feel as if we hardly see you nowadays and I know Mr.CEO has a lot to do with it. I hope he knows that the six of us will always be your favorite men. I’m obviously the number one man in your life.” You playfully pinched his cheek and put your hair up while Jaebum helped you with your apron. 

You tried your best to focus on cooking and the jokes the guys kept making throughout the day, but you couldn’t help the fact that your mind kept wandering to Mark. Did he get your message? Did Erica talk to him? How did he feel when you told him you could no longer be apart of his life anymore? The day felt as if it was dragging on and you couldn’t wait for it to be over with. Luckily, many customers seemed to come in, giving you a chance to focus on something other than Erica and Mark. Once it was time to close, you made a beeline for your phone and frowned when you saw all the missed calls and text messages from Mark. 

You weren’t ready to hear what he had to say, so you shoved your phone in your bag and packed up your things in order to go home. As you were walking towards the kitchen, you felt a gentle tug on your wrist. 

“I know you’re probably going to overthink if you go home tonight and as much as you want to be by yourself, maybe it’s best if you slept over my place. Just for tonight. We could watch a movie and I’ll make you some ramen. I’ll even give you my favorite hoodie that you love so much. Please? I hate the thought of you suffering alone. We can even steal some ice cream from the freezer.” 

You smirked in response, causing his grin to widen. “Fine. You had me at your hoodie. And ramen. Thank you Jaebum. You’re truly amazing you know that?” He playfully wiggled his brows at you. 

“Oh I know. I’m a catch. I hope you know I wouldn’t do this kind of thing for anyone else. Jackson still complains that he has yet to see my apartment. You’re special y/n and you mean a lot to me.” You were sure he could see the blush that rose upon your cheeks, but he didn’t say anything as he took your bags and led you to his car. 

The drive to his place was quiet, other than the soft jazz playing on the radio; but you liked it. It was a peaceful and calming kind of silence. Most of your rides with Jaebum would consist of loud music as the two of you would sing along to at the top of your lungs, but Jaebum knew that’s not what you needed right now. Once he pulled in to his complex, he walked over to your side and helped you out. Sometimes, you found yourself wondering how your life would be like if you and Jaebum were to end up together. 

He was quite the gentleman, he knew exactly what to do to make you laugh and smile like an idiot, he took such good care of you and wanted nothing but the best for you. However, your heart always belong to Mark and over the years, you continued holding on to a tiny string of hope that he would come to his senses one day and finally choose you. 

After entering his apartment, he quickly made his way to his room to get you something to wear as you took your place on his couch. You decided against looking at your phone for the rest of the night just because you didn’t want to ruin your time with Jaebum. The thought of losing Mark permanently sent an upsetting feeling to your stomach and you were sure he was doing his best to get in touch with you in order to prevent you from doing so. But there wasn’t anything you could do. The ball was in his court now. If he wanted it to be different this time, it was all up to him. 

“Here. I got you some sweats too if that’s okay.” You smiled politely at him and followed him to the kitchen where he began cooking dinner for the both of you. The night was spent eating everything his fridge had to offer while watching the first three Star Wars movies. He pulled you close to him and had his arm wrapped around your shoulder throughout the entirety of the night. You’ve always felt so safe in Jaebum’s arms and you were afraid of how lost you’d feel if you no longer had him around. 

Everyone and their mothers knew that Jaebum harbored feelings for you, it was painfully obvious and the guys made it known almost every day. You were afraid that knowing you were trying to mend your relationship with Mark would only ruin your friendship with Jaebum. If you had to choose between the two of them, you know you’d choose Jaebum. 

Mark chose his family that night, but Jaebum always chose you no matter the circumstance. When you called him and asked him to come work for you, he already had many offers on the table from well known restaurants that he’s never told you about, but he agreed to you in a heartbeat. When his ex girlfriend at the time didn’t approve of his friendship with you and had him choose between you and her, he broke up with her the following morning. 

In the first month after your restaurant opening, you hardly had any customers and you were so embarrassed. You didn’t know what to do. It came to a point where you wanted to give it all up, but the man whose arms were currently wrapped around you never let you do so. Jaebum had always known you were destined for greatness. You were the most hard working and passionate person he knew; so he did his best to put your restaurant on the map by handing out fliers, putting ads online and even handing out free samples to people. It didn’t take long for customers to start coming in and no matter how many times you’ve thanked him for making your restaurant what it was, he made sure you knew it was all because of your talent and determination. 

Your heart cried for the older boy. You wished you could return the same feelings for him. However, even if Mark didn’t come back in to your life, you were sure a relationship between you and Jaebum wouldn’t blossom. The two of you have known each other for too long to put your friendship at risk if something negative were to happen. 

You didn’t even realize you fell asleep on his shoulder during revenge of the sith nor did you feel the soft kiss that was placed against your lips as he placed you gently on to his bed. When you woke up the next morning, it took you a few seconds to recognize where you were; but you’ve slept over Jaebum’s apartment countless times to know you were in his room. The navy blue bed sheets and cream walls suited him. So did the Bart Simpson poster on the wall. You made your way out in to the living room and frowned when you noticed he wasn’t there. It was then that you realized what time it was and began to freak out. Did you really sleep until 11:30? It was practically already lunch time and you were about to lose your mind until you noticed the post-it note waiting for you on the counter. 

“Hey, I’m not too sure when you’ll read this and knowing you, I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m home by the time you actually get up. I went to work. I didn’t want to wake you, you deserve a break after everything you’ve went through yesterday. I’ve prepared you some breakfast, it’s sitting in the microwave. You kept stealing all the blanket last night by the way, so you owe me one. Rest up and I’ll see you later. Have a nice rest of your morning..or afternoon.-JB” 

you smiled at his words before eating your breakfast and deciding to head back to your place. You didn’t want to take advantage of Jaebum’s generosity and you really wanted to take a shower. Since he was the one to drive you over to his place, you called for an Uber and patiently waited for it to arrive. 

In that moment, you took out your phone and finally began to read Mark’s texts and listened to the voicemails he left. As soon as you heard his muffled cries, you began tearing up yourself. He sounded extremely devastated. He had just gotten you back in to his life and he knew he was slowly gaining back your trust. There was no way he was going to lose you that easily. Mark knew what had to be done in order to win back your love completely and even if it took him years of being away from you and crying over you to come to this point, he was prepared to give up everything for you. 

His texts were filled with apologies but it seemed as if he didn’t know what to do either. There was no way he would stop being friends with you, but he too was afraid of what his father was capable of. Throughout the entire ride, you felt numb. You couldn’t think. Sure, you could beg and plead for Mark to leave you alone even if you both knew that’s not what you wanted. But you knew Mark, he wasn’t going to give up that easily. You just weren’t sure of what he had planned or how far he was willing to go for you. 

After the driver dropped you off to your building, it took all your energy to drag your body to the elevator. Your fingers hovered over his contact multiple times. It was selfish of you and you knew that you’d only make things worse by trying to reach out to him after telling him to leave you alone. However, the slumped figure that was sitting on your welcome mat made your head spin. Not knowing how long he’s been waiting there for, you found yourself running towards him and he was quick to lift his head up at the sound of your shoes against the concrete. 

Once his eyes landed on yours, he got up from his spot on the ground and didn’t hesitate to pull you in his arms. You felt so relieved yet extremely nervous to see him. What was he doing there? Was he not afraid of the consequences if Erica were to find out he continued to stay in contact with you? You felt tears against your neck as his grip on your waist only tightened. 

“Mark, what are you doing here? How long have you been waiting for?” You opened the door to your apartment and pulled him in, not noticing that he had yet to respond. Before you could ask any more questions walk any further, he turned you to face him and hesitantly brought his hand up to your cheek. “Mark—“ when you felt his lips against yours, it’s as time stopped and the room began to spin in slow motion. 

You knew it was wrong, but you’ve missed the sensation of his lips on yours. It felt so foreign, yet all too familiar and you didn’t realize how much you craved the taste of his lips until you deepened the kiss. Things began getting hot and heavy between the two of you, after not having each other like this in so long your bodies were reacting desperately and hearing his sweet moans sent warmth to your core. Unfortunately, red flags began to go off in your mind, causing you to pull away. He knew you were confused by the dazed look on your face so before you could say anything, he spoke up. 

“I quit today.” You looked up at him in shock. What exactly did he mean? He giggled at your blank expression before stealing one more kiss. 

“I’m assuming Erica confronted you and threatened you. She told me she went to see you and I knew something was up when she said she was no longer in need of your services. She began to belittle you and said rude things about you and I couldn’t take it so I stormed out of the conference room at her dad’s company and made my way to my family’s company. That’s also around the same time I got your messages and I was pissed. I know I don’t deserve it; I don’t deserve you, but I just got you back in my life. This is the happiest I’ve been in a really long time. There’s no way I was going to lose you again. Not if there was anything I could do about it. I made my way up to my dad’s office and let my heart do the talking. I told him I was resigning and refused to go on with the wedding.” 

He smiled gently at you and playfully booped your nose. “I chose you, something I should’ve done three years ago. My dad was furious and even started cussing at me. I’m pretty sure I’m disowned by my family now, but I don’t care. You’re all the family that I could ever need. I know, you probably think I’m insane for doing something so abrupt and not putting more thought in to it and I did it without even knowing how you feel. I don’t know whether or not you’d want to be with me. I can only hope and pray that you’ll take me back. Even if you decide that it’s too late for us, I don’t regret my decision one bit. In choosing you, I also chose myself. I don’t know why I allowed the wedding plans to get this far. I just felt like I deserved it I guess.”

He gently placed his forehead against yours and grazed your wrist with his thumb. “The thought of you made me realize that I’m so much more than what my parents want me to be. As much as I hated not having you in my life, maybe we needed this. I mean, I needed it. I learned my lesson. I’m a grown ass man, I have the right to make my own decisions. Even if it means going against my parent’s wishes. There’s so many opportunities I missed out on because it wasn’t something they would’ve been proud of. But I don’t give a shit about what they want anymore. It took me years to come to the realization that they couldn’t give two shits about my happiness yet I was so willing to do anything and everything they asked of me. I wanted to be the perfect son and I lost both you and myself in the process. Fucked up isn’t it?” 

You could feel him tense up at the thought of all he���s been through and you found yourself gently caressing his arms in attempts to calm him down. “You don’t have to say anything, I know it’s a lot to take in. It was a lot for me. I came here as soon as I left the company. I needed to see you and tell you everything. I’m screwed, honestly. I don’t have a college degree nor do I have much experience, but that’s not my main focus right now. I’ll worry about all of that later. You. You’re all that matters right now. I’m all yours if you’ll have me y/n. I can’t give you much. I can no longer provide for you in the ways that I used to be able to. But I can give you my mind, body, heart and soul. I’ll support you, care for you, love you. Do whatever you need me to do. I’ll be whatever you need me to be. I built thick skin during the time we were apart. I truly believe that God, for whatever reason that I will be forever grateful for, brought us together again and I couldn’t let you get away this time. I love you y/n and I’m sorry. I know that my apologies probably don’t mean anything to you, but I’ll spend the rest of my life proving to you that I’m deserving of you and your love. That you’re all I could ever dream of. I’m going to do whatever I can to gain your trust again. We’ll take things at your pace y/n, that is if you decide you’re willing to come back to me.” 

For months after your breakup, you found yourself crying and getting drunk almost every single day in order to prevent your mind from wandering to him. It took you almost an entire year to come to terms with your breakup. You tried your best to lie to yourself, telling yourself that you hated him. That he was never man enough for you. That you deserved better. You made a promise to yourself that if Mark were to ever come back and beg you to return to him, you wouldn’t give in. 

However, the handsome man standing in front of you was different than the boy who failed to put you before his family. He was more mature, he finally realized his worth and no longer cared about what anyone other than you had to think about him. It took a long time, but you were over the moon to hear his sudden confession. You were glad he was aware that you deserved better. But you didn’t want better. You wanted Mark. For as long as time would permit you to have him for. Seeing the way he was looking at you with so much love and admiration in his gaze is the reason you found yourself reconnecting your lips together. You could only hope that he could feel the love you had for him through the kiss and as he smiled against the corner of your lips, you knew your message was received. 

“I love you too Mark. So much. I wish I could say I stopped, only because I was so upset with you. But I never stopped and I know I never will. You own this pathetic heart of mine. I know I deserve better, but I also know that you’re not the same person you were three years ago. I’m so proud of you for building up the courage and putting your foot down. God, you have such a way with words. I really don’t know how to respond to all of that. I’ve missed you so much. I’m sorry you had to sacrifice practically your entire life for me, but I’m extremely happy you did. Like you said, you didn’t do it just for me, you did it for yourself too. I know it will be hard for you to start from scratch, but you’ve never failed to make me proud in all that you’ve accomplished. I’m sure you’ve gained a lot of knowledge working at the company. You could go to college and get your degree in architecture and maybe even start your own company. I’ll be by your side the entire time and I’ll help you in any way possible.” 

You smiled up widely at him and giggled when you saw tears form at his eyes. “You were always so sensitive, come here my crybaby.” You brought him towards your living room and laid on your couch, brining him down with you. He placed his head against your chest and began leaving soft kisses along your jaw. 

“You’re perfect, you know that? Thank you for taking me back baby. You won’t regret it.” To your dismay, he got up off of you and as you were about to complain about the loss of warmth, he threw you over his shoulder and playfully slapped your cute little butt. 

“Mark! What are you doing?!” He laughed as he made his way to what he thought was your bedroom. 

“Three years. I went three years without you and your beautiful body. I haven’t had sex in three years y/n, I’m sure I could be considered a born again virgin. I’m sex deprived, hell, I don’t even know if this thing still works. Give it a try babe. Don’t look at me like that. We have a lot to make up for, so be prepared. Why don’t you take out all your built up anger you’ve built up over the years and dom me princess—OW. Yes, I love the aggressiveness—okay I don’t find that kinky at all—will you stop that?” He threw you down on your bed and jumped on top of you. Your hands made their way in to his hair and gently tugged on it, earning yourself an erotic moan. 

Mark began leaving kisses all around your face before making his way down towards where you needed him the most. As he began nipping and sucking on your chest, he suddenly pulled away, earning himself a glare. However, his next words made your cheeks warm. “Thank you for coming back to me baby. This is only the beginning of our forever. Aw babe, don’t start getting emotional on me now. I was just seconds away from eating your pretty pussy and fucking your brains out—okay. You’re definitely gonna get it.” 

Before he could go any further, you cupped his chin with your fingers and made eye contact with him. “I love you Mark Tuan.” He kissed you passionately, as if his life depended on it before grinding himself in to your thigh. “I love you more y/n. Don’t you ever forget it.”

[crappyfics]

Coco [part 1]

Summary: It wasn’t about impressing him. It was about becoming the best version of yourself.

Word count: 2k

Notes: Couldn’t find the owner of the header.

It was a hot summer day and it seemed like it was never gonna end. Stuck at your job, you worked the stock since ten in the morning piling up boxes, moving away trolleys, receiving supplies and sending out products. Your coworkers would show up every once in a while to grab a trolly piled up with products, and only be back once they were done placing the stuff in the respective shelves. The customer traffic was at its peak that day with everyone coming by to purchase something for a refreshing drink. You had received a great shipment of gin and rose wine which were highly requested this time of the year. The store was going to close soon and you looked forward to it. Though you hadn’t finished moving things around in the stock which was a bummer, really, because it meant you would have to deal with it the next morning. So you took off your gloves and apron, placed them on top of a box pile then retreated to the bathroom to splash some water on your face. 

The cool water refreshed your skin that was hot and sweaty not only from the physical effort, but for the heat in the warehouse that you could swear was also slowing down your productivity that day. You wash your face one more time then dry it with some paper feeling much better now. Coming out of the washroom, you get startled with the inconvenient Chanyeol who’s been getting on your nerves a little more than usual. Arms crossed against his chest, he stared down at you with a smile you really didn’t appreciate right now. 

“I’m not doing overtime, Chanyeol,” you said, managing to move past him and towards the lockers. You heard his footsteps behind you, his presence was always like a shadow following you. At least at work, he always made sure you were under his supervision. 

“I wasn’t gonna ask that,” he responded with a tranquility you recognized well. He liked to play that game with you, the rat and the cat, it was ridiculous. 

“It’s almost eight and you never have anything nice to say to me after five p.m.” you spoke as you opened your locker and pulled out your sneakers dropping them on the floor and proceeding to undo the laces of your work shoes. They were heavy and dirty, so much like how you felt at that moment. 

“You’re funny,” he laughed knowing very well it was all true but he kept the commentary for himself. “I was going to tell you to arrive one hour early tomorrow,” he said, making you snap your head towards him, giving him a death glare he was so accustomed to. “We have a lot of boxes to place here in the back, and another 50 or 60 to put out in the front.” 

“Yeol, I was working in the back on my own all day,” you whined much to his surprise because he really thought you were going to attack his stomach with a punch or something. But honestly speaking, you would never hurt your boss, especially not at work. He just was never used to hear you whine if it wasn’t for special occasions, such as asking for a day off or whatever. “You gotta make one of the boys come out here and help me out if you want the stock to be done in two days. One and a half if we’re being optimistic.” 

You sat down on the bench in front of the lockers and continued to take off your shoes and change for the light weighted sneakers you had. You placed the heavy ones very carelessly back inside your locker and reached further up there to grab your jacket that was pretty useless that day given the high temperature in the city. 

“Okay, I’ll call Lay tonight,” he said. He moved closer and searched for your face in hopes to find a sign of contentment. 

“Can you call Sehun instead?” you looked up at him finding his knitted eyebrows quite funny the way they judged you. 

“And I was here all this time thinking you didn’t like the boy,” he responded leaning on the locker right beside yours and not taking his eyes off of you now that he heard something new. 

Footsteps were heard coming from the front of the store. In a trail, your coworkers walked in going directly to their respective lockers. Baekhyun came last, rolling the keys of the front door around his finger and playfully making his way to you and Chanyeol. Yeol opened his hand for Baek to drop the keys back to him. 

“He’s the fastest at moving shit around,” you simply responded. 

“Are we talking about Sehun again?” Baekhyun asked, throwing an arm around your shoulder and smiling now copying the knowing smirk of Chanyeol’s face. 

“Again?” Chanyeol asked. “So this conversation has happened before.”

“I can’t with you two.” you grabbed your bag and moved past both boys who shared a knowing look now finding it hilarious how worked up you got with the silly teasing. You headed to the backdoor but stopped before leaving. You looked back towards the boys and saw Chanyeol still chatting with Baekhyun by the lockers. They noticed you still there looking at them. “I’ll wait in the car.”

Chanyeol passed around the bottle. Only the three of you, it didn’t take too long for it to get to you. The hard whiskey was not doing wonders to your throat, but it sure was making you feel lighter, freer. You hissed with the alcohol sliding down your throat, you could feel it reach your stomach. But after that pain was gone, you were ready to take another swig, though, you passed the bottle back to Chanyeol. Baekhyun, as the designated driver, stopped after his first swig. It was always the three of you. The three of you sitting in the car, listening to Chanyeol’s rock playlist, drinking something cheap you bought, chatting, singing, and crying the night away until it was time to go home. Though growing older meant that the nights were shorter, drinking was a little more responsible, and chatting was more mature as well. Though these small things shifted, the habits were still there, your friends were still the same. 

When Chanyeol turned eighteen, he applied for a job at the liquor store and it sounded like the coolest thing in the world. After six months of working there, he had a good front with his boss at that time which facilitated the hiring of Baekhyun who just recently had lost his job at the bakery. You were only fifteen when that happened, and being the youngest of your friends sometimes took a toll on you. You couldn’t go out to the same places, neither drink, or go clubbing. It was hard for you to also see them working for the same company. You had a part time job at the grocery store which gave you some good cash for your needs as a teenager. But when you were no longer a minor, Chanyeol was already a supervisor at Spirits and saw no problem in adding you to the team. The three of you were like the dream team. You enjoyed doing a lot of the heavy work because you were good at it, Baekhyun was a master at customer service, and Chanyeol was a diplomat earning him, later on, the post of manager.

“So what is it with you and Sehun, huh?” Chanyeol’s indiscretion was probably the thing you hated and liked the most about him. He wasn’t like that at work, but once you were outside, all the teasing and bickering was maximized since there was no policy code holding him back. 

“She likes him,” responded Baekhyun, taking a huge bite on his burger. He didn’t even bother looking at you in the backseat, but Chanyeol sure looked behind to find your obviously blushed cheeks. 

“No, I don’t,” you snapped back not knowing if you were convincing enough. You shouldn’t even try lying to them because it was useless doing so. Baekhyun already knew you were clearly interested in the tall boy who ever so often makes you shake in the base whenever he towers over you. Chanyeol was a little more oblivious because he didn’t spend much time out in the back with you, he was always very busy inside his office. 

“He gave her a stupid nickname,” Baekhyun said raising up the corners of his lips which were a little dirty with ketchup and mayo. He looked stupid. “He calls her Coco.”

“I think it’s sweet,” responded Chanyeol turning back to you waiting for a response. You just looked away not knowing exactly how to get away from that conversation. You weren’t very good with boys and talking about them made you extremely uncomfortable. “Why Coco though?” he looked back at Baekhyun.

“Because she looks like a dry coconut,” he laughed causing Yeol to laugh as well. 

“No! It’s because I smell like coconut, he said.” you explained in an urge to defend your honour, to defend the nickname Sehun gave exclusively to you. “You’re an ass, Baekhyun.”

“Why don’t you ask him out?” Chanyeol suggested as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. You sighed, he would never understand. You could not just go up to Sehun and set up a date. C’mon, the guy was the most handsome man you’ve ever seen. And you… You were always a mess, sweaty and exhausted from work. 

“Don’t be stupid,” you snapped. 

“He likes the smell of your sweat,” Baekhyun pointed. “Shouldn’t be too hard to get him to go out with you.”

“I honestly cannot tell if you’re mocking me or being supportive,” you responded to his mockery advice. 

“I just think you need to smile a little more, you know?” he continued purposefully ignoring your inquiry. “With that ugly scowl on your face 24/7, no one is going to make a move on you.”

“Well, excuse me,” you gasped. It was unexpected to get attacked at such an odd hour. “I smile! I get stressed at work because my boss leaves me alone in the back for eight hours.”

“Don’t act like I always do that!” Chanyeol defended himself from your also very unexpected attack.

“We’re gonna work on your smile and then we can move on to your wardrobe,” Baekhyun continued not giving a single flying fuck to whatever you were saying.

“What’s wrong with it?” you questioned looking down at yourself and finding the uniform you’ve been wearing for the past twelve hours now. You stopped for a moment. Even outside work you didn’t make much of an effort to look good. You didn’t even care if you were wearing your uniform or another tshirt, because you never felt the need to look good. You didn’t care about how others perceived you either. But hearing Baekhyun point out your flawed and lazy outfits was taking a toll on you. 

For the first time ever you felt like you had to impress somebody. If you wanted Sehun to look at you the way you wanted, then you should get rid of the oiliness of your skin, the messy hair tied up in a lazy ponytail, work on a smile… And for when, one day, you guys finally go out, you will definitely need new clothes. It wasn’t about making it to impress a man, it was about looking like the best version of yourself! 

Your reflection ended as soon as Baekhyun stopped listing all the wrong things about your Walmart plain t-shirts. You hated to admit it, but he was… right. You could have a little more fun next time you go shopping and maybe spend a little more than ten dollars on a top. You looked back, finding Baek’s eyes on the mirror and he looked back at you. You could tell by his eyes that he was now smiling. You braced yourself. 

“Did you hear me, Coco?”

[flu-shot]

My pilot survey response for tomorrow under the cut! I could write a whole separate essay on things I didn’t like about sweet enchantment, but heres a hot 1.5k about social issues.

Sweet enchantments has as solid a premise as any other series. I wasn’t especially excited about the high concept, but I’ve always maintained that execution is much more important than format. So I was really looking forward to see what your team would do. I played both routes, even though I’m not attracted to men, because I wanted a fuller picture of the lore. Despite wanting to love sweet enchantments, I’ve found its institutional problems to be too severe. As a survey inherently invites critical engagement, I hope you can keep an open mind to examining these problems.

Sweet enchantments was a strange kind of cognitive dissonance. It’s played as a light hearted café drama, but every element reads as a horror story. And not just because of the customer service work, or the kidnapping. Its implications about race and relationship dynamics were frightening. The lovestruck team has shown that they care deeply about respecting issues of race, sexuality and gender, class, and trauma, so I’m assuming a level of base knowledge here. You know how deeply fiction interacts with life. It’s understood.

To start, Lucien’s route is fun, but the magical alternate world where racism as we know it might not exist isn’t an excuse for how he’s treated as a character of color in our world. His first cg is massively whitewashed, and while the others are better they’re not great. In that first cg he looks vaguely tan, not like the dark skinned black man that he is. Lightening a character’s skin this way is not only unprofessional as an artist, but also as a habit comes from racist norms.

You need to have a sit-down conversation with your artists about drawing people of color. Because while Lucien is the worst whitewashed, he’s not the first. We were all socialized with white beauty standards, but that’s not an excuse to persist with these norms. It’s a demand to resist them. To put it simply, prioritizing light skin and white European features is bad, even if it’s what we’ve been taught. Artists have the ability to look at reference material, to study what they don’t know about brown skin. Art is created. Everything that is done is done intentionally. Palette, filter, and lighting are all generated by the artist, and they don’t exist in actual space. This is not a case of bright lighting. The lighting isn’t real. Even if it were, that’s not how bright light looks on brown skin. The perceived value is just too far from the local value.

Here’s a video on rendering black skin-( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALIBrFzIQ8s)The dude’s clearly a little awkward talking about it, but it’s sweet and technically sound. For more on how lighting black skin works in real space, mic.com has an article called ‘keeping insecure lit:cinematographer Ava Berkofsky on properly lighting black faces’

Runa’s problems are more in the narrative. Many of the lovestruck routes I’ve read are excellent about respecting consent. It’s even been the focus of multiple narratives. So I was surprised by the active use of charm magic here. Please put a pin in this thought- it’s important to pay attention to real life allegories for narrative elements. They will always read as intentional connections. In this case, charm magic jumped out immediately to me as a consent issue. Please at this point jump to planned parenthood’s FRIES- consent must be freely given, reversible, informed, enthusiastic, and specific. By these standards consent cannot exist under charm magic, the same way it cannot exist in any other impaired state of mind. I know this thought wasn’t in any of the producer’s minds, but Runa’s charm magic has the ability to be a magical allegory for a date rape drug. This was a risky choice considering the predatory lesbian stereotype, but I assumed the route would work around it. Unfortunately, her last batch of episodes revealed that she has used her charm magic. Her action on Kamila, to magically intoxicate and coerce her into a relationship that quite probably included sex, is an act of sexual assault. For what it’s worth, Kamila coercing the mc into a kiss is sexual assault as well, and was incredibly unwise to inflict on the players, who have their own traumas. I urge you to not go any further with this route. Oversight that it may have been, Runa is a sex offender. Lovestruck can’t encourage forming any kind of relationship with a rapist.

Individual routes aside, the premise of sweet enchantments has its issues. The choice to set the café as a prison was tone deaf. Particularly troubling is the fact that this prison is mostly inhabited by people of color. The American prison system grew out of slavery and to this day exploits the free labor of black people in particular, and brown people at large. If you need a short introduction, Jaron Browne has an article called ‘Rooted in Slavery: Prison Labor Exploitation’. There is at most one white prisoner in sweet enchantments- I’m not clear on Roman’s race. To have the café set up as the free labor of these prisoners of color, and then on top of that introduce a white mc to save them from their past, is incredibly concerning. Glorifying white crime wouldn’t have been good either, but that’s where we get into the complexity of the penal system being too much. There’s no good way to do this plot.

The penal system is not a light subject. Once again, real world allegories matter- no matter what you do, this is not a new prison system that you’re making up. It will always run in parallel to real life. And prison in America, the country you’re based in, is a corrupt, politically complex, broken, racist system that you can’t hope to create media about with the kind of levity this series is curating. You do not have time to talk about privatized prison, or the school to prison pipeline. Watching orange is the new black is not sufficient research. Nodding to mass incarceration is not effective social commentary. I don’t mean to say that you can’t address the penal system. Lovestruck has handled a lot of complex heavy themes. But the light hearted tone and surface level treatment sweet enchantments is coming at it with can’t do the topic justice.

Also, I realize magical racism is a well-trodden road, but that doesn’t make it good. The prohibition of human/magician relationships in particular hit me hard. The real life equivalent here is anti-miscegenation laws. In my own life, these laws were why my grandparents had to leave the state to get married. These issues have not yet been rendered purely historical. They’re recent, and present in the minds of the public. Real life allegories matter. You can’t have a plot about races not being able to legally marry without invoking real life eugenics and institutional racism. This is another story that could theoretically be done, but never as a fun, quirky subplot as I fear it is in sweet enchantments.

Someone had the forethought to make Liora the warden and I appreciate that. I appreciate that there are so many poc characters in this series, and I’m really hopeful that that’s the norm going forward, which seems likely considering other recent series. Lovestruck is still miles ahead of many other stories. But effective representation requires consideration of the characters’ identities. In this case, not fully considering the implications of the forms of representation in sweet enchantments created some huge misunderstandings and upsetting themes. Diversity without thought is better than no diversity, but still less than true inclusion. It’s a bigger question than percentages. The other day I heard Dr. Dafina-Lazarus Stewart speak, and there’s something they said that I think explains it well. To paraphrase- diversity asks who sits at the table. But inclusion needs to ask, whose seat at that table is in danger? Whose ideas are considered? Who is made to feel that they belong?

Originally, I was going to write this response focusing on ways that sweet enchantments can improve. Lovestruck has yet to actually drop a pilot series, so it seemed like the most efficient option. And in my initial impressions there were several nice things about sweet enchantments that could stand to be played up- the patisserie in Lucien’s route is lovely and well researched, and the plot of overcoming the food critic is fun. Nothing in Runa’s route was super appealing to me, but I appreciated the niche her character would fill. Female characters should be able to have a wide range of personalities, including abrasive ones. But these are little consolation in the face of its larger problems. Sweet enchantment is a minefield of sensitive issues that deserve respect, care, and time that you can’t give to make it even acceptable. While I recognize you’ve already invested time and resources in the series, it needs to be dropped. If you can’t drop this pilot, then there’s no pilot you can.  

[odindiana15-blog]

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[askmeaboutmyrudyard]

Part two

(the second part of me trade, also known as I forgot how to write send help)

Terryn checked the text once more and glanced at the clock in the upper right corner.

[From Terryn] 7pm, Movie tonight @ 8. Be ready

That was what he had written Chris, his roommate for over seven years, online dating status recently upgraded to husband. It was now 8:30, far past the time they were scheduled to be in the middle of enjoying their bi-monthly Date Night.

An unacceptable deviation from their predestined course as far as he was concerned. This was a tradition Chris had started since before they had even gotten together. In the early years, the military had taken its toll on the former nurse’s personal life, and he’d found himself alone with people whose schedules always seemed to conflict with his own. But that didn’t stop the dark days from coming when Chris was a bundle of manic energy barely held together in physical form by old ducktape and chicken wire. During those moments, he’d wanted. Needed, to go out somewhere, anywhere beyond the four-walled prison that made up their apartment. The only problem was he’d needed his plus one, because, when he was joined by a companion he hadn't felt quite as alone.

Terryn had agreed readily enough, not just because it meant free food(though this was a perk), but also he’d felt a bizarre sense of responsibility for his roommate. He had not regretted making the decision.

Fast-forward a few years and a ton of mutual pining and deep soul-searching later, and through it all there was not a date that they had missed.

Chris seemed accepting enough of the delay, drumming his hands on the lobby table while he played Roblox on his cellphone and surreptitiously scanned the crowd for anyone who might be taking undue interest in them, Terryn, on the other hand, was still, eyebrows furrowed, arms crossed over his chest, and quietly incensed.

The theater had managed to overbook their seating, and now he and his partner had been made to wait two and a half hours before they finally saw the damn film. They had received superior accommodation for their troubles, but that was hardly a benefit when factoring the time they could've spent literally anywhere else.

If the cinema had bothered to call, hell, even shoot off a text message or an email, just to let them know that plans had changed, it would have been one thing, a disappointment, but not one he couldn’t have rolled with.

The date would still be on; obviously, he wouldn't have canceled this on Chris, not when the guy looked forward to these things like a kid on Christmas, but there were better places to spend one's time than a noisy theater lobby.

He could have made dinner for them both before they’d set out at the very least, then he wouldn’t be sitting here grumpy and hungry. The only thing keeping him from paying for the overpriced nachos was the thought of what the ingredients had been sitting out in the open, congealing in a cruddy Frankensteinian combination of aged mystery meat and what he supposed was meant to pass as cheese would do to his digestive system.

This meant Chris also went without because Terryn would never subject someone he cared for to food he'd never feed himself. Chris hadn’t shown any interest in the menu, but if they had been in a decent place, he would have already ordered a few appetizers and shoved them in Chris’ direction. He wouldn’t eat everything on his plate, but an attempt was made, and anything was an improvement over nothing at all.

And, to be frank, He hated depriving Chris of food when the man didn’t seem to eat all that much in the first place.

Chris might not eat as much as Terryn felt he should, but he knew his partner could appreciate an attempt at a homemade gourmet dinner. After all who wouldn't enjoy a meal handcrafted by himself, using vegetables cut to perfection and stored inside cans for an extended shelf life, prepared with meats not yet considered unsalvageable, all prepared from a traditional recipe passed through generations of internet users, and stolen straight from the food website with the highest rating Terryn could find? It would have been relatively cheap, and they'd have both been fed at the very least.

Some might joke that he shared a few traits too many with Spongebob's Mr. Krabs, but unlike the crustacean, he could cook on a budget and no one had ever gotten food poisoning on his watch.

He wasn't confident this particular cinema could boast the same, if whatever he was meant to be looking at under the heating lamp was any indication, he recognized the nachos, it was hard to mistake tortilla chips after all, but number of things, one of which might have once been a corndog, were shriveled up beyond recognition.

If he hadn't already prepaid, hadn’t already promised Chris he’d get him this movie he’d have tried to convince his partner they were better off eating out tonight instead (Denny’s was usually relatively cheap and was open 24/7) and downloading the movie illegally to soothe a steadily growing need for petty revenge.

If these people caused a break in their long-held tradition, not only would he be writing a nasty letter to the manager, he would follow that up by typing up a brutal review to anyone, from Yelp to Google Maps, willing to accept his missives. He could not control how the day went, but he did have that happy power to make them regret this day.

Next time, they’d do something more straightforward. Maybe take a drive to a city they’d never been before, take a bunch of selfies Terryn wouldn’t care for but Chris would happily print. Later on, he'd add them to the growing collection of photo albums they had created together(bonus points if the places had any historical value), rent a room at the cheapest hotel they could find, and watch Netflix She-Ra while Chris cuddled up to him in his pajamas. That would have been a nice day.

Instead, Terryn had promised they’d go out to the movies.

“Just think of it,” he’d said earlier that very morning, sleep not yet chased from his voice. “You, me, and the Big Screen.” He hadn’t been as interested in the ordeal as Chris, but he’d wanted to make him happy. “No worries. No interruptions.” Terryn had meant those words, and they’d turned him into a liar. Chris had believed him because there was no reason not to, the shorter of the two was a man of his word.

He watched the numbers on his phone change from 9:00 to 9:01 and wondered if he should surrender to Chris’ demands on Facebook messenger challenging him to a Player vs. Player battle on Pokemon Go.

It was inevitable that Chris would win any match the two set themselves to as the game expected him to spend real-world currency and he’d neglected his team as a result. The thought of keeping Chris contented and distracted was the only thing that honestly made him consider it.

Their waitress came by their table and frowned at the pair who had ordered nothing but the water when it had been offered freely as they waited. He could feel her giving them pitying looks and hear the whispers of the other employees as they went about their tasks.

“Can I get you anything, boys?” The waitress, an attractive thirty-something, who stands next to their table, a notepad in her hand, prepared to jot down anything they might ask. Terryn considers the question if they ordered the theatre would benefit, but she’s been walking by, dutifully refilling their glasses with water every time she’d seen them emptied. He didn’t appreciate being made to wait, but he could be moved by decent customer service. He looks at Chris, inviting the man to order whatever he felt he wanted, before going back to check the time.

“Could I have a coffee, please?” Chis asked, and Terryn could practically hear the smile in his tone. She nodded, marking it dutifully on her notepad and frowns at the two.

“I’m sorry you boy have had to wait so long.” She says, her voice seemed genuinely apologetic. “Thank you for being so patient.” She says this with a curtsey and turns around when they both tell her that waiting was no trouble.

“It’s no trouble.” He echoes, feeling the lie eat away at his tongue, relaxing only when Chris stretched his hand across the table and took Terryn’s in his own, and smiling reassuringly at him.

The redhead takes a deep breath before sitting up, posture ramrod straight once more. He watches their waitress pass through the double doors that led to the kitchen, and he fervently prayed there would be nothing wrong with the coffee she brought back.

Chris’ grip on his hand tightens, catching his attention, and the man proceeds to give him a wicked smile. It’s the only warning he gets before a weight slides seductively against his inner thigh. It’s only his steady self-control that prevents him from jolting at the touch.

That had been a prosthetic leg touching him with familiarly he’d only ever afforded to one person.

He frowned across the table and Chris smiled, innocent as a newborn duckling. Fitting since he’d never trusted ducks in the first place.

There weren’t many patrons, most who walked within their field of vision were viewers moving to and from the concession stands and the packed theaters but the idea that even one person could have seen, well. It didn’t bare thinking of, to be honest.

Chris makes a beckoning motion and just like that he’s walking towards the restrooms, the one in the middle that says ‘Gender-Neutral.’

The doors swung open even as Terryn wondered if following the man was in his best interests.

He noticed immediately upon entering that it was a one-person stall. Chris quickly locked the door behind him.

A shiver struck him straight in the stomach, part fear, part something else as he registered how very loud the pull of the other man’s zipper sounded in the echoes of the bathroom despite the thumping base from the theater. “Chris…”

“You looked tense in there,” Chris said, a coy smirk playing on his face, watching his companion through those stunning eyes. “I thought perhaps I could help you loosen some of that pressure?” Terryn gives Chris a fresh once over, and suddenly there seemed entirely too much space between them. The shiver that’d started up in his belly deepens into a sizzle that rocketed along his spine. Chris wasn’t the most attractive man he’d ever met, but damn him for a deceiver if he ever said the man didn’t touch him in ways no other could. “And if I decline?” “Then I suppose we’ll just be returning to much of the same,” Chris says, and he’s already undoing the buttons to his collared shirt as he allows Terryn to back him up against the wall. His eyes are wide and he holds Terryn’s gaze steadily until they’re lined up, so close a breath makes their bodies touch. “Unless you’ll let me poké battle you into your early grave.” He grins mischievously. Terryn slips a hand under the open zipper of Chris’ winter coat, his palm settling against the man’s taut stomach. The light fabric of Chris’ shirt whispers along skin under Terryn’s touch. “Maybe later,” Terryn comment, and yeah, perhaps he will let Chris slaughter his team later if the man was so enthused by the prospect. Terryn runs his hand down to get a feel at what Chris is hiding in his pants, and the look in his lover’s eyes when he palms him is worth trouble alone. Chris is taller than him, so he takes a handful of that shirt and nudges that soft mouth open with his own. “You like the thought of handing my butt to me, Chris?” He asked, still referencing the game, but leaving his words open for euphemism. "You know it." There’s a challenge in his eyes and a smirk on his lips that Terryn finds captivating. Outside of Chris, Terryn’s never met a gay man so comfortable in his own sexuality before. His palm shapes the shaft thickening under his touch, and he feels the quiver in the press of Chris’ leg against his own. A firm squeeze brings an aftershock, and he considers sucking Chris off until the man’s legs damn well buckle. But then there was no doubt they’d get caught. The prospect of getting caught was probably what set this particular idea off in Chris’ mind. Terryn knew that. But there was more to it. The idea of being outside, where anyone could hear them realize what they were doing after they’d been figuratively screwed over by the theater made it exciting. Chris would only be getting this one time out of him, and then never again. All the buttons of Chris’ shirt are opened now, and he’s tugging both it and the coat free from his arms. Chris looks good when he’s all mussed up, and Terryn’s pretty sure that he's never going to see that darn winter coat and not think about how well Chris looks right now in this moment. "I think it's about time you let me help you,” Chris tells him. “I don’t know…” Terryn responds with a grin, “I’m feeling better with things as they are right now.” He makes it a mission to get Chris thoroughly debauched before his manhood feels the breeze. A nudge to the jaw has Chris tipping his head back, giving it all up as easy as you please. Terryn braces his hands on Chris’ hips to pin him in place and tongues at Chris’ throat until the hands grasping at his shoulders turn shaky and desperate, each clutch of fingers a mute request for friction. He licks a path up to Chris’ ear, breathes a laugh there when Chris’ hips jolt. Lips dragging along the horizontal angle of Chris’ cheek, Terryn goes back in for a kiss, keeping everything slow and thorough, and when Chris melts, he goes like a rumbling avalanche. A hard, full-body shudder chases the low rumble of a groan spilling straight onto Terryn’s tongue and the only thing keeping Chris on his feet is the press of Terryn’s body against his. Feeling lightheaded with all his blood gone south, Terryn can’t keep up the necking forever. He resents his own body for making him come up for air. Hauling their bodies tight, he sucks in a breath that makes his lungs ache and lets Chris have a go at the hollow of his throat. After a moment, he looks down, waits for Chris’ eyes to open, and says, “If you want to continue, you might want to remove the pants.” Dimly, Terryn notes how Chris needs to gather the strength to turn around. He can sympathize; it takes a lot more effort than it should to undo his belt. The idea of Chris fucking Terryn on his knees in the bathroom of a theater, ready and willing, seemed to be turning the man on something fierce, judging by the bulge in the man’s jeans. Chris pushes his trousers down, shorts dragging with them to show his prosthetic leg and bare the meat of his tight little ass. With a mouth pressed to the back of his neck and hands spread at the low of his back, Chris goes up on his toes. A shaky exhale marks the moment Terryn’s cock rubs naked and hot against his skin. "I hope you don’t think I’d consent on taking it raw." Chris' body quivers from a silent laugh, and sure enough, with a little digging around in his trouser pocket, he produces a small tube of Vaseline. Terryn shakes his head and laughs. It shouldn't be so surprising, but it's just so convenient he's at a loss for words. Chris' ankles inch apart like a reminder and Terryn gives him an extra nudge, moving his foot aside until he's indeed spread out and waiting. There’s nothing like making love with someone you cared for, and a rare tickle of nerves flutters around in his belly when Chris is all greased up and ready to go. He discovers that this time he's the one who must steady himself as their bodies line up together.

With the way he arches his back, Terryn knows he seems more than eager for it.

He lets Chris help him with the work regardless, and it's no adversity for Chris to pry Terryn open with a combination of thumb and phallus. Before long, Chris' putting wrinkles into his shirt and jacket, a handful of fabric crushed in his grip to expose both the slant of Terryn’s shoulder blades and the columns of muscle low on his spine. Terryn’s hands smack against the porcelain toilet to give him the leverage to fuck himself onto Chris’ cock, grimacing as he realized what he’d just touched, and planning to cleanse himself fully later on that evening. He enjoys the feel of it pulsing within him and is left frustrated that his body needs time to adjust to taking more than just the head without causing himself unnecessary damage. He feels Chris’ hands reverently traces the curves of his rump with the edge of his thumbs, moving inwards where Terryn’s skin goes from smooth to dusted with dark fuzz to furred with soft curls. Chris spreads his hand out and squeezes where it matters most, all those little hairs catch in the sweat of his palm, and he whispers little endearments that are almost lost beneath the growing compression building up in Terryn’s chest. The heel of his hand digs in past soft flesh to find muscle, and Chris spreads Terryn open until nothing is obscuring the slow strokes that get him closer and closer to bottoming out. When the slide gets more harried, and the lift of Terryn’s hips turns greedier, Chris firms his hold in the back of Terryn’s shirt. The two of them are in Sympatico now, their intimacy firm and slow and finding enough ways to distract themselves from giving in to the urge to just slam it until they come.

They both work to whip it up a little. To keep things exciting: sometimes Chris started randomly hammering at him just to get Terryn’s stability to teeter and make him steady himself, other times it's twisting back and tracing a finger down from Chris' tailbone to where the Vaseline’s got all those little hairs stuck in whorls, they nip and tuck and roll as one.

Chris gives his seat a squeeze again, peeling his hand away and watching in fascination as a ghost of the print appears in the middle of Terryn’s darkly flushed skin, before giving it a little slap.

Terryn kisses him after that last slap across his bottom and knows all the way to the heart of him the two of them are going to treasure this for a long time. He extends an arm out to rest a hand on Chris' shoulder and tries not to think about how things will change.

They work so well together and have for some time now. It’s as hard to conceptualize the future as it is to remember precisely how things were in the past.

So he focuses on the moment as best he can. On the wet sounds they make and his partner's breathing and the gritty burn that comes when Chris grips him firmly and works his johnson with purpose. He slips his hands into the other man's hair and moves, rocking back and forth with his hips and butt to get Chris moaning and enjoy the now before he gives in and finishes the job with enthusiasm.

Pushes out a ragged groan that’s still echoing in his skull when finally his body pulls, rolling in those slow waves that washed away tension as if it had never been.

Terryn rolls half on top of him and returns the favor with a rough hand and slow kisses, and when they’re both sated and sticky, he realizes how very much it’s like stepping onto the edge of a high cliff and having faith instead of a chute.

He wants to believe more than anything that Chris feels as strongly, that  Chris is his Chute.

Chris blinked sleepily at Terryn as he stood up again, helping Chris tuck his prosthetic leg back into his pants and kissing him deeply just in time for someone to knock on the door. He smirked as Chris scrambled to pull up, covering his laugh with a hand. “Stimulating enough for you?”

“Maybe a little too exciting.” Chris shook his head as the two rapidly began cleaning the evidence of what they had done.

He laughed, wrapping an arm around Chris’ waist and pulling him toward the door, thankfully no one was waiting for them outside. “Come on, I think your coffee is in danger of going cold.”

[stone-man-warrior]

April 4, 2021: 1:31 pm:

==========================================

This happened:

I have not seen that kind of thing before.

That might be the very first email I have received on my Google Gmail account that was not a promotional email advertisement or from a government email addy.

I have no words to add, as this whole account has been explaining that I am the last remaining US Citizen in the state of Oregon who has not already been killed or taken captive by the Canadian terror army.

The truth about that email could very well be a SAG Damage Control Scenario designed to mitigate the extent of the situation, from full blown terror takeover of USA at the White House, Congressional, and State Governors of all fifty states, down to smaller situation where it’s simply a few murderous thugs running amok.

Sadly, the email sheds no new light on my predicament.

I do appreciate the email though, no one ever sends me any email.

==========

1:44 pm:

I’ll be darned!

The death threat came to all three of the email addy’s I have showing on the browser!

I was really anticipating that someone would see the email addressed and simply send some questions that would lead to some help arriving, not a threepete of what I already know.

==========

2:06 pm:

Mr. Gooseman,

Thanks for the note.

I am curious if you did what I ask people to do? I see that you did not offer any help in the note you sent me, and I need help, you even say so yourself.

So, if you were able to gleen those email addy’s from this account, then certainly you could find the parts where I say:

“Please send help”

“Please send US Military to Josephine County Oregon“

and you should have found where I asked those other two fellows recently to simply contact US Military and US national Security Administration to ask those people to have a look at this Tumblr account, especially this link here:

https://stone-man-warrior.tumblr.com/archive

So please do that.

I am not able to reach any help by phone, email, internet, smoke signal or even carrier pigeon, the Canadian terror army that controls the state of Oregon has blocked my access to reaching help.

Please, Mr. Gooseman, contact US Military, find a military officer at a military base and ask that person to read this account. You could be anonymous and still do that.

Just send this tumblr entry along with the link so the Officer can know why you are making the contact and not me.

As it stands now, all of the former Trump administration is trying to kill me, many have already died trying to, the Joe Biden Administration is trying to kill me, Ron Howard and all of the subscribers  to his “Master Class” are trying to kill me, Ann & Nancy Wilson have teamed up with the members of Pink Floyd to try to kill me, and I think Roger Waters is the only one of that crew that has not died trying to kill me. Joe Bonamassa, Kenny Wayne Sheppard and the operators of Princess Cruise Lines and Carnival Cruise Lines have been trying to kill me for years ... even Lynsi Lavelle Snyder-Ellingson came to try to kill me way back in around 2007 when I tried to use Beta Twitter to get some help to stop the mass murders that were happening in Oregon at the time.

now, there are no more US Citizens left alive for the terror bastards to mass murder, I am the last one, because no one bothered to send any help.

The baby is on fire Mr. Gooseman, there is no one watching the baby.

Please send help to Josephine County Oregon, and give my regards to Mr. Vance Dutton.

Thank you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5fezBnvkiU

===========

4:10 pm:

https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/voneulenberg

This account is not a popularity contest, and this does not help,

This account is here for only reason, to get some life saving help, to get help to stop the terror take over and mass murders that are happening, to stop the poison gas attacks, to get some US Military to come to Oregon to do their job.

===============================

4:32 pm:

I was sure.

Yesterday I reported about some people associated with Monroe terror cell, and Sunflower terror cell who had brought the exotic birds to use a noise cover for attacks that were underway when I went out to take a walk, and went to get my mail. I reported that I saw a young woman with long black hair who I observed walk towards Dietricks SAG Heroin distribution terror cell at 601 Jackpine, and that I suspect the girl went into the Manning MedDems terror cell at 598 Jackpine. I told of the others I heard but did not see, at least two near the mailboxes on the road, and at least two more either at 520 Jackpine or were hiding in the creek in my yard near the fence at 520. I told about the two people who were at Monroe terror cell at 434 Jackpine who looked to me as if they were wearing disguises to mimic the two Monroe terror soldiers, Sandy and Jeff Monroe and that is suspect the female was Lorena Chapman, and that the male person I saw there could be a person who drives an older light blue color Ford F-250 with Lumber rack, and that truck could be parked at Wesely Crowel’s terror cell at 549 Jackpine, or at Sparacino terror cell at 545 Jackpine right now.

What I did not report:

That black haired girl had burst. She was releasing nitrous oxide into my driveway when I first saw her, then she walked towards the mailboxes from my driveway. I was lighting my lighter the whole time I was outside because I had heard so many people, and some of them seemed to have been on my property at the time, and I knew they had been earlier in the day on my property.

That black haired girl’s nitrous tank ignited while she was at the mailbox area, while I was still on my driveway on approach to my driveway gate with caution. I saw the girl run, and by the time I got to the road, she was nearby Freeberg’s terror cell at 535 Jackpine, and the Monroe’s were hiding out of view at the Monroe driveway, but I could hear them in radio contact speaking to that black haired girl who was over by Freeberg’s at the time she burst. I actually saw her burst. Her blue shirt bulged out as she expanded while standing in the road by Freeberg’s, then suddenly her arms were filled with a yellow sort of orange colored lump of things... it was her guts, I heard the sound of a giant belch as that happened, and she just stood there, her belly burst open, and she caught her guts in her arms in front of her.

The girl walked to 520 Jackpine, looked through the driveway gate there and said “I need Evac”, but there was no response from 520. The girl fell to the ground at that time, then stood back up, hunched over, and began to walk towards the Dietrick/Manning end of the road. I saw her turn around to look at me, and she burst again, the second time it tore her pants as she was standing at the entrance of the Manning 598 MedDems terror cell driveway, about 800 feet away from where I was at the mailboxes.

I turned to get my mail at that time, then when I looked again, the girl was gone.

So, I suspect that today’s email death threat advisory and that follower are support people who may have been nearby at Sunflower terror cell on Russell Road, or perhaps were at Chartrand’s Oregon State Police/Royal Canadian Mounted Police terror cell at 376 Jackpine.

Basically, i suspect the death threat advisory email was a desperate attempt to locate that girl from terror comrades who were not aware that the girl is dead, and since the outcome of yesterdays attack was planned to take possession of my home, those extended supporting terror operatives simply made contact with my email in effort to hopefully find the missing dead female Canadian terror soldier.

Hope: It’s what remains after everything else is gone.

Here’s to Hope, a toast on Easter Sunday.

================================

5:10 pm:

The part about the black haired girl came with a Centurylink terror spy notification.

====

That man I saw driving the light blue Ford F-250 the other day looked remarkably similar to Jeff Monroe, and Jeff Monroe looks remarkably similar to Frank Beard of ZZ Top, just that Jeff’s hair is bit shorter. The man in the Ford was sporting a grey go-tee style beard though, like the current Jeff Monroe wears.

The only way I could be sure if Jeff Monroe is really Jeff Monroe, is to hear him speak. Monroe has a speaking and vocal style that is rehearsed, practiced, honed and perfected. There is something about his particular brand of deception that sort of draws in victims such that Jeff Monroe comes across as the friendliest, most laid back, easy going sort of almost lethargic style that makes him seem completely non-threatening, while at the same time, the man has a cross-bow loaded, at his feet, waiting for the victim to come closer, in range, to take the shot during a friendly  conversation.

Around here, it’s normal for the people to dress and wear professional grade Hollywood style make-up, including custom made rubber masks, the same kind as are uses in movies to make the actors appear as a completely different person The Monroe terror cell is a SAG affiliated terror cell, one way passers by are able to see that they are SAG leadership sponsored terror operatives, is to have a look at the portable Pop-Corn Cart/trailer that they have over there in the yard on display, it even features two giant size letter Z’s on the top.

The reason Jeff looks so much like Frank Beard is not a coincidence, the Monroe’s grow  marijuana especially for Frank Beard, but Billy Gibbons, and Dusty Hill are both dead long ago, having died while trying to kill me, because I am a Medicare beneficiary and they thought it would be a piece of cake to take me out so they could perpetuate and maximize some prescription meds in my name after I am dead, without reporting to anyone about the death. that is how ClubMed is done, and it’s done by SAG members, musicians, clowns, and magicians so they can get high on medicine that belongs to old disabled murdered US Citizens  Jeff Monroe was chosen by the ZZ Top partly because he makes a good look-a-like for confusion service so that Frank can easily deny he was anywhere around here, “it was just Jeff, not Frank”.

Terrorist bastards.

I have a feeling that the black haired girl was the daughter of a celebrity SAG terror leader who came to Jackpine on SAGClubMed Junket, and for a chance to kill me.

My family and friends are all dead too, so, welcome to the club of dead family and friends, assholes. Enjoy your stay in Oregon.

=====================================

8:43 pm:

Local conditions include that at least one terror soldier burst of nitrous ignition a couple of hours ago at Monroe’s terror cell.

I can  plainly see that the current Sandy Monroe has been stationed inside of that smaller chicken coup there at Monroe’s where I have mentioned many times that the chicken coup is a place that houses many electronic listen devices and I can especially see by observation over a long time that there is apparatus that in there that Monroe’s use for making and editing recordings of my voice, how they use the recordings is not something that I know, But I also know that the Monroe terror cell, like all of the others neighboring terror cells is protected by the local authorities. As I report regularly, the local authorities are all impostors, so, there are terror soldiers dressed in police and sheriff uniforms, driving the police cars, armed with police weapons and police bullets and have the keys to the police stations and they also operate the county jail as a killing mechanism filled with terror soldiers inside the jail who are a special assassin team of operatives in there.

So, Sandy was inside of that chicken coup operating the surveillance equipment when the other one burst of nitrous ignition, and she ran over towards the main house there to tend to the injured or dead terror soldier. After a few minutes I heard the sound of another terror soldier or maybe two of them as they launched away, sounded as if they landed on Russell Road out front of Sunflower terror cell.

About twenty minutes ago, another group of terror soldiers was staged and looked ready to start another attack plan from Donkey George terror cell, and others at Strong’s. The one’s at Donkey George’s were sitting in a car, waiting for a signal, I think the signal is going to come from Chartrand;s, as there are yet more terror soldiers there, and they have been doing signals from there all week and today when the attacks begin to advance towards my house.

I am estimating that three terror soldiers were killed in the past three hours, all of them were staged at Monroe’s, yet despite that, there seems to be another attempt under way now.

===========

My leg conditions took a turn into a bad way today, I don’t have an update, the conditions are dynamic and changing rapidly, and very, very painful with no where to turn for medical help.

[hoganleslie93]

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Health Insurance Marketplace, or People and their dependents may need to check whether their life insurance coverage has to pay at some stages after death, such as a terminal illness, insurance experts told the Marketplace. The process of buying life insurance, and by shopping around, can be so complicated that even a novice will not know it, says health insurance experts. For those who don’t know how to buy life insurance, you’ll need to visit the Marketplace or a life insurance calculator online. For help finding life insurance coverage at various stages after a terminal illness, we recommend using our interactive chart for a few simple tips. If the term “med-dependent” or “dependancies may need additional assistance, including home or long-term care, we recommend the use of life insurance before the diagnosis of terminal illness, as there can be an exemption. This exemption requires the person being covered to make a series of terminally important lifestyle changes as they are being treated for an illness or.

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Average renters insurance costs in Georgia are available to you on your mobile phone. To start, you can get an online quote and use the online services you can call for free for an unbiased look at the policy and quotes. But don’t worry! The online tools you don’t need, such as the online quote and comparison tools, save you time and money. The only one time you should be buying auto insurance is when looking for a policy. You’ll be able to find it through your mobile phone’s internet service, which will give you the ability to compare and compare coverage. You don’t actually need to buy a policy on car insurance, but it probably isn’t something to think about, so it’s worth it for you. The best way to save money on a low cost is to compare quotes. Compare insurance rates online. Enter information to try and get the most affordable rate. In , there are several common kinds of auto insurance: liability, .

[mgrotesques]

3 Online Business Tips That Are Guaranteed To Bring You Results And Success!

Online business hints are something I will be sharing with you now. In this column I will be giving you a few secrets of how to succeed and take your both your online business and your bank balance to another level or even higher! you the chance to become rich or wealthy.

Before I provide my online business tips I'd love to say that I'm certainly not guaranteeing your success because that's down to you. Various people will get different results based on how prepared they are to succeed and how much time and effort they put into their business. However, should you follow what I am going to tell you then I will almost guarantee you will get results and you'll be successful so bear that in mind!

The time has come for me to share with you the secrets to success aka my online business tips so allow me to break it down for you below:

1) The first thing you will need to do is do it. I've said it before and I will say it again-if you EVER need to succeed and be rich or wealthy you've got to take action. This may include writing and submitting an article regular or submitting fresh content on your site. It can be any rewarding activity. The rich and wealthy didn't get to the level they're by being idle and telling others to do the job for them. They got damn serious and began taking some serious actions which finally purchased success knocking on their front door. Take action men because without it you'll never succeed.

2) The second point of my online business tips is the idea of consistency. There's absolutely not any use in taking action for one day then not performing Jack all for another month! Take consistent action because this is what's going to lead you onto the real path of success and financial prosperity. If you're reading this and saying that's difficult then believe me, it truly isn't because as soon as you've got the regular set it will look like a natural thing to you. However, if you're saying to yourself you won't take consistent actions, then why bother with a business as you'll never succeed, period!

3) Helping others and giving value is one of my third online business tips now. By helping others you're also helping yourself because you'll be making it easier for yourself to succeed. The"me me me" attitude won't get you anywhere therefore you've got to put the people first and yourself second. By providing value and helping others, not only are you completely adhering to these online business tips, but you're also playing a role in solving people's problems and that's something they'll appreciate and enjoy you for which will strengthen your relationship together. This is a must since the stronger your relationships are, the more it will help you and the more money you can make in the long term!

So in conclusion, as you can see from my online business tips, there aren't really any big secrets to be successful. I guarantee you if you ask anyone else they will let you know exactly what I've shared with you previously, since they're the only true actions to a degree of lifelong success. Don't expect to make a million in one month or even six months since that just won't happen unless you are some marketing Jedi:--RRB- so, be aware of my online business tips since they might assist you in becoming a success that you could also become by clicking on the link in the box below, and taking actions by building your own online business today!

Massage Business Tips for Owning a Successful Massage Therapy Business

Massage business tips are useful for anybody going into this subject. The first thing anybody serious about this line of work ought to understand is that it takes a dedication to enhancing skill level and knowledge.

Successful massage therapists generally set their own hours, and can often afford to be discerning in regards to their clientele. Understanding the fundamentals of good business practices and learning how to market yourself will enable you to succeed. Just like any other kind of job, it comes with its own set of challenges, but a number of the ideas below will help you overcome them.

Training

First thing you should consider is developing the skills which can allow you to succeed at the massage therapy business. Many massage business help will recommend studying with reputable schools such as Cortiva Institute and the Utah College of Massage Therapy.

These schools provide training in an assortment of techniques. Course outlines and the duration of programs differ, but the majority of them can put you on the ideal path. Keep the initial stage of your search area, which is, start looking for colleges in your state. This is such a popular area, that it shouldn't be tricky to locate one or more training centers locally. A Couple of pointers which could be helpful in narrowing your search are:

Is your institution accredited? Talk to recent graduates about the training programs and subsequent experiences in the area Make a trip to the school so you can make your own assessment Promoting Your Business

With your coaching firmly under your belt, you can move on to establishing and developing your business. If you do not plan to visit customers, then you have to take some time to find the perfect place for your business. A spot that's near or within the business community must give the best potential. But, large residential communities shouldn't be overlooked. If you plan to see your clients, a trusted vehicle is an advantage, though it's not always vital.

Standard business marketing concepts apply to this sort of venture also, such as media, printing brochures and flyers, using a web presence and using selectively placed print ads. Of course, nothing boosts your business like favorable word-of-mouth. Consequently, you must strive to make certain that each and every customer is happy with your services.

Some important strategies to accomplish this is to maintain your appointments and be on time and that you send the sort of massage they ask. You might even let clients know you enjoy then by providing discount to ordinary customers.

The Value of Massage Business Tips

This is more than a business, as you are in reality offering a valuable service to customers. This clinic offers many health benefits such as:

Stress relief Comfort Improved circulation Speedier recovery from muscle injury Pain management Lots of people dealing with illnesses utilize massage therapy as part of the coping strategy. Physical therapists often practice these techniques as part of the overall treatment programs. It may improve the outlook for individuals struggling with a range of health care problems so a massage therapist should increase your skills frequently. Staying current on new procedures and taking constant refresher courses are massage business hints worth practicing.

Some other great tips to bear in mind when establishing a massage therapy business include:

Having insurance: Accidents happen so it's important to purchase decent liability insurance to help protect yourself in the event that a customer will get hurt. 

Upgrading your offerings and amenities: Keeping abreast of changes as they relate to best practices in the market shows clients that you're aware of what is happening. This may call for altering equipment and or accessories if they're no longer being used.

Practice great customer support: Repeat clients are a business's best advantage, so build great relationships and treat clients well. Making them feel they are important to you will build customer loyalty.

Before, people felt that the expense of massage therapy was restrictive. This may need to do with the fact that lots of people associated the clinic with luxury spas. These days, almost anyone can experience the benefits of these sessions.

As a therapist, make certain that you make use of as a number of the available tools as possible. Buy excellent equipment, as this will ensure the comfort of your customers, and help to boost your standing as a professional.

Bear in mind that you're not confined to dealing with just individual customers. You can offer your services to resorts, corporate entities, sports teams and health clubs so reading about and using massage business ideas to cultivate your business can allow you to succeed.

[cdrforea]

Internet volunteerism during COVID-19 | Gadgets Magazine

New Post has been published on https://bestedevices.com/internet-volunteerism-during-covid-19-gadgets-magazine.html

Internet volunteerism during COVID-19 | Gadgets Magazine

Niña Beltran-Yap, herself a lung doctor and front liner, contributed some paintings to collect donations.

This year, 26 years have passed since the Philippines first connected to the World Wide Web. A lot has changed since 1994, and over the years the Internet has changed the way Filipinos learn, express themselves and chat, communicate with their families, do business with the government, and promote their business.

The Internet in particular has also changed the way Filipinos help each other in times of need.

Here are some common people whose volunteering has been promoted through the internet:

Free e-consultations for stroke patients

Physiotherapists like Alexander Almonte need to be creative to continue serving their customers.

Almonte was unable to make home visits and announced on Facebook that it was holding online consultations for patients who needed physical therapy during the quarantine. And although Almonte is a freelancer who relies on paying customers for his income, he has made his services available free of charge.

After his post, Almonte received over a dozen PT consultations from home and abroad. "I interview her on Facebook to see what patients need. Then I search for and check online sources, which I then pass on to them, ”he said.

While most of his consultations are with friends, Alex has also helped complete strangers, including a woman whose father recently had a stroke. "I sent her simple videos on how to train her father's upper and lower extremities, how to do balance exercises while sitting, and how to position the bed."

It is important for Almonte to spread cheers in difficult times. "It feels great to be able to help people, even those you don't know. In times of uncertainty, it feels good to be able to do something positive."

As a freelancer, Almonte's income was affected by COVID-19. "Because of the quarantine, business was sluggish because we can't treat patients at home. But right now it feels right to be holding free consultations."

"A lot of them asked me how much I charge. But it just doesn't feel right to charge now," he added.

Storytelling fans collect donations for COVID-19

Since many parents are looking for activities that have to do with their home-bound children, an old form of entertainment with a modern twist is emerging again – thanks to volunteers like Rich Rodriguez who go online and give an old favorite a technical touch: storytelling for Children.

Rodriguez, a training manager at a Taguig-based BPO, has been volunteering as a storyteller for fifteen years. "I've been thinking about how we're already used to online streaming and viral videos, so why not use these channels to encourage parents to return to the habit of reading to their children?"

He recalled the days before the Internet nostalgically: "I wanted to relive those days when we had neither Netflix nor online games."

Rodriguez noted that his live videos on his “Storytimes with Kuya Rich” Facebook page are all simple and straightforward. "No unusual processing. I wanted to do something that looks very simple, natural, and easy to do. I want people to think, "I can do that too."

While reading stories, Rodriguez emphasized the use of facial expressions, gestures and body movements. "It doesn't have to be complicated. All it takes is a little imagination."

Encouraged by the support of his audience, Rodriguez teamed up with friends to advance their advocacy. Now they're also using his Facebook Live storytelling sessions to raise money for COVID-19 frontliners.

"Some people asked me where I got the energy from to be so happy and lively during my storytelling sessions, considering that I do it after work," he said. “I'm just telling them – if you really love what you do and for whom you do it, you can draw strength from there. When it is born out of love, it takes away all exhaustion. I am sure that many parents can refer to it. "

Spearhead fundraisers with art, photos

Inspired by other online fundraisers, photographer Mikki Luistro and his friends decided to make their own.

"I was inspired by a post on Instagram that raised funds for Caritas Manila," said Luistro, who then shared it with his friend Glenn Mendiola, who runs an online printing service called Alternative Apartment.

The result: #AlternativeHelp, an initiative that now involves 18 photographers and artists who sell their prints and photos to provide care packages to the frontliners. (Order form: b.link/AlternativeHelp-Form)

Those who buy prints can help provide “Hugot Packs” to healthcare workers through their partner organization, Help for Health Movement (fb.com/@help4healthph). Each pack contains vitamins, hand disinfectants, handkerchiefs, snacks, drinks and hygiene items for 14 days. It also contains small pointers to appreciation and support from people who send their love to the front.

Among the artists who sell their prints is the pulmonologist Nina Beltran Yap – herself a front liner. “I was asked if I could contribute some of my pictures to raise money for medical care for our front liners. Of course I said yes! We need all the help we can get! "

"I think this project could really help provide PSA to our frontliners – young residents and colleagues, nurses, guards and cleaners who are at the forefront," she added.

Bakers for front liners

Baker & # 39; s Hub Meycauayan in Bulacan had to temporarily close its business due to the expanded quarantine. Nevertheless, owner Rocel Roque-Maningat was looking for volunteers on Facebook who could help bake bread for frontliners.

"Hello Meycauayan baker, may Alam Po Ba Kayo Na bakery Na Want Mag-Bake Ng bread for donations Sa frontliner, checkpoint staff, residents in need? I have ingredients that are intended for the donation of the finished products, ”said her contribution.

The result? Netizens answered their call.

"We currently have four volunteers: Chef Rei Andaya, Dr. Joanna Alag, Flor Exaltacion and Tina Mendoza – owners and bakers who bake bread with the ingredients we provide. These are mainly distributed to people who occupy the checkpoints, hospitals, and barangay personnel, ”she said.

In the midst of the COVID 19 emergency across the country, the Internet is more important than ever. As connectivity is critical in these difficult times, PLDT and Smart continue to regularly provide communications and data services to the public, including professionals and ordinary people who volunteer their services and talents to raise funds for frontliners and those in need help.

connected

[workfromhomeyoutuber]

Gimkit: Customer Support Representative

Headquarters: Seattle, WA URL: https://www.gimkit.com

Hey there! We're looking for a Customer Support Representative to join our team in providing amazing customer support to educators around the world. Gimkit currently is just three people — you'll increase the size of our team by 33%! 

About the Job 

Once fully up to speed, you’ll be the one responsible for providing outstanding customer service and support, primarily over email. You’ll help answer questions on Twitter, create and edit help documentation, and perhaps host some classes. You’ll also have opportunities to carve out your own passion projects related to supporting educators and students. 

While we're helping you get on board, you’ll be expected to be proactive in your process and learn quickly. 

Written communication is a huge part of this role - you’ll write about 100 emails per day. This is a significant volume, so be sure that you’re ready and able to deal with that kind of daily load — you’ll get all the support and guidance you need along the way! 

There are three main parts of this job. The largest is responding to customers and supporting them in finding the information and solutions they need. The second is creating content to help customers before they reach out. The final part is communicating to us. You'll be the one communicating with customers every day and you'll be their advocate on the product development side. 

About You 

You're a great writer and love helping educators. You enjoy making complicated situations simple and delightful. As a result, you're a great problem-solver who can process and resolve issues quickly. You're a stellar communicator, even when you have to communicate less-than-stellar news. 

You're as compassionate and empathetic as they come - you have a drive to constantly help others. 

Deep technical knowledge of computer programming is not required, but you have a solid understanding of common issues with web-based software and how to get information to help us solve them. 

You feel comfortable speaking up about your values. We make change from fresh perspectives and appreciate new viewpoints. Your voice matters to us. 

You love supporting people. This isn’t a springboard into another area at Gimkit. You want to handle Gimkit's support for a while, and you’re excited to contribute to making Gimkit the best product for our customers. 

We strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds and identities to apply. Each new hire is an opportunity for us to bring in a different perspective, and we are always eager to further diversify our company. Gimkit is committed to building an inclusive, supportive place for you to do the best and most rewarding work of your career while being yourself. 

Pay + Benefits 

We believe in fair, living wages no matter where you live. To do this, we pay 30% more than the average person makes in your city with the same role and experience. 

However, tech salaries have gone up much quicker than customer support salaries. If you live in San Francisco and got paid 30% better than the average Customer Support Representative, you would get paid $53,000 a year. That's not a fair, living wage. So, we've decided to pay whichever is higher: $65,000 a year or 30% more than the average person makes in your city with the same role and experience. 

We don't do bonuses at Gimkit. Instead, we share Gimkit's profits across all employees. Typically, each employee takes home thousands extra every year. 

Our benefits are all aimed at supporting a life well lived away from work. None are designed to try to make you work longer hours or force you into staying around for a job you don't like. 

💗 Health, dental, and vision insurance: 100% premiums for you and 50% premiums for your dependents

🌴 Flexible time-off policy with a 10 day a year minimum

🤗 $1,000 a year charitable donation match

❄️ 2 week paid winter break at the end of each year

📘 5 paid days per year to volunteer in Education

👵 401k match up to 6% of salary

🏃 $100 a month health stipend (gym membership, massage, meditation app subscription)

💸 Profit-sharing

👶 3 months paid maternity and paternity leave

🛎️ $350 a month working budget (for co-working space, coffee shop, home office improvement)

✈️ Work remotely. At home, co-working space, or coffee shop, it's up to you. Your salary will adapt to fit the cost of living wherever you live

😔 And while this shouldn't need to be mentioned under benefits, we think it's worthwhile to bring up work-week hours. Only about 12% of startup employees work 40 hours a week or less (https://stateofstartups2019.firstround.com/). We're part of that 12%. We're not interested in crazy hours.

Finally, we think it's important to mention we're not VC funded. We're completely bootstrapped. We're running a profitable, sustainable business where we can afford to pay well and offer great benefits while making something people love. 

If you want to join us in making our customers happy, please apply! 

How to Apply 

Introduce yourself to us as a colleague. Show us your future here! We value great writers, so be yourself, be creative, and take your time with the application. There’s no prize for being the first to submit! Stock cover letters won’t do. Tell us why you want this job. Tell us about: 

Why you want to work in customer support.

A description of a great customer service/support experience you had recently, and what made it great.

A time you taught yourself a new skill to complete a job or project.

Then, pick three of the customer questions below and answer them like you would if you worked here (hint: at this point, we value tone and style over correctness): 

How do you create a Class?

Why does Gimkit cost money?

Does Gimkit have the ability to export a report to a CSV file?

My students told me they completed an Assignment, but it's not showing up on my end.

How do I cancel my subscription?

Email your application and/or questions to us at jobs@gimkit.com. We’re accepting applications for this position until March 15th. 

We’ll let you know that we’ve received your application. After that, you probably shouldn't expect to hear back from us until after the application deadline has passed. We want to give everyone a fair chance to apply and be evaluated. 

We’re seeking fluent English speakers/writers to work with us to answer customer inquiries via email during regular business hours Monday through Friday. 

We’re a remote company, so your location isn’t as important as your fit for the role. That said, we do prefer that your daytime hours coincide with your working hours so as to avoid night shift burnout. Remember to tell us where you’re located! 

We look forward to hearing from you! 

To apply: jobs@gimkit.com

from We Work Remotely: Remote jobs in design, programming, marketing and more https://ift.tt/323gaOJ from Work From Home YouTuber Job Board Blog https://ift.tt/2uc1DUA

[nodesiretogrowup]

A lot has happened with me recently and I need a place to vent.

So I went on my first real date about two weeks. The guy is 5 years older than me. It was nice enough. But towards the end of the date he kissed me. It was my first kiss and it just felt weird. He said I was a good kisser but I really didn’t feel anything. It wasn’t bad but I didn’t really enjoy it either. The whole time I was thinking about how the kiss felt like he was trying to eat my face. I have another date scheduled with him. I would like to feel something for him. He’s nice and I’d be cool with just being friends, but I think he wants more. I’m not really looking for a serious relationship right now. I’m still trying to figure the other parts of my life out and romance isn’t a high priority. But he keeps texting me wanting to spend more time together. I need some space to figure out what exactly I’m feeling and I just recuperate from work (which is another thing that’s bothering me). Since I haven’t really had opportunities to go on dates I’d like to go out with other people to see what I’m looking for in a partner. I’m not ready to be tied down.

Work is absolutely horrid. I have a manager that I never see who leaves passive aggressive notes for me when I don’t do things to her liking and never compliments me for what I’m doing right (I’ll probably have a nasty note tonight because I didn’t sweep up the nasty floor maps which are impossible to clean with the shit brooms they have). She never stays late and expects a lot from me. I have to make sure everythings stocked for the morning crew who don’t leave me stocked “because they’re too busy” which is a bullshit excuse. They have time to cut a few lemons or sweep up before or during meal service. There’s a whole team in the morning! At night it’s just me and the chef, who is too busy with her own stuff to help me even though I help her out all the time (more on that later). When I was working at the other location morning and night crew left each other fairly well stocked. They worked as a team. Day crew is just lazy and barely do their jobs then blame night crew for the things they did wrong. I usually have to clean up after them. On my days off they have one of the morning guys come in to cashier and he does NOTHING. They have me lifting large items which are extremely heavy, which is hard on my body. It’s cause me to have body spasms. I also have to pick up the catering by myself on top of everything else plus I help the chef take out the trash even though that technically isn’t part of my job.. And the worst part is no one recognizes how hard I’m working, not even my coworker. Last Wednesday I had to pick up three catering order, one of which was in another building, on top of getting things stocked which requires me to go outside into the storage room and putting away the heavy water containers. I was exhausted from all that running and my coworker had the gall to say “you look exhausted while I was the one running around like a mad woman.” I am surprised that I had the restraint to not just slap her across the face. Yeah she has to go around the kitchen to get different things and she has to shut down the stations, but it’s all in one fucking place. I'M the one running all over the place! And she hardly lets me get a word in when we talk and when I do she just says “welcome to my world.” My favorite time she does this is when she talks about how much pain she’s in. She fell of her bike about a month ago and is still having pain. She’s running around getting all these tests done and bitches about how the doctors think there’s nothing wrong and about how she’s tired of being in pain. Bitch I’ve been dealing with that kind of shit for THIRTEEN YEARS. THAT IS HALF MY LIFETIME. I don’t want to be the person who makes it a contest of who is more miserable, but it’s so annoying when she acts like what she’s going through is the worst thing ever. I’m just so tired of it. She’ll bitch to the customers about her pain while I keep how much pain I’m in a secret because I don’t want anyone to worry about me. I try to work with a smile on my face to make customers smile because my coworker can kind of be a bitch to them. I want to send out positive vibes because lord knows the world needs it but I’m just so tired. I’m tired of pushing myself when no one appreciates it. I’m not mad at the customers, they are (for the most part) super nice to me AND seem to notice how hard I work. A few of them tell me to slow down and that I don’t have to do everything. I appreciate the sentiment but I can’t do that. There is so much my manager wants out of me and I’m running on fumes at this point. I need some time for myself, but that won’t happen any time soon. They want me to work on Christmas Eve for Christ’s sakes! I’m sooooo not doing that. I’m calling out. I’m just done. With everything.

[autumn-in-phandom]

A review of "How WHITE is Dan?!- DNA TEST RESULTS"

I was riding in the car on the way to the store when I heard a familiar alert coming from my phone. I wondered aloud “Ooo is that Dan?” He was due to have a video out today or tomorrow, but it could be one of the few other channels I’m subscribed to. I’ve been psyched out before. I opened my phone and yes it was Dan and what was more, the word DNA was there. “They were right!” Those psychic IDB members with their “strong feelings” were right. 

I for one didn’t think Dan would make this video. Mainly because he said so himself during a liveshow in the spring, shortly after Phil had posted his. He had admitted to taking the test as well, but the results were so vague and he was disappointed. I could relate, having bought DNA kits for my parents and getting very broad results, particularly for my mother’s side, which we wanted to know more about. 

However, one shouldn’t take Daniel Howell at his word. He could be lying, or in this case he might just change his mind with the seasons. He wasn’t feeling it back then, but there was a hint in his last solo liveshow that he was thinking about ancestry again. The chat asked about “the grandma tweet” and he pulled up the photo of someone’s distant relative who had a strikingly similar face to his. Someone said it could be his great-grandmother, after all his own grandma was adopted. So reasonably, someone on IDB predicted that Dan would work this photo into his DNA video. After all Dan often sits on ideas for videos and then decides to make them when he feels the “the time is right” (or the topic is relevant). 

Dan did indeed choose to make this video now for a specific reason, and while the photo may have inspired him, it didn’t make an appearance or get a mention. Apparently the driving force behind this video was current events. Current events that some fans were disappointed that Dan and Phil had not mentioned. The heated protests in Charlottesville, Virginia were mentioned in the first eight seconds: 

“Hello Internet, in these times when apparently (camera zooms in on his lips) *some people* find it difficult to tell the difference between protesting racism and *racism*, I thought it would be relevant and mildly interesting to make a video about the shared genetic history of all humans by finding out *the origins of my ancestors*.“ (Cue the soft grey filter with fake lens flares, zen music and calm hand movements from Daniel). 

I was immediately intrigued, but a bit skeptical. How was a video entitled "How WHITE is Dan?!” going to positively address racism? Especially knowing that his results were boring, so probably not that diverse. Well, he did it by following through on his topic sentence and actually showing the shared genetic history of all humans through maps of human migration. He also did some historic research into his small percentage of West African DNA. Of course the little sign in the background reading ‘AYY FUCK NAZIS’ and his black shirt with red Cyrillic letters that translate to “equality” were nice aesthetic touches. 

Mind you, the actual factual human migration information comes later in the video. First we have sarcastic philosophical Dan waffling on about lizard people on Pangea slowly drifting apart “metaphorically and physically, until the inevitable nuclear apocalypse blows our planet into tiny chunks floating infinitely into the abyss of space” with a starry falling through space effect. Woah there nihilistic Dan, stay with us. 

It’s okay, there is a quick jump cut that changes the tone immediately. It’s a mention of Phil and his DNA video, complete with a clip of “Science!Phil”. What’s more, Dan says that Phil ordered the DNA test kit for him. Perhaps, it’s just to set up his own reluctance, as he goes on to do just that. For some of us, the idea of Phil ordering DNA testing for both of them (even if it is to use in a video) paints a pretty domestic picture. Though in Phil’s video he says he was given his for free by a friend of the family who is a doctor, thinking it would make a cool video. Perhaps this is why neither of their videos seem to be sponsored by the DNA testing company, 23andMe. Or are they?

Cue relatable slightly paranoid Dan with some sharp humor about “laboratories” and being cloned and replaced “by a compliant artificial intelligence” by Mark Zuckerberg (thanks for knowing the correct spelling of that iPad) or “Zuck”, with a Stephen Hawking like voice saying “I’m coming for you Danny”. Dan of course gave a fake name for his DNA profile (as did Phil), but kept his date of birth. However he admits there isn’t really any point in trying to protect his identity on the internet. Okay, John Johnson. 

“Are you ready! Am I ready? I have no idea what to expect to be honest.” Here’s the part where I have to suspend my disbelief and just accept that Dan pretending to react to these results as if he didn’t view them several months ago does make for a better video. Just like Dan pretending to play Bubble Bobble for the first time on the gaming channel in 2016, when in reality he tweeted about reaching level 100 with Phil back in 2009, did result in a very sweet gaming video. 

 Add a being related to a giraffe joke to the lizard one. I’m not sure if this is really helping the “one human race” thing, but it’s a pretty harmless joke. “Wow. Looking pretty white. That is one blue circle there, isn’t it JJ?” (the blue being European ancestry). Dan is 98.2% European and he jokes that this is the end of the video only a minute and half in. 

Dan drags his ancestors for “literally” sticking to four countries (Britain, Ireland, France and Germany) when in reality those results are lumping Britain and Ireland together because they share so much common DNA, the same for French and German. He is also ignoring that 33.8% of his Northwest European genetics is broadly undefined and he hasn’t gotten to the Southern European, Scandinavian or West African parts yet. But I still found “really got out there and saw the world” quite funny. “Okay someone saw the sun at least” was a good one, though I wish he would have addressed his ability to tan darkly in this video, perhaps in the fair skin section. More on that below. 

More relatable humor about not wanting to hike or get on a boat gets worked in to Dan finding out that he is not the least bit Asian or American. I vaguely recall a rumor about him being part Asian, let’s lay one that to rest. And I remember him hoping years ago that he might be part Native American because his grandma was adopted, but I found that extremely unlikely. Probably just a bit of wishful thinking perhaps brought on by being Team Jacob. 

Now here is the part that interests me the most. On the Ancestry DNA test I gave to my parents, 1.8% was considered a “trace amount”, but in this 23andMe service they give a specific timeline for when each genetic group cropped up and the West African and Scandinavian both span from the late 1700s to mid 1800s, not that long ago. Dan concludes that “a ‘Scandi’ and a West African got it together” (insert graphic of the two countries coming together with a smooching sound effect). I’m not sure if that timeline is definitively saying they were a couple, but Dan’s Wikipedia research supports it and it is an interesting bit of history. 

Segue into a brief farming family reunion story. 400 cousins, I’m sure. Shift to black and white and cue the unexplained mysteries music for Dan’s adopted grandmother mention. Dan “feels like there’s some epic adventure story there for another time”. Sign me the frick up! In fact please just bring your grandma onto one of your YouTube videos. She has always been the one Dan has been most comfortable talking about and even sharing pictures of. (Oh 'helo ther’ unflattering selfie from the Tinder spon on Dan’s computer). 

I appreciate Dan showing the Haplogroup migrations of his paternal line, but in true Dan fashion it included commentary about “presumably wrestling mammoths and getting frozen or something” in Asia and “then buggered off to Europe to get bitten by a rat or something”. “And consistently had sex for thousands of years. Well done ancestors (Dan applauds) truly incredible story. Lord of the Rings. Ten out of ten. Would read again.” Lovely sarcastic Dan. 

 And as he hypes up “the fun stuff”, “weird things about your personality, health and biology”, and “intimate specific information” that he probably shouldn’t share with the Internet”, but he will because he’s “just a piece of meat”, I get hit with a mid video ad of Gwen Stefani applying mascara, because the cheeky bastard made this exactly ten minutes and one second long. (To be fair Phil did the same thing recently). 

Dan has 300 Neanderthal variants, more than 82% of their customers. This is the same percentage as Phil, who talked about his head and brow shape and nasal chambers, but Dan uses this to relate to his “dank cave” dwelling habits (never opening the curtains of his bedroom). Based on his genetics, Dan is not likely to be a deep sleeper. “As I always say, why bother sleeping when you can stay awake thinking about stuff that makes you anxious. Right! Woo!” Dan addressing his mental health with humor, is always appreciated. I can actually see the power athlete possibility. He could be a big strong guy, but “wasted potential” and all that. (Personally my lazy self recoils at the idea of people dedicating so much of their time to training up their bodies to be these perfect machines, but hopeful D&P are spending some time at the gym for their general health.) “Looking at memes and talking about myself” is a great self-aware one liner. 

 Alright “cheek dimples”! Flop. What does this test know anyway? Stop referring to them as a deformity Dan, everyone loves your dimples! Okay I just did a bunch of reading on dimples and I guess they are considered a genetic deformity now a days. However on a social-biological level they may have all sorts of benefits, from being able to read emotions more clearly, to people wanting to procreate with you and not abandoning their cute babies. Dan has also been saying lately that he’s double deformed, but it is actually quite rare to have one side of your cheeks dimpled. (I used to have dimples as a child and all of a sudden they are back, but they are closer to my mouth than my smile lines and may just be from fat. Who knows.) 

 Alright good thing this isn’t a spon, calling the results “garbage”, “pseudoscience” and a “farce” even in jest, might not fly. Dan’s distrust of blonds Tweet is (at least partially) explained. I still think it might also relate to Dream Daddy and it is a mighty coinkidink that it was posted on the one year anniversary of Frank Ocean’s album. Promos all around? We just need to accept that Dan is a multilayered creature we will never fully understand. My husband will appreciate being compared to a unicorn though. 

Dan’s pain kink and weird enjoyment of the dentist makes a resurgence! Please make a full video out of this Dan. We promise not to shame… much. “Scrape me Dad-”. Interestingly enough Phil has an average sensitivity pain but thought it would be higher, hates having his gums scraped and implied his dentist might be a sadist. 

Dramatic build up and disclaimer for genetic health and increased risk of disease section. Feeling very relieved for the low risk of Altzheimers after reading that tear jerking dementia phanfic the other day (though it was Phil with the disease and I don’t think he mentioned it in his video). Dan was clearly worked up as well. He rests his face in his palm and is visibly pink and blotchy. 

He balances the seriousness with an over the top dramatic reaction to being a carrier for red hair, complete with a black and white fake sobbing scene. I’ll admit I found his pause at “So you’re telling me that there’s a chance that I could have children— born with red hair” a bit distracting, though I’m sure it wasn’t mean that way. “There was no disclaimer for this one.” Ha. I case you didn’t know he’s just joking “you beautiful sunset heads, rub those freckles all over me.” Dan has made his love of ginger people quite clear in the past and this tends to start a discourse about Phil’s natural hair color. 

I’ll weigh in on this. Phil was clearly ginger as a young child, just as Dan was blond when he was little. Both of their hair darkened quite a bit as they grew up, each becoming increasingly more brown. It’s harder to tell with Phil because he has denied his natural hair color for so long and seemingly makes up things about old photographs. Did he actually dye his hair before his first day of secondary school? Perhaps it was a bit of bleach that brighten it up and brought out the yellow/orange tones. In Phil’s Tinder spon he did admit to his hair getting a bit ginger during the summer. However by the time of his graduation, early university years and his appearance on 'The Weakest Link’ he had light-medium brown hair that I have a hard time considering a shade of auburn. You might call it nutmeg, but not cinnamon. I have medium auburn hair that has dulled with age, but does get more copper in the sun. But I don’t think Phil can be considered ginger anymore, especially as he chooses not to embrace it, so Dan’s love of ginger people seems completely separate from his fondness for Phil (except perhaps the freckles). 

Moving on to skin pigmentation and the title of his video, “How white is Dan Howell?” He laughs at his genetically light skin. 39% Very fair, 32% Moderately fair and “at most 25% Light beige” and acknowledges his privilege. It would have been a great chance to maturely talk about his ability to tan when he was younger, relating to his Southern European and West African ancestry without making problematic 2010/2011 era jokes. However it seems paleness is part of Dan’s branding now (since Phil has clearly turned him into a vampire). Or it’s just the “never go outside”, “cave dwelling” schtick. We’ve all seen your freckles Dan. 

In conclusion he hopes that people took something away from this be it “the possibility that [he] will have a ginger child in the future, that no one believes is [his], or that humanity has so much in common and we shouldn’t be divided by fascism, or that in the near future 'Zuck’ will be able to target ads to us based on our genetic code.” I sure hope it’s the middle one. “Ayy fuck Nazis”. Still, Dan gives us 20 years before society implodes. Finally he turns a joke about exercise into a confession about crying while reading the news. Seriously, well done Mr. Howell. (Nice promo for the casual and intimate liveshows too.) 

This was a great contrast to Phil’s light hearted DNA results video with Science!Phil, CushionStack.com, buff kangaroo attraction, naked mole rats, Buffy Summers alias, “top of the morning to ya”, Phil’s French ear, German elbow, Swedish eyebrow and Sardinian freckle, alien jokes, celebrity haplogroups, testing out his photic sneeze reflex and short-term memory and talking about asparagus urine detection. Bless Phill. I love him, truly. 

Both Dan and Phil’s videos do inspire me to send off the raw data of my parents DNA to a better company that can give me more detailed results. Maybe 23andMe. I’ve heard good things about the Human Genome Project as well. Ancestry DNA was pretty rubbish. 'Zuck’ and his wife should give these boys some money (if they haven’t already).

[appdesignworld-blog]

Apps Within Apps: UX Lessons from WeChat Mini Programs

WeChat, the most popular social Mobile App Development company  application in China, had 1 billion monthly active users as of March 2018. A product update at the end of 2017 introduced a new significant function from the program: WeChat miniature programs (such as mini games). Mini apps are much like programs, but they're built within WeChat: they believe as though apps within a bigger app.

Mobile site

Native app

WeChat official accounts for that Provider

We wondered how Folks perceive the gap between these different Stations and whether specific jobs are better suited to a single channel than to another. To find out, we conducted a usability-testing research with 10 WeChat consumers in Beijing.

Even in the Event That You won't be designing a WeChat miniature app, the user-experience Consequences of the type of extensible user interface really are intriguing. Traditionally, websites and software programs are closed packages that can't be extended by consumers or third party providers. In contrast, the WeChat mini apps are another experience architecture, associated with goods such as:

Add-ins for broad software packages, such as browser Toolbars and spreadsheet toolpacks (e.g., statistical analysis features which may be inserted into Excel for those few users who perform ANOVAs, without confusing the huge masses)

Facebook Messenger App, which affirms third-party matches, News, and shopping services within the Gamesand Discover segments of the app.

Integration apps Provided by SaaS (Software as a Service) Companies (by way of instance, Slack users can install integrations that let them connect to a Google Calendar event or a Trello card directly from within the Slack application.)

Intro to WeChat Mini Programs

For those not familiar with miniature programs, below are a Couple of examples of What they are and how they work.

Mini apps are mobile programs built for and within the WeChat platform. There are mini programs for games, food shipping, shopping, ticket revenue, home solutions, image editing, and more.

Users mentioned this feature and believed that it would Save storage space on their phone.

Discovery happens primarily from online social sharing and Offline QR-code scanning. Offline, ads with QR-codes promote miniature programs. By way of example, a shopping mall promoted a miniature application for prepaying parking fees.

Mini apps can be accessed in the WeChat home display, but Because WeChat's chief function is chatting, the house screen is devoted to current conversations. To see mini apps, users will need to swipe down from the top; this action shows a listing of recently used miniature apps. Although swiping was easy and convenient for regular min-program users, new or infrequent users weren't likely to detect programs in their own unless they staged down or someone shared a program with them.

5 UX Lessons from WeChat Mini Programs

1. Maintain the core functionality and content that users expect.

Individuals who have used your business's (full-sized) app have mental Models and expectations concerning the material or services you provide. If a miniature version of an application makes it almost impossible for users to find the center content they want, people will use the app they're acquainted with rather.

Of the JD shopping miniature program was not as informative as the JD mobile program:"On the [cellular app's] homepage, I can browse for discount information [she swipes via the carousel of pictures at the top]. It also displays whatever I've seen and bought, and recommends more similar items. All that information will probably NOT be shown from the mini program." She believed that the miniature program had less content, and so she did not want to store on it. Another user, a 24-year-old female, had a similar Issue Using a mini-program version of a food-delivery service called Meituan. "The first thing I do when I open the delivery app is getting a few coupons. That app will automatically demonstrate some coupons every time you log into, and that I don't know if the miniature program is going to do that." She opened the miniature program and was frustrated:"No, there aren't any [vouchers ]. This is all expensive. Also, there aren't as many promotions displayed [in the carousel] as in the business app."

If a mini program can't do everything that the cellular app can, it must Support a handoff solution--an easy way for users to move between the mini program and the mobile app or website to view the full content.

2. Always consider the context of use. On cellular, support Quick pursuits and layout for interruption.

Throughout our study, many people complained that if a WeChat message arrived While they have been in a mini program, they couldn't readily check the message and resume their activity from the program. Rather, they needed to give up the program to see messages. Regrettably, some miniature programs did not save users' progress, forcing them to begin again. Since, in its heart, WeChat is a social-communication tool, miniature programs should be made to accommodate multitasking. To minimize the chance of disturbance, flows should be effective and have minimum interaction price. Here are some suggestions for implementing these principles:

Save users' progress in order that they can go back to a job later. A Racing mini game called Joyful Ball enabled users to save their progress and return to it later. A 20-year-old male user complimented this attribute:"I play it mainly on public transport and in class once I am bored. It is all fragmented moment. This allows me to stop and go back to it without losing my place, which is good."

This type of reminder will help users who whined that they had left something in their own shopping cart. Item from the cart.

Minimize consumer attempt by having good defaults based on WeChat-account data. By way of example, the JD miniature program could automatically fill users' information (address and phone number) on the webpage, because JD accounts are directly connected to customers' WeChat accounts. Therefore, even users who start the JD miniature app for the first time may appreciate"one-click payment" and not have to enter their information.

3. Take advantage of the platform's core functionality.

Many users said that they learned about most mini programs and miniature Games from group chats or by friends. Good mini programs make the most of the WeChat's core functionality, which is communication. By way of instance, JD's mini program promoted bunch purchases on the homepage even more than the mobile app did. (Group purchases operate by providing a discount on a product if enough people agree to purchase the product. When an item doesn't get enough orders, no one receives the item.) The emphasis on team purchases makes sense in the WeChat circumstance, because the platform makes it easy for users to share a link to their WeChat friends and encourage them to participate in a group purchase.

Encouraging users to share is good for your organization. But Don't overdo it! During our testing, many users complained that miniature programs, especially mini games, driven them to share content with other people. Participants explained,"If I need to talk about a game to get rewards and continue playing, I'd rather not even get the benefits," and"Compulsory sharing is your worst." A 20-year-old man user stated,"People will share on their own in case you have really great content -- Don't force me to perform it like a pyramid scheme."

4. Design miniature apps with infrequent users in your mind.

Many of our research participants stated that they prefer mini programs for Services that they only use sometimes, to save space on their phone. By way of instance, a user explained,"If I just need to use the function once a month, I'd use the mini program. By way of instance, dry cleaning. I do not need to download an app for cleaning. I could only use the mini program." Designers must figure out the requirements of occasional customers and tackle them at the mini app directly.

A fantastic example is the SF Express mini application for postal shipments. Compared with the more comprehensive mobile program, this mini program addressed occasional usage by centering the layout around the most common user activity, Schedule pickup.

App (left) featured Program   react native development company  pickup, which was the primary demand for consumers who sometimes used the support; compared, the corresponding mobile program (appropriate ) had many more features. Infrequent use necessitates intense usability and also an emphasis On quick learning, because you can't assume that users will accumulate knowledge about the layout with extended use. Traditional usability guidelines also apply to miniature programs. Here's an illustration from our study:

Design easy navigation for learnability. For Example, Carrefour's miniature program used texts and icons in the navigation bar, which has been favorable for older adults. A 55-year-old male user who didn't even know how to search for a mini program might easily browse different categories and things in this program, since it was easy and intuitive enough.

5. Confirm smooth cross-channel transitions.

A customer can interact with an organization on many different stations: The mobile app, a mobile site, a desktop site, a WeChat mini program, a WeChat official accounts, and so on. Designers should consider that the entire customer journey, providing a smooth user experience across channels.

Simplify channel switching. A Fantastic example is How JD shopping told users once the thing they wanted was back in stock. Since, unlike WeChat official reports, mini programs are not able to send notifications, the JD mini app offered a QR-code of their corresponding JD WeChat official account; after this accounts allowed users to get messages from JD and discover when their item became available. During our testing, a user followed this procedure and got a notification for the VR glasses he wished to order. He remarked,"it's quite considerate of this company."

Deliver some content before requesting users to switch to another Channel. Switching between stations has a high perceived price: users need to think that the transition would be well worth the effort so as to create it. During our testing, 1 mini program required an individual to follow along with the company's WeChat accounts to get more information about its products. Since this petition was too much too soon (she'd hardly opened the mini program and clicked a button), she left the program immediately.

A miniature program asked Users to subscribe to the organization's WeChat account shortly after they opened the program and then clicked on a button on the homepage. 1 study manager left the mini programimmediately.

Offer easy avenues for switching channels. Throughout She wanted to download the cell program, but she browsed and couldn't find any method to access the cell program from the miniature program.

Conclusion

WeChat mini programs are a brand new interaction channel; such new stations can Be anticipated to arise anywhere, any time. Designers must be nimble and adapt their products to these new ways of interaction.

To take advantage of these new microsoft  opportunities, it is important to Know their strengths and limitations. If you find yourself designing an app in a app or designing for limited-functionality channels (e.g., a smartwatch, a voice assistant), keep these points in mind:

Add value to this product based on the circumstance and Frequency of use.

Think about the cost of switching stations and how to create transitions seamless.

Deliver content and graphics for this platform's users.

[jenniferbowley]

Weekly Digital Marketing Q&A – Hump Day Hangouts – Episode 234

Click on the video above to watch Episode 234 of the Semantic Mastery Hump Day Hangouts.

Full timestamps with topics and times can be found at the link above.

The latest upcoming free SEO Q&A Hump Day Hangout can be found at http://semanticmastery.com/humpday.

Announcement

Hernan: Alright, we’re live. What’s up, everybody? Welcome to Hump Day hangouts for the first day of May 2019. We have a really special guest for you guys today, which is gonna be awesome. But before we get into that, I want to go the round robin and say hi to everybody, because we don’t have Adam secretary today. Would.

Bradley: You forgot the episode number? 234.

Hernan: Oh, there you go. Now, you know, that’s why we get we keep them not because he’s handsome. Do you know? And so let me get this in order. Okay, so I got Adam. What’s up, Adam? Are you doing man?

Adam: Hey, I’m doing super well. Thanks so much for having me. But awesome book.

Bradley: But remember, that’s not the same Adam that everyone’s used to seeing.

Hernan: So I get Yeah, I’ll get to that in a second. I get to that. What’s up, Marco?

Marco: Sorry, I was talking to a dead mic. I’m good, man. Mayday. Let’s celebrate communism.

Hernan: Hey, what’s up, Bradley? How are you doing, man?

Bradley: I don’t know how to follow that. So good to go, man.

Hernan: All right, awesome. Okay, cool. So uh, so yeah, in case you guys haven’t noticed yet. We have Adam from Loganix today with us. And it’s really, really cool to have him on board. We have been, you know, promoting his products and whatnot with great pleasure. And it’s a great pleasure to have Adam. And you know, before we go into that I wanted to give you guys a round down of announcements, which I got from our main man, Adam Moody here, which is basically if you’re new to Semantic Mastery, welcome. Don’t forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel. If you’re watching this on YouTube. If you’re watching this live, thank you for being here. If not, don’t forget to subscribe and whatnot. If you want to get a repeatable step by step system to rank your websites, don’t forget to get the SEO Battle Plan which you can get by going to https://www.battleplan.semanticmastery.com.

You can also go to mgyb.co for all your done for you SEO Services, everything that you need over there. And if you’re ready to take it up a notch, you can always join the Semantic Mastery MasterMind which is pretty awesome. We have local business owners and agency owners and that is pretty cool over there. And I just wanted to give these guys you guys a tease about this is that we’re getting a facelift on our flagship GMB program. So we’re going to talk a little bit about that later on as well. So with that being said, I think that I didn’t miss anything that I missed anything, Bradley?

Bradley: Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Hernan: There you go subscribe to our YouTube channel. So with that being said, we have Adam Steal from Loganix. What’s up my man? It’s great to have you here. We’ve known each other for quite a while, right?

Adam: Yeah, I think we’ve sort of mutually been following each other. I don’t know probably since what I want to say 2012, 2013

Bradley: something like that. Yeah. Yeah, we’re all guys been in the industry. Well, Semantic Mastery. We started this as a company, I think in 2013. Or maybe it might have been. Yeah, it’s been a while. So it’s been a while.

Hernan: So and I like that T-shirt that you haven’t, man. It’s pretty cool. Yeah, it’s pretty good.

Bradley: You got it. You got it. Alright, so So yeah, so just as a proper introduction, Adam is the owner of Logan x Loganix not I asked him he said Potato Potato. So but you guys know I’ve talked about him a lot. Hands down. It’s the best citation cleanup service out there. And also, he’s got the monthly citation building which is really nice as well as social profiles and you different types. They’re both structured and unstructured citations that get built, it’s really good service. It’s like the Cadillac of citation services as opposed to you know, the other services that are much more like compact cars are the way I look at it. And so typically when I have any clients that need citation cleanup, which happens fairly often, you know, that’s I always go directly to him, even though there are other vendors out there that might do stuff cheaper, they don’t get as good as results.

And so, you know, by the way, citations are not the only thing that he does over there. That’s just typically what I talk about because that’s the service that I use the most but I know that Adam has put a lot of work into recently adding a lot of additional services and more higher-end services as well. So if you guys haven’t had a chance to take a look at it, I am going to drop my affiliate link semanticmastery.com/loganix and you can go see what all kinds of services he has. Great white label service guys, again, if you’ve got, if you’ve got lower end clients, you might it might not be the best time idea for you but a lot of you guys are doing well with your clients and it’s a great service because it’s it the reports are beautiful all of that so I can’t say enough good things about Logan extra service.

Adam: Thank you, Bradley. I appreciate that. Very kind.

Bradley: So with that we also you know, I guess Adam you got anything cooking on your end like is, you know, anything new services that you want to talk about or anything that you’ve been in, that’s been in recent development or anything industry, you know, industry news or industry related, I should say that you’d like to shine some, some of your expertise on right now or what?

Adam of Loganix

Adam: I guess it’s a little bit of both. For starters, I’ve been heads down focusing on the link building part of our business, trying to cut the list that we the lists that we previously offered sometimes ala carte sometime previously, by domain authority. Here, we’re selling a lot of stuff that was your typical guest post stuff like, you know, you go to the site and you pull up, say, the last most recent 10 posts. And it was like, super, super obvious. Oh, yeah, this is a paid guest post site, or they do paid guest posting. And so we’ve sort of more or less read our list of that going from, from somewhere of, I don’t know, somewhere between 50 and 100,000, give or take, give or take 10,000 sites on our list to something a lot smaller, somewhere to the tune of, I don’t know, five, six, maybe 700 sites total. And we just reply to very strict criteria, both quantitative so metric related stuff like they have at least 500 monthly organic visits as per Ahrefs and more qualitative stuff like pull up the last 10 posts, read every single one of them. What’s the content quality, who was the author? Where’s the author from? What else have they written? Is their social engagement? Are there comments? Who are they linking out to go check out the site they’re linking out to etc, etc, etc. So just making sure that it’s not, it’s not stuff that’s going to get our customers in trouble down the road. So that’s my life has pretty much just been that for the last three or four months and probably for the foreseeable future.

Possible Paid GMB In The Future

So there’s that and then on the news side of things, something that’s kind of caught my attention lately and I’d love to get everybody’s opinion on it is paid GMB in the future. Are we looking at a future where we’re paying? Our everybody in GMB is paying per lead? Are we looking at a future where we’re paying a monthly fee to have a GMB? What does that do to fake listings? Are they gone or do people just pay or that kind of thing? So my team and I have been discussing that at length the last few days. I think a few tweets from some folks brought that on. I think Alphabet had some pretty not so great. Well, it’s still commendable gains, but people are now saying that okay, well, now they need to find a way to make more money and maps is on their hit list, supposedly, oh, and there was some sort of a survey that they had going around. I didn’t personally see it. I saw screenshots up, but that they were basically asking questions about how would we pay for GMB? What we’d like to see all that kind of stuff. So it sounds like it may be happening sometime in the near future.

Bradley: It’s in the pipeline. Possibly. Yeah. Yeah. You know, I think it’s, there’s it’s multifaceted why they don’t want it, you know, could be because they want to generate more revenue, but I also think it’s also a way to combat spam. You know that whenever the mobile first index occurred in July last year, it opened up this huge, huge, like gaping hole for spam GMBs. And you know, a lot of us have been taken advantage of that. And so I think that you know, and we knew that the days were going to be numbered, it was that it had a limited shelf life.

But we’ve always said, you know, it’s quite a while you can, and, you know, I’ve been, I’ve assumed that one of two things were going to happen was one that it was it could go paid, which would eliminate a lot of spam listings right off the bat, because a lot of people aren’t going to pay for spam listings, if they’re not generating real revenue for them, or people won’t attempt to try to start new ones or number two, would be to require a lot more verification, like submitting corporate documents, for example, in order to get a to register or verify or profile, that kind of stuff. And so, you know, I think that I think that they’re going to do whatever they can to kill the spam side of it. And, you know, we’ve seen a lot of changes over the last maybe six or eight weeks now where, you know, they’ve done things to try to prevent that. And it seems like, you know, it’s the cat and mouse game Adam that we always play, you know, it’s that they, they close one loophole, and we find it somewhere else, you know, we crack the code somewhere else. And when I say we, I mean, all of us in this industry. So, you know, I don’t, I feel like even if they do go that way, there’s still going to be an opportunity.

I mean, for example, I’ve got a number of lead generation assets that are produced very, very well for me that I’d be willing to pay for. There’s no question. And I think if you approach it that way, it’s just a cost of doing business, you know, you work that into your overall costs for you know, and pass that off through your the cost per lead and that kind of thing, if you’re going to do it that way.

Number two, I think that even if, even if they do that, they’re still always going to be workarounds that we’re going to be able to, you know, figure out and again, when I say we, I mean us as an industry as a whole, not just us, you know what I’m saying? So, you know, again, it’s, every time there’s a big change in anything that has to do with Google especially, it’s like in you know, Adam, you’ve been around for a long time. So you get this, but this is more for our audience’s benefit. A lot of people run around with their hair on fire, like, you know, the sky is falling, the sky is falling, it’s not the case. It’s, you know, even if it’s a really big shakeup, let the dust settle, figure it out, you know, take a few deep breaths and then work through it and always find additional opportunity. At least that’s my opinion. So, Marco.

Marco: I’d like to first and foremost, post to us. Google being broken, of course, I’ll let me have a drink. Because every time they do something stupid, they open up another stupid door. And, you know, stupidity kinda. It’s kind of like a domino. stupidity Domino, so whatever it is that they’re doing somewhere along the line, guys, we’re talking about if we knew that how huge the algorithm actually was, right? And everything that they were trying to control, because every time they tweaked something, something else breaks. And that opens a gaping hole. And so we’re going to take advantage of that. And then there are things that they just literally cannot control. Because I’ve mentioned this before. It’s part of how the web is built. Fundamentally, there are things that they just cannot do, no matter how much they try, when I want to call it whenever MSN, right? When they try to control it Explorer, and they try to do things their way. It didn’t matter. I used to have to code for whatever version of Explorer they were doing because they were trying to go against the W3C and do things their own way. How did that work for them?

Where’s Explorer now How? How’s that? Where’s Edge? I mean, I know its Edge, they had to get rid of the Explorer name, because it sucks. And SEOs, we found a way around everything. That’s what we do. That’s our job. Or, at least for me, my job is to manipulate to find ways to manipulate them because they manipulate look at it. Now that now, it’s an IF. So, we don’t even know if it’s going to happen. But you know, it’s obviously something that they’re thinking about whether it happens or not. I mean, if we have to pay for it, we will just charge our clients a premium. And, yeah, they’re going to piss off a whole lot of business owners. And I want to see what happens behind that. So I’m kind of looking forward to it.

Adam: Preach.

Bradley: Yeah. So and, you know, I mean, it’s interesting is it, whatever happens, well, you know, we’ll figure out a way to still monetize it. This is what we do. Like Marco said, so, very cool. Well, just out of curiosity, Adam about your, your link building services now that you’ve been focusing on building now is it Have you noticed a huge difference since you started really working on the quality of them and in the rank, you know, the, the boost that it gives to ranking with the effect that it has on rankings and even traffic for that matter? Because I know and, again, I’d like to get Marco’s opinion on this. One of the things that we all know works really well is not just having links anymore. It’s having links that have a true engagement to you know, so activity, relevancy, trust, and authority. That’s Marco’s ART. You know, and so the fact that you’re going out and not just finding places to place links, but also places that have real traffic and real social engagement and that kind of stuff that has to have a significant effect and have you seen that like, you know, consistently?

Adam: You know, Yes and No. I certainly can’t point to any beta or anything like that, or tests like good tests that would sort of conclusively say one thing or another, just because most of the sites that we’re working on are not, not our sites, their agencies, and those agencies, this is their, these are their clients, and they could be doing a million different things at the same time. So it’s very hard to, you know, to conclusively say one thing or another.

A lot of what we’re doing is, is sort of based on our own theories we’re trying to imagine, okay, you are a Google manual reviewer. You’re performing a snip test on this site, what are you looking for? What do you not want to see? What do you want to see that kind of thing? So that’s, it’s very theoretical. I also think what we were doing previously using topical, like niche specific sites, but ones that certainly engaged in a lot of paid link building like Like I said, before, you pull up 10 of their recent posts, and eight of the 10 were definitely paid. And the two were actually data. They were organic, they’re written in house kind of thing. I think that’s still working. I think results-wise, I think that’s totally still working, I’m not seeing necessarily any more results, per se, have a site up a similar traffic, but what it’s forced us what all this sort of scrutiny has sort of forced upon us is, we are now working with sites that have much larger amounts of organic traffic and engagement. And while we may not be necessarily seeing better rankings per se, what we are seeing is actual referrals from these sites or get a referral showing up in Analytics. And in the case of you know, we do a little bit of link building for our own site. And in the case of us, we’ve seen actual money come from this and that I think that’s the, it’s great to increase rankings and everything, but the real sort of cherry on top or icing is, is, is when you get referrals and you get the actual sort of return on investment, if you will, that shows up in Analytics.

Bradley: Yeah, well, valid, relevant traffic, you know, from referral traffic, if it’s relevant traffic that can convert, you know, and as opposed to just having links, which can help rank and obviously then when people search for specific query, have they find that, you know, that helps conversions too, but in kind of like a two-step approach versus you know, having relevant traffic coming through links from very well placed links, you know, what I’m saying? Like, I think there’s a lot of benefit to that. I mean, that’s the bottom line. Rankings don’t mean shit. It’s the revenue generated from them that we all want, you know what I’m saying? So I think that’s cool. Marco, you got any comments on that before we get into questions?

Marco: No, I mean, he hit the nail on the head. Because I talked about this last week, right? That when we did the Syndication Academy updated and MGYB. Google is looking for for the finish, right? It’s looking for that person that coming through that referral to finish whatever tasks were set for them to do. So they land on your website. That’s one thing. But if they bounce, well, it was useless. Because that person did nothing for even though it was relevant and might have come from authority and trust nothing. What happens is that that activity is measured it and I mentioned it that you need to set right remember we talked about this you need to set the goals you need to add Analytics, Google Tag Manager that a Facebook pixel. Everything so that everything is picked up and that person is followed all the way through. And what Google wants to see is they want to see that finish. They want to see that call. They want to see that form fill. Or if you have in them download a PDF or whatever in exchange for an email. All that action is what actually sends. It finishes the signals is the cherry on top, right? Because I mean, Google, and we mentioned this with YouTube ads. Google is sending people through YouTube Ads to you to see what it is that they’re going to do that doing the same thing. If you have Analytics on your website, you have Tag Manager, you’re following them, you’re cooking them, then, of course, they’re going to be followed and everything that they do is going to be seen. That’s the art of ART – activity, relevance, trust and authority activity on the link. How did they act and react when they got to the destination? Did they finish? Did they leave it halfway? Did they come back? That’s why it’s so important to have a cookie. Because the person may not finish the action on that day, but let’s say they came back 15 days later, I still counted that cookie. Right? So that’s why we want all of these things so that we sent. This is one of those times where you definitely want Google to get all of these signals. We hide a whole bunch of shit from Google. Right? Tier two and out, putting your golden frame in your tier one, branded, you want Google to get as much information as possible about what people are doing when they engage with your links off-site. And when they come on site, how they engage with, I saw on his t-shirt with content, right with links, how do they engage with it? Do they like it? You know, Google, you can bet that the following that heat map the following that person. They’re seeing everything that person knows that’s the most important part of the links played a vital role in this because how else is Google going to get those signals? If not through links?

Bradley: Well said my man, all right, well,

Adam: I was hoping I could just add one more thing to that. We’ve been doing in order to get all these new links, there’s a tremendous amount of outreach that is involved. And one thing that we’ve seen not only improve the amount of referral traffic that we get from these placements, but also the conversions themselves is an actually on the outreach side of things. The sort of the amount of emails we get back accepting our content is when we go to these websites, I’m certainly not the one to, I didn’t create this or anything. I think I heard of it at a conference. But what we do is we reach out and we do a little bit of keyword research in advance, and so will identify keywords that are relevant to the content that they’re already producing that they’re not presently ranking for. And we’ll approach them with that information and say, Hey, you know, here’s a couple of pieces we’ve recently written, they’ve received good traffic, we’ve noticed you don’t rank for this particular keyword, we think we could write something really great. And with the sort of domain authority, etc, that you already have, I bet if we put together a piece of content for you, that is specifically optimized for those keywords that you would get more monthly organic traffic out of you know, out of the the the deal. And with that, we found a lot fewer people coming back to us and saying, okay, sure, but I want 200 bucks, which sucks. But and then, of course, you know, people, the actual people that read it are more engaged and more likely to click and more likely to do something on our on my site. So I found you’re very valuable.

Bradley: You pitch it to them as it will benefit and their overall organic traffic numbers as well, potentially. Right?

Adam: Yeah. Because everybody else that’s reaching out to them typically is not really thinking of how does this make them money? So I look at how are they monetizing? Is it AdSense? Is it what is how are they making their money? Can I put something together that will potentially make them money? Because then they have no reason to charge me because I’m putting something together that will potentially make them money.

Bradley: Yeah, I saw that long term money versus or recurring revenue. You know, for example, obviously, if they’ve got ads on their site, and they’re getting ad revenue, then you know, a piece of content that ranks well and gets organic traffic consistently over time, that’s going to actually produce a hell of a lot more than $200 for one guest post, you know, that nobody ever sees really, you know what I’m saying? So, yeah, I totally get that. What is it? WIIFM – what’s in it for me, right? Yeah, so very cool. All right. Well, look, we’ve got not many Questions can compare to what we usually have them. I’m pretty surprised. But we’re going to actually go through the ones that we have. And if we need to wrap it up early today, I’m cool with that too. So let me actually grab the screen and we’ll get into it. Is everybody cool with that? You guys cool with getting into questions? Yep. You guys are quiet today on Hump Day Hangouts. You better post some questions or we will wrap it up early, just so you know, which would be like a first. That’s okay.

Possible Reasons Why IFTTT Turns Off T2 Recipes In Some Older Accounts

Bradley: Um, so the first question comes in from Lloyd, he says I have some older IFTTT accounts and when I went to login to IFTTT, I noticed all my tier two recipes have been turned off any idea as to why too many RSS feeds so IFTTT turns them off because it looks like spam. All are enabled, so it’s working fine now, I don’t know that’s I mean, I saw the post in the Syndication Academy, Facebook group about that. I think, Lloyd I don’t know if it was either posted it or what but I saw I saw a similar post about that. Well, other people commented and said the same thing. That would be a question that I would directed IFTTT. I’m not sure why that is. I haven’t experienced that. Well, I mean, of course, I haven’t gone through all of my different networks that I have running to see if anything’s been turned off. But the ones that I have seen recently that, you know, I, I haven’t seen that problem. So I don’t know why that is.

I know that typically what happens if they’re going to turn off recipes or athletes as they’re called now, you, you usually get email notifications prior to them turning off, like if there’s a reason that they’re going to turn them off if they need attention, for example or something. Or if they turn them off, you typically get a series of emails saying, you know, that an app that’s been turned off or disconnected, and it needs to be reconnected. So usually, there’s some sort of warning signals, if they just arbitrarily turn them off. I don’t know why. And that again, would be something that I mean, if I had an answer for you, Lloyd, I’d certainly give it to you, but I don’t so that’s something that obviously I don’t work for IFTTT, I would direct them. That sort of a question to them to their support and see what their explanation is for that. So

How Do You Add Flick Or Nimbus The Same Way We Add @id Pages On Amazon S3?

Alright, the next one is Fitz. What’s up Fitz? He says, Thanks for always answering questions on hump day it is appreciated when we add new sites like Flick or Nimbus or any other new sites, how do we add them? SameAs for @ID pages on Amazon s3. Okay, well, that’s that’s a simple one fits. You know, here’s an example. I pulled this up earlier because I saw your question, I use that technical, technicalseo.com Tools Schema Markup generator, usually, when I’ve got to produce the code for local business, you know, structured data, and right under here is the social profiles. So for each one of these, you click now it’s got a label here, but if you take a look at the actual code, there is no label. So it doesn’t matter what these things say or what the icon is over here. They’re just additional links. So when you and I know it’s probably small on your screen, guys, but if I were to take this code, and I didn’t grab all of it, but let’s just take this code for him. minute, and pretend that it was already all filled out with the information that I was going to. Let’s zoom in on this for a minute. Give me a minute. Okay, so all you gotta do is right here would be your same as URL, right? So loose HTTP, sameas URL, right? So all you would do is just add more of these, right? So just it’s a tab, then it’s, quote, your URL and quote and then a comma, and you leave the last comma off the last SameAs URL in that section of code. I’m not a coder, so I don’t know what that all that shits called. I just know how to fumble my way through this stuff when needed. So my point is, you can add as many here as you want. Now, I typically recommend just adding tier one branded profiles. Citations can work too, but I usually will only add you know, top level like the citations that are really powerful.

But yeah, you can add, you can add as many of them in there as you want. Just remember the last and it just go validate it, check it in a structured data testing tool to make sure you didn’t make an error somewhere. But it’s really simple to do. And then the last thing is all you got to do is go update if you’re talking specifically about like an HTML page, hosted an Amazon S3 Bucket, all you gotta do is just update the index dot HTML file. So go delete the original file from the bucket and then upload the new one. And that’s it. That’s all you should have to do. Okay.

Marco: Yeah, Bradley, I like using James Flynn’s website. Okay, because he gives you the sameas code. All you have to do is enter the URL.

Bradley: Right? Well, that’s what this does to. You just put the URL in here and it puts it in as the same as right here. Do you see that? Marco: Okay. Yeah, yeah,

Bradley: all I was saying was, there’s a limited number of here that they’ll give you so like, even if I checked all of these, and these are the fields where you enter the URL in and it will you know, populate over here. But there’s a limited number of fields. So if you have more than that, all you got to do is just copy the code, put it into a notepad file or use Notepad++ and it formats it better. And then you can actually just copy you know this and paste it in underneath and just keep adding as many as you want. It’s real simple. It’s not something that should be difficult. So all right. Good question Fitz.

How Do You Rank A Siloed Out Playlist Aside From Using Google Ads?

Next one is DANDAMN. I don’t know if that’s it or not, but it’s a look looks like for a new YouTube playlist. I was going to get views, comments and the like. But I’ve been told this is no longer effective. embeds of the obvious next thing to do is there too much when it comes to embeds to move videos up in the SERPs? What is your most recent way to rank a siloed out playlist aside from Google ads? For some reason the ads I have spent a considerable amount on and have seen no bump in my rankings. I use a method shared by Bradley in a webinar for video ads to no avail. Well, it’s going to depend on a lot of factors, then. I see. I mean, I got,

I got one, in particular, I’d love to show you right now, but I can’t because it’s for a project I can’t reveal at the moment. But I’ve got a project that I’m working on right now that I haven’t done any SEO to other than it went out to a tier one branded syndication network, which is a brand new network because it’s a brand new project. So and it’s just one branded syndication network. And all I’ve done since that is set up an ad for it, and it’s ranking on page one for a fairly competitive term. And so again, I see that is against my standard operating procedure is to set up ads, if you’ve got your targeting set correctly, you will get a bump from that. There is absolutely no question about it. So it also obviously, the video has to be optimized properly as well. So if you’ve got those two things, right, so you’re on page correct. And then you’re setting up your targeting correctly when you’re driving traffic to it from YouTube ads. Those are your buying engagement signals from Google.

It will work. Again, it’s it’s likely that you’ve got something that’s not completed or not optimized well and it could be the ads not optimized well or the targeting. Or it could be the video is not optimized well or could be an Uber competitive term. But that said, when it comes to using the YouTube playlist, that’s essentially the YouTube silo method, right. So the idea there is to create the silo with your the term that you want to rank for if it’s a broader term, then go find all the supporting keywords and then create similar videos that are supporting videos like supporting articles would be within a silo and put the place them on the playlist and there are different ways to link to do the internal linking from within the playlist to help to boost whatever video it is that you want. I would recommend that you know, don’t just link from the video description up to the like the top of the silo which is the video that you the keyword that you want to rank for the most that should be the top of the silo. So video number one in the playlist, then all of this success, the subsequent videos right so

Those would be the supporting articles essentially the supporting videos are going to target longer tail keywords that would are in that same keyword theme. Right. So that same silo essentially. And then typically people would just link from the video description up to the video that they want or daisy chain them together so link from one video to the next to the next. And then at the end link back up to the top of the silo that that works too but use comment links, because comment links and by the way, you can pin those but comment links are at least they used to be and I haven’t checked recently but I don’t think it’s changed or do follow links when their YouTube links from YouTube the YouTube comment links there do follow links so use those as well. Okay, so not only link from the video description, which is typically nofollow but not linked from the comments and then you can actually pin that link as a pin to comment so that you’re it stays right below the video at all times. Okay, so check that as well as far as views comments in the like, if you’re buying spanned views like, like you go to a view service, or and by comments and likes that way, Google’s algorithm or YouTube, our YouTube’s algorithm knows that those are fake accounts now that are doing that, because they don’t have any real activity, like the algorithm can detect that stuff. Marco can go on and on and on about that, you know, to confirm what I’m saying.

So that’s why I always recommend buying relevant traffic from Google directly. Because then you’re likely to get real comments, real likes, perhaps real subscribe and you’re getting views from real people. Google knows those are real people. Because you’re buying traffic from Google, from known buckets, right? known buckets, meaning known audiences. And that’s the whole point. If you’re buying spammed faked engagement signals, the algorithm can detect that and it just basically disregards it’s not that it harms it anymore. Like is I just think it’s ignored. So you know,

As far as embeds, you can go crazy with embeds, you can go ape shit with embeds if you’d like. My assessment has always been and has been for a long time now though, if you go out and build, you know, 10,000 backlinks to a video or get 10,000 embeds for a video that has very few views, then is that natural? No, I mean, you can still brute force SEO stuff, doing that kind of stuff, especially with videos, you can still get away with that. But in my opinion, it’s a lot better to do smaller embed last like 50 or 100 embeds at a time on like tier one embeds, then maybe do some tier two stuff and then send some traffic into that kind of like what we were just talking about at the beginning of this webinar, right? Send some traffic to some of the pages that the videos embed, embed it on to get views on those pages, that kind of stuff kind of activates the whole process because now it’s looking as instead of just being a spam SEO tactic, it’s actually getting those engagement signals and YouTube you can rank with engagement signals alone from you.

Guys, there’s no question. You rank within YouTube and Google, you might need some more traditional SEO stuff as well. But engagement will help it to rank in Google, you know, Google search as well. So does anybody want to comment on that? Adam, you got any YouTube experience SEO stuff?

Adam: Which said about the ads, this is what I’ve done in the past. And that’s definitely so my goal, especially when I don’t have an audience or my client doesn’t have an audience. It’s a pretty quick and high-quality way of getting some engagement. It’s not always good engagement, in the sense that sometimes the comments aren’t exactly what I’m looking for. But engagement nonetheless. And indeed, I’ve seen that on multiple occasions impact my YouTube video rankings in the Google SERPs. So I certainly agree with that.

Bradley: Yeah, and so you know, again, with local guys, if you ever geographic targeting set you can go broader with your topical targeting, or your audience target. You know, I prefer audience targeting over topical targeting. But you can go broader with that as long as you have a really tight geographic area because then you’re getting if you’re getting clicks, engagement signals from local IPS, so your your geographic relevance is more important than topic for audience relevance, in my opinion, if you’re trying to make a local video, if you’re trying to rank something that’s more global, or you know, national, for example, then it’s much more important in my opinion, well, first of all, you still want to have local IP clicks and what I mean local is local to whatever your local area would be. If it’s like if it’s if you’re looking to rank for a US-based term, you’d want your, your location targeting to be united states, for example. But what I’m saying is topical or audience targeting at that point would be more important in my opinion, because I’ve been able to achieve really good local video or local keyword rankings with videos by just using kind of broader topical or audience targeting, but setting my geographic area very tired

For just around, you know, within a 30-mile radius around a particular city, for example, that kind of stuff really helps. So again, if you’re not seeing any movement at all, and you said you spent a lot of money and not seeing any bump in rankings, my guess is you’re not you’re targeting is incorrect. Okay, during the MasterMind, I’d be happy to analyze that for you live on our we got a webinar coming to our MasterMind webinar tomorrow. So I don’t know if you are not if you are posted in the group will take a look at it for you tomorrow.

Marco: And if he’s not, then it’s a good time to join.

Bradley: I agree. I agree.

What Are Your Thoughts On Google Neighborhood And How It Differs From The Regular GMB?

Alright, so Gordon’s up he says, Hey, guys, thank you very much again for your hump days. Help. Okay, it is greatly appreciated. I’ve been hearing lately about ranking in the Google in Google Neighborhood, as it’s easier than ranking in the regular GMB three pack. What exactly is a Google Neighborhood? That’s a good question. Is it different than the regular gym be three pack? And if so how is the ranking protocol different? I don’t know what a Google neighborhood is. I’ve not heard that term. Unless there

Somebody was just talking about ranking on a more like, you know, hyper-local level, like suburb based keywords instead of, you know, citywide, maybe like neighborhood-based or, you know, very small section or boroughs. You know, like, for example, I don’t know, maybe that’s what they’re talking about. I’m not sure as any anybody know what Google neighborhood is? Yep. What is it? Okay.

Marco: It’s actually two to two things. It was started in May of last year. I think it was. So yeah, about a year ago. One is Google neighborhood, which allows you to build interestingly enough, my map, people say My Maps are dead, right, Bradley. Yeah. But here’s Google last year, giving you a whole new platform where you could build a map around your neighborhood, right? This is this. This is one thing because it’s my maps and yes, of course. It’s totally different from the GMB three. Because GMBs use Google Maps, not My Maps. Now the other one the other project that they started with neighborly, but neighborly with you, because they actually started it in India. So the neighborly project is for people to form I don’t know, relationships are on the neighborhood in India, it’s not yet available everywhere. So it’s just two different things and I don’t seem like it could be beneficial to build you know a neighborhood map with all kinds of relevance and of course, your clients project being the most prominent in the neighborhood driving directions, K, it uses km L and you could do a KML download. If you can do a camera download, you can do an upload, and you could do a whole lot of nasty excuse me relevance in using KML, right. We do that with my maps all the time and all RYS Academy Reloaded. So yeah, it’s two different and distinct things from the GMB three pack. unless they’ve updated it from the last time that I took it. I haven’t had a look in about three or four, four months, regarding the two projects that they started. You know, I try to stay on top of my maps and everything that’s going on there because they work so well.

Bradley: Very good. Thank you. I wasn’t aware of that. It’s not something I’ve even seen this Google Neighborhood. So.

How Do You Find The GMB Listing URL To Use In Authority Backlinks For Rank Boosting?

Okay, cool. So how do you find the URL for GMB listing to use authority backlinks for rank boosting? Thanks again, okay, so go into your GMB dashboard, click on the Info tab. You can even find it on the Home tab where it says view on search and view on maps. Just right click copy link address, paste it into a notepad file. Remove any of the, you know odd characters after the CID number, which is essentially the ID number for that location. So at the end of the URL, sometimes there will be like ?=en for English and in there might be some like coordinates and things like that you can eliminate all of that stuff. And then you’re just left with a maps.google com URL with something like cid= or something like that. That’s your URL. But you want to change the subdomain from maps dot google.com to www.google.com. Because if you take that, if you right click that link address, as I’m saying, right click on the view on maps, and then copy link address and you go to a redirect checker like redirectdetectivecom or .org I think it is or where goes or something like that. And you paste that in. It’s a 302 redirect to that same URL, except instead of maps.google.com, it’s www.google.com. With its but the rest of the URLs exactly the same. So my point is, you just want to swap that subdomain from maps. to www. and then that URL, right There is a straight 301 redirect. And it’s not even a redirect if you take that URL and put it in a redirect checker, it’s going to say 200 test, okay? Right, that’s the HTML code or whatever, the header code or whatever, it’s a test, okay at 200. But if you go paste that into the browser, you know, the address bar, and click Go, then it will load the map listing and then once the map listing is fully loaded, it will convert to that long, stupid, ugly URL that maps gives you. So that’s why I’m saying it’s interesting because it’s it’s essentially a redirect, but there’s no redirect in the HTML header, it only converts to that really long URL once the browser is fully loaded, the maps listing, so that’s the best link in my opinion to use. I’ve done some testing with that and I’ve got the best results using it.

Okay, good question. Dan says I noticed an email at $17 price for the video lead gen system. Is that an add on or what exactly for that is that for I can’t tell you because I don’t look read all of our emails. Dan, I’m not sure about that I’m sure it was probably an order bump and that was probably before we launched the new version of it. You’re probably talking about an older one correct me if I’m wrong but if you have a question specifically about it find email and contact us at support@semanticmastery.com. Okay.

Does The Lack Of English (UK) Translation For Ultimate SEO Plugin Matter When It Comes To Ranking UK Sites?

Tony says thanks for all the work and advice always very useful. I managed a few websites part time and I like to follow the battle plan advice the ultimate SEO plugin download page says that this plugin is not translated into English UK yet. Clearly, I would like to use it but I am in the UK with UK clients. does this matter?

Isn’t it pretty much the same except for the miss the odd spellings of a few words? Is it Can anybody correct me on this one is there there’s something significantly different between UK English and American English where the plugin wouldn’t work? Not only the spelling, but I don’t see how that should matter because you have to type in your titles and your descriptions anyway.

Marco: Yeah, so. I don’t think that there’s any difference and do get the plugin get the paid version. Yeah, the SEO ultimate plus get away from Yoast. I hate that fucking virus man.

Bradley: Yeah, that’s all Bloat. Seriously, that’s a great plugin guys that the get the paid version SEO ultimate plus their version two dot o was coming out soon it’s been in beta testing for months now because the coding behind it is been delayed a few times but you know it’s a great plugin and the paid version I don’t think the free version is really supported anymore anyways, but the paid version is and it’s still my SEO plugin of choice no choice.

Marco: It’s two years old it probably won’t work with the new newer WordPress right. We’re at 5.1 point one I mean the free version. Yeah, the free version is it’s not updated. So but SEO Ultimate Plus, you get a five star five site license for what? 45, 46 bucks. Totally worth it. If you’re in our MasterMind you would get 10 licenses. That’s another reason instead of paying 97 bucks you pay the regular 47 or whatever. And you get a 10 website license for another reason to be in our MasterMind, Jeff he’s a buddy man. Yeah.

Bradley: So yeah, I don’t think it would make any difference as far as UK English versus US English. I can’t imagine it would we got a lot of members that are from the UK that are using it, and I haven’t heard that before. So but again, they’re probably using the paid version.

How Long Does It Take For The RYS Stacks To Start Showing Its Ranking Power?

All right, Gergely. I guess it says, Hey, guys, thanks for these webinars. Usually how many does is it take days does it take for an ROI stacks to show that start to show their power? That varies. It does take a while it does. There’s no question. It’s not something that happens overnight. But the boost that you can get from it can be quite significant and they can and it can last for years. I just demonstrated that again last week when Marco and I did the MGYB and Syndication Academy update webinar, I was talking about that. I can demonstrate it again. But my point is those the effect from that will last for a long, long time. How long does it take for it to show any boost? That really depends, and I noticed sometimes it takes a lot longer than others. Marco can, you can comment on that?

Marco: Yeah, sure. And I’m gonna go totally with you. It depends. It depends on the competition. It depends on your keyword targets. It depends on how well your website structure set up. It depends. If you’re aiming it at GMB. Right. And if you’re trying to pop it into the three pack, it depends on how much power you’re putting behind it. Are you doing press releases? Are you doing link building? Are you doing link building to your drive stack and press releases? Are you doing tiered link building? This whole matters because that’s the amount of power that you can push. If you read the done for you User’s Guide, it recommends waiting 21 days, because that’s when you clear the Google dance. And you know that some people will say that there’s no such thing as a good Google that they call it a sandbox, call it whatever you want. It takes 21 days, from the moment you start for your project to settle into where Google thinks it could be. So on the 22nd, day, you go and you take a look, whatever Rank Tracker you’re using, I like to use a Search Console and Analytics to see what kind of bump I’m getting to see if anything moved up. Plus, some local rank trackers if it’s local, or some other type of rank trackers. Once you have the data that you need data. You can’t go on suppositions you can’t go on. What if you can’t go on how long will it you have to have the data once you have the data and you see that you have stuff on the second page that you can push up there, you can hit it with presses, you can hit it with a PR bomb, you can hit it with, you can do a MyMap and beds, and then link built to the mind map in bed. There are tons of things that you can do. That’s why you get the User’s Guide. And if you didn’t get the user’s guide, you should have gotten a link in your email by the way to download it. Then what you need to do is contact support at mgyb.co, and ask for you done for you User’s Guide because that tells you what to do.

Bradley: There you go. And again, this will be demonstrated on the webinar last week that I was talking about guys, which is nuts. This is you know, this is all done from a drive stack. That’s the Google site within the drive stack. Okay, this is the WordPress doc this was done. Take a look at the date on this. I know it’s probably small. I’ll zoom in on just one of them, guys.

Look at the date on that May 16, 2015. So that was almost four years ago. And if you take a look at this guys, this was just one of them and this was four years ago when I didn’t even know like I just learned how to build a Dr. stack that day. And I didn’t even have instructions for Marco, he just told me about the concept. And it was on a Saturday and I literally took, I stopped doing what I was doing that day, and spent about five hours building my first drive stack, without even any instruction, just based upon that little bit of information marker told me and this if you take a look at this, guys, I mean, again, ranking number one for four years. And the WordPress com site, it’s pushed my main site up and put me into, you know, I’ve got somewhat of I’ve got a local IP, so I’m showing a knowledge panel as well. But for various keywords or variations of the keywords, ranked for many of these properties, again, with doing absolutely no backlink building, and just actually doing the drive stack stuff, right. So again, number one for all our ranking all the other Virginia SEO agencies with a shitty Google site that has shitty spun content, like literally that was a spun article from a content farm and it’s got nothing but a bunch of drive.

That’s a broken Google Plus embed. Google Plus is dead. And like it’s just absolutely been dominating for four freakin years now. And what’s interesting is this wordpress.com site, free WordPress. com site, if you guys go view page source on this, the only content on this page and the post body of this page is this right here. The rest of that is just embedded iframe, they’re just embedded drive stack files. There’s absolutely no written content on this page, guys, except for that one line of text right there. And it’s been ranking number one, or in this case, that’s what number three for years and there’s no bad go check the backlink profile on this stuff. It’s insane. And so again, like you know, it took probably, I don’t know, seven or eight weeks before I like I remember because I had been checking on it for several weeks. I was checking on it to see if if anything had happened from the stack that I built was the very first one that I ever done, and I don’t build them now. Anyways, we got somebody that and for us, right? You guys do too. You can, you can hire us to do it.

But I looked at for four weeks, I kind of track this. And then I gave up on it because I didn’t see anything from it. And then one day somebody had said something I said, Oh, yeah, let me go check on that. And it had been several weeks, and I went and checked on it. It was boom, number one. And it’s been number one ever since. And it’s just been crazy. So it does, it does work. And it’s not, that’s not the only example. That’s just the one that I don’t mind showing. You don’t I mean, so, be patient. Also, some of the other things you can do is build links to it. That’s you know, we’ve got a link building service specifically designed for that at MGYB. So you know, you can hit it with kitchen sink spam, and it will take it like a champ.

What’s The Use Of @ID Pages?

Alright, next is what’s the point of an ad ID page. Did you make any tests with that Id pages if they make a difference? Yeah, we wouldn’t have taught it if we didn’t make tests if we didn’t test it first. So we are you know, everything that we do we’ve tested and it has to do with. The reason it works so well is iframe stalking, which is taught in RYS Academy, primarily. But the @ID page principal or the method has been taught in pretty much all of our different paid courses. And that just works really, really well because of iframe stalking. Okay. And it works, it does make a difference because you can use the @ID page or any sort of stacked iframe page doesn’t have to be an @ID page. We just do that, because that’s very specific to local guys. But again, you can create tier one properties that are using a Google site, for example, with a bunch of iframe stuff that you do, and it’s not going to get into specifics here. But then that becomes a link building target. Right, that becomes a target that can boost all of the assets. So yes, it does absolutely help if you’re in any one of our paid training, and you’ll know how to build them. If you’re in the MasterMind, we can get into that much deeper if you’d like. You know, we can talk about why and how and I can show you other examples.

Okay, Dan says I will have to go through. So he’s the one asking about the YouTube ads and a playlist and all that. He says I have to go through with a fine tooth comb. Because what you mentioned, I’ve done with the exception of comment links. Thanks for the input. Yeah, no problem.

Also, Dan, think about this. If you have other profiles available, like from syndication networks, for example, other Google profiles that have YouTube accounts, you can go in and actually take that video and add that video that you want to rank for and other playlists. So in other Google profiles, create a playlist, a keyword optimized playlist for the keyword that you want to rank for, and then add the video that you’re trying to rank into that playlist in other Google accounts, right? like it, comment it from those other Google accounts, as long as you’re not all logged in from the same IP. So for example, and even if you are, it’s okay, but not what I’m saying is don’t, don’t just go clear your cache and cookies and log into another Google account. That doesn’t work. What I’m saying is if you’re using something like browser or ghosts browser or something like that

Where your browsing sessions remain intact for each profile, you can even use the same IP, that’s fine because all of those different profiles are going to be acting as if they’re their own. You know, their own profile, there have their own browsing histories and things like that. And so you can use those to kind of help give it a boost. I had it I ran a test for one of the videos that I had done some standard SEO stuff like it went through my syndication networks. And I had set up a video ad for a YouTube ad for it to start getting some engagement but it was bouncing on page two like it was hovering on page two. And then all I did was I took five different browser to profiles that I had that have a significant history built for them. And I went in watch the video, I commented with one profile I liked it with another profile then with the fifth but I did several things but it with the fifth profile. Again, they were more aged Google accounts but that have had a

You know, significant browsing history and activity that have accrued within those profiles for, you know, over the last couple of years, really. But the last thing I did was I created a playlist keyword optimized playlist with the lat the fifth profile, added that video, then I commented on it with the playlist URL is the comment. And, and like, within, I’m not kidding, within 30 seconds, it jumped to page one, and it’s been on page one ever since. So that kind of stuff really does help if you can get the video added to other people’s playlist, essentially, even if you’re doing it yourself. That will help to Okay.

What Makes Google Decide Which Brand Should Rank First When Both Of Them Have The Same Name?

All right. We’re almost out of time, but we can run through the next two, I think Hey, guys, one more question. Did you ever want a new situation to take the number one organic gym be ranked from a competitor when both your client and the competitor had the same name and GMB and nearly the same exact match domains, both shoot for the same they both shoot for the same exact match, brand new. What makes Google decide that one brand is actually now another brand eg one website, taking over the top positions, even knowledge panel in some cases? Usually navigational type search queries, which again, it’s an engagement or an activity signal. We’ve talked about this many times in the past. But what’s called site weight is part of the algorithm, I think that was introduced in the algorithm way back in like 2010 or so I remember I learned about it in 2011. But essentially, if all things are being two, if two sites, two brands with a website were equal, all things being equal, which I know is damn near impossible, but if they were, if one site has the navigational search queries, and then they click through more than the other, that one’s going to have more weight in Google’s eyes, in other words, is given more weight given more authority. So what I mean by that is doing some navigational search queries a query like a brand, a brand search or a website names

So in other words, if it’s Joe’s plumbing, com, we’ll just use that as an example is the website and the name of the company is Joe’s plumbing. Then people doing searches for Joe’s plumbing. I know you’re saying you’ve got a competitor with the exact same name, but you’ve got a unique URL, right? So if you’ve got Joe’s plumbing.net and the other guys Joe’s plumbing com then I would do like Joe’s plumbing.net searches like a search for that domain name and Google and then click through

you know, you could do a navigational searches, which would be brand plus services like so different types of services, service keywords, or product keywords, depending on what type of business you’re trying to promote. I’m looking for the contact information so Joe’s plumbing contact, or Joe Joe’s plumbing phone number, like seriously that type of a search query Joe’s plumbing, plus phone number, like you put that in and if it pops up with the right phone number on the right list and click through those kinds of things. Now not it’s not something that you can do from the same IP that it’s going to have an effect

But if you can kind of crowdsource that out, there are ways to do that right micro-task worker, for example, those type of navigational queries will help to push it out something that you have to maintain though. So you know, until once you take over that position or get your knowledge panel to appear as opposed to the competitors, a lot of times organic activity will take over anyways and will help it to maintain that. But you can force that issue. You can also do it with ads. Again, I can’t talk about how to do that here but you actually can do part of that using Google ads or even Facebook ads. So again, it’s all about that activity and engagement signals on the brand that you want to promote and that’s going to help to give it that edge. I mean, you can do some other standard SEO stuff but I found that you know, we’ve been a Marco and I have both done tests where we’ve been able to manipulate knowledge panel or in things like auto suggest, by you know, specific engagement signals. Marco, you want to comment that all that?

Marco: No, that handled it perfectly.

Adam: Yeah, that’s been my experience as well. Using stuff like, micro workers is one of my favorites but there’s a number of other ones that are Yeah, good. Hang on where you live?

Bradley: Well, yeah, that’s an old process. We talked about Ivan boot Amir taught me that years and years I think it was 2011 might have been 2012. But that’s where he like introduced that, that concept and micro-task workers and I mean, it’s it really that’s what I call click-through spam, but so CT spam, but it works really well. Again, you have to engineer it correctly, but if you do it right, then you can significantly change, like the positioning of a website and you can also change like auto-suggest, you know, suggested search queries and all kinds of stuff doing that.

Adam: Yeah, it’s good for like, reputation management’s where, you know, you know, brand name, spam comes up and you want to put something above it in an auto-suggest have used it for that. But yeah, like you said, it’s the kind of thing you have to maintain when you start doing it for a period of time. In my experience, it often reverts to what it was. Yep, not done anything else.

Bradley: Alright guys, we actually have to wrap it up. Sorry. We’re at the five o’clock mark and I have to run but I appreciate all the questions they did come in. We were worried that it was going to be a slow day today, but it wasn’t. So thanks, everybody, and Adam. Hey, man, thanks for hanging out with us today.

Adam: Da totally My pleasure. I’m really really grateful for you having me it’s been a little bit of fun.

Marco: Absolutely, man. Anytime. So thanks, Marco for hanging out, dude. We’ll see all the man. Thanks, Adam. Bye, everyone.

Weekly Digital Marketing Q&A – Hump Day Hangouts – Episode 234 syndicated from https://medium.com/@SpanishFly