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just-absolutely-super · 5 years ago

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The First Crack

@soulxmakaweek

Day 4, Laughter featuring baby (and by baby I mean they’re, like, 12) SoMa. Enjoy!

Summary: It was the first time she had ever heard him laugh like that... Maka, Soul, and a kitchen mishap

FF.net // AO3

Maka had only known Soul for a week and she was thoroughly convinced he was emotionally constipated.

Seriously, the only form of raw human emotion she saw out of him came in the form of his playing the piano. It was like he had opened a window into his soul, one she had peered eagerly into and accepted wholeheartedly. But then he had decided that she couldn't see any more and firmly shut the window before nailing a bunch of two-by-fours to it, making him impossible to read again.

It didn't help that all their interactions afterwards were in the form of arguments. She'd try to get to know her new partner only for him to make scathing, teasing comments about her appearance and her affliction for reading books. This would cause her to lose her temper, leading to a chop before they'd go back to their respective rooms to do their own thing.

It was rather frustrating. She wondered if all boys were like that. She dismissed that thought, though, when she remembered the other men in her life: her father and Black Star.

Her father had no trouble expressing himself. He often wore his heart on his sleeve (as well as a different woman every day), sobbing big fat tears whenever his darling daughter gave him the cold shoulder. Meanwhile, Black Star spent most of his time crowing about how awesome he was and how he'd surpass God while Professor Sid yelled at him to get off the school's roof before he hurt himself.

No, she deduced that all boys weren't as opposed toward expressing themselves. It must just be a Soul Eater thing.

She could have tried harder to get to know him, but her mother often told her that partnerships were so fragile during the beginning stages. Even if you clicked right away, there was always that risk of things becoming strained and awkward the more you got to know each other. The best plan of action was to always go slow and to not force yourselves on each other.

Maka didn't want to try and search for a new partner—one who was a scythe at least—so she hung herself back and allowed Soul to be his moody, closed-off self. If things worked in her favor, he'd open up to her sooner or later…

"Hey, Mama sent me a blender as a housewarming gift. I'm gonna make a smoothie, do you want one?" she asked him one afternoon, poking her head in his room.

Soul was in bed lying on his stomach, some magazine in his hands. He lifted his head up to acknowledge her, "Yeah, sure. You got strawberries?"

Maka nodded, "Of course! I'll let you know when I'm done."

Soul gave a grunt in reply as Maka bounced into the kitchen. She was excited. Excited because not only was she going to try out her newest appliance, but she and Soul would have another reason to bond with each other. Sure, it may end up as them drinking their cold drinks in the living room while aimlessly flipping channels, but it was better than nothing. Maka liked to think of the glass half-full during these occasions.

After setting the blender up, Maka hummed as she brought the ingredients onto the counter. Following the recipe she had looked up at the library, Maka put everything in the jar. Placing the lid onto the jar, she eagerly pressed the start button…only for nothing to happen.

"Huh?" she said, turning every which way to figure out why the appliance wasn't working. She thought she had everything in place. It should turn on!

After fiddling with it for a while with no results, she got frustrated. She yelled out, "Soul! Could you come in here and help me?"

"What's the matter?" she heard him ask from his bedroom.

"I can't get the blender to come on."

"Are you serious?" he complained. She heard his heavy footsteps. "It's a blender, Maka. It's not like they're hard to use."

She pouted at him when he rounded the corner into the kitchen, "I know that! But I can't get it to turn on!"

Soul rolled his eyes, "Move aside. Let me look at it."

He inspected it. She watched him take the lid off of the jar to look inside, probably making sure nothing was jamming the blades if Maka had to guess. Deducing that the blades were fine, he detached the jar from the base and set it on the counter before picking the base up to examine it. Maka was thankful he had done that; she didn't want to worry about him accidentally spilling the contents of their smoothie onto the floor. After a brief moment, he placed the appliance back on the counter before turning to his meister.

"Found the problem. It's battery operated. You didn't put the batteries in, genius." He said, letting out a chuff at her incompetence.

Maka flushed in embarrassment. She was torn between hiding her face in shame and punching that infuriating smirk off his face.

"I… I thought they were already put in!" she defended.

Soul snorted, "Obviously not." He checked the box Maka had opened when she received the package from her mother. "Oh good, your mom included some batteries. Let me install them then we can work it."

Maka watched him place the batteries in, her cheeks still burning from the shame of making an utter fool of herself in front of her weapon. She hoped this didn't give him second thoughts about agreeing to partner up with her.

"Alright, here we go," she heard Soul say. She looked back to him and saw he was about to hit the "on" button. What she also noticed was in his hurry to make smoothies he had forgotten to put the lid back on the jar.

"W-Wait, Soul! Don't—"

Too late. Soul pressed the button and Maka watched his red eyes widen comically at the realization of what he had just done. Both weapon and meister squealed in shock as the contents of what would have been their fruity drinks exploded over them and their kitchen.

"Shut it off! Shut it off!" Maka screamed, running over to the boy.

"I'm trying! I'm trying!" Soul screamed back, strawberry and yogurt and whatever else had gotten into his eyes, clouding his vision and inhibiting him from hitting the correct button.

"Let me!" she said, forcing the appliance closer to her and managing to find the "off" button. She sighed in relief at hearing the whirling blades die down.

"Man, so uncool!" Soul groaned, running a hand through his hair and grimacing in disgust when it came back covered in pink goop.

Maka blinked at his appearance. The pink tinge of the smoothie and random chunks of strawberry worked really well with his white hair. It practically dyed it. Before she could stop herself she gave an unattractive snort before bursting into uncontrollable giggles.

Soul scowled at her, watching as his meister leaned forward in laughter.

"It's. Not. Funny." He growled.

Maka said in between giggles, "Oh…yes it…is! Hahaha, you look ridiculous!"

"Yeah, like you're any better!" he fired back, gesturing to her own smoothie-covered appearance.

"Yeah, well…" giggle, "at least my hair isn't pink now. You look so uncool!" she then fell onto the floor. The comment might have been mean, but after a week of hearing him call her breasts tiny, it felt like a breath of fresh air to make fun of him for a change.

"We'll see about that…" she heard her weapon say. Maka stopped her giggling upon hearing the underlying threat in his words. Looking up to him, she saw he had a maniacal grin on his face, a handful of pink goop in his hands.

"Soul Eater, don't you dare—" Maka's attempt to threaten him turned into a squeal of shock as Soul dived onto her to rub strawberry smoothie into her pigtails.

"Who's got the pink hair now, huh?" Soul taunted, making sure to slather the chunks of strawberries onto her face for good measure.

"You are DEAD!" with a battle cry, Maka tackled Soul.

The two wrestled each other on the kitchen floor, using whatever they could find among the mess as their ammunition. Various noises coming out of their mouths—screaming, threats of bodily harm, and most of all, laughter.

The laughter was mostly consuming them, to the point they disentangled themselves from their brawl to spread themselves out onto the floor. Maka was clutching her stomach as her sides were starting to hurt.

"Ceasefire, ceasefire!" she pleaded, her guffaws too much for her.

"I can't believe I forgot to put the lid on!" Soul said, "That's like…the number one rule of a blender. You'd have to be a stupid cartoon character to make that mistake! And now I'm covered in all this crap!"

He then turned onto his side as he broke into more infectious laughter. Maka would have joined him if she weren't overcome by a sudden revelation.

This was the first time she had ever heard Soul laugh.

Sure, he would snicker at a crude joke Black Star would tell him, or chuckle if he heard a funny joke on television, but as for genuine bone-deep laughter? This was definitely the first.

She just marveled at the site. His sharp teeth fully on display; his deep red eyes closed tight, crinkling at the edges in his mirth; and if she looked closely, she could see tears forming in the corners because he was laughing so hard.

He looked so natural and carefree. Like he didn't have the world's biggest chip on his shoulder. Like he wasn't worrying about how he looked or presented in front of others.

He looked…happy.

"Hey, what's with that look on your face?" his voice drew her out of her musings. He was trying to glare at her, but it was offset by his still present grin, "If you think I look bad, you should see yourself, nerdbrain."

Maka stuck her tongue out at him, "I wasn't staring!" (She ignored how unconvincing that sounded.), "I was just thinking about what a pain this was going to be to clean up, is all!"

Soul sighed, rolling onto his back again before cringing as more of the smoothie substance seeped into his shirt. "Yeah, that's gonna suck… Well, I'll let you take care of it. I'm gonna hop in the shower."

Maka gave an indignant noise, "Oh no you don't! You're the one who caused the mess, I get the shower while you clean up!"

"It wasn't my idea to make the smoothies!" he shot back.

"Well, I'm a lady and ladies go first!"

Soul snorted, "Funny, I thought 'ladies' had more sex appeal—"

"MAKA CHOP!"

"OUCH!"

While Soul nursed his aching head, Maka used the opportunity to run to the bathroom. "I'll help once I'm done showering. Then you can shower and I'll finish what you started!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever…" she heard him grumble as she grabbed some clean clothes and shut the door.

As she peeled off her stained clothing, she thought she heard more of his distinct laughter from his place in the kitchen. She felt herself smile.

It may take some time, but she felt hopeful that she could crack the sturdy exterior that was Soul's metaphorical walls.

Hopefully it wouldn't take too many mistakes and messes for that to happen…

#soma #soul x maka #soulxmakaweek #somaweek #somaweek2020 #soul eater evans #maka albarn #soul eater #my writing

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topropeblogsplash · 4 years ago

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Why CM Punk Just May Have Been The Best In The World

Well, hello there! Thanks for checking out post number one of my brand new, weekly pro wrestling blog :)

Now, allow me to start off by explaining what I mean when I say 'best'. I don't necessarily mean CM Punk was the absolute, definitive, best pure wrestler of all time as there have arguably been a few slightly better than him over the years, although it's a close one! What I am defining as 'best', for Punk, is I believe he may very well have been the best all-rounder of all time, by which I mean taking into account every aspect of wrestling. For example, if you were to mark him out of 100 on every area of wrestling - such as; the wrestling itself, being face, being heel, promos, wrestling psychology, selling, the list goes on... - and make a graph out of the marks given on each area, whilst some areas would naturally be higher than others, I believe for the most part the various sections of that graph would be fairly level and consistent, showing quite a flat line rather than a bumpy, 'up and down' one, which would understandably be the case for most of his competitors.

So, that all being said, let's start off with an area I personally would score him 10/10 on, something he has become known for and unarguably helped make him the star he became. Of course, I am talking about talking - his promos!

Promos

There have always been some good talkers in the wrestling world, from The Rock or Stone Cold Steve Austin right back to Dusty Rhodes, however, very few ever reach that 'perfect' level, that level where everything they say just seems to come out like gold. From the words themselves to the way it's delivered. CM Punk is a guy who has this. Whether you're watching his promos map out his career in ROH, or the infamous 'pipebomb' promo which excelled him to the next level in WWE in June 2011, I personally can not think of a single promo of Punk's where it just didn't seem to fit or seemed somewhat 'off'. His promos of the latter half of 2011 where he was 'The Voice of the Voiceless' really seemed to come from the heart and were so full of truth and expressed what a lot of us fans had felt for a long time.

So Punk, yes, you do have everybody's attention now.

The Wrestling Itself

Next up, of course, is his pure wrestling ability. I would say that whilst there are some who are technically 'better' wrestlers than him, such as Bret 'Hitman' Hart, that list, I personally feel, would be a reasonably short one. Everything he does seems to have meaning, a purpose to it, he wasn't really one to do flashy moves just for the sake of it. When he did do something such as a springboard clothesline or a dive through the ropes, it had a place in the match, it wasn't just there for the sake of it - the match had built to a point where it looked natural and fitted in perfectly.

He had a great mix of being able to have quick, fast-paced spells when the match called for it, whilst being able to then transition into slowing down the pace at relevant points and go into attempting to wear his opponent down with some mat-based submissions and sleeper holds.

He also possessed probably the most difficult quality of a wrestler - being able to get the crowd going again if they quietened down at any point. He knew how to have people invested in the match, how to make them care. If he was a face he knew when and how to lift them up and make them cheer for him. If he was a heel, he knew how to push people's buttons and get under their skin, ensuring they can't help but boo him, which brings me on to the next point..

His ability to be both an incredible heel or a fantastic face

More often than not, a wrestler will be better at one than the other, and in some cases, some can only really do one and not the other.

For Punk, although I feel he had the edge and really came into his own as a heel, we cannot deny how great he was as a face too! Just think back to the previously mentioned 'Voice of the Voiceless' work he was doing in 2011, where he seemed to hold the entire company in his palm and have many fans hanging off of his every word and move, some even tuning in mainly to see him! His feuds with John Cena and Triple H spring to mind with him being the top face in the company at the time.

With regards to him being a heel, well, what more needs to be said?! The Straight Edge Society had people up in arms with him! Or his feud with The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 29 - the build-up to that match alone had a lot of edgey ingredients, some of which even I feel may have gone a little too far, such as the mentioning of Paul Bearer who at the time had not long passed. But when you feel that maybe a heel has gone too far, are they just doing their job? Perhaps it's a debate for another time.

Perhaps my favourite heel promo of Punk's is one that a lot of people might not remember as it seems to have fallen under the radar for whatever reason, being overshadowed by his infamous 'pipebomb' promo. We all remember when he sat down at the top of the stage in Las Vegas three weeks before Money In The Bank 2011 and spoke his mind, but how many of us remember his incredible heel promo building to face The Rock at Royal Rumble 2013?

The video below is what I believe is a heel playing that role to perfection! For the full effect of this great promo, check out the January 27th 2013 edition of Raw on the WWE Network, unfortunately a lot of this promo has been cut down on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mr8mfBRsD2s

During the promo, Punk gave a great mix of building the match itself whilst portraying a genuinely unlikable character. He even expressed feelings which may have touched a nerve in real life to some who have come before him, chuckling and claiming that "wrestling one night a month at Madison Square Garden is EASY!!" And that Hulk Hogan "had it easy". This not only seems very disrespectful to those guys, but also seems a big 'no no' in the world of how wrestling politics are behind the scenes. Punk really seemed to say it like he meant it, and in all fairness, look at how his schedule was - definitely not one match a month..

Of course, though, I'm not just talking about his awesome promo work - we've covered that already. He knew how to actually wrestle as an amazing face and have the entire crowd cheering him on. Or alternatively, he could have the entire place booing him whilst he uses dirty move after dirty move. It's the little things he does which make either of these - those cocky looks if he's a heel, or those adrenaline-filled claps & stomps to the mat of a face as he tries to get the crowd to will him on.

Finally, I'm going to finish this blog post off with a somewhat surprising point, but one I feel is worth making nonetheless as it seems only a handful of wrestlers can do this well for an entire show, on back to back weeks.

Commentary

...yes, that’s right!

Punk's ability to be a very good commentator! Okay, I won't blame anyone at all if you don't remember his short time on the commentary team whilst the soon-to-be leader of the New Nexus recovered from a hip injury.

This may be a weird point to bring up, but remember, we're discussing why CM Punk just may have been the best in the world, meaning having the ability to cover all areas on a more consistent basis than anyone else, and being able to commentate on an entire show - rather than only one match which is relevant to a Superstar’s next PPV rivalry - seems such a difficult skill to master, and Punk fitted into that role seamlessly! There have been very few in recent years who can step so comfortably into this role, most recently Chris Jericho has been doing some amazing commentary work in AEW, and it's no coincidence him and Punk fitted into this role so well whilst also being two of the very best promos around. Of course, Jerry 'The King' Lawler and Tazz were once wrestlers who took to the commentary table - much like Nigel McGuiness currently is - but remember, Punk was still an active wrestler at this point, only sidelined briefly for an injury, he didn't take masses of time off to be trained how to commentate, he just kind of did it and he did it well. He was not only entertaining and gave moments of speaking his mind, but his commentary on the matches themselves really had value and flowed as if he had been doing it for years. I urge you to go back and watch shows from late 2010/early 2011 and listen to his work. He was not only a good commentator for someone who had little experience in that area, but was very good regardless, even stepping up to the level of some full time commentators.

So there we have it, my personal views on why CM Punk just may have been the best in the world. If you have any points you think I may have missed out or anything you would like to include about this, please feel free to mention it in the comments below :)

If you would like to see me performing some stuff in my work as a magician, please check out my socials! :)

Instagram/Facebook/Twitter: @Kemptonmagician

#wwe #wrestling #pro wrestling #wwe blog #cm punk blog #The Rock #CM Punk #WWE CM Punk

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willow-salix · 5 years ago

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Here's this week's #FABFIVEFEB from the prompts by the awesome @gumnut-logic. This is all about the Scott, and I loved writing this. This bad boy topped out at 5,110 words, I don't know where they all came from apart from the fact that it was pancake day yesterday and that was all I need for the vision in my head. I used all the prompts somewhere (even if they are a little vague) except glow.

"Scott?" Alan whined from his position slumped over the kitchen table, his arm up to speak into his comm. "Can you make me some pancakes?"

"No I can't, sorry, I'm just too busy, " Scott's distracted voice floated from Alan's wrist.

"Oh come on, you make them the best."

"I don't have time."

"But Selene said it's pancake day in the UK, it's tradition."

"No, Alan, I'm waiting for Brains to finish that modification to Thunderbird One so I can test her out and make sure she's still operational for rescues as well as the Zero-XL."

"But he won't be done for ages…"

Scott declined to answer, cutting the call.

Alan huffed, sat up and crossed his arms angrily. All he wanted was to spend some time with his brother like they used to. Scott made the best pancakes in the world, he could flip and land them perfectly, any shape, any size and they always came out golden brown and fluffy.

He'd been dreaming about those pancakes, remembering how their dad had patiently tried to teach them all how to mix up the perfect batter, how to test the heat of the pan and how to flip them just right.

Virgil and Scott had mastered the batter instantly, seeming to have a knack for measuring by eye and mixing it with a hand whisk. John had taken his time, insisting on noting down the exact weight and measurements of each ingredient as Jeff had added them and then using the blender to make it as smooth as humanly possible. Gordon and Alan had shared a bowl, which has descended into chaos as they had both tried to add ingredients, ending up with a lumpy, eggy, sloppy mess.

Virgil's pancakes had been nice enough, a little messy around the edges, a little abstract but edible and easily flipped with a spatula. John's had been perfectly formed equal little rounds of fluffy goodness, small enough to flip with a spatula and stack easily. Alan and Gordon had dropped many, burnt a few and had a couple still raw. But Scott's had been perfect. He had flipped them as if he had been doing it his whole life, an easy wiggle and flick of his wrist and up they had sailed, executed a perfect 180 and landed back in the pan with a gentle splat. He had experimented with different flavours, adding chocolate chips and different sauces to various degrees of success but always perfectly cooked.

Over the years the duty of making pancakes for breakfast on a weekend had fallen to Scott and their dad, the two tag teaming, perfectly synchronised, Jeff mixing and plating them up, Scott pouring and flipping. If Scott was in a particularly good mood or had time to spare he would try to make the pancakes in simple shapes, a fish for Gordon, a rocket for Alan, a star for John. It didn't matter what the shape was, he always managed to flip and land it without trouble.

After Jeff had disappeared Scott had continued to make them for any family that was home, it had been a tradition for so long that they had clung to it, it was familiar, it was comforting and they had needed that more than ever.

Over the years as International Rescue had gotten busier, their days more unpredictable and their weekends almost non existent their breakfasts had trailed off and then stopped all together.

Alan hadn't realised how much he missed them until he'd woken up with a craving for Scott's special toffee apple pancakes, made with applesauce and chunks of fresh apple mixed right into the batter and toffee sauce drizzled on top. He could practically taste them.

They had all been so wrapped up in the Zero-XL building and the possibility of finding their dad that they had barely spent any time together, it felt like they were growing further apart rather than closer together as they should have been. They were about to reunite their family, to be complete for the first time in eight years but Alan couldn't help that he was a little worried. What if things changed? What if their dad wasn't the man they all remembered? It had been hard to lose him but they had all come to terms with it, had each learnt to accept it in their own way and now he didn't really know what to think. Their world was about to change all over again and, much as he hated to admit to himself, he was nervous. He craved something normal, something solid and dependable. He wanted his big brother.

"What's up puddin'? Why the long face?" Selene wandered into the kitchen from who knew where, her face full of concern. "You OK, boo?"

Alan nodded, not trusting himself to speak just yet.

As always, Selene knew exactly when he needed a hug, even though he would never ask for one, and pulled him into her arms.

"Talk to me, precious."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning his head against her shoulder, allowing her warm, comforting presence to surround him. She held him tight, not making any move to let go, something he loved about her. There was never any time limit to a Selene hug, none of that brief embrace then let go as soon as you could rubbish, she'd happily stand there for an hour if that was what you needed. More times than he cared to remember he'd found himself leaning against her on the couch, allowing her to wrap an arm around his shoulder and draw him into a cuddle that could last the entirety of a film. Selene he felt safe talking to, she never judged, he didn't feel like he had to be manly with her, to act mature or hide anything from fear of upsetting or angering her.

"Scott won't make me any pancakes." Just saying it out loud sounded stupid, like all that was wrong was the fact that he was hungry and wasn't getting his own way. He didn't want to sound like a spoiled brat. "I mean, I wanted him to make them with me, like he used to, but he's too busy. He's right, I shouldn't have asked."

Selene sighed, hugging him tighter. "No he's not, darling. He's not too busy, he's hiding away. And you were right to ask."

Alan lifted his head to look at her, confusion written all over his face. "Scott's hiding? What for? Scott doesn't hide, he faces everything."

She shook her head. "No, he doesn't, that's just what he wants you all to think, especially you."

"Why me?"

"Because you're his baby brother, he wants you to have someone you can look up to, someone dependable and in control, even if he doesn't always feel that way on the inside."

Alan snorted. "I doubt Scott feels that way, he's so sure about everything. He has a one track mind, get the Zero-XL finished, find Dad and everything will be fine." He pulled out of her embrace and sat down on one of the kitchen stools.

"And are you not sure about his plans?"

Alan scowled as she zeroed in on the problem with that uncanny ability of hers, not needing him to even voice it. She stared right back at him, face neutral, waiting for him to elaborate. He picked up a spoon that had been abandoned on the counter and fiddled with it, needing something to do with his hands.

"I don't know."

She waited some more, leaning patiently against the sink, giving him the time he needed to collect his thoughts and choose his words.

"What if everything is different after? Not in a good way I mean. Everyone is so desperate to have Dad back and so sure that it'll be brilliant, and I think that too, but…"

"But there's a little part of you that is scared and worried that he won't be how you all want him to be?"

He nodded, relieved that she understood exactly what he meant.

"No one else thinks that way. Just me. Because I'm the youngest and because I don't really remember him that well. It's like…" he paused, unsure if he could say the words. But this was Selene he was talking to, she would get it. "It's like he's a character from a favourite film, one that's so familiar it's like they are part of your life, but they also seem so abstract, like you know that they aren't actually real. Does that make sense?"

"Perfect sense. And believe me, you aren't the only one feeling this way. Scott's been in charge of this family for a long time, in charge of International Rescue and everything that comes with it, this is his baby as much as it was your dad's. And John, he is happy and content with his work in Five. You know he loves coordinating and bossing you all around, he loves to organise and prioritise each call that comes in. He told me that before your dad disappeared all he did was field the calls and relay them to base so your dad could make all the decisions. That's going to take some getting used to and some toes are going to get stepped on, there will probably be arguments and compromises will be needed. But it'll all come in time. I haven't spoken to Gordon or Virgil about it but I'm willing to bet they feel the same. You will all need to get to know one another again, you're all different people to how you were then, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing, sweetie."

Alan looked down at the spoon in his hands, now bent out of shape, the bowl twisted back to meet the handle."What if he doesn't like me? " His voice was small, so quiet she barely heard him.

Oh gods, her heart was just breaking for him at that moment. Her poor little sweetheart. She crossed over and hugged him from behind, kissing the top of his head.

"Baby, there isn't a single person in this world that wouldn't love you. You are perfect."

"You have to say that, you're marrying my brother."

She sighed, flicking his ear gently. "No I don't. And do you honestly think that I'm not shitting myself too?"

Her rude words made him choke out a surprised laugh as he rubbed his abused ear. "Why would you be scared?"

"I'm meeting your dad for the first time and I'm not exactly anyone's dream of a daughter in law. I'm a crazy witch that swears too much and moved into his house. He could hate me."

It was Alan's turn to make her feel better. "He'll love you, because we all do, and there's no way he couldn't. You have made my brother the happiest he's ever been, you've made him better, and Dad will see that. You haven't just helped John, you don't just love John, you love us all."

She smiled gratefully, hugging him tightly from behind, squishing him against her chest so he couldn't see the way her eyes were damp with unshed tears. "I got stuck with all of you, bloody package deal brothers."

He laughed, knowing she didn't mean it.

"Give me your comm."

"What? Why?" he lifted his arm up for her.

She tapped the screen and waited for Scott to answer.

"Yes, Alan?"

"Scott," she wheedled. "You know you love me…will you come and make me some pancakes? "

Alan muffled a laugh with his hand. His brother was silent for a few moments, then his long suffering sigh floated out.

"Fine, I'm coming up."

"How did you do that? How come he never says no to you?"

"Witch magic."

"That can't be your answer to everything, you know."

"Say's who?"

"Say's me," Scott answered as he entered the kitchen, ruffling Alan's hair affectionately as he passed.

"Rude, you weren't included in this conversation."

Scott ignored her, knowing exactly what was going on. He felt bad that he'd said no to Alan's request, had wanted to drop everything the second his baby brother had asked, but a sense of duty had prevented it. How could it be right for him to stand around making pancakes when there was work to be done and what seemed like a million things to prepare for his dad's homecoming? Honestly, he was grateful that Selene had intervened, giving him an excuse to spend some time with his smallest brother.

"What pancakes do you want, squirt?"

"Toffee Apple," Alan answered immediately.

"How did I know you'd say that?" Scott reached for a large mixing bowl and gestured to the store cupboard.

"Because they are my favourites," Alan started taking out packages of flour and jars of applesauce without being asked, both of them falling back into their familiar routine.

Selene took herself off to the side and sat down at the table, content to watch them work together. Alan helped Scott to measure out the ingredients and they both took turns whisking it into a smooth batter then added a sprinkling of chopped apple into the mix.

Scott lined up three skillets and set the heat beneath them, letting them get nice and hot. Once they were to his liking he took a ladle and spooned out a big dollop into the middle of each pan.

So impressive were his skills that he didn't even need to use a spatula to loosen the bottom as she would have done, no he just wiggled the pan and the pancake slid up the side like a well trained puppy, ready to be tossed.

Scott wiggled the pan a bit more, playing up to the enthusiastic encouragement of Alan, then with a flick of his wrist the pancake soared upwards, turning in midair and coming down to land perfectly in the center of the pan, much to the appreciative cheering of Selene and Alan.

He repeated the process in quick succession until a large stack of pancakes rested on the warming plate.

"Can you call the others to come eat?" Scott requested and Alan scrambled to do his bidding.

"Let's see if I've still got this," Scott muttered under his breath as he took a smaller spoon and dipped it in the remaining mixture, dribbling it into the pan, returning time and again for another dip, concentration etched on his face.

Selene wandered over to watch over his shoulder, seeing the vague but recognisable shape of Thunderbird Three forming in the pan. Scott let it cook through until little air bubbles had formed all over the surface and then wiggled it up to the side.

"Ready?"

Both Selene and Alan nodded and with a deep breath, Scott launched the rocket skyward. It sailed up on its perfectly plotted path, dipped at the tip and turned end over end, hurtling back to the pan. Scott flailed comically for a second before he caught the little rocket, the only damage being a slight crease where the nose cone had hit the rim of the pan.

Selene clapped, very impressed and Scott bowed theatrically, his face split in a wide smile as he returned it to the heat for another minute then carefully slid the lovingly made treat onto the plate Alan held out.

"Pancakes!" Gordon cheered as he dashed in, heading straight to the stack. "We haven't had these in years!" He glanced over at the rocket that Alan was drenching in toffee sauce. "Hey! Where's my fishy? You always make me a fishy."

"I'm working on it," Scott started his dip and dribble routine all over again, drawing an outline first and then filling in the center, all under Gordon's watchful eye.

Virgil wandered in and retrieved a plate, helping himself to a few from the stack. Brains was next, and then Kayo, followed, slowly and somewhat hesitantly, by The Mechanic, who was still refusing to give anyone his real name. Selene was secretly convinced that it was either something mundane, like Dave, or very out there like Heathcliff and that he had been cursing his parents ever since. Either way, she called him Nic, shortened from Mechanic and he had learnt to do what everyone else in the family did and ignore her.

A pair of warm arms slid around her middle, making her jump, John's evil chuckle muffled against her skin as he kissed her neck in greeting.

"How did this happen?"

Selene looked over at Scott as he caught the fish perfectly, pleased to see the way he had visibly loosened over the last half hour of so of fun with his youngest brother.

"We wanted pancakes, it's traditional on Shrove Tuesday in Britain."

"Was that all, huh?"

She nodded, leaning back against his space suit clad chest, her fingers lacing through his. "Yep, that's it."

"A fish is easy to flip," Kayo taunted from her place at the table, a fork full of pancake halfway to her mouth.

"I'd like to see you do better," Scott challenged, already working on another, this time star shaped.

"Anyone could do it," Kayo shrugged.

"Yeah," John joined in, obviously in the mood to push some buttons. "It's simply a case of angle, height and force, physics, couldn't be simpler."

Selene grinned evilly. "You know what else is traditional in my country?"

"What?" Alan asked, his voice muffled, cheeks bulging like a hamster's.

"Pancake races."

***

Half an hour later saw them all outside on the beach. Selene and Grandma acting as judges and general rule keepers, while the brothers, Kayo and, after much persuasion, The Mechanic and Brains were all lined up ready to race.

"OK, remember, you can only run if you are flipping and catching and while the pancake is in the air, you can use both hands on the handle if you want to, but if you drop your pancake you have to stop and pick it up, place it back in your pan to flip again, you cannot throw it into the air and catch it. You have to complete one stationary toss and catch before you can pass the pan over. First team to cross the finish line wins. Got it?" They all nodded seriously.

"Ready team A?"

Gordon, Scott, Kayo and Brains cheered in response.

"Ready team B?"

John, Virgil, Alan and The Mechanic whooped in answer.

"Alright! On your marks! Get set…" Brains and The Mechanic readied themselves. "GO!"

Brains gripped the pan handle with both hands and hefted it upwards. The pancake barely lifted and did a very ungraceful belly flop back down but that counted and he managed to take a few steps forward.

The Mechanic had a little more strength and was a tad more coordinated and after a practice flip and catch, he got the hang of it and managed to make pretty good time.

Brains on the other hand, missed the pancake twice and had to retrieve it from the sand and toss it again before he could move. When he managed two flips and catches in succession his team mates cheered like crazy.

He passed the pan over to Kayo who flipped and took off, getting in three steps before she had to catch and flip again.

John took over from The Mechanic, taking his time to do an experimental flip, landing it well enough. He then tried again, leaning forward a bit and tossing at an angle rather than straight up, stretching to catch the flat disc.

"Come on, John, MOVE!" Alan yelled.

John ignored him, ignored the way Kayo was making steady progress down the beach, flipping, catching and running a few quick steps.

One more practice and he got his rhythm. With a wrist flick at the right angle, just the right spin, the right speed… He took off running, managing to toss the pancake ahead of him and catch it every time without slowing his pace once. Alan and Virgil burst into loud cheers, Alan bouncing on the spot eager to receive the pan for his lap.

"What the fu-" Kayo missed her pancake completely as John sailed past her effortlessly. She grabbed the pancake and put it back in the pan, tossed it hurriedly into the air, but over compensated and ended up running right past it and having to backtrack and pick it up again.

"Damn you, Tracy!"

John waved a casual hand behind him in acknowledgement, came to a gentle stop beside Alan, tossed and caught it one more time then handed over the pan much to Selene's supportive cheers.

"Hey! Favouritism from the Judge!" Gordon yelled as he waited impatiently for Kayo to reach him.

"Dude, he's running in a skin tight suit and didn't mess up once, I'm allowed to cheer!"

"Divided loyalties!"

John spread his hands in a what-can-I-say-the-truth-is-the-truth gesture, a smug smile on his face, not even out of breath.

The edge of Kayo's pan hit Gordon in the kidney as she nudged him to get his attention.

"Shit!" he grabbed the pan and tossed the sandy and now decidedly ragged pancake into the air, taking a couple of steps.

Alan was faring better and stopped mid step to stick his tongue out at Gordon. Splat! The pancake landed on his head as he turned back.

"That doesn't count as catching it!" Scott yelled at Grandma.

"He's right, Alan, toss it again, it has to be caught in the pan."

Alan slapped the pancake down into the pan and tossed it again as Gordon started to catch up.

Alan got in a few running steps before he caught the pancake.

Gordon threw the pancake into the air but didn't manage to land it right, one side flopping off the edge of the pan where it ripped, one half falling to the ground.

"Grab it!" Scott yelled.

Gordon fumbled but grabbed the lost half and deposited it into the pan. Tossing both halves was tricky but he managed it, catching both with a little extra effort.

Alan had stopped dead to laugh at Gordon's pancake disaster, allowing Gordon to pass him, but tossed and caught quickly, rushing to catch up.

"Ooof!" Alan landed on the sand as Gordon innocently pulled his foot back. "You tripped me!"

"Judges!" Virgil yelled.

"Two toss penalties for Gordon!" Grandma ruled, much to Gordon's disgust.

Alan made the most of his time advantage to get to his feet and hurry forward. He stopped, tossed and caught then passed the pan on to Virgil.

Gordon caught up and gave Scott the pan.

The two eldest and probably most competitive of the boys started their lap.

"You killed this pancake, Gordy!" Virgil complained as he tried to get the hang of flipping both halves.

"Blame Kayo, she started it! OWW! There was no need to hit me!"

Kayo rubbed her knuckles and grinned evilly.

Scott was, as predicted, making excellent time, tossing and catching with effortless ease while Virgil cursed, struggling to master the art of a double flip and catch. In the end he settled for smaller tosses of a higher frequency, the ragged halves barely lifting up but still clearing the pan and therefore counting, while he trotted along in a quick shuffling run.

The two teams cheered, bellowing encouragement and insults, having left their previous spots and converged on the finishing line.

"Come on, Scott!"

"Run, Virg!"

"Flip it!"

"Call that a toss? Pathetic!"

Scott glanced over his shoulder at his brother.

"Might as well give up now, you can't beat me!"

"In your dreams!" Virgil yelled back.

The finishing line was in sight and with a last burst of speed the racers edged closer.

Virgil, in a last ditch attempt to win, tossed the pancake halves towards the finish line -a beach towel laid out on the sand- and threw himself forward.

Scott, spotting what he was up to, did the same…

Virgil stretched out with the pan, ready to catch the falling food…

Scott dived, reaching out…

They landed in a tangle of arms and legs, Scott splayed out on top of Virgil, Virgil face down in the sand…

They all watched in horrified fascination as the pancakes seemed to hover suspended in mid air for a second before falling down to earth.

Scott flapped with his pan, Virgil flailed trying to push Scott off him, managing to get an arm free to stick out his pan.

PLOP! plop plop!

The two judges, along with the rest of the teams, rushed towards the two fallen racers.

"Seriously?"

"What are the odds?"

"What?" Scott pulled himself up off a complaining Virgil and looked into his pan.

Virgil sat up, doing the same.

In his pan sat Scott's still vaguely round pancake. And in Scott's, crumpled and creased, ripped and sandy, were the lumps of pancake that had belonged to Virgil.

"So who won?" Gordon asked.

***

"I saved you the last pancake," Scott came up behind Alan and offered him the plate.

"Thanks, Scott," Alan shifted over on the bench to make space for his brother and took the plate. "And thanks for today."

Scott sat down beside his brother, draping his arm around his shoulders. "You're welcome, and I'm sorry I didn't come straight away. I guess I've been a little preoccupied recently. I know that's not an excuse, but it did feel like a valid reason at the time."

"I shouldn't have asked, not really, you had more important things to do."

"No, you were right to ask, it's been a great afternoon and I think we all needed it. Thanks for forcing me to take a break."

Alan nodded, leaning closer to rest his head against his brother's shoulder.

"I just…I guess I feel like so much has changed so quickly and it's only going to change more. When Selene said it was pancake day I remembered how great it used to be to have fun and just spend time together. With everything that's been happening I didn't want that to be something that changed too."

Scott sighed, giving Alan's shoulder a squeeze.

"I'm sorry, I should have realised that. I should have noticed that you needed a bit more time than I've been giving you lately."

Alan scowled. "It's not your job to give me time, I'm not a baby, I'm big enough to look after myself now."

Scott chuckled. "Are any of us big enough to look after ourselves? Or is that why we all want Dad back so much?"

"Selene said that you weren't busy, you were hiding," Alan had zero issues with throwing her under the bus, knowing that Scott would never make her feel bad about it.

Scott was silent for a few moments before he spoke again. "She's not wrong, I guess, in a way, I have been hiding. I know I've been driving Brains and The Mechanic nuts with my constant attention. I'm just worried I think, worried that we'll be too late and we won't find Dad, worried that even if we do find him he won't be the man we remember."

"That's part of my problem, I don't remember him, not really. I just know that he was nice, and that everyone was less stressed when he was around."

"Yeah, dads always make things better and easier. Can I let you in on a secret?"

Alan nodded.

"I've been avoiding you guys a bit, especially you, because I don't want to let any of you down."

"Let us down? That's crazy! There's no way you could ever do that."

Scott closed his eyes, feeling so tired all of a sudden, the fun and relaxation of the last few hours fading away to be replaced with the bone deep exhaustion that was his constant companion.

"I'm having all these doubts, Allie. Doubts that I've been too stubborn to voice out loud."

Alans eyes opened wide. Selene had said that Scott was having the same fears he was, but he hadn't really believed her up until that point.

"What do you mean? What kind of doubts?"

Scott turned away to look out over the island to the sea below them, stretching out as far as the eye could see.

"I worry that he won't be alive when we get there, or that we won't even find him, but I also worry about what will happen if we do manage to bring him home. I want him home, of course I do, but things are going to change, and I'm just hoping that it won't be too hard on us all, especially Dad. We've been on our own, doing things our way with International Rescue for longer than we were doing them with him, and I worry that we're going to clash. Or even that Dad won't want to be here any longer, that he won't want to continue the way we are or even go out on rescues again. Can you imagine a world without International Rescue in it? One where we sit at home and don't help people? It was trying to save people that got Dad lost in the first place, and we've spent eight years saving others but left him alone. We didn't help him. What if he resents us for that? What if he blames us?" Scotts voice dropped lower, almost a whisper." What if he blames me? I'm the one that's in charge."

"I've thought all that too, apart from the bits about you, he would never blame you, none of us would."

Scott hugged his littlest brother tighter than ever, until Alan squeaked and squirmed to get away. He didn't know how he'd missed the fact that Alan himself had also been worried.

He was lucky to have his brothers and the friends that he counted as family. He felt his tight shoulders loosen a little. None of them knew what they would find when they got up there, or what would happen after, but no matter what, he'd have the support of everyone he held dear. That would be enough to get him through anything.

"It'll be alright, Allie. We'll make sure of it. We'll do as we always do, we'll get through it together. Things have a way of working themselves out. We'll get up there, we'll find Dad and we'll bring him home. That's all that matters, that's all we need. Everything else is fixable in time."

Scott looked up towards the lounge windows where the sound of Virgil's piano filtered down to them, along with the indistinct rumble of conversation.

"We're a family, Dad's part of us, and we'll make sure that he knows that."

#scott tracy #alan tracy #virgil tracy #gordon tracy #john tracy #kayo kyrano #brains #the mechanic #Thunderbirds #thunderbirds fanfiction #thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds 2015 #thunderbirds tag #FabFiveFeb

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gs2197 · 7 years ago

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#GS Movie Review: Blade Runner 2049

You’ll either fall asleep, or have both your eyes and mouth wide open throughout. No in between.

Hypnotic & Demanding. 2 words that perfectly describe what I think of the latest entry in Ridley Scott’s, sci-fi noir, nearly 40 year old series.

If I had to sum up my experience while watching this film in one word? Powerful.

Exhausting could also do the trick, but it’s unfair to rule out this film simply because of its lenght, and how demanding it is to its viewers. I’ll be perfectly honest with you: this movie can feel never-ending at times.

Is it worth it though? I’m glad you asked, because despite some clear flaws, 2049 is an experience unlike any other I’ve had in the past couple of years. Much like Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, back in 2014, this film made me guess, it made me smile and it truly gave me chills in the hairs in the back of my neck.

Rejoice science fiction fanatics and cinephiles willing to sit through this 2 and a half hour trip. You’re in for a ride. A very long one.

It’s impossible to mention this movie without acknowledging Denis Villeneuve’s mastery and artistry when it comes to film-making. Ever since I saw Sicario, I realized what a powerhouse he could become if Hollywood gave him a chance to keep demonstrating his talent.

While I haven’t gotten a chance to see Prisoners (yet), I am familiar with both his take on mexican organized crime Sicario, and his brilliant (and as Evan Puschak expertly put it into words, his “reponse to bad movies”), refreshingly original voyage into the realm of science fiction: Arrival.

Both movies are superbly crafted, and I’m truly glad and excited to see that Villeneuve is still going strongly and confidently into earning the well-earned title of legend. Blade Runner 2049 has no shortage of visually arresting moments. I’d be lying if I said I’m not anxiously waiting for the Blu-Ray release of the film to somehow take several frames of the film and hang them on my bedroom walls, or use them as wallpapers in my laptop.

I’m not even kidding. The cinematography unhurriedly takes its time to soak in every angle and detail in the world depicted in the film, and while the pacing will undoubtedly feel agonizingly slow for some, the overall experience benefits from that laid back approach: said “slowness” gives its viewers the chance to lose themselves in this mesmerizing world and forget the minutes (or hours) flashing by. The use of color, the gentle panning of the camera, the Jurassic Park-like mixture of practical effects and CGI... it all ads up. It all works as a cohesive whole. Say what you want about the runtime, this movie is the perfect example of stunning cinematography and DAMN, do I want to see this movie again just because of it.

You may not be instantly aching to see the movie right away, but beyond any doubt, the thrill of sitting through this film again will be as worth it as it was the first time around. Visuals-wise, this movie delivers, over and over...

And you guessed it: over again.

You see that silhouette up there? That’s Ryan Gosling. I like Gosling. He’s a damn good actor. If you had any doubts, look no further: his performance in Blade Runner 2049 is PHENOMENAL. And thankfully so: you’ll spend 85% of the film by his side. The rest of the percentage is spent on runtime and sharing scenes with the rest of the cast. Is that a bad thing? Meh. I’m sad to report that Jared Leto still hasn’t shaken the bad luck that... that mess did to his career. While he is also a terrific actor, the ammount of time he is on screen is insulting. Much like his take on The Prince of Crime, Leto has a way to capture any viewers attention with ease. Approximately 10 minutes of runtime are no way to treat an actor of this caliber in my opinion.

Thankfully some members of the cast do get a chance to shine, and man do they wanna leave you blind!

Ever heard of Ana de Armas? I’m sad to report that me neither. Thank God that Hollywood found her. The first thing you’ll probably notice is that she is a remarkably beautiful woman. Even my gayness can’t help but waver at the sight of her. The best part? She can also act. And she can act really well. I never thought I’d ship a replicant and an AI, but hey, life’s full of surprises! There is one scene in particular where my eyes refused to blink. It was romantic, sexy, heartbreaking, confusing and it was a prime example of creativity at its best. You’ll know which scene I’m talking about when you see the movie. It involves hands. And a hooker.

Don’t even get me started on Harrison Ford. He is as awesome as always, but he suffers the same fate as Leto to some degree. For further reference, look up to the out of place GIF up above.

But before I move on to the next category, I HAVE to acknowledge the powerhouse that is Sylvia Hoeks. She doesn’t get that much personality to match K or Joi (Gosling and de Armas), but much like Ana, she steals every scene she’s in. Fingers crossed to see more of her in the future.

Robin Wright fans?

The ugly, crying Anthony Anderson GIF also applies. Sorry.

Now on to the technical side of the story. If you thought that Gosling and Villeneuve were the icing on the cake, you were partially mistaken. Production desing is A. Fucking. Mazing. Every single set is stunning and dream-like. Hell, even K’s apartment looks cool despite it’s size.

However Dennis Gassner managed to sneak his way into a project of this scope is beyond me. I’m glad that he did. His eye for detail is off the charts, and just like the rest of the ingredients that conform this film, he is a truly welcome and wonderful addition that makes 2049 shine as brightly as it does.

Visual effects are a somewhat mixed bag for me. The grandeur and epicness are undeniable. It may be my wild imagination or the theater I went to see the movie in, but it’s hard to discern whats going o on screen at certain points. Its a real shame, given how mesmerizing the imagery is for the duration of the film. The mix of practical and CGI is breathtakingly well executed, and ever since Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, I had yet to see a film that matched the level of detail and technical expertice that Nolan’s movie has. Now that Blade Runner 2049 has finally arrived, I’m having an unbearably difficult time trying to decide which movie excels more in that front.

Let’s just call it a tie for now.

The audio design/mixing is also excellent. The few and far in between action sequences in the movie are elevated sky high due to how polished and strongly every single punch and kick feels. As you may have noticed this movie is an undeniable contender for a couple Academy Awards, hopefully they’ll give this movie the love it deserves.

And finally we get to the narrative. As I’ve mentioned before, Blade Runner 2049 sure does take its time to kick into gear, at least for audiences and viewers expecting a bombastic and unstoppable blur of action and wit. This movie’s pace is certainly not for anyone. The movie IS 2 hours and 30 something minutes long, so if you go to see it you shouldn’t be surprised.

I personally loved 2049. While I don’t see myself jumping right back to rewatch the movie as excitedly as I’d do it for Inception, Gone Girl (or Frozen to be totally honest) this movie has a level of craftmanship and detail that makes me want to suck it up and go enjoy the ride once again.

As for the flow of the narrative, I have to admit that the experience of watching Blade Runner 2049 was similar to the one I had while watching Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in theaters. I was particularly hungry while watching it and couldn’t really appreaciate how mind-blowingly good the movie. It felt eternal and never-ending at the time. Now? I’ve watched the Ultimate Edition at least 4 times during 2017.

So basically my point is: the movie is worth watching over and over and guess what? Over again.

The thing is, it’s unfair to label this movie as unwatchable, overlong and boring as I’ve led you to believe up above. The movie has a lot of twists and turns that I wasn’t expecting. The nods to the the original Blade Runner had me smiling like a madman, and the visuals and production desing kept me constantly engaged and amazed by the raw power and greatness of it all. Watching this film was a true delight despite its flaws.

The chemistry and relationship between de Armas and Gosling’s characters is by far one of the most engrossing and enjoyable story threads in the movie. The dialogue is spot on throughout. The performances, despite how little runtime some characters get, are all excellent. From Bautista’s brief time on the spotlight in the opening minutes, to Harrison Ford’s exciting introduction action sequence, and even Leto’s philosophical mumbo-jumbo monologues (I applaud anyone able to understand him the first time around), every actor gives it their all while they get the chance to do so.

I could go on praising this film for a while, so let’s just say that I implore you to give 2049 a chance to mesmerize and captivate you. It certainly did that and more for me.

Now, before the conclusion and consensus, I’d like to make a couple recommendations to properly enjoy Blade Runner 2049.

1. Watch the original Blade Runner. The Director’s Cut if you get the chance. You’ll enjoy this movie twice as much if you’re familiar with Ridley Scott’s masterpiece.

2. Watch the 3 short films that were released to fill in the gaps between 2019 and 2049. You can thank me later. They’re all awesome!

- Black Out 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrZk9sSgRyQ&t=810s

- 2036: Nexus Dawn https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgsS3nhRRzQ

- 2048: Nowhere to Run https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ9Os8cP_gg

Conclusion: The latest (and long time coming) installment in the Blade Runner universe is an exercise in patience. It’s extremely demanding, thought-provoking and engrossing. It’s a visual and technical masterpiece. Call it craftsmanship or talent, but it’s undeniable that Villeneuve has created a stunning, highly detailed and impressive science fiction movie that should be praised and acknowledged by its achievements, and further analysed and dissected in the future.

Consensus: “Blade Runner 2049 is an exhausting, long but undeniably polished and captivating piece of entertainment. With production design and visuals that set a new benchmark for sci-fi and movies in general, Villeneuve has crafted a beautiful, well-acted and ultimately enjoyable experience that will test your capacity for attention and your patience.”

#Blade Runner #2049 #SciFi #Ryan Gosling #Ana de Armas #Stunning #Insane visuals #Long ass movie #Top 5 favorite films of 2017 #Denis Villeneuve #Movie Reviews

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drycoin14-blog · 6 years ago

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Rosemary Garlic Fried Potatoes by The Pioneer Woman

Sometimes you just need to throw potatoes in a pot and fry them. You just do. But in all my experience with frying potatoes through the years, I’ve found that simply throwing them (however violently) into a pot of oil when they’re raw just will never result in that magical, crispy wonderfulness that potatoes are meant to have. The best approach, I’ve found, is to cook the potatoes (whether by boiling or roasting) before frying them. The result is crispy, awesome potatoes every time!

Make these the next time you’re serving up steaks, burgers, pork chops…or anything! And I wouldn’t put it past myself to serve these with a salad. (But maybe that’s just me.)

The Cast of Characters. This is a complicated one, folks! Ha. Potatoes, rosemary, garlic, and vegetable oil for frying. Done!

Start by scrubbing the potatoes clean and cutting them into chunks. If they’re larger potatoes, cut them in half lengthwise, then make a couple of cuts in the opposite direction. If they’re smaller, just cut them in fourths.

At the same time, slice the garlic cloves as thin as you can! I used about 10 small cloves.

This is about 3 1/2 pounds of potatoes, but use as many (or as few) as you need.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, then carefully add the potatoes. Boil them until they’re tender, about 15-20 minutes.

Then drain them…

And pour them onto a sheet pan in a single layer.

This will allow them to get totally dry; you don’t want any water on the potatoes when you put them in the oil!

A note about the tenderness of the potatoes: How much you cook/boil them depends on how “neat” and tidy (or unruly and jagged) the potatoes stay when you fry them. I made a batch earlier this week when I was filming my Food Network show, and I stopped boiling them when they were just barely tender; the skins had not started to loosen, and the potatoes still looked pretty much the way they did when I dropped them into the water to cook.

This time, I decided to take it a little farther and cook the potatoes until they were really tender and falling apart. (I’ll tell you the difference in frying a little later in this post, but just wanted you to know you have options depending on what you’re looking for!)

Heat a pot of oil (put it on the back burner if you have little kiddoes in the house!) to about 350-360 degrees. Use a slotted spatula or spoon to carefully lower some of the potatoes in the oil. You’ll have to work in batches, depending on the size of your pot. (It took me about 5 batches of frying in the size pot I had.)

Cook them for about 3 to 4 minutes, then check the potatoes and make sure they are starting to get golden and crisp…

Then drop in a few garlic slices and a sprig of rosemary (I use a spatula just to make sure I don’t get splashed with hot demon oil.

About the garlic and rosemary: Basically, you’re going to drop in a fresh batch of garlic and rosemary toward the end of each batch of potatoes. This doesn’t so much infuse the cooking oil with the flavors (though I think it certainly does a bit) as much as it fries the garlic and rosemary for the finished dish. (Plus it just looks pretty!)

Fry the potatoes, garlic, and rosemary for another minute or so, and when the potatoes are super golden and crisp, remove them all to a paper towel lined sheet pan. (Be sure to really fish out the little slices of garlic so you don’t wind up with burned garlic later.)

Immediately sprinkle the potatoes generously with kosher salt to make sure the salt sticks!

Then just keep frying in batches…

Draining and sprinkling with salt…

Until you have a big, beautiful pan of potatoes! I set the pan on the stovetop next to the pot of oil just to make sure they stay warm.

You can strip the leaves off the rosemary (they’ll basically crumble off pretty easily) and let them be part of the potatoes, and/or you can lay the fried springs on top for serving.

So the difference between how soft you get them during boiling can be seen right here. The other day when I only boiled the potatoes until they were barely tender, the chunks stayed together and each piece of potato was totally discernible from the next. Here, you can see that pieces of potato skin, little rough pieces of potato, are all over the place. It’s my personal preference, but you can do whatever your heart tells you to do.

Enjoy these, friends!

Rosemary Garlic Fried Potatoes

February 11, 2018 0

Prep Time:

5 Minutes

Difficulty:

Easy

Cook Time:

30 Minutes

Servings:

8 Servings

Ingredients

3 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, Scrubbed Clean And Cut Into Chunks

Vegetable Oil, For Frying

6 whole Rosemary Sprigs

12 cloves Garlic, Sliced

Kosher Salt, For Sprinkling

Smoked Paprika (optional) For Sprinkling

Instructions

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Carefully lower the potato chunks into the water and cook them until fork-tender, about 15-20 minutes. Drain the potatoes, then pour onto a sheet pan and allow them to dry completely and cool slightly.

Bring a pot of vegetable oil to a temperature of 350 degrees. (NOTE: Put pot on the backburner of the stove if you have children in the house.) Using a slotted spatula and working in batches, carefully lower cooked potatoes into the oil and allow them to fry for 3 to 4 minutes, or until golden and slightly crisp. Add a few garlic slices and rosemary to the pot, and continue frying for another minute or so, until potatoes or deep golden and crisp. Remove to a paper towel lined plate, making sure to get all the garlic and rosemary out. Sprinkle generously with salt and repeat in batches with the rest of the potatoes, rosemary, and garlic.

Serve with steak, chicken, or fish (or salad!)

Source: https://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/rosemary-garlic-fried-potatoes/

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lindyhunt · 6 years ago

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Charlotte Cardin Will Take Over the Music Industry in 2019–Even Though You Don’t Know Her Name Yet

In our Winter issue, FASHION editors rounded up the 100 people, products and experiences we predict will blow up in 2019. It’s our inaugural Hot 100 Fuse List. From the workouts you’ll be doing, to the new designers and destinations you’ll see on your feed, this is your guide to being in the know next year. With two headlining tours under her belt, two successful EPs and an album on the way, naturally Charlotte Cardin was the first to come to mind.

Photography by Brent Goldsmith. Styling by Juliana Schiavinatto. Creative direction by Brittany Eccles. Hair, Peter Gray for Home Agency/Shu Uemura. Makeup, Julie Cusson for Chanel. Fashion assistants, Cherry Wang and Gabriela Lima. Photography assistant, Florian Debray.

1: Charlotte Cardin

Charlotte Cardin isn’t lying when she talks about her love of Radiohead. When you’re a fan, you don’t necessarily mean to talk about your idols all the time, but opportunities just seem to arise. It so happens that, as a musician, Cardin gets asked about music a lot. Consequently, there’s a good chance you’ll hear her gush about Radiohead.

Over the phone from Paris, where she is overlooking the artistic mecca of Montmartre (tough work, right?), she’s talking about one of their songs in particular. “I always give the example of ‘No Surprises’ by Radiohead,” she says. “It’s probably my favourite song in the world. It’s so simple, and the melody is so beautiful. I like hearing something that’s so good that it doesn’t need much—maybe they even underdid it, just because your mind can complete the song a bit. I like hearing space in music.”

Take note: Cardin is big on space.

Imagine if she were a character in a novel about a beautiful singer-songwriter from Montreal who first earned acclaim as a competitor on the Québécois version of The Voice (La Voix) but is now writing music in Paris, for instance. It shouldn’t be much of a stretch. To continue this precarious metaphor, let’s say this novel was assigned in an English 101 class. You could write an essay in said class about how Cardin represents the concept of liminality, of occupying a space in between. You would probably get a pretty good grade. (I hope so, anyway, because that’s essentially my angle for this piece.)

Right now, she exists in a moment just before. Before adulthood, before fame and celebrity, she sings her entrancing smoke-and-nostalgia-scented pop somewhere in between real life and stories.

Part of this ambiguity is intentional. The songs she writes are confessional, sometimes raw or sad or brimming with lust and longing. But that doesn’t mean they are true or even about her exactly. “I don’t only write about personal heartbreaks,” she says. “I will write from my perspective, but a lot of my songs are fictional: things that a friend told me, something I noticed or something I experienced myself.”

“I love playing with the line between fiction and reality,” she continues. “If you start from a story that sort of affected you but isn’t currently destroying your life, there’s just more space to create around that event.”

Speaking of fiction and singers: Cast your mind back to 2002. That year, when she was 20, poet, performance artist and icon Britney Spears sang her powerful tribute to liminality. You’ll recall that at the time, as she insisted in the song, she was not a girl anymore but neither was she a woman. What she needed, she proclaimed, was time—a moment for herself—while she was in between.

In terms of genre and branding, Cardin doesn’t share many similarities with Spears. (Stylistically, and with good reason, she’s more often compared to Amy Winehouse, although she doesn’t share her demons, thankfully.) But that song could have been written by Cardin. Or, I suppose, by any woman in her early 20s. Liminality is a universal experience: when you are old enough to hang a degree on your wall but not old enough to rent a car. Cardin doesn’t sing about it in so many words, but she embodies it. For her, it has less to do with post-adolescence and more to do with experience and self-discovery.

She is at the age when your identity starts to coalesce and you start examining your life with a more critical, informed eye. At 24, with two headlining tours under her belt, two successful EPs and an album on the way, Cardin is learning more about herself. And what she has discovered is that, like Spears, she needs some time.

“I didn’t think I was a loner, but I realized I am a little bit,” she says. “I really need some space, some personal time just to do my shit without having people around. I tour with extraordinary musicians, awesome human beings, and they’re really good friends of mine, but I realized I do need some personal space to be happy.”

But, Cardin says, this revelation doesn’t extend to her romantic life. “In a relationship, I don’t feel the same way,” she explains. “I think the best relationships are those where you can spend so much time with the other person but you never feel like you need to act a certain way or do specific things.”

“I really need some space, some personal time just to do my shit without having people around.”

Which, actually, sounds a lot like how she feels about her family. If we judge fandom by how readily, and how often, a person mentions his or her favourite band (or whatever), then Radiohead has nothing on Cardin’s family. That’s probably how it should be.

After all, Thom Yorke didn’t put her in singing lessons when she was eight, and he doesn’t travel to as many of her shows as he possibly can. Her parents do, always full of pride for their daughter, even when she sings about adult situations. “It’s awkward sometimes if they ask exactly what I meant by something that I know is not something I want to share with them,” she says. “But they’re open-minded. I’m glad I don’t have to feel ashamed, because I know they understand. They were young once, too. They’re like, ‘We know that sex exists.’”

She’s safe is the point. But her family isn’t the only reason she can enjoy where she is now. There’s excitement and freedom when you’re in between because the world hasn’t assigned you a dominant narrative quite yet. Sure, there are comparisons to Winehouse—but that is as complimentary as it is accurate. She also tends to get asked about La Voix and about the time she spent modelling when she was 15. (She left the biz when she was 19 to focus on her music.)

If “It girl” were still a title women wanted and the media bestowed, Cardin would be an ideal candidate. And the fact that she was a model is an essential ingredient in her It-ness. She’s so cool; she gave up what is a quintessentially cool career in favour of an even cooler one.

“I’m glad I don’t have to feel ashamed, because I know they understand.”

The other thing that makes her cool is the confident way in which she trusts her instincts. “I’ve realized that when you believe in something, even if you have a certain doubt, or a certain fear, it’s nice to go with it because you can never be mad at yourself for something you believed in,” explains Cardin. “It’s when someone imposes something on you—that’s when you’ll regret a song or doing something. You might mess up a few times, but at least it’s your own fault.”

I can see her hanging out in that Paris apartment, writing songs, on the edge of whatever comes next, trusting herself to figure out what that is. In his novel Everything Matters!, Ron Currie writes something about moments—moments like the one Cardin has made for herself: “…even in this last moment there is still Everything, whole galaxies and eons, the sum total of every experience across time, shrunk to the head of a pin, theirs for the asking, right here, right now. And so anything, anything, anything is possible.”

If only that were in a Radiohead song, then it might be Cardin’s favourite line because it already describes her perfectly

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almadinaeshopbestmachineryt-blog · 7 years ago

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New Post (The Honest to Goodness Truth on Runescape Summoning) has been published on Al Madina Eshop

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The Honest to Goodness Truth on Runescape Summoning

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Using Runescape Summoning

1These Avatars cannot be summoned by player characters. This will then enable you to make your scrolls. Holy summons don’t have any offensive capabilities. Summoning is a complicated skill that enables you to invoke many varieties of assistance from a broad range of creatures. Distinct Familiars have various abilities and distinct Scrolls. Crabs can be purchased from mogres. This higher Combat level isn’t visible on free worlds. http://www.railay.com/railay/news/viewtopic.php?p=8547 Obelisks are a fundamental portion of the Summoning skill. They can be found on Cairn Isle. You don’t need to mine any Rune Essence. This guide is all about the Summoning skill. Summoning scrolls must execute a familiar’s special move. This Obelisk can be found in Filliman’s Grotto, which can be obtained during and following the Nature Spirit quest. To make pouches you have to take the essential items to a charged summoning obelisk and apply the obelisk, now simply pick the Pouch you want to make.

Not one are ready to be boosted. I decided to educate myself. You want to go south here. A warning will request that you stop mistakes. The slayer assignment will be to kill a range of a particular type of monster. The reach of monsters you may improve your Block list is dependent upon your quest points. Robe bottom is fancy, and it provides a magic attack bonus that’s excellent but it’s a little over the budget for most of players. The great thing about fighting different players is they can drop really nice and valuable stuff, as you only keep three items when you die. However, it’s hard to obtain runescape 3 gold in game. Using Runescape Summoning

Crimsons or Blue charms supply you with the exact quantity of experience as the Greens do but cost you a lot less. Silver jewelry is a means of purchasing and adding to your collection as it is not hard to purchase and less costly. The times continue to get shown here in order to function as a guideline ONLY. Remote view familiars enable players to check out what is occuring in distant locations. There’s a one-way from the industry region to bank. In the category of Shoes at the online store you’re in a place to discover a collection of models that are unique at the ideal price. The Start of Runescape Summoning

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Abyssal is the 2nd best tier. Combat is regulated by a life points system. Players set their own objectives and objectives since they play the game. Here are we provide some helpful suggestions on the best way to earn RS gold whilst training Summoning skill. It’s very dark inside, and you’ll need to create a lantern. The Summoning boost wouldn’t enable you to make pouches requiring a higher degree than your regular maximum. You’ve got to mine the huge rock in the middle of the rooms to get the rune essences. Herb patches, for example, only allow you to plant Herb seeds within them. Just remember this to bring a pet, it has to be fully grown. They take a long time to grow up. Topped with various sorts of fruits, this muffin is certain to satisfy. Consider it like building a cocktail along with all the ingredients, and then pouring it out when you need to. You may also purchase some raw chickens yourself from a shop. Till you’re in possession of an entire inventory, continue telegrabbing the wine. In order to earn a pouch, what you’ve got to do is take an empty pouch, a charm, the right quantity of spirit shards and the corresponding tertiary ingredient for the specific pouch you want to make. Maybe it’s a awesome alternative for you to get gold on the site. Besides, once you must purchase gold that’s RS3 RSorder is a suitable choice for you. Employing the rings is in fact straightforward. Moreover, charms may also be acquired from thieving chests in Dorgesh-Kaan. They add a bit of elegance to the appearance. Hope this little guide is useful for you. Foragers procure items and may also store found items. Well now you know the best place to receive all the equipment, you are going to want to understand what it’s possible to make with them. Herb patches don’t will need to go watered. Share this guide, or skip to the report. Each familliar has a distinctive ability they’re in a position to use. At the base of each column will be the term of the thing you will need to move in the center row. You might want to be able when you speak to her! http://www.primariaprajeni.ro/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=782710 Furthermore, you must discover the task before you’re all set to block it. Players who successfully finish the necessary tasks during the event is given a reward like an merchandise or an emote, letting the player character to do a gesture conveying an emotion. For instance, if you didn’t get the materials, you would have to train Woodcutting to collect logs to train Firemaking, seeing as you can’t train Firemaking without some kind of logs. Once on top, you’re likely to come across some stairs. You’re going to require a lightsource if you’d like to navigate the cave. When it is employed as a means to train 19, he or she’s a enjoyable skill. Yes, but nevertheless, it will cost a lot of money. You may be thinking why you would love to go down a passageway. I would advise utilizing a high populated world whilst collecting these, so they will spawn faster. Your principal job will be to harvest or collect god tears as well as ascertain the way the occasions will unfold. There are several diverse approaches to earn money that is quicker. This is very helpful for investigating Ancient effigies. Necrotic is an ambitious and contemporary spin on the conventional RSPS.

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ibloggingkits-blog · 8 years ago

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New Post has been published on Blogging kits

New Post has been published on https://bloggingkits.org/this-image-of-a-hidden-snake-is-riding-the-internet-wild/

This image of a hidden snake is riding the internet wild

The tweet has gotten extra than 3,000 retweets in three days, with hundreds of replies from those who can not discover the snake. Bonus Deuces Wild Increases Your Odds at Prevailing.

People have a tendency to play this recreation time and again. Bonus Deuces Wild is one of the maximum famous video games at casinos and bars. Now you may plan it at domestic too. This recreation changed into famous inside the vintage Wild West mining camps. The “wild” nickname referred to lions and wild cats that might come down from the hills in search of meals.

In Bonus Deuce Wild you use smaller coins or small wager amounts on the net. This is part of the popularity of the game. It is cheap to play and has pretty appropriate odds. Bounds Deuces Wild is popular due to the fact you may win the sport in many special methods. The wild card allows you to play greater and load extra money. The wild playing cards are all the deuces. Your #2 card may be used to play something card you desire.

Bonus Deuces wild may be downloaded to your laptop with javascript. It does make you sign in and provide your personal records. So it could be played at domestic.

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The Stealing of a private Name (Emblem Name) Online – Is the internet the Wild West?

there may be a massive problem On-line with oldsters doing something they are able to promote their Online little businesses, and it is gotten to the point that they plagiarize content, use Emblem names, thieve content, and borrow Humans’s names. Allow me to let you know of a hassle That is brewing On-line This is getting a little bit out of manipulating.

As a really prolific On-line article writer, I’ve built a quite suitable Emblem Name, which takes place to be my non-public Name. But, what I have observed is that my content has been stolen, re-worked, and utilized by those who wish to make little trickle bills from AdSense or worse, promote a few sort of scammy trinkets Online.

Currently, I stated that a person had borrowed my private Call (Emblem Call) and had started posting articles at a substandard article directory web page, and inside the byline took the internet Surfers to a less than valid web-web page. When I contacted the proprietor of the directory web page they emailed back beneath the Name of “Admin” that is indeed, a bit shady, as no Name turned into given; what are they hiding from.

So, now we’ve got bogus authors hiding, the use of different Human beings’ names posting at illegitimate listing-article-web sites with folks jogging these websites who are most likely much less than valid themselves. Worse, no one is monitoring this, or the fraud This is being perpetrated – all using other People’s names and popularity.

Whilst contacting the article-admin of this website, he or she writes returned to me: “There may be many People inside the global with the same Call. If he isn’t definitely the usage of his actual Call and the usage of your Call then you definitely ought to touch him directly that why he is doing this as we are not accountable of who he’s and what he’s posting on our web page. Additionally, he might be posting his articles on many different article directories. It might Additionally be difficult so that you can ask each listing owner to get rid of his articles. you can touch him with the aid of going to the websites he’s selling. We do not share or deliver our authors’ private emails to 1/3 events. If he is filing articles written through then you definitely we are able to take away the one’s articles. Wish you may apprehend this.”

Interesting isn’t always it, what we’ve here is a boatload of excuses as to why the listing website isn’t always liable for the fraud they are permitting, and why they can not do whatever about it. Incidentally, I used to be not able to touch the character, who used my Call, as there was no manner to contact them on their website. Properly, this ought to be a lesson to all about the problem in protecting your recognition, your Name and maintaining your Logo Name. Please don’t forget this.

Find out about the Fitness Benefits of Uncooked Wild Foods The Raw meals movement nowadays is gaining recognition across a much broader and wider spectrum of society. Uncooked wild food is more unique and probably isn’t always as excessive up at the radar for the general public.

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alienation2016-blog · 8 years ago

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New Post has been published on Alienation

New Post has been published on https://alienation.biz/germany-pushes-plan-to-boost-private-investment-in-africa/

Germany pushes plan to boost private investment in Africa

Narrowing the space between wealthy and poor is key to fending off an unfavorable rise in populism, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said on Saturday as he laid out a plan to reinforce personal investment in Africa.

“If we do not anything to change this, we will count on an upward thrust in populist events and demagogues, and an upward push in instability around the arena, with all its bad consequences for sustainable increase”, he stated in a speech in Washington.

“We’re seeing it already in some elements of the sector,” he stated all through the global Infrastructure Discussion board at the Inter-American Improvement Financial institution. Schaeuble is among the officials attending the IMF and World Financial institution spring meetings this week.

He said Germany, which holds the presidency of the G20 organization of countries

Is pushing a plan to have African nations partner with sure G20 nations and international creditors, inclusive of the arena Financial institution, to draw out of doors buyers to the continent.

The primary stage of the concept, dubbed “Compact with Africa,” might cognizance on Rwanda, Senegal, Tunisia, Morocco and Ivory Coast.

“If we need to make sure long-term balance and protection, we need to keep to lessen the gap in wealth between the wealthy countries and the terrible international locations of this International, in particular on the African continent”, Schaeuble stated.

German Food – What Type of Food Do Germans Eat

After residing in Germany for five years, having a German Spouse and plenty of German Pals, I’ve come to be aware of the types of feed the common German eats in Germany. First, you must realize conventional German meals like Jaeger schnitzel aren’t ordinary ingredients for Germans. Yes, they’re eaten there, but the motive of this text is to provide an explanation for the regular ingredients which can be eaten in Germany.

1. Bread – When the words “food” and “Germany” are spoken inside the equal sentence the primary issue that involves mind is bread! Germans LOVE their bread! Bread is eaten in one-of-a-kind ways for each meal of the day consisting of snacks. That does not imply that each German eats bread with every meal, but bread is a commonplace a part of many German dishes, irrespective of what the time of day.

2. Potatoes – In a close second is potatoes. I had no idea potatoes could be served in so many extraordinary approaches until I moved to Germany. Many German Potato Dishes are Without a doubt exact too!

three. Cheese – Cheese is usually eaten in Germany together with bread and lunch meat and like the extraordinary potato dishes that you may locate in Germany, there are such a lot of exclusive types of cheeses in Germany it is extraordinary.germany breaking news

4. Lunch Meat – Lunch meat, like salami, could be very famous in Germany in particular observed with cheese on bread. Lunch meat and cheese on a broken (bread) is a very common breakfast and supper meal.

5. Salad – Salad could be very popular in Germany as a lunch and/or dinner aspect dish.

6. Bratwurst & French Fries – A brat and fries to a German is sort of a Cheeseburger and fries to an American. it’s their junk meals and it is eaten loads, similar to American junk food.

7. Cereal – As with many other Nations all through the sector, Germans love cereal and oatmeal, especially “Muesli” (raw rolled oats.)

Obviously, the German food plan isn’t always restrained to handiest this listing of meals, however, based totally on my experience and time living in Germany they may be the maximum popular regular meals.

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WoW Private Servers – What Makes Them So Appealing

World of Warcraft is a completely thrilling and popular game that runs on official server software. Personal servers have, but surfaced and extra gamers have flocked to the Personal servers to get a thrill of the sport. The Personal servers are sports servers which might be hosted by means of companies and entities that aren’t the game licensed distributor or producer in this example being Snowfall enjoyment. There are off route dangers involved while the usage of such servers, however, there are also some of the advantages which have attracted gamers even amidst the setbacks.

Technically speaking, the Personal servers are privately owned and emulate the gameplay reveal in of WoW and other on-line video games. They are also called server emulators. In case you are questioning why everybody would need to apply Personal servers to play, properly right here are a few things which you want to understand approximately the Personal servers.

They are unfastened – Maximum of the instances the servers are loose and make it possible for gamers to honestly enjoy gambling subscription sport without charge in any respect. loose to play video games continue to be famous and whilst it is viable to play steeply-priced games without charge in any respect then that is a splendid enchantment to the users. Even high professional gamers nonetheless locate the loose variations of the video games very attractive and that is what has led to the popularity of the servers.

The servers are a touch special

This is due to the fact Most put into effect particular gameplay rules that generally are a deviation from what official servers offer. The Non-public carriers can alter the game, deleting and including a few talents, rates and fashions. using the servers, it’s far feasible for brand new characters to begin at most degrees or for the enjoy charges to be lots faster. different adjustments which are viable with the servers are unique in-recreation occasions and special mobs among others. Most people of the players unearths the difference pretty exciting, although its approaches that the dynamics of the game have modified by hook or by crook.

They’re handy – this is in the sense that the servers make it viable which will play video games that could in any other case be tough to play. An awesome example is video games that may not be provided within the vicinity in which the participant is positioned. In this type of scenario, Private services make it feasible for such players to still enjoy the video games. The same is the case in situations wherein the professional versions of the video games are discontinued through the manufacturers; the gamers nonetheless maintain playing the play the use of the Non-public carriers. Normally, gamers are able to revel in blocked content the use of this server choice.

They are anywhere – The opposite motive that has made WoW Private servers appealing to players is that They are good sized. They were round for a massive length of time and that they continue to grow in recognition. There is, of course, the criminal gray region, however, they maintain to thrive. They’ll have bugs and balance issues, particularly in view that Most are previous, however, they still have ended up very popular among game enthusiasts.

The New-Age Investment – Alternative Investment

Opportunity Funding implies investing in assets aside from the conventional strategies which include shares, bonds, coins, and so forth. These might be non-public fairness, hedge price range, real property, commodities, treasured metals, wine, art, and many others. That kind of investments is held through excessive internet really worth people, or institutional traders. The addition of this sort of Funding to the portfolio allows diversification, reduces risks and complements returns.

The overall performance of property utilized in Alternative investments is incredibly lower while as compared to those within the conventional techniques. They’re relatively extra hard to cost. They may be also less liquid when as compared to conventional strategies.

Some famous styles of Alternative investments being broadly used are:

Personal fairness:

This can be described as making an investment in private businesses such as begin-ups, challenge capital, and financing throughout levels of the corporation’s growth. This Funding is done in businesses that don’t difficulty public shares. These firms boost budget via capital invested by using institutional and non-institutional traders.how to make an investment

Direct Funding in personal companies:

This means investing in a begin-up or a personal employer immediately in place of the equity. This is an excessive chance and high return proposition.

real belongings:

This means investing in bodily assets that are of high fee. Examples of such property are valuable metals, actual property, oil, wine, artwork, earrings, and so on.

Hedge finances:

In this example, the price range is accumulated from a number of investors to form a common pool of budget. These finances have invested the use of extraordinary types of techniques to earn the go back on investments. They have got the gain that they need less SEC guidelines than different finances.

Managed Futures:

That is much like Hedge funds wherein a not unusual pool of investor’s budget is created. These price ranges are invested in numerous financial contraptions inclusive of commodities, foreign money and hobby rate markets.investment definition

Monetary Derivatives:

An economic by-product is an arrangement wherein the investor is promised a fee while a certain asset reaches a certain stage. Those securities consist of futures, options, forwards and swaps.

Fund of price range:

This is a way of diversifying investments. It’s far executed by making an investment in multiple managers, asset instructions or techniques.

private Placement Debt:

buyers can acquire steady coins flow via making an investment in a private employer thru promissory notes.

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3one3 · 8 years ago

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The Sequel - 783

The End of a Very Long Wait

André Schürrle, Juan Mata, other Chelsea players, and random awesome OC’s

(okay they’re less random now but they’re still pretty awesome)

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“Here, try this. Blow on it! It’s hot! Duhhhh.”

“Very good, but it needs salt.”

“I haven’t put the cheese in yet. The cheese makes it saltier.”

“Can I try a-“

“No! Hands off!”

“What difference does it make if I eat one now or eat it in three minutes with the pasta and sauce?”

“It’s better with the pasta and sauce! It’s like wasting one. Meatballs are not a renewable resource.”

“Actually they really are.”

“Actually they’re really not, because we’re going to run out of grass to graze the cow on.”

“Okay but ground turkey doesn’t come from cows.”

“Yeah. Well. Okay. We’ll run out of something necessary to raise turkeys too.”

Juan walked away laughing and Christina frowned at her skillet of creamy sauce for her Swedish meatballs, which happened to be of the turkey variety. I used beef stock though! So it still requires cows! I’m still right, she argued to herself. They were going to order Thai delivery but the lady who answered the phone at their favorite spot warned of a long wait, so the rider ran down to the market for a couple of ingredients to throw together her dad’s Swedish meatball and egg noodle recipe. It was easy and quick and tasty, and she didn’t get to Juan’s until almost 9 on Wednesday night so the first two benefits were crucial. Her first day post-André was long and busy because she put some things off during his last days in London to spend more time with him. Juan’s family had all gone back from whence they came too, and his sad Christmas tree was in the collection pile outside with his neighbors’. The twinkle lights from his bedroom were packed away somewhere, and with them the extra cozy feeling they conjured in there a week earlier.

“You want more Riesling?” the Spaniard asked.

“Obviously.” Christina held her glass out behind her and stirred the sauce and noodles with the other hand. She had asparagus steaming on the stove too. He took it from her to top it up.

“Eat at the table or eat on the couch?”

“Couch.”

The couch was where the pair of friends ate and where they ended up entrenched for almost three hours. They found an illegal HD copy of Manchester By The Sea after some diligent online hunting. The film generated a lot of Oscar buzz and was touted as the best of the season. It was brilliantly shot, even more brilliantly acted, viciously real, and soul crushingly depressing. Each time they thought maximum sadness had been reached, something even more tear jerking was revealed about the characters. The depths to which the movie dragged Christina, who identified most with the perfectly captured awkwardness of human interaction following a death, had her clinging tighter and tighter to the player. She ended up lying on her stomach and hugging his waist. He was on his back, perpendicular to her, and got squeezed each time she felt like crying, like that could ward it off. The screenplay writer and the film’s director helped to dam the viewers’ tears by providing blunt, raw, and exquisitely timed and delivered comedy. The jokes broke up the sadness, and, unusually for most really good serious plots, were truly laugh-out-loud funny. It was bedtime after they discussed the unsatisfying ending, because they had an early flight to Spain in the morning and because it was just bedtime anyway.

“Are you sleeping with me, or?” the player asked the rider as she drained her water glass before getting up from the couch. He stood in front of the coffee table and scratched his elbow. It was an awkward gesture and it reminded her of the movie. It reminded her of the number of times the main character said “okay, thanks” to the three people in the hospital telling him about and helping him deal with the immediate fallout of his older brother’s death. That is to say, his itching seemed like something one does when one does not know what else to do.

“Why wouldn’t I?” she asked back once the water was gone.

“Two weeks with him...maybe things change,” Juan shrugged.

“Not really.” Oh you have no idea how they’ve changed, Christina smirked to herself. She hadn’t thought about that all day. She didn’t spend her workday thinking about how she had permission to do whatever she wanted with him that night, or feeling eager about it. It didn’t occur to her at all until that moment.

“Good. That means I can give you your gift from the Three Kings a little early.” He smiled but it was unclear to her if he was grinning because improving things with André did not result in her wanting to put some distance between them, or if it was the present. She told him some of the good things that happened with the German during his stay. For example, when André said she could stay in London until the house was ready, she told Juan the next day. When they had three “good days” in a row, she shared that with her friend too. She was tactful about it so as not to rub anything in his face that might disappoint him. She just wanted to share her updates with someone and Natasha was not as in the loop as Juan.

“Is it a miniature Sicilian donkey? I hope it’s a donkey.”

“Why would it be a donkey?”

“I don’t know. Didn’t the three kings come on donkeys or something? I don’t know anything about this holiday,” the rider shrugged, following him to the bedroom.

“Do you know of many kings who rode miniature donkeys?”

“No. I don’t know. Has Sicily ever had a king? I can’t really picture some fat mafia guy on one, but I’m sure Sicily hasn’t always been full of fat mafia guys. Is my present really in the bathroom?” Christina inquired with a skeptical brow situation when her friend waved for her to follow him in there.

“Yes.”

“Why? Why do I feel like it’s going to be something gro-“

“Here you are.” The Chelsea man opened the top drawer of the stack in the middle of the vanity and produced a toothbrush with a red bow tied around it, and then a box of paste too. Both were her brand, not his. “Ta da! Now you don’t have to use mine and complain about how disgusting my toothpaste is every...single...time...you stay here.”

“Aww, Juaniiiin,” she laughed. “How sweet. You know your girlfriend is going to notice the suspicious arrival of a third toothbrush though, right?”

“Not if it stays in that drawer.” He pointed at the one he’d just opened and closed, and raised his eyebrow too. “She keeps all of her crap in the drawers on the left.”

“Sneaky.”

“Mmm.”

“For such a good, upstanding person, you sure know how to...how should I say it? Conceal things? Cloak your misdeeds?”

“I’m not doing anything wrong! Hiding a toothbrush is only significant if the toothbrush is a symptom of a secret affair. We’re not having an affair, and your presence here is not a secret,” Juan shrugged, untroubled.

“Then why hide the toothbrush?”

“Because it’s easier to hide it than it is to explain it,” he smiled with huge, blinking eyes.

“Uhhuh. Well, thank you. I actually brought my own this time since I knew I was staying. Aaaand I brought my own pajamas and everything. How many times do I have to stay over before I get my own drawer in the closet?”

“You girls are so needy about space. Want me to evict T from her drawer?”

“No. I don’t want another girl’s sloppy drawer seconds.”

“Then you get no drawer.”

“Each one of us must live the life God gives him; it cannot be shirked.”

“You’re talking about God to me?”

“No, I’m quoting Sophocles to illustrate my acceptance of the denial of a drawer, which is obviously very serious and significant.” Christina winked at the player who was doing a surprisingly good imitation of André’s standard confused-face, gave him a peck on the cheek, and turned around to get some things from her overnight bag so she could prepare for bed.

You know what could be fun, she asked her reflection a moment later while she brushed her teeth and he was next door in the closet. Just getting into bed and assaulting the teddy bear. He’d never see it coming. He’s been bizarrely appropriate all night. He’d be so confused if I went in there naked and started kissing him and whatever else and then just never stopped. Do I want to do that though? And would I want it to be like that? A couple of weeks ago I was wanting to have romantic, meaningful sex with him- like the earth-moving kind. But I don’t want to want that. I don’t really mind wanting to just...have some fun with him. Is that worth it? What if it gets weird? I have to spend all of tomorrow with him. I can’t just escape home. And what if it gets weird weird? Me and Schü are almost normal right now. How is he gonna feel if the first day he’s gone I come over here and do Juan?

The Spanish player walked in behind her to brush his teeth too, and she realized she’d been moving her new Crest tool over the same couple of teeth the entire time she theorized about her next move. It was time to rinse. There were always two small glasses on his vanity- one next to the left sink and one next to the right sink- and she always used the sink and the glass on the right because that was his. He took a step back to give her room to rinse. What could it really hurt, the rider asked herself. I’m not in any kind of romantic mood. His toothbrush gift did not fill my tummy with lovestruck butterflies. And having sex like everyday is doing wonders for my sleep, and really for my skin too. My skin is always better with regular orgasms.

Christina patted her face dry with a hand towel and then instead of patting some moisturizer into her dry spots and putting her jewelry in the toiletries bag, she wrapped her arms around Juan’s waist from behind. He paused his brushing for a second and eyed her skeptically in the mirror. As soon as he looked down into the sink she lowered her hands down his stomach and into his terry shorts. That garnered even more disparity in the direction of his eyebrows. She felt around over his underwear and gave the important parts underneath a squeeze.

“What are you doing?” he asked after spitting a mouthful of foam into the porcelain square.

“Saying hello,” she told him innocently while peeking over his shoulder with a pleasant and polite smile. He offered a sarcastic frown back with more foam leaking out of the side of his mouth. The expat settled back onto the flat of her feet from her toes and patted his stomach as part of her hands’ retreat from inside his clothes. Juan resumed brushing but his eyes were still narrowed and fixed exclusively on her in the mirror. “I’m gonna go change!” Her bag was on the bench at the foot of his bed.

“K,” he grunted while brushing.

What should I put on? It’s not like I packed for this. I have a t-shirt for sleeping, a tank top for under my sweater for tomorrow, another pair of boring underwear, and the bra I’m currently wearing, which is not sexy. Am I so into the planning of the execution here because I’m not that into the act in the first place? Or because I’m deflecting from some hesitation? Or because...I don’t even know. Some other thing. Should I just chill? Just see what happens? What do I actually want to happen? Just chill. This is already getting out of hand, Christina told herself. She took a deep breath, moved her curling iron out of the way in her overnight bag, grabbed her t-shirt, and tried to be calm about stripping off her jeans and comfy plaid shirt.

“Do I get to-“

“Jesus!” she shrieked, surprised by the Spaniard’s voice a couple of feet back and to the right. She’d retreated so far into her thoughts that she neither heard nor saw him pad into the room while she was folding her clothes.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he chuckled. “I was asking if I get to walk up behind you and grope you as well, or if that is only your privilege?”

“Just mine.” Christina dropped her white tee over her head and fought her arms into the proper holes, which was surprisingly difficult all of a sudden. Juan’s standing there watching her made the most practiced and mundane tasks into something she actually had to think about. He spared her further weirdness by sitting on the bed to plug his phone in on the nightstand, and by the time he’d moved over to the proper side of the mattress, the rider had successfully removed her bra from under the shirt and put all of her clothes in the bag. Her next task was to try to be “normal” again, and forget that she’d allowed herself to descend into some obsessive planning for something she didn’t even know if she wanted.

“I’m not setting my alarm. Can you wake me up at 10 to 6?”

“Yeah. Does that mean we’re leaving at 6:30? Ten minutes to avoid getting up, 30 to get ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Yuck. That means I have to get up at 5.”

“Pobrecita.”

“It’s going to be so embarrassing when I can’t talk to the kids we meet because they speak too fast and my Spanish is rusty.”

“Should I speak to you exclusively in Spanish in the morning? For practice?”

“No. I don’t do foreign languages at 6 in the morning. I barely do English at 6 in the morning,” Christina clarified as she unfolded her legs under the off-white duvet. Ahh. This bed. So squishy, she reflected happily, the featherbed absorbing her like quicksand. “Do you ever dream in English?

“I’ve had dreams where I speak in English, particularly to you, but if I think in my dreams it’s probably in Spanish. I don’t know. I don’t know how much thinking I do.”

“So you dream about me often now eh?” The rider turned on her side, a hand under her pillow to prop it up, and smiled a little.

“You’re in my dreams a lot,” Juan shrugged. He held both lips between his teeth for a second before clarifying. “Not always as the main character or event. Sometimes you’re just there. I’m not like you though. You habitually dream about me.”

“Not in a while, actually. I haven’t slept well enough for a long time to have or remember my dreams, and then when I do get really good sleep I don’t remember them either.”

“You’re sleeping better now? Lately?”

“Much. How’d you guess?” Christina smiled.

“Your face. You don’t look as tired the last few weeks.” The Spaniard got more settled on his pillow too, flattening out instead of sitting up. He had an elbow to lean on though, evidently not ready for sleep yet, or just hoping to talk more, or assuming more talk was coming. The lights were still on too. “It makes me happy, to see you feeling better, but also not so happy, because I know it’s because he’s been here.”

“To be honest, I don’t know if I’m feeling better just because he’s been around, or if it’s more because we’ve tried to sort some of our issues out, and because I haven’t had to show, or travel, and I get to spend so much time with Lukas, and now because I know I don’t have to go live in that apartment. It’s okay for you to be unhappy about the mechanism of my happiness though,” she insisted. “I get upset when somebody else makes you happy too, and then I get upset that I’m upset,” she chuckled.

“I know. Taylor is the same. I think everyone is like that.”

“Do you want to make me feel better about groping you?”

“Uh, I think you felt fine with it, cariña,” the player corrected. “That was not a guilty face you made, nor is this smirk you make at me now. It has Bad Girl all over it, not Sad Girl.” Christina let her face fall and asked a serious follow up.

“Which do you like better? Is Bad Girl way more attractive than Sad Girl?”

“They have their own...virtues.” Juan reached out to touch her nose with the tip of his finger, and then followed the arch of each brow. “They are both you, always, and I find all of you attractive, always. Except the dirt under your fingernails,” he added, in case the conversation was getting too serious. “You know, when you let your nails get too long and you don’t have color on them and get your barn dirt in there? So unattractive.”

The barn girl agreed about the barn dirt under her nails, but that wasn’t the important part of what was said. He implied that she was always at least a little Bad and always a little Sad, and she felt that was pretty true. Happiness didn’t come with an on/off switch for her. The Bad part was something she wasn’t completely sure about. There were times when she felt entirely guileless. But her sadness never went away. She was certain that Sad Girl was always part of Chris. Her friend had the right answer to the question too. He wasn’t just right about her personalities. He said he was attracted to them no matter the proportion in which they expressed themselves at any given time. He said “always”.

“Is this okay? Does it meet your approval?” She brought her left hand out from under the blanket for him to inspect her nails. They were both short and polished, in a durable satin black finish.

“Yes. I’m glad you didn’t grope me with dirt under your nails.”

“So you’re saying you’re fine with this hand- this one right here- touching you inappropriately?” Christina wiggled her fingers about and looked through them at her friend, as if to look through prison bars.

“Actually that is not at all what I said, but I don’t mind if you interpret incorrectly- if you tell me why you want to,” Juan challenged placidly. He took her hand back and tried to gently use it to hit her in the face.

“The simplest answer is that I’m allowed to. I’m allowed to sit on you,” she narrated as she tugged her hand away from him and used it to help push him over on his back so that she could sit on his rather tiny torso. “I’m allowed to touch you however I want, and to have you touch me back however I want, or you want, or I want. Whatever,” she smiled a little after installing the footballer’s hands on her hips and settling hers atop his shoulders. “I’m allowed to kiss you however I want, and you’re allowed to kiss me back however you feel like it.” Her lengthy explanation included a chaste kiss and no opportunity for him to kiss back, regardless of whichever way he wanted to. It finished with the epitome of a Bad Girl look- her left brow lifted from the middle, her mouth open just enough to show off the way her tongue swished slowly, delectably, back and forth over her front teeth, and her eyes alight with familiar mischief. “And I’m allowed to fuck you however I want, or even however you want, if you’re lucky.”

“And is that your doing or his offering?” the Spaniard inquired with fistfuls of her butt. The question gave her pause. Does it matter to him, she wondered. Does it make it better to him if I asked Schü to be allowed to do these things, versus Schü offering it first? And if it does matter, is it because of his relationship with him or me? I don’t want to be a pawn, and I don’t want to be a prize either.

“Why does it matter?”

“I’m curious why you would even talk to him about it if things are going well for you two. It’s not like you to risk upsetting anything. It would surprise me if you asked him.”

“I didn’t ask him. He asked me.”

“Just, out of nowhere?”

“He saw me swoon at the bowling alley last week when you told me about your dream, so he asked some questions and...well it’s a long story but he doesn’t mind, and he doesn’t want me to worry that it would upset him, and then consequently worry about why it doesn’t bother me that I want to do things that upset him. I actually- I want to tell you all about it, in detail, but not right now...”

“What do you want to do right now?” Juan asked flatly. Christina worried that her answers were wrong- or not wrong, exactly, but not what he wanted them to be. She worried he was only interested if she was the one seeking approval to be with him, and she was putting her relationship in jeopardy for him, or she was choosing him over doing the best thing for it. She worried that André’s effort to take his own argument away from him was some kind of disappointment to him. So she formulated a test.

“I want to connect with you,” she told him in a tiny voice, with her hip tilted forward against him and her face right above his and her hands squeezing his shoulders. The obvious answer would have been to just say “I want to fuck you” or “I want to be with you”. But he talks about the connection we have when we’re together- together, together, like in the literal sense of the word- and he gets that longing look in his eyes like I’m the whole world to him, and okay, maybe 20 minutes ago I wasn’t even thinking of this at all, and okay, maybe when I did think of it I was thinking more about the physical excitement of being with him again after so long, and being with someone different, and that...that ridiculous feeling I get when he finds that one little spot from the back that I can’t get anywhere near with toys and Schü doesn’t get to the same with his toy, but I want the emotions too. Schü said it’s allowed, and if that makes a difference to Juanin and gets rid of this hesitant skepticism I get from him then that’s what I want. Plus I just want him to have the connection. “And I didn’t know that I wanted that until 15 seconds ago, so please forgive me if my prior actions don’t seem to line up.” Her addendum was for honesty’s sake, and because she didn’t want to appear to be playing him, or making fun.

“Why? What changes in 15 seconds?”

“I remembered how you look at me, and what you said it means to you. I want you to have the connection.” Christina relocated one of her hands to touch the player’s face. She rubbed her thumb near the corner of his forehead, by the hairline. “I wanna have it with you.”

“You’re sure? This doesn’t make sense to me, what you say.” Juan shook his head back and forth slowly. He didn’t have that look of calm mixed with anticipation that she anticipated.

“You thought things would be bad between me and him when I finally said yes, and that it would mean more for you,” she surmised, kind of sad, kind of dejected. “You thought it would be the beginning of his end and the start for you.” He always said it wouldn’t be like that though, the equestrian argued to herself. He went out of his way to say that he thought Schü wouldn’t even care, and that it would just be fun, and meaningless. I’m going to be so disappointed in him if he was ly-

“No. No, no, no, baby girl.” The footballer’s head was wagging back and forth to deny the allegation, and it just confused her more. He hugged her upper body. “I just don’t understand why you would invite the feelings that come with what you say you want. I don’t understand why with your situation improving you would choose to complicate it.”

“I didn’t invite the feelings.” It was Christina’s turn to shake her head. “I was just going to seduce you,” she smiled. “I didn’t plan ahead of time. I thought of it while I was brushing my teeth. I was just going to jump you, basically, and now here I am, here like this, and the feelings are here. I didn’t ask for them. And if you stop scaring me with the hesitation and the total lack of the faces you usually make and the things you do that make me totally die inside for you, then I would like to find out what happens with the feelings. I have to. I have to find out what I’ve been avoiding all this time. Maybe this is how I...figure stuff out. And now I can do it without worrying that it breaks his heart.”

“I’m not hesitant from my side. You don’t have to worry that I don’t want you. I do. I want you to be sure though. You can’t freak out on me in the morning and not speak to me for two weeks.”

“I promise I won’t. Nothing changes like that.” That’s a lie. I can’t really promise that. I even just said to him that maybe this is how I figure things out, she thought. But either I wake up tomorrow and nothing is different between us or I wake up tomorrow somehow knowing I need to be with him, and I hardly think he’ll complain about that. It’s not like I’ll wake up thinking “That was so good and now I know I can’t have a relationship with Juanin or it’ll ruin my marriage forever,” because I’m pretty much already in that boat. Oh, I guess we’re done talking, she concluded silently since her lips were otherwise engaged. The Spaniard used one hand around the back of her head to get those lips close enough to reach with his own.

Juan could kiss. He could do the bare minimum to help get a woman in the mood to have sex, but he could also kiss her like he simply loved kissing her. The gentle way his fingers moved against her scalp and his thumb rubbed her cheekbone, the way he used his lower lip to pull at her mouth and kept his nose pressed right next to hers, and the way he attacked, attacked, attacked until she tried to get aggressive back, and then relaxed for the couple of seconds she spent wondering why he stopped trying to maul her face all combined to give life to the butterflies. They were back. They found their wings. He kept at it until it got sloppy. He clearly went from enjoying making out with his ex-girlfriend to really wanting more than that with his favorite lover. He could be forgiven for it too given the number of false starts he’d had to endure in recent months. He started almost lapping at her- the kissing became all tongue- and it grew unfocussed, both stylistically and geographically. He missed the corner of her mouth and just kissed at her cheek instead. She sat up a little when he tried to move to her neck. He did too. They both went to lift her shirt off at the same time.

“I’ll do mine. You do yours,” Christina smiled. She removed her tee carefully, like a reveal. The footballer yanked his over his head and off his arms and then chucked it somewhere. He was in a hurry to kiss all the newly available skin in front of him.

“Why didn’t-“ he started between smooches around her collarbones. “You tell me this...earlier?”

“Wha?” The rider shut her eyes to savor the exploration. Does he mean why didn’t I tell him sooner that I am leaving a wet spot above his undies? Because I just noticed when I moved back.

“Why didn’t you-“ There was hope that he might actually get a whole sentence or question out, but then his lips attached to her jaw like a suction cup.

“No hickeys...kids...” she mumbled, not yet too distracted to think of consequences. In the back of her mind that realization had significance, but not enough to break through the stuff at the front.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner that you want to do this, angel?” the Chelsea man finally asked. “When there was more time?”

“I told youuuuuu. I didn’t think of it until I was brushing my teeth. Ow! Don’t bite!”

“Never did I imagine the way to get you to want to really be with me again was to give you a toothbrush,” he laughed once he was done biting her left nipple.

“It’s really not that big a leap. You should have seen what I used to do with my electric toothbrush when I was a kid.”

“Ew. Cariña.” A disgusted expression kind of like the one that happened during the dirt and fingernails discussion made Christina laugh more. The non-seriousness was part relief and part disappointment. She wanted the meaningful, romantic love rather than the casual and lighthearted fuck, but she also didn’t want it to get so intense that she stopped feeling the physical because she was too deep in the emotional.

“It had different attachments,” she told him, defensive. “I didn’t use the same one for my teeth as my you know what.”

“How do I make your nerves go away, hm?” Juan softened, and went back to kissing her neck, slowly and more delicate about how his lips treated her warm skin.

“I’m not nervous...”

“You just told me about masturbating with an electric toothbrush,” he whispered near her ear. “You’re nervous.”

“Nope.”

“Alright.” He relaxed back down to his pillow, hands on her thighs on either side of his hips. “You’re very sure? We’re only a few steps from where you usually change your mind. I don’t want to get my hopes up.” An amused smirk did nothing to cover his true skepticism. The nearly naked girl figured it was then or never to show him she wanted the real thing, and that she wasn’t nervous or uncertain.

“Can we skip those steps?” she asked in a tiny and innocent tone that ended up far short of the level of conviction she hoped to convey. Each of her fingers picked a different part of his abs to take in, as if they were unfamiliar and unseen for a while. “I want to skip to the connection part, and you on top of me with your face here.” Christina patted her shoulder and tried to bring her blues anywhere in the vicinity of Juan’s more diverse ones. It was so much easier to take in his whole face as one. It was one she could idly stare at for hours. His beard was relatively thinned out though far from stubble. His normally pale winter complexion was warmed by the moment. His eyebrows were their tidiest. The little bit of baggage he carried under his eyes was spread out because they were squinting at her just a bit- not enough to make wrinkles at the corners. His smile was very understated, so his lips were nearly straight, and they were pale pink instead of a deeper color, and she could tell he was pushing the bottom one out just a tiny bit because it looked bigger than it should. It was part of the subtle grin. There was just the one slightly dipping line in his forehead, so there was no tension in it. He was as handsome to her as anyone could ever be, and she didn’t want to stop looking. “I promise as long as this doesn’t get weird I’ll worship you with my mouth and tongue for as long as you can stand tomorrow when we get back. I just want to skip that stuff now,” she reiterated.

The diminutive Spanish playmaker usually knew, just as he always knew the right play on the pitch, exactly what to say. His finishing was a level better than the rest of his kind too. Cazorla, Silva, Fabregas- none had the same nose for goal, for trying something tricky, for choosing a shot befitting of a top striker. So Christina expected some kind of verbal “finish”. She expected him to say something knee-weakening and heart-melting in response to her request to bypass any further foreplay. But he didn’t have any words for her, or at least not any he was willing to actually offer. Instead he sat upright again, pecked her cheek, and secured an arm around her waist so that she’d stay with him when he switched them from his back to hers. She felt as if she’d been placed gently on the pillow she’d abandoned a few minutes earlier, cool and fresh, rather than simply dumped there or even pressed down. Juan left her for a moment to push the lightweight duvet out of the way, and to push his briefs off and out of the way too. Her loosely fitting mesh pair of underwear went next, and despite the moratorium on such behavior, he was unable to resist kissing the rider’s smooth and sculpted right thigh, and the smooth and less defined area right under her navel. Logistically speaking, and unromantically speaking, and un-sexily speaking, it was not as simple to skip foreplay and go directly to the “connection” for him as it was for her. She could be so turned on by kissing and talking and thinking about what was happening that she left a real wet spot behind where she was sitting on him, and he could grow and get hard from those things too, but not the way he would be if she’d actually touched him there. He did that himself while he used those uncommitted kisses to keep her simmering. Christina thought he was just teasing, like he was unable to forego it, and that made her feel good. She liked that he seemed unable to resist. And her only nerves stemmed from expectations. She wanted what was about to happen to fully meet Juan’s. She wasn’t entirely sure what her own expectations were. Part of her wanted to feel moved and the rest hoped for something less significant. Juan was completely keyed into her thoughts.

“You’re very relaxed,” he observed after visiting on her pillow for a “hey how are you doing” kiss. “For something that has been...built up for such a long time.”

“Because I already know I’ll enjoy whatever happens,” his best girlfriend assured with first a cheeky smile and then an inadvertent lip bite that maybe undermined her facade of confidence. She circled her legs around his butt and tried to hook her feet together. I just mean having sex doesn’t have to change the world for us, she reasoned. It can just be sex. It’s always good with him. I doubt he forgot how. Is he- Instant panic struck when Christina saw a hand disappear and then felt a shallow intrusion between her legs. The anxiety was about how it was going to happen. Is he going to look down there while he does it? Is he going to, like, slide in super slow and gaze into my eyes at the same time? Is he going to kiss me while he- Her mind flicked through all the possible scenarios as quickly as possible. There really was a lot of hype about that moment. She didn’t know if she had a preference for how it would unfold, or if she could immediately analyze the significance of whichever option the Spaniard chose, or how she should respond to it. She didn’t know if she could stare back if he chose to look at her when he finally crossed the line they’d been flirting around for the better part of a year, or if she’d flinch away from whatever was in his eyes. And then it just happened before she could think any further. Juan was inside her. She felt him there. And then his lips were back to kiss her sweetly, and his hands were on the bed on either side of her, making two pillars of his arms, which tucked up against her ribcage. Her fingers wrapped around them and her chest lifted up in between. It was strange and exciting alike to feel something sort of unfamiliar there- something that wasn’t André, or one of André’s naughty gifts to her. The Chelsea player’s lips touched down on her sternum next, and it was then that she realized her eyes had been closed the whole time and she had no idea where his had been when he pushed into her. And it didn’t really matter.

“Is it okay?” he asked her when her chest never relaxed back- when her spine remained arched like something felt too much, be it physical or mental. She nodded, without opening her eyes, and let her hips relax and her legs fall away from him, drawing her knees further apart. Juan took that as an invitation to move, and he did. He also lowered down onto an elbow, and snuck the other arm under her shoulder to hang onto her, and kissed her again- first on her mouth, to suck on her bottom lip again, and then the sharp part of her jaw, and by her ear, and by her pulse, and at her throat. She held onto his head, fingers in his hair, and leaned back even harder into her pillow. It wasn’t that she was trying to get away. It just felt normal for that end of her spine to go one way when the other went the opposite. Her hips lifted to encourage her partner to go a little bit faster. His patience made her desperate. Everything felt. Every nerve was alive to the stimulation on offer. It was overwhelming, and the wave-like sensation of pleasure in the very middle of her upper body ramped up so quickly in intensity that it almost made her anxious. The player kissed her shoulder, and then dropped his forehead and his nose on it the way she said she wanted.

“Juanin,” Christina whispered as both complaint and praise. She didn’t even know what she was complaining about, or asking for, nor why she felt compelled to say anything at all. She hardly ever spoke her husband’s name during sex, or any of the other things by which she called him. It always happened with the other player though. Sometimes it was like encouragement, sometimes it was like she needed to make a noise and his name was the first thing that came to mind, almost like a meaningless mumble, and sometimes it was more like a desperate wail because she was overwhelmed, close to orgasm, and almost afraid of what was coming. Whatever her present noise was about was a mystery, to him too.

“What, baby girl?” he asked softly and without irritation. “More? Less? Different?”

“I don’t know.”

“I love you,” he told her as her hands peeled away from his head and grasped his shoulders instead. They settled with her thumbs on his collarbones, and just clung on at first. Then she summoned a little strength away from just trying to feel everything to push him away a bit, and give her even more room to lift her chest, and her chin. Making distance had nothing to do with his saying he loved her, and everything to do with wanting more leverage for her hips. Juan let go of her to hold one of her legs open even further, and it made her squirm- firstly because it was the one still recovering from the adductor strain, and secondly because the new angle of penetration felt “more”. I love you too.

“More,” she requested in the same tone as she said his name. Her blunt nails tried to dig into him too. He pushed faster, finally enough to get him breathing harder. “No. More of the I-love-you,” the rider corrected. That produced a work stoppage. Just one of her eyes opened slowly to find out why once she realized it wasn’t temporary. Both of his were fixed on her face, and they smirked just as much as his mouth did. “I love you too.” Her offered response was earnest and quiet and matter of fact with no emphasis on the “too”, and she rubbed his chest at the same time, one hand focused very much over his heart. The Spaniard leaned down to kiss her forehead and then shifted over beside her to hold her the way she’d been thinking about for weeks because André tried to do the same. He wedged himself under her right shoulder, hugged her neck with his left arm, and pulled her right leg over and back so he could slide into her again, with access to everything he wanted to be able to touch- her breasts, her stomach, her clit. Christina relaxed into the hold like it was where she was meant to be, and she reached backward for his face as soon as he brought it near so that she could kiss him and let him know she liked his intuition. His always considered and careful hand closed around her throat.

“Angel,” he whispered into her mouth while it stayed open expecting more smooching.

“Do you feel it?”

“Sí.”

“It’s what you wanted?”

“You are all I wanted. Beautiful...sexy...mine.”

“Juaanin.” Jeez that was an undignified whimper, she thought about what came out of her mouth, still centimeters from the one saying things that combined with the movement of his back and hips to bring her closer to feeling the unique kind of ecstasy to which she was looking forward.

“Keep saying it.” His hand was heavy on her throat, almost threateningly, and that was exciting too.

“Juanin,” she repeated, trying not to roll her eyes behind their lids. It was her assumption, based on the situation and on the dirty dream he told her about, that he just wanted to hear his name moaned in all the different, breathless ways in her repertoire, and probably screamed later when he grew tired of “connecting” and would tell her to switch to her knees and elbows.

“Not that.” But he surprised her.

“I love you.”

“Angel.” And moved faster, and squeezed tighter around her throat, when she said the right thing.

“I love you.” More.

“Christina.” More.

“I love you.” More.

“Babyg- ugh!” He groaned for a second before smashing his lips into hers. It was like a crash, like he forgot their mouths were already so close they were probably just breathing the same air back and forth to one another. Christina made a little moaning sound of her own because of the intensity she felt, having that heavy, constricting weight on her windpipe and then having her lips assaulted. The other intensity- the kind she felt when she realized he was even more turned on- more affected by “I love you” than she was- was deliciously all encompassing and had her body struggling to keep up. Her head tilted back the second his possessive lips relented, and she tried to take a deep breath. Juan let go of her throat and pressed the heel of his palm into her pubic bone instead, his fingers feeling around where they were joined for a way to make her feel even better, and he was delicate and careful about it. Her neck relaxed, and she opened her eyes as she brought her chin back down. The player was the one to shirk the eye contact. He nuzzled at her cheek and pecked at her jaw, all the while keeping the steady rhythm in and out of her. “I want to be good to you, angel. Not selfish.” He made her wonder if he thought he was hurting her before, forcing her to overdo it with something she maybe didn’t believe or feel as much as repeating it might indicate, and indulging the part of her that liked to be a little bit used and a little bit hurt. That was something she couldn’t get from André. He was significantly more fearful about her occasional self-destructive compulsions.

“I like it when you’re selfish.”

“But only in bed.”

“Don’t go there.”

“I won’t.”

“I love you. I love you so much.”

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