#vietnamese street eats | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

tawus · 5 months

Note

African/African-American/Black

Do The Right Thing (1989) On the hottest day of the year on a street in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, everyone's hate and bigotry smolders and builds until it explodes into violence.

Goodbye Solo (2008) This film is touching and humorous. It is the story of an unlikely friendship between a struggling but happy cab driver from Senegal, and a tormented southern man with secrets.

Lincoln (2012) As the Civil War continues to rage, President struggles with continued fighting on the battlefield during the civil war but he also fights with many inside his own cabinet with his decision to emancipate the slaves.

Malcom X (1992) Biographical epic of the controversial and influential Black Nationalist leader, from his early life and career as a small-time gangster to his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam.

Straight Outta Compton (2015) The group NWA emerges from the mean streets of Compton in Los Angeles, California, in the mid-1980s and revolutionizes Hip Hop culture with their music and tales about life in the hood.

The Color of Friendship (2000) Mahree Bok is a white South African teenager and a product of the Apartheid system raised to view dark-skinned people as second-class citizens. Piper Dellums is the daughter of an African-American U.S. Congressman living in Washington D.C. When Mahree is chosen to spend her time as an exchange student at the Dellums's house, she is shocked on her arrival to discover that the Dellums are black, and the Dellums are just as surprised when they realize that Mahree is a white South African.

The Color Purple (1985) Based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Color Purple is a richly-textured, powerful film set in America's rural south. It is a brilliant drama about a black woman's struggles to take control of her life in a small Southern town in the early 20th century.

The Help (2011) This academy award winning movie takes place during the civil rights movements of the 1960’s, when an aspiring writer decides to write a book about the African-American maids' point of view on the white families they work for and the hardships they experience on a daily basis.

——————————————

Cambodian/Chinese/Vietnamese

Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) A senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.

Holly (2006) In Cambodia, Holly, a 12-year-old Vietnamese girl, encounters Patrick, an American stolen artifacts dealer. The story follows their strong connection and her unrelenting efforts to escape her fate.

Last Train Home (2009) A couple embarks on a journey home for Chinese new year along with 130 million other migrant workers, to reunite with their children and struggle for a future. Their unseen story plays out as China soars towards being a world superpower.

Lost in Paradise (2011) Khoi, naive twenty-year-old travels to Ho Chi Minh City from the countryside to begin a new life. It's his first time in the big city and he's looking for a place to live.

Raise the Red Lantern (1991) A young woman becomes the fourth wife of a wealthy lord and must learn to live with the strict rules and tensions within the household.

Sentenced Home (2007) This documentary follows three Cambodian-American men, brought to the U.S. as children by their refugee families. They were raised in the grim public housing of Seattle, among gangs and other realities of that life. Bad choices as teens altered their lives forever, when immigration laws after 9/11 provided no second changes for such children. Though they were raised in the U.S., speak to one another in English, even think in English, each is sentenced to return to Cambodia - separated from family here, possibly forever.

The Joy Luck Club (1993) The story of four Chinese women who immigrated to the U.S. and their first-generation daughters. When one of the women dies, her daughter plays Mahjong with the older women and begins to really learn what her mother endured in China and of her sisters who were left behind. Daughter from Danang (2002) Separated at the end of the Vietnam war, an "Americanized" woman and her Vietnamese mother are reunited after 22 years.

The Last Emperor (1987) The story of the final Emperor of China.

The Quiet American (2002) An older British reporter vies with a young U.S. doctor for the affections of a beautiful Vietnamese woman.

The Vertical Ray of the Sun (2000) The plot centres around three sisters, two of whom are happily married (or so it appears).

Three Seasons (1999) An American in Ho Chi Minh City looks for a daughter he fathered during the war. He meets Woody, a child who's a street vendor, and when Woody's case of wares disappears, he thinks the soldier took it. Woody hunts for him.

——————————————

South Asian/Indian

Bhaji on the Beach (1998) Hashida, an 18-year old Asian woman, lives with her family in Birmingham. Her father wants her to become a doctor and next month her medical school is going to start. Secretly, she has a black boyfriend – which is an absolute faux pas in some Asian cultures – and has now discovered that she is pregnant. She joins a small South Asian women's group on a trip to Blackpool, a trip that holds life-changing experiences for all.

Bend It Like Beckham (2002) Teen-aged Londoner Jesminder Bhamra chases her dream of being a professional soccer player while dealing with the objections of her traditional Sikh family.

Gandhi (1982) A biography of Mohandas K. Gandhi, the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of non-violent protest.

Slum Dog Millionaire (2008) A teen in Mumbai, India who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" When he is suspected of cheating, he is arrested. During his police interrogation, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers.

The Namesake (2006) A tale of a first-generation son of traditional, Indian immigrant parents. As he tries to make a place for himself, not always able to straddle two worlds gracefully, he is surprised by what he learns about his family and himself.

——————————————

Disease/Mental Illness/Disability

My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown (1989) Christy Brown, born with cerebral palsy, learns to paint and write with his only controllable limb - his left foot.

The Theory of Everything (2014) A look at the relationship between the famous physicist Stephen Hawking and his wife.

Ray (2004) The story of the life and career of the legendary rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom during the 1950s and 1960s.

Silver Linings Playbook (2012) After a stint in a mental institution, former teacher Pat Solitano moves back in with his parents and tries to reconcile with his ex-wife. Things get more challenging when Pat meets Tiffany, a mysterious girl with problems of her own.

Still Alice (2014) A linguistics professor and her family find their bonds tested when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.

——————————————

LGBTQ+

A Single Man (2009) The story of an English professor, who one year after the sudden death of his boyfriend, is unable to cope with his typical days in 1960s Los Angeles. It is a powerful story of his grief and pain for the loss of someone he truly deeply loved.

Boys Don’t Cry(1999) This film is about the true life story of Brandon Teena, a young woman who is going through a sexual identity crisis. She cuts her hair and dresses like a man to see if she can pass as one. She lived life in a male identity until it was discovered he was born biologically female.

Brokeback Mountain (2005) This film tells the story of a forbidden and secretive relationship between two same-sex cowboys and their lives over the years.

Milk (2008) This film tells the story of American gay activist, Harvey Milk, and his struggles as he fights for gay rights and becomes California's first openly gay elected official.

Philadelphia (1993) In this movie, a lawyer, working for a conservative law firm, is diagnosed with AIDS. His employer fires him because of his condition. He tries to find someone to take his case but all refuse except one willing small time lawyer who advocates for a wrongful dismissal suit in spite of his own fears and homophobia.

The Danish Girl (2015) A fictitious love story loosely inspired by the lives of Danish artists Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener. Lili and Gerda's marriage and work evolve as they navigate Lili's groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.

Transamerica (2005) A pre-operative male-to-female transgender takes an unexpected journey when she learns that she fathered a son, now a teenage runaway hustling on the streets of New York.

——————————————

Hispanic/Latino(a)/Mexican

A Day Without a Mexican (2004) One-third of the population of California is Latinos, Hispanics, Mexicans. How would it change life for the state's other residents if this portion of the populous suddenly vanished? The film is a "mockumentary" designed to show the valuable contributions made every day by Latinos.

Babel (2006) Tragedy strikes a married couple on vacation in the Moroccan desert, touching off an interlocking story involving four different families.

El Norte (1983) The Guatemalan army discovers Mayan Indian peasants who have begun to organize, hoping to rise above their label of "brazos fuertes" or "strong arms" (manual laborers). The army massacres their families and destroys their village to give the new recruits no choice but to follow and obey. However, two teenage siblings survive and are determined to escape to the U.S. or El Norte. They make their way to L.A. - uneducated, illegal immigrants, alone.

Mi Familia (My Family) (1995) This epic film traces over three generations an immigrant family's trials, tribulations, tragedies, and triumphs. Jose and Maria, the first generation, come to Los Angeles, meet, marry, face deportation all in the 1930s. They establish their family in East L.A., and their children Chucho, Paco, Memo, Irene, Toni, and Jimmy deal with youth culture and the L.A. police in the 1950s. As the second generation become adults in the 1960s, the focus shifts to Jimmy, his marriage to Isabel (a Salvadorian refugee), their son, and Jimmy's journey to becoming a responsible parent.

Sin Nombre (2009) A Honduran young girl and a Mexican gangster are united in a journey across the American border.

Under the Same Moon (2007) Heartwarming story about a mother who leaves Mexico to make a home for herself and her son (Adrian Alonso). When the boy's grandmother dies, leaving him alone, he sets off on his own to find his mother.

——————————————

Immigrants/Undocumented

Crossing Arizona (2006) With Americans on all sides of the issue up in arms and Congress in a policy battle over how to move forward, Crossing Arizona tells the story of how we got to where we are today. Heightened security in California and Texas has pushed illegal border-crossers into the Arizona desert in unprecedented numbers (estimated 4,500 a day). Most are Mexican men in search of work, but increasingly the border-crossers are women and children wanting to join their husbands and fathers. This influx of migrants crossing through Arizona and the attendant rising death toll has elicited complicated feelings about human rights, culture, class, labor, and national security.

Dancer in the Dark (2000) An east European girl goes to America with her young son, expecting it to be like a Hollywood film.

In America (2002) A family of Irish immigrants adjusts to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.

The Terminal (2004) When an Eastern European immigrant comes to American to fulfill a promise to his father he finds himself stranded inside JFK airport, making it his temporary residence when he cannot enter the USA nor return home.

The Visitor (2007) A lonely economics professor in Connecticut life is changed forever - and for the better - when he finds a couple of illegals, who happen to be living in his New York apartment.

Green Card (1990) A French man wanting to stay in the US enters into a “short-term” marriage to an American woman so he can get his green card. Complications result when he gets caught lying.

——————————————

Indigenous

Avatar (2009) A paraplegic marine dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home.

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (2007) A chronicle of how American Indians were displaced as the U.S. expanded west. Based on the book by Dee Brown.

Once Were Warriors (1994) A family descended from Maori warriors is bedeviled by a violent father and the societal problems of being treated as outcasts.

Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) In 1931 Australia, government policy includes taking half-caste children from their Aboriginal mothers and sending them a thousand miles away "to save them from themselves." Molly, Daisy, and Grace (two sisters and a cousin who are 14, 10, and 8) arrive at their “school” and promptly escape, under Molly's lead. For days they walk north, following a fence that keeps rabbits from settlements, eluding a native tracker and the regional constabulary. Their pursuers take orders from the government's "chief protector of Aborigines," A.O. Neville, blinded by Anglo-Christian certainty, evolutionary worldview and conventional wisdom.

Smoke Signals (1998) Young Indian man Thomas is a nerd in his reservation, wearing oversize glasses and telling everyone stories no-one wants to hear. His parents died in a fire in 1976, and Thomas was saved by Arnold. Arnold soon left his family (and his tough son Victor), and Victor hasn't seen his father for 10 years. When Victor hears Arnold has died, Thomas offers him funding for the trip to get Arnold's remains, but only if Thomas will also go with him. Thomas and Victor hit the road.

The Spirit of Crazy Horse (1990) One hundred years after the massacre at Wounded Knee, Milo Yellow Hair recounts the story of his people-from the lost battles for their land against the invading whites-to the bitter internal divisions and radicalization of the 1970's-to the present-day revival of Sioux cultural pride, which has become a unifying force as the Sioux try to define themselves and their future.

Whale Rider (2002) On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their History dates back a thousand years to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. Whangara chiefs have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand culture, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai must fight a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.

——————————————

Middle Eastern

Baran (2001) In a building site in present-day Tehran, Lateef, a 17-year-old Turkish worker is irresistibly drawn to Rahmat, a young Afghan worker. The revelation of Rahmat's secret changes both their lives.

Incendies (2010) Twins journey to the Middle East to discover their family history, and fulfill their mother's last wishes.

Schindler's List (1993) In German-occupied Poland during World War II, Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazi Germans.

The Band’s Visit (2007) A band comprised of members of the Egyptian police force head to Israel to play at the inaugural ceremony of an Arab arts center, only to find themselves lost in the wrong town.

Turtles Can Fly (2004) Near the Iraqi-Turkish border on the eve of an American invasion, refugee children like 13-year-old Kak (Ebrahim), gauge and await their fate.

Wadjda (2012) An enterprising Saudi girl signs on for her school's Koran recitation competition as a way to raise the remaining funds she needs in order to buy the green bicycle that has captured her interest.

——————————————

Pacific Islander/Polynesian

Balangiga: The Howling Wilderness (2017) 1901, Balangiga. Eight-year-old Kulas flees town with his grandfather and their carabao to escape General Smith's Kill and Burn order. He finds a toddler amid a sea of corpses and together, the two boys struggle to survive the American occupation.

Moana (2016) In Ancient Polynesia, when a terrible curse incurred by the Demigod Maui reaches an impetuous Chieftain's daughter's island, she answers the Ocean's call to seek out the Demigod to set things right.

Once Were Warriors (1994) A family descended from Maori warriors is bedeviled by a violent father and the societal problems of being treated as outcasts.

Princess Kaiulani (2009) The story of a Hawaiian princess' attempts to maintain the independence of the island against the threat of American colonization.

——————————————

Women

Āfsāīd = Offside (2006) Struggle of Women in a country that excludes them from entering the stadiums.

The Help (2011) This academy award winning movie takes place during the civil rights movements of the 1960’s when an aspiring writer decides to write a book about the African-American maids' point of view on the white families they work for and the hardships they experience on a daily basis.

Suffragette (2015) The foot soldiers of the early feminist movement, women who were forced underground to pursue a dangerous game of cat and mouse with an increasingly brutal State.

Water (2005) The film examines the plight of a group of widows forced into poverty at a temple in the holy city of Varanasi. It focuses on a relationship between one of the widows, who wants to escape the social restrictions imposed on widows, and a man who is from the highest caste and a follower of Mahatma Gandhi.

Ooh amazing, thank you for this! ❤️

I've watched Slumdog Millionaire, Brokeback Mountain, and Schindler's List. And read a Penguin Classics abridged version of Rabbit-Proof Fence as part of my English learning back in my teenage years. Some of the others I'm familiar with tho have yet to watch; and others are completely new to me

#movies #movie recs #films #film recs #mokona #ask tawus

32 notes · View notes

ceasarslegion · 19 days

Text

Edmontonian miku who goes out in public in an oilers jersey and got laid off from her oil field job right after purchasing a Ford f-150 hanging out at WEM and telling her friends "there's nothing to eat, let's just go to earls" because she thinks doritos are spicy and the other option on bourbon street are Boston pizza (that makes her feel sick) Vietnamese noodles. Also on the drive there she caught 3 speed traps and asked what the deal with the pile of silver balls was while her mcdonalds coffee (that's better than tims coffee now) went lukewarm in the cupholder. Calls people "bud" and at some point will talk about how the city's going to shit. At least one person in her group will blame immigrants despite they themselves being from India.

#edmonton posting #is this one too specific

12 notes · View notes

mydarlinginej · 1 month

Text

read my full review of a banh mi for two by trinity nguyen here.

In this sweet sapphic romance about two foodies in love, Vivi meets Lan while studying abroad in Vietnam and they spend the semester unraveling their families’ histories—and eating all the street food in Sài Gòn.

In Sài Gòn, Lan is always trying to be the perfect daughter, dependable and willing to care for her widowed mother and their bánh mì stall. Her secret passion, however, is A Bánh Mì for Two, the food blog she started with her father but has stopped updating since his passing.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese American Vivi Huynh, has never been to Việt Nam. Her parents rarely talk about the homeland that clearly haunts them. So Vivi secretly goes to Vietnam for a study abroad program her freshman year of college. She’s determined to figure out why her parents left, and to try everything she’s seen on her favorite food blog, A Bánh Mì for Two.

When Vivi and Lan meet in Sài Gòn, they strike a deal. Lan will show Vivi around the city, helping her piece together her mother’s story through crumbling photographs and old memories. Vivi will help Lan start writing again so she can enter a food blogging contest. And slowly, as they explore the city and their pasts, Vivi and Lan fall in love.

my review:

I’ve been mutuals with Trinity for years, and I’m so happy to be able to review her debut! I’ve been so excited to read this book for YEARS; it seemed tailor-made to be one of my favorite things and it did not disappoint. Gorgeously written, A Bánh Mì for Two is a sweet love story about two girls falling in love as they (re)discover the magic of Sài Gòn.

Lan has been working herself ragged caring for her mother and running their bánh mì stall in the bustling streets of Sài Gòn. Whenever she manages some free time for herself, she writes on her blog A Bánh Mì for Two although she hasn’t been feeling very inspired to write lately. Meanwhile, inspired by her favorite blog, Vivi has come to Sài Gòn on a study abroad trip, which would be against her mother’s wishes if she knew Vivi was there. She’s determined to find her mother’s family and learn the history that her mother won’t tell her. When she meets Lan and realizes she’s her favorite blogger, they agree to help each other, slowly growing closer.

A Bánh Mì for Two was such a gorgeously written story; I’m so excited to read more from this author! Both Lan and Vivi have their own respective character arcs that we follow, and I really liked both of their points-of-view. Lan has become a bit dispirited with her life with so many worries. When Vivi comes into her life, she learns to fall in love with her city again, as Vivi herself is discovering the magic of Sài Gòn for the first time.

read my full review here.

#a banh mi for two #trinity nguyen #reviews #book reviews #booklr #mine #link

10 notes · View notes

thrifthi · 10 months

Note

hi fellow SEAsian simblr here. how are we faring lads (genuine question i haven't checked out the new pack yet)

THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. I HAVE A LOT TO SAY.

So here is what I think about the new For Rent pack as a fellow SEAsian (I'm Vietnamese more specifically) im not gonna talk about the renting things idc about that

first thing i did was check out the food because food is very important and it was interesting

this is bánh cuốn. i mean its not super bad, it has the fried onions and the leafy greens but WHERE IS THE FISH SAUCE?? i just witnessed my simself eat 2 SINGLE PIECES OF BÁNH CUỐN (no one eats just 2 at a time but ok) WITHOUT FISH SAUCE. I just came back to VN and still havent had the chance to eat this, its literally one of my fav Vnese dishes. tried to live vicariously by watching my simself eat it but nah that bánh cuốn could be better

THIS. NOW THIS. TRY TO GUESS WHAT IT IS. LOOK AT HOW DISAPPOINTED SIM THI IS.

THIS IS NASI LEMAK???? IS THIS AN ERROR?? WHAT IS THAT?? no way that is nasi lemak EA did it dirty

Cà Phê Trứng, aka egg coffee. looked at it for a solid 5 minutes what the hell they meant by cà phê trung (middle coffee??) then i realised it was egg coffee 💀 looks pretty legit. for drinks, there are also sugarcane juice (I LOVE) and Thai milk tea (I LOVE EVEN MORE)

bánh xèo looks legit, quite detailed actually, though it makes the same mistake - no fish sauce. just put the sauce on the plate EA idc

THE SATAY LOOKS GOOOOOD THO I LOVEEE

i like the scenery so far, havent done a lot yet and its been raining but the debug houses look like the houses id see in the streets. there are also tuk tuks on the street, which is SO CUTEEEE

I SAW THE NAME PIRATE

anyways to atq, id say that im having fun thus far :) there r just some minor details that bother me but hey its EA

#i love how 50% of this post is just food #ts4 #for rent #ts4 for rent #the sims 4 for rent #ts4 screenshot #ask #ts4 simblr #simblr #ts4 gameplay

26 notes · View notes

prongsmydeer · 6 months

Text

Ayesha Liveblogs Hidden Agenda S1

I will not lie to you, I am watching this entirely for the fact it stars Tony from the Warp Effect

"I will get back my five minutes. When that time comes, I will let you know." Seems like an extreme overreaction to imply you want some sort of physical favour for missing a few minutes of studio time, but hey, I'm not a musician!

Much like Pat, I also feel like I've walked in the middle of something

LMAO @ the opening theme suggesting there's only one woman in this whole show, but I guess if I want women, I should choose a different genre

"As I've told you guys, I'll deal with the Nita situation my way." You know that post that's like 'I'm bisexual, by which I mean I'm physically terrified of dating men and emotionally terrified of dating women?' That's Zo

"Joke used to date Nita. Maybe he can help you out." Ah, I think we have arrived at the premise

I really want to know what's going on between these two because they are really acting like We Have A History:

Nita talking to a female classmate who is fully offscreen because she's the only woman on this show HAHAHA

"Why did you freak out like that?" said Pok, as if he had not jumped on a man holding a full cup of coffee

Not the debate club of the political science faculty!! This is far too relatable to my university experience LOL (also RUN Nita this is a terrible dating pool)

So far, mostly Joke's role has been to pop up out of nowhere to taunt Zo about being romantically inept, like a particularly Rude Flirtation Ghost

"I'm not sure, [Joke] might have a problem with me." If by 'problem' you mean a semi-hostile leetle crush, Zo, u right

Fellas, is it romantic to lean into ur crush and whisper in their ear that they have no spine?

[Taylor Swift voice] I think I've seen this film before:

I've said this before but: If your friends leave you alone at a bar while ur plastered, get new friends!!!

Awwww Joke taking the 5 minutes to clear up a misunderstanding with Zo is the first sincere thing he's done in this show

SCREAM why did you make one of the romantic leads punch the other? I know he's drunk but COME ON. WHO LIKES SOMEONE WHO PUNCHES THEM IN THE FACE FOR NO REAL REASON

At least he's apologizing right away???? What a bold first ep

Yes, I do know in Bad Buddy (also by GMMTV) they were starting with street brawls, but that's different, it was their faculities fighting, not like one guy doing it unsolicited

LMAO I can't believe the punch was a plot device to give Zo a reason to follow Joke around wanting forgiveness

"If you just leave it as it is, it won't heal quickly." It was ALSO a plot device for intricate rituals for touching the skin of other men

"Who said I don't like you?" "You repeatedly gave me harsh words during our freshman year." Ohhhhh so their history is that tweet with Joke not knowing how to deal with his crush and writing Zo a letter that says, 'get out of my school'

You know, I do enjoy the Share My Drink So We Can Start a Weird Dating Mentorship Pact. It's fun! It's like a blood ritual but for stupid bisexual guys. Or a marriage, take your pick

"I can't eat anything here, right?" Dkljdlkjdd is Zo just a very picky eater? Vietnamese food isn't even like a polar opposite to Thai food in my experience, it's still Southeast Asian cuisine?? Also I have definitely had fresh spring rolls from Thai restaurants LOL

"My peer mentor is the best!" For some reason, I did think Pok was older than Zo at first sight

The more time that Zo and Joke spend in the debate room, the more Zo's personality (a mild pain in the ass) makes sense

HHAHAHAHAH is Zo dream-sequencing about kissing him? I didn't think we'd get here so fast

Oh psych, it's Joke's dream sequence. That tracks, but my god, get it together Joke, this guy punched you like yesterday

"No, let's get something to eat." Joke said: If we stay in this debate room any longer I WILL kiss you, Zo, and then it'll be both of our problems

I like that they haven't done ANYTHING to talk about Nita all day. They're just hanging out hahahaha

"Why would you come [to my gig]? It's not the right place for practice." "You'll see." Colour me intrigued about Zo's plan

Joke alternating between singing scales and practicing debate intros is so me. I am so him

Joke's cousin laughing at him but cheering him on for debate while handing off the key card is the true family representation I need from these shows

Trin is also P'Dim from 2gether and Captain from the Warp Effect so this is really the first role I've seen Guy Sivakorn in that he's not at least a little nefarious

"This is your home turf. Trust me, you can do it, Joke." Awww I like that Zo is teaching debate techniques through a medium he feels more comfortable with, which is music performance

I like that Zo has also made himself designated driver! Always appreciate someone staunchly against drinking and driving

"I told you who my crush was." "You told me voluntarily. I didn't ask," said Joke, like he didn't eavesdrop on Zo in a bus and then accost him to confirm what he heard

"Why would you want to join this club? I don't get it at all." "I'll explain later." Will you Joke? Because every explanation for this situation makes you sound a little crazy. 1) I am helping a guy to date you, Nita, so I need to be in this club to make that work or, more honestly 2) I like a guy in this club, but he wants to date you, so I'm in this club to spend time with him, while hoping that I don't help him enough to date you

A relationship with a hidden agenda is such a broad topic for someone's first debate. Talk about school uniforms, or fracking, or a legitimate social issue. Also also also. Do they not have a structure for this debate? Where are the themes, the motions, the timed speeches. Even if Thai debate is different from the styles I know, there should still be a structure. Why they just rebutting ceaselessly back and forth? All this for a title reference. Which debate nerd signed off on this!!

"To me, a hidden agenda is a secret." You have to decide the definitions at the top of the debate, or else you can't have one!! Writers team, I'm sending you a passionate telegram

It is fun how Joke is always standing like, 6 inches from Zo's face at every opportunity and you can see Zo getting progressively more distracted each time

The English dialogue and PowerPoint caught me off guard:

Honestly, as bananas as this is, I feel like Joke really does have the opportunity to Build-A-Boyfriend here, which does tickle me

Zo every time Joke stands too close: Not now, gay thoughts!

"But if you never try new things, how will you know what suits you?" Like dating men, said Joke, in the subtext

I don't actually like Zo's white jacket, but I appreciate that all of these outings are giving him an opportunity for both new things and confidence-building

"Well, look at him. We might need an exorcism. He must be possessed." Pat absolutely losing it because his friend showed up slightly hotter than he was the day before:

"Your task is to plan a mock date with Nita. I'll be there to fine tune the details." "Wait a minute. So you're telIing me you'd play Nita, and I'd be... dating you." Oh, I love a mock date

Zo crashing his bike because he's too busy making eyes at Joke LMAOOOO

I LOVE the pottery painting date and Zo giggling because he tried to clean paint off Joke's face but he made it worse

If a man tried to order for me on a date, immediate red flag LOL

"Stay true to who you are on your first date." Every bit of advice that Joke gives is genuinely helpful

"Would you like to go on a date with me?" [Joke freezes and then leaves immediately] Truly a congratulations, you played yourself moment

Two dudes, standing in a library, 6 inches apart bc they are bi:

Reading someone your favourite book while sitting together in the library stacks IS emotionally intimate. Good job, Zo!

We interrupt this program to say: Hee hee

Zo, beelining for the bathroom: Something LGBT just happened to meeeeee

It only took Zo three episodes to realize that dating someone might lead to you being attracted to them, good for him!

Debate club members using school activities to trick people into a date really brings back some war flashbacks for me

"The portrayal of women is quite antiquated. If I were in Clytie's place, I wouldn't just wait. If someone doesn't want to be with you, they simply don't. The sun will never look at you. Isn't it better to look for someone who truly values you?" I love Nita

"First is passion. Second is intimacy. And third is commitment." I do enjoy a Romantic Realization montage

Zo said: The best way to deal with my newfound romantic feelings is to run away to Chiang Khan

Joke said: Great! I'll come with you. To which Zo said: That's not what I meant!!! U r not helping the crush crisis

LOL when they subtitled them bowing to the monk with "Vulnerable" did they mean "Venerable"?

I was wondering if Nu was a Thai honourific but upon googling it is a diminutive meaning "mouse" or, contextually somewhat like being someone you just met calling you baby

"When a person is sad, he needs some alone time." "Have you tried being someone else's company? It might be better than being on yotur own." Touché, Joke

I did not expect Jeng and Pok to already be dating. Points for surprise!

Awwwww Pok looks v nervous, is he worried about Zo finding out that he'd dating a man? Don't worry Pok, he's also kinda dating a man, in a very convoluted way

If there's one thing Joke will do, it is button not even HALF of his shirt. Tiddies out always. Respect

"But Pok and I are close. He's my peer mentee. Finding out like this feels off. Am I not trustworthy?" I really did think that Zo was stankfacing Pok for just crashing the date-cation, and not because he was concerned about not having known Pok was gay. Also babygirl, with greatest affection, it really isn't your business why or when someone comes out to you, or doesn't

"I just don't want to make anyone uncomfortable." Awww Zo

"Stop giving each other doe eyes." Zo and Joke have been CAUGHT and CALLED OUT hahaha

I am also Team Glass Floors Are Scary. I feel closer to Joke with every passing minute

Zo laughing while still helping Joke through his fear is my love language:

"The first photo Pok and I took together is in that wallet." Maybe I'm just from the age of digital cameras, but I feel like that is not what would stress me out about losing my wallet LOL

Joke trying to recreate the sunset for Zo. SWEET BOY

"When I look at you, you make people around you happy. They smile, and at ease. You bring a warm and comforting vibe with you." Joke comparing Zo to the sun!!!!! ROMANCE

"Aren't we all the protagonists of our own shows?" How meta

The tinkling of bells while Zo eats grilled rice for no reason. Beautiful sound editing

I love these guys talking to their friends about their concerns, both in Joke pointing out to Jeng that just because Pok is willing to be closeted for now, doesn't means he feels good about it, and Zo establishing that Pok doesn't need to talk about anything before he's ready, but Zo is there to help

"From your perspective, what kind of person am I?" Joke said: Do you like me? Check ☒ yes or ☐ no

"You should let yourself express your feelings sometimes." This is both good advice and a possible romantic segue, Joke can multi-task

"Do you think... if your heart races whenever you're around someone, does that mean you have feelings for that person?" Zo said: Do I like you? Check ☒ yes or ☐ no

Zo said: Actually, never mind, the answer is yes:

I really look forward to Zo trying to explain himself after this

"I wanted to know what you were doing, but you didn't answer me." Based on how this bus ride is going, I feel like they did not have a conversation about the kiss

"I'm sorry. But I think we should keep things the same between us." Zo said: I will NOT be elaborating on our kiss at this time xoxo, goodbye!

Replying, "Mom, I got a lot of snacks?" to "Did you go there alone?" is a MUCH more suspicious answer than saying you went with a friend (who you're kissing and dating and having feelings for, but I digress)

"Should I put water on it?" "No, that'll fill the room with smoke!" GHKJHGKJHGG Joke trying to help with the burning food but not having a clue what to do. Mood

WikiHow Article: What Do When Your Crush and Close Friend That You Kissed and Are Now Avoiding Like the Plague Shows Up in Your Dorm Room Wearing Matching Aprons with Your Mom

"If it's too hot, take it slow. Try these dishes, they aren't spicy." Oh how the food suggestions turntables

"I wasn't exaggerating. I genuinely think you're exceptional." Get you a man who hypes you up like Joke

Fellas, is it gay to hold hands and gaze deeply into your homie's eyes while doing the dishes?

"I don't know how I feel about you. And there's this whole thing with Nita. I don't want to say things that I might regret later. Can you give me a bit of time to figure it out?" COMMUNICATION

Joke karaokeing out his romantic woes. Me too, buddy

"Knowing how you feel might help him make a decision." Joke said: How dare you make an excellent point, Jeng

"When did you realize that you were into Jeng?" Awww, Zo is trying to sort out his feelings

One (1) kiss with Joke cured Zo of all his nervousness around Nita

Joke showing the debate club his goofy side just to make Zo smile

"I'm looking." "Where? You're only looking at my face." Truly these two sitting beside each other in debate club is a big hazard to their focus

"I want to love the toad. Does the toad love me?" Crazy lead-in to telling you have feelings for someone by comparing them to a frog. I am in love with Joke

It makes me happy how much Zo is a true debate nerd

"The topic for today is school uniforms: Pro or con?" I told you it was a classic!

"I felt bad about kissing you, avoiding you, and being the idiot I've been. Despite all that, you still helped me." Zo says: Stop being nice to me or I WILL fall in love with you

UNBELIEVABLE THAT ZO IS STILL ASKING JOKE IF HE (ZO) LIKES HIM (JOKE)

"I like you, Zo. I'll make you see that I really like you. I want to make you see that you like me too. Let me win you over." Roooomance

The most unrealistic thing that's happened in this series thus far is them pretending that this pillow looks at ALL like a sunflower. Could the props department not have at least found some felt and tried their best?

"I'm still in shock," said Zo, about Joke trying to win him over, as if he had not been the one who kissed Joke first bkjgjhgkjhg

"You guys don't seem all that surprised, especially you." Has Pat been pulling some shenanigans this whole time? He was the one who kept saying Zo should ask Joke for help

"What did you do as a kid?" "I stayed home, did homework, and went to tutoring classes." Nerd ❤️

Zo said: You must beat me at ten arcade games to earn emotional honesty on this date

And Joke replied: Let's do it baby, I love winning AND talking about our feelings

"Why are you forcing stuff on Zo? If he doesn't want to eat it, drop it." Honestly this is also how I'd react if someone was trying to make my friend eat food they didn't ask for, Kot. There's a fine line between expanding your horizons and ignoring someone's preferences

"Do you think it's right to pick a fight with Kot like that?" [Zo as the Spice Girls voice] If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends

"You can do what you want, but respect boundaries. As for the food, I know you meant well. You wanted me to try something new. But you need to understand that I don't like it. People don't like things they don't like." I'm glad Zo is establishing boundaries. We love a healthy heart-to-heart

"I know that you're in a bad mood. You're not ready to listen. Take some time to cool down. I believe you'll get what I'm trying to say." I just love the entire vibe of this conversation. The confidence, clarity, empathy, honesty. Go Zo!!!!

Ohhhhh, was Joke never dating Nita at all??? Just protecting her from this weirdo who leaves her haunting sticky notes

"After that, rumours about Nita and me started. I didn't bother clearing them." You know, now that I think about it, Joke never did say he dated Nita LOLLLLL

"You didn't really want Nita." Bold take, Joke, how are you gonna mansplain Zo's feelings

"I had feelings for you." HAHA Zo confessing to Nita in past tense

"Thank you for the feelings you had for me, even if they were just admiration." KJHGKJGH Zo said: Joke was right, I am not in love with you, you are simply the Zendaya of this school

God, this metaphor of Zo being the sun and Joke being a sunflower is getting to me. I LOVE SUNFLOWERS

"I'd be so lost without you," said Zo, after Joke simply handed him a glass of water HAHAHAH

"Just be yourself. Being you is more than enough." STOP THEY'RE SO CUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!! You win this round, drunk punch debate show

Oh I do love their little hand holds. And Zo being the one to reach out:

"Yes, I am [single]. I can give you my Line ID." Jeng, how is Joke, who is not even officially dating Zo yet, better at turning people down than you, who has been with your boyfriend for like a year? Bananas behaviour

This show is capturing the very real sentiment of visiting a man's apartment and going, "Damn, you live like this?"

Zo taking food from Joke's chopsticks instead of getting his own because he wants to flirt. Hee hee

Lmao @ Zo looking surprised at Joke asking him how he feels about him as if that's not the natural progression from Zo saying he doesn't have feelings for Nita

Zo every time things become a little too romantic: I gotta go to the bathroom

It's fun that they have already slept in the same bed without even it being a big thing before but this time is different because they are Romantically Involved

"Why did you choose this place for our date?" Hee hee amusement park date. First official date!!

Joke saying he's not scared of he amusement park when he is in fact, very scared and motion sick, is very funny

I'm surprised it's taken this long to get to an Obviously Sponsored Segment. They lasted seven episodes!:

"I think... I think I like you." Awwwwww so Zo has liked guys before, it's just didn't work out with this guy Puen

Being dumped on a moving merry-go-round by a guy who was leading you on because Puen "just thought it'd be fun" is BRUTAL. No wonder Zo asks Joke if he's serious about them 14 times a day

"Maybe that's why I'm afraid to confess my feelings to anyone." True, this actually does add some context to Zo's interactions with both Nita and Joke

"You're just like my grandma," said Joke, which is both a delightful implication his grandmother also laughs at him for being a scaredy cat and a wild thing to say to your crush

They said: Fear not, if you are missing the kissing, we will offer you some JengPok kisses

Bold choice for them to choose to end this date with an introduction to Joke's grandma, but I suppose she was part of theme of the day

"Why is he wearing your shirt? Did you spend the night together?" Also a bold choice for in front of grandma

"I'll come over tomorrow for round two. I'm not backing down that easy." Zo said: Meet me in the ring, Joke's Grandma, I WILL make you love me

"Your partner has to be a fighter. It wouldn't last otherwise." Grandma said: I bully your future boyfriend as a litmus test for his strength of character. He passed!

"You need to step up your game, Joke. Because I'm kind of fond of this one." HAHAHA Grandma dunking on Joke for them not being together yet

Also, all of Grandma's outfits are INCREDIBLE

I repeat, if there's one thing that Joke will do, it's take his tits out at the first opportunity:

Awwww Zo helping Joke to "recharge his battery" by giving him a tighter hug

Fjkfhkjfhkfjh what's going on with Zo, passing out in his living room and getting nauseous over chicken? I mean, relatable, but what's up. Overworking or is he coming down with something specific?

Update from 1 minute later: Overworking, apparently

It's fun that we've progressed from pottery painting to making your own pottery and then painting it. It's symbolic. Also Zo putting a sunflower on his cup!!

"Honestly, I felt something for you too." Coffee Shop Carthasis ft. Puen the Ex-Situationship, perhaps?

"Are you planning any late-night funny business?" I think this Joke's way of saying, 'Please kiss me again'

Also I love that they just hold hands as they walk around now

"Thank you for coming into my life. Thank you for trying to win me over. No, I should say, thank you for being my boyfriend." AYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

HAHAHA Zo closing the door only to yank him in for a quick make-out and shove him back out again:

I feel like the anonymous breathy phone calls to Joke have to be the same guy who keeps sending Nita haunting sticky notes. He's an equal opportunity harrasser, I guess

Them hanging out in bed just to cuddle. I looooooove

[Pat as Joke] "Darling I, miss you." [Kot as Zo] "I do not want to go to class, Joke. I hate being away from you." Hahahaha Zo's friends pretending not to look at Joke and Zo while they flirt but then immediately reenacting their flirting as soon as Zo sits down. 10/10 friendship

Something I haven't really talked about in the past 8 eps but that has consistently been happening is that every time Zo is thinking very hard he kind of stares into space with his mouth slightly open like :o It is very awkward and endearing

NOT Zo making class friends with Poom the Stalker

Zo play-biting Joke's hands while he has his arm around him is also one of my love languages

Convenient of Poom to send an incredibly threatening message confirming that he was stalking Nita, Zo, and Joke at the exact time he would be at Zo's apartment

I know it's necessary to resolve the storyline but I would like them to get rid of Poom ASAP

Poom smashing their special date mugs >:( He is not only a gross, harassing stalker, but also just a run-of-the-mill douchebag

I'm glad Nita gets to see Poom (James) get his ass beat by Joke and then taken away in a police car

"Until you're ready, I can wait." [Zo immediately kisses him] Zo said: I've thought about it for ten seconds, and it turns out I'm ready now!

"How can a couple have a secret relationship that goes on and on?" Nine episodes in, Pok and Jeng are finally dealing with the festering romantic resentment of Jeng being so closeted he is actively leading on women

"Although you don't plan on dating her, you can't just go around acting like you're single." A really reasonable point, Joke

"I see a knot between your eyes." "You can be a masseuse." Meanwhile, Joke and Zo are in their sappy couple era, good for them:

Not Pat and Joke being caught shenanigan-ing about Zo. Eep!!!

I can understand why Zo is upset. If you found out that the moments that felt organic and meaningful to your relationship (impromptu trip to Chiang Khan, even Zo coming to Joke for help, all ochestrated via secret texts) were actually planned with one of your friends and your partner scheming to get you together, that would really make you take a pause and reevaluate

"You and I still have things to discuss." "Discuss what? Why am I out of the loop?" Kot being the only one who isn't In Trouble with Zo LOL

"How should I be feeling? My best friend pimping me out to you!" That's a rough but fair way to phrase it, Zo

I am also 100% on Zo's side here, he has, at best, been told many lies of omission, and at worst, had his feelings and boundaries disrespected by his loved ones, and he's given Joke so many opportunities to tell him. Joke minimizing is not helping, and it's kind of Zo to not immediately dump his ass

"During the debate tournament, you may get a topic that doesn't align with your beliefs." That's true, it's like 50-50 at any given time LOL

Also: If I were watching these debate interactions you best believe me and the besties are debriefing about the debationships

"Grilled Rice, tell me, what should I do?' Props to Joong for keeping a straight face

Yeah, Pat and Joke, Zo is mad at you for lying, but luring him into a mascot flash mob in his classroom with another lie with fix it

Also I didn't mention it but if for some reason you've gotten this far without seeing the show, Pat fell down the stairs after Zo caught him in the lie, that's why the furthest dog is on crutches:

"Zo is mad because you lied to him. But your apology is another lie? Enough already." THANK YOU KOT

I'm not even sure that at any point Joke has said, "I'm sorry," so my opinion is that he should, in this order, say: 1) I'm sorry for lying to you. It hurt you, I realize that now. It wasn't fair to you. 2) If you can, please tell me more so we can make sure all your concerns are heard. 3) What, if anything, can I do to start rebuilding trust? What do you need from me? Space, access to my messages, an explanation of how me and Pat know each other

"I know you understand me." "I know. I've been so understanding. Even though I'm not fine with it, I try to be." I actually like the B couple conflict much more than the main couple conflict, at least Pok and Jeng both have legitimate sides

"I was blind to how my selfishness hurt you. I need you in my life. I can't live without you. You are my everything. I promise I'll make this right. I will fix this for you. I'm sorry." Now THAT is an apology. 1) Say you're sorry 2) Acknowledge and address the concerns being raised and 3) Change your behaviour!

Jeng coming out to the football club to assure Pok he's serious about them. ❣️

"I was just helping Joke get close to you. When you started dating, I did nothing to influence either of you. But it was wrong to keep it from you, to go behind you back. I was supposed to be a friend you can trust. I'm really sorry, Zo." Pat also knows how to give an apology. 2 down, 1 to go!

"I'm really sorry. I've done you wrong all this time, but I never apologized. You don't have to forgive me for this. But I promise I won't lie to you or hide anything from you again. You may not believe me now, but I'll prove it to you. FINALLYYYYYY JOKE. IT TOOK YOU SO MANY TRIES

Gjkljgkgjlgk Zo gently informing him, 'Yeah stupid, I was waiting!'

"Absolutely no lip contact for a month." HAHAHA. Good for Zo. Also I give them a week

If we count play-kissing, it took them like 50 seconds

I appreciate whoever captioned ep 10, because not only did they caption the dialectical differences or accents from where Zo is from versus Bangkok, they also made sure those captions sit higher on the screen the default English caption height, so you can see both without moving it. GOOD JOB!

"Zo, where are you? Why aren't you here at my house?" Hahaha Zo has earned his place in Joke's Grandma's Favourites (Joke is not included)

"You'll need fuel for an intensive tutoring session tonight." "Maybe ease up a touch?" Can confirm, this is a relatable Asian parent-child dynamic

"By the way, I've got a debate topic in mind for tonight. Childhood trauma from parental conflicts results in troubled adults." Wow, a little on the nose, but true, Mrs. Zo's Mum

None of these guys follow any structure when it comes to debate. Normally, you get a topic, you take a few minutes to prep your arguments, THEN you start arguing. You don't just automatically keep rebutting back and forth. How can Zo be expected to speak to his arguments after like less than 10 seconds of thought? Unreasonable!

"I can play [football] anywhere. It doesn't have to be that club." Maybe Jeng should go to Sarawat and Tine's school, where more than half of any given sports team is at least somewhat gay

Pok crying because he realizes being out makes Jeng's life a lot harder :'(

"One day you'll find that love will make the impossible possible. This too shall pass. It will." I'm glad Zo has a good relationship with his dad

It's a good thing that Zo likes Joke so much, or showing up out of the blue at his house could've gone over a lot more poorly

"Your parents seem chill." Famous last words, Joke, I tell ya

Also, I do appreciate how evident it is that Zo DOES want Joke here

If there's a trope I will never get tired of, it's sneaky hook-ups in your childhood home as adults. In practice, maybe a lil stressful. In fiction, VERY FUN

"Your mom's pretty intense, huh?" [Tonelessly] "Yeah, but I'm used to it." Oh, Zo, I know the voice of childhood trauma when I hear it

The fact that everything with Puen also made Zo's relationship with his mum worse. No wonder he plays things so close to the chest

"I get it completely. Your family and mine are not so different." That explains why Joke spends all of his time at his grandma's and not with his parents

"I've got your back from now on." Sometimes that's all you need. Empathy and back-up

"Happy birthday!" "You knew?" He went to see Zo because it was his birthday!! They are sooooooooooo

Also, Zo said: The kissing embargo does not count on birthdays

Woo for Zo getting debate club presidency for this year!!!

"What did he do that made you hate him?" "He's close with Trin!" Finally the weird tension between Former Debate Club President Wave and Bar Owner Trin is being addressed

"But we're pals! You can't have feelings for me." I know this is supposed to be an emotionally intense conversation but it reads SO funny in English:

Unbelievable!! You're telling me that Wave is made because HE started throwing punches in the dorms and got banned from debate tournament

"He cost me the competition!" "That's on you. You wouldn't have missed out if you hadn't thrown that punch." You tell him, Zo!

"Who said you could smooch my hand?" [Zo does a finger gun] "Took the liberty myself." Bi culture khgkjgh

Joke saying, "Then let's ramp up our international relations, shall we?" as a segue for sex is incredible. This series may not be for everyone, but it is for meeeeeeeeee

Not Joke's family trauma revealed as being left on read in the group chat

I do appreciate at the debate tournament they actually are (finally) following a motion, prep time and speech structure

Also. It's clear whoever wrote this scene has NEVER competed in a debate tournament because they are not talking fast enough or writing anything down

"Can you say in all honesty that your effort here is not a product of hard work?" Not to jump on Nita's argument specifically but this making a point about the individuals you're debating rather than their arguments is ad hominem fallacy and would not score well at a debate tournament. In this essay, I will—

It's SOOOO funny that they made Zo loving the sound of soda tabs a genuine characteristic so they could better integrate sponsors. I miss the Bad Buddy soda sponge bath

YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH POLI SCI DEBATE CLUB!!!

Good for Nita for taking home the Finland prize. Regardless of substance, it was very well-delivered!

[Park, about Nita] "Look at our shining star! So gifted." [Zo nodding, looking at Nita] I think Zo is doing a very good job of not showing how much not getting the Best Speaker/study abroad scholarship has hurt his feelings

"You don't always have to put on a brave face, you know?" said Joke, to which Zo probably thought, 'You don't understand, putting on a brave face is all I have done my whole life, I don't know how to turn it off!'

It's funny that Park is a credited character in the intros but the only memorable dialogue he's had up until Episode 11 is asking Zo to dress up as a frog to surprise Nita

It makes a lot more sense now that I know it's Nita's birthday and they weren't just frog-surprising her for winning best speaker LOL

I do love the nonverbal communication of Joke raising his eyebrows like, 'You okay?' and Zo smiling and fixing his hair like 'No sweat'

"Saijai, Joke isn't here. Shall I call him?" "That's fine. He'll turn up." LMAO no one in this show tells ANYONE that they're coming. Zo's mum didn't when she visited Zo in Bangkok, Zo didn't when he went home, Joke didn't when he visited Zo at home, Joke's family hasn't when they're visiting him. WHY DOES NO ONE THINK THEY SHOULD SAY THEY'RE GONNA VISIT

"You can tell me." [Zo sighs, hesitating.] "Alright, if you're not ready to tell me, wait until you are, okay? Do what makes you feel good." This is good relationship communication

"My mom's never said she's proud of me. Not even once." Oh, Zo. Heartbreaking. Also same maybe? I don't know fhkjfhkjf

I really do think they are both handling this situation as well as possible

"Zo, what brought you here?" said Zo's mum, like his dad wasn't lying in a hospital bed right front of him

"Was it a kidney stone?" "Yes, indeed. But surgery these days is minimally invasive. They just insert a tool. It doesn't hurt much. An ingrown nail hurts even more." First of all. As a person who has had 'miminally invasive surgery' YOUR BODY DOES STILL HURT AFTERWARDS. Secondly, the thing that precipitates the surgery is usually a very painful medical emergency!!!!! That is why you go to the hospital. I haven't had a kidney stone but I know they can cause a ton of pain!!!! Thirdly, it's not YOUR body, Zo's mum, so shut up about it. This is like, incredibly rude dialogue. Villain behaviour. Meet me in the Denny's parking lot LOL

"Buzz the doc if it hurts, okay? Don't think you'll disturb him. Don't just hold it in." At least she is NOW acknowledging Zo's dad could be in pain. But good grief

"Zo, you know your dad was in pain for a long time. But he wouldn't tell me, wouldn't see the doctor." Why are so many dads this way jkhfkhf. But also, why then, were you dunking on him for being worried, Zo's mum!!!

I do actually understand why Zo's mum did not tell him mid-debate that his dad was in surgery. Would've been rough

Joke subtly telling Zo's mum he needs support without betraying Zo's confidence. Love that!

"You did such a great job today. You nailed your speech. I'm so proud of you." Awwwww, good for Zo and his mum

Fjfhjfkhf Joke missing out on his family trying to celebrate him because he's been too busy with his friends and supporting his boyfriend. How many of these problems would've been solved if they'd texted beforehand

"Joke, I need some alone time tonight. Just to process how I feel." We love a boyfriend who expresses his needs

Joke making faces to his BF to say goodbye and then continuing to make faces to himself for no reason is so me. Joke continues his streak of Niche Relatability

I do wish that Joke got to celebrate with his family, he needs family time too!

"Zo, your dad's got sepsis. He's in the ICU." THIS IS WHY I WAS SO MAD WHEN SHE WAS MINIMIZING THE EFFECTS OF SURGERY. THEY ARE SO SERIOUS!

Poor Zo and his mum though, this is the worst feeling

"You can count on me to be here for you in times like these. Remember, I'm your sunshine." Ohhhh I like that they've switched up the metaphor, they are both suns

In all this, I did forget about the random bunny animation voice-over that they started this show with LOL

What class is that voice-over even for? An elective?? It's been going on for months. They never explain!

"This 'under the weather' thing seems to hit you every year on this day." Is Joke's dad the emotional equivalent of Zo's mum, in that he is prone to bringing bone arsenic to his child whenever possible?

Dhkjhgkjghgkj Joke walking around his huge, beautiful house looking for his parents does give Poor Little Rich Boy

Also. They've not put Joke in a super reasonable position in either of these situations. Of course Joke's parents would be busy if they're planning Bachang's (I assume Joke's brother's) graduation, which is time-sensitive, as opposed to a college acceptance, which is often unpredictable and happens months ahead of time. Of course Zo may be a more absent partner if his dad is in the hospital with sepsis. Joke isn't making it their problem or anything, but it is a little bit lacking perspective to be upset that Other People Have Stuff Going On When You Want Them Around

"I think what you're feeling isn't physical, but mental." At least Jeng is here to help Joke talk it out

"Am I one of the things bothering you?" Shockingly emotionally perceptive of Zo's mum

"I feel like all that I've done means nothing." "Zo, you've got it all wrong. I've never set any expectations for you to follow." Zo's mum, you should read a wikipedia article on gaslighting, because you have done it multiple times, on screen

"I'm sorry for making you feel this way." That's a better response

"You're always enough. Winning that scholarship or not, success or failure, you're still you at the end, and you matter. Remember, you're the sun, always shining brightly on your own." "I'm sorry. But I need to be with my parents." It's funny, because Zo and Joke didn't actually do anything romantic in this hospital hallway, but I think this particular argument is the most emotionally intimate thing they could do while his mum was eavesdropping without them knowing kgjhgkjhghgj. Like, they didn't say anything about dating, but it screamed couple

She's gotta know they're dating now, right? She's gotta!

"What's going on between you and Joke?" That didn't take long. Also I love her little smile after she asks

"You might end up pushing Joke away, like you did to me." I take back my love, see u back in the parking lot, Zo's mum

"Something precious... Joke!" I'm glad Zo does see the value in his relationship. Also, now they ARE romancing in the hallway

"It's great... seeing you get your act together, finally." Joke's dad IS the same vibes as Zo's mum. Coming in hot with a backhanded compliment

"I stopped by your apartment and ran into Jeng. He said you might need a friend. So I'm here." Zo said: Uno reverse on the boyfriend drop-in family support visit. No one on this show knows how to use a phone 💖

"You don't need to cover for him. I know he's up to no good." What an insane thing to say to your son's friend upon first meeting him. He is monologuing on Joke's flaws. Joke's dad SUCKS.

"[Joke] may not be the golden boy you pictured, but to me, he's pretty much perfect." Zo said: You have actually chosen the extremely wrong audience, as I am President of the Joke Fan Club, and will reverse monologue on Joke's virtues

Get you a boyfriend who will therapize your dad at the dinner table

Also, do these wider shots suggest Joke has TWO brothers, neither of who have named as his brothers LMAO. This show really only utilizes its cast for drama

Zo and Joke really said to each other: Give me ten seconds, I will fix your relationship with your mean parent:

"If you've ever felt I didn't care for you, you're wrong. I love you just like your brothers." Oh, so they are his brothers!

The most realistic part of this show is all of the parents going, 'Actually, the emotional problems in our relationship are the fault of your own misconceptions.' 10/10, terrible and true parenting. Also Dad revealing it was middle child trauma all along LOL

"I've always been proud of you, son. Without fail, any given time. I'm so happy that you're my kid." Again, refer to what you JUST did moments ago, Joke's dad. But, better, I guess

"I'm sorry I pulled away for a bit. I was lost. I didn't know where to turn or what I wanted." I'm glad that Zo is acknowledging it. These two are all about talking through their feelings

"I love you, Joke." I like that Zo is initiating this 💞 They make lots of effort to balance the support and love

"I've never been shy about us, and I'm no longer scared." I really love Jeng and Pok's relationship arc

Jeng kissing Pok outside the party to show how much he means it and loves him!!

"But let's be honest, it's not the outfit that makes me look this good, it's all in the face." Hahaha Joke has never been lacking in self-confidence but I like how him voicing it shows he's back in a good emotional place

"But, you know, I was in a weird place back then. It's all good now." Me about myself every minute that's not the current one

"And honestly, you totally deserved it." We love a good sport!

Not them fully pausing the montage of their friends achieving their goals (beating video games, passing exams, rejoining football, going to Finland) to resolve the Wave and Trin conflict

"Kiss me, this time with the certainty we have in each other now." Oooh we love a full-circle post-uni kiss in Chiang Khan

"Well, my dream is a lot simpler now. Just being by your side like this, forever." ZOOOOO. STOP THAT'S SO SWEET 🥺💘

Final thoughts on this show: I would say the plot is somewhat meandering because it doesn't feel like it has one particular story to tell until the last few eps, and the use of their cast of characters could've been better, because I felt like people would only pop up to drop in a plot point. BUT I do find the show incredibly endearing!! I love the debate themes, I love how Zo is really focused on school, I love the silly little dating lessons. I think they do a particularly good job of building upon Zo slowly to help you understand who he is and why. I also liked the way they navigated the friends to lovers arc, though I could've done without the initial drunk punch or all the scheming. I don't feel like it added much, and I do think it took away from the relationship. I get that it's called, 'Hidden Agenda' but the mere fact that Joke liked Zo from the start fulfills that. The other part is that they laid some groundwork on why exactly their relationship was so tense in the beginning with flashbacks about the Freshy contest, but didn't really deliver on it beyond Joke appreciating that Zo asked how he felt. It felt like they didn't make much effort to reconcile the tone change or develop Joke's backstory in general. In any case, they had good chemistry, really good communication, a fun secondary couple, some really realistic parent dynamics and I liked it enough that I'm willing to hand-wave away its perceived flaws. A pretty solid mid-tier romance!

#ayesha says things #liveblogging #ayesha liveblogs hidden agenda #hidden agenda the series #television #thai television #long post #beauqueue

8 notes · View notes

mangostarjam · 6 days

Note

fuji!! how are you doing on this fine day lovely lady? i'm responding to our thread here bc idk what the etiquette is on reblogging long ass conversations on the same thread lmao so to be safe i'll just send u a new ask.

soupmates is so cute and i love when typos become canon jargon in friendships hehe. you've made me crave croissants again and i am wistfully thinking of how we have a rule that while we're in france, if one of us asks "what time is it?" the other is legally obligated to respond "croissant o'clock" and then we go find a boulangerie. this is how we end up eating 8 croissants/day whenever we're there.

wttcsms is on my deep dive list too!! every time i see them on my dash i'm like how does it feel to never be wrong? ack i've just been so busy that the only time i have to trawl tumblr is during my unhinged insomnia hours when i'm only half aware of what i'm keyboard vomiting lmao NO FILTER only screeching.

okay not mushrooms but this weekend i was busy running around the kitchen experimenting with my lil hoard of fig leaves! i made fig leaf syrup, fig leaf oil, and experimented with dehydrating and freezing the leaves for preservation. i also tested different ratios of toasted fig leaves and pandan in creme brulee and panna cotta so i could see how the flavors bloom in dairy in preparation for the idea i had for my cake. then i gave all the excess treats to baristas at our fave local coffee joints bc i'm not a huge sweet tooth and this was tew much dessert! after i found a ratio i thought worked, i made the cake except i'm afraid it's going to turn out hideous (it's still in its cake ring rn) but it's basically a first draft cake and i can refine it next time! you should see the notes i took on it. i always try to start with a neat plan and end up scribbling all over it with ideas and corrections.

tonight we've invited a couple of our friends over so i can do a fig leaf-inspired dinner with hamachi crudo with fig leaf oil, tomato bisque with fig leaf oil drizzle and crouton, slow roasted salmon in fig leaves (finished with a sear from our bernzomatic + searzall bc crispy salmon skin is life), and the fig leaf and strawberry cake. my friend also got cheesybf a new cocktail set for his bday so we can use the fig leaf syrup to make some nice gin cocktails or a fig leaf strawberry mocktail!

right now i'm munching on leftover crying tiger steak and nam jim jaew for lunch with jasmine rice that i steamed with some of the leftover pandan leaves for extra ~aroma. i still have a ton of leaves so i think i'm gonna make a pandan simple for my favorite matcha pandan lattes.

re: urls haha YES chopsticks are the best way to eat flaming hot cheetos and no one can change my mind. i always think of puffins when i think of my own username. those cute lil round birds. with like a lil cheese hat. i also associate you with apples now as we move into fall. but mentally my picture of you is a swirl of the colors in a kent mango, scented by mango skin by vilhelm and just a hint of kilian's apple brandy on the rocks. maybe a waft of mfk 724 and something like clean cotton or a soft white floral.

HAHAHA totally fair i just realized it was getting long maybe i should put my responses under a read more LOL

i'm responding a day (??) late (time is fake) bc i had to recover from how gorgeous your cake looked and sounded tbh. but i'm good!! my new assistant at work is picking things up quickly and has common sense which is sadly in short supply around here lmaooo

there's a vietnamese bakery in my hometown that makes the BEST croissants i've ever had in my life (though tbf i have not been to paris yet!) and they supply all the local taquerias with bolillo so they are Churning Out Breads but i cannot emphasize enough that it's like. a warehouse space. with a door on a side street and the price list handwritten and they only recently started accepting anything but cash. i love them. the croissants are huge and lightly buttery and delicious. i will now be declaring it's croissant o'clock any time we happen to drive nearby haha

wttcsms and dee my beloveds!!! on behalf of all writers though i will say no filter unhinged screaming comments/tags are GREAT to read. i hope your busyness is the good kind!! it's always lovely seeing you pop up on the dash or inbox or wherever but i hope you're having a good time here >ᴗ<

oh my goddddd your fig leaf experiments... divine. glorious. something about the description of "seeing how the flavors bloom in dairy" is just. dreamy?? you sound like a wizard creating your own magical spell book tome with your scribbles and notes and ideas (saying this in SUCH a complimentary way). crispy salmon skin IS life i just had some last night hehe i had to look up crying tiger steak and nam jim jaew but YOOO this reminds me of duk prahok... yum. and oh my god crying tiger steak is like. a summer staple for us. i never knew it had a NAME. not to over share but my family is from cambodia and i have so many recipes in my brain that i just figured were things my dad created LOL

AND I LOVE PUFFINS!!! in like second grade i did a report/presentation on puffins unprompted unsolicited to my class. i read a book about them and was obsessed i wanted everyone to learn about them (yes i am/was a nerd) (bless my teacher for letting me present lmao). and i do love apple scented things mmm. one of my favorite candles ever is autumn air from elder&co (notes of wild apple and pear and fallen oak leaves). i'm so glad it's getting cloudy and cozy season is coming bc i can light my candles without feeling too silly. do you have any favorite candles?? oh these other scents are SO GOOD. i love that!! brb going to find a way to smell these immediately

#fujimail #🥐🧀#HI CHEESYPUFFKINS ILY

3 notes · View notes

slyersky · 2 years

Text

Peter Parker x Reader - Dumplings

A/N: I had a lot of fun writing this! :) Wasn’t quite sure how to end it but after I read it to my friend they said it would be perfect to just end it there. So that’s what I’m doing.

Summary: Reader has a totally-not-date with Peter. Peter doesn’t come. When they leave Spider-Man suddenly takes them home. Things seem to unfold from there.

Content: fluff, MCU!Peter, slight miscommunication(?), more like keeping secrets, mutual pining, Peter trying to wingman himself

Word count:~7.100

The cold autumn wind tore at your body as you walked down the street. Your arms were wrapped around your torso in an attempt to keep yourself warm. The jacket you were wearing wasn’t made for this kind of weather and you had not thought of bringing a scarf when you had left the house. It was easy to tell that winter was near, perhaps there would be snow in a few weeks.

Luckily, the destination you had was already in sight. The bright neon sign sticking out from the side of the building clashed with the grey clouds above you. A huge window at the front of the building provided a quick look into the establishment. Only a few people were sitting at the tables, the interior looked welcoming and the daily special had been written on the window with red window marker. You had wanted to try out this new Vietnamese restaurant for weeks now and had taken the opportunity to invite a certain friend of yours along with you.

Finally reaching the door to the restaurant, you stepped inside and were immediately engulfed in warmth and the smell of food. You walked over to one of the free tables near the wall, one with a seat that faced the window, so you could see when your friend, aka Peter Parker, arrived. You took off your jacket and hung it over the back of your chair, and then you sat down. A small Asian lady in her 40s walked up to you but you quickly informed her that you were still waiting for someone. She left again and you stared out the window for a few minutes.

It wasn’t long until your phone that was in your pocket buzzed, someone had sent you a message. You took it out of your pocket and the screen lit up. The device in your hand buzzed once more and you read the messages quickly.

Two new messages from Peter :):

hey! sorry but i’m gonna be late

you can go ahead and order us some starters tho ;)

You let out a small sigh. Peter was late to almost everything you would plan these days. You wondered if this was just the case with you or Ned as well. You had to ask him tomorrow. Hopefully, it wasn’t just you, it would make you worried that you did something wrong.

After a quick look at the menu, you decided what to get as a starter. Raising your hand and looking out for the waitress, you called her over to order. As a drink, you ordered (favourite drink) and for the starters some dumplings and summer rolls. The dumplings were more for yourself than for Peter, he probably wouldn’t even have a chance at snagging himself more than two. You could eat them every day of the week if you actually had the money for it. Usually, you bought them at another Asian restaurant near your home but maybe that would change today...

20 minutes went by. No sign of Peter. The waitress stopped at your table to deliver your food. You looked at your phone, no other messages from your friend. With a sigh, you took a sip from your drink and began bouncing your leg up and down.

Another 20 minutes passed. You didn’t dare touch the food in case Peter arrived. It would be rude to start eating without him. Once again you checked your phone that was laying on the table. Nothing.

Five minutes later, still no Peter. You tried to call him but no one picked up. Cursing to yourself, you sent him a quick message: Hey, Pete! Where are you? Are you okay? Still waiting for you…

The people around you, the waitresses, the other guests, they all started staring at you. Some of them gave you sympathetic looks. One of the waitresses even came up to you and gave you a free cup of tea. Her reasoning was so you wouldn’t be as upset for getting stood up. But you weren’t being stood up...right? Peter was just...extremely late.

You finally gave in to your desire to eat, you had been hungry ever since you had arrived here. The dumplings were already cold. You couldn’t even enjoy them properly, the thought of Peter just ditching you was upsetting. What was supposed to be a nice afternoon with your friend had turned into you sitting alone and munching on cold, mediocre dumplings. The summer rolls were alright, at least they weren’t served hot as well. You angrily stabbed at them with your fork, your appetite was gone but you didn’t want to waste the money you were spending.

Over an hour had passed since you had come to the restaurant and no signs or texts or calls from Peter had reached you. Saying you were disappointed was an understatement. You had had enough. It was dark already, you didn’t want to risk anything while you were heading home, so you called over the waitress to pay for your food.

With a sigh, you pulled your jacket closer to your body. You had only been walking for a minute and you were already cold. With one hand you got out your phone. Another attempt to call your friend only sent you to his voicemail. You typed out another message: I’m going home now. Sad that you couldn’t make it.

That wasn’t true. You weren’t sad, you were pissed and disappointed, but you weren’t going to tell him that.

You put your phone back into your pocket and continued to head home. It was kinda scary walking alone in the dark, without any protection, and in one of the more dangerous parts of town too. Cowering into yourself a little you sped up your pace at the thought of getting into trouble somehow. The way home wasn’t that long, you could just take a shortcut and be home in a flash.

Deciding to do just that, you walked into an alleyway. There were no lights there, one could barely see anything. Making out the shapes of trash cans was hard enough on its own, you almost walked into one, focused as you were on being as fast as your feet allowed without running.

A loud thump came from behind you, making you freeze in place. This was it, some dude was gonna rob you and you were not gonna be able to get help. What if he had a knife and tried to stab you with it? The sound of footsteps made its way towards you. Oh, you were so done for. You felt like your life was flashing before your eyes. You would die right here and-

“Hey!”, a red mask popped into your field of vision, you let out a short scream, both out of fear and surprise. On instinct, your hand moved to smack the probable attacker in the face. It was caught just before you were able to hit.

“Woah! Cal-“, the person cleared their throat, their voice sounding a little deeper when they spoke again,-“calm down there. I’m not here to hurt you.”

Now that the initial fear was subsiding, you recognised who was in front of you.

“You’re… It’s just you, Spider-Man…”, you breathed, scanning the hero from head to toe. You weren’t unfamiliar with him, he had helped you a few times before, though you doubted that he remembered something so small in the hero lifestyle. “Man, you scared me half to death. Don’t do entrances like that on civilians…”

He let go of your hand and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, apologising.

“I was just on patrol and saw that you were walking around alone. You looked kinda scared, so I thought that maybe you would appreciate it if I- someone…accompanied you.”

“…That’s��very nice of you, thank you.”, you were kind of baffled, yet you gave him a warm smile and started walking again. He followed suit.

There was a short amount of silence. While you didn’t, the hero kinda seemed to mind it.

“So…uh… If I may ask… What are you doing out here all alone?”

“Oh, I was…supposed to meet up with a friend… Turns out that he… didn’t show up at all.”, you mumbled, unsure if you should really tell a stranger about your teenage problems.

“I’m sorry… Maybe there was something important that got in the way…?”, the hero suggested as the two of you exited the alleyway and took a left turn.

“Maybe… But he could’ve texted or called me about that… That way I wouldn’t have waited for him for like an hour.”

“Wait- An hour?!”, his voice cracked during the sudden outburst. Why did he sound so shocked? You nodded. Once again he cleared his throat and tried to pick up more of a joking manner. “Man… That guy… must really be a douchebag then, huh?”

“He’s not, actually… He’s really nice…and funny… But he’s still an idiot sometimes.”, you had caught your words before they all came out at once. You weren’t about to start gushing about Peter in front of some random guy.

“Everyone in that damned restaurant thought I was getting dumped by a date… It’s so stupid.”, you kicked an empty soda can that was in your way while you kept walking down the street. It made a loud noise as it clattered along the sidewalk.

“Because it wasn’t a date…? Or because they all thought it was?”, Spider-Man asked carefully.

Your face started heating up, if it was out of anger or embarrassment you couldn’t really tell. Remaining silent, you kept walking. This wasn’t a conversation you were going to have with a hero. He could luckily tell that you were not in the mood to talk about it and didn’t say anything else for the rest of the way home.

“Ned?”

“What’s up?”, you were lucky that you had caught him alone.

“Can I talk to you for a sec? It’s about Peter…”, as you said that, you could see a small amount of panic flash on his face. Yet he still nodded and followed you to a quieter corner of the school hallway.

“…When you meet up with Peter… is he ever… late by any chance?”

“What…?”

“Y’know… does he make you wait for him or not show up at all when you two hang out?”, you looked down at your friend with a slight frown of worry.

“Sometimes, yeah. But stuff like that happens, right?”, he smiled at you and you could tell that something was making him nervous.

“I guess… But I feel like-“

“Hey, guys! What are you talking about?”, Peter suddenly appeared in your peripheral and you quickly spun around.

“Oh! Uh… Nothing important. Just…had a question about our homework, that’s all.“, you lied. You didn’t exactly know why, you kind of felt like you had to for a second.

“Oh, I see… Uhm…(Y/n), I wanted to apologise for yesterday. I really should have called you but there was an emergency at the…uhm…internship.”, he pulled you aside with one arm, almost out of earshot for Ned. The boy scratched his neck nervously as he tried to explain himself. His voice was barely above a whisper, not wanting to attract any unwanted attention.

“Just…forget it, it’s fine. I’m not mad or anything.”, you forced a small smile. There was a feeling deep inside of your stomach that he was making up excuses, but you told yourself that it was fine. This wasn’t going to happen anymore, right?

“Still… I wanna make it up to you! How about we go to the cinema this Saturday? You can pick the movie of course.”

There was still hope then? You were sure that your cheeks were heating up at his suggestion. You had to act fast to not make it that obvious.

“…Uh… Sure, that would be cool.”

“Cool! It’s settled then.”

“Settled my ass…”, you muttered as you glared at your phone and made your way to the exit of the cinema. You should’ve seen it coming, honestly…

Once again, Peter had not shown up. He had told you to already buy a ticket for yourself since he would be a little late. He had said that he would be there by the time the movie started. He had promised. And then you had sat there. Alone, with a huge tub of popcorn in your lap. Once the movie was already playing for a while you had checked your phone for what felt like the billionth time.

New message from Peter :):

hey, i don’t know if i’ll be able to make it in time

Of course…

The movie ended about 20 minutes ago. Your disappointment grew by the minute. Not only had the movie been utter garbage but you also had no one to laugh about it with now.

With a small grumble, you stepped outside into the cold night. Your breaths came out in puffs of smoke as you stuffed your hands into the pockets of your jacket to keep them warm. As you were preparing to walk home a certain figure caught your attention out of the corner of your eye.

There he was again, on the other side of the street. He was handing over what seemed to be a robber to a police officer and giving him details about the robbery. You stared at him for a while. For some reason, it seemed strange to see Spider-Man again, especially now, like this wasn’t just a weird coincidence. The cop took the criminal from the hero's hands and their conversation seemed to end. As if he had felt you were staring at him, Spider-Man turned his head towards you. You froze for a second, unsure of what to do. He, however, sure did know. Within a few moments, he was already crossing the street towards you, already waving.

“If it isn’t my favourite nighttime escort… Working hard I see…”, you greeted him while gesturing towards where he just stood.

“Oh, you know… Just trying to keep things in order around here… What uhm… what are you doing here?”, of course he would ask. If you told him that you had gotten stood up again he would surely think of you as a loser. You shifted your balance from one foot to another a few times. Then you finally pointed at the cinema a few buildings behind you.

“Uhm… I just…felt like watching a movie…”

“All alone…? That doesn’t sound very fun.”

“Well… I had plans with someone but… uh… he didn’t show up.”, you looked down at your feet, heat rising to your cheeks.

“Oh… I’m sorry.”, for some reason he sounded like he felt responsible for your suffering.

“You’re not the guy I was supposed to meet up with, don’t apologise.-“, you tried to laugh the embarrassment off- “‘Sides… Feeling sorry for myself won’t make it any better.”

There was an awkward amount of silence. You were contemplating whether you should just say goodbye and go home. Would that be rude?

“Was it the same guy as last time?”, you nodded, your face going even redder from embarrassment. You were a little surprised that he even remembered. “Damn, I might have to go and have a talk with him! The audacity to be so rude to his friend…”

“Please don’t…”, you gave a small nervous chuckle.

“Alright… Can I at least take you home?”

“That would be nice…”

You had to admit that you were pretty sad about what happened today. It felt as if the entirety of your life was starting to turn against you. You didn’t even want to face Peter in school again. Would it just be better to stay at home for eternity? You would never say it out loud, of course, but the seed of doubt in your friendship with Peter was slowly growing. Did he just not like you anymore? What had you done wrong?

The hero seemed to notice your distress as you walked down the streets of Queens. He didn’t say anything though. You were kind of glad that he didn’t. After all, you had said earlier that self-pity wouldn’t help. And now you were doing the exact thing you didn’t want to do. Suddenly he seemed to spot something in the distance. The eyes on his mask expanded and he quickly looked between you and the thing he saw.

“Hey! Wait here for a minute! I’ll be right back.”, he quickly grabbed your shoulder to catch your attention and then ran off to the other side of the street. Your eyes followed him with a dumbfounded look. You watched him enter a shop, you couldn’t quite read the sign on the door.

Just like he said, after a few minutes he came back out. As he was coming closer you saw that he was holding a small to-go box. When the hero finally reached you, he held the box out towards you. You took ahold of it with a questioning gaze.

“It’s ‘dump’-lings… Get it?”, he tried to explain as you opened the box and the smell of food hit your nose. You looked back at him again, still slightly confused. He laughed awkwardly as he scratched his neck with one hand. “‘Cause you… basically got dumped, y’know… Dump-lings… Haha…”

You could tell that he was suddenly worried about crossing a line. He started fumbling with his fingers as he let out another awkward chuckle.

“I just… You looked so upset… I thought that maybe a pun and some food that you like would cheer you up…”

Now you couldn’t help but snicker. You had never met a hero that was so awkward but also so nice, not that you had met many heroes in your lifetime. But this definitely made your night better. Even if his pun was horrible.

“Thank you… I appreciate it. Just…never try that joke again. Also… It wasn’t a date, so I didn’t get dumped, technically…”, you smiled at him. But after a few seconds, your face scrunched up in thought again. “Wait… How did you know that I like dumplings?”

The hero took a step back and you could tell that he tried to avoid your gaze.

“Ah…uh… It was just a lucky guess… And I figured that since a lot of people like them, I couldn’t really go wrong with them…”

That was true. Most of the people you knew would never say no to dumplings. You had been suspicious for no reason at all.

“Thank you again… You seem to be a lot more reliable than Peter…”, the two of you chuckled a little as you kept walking. You bit into the warm food on your fork, it tasted amazing. “I might just ask you out next time instead of him.”

You regretted the words as soon as they left your mouth. Oh no. This would be awkward. You stopped dead in your tracks, the hero next to you did the same. He stared at you for a few seconds.

“…Soooo… You were considering these as dates after all…?”, huh? Out of all the questions he could have asked and the things he could have said… He chose to ask that?!

“Thaaaat’s… none of your business.”, you turned your head away. Your face was starting to turn redder than a beet.

“What? Come on.”, he protested with what sounded almost like a whine. You started to walk again, quicker this time. The hero quickly caught up with you again. “It’s definitely some of my business if you want to replace your friend with your friendly neighbourhood spider.”

Your thoughts were racing in embarrassment. Not only had you just basically confessed your crush on a boy to a complete stranger, but you had also told said stranger that you could imagine going on a date with him?! Why had you even considered this in the first place? You barely knew this guy. You had no idea what he was really like, let alone who he was under that mask of his. Were you really that naive to just trust him like that?

You were struggling to find the right words to say. Opening your mouth, you tried to speak, but nothing came out so you just closed it again. After you did that a few times in a row (you could guarantee that you were looking like a damn fish) you gave up.

“Alright, I’m sorry. You’re right. This shouldn’t be any of my business. If I crossed a boundary of yours, I apologise.”, the man sighed and awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

“Let’s just… Let’s just not talk about it anymore.”

“Okay. Should I still walk with you for a bit?”

“…Sure.”

“Well… Here we are. Thank you for the company… and the dumplings.”, you turned around to look at Spider-Man once again.

“You’re more than welcome. And sorry again for making you uncomfortable.”

“Apology accepted. Have a nice evening. Don’t go around patrolling for too long.”, you chuckled and unlocked your front door. Just as you were about to go inside, the hero’s voice popped up one last time.

“Also… Maybe just talk to that guy you like. I’m sure he feels the same, he’s probably too nervous to tell you.”, with that, he zipped away with one of his webs.

You anxiously dug your fingers into your palms. 30 minutes had passed since you came home and you had done basically nothing but stare at your phone that was lying on your bed. Something about the hero’s words had stirred something in you. Should you really call Peter now? What if he actually didn’t feel the same? You didn’t even know how you would start the conversation. Would your frustration and anger from earlier just bubble up again? Before you could think properly you already had your phone in your hand and punched in his number.

One Beep.

Two Beeps.

Your hands were shaking. Was it too late to hang up now? This was a bad idea.

The fifth beep.

“Hey, (Y/n). Before you say anything, I want to say that I’m sorry.”, you remained quiet for the time being. “I had promised you that we would hang out and I blew it. And no excuse will ever be enough for that but I will try to make it right again. If you let me, of course.”

“Peter, you’re an asshole. You really are.-”, you spoke without thinking once again but this time you didn’t stop yourself. Something about his apology had made you change your mind about what you were going to say - “This wasn’t the first time this happened. Nor was last week at the restaurant the first time. You keep on missing our hangouts or cancelling last minute. Honestly, I don’t know if we’re really even friends anymore! You barely talk to me, you stand me up and you certainly don’t even trust me enough to tell me the truth about your little escapades! Do you even still like me? It would be easier if you just told me that you don’t want to be around me anymore!”

You had thought that you would be able to keep calm and collected. Well, you had utterly failed. Silent tears were running down your cheeks and you felt like screaming at your friend.

“No, no! You’ve got it all wrong. I do still like you, more than you realise. I want to spend time with you. And I know, I’ve been a horrible friend to you for the past month but I promise you I’m gonna make it right again.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Peter.”

“I’ll keep this promise. Please, you have to believe me.”

You were quiet for a few seconds. So many emotions were running through your head again. How could you trust him now? What made this any different than all the other times he had said that he would make it right? And could you be sure that he would be honest about the things he was doing?

“Well, it’s one thing to stand me up. It’s another to not tell me why or even make up excuses. I don’t know what you’re hiding, I’m not sure if I even really want to know… But I’m gonna be honest with you… You’re making it really hard for me to keep loving you.”, without another word, you hung up. In just a few seconds you turned off your phone and chucked it onto your bed.

Peter had tried to reach you for the next few days. But either you had blocked him or turned your phone off. His calls didn’t go through either way. When he tried to talk to you on Monday, you weren’t at school. You weren’t there the next day either. Ned didn’t really know what was going on either.

“When I asked, they just told me they were sick… Do you think it’s something else?”, Ned shrugged as he sat down at a lunch table with his friend.

“…I might have messed up, man. I wanted to make things right with them and hang out last weekend but… spidey-business came up and it wasn’t able to make it.”, the boy confessed.

“Dude… So that’s why they were asking me about you?”

“Wait… what?”

“(Y/n) came up to me last week and asked if you were standing me up all the time too! I tried to cover it up because I thought they were figuring out your secret and stuff! Shit… Did you apologise?”

“I brought them home as Spider-Man, just like last week, and I tried to cheer them up… And then they said something weird and things got really awkward and I think they meant that they like me…? As in, like like me… And then I tried to nudge things in a direction to make things better. But then they called me and I tried to apologise and then everything just backfired. They got really upset and hung up on me and now I can’t reach them anymore! I don’t know what to do!”, Peter talked at a speed that made it hard to comprehend what he was saying. He threw his hands in the air in defeat and then curled in on himself. Ned sat there for a second, taking everything in.

“…When you say that they like like you… And you ‘tried to nudge things into the right direction’… Does that mean that you like them too?”

“Wha- O-of course I do. I wouldn’t have done it like that if I didn’t.”, the brunette ran a hand through his hair as he whisper-yelled and looked around nervously. “I don’t know what to do, Ned. If I don’t fix this, our whole friendship is gonna fall apart.”

“Okay, okay. I know how we can salvage this, trust me. Here’s the plan…”

Your doorbell rang. Begrudgingly, you stood up from your bed and trotted to your front door. You pulled it open and came face to face with Ned. He looked somewhat nervous as he shifted from one foot to the other.

“Hey! How are you doing?”

“…I’m fine, I guess. Just feeling sick.”, you answered, even though it was a lie. Your voice was strained and tired. All you wanted to do was go back to bed and never see the light of day again. “Thank you again for bringing me the homework. But you really didn’t have to go through the trouble of doing it in person. Photos or something would’ve done the job too, Ned.”

“No, no! I wanted to check on you. Plus, Mrs Warren really gave us a bunch of papers. I don’t wanna carry those around all day.”, the boy joked and started rummaging through his backpack for the papers. He still gave off a slightly nervous vibe but you were too tired to question it. He tried to break the silence. “Do you think you’re gonna be back at school soon? You don’t look too good.”

He was right. There were dark circles under your red eyes. You hadn’t slept and spent a lot of the time crying, of course, no one knew that. You looked pale and your hair hadn’t been taken care of the past few days. You hadn’t eaten properly either, what was the point anyway.

“Geez, thanks… Uhm, maybe in a day or two? We’ll have to see.”, you weren’t sure if you even wanted to go back to school. You were practically dreading the thought of it. If you did, you would have to face Peter eventually. That was one of the things you certainly did not want to experience at the moment. But you weren’t stupid, you knew that that would happen sooner or later. There was no way around it. You would just prefer it if it happened later.

“Oh! My Nana also insisted on taking this to you… She said that it helps against colds and stuff.”, Ned pulled out a small, clear container full of food and handed it to you together with a stack of paper.

“That’s… really sweet of her. Tell her I said thank you.”, you shot him a smile and he smiled back. Silence settled between the two of you. You were expecting him to say goodbye and leave but he kept standing there. He was shifting from one foot to the other again. What did he want? Was he expecting something from you? Maybe you should just tell him goodbye.

“Well, uhm… Maybe it’s time-“, you started but the shorter boy interrupted you.

“Actually, uhm, could I get a glass of water? I’m really thirsty.”, the request caught you so off guard that you didn’t notice the glances to the side that Ned did. He looked even more nervous now.

“Oh… Sure. Just give me a sec…”, you made your way into the kitchen and set down the stuff on the table.

You filled a glass with tap water and then made your way back to the door. Ned was now glancing inside your house as if he was looking at something. Once you came closer he quickly straightened and acted as if he wasn’t doing anything. You could tell that something was off. Ned was incredibly bad at lying. For a second, you debated with yourself if you should confront him about it. But you felt too tired to pry.

“Here you go.”, you handed him the glass. The boy downed the water in one go. You stared at him, completely confused, as he quickly handed you back the glass.

“Thanks… Oh, would you look at the time. I have to go. Get better soon, bye.”, and with that, he basically ran away. You followed him with your eyes until he was out of sight. Now that was certainly strange… You had wanted him to leave but even that was a bit too sudden for your liking.

Oh well. You closed your front door again with a small sigh. Then you made your way back to the kitchen and set down the glass inside the sink. You would wash the dishes later, you had too little energy to do it right now. You braced yourself on the edge of the sink and let your head hang low for a second. The light that came through the kitchen window became less and less. The colder months made your home seem all the darker. You made a mental note to turn on the light in the hallway when you went back to your room. That way your parents wouldn’t come home to a completely dark lair of self-pity. A hand went over your face to get yourself back together. You decided it would be best to just go back to your room and sleep again. You straightened your posture and turned around. In your kitchen doorway, however, stood a figure. You let out a scream, jolting backwards. You grabbed the nearest thing beside you, which unfortunately was nothing more than a sponge, and threw it at the intruder. It was too dark already to see who it was but the figure easily caught the sponge. They held it in their hand as they took a step forward. You screamed once again and backed up further into the kitchen.

“Hey! Hey! Relax! It’s just me!”, a familiar voice said and the figure extended an arm towards you in surrender.

“What the-? Peter?!”, your hand finally reached for a light switch behind you. A strip of light from beneath the kitchen cabinets illuminated the room. The boy squinted his eyes at the sudden light. “What the hell are you doing in here?!”

“Okay, I know you’re mad but-“

“Mad?! You just broke into my house! That is absolutely illegal, I’ll have you know!”, you really did not want to put up with him right now. You were only one more annoyance away from actually calling the police on him.

“Technically… I didn’t break in. I came in through the door while you were getting water for Ned.-“

“I fucking knew it! He was behaving so suspiciously the whole damn time!”, you threw your hands into the air and turned away for a second. The audacity that these two had… While you were distracted, Peter put the sponge you had thrown at him next to the sink again. “What the hell do you want? I swear, if you pull anything stupid I’ll call the damn police on you.”

“I… I wanted to apologise to you… For real this time.”, you only now noticed that he had kept one of his hands behind his back the whole time. Now he brought his hand back in front of him, what he held made your mouth fall open. It was a massive flower bouquet, filled with all different kinds of flowers. There were roses in different colours, daisies, peonies… It looked as if Peter had either picked every flower in the store that he thought you would like, or he had tried to look up the actual symbolisms of said flowers. The size of it was impressive, that much you had to admit. It was almost bigger than his head, it had to have been extremely expensive… “I didn’t know how else I would be able to talk to you. You didn’t answer my calls and I’m pretty sure if I had shown up at your doorstep you would have just slammed the door in my face.”

He wasn’t wrong. You wouldn’t have wanted to talk to him. But you believed that you had every right to act like this. You wanted to voice your thoughts but Peter was quicker.

“Of course, that’s totally justified. I’ve been nothing but an asshole to you for the past few months. I promised to make it up to you and I broke that promise. When you called me last weekend I was hoping to be able to apologise. But uh… with you exploding in anger and… everything… I wasn’t able to. I get now that that wouldn’t have been so easy anyway.”, he carefully stepped towards you and held out the bouquet. There was a small moment of hesitation. Would taking his gift already mean that you forgave him? Was all this just to win over your goodwill again? You still grabbed the bouquet from his hand, not looking at him while you did so. Quickly, you got out a vase and put in the bouquet with a bit of water. Silence settled in the room.

“So? You keep saying you want to apologise… Where’s that apology then? And also… I demand an explanation, Peter. I know you weren’t being fully honest with me.”, you crossed your arms and leaned against the counter. Your eyes narrowed as you waited for an answer.

“Uhm… You may want to sit down for this if you want the explanation…”, Peter grabbed you by the shoulders and made you sit down at the kitchen table. Before you could protest about him touching you he stepped back again and started fumbling with his hands. He didn’t say anything, though. You looked at him expectantly, brows raised in scepticism.

“Uhm… Okay… Here we go. I… am… Spider-Man.”, he stammered while avoiding eye contact.

“…Peter.”, you started with a sigh. “I need you to be honest with me here-“

“No no no! I am being honest.”, he waved his hands in front of him in a desperate manner. You only looked at him with a deadpan expression. Really? Did he think he could win you over that easily? If he tried to get on your good side by just spouting more lies you were going to explode.

“I can prove it to you!”, he swung his backpack off of his shoulder and zipped it open. After rummaging through it for a second he pulled out something red. He handed it over to you and when you unfolded it… It sure looked like the mask of the neighbourhood hero.

“How am I supposed to know if this is actually real? For all I know you could’ve bought it from some costume shop or someth-“, you weren’t sure if you actually wanted to believe that he was who he was claiming to be. That would mean that you had complained about Peter…to Peter… And you had admitted that you liked Peter…to Peter! Before you could finish your sentence, however, something white whipped out of the boy’s wrist and stuck to the mask you were holding. With a quick pull, it flew out of your hands and back to Peter. That white string. It looked like the web strings Spider-Man used.

“There! Believe me now?”, he looked at you expectantly. You, however, seemed to be frozen in place, staring at your now empty hand. This could not be real. This was a dream, right? Seeing you in an unmoving, unblinking state made Peter even more nervous than before. “Are you okay?”

“No.”, you answered without thinking. Then your gaze drifted back up to Peter. “How could I be when my best friend tells me that he is a god-damn superhero?! And when that exact superhero has been a much better friend than my actual best friend has been for the last few weeks, even though they are the same person? What the actual fuck?”

“Look… Every single time we tried to meet up there was something going on. A bunch of bad guys were seemingly having their field days. When we were supposed to eat at that restaurant together some decided it would be fun to blow up a factory! When you wanted to meet up to study a fire broke out because someone owed another guy money. And when we wanted to watch that movie a random mutated lizard was wreaking havoc in the sewers! Can you believe that?! We’re not in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, why would anyone put anything mutated in the sewers?”

“But then you had enough time to go and conveniently check on me once you were done?”

“I always tried to at least check if you were okay. And if I couldn’t do it as Peter, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to do so as Spider-Man. You have to believe me when I say that I never wanted to stand you up or leave you behind. But sometimes…y’know.”

“Yeah… Of course, spending time with me is less important than saving a bunch of civilians.”, you slumped in your chair and crossed your arms.

“You say that like you’re bitter.”

“I’m not. Those people need saving after all. Who’s gonna do it if not you? It’s understandable.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that you sound bitter.”

“…And what if I am? I shouldn’t be! Choosing between saving the lives of many and spending time with me shouldn’t even be an option. But it still hurts, Peter. It hurts to know that I am not a priority. And I know that’s selfish, you don’t need to tell me.”, you looked away in embarrassment. You were being so childish. Maybe you should just tell him to leave.

“…But you are a priority. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come to check on you every time you had to walk home alone. I would never want to see you hurt or upset because of something I did. So I wanted to at least somewhat make you happier… Even if you didn’t know that it was me that tried to cheer you up. I would do anything to spend more time with you. And I would do anything to see you smile.”

You didn’t answer for a while. You had to admit that it was sweet that he at least tried to salvage his mistakes. Even if it was in a completely stupid kind of way. But now that you thought about it… How did you not notice that he was Spider-Man earlier? He had changed his voice to be minimally lower than normal when he talked to you, he knew that you liked dumplings and he seemed to be waaay too interested in your personal life… A laugh made its’ way through your throat.

“Hey… What are you laughing at now?”, Peter asked perplexed.

“It’s just… You offered… to go and beat yourself up. It’s kinda stupid. Not to mention you tried to play wingman… for yourself.”, you managed to say in between giggles. Your friend's face grew beet red.

“Well… I would have done it if you’d said yes.”, he seemed to ignore your second comment as best as he could.

“Pff… Don’t be ridiculous, Peter.”

“…Do you forgive me, then?”

“You technically still haven’t apologised.”, you teased.

“Right… Uhm… I’m sorry for standing you up all the time and then not being able to make it up to you in person. And I’m sorry for lying to you about what was going on in my life. But I hope that you can forgive me one day because when that day comes I would like to take you on an actual date. But you can call it a not-date if you want. Just so a certain superhero won’t get jealous when he hears about it.”

You were taken aback for a second. So he did like you back… And he wanted to go on a date with you…

“Woah… Uh… Apology accepted. But… I don’t know. Maybe I do prefer that mysterious masked hero that is willing to protect me at night after all.”

#marvel mcu #mcu fluff #fluff #peter parker x reader #spiderman x reader #gn!reader #ned flanders #be your own wingman #bad puns #idiots in love #hero x civilian

68 notes · View notes

foundtherightwords · 1 year

Text

All Our Yesterdays - Chapter 1

Pairing: Ralph (Timewasters) x OFC

Summary: Thu, a museum archivist, only wants to escape her dull life in 21st-century Hanoi. The last thing she expects is to end up in 1929 Indochina via a time-traveling elevator and cross paths with Ralph, an Englishman on the run from the French Foreign Legion. Romance blossoms between them, but in a colonized country, unrest is always looming on the horizon, and Thu must decide if she wants to stay with Ralph in the past or return to the safety of the future.

A/N: In the show, Ralph ends up somewhere in Morocco or Algeria (judging by this photo - thank you, @quinnkeerys, for doing the Lord's work), but I'm more familiar with French Indochina, and a Legion regiment was stationed there at the time, so I transferred him there to make the research easier for me.

A few notes on the Vietnamese names/pronunciation:

- Thu is pronounced like "too", but with a softer "t" sound. - The "D/d" letter in Vietnamese is pronounced as "z", so for example, "áo dài" (long tunic, the national costume of Vietnam) is pronounced like "ao zai". "Đ/đ" is pronounced as "d". It's confusing, I know. - For easier reading, I left the diacritics out of the characters' names (Hoang instead of Hoàng, Phuong instead of Phương, Lien instead of Liên.) The place names and other nouns are kept intact though. If they are difficult to read or mess up the format, let me know and I'll take them out.

Also, I only watched the first 2 episodes of "Timewasters" (the ones featuring Ralph), so I had no idea what is canon about the time machine.

Warnings: outdated/period-typical attitudes, mentions of war, mentions of pregnancy and abortion (involving a supporting character), some angst (it's mostly fluff but you know me, I can't do without angst altogether), some smut (non-explicit)

Chapter warnings: outdated attitudes about women/marriage

Chapter word count: 3.3k

Chapter 1

"Thu, are you even listening to me?" Hoang's irritated voice brought Thu out of her reverie. With difficulty, she turned her eyes away from the vendor selling tofu pudding—tào phớ—outside. The vendor's hand was moving in a blur, scooping silky tofu from the big container into smaller cups and pouring sugar water on top. She was remembering how, in her childhood, such vendors would use a big mussel shell as a scoop instead of the ubiquitous aluminum ones now, and how the tào phớ of childhood seemed to taste sweeter, fresher. Now she was struck by a sudden craving. It was the first of September, but summer was still holding on stubbornly, and the air-conditioned interior of the coffee shop felt close, stuffy. A bowl of cool, slightly sweet, jasmine-infused tào phớ would just hit the spot.

"You want some tào phớ?" she asked Hoang.

"What?" Her boyfriend stared blankly back. She nodded toward the vendor, and Hoang made a face. "No. And you shouldn't either. It's not sanitary, you know. I wish the city would just ban all street vendors. So untidy."

Thu rolled her eyes. "But they're such an integral part of Hanoi!" she protested. "It's been that way for hundreds of years and will continue to be."

"I doubt it," Hoang said callously. "Already there are fewer of them after the pandemic. People's buying and eating habits are changing. Soon they'll be gone, just you wait."

Thu sat back, chagrined. They had had this argument often enough for her to know it was a losing battle. She shouldn't have said anything at all.

"Anyway," Hoang continued, "we're good for this Saturday?"

"What's happening Saturday?"

"My parents coming to talk to yours."

"About what?"

"About the wedding, what else? Have you not listened to a word I said at all?"

The truth was that she had tuned out the moment Hoang mentioned his mother had been to see a fortune-teller. It was exhausting, the way his mother always consulted fortune-tellers before doing anything, so after a while, Thu stopped listening. But now, the mention of "wedding" sent a chill through her, as she realized what it could mean.

"Wedding?" she repeated, trying to hide her rising panic.

Hoang let an exasperated breath out through his nose. "Yes, our wedding. Mom is determined to have it before the Lunar New Year."

"Before the Lunar New Year..." Thu did some mental calculations. "But that's only five months away!"

"So what? Plenty of time to plan a wedding."

"But why the rush?"

"Because you're turning twenty-six next year, and it's not an auspicious age to get married," Hoang explained, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"So let's wait until I turn twenty-seven then! Or twenty-nine!"

"Come on, we are going to get married anyway, what's the difference a year or two going to make?"

It makes all the difference in the world! Thu wanted to shout, before stopping herself in time. She and Hoang had been together for four years, and it had always been understood that they would eventually get married, though they had never officially discussed it. And now, when Hoang finally brought it up, she realized, with horror, that she did not want to get married. Not yet. Perhaps even not at all. There was so much she wanted to do.

"I want to get my Master's first," she said.

"You can do that after we're married," Hoang replied breezily.

Easier said than done. After they got married, there would be kids (When are you going to have a baby?), responsibilities, and more kids (Two is always better than one, you know!), and before she knew it, her life would settle into monotonous drudgery, rushing home after work to put dinner on the table, dropping off squalling kids at daycare and picking them up again, arguing about what primary school to enroll them in, and on and on and on. Try as she might, she could picture none of the marital bliss people often boasted about. She shuddered and reached for her pendant, twisting it between her fingers as she always did whenever she was nervous.

"Actually... my parents might have... plans this Saturday," she said, trying to stall.

"Really?" Hoang raised an eyebrow. "But when my mom called, your mom said it was all good."

Thu's stomach churned in anger. Her mother always did that, deciding what was best for her without asking what she wanted. "Looks like they got it all under control," she said coldly.

Hoang didn't hear, or pretended that he didn't hear the frosty note in her voice. He leaned back and took a sip of his iced coffee. "Yep, I figured, moms have a lot more experience in this kind of thing, so why not let them take charge? They're happy, we don't have to worry about all the trivial details; it's a win-win."

Thu clamped down a bitter retort. It wasn't that Hoang didn't make an effort in their relationship; he remembered her birthday and their anniversary and other important dates, but he was always very matter-of-fact about them. His gifts were the practical kind, and he never got her flowers, saying there was no point since they were going to die anyway. Anything else would just be a "trivial detail" to him. She appreciated his pragmatism, but once in a while, she wished they could have been a little more spontaneous. It was like Hoang was afraid of being seen as sappy. She knew if he had it his way, he wouldn't even have a wedding at all. They would just go to the city hall and sign the marriage certificate and that would be that.

"Where are we going to live, after we get married?" she asked.

"With my parents," Hoang said, the "of course" plain in his tone even though he didn't actually say it out loud.

"You know I don't like it when so many generations live under the same roof," Thu said. Hoang lived with his parents and grandparents. She knew it was still the norm, but the very idea set her teeth on edge.

"What's the big deal?" Hoang shrugged. "In your own words, it's been like that for hundreds of years, and it's much more convenient. You know, for someone who loves history, you sure are picky about which part of it you love."

His words stung. "Just because I love something, doesn't mean that I'm blind about it!" she snapped, then gathered up her things and stormed out of the coffee house before Hoang could say another word. A bit of an overreaction, perhaps, but she was looking for any excuse to escape further discussion of the wedding. She wasn't brave enough to tell him that she didn't want it, and even if she did tell him, she wasn't even sure if she could get through to him.

That evening, over dinner at home, Thu tried to broach the subject with her parents first. If she could get them on her side, then maybe she could convince Hoang to push the wedding back a few years.

Her mom wasn't having any of it.

"But you two are going to get married anyway," she said, maddeningly echoing Hoang's words. "I don't see why you'd want to wait."

"We don't have our own place yet," Thu said. In this, she knew her parents would support her. No parents want their daughter to have to live with the in-laws. "And I want to get a Master," she added hopefully.

"What's the point? It's not going to raise your salary at the museum, is it?"

"It'll allow me to get a teaching position at the university."

Her mom snorted. "And their salary is better, I suppose? Your dad and I can lend you the money to buy your own place."

Thu turned to her dad in dismay. "Dad?"

"Mom's right," her dad said, his face hidden behind his phone. "We won't charge you interest."

"If you don't want to be in debt, then take that job with Cousin Minh," her mom continued. "He's been calling again. He says they can really use someone with your English skills, and they pay very well. You'll save enough for an apartment in no time."

"Mom, he sells illegal IDs!"

"Nonsense. He runs a visa agency."

"Yes, which includes selling illegal IDs. He's lucky he's not getting arrested. I am not going to work for him."

"Ooh, if you're getting married and moving out, can I have your room?" her younger brother, Tung, piped up.

Thu dug the heels of her hands into her eyes, frustrated. There would be no help from this quarter.

"Look," her mom said in a softer voice, "we just want you to settle down. Hoang is a nice boy. He has a good job. It's the right time to get married. If you wait longer, something else may come up."

Settle down. Get a job. Get married. Have kids. The same path as everybody else. Deviate from that, and you'd risk disapproval and pity. What will happen to you? Who will take care of your parents in their old age? Who will take care of you in the future? And of course, that was the sting. Hoang might be dull, but he was safe, stable, predictable. She could imagine a future with him, even if that future was not particularly bright.

Thu went into her room and took refuge in her history books. At least with them, she knew how the stories all turned out; it didn't matter if the endings were good or bad. Perhaps that was why she loved history so much. There was none of this worrying about the future in history.

***

Those gnawing thoughts were still going around her head the next day at work, grating on her nerves and making her snappish with everybody. It was a slow day. Usually, she relished days like this, when she could settle into the backrooms of the museum, going over the archives, or walking through the echoing halls, looking at the artifacts, pretending to be a visitor, but today, the quietness of the museum felt stifling, its familiarity stale. It probably didn't help that she was stuck doing paperwork, cataloging the findings of a recent dig just outside of Hanoi. Sometimes, this job felt futile, like there was nothing else they could discover about the past. Vietnam's history is a bewildering patchwork of myths and half-preserved facts, destroyed by centuries of war and natural disasters and just plain old bad weather, impossible to make sense of, and Thu had never felt the futility of that task more acutely than she did that day, while logging broken pieces of roof tiles and ceramics into the computer. She was glad when, near the end of the day, her supervisor asked her to leave off the work and deliver some invitations for the museum's upcoming seminar to the nearby Institute of French Culture.

Leaving her motorbike at the museum, Thu walked the short distance from behind the Grand Opera House down Tràng Tiền Street. It was rush hour; by the time she got her bike out of the museum's parking lot and found a parking space near the Institute, she would've already gotten there on foot. The concrete pavement still retained some of the day's heat, and the currents of roaring cars and bikes and their constant honking only added to the warmth, but already, there was a slight crispness to the air that whispered of autumn, of moon cakes and green rice, of lantern processions. As Thu wove her way through the traffic, she imagined herself as an office girl from the French School of the Far East, which used to be in the same building as her museum, walking to the IDEO Printing House, where the Institute now stood, on some errand...

Her phone buzzed, cutting off her daydreaming. She glanced at the screen and groaned inwardly. A text from Hoang:

Confirmed with my mom, we're coming to your house 10 AM Saturday. Prepare lunch. Something not too heavy.

The bossy tone of the text pricked at her. He couldn't even say "please" at the end! Was this a taste of how their marriage was going to be, with Hoang dictating the terms and Thu following obediently? To hell with that. And if Hoang and her mother refused to listen, then she would find a way to make them listen...

Without stopping to think, Thu logged into her mother's account, still remembering the password from when she set it up for her. She scrolled through until she found the string of messages between her mother and Hoang's, and fired up a text:

I'm very sorry, but we're going to have to cancel the plan on Saturday. There's an emergency.

Would that be enough? No. Better make it clear. She added, Also, to be honest, we can't afford a January wedding. It's too soon.

Better make it double clear then. And I think Thu and Hoang can benefit from having more time to think. They're both too young to—

No. She deleted the last sentence. It would be too obvious. Of course, it would become obvious who sent the text if Hoang's mother decided to call hers, but she was hoping, if nothing else, this would at least get their attention and allow her a chance to really talk about what she wanted.

Thu went into the Institute and dropped the invitations off at the main office on the fifth floor. Her head throbbed from the heat and the stress. While waiting for the elevator, she reached for her stash of emergency M&Ms in her backpack. She just popped a handful into her mouth when her phone rang, shrilly, accusingly. She glanced at the watch on her phone. Her subterfuge lasted a total of eight minutes.

"Hi, Mom," she answered, resigning herself to a dressing-down.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Her mom sounded furious. "You sent a message to Hoang's mother to cancel the plan on Saturday, didn't you?"

"I did, yes."

"Why?!"

"Because I don't want to get married, Mom. Not yet. I've been trying to say this but nobody—"

"Do you have any idea how humiliated I was? I couldn't tell her that I didn't send that message! I had to say there was a misunderstanding and reschedule for Sunday."

"Mom—"

"That's final! I'm done discussing this with you!"

Her mom hung up. Thu sighed. Why won't they just listen?!

The elevator arrived. The door slid open. There was already a man inside, a Westerner. Thu eyed him curiously. He looked to be in his sixties and was terribly unkempt. Despite the heat, he was dressed in a long, dark coat. His pale, straggly hair stuck out from under a woolen hat, and he had a scruffy white beard. If she didn't know better, she would've said he was homeless, but she had seen plenty of backpackers looking far worse on the streets of Hanoi.

"Going down?" she asked in English, indicating with her hand.

The man grinned, showing a mouthful of rotten teeth. Thu recoiled slightly. But it was getting late, and she was exhausted. She just wanted to go home, avoid her mother, have a long, cool shower, and curl up in bed with her books. So she shrugged and stepped into the elevator, carefully reaching around the man to press "1".

As she stepped back, Thu noticed him eyeing her bag of M&Ms hungrily, practically bending down to sniff it.

"Would you, uh, like some?" she asked.

The man gave her another rotten-toothed grin and snatched the whole bag out of her hand.

Before Thu could even protest, the phone rang again. Hoang this time. "Did your mom just reschedule our meeting for Sunday?" he asked.

Thu wondered how he managed to make it sound so formal, like a business meeting. But she was in no mood for arguing. "I tried to cancel it, but she didn't want to," she said in a defeated voice.

"You did what—what the hell?"

"We're too young to get married! I'm only twenty-five and you're only twenty-seven, for Heaven's sake! Why is everybody in such a rush for us to get married? Is there an old relative about to die? Are you about to die?"

"Don't joke about that!"

"I'm not joking!"

She heard Hoang take a deep breath. "I don't understand your hang-up about the age thing," he said. "It's a perfectly reasonable age to get married. You know people got married in their teens back in the day—"

Thu wanted to scream. The fact that he thought this was about "the age thing" proved, all too clearly, that he didn't understand her doubt and her fear at all. "Stop talking about 'back in the day'," she hissed. "You have no idea what it was like 'back in the day'! If I could, I would go live 'back in the day' just to get away from all of you!"

"If this is how you insist on behaving, then maybe we should just call the whole thing off!"

"Good!"

"Did you hear me? I'm not just talking about our wedding, I'm talking about us! If you do this, it's over!"

"That's the best news I heard all day!"

She hung up, and, for good measure, turned the phone off and threw it into the depth of her backpack. She didn't want to give Hoang a chance to tell her that he didn't mean it, that it was just a heat of a moment thing...

Next to her, the homeless-looking man was munching on the M&Ms—her M&Ms!—and fumbling with the keypad. Then he turned and handed her a folded piece of paper.

Thu opened the paper and saw a few lines of Vietnamese scrawled on it:

RULES FOR TIME TRAVELERS

Don't kill anyone

Don't impregnate or get impregnated

Don't touch any animals

Try to blend in, and have fun!

Mystified, she looked up, but the man was gone. Before she could even wonder about his disappearance, a persistent beeping coming from the keypad caught her attention. The elevator was shaking.

Great. Just great. The elevator was breaking down, and now she was going to get stuck in it. Just the cherry on top of an already perfect day.

The shaking intensified. A flashing light made her look up, and she couldn't believe her eyes.

The elevator was not breaking down.

It was breaking up.

As in disintegrating. Above her and all around her. The debris was getting sucked into some terrifying vortex of dark clouds laced with lightning, while the beeping continued, piercing in her ears, and all the numbers on the keypad started flickering in a dizzying sequence. Thu had a horrible sensation, similar to when she was little and had a high fever, of being stretched long, as long as possible without snapping, while at the same time getting compressed into something tiny, tinier than she could ever imagine. She sank to her knees, wrapped her arms around her head, and screamed.

Then, as abruptly as it started, everything stopped. The elevator dinged and came to a halt.

Thu cautiously opened her eyes. She was still in one piece. She was still in the elevator, which was in one piece as well.

Perhaps it had all been in her imagination. There had been something wrong with the elevator, certainly, but in her stress and fatigue, she had imagined it to be something much worse. And the man... he must have gotten out when she wasn't looking.

Letting out a breath of relief, she fixed the straps of her backpack more firmly on her shoulders and exited the elevator.

And immediately realized that something wasn't right.

Chapter 2

A/N: This first chapter is just a setup, so please bear with me. Ralph will appear in the next chapter, which is coming tomorrow! Also, as usual, if you want to be added to the tag list, let me know.

#ralph penbury #ralph penbury fic #ralph timewasters #ralph x ofc #joseph quinn #joseph quinn fic

22 notes · View notes

clarepreed · 1 year

Text

Corporate Abduction, Pt. 1

Story Content and Summary - 6,245 words. Larissa and Mitchell are abducted. Vomit aspiration, suffocation, refractory ventricular fibrillation, on-site resuscitation.

Three months after the events of Not for the Faint of Heart.

Mitchell

“Where are we going for dinner?” Larissa asked as they stepped into the elevator. Mitchell rested his hand on the small of her back, ushering her inside. Even though it was late in the day, he could still smell the herbal scent of her shampoo.

He pressed the button for the underground garage and leaned in, kissing her temple. “We’re going to a pho place in Creston. I know it’s a bit of a drive, but—”

“You know I want to eat at every pho place that’s in existence, right?” She grinned at him, her beauty mark riding her full upper lip.

“Yeah, I thought you might say that. We might get home late, do you have your medication with you?” The elevator slowed, dinging as they arrived at their floor.

Larissa patted her purse. “I have my backup doses with me. Of course, a couple of hours wouldn’t make a difference.”

“I’m sure you’re right, but if it’s all the same to you, I’d rather you didn’t test that theory.” Mitchell glanced around them as they exited the elevator. He felt Larissa reach out and rub his arm as they walked.

She’d had one seizure in the months since the incident at the falls, about three weeks after. The seizure had been short, she’d recovered quickly, and she hadn’t had another since. Still, tonight was the first time he’d felt comfortable taking her more than a few minutes away from downtown, where there was quick transport to a state-of-the-art hospital.

They walked to his SUV and he helped her out of her coat and into the vehicle before leaning in for a quick kiss.

Larissa reached up and smoothed his collar. “I shouldn’t have been flippant. I’m sorry.”

He stood by the SUV with her for a moment, shaking his head. “I don’t want you to have to walk on eggshells. And I’m glad if you can feel relaxed about it at all, I honestly am. Low stress is better for you, right?”

“We just need some time,” she said, smiling at him. “We’re expecting ourselves to be back to normal already and that’s just unreasonable.”

He leaned in to kiss her again, and then closed her door.

The drive was expected to take just over an hour. They settled in, Larissa driving the Spotify playlist. Traffic was heavy as they crossed the city limits; Mitchell assumed they were mostly commuters.

Eventually, as they got closer to Creston, traffic thinned out. Another SUV took the exit behind them, onto a straight road that ran alongside a field.

“How did Creston end up with a pho place?” Larissa asked. “Do a lot of Vietnamese people live here?”

“They do, actually. Nhung has family here; she’s the one who told me about the restaurant.” Mitchell glanced up into the rearview mirror; the SUV had pulled up close to tailgate him. He looked down at his speedometer and saw he was actually driving a little fast. They were also in a passing zone. “I don’t know what this guy’s problem is, he needs to go around.”

As if on cue, the SUV swerved around Mitchell’s back bumper and accelerated.

“That tint hardly looks street legal,” Larissa murmured.

Mitchell opened his mouth to respond when the other SUV swerved away from them, driving into the emergency strip on the other side. “Woah!” he exclaimed, his foot lifting off the gas.

“What the hell is he doing?!”

“I don’t—” The other SUV over-corrected, and before Mitchell had time to hit the brakes, it smashed into them. He tried to control the vehicle, but the steering wheel jerked in his hands, and it seemed like the other driver was determined to force them into the field.

“Trees!” Larissa blurted out, her body going tense as she braced herself. She was right, they were approaching a short line of trees down the edge of the road, and he couldn’t—

“FUCK!” The tires squalled as the swerved toward the field, the wheel shaking in his hands. The driver’s side of the car smashed into the first tree, glass filling the cab. There was a hard impact against the side of his head and he lost consciousness.

Larissa

Larissa didn’t remember the last several seconds of the accident. One moment, they were swerving, and the next she was lying in a pool of pebbled glass, staring down at the dirt underneath the passenger side of the overturned SUV.

She laid there for a full minute, stunned, until something warm and wet dripped on the side of her face. She jerked, looking toward the driver’s seat, which was now above her.

Mitchell was limp, hanging sideways, his right hand dangling close to her. The blood was coming from him, though she couldn’t immediately see his injury.

“Mitchell!” Her voice came out hoarse and quiet, and she coughed, waving through the cloud of airbag powder. She reached up and squeezed his hand, her heart pounding and a finger of ice trailing down her spine. “Mitchell!”

He didn’t respond. Larissa fumbled with her seatbelt, hands clumsy, her own blood welling from a series of cuts down the side of her arm. She wasn’t sure where her phone had ended up, but she knew she needed to find it so she could call for help. “Mitchell! Mitchell, wake up!”

She heard voices outside the vehicle as she was reaching for his hand again and shouted: “HELP! HEY! HELP!”

The vehicle shook, but no one responded to her directly.

Larissa pressed her fingers to the inside of Mitchell’s wrist. His heartbeat was strong and regular, and she let out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding.

“Mitchell! Mitchell, honey, wake up!” She got her feet underneath her so she was crouched in the glass and able to see his face. His eyes were closed, features serene. There was a bloody wound to his left temple; she pressed her palm to it, trying to stop the bleeding. “HEY! OUT THERE! Can you hear me?!”

A man appeared, looking down into the car through Mitchell’s broken window. Larissa blinked up at him and exclaimed: “Oh, thank God! Help us! He’s not conscious!”

The man responded by pointing a gun at her.

Larissa froze, her hand still pressed to Mitchell’s temple, her heart taking off in her chest.

“This is what’s going to happen,” the man said. “We’re gonna work together to haul him out. If you try anything, I’m going to shoot you in the face and bring your corpse with us for him to look at when he wakes up. Do you understand?”

Larissa took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. “Y-yes. I won’t try anything. We don’t have any weapons in the car.”

The man wore a surgical mask and a hat. She could see that he had light skin and eyebrows, but his most identifiable feature was his piercing blue eyes. “For our purposes, my name is Jim, and my associate is Joe.” The vehicle shook again, and she saw much smaller man wearing the same kind of surgical mask lean into view.

“What do I need to do to get him out of here?” She worked hard to keep her voice even.

“We’re gonna try to get the door open. If we can’t, we’ll haul him out the window. Your job is to unbuckle the seatbelt when we tell you. Not before, unless you want him to flatten you when he falls, you got it?”

“Yes, I understand.”

They could not, it turned out, get the door open. Jim tugged; Joe tugged. It unlatched and opened a few inches, but no further.

“Piece of SHIT!” Jim growled, glaring at Joe. “You hit them too fucking hard. You’re lucky we can get out of here at all, dumbass.”

Larissa’s legs were starting to cramp. She tried to ease the pain, shifting slowly so the men wouldn’t notice. Keeping her hand pressed to Mitchell’s temple, she leaned closer and kissed his forehead. “Wake up, honey,” she murmured.

She had to pull back when Joe and Jim crammed their arms through the window, reluctantly removing her hand from his wound.

Jim growled: “Undo his seatbelt!”

She found it with her bloodied hands, pressing the button and then helping to feed it around his limp body. The two strangers dragged him through the opening, both grunting as they hauled his limp weight. They caught his shoulder hard on the frame and she was shocked and relieved to hear Mitchell grunt.

“Mitchell?” she called out, but by then the men had dragged him out of sight. She stood and stretched up her hands, just tall enough for her fingertips to graze the doorframe. She heard the heavy sound of a body falling from the car and landing on the ground and gasped. “What the hell?! Are you trying to break his neck?!”

“I will still shoot you in the face,” Jim said, his voice mild. His face reappeared in the window, and then suddenly he and Joe grasped hold of her wrists, hauling her up. She could feel Jim’s hand slipping on the blood on her cut arm, and he reached down and grabbed her elbow.

They were not any gentler with her; as soon as they got her out of the car they dumped her over the side, narrowly avoiding dropping her on top of Mitchell. She landed hard on her feet and crumpled to the cold ground, pain shooting up her left leg from her ankle to her knee.

Despite the pain, Larissa rolled over and dragged herself over to Mitchell. He was still, sprawled on his back, eyes closed. “Mitchell!” She was relieved to see his breath fogging the air above his face.

The men jumped down beside her.

“We need to hurry this the fuck up. Take off your watch.” Jim had his gun pointed at her again. She scrambled to remove her smartwatch, watching as Joe took off Mitchell’s. “Where’s your phone?”

“Somewhere in the car, I don’t—”

Jim snatched her watch out of her hands and threw it to the side. “His phone?”

“Probably his pocket. Uh… right back.”

“Stand up.”

“But—”

“Stand the fuck up!” Jim shouted, pointing the gun at her face. He watched as Larissa dragged herself to her feet, unable to put weight on her left leg. “Hold your wrists together out front. Joe?”

“I got it,” Joe said, sounding exasperated. “I need to get the SIM card out of his phone before we start moving, though…”

Larissa held her wrists out reluctantly, unable to take her eyes off Mitchell. “You need to bandage his head. He’s bleeding!”

“You need to shut the fuck up,” Jim said, as Joe began to wrap her wrists with duct tape.

“But—”

“Stop, Joe. Tape both their wrists behind their backs. And tape her mouth when you’re done with her hands.”

“Mitchell!” she shouted. “Mitchell wake up! Mitchell—”

Joe grabbed her face, closing her mouth before he slapped a length of duct tape across it. He added a second piece to it for good measure, his hand rubbing across her face to make sure the tape stuck.

Larissa drew a shaky breath through her nose, her heart sinking as Joe roughly rolled Mitchell into his stomach to secure his wrists.

Mitchell

The first sensation he had was rocking, followed by a sharp pain in his temple.

He moved before he opened his eyes, felt his leg brush up against the warmth of another person. This prompted him to open his eyes. Or try to. The left felt glued shut, and when he tried to reach up to his face to clear it, he found he couldn’t move his arms.

His vision slowly cleared, and the first thing he truly saw was Larissa.

She was sitting across from him, her wide eyes staring as his eyes focused on her. Her hair was mussed, her clothing smudged with blood. There was duct tape over her mouth, and he saw that her wrists were bound behind her. She looked sweaty, even though the air in the back of the SUV was cool. He scanned down her body, spotted the holes torn in the left leg of her woolen tights. She looked frightened but relieved, her shoulders sagging when they made eye contact.

He whispered: “Are you okay?”

She nodded, and raised her eyebrows at him.

“I’ll be fine,” he whispered back, though his head ached. He looked around him. They appeared to be in the back cargo area of a large vehicle. The sky outside was dark, though the windows were all heavily tinted. He had vague, broken memories of a car accident. “This vehicle… hit us?”

Larissa nodded. He watched her take a series of slow, deep breaths through her nose, her nostrils flaring wide.

He sat up straighter. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She looked at him, her brow furrowed, seemingly frustrated that she couldn’t respond. She shrugged her shoulders and nodded.

Mitchell drew his left knee up and tried to bend over and wipe some of the congealing blood from his face onto his pants.

So. This is an abduction. I would say that so far, it’s not going well. I’m sure almost killing your target before you make your demands isn’t in the playbook.

The SUV slowed, came to a stop, then turned right. They continued straight for a while, and then the road began to curve into tight switchbacks. Mitchell pressed his left foot against the back hatch, trying to brace himself.

“Mmph…” Larissa breathed hard through her nose, her head tipped back. He could see her neck muscles retracting and the pulse in her neck jumping.

“Are you going to have a seizure?” he whispered, leaning forward.

Her brow furrowed and she slowly shook her head. The SUV went around another curve and he watched her swallow hard.

“You’re car sick.” Worry flooded him, and he scooted closer to her, his shoes scuffing the hatch.

“What the hell are you doing back there?!” a man shouted from the front of the SUV.

“She’s going to throw up, you need to take the tape off!” Mitchell barked. He had a brief thought toward whether he recognized the voice; decided he didn’t.

“Sleeping Beauty finally graces us with his presence,” the man said. “We’re almost there, keep your pants on!”

Larissa’s skin looked increasingly pale. Mitchell leaned close and whispered: “Slow breaths, baby.”

He was feeling a little green himself, he assumed from the blow to the head.

He looked her over again. She had blood in her hair, but he couldn’t tell what was his and what was hers. “Did you hit your head?”

She shrugged, and her eyes darted to his bloody temple.

“Don’t look,” he murmured. “I’m sure that doesn’t help.”

Perhaps if I keep talking to her…

“Any idea where we’re going?”

She shook her head and swallowed hard again.

“Was I out a long time?”

She nodded emphatically and blinked her eyes several times. He chastised himself for asking a question like that, watching as her eyes shone with tears.

“They took our phones?”

She blinked, tilted her head. After a moment, she clearly nodded, then shook her head.

“Hmm. What about your purse?”

She shook her head.

“So you don’t have your medication.”

Another head shake, though she followed with a shrug. He heard her cough, or try to, and a wave of clear mucus bubbled out of her nostrils. Her response was to turn her head away from him and exhale forcefully through her nose, followed by a series of snuffling inhalations.

“Larissa,” he whispered. “Look at me.”

She turned her head, and he could see panic had set in. Her nostrils were flared, eyes wide. She coughed again, retched, struggled to draw breath through her nose.

“You’re alright, Larissa—Hey!” he called out, his voice loud. “You have to pull over. She can’t breathe like this; she’s going to vomit!”

She squeezed her eyes shut in what looked like a last-ditch effort to calm herself, and then her body convulsed. She let out a gurgling noise, mucus and bile spraying from her nose.

“Should we stop?” he heard someone ask.

“Nah, that’s the drive, isn’t it? Jane’s meeting us at the house, she’ll take care of whatever the hell is going on back there.”

“STOP THE FUCKING CAR!” Mitchell shouted. Larissa was making horrible choking noises and thrashing around wildly. Her arms strained against the tape on her wrists, the force telegraphing into her shoulders and neck. Mitchell pushed himself against her, unable to think of anything to do except to try to use his teeth to peel off the tape.

Her eyes were huge with panic as the contents of her stomach and her sinuses frothed out of her nose, blocking her airway. Mitchell pinned her against the back seat with his body, fighting her animal instincts until he was able to scrape his teeth down her cheek. He had better luck with the bottom section of tape that lapped over her jawbone, but it was taking a long time to lift the corner. The smell of vomit was a distant blow to his senses.

Get it off or she dies, get it off—get it off—GET IT OFF!

The vehicle stopped, but Mitchell kept scraping at the tape, finally peeling up enough of it that he was able to nip the corner with his teeth. He jerked his head to the side, lost his grip, and tried again. Larissa was growing visibly weaker, her head lolling, her thrashing movements slowing to a twitch. The second jerk of the tape peeled it halfway to her lip; two more jerks and he made it to the corner of her mouth.

Larissa went limp then, her eyes distant as she sagged against the back seat of the SUV. An involuntary noise choked out of Mitchell’s throat. He was having a hard time getting an angle on the tape now that her head had tipped down, so he drew a breath and screamed: “YOU’RE KILLING HER!”

He twisted around, his body crammed against hers. He wrapped his lips around her nose, his stomach rolling at the sour taste of vomit, and tried to force a breath past the fluids clogging her nostrils. It was of no use, but he tried again anyway. As he was pulling back, he saw her eyelids flutter. He tried a third time, and then she went absolutely still.

The back hatch and tailgates opened, and he heard a man say:

“Fuck, Jim, he wasn’t exaggerating—”

“What did you do to them?!” a woman said, her voice sharp.

Mitchell whipped his head around and glared at the assembled criminals. Even in his agitated state he noticed they all wore surgical masks and nitrile gloves, but they hadn’t bothered to mask their hair. The woman’s was an icy bleached blonde.

“Help her, NOW!” Mitchell commanded. “You get nothing from me if you kill her!”

One of the men reached around Mitchell and yanked the tape off Larissa’s face. She slumped forward, but didn’t take a breath.

“Do your thing, Jane,” the man said. “We’ll get him out of the way.”

“Larissa! LARISSA!” Hands grabbed Mitchell’s arms, hauling him backward into the light of a streetlamp. He struggled, but as soon as they had him fully upright, he felt his blood pressure plummet. The person holding him up cursed and lowered him to the ground, quickly losing control of his weight. Mitchell landed hard on his hip, and the hands on him kept him from tipping over onto the cold concrete.

He blinked, desperate as he looked up into the back of the SUV. He couldn’t hear what the abductors were saying over the roar in his ears, but he watched as the woman dragged Larissa onto the tailgate, snapping at one of the men to hold her upright. She dug through a black duffel sitting on the concrete driveway and pulled out a pair of shears, making short work of the tape on Larissa’s wrists.

“Get her down,” Jane commanded. Larissa was limp between Joe and the woman, long hair draping like a curtain as they laid her flat. The woman pulled a packaged ambu bag out of her duffel and tore off the plastic, connecting the bag to the mask.

She pressed the mask to Larissa’s face and tried twice to force air into her lungs, but Mitchell could see her chest remained still.

Setting the bag to the side, Jane pressed her fingers into Larissa’s neck. “She still has a pulse, but that isn’t going to last long.”

She swung her leg around and straddled Larissa’s prone form, quickly shoving her clasped hands into her navel. The force made Larissa’s chest bulge and her head fall to the side. Larissa’s half-lidded eyes stared empty at Mitchell, and he felt his eyes burn with tears.

Jane shoved her hands into Larissa’s abdomen over and over again until she made a gagging sound, then leaned over her. The blonde swept her fingers between Larissa’s teeth, scooping out vomit. She repeated this process two more times before she pressed the mask to Larissa’s face and squeezed the bag. This time, he watched her chest rise and fall twice before the woman pressed her fingers into Larissa’s neck again.

The female captor snapped her head up, pinning Joe with her fiery glare. “Get everything out of the trunk of my car. All of it. Now!” Then, still straddling Larissa, she clasped her hands together and started giving her forceful chest compressions.

“One, two, three…”

“I can help!” Mitchell pushed himself into his hands and knees. Jim moved closer to him and pressed what Mitchell assumed was the barrel of a gun into the back of his neck.

“Don’t—”

“Let me help!” Mitchell shouted, his heart in his throat as he watched Larissa’s body move with the force of the compressions. “The more hands Jane has to help her, the more likely it is that she can revive Larissa! Please!”

“…twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty! He’s right, Jim!” Jane squeezed the bag twice, Larissa’s chest rising and falling. Then she laid the mask down and started chest compressions again. “One, two, three…”

“I’m not cooperating if she dies,” Mitchell snarled. “I’ve done this before; I can provide actual assistance!”

“Fine!”

Mitchell crawled over and sat down next to Larissa’s head.

“…thirteen, fourteen, fifteen…”

He tried to be gentle as he tipped her head back. He held her airway open, the column of her neck exposed and fragile-looking. As Jane neared thirty compressions, Mitchell picked up the mask and pressed it over Larissa’s mouth, his fingers lapping over her chin.

“Thirty!”

Mitchell squeezed the bag, Jane watching his technique and then nodding. Larissa’s chest rose as he squeezed the bag again. Her half-lidded gaze seemed to rest on him as he helped her breathe, his heart contracting painfully.

“One, two, three…”

Joe ran around the SUV as Jane started chest compressions again, a bag over his shoulder and an oxygen canister and a white plastic board Mitchell didn’t recognize under his arms.

Jane climbed off of Larissa, kneeling at her side. “Joe, put that board next to her, the top aligned with her shoulders. Sixteen, seventeen, eighteen… Okay, I’m gonna roll her onto her side and you slide it underneath her.”

Mitchell lifted the mask off Larissa’s face as Jane rolled her. He quickly grasped Larissa’s chin so her face didn’t strike the concrete, wincing as her limbs flopped tonelessly. When the white board was underneath her, Jane turned Larissa onto her back and quickly adjusted her positioning on the board.

“…twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five…” The board pushed Larissa’s chest into the air and tipped her head back, making the chest compressions look even more dramatic. “…twenty-nine, thirty!”

As Mitchell pressed the mask to her face again and squeezed it, Jane dug out a pair of shears and made quick work of Larissa’s blouse, camisole, and bra.

“Joe, you’re on compressions.”

“I’ve never—”

“Do what she says!” Jim growled. Other than barking orders, he seemed content to stay out of the resuscitation effort.

Mitchell was already on it, terrified that Larissa would just lay there while everyone was arguing. He dropped the bag and scuttled around to her side, his hands finding the reddened area between her breasts. Unrestrained, her large, freckled breasts wobbled as he shoved his hands down between them.

“One, two, three…” Larissa’s stomach bulged with each compression, the CPR board exaggerating the look of the thrusts. He felt like his hands dug into her deeper and more easily with her back bent over the board. “…sixteen, seventeen, eighteen…”

Jane connected the mask to the oxygen tank and opened the valve, then made quick work of applying the defibrillator pads. When Mitchell finished the cycle, he heard a high-pitched whine filling the air. He’d been through this before, and knew this meant his fiancée’s heart was still in her chest. His own beat painfully.

“Joe, hold this mask to her face—like this. Yes, exactly. Now slowly squeeze and release the bag twice.” She watched the smaller male captor and then nodded. “Do that every time he hits thirty.”

“One, two, three…” Mitchell knew he wouldn’t be able to keep this up for long. Every time his head bobbed, it throbbed with pain. He felt dizzy and nauseated. But he also knew Larissa was effectively dead, and that she needed him right now if she had any chance of being revived.

Jane picked up the shears again and snipped through three right side of Larissa’s skirt and tights before pressing her fingers briefly to the pulse point she’d exposed. “Good perfusion.”

“…thirteen, fourteen, fifteen…”

Jane was starting an IV. “I’m going to give her epinephrine and then I’ll take over compressions. After five cycles, I’ll analyze and see if she’s shockable. After that, I’ll intubate her.”

“Thirty!”

Joe gave Larissa two breaths from the bag as Jane finished up with the IV epinephrine. Then she called out: “Switch! One, two, three…”

The monitor bleeped with the rhythm of Jane’s compressions. Mitchell reached down and grasped Larissa’s limp hand. He felt her engagement ring dig into his palm. Her skin was cold; he hoped that was from the air temperature and not lack of circulation. Larissa’s lungs let out huffs of air with each of Jane’s compressions, and Mitchell heard her ribcage creaking.

“I thought you knew what you were doing!” Jim said suddenly.

“Thirty! I came prepared for seizures, you absolute dumbass, not vomit aspiration. I couldn’t steal the entire ambulance! One, two, three…”

Prepared for seizures, he thought. They were willing to risk her having seizures to get money from my company.

Mitchell squeezed Larissa’s hand and released it, then turned to the large duffel bag Jane had on the ground. Inside, he poked around until he found a smaller black kit. When he unzipped it, he saw an assortment of what he recognized as respiratory supplies. Leaning over, he deposited the case on Jane’s side of Larissa, near her head.

“…twenty-nine, thirty! Thank you!” She set herself to selecting a laryngoscope blade and opening the packaging for the endotracheal tube. The monitor squealed a flatline as Joe gave her breaths. “Grab the tape from the end pocket of the bag, please.”

Then she was compressing Larissa’s chest again. Mitchell found the tape and sat it next to the other supplies. He listened to the bleep of her artificial heartbeat, his eyes on her face. “Come on, baby. She gave you the medication, you have to give her something in return!”

He swept a strand of her long, honey-colored hair out of her face.

Before long, the cycle was complete, and Joe was giving her another breath.

Then Jane was back on Larissa’s chest, forcing her sternum toward her heart. Mitchell could see her ribcage flexing as the force rippled down into her abdomen, highlighted further by the opening in her skirt. When Jane next lifted her hands, he could see the bruising over Larissa’s sternum had darkened.

“One more cycle and then we switch,” she said, her eyes on the monitor.

The next cycle of thirty compressions felt brutal to Mitchell. Larissa lay limp and unresponsive, her bloody arms spread and her legs swaying with each thrust. He realized as he was looking at her legs that he could see dark bruising through the tears in the tights. The sight only added to the anger that was intertwined with the fear in the pit of his stomach.

“…twenty-nine, thirty! Keep squeezing the bag until I tell you to stop. Checking her pulse…” The monitor squealed the asystole alarm, and when she pressed her fingers to Larissa’s throat and wrist, she felt nothing. “Joe, scoot out of the way for a minute. Sir, Mitchell, continue compressions until I tell you to pause. I’m going to intubate her now.”

Mitchell started compressions again, though a small part of him wondered where this was going. He’d already had his miracles with Larissa. Seen her almost die three times and come back to him. She wasn’t unscathed, but she’d made it. How could she pull through another time?

Anguish rolled through him and he pushed the feeling through his chest compressions, careful not to pump her chest too fast.

Jane already had the laryngoscope down Larissa’s throat. “Pause compressions.”

Mitchell stopped pressing down on Larissa’s sternum, watching as Jane slid the endotracheal tube down the blade. Shortly after, she reached over and awkwardly grasped something to the side, muttering: “…inflate the cuff.”

Then she withdrew the scope, connected the bag to the tube. She used the stethoscope hanging from her neck to listen while she squeezed the bag.

“I’m in. Start compressions.”

“One, two, three…”

“Joe, squeeze this bag every three seconds. Steadily, don’t squeeze too hard. I’m going to give her more epinephrine. Mitchell, you’re going to perform compressions continuously until I tell you to stop.”

Come on, baby, he thought. Give us something. Please, don’t be dead. Please, God, please… not like this…

He was beginning to breathe hard, felt himself sweating despite the chilly air. Then, a bright red drop splattered onto the pale skin of Larissa’s chest, followed quickly by another.

“You’re bleeding again,” Jane said, glancing up as his head.

“I’ll grab a bandage next time we stop or switch,” Mitchell ground out.

The alarm on the monitor changed to a rapid beeping.

“Pause compressions for analysis… She’s in ventricular fibrillation… Continue compressions and breaths until I tell you to stop.” Jane was briefly silent and then she said. “Both of you stop and get clear of her. No one touching? Clear!”

Mitchell watched, his breath held, as Larissa gave a slight jerk and the monitor was silent. Then the high-pitched whine returned.

“Asystole! Dammit… I’m going to take over compressions, Mitchell. Joe, continue breaths. One, two, three…”

Blood was running down his face, so Mitchell leaned back and grabbed the duffel, dragging it into his lap and quickly going thought the contents. He found what looked like a packaged surgical dressing and tore it open before pressing it to his temple.

“…thirty-seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine…”

“We need to get inside,” Jim said.

“I’m no paramedic,” Joe muttered as he squeezed the bag, “But if we aren’t taking her to the hospital then I think staying right here is more likely to result in a positive outcome.”

Positive outcome. He drew a deep, shaky breath. Please. I’ll get you out of here somehow, and you’ll be okay, and in a few months we’ll get married…

“…sixty-two, sixty-three, sixty-four…”

Mitchell sat next to Larissa’s twitching body, hand pressed to the bandage, his eyes unable to keep still. Her head rocked side to side, unseeing eyes staring up at Joe. Her skin was noticeably gray even in the white light of the lamp, and what part of her full lips was visible around the tape had gone blue. The tube protruded between her teeth, keeping her mouth open.

With each compression, Larissa’s shoulders jerked and her full breasts wobbled. The skin of her areolas looked dusky. Her nipples pebbled. The bottom of her ribcage bobbed up and down, and her soft stomach bulged.

“We’ve got v-fib… both of you clear!” Joe let go of the bag and Jane pushed the orange button on the monitor. Larissa’s body jerked. Her head fell to the side, pulled down by the weight of the bag, and Mitchell noticed her eyes had fallen closed.

“Still in v-fib. Joe you’re going to have to do compressions, I need Mitchell on the bag while I push another epi.”

Mitchell scooted around, taking Joe’s place. He quickly righted Larissa’s head and then started squeezing the bag, keeping pressure on his temple with the other hand. His eyes were on Joe; both he and Jane were watching him to see if he would perform effective compressions.

“One, two, three…”

“Good,” Jane said, watching as Joe’s hands plunged rhythmically between Larissa’s exposed breasts. “Don’t stop.”

“Come on, Larissa…” the words came out of him before he even realized he was about to speak. “Please, please, baby, please…”

“…eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one…”

“Jane,” Jim said.

“What?”

“How long you gonna do this?” His voice was almost nonchalant, but Mitchell detected an edge to his words.

“What did I tell you about my cooperation?!” Mitchell growled, glaring at Jim. He was careful not to let his emotions affect his hand on the bag.

“I’m not ready to terminate care,” Jane said. “I have a few other things to try if she doesn’t convert to… if her heart doesn’t start beating normally after the next shock.”

“…fifty, fifty-one, fifty-two, fifty-three…”

Jim sat down on the tailgate of the SUV, gun in hand but no longer pointed at anyone in particular.

Time crawled. To Mitchell, it felt like he was squeezing the bag infinitely. Joe’s hands crushed Larissa’s chest over and over again.

Eternity was apparently only two minutes, however, and Jane asked Joe to briefly pause compressions while she looked at the monitor. It was still beeping rapidly, and she asked Joe to give compressions for another twenty seconds or so before she told them both to back away.

“Clear!” Jane pressed the button, and Larissa jerked a third time. A few seconds later, as the monitor chirped, she said: “Joe, resume compressions. I’m going to administer amiodarone and change pad placement, then I will analyze again.”

“One, two, three…”

Are you gone? Mitchell looked down at her face. The delicate skin of her eyelids had gone lavender, and her eyes appeared sunken in.

“I love you,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

Jane made a noise, and when he looked up at her, she was staring hard down at Larissa’s IV port. Her eyes were watery.

“Why are you doing this to us?” he asked her, his voice quiet.

Jane flinched, but Jim stood, scowling. He pointed the gun down at Larissa’s lifeless body. “I don’t need her and I don’t need you to cooperate. I can make this situation permanent unless you’d like to shut the fuck up.”

Before Mitchell could respond, Jane said: “Let me do what you have me here to do, Jim.”

To Mitchell’s surprise, the man backed off, lowering the gun and backing away.

“Pause compressions!” Joe lifted his hands and Jane pressed a new defibrillator pad directly over the bruise between her breasts. Then, she rolled Larissa onto her side. Mitchell dropped his hand from his temple, the bandage adhered in place by his blood. He steadied Larissa’s head, rhythmically squeezing the bag and watching as Jane pressed a pad to Larissa’s back.

Jane laid Larissa back onto the CPR board and unplugged the leads of the first set of pads before replacing them with the new set. The rapid beeping picked up where it had left off.

“I’m going to perform chest compressions for one minute and then analyze again,” she said. She resumed compressions, seeming more forceful than before. “…three, four, five…”

Larissa’s stomach bulged and relaxed, bulged and relaxed, breasts quaking. Mitchell adjusted the position of Larissa’s head and kept squeezing the bag.

Different medication, she changed the pads… Please, Larissa, if you’re still in there…

“…twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five…”

“Joe,” Jim said. “Until Jane needs you again, get started with his phone. The faster we get our payout, the faster these folks get to the hospital.”

Joe drew Mitchell’s phone out of his pocket and started picking at a piece of duct tape on the back.

“… fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight…”

“Larissa,” Mitchell said, trying to tune out everything but the bag and her face. “If you can hear me… please, don’t go. I know it’s going to be hard if you come back, and I know I’m being selfish, but… Please, baby. Don’t go. Don’t go…”

“… seventy-eight, seventy-nine, eighty…”

Another twenty compressions, and then Jane paused compressions long enough to analyze.

“V-fib. Charging.” She forced her hands into Larissa’s sternum for ten to twenty more seconds and then called out: “Everyone clear! Don’t touch her! Come on, Larissa! Clear!”

She pressed the button, discharging the shock.

Larissa spasmed.

Mitchell grabbed the bag and squeezed it. Jane pressed her fingers into Larissa’s neck and the inside of her wrist.

The monitor registered a beat. Then another.

“Sinus!”

Part Two

#resus writing #cpr resus #female resus #medical drama

32 notes · View notes