#white’s cake tasted the best. it was some kind of tea flavoured..?

[melon-bunn]

Birthday Cakes!!!

[erina-writes-headcanons]

Alfred F. Jones, Arthur Kirkland, and Francis Bonnefoy who have a S/O with Today’s Birthday.

This is for the anon who asked me for a birthday scenario. If you like this, please give alike! If you don’t like it, please give a feedback (Politely) so I could make the Headcanons better. Anyway, Enjoy. 

Part 1, Part 3, Part 4

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Alfred F. Jones

I hope you have lots of energy and doesn’t get tired easily if you want to celebrate your birthday together with Alfred. The reason why I said that is because it will be a very long and tiring day for you.

Your birthday with him also going to be very colourful and extravagant, unlike Kiku or Ludwig celebration where it’s much more simple and less tiring.

Alfred is going to either make or buy you the biggest cake, it will be around four or three-layered cake like those wedding cake but with vibrant colours.

It wasn’t a surprise anymore if the whole dining table is filled with tons of various foods and drinks, there are some hamburgers, milkshakes, ice cream, corndogs, pizza, soda, and many more.

For your birthday, he invites all countries, including the other countries like Russia, Nordics, and other Countries you have never met before, including all of your best friends.

Alfred also would be the host and the DJ for your birthday party, putting up some popular music and your favourite music.

To make sure you have a blasting day, he would pay a firework that will show up your name in the sky with blue and red colour at midnight after celebrating your birthday as the other countries watch the firework show. 

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Arthur Kirkland

Arthur is a complete gentleman so he would also make the best day for your birthday without making you too tired nor uncomfortable. It’s going to be another relaxing but fun birthday for you.

In the morning, he would make something for you even though some of them ended up burnt or too salty/sweet. Although, he made you a tea so you could wash the disgusting taste with the drink.

If you are a book lover, it would be a perfect birthday for you because he would give you the book that you always want, even if the author didn’t publish it anymore. Somehow, he still can get the book that you want the book so bad.

After getting the book that you want, he will bring you to some kind of Book Cafe, where it’s book heaven for you, you would read many books together with him.

However, if you don’t like reading books. He could bring you to the nearest cinema, letting you choose the movie that you want to watch together with him, even if it’s a horror movie.

He would make sure to buy your favourite drink and your favourite popcorn flavour in a large size, so the two of you could eat together while paying attention to the movie.

It’s a perfect birthday date with him if you are an introvert and dislike crowds or parties. However, if you like parties or crowded places, he would respect that but he wouldn’t really enjoy the date. He just wants you to be happy on your birthday.

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Francis Bonnefoy

The two of you are going to have a romantic birthday, even if he’s usually romantic. He would be twice more romantic when it comes to your birthday celebration.

Francis will get you the most expensive and stunning dress or suit on you. Balenciaga? He will get one for you, Givenchy? It's inside the shopping bag, Louise Vuitton or Dior? It’s already inside the gift box, laid down on top of your bed.

After wearing the suit or the dress, he would pull a  freaking private limousine, bringing you to the fancy French restaurant that he booked for only two of you, to make you feel like another queen or princess.

Do not also forget that he will order the best wine for you to drink, but he respect your choice if you don’t drink alcohol and he won’t force you to try the red wine or the white wine if you don’t like it.

France may be a huge flirt or a playboy but he can be a sweetheart for you. If you don’t like the food that you ordered, he would switch his meal with yours and he will let you have it if you like it.

The restaurant has a jazz band. Once the band start to play, he will bring you to the middle of the dance floor with a charming smile and a hand placed on your hip, guiding you to slow dance.

Francis would make sure to make you feel like a princess or prince with a prince charming if you are celebrating your birthday together with him.

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[taiblogcomics]

Mountain Dew Finally Snaps

Like a dry and brittle twig, dear readers.

Hey there, pathogens. Oh boy. I’m posting at around midnight, the main blog entry has already gone up for the day, so you can probably guess what that means! I’ve found some sort of new drink to review~

And it’s kind of a doozy. Let’s just get into it~

Mountain Dew Gingerbread Snap’d

Yes, my friends. You read that right. This Mountain Dew flavour purports to be gingerbread. I don’t think I have to tell you why this is weird?? But if I don’t, this is going to be a short blog entry, so let’s dissect it a bit~

First of all, for the record, I like gingerbread. More specifically, I like gingerbread cookies. Actual gingerbread, the more cake-like version that resembles the “bread” part of its name is less thrilling to me. But just because I enjoy it in a cookie form (and to a lesser extent, a bread form) doesn’t mean I want it as a carbonated beverage. Some things I do want as a carbonated beverage! Blue raspberry Jolly Ranchers come to mind! Gingerbread does not~

Another thing is that you may have heard of this already! They were teasing this one for a while. Like, since holiday 2020, at the very least. And in those teaser images, the drink was actually depicted as brown. Like, a light tan kind of colour. Similar to gingerbread cookies or a deer, perhaps. I can’t begin to tell you how good a change turning it to “mystery flavour white” was. First, everybody loves a white soda, it’s an excellent gimmick. I’ve ranted at length about Whiteout’s undeserved win using that very gimmick. But that’s here nor there. It’s just that I was already apprehensive at best at just the notion of the flavour. Somehow making in the colour of tea with too much milk in it made it far worse~

Anyways, I’ve beaten around the bush enough. It’s time to bite the bullet. Or the soda. Drink the soda, I guess, I’m not going to be biting it.

Right.

Oof. If there were any doubts, they’re swiftly and mercilessly ended here, dear readers. The scent from this is strong. Like, extremely heavy in the ginger department. More than any gingerbread cookies I’ve ever sniffed (and I’ve sniffed a few in my day, let me tell you). It’s definitely leaning in the “bread” direction, let’s say. That’ll wake you up~

...Yep, that’s weird. That’s exactly as weird as I thought it was going to be.

I’m glad I waited until I could find this in the single 20 oz bottle, because I saw this a couple weeks ago in the big 12-can box. And while I’ve done that for other flavours (hell, I bought a second 12 cans of that VooDew because it was so good), I definitely didn’t want to risk being stuck with 12 cans of this stuff. And I was right to, because this might be one of the worst Mountain Dew flavours I’ve ever experienced.

Like, it’s not nasty or anything. It doesn’t make me gag or feel sick. It’s just an ongoing taste of “why would I want to put this in my mouth?” You know, like root beer~

Can’t recommend this one, fellows. And you know me, usually we’re recommending Mountain Dews left and right around here. But no. Not this one. Not this time. If you want to try this one for yourself, that’s on your head. And in your mouth, unfortunately. I wash my hands of it. But not with it, that’d be sticky.

[cozywritings]

Coffee Cake

Moving to Canada, escaping your hometown, and opening your own bakery was a dream of yours since you were a teenager. Now, at 23 years old, you’re able to do exactly that. However, what’s to happen when you open up next to a coffee shop owned by the most handsome and sweetest person you’ve ever met?

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“Okay guys, thank you so much for putting up the flowers. I really appreciate it.” You smiled as the men left, taking their baked goods and waving goodbye. You’d finally closed on your little shop and were starting to decorate. Deciding to go with a floral look, you went with flowers that would cascade the building but also were low maintenance. As you looked over to the coffee shop next door you chucked, the difference in design was funny. Your little shop was white and colourful while this one was black and the interior was full of dark stained wood.

Walking into the door you hummed at the smell of coffee and spices, a tall man with dark curls smiled at you. “Oh hi, how may I help you on this lovely afternoon?” His voice was like velvet as you walked up to the counter. 

You smiled at him, waving. “I just wanted to come say hi, I just bought the shop next door. It’s going to be my first real bakery and I just wanted to come meet my neighbors!” Your voice light and cheery as you bounced on your toes.

The curly haired man smiled and held his hand out. “Well I’m Raul. This is my little coffee shop, I hope you’re up for a little competition. James here is quite the pastry man.” He chuckled, pointing at a shorter man that looked like a frat boy. 

You waved at each other and looked back to Raul, he was staring at you with a smile that could stop traffic. “Well I mainly do cakes and cupcakes, special orders, cookies and muffins.” At the mention of muffins, his eyes lit up.

“You do muffins?” Hes asked excitedly, you nodded, a proud smile on your face. They were your best seller back home.

“Everyone loves my double chocolate ones. And then of course the classic blueberry and banana nut. I’m working on some more recipes currently.” You told him, reminding yourself to finish up the pumpkin recipe soon for the fall.

Raul was now leaning against the counter, a serious look on his face. “When can I test the muffins?” His tone making you giggle before you pointed next door to your own shop. 

“I have a couple right now. I’ve been using them to thank the guys helping me get all moved in. Some of them are accepting them as payment when they are really just a thank you.” You smiled, thankful for all the help and how nice everyone was during your set up.

Raul tossed his hand towel on the counter, turning back to the crew behind him. “Guys, I’m going next door for a taste test. Be back later!” There was a collective “okay” and a few asking if they could come too and you giggled at their eagerness.

Walking into the shop, he looked around at your little lobby, glass cases and an order book on the counter. “It still needs some work but I’m hoping to be open by the end of next week. I’m doing a few private orders for now.” He smiled at you as you spoke, looking through the book of cakes and cupcakes you’ve done throughout the past few years.

Suddenly he shut the book and crossed his arms. “What about a little deal?” He asked, an eyebrow cocked as you walked back into the room, muffins in hand. 

“What kind of deal?” You asked as you placed the baked goods on the counter, digging into a double chocolate muffin with a fork. 

“How do you feel about coffee?” He asked, before taking a bite of his own muffin and letting out a satisfied hum. His eyes closed for a second and you realized how truly beautiful this man was.

“Well, I’m not a huge coffee person honestly I’m more of a tea and hot cocoa girl, but I love the smell of coffee. Why?” You laughed as he tried to swallow his mouthful of muffin, seeing as he shoved the whole thing in his mouth.

He blushed at his struggle. “Sorry, that was just so good. Anyways. I would honestly love one of your baked goods every morning and in return you could maybe be my taste tester for new drinks? I’m exploring new flavours and the guys aren’t really into it. They like what they like and that’s it.” You thought about it for a moment. You didn’t mind giving away treats, and you got free drinks out of the deal. Plus, having a gorgeous man hand deliver your breakfast to you every day didn’t sound too bad.

“Deal.” You smiled, sticking out your hand to close the deal. He grabbed your hand and you noticed how large he was. His hand engulfed yours as he shook it, you also noticed what looked like a whole sleeve peeking out of the sleeve of his shirt. 

“Alright m’lady. What will it be today?” His sweet smile melting you. You already knew this man would be the death of you. 

“Well, let’s see. It’s 5 in the evening, so let’s go with a nice iced tea. I don’t really have a preference but it has to be sweet. None of that ‘no sugar’ garbage.” He nodded, taking a mental note of your order. 

“Okay, I’ll go whip something up and be right back.” He saluted you, closing the door gently behind him. As soon as Raul left, you let out a squeal. You swear you couldn’t have picked a better location. You were just down the street from your apartment, and you were right next door to a cafe run by the sweetest, most attractive guy you’d ever known, and your mind was full of him. You couldn’t help but think about how cute he looked, mouth full of muffin, trying to talk. He was obviously already comfortable with you. Or maybe that was his nature, but you couldn’t stay in your thoughts long. The bell above the door rang and in he walked, a glass of reddish tea in his massive hand.

“Here you go! I pegged you as a hibiscus tea girl, so I decided on that. There’s a little lemonade in it as well, since it’s so hot out today.” You blushed, taking the glass from him and looking at the cup. It was a thick glass jar. The shops name etched into the side. 

You ran your fingers over the logo, the unique woman’s eyes with coffee steam framing her face intriguing you. “This is a fancy glass you’ve got here.” You spoke, looking at him over the rim on the glass. 

“Oh, we got those done last Christmas for the employees and we’ve become pretty popular in the area so we started selling them. We also have a few shirts and around Christmas we sell hot cocoa bundles with mugs.” You smiled as you watched him talk about his business, taking sips of tea and humming. 

“This is amazing by the way. And you were right about me being a hibiscus girl. So, how long have you had the cafe?” You asked, using any excuse to keep him in your presence as long as possible.

He ran his hands through those soft looking curls. “I opened it 5 years ago when I was 18. It sounds kind of stupid, but I always wanted my own cafe. My mom is British and always had tea in the house and during snow days I’d be in charge of hot cocoa and one day I just decided that I was going to have my own shop. I even designed to logo, with my brother’s help. What about you?” 

You placed the now empty glass on the counter before explaining that you had always had a thing for baking and when it came time to go to college you went into to culinary.  “This is my first real shop. I used to just take orders online and do local things back home in the states.” You blushed, looking at your shoes.

“You’re from the states?” You nodded. “What made you want to move up here?” You just shrugged, wiping some dust off the glass case. 

“I wanted something different I guess. And where I lived it was always ungodly hot and I hated it. So I moved up here to escape the heat. And before you say anything, I know the winters are harsher, but I’m okay with that. My apartment has a fireplace and I live in fuzzy socks. Besides, being hot sometimes makes me uncomfortable and anxious.”

The two of you talked for a few more hours while Raul helped you clean up a little bit since the rest of the equipment and the decor would be in tomorrow. “Well, I should let you go. Thank you so much for your help, and the tea. It was amazing.” You smiled over at him, handing him a box of cupcakes for the guys at the cafe.

“I’ll see you tomorrow with a new drink. It was nice meeting you, and I’m glad we’re going to be work neighbors.” And that was all he said before waving goodbye and walking back to his own store to lock up and clean for tomorrow.

You stayed back a little longer, packing up the rest of the goodies before making your way home. You were now even more excited to come into the shop tomorrow to get set up. Raul had offered his help in the heavy lifting and how could you say no to those eyes, or those muscles. So you settled into bed, eagerly awaiting the morning.

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The next few days were full of hard work. Between setting everything up and baking for the people helping you, you were exhausted every night. You were so grateful for Raul, as he would periodically come over, that same glass filled with a different cold beverage. He even got the cup personalized with your name on it.

Tomorrow was opening day. You were extremely excited, and equally nervous, but you were confident in your little shop. You’d worked so hard for this and you’d refuse to let this go bad. “Hey there sugar!” Raul shouted, the nickname making you blush as you walked up to the counter and asked for a raspberry lemonade. “Tomorrow is the big day. Are you nervous?” You nodded, chewing on your bottom lip. “Don’t worry, the guys and I will be there to support you. We’ll even wear your shirts.” he said and you blushed.

A few days ago you’d ordered a few shirts as a joke for the guys at the cafe. Pastel pink and blue with your logo on the front. The back had the saying “Have your cake and eat it too.” The thought of 5 men standing in public in those shirts made you laugh. “Thank you for all the support Raul. It means a lot to me.”

“Of course! I remember how nervous I was when I opened RM Coffee, and you’re doing this all by yourself? It’s impressive.” He placed a hand on your shoulder before handing you your cup. He was wearing a short sleeve today, and you could see almost all of his sleeve, it made you wonder what other tattoos he had.

You slid him a $5 bill and got up. “Okay guys, I’m gonna go get some rest before tomorrow. I’ll see you all in the morning!” You waved goodbye to the boys in the shop before walking home. You were half way down the street when you heard someone behind you, and whipped back around to find Raul.

He had his hand out, holding something. “You left your notebook!” He shouted, the book stretched out to you. 

“Oh, thank you! That had all my new recipes in it. I’d die if I lost it.” You sighed, taking it from him. Your hands brushed and you didn’t miss the way way his breathing picked up at the contact.

“Also, I was uhh, I was wondering if after the grand opening tomorrow, you’d let me take you out to dinner? You know, after closing. Of course.” His cheeks were red as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Your face heated up, before nodding. “I’d really like that. Maybe you can show me the places to eat here.” He smiled, hands now shoved in his pockets. 

“I’ll come by around 7 and we’ll go to dinner then. I-I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight and good luck.” You hugged him gently, he was warm and you didn’t want to let go of him.

“Goodnight Raul. Thank you for all your help.” And off you went, mind racing over tomorrow. Did the hot guy next door really just ask you out?

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Curling your hair and adding the finishing touches to your makeup, you were ready for the day. You’d chosen a simple pink cotton dress and nude heels. Seeing as this was an important day, you decided to dress nicer than your jeans and a ‘Sugar Cakes’ shirt you would usually wear. Plus, you had a date tonight. You needed to look amazing, even if your date had already seen you sweating and in sweatpants.

As you made the short walk to the shop, you noticed a crowd of people around the bakery. They were all chattering and taking photos in front of the flowers cascading over the window, and a smile graced your features, being one for the perfect photo, you were glad people were taking advantage of the beautiful backdrop you’d created.

“Good morning Sugar.” Raul greeted, a chai tea in his hands with your name on it. “You ready for this? You’ve got quite a crowd, I’m impressed.” You nodded, taking the drink and looking at him, pastel pink shirt pulled tight across his chest. 

“You look good in pink.” You giggled, before turning to look at the boys. Mike, Brian, Geoff, and Ian all wearing pink and blue shirts. 

“James was going to be here too but he caught his girlfriends stomach bug.” He said, answering your unasked question, you shook your head, wishing him well before walking towards the front of your shop.

Taking your spot in front of the door with that gorgeous red ribbon across it, the nerves set in. “Good morning everyone. Thank you all so much for coming to the opening for Sugar Cakes, it means a lot to me. This is my first storefront and I’m so excited to share my creations with you! In light of today, I have mini cupcake samples inside waiting for you all!” They all clapped and cheered for you. “Also, a special thank you to the boys of RM Coffee for all the late night help and personal supply of caffeine while I prepared for today. And for the support, I mean come on. Don’t those men look fabulous in those pastel shirts!” You laughed, motioning to the group of baristas.

“So, who’s ready for cupcakes?” You shouted, scissors in hand. While everyone cheered, you snipped the ribbon, smiling as you watched it fall to the floor. “Sugar Cakes is officially open!” You smiled as Raul pulled you in for a hug and kissed your cheek.

“You’re gonna be quite busy today Sugar. I understand if you wanna call a rain check on tonight.” You shook your head, taking your tea from him 

“Of course not. Maybe just something casual.”  You suggested, there was no way you were cancelling your night with this man.

He smiled and nodded. “I know just the thing.” There was a smirk on his face as he placed a kiss to your temple before walking into his own shop.

The day went by fast. You’d sold 15 dozen cupcakes, had an order for a birthday cake, and an office asked if you’d provide muffins for their Monday morning meeting. You were so ecstatic all day you didn’t care that you hadn’t changed the heels that were now killing your feet.

There was a ding as someone entered the store before they spoke. “Excuse me, miss, do you have a moment to spare?” You looked up to see Raul, a bag in his hand. 

“For you? Always.” You grinned, motioning him to come behind the counter with you. 

He was quick to get to you. “I um, I noticed you looked uncomfortable in those shoes and I felt really bad you didn’t bring anything to change into. So I went to the shop down the street and got you some sneakers. They aren’t the most fashionable but at least your feel won’t hurt.” He blushed, handing you the plastic bag with a pair of white sneakers and half a sandwhich. “Figured you be hungry and since James isn’t here we had the extra half from lunch.”

You smiled at him, hugging his waist tightly “Oh my god you’re the best.” You sighed, slipping off your heels and putting on the shoes. “Oh my god that feels so much better. Thank you so much Raul.” He nodded, exchanging a few details about tonight before letting you get back to the customers.

The afternoon was a lot calmer than this morning, but you were still constantly busy. You had another order for macaroons to make and cupcakes for a baby’s first birthday. How you were going to do all of this alone, you weren’t sure, but you knew you’d get it done.

At exactly 7:00, Raul was outside, the pastel pink shirt was replaced with a nice navy button down and he looked amazing. “You ready for your night of no customers?” That smile he flashed you making you want to melt. 

“What did you have in mind?” You asked as he opened the door to his own business

“Well, since you expressed to me that you have a deep, burning passion for hot chocolate, but you only know how to make the packaged kind. I thought,” he waved towards the counter “I could teach you how to make it from scratch.” You gasped at the assortment of chocolate and flavors to add and all the mugs to chose from, all laid out on the counter. 

“That actually sounds amazing.” you sighed, leaning against his side, the day finally taking it’s toll on you.

You learned that you can do milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and even a white chocolate. And that milk is so much better than water. “I can’t believe that you’re a baker, yet you struggle with a simple drink.” Raul chucked, boping your nose and smearing whipped cream on it. 

“Hey, don’t judge. I watched you shove a whole muffin in your mouth like you hadn’t eaten a real meal in days.” You pointed out, referring to that first day.

He threw his hands up in defense. “That wasn’t my fault. I’ve been living off of coffee and James danishes for weeks now.” You smiled, grabbing a chocolate cookie and pushing it into your mug. “Beautiful!” He shouted, throwing his hands into the air “Ladies and Gentlemen she has done it!” You bursted into a fit of giggles, holding your stomach as you laughed. “Now you’ve gotta drink it, while we watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” You let out a louder laugh at his choice.

“Why that? It’s not Christmas babe.” He smiled at the nickname you let slip, opening his laptop and turning off all the lights in the shop, pulling out a blanket. “Christmas in July was a few days ago. I figured it was fitting.” You shrugged, his reasoning making sense as you curled up under the blanket, mug of cocoa in your hand.

As the movie came to an end, you had your head on Raul’s shoulder, your body tired from the days excitement. “Hey, do you want me to drive you home honey? It’s too late to walk and you seem kinda tired.” You nodded, thanking him before folding up the fuzzy blue blanket and setting your now empty mug on the counter. “I’ll wash the muga in the morning. Let’s just get you home.” You smiled, grabbing your purse and making your way out the door and to the black BMW he had pointed out to you.

“You know, I may steal your hot cocoa recipe and name it after you.” He said as you pulled up to your apartment. 

“That’s fine. As long as I can make the double chocolate muffin with extra chocolate chips the Raul Special” you retorted, looking at the side of his face. He was handsome from every angle. 

“I’d love that idea. Makes me feel special.” He smiled, walking you to your door. The pristine white door had pastel pink numbers on it and he chuckled. It was very you to have already made the place your own.

“Thank you for tonight Raul. It was amazing and exactly what I needed.” Your hands were shaking now. This was the sacred doorstep moment. Would he kiss you? Go for the cheek? Maybe just walk away.

Your question was answered when he cupped your face, plump lips grazing yours before you reached up on your tiptoes, closing the gap. His lips tasted like mint and chocolate, and you couldn’t help but let out a soft moan. “Do you um, do you wanna go out again tomorrow?” He whispered against your lips, smiling as you nodded. “Good. Pick you up at 7. Dress nice. I’m gonna make up for missing dinner tonight.”

You leaned in for another kiss, and he wasn’t complaining. Pushing you up against the door and hands holding your waist. “I gotta go honey. I’ll see you tomorrow, and I’ll have something special for you.”

And with that, he left, eyes droopy as he watched you blush before touching your fingertips to your swollen lips before disappearing behind your door. You’d never felt so strongly about someone so quickly, but Raul seemed like that kind of person who drew you in and didn’t make you regret it.

So you crawled into bed, all too excited for tomorrow and your second date. The only worry you had was what he planned on giving you in the morning.

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You woke up to someone pounding on your door at 5am. “Who the fuck could that be?” You groaned, wrapping up in your silk robe and walking to the front of your apartment. You looked through the peephole to find Raul. Hands behind his back.

Slowly, you opened the door, the sun barely brightening the sky. “Fuck, did I wake you,?” His smile dropping at your robe clad body and ruffled hair. 

You shook your head, opening the door further. “It’s fine. Just an hour early. Come in, what are you hiding?” He blushed, stepping into the apartment and pulling a bouquet of roses from behind his back, a thermos in his other hand.

“I told you I’d have something special for you, I made a few adjustments to your hot chocolate and I’m ready to add it to the menu, after your approval.” His cheeks bright pink as he handed you the matte black thermos. You took a sip, closing your eyes and humming at the taste. 

“It’s absolutely amazing. What did you do?” Taking another sip, you hopped onto the counter and looked at him. His hair was messy and his shirt was unbuttoned more than usual. He looked amazing for it being so early in the morning.

Raul smiled, setting the roses on the counter. “Well, I added a little more of the milk chocolate and that hazelnut flavor you liked. And a dash a cinnamon.” He smiled proudly as you took another large sip, cursing yourself for burning your tongue.

“I was thinking of calling it the “Hazelnut Sugar” in honour of the fact you made it after your love of Nutella” a blush creeped up your cheeks as he tucked your bed ruined curls behind your ears. “I’ll let you get ready for work, don’t forget we have a date tonight.” He placed a kiss to your lips before walking out the front door, leaving you sitting in your kitchen with a stupid smile on your face and the coffee cup in your hand.

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It’s been a few weeks since your redo date with Raul. Over a month actually. He took you out to a wonderful dinner and then out for ice cream before taking you home. Leaving you with another heated front porch makout session. You were hesitant to jump into anything intimate. You’d already told him about your ex and he understood why you want to take things slow. But the two of you were already so loving. 

Everyone now knew you were official, you both spent your mornings in the coffee shop and lunch in the bakery. Raul would drive you home after closing and stay until well into the night. Every greeting started with a kiss, no matter where you were.

You were now seated at one of the tables in the cafe, since it opened an hour before you so you usually brought Raul his muffins and sat with him while he ate. And you always had your special drink of the day. If he didn’t have anything new for you to try, he’d give you a favorite of yours. Today you were drinking your hibiscus tea with lemonade when the bell above the door rang and you turned. Your face turning white at the figure in front of you.

Walking through the doorway was your ex himself. His black hair slicked back and his sunshades clipped to the front of his shirt. “Oh, hey there doll face. What are you doing here?” His voice low as he sat next to you. You looked around for Raul or any of the guys, but they were all in the back laughing at something. “So sweetheart. You settled in nicely?? Don’t worry, I’m not here long. Just up to visit Scott for a few days and I’m headed back to New York.”

You stared at the side of Raul’s face through the window as Nate spoke “You should stay. In New York. No one wants you here.” He slung an arm over your shoulder, letting out a fake gasp “Oh baby, you want me to stay.” As he leaned in to kiss your cheek, your face green and scrunched up, you wondered how none of the other customers weren’t concerned. Raul walked back into the front, staring at you two. You looked at him, eyes begging for him to stop this, tears brimming your eyes in fear and embarrassment.

He had your thermos of hot cocoa in his hands, “Hey babygirl, you should get to work. I made you your favorite” He smiled, setting down the cup and leaning in, hands cupping your face before placing a deep and passionate kiss to your lips. 

“Thank you.” You mumbled against his lips before he pulled away to look at Nate.

If looks could kill, Nate would be six feet under already. “Good morning sir. How may I help you today?” he asked, keeping him distracted while you made your way next door.

---

At lunch, Raul came in, a soft look on his face. “Hey, what happened this morning. You looked terrified and I’m so sorry I wasn’t out there.” You were glad you didn’t have any customers or special orders to make as you walked over to him, falling into his embrace and letting out a few tears. 

“That was Nate. My ex. He, he said he was here for a few days and oh god. He knows I live near by.” Raul rubbed your back slowly, pressing his lips to your head as you swayed gently in the entryway.

“Hey, you’re okay baby. It’s okay. He doesn’t know where you live. I’m only 15 feet away from you almost all day. And uh, if you’d like. I’ll stay with you late tonight if it’ll make you feel safer.” You nodded quickly. Fear of the last time Nate wanted to find you, and ended up breaking down your door and searching your apartment for you, taking over. You were now having a panic attack in your small lobby.

“Shhh baby, it’s okay. You’re going to be safe. How about you close down the shop, and I’ll put Brian in charge for the rest of the day and we go to my apartment instead. You can sleep easy in my bed and I can sleep on the couch tonight.” You sniffled, nodding and reaching into your pocket to grab the keys to the shop. 

“Thank you, babe. I just really need to lay down.” He nodded, pressing a kiss to your head before he left to go inform Brian. You felt bad pulling him away from his work, but he offered, and how could you say no to cuddling with Raul.

You got the bakery closed up, placing a handmade sign in the window reading “Closed due to personal illness”. Raul was waiting for you in his car to go pack a bag and head to his place. “You’re gonna be safe. Today was the last time you’ll ever have to see him okay? I won’t let him hurt you again.” You smiled as he placed a hand on your thigh, rubbing small circles to keep you calm.

“Welcome to my cozy home.” He announced, motioning to the inside of his house, causing you to let out a giggle. 

“It’s very cozy looking.” You noted. Taking in the soft couch and blankets. It was surprisingly clean and smelled amazing, like the inside of his shop.

You heard him clear his throat behind you. “My uhh. My room is down the hall, you can put your stuff in there. Do you want anything to drink?” You shook your head, walking towards the door he’d pointed at.

The room was simple, a large wooden framed bed with a grey comforter, a matching dresser and bedside table and a tv. Nothing extravagant, but it was cozy. You set your bag on the end of the bed, looking for your pajamas when Raul came up behind you, arms around your waist. “Hey, I’m gonna go get something for dinner tonight. Do you want to take a shower? Wash off the morning and then when I get back you can teach me how to make those cute little macaroons you have at the bakery?”

You leaned your head back against his shoulder, biting your lip “Macaroons take a long time to make sweetie, how about we cheat and you get some ice cream instead?” He chuckled, nodding his head. “Or maybe, you could just call in a pizza later and you join me in the shower?” You smirked and his eyes widened.

“How about I run a bath? You’ve had a stressful week and it’ll be good for you.” You nodded, sighing and turning to face him.  

There was a playful grin on your face as you spoke. “Will this relaxing bath include my boyfriend?” Raul leaned down, kissing you softly. 

“If that’s what you want. Of course. But I promise I won’t try anything funny.” You let out a giggle, kissing his chest gently. What a fucking gentleman.

---

The warm water felt good on your skin as you leaned back against Raul’s chest. His chest that had a sparrow tattoo that he said matches his brothers and a very beautiful floral piece on his shoulder. His hands rested on your thighs, rubbing small circles. “So, what kind of pizza do you want? Or would you rather I order you a pasta?” his voice was low as he mumbled against your heated skin. 

“Are you really asking me about dinner right now? You’ve got a naked girl in your lap and you’re asking about food??” you giggled, placing your hands on his forearms.

He kissed your shoulder gently, wrapping his arms around your waist tightly. “What would you rather talk about my love?” Shrugging, you leaned your head back for a kiss and he happily obliged. You reached back and tugged a little on those soft curls, earning a groan. “You’re supposed to be relaxing.” He warned, kissing along your shoulder. 

“Right, right” You smiled, relaxing back against his chest and closing your eyes. “Raul? Will you sleep with me tonight? I just don’t feel safe and I’d feel a lot better if you were there with me.” He smiled, nodding and burying his nose in your hair. 

“Of course. It’s whatever you want. I’m here to keep you safe.” He emphasized his point by squeezing you tightly, pulling you closer to him. 

——

Now sat on the couch in one of Raul’s shirts and the shorts you brought, you heard the doorbell ring and Raul let out a groan. “Fuck I forgot it’s Wednesday. I always have dinner with my brothers on Wednesday here.” He looked over at you with an apologetic smile. “I can tell them to go home. You have already delt with enough today, you don’t need the stress of meeting my brothers for the first time.” You just shook your head and rubbed his thigh. “No it’s okay, I’d love to meet them. I guess it’s a good thing we didn’t order dinner yet.” He smiled at you, getting up to open the door for his siblings. 

You heard them walk into the house and your nerves picked up. Here you were, meeting your boyfriend’s family for the first time and you were wearing his clothes and no makeup. “Oh shit, we didn’t know you had company Raul.” you looked up prepared for younger brothers, but instead saw two men that looked exactly like Raul. To an extent.

“Oh yeah, uh remember when I told you I was seeing someone?” they nodded, staring at you on the couch, in what was obviously their brother’s shirt. “This is my girlfriend, she uh, needed to stay here for the night because of some personal stuff. Be fucking nice.” He growled at them and you giggled.

The brother that noticed you first spoke, “Hi, I’m Shawn.” he smiled, holding his hand out for you to shake. He was almost as big as Raul, but his hair was slightly shorter and he had way less tattoos, but you saw the sparrow on his hand that matched Raul’s. “I’m sorry we barged in on you two, we always have dinner on Wednesday and we never think to call first.”

You shook your head, “Oh no, it’s perfectly fine, we were actually about to order some pizza, I think. I hope that’s okay with you guys.” He smiled, sitting on the smaller couch and looking at the third triplet who was talking to Raul about some new building coming up in town.

“Hey, I’m Peter.” he finally said, noticing you and Shawn were done with introductions. “It’s really nice to meet you, Raul never has girls over.” he smirks and Raul smacks the back of Peter’s head. Opposite of Shawn, Peter’s hair was longer than Raul’s and from what you can see, other than the sparrow you can see peeking out from the cuff of his jeans, he doesn’t have any other tattoos.

All four of you sat in the living room and talked while you waited for the delivery driver to arrive, you learned that Shawn was a business owner as well. He owned a music shop and taught guitar to kids and performed at the coffee shop on occasion. Peter was an architect, hence why he was talking to Raul about a new building. You were already very comfortable with the guys and you were grateful for that.

The doorbell rang for the second time and you got up to get the food, letting the guys catch up. “Hey, I have an order for Mendes?” the guy said, looking at the receipt and you nodded when he looked over at you. “It was paid for online.” he blubbered, obviously nervous when you took the boxes and handed him some cash. 

“I know, here. Thanks for coming out here.” you smiled at him and he blushed, he couldn’t have been older than seventeen. “Have a nice night.” you waved at him and closed the door. Turning to the kitchen you heard Raul talking to his brothers.

You couldn’t help but listen in. “I know but she was so stressed after he showed up, I couldn’t let her sit at home alone. She was scared enough in the shop. I’m taking it slow, I really like her and you guys know I’m not usually one to be affectionate, but there’s something about her.” You blushed, taking the paper plates and joining them in the living room again.

---

Crawling into bed, happy and full of takeout pasta and ice cream, you curled up next to Raul. He was wearing some fuzzy plaid pajama pants and his torso was bare. “Hey, he’ll be gone in a few days and you’ll be free of him. I’m going to take care of you sugar” You laughed and nudged his arm at the nickname.

“I know you will. Thank you, you’re the most amazing person.” You whispered against his skin before he placed a finger under your chin and brought your face to his, kissing you softly. His lips were soft and tasted like his mint toothpaste. His oversized shirt raised above your hips as you reached up to play with his hair.

He let out a hum at the feeling. “They like you, ya know. They think you’re good for me, good to me. And coming from them, that’s a compliment.” You hummed, pressing a lazy kiss to his jaw. There was something about Raul that made you feel comfortable, like you could do anything and he’d love it. You pulled your hand away to scratch your wrist and he let out a whine. “Play with my hair again?” he asked and nuzzledinto your neck.

How in the hell were you supposed to deny him when he looked so soft? So you threaded your fingers into his hair and kissed his forehead gently. Eventually he decided you needed to stop or he’d fall asleep, so you switched places, Raul playing with your hair until you finally fell asleep, curled into his side. Your head on his chest and thigh resting lazily over his hip. Pressing a kiss to your forehead, he whispered a soft goodnight to you before lowering the volume on the tv and shutting off the lamp.

----

When you woke up, Raul was gone, but you could smell something from the kitchen. As you sat up to follow the smell, you felt a piece of paper on the sheets. Picking it up you read

“Stay in bed. I’ll be back soon. Don’t go anywhere!”

You laughed at the note, he was excited about something and plus, he was just so damn cute. The something was revealed to you when he walked into the bedroom, a tray covered in breakfast food in his large hands. “Good morning gorgeous. Did you sleep okay?” You mumbled a yes as he crawled into bed next to you, handing you your plate of bacon and cheese covered eggs and cup of tea.

“So I was thinking. Maybe I should call the guys and have them run the shop today, and we can have our own day? Just resting and watching movies or something. I mean. You’ve already got the sign up at the shop.” he asked, looking at you like he was praying for you to say yes. You knew he was just worried about you.

You thought about it for a moment, taking a sip of your tea. “I guess one day out of the bakery couldn’t hurt. As long as there is cuddling involved.” 

Raul smiled widely as he nuzzled his face into your neck. “Good. Because I already called the boys to cover.”

You gasped, gently hitting his shoulder. “You planned this!” He just chuckled, kissing along your neck before stealing a piece of your bacon. His curls tickling your cheek as he held you. “Okay, do you want to learn how to make my new pumpkin recipe for the fall?” he nodded quickly, always eager to try something new. He had become your personal taste tester for you new recipes.

---

Looking at all the ingredients on the counter, you smiled. This was the first time you’d be sharing a recipe with someone, and it was a new one. 

“You know.” Raul said, settling against the counter next to you, “I was thinking, it’s about time you made a menu item for me.” That cheesy grin on his face.

“Raul. You already do have one. The double chocolate muffins with extra chocolate chips.” He pouted, pulling up his phone. 

“But I’ve already started on another one for you. I was thinking a special blend of your hibiscus tea with that lemonade you like. I never put lemonades in my tea unless it’s a special order.” He stated, looking at his phone, very obviously taking photos of you. 

Your cheeks now a soft pink. He wanted to add another special to the menu just for you. “I’ll think about it.” You giggled, kissing his chest.

You were currently making the brown sugar and cinnamon frosting, a bowl of fresh cinnamon sticks waiting on the counter. “Babe? Can I help with anything?” He asked, coming up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist. 

You shook your head, grating some cinnamon into the bowl. “Nope. You made my breakfast this morning. I’ll make your dessert tonight.”

“But I was thinking of a different treat for dessert this evening.” He smirked, watching as you took a taste of the frosting.

Your eyes widened at his statement and he bit his lip. “Hey, if you’re planning on doing that, you might wanna get to work on dinner. I usually have wine with mine.” 

He raised his eyebrows. “A wine drinker?” He asked and you nodded. 

“I have been since I was 18.” You informed him, placing the frosting into the fridge and checking the timer on the cupcakes. 

He tilted his head at you. “Babe, the legal age in the states is 21.” 

You put a finger over your lips. “Shhhhh. Mom was very easy going.” You laughed, picking up a kitchen rag and cleaning up the counters to start on the chicken you were planning on making for dinner. 

“Those smell amazing by the way. I haven’t had real cooking in my kitchen in a long time. Like I said. I’ve kinda been living off of coffee and your muffins. Dinner usually consists of takeout or a sandwich.”

You smiled, finishing your cleaning and reaching for the glass of water. “Well, if you keep be around there will be real dinners.” You smirked, walking over to take the dirty utensils to the sink.

“I’ll wash the dishes. Why don’t you open that cabinet there and make a choice.” You looked at him, face twisted in confusion before opening the door to see a small room full of wine. 

“Are you kidding me? I swear you’re perfect.” You sighed, searching to see if he had that sweet red you enjoyed so much. “Ah. Yes!” You squealed, pulling out the bottle and walking back into the kitchen.

Raul had already washed all the dishes, and grabbed two wine glasses and was now waiting for you in the living room. “You’ve made a good choice.” He commented as he saw the bottle in your hands. 

“It’s my favorite. I always prefer a sweeter wine. Never was a fan of the dryer ones.” You shrugged, sitting next to him and popping the cork before pouring you both a good sized glass.

——

”Don’t go wasting your emotions. Lay all your love on me!” You shouted along with the song, Raul down on his knees as he serenades you from the floor, looking up at you standing on the coffee table and singing into your wine glass. You both were now 4 glasses and a whole bottle of wine in, doing impromptu karaoke in the living room. The idea of dinner was long forgotten after you ate the cupcakes. You were grateful Raul didn’t have neighbors so far out into the woods here.

As the song came to an end, Raul stood up, grabbing your waist and lifting you off the table. Ed Sheeran’s “Barcelona” blasting through the house. He began spinning you around, singing to you. You had to admit that he was an excellent singer, you assume he learned from Shawn. Maybe it ran in the family. He even got the Spanish correct. But the whole mood changed when Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling In Love” started playing.

You were now swaying drunkenly around the living room, Raul holding tightly to your waist and your arms resting on his shoulders. “Mmm move in with me.” He mumbled, burying his face in your neck. 

“Babe, we’ve been dating for a little over a month.” you giggled, finding his offer funny. 

He shook his head, laughing at his own words “Oh. Haha I guess so. Just seems so natural with you.” You weren’t sure if this was drunken talk or his sober thoughts finally coming out, so you kissed his chest and smiled as the intimate song ended and a more upbeat tune started.

In your wine drunken state, you spun around, pressing yourself against his groin and started grinding your hips to the beat. His hands instantly flying to your hips and pressing his semi against you. “Fuck. Babe you can’t do that. We are taking things slow.” You laughed, turning back around and pulling him towards the couch. He took a seat on the couch, expecting you to lay next to him, not straddle him and place a kiss to his neck.

“Just wanna have a drunk make out session with my boyfriend.” You breathed, cupping his face and kissing him. It was hungry and sloppy but it was perfect. His hands instantly gripping at your hips, grinding you down into him as he tugged on your bottom lip. “You should stay here again tonight. Can’t have you home alone and we aren’t in a state to drive. Plus, I like having you in my bed.” You nodded, now suddenly tired as the alcohol runs it’s usual course.

Raul laughed at your sudden change in mood, carrying you to bed. “You know, I really do like you. I might even love you.” You admitted as you crawled up to the pillow and stripped off the shirt that was now too hot. You didn’t care. He’d seen you naked in the tub the night before. 

“I might love you too. Now get some sleep. We’ve got work in the morning.” He reminded you, pulling you into his chest and running his fingers along your back to ease you to sleep. 

——-

You heard Raul’s phone ring twice before he answered. “Hello? Babe are you okay? Why are you calling me if you’re right next door.”

You laughed on your side of the phone “Raul can you come over please? I have something to show you.” You were all too excited to show him the new creation you’d made. It was a mocha flavoured cupcake with a white chocolate icing. You had made a whole dozen of them and they were waiting on the counter. 

“What is it honey?” He asked as he walked in the door, the teenage girls at the table eating their cupcakes blushing at the gorgeous man in front of them.

“I made that second item you’d asked for.” You smiled, motioning to the cupcakes on the counter. “They’re mocha cupcakes.” You informed him as he picked one up. 

He looked over at you, eyes bright and full of adoration. “Like my favorite drink flavour. But what ever shall we call this?” He asked in a mocking tone.

“Well, I was thinking of calling it the”Mendes Mocha” a wide smile on his face told you that was a good choice. “You’re so cute, oh my god I love you.” That was the first time he’d said that. However, you knew by the way his smile never faltered, that he meant it.

You giggled as you heard the two girls gasp. “I- I love you too.” And without saying anything else, Raul leaned across the counter for a kiss. 

“I love you.” He mumbled again, brushing your hair behind your ear and stealing another kiss. 

“You’re coming over tonight. No questions asked. I’m ready.” He pulled back, looking at you with a questioning face. “I am. Now get back to the shop. And take these cupcakes! I made them for you and the guys.” You handed him the plate and smiled as you watched him leave the bakery. Tonight would be perfect.

———

The sun was already low when Raul knocked on your door, takeout burgers in the bag he was holding. You let him in, smiling at the tattooed man and giving him a kiss. “Thought I’d bring you some of the best burgers in the area. It’s my favourite place to go for curly fries.” 

You snatched the bag from his hands “Mendes if there are no curly fries in this bag, I’m sending you home and tonight will be cancelled.” 

He let out a laugh, pressing a kiss to your head. “There’s extra curly fries in the bag. Special just for you.” You hummed in satisfaction as you popped a fry into your mouth. 

They were Cajun seasoned, your favorite. “You may stay.” You stated, pulling out the food and taking a seat on the couch. “Are we gonna finish ‘Nailed It’ or do we wanna watch a movie?” You asked, clicking to Netflix as Raul sat next to you, pulling your feet into his lap.

You looked over at him, waiting for an answer. “I was thinking Dirty Dancing. You seem to really like that one.” You gave him a look, raising your eyebrows as if to ask “are you really gonna watch this movie?” He nodded, taking the remote from you and pressing play on it. 

“This is my favorite part!” You squealed, as it cuts to the final scene. All the talent show acts singing on stage before Johnny comes back for the final dance. “You know. I know how to do that.” Raul blurted out, taking a sip of water. 

Raising your eyebrows, you turned to face him. “Do what?” You looked down at his chest, his button down unbuttoned completely and just hanging on his shoulders. 

He just shrugged, “The lift they are about to do. I can do that. The hockey team lost a bet in high school with the dance team, me and my brothers were on the team, and we had to learn this. We ended up being their partners for the spring show. If we had won, they were gonna learn to play hockey.” 

You just stared at him. “Show me.” He nodded, standing up and walking in front of the couch.

You got up and stood on the opposite side of the living room, staring at him skeptically. “Come on baby. I’ll catch you.” You laughed, not sure if he was referencing the movie or really calling you the nickname, but still stood up. However, you didn’t doubt he would catch you. 

You bit your lip nervously, you’d always wanted to do this. When you were younger you danced and always hoped you’d get to have that perfect lift but you quit before you made it that far. “You got this babe.” He cheered as it was time for the lift and you ran towards him, your toes pointing the second he lifted you off the wood flooring and held you above his head. 

You new the form pretty well so you held it for a few seconds before he was sliding you down his body. Your legs wrapping around his waist, stopping you from going any further.

He looked at you, your body flush against his, gasping as you leaned down for a hungry kiss, lips crashing into his. “You sure you’re ready baby?” You nodded, tugging the open button down off his shoulders as he walked the two of you to your bedroom. 

He stumbled a little over the towels on the floor, causing you to let out a giggle. “I should pick those up.” You mumbled into his mouth before pulling away to tug your shirt off your heated body, tossing it onto the floor next to the towels.

Laying you down carefully, he hooked his fingers into the band of your leggings . “Baby are you sure you want this? We can stop if you want.” You shook your head, lifting up your hips. 

“I want this Raul. Please do something.” He didn’t need any more confirmation before he slowly slid the fabric down your thighs. His eyes widening at your half naked body, you bit your lip, his eyes making you self conscious.

“No no baby, you look amazing.” He reassured you before ridding you of your panties and tugging down his boxers, joining you in your naked state. “I- uh, I have a condom in my jeans. I’ve got to go get it.” You nodded your head, watching the way he opened the package. “I love you so much. I promise I’ll be gentle.” You smiled at now nervous he suddenly sounded, and ran a hand through his curls. “Hey, you okay Raul?” He nodded, kissing your lips softly. 

“Just, it’s been a while and, god I just love you so much. Wanna make you feel so good.” Letting out a chuckle you mumbled an “I love you too.”

—

“Come here baby.” He said as he leaned back on the bed, arms open for you to curl into. And that’s exactly what you did. Your head on his chest, listening to his heart rate slow down as he held you tightly to him. “I love you Raul.” You hummed out before your eyes closed and sleep took over. “I love you too.”

Raul’s lips on your shoulder woke you up. “Wake up baby, gotta get ready for work.” You let out a groan before rolling over and pressing your lips against his gently. “Just a few more minutes. Wanna be with my boyfriend.” 

He chucked against your lips. “You see me all day honey.” He reminded you, hand coming up to rest on your jaw. This thumb was pressing against your pulse point gently and your jaw went slack. 

“S’ not the same though” you pouted as he sat up and put on his jeans.

“I’m taking my white shirt back for the day.” He announced as he took the shirt off the hanger to wear. You’d kept it after a date that ended up at your apartment in the bath. You just laid there and watched him get dressed, muscles contracting as he moved. “You’re staring.” He stated.

You blushed, having being caught and looked down at your rings. “You’re pretty.” You mumbled, looking back up at him and letting the sheets fall off your chest and settle at your hips. 

He walked back over to you, kissing your nose softly. “Be at the cafe in 30 minutes?? I’ve got something new for you to try.” You nodded, crawling out of bed to get ready for the day as Raul let himself out.

Last night was better than you’d imagined. And you hoped there’d be more. Simply because Raul was so gentle with you, but you were still sore. So you settled for wearing a sundress today, as jeans wouldn’t help the situation. “He’s gonna be the death of me.” You mumbled as you made your way to the cafe.

——-

October

Working all alone in the bakery got really stressful around holidays. Lots of people wanted cupcakes and cakes made for Halloween back home and since you were still shipping, you had at least 10 orders to make. So here you were, hair in a messy bun, running around putting cupcake tins in the large ovens and setting other tins to cool in the blast chiller, while also trying to decorate the desserts correctly and exactly the same. 

“Honey! I’m here for lunch!” Raul announced, holding a bag of paninis from the shop down the street and a lemonade for you. 

You poked your head out of the kitchen, frosting on your forehead and he smiled at you. “I’ll be out in just a minute baby, I’ve gotta finish these cupcakes.” You rushed the words out before returning to the baked goods on the counters, picking up the bag of orange frosting and icing the jumbo cupcakes in front of you.

They were supposed to have orange frosting and a small fondant hat. You made this kind every year for a family that lived next to you back home. Along with a few other specific orders, like the coffin cake the Briggs’ wanted and the double bunt cake that was made to be a pumpkin.

Raul nodded, taking a seat on the counter behind you and licking the batter off of a bowl. “The dark chocolate batter is really good babe.” He mumbled over the finger in his mouth as he licked the batter off of it. 

“Thanks, I revamped it with some chilli powder for a family back home. It’s a special order.” Finally setting down the frosting bag, you leaned in for a kiss and tasted the batter on his tongue. 

You moaned into his mouth when his hand came up to your neck. “I got you that ham and cheese panini you love. With the spinach.” He smiled at you, handing you your sandwich.

“You’re the absolute best.” You praised over a mouth full of food. Raul laughed at you, taking a large bite of his own lunch before stealing a sip of your lemonade. “That’s mine Mendes.” 

He flashed you a cheesy grin, handing you the cup. “I think you need to hire some help baby. You work in here all day by yourself and I know you’re really stressed right now.” The worry evident in his voice. “Yes, but if I do, I’ll lose the excuse for nightly back rubs and stress induced sex.” He let out a chuckle, arms open in a silent plea for you to stand between his parted legs. 

He spun you around and placed a kiss to the back on your neck. “How about this.” He proposed, his thumbs digging into your shoulders. “You hire some help, and then you can close up shop earlier and we can have more dates and then wine induced sex.”

The offer was reasonable. And you were in need of some extra hands around the kitchen anyways. Holiday orders would soon be approaching and you’d definitely need help. “That works, I’ll start looking for some extra help.” He smiled against your neck before placing another gentle kiss to the skin. 

“The boys have things handled at the cafe. Why don’t I help for the rest of the day?” His arms wrapping around your waist as you walked to the sink to wash your hands.

You giggled at his clinginess. For someone so large and tattooed and pierced, he was the softest person you’d ever met. “Hmmmm I could use some help. As long as I get periodic kisses. I’ve been so busy lately and I’ve missed my boyfriend.”

Turning around to dry your hands, Raul grabbed your face and planted a sloppy kiss to your lips. “I missed you too baby. How about you come over after work today and I’ll set up a bath for you. It’s been two weeks since I’ve had any time with you.”

You nodded, kissing him again softly before getting back to work. “Come on lover boy. I’m going to teach you how to properly frost a cupcake.”

——

A month later. 

It all happened so fast, you aren’t exactly sure how it happened. One second you were opening the oven to get the cupcakes out, and the next you were on the floor screaming. Raul heard you from next door and came sprinting through the shop. “Baby? Baby what happened!” His voice frantic as you laid on the floor, clutching your arm before you passed out from the pain.

You’d been awake for 2 days straight, and in your exhausted state, your hand slipped and landed on the oven grate. Burns raising on your skin as Raul carried you to the car, he yelled at James to cover your shop and clean up the kitchen for you. “Fuck, baby it’s okay. I’m gonna take you to the hospital.”

You were now set up in a hospital bed. Your left arm burning as you tried to remember what happened to your arm. “Raul?” You croaked, and he shot up from the chair. 

“Oh good you’re up. How’s your arm?” His fingers resting on your shoulder. 

“Fucking hurts.” You chuckled, looking at the bandages running from your fingertips to your elbow. They were a pale pink color and you're sure he’d asked them for that color wrapping. 

“You took a bit of a fall there babe. Third degree burns on your hand and forearm.” He told you, grabbing your hand and kissing your knuckles. 

“Here’s the cream for the burns.” The doctor announced as he walked in the room. “Your paperwork has been done and you are good to go home. You’ve got to rest and relax for a few days and keep that arm away from the heat. I’ve got some topical cooling cream for you in a bag and you should apply it twice a day. It’ll draw out the heat and heal it quicker.” You nodded at the instructions before thanking him and being discharged.

However, the ride home was anything but relaxing. “I just can’t fucking understand why you don’t have extra help yet. You fucking burned up your arm baby! And all because you were too caught up in work to even fucking sleep. That’s it. You’re staying with me now. I’m making sure that you sleep. And that your arm is healed. Then I’m calling a few of the college students who sometimes help me during the holidays and they are going to take over. Because you’re not getting hurt again!”

The yelling was anticipated, Raul was always protective of you. But you weren’t prepared for him to be this angry. “Raul  I didn’t do it on purpose! I was tired and I slipped. It could’ve happened to anyone.”

 At that, his face softened at the next comment. “But it didn’t happen to anyone. It happened to you, and now you’re hurt badly. Please stay with me. Let me take care of you.”

“Raul are you suggesting I move in with you?” You asked, trying to lighten the situation and change the topic. 

There was a brief moment of silence, aside from the radio before he spoke “Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting. Move in with me. Please?” There was another pause before he stopped at a stop light and you leaned over, gently grabbing his hand. 

“I will. Of course I will.” He looked over at you wide eyed, speeding to your apartment. 

The moving in started right away. Literally. Raul made that stop at your apartment where you both packed up all you possibly could. You were taking a while, only able to use one hand really, but you were able to pack an over night bag while He loaded up everything he could into the back of his car and the trunk . “You ready baby??” He asked as you made your way to him. 

“I am!” You smiled, hopping into the front seat and resting your feet on the dashboard. “I’ve never lived with a boyfriend before.” You admitted as he pulled into his own driveway.

“I have never lived with a girlfriend before.” He told you, grabbing your things and letting you into the house. “I’ll unpack your stuff okay? You lay down and get some rest. I’m planning a movie date tonight.”

—-

You woke up about 11, the sun was long gone and the house was illuminated by a few lamps. “Good morning sleeping beauty.” Raul whispered as he looked at you in his lap, his fingers carding through your hair. “You sleep okay?” A small hum left your chest as you nuzzled into his side. “I’ve got some soup on the counter for you. Broccoli cheddar.” 

You smiled up at him. “That’s my favourite kind.” You sighed, still groggy from sleep. Before you laid down, you took one of the sleep aids the doctor prescribed since you were sleep deprived. 

He nodded, turning down the tv. “I know honey. You’ve told me. I just figured it’d be best. You sounded a little sick too. I think it’s the lack of sleep your getting. Making you sick sweetheart.”

You looked down at your left arm, frowning at the ugly bandages. “I’m going to stay with you for a few days okay? The boys have the cafe and I called a few of my holiday helpers to to cover the orders for you. They have very specific instructions, so they will make sure it’s done properly and all the orders go out.” You leaned up, pressing a lazy kiss to his chapped lips. “You’re amazing. Did you know that?” You asked, sitting up and straddling him to get a good look at his face. You noticed a small hole in the top of his ear and smiled. “You used to have an industrial?” You asked, reaching up to touch the hole. 

He nodded, laughing. “Yeah, I took it out when I was seeing this one girl who said she thought it was stupid.” He looked at you, your face contorted in a weird expression. “What? You don’t like that I’ve seen other girls before you?” 

You laughed and shook your head. “No, I just think it’s stupid you took it out. It would be so hot. I’ve actually been thinking of getting some modifications myself.” You stated proudly, looking at your lap. “When I was graduating college, all my friends got tattoos and nipple piercings and I was nervous but I still wanna do it.” 

At the mention of nipple piercings, Raul let out a moan. “I can call Lex, of the the artists at the shop I go to if you really want to.” He suggested and you nodded. 

—

The two of you watched Deadpool 2 as you ate. Raul feeding you because he claimed the bowl was too hot for you to hold. Protective Raul was always present and so was his cuddly side. The way he pulled you into his lap and nuzzled into your neck made you realize that you were head over heels in love with them man, and it had only been 4 months.

You’d never lived with someone before, and you were always convinced you’d be nervous as hell. But this felt comfortable. You practically lived with Raul anyways, so it only made sense. And if you were being honest with yourself, you could see yourself with him forever. But what you didn’t know. Is that he could see that too.

—-

December

The orders were all reds and whites and greens. Peppermint was everywhere. In the frosting, as decoration, in your hot cocoa Raul brought you during the day. There were orders for Santa hat cupcakes and cupcakes like wreaths. Red and green macaroons with white filling, and you couldn’t have been happier about it all. Eli, Conner, and Britt were all such a huge help in the kitchen.

“Sweetheart. I have your hot cocoa here. There’s also a gift for you.” You walked out of the kitchen to see Raul, his grey knit sweater hugging his biceps perfectly. 

You looked down at the box on your counter “Baby Christmas isn’t for a few more days. What is this for?” He just shrugged, sliding the box towards you. 

“Open it and see. I think you’ll love it.” His face now a bright red as the nerves set in.

You gently tore off the pretty blue paper, placing the bow on top of your steaming cup, before lifting off the top of the box and letting out a gasp. “Oh, Raul!” You sighed, holding up the soft red silk dress and a pair of black heels. 

“I figured you could wear it to dinner tonight. You said you wanted to look nice for this evening and I wanted to get you the best.” He was beaming at your excitement. 

The dress was dropped into the box as you hugged him tightly. “It’s amazing. Oh my god! I can’t wait to wear it and it’ll go amazing with the black purse I just got for my birthday!”

He smiled that cheesy grin you loved before placing a kiss to your lips. “I’ll come get you about 4 and we can go home to get ready. You’ve got this today, right guys?” He leaned back to look at the 18 year olds in the kitchen and got a collective “yeah!”

—-

“Oh fuck you look so good.” He breathed as you came out to the living room where he was waiting for you. He had already put on his black slacks, his button down was the same color as your dress and you smiled. You did a quick spin so he could see everything. “Compliments to my stylist.” You laughed, taking his hand before he led you to the car. Both of you wrapped in big coats to combat the cold air.

Finally arriving to the restaurant, Raul ran over to your door, opening it for you and helping you across the snow covered parking lot. “I’ve never seen this much snow before.” You commented, looking at the white streets glittering in the lights of the building. “It’s so beautiful I could just cry.” 

He just looked at you and smiled, pressing a kiss to your head. “You’re just so perfect baby. I love you so much.” You hummed, looking up at him and asking for his that he happily gave you. 

The restaurant was warm and there was a small tree in the foyer and some garland here and there. “It’s a special night for us. Why don’t you bring us a bottle of your best wine. Make sure it’s a sweet wine please. That’s my girl’s favourite.” Raul spoke to the waiter, a smile on his face the whole time. 

“Ooh, what’s he special occasion?” The boy’s face lit up, glad he was involved in something special. 

Raul sat up straighter, grabbing your hand and noticing you were wearing the bracelet he got you for your birthday. “Well. It’s my 6 month anniversary with this gorgeous angel. And she just recently decided to move in with me.”

The boy smiled, sending you a “congratulations” as he left to get the wine and stumbled over his feet a little. “I think someone has a little admirer.” he laughed, pressing a soft kiss to your hand. “You really do look amazing sugar. That color looks so good on you. I just knew it would.” A blush crept up your cheeks as you squeezed his hand. 

“Well you don’t look too bad yourself. I’ve never seen you in a suit before.” You sat back to look at him. The black suit fitting him perfectly and that red button down making you have impure thoughts at the dinner table.

“Here you go guys, this one is on the house. Happy anniversary.” Archie, your waiter smiled as he placed a plate with a large brownie and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top in front of you. On the plate, written in chocolate sauce was “Happy Anniversary” with a little heart. You looked over at Raul and smiled, thanking Archie before grabbing and spoon and taking a bite, Raul doing the same.

Walking back to the car, you made a small snowball and threw it at Raul who was fishing for his keys in the pocket of his jacket, hitting him in the shoulder. “Oh you’re in for it now babygirl!” He laughed, throwing a snowball back at you and getting you in the back.

The two of you had a small snowball fight in the parking lot before the cold got to your fingers and you needed to go warm up. 

—-

 “Oh baby they’re freezing!” He scolded as he held your hands in front of the fireplace back at the house. You were both wrapped up in a blue blanket, clad in your pajamas and mugs of hot cocoa on the table

“I love you so much. And I’m so grateful that you decided to move up here and open up shop right next to me.” He mumbled against your fingers. 

You noticed he was paying extra attention to your ring finger. “I am too. It’s like fate knew we’d be perfect for each other.” As you spoke, you leaned your head against his shoulder, your eyes drooping as your body went slack against Raul’s. 

“Get some sleep, love. We can stay right here tonight. We don’t have work tomorrow.” He reminded you, rubbing your back gently as you grabbed a pillow from the couch and curled up  in his lap.

“I love you, Raul.” Your body giving in to the sleep. 

“I love you too.” He smiled, laying down next to you, his face nuzzled into your neck. His thoughts riddled of the memory of you tonight, and the ring, sitting in a black velvet box in the glove box of his car. Waiting for that soon approaching day

—-

You woke up on the floor, forgetting you’d fallen asleep in front of the fire the night before. Raul was pressed against your back, already awake. “Morning darling. You ready?” He asked, pressing a kiss to the back for your head. 

“Ready for wh- oh fuck. I forgot. Yeah.” You chuckled nervously, remembering today was your appointment with Lex. For Christmas Raul decided he was gonna pay for your piercings and then if you wanted a tattoo. 

“You don’t have to babe. I can always cancel it if you wanna back out.” You shook your head, determined to do this. “Alright, let's go then babe.” He swatted your butt and you got up to get dressed. 

You decided on a bodysuit and a pair of jeans, just in case you decided on a tattoo as well. “Well sugar, you ready?” Raul asked as you walked into the shop. You were shaking in anticipation.

“Morning Raul!” A guy waved at you two from behind the counter. “You have an appointment?” He asked, looking at the schedule book on the counter. 

“She does.” He smiled, nudging you and walking you to the guy at the counter. “She’s got a piercing and a possible tattoo with Lex.” 

The man held out his hand and smiled at you. “Hey, I’m Will. You can follow me back here.” He said and waived you and Raul back to a room in the back for privacy. 

“Morning gorgeous.” A lady, you assumed was Lex, smiled at you from her chair. “If you’re ready, you can pull the top down and settle into the chair.” She said, pulling on a pair of latex gloves. 

You looked over at Raul, who was smiling at you, while Will put on a pair of gloves as well. He just grabbed your hand as you laid down and pulled the top below your chest. “Okay I’m ready.” You announced and dropped Raul’s hand tightly. 

“Okay honey, close your eyes and take a deep breath.” Lex told you after she’d applied the clamp. You did as you were told, letting out a soft whimper as the needle pierced your flesh. “This one will hurt a little more. But you’re doing just fine. Will, you ready?” She asked looking at Will who was standing by Raul’s head. He nodded and at the same time she pierced your second side, Will pushed a needle through Raul’s closed up industrial. 

You let out a scream but stayed still as Lex screwed the barbell together. “Oh baby, that looks so sexy.” Raul said, looking over at you after Will had secured the stud. “Do you wanna do a tattoo too? Christmas gifts galore?” 

Lex handed you a mirror so you could look for yourself and you let out an excited squeal. “Oh these are so cute!” You smiled, handing the mirror back, pulling your top back up and looking over at Raul to see his stud. “You look sexy too babe.” He smiled, pulling out his phone to take a photo of his ear to send to Shawn and Peter. 

“Well, would you like to do a tattoo as well? Raul says he’s paying, so do whatever you’d like.” You bit your lip, remembering the floral piece your friend sent you that you wanted. You wanted to get it because it had your parents and yours favorite flowers. She’d done it after your parents passed away two years ago in a car accident. 

You nodded your head, pulling up the photo, but not showing Raul. “Can we do that?” You asked Lex, nervous she’d be hesitant since it’s not her own work. “My best friend did it and it’s really personal. I have the rights to the piece.” 

She nodded and smiled, waving the guys out of her room. “What does it mean?” She asked as she shut the door and started disinfecting everything for the tattoo. 

“When I was 21, my parents got into a car crash. They didn’t make it. The roses were my dad’s favorite, well at least for every Valentine’s Day he gave me pink roses. My mom loved tropical flowers, hence the hibiscus, then my favorite is the peony.” You smiled at the memory of your parents. 

She hugged you gently, careful of the new jewellery and pulled back to trace the photo that you sent her. “Where do we wanna put this masterpiece?” She asked, motioning to your body. 

“I was thinking my thigh, so that way I can see it, but it’s covered for my wedding day.” You had made the choice a long time ago that no tattoos would be visible until after your wedding. 

She looked over at you, eyes wide. “I didn’t know you and rail were getting married!” You laughed and shook your head. 

“No no, it’s just a rule I have. No visible tattoos until I’m married. For photos.” She nodded in understanding and apologised for the assumption. “Oh you’re fine. I can see where the confusion came from.” 

—-

A little over an hour later you were ready to go. The tattoo was bandaged and finished, and you thanked Lex profusely for the beautiful work. She even added a little color to it to make it special. 

“You all ready my little rebel?” Raul asked as you met him in the lobby. He also had a bandage on his opposite bicep. 

“Oh finally working on the blank arm?” You asked, looking at the cling wrap. It was covered by a black piece so you couldn’t see it. “Why can’t I see?” You pouted, looking up at him. 

He smiled, pulling out his wallet and making his way to the counter to pay for your new additions. “It’s a surprise babe. I’ll show you later. Here.” He handed you the keys. “Go start the car okay? I’ll be there in a minute.” So you made your way to the car, careful of the seatbelt as you got settled in and scanned the radio. 

Raul got in shortly after, smiling at you. “Merry Christmas my love.” He hummed, pulling out of the parking lot and making his way to the house. “So when are you gonna show me what you got?”

You looked down at your thigh and smiled. “When we get home. When can I see yours?” You quipped, tapping his arm and smiling. 

“When we get home.” He smiled, holding his hand out for you to take. “I’m proud of you for today. And you look really hot. But you also looked really hot before.” He winked at you, pulling into the driveway. “Let’s go do our reveal.” He grinned, turning off the car. 

Now sat on the bed, the sheets covering the masterpiece on your leg. “Now before you say anything, this is a really special tattoo. And I don’t want you to look at me all sad, I’m okay.” You warned, tossing the sheet off your body to show the bouquet. 

“That’s beautiful, darling. What’s it for?” He asked, fingers brushing against your thigh before grabbing your hand. 

You squeezed it gently. “Two years ago my parents died in a car crash. They were going to a bed and breakfast and there was an accident on the slippery roads. These are mine and my parents favorite flowers.” You looked down at them, leaning against his side. 

“I’m sorry baby. I’m glad you could do something to memorialize them.” He kissed the top of your head. “Would you like to see what I did?” He asked, pulling the tape off his arm. 

You nodded eagerly, eyes glued to the spot on his bicep. He pulled his covering away to reveal a small peony flower in the steam coming off of a cup of coffee. “It’s uh, it’s for you.” He blushed, watching as you years up at the gesture.

“Did you know that I love you, Raul Mendes?” You asked, launching yourself over and into his lap to cup his cheeks. He nodded, pressing his his against yours feverishly. 

 —————— 

New Year’s Eve

You were back in that red dress, a glass of champagne in your hand as you talked to Peter. You were all at a party on top of a building, and there was about 10 minutes until midnight. You were on your second glass of champagne, but you were still very aware of what was going on. 

Raul had been nervous all day, almost forgetting his shoes before you left for the party, taking a wrong turn and making you 20 minutes late to the party.

He was in that black suit again, this time wearing a crisp white button down and a navy blue tie. He looked like an absolute dream, and while the party was black tie, he seemed very dressed up. “Baby your macarons and champagne cupcakes are a huge hit tonight!” He smiled, placing a kiss to your cheek. 

“Well, they were in high demand this season so I figured they’d be the best option and James’s wife Avery was so excited to pick them up this afternoon.” You smiled, wiping some frosting off the corner of his lip. 

As the clock ticked closer to midnight, the more nervous Raul looked. His face looked flushed and his hands were shaking. You figured he was nervous about driving home after the party or maybe he wasn’t so comfortable around this many people.

Raul’s hands wrapped around your waist as you watched the tick down the seconds. “5, 4, 3, 2, 1!” And you were spun around, Raul’s lips crashing against yours as he held you close to him. 

“Partner with me.” He mumbled against your lips “break down the wall between our shops. I wanna see you all day every day.” You giggled at his proposal, nodding as confetti and glitter rained down on you.

“You will?” He asked, his pink cheeks making you smile. 

“Of course I will!” And he kissed you again. His plan was falling perfectly into place.

——

8 months later 

“Baby should we paint the walls grey or what?” You asked, looking at the swatches from the contractor. Raul popped his head in from around the corner and you giggled. “Maybe a nice grey. That way it’s still pretty for your cupcakes and still fits my coffee shop.” You nodded, picking out a neutral grey color and sending it to Ricky.

The painting was the last thing to do before you could reopen your shop, and you were so excited you couldn’t handle it. You’d been only doing orders, making them from home and you’d been itching to get back into your kitchen at the bakery. “Hey honey, I was thinking we could use these little metal chairs, since they are white it could mesh well.” 

You looked over at his laptop at the new stuff for the floor, smiling at the cute little chairs and pressing your lips to his bicep against the healed tattoo. “You know. I think we’ve done enough for today. Why don’t we go back to the house and relax.” As you spoke, you kissed along his shoulder, your fingers slipping under his shirt and running over his abs. He couldn’t have moved fast enough, tugging you along behind him to the car and speeding the already short drive to the house.

Laying there, tangled up in the sheets, Raul drew little patterns on your back with the pads on his fingers. You swore you felt him write “marry me” across your shoulders, but thought you were imagining things. “You think we can open by the end of this month?” You asked, looking up at his peaceful face. 

“We just had sex, and you’re wondering when we can open?” He chucked, running his fingers through your hair. 

“I guess that isn’t the best pillow talk.” You yawned, nuzzling into his neck. You could lay there with him forever, nuzzled against his warm skin and breathing in that smell that you could only describe as Raul. 

You laid in silence for a few minutes. “Baby, do you ever think about our future?” He finally spoke, but you were already sleeping peacefully on his chest. Your even breathing fanning across his bare chest slowly pulling him into dreamland with you.

——-

The shop was finally ready, all the chairs and tables set up, your display case clean and ready for you to fill it in the morning before the grand opening. Raul was wiping down the cappuccino machine as you went around making sure all the artwork on the walls were hanging straight and the flowers you'd placed accordingly were still perfect.

“I think it’s all ready for tomorrow honey. You ready to go home and have dinner? I’ll make that pasta you like in exchange for a shoulder massage.” He propositioned, throwing the towel over his shoulder and running a hand through his curls. 

“I think that’s a fair deal.” You smiled, looking over at him. Sweaty and sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He was a sight to be seen. 

He nodded, tossing you the car keys. “Go start the car and I’ll lock up okay?” You smiled, tightening your ponytail and walking off to the parking lot out back to cool off the car.

Raul stayed back, making sure everything was perfect for tomorrow. It was a big day. Even bigger than you were ready for, and he’d be damned if anything went wrong.

——

When Raul came back from the gym, you were just waking up, his button down open and hanging off your body as you brushed your teeth. “Raul, darling you’re staring.” You laughed, rinsing out your mouth and starting the shower. “You gonna join me or am I gonna have to be in there all alone on this wonderful morning?” It was a wonderful morning indeed.

He was quick to strip out of his gym clothes, sliding in behind you under the stream of water. His hands instantly grabbing the shampoo bottle and squeezing it into his palm. You closed your eyes as he massaged the gel into your scalp, your arms wrapped around his waist and cheek pressed against his chest. 

It was such an intimate moment and you wished it would never end, while he was praying for it to be over, so he could do what he’s been wanting to do since day one.

Now clean and dressed in a nice black dress, you were curling your hair. Raul stood behind you, watching you with so much love and adoration in his eyes you wanted to cry. “Haven’t you been told it's rude to stare, Mendes.” The way his last name slipped off your tongue so effortlessly, he almost dropped to his knees right there. 

“Honey we’ve got to go, you look perfect. We are going to be late to our own opening.” He laughed, placing a large hand on your lower back as you walked out the door.

There were reporters everywhere. Photographers covering the opening of the new merged shop. And of course the boys who would now be working for the both of you. The customers, who were thrilled to see the shops open again and missed the goodies they’ve been missing since it was under renovation were all buzzing with excitement. 

The two of you stood in front of the building, Raul had one hand in his pocket and you figured it was his nerves. But as the cameras started flashing and you both held a scissor handle, he let go. Dropping to his knee and pulling his hand out of his pocket finally, he spoke. Words shakey as he tried to keep himself together.

“When you opened up next to me a year ago, I never thought we’d become what we are. And now here we are, and as we join our two babies together. Why not join our lives as well. What do you say?” The tears were freely falling down your face as you nodded. Pulling him up to give him a kiss you sobbed out a “yes!”  And the crowds of people cheered.

“Now that the hard part is over! Welcome to Coffee Cake cafe and bakery!” Raul cheered, slipping the ring on your finger and pulling you in for another kiss

—-

Somehow you managed to pull through the day. Many congratulations being thrown at the two of you when a familiar face walked in. It was Archie, your waiter from the night you went to dinner for your anniversary. “Hey guys! I just heard. I’m so excited for you guys!” He beamed, dropping a takeout bag on the counter before ordering a coffee and a blueberry muffin. 

“This one is on us Achie.” You smiled, looking into the bag and seeing another brownie, this time with the words “congratulations” in chocolate. He waved a goodbye before leaving and you got back to work, But all day you wanted to be with Raul. Your fiancé. 

You don’t know how he pulled it off, but he did it. The excitement radiated off of you in waves at the thought of spending the rest of your life with this man. And you couldn’t wait to see what else the world had in store for the two of you. “I love you sugar.” He whispered in your ear, kissing your neck now that the traffic had stopped and the shop was empty, seeing as it was almost closing time.

“I love you too Mendes.” Your smile was evident in your voice.

You felt him smile against your skin. “That’s gonna be your name soon.” His lips trailing down your neck as you gasped

“Hurry and close up baby. I wanna show you just how much I love you.”  You mumbled, grabbing his hand and feeling his fingers brush your ring. And you swore you’d never seen him happier. Or move that fast.

[awrldalone]

17th May 2021, 10.47am

I feel like a spinning top. Going round and round, moving everywhere, dizzy like when you spin on yourself and the world begins to shift.

Saturday was full. Mass was peaceful when I could turn off my brain and neglect the alarms that screamed “hypocrisy” at every word. I discovered Pope Francis changed some of the words to the Padre Nostro, and I wonder why he focused on that rather than actual problems within the church.

Afterwards, we had lunch. My aunt - I had not seen her in a little over a year – said I am too skinny. While I was eating. I have always been told I am too fat, obese, overweight, disgusting. Every family function has been a reminder that I need to lose weight, and now that I have, I’m still not good enough.

Besides, I hate it when people acknowledge my body, or the fact that I am eating. It was fish. A lot of fish. Very tasty, might I add, but my favourite part was the cake.

We got home at around 6pm. I changed, made iced tea and risked to stain my white jeans - they used to be my father’s, but I got them fitted to my waist – and finally I left the house. My little cousin came over, since I was headed to Venice. Yesterday it was C.’s birthday, so she invited a few people at her house, to sleep over (but not to celebrate, since she does not want to recognise that she is of age now.)

On the way, I bought a roll of film. A few days ago, I tried taking out the already-shot film but my camera did not roll it up like it should have. It all got exposed to light. Rendered unusable. Undevelopable. It was sad.

I also bought a cake. An overpriced, over-sweet chocolate mousse. I’m not into that kind of stuff, I’d rather eat something lighter, brighter, fruitier. It almost fell on the ground while I was carrying it. It was cold on my lap, on the bus. 

I went to a café-bar near my school, we often go there to study, but in recent times we’ve also got a spritz or two, and I found everyone sitting near the canal. I was late, but I had already told them, so they were already done with whatever they were eating and drinking. 

C.’s house is near the Hospital, I have learnt the way now, despite the fact Venice always feels similar, every little street blends with the other and it is easy to get lost, or not remember where to go even if the destination is known.

We had fun. Some vodka, a soap-tasting Japanese gin with “delicate layers of yuzu lemon, sake, and a hint of cherry blossom flavour”. I hope no one remembers what was said, because I know that what I said are things I ought to have kept to myself. Things I usually never open up about.

There comes a point in the night when you get the urge to smoke. I’m not a smoker, but the idea of a grey cloud and a cigarette seem a thousand times more appealing when you’re drunk. So we went on the tiny balcony where C.’s mother growths flowers, and we smoked and talked about smoke, and feelings. There also comes a point in the night when talking in a foreign language comes natural. French, English, tous les deux. Slurred Italian words, and a bit of dialect. 

I told C. I cut. She told me she does too. I told her to stop. She told me she won’t. I told her I won’t either. I burnt my hand in three places, tiny red spots still linger like bug bites. That girl who kissed me last summer told me she finds me attractive. She said she likes the veins of my arms and I feel like an asshole writing this. 

I almost passed out with my cheek on the toilet seat, trying to purge but unable to think completely straight, more because of how sleepy I was. I threw my body on the bed.

Sunday I woke up okay. Dehydrated, rotten inside, but okay. 

We planned to study Philosophy. Locke, Hume, Kant. So we went out for breakfast, I tried eating a French Toast but it was too sweet. It looked pretty, sometimes I eat food because of its color colorful (for example, red berries; I like reds and greens). 

I could focus on the words of the book, but Cl. and Ca. were revising out loud, which was distracting. I drunk an americano, it tasted very bad, and I started listening to music. I need to get to know new people. I probably was still a little bit drunk, everything was still in my system. 

At two pm I got up from my chair, the wind was getting colder and I wanted to go home. I said goodbye, they said they were going to leave with me, so we walked. Cl. was not feeling her best because she got vaccinated recently, since she’s diabetic. Thinking about vaccines angers me. A British friend of mine always has to rub in the fact he is fully vaccinated, that he does not need to wear masks in school anymore, and all that shit. It makes me feel black with envy.

At home I studied too. I made myself tea, it tastes like the rose perfume my grandma used to use, in a good way. When my sister and my father left, my mother came into my room to talk to me.

And my heart dropped. Shattered. All the pieces scattered on the floor. She said my sister cried, yesterday night, while I was away. Dangerous shards that can cut flesh. She said it’s because I like boys. She said my older cousin told my younger cousin about a stupid TikTok I made, where I joked about liking men, and my younger cousin told my sister. And she cried. 

Was she ashamed? How can a ten-year-old be so crude? Wrong inside? It still hurts that she would feel that way. 

After dinner, I talked to her. I am grown, old enough to face anything. I asked her about it and I explained that I have nothing to be sorry about, nothing to be scared of, nothing to be ashamed of, and so does she not.

I think everything is okay now, but it still hurts. Broken glass stuck to my feet. I would have told my sister, eventually, I just did not want it to be like this. If my cousins step foot into this house again, I might get violent. 

-c.

[lunchcase]

White Tea

Shifu made it

Smells heavenly. It has a sweet, almost flowery aroma that’s also reflected in the taste. Like a tea field wake up call. Like a very natural sweetness.

Green tea

Smells much more earthy, and concentrated tea. My aunt described it as “like vegetables”, and that’s why you can’t use too hot water when boiling it, because you’ll cook it immediately. You can alter the taste and concentration by adjusting water and leaf ratio. Shifu and aunt said the difference between green and white is the level of processing. Green tea has the least processing, resulting in that earthy note. It’s a very 開胃 (open the stomach) kind of taste, which means it’s perfect for before and after meals, esp. oily meals, or little tea cakes, to make you hungry (before) or soothe any stuffiness (after).

Shifu has much more elaborate tea equipment than I do, and instead of pouring it all into a teapot, he puts leaves in a small cup, pour the hot water in, use the cup lid to stir it a little, and then, using the lid to hold back the leaves, pour it into a second cup, then maybe a third, before pouring properly into the cup to be served, mirroring the tea processes / ceremonies I’ve witnessed in China. The result is a very clean taste, and with every cup produced, the taste gets more and more mellow. It’s a journey that feels like calming down.

If you have white and green together, drink the white first or you’ll lose some of the taste to the stronger green tea.

Taiwanese Oolong

I don’t know how to describe the scent, but the taste is very clear. Aunt says Taiwanese tea tends not to be as bitter, making it a good starter tea, but I personally like the slight bitter tang of tea. The oolong is not as strong as green, but stronger than white. I always thought it’d be good for meals. I think the aftertaste is stronger, and gives more of a rough sensation at the back of your throat. Funny, for all the stronger flavour green is, it feels smoother. This was made by pouring directly into a teapot, and not the more elaborate process of green. Oolong has a distinct taste to it that is very recognizable.

There’s a lot of study to tea and teapots. What makes a good teapot is the material, and you can see good craftsmanship through things like the sprout (see that video). Best practice is, once you use a teapot to make a certain kind of tea, you should only use it for that kind of tea. That helps the pot build flavour - the walls absorb the tea flavour over time, creating stronger flavours that you can smell just from the pot, so each pot, given time, smells distinct of a certain kind of tea.

You don’t drink the first cup. You swirl the tea in the cup to both clean and prepare the cup for its flavour. Powder can also be healthy, but drinking straight from the tea leaves tastes better.

Apparently, drink too much tea and you have to eat something - your stomach becomes too “open”, hence the 開胃.

[wintcrwinds]

(me: matty is on break also me: here is a giant matty factfile)

The Basics

Name? Mateo Rosario Hernandez Moreno

Age? 26

Approximate height? 5′9

Hair colour? Dark brown

Eye colour? Brown

Do they speak with an accent? No

Where are they from? Zuzu City

Where are they now? Stardew Valley

Backstory

Who are their parents? Héctor and Jennifer Moreno

What is their earliest memory? Watching campy old superhero cartoons on tv with his dad, back at their old apartment. Matty would stay up late waiting for him to get home from his job bussing tables at their local diner, and would inevitably fall asleep before the show was over.

What did they want to be when they grew up? A costumed crime-fighter, a server at JojaBurger, or Tony Hawk, in that order.

What did/do their parents want them to be? They don’t really see each other enough to get into it on the job front, though Matty supposes it would’ve been nice if he’d’ve been a tech genius like them - carried on the family business or something.

Do they have siblings? Older or younger? Brothers or sisters? None, but he did have an imaginary older brother in the same way most kids have imaginary friends. Bit sad, innit. 

Do they have or have they ever had children? How many? No, none, and never!

Do they or have ever had a significant other? Are they still with them? Why? Why not? Not a significant other - he’s dated a little, but his enthusiasm tends to scare people off.

Up until now, what’s the most noteworthy thing they’ve done? To them? To the people around them? Matty doesn’t really think he’s done anything noteworthy. Noteworthy things are for other, cooler people.

Tastes

What’s your character’s favourite colour? Red! No, blue! Wait, no, red!

Do they/would they choose to wear a scent? What would it be? Axe bodyspray, he’s rich but also basic.

Do they care about what things look like? All things, or only some? Not at all. His apartment looks like a college dorm crossed with Comic Con crossed with a dumpster.

What’s their favourite ice cream flavour? Phish Food!

Are they a tea, or coffee drinker? Or soft drinks, or do they drink a lot of alcohol? What kind? Doesn’t really drink tea or coffee because his palette is that of a ten year old. He drinks a lot of JojaCola, and only bothers with alcohol when he has someone to share it with. Which isn’t very often.

What kind of books do they read? What TV shows and movies do they watch? Matty doesn’t read anything except for graphic novels and comic books because focusing on lots of words is haaaard. In terms of TV he likes most popular stuff if it isn’t too cerebral, stuff like the Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, anything from the MCU...

What kind of music do they like? Do they like music at all? He likes pop punk mostly, it’s hype!

If they were about to die, what would they have as their last meal? Mexican feast, next question.

Are they hedonistic? In all cases? Or does practicality sometimes/always/often win out? Yeah, in a way! Matty doesn’t see the point in doing stuff if he’s not excited to do it!

Do they have any philias or phobias? Nah.

Morals, Beliefs, and Faith

Do they have an internal or an external moral code? Both?

To what extent are their actions dictated by this code? Mostly, though some things (mostly grafittiing and trespassing) are worth breaking the law for.

Do they believe in a God or Gods/Goddesses/Higher being of some description? Nah.

Are they superstitious? Not really, but he will call out stuff as being bad luck.

Do they believe in an afterlife? If so, what’s it like? Yeah dude, he believes in like... alternate universes. So you die, and then you start your life over again in another version of reality.

Do they have any specific beliefs that manifest obviously? No.

Are they respectful of the beliefs of others? To what extent? Yeah, but he’d rather not talk about it? He thinks religion is private and therefore awkward to talk about.

Have they ever had to stand up to criticism for being religious? Or not being religious? Nope!

Would they be more likely to act for the good of the one, or the good of the many? The good of the many.

Relationships

Do they make friends easily? Not really, in the past people have tended to find his personality too intense to handle, and he has been told frequently that he’s annoying.

Do they have a best friend? It’s Bartholomew, his butler. Bit sad innit.

Can they get people to do what they want them to? If so, how? No. Even bribery doesn’t really work.

Do they have a lot of romantic relationships? Serious, or short term? Matty hasn’t found anyone to tolerate him long enough for any kind of romantic relationship.

Do they fall in and out of love easily? Yeah, he’s a sucker for a pretty face and a kind word.

Do strangers and acquaintances actually like them when they meet? Historically, no, but he’s hoping that will change!

Do they have a network? Not really... his parents are too often absent to count, and Bartholomew can’t be a network on his own.

What is their relationship like with their family? BIT SAD INNIT. Matty really loves his parents, and he knows they love him too, but the physical distance between them has made a metaphorical distance too.

Are they still in touch with non-family people they were in touch with a year ago? Five years? Ten? More? No.

Do they like children? Do they want children of their own? He likes kids (and frankly they usually have overlapping interests), but Matty is more a fun uncle than a father figure, he thinks.

Physical Appearance

How does this character dress? How would they choose to dress, if all options were open to them? T-shirts, hoodies, jeans, converse, denim jacket, and probably a hat of some description. Matty has enough money to dress how he wants, but his tastes trend on the cheaper side.

Do they have any tattoos? What do they mean? None.

Do they have piercings? How many? None, but maybe he wants his nose pierced.

Do they have scars? Where did they come from? Yes, Matty is extremely accident prone and hurts himself a lot. Luckily, most injuries don’t phase him much.

Do they alter their appearance in some way on a regular basis? Nope!

Is there something they’d choose to change about their appearance if they had the opportunity to? His wonky chin? :(

Is there something about their appearance they’re particularly proud of/happy with? His hair!

Objectively, are they physically attractive? Fairly plain? Unattractive? He’s cute for sure.

Do they have an accurate mental picture and opinion of their physical appearance? Yeah dude, Matty knows what he looks like, and he thinks he looks fine!

How much time do they spend thinking about their physical appearance? It would be a lot less if he wasn’t so obsessed with his hair.

General Knowledge

Can they navigate their own local area without getting lost? To what degree? No, his sense of direction is absolute garbage. Without his phone he’d be lost like 90% of the time.

Do they know who the top politician or monarch is where they live? What about elsewhere? He knows Mayor Lewis, does that count?

Do they know if/where there are any major conflicts going on right now? No.

Do they know the composition of water? ... no...

Do they know how to eat a pomegranate? Carefully?

Are they good with the technology available to them? Average? Completely hopeless? Okay, tech is something Matty is good at. 

Could they paint a house? Without making a mess of it? Paint it? Yes. Do it without making a mess? Absolutely not. He’s happy to be invovled though!

Could they bake a cake? Would you eat it if they did? No, and no, he’d try so hard, but he’s literally useless and would definitely give me food poisoning.

Do they know how to perform basic maintenance on the common mode of transportation? He can maintain his skateboard, but that’s it.

Do they know the price of a loaf of bread? How much can a loaf of bread cost? 20G?

Specific Knowledge

Do they have a specific qualification in a narrow area? The only qualification he has is his high school diploma, so no.

Is there something they do or know exceptionally well that most other people don’t? He’s actually a very good artist.

Do people often comment on a particular skill or area of knowledge to this character? Behind their back? Maybe on his lack thereof. Matty doesn’t really give the impression that he has any skills or knowledge. 

Is there an area this character could be considered top of their field or a genius in? God no.

Have they deliberately sought to gain knowledge in a specific area? If so, why? No, he’s stupid :(

Do they speak more than one language? More than two? Why? He speaks an embarrassingly small amount of spanish - the white family butler literally speaks more spanish than him.

Does their cultural background effect what they would be expected to know? I mean, maybe his taste in Mexican food should be better than frozen burritos from JojaMart.

Have they ever been publicly acknowledged for being well-versed in something? Never.

Have they ever been bullied for knowing a lot about something? Yeah, he reaaaally loved superheroes as a kid, and got rinsed for talking about them so much.

Do they actively seek new knowledge, or let it come to them naturally? If anything Matty avoids knowledge.

Miscellaneous

What did they have for breakfast this morning? Dry cereal because his milk went bad and he was too lazy to go and buy more.

What ridiculous belief/s did they have as a child? ): I mean, the imaginary older brother was pretty silly.

Do they like marshmallows? Yeah!

Do they sleep on their side, front, or back? On his front, mouth open, snoring.

Do they work better with sound or silence? Sound! Music makes brain work faster.

Do they have a strange obsession with something minor? His hair? Superheroes?

Do they like art? Uhhhhhh, medium? He likes comics and stuff, but he’s not going to a museum anytime soon.

How fast can they run? Fast!

Do they prefer to sit on the floor or on a chair? Floor.

What do they want, right now? A breakfast burrito. Preferably one he didn’t have to microwave himself.

[despair-tummy]

I know you aren't taking numberd prompt requests, but are you still taking requests, period? Because there's not enough Aoi eating way too many donuts in the world.

Damn anon, you’re right. We need more of this.

[[MORE]]

Days passed since their imprisonment in Hope’s Peak Academy, with still no way out and still no word about anything going on outside the walls of this school. But Aoi tried to stay positive by reminding herself of the few good things.

No one committed a murder, that was one good thing. Oh! And she made an amazing new best friend named Sakura Oogami! And of course, there was the unlimited supply of food that they had in the kitchen and in the storage room. And you know what that meant? Unlimited free donuts!

The very thought of the tasty pastry could make Aoi smile, her mouth would water instantly whenever she got a whiff of sweet donuts. And with easy access to her all-time favourite food, she could go all out with her donut addiction as much as she wanted to! And today was no different.

With Sakura determine to find a suitable partner to spar with, it gave Aoi a bit of time to indulge in her love of donuts.

Aoi raced to her room the moment she got her hands on a box, arriving in record time. She let the door slam shut behind her as she plopped herself on her bed.

“Alright, donut time!” she excitedly cried out to herself.

Years of donut eating had given Aoi the skill of mastering of peeling the annoying small strips of clear tape that kept the pastries locked in their cardboard box prison. So the box was opened with ease and Aoi was face to face with a dozen glorious donuts. Like snowflakes, no two in this box were alike. All twelve were a different kind to offer the full variety of the donut spectrum.

Aoi licked her lips, if these weren’t so tasty she could have stared at these all day like they were the northern lights or an eclipse. But they were beyond delicious so she had no excuse not to eat them!

“Alright, come to mama!” Aoi grinned, eying the selection a final time before she finally made her first choice.

Chocolate dipped was a classic, it was basically the mascot of donuts! With it’s doughy and chewy base and that smooth chocolate frosting goodness it was dipped in. Aoi’s pearly white teeth cleaved through the donut with ease, as she chewed her mind was filled with memories of being a young child and always going for a chocolate dipped donut whenever her parents took her to the bakery. Ah, these brought back some sweet memories, literally.

She wiped her chocolate frosting smeared lips on the sleeve of her sweater (she was planning to wash it tonight anyway) before reaching into the box for a second one. This time Aoi chose a vanilla frosted one with countless rainbow sprinkles.

These ones always reminded Aoi of birthday parties, she and all her friends always had a vanilla poundcake decorated with as many colourful sprinkles as one could put onto a cake. And boy, did this donut taste just like that. All that was missing was a few balloons and streamers and it would be officially be a birthday party... Well, it would also have to actually be someone’s birthday too. So, for now, Aoi would just have to settle on a delicious vanilla frosted donut, which she was glad to do so.

“Delicious!” Aoi said aloud to herself as soon as she swallowed that last bite.

She wasted no time reaching into the box and selected a coconut donut.

Coconut... Aoi could never understand the big deal surrounding the fruit. Some people were disgusted by it so passionately it was ridiculous. Aoi didn’t really care much for coconut on its own, but when it was toasted and used to coat a yummy donut in? She was on cloud nine with each and every bite she took.

Three donuts would seem like a lot to the average joe, but to Aoi, it was just the beginning. Her desire to eat donuts didn’t stop at merely three, oh no. Her insatiable lust for them made her reach into the box a fourth time and fetch a sticky apple fritter.

Upon taking the first bite, Aoi was instantly reminded of her mother’s homemade apple pie. While she was and would always be a donut girl at heart, Aoi couldn’t deny her mother’s apple pie was out of this world! The perfect balance of cinnamon and apples was heaven on her tastebuds, as was this apple fritter.

She licked a layer of glaze and cinnamon off her lips and popped the last bit of the fritter in her mouth before getting another donut.

Ah, the plain donut. Such an underdog in Aoi’s humble opinion, hardly anyone went out of their way to get one, she herself was guilty of this. However, the plain donut was perfect for dipping into teas, coffees and hot chocolate! It’s had no frosting to melt off and it held up very good even when soggy from soaking up liquids. But she had no drink to dunk this underrated donut in, but she intended to still fully enjoy this one!

Dozens of crumbs fell from her mouth and either onto herself or on the sheets of her bed. Hardly a concern being as she could always just give the sheets a good shake to tidy them up.

Now with the plain one out of the way, what to eat next?

Her sticky and crumb coated fingers snatched up a honey crueller. Oh how Aoi loved these, they were her absolute favourite. But then again her favourite donut changes almost daily.

But even with her indecisive nature when it came to favourites, it didn’t keep her from enjoying the light and sweet taste of the crueller.

With half a dozen donuts eaten, it was hardly surprising the swimmer’s midsection was rounder by the sheer amount she managed to eat. Sure she was full, but the allure of the pastries was filling her mind with such a powerful temptation that even the most strong-willed people couldn’t turn down.

Next up was the bear claw, rather an ironic choice considering their captor was literally a bear. But even Monokuma and his sick and twisted love of despair couldn't ruin her love for the mighty bear claw! It would be an almost fun way to spite the evil mechanical bear if he cared about such things. Who knows, maybe if she ate enough bear claws it would annoy Monokuma? Aoi certainly wasn’t going to pass up an excuse to eat more donuts.

She chuckled to herself at the thought, it was a silly idea but an entertaining one. But what was more entertaining was getting another donut from the box. This time she decided on yet another classic, the jelly donut. Aoi always did love a well-filled donut, the filling always added an extra touch of yumminess. And with a jelly filling? It was perfect. Especially since it was often a surprise what flavour of the jam was used... well that was only if you never bothered to read the label. But hey, donuts were more important than reading! And she liked all the jellies! Strawberry, blueberry, lemon, and she loved them all! There was no such thing as a bad jelly donut!

Much to her delight that last statement was proven true when the sweet and tart taste of lemon jelly spread on her tastebuds amidst the powdered sugar and doughy pastry.

Licking white powder off her lips and fingertips, Aoi selected a maple bar as her next donut to devour. Even as her bloated stomach gurgled in protest, begging the donut addict to please stop with the overload of sugar and carbs. But Aoi persisted, taking a massive bite of the bar.

Instantly the strong and sweet taste of maple spread throughout her mouth. It reminded her of the maple syrup she would drown her pancakes whenever she adds them. Being the sugar junkie she was, there was no such thing as too sweet!

Only three donuts left, and you didn’t have a be a rocket scientist to know Aoi intended to eat them all. She picked up a cinnamon twist, taking a short moment to admire the pretty little braid. It was rather adorable not to mention amazing what bakers could do. Maybe once she got out of here she could try and learn how to make such cute pastries. Or maybe she could try and teach herself while trapped here? It wasn’t like anyone else was using the flour stocked in the kitchen. Long as she cleaned up after herself no one could complain.

But enough thinking, it was time for eating! And sure enough, the cinnamon twist disappeared from her hand and travelled down her gullet to her gut.

Aoi was down to two donuts, Boston cream and chocolate glaze. Both of which were equally good in their own ways. Seeing as she was going to eat them both, Aoi just grabbed one at random without thinking it over. And the second to last donut she was going to eat? It would be a tasty chocolate glazed.

She loved these ones, they tasted like that chocolate cake Yuta always got for his birthday, minus the thick layer of chocolate frosting. No wonder her brother loved them. They were so moist and chocolatey, perfect for chocolate lovers worldwide!

Last but not least, the Boston cream. Aoi actually had a bittersweet relationship with this particular donut. One time for a prank her younger brother decided to remove the creamy refilling and replace it with mayonnaise. Needless to say, the prank put her off of Boston creams for a year! Something unheard of coming from Aoi Asahina, a lover of all donuts! But she was working through her issues, and what better way to do that than to eat one?

Once the creamy middle hit her tastebuds, Aoi felt relief wash over her as she was met with a sweet filling instead of mayonnaise. Yes, this was much better. Maybe getting over her trust issues with Boston creams would be easier than she thought?

And so, all twelve donuts were eaten. The only things that remained were a few crumbs and sticky smears of glaze and frosting.

Aoi hiccuped and wiped her mouth on her sleeve.

“Oof... that was good,” she said, lazily draping a hand over her taut belly. “Can’t wait to do it again.” her lips curled into a smile. “Maybe I’ll get two dozen next time.” Aoi chuckled to herself.

[qvietlight]

time for the big archie fact file!!

The Basics

Name? Archie Virginia Taylor

Age? 37

Approximate height? 5′8

Hair colour? Blonde

Eye colour? Blue

Do they speak with an accent? No

Where are they from? Zuzu City

Where are they now? Stardew Valley

Backstory

Who are their parents? Charles and Anthea Taylor

What is their earliest memory? Meeting her little brother, Aubrey, for the first time. She turned to her parents and asked if they were sure he had to come home with them.

What did they want to be when they grew up? Still a ghost hunter, but more the Scooby Doo type - busting baddies and hanging out with the loch ness monster.

What did/do their parents want them to be? Archie’s job is a point of contention with her father. Charles wants her to have a ‘proper’ career. Any career. Preferably something in an office that made use of her degree.

Do they have siblings? Older or younger? Brothers or sisters? Yes, one younger brother, Aubrey. He’s adopted, and they have a very good relationship.

Do they have or have they ever had children? How many? No. Gross.

Do they or have ever had a significant other? Are they still with them? Why? Why not? Penelope. They were together for fifteen years, and broke up only a couple of months ago. Penelope wanted to get married, Archie didn’t.

Up until now, what’s the most noteworthy thing they’ve done? To them? To the people around them? To Archie? Starting That’s the Spirit! To other people? Graduating summa cum laude from Colombia with joint honours in Sociology and Political Science.

Tastes

What’s your character’s favourite colour? Red

Do they/would they choose to wear a scent? What would it be? She wears a Jo Malone scent - Blackberry and Bay.

Do they care about what things look like? All things, or only some? In some ways? She likes things organised, and likes to appear put-together herself.

What’s their favourite ice cream flavour? Pistachio.

Are they a tea, or coffee drinker? Or soft drinks, or do they drink a lot of alcohol? What kind? Coffee coffee coffee! She doesn’t really drink soft drinks, but in terms of alcohol, she prefers her drinks uncomplicated. Beer, whiskey, etc.

What kind of books do they read? What TV shows and movies do they watch? Mostly non-fiction, she’s always looking to expand her knowledge in whatever way she can, but she does have a soft spot for pulpy detective novels. In terms of TV, she watches lots of documentaries, and likes British Crime dramas. She’s also a big Twin Peaks fan.

What kind of music do they like? Do they like music at all? Is it loud? Angry? Fronted by a female singer? She’s into it.

If they were about to die, what would they have as their last meal? Japanese food. Bang bang cauliflower, gyoza, yaki soba...

Are they hedonistic? In all cases? Or does practicality sometimes/always/often win out? No, Archie is practical to a fault.

Do they have any philias or phobias? Not really. She’s largely unflappable.

Morals, Beliefs, and Faith

Do they have an internal or an external moral code? Internal, I guess. She’s not above a little light law-breaking to accomplish what she needs. 

To what extent are their actions dictated by this code? Mostly?

Do they believe in a God or Gods/Goddesses/Higher being of some description? Nah.

Are they superstitious? Not really.

Do they believe in an afterlife? If so, what’s it like?  Not really. All of her research has disproved an afterlife so far.

Do they have any specific beliefs that manifest obviously? No.

Are the respectful of the beliefs of others? To what extent? She tries to be. But some people are stupid.

Have they ever had to stand up to criticism for being religious? Or not being religious? Nope.

Would they be more likely to act for the good of the one, or the good of the many? The good of the one.

Relationships

Do they make friends easily? Not at all. Her personality is kind of abrasive.

Do they have a best friend? It was Penelope. So not anymore.

Can they get people to do what they want them to? If so, how? Sometimes? Mostly though just being completely relentless.

Do they have a lot of romantic relationships? Serious, or short term? Not a lot. She had a couple of girlfriends in college before Penelope, but that’s all.

Do they fall in and out of love easily? Not at all. It takes her a long time to warm to people.

Do strangers and acquaintances actually like them when they meet? No.

Do they have a network? Probably just her dad and brother now. 

What is their relationship like with their family? Complex. After her mother died, she and Aubrey were raised very hands-off, and their father always treated them as adults rather than children because he simply didn’t know how else to relate to them. Archie and her father are very alike, which is part of the reason they butt heads so much. But there is no doubting their love for each other. 

Are they still in touch with non-family people they were in touch with a year ago? Five years? Ten? More? She’s got a couple of friends from college she still talks to, but her social group isn’t exactly huge.

Do they like children? Do they want children of their own? No, and no. 

Physical Appearance

How does this character dress? How would they choose to dress, if all options were open to them? Mostly dark clothes, clean and simple, and Doc Martens.

Do they have any tattoos? What do they mean? None.

Do they have piercings? How many? Just her ears, one in each lobe and one in her right cartilage.

Do they have scars? Where did they come from? Yes, from gender reassignment surgery. 

Do they alter their appearance in some way on a regular basis? She wears makeup almost every day.

Is there something they’d choose to change about their appearance if they had the opportunity to? Nope, she looks hot. 

Is there something about their appearance they’re particularly proud of/happy with? She’s got nice eyes, and she likes her freckles. 

Objectively, are they physically attractive? Fairly plain? Unattractive? Attractive...

Do they have an accurate mental picture and opinion of their physical appearance? Yes, I think so.

How much time do they spend thinking about their physical appearance? Not much at all anymore. She looks how she always wanted.

General Knowledge

Can they navigate their own local area without getting lost? To what degree? Yeah, she’s confident and fairly intuitive.

Do they know who the top politician or monarch is where they live? What about elsewhere? Yes, she tries to keep up to date with current affairs, being a Poli-Sci major.

Do they know if/where there are any major conflicts going on right now? Yes.

Do they know the composition of water? Yeah.

Do they know how to eat a pomegranate? Obviously.

Are they good with the technology available to them? Average? Completely hopeless? Her lifestyle is very tech-based, so yes.

Could they paint a house? Without making a mess of it? She certainly thinks she could - whether that’s actually true is debatable.

Could they bake a cake? Would you eat it if they did? She can follow instructions because she’s not an idiot, so the cake would be fine, but she wouldn’t be excited to waste time on it.

Do they know how to perform basic maintenance on the common mode of transportation? She knows how to change a tire and the oil in her car. She has to, since her car is a pile of crap.

Do they know the price of a loaf of bread? Yes.

Specific Knowledge

Do they have a specific qualification in a narrow area? No, he dropped out of college.

Is there something they do or know exceptionally well that most other people don’t? Well, she knows a lot about mythology and the supernatural. 

Do people often comment on a particular skill or area of knowledge to this character? Behind their back? Probably not?

Is there an area this character could be considered top of their field or a genius in? Probably not. She’s very intelligent, but lots of people are.

Have they deliberately sought to gain knowledge in a specific area? If so, why? She deliberately seeks knowledge in many different areas, because you can never be too educated.

Do they speak more than one language? More than two? Why? She speaks English, and some rudimentary Chinese and Spanish. It just seemed smart to learn.

Does their cultural background effect what they would be expected to know? Idk, white people shit?

Have they ever been publicly acknowledged for being well-versed in something? Well, she graduated college summa cum laude so yes!

Have they ever been bullied for knowing a lot about something? People wouldn’t dare. She’s scary.

Do they actively seek new knowledge, or let it come to them naturally? Actively.

Miscellaneous

What did they have for breakfast this morning? A cup of coffee. 

What ridiculous belief/s did they have as a child? ): None really. 

Do they like marshmallows? Not really. Not vegetarian.

Do they sleep on their side, front, or back? Side

Do they work better with sound or silence? Sound, but only sound she can moderate herself.

Do they have a strange obsession with something minor? Ghosts? Mythological creatures?

Do they like art? Some? 

How fast can they run? Fast enough.

Do they prefer to sit on the floor or on a chair? Chair.

What do they want, right now? Another cup of coffee. And a cigarette.

[elinaline]

Got tagged by @mixmio​ thanks ! my brain does not want to focus on work these days so perfect

1. What is the colour of your hairbrush?

it’s like. black. I rarely use it though, because if I brush my hair it looks like a bomb exploded on my head fdjkfh so I untangle it after putting in conditioner and usually I just fight it with my bare hands in the morning

2. name of a food you never eat?

cucumber. fuck that vegetable it’s disgusting way too smelly and the texture is fucking horrible

3. are you typically too warm or too cold?

too warm !!!!!! and it’s only gonna get worse (: woohoo

4. what were you doing 45 minutes ago?

I was being anxious lmao, and weirdly emotional because of that playlist spotify gave me. Also thinking about how to formulate the things I want on my report for my precedent internship that I still need to conclude.

5. what’s your favourite candy bar?

is it twix ? is it mars ? I never know the difference carambar good also

6. have you ever been to a professional sports event?

I used to be in the official orchestra of a professional rugby team so I’ve been to a few dozens official sports events actually !! I’ll always remember the patrouille the France oing over our head as we were playing for a France-Ireland match in Bordeaux, that was amazing, and Irish rugby fans are so fun :)

7. what is the last thing you said out loud?

“oh it’s bubbling up !” talking about a cake I’m trying to do with sourdough starter

8. what is your favourite ice cream?

fucking uuuhhhhh blueberry ? there’s no better ice cream taste than one made from wild blueberries that you went out in the moutain to pick with your family after noticing a good spot during a hike :3

9. what is the last thing you had to drink?

orange juice 5mins ago

10. do you like your wallet?

yeah ? it’s convenient I.... it’s got lots of pockets ? idk it’s sturdy wh. that’s a weird question actually

11. what was the last thing you ate?

lunch made by my roommate ! also a bit of the paste from aforementioned cake lol

12. did you buy any new clothes last week?

no I don’t intend on buying new clothes until a loooonnnngggg time I don’t particularly need any plus like. quarantine lol.

13. last sporting event you watched?

uh.

the. no wait ? no that’s it probably bits of the tour de france last summer ?

14. what’s your favourite flavour of popcorn?

there are different flavors between salt and sugar ???????????? anyways salted popcorn is absolutely disgusting so. sugar. there are different flavors ? what a wild world we live in

15. who was the last person you sent a message to?

@breadstyx​ I was talking to them about the cake

16. ever go camping?

rarely

we were supposed to go camping this weekend, since it’s a long one what with May 8, with my class as sort of like one last big event altogether but :) fuck us I guess lol

17. do you take vitamins?

I used to in highschool bc I had toxoplasmosis and it fucking drained me. I’ve also taken some magnesium complements this year because I had vertigo caused by stress because it was such a nice year for me (: (: (:

18. do you go to church every Sunday?

LMAOOOOO NO

19. do you have a tan?

I’ve been stuck inside for the last two months and there is basically no direct sun in my apartment. so. I’m white as fuck rn

I’ll get SO sunburnt as soon as I can go outside lol but catch me rolling in the grass as soon as they reopen the parks, I haven’t seen grass in 52 days fuck off. Like knowing we’d get out of quarantine but that the parks would still be closed for a while did a funny number on my mental health hahaaaa

20. do you prefer Chinese food or pizza?

I’m not a big Chinese food fan generally :/ also what kind of pizza are we talking about ?

21. do you drink soda with a straw?                      

before I answer this question I need to know what you define as soda because I’ve never understood what non French people meant by that. also generally I don’t use straws apart for like milkshakes and smoothies

22. what colour socks do you wear?

right now I’m barefoot

23. do you ever drive above the speed limit?

I haven’t driven in years my guy fdkfh but usually no I’m exactly at the speed limit I’m terrified of driving and I hate it SO

24. what terrifies you?

like, right now, or ? in general ? I’m terrified of every countries around slowly turning into authoritarian regimes and not being able to do shit, I’m terrified of the general mistrust towards science I can see in the general public, I’m terrified of the rise of fascism, I’m terrified of climate change in a very short term idea because I can’t bear many more summers above 45°C and in the long term because I’d like today’s kids to have a future, I’m terrified of never being enough and not getting a PhD funding, I’m terrified people will get bored of me or think I’m not useful anymore and leave me and I’d have to rebuild myself from zero again, I’m terrified of the general idea of losing control, I’m terrified of big empty spaces, I’m terrified of causing harm of any kind without being able to control or reduce it. You know the usual dose of existential fear and then some, and then some more for good measure haha :)

25. look to your left what do you see?

a calendar

26. what chore do you hate?

doing the dishes and getting the bin out because it hurts my back

27. what do you think of when you hear an Australian accent?

":)” loved going to Melbourne would love to go back I miss my friend there

28. what’s your favourite soda?

seriously define soda first. If you mean drink with bubble I don’t like any of them basically. If you mean processed drink with an average of five sugar cubes per can I’d say Oasis ? or Ice Tea

29. do you go into fast food places or drive thru?

never been to a drive through. fast foods yeah ! there used to be a Declercq (it’s like belgian fries, v good, v greasy, perfect for a friday night with friends) near my school but they had an oil fire so it burned down :( so now the alternative for greasy fries is BK

30. who was the last person you talked to?

@breadstyx​ whom I sent a message to about the cake. IRL I live with my roommate so.

t31. favourite cut of beef?

one that’s tender ? you think I know perfectly which cut is what and not that I don’t buy the cheapest one when I feel like polluting a lot with what I eat ?

32. last song you listened to?

I’m currently listening to a spotify playlist. I’s currently playing hang on

Willow tree by twin wild i’ve never heard of these guys but ok

33. last book you read?

oh fuck I’m in a “unable to read” period lmao. Probably one of the October Daye series uh. The one where her mom comes to steal her fiance and her twin

34. can you say the alphabet backwards?

zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihfedcba

took a while but I think it’s correct ? It’s like. I know sequences that are easy to invert and I need to link them together that’s the tricky part

35. how do you like your coffee?

black

36. favourite pair of shoes?

Before I bought my docks I had those huge bulgy shoes that I loved because no one could step on my feet in the metro, but the insole started caving in in a weird way and it hurt my ankle so I had to stop wearing them :(

37. the time you normally go to bed?

(: NORMALLY around midnight, but rn it’s more like. between 1 and 2 am when I’m not too bad

38. the time you normally wake up?

NORMALLY around 8 but I’ve decided 9.30 would be good, and I usually am able to get up only by 10am

39. what do you prefer sunrise or sunsets?

I’m usually not awake for sunrises but both are good. I like the hour JUST after sunset best because it’s like. you can see daysky on one side and nightsky on the other, and everything is sort of blue or sort of orange

40. how many blankets are on your bed?

one

41. describe your kitchen plates?

they’re round and kinda concave so that food doesn’t get out ? I? do you have many weird questions like that

42. do you have a favourite alcoholic beverage?

I’m a sucker for a good piña colada but it’s hard to get them exactly right, like the balance between too sweet and too creamy is subtle

43. do you play cards?

in highschool I used to but I’ve forgotten all the game we’d do

44. what colour is your car?

don’t have one

45. can you change a tire?

lmao

46. your favourite province?

If we’re talking french region, Aquitaine is the closest I’ve ever felt to being home I guess ? I love the Pyrenées as well, all three old regions I don’t know the new ones fdfsdhfsdf

47. favourite job you’ve had?

I’ve only ever done summer camp counselor as a summer job, and I’ve had both a traumatising experience filled with sexual harassment and a really good experience that helpes me get more self confident so.

48. how did you get your biggest scar?

it’s not really a scar it’s a bump on my head that never left, I hit my brother in the garden pool at full speed when I was 7

49. what did you do today that made someone happy?

afaik nothing but I’m about to put this cake to bake SO

I am tagging uuuuuuuuuhhh say @sunny-day-sky andddd @queerlynx but like. don’t feel pressured to do it, it’s a Lot

[partwildflower]

Great ice cream parlours around the world

Wherever you are in the world, ice cream is the quintessential summer treat. Whether you’re cycling in Copenhagen or temple-touring in Tokyo, exploring famous streets or keeping off the beaten track, we’ve scooped up a selection of fantastic parlours offering you respite from a sweltering day. All you’ve left to do is answer the all-important question: what’s your flavour?

Ice cream sandwiches at Ruby Violet, London. Image courtesy of Danielle Wood/Ruby Violet

Ruby Violet, London

We love the flavours at this quaint, blue-tiled London hideout, where extraordinary flavours are presented in an array of forms – from milkshakes and affogato to sofa floats and the Meringue Muddle, comprising two scoops with meringue bathed in hot salted caramel or chocolate sauce. If none of these will tide you over, you can also pick from a tantalising selection of cocktails, tea, coffee and hot chocolate, or indulge even further with an ice cream afternoon tea, ice cream cake or elegant bombe. The parlour was brought to life by Julie Fisher – who’s so good at crafting the creamy stuff, she’s even published her own recipe book, Ruby Violet’s Ice Cream Dreams.

Address: 118 Fortess Rd, London NW5 2HL

Le Bac à Glaces, Paris

All journeys to Paris should begin and end with a taste of its sweetest snacks: for the best artisanal ice cream try the chic and sophisticated Bac à Glaces, which makes its own creamy delights using natural produce and fresh fruit. Some stunning French flavours are just a scoop away: choose from chestnut, coffee, nougat, salted caramel, white cheese, speculoos and more, or opt for a selection of refreshing sorbets ranging from pink grapefruit to passionfruit.

Address: 109 Rue du Bac, 75007 Paris, France

Image courtesy of Oddfellows Ice Cream Co.

OddFellows Ice Cream Co., New York City

On your next trip to Brooklyn, New York City, make a stop at OddFellows Ice Cream Co. where the ice cream is pasteurised and made from scratch to guarantee a rich and flavourful snack. A bright vintage-inspired parlour featuring red-and-white striped interiors, it offers a different array of flavours each day – standouts include buttermilk apple, matcha passionfruit, pumpkin cheesecake, roasted pear and caramel walnut, and black olive coffee with blueberry compote.

Address: 175 Kent Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11249, USA

OLUFs, Copenhagen

About as colourful as Copenhagen’s architecture, the ice cream bars over at OLUFs in Osterbro are treats to both the eyes and tongue. Each one is a work of art in its own right: whether chocolate-dipped, pistachio-flecked or coconut-covered, the home-made Italian gelatos and sorbets are smothered and sprinkled to perfection – they’re so pretty, they’re the kind of snack you’ll want to be seen eating as you amble down the city’s stylish streets.

Address: Olufsvej 6, 2100 København, Denmark

Popbar, Jakarta

While we’re on the subject of popsicles, another venue to try is the amazing Popbar, which has made the rounds in the United States and proves a refreshing option to beat the heat with in Jakarta. You can customise a selection of pretty pastel popGelatos and popSorbettos with hundreds of toppings. Some eye-poppingly fruity flavours here include guava, papaya, watermelon, kiwi, mandarin and banana.

Address: Jl. Letjen S. Parman Kav. 28, Central Park Lt. L No. 157, RT.12/RW.6, Tj. Duren Sel., Grogol petamburan, Kota Jakarta Barat, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 11470, Indonesia

Image courtesy of Salt & Straw

Salt & Straw, Portland

Pear and blue cheese, strawberry honey balsamic with black pepper, chocolate gooey brownie, and honey lavender are just some of the unique combinations that can be found at Salt & Straw’s Portland joint, which brings creativity and refinement to the table with frosty flair. Teamed with a rustic interior, where wooden floors and produce-lined furnishings glow in the sun, this little spot is perfect for whiling a post-lunch afternoon away.

Address: 838 NW 23rd Ave, Portland, OR 97210, USA

Glaslyn Ices, Beddgelert

Far removed from bustling big cities, this little Welsh parlour comes as quite a surprise, with award-winning ice cream that’s irresistibly thick and served on a tasty waffle cone. You’ll find it in the picturesque village of Beddgelert, set in the gorgeous Snowdonia area of Gwynedd. Pick up a crème caramel, white chocolate or butterscotch and pecan snack, to savour on a leisurely stroll along the river.

Address: Beddgelert, Caernarfon, Gwynedd County LL55 4YB

Rocambolesc, Barcelona

Located in Barcelona, this little treasure of a gelateria is a dream come true for every kid at heart. Imagined by Jordi Roca of El Celler de Can Roca fame, its cute interior makes for an upscale Roald Dahl-esque experience – think giant candy-striped pipes, bicycle wheels and colourful illustrations straight out of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We haven’t even mentioned the best part: uniquely-shaped popsicles and freshly-churned, 100% natural ice cream, popped onto a long waffle cone and decorated with many a great topping. On less sunny days, try the panet – lush ice cream and toppings wedged between two brioche halves.

Address: La Rambla, 51-59, 08002 Barcelona, Spain

Image courtesy of Gelato Messina

Gelato Messina, Sydney

Voted the home of Australia’s best gelato by Good Food Guide, Gelato Messina serves whopping, mouth-wateringly messy portions to more than satisfy your sweet tooth with. Five special flavours are introduced weekly alongside the usual crowd favourites, which include panna cotta with fig jam and amaretti biscuit, macadamia crunch, apple pie, and pear and rhubarb. Gelato cakes are also available – options include the quirky Dr Evil’s Magic Mushroom, the epic hazelnut and caramel affair that is The Golden 8, and the more sophisticated Bombe Alaska.

Address: level g/80 Pyrmont St, Pyrmont NSW 2009, Australia

Giolitti, Rome

Giolitti is one for all serious foodies to top their ice cream bucket list with: founded in 1890, this popular parlour is the oldest in Rome and constantly buzzes with eager crowds. Try a rainbow of traditional and harmonious flavours, each perfected by years of experience and served in generous portions. Follow a cone up with a delectable ice cream biscuit, cake or truffle, or opt for the most indulgent Mont Blanc dessert.

Address: Via degli Uffici del Vicario, 40, 00186 Roma RM, Italy

Gelateria Sincerita, Tokyo

Once you’ve finished tackling Tokyo’s savoury treats, head off to find this quiet, dainty and adorable hideout in Suginami. Everything here is coloured in feminine shades of pastel, making for a sophisticated Italian gelato experience in the heart of Japan. Get your hands on a scoop of coconut, maple, fresh milk, white berry or cheese and fig ice cream, all served in a dainty cup, and grab yourself a warming coffee for the road.

Address: 1 Chome-43-7 Asagayakita, Suginami, Tokyo 166-0001, Japan

Written for Secret Escapes’ blog, The Great Escape, published 14 September 2018.

[tessmontyart]

2018 Year In Review

Another year, another review 💕(I actually typed most of this up before 2019 and then got distracted, whoops)

To put things short, 2018 has been AWESOME :D Exhausting and fast, but awesome.

I started it off pretty uncertain how things were going to go, dreading it would be a repeat of 2017′s boring TAFE courses and endless job rejections. But the miracle happened - a 2D animation studio opened up near me, I applied, did an animation test and got the job!

The job was a contract from 1st of April - 21st of December, so I spent the majority of my year going to work to animate characters for a really crazy but hilarious new kids show called Spongo Fuzz and Jalapena, due to air mid 2019 :) 

It was honestly the most fun job I have ever had and I can’t wait for the next project! 🎉 I have never been this exhausted in my life, though. 😅I had already booked a whole bunch of conventions before I got the job, and didn’t want to cancel them so I was working nonstop - Animation during the day and intensive convention prep every night. 

I also had the bright idea of creating a full colour 26 page comic -with a tight deadline - so I was madly working to the point I didn’t even have time for dinner half the time :’) I am sort of happy with the comic, but also kind of wish I never had the idea in the first place. 😅

I tabled at a ton of conventions; Melbourne Supanova, Central Coast ComiCon, Other Worlds Zine Fair, Sydney Supanova, SMASH and Canberra Gamma Con. If next year doesn’t go so well on the job side of things I’m hoping to add a few more conventions to that list - Brisbane Supanova, Oz Comic Con and Animaga to name a few. I’ve already booked Sydney Madman Anime Festival!

2018 was the year my partner and I celebrated our 4th year together, and he never fails to amaze me with his continuous love and support. I was too sick to attend the first day of SMASH, so he set up and ran the whole stall for me while I stayed at home. Same with Sydney Supanova, I was too bogged down in animation work and couldn’t afford to take the Friday off, so he set up and ran the stall for me on Friday, then we ran the stall together on the weekend. He also tended to my every need when I broke my toe, cooked all my meals when I was busy with work and even packaged + posted all my Etsy orders every day because I was always working during post office hours. He listened to all the problems I was having with my stall setup and helped make shelves and decorations to make it look and function better. I was getting stressed because my desk space was too small, BAM he bought me a brand new desk with plenty of storage. I was getting stressed that I had so much on my convention to-do-list and couldn’t keep track of all my project ideas, BAM, he sets up a whiteboard and helps me brainstorm everything so I can keep track of all my thoughts and ideas and what to prioritise for future conventions. I didn’t even ask him to do any of this, he just loves to help me and make me happy and I am forever blissed and happy to be able to spend my life with such a wonderful human! 

(Home made High Tea I made for him on Valentines Day) 

Arsty Highlilghts / accomplishments:

🌸I designed 9 cute Houseki no Kuni acrylic charms which have been doing really well at conventions!

🌸I also drew a cute series of ‘Sleepy Gem’ Houseki no Kuni / Steven Universe holographic prints, which I’m quite proud of 😊

🌸I created my 2nd enamel pin design, which already needed 2 reorders because they were so popular! ;w; I never knew I could make something that so many people love *sob* I’ve already planned to make these into a series! (already designed some deer ones, and thinking of doing foxes next ^_^ )

🌸I also tried getting gold foil prints done for the first time, which was pretty cool! I got the american sizes mixed up though so I might try for the bigger size next time :) (grainy photo cause its a screenshot from a video)

🌸I’ve been taking steps to make my stall look more ‘professional’, and got a really neat wooden sign made for me by my friend as_sweet_as_jasmine!

🌸I’ve started revamping my favourite series of posters - the Eevee Gijinka girls :) I plan to have them all done and ready for 2019s conventions! 

🌸This was the year I got an iPad, so I could do digital art on-the-go. Honestly its helped me so much, and I can’t wait to be able to use it more (sorta didn’t get a chance to touch it while i was working!)

🌸I got Copic Markers for my birthday so I had a whole new medium to play with! These mixed with using a brush pen for inking really make my inktobers pop and I’m eager to draw more with them  :) 

🌸Speaking of Inktober, it was a huge accomplishment for me to put effort into a decent artwork every day this year! Usually theres a few dud ones when I lacked inspiration, but I somehow managed to make it work ;w; So when it came time to printing the books, theres 31 illustrations rather than 25 like the others :) Also the whole rainbow theme idea came from how cool I think it would look flipping through a rainbow book - so I managed to make that happen and couldn’t be happier!

🌸I passed 1000 sales on Etsy!! 😱As well as 1000 followers on instagram! Crazy right??

General 2018 highlights

🌸2018 was the year one of my best friends got married! I made cute little clay wedding cake toppers for her :)

🌸The year Owl City’s 7th album Cinematic came out!! All the tracks are so GOOD and exactly the sound all us hootowls were longing for. Also Be Brave is a tearjerker, in a good way. What an amazing human Abbey is to Adam <3 

🌸The year Spyro Reignited Trilogy came out!! It’s absolutely amazing, and I love every second of it. Every time I play it I just can’t help but stand there looking around at every detail because everything is just so gorgeous *_* And the nostalgia is so real.

🌸Not exactly a highlight but the year Tumblr went NSFW free, and lost hundreds of thousands of users 😂I’m still here though. Got a dumb tradition to keep up ya know.

🌸The year my work had a hilarious Christmas party where we had to dress up as a character from Spongo Fuzz and Jalapena. It was the first time I actually put effort into a cosplay by myself 😂(possibly the last) (wont put a photo up for embarrassing reasons)

🌸the year I broke my toe for the first time xD;; definitely not a highlight but a first! I couldn’t walk for weeks! it sucked!!! T__T

🌸The year my friend successfully funded his kickstarter for his own cartoon ‘Nurry Brothers Adventure World’ :D So proud of him. I’m gonna help him animate!

🌸The year Lano and Woodley reunited with their amazing show ‘Fly’!! I loved it so much I saw it twice :D 

🌸The year I tried doing Halloween for the first time - I bought a bunch of lollies and chocolates and decorations on my letterbox/door to let people know I was participating. I got 2 different groups of people at the door, 5 people all up 😂More than I expected tbh!

🌸I tried Ruby chocolate for the first time! It was ok .. just kinda tasted like berry yoghurt flavoured white chocolate though ;w; 

SO! What’s coming for 2019?

I’m not really sure at the moment, but I have high hopes for Cheeky Little Studios (the animation company I worked for) - so I guess I’ll just have to wait and see if any of their next projects get concrete start dates :) I’m not as terrified of the year as I usually am when its just one big question mark. I know I can make decent money through conventions and commissions in the meant time so I’ll just continue doing what I love! 

LAST YEAR I SAID:

“I am crossing my fingers for an animation job I applied for a while ago” - I GOT IT! :D

“I plan to do even more conventions. Hopefully I can get into Oz Comic Con!" - didn’t end up applying because I was busy with the job, but keen to try for 2019 :)

"I’m keen to apply for like Animaga in Melbourne, as well as Madman Anime Fest in Brisbane and Melbourne.” - didn’t end up doing so for the same reason above, but that might change this year :)

“I also want to make a lot more non-fandom things for market stalls, as well as a comic and zines!” - I made the comic, as well as 3 inktober zines and a cute ‘if I fits I sits’ cat zine! As well as a bunch of cute original enamel pin ideas and my whole inktober was original art :D 

“Hopefully I’ll hit 1k followers on fb/ig? :D that will make me feel important lol” - I hit 1k on instagram!! I felt very important xD

“I’m also hoping to go on a holiday this year." - I didn’t, for job reasons ... buuut I’m booked in for a cruise in Italy / Greece this September that I’m extremely excited for!

“PLEASE BE KIND 2018, I’M BEGGING YOU 😱” - You were very very kind to me, 2018. 2019, please follow suit! 

(man this is the 7th year of review I’ve done. Can’t believe I’ve been on tumblr this long 😅)

[2017] [2016] [2015] [2014] [2013] [2012]

[thisislizheather]

May Misery 2020

How is it June? Imagine that this year is just a nightmare that we’re all simultaneously having? I should use this space to be uplifting, but hope is exhausting at the current moment. All I can tell you are the things that either brought me joy or displeasure from the last month. That’s all I can do at the moment. And that’s definitely a privilege right now, I understand. I feel helpless, hopeless and like nothing is going in the right direction. This is a terrible intro, so let’s just get into all the meaningless trash that I did last month.

My brother Gary made this great video on how to make KFC gravy and you might think I’m biased, but he’s just so fun to watch. Love it so much.

I rewatched two Alfred Hitchcock movies: Rope (still such a great motive, one of his best) and Rear Window (which is average as hell, the idea of the story is so much better than the execution of the movie). Also, it made me really laugh hearing Nathan say, “If you can’t kill your wife, whose wife CAN you kill?“

Are you aware that they’re still making new flavours of M&Ms? I tried the fudge brownie flavour and I gotta say, they just taste like regular ass M&Ms.

I had completely forgotten about this amazing ricotta toast (thank you, Marla) recipe that I loved from years ago. Everyone should make it. It sounds like such a boring recipe, but it’s incredible. Of course it’s from Ina.

A great article about apologizing.

We keep making these chickpea pitas and likely won’t stop.

Months ago I bought this white poncho on sale for basically nothing because I thought this was my year of travel. Yeah. Great purchase.

I watched the Michelle Obama documentary, Becoming, and it’s obviously inspiring and great. Love the woman.

I’ve mentioned before how walnuts in pesto are way tastier than pine nuts, right? Cheaper, too. In any case, I can’t stop making this walnut pesto.

I watched the first season of Awkwafina is Nora From Queens and it’s SUCH A GOOD SHOW. Every single character is great. Perfect show.

I made this banana cake again, mostly because of that damn frosting. Even if you’re just making a regular cake, you should do it with this coffee cream cheese frosting.

Every morning for the past few weeks, I’ve been making this iced coffee protein shake (below). It might be the only thing I look forward to at this point in time. (It tastes pretty similar to a Tim Horton’s Iced Capp, just less sugary.)

I only wear one perfume (Miracle by Lancome), but I’m almost completely out of it (and won’t repurchase anytime soon since these are not the times to be buying luxurious items) so I’ve been wearing Fresh Cream by Philosophy that I got as a gift last year and I kind of love it. It makes me smell like a cake.

I’m still making these halloumi hummus bowls for lunch, but I’ve amended the recipe slightly by adding chopped basil instead of oregano and slicing up the halloumi incredibly thin since I think it tastes better when it’s crispy and thin.

Some movies that I’ve rewatched: Dazed & Confused (a forever favourite, I love a movie where the plot happens over the course of one day), Crazy Rich Asians (still fantastic, although I truly hate the bride character or actress playing her, I can’t decide), I Know What You Did Last Summer (still holds up, solid movie), I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (not a great sequel at ALL, but I do love the idea of a killer on vacation), and Back To The Future (this might be the perfect movie, the script is amazing, everything is so fun, the music is epic, I also love the fact that the writers Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale will never allow a remake or reboot during their lifetimes).

I got this cropped sweatshirt from Nordstrom that I wear approximately six days a week.

In love with this new Jackbox game that I’ve been playing with my family on Sundays: Mad Verse City.

I walked to Manhattan from Queens and wrote about it.

The peony blossom candle from Trader Joe’s smells beautiful.

The Body Shop gives you a free product worth $10 on your birthday month, so I got their tea tree body wash and I love it. What the hell did I do before tea tree?

Just learned: grating garlic is so much tastier than chopping garlic. Thank you, Bon Appetit!

I made this kung pao cauliflower and it was good as a side dish but definitely not as a main. Cauliflower as a main dish will always be offensive to me.

I watched Stephen King’s Graveyard Shift and absolutely hated it. Terrible movie. What kind of accent is that guy supposed to have???

I bought a cuticle cutter since the nail salons are still closed and I figured how hard could it be to use? Turns out: very hard. No idea how to use it on myself or anyone else for that matter.

I have been making these kale quesadillas for lunch and they’re so tasty. I just use whatever cheese I have, basil and white wine vinegar instead of champagne vinegar. Also, I omit the corn because frozen corn is always trash. Super simple recipe, too.

I watched two episodes of the Epstein documentary on Netflix and had assault nightmares that night so I thought maybe I don’t need to finish all the episodes. I’m not including the link here for it because I truly don’t think anyone needs to see it.

My friend Dusty made this great short film.

I argued with Nathan at least twice this month on camera. (And about 400 times in real life? Again, no link for that.)

My six year old nephew is beyond adorable in this video about the lockdown.

I bought these Steve Madden sandals for $22 when they were on sale the other day and I had a gift card, and I’m in love. 

Forgot how good these black bean muffins are. Such a nice little snack. Ignore the fact that they sound disgusting.

Excited to hear that Tuca & Bertie are coming back for another season! (Thank you Harmeet for turning me onto this great show!)

We’ve been eating the Beyond Meat hamburger patties and they’re phenomenal. We’ve been putting this McCormick gravy on top of them and and I’ll add these pickled red onions too and wow. Heavenly. Never would’ve thought I could be into a homemade pickled onion. Growth!

This is wild and slightly horrifying.

Super interesting piece about the NYPD.

You can see my favourite tweets from the month over here.

Some things that I’d like to do this month: I promise that I will finally review the last two monthly Ipsy bags, I really want to make these salted thyme chocolate chip cookies, I want to make this midnight pasta that I heard about from Mindy Kaling, I want to read at least two books this month, I’m dying to make this ricotta jam jar, and I don’t know, maybe June won’t be a complete shitshow. Also, don’t forget about Father’s Day on the 21st. Just a reminder. If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in April over here.

And it’d be weird not to mention this at all right now, but there are so many awful and horrendous things going on, you know this. I completely support Black Lives Matter and it’s insane that there’s any kind of divide about whether you do or you don’t. It makes me sick that saying something as simple as “black people are human beings” could ever be considered complicated or political, but I guess here we are. I have no magical words to offer and I wish I did. I have no quote that’ll make everything make sense because nothing right now makes any sense. People are not being treated like human beings and it’s disgusting, it’s that simple. I don’t know what’s ahead of us, but for fuck’s sake I hope it’s better than where we’re at right now.

[the-coconut-asado]

Goodbye Veganuary, Hello Prague

Veganuary came and went and I can’t say I mourned its passing. And for those trying to make Febru-dairy a Thing, leave it out and stop crying over spilt milk.

For someone who auto-smells barbecue whenever a cow walks past and has to start the day with two eggs, I do actually love eating plant-based dishes provided they taste delicious. And since watching Game Changers on Netflix, Adam and I have been trying to eat less meat and dairy during the week so we can improve our fitness. I’m not so fussed about the phallus-lengthening properties of celeriac, but each to their own. If you are bewildered by this reference, just watch the programme.

But I must admit, a surfeit of vegetables and a scarcity of sunlight in January did make me think alot about my trip to Prague last summer, with its abundance of sunshine and array of macho meat dishes.  I went with my daughter Lara and best friend Sue, bucking the trend of the wave of stag weekends that spill over into the city when Amsterdam fills up. That said, we saw but a handful of stag-celebrants on segways sporting a mix of bravado and embarrassment, and that was about it.

First thing to say about this extraordinarily pretty city - and this may be a nod to its Men Behaving Badly heritage -  is that it ain’t PC. A Picture-Post ‘buxom wench’, embonpoint spilling out of her dirndl top, cheers to you from a poster with two flagons in each fist as you walk through the arrivals lounge;  two hours later and the first bar we went into was adorned with discarded bras, mounted on the wall in a possible imagined tribute to Carry on Camping.

More agreeably, the next thing to note is that everything in Prague comes ‘with a twist’. You may be happily surprised by the tourist-to-cocktail-bar ratio in the city. You will be even more happily surprised by the quality of cocktails on offer, just don’t expect business as usual. My Negroni came with a ‘twist’ of passion fruit at Bon Vivants, a cosy little bar with an attentive waiter who made you realise where Borat got the inspiration for his accent; the Winter is Coming cocktail in the legendary Hemingway Bar came in a flagon straight off the Games of Thrones ‘set’.

Perhaps the biggest twist of all is that Prague boasts a vineyard in the middle of the city. St Wenceslas Vineyard (Svatováclavská vinice)  sits at the foot of Prague Castle, with its restaurant perched on a hillside at a slightly challenging gradient, a vine arboretum sheltering us from the scorching early September sun. 

Wines - delicious. Service - offhand verging on the affronted. But as Flambeed Chorizo was featured on the menu, we took the dodgy service in our stride. Properly torched and served with french fries (of course) it was a meaty treat, and went well with the Estate’s highly alcoholic white varietal.

Lara had managed to seek out some intriguing things for us to do and places for us to eat. Pork Knee featured on the menu at Mlejnice,  a classy little bistro on the verge of town - succulent as only a fall-of-the-bone, slow cooked cut can be. And if you craved something sweet, a tiny courtyard tucked off the main tourist trail to St Vitus’ Cathedral offered herbal teas and a toothsome slab of carrot cake, meltingly moist and jam-packed with nuts, raisins and spices in a ‘don’t even mention a light sponge’ kind of a way. 

Did I say that the biggest twist of the trip was the St Wenceslas Vineyard? Well,  I lied. Lara’s top find was, wait for it…. the Beer Spa. Literally a day spa where you sit in a barrel of beer while swigging pilsner straight from the tap, to the strains of a Czech cover of “Better Love Next Time Baby.” Take a look at their website and you are whip-lashed back into a 1970’s soft porn flick, the men all droopy moustaches and bright grins, the women looking like they are having the most fun you can have in a bath of Budvar while waiting for the ‘plumber’.

Here’s how it works: you book a room for two, three or four for an hour. You sit, alone or in pairs,  in a barrel filled with warm beer and beer minerals. Two beer taps are only an arm’s reach away, together with two chilled pint glasses. And there you sit for 30 minutes, drinking and giggling. When the timer goes off (classy touch),  you disembark, wrap yourself in a towel and recline on a bed of straw for another 30 mins (you’re barking with laughter by now), before dressing and departing. You’ve no reason to feel shamefaced, but somehow you do, and your punishment is that Dr Hook earworm for the rest of the evening. But the beer was damn good and our mood was upbeat.  

We stepped out into an early evening bathed in sunlight and, with skin pleasantly smoothed by all those minerals, we headed for a kerb-side Italian restaurant in one of the achingly lovely cobble-stoned squares that make up the Old Town. This Italian trattoria specialised in gluten-free everything, and their bread basket could almost persuade me to leave gluten alone for the rest of my days. Or at least until I next walk past the sourdough counter at Ole and Steen.

If meat and cocktails with a cakey pudding (or puddingly cake) are your thing, then try out my alternative Sex-in-the-city menu. An otherwise Hungarian Beef Gulyas with a now-legendary Prague twist: parsley dumplings and a helping of flavour-bomb smoked paprika ; mop up the juices with a spicy if gluten-full Turmeric and Shallot Soda Bread. Then let that all settle before you cut yourself a slice of  a homage to the carrot cake - this time with Butternut Squash and Ginger.

And flame yourself a chorizo while you’re at it.

Beef Gulyas and Dumplings

This is the perfect Saturday night, curl-up- in-front-of-a-good-movie dinner. It cooks in a couple of hours, tastes even better the next day and freezes superbly. Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 kilo stewing beef, cubed

2 tbsp. Plain flour

2 tbsp. Olive oil

2 tbsp. butter

2 red onions, sliced

2 garlic cloves, chopped finely

1 tbsp. Sweet paprika dn 1 tbsp. Smoked paprika

Handful of fresh lemon thyme leaves, stripped from their stalks

2 tbsp. Tomato paste

½ litre red wine or beer

½ litre beef stock

1 tsp caraway seeds

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

For the dumplings:

15g plain flour

1 tsp. Baking powder

30g salted butter

75 ml milk

Generous handful of flat-leafed parsley, roughly chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

How to make:

Toss the beef cubes in a bowl with the flour and season generously.

Heat the butter and oil in a large casserole, and when hot, shake the flour off the beef and add the cubes in small batches to the pot, turning them and letting them brown before removing transferring the meat to another bowl before adding the next batch.

When all the meat is browned. Add the onion and garlic to the casserole dish and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened and starting to brown. Add both paprikas, caraway seeds and lemon thyme, then stir before returning the beef to the pan and giving another stir.

Add the wine or beer, the stock and the tomato paste, bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low. Season again then cover and simmer for 11/2 - 2 hours, or until the beef is tender. At this stage you can cool and leave the gulyas overnight, allowing the flavours to steep, or press on with the dumplings.

If you are going to eat this as soon as it is cooked, then start making the dumplings 10 or 15 minutes before the end of your cooking time.

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat, then add it into the well of flour, along with the milk and the chopped parsley. Stir everything together until a dough forms, then divide the dough into 7 or 8 portions and roll each portion into a ball.

Remove the lid from the gulyas, pop the dumplings on top of the beef in a single layer, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes, until the dumplings are cooked through - wobbly yet firm.

Serve with some buttered, braised savoy cabbage and mop up the juices with a slab of Turmeric and shallot Soda Bread (see below)

Turmeric and Shallot Soda Bread

This loaf, based on a recipe by Sarah Cook, looks like a large yellow rock and tastes of crackling fires (almost like the one burning in our Beer Spa cabin). It has a fair bit of turmeric and that’s a good thing. Serves 6-8.

Ingredients:

225g plain flour

225g wholemeal flour

2 tsp. Coriander seeds

2 tsp. Ground turmeric

1 tsp. Bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp kosher salt

25g butter, diced and chilled

75g Jumbo oats

2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped

375ml kefir or buttermilk

How to Make:

Heat the oven to 200C fan or 180C/ Gas 6.

Toast the coriander seeds in a small pan for a couple of minutes until they start to smell aromatic, then crush in a pestle and mortar. Leave to one side.

Mix together all the dry ingredients except the jumbo oats, then rub in the butter until you have a crumbly texture. Add the oats, chopped shallots and coriander seeds.

Pour over the kefir or buttermilk, then cut into the dry mixture with a metal spoon until just mixed, then get your hands in and knead gently until you have a relatively smooth dough (it will be a bit gnarly, but that’s the nature of soda bread).

Form into a ball and pop onto a baking sheet. Cut a wide cross quite deep into the loaf - almost all the way down. This will allow the loaf to fan out into the classic sourdough shape as it cooks.

Pop into the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes, or until the base of the load sounds hollow when tapped. Cool and serve with your Gulyas and lashings of butter.

Butternut Squash and Ginger Bundt Cake

I slavishly subscribe to all known foodie magazines and am forever ripping pages of inspiration out of them. This recipe is based on one from Waitrose Magazine. I tried it out once and couldn’t believe the texture and depth of flavour. It’s now a household regular and to my mind, much more moreish than it’s carrot cousin. 8-10 slices.

Ingredients

200g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

225g plain flour

300g butternut squash, peeled and diced

2 tsp fresh ginger, grated

50g golden syrup

1 tsp. bicarbonate of soda

11/2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. Ground ginger

½ tsp. Kosher salt

50g ground almonds

250g dark brown muscovado sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

150ml buttermilk

For the icing:

150g icing sugar

25 ml buttermilk

A generous squeeze lemon juice

Pieces of chopped, crystallized ginger

How to make:

Heat the oven to 170C/ Gas 3, and grease and flour a large bundt tin.

Steam the squash, or boil, for around 15-20 minutes, then mash with the grated fresh ginger and golden syrup.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, spices and salt into a large bowl, then add the ground almonds and mix. In a separate bowl beat the butter and sugar for a few minutes until pale and fluffy. 

Add half the beaten egg, mix again, then add the second half of the egg and beat again. Fold in the flour and almond mixture, the mashed squash mixture and the buttermilk until you have a smooth-ish batter.

Pour the batter into the bundt tin, level out and then pop into the oven for 40-45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15-20 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a cooling rack and leave until cool.

To make the icing, whisk the icing sugar, buttermilk and lemon juice (adding more lemon juice as necessary) until smooth. Pour over the cooled cake, and keep scooping up the pools of icing to re - drizzle over the top. Decorate with chopped crystallized ginger.

[duncanbarker-blog]

Osaka is up there with Kyoto and Tokyo as one of the most vegetarian-friendly cities in Japan. We found a wide range of vegan restaurants as well as Japanese restaurants specialising in typical dishes like ramen and okonomiyaki that offered meat-free versions.

As with our vegetarian Tokyo guide, we focused on finding the best vegetarian restaurants in Osaka that serve Japanese meals. The food is so good in Japan that we wanted to take advantage and be able to try local dishes rather than eat the Western-style salads and burgers that some veggie restaurants focus on.

As with anywhere in Japan, you will struggle as a vegetarian in Osaka if you just wander into a random restaurant. Planning is key and the Happy Cow app is your best friend for finding meat-free meals nearby. Below you’ll find the vegetarian-friendly restaurants we enjoyed in Osaka so you can plan your itinerary around some of these.

As many of these restaurants are small, family-run places it’s worth checking their Facebook pages before you visit to make sure they aren’t closed (you may have to use Google Translate). It’s always a good idea to have a backup plan. Google Maps is the easiest way to find your way around (see the map below). See our vegetarian Japan post for more tips.

The current exchange rate is approximately 1 USD = 106 yen and 1 GBP = 129 yen. Note that most restaurants don’t accept credit cards. 7-Eleven is the best place to withdraw cash with international cards for free.

Where to Stay in Osaka for Vegetarians and Vegans

Staying in walking distance of at least a few vegetarian-friendly restaurants will make your stay in Osaka much easier. After a long day sightseeing, you don’t always want to trek across town to find a place to eat.

It’s also worth considering staying in an Airbnb apartment or a hostel with a kitchen so that you’ll have the option to prepare some of your own meals. There are plenty of Airbnbs in Osaka and they are often cheaper than a hotel room. 

We stayed in this one-bedroom Airbnb apartment in Shinsaibashi. The location is ideal with most of the restaurants below in walking distance. The area is quiet but there are lots of cool shops and cafes nearby, and it’s just a 20-minute walk to the vibrant Dotonburi neighbourhood.

There are a couple of metro stations nearby. The Life Nishiohashi supermarket is only a few minutes’ walk away and has a wide variety of products (including bread and cheese for a quick meal).

The apartment is the biggest place we’ve stayed in Japan with a large living/dining room and kitchen and a separate bedroom with a double bed and couch.

We visited in February when the weather was very cold—the bedroom heated up quickly but the living room took longer. The small bathroom was unheated which was the biggest downside. 

Check the prices of this Airbnb in Shinsaibashi here.

Vegetarian Osaka Map

This map shows our Airbnb and recommended restaurants. The blue pins are for vegan restaurants and the red pins for vegetarian-friendly restaurants that also serve meat.

Osaka Vegan Restaurants

More and more vegan restaurants are opening in Osaka. All these restaurants and cafes are entirely vegan, so you can safely choose anything from the menu.

1) Green Earth (TOP PICK)

Lunch set with potato and bean curry

Green Earth is the oldest Osaka vegetarian restaurant and dates back to 1991. It does have an old-school feel with simple decor, but the food is tasty and excellent value. The staff speaks English and there’s an English menu. It turned fully vegan in 2019.

The most popular dish is the lunch set meal which changes daily. It includes a choice of brown rice or a black and white rice mix with a main dish, salad, vegetable side dish, and soup. We had a tasty potato and bean curry on one visit and an okra and soy meat curry on another. You can add a kombucha to the set for just 150 yen.

The Japanese curry and rice is even cheaper and you can choose your ingredients—the sauce was so tasty I wanted to lick my plate. The vegan pumpkin cake is also delicious and won a TV award.

They also have sandwiches, salads, pizza, and pasta on the menu and sell a few vegan products like cookies, muffins, and lentils.

Cost for a Main Dish: 850 yen for lunch set and 700 yen for curry. Details: 4-chōme−2−2 Kitakyūhōjimachi, Shinshaibashi. Lunch from 11.30 am – 4 pm Monday to Saturday. Dinner only on Fridays. Closed Sundays. Website: Green Earth. 

2) Rocca (TOP PICK)

Rocca has the most traditional Japanese set meal we ate in Osaka. There’s no English menu and the owners don’t seem to speak much English, but you don’t need to order. Just take a seat at the counter in this stylish, minimalist space and you’ll be brought a lovely vegan meal.

Our set included tea, rice, miso soup, pickles, three vegetable sides, and a main dish of delicious fried balls (possibly potato) in a tasty sauce.

It’s the kind of Japanese meal I love—artful, delicate flavours, and an array of dishes that I can’t quite identify but which all taste delicious.

The location is a little out of the way, between the Namba and Umeda areas, but it’s worth a detour for a traditional Japanese meal at a great price.

Cost for a Main Dish: 1000 yen for lunch set including tea. Details: 1-chōme−1−6–6 Tosabori (Vegetarian Meals ROCCA on Google Maps). Open from 11.30 am – 2.30 pm and 6 pm – 9.45 pm. Closed Sunday. Only open for lunch on Saturday and closed the second Saturday of the month. Website: Rocca Happy Cow listing. 

3) Cafe Atl (TOP PICK)

Japanese set lunch

This organic vegan cafe is in a bright, modern space on the first floor overlooking a shopping street in Shinsaibashi. The staff speaks English and there’s a simple blackboard menu in English with details and photos of the three items—a Japanese set, fusion set, and curry set.

The curry set was good, but we preferred the Japanese set which included tea, miso soup, rice, tofu in a soy sauce dressing, fried tofu in a sweeter sauce, pickles, mushrooms, and greens. It was all delicious and felt light and healthy.

Cost for a Main Dish: 1500 yen for lunch set including drink. Details: 2 Chome–1–24, Shinshaibashi. Open from 9 am to 5 pm. Closed Tuesday. Website: Cafe Atl Facebook page. 

4) Megumi

Brown rice miso ramen at Megumi

This cosy vegan restaurant in Osaka has just a few seats at the counter and is run by one lady who cooks and serves.

The extensive menu is in English and Japanese and includes lots of Japanese dishes including set meals, curry, tempura, ramen, gyoza, and okonomiyaki. Everything is gluten-free and vegan.

My favourite dish was the natto okonomiyaki, which is often described as a Japanese pancake but felt more like a potato fritter in this case—excellent comfort food.

We also got the brown rice miso ramen set which included pickled vegetables, gyoza, and a small salad. The gyoza were good but the ramen was a little plain for our tastes (we like our ramen spicy).

Although the meal was more expensive than most of our others, it’s worth it to try a range of vegan Japanese dishes.

I recommend making a reservation (I messaged on Facebook) as it’s a small place that often closes and is quite far from everything.

Cost for a Main Dish: Ramen and gyoza set 2900 yen. Natto okonomiyaki 1880 yen. Details: 2−2−10 東寺町ビル. Open from 6 pm – 10 pm. Closed Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Website: Megumi Facebook page. 

5) Genmai Cafe

Shokujido-Zen set vegan lunch with two brown rice balls

Genmai Cafe (listed as Haigenki Salon Shinsaibashi on Google Maps) has a modern canteen feel and is popular with Japanese office workers on their lunch break (arrive before noon or after 1 pm to avoid the rush).

You order at the counter (there is an English menu) and have the choice of five set meals. The focus is on brown rice balls, but there are also curry, salad, and daily main options.

We got the most expensive Shokujido-Zen set which included a choice of two brown rice balls (fillings include fried tofu, pickled plum, and pickled vegetables), tea, soup, salad, and five vegetable side dishes.

Although Happy Cow doesn’t list the cafe as vegan, they say they are entirely vegan and the menu seemed to be. There are vegan desserts too.

While it isn’t one of my top picks in Osaka, we did enjoy our meal and it’s worth visiting if you are in the area.

Cost for a Main Dish: From 850 – 1200 yen for lunch set. Details: 3-chōme−6−9 第3酵素ビル1F, Shinshaibashi. Open from 11 am – 6 pm. Closed Sundays (and for holidays in September—check their Facebook page). Website: Genmai website and Facebook page. 

6) Paprika Shokudou Vegan

Lunch set with vegetable and tempeh teriyaki stir fry

Paprika is a cosy, stylish vegan cafe. The staff didn’t seem to speak much English but were friendly and brought us an English menu. Just ring the bell when you’re ready to order.

The menu is more limited at lunch and focuses on sets—choose a main and it comes with rice, miso soup, salad, and a side (ours was potato salad).

We found the menu too fake meat focused for our tastes with options like soy meat karaage and vegan hamburger. We chose a vegetable and tempeh teriyaki stir fry, which didn’t feel very Japanese but it was tasty.

At dinner they also have rice bowls, pizza, and pasta as well as the sets. There’s a 300 yen seat charge in the evenings.

It’s not my favourite place in Osaka, but it’s a good option if you’re in the area and like soy meat.

Cost for a Main Dish: From 1260 yen for lunch set. Credit cards accepted. Details: 1–9–9 Shinmachi, Shinshaibashi. Open from 11.30 am – 2 pm and 5.30 pm – 10 pm. Closed Monday. Website: Paprika website. 

Vegetarian-Friendly Restaurants in Osaka

Some of the best vegetarian food in Osaka isn’t found in vegetarian restaurants. The restaurants below serve meat and/or fish, but they also cater for vegetarians (and often vegans).

They are a good opportunity to try classic Japanese dishes like ramen, gyoza, and okonomiyaki in a typical setting. You may need to explain your dietary needs, but we didn’t find it difficult in any of these places.

7) Self Tacoyaki Bar Iduco (TOP PICK)

Tacoyaki is an Osakan street food that’s usually made with octopus, but Iduco offers the unique chance to try a vegetarian or vegan version of these balls.

It’s a tiny, cute open-air stall where you stand at the bar and make your own tacoyaki. The owner is super friendly (and a big fan of Manchester bands like The Stone Roses!) and will walk you through it. We kept warm on a winter night with some hot umesyu (plum wine).

You pour the batter into small ball moulds on a hot plate and add your choice of fillings such as green onion, pickled ginger, mushroom, konnyaku, puffed rice, and dried seaweed. When they have finished cooking you can top the balls with tacoyaki sauce, mayonnaise (egg-free available), nori, hot sauce, or whatever you like.

The results are delicious—gooey on the inside, crispy on the outside. It’s such a fun and affordable experience and a good place to meet locals.

Iduco is just down the road from the Harukas 300 observatory, which has fantastic views at night, and Spa World is also nearby.

Cost for a Main Dish: 16 tacoyaki are 800 yen for vegetarian and 1000 yen for vegan. Details: 1-chōme–3–20 Taishi. Open from 5 pm until midnight every day. Website: Iduco Facebook page. 

8) Matsuri (TOP PICK)

Samurai ramen at Matsuri

This halal restaurant has a whole separate vegetarian menu (not on their website) which includes Japanese classics like ramen, okonomiyaki, tacoyaki, yaki soba and more. We appreciated that they don’t seem to use fake meat.

Vegan dishes are marked but ask if you want something adapted as they speak perfect English.

We both got ramen—the curry ramen and spicy Samurai ramen with beansprouts, eggplant and mushrooms were both tasty. We would have returned to try more things if it was nearer to our Airbnb.

The location is a bit out of the way, but we stopped here on our way back from Universal Studios Japan (which has limited vegetarian options) as it’s close to Noda station where we had to change trains.

Cost for a Main Dish: Ramen is 750 yen. Details: 3-chōme–27–17 Yoshino. Open from 11 am – 2 pm and 5 pm – 11 pm. Closed Sunday. Website: Matsuri website. 

9) Asai Togei (TOP PICK)

Kaiseki is a traditional multi-course fine dining experience in Japan. It’s difficult to find meat and fish free versions of kaiseki, but luckily Asai Togei does a vegan set.

For the vegan kaiseki you must book 24 hours in advance—I emailed them at asaitogei151@gmail.com but you could call as they speak good English (our server had lived in San Francisco).

We went for the most expensive option at lunch which included eight dishes—it was a lot of food so you could choose one of the cheaper options. You have no choice over what you eat—you’ll be brought a series of beautifully presented small plates using seasonal ingredients.

Our meal included pumpkin soup, a pretty plate of konnyaku, yuba, and mountain yam, lily root dumplings, tempura, noodle soup, and green tea mochi to finish.

The food was excellent and worth the splurge. If you are also visiting Tokyo and only have the budget for one fine dining meal, we preferred Bon which is entirely vegan and has a more traditional setting. Asai Togei has a more casual feel where you sit in private booths rather than on tatami mats (an advantage for some).

Cost for a Main Dish: Vegan set lunch is 3500 yen, 5000 yen or 7000 yen depending on the number of dishes. Dinner is likely more expensive. Details: 2-chōme–2–30 Shinsaibashisuji. Open from 11.30 am – 2.30 pm and 5 pm – 10 pm. Closed Sunday. Website: Asai Togei website (use Google Translate).

10) Okonomiyaki Chitose

Okonomiyaki is a typical Osakan dish that’s often described as a savoury Japanese pancake—an egg and flour batter is cooked with cabbage and various fillings of your choice. Although it can easily be made vegetarian (but not vegan), it can be difficult to explain this in most okonomiyaki places.

Okonomiyaki Chitose is happy to cater to vegetarians, though. This tiny backstreet place in the Tennoji area has just four seats at the counter and two tables. It’s popular with tourists and there’s often a queue outside, so arrive early (we got the last table just after midday).

There are no vegetarian options on the menu, but the friendly lady who runs the restaurant speaks English and was happy to make us one. Her father operates the grill and you can watch him work. Our veggie okonomiyaki came with cabbage, tofu, peas, sweetcorn, carrots, and pineapple.

They might not be the traditional fillings but it was good. We also got a modan yaki which includes noodles—it was our favourite but very filling so one of each worked well. Go hungry as you have to order one dish per person.

Cost for a Main Dish: 750 yen for vegetarian okonomiyaki and 850 yen for modan yaki. Details: 1-chōme–11–10 Taishi, Nishinari-ku. Open from 12 pm – 3.30 pm and 5 pm – 8 pm. Closed Wednesday. Website: Chitose website. 

11) Gyozaoh Dotonbori

Dotonburi is known as the area to eat at night in Osaka, but vegetarian options are limited. I definitely recommend coming in the evenings to experience the neon chaos, and Gyozaoh Dotonbori is the ideal place for a quick and affordable meal.

This traditional gyoza bar has counter seating, where you can see the chef at work, and a few tables. There’s an English menu and the friendly staff speaks a little English. They have vegetable gyoza either pan-fried or deep-fried (both are worth trying) and a few vegetable sides—we got the cucumber and the eggplant.

It’s worth telling them you are vegetarian as they advised us that the eggplant dipping sauce contains dashi (fish broth) and brought us soy sauce instead. I think the gyoza are vegan, but it’s worth checking.

Cost for a Main Dish: 480 yen for vegetable gyoza and 290 yen for sides. Details: 2-chōme–4–14 Dōtonbori. Open from 5 pm – 1 am. Website: Gyozaoh Dotonbori Facebook page. 

12) Chabuton Ramen

Chabuton is a ramen chain that offers vegan ramen and gyoza. We went here several times in Osaka and Kyoto and enjoyed having the typical ramen experience where you order at a vending machine.

In Osaka we went to the Chabuton Yodobashi-Umeda branch which is on the 8th floor of the Yodobashi electronics store. When you arrive, order and pay at the vending machine. The machine is in Japanese but if you look at the English menu on the wall you can compare the items you need—the vegan ramen and gyoza are marked as green on the menu.

Once you have the ticket give it to the staff and say you ordered the vegetable gyoza as the meat gyoza shares the same button.

The ramen comes quickly and is packed with vegetables. You can jazz it up with the condiments like chile on the table. The gyoza are good too.

Cost for a Main Dish: 750 yen for ramen and 320 yen for gyoza. Details: 8F of Yodobashi Umeda near Umeda and Osaka stations. Open from 11 am – 10 pm. Website: Chabuton Happy Cow listing. 

13) CoCo Ichibanya Curry House

Vegetarian menu at CoCo Ichibanya

If you are ever stuck for a vegetarian meal in Japan, look for the nearest CoCo Ichibanya. Most branches of this Japanese curry chain have a separate vegetarian menu—look for signs on the window or for the green menu at the tables. The regular English menu is helpful to explain the ordering process.

You can choose your fillings (we usually get vegetables and eggplant), spice level (3 is pretty spicy), and size of rice portion. It’s tasty, filling, inexpensive, and quick.

We went to the branch nearest to our Airbnb, “CoCo Ichibanya Nishi-ku Awaza 1-chome” but “CoCo Ichibanya Kitahorie 1 Chome” between Shinsaibashi and Dotonburi also has a vegetarian menu. There are many other branches. I check the Google Maps reviews to see if anyone mentions the vegetarian menu.

Cost for a Main Dish: Vegetarian curries from 654 yen to 911 yen. Details: Various branches. Open from 11 am – 11 pm (some branches 1 am). Website: CoCo Ichibanya website. 

14) Mochisho Shizuku Shinmachi

We’re not usually fans of Japanese desserts (rice and beans don’t appeal in sweets), but we loved this traditional Japanese wagashi (sweet) shop that our Airbnb host recommended.

It’s minimalist and stylish. We got sweets to take away, but I recommend eating in with some green tea for a unique Japanese experience (apparently there is an English menu).

You can choose from the rows of colourful daifuku on the counter. Names are written in Japanese so we just pointed.

Our host recommended the Framboise Daifuku (the bright pink one) and it was definitely our favourite—a soft glutinous rice ball with a whole raspberry inside. The chocolate one was also good, but the green tea was less to our taste.

Daifuku are traditionally vegan so I assume they are here, but I don’t know for sure.

Cost: 400 yen for Framboise Daifuku. Details: 1-chōme−17−17 Shinmachi. The tea house is open from 1 pm – 5.30 pm, but the shop may open from 11 am – 7 pm. Website: Shizuku website. 

Vegan Ramen Cooking Class

We ran out of time, but I really wanted to do this vegan ramen cooking class that’s listed on Airbnb Experiences and has fantastic reviews. It’s in Ibaraki which is 12 minutes from JR Osaka station or 20 minutes from JR Kyoto station by train. 

If you’d prefer a more central class, this ramen and gyoza cooking class is in Namba and offers vegan and halal options. 

Other Japan Vegetarian Guides

Vegetarian Survival Guide to Japan

The Best Vegetarian Restaurants in Tokyo

Vegetarian Kyoto (update coming soon)

2 Week Japan Itinerary

I hope you enjoy eating your way around Osaka as a vegetarian as much as we did! Leave a comment below if you have any more recommendations.

[msbrightside85]

Food glorious food

So you’re probably wondering the same as me ... how has it taken me so long to write about food? Probably because it’s a fairly daunting subject with it being so broad. But i have decided it’s about time I did ...

From the top (clockwise): Bacon fried rice, Beef noodle soup, Korean style deep fried chicken with rice cakes, Chinese style cheese steak sandwich, Chicken noodle soup, Range of hot pot skewers, (middle): Vegetable noodles.

So as I have already mentioned, I was very happy to discover that mango, pork and avocado are greatly loved over here and easily accessible (although avos can be a tad pricey). Unfortunately one of the most elusive food items also turns out to be one of my favourites … cheese. But thankfully, since my original dismay (and what felt like a fairly long amount of time) at the lack of cheesey options here, I have been shown two supermarkets that have ACTUAL cheese counters. I cannot tell you how happy I was. It was perhaps a little OTT looking back but I couldn't help myself. 

The widespread Chinese offering of cheese is generally of the plastic variety. Yup. Cheese slices. I can hear mum saying 'that's not real cheese' and she would be right but that is par for the course here. Plastic cheese in a range of varieties. Emmental, Gouda, Edam. All plastic. Now don’t get me wrong I do believe there is a place for cheese slices in this world (sorry mum), they’re perfect in burgers at a BBQ and they make an excellent addition to a midnight fridge tapas session (I say mournfully, as these ‘sessions’ are basically non existent since getting a flat mate and not being able to get coleslaw here - a fridge tapas staple food in my mind) but when you don’t have the real thing cheese slices are certainly not a suitable substitute. Although in saying that they have found their way into our home inside Caitlin’s grilled cheese sandwiches! Anyway I digress ... so after being shown where I can buy the real stuff (or as real as I’m gonna get) I am pleased to report I have bought both mozzarella (not the white buffalo kind the harder stuff but still good) and cheddar (or something resembling cheddar) so I am sated. For now. Until my next craving. Dammit I’m thinking about coleslaw now ...

A question that I've been getting a lot from England is what food do you miss? The answer? Let me be perfectly honest … there's not a lot that you can't get hold of out here. Yes, some things might be a little more expensive because it's been imported but most things are available from somewhere, especially in a city the size of Suzhou. So I'm learning to try and reduce my initial hysteria at not having something and ask around. Generally there's someone or somewhere that can help with the homely cravings. I even found a bag of pre-made gravy the other day which is DEFINITELY something I didn’t expect to find - so that’s me sorted for winter! Buuuuut in saying that, don't take this to mean that I want you to stop trying to send me the odd pork pie or two in the post … because pork pies are most certainly on the unattainable list. Although I have heard about an English restaurant which I believe may make their own … must remember to look into that.

Talking of pork pies, I asked one of my classes of older kids at school which topics interested them most about England and one of them said food. So I put some information together about fish and chips, bangers and mash and other foods that are quintessentially English, including pork pie. Surprisingly enough it was pork pie that got the biggest reaction, they thought it sounded disgusting! Which I thought was pretty rich considering some of the foods that are available here in China. I can imagine most of you would take pork pie any day. I mean here they have stinky tofu (and man it really does …) not forgetting frog which I have already mentioned and of course chicken feet …

Yeah ... this is definitely my biggest Chinese culinary challenge to date and to say I ate it isn't strictly true. I nibbled at it and then couldn't go any further. Why? It just looked too much like a human hand!!! It started freaking me out a bit to be honest. This one was boiled but I hear the fried ones are a little better to handle so who knows maybe I could be converted. Maybe.

All in all (and chicken feet aside) it's hard to miss something when you have such a fabulous range of food to choose from and I'm not just talking about Chinese food. We have a great pizza place with a traditional stone oven where the beer is cheaper than the soft drinks, there is a great Vietnamese place where I had the yummiest beef pho and Korean food aplenty. There is a fantastic range of dumplings that come in all shapes and sizes and come with a range of fillings although pork is general the favourite (which always pleases me!).

There's an abundance of bakeries serving the best cream buns and desserts, there's a cool Japanese place that has the best curried rice and a lettuce they call ice plant which is unlike anything I’ve ever tried. BBQ or shaokao (pronounced show-cow but rhyme the first part with cow) is everywhere here and tastes amazing! Although if you’re not a fan of spice then you need to know how to communicate this in Chinese because their not very spicy can arrive and be pretty damned spicy!

There's also a traditional dish here called hot pot. Hot pot quite simply is a pot of boiling water in the middle of the table (it can be flavoured to your preference} and you order different raw ingredients to throw in it! Then once it’s cooked you get (try to get) the food out with your chop sticks. The local girls I go out with usually feel sorry for me and end up scooping morsels of food out and throwing them into my bowl, which I am eternally grateful for :)

But going back to home comforts, I've had a Chinese version of a bacon and tomato sarnie, which uses the white fluffy dumpling stuff instead of a breadcake and a few weeks ago I had amazing eggs benedict with smoked salmon. I was a very happy bunny that day I can tell you. It was exactly what I needed. 

So all in all it really doesn't leave much room for missing things, especially when you enjoy food as much as I do. But it’s always good to have a bank of places you can go to when you’re having a bad china day or you’re missing home. Like I say there’s a place called Ann's that I believe makes their own pork pies, they also serve afternoon tea and do roast dinner BUT I've sworn to myself that I will only go there when I'm really craving something that is unattainable elsewhere else. I've been told we may be going there for our work’s Christmas meal so I wonder if I can hold out until December before going or whether i’ll crack before then. Tune in next time to find out. TTFN. Rachael.